April 30, 2012 Monday: 4th Week of Easter (B)

Losing and Gaining Our Lives


The great paradox of life is that those who lose their lives will gain them. This paradox becomes visible in very ordinary situations. If we cling to our friends, we may lose them, but when we are nonpossessive in our relationships, we will make many friends. When fame is what we seek and desire, it often vanishes as soon as we acquire it, but when we have no need to be known, we might be remembered long after our deaths. When we want to be in the center, we easily end up on the margins, but when we are free enough to be wherever we must be, we find ourselves often in the center.

Giving away our lives for others is the greatest of all human arts. This will gain us our lives
-Fr. Henri Nouwen

April 29, 2012: 4th Week of Easter (B)

Click to hear audio homily

Those of you who do not have a ‘green thumb’ will appreciate this story. After the flowers on the Easter lilies in our churches withered, I took them to the rectory to keep them alive so that I could plant them near Blessed Mother’s statue. In the morning, I put them out in the sun and added water to their pots. I checked on them in the afternoon, and they looked worse; the strong sun had beaten down already weakened plant. I quickly put them under the shade but as of day five, I only had three survivors left. I was a bit saddened by this, disappointed in my lack of skills and tender-loving-care to bring them back to life. This was playing on my mind when I was walking through the mausoleum the other day. Hanging on each of the mausoleum crypt were silk flowers that looked like fresh cut flowers, but didn’t require any water and care to keep them that way. A tempting thought popped in my mind. Why don’t I place silk flowers by Blessed Mother’s statue; I don’t need to water them or care for them. Then another thought entered—probably Blessed Mother reminding me—that her statue is still being neglected and uncared for.

Sometimes this is how we approach our loved ones. Before I entered seminary, one of the guys I worked with was describing his weekend to me. He was recently divorced and had two young daughters who came to his house every other weekend. He said he made sure he purchased everything that his girls wanted in their rooms— cable TV, laptops, gaming devices—every conceivable electronic device that the girls wanted, which they did not have at their mom’s house. There was something amiss about that, just as there was something amiss about my idea to place silk flowers by Blessed Mother’s statue. It lacked care, tenderness, and most importantly, it lacked love.

In the Gospel today, Jesus used two images to describe himself--one image to describe who he is not like, and another image to describe who he is like. He said he is not like a hired man who works for money to take care of a flock; a hired hand cares about himself and goes no further. He is not interested in caring and protecting those that have been entrusted to him. Therefore, if there were adversities which stirred in him fear, like a wolf, he would simply run away to save himself. However, Jesus said he is a good shepherd; fear or adversities did not cause him to lose sight of who had been entrusted to him. Going beyond his own self-interest and preferences, he was willing to lay down his own life for those that have been entrusted to him, because he cared and he loved them.

Do you remember the times when you acted like a hired hand, lacking tenderness, care, and love with those that were entrusted to you? Do you also remember the times when you acted like a good shepherd, when you went above and beyond adversities, beyond your own preferences to take care of another? We hear encouraging words from the First Letter of John that we are in some way all entrusted to each other. He said, “Beloved: See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God. Yet so we are.” Hence, Our Lord calls us to be good shepherds to each other, for Father loves us because we lay down our lives for each other.  Perhaps we may never literally lay our life down for another, but figuratively speaking, we do so each day when we go about our day doing what the Father has called us to do. Maybe your job is to earn the money for the family, or maybe your job is to wash the dirty clothes for your family. When we perform the tasks to take care of one another then we are laying down our life for another.

Many moms have described to me that their young children have a change of personality toward the end of the day, usually around the time that the mom needs to be preparing dinner.  I’ve been told that a child will play all day long, but when he begins to tire out, it is then that the whining begins. When the mom’s patience is worn out and she is beginning to feel tired, then that is about the time the child is clinging to her legs. The mom knows that no amount of warnings or scolding will calm the child. A mom only has to lean only and pick up her child and hold him close. The child relaxes because of the physical touch his mom has given him.

That’s why we come here today, and for some of us every day, to receive the physical touch, the Eucharist, from the one who laid down His life for us. Our Lord treats each of us uniquely with his tenderness. Some of us may approach him feeling down, feeling as if we failed in some way, or feeling as if we are tired from facing daily challenges. We are reminded through mass that He is the good shepherd; each of us belongs to him and he knows each of us by name. When we see him lifted up at mass, we realize that each of us is precious to him and hence he has sacrificed his life for each of us. He treats us like a live, delicate flower rather than a silk flower, and we are called to do the same. Let’s take time this week to see if there are persons in our lives that we can be present to in person with care and tenderness.

April 27, 2012 Friday: St. Gianna Molla

St. Gianna Beretta Molla
Gianna Beretta was born on October 4, 1922, near Milan, Italy. She grew up in a Christian home, and her parents carefully passed on to her their Catholic faith. As a teenager, she was active as a member of Catholic Action groups. When she was sixteen, she made up her mind that she would rather die than commit a mortal (very serious) sin, and that she wanted to do everything for Jesus.

Her parents’ deaths, four months apart in 1942, were a heavy blow to Gianna, who was just beginning medical school at the University of Milan. After six semesters, she continued her preparation at the University of Pavia, where she earned a doctorate in medicine on November 30, 1949.
Gianna opened a clinic in 1950. She soon had many patients. In addition to her work as a physician, Gianna also devoted her time to community projects. She continued to be an active member of Catholic Action groups too. She organized talks and retreats, hikes and social events, and was very successful in reaching out to young people. Pietro Molla, a prosperous engineer, who belonged to one of the Catholic Action groups, was impressed with this dynamic young doctor who cared so much about others. Gianna had been planning to become a medical missionary sister in Brazil. Her brother was a priest there, and she knew he would be happy to have her help him. But once she got to know Pietro, Gianna wondered if it was God’s will for her to marry him and start a family. After much prayer, she asked the advice of her confessor. The priest answered her, “If every good Catholic girl became a nun, there would be no Christian mothers!”

Pietro and Gianna were married on September 24, 1955. Gianna was thirty-three. In 1956, their first child, Pierluigi was born. Mariolina was born in 1957, and Laura came along in 1959. After that, Gianna lost two more babies before they were born. But she became pregnant again in 1961. After two months, she started to experience pain, and her doctor found a tumor in her uterus. Before undergoing the necessary surgery, Gianna gave her surgeons strict orders to keep her unborn child safe. The following April, just before the baby was to be born, Gianna told her doctor, “If you have to choose between my life and the life of the baby, I demand that you save the baby’s life.” As a doctor herself, Gianna was well aware of the risks she was facing, and she wanted her wishes known.

On April 21, Gianna had a healthy baby girl, who was baptized Gianna Emanuela. But Gianna was dying from complications in the delivery. She asked Pietro to take her home so she could die in her own room. There, on April 28, 1962, Doctor Gianna Beretta Molla died. Her daughter, Gianna Emanuela, who has been called the “living relic of her mother,” followed in her mother’s footsteps and became a doctor. On April 24, 1994, with understandable joy and pride, she was present at the beatification ceremony for her mother, who selflessly gave her own life so that she could live. Gianna was named a saint ten years later in 2004.

Jesus said, “There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for a loved one” (John 15:13). That’s exactly what St. Gianna Beretta Molla did. Let’s ask this brave and unselfish saint to help everyone understand the sacredness of human life.

-Daughters of St. Paul

April 26, 2012 Thursday: 3rd Week of Easter (B)

Yes, We Can Change the World


But we can, if we want, just rise up in our place and change the world. We can choose to be sensitive to those who somewhere have been crushed and are hiding behind their walls of depression and fear.

- Jean Vanier, Address to the Business Community, April 2005

April 25, 2012 Wednesday: St. Mark the Evangelist

St. Mark the Evangelist


Mark lived at the time of Jesus. Although he was not among the original twelve apostles, he was a relative of St. Barnabas the apostle. Mark is well known because he wrote one of the four Gospels. That is why he is called an “evangelist,” which means “Gospel writer.” Mark’s Gospel is short, but it gives many little details that are not in the other Gospels.
While he was still young, Mark went with the two great saints, Paul and Barnabas, on a missionary journey to bring the teachings of Jesus to new lands. Before the journey was over, though, Mark seems to have had a disagreement with St. Paul. Mark suddenly returned to Jerusalem. Paul and Mark later worked out their differences. In fact, Paul wrote from prison in Rome that Mark came to console and help him.

Mark also became a beloved disciple of St. Peter, the first pope. St. Peter called St. Mark “my son.” Some think that Peter meant to say that he had baptized Mark. Mark was consecrated a bishop and sent to Alexandria, Egypt. There he converted many people. He worked hard to spread love for Jesus and his Church. It is believed that he went through long and painful sufferings before he died around the year 74.



St. Mark’s relics were brought to Venice, Italy. He is the patron saint of that famous city. People go to the beautiful basilica of St. Mark to honor him and to pray to him. In art, St. Mark’s symbol is the lion.


We can remember St. Mark when we have a disagreement with someone, or when we find it hard to get along with someone. At those times, we can ask St. Mark to help us work out our disagreements in kindness and respect.
-Daughters of St. Paul

April 24, 2012 Tuesday: 3rd Week of Easter (B)

Being Sent Into the World
Each of us has a mission in life.  Jesus prays to his Father for his followers, saying:  "As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world" (John 17:18).

We seldom realize fully that we are sent to fulfill God-given tasks.  We act as if we have to choose how, where, and with whom to live.  We act as if we were simply plopped down in creation and have to decide how to entertain ourselves until we die.   But we were sent into the world by God, just as Jesus was.  Once we start living our lives with that conviction, we will soon know what we were sent to do.
-Fr. Henri Nouwen

April 23, 2012 Monday: 3rd Week of Easter (B)

Going Beyond Our Wants

Sometimes we behave like children in a toy shop.  We want this, and that, and then something else.  The many options confuse us and create an enormous restlessness in us.   When someone says,  "Well, what do you want?  You can have one thing.   Make up your mind,"  we do not know what to choose.

As long as our hearts keep vacillating among these many wants, we cannot move forward in life with inner peace and joy.  That is why we need inner and outer disciplines, to go beyond these wants and  discover our mission in life.
-Fr. Henri Nouwen

April 22, 2012: 3rd Sunday Easter, Audio Homily

https://vr.shapeservices.com/play.php?hash=6576b465e4c0a62a409510a5c7fbf16011a6741b8a0b82d30

April 22, 2012: 3rd Sunday of Easter (B)

Sometimes, love touches us in a surprising way. Love likes to come at the most opportune time, when it's least expected. One evening this week, I made an appointment to see a couple in my office for consultation. Because they could not find a babysitter, I told them it was okay for them to bring the 2 and 4 year olds along with them. I told them I would find something to keep them busy. I arrived at the appointment late, so the family was exploring the church grounds. When I held out my hand for the 4 year old for a ‘five,’ she slapped my hand then unexpectedly she held onto my hand and wanted me to lead her to the office. So hand-in-hand we walked to the office. I found a DVD of a children’s show Veggie Tales and played it on my computer for them to watch. I handed each of them a chocolate bunny from Easter to munch on. Meanwhile, their parents and I were across the hall in another office to begin consultation. A short while later, the 4-year old peaked in, smiled, and said, “I just want to check on you guys.” She said it as if she was the mother checking on her kids.

The parents and I discussed a book that I had given them to read together called, “The Love Dare.” I read the short passage from a chapter entitled, “Love is Kind.” It reads, “Kindness is love in action. Being kind means you meet the needs of the moment. If it's housework, you get busy. A listening ear? You give it. Kindness thinks ahead, and then takes the first step. It doesn't sit around waiting to be prompted or coerced before getting off the couch. The kind husband or wife will be the one who greets first, smiles first, serves first, and forgives first. They don't require the other to get his or her act together before showing love. When acting from kindness, you see the need, then make your move. First. “



Reflecting on your week, how did your love for your spouse and family compare with what I just read to you? Did your love in action fit the definition of kindness where you were gentle, willing, and took initiative to act first on the need rather than wait? It is difficult to demonstrate love when we feel little to no motivation, but love in its truest sense is not based on feelings. Rather, love determines to show thoughtful actions even when there seems to be no reward. We will not learn to love until we learn to demonstrate kindness.

That’s what Jesus was showing us in the Gospel. After the Resurrection, Jesus took the initiative to show himself to his disciples, the very disciples who abandoned Jesus when He was arrested. Yet Jesus thought not of his wounds but the needs of his disciples. He knew ahead of time that they felt as though their world was shaken, that they were abandoned, and felt alone.

Jesus is the one who anticipates our needs first, greets first, smiles first, serves first, and forgives first. Heavenly Father, through His Son is demonstrating to us that even if we feel as if our world is shaken, if we feel abandoned or alone, if illness befalls on us, the love of the Father will never change. The Father sent His Son to this world so that we might have eternal life with the Father. This love that Heavenly Father and His Son have for us, will not change tomorrow or ever. And Jesus asks us, in turn, to love as He did, to lay down our life for our neighbor. Love is what we must live. Nothing else matters or will matter but love.

After the consultation with the couple, I went back to my office to turn off the lights. I noticed that lots of things on my desk were misplaced or missing. The calculator screen had dark smudges; I’m sure one of the children began to play with the calculator after munching on the chocolate bunny. My post-it notes had lots of drawings on them, and the floor was littered with pens and office supplies. I had to chuckle to myself. How much of this happens at their own house every day, and how patient and kind the parents have to be with such chaos. And this brings us to this final thought. Even as we make such mistakes and mess in our life, how kind and patient Our Heavenly Father must be with us, wanting us not to be overwhelmed by our own failures or unexpected losses?

April 20, 2012 Friday: 2nd Week of Easter (B)

Healing Contradictions

The many contradictions in our lives - such as being home while feeling homeless, being busy while feeling bored, being popular while feeling lonely, being believers while feeling many doubts -  can frustrate, irritate, and even discourage us.  They make us feel that we are never fully present.  Every door that opens for us makes us see how many more doors are closed.

But there is another response.  These same contradictions can bring us into touch with a deeper longing, for the fulfillment of a desire that lives beneath all desires and that only God can satisfy.  Contradictions, thus understood, create the friction that can help us move toward God.
-Fr. Henri Nouwen

April 19, 2012 Thursday: 2nd Week of Easter (B)

Freedom Attracts


When you are interiorly free you call others to freedom, whether you know it or not. Freedom attracts wherever it appears. A free man or a free woman creates a space where others feel safe and want to dwell. Our world is so full of conditions, demands, requirements, and obligations that we often wonder what is expected of us. But when we meet a truly free person, there are no expectations, only an invitation to reach into ourselves and discover there our own freedom.

Where true inner freedom is, there is God. And where God is, there we want to be.
-Fr. Henri Nouwen

April 18, 2012 Wednesday: 2nd Week of Easter (B)

Yielding to the Spirit


God will speak to you by such inspirations, such interior lights, such manifestations of his goodness, such sweet touches in your heart, such tokens of forgiveness, such experience of peace, such hopes of heaven, such rejoicings within you, such sweetness of his grace, such loving and close embraces—in a word, by many voices of love—that he will be well understood by those whom he loves, and who seek for nothing but him alone.
—St. Alphonsus Liguori

April 17, 2012 Tuesday: 2nd Week of Easter (B)

Growing Into Our True Freedom

True freedom is the freedom of the children of God.  To reach that freedom requires a lifelong discipline since so much in our world militates against it.  The political, economic, social, and even religious powers surrounding us all want to keep us in bondage so that we will obey their commands and be dependent on their rewards.

But the spiritual truth that leads to freedom is the truth that we belong not to the world but to God, whose beloved children we are.  By living lives in which we keep returning to that truth in word and deed, we will gradually grow into our true freedom.

-Fr. Henri Nouwen

April 16, 2012 Monday: 3rd Week of Easter

The Resurrection of Our Lord: 
in the words of St. Therese of Lisieux

 "I felt there was a heaven and that this heaven is peopled with souls who actually love me, who consider me their child.  This impression remains in my heart."

"In order that Love be fully satisfied, it is necessary that It lower Itself, and It lower Itself to nothingness and transform this nothingness into fire.  O Jesus, I know it, love is repaid by love alone."

"For me to love You as You love me, I would have to borrow Your own love."

"Since Jesus has reascended into heaven, I can follow Him only in the traces He has left; but how luminous these traces are!"

-from The Story of A Soul: Autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux

April 15, 2012: Divine Mercy Sunday Audio Homily

https://vr.shapeservices.com/play.php?hash=815effa658c360244fb73051afd1022b1856d36004fbbde2e

April 15, 2012: Divine Mercy Sunday

This week, I drove out to Covington, Louisiana to visit one of the retired priests of our diocese. Fr. Vic Messina, who enjoys contemplative prayer, renovated a neglected house on a secluded part of the property near the Benedictine monastery. The 170 year-old house is surrounded by 1,100 acres of wooded land. When I arrived, he was busy digging ground to plant a fruit tree. He said he planted many fruit trees around the house, but a family of deer came and ate all that he has planted. His former parishioners helped install 8-ft deer fence around the property. But that’s not all his troubles with critters. He had to drive a snake out of the house, but that’s not as bad as what he heard at night. He said the rats were playing baseball in the attic every night. He had to install high-frequency noise makers in the attic to force rats to take their tailgating elsewhere. In the back of the house, there were large mounds of dirt. He said after Katrina, some downed trees were cut but their stumps were left. When the stumps were pulled, it left large gaping holes so they had to be filled.


As we were walking back to the house from the tour of the property, he said, “Paul, I pray each day to the Lord that all the repairs and renovations I’m making to the house reflect the transformation that He is making inside of me. You know, St. Teresa of Avila compared our soul to a mansion with many rooms. With many challenges I faced repairing this place, I felt like I was in a mansion with many different locks and I didn’t have the keys. Each time I needed something, God provided me someone to help open each lock. It’s a very humbling experience, to let God show me that He was providing me everything, every step of the way.”


How many of us have come to a similar conclusion as Fr. Vic, that God has unlocked doors to challenges, every step of the way? In the Gospel today, we meet the disciples behind a locked door for fear of their lives. They just heard from Mary Magdalene that she has seen the Risen Lord, but that did not change their fear of their future. This happens for us too. We’ve been through 40 days of Lent and through the Holy Week. How many of us, in the back of our minds, have said “So what? How does Jesus’ Resurrection change what I’m facing now? What can He do to improve my situation?” We can be like Thomas from the Gospel today who said, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."

Jesus, however, has keys to every locked doors, even doubts and cynicism. Jesus walked into the locked room where everyone inside wanted to keep everyone else out. Yet, without using a key, He appeared in the midst of them and simply said, “Peace be with you." He showed them his hands and his side.The disciples received joy and assurance in the most unexpected way. The word “Shalom” or ‘peace’ Jesus spoke does not just mean simply absence of war or conflict. To understand what Jesus spoke, we need to listen to the Prophet Isaiah. God said through Isaiah, “For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my mercy shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed, says the Lord who has compassion on you” (Isa 54:10). In the peace that Jesus speaks of, there is connection between mercy and peace. So as he is saying “Peace be with you,” Jesus is having compassion on those who are locked in fear and opens the locked hearts and fills them with Holy Spirit whose very presence gives assurance that with God everything is possible. The Holy Spirit also assures them of forgiveness of sins and gives them the ability to be merciful and forgiving to others.


After showing me the perimeter of the house, Fr. Vic led me inside the house into a small room which he made into a chapel. There was an icon of Blessed Mother along with a Tabernacle with an icon of Jesus’ Holy Face. Nearby adjoining the chapel wall was a large picture of the Divine Mercy facing the bed. Fr. Vic said that he sleeps with all the windows of the house open. At night, he hears every creatures that live in that immense wooded property. Critters come and go on his porch and look through the screened windows, but Fr. Vic sleeps soundly trusting that Jesus who unlocked all the challenges to renovating the house, will also give abiding peace in his heart. As he wakes up to the light of a new day, the first thing that he sees is a large picture of Jesus in front of him with the words, “Jesus I Trust In You!” So on this Divine Mercy Sunday, we entrust ourselves to Jesus with the simple, “Jesus, I trust in You!”

April 13, 2012: Easter Friday

Today, in John's Gospel, we see the Risen Lord resume his teaching activity. The
colorful story of the disciples' fishing expedition is a treasure trove for our
own contemplation. Simon Peter said to them, "I am going fishing." We may well speculate over the movements of the heart underlying Peter's sudden decision. Is he simply taking advantage of a leisurely "off-day"? Does he just need to "get
away" and "find himself" in his favorite pastime? Or does this decision represent, at a deeper level, Peter's interior wrestling match, between his former life as
a fisherman and his recent years of companionship with Jesus? Whatever his precise
motivations, we can certainly agree that Peter had "a lot on his plate." He no doubt takes all his personal baggage with him to the seas. His utter failure on the waters-but that night they caught nothing-signifies the barrenness of his attempt to "find
himself" apart from the Risen Lord. In his great compassion, Jesus inserts himself
into this hapless scene at precisely the right moment. Cast the net over the right side of the boat... The voice of the Master strikes the heart of the disciples,
and Peter cannot contain himself: he tucked in his garment, for he was lightly clad, and jumped into the sea. The fellowship meal shared on the beach represents a critical moment in the disciples' Christian education: And none of the disciples dared to ask him, "Who are you?" because they realized it was the Lord. Slowly, but surely, they are learning...
-Mr. Bryan Y. Norton, SJ

April 12, 2012: Easter Thursday

Dear children, as the Queen of Peace, I desire to give peace to you, my children, true peace which comes through the heart of my Divine Son. As a mother I pray that wisdom, humility and goodness may come to reign in your hearts – that peace may reign – that my Son may reign. When my Son will be the ruler in your hearts, you will be able to help others to come to know Him. When heavenly peace comes to rule over you, those who are seeking it in the wrong places, thus causing pain to my motherly heart, will recognize it. My children, great will be my joy when I see that you are accepting my words and that you desire to follow me. Do not be afraid, you are not alone. Give me your hands and I will lead you. Do not forget your shepherds. Pray that in their thoughts they may always be with my Son who called them to witness Him. Thank you.
(April 2, 2012, Our Lady of Medjugorje)

April 11, 2012 Tuesday: Divine Mercy Mass

This morning I was waiting in the St. Francis Church for all the family to arrive for their mother’s funeral. A 9-year old granddaughter named, Grace, approached the casket of her mawmaw. I tried to see her reaction—many times, young children are frightened by the sight of a deceased person. But this child had a smile on her face, as if she was glad to see a living mawmaw in front of her.

Many of us have lost our loved ones and experienced grieving. One of the most difficult things we face after our loved one dies is letting go of the way we used to relate to the person. We still long for that person’s physical touch, audible words, and comforting presence.


Mary Magdalene faced such letting go. Her eyes had been swelled with endless tears since that day on the Calvary. She longed to be with her friend and teacher Jesus, like she used to. Even when Jesus actually appeared to her, she could not recognize him because of her sorrow and tears. And this happens to us too. We are not able to recognize the signs that our deceased loved ones are sending because of our sorrow and sadness. When she finally recognized Him, she wanted to cling to Him. But Jesus could not stay in this life for He had not completed His mission. He could not stay, and He had to go to His Father so that His children could go to the Father. Out of love Jesus emptied Himself so that we could have life forever in union with the Father.

The 9 year old girl, Grace, said something profound to her parents when she found out that her mawmaw died. Her mawmaw died on Good Friday. And the little girl said, “She died on a special day.” She knew that in someway, that her mawmaw shared something special with Jesus—suffering and death. But Jesus wants us to see in His suffering on the Cross not the enormity of pain, but His unfathomable love for us.

Jesus said to St. Faustina, “Do not be absorbed in your misery—you are still too weak to speak of it—but, rather, gaze on My Heart filled with goodness, and be imbued with My sentiments…be merciful to others, as I am to you; and, when you feel your strength failing, if you come to the fountain of mercy to fortify your soul, you will not grow weary on your journey.

April 8, 2012: Easter Sunday, Audio homily

https://vr.shapeservices.com/play.php?hash=b27f99d2e2a33ebefb3d79a3ef893d2190f93ea94b79c45f4

April 8, 2012: Easter Sunday (B) Resurrection of Our Lord

What was it like for Mary Magdalene on that morning to see the rock rolled away and the tomb empty, to place her hands on the cold rock and to see the burial cloth put aside? I had a chance to place my hands in that tomb a few years ago when I was in Jerusalem. With more than 40 people in line to enter the tomb, I was allowed only 2 minutes to pray inside and so I barely had a chance to soak in what was in the tomb. Likewise, with all that is going on in our lives with our work and our family, it is difficult for us to connect to this resurrection event; life seems to pass by us so quickly and thus we miss the significance of what just happened on the first Easter morning. What we have just heard, about the Resurrection of Jesus, has to be in context with what we have been hearing the entire week about the denial, the trial, the passion, and crucifixion of Our Lord.   

If in Jesus’ resurrection we were dealing with the miracle of a resuscitated corpse, it would ultimately be of no concern to us. For it would be no more important than the resuscitation of a clinically dead person through the art of doctors. But the New Testament testimonies leave us in no doubt that what happened in the resurrection of Jesus was utterly different. His Resurrection was about breaking out into an entirely new form of life…In Jesus’ Resurrection a new possibility of human existence is attained that affects everyone and that opens up a future, a new kind of future, for mankind. Therefore, there is now an intimate, inseparable link between the resurrection of Christians and the Resurrection of Jesus.   

(Jesus' Tomb inside Holy Sepulcher, Jerusalem)

St. Paul tells us,
For if we have grown into union with him through a death like his,
we shall also be united with him in the resurrection.
We know that our old self was crucified with him,
so that our sinful body might be done away with,
that we might no longer be in slavery to sin.
If, then, we have died with Christ,
we believe that we shall also live with him.

(Inside Jesus' tomb, Holy Sepulcher, Jerusalem)

Last year, a little boy by the name of Colton Burpo made headlines on all the major network news programs including the NBC’s Today Show where he appeared and explained what happened to him when he was four years of age. It all began for Colton with a near tragedy when what his parents and doctors thought was the flu was actually a ruptured appendix. After 17 days in the hospital, Colton emerged but his parents noticed that he was different. The little four year old began speaking about heaven and things he could not have possibly known; his mother’s miscarriage, his father’s prayer to save his son, and a visit with his great-grandfather, Pop. One day Colton said, “I saw Jesus’ cousin John the Baptist, King David, Samson, Peter, John, and Jesus’ mom, Mary. I also got to talk to my great-grandpa Pop.” The more Colton spoke about such matters, the more his parents realized that Colton had a near-death experience while in the hospital.

I wonder what draws people to Colton’s story when we know of many people who were at the brink of death and who are now well thanks to doctors and medical technology. Back in Jesus’ time when Lazarus was resurrected, some were still skeptical. We too, the modern Christians, are not moved by miraculous cures or wonders of medical science. Why is that? It is because many of us still think of resurrection in earthly way, but what Colton experienced was a resurrection beyond earthly life. Colton said, “One of the most wonderful things about heaven is that no one ever gets sick or hurt there. No one ever has bumps or bruises or skinned knees. No one needs glasses or wheelchairs. In heaven, no one is old; everyone is young and healthy. And no one dies in heaven.”

At our sacred liturgy on Good Friday as I held the cross for the parishioners to venerate, I watched as they came forward with the bumps, bruises, and skinned knees of their hearts to press their lips on the cross. They offered their sufferings as they beheld the wood of their salvation. On one hand they experienced sufferings of earth, but that wood of salvation connected them to what Colton saw in heaven--reality of life with God in eternity. Amid their suffering, they experienced the joy of life awaiting them.

Colton lives his life very differently now--he tries to live his heaven here on earth. And that’s what we are called to do. Colton said, “Jesus told me to be nice to others and to talk to God in prayer. He talked to me about the markers on His hands and His feet from when He died on the cross. He did that so we could go see Him and His Dad in heaven.” Colton has one last advice for us, “The most important thing Jesus told me was how to get to heaven. He said to believe in Him and follow Him. That makes God very happy.”

We Christians, have been given a unique knowledge of our past, present, and our future through the Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ. This life that we have been given by God is a gift. We know we have in some way taken this gift for granted, and sometimes, we have abused it. Therefore, we need to take to heart what St. Paul told us: Think of what is above, not of what is on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ your life appears, then you too will appear with him in glory.

April 7, 2012: Easter Vigil

JESUS IS THE ANSWER 

 (Photo: Beatification Mass of Mother Teresa, Vatican)

 Many young people today lack hope. They are perplexed by the questions that present themselves ever more urgently in a confusing world, and they are often uncertain which way to turn for answers. They see poverty and injustice and they long to find solutions. They are challenged by the arguments of those who deny the existence of God and they wonder how to respond. They see great damage done to the natural environment through human greed and they struggle to find ways to live in greater harmony with nature and with one another. Where can we look for answers? The Spirit points us toward the way that leads to life, to love, and to truth. The Spirit points us toward Jesus Christ. There is a saying attributed to St. Augustine: “If you wish to remain young, seek Christ.” In him we find the answers that we are seeking, we find the goals that are truly worth living for, we find the strength to pursue the path that will bring about a better world. Our hearts find no rest until they rest in the Lord, as St. Augustine says at the beginning of the Confessions, the famous account of his own youth. My prayer is that the hearts of the young people who gather in Sydney for the celebration of World Youth Day will truly find rest in the Lord, and that they will be filled with joy fervor for spreading the Good News among their friends, their families, and all whom they meet.
 (MESSAGE TO THE YOUNG PILGRIMS TAKING PART IN WORLD YOUTH DAY 2008, Pope Benedict XVI)

April 6, 2012: Good Friday

 A couple of years ago, during the Good Friday service, something happened that changed the way I see the cross. During the part of the service where we venerate the cross, we were waiting for last remaining persons to come up to the cross to venerate. The cross had a relic of the True Cross (a piece of the Cross on which Jesus died) in the center. The last two persons in the line were a son and his father. The son was in his mid-40’s and had Down syndrome. He did something no one else did. With a big smile, he first laid his right cheek on the relic. Then he placed his left cheek on the relic. Then he planted a big kiss on the relic. Those in the center aisle who were witnessing this began to cry. This man with Down syndrome, whom the world thought of one of the least significant, actually saw the significance of the cross that no one else did.  

 I am reduced to silence before the crucifix, this incredible enduring symbol of our Faith. To enter a church as many times as we do and to see the crucifix within the main focal point of the action of the mass, may desensitize some of us because it could become as familiar to us as the pews and chairs or other fixtures of the church. How unfortunate if we allow that to happen, because the mere sight of a crucifix or even a cross demands a personal response from each us.

The Father’s desire to bring us back to Him was so great that you, Jesus, left your place in the glory of heaven and became man. Yes, you were obedient to your Father, emptied yourself of your divinity, and took on humanity. Your mother, our Blessed Mother, and St. Joseph knew from the beginning that the child given to them by the Father was destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel yet they loved and cared for you while not fully understanding what was to happen.

I look upon this crucifix and ponder all that you endured -- the trials and sufferings of mankind, and then the most inhumane treatment as you were denied, tried, beaten and crucified. You emptied yourself of your humanity for me; you poured out your life for me by dying on the cross. My mind’s eye cannot begin to picture the physical beatings you endured.  Nor can my mind understand or my heart know the depth of your love for me that you would endure the horrendous scourging and torture to ensure our unity with the Father for all eternity.

You endured suffering and death to show me how much I matter to you, how much you love me, and how much you want me to turn from sin and love you. I am not worthy of your great sacrifice, but still you did it all for me. Yes! the cross demands a personal response from me. Yet your death becomes personal only when I recognize my desperate need for salvation, my own sinfulness, my powerlessness to be free from sin. Your death becomes personal when I can place my hands around the crosses of everyday life and offer my pain and suffering for someone else’s salvation. Your death becomes personal when I can extend my hand to assist someone in need, not to receive accolades, but because I have learned to love.

If you could become man, put your life entirely in your Father's hands, and trust him even to the point of dying on the cross, can I not trust you and put my life in your hands? If you love me this much, can I not love you even a little in return?

The cross which we will venerate today will also have the relic of the True Cross in the center and the relic of the Holy Nail (these nails contain the filings from the original nail used to crucify Jesus) on each arm.

April 5, 2012: Holy Thursday, Audio Homily

https://vr.shapeservices.com/play.php?hash=dd2732b36e289fd6dae0dfe2036b57d48c5944d149ce8a9c8

April 6, 2012: Good Friday

THE HEART OF THE CHRISTIAN FAITH

God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him” (1 Jn 4:16). These words from the First Letter of John express with remarkable clarity the heart of the Christian faith: the Christian image of God and the resulting image of mankind and its destiny. In the same verse, St. John also offers a kind of summary of the Christian life, “We know and believe the love God has for us.” …[I]n these words the Christian can express the fundamental decision of his life. Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction. St. John’s Gospel describes that event in these words, “God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should…have eternal life” (3:16). In acknowledging the centrality of love, Christian faith has retained the core of Israel’s faith, while at the same time giving it new depth and breadth. The pious Jew prayed daily the words of the book of Deuteronomy which expressed the heart of his existence: “Hear, O Israel: the our God is one LORD, and you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might” (6:4-5). Jesus united into a single precept this commandment of love for God and the commandment of love for neighbor found in the book of Leviticus: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (19:18; cf. Mk 12:29-31).  
(DEUS CARITAS EST, I, Pope Benedict XVI)

April 5, 2012: Holy Thursday

A few days ago, I was sitting in a room that appeared to be a doctor’s examination room. It had an examination table along with the typical tools that a doctor would use. I sat on the doctor’s stool, waiting. The first ‘patient’ came in and he sat a few inches from me. He had a muscular build and it looked as though he weighed nearly 300 pounds. Just minutes into our conversation he broke down and cried, all the while we were both annoyed with the flies that were all about us. When we were through, I handed him a piece of paper and he left. Then another large man came in and I observed that every inch of his forearms were tattooed with different sorts of skull designs. The flies annoyed us as well. I told this man, “You know the evil one is like these flies. They don’t weigh much, and they really don’t have much power at all, but like these flies, the evil one knows how to distract us and how to push our buttons.” When we finished, I also handed him a piece of paper and he left. The cycle of men entering and leaving continued for more than an hour. As I came out of the doctor’s room and looked down the hallway, I noticed that at least one of the guys was trying to read the piece of paper that I had given him. No, it was not a prescription, but a note containing a conversation between Jesus and a sinful soul as written down by St. Faustina Kowalska, a saint who spread the message of Divine Mercy to the world.

I asked each of the guys at the prison who came in for confession to read the note as if Jesus was speaking to them. One of the guys said that he could not read it because he is far-sighted, so I read this portion to him:  Jesus said to the soul:

“Be not afraid of your Savior, O sinful soul. I make the first move to come to you, for I know that by yourself you are unable to lift yourself to me. Child, do not run away from your Father; be willing to talk openly with your God of mercy who wants to speak words of pardon and lavish his graces on you. How dear your soul is to Me! I have inscribed your name upon My hand; you are engraved as a deep wound in My Heart.”

You should have seen the look on that man’s face when I read the last few sentences. He could not believe that Jesus would say to him, “How dear your soul is to Me!” He was probably thinking to himself, ‘Me? Jesus? This soul who has disappointed and hurt my own mom and dad, my children, my wife, my grandparents, and my friends by lying and stealing from them—such despicable soul is precious to Jesus?’ What kind of extravagant love does Jesus have for me? What kind of extravagant sacrifice did Jesus make for me?

In the few short hours I spent in that room hearing confessions, I sensed their anger, impatience, and pride. They knew they were sorry in some way, but some of them believed that they were justified in what they had done. Many admitted that they were serving time in prison a second time for committing the same crime that had landed them in prison the first time.

Don’t we also make mistakes over and over again? Aren’t these the kind of things that divide us--our pride, feelings of superiority, ethnicity? Aren’t these keeping us from washing each other’s feet?  Jesus said, “for I know that by yourself you are unable to lift yourself to Me.” Jesus had to show us how to be humble and so at the Last Supper he took off his outer garments and wrapped a towel around his waist like a servant. Then he poured water on the disciples’ dirty feet and washed them. We too have to shed our pride, superiority, selfishness, and everything else that keeps us from serving others. Jesus was showing us how to love as He loved. Jesus knew that his hour had come to pass from this world to the Father. Jesus loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end. That night of the Last Supper, Jesus reminded us again of His extravagant love and His extravagant sacrifice.

One of the men in the doctor’s room had his head down in tears and said to me, “Father, can you pray for me and my family right now?  My wife is in jail at this moment too. Please pray with me right now that I can be a better model for my children and my wife.” Jesus calls us his brothers and sisters and he calls us his friends. So we share intimately in His life, but this also means that we must carry on His mission and follow His example by serving, by loving, our brothers and sisters.

April 5, 2012: Holy Thursday

THE CROSS GIVES US JOY

 After affirming, “Whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it,” Jesus adds, “For what does it profit a man, to gain the whole world and forfeit his life?” (Mk 8:35-36). To what extent does a life that is totally spent in achieving success, longing for prestige, and seeking commodities to the point of excluding God from one’s horizon truly lead to happiness? Can true happiness exist when God is left out of consideration? Experience shows that we are not happy because our material expectations and needs are satisfied. In fact, the only joy that fills the human heart is that which comes from God; indeed, we stand in need of infinite joy. Neither daily concerns nor life’s difficulties succeed in extinguishing the joy that is born from friendship with God. Jesus’ invitation to take up one’s cross and follow him may at first sight seem harsh and contrary to what we hope for, mortifying our desire for personal fulfillment. At a closer look, however, we discover that it is not like this; the witness of the saints shows that in the Cross of Christ, in the love that is given, in renouncing the possession of oneself, one finds that deep serenity which is the source of dedication to our brethren, especially to the poor and the needy, and this also gives us joy.
(GENERAL AUDIENCE, FEBRUARY 6, 2008, Pope Benedict XVI)

April 4, 2012: Wednesday of Holy Week

DRAWN NEAR TO GOD

 In Jesus, the Heavenly Father inaugurated a new relationship with us; he made us “sons in the Son himself.”…[I]t is precisely on this reality that St. John invites us to meditate.…The beloved Apostle of the Lord stresses that we are really sons: “and so we are” (1 Jn 3:1). We are not only creatures, but we are sons; in this way God is close to us; in this way he draws us to himself at the moment of his Incarnation, in his becoming one of us. Therefore, we truly belong to the family whose Father is God, because Jesus, the Only-Begotten Son, came to pitch his tent among us, the tent of his flesh, to gather all the nations together into a single family, the family of God, belonging to the divine Being united in one people, one family. He came to reveal to us the true Face of the Father, and if we now use the word “God,” it is no longer a reality known only from afar. We know the Face of God; it is that of the Son, who came to bring the heavenly realities closer to us and to the earth.
(GENERAL AUDIENCE, JANUARY 3, 2007, Pope Benedict XVI)