A LESSON TO BE LEARNED

      Here we are on August 15th.  Half of this month is gone.  And in that short time we, as a Church and as a nation in the world community remember some significant moments that occurred within a few short years before I was born in 1947.

     On the 6th and the 9th of August seventy-six years ago the world saw a power unleased in a time of war that had never been used that way before.  The use of atomic weapons on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan by our country brought about the end of the World War but also brought about the beginning of a time of fear and uncertainty that has been described as "the cold war".  Hundreds of thousands of of people, including mostly civilians, died in the dropping of those two bombs ... some in an instant and many later as a consequence of the fallout.   You could say that a good came from this action (the end of the immediate conflict with Japan), but a continued and even greater evil continues to undermine the basic goodness of humankind.

     Man's inhumanity to man has been with us from the time of Adam's sin.  The countless millions who died in war and the death camps during World War II, during our own time, point to the frailty of human nature without God.  And we continue to regress, to show a resolve to destroy ourselves rather than repent and reform,  The examples are endless.  We hold onto a culture of death and hatred and self.   Remembering Hiroshima and Nagasaki in a spirit of sorrow is necessary if we are to live the peace that Christ brings to us.

     Also in this first half of August the Church remembers and celebrates the heroic virtues and the selfless faith of two individuals who, only a few years before the bombings in Japan, suffered death and martyrdom in the death camps of the Nazi regime.  On August 9 we honor Saint Sister Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, a Carmelite nun from Germany who fled to Holland, who was put to death in the camps because she was born a Jew.  Her name was Edith Stein, and she was a intellectual and a philosopher,  She gave up her Jewish heritage long before she found Christ in the Church and was baptized and entered religious life.  But she joined her ancestral people in their struggle and cross and shared their cross with the Cross of Christ.

     The second one honored is a Polish Franciscan priest by the name of Saint Father Maximilian Kolbe, who also died as a prisoner in the camps by offering his life in place of another prisoner who was to be put to death.  His courage and sacrifice was even recognized by his captors.  An interesting note about Father Kolbe is that he served at a mission before the war in, of all places, Nagasaki, Japan, ministering to the faithful there.

     These were not events or people of ages past ... they are of our time, of our generation.   The circumstances of these events do not bring out the best of our human nature ... but the heroic virtues and the suffering of so many give witness to something greater than what we can offer, of someone greater than ourselves.   May we learn our lesson.

REFLECTIONS

      There is an old saying that "Confession is good for the soul".  I might pick up on that thought and say that "confession" is also very good for the "retired priest blogger" who has not posted since last month.  I confess to being lazy - many times thoughts or ideas came to me but I was too lazy to go to the computer and put them in print.

Mea culpa!  I apologize and ask your forgiveness.

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     If you have been watching the Olympics you are aware that we honor the achievements of our sports heroes from around the world as they provide us with inspiring examples of determination, hard work, and excellence.  We award gold, silver or bronze to recognize these individuals or championship teams.

     The Church also honors our spiritual athletes who have run the race and achieved the crown of glory that comes from our union with Christ.  These champions are our saints.  They vary greatly: from the most obscure (who was Apollinaris?) to those whose names flow from our tongues with ease (John Paul II or Mother Theresa of Calcutta), those who go back to the time of Jesus (Peter, James and John) to those of our time (Teresa Benedicta of the Cross or Maximillian Kolbe), maybe even saints that we may met or seen in our lifetime. 

     August is filled with such champion saints.  July 31st is Ignatius of Loyola who founded the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits - of which Pope Francis is a member), August 1st is Alphonsus Liguori who founded the Redemptorist Order, the 2nd is Eusebius of Vercelli who lived centuries earlier and who, as bishop of Vercelli in northern Italy, spent his life defending against the heresy of Arianism.  Yesterday, the 4th we remember and honor John Mary (Jean Marie) Vianney, the cure (or pastor) of Ars, a little village in France during the 1800's.  He is the patron of parish priests.  His greatest achievement was his holiness and dedication to serving the people of his parish with the heart of the Good Shepherd.  In a humble spirit he ministered the Sacraments and celebrated the Eucharist, spend countless hours in the confessional, offered his life in constant prayer and penance, and transformed a godless village into a mecca of spiritual strength.

     I've always had a love of Saint John Marie Vianney.  In our high school seminary, we had a dorm named after the Cure of Ars ... as a Third Order Secular Franciscan at the Friary in Uniontown during my high school years I chose the name "Jean Marie" as my Franciscan name.

When I struggled with my studies in seminary I remembered that seminarian Vianney was almost not ordained because he too struggled with grades (especially Latin).  As a parish priest for forty-four years, I relied upon his inspiration and intercession in my work.  And before the pandemic I concelebrated Mass, venerated the relic of his uncorrupted heart, and heard confessions at Our Lady of Grace Church during the Knights of Columbus sponsored pilgrimage visit to our diocese of that special relic.  His heart, the heart of a shepherd, continues to touch our hearts.

     At a time when priests, especially parish priests, are given greater responsibilities with expectations that are often beyond our humble abilities, please pray to Saint John Vianney, the Cure of Ars, for your priests.  Let me close with this:

Saint John Vianney's Prayer for Priests.

God, please give to your Church today many more priests after your own heart. 

May they be worthy representatives of Christ the Good Shepherd.  

May they wholeheartedly devote themselves to prayer and penance; be examples of humility and poverty; shining models of holiness; tireless and powerful preachers of the Word of God; zealous dispensers of your grace in the sacraments.  

May their loving devotion to your Son Jesus in the Eucharist and to Mary his Mother be the twin fountains of fruitfulness for their ministry.  

Amen.  

INSPIRING LIVES

      I received a beautiful and inspiring tri-fold brochure in the mail today from the Benedictine Sisters of Pittsburgh which celebrates five of their Community's Sisters who are recognizing significant milestone of their Monastic Profession.  As Sister Karen Brink, their newly re-elected Prioress, states: "Three hundred and twenty years of Benedictine living is what you will see in the faces of our Sister Jubilarians.  What a blessing their lives have been, not only for themselves but for all those whose lives they have touched through the three pillars of Benedictine Life: Prayer, Community and Ministry."

    My association with the Benedictine Sisters of Pittsburgh began when I arrived as pastor of Saint John the Baptist Parish in Scottdale, where they served in both the school community and the parish community.

     The Sisters celebrating significant anniversaries are: Sister Rosalyn Soller, a Sister for 70 years - working with the poor in Kentucky, teaching and serving as a principal, novices and other Community services.

     Sisters Mary David Lecker and Judith Nero are professed 65 years. [No bio was given for these Sisters]

     Sister Roberta Campbell celebrates 60 years, and I came to know her in her role as Prioress which covered 12 years beginning in 1990 and overlapped my time in Scottdale.

     And Sister Audrey Quinn, also 60 years professed.  Her ministry took her, along with Sister Sue Fazzini, to Greene County where they became foster parents to more than 160 children over a period of 18 years and served in a number of Greene County Community agencies.

     These five women's lives are inspiring in themselves.  Add the fact of their Faith and their  commitment to the Way of Saint Benedict - ORA ET LABORA [Pray and Work] and they are outstanding and deserving our our well wishes and prayers.

HISTORY- remembered , revised, found

     Within the past few weeks we as a nation have celebrated aspects of our history in ever changing times.  I am interested in history, and even though as a kid I did not appreciate the subject, as an adult I value the lessons that are to be learned.

     There are two events within our national history that I have recently discovered.  I believe that I was brought up with an open view of history, but I was surprised to learn, this year for the first time, of the June 6, 1921 Tulsa Race Riots or as it is also called the Black Wall Street Massacre.  How, after an accusation of a supposed assault on a white woman by a young black man, tempers exploded and a vicious race riot occurred in Tulsa that took 40 lives and destroyed 35 square blocks of a prosperous Black community.   How can I have not heard of this terrible act of hatred?

     And then there is Juneteenth, declared as a National Holiday this year but celebrated in many parts of the country since the mid 1860's.  This date - June 19, 1865 - was the day that the last of the slave states had their slaves emancipated, in a proclamation by Union General Gordon Granger in the State of Texas.   This came a few years following the 1862 Emancipation Proclamation of President Lincoln.  I learned about that, but the 1965 event was not taught.  Why?

     Then on July 1, 2 & 3 we remembered the 158th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg during the Civil War.  I have a great interest in this battle and its stories.  I had many books and some great art works - signed and numbered prints of the battle and it's participants - some of which I disposed of in my retirement downsizing.  However, some of my prints remain, and in fact grace my bedroom walls.  By happenstance, though, most of my remaining prints are of Lee and Longstreet and Confederate soldiers.  My concern is that I will be thought poorly of in this revisionist and politically correct atmosphere.  We move to tear down statues or demonize good but not perfect people who were caught up in a terrible struggle.   This narrow view of history does a great disservice to our national memory and especially to our youth.

    Then on Sunday we celebrated Independence Day where 245 years ago many of those who drafted and signed the Declaration of Independence are now being demeaned because of their flaws, owning slaves or womanizing or other failings, and the great ideas and courage and efforts to bring this nation into being are ignored.   There are no perfect people in this world, just those of us striving to do the best we can and find a better life.  To be quick to judge the actions of others without trying to understand their times and circumstances allows us to be vulnerable to the judgements of our actions.

     Let us not cover up our missteps and errors - let us learn from them.  But let us also not forget the goodness of people and actions and ideals that have brought us to where we are - let us remember them. 

WISDOM

      Not all scriptures are created equal.  In my role as a preacher of the Word, whose task it is to break open God's Word, I can attest to that statement.  All scriptures are important, but some are easier to preach on.

     The readings for this past Sunday, the 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time, are great readings for preaching.  They are filled with powerful words that speak of the goodness of our God.

     Verse 13 of chapter 1 of the Book of Wisdom, the first reading for that celebration, says: "God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the living."

     God does not make death!

     But listen to the way we speak of God at times - "If you don't behave, God will punish you" ... "Why did God take this person, allow this child to die?" ... a natural disaster is called "an act of God".

     Wisdom 1 said: "God does not make death!"  then it continues: "For he fashioned all things that they may have being; and the creatures of the world are wholesome."

    Remember the creation accounts?  At the end of each creative act, God paused and looked at what had been created, and saw that it was good.  Everything was fashioned that it may exist and have being ... a gift given by the divine being.

     But death does exist - it comes from the sin of the rejection of what was God-given in search of an empty promise of something more.

     In verse 23 & 24 of chapter 2 of Wisdom we read: "For God formed man to be imperishable; the image of his own nature he made him.  But by the envy of the devil, death entered the world and they who belong to his company experience it."

     From the time of the Fall we have struggled to realize and hold onto our destiny, sometimes succeeding but often failing.   But then came the Word once again in time, speaking a creative word that would repair the damage done by sin and restore to God's company those claimed by the evil one.   This time the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen him and share in his glory.

     In a world still claimed by chaos and darkness, sin and death, it is imperative that we know that we have been made new and good through the redemptive action of the Cross.   And we must lay claim to that wonderful gift and give thanks.

STORMY WEATHER

      On this Monday afternoon in June much of the nation, especially in the East, has been dealing with severe weather.  Our own area has had a series of storms that have rumbled through.  The summer months are noted for these kinds of days.

     The readings for yesterday's 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time referenced storms in life.  We met Job whose storm in life was to find his security and blessings stripped away in a "bargaining" between the Lord and the evil one.  Everything that he held important, primarily his close relationship with the Lord, was being challenged.  It was not within Job's nature to doubt that relationship with God, but he came close.  In the passage from chapter 38 the Lord reminds Job just who is in charge, and how faithful God is to his promise to Job.  In the midst of the confusion and doubt afflicting Job, God says to him ... fear not - I am in charge and I am true to my promise that you are dear to my heart.  And Job found courage.

     Psalm 107 [the Responsorial Psalm of the liturgy] reminds those that sailed the seas and dealt with the storms of nature that the Lord is in charge ... that "he hushed the storm to a gentle breeze and the billows of the sea were stilled."  It ends with these words: "Let them give thanks to the Lord for his kindness and his wonderous deeds to the children on men."

    In chapter 5 of the 2nd letter to Corinth, Paul tells of the tumultuous change that entered his life when he realized the love of Christ for all.  He says that the storm of that realization "impels" him to regard everyone as a new creation redeemed by the love of Christ, and deserving of his love and resect.

     And the Gospel of Mark tells us of the storm at sea where even the seasoned fishermen who were his disciples could not cope with the storm they found themselves caught in.  Jesus was with them, but he was asleep on a cushion in the boat.  Jesus was with them, not in their fear or helplessness, but in the boat to calm the wind and the seas and calm the fears of our concerns.  He steps in to show us how loved and cherished we are.

     Remember this - while he can calm the storm ,,, end the persecution ... restore what was lost ... he is also there to give us the peace and security that we need to keep calm ... the strength we need to not only endure the hardships but to come out victorious ... and to ability to rejoice in the glory of the Kingdom of God. 

DECORATION DAY

       Yesterday the nation celebrated what has become known as the first holiday of the Summer season - Memorial Day.  Until 1971 this holiday was called "Decoration Day" because of the tradition beginning at the end of the Civil War to decorate with flowers the graves of those who lost their lives in that conflict in their honor.  It began with a proclamation on May 5, 1868, by Union General John Logan, that May 30th would be the day of remembrance and honoring.  This holiday was not adopted by the Southern States on that date, but they chose a different date to honor their fallen.

     On Sunday evening we at Neumann House where I live watched the 25th Anniversary Concert of "Les Miserable".  Taking place in Paris during the French Revolution, there is a line spoken by one of the young leaders of the rebellion that says: "The blood of the martyrs will water the meadows of France".  This is the sentiment that Decoration Day embodied, for those who died from both sides of that terrible conflict in the mid 1860's, the Civil War of our nation, provided for the freedom of a united nation, these United States of America.

     Over the years, as other wars became a part of our history, the call to recognize and honor all who fought and died for the rights of people and for  freedom and a better world were included in the remembrance.  The national holiday was moved in 1971 to the last Monday in May, this year May 31st.

     It is unfortunate that all too many do not know the origin or purpose of this holiday and see it as a long weekend off.  We must never forget ... and whether we "decorate" the graves of those who died in battle or not, we must never forget their sacrifice and we must offer our prayers of thanksgiving for those who gave "the last full measure of devotion".

     This day has always been special for me (the original day - May 30th) for I always thought that they put out the flags and had the parades for my birthday.  Then they moved it to the nearest Monday.  Oh, well.  A belated "Happy Memorial Day!"