A WINTERS PRAYER

      We began our Christmas festive dinner last evening at Neumann House with this prayer.  On this bitter winter day before Christmas, I thought I might share it with you.

    We give you thanks, O Lord, 

for times and seasons 

and now for winter nights 

when stars shine coldly bright, 

and dust is turned to diamonds underfoot.  

For winter days when trees 

are stronger than the icy death 

and hold in blackened limbs 

the promise of the resurrection.  

For opposites be praised: 

for heat and cold, 

for stillness and the snow 

that sculptures every house and tree 

and falls like great absolution 

to heal the wounded earth.  

We give you thanks for Him 

whose birth we celebrate in winter 

so all may know, may wildly know, 

that love is stronger than the coldest flesh 

and mercy blankets all the land 

more surely than the snow.  

We give you thanks for Him 

who makes more than children joyful 

and does not cheat our laughter in the end.  

Joyous Lord, 

beyond imagining but not beyond desire, 

we give you glory and our son of praise.

[author unknown to me]

LOCKED AWAY

      I like a good story.  There is a whole generation of young people, and those not so young, who know well the story of a young wizard named Harry Potter and his friends, and their battle against "the dark lord".  Early on in Harry's story, when he was in the care of his aunt and uncle, we hear that they often locked Harry in his room, and before that in the "cupboard under the stairs".  They did so because the feared him, the resented his powers and popularity in the wizarding world and they thought him odd.  People "put down" what they don't understand.  As the story progresses, his aunt and uncle and cousin disappear from the story while Harry becomes the hero and conqueror of the world of darkness.

    I mention this today because Harry's story somewhat images the story of a man named John of the Cross, a Carmelite priest in the later part of the 1500's who sought to reform the Order, bringing it to it's original strict observance.  He was joined by another great saint, Teresa of Avila.  John was physically small of stature, misunderstood, feared by his community.  He was "locked away", imprisoned in his own cell, some accounts having him locked in a cupboard - not seen or heard.

    And yet his life and his writings, including some great spiritual guidance and passionate poetry, have survived and led to the reformed movement he heralded.  He triumphed over darkness and closedmindedness.  His passionate love for the Lord brought him before the Church as a great champion and with a recognition as a Doctor of the Church.  John's message is to embrace the Cross if you really want to know the meaning of life ... if you want to live ... and if you want to love.

     Today is the Memorial of Saint John of the Cross, Priest and Doctor of the Church, mystic and poet, light to the world.  Saint John, may our Faith never be hidden but bear light for all.

TWO THINGS TODAY

      There were two events that I shared in on the Feast of Juan Diego, one of our older newer saints.

    This morning I journeyed to Saints Cyril and Methodius Church in Fairchance, PA, for the funeral Mass for a good priest and friend.  Father Leo Pleban, a retired priest from the Diocese of Youngstown, Ohio, who has spent his retirement years in the Greensburg Diocese, was laid to rest.  The Church we celebrated in this morning was his home parish, along with his older brother, Father Alexander Pleban of our Diocese and their younger brother, John who passed away within the past two years.

    Bishop Larry Kulick of our Diocese presided in the absence of Bishop David Bonner of Youngstown.  Youngstown was represented by a number of their clergy.  There were about twenty-five priests concelebrating and a good number of people present to entrust Father Leo to the Lord.

    May he Rest In Peace!  And may Father Al and his relatives find comfort.  They were very close brothers, in family and in priesthood.

    Then this evening we watched a movie about Our Lady of Guadalupe - really about the life of Juan Diego whom she appeared to long ago in Mexico.  It was good to be inspired.

The POWER of the WORD

      Today we honor Saint Ambrose, the bishop of Milan from 374 when elected by popular acclamation and ordained on this date (December 7th) until his death in 397.  In those 23 years he brought life to the Church through his service to the poor, his teaching of the faith and his preaching, for which he was well known.  It is said that a young Augustine, a non-believer who lived a "wild" life, heard Ambrose preach and was touched by the power of the word.  He was attracted to the message of the Gospel and sought out Ambrose who led him to the Church.  Augustine, of course, became the great saint and bishop of Hippo.

     Ambrose in a letter to brother bishops spoke of the grace of their words winning over people to their message.  In the Office of Readings I quote from this letter: "Let your words be rivers, clean and limpid, so that in your exhortations you may charm the ears of your people.  And by the grace of your words win them over to follow your leadership.  Let your sermons be full of understanding.  Solomon says: The weapons of the understanding are the lips of the wise; and in another place he says: Let your lips be bound with wisdom.  That is, let the meaning of your words shine forth, let understanding blaze out.

     Let no word escape your lips in vain or be uttered without depth of meaning."

     Great words for any preacher of the Word of God!  Ambrose put this exhortation into practice, as evidenced by the effectiveness of his preaching.

    Pray for those who are commissioned to preach and teach, that their words be an effective source of inspiration.

AN EARLY CELEBRATION

     Yesterday, Sunday the 4th of December, Bishop Larry Kulick and the Diocese of Greensburg hosted a traditional Slovak Christmas Eve Dinner as well as a celebration of song and dance provided by "the Pittsburgh Slovakians".  A large crowd attended this annual event which was held at the Christ Our Shepherd Center in Greensburg, our Diocesan facility.  Those of a Slovak background and their guests enjoyed the evening and a great traditional Christmas Eve Dinner.

     Since we live on the same campus we were happy to have had the same delicious Slovak food in our dining room.  We were given baked cod, pierogies, peas, pagach (a food made of mashed potatoes, dough, cheese and onions or cabbage), mushroom soup, bobalki (dough balls with poppyseed), and prunes among other delights.  We enjoyed this special meal.

    There are many traditions surrounding Christmas, most coming from our various national customs and fares.  May you have traditions that you uphold with your families.

MEET JOHN

      I shared this reflection on Saturday on my lectio program on WAOB radio.

     On this second Sunday of Advent we meet John, the son of Elizabeth and Zechariah.  We meet him in the third chapter of Matthew's gospel.  John is one of the primary icons of the Advent season - an image of revelation given us by God.

     The very first verse begins: "John the Baptist appeared."

     This is the man who is seen as the last of the prophets of old and the first of the prophetic voices of the new covenant.  The scriptures tell us of John that there is no man born of woman greater than John.

     John appeared crying out in the wilderness ... preaching to the searching souls a message of challenge and of hope.   The challenge is to repent ... the hope is found in trust.  

     Isaiah says of him: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness; prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his path."

    The people who walked in darkness and who understood the promise of a light to guide them waited ... and waited ... and waited.  When they saw this man - who wore a garment of camel's hair and a leather girdle around his waist, who fed on locusts and wild honey ... this "wild man" who spoke God's word with such power and conviction - they were ready, they responded, they came to him at the Jordan river.

     Inspired by his word and made ready by their hunger they came to the waters of repentance, for the chance to move forward with renewed vigor on their spiritual journey.  We must ask ourselves: Are we ready to hear his call to repentance and new life?

BROTHERS

           Today the Church celebrates the Feast of Andrew, the Apostle.  He is the brother of another Apostle, Peter.  Andrew was born in Bethsaida and was a disciple of John the Baptist, who is featured predominantly in this Advent season.  He became a follower of Jesus when, as we hear in the Gospel of Matthew today, they were called by Jesus to follow him.  They did so without hesitation.  Andrew preached the gospel in many lands and was put to death by crucifixion at Achaia (his cross was placed in the direction of an X.)

     I had the honor of being the celebrant for our early morning Mass at Neumann House, our residence for retired priests.  We take turns as celebrant.  I spoke of the example that Andrew and Peter give us as brothers: in ministry as well as in the familial sense.  The Apostles give us another example in James and John, the sons of Zebedee.  One of our priests at Neumann House joins that group - Father Al Pleban, a retired priest of Greensburg.  He and his brother, Father Leo Pleban, a retired priest of the Youngstown Diocese who lives in Mt. Pleasant, share a priestly brotherhood and a familial brotherhood.  Both are great men and fine priests and good brothers to those of us who share the gift of priesthood.  [Please offer a special prayer for Father Leo who is ailing.]

     I mentioned in my homily a passage from a homily of Saint John Chrysostom on the feast of Andrew from the gospel of John.  The line I mentioned is: "To support one another in the things of the spirit is the true sign of good will between brothers, of loving kinship and sincere affection."

     This applies not only to familial ties of sisters and brothers, not only to the fraternal ties of ministerial priesthood but also to all of us who are brothers and sisters in the name of Christ.  Support one another, with loving kinship and sincere affection in the name of Christ Jesus, our brother.

A SIGNAL TO THE NATIONS

 Behold the Lord will come, 

and all his holy ones with him, 

and on that day 

there will be a great light.

     The first reading for this Tuesday in the First Week of Advent is of the first ten verses of Chapter 11 of the prophet Isaiah. I encourage you to get out your Bible and read it prayerfully.

    Isaiah describes the coming of One who is a shoot from the stump of Jesse.  He will be filled with God's Spirit - a Spirit of wisdom and understanding, a Spirit of counsel and strength, a Spirit of knowledge and fear of the Lord.  

     When this One comes things will never be the same - "the wolf will be the guest of the lamb", "the leopard shall lie down with the kid", "the calf and the young lion shall browse together" ... "with a little child to guide them".

     We are not there as yet, for we have not given our lives totally to the One who was promised, the One who has come, the One who will create anew what was lost to sin and the One who will come again.   So we wait and hope and trust and follow Him.

STAY ALERT

     The entrance antiphon for the liturgy for this Monday of the First Week of Advent is this:

     "Hear the word of the Lord, O nations, declare it to the distant lands: Behold, our Savior will come; you need no longer fear."

     Our Advent time is one of listening, of being even more attentive to the word of the Lord.  This Advent finds us continuing on the trend of not listening, of losing our focus and lessening our attention to what is most important, and of floundering in our mediocrity, our homelessness, our fear.  Generations have strayed from the way and come to count as insignificant the call to conversion and the path that leads to the Lord.  We have become complacent.  And much worse, we are okay with simply getting by.

     But that is not enough ... it will not suffice ... if we are to prosper.

    The Collect Prayer of the Church today prays: "Keep us alert, we pray, O Lord our God, as we await the advent of Christ your Son, so that, when he comes and knocks, he may find us watchful in prayer and exultant in his praise."

     Take time every day during this great season of Advent to stay alert and to be ready.  Paul yesterday in Romans 13 told us that "it is the hour now for you to awaken from sleep."  May we heed his words. 

ADVENT

      "Jesus Christ is the joy and happiness of all who look forward to his coming!  Let us call upon him and say: "Come, Lord, and do not delay'."

     These words introduce our intercessions in the Prayer of the Church, the Divine Office, for the first Sunday of Advent, the beginning of the Church year and the renewal of our journey toward the Lord and our fulfillment and happiness.

     ADVENT - the word and spirit of this season of expectation comes from two Latin words - the verb VENIO meaning "to come" and AD meaning "toward" or "to".  It is a time of seeking and encounter.  It is a time of waiting with hope.

     Advent's twofold character is our preparation for Christ's coming at Christmas which celebrates that moment in time when Emmanuel - God With Us - took flesh in the person of Jesus and was born in Bethlehem of Judea.  It also invites us to prepare our hearts and souls for his second coming in glory at the end of the age.  It is a time of expectation.  Christ has come and renews himself in our lives as we celebrate his birth and the belief that he will come again.

    Come, Lord Jesus, and do not delay!  We await you with open hearts!

     There is a third "coming" to be recognized and celebrated.  It is the invitation that we have all received in our Baptism to "come to him".  He opens his heart to us ... he longs for our closeness ... he desires our return from the sinfulness and darkness of self to the blessing and light of his embrace ... he rejoices to find us seeking him.

     Advent begins/renews/rekindles a movement, a journey into the mystery of life.  Like the wise men that we will meet at Christmas we are searchers for truth and seekers of that which brings fulfillment.

     I love the words of the Collect Prayer at the Mass for this day.  The Church prays: "Grant your faithful, we pray, Almighty God, the resolve to RUN FORTH to meet your Christ!"  The emphasis is mine - "to run forth to meet your Christ".

     This Advent, let us resolve to run forth in one direction - toward the One who has already come toward us - Jesus the Christ.

A New Adventure

     I ran across this among my things.  It is the "Daily Schedule and Rules for Saint Joseph Hall" given to us at the start of the school year on September 3, 1962 [60 years ago] and the opening of the High School Minor Seminary Residence Hall for the Diocese of Greensburg named Saint Joseph Hall.  I was beginning my sophomore year of high school.  You might find it interesting.

 

     History  -  Saint Joseph Hall, the residence hall for minor seminary students of the Diocese of Greensburg was planned and established by the Most Reverend William G. Connare for the sole purpose of training boys to help this Diocese as secular priests.  Saint Joseph Hall opens its doors on September 3, 1962, for the first time.  The residence hall will be under the direction of a diocesan priest and other diocesan priests will staff the hall in the capacities of Spiritual Director, Prefects of Disciple and Prefects.

     The boys will reside at Saint Joseph Hall but will journey each morning by bus to Saint Vincent Prep for their scholastic training.  They will return to the Residence Hall each evening.

     With the opening of the Hall there will be one member of the junior class and many sophomores and freshmen.  In September of 1963 we hope to add a new class until the full minor seminary course of six years is completed.

AIMS   -   The exclusive aim of the Residence Hall program is to train young men for the priesthood of the Diocese of Greensburg.  The program will embrace the spiritual, intellectual, the moral and physical training of the candidates.

Suggestion for the Daily Schedule for Students

6:00 am - Rise

6:20 am - Chapel for morning prayers

6:30 am - Holy Mass

7:00 am - Breakfast

7:30 am -Making of Bed

7:45 am - Board bus for Saint Vincent

8:15 am - Classes begin at Saint Vincent

11:45 am - Lunch at Saint Vincent

3:15 pm - Return to Saint Joseph Hall

3:30 pm - Recreation

5:15 pm - Spiritual exercises (Rosary)

5:45 pm - Supper

6:15 pm - Recreation

7:00 pm - Study

8:30 pm - Chapel for night prayers

9:00 pm - Retire ... lights out ... strict silence

NOTE: This schedule is somewhat varied on Saturday, Sundays and holidays.

[ With that schedule who had time to get homesick!  Note the time for bed, with strict silence until morning - 9:00pm!]

     Note also these regulations:

We had a weekend each month off to go home, plus Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter and a summer vacation.

"Letters, papers, books and packages may be sent and received.  The authorities of Saint Joseph Hall have the right to open and inspect the mail of all students.  All students are expected to write their families at least once a week."  [Try to get away with that today!]

All students are required to wear suit or sports coats or sweater coats to classes, dining hall and chapel, and ties.

There was limited tv watching (only at designated times and with permission - also only one tv in the rec room) ... no personal tv, radio, alarm clock (we were awakened by a handheld school bell) or phones (long before cell phones, computers, iPads etc.).

     These were different times, and these regulations and schedules were not "out of the ordinary" ... we survived and were generally better for it. 

   

An extraordinary blessing

      In reflecting upon my High School years in the seminary program for the Diocese of Greensburg I am very aware of how blessed I was to spend those years in an academic program that had such a gifted faculty.  In the years from the Fall of 1961 through my graduation in 1965 I was taught by a great group of teachers at Saint Vincent Preparatory School.  Most of them were Benedictine priests and monks from the Archabbey along with a number of lay men who supplemented the faculty.

     Looking back, there are some subjects that I remember, some teachers that stand out for me, and unfortunately some areas in which my memory needs reinforcement.

     I remember our freshman English grammer professor, Father Camillus Long, who was brilliant if not a bit eccentric.  He never found a textbook on English grammar that he found adequate.  So, he wrote his own!  He ran off the pages on heavier stock paper, had them bound, and used them to teach us.  Another of our English professors was Father Bryant Halloran who taught us English literature and gave me a great love of reading and appreciation for literature.  If I had had my choice in major in college (we had to major in Philosophy) I would have chosen English Lit.  I can still recite a number of quotes from Shakespeare that we were required to memorize.

     Our other involvements, sports, plays, glee club and so forth helped round our training.  I personally enjoyed the work with the forensic competitions between neighboring schools where we competed in areas such as debate, extemporaneous speech and public speaking.  It set the stage for what I have been doing in ministry for nearly fifty years.

     Latin was a major part of our curriculum, with Father Herman Ubinger laying the foundation in the first two years.  He involved us in the "Junior Classical League" where I remember journeying to an event at the Buhl Planetarium in Pittsburgh.  We also had Father Leopold Krul (later Archabbot) and Father Augustine Schuetz.  It was during a Latin Test being given by Father Augustine on November 22, 1963, that we received word of the shooting and death of President Kennedy.  It was one of those "where were you" moments.

     Modern languages were limited to French or German (the Benedictine community was originally from Bavaria).  I took French and had two years with Father Julian Smith, who had a great wit and nicknames for some of us (Jared Baker he called "boulanger" [a baker] and he called me "fourneau-iak" [a stove is a fourneau].

     Father Emeric Pfiester developed our artistic abilities and the annual "art show" found a number of my creations among the exhibits.

     I remember Father Arthur Holtz teaching us civics and Pennsylvania history.  He also led the music program.

     There was math, the sciences, history, religion and the usual gamut of classes.

    The thing that set this group of teachers apart for me is their academic background and dedication of profession.  In the Benedictine tradition they were committed to excellence in higher education.  The fact that many, if not most of these men, were also on the faculty of the Seminary and the College, with advanced degrees in multiple fields, made what the offered a valuable gift - one that I only began to realize later on in life.

     How have I been blessed?  Let me count the ways - but let it include these years of formation.  The Benedictine Community at Saint Vincent has by gratitude.

The first step

     I am not sure of the actual date in 1961, but in those days the school year usually began just before or after Labor Day - so it probably was the beginning of September of 1961, when Mom and Dad, my sister Janie and I drove from our home in Uniontown to Saint Vincent Prep School in Latrobe, PA.  It was a trip of just over an hour, but for someone who rarely if ever strayed far from home it was a major journey.   Add to that the fact that I was to stay on campus, having never been away from the security of my home and family, and the prospects were daunting.

     My recollections are my own and may not be as accurate as they should be.  In fact, watching all of the advertisements for "memory aids", maybe I should make a trip to the pharmacy.

     I remember driving up the road that leads from Route 30 to the Archabbey complex, seeing the buildings on the horizon, and wondering what I was getting into.  It was my first time at Saint Vincent.  We pulled to the entrance of the Prep building (Benedict Hall) to which we had directions and entered the main entrance.  It was a portico in the center of a long brick building.  To the right, at the end of the hall, was a small stained glass window.  To the left, at the end of the hall was a large crucifix that was lighted.  The headmaster's office was to the left.  We met with Father Louis Sedlacko, the headmaster, introduced ourselves, were welcomed and oriented, and then directed to a tour of the building.  Beyond that I remember only the departure of my family, and the strange experienced of "being left behind".

     I have been trying to recall that first year and find that there are only a few memories.  Maybe it was the excitement of a new experience, or the fear of the unknown, or the busy schedule that filled the days, but there are only scattered memories. Here are some of those memories:  living in community - our study hall and rec room were on the second floor ... we lived on the top floor, with locker room, washroom, lavatory and dorm room.  All of our class of twenty-one slept in one large room, single beds ... what an experience.  Praying the Stations of the Cross during Lent in the huge and impressive Abbey Basilica Church.  I remember Saturday evening movies in the college auditorium for the students.  We were involved in many intermural sports programs and were introduced to soccer, which was brought to the school and the local community by Father Vernon Holtz, who is still an active member of the Benedictine community.

    The Saint Vincent Preparatory School began the year after Saint Vincent was founded.  From 1847 until the early 1970's it served the college community as a Prep School.  Until the Fall of 1961 it served the Scholasticate (the Benedictine students of high school age) and served as a regular Prep School for outside students, most residential with a few "day hops" (locals who lived at home and attended class on campus).  With our freshman class we were the "beginning of the end" of the Prep, for we were all students for the priesthood - Scholastic and Diocesan students.   The other Prep students treated us well, sometimes with "kid gloves" for we were "in a special category".  I made a number of friends among the Prep guys.

     The year went by quickly and we looked forward to our summer vacation, for the next year would involve a new living arrangement.   

The Journey - the beginning

         With the approach of the school year I have been thinking back to the beginning of my journey toward priesthood as I entered the seminary program for the Diocese of Greensburg.  Remember that this was a long time ago, in another age of the Church and in a different world.  I entered in my High School years (those that did so are called "lifers" - four years of High School, four of undergraduate college work and four of theological studies).   I entered at the ripe old age of thirteen way back in the Fall of 1961 - 61 years ago this Fall.

     I always wanted to be a priest.  From my earliest years family would tell me that that was my goal.  I was encouraged by the Religious Sisters who taught me, supported by my family and friends and inspired by our parish priests, in particular two who served us during my grade school years - our pastor Father Charles Kobylarz and one of our assistants, Father (later Bishop) Norbert Gaughan.  Father Charles was a young pastor, personable, and a good leader and Father Norbert was smart and a great preacher.   At my first Mass I acknowledged Father Charles as my inspiration.

     During my eighth-grade year I took the entrance exam with a few other boys from my class from Saint Joseph Parish School at Greensburg Central Catholic High School.  Having been accepted in the program, I remember attending a "gathering of the new class of students for the program" at Immaculate Conception Parish in Irwin (twelve years later I would serve there as an Associate Pastor).  Father Len Sanesi, the vocation director and Associate Pastor at IC at the time, arranged our meeting with Bishop William Connare.  One thing I remember about that meeting was the bishop saying (statistically) that we will be lucky to have one ordained from the group of about twenty-one young men.  We actually had two ordained priests: myself and another who was ordained later and subsequently resigned active ministry; and we would have two ordained as Deacons (one in California and the other, Deacon Bill Hisker, ministering in our own Diocese). 

     All of this led to our acceptance for the Diocese in the seminary program of formation that would begin at Saint Vincent Archabbey Preparatory School in Latrobe.  It was the beginning of an experience that I will share a little more with you the next post.  All of that began sixty-one years ago this Fall.

CATCHING UP

      They talk of the "hazy, lazy days of summer", and that is never truer than when you are in retirement - at least for me.  A month and a half have gone by since my last post, and while there have been thoughts and events that have come to mind, I have failed to put them in written form.  Let me give it a try again, with apologies.

     This past Sunday, the 20th of Summer Ordinary Time, we hear a reading from the Gospel of Luke, the 12th chapter.  In verse 49 Jesus says: "I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!"

     He goes on to say that he has come to shake up the complacent ... to challenge the status quo ... to call forth a passion within the hearts of people - a passion for God and a passion for the things of heaven - a passion that will transform lives.

     Fire is the key word here.  What does fire do?

     Fire destroys ... it can devastate a landscape, wipe out communities, bring death and destruction. ... as evidenced in the wildfires out West.  It is often seen as a punishment: the fire called down upon Sodom and Gomorrah or our describing hell in terms of punishing fire.

     Fire also purifies, taking the impurities from something - we see this in the refining fires of a forge or oven or blast furnace or kiln.

     Does Jesus not show us that the refining fire of his love will purify the heart of the repentant sinner and make them strong and worthy of his abiding grace?   That it will take away all division, hatred, hostility and selfishness.

     When the fire of his love stirs the pot, stirs our hearts so that that which is unworthy of God finds no place within us, then we will find the ability to live, to share his life with others, to create a kingdom that will last forever.

     There is a third kind of "fire", one that I believe Jesus is referring to here.  It is the fire of "PASSION" ... the fire that excites the heart and moves us to action.  It was seen in the "tongues of fire" at Pentecost that stirred the Apostles to leave the upper room and go first into the city and then to the ends of the earth proclaiming the Good News.  It is the "fire" burning within the hearts of the Emmaus travelers as they walk with him and broke bread.

     Ask for the fire of his passionate love in your heart, that we may together bear witness to his love.

AN EPIC BATTLE

     159 years ago today a three day battle of the Civil War in the United States began in a small town called Gettysburg.  The battle stretched over July 1, 2 & 3 in and around the town before the Confederate army began to retreat South.  This battle of Gettysburg is noted as a pivotal point in the war between the States, and is presented to youngsters who study history.  I recollect learning the basics when I was a kid - especially because, being from Pennsylvania, this battle was "in our backyard".

     But it was only thirty years ago that I developed a keen interest in this quiet Central Pennsylvania town and the battle that made it famous.  At that time I was pastor of the Church of Saint Paul in Greensburg (by the way, exactly 150 miles to the West of Gettysburg on Route 30).  My associate was Mike Ripple who had a special love of Gettysburg.  He had a distant relative that was deployed there during the battle.

     My love for things about the battle and the location had little to do with the military tactics (that's not my thing) but rather on the personal interest stories, the human elements of this struggle, and of the quiet peacefulness that I find in this place of great bloodshed and carnage.  I watched movies, read books, collected artwork, visited often and hold fond memories of experiences over the years.   Many times I drove Route 30, over the rolling hills and through small towns to enjoy walking the battlefields or having dinner at the Dobbin House (a great historic place to eat).

     Mike and I have remained great friends for these thirty years and I am grateful that he "reintroduced" me to Gettysburg.  On Monday of this week Mike and his family shared the loss of their Dad.  George Ripple, known to many as Pappy, died peacefully at the age of 98 at home.  George has been a good friend to me as well, and I pray for his Eternal Peace in glory.

    As I get older and as our struggle with the pandemic has made the pain of loss and death more impactful because of "distancing" and as more and more of my friends and acquaintances have died I find myself reflecting upon death more.  Gettysburg 159 year ago was all about death and destruction.  But today it is about learning lessons, celebrating peace and living life quietly.  A good lesson for me and all of us to contemplate. 

"A most pure heart" - Nicholas Flowers

      On Wednesday, May 25th, I concelebrated and preached the funeral of a young man whose name is Nichols Alexander Flowers.  Nick was 19 year old.  He is the son of Mickie and Larry Flowers, the brother of Maddie, Gabbie and Noah, the grandson of my cousin Larry and his wife Joyce and the grandson of Ray, a grade school classmate and his wife Patti.

     Less than four weeks ago life was normal, but within that time Nick found he had a heart problem and underwent major surgeries before leaving us this past Friday morning.  His passing was devastating, his funeral very sad, his spirit, though, overriding all these emotions, brought a smile to so many faces and peace to so many hearts.

    Many people said many things about Nick.  His family shared that he was "the sweetest, kindest, most loving soul.  He loved his family dearly."  He never, ever, had a mean word for anyone or about anything.  "He is without a doubt the most pure hearted person that we have ever known."

    This was echoed on social media by his high school band director who posted "I witnessed one of the kindest, happiest, purest young men I have ever met."  He said of Nick "His attitude instantly filled the entirety of every space he was in until there was no room for anything else but happiness."  "He always knew what was important, and was never afraid to remind us in his own gentle but insistent way."   This teacher concluded: "I will never have another student like him and you will never have another friend like him because he is one of a kind."  A great tribute.

Nick was involved in band and the drama club at Albert Gallatin High School and was currently on the dean's list in his freshman year at Penn State.

He was a kid that "went to bed with a smile on his face and woke up the same way."  He was a young man of deep faith and infectious joy.

     One person on facebook spoke of being inspired by this family every time they came into Saint Joseph Church, filled the pew, knelt in quiet prayer before greeting those around them and praying with the parish family at liturgy.

     Nick is a gift to us.  Nick in his young life knew that God had gifted him so that he could share that giftedness with others.  And he welcomed the gift that others are into his life.  No wonder he was such a pure heart who exuded happiness.  Thank you, Nick.

    He brings his joy to the home of his heavenly Father.  Our continued prayers to his Mom and Dad, sisters and brother, family and friends.

A GREAT FRIEND

      We are all too often touched by the experience of death in our lives, especially as we grow older.  

    I would like to mention the death of a very good friend from Masontown, who I have known since my arrival there as pastor at All Saints in October of 1986.  Her name is Donna Jean Parish.  Donna died on May 18th after a very long and courageous battle with cancer.

    Donna was loved and supported by and, as he told me yesterday, a blessing to her husband and best friend, George.  Their son, George and his wife Sarah, and their children Levi and Andrew were the joy of Donna's heart.

    Donna taught kindergarten at All Saints School for 26 years, touching a generation of lives with her faith, goodness and love.  Her funeral Mass was today.  How can I remember and honor her?  I think that I have found a way, with the help of one her former students, Drew Colebank, who wrote what follows below about this good woman.  I share his words, which her son, George, posted on facebook.  Thanks Drew.

From Drew Colebank regarding Donna Parish

How do you measure the life of a woman?  In the love she shared from her heart!

Did she leave the world better than she found?  A woman who taught a generation to keep the faith, always hope, and abide in love.

She taught a generation to care for each other, even in a careless world of bigotry.  She taught a generation to give to each other, even in a selfish world of vanity.  She taught a generation to seek peace, even in a violent world of hate.

 She comforted us as kindergarten children on the day the world stood still, 9/11 a day of crisis, while the world is in crisis still in senseless conflict and painful pandemic.

Is the world any better?  Absolutely!

It was not, is not, and will not be the same without this loving little servant who made an everlasting impact on the Kingdom of her God, a true saint of Christ.  She fought the good fight, a battle won!

"Well done, good and faithful servant!  You have been faithful over a few things.  I will make you a ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your Lord."  (Matthew 25:11)

Thanks, Drew ... and most especially - Thanks, Donna.  She now Rests in Peace.  I am blessed to call her a friend.

VIGIL REFLECTION

     I was asked to preach at our house Vigil celebration this year.  What follows is my reflection given this past Saturday evening to the men of the Neumann House residence for retired priests.

     We began our Triduum liturgy on Thursday by remembering - calling to mind as we heard the scriptures from Exodus the Passover supper of the first covenant - and then entering into the supper of the new covenant, doing as Jesus asked of us "in memory of me".  We recalled on Friday the suffering and death of Christ as we remembered the act of our redemption, the source of our salvation.  We reached out and touched the Cross which becomes our sign of victory.

      Tonight we continue to remember as we pledge to continue to walk in his way.  Our remembering involves the telling of our story, part one of our history.

     In 1981 there was a Mel Brooks comedy that came out entitled "History of the World, Part 1".  It presented a number of comedic scenes from human history from the cave man to Moses to Nero to the Spanish Inquisition to the French Revolution.  The Church tonight, in the beauty of the full liturgy and scriptures, gives us the REAL history of the world, part 1.

     From darkness and chaos and nothingness the Lord God said "Let there be light" ... he brought order to all created things ... and out of nothingness he brought life.  He crowned his creation by fashioning us (human beings) "in his image and likeness" and the befriending us.  But temptation and sin entered the picture and things went downhill from there.

     He called a people to himself in Abraham - and in the pivotal moment of our story freed them from slavery and bondage in Egypt and led them to a land flowing with milk and honey, a promised land.  There were highs and lows in this journey, all leading to the close of part 1 and the beginning of something new.

     That new thing, that new covenant was sealed with the ultimate sacrifice - the life of the Son of God on the tree of the Cross.  From this new Passover we experience a new exodus - from the darkness of our sin to reconciliation and the light of truth, through the chaos and confusion of a life lived in a troubled world to a way of living that IS peace, and from death in all of its forms to the new life of the risen Lord and the empty tomb.

     We will be invited in a moment to recall our baptismal promises and renew our commitment to this new covenant and the beginning of "the history of the world, part 2" - a journey that, while still not lived in perfection, is lived in hope and the assurance that the victory has been won ... the tomb is empty ... and we walk again, like in the garden of old, side by side in the friendship of Jesus, our Lord and Savior.

     Then, coming again to the table and recognizing him "in the breaking of the bread", we can go forth to witness with ALLELUIA on our lips and in our hearts. 

VIA DOLOROSA - completion

      I missed last Friday's post on the Way of the Cross, so I will complete our reflections on this Good Friday.

The Eleventh Station

JESUS IS NAILED TO THE CROSS

    The action of "nailing" the convict to the cross was not commonplace but reserved for the circumstances when a "point was to be made".  Usually the hands and feet were securely bound by ropes.  However we are bound to our cross, the pain is always there and usually excruciating.

    Sometimes our will is bound to the cross through the people that we are forced to bear or who we must serve or obey.  Sometimes it comes through sickness and disease without our being able to do anything about it.  Sometimes our being bound to our cross crushes our dreams, plans, and ambitions that keep us from touching the living God.

    Jesus willing allowed himself to be bound, with nails and ropes, to a cross for the redemption of all creation.  

The Twelfth Station

JESUS DIES UPON THE CROSS

    At the foot of the cross was his mother, Mary.  She stood there in anguish and sorrow.  Though Mary can do nothing at this moment, her inactivity is not paralysis.  It is an inward churning of love and wonder and sorrow.  If this is where her son leads her, then this is where she will stay.  She will want nothing else if this is the appointed end of the son whom she loves; the son who, far from receiving her loving care has become the master of her soul.

The Thirteenth Station

JESUS IS TAKEN DOWN FROM THE CROSS

    He has commended himself into the hands of his Father.  The crowds begin to disperse.  Those who love Jesus stay with him in stillness; those who hate, betray, or deny him leave, with many words and emotions.  Waiting with Christ in stillness, like Mary, means union with him.  It means knowing "the tragedy and the victory of his love."  It is called contemplation.  Are we found at the foot of the cross in prayer and contemplation, or have we moved on?  The great "Pieta" is the image of this Station.

The Fourteenth Station

JESUS IS LAID IN THE SEPULCHER

    The scriptures take the view that in living and dying, the best thing available to us is the knowledge of God.  As to knowing ourselves, that will come with knowing God.

    The Cross of Christ reveals God most truly because that is where he redeems the human beings that he has made, bringing them fully and finally into his purposes.  Wonderfully he allows us to embrace his Cross.  When the crucified comes to live with us, we die into his glorious Resurrection.

Remember, that Easter morning this sepulcher will be found empty ... but he is found in our midst.

VIA DOLOROSA - 9 & 10

      We continue with our journey to the Cross on Calvary with these next two Stations.

The Ninth Station

JESUS FALLS THE THIRD TIME

    Jesus fell three times, the Scriptures tell us.  Why?  Was there a reason beyond pain and exhaustion?  Maybe this third fall was for us, that we might find strength in his weakness and might not fall ourselves.  Or, if we do fall, we might love him whose battered face and pain filled eyes cast the look of love our way - and who picks us up because he fell bearing a Cross of love.

The Tenth Station

JESUS IS STRIPPED OF HIS GARMENTS

    Not since Adam and Eve clothed themselves with the skins God gave to them as he cast them out of the Garden has man's nakedness been anything other than a mark of his shame.  Christ's nakedness reverses that curse, and all who believe will be given robes of white, washed in the blood of the Lamb.

    That day they removed all his earthly clothes in order to prepare him for his robes of glory and triumph. 

A FRESH START

      At this stage in our Lenten journey we see invitations to parish Lenten Penance Services where the Sacrament of Reconciliation is celebrated.  It is a part of the penitential nature of the season.

The first reading for this Tuesday in Lent is from chapter 65 of the prophet Isaiah.  We read: "Thus says the Lord: Lo, I am about to create new heavens and a new earth.  The things of the past shall not be remembered or come to mind.  Instead, there shall always be rejoicing and happiness in what I create; For I create Jerusalem to be a joy and its people to be a delight; I will rejoice in Jerusalem and exult in my people."

    What powerful and affirming words ... what a reassurance to the heart that is lost in sin or the struggle to follow the Lord's way.

    The Sacrament of Reconciliation is about forgiveness of sins.  Recognizing our failures and desiring to be be set free and to begin anew, we come with a sincere heart and an open mind to the truth that the Lord is creating a new thing, opening for us the possibility to begin again, to make a fresh start, to be reconciled.

    A very important part of that gift is found in the words: "The things of the past shall not be remembered or come to mind."

    How hard it is for us to not remember - the hurts that we have experienced, the hurts and failures that we have inflicted upon others, the burden of our guilt and pain.  But God's word is clear.  Come to him with a truly repentant heart, trust in his mercy and love, and start fresh to walk in the way of the Lord.

    If you are contemplating taking part in a Lenten Penance Service this year, remember God's assurance that his grace will bring about a recreation in you.  Make a fresh start and be blessed.

VIA DOLOROSA - 7 & 8

      We continue with our journey with Jesus to the hill of Calvary with the next two Stations of the Cross.

The Seventh Station

JESUS FALLS THE SECOND TIME

Jesus fell once.  It was from weakness and pain but it was for something or someone.

    He fell the first time for those who set the murderous wheels of his passion and death in motion, Pilate and his emperor, the chief priests and religious leaders calling for his death, those blinded by power and their weakness.  He showed them the power of weakness when that power and weakness are called love.

    This second time he fell it was for those who followed and watched, sometimes at a distance as passive bystanders and sometimes as the crowd jeered his and called for his death.  They were caught in spiritual paralysis and guilt and blindness to suffering and death.  He fell that they might run to their merciful God.  

    He fell a second time and he got up again and stumbled forward to his death and our freedom.

The Eighth Station

JESUS MEETS THE WOMEN OF JERUSALEM

In Luke 23:28 Jesus says to these women along his path "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children."

    Jesus predicts a harsh future that his people will have because of their rejection of God's works of mercy and grace.  Jerusalem will ultimately fall to the Romans, the temple again destroyed and God's people once again dispersed.  When sorrows and pain touch our lives we must remember that redemption and joy are our destiny, when we weep for the crucified one and rejoice in the risen Lord. 

ACT OF CONSECRATION - Part 2

      We continue with "The Act of Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary" of Pope Francis given at Saint Peter Basilica on March 25, 2022.

"Therefore, O Mother, hear our prayer.

Star of the Sea, do not let us be shipwrecked in         the tempest of war.

Ark of the Covenant, inspire projects and paths     of reconciliation.

Queen of Heaven, restore God's peace to the            world.

Eliminate hatred and the thirst for revenge, and     teach us forgiveness.

Free us from war, protect our world from the         menace of nuclear weapons.

Queen of the Rosary, make us realize our need         to pray and to love.

Queen of the Human Family, show people the         path of fraternity.

Queen of Peace, obtain peace for our world.

    O Mother, may your sorrowful plea stir our hardened hearts.  May the tears you shed for us make this valley parched by our hatred blossom anew.  Amid the thunder of weapons, may your prayer turn our thoughts to peace.  May your maternal touch soothe those who suffer and flee from the rain of bombs.   May your motherly embrace comfort those forced to leave their homes and their native land.  May your Sorrowful Heart move us to compassion and inspire us to open our doors and to care for our brothers and sisters who are injured and cast aside.

    Holy Mother of God, as you stood beneath the cross, Jesus, seeing the disciple at your side, said: 'Behold your son' (Jn 19:26).  In this way he entrusted each of us to you.  To the disciple, and to each of us, he said: 'Behold, your Mother (v.27).  Mother Mary, we now desire to welcome you into our lives and our history.  At this hour, a weary and distraught humanity stands with you beneath the cross, needing to entrust itself to you and, through you, to consecrate itself to Christ.  The people of Ukraine and Russia, who venerate you with great love, now turn to you, even as your heart beats with compassion for them and for all those peoples decimated by war, hunger, injustice and poverty.

    Therefore, Mother of God and our Mother, to your Immaculate Heart we solemnly entrust and consecrate ourselves, the Church and all humanity,  especially Russia and Ukraine.  Accept this act that we carry out with confidence and love.  Grant that war may end and peace spread throughout the world.  The "Fiat" that arose from your heart opened the doors of history to the Prince of Peace.  We trust that, through your heart, peace will dawn once more.  To you we consecrate the future of the whole human family, the needs and expectations of every people, the anxieties and hopes of the world.

    Through your intercession, may God's mercy be poured out on the earth and the gentle rhythm of peace return to mark our days.  Our Lady of the "Fiat", on whom the Holy Spirit descended, restore among us the harmony that comes from God.  May you, our "living fountain of hope", water the dryness of our hearts.  In your womb Jesus took flesh; help us to foster the growth of communion.  You once trod the streets of our world; lead us now on the paths of peace.  Amen. 

ACT OF CONSECRATION

     After the apparitions at Fatima the Church offered prayers of Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary for Russia, what I remember were for the "conversion" of Russia.  A terrible atheistic communism was spreading and we offered prayers to the Blessed Virgin Mary for assistance.  During Pope John Paul II's pontificate he dedicated the entire world to the protection of Mary.  In light of the present unrest between Ukraine and Russia, Pope Francis is asking the Church once again to make an Act of Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary for her intercession.  He will do so at Saint Peter on the Solemnity of the Annunciation on March 25th of this year, 2022.  The Act of Consecration is long - two pages.  I would like to share it with you - but will do so in a few segments which you may piece together in your prayer.

    "O Mary, Mother of God and our Mother, in this time of trial we turn to you.  As our Mother, you love us and know us: no concern of our hearts is hidden from you.  Mother of mercy, how often we have experienced your watchful care and your peaceful presence!  You never cease to guide us to Jesus, the Prince of Peace.

    Yet we have strayed from that path of peace.  We have forgotten the lessen learned from the tragedies of the last century, the sacrifice of the millions who fell in two world wars.  We have disregarded the commitments we made as a community of nations.  We have betrayed peoples' dreams of peace and the hopes of the young.  We grew sick with greed, we thought only of our own nations and their interests, we grew indifferent and caught up in our selfish needs and concerns.  We chose to ignore God, to be satisfied with our illusions, to grow arrogant and aggressive, to suppress innocent lives and to stockpile weapons.  We stopped being our neighbor's keepers and stewards of our common home.  We have ravaged the garden of the earth with war and by our sins we have broken the heart of our heavenly Father, who desires us to be brothers and sisters.  We grew indifferent to everyone and everything except ourselves.  Now with shame we cry out: Forgive us, O Lord!

    Holy Mother, amid the misery of our sinfulness, amid our struggles and weaknesses, amid the mystery of iniquity that is evil and war, you remind us that God never abandons us, but continues to look upon us with love, ever ready to forgive us and raise us up to new life.  He has given you to us and made your Immaculate Heart a refuge for the Church and for all humanity.  By God's gracious will, you are ever with us; even in the most troubled moments of our history, you are there to guide us with tender love.

    Now we turn to you and knock at the door of your heart.  We are your beloved children.  In every age you make yourself known to us, calling us to conversion.  At this dark hour, help us and grant us your comfort.  Say to us once more: "Am I not here, I who am your Mother?"  You are able to untie the knots of our hearts and of our times.  In you we place our trust.  We are confident that, especially in moments of trial, you will not be deaf to our supplication and will come to our aid.

    That is what you did at Cana in Galilee, when you interceded with Jesus and he worked the first of his signs.  To preserve the joy of the wedding feast, you said to him: "They have no wine" (Jn 2:3).  Now, O Mother, repeat those words and that prayer, for in our own day we have run out of the wine of hope, joy has fled, fraternity has faded.  we have forgotten our humanity and squandered the gift of peace.  we opened our hearts to violence and destructiveness.  How greatly we need your maternal help!"

    [to be continued] 

BEING CULTIVATED

      Our gospel for this Sunday of Lent tells the story of the fig tree found in chapter 13 of Luke. [see Luke 13:1-9]

    Here we see a glimpse of the nature of God.  We hear: "There once was a person who had a fig tree planted in his orchard, and when he came in search of fruit on it found none."

    We know that our God has called us by name, gifted us with an abundance of his grace, and made clear that he has expectations for us.  Those expectations involve more than simply "growing where you are planted".  There is the expectation that the grace given will bear fruit and provide praise and glory for the name of God.

    Like the man in the story today, there is sometimes a disappointment that even after the years of our existence we might not be bearing fruit,  Our Lenten journey allows us to examine our lives and their productivity.

    The man in the story says to the gardener: "For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree but have found none.  So cut it down.  Why should it exhaust the soil?"  But the gardener intervened and begged to let him spend the next year cultivating the ground around the tree and fertilize it.  Then if it still does not bear fruit it will be cut down.

    Our God is a God of expectations.  He does not simply gift us and then leave us on our own, giving us the leeway to grow or not to grow.  He expects growth, he expects progress in living out his gifts, he awaits the proof of our faithfulness and the fruit of our lives lived well.

    Jesus is the gardener in this parable.  He appeals to the Father to give us a second chance - and then he works with us to bring out the best within us.

    Our God is a God of expectations - expectations that are tempered by patience which flows from his love.  In our weakness there are moments when the fruit that we bear is not evident and in those moments he has the right to "cut us down".  However the nature of God will not allow him to do so easily ... rather he pledges to work with us, to cultivate us, to fertilize us [just think of the things that we sometimes have to deal with] and to bring out the best in us.

    Our God is a God of patient love, and while we may find ourselves condemned by refusing his gardening skills, we are also assured that if we are willing to allow him, he will do everything to bring his life to us.  Thank his for his patient love. 

SAINT JOSEPH

      Yesterday was the Feast of Saint Joseph, the spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  It is one of two feasts honoring Joseph (the other, May 1st - Saint Joseph the Worker).  As Patron of the Universal Church, Joseph holds a special place of honor and respect in our hearts.  Here is what Saint Bernadine of Siena had to say of Joseph.  It comes from the Office of Readings for the feast.

    "What then is Joseph's position in the whole Church of Christ?  Is he not a man chosen and set apart?  Through him and, yes, under him, Christ was fittingly and honorably introduced into the world.  Holy Church in its entirety is indebted to the Virgin Mother because through her it was judged worthy to receive Christ.  But after her we undoubtedly owe special gratitude and reverence to Saint Joseph.

    In him the Old Testament finds its fitting close.  He brought the noble line of patriarchs and prophets to its promised fulfillment.  What the divine goodness had offered as a promise to them, he held in his arms."

    We pray: "Remember us, Saint Joseph, and plead for us to your foster-child.  Ask your most holy bride, the Virgin Mary, to look kindly upon us, since she is the mother of him who with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns eternally,  Amen"

VIA DOLOROSA - 5 & 6

     We continue our journey to the hill of Calvary by looking at the 5th and 6th Station of the Cross.

STATION 5 - THE CROSS IS LAID ON SIMON OF CYRENE

    Simon of Cyrene is pressed into service to help carry the Cross for Jesus, but the Cross belongs to Jesus to bear.  We can look at Simon as our forefather in the faith.  We learn to love the Cross by embracing it, kissing it like we do on Good Friday.  The Cross that we reluctantly yet willing accept is the Cross found in the difficulties of the world, or our unfulfilled longings and yearnings and in every cry of pain and agony.

    We come to love the Cross because of Christ and the love in which he bore the original.  Simon helped Jesus bear his Cross - through the helping hands of our neighbors and through God's grace, we are not left alone to bear our crosses.  Like Simon we stand with those in need and like Simon our friends stand with us in the carrying of our burdens, our crosses.

STATION 6 - VERONICA WIPES THE FACE OF JESUS

    The person of Veronica is not found in Scripture, but the action of one who responds to agony and pain, to the need for an act of kindness is not only found in the Scriptures but demanded in the Gospels.  Thus the Church gives us this moment of compassion.

    The face of Jesus is ultimately inseparable from the image of his crown of thorns and the injury inflicted by the blows of his tormentors.  The face of suffering revealed to Veronica (revealed to us) will soon be the face of glory.  His face will shine upon us and we will know peace as we see him face to face.  

    May we be a Veronica to those most in need and may Gospel love be brought to the world through us.

SAINT PATRICK

      The following was given me at lunch today by one of our priests, Father Jeremiah O'Shea.  It was on a shamrock bookmark.

St. Patrick

Bishop of Armagh (died 461), was a Roman citizen who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in Ireland.  After escaping to his native Britain, Patrick heard a voice telling him to return to Ireland to serve the people he had met there.  It is said that St. Patrick used the shamrock to teach about the Trinity.  It's three-in-one leaves symbolize Father, Son and Holy Spirit in one Supreme Being.  The Irish people knew intuitively that God is present in all of creation, and St. Patrick showed them that, in the mystery of the Holy Trinity, God was beyond all of creation as well.

"I bind unto myself the name, 

The strong name of the Trinity by invocation of             the same.  

The Three in One and One in Three, 

Of whom all nature has creation.  

Eternal Father, Spirit, Word, 

Praise to the Lord of my salvation;  

Salvation is of Christ the Lord!"

            From St. Patrick's Breastplate

HAPPY SAINT PATRICK DAY!

THE MOUNTAINTOP - A DIFFERENT VIEW

         I recorded the voice over this afternoon for the broadcast on WAOB of Pope Francis' homily for last Sunday.  The gospel story was "the transfiguration" and here were a few of his thoughts that I found helpful.

    "Jesus 'went up the mountain'.  Jesus' path is one of ascent, not descent.  The light of the transfiguration is not seen on the plain, but only after a strenuous ascent.  In following Jesus, we too need to leave the plains of mediocrity and the foothills of convenience; we need to abandon our reassuring routines and set out on an exodus.  

    Brothers and sisters, only the ascent of the cross leads to the goal of glory.  This is the way: from the cross to glory.  The worldly temptation is to seek glory by surpassing the cross.  We would prefer paths that are familiar, direct and smooth, but to encounter the light of Jesus we must continually leave ourselves behind and follow him upwards."

TRANSFIGURATION THOUGHTS

      The gospel reading for the 2nd Sunday of Lent is from Luke 9:28-36.

    Jesus had called his disciples ... he taught with great wisdom and with a message that moved hearts ... he touched the lives of those on the peripheries, those hurting in body and soul ... he healed the sick ... he raised the dead to life.   He sparked among his people a hope that their long exile, their time of waiting for the Lord's coming, was at an end.   Things were hopeful ... things were getting better ... they could see prophecies being fulfilled.

    But Jesus knew what was coming - for him and for them.   And he sought to prepare them.

    Jesus took Peter, John and James, his closest friends and companions, to the mountaintop.   They followed him with an expectation that they would spend time in prayer before God.   Another intimate moment.

    But Jesus knew the tremendous challenge awaiting them with his rejection, arrest and crucifixion.   This would be a time of terrible darkness for them, unless they had something unexpected and marvelous to hold on to.

    So on that mountaintop, a place where God is often found, they found God in the most unlikely place - in their friend and teacher, Jesus.

    "His face changed in appearance and his clothes became dazzling white."  He was revealed by a voice from heaven: "This is my chosen Son, listen to him."   With this glimpse of Jesus in his glory, they were overwhelmed.

    Peter, John and James were never the same ... those they told, those that heard their witness were strengthened for the dark days ahead.   Those who had doubts found courage to believe.   And even though the scriptures say that they remained silent and told no one what they saw, this did not last long.   You cannot keep the Word of God under wraps.

    But something else happened.   In that encounter, with the transfigured Jesus seen with Moses (representing the Law) and Elijah (representing the prophets), all creation was brought to perfection.

    The knowledge that God in all his glory as seen in Jesus on that mountaintop is the God that draws us to himself and desires to share himself intimately with us.   We share his glory, as he shares our humanity.   This does not make us gods ... but it allows us to be God-like.

    Our lives lived in love in the pattern of our Lord is the gift that we affirm today on this Sunday of Lent and pledge to live well.

VIA DOLOROSA - 3&4

      Continuing our journey on this Way of the Cross, we will look on this second Friday of Lent on Stations 3 & 4.

STATION 3 - JESUS FALL THE FIRST TIME    

    Our third station is to reflect that in his journey to Calvary Jesus fell three times.  This moment of reflection is on the first of those falls.  Jesus, remember, had fasted and prayed, he had been arrested and scourged, handled cruelly and made to carry the instrument of his death, the cross.  Whether it was the traditional image of the cross or simply the crossbeam as some say, it was a tremendous burden.  And he stumbled and fell to the ground.

    We often stumble and fall even when the burdens we carry are less severe and we are in better shape.  The question is: "What do we do when we fall?"  Do we lie there or do we get up and continue our journey?  Do we keep going even when it is tough?

    Jesus was weighed down not only with the wood of the cross, but with the rejection of his people, with the accusations of his religious leaders, with the condemnation of Pilate and the anger of the crowd, with the hatred that was the response to his love.

STATION 4 - JESUS MEETS HIS MOTHER

    Mary was there.  She was comforted by John and Mary and her friends.  She was a mother who was in true anguish and pain.  We call Mary the sorrowful mother, for as Simeon had predicted, a sword of sorrow pierced her heart.

    Pause and imagine what she was going through.  Then pause and remember that as great as her sorrows were that day, she did not despair.  She saw her son broken, but she saw His Son offered as a sacrifice for everyone.  She would see him "lifted up" and she would see him raised from death.

    Mary's sorrows (and joys) continue as she watches us continue to struggle to be free and to find in her son our true freedom.  Mary, we love you!  Pray for us!

POWER OF THE WORD

      The first reading for Wednesday of the first week of Lent comes from chapter 3 of the Book of Jonah.  We find Jonah finally responding to the word of God to go to the city of Nineveh and bring God's word to that sinful city.  After only one day of calling the Ninevites to repentance and to action, they responded.  A truly miraculous encounter with the power of God's word.

    With one week of Lent under our belts, we too are presented with the challenge to see God's word to us, in Scripture and in prayer, as more than "just words".

    I really like the words of Pope Francis, they speak to my heart.  Here is what he has said about the Word of God.

    The word of God changes us ... It penetrates our soul like a sword.  If, on the one hand it consoles us by showing us the face of God, on the other, it challenges and disturbs us, reminding us of our inconsistencies.  It shakes us up.  It does not bring us peace at the price of accepting a world rent by injustice and hunger, where the price is always paid by the weakest.  God's word challenges the self-justification that makes us blame everything that goes wrong on other persons and situations.  The word of God invites us to come out into the open, not to hide behind the complexity of problems, behind the excuse that "nothing can be done about it" or "it's somebody else's problem", or "what can I do?"   The word of God urges us to act, to combine worship of God and care for man.  

    The Word wishes to take flesh today, in the times in which we are living, not in some ideal future.

    Are we a Church that is docile to the word?  A Church inclined to listen to others, engaged in reaching out to raise up our brothers and sisters from all that oppress them, to undo the knots of fear, to liberate those most vulnerable from the prisons of poverty ... from the sadness that stifles life?

    We might add, from the terrors of fear and war.  The news these past two weeks has been filled with images and news of Ukraine's terrible Lent of occupation.  I've heard many people, even non religious people, say that they are "praying for the people of Ukraine".  The Word of God calls for prayer ... but also for action.  Jonah did not expect anything to happen in Nineveh, but was he surprised!  May we find ourselves surprised when the power of the Lord's word, in prayer and in active participation in the suffering of our sisters and brothers, changes hearts and minds and brings peace.

GOD'S LESSONS

      The Office of Readings from the Divine Office, the liturgical prayer life of the Church and her priests often contain great little nuggets for reflection.  The second reading for this Tuesday of the First Week of Lent is from a treatise on the Lord's Prayer by Saint Cyprian.  Cyprian was an early bishop and martyr who lived in Carthage in North Africa and died in 258.  Here is his opening paragraph.

    "Dear brothers, the commands of the gospel are nothing else than God's lessons, the foundations upon which to build up hope, the supports for strengthening faith, the food that nourishes the heart.  They are the rudder for keeping us on the right course, the protection that keeps our salvation secure.   As they instruct the receptive minds of believers on earth, they lead safely to the kingdom of heaven."

    The gospel message, the witness by Jesus of the Father's love for us, is the lesson that we should strive to understand better and live more fully this Lenten season.  Promise yourself this blessing.