Archives for February 2018

Asking about how we use our always available resource of prayer is no different from asking ourselves how we use any of our available resources. Suppose I have some good medical training under my belt. Now I am driving someplace and see an accident of any kind. And I decide not to help this or that person. I don’t even bother to call 911. A phone is, after all, another resource. So that is two resources that I choose not to use. Now the person in the accident dies. Don’t you feel that there should be someone saying to me, “shame on you?” I certainly think so.

Now, to be honest with you, I do not have any formal medical training. I wonder how many people do, in fact. However, all of us can pray. At a minimum the vast majority of us have at least one memorized prayer that we probably learned as a child. And I dare say that most of us can do better than one memorized prayer. So, that’s a resource that we have. How well do we use this resource?

Whenever I read in the newspaper of someone who died, I immediately say a prayer for that person’s soul. If I am driving and see either a police cruiser or an ambulance go past me with sirens and lights on, I feel compelled to say a prayer then too. I may even pray in my own words. “God, please be present to whoever is in need!”

I know that I shared with you that my father, who always wore a hat, would tip his hat whenever he drove past a Catholic Church. If he didn’t wear a hat that particular day, he would slightly bow his head. That’s as good a prayer as any! He is, after all, acknowledging God! It’s like the man sitting in a church in the mid 19th century just gazing at the Tabernacle. The pastor there was a famous saint named St. Jean-Marie-Baptiste Vianney. Curious, St. John went up to him and asked how he prayed. The man responded, “I look at him and he looks at me!” Yes, that is prayer too!

So how well do we ourselves utilize this resource that all of us have? The resource of prayer? Suppose our prayer would make all the difference in the world? Would we regret not praying? I would certainly think so. And it does, you know, make a difference. In some studies that I have read at least, it would stun you to discover how much a difference it makes objectively to a situation. And you would be amazed to learn how much a difference it makes to us to pray! If I knew how much I, myself, am healed when I pray for another, I don’t think that I would stop praying! The effect both on myself and others is that powerful. Blessed Lawrence of the Resurrection said that we would be amazed if we knew what our souls said to God in the middle of the night. Wow! So many people of all walks of life, both religious and scientific, all saying the same thing. It has to make you wonder; wonder enough anyway that you cannot help but be encouraged to pray more. I do pray for you. Please pray for me as well!

Peace, Fr. Walt

The meaning of this title is very important. Lent is not just a journey to show us a different color for the priest’s vestments, in this case purple. Instead, this season is symbolic and offers us ever deeper meaning. For example: We are beautiful creations of God. This statement is true. And God is very merciful. This is also true, so true in fact, that Pope Francis declared 2016 to be a year of Mercy. Adding on, we see where Christ says that we should love others as ourselves. It is a very good self-examination for us to ask ourselves if we believe this teaching of the Lord. Do we love ourselves? Can we forgive ourselves? This type of question that we can ask ourselves can in turn influence how we love and forgive others. There is an old saying, “Hurt people hurt people. ”Yep! If I’m hurt and I cannot let it go; if I can’t forgive myself in other words, I end up in a position where I can easily hurt someone else. Now, if I can forgive myself, and in this way show love for myself, then I am in a better position to be loving to other people.

This pastor page reflection at this point has a “feel good” message to it. But it’s not complete. Let’s go deeper. Pope Francis is typically criticized for always, and maybe only, talking about Mercy. Some people say that he is watering down the faith. But is this statement really accurate? Yes, on one hand he does speak of Mercy a great deal. On the other hand, he excommunicated the Mafia, disciplined a Bishop in Germany, and has chastised much of the governmental structure of the Vatican. Does this sound like someone who cannot balance Mercy with Justice? It does not sound that way to me. Rather, it sounds like Pope Francis can balance Mercy and Justice quite well.

So what does this discussion have to do with us? Well, we should follow suit for one thing. We need to see ourselves in the most loving light. We must realize that God IS a God of Mercy, and that His Mercy is always extended toward us. And we need to accept His Mercy and receive it. He already has been merciful to us! After all, He gave us the Church and its commandments. He gave us the sacrament of confession, where His Mercy can really be experienced. However, in realizing this fact and accepting it, we will have to accept the reality that we sin, and that expressing sorrow for our sins is the primary way we can be open to His Mercy.

And that brings us to Lent. This is the primary season where we are called to recognize our sinfulness and to ask God for His forgiveness. To help us in this part of our spiritual journey, many resources are made available to us so that we leave the season of Lent with a deepened awareness of God and with a desire to draw closer to Him. So, we offer you a Lenten Mission Speaker in March. We already have organizations in the parish designed to deepen your spiritual life, like WELCOME, (formerly Christ Renews His Parish) which there are retreat weekends coming up! All ministry naturally blossoms out of real and true spiritual life. And the Ultimate aim of WELCOME, after a process of spiritual renewal with the help and support of other parishioners, ends with some freely chosen parish ministry. Sharing your own spiritual experiences, in turn, deepens your own spiritual life even more. Please do take advantage with all that our parish offers!

Peace, Fr. Walt

Most of our praying involves the use of words. There are some people who pray in silence, but such are few and far between. The use of words is far more common. Because such usage predominates our spiritual thinking so much, in my opinion it is not a bad idea for us in this season of Lent to take a good look at the words we use in describing our spiritual life.

Words can give us so much energy, and as a result, inspire us! Make us more optimistic in how we face this very day, if not the day after and the one after that. For example, some people might say that they are “seekers of truth.” Such a phrase sounds noble as it communicates to other people what seems to be a very high goal in that person’s life. However, consider the phrase “finder of truth,” instead of “seeker of truth.” For many people, the phrase that includes the word “finder” has even more energy yet. A “seeker” may indeed seek but always come up hands empty.

The word “finder” has more surety to it. It is a more confidant and optimistic wording. And as far as Christian thinking goes, it is more accurate indeed.

How about the words we use to describe our Lenten journey? Quite naturally we use words and phrases such as “penance,” giving things up for Lent, and “sacrificing” as our main thematic words. They are all accurate enough to describe our Lenten liturgical season, much as a “seeker of truth” is an accurate way of describing the Christian path understood in a more rudimentary way. However, consider other wording to describe the season of Lent. Consider “enlarging our hearts,” “opening ourselves up to greater healing,” and “deepening our experience and ultimately our understanding of Mercy.” Here, the understanding is that although we seem to be giving this or that up for Lent, we are communicating to ourselves and others that we are really receiving and receiving more than we think. Am I really sacrificing when in fact my heart is enlarging more by Lenten practice to experience more of God’s love? How is drawing close to God a sacrifice?

Words paint pictures. Words communicate how much or little we understand of the spiritual path.

As the spiritual path cannot be seen directly, we use words within metaphors to make sense of it.

We use words to approximate our understanding of it. Change a word or wording, and we may

find our understanding deepens. That is why so many scholars study the ancient languages when studying the Bible. One simple English Bible is hardly adequate. To get a really good understanding, one needs several English translations and a good appreciation of the ancient Biblical languages. This has always been true.

We don’t have to go that far ourselves to understating the Bible. A Bible with good footnotes and a decent commentary thrown in for good measure can take us a long way. And looking at the words we use right now to describe our Lenten journey, and changing the accordingly to more energized and optimistic wordings can take us further yet. It is all prayer, but prayer ought to take us deeper along the path, rather than leaving us in any one place. For this season of Lent, let’s go as deep as we can.

Peace, Fr. Walt