Homily for Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time - February 1, 2015

Homily for Ordinary Time 4

February 1, 2015

By Whose Authority?

 

            A friend of mine who is a priest in Alabama told me a funny story one time. He had gotten a request to go and bless someone’s house, so he went out to the house, but when he got there, he was met by three African-American women who he didn’t recognize. They invited him in and asked him to bless the house, explaining that they had been having some strange things happening – hearing creepy sounds, feeling “presences”, and having things move around on their own in the house. So the priest blessed the house quickly, a little creeped out by being in a “haunted house”. As he was preparing to leave, the women were most grateful, but he asked them, “Are you parishioners at my parish? I don’t recognize seeing you at Mass.”

            They replied, “Oh, no, Father. We’re Baptists.”

            The priest was startled and said, “Really? Then why did you call a Catholic priest?”

            They said, “Well, don’t you guys deal with stuff like this? You know, demons and ghosts and all that? We love our pastor, but he doesn’t do this kind of stuff!”

            The priest said he got a good laugh out of this, but it also reminded him of the authority of the priest – and the Church – to continue Christ’s work on earth. Today’s Gospel tells the story of Jesus casting out a demon. Demons must obey Jesus because Jesus has the authority to tell them what to do. If someone without authority tried to kick out a demon, they would probably just laugh in his face. In fact, that happened in Scripture – in the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 19, some men were jealous of St. Paul’s ability to cast out demons in the name of Jesus. Seven sons of the Jewish High Priest tried to cast out a demon in a possessed man, in the name of Jesus (who they didn’t believe in). The demon responded to them, “I know Jesus, and I know Paul, but who are you?” Then the possessed man, filled with an evil strength, jumped these seven guys and beat them up so badly that all of them ran from the house, naked and bleeding. (It’s right there in Scripture – you can’t make this stuff up!). They didn’t have the authority to do this – only Jesus has the authority to cast out demons.

            But Christ wanted to continue His ministry even after He ascended to Heaven, so on the day He ascended into Heaven, He passed onto His Apostles “all authority in Heaven and earth.” (Matthew 28). He told Peter, the first pope, that what he “bound on earth would be bound in Heaven.” In other words, Jesus passed on His authority to Peter and the Apostles – the Pope and the Bishops.

            What does that authority allow the Pope and Bishops to do? It allows them to teach in the name of Jesus Christ. We call this the Magisterium – the teaching office of the Church. When the Pope and Bishops, united with each other, teach something as definite, we believe that they are protected by the Holy Spirit from making a mistake. They are teaching with the authority of Christ.

            I have a dear friend who is a devout Baptist. About two weeks before my ordination to the priesthood, he invited me to go hiking. I can’t turn down a hiking trip – ever – so I agreed, and we got up to beautiful view and sat down for a snack, when he pulled out his bible and said to me, “I think you’re making a terrible mistake by becoming a priest.” And then he proceeded to try to convince me to become a Baptist. I thought to myself, “Oh geez, here it goes…” and I briefly entertained the thought of pushing him off the cliff (just kidding), but we began a rousing discussion about the Bible and his understanding of it. He is a holy man, and loves Jesus deeply, but the problem with all of the Protestant churches is that they have no authority to interpret the Bible accurately! There are over 32,000 different Protestant denominations, all using the same Bible for their faith. The reason for their division then, if they all use the same Bible, is the fact that no one can agree on an authoritative interpretation of it! Which parts do we take literally, and which parts are symbolic? For example, my friend was telling me that his church teaches that when Jesus said, “Eat My Body and drink My Blood,” He meant it symbolically only. But what gives him or his pastor the authority to interpret that passage that way, especially since for the first 1500 years after Christ, everyone interpreted that passage literally? Not everyone who reads the Bible has the authority to interpret it properly.

            Only when Christ gives us the authority, do we have the authority to teach according to the mind of Christ. And He gave that authority to the Holy Father and bishops. None of us – myself included – have the authority to change church teaching to suit our preferences! It boggles my mind when people say to me something like, “Oh, I don’t go to church every Sunday, but I’m sure God understands.” Oh? Where do you get your knowledge of what God likes or doesn’t like? So God doesn’t mind if you break a commandment? I’m pretty sure they’re just saying that to make themselves feel better. We must always look to the Church to understand what truly pleases God. If we try to get to God on our own, outside of the Church, we will end up shaping God in our own image!

            And the Church has no authority on its own – it has to be faithful to the teachings of Christ and the H we will end up shaping God in our own image!

 truly does please God. oly Spirit. That’s what many in the media don’t understand. If you read any of the media coverage of the Pope’s recent trip to the Philippines, the mainstream media was very disappointed that the pope reiterated the Church’s unchanging teaching that artificial birth control is gravely immoral. The media was hoping that the Pope could just go against the consistent, timeless teaching of the Church which was handed down from the Apostles. But that is silly – the Church is not just another institution that can “update” itself according to the whims of the world. No, the Church hands on a tradition that was handed to her by Jesus and the Apostles, because She has the authority to continue the ministry of Christ in the world. In the Gospel, Jesus used His authority to cast out demons. Today, the Church uses her authority to cast out the demons of sin in our lives so that we can live in freedom and joy as sons and daughters of God.

            Trust and follow the teachings of the Church. If we do not, then we make ourselves our own authorities – and just like that didn’t end well for the seven men in the Acts of the Apostles who tried to cast out demons on their own authority, it won’t end well for us either! Trust the Church like you trust Jesus – both Jesus and the Church want your deep happiness, true freedom, and eternal salvation.

Homily for Ordinary Time 3 - January 25, 2015

Ordinary Time 3

January 25, 2015

The Desires of God

 

            St. Francis may be known as the patron saint of animals, looking cute as part of an outdoor birdbath, but he was a fiercely holy man. Yet he didn’t start out that way. He was a worldly playboy as a young man, someone who loved being the life of the party. Popular with the ladies, good-looking, athletic, and wealthy, he had everything the world could want. He spent his early days pursuing wealth and fame through the military. When he was in his mid-twenties, however, he was fighting in a battle against a neighboring town when he was captured and thrown into prison.

            His time in prison allowed him a chance to reflect upon his life. Francis started to realize that all of his money, all of his popularity – it all left him empty in the long run. What good was it for him to have all this, when he didn’t have any peace in his soul? He was always striving for something more. In his former life, his appetite for sex and money and expensive clothes was never satisfied – it had only grown more and more. And yet, his life seemed to have no purpose! When he was finally released from prison a year later, he realized that his whole life had to change in order for him to find happiness.

            He began to avoid the raucous parties and spend more time in prayer. Once, when his father (a rich cloth merchant) was away on a business trip, Francis sold all of his expensive cloth and gave the money to the poor. His new life consisted of prayer, penance, fasting and poverty – in a word, suffering. But it brought him more joy than his former life of pleasure.

            What do you think God wants for you? If you ask Joel Osteen, he would say God wants you to be rich and successful in the world’s eyes. If you ask most Catholics, they would probably say the opposite – God wants us to be miserable; after all, why else would He give us the Ten Commandments? I stopped into our fourth grade religious education class two weeks ago and asked the kids, “What do you think God does all day?” One precocious boy raised his hand and said, “I think He sits in Heaven, waiting for you to mess up.”

            What kind of God is that? I wouldn’t want a relationship with a “police-officer God” either. But what if I told you that God wants you to have greater joy, deeper healing, true peace? God is a good Father – and what father or mother among us wouldn’t want their kids to be happy and healthy?

            The problem is, we often don’t know what makes us deeply happy or fulfilled. And that is precisely why our readings today speak about repentance. We try to pursue this false type of happiness, which might tide us over for a moment, but ultimately leaves us empty. So Christ invites us to leave behind those empty pleasures and instead find true joy. That is what repentance is all about.

            For many of us, repentance is a negative thing – DON’T do your sins, GIVE UP your little pleasures. Yes, that is part of it – but it’s more like we’re giving up an artificial joy for a real one. It’s kind of like a little kid putting a piece of plastic in his mouth, and the parent takes that out and instead gives him a real lollipop. The kid will throw a temper tantrum for a while, even though the parent is really trying to look out for him so he doesn’t choke or eat plastic. Instead, the parent gives them a true treat, but the kid still wants the false one. This is the same with God – He urges us to give up our false happiness so we can have our hands empty to receive true joy – but we have to be willing to give up the false happiness of our sins.

            A defining moment in my life was when I was probably 14 or so. I had just come home from a school dance, which was tons of fun, but I remember sitting in my bedroom thinking, “Wow, that dance was great…but now what?” I just felt so empty, already striving and trying to figure out what the next thrill would be. My life was not yet built on the rock of my friendship with Christ, which provides a bedrock of joy that is deeper than just what happens to us. But in order to know Christ, I had to give up my sins, trading in the empty pleasures for true joy.

            Let’s take a practical example. Let’s say we are tempted to gossip and spread someone’s faults. Will that give us some momentary pleasure? Yes, I suppose so. But look at the results of that sin – we will feel guilty later, we will have ruined someone’s good name, and other people will trust us less. All bad effects –and they last a lot longer than the rush of pleasure. Is it harder to follow the right path? You bet. Does it cost us something; do we suffer a little while for following Christ? Absolutely. Does it lead to joy abundant? Without a doubt.

            I love what CS Lewis said about this: “It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased!”

            So when we hear Jesus crying out, “Repent!”, don’t think of it as a negative. He is inviting you into the fullness of abundant life that He offers. What does God want for you? It’s very simple – He wants you to experience joy – which requires that we give up the lies and false promises of our sins.

Inspiration & Apathy

* Note: This was part of a blog I wrote for the Archdiocese of Baltimore in 2008 *

            Apathy can be one of the most discouraging things that we face as priests and seminarians. Our hearts are so consumed with the love of God that we don’t understand why the rest of the world isn’t inflamed with the same madness. And yet, the desire is there…the desire to know and love the Lord, if only we know where to look and how to approach it…

            I just got back from a week-long Work Camp in Binghamton, NY. It was a great week – the weather was beautiful, the job was interesting and challenging, and our accommodations were, well, stinky (in fact they stank so much that one night some of the boys thought it would be a good idea to put an entire bottle of baby powder in a fan and turn it on, to improve the smell…of course as we were hacking and coughing as our lungs dried out (for baby powder was never meant to be airborne) and a thin layer of white dust settled over everything, we began to think that perhaps that wasn’t the greatest idea ever).

            And yet the best part of that week was seeing how grace was moving in the hearts of these teens. A few examples:

            We had a “prayer wall” where people wrote down their prayers on a big sheet of paper that covered the wall. Usually people would walk right by it, maybe say a quick prayer, but usually ignore it. Well, one of our boys decided that every night he would say a Hail Mary, on his knees, for each of the prayers on the prayer wall. So there he was, for forty-five minutes, kneeling in front of the prayer wall, praying a Hail Mary for every single intention on the wall. He didn’t care what everyone else was thinking – he had a heart after the Heart of Christ.

            On the first night, I was going to pray the Rosary while walking, so I decided to invite anyone who wanted to come and join me. We had six people that night. Not bad, I thought. Good to see that at least a few of these kids enjoyed the Rosary. Well, the next night that number doubled…and then tripled the night after that. By the final evening, we had thirty of our high-school teens walking in a huge group in the dark on an empty football field, praying the Rosary. How cool is that!

            We also had Mass offered twice while we were there. While it was completely optional, ten kids showed up, along with all of the adult chaperones! I was blown away! Wow, what a hunger for God.

            Every night we would have late-night discussions in our room (which held about 25 guys – hence, the stink). What do you think teenage guys would want to discuss – girls, or sports, or cars? How about theology and philosophy? Every night we would have these deep discussions about whether or not God exists, how can we prove that there is a Heaven, who our favorite saints were, what God’s grace was doing in our lives, and the like. I’ve never seen so many teens so longing for truth! It was inspiring and really cool.

            I had been a little bit bummed coming into that week, frustrated at the apathy that was so present in the parish, feeling like nothing could be done to set hearts ablaze. But I left that week with renewed vigor, realizing that these teens really did care about God and about eternal realities. How good God’s grace is!

In the Vineyard

* Note: This was part of a blog I wrote for the Archdiocese of Baltimore in 2008 *

            I have been mulling a lot over the difference between the lay and clerical states. I guess it kind of came up in our area clergy meeting, where some people were praising the roles of lay ecclesial ministers. And truly, their role is an important one and the Church could not function without them. But it made me start to think, gee, if I can have such a happy, satisfied life serving the Church as a layman (without those “burdensome” promises of chastity and obedience), why wouldn’t I choose that over being a priest?

            So this got me thinking. What is it, exactly, about the clerical state that differentiates one from the laity? I came up with three things:

 

            First, we are an eschatological sign. Or, to put it in simpler terms, we point to eternity. In fact, we point, not only to eternity, but to Christ.

            Our director of adult faith formation was commenting one time at a staff meeting that she was frustrated how she often stands outside of Mass to greet people along with the priests. Many people would pass right by her and go to greet the priests instead.

            Well, we should greet EVERYONE in Church, but this example showed me something profound. They didn’t greet us because we were better, smarter, more proficient, more kind, for I know many lay ministers who are far better, smarter, more talented and more charitable than I am. But rather, they came to us priests (and wanna-be’s) because to them we represented something more than ourselves – we stood for Christ. We pointed to a heavenly reality in a way that a lay minister can’t. Simply because we have consecrated ourselves to Christ, we stand for Him and reflect Him in a unique way, however imperfectly.

 

            Which brings me to my second discovery, the idea of being consecrated to Christ. Lay people are Christian ministers with 9-5 jobs (of course, any youth minister could tell you that the hours are slightly more crazy than that…). But a priest is someone who is 24/7 a minister.

            One time a priest invited me to go with him to someone’s house, but he said, “You don’t have to come if you don’t want to, if you don’t want to be ‘on’ for the evening.” I thought this was ludicrous – my consecration to Christ and my Christian witness is hopefully not something that I can turn ‘on’ or ‘off’. Rather, it should be something that permeates my entire being and is reflected in every aspect of my life. I cannot “go home” like lay ministers can – when they go home, they are no longer “the youth minister” or “the DRE”. But priests are always priests – at home and away, on vacation, with their family, and with their parish.

            Now, this aspect I definitely live imperfectly. It’s tough to have that integration, to be ALWAYS a Christian, even in traffic and standing at the checkout counter (two places where I struggle to practice charity!). But I still believe that it is an ideal to live up to.

 

            Because of the consecration to Christ, the third aspect necessarily follows: we are consecrated to His Bride, the Church, in a unique and special way. When parish events conflict with family obligations, many lay ministers have the freedom to choose their families over their job. But we have no such luxury. Our new family is the Church – our parish. This isn’t to say that we don’t have time with our families or that we can’t take a vacation, but in a very real way we have the duty and privilege to be there for our parishioners.

            And this is not true with lay ministers. For married lay ministers, their first obligation is their spouse and family. Even for single lay ministers, they have other obligations that take up their time. We, however, are to live and die for our parishioners. This, I think, is why “Co-Workers In the Vineyard” (the USCCB document on lay ecclesial ministry) speaks of priests as being the ones to whom “ministry” is properly applied. All lay ministry is delegated from and dependent upon priestly ministry, because the priest is in a special way wedded to his parish, as a father is responsible for his children in a unique way.

 

            Anyway, these are a few of my musings. Through this meditation I have come to realize deeper the calling to the priesthood – it is much more than mere functionality – it is a call to become completely consecrated to Christ and poured out in ministry to His Church. How awesome this life is!

The Way, the Truth, and the Life

* Note: This was a post from my blog with the Archdiocese of Baltimore in 2008 *

            Recently there was an article in the Catholic Review which stated that Catholics are leaving the Church in droves. According to a study done by CARA, the Catholic Church is losing members more rapidly than any other denomination. The article gave many possible explanations for that, such as a lack of religiosity in the home, the distractions of materialism, being too busy, feeling like the Church is “disengaged” from the real world. However, I really think that there is one fundamental problem.

            We have stopped claiming to have Truth.

            People of my generation, however, are hungry for truth. We don’t want mere opinion, we don’t want relativism. We want something true that we can sink our teeth into. And often times, catechists and leaders in the Catholic Church are afraid to claim that we have truth.

            Indeed, in our country it is politically incorrect to have “truth”. As I was browsing through our parish library this past weekend, I came across a book by a priest titled, “Ten Best Guesses About Life.” Intrigued, I opened it up. In the introduction, the priest wrote that he hadn’t figured out the meaning of life and death, the meaning of suffering and the reality of God, but just that he was presenting his best guesses about the topics. And while there’s something to be said for admitting our own struggles with faith and our own limitations, I am seeking for the Truth about life and death, not mere “good guesses”!

            As I approach the end of pastoral year and think about returning to seminary, it hits me that this time next year I will be less than a month away from my ordination to diaconate – where I will make permanent promises of chastity and obedience. And it strikes me that I need to know that I am committing my life to the Truth. If the Catholic faith does not have the Truth, then aren’t I wasting my time and my life by vowing myself to be faithful to our Church?

            Perhaps I’m being too black-and-white. But in my view, many aspects of our faith MUST be black and white. They can’t be both/and. For example, is the Eucharist really Jesus, or is it bread? It can’t be both (that’s a heresy in itself). Is the Catholic Church really the true Church founded by Christ that contains the fullness of revelation, or not? It seems politically incorrect to say this. We want to hide beneath a false “ecumenism” and say that there are “many equal paths to God”, as I have heard it said by leaders in the Church. But when we get right down to it, either it is or it isn’t. And why would I want to give my life to the Church if it is only one of many “equal paths to God”?

            The Scriptures and the Church really do make some audacious claims. Jesus is truly the Son of God? The Pope is truly the Vicar of Christ? Missing Mass on Sunday, when done knowingly and with full consent, is truly a mortal sin? Abortion really is murder? These things are pretty bold, perhaps even imprudent, definitely politically incorrect. But it is the teaching of the Church. And when we water this down, refuse to preach and teach it, we are claiming that our faith does not have the Truth – about life and death, about the afterlife, about God and Jesus and our relationship to them.

            And if our Faith does not have the Truth, then why be a part of it? People of my generation are fed up with being taught that we are a Church of “best guesses,” and this is why many of them have left the Church. Is there any truth here at all? If not, they will go somewhere else to seek the Truth. I have seen it over and over again – young people leaving because they don’t believe; not believing because they are taught that it’s not the Truth, only the opinions of a few old cardinals in Rome.

            I suppose that this past weekend’s Gospel readings really struck home with me – Jesus says to His disciples, “I AM the Way, and the Truth, and the Life.” I believe in an utter uniqueness of Jesus Christ as the only way to salvation. I believe in the Catholic Church as the One True Faith founded by Jesus Himself. I believe that Jesus Christ is truly present in the Holy Eucharist.

            And I only believe it because it is the Truth.

Full Circle

* Note: This was part of a blog that I published with the Archdiocese of Baltimore in 2007 *

            It’s funny how the Lord works. Things from my past that I never thought I’d be involved in again have proven to be critical over this pastoral year. And that’s really cool, to think that God never wastes things that you’ve been through in order to evangelize.

            A couple of examples from this past year:

            When I was growing up, I was really into the lay movement Regnum Christi. They were pretty much my spiritual formation when I was a teenager (it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to say that they were the reason that I am still a Catholic today). They, and their branch of priests, the Legionaries of Christ, held retreats a couple of times a month for boys, and through that I really developed a personal relationship with Christ and many friendships with awesome priests and laypeople on fire with the Faith. But after going off to college, I wasn’t able to get involved in Regnum Christi at Steubenville. I thought that my days of connection with Regnum Christi were over.

            Well, here I go and get assigned to St. John the Evangelist in Severna Park, which turns out to be a hub of Regnum Christi activity in the area. I’ve gotten to know many families in this parish who are very much involved in the movement. That has resurrected a certain aspect of my spirituality that has lain dormant for many years. And interestingly enough, because I have had this background in Regnum Christi, I feel like I can better able minister to these families because I know about their spirituality.

            Another example of this phenomenon of the Lord using something from the past to help me minister currently is my involvement in the Boy Scouts. Growing up as a teen, I was really involved in the Scouts, becoming an Eagle Scout and holding lots of leadership positions in the troop. But of course then I grew out of that, and left it all behind going off to college and getting involved in the diocese.

            Well it turns out that there is a very active troop right here at St. Johns in search of a chaplain. So I stepped in and became the troop’s chaplain. Getting re-involved in the Boy Scouts, this time as an adult volunteer, has been very rewarding in many ways. One thing that I’m doing is teaching the Scouts’ religious emblem, which is an awesome eight-month process of weekly meetings with the fourteen Scouts who are in the program. Though I was a little bit reticent upon taking that on (it takes up three hours of every Tuesday afternoon – that’s a pretty significant time commitment), it has been one of the most rewarding things that I’ve done here – I’ve gotten to know these boys on a deeper level, and that has revealed that many of them are sincerely striving to be saints. This inspires me, and gives me hope that Christ is still at work in the lives of these kids.

            So I guess I just wanted to say that it’s neat how in the divine economy, God uses everything that we’ve been through and everything that we’ve enjoyed, and He uses it all to help us reach out to minister to others. And plus, those things that we’ve enjoyed but thought were in the past (like Regnum Christi and Scouting), can sometimes return in our lives, purified and made holy. How cool this life is!

The Great Rejoicing

          * Note: This was part of a blog I wrote for the Archdiocese of Baltimore in 2007 *

  I finally understood the parable of the lost sheep.

            Late on Sunday evening, after the last Mass of the day, I was speaking with a lady in the gathering space. I had gotten to know her and her family over these past six months, and they were very inspiring people. She and her husband and the two kids, a boy in fifth grade and a girl in ninth, were a very kind and loving family.

            But it grieved me that they were somewhat infrequent in their Mass attendance.

            So as I was speaking with this lady, the topic came up of where the rest of the family was at Mass, since they had not been attending with her. She explained to me that the boy had swimming practice every Sunday evening, so they couldn’t make Mass.

            I was so saddened by this, and apparently it showed, because she even said to me, “It looks like you’re about to cry!”

            I tried to explain to her about the awesome love that Christ has for us in the Eucharist and how much the Mass means to me. We spoke some more, but in the end I was unsuccessful in convincing her of the necessity of weekly Mass. We parted amicably, and as I went back into the church I felt like I had been hit by a ton of bricks. What would it take to convince them of the beauty and importance of the Mass?

           

            Brief soapbox-ing: I love the Mass so much. To me, the Mass is life. If only we could understand the value of the Mass, we would never pass up a chance to go. As good as other prayer forms, or good works, or recreation can be, there is nothing more healing, nothing more refreshing, nothing better that we can do with our time than go to Mass and worthily receive Our Lord in Holy Communion.

 

            Back to the story.

            Okay, so I went to youth group and had a fine time. After youth group, I headed back to the rectory where I checked my email one last time before going to bed. Lo and behold, there was an email from this lady.

            She said that when she got home, she related our conversation to her husband. Her husband thought that it was quite ironic, because while he was with their young boy at swimming, he and the boy had a conversation similar – the kid said that he would rather go to Mass than go to swimming. So the husband ended up changing the swimming class to another time in the week so that they could all go to Mass together as a family.

            I was blown away in shock reading this. For as long as I have prayed for this family, for as long as I have loved them, I could never have imagined that God would have worked so surprisingly in their hearts, through the faith of an eleven-year-old boy!

            The joy that I felt upon receiving this news made me think of what the angels and saints must feel “when one sinner repents”. I was so amazed that God could work so quickly, so unexpectedly, to lead these souls back to Him!

            Just another day in the life of a priest…

Bring 'Em to Jesus and Get Out of the Way

* Note: This was part of the blog that I wrote for the Archdiocese of Baltimore in 2007 *

If I had to pick a motto for my life, I think it would be, “Bring them to Jesus and get out of the way.” That’s pretty much what we’re all about, as priests (and priest wanna-be’s). And the Lord keeps showing me this – it’s not about me, but it’s about getting out of the way so that He can work powerfully.

            Every first Friday, we have Eucharistic adoration here at St. John’s. This past First Friday, I went over to the school to teach my usual 6^th grade classes in the afternoon. Being that this is Respect Life week, I taught a pretty intense lesson on abortion. The kids were really getting into it and were fairly shocked when they realized how widespread this problem was and how horrific it is in its very nature. Many of the kids, in fact, didn’t even know what abortion was! So when they learned, they were rightly outraged.

            At the end of class, I invited all of them to join me for some adoration for an end to abortion after school let out. Totally optional, but I just wanted to get them praying for an end to this huge problem in our society. Well, I was quite surprised to find that eight kids wanted to join me for adoration. That was more kids than I expected!

            So we headed over to the church immediately after school let out. As soon as we got into the church and started to pray, I could feel the Holy Spirit moving powerfully in their hearts. The young man next to me began to weep, overwhelmed with the love of God. It was all very inspiring to see their faith and attentiveness in prayer.

            Fifteen minutes passed, and no one stirred. Finally, knowing that I had to get to another meeting, I whispered to them all, “You all are welcome to stay as long as you want, but if you need to leave, that’s okay too,” and I got up to leave, expecting most of them to be tired of adoration already, bored and ready to leave.

            No one moved.

            I was amazed.

            There is such a hunger for Jesus that if we simply bring people to Jesus and get out of the way, He will move powerfully.

            I left and came back a couple of minutes later, just to check and make sure that no one was destroying hymnals or anything (they ARE sixth-grade boys, after all). Everyone was still there, adoring the Lord with great devotion.

            I get blown away by stuff like that. So many people, including fellow ministers in the Church, try to convince me that kids aren’t into stuff like adoration or loving Jesus. And yet, I have seen completely the opposite – there is such an unbelievable hunger for the love of God, even in a place like Severna Park where most people are pretty rich and where materialism has a strong foothold. Yet despite all that, nothing can quench our natural desire for the Lord.

            So, what am I to do but bring them to Jesus and get out of the way, so that the Lord may work most powerfully in their lives!

The Grapes of Solitude

* Note - this is part of a blog that I wrote for the Archdiocese of Baltimore in 2007 *

            People often talk about the loneliness that’s associated with the priesthood. Well, I’ve got two thoughts on that.

            First, loneliness is a challenge and a reality, but we need to make a distinction between loneliness and solitude. Every time I encounter loneliness (being alone and longing for other human interaction) I try to transform it into solitude (being alone with the Lord). It’s really very simple because we are always in the presence of the Lord – a comforting thought when one is all alone.

            For me, the toughest time with loneliness is on Sunday afternoons. After the wonderful joy of greeting all of the parishioners at Sunday Masses, they all head home to spend the afternoon with their families. And we are left in the rectory all alone. It kind of makes me long to have a family, but then I remember Whose I am – and this is a deeper intimacy than I could ever find with a wife. There is something about sharing one’s entire self – body, soul, spirit - with the Lord that is even closer than man and wife, even at their most intimate union. I think it is because when a soul loves the Lord, they become so totally united that there aren’t two persons but we become, somehow, mystically immersed into the Trinity. Even in married love, though the two become “one flesh”, they still remain two persons. No husband can enter into the soul of his wife like Christ can enter into a Christian’s soul; principally through the Eucharist, and then in one’s private prayer.

            Sorry, folks, I know that sounded like some kind of doctoral dissertation. I didn’t mean it to be. But it’s so incredibly beautiful to be consecrated to the Lord – totally His – that I can’t stop myself when I think about the union that we share. Never perfectly, because of the weakness of His sinful creature, but a real union nonetheless. Awesome!

 

            My second thought on loneliness is this. They say that “the parishioners become a family for the priest and this is an even bigger family than any physical father could have.” That’s so totally true, and this week I’ve been blessed in so many ways to experience that.

            Okay, let’s start at the beginning of this story. We have wild Concord grapes growing on our campus here at St. John’s. I had seen them in the summer when they were still green, and after waiting several anxious months, they seemed to be ripe now at the end of September. No one else seemed inclined to do anything with these grapes, so I decided to take matters into my own hands and try to make my own wild grape juice.

            And yet a project like that would always be far more fun with help. So on Tuesday afternoon I recruited some of the fifth-graders that I teach in the school to help me make a mess…I mean, make grape juice. With four fifth-grade boys in tow, we picked baskets upon baskets of these wild grapes. Or, at least that was our aim. Many grapes were thrown at each other as the boys tried to have “Grape Wars”.

            After we had the bunches, we washed them, and then came the fun part: the squishing! We washed our hands and then just started squeezing the grapes in our hands to juice them (we opted for the hands method over using our feet to step on the grapes, like they do in Italy…we figured that for fifth-grade boys, their foot-hygiene might pose a health issue with these grapes). It took about fifteen messy minutes (as grape pulp got flung on the floor…and at each other) but by the end we had about a quart of grape juice. Then came the tasting! We gathered everyone from the religious education office to be the official taste-testers. They said that they liked it! When the boys themselves tasted it, they were also impressed with their efforts. Said one of them, “Wow, it’s not as disgusting as I imagined it would be.” A true complement, from a fifth-grade boy.

            So as I was reflecting upon this experience, this really felt like something that I would do with my little brother and sister. And these boys really began to feel like my little brothers! It was pretty cool to have little siblings in the Lord. It’s true that I have a bigger family than I could ever have imagined. The Lord has given me these kids as little brothers and sisters “on loan,” and I must be a good steward in setting a good example for them and bringing them closer to the One to whom they truly belong.

            It also helped that this evening I went to the fifth and sixth-graders’ soccer game at a local park. As I was cheering there on the benches with the parents, I reflected upon how I truly love these people – all of them, the old and the young, everyone. They are truly my family and though I’m not a “Father” yet, I am sort of like a big brother to them all. It’s such a beautiful relationship, and I receive so much from them as I try to give them the little that I have.

 

            All in all, though loneliness could be an issue for some men in the priesthood, it need not be. If we have a passionate love of the Lord and a holy love for His people, we will never be without family or intimacy. What a great life this is!

Homily for Ordinary Time 2 - January 18, 2015

Homily for 2^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

January 18, 2015

On Chastity

 

            One of my favorite saints is St. Dominic Savio, who died at the age of 15, but even at such a young age, he was living a life of heroic love for God and his neighbor. One day he was walking in his school when he noticed a group of boys huddled in a corner, talking and laughing. Dominic walked up to them and saw that they were looking at a magazine with dirty pictures. Immediately without a second thought, Dominic grabbed the magazine and tore it to shreds, right there.

            “Hey!” one of the other boys objected. “What do you think you’re doing?”

            Dominic responded, “Our eyes were given to us to behold God’s beautiful creation, and you’re using them to look at impure images!”

            One of the other boys responded, “Oh, come on! There’s nothing wrong with it!”

            To which Dominic replied, “If you see nothing wrong with it, that’s even worse! It means you’re used to seeing dirty things!”

            Needless to say, the boys were all ashamed, and quickly hastened to confession!

            Today’s second reading speaks about the virtue of purity. It’s not an easy virtue, but one that is necessary. As St. Padre Pio said, “Humility and purity are the wings that carry us to God and make us almost divine.” Purity is necessary for a Christian!

            What is purity? A simple definition is that purity is respecting God’s plan for our bodies and human sexuality. You see, we do not belong to ourselves. Our bodies are not our own – they belong to God, and we will have to give an account of what we do with them. Our bodies were given to us so that we can use them to give it away to others in love – not for our own selfish pleasure, and certainly not so we can use other people as objects.

            Self-giving, not selfish. That’s why the Church teaches that sexual sins are always serious sins – it takes this beautiful, life-giving gift of God and uses it for selfish pleasure instead.

            After all, our bodies are holy because they are the temples of the Holy Spirit. If you remain in the state of Grace – in other words, if you are in a deep personal friendship with Jesus and you haven’t broken that friendship through mortal sin – then the Holy Spirit dwells within your body. So we need to treat our bodies with respect and dignity, striving always for purity.

            So how, in our very impure culture, can we live a life of purity? Three suggestions.

            First, we need to practice custody of the eyes. That means that we make sure that what we see is not indecent. When St. Dominic Savio was around beautiful women, he made sure that he either looked her in the eye, or he looked away from her. He did not allow his eyes to wander to where they shouldn’t be. He later reported that he practiced such custody of his eyes that he would get headaches from trying to control his eyes. But it was that heroic virtue that allowed him to preserve his purity.

            So, do you keep your eyes pure? Or do your eyes wander to websites they shouldn’t visit, or do they look upon others who are not dressed modestly? This is a challenge for both men and women of all ages…trust me, I hear confessions. Strive for control of your eyes, and purity will be yours.

            The flipside of this, of course, is that we need to always dress modestly. I gotta be honest, it’s hard to go to a beach or swimming pool…or even the mall…these days because of immodest clothing. It’s important to not wear immodest clothing because our bodies are holy, and holy things should be veiled. The tabernacle has a veil because it is sacred – not everyone can look in there. It’s a holy place. Same with our bodies. We are sacred, so we shouldn’t display everything for everyone. Some parts of us should be reserved only for our spouse and God alone.

            Second, we need a life of prayer. The only thing that can overcome lust is love. We must love Jesus more than we love our sins of impurity. I know that sins of impurity often cause real addiction, such as an addiction to pornography. Only God’s grace can help us overcome these addictions to impurity. Pray often, particularly the Rosary. I remember a friend of mine struggling with an addiction to sexual sin, and he felt like just giving up the struggle because it seemed like he wasn’t making much progress. Finally, in desperation he cried out, “O God, how long will it be until I am free from my addiction?” He felt Jesus respond to him, “When you have prayed one Rosary for every time you have committed your sin, you will be free.” Prayer works!

            Third, we need frequent confession to preserve purity. Be completely honest in confession – we do ourselves a lot of harm if we hide our sins from the healing mercy of God. God desires your freedom, and your purity. He will help you achieve it if you desire it!

            My friends, St. Paul tells us to shun impurity. What a gift purity is! Even if we’ve lost it through sins, we can regain it by God’s grace. As Jesus Himself said, “Blessed are the pure of heart…for they shall see God!” If we want to see God, we need purity of mind, body, and soul!

Baptism of the Lord - January 11, 2015

Homily for the Baptism of the Lord

January 11, 2015

Fatherhood

 

            On December 7, 1988, an 8.2 earthquake struck Armenia, destroying cities and killing about 50,000 people. An elementary school in a certain town collapsed, leaving nothing more than a pile of rubble. Immediately after the earthquake, a father ran to that elementary school and began frantically digging through that pile of bricks and mortar himself, in hopes of rescuing his son. There wouldn’t be a full-scale recovery effort for days, so he was all alone in trying to rescue his son. Panicked and desperate, he sweat and grunted and hauled cement blocks away from the pile, hoping against hope. His neighbors told him to give up, that everyone was dead beneath the rubble. But he continued – and he dug, by himself, for 38 hours…until he was finally able to uncover the room where his son and 13 of his son’s classmates were found, miraculously, alive. According to bystanders, when the father finally freed them, the son turned to his friends and said, “See, I told you my father wouldn’t forget us.”

            That is the kind of good Father we have in Heaven. We get a small glimpse of this intimate moment today in the Gospel, as Jesus hears some treasured words of affirmation: “You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.”

            It is in imitation of this kind, strong, faithful Heavenly Father that earthly fathers must imitate. It comes as no surprise that there is a real crisis of fatherhood in our culture today. Many fathers are violent, abusive men – I just think about the crisis in the NFL with Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson, who were both suspended for domestic violence. Other fathers are passive and wimpy men, men who won’t lead their families. Then again, some fathers are just plain absent, and their gap is left open in the lives of their family.

            So what does real, manly fatherhood look like? In imitation of God the Father, I think there are three characteristics of a good father.

            First, a good father protects. A father must protect his family. From what, you ask? First and foremost from sin. The Evil One hates families. He wants to corrupt the innocence of children and destroy the unity of families. So a father must stand as the vanguard to protect his family from sin. It always irks me when I’m spending time with a family and a teenager or a kid would take the Lord’s name in vain or tell some dirty joke and the father will just stand idly by. Men of God, your strength is needed to protect your families from sin!

            Fathers, if you knew that someone had insulted your wife and children, wouldn’t you want to rise up to confront that person? Of course. It’s hard-wired in us as men to defend the innocent. Even more so, we need to defend our families…from sin.

            Second, a good father leads, especially leads his family in the Faith. I heard an interesting statistic one time. If only a mother takes her children to Mass, then the kids have a 45% chance of remaining practicing Catholics when they grow up. If only a father takes his children to Mass, there is a 95% chance that the children will remain Catholic. Why is that? Well, when I was growing up, my father was the strongest man I knew. He was my hero. So when I saw my dad – the strong man – kneeling before Jesus and seeking His grace, I thought: “Wow, we must really need Jesus in our lives, if my father desperately needs Him.”

            In certain cultures it isn’t considered “macho” for a man to be a faithful Christian. Well, too bad! Even men, with all their strength, stand desperately in need of God’s forgiveness, healing, and grace. It isn’t enough to support our wives and children in their faith – we need it deeply ourselves, so that we can LEAD our families to Christ.

            Finally, a good father serves. I remember growing up that my father would never take the last piece of pie. He would always make sure that his family was provided for before he himself would rest or take a break. A good father puts others before himself, following the example of Jesus, Who came to serve and not to be served.

            Lead, protect, and serve. These are the three characteristics of a father, following after the heart of our Father in Heaven.

            Now, when I talk about fatherhood, I realize that many men here are in different situations, so allow me to address each one separately. If you are a man whose children are grown and out of the house, your fatherhood does not stop! Continue to be a source of wisdom and support for your family. Protect them in prayer. Reach out to them.

            If you are a man who has had no children, you are still a father! Look for people in your life who you can mentor. There are many fatherless younger men and boys out there – get involved in their lives in a healthy and wholesome way. I myself have no biological children, but I am called “Father” because hopefully I have the privilege of leading, serving, and protecting my flock.

            If you are a young man who has not yet started a family, pay close attention to my words, because your strength will be needed, by Christ and by your family, to build a world of goodness and holiness.

            If you are a woman, please pray for the men in your life - your physical fathers, your husband and peers, and your spiritual fathers. I know that many times we carry wounds from our fathers – forgive your father, then, if it is necessary. Encourage the men in your life to rise up as leaders, protectors, and servants.

            My friends, this Church and this world needs men to step up and act like men, following closely after God the Father. You have a strength – and it is needed, to protect, to lead, and to serve.