The departure of the American Catholic Church from the leadership of the Church is a product of delusional reasoning. The Church seems to be running toward law as solution rather than the beatitudes.
Have we lost confidence in love? Have we fallen into reductionist reasoning that love is equal to impotence?
Conversion of love is the only valid Christian message. As I say time and again, Conversion not Coercion. Conversion of every christian heart in solidarity and common good with all human hearts.
Contrast Pope Francis.
In this time, Pope Francis is apologizing for the deplorable acts of individual Christians and the whole of the Church’s participation in the catastrophic Canadian assimilation policies against the indigenous people.
Whatever the social issue the answer is respect, compassion, sensitivity, friendship, welcoming, participation, common orderliness, and a journey to holiness.
Modern colonialism exists, is expanding and even within our own cities.
We must bring from our own treasures quiet discourse, familial love, virtues, chastity, Sacrament and baptism. Not as instrument but as gift and gift alone. Bearing rejection gracefully and respectfully.
Greetings on this the Wednesday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time Readings: HOS 10:1-3, 7-8, 12; PS 105:2-3, 4-5, 6-7; MT 10:1-7 Notes: A beautiful readings with the gospel portion today. Speaks completely of the mission of the Good News.
To proclaim:
The Face of the Lord upon us.
Piety (reverence).
To be found, those who are lost.
Justice.
Drive away unclean spirits.
Cure every disease.
Heal every illness.
He sent, He sends:
He sent twelve.
He sent seventy-two.
He sends us.
This kingdom coming is real and present. We see the opposite in many places and in many ways but be attentive to the good. And see the Lord breaking through.
First reading An emphasis on conversion.
“Sow for yourselves justice, reap the fruit of piety; break up for yourselves a new field, for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain down justice upon you.”
Responsorial Psalm Seek always the face of the Lord.
Alleluia Verse The Kingdom of God is at hand: repent and believe in the Gospel.
Sing to him, sing his praise, proclaim all his wondrous deeds. Glory in his holy name; rejoice, O hearts that seek the LORD!
Gospel Portion Jesus summoned his Twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out and to cure every disease and every illness.
Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”
Greetings on this the Monday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time Readings: HOS 2:16, 17C-18, 21-22; PS 145:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9; MT 9:18-26 Notes: Happy 4th of July!
Christianity is not a fertility cult.
We do not engage in acts of appeasement of the gods. Appeasment, specifically to bring about fertility of land, animal and human.
We are deeply rooted in our femininity. Becoming, being pregnant, giving birth and being born are honored moments in life. We specifically celebrate three special pregnancies and births:
Nativity of John the Baptist.
Nativity of Mary.
Nativity of Jesus.
Men have lost their awe of women, of their gift of person, gender and mother. We need to do better in every dimension.
First reading The first reading is a reversal of sorts. An early, emerging feminist movement.
I will allure her now – is reversing the ordinary understanding allure as a betrayal.
The valley of Achor (valley of trouble, misery or disaster) becomes a door of hope.
My baal (lord, master) the fertility god, instead the Lord bring your health and fertility.
A law response in Leviticus:
You shall not offer any of your offspring for immolation to Molech, thus profaning the name of your God. I am the LORD (Lev 18:21).
A love response in Hosea:
Instead the Lord offers the deep abiding love of a Spouse: I will espouse you to me forever: I will espouse you in right and in justice, in love and in mercy; I will espouse you in fidelity, and you shall know the LORD.
Responsorial Psalm The Lord is gracious and merciful.
Alleluia Verse Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death and brought life to light through the Gospel.
Gospel Portion In today’s gospel portion Matthew, like Mark and Luke, tells the story of two women.
A little girl needing restoration of life itself by the Lord through the urging of her father.
An old woman needing healing by her own initiative to come to the Lord.
Women, young or old, are under the Lord’s care fully and completely, for life, for health and for fertility. In every way, in all ways and at all times.
Women, hold nothing back from the LORD. Even all that troubles you or you seek special attention – do! Men, advocate for women, as this father did in today’s portion.
Jesus listened to women and for women. Jesus acted to restore rightness for women.
Greetings on this the Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings: Is 66:10-14c; Ps 66:1-3, 4-5, 6-7, 16, 20; Gal 6:14-18; Lk 10:1-12, 17-20 Notes: Where ever you live and whatever your circumstance.
Peace to this household.
Here it is the heat of the summer.
Heat and humidity dictate a slower day and calmer pace.
Be at peace. Rest. Know you are loved.
First reading When you see this, your heart shall rejoice and your bodies flourish like the grass; the LORD’s power shall be known to his servants.
Responsorial Psalm Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
Hear now, all you who fear God, while I declare what he has done for me. Blessed be God who refused me not my prayer or his kindness!
Second reading The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers and sisters. Amen.
Alleluia Verse Let the peace of Christ control your hearts; let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.
Gospel Portion ‘Peace to this household.’ If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him.
Greetings on this the Friday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time Readings: Am 8:4-6, 9-12; PS 119:2, 10, 20, 30, 40, 131; Mt 9:9-13 Notes: We are trapped in the echo chamber. Some even, and most pitifully, within the Church who say holy things without sanctity of spirit. But a new emphasis is given us if we are able to accept it. BLM is recognizing the margins. Seeing the indigenous is recognizing the margins. Helping the poor is recognizing the margins. Not because they are less, but because the are thought of as less.
See this article: (February, 2016).
Today the Pope celebrated Mass in the southern state of Chiapas with those who have suffered the greatest in Latin America, the indigenous. At a beautiful Mass where various Mayan dialects were spoken and sung, the Pope brought a message of hope and mercy. A vastly agrarian and poor state where the dignity of the indigenous has not always been respected, the Pope recognized that too often they have been excluded from society. “Your peoples have not been understood and have been excluded from society. Some have considered your values, your culture, and your traditions inferior. Others, dizzy by power, money and the laws of the market, have expelled you from your lands or have contaminated them. How sad. How good would it be for us to do an examination of conscience and learn how to say ‘I am sorry.’”
You search the scriptures, because you think you have eternal life through them; even they testify on my behalf. But you do not want to come to me to have life (Jn 5:39-40).
And again.
If I speak in human and angelic tongues but do not have love, I am a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal. And if I have the gift of prophecy and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge; if I have all faith so as to move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away everything I own, and if I hand my body over so that I may boast but do not have love, I gain nothing (1 Cor 13:1-3).
Yes, days are coming, says the Lord GOD, when I will send famine upon the land: Not a famine of bread, or thirst for water, but for hearing the word of the LORD.
Echo Chamber – an environment in which a person encounters only beliefs or opinions that coincide with their own, so that their existing views are reinforced and alternative ideas are not considered.
First reading Hear this, you who trample upon the needy and destroy the poor of the land!
Yes, days are coming, says the Lord GOD, when I will send famine upon the land: Not a famine of bread, or thirst for water, but for hearing the word of the LORD.
Responsorial Psalm One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God (Matt 4:4).
Alleluia Verse Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest, says the Lord.
Gospel Portion As Jesus passed by, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post. He said to him, “Follow me.”
Go and learn the meaning of the words, I desire mercy, not sacrifice. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.
Greetings on this the Thursday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time Readings: Am 7:10-17; PS 19:8, 9, 10, 11; Mt 9:1-8 Notes: Today’s gospel portion is closely related to yesterday’s gospel portion.
Jesus heals Body and Soul. Primacy is the soul but visually we can see in the body.
He heals when he speaks (and we proclaim).
He heals when he touches and we touch (Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick).
He heals when he forgives and we forgive sin (Sacrament of Reconciliation).
Prayer before Deacon proclaims the Gospel: May the Lord be in your heart and on your lips, that you may proclaim his Gospel worthily and well, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Prayer after the proclaiming the Gospel: Through the words of the Gospel may our sins be wiped away. (Hearing the proclaimed Gospel removes venial sin).
Before we get so high and mighty about making this nation without true Religious Freedom, we may want to consider when the power is in the other’s hands!
According to the historian Tacitus, many Christians were put to death because of their “hatred of the human race.” Peter and Paul were probably among the victims.
Reflection
Wherever the Good News of Jesus was preached, it met the same opposition as Jesus did, and many of those who began to follow him shared his suffering and death. But no human force could stop the power of the Spirit unleashed upon the world. The blood of martyrs has always been, and will always be, the seed of Christians.
First reading Amos answered Amaziah, “I was no prophet, nor have I belonged to a company of prophets; I was a shepherd and a dresser of sycamores. The LORD took me from following the flock, and said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’ Now hear the word of the LORD!”
God does not call the qualified. He qualifies the called.
Responsorial Psalm The judgments of the Lord are true, and all of them are just.
Alleluia Verse God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
Gospel Portion Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”– he then said to the paralytic, “Rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home.” He rose and went home. When the crowds saw this they were struck with awe and glorified God who had given such authority to men.
Greetings on this the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles Readings: Acts 12:1-11; PS 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9; 2 Tm 4:6-8, 17-18; Mt 16:13-19 Notes:
Next week: Teen retreat Steubenville Florida July 8th to 10th! Participating, excited for them and all! Will post photos.
My parish activity as I restarted my sabbatical (suspended for Lent and Easter season).
Masses 8:00 AM Monday and Thursday.
Benediction 7:00 PM Wednesdays.
Infrequent Mass on weekends depending on travel schedule.
Local Plans
Veterans Administration Medical Center, chaplaincy.
St. Philip Benizi, Belle Glade, FL, mission.
Remote Plans (highly variable)
Port-Au-Prince, Haiti
Guatemala City
Nuevo Laredo
Olongapo City
We all share in the mission life, in small or large part. We all tend to the people in the proximity of our own place. We all have joys and sorrows of mission.
To paraphrase a song popular in honoring veterans: All gave some, some gave all.
An excellent quick summary of the spiritual life of Peter and Paul at the link below!
Reflection Franciscan We would probably go to confession to Peter sooner than to any of the other apostles. He is perhaps a more striking example of the simple fact of holiness. Jesus says to us as he said, in effect, to Peter: “It is not you who have chosen me, but I who have chosen you. Peter, it is not human wisdom that makes it possible for you to believe, but my Father’s revelation. I, not you, build my Church.” Paul’s experience of the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus was the driving force that made him one of the most zealous, dynamic, and courageous ambassadors of Christ the Church has ever had. But persecution, humiliation, and weakness became his day-by-day carrying of the cross, material for further transformation. The dying Christ was in him; the living Christ was his life.
First reading In those days, King Herod laid hands upon some members of the Church to harm them. He had James, the brother of John, killed by the sword, and when he saw that this was pleasing to the “authorities” he proceeded to arrest Peter also.
On the very night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter, secured by double chains, was sleeping between two soldiers, while outside the door guards kept watch on the prison. Suddenly the angel of the Lord stood by him and a light shone in the cell.
They emerged and made their way down an alley, and suddenly the angel left him. Then Peter recovered his senses and said, “Now I know for certain that the Lord sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod
Responsorial Psalm The angel of the Lord will rescue those who fear him.
Second reading I, Paul, am already being poured out like a libation, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith.
Alleluia Verse You are Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.
Gospel Portion He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter said in reply, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
The netherworld will fall.
Those you heal, will be healed.
Those you free, will be freed.
Yes, that is a good way to understand.
Heal.
Set free.
Be the Face of Christ.
Back to the VAMC Sunday to celebrate Mass with my brothers.
Greetings on this the Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings: 1 Kgs 19:16b, 19-21; Ps 16:1-2, 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11; Gal 5:1, 13-18; Lk 9:51-62 Notes: The Apostles James and John wanted to send down fire from heaven. They envisioned that these enemies of the Word and of the Jewish people deserve nothing less than fire. A terrible and horrible death.
Jesus turned and rebuked them (Lk 9:55).
They no doubt were thinking Elijah (our Prophet of recent reading sequence, another).
Elijah answered the captain, “Well, if I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.” And fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty men. Elijah answered them, “If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.” And divine fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty men (2 King 1:10, 12).
Indeed Jesus wanted fire but not a destructive fire a restorative fire.
“I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing! (LK 12:49).
News: Roe v Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States, June 24, 2022, Friday past. I will write separately on the topic. I have a rule that I follow. In any big event that analysis is critical, I insist on finding three good things and three not so good things about the event. Forcing myself to go beyond my own bias and instinct and really enter the question. Not yet ready.
Maya Lin
I will preach on Maya Lin, a young woman, who won the design concept for a memorial. A block of black granite slashed into the Earth, “The Wall” it is referred to by many. It’s in a V shape. V for the peace sign. V for victory. One blade pointing to the Lincoln Memorial. One blade pointing to the Washington Memorial.
She endured insult, a Chinese American. Of Chinese ancestry she was called an “Egg Role”. Some saw her design as an affront to them. Others saw as it affront to them, too, the other them. Some bemoaned the simplicity. But no.
Quoting her:
an opening or wound in the earth to symbolize the pain caused by the war and it’s many casualties.
Names engraved like a journal’s pages (L->R ascending). Top down, left and right the names. Now number over 58,320. Arranged by Date of Casualty. The date of death. You can see the escalation and de-escalation by the height of the wall, the number of names.
Beginning in 1959. Ending in 1975. The first and the last names in time because of the arrangement are both in the center of the memorial.
The panels crack in pain.
The time spans six Presidents:
Eisenhower
Kennedy
Johnson
Nixon
Ford
Carter
Reagan
A place of pilgrimage. A place to visit lost loved ones and lost unit members. Like the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, little sleeves of paper wedged near the etched names. Some make pencil rubbings to get the name onto a piece of paper.
1965, First Marines based in Vietnam.
1967, War protests.
1968, Tet Offensive.
1970, Kent State deaths.
1973, Paris Peace Treaty
1975, Saigon Falls
1975, Mayaguz incident – personal to me, active duty.
1982, Vietnam Memorial
First reading The LORD said to Elijah: “You shall anoint Elisha, son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah, as prophet to succeed you.”
Elisha left him, and taking the yoke of oxen, slaughtered them; he used the plowing equipment for fuel to boil their flesh, and gave it to his people to eat. Then Elisha left and followed Elijah as his attendant.
Responsorial Psalm You are my inheritance, O Lord.
You will show me the path to life, fullness of joys in your presence, the delights at your right hand forever.
Second reading Brothers and sisters: For freedom Christ set us free; so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.
For you were called for freedom, brothers and sisters. But do not use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh; rather, serve one another through love.
Alleluia Verse Speak, Lord, your servant is listening; you have the words of everlasting life.
Gospel Portion On the way they entered a Samaritan village to prepare for his reception there, but they would not welcome him because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem. When the disciples James and John saw this they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?”
Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they journeyed to another village.
Paul in the letter to the Galatians For freedom Christ set us free; so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.
But if you go on biting and devouring one another, beware that you are not consumed by one another.
The nation was devouring itself in anger, revenge and self-pity.
Greetings on this the Solemnity of Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Readings: Ez 34:11-16; Ps 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6; Rom 5:5b-11; Lk 15:3-7 Notes: Bringing to the Height of the Most Sacred Heart. He seeks the lost.
During the Novena I preached daily on the Sacred Heart, some reminders:
Wednesday – Lamb of God, gentle, meek, and approachable. Invite the Lord to the secret of your heart (Elijah in the cave story). Elijah prayed for himself and Elisha even on his biggest day!
Thursday – Prayer. Ask – from the secret place. Seek – from the secret place. Knock – from the secret place. Alms, prayer and fasting – in the secret place of your heart.
Friday – Treasureand Store. Treasure (or store) is the source of your strength. Gain your strength from the treasury of Heaven. Whatever you are going through, the Lord makes for good, somehow, someway.
Saturday – Good Shepherd. Lamb and Shepherd. Meek and Wise. Gentle and Strong. Do not take from the wrong treasury that, although looks good, is from the thief who comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy.
Sunday – Know. The image of the Sacred Heart is a crown of thorns surrounding a heart. The thorns are a reminder of the need and mistake, not as punishment, but as wisdom. The heart is fresh, strong and (for my imagination) a beating, throbbing presence of God’s love for us. Strong, pulsing, alive and real.
Monday – Splinters! Story of the cars side by side gong down the road, me racing, she steady. Bumm, bumm, bumm… My beam of the eye, you are my aid, my friends! But once I chose to dwell with her (talk, relate, share), the beam became a splinter then became nothing at all.
Tuesday – You are Holy. You are the pearls. All these exterior things can be troubling. But the Lord overcomes all of them.
Wednesday – Blood and Water from the side of Jesus which brings salvation. Good fruit – the gifts of the Holy Spirit bring the fruit which brings peace with God and man.
Thursday – Living Water (the Holy Spirit, a gift from Jesus) We Are Cracked Pots – we are all cracked pot but the living water leaks out of us and goodness and kindness follow us all the days of our lives.
First reading Thus says the Lord GOD: I myself will look after and tend my sheep. As a shepherd tends his flock when he finds himself among his scattered sheep, so will I tend my sheep.
Responsorial Psalm The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want. Only goodness and kindness follow me all the days of my life.
Second reading Brothers and sisters: The love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.
Alleluia Verse Take my yoke upon you, says the Lord, and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart.
Gospel Portion Jesus addressed this parable to the Pharisees and scribes: “What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it?
The greatest sorrow of a fireman is losing a child to a fire. Children, when there is a fire in the home, tend to hide somewhere (closet, under bed, beneath a pile of clothes). It is so difficult to find them quickly and get out alive. It is a sad thing to be lost/hidden in the wrong ways.
The Lord will find you, if you allow him, embrace the love that seeks your good for your good and a lifetime of joy.
Together, we are the dots that form the Image of Christ
Greetings on this the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ Readings: Gn 14:18-20; Ps 110:1, 2, 3, 4; 1 Cor 11:23-26; Lk 9:11b-17 Notes: We collectively embody Christ’s real presence in the world. It is said and it is done!
Pointillism
Pointillism is a technique of painting in which small, distinct dots of color are applied in patterns to form an image.
Eucharist
The transformation (transubstantiation) that occurs is not only of bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ, but of the community as well. Through Eucharist, the faithful become what they receive, namely the body and the blood of Christ. They are not individually transubstantiated into the real presence of Christ, but collectively embody Christ’s real presence in the world (see footnote).
– Allman, Mark
First reading Melchizedek, priest. Jesus in the order of Melchizedek.
Responsorial Psalm You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
Second reading In our second reading, Saint Paul asserts the importance of sacred Tradition. Just like in the development of the Old Testament, the New Testament went first through a period of Oral Tradition. Before it was written as a canon, it was spoken and shared face to face and then written in real time. It is not until much later it becomes canon and ‘set’ for all time.
We literally say a portion of this text in the Eucharistic Prayer and in the Memorial (anamnesis) Narrative.
More correctly to say: It is said and it is done!
Brothers and sisters: I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was handed over, took bread, and, after he had given thanks, broke it and said, “This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.
Alleluia Verse I am the living bread that came down from heaven, says the Lord; whoever eats this bread will live forever.
Gospel Portion The Return of the Twelve and the Feeding of the Five Thousand.
Jesus spoke to the crowds about the kingdom of God, and he healed those who needed to be cured.
Then taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing over them, broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. They all ate and were satisfied. And when the leftover fragments were picked up, they filled twelve wicker baskets.
In Jesus, the gospel portion brings to light his saving work:
Be healed.
Be filled.
Be satisfied.
Become a dot in the Eucharistic Pointillism.
Peace be with you, Deacon Gerry
References Allman, Mark. “EUCHARIST, RITUAL & NARRATIVE: FORMATION OF INDIVIDUAL AND COMMUNAL MORAL CHARACTER.” Journal of Ritual Studies, vol. 14, no. 1, 2000, pp. 60–68. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/44368578. Accessed 19 Jun. 2022.
