Jesus Christ has changed every human life and all of human history!

This is the good news of our faith!

By His coming in the flesh, to become a true man, like us in all things but sin, He has forever changed humanity.  By His death and resurrection, He has destroyed our death and restored our life. 

           
It is in the context of this good news that we now celebrate Respect Life Sunday.  The good news of Jesus Christ is a clarion call to rejoice and be glad.  The situation of the world around us, however, should give us pause to realize that the good news of Christ has not been fully received in the world.  And so we are called to pray.  We are called to pray that the good news of Christ might be proclaimed in an ever-new way. We are called to pray that a true Culture of Life might triumph over a very real Culture of Death.  As we meditate on these Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary, let us keep in mind the call and the need to pray for a greater respect for life in all its many forms and stages.      

The Resurrection of Our Lord

            In His resurrection, Our Lord has shown us that the divine life of God is able to break through and destroy the bonds of death.  Having entered into our death, Jesus allows us to enter into His life.  Not only does He allow us to enter into His life, He actively invites us.  He says, “Come, follow Me!”  The Resurrection shows us that human life does not end in death.  God wills that all people be with Him and share in His intimate communion of love.  This involves forsaking all practices and philosophies that do not draw us closer to God, our ultimate end.  In meditating on the Resurrection, may we come to understand the great dignity of human life, and thus also come to share in the new and eternal life offered to us in Christ. 

The Ascension of Our Lord

            In His Ascension, the sacred and glorified humanity of Our Lord is forever exalted at God’s right hand.  However, Jesus does not ascend to the Father alone.  He wills to take all those who believe in Him and trust in Him to the Father also.  This is true beatitude, true blessedness!  If we follow Him who called Himself “the Way, the Truth, and the Life,” we will also live with Christ at the Father’s right hand.  In our meditation on the Ascension, may we remember our call to true blessedness with God in heaven and thus find strength for our work of creating a true Culture of Life on earth.

The Descent of the Holy Spirit

            In the Descent of the Holy Spirit, we see a glimpse into God’s plan for humanity: we are not mere creatures made from the dust of the earth, but we are destined to have a share in the life of the Spirit.  The Spirit’s descent on the disciples gathered together in prayer is the realization of man’s deepest longings to be filled with the Spirit of God’s life and love.  The Descent of the Spirit is permanent.  The Spirit does not descend and then re-ascend, but He remains in the soul permanently and makes the soul His temple.  God dwells not only among us, but within us!  The human person has great dignity, because God has chosen to make the soul of man His dwelling place.  As we meditate on the Descent of the Holy Spirit, may we find the strength and the conviction to defend the dignity of human life in all that we say and do.

The Assumption of Mary

            In Mary’s assumption into heaven, we see God’s great esteem for motherhood.  Our Lord wanted His mother to be with Him in heaven.  Jesus indeed has a Father, God the Father, but He also has a mother, and she is not to be overlooked.  Motherhood is an exalted vocation, because mothers are called to take care of God’s children.  God cares for both mothers and children.  God is both “pro-woman” and “pro-child.”  As we meditate on the Assumption of Mary into heaven, may we find the conviction to care for both the well-being of mothers and the well-being of their children as we acknowledge the truth that God cares for all life, both born and pre-born.

The Coronation of Mary

            In Mary’s coronation, we see her exalted by God as the Queen of Life.  Mary’s coronation is the work and the gift of God.  It is her reward for saying yes to life, despite her unfavorable historical circumstances.  By her “yes” to the Archangel Gabriel at the Annunciation, Mary became the mother of Christ our Life.  She became the Mother of Life.  From heaven, she now prays for us, that we too might have the courage to say “yes” to life, even despite unfavorable circumstances.  As we meditate on the Coronation of Mary as Queen of Life, may we become evangelists in her service, proclaiming, both by our lives and by our words, the Gospel of Life!

V.) O Mary, Mother of Christ our Life,

R.) Pray for us!

CHRIST OUR HOPE

The Importance of the Resurrection for Christian Faith

            We are an Easter people.  We are people of “the eighth day,” the day of the new creation, the day of the Lord’s Resurrection from the dead.  The Resurrection stands as the great hope of the People of God of the New Covenant, the Church, the Mystical Body of Christ.  Through His glorious Resurrection, Our Lord Jesus Christ has conquered sin and death forever.  We are no longer a people in darkness, no longer a people in captivity, in exile away from the light of God’s face.  In and through Christ, a light has shone upon us, a light of hope.  As Isaiah the prophet proclaims, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone” (Isaiah 9:1).  The in-breaking of the Resurrection of Christ in our present world signals the coming of a new era, an era of light and renewal, an era of hope for a life transformed beyond the power of sin and death.  The Risen Christ is our hope, a hope that the present world and this present life is not all there is, but that life, a new and better life, exists beyond the grave: the life of the resurrection of the dead, a life radiant with divine light.  The Lord Jesus Christ raised from the dead represents the hope in our hearts that those who have died in a state of friendship with God might share in the glory of eternal life in the Kingdom of God.  We make this prayer our own in “Eucharistic Prayer III” at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass: “Welcome into Your kingdom our departed brothers and sisters, and all who have left this world in Your friendship.  We hope to enjoy for ever the vision of Your glory, through Christ our Lord, from whom all good things come.”  The Lord’s death and resurrection has opened up for us the way back to God the Father, the Lord our Creator from Whom we came and to Whom we are now able to return, by virtue of the passion, death, and resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ.  The Lord’s death achieved for us the forgiveness of sins.  His resurrection achieved for us our entrance in to our heavenly homeland.
 

            The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) tells us, “The Paschal mystery has two aspects: by his death, Christ liberates us from sin; by his Resurrection, he opens for us the way to a new life. This new life is above all justification that reinstates us in God's grace, "so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life." Justification consists in both victory over the death caused by sin and a new participation in grace.   It brings about filial adoption so that men become Christ's brethren, as Jesus himself called his disciples after his Resurrection: "Go and tell my brethren."  We are brethren not by nature, but by the gift of grace, because that adoptive filiation gains us a real share in the life of the only Son, which was fully revealed in his Resurrection” (CCC, no. 654; see also CCC nos. 638-655 and 988-1014 for references and further explication).  At the Incarnation, Christ “entered into” humanity by taking humanity to Himself, that is, by taking on a human nature as the Word made flesh.  At the Resurrection, He transformed humanity through the transformation of the human nature He assumed.  The flesh is no longer bound by sin to be a slave to sin, but is now transformed by the redeeming power of Christ, who enabled humanity to live now in the grace of the redemption.
 

            By the power of His resurrection from the dead, human life is changed and transformed for the better, for the glory of God.  Saint Irenaeus, writing in the 2^nd century, tells us, “The glory of God is man fully alive.”  In Christ’s resurrection, we see “man fully alive,” to the greater glory of God.  In Christ’s resurrection, we see humanity transformed, perhaps even “re-created” to truly become “the image and likeness of God” (cf. Gen. 1:26), re-capturing for us what we lost through sin and thus reclaiming our original dignity as sons and daughters of the Most High God.  Saint Paul tells us, “For the love of Christ impels us, once we have come to the conviction that one died for all; therefore, all have died.  He indeed died for all, so that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.   Consequently, from now on we regard no one according to the flesh; even if we once knew Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know him so no longer.  So whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come” (2 Cor. 5:14-17).  Indeed, the old things HAVE passed away, and, indeed, new things HAVE come.  This is our Christian hope, that the passion, death, and resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ are not simply doctrinal affirmations of faith, but that they truly change us, that they truly have an impact on how we live, that they mold us and shape us into the people we are becoming: the People of God, the Body of Christ, the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church, a people destined for salvation.

            We can very clear see the dangers associated with the denial of the resurrection of Christ.  Saint Paul tells us quite plainly, “But if Christ is preached as raised from the dead, how can some among you say there is no resurrection of the dead?  If there is no resurrection of the dead, then neither has Christ been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then empty (too) is our preaching; empty, too, your faith. Then we are also false witnesses to God, because we testified against God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if in fact the dead are not raised.  For if the dead are not raised, neither has Christ been raised, and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is vain; you are still in your sins.  Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.  If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are the most pitiable people of all” (1 Cor. 15:12-19).  This is the very thing we see happening today: all kinds of people are describing the resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead as something relegated to the tales of mythology, as the product of a group of people trying to cope with the death of their leader, as a fanciful fairy tale, but certainly not as literally true.  We are told that we are foolish for professing faith in the resurrection of Christ; that we need to get in step with the times; that we need to let go of our clinging to a dead past.  In truth, nothing could be farther from the truth.  The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead has changed the whole world, brought about redemption and enabled mankind to enter into the divine life of the Most Holy Trinity by calling for our own participation in the mystery of Christ, the “paschal mystery.”  If we do not profess faith in this, can we profess faith in anything?  Indeed, it is impossible to call oneself a Christian and not believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead: the resurrection is at the heart of Christian faith and hope.

            If, then, we possess this radical hope in the Risen Christ, we must not keep this hope to ourselves: the Lord Jesus calls us out of ourselves and forward into mission, into ministry, into evangelization.  In Matthew’s Gospel, we are told: “Then Jesus approached and said to them, ‘All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.   And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age’" (Matt 28:18-20).  In this brief passage, we are told to 1) Go, 2) make disciples of all nations (a very CATHOLIC mission!), 3) baptize them in the name of the Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and 4) commend them to observe the commandments of Christ.  And lastly, it is Christ’s promise, “And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age,” that makes our Christian mission possible, insofar as it is Christ who works in and through the members of His Body, the Church (through the indwelling of sacramental grace), to make possible the Church’s missionary activity.
 

            In Mark’s Gospel, our mission is similar: “He said to them, ‘Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature.  Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned.  These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages.  They will pick up serpents (with their hands), and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover’" (Mark 16:15-18).   Signs and wonders accompany the Church on mission; we see these signs in the lives of the Saints, the greatest heralds of God’s reign and all of His mighty deeds.  The heart of the message is the Gospel, and the salvation that comes with or is made possible with Baptism.  We are a Church which makes converts, which wants people to come to hear the good news that Jesus Christ is Lord, and that He died to grant to us the forgiveness of our sins, and was raised up again so that we might live in new life.  This is at the heart of our Christian lives; it is for this reason that we cannot keep Christ our Hope to ourselves, and why we must share Him, God’s Son and the author of our salvation, with the world.  His resurrection has changed the whole world; as His faithful people, He asks us to do no less, like His Saints, through our witness to Him and His saving power.  To Jesus Christ be all glory, honor and power, for ever and ever, amen, alleluia!

~ Noah J.    

GOOD FRIDAY- "EVERYTHING'S NOT OK"

Everything’s not “OK.”  The title should say it all.  Sadly, more must be said.  We like to go through life thinking “Everything’s OK; I’m OK, you’re OK.  We’re all OK.”  This is pleasantly wishful thinking, but sadly far from the truth.

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It’s OK if I live with my boyfriend/girlfriend before marriage (after all, it’s about saving money isn’t it!); It’s OK if I have sex before marriage, especially if I use a condom to prevent getting pregnant (after all, “safe sex” is better than unprotected sex, and really, who needs marriage these days!); It’s OK if I were to get pregnant to have an abortion (after all, it’s my body, my child!); It’s OK if I engage in riotous living and get intentionally drunk and having a good time (after all, you only live once!).

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It’s OK if I abuse my body or the bodies of others (after all, I do what I want to do!); it’s OK if I forget how I’ve been raised (after all, those were my parents’ rules, not mine!); It’s OK if I gave or received oral sex (after all, it’s not really sex, is it!); It’s OK if I’ve violated most of if not all of the ten commandments (after all, times change, that stuff is permissible now!).

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“Everything’s OK”?  Hmm, we wish we could say so!  Today is Good Friday.  As Catholics and more generally as Christians, this is the day we commemorate the death of Jesus Christ.  If everything were “OK,” would Jesus really have needed to die for us?  If everything were “OK,” would Jesus really have needed to come to earth to begin with?  If everything were “OK,” would Jesus have needed to endure the scourging, the mockery, the spitting, the abuse, the hits, the scars, the cries, the tears, the agony He did?  “This saying is trustworthy and deserves full acceptance: Jesus Christ came to save sinners…” (1 Tim. 1:15a)  Please do not think I’m meaning to preach at you here or being condemning; very much the opposite, so let’s not be mistaken.  But today is a very special day.  Today we realize the love of God for us; the love that is willing and able to lay down His own life for us so that we might live; the love that is willing to forgive sins and receive sinners as sons and daughters; the love that is willing to make things new, and achieve a new beginning for those who are loved.

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Not everything’s “OK.”  Jesus Christ came and died for us to save us from our sin.  He came to help us to know that not everything’s OK, but that sins can be forgiven, life restored, happiness fulfilled, and death overcome.  Jesus came to die for us, and He did so out of love.  He died for a reason, to save us from our sins.  We need to come to a reckoning of the sin in our lives.  Unfortunately, we must admit that we have committed horrible crimes, that we have not lived up to our baptismal promises to reject sin and Satan, and embrace God and the truth He offers us; we must admit that we have fallen short of the ideal, have missed the target, have gone astray from the path of life set before us, have sought after everything but God to fulfill our lives.  We must reckon with this fact.  And then we must reckon with the fact that Jesus came to set us straight, to correct the wrong that had been done, to seek and to save the lost, to become our righteousness and our hope of glory.

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I have entitled this blog/note what I did for a reason: we think everything’s OK, but it’s not.  Good Friday is the stark reminder of that.  We often need to be reminded that life can only become “OK” when we have Jesus Christ, who died for us, to save us, at the center of our lives.  It’s a cop-out to say “that’s not for me.”  It’s a cop-out to say “that’s true for you, but not for me.”  It’s a cop-out to say, “I’m sorry, but I’m not a religious person.”  It’s a cop-out to say, “I don’t need any saving.”  It’s a cop-out to say, “My life’s fine the way it is.”  It’s a cop-out to turn a blind eye to the One who loved us enough to die for us.  It’s a cop-out to believe that we can’t be forgiven for our past wrongs.  It’s a cop-out to not step up to the plate and admit that we need help in order to live happy, full, and complete lives.  Jesus came to fulfill us; He came to set us free from slavery to sin; He came to help us live happy, full, and complete lives; Jesus came to save us.  How will we respond?  Will we respond with apathy, with a blind eye to the One who suffered for us?  Or will we look upon Him whom we have pierced, and proclaim, “Jesus, I trust in You!”? 

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In John’s Gospel today (the Passion Narrative), we read how Jesus’ side was pierced, and out flowed blood and water.  Legend has it that the Roman Centurion who was underneath Christ’s side when the blood and water poured forth received corrected vision from his poor eyesight; he was made able to see clearly and completely; no longer was he bound to see only indistinctly, as in a mirror, or incompletely, as through a tunnel; No, he was made able to see completely; his eyesight was restored, he was converted to Christianity, and became a believer in Jesus.  He’s now recognized as a saint- Saint Longinus.  This is analogous to what Jesus wants to do for us.  When we spiritually allow the blood and water that flowed forth from His sacred side to flow over us, He can heal us from our poor vision; He can restore our sight, He can convert us, and make us whole. 

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Today is Good Friday.  Today we commemorate our Lord’s death for our sake.  Today we realize the love of God that was made by Jesus in the sacrifice of the Cross.  In the Cross is held all of our hopes and sorrows; all of our dreams and worries; all of our joys and agonies; all of our life, death, and hope of future life.  In the Cross is the story of our lives.  In the Cross is the story of our sorrow; in the Cross is the story of our hope, our hope for something better on the other side; in the Cross is the story of our life, a life that knows pain and suffering, yet also a life that seeks after fulfillment and the joy of a new day. 

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Today, seek after the One who has sought after you; be willing to die for the One who was willing to die for you; trust in the mercy of the One who attained mercy for you; seek the will of the One who gave up His own will for love of you; love one another like the One who loved you, loved you to the end.  Today is Good Friday.  May it truly be “good” and may it be for you a day of conversion, a day of repentance, a day of trust, a day of the beginning of new life in Christ.  God bless you on this Good Friday, and as you have died with Christ, may you also rise with Him on Easter Sunday!

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Pax et Caritas,

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Noah J.

Orthodoxy and Orthopraxy:

Necessary Elements for Authentic Christian Living....

            Belief and Practice: they are intimately related and both necessary for authentic Christian living.  It’s seemingly very easy, in our fallen world of sin, to divorce the two from each other.  It’s easy to think, “If I believe correctly, then I’m obviously a good Christian.”  In the same vein, it’s easy to think, “If I’m doing the right things, then I’m obviously a good Christian.”  The reality is that we need to both believe correctly and practice correctly.  Correct doctrine (orthodoxy) without the proper consequent practice is dead, worthless, and ultimately pointless.  Correct practice (orthopraxy) without the proper prior doctrine will, in the end, prove to be fruitless, ineffectual, and ultimately meaningless.  It seems obvious that practice flows from belief.  We must be people follow the command: “practice what you preach,” otherwise we are lying to ourselves and not living in the truth of our faith.  This is in accord with the famous phrase, “Lex orandi legem credendi constituit,” translated as “the law of prayer constitutes the law of belief,” or as “as we pray so we believe.”  Prayer, that is, our “practice” as Christians, reflects our belief, and must reflect our belief in order to be authentic.  Likewise, our doctrine informs our prayer, informs our practice; it makes what we do meaningful and grounded in truth.  Let’s make a closer examination into this inherent relationship between orthodoxy and orthopraxy so that we might better understand the dynamic of authentic Christian living.

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            First: orthodoxy.  What exactly is meant by this word?  It is typically understood as “being of correct opinion or thought.”  It is that, true.  However, it might also be understood as “correct glorification” or “correct worship.”  This interpretation is merited from the word part, “doxy,” coming from the Greek, “doxa,” identified with “glory” in the Greek New Testament.  The word, “doxology,” common in our Christian liturgical vocabulary, is also derived from this “core” word.  Thus, to be among the orthodox means to believe correctly and/or worship/glorify God correctly.  As correct belief, orthodoxy means abiding in the faith of the Church, for instance, in holding fast to our faith in the Resurrection of Christ (cf. 1 Cor. 15:12-19), or as in generally holding fast to and professing our faith, without which it is impossible to please God (cf. Heb. 11:6).  As correct glorification, it means worshipping God in the way He willed to be glorified, particularly in our remembrance of the death and resurrection of His Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, which we do in, with, and through the Church, “the pillar and foundation of truth.” (cf. 1 Tim. 3:15).  We worship God correctly when we worship Him as He instructed us, “in spirit and in truth” (cf. John 4:21-24), and when we follow His command to “Do this in memory of Me” (cf. 1 Cor. 11:24-29), regarding our celebration of the Most Holy Eucharist, the Blessed Sacrament of the Lord’s Body and Blood.   This “correct belief” and/or “correct glorification”/“correct worship” is absolutely necessary, because the living out of the authentic Christian life flows from this.  In other words, an authentic Christian life is the inevitable fruit of proper faith and worship.  We live as we should as Christians when we glorify God as we should, and when we profess faith that is in line with the sound teachings of our divinely-revealed faith.  But that is not all. 

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            We also need to have our faith and worship “meet” our daily life, that is, our faith must be “faith in action,” so to speak; it must be “lived” faith.  Orthopraxy, then, is the living out of our authentic Christian faith and worship.  In some sense, it can refer (in my opinion) both to the fruit of authentic worship and to authentic worship itself, insofar as worship itself might be described as the correct practice flowing from correct doctrine, or in other words, the proper glorification of God based as it is on our faith in who God is and our relationship to Him.  In understanding orthopraxy as authentic worship, as liturgy, we refer particularly to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.  Regarding the Most Holy Eucharist, if we receive the Body and Blood of Christ (truly changed by the power of the Holy Spirit acting through the priest who repeats the words of Christ at the Last Supper), presented to us at the Holy Mass as “The Body of Christ” and “The Blood of Christ,” to which we respond, “Amen,” (i.e., “So be it,” an assent of faith to the truth of what was just said), without faith, our practice of the faith is inauthentic and furthermore a lie to ourselves and a grave offense against God, since we say “Amen” but do not really mean it.  Our “Amen,” then, must be true, it must be real, and it must express our inward disposition of faith.  Our prayer is meant to reflect and shine forth our belief.  Simply put, prayer is faith in practice, in action.  It is essential that our prayer (i.e., our worship) reflect our belief; otherwise our prayer is inauthentic, meaning that it does not truly give expression to our belief.  Orthopraxy is authentic worship insofar as it is done with true faith and a sincere intent to give glory to God.

            In terms of authentic Christian living, in understanding orthopraxy as proper practice, the practice of our faith must reflect the genuine nature of our faith.  The way we live our lives is the fruit of our belief; our lifestyle expresses our faith, if we are indeed sincerely true to that faith.  Orthopraxy means following the “straight and narrow path” (cf. Matt. 7:13-14) marked out for us by Christ.  Again, it means authentically doing the will of the Father (cf. Matt. 7:21-23) and building one’s life solidly on rock by acting on the words of Christ (cf. Matt. 7:24-27).  If we fail to show ourselves as Catholics (i.e., Christians) in practice, can we really call ourselves Catholics (i.e., Christians)?  If you feel challenged and convicted right now, then good!  Of course, it’s not that we must necessarily live our faith perfectly (though, that, of course, would be the goal we strive to achieve), but it does mean that we should be doing the best we can to show ourselves as followers of Christ in the practice of our faith.  Our Lord said, “This is how all will know you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (Jn. 13:35).  A truly Christian life is evidenced in the practice of love for others, particularly as Christ loved us (cf. Jn. 15:12).  The eschatological witness of Matthew’s Gospel tells us that our judgment will be based on how we have responded to “the least” among us, and it is the Lord Jesus Christ who identifies Himself with these “least” living in our midst (cf. Matt. 25:31-46).  In fact, according to the above mentioned passage in Matthew 25, our whole salvation depends on how we’ve responded to Christ in our midst in the person of the poor, the naked, the hungry, etc.  If we take the eternal salvation of our immortal souls seriously, we must take the practice of our faith seriously.

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            So what is the point of the preceding discussion?  In the words of Saint James as given to us in the Letter of James, we read that “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works?  Can that faith save him?” (James 3:14).  This is an excellent question.  Can faith, not manifested in works, save somebody?  What does Saint James say?  “So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead” (James 3:17; see also v.15-16).  Faith that is not expressed in action is dead faith, useless faith, and thus, probably not even “faith” properly so-called.  From the perspective of what has been said so far, what James says here is crucially important for us: “Indeed, someone might say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’  Demonstrate your faith to me without works, and I will demonstrate my faith to you from my works” (James 3:18).  In slightly different language, Saint Paul also displays the close connection between faith and works, and it is readily applicable to our discussion here: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so no one may boast.  For we are His handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:8-10).  Of course, let’s not be confused here: we are NOT saved by our good works; we are saved by faith, but, as St. Paul says, we were created to walk in good works, and, as St. James says, faith without works is dead. 

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            So we can see here, then, that it is crucial to manifest our faith in practice…..faith must always be expressed in practice, and the practice must always be the fruit of our faith.  These things are necessary for authentic Christian living.  So, at this point, it may be good to do a little “self diagnostic” to see whether you’re living the authentic Christian life: where is your faith?  Is it or how is it manifested in practice?  What’s the fruit of your faith?  What’s the fruit of your Christian witness in practice?  What can you do to better express in practice your identity as a Catholic (i.e., Christian)?  Now is the time for you to live your faith “out loud.”  You are hereby challenged: let your faith be made known in the way you live your life…..there’s no other way to go!

~ Noah J.

Catholicism, Culture, and Evangelization:

Reaching Out to Proclaim Christ to a Lost and Confused World

            Speaking to the people of the city of Athens, we read this account of St. Paul's preaching before the people:  "Then Paul stood up at the Areopagus and said: "You Athenians, I see that in every respect you are very religious.  For as I walked around looking carefully at your shrines, I even discovered an altar inscribed, 'To an Unknown God.'  What therefore you unknowingly worship, I proclaim to you.  The God who made the world and all that is in it, the Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in sanctuaries made by human hands, nor is He served by human hands because He needs anything.  Rather it is He who gives to everyone life and breath and everything.  He made from one the whole human race to dwell on the entire surface of the earth, and he fixed the ordered seasons and the boundaries of their regions, so that people might seek God, even perhaps grope for him and find him, though indeed he is not far from any one of us.  For 'In him we live and move and have our being,' as even some of your poets have said, 'For we too are his offspring.'" (Acts 17:22-28).  I find this to be a fascinating Biblical account where "Catholicism, Culture, and Evangelization" all meet in one.  What can we learn from it?

            It is important first to note that St. Paul was intimately mindful of and knowledgeable about the culture he found himself in.  From a careful investigation into the climate and aptitudes of the culture, he draws his conclusion, which then propels him into evangelization, into proclamation of the Good News which is the Gospel.  In St. Paul's time, in Athens, Greece, worship and veneration of the pantheon of the "gods" (what we would call Greek Mythology) was enjoying favor, as were the prevailing philosophies of the times.  The cult of the gods and goddesses was so prevalent that the people in Athens at that time wanted to make sure that they honored each of the gods/goddesses, and so even if there was a god that was unknown, the Athenians wanted to make sure that this unknown god was venerated properly so as to gain his/her favor and blessing.  St. Paul, having received the revelation of Jesus Christ, took the opportunity to proclaim to the people the true God, the maker of heaven and earth.  He thus revealed to the Athenians that their "religious instinct" in the worship of gods was good, but lacking correct focus and proper knowledge, insofar as their worship was not of the true and only God.  For the God that St. Paul proclaimed to them was the "unknown god" that they worshipped and venerated in ignorance, the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the true God, the one and only maker of heaven and earth.  St. Paul met the culture, interpreted it in light of the true faith, and proclaimed the truth, the good news, the Gospel to the people. 

            In our day and age, the situation is not so different.  There are plenty of altars in our culture: they are found in strip clubs, in bars and taverns, at the workplace, in nature, in the bedroom, on the internet, at the movies, in the supermarket, at the concert, and in a multiplicity of other different locations.  The altars of our "worship" pervade our culture.  But they are not the altars of the one true God; no, they are the altars of the "gods" of popular culture, for we have created our own "mythology" that defines our worship and gives voice to our prevailing philosophies.  For many, sex and sensual pleasure is their god; for others, alcohol and rebel-rousing; for still others, work-a-holism; for others, the best of food and drink; for others, internet pornography and masturbation or the online chat room where anonymity and fantasy reigns supreme; for others, the lives of celebrity "icons" of popular culture who are the trendsetters of fashion and taste; for still others, dark forces of spiritual "energy" that put them in the driver seat of life, subject to no one, themselves defining what is true and right.

            In such a setting as our culture today, a proclamation of truth is needed badly.  In his day, St. Peter, animated as he was by the Spirit of God and graced with the sure charism of truth by virtue of his unique office, proclaimed, concerning the crucified and risen Jesus, "There is no salvation in anyone else, for there is no other name in the whole world given to men by which we are to be saved."  (Acts 4:22).  The so-called "gods" of our popular culture are nothing.  Jesus Christ is everything, for He alone is Lord and Savior; He alone is the source of salvation for all of humanity; He alone is the God-Man, the Incarnate Word, the very essence and expression of God's image and likeness.  In our culture, we are all looking for God, so that we might show Him proper veneration and worship.  The problem is that we have gotten it very wrong.  We all have a "religious instinct" oriented toward the worship of a being higher than ourselves, but we are mistaken in the object of our religious veneration and worship.  Rather than honoring the true God, we have set up for ourselves a multiplicity of "gods" that we worship on a regular basis.  The "gods" of popular culture have become the center of our worship, and thus we have set up for ourselves an idol, a false "god," a reality altogether different from the true God, towards which we are all ordered by nature to worship and adore.

            We are the evangelizing Church, but we start by first being evangelized, by first receiving the good news that Jesus Christ is Lord, that He alone is Savior, and that He has established His Church to be His Body, to be the sacrament of salvation for the whole world.  It is our task today to truly receive the good news that Jesus Christ came to save us; that He came as God to do what only God could do, to accomplish what was impossible for man alone, so that through Him, we all might have true and abundant life.  He seeks to accomplish within the hearts of all people true conversion away from the worship of false "gods," to the worship of the true God, the Most Holy Trinity, One God in three Divine Persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  After we have received the good news, after we ourselves have been evangelized, it falls us to as Christians, as the bearers of Christ to the world, to proclaim Christ to the world, to further the mission started by Christ of proclaiming the presence of the kingdom, a reality that is "already, but not yet," a reality toward which we are all ordered by the will of God.  We must meet the culture, interpret it in the light of the true faith, and then proclaim the good news to the people.

            It is to us that Christ gives the great commission: "All authority has been given to Me, both in heaven and on earth; go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations.  Baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Teach them to carry out everything I have commanded you.  And know that I am with you always, until the end of the world."  (Matt. 28:18b-20).  Christ's continual presence with us makes our mission possible.  We go to proclaim Him to people, we go with His presence, in the power of His Name, the Name above all other names (cf. Phil. 2:9b), to win souls for the kingdom and for eternal salvation.  Have you heard the good news of Jesus Christ?  How have you responded?  Are you aware that as a Christian it is your responsibility to proclaim Christ?  How have you met or failed to meet this responsibility?  What will you do now to proclaim Christ, in word or in deed?  You have hereby been commissioned: go out and meet the culture; interpret it in the light of faith, and proclaim Christ to a lost a confused world!  Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam! 

~ Noah J.                                

"Persevere in Prayer":

Learning the Meaning and Value of Persistence in Prayer

ADDENDUM

            It is obviously quite impossible to cover a topic as big as "prayer" in one blog entry.  Therefore, I feel the need to put out this "addendum" to the blog entry just posted.  My post dealt primarily with the subject of perseverance in prayer, but in a certain sense, it also dealt with the reality of prayer in general as a normative Christian responsibility and a necessary aspect to living out an authentic Christian vocation.  To the end that the blog did deal with prayer in general, I believe it may be helpful to offer some "prayer resources" that might aid you, my dear reader, in your prayer life.  I would first of all like to make it clear that there are several "modes" of prayer, particularly in the Catholic Church, the Church of Christ entrusted with the fullness of Christian faith and the means of salvation.

Four "Modes" of Prayer

            There are typically identified four "modes" of prayer: Oratio, Lectio, Meditatio, and Contemplatio.  You'll pardon me for using their Latin names.  "Oratio" is related to "oration," that is, to the praying of vocal prayers, prayers such as the Lord's Prayer, the Memorare, the Salve Regina, Prayer to Saint Michael, and so on and so fourth.  This is a fairly "active" way of praying: we speak to God either out of our hearts, spontaneously, or from an already prepared ritual or prayer book.  It is a fine way of praying, the one with which most of us are probably most familiar. 

            "Lectio" refers to "Lectio Divina," or "divine reading," a prayerful reading of Scripture or of another spiritual work, though Scripture has pride of place.  This reading is in fact prayer, a prayer in which we encounter the inspired Word of God and allow it to "ruminate" within us and speak to us of God's wisdom, love, mercy, joy, peace, and grace.  This type of prayer has more to do with seeking understanding than offering supplication, as is the case with Oratio. 

            "Meditatio" refers to meditation.  The Holy Rosary is a prime example of this type of prayer.  While praying the Holy Rosary, we engage our mind in meditating on the "mysteries" of the Gospel ("mysteries" here not meaning "unknowable," but rather, infinitely knowable, unable to be exhausted).  In Meditatio, the mind seeks to understand better the realities of the Christian life so as to better live them out in daily life.  That is, a better understanding of the mystery of the Transfiguration, for instance, can help us realize our own human dignity and gives us a foretaste of heavenly reality in our mind's eye. 

            In "Contemplatio," that is, contemplation, the person who prays is purely receptive, opening him/herself completely to God and to His moving.  Contemplation is wholly gift, purely mercy.  It must be received from God, and not sought after.  In this type of prayer, the person (and their mind) is truly elevated to the heights and depths of the fullness of God and all of divine reality.

Recommendations

I have several book recommendations which may be helpful:

            ~ "Introduction to the Devout Life" by St. Francis de Sales

            ~ The fourth section of the Catechism of the Catholic Church on prayer (essential)

            ~ "Prayer Primer" by Fr. Thomas DuBay

            ~ "The Tradition of Catholic Prayer" by the Monks of Saint Meinrad Archabbey

Undoubtedly, there are MANY MORE resources for prayer out there.  I have given you some of the ones I have on my book shelf as a kind of "introduction" to what and where one should or could start to go deeper into the life of prayer.

Praying with Icons

            As a matter of personal taste and preference, I enjoy praying with icons.  Icons are probably more familiar to Christians of the Eastern Churches (both Orthodox and Catholic) than they are to Latin Rite Catholics (though, for Latin Rite Catholics, we are all very familiar with sacred images).  "Icon" simply means "image."  It is the custom of Eastern Christians to pray with icons on a regular basis, particularly in the context of the Divine Liturgy (i.e., of St. John Chrysostom {Byzantine}).  In the Eastern Churches, the icon takes on an almost sacramental reality.  For us as Latin Rite Catholics, we know that the Sacraments are efficacious symbols- they achieve in reality what they outwardly symbolize. Thus, Baptism, for instance, is indeed a pouring of water over the body, but it is also a purification of the soul; Baptism achieves what it symbolizes, it is efficacious.  Just so, icons, for Eastern Christians, take a very similar role, though not exactly the same role, of course.  The icon is representational of the reality, or person it represents.  In some sense, the icon "mediates" the person or event which it represents. 

            Praying with icons, as a form of Christian piety, is justified by virtue of the incarnation of the Word of God.  Thus, in John's Gospel, "Philip said to Him, 'Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.'  Jesus said to him, 'Have I been with you for so long a time and you still do not know me, Philip?  Whoever has seen Me has seen the Father.'" (John 14:8-9b).  Jesus, through the incarnation, is an icon of God: whoever has seen Him has seen God.  His divinity is veiled in flesh, but above and beyond His flesh, and through the flesh, the face of God is seen on the face of Christ.  This is the reality and basis for icons.  The icon is simple and its simplicity impels us to look beyond the face of the icon to the reality behind.  For example, when we look on an icon of Christ the Savior (NOTE: iconography does not promote excessive "familiarity" with the realities they symbolize and thus an image of Christ would always be just that, not an image of "Jesus," since that name is more familiar) or of the Holy Theotokos (i.e., the Blessed Mother) or of any of the Saints or events in the Old and New Testament, we are compelled to see not the image before us, but to see the reality that lies behind it.  Praying with the image invites us into the mystery of the life of the person or event upon which our physical eyes gaze.  Praying with icons can be a very powerful and moving experience, one in which it can be hard to just "walk away from," especially if the icon does in fact mediate the person and reality to one's perception and understanding.  This is often my experience after praying with icons. 

            There are many different ways to pray.  I've listed here only a few.  This "addendum" to my previous blog post probably does not do the subject justice, but hopefully it helps you to understand the rich depths of the tradition of Christian prayer, and thereby aids you in growing in your prayer life!  Ad majorem Dei gloriam!

Peace,

Noah J.

"Persevere in Prayer":

Learning the Meaning and Value of Persistence in Prayer

            The Apostle Paul exhorts the people in his letter to the Romans, "persevere in prayer" (cf. Romans 12:12).  Likewise, to the people of Thessalonica, Saint Paul says, "Pray without ceasing" (1 Thess. 5:17).  There is no doubt: these are hard words to receive in our day and age.  They are so demanding!  "Can't I just pray when I feel like it?"  "I just don't have time in my busy life for prayer; I have too many other things to do."  "I'll get prayer in when I can."  Sound familiar?  If you're a person of faith, phrases like these are perhaps all too familiar.  Why do we make excuses for not praying as much as we should or as much as we would like?  Most likely because we don't know the meaning and value of prayer, nor are we familiar with how exactly we persevere in prayer.  There is no magic formula, but there are fundamental principles which it seems good to abide by if we think there's room for improvement in our prayer lives. 

            First of all, we shouldn't just pray when we "feel like it."  If our prayer life were contingent upon how we were feeling from day to day, it's hard to say that any of us would ever find ourselves in prayer!  Prayer is not or should not be the offshoot of how we are "feeling" on a particular day.  We pray because we're supposed to pray, not because we feel like it.  Children do things based on how they feel.  Adults do things because they know they should, regardless of how they feel about it.  Feelings are notoriously transitory; no true spiritual life can ever be based purely on feelings.  This is not to negate the role of our emotions in our prayer, but it is to say that our emotions/feelings are an unsteady and unreliable foundation on which to build a relationship with God.  God calls us to prayer, to relationship with Him, to participation in His own divine life.  Our Lord says, "When you pray…" (cf. Matt. 6:5) and not "If you pray…"  If we are living faithfully in accord with our true Christian vocation, it is incumbent on us that we pray- we have an obligation to pray.  We pray because we know we should, not because we "feel like it."  This is of fundamental importance to understand for authentic Christian living.

            As noted above, why does St. Paul say "persevere in prayer"?  It seems to me, he says "persevere" precisely because, first off all, prayer is not always easy and so if it's not easy we must therefore persevere in prayer precisely for that fact.  Secondly, prayer is an ongoing reality of Christian living; it is precisely the thing we must keep doing over and over again.  The Gospel has much to teach us in this regard, and one passage seems particularly significant: "And He said to them, 'Suppose one of you has a friend to whom he goes at midnight and says, 'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, for a friend of mine has arrived at my house from a journey and I have nothing to offer him,' and he says in reply from within, 'Do not bother me; the door has already been locked and my children and I are already in bed.  I cannot get up to give you anything.'  I tell you, if does not get up to give him the loaves because of their friendship, he will get up to give him whatever he needs because of his persistence." (Luke 11:5-8).  This parable of sorts is a teaching of Our Lord on prayer.  Our petition may not be answered the first time, and this is what necessitates the virtue of persistence.  Persistence may be defined as "the quality of continuing steadily despite problems of difficulties."  We must continue steadily despite, or precisely because of problems or difficulties.  If union with God is one of the "ends" of prayer, we must persevere until it becomes a reality.

            Is prayer important?  Can we justifiably let it suffer if we take our Christian faith seriously?  Quite frankly, yes, prayer is of the utmost importance and we cannot justifiably let it suffer if we take our Christian faith seriously.  Quoting St. Therese of Lisieux, the Catechism of the Catholic Church states, "For me, prayer is a surge of the heart; it is a simple look turned toward heaven, it is a cry of recognition and of love, embracing both trial and joy."  (cf. CCC 2558).  It is enough for us often to turn our mind to the things of God.  This is a way of prayer.  Prayer is not always the multiplication of many words, the "saying" of many particular prayers, as good, as valuable, and as meaningful as those prayers might be.  It is often taking the time to make an expression of gratitude in one's heart to the God who has provided us with all that we could ever hope for or imagine.  
 

            The Scriptures say, "All good giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no alteration or shadow caused by changed." (James 1:17).  God is the giver of all good gifts.  He wants to give us all we need, out of the abundance of His love for us.  In the Holy Gospel According to St. John, we read these words of Our Lord: "Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name He will give you.  Until now, you have not asked anything in My name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete." (John 16:23b-24).  Our Lord goes on to say, "On that day, you will ask in My name, and I do not tell you that I will ask the Father for you.  For the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me and have come to believe that I came from God." (John 16:26-27).  Let us petition the Father in faith, in the name of His Son, and He will give to us whatever is in according with the graciousness of His will, for He loves us.  

            And let us pray as one, as a community, particularly in the context of the public prayer of the Church, the Holy Mass, where our prayers are most effective.  We must do this lest we think there is any such thing as a "me and Jesus" Christianity, because there is not.  Our Lord says, "Amen, amen, I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything for which they are to pray, it shall be granted to them by My heavenly Father.  For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there I am in the midst of them." (Matt 18:19-20).  Jesus is present in the midst of us, and His presence is manifested in the midst of community, which is why is necessary for us together as the Church, the Body of Christ, to offer our prayer in name of Jesus to the Father in the power of the Holy Spirit.  And so let us persevere.  Let us realize the love of the Father for us and so continue to offer our prayers with perseverance, in faith and in the knowledge of God's love for us.  For Our Lord says, "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.  Which one of you would hand his son a stone when he asks for a loaf of bread, or a snake when he asks for a fish?  If you then, who are wicked, now how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask Him."  (Matt. 7:7-11).   

~ Noah J                         

Zeal For Your House Will Consume Me:

God's House is Holy, a House of Prayer

            What's in a name?  Hmm…a very interesting and important question, indeed!  When I originally put forward the idea of creating this blog series and asked people what they were interested in reading about, I was asked to write about the meaning and significance of the "profile name" that I go by here on MySpace: "Zeal for Your house will consume Me."  What does it mean?  What is its significance?  Where does it come from?  Why did I choose it?  These are all very good questions.  Ultimately, the name signifies the obvious: Zeal for God's house.  Furthermore, this designation is not so much about a name, as such, as it is about an attitude and a frame of mind, a quality of being and a personal character ideal.  The name identifies and says something about the person behind the name.

            Where does the name come from?  First of all, it's not a "name" at all but really a Scripture verse.  Its origin is Psalm 69:10.  However, the New Testament usage is probably more significant, found in the event of the Cleansing of the Temple by Our Lord in John 2:13-23, specifically in v. 17.  In this passage, Our Lord is angered (righteously, I might add) by the sale of oxen, sheep, doves, as well as the presence of the money-changers in the Temple area.  After having made a whip out of cords and driving the merchants out of the Temple area, Our Lord cries out, "Take these out of here, and stop making My Father's house a marketplace" (cf. v. 15-16).  Jesus is zealous for the Temple of God and its holiness; it is a place of prayer, a place in which to offer sacrifice, a place to encounter the presence of the Holy One of Israel, the Lord, God the Most High.  It is written in Scripture, "My house shall be a house of prayer for all peoples." (cf. Isaiah 56:7).  Jesus is filled with righteous indignation and with zeal for His Father's house; what the merchants were doing did not align itself with God's intention for His holy temple, His house of prayer. 

            What exactly is meant by the word "zeal"?  The word "zeal" captures something of a notion of "fire" and "passion" or perhaps "ardor" and "fervor."  Zeal is a matter of personal character or temperament.  As the Son of God, the zeal of Christ is perfect, holy, righteous, awesome, and powerful.  Undoubtedly, it is also still more beyond our telling.  The Letter to the Hebrews says, "Our God is a consuming fire" (Heb. 12:29).  Those who draw close to God experience His fire, His zeal deep within them, animating them and making them courageous.  St. Paul writes to the young Bishop Timothy, "…I remind you to stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands.  For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control." (2 Tim. 1:7).  To be filled with zeal is to experience that "stirring into flame" of the Spirit given to us by God- a Spirit of power, love, and self-control.  To be filled with zeal is to grow in courage, in "holy boldness" for the glory of God's name and the great dignity of His works.

            Just as Our Blessed Lord was filled with zeal for the holy Temple, God's house of prayer, just so the Cleansing of the Temple is a clarion call to ignite within ourselves the flame of zeal for the dignity and glory of "the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of truth." (cf. 1 Tim. 3:15).  For me, the Scripture passage, "zeal for Your house will consume me," is a reminder that I am a member of the Body of Christ, the one Church of Christ, God's holy temple.  Ultimately, this "zeal" is grounded in the recognition of the greatness of God and of the magnificence of His work, particularly of His dwelling- the heart of every member, individually and collectively, of the Body of Christ, the one Church of Christ.

            But let's get to the heart of the matter: I choose the Scripture, "Zeal for Your house will consume Me," because I, myself, am filled with zeal for the Lord's house.  The Lord God, who is "a consuming fire," has ignited the fire within me.  I am passionate about the house of the Lord, on fire for its glory and dignity, filled with ardor for its perpetuation, and animated by fervor for its mission.  I chose the verse as my "profile name" because it's Biblical basis disrupts much of what we consider to be "normal" behavior for the Son of God.  Jesus was not a push-over; neither, then, should we be. Let us not tolerate atrocities in the house of the Lord; let us cast out every obstacle that places itself in-between us and the true worship of God.  However, zeal must ultimately be tempered by love.  Zeal without love does much violence, and love without zeal can tend towards laxity.  True zeal effects positive change, renewal, and greater life.  Ultimately, we all need a little zeal in our life.  Otherwise, we may hear the words of the Lord spoken to us: "I know your works; I wish that you were either hot or cold, but because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth." (Rev. 3:15-16).  Where's the zeal in your life?  Give it all to God, for His glory.  In love, let your life be consumed with zeal for the house of the Lord.                                        

Entering Into Sacred Silence:

Hearing the Voice of the Lord

            If any of you are like me, you sometimes feel like you don't have enough time to "get away from it all" and have some peace and quiet!  I know I certainly feel this way from time to time.  There's something about that quiet time, that silence that's so essential, so necessary for living not just a good life, but a holy life, a life of purpose and meaning, a life pleasing to God and personally fulfilling.  Ultimately, there seems to be something "rejuvenating" about those moments of silence in our lives- it gives us energy, nourishes our souls, and makes us more able to discern and respond to God's voice and activity in our lives.  Have you heard His voice lately? 

            Let's be honest here: the facts of our normal, everyday lives are obvious: we are continually bombarded with more and more "things to do" and we might even say to our selves, "Well, if I don't do it, it won't get done!  Somebody's got to do it!"  The truth is that we are slaves to perpetual activity and perpetual noise.  We are people of the "To Do" list.  We can't sit still for too long without fidgeting, waiting for whatever comes next.  We hate the "in-betweens" of life, those awkward moments where we are uncertain of what to say or what to do.  Why is this?  Partly, I think we've been socialized to be this way.  We've been trained to multiply words to no end and engage in pointless conversations about the weather, for instance, to no effect other than to fill up the "awkward silence" that would otherwise exist if we were not speaking.  Try standing in an elevator with several other people; if nobody's talking, the first person off can't wait to leave- "On to the next thing!"  Those moments of "awkward silence" in life are excruciating, probably because they are perceived as lifeless, uncomfortable, stale, and perhaps ultimately boring.  But this is our vision, not God's vision.  God's vision of silence is an altogether different vision than ours.

            The quote I have at the top of this blog page is very important for us.  It's a quote I like very much and remember being captivated by when I first read it: "The Father spoke one Word, which was His Son, and this Word He speaks always in eternal silence, and in silence must it be heard by the soul."  Thank you, Saint John of the Cross!  What a profound statement!  Indeed, God has a different vision of silence than we do.  God's vision of silence is one in which the moments of silence in our lives is "pregnant" with life, with love, with beauty, with truth, with goodness- its potential to speak to us is limitless, and its power to impact us is astounding. 

            I am captivated by the story of Samuel in the Temple (cf. 1 Samuel 3:1-10), particularly because of Samuel's eventual response to the mysterious voice he heard calling him- "Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening."  Too often we may want to turn that around and say, "Listen, Lord, for Your servant is speaking!"  If we take on this attitude, we have failed to listen to the God who speaks to us in silence.  It is God who must speak to us, and we who must listen.  After all, we have one mouth but two ears….does this tell us anything?!  When we're not saying anything, when we enter into silence, God can better speak to us and likewise, we can better listen to His voice.  I am also captivated by the story of Elijah on Mount Horeb (cf. 1 Kings 19:9-13).  Elijah sees a strong and heavy wind, an earthquake, and fire- but in none of these was the Lord to be found.  Elijah ultimately encounters God in "a tiny whispering sound"- this, and not in those other impressive sights, is where God was found- in the silence, through a whisper. 

            And so it is with the stories of our lives.  How can God possibly speak to you, and how can you possibly hear Him above the deafening roar of the busyness of life?  He longs to speak to you in the stillness of your heart, in the quiet moments of your life.  He wants to speak to us in the very depths of our being and say, "Be still and know that I am God." (cf. Psalm 46:11).  Have you heard His voice lately?  How have you responded?  What must change in your life in order for your relationship with God to grow stronger, more alive?  What do you find consumes most of your time and your peace?  Where is God in the midst of that?  Do you make enough time in your life for silence and reflection?  Invite God into the busyness of your life.  Ask Him to transform those moments of "awkward silence" in your life into moments of peace, moments of life, and moments of grace.  Open your heart to the God who longs to speak to you.  If you do this, you will know peace, you will know life, and you will know a grace that can transform your life.  Have you heard His voice lately?  Open your heart to Him, for He speaks to you in silence.  Listen to His voice with the ear of your heart, in silence.  Be still and know that He is God.

~ Noah J.                            

Hello, friends!

OK, so it's been a while since I've blogged on anything!  Where does the time all go?  Hard to say!  All I know is "you gotta make time to take time"....please, no breaking out in song!

Anyway, my real purpose for this blog right now is to inform those of you who are interested that I'd like to take the time to do a weekly blog entry.  As some of you from way back may remember, I did have a blog I did every week entitled "weekly word"....each week, I picked a passage of Scripture, gave a bit of introduction, gave the passage itself, gave a little background/context for the passage, asked some questions for reflection, and included a challenge.  Those blogs took quite a while to compose for a busy guy like me...like an hour and a half, perhaps longer depending on how verbose I was feeling. 

I'd like to perhaps do something like that again, maybe giving reflections for Sunday Mass readings every once in a while, but more often, I'd like to start a series of short blogs, 3 or 4 paragraphs, talking about different themes in the spiritual life, musings on seminary life, or a Christian reflection on current events.  I'm not sure...there are a lot of options.  I would plan on hopefully having a new blog post every wednesday.  I'm interested in what most interests you.....what do you want to hear about, what are you interested in reading?  If I post blogs that no one's interested in reading (except perhaps myself!), what's the point?  So give me some feedback...what matters to you?  I don't promise I'll taylor every blog post to what you're interested in hearing, but this way you help me with ideas, and I help you by writing about what you're interested in.  So just let me know.  I look forward to what you have to say!

May the blessings of Almighty God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, descend upon you and remain with you forever.  Amen.

Yours in Christ,

Noah J 

Hello friends!

Pax et Bonum!

I just wanted to let you know I will not be able to be here on MySpace very much this summer.  I'm doing CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education) this summer, and the parish rectory where I'm living doesn't have internet access, so this is why I will not be on much. 

I will try to monitor my groups when I can, respond to messages when I am able, and look at friend requests when I have the time.  It's a busy summer, but good so far.  I wish the best to all of you, and hope to catch up with you soon!  Until we chat again, I remain....

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Noah J :-) 

Hey fellow myspacers :)  I hope ya'll are doing well out there!  I write this short blog, for one, because I love this video, and secondly, because I don't feel we "take JESUS to the streets" often enough.  I don't mean that we don't do public Eucharistic Processions enough (although that's also true), but what I do mean is that as members of Christ's Faithful, as members of the One Body of Christ, IT IS OUR JOB AND OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO PROCLAIM CHRIST to a world in desperate need of a message of salvation. 

I was reflecting today at Mass, during the Gospel, that we hear the Gospel over and over again, and it can get boring, and we keep saying the same thing.  And then I realized, "Duh!  We better be saying the same thing!  It's the only thing worth saying, the thing we're supposed to be saying all the time!"  The Church must proclaim the Gospel every day.  If it seems to get "boring," it is then that we should realize that we're no longer listening or have hardened our hearts to message of Christ and His love, sacrifice, and salvation (or that our Gospel proclamation is inauthentic, which is a BIG problem if that's the case). 

The Church must proclaim Christ.  We the Faithful must proclaim Christ.  He is our message, and as long as there is air in our longs, the name of Christ should be on our lips.  Our problem is that we get too wrapped up in "political correctness."  Please!  Jesus wasn't crucified for being politically correct!  The Gospel is controversial, I'm sorry!  The Gospel isn't "politically correct"...get over it!  It will challenge you to change your sin-soaked life, will make you angry, will make you uncomfortable, will push the limits of what you consider sanity, will destroy what you think you know and give you new knowledge, and it will push you to limits you didn't think you could go to!  It will do all this and more.  And if it can do this for us, what can it do for the rest of the world?!  And this is why we must take Jesus to the streets, why our proclamation must be new to every generation, why we must not grow weary or get too wrapped up in political correctness.  Jesus is the SAVIOR OF THE WORLD.  It's time the world knew about it!

I want to take JESUS to the STREETS!  Who's with me?!  Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam!  For the greater glory of God!

Vatican official calls liturgical renewal 'irreversible path'

By John Thavis
Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Liturgical renewal launched by the Second Vatican Council is an "irreversible path" and has not been affected by Pope Benedict XVI's concession on wider use of the Tridentine rite, a Vatican official said.

"The pope's decision has so far not produced any change in the celebrative practice of our ecclesial communities. His gesture was only one of service to unity," Archbishop Piero Marini, who arranged papal liturgies for more than 20 years, said in an interview April 25 in the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano.

"Therefore let's look ahead and let's continue with enthusiasm the path undertaken by the council," he said.

Late last year Archbishop Marini was named to head the Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses.

The archbishop remains involved in international liturgical issues, and he said a revision of the committee's statutes is giving it wider authority over eucharistic congresses at the national and regional level, too.

Asked if Pope Benedict's relaxation of restrictions on the use of the pre-Vatican II liturgy signaled a halt to the liturgical reform movement, Archbishop Marini said that was clearly not the pope's aim.

The pope's decree "does not intend to introduce modifications on the current Roman Missal or express a negative judgment on the liturgical reform desired by the council," he said.

He said the decree, which reached out to disaffected Catholics, should be seen as an effort to maintain unity in the church.

Archbishop Marini said his own experience in organizing papal liturgies in more than 100 countries has convinced him that the liturgical reform movement has brought overwhelmingly positive results.

"Everywhere, the liturgy desired by the council was celebrated with lively participation and enthusiasm. Everyone understood the liturgy as proper to the local church and at the same time as an expression of the universal church," he said.

Those liturgies also demonstrated that liturgical reform has solid theological foundations, he said.

"Therefore this is an irreversible path," he said.

Liturgical celebration cannot be separated from the life of the church, the archbishop said, and this means "the church of today, not the church of yesterday or of tomorrow."

At the same time, Archbishop Marini said celebrating the liturgy according to Vatican II is not an easy thing. It takes patience, perseverance and pastoral charity, he said.

One particular issue that has emerged during papal trips, he said, is the fact that some Masses are now attended by hundreds of thousands of the faithful. That raises practical considerations like the number of concelebrants, the distribution of Communion and the level of personal participation, he said.

Pope Benedict has already asked for reconsideration of the role of concelebrants, and Archbishop Marini said it makes sense to look at the question through a serious study and with eventual pastoral-liturgical guidelines.

Archbishop Marini looked ahead to the 49th International Eucharistic Congress in Quebec June 15-22, and he praised the local planning for the event. In particular, he said, Quebec Cardinal Marc Ouellet deserves credit for the enthusiasm, competence and commitment he has brought to the congress.

"I hope this congress will be a source of life and a sign of a renewed springtime in the church in Quebec, in Canada and in the whole world," the archbishop said.

URL Source: http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0802350.htm

Benedict XVI’s Message to the United States

"I Am Coming, Sent by Jesus Christ, to Bring You His Word of Life"