HOLY  SATURDAY

How about changing Holy Saturday
to Silent Saturday or Empty Saturday?

Why?

Well, I stopped into church this morning
and it felt so silent and so, so empty.
I saw the empty tabernacle with its doors
left wide open. That was different.
Next I looked at the empty cross
from last night’s Good Friday service.
Next I sat down in the empty benches
all alone, realizing there will be no singing
or public praying till tonight’s Easter Vigil.

Silent Saturday. It seems like
a good idea to shut down the prayers
and the public gatherings and just be.
Churches can be too noisy,
too much of the time – people
and priests unable to pray without
words – having to stuff “Hail Mary’s”
and “O my Jesus” into every second.
Today I just feel the need for a day
like today to just take some time
and walk around in nature’s church,
and see spring beginning, spring springing,
or to take some time to just sit
in the silence of an empty church –
especially on this Holy Saturday morn.

Okay!
Maybe “Holy” is better for this Saturday.

“Where have they taken my Lord!”
Where did you go Lord Jesus – after
they took you down from the cross,
after they took you out of your mother’s arms,
especially when she wouldn’t let go –
after they put you in the brand new
empty tomb – where did you go?

Scriptures and creeds and knowers,
say you rose again the third day
after you suffered death and were buried.
Icon makers and visionaries with great
imaginations have you wandering around
in the clumpy complicated underworld
of death – reaching for Adam and Eve
and meeting patriarchs and prophets –
and all those who have gone before you.

Okay. But I don’t wonder about this
on this Saturday morning. I want silence.
And tomorrow I want Easter Faith
and the hope of waking up after I die
and meeting you, Lord Jesus, and all
those I have met not enough in this life.
How this happens I really don’t care.
When I die, I just want to hear you Jesus
standing at my grave, screaming out my name –
and if you do this the very second
after I die, all the better. Amen.

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Icon on top: Harrowing of Hades  - by Dionisus (15th Century) - in the Ferapontov Monastery - which flourished from the 15th to the 17th centuries. It is located in the Vologda region of northern Russia.

FASTING,  PRAYER

AND COMING TOGETHER

Quote for Today - Holy Saturday  - April 23,  2011

"You shall come together and watch and keep vigil all the night with prayers and intercessions, and with reading of the prophets, and with the Gospel and with psalms, with fear and trembling and with earnest supplication, until the third hour in the night after the Sabbath; and then break your fasts."

Anonymous: Didascalia Apostolorum, 21. (3rd Century)

SIMPATICO

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this Good Friday is, “Simpatico!”

I’m taking this theme from the second reading we heard tonight. [Cf. Hebrews 4: 14-16; 5: 7-9]

The author of the Letter to the Hebrew is describing Jesus – as a great high priest. He writes, “Brothers and sisters: Since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession.”

Then he writes, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses….”

Then he says that Jesus is approachable.

That’s my basic message in this Good Friday homily. Jesus is approachable, because he can sympathize with us. Jesus is “simpatico.”

OUR EULOGY

Wouldn’t “simpatico” be the one word we all would want in our eulogy? Wouldn’t we want our kids to describe us as approachable – understanding, sympathetic, empathetic – in a word, “simpatico”?

I’ve told at least 2 dozen people over the phone in my life – who live at a distance – and they are looking for a priest to talk to about a problem, “Go to churches in your area for Sunday Mass – and sit there and listen to the priest and watch him – and then ask and listen to your gut, “Could I talk to this guy? Is he approachable? If not, go to the next church?”

Looking back at our life, what principal, what coach, what boss, what teacher, was our favorite?

Of course we would want people that challenged us, people whom we learned from, but I’m willing to bet that one of their key ingredients – if not their best quality – was their ability to sympathize – to understand.

As the State Trooper on the highway approaches us with ticket pad in hand and we were going only 10, ten measly miles, over the speed limit, don’t we hope he or she has simpatico?

Don’t we hope the judge we approach – when we’re trying to get out of jury duty – has 10,000 ounces of simpatico? We gotta get out of this. We have take care of our Aunt Lizzy on Monday, baby sit for our daughters kids on Tuesday, etc. etc. etc.?

I remember I was on Jury Duty in New Jersey and I was in Jury Pool G and they were selecting jurors. We were standing in the back waiting to be called one by one to be one of possible 14 jurors in a case. Members of our pool would go to a seat, sit down, be asked a few questions, and then selected or rejected by the prosecution or the defense. Our occupations were listed next to our name. My name was called. I got to the seat – sat down – and no sooner had my butt touched the chair – did I hear the words, “Rejected” or whatever the word was. When those of us who were dismissed got back to the big holding room, we rejects were talking and someone said of me to our group. “Priest. Automatic reject Father. Automatic. You heard the case. Two guys raped another guy in prison. The prosecution would expect you to obviously be sympathetic.”

That hit me. Of course. That’s what people would hope in confession or whatever from a priest. Smile.

JESUS – SIMPATICO – BIG TIME

If we read the scriptures with this idea in mind, it’s obvious that Jesus was big time simpatico. This is what the Letter to the Hebrews we heard tonight pointed out.

He was born in a stable with animals. He came from a poor village. He reached out to people others were avoiding. He said, “Let the person here without sin, cast the first stone!” when the Scribes and the Pharisees wanted to trap him by bringing to him a woman caught in adultery. [ Cf. John 8:1-11]

That Jesus was filled with sympathy for others hit me as I was putting together this sermon today for Good Friday. That Jesus was filled with sympathy is the heart of the matter.

The word “simpatico” – originally coming from the same spelling word in Italian – then becomes the same word in Spanish, “simpatico,” and “sympathique” in French, and “sympatisch” in German. All have in the word, the original Greek and Latin words “pathos” and “pathia” meaning feelings, emotions, experience.

Good Friday is all about “The Passion of the Christ.”

Jesus cried, screamed, almost despaired, was lonely, felt all alone, needed companionship, these days, these nights, during this week of Passion – when he was celebrated on Palm Sunday, when he celebrated a big meal with his disciples, one of whom betrays him, when Peter, James and John, his 3 best friends, slept when he asked them to stay awake because he need them, when they all run away when he’s arrested, when he imprisoned, beaten, bloodied, crowned with thorns and beaten again and made fun of.

This Good Friday afternoon when he was judged and condemned to death, he didn’t get any sympathy from Pilate or the crowd, who chose a thief over him, screaming, “We want Barabbas!” and then they screamed, “Take him away, take him away! Crucify him!”

As priest I’ve gone through this Good Friday service a good 46 times. Now I’m not sure about this, but I sense, the younger the crowd, the louder the rejection – the older the crowd the more hard it is to say, “Take him away, taken him away! Crucify him.” and to yell, “We have no king but Caesar.”

SUFFERING AND SINS – MISTAKES AND MESS

Suffering and sins, mistakes and mess, make us more sympathetic – or can make us more sympathetic.

I often reflect on the quote I heard 40 years or so ago, “Suffering enters the human heart to create there places that never existed before.”

I always remember Nathaniel Hawthorne’s story where one woman says to another woman – a woman who is very proper and very priggish, “You know you ought to go out and commit a really good sin and then you might understand the rest of us.”

How many women have told me they have much more sympathy towards those who had an abortion after their moms or daughters told them that they had an abortion?

I remember hearing a priest give his A.A. talk and in it he told about all the mistakes he made in his life and I said to myself, “If I ever got messed up, here is the first priest in the United States I would call up and head to see.”

How many dads have told me that they became much more understanding of men who are gay, after their sons came to them and told them they were homosexual?

The Letter to the Hebrews says Jesus our High Priest went through it all – all except sin – but he can sympathize with our weaknesses – so let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help.

TONIGHT – THIS GOOD FRIDAY

Tonight – this Good Friday evening – stand under this gigantic cross and understand why well over a billion people in our world – still hang with him.

Tonight as you come from all parts of this church to kiss the cross of Jesus – know it’s the person who died on this cross – we’re centering in on – the one who died in excruciating pain. This is the Christ – this is the one whom we can always go to for sympathy – simpatico – love – passion – the one who knows our feelings – our passion – our passions.

Tonight, let us realize the more we unite with Christ, the more we will leave this church – and become simpatico with all the rest of us poor slobs and sinners in this world of ours. Amen.

SPEECHLESS

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for Good Friday Morning Prayer is, “Speechless.”

That’s a strange title for a sermon which hopefully is “sacred speech”.

“Speechless in Annapolis.”

My main point will be: “Good Friday evokes awe – oooh – and – silence.

READING FROM ISAIAH 52: 13-15

“See, my servant shall prosper, he shall be raised high and greatly exalted. Even as many were amazed at him – so marred was his look beyond that of man, and his appearance that of mortals. So shall he startle many nations, because of him kings shall stand speechless; For those who have not been told shall see, those who have heard shall ponder it.”

Speechless is the word that jumped out of the reading in today’s morning prayer for Good Friday. In Isaiah 52: 15 the writer says when people see the servant – the so called “Suffering Servant” – people will be startled and kings will stand speechless.

I stopped and thought about that. I asked when have I stopped and found myself speechless in the presence of another person.

A FEW EXAMPLES

A few years back I received a call from Anne Arundel Medical Center. We love Father Pat Flynn and now Father Joe Krastel, because they both love going up to the hospital and seeing lots and lots of people. I was on duty and got to the hospital and a nurse escorted me into an area I never was in before. It was an operating room. I said to myself, “Uh oh. Oh no!” A whole team were in the middle of an operation. The key doctor said, “Father we couldn’t wait – so we started without you. Could you anoint this man and say some prayers over him. We need all the help we can get.”

I was speechless. I was stunned. Then I anointed his forehead only –not the palms of his hands. There were tubes everywhere. I then spoke some prayers and walked out and the team said, “Thank you!”

Afterwards – as I was taking the surgical mask off, I stood there speechless – thinking, “Did this just happen?” It was a first for me – but I did hear that surgeons can be talkative at times. I’d guess it could be nerves – or the first time they did a big operation they were speechless.

I once was sitting with a couple who were to be married here at St. Mary’s. At the first preliminary meeting I noticed the guy had a metal leg. It was badly wounded in Iraq. As I heard his story, I became speechless. Being an officer, he was picked out for sniper fire – and they got him. Messy. Messy.

Haven’t we all seen someone who had been severely burnt – or what have you – and we’re speechless – especially because we didn’t want to say the wrong thing – or even let our face or body language say the wrong thing?

Well, in this reading, the author is telling about the Suffering Servant who will be raised high and will be greatly exalted. However, he’s also going to have a horrible looking face and body.

After the word, “speechless” the next key word for me was “marred”. I looked it up in my 7 different translations of the Bible. Most of the translations used the word “marred”. Next I wondered what the Hebrew word was – not that I know Hebrew – but I always find this sort of investigation interesting and informative. The Hebrew word is “MISHCHAT” and the English words that are used to translate it are meaning “marred”, “defaced”, “deformed”, “distorted”.

CHRIST

Is it any wonder that the text from Isaiah was used by Christians to describe Christ – who also was marred, defaced, deformed and distorted.

I’m sure you’ve all seen really bloody images of Christ on the cross – or you saw the movie, “The Passion of the Christ” and I’m sure you were speechless – as you sat there or stood there.

I started working on this homily yesterday afternoon and then we were out at St. John Neumann’s last night – and as I sat there looking at the gigantic cross – I continued wondering about this theme of “speechless” and “marred”. Of course I wasn’t doing this during Father Jack Kingsbury’s homily. I was wondering if the question came up when the team and I understand the parish was asked about that crucifix. “How bloody!” “How disfigured?” “How marred?”

I’m sure they and the artist who made that gigantic body for that cross thought about impact – feelings – prayers – that this work of art would evoke.

I wonder what folks who come to St. John Neumann think and feel when they see that gigantic crucifix. I have to come up with a sermon for this evening for the Good Friday service.

CONCLUSION

I’m sure all of us – the more we go through this day – the more Good Fridays we go through in our life – that we all become more and more speechless – in the presence of a God – who was willing to come to us – who was willing to take taunts and spit – and rejections – and beatings – and a crowning with thorns – and then die for us.

Today – listen – watch – notice – Good Friday – this day – around our world is quieter than any other day of the year.

What will be your few words today – if any. A lady was telling me recently that the last two words her husband said to her – as he was dying were, “Thank you!”

That left me speechless.

THE CRUX - THE CROSS -

OF THE MATTER

Quote for Today - Good Friday - April 22, 2011

"It is true, and even tautological, to say that the Cross is the crux of the matter."

G.K, Chesterton [1874-1936], The Everlasting Man, (1925)

Photo on top - a scene along a farm road in Croatia

POETS

Poets throw words into the air.

And some fall into ears and

work their way down

that brown wax channel

into the garden of the brain.

And like a steel spade

the poet’s words and images

wiggle and ease and shake

loose a root of a memory. And

water trickles or rushes up

from that forgotten moment.

And tears flow out of eyes.

And a smile shows up

on a face or two. And sometimes,

sorry, just the opposite happens:

a scowl – the wanting to hide

from a distant deep rooted hurt

which appears as a wince

on a wrinkled face.

O my God, there is so much tilling

and so much telling to tell – and

so much to forget, so much to bury,

or sometimes better, so many roots to cut.

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2011

A TASTE

OF SUFFERING

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this Holy Thursday morning prayer is, “A Taste of Suffering.”

I picked the topic of suffering because that’s the topic in the following scripture reading we just heard from the 2nd chapter of Hebrews, verses 9 and 10.

“We see Jesus crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, that through God’s gracious will he might taste death for the sake of all. Indeed, it was fitting that when bringing many to glory, God, for whom and through whom all things exist, should make their leader in the work of salvation perfect through suffering.”

What’s your take on suffering? What suffering have you tasted in your life so far?

MAKE A LIST – TAKE A LIST TO PRAYER AND TO REFLECTION

If someone asked you to make a list of the top 10 sufferings you have tasted in your life – what would your list look like – what would your list taste like?

The death of a child. The death of a spouse. The sudden death of someone very close to you.

Divorce. Betrayal. Being rejected. Being ignored. A family split apart.

Cancer. Strokes. Alzheimer’s. Parkinson’s. Mental sickness. Retardation.

Abuse. Cover ups. Denial of abuse – allowing for more abuse. False accusations.

Cries in the night. Can’t sleep. No way out. No relief. Enough already.

What did our childhood sound like? When we see and hear little kids screaming in church – do they echo in our screams in the night when we were in the dark and mommy and daddy were elsewhere and we felt all alone? Did we have a happy childhood? How about our teen years? Acne or aches or being made fun of – or thinking teachers had favorites and we weren’t one of them?

We know what it is to think milk or wine or a piece of fruit looks great and we drink it or bite into it and it’s sour or bitter? What sufferings did we taste in our 20’s and 30’s and beyond?

What sufferings do we taste daily? How come everything seems better in the other person’s house or family? Am I plagued by comparisons – and as we know: comparisons can crush. How do optimists become optimists and pessimists become pessimists? Is it a matter of luck or a matter of attitude or grace?

As in a Chinese restaurant, so in life, there is the sweet and the sour,

What sufferings have we tasted?

What do we choose for our outer conversations with each other and our inner conversations with ourselves: Good News or Bad?

As Jesus says in the garden this very night – after the Last Supper, “Father if it is possible, let this cup pass from me, but not my will, but yours be done.” [Luke 22: 42]

Obviously, the reality of suffering, the cross, death, denial, betrayal, are major themes and scenes we ponder and reflect upon and bring them to our prayers, this week – this Holy Week – but also when we have to make our own personal Way of the Cross some other week, some other moment this year or some other year.

WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED FROM TASTING SUFFERING?

We can make our list on that as well.

We might have learned that suffering can help us grow in understanding and patience – because now we know what others have had to go through.

We might have learned that some people think God zaps and punishes people – and some people don’t lay that on God. Some people know that suffering sometimes comes from the results of our poor eating habits or smoking or drinking or laziness or lake of exercise and sometimes suffering comes with a random knock on our door.

We might have learned that God is powerless when it comes to suffering – so powerless that God became one of us and went through horrible suffering, rejection, jeering, beating, stripped naked and then nailed to a cross and made to die on the cross, to redeem us as well as to help us deal with crosses – to tell and show us we’re not alone when it comes to suffering. We can realize that Christ is with us all days even to the end of the world. Yes, Jesus said he could call on his Father and 12 legions of angels could be there faster than any 911 call. But no, these days we experience once again, what Jesus went through in all these Stations of the Cross – especially the 12th Station – when Jesus dies on the Cross.

What have we learned from tasting suffering?



++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Picture on top: Garden of Gethsemani Copyright Kichura

HOLY THURSDAY

Quote for Today - Holy Thursday Prayer - April 21, 2011

"O God,
from whom Judas
received the punishment of his guilt,
and the thief the reward of his confession,
grant us the effect of Your clemency;
that as our Lord Jesus in his passion
gave to each a different recompense
according to his merits,
so may He deliver us from our old sins
and grant us the grace of His resurrection."


This is an English translation of the Collect prayer for Holy  Thursday and Good Friday - the Latin of which is found in the Gelasian Sacramentary dating back to  5th to the 7th century. The Gelasian Sacramentary is the second oldest Roman Catholic liturgigal book. The oldest is the Verona Sacramentary.

Picture on top: Garden of Gethsemani in 1893.

COMMITMENT:

JESUS AND JUDAS

INTRODUCTION

Today, Spy Wednesday, I’d like to talk about commitment.

And after making some preliminary comments about commitment, I’d like to make two points about commitment.

PART ONE: COMMITMENT—

SOME PRELIMINARY COMMENTS

THE QUESTION

I believe that when it comes to commitment, the question isn’t whether I’m committed or not, the question rather is: What am I committed to?

That is the question!

A few weeks ago when I spoke about St. Patrick, I got into this whole issue of where my heart is—where my core is—what am I committed to?

The people we say or think are not committed, might be quite committed to just that: to not being committed—to not being nailed down—to not being tied to anything.

And that very posture is a commitment.

So everyone is committed (in my opinion). So the question once more is: what am I committed to?

AN ASIDE

And as an aside, if a person has a clear commitment and we approve of their commitment and the way its going,  we call them dedicated, zealous, and committed.

If we don’t like them and / or their commitment, we call them fanatics, hardhats, hard heads, liberals, conservatives, nuts, what have you.

LIKE FLINT

In today’s first reading, Isaiah uses the image or symbol of flint. He says, “I have set my face like flint....” [Cf. Isaiah 50: 4-9a]

Flint is basic. It’s stone. It’s hard and well defined.

Isaiah sees that once he becomes a prophet he has to be: dedicated, a rock, stable, sharp, clear, well defined, strong.

We make primitive axes and homes out of rock.

So no wonder it’s a good image or symbol of stability and strength. It’s an image of commitment.

When we are committed, we are willing to fight for our cause. We pick up stone axes or we  tighten our fists.

When we are committed to putting up a house — we start by searching for stones to build solid walls. Picking the spot, starting to build, is a statement to ourselves that we are planning to stay here, to settle here in that place. We’re settling in. We’re committed.

If we’re not, then we hit the road and keep on searching. If not, a tent is our symbol!

EZECHIEL

There is a passage in Ezechiel where we find the same image that we see here in Isaiah.

It’s from Ezechiel 3: 8 - 9:

“The whole house of Israel is stubborn and obstinate.
But now, I will make you as defiant as they are,
and as obstinate as they are;
I am going to make your resolution as hard as a diamond
and diamond is harder than flint.
So do not be afraid of them,
do not be overawed by them
for they are a set of rebels.”

Then Ezechiel hears the words, “Listen closely....”

LUKE – JESUS FACE IS SET LIKE FLINT

In the gospel of Luke, we find this same message in 9:51. Jesus aimed his face at Jerusalem. Jesus took the road that leads to Jerusalem resolutely.

The people in the north would take a route around Samaria to get to Jerusalem in the south. Jesus went straight through Samaria. His face was set like an arrow towards Jerusalem. He traveled like the crow flies.

That’s commitment.

That’s having a clarity of goal, target, destiny.

COMMITMENT

So commitment is sticking to one’s goal, no matter what.

Isn’t that what Jesus did?

Isn’t that what Judas also did - as we notice in today's gospel? [Cf.  Matthew 26:14-25]

Judas had a clear goal.

He thought Jesus was his way to reach it.

When he saw that Jesus was not fitting his goal, his plans, his expectations, then Judas betrayed him.

That’s commitment.

ANDREW GREELEY

When I read Andrew Greeley’s autobiography, “Confessions of a Parish Priest”, I jotted down several comments about commitment that grabbed me.

On page 32 he writes, “I decided I wanted to be a priest in the second grade, have never changed my mind and never had any doubts.”

On page 95: he spells it out, “So when did I decide to be a priest? In Sister Alma Frances’ classroom, in second grade, in the late autumn of 1935 when she asked how many boys wanted to be priests. About half of us raised our hands, and Sister, God be good to her, said that perhaps one of us would make it. Actually two of us did, my close friend Lawrence McNamara, now bishop of Grand Island, Nebraska, being the other.”

On page 121 he says that when he was in the major seminary and experienced what he thought was nonsense, I “kept my own counsel, honored all the rules ... and gave the proper responses to the prefect of discipline and the spiritual director and the rector when they asked me about my fitness for the priesthood.”

On page 136 he asks, and why? Why did he put the best possible face on it? His answer, because “I wanted to be a priest. My instincts told me there was more to the Church than the seminary.”

And on page 71 we hear Greeley say that his commitment is till death. He is talking about being told to stop writing novels. He is often asked that question.

He explains, “Freedom of expression is not a right the Church can bestow and take away. It’s an inalienable right with which we are born. The Church does not grant it, the Church cannot revoke it, I cannot even in good conscience give it up because Church leaders demand it. It is conceivable, though I think unlikely, that I could lose the canonical standing which I now claim. If that happens, so be it. It is also possible, though unlikely, that ecclesiastical authority could laicize me. Both the cardinal and his Roman friends realize, however, that if they attempted to throw me out of the priesthood, I would simply not leave. I would continue to claim to be a priest theologically if no longer in canonical good standing and continue to do exactly the same work as I am presently doing.” (p. 71)

So that’s commitment. Greeley wanted to be a priest since he was a kid and he still wants to be one.

As priest it was helpful for me to read all this – since my story is somewhat similar in wanting to be a priest ever since grammar school.

Here is one last comment from page 96. “Why did you want to be a priest? That question is a lot harder to answer. I can remember the day I decided, but I can no more articulate the reason for the decision today than I could then. I liked the priests, I respected them, I admired what they seemed to do—intervening somehow between God and humans—and I wanted to do the same thing. The impetus and the drive to the priesthood came not from the family, but from me, not exactly against their better judgment, but against some gently spoken reservations.”

“My response to the reservations was typical of the little boy who had run down the hill at Twin Lakes. Why experiment with something else when you’ve made up your mind what you want to do? Why put off ordination for one more year? Why make the course thirteen years instead of twelve?” (p. 96)

Enough of Greeley. I state all that to stress what commitment is—whether it’s Greeley, or Isaiah, or Ezechiel or Jesus.

Now two points about commitment.

PART TWO:

TWO POINTS ABOUT COMMITMENT

FIRST POINT

The question then is not whether we are committed, but what we are committed to.

Now I would make the point that we’ll never really be happy or joyful, until we are committed to what God made us for.

If we chase the wrong star, it’s disaster.

And the line from today’s gospel, jumps off the page. “It would have been better if we had not been born.”

We are born to do God’s plan for us.

God is not an idiot. God made us for a reason. God has plans for us. He has dreams for us and about us.

So that would be my first point. The secret of happiness is to do God’s will, God’s dream for us.

Thy will be done.

When we don’t, we are in living in “Disasterville.”

POINT TWO

And the second point is to come up with answers to this question: “Well then, how do I know God’s will, God’s plan, God’s dream for me?”

And the answer is to ask him. Stop and listen to him.

I mentioned above some words from Ezechiel. Listen closely to them.

We heard in today’s first reading that we should pray each morning that God’s pours his word into our ears.

EMPTY CUP OR GLASS

Each morning when we fill our glass with orange juice or our cup with coffee, simply say, “Here I am, Lord. Pour your words into my ear.”

Or as Ezechiel says elsewhere, “Eat God’s words.”

So how do we know God’s will. Ask him.

This is holy week. Listen to him.

Hear the word of the Lord.

Chew on that word. God’s word will become you.

CONCLUSION

Maybe that’s what Judas stopped doing! Maybe he stopped listening to Jesus somewhere along the line.




Picture on Top - Judas in a study on the Last Supper by Michaelangelo.

NOW

Quote for Today  - April 20, 2011

"Why always, 'Not yet'? Do flowers in spring say, 'not yet'?"

Norman Douglas

BETRAYAL

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this Tuesday in Holy Week  is, “Betrayal!”

I have a collection of quotes by various people – stating what they think is the greatest sin. The sins include sins of commission and omission – ranging from laziness to lying to pride to self-centeredness – to denial that there is such a thing as sin in the first place – to denial that other people can be different than us.

Question: “Well then, what do I think is the greatest sin?”

Answer: “It all depends!”

Question: Is the greatest sin – being slippery – being cute – being evasive?

Answer: “It all depends!”

TODAY’S GOSPEL

Today’s gospel and the gospels this week certainly make the case for betrayal as the greatest sin. Notice the little short sentence in the English version of today’s gospel. When Jesus hands Judas the morsel of food – Judas takes it. Then the gospel simply says, “And it was night.” The lights went out in Judas mind, heart and soul – and he goes out and sells Jesus out. Yet, the gospel gives hints that Judas had second thoughts when he tossed back the 30 pieces of silver.

And Judas kills himself.

At times suicide was listed as the greatest sin – because it was seen as despair – completely giving up the hope in a God who could save us. Then there are horror stories about people wanting a funeral in church for a loved one who committed suicide – and they were refused a funeral Mass and a Christian burial.

And I’m sure some would see that the refusal was the greatest sin. If ever a family needed support, it could be that moment. As priest I’ve experienced how difficult a funeral is for the family of someone who took their own life.

The gospels could make a great case that abusing children would be the greatest sin – especially based on Jesus’ words that it would be better that a person have a millstone tied around their neck and then they be thrown into the sea – than lead a little one astray.

And the Pharisees are constantly being challenged by Jesus for being filled with inner death – inner judgment about everyone else but themselves – that they have it right and everyone else has it wrong – especially Jesus.

BETRAYAL

Betrayal would certainly be in the running for the greatest sin.

Having sat with a lot of couples preparing for marriage, betrayal, breaking trust, an affair, is usually mentioned as the deal breaker – because the covenant is broken – trust is broken – it’s all over. It’s night. The lights have gone out in the marriage – and they are saying this even before they start.

Dante puts betrayal in the 9th, the bottom, the worst circle of Hell – and in the center of that circle near Judas is Lucifer or Satan – who betrayed God. And there they are frozen, stuck in ice, biting into and then chewing each other’s heads. Messy stuff.

DE PROFUNDIS

Holy Week certainly deals with these big issues.

I’ve always loved it that the Redemptorist motto is taken from Psalm 130 – the De Profundis Psalm, the “Out of the Depths I cry to you, O God,” Psalm. And in that psalm are the words and the Redemptorist motto, “In Him, there is fullness of redemption.”

"Copiosa apud eum redemptio" in Latin.

With Christ there is copious redemptio - fullness of redemption - unending forgivness.

Even if one hits the bottom of the bottom – the deepest pits, and they feel like they are in the 9th circle of hell – totally frozen – there is always hope. Even if one feels like they are in total night, there is a dawn.

That’s what Psalm 130 proclaims – so we Redemptorists hope that you being part of our Redemptorist charism, vision, message and mission, will always trust that God will never give up on you – that God will forgive any and every sin – especially if you feel you’ve committed the greatest sin.

Tough stuff to think about on a Tuesday morning.

I would also assume that’s why the painting of the Good Shepherd is up here in our sanctuary.

So this Good Friday see Jesus on the Cross as our Redeemer.

So this Good Friday hear loud and clear Jesus’ words from the cross, “Father forgive them because they don’t know what they are doing?”

CONCLUSION

I would assume that’s why Father Daniel Francis last week – preaching a Redemptorist Mission here in our parish - told on one of those night talks the story about Jesus getting up from the banquet table of heaven and going to the window hoping to see Judas coming up the road - coming  home.

Daniel has it better than Dante who has Judas almost up to his neck – stuck in ice – in the very bottom of hell.

SIN:  THE FORMULA

Quote for Today - April 19,  2011

"The basic formula of all sin is, frustrated or neglected love."


Franz Werfel

Do you agree with Franz Werfel's comment?

TIME TO SPRING

Did you take the time today

to see – to smell – to touch

the flowers all around you?

Did you take the time today

to look into the eyes of those

around you and say, “Hi in there!”

Did you take the time today

to say a prayer of thanks to God

for one more glorious day of life?

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2011

Tulips on top - just outside

the Adortion chapel

here at St. Mary's Annapolis,

April 18,  2011

JESU,

JOY OF MAN’S DESIRING

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this Monday in Holy Week is, “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring.”

BLOG QUOTES

I put a quote for every day on my blog. I have a lot of quote books and look for a quote that is challenging, timely, interesting, and intriguing.

The quote I chose for today is from something Roger Fry said, “Bach almost persuades me to be a Christian.”

It’s a quote found in a something written by Virginia Woolf on Roger Fry [1940 – Chapter 11].

I find it to be an interesting and intriguing quote. It triggered some questions: Do I try to find out more about who Roger Fry or Virginia Woolf were? I heard of them – but I don’t know enough about them. Or do I find some Bach and listen to him – in hopes of hearing why Roger Fry said what he said? “Bach almost persuades me to be a Christian”?

Next, I recalled the wedding I had on Saturday. For the seating of the mothers the music was, “Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring” by Bach.

I’m not good at music – but I know that piece when I hear it.

So I typed into Google, “Bach Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring.”

The Internet is great. There were all kinds of YouTube pieces by Bach - including, “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring.”

I listened to 3 or 4 of them. Sure enough, I got a glimpse into what Roger Fry was saying, “Bach almost persuades me to be a Christian.”

I wondered when this happened. Was Roger Fry at a concert? Where was it or what was it when he heard Bach and made that statement?

TODAY’S GOSPEL

Then I began to prepare for this homily. I read the readings and the word “perfume” in today’s gospel hit me. I read the gospel again and Judas’ words hit me,

“’Why was this oil not sold for three hundred days’ wages and given to the poor?’ He said this not because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief and held the money bag and used to steal the contributions.” [Cf. John 12:1-11]

I then wondered how much does perfume cost. I’m not good at perfume – just as I’m not good at music.

Surprise! I noticed that there is a bottle of perfume entitled, Clive Christian’s Imperial Majesty. They make 5 bottles of it a year. A 16.9 ounce bottle of this perfume costs $215,000 dollars. It has an 18 carat gold collar and it has on the bottle a 5 carat diamond.

Why wouldn’t a man give a gift card to his wife or girlfriend, especially if the man was a Christian, “In lieu of giving you a $215,000 bottle of Clive Christian’s Imperial Majesty perfume, I made out a check for $215,000 to your favorite charity, St. Mary’s Saint Vincent de Paul Society, for the poor or Annapolis?”

Then I noticed that there were cheaper perfumes. I also noticed that Number 8 in price is listed at $800. It's a one ounce bottle of perfume – entitled, “Joy!”

There's that "joy" word again.

Question: Did Jesus go, “OOOOh nice” when he got a whiff of the expensive perfume Mary anointed Jesus’ feet with?

We know Judas knew his perfumes because he estimates the price of the perfume Mary used to be 300 days’ wages.

John says that Judas’ motive was not the poor but his pocket.

CONCLUSION

The clock was ticking and I had to get out here to St. John Neumann’s for this Mass, so I had to come up with a conclusion for this homily.

So what’s the bottom line?

Is it that perfume is good? Jesus accepted Mary anointing his feet.

Is it that concern for the poor is better? Judas was voicing that - in a backdoor sort of way.

Or is  it that Jesus is best – and he is Joy – the greatest Joy one can experience – as Bach and Mary – the sister of Martha and Lazarus - as well as Roger Fry,  knew?

BACH

Quote for the Day - April 18. 2011

"Bach almost persuades me to be a Christian."

Roger Fry (1866-1934) in Virginia Woolf Roger Fry (1940), Chapter 11.


1748 Haussman painting on top of Bach [1685-1750].

Short Question: When was the last time you listened to a piece by Bach?


Try YouTube Celtic Woman, Jesu Joy of Man's Desire or YouTube Dinu Lipatti plays J.S. Bach - Cantata BWV 147 (1950)

PALMS UP

INTRODUCTION



The title of my reflection for this Palm Sunday is, “Palms Up.”



MEANING OF THE PHRASE: “PALMS UP!”



I looked up the meaning of the phrase, “Palms up” and found that it has many meanings from surrender to I’m here, from acceptance to helplessness, apology to cluelessness, innocence to there you have it, and on and on and on.



Today Palm Sunday I thought of the human hand – palms up and open – as in a way of waving a hello or a greeting. The people in the crowd wanted to wave and celebrate Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem – and so they grabbed what was right there, palm branches – and waved them to celebrate Jesus’ presence.



We have palm branches at hand today, but when we don’t have flags or signs or palm branches, we wave with our open hand – palms up and out. We do this when we see a friend or when we see a famous person going by. “Look there’s the president or pope or Miss Maryland!”



MEANING OF PALM SUNDAY



What does Palm Sunday mean to us? It’s the beginning of Holy Week – the culmination of Lent – the arrival of the 3 big Christian High Holy Days: Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday.



These days have so much meaning – that we need a week, a lifetime, the hours of the services this week to ponder the fringe – the edge – and then gradually move into the middle of their meaning.



For this Palm Sunday, for this homily or reflection, what struck me was that Jesus went through what we all go through. We have our own personal Holy Weeks and Horror Weeks. Jesus went through the whole mess for the mass of us.



On Palm Sunday he’s honored, celebrated, waved to, cheered on – but by Friday they are screaming for his blood: “Crucify him. Crucify him.” Their hands have moved from open waves to tight fists.



Then next Sunday we celebrate hope – recovery – renewal – resurrection – the upswing of Jesus into glory. In theology it’s called “The Kenotic Curve.” Kenotic – K E N O T I C – from the Greek verb “kenoo” K E N O O or the adjective “kenos” K E N O S – meaning emptying, absence, the hollowness of everything.



TODAY’S SECOND READING



We find all this in today’s second reading – Philippians 2: 6-11 – which is called “The Great Kenotic Text”. We used to hear in theology all the time: “Know Philippians 2: 5b-11!



We get the message. God is God. Christ Jesus – who is also mysteriously God – lets go of equality with God – empties himself – become human – empties himself even more – takes on the form of a slave – humbles himself even more and becomes obedient to the point of death – even death on a cross.



That’s the first half of The Kenotic Curve – the Downhill Slide.



Then Paul says, "Because Jesus did this – God exalts him – bestowing on him – a name which is above every name. It’s Lord. Jesus Christ is Lord – that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth – so that every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of the Father.



The best scholarship to date puts this text – these words of Paul to the people of the Greek city of Philippi – is between the years 54 to 57. It was written from the city of Ephesus – in modern day Turkey.



It’s before our gospels.



Notice how primitive it is. The early church is trying to put into words how this Jesus of Nazareth is both human and divine. The Early Church is trying to put into words how God is Trinity – and it would struggle with this for a few centuries – till we went through heresies and councils and came up with our creeds.



We are the beneficiaries of these struggles and articulations.



IN THE MEANWHILE



In the meanwhile we get it. We get these texts. We understand the Kenotic Curve. We see it every time we go to visit a loved one in the hospital. There it is: the monitor. We hope it’s going up and down for our loved one – otherwise they’re dead. They flat lined.



We know the ups and downs of life. We know days of glory and days of horror. We know days of fullness and days of emptiness.



The Kenotic Curve tells us that God knows us – because the Son of God became one of us – and went through what we go through. It’s usually the bottom of the curve – the pits – the dark valley at the bottom – when we recognize our need for God. That’s when we pray. That’s why Psalm 23 is so popular – especially at funerals. Though I walk in the dark valley you are with me.



All is darkness and they remain that way till our Bad Fridays move to our Easter Sundays – till we realize resurrection. Then we change the words from "Bad Friday" to "Good Friday".



We see the Kenotic curve every day and every year.



Sometimes we hit a home run; sometimes we strike out. Nobody has hit over 400 since Ted Williams did it in 1941. Red Sox fans will tell you he came within 5 hits of doing it again at the age of 39 in 1957 – when he hit 388.



Sometimes we’re at a beautiful wedding – 150 people – and there is music and dancing, cake and celebration – but then we’re all alone when we get the phone call, “Mom, we’re getting a divorce.”



We celebrate our kid’s baptism, graduations, dance recitals, but it’s lonely when we have to see the police or the principal when our kid messes up.



Sometimes we’re in a brand new car and people stop for a second to admire it – and sometimes we leave the new car sticker on the back side window on the left – just to let folks know, “This is a new car!” and sometimes the car has become a clunker and it won’t start and it’s costing us money on repairs and we don’t have the money to buy a new one.



We know the ups and downs of life. In the marriage vows we even say it, “for better for worse, richer or poor, sickness and health.”



Life is curvy – not that many straight lines – might as well get used to it – and Jesus walked that crooked line from Nazareth to Jerusalem – and he arrived there today – and he’ll be killed next Friday. It’s as bottom line as that.



CONCLUSION – UPTURN - RESURRECTION



But we are a people of hope and people who belief in upturns – and so we’ll also be back next week for Easter Sunday – Alleluia. Alleluia.



So our prayer doesn’t end with, “Christ has died.” We continue and say, “Christ has risen. Christ will come again" - and "again and again and again.”

DREAM  THERAPY

April 17, 2011

Quote for the Day

"All the things one has forgotten scream for help in dreams."



Elias Canetti [1905-1994], Die Provinz der Menschen (The Human Province, 1973), page 269


Drawing on top from Punch magazine.