BORING INTO A BORE
"It's so much easier to pray for a bore than to go and see one."
C.S. Lewis [1898-1963], Letters to Malcolm, Harcourt, Brace and World, 1964
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
ON MATTHEW 5: 48?
INTRODUCTION
The title of my homily for the 11 Tuesday in Ordinary Time is, “What’s Your Take On Matthew 5:48?”
Matthew 5:48 is the last sentence in today’s gospel reading. My take on this text is that a lot of people are familiar with it. Jesus said, “So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
A lot of people have taken that text to heart and their take on that text has a big impact on their lives.
I probably have preached on this text a good 50 times – because I know from listening to people that this is one of those texts that people are very aware of. There are those who think it means that they have to be perfect in specific areas where they know they are not perfect. They think that without any nuances. And having heard various takes by various preachers and commentators on this text, there are nuances – or different takes.
Warning: don’t take my take on this text.
Message for today: take a good look at your take on this text – and then reflect on where that takes you – or could you take another take on this text?
Once more the text: “So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
Question: Is there a perfect take on this particular text?
THIS YEAR’S TAKE
This year my take on this text goes this way.
The text that comes down to us, comes down to us in Greek – and the Greeks had their take on what perfection is. Nobody is perfect. The Greek word used in today’s text is, “TELIOS” – which means perfect, complete, finished, mature.
Is the Greek take on this text – my take on this text?
Here’s Jesus telling crowd in the Sermon on the Mount – to be perfect – and then to make it even tougher, “to be perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect.”
That’s quite a goal. That’s quite a target. That’s quite an aim.
And many times people feel guilty – because they don’t measure up to perfection – what they think would be perfect – and then on top of that, what they think God would think would be perfect in this situation. For example, a person reads the reading perfectly, except they feel they mispronounced one word or stumbled on one word – or they turned two pages instead of one when the reading goes into a second page and they stand there confused for 3 seconds – that feels like 3 years. “Oh my God, I blew it. I was a disaster.”
The Greeks had the idea everyone and everything has a TELIOS – an end – a reason for its existence – and that’s the target to go for – and if you reach it, you’re perfect.
SHOT AN ARROW INTO THE AIR
I like one of the Greek takes on sin. It’s called HARMATIA – meaning literally missing the mark. The word would be used in archery – and there’s the target – and you shoot the arrow at the bulls eye and if you missed, that’s HARMATIA. If you hit the bulls eye, you’re perfect.
So the goal is to get 100 or an A in the test – make the perfect meatloaf and make and bake the perfect Key Line or Key Lime Pie – it’s spelled both ways – and if there is one tiny thing wrong – imperfect – they you hit HARMATIA. You missed your mark.
Would a person be happier in life if they didn’t worry about perfection when it comes to pies and dusting. Just do it. Just do your best in the time you have. And while dusting or pie making, enjoy the breeze coming through the windows. Or look out the window at a scene taking place across the street. There’s two little girls twirling hula hoops on a green lawn and they are laughing and having a great time. And that evening laugh because nobody notices dust, but everyone enjoys the taste of Key Lime Pie – and don’t notice if it has an uneven crust or some of the pie is slipping over on the side of the dish – or heavens forbid, there is a little bit of dust on the pie. Smile. I won’t tell, if you won’t tell.
I like the image of a kid with a bow and arrow and he or she just shoots it in the air – and that’s the goal. One can’t miss if you’re just shooting an arrow into the air. That person is perfect. Even if the arrow slips and falls 2 feet to the ground, one hit the air. Perfect.
Now to be perfect in prayer, driving, speaking, commenting, mothering or fathering, being a Christian Catholic, that’s a goal. And depending on how we take “perfection” can determine our mind set and attitude about life.
In today’s gospel Jesus spells out where to be perfect: in loving not just one’s neighbor, but in loving one’s enemies – in praying for those who hurt us.
Tough stuff – but it’s so other centered and not so self centered – which can be the case of people who are scrupulous or nervous about every distraction in prayer or every fleeting so called “bad thought” that flies across their radar.
ARAMAIC - HEBREW
Not being perfect, I looked for a loophole. I thought: Jesus preached this in Aramaic – which is close to Hebrew. So what would be the Hebrew, Jewish, take on the idea of perfection?
The Hebrew word used would be TAM or TAMAM. It too means complete, finished – mature. But there is Good News here. Hebrew thought would say, “Hey! Everyone has their faults. Nobody is perfect! So to be perfect, go with God. God will take over and make what you’re doing, if it’s good, perfect.
The Hebrew thought stresses our weakness and God’s strength. God does the rest of the dusting in our mind. God sends the Holy Spirit as a Refreshing Breeze so we can enjoy the cool of the evening – and all those around us.
So if we’re doing anything – reading, praying, helping another, trying to love the person who is a pain or a problem, one says to God, “I’m trying to reach my goals, but you got to be the difference maker. You make it perfect – because I know I can’t.”
CONCLUSION
A conclusion to an imperfect sermon: Passing the buck to God can take a lot of stress and strain off our everyday endeavors.
So, please God, You do the rest with these perfect and imperfect people here on this perfect morning. Amen.
IN THE PALM
OF YOUR HAND.
Quote for Today June 14, 2011
“If you look deeply into the palm of your hand, you will see your parents and all generations of your ancestors. All of them are alive in this moment. Each is present in your body. You are the continuation of each of these people.”
Thich Nhat Hanh
Monday, June 13, 2011
TO HIS MADNESS
INTRODUCTION
The title of my homily for this 11th Monday in Ordinary Time is, “There’s a method to his madness.”
If someone would tell you to turn the other cheek when someone slaps you on the face – you would think them mad – crazy – stupid.
You’d say, “Others would just take advantage of you and beat you either further.”
Yep, that’s what Jesus said and did. He know all about the crazy human heart. God did not stay, “Far From the Maddening Crowd.” Nope, God became one of us – and experience what the book of Genesis pointed out by Chapter 4 – brother can kill brother.
And as we look at the big cross up here as the backdrop in our sanctuary, we see that he practiced what he preached – he walked the talk right to Calvary. He turned the other cheek and forgave those who slapped and spit and beat and nailed him to a cross. He didn’t get mad. He was mad. He said from the cross: “Father forgive them for they don’t know what they are doing.”
But Jesus knew what he was doing. There’s a method to his madness.
But for some reason, some Christians don’t accept the principle that a non-violent approach to life is the Christian way to do life. I would add that the down deep reason might be that they think it’s mad.
ST. PAUL
St. Paul in today’s first reading from 2nd Corinthians continued the madness and says we Christians put up with “afflictions, hardships, constraints, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, vigils, fasts;…” as our way of life. He continues, “We are treated as deceivers and yet are truthful; as unrecognized and yet acknowledged; as dying and behold we live; as chastised and yet not put to death; as sorrowful yet always rejoicing; as poor yet enriching many; as having nothing and yet possessing all things.”
Non-violence must have been a tough, tough, decision and discovery for St. Paul – because he was a violent man. He was an extreme kind of personality. You knew when he walked into a room – or a town.
When did he discover this was Christ’s way of doing life? When or what caused him to realize this was the message of Christ from the Cross? Did he say in deep prayer with deep feeling to Jesus, “You’re mad!”
JESUS’ METHOD OF MADNESS
If we don’t retaliate, if we turn the other cheek, if we gain the patience Christ had, then the other has no reason to retaliate back at us. Okay, we might frustrate them. If we forgive because we don’t know the other’s heart and soul and story, then maybe the other will discover peace and forgiveness – and change.
Jesus pushed this – and today we are over 1 billion strong. Paul discovered this and pushed this, and the churches he founded, flourished.
IN OUR LIFETIME
In our lifetime we have been blessed if we saw that Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., Caesar Chavez, Nelson Mandela, and many others have gone this way – and made significant breakthroughs.
They were on the big stage, the big screen, we are on the local scene: family, parish, neighbors.
How do we deal with yelling, anger, sniping, attacking?
I fail at times. I’ve never been slapped in the face nor have I been spit on. In conflict, I try silence and humor – and walk away – most of the time. It seems that others just scratch their heads or then ignore me because I didn’t fight back. I hope I stopped the sniping or the griping - and I hope they walk away with second thoughts.
CONCLUSION
Let me close with 3 quotes which might add a nuance or two to the topic of non-violence – the idea about turning the other cheek, going the extra mile, and stopping retaliation.
Cesar Chavez: “Non-violence is not inaction. It is not discussion. It is not for the timid or weak …. Non-violence is hard work. It is the willingness to sacrifice. It is the patience to win.”
Bernard Haring, a Redemptorist priest and Moral Theologian, who took a lot of verbal attacks and comments behind his back, said, “It belongs to the very substance of nonviolence never to destroy or damage another person’s feeling of self worth, even an opponent’s. We all need, constantly, an advance of trust and affirmation.”
And lastly, a comment from Michael Fink. I don’t know who he was: “You’re lucky I took me a vow of non-violence, or you’d be suffering some pain right now.”
Sunday, June 12, 2011
FORGIVING SINS
INTRODUCTION
The title of my homily for this feast of Pentecost is, “Forgiving Sins.”
In today’s gospel Jesus says, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”
The title of my homily is, “Forgiving Sins.”
I would like to ponder the message: I have the power to forgive sins.
PART ONE: ON HEARING CONFESSIONS
I was blessed with a good education. To become a priest, after finishing college, there were 4 more years of studies – as well as a year of novitiate. Besides preaching, catechetics, - as well as languages – some more Greek, Spanish, Portuguese and even some Hebrew – I barely learned the Hebrew alphabet, these post college 4 years consisted of 2 years of Old Testament Studies along with Dogmatic Theology and 2 years of New Testament Studies along with Moral Theology.
Most priests would be ordained after those 4 years of post college studies, but we were ordained after 3 years. However, we couldn’t hear confessions for another year till we finished our second year of Moral Theology. So we were called, “Simplex Priests” for a whole year. Most weekends of our final year of seminary – we helped out in different churches in the Hudson Valley – in mid-Upstate New York. We said Mass and preached, but we couldn’t hear confessions – and at times we wondered what that would be like.
Then in June of 1966 – a year after our ordination - we were delegated to hear confessions. At the age of 26, I found myself on the other side of the screen or dark curtain in a confessional box for the first time in my life. Now my real education in life was about to begin.
I don’t remember what my mind was like back then – other than I sometimes find a copy of a homily from that first year and I say to myself, “Oh my God I am partly sorry!”
At first, hearing confessions was scary – listening to a person unloading their mistakes and sins – and wanting to move on.
It’s now 45 years later. What have I learned?
I think of the radio program called, “The Shadow” which we heard as kids. It began with the introduction: “Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows.”
If anyone should know what evil can lurks in the human heart, the priest should know.
If anyone should know that we all have a shadow side, the priest should know.
And in recent years, we have discovered, sad to say, the evil that lurks in priest’s lives. We don’t practice what we preach. We don’t learn and grow enough from what we read and hear about. The Bible talks over and over again about how we humans can self destruct – which causes great mess on families, community and world. Newspapers, magazines, TV news and talk shows couldn’t survive without sin. And pundits would add: "Hmmmm Church too."
What else did I learn? I learned that priests forget almost everything they hear in confession. If you hear confessions for an hour – in a confined space – and often you have no clue – who the person is – other than another human being – you don’t remember – nor do you want to – what people say. However, one says a quick prayer for that person who just confessed and admitted his or her sins.
After each confession, I close the screen or slide in the confessional. I pause. I breathe. I pray, “Come Holy Spirit” for the next person. Then I open the screen for that person and say, "Peace be with you."
When you have nothing to do and the church is empty, open the confessional box doors and check those tiny rooms in every Catholic Church. Say a prayer for priests and those who come here to be healed and helped.
I learned that the screen or curtain is very smart. Sometimes people need to be anonymous. Some people need to get things off their chest and move on.
I learned that there are two kinds of confessions: have to confessions and every once an a while I ought to go to confession, confessions.
I learned that confession in the Catholic Church has a long and very varied history. There were times in the Church’s long history when people went to confession once or twice in a lifetime.*
I learned that confession is good for the soul. And I also learned it’s not good for the soul if a person becomes scrupulous or there is no intention of changing or the whole experience becomes a mechanical parrot like experience – or people lie to themselves or don’t know themselves – and that’s what confession ought to help happen to us.
I learned that little kids confessions have improved 90 per cent since I was a kid. When we were kids, we went to confession with the so called laundry list – or teacher’s list. There were words we couldn’t even pronounce. I was "distobedient" to my mother and father 10,000 times. Most of the time nowadays the kid is better prepared – and sits there across from the priest and as Art Linkletter used to say, “Kids say the darndest things.” I have found that the kid is thinking at an early age that what he says or does or does not do, can hurt a brother or sister, friend or parent – or dog. Kids confess that as well.
I learned that it’s good every once and a while to examine one’s life. Just as going to the doctor or having one’s teeth checked, can catch stuff in one’s body or teeth – before things get worse – so too this sacrament.
A stitch in time saves nine.
A test in time can save a life.
So too the soul – so we have lists and we have Penance and Reconciliation services – and confessions in most Catholic Churches. When was the last time I reflected upon my life – with a list of the 7 Capital Sins in hand. When was the last time I read the paper and noticed the 7 Capital Sins going on? When was the last time I just listened to everyday life – and noticed that greed and grab mine is going on – or envy or jealousy is the centerpiece at coffee breaks or Facebook or Twitter or cell phone calls. Some people make lust # 1. Compare Dante’s levels of hell and where he puts popes and politicians and various people. Read C.S. Lewis who says there’s no comparison between the easy sins of lust and gluttony and the deeper more destructive sin of pride. I’m better than you – and to prove it, people want their car, home, titles, education, looks, clothes, religious practices or what have you as evidence, I’m at a higher level of smarts – looks – being that you – life than you, you poor slob. Read Jesus’ parables – they are Divine Comedy about how pompous we modern day Pharisees can be. They should scare the hell out of us – on how we walk by our neighbor in need – or we make fun of those we label down and out – and I’m up and out front in polls or pulpit.
I also learned that some people would do well to go for therapy as well - and / or enter 12 step programs for recovery from addictions of all sorts. It’s difficult and downright humiliating to admit I’m powerless over food or drink or sex or gambling and I need God and others for help – who can be powers greater than myself.
I hope many of you are familiar with 12 Step Programs – especially AA. Two key early steps are # 4 and # 5. One does a serious and in-depth look into one’s life and writes it all down. That’s Step 4. Step 5 is going to another person and telling and spilling one’s moral inventory of mess to that person.
I learned that confession can be nothing compared to listening to a person do the 5th Step in a 12 Step recovery programs. When I was stationed in Lima, Ohio for eight and a half years before coming here, every summer in July, I helped as one of the clergy in a big, big AA men’s retreat in Olivet, Michigan. 200 plus men would come on weekend retreat and a lot of them would make a 5th Step. A person would sign his name on a piece of paper on the door behind which were about 7 ministers and 2 priests. Each person who signed up was given a ½ hour – to come in – and dump a whole lifetime of disasters or this or that. Most had stuff on paper – and read from the paper. It was a draining experience, especially Saturday night, we clergy would finish at 2 or 3 into Sunday morning! Next. Now those were confessions.
I learned – this is my personal opinion for 25 years now at least – that the Catholic Church needs to have in the future a whole Synod on the Sacrament of Confession. In my opinion, confession needs major work – major surgery. Some people are scrupulous. Some people are addicts and need to deal with their issues in a setting other than a confession in the back or side of a church. Then there are folks who haven’t gone to confession in 20, 30 or 40 years. Some priest yelled at them. Yes, there are grouches amongst us. How often one could or should go to confession varies. Some people hear on EWTN that they ought to go every week. Some priests suggest going 2 times a year. Some people don’t see that Acts of Charity and Kindness take away a multitude of sins. Some people don’t connect that the first part of Mass is a reconciliation service. Some people ought to be confessing their sins to one another: a spouse, or a parent or a child or a friend. Some people better not do that, because it might destroy the bond or the relationship.I suspect some secrets ought to go with us to the grave; yet I also know that there is something in us that calls for us to vent or confess or tell someone about what happened. However, families don't need to find out that one of their members wrote a tell-all memoir. Sometimes we need to hang our dirty laundry on the cross and not on the backyard line.
Looking back now to 1966, I have listened to a lot of people asking for forgiveness in the Sacrament of Confession, Reconciliation, or Penance, or whatever it’s called. I'm stressing here for starters to do a bit of reflection on yourself and this Sacrament called "Reconciliation" or "Penance" or "Confession,"
PART TWO: THE MAIN POINT IN THIS HOMILY
In this homily my major stress would be to challenge myself and all of us with the application of the text from today’s gospel that I began this homily with: “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”
Each of us here has the power to hold onto sins and each of us has the power to forgive sins.
In the First Reading from Acts we hear about a phenomenon from the early church – the gift of tongues.
I would like to stress that the most powerful sign of the Holy Spirit would be to loosen up our tongues and minds and discover we have the ability to say with our tongue and our self, “I forgive you” as well as to say, “I’m sorry that I hurt you when I….”
I would stress that in the gospel Jesus burst through walls and closed doors and said, “Peace be with you.” It was a scene of fire and wind – two of the great symbols of the coming of the Holy Spirit.
Then he gave them the disciples the power to forgive or to hold onto sin.
This text has been applied to the Sacrament of Confession.
I want to apply it also to every disciple of the Body of Christ – no matter who we are or where we are from or what language we speak.
DEALING WITH SELF AND OTHERS
I want to challenge all of us to reflect not only on forgiveness of how we hurt others or others hurt us – but on the issue of letting go.
Forgiveness is not forgetting. That’s dementia or the letting go in time.
Some questions:
Whom do you have to forgive?
Parents who made mistakes on you.
Teachers who were not fair.
Family members who cheated on you or what have you when it comes to wills and or money or homes and furniture or stuff.
I've heard people tell me that they still have a grudge after 50 years that a sister got the silverware set they wanted.
Is there a priest or bishop or a boss or a coach or anybody who abused you verbally, emotionally, sexually, or what have you?
CONCLUSION
If there is anything I learned as a priest, the biggest truth I learned is about the retaining – the power of retaining –holding onto sins – my own or those against me.
People hold onto mistakes, hurts, it seems all their lives.
Have they grasped, prayed over what Jesus did in today’s gospel. He broke through thick skulls and breathed new life into his disciples.
May it be me.
May it be you.
* REFERENCES
Cf. Regis Duffy, “Reconciliation”, in The New Dictionary of Theology, editors Joseph A. Komonchak, Mary Collins, Dermot A. Lane, Michael Glazier, Wilmington, Delaware, 1989, pp. 830 – 836.
Cf. New Catholic Encyclopedia, on Penance from pages 72 to 84. This provides a series of articles by different authors on different aspects of Penance. [1967 © The Catholic University of America. Washington D.C.]
Cf. Berthold Altaner, Patrology, translated by Hilda Graef, Herder and Herder, 1960. Here are some pages and sections to look at: “19” on page 31; “g” on page 53; “1.” and “3.” on pages 86-87; “a” on page 144; “Cyprian on arrogance of confessors page 194; “20” on page 176; “10.” on page 181; “6.” on page 204; “7.” on page 233; “4.” on pages 343-344; “4.” on pages 384-385; “3.” on pages 420-421; “10.” on pager 433; “c.” on pager 448-449; “7.” on page 454; “14.” on pages 530-531; “4.” on page 563; “4.” on page 609.
Cf. J. A. Jungmann, S.J., Pastoral Liturgy, Herder and Herder, N.Y., 1962, pages 244-251; page 299.
Cf. Guide for Confessors, from the Praxis Confessarii of St. Alphonsus Liguori, under the name of Father Daniel Lowery, C.SS.R, Mt. St. Alphonsus, Esopus, New York, 1978
Cf. Joseph Martos, Doors To The Sacred, A Historical Introduction of the Sacraments in The Catholic Church, Revised and Updated Edition, Liguori / Triumph, Liguori Missouri, 2001, Chapter IX, Reconciliation, pp. 275-324.
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