PAUSE

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 1^st Friday in Ordinary Time is, “Pause!”

How good are we at pausing ----------- resting --------------- being silent -------------------- stopping --------------------------- becoming quiet?

TODAY’S READINGS

As usual I picked up  today’s readings to read them out loud - so as to come up with a homily. Ooops!  I caught myself - before I started. I forgot to pray. I don’t always catch myself - pausing for a prayer beforehand. I closed my eyes and said a prayer to the Holy Spirit - for light - hoping something would hit me as I was reading the Word - something  that might help all of us.

Ooops. Sometimes I  look at an Ikon of Jesus Christ that is on my wall above me - above my computer.

Pause!

To pause is important.

As I read today’s first reading  - Hebrews 4: 1-5, 11 - I noticed that  the text had the word “rest” in it - 6 times. Interesting.

I then asked, “What’s the Greek word in the original text that they translated it by the English word  “rest”? It was  “katapausin” all 6 times - 5 nouns - 1 verb.

I then tried to find the derivation of the English word “rest” - which was used to translate the Greek word “katapausin”. I found in Webster’s dictionary that it’s from an old English word - that comes from an old German word, “rast”. Okay.

Then I remembered the word “rest” in of Jesus’ words:  “Come to me all you who are weary or heavily burdened and I will give you rest!” Matthew 11: 28. I wondered if Matthew has that same word “katapausin”.  It didn’t. It had the word “anapausin”.

It was then that I said to myself, “Stupid. Stupid. Stupid! The English word 'pause' comes from both these words - each of which has a different prefix: “ana” up and “kata” down - but the same root word "pausin". We had studied about Xenophon’s Anabasis - the “going up” of the army he was part of. Our professor told us that “Katabasis” would mean in contrast, the “retreat”, or “going home” or “going down”.

Obviously, I like to pause at words - to see where they come from - to see their roots - prefixes and suffixes, etc. - and see what I can learn.

So the message for today is one word: Pause!  Rest. Stop. Calm. Peace. Relax.

COMMENTARIES

I noticed in the Collegeville Bible Commentary on The Letter to the Hebrews  that the author of this text in Hebrews is stressing three understandings of  this theme of “rest”:

1) The Promised Land: the dream place of rest for the Hebrews.

2) The Sabbath Rest: the 7^th day of Creation - the 7^th day for the Jews (Saturday) - the 7^th Day for the Christians (Sunday),

3) The Eternal Rest - eternity - heaven.

Stop! 

Pause at that! Besides the meaning of the some words, there’s plenty of food for thought right there at those 3 rest stops for some reflection today.

1) How many people around the world are like the Israelites in the desert, longing for the Promised Land? They are experiencing ongoing wars and raids and eviction and forced migration. They have a dream for peace. If only we could get to Scandinavia or America? If only we could relocate to somewhere where there is no horror and shooting and terror and bombs?  Those out of work, long for a paycheck and a home and food and peace.

2) How many people have to work 7 days a week? How many people don’t have Sabbath or weekends or breaks or holidays?

3) How many people don’t believe or sense or have even heard for sure that there is a life after this life - Resurrection - the Good News of Jesus.

As to inner rest, today’s gospel has the story of a man who can’t move outwardly. He’s paralyzed. Some friends bring him to Jesus. The crowd is crowing them out. They go up on the room and cut through it and lower the paralyzed man down with ropes to Jesus.

Jesus pauses to see the paralyzed man. Then Jesus shocks those present by forgiving the man of his sins.

I’ve preached on this gospel many, many, many times, so that’s why I went with today’s first reading. I want to learn something new. 

In the context of my message about rest or pausing, let me ask this question: “How many people are restless, or can’t be at peace, because of their sins? Sins can paralyze. Sins can force us to spend the rest of the day, the year, one’s life worrying about  a bad mistake on their part. Sin paralyzes people. Forgiveness is necessary for healing - to become unparalyzed.

CONCLUSION: ENOUGH ALREADY

So a conclusion is to take a break, pause, which is what we are doing here by being at Mass, and look at the issue of rest in our lives - and the rest of our lives and the rest of our existence.

In the meanwhile, just in case I was too wordy with my word stuff, let throw in one example that I have used all my life concerning this theme.

When I was in high school or college, way back, I once heard Jim Brown the famous football player on the Cleveland Browns being interviewed. He said something like this, “Watch young running backs  when they get tackled. They push off and fight to stand up and run back to the huddle. He said, “That’s wasted energy. When I get tackled. I slowly let the others get off me and get up. Then I slowly get up and slowly walk back to the huddle for the next play. Then watch me move.”

AT  THE  WAKE

Quote for Today - January  18, 2013

"The dead tell no tales - but there's many a thing learned at the wake."

Irish Proverb


HOMEWORK:

Think of funerals and wakes you've been to and what you learned about the person who died that you didn't know till you heard the eulogy, read the obituary, or talked to others about the deceased.

DIPLOMAT:

YOU GOTTA KNOW

JUST WHEN....

Quote for Today - January 17, 2013

"A diplomat must always think twice before saying nothing."

Irish Proverb

WHERE ARE 

OUR DESERTED PLACES?

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 1^st Wednesday in Ordinary Time is, “Where Are Our Deserted Places?"

In today’s gospel - Mark 1: 29-39 - we have mention of a theme we find several times in the gospels:

Rising very early before dawn,
he left and went off to a deserted place,

where he prayed.

The title of my homily is, “Where Are Our Deserted Places?

I know I have preached on this topic and theme at various times.

Where are my deserted places?

MAKE A LIST

Make a list of the places where you can go to in order to escape, to find peace, to be alone.

My father loved the cellar.  A friend of mine built a chapel out of his garage. My niece told me about a Muslim co-worker, who used a closet to get in some of her prayers. I know of a lady who used to hide from her four sons under the kitchen sink. You’d have to be in great shape to do that one. My sister-in-law used the bathroom - to escape from her seven daughters when they were tiny. Fingernails from tiny hands on a locked bathroom door can induce guilt.

Where are your deserted places? The Eucharistic chapel, a corner in this church or St. Mary’s, a book, the library, a walk in the cold or the warm, shopping, a drive, the back porch, the house when nobody is home, Quiet Water’s Park, the Naval Academy, a museum, sitting with a journal, painting, writing a poem, knitting, making Ranger Rosaries, etc.?  Where are your woman caves, man caves, secret places?

TODAY’S READINGS

Today’s gospel for starters triggers this topic, theme and question about deserted places?

Today’s gospel takes place in Capernaum - just off the Lake of Galilee. I can read today’s gospel and put myself in Capernaum with ease - because I was  there once. Anyone who has been to Israel knows this. Capernaum is part of the bus ride - part of the tour. It has the Fourth Century synagogue - whose restoration began in 1922-24. again in 1969, and 1984.  

When I was there in 2000 with 22 priests, Father Stephen Doyle, a Franciscan, who was leading the retreat and tour read today’s gospel story in one of its versions, He told us that this roofless ruin of a synagogue was possibly where this gospel took place - and then gave us a half hour or a hour for quiet prayer. Wonderful.

 Then we went to where the ruins of Peter’s house. It now has a church built over it - a church with glass floors - through which you can see the ruins - where today’s gospel took place - where Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law. That place was somewhat crowded compared to the space in the synagogue area - and it’s huge stones on which people can sit - and reflect.

Then we went to the gift shop and I bought this book by Stanislao Loffreda, Recovering Capharnaum. I have stepped back in many a gift shop in a place like Capharnaum - and noticed people often buying a pamphlet or guild book about a place - perhaps to hold onto the holy - perhaps to be able to go back there in memory - in some quiet place - in some quiet time - in the future.

CONCLUSION

Where are your quiet places? 

How do you quiet down?  

What do you do to grow and know the Lord and yourself and others better?  

What did Jesus do in his quiet places? 

The gospels tell us he talked to Our Father - and I’m sure he figured out how to do what today’s first reading from Hebrews 2: 14-18 - tells us he did: how to become like his brothers and sisters in every way. 

That’s our Jesus. That’s our brother! No wonder everyone was looking for him. They wanted to eat him up. 

HELLO!

Quote for Today - January 16,  2013

"A blind man should not be sent to buy paint."

Irish Proverb


HOMEWORK:

Come up with 5 applications of this proverb.

For example: Size 20's should not be telling size 12's how to diet.

I DIDN’T TURN OUT 

TO BE THE PERSON 

I HOPED TO BE

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “I Didn’t Turn Out To Be The Person I Hoped  To Be.”

Don’t we all?

That’s the thought that hit me when I read and reflected on today’s two readings - as well as today’s psalm - Psalm 8.

When we’re young, we dream - we hope - we make big plans and vast expectations for ourselves. Don’t we all? At some point - we face the wrinkled truth: I didn’t get as far as I thought I was going to get.

The marriage - good - but it could have been better. We live some more and change that “it” to an “I” as in, “The marriage - good -  but I could have been better.”

At work -  if things fell apart - or people saw through my coffee breaks or solitaire escapes - or if they saw my inadequacies and limitations -  if I was passed over - or if I lost my job, I could be deeply hurt by these ughs of life.  

Deeper and more painful there is that  day - or afternoon - or sleepless night when I realized, “I didn’t turn out to be the person I hoped to be.” "Lost time: I lost too much time!" That moment was a bummer. It was down right hurting and depressing. These moments could also teach us how to laugh at ourselves - which is an essential part of humility.

Sometimes the cake, the meeting, the conversation, the vacation, the speech, the sermon, the date, the show down - one’s life - doesn’t happen like I thought it would happen.

We might remember Judy Collins or Joni Mitchell singing the following message:

I've looked at life from both sides now
From WIN and LOSE and still somehow
It's life's illusions I recall
I really don't know life at all

I've looked at life from both sides now
From up and down and still somehow
It's life's illusions I recall
I really don't know life at all

TODAY’S FIRST READING AND TODAY’S PSALM

Today’s first reading from Hebrews - Chapter 2 - quotes Psalm 8 - that we were made a little less than the angels. That’s a very high bar!

I did a little research last night and read that the translation we have here - that we were made a little less than the angels - is from the Greek Septuagint scriptures of the Psalms. The Hebrew text of that psalm raises the bar much higher because it says we’re made “a little less than God.”

The higher the expectation, the higher the “Uh oh! Oh no!” depressive feeling we might  feel when we realize -  like Adam and Eve we didn’t reach God’s goals for us. I don’t know about you, but when I make a mistake - when I put my foot in my mouth - when I lay an egg - the only person on the planet that I’m with at that moment is me.

TODAY’S GOSPEL - MEANING  - TODAY’S GOOD NEWS

Today’s gospel - along with that first reading - point out it’s not all me - it’s not all - I, I, I. Surprise, Jesus can arrive in our village - in our mind, in our temple - and if we’re humble enough - down enough - we can celebrate being like the guy in the gospel, the guy with the unclean spirit. We can know  who Jesus Christ is and he came to be with us. Jesus can be for us  the one who fills the gaps - the one who fills the holes in our life - can understand and heal the disasters in our pages - our story.

CONCLUSION

The title of my homily is, “I Didn’t Turn Out To Be The Person I Hoped  To Be.”

If we reached 25% of our life goals - praise God - Jesus can be the other 75%. If were minus 35, Jesus can be plus 135.

When we look at our life - hopefully we can laugh more than cry.

As we’re sitting in the back seat of a limo on our way into heaven and we give our best Marlon Brando imitation: “I could have been a contender.”

When we die, others might see us entering paradise with a smile on our face and we only worked 1 hour in the vineyard - or might have been like the Good Thief - we got on the right side of Jesus just as we died. This might tick people off who got 90’s all their lives.

We can smile, because we made it. We can be like the Prodigal Son and find ourselves welcomed back home no matter what. In heaven they will even throw a party for us. We’ll sit down to eat the fatted calf with only one regret: others will be mad at God for this. Then Jesus will welcome us too and tell us not to worry about older brothers who never messed up. Surprise, they have all eternity to get the hints from Jesus about mercy and forgiveness and love.

HUMILITY

Quote for Today - January 15,  2013

Life: "A long lesson in humility."

James M. Barrie [1860-1937]

Questions:

Agree or disagree?

Does this quote by James M. Barrie ring true for you?

Put into words for another your 3 biggest learning moments?

Painting on Top: Andrew Wyatt  [1917-2009]