PERCEPTION AND REALITY

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this Monday in the Third Week after Easter is, “Perception and Reality.”

At times I want to do a little more thinking on the question of “Perception and Reality” - but it’s my perception of myself that I don’t seem to be doing it.

When I read today’s readings that’s the theme that hit me - so I said to myself,  here’s a chance to do a tiny bit more homework on this question.

TODAY’S READINGS

Today’s first reading from the Acts of the Apostles [Acts 6:8-15] features Stephen. Some perceive him as a trouble maker - others see his face - as today’s first reading ends - as that of the face of an angel.  He was loved and he was hated.

The reality is: he’s Stephen - one of the early followers of Christ - the first to die as an adult for his faith.

Today’s gospel - John 6:22-29 - has this theme of perception and reality in bold form. Jesus tells the crowd that they are after him because of the food he’s providing - and not because of who he was: the Son of Man - who has the seal of God the Father’s approval on him.

The gospel of John - as I perceive it - features this issue of perception and reality over and over again. People are constantly not getting it. People are constantly missing the points that Jesus makes.

They are catching perceptions - but Jesus is after reality.

PERCEPTION AND REALITY

So the title of my homily is, “Perception and Reality”.

I have found myself saying inwardly to the leaders of our church: “You don’t get it. You don’t get it. You don’t get it. Perception is reality.”

In the child and teenage abuse cases - the perception of so many people is that you have not done your job. The perception is that you have hidden lots of stuff. The perception is that you don’t care about the children - only yourselves.

Then the leaders and/or their spokespersons say, “That’s not fair. We have done this, this and this. That’s the reality.”

And I say inwardly, “It doesn’t make any difference what the reality is - because the perception is that you blew it.”

I have found myself saying inwardly many times: “Perception is reality.”

As I thought about all this for this homily today, I found myself thinking: “It would be better to say, ‘Perception is reality - even when it’s not reality.’”

Upon further thinking it hit me that obviously the best thing to do is to work on realities and then see if they change people’s perceptions. In other words, perceptions are out of the bishop’s hands. Realities can be change.

WHAT ARE YOU SAYING?

My perception on hearing all this would be to say, “What are you talking about?” It seems that you’re all babble. You’re all jargon. Hurry up. I got things to get to after Mass and my perception is that you’re just up there talking away. You’re getting off stuff that  I’m not getting or I’m elsewhere or you’re not clear.”

So here’s an attempt at clarity….

Take as an example a priest who comes from a rich family. His parents give him an $100,000 Mercedes.  I would think he would be wise to drive a Chevy Malibu - or a cheaper car - because the perception is that Jesus would not drive a Mercedes - but a donkey. And some might wonder where the money is coming from …. or you shouldn’t be a priest and travel in this style.

Bishops wear these expensive or “odd” outfits. The perception is that they are in this for the glory.  The reality is that Jesus died on the cross with nothing or with nothing but a loin cloth on.

The reality is that we don’t know why someone is into this religious style mode. Personally I think they are nuts to wear all these strange expensive outfits etc. In my opinion it doesn’t help their reality.  But I perceive others don’t think the way I think.

I think these thoughts - but by mouthing them - people might perceive me as a complainer or what have you - and want to stone me to death like they did Stephen when he spoke up.

I’m very happy now with Pope Francis. At present, the perceptions are that he’s interested in simplifying, simplifying, simplifying.

John the 23 went that way - and the opposite - the extravagant - had come back.  That’s my perception.

In my opinion, the glitter and the glamour can get in the way of the reality of the gospel.

I like it when the founder of the Redemptorists, St. Alphonsus,  was made a bishop,  he went very simple. For example, as bishop he was given a few rings and things - and they went the way of donations. We were told the stone in his ring was simply broken glass. He was strongly against elaborate meals, beds, carriages, and what have you. He said, “St Peter the first pope - he didn’t have a carriage.” 

Yet he did see a carriage would get him to places faster than on foot - so it better be a borrowed or a cheap carriage. [1]

This pope knows the life of St. Francis and these saints - so I’m optimistic that he’ll cut the stuff that Jesus cut - and the saints cut.

That would be my way with dealing with perceptions.

The reality better be the reality that Jesus, the gospel, and people must come first - especially the poor.

Otherwise just as ostentation and classy stuff can be deception - so too simplicity.

CONCLUSION

The bottom line is reality.

God, neighbor, self.

Birth, death, eternity.

Love of God and love of neighbor.

PICTURES

On top: Habit of St. Francis of Assisi

Next: A Bishop in cappa magna.

Next: Christ on the cross by Rembrandt

Next: Cardinal Burke in red.


NOTES:

[1] Theodule Rey-Mermet, St. Alphonsus Liguori, Tireless Worker for the Most Abandoned, New City press, 206 Skillman Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211, pages 507-623

BEETHOVEN 

ON ATTITUDE

Quote for Today - April 15, 2013

"I shall hear in heaven."

Ludwig von Beethoven 1770-1827] commenting on his deafness.

ICHTHYOLOGIST

[The following is a story for this morning's Kids' Mass - 3rd Sunday after Easter - C.]

ICHTHYOLOGIST

The third grade teacher, Mrs. Bridlepath, wasn’t surprised when Theodore said,  he wanted to be an ichthyologist when he grew up.

The principal was visiting Mrs. Bridlepath’s third grade classroom, so to impress the principal, she asked the kids to tell what they wanted to be when they grew up.

Once more 11 of the 26 kids in the third grade - said they planned on becoming veterinarians. Once more those 11 were all girls. The boys said they were going to be football players, lacrosse players, engineers, U.S Navy Seals, Nascar Drivers, etc. It was then that, Theodore said his dream was to become an ichthyologist.

At a coffee break Mrs. Bridlepath and the principal, Mrs. Thistle were talking about Theodore. “Interesting choice” said Mrs. Thistle the principal, “but just what is an ichthyologist?”

“Oh,” said Mrs. Bridlepath, the third grade teacher, “it’s a person who knows and studies all about fish.”

Mrs. Bridlepath added - that every summer Theodore’s parents try to take Theodore and his older sister Teresa, who wants to be a soccer player, to a different aquarium. Mrs. Bridlepath added, “I didn’t know there were so many different aquariums around the country.” She only knew of the one in Baltimore, Camden New Jersey and the one in New York at Coney Island. Now she knew, because of Theodore, there over 100 of them, and he hoped to see all of them before he hit 21 years of age.

Mrs. Bridlepath told the principal: “That’s all he’s really interested in.”

Theodore had a small fish tank - that held 20 gallons of water in his room - and a big tank - that held 55 gallons of water in their basement. “Watching the fish in there,” Theodore said, “was better than watching people on a big screen TV.”

Theodore used five dollar or twenty dollar bills he got from aunts and uncles - grandmas and grandfathers - to buy tropical fish for his tanks.

He knew all there was to know about fish in his brain - and in large collection of books about fish in his room.

As he grew up - teachers tried to get him to think outside of the fish tank - telling him there were many other careers and jobs he could try.

However, Theodore’s mind was made up - quoting statistics about the world being 71% water and that there were over 30,000 different species of fish. He said there were jobs for ichthyologists in food industries, marine biology, aquariums, and in teaching, etc. etc. etc.

Time went on. Theodore’s regular name switched to Teddy for most people. He got to love sports - and studies in other stuff  than fish - but he kept his dream alive to be an ichthyologist. He still loved to visit aquariums and read up about fish. He loved to surf the waves at the ocean as well - becoming very good at that as well.

His sister Teresa - Teri - became a violinist - and now plays for the Boston Symphony Orchestra - is married - and she and her husband Tom have 4 kids - one of whom has a small fish tank - with 4 gold fish - and he too says when he grows up, “I am going to become an ichthyologist.”

Theodore - or Teddy - didn’t become an ichthyologist. Surprise. He became a priest - to the surprise of everyone. 

Mrs. Bridlepath and Mrs. Thistle went to his first Mass. Mrs. Bridlepath didn’t say, “I always knew he’d be a priest.” Mrs. Thistle said, “I thought he was going to be a - what was that word again, “An ichthyologist” said Mrs. Bridlepath.

Then in his first Mass sermon they found out what happened. Father Teddy chose as his Gospel reading for that first Mass the story in the gospel of John about the morning Jesus told his disciples where to cast their nets. They were fishing all night long and had caught nothing.  They cast their fishing nets just where Jesus told them to toss them and surprise: their nets were filled with fish - almost to breaking point.

When they brought their nets to shore they counted their fish - large ones - 154 fish.  Teddy said when he heard that for the first time - he realized Jesus was interested in catching fish.  Then he told everyone in church that morning - "That was the beginning." He told everyone that Jesus - a carpenter - switched his career to becoming a fishermen - to catch men and women to follow him.

He added that Jesus called fishermen to  become fishers of people - and they switched their jobs to become preachers - then with a smile - so I switched my career in ichthyology to becoming a priest.

His parents were sitting there thrilled in the first bench in church - with wonderful smiles on their  faces - and small golden pins on their lapels - that Father Teddy gave them - small golden pins with the image of a fish on them - the symbol of Christians.

His sister Teresa - was sitting off to the side - crying -  with her violin in hand - with 15 members of the Boston Symphony Orchestra who were playing at the Mass - and Father Teddy said, “So I guess it’s good to ask kids what they want to be when they grow up - but you never know? Look at my sister Teresa over there. She always wanted to be a soccer player - and look at her now.”

And she, the older sister, stood up, and interrupting his sermon spoke into a standing microphone, “and you wanted to be an ichthyologist” and the whole church laughed and clapped.

And after the clapping, Father Teddy said back at her from his microphone, “I did become one! Look at all the fish in church this morning whom I caught to come to my first Mass today. Amen!”

And everyone clapped again.

DO YOU LOVE ME?

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 3 Sunday after Easter - C - is, “Do You Love Me?”

Perhaps the best way of doing this homily would be for everyone here in the church to come up to the microphone one by one and ask, "Do you love me?"

At first some might yell out to the person who asked the question, "Yes!"  

Then as everyone began hearing everyone ask the question, I can hear the answer getting louder and louder and louder: "Yes! Yes! Yes!"

It would take a bit of time, but I guarantee it would be the one sermon you would remember for the rest of your life - not the following homily, I'm about to preach.

Once more, the title of my homily is, "Do You Love Me?"

Today’s readings have various topics and themes to think about - to pray with - to preach about - to be challenged with - too, too many in fact.

SOME QUESTIONS

What do these readings say to you in your life today?

·        Whom do I obey: God, Self, Others?  [First Reading]

·        Am I scared or hesitant to be labeled a Christian - a follower of Jesus? [First Reading]

·        Am I here at Mass to praise God - to sing praise to the Lord, to give thanks to God? [Psalm Response]

·        When I praise God - when I praise the Lamb - do I say a loud “Amen” and see myself saying that with every creature on earth and under the earth and in the sea, with everything in the universe? [Today’s Second Reading]

·        What have I caught in my life or have I come up empty? [Today’s Gospel]

·        Whom Do I feed? Who has fed me? [Today’s Gospel]

·        Do I hear Jesus - and how he has forgiven me the times I have denied him - like Peter denied Jesus? [Today’s Gospel]

·        Do I hear Jesus’ question: “Do you love me?”

ONE TOPIC - ONE THEME

Today I’d like to think about the “Do You Love Me?” question.

It’s a topic and a theme we all deal with all the time - knowingly and unknowingly - sometimes down deep more than other times.

I sense it’s the number # 1 motive in life: to be loved and to love.

Who loves me? Whom do I love?

Remember that was Kojak’s question: “Who loves ya, baby?”

[LONG, LONG, LONG PAUSE]   Who loves you?

A sermon on this topic can impact us.

I can never forget a scene I saw on a late night talk show when Sammy Davis Jr. was asked, “Why do you always say to people, ‘I love you”? And he said that he had a buddy whom he loved, but he never told him he loved him. The buddy was killed in an accident. So Sammy Davis said he made a life resolution: “If I love someone, I’m going to tell them ‘I love you!’”

My mom and dad loved us four kids big time. It was never an issue with me. However,  I didn’t remember them specifically saying that. I know it was a big issue for some people. I used to call my mom every Sunday - my father had died way back in 1970. So that Sunday night after hearing Sammy Davis Jr’s comment on why he said, “I love you!”, I said that to my mom at the end of my phone call, “I love you”, and she paused and then said, “Love you!”

I did that every Sunday - and every Sunday I got the “Love you!” but never the “I” in the “I love you.” 

On the night before my brother was to have his cancer brain tumor operation from melanoma, I called him in the hospital and said, “I love you!” and he said back, “I love you too!” Those were his last 4 words to me - dying the next day after his brain operation.

Who loves you?

After having been on a lot of high school retreats - and having listened to a lot of today’s kids and people, there are a lot fewer comments from people saying, “My parents never told me they love me?” We have improved on that - as well as the hugs.

BIG DISTINCTION: ACTION SPEAKS LOUDER THAN WORDS

When it comes to love, we all know that there is a big distinction between words and actions.

Actions speak louder than words.

In fact, if people say they love us, but rarely show it - or show indifference on lack of caring - the words, “I love you” can become a trigger for anger or frustration.

Moreover, we’ve all heard in many sermons - especially those on today’s gospel - the Fiddler on the Roof commentary about “I love you” - when Tevye asks his wife, Golde,  if she loves him. She can’t say the words. She can only talk about what she does for him. Tevye won’t give up and keeps asking her. At one point in the song - in the play - she sings,

Do I love you?
For twenty-five years I've washed your clothes
Cooked your meals, cleaned your house
Given you children, milked the cow
After twenty-five years, why talk about love right now?

She still won’t say it.

He asks again and she answers, “I’m your wife.”

He answers back, “I know… But do you love me?

She answers - sort of to the audience,

Do I love him?
For twenty-five years I've lived with him
Fought with him, starved with him
Twenty-five years my bed is his
If that's not love, what is?

Tevye says, “Then you love me?”

Golde answers, “I suppose I do.”

Tevye then says, “And I suppose I love you too.”

Then both end the song with these words,

It doesn't change a thing
But even so
After twenty-five years
It's nice to know.

TODAY’S GOSPEL

So Jesus fiddles with his disciple Peter at the lakeside here at the end of John’s gospel and asks him 3 times, “Do you love me?” “Do you love me?”  “Do you love me?”

And three times - Peter answers with growing frustration: “You know I love you!”

And three times Jesus tells Peter to do what Jesus did, “Feed …. Tend …. Feed my sheep.”

CONCLUSION

Obviously the Church, the family, every marriage would work - if everyone loved one another - gave of themselves to one another - totally like Jesus did.

Obviously we who come to Mass to come to communion know this: we come here to be fed, to be loved by Jesus and to then use that energy to love one another. Amen. But it’s also nice to hear it every once and a while.

EARTH

Quote for Today - April 14, 2013

"What is [the earth] most like? ... It is most like a single cell."

Lewis Thomas [1913-] The Lives of a Cell [1974]

THERE'S A WIDENESS 

IN GOD'S MERCY 

Quote for Today - April 13, 2013

"There's a wideness in God's mercy
Like the wideness of the sea;
There is a kindness in His justice
Which is more than liberty."


Father Frederick William Faber [1814 - 1863]

O O O O O O O

Here is the whole piece by Father Faber - a convert from Anglicanism and into the Catholic Priesthood.

Notice verse 6 - where you can see the Redemptorist Motto: Copiosa Apud Eum Redemptio - from Psalm 130

O  O  O  O  O  O  O

THERE'S A WIDENESS IN GOD'S MERCY

1. There's a wideness in God's mercy,

Like the wideness of the sea;

There's a kindness in His justice,

Which is more than liberty.

2. There is no place where earth's sorrows

Are more felt than up in Heaven;

There is no place where earth's failings

Have such kindly judgment given.

3. There is welcome for the sinner,

And more graces for the good;

There is mercy with the Savior;

There is healing in His blood.

4. There is grace enough for thousands

Of new worlds as great as this;

There is room for fresh creations

In that upper home of bliss.

5. For the love of God is broader

Than the measure of our mind;

And the heart of the Eternal

Is most wonderfully kind.

6. There is plentiful redemption

In the blood that has been shed;

There is joy for all the members

In the sorrows of the Head.

7. 'Tis not all we owe to Jesus;

It is something more than all;

Greater good because of evil,

Larger mercy through the fall.

8. If our love were but more simple,

We should take Him at His word;

And our lives would be all sunshine

In the sweetness of our Lord.

9. Souls of men! why will ye scatter

Like a crowd of frightened sheep?

Foolish hearts! why will ye wander

From a love so true and deep?

10. It is God: His love looks mighty,

But is mightier than it seems;

'Tis our Father: and His fondness

Goes far out beyond our dreams.

11. But we make His love too narrow

By false limits of our own;

And we magnify His strictness

With a zeal He will not own.

12. Was there ever kinder shepherd

Half so gentle, half so sweet,

As the Savior who would have us

Come and gather at His feet?

Lyrics: Frederick William Faber
Music: Lizzie Shove Tourjée

DIVINE  MERCY 

Quote for Today - April 12,  2013

"The French scholar and Christian,
Frederick Ozanam, 
once said that if God has,
as of course He Has,
some mysteries 
yet unrevealed to us,
no doubt they are secrets of mercy."

Susan L. Emery, The Inner Life of the Soul, 1903