FAMILY

Poem for Today - February 21, 2014
Continuing Black History Month

THE IDEA OF ANCESTRY

Taped to the wall of my cell are 47 pictures: 47 black
faces: my father, mother, grandmothers (1 dead), grand-
fathers (both dead), brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts,
cousins (1st and 2nd), nieces, and nephews.They stare
across the space at me sprawling on my bunk.I know
their dark eyes, they know mine.I know their style,
they know mine. I am all of them, they are all of me;
they are farmers, I am a thief, I am me, they are thee.

I have at one time or another been in love with my mother,
1 grandmother, 2 sisters, 2 aunts (1 went to the asylum),
and 5 cousins.I am now in love with a 7-yr-old niece
(she sends me letters in large block print, and
her picture is the only one that smiles at me).

I have the same name as 1 grandfather, 3 cousins, 3 nephews,
and 1 uncle. The uncle disappeared when he was 15, just took
off and caught a freight (they say).He's discussed each year
when the family has a reunion, he causes uneasiness in
the clan, he is an empty space. My father's mother, who is 93
and who keeps the Family Bible with everbody's birth dates
(and death dates) in it, always mentions him. There is no
place in her Bible for "whereabouts unknown." 

© Etheridge Knight

HERE AND HEREAFTER

poem for today - February 20, 2014
Continuing Black History Month

An Old Jamaican Woman

Thinks About the Hereafter

What would I do forever in a big place, who

have lived all my life in a small island?

The same parish holds the cottage I was born in, all 
my family, and the cool churchyard.

                                                       I have looked

up at the stars from my front verandah and have been afraid

of their pathless distances. I have never flown

in the loud aircraft nor have I seen palaces,

so I would prefer not to be taken up high nor

rewarded with a large mansion.

                                                        I would like

to remain half drowsing through an evening light

watching bamboo trees sway and ruffle

          for a valley-wind,

to remember old times but not to live them again;

occasionally to have a good meal with no milk

nor honey for I don’t like them, and now and then

          to walk

by the grey sea-beach with two old dogs and watch

men bring up their boats from the water.

                                                          For all this,

for my hope of heaven, I am willing to forgive my debtors

and to love my neighbour ...

                                      although the wretch throws 
stones at my white rooster and makes too much noise 

in her damn backyard.

                                                © A. L. Hendriks

A. L. Hendriks: ‘An Old Jamaican Woman thinks about the Hereafter’ from On This Mountain and Other Poems (Deutsch). Reprinted by permission of the author.

Picture found on line.

JAMES WELDON JOHNSON'S 

CREATION ACCOUNT 

 Poem for Today - February 19, 2014
Continuing Black History Month

"The Creation"

          And God stepped out on space,

          And he looked around and said:

          I'm lonely -

          I'll make me a world.

          And far as the eye of God could see 5

          Darkness covered everything,

          Blacker than a hundred midnights

          Down in a cypress swamp.

           Then God smiled,

          And the light broke, 10

          And the darkness rolled up on one side,

          And the light stood shining on the other,

          And God said: That's good!

          Then God reached out and took the light in his hands,

          And God rolled the light around in his hands 15

          Until he made the sun;

          And he set that sun a-blazing in the heavens.

          And the light that was left from making the sun

          God gathered it up in a shining ball

          And flung it against the darkness, 20

          Spangling the night with the moon and stars.

          Then down between

          The darkness and the light

          He hurled the world;

           And God said: That's good! 25

           The God himself stepped down -

           And the sun was on his right hand,

          And the moon was on his left;

          The stars were clustered about his head,

          And the earth was under his feet. 30

          And God walked, and where he trod

          His footsteps hollowed the valleys out

          And bulged the mountains up.

          Then he stopped and looked and saw

          That the earth was hot and barren. 35

          So God stepped over to the edge of the world

          And he spat out the seven seas -

          He batted his eyes, and the lightnings flashed -

          He clapped his hands, and the thunders rolled -

          And the waters above the earth came down, 40

          The cooling waters came down.

          Then the green grass sprouted,

          And the little red flowers blossomed,

          The pine tree pointed his finger to the sky,

          And the oak spread out his arms, 45

          The lakes cuddled down in the hollows of the ground,

          And the rivers ran down to the sea;

          And God smiled again,

           And the rainbow appeared,

          And curled itself around his shoulder. 50

          The God raised his arm and he waved his hand

          Over the sea and over the land,

          And he said: Bring forth! Bring forth!

          And quicker than God could drop his hand,

          Fishes and fowls 55

           And beasts and birds

          Swam the rivers and the seas,

          Roamed the forests and the woods,

          And split the air with their wings.

          And God said: That's good! 60

          Then God walked around,

          And God looked around

          On all that he had made.

          He looked at his sun,

          And he looked at his moon, 65

          And he looked at his little stars;

          He looked on his world

          With all its living things,

          And God said: I'm lonely still.

          Then God sat down - 70

          On the side of a hill where he could think;

          By a deep, wide river he sat down;

          With his head in his hands,

          God thought and thought,

          Till he thought: I'll make me a man! 75

          Up from the bed of the river

          God scooped the clay;

          And by the bank of the river

          He kneeled him down;

          And there the great God Almighty 80

          Who lit the sun and fixed it in the sky,

          Who flung the stars to the most far corner 
                            of the night,

          Who rounded the earth in the middle of his hand;

          This Great God,

          Like a mammy bending over her baby, 85

          Kneeled down in the dust

          Toiling over a lump of clay

          Till he shaped it in his own image;

          Then into it he blew the breath of life,

          And man became a living soul. 90

          Amen. Amen.

(from God's Trombones, 1927)

© James Weldon Johnson

From The Heath Anthology

 of American Literature,

Volume Two, Second

Edition, 1053-1055.

__________________________________________________

Here's my creation account from my book, Cries ....  But Silent

CREATION ACCOUNT

In  the beginning

all was God.

In the beginning

all else was silence,

all else was darkness.

And God burst

through the dam

of silence and darkness

with his word,

“Let there be light!”

And God’s power,

and God’s spirit

exploded into creation.

Molten lava,

red rivers of fire,

huge stones and planets

rolled down the dark hills

of space, down the empty

halls of the universe,

crashing, splashing,

noise and sound.

Creation had begun ,

bursting, splattering seed

into the empty holes

of barren time.

“Let there be life!”

And the fertile egg

of earth began.

And in time

the naked baby

came forth

crawling towards

the Father,

standing, falling

rising, trying

again and again

to stand up to the Father.

And gradually

it too learned

the words,

“Let there be light!” 

THE  I  DON’T  GET IT  PRAYER 

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 6^th Tuesday in Ordinary Time is, “The I Don’t Get It Prayer.”

Sometimes it takes courage to say to God or to others - but especially for starters to ourselves: “I don’t get it.”

And I think it’s a good prayer: “I don’t get it God. I just don’t get it.”

Hey, sometimes it takes courage to say, “I don’t get it.” when we’re  in a group and everyone is laughing at a joke that someone just told - but we don’t get it.

We don’t want to look or sound stupid in a group or in a relationship, but to say, “I don’t get it” contains the message: “I would like to get it. I want to know what you’re saying or doing.”

I think it’s a compliment when someone says to me after Mass, “Your homily…. I didn’t get it.”  It tells me that I’m not a growler - or someone to be feared. I get that. And it’s a challenge to try to be clearer.

TODAY’S GOSPEL

Today’s gospel - Mark 8: 14-21 - ends with Jesus asking a question to his disciples in the boat, “Do you still not understand?”

They don’t get it.

Sometimes it takes time to get it.

Sometimes it takes a life time to get it.

Sometimes it takes the cross to get it.

Sometimes it takes a lot of living to understand life - to get it.

Sometimes it takes a life time of receiving communion to get the bread - the giving of his body and blood to us - and we in turn to give our body and blood to each other - when we are in holy communion - or trying to be - with each other.

Jesus’ disciples had seen Jesus feed the 5000 as well as the 4000 - but here they are worried about their stomachs and food - because they only have 1 loaf with them on the boat.

They don’t get it. They don’t get who’s in the boat with them - Jesus the bread giver and the bread winner.

For starters Jesus is saying, “I don’t get it - that you don’t get it.”

Well, I get it that.  I’ve noticed it’s not understanding is an ongoing theme we often hear about as we listen to the gospels. 

Mark is getting at that message here - but the Gospel of John is THE  gospel that really brings out what Isaiah said, what the prophets said, and what Jesus says in today’s gospel: “People have ears that don’t hear, eyes that don’t see, and hearts that are not open for new life.”

We’re slow learners.

So the prayer: “The I don’t get it prayer.”

FIRST READING - FROM JAMES

Today’s first reading from James 1: 12-18 talks about how stupid we can become. We just don’t get it.  We set ourselves up for problems by walking right into temptations. At some point we need to get it - those moments that are set ups for anger or gossip or what have you. We dance with the devil and set ourselves up for trouble.  

Then when we get overwhelmed with problems and sins, we become stupid again and again and we then ask, “How come I keep falling into sin?”  Or “How come God places temptations in front of me.”

We’re saying, “I don’t get it God - how life works.”

And if it’s a prayer, we might hear God say in return: “Hey - you gotta do some work!”

CONCLUSION

Mark in his gospel story today might be saying: “Life is like a boat ride across the waters - and Jesus is in the boat. You’re not alone. Get it? Don’t forget to get with him.”

In this homily I’m saying: “When we say, ‘I don’t get it to God or to others - but especially to ourselves, that’s a good time for “The I don’t Get It Prayer.”

DON'T FORGET 

TO SAY, "THANK YOU!"

Poem for Today - February 18, 2014 
Continuing Black History Month

FLORIDA ROAD WORKERS

I‘m makin’ a road

For the cars to fly by on

Makin’ a road

Through the palmetto thicket

For light and civilization

To travel on.

l’m makin’ a road

For the rich to sweep over

In their big cars

And Ieave me staudin’ here.

Sure,

A road helps everybody!

Rich folks ride --

And I get to see ‘em ride.

I ain’t never seen nobody

Ride so fine before.

Hey, Buddy, Look!

l’m makin’ a road!

                                      - Langston Hughes  ©

“Florida Road Workers” by Langston Hughes: from The Panther and the Lash by Langston Hughes. Copyright 1967 by Arna Bontems and George Houston Bass. Reprinted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.

Painting on top: Walter Durac Barnett

RIVERS

Poem for Today - February 17, 2014
Continuing Black History Month

THE NEGRO SPEAKS  OF RIVERS 

I’ve known rivers:

I’ve known rivers ancient as the worId

and oIder than the flow of

       human bIood in human veins.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young.

I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.

I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.

I heard the singing of the Mississippi 

              when Abe Lincoln went

down to New Orleans, and I’ve seen its muddy bosom 

              turn all golden in the sunset.

                                      - Langston Hughes  ©

“The Negro Speaks of Rivers” by by Langston Hughes: Copyright 1926 by Alred A. Knopf. Inc., and renewed 1954 by Langston Hughes. Reprinted from Selected Poems by Langston Hughes, by permission of the publisher.

Archbishop Lori's Homily Text 

Commitment Weekend 

February 15-16, 2014 

Dear Friends,

I’m happy to have this opportunity, as your Archbishop, to visit with you today.  One of my great joys in my service here in Baltimore is personally visiting the wonderful and vibrant parishes that make up our Archdiocese. I’m in the process of making my way around to all of our parishes.  So if I’ve been to your parish, of if I’m still on my way, I’m coming soon - to a parish near you.

You know, these days are especially inspiring days to be Catholic. It seems that every day, our Holy Father, Pope Francis, is opening minds and hearts to the Gospel, opening the world's eyes to the compassion which is lived out by our Church. This has moved Catholics around the world to become more in touch with their relationship with Christ and the Church, reinvigorating our faithful and bringing back many who had been away.

When he was installed as Pope on Saint Joseph's Day, last March, in Vatican City, the Holy Father called on all of us to 'Be Protectors of God's Gifts.' He said that the vocation of being a "protector" ... means respecting each of God's creatures and respecting the environment in which we live. It means protecting people, showing loving concern for each and every person, especially children, the elderly, and those in need, who are often the last we think about. It means caring for one another in our families: husbands and wives first protect one another, and then, as parents, they care for their children, and children themselves, in time, protect their parents." The Holy Father continued, "It means building sincere friendships in which we protect one another in trust, respect, and goodness. In the end, everything has been entrusted to our protection, and all of us are responsible for it. Be protectors, "he said, "of God's Gifts!"

Certainly, this is a call to stewardship - examples of which are found countless times in the Gospels - stewardship of our community, our family and our faith. For this reason, we have chosen "Be Protectors of God's Gifts" as the theme for the Archbishop's Annual Appeal this year.

This is most fitting, as the focus of the Appeal is stewardship - a very responsible and loving way of caring for God's Gifts that have been entrusted to us: defending them from harm ... helping them to grow ... and making them better so they can be handed on to the next generation.

The Archbishop's Annual Appeal helps us protect, foster, and sustain the essential services and ministries of the Archdiocese of Baltimore so that we can proclaim the Gospel, celebrate the Sacraments, and extend the love, mercy, and charity of Jesus Christ in the world.

I'm happy to have this opportunity, as your Archbishop, to visit with you today. One of my great joys in my service here in Baltimore is personally visiting the wonderful and vibrant parishes that make up our Archdiocese. I'm in the process of making my way around to all of our parishes. So if I've been to your parish, or if I'm still on my way, I'm coming soon - to a parish near you!

The Appeal allows us to share our good works and spread the Good News of God's love throughout our Archdiocese, from its westernmost reaches Garrett and Allegheny County, to Tyndall, to Harford County, to Annapolis, to Clarksville, to Frederick, and to Baltimore City itself.

The Appeal helps us sustain the essential mission of the Church - to evangelize, to teach the faith, to ensure that there's a strong sacramental life in the Archdiocese ... to keep our schools strong ... to carry on a vibrant program of nurturing and forming priestly vocations ... to supporting our retired priests, and to extending a helping hand through our charitable outreach to the less fortunate members of our community.

         

In other words, the Appeal touches all the cylinders of the engine that is the Archdiocese of Baltimore, helping them to fire properly and keep everything running smoothly. The generosity of those who give to the Appeal in many ways transforms lives, bringing hope to those who have none, bringing comfort to those for whom day-to-day life is a struggle, and, most importantly, bringing God into the lives of those who have lost their spiritual way, guiding them to the path that leads to the Lord Jesus Christ.

Yet, I'd also like everyone to regard the Appeal as a call for each one of us, in our own lives and vocations, to "Be Protectors of God's Gifts." Parents protect God's Gifts by providing an example to their children of living lives of faith and virtue.

Parishioners are called to active involvement in the life of their parishes, and doing all they can to help see that every member of your spiritual community becomes more in touch with God's love. And for all of us, protecting God's Gifts is a matter of prayer, as we ask God's blessing, and the intercession of Our Lady and the Saints, as we go about the work of the Lord.

A moment ago, I mentioned that the inaugural homily of Pope Francis was delivered on the Solemnity of Saint Joseph. The Holy Father describes how St. Joseph was, in many ways, the ultimate-protector of God's Gifts, safeguarding Mary, Jesus and the Church. Saint Joseph, the Pope said, was "constantly attentive to God, open to the signs of God's presence and receptive to God's plans, and not simply to his own ... Joseph is a "protector" because he is able to hear God's voice and be guided by His will ... " The pope continued, "in him, dear friends, we learn how to respond to "God's call, readily and willingly, but we also see the core of the Christian vocation, which is Christ! Let us protect Christ in our lives, so that we can protect others, so that we can protect creation!"

I ask that you reflect with me on these words from our Holy Father, Pope Francis. I am confident they will inspire you, as they inspire me, and encourage us together to take on this role of "Protector." Ours is the privilege, and the responsibility, of preserving our Catholic faith and assuring that our children, and their children, will encounter Christ and His love through it, just as we have. I confidently ask your generosity, and your participation in this year's Archbishop's Annual Appeal. Let us all join together in being "Protector of God's Gifts."

Thank you, dear friends, and may God bless us, and keep us always in His love!