December 4, 2018 

Thought for today: 

“Be  stronger  than  your  best  excuse.”

SAYING DANGEROUS THINGS

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “Saying Dangerous Things.”

Have you ever said something that is dangerous - something that causes reactions - that could get you in trouble?

I guess it would begin with thinking dangerous thoughts.

A comment to make if asked such a question might be: “For example?”

Or, “Please explain?”

Or, “What do you have in mind?”

Or, “It all depends.”

PORPRAVA MILADY HORAKOVA

Where my question comes from is something I spotted last night by accident. Father Joe Krastel and I were watching the Pittsburgh Steelers - Los Angeles Chargers football game - Sunday Night Football - and the camera turned on Mike Munchak - one of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ coaches. Joe asked, “Where did he play?”  I said, “Maybe Notre Dame?” Joe, who has a tremendous memory said, “I bet you it was Penn State.”

I looked it up later on and found out that he played for Penn State and then played for 10 or 11 years on the Houston Oilers and was all pro 9 times - and is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He was from Scranton, Pennsylvania.

Surprise I spotted off to the side on my computer - on the internet - where I looked up Mike Munchak -  one of those YouTube short videos. At times I like to look at them instead of playing computer games. It showed the image of a distinguished looking woman in a blue dress - with a white collar -  and it looked like they were leading this woman out to be hung.

Scary. I watched the whole thing. Her name was Porpora  Milada Horáková.

The short film had little sound - and the words were in Czech or some foreign language. She was hung. I had never heard of her. It lead me to look up to find out who she was - and what did she do to deserve being hung.

Milada Horáková

I was in Slovakia once on a Danube Cruise - and could have chosen Prague as a side trip  - but didn’t.  From what I learned last night I might then have seen a statue of this woman - who is now a national hero - for her stands on major issues - in the life of her country.

She was married and had one daughter.

She was arrested by the Gestapo - in standing up to the Nazi’s - and was liberated from prison by the Americans near the end of World War II.  She then stood up to the communists for years - on national policies and programs - for women and for children - and foreign policy - and use of resources - and was arrested - and condemned to be hung in Prague’s Pankrac Prison on June 27, 1950 at 5:30 A.M.

I woke up this morning still thinking about her and that scene.

HOMILY

It got me to ask the question of my homily: “Have I ever said something that is dangerous - something that causes reactions - that could get me in trouble?”

It could be prolife. It could be Peace and Justice issues. It could be many things like family fights - like telling someone - with love - about their drinking or non-care of kids or aging parents.

When I read Isaiah’s comment in today’s first reading, I thought of all this as well.

Isaiah said something that has gotten a lot of people in trouble: “They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; One nation shall not raise the sword against another, nor shall they train for war again.”

Haven’t we all gone down streets - like in Baltimore - where there are terrible pot holes and said, “The money we poured out for the Iraq war could fix all the streets in America or help pay teachers better - especially in inner city schools or feed the hungry and on and on and on.”

I don’t have a degree in economics nor am I an engineer nor am I million other things - but there is a call in all of us - to think - and to speak up more than we do - instead of being silent and helpless.

CONCLUSION.

The title of my homily for today is, “Saying Dangerous Things.”

I do a lot of baptisms and I’ve been to lots of confirmations - and I know the New Testament message - is oiled into babies as well as teenage skulls - that we are all called to not only be priests - all of us - as well as kings and queens - as Jesus was a king - that is a king who feeds the poor and washes feet - and cares for the sick - but we are also called to be prophets.

Jesus was also a prophet - and prophets are often yelled at - spit at - and sometimes crucified - sometimes hung.

December 3, 2018

PUERTO RICO

I am an island

surrounded by water -

the Atlantic and the Caribbean.

I am San Juan,

Mayaguez,

Ponce, Guyama,

Carolina, Caguas, Bayamon,

smaller cities and islands.

I am Taino and Igneri,

Hispanic, Catholic

Evangelical and other.

I am American.

I am Latino.

I am some 3,659,087 Puertorriquenos in P.R.

and some 4,600,000 in the mainland USA.

I am mountains.

I am roosters and rain,

then a sun shower

landing on green, green, green.

I am on a road,

many roads that twist

and curve, and then curve some more -

leading to beaches, water, work,

manufacturing, tourism.

I am history  -

a story - many stories.

I am hurricanes:
Maria, Hugo, Irma,
Katrina, and so many others. 

I am a veranda

mi casa, su casa

watching the noise

hearing the show going on.

I am life.

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2018

December 3, 2018

Thought for today: 

“Rock  bottom  became  the  solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.”

A  BABY  CHANGES  EVERYTHING

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this First Sunday in Advent [C] is, “A Baby Changes Everything.”

I don’t know about you, but these Advent readings - as well as the end of the Church year readings - don’t grab me.

They talk about the sun, the moon and the stars gliding and sliding and colliding in the skies. They talk about traps and tribulations on the earth and the oceans roaring - pounding our shores - and SURES.

Yes - we have earthquakes - like last week’s big one in Alaska - and we have forest fires and hurricanes - and lots of other natural and unnatural disasters. With 24/7/365 news coverage - unless we turn the TV off - or limit it - expect more.

These readings feel like loud video games - or advertisements for war movies. They want me to change the channel - or move to a quieter room - for place and space and peace.

So that’s how the Mass readings for the end of the church year  and then Advent begins every year.

And then every Advent ends with the Baby.

A baby changes everything…

I prefer Christmas at the end of Advent - with the arrival of the Baby - and silent night - and sleigh bells ringing on soft silent snow - and then the end of the Christmas rush.

ADVENT

Advent begins this Sunday. The 4 candles on the Advent wreath tell us it’s 4 weeks. The Church pushes some extra stuff for the Advent Season. However Christmas shows up early with Christmas parties and gift getting - and shopping - shopping - takes over around Thanksgiving - with Black Friday and Cyber Monday - and gotta get those Christmas cards out - because there are always those people who send out cards around December 1^st. I never did finish my Christmas Cards for last Christmas and the one before that and the one before that.

We’ll wear purple in Advent and provide confessions and we’ll hear O Come, O Come Emmanuel for the Sundays of December.

THE BABY

Don’t forget the baby.

Christianity isn’t stupid.  God is not stupid. God comes as a baby.

That’s the message.

The baby comes as a small and crawling and crying presence.

And a baby changes everything.

When it comes to life - you gotta take baby steps first.

ERICKSON’S 6^TH   AND 7^TH STEPS

Everyone who has taken a little psych in college knows Erik Erikson’s 6^th and 7^th steps and stages of life.

6^th Step: Intimacy vs Isolation - meeting and falling in love - getting out of self and into another.

7^th Step: Generativity vs. Stagnation.  We better have our babies - we better work together for others.

Then the 8^th and long - hopefully - last stage of life - when  we figure life out - our life out - our purpose in life.

My thought has been that God does not have specific, specific plans for us and for our life - other than to keep the Great Commandment - to love the Lord our God with our whole heart, mind, soul and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves - in our setting, in our circumstances, with our gifts and with our dreams.

For the sake of transparency, not everyone thinks my way - who does think  the same as the person next to them?

And yes hopefully we all pray, “Thy will be done” - which is God’s call that love one another as Christ has loved us.

MARRIAGES AND BAPTISMS

I do a lot of marriages and baptisms - and funerals as well.

And like at Christmas I know a lot of folks are not here much of the year.

And I think the numbers are going down - so I hope people at weddings, baptisms and funerals - are thinking about church and God and purpose in life.

When with couples preparing for Marriage I often hear them say they want religion for their kids.

I just listen knowing we learn from life the most.

People often go to church because of their parents and then say they will be going to church because of their kids.

At baptisms I love to read the gospel of Jesus about “Let the kids come to me and don’t stop them - because they know about the kingdom of God.”

I like to say, “Kids are the best teachers.”

I like to say, “A baby changes everything.”

Life stinks if we don’t change - so too diapers and pampers.

I have learned that the 2 biggest changers in life  - is another - moving in with another and then getting married and then having a baby.

A baby changes everything.

And couples knows this.

In marriage one has to think of another.

With a baby, two have to thank of another.

Babies change us.

Couples at first call each other, “Babe” or sing, “Baby, Baby.”

Kids teach us to see.

To see so much.

Kids want.

Love, affection, food, and to get us to see - they keep pointing. They keep looking. They keep seeing.

They make us laugh. They make us cry when they get sick.

They make us sacrifice - put down the paper - or the clicker - and give them attention - much more than a dog or a cat.

I remember dropping into a priest friend of mine  nieces house on the way home  for Christmas. We were just in time to see kids opening Christmas gifts. Not having kids of my own, it brought back memories of opening Christmas gifts - underwear and socks  - mostly.

Well, Joe's  grandnephews  - 3 boys - would be opening up great big waterguns, suppersoakers, and loud moving yellow construction trucks, and they would be celebrating - till have surveyed their Christmas take they saw their brother - get something they wanted - and there would be a whining and fighting on Christmas morning.

Violence and selfishness is in the Christmas story - the baby had to be born in a barn - and the Innocents were slaughtered…..

A baby changes everything.

That’s the Christmas story for starters.

WELCOMING

Hopefully we all get the Christmas Message - the Life Message - that the little kid points out what we’re not seeing.

The little kid - the baby - welcomes all - wants all - like take our glasses off our face - when we’re holding them.

The little kid wants to open doors, cabinets, drawers, boxes, everything.

I want it all - the little baby crawls towards life - others.

CONCLUSION

Advent, Christmas, Christianity, at this time - of small steps - is telling us life is a lot more than this.

It stars like a little bud, a little shoot as Jeremiah tells us in today’s first reading.

It starts like a push as Paul tells us in today’s second reading - a push towards Christ.

It’s  life as today’s gospel tells us: don’t get trapped by anxieties - especially the big noisy things - hear - see - the Little Baby.

Christ will change us.

December 2, 2018

TAX  EXEMPT

Without realizing it, I exempted myself

from helping others. Now that’s  not fair.

I am my brother’s keeper. I am called

to stop and be a Good Samaritan.

The call is to bear each other’s burdens

and in this way we’ll fulfill the Law of Christ.

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2018

December 2, 2018 

Thought for today: 

“What is the first business of one who practices philosophy? To get rid of self-conceit.  For it is impossible for anyone to begin to learn that which he thinks he already knows.” 

Epictetus [c. 50-120] 

in Discourses # 17.