October 4, 2016

MY  WHY’S VARY 

God my why’s vary,

depending on what’s

going on in my gut.

But what about your

why’s? What are your

why’s shot back at us?

The content and the

quality of our dialogues

rarely sound like Job?

Yet there are nights

I ask, “Why am I still

alive and why, “Oh why?”

I know that goes back

to the day I heard that the

shortest poem was, “I / Why?”

And I responded well I’ll

write the second shortest

poem. It’s “You / Who.”

Yet I still scream, “God, you

must have taken down at least

one tyrant, well why not again.?”

“Why not give the children

in shell shocked Syria a

month of peace? A month!”

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2016

PLAYING  THE  PART 

OF  ST.  FRANCIS  OF  ASSISI

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “Playing the Part of St. Francis of Assisi.”

Today, October 4^th, is his feast day.

THE PLAY’S THE THING

One of Shakespeare’s most famous lines is in Hamlet - where he says, “The plays the thing / Wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the king.”

That’s vintage Shakespeare because as playwright he would know that people watching a play - subconsciously or unconsciously - connect with the characters on the stage. Shakespeare would know what to do to try to catch his audience. He knew the tricks of the trade. He would know what to do to catch the attention, the spiritual life, the conscience, the reality of what it is to be a moral, a good, decent human being. So the audience would see good and evil on stage in front of them - and hopefully go for the good and to avoid the evil.

Those seeing a performance of Hamlet would discover that Hamlet’s uncle, Claudius killed his own brother, the king - Hamlet Senior. Then Claudius marries Gertrude, Hamlet’s mother, the queen. Tough stuff for Hamlet Junior - to deal with, to get the facts, to makes sure he’s right and to get revenge on his uncle. So Shakespeare has Hamlet putting on a play within the play to catch the conscience of the king.

JORGE MARIO BERGOGLIO

Cardinal Jorge Mario Begoglio of Buenas Aires, Argentina, went to Rome to elect a new pope.

He ends up becoming the new pope on March 13, 2013.

Now he has the choice to come up with a name.

He surprised so many by being elected. Then he surprised us all even more by the choice of a name: Francis.

He could have chosen Benedict or John Paul or Ignatius or Vincent de Paul or any name for that matter - even keeping his own name Jorge, George or even Mario his second name. Imagine Pope Mario,

Nope. He’s no dope. The new pope, A Jesuit chooses a Franciscan’s name. Pope Francis.

Surprise!

It ends up being a remarkable choice.

The story goes that a cardinal said to Bergogio just after being elected, “Don’t forget the poor.” So he chose the name of Francis - Poor Francis of Assisi.

I would assume that he was thinking about this long before that moment - that he had a great liking and got great inspiration from Francis of Assisi.

If you were named pope what name would you choose

The naming is just the first step.

It’s the next day that counts.

So from then on he has the choice to play the part of Francis - to be himself of course - but to play the part of Francis of Assisi.

We know the story.

We’re born, we get a name, and then in time we have the choice to be ourselves - to become ourselves. In Hamlet we also have the line, “To thine own self be true”. Polonius says that to his son Laertes.

So we’re called to be ourselves. There is only one of us - forever and ever.

But we also able to play as Shakespeare put it in his play, As You Like It, “All the world’s a stage,/ And all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances; / And one man in his time plays many parts.”

We’re called  to play the part of Jesus Christ, to be a Christian, to be a saint.  But we also imitate others - our parents, our pals, a nurse, a lawyer, a therapist, a salesperson, a teacher, what have you - and we watch how our parents loved one another, how teachers taught, how nurses cared for others - how fellow workers, work.

And so we play our parts. And hopefully we become the part - doing it with our personality - our gifts, our spirit, our learnings.

SO WHY THE CHOICE

So why did Pope Francis the First pick Francis as his name.

For starters - thinking of Hamlet - and Shakespeare - did Pope Francis pick that name to get us to look at the life of Francis and we too play that pert.

For starters - we know Francis was for the poor and lead a poor life. We’ll we’ve all read how Francis has tried to simplify, simplify, simplify - when it comes to shoes, clothes, space, travel.

For starters - we know that Francis of Assisi was called to rebuild the church and then did. And Pope Francis is certainly trying to do just that. and we can do the same every day.

For starters - we know that Francis of Assisi brings us back to Jesus Christ - the human Christ - the birth of Christ, the eucharist, the poor, the people, the death on the cross.

For starters, if we read the life of St. Francis we discover that he sang and glorified the beauty of creation - and we see the Pope has a whole big letter on that last year - Laudato Si’ - on the gift of this great home, garden, earth, which God has created for us.

 CONCLUSION

Be yourself - but be like Francis of Assisi - who brought Jesus to the poor - who renewed our church. Be like Pope Francis - reach out to everyone.

Smile. The pope certainly knows the power of a smile as walk down the miles of our life.

Pope Francis became Pope at 76. Wow. So lets hope all of us have much more life in our tank.

October 3, 2016

OCTOBER

October doesn’t get that much ink

from poets - or if it does - I’ve missed it.

Maybe it’s from where one stands or

what one’s doing - back to school -

serious work - high energy - catch up

stuff after summer and September -

and not enough time for poems or

pondering deeper things like frost and

the sight and sound of dead leaves.

Hints of things to come - cold rain -

winds - leaves changing here in

the north of the northern hemisphere -

but not yet - Indian Summer - always

an oasis - put back the sweaters and

the flannel shirts - don’t even think

of scarves or gloves or hats - yet.

October - here’s some ink - I’ve always

seen you as the best month of the mix.

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2016

FROM JERUSALEM 

TO JERICHO

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “From Jerusalem to Jericho.”

ON THE ROAD FROM JERUSALEM TO JERICHO 

There is a gospel song - a country western gospel song - by Hank Williams Sr. entitled, “From Jerusalem to Jericho.”

I put it on my blog - along with this homily - as one more way of preaching the good news of Jesus.

The Good Samaritan parable is one of top 5 or 10 parables of Jesus. Some of the best known ones are here in the gospel of Luke.

Everyone - hopefully everyone has heard of the story of the Good Samaritan.

We hear it here in church - whenever this gospel is read - and we hear it in our conscience every time we pass a beggar or a hurting person by.

They wave their, “I’m hungry” sign. We feel a “Guilty, guilty” sign blowing in the wind.

We’re even aware of the so called, “Good Samaritan Law” - one more example of religion entering into civil life - just as the “Hail Mary Pass” has entered into football.

HOW TO READ THE SCRIPTURES?

We’ve all been taught that one way to read the scriptures is to picture ourselves in the text.  

Sometimes this is difficult to do. If so try another method.

However, this method is especially easy with the parables.

We simply say, “Who am I in this story?”

Of if there are a few characters, we go down the line and see ourselves as each character in the story.

So in this story, when am I the Good Samaritan, stopping to help my neighbor?

When am I the man beaten up?

When am I the priest or the Levite passing by those who have been hurt or robbed?

When am I the robber - say for example - robbing someone of their good name?

When am I the inn keeper - seeing people helping other people?

When am I the scholar of the law - testing Jesus about what it is to be a good person?

HANK WILLIAM'S SONG

In Hank Williams song, he makes all of us the guy who was beaten up.

Every day is a journey down the road from Jerusalem to Jericho.

He sings, “We are the fallen ones that lie along the way” and people pass us by - like the priest - every day.

He sings, “Who are the ones who stop to help us along the way - the ones who are kind and true?”  Who are the ones who care? Who are the ones who bring the hurting ones into their inn?

Listen to the song on You-tube at the top of this homily. 

CONCLUSION

Our first reading for today is from the beginning of Paul’s letter to the Galatians. At the end of Galatians, 6:2, we’ll have the message of the Good Samaritan Parable. It's my favorite bible text, “Bear one another’s burdens and in this way you’ll fulfill the law of Christ.”

Amen.

FAITH

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “Faith.”

Today’s three readings all mention faith - so the obvious message is to preach about faith.  I’m sure if we could get our hands on every sermon from around the Christian world for this 27^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, year C - it would be, “The priest or the deacon or the minister preached about faith.”

Several large Protestant Congregations have the same readings as Catholics. As least we do that together.

If you talk to your kids or parents in far cities or neighbors or co-workers and they are church goers, ask them, “What was the sermon about on Sunday?”

I’m guessing the answer will be - if remembered, “Faith!”

WHAT TO SAY?

What to say about faith?

I preached at our Kids Mass at 8 o’clock this morning  and I wrote a story for them as I usually do - but for us adults what to say?

In the story of our life as Christians and/or Catholics, what is our story when it comes to our faith?

So I prayed like the apostles in the opening words of today’s gospel, “Increase my faith - I want to preach a homily on faith, Lord.  Help!”

And two things hit me:

First of all: Faith is a gift.

Second: Work on increasing that gift.

There they are - sort of a backwards - or sideways - sort of playing on the Christian struggle about faith and works.

So faith as a gift and faith as something we have to work on increasing and growing in.

FAITH AS A GIFT

“My mom and dad gave me the gift of faith.”

Many of us could say the same thing.

They brought me to church - and they put me in Catholic School.

Their parents and grandparents and great grandparents and back and back and back were Catholics in Ballynahown in Ireland - right on Galway Bay.

Or various people say, "It was my spouse who gave me the gift of faith. I was nothing before I met him or her - or I belonged to another community - and I switched over and became a Catholic because of my spouse."

Our RCIA program for this year for those interested in becoming a Catholic just started a few Wednesday nights ago. I’m sure everyone attending will address this question in their get-togethers.

We get a lot of gifts in a lifetime. We get a bicycle or a teddy bear or an envelope with an Andrew Jackson - a twenty dollar bill - in it - or a ring or a watch or a computer - or a car - or what have you.

Faith is a gift - and like many a gift - sometimes the gift wears out - or goes into the closet or is thrown out or forgotten - so too faith.

The first three weddings in the next generation of my family all have been outside of our religion. That hit me - of course.  I drove up to Connecticut with a Jewish close family friend of my brother here in Maryland for one of those weddings. Marty asked me about my thoughts on the way home. The year before I had gone to a Jewish ceremony for the death of his wife - and I got to do a reading - and then after that burial in a Jewish cemetery  we drove to a nearby Catholic cemetery to say some prayers at my brother’s grave. We're close, so I told Marty - while driving home to Maryland - I was wondering if my faith - my reality as priest - had any reality with those who have dropped out or wherever they are - regards their faith.  I also wondered what their parents thought. At some point I'll ask them.

Faith is a gift.  I have to keep on remembering that - and all the implications of what a gift is.

As priest I’m hoping at every wedding, every baptism, every funeral, every prayer service, every Sunday Mass all of us cherish the gift of faith - if we’ve been given it. Or we all feel God urges.

I’ve heard about 10 people say in the past few years about family members who have stopped going to church, “What are they going to do when times get tough - when hard times are a coming as the old country song puts it? How are they going to deal with life’s problems?”

Of course many folks don’t lose their God connection - even if they have lost or given up on their Church connection.

Of course as priest, I would say that Church helps keep one’s connection with God better than not. And I assume that’s why you are here this evening as well.

So for starters: faith is a gift.

And we pray this evening a prayer of thanks to God and others for giving us this gift - for giving us good example - witness - a deepening of faith.

FAITH AS A RELATIONSHIP TO BE WORKED ON  # 2

And this leads us to our part - in the deal - in the covenant.

As in marriage, as in family, as in any relationship, we need to work on our faith.

Today’s second  reading begins with the image of stirring into flame the gift of God that you have….”  That’s exactly what it says.

We’ve all had the experience of a camp fire or starting a camp fire and we blow on the leaves and the branches and crumbled newspaper we’ve put in with the wood. And when the fire starts to fade - we stir it up again - with a stick and add on some more wood.

It’s same for a fireplace.

So faith demands work on our part.

Faith demands practicing prayer. This week take your rosary and find a quiet place in your house or in your car while driving and say 59 times on the 59 beads, “Lord, increase my faith.” That will take less than 2 minutes.

Faith demands practicing the great commandment to love the Lord our God with our whole heart, mind, soul and strength - and to love our neighbor as ourselves.            

Faith calls us come to church - not just for Mass - but to drop into some church once or week or so and just sit there in the afternoon quiet - and just listen.

Jesus told us that we have an inner room - where he waits for us.

A guy just the other day said, “I used to be an Episcopalian and I became a Catholic because my wife was - and we came here to church together, so I became a Catholic. And I discovered the difference pretty soon: the Catholic Church has that second collection.”

Faith needs humor as well.

Faith needs screams and yelling as well.

Imagine living in Aleppo in Syria?  I’m sure every person there can connect with the today’s first reading - where Habakkuk the prophet screams, “How long, O Lord? I cry for help but you do not listen. I cry out to you, ‘Violence!’ but you do not intervene.”

I’m sure every person who is Muslim is saying similar words from the Koran.

There are still some Christians left in Syria - one of the places of our ancient faith.

But whoever we are - in safe gated communities - in alcoholic families or drug struggling situations - or in family’s with deep marriage problems - or where there is cancer or strokes or dementia - you name it - it’s Bad Friday in that place  - and it can only become Good Friday and Easter in the long run - for those with faith - better to have faith with God - on the Cross in our midst.

The stations on the cross in church are here because they are out there as well.

CONCLUSION

I was looking at an example to close this homily - in case nothing hit home.

I reached for a book of talks and homilies by Bishop Ken Untener and he tells the following moment about himself. [1]

He’s visiting some parish and the pastor  giving our communion next to him was doing something different from him. He says that it wasn’t dramatic - just different.

He said, “Something was going on between the pastor and each communicant. There was a momentary engagement, connection, intersomething-or-other. What he was doing was placing the consecrated bread in their hand, leaving his own hand for a moment to rest there, looking them in the eye as he said, ‘The Body of Christ,’ then attentively receiving their ‘Amen.’”

So he said, he tried it. It took a second longer.

He said a few weeks later while driving, a light bulb in his mind went on.

He realized people actually when saying, “Amen” - were receiving the Risen Lord into their lives.

In saying, “Amen” they were saying in effect, "I'm not perfect, but I really do believe in Jesus Christ , and in all that he taught, and in all that he stood for. I don't claim to understand it all and save have all
the answers. But  I do believe  in this way of life, and from the soles of my feet to the top of my head, I commit myself to walk in his footsteps. I accept the Lord and all that he stands for into my own life.”

When I read that I said I might try that - knowing that some people go crazy with the slow when it comes to Mass. I know I’ve been saying inwardly for 30 or 40 years or so when I’m handing a person communion or putting it in their mouth, “Lord, help this person.” 

Then: I say, "Body of Christ."  

And hopefully they say, "Amen."

OOO + OOO

NOTES

[1] This picture is by Dave Sandford - and you can find it on his web site - entited Lake Erie pictures.

[2 Bishop Ken Untener, The Practical Prophet, Paulist Press, New York, Mahwah, N.J, 2007, pages 97-99.

TWINS

Francis and Seelos were twins - a boy and a girl twin - which is very, very different  - than if your twin is the same sex as you.

They were mom and dad’s only kids and they were thrilled when they found out they are were pregnant and they were going to have twins.

They were born - October 5^th  - the feast of Blessed Francis Seelos - so the parents said, “We prayed to Blessed Francis Seelos to have a baby - and surprise we ended up having twins. So when we were thinking of names, we said, ‘Francis or Frank  will work for the boy - and why not Seelos for the girl?’ Seelos - now that’s an interesting name for a girl - but we’ll make it work.”

Grandparents were even more trilled - not with the names at first - but that they would be twins in the family. The last time that happened was 5 generations back - and those twins were two girls in Italy - Sicily - back in the late 1800’s.

At the baptism of the twins, Francis and Seelos, the Italian great grandmother on the mom’s side was asked to give a blessing right at the end of the baptism. They helped her up into the sanctuary - where the baptismal font was.

Everyone became very quiet.

The great grandmother - Mama Mama Maria - as everyone called her - paused and then said out loud, “It’s an old Sicilian Custom for the oldest family member living to give a blessing to the newest family member.”

“Today I want to give a blessing to our new twins: Francis and Cecilia….”

“Mama Mama Maria her name is Seelos!”

“Oh, okay continued Mama Mama Maria.”

She put her old wrinkled arthritic hand on Francis’s head and said, “Francis may you be a peacemaker all your life.”

Then she moved her hand onto Seelos’ little head. She saw how beautiful Seelos’ eyes were - so she said, “Seelos may see amazing things in your lifetime. May you have a great sense of amazement!”

It was an amazing moment. Mom and dad cried. Francis and Seelos’ grandparents on both sides were crying. And Mama Mama Maria gave each kid - each twin - a beautiful kiss on the top of their heads - with great gusto and sound. “Uuuuuummmm! Ahhhh!

All clapped.

Twenty five years later at the party after the baptism of Seelos first baby - with Francis as the godfather - the twin’s mom made a speech.

“Remember when Francis and Seelos were baptized …. Remember when Mama Mama Maria - Lord have mercy on her - wow do we miss her…. but she had a great life. Remember when she gave that wonderful blessing on our twins - that Francis be a peacemaker and Seelos have a sense of amazement at everything she saw.

“Wow did that come true.

“Seelos you have always seen what most of us miss. How other kids love to lick their ice cream cones - especially chocolate chocolate chip and butter almond cones. How people who get a new car - like to just sit there for a while before they start it up the first few times - just to smell the beauty of new car smell…. How Snuggles our dog - Lord have mercy on him - loved to go into the ocean when we went to the beach in the summer - and shake off the salt sea water on the rest of us back on the blanket…. How you love to stay outside before we go into the house at night and look for the stars or slivers of the moon…. How you love all types of mustards and every kind of tree - including mulberry trees. How you have become a pediatrician - a baby doctor because you love babies - and now you have one of your own….

“Mama Mama Maria - your grandmother - put a great blessing on you at your baptism. Seelos - maybe your name should have been See-lots.

“And Frank - Francis - Mama Mama Maria - called it right for you as well. We have always seen how you were a peacemaker - especially when kids were fighting in the playground. And when a kid was being bullied you stood up for that kid. Thank God you’re 6 foot 3, 235 pounds, that certainly helped. You have always been so good to old people - visiting Mama Mama Maria in the nursing home before she died and your other grandparents - so many times. And good thing you have a great sense of humor like Blessed Francis Seelos.”

At that, Seelos, the new mom, not of twins, asked her grandmother to come up to the front. “We forgot to ask you to give a blessing to our your new granddaughter - so keeping the old Sicilian tradition - could you give our baby - the newest member of the family - a special blessing from the oldest member of the family.

She paused.

She hesitated.

Then she said - putting her hand on the head of 6 week old baby, “Teresa, may you have a sweet life - with plenty of sweetness and smarts and everyday will be a surprise - in the same spirit as you amazing mom, Seelos.

OOO+OOO

[This was a story for our Kids with their parents Mass - at 8 AM - at Marian Hall, today, October 2, 2016. This coming Wednesday - October 5^th - is the feast of the Redemptorist Blessed Francis Seelos. With that in mind and St. Francis Assisi - which would have been Seelos’ day - dying October 4, 1872 in New Orleans of Yellow Fever, I made up this story. I like to see St. Francis of Assisi as an instrument of God’s peace and Blessed Francis Seelos  as a man of peace - a smile - a great sense of humor. I spotted the images of mustard seed, mulberry tree and the ocean in today’s gospel, Luke 17: 5-10 - for this 27 Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year C]

[Picture on top - from the Internet - by Abby Bischoff]

October 2, 2016

STEPS

Did you ever watch kids

when they come to steps?

Some take them on no matter now

high the mountain seems to be.

Some hesitate. Some sit down

in frustration. Some scream.

Some look around for someone

to pick them up and bring them

up to the top of the steps.

Are steps a personality test on

how this kid is going to take on life?

Are we getting a glimpse on whether

this one will enter a 12 Step program

for whatever or whether they will

spend their lives blaming others or

just sit there at the bottom of the steps?

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2016