EMPTYING  ONESELF 

The title of my homily - it will be short…. a page and a half - 14 pica - is, “Emptying Oneself.”

In today’s second reading - from St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians - we read the following about Jesus, 

“Christ Jesus, 

though he was in the form of God, 

did not regard equality with God something to be grasped.  

Rather, he emptied himself, 

taking the form of a slave, 

coming in human likeness; 

and found human in appearance, 

he humbled himself, 

becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

During this Mass, during this short sermon, take another sneak peek at today’s second reading from Philippians 2: 6-11.

This text is dated - to have been written between 54 and 57 AD.  That’s before all 4 Gospels. Moreover some scholars think  that today’s text - is part of an earlier hymn - possibly written in Aramaic - that Paul borrowed or used here in his letter. That would make all this - very early stuff about how Jesus was seen - and beginning to be understood - well before the written creeds and written gospels.

He was God - equal to the Father. He became human -  equal to us.

Christ -  Trinity - Divinity - Human.

Us - Human - but in Christ - because of Christ - we can slowly become Divine - entering into God - the Trinity.

After all - as the first book of the Bible, Genesis,  puts in in its first chapter, Genesis 1; 27, “God created us in the image of himself, in the image of God he created us, male and female he created them.”

Profound stuff…. Deep stuff …. Get this stuff - and stuff this stuff into ourselves.

This week, Holy Week, we deal with profound stuff.

First: hear the call - to empty ourselves of ourselves. Less selfies. More otheries.

This week - shut up - empty our mouths of our words and our stories - and listen to the others.

Holy Thursday is all about a meal. A meal is a great place to be in communion - holy communion - with each other.  A meal is a great place to listen to others, “How was your day?” “Moms, dads, brothers, sisters, kids, co-workers - friends - strangers - how is your life going? I’m all ears for you.”

Good Friday is all about suffering and the cross. Is there anyone around us who is suffering - dealing with a cross - family stuff, sickness stuff, death stuff, rejection stuff?   Make the way of the cross with them. Be there under their cross. Help them carry their cross.

Holy Saturday is all about silence. I don’t know about you and Lent 2017 for you. I failed again this year to make a Holy Lent. This week. This Saturday - take a good silent walk and sort out what has died within us or what has to die within us - what has to be emptied out of ourselves and what needs to rise.

Easter Sunday is all about resurrection and new life. Where do I have to rise as a disciple - a follower of Jesus?

To be continued….

PALM SUNDAY 2017

Life is a balancing act.

Sometimes we are up and sometimes we are down.

Sometimes we are feeling great and sometimes we are feeling yucky and sickly and fluey.

Sometimes we feel we are on top of the world and sometimes we feel down, 6 feet under, grave, grief, buried in work and cave in’s and we are dead.

Sometimes everything goes right: the bread falls jam side up and sometimes we take the jam out of the refrigerator by the lid and the jar falls to the floor—jam side out all over the floor.

Life is a balancing act.

Ups and downs.

Good days and bad days.

God days and devil days.

Sin and grace.

Light and darkness.

Mountain highs and Maryland misty morning lows.

Grey foggy April non-budding yet leafless days and the bright colored days of October when the leaves and the woods “ache and sag and almost cry with colour!” (Edna St. Vincent Millay).

If we can relate to all those feelings, today Palm Sunday is our day.

If we can relate to all those feelings, Holy Week is our week.

If we can relate to all those feelings, Jesus is our person—the one we want to talk to this week, the one we want to walk with this week.

Holy Week: the holiest week of the year. Spring, but almost spring—with lingering winter on our backs. Hints of warmth, but the cold “winter of our discontent”  still creeping through our walls and windows and under our doors. (Cf. Shakespeare's  King Richard the Third, act I, sc. i, l. 1)

Palm Sunday 2017. Jesus!

Let us walk with Jesus.

Hosanna in the highest coming from our inner “bare ruined choirs”, but strains of “Behold the Wood of the Cross” being practiced in a back church room at another piano. (Cf. Shakespeare’s  Sonnet 73.)

Palm Sunday, 2017. Jesus!

Palms in our hands as we march across center stage, but in the corner of our eye, we spot the cross standing there off stage—ready to be picked up in the third act: Good Friday.

Palm Sunday, 2017. Jesus! Joy of Men and Women’s Desires!

Spy Wednesday, 2017. We betray one another at times.

Holy Thursday, 2017. We wash each other’s feet—we have words with one another—we eat with one another—we try to pray with one another—too often we fall asleep—we run from each other even though there are signs of “peace”.

Good Friday, 2017. We sulk and silent each other—we convict each other without a trial—we beat one another—causing headaches and crowns with thorns—we weep on our inner streets as we see those we cursed and spit at and worse, laid such crosses and burdens on, and even far worse, we move towards Calvary with. Darkness, death, temples and chapels and monasteries and churches ript in two.

Holy Saturday, 2017, Silence! Tomb time! Grave! Grief!

Easter Sunday, 2017!

Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday, 2017!

Whoever knows all this is our human story, Palms Up!

Amen!

It is us!

It is the Lord!

It is the story of divinity entering humanity, so humanity can see and enter divinity. This is our call! This was our fall—our fall from grace—in the garden.

We are made in the image and likeness of God!

Yet we bomb and gas each other to death.

Look at Jesus.

Look at Jesus in the garden.

Look at each other!

Paradise can be regained!

With Jesus!

Let us march together Disciples of Jesus!

Easter us, O Lord Jesus!

“Marana tha!” [Book of Revelation 22:20 - next to last verse in the New Testament.]

Come, Lord Jesus! 

HOLY WEEK

3 HOLY WEEK YOU TUBES

April 9, 2017

SOMETIMES

Sometimes I’m the donkey….

Sometimes I’m the song of praise….

Sometimes I’m the crowd ….

Sometimes I’m up close and personal….

Sometimes I arrange the supper ….

Sometimes I’m the bread broken ….

Sometimes I’m the wine glistening ….
Sometimes I’m the feet being washed ….

Sometimes I’m ears hearing words of service ….

Sometimes I’m in the night - in the garden ….

Sometimes I’m sleeping in prayer ….

Sometimes I’m running away in fear ….

Sometimes I’m watching him carrying his cross….
Sometimes I’m hearing his scream, “Forgive them….

Sometimes I’m thinking it’s all over…. He died.
Sometimes I’m hoping for resurrection

and the real beginning of the rest of my life….

© Andy Costello, Reflections  2017

HOLY WEEK PRAYER

Lord Jesus,

this week we walk with you into Holy Week:

Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday.

Holy Thursday: we hear Last Supper words

of love and bearing fruit,

as well as hints of denial and betrayal.

With washed feet we receive you:

bread and wine, body and blood.

We walk with you one last time,

this time hearing the call for Garden prayer.

We fall asleep unable to watch

and pray one hour with you.

We run away from you,

as you are being betrayed by a kiss.

Dark Friday: we hide there

the next day in the shadows,

trying to get glimpses of you,

crucified on wood with words

and spit and nails.

You die -- bleeding words of thirst,

forgiveness and letting go.

Empty Saturday: we sulk there in the silence,

filled with doubts -- doubts that any of this

has any meaning,

not yet knowing resurrection. 

We began this week with palm branches

and Hosannas;

we end this week with anxious empty silence. 

Our upper rooms, our minds,

are filled with fear and lack of peace

Sunday: we walk backwards

talking only about yesterday,

not yet knowing the meaning of today! 

Amen! Come Lord Jesus!

You break through our walls;

you walk into our thoughts;

you stand on our shores;

you break bread and words with us again. 

Slowly, the whole story

begins to take on meaning. 

Slowly, we rise from our sleep,

beginning to know that all of this

had to happen this way. 

We begin to see that life

is celebration and Hosannas,

passion and pain, death and resurrection. 

Life is love and bearing fruit;

life is betrayals and denials;

life is death and then

the hope of resurrection. 

Amen! Come Lord Jesus!

©  Markings Prayers, Andy Costello

April 8, 2017

10  DAILY  TASKS 

Listen to one person no one listens to ….

Say, “Can I get you a glass of water?”....

Look deep into  another’s eyes - far back ….

Drop into a holy place - any religion ….

Wave to an old person in a window ….

Hold a door for someone - with a smile ….

Call someone - “How are you doing?” ….

Study a face - wonder about their inner room ….

Pick up 2 pieces of litter ….

Walk around the block ....

© Andy Costello, Reflections  2017

WEAPONS  OF  CHOICE

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 5th Friday in Lent  is, “Weapons of Choice.”

That theme - that reality - hit me when I read  the first sentence in today’s first reading and the first sentence in today’s gospel.

The first reading from Jeremiah begins, “I hear the whisperings of many. Terror on every side! Let us denounce him.”

Whisperings. Announcing denouncements against someone can be very strong weapons.  In Jeremiah’s case he says, “All those who were my friends are on the watch for any misstep of mine. ‘Perhaps he will be trapped; then we can prevail, and take vengeance on him.’”

The gospel from John begins, “The Jews picked up rocks to stone Jesus.”

When I was in Israel in January of 2000, I notice the rocks - especially in the more desert like south. Rock, stones, that can break lots of bones.

We have all seen enough TV riots - with people picking up anything they can pick up and throw - rocks and water bottles and soda cans and signs and barriers at the police or whoever.

The title of my homily is, “Weapons of Choice.”

MARRIAGE AND FAMILY

When I meet with couples who are planning on getting married, we go through a Pre-Marriage Survey. It’s a 165 questions.  One question I ask off the paper is, “What is your weapon of choice?”

Couples look at me weird when I ask that - and I have found out it’s a good question.  I have found out that most people are unaware of their weapon of choice.

It could be silence. It could be cursing and yelling back at the other. It could be talking behind the other’s back. It could be passive aggression. It could be sleeping on the couch. It could actually be throwing things.

I don’t know what the statistics are for 100 police phone calls: how many are domestic violence?

Someone recently robbed two things from St. Mary’s church building: the tabernacle key and a Roman Missal - just like the one here on our altar.

“Let’s go to the video tape,” as Warner Wolf the TV sports announcer used to put it.

Ann Marie - in our office - went to our surveillance cameras and sure enough - they have excellent cameras   - there was a guy walking around the church - going into the sacristy - going into the safe - and walking out the church with the sacramentary book or Roman Missal - and seeing someone putting it under his jacket.

He has since been arrested. I don’t know what they have recovered.

Question: if your house - if the places you enter - if your car - was bugged - what would we see? What would we hear?

Next week is Palm Sunday and Good Friday.

Every person has their Palm Sunday Parade - when we’re honored - whether it’s going down the aisle getting married - whether it’s our birthday or anniversary or a good day - when we’re getting good press - then there are our Good, or better, our Bad Fridays, when we are crucified.

I hold that one of the central messages of the cross is this: “Hello, this is what we do to one another.”

Someone hurts us and we get back by whispering, gossip, silence or passive aggression. We sabotage another. We crucify one another.

CONCLUSION: JESUS’ MESSAGE

Jesus has many messages  about all this.

He tells us to go the extra mile. He tells us to turn the other cheek.  He tells us to answer evil with good. He tells us from the cross, “Father forgive them for they don’t know what they are doing.”

The world answers aggression with aggression - bombing - what have you.

How do we answer behavior in others that we don’t accept?

Christ tells us what to do - and he shows us how to do it.