IF   YOU   EVER  GET  TO  ISRAEL

The title of my thoughts for this morning is: “If  You  Ever  Get To Israel.”

If you ever get to Israel,  it probably will be on a Christian tour.

And one of the spots you’ll go to is Capernaum.

It’s featured big time in the Gospels – but it hasn’t been that big a deal down through the centuries after Christ.

In Jesus’ time it was a tiny town – with about 1500 people – on the northwest shore of the Lake of Galilee.

You get off the bus and walk a short distance to go through the gate into city.

Today it’s a tour spot that only has basically  2 spots to look at: the synagogue and Peter’s house  - both of which are mentioned in today’s gospel.

The Franciscans bought property there – above the Lake – and in and around 1867 there was excavations there – as well as  after 1967.

I was in Israel for 10 days in the year 2000 - January.

We were in Capernaum for about 2 hours in a morning.

We went into the Synagogue remains. It’s a small rectangular building with sides, but no roof. It was very clean. You can sit on the hard stone steps along the side. It has a large open space in whole center of the former synagogue – like a small church without seats.

Our tour was a retreat, so we had an hour of quiet. Father Steven Doyle was giving the tour and the retreat.  He read a gospel like today’s – made some comments – and then  gave us time to reflect.  The 22 of us priests making the tour and the retreat  became quiet. Hey, we were in a sacred place.  My prayer was the prayer of the man with demons in yesterday’s gospel and the people with demons in today’s gospel: “Jesus you are the Son of God.”

Archaeologists say the present structure is from the 4^th century. They say it’s a synagogue built upon a synagogue.  They date it - based on coins in the mortar holding together the big stones of the synagogue.

After the hour of prayer, we went about 40 to 50 yards  to what archaeologists   said was Peter’s mother-in-law house.  They figure an octagonal church was built on top of an older building.  In 1990 they finished a hexagonal church – with steps up into the building – with glass floors – so you can see the ruins of an older church below – which was built on what some think was Peter’s house.

After that we went outside before heading out the gate to the bus.  Father Steven Doyle pointed to a red roofed church about a mile away. He said it’s a Byzantine church. He pointing to small clumps of earth or  small bumpy hills all around it. He said, “Under those small hills is a lot of rubble and ruin to excavate in the future.”

When in Israel, there is plenty of time.

We were on Franciscan property and they had done most of the work where we had just visited. Amen.

September   2,   2020

Thought  for  Today

“The morning is wiser than the evening.”

Russian Proverb

Garden St. Mary's

Annapolis

 

SEPTEMBER  1st:

WORLD DAY OF PRAYER 

FOR THE CARE OF CREATION

INTRODUCTION

The title of my thoughts for today is,  “September 1^st: World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation.”

THE MIND OF CHRIST

Today’s 1st reading from 1^st Corinthians ends with the words, “Have the mind of Christ.”

What is the mind of Christ when it comes to our care of the earth?

Jesus  told us to watch and marvel at the birds of the air and the flowers of the field. 

However, I don’t think we can be definitive as to Christ’s thoughts about hydroelectric power plants and light bulbs.

Yet, I believe,  we can come up with opinions on what we think would be smart thoughts about caring for the earth in 2020 – of course.

So some thoughts about the care of creation in 2020.

SEPTEMBER  1^ST

Calling this day “World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation” has been around since 2015 for us Catholics,.

However, I don’t remember speaking about  this in the past few years. 

So last night I did some home work and these are a few of my thoughts.

I like that the Eastern Orthodox wing of the Christian Churches began this idea.

Back in the mid-80’s at a big Eastern Orthodox assembly the issue of environment was discussed big time. Patriarch Bartholomew  ends up with the nickname, “The Green Patriarch.”

Around 2001 different European Christian communities picked up on this theme and did their best to make worldwide improvements  in how we care for creation.

Then in August of 2015 Pope Francis makes his move – by backing the idea of September 1^st as a special day to look at the environment.

There were documents – called encyclicals from Eastern Orthodox leaders and then Laudato Si from Francis.

We can ask ourselves what have we picked up from this focusing on Green Theology etc.

I like the way for different years and different meetings, groups looked at specific areas. For example:  The Black Sea, the Danube, the Adriatic Sea, the Baltic Sea, the Amazon, the Artic, the Mississippi.

I like the way folks looked at water – not just for baptism, but for drinking, for agriculture, for recreation, for aqua filters, etc.

Then there have been calls to look at agriculture and nutrition, air and atmosphere.

SPECIFIC IMMEDIATE PLACES ON THE PLANET

Next I looked back to the late 1960’s and Monsignor Bob  Fox picking 4^th street in Manhattan as a street to be cleaned.dd

On a Saturday, hundreds of people started on Avenue D near the East River and swept and cleaned their way to the Hudson River on the West Side.  They had trucks, brooms, shovels and plastic bags and they did it.

I also remember a specific lot – around 6^th street – perhaps between Avenue B and C - where a building had sat. Now it was just dirt and an empty lot.  In this  vacuum of space were two old  rusty cars – toilet bowls – tons of garbage and waste – a couch.  A group cleared it – planted grass – put in some benches and a few cement card and chess tables, a vegetable garden, lights, trees and flowers – painting the back fences etc. and that lasted for my 2 years on the Lower East Side.

It was a model on what could be done.

I loved hearing about the Cayuga River in Ohio being cleansed.  There were newspaper articles that it was the river that had so much oil on it – that it once was on fire.

I like Gene Grohe’s pride that Lake Erie has been cleansed a good bit.

So too  Perfume Bay – Stink Creek – just before Coney Island. As kids when we went to Coney Island – when we went over this water on the subway – we would pause and yell out the open window, “Phew!” and make out we were choking. It has been cleansed a bit.

I noticed last night that finally that the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn might finally get  its $500 million clean up check.

CONCLUSION

So once a year now Christians ask that September 1^st we concentrate on how we are caring for the earth.

So talk, pray, and act is the message.

September  1,  2020

IF  I   DIED  TONIGHT….

If I died tonight ….

If I died tonight I’d regret

about 10 times I didn’t say, “I’m sorry”,

about 3 times I didn’t ask, “Please forgive me!”

about 1,000 unanswered letters,

about 10,000 wasted hours,

about 10 books I didn’t finish writing,

about 1,000 books I didn’t read,

that only once did I got scream back 

from a sermon I preached,

and there’s more ….

If I died tonight ….

If I died tonight I’d rejoice

that I got to the Lake of Galilee,

that I the last thing I said to my brother

before he died was, “I love you,”

that I gave it my best shot 81%

of the times,

that I could hit a curve ball,

that I listened to people when then

asked to talk to me,

that I had a wonderful family,

that I lucked out in the people I met

and there’s more ….

If I wake up tomorrow …. there’s more.

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2020

 September  1,  2020

Thought  for  Today

“The one who is afraid to throw the dice will  never  throw a six.”

Chinese  Proverb 

August 31, 2020

MOONLIGHT

It was a full moon. It was a dark night.

There were few clouds. Most was clear.

Someone yelled, “You have a camera.

“Quick! Get it! Get a picture of the moon.”

I tried – but my picture was all shake and shimmer -

and the blurry  light of the moon on the ocean.

I couldn’t capture the picture with my expensive camera,

so I had to settle for seeing it all - with just my eyes.

But I did let the moon and the whole dark
scene slide into my random access memory.

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2020

August   31,  2020

Thought   for  Today

“Priest’s  Protest  at  Retirement

The  81-year-old parish priest of an Udine church in North Italy rent his vestments, smashed communion wine on the floor and ordered his bishop out of the chapel during a packed mass last week.

The spectacle was Father Angelo Quirini’s last performance  in a series of protests against Bishop Alfredo Battisti’s attempts to force him to retire.

Bishop Battisti’s announcement to the congregation during the mass that Fr Quirini was retiring had provoked the priest’s wrath.

His fourth and final protest gesture was to turn out all the lights in the church.  The astonished parishioners, left in the dark,  then heard him declare at the top of his voice from the direction of the altar, ‘Go, Bishop, while you still have the chance.’”

by our Rome correspondent

Found this last night in a box

of old letters.  Someone sent it 

to me as a newspaper clipping.  

It’s  listed “Catholic Herald” 

5/10/91, England.