Memorial of Saint Athanasius, bishop and doctor of the Church
Alleluia, Christ is risen! We are now starting on our second week of Easter and continuing to follow the journey of the early Church as remembered in the Acts of the Apostles. Our passage for today again describes Peter and John, who, by now must be regarded as troublemakers in the eyes of many in the city. For the Christian community, however, the actions of Peter and John make sense because they are interpreted in light of the paschal mystery, i.e. Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. They Christians feel empowered by their recollection of all that had happened; Jesus’ death has not ended their discipleship; rather, his resurrection has intensified their commitment to the gospel message. Hence the word that describes them is “boldness.” In the face of threats, they stay true to their lives as followers of Jesus.
Second Sunday of Easter
Easter is over! Many of us who gave up things for Lent are now perhaps enjoying these things again. I wonder, what did that first bite of chocolate, that first sip of coffee, that first gulp of beer, the fresh feel of game console feel like. PersonalIy, I consider the weeks after Lent to be the most dangerous time for Christians. Suddenly, the spiritual discipline that we got used to during Lent gets forgotten; prayer becomes more lax, and we get back to our old ways again. After Christ is risen and it is time to sit back and enjoy life again.
Thursday in the Octave of Easter
These words from today’s Psalm (Ps 118:15) illustrate the insuppressible good news of Jesus’ life death and resurrection. The good news of the resurrection bubbles forth from Jesus’ disciples out of their gut, almost uncontrollably; it is unable to be squelched or held down.
Friday in the Octave of Easter
My husband and I were overjoyed to have our daughter Gabriella baptized at the Easter Vigil last Saturday. The Vigil is so jam-packed with evidence of the goodness of God's salvation in Jesus Christ that we wanted Gabriella to enter the church on this most holy day of the year. There is something amazing, too, about being baptized along with so many others. Jesus once said that the Kingdom of God is like yeast that is mixed in with flour and then set to rise (Luke 13:20-21). The Church rises like that yeast, becomes bubbly and frothy and full of life, and that reality is so present when we witness something like all those baptisms and confirmations. At one point I was struck by the fact that these children and adults who were baptized that night too will, thank God, be helping to raise this baby in the faith. We help each other stumble toward the grace of God.
Thursday in the Octave of Easter
Alleluia! And happy Easter! Today we celebrate the fifth day in the Octave of Easter. Like all other days in the Octave, today is a solemnity, the highest feast of the Church. But of course, most of our country has already left Easter far behind. And most likely, we too have been back to work this week – the daily grind of everyday life.
Wednesday in the Octave of Easter
As the water rises all around us from the seven inches of rain we have received over the past eight days, we hear of many people who have floods in their houses. Some of these people, anticipated the water and took measures to deal with it before it even started; others are in turmoil because of the disruption. Many of us in the very least have had to spend time moving things around in order to avoid them being damaged by the water. It’s at times like these that many of us wish we had traveled lighter, that is with less stuff. For Peter and John, traveling light seemed to be a way of life. On the go with Jesus demanded that they traveled light in order to follow wherever he led. Perhaps, these days are as good as any to examine what we carry and how that may impede our ability to recognize resurrection all around us.
Tuesday in the Octave of Easter
I sometimes tend to think of Easter as a day or perhaps as a week long celebration (The Octave of Easter). Yet it is more than that. It is a season of the Church year, stretching from Easter Sunday until Pentacost Sunday. Yet, attending the Easter vigil mass this year brought to my attention the thought that each day of the year should involve a recognition and awareness of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. In fact, this is literally true, since each celebration of the mass is a celebration of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead.
Monday in the Octave of Easter
Alleluia! Christ is risen, alleluia! For most people in the United States, Easter has come and gone. It is over in one day; even the Easter candy is now on sale. But for the Church, Easter Sunday is only the beginning of the Easter season. Today, Monday, is the second day in the octave of Easter. All of the days from Easter Sunday through to the following Sunday rank as solemnities, the highest holy days in the liturgical year of the Church.
Easter Sunday: Solemnity of the Resurrection of The Lord
Speculation! Speculation!! Speculation!!! Around every Easter time, people begin to speculate. For example, last weeks’ TIME magazine carried a cover article titled, What if there’s No Hell? In March this year, Bart Ehrman (the author of God’s Problem: How the Bible Fails to Answer Our Most Important Question -- Why We Suffer), published a new book entitled, Forged: Writing in the Name of God--Why the Bible's Authors Are Not Who We Think They Are. In this book he claims that, "Christians intent on establishing what was right to believe did so by telling lies." So are we present today in this church on Easter Sunday because of a lie? Really? Can a lie sustain a way of life for two thousand years? For example, this year we have 23 people who came into the church at the vigil. I was in the confessional with some of these men, women and young people. A lie does not explain the personal transformation in them. A lie could not explain the burning in their hearts when they hear the name of Jesus. A lie could not explain the inexplicable love in their hearts. A lie could not account for the tears in their eyes. A lie cannot account for the steps they took to the altar. As a matter of fact, a lie does not account for us coming together today. This community, this gathering, our coming together, for me, is the greatest evidence of the resurrection of Christ.
Holy Saturday
Holy Saturday (from Sabbatum Sanctum, its official liturgical name) is sacred as the day of the Lord's rest; it has been called the "Second Sabbath" after creation. The day is and should be the most calm and quiet day of the entire Church year, a day broken by no liturgical function. Christ lies in the grave, the Church sits near and mourns. After the great battle He is resting in peace, but upon Him we see the scars of intense suffering...The mortal wounds on His Body remain visible....Jesus' enemies are still furious, attempting to obliterate the very memory of the Lord by lies and slander.
Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion
The first reading (Isaiah 52:13-53:12) is one of the most important readings of the year and serves as a hinge that holds together the Old and New testaments. Today's passage speaks of a Suffering Servant, one who was "pierced for our offenses and crushed for our sins." He bore our sins, he was "led like a lamb to the slaughter." Christians readily see this Suffering Servant as Jesus the Christ. But even more than that (if indeed there can be more), I am struck, this year, by the shock and wonder that emanates from today's texts. "[S]o shall he startle many nations, because of him kings shall stand speechless; for those who have not been told shall see, those who have not heard shall ponder it."
Holy Thursday
Today begins our Triduum. Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday (Easter Vigil), are deep with meaning that colors not only this particular day, but the whole of the Christian life. The paschal mystery expressed in this Triduum is at the heart of all we do.
Wednesday of Holy Week
In what may seem an ironic twist, the protagonist reveals the betrayal that is about to be committed by the antagonist in a way betraying the betrayer. Jesus did not need to be omniscient to perceive that something was going on in Judas. Surely, there were outward signs revealing his inner turmoil. If a close friend is acting extremely out of character, you think that something must be going on in their life. Still, can you imagine a close friend betraying you? Perhaps, it has happened. Even worse, some of us can recall being the one who betrayed a close friend or loved one. And on some level, each of us by our sin, contributed to Jesus needing to accept the cross on our behalf.
Tuesday of Holy Week
Last week Tuesday we saw that Jesus tells the Pharisees, “Where I am going you cannot come” (John 8: 21). The reading for today refers back to that exchange with the Pharisees. The Pharisees completely misunderstood Jesus’ words thinking that he was talking about suicide. But Jesus was making the point that they could not follow him where he is going, because they were focused on earthly rather than spiritual things.
Monday of Holy Week
With Palm Sunday yesterday, we began what is known as “Holy Week,” which includes the last of Lent and the Triduum of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday. We are now quickly moving toward Jesus’ passion and death; we are hastening toward Jerusalem. Today’s first reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah is one from the Old Testament that our Church has always understood Christologically. In other words, although it was written before Jesus was born in Bethlehem, we look at this passage as applying to Christ.
Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion
Over the last two weeks I have spent much time in the confessional. And I have heard amazing stories of conversion. Both kids preparing for Confirmation and RCIA candidates preparing for baptism and reception into the church have been tremendous witness to me. I have been drawn to tears with their humility, their desire for God, and their willingness to follow Christ. I felt challenged by these conversion stories. As Holy Week approaches, these conversion stories have compelled me to evaluate my own Lenten journey. So I decided to go through all the homilies I preached and evaluate my life. I hope this reflection will be useful for you as well.
Saturday of the Fifth Week of Lent
In today’s first reading, the prophet Ezekiel writes of how the LORD God will gather the people of Israel together again from their exile. God promises to heal their divisions, to cleanse them from their sinfulness, and to help them obey His commands. He promises to set up make a new and eternal covenant with them. He promises to make a sanctuary, a place to worship Him properly, that will last forever. As Catholic Christians, although we would acknowledge that the Jewish people may have other legitimate ways that they would see a passage such as this fulfilled in their own history, we interpret this passage primarily as relating to the coming of Jesus and to the establishment of the Church. Much of the passage is understood metaphorically- we do not seek to control a particular piece of land upon the earth but instead to be united to God as one “People of God” who are spread out all over the earth. In our understanding, the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist means that God dwells with us constantly in the tabernacles of our various Church communities.
Friday of the Fifth Week of Lent
Game shows like to heighten suspense by asking, “Is that your final answer?” , which potentially psyches out the contestant. Today’s scriptures display a similar kind of suspenseful questioning, but for Christians, these readings will not psyche us out, but give us some faith and hope.
Thursday of the Fifth Week of Lent
With Easter quickly approaching, our eyes are drawn toward the paschal mystery – the story of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. This story is also the story of a covenant. Throughout salvation history, God has made covenants with his people. In today’s first reading, for example, we have a passage from Genesis where God tells Abraham that just as God will keep the covenant with Abraham’s descendants, they must also keep their covenant with God. The psalm response reinforces this theme: “The Lord remembers his covenant forever.”
Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Lent
What would happen if the person who you worked for asked you to do something that was against your faith? Think of it, if the person who signs your paycheck said I need you to sin in order for you to keep your job, would you? This choice may seem very possible but it happens. It has certainly happened in my own life. The choice might be clear, however usually there are many circumstances which may pull or push us in one direction or another. If this choice were a test would we pass?