Spiritual Bytes

By Deacon Richard Hay

“Father, Son, and Holy Spirit…”

“In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

In the most basic sense, this is the Holy Trinity which we celebrate today in the Catholic Church. This phrase is used throughout our liturgies, sacraments, and with sacramentals such as when we enter the church and dip our fingers into the Baptismal Font. We cross ourselves in this action, even if it is an unconscious habit, to acknowledge the three persons who are one God in the Trinity. It is part and parcel of our existence as Catholic Christians. This weekend, during the Vigil Mass I baptized a baby named Sawyer and I used these same words when I baptized him and we welcomed him into the Body of Christ because those are the words we use to baptize in our Church.

While this phrase, which invokes all three persons of the Most Holy Trinity, is a phrase that reminds us of one God in Three Persons, university level courses that last an entire semester or more can teach us about this but still can’t fully explain this profound mystery of our faith. Even our patron, Saint Augustine, attempted to fully understand the Most Holy Trinity by researching and writing about it for 30 years. Despite that and being recognized as a Father of the Church, he was never able to fully understand the Most Holy Trinity when he was writing his final book on it called De Trinitate.

There is a story about that struggle that is often shared concerning  Augustine that goes like this.

It is said that he was walking along the beach, struggling to understand how God could be three Persons in one God, when he met a small child who was using a seashell to scoop water from the sea.  The child would run back to the beach and pour the water into a small hole he had dug in the sand.

Augustine watched for a while, then asked the child what he was doing.  “I’m putting the sea into this hole,” the child explained.

“But that is impossible!” Augustine said.  “The hole is not big enough to contain the entire sea!”

The boy stopped for a moment, stood and looked into the eyes of the Saint, and replied, “It is no more impossible than what you are trying to do – to comprehend the immensity of the mystery of the Holy Trinity with your small intelligence.” With that, the child disappeared from Augustine’s sight.

In that moment, Augustine then understood that no mortal man can understand the Trinity because it is a mystery that only God can comprehend. Whether the child was an angel or as some believed, the Christ Child himself, it taught Augustine this very important lesson about the mystery of the Trinity.

To set expectations about this homily, we are not going to walk out of this church understanding the full depth and mystery of the Most Holy Trinity – if Saint Augustine was unable to communicate complete understanding about it, I have zero expectations that I would be able to do it myself.

However, that is OK because we can still explore this great mystery of our church through our scripture readings today and the Traditions of our church that help bring us closer to this mystery. Ultimately, full understanding will only come when God reveals all to us in the glory of heaven when we join Him, the Son, and the Holy Spirit – One God – for ever and ever.

Biblical scholar and author, Peter Kreeft, in his commentary titled “Food for the Soul”, says this about the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity:

“We don’t need to understand the theology, though it is very helpful, but we need to believe the data, because it is divinely revealed. The bible is very clear on that.  Here is the data: The Father is God. The eternal Son of God is God. The Holy Spirit is God. Yet, there is one God. In God, the three persons are related to each other in eternal, infinite, and perfect love. They are not one person but three persons in total harmony and total love.”

Our second reading today from St. Paul to the Romans describes the work of each of the three persons in the Trinity for our salvation.

First – We have peace with God our creator and the creator of all things. That means we are reconciled with Him through the work of Jesus Christ.

Second – Through the work of Jesus Christ, we have gained the gift of grace thanks to his passion, death, and resurrection. We continue to receive those graces through the sacraments he left the church which allow us to hope in the glory of God. We hope because we know that affliction, which we all experience, produces endurance, endurance produces character, and proven character produces hope and as we know, hope in God does not disappoint.

Third – The reason for all of this is because the love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us freely through the love of the Father and the Son.

The words of St. Paul so beautifully connect how the uniqueness of the three persons of the Most Holy Trinity, each with their own actions for a common goal, help us towards our salvation.

We hear this every time we pray the creed at mass or make a profession of faith – this creed was developed in 325 AD at the Council of Nicaea, to help members of the early church to learn and understand the core beliefs of the faith and to also help against the heresy which denied the divinity of Christ. In 381 AD, at the Council of Constantinople, it was updated again to address some lingering concerns about that same heresy that were still around. Since then, over more than 1600 years, it has remained relatively unchanged.

While we may not fully understand the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity, we can still embrace it as an integral part of our faith.

I have this memory of a homily by Fr. Donal many years ago on the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, where he talked about being more deliberate when making the sign of the cross. To be more intentional about reverencing the three persons who are one God when we cross ourselves in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Making the sign of the cross can become very rote and feel repetitive if we do not take the time, even if it is just a few extra seconds, to be thankful for the beauty of our faith and the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity.

As Fr. Donal encouraged us all those years ago in his homily, I also encourage each one of us anew to take our time with the sign of the cross.

By taking the time to say the name of each person in the Holy Trinity as we slowly, deliberately, and with intention touch our fingertips to our forehead, to our heart, and to each one of our shoulders, we give the Holy Trinity its proper recognition in this simple gesture.

As I said, we are talking about just a few extra seconds so that we have that time to recall the mystery of the Holy Trinity which is the source of our salvation, our reconciliation, and our unity as the people of God – even if we do not fully understand it.

“In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”

Amen…

By Deacon Richard Hay

“The love of God in our lives…”

I don’t know about you, but this last month, the first four weeks of the Easter season has been quite an experience – quite the journey – with all the events happening within our universal church.

This coming Monday will mark just one month since our Holy Father Francis died early on that Easter Monday.

I recently had a conversation with one of our parishioners at a parish event, and they mentioned that this journey which the universal church has been on very much parallels what we had been through during Holy Week when we celebrated the Easter Triduum including Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and of course Easter.

While not anywhere near the sacrifice that Jesus offers for our sins on the cross, Pope Francis did dedicate his life to the church – especially when he accepted his election as our Pope back in 2013. So, his death, as the Vicar of Christ, the leader of Jesus’s church on earth and the successor to St. Peter did result in our mourning for him – just like the apostles mourned Jesus’s death.

We then watched the church go through the period of “Sede Vacante” or the empty chair, like the three days without Jesus while he was in the tomb. Pope Francis was also laid to rest in a tomb, with his body prepared for that burial just like Jesus’s body was prepared before being laid in the tomb after his death.

Of course, we know that on the third day, Jesus was raised from death to life – resurrected – as it was promised and there was great rejoicing in the early church among the apostles and believers of Jesus as he appeared among them as we have heard over these Sundays of the Easter season.

We have also had the opportunity to experience great joy when our new Holy Father, Pope Leo the XIV, was elected by the College of Cardinals on May 8^th. While not a resurrection, it is a new life in the Church – a continuation of the line of successors that goes back to St. Peter.

As you can see, there are many parallels in what has happened with the death of our Holy Father Francis and the election of Pope Leo and our journey through the Easter mysteries.

That brings us to today – this Fifth Sunday of Easter. The first reading, psalm, and second reading contain a lot of imagery about the Kingdom of God.

The gospel also follows with verses about this same kingdom, but this is now the Kingdom of God’s love. Our church in this world is all about establishing the Kingdom of God here on earth and we do that through the love of God and His Son which brings us the Holy Spirit. Haven’t we seen the Holy Spirit in action over these last few weeks in our universal church? As Father said recently – no such thing as coincidences when it comes to faith.

In the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles, we hear about how the structure of the church was established during Paul and Barnabas’s mission to the Gentiles. They appoint elders who are prayed over and installed to oversee these local churches – just like our bishops and priests who are put in place to shepherd the local church and parishes in various dioceses.  Their authority is given by Christ in an unbroken line of succession from the first apostles. It is given to them to exercise ministry and authority in the absence of those who preceded them.

This has happened throughout history, for over 2,000 years, and it continues to happen in our church as we have witnessed with the papacy over this past month.

The first reading concludes with the verse “It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God.” Those hardships we are going to experience in this life and many if not most of us have done so but it is through the love of God that we are given the graces to live through those moments in life. Jesus never said it would be easy, but His love will be there to sustain us. The Universal Church also goes through these hardships and challenges but through the love of God it is also sustained.

Our Psalm today is also known as the “Psalm of the Kingdom of God”. In case you were not counting, the Kingdom of God is mentioned four times in this psalm – more than any other psalm.

In it we are reminded that we are called to proclaim this kingdom just like the Apostles, Paul, Barnabas, and their successors over all of history. We receive this call at our baptisms – you have heard these words said over the last three weeks as Father Marek and I baptized eight babies at the Sunday masses – that through our baptism we are to join Him as “Priest, Prophet, and King.”

The psalm also affirms that God’s grace, which is sustained in us through the sacraments, is characterized as gracious, merciful, kind, good, and compassionate. What beautiful reminders to consider when we look at God’s grace and His love for us. Nothing in there about a vengeful God – just a pointer to the gospel’s new commandment of love and that his kingdom is for all ages – and that it – along with His love – endures forever.

The verse that should catch our attention in the second reading from St. John in the book of Revelation is that “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

Consider how intimate that interaction is for us. Would you let a stranger walk up and touch your eyes? Maybe a father, mother, or spouse could do that because we already have a close and intimate relationship with them. But a stranger – not very likely.

Through the love of God, who is no stranger to us if we are his disciples, we can receive the depths of this intimacy with God and having Him wipe away those tears will be comforting. This is the level of intimacy in the life to come – this is the level of intimacy we can have through the love of God.

Our dear departed Pope Francis put it this way in his apostolic exhortation “Amoris Laetitia” (The Joy of Love) – he wrote:

“The family is an image of the Holy Trinity – the tenderness of love that should be expressed between spouses and family members is a foretaste of the divine.”

How beautiful and encouraging is that!?! I don’t think it would be strange at all to have God wipe away my tears.

Finally, in our gospel we hear this new commandment to love one another as Christ loves us. To love others like he loved us is to evangelize and demonstrate our love for Him through loving each other. How do we do this as individuals or a community?

Is our parish a community of love or do we just say hello in passing as we race into church to grab a seat or rush out to get in our cars and beat the traffic? Through those types of actions and others in life, can we be called the disciples of Jesus?

Remember he said we are recognized as His disciples because we show and are the love of Christ to others.

Can we truly say that we are the love of Christ through our actions? It is a tough question and requires a tough truth at times.

If changes are needed in our lives, then we should pray on it, then we can ask God to help us change so that our actions truly reflect the love of Christ to all we encounter and not just some of those we cross paths with in our daily lives.

Let me close with the blessing that Pope Leo shared from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica when he was introduced to the world for the first time as our Holy Father. He said:

” God loves us, God loves you all, and evil will not prevail! All of us are in God’s hands. So, let us move forward, without fear, together, hand in hand with God and with one another! We are followers of Christ. Christ goes before us. The world needs his light. Humanity needs him as the bridge that can lead us to God and his love. Help us, one and all, to build bridges through dialogue and encounter, joining together as one people, always at peace.”

Amen

By Deacon Richard Hay

“The mysteries of unconditional love…”

Michael W. Smith is a very popular Christian artist and if you have listened to contemporary Christian music at any time, you have likely heard one of his praise and worship songs such as “A New Hallelujah”, “Open the Eyes of my Heart”, and “You are Holy”.

He has recently released a new single called “Arms Around the Sun” and there is a line in that song that fits perfectly with this journey we are now on through the mysteries that are part of the Holy Triduum leading to Easter.

It goes like this – “I believe You are a love that never ends but trying to get my head around You is like trying to wrap my arms around the sun.”

In all these mysteries that we will encounter over these next few days – they are given to us because the love of God has no end. In fact, we will bear witness to the greatest sign of his love when on Good Friday Jesus gives up his life for our salvation.

There are three key events in tonight’s readings for Holy Thursday as we begin this journey.

First is the institution of the Eucharist. Jesus and his disciples are at the Passover Seder meal and when it is concluding he shows the apostles how they are to celebrate this new covenant of his body and blood – this is the first mass. Remember, the Passover meal was an important meal to the Jewish people to commemorate their exodus from Egypt and slavery on their way to a promised land of milk and honey as part of their covenant with God.

By giving his apostles and us bread that is his body and wine that is his blood as a new covenant, we receive the graces of what we now know as the Sacrament of the Eucharist. When we attend the mass, the source and summit of our faith, where we receive this sacrament, we also experience our own exodus from slavery – a slavery to sin – and that exodus from sin leads us also to a promised land – eternity with the Lord in heaven.

Second – the institution of the priesthood. Yesterday, at the Holy Chrism Mass, the priests of our dioceses renewed the promises they made at ordination when hands were laid on them by their bishop to configure them to Christ. At that ordination their hands were also anointed with Holy Chrism – they are anointed as a sign of the Holy Spirit and receive the sacred power to sanctify, shepherd, and teach.

Without the priesthood, we would not have the Holy Mass, the eucharist, and everything that stems from that such as adoration and viaticum for the dying. There would be no anointing of the sick and there would be no reconciliation for the forgiveness of sins.

Third – it is Christ putting into action one of the two most important commandments he shared with us. The first we know is to love the lord our God with all our heart, soul, and all our strength. The one that is forefront tonight is the second most important commandment – to love one another as Jesus loves us. He shows us this love through the humble act of washing the disciples’ feet. This act was significant because this was something normally done by a household servant or slave.

After he does this, even washing Peter’s feet despite his protests, he tells them that if he, as their master and teacher have washed their feet, then they should wash one another’s feet. He gave them a model to follow and then says to them”, …as I have done for you, you should do also.”

For us this is about more than washing feet though – this is about being Christ for others because they also have Christ in them. This is about those two most important commandments – this is about love – unconditional love. We should be willing to always humble ourselves to serve others – that is what Christ gives us in the gospel tonight.

Here shortly, we will have an opportunity for feet to be washed as Jesus did on this night over 2,000 years ago. I know the elect will have their feet washed by their sponsors and in turn, the elect will wash the feet of their sponsors.  Others will have their feet washed by a family member or a friend.

I want to encourage all of us here to contemplate and reflect while this is happening on someone who we might be estranged from for any reason – maybe we haven’t talked to them in a long time because of a disagreement – if the opportunity to wash their feet – to humbly serve them in some way – became available – would you do it? Jesus calls us to do so because he has also done it for us.

In celebrating the eucharist and carrying Jesus within us outside of this church, we must wash the feet of others through our actions by

• Revering Christ’s presence in others.
• Considering others’ needs as important as ours if not more important.
• To serve others without expecting any reward or recognition.
• Sharing our time, talent, and treasures to be true disciples of Christ.

Jesus’s action tonight in serving his apostles in this most humble manner, shows us the importance of serving each other – being Christ for those we encounter. We should always have the eyes of our heart open for those opportunities in our own lives. These are things we should all prayerfully consider during these days.

Although the mood of some of our time in these days approaching Easter will be very solemn – especially during Good Friday as we wait to witness the Passion of the Lord and his death on the cross – a day on which no mass will be celebrated throughout the universal church. When we sit in the silence of Holy Saturday as Jesus lays in the tomb – each of these days are filled with witness of his eternal love for us.

• He goes to the cross because he loves us.
• He lays in the tomb because he loves us.
• He rises from the tomb because he loves us.

The beauty of these powerful displays of God’s love for us through the actions of his only son will sustain all of us well beyond the Easter celebration.

They in fact will take us to eternity if we are willing to profess him as our lord and savior by loving others as he loves us.

As Michael W. Smith also says in his song “Arms Around the Sun”; we should all be caught up in the wonder of who God is even though he is too big to measure, too heavy to hold, too deep to fathom, too bright to behold, and although he may be far beyond the horizon – he is still closer than a prayer.

Let the mysteries of the Triduum and Easter inspire us with the closeness of Christ’s love, enabling us to then spread that love and serve one another.

By Deacon Richard Hay

“Journeying for ourselves and with others towards resurrection”

I am sure everyone here has made some type of journey in their lifetime. Whether it is a vacation or a business trip – we all have a sense of what it is like to travel somewhere.

There are also journeys of life, growing from childhood into being a teenager and adult, from being single to married, having kids and becoming parents or later grandparents, or in our work careers. The bottom line is that we are always on a journey of some sort in our lives.

Over these last five weeks we have been journeying towards Easter through this period of Lent where we focus on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Time is a funny thing in the way it moves, seemingly fast at some points and at other times slower but next weekend it will already be time to celebrate Palm Sunday and the Lord’s triumphant entrance into Jerusalem.

As with any journey, there are often smaller journeys within them. Now, I am not talking about branches off the main path of the journey but more so the underlying parallel journeys that happen.

During Lent this year, over these last five weeks, we have been on a journey including having had our parish mission, a reconciliation service, weekly Soup Supper and Stations of the Cross right alongside another journey that we have been witnessing and participating in over these past three weeks.

I am talking about this journey alongside of our catechumens and candidates – the elect as they are now known – as they have participated in the scrutiny’s as they are preparing to receive the sacraments at Easter.

Over these three Sunday’s we have witnessed and been part of this period of purification and enlightenment the elect are undergoing. We have done this by utilizing the Year A readings from the Holy Gospel even though we are in Year C as a church. Then there is a special prayer prayed over them before they are dismissed to learn more about the Word of God.

We use these particular readings because they emphasize important elements of our faith which the elect will soon profess for the first time.

The first week we heard about the Samaritan woman at the well and her encounter with Jesus. We learned that Jesus wants to share the water of life with all of us so that we never have to be thirsty again in faith.

Last week, in the second scrutiny, we heard the gospel of the Man Born Blind. We heard the entire story of not only the physical healing and restoral of his sight but, as Fr. Marek mentioned in his homily, that gospel story was also about the opening of the eyes of the blind man’s and our hearts – our eyes of faith – our spiritual sight – sight we need so that we can testify to God’s presence in our life and proclaim him as our Lord and Savior.

Today, in this fifth week of Lent – the third scrutiny for the elect, we hear the story about the raising of Jesus’s friend Lazurus from the dead. We learned that we all receive the promise of resurrection – a new life – if we believe.

We heard Jesus ask both Mary and her sister Martha if they believed this and they professed that faith to Jesus.

Jesus used this last public miracle in his ministry on earth to show his apostles and disciples that he was sent by the Father and is the Son of God. However, he also did this knowing very well he was close to Jerusalem and that the authorities would quickly hear about it and this miracle would push them towards the fulfillment of the scriptures and the Father’s will that Jesus would suffer and die for our sins.

In the Gospel of John, we have travelled from the first miracle Jesus did – turning water into wine at the wedding in Cana – to now his last miracle – raising Lazurus from the dead.

You might remember I asked the question during that homily why not perform this last profound miracle of raising Lazurus from the dead first, instead of what seems like a minor thing of changing water into wine. We now understand it was always to do the Father’s will – to bring glory to the Father who sent Jesus to become like us in the first place.

This week, all of our readings should help us to look at death with hope because of the resurrection we have been promised. That means we should be living in a loving relationship with Jesus each and every day, because if we do then he will raise us up on the last day, just like he did with Lazurus in the gospel.

That is because there is more for us who profess Jesus as our Lord and Savior like the Blind Man, Mary, and Martha did in the gospels.

The readings bring out these assurances we are given. In Ezekiel the prophet tells the Israelites that it will be God’s breath of life that will bring them back, give them a new life and eventually resettle them in their land.

St. Paul is writing in the second reading to reassure the Romans, a Christian people whose belief in Jesus could cost them their life at any given moment. They are surrounded by death, but he tells them and us of the promised resurrection for all of us who believe that Jesus is our Savior. That promised resurrection is a reason for hope in our lives in this world and to not fear death itself. Remember – life is changed not ended at our deaths.

Then in John’s gospel, we are shown through the raising of Lazurus, the very undeserved gift we will also receive through belief when we are raised to eternal life with the Lord at the end of times. That resurrection hope truly lets us know that through our faith in Jesus, we receive the promise of the resurrection and new life with Him.

This is all reality; Not conjecture or wishful thinking – but real.

The woman at the well asking for the life-giving waters from Jesus, the blind man regaining not only his physical sight from the Lord but having his spiritual blindness taken away, and then Lazurus being raised from the dead and the profession of faith his sisters Mary and Martha make to the Lord – that they believe he is the Christ, and each of us professing our faith in the Lord – all of it real.

We might be tempted to look at these stories in scripture and think – well they had Jesus in the flesh – believing was much easier by witnessing these things in real time but let’s remember that we also have Jesus present to us in this day and age. He comes to us right here on the altar at every mass.

Through the miracle that happens when the priest says the words of consecration, Jesus becomes present to us just like he was present to the woman at the well, the man who was born blind, and Lazurus who was raised from the dead.

We affirm that belief every time we approach the Most Holy Eucharist and say Amen – which of course means “I believe”.

So as our journey continues in these final days of Lent, we should all continue to pray for the elect who will complete one of the final parts of their preparation for the Easter sacraments today with the final scrutiny.

The day is coming very soon when each of you, the elect, will be able to join as at the table of the Lord and encounter Jesus’s full presence – His body, blood, soul, and divinity in the Most Holy Eucharist – the gift and grace we are all preparing for in this season of Lent.

I encourage everyone to strengthen their Lenten practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving in these final days of Lent. If something needs to be changed – then change it – don’t hesitate – and then keep moving forward towards the Easter celebration that will be here very soon because our Lenten journey is almost at an end.

By Deacon Richard Hay

“Working Towards Our Own Transfiguration”

To quote Deacon Greg who just recently finished up our Parish Lenten Mission this past week – “How is your Lent going?”

Hopefully, everyone who attended has a few more tools to use as this journey through Lent continues marching forward. By the way, Deacon Greg’s talks were recorded and will be posted in the coming week for everyone else to see.

 Today, we now enter week two of Lent. In our readings we heard about the covenant between Abram and God; we hear about the ever present light and salvation we receive from the Lord; St. Paul reminds us that our citizenship is in heaven and how the Lord will change “our lowly bodies to conform with his glorified body”; and then in the gospel we hear from Luke about what Peter, James, and John witnessed on the mountain-top when Jesus was transformed into his glorified body.

As you might gather from what we have heard – we are talking about transformation this weekend including our own potential for transformation both now in Lent but also throughout the other parts of our lives and when we receive our heavenly reward and our own glorified bodies to live with Jesus forever.

First though – a little story…

There was an old farmer from the countryside who was visiting a big city for the first time with his wife and son. He stood speechless in front of the elevator in the lobby of this big hotel. As he watched in wonder, an old woman got into the elevator and the doors closed. Within just a few minutes, after the flashing of lights and chimes, the doors once again opened up and a beautiful young woman stepped out of the elevator into the lobby. Completely amazed, the old man excitedly called out to his son who was registering for the room the family would use during their stay. He said, “Son, come on over here and put your mother into this machine…”

I am sure we all wished transformation was that easy, but reality proves to us that it is not that simple. Of course, there is also an entire industry that exists just to help men and women look better or change something about themselves they don’t like.

However, the type of transformation we are talking about here in the context of the church is an internal transformation that will eventually lead us to our own transfigured and glorified bodies when we join Jesus in heaven.

For this reason, our bodies are not our own – they are temples to God and they should be His in every way so that our actions always reflect that we are Christ for others and even if we do not see an appearance of dazzling brightness like the apostles did during Jesus’s Transfiguration – we need to always be aware of Christ’s presence in others we encounter.

The Holy Spirit can transform our lives during Lent so that we can be that Transfigured Christ to others by living a spirit filled life by making more room for him through the Lenten practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

In our first reading, Abram, who will eventually become Abraham, our father in faith, is a pagan when he has this encounter with God and is told that his descendants will number as the stars. God enters this covenant with him because of Abram’s faith and obedience.

Our responsorial psalm contains a beautiful declaration of our faith, the faith Abram agreed to in his covenant with God, when it says, “I believe that I shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living.”

In the second reading, St. Paul clarifies that it is not the observance of the Mosaic Law that makes people Christians – in those days there was much consternation about following the law and being followers of Christ. However, he tells us that ultimately to be Christian is to share in a life of being a disciple of Jesus so that we can then share this glory in the life to come.

In the gospel, we hear Luke’s account of the revelation of Jesus’s glory. He always had this glorified body, but the eyes of the apostles were prevented from seeing it until the Transfiguration.

The main purpose of this event was to help the apostles fully understand the Father’s plan for Jesus’s passion, death, and resurrection. It also helps Peter, James, and John see and understand Christ’s divine nature so they could see who Christ truly is plus it would encourage them as they led the early church after Jesus’s ascension.

Then the voice of God affirms everything they are witnessing in this moment when out of the clouds, which had descended on the mountain-top, they hear God’s voice say: “This is my chosen Son; listen to Him.” A revelation of Jesus’s true identity and a glimpse into the glory that awaits all of us who do God’s will in this life by trusting and listening to Him.

In our own lives, we experience a transfiguration – a transformation – at every Holy Mass when we receive the bread and wine which have become the true presence of Christ – fully his body, blood, soul, and divinity – and then we become part of Him who feeds us from the altar.

The apostles were strengthened by Christ’s transfiguration on that mountain-top, and we similarly receive heavenly graces and strength as we come to the source and summit of our faith – the Holy Mass – and receive the Most Holy Eucharist. Regular reception of the Eucharist will help us with our own transformation both during this continued season of Lent, but also throughout the rest of this year and throughout our lives.

Other sacraments create transformation in our lives as well:

• In Baptism we share in being a priest, prophet, and king with Christ.

• In Confirmation, which more than 50 of our youth will receive in May, affirms our baptism and creates us as temples of the Holy Spirit.

• In Reconciliation which brings us back into the graces of God after we have chosen to step away from Him by sinning. He is always there waiting with open arms to bring us back into a relationship with Him through this sacrament.

We should view the transfiguration of Jesus as encouragement – especially in moments that we might feel distant from God. Be reminded that a transfiguration awaits all of us who remain in communion with Him.

Finally, we should seek out our own mountain-top experiences by:

• Spending extra time in prayer.

• Fasting not just from food but, like Deacon Greg said during our mission, from things that do not bring us closer to God.

• Doing almsgiving by helping others in need or simply be present for someone who needs your presence – give not only of your treasure but also of your time.

As we continue this journey to another mountain-top, that of Golgotha on Good Friday, know that there is still plenty of time to find these and other opportunities to grow closer to God – we just need to be willing to make the effort and climb up to the mountain-top to meet Him.

By Deacon Richard Hay

“Presenting ourselves to the Lord…”

Today’s Feast of the Presentation of the Lord and the gospel we just heard from Luke, was a very regular occurrence in a Jewish temple. In fact, we hear in the gospel the reason Joseph took his family to the temple was to present Jesus to the Lord because that is what the law required of them.

Although it is not made clear in the gospel, Joseph brought his family to the temple in order to not only present Jesus to the Lord, but it was also for Mary’s ritual cleaning because, according to Mosaic law,  any woman who gave birth was ritually “unclean” for 40 days after giving birth and also needed to make themselves present at the temple to offer the required sacrifice to once again become ritually clean.

Joseph is faithfully obeying God’s law given through Moses for both purification of the mother and the redeeming of the child.

That is why this feast occurs 40 days after Christmas. In many areas of the world, today’s feast also marks the end of the Christmas season. In fact, the creche at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, has been left in place until this feast for that reason.

So now we know that the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord was also known as the Feast of the Purification of Mary, but did you know it was also known by a couple of other names?

The Feast of the Encounter – with Simeon and Anna who were both in the temple – drawn by the Holy Spirit to be there because they had been told they would encounter the Lord. This encounter was between the old and the new with Jesus representing the new covenant and Simeon and Anna representing the old.

As we are reminded of Simeon and Anna’s many years of being present in the temple, waiting for the Lord. It gives us a moment to reflect on what Pope Francis reminded us about the older members of our parish – that we should continue to honor them and seek out their wisdom which they have gained through their faith lives; be mentored by them in our faith and in turn mentor others in their faith. Building those bonds of faith through community because sharing our experience can help each other navigate the challenges of life. There is so much experience in life and faith in this community and it should be shared freely and abundantly.

Second – the Feast of Candlemas – the blessing of the candles. This feast came about because of Simeon’s comment in the gospel that Jesus was “a light for revelation to the Gentiles”.

In our worship and liturgies, candles are always used to represent the light of Christ and always provide a visual reminder that he is the light of the world. If you have ever attended the Easter Vigil, and watched as the Paschal Candle enters the darkened church as a solitary point of light and then is slowly spread through the church to other candles until the church is ablaze with light, then you have seen the power of a single candle to spread abundant light. That same Paschal Candle is lit and present at baptisms and funerals because it is a reminder of the light of Christ and how it accompanies us at the beginning, end and all throughout our Christian lives.

Today’s feast and this gospel, also emphasizes the priesthood of Christ. As members of the Body of Christ, we are part of that priesthood because at our baptism we are reminded that we are “priest, prophet, and king”.

To fulfill those roles, we can ask Christ that more of his strength be given to us through the Holy Spirit – like Simeon and Anna did – to enable us to fully share in his priesthood.

If you think about it, this process of presentation continually occurs in our sacramental lives. It happens when we present our children for baptism, first communion and confirmation or when anyone presents themselves for reconciliation, matrimony, anointing of the sick, or to Holy Orders for ordination as a deacon, priest, or bishop.

If you were keeping track, yes, that is all seven of the sacraments given to us by Christ himself.

Consider this though, while some of those sacraments are only received once in our lives, two that we should always be presenting ourselves for is the Eucharist and Reconciliation.

Look, I know I sound like a broken record with this because it comes up in my homilies quite often – but these are the two sacraments that will give us strength beyond compare and so we should present ourselves for them often.

Every mass we attend and participate in is a renewed presentation to the Lord. Therefore, we should live daily with that awareness, carry it forward as we encounter the challenges of life, carry it for the whole church – yes, our role is that important that it impacts the entire church because we are part of the Body of Christ. When we approach the Eucharist and say ”Amen” – which means “I believe” – in that word – in that act – we are acknowledging our believe that we are receiving the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ – his true presence – that should feed our soul until the next chance we have to present ourselves to the Lord. Why else would we present ourselves to receive this heavenly nourishment if that wasn’t the case?

These sacraments help us with the next need we have in presenting ourselves to the Lord – that we need to always be in the presence of God – just like Simeon and Anna were in the temple to encounter Christ and his Mother. If they had not followed the prompting of the Holy Spirit – they would not have experienced those encounters with Christ. We also do not want to miss those opportunities to be present to Christ in our own lives. Although it might not be as dramatic as Simeon and Anna’s encounter – we do not want to miss that prompting.

Of course, here in the parish we can do that by spending some time in front of the tabernacle where Christ is always present, we can do that at exposition, and of course here at the Mass when Christ becomes present on the altar. What about when we are not here around the church and all these elements and reminders of God? How do we stay in the presence of Christ?

One simple way to do this throughout our day are what are called “Arrow Prayers”. They can be a quick Hail Mary, Our Father, or a simple “I love you Jesus” or “Jesus, I trust in you”. It is a way for us to let God know we love him and that he is on our mind and in our heart. These are quick little prayers to God while we are in our day in the ordinary parts of our lives.

So, lets’ ask ourselves:

• For what am I waiting?
• What parts of my heart do I hide from others?
• What pain and struggles do I need to bring to the Lord?
• With whom have I shared the joy of the Gospel?
• How do I share this joy?

As we continue into our week, let’s ponder in prayer and the presence of God what the answers to these questions might be.

If you don’t get an immediate answer, continue to reflect on it in prayer but if you do get an answer, then the next step is to fulfill that response in action.

Bottom line is to always present ourselves to the Lord so that we can be in his presence and able to hear the prompting of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

By Deacon Richard Hay

“Always invite Jesus and Mary…”

Everything feels so different when we transition from Christmas season to Ordinary Time each January because the decorations are all gone. It makes things up here in the sanctuary feel so empty – all of a sudden we have all this extra room. You all probably go through this experience in your homes as well.

In reality, it is the same sanctuary we always have – the change is part of the movement of our lives – moving along normally in the life of the church.

Today, on this Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, in our readings we have heard John’s Gospel about Jesus’s first miracle which happened at the Wedding Feast in Cana.

First though – a little story – Many years ago, during an episode of the Tonight Show, Johnny Carson was interviewing an eight-year-old boy who was asked to appear on the show because he had rescued two friends from a coal mine near his hometown in West Virginia. As Johnny started asking him questions, he quickly realized that the young boy was Christian. He asked if he attended Sunday School to which the boy said yes, and so Johnny asked him what he was learning in Sunday school.

“Last week,” the boy replied, “our lesson was about how Jesus went to a wedding and turned water into wine.” The audience burst into laughter and applause at his response. Johnny, with a straight face, then asked “And what did you learn from that story?”

You could immediately tell that the young boy had not thought about getting asked this question. However, after squirming in his seat for a bit, he turned to face Johnny and replied, “If you are going to have a wedding, make sure you invite Jesus and Mary!”

In that reply this young boy, in a very simple and straight forward manner, has stated in part what the message of today’s Gospel is all about. We must make sure we invite Jesus and Mary into our lives – into all parts of our lives – no matter where we live or where we go – they should always be present.

The miracle at the Wedding Feast in Cana is Jesus’s first one after beginning his public ministry although, based on what we heard in the Gospel today, it didn’t sound like that was going to be the case.

Weddings were multi-day events in those days, and it would have been extremely embarrassing for the bride and groom to run out of wine during their wedding feast – no one wants to start their marriage under those circumstances. A modern day parallel might be either the bride or the groom saying an ex’s name during the exchange of their vows. Hard to recover from that happening.

Mary understands this and she goes to Jesus and says, “They have no wine.” In reply though, Jesus says to his mother, “Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come.”

Sounds like the beginning of a long conversation, doesn’t it? Not in this case. Mary simply turns to the servers and says to them, “Do whatever he tells you.”

Jesus then turns to the servers, and we know how this finishes with the six stone jars being filled with water and the headwaiter, after tasting it, going to the bride and the groom, who were almost embarrassed at their wedding feast by running out of wine, to praise them for saving “the good wine” for last.

John then closes this part of the Gospel by writing that “Jesus did this as the beginning of His signs at Cana in Galilee and so revealed His glory, and His disciples began to believe in him.”

Why a wedding for His first miracle? Why water being turned into wine? Would it not had been much more impactful if Jesus had for instance raised Lazurus from the dead instead? Wouldn’t that turn many more heads and hearts towards Him? The reason is because it’s all about the covenantal relationship that God desires for us.

Jesus is the new covenant – we hear Him say this at the last supper about His body and blood being that covenant for the forgiveness of sins.

– By definition, a covenant is a solemn agreement or promise between two parties.

– More than a mere contract; it is a binding commitment.

– Often initiated by God and reflects His sovereign will and purpose.

– Based upon mutual commitments, involving promises, obligations, and rituals.

Sounds a lot like a marriage doesn’t it?

If we continue with the covenant as marriage theme, then we must understand that…

– Jesus is the bridegroom

– We, the Church – all of us – are his bride

– Our faith and therefore our relationship with him should be one of intense intimacy

– God loves us like a bride; He rejoices in us, takes delight in each and every one of us individually – just as we should rejoice in our own spouses.

In the rite book that we use for celebrating marriages, in the introduction, it says this about Jesus being at the wedding in Cana:

“By his presence, Christ brought blessing and joy to the wedding at Cana, where he changed water into wine and so foreshadowed the hour of the new and eternal covenant: “For just as of old God made himself present to his people with a covenant of love and fidelity, so now the Savior of the human race offers himself to the Church as Spouse, fulfilling his covenant with her in his paschal mystery.”

In our personal relationship with Christ, the bridegroom, we must be fully in His Word – the scriptures – and in the body and blood of Christ – the Eucharist – the true presence of Jesus. Once our personal relationship is thriving in Christ, then, on that core, we must build the relationships around us, with our spouse, our children, our family, our friends, and those we encounter.

As we consider the miracle at Cana, let us remember that Jesus’s first public miracle was not just a display of divine power, but a profound sign of God’s abundant grace and transformative presence in our lives.

In a moment of potential embarrassment and crisis, through his mother’s prompting, Jesus brought forth the finest wine from simple water, demonstrating that what He offers us is infinitely better than anything we could imagine. This transformation invites us to open our hearts to His presence, trusting that He can bring renewal and joy, even in our most ordinary moments and challenges.

As we continue through this upcoming week, may we carry the assurance that God is at work in our lives, ready to bring forth new beginnings and unexpected blessings. Let us live with faith, hope, and openness to the miracles God wants to perform in and through us.

One of the ways we can do all of this is to remember to invite Jesus and Mary to everything in our lives and fully participate in the sacraments of the church which were given to us through the new covenant.

Like Mary said to the servers, in the only instruction she gave throughout the Gospels, she says to us now:

“Do whatever he tells you.”

By Deacon Richard Hay

“The Reality of Advent Preparation”

I am going to let you in on a little church secret.

Many times, during Advent, we talked about preparing for the arrival of Jesus – to remember both His first coming as a baby in Bethlehem on that first Christmas but also to prepare for His second coming at the end of time.

During this season of Advent, we have been encouraged to spend time preparing in prayer and reflection. The goal is to not rush towards Christmas and skip right over these four weeks of Advent – but patiently journey through this season because the four Sundays of Advent are each unique and give us a special focus.

However, as I walked into the church last Thursday morning and saw our own preparations for Christmas starting to appear, as you also now see all around us, the reality sets in that as much as we would like to purely focus on preparing our hearts and souls for Christmas during Advent, there is the need of some actual preparation – physically getting out the decorations plus putting up the tree, hanging the lights, stockings, setting up the nativity, and yes, even putting out the 20 foot inflatable Santa Claus – it is all part of the season. That type of preparation must also happen, even here inside of our own church, otherwise the calendar just doesn’t give us enough time as we shift between the seasons of Advent and Christmas.

So, the secret is that what we must do and hopefully have done over these last four weeks is to have at least put aside part of the time on our calendar to focus on preparing our hearts and minds to receive Christ because this is important in our spiritual lives.

Then, with what time is left over, we can do the other things that are necessary to prepare for Christmas. This is just our reality, but it should not come at the expense of our spiritual preparation.

So, over these first three weeks of Advent, each Sunday has been tied to a theme to help us in these preparations. In addition, Father Marek’s homilies have given us some beautiful insight into where and how to focus each week.

That first Sunday of Advent was about hope. Father Marek reminded us that preparing for Advent is like the fire drills that we used to have in school. We need to develop strong habits in our faith life so that we are prepared for both Jesus’s first coming at Christmas and His second coming. Are we truly prepared for that to happen? Do we need to work on new or existing practices in our faith life to improve in those areas so we are ready?

On the second Sunday of Advent, we focused on peace. In Father’s homily, he asked us how well are we preparing for eternity. Are our hearts at peace with that preparation or do we feel unsettled about it? One needs to be maintained – our peacefulness – and if we feel unsettled, then there is still work to be done.

Then last week, on the third Sunday of Advent when we celebrated the joy we should all feel about Christ’s coming, Father told us that wonderful story of the monastery and monks. We learned that when we see the possibility of the Messiah in others, it can only lead to great joy and growth. Do we take the time to see Jesus in others or do we just skip that completely?

Now, today, we arrive at this fourth and final Sunday of Advent. This entire season of journeying towards Christmas and the themes of Hope, Peace, and Joy are brought together under the auspices of love.

This is of course no accident because God is all about love – the purest form of love – and absolutely everything that is in Him is of love.

As Jesus himself told us when he was asked what the greatest commandment was, he said:

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ And then he added “the second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”

Our readings today emphasize this love of God beginning with the first reading from Micah. This is full of messianic prophecies, and I won’t list out all ten, but Jesus’s coming fulfills all of them and He was sent by the Father out of love for each one of us. That is why He sent His son to become man – to become incarnate – at that first Christmas – all out of love for us.

God’s rule is not one of power but of love and love is the point of these prophecies being fulfilled. Love is the gift of self in all our relationships – with God, our spouses, families, friends, co-workers and even the strangers we encounter in our lives each day.

The second reading shows that it was out of love that we have been consecrated through the offering of Christ’s body once for all – for all our sins.
Then, in our gospel, some powerful stuff is happening in the Visitation of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth.

First, Elizabeth recognizes Jesus in Mary’s womb when she says, “and how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” When she professes Jesus as Lord in that moment – this could be considered the first Christian proclaiming Christ as our Savior.

Elizabeth is made aware of this through the Holy Spirit in this beautiful encounter with Mary. The Holy Spirit reveals to Elizabeth that Mary is carrying Jesus, that is how she knew it was our Lord. Even John, growing in Elizabeth’s womb, encounters Mary as the Mother of God and Jesus’s presence when Elizabeth hears Mary’s greeting and she tells Mary afterwards that the infant in her womb “leaped” for joy in that moment.

This of course, connects us back to the homily last week about the monks and looking for the Messiah’s presence in others. This is something we should always be looking for – Jesus – in everyone we encounter because it will change how we treat people when that is our first thought. It will in fact cause us to “leap for joy” and create massive changes and revival in our world just like it did for the monk’s and the monastery.

There is still time in this season of Advent over these next couple of days before Christmas to collect ourselves, reflect on what we have been able to do to prepare for the coming of the Lord, and ask ourselves these questions:

• Are we truly prepared for Christ’s coming?
• Are our hearts truly ready for eternity?
• Are we always truly making the effort to see the Messiah – to see Jesus in others?
• And, are we always truly loving of our God and others?

If any of those answers are no, don’t worry, even though Advent is nearly complete, all of this can still be worked on but don’t delay because the day and time of His second coming is known only to the Father in heaven.

When that happens, then the time for preparation is over – we must be ready to meet our Lord whenever that day and time comes – we must always be prepared.

So, let’s all take some time before Christmas to truly open our hearts for the coming of Jesus and keep our hearts always open to Him so we may be ready to make Him the light in our hearts and our lives.

By Deacon Richard Hay 

“The Passage of Time” 

The passage of time is quite unique. There are times it seems to flyby and at other times it seems to slow down significantly. However, that is just our perception. If we are paying attention to the clock, it may seem to move slowly but in reality, it is moving at the same pace as it always does. Even when we are distracted and burn a pan of food or leave the laundry in the washer or dryer well beyond the cycle – that clock is still moving at the same speed, it is just our situation and awareness of time that creates these sensations of the fast or slow movement of the clock. 

If you have ever been anticipating a big trip, you know how this works. The trip to your destination always seems to take much longer than the return journey.  

Back in May of this year, we started our journey through the longest continuous season of our liturgical year – 27 weeks of Ordinary Time – that started with the seventh week in Ordinary Time and will end next week with The Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe – the beginning of the 34^th and final week in Ordinary Time for this liturgical year. That means two weeks from now will be the First Sunday of Advent and the beginning of a new liturgical year. 

At times, these final days of the liturgical year seemed so far away. Since we started this period of Ordinary Time, we have been through the final days of Spring, an entire Summer, almost all of hurricane season, the start of a new school year, and these early days of fall. 

There has also been a different focus in the weekday and Sunday readings and gospels over these past weeks. We have been hearing regularly about Christ’s journey to Jerusalem to ultimately suffer his passion and about his second coming. 

Some of you might be wondering why the readings about the second coming of Christ at the end of times when we are preparing for the first coming of Jesus at Christmas. Well, they are both, of course, very connected because you can’t have one without the other. They are in fact bookends to our lives.  

Jesus came for the first time in human form, what we call the incarnation, starting as a little helpless baby in a manger, to ultimately save us through his suffering and death on the cross which was followed by his resurrection and ascension. Since then, all of his followers over the last 2,000 plus years, have been waiting for his return. This second coming will bring us together with him for our eternal reward so that we can live forever with him as God showed Daniel in our first reading. 

That first reading from Daniel is considered by scholars to be one of the clearest accounts of the resurrection of the dead and eternal life within the Old Testament. 

In the days of Daniel and the Old Testament, there was no clear ideas about resurrection or life after death, so this passage in Daniel and our Responsorial Psalm – which was written by David – are very prophetic – a vision from God to be shared with all of us. 

We are often told that the New Testament is present in the Old and this is an example of that. Through knowing scripture, Jesus’s preaching, ministry, crucifixion, and resurrection – we can go back into the Old Testament and see the connections like we do today about his second coming. 

We also hear a very hard truth in Daniel’s prophecy – one we never want to hear but we must – that there will be punishment for wickedness in this life for all of eternity and that comes out of our free will if we choose to live our lives in sinfulness. That is just the truth of that situation. 

However, there is always hope. The Catechism states – “We cannot be united with God unless we freely choose to love him.”  

So, how do we do that? We do so through what he told us are the two greatest commandments which we heard Jesus share in the gospel just two weeks ago – to love the Lord our God with all our hearts and to love our neighbors as ourselves.  

If we follow those – if we allow those two commandments to impact every choice we make in life – no matter how big or small – then as Jesus told the apostles – “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.” 

As I mentioned earlier, the gospel today is also referring to the end times and Jesus’s second coming. It includes a line towards the end, after the description of Jesus’s second coming, that states – “this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place.” You could almost read that as if his second coming is well overdue but that is not the case according to biblical scholar, Mary Healy. She explains it like this: “Jesus is not asserting that the end of history will come immediately, but rather that his passion, and with it the transition from the old covenant to the new, is the beginning of the end, the entrance into the final stage of God’s plan that will culminate in a new heaven and a new earth. In that sense his coming in glory is “imminent” from the day of his ascension.” 

The last line of our gospel today lay’s it out clearly: “But of the day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”  We simply don’t know, and we should live our lives accordingly. 

So rather than focusing on the generational passage of time, we should focus on our lives within our lifetimes. The one thing we can and should live with clearly in our hearts and souls is to follow those two commandments of Jesus to love him and our neighbors.  

We should also seek reconciliation with God if we have offended him, or if we have offended family, friends, or neighbors. We do not want to risk our eternal souls to be punished for all eternity by not living a life of love for God and others. 

The month of November in the church is an opportunity for contemplation on our humanity and yes, our upcoming death – to examine how we live our lives and be honest about where we do well but also where we fall short.  There is still time to do that over these next two weeks. 

The sacraments are there to help us with that process – to help sustain us as we live the life of love God calls us to live every day. Prayer is also a key – to be in regular conversation with God with not only our petitions, but also our thanks for the gifts and graces he gives us. 

As we wrap up – we go back to the beginning of this homily and the passage of time.  

At times it will slow down for us and lead us to believe we have all the time in the world between now and something in the future – just like how the end of this period of Ordinary Time used to be 27 weeks away back in May but is now right around the corner. 

I want to leave you with these words from a popular contemporary christian song I discovered a few weeks ago by Brandon Lake called “That’s Who I Praise”. It brings together everything in this homily quite nicely: 

“I want to love like Jesus, that kind of grace. 

I want to live like I’ve got no more precious time to waste. 

I’m going to give Him glory with all my thanks. 

There is no greater, stronger, higher name. 

That’s who I praise.” 

By Deacon Richard Hay

“Balancing the Extremes”

I recently had a conversation with someone where we talked about the extremes that are part of our lives these days. We often encounter these extremes through social media, the news, people we interact with and maybe even within our own family and friends. As I mentioned in a recent homily, we live in a world where the extremes are much more pronounced than they have been in the past. We also can spend time in our own thoughts about extremes and “what if” situations when it comes to our daily life and especially in our faith. Many of these internal extremes can rival the best that movie directors and producers put on the big screen.

This does not need to be our norm though – we can choose to not exist in these extremes. Whether it is in our external existence and interactions with others or our internal thought process – it is so important to have balance in all aspects of our lives so that we do not descend into despair and worry.

Rather we should make the effort to spend our lives so that those extremes do not have such high peaks and deep lows.

We should approach life in the love of God because ultimately, that is where we are intended to exist. Once we are there, then we can let those extremes go, trust fully in God’s will and love for us and then share his love with others.

Our readings today reflect this, beginning with the first from the prophet Isaiah. This is a prophecy about Jesus’s sacrifice for us and it starts out with a line that seems extreme – “The Lord was pleased to crush him in infirmity”.  

It comes across as if God might have been “happy” to send Jesus to become human like us and ultimately be crucified. However, this is all about God’s will – his plan for our salvation – his deep love for us – in that he sent his only begotten son. God wasn’t “happy” to send Jesus as a sacrifice, but he did so because it was his will that Jesus would save us through the cross.

Isaiah then writes that because of his affliction – through Christ’s suffering – there will be many blessings – “the light in the fullness of days” – because he will bear our guilt and justify many. That is God’s love for us in action – we often think we are unworthy of such unconditional love and therefore we end up in those extremes – because our humanity tells us we are not worthy of that kind of “agape” love – the unconditional love of God – but we are and that is something we need to always keep in the forefront of our minds and hearts.

I believe it is the evil one – the devil – who puts those doubts into our minds – to sow those extreme moments – to try and create distrust in our hearts because as we draw closer to God – the devil loses. That is why it so important to have balance with God’s love as the centerline in our lives.

The psalm in today’s readings is unique among all the psalms in this chapter because it is a cheerful one as opposed to a lament like the other psalms that are also in this chapter. These are words that we can reflect on to remind us why those deep extremes that we encounter are not of God.

First, we hear that the Lord is upright; trustworthy; that he loves justice and right; that the earth is full of his kindness; that his eyes are on those who hope for his kindness; and that he will preserve us in spite of death and famine in the world. Definitely words intended to lift us up and provide encouragement.

Then, the psalmist writes about us when he says that “our soul waits for the Lord who is our help and our shield”. This is the thought to also keep in our mind when we experience these moments in our faith of “what if” – he is our help and our shield – if we love him unconditionally like he does us – there is no reason for doubt – only hope.

Our second reading brings this into focus when we read that we should “…confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help.”

Our approach to this mercy and grace is by regularly receiving the sacraments – particularly the Eucharist and Reconciliation plus daily prayer – because they will help us bring our existence into balance – our extremes will become less and less intense as we focus on the love of God.

Another way we create balance is laid out for us in today’s gospel. In fact, in keeping with the theme of extremes – what we learn in the gospel is that in our humanity we see things based on our own experiences of life – and there is Jesus teaching us that it is really the exact opposite.

First – let’s clarify that James and John realize that Jesus is the Messiah. That is why they ask him to permit them to sit on his right and his left. However, that request comes from their human understanding of what a kingdom is and what the various roles in that kingdom would be – they are thinking with an earthly perspective.

As we hear Jesus tell them – a leader is actually a servant – that the greatest leaders will be those who are the greatest servants. That of course, is not what James and John were thinking. We learn that is also not what the other 10 apostles were thinking when they overheard the conversation and became indignant.

Jesus clarifies this when he reminds all of them that they will in fact drink from the cup Jesus will drink from – persecution for their faith – and for James and the other apostles that means martyrdom and for John exile.  The exact opposite of what they thought the kingdom of God was about – glory, power, and riches of an earthly nature.

In the final part of the gospel, Jesus provides the apostles with understanding about their roles as servants in the church – roles that he showed them as an example in his own life – and our roles as well:

• That it is not about being served – but serving others

• That it is not about getting anything but giving all we have

• That it is not about being first but being the last to put others ahead of us

The Kingdom of God is beyond anything we might imagine. In our human existence there is no comparison – we get close and get very brief glimpses of what it might be like through the mass and the sacraments, but like the apostles – we can’t fully understand it until the day comes when we are called to be with the Lord at the end of our lives or at his second coming.

When that happens – that which we do not fully understand right now – the mystery of what our existence in heaven and eternal life with God will be like – ends up being filled with clarity and joy because we will then be in the full glory of God to honor, worship and praise him forever – no more living in the extremes.

As Pope Francis recently said in conjunction with the Year of Prayer:

“Daily prayer, and especially the Eucharist, makes us pilgrims and missionaries of hope. We journey towards everlasting life in God and the nuptial banquet that God has prepared for all his children.”

So, we should understand that this earthly existence will not matter and the only thing that will is pure glory and praise because the will of God, that each one of us will be in heaven with him, has been fulfilled and he will continue to love us forever.