Morning of Reflection (Videos)

[Late Note: After watching the videos embedded below, a few folks have contacted me and asked what my comment about "The Godfather" was all about. During one of the talks (I think it was the 2nd talk), a cell phone in the congregation rang with the theme of "The Godfather" movie playing loudly. It wasn't picked up by the microphone I was wearing, so you can't hear it on the video. Anyway, my odd comment was in reference to the phone ringing.]

Our parish's Council of Catholic Women asked me to lead a pre-Lenten Morning of Reflection for the parish on Saturday, February 10. Designed as a kind of introduction to the Lenten season, its theme was "God's Call to the Way of the Disciple."

The CCW was joined by our parish prayer groups in preparing for this day. It was a monumental task and I extend my thanks to all who helped put it all together.

The morning began with morning Mass at 8 a.m., followed by a Scriptural Rosary in the church. We then enjoyed a wonderful breakfast in the parish hall.

After breakfast I exposed the Blessed Sacrament on the altar and delivered three talks on discipleship with each talk centered on a particular Gospel passage.

Each talk was followed by a hymn related to the talk's subject. These were sung by our three amazing and very talented music ministers -- The Grace Notes -- Dawn DiNome Wetzel, Becki Pishko, and Jillian O'Neil.  

After the third talk, I conducted Benediction and reposed the Blessed Sacrament. The prayer teams of our Emmanuel Prayer Group were  then available to pray over and with parishioners who brought healing and other needs. It was a wonderful morning and perhaps 500-600 people attended. I only hope that my talks were well-received. 

I discovered later that our A/V folks had recorded the three talks but not the brief homily I preached at morning Mass. I have included the text of the homily below since I intended it as a kind of introduction to the Morning of Reflection. Videos of the three talks follow the homily text. If you really want to watch the videos, understand that each is about 30 minutes long, so you'll have to set aside some serious time. Maybe they'd be good spiritual food for your Lenten meditation...or maybe not. I'll let you decide.

Here's the text of the homily I preached at morning Mass  -- Saturday, 5th Week in Ordinary Time:

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Readings: 1 Kgs 12:26-32;13:33-34 • Ps 106 • Mk 8:1-10

Mark's Gospel has often been described as a Passion narrative with a long introduction. And that introduction? Well, it moves right along, doesn't it?

Mark's sort of the Sergeant Joe Friday of the Gospels: "Just the facts, ma'am. Just the facts." (If you're under 60, you might have to ask a more mature friend about Joe Friday.) Anyway, Mark doesn't waste time on what he likely considered extraneous details. He gets right to the point.

He even begins that way, No genealogies for Mark. No infancy narratives. None of John's deep theological insights. No, Mark tells us what it's all about with his opening words:

"The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God" [Mk 1:1].

You can almost hear him saying, "That's it, folks, the nitty-gritty - but let me tell you more just so your faith will stay strong."

And as Mark's Gospel progresses we encounter two themes, two threads that weave their way through the Gospel and converge in the Passion narrative of chapters 14 and 15.

One is the story of Jesus, the Son of God, and the suffering Son of Man, a life and ministry that moves inexorably to His Passion, Death, and Resurrection as the very fulfillment of all Scripture [Mk 14:49].

The other thread is the story of the disciples. At first glance it seems to be a remarkable story of the remarkably clueless. Moved by the Spirit, the twelve attach themselves to Jesus with little understanding of His teachings or what His call to discipleship really entails. Some, like Peter, James, and John, have moments of bravado, moments that end up as little more than cowardly bluster. Others remain strangely silent as they struggle to come to terms with their response to this calling.

Interestingly, it seems that the closer a disciple is to Jesus, the less he understands. That, of course, all changes at Pentecost. But don't see their spiritual struggles as a sign of human failure; rather, it's a story of God's success. It's a story of spiritual growth, of gradual formation, a time when the Spirit plants seed after seed in the hearts of these friends and followers of Jesus. Like every seed planted by the Spirit, these sprout and bloom according to His schedule, not ours.

Later this morning we'll look at three events in the Gospels, and see how the Spirit moved those involved as they responded to calls to discipleship. The Spirit can move quickly indeed, or He can lead us to the truth over a lifetime. And it's our response that makes all the difference. We see signs of this in today's Gospel passage.

4,000 people, a huge crowd, have been with Jesus for three days, and have eaten nothing. But we hear no complaints from the crowd, for in their hunger for Truth they have been fed with the Word. They are satisfied.

For them it has been three days of contemplative prayer, for what is contemplative prayer but placing oneself in Jesus' presence and listening, listening to the Word so He can alter one's very being.

It's also a time of fasting. But in his compassion, Jesus knows once He leaves them, their fast will end, and they will return to the world hungry. They will need to be restored so they can carry the Word to their homes, into their everyday lives where they can live from faith.

So Jesus turns to His disciples and simply states a truth:

"They have nothing to eat" [Mk 10:2].

"How can we get bread in the desert?" [Mk 10:4] they ask. He has yet to reveal that He is the Bread of Life, that wherever Jesus is, there is Bread. Yes, Jesus is the Eucharist, a gift He will institute at the Last Supper - the bread, His Body - the wine, His Blood - the gift of His Presence until the end of the age. But as yet they don't know this. Have they so soon forgotten His earlier feeding of the 5,000? Miracle upon miracle, healing upon healing, and yet they ask: "How can we get bread in the desert?"

Does Jesus answer their question? No. Instead, He asks the disciples another. "How many loaves have you?" [Mk 10:5]This, brothers and sisters, is a moment of grace and the loaves are its image. Grace is present because Jesus is present. It flows outward from Him to all who are open to receive it. But grace can never be a private possession. It must be passed on, flow from one to another.

Yes, how many loaves do you disciples have? How much faith do you have? Do you have enough? Are you instruments of grace?

"Seven," is their one-word reply. Does it point to the Spirit's seven gifts they will receive at Pentecost when the full meaning of their discipleship is revealed? Perhaps so.

So Jesus takes the loaves, but He takes nothing without thanking the Father. He gives thanks for the disciples' bread, bread meant for them and for Him, but now destined for thousands.

He breaks the bread, as He will break Himself in the Eucharist, and hands the bread to His disciples. The disciples distribute the bread; doing the miraculous, as the Bread received from the Church carries His miraculous Presence into the world.

Here we see the Church in the process of becoming, for the Bread it is given, the Eucharist - it, too, is blessed, broken, and multiplied. Jesus, through the work of the Holy Spirit, offers Himself, but His disciples carry Him into the world.

Jesus also blesses a few small fish so the people can eat an ordinary meal, the same kind of meal the disciples would eat with the Lord. This meal, this everyday experience, becomes for the people an extraordinary, miraculous experience.

Were those few small fish a sign, a reminder that Simon Peter and the others must soon abandon their boats, their nets, their lives and become fishers of men? Did the disciples learn this day that when they give all that they have - even if it's only seven loaves and a few fish - God will multiply it a thousand fold?

And what about you and me?

Can we abandon everything in our lives that is keeping us from true discipleship?

Can we, too, hand the loaves and fish of our lives to the Lord and let Him bless, break and multiply them - so we can carry Him into the world?

Will you let God work His miracles in the everyday ordinariness of your life, so you can be an instrument of His grace?

We are all called, dear friends.

Lord, teach us to serve you as you deserve; to give and not to count the cost; to fight and not to heed the wounds; to labor and seek no reward save that of knowing we do your holy will.

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We included meditation questions for each talk, including the morning Mass homily, in our reflection booklet. I gave the participants a few moments to meditate on the questions after each talk. The questions that follow were intended for meditation after the morning homily:

Meditation Questions -- the Call to Discipleship.

• What are some of the obstacles you have encountered, or are now encountering, as you strive to respond to Jesus' call to discipleship?
• How can knowing you are "loved into existence" affect your life and how you consider and treat yourself and others?
• Jesus invites us into an intimate relationship with the Blessed Trinity. What does this mean to you? How is this manifested in your life?

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Videos of the three talks follow:

1. The Call to Abandonment.

"...the water I shall give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life" [John 4:14].

In her desire for new life, for salvation, the Samaritan woman at the well is filled with hope, a hope she feels called to share. Driven by this hope she reaches out and shares the Good News. Like Mary, who carries the unborn Jesus, the Word, to Judea, the Samaritan woman becomes an evangelist, carrying the Word to others.

Meditation Questions -- Disciple and Evangelist: a spring of water welling up to eternal life.

• Describe a situation when you have experienced being refreshed by the Word of God.
• God calls everyone to discipleship. Through those who respond He extends that call to others. How can you better respond to this call to evangelize?
• What aspect of your life must you abandon and leave behind as you follow the path to being a disciple of Jesus Christ?
• What does it mean to be a "God-bearer" in today's world?

2. The Call to Follow.

"Go your way; your faith has saved you...he...followed Jesus on the way" [Mk 10:52].

Faith saves, but true faith is a living faith, one that always brings forth new life, one that demands a response. Bartimaeus turns from his own way, leaving his old life behind, and follows Jesus on "The Way."

Meditation Questions -- Respond in faith: Your faith has saved you.

• Have you ever had a surprising encounter with Jesus, an encounter in which you recognized His presence in your life? Describe it. What was your response? Share this with another.
• What fears might keep you and others you know from following the path to discipleship?
• People are often like the disciples who want to keep others from Jesus. Have you ever encountered this? Have you ever done this? What is the root of this lack of trust on their part and ours?

3. The Call to Serve Without Compromise.

"...her many sins have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love" [Lk 7:47].

We turn to Luke's Gospel and Jesus' encounter with the sinful woman who washed His feet at the house of Simon the Pharisee. Yes, true repentance brings forgiveness, God's gift to those who turn to Him in recognition of their sins. In an act of thanksgiving, overwhelmed by this gift, ultimately the gift of salvation, she is filled with a joy that can only be expressed in her love for the Giver. She responds in love, ignoring the world and its threats, and showers her love on the divine Word.

Meditation Questions -- Response in love: she kissed and anointed His feet.

• Can love ever be wasteful? Can we love too much?
• What is Jesus' attitude toward the sinner? Can you offer some other Gospel examples? How can we follow Him?
• What does the sinful woman in thus passage teach us as we respond to the call to discipleship?

Life in the Spirit

A few days ago I was privileged to conduct one session -- on "Salvation" -- of a Life in the Spirit Seminar at our parish. My talk follows.

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Good evening, and praise God!

When Marge asked me to take part in this Life in the Spirit Seminar, I said, "Sure. Happy to help." Then she said, "Your topic will be 'Salvation.'"

My first thought was, Well, that's a nice concise, well-defined topic. It covers only the entirety of our human existence - our sole reason for being. And I have to address it in 30 minutes or less. Thanks a lot, Marge.

But then I recalled some advice I received early in life: You can take what you're given and try to do your best, or you can turn to God in humility and ask for the Spirit's inspiration. God's work is always far better than your best.

Indeed, if we let Him, the Holy Spirit will give us the words, the Word of Salvation. So, I decided to take that advice and turn it over to the Spirit. I'll just try to be God's mouthpiece.

Let me begin by briefly describing my own journey to life in the Spirit, a journey that really began when I married Diane.

Diane, brought up a Southern Baptist, had spent time among the Methodists, and during her college years finally settled in with the Pentecostals. It was then that she experienced a Baptism in the Holy Spirit. Now by the time we married, she had converted to Catholicism.

A few years later, while living in Monterey, California, she encouraged me to attend a Life in the Spirit Seminar put on by our parish's charismatic prayer group.  And not long after that I experienced my own vivid Baptism in the Spirit. It was an event that completely changed me. I believe ultimately it led me to the diaconate.

The Holy Spirit Present In the Church

Anyway, about five years after this, I guess it was about 40 years ago, Diane and I and three of our little ones (I think she was pregnant with number four) were enjoying a day at the San Diego Zoo when I was approached by a couple of teens, a boy and a girl. They were members of a strange cult, popular in Southern California at the time. They called themselves the "Children of God".

They handed me one of their tracts and then the boy asked, "Are you saved?" I simply replied, "Yes, I am, but I'm still working on it."

I don't think they knew what to make of that response, and so the girl said, "If you're saved, you're saved. That's all there is to it."

So I expanded my comment by telling them I was just following St. Paul's advice when he told the Philippians to "work out your salvation with fear and trembling" [Phil 2:12].

Now, don't think that I'm so clever and quick that I came up with that response off the cuff. No, indeed, I'd encountered these young folks on several occasions, and had always just shooed them away. But one day I realized I should probably respond. Of course, by this time I had experienced that Baptism in the Holy Spirit, so I was used to coming to Him for help. And so I did.

He led me to Jesus' words in Luke:

"For the holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you should say" [Lk 12:12]

and again in John:

'He will teach you everything..." [Jn 14:26]

In effect the Holy Spirit told me not to worry about it. But then I heard these words, and I heard them just as you're hearing my words right now: "...Just stay close to me." 
Well, after I'd quoted St. Paul, the boy chimed in with "Paul was wrong. Jesus told us not to fear." They then scooted off to accost someone else.

Of course, they were wrong, not Paul. Yes, they were very wrong, because St. Paul and Jesus were speaking of two very different kinds of fear.

Paul was referring to a reverential fear that moves us to do God's will because of our love for Him. He wasn't speaking of a servile fear or fear of punishment. Indeed, the fear Paul speaks of is a gift of the Holy Spirit, the "fear of the Lord" that comes from an understanding of the reality of who God is and who we are. It's a sense of reverence and awe at the majesty of God and a healthy revulsion at the very thought of sinning against Him.

Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom [Prv 9:10]

But when Jesus tells us not to fear, he's speaking of a very different kind of fear, a fear of the things of this world. This is the fear that as Christians we must abandon, for it keeps us from a personal and trusting relationship with Jesus Christ. Quite simply, if we're afraid of the world, how can we trust in Jesus? We can't.

Fear not, I am with you

And believe me, in my days as a Navy pilot I encountered my share of very scary situations, times when fear could easily rise up and take control. But on every occasion, I just turned to the Holy Spirit in trust, and told Him, "It's yours, take it from me, just as you promised." And do you know something? He always did.

But what does all this talk about fear have to do with our salvation? Actually, it has everything to do with it. Let me show you why.

I suppose the first time I really thought very deeply about my salvation was in eighth grade when Sister Francis Jane looked out at our class of 40 boys and girls and asked us: "Does anyone here not want to go to heaven?"

No hands went up, although there were a few scattered snickers. I'm not sure why, but 13-year-olds tend to snicker at pretty much everything.

Sister than asked, "How do you plan on getting there? Any ideas?"

With that a bunch of hands went up. Of course, they were all attached to girls.

One girl said, "By obeying the Ten Commandments," and another, "By loving God and my neighbor," and a third, "By helping others, especially the poor," and these were followed by three or four similar responses. I think one boy finally joined in and said, "Drop your envelope in the basket."

That generated a few more chuckles, all from the boys, until Sister gave us "the look." She then said, "You all seem to think that you can earn your way to heaven. Well, let me tell you, that's not how it works."

She picked up that big Bible of hers, turned to Luke's Gospel and read that passage in which the sinful woman comes to Jesus while He's dining at the home of the Pharisee Simon [Lk 7:36-50].
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A Pharisee invited him to dine with him, and he entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at table. Now there was a sinful woman in the city who learned that he was at table in the house of the Pharisee. Bringing an alabaster flask of ointment, she stood behind him at his feet weeping and began to bathe his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them, and anointed them with the ointment.

When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, that she is a sinner.”

Jesus said to him in reply, “Simon, I have something to say to you.”

“Tell me, teacher,” he said.

“Two people were in debt to a certain creditor; one owed five hundred days’ wages and the other owed fifty. Since they were unable to repay the debt, he forgave it for both. Which of them will love him more?”

Simon said in reply, “The one, I suppose, whose larger debt was forgiven.”

He said to him, “You have judged rightly.” Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? When I entered your house, you did not give me water for my feet, but she has bathed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but she has not ceased kissing my feet since the time I entered. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she anointed my feet with ointment. So I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; hence, she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little.”

He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”  The others at table said to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”

But he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
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Did you notice that throughout her encounter with Jesus the woman said nothing; the dialog is all between Jesus and Simon. 

Yes, she said nothing, but her actions said everything. She bathed Jesus feet with her tears, drenched them with expensive perfumed oil, and then dried them with her hair. Unlike Simon who as host hadn't extended even the most basic hospitality to Jesus, the woman was over the top. Her love for God, her love for Jesus was so great...But why?

Jesus gives us the answer in His dialog with Simon: because she knew she'd been forgiven. Jesus, you see, explained it all to Simon (and to us) when He said:

"So I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; hence, she has shown great love."

In other words, this display of love on her part resulted from the forgiveness of her sins, which had already occurred. When Jesus followed this by saying to her "Your sins are forgiven," He merely confirmed what she already knew. But then he says, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."

And so, what are we to make of all this? Well, it's really all of one piece, wrapped up in those three theological virtues of faith, hope and love.

Faith, we are told is a gift, a gratuitous gift. And I think we can all accept this, since in our sinfulness we are certainly less than deserving. This is where the Holy Spirit steps in, for He is the gift-giver. He is the source of that desire, that need for God, that movement within us, which opens us to the gift. He rends our hearts; He tears open the human heart so Father and Son can dwell there.

Speaking with the twelve the night before He died, Jesus told them:

"Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him" [Jn 14:23].

This indwelling is the work of the Holy Spirit, for Jesus had already told the apostles:

"The Father...will give you another Advocate to be with you always, the Spirit of truth...it remains with you, and will be in you" [Jn 14:16-17].

Yes, the Spirit, the Advocate, does God's work in the world, and He does God's work in each of us. I sometimes refer to the Holy Spirit (almost sacrilegiously) as God's Workhorse. It's just a metaphor, Lord. In a sense He's the behind the scenes manifestation of God's Presence in the World. He does God's work in the world. But it's more than that.

Every Sunday, we come together and proclaim the Nicene Creed aloud, confirming the totality of our faith. And in doing so we utter those words:

"I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life..."

What life? Well, the Creed doesn't qualify it, does it? It specifies no exceptions. The Holy Spirit is the giver of all life.

The Holy Sprit, the Lord and Giver of Life

He is the giver of our bodily, earthly, material life and the giver of eternal life. He stands abreast that path to salvation, calling us, directing us. And so, with this in mind, let's return to our sinful woman...

Filled with the Spirit, and with the hope He offers, she is moved to seek out Jesus. My mother used to say, "Hope moves us; it moves us to faith." That's what hope does. It moves us, it drives us despite our fears, despite everything the world throws at us.

Did the sinful woman have reason to fear? She certainly did. From a human standpoint she risked a lot. She risked chastisement, ridicule, condemnation, the public exposure of her sins, perhaps even physical harm. And in approaching this holy man, who was in the presence of those who despised her, from a human perspective she might well have feared His reaction. Yes, humanly, naturally, she should have been afraid.

But she wasn't...because she had accepted the Spirit's gift of faith, a supernatural gift that dissolves all fear, that instills hope, a gift that calls us to trust, that calls us to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It was through her acceptance of that gift that the Holy Spirit revealed the divine person of Jesus, a gift that called her to love, to worship. It was her acceptance of that gift that moved her to repentance that gave her hope, allowing her to accept the forgiveness Jesus offered.

It's one divine gift after another. And it was hope that drove her to come to Jesus, that revealed His forgiveness of her sins. Filled with faith, and driven by hope, she can only love. Her love is directed solely at Jesus, the source of her salvation.

Do you see what's happened here? Like the sun burning off a morning fog, the Spirit within her has burned off her fears. They have simply evaporated. The Spirit revealed several things to her:

1. She is a sinner, but that forgiveness is available to her; she need only repent;

2. The Lord, Jesus Christ, is the source of forgiveness;

3. Her hope is real, forgiveness is hers. Salvation awaits.

She believes, she repents, she's forgiven, and she loves.

It's through this simple process of faith, repentance, forgiveness and love that Jesus offers her the gift of salvation - something that He confirms when He tells her:

"Your faith has saved you..."

Salvation then is her eternal reward. But that's not all. There's also a temporal reward.  Jesus added something. Did you hear it?

He added three words: "Go in peace."

She will also be rewarded in this life with the gift of God's peace. And what is God's peace other than hope realized?

That's what I learned in the eighth grade from that good Dominican, Sister Francis Jane.

Now, some Christians consider salvation a one-time experience in the life of the Christian - that we need only accept Jesus in faith as our Lord and Savior and we are saved - no matter what. Such a teaching, however, ignores the reality of human life, of human nature itself. You see, sad as it is, you and I remain sinners, constantly in need of repentance and forgiveness, called to love until our last breath. Called, like Paul, to work out our "salvation with fear and trembling."

Yes, salvation is a gift, but one that demands more than an intellectual acceptance, more than an emotional acceptance. It demands the acceptance of a lifetime. It confronts us with a choice: We can reject the gift, turn away from God, either out of fear of the worldly consequences, or out of despair because of the magnitude of our sinfulness; or we can accept the gift and turn to Him in love.

This demands a radical change, an abandonment of the life that precedes it. Once again the sinful woman shows us the way. She ignores the many fears through which Satan tried to turn her from Jesus, and though her sins are many, she doesn't despair. The Spirit had revealed to her what Jesus later taught his disciples when He referred to Himself as the Good Shepherd:

"I am the gate. Whoever enters through me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy; I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly" [Jn 10:9-10].

Understanding this she turns to Jesus in complete trust, just as the sheep trust their shepherd.  Given abundant life, she offers the only thing she can: abundant love. She's made a decision to change, to accept God's gift of forgiveness, to accept with a humility that most of us can only imagine.

You see, brothers and sisters, salvation demands a living faith. And the path to salvation is the path of discipleship. Did she became a disciple? In the very next verses Luke tells us of the women who had been healed of their sinfulness, their infirmities, and their demons, who went on to follow Jesus on the way. I doubt that Luke placed these words there accidentally.

And note, too, that her tears are not tears of sadness; they are tears of joy. Salvation is a gift of joy. It's the Good News, and we must live its acceptance as joyful Christians.

I'm pretty sure Deacon Dick will agree with me. At Mass when I go to the ambo to proclaim the Gospel and look up at the thousand faces before me, I have to search for a happy face. Here I am about to proclaim the Good News and it looks as if they've just received bad news.

The Good News is salvation itself, and we must live its acceptance as joyful Christians. After all, how can there be any other kind of Christian? And from what source do we receive this additional gift of joy? St. Paul reveals it, as he completes his letter to the Romans:

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit" [Rom 15:13]

That certainly sums it all up, doesn't it?

And how blessed we are today...because we have the Church and her graces. When we accept God's call and turn to Him in trust, we too are saved by rejecting Satan and sin, by praying in and with the Holy Spirit, and being open to His movement in our lives, by active participation in the Church's sacramental life, and by extending God's love to all.

These are no less than the promises that define our sacramental Baptism.

Let me leave you tonight with the words of St. Jude, in perhaps the least read little book of the New Testament, when he calls us to:

"Pray in the Holy Spirit; keep yourselves in the love of God; wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life" [Jude 20-21].

God love you all.