June 4th - Ascension Sunday (English)
June 4th - Ascension Sunday (Spanish)
June 11th - Pentecost Sunday (English)
June 18th - Trinity Sunday (English)
June 25th - Corpus Christi Sunday (English)
Some energetic missionaries were visiting the pastor of a small congregation
from another denomination. He listened for a while and they said to them,
"Gentlemen, look. I have a proposal that will settle this. I have here
a glass of poison. If you will drink this poison and remain alive,
I will join your church—and not only myself, but my whole congregation
as well. But if you won't drink the poison, well, then, I can only conclude
that you are false ministers of the gospel because you do not trust that
your Lord would not let you perish."
This put the missionaries in a bind, so they went off to a corner
to put their heads together, and they said, "What on earth are we going
to do?" Finally, after a while, they decided. They came back and
approached the minister and said, "Tell you what. We've got a plan. You
drink the poison, and we'll raise you from the dead!"
Most of us imagine that Jesus must have been using sign and
symbol when he told his apostles that they will be able to handle deadly
snakes, drink poison, heal the sick, and speak entirely new languages.
Most of us, by those standards are not very good Christians.
Maybe it is true that Jesus was speaking in symbolic language.
It is just as likely that Jesus was referring to things the apostles had
yet to understand. He told them to wait on the Holy Spirit.
Then they would be given power to do great things. They couldn’t
yet grasp the possibility that Christianity would span the entire globe.
The Liturgy would be sung in Vietnamese, chanted in Latin, and proclaimed
in Swahili. There would be Pope Leo who would face barbarian tribes
trying to destroy Rome. Charles Lwanga, a young African would rather
face death by the king than deny the faith. There would be religious
like St. Isaac Jogues who would be tortured by Iroquois Indians and yet
desire to proclaim Christ’s message of hope and healing to them.
How could Peter, James, and John know this?
Likewise, the apostles knew that Jesus could heal the sick.
They didn’t know that the same power would be given to them on Pentecost.
I am sure they were surprised to see that when the sick came to Peter and
when he laid hands on them they recovered. Since that time there
have been countless times the sick have come to us for healing. In
the sacrament of anointing and reconciliation I have given peace and healing
to people troubled by sickness or despair. The many hospitals, nursing
homes, and healthcare facilities that are run by people of faith remind
us that God is not stingy with his gift of healing.
The ascension of Jesus to heaven leaves the apostles puzzled.
They must have thought to themselves, “Now what do we do?” Perhaps
that is why they kept looking up to the sky. Maybe they were saying,
“Do you suppose he’ll come back later today? Let’s hope so!”
The thought of continuing on with the work that Jesus begun was just too
scary.
It can be that way for us too. Many of us don’t believe
that Christ has given us power to change the world. We don’t imagine
that the Lord really intends for these hands to heal the sick or this group
of people to expel demons. Yet, until Christ comes again he empowers
his church with people to do many things thought impossible. How
many of you never imagined you would be worthy to be a Eucharistic minister
or a minister to the sick? Many people have told me that they were
nervous the first time they were asked to read at Mass or bring up the
gifts. If you have ever taught in the religious education program
you knew that you weren’t ready. Yet, someone trusted you enough
to say, “You can do this.” So, you taught the children about our
faith in a way they could grasp and then hand on to others.
Next Sunday we will celebrate Confirmation in our parish.
We will call on the Holy Spirit to be poured out on 47 people. We
will ask God to send His Spirit of wisdom, knowledge, and courage upon
them. We want them to be strong. But we will be asking the
Spirit to be poured out on everyone anew. There are so many things
to be done to bring the message of Christ to our world. There are
ministries in this parish that need your gifts and talents. Our world
too often settles for the culture of death rather than proclaims life.
You can change that! You can make a difference! Don’t look
up to the sky and wait for Jesus to return in glory. Go forth into
the whole world and proclaim the Good News. The world is waiting
for you!
Unos misioneros energeticos estaban visitando a un pastor de una pequeña congregación de otra denominación. El escuchó por un rato y luego les dijo a ellos.
"Caballeros, miren, yo les tengo una proposición que va a arreglar ésto. Aqui tengo un vaso de veneno. Si ustedes beben esto y se mantienen vivo, yo me uniré a su iglesia- y no solo yo, pero toda la congregacion. Pero si no beben el veneno, entonces, debo pensar que ustedes son falsos ministros del evangelio porque no confian que el Señor les librará de la muerte."
Esto puso a los misioneros en una obligación, asi que se fueron a una esquina juntaron sus cabezas y dijeron, "¿Que vamos hacer?" Finalmente, despues de un rato, ellos decidieron. Regresaron se acercaron al ministro y le dijeron, "Te dire una cosa. Tenemos un plan. ¡Tu bebes el veneno, y nosotros te resucitaremos!"
Muchos de nosotros nos imaginamos que Jesus usaria símbolos y señales cuando le dijo a los apostoles que iban a poder coger vivoras venenosas, beber veneno, sanar enfermos, y hablar enteramente en nuevas lenguas. Muchos de nosotros, bajo esas normas no somos muy buenos cristianos.
Quizás es verdad que Jesus estaba hablando en un lenguaje símbolico. Hasta puede ser que Jesus se referia a cosas que los apostoles todavia no podian entender. El les dijo que esperaran al Espiritu Santo. Que se les daria poder para hacer grandes cosas. Ellos no podian comprender la posibilidad de que el Cristianismo se extenderia por toda la orbe. La Liturgia se cantaria en Vietnamese, cantada en Latin, y proclamada en Swahili. Habria un Papa Leo que encararia a las tribus bárbaras tratando de destruir a Roma. Charles Lwanda, un joven Africano preferia la muerte por el Rey antes de negar su fe. Habrian religiosos como San Isaac Jogues que sería torturado por Indios Iroquies y sin embargo deseaba proclamar a ellos el mensaje de Cristo de esperanza y sanación. ¿Como Pedro, Santiago, y Juan podian saber ésto.?
Aunque, los apostoles sabian que Jesus podia sanar al enfermo. Ellos no sabian que el mismo poder se les daria en Pentecostes. Estoy seguro que ellos se sorprendieron cuando los enfermo venian donde Pedro el cual al imponerles las manos se sanaban. Desde ese entonces a habido un sin fin de ocasiones en que los enfermos vienen a nosotros buscando sanación. En el sacramento de unción y reconciliación yo le he dado la paz y sanación a personas con problemas de enfermedad o desesperación. Los muchos hospitales, asilos, facilidades de salud que son dirigidas por personas de fe nos recuerdan que Dios no es mísero con su don de sanacion
La asención del Señor a los cielos deja a los apostoles intrigados. Ellos pensarian a si mismo, "¿Y ahora que vamos hacer?" Quizás es por eso que se quedaron mirando al cielo. Quizás se decian, "Tu crees que regresará hoy?" "¡Esperemos que si!" El pensar que tenian que continuar el trabajo que Jesus habia comenzado era muy tenebroso.
Puede ser asi para nosotros tambien. Muchos de nosotros no creemos que Cristo nos ha dado el poder de cambiar el mundo. No nos imaginamos que el Señor verdaderamente espera que estas manos sanen al enfermo o que este grupo de personas saquen fuera demonios. Sin embargo., hasta que Cristo regrese otra vez autoriza a su iglesia con personas que hacen muchas cosas que parecian imposible. ¿Cuantos de ustedes jamas pensaron que podian ser dignos de ser ministros Eucaristicos o un ministro de enfermos? Muchas personas me han dicho lo nerviosos que se ponian la primera vez que se les pedia leer en la Misa o traer las ofrendas. Si alguna vez a enseñado en educacón religiosa sabias que no estabas preparada. Sin embargo, alguien confio lo suficiente en ti y te dijo, "Tu puedes hacerlo." Entonces, enseñastes a los niños sobre nuestra fe en una forma que ellos podian entender y despues pasar a otros..
El próximo Domingo celebraremos Confirmación
en nuestra parroquia. Invocaremos al Espiritu Santo que se derrame sobre
47 personas. Le pediremos a Dios que envie Su Espiritu de sabiduria, conocimiento,
y valor sobre ellos. Queremos que sean fuertes. Pero estaremos pidiendo
al Espiritu que se derrame sobre todos de nuevo. Hay tantas cosas que hacer
para llevar el mensaje de Cristo al mundo. Hay ministerios en ésta
parroquia que necesitan su talento y dones. Nuestro mundo muchas
veces se conforma con la cultura de muerte en vez de proclamar
la vida. ¡Tu puedes cambiar eso! ¡Tu puedes hacer la
diferencia! No mires al cielo esperando que Cristo regrese en gloria. Ve
a todo el mundo y proclama la Buena Nueva. ¡El mundo espera
por ti! Amen
If I were to ask you to talk about electricity what would you
say? Unless you are an engineer or someone who works for the power
company you would probably start by saying something about what it does.
You might say that electricity is dangerous. It can kill people.
If you put a screwdriver in a light socket you could get electrocuted and
die. Maybe you would think about the good things that electricity
can do. You might talk about how life is easier because electricity
makes it possible to have lights at night, to have electric appliances,
and most importantly it powers up your computer. All of these things
are correct, but they are not describing electricity itself.
It’s hard to know what to say about something that is invisible
that can be harnessed, but can’t be captured in a jar. It’s something
we see the effects of, but can’t see it. All of this kind of reminds
us of God, especially God the Holy Spirit. We believe that God exists.
We have the words of Jesus telling us of God. Our tradition reminds
us that God is a Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. But try talking
about God the Holy Spirit, in Himself or Herself. It gets very difficult.
What we know of the Holy Spirit is the effects. When the Spirit
descended upon the apostles on Pentecost they heard something and felt
something. They heard a wind blowing through the room. They
felt the breeze and something like tongues of fire settle upon each of
them. Then they experienced something. They were no longer
afraid. They opened up the doors of the upper room and began preaching
to the pilgrims in Jerusalem. All these pilgrims also could understand
them even though they were from many different lands and spoke different
languages.
In addition to the effects of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost the apostles
would experience something else. They would know what to say.
Their minds were infused with grace and knowledge to speak before kings
and princes, philosophers and poets. Every indication we have is
that they always knew how best to explain the life of Christ to whoever
would listen. Then, as the early church grew throughout the Roman
Empire the apostles experienced persecution and torture. Yet, they
continued to spread the news that Jesus had been raised up. They
could endure great suffering and death knowing that their Lord would save
them just as surely as God raised Jesus from the dead.
Maybe we can’t talk about the Holy Spirit directly, but we sure
can see the effects in the apostles. Today we are calling on the
Holy Spirit to grant us His gifts. This afternoon we will ask the
Spirit to enter most deeply into the hearts of those receiving Confirmation.
What is it that we want the Holy Spirit to do for these young people?
What do we want the Spirit to do for us?
That will be different for each of you. Maybe you need courage
to stand up to peer pressure or to be faithful in your marriage.
Maybe you need knowledge to know what to say to your children when they
ask you about the faith. When do you teach them? How do you
teach them to be holy people? I would imagine that is the hardest
thing you do today: teach your children amidst the clutter of TV, video
games, and the culture. It could be that you need to ask for wisdom.
It’s important to know the right information. It’s more important
to have the wisdom to put that into practice. Knowing how to value
that which is truly important and not that which is merely fleeting is
where the gift of wisdom helps.
The Spirit, as St. Paul says, also is exhibited in our lives by
our attitudes and actions. When we live in the Spirit we are people
of peace, joy, patience, and self-control. I see too
many people that are impulsive. Something gets them angry and they
are ready to punch someone out or to call them a name. When things
don’t go exactly as planned it seems to be a license to make everyone else’s
life miserable. No. That is not the fruit of the Spirit.
That is of the sinful flesh. That must be rooted out of one’s life.
It can be if you invite the Holy Spirit into your life.
In so many ways our culture says it’s okay to be immoral, to lie
and cheat. It’s okay to be promiscuous and to take marriage commitments
lightly. It’s okay to cause harm and violence. The apostles
didn’t change the world by living as members of the world. They were
filled up with the Holy Spirit. They lived peaceably even as they
endured pain. They spoke with joy despite hardship and distress.
They praised God even in their darkest moments.
We want our world to be better. We want to live in peace.
That happens when each and every person asks for the gifts of the Holy
Spirit. Ask for the spirit of peace and joy. Ask for patience
and perseverance. God wants to renew the Church and the world. Invite
the Holy Spirit into your life today! Amen.
Today we honor the Holy Trinity. It is a mystery that
we aren’t so concerned in figuring out as much as trying to better understand
it. The doctrine of the Trinity says that we believe in God as completely
one. Yet, in God there are three persons known to us as Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit. This Trinity of persons acts in harmony all the
time. It is not possible for the Son to work against the Father or
the Spirit. Yet, what has been revealed to us is a God that is known
in different ways.
I believe that in order to understand the Trinity we look
at the qualities of God. We come to understand God by what we see
God doing. In the Hebrew Scriptures we came to understand that God
is a creator. Moses tells the people that they have seen the awesome
and mighty deeds of God in their midst.
The second thing we notice about God is that He desires to
be in union with people. He calls Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
He tells Moses that he hears the cries of the Israelites in bondage and
wants them freed from slavery. God cares about His creation, especially
His human creation.
We also learn that God desires us to be in harmony and unity
with Him and with people. The Covenant on Mt. Sinai is God’s promise to
always care for us. It is God’s sign that He wants an ongoing relationship
with us. God also desires us to be in union with Him and with His people.
The birth of Jesus reveals that God is not distant from us.
He ties Himself intimately with us. God takes on everything of our
humanity. While living on earth Jesus teaches us about a God that
is forgiving beyond human measure. We learn that despite human sin
and frailty God doesn’t give up on us. He is a forgiving God.
At Pentecost we learn of God the Holy Spirit. This Spirit
gives gifts to transform the world. Jesus told the apostles that
they will do great things in His name through the power of the Holy Spirit.
With the Holy Spirit they would never be alone, not even in the darkest
moments.
The mystery of the Trinity can be understood when we look
at marriage lived out well. Marriage is the mystery of two people
becoming one. They never lose their identity, yet most assuredly
their joining together makes them different than they were before they
were married.
In marriage a couple learns that they are most successful
when they work as one. Instead of being at cross-purposes by their
own independent ways of doing things they join together and accomplish
so much more. The most intimate form of unity in marriage is the
bringing forth of new life. God the creator is revealed in the birth
of a child.
Husbands and wives find that they don’t live with complete
openness and trust. They realize they can take each other for granted.
It is at those times that patience and forgiveness is called for.
Each couple discovers something of the forgiveness of God in their married
life.
When husbands love their wives they form a bond that is present
even when the two are not in the same room. I have heard of instances
when a wife will tell of the strength she felt from her husband while facing
some difficulty even though he may have been at work or away on a trip.
There is almost something like the spirit of the other person present.
You can hear their voice, their advice, and their love echo in your mind.
You know that you can face things you might not have dared otherwise.
Most married couples desire to be with each other. Even
though many jokes are told of how wonderful it is to not have the other
person around nagging, in reality when the spouse is away or has died there
is an emptiness that is real. The desire God has for unity with us
is discovered in marriage. While no person can totally meet all the
needs of another person, when we are loved something of that emptiness
and longing is filled up.
Wives often show their husbands they are capable of things
they never thought possible. Sometimes it is the gentle encouragement
to finish college, start a family business, or take on a building project
that could only happen because the man knows his wife is behind him.
God is a mystery, but maybe not any more than trying to have
two people join in marriage. There they discover the creative and
forgiving power of God. They see that as God is a relationship of
persons in love they too reflect that love to each other. That
is an awesome privilege and responsibility.
There are youth gangs in many large cities in the U.S.
Many of these gangs expect that their members join themselves completely
to the group. Usually this can only be accomplished by some ritual.
That ritual usually is something illegal. It might be stealing something.
It might be doing some kind of vandalism. For some gangs a person
is not a full member until they kill someone. Then, the blood of
that victim joins them forever. No one would turn in a brother if
they too could be prosecuted for the crime of murder.
Gang members often feel closer to each other than they do
to their own families. They have a complete allegiance to the group
and the goals of the group. They are willing to do anything for them.
Most of us find it hard to understand how people can do the things they
do as part of a gang. Even though the methods and crimes are terrible,
I can certainly understand the notion of being one with others through
blood.
Moses told the people that they are one with God. The
people responded that they want to freely join themselves to God.
To ritualize this covenant the people sacrifice an animal. Some of
the blood is sprinkled on the altar. The rest is sprinkled on the people.
This kind of covenant, sealed in blood, is to remind the people that if
they break their oath they agree to have done to them what happened to
the animal sacrifice. That’s a pretty strong oath.
Jesus tells his disciples that they need to eat his body and
drink his blood. He wanted them to have complete unity with Him.
They would be tied to Him forever if they partook in the Eucharist.
Their union with Him would be deeper than union with their families. The
apostles can’t fully understand what Jesus is asking of them. He
wants them to join him completely in his mission. To do that they
must agree to enter into a covenant sealed with Christ’s own blood.
The following day, Good Friday, they will understand just how completely
Jesus sealed the covenant with them. It wasn’t symbolic at all.
It was sealed in his death on the cross.
The blood of Christ joins all followers together in the mission.
To partake in the Eucharist means that we partake of Christ. To eat
of Christ is to fully enter into Christ’s life, death, and resurrection.
The apostles and every one who has followed after them enter into a covenant
with Christ in Eucharist. We make a solemn pledge to do as Christ
has done. We agree that we will commit ourselves to Christ’s way
of seeing the world and seeing all people. Sealed in Christ’s blood
we do not seek revenge or malice to anyone. The mission of Christ
is to bring peace and forgiveness to the world. We are called to
sanctify the world to the Father.
By giving us his body to eat and his blood to drink, Christ
united himself with us. The divinity of God the Son joined to us
in our humanity. Holy Communion gives us, you and me, intimate union
with Christ Jesus. This union is real and true, and yet can get lost
with all the activities of life. That is why it is so important that
this union is nourished often.
We are nourished most completely in reception of the Eucharist
at Mass. It is the gift of Christ to the Church for all time. This
celebration unites us with Christ and with one another unlike any union
we could imagine. Secondly, praying before the Blessed Sacrament
can nourish us. Being in the presence of our Beloved gives us peace
and strength to continue on. This strength is especially helpful
if we are unable to attend Mass or receive communion. Our parish
has a Chapel of Reposition that is open 24 hours a day. Every First
Friday we offer exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. This afternoon
we will offer the same opportunity.
Our union with Christ is nourished in daily prayer and in
service to our neighbor. We cannot be one with Christ and turn our
backs on those in need. We ought not to neglect our duty to come
to Mass and to pray before the Real Presence in the Eucharist. But
we also must never forget that we hold a communion with all our brothers
and sisters. They go together. Serving our neighbor leads us
back to Christ the source of life in the Eucharist.
The Feast Day we celebrate today reminds us that we receive
the Body and Blood of Christ. We are joined to Him forever in this
union. It also means that we are joined with all other people.
We have committed ourselves to His mission of reconciling the world to
the Father. Praise God for the gift of the Eucharist today and every
day. Amen.
