From: John 3:16-21
The Visit of Nicodemus (Continuation)
(Jesus said to Nicodemus,) [16] "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. [17] For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. [18] He who believes in Him is not condemned; He who does not believe is condemned already, because He had not believed in the name of the only Son of God. [19] And this is the judgment, that the light has come into world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. [20] For every one who does evil hates the light, and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. [21] But he who does what is true comes to the light, that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been wrought in God."
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Commentary:
16-21. These words, so charged with meaning, summarize how Christ's death is the supreme sign of God's love for men (cf. the section on charity in the "Introduction to the Gospel according to John": pp. 31ff above). "`For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son' for its salvation. All our religion is a revelation of God's kindness, mercy and love for us. `God is love' (1 John 4:16), that is, love poured forth unsparingly. All is summed up in this supreme truth, which explains and illuminates everything. The story of Jesus must be seen in this light. `(He) loved me', St. Paul writes. Each of us can and must repeat it for himself--`He loved me, and gave Himself for me' (Galatians 2:20)" ([Pope] Paul VI, "Homily on Corpus Christi", 13 June1976).
Christ's self-surrender is a pressing call to respond to His great love for us: "If it is true that God has created us, that He has redeemed us, that He loves us so much that He has given up His only-begotten Son for us (John 3:16), that He waits for us--every day!--as eagerly as the father of the prodigal son did (cf. Luke 15:11-32), how can we doubt that He wants us to respond to Him with all our love? The strange thing would be not to talk to God, to draw away and forget Him, and busy ourselves in activities which are closed to the constant promptings of His grace" ([St] J. Escriva, "Friends of God", 251).
"Man cannot live without love. He remains a being that is incomprehensible for himself, his life is senseless, if love is not revealed to him, if he does not encounter love, if he does not experience it and make it his own, if he does not participate intimately in it. This [...] is why Christ the Redeemer `fully reveals man to himself'. If we may use the __expression, this is the human dimension of the mystery of the Redemption. In this dimension man finds again the greatness, dignity and value that belong to his humanity. [...] The one who wishes to understand himself thoroughly [...] must, with his unrest and uncertainty and even his weakness and sinfulness, with his life and death, draw near to Christ. He must, so to speak, enter into Him with all his own self, he must `appropriate' and assimilate the whole of the reality of the Incarnation and Redemption in order to find himself. If this profound process takes place within him, he then bears fruit not only of adoration of God but also of deep wonder at himself.
How precious must man be in the eyes of the Creator, if he `gained so great a Redeemer', ("Roman Missal, Exultet" at Easter Vigil), and if God `gave His only Son' in order that man `should not perish but have eternal life'. [...]
`Increasingly contemplating the whole of Christ's mystery, the Church knows with all the certainty of faith that the Redemption that took place through the Cross has definitively restored his dignity to man and given back meaning to his life in the world, a meaning that was lost to a considerable extent because of sin. And for that reason, the Redemption was accomplished in the paschal mystery, leading through the Cross and death to Resurrection" ([Pope] John Paul II, "Redemptor Hominis", 10).
Jesus demands that we have faith in Him as a first prerequisite to sharing in His love. Faith brings us out of darkness into the light, and sets us on the road to salvation. "He who does not believe is condemned already" (verse 18).
"The words of Christ are at once words of judgment and grace, of life and death. For it is only by putting to death that which is old that we can come to newness of life. Now, although this refers primarily to people, it is also true of various worldly goods which bear the mark both of man's sin and the blessing of God. [...] No one is freed from sin by himself or by his own efforts, no one is raised above himself or completely delivered from his own weakness, solitude or slavery; all have need of Christ, who is the model, master, liberator, savior, and giver of life. Even in the secular history of mankind the Gospel has acted as a leaven in the interests of liberty and progress, and it always offers itself as a leaven with regard to brotherhood, unity and peace" (Vatican II, "Ad Gentes", 8).
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Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland. Reprinted with permission from Four Courts Press and Scepter Publishers, the U.S. publisher.
Showing posts with label Feast. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Feast. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 03, 2011
Thursday, December 11, 2008
December 12-Our Lady of Guadalupe
"Who is she that cometh forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, bright as the sun?" Canticles, 6:9.
It was early morning, Saturday, December 9, 1531. An old Indian was picking his way along a rocky path through the hills that led to Mexico City. He was one of the many converted by the zealous missionaries of the time. He was on his way to Mass and instruction. His name was Juan Diego.
Suddenly he heard sweet music, so sweet that it seemed of another world. As he looked and listened he beheld a beautiful woman. In the center of a dazzling light in the nearby rocks stood the Blessed Virgin. She smiled sweetly and kindly upon him as the Indian stood there speechless.
"Juan, my son," she directed, "go to Bishop Zumarraga, a Franciscan. Tell him that the Virgin Mary desires a church erected on this spot. Hasten now."
The vision vanished as quickly as it had come. Juan stumbled on his way still stunned by the sight of the beauteou~ Lady. A few hours later he related his story to Bishop Zumarraga, the first bishop of Mexico City, a spiritual leader who loved his people. Patiently the prelate heard the story. But his mind was doubtful, and when Diego had finished his tale, the bishop placed a kindly hand on his shoulder and said:
"Yes, yes, Juan. It is interesting, this story of yours. We shall think it over."
But the next day, Sunday, the bishop again found Juan waiting to tell him of a second appearance. The bishop asked him many questions, trying to find mistakes in his story. He sat back and told Diego:
"Juan, I would like to believe you, but I do not know. I must have some sign, some token from the Blessed Virgin that you are telling the truth."
Juan promised to ask the Blessed Mother for some sign. On his way home Mary appeared again and assured him of a sign. However, Juan stopped to visit a seriously sick uncle, for whom he went to seek a priest.
As he came to the hill where Mary had appeared to him he remembered that he was supposed to come back on Monday. Since he was afraid of her reproaches, he took a different route. But our Blessed Mother appeared to him nevertheless with the question:
"What road is this thou hast taken, my son?"
"My child," Juan answered using this endearing name, "a servant of yours, my uncle, is dangerously sick of a grave and mortal malady."
He then told her that he was on his way to get a priest, that he would come tomorrow without fail. Mary assured him that his uncle's illness hod passed and that he would not die of it. Then Mary told him to go over to the spot on the mountain where she had first appeared to him and gathor some roses. It was not the time for flowers of any kind. It was winter, Besides, roses never grew in that region. Nevertheless Juan obeyed and he did find beautiful roses. He gathered them ino his cloak and hurried to the bishop who was waiting with a group of officials of church and government.
As Juan came into the room the bishop greeted him with these fatherly words:
"Well, my son, what news have you?"
"My father, I have the sign you asked," answered Juan.
"A sign," repeated the bishop, leaning forward, "where is it?"
"Here in my cloak," said Juan and then he told how Mary had directed him to gather roses. He faltered and went on:
"With her own hands Our Lady arranged the flowers; then she told me to cover them with my cloak and bring them to you untouched and unseen. Here, my father, is the sign you asked - the roses of Guadalupe."
Juan opened his cloak. The glorious, fragrant roses fell at the feet of the bishop. No sooner did the prelate and the people with him notice the roses than they noticed something else on the Indian's cloak. There on the coarse cloth was painted a picture, a life-size picture of the Blessed Virgin just as Juan had seen her and described her. That was sign sufficient for the bishop.
A small chapel was built on the spot where Mary had appeared to this poor, simple Indian, a chapel that was repeatedly replaced with a larger and larger building until finally today there is a huge basilica, the center, the heart of a devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe that has not only swept Mexico but has influenced the entire world.
The picture was closely guarded, but immediately pilgrimages, processions and groups from all over the countryside began to make their way to this shrine. Countless miracles were obtained. Countless conversions were effected.
Pope Benedict XIV decreed that Our Lady of Guadalupe should be Mexico's national patron, and today she is recognized as the Queen of the America's. Pope Pius XII, as Cardinal Pacelli in 1933 crowned the picture painted by Cabrera which had been given to Pope Benedict XIV.
We Americans who have this shrine of Our Mother in our midst, as it were, here upon the American continent, might well repeat the prayer of the Most Rev. John J. Cantwell composed for the coronation of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Los Angeles:
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Adapted from Feasts of Our Lady
by Msgr. Arthur Tonne
It was early morning, Saturday, December 9, 1531. An old Indian was picking his way along a rocky path through the hills that led to Mexico City. He was one of the many converted by the zealous missionaries of the time. He was on his way to Mass and instruction. His name was Juan Diego.
Suddenly he heard sweet music, so sweet that it seemed of another world. As he looked and listened he beheld a beautiful woman. In the center of a dazzling light in the nearby rocks stood the Blessed Virgin. She smiled sweetly and kindly upon him as the Indian stood there speechless.
"Juan, my son," she directed, "go to Bishop Zumarraga, a Franciscan. Tell him that the Virgin Mary desires a church erected on this spot. Hasten now."
The vision vanished as quickly as it had come. Juan stumbled on his way still stunned by the sight of the beauteou~ Lady. A few hours later he related his story to Bishop Zumarraga, the first bishop of Mexico City, a spiritual leader who loved his people. Patiently the prelate heard the story. But his mind was doubtful, and when Diego had finished his tale, the bishop placed a kindly hand on his shoulder and said:
"Yes, yes, Juan. It is interesting, this story of yours. We shall think it over."
But the next day, Sunday, the bishop again found Juan waiting to tell him of a second appearance. The bishop asked him many questions, trying to find mistakes in his story. He sat back and told Diego:
"Juan, I would like to believe you, but I do not know. I must have some sign, some token from the Blessed Virgin that you are telling the truth."
Juan promised to ask the Blessed Mother for some sign. On his way home Mary appeared again and assured him of a sign. However, Juan stopped to visit a seriously sick uncle, for whom he went to seek a priest.
As he came to the hill where Mary had appeared to him he remembered that he was supposed to come back on Monday. Since he was afraid of her reproaches, he took a different route. But our Blessed Mother appeared to him nevertheless with the question:
"What road is this thou hast taken, my son?"
"My child," Juan answered using this endearing name, "a servant of yours, my uncle, is dangerously sick of a grave and mortal malady."
He then told her that he was on his way to get a priest, that he would come tomorrow without fail. Mary assured him that his uncle's illness hod passed and that he would not die of it. Then Mary told him to go over to the spot on the mountain where she had first appeared to him and gathor some roses. It was not the time for flowers of any kind. It was winter, Besides, roses never grew in that region. Nevertheless Juan obeyed and he did find beautiful roses. He gathered them ino his cloak and hurried to the bishop who was waiting with a group of officials of church and government.
As Juan came into the room the bishop greeted him with these fatherly words:
"Well, my son, what news have you?"
"My father, I have the sign you asked," answered Juan.
"A sign," repeated the bishop, leaning forward, "where is it?"
"Here in my cloak," said Juan and then he told how Mary had directed him to gather roses. He faltered and went on:
"With her own hands Our Lady arranged the flowers; then she told me to cover them with my cloak and bring them to you untouched and unseen. Here, my father, is the sign you asked - the roses of Guadalupe."
Juan opened his cloak. The glorious, fragrant roses fell at the feet of the bishop. No sooner did the prelate and the people with him notice the roses than they noticed something else on the Indian's cloak. There on the coarse cloth was painted a picture, a life-size picture of the Blessed Virgin just as Juan had seen her and described her. That was sign sufficient for the bishop.
A small chapel was built on the spot where Mary had appeared to this poor, simple Indian, a chapel that was repeatedly replaced with a larger and larger building until finally today there is a huge basilica, the center, the heart of a devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe that has not only swept Mexico but has influenced the entire world.
The picture was closely guarded, but immediately pilgrimages, processions and groups from all over the countryside began to make their way to this shrine. Countless miracles were obtained. Countless conversions were effected.
Pope Benedict XIV decreed that Our Lady of Guadalupe should be Mexico's national patron, and today she is recognized as the Queen of the America's. Pope Pius XII, as Cardinal Pacelli in 1933 crowned the picture painted by Cabrera which had been given to Pope Benedict XIV.
We Americans who have this shrine of Our Mother in our midst, as it were, here upon the American continent, might well repeat the prayer of the Most Rev. John J. Cantwell composed for the coronation of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Los Angeles:
"Immaculate Virgin of Guadalupe, heavenly missionary of the New World, thy sweet charm holds the hearts of thy people. Blessed Mother of God, from thy sanctuary of Tepeyac, monument of the love of all America for you, that hast been for centuries the mother and teacher of our people; be also our refuge, our defense, and unto us a pillar of strength. O Most Immaculate Mary, protect and save our republic, our superiors and rulers and all the people of our continent."Many Americans, non-Catholic as well as Catholic, have visited her shrine. The Mexicans in the United States have brought with them from Old Mexico this flaming love for Our Lady of Guadalupe. But she belongs to all of us, especially to all Americans. On her feast tell Mary that you want to belong to her. Amen.
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Adapted from Feasts of Our Lady
by Msgr. Arthur Tonne
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Christ's Resurrection and Ascension
ITHE RESURRECTION.[l]
Christ's Resurrection is the foundation of the Christian religion.[2] This is admitted by unbelievers and believers alike; hence the varied attacks of the one and the countless defenses of the other.
No one was present at the event, nor do the Evangelists or St. Paul claim that there was; they preserve a silence regarding it that "does honor to their veracity."[3] But the circwnstances of His Resurrection were of such a nature, and so many people saw Him alive after His death, that no doubt whatsoever exists regarding the reality of the crowning and fundamental miracle of His life. We have seen how theft of the body was rendered impossible by the sealing of the tomb and the presence of the guards. Other features connected with the tomb which prove the reality of the Resurrection will be dealt with later.
One fact must be kept in mind: that neither the Apostles nor the holy women who first saw the Risen Christ expected the Resurrection. St. John, standing in the empty tomb on the very morning on which Christ arose, confesses to his own and the other Apostles' misunderstanding of the Scriptures, and of Christ's own repeated prophecies, regarding the necessity of the Resurrection. He says: "For as yet they knew not the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead."[4]
In the minds of the Apostles first, and later of the Jews in general, Christ's Resurrection was not the fruit gathered from a long cultivation of the divine promises in the Scriptures, but rather the key that actually explained those prophecies. The Jews expected a Messias. The greater number of them thought He would deliver them from political bondage. But none of them believed He would rise from the dead. (Mary His Mother is excepted, of course.)
In other words, the Resurrection had to happen before the Jews could detect its long and varied prediction in their Books. To be grasped it had to be read in the bright light of its own reality.
The four Evangelists record the Resurrection and its principal points; each then presents its details in his own individual style. St. Matthew reports the impression that the sight of the angels, the earthquake and the empty tomb produced on the guards and on those who came first to the sepulchre on the morning following the Sabbath. He relates Jesus' appearance to the holy women in Jerusalem and to His Apostles in Galilee. St. Mark, the lover of action, sketches the situations that arose around the empty tomb: Mary Magdalen and Mary, the mother of James the Less, standing in the first rays of sunlight discussing the problem of rolling the stone from its door; their astonishment on discovering the Sacred Body gone, and an angel within the tomb, and their precipitate flight to tell the news to the Apostles.[5]
St. Luke, through a series of vivid crises, describes the appearance to the holy women of two angels "in shining apparel"; the angels' command to the women to go to the Apostles and report the Resurrection of the Master; the Apostles' incredulity of the story, that reminded them of "idle tales"; how two of Christ's own disciples mistook Him for a stranger in the city who had not even heard of the Crucifixion; the "Stranger's" marvelous summary to them of the Messianic prophecies; and the sudden denouement wherein the two disciples recognized Jesus by the manner in which He broke the bread for them at supper.[6]
St. John's account is a succession of vignettes wherein we see Peter and John in the tomb examining with awe the carefully folded bandages and shroud; Mary Magdalen sinking to the ground at Jesus' feet on His utterance of her name; Jesus standing among His disciples in the Cenacle; His second appearance there and discussion with Thomas; His presence among them on the morning shore of the Sea of Galilee, and His commission to Peter to feed His sheep.[7] St. Paul also enumerates Jesus' appearances.
A brief account of Christ's various apparitions follows in their "likely arrangement." [9]
CHRIST APPEARS AT THE SEPULCHRE. The first appearance of Christ took place on the morning after the Sabbath, in the garden near the tomb. The four Evangelists stress the fact that it was just at sunrise that the holy women went to the sepulchre to finish the anointing of Christ's body - a labor of love that the Sabbath had interrupted.[10]
Mary Magdalen and Mary, the aunt of Jesus, had remained watching by the tomb so long on Friday evening that they had no opportunity to buy their part of the embalming spices till after sunset on Saturday. But when the Sabbath rest was ended they procured what they needed and got everything ready for an early morning start to the sepulchre. It was still dark when they set out, but by the time they reached the garden the sun had risen.
Some time in the shadowed dawn an earthquake shook the neighborhood, and an angel with countenance of lightning and raiment of snow descended into the garden, striking terror into the hearts of the soldiers on watch at the tomb. They fell prostrate and remained for a time on the ground as men dead. The heavenly visitor rolled back the stone from the door of the sepulchre and mounted guard on it. [11]
Salome, Joanna and other holy women were also on their way to the tomb at daybreak, but the two Marys who had been the last to leave were the first to arrive. St. Mark presents them discussing how the sepulchre should be opened. Great was their surprise, therefore, when they saw the stone rolled back and one whom they took to be "a young man" watching over the empty tomb. Mary Magdalen impulsively concluded that His enemies had stolen Christ's body. She at once turned and hurried back to Peter and John, and at her anguished words, "They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid Him,"[12] the Apostles set out in haste for the tomb.
Meanwhile the second group of women also discovered the angelic sentinel at the empty sepulchre. Cautiously entering, they beheld another angel sitting on the right side, garbed like the first in gleaming white.[13] "Be not affrighted," he said. "You seek Jesus of Nazareth Who was crucified. He is risen, He is not here. Behold the place where they laid Him. But go, tell His disciples and Peter that He goeth before you into Galilee; there you shall see Him, as He told you."[14]
By this time Peter and John, running in their excitement, were well on their way to the tomb. The younger John, outdistancing Peter, arrived first; he did not enter, however, but looked in and noted "the linen clothes lying."[15] When Peter arrived, he entered without hesitation and also saw "the linen clothes lying. And the napkin that had been about His head, not lying with the linen clothes, but apart, wrapped up into one place."[16] Following Peter into the sepulchre, John examined the linens, "saw and believed." Up till that moment he had not grasped the necessity of the Resurrection.[17]
The order displayed by the folded linen showed that the tomb had not been robbed. Peter and John returned to the city, probably to John's house to consult the Blessed Virgin on what had happened. No one yet had seen Jesus - save perhaps His Mother, as tradition holds.
The group of holy women who had entered the tomb and heard the angel's words lingered in the garden for a while in "fear and great joy."[18] When they finally departed to acquaint the Apostles with their discovery, the garden was left empty for a few moments, save for the angels, both of whom were now in the tomb, "one at the head, and one at the feet." Soon Mary Magdalen returned, having followed Peter and John, though necessarily at a slower pace. Her heart heavy at the supposed loss, she stood weeping for a few moments at the open door before stooping down to look inside. At last, however, she beheld the two angels mounting guard over Christ's funeral slab, as for centuries the two golden cherubim had kept watch over the cover of the Ark, facing one another at each end of the Kapporeth, God's "resting place" among His people.[19] The angels asked Mary: "Woman, why weepest thou?" "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid Him," [20] she replied.
And turning away from the tomb without waiting for an answer, she wandered disconsolately forth into the garden. A Man approached Whom, without particularly noting Him, she supposed to be the gardener. He too asked her: "Woman, why weepest thou?" and added: "Whom seekest thou?"
"Sir," she replied, absorbed in her grief, "if thou hast taken Him hence, tell me where thou hast laid Him, and I will take Him away."[21]
Then He Whom she had mistaken for the gardener spoke again - just one word: "Mary." A wave of ecstasy swept through her being. "Rabboni," she whispered, and sank to kiss His feet.
"Do not touch Me," He said, "for I am not yet ascended to My Father. But go to My brethren, and say to them: I ascend to My Father and to your Father, to My God and your God."[22]
Mary obeyed, and went and told the Apostles,23 but they were too desolate to believe her. [24]
That was Jesus' first recorded appearance after His Resurrection, though many Fathers and Doctors of the Church have always taught that He first showed Himself to His Mother. His second appearance followed closely on His first; it was to the holy women on their way to fulfil the angel's command: "Go, tell His disciples and Peter that He goeth before you into Galilee." They immediately prostrated themselves, and He allowed them to kiss His feet, although He had just denied Mary the same privilege; for their affection was not of that detaining, possessive type that Mary's heart held for Him. Jesus calmed the fears of these devoted women and repeated to them the command which the angel had given them: "Go, tell My brethren that they go into Galilee; there they shall see Me." [25]
The Resurrection of Jesus had a very natural effect on the soldiers who had been set to watch the tomb. They had failed in their duty: by daylight the tomb stood open and empty. Court-martial faced them. Recovering from the shock which they had suffered from the earthquake, the angel's appearance and the sight of the empty tomb, they decided to report the whole supernatural occurrence to the chief priests. Utter dismay filled the latters' souls. Jesus was not only gone from the tomb, but gone evidently of His own strength. They immediately convoked the Sanhedrin to deliberate on how to meet this new situation. Jesus had thwarted them to the end. They had killed Him and buried Him, but He had supernaturally broken these bonds; He was at large again. If this report reached the people, universal belief in His Divine Messiaship would instantaneously follow.
The Sanhedrin determined on a plan worthy of their character and practice. "They being assembled together with the ancients, taking counsel, gave a great sum of money to the soldiers, saying: Say you, His disciples came by night, and
stole Him away when we were asleep. And if the governor shall hear of this, we will persuade him, and secure you. So they, taking the money, did as they were taught: and their word was spread abroad among the Jews even unto this day."[26]
And that was the best argument that men steeped in guile could concoct against the reality of Christ's Resurrection on the morning that it took place. It has been repeated in countless forms since; but St. Augustine spiked it for all time with his well-known argument: "If the soldiers were asleep, what could they have seen? If they saw nothing, what is the value of their testimony?"[27]
IIChrist appeared three times to His followers in or near Jerusalem: first to two of the disciples on the way to Emmaus, and twice in the Cenacle.
ON THE WAY TO EMMAUS.[28] The site of Emmaus cannot today be determined with certainty, but Meistermann[29] and Fillion[30] locate it in the present Qoubeibeh, a village about seven miles northwest of Jerusalem. The road leading to it from the Holy City runs at one place through the narrow valley of Sorec, and fords a stream; beyond this, on the southern slope of the mountain, near the village of Beit Hanina, is the spot where, tradition says, Jesus joined His two disciples on their way to Emmaus. One of these was named Cleophas,[31] the other's name is unknown. It was afternoon on the day of His Resurrection.
Christ overtook the two and fell in step with them. They did not recognize Him, and accepting Him as an ordinary wayfarer, they resumed their discourse concerning His suffering and death. Their sorrow was manifest, and Jesus presently asked them: "What are these discourses that you hold one with another as you walk, and are sad?"[32]
They could scarcely believe that anyone in or near Jerusalem had not heard of the Crucifixion. Cleophas, therefore, asked in surprise: "Art Thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things that have been done there in these days?"
"What things?" Jesus inquired. And both disciples answered: "Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, Who was a Prophet, mighty in work and word before God and ail the people; and how our chief priests and princes delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. But we hoped that it was He that should have redeemed Israel: and now besides all this, today is the third day since these things were done.
"Yea," they continued in puzzled accents, "and certain women also of our company affrighted us, who before it was light were at the sepulchre, and not finding His body, came, saying that they had also seen a vision of angels, who say that He is alive. And some of our people went to the sepulchre, and found it so as the women had said, but Him they found not."[33]
Without revealing His identity, their Companion then began to trace for the disciples in their own story the features of the Messias as Moses and the prophets had sketched them. Line by line He pointed out that the Christ, and only the Christ, the true Messias, could have suffered and died exactly as they had told Him that Jesus of Nazareth had done. If they had really understood the Scriptures, instead of being surprised and disappointed at His Crucifixion they would have expected it. To support that interpretation He asked them: "Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and so to enter into His glory?"[34]
The hearts of the disciples were aglow as He thus expounded the Scriptures to them, but as yet the light of recognition had not flashed on their minds. By this time the three had reached Emmaus. It was "toward evening" and the day was "far spent." Jesus made as if to part with them and continue His journey, but they "constrained" Him to remain with them, at least to dine with them. "And it came to pass, whilst He was at table with them, He took bread, and blessed, and broke, and gave to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew Him: and He vanished out of their sight."[35]
So happy were the two disciples to know that Jesus was risen from the dead that, despite the fact that the day was over, they arose and traversed again the seven miles to the Holy City, to tell the glad news to the Apostles.
CHRIST APPEARS IN THE CENACLE.[36] As we should expect, Christ's first appearance to His Apostles was attended with such circumstances as absolutely abolished all doubt of His Resurrection in their minds; for this was His official appearance to His Church.
When the two disciples from Emmaus joined the Apostles in the barricaded Cenacle with the report that they had seen the Risen Christ, the Apostles themselves had fresh news about Jesus. They greeted the travelers with the words: "The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon."
The two disciples then began to tell their own experience; but even as they were reciting the events of the afternoon and evening, Jesus suddenly stood in the midst of the gathering and said: "Peace be to you. It is I, fear not." Yet they did fear. For despite all the reports of His Resurrection that they had heard that day, when He actually stood before them bewilderment and doubt seized their hearts. He read their concern and hesitation. "Why are you troubled," He asked, "and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? See My hands and feet, that it is I Myself; handle, and see: for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as you see Me to have."[37]
Joy began to fill their hearts; but even as their gladness increased so did their incredulity. It was too good to be true. Jesus, then, to set all doubt finally at rest, asked them, "Have you anything to eat?" They gave Him a piece of broiled fish and a honeycomb - all that they had left from their evening meal. He ate some of this and returned the rest to them.
Thus only gradually did He overcome the Apostles' stubborn unbelief in the reality of His Resurrection. But their doubt called forth the clearest proof of the fact. Instead of being gullible they were skeptical; instead of being credulous they were cynical. The message given to the holy women by the angel in the tomb they regarded as an "idle tale." The very assertion of Jesus Himself they did not believe without proof.
When the Apostles at last accepted His Resurrection, the foundation of their faith and ours, our Lord bestowed on them the power to forgive sins, in direct continuation of that power which He Himself had exercised according to the Will of the Father. Repeating the phrase, "Peace be to you," He added: "As the Father hath sent Me, I also send you"; and breathing on them: "Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them; and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained."[38]
It happened that Thomas was not present at this first appearance of Christ to His Apostles; and when he rejoined them he absolutely refused to believe them. For eight days he had only one answer to all their repeated protestations that they had seen the Risen Christ. It was this: "Except I shall see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe."[39]
No skeptic has ever demanded clearer proof; and Jesus complied with His Apostle's terms. "After eight days, again His disciples were within, and Thomas with them. Jesus cometh, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said: Peace be to you. Then He saith to Thomas: Put in thy finger hither, and see My hands; and bring hither thy hand, and put it into My side; and be not faithless but believing."
Thomas was convinced. He confessed: "My Lord and my God!"
Jesus quickly made Thomas realize how poor and unpleasing incredulity is in the eyes of God. "Because thou hast seen Me, Thomas, thou hast believed," He said. "Blessed are they that have not seen, and have believed."[40]
CHRIST APPEARS IN GALILEE.[41] As soon as it was convenient for them to leave Jerusalem after the Paschal octave, the Apostles obeyed their Master's command[42] and set out for Galilee, their native province. Jesus had promised to meet them there.[43] St. John relates the circumstances of the appearance.
As Fouard remarks,[44] Judas' desertion had left the Apostles without funds, and till such time as Christ would appear to them they sought a livelihood at their old trades. Peter, therefore, one evening in the vicinity of Lake Genesareth, said to his companions: "I go afishing." Six of them, Thomas, Nathanael, James the Greater, John and two unnamed Apostles, probably Andrew and Philip, joined him. They trawled the whole night through in Peter's boat, but, as on a former occasion,[45] they caught nothing.
At early dawn they were about three hundred feet from the shore when an apparent stranger, whom they had not noticed, called to them in tones of familiarity from the beach. "Children," He asked, "have you any meat?" - that is, have you caught anything? Stopping the boat, they looked steadfastly at Him in an attempt to discover Who it could be that addressed them so affably, and answered "No." The Stranger then called again: "Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and you shall find." They did so, and took such a haul of fish that they could not lift the net into the boat.
There was something familiar about that command and its results. John was the first to understand. "It is the Lord," he said to Peter, who, in turn, pulling on once more the outer tunic which he had taken off, the better to work the nets, jumped overboard and swam ashore. The others beached the boat and got out. To their surprise they saw a fire burning brightly in the dawn, with a fish and some bread on it. Jesus, Whom they all now recognized, said to them: "Bring hither of the fishes which you have now caught." Peter, again the first to act, went and drew the net onto the beach. One hundred and fifty-three fish were in it. Without putting on the fire any of the newlycaught fish, Jesus said to them: "Come and dine." They did so; but so awed were they by His presence that, "none of them durst ask Him: Who art Thou? knowing that it was the Lord." He then distributed to them the bread and fish.
Following the first miraculous draught of fishes, more than a year before, Jesus had promised to make Simon a fisher of men: "From henceforth thou shalt catch men."[46] He now fulfils that promise: He confirms him in the Primacy of the Church, and makes him His Vicar on earth.
"Simon, son of John," He asks, "lovest thou Me more than these?"
Jesus, as we see, momentarily takes from Simon the name Peter that He had given him; for his constancy to the Master at His trial had been anything but rocklike.
Besides, Jesus makes a comparison, by the words "more than these," between Peter and the other Apostles, the very comparison that Peter himself had implied when he boasted in the shadows of Gethsemani: "Although all shall be scandalized in Thee, I will never be scandalized."[47] In remembrance of that presumption Peter hung his head in front of all, and humbly answered Jesus' question: "Yea, Lord, Thou knowest that I love Thee." Jesus then said to him: "Feed My lambs."
Since Peter's denial had been threefold, Christ demands from him two more professions of love, and adds an increased jurisdiction to His Vicar after each protestation. "Simon, son of John, lovest thou Me?" He asked again; and Peter repeated: "Yea, Lord, Thou knowest that I love Thee." Christ said once more: "Feed My lambs." Then came the selfsame question a third time: "Simon, son of John, lovest thou Me?" And St. John tells us: "Peter was grieved, because He had said to him the third time: Lovest thou Me? And he said to Him: Lord, Thou knowest all things: Thou knowest that I love Thee."
Peter's profession was complete, and following it, Jesus' commission of authority to him was conclusive: "Feed My sheep." Thenceforth he and his successors were the Supreme Pastors of the Church.
Christ in figurative language then foretold to Peter his own crucifixion. "When thou wast younger," He said, "thou didst gird thyself, and didst walk where thou wouldst. But when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and lead thee whither thou wouldst not."
John expressly states that this girding and stretching forth of hands and leading away refer to Peter's crucifixion. He says: "And this He said, signifying by what death he should glorify God."[48]
At this point Jesus called Peter aside, and said: "Follow Me." As they departed, John came after them, and Peter observing this, asked Christ: "Lord, what shall this man do?" And the Master said in firm tones: "So I will have him to remain till I come, what is it to thee? Follow thou Me."
The words "till I come" gave rise to many conjectures concerning John among the first Christians. The common one was that John would not die. He did indeed survive martyrdom; but the promise probably refers to Christ's coming in mystical power at the destruction of Jerusalem.[49]
St. Matthew relates the second and final recorded appearance of Jesus in Galilee.[50] Others besides the Apostles were there, as may be deduced from the fact that "some doubted." Commentators suggest that this is the same apparition to which St. Paul refers, and at which he places more than five hundred brethren.[51]
Appearing suddenly to His Apostles and disciples on a nameless mountain, Jesus spoke to them and removed all doubt of His Resurrection from those who had not yet seen Him. It was at the conclusion of this final apparition that He sent out His Apostles as His representatives to the whole world. Claiming first the power to do so, He says: "All power is given to Me in heaven and in earth. Going, therefore, teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost; teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. And behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world."[52]
Armed with that power, that formula and that promise, the Apostles, after His Ascension, went out as He had commanded. And their power extended not only to men, but to all creatures, as St. Mark says: to inanimate nature, to deadly reptiles and poisons, to the devils, to disease, and even to the human faculty of speech: "Go ye into the whole world, and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be condemned. And these signs shall follow them that believe: In My name they shall cast out devils: they shall speak with new tongues. They shall take up serpents; arid if they shall drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them: they shall lay their hands upon the sick, and they shall recover."[53]
CHRIST'S ASCENSION.[54] Christ's Ascension took place on Mt. Olivet forty days after His Resurrection. The Apostles had left Galilee and gone to Jerusalem, perhaps to attend the Feast of Pentecost, or more probably because Christ had directed them to go there. St. Luke, in the final verses of his Gospel, and at the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles, gives us the account of the Ascension.
Our Lord joined His Apostles in Jerusalem, probably in the Cenacle, and gave them His final instructions. He first reminded them, however, that everything prophesied regarding Him had to happen literally. Time and again He had stressed that truth to them during His life. He now repeats it: "These are the words which I spoke to you, while I was yet with you, that all things must needs be fulfilled; which are written in the Law of Moses, and in the Prophets and in the Psalms, concerning Me." The Evangelist then tells us: "Then He opened their understanding that they might understand the Scriptures."[55]
The Law, the Prophets and the Psalms are the three divisions of the Bible. By opening the understanding of His Apostles, Christ enabled them to interpret the Holy Scriptures correctly. "The Holy Ghost soon afterward completed this gift, by virtue of which the first preachers of the Gospel were able to discover in the Jewish Bible the details that referred to their Divine Master. And this gift was subsequently transmitted to the Church, which became the infallible depository of the true sense of the Sacred Books." [56]
Referring again to the necessity of His Passion, Death and Resurrection in the plan of Redemption, Jesus continued: "Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise again from the dead the third day. And that penance and the remission of sins should be preached in His name, unto all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And you are witnesses of these things. And I send the promise of My Father upon you: but stay you in the city till you be endued with power from on high." [57]
The "promise of the Father" is the Holy Ghost, Who will come to them before they leave the city. Then they are to begin preaching "penance and the remission of sins," first in Jerusalem to the Jews, and then to the Gentiles throughout the world. They are to preach in His name. Those instructions are most definite, and the Apostles carried them out to the letter.
Jesus then left the Cenacle and started out for the Mount of Olives, followed by His Apostles and disciples, some holy women, and probably His Mother.
It was practically impossible for the Jewish mind to grasp the fact that the Messias was not to be a political deliverer; and so now, as countless times before, they asked Him: "Lord, wilt Thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?"[58]
He answered them by pointing out once more the nature of the kingdom which they were to establish throughout Palestine and the whole world. He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or moments, which the Father hath put in His own power. But you shall receive the power of the Holy Ghost coming upon you, and you shall be witnesses unto Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and even to the uttermost part of the earth."[59]
By this time Jesus had reached the Mount of Olives. He stopped at a spot about two-thirds of a mile from the Holy City.[60] After giving His Apostles and friends a parting blessing, He began to ascend into heaven, and soon He was lost to view.
Even after Christ was gone from their sight, the Apostles and the rest continued to gaze after Him, lost in the wondrous sight. But the sudden appearance of two angels among them brought all back to earth. "Ye men of Galilee," the heavenly visitors asked, "why stand you looking up to heaven?"[61] There was a touch of Christ's practical outlook in that question.
The Apostles went back to the Cenacle, to pray and await the coming of the Holy Ghost.
_____________________
REFERENCES
1. Mt. 28:1-15; Mk. 16:1-11; Lk. 24:1-12; Jn. 20:1-18.
2. 1 Cor. 15:14-17.
3. Fillion, op. cit., III, p. 567. 4. Jn. 20:9.
5. Mk. 16:1-8.
6. Lk. 24: 1-30.
7. Jn. 20, 21:1-17.
8. 1 Cor. 15:3-8.
9. Fillion, op. cit., III, p. 569.
10. Mt. 28:1; Mk. 16:1, 2; Lk. 24:1; Jn. 20:1.
11. Mt. 28:2-4.
12. Jn. 20:2.
13. Mt. 28:5; Mk. 16:5; Lk. 24:4. 14. Mk. 16:6, 7; Mt. 28:5-7; Lk. 24:5-7.
15. Jn. 20:5.
16. Jn. 20:6, 7.
17. Jn. 20:8, 9.
18. Mt. 28:8; Mk. 16:8.
19. Ex. 25: 18-20.
20. Jn. 20:13.
21. Jn. 20:15.
22. Jn. 20:17. 23. Jn. 20:18.
24. Mk. 16:10, 11.
25. Mt. 28:10.
26. Mt. 28:12-15.
27. Exposit., Ps. 63:7.
28. Mk. 16:12, 13; Lk. 24:13-33. 29. Meistermann, Op. cit., p. 298 f. 30. Fillion, Op. cit., III, p. 581. 31. Lk. 24:18.
32. Lk. 24:17.
33. Lk. 24:18-24.
34. Lk. 24:26.
35. Lk. 24:28-32.
36. Mk. 16:14; Lk. 24:36-43; Jn.20: 19-23.
37. Lk. 24:38-40; Jn. 20:19, 20.
38. Jn. 20:22, 23.
39. Jn. 20:25.
40. Jn. 20:26-29.
41. Mt. 28:16-20; Jn. 21:1-24.
42. Mt. 28:7; Mk. 16:7.
43. Mt. 26:32; Mk. 14:28.
44. Fouard, op. cit., II, p. 367. 45. Lk. 5:5.
46. Lk. 5:10.
47. Mt. 26:33.
48. Jn. 21:15-19.
49. Fouard, op. cit., II, p.3 72, n. 1.
50. Mt. 28:16-20.
51. 1 Cor. 15:6.
52. Mt. 28:18-20.
53. Mk. 16:15-18.
54. Mk. 16:19, 20; Lk. 24:50-53; Acts 1:3-12.
55. Lk. 24:44, 45.
56. Fillion, op. cit., III, p. 604.
57. Lk. 24:46-49.
58. Acts 1:6.
59. Acts 1:7, 8.
60. Acts 1:12.
61. Acts 1:10, 11.
_________________________
From The Life of Christ
by Isidore O'Brien, OFM (© 1937)
March 30-Feast of Divine Mercy
The Feast of Divine Mercy will be celebrated at Sts. Joachim and Ann Parish, St. Charles, Sunday, March 30.
Eucharistic Adoration and Confessions will begin at 2:30 pm. The Chaplet of Divine Mercy will be sung at 3:00 pm followed by the Holy Rosary.
Celebration of the Holy Eucharist will begin at 4:00 pm. Father Timothy Elliott is the main celebrant and preacher.
There will be priests available to hear confessions. To avoid a lengthy wait in line, perhaps missing some of the celebration, it is preferable to go to Confession prior to that day.
If you have participated in the Sacrament of Reconciliation during Lent, that is sufficient to receive the Graces promised for Divine Mercy Sunday. It is also recommended that you celebrate the Novena of Chaplets of Divine Mercy beginning on Good Friday, as a preparation for the Great Feast of Mercy.
For information, please contact Alice Sinak, 636-300-4465.
Eucharistic Adoration and Confessions will begin at 2:30 pm. The Chaplet of Divine Mercy will be sung at 3:00 pm followed by the Holy Rosary.
Celebration of the Holy Eucharist will begin at 4:00 pm. Father Timothy Elliott is the main celebrant and preacher.
There will be priests available to hear confessions. To avoid a lengthy wait in line, perhaps missing some of the celebration, it is preferable to go to Confession prior to that day.
If you have participated in the Sacrament of Reconciliation during Lent, that is sufficient to receive the Graces promised for Divine Mercy Sunday. It is also recommended that you celebrate the Novena of Chaplets of Divine Mercy beginning on Good Friday, as a preparation for the Great Feast of Mercy.
For information, please contact Alice Sinak, 636-300-4465.
Friday, December 07, 2007
Reflections, the Immaculate Conception
Here are some of the previous posts, reflections and meditations on the Immaculate Conception:
Virtue in Person, The Immaculate Conception 2007
Contemplating the Immaculate Conception, the Grace of God 2007
A Reflection on the Immaculate Conception 2006
The Immaculate Conception-The Lovliest Lady 2006
Three Reasons the Church’s Enemies Hate The Immaculate Conception 2006
Mental Prayer for December 8, Feast of the Immaculate Conception 2006
How are we to understand the Immaculate Conception? 2006
Straight Answers: The Immaculate Conception 2004
Virtue in Person, The Immaculate Conception 2007
Contemplating the Immaculate Conception, the Grace of God 2007
A Reflection on the Immaculate Conception 2006
The Immaculate Conception-The Lovliest Lady 2006
Three Reasons the Church’s Enemies Hate The Immaculate Conception 2006
Mental Prayer for December 8, Feast of the Immaculate Conception 2006
How are we to understand the Immaculate Conception? 2006
Straight Answers: The Immaculate Conception 2004
Feasts of Mary and Our Advent Observance....
...By Archbishop Raymond Burke
Two important feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary take place during the Season of Advent: the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception (a holy day of obligation) on Dec. 8 and the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mother of America and Star of the New Evangelization, on Dec. 12. Closely related to both feasts is the Memorial of St. Juan Diego, the messenger of Our Lady of Guadalupe, on Dec. 9, which will not be celebrated liturgically this year because it falls on the Second Sunday of Advent.Continued here.The celebration of these feast days of our Blessed Mother and of St. Juan Diego help us to enter more fully into the observance of the Season of Advent.
The Blessed Virgin Mary is our model in preparing for the celebration of Christmas by disposing our hearts to welcome our Lord more fully, both as He comes to us now in the Church and as He will come to us in glory on the Last Day. She is also our intercessor who asks our Lord to give us the special graces of Advent, by which our hearts are purified of whatever hinders both our Lord’s coming to us now and our preparation to meet Him when He will come in glory. A reflection on her feasts will help us to see how the Blessed Mother is both the model of our Advent observance and our intercessor for the strong graces of the Season of Advent in our lives...
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Feast of All Saints, The Communion of Saints
"I Believe in the Communion of Saints."
This text, taken from the Apostles' Creed, is an expression of thc Catholic belief that the saints and friends of God have vital interests in common. It is of Divine faith that things affecting one's soul in its relation to sanctity and happiness, have an intimate bearing on all souls that belong to the Kingdom of Christ. We Christians glory in a brotherhood whose membership transcends the narrow limits of this world. We claim as our fellow citizens and our brethren, countless human beings dwelling in heaven, on earth, in purgatory, who are united by a mutual sympathy and friendship nmong themselves and by the common reliance they place in the goodness and favor of the Almighty.
I. Now all are called saints on earth who are sons abiding in the household of God. To be such they must be free from grievous ain. But freedom from sin and admission to the companionship of the saints, we may well recall, in the case of most men implies repentance for past misconduct and a determination of future amendment; just as it required the sorrow and tears of the returning prodigal to open once more to him the home of his youth and innocence.
Whether then it be Baptism or penance that has made them the friends of God, the saints on earth are the living memhers of the Church Militant, whose essential qualification is innocence and holiness, and whose cherished possession is a common heritage of merit and atonement bequeathed to them by Christ in the shedding of His Precious Blood. The saints here below have in common the same means of grace and edification, enabling them to withstand with unfaltering countenance the dangerous allurements that threaten their peace of mind.
They all partake of the Banquet of the Lord and are fed with the same Holy Bread of eternal life. Their common worship is the prayer and sacrifice of the universal Church offered up by the mediation of an Omnipotent Intercessor. It is the prayer of many hearts united with the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Their voices ascend to heaven as one voice and cry, beseeching the Father of mercies that the day of His children on earth may be disposed in peace and that all may be numbered in the flock of the elect.
II. The saints in purgatory are those who suffer after death, but who have received from God, in the particular judgment, the certain assurance that they are saved. Their earthly existence for them is a thing of the past; but the combats they sustained in the flesh and the temptations they encountered, have left wounds and scars that were not entirely healed by the remedies applied of contrition and penance.
Their condition, in dying, though not meriting everlasting punishment, nevertheless prevented their instant passage into paradise. And thus they are excluded for a time from heaven. They are the saints called the Church Suffering, because they remain in a place of purification, until by the grief and affliction they patiently endure, all wounds and traces of their earthly failings and imperfections are burnt and purged away.
But the good and the generous, when subjected to suffering, are peculiarly sensitive to the affliction of others. Hence the saints in purgatory are united in sorrow; and as their common grief at being kept far from God, is so much the more penetrating, so likewise the compassion they feel for one another's distress is deeper and more overpowering than any we can experience in this world.
Nor does this mean that these afflicted souls are separated from the living. Rather, we must say, participation in the treasury of atonement, of which the living Church holds the keys, is more necessary for them; seeing that, in their prison and chains, they are powerless to help themselves. Though confined in purgatory, they retain a rightful share of the benefits dispensed in this world by the ministers of Christ.
They are joined to their human brethren on earth by the recognition and expectancy of relief. We are able to lend them aid by offering to God, as atonement for their debt, our own prayers and other good works. What a consoling dogma of our religion that we can thus render assistance to deceased relatives and friends, our separation from whom by death we bitterly mourn! And we may be well assured of their gratitude and of their prayers in return if our charity, esteemed by God, hastens for them the glad hour of their deliverance from prison when they shall be granted refreshment, light and everlasting rest.
III. By far the most numerous branch of the Communion of saints is formed of the blessed in heaven. From every tribe and tongue nnd people are they gathered before the face of God in the everlasting courts where they participate in the all-absorbing vision of things which eye hath not seen nor ear heard, which it hath not entered into the heart of man to conceive. It is the Church Triumphant, the union in glory of souls washed in the Blood of the Lamb. It the unspeakable happiness that the assembly of the elect enjoy when they possess God eternally as their reward exceedingly great.
Now, if there is an identity of interest among the faithful of world, if, likewise, there is an intimate union and fellowship animating the suffering souls, then what shall we say of the union and fellowship that pervades and animates the inhabitants of the Holy City? Seeing that the heart of man was created for neither strife nor sorrow, but for happiness alone, and since rational beings instinctively seek companionship in enjoyment, thus, in the abode of perfect rest where no shadow of suffering threatens, each redeemed soul is united with his companions of glory, and the knowledge of his own individual blessedness is immeasurably increased by sharing in the blessedness of the unnumbered thousands that sing hymns of joy before the great white throne.
But even in their joy, supreme and everlasting as it is, the saints in paradise are not forgetful of their brethren in less happy spheres. How many among them retain a vivid memory of the chastening pains they lately endured, and which they know others still endure, as the nearer preparation for participation in the privileged Communion of the beatific vision!
Further, in viewing the sacred wounds of the glorified humanity of Christ, are they not necessarily reminded of this world we dwell in? Are they not reminded that earth, and not heaven, was chosen by the Son of God for His mortal career in human flesh? And that, on this earth, He elected to suffer and to die to purchase for men so glorious a destiny? Is it possible for the elect to forget the abode where the foundations of their happiness were laid? Where God, for their benefit, manifested His bountiful Providence by miracles and revelations, by lessons of warning and promises of reward, by institutions of holiness and mercy? Where they themselves, sustained by Divine grace, were able to rejoice in the midst of tribulations and sorrows that appeared too heavy, too unbearable to all except to those who loved God and trusted in the power of His love?
Nay more, this present world in its actual condition, is revealed to the eyes of the blessed: They take a never-failing interest in the lives of existing men, because, however poorly circumstanced we may be, they behold the true nobility we possess as children of God redeemed equally as they by the Precious Blood of Jesus.
In our souls they see imaged the adorable likeness of our Maker. In us they recognize members of that Church whose riches are their enjoyment. And if their joy will be filled with greater rejoicing in the triumph of our salvation, then truly may we say that the saints are with us not only in mind, their hearts likewise accompany us, so to speak, in the battle we wage against the powers of darkness. Their intercession with God is unceasing in our behalf that, through His mercy and goodness, we may be made to persevere till the hour of victory and reward.
Practices. - Let us not permit this First of November to pass away without making some useful applications of our belief in the Communion of Saints. If we belong to the company of the just, then we are constrained to practise holiness. We are bound faithfully to fulfil our duties toward God and man.
Still we will show little generosity in so worthy a cause if we limit our endeavors to strict duty. We must therefore multiply our deeds of virtue that our example may be a shining light for the footsteps of our fellow Christians whose welfare is so closely connected with our own.
During this month of November no person, animated with a spirit of charity and true piety, will fail to engage in special good works for the benefit of the suffering souls. Finally, let us pay due honor to the saints in paradise who are our friends nearest to God.
Let us beg them to obtain from the Almighty this favor: that our lives may resemble theirs in goodness and fidelity in the service of religion, and that, in dying, we may be speedily admitted into the full participation of the celestial privileges of the Communion of Saints.
__________________
Adapted from Plain Sermons by Practical Preachers, Vol. I(©1916)
Homily by Rev Stephen Murphy, O.M.I.
Nihil Obstat: Remegius Lafort, S.T.D
Imprimatur: John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York
This text, taken from the Apostles' Creed, is an expression of thc Catholic belief that the saints and friends of God have vital interests in common. It is of Divine faith that things affecting one's soul in its relation to sanctity and happiness, have an intimate bearing on all souls that belong to the Kingdom of Christ. We Christians glory in a brotherhood whose membership transcends the narrow limits of this world. We claim as our fellow citizens and our brethren, countless human beings dwelling in heaven, on earth, in purgatory, who are united by a mutual sympathy and friendship nmong themselves and by the common reliance they place in the goodness and favor of the Almighty.
I. Now all are called saints on earth who are sons abiding in the household of God. To be such they must be free from grievous ain. But freedom from sin and admission to the companionship of the saints, we may well recall, in the case of most men implies repentance for past misconduct and a determination of future amendment; just as it required the sorrow and tears of the returning prodigal to open once more to him the home of his youth and innocence.
Whether then it be Baptism or penance that has made them the friends of God, the saints on earth are the living memhers of the Church Militant, whose essential qualification is innocence and holiness, and whose cherished possession is a common heritage of merit and atonement bequeathed to them by Christ in the shedding of His Precious Blood. The saints here below have in common the same means of grace and edification, enabling them to withstand with unfaltering countenance the dangerous allurements that threaten their peace of mind.
They all partake of the Banquet of the Lord and are fed with the same Holy Bread of eternal life. Their common worship is the prayer and sacrifice of the universal Church offered up by the mediation of an Omnipotent Intercessor. It is the prayer of many hearts united with the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Their voices ascend to heaven as one voice and cry, beseeching the Father of mercies that the day of His children on earth may be disposed in peace and that all may be numbered in the flock of the elect.
II. The saints in purgatory are those who suffer after death, but who have received from God, in the particular judgment, the certain assurance that they are saved. Their earthly existence for them is a thing of the past; but the combats they sustained in the flesh and the temptations they encountered, have left wounds and scars that were not entirely healed by the remedies applied of contrition and penance.
Their condition, in dying, though not meriting everlasting punishment, nevertheless prevented their instant passage into paradise. And thus they are excluded for a time from heaven. They are the saints called the Church Suffering, because they remain in a place of purification, until by the grief and affliction they patiently endure, all wounds and traces of their earthly failings and imperfections are burnt and purged away.
But the good and the generous, when subjected to suffering, are peculiarly sensitive to the affliction of others. Hence the saints in purgatory are united in sorrow; and as their common grief at being kept far from God, is so much the more penetrating, so likewise the compassion they feel for one another's distress is deeper and more overpowering than any we can experience in this world.
Nor does this mean that these afflicted souls are separated from the living. Rather, we must say, participation in the treasury of atonement, of which the living Church holds the keys, is more necessary for them; seeing that, in their prison and chains, they are powerless to help themselves. Though confined in purgatory, they retain a rightful share of the benefits dispensed in this world by the ministers of Christ.
They are joined to their human brethren on earth by the recognition and expectancy of relief. We are able to lend them aid by offering to God, as atonement for their debt, our own prayers and other good works. What a consoling dogma of our religion that we can thus render assistance to deceased relatives and friends, our separation from whom by death we bitterly mourn! And we may be well assured of their gratitude and of their prayers in return if our charity, esteemed by God, hastens for them the glad hour of their deliverance from prison when they shall be granted refreshment, light and everlasting rest.
III. By far the most numerous branch of the Communion of saints is formed of the blessed in heaven. From every tribe and tongue nnd people are they gathered before the face of God in the everlasting courts where they participate in the all-absorbing vision of things which eye hath not seen nor ear heard, which it hath not entered into the heart of man to conceive. It is the Church Triumphant, the union in glory of souls washed in the Blood of the Lamb. It the unspeakable happiness that the assembly of the elect enjoy when they possess God eternally as their reward exceedingly great.
Now, if there is an identity of interest among the faithful of world, if, likewise, there is an intimate union and fellowship animating the suffering souls, then what shall we say of the union and fellowship that pervades and animates the inhabitants of the Holy City? Seeing that the heart of man was created for neither strife nor sorrow, but for happiness alone, and since rational beings instinctively seek companionship in enjoyment, thus, in the abode of perfect rest where no shadow of suffering threatens, each redeemed soul is united with his companions of glory, and the knowledge of his own individual blessedness is immeasurably increased by sharing in the blessedness of the unnumbered thousands that sing hymns of joy before the great white throne.
But even in their joy, supreme and everlasting as it is, the saints in paradise are not forgetful of their brethren in less happy spheres. How many among them retain a vivid memory of the chastening pains they lately endured, and which they know others still endure, as the nearer preparation for participation in the privileged Communion of the beatific vision!
Further, in viewing the sacred wounds of the glorified humanity of Christ, are they not necessarily reminded of this world we dwell in? Are they not reminded that earth, and not heaven, was chosen by the Son of God for His mortal career in human flesh? And that, on this earth, He elected to suffer and to die to purchase for men so glorious a destiny? Is it possible for the elect to forget the abode where the foundations of their happiness were laid? Where God, for their benefit, manifested His bountiful Providence by miracles and revelations, by lessons of warning and promises of reward, by institutions of holiness and mercy? Where they themselves, sustained by Divine grace, were able to rejoice in the midst of tribulations and sorrows that appeared too heavy, too unbearable to all except to those who loved God and trusted in the power of His love?
Nay more, this present world in its actual condition, is revealed to the eyes of the blessed: They take a never-failing interest in the lives of existing men, because, however poorly circumstanced we may be, they behold the true nobility we possess as children of God redeemed equally as they by the Precious Blood of Jesus.
In our souls they see imaged the adorable likeness of our Maker. In us they recognize members of that Church whose riches are their enjoyment. And if their joy will be filled with greater rejoicing in the triumph of our salvation, then truly may we say that the saints are with us not only in mind, their hearts likewise accompany us, so to speak, in the battle we wage against the powers of darkness. Their intercession with God is unceasing in our behalf that, through His mercy and goodness, we may be made to persevere till the hour of victory and reward.
Practices. - Let us not permit this First of November to pass away without making some useful applications of our belief in the Communion of Saints. If we belong to the company of the just, then we are constrained to practise holiness. We are bound faithfully to fulfil our duties toward God and man.
Still we will show little generosity in so worthy a cause if we limit our endeavors to strict duty. We must therefore multiply our deeds of virtue that our example may be a shining light for the footsteps of our fellow Christians whose welfare is so closely connected with our own.
During this month of November no person, animated with a spirit of charity and true piety, will fail to engage in special good works for the benefit of the suffering souls. Finally, let us pay due honor to the saints in paradise who are our friends nearest to God.
Let us beg them to obtain from the Almighty this favor: that our lives may resemble theirs in goodness and fidelity in the service of religion, and that, in dying, we may be speedily admitted into the full participation of the celestial privileges of the Communion of Saints.
__________________
Adapted from Plain Sermons by Practical Preachers, Vol. I(©1916)
Homily by Rev Stephen Murphy, O.M.I.
Nihil Obstat: Remegius Lafort, S.T.D
Imprimatur: John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Saturday, June 09, 2007
The Feast of Corpus Christi
Why is this day called Corpus Christi?_____________________________
Because on this Thursday the Catholic Church celebrates the institution of the most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar. The Latin term Corpus Christi signifies in English, Body of Christ.
Who instituted this festival?
Pope Urban IV, who, in the decree concerning it, gives the following explanation of the institution and grandeur of this festival:"Although we daily, in the holy Sacrifice of the Mass; renew the memory of this holy Sacrament, we believe that we must, besides, solemnly commemorate it every year, to put the unbelievers to shame; and because vie have been informed that God has revealed to some pious persons that this festival should be celebrated in the whole Church, we direct that on the first Thursday after the octave of Pentecost the faithful shall assemble in church, join with the priests in singing the word of God," &c.Hence this festival was instituted on account of the greatness of the divine mystery; the unbelief of those who denied the truth of this mystery; and the revelation made to some pious persons.
This revelation was made to a nun at Liege, named Juliana, and to her devout friends Eve and Isabella. Juliana, when praying, had frequently a vision in which she saw the bright moon, with one part of it somewhat dark; at her request she received instructions from God that one of the grandest festivals was yet to be instituted the festival of the most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar.
In 1246, she related this vision to Robert, Bishop of Liege, who after having investigated the matter with the aid of several men of learning and devotion, among whom was Jacob Pantaleon, Archdeacon of Liege, afterwards Pope Urban IV made arrangements to introduce this festival m his diocese, but death prevented his intention being put into effect. After the bishop's death the Cardinal Legate Hugh undertook to carry out his directions, and celebrated the festival for the first time in the year 1247, in the Church of St. Martin at Liege.
Several bishops followed this example, and the festival was observed in many dioceses, before Pope Urban IV in 1264 finally ordered its celebration by the whole Church. This order was confirmed by Clement V, at the Council of Vienna in 1311, and the Thursday after the octave of Pentecost appointed for its celebration. In 1317, Pope John XXII instituted the solemn procession.
Why are there such grand processions on this day?
For a public profession of our holy faith that Christ is really, truly and substantially present in this Blessed Sacrament; for a public reparation of all the injuries, irreverence, and offences, which have been and are committed by impious men against Christ in this Blessed Sacrament; for the solemn veneration and adoration due to the Son of God in this Sacrament; in thanksgiving for its institution; and for all the graces and advantages received therefrom; and finally, to draw down the divine blessing upon the people and the country.
Had this procession a prototype in the Old Law?
The procession in which was carried the Ark of the Covenant containing the manna, was a figure of this procession.
From Explanation of the Epistles and Gospels
by Fr. Leonard Goffine (c) 1880
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