On Christian Perfection, Part 1
On Christian Perfection, Part 2
----------------------------------
We have seen in what Christian perfection consists, and to whom we have to look as our model; but we must not close this instruction without asking ourselves whether or not we are all bound to aim at so high a standard.
Certainly we must aim at it, for our Saviour has commanded it, saying: "Be ye perfect." But, more than this, perfection consists in loving God above all things, and this love is also commanded us by the greatest and the chief commandment: "Thou shall" (note well these words) "love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole mind; this is the greatest and the first commandment." To aim at perfection is therefore commanded us; it is the primary commandment, enjoined on all.
Now spare me, I beg, the ordinary excuses of lukewarm, slothful, and worldly-minded Christians. Perfection is all very well for religious, for monks and nuns who have said good-bye to the world, for priests who are to a great extent relieved of its burdens, for women to whom piety is attractive, and for children who are not yet emancipated. But for us who live in the very midst of the cares and business of life, in the full stream of its perils and temptations, perfection is out of the question. Such reasoning, though very general, is absolutely false.
To strive after perfection is the duty of every one, be he priest or layman, monk or secular, married or single, young or old. There is but one God, one heaven, one Christ, one commandment; the end is the same for all men; the same perfection, namely, to love God above all things, is required of all, and without it there is no salvation; the only difference that exists consists in the fact of its being easier of attainment in the quiet of the cloister-not in its having no bearing on other lives; the commandment is binding on all.
O dear Lord and Saviour, master, teacher, model of all perfection, grant that Thy commandment may be ineffaceably impressed on my heart, that Thy life may be ever present to my mind, that Thy almighty hand may guide and support me so that I may follow in Thy footsteps in life and death, till I reach eternity. Amen.
Adapted from:
Popular Sermons on the Catechism, Bamberg & Thurston, 1914
Thursday, April 14, 2005
A Open Letter to the Board 'Chairman' Of St Stanislaus Kostka Parish
I received the following letter this evening. It is an open response to the deplorable action of the board of St Stanislaus Parish in removing certain members from the Parish Registry, presumably it seems, because some parishioners want to be obedient to the Archbishop and the Church, and because they want the parish to remain Catholic and restructured to be in accord with the laws of the Church.
Some have wondered where the Board spokesman, Roger Krasnicki, has been of late...this letter seems to indicate a reason why he has not been heard from recently.
=========================================
OPEN LETTER
RESPONSE TO THE LETTER OF MR. BILL BIALCZAK,
ILLEGALLY SELECTED CHAIRMAN OF THE
BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE POLISH
ST. STANISLAUS KOSTKA PARISH IN ST. LOUIS
Mr. Bialczak:
The whole world was mourning the death of our Holy Father. It was the only subject nearly everyone was thinking and talking about. People of all religions of the world were paying tribute to the Holy Father, John Paul II, but you were preoccupied with your petty fight. It was so insensitive that you chose to inform us by letter (postmarked 4/04/05) regarding your decision to remove us from the "Parish registry" during this solemn time - disturbing our mourning and prayers for our beloved Pope.
Let me explain to you, Mr Bialczak, that the Parish, as a part of the Archdiocese, is where the Pastor and faithful parishioners are. The Pastor, not you, represents the leader of the Parish. You can remove us from your registry, please do so, but you have no right to remove us from a parish in which you never had such authority in the first place. You currently have no legal parish position recognized by the Roman Catholic Church, therefore all your actions are illegal.
Your behavior is ridiculous and desperate. You should be thankful to the Archbishop for giving you so many opportunities to make amends and, for not taking you to court because of your illegal takeover of the Parish.
Mr. Bialczak, I would like to remind you that, as members of the board of directors, you were appointed by the Archbishop, and the Archbishop had a right to remove you. The reorganization of the Parish, started by Archbishop Rigali, was not just about the property issue. It was requested by over 180 Polish-speaking parishioners in the year 2000 after your action to remove from our parish Father Jacek Nowak, a very popular and beloved Polish Priest. In 2003 the Archbishop asked you to step down, and you had an obligation, based on the by-laws, to obey this request. You were violating the Parish by-laws by disregarding your obligation to follow the authority of the Archdiocese of St. Louis. By refusing to accept the decision of the Congregation of the Clergy, you put yourself out of the structure of the Roman Catholic Church. In January 2005 you chose to ignore the petition of 140 parishioners who have urged you to respect and obey the Archdiocese's request and the Vatican's decision.
Do you realize how arrogant you were in 2000 when you told us that "this is America, not Poland", implying that we cannot practice our Polish traditions here. How hypocritical you are now, pretending that you want to preserve those traditions.
You caused great pain to our Parish in 2000. Now by creating the present crisis, you are destroying our 125 year old Parish. Our Founding Fathers established this Polish Roman Catholic Parish, which was supposed to be run, according to their by-laws, in conformity with the principles and discipline of the Roman Catholic Church and in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Archdiocese of St. Louis. By your disrespectful disobedience and defiance of the Archbishop, you betrayed the will and wishes of our Founding Fathers.
In your letter, you wrote that we have left the historical Mother Church of St Louis Polonia, but it is you who are abandoning our Polish religious traditions. You are the one who is hijacking our Parish, leaving the Roman Catholic Church, and looking for other options. You are proposing a breakaway from the Archdiocese, and you are considering switching the faith.
We are simply striving to preserve our Faith and our Polish Roman Catholic St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish in our Archdiocese for the future generations.
Your most vocal, self-appointed spokesman, Mr. Richard Bach, is a member of a different parish. (Isn't it strange that he is not protesting against the Archbishop in his own Parish, but chose ours instead?) Recently we were informed that your official spokesman, Mr. Roger Krasnicki, is not representing the board of directors or the St. Stanislaus Parish anymore. Is it because his affiliation with the Polish National Church has been revealed? It has become more and more apparent from whom, besides the liberal media, you are receiving support.
Eugene Brzyski
Parishioner of the St. Stanislaus Kostka Church.
Some have wondered where the Board spokesman, Roger Krasnicki, has been of late...this letter seems to indicate a reason why he has not been heard from recently.
=========================================
RESPONSE TO THE LETTER OF MR. BILL BIALCZAK,
ILLEGALLY SELECTED CHAIRMAN OF THE
BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE POLISH
ST. STANISLAUS KOSTKA PARISH IN ST. LOUIS
Mr. Bialczak:
The whole world was mourning the death of our Holy Father. It was the only subject nearly everyone was thinking and talking about. People of all religions of the world were paying tribute to the Holy Father, John Paul II, but you were preoccupied with your petty fight. It was so insensitive that you chose to inform us by letter (postmarked 4/04/05) regarding your decision to remove us from the "Parish registry" during this solemn time - disturbing our mourning and prayers for our beloved Pope.
Let me explain to you, Mr Bialczak, that the Parish, as a part of the Archdiocese, is where the Pastor and faithful parishioners are. The Pastor, not you, represents the leader of the Parish. You can remove us from your registry, please do so, but you have no right to remove us from a parish in which you never had such authority in the first place. You currently have no legal parish position recognized by the Roman Catholic Church, therefore all your actions are illegal.
Your behavior is ridiculous and desperate. You should be thankful to the Archbishop for giving you so many opportunities to make amends and, for not taking you to court because of your illegal takeover of the Parish.
Mr. Bialczak, I would like to remind you that, as members of the board of directors, you were appointed by the Archbishop, and the Archbishop had a right to remove you. The reorganization of the Parish, started by Archbishop Rigali, was not just about the property issue. It was requested by over 180 Polish-speaking parishioners in the year 2000 after your action to remove from our parish Father Jacek Nowak, a very popular and beloved Polish Priest. In 2003 the Archbishop asked you to step down, and you had an obligation, based on the by-laws, to obey this request. You were violating the Parish by-laws by disregarding your obligation to follow the authority of the Archdiocese of St. Louis. By refusing to accept the decision of the Congregation of the Clergy, you put yourself out of the structure of the Roman Catholic Church. In January 2005 you chose to ignore the petition of 140 parishioners who have urged you to respect and obey the Archdiocese's request and the Vatican's decision.
Do you realize how arrogant you were in 2000 when you told us that "this is America, not Poland", implying that we cannot practice our Polish traditions here. How hypocritical you are now, pretending that you want to preserve those traditions.
You caused great pain to our Parish in 2000. Now by creating the present crisis, you are destroying our 125 year old Parish. Our Founding Fathers established this Polish Roman Catholic Parish, which was supposed to be run, according to their by-laws, in conformity with the principles and discipline of the Roman Catholic Church and in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Archdiocese of St. Louis. By your disrespectful disobedience and defiance of the Archbishop, you betrayed the will and wishes of our Founding Fathers.
In your letter, you wrote that we have left the historical Mother Church of St Louis Polonia, but it is you who are abandoning our Polish religious traditions. You are the one who is hijacking our Parish, leaving the Roman Catholic Church, and looking for other options. You are proposing a breakaway from the Archdiocese, and you are considering switching the faith.
We are simply striving to preserve our Faith and our Polish Roman Catholic St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish in our Archdiocese for the future generations.
Your most vocal, self-appointed spokesman, Mr. Richard Bach, is a member of a different parish. (Isn't it strange that he is not protesting against the Archbishop in his own Parish, but chose ours instead?) Recently we were informed that your official spokesman, Mr. Roger Krasnicki, is not representing the board of directors or the St. Stanislaus Parish anymore. Is it because his affiliation with the Polish National Church has been revealed? It has become more and more apparent from whom, besides the liberal media, you are receiving support.
Eugene Brzyski
Parishioner of the St. Stanislaus Kostka Church.
The Mood in the Vatican
Inside the Vatican has released a report describing the general mood in Rome:
*** Update ***
The link to the Newsflash Archives is here.
When a sailboat is becalmed on a quiet bay, the sails no longer flap, the rigging no longer whines, and a pleasing silence descends. One can rest and wait, knowing the wind will pick up again soon, straining the sails, making the ropes sing, slicing the boat's prow through the black water.These NewsFlashes change frequently and may not remain on the web for very long. I could not find an archive of the Newsflashes, although I did not spend much time looking. The best way to keep in touch and up-to-date is to subscribe to the Email updates. If someone needs a copy of a previous Newsflash, please let Slatts know and he has assured me that he can forward a full copy to you.
Today was like that in Rome. Yesterday was, too, and tomorrow seems likely to be as well.
...
La Repubblica, the leading Rome daily, yesterday morning set everyone chattering with a piece by Marco Politi saying this: that Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was the present "front-runner" with some 40 cardinals ready to vote for him, perhaps even 50, due to the support of Cardinal Camillo Ruini of Rome, Cardinal Angelo Scola of Venice, and three cardinals from the Roman Curia, Cardinals Julian Herranz of Spain, and Alfonso Lopez-Trujillo and Dario Castrillon-Hoyos of Colombia.
Politi claimed that Ratzinger had made it known that he did not want to endure a long series of failed votes, which would suggest that a large number of cardinals did not really want to elect him, so he had indicated he would withdraw his candidacy if he did not reach a two-thirds majority on the first few ballots.
Politi said Ruini and Scola had joined the "Ratzinger group" in order to block the election of Dionigi Tettamanzi, the diminutive cardinal archbishop of Milan.
La Stampa of Turin yesterday reported that another strong Italian candidate besides Tettamanzi was Ennio Antonelli of Florence.
Politi reported that Vatican Secretary of State Angelo Sodano had spoken to the 137 cardinals for a full three hours about the world political and diplomatic situation, but had never once mentioned the Holy See's opposition, ordered by Pope John Paul, to the US attack on Iraq in 2003.
In a second article, also yesterday, Politi argued that Sodano was a strong candidate, an alternative to Ratzinger.
He concluded his piece by arguing that Cardinal Walter Kasper was "silently" emerging as a possible candidate, partly because of the good work he has done in building bridges toward the East, and toward the Russian Orthodox in particular.
*** Update ***
The link to the Newsflash Archives is here.
Progressives, Moderates, Neocons: Notes Before the Conclave
(Cardinal Ratzinger is one of my personal favorites along with Cardinal Arinze)
More here.
On one side, Ratzinger, Ruini, Bergoglio, Scola with their proposal for a new “Papal Revolution.” On the other side, the list of their opponents, with Tettamanzi as the man for all seasons.
by Sandro Magister
============================
ROMA, April 14, 2005 – On Tuesday, April 19, the first full day of the conclave which will elect the new pope, the feast in the calendar of the Roman Church is that of Saint Leo IX. He was pope between 1049 and 1054. He was a standard bearer of the great “Papal Revolution” which, at the beginning of the second millennium, between the 11th and 12th centuries, refashioned the Church and the West. He was German.
And the indisputable front runner in this conclave at the beginning of the third millennium is also German – but above all, he is “Roman.” He is Joseph Ratzinger, and he will turn 78 on April 16. The morning of Monday the 18th, he will be the one presiding over the “missa pro eligendo romano pontifice” at Saint Peter’s. And during the first secret ballot on Monday afternoon, he is expected to receive numerous votes of consensus and esteem, certainly several dozen at least. The quorum necessary to be elected, with 115 cardinals present, is 77 votes. At the tally, Ratzinger and the other cardinals will be watching and judging. They will be standing beneath the terrible gaze of a Judge infinitely higher than they are, the Christ painted by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel.
. . .
The most fearsome conflict of the next decades, Ratzinger and Ruini have both said on numerous occasions, will not be that between the Church and Islam, but rather the cultural conflict between the Church and “the radical emancipation of man from God and from the roots of life,” which characterizes contemporary Western culture and which “leads in the end to the destruction of freedom.” For the neoconservative cardinals, the Church’s commitment to this clash centered in the West must be given absolute priority in the next pontificate. (my emphasis)
Thousands reflect at Pope's grave
VATICAN CITY - Thousands of mourners filed past the grave of Pope John Paul II after the Vatican reopened its grottoes for public viewing Wednesday.More.
Lincoln Nebraska -Heartland of Orthodoxy
LINCOLN, Neb. -- Many liberal Catholics hope the new pope will make changes in the centuries-old teachings of the Roman Catholic Church to fit the modern world, but not the faithful here in one of the most conservative dioceses in the country.Some people fail to understand that Truth is immutable - it is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. What is Truth? Jesus is the Truth. Some think that Vatican II changed all of this, however, Pope John XXIII called the Council for the purposes of preserving the Sacred Deposit of Faith and for better presenting it to the world.
"The church shouldn't adapt to society changing; the church should stay as a rock," said Richard Danek, 51, a real estate appraiser who lives near Lincoln, an hour's drive southwest of Omaha. "If the church adapts, then at what point do we stop adapting?"
"The church is eternal, and it has given us these teachings for 2,000 years," said Sandra Danek, a former Southern Baptist who converted to Catholicism after she married Richard. "It's the teachings from Christ himself."Amen, sister!
Such lock-step orthodoxy is not the norm in the United States. Polls suggest most American Catholics disagree with the Vatican on several core issues. In a World Values Survey conducted between 1999 and 2001 for international researchers based in Sweden, 37 percent of American Catholics agreed with the church that abortion was "never justifiable," compared with 46 percent of Catholics worldwide. In that survey, 20 percent of American Catholics said homosexuality was never justified, compared with 51 percent worldwide."Lock-step" orthodoxy? Rather, it's true name is "Faith", the theological virtue "by which we believe in God and believe all that he has said and revealed to us, and that Holy Church proposes for our belief, because he is truth itself" (CCC 1814).
May God continue to bless Bishop Bruskewitz, a faithful servant and defender of the Faith. The people of the Diocese of Lincoln are blessed to have him as Bishop.
More on this article here.
Two sue archdiocese, allege sexual abuse
Two men filed suit against the St. Louis archdiocese, Archbishop Raymond Burke and a Festus property owner Wednesday, claiming they ignored sexual abuse that occurred more than 30 years ago and failed to protect young boys from a predatory priest.More.
The suits claim that the men, known in the lawsuit as John Doe 110 and John Doe 112, were molested by the Rev. Norman Christian while he was a priest at Sacred Heart Church in Crystal City. The archdiocese removed Christian from the ministry in 1995 after an allegation of sexual abuse. He died in October at age 69.
The suits say Christian molested the boys on church property and at a Festus swimming hole in 1970 and 1971, that the archdiocese knew that Christian was a pedophile and that it failed to act to protect children.
Archdiocesan spokesman Jamie Allman said that he couldn't comment but said the church immediately acts on accusations of sexual abuse.
American Catholics favor lenient pope
Blanca Valle's words embody what challenges the Catholic Church in America. "I believe that everyone should have their own opinion on abortion, capital punishment, birth control,' said the 23-year-old Victoria's Secret sales clerk.Moral relativism at its finest, yes? Perhaps she (and others) have not heard the words of Jesus, "He who hears you hears Me" (Luke 10:16).
Believing that Jesus was the Christ is essential to her faith, the Fontana Catholic woman said. The rest is open to interpretation.
The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council said in "Lumen gentium" #20:
"This sacred Council teaches that the Bishops, from divine institution, have taken the place of the Apostles, as the pastors of the Church: he who hears them, hears Christ; he who spurns them, spurns Christ, and Him who sent Christ".
Polls taken since John Paul's death indicate a majority of American Catholics think the Vatican should allow priests to marry and women to be ordained. About 80 percent told Gallup the next pope should permit the use of birth control.If these figures are to be believed, one can legitimately wonder, "When the Son of man comes, will He find faith on earth?" (Lk 18:8).
What a tremendous and daunting task remains for faithful Catholics to re-evangelize and re-catechize their lost brothers and sisters. May God grant His faithful the patience, strength, and wisdom to help our bishops and priests in this endeavor.
Full article here.
Ratzinger Said Gaining Papal Elector Favor
As with all stories coming out of Rome on who may be emerging as the next likely Pope, a healthy skepticism is probably the best attitude one could have. While for some of us, this would be a most acceptable outcome, we must resign ourselves to the fact that our best approach is to continue to pray that the Holy Spirit will overshadow and enlighten the Cardinal electors and that God will bless us with a good and holy man to be our shepherd.
VATICAN CITY (AP) - Support for German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger appears to be building ahead of the conclave to select a new pope, Italian newspapers reported Wednesday.More.
Corriere della Sera, citing anonymous sources, said at least 40 cardinals have voiced some backing for the conservative Ratzinger during daily meetings before the conclave opens Monday with an expected 115 cardinals.
Next Pope's Silk Vestments on Display
ROME (AP) - The secret talks to name the next pope haven't even begun, but the papal tailoring shop already has his vestments on display in the front window.More.
The tiny, old-fashioned Ditta A. Gammarelli shop in downtown Rome displayed three sets of white vestments - small, medium and large - to be shipped to the Vatican.
Some may recall that last year when Archbishop Burke was in Rome to receive the pallium there was a discussion in the Post about Gammerelli's.
eBay Response to Sacrilege
An eBay spokesman explained Wednesday why the online auction site allowed the sale of a Holy Communion wafer allegedly blessed by the late Pope John Paul II in 1998 at his 20th anniversary Mass.More.
...
Hani Durzy of eBay said the listing "kicked up a minor controversy at eBay," as well. But, he said, it was determined that the listing did not violate eBay's policy of what can be posted.
On Christian Perfection, Part 2
Part 1 is here.
Now that we see clearly what perfection is we naturally ask, where shall we find a pattern, a model of this Christian perfection which we may follow; which is the way that leads to it! The way to perfection lies in the imitation of Jesus Christ. The life of Jesus Christ must be our model and pattern; it is by contemplating and imitating it that we shall attain perfection.
Artists of all kinds, painters, sculptors, poets, if they want to excel in their art, give themselves up to the careful study of the work of the old masters, and try to form their style on this model. In Jesus Christ we have the highest, most sublime, and complete type of Christian perfection, the perfect pattern for every age, station, and condition of life.
As a child He was perfect, growing in grace and wisdom before God and man; although more holy, more powerful, more wise than Mary and Joseph, he was subject to them in the lowliness and poverty of the little house at Nazareth. As a youth He was modest and obedient, offering a perfect example to those about to undertake any new enterprise. Consider how He prayed and prepared Himself in the desert for His public life; what strength He displayed in rejecting the suggestions of the evil spirit; and what burning zeal He showed all through His public life to accomplish the mission given Him by His Father. "My meat is to do the will of Him that sent Me. (John 4:34)"
How great was His reverence for the Father, His patience with the apostles and disciples, His condescension to the multitude, His compassion for the sick and poor, His love for sinners, His humility in the working of His daily miracles! It is in times of trial and suffering above all that we expect the perfection of a Christian to stand fast and endure, and so it is in His sufferings and death that the sublime example of Jesus Christ shines out most conspicuously.
We find Him enduring His passion with infinite fortitude and in complete resignation to the will of God; and, full of love for His enemies, offering Himself on the cross in a spirit of complete self-sacrifice for the sins of the world. His every thought, word, and deed, His life, sufferings, and death, are alike stamped with the impress of infinite perfection; and the saints who strove to lead perfect lives here below have all taken Him as their type and model.
Our Saviour Himself calls upon us to imitate Him, saying: "Learn of Me, for I am meek and humble of heart," (cf Matt 11:29) and especially in His sufferings He wishes to give us an example: "If any man will be My disciple, let him take up his cross and follow Me." ( cf Matt 16:24).
St. Peter tells us the same thing: "Christ suffered for us, leaving us an example that you should follow His steps." (1Pet 2:21)
If we want to know what particular points and virtues in Our Lord's life to keep specially before our eyes in order to imitate them ourselves in our own lives, we should do well to study the eight beatitudes given by our Saviour at the beginning of His public ministry in the Sermon on the Mount.
They are:
(1) "Blessed are the poor in spirit"-those who are humble;
(2) "Blessed are the meek"-the patient and gentle;
(3) "Blessed are they that mourn"-those who repent and do penance;
(4) "Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice' '-who strain earnestly after perfection;
(5) "Blessed are the merciful"-who practice brotherly love;
(6) "Blessed are the clean of heart"-the chaste;
(7) "Blessed are the peace-makers"-those who love peace;
(8) "Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake"-who show fortitude under suffering and injury.
Our Saviour in very clear language promised the reward of eternal life to all who practice these virtues; they will inherit the kingdom of heaven, the land of promise; they will enjoy the consolation of eternal life, the bliss of everlasting happiness, the vision of God, their Father, for all eternity. The eight beatitudes give us a complete plan or program, so to speak, for a perfect Christian life, and a glance at the life of our divine Saviour, one look at His cross, will convince us that He Himself practiced in the most complete manner all that He requires of us.
Adapted from:
Popular Sermons on the Catechism, Bamberg & Thurston, 1914
Now that we see clearly what perfection is we naturally ask, where shall we find a pattern, a model of this Christian perfection which we may follow; which is the way that leads to it! The way to perfection lies in the imitation of Jesus Christ. The life of Jesus Christ must be our model and pattern; it is by contemplating and imitating it that we shall attain perfection.
Artists of all kinds, painters, sculptors, poets, if they want to excel in their art, give themselves up to the careful study of the work of the old masters, and try to form their style on this model. In Jesus Christ we have the highest, most sublime, and complete type of Christian perfection, the perfect pattern for every age, station, and condition of life.
As a child He was perfect, growing in grace and wisdom before God and man; although more holy, more powerful, more wise than Mary and Joseph, he was subject to them in the lowliness and poverty of the little house at Nazareth. As a youth He was modest and obedient, offering a perfect example to those about to undertake any new enterprise. Consider how He prayed and prepared Himself in the desert for His public life; what strength He displayed in rejecting the suggestions of the evil spirit; and what burning zeal He showed all through His public life to accomplish the mission given Him by His Father. "My meat is to do the will of Him that sent Me. (John 4:34)"
How great was His reverence for the Father, His patience with the apostles and disciples, His condescension to the multitude, His compassion for the sick and poor, His love for sinners, His humility in the working of His daily miracles! It is in times of trial and suffering above all that we expect the perfection of a Christian to stand fast and endure, and so it is in His sufferings and death that the sublime example of Jesus Christ shines out most conspicuously.
We find Him enduring His passion with infinite fortitude and in complete resignation to the will of God; and, full of love for His enemies, offering Himself on the cross in a spirit of complete self-sacrifice for the sins of the world. His every thought, word, and deed, His life, sufferings, and death, are alike stamped with the impress of infinite perfection; and the saints who strove to lead perfect lives here below have all taken Him as their type and model.
Our Saviour Himself calls upon us to imitate Him, saying: "Learn of Me, for I am meek and humble of heart," (cf Matt 11:29) and especially in His sufferings He wishes to give us an example: "If any man will be My disciple, let him take up his cross and follow Me." ( cf Matt 16:24).
St. Peter tells us the same thing: "Christ suffered for us, leaving us an example that you should follow His steps." (1Pet 2:21)
If we want to know what particular points and virtues in Our Lord's life to keep specially before our eyes in order to imitate them ourselves in our own lives, we should do well to study the eight beatitudes given by our Saviour at the beginning of His public ministry in the Sermon on the Mount.
They are:
(1) "Blessed are the poor in spirit"-those who are humble;
(2) "Blessed are the meek"-the patient and gentle;
(3) "Blessed are they that mourn"-those who repent and do penance;
(4) "Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice' '-who strain earnestly after perfection;
(5) "Blessed are the merciful"-who practice brotherly love;
(6) "Blessed are the clean of heart"-the chaste;
(7) "Blessed are the peace-makers"-those who love peace;
(8) "Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake"-who show fortitude under suffering and injury.
Our Saviour in very clear language promised the reward of eternal life to all who practice these virtues; they will inherit the kingdom of heaven, the land of promise; they will enjoy the consolation of eternal life, the bliss of everlasting happiness, the vision of God, their Father, for all eternity. The eight beatitudes give us a complete plan or program, so to speak, for a perfect Christian life, and a glance at the life of our divine Saviour, one look at His cross, will convince us that He Himself practiced in the most complete manner all that He requires of us.
Adapted from:
Popular Sermons on the Catechism, Bamberg & Thurston, 1914
Gospel for Thursday, 3rd Week of Easter
From: John 6:44-51
The Discourse on the Bread of Life (Continuation)
(Jesus said to the Jews,) [44] "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day. [45] It is written in the prophets, `And they shall all be taught by God.' Every one who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me. [46] Not that any one has seen the Father except Him who is from God; He has seen the Father. [47] Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life. [48] I am the bread of life. [49] Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. [50] This is the bread which comes down from Heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die. [51] I am the living bread which came down from Heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is My flesh."
**********************
Commentary:
44-45. Seeking Jesus until one finds Him is a free gift which no one can obtain through his own efforts, although everyone should try to be well disposed to receiving it. The Magisterium of the Church has recalled this teaching in Vatican II: "Before this faith can be exercised, man must have the grace of God to move and assist him; he must have the interior help of the Holy Spirit, who moves the heart and converts it to God, who opens the eyes of the mind and makes it easy for all to accept and believe the truth" ("Dei Verbum", 5).
When Jesus says, "They shall all be taught by God", He is invoking Isaiah 54:13 and Jeremiah 31:33ff, where the prophets refer to the future Covenant which God will establish with His people when the Messiah comes, the Covenant which will be sealed forever with the blood of the Messiah and which God will write on their hearts (cf. Isaiah 53:10-12; Jeremiah 31:31-34).
The last sentence of verse 45 refers to God's Revelation through the prophets and especially through Jesus Christ.
46. Men can know God the Father only through Jesus Christ, because only He has seen the Father, whom He has come to reveal to us. In his prologue St. John already said: "No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has made Him known" (John 1:18). Later on Jesus will say to Philip at the Last Supper: "He who has seen Me has seen the Father" (John 14:9), for Christ is the Way, the Truth and the Life, and no one goes to the Father except through Him (cf. John 14:6).
In other words, in Christ God's revelation to men reaches its climax: "For He sent His Son, the eternal Word who enlightens all men, to dwell among men and to tell them about the inner life of God (cf. John 1:1-18). Hence, Jesus Christ, sent as `a man among men', `utters the words of God' (John 3:34), and accomplishes the saving work which the Father gave Him to do (cf. John 5:36; 17:4). To see Jesus is to see His Father (cf. John 14:9)" (Vatican II, "Dei Verbum", 4).
48. With this solemn declaration, which He repeats because of His audience's doubts, (cf. John 6:35, 41, 48), Jesus begins the second part of His discourse, in which He explicitly reveals the great mystery of the Blessed Eucharist. Christ's words have such a tremendous realism about them that they cannot be interpreted in a figurative way: if Christ were not really present under the species of bread and wine, this discourse would make absolutely no sense. But if His real presence in the Eucharist is accepted on faith, then His meaning is quite clear and we can see how infinite and tender His love for us is.
This is so great a mystery that it has always acted as a touchstone for Christian faith: it is proclaimed as "the mystery of our faith" immediately after the Consecration of the Mass. Some of our Lord's hearers were scandalized by what He said on this occasion (cf. verses 60-66). Down through history people have tried to dilute the obvious meaning of our Lord's words. In our own day the Magisterium of the Church has explained this teaching in these words" "When Transubstantiation has taken place, there is no doubt that the appearance of the bread and the appearance of the wine take on a new expressiveness and a new purpose since they are no longer common bread and common drink, but rather the sign of something sacred and the sign of spiritual food. But they take on a new expressiveness and a new purpose for the very reason that they contain a new `reality' which we are right to call "ontological". For beneath these appearances there is no longer what was there before but something quite different [...] since on the conversion of the bread and wine's substance, or nature, into the body and blood of Christ, nothing is left of the bread and the wine but the appearances alone. Beneath these appearances Christ is present whole and entire, bodily present too, in His physical `reality', although not in the manner in which bodies are present in place.
For this reason the Fathers have had to issue frequent warnings to the faithful, when they consider this august Sacrament, not to be satisfied with the senses which announce the properties of bread and wine. They should rather assent to the words of Christ: these are of such power that they change, transform, `transelement' the bread and the wine into His body and blood. The reason for this, as the same Fathers say more than once, is that the power which performs this action is the same power of Almighty God that created the whole universe out of nothing at the beginning of time" (Paul VI, "Mysterium Fidei").
49-51. The manna during the Exodus was a figure of this bread--Christ Himself--which nourishes Christians on their pilgrimage through this world. Communion is the wonderful banquet at which Christ gives Himself to us: "the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is My flesh". These words promise the manifestation of the Eucharist at the Last Supper: "This is My body which is for you" (1 Corinthians 11:24). The words "for the life of the world" and "for you" refer to the redemptive value of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. In some sacrifices of the Old Testament, which were a figure of the sacrifice of Christ, part of the animal offered up was later used for food, signifying participation in the sacred rite (cf. Exodus 11:3-4). So, by receiving Holy Communion, we are sharing in the sacrifice of Christ: which is why the Church sings in the Liturgy of the Hours on the Feast of Corpus Christi: "O sacred feast in which we partake of Christ: His sufferings are remembered, our minds are filled with His grace and we receive a pledge of the glory that is to be ours" ("Magnificat Antiphon", Evening Prayer II).
************************
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.
The Discourse on the Bread of Life (Continuation)
(Jesus said to the Jews,) [44] "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day. [45] It is written in the prophets, `And they shall all be taught by God.' Every one who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me. [46] Not that any one has seen the Father except Him who is from God; He has seen the Father. [47] Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life. [48] I am the bread of life. [49] Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. [50] This is the bread which comes down from Heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die. [51] I am the living bread which came down from Heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is My flesh."
**********************
Commentary:
44-45. Seeking Jesus until one finds Him is a free gift which no one can obtain through his own efforts, although everyone should try to be well disposed to receiving it. The Magisterium of the Church has recalled this teaching in Vatican II: "Before this faith can be exercised, man must have the grace of God to move and assist him; he must have the interior help of the Holy Spirit, who moves the heart and converts it to God, who opens the eyes of the mind and makes it easy for all to accept and believe the truth" ("Dei Verbum", 5).
When Jesus says, "They shall all be taught by God", He is invoking Isaiah 54:13 and Jeremiah 31:33ff, where the prophets refer to the future Covenant which God will establish with His people when the Messiah comes, the Covenant which will be sealed forever with the blood of the Messiah and which God will write on their hearts (cf. Isaiah 53:10-12; Jeremiah 31:31-34).
The last sentence of verse 45 refers to God's Revelation through the prophets and especially through Jesus Christ.
46. Men can know God the Father only through Jesus Christ, because only He has seen the Father, whom He has come to reveal to us. In his prologue St. John already said: "No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has made Him known" (John 1:18). Later on Jesus will say to Philip at the Last Supper: "He who has seen Me has seen the Father" (John 14:9), for Christ is the Way, the Truth and the Life, and no one goes to the Father except through Him (cf. John 14:6).
In other words, in Christ God's revelation to men reaches its climax: "For He sent His Son, the eternal Word who enlightens all men, to dwell among men and to tell them about the inner life of God (cf. John 1:1-18). Hence, Jesus Christ, sent as `a man among men', `utters the words of God' (John 3:34), and accomplishes the saving work which the Father gave Him to do (cf. John 5:36; 17:4). To see Jesus is to see His Father (cf. John 14:9)" (Vatican II, "Dei Verbum", 4).
48. With this solemn declaration, which He repeats because of His audience's doubts, (cf. John 6:35, 41, 48), Jesus begins the second part of His discourse, in which He explicitly reveals the great mystery of the Blessed Eucharist. Christ's words have such a tremendous realism about them that they cannot be interpreted in a figurative way: if Christ were not really present under the species of bread and wine, this discourse would make absolutely no sense. But if His real presence in the Eucharist is accepted on faith, then His meaning is quite clear and we can see how infinite and tender His love for us is.
This is so great a mystery that it has always acted as a touchstone for Christian faith: it is proclaimed as "the mystery of our faith" immediately after the Consecration of the Mass. Some of our Lord's hearers were scandalized by what He said on this occasion (cf. verses 60-66). Down through history people have tried to dilute the obvious meaning of our Lord's words. In our own day the Magisterium of the Church has explained this teaching in these words" "When Transubstantiation has taken place, there is no doubt that the appearance of the bread and the appearance of the wine take on a new expressiveness and a new purpose since they are no longer common bread and common drink, but rather the sign of something sacred and the sign of spiritual food. But they take on a new expressiveness and a new purpose for the very reason that they contain a new `reality' which we are right to call "ontological". For beneath these appearances there is no longer what was there before but something quite different [...] since on the conversion of the bread and wine's substance, or nature, into the body and blood of Christ, nothing is left of the bread and the wine but the appearances alone. Beneath these appearances Christ is present whole and entire, bodily present too, in His physical `reality', although not in the manner in which bodies are present in place.
For this reason the Fathers have had to issue frequent warnings to the faithful, when they consider this august Sacrament, not to be satisfied with the senses which announce the properties of bread and wine. They should rather assent to the words of Christ: these are of such power that they change, transform, `transelement' the bread and the wine into His body and blood. The reason for this, as the same Fathers say more than once, is that the power which performs this action is the same power of Almighty God that created the whole universe out of nothing at the beginning of time" (Paul VI, "Mysterium Fidei").
49-51. The manna during the Exodus was a figure of this bread--Christ Himself--which nourishes Christians on their pilgrimage through this world. Communion is the wonderful banquet at which Christ gives Himself to us: "the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is My flesh". These words promise the manifestation of the Eucharist at the Last Supper: "This is My body which is for you" (1 Corinthians 11:24). The words "for the life of the world" and "for you" refer to the redemptive value of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. In some sacrifices of the Old Testament, which were a figure of the sacrifice of Christ, part of the animal offered up was later used for food, signifying participation in the sacred rite (cf. Exodus 11:3-4). So, by receiving Holy Communion, we are sharing in the sacrifice of Christ: which is why the Church sings in the Liturgy of the Hours on the Feast of Corpus Christi: "O sacred feast in which we partake of Christ: His sufferings are remembered, our minds are filled with His grace and we receive a pledge of the glory that is to be ours" ("Magnificat Antiphon", Evening Prayer II).
************************
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.
Wednesday, April 13, 2005
Adrift in a Sea of Moral Confusion
Immediately following the death of the Holy Father on April 2, "Catholics Speak Out" and the "Quixote Center", issued a Press Release titled: "A Man of Contradictions: Pope John Paul II Leaves a Mixed Legacy"
This group begins by stating:
Some of the statements include:
For starters, one can look in Ecclesia de Eucharistia
44. Precisely because the Church's unity, which the Eucharist brings about through the Lord's sacrifice and by communion in his body and blood, absolutely requires full communion in the bonds of the profession of faith, the sacraments and ecclesiastical governance, it is not possible to celebrate together the same Eucharistic liturgy until those bonds are fully re-established. Any such concelebration would not be a valid means, and might well prove instead to be an obstacle, to the attainment of full communion, by weakening the sense of how far we remain from this goal and by introducing or exacerbating ambiguities with regard to one or another truth of the faith. The path towards full unity can only be undertaken in truth. In this area, the prohibitions of Church law leave no room for uncertainty,92 in fidelity to the moral norm laid down by the Second Vatican Council.93
I would like nonetheless to reaffirm what I said in my Encyclical Letter Ut Unum Sint after having acknowledged the impossibility of Eucharistic sharing: “And yet we do have a burning desire to join in celebrating the one Eucharist of the Lord, and this desire itself is already a common prayer of praise, a single supplication. Together we speak to the Father and increasingly we do so 'with one heart'”.94
The next "reason" given for a "mixed legacy":
Grown men and women who are followers of Christ "should be able to control their reproductive lives" - indeed they should! And the Church provides the moral teaching for us so that we can be clear what is and is not pleasing to God. The Church assists us with her wisdom which comes from the Holy Spirit. We receive certain gifts of the Holy Spirit, provided we are properly disposed. These gifts, these graces, give us the necessary strength and protection against the sins of impurity, against the sins violating the commandments of the Decalogue.
The Holy Father has affirmed the constant teaching of the Church. The "millions' who ignore the teaching of the Church on artificial contraception, directly procured abortions, and homosexuality are not only ignoring and disobeying the Church, they are refusing obedience to Christ, Himself.
Rather than address each issue, for there are many, I will instead just post those which are listed by this group of professed "Catholics". It would be one thing if there were one or two issues which could be discussed in an intelligent manner. However, these groups, quite often, raise numerous issues, many of which are sexual in nature and each one has been addressed at length by the Church before. A defective understanding of Catholicism and general morality is often the cause of such vehement disagreement and defiance of Church teaching.
And Paragraph 2358 states: "The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. This inclination, which is objectively disordered, constitutes for most of them a trial. They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God's will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord's Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition."
Perhaps, if the Church had addressed this cancerous disease in a manner relative to its dangers to the faithful and exercised her available discplinary and medicinal remedies, the Church would not be in the precarious position she is in now. It seems that the Church needs a cleansing of the putrification that continues to contaminate and poison the faithful. Are those who belong to dissenting groups such as this really and truly Catholic? How is this possible, while they may have been baptised as Catholics, demonstrate by their obstinate actions that they have rejected Christ and His Church and that they have no qualms in corrupting others.
May our Lord have mercy on us, on His Church, and on those hell-bent on destroying His Church.
This group begins by stating:
Catholics Speak Out and the Quixote Center pray for the pope’s soul. We acknowledge his essential goodness and deep spirituality.They then begin to expound on the Holy Father's "very mixed legacy." There can be no doubt that the Holy Father constantly affirmed the perennial teachings of Christ and His Church. For this, many professed Catholics became upset - they were upset because the Church would not approve them in their sins. A rational and knowledgable Catholic can hardly hold the position that the Holy Father's continued exposition of irreformable Church teaching resulted in a "mixed legacy." The only thing which seems to be "mixed" are the scrambled ideas and positions held by those who have been seduced by Satan.
Some of the statements include:
He even shared the Holy Eucharist with men and women who had publicly dissented with church teachings, then turned around and signed a solemn statement that no member of another Christian denomination could sit at the holy table.The Catholic response to this confused statement can be read in a number of places:
For starters, one can look in Ecclesia de Eucharistia
44. Precisely because the Church's unity, which the Eucharist brings about through the Lord's sacrifice and by communion in his body and blood, absolutely requires full communion in the bonds of the profession of faith, the sacraments and ecclesiastical governance, it is not possible to celebrate together the same Eucharistic liturgy until those bonds are fully re-established. Any such concelebration would not be a valid means, and might well prove instead to be an obstacle, to the attainment of full communion, by weakening the sense of how far we remain from this goal and by introducing or exacerbating ambiguities with regard to one or another truth of the faith. The path towards full unity can only be undertaken in truth. In this area, the prohibitions of Church law leave no room for uncertainty,92 in fidelity to the moral norm laid down by the Second Vatican Council.93
I would like nonetheless to reaffirm what I said in my Encyclical Letter Ut Unum Sint after having acknowledged the impossibility of Eucharistic sharing: “And yet we do have a burning desire to join in celebrating the one Eucharist of the Lord, and this desire itself is already a common prayer of praise, a single supplication. Together we speak to the Father and increasingly we do so 'with one heart'”.94
The next "reason" given for a "mixed legacy":
...he denied that grown women and men should be able to control their reproductive lives without interference from the church or the state. Under his reign, millions walked away from the church or ignored its teachings.What is the difference between those who walk away today and those who walked away from our Lord, as we read in the Sixth Chapter of John? "This is a hard saying - who can accept it?"
Grown men and women who are followers of Christ "should be able to control their reproductive lives" - indeed they should! And the Church provides the moral teaching for us so that we can be clear what is and is not pleasing to God. The Church assists us with her wisdom which comes from the Holy Spirit. We receive certain gifts of the Holy Spirit, provided we are properly disposed. These gifts, these graces, give us the necessary strength and protection against the sins of impurity, against the sins violating the commandments of the Decalogue.
The Holy Father has affirmed the constant teaching of the Church. The "millions' who ignore the teaching of the Church on artificial contraception, directly procured abortions, and homosexuality are not only ignoring and disobeying the Church, they are refusing obedience to Christ, Himself.
He tried to construct a new understanding of the role of women in church and society, spoke of women’s “complementarity,” their fundamental equality, but made sure they would never receive equal treatment in the church.Men and women are different, yet equal in dignity. This subject has been beaten to death but some still refuse to accept that God created man and woman as He did.
Rather than address each issue, for there are many, I will instead just post those which are listed by this group of professed "Catholics". It would be one thing if there were one or two issues which could be discussed in an intelligent manner. However, these groups, quite often, raise numerous issues, many of which are sexual in nature and each one has been addressed at length by the Church before. A defective understanding of Catholicism and general morality is often the cause of such vehement disagreement and defiance of Church teaching.
He waged a war against homosexual persons, and bitterly denounced a gay pride march in Rome, taking it as a personal affront—never acknowledging the role that gay men exercise in staffing the churches as priests.The Holy Father was very clear to show concern for the individual while rejecting the individual's sins. As the Catechism (#2357) reminds us, "Basing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual acts as acts of grave depravity,141 tradition has always declared that "...homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered."142 They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved."
And Paragraph 2358 states: "The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. This inclination, which is objectively disordered, constitutes for most of them a trial. They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God's will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord's Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition."
John Paul II extolled democracy, but exercised an iron hand over the church.There are many, many others who would disagree with this statement. The Holy Father was very lenient and allowed much of this dissent to continue unabated, as were many of the bishops who failed to excise the cancer from the body.
John Paul strengthened the Curia, which hated and fought Vatican II, stripping the bishops of any real authority, setting in motion a determined effort to roll back the clock and the prophetic gains envisioned at Vatican II.Again, the Holy Father, repeatedly fostered and promoted the reforms of Vatican II. Those who persist in claiming he was "rolling back the clock" are flagrantly ignorant of the efforts of the Pope in implementing the vision of the Council. Most of these people, I suspect, could not even tell us what the documents of Vatican II are, and probably do not even know how many documents were issued by the Second Vatican Council.
John Paul II’s machinery subjected the bishops to galling bouts of liturgical editing by junior members of the curia with little or no linguistic experience.Sheer lunacy...
John Paul II oppressed those who disagreed with him. The man who advocated for human rights denied freedom of expression to theologians...Again, it is clear from statements like this, particularly when the facts utterly refute this statement, that these people appear to be deranged, suffering from a glaring inability to see and deal with reality. They either ignore or distort the facts. When we can still see Richard McBrien and others spouting heresy at every opportunity, we can be certain that the Holy Father did not deny freedom of expression to a sufficient number of so-called "theologians".
When it became clear that John Paul II would never drop the man-made (not revealed) rule of celibacy, thousands of priests walked away from their deeply loved call to serve in vocations they loved, unable to live a lie."Unable to live a lie?" What a revealing statement...! Those men entering the seminary knew well beforehand of the sacrifices they would be making and of the gifts, the graces, they would receive for dedicating their lives to God and to His people. Those, whether priests, religious, or laity, who deliberately chose to live a lie are ultimately responsible for their own actions.
Because of his rigidity, the church is nearing collapse.I could be wrong, but it seems that it is because of heretics and apostates infiltrating the Church and poisoning the faith that the Church, at least in the West, is faltering. Decades of little or no catechesis has left many unable to protect themselves from the poisoned elixir of pride offered by groups such as these.
Perhaps, if the Church had addressed this cancerous disease in a manner relative to its dangers to the faithful and exercised her available discplinary and medicinal remedies, the Church would not be in the precarious position she is in now. It seems that the Church needs a cleansing of the putrification that continues to contaminate and poison the faithful. Are those who belong to dissenting groups such as this really and truly Catholic? How is this possible, while they may have been baptised as Catholics, demonstrate by their obstinate actions that they have rejected Christ and His Church and that they have no qualms in corrupting others.
May our Lord have mercy on us, on His Church, and on those hell-bent on destroying His Church.
Catholics to eBay: Treat us as Fat People
William Donohue responds to eBay's failure to stop the sale of a purported Consecrated Host:
“As president of the nation’s largest Catholic civil rights organization, I was disturbed to learn that eBay would unnecessarily offend 63 million Catholics in the U.S., and 1.1 billion worldwide, by selling a consecrated Host online. To Catholics, the Eucharist is the center of our religion, worthy of the utmost reverence. While we don’t expect non-Catholics to maintain the same perspective, we do expect them to be respectful of our sentiments. That is why the decision not to withdraw this item is so disturbing.Full statement
. . .
“Last fall, eBay banned the book, Why Is America So Fat? Was that an example of your neutrality? Or maybe I’m missing something—was the book endowed with some sacred properties that eBay honors? In any event, the next time someone insults Catholics, please think of us as fat people.”
Painting at Franciscan University Depicts Pope as University Student
STEUBENVILLE, Ohio (CNS) -- A life-size painting of Pope John Paul II as a young university student now hangs in the lobby of the John Paul II Library at Franciscan University of Steubenville.More.
The painting by California artist Lisa Steinbrenner Andrews, who specializes in portraits and still-life subjects, was unveiled at the university April 8, just hours after Pope John Paul's funeral.
"It's a portrait of Karol Wojtyla as a university student destined to be pope," Andrews said. The painting is called "During Unrest the Lord Will Strike," a phrase taken from the work of one of the pope's favorite writers, 19th-century poet Juliusz Slowacki, who predicted 100 years before the election of Pope John Paul II that one day there would be a Slavic pope.
John Paul II's Poem Foreshadowing the Conclave
Official translation of the text of John Paul II's poem foreshadowing the conclave, which he wrote in Polish in 2002 as part of a volume of poetic meditations published by the Vatican the following year.From an Inside the Vatican NewsFlash
Judgment
In the Sistine the artist painted the Judgment,
The Judgment dominates the whole interior.
Here, the invisible End becomes poignant visibility.
This End is also the summit of transparency
such is the path of all generations.
"Non omnis moriar" (Not all of me will die).
What is imperishable in me
now stands face to face with Him Who Is!
This is what fills the central wall of the Sistine profusion of color.
Do you remember, Adam? At the beginning he asked you where are you?
And you replied: I hid myself from You because I was naked.
Who told you that you were naked?
The woman whom you put here with me gave me the fruit....
All those who populate the central wall of the Sistine painting
bear in themselves the heritage of that reply of yours!
Of that question and that response!
Such is the End of your path.
Epilogue
It is here, at the feet of this marvellous Sistine profusion of colour
that the Cardinals gather
a community responsible for the legacy of the keys of the Kingdom.
They come right here.
And once more Michelangelo wraps them in his vision.
In Him we live and move and have our being.
Who is He?
Look, here the creating hand of the Almighty Ancient One,
turned towards Adam....
In the beginning God created....
He, the all-seeing One....
The Sistine painting will then speak with the Word of the Lord:
Tu est Petrus (You are Peter) as Simon, the son of Jonah, heard.
To you I will give the keys of the Kingdom.
Those to whom the care of the legacy of the keys has been entrusted
gather here, allowing themselves to be enfolded by the Sistine s colours,
by the vision left to us by Michelangelo
so it was in August, and then in October,
of the memorable year of the two Conclaves,
and so it will be again, when the need arises after my death.
Michelangelo's vision must then speak to them.
Conclave: a joint concern for the legacy of the keys of the Kingdom.
They will find themselves between the Beginning and the End,
between the Day of Creation and the Day of Judgment.
It is given to man once to die and after that the judgment!
A final transparency and light.
The clarity of the events
the clarity of consciences
It is necessary that during the Conclave, Michelangelo teach them
Do not forget: "Omnia nuda et aperta sunt ante oculos Eius."
You who are in all, show the way!
He will teach you....
All conclave officials to take oath Friday
Vatican, Apr. 13 (CWNews.com) - All Church officials and employees who have any role the papal conclave that begins next Monday will be required to take an oath of secrecy on Friday, April 15, the Vatican press office has disclosed.Those required to take the oath include:
Doctors and nurses assigned to provide care for cardinals with medical conditionsMore.
Cooking, cleaning, and technical personnel
Drivers who will carry the cardinals in vans from the St. Martha residence to and from the Sistine Chapel, and elevator attendants
Fate of 7 Catholic Churches in Discussion in Wausau
The seven Wausau-area Roman Catholic churches involved in realignment discussions have composed a tentative plan, and priests and laity involved in the process have thus far kept a lid on the details.More.
Closing churches is nothing new to Diocese of La Crosse Bishop Jerome Listecki.
Some Cardinals Speak Out Despite Self-Imposed Silence
Three cardinals emphasize collegiality
Ratzinger said to favor free speech before conclave
By John L. Allen Jr.
National Catholic Reporter
Opus Dei Watching for Selection of Pope
MADRID, Spain (AP) - As cardinals prepare to elect a new pope, one Catholic community in particular has much at stake - Opus Dei, the ultraconservative movement at the center of the furor generated by ``The Da Vinci Code.''What a lead-in paragraph for the article...
Bishop Foley Suspends Resignation
Bishop David E. Foley had announced his resignation April seventh. He previously said the Vatican had accepted his retirement request on February third, his 75th birthday. But in a statement today, Foley said the announcement was premature and that the Vatican had not yet granted his request to step down.Source.
Gospel for Wednesday, 3rd Week of Easter
From: John 6:35-40
The Discourse on the Bread of Life (Continuation)
[35] Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. [36] But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe. [37] All that the Father gives Me will come to Me; and him who comes to Me I will not cast out. [38] For I have come down from Heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me; [39] and this is thewill of Him who sent Me, that I should lose nothing of all that He has given Me, but raise it up on the last day. [40] For this is the will of My Father, that every one who sees the Son and believes in Him should have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day."
*******************
Commentary:
35. Going to Jesus means believing in Him, for it is through faith that we approach our Lord. Jesus uses the metaphor of food and drink to show that He is the one who really meets all man's noblest aspirations: "How beautiful is our Catholic faith! It provides a solution for all our anxieties, calms our minds and fills our hearts with hope" ([St] J. Escriva, "The Way", 582).
37-40. Jesus clearly reveals that He is the one sent by the Father. This is something St. John the Baptist proclaimed earlier on (Jn 3:33-36), and Jesus Himself stated it in His dialogue with Nicodemus (Jn 3:17-21) and announced publicly to the Jews in Jerusalem (Jn 5:20-30). Since Jesus is the one sent by the Father, the bread of life come down from Heaven to give life to the world, everyone who believes in Him has eternal life, for it is God's will that everyone should be saved through Jesus Christ. These words of Jesus contain three mysteries: 1) that of faith in Jesus Christ, which means "going to Jesus", accepting His miracles (signs) and His words; 2) the mystery of the resurrection of believers, something which begins in this life through faith and becomes fully true in Heaven; 3) the mystery of predestination, the will of our Father in Heaven that all men be saved. These solemn words of our Lord fill the believer with hope.
St. Augustine, commenting on vv. 37 and 38, praises the humility of Jesus, the perfect model for the humility of the Christian: Jesus chose not to do His own will but that of the Father who sent Him: "Humbly am I come, to teach humility am I come, as the master of humility am I come; he who comes to Me is incorporated in Me; he who comes to Me, becomes humble; he who cleaves to Me will be humble, for he does not his will but God's" ("In Ioann. Evang.", 25, 15 and 16).
*************************
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.
The Discourse on the Bread of Life (Continuation)
[35] Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. [36] But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe. [37] All that the Father gives Me will come to Me; and him who comes to Me I will not cast out. [38] For I have come down from Heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me; [39] and this is thewill of Him who sent Me, that I should lose nothing of all that He has given Me, but raise it up on the last day. [40] For this is the will of My Father, that every one who sees the Son and believes in Him should have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day."
*******************
Commentary:
35. Going to Jesus means believing in Him, for it is through faith that we approach our Lord. Jesus uses the metaphor of food and drink to show that He is the one who really meets all man's noblest aspirations: "How beautiful is our Catholic faith! It provides a solution for all our anxieties, calms our minds and fills our hearts with hope" ([St] J. Escriva, "The Way", 582).
37-40. Jesus clearly reveals that He is the one sent by the Father. This is something St. John the Baptist proclaimed earlier on (Jn 3:33-36), and Jesus Himself stated it in His dialogue with Nicodemus (Jn 3:17-21) and announced publicly to the Jews in Jerusalem (Jn 5:20-30). Since Jesus is the one sent by the Father, the bread of life come down from Heaven to give life to the world, everyone who believes in Him has eternal life, for it is God's will that everyone should be saved through Jesus Christ. These words of Jesus contain three mysteries: 1) that of faith in Jesus Christ, which means "going to Jesus", accepting His miracles (signs) and His words; 2) the mystery of the resurrection of believers, something which begins in this life through faith and becomes fully true in Heaven; 3) the mystery of predestination, the will of our Father in Heaven that all men be saved. These solemn words of our Lord fill the believer with hope.
St. Augustine, commenting on vv. 37 and 38, praises the humility of Jesus, the perfect model for the humility of the Christian: Jesus chose not to do His own will but that of the Father who sent Him: "Humbly am I come, to teach humility am I come, as the master of humility am I come; he who comes to Me is incorporated in Me; he who comes to Me, becomes humble; he who cleaves to Me will be humble, for he does not his will but God's" ("In Ioann. Evang.", 25, 15 and 16).
*************************
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.
Tuesday, April 12, 2005
Time for Prayer and Growth in Charity
"Catholic" Women’s Ordination Conference Lays Out the Case for Women Priests
As unbecoming as it may be to certain people whose understanding is flawed or deficient, God, in fact, chose men -exclusively- to be His priests. This can be seen in the Old Testament in Aaron and in the New Testament in Christ.
This is not a question which pertains to one's worthiness, superiority or some other attribute. This pertains to God's plan, His providence, His gift, His will, His grace. The call to the ordained priesthood is not a matter of "rights" since no man or woman has any rights before God. There is no such thing as a "right" to be a priest. Nor is this a matter of justice or equality as some continue to bellow and wail.
God's choice of males for His ordained priesthood cannot legitimately be viewed as an 'accident' just as the sending of His Son to become man for our salvation was no accident or coincidence. The totality of His ultimate reasons are hidden from us in the wisdom of His Godhead. Given this fact, we are obliged to follow our Lord's commands and examples, especially in His gift of the Sacrament of Holy Orders.
Despite the continued irrational rants of some who are unable or unwilling to listen to reason or accept the teaching of the Church, we must continue to reaffirm the Church teaching in charity, trusting that someday, the emotionally confused or willfully ignorant may be enlightened by God's infinite grace.
All Catholics should be able to give a reasoned defense of the faith we have, as St. Peter advised. We would do well to review the documents above as well as the Catechism, beginning at paragraph 1536 on Holy Orders. We should also continue to pray for those who oppose the Church and, in so doing, oppose our Lord.
WASHINGTON, April 12 /U.S. Newswire/ -- At this pivotal time in the Catholic Church, the Women’s Ordination Conference (WOC), a feminist voice for women in the church, provides the theological, biblical, and historical reasons for ordaining women.This, of course, is in direct opposition to Inter Insigniores from the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith under Pope Paul VI and, most recently, Pope John Paul II's Ordinatio Sacerdotalis. One might presume that those in the WOC have yet to read and understand what the Church teaches.
“First and foremost, God calls women to be priests. Women and men are equally created in the image of God; therefore, the church should embrace the gifts of women in all levels of ministry,” stated Joy Barnes, WOC’s executive director. “This is not simply an issue of women’s rights, this is fundamentally about fulfilling Jesus’ gospel message.”God, Himself, calls those who will exercise the function of the priesthood. No man makes this decision for himself - the Church discerns which men have been called by the Lord for His ordained ministry. It is as impossible that a woman could be called to the priesthood as it would be for a man to become a mother. One must see, however, that there is an equal dignity of a man and a woman, even though there is no equality in function - there exists a 'complimentarity' between the two.
As unbecoming as it may be to certain people whose understanding is flawed or deficient, God, in fact, chose men -exclusively- to be His priests. This can be seen in the Old Testament in Aaron and in the New Testament in Christ.
This is not a question which pertains to one's worthiness, superiority or some other attribute. This pertains to God's plan, His providence, His gift, His will, His grace. The call to the ordained priesthood is not a matter of "rights" since no man or woman has any rights before God. There is no such thing as a "right" to be a priest. Nor is this a matter of justice or equality as some continue to bellow and wail.
God's choice of males for His ordained priesthood cannot legitimately be viewed as an 'accident' just as the sending of His Son to become man for our salvation was no accident or coincidence. The totality of His ultimate reasons are hidden from us in the wisdom of His Godhead. Given this fact, we are obliged to follow our Lord's commands and examples, especially in His gift of the Sacrament of Holy Orders.
Despite the continued irrational rants of some who are unable or unwilling to listen to reason or accept the teaching of the Church, we must continue to reaffirm the Church teaching in charity, trusting that someday, the emotionally confused or willfully ignorant may be enlightened by God's infinite grace.
All Catholics should be able to give a reasoned defense of the faith we have, as St. Peter advised. We would do well to review the documents above as well as the Catechism, beginning at paragraph 1536 on Holy Orders. We should also continue to pray for those who oppose the Church and, in so doing, oppose our Lord.
The "Fruits" of Contraception and Secularization
US Census: 55% of US Families Childless
WASHINGTON, April 12, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The Howard Centre for Families, in a release today, revealed that fully 55 percent of US married-couple families are childless. A 2003 United States Census Bureau report revealed that, of 57,320,000 married couples, 31,406,000 did not have any children eighteen years of age or younger.More.
Some Details about the Upcoming Conclave
From Inside the Vatican:
-- a Mass before the conclave will be celebrated with the cardinal electors in St. Peters on Monday April 18, at 10 am, presided over by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. Following this, at 4:30 pm, the cardinals will move into the Sistine Chapel and the St. Martha residence, and take their oath etc.
-- the famous white (or black) smoke is supposed to arise from the Sistine Chapel each day at about 11 am, 12.30 am, 6 pm and 7.30 pm
-- a 2/3 vote is needed to elect a new Pope. After 30 unsuccessful ballots, a 1/2 majority is sufficient to elect the new Pope
-- after 3 balloting days, 1 day of prayer and reflection takes place (i.e., in the first week, this means that no votes will take place on Thursday)
-- most people believe that it won't come to this. The cardinals will be under pressure to demonstrate that the Church is united. Predications are that the new Pope will be elected no later then Tuesday or Wednesday.
-- the new Pope will come out on the balustrade about 1/2 to 1 hour after the white smoke has arisen
-- the installation of the new Pope is to take place on the Sunday after the election. This was previously known as the coronation, but Paul VI abolished this ritual and instead sold the pontifical crown to the Knights of Columbus in order to use the money for the poor. The crown is now on display in Washington, D.C.
-- a Mass before the conclave will be celebrated with the cardinal electors in St. Peters on Monday April 18, at 10 am, presided over by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. Following this, at 4:30 pm, the cardinals will move into the Sistine Chapel and the St. Martha residence, and take their oath etc.
-- the famous white (or black) smoke is supposed to arise from the Sistine Chapel each day at about 11 am, 12.30 am, 6 pm and 7.30 pm
-- a 2/3 vote is needed to elect a new Pope. After 30 unsuccessful ballots, a 1/2 majority is sufficient to elect the new Pope
-- after 3 balloting days, 1 day of prayer and reflection takes place (i.e., in the first week, this means that no votes will take place on Thursday)
-- most people believe that it won't come to this. The cardinals will be under pressure to demonstrate that the Church is united. Predications are that the new Pope will be elected no later then Tuesday or Wednesday.
-- the new Pope will come out on the balustrade about 1/2 to 1 hour after the white smoke has arisen
-- the installation of the new Pope is to take place on the Sunday after the election. This was previously known as the coronation, but Paul VI abolished this ritual and instead sold the pontifical crown to the Knights of Columbus in order to use the money for the poor. The crown is now on display in Washington, D.C.
Retrospective on Pope's Life & Work
Pope John Paul II was truly a beacon of light in a weary world. This faithful shepherd will live on in our memories, and his legacy will have a profound and lasting impact on the Church. We pause to celebrate his life and work.The Retrospective by CatholicCulture is here.
More on the letter by Fr. William Forst....
In an attempt to understand the confusion shown in a letter by Fr. Forst, a Google search allows one to gain some insight into the reasons.
Apparently, Fr. Forst, along with several others, were signatories of an Open letter to Cardinal Ratzinger which claimed to be a "Statement of Solidarity and Support of Women Called to the Ordained Ministry".
This statement of "support" comes from the Quixote Center, a group which dissents from the teachings of the Church and promotes this dissent without regret. It is nothing more than an outright rejection of a truth of the Faith (that ordination is reserved to males alone) that requires one's assent to remain Catholic. Such a rejection places one outside the bounds of the Church and can rightly be seen as a rejection of Christ and His authority.
Apparently, Fr. Forst, along with several others, were signatories of an Open letter to Cardinal Ratzinger which claimed to be a "Statement of Solidarity and Support of Women Called to the Ordained Ministry".
This statement of "support" comes from the Quixote Center, a group which dissents from the teachings of the Church and promotes this dissent without regret. It is nothing more than an outright rejection of a truth of the Faith (that ordination is reserved to males alone) that requires one's assent to remain Catholic. Such a rejection places one outside the bounds of the Church and can rightly be seen as a rejection of Christ and His authority.
The Pope as Monarch: Reflections on Politics
As I ponder the life and death of John Paul II, I am reminded that there is something about a pope that is very much like a king. This analogy with the social order is far from perfect, for the Church and the body politic are very different things. But there is much to be gained from wondering about the sheer greatness of this fallen leader. For both the Church and the world, some of these gains may be political.
Moments — Private and Public — With the Pope
George Weigel was given unprecedented access to Pope John Paul II while he prepared his biography.This is another good article in the National Catholic Register.
But after 1999’s Witness to Hope was on the bookshelves, he found that the Pope had moved him in a far deeper way than merely as the subject of research for a book. He spoke with Father Raymond J. de Souza for the Register.
--------
Many people expect that John Paul II will be declared a saint within 10 or 15 years. If that happens, what should he be the patron saint of?
Intellectuals, because he demonstrated what many deemed impossible: that it was possible to take both the great tradition of Christianity and the intellectual passions of modernity seriously.
In doing that, he embodied an image that I think was first proposed by Father Richard Neuhaus: a Church opening its windows to the modern world, certainly, but also a Church challenging the modern world to open its windows to the worlds of which it is part, including preeminently the world of transcendent Truth and Love.
Governor of Illinois Threatens Pharmacists
Both sides are preparing for what may turn into a legal battle over Gov. Blagojevich's order that pharmacists dispense contraceptives, even those that some pharmacists say kill embryos.Blagojevich is a tyrant in the People's Republik of Illinois...
The Illinois Pharmacists Association asked Blagojevich to rescind his order. State Rep. Ron Stephens, a Downstate pharmacist, said, "I will not abide by it." The conservative Family PAC is urging pharmacists to ignore the order. And Catholic Bishop Thomas Paprocki implored Blagojevich from the pulpit to rescind the order.
"In your call to pharmacists urging them to violate the emergency rule I issued, you neglected to remind them of the penalties their employers will face if they deny a woman her right to health care," Blagojevich wrote Caprio. Those penalties range from fines to losing their licenses, Blagojevich said.
Article here.
Confusion over "Moral Values"
Medicaid cuts and moral valuesI can agree with the priest in the first instance that he cites above. However, by the time his pen scribbles down to the second paragraph, the good priest seems to have lost his ability for rational thought. Maybe he could address all of those who have sought refuge in St. Charles county to move back to St. Louis City and County.
I see an apparent moral contradiction between two articles appearing in your paper of April 7. One informs us that the Missouri Legislature has cut funding for Medicaid. The other notes that the Missouri Senate approved state subsidies for sports stadiums.
It appears this is taking from the poor to pay the rich. As a Catholic priest, I see the Archdiocese of St. Louis copying this same morality by closing parishes and schools in the poorer part of St. Louis and St. Louis County and building a new church and grade and high school in St. Charles County.
I wonder if these are the same "moral values" we voted for last November?
Fr. William L. Forst
Florissant
Source
By the way, I could not find Fr. Forst listed at the archdiocesan web site - either in the parish search or the general search. What parish did or does he serve or is he a diocesan priest?
Gospel for Tuesday, 3rd Week of Easter
From: John 6:30-35
The Discourse on the Bread of Life (Continuation)
[30] So they said to Him (Jesus), "Then what sign do You do, that we may see, and believe You? What work do You perform? [31] Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, `He gave them bread from Heaven to eat.'" [32] Jesus then said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from Heaven; My Father gives you the true bread from Heaven. [33] For the bread of God is that which comes down from Heaven, and gives life to the world." [34] They said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always." [35] Jesus said them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst."
*********************
Commentary:
28-34. This dialogue between Jesus and His hearers is reminiscent of the episode of the Samaritan woman (cf. John 4:11-15). On that occasion Jesus was speaking about water springing up to eternal life; here, He speaks of bread coming down from Heaven to give to the world. There, the woman was asking Jesus if He was greater than Jacob; here the people want to know if He can compare with Moses (cf. Exodus 16:13). "The Lord spoke of Himself in a way that made Him seem superior to Moses, for Moses never dared to say that he would give food which would never perish but would endure to eternal life. Jesus promises much more than Moses. Moses promised a kingdom, and a land flowing with milk and honey, good health and other temporal blessings [...], plenty for the belly, but food which perishes; whereas Christ promised food which never perishes but which endures forever" (St. Augustine, "In Ioann. Evang.", 25:12).
These people know that the manna--food which the Jews collected every day during the journey through the wilderness (cf. Exodus 16:13ff)--symbolized messianic blessings; which was why they asked our Lord for a dramatic sign like the manna. But there was no way they could suspect that the manna was a figure of a great supernatural messianic gift which Christ was bringing to mankind--the Blessed Eucharist. In this dialogue and in the first part of the discourse (verses 35-47), the main thing Jesus is trying to do is bring them to make an act of faith in Him, so that He can then openly reveal to them the mystery of the Blessed Eucharist--that He is the bread "which comes down from Heaven, and gives life to the world" (verse 33). Also, St. Paul explains that the manna and the other marvels which happened in the wilderness were a clear prefiguring of Jesus Christ (cf. 1 Corinthians 10:3-4).
The disbelieving attitude of these Jews prevented them from accepting what Jesus revealed. To accept the mystery of the Eucharist, faith is required, as [Pope] Paul VI stressed: "In the first place we want to remind you that the Eucharist is a very great mystery; strictly speaking, to use the words of sacred liturgy, it is `the mystery of faith'. This is something well known to you but it is essential to the purpose of rejecting any poisonous rationalism. Many martyrs have witnessed to it with their blood. Distinguished Fathers and Doctors of the Church in unbroken succession have taught and professed it. [...] We must, therefore, approach this mystery, above all, with humble reverence, not following human arguments, which ought to be hushed, but in steadfast adherence to divine revelation" ("Mysterium Fidei").
35. Going to Jesus means believing in Him, for it is through faith that we approach our Lord. Jesus uses the metaphor of food and drink to show that He is the one who really meets all man's noblest aspirations: "How beautiful is our Catholic faith! It provides a solution for all our anxieties, calms our minds and fills our hearts with hope" ([St] J. Escriva, "The Way", 582).
******************
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.
The Discourse on the Bread of Life (Continuation)
[30] So they said to Him (Jesus), "Then what sign do You do, that we may see, and believe You? What work do You perform? [31] Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, `He gave them bread from Heaven to eat.'" [32] Jesus then said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from Heaven; My Father gives you the true bread from Heaven. [33] For the bread of God is that which comes down from Heaven, and gives life to the world." [34] They said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always." [35] Jesus said them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst."
*********************
Commentary:
28-34. This dialogue between Jesus and His hearers is reminiscent of the episode of the Samaritan woman (cf. John 4:11-15). On that occasion Jesus was speaking about water springing up to eternal life; here, He speaks of bread coming down from Heaven to give to the world. There, the woman was asking Jesus if He was greater than Jacob; here the people want to know if He can compare with Moses (cf. Exodus 16:13). "The Lord spoke of Himself in a way that made Him seem superior to Moses, for Moses never dared to say that he would give food which would never perish but would endure to eternal life. Jesus promises much more than Moses. Moses promised a kingdom, and a land flowing with milk and honey, good health and other temporal blessings [...], plenty for the belly, but food which perishes; whereas Christ promised food which never perishes but which endures forever" (St. Augustine, "In Ioann. Evang.", 25:12).
These people know that the manna--food which the Jews collected every day during the journey through the wilderness (cf. Exodus 16:13ff)--symbolized messianic blessings; which was why they asked our Lord for a dramatic sign like the manna. But there was no way they could suspect that the manna was a figure of a great supernatural messianic gift which Christ was bringing to mankind--the Blessed Eucharist. In this dialogue and in the first part of the discourse (verses 35-47), the main thing Jesus is trying to do is bring them to make an act of faith in Him, so that He can then openly reveal to them the mystery of the Blessed Eucharist--that He is the bread "which comes down from Heaven, and gives life to the world" (verse 33). Also, St. Paul explains that the manna and the other marvels which happened in the wilderness were a clear prefiguring of Jesus Christ (cf. 1 Corinthians 10:3-4).
The disbelieving attitude of these Jews prevented them from accepting what Jesus revealed. To accept the mystery of the Eucharist, faith is required, as [Pope] Paul VI stressed: "In the first place we want to remind you that the Eucharist is a very great mystery; strictly speaking, to use the words of sacred liturgy, it is `the mystery of faith'. This is something well known to you but it is essential to the purpose of rejecting any poisonous rationalism. Many martyrs have witnessed to it with their blood. Distinguished Fathers and Doctors of the Church in unbroken succession have taught and professed it. [...] We must, therefore, approach this mystery, above all, with humble reverence, not following human arguments, which ought to be hushed, but in steadfast adherence to divine revelation" ("Mysterium Fidei").
35. Going to Jesus means believing in Him, for it is through faith that we approach our Lord. Jesus uses the metaphor of food and drink to show that He is the one who really meets all man's noblest aspirations: "How beautiful is our Catholic faith! It provides a solution for all our anxieties, calms our minds and fills our hearts with hope" ([St] J. Escriva, "The Way", 582).
******************
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.
Monday, April 11, 2005
Canadian "Catholic" Dissident Paper Banned from Diocese
The Catholic New Times newspaper is similar in many ways to the National unCatholic Reporter. Both publications continue to promote dissent and heterdoxy.
PEMBROKE, Ontario, April 11, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Pembroke Bishop Richard Smith, the current President of the Ontario Conference of Catholic Bishops, has banned the dissident Catholic New Times newspaper from parishes in his diocese. "I am hereby directing any parish that facilitates distribution of this newspaper to cease doing so immediately," wrote Bishop Smith in a letter to all pastors dated February 11.Bishop Smith should be praised for his stance against those who would pervert the faith and teachings of the Church. More bishops should do this to 1) cause the conversions and repentance of those responsible for such scandalous publications, or 2) to be effective in reducing the publication's readership. Both goals, I believe, are highly laudable.
The February edition of the 'Catholic New Times' "editorial comment contains views which are clearly at odds with the teaching of the church on faith and morals," Bishop Smith said. "In my judgement, it is not appropriate to have copies of this newspaper made available through our parishes, as this could be interpreted as diocesan approbation of its views."
The Catholic New Times' decades long dissent from Catholic teaching on major issues such as abortion, same sex 'marriage' and a female priesthood, is not news, but it is a source of constant scandal to many laity and faithful clergy.More here.
Opus Dei Prelate Says All Catholics Can Aid Conclave
The prelate of Opus Dei says that all Catholics can participate actively in the forthcoming conclave by "uniting ourselves with our prayer to the cardinals and the entire Church."More.
Sacrilege on EBAY
Eucharist from Mass w/ Pope John Paul II in 1998 +Xtras
Actual Eucharist I saved from Pope's 20th anniversary
The Host does not look to be that old, if indeed, it is a Consecrated Host. I have not tested an unconsecrated host to determine how many years one would last, but perhaps others have.
Actual Eucharist I saved from Pope's 20th anniversary
Fist of all, I AM NOT CATHOLIC AND DO NOT BELIEVE I'M GOING TO HELL FOR SELLING THIS COLLECTIBLE. So, if you're going to send me a message saying that I am don't waist your time because it'll just be deleted w/o being read. It's a momento from that great afternoon with Pope John Paul II.Source
Yes, this is the actual Eucharist I saved during the mass that I participated in on October 18th, 1998.
I ate one wafer then I went back and got another one to save and he gave me another one, but I did get a very dirty look! I was studying in Florence that semester and a bunch of us went down to Rome that week to partake. I'm not Catholic, but I found it all very interesting. Along with the Eucharist, I have the program from that day and a litte bulletin. It's all in Italian. I also have 4 stamps from the Vatican that year and a bottle opener that I bought when I was in Rome way back in 1992. From what I understand, if you're holding something in your hand during a certain moment when Pope John Paul II spoke during his mass, whetever it becomes blessed. I was holding this bottle opener during mass with him in 1992. It has his picture on one side and a picture of the Trevi Fountain on the other. Everything from 1998 (Eucharist, bulletin, program, and stamps, have been encased in plastic in my stratch book since then and have not had much light and no air. All in awesome condition and I believe extrememly rare for obvious reasons. I've included a pic of 2 pics I took that day in 1998 when I was there. The front of St. Peter's was already being cleaned up for the big 2000 festivities and my other pic would have been great instead for my friend's hand in the way! I would like to sell them as a package but would consider seperate offers. These truly are great pieces of history!
The Host does not look to be that old, if indeed, it is a Consecrated Host. I have not tested an unconsecrated host to determine how many years one would last, but perhaps others have.
Coming Sunday May 22, 2005 at "The Cedars"
The next America Needs Fatima Meeting is to be held on Sunday May 22, 2005 at 1:30PM at "The Cedars" St. Raymond's Co-Cathedral in St. Louis, featuring our guest speaker longtime American TFP member Mr. John Horvat.
The title of the talk is:
Death by Starvation: When Our Catholic Faith Clashes with Our Culture
Here is a brief description on the talk:
The title of the talk is:
Death by Starvation: When Our Catholic Faith Clashes with Our Culture
Here is a brief description on the talk:
In light of the Terri Schiavo case, death by starvation has been put in the limelight. Many have sought to say that food and water are extraordinary measures to sustain life. Our talk will clearly outline the Catholic position on this matter. It will explain why death by starvation is cruel and contrary to Divine and natural law. How “living wills” do not always resolve the problem. How the term “brain dead” is misused to facilitate death by starvation. We will discuss why today’s culture prepares the way for extending this practice beyond the mentally disabled.Hat Tip to Mark Serafino for the update.
Spread the word. Invite a friend. Bring a bus-load of neighbors and parishioners, just don't miss this meeting.
Better still, do you know a priest or doctor you could invite to this talk?
We will send out a reminder in a few weeks, in the meanwhile mark your calendars.
Please pray for our Cardinals and their election of a good successor to Pope John Paul II.
Cardinals to pray at pope's tomb before it opens to public
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The world's cardinals were scheduled to pray at the tomb of Pope John Paul II April 12, the evening before the grotto under St. Peter's Basilica was to open to the public.More.
Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said the cardinals would visit the tomb after the evening's celebration of a memorial Mass for the pope.
The grotto was to open to the public at 7 a.m. April 13, the spokesman said, and was expected to remain open 7 a.m.-6 p.m. daily.
April 11, Optional Memorial of St. Stanislaus, bishop & martyr
St. Stanislaus was the Bishop of Cracow, Poland. A champion of the liberty of the Church and of the dignity of man, he defended the lonely and the poor. When he reproached King Boleslaus II for his immoral life, the king himself killed him during Mass. He is the patron saint of Poland.More here.
Spirit of counsel and fortitude, have mercy on us. Litany of the Holy Spirit for the election of a holy pope.
Pray for our own current situation in which some defiant and obstinate members of St. Stanislaus Kostka parish persist in unlawful disobedience against the directives of our Archbishop and of the Church.
Gospel for Monday, 3rd Week of Easter
From: John 6:22-29
The People Look for Jesus
[22] On the next day the people who remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with His disciples, but that His disciples had gone away alone. [23] However, boats from Tiberias came near the place where they ate the bread after the Lord had given thanks. [24] So when the people saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.
The Discourse on the Bread of Life
[25] When they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, "Rabbi, when did You come here?" [26] Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. [27] Do not labor for the food which perishes, but the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you; for on Him has God the Father set His seal." [28] Then they said to Him, "What must we do, to be doing the works of God?" [29] Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him He has sent."
*********************
Commentary:
26. Our Lord begins by pointing out that their attitudes are wrong: if they have the right attitude they will be able to understand His teaching in the eucharistic discourse. "You seek me", St. Augustine comments, "for the flesh, not for the spirit. How many seek Jesus for no other purpose than that He may do them good in this present life! [...] Scarcely ever is Jesus sought for Jesus' sake" ("In Ioann. Evang.", 25, 10).
This verse marks the beginning of the discourse on the bread of life which goes up to verse 59. It opens with an introduction in the form of a dialogue between Jesus and the Jews (verses 26-34), in which our Lord reveals Himself as the bringer of the messianic gifts. Then comes the first part of the discourse (verses 35-47), in which Jesus presents Himself as the Bread of Life, in the sense that faith in Him is food for eternal life. In the second part (verses 48-59) Christ reveals the mystery of the Eucharist: He is the Bread of Life who gives Himself sacramentally as genuine food.
27. Bodily food helps keep us alive in this world; spiritual food sustains and develops supernatural life, which will last forever in Heaven. This food, which only God can give us, consists mainly in the gift of faith and sanctifying grace. Through God's infinite love we are given, in the Blessed Eucharist, the very author of these gifts, Jesus Christ, as nourishment for our souls.
"On Him has God the Father set His seal": our Lord here refers to the authority by virtue of which He can give men the gifts He has referred to: for, being God and man, Jesus' human nature is the instrument by means of which the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity acts. St. Thomas Aquinas comments on this sentence as follows: "What the Son of Man will give He possesses through His superiority over all other men in His singular and outstanding fullness of grace. ...When a seal is impressed on wax, the wax receives the complete form of the seal. So it is that the Son received the entire form of the Father. This occurred in two ways; eternally (eternal generation), which is not referred to here because the seal and the sealed are different in nature from one another; what is referred to here is the other manner, that is, the mystery of the Incarnation, whereby God the Father impressed on human nature the Word, who is the reflection and the very stamp of God's nature, as Hebrews 1:3 says" ("Commentary on St. John, in loc.").
******************
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.
The People Look for Jesus
[22] On the next day the people who remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with His disciples, but that His disciples had gone away alone. [23] However, boats from Tiberias came near the place where they ate the bread after the Lord had given thanks. [24] So when the people saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.
The Discourse on the Bread of Life
[25] When they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, "Rabbi, when did You come here?" [26] Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. [27] Do not labor for the food which perishes, but the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you; for on Him has God the Father set His seal." [28] Then they said to Him, "What must we do, to be doing the works of God?" [29] Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him He has sent."
*********************
Commentary:
26. Our Lord begins by pointing out that their attitudes are wrong: if they have the right attitude they will be able to understand His teaching in the eucharistic discourse. "You seek me", St. Augustine comments, "for the flesh, not for the spirit. How many seek Jesus for no other purpose than that He may do them good in this present life! [...] Scarcely ever is Jesus sought for Jesus' sake" ("In Ioann. Evang.", 25, 10).
This verse marks the beginning of the discourse on the bread of life which goes up to verse 59. It opens with an introduction in the form of a dialogue between Jesus and the Jews (verses 26-34), in which our Lord reveals Himself as the bringer of the messianic gifts. Then comes the first part of the discourse (verses 35-47), in which Jesus presents Himself as the Bread of Life, in the sense that faith in Him is food for eternal life. In the second part (verses 48-59) Christ reveals the mystery of the Eucharist: He is the Bread of Life who gives Himself sacramentally as genuine food.
27. Bodily food helps keep us alive in this world; spiritual food sustains and develops supernatural life, which will last forever in Heaven. This food, which only God can give us, consists mainly in the gift of faith and sanctifying grace. Through God's infinite love we are given, in the Blessed Eucharist, the very author of these gifts, Jesus Christ, as nourishment for our souls.
"On Him has God the Father set His seal": our Lord here refers to the authority by virtue of which He can give men the gifts He has referred to: for, being God and man, Jesus' human nature is the instrument by means of which the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity acts. St. Thomas Aquinas comments on this sentence as follows: "What the Son of Man will give He possesses through His superiority over all other men in His singular and outstanding fullness of grace. ...When a seal is impressed on wax, the wax receives the complete form of the seal. So it is that the Son received the entire form of the Father. This occurred in two ways; eternally (eternal generation), which is not referred to here because the seal and the sealed are different in nature from one another; what is referred to here is the other manner, that is, the mystery of the Incarnation, whereby God the Father impressed on human nature the Word, who is the reflection and the very stamp of God's nature, as Hebrews 1:3 says" ("Commentary on St. John, in loc.").
******************
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.
Sunday, April 10, 2005
Exact time of Pope's death has taken on mythic proportions in Poland
Since Pope John Paul II died at 9:37 p.m. on April 2, the precise time of his death has been elevated to the status of a holy hour in his native Poland. "There is a certain magic in the time of the Pope's death," said Paulina Dworczynska, a young woman in Warsaw. "At home, we light a candle. It's become a ritual."Source.
The cult of 9:37 p.m. began on Sunday, 24 hours after he died, and has grown daily since then, taking on mythical proportions by the time John Paul II's funeral was celebrated in Rome yesterday.
Medical Ethics Resource Documents
On Christian Perfection, Part 1
Be you therefore perfect as also your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matt. 5:48)
In what does Christian perfection consist?
Christian perfection consists in loving God above all things and all things in God. Its essence is to love God above all things, for by so doing we shall certainly also love all other things in Him, namely, as He wills, as much as He wills, and because He wills.
Are we justified in thus representing that Christian perfection consists before everything else in the love of God?
We are justified, for "love is the fulfilling of the law"; in other words, whoever loves God above all things has fulfilled the whole law perfectly. "Above all things have charity, which is the bond of perfection"; this means that charity and perfection are interwoven in the closest possible manner; it is the teaching of St. Paul, who had himself attained perfection and knew well in what it consists.
St. Augustine, St. Gregory, St. Thomas all agree with the holy apostle on this point.
Moreover, it is easy to see why we must seek Christian perfection in the love of God before everything else. There are many other glorious and beautiful virtues, such as humility, purity of heart, mercy. But if anyone of them alone constitutes Christian perfection it must necessarily be that one which is pre-eminent among them, the most sublime, the queen of them all. Which would we describe in these terms? Surely the love of God. The theological virtues rank before the moral virtues, and of them charity is the first and the greatest. "Now there remain faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity." All other virtues are but steps leading to the love of God.
If any single virtue comprises in itself the whole of Christian perfection, it must be one capable of including and implying all the others; and this is what the love of God does. If any man love God above all things, he will readily believe His word, hope firmly in His promises, and endeavor according to God's holy will to practice humility, brotherly love, mercy, and all the other virtues pleasing to Him.
Therefore, Christian perfection depends before everything else on love of God. It would be a mistake to think it consisted in long prayers, austerities, almsgiving, or the working of miracles. Perfection under some circumstances requires such things, or they may be marks and evidences of it, but they do not in themselves constitute it.
"If I should have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity I am nothing." The marks of perfection are the same as those by which we recognize true love of God.
How can we tell whether we love God?
We love God if we do His holy will, that is, if we keep His commandments.
Adapted from:
Popular Sermons on the Catechism, Bamberg & Thurston, 1914
In what does Christian perfection consist?
Christian perfection consists in loving God above all things and all things in God. Its essence is to love God above all things, for by so doing we shall certainly also love all other things in Him, namely, as He wills, as much as He wills, and because He wills.
Are we justified in thus representing that Christian perfection consists before everything else in the love of God?
We are justified, for "love is the fulfilling of the law"; in other words, whoever loves God above all things has fulfilled the whole law perfectly. "Above all things have charity, which is the bond of perfection"; this means that charity and perfection are interwoven in the closest possible manner; it is the teaching of St. Paul, who had himself attained perfection and knew well in what it consists.
St. Augustine, St. Gregory, St. Thomas all agree with the holy apostle on this point.
Moreover, it is easy to see why we must seek Christian perfection in the love of God before everything else. There are many other glorious and beautiful virtues, such as humility, purity of heart, mercy. But if anyone of them alone constitutes Christian perfection it must necessarily be that one which is pre-eminent among them, the most sublime, the queen of them all. Which would we describe in these terms? Surely the love of God. The theological virtues rank before the moral virtues, and of them charity is the first and the greatest. "Now there remain faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity." All other virtues are but steps leading to the love of God.
If any single virtue comprises in itself the whole of Christian perfection, it must be one capable of including and implying all the others; and this is what the love of God does. If any man love God above all things, he will readily believe His word, hope firmly in His promises, and endeavor according to God's holy will to practice humility, brotherly love, mercy, and all the other virtues pleasing to Him.
Therefore, Christian perfection depends before everything else on love of God. It would be a mistake to think it consisted in long prayers, austerities, almsgiving, or the working of miracles. Perfection under some circumstances requires such things, or they may be marks and evidences of it, but they do not in themselves constitute it.
"If I should have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity I am nothing." The marks of perfection are the same as those by which we recognize true love of God.
How can we tell whether we love God?
We love God if we do His holy will, that is, if we keep His commandments.
Adapted from:
Popular Sermons on the Catechism, Bamberg & Thurston, 1914
'Late Nite Catechism 2' at All Saints in St. Peters
From an E-Mail received Saturday:
All Saints Parish in St. Peters is presenting the play "Late Night Catechism 2" at the parish gym next Saturday April 16th at 6:00PM.I, too, have noticed some rather questionable ads in the Review...Most notably, those from the Aquinas Institute of 'Theology'...
The play is described as the sequel to Late Nite Catechism this time featuring "Sister" conducting an adult catechism class focusing on Purgatory, Heaven and Hell. "Sister" of course is not really a religious nun, but a professional actress who's theological credibility is irrelevant to this "funny" show. Satire is not an element of our faith. We live in a time when the serious nature of our faith and it's application in daily lives is of utmost importance.
Look in the Classified section of this week's St. Louis Review and you will see the advertisement for this play. The picture alone is an outrage, but if you scan further down in the box you'll find the following statement from the Los Angeles Times:
"Even funnier than the original. Who knew damnation could be so much fun!"
In case you were thinking about expressing an opinion on this parish sponsored ridicule of our faith, the pertinent information is listed below.
All Saints Parish
7 McMenamy Rd.
St. Peters, MO 63376
Reverend Donald Wester Pastor
email: asparish@inlink.com
I have heard commercials on KMOX for the 'original' play and was outraged by what I heard. We cannot expect that this 'sequel' will be any better.
Please let your thoughts be known and ask your friends and family to express theirs too.
The Post Dispatch Weighs In on Papal Election
If the conclave that opens April 18 elects a non-European, the choice will be viewed as historic evidence that the Roman Catholic Church has embraced a developing world where its membership is growing most.Article
A new pope long in years will be dismissed as a transitional figure. A staunch conservative will be seen as locking in Rome's recent insistence on doctrinal conformity, a liberal as the herald of change to come.
Yet the pattern of recent papacies suggests that the predictions and speculation will almost certainly be wrong.
115 Cardinals Participate in Conclave, Vow Silence
From Saturday's EMail:
Vatican spokesman, Joaquin Navarro-Valls, today announced that only 115 cardinals will participate in the conclave. Cardinal Jaime Sin, Archbishop Emeritus of Manila (Philippines), and Cardinal Adolfo Antonio Suarez Rivera, Archbishop Emeritus of Monterrey (Mexico), will be unable to attend due to illness.This was from an Inside the Vatican Newsflash.
Furthermore, the cardinals today unanimously decided not to give any more interviews before the conclave opens on April 18. Navarro-Valls stressed that this should not be interpreted as a snub to the media but a gesture of great responsibility as the cardinals have begun a period of silence and prayer.
***
The major of Rome, Walter Veltroni, announced that the Roman central train station, Termini, and the area on the edge of Rome called Tor Vegata, where World Youth Day took place in 2000, will be named after John Paul II.
Cardinal Arinze's Address to the Gateway Liturgical Conference
The address, which was read by Msgr. James P. Moroney, Executive Director of the BCL, is posted at the Archdiocesan web site here in PDF format.
I will have a converted text document later this evening to post.
It's a great keynote address! It's well worth the time to read it.
An additional item of note: Dance in NOT permitted in the Liturgy in North America or Europe...I hope some priests of this archdiocese heard that. See page 10 of the PDF concerning "Dance in the Liturgy".
I will have a converted text document later this evening to post.
It's a great keynote address! It's well worth the time to read it.
An additional item of note: Dance in NOT permitted in the Liturgy in North America or Europe...I hope some priests of this archdiocese heard that. See page 10 of the PDF concerning "Dance in the Liturgy".
Terri Schindler Schiavo's Brother & Sister Speak Out
SEAN HANNITY: Let's go back to the day that Terri died. Both of you were with her up until about 10 minutes before she died. I want to first address this idea that she was peaceful, that this was a calm and a gentle death, as Michael's attorney, Mr. Felos, said. Is that the case? Is that true?Transcript of the interview.
BOBBY SCHINDLER, TERRI SCHIAVO'S BROTHER: Absolutely not, Mr. Hannity. You I don't want to get too graphic. But what my sister and I saw was absolutely horrific.
For any family to have to experience what our family experienced the last two weeks, and particularly the last 72 hours was just barbaric. This whole death with dignity is an absolute lie. To see my sister suffering the way she was suffering before she died, is — I'm telling you, it's something I will never forget. And it's an image that will last with me forever.
HANNITY: Susan, I mean, you were with your sister. I mean, he said peaceful, calm, gentle and I've heard from Brother Paul and others that she was literally gasping and struggling and in pain. What did you see?
SUZANNE VITADAMO, TERRI SCHIAVO'S SISTER: That's pretty accurate. I mean, she was gasping. It was awful. She looked absolutely horrific. It was very difficult to be in the room with her. She looked like death. It was just awful.
Gospel for 3rd Sunday of Easter
From: Luke 24:13-35
The Road To Emmaus
[13] That very day two of them (disciples) were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, [14] and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. [15] While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. [16] But their eyes were kept from recognizing Him. [17] And He said to them, "What is this conversation which you are holding with each other as you walk?" And they stood still, looking sad. [18]
Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered Him, "Are You the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?" [19] And He said to them, "What things?" And they said to Him, "Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, [20] and how our chief priests and rulers delivered Him up to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. [21] But we had hoped that He was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since this happened. [22] Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning [23] and did not find His body; and they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that He was alive. [24] Some of those who were with us went to the tomb, and found it just as the women had said; but Him they did not see." [25] And He said to them, "O foolish men, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! [26] Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into His glory?" [27] And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, He interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.
[28] So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He appeared to be going further, [29] but they constrained Him, saying, "Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent." So He went in to stay with them. [30] When He was at table with them, He took the bread and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them. [31] And their eyes were opened and they recognized Him; and He vanished out of their sight. [32] They said to each other, "Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked to us on the road, while He opened to us the Scriptures?" [33] And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the Eleven gathered together and those who were with them, [34] who said, "The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!" [35] Then they told what had happened on the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of the bread.
**************************
Commentary:
13-35. In the course of their conversation with Jesus, the disciples' mood changes from sadness to joy; they begin to hope again, and feel the need to share their joy with others, thus becoming heralds and witnesses of the risen Christ.
This is an episode exclusive to St. Luke, who describes it in a masterly way. It shows our Lord's zeal for souls. "As He is walking along, Christ meets two men who have nearly lost all hope. They are beginning to feel that life has no meaning for them. Christ understands their sorrow; He sees into their heart and communicates to
them some of the life He carries within Himself."
"When they draw near the village, He makes as if to go on, but the two disciples stop Him and practically force Him to stay with them. They recognize Him later when He breaks the bread. The Lord, they exclaimed, has been with us! `And they said to each other: "Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked to us on the road, while He opened to us the Scriptures?"' (Luke 24:32). Every Christian should make Christ present among men. He ought to act in such a way that those who know Him sense `the aroma of Christ' (cf. 2 Corinthians 2:15). Men should be able to recognize the Master in His disciples" ([St] J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 105).
13-27. Jesus' conversation with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus gives us a very good idea of the disillusionment felt by His disciples after His apparent total failure. Cleopas' words summarize Christ's life and mission (verse 19), His passion and death (verse 20), the despair felt by His disciples (verse 21), and the events of that Sunday morning (verse 22).
Earlier, Jesus had said to the Jews: "You search the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness to Me" (John 5:39). In saying this He indicated the best way for us to get to know Him. Pope Paul VI points out that today also frequent reading of and devotion to Holy Scripture is a clear inspiration of the Holy Spirit: "The progress made in biblical studies, the increasing dissemination of the Sacred Scriptures, and above all the example of tradition and the interior action of the Holy Spirit are tending to cause the modern Christian to use the Bible ever increasingly as the basic prayerbook and to draw from it genuine inspiration and unsurpassable examples" ([Pope] Paul VI, "Marialis Cultus", 30).
Because the disciples are so downhearted, Jesus patiently opens for them the meaning of all the Scriptural passages concerning the Messiah. "Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into His glory?": with these words He disabuses them of the notion of an earthly and political Messiah and shows them that Christ's mission is a supernatural one--to save all mankind.
Sacred Scripture contained the prophecy that God would bring about salvation through the redemptive passion and death of the Messiah. The Cross does not mean failure: it is the route chosen by God for Christ to achieve definitive victory over sin and death (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:23-24). Many of our Lord's contemporaries failed to understand His supernatural mission because they misinterpreted the Old Testament texts. No one knew the meaning of Sacred Scripture like Jesus. And, after Him, only the Church has the mission and responsibility of conserving Scripture and interpreting it correctly: "All that has been said about the manner of interpreting Scripture is ultimately subject to the judgment of the Church which exercises the divinely conferred commission and ministry of watching over and interpreting the Word of God" (Vatican II, "Dei Verbum", 12).
28-35. The Master's presence and words restore the disciples' spirits and give them new and lasting hope. "There were two disciples on their way to Emmaus. They were walking along at a normal pace, like so many other travelers on that road. And there, without any fuss, Jesus appears to them, and walks with them, His conversation helping to alleviate their tiredness. I can well imagine the scene, just as dusk is falling. A gentle breeze is blowing. All around are fields ripe with wheat, and venerable olive trees, their branches shimmering in the soft glowing light.
"Jesus joins them as they go along their way. Lord, how great you are, in everything! But You move me even more when You come down to our level, to follow us and to seek us in the hustle and bustle of each day. Lord, grant us a childlike spirit, pure eyes and a clear mind so that we may recognize You when You come without any outward sign of Your glory.
"The journey ends when they reach the village. The two disciples who, without realizing it, have been deeply stirred by the words and love shown by God made man, are sorry to see Him leaving. For Jesus `appeared to be going further' (Luke 24:28). This Lord of ours never forces Himself on us. He wants us to turn to Him freely, when we begin to grasp the purity of His Love which He has placed in our souls. We have to hold Him back (`they constrained Him') and beg Him: `Stay with us, for it is towards evening, and the day is now far spent' (Luke 24:29).
"That's just like us--always short on daring, perhaps because we are insincere, or because we feel embarrassed. Deep down, what we are really thinking is: `Stay with us, because our souls are shrouded in darkness and You alone are the light. You alone can satisfy this longing that consumes us.' For `we know full well which among all things fair and honorable is the best--to possess God for ever' (St. Gregory Nazianzen, "Epistulae", 212).
"And Jesus stays. Our eyes are opened, as were those of Cleopas and his companion, when Christ breaks the bread; and, though He vanishes once more from sight, we too will find strength to start out once more--though night is falling--to tell the others about Him, because so much joy cannot be kept in one heart alone.
"The road to Emmaus--our God has filled this name with sweetness. Now the entire world has become an Emmaus, for the Lord has opened up all the divine paths of the earth" ([St] J. Escriva, "Friends of God", 313f).
32. If you were an apostle, these words of the disciples of Emmaus should rise spontaneously to the lips of your professional companions when they meet you along the way of their lives" ("The Way", 917).
33-35. The disciples now feel the need to return to Jerusalem immediately; there they find the Apostles and some other disciples gathered together with Peter, to whom Jesus has appeared.
In sacred history, Jerusalem was the place where God chose to be praised in a very special way and where the prophets carried out their main ministry. God willed that Christ should suffer, die and rise again in Jerusalem, and from there the Kingdom of God begins to spread (cf. Luke 24:47; Acts 1:8). In the New Testament the Church of Christ is described as "the Jerusalem above" (Galatians 4:26), "the Heavenly Jerusalem" (Hebrews 12:22) and the "new Jerusalem" (Revelation 21:2).
The Church began in the Holy City. Later on, St. Peter, not without a special intervention of Providence, moved to Rome, thereby making that city the center of the Church. Just as Peter strengthened these first disciples in the faith, so too Christians of all generations have recourse to the See of Peter to strengthen their faith and thereby build up the unity of the Church: "Take away the Pope and the Catholic Church would no longer be catholic. Moreover, without the supreme,
effective and authoritative pastoral office of Peter the unity of Christ's Church would collapse. It would be vain to look for other principles of unity in place of the true one established by Christ Himself [...]. We would add that this cardinal principle of holy Church is not a supremacy of spiritual pride and a desire to dominate mankind, but a primacy of service, ministration and love. It is no vapid rhetoric which confers on Christ's vicar the title: `Servant of the servants of God'" ([Pope] Paul VI, "Ecclesiam Suam", 83).
******************
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
The Road To Emmaus
[13] That very day two of them (disciples) were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, [14] and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. [15] While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. [16] But their eyes were kept from recognizing Him. [17] And He said to them, "What is this conversation which you are holding with each other as you walk?" And they stood still, looking sad. [18]
Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered Him, "Are You the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?" [19] And He said to them, "What things?" And they said to Him, "Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, [20] and how our chief priests and rulers delivered Him up to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. [21] But we had hoped that He was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since this happened. [22] Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning [23] and did not find His body; and they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that He was alive. [24] Some of those who were with us went to the tomb, and found it just as the women had said; but Him they did not see." [25] And He said to them, "O foolish men, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! [26] Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into His glory?" [27] And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, He interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.
[28] So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He appeared to be going further, [29] but they constrained Him, saying, "Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent." So He went in to stay with them. [30] When He was at table with them, He took the bread and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them. [31] And their eyes were opened and they recognized Him; and He vanished out of their sight. [32] They said to each other, "Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked to us on the road, while He opened to us the Scriptures?" [33] And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the Eleven gathered together and those who were with them, [34] who said, "The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!" [35] Then they told what had happened on the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of the bread.
**************************
Commentary:
13-35. In the course of their conversation with Jesus, the disciples' mood changes from sadness to joy; they begin to hope again, and feel the need to share their joy with others, thus becoming heralds and witnesses of the risen Christ.
This is an episode exclusive to St. Luke, who describes it in a masterly way. It shows our Lord's zeal for souls. "As He is walking along, Christ meets two men who have nearly lost all hope. They are beginning to feel that life has no meaning for them. Christ understands their sorrow; He sees into their heart and communicates to
them some of the life He carries within Himself."
"When they draw near the village, He makes as if to go on, but the two disciples stop Him and practically force Him to stay with them. They recognize Him later when He breaks the bread. The Lord, they exclaimed, has been with us! `And they said to each other: "Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked to us on the road, while He opened to us the Scriptures?"' (Luke 24:32). Every Christian should make Christ present among men. He ought to act in such a way that those who know Him sense `the aroma of Christ' (cf. 2 Corinthians 2:15). Men should be able to recognize the Master in His disciples" ([St] J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 105).
13-27. Jesus' conversation with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus gives us a very good idea of the disillusionment felt by His disciples after His apparent total failure. Cleopas' words summarize Christ's life and mission (verse 19), His passion and death (verse 20), the despair felt by His disciples (verse 21), and the events of that Sunday morning (verse 22).
Earlier, Jesus had said to the Jews: "You search the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness to Me" (John 5:39). In saying this He indicated the best way for us to get to know Him. Pope Paul VI points out that today also frequent reading of and devotion to Holy Scripture is a clear inspiration of the Holy Spirit: "The progress made in biblical studies, the increasing dissemination of the Sacred Scriptures, and above all the example of tradition and the interior action of the Holy Spirit are tending to cause the modern Christian to use the Bible ever increasingly as the basic prayerbook and to draw from it genuine inspiration and unsurpassable examples" ([Pope] Paul VI, "Marialis Cultus", 30).
Because the disciples are so downhearted, Jesus patiently opens for them the meaning of all the Scriptural passages concerning the Messiah. "Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into His glory?": with these words He disabuses them of the notion of an earthly and political Messiah and shows them that Christ's mission is a supernatural one--to save all mankind.
Sacred Scripture contained the prophecy that God would bring about salvation through the redemptive passion and death of the Messiah. The Cross does not mean failure: it is the route chosen by God for Christ to achieve definitive victory over sin and death (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:23-24). Many of our Lord's contemporaries failed to understand His supernatural mission because they misinterpreted the Old Testament texts. No one knew the meaning of Sacred Scripture like Jesus. And, after Him, only the Church has the mission and responsibility of conserving Scripture and interpreting it correctly: "All that has been said about the manner of interpreting Scripture is ultimately subject to the judgment of the Church which exercises the divinely conferred commission and ministry of watching over and interpreting the Word of God" (Vatican II, "Dei Verbum", 12).
28-35. The Master's presence and words restore the disciples' spirits and give them new and lasting hope. "There were two disciples on their way to Emmaus. They were walking along at a normal pace, like so many other travelers on that road. And there, without any fuss, Jesus appears to them, and walks with them, His conversation helping to alleviate their tiredness. I can well imagine the scene, just as dusk is falling. A gentle breeze is blowing. All around are fields ripe with wheat, and venerable olive trees, their branches shimmering in the soft glowing light.
"Jesus joins them as they go along their way. Lord, how great you are, in everything! But You move me even more when You come down to our level, to follow us and to seek us in the hustle and bustle of each day. Lord, grant us a childlike spirit, pure eyes and a clear mind so that we may recognize You when You come without any outward sign of Your glory.
"The journey ends when they reach the village. The two disciples who, without realizing it, have been deeply stirred by the words and love shown by God made man, are sorry to see Him leaving. For Jesus `appeared to be going further' (Luke 24:28). This Lord of ours never forces Himself on us. He wants us to turn to Him freely, when we begin to grasp the purity of His Love which He has placed in our souls. We have to hold Him back (`they constrained Him') and beg Him: `Stay with us, for it is towards evening, and the day is now far spent' (Luke 24:29).
"That's just like us--always short on daring, perhaps because we are insincere, or because we feel embarrassed. Deep down, what we are really thinking is: `Stay with us, because our souls are shrouded in darkness and You alone are the light. You alone can satisfy this longing that consumes us.' For `we know full well which among all things fair and honorable is the best--to possess God for ever' (St. Gregory Nazianzen, "Epistulae", 212).
"And Jesus stays. Our eyes are opened, as were those of Cleopas and his companion, when Christ breaks the bread; and, though He vanishes once more from sight, we too will find strength to start out once more--though night is falling--to tell the others about Him, because so much joy cannot be kept in one heart alone.
"The road to Emmaus--our God has filled this name with sweetness. Now the entire world has become an Emmaus, for the Lord has opened up all the divine paths of the earth" ([St] J. Escriva, "Friends of God", 313f).
32. If you were an apostle, these words of the disciples of Emmaus should rise spontaneously to the lips of your professional companions when they meet you along the way of their lives" ("The Way", 917).
33-35. The disciples now feel the need to return to Jerusalem immediately; there they find the Apostles and some other disciples gathered together with Peter, to whom Jesus has appeared.
In sacred history, Jerusalem was the place where God chose to be praised in a very special way and where the prophets carried out their main ministry. God willed that Christ should suffer, die and rise again in Jerusalem, and from there the Kingdom of God begins to spread (cf. Luke 24:47; Acts 1:8). In the New Testament the Church of Christ is described as "the Jerusalem above" (Galatians 4:26), "the Heavenly Jerusalem" (Hebrews 12:22) and the "new Jerusalem" (Revelation 21:2).
The Church began in the Holy City. Later on, St. Peter, not without a special intervention of Providence, moved to Rome, thereby making that city the center of the Church. Just as Peter strengthened these first disciples in the faith, so too Christians of all generations have recourse to the See of Peter to strengthen their faith and thereby build up the unity of the Church: "Take away the Pope and the Catholic Church would no longer be catholic. Moreover, without the supreme,
effective and authoritative pastoral office of Peter the unity of Christ's Church would collapse. It would be vain to look for other principles of unity in place of the true one established by Christ Himself [...]. We would add that this cardinal principle of holy Church is not a supremacy of spiritual pride and a desire to dominate mankind, but a primacy of service, ministration and love. It is no vapid rhetoric which confers on Christ's vicar the title: `Servant of the servants of God'" ([Pope] Paul VI, "Ecclesiam Suam", 83).
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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
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