The Annunciation of the Lord

Readings for the Solemnity of the Annunciation

When I picture this scene between Mary and the angel Gabriel, I see something very dramatic. I think at least on some level, Mary must have understood what was being asked of her, what would be riding on her shoulders. She must have had a sense at least that her boy would be no ordinary boy, but that somehow in him would be the salvation of the world. I find myself wondering, "How did she have the strength to say 'yes' to that?!" How could she give her consent to such an extraordinary task?

Yet, it occurs to me that we stand in Mary's position each time we come to the altar for Eucharist. We take into our very bodies the power that saves the world and we carry him out beyond the walls of the church to our friends and neighbors. The key to understanding this mystery, though, is not that Mary's "fiat" was as routine as our "Amen" can become if we let it, but that our "Amen," each time we receive the Eucharist, is as monumental as Mary's fiat. Both Gabriel's message and the message "The Body of Christ" are to be received with open hands and open heart.

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory Forever!

~J

What Can I Offer?

Normally, I would just post the homily I gave at the daily Mass, but today it would make more sense for this post if I start off describing what I did.

They teach us in seminary that there are three reasons to preach: to delight, to teach, and to persuade. Any preacher can, and ought, to rely on the Holy Spirit to supply the right inspiration for the first and the last of those goals, but teaching is very much dependent on the knowledge one has "up there." I found myself seriously questioning what I could possibly teach to the daily Mass crowd here at St. Peter's in Saratoga. Like most daily Mass congregations, they all know way more than I do about life. On top of that, most of the things I know that they don't, they wouldn't really want to know anyway! Then, I had an idea…

As a part of the internship program, I have to look over the statistics for the parish and send a profile back to Mundelein. One of the things I learned was that only about a third of the people registered at St. Peter's attend Mass regularly. (They have just over 3,000 registered parishioners, and they're average weekend Mass attendance is around 1,000.) It occurred to me that this probably weighs on the minds of the daily Mass goers. It also occurred to me that the majority of the people in the parish who don't go to Mass are around my age. So… I got my idea for what I could teach: I can share the insights, arguments, and stories that have made sense to me, touched me, and my friends, and have kept me in church so that they can in turn share them with their friends and neighbors.

Today's Readings were from Deuteronomy and the Gospel According to St. Matthew.

The other night I was leading a discussion group for the 11^th-graders preparing for confirmation here at St. Peter's. I asked them to share their thoughts with me on Jesus and the Church. One girl said something to the effect of, "Well… I like Jesus… he talks about peace and being a good person. But it seems like the Church is just about rules and regulations." Today's gospel reading, in fact, highlights Jesus' relationship to rules and sheds light even on the relationship between him, the mission he gives us, and his Church.

Here's what people have said that make sense to me. First of all, Christian discipleship looks like something. The ten commandments, for instance, show us the bare minimum of what loving God and loving our neighbor looks like. In other words, Jesus never tells us to do something without first showing us how. Second, he never asks us to do anything alone, he has given us the gift of the Church to support our discipleship.

That works for me… maybe you'll find it helpful too.

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory Forever!

~J

Signs for Every Generation

Wednesday's readings were from Jon 3:1-10; Ps 51:3-4, 12-13, 18-19; and Lk 11:29-32.

"This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign…" Jesus laments at the beginning of our gospel reading today. It occurs to me, though, that it is part of human nature to look for signs, to look for proof, especially when it comes to divine matters. In every generation, people want proof that Jesus Christ was who he claimed to be and that his teachings are valid, worth following.

Today, we commemorate St. Casimir, and I want to share with you a snippet from an account of his life. St. Casimir was a prince, and this is what someone wrote of him:

By the power of the Holy Spirit, Casimir burned with a sincere and unpretentious love for almighty God that was almost unbelievable in its strength. So rich was his love and so abundantly did it fill his heart, that it flowed out from his inner spirit toward his fellow men. As a result, nothing was more pleasant, nothing more desirable for him, than to share his belongings, and even to dedicate and give his entire self to Christ's poor, to strangers, to the sick, to those in captivity and to all who suffer. To widows, orphans and the afflicted, he was not only a guardian and patron but a father, son and brother.

I ask you: if you could have met St. Casimir, would have been inclined to believe what he had to say about Jesus Christ? As you looked at the example of his life, would it not have been easy for you to believe in Christ's teachings? Was he not a "sign" to his generation?

The discipline and penance we follow in Lent is meant to empty us out—to make the most room for what Jesus wants to give us. When we allow this to happen—allow ourselves to be filled completely with what Jesus wishes to give us—our very lives become proof and validation for the person and teachings of Jesus Christ. We give our loved ones the sign the long for so desperately.

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory Forever!

~J