If you, therefore, are Christ’s body and members, it is your own mystery that is placed on the Lord’s table! It is your own mystery that you are receiving! You are saying “Amen” to what you are: your response is a personal signature, affirming your faith. When you hear “The body of Christ”, you reply “Amen.” Be a member of Christ’s body, then, so that your “Amen” may ring true! (St. Augustine of Hippo, from Sermon 272)

St. Augustine lived his deep and boundless passion of love for our Lord Jesus. He reminds us that we become what we receive in the Eucharist. Which follows the tradition of “Lex orandi, lex credendi”, (what we pray we come to believe) and then we follow this with what we do is who we truly are and women and men of faith who seek the face of Jesus Christ in each and every person. I mentioned a few weeks ago how it seems so long ago we were talking and seeking to grow in the works of mercy and how the hatred and violence seemed to easily to flow back into our hearts.
I have been reflecting on this small portion of St. Augustine sermon this week as well as reviewing the Works of Mercy and I asked myself a very simple question, “Am I a work of mercy?”
With the terrible and life taking destruction brought about by Hurricane Harvey (and by many other natural disasters around the world) I watch, look and wonder how do I respond? It is easy enough to say I will donate to an aid organization or give some clothing or other goods to be shared with those who have lost everything. Those are all actions of mercy and I am doing something good but as a Christian am I called to more?
And the answer is yes. How? One answer is to pack up your bags and head down to serve. But for many of us, this is impractical and in truth would probably cause as many problems for the recovery effort as it would solve.
The second “how?” can be summed up in one simple word: prayer. Yes, here it is again. But it isn’t just prayer for prayer sake but rather it is the unitive prayer St. Augustine writes about above. We say it so often as Catholics, “we are the Body of Christ” and we “celebrate in union with all” that we forget the power of intercessory prayer and how this prayer can unite us in mercy and love with God and with each other. It is a prayer of attentiveness. St.Louis de Montfort wrote these beautiful words about praying the rosary, ”In order to pray well, it is not enough to give expression to our petitions by means of that most excellent of all prayers, the Rosary, but we must also pray with real concentration…How can we expect God to listen to us if we ourselves do not pay attention to what we are saying?” (p 103, The Secret of the Rosary)
In prayer, and especially the rosary, we find ourselves on a journey of love and blessing with Jesus Christ and we then become the very work of mercy we desire because we unite ourselves in the Body of Christ with our brothers and sisters both near and far, both in suffering and joy, in love and holiness. The work of mercy we become is the prayer that blesses those who can do what we cannot at this moment. This does not excuse us from direct action of the work of God but it reminds us that united in love and offering hope in prayer we do change the heart of the world because our heart is broken and blessed and made into a new creation.
This is only possible with a deep and profound relationship with Jesus Christ. Hearing the words of St. Augustine above echo in St. John Paul II reflection on the rosary we begin to know our call to walk the mysteries of prayer, “At the same time, it becomes natural to bring to this encounter wit the sacred humanity of the Redeemer all the problems, anxieties, labors and endeavors which go to make up our lives. “Cast your burden on the Lord and he will sustain you.” (Ps 55:23)” (#25 Rosarium Virginis Mariae.)
Jesus is present with us as we place our heart in His Sacred Heart of love. Let us pray together, work together and bring together the Body of Christ in becoming the work of mercy God calls us to be. And through the intercession of Our Lady of the Rosary may we unite ourselves to her son in the service of all.
God Bless
Fr. Mark

As we unite ourselves in prayer with our brothers and sisters in the areas affected by Hurricane Harvey our Bishop Patrick, in unity with all bishops in the United States, has asked that we reach out to those suffering in Texas and the Gulf Coast.
Bishop Patrick has asked, as a church, we direct or donations through Catholic Charities who are on the ground in the 9 dioceses impacted by this storm. There is a link below to make an online donation. St. Lucy will have an in pew collection in a few weeks for those who wish to donate in this manner.
If you have already shared of your time, talent and treasure through different relief agencies, thank you and God blesses your generosity. We know from experience the recovery will take not days or weeks but years so let us continue to be united in the works of mercy in sharing God’s blessings with those in need.

Donate now and help families recover from Hurricane Harvey

I was thumbing through my Daily Roman Missal this week looking for a specific Mass offering and the scriptural choices that were available when I came across a section titled “How to be a Better Catholic.” And I thought: Okay, how can I be a better Catholic? Who wouldn’t want to answer this question because it would ultimately translate into a very simple question: How can I be a better person? The Missal breaks it down into four simple things. First, there is the recognition of a call to holiness. I’m good with that. I want to be holy. Second, is the need for a life of prayer. Okay…I pray. Third, the discipline and growth in a life of self-denial. Not the biggest fan but we can work with this. Last, there is a need for a life of work. Got it…now how do we do it?
In truth, with all funning aside, these four steps are not that new, inventive or strange to the spiritual life of any Christian. They are the normal pathway to follow. When we read any of Matthew Kelly’s books we see these four calls to holiness. If we have read any of the lives of the saints, this is what they do and who they are. So no surprises here. But………we must do them….that’s the fun part. And believe me there is much more to “being and better Catholic” because the section of the Missal goes on for several more pages…these are just the beginning. So my proposal is a simple one…I’m going to go through this section by section…it won’t be part of my Friday emails but you can follow it on my website which I will list at the bottom of the page.
How to be a better Catholic.
Step 1. Recognize that I can be a better Catholic. I am a sinner but as the Church reaffirmed in the Second Vatican Council, each and every person is called to holiness and to live a life that moves away the sins which bind me and keep away from the grace and love that God desires me to live in. This universal call to holiness is universal because it is better when we travel in groups of holiness rather than doing on our own which as we all know (or at least I wish I would remember more often) is the trap of the devil to fall into to sinful pride. What does this look like? Well, Mass on Sunday when a whole bunch of sinners come together to seek holiness by asking forgiveness, praying with and for others and receiving the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. It looks like a family praying the Rosary together on a Saturday night (or any night) seeking holiness. It is the reality of children and grandchildren gathered around the sick bed of their elderly (grand)parent in love. It is the noisy and raucous music of young Catholics giving glory and praise to God in music and dance. In other words, it looks like many different things, but it always looks like the search for God even in the quiet contemplation of Adoration when the unified silence of those gathered togethers lifts a joyous gift of praise and blessing to God.
Step 2…do step one again. If I am seeking holiness, then my conversations with God (prayer) draw me deeper and deeper into a loving relationship of love. And a relationship with God in love is a relationship of holiness.
Step 3…do step one again and step two because self-denial and discipline entails a continual and holy offering of daily sacrifice of time, talent and treasure, the stewardship of life. Self-denial is turning towards God and away from the individualist egocentric greed that focus on the momentary and denies the eternal of life.
Finally, step 4, yes repeat and begin to work. Work is the call to fulfillment. Pope John Paul II Encyclical “Laborem Exercens” reminds us, “Far from thinking that works produced by man’s own talent and energy are in opposition to God’s power, and that the rational creature exists as a kind of rival to the Creator, Christians are convinced that the triumphs of the human race are a sign of God’s greatness and the flowering of his own mysterious design.”(#25)
More later…when I pray that I am a better Catholic.
God bless,
Fr. Mark

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.” Mt 5:43-45

With everything that has happened during this past week, the words of Jesus spoken to us above should slow us down and give us all pause. It was just last year when our Holy Father Francis gave us the Jubilee Year of Mercy and I can only reflect on how quickly we have moved on and forgotten the works of mercy. And it is here that I wish to begin. God invites us to be community and to grow in mercy and love. We could all quote for pages biblical citations (see below) and teachings of peace from our Catholic tradition and while we may, as a Church, not always lived up to the ideals, we are still called to the perfection of love and mercy our Heavenly Father offers to us.
“There’s a bit of nobility in the worst of human beings because all are made in God’s image, and the image can never be completely effaced or lost…No matter how desperate the case, no matter how ignoble the character, theirs is the unshakable condition that there is always hope!” (P 118 from “Light in the Darkness: The Teachings of Fr. James Keller, M.M. and the Christophers” presented by Fr. Jonathan Morris) The reality of this quote from Fr. Keller echoes strongly the truth of Jesus’ words from the Gospel of Matthew. No matter how vile an ideology, how heinous the action of a person we believe that there is the real hope of redemption. It is the greater respect of life where we see and know the dignity of God’s creative love in each and every person.
As Christians this is our duty, to seek the very best in our sisters and brothers as the foundation of all relationships. My first true understanding of this was, as a young man, seeing the photo of Pope John Paul II sitting in prayer and reconciliation with his would be assassin, Mehmet Ali Ağca. The great saint seeking the best and the holy from the person who wished him dead. Is this not the command Jesus shares above…to love and pray for even those we call enemies.
How are we called to confront sin and violence. St. Padre Pio is quoted as saying, “The rosary is the weapon of our times.” It is the weapon of our time because especially in the Sorrowful Mysteries we walk through the hatred and violence Jesus took upon his cross so we may understand what the great saints of peace, like St. John Paul II, lived in their heart. The prayer of the rosary calls us to become the words we pray. St. Louis de Montfort shared this wisdom on praying the rosary, “People who say Our Lord’s Prayer carefully, weighing every word and meditating upon it, may indeed call themselves blessed for they find therein everything that they need or can wish for.” (p 39 “The Secret of the Rosary”)
Ultimately in the Christian life we discover and become more Christ-like when we walk with him and allow the presence of Jesus to heal the wounds of sin which we all hold. St. Gregory of Nyssa understands this, “Since we possess Christ who is peace, we must put an end to this enmity and live as we believe he lived. He broke down the separating wall, uniting what was divided, bringing about peace by reconciling in his single person those who disagreed. In the same way, we must be reconciled not only with those who attack us from outside, but also with those who stir up dissension within flesh then will no longer be opposed to the spirit nor the spirit to the flesh.” (St. Gregory of Nyssa)
The internal and eternal peace is trusting in goodness and hopefulness which discovers the holiness of God’s divine presence in our soul and in each and every person. “Now peace is defined as harmony among those who are divided. When, therefore, we end that civil war within our nature and cultivate peace within ourselves, we become peace. By this peace we demonstrate that the name of Christ, which we bear, is authentic and appropriate.” (St. Gregory of Nyssa) Harmony is never sameness but rather it is the gift of musical joy that is produced when the master musician is touching each string to draw out the beauty and truth of the note we are each called to contribute in joyful love. To allow our Master to hold us, to touch us and to draw forth from us the note of peace, the note of beauty, the note of mercy and love is to allow ourself to be with the Master in trusting love and care for those around us.
Our Lady Queen of Peace, pray for us.
God Bless
Fr. Mark
ps. As I was finishing this note, the news of the terrible violence in Barcelona Spain came across the news. More than ever, pray for peace, justice and God’s grace to reign in the hearts of all.

Just a few quotes from Sacred Scripture to place in prayer in the coming days, weeks, months and years.

He executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and shows His love for the alien by giving him food and clothing. So show your love for the alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.”You shall fear the LORD your God; you shall serve Him and cling to Him, and you shall swear by His name. (Deut 10:18-20)

Hear, O Israel!* The LORD is our God, the LORD alone! Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God, with your whole heart, and with your whole being, and with your whole strength. Take to heart these words which I command you today. Keep repeating them to your children. Recite them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up. (Deut 6:4-7)

Finally, all of you, be of one mind, sympathetic, loving toward one another, compassionate, humble. Do not return evil for evil, or insult for insult; but, on the contrary, a blessing, because to this you were called, that you might inherit a blessing. For: “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep the tongue from evil and the lips from speaking deceit, must turn from evil and do good, seek peace and follow after it. (1 Peter 3:8-11)
And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for: “God opposes the proud but bestows favor on the humble.” So humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time. Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you. Be sober and vigilant. Your opponent the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for [someone] to devour. Resist him, steadfast in faith, knowing that your fellow believers throughout the world undergo the same sufferings. The God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory through Christ [Jesus] will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you after you have suffered a little. To him be dominion forever. Amen. (1 Peter 5:5-11)

Today, August 11, we celebrate the Memorial of St. Clare of Assisi and I would like to share with you two short quotes from her that encapsulate her life of love but also direct us towards our true love.
“Love God, serve God, everything is in that.”
“We become what we love and who we love shapes what we become.”

Both quotes point us to God and remind us, made in the image and likeness of God, we are bound by a deep and abiding love with God in and through His son Jesus Christ. We may want to pray and meditate on these two quotes in the coming days. It is a way of pointing ourselves toward and choosing to walk with Jesus that “shapes what we become.” What else would we want to do?
Last week I shared a brief reflection on the Rosary and why we pray this important prayer. One of the great reasons, as with the quotes from St. Clare above, we desire to become conformed to God and walking with Jesus through the mysteries of the Rosary we discover the love of God, the service of God and the shape of God in our lives.
St. Pope John Paul II in his Encyclical Letter “Veritatis Splendor: The Splendor of Truth” shares these beautiful words, “The Church, and each of her members, is thus called to share in the ‘munus regale’ of the Crucified Christ (cf. Jn 12:32), to share in the grace and in the responsibility of the Son of man who came “not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mt 20:28) (#87)
Jesus, then, is the living, personal summation of perfect freedom in total obedience to the will of God. His crucified flesh fully reveals the unbreakable bond between freedom and truth, just as his Resurrection from the dead is the supreme exaltation of the fruitfulness and saving power of a freedom lived out in truth.” (#87) While St. John Paul II is not talking directly about praying the Rosary, what he talks about is being with Jesus throughout the Gospel. From the first mystery of the Rosary to the last mystery we begin to form this “unbreakable bond” St. Clare describes so beautifully. And we begin the journey. Meditating the mysteries of the Rosary allows us to walk with Jesus through his mother Mary.
When we choose to walk with Jesus we begin the walk of faith and perfection, but not the perfection of the world rather we walk the way of faith and trust knowing we are created in God’s blessing. Fr. Jacques Philippe gives us this beautiful reminder. And once again he, while is not speaking about the Rosary, is talking about what happens when we begin to pray this beautiful prayer. Fr. Donald Calloway, whose booklet we shared at St. Lucy Parish this past week, reminds of the spiritual battle the Rosary helps us to fight and to seek Jesus in resisting the temptations of life. “We believe, for example, that to win the spiritual battle we must vanquish all our faults, never succumb to temptation, have no more weaknesses or shortcomings. But on such a terrain we are sure to be vanquished! Because who among us can pretend never to fall? And it is certainly not this that God demands of us, for “He Knows of what we are made He remembers that we are dust.” (Ps 103) (p11-12 from Searching for and Maintaining Peace)
The Rosary helps us to fight our sins and resist falling again when we take time to pray and mediate on this wonderful gift and once more, pondering on the two small quotes from St. Clare we see how we are called to love, serve and walk with Jesus through Mary. Because when we choose to walk with Jesus we find the mysteries of the cross celebrated with joy and not fear and doubt. “Taking up our crosses is only part of the equation. After recognizing and accepting the crosses in our lives, we are faced with a choice: to carry it while heading toward or away from Christ. When we choose to run toward God, even in our darkest moments, we discover that suffering brings us deeper into the mystery of His life, where suffering is not the final word. Resurrection is. Glory is. Eternal love and joy is.” (p 95 from Head & Heart by Katie Warner)
Below are two short videos explaining the Rosary and a longer one from Fr. Calloway sharing the joy of the Gospel and the truth of the Rosary.
God bless
Fr. Mark

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACfwnlktvi4 (Fr. Calloway)

“Who is the best teacher you ever had? I’m sure that you can recall one or perhaps several teaches rather quickly. I can name a few of mine that were in the very first rank. They were skilled in maintaining interest and converting information. The increased my understanding their subject. They are with me still in my memory of their material and of their enthusiasm for teaching.” (p 39)

As I read this quoter from Fr. John Crossin, O.S.F.S. book “Everyday Virtues” many women and men who have nurtured my curiosity came to mind almost immediately. So I sat down and made a list which quickly morphed from those teachers in the classroom to those teachers of life that have been vital in my development as a man, a priest and a Christian.
The teachers who filled my classroom experience with so much joy often came later in my schooling. I will readily admit that my studies and grades did not live up to my ability for many years and this is where the outside teachers came in to my thoughts. As a young boy I dreamed of being a Marine and serving our country (I had a strong John Wayne infatuation) and for many years, especially early in high school my dreams lead me to discount education. At the end of my sophomore year the Marine Corps recruiter came to visit and I was able to make an appointment with him. When I walked into the room after a brief conversation he closed my school records and stated the Marine’s didn’t want me. I was dumbstruck. He looked at me directly in the eyes and said baldly, “Why would we want you? You clearly don’t do your best. The Marines only want the best.” Believe it or not, those three small sentences were burned into my brains and kickstarted my betterment of my academic progress. While this Marine recruiter was never a classroom teacher, this quick lesson is one that called me back to be in the words of Matthew Kelly, “The best version of myself” a version that two years later took the oath of a United States Marine.
As a classroom teacher for eight years in Catholic schools I was honored and blessed to work with hundred of wonderful families and their children. I know from both sides of the desk the influence and gifts that teachers share with their students. It is the power of words lift up or pull down the dreams of people. This was one of the reasons that I chose to teach in Catholic schools, to be able to share the truth, love and forgiveness of Jesus’ words I could not do in other settings. Because, it is often not the long journey of learning a new subject or master a new skill that we are thankful for, rather it is many times the simple phrase or word which impacts us greatly.
This is how God works in our life…yes, we learn through the long journey of life but more often it is the little blast of the Holy Spirit and the nudging of Guardian Angel that change the direction to make the journey fruitful. Throughout scripture and the stories of our faith the little light that becomes the beacon of hope, joy and blessing. And here is the but…but it takes work and can at times be difficult because it requires the readjustment and reevaluation of the habits of life.
Getting back to the teacher…one life lesson given by a professor at Holy Names College, my advisor Dr. Richard Yes, who taught philosophy. He reminded me one day with a few small word about gentleness and kindness in the arguments of life…especially in philosophical debates.
Fr. Crossin writes, “Ultimately we seek understanding of God’s work in our hearts. The great saints and mystics tell us that God comes to us, embraces us, in the deepest forms of prayer. Here our understanding gives way to the experience of the divine.” (p 41)
Let us give thanks to all teachers in our lives and especially pray that we may keep our ears, eyes and hearts open to the embrace of God’s nudging and give thanks to god who blesses us with his love.
God bless
Fr. Mark

Why pray the rosary? There are many reason, Fr. Donald H. Calloway, MIC in his booklet “How to Pray the Rosary” gives us this as one of the many reasons, “the rosary is an evangelical tool that brings the light of Christ into all situations.” (p 11) So the question may be deeper than, Why pray the rosary? and becomes quite clearly…”Who wouldn’t want Christ in all parts of my life?”
This weekend, at St. Lucy Parish, we will through the generosity of some parishioners be making available Fr. Calloway’s booklet as well as several age appropriate pamphlets on praying the rosary both as an individual devotion but also as a family prayer seeking the unity and love of God blessing “into all situations” of our lives.
Why do I pray the rosary? There are many reason but let me go through several steps. First, as a priest, praying the rosary with our Blessed Mother is life giving and fills me with hope on a daily basis. Several years ago I read a book by Liz Kelly, “The Rosary: A Path Into Prayer” that has several quotes helping to explain the passion of the rosary. The first it is a physical action of praying the rosary. Liz Kelly shares, “The rosary is a physical object that has developed over time, but it mirrors God and his creation in a remarkable way.” (p 54) The reality of passing the beads slowly through my fingers as I pray the rosary reminds me of the connection that I have with God through the incarnation. And like the rosary having developed over time my deepening love of the rosary also has grown and developed as I have spent more and more time in walking with Mary in prayer and mediating on the mysteries of her son’s life, death and resurrection.
“Each decade of Hail Mary inevitable leads us back to the Our Father—the prayer Christ taught us himself. And so Mary leads us to the Father—the source of all life, all grace—again and again. With him we linger for a while contemplating the next mystery, recalling our our petition or thanksgiving, asking once again for the Lord to be present to us in our meditation, praying his perfect prayer.” (p 55) Kelly shares this beautiful understanding of the path of the rosary, where the rosary leads us back to the God the Father. I have shared this many times before but it bares repeating. When I was in the hospital after my heart attack the one prayer I repeated over and over again was the rosary and the path of peace and calm amidst the doubts and fear was real and gentle as I slowly repeated again and again the gentle Hail Mary followed by the prayer Jesus shared with us. Today, when I pray the rosary, experience much the same peacefulness. Usually on my morning walks and during other times I bring to Jesus, through Mary, the concerns, hopes and dreams of the day where I am able to slowly and quietly life these prayers with Mary’s perfect prayer.
“Because it’s simple, the rosary meditation can be a good way to begin to build the trust that all prayer requires. For example, in my greatest time of distress, the rosary asked very little of me, which helped set the stage for the process of building trust.” (p 57) Truly the simplicity of the rosary is a great blessing. I don’t need to think, I just need to be during this time of prayer. There are times when the rosary slips so quickly by that the 20 minutes feels like only a few seconds and other times where it goes slowly as God works into my heart to slow me to hear his holy words.
The rosary is the great invitation into a unity of life and love with Mary as we pray with her son our Lord and Savior Jesus.
God bless
Fr. Mark

woke up today in a bit of a haze. It’s July 31…the Memorial of St. Ignatius of Loyola and…the Dodgers are 34.5 games in front of the Giants. How can you not smile. I have been thinking about baseball, soccer and prayer the last few days because with all the joy that the 34.5 game lead over the Giants (and it’s still July) gives me watching and listening to the games this weekend was a bit troubling. Why you may ask would it be troubling when the Dodgers have a 34.5 game lead of the Giants? “Well, it’s all about noise.” would be my response. Dodger Stadium is the third oldest park in baseball at this time moment. (If you can guess the forth oldest, I’ll be you a beer.) Fifty years younger than Fenway and Wrigley Field it is a beautiful place to watch a game of baseball. And yet, something was amiss a I watched and listened…it was the noise, a constant noise and blaring noise that seemed to fill every nook and cranny of the game.
As many of you know, if you have read prior reflections, I am praying my way through Robert Cardinal Sarah’s book “The Power of Silence: Against the Dictatorship of Noise” which may be why I am becoming so attuned to the noise surrounding our lives. He writes, “How can we express in concrete words a “silent music’? This musical phenomenon is necessarily a faint, humble sound heard by God alone. It consists of the notes produced by the harp of our heart when it is consumed with love.”(#77) And this is where silence, baseball and prayer come into the blessing of life. The art and beauty of a baseball game is meant for silence: the pauses, the breaks, the moments between when the “silent music” can be seen and heard in the waiting and anticipation of the next pitch or hit, the catch or cheer that is raised for a few moments only to enter once more into the voice of silence, the watching and waiting.
When I lived in Seattle before moving to Oakland my friend Carl and I would often spend evening watching the Seattle Mariners in the old Kingdome, where we would watch some pretty awful teams…one that finished 39 games back (the Giants still have hope.) One of the greatest blessings was the quiet of the game…not many fans…and a lot of conversation (and a few beers) as the game went on…it was the silence/quiet that was the blessing.
Which brings me to soccer…it is a game not meant for silence. The singing, the chanting the joy of the beautiful game is meant to be a unison of voice lifted high together and joined as one as the action takes place always moving, shifting and forming and reforming the shape of the team as the ball is moved about with grace and joy.
To me the beautiful game of soccer is like our Sunday liturgy, we come to gather and sing, pray and lift our voices as one. To enter into the joyous blessings of the differences of life being lifted up to be transformed and made new for this moment of time together seeking, sharing and being sent forth with blessings of the beautiful gift of life.
Baseball is more like the contemplative prayer of participating in the gentle rhythm of daily life where we watch, wait and act as the moment of blessings places itself into our midst. It is at this holy moment, the moment of the hit, where we all move together acknowledging the “silent music” bursting forth into new life.
Maybe I worry too much about the noise of Dodger Stadium and desire the silence of the past too much but I do think and know deeply this one important thing…the love of the game is found not in the noise but in the moments between.
In life this is where God is, where he desires us to be…with him pondering, preparing and listening to the “silent music” of love.
God Bless
Fr. Mark

Go Dodgers.
(4th Oldest…Oakland Colosseum)

It is amazing what a new coat of paint or putting new carpet into a room does for the feeling of a place. We all know they are but cosmetic fixes but they do bring a renewed sense of beauty and wonder. The parish (St. Lucy) has been experiencing these blessings as we have replaced the carpet in our church building and have put a fresh coat of paint on the exterior of many of our parish school buildings…and it looks wonderful. The truth is the underlying structures and functions of the buildings remain the same but these small changes uplift the spirit.
I use the preamble as a way of reminding us, we as Christians, are an interior and exterior faith. We express our faith in the interior holiness of seeking God’s presence in our life and at the same time revel in the beauty of the art, architecture, music and worship we celebrate in our weekly Eucharistic feast. The interior and hidden part of our spiritual life is often expressed in the outward and joyous gifts we share with the community around us as we gather to blessed and sent forth to proclaim the love of Jesus Christ.
While the interior disposition and search for holiness is vital it always must be accompanied by the exterior works of grace. It does no good to put new paint on a building and never look at the structural integrity and in the same way the beauty of an interior will begin to degrade quickly when the exterior is left to be ravaged by the elements of weather and time.
Before I entered the seminary I was a parishioner at St. Martin of Tours in San Jose. Each Sunday morning I would rise early and attend the 7:00 a.m. Mass. Because I didn’t own a car at the time I would often ride my bike the mile or so I lived from the parish. I would often feel tempted, especially if the weather was in-climate or on those hot mornings to forgo the slacks and collared shirt I normally wore for Mass. But the temptation was usually overcome by a deeper desire to honor God and to remember where I was going and what I was going to do there. It wasn’t that the clothes (exterior) automatically made my soul and prayer (interior) holier or more presentable to God rather for me it was an outward reminder of who I was made to be.
In “Sacrosanctum Concilium: The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy” from the Second Vatican Council (Vatican II) the Church speaks about the dignity and the reality of what occurs at the Eucharistic Liturgy and why we should be attentive to how we celebrate…
Why do we come? The first sentence of Chapter 1 is very plain and direct where the Church proclaims, “God who “wills that all men be saved and come to the knowledge of he truth” (1 Tim 2:4) (#5) We are invited into an act of not only relationship but a growing in the knowledge and love of God. The understanding the truth that proclaims “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” (1 Jn 4:8)
Entering into this love and mercy is a work of grace shared by all members of the Body of Christ, This is why coming to celebrate is such an important moment each and every week because as we are reminded, “To accomplish so great a work Christ is always present in his Church, especially in her liturgical celebration.” (#7)
The unity we seek with Jesus is found most fully in the interior act of prayer and the exterior action of worship united as one when we are gathered in communion. When we absent ourselves from this grace the exterior begins to weaken and our interior strength begins to wane. Just as climbing a hill to see the vista of wonder takes work and sweat, we know the celebration of God’s love is also the metaphorical mountain top, “the liturgy is the summit toward which the activity of the Church is directed; it is also the fount from which all her power flows.” (#10) it is where we can proclaim in a voice that has echoed throughout salvation history, “Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. (Ps 951-2) See you in the Eucharist.

God Bless
Fr. Mark

What is in a footnote? This question came about from my rereading St. Pope John Paul II’s Apostolic Letter “Rosarium Virginis Mariae: On the Most Holy Rosary” from 2002. It wasn’t just the text of the letter but the footnotes because footnotes have always fascinated me. Whether it is a book or an article, the footnotes tell a deeper story of the ideas. They help us to see the trail of love and hope that springs from our faith.
Our history, tradition and foundations are such a blessing in so many ways because too often we can get enamored with the newest, the most recent and the shiniest object in front of us and forget our history, tradition and foundation from which spring so many great gifts in our life of faith in Jesus Christ. I was reminded this in a funny way by Deepu Kochuparambil (the youth minister at St. Catherine of Alexandria) on his blog www.homedeepu.com where in his introduction on Facebook to a recent post, “Much Obliged” he described Mark Hart’s book “The “R” Father” as “one of his older books.” which made me laugh because it was published in 2010…young people these days. (I hope the long introduction didn’t spoil the chuckle) Deepu writes a great blog…highly recommended read for everyone…even the non-youth of the world.
So why do I bring up this through the long and rambling introduction? Well, because we forget too often the depth of our faith traditions and history and continue to try and build new foundations where one has already been laid for us. At least this is my own personal experience. As Catholic Christians we are able to hear and live this tradition each time we come together and celebrate Mass. It is the foundation of our faith. I, as a priest, in preparing my homily often go back deep into the tradition of the Church for guidance and understanding about the Sacred Scripture given to us on each Sunday. We see it in our prayers, devotions and offerings where we daily enter into the long and joyful conversation of love, mercy and forgiveness that each saint has had with God as they (and we) listen and speak with gratitude.
I love Mark Hart’s book on the Our Father but it and the footnotes in St. John Paul II’s letter remind me of the deeper history and traditions of understanding and praying the Our Father as part of daily prayer life. You can find thousands of different writers from ancient times, like St. Cyprian of Carthage, to later writes like St. Theresa of Avila and St. Thomas Aquinas to more modern times with Bishop Fulton Sheen (and Mark Hart) being great examples, reflect on the meaning, substance and grace found within this beautiful prayer.
The thing is we often skim only the surface of this prayer and much our faith and fail to go deeper. Each time I read a reflection on the “Our Father” I am challenged to go deeper into my relationship with God. Because in reality each reflection slows me down as a enter into the Our Father and hear the reflection as a footnote inviting me to explore and widen the joy in which we are called to pray.
Ultimately, the continued growth in faith, knowledge and love of God is our goal as baptized Catholic Christians. We can only do this by continuing to engaged in the daily, weekly and life long practice of our faith. Taking time to go into the footnotes of our faith, listening carefully to God’s voice and then living these words spoken in love is a blessing beyond all measure.
Take time in the footnotes, whether it is in the words of memory spoken by a friend or the little numbers in an essay or book and as we look deeper we should never be afraid to enter into the quiet of those little notes seeking the spark of the Holy Spirit to spur us ever deeper in the discovery of Divine Love.
God bless
Fr. Mark

We all need a little break every now and then. I am away for a short while on a vacation. To be able to rest and relax and renew the batteries for the work of ministry. We are reminded that Jesus took time to rest and relax with friends but as the Gospels relate, he was often interrupted in this pursuit time of prayer and quiet.
Cardinal Sarah writes, “Jesus himself points out to men the beautiful dwelling places of solitude and silence.” (#121) and later he quotes Fr. Henri Nouwen, “As ministers our greatest temptation is toward too many words. They weaken our faith and make us lukewarm. Silence is a sacred discipline, a guard of the Holy Spirit.” (#135) (From: “The Power of Silence”) We can all fall into this temptation of avoiding quiet, silence and solitude. The world today gives us the opportunity for noise, busyness and interruption beyond counting and God offers us the gifts of peace, joy and relationship. We get to choose daily which is our greatest desire.
The journey into silence and the interruption of silence are both gifts that are to be treasured. It is a moment of blessing when we have entered into silence with God that we are then called out of silence into an active service of God’s people by the Holy Spirit. This call to service is set upon the great foundation of prayer we are called to begin.
Where do we find time for silence? Where do we find time for prayer? It would be nice if we could take unlimited time and find unlimited opportunities for prayer and silence, yet we know the responsibilities of life call us away from silence and prayer. Husbands and wives must be attentive to each other in relationship that calls them out of silence and prayer, as do parents or children, as we are all called into service of one another.
Where do we find time for silence? Take a cup of coffee as an example. I was speaking with a man a few weeks ago and he shared how his morning cup of coffee became his moment of silence in the day. Before his family became overly active he loved to sit at the breakfast nook in the kitchen and just be in the silence and quiet of the morning in preparation of the day. Admittedly it usually only lasted for a few moments but for him it was the foundation of the day to serve his wife and children. Seeking silence also finds itself in the small tasks of life, like folding laundry, driving to work or perhaps working in the garden. It is found when we turn off the outside noise and seek the peaceful union of God’s voice with ours.
Where down find time for prayer? This is a much more intentional act of love towards God and others because it focusses our silence directly towards the purpose of God’s will in our lives. St. Ambrose writes these beautiful words, “It is the soul that has its door, its gates. Christ comes to this door and knocks; he knocks at these gates. Open to him; he wants to enter, to find his bride waiting and watching.” When we intentionally enter into silence in the hope of hearing the voice of God whispering the call to union, we open the door to our soul to be joined as one. When you go to Mass this weekend, notice the moments of silence that the Church offers to us to listen prayerfully during the celebration. Prayer is when we choose to point our silence towards God. Our continuing invitation is to find time for silence, even a few minutes a day, and then point our soul towards the Divine silence in prayer.

God Bless
Fr. Mark