One of the great joys of being a parish priest is the comings and goings during the day. This is especially true on Sundays and the days when school, camps or other activities with families are happening around the parish grounds.

As I stand at the doors of the church before Mass begins I am able to witness the coming together of a family and my greatest joy is when the young children coming running up to the church often imploring mom and dad, or their siblings to hurry up. It is also true that as time goes on, as children grow, this enthusiasm of running to church can wane. It is true that as many of our youth reach the “teens” and young adult life they begin to resist and can at times turn away from the celebrations of our Catholic faith, most notably the Mass as they proclaim that they are “spiritual” but not “religious.”

At the beginning of Chapter 3 of Amoris Laetitia Pope Francis offers this view of marriage and family I believe helps us to resist this waning of faithfulness. Following the message from the Joy of the Gospel (Evangelii Gaudium) we are encouraged to be a prophetic voice of joy and love in the world. This is the goal, how God desires we follow in his plan of creation…to be joy filled people of love. Now comes the hard part.

“In and among families, the Gospel message should always resound; the core of that message, the kerygma, is what is “most beautiful, most excellent, most appealing and at the same time most necessary”. This message “has to occupy the center of all evangelizing activity”. It is the first and most important proclamation, “which we must hear again and again in different ways, and which we must always announce in one form or another”. Indeed, “nothing is more solid, profound, secure, meaningful and wise than that message”. In effect, “all Christian formation consists of entering more deeply into the kerygma”. (58)

There is this little word “kerygma.” What does it mean and how does it help us to fight for the joy of the Gospel. I will leave it to St. John Paul II to give meaning to kerygma (see below), but to put it plain and simple…as we know the Gospel, we know Jesus and follow him by faith.

It has been taught, said, proclaimed…use whatever word you like…over and over again that parents are the first and best teachers of the faith. This is done by both words and example. And it is not easy. While St. John Paul II writes we are overwhelmed by God’s love as we entrust ourselves to Him, how many times do we, and especially parents, become overwhelmed by the many things that can distract us away from the love of God, family and neighbor.

The message, though simple, is very difficult to follow as we allow the small distractions to enter into our daily routines. I asked a parent one time, when she was struggling with her teenage daughter, if she prayed with her before bed (or at any time). She looked a little shocked and said she had stopped that practice when her daughter was ten years old. I challenged her to begin again knowing that there would be great resistance..

Pope Francis reminds us that as we grow, as we know God better (or worse), as we are challenged by the changing world, the message of the Gospel, the practice of the faith and the life of virtue are still important and relevant to the forming of our lives. We just need to say it a bit differently.

I wish I could promise parents complete success by following a prescribed program…but I can’t…the free will thing God has blessed us with. But I do trust that the seeds we plant, the nurturing we do and the tears shed in watering the hopes of our world are blessed by God. We may never see the return, but trusting in God we know that life conquers death and love overcomes sin.

God Bless

Fr. Mark

 

 

St. Pope John Paul II wrote in Catechesi Tradendae,

“Thus through catechesis the Gospel kerygma (the initial ardent proclamation by which a person is one day overwhelmed and brought to the decision to entrust himself to Jesus Christ by faith) is gradually deepened, developed in its implicit consequences, explained in language that includes an appeal to reason, and channeled towards Christian practice in the Church and the world.” (CT 25).

A woman once desperately asked God in prayer, after many discouraging trials, “If only you could assure me that I can persevere, I would be satisfied.” An answer came from her heart, “Well if I did give you that assurance, how would you act? Just do that and all will be well.” Trust in God. (From Bringing the Imitation of Christ into the 21^st Century p 19)

 

To “Bear Wrongs Patiently” is the Work of Mercy that I missed during the month of June. In my excitement with Amoris Laetitia I missed this work during the Jubilee Year of Mercy. Therefore, I ask you to bear this small wrong patiently as we discover a little bit about how we are to live this Spiritual Work of Mercy.

 

As the above short story tells us to bear wrongs patiently is both an inward and outward work of mercy. It is the act of forgiveness and mercy that is echoed so beautifully in the Lords Prayer when we pray, “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” All works of mercy include the active engagement of our hearts with the other in our life: God and neighbor.   We must learn to be patient with our self, our sins, our faults, our failures to be truly “mercifully patient” with others.

Take for instance my golf game…the greatest challenge is to be patient with who I am as a golfer…not very good…and to play the game with joy and mercy. I can get better (and I am, little by little) but I need to recognize the gradual movements within my ability. This is why we need to learn to bear wrongs patiently with others. I can loose the perspective on my own faults when I choose not to hear the voice of others as I listen to the negative and unfavorable voices in my heart and not hear the encouragement of the progress being accomplished in the voices of the other in my life.

Have a good and positive attitude. Look about you and see those people past and present, who offer encouragement by their example. You may not imitate them exactly or be as successful as they are but be uplifted by them and allow you own faith and hope to supply. (From Bringing the Imitation of Christ into the 21^st Century p 19)

Bearing wrongs patiently is an active movement! It is not sitting back and becoming a doormat in allowing others to “do wrong” and being patient with the forlorn hope that change will come about. Back to the golf game: My friend, Henry, gently reminds me, when I’m in a listening frame of mind, that to hold the club lightly in my hands gives me greater control than squeezing the life out of the club. He has reminded me of this blessing for over seven years of playing together…and I am still learning. I begin to appreciate the bearing of wrongs with patience when I hear that kind and persistent voice of reminder. I know it must get frustrating for him to say it over and over again wondering if I will ever “get it”…I promise you I do try to remember.

It is a reminder to me, as it should be to all of us, that sometimes the wrong that we must bear is a lifelong cross of seeking the very best for the other in our life.

 

In the end, this is why we bear wrongs patiently: for the good of the other. The spiritual work renews our hearts and helps us to accept God’s mercy, as we become bearers of mercy to our brothers and sisters. It is recognizing the compulsions and passions that are in need of patience from our self and others. It is when we can do this that the mercy of love becomes more apparent and we are able to bear the wrong with lightness in God’s saving grace. Fr. Richard Rohr in the below quote reminds us in forgiveness, the continual act of mercy, we learn to see God through our faults and the faults of others by recognizing that we are all daughters and sons of a merciful and loving God. And when we, with God, bear wrongs patiently, we are then able to truly embrace the other, as Jesus embraces his Cross. It is here that love flourishes and mercy abounds.

The task is to overcome these passions and to learn to perceive reality (more) objectively. We have to press through to God, the Totally Objective, who for Christians is at the same time Totally Ours, since he has committed himself to our world and become part of it. We must be capable of meeting someone other that ourselves. (From What the Mystics Know p 33)

God Bless

Fr. Mark

 

 

1. Bringing the Imitation of Christ into the 21^st Century, by Fr. William A Meninger OCSO
2. What the Mystics Know: Seven Pathways to Your Deeper Self, by Fr. Richard Rohr OFM

 

As we read this short reflection we pray for the victims of violence, those who have died, their family, friends and communities.  We pray that the true peace of Jesus Christ may rest in the hearts of all people.

 

Visit the imprisoned, the Corporal Work of Mercy that we focus on this month is a little bit scary for many people. I have been writing a lot about marriage, relationship and how we understand them through the Apostolic Exhortation, Amoris Laetitia the last few weeks but, in this Year of Mercy, I would like to return to the works of mercy for this week.

How do we visit the imprisoned? That is a good question and a hard question to answer. I think if we all decided to call the local jails and prisons in the area tomorrow and ask to visit a person that is incarcerated we would all be questioned and it would take months, if not years, to get the proper permissions and appointments necessary to visit someone in prison. Unless we are in the position of having a relative imprisoned it is very difficult to simply “visit the imprisoned.”

Too often in our society the life of the imprisoned is glamorized both positively and negatively. Whether on television or the movies we are given a glimpse of life within cells and walls, that for many of us, are easily left behind as we turn the channel and walk out of the theaters. The life portrayed doesn’t allow us to see the grinding weight of the loss of freedom and the violence done to the human spirit.

But once more it begs the question, how do we visit the imprisoned? I would certainly ask you to pray about joining ministries that do take time to go into the jails and prisons to visit those men and women are incarcerated. When I was in Morgan Hill as pastor of St. Catherine of Alexandria Parish, we had a group of dedicated lay volunteers who visited the local juvenal facility on a weekly basis not only sharing the Gospel message but also the reality that each young person they visited was loved and cared for in the dignity of a child of God.

I believe this is the ultimate gift of visiting the imprisoned; we recognize the other as a child of God, whether free or imprisoned. So what can we do? We are reminded that the imprisonment does not end when they are released. Both the spiritual and mental imprisonment often continues as their “record” follows them into society. The Diocese of San Jose promotes a restorative justice model that assists those imprisoned with criminal records to find pathways of reintegration into society. The Catholic Church along with many other religious and social service agency work with families, especially children, to help them adjust and grow through the pain and burden of having family members imprisoned because of their actions. This is where our actions can make a difference of “visiting the imprisoned” when we choose to encounter in the other in hope sharing the gift of peace given by our Lord Jesus.

I understand that not everyone is able to help, volunteer or spend time in this act of mercy on a regular basis, but if through prayer and discernment you feel that this is where God is calling you to serve, then respond with generosity with the gift of your time and talent in being the hands and feet of Jesus.

To “visit the imprisoned” may be the most difficult work of mercy that we are called to do but each and everyone of us can and should begin with prayer: prayer for a more just society, prayer for the protection and sanctity of families, prayer for victims of crime and those who perpetrate acts of violence and prayer for the peace of Christ that is the one way to true community, true love and true peace in the world.

God Bless

Fr. Mark

“The bonds of friendship make the demands of discipleship bearable. “Bering one another’s burdens,” within the Christian community, enables its members to walk a path of healing and conversion.” (#170 Love is our Mission)

This weekend I will be witnessing the sacramental marriage of my nephew Phillip and his wife Bethany. The con-validation of their marriage is a moment of great joy and blessing to them, their children and the whole family. We, as children of God, are always in process but if we truly follow the call to truth and love we will always find our self on this holy journey together with Jesus at our side.

When Phil and Bethany celebrate the Sacrament they are to become the bond of friendship will deepen and be graced and blessed in the unique way of becoming husband and wife. As the quote above reminds us, the relationship of the man and woman in marriage calls them to walk the path of healing, the path of grace, and the path of salvation.

I will remind Phil and Bethany that their one work within marriage is to get the other to heaven. (1 Cor 7:14-15) In the Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia the Church puts it this way, “The sacrament of marriage is not a social convention, an empty ritual or merely the outward sign of a commitment. The sacrament is a gift given for the sanctification and salvation of the spouses, since “their mutual belonging is a real representation, through the sacramental sign, of the same relationship between Christ and the Church. The married couple are therefore a permanent reminder for the Church of what took place on the cross; they are for one another and for their children witnesses of the salvation in which they share through the sacrament” “(72)

Phil and Bethany will become the “gift given” as they take each other in the vows they pray. To become a gift of the beloved is the opening of hope in the joy of love. The gift (husband and wife) is freely given and without bounds that withhold any part of the gift. This is the hard part and why the first quote of walking a “path of healing and conversion” becomes the essential part of the marital love growing through their conjugal love within the sacramental life of husband and wife.

I will share with them through the “mutual belonging” they come to life and share life in the dignity of Jesus Christ. It is the obedience in love to the others that opens the true reality of the friendship that flowers through spousal love which moves through the fullness of life and new life and new hope flowers in their relationship.

We will talk about how the cross becomes for them the tree of life as they become living witnesses to mercy and healing to each other, their children and all whom they meet in their journey of life.

The tree of life is a tree of blessing where the fruit of blessing in joy and fun thrive. Marriage is a place of laughter and grace where true joy comes to life in the shared gift of faithfulness and love. Marriage is the place where shared smiles, shared touches and shared blessings feed the happiness of the soul for each other.

Marriage is where the rituals of life find their deeper meaning. The morning kiss becomes a kiss of blessing, the shared coffee becomes a gift of unity and the spoken word becomes a prayer that binds us closer together in God’s divine love.

Lastly, we will remind them to laugh daily, to forgive hourly and to embrace their beloved continually in the love of knowing that as we embrace the other we truly embrace our cross, a cross blossoming in forgiveness, mercy and joyful love.

God Bless

Fr. (Uncle) Mark