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