Saint Andrew

As we begin this Advent Season, we pause to celebrate the Feast of Saint Andrew, an apostle of the Lord and brother to Saint Peter. I love the gospel for our feast today, Matthew 4:18-22. The gospel talks about Jesus walking along the Sea of Galilee and he sees Andrew and Simon Peter casting their nets. Our Lord calls to them and they drop everything and follow him. The same occurred a little bit later when Jesus spots James and his brother John. They were cleaning their nets with their father Zebedee. Jesus called them a they left everything behind to follow him. It seems like there was no hesitancy in any of these early apostles. They heard the call of our Lord and immediately left what they knew and followed after him. One of the commentators asks this question, "What made Andrew leave his nets immediately and follow Jesus?" The answer is: "Faith comes from what is heard." Christ beckons, "Come after me..." His promise transformed the possibilities of Andrew's life (Magnificat, 401). Just think what the Lord can do for our lives when we commit ourselves to following him. It takes faith, grace, and trust, and the Lord provides us with all those gifts and so much more. Let us ask Saint Andrew to intercede for us and help us to heed the Lord's call and follow after him. God Bless You!!!

I HOPE so!

There is a phrase that we use a lot in our everyday language. Whenever we plan something or want something to happen, we usually say, "I hope so." As one person reminds me every time we talk, "We live in hope." We have received the gift of hope and it is a gift that we can pray for everyday. Like one commentator writes, "At the beginning of Advent, the Lord reminds us that the horizons of God's promised kingdom are vast indeed. He created all peoples for his glory, and he will draw them all to himself. Let us not set narrow borders to our hope for his promised peace, the healing of all the wounds of sin that divide us" (Magnificat, 396). Hope has no boundaries, so we should not set narrow borders to our hope. The gift of hope is what we pray for during this Advent Season because we know our Savior is coming soon. Have a blessed day and no matter what we encounter in life, let us always live in hope! God Bless!!!

HOPE!!!

Happy New Year as we begin the Advent Season. This is the time for us to live and wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior of the World. As someone told me after one of our weekend Masses, "Hope is a small word but it has a lot of power." Hope is my focus during the Advent Season. This January, the Diocese of Salina, Kansas, will begin the Pastoral Plan named, "Stewards of Hope." We are all stewards and we need to be a people of hope. As another person always reminds me, "We live in hope." There are so many examples of hope that we can find and some happen to be right in front of us. Our different experiences in life can be a testament of hope. Like faith, we can share the hope that we have with our brothers and sisters. My prayer for you today and this Advent is that the gift of hope will be yours and may it be a gift that we live and share each day. Have a blessed Sunday!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I know you might be saying that I missed the Thanksgiving greeting by one day. I apologize because after the morning Mass for Thanksgiving Day I headed home and relaxed the rest of the day after a wonderful meal, thanks Mom! As I told the people who attended our Thanksgiving Masses on Wednesday evening and Thursday morning, everyday is Thanksgiving Day. Yes, we gather one day a year or one weekend a year as family and friends to give thanks for God's blessings in our lives, but each and every day is a day of Thanksgiving. In our time of prayer and interactions with others, we need to be thankful because all that we have comes from God. Wishing you a Happy and Blessed Thanksgiving! Let us always be thankful for what God has done for us in our lives. Blessings to you all!!!

The Vietnamese Martyrs

Today is the Memorial of Saint Andrew Dung Lac and his companions. It was during the 16th Century that the Gospel of Christ was first sown among the Vietnamese people and this seed grew through the blood of the martyrs. In the 17th, 18th, 19th Centuries, many Christians received the martyrs crown especially bishops, priests, religious men and women, and members of the laity. All of these suffered torments of various kinds for their Christian faith and fidelity to the cross of Christ, and bore witness to Christ's Church and true religion. Our beloved Holy Father, Venerable John Paul II on June 19, 1988, declared 117 martyrs to be among the ranks of the saints (Magnificat, 328). We look to these holy men and women and we ask their intercession as we continue our journey of faith. May we do what we can to live our faith to the fullest, stay close to the cross of Christ, and continue the mission of the Church entrusted to us. God Bless You!!!

Taking Care of Parents!

Thank God for the gift of parents. They are the ones who bring you into the world- care for you, love you, nurture you, and so many other gifts and qualities. It is tough to see your parents as they age and get hit with different infirmities. In my bio, I tell people that I am an only child, which was not easy growing up, but as you get older, you get used to it, and of course God does His part by bringing other people into our lives to love, care, guide, and support us. Still, you have to do your part to help your parents. As one person told me recently, we end up "parenting our parents." My dad has dealt with alzheimer's for the last few years and thankfully can still function and live at home. My mom has dealt with ulcerative colitis for over 20 years and there have been no major flare ups until now. She will be facing surgery in the next couple of weeks to remove a bad section from the colon. I ask you to keep my folks in your prayers! It is also a good reminder for us to take care of ourselves. We have people in the medical profession to help us and provide what is necessary to stay healthy and well. Each day is thanksgiving as we thank God for the gifts that He has given to us. Let us always take care of the gifts we have received and use them for the glory of God! Have a blessed day!!!

Re-Dedication!!!

Today at the Mass for our Catholic School students, I talked about the Feast of the Dedication of the Basilicas of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, even though it was the day before. We have had new servers at our Masses this week and they have been pretty nervous. I told them about my nervous experience as a server. It happened to be at the dedication Mass for our new parish church when I was growing up. That was a very important Mass and we had to make sure we were ready to do what was asked of us. I told the students that a dedication Mass is a very beautiful ceremony because we are dedicating a new building to the praise and worship of God. It is also a good time to re-dedicate ourselves to the mission entrusted to us because we are the church, the living stones. We are sent forth to proclaim the Good News each time we celebrate Mass. We celebrate these beautiful dedication Masses but let us always be mindful to dedicate and re-dedicate all that we do in our lives for the glory of God. Have a blessed day!!!

Basilicas of St. Peter & St. Paul

Two of the four major basilicas in Rome have a special feast day today. The Universal Church remembers the Dedication of the Basilica of Saint Peter and the Basilica of Saint Paul, Outside the Walls. These two saints are very important and wherever you look in Rome, you see the two together. Saint Peter was the first pope of the church and Saint Paul became one of the church's great evangelizers. It is not often that the Catholic Church marks the dedication of a church, unless it has special significance. Earlier this month, the church celebrated the Feast of the Lateran Basilica, the Mother Church of Christendom. Even though we call to mind the structures that have been built for the praise and worship of God, we cannot forget that the church is made up of people, the living stones. Perhaps these feast days are a call for us to re-dedicate ourselves to living our faith to the fullest and continuing the mission of the church that has been entrusted to us. May Saint Peter and Saint Paul intercede for us as we journey towards the Kingdom of God. Have a blessed day!!!

Saint Elizabeth of Hungary

This November 17 is the Memorial of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary. Saint Elizabeth was born in 1207 and was the daughter of Andrew, the King of Hungary. She married Louis, Landgrave of Thuringia and they had three children. She devoted herself to prayer and meditation. Following her husbands death, she embraced a life of poverty and erected a hospital in which she served the sick. Saint Elizabeth died in 1231 (Magnificat, 246). The opening prayer for the Mass today says that the Father helped Elizabeth of Hungary to recognize and honor Christ in the poor of the world. Our prayer is that Saint Elizabeth's intercession will help us to serve our brothers and sisters in time of need and trouble. We are to see the face of Christ in one another. Let us pray that Saint Elizabeth of Hungary will intercede for us and help us to imitate Christ as we reach out in service to others. Have a blessed day!!!

God's Plan!

Are you familiar with the saying, "If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans." There is a lot of truth in that because God knows what is best for us and it is in Him that we put our faith and trust. This comes to mind as we think about the blog from Monday where we cannot predict the future or the end of the world. Only God knows the day and the hour. However, there are some things that we can think about. These following items come from the Saint Anthony Messenger Press, the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Nov. 14, 2010: 1) Life is hard - even for disciples; 2) What matters most is not following my Plan A exactly but rather following God's plan generously; 3) The Holy Spirit helps us to follow God's plan. Jesus calls each of us to be his disciples and he tells us to pick up our cross and follow him. Our Lord did not tell us what crosses we would have to carry in life but he assures us that he is with us at all times. Let us continue to pray for one another and encourage one another in our journey of life and faith as we follow the plan that God has for us. God Bless You!!!

The Here and Now!

This title is very appropriate because there are people who try to predict when the world is going to end. Only God knows the day and the hour, so there is no need to try and figure it out ourselves. Instead, we need to make the most of the time that God has given us in the here and now. Several things from this past weekend that I used in my homily: 1) "Christian life is to focus on the here and now and that will require strength and faith. The teaching of Jesus does not offer us a way to predict the end of the world. Instead, the teaching of Jesus provides his followers with the spiritual resources needed to cope with the adversity and hardship that is part of life in the here and now." 2) "According to Jesus, a successful follower is not one who can predict the future. The authentic follower of Jesus is the one who lives out Jesus' call for love and obedience in the here and now and who perseveres until the end" (St. Anthony Messenger Press, Homily Helps). This is the key, to live in the present moment and to continue to do what we can in building up the Kingdom of God in our midst, as we await the full reality of the kingdom to be revealed in God's time. Have a blessed day!

Saint Josaphat

Today the Church celebrates the Memorial of Saint Josaphat. He was born in Ukraine of Orthodox parents about the year 1580. Embracing the Catholic faith, he became a Basilian monk. Once ordained to the priesthood and becoming a bishop, he worked faithfully for the unity of the Church. Enemies plotted his death and he was martyred in 1623 (Magnificat, 159). We pray for the unity that Saint Josaphat faithfully and tirelessly worked for. Jesus even prayed that we may all be one. That is still a constant prayer and work among all peoples, that we will be united and live as the one body of Christ. May Saint Josaphat intercede for us and help us always to work for the good of the Church and the unity of all. Have a blessed day!!!

Saint Leo the Great!

Today the Church celebrates the Memorial of Saint Leo the Great. It is said that he was probably born in Rome and became Pope in 440. He was a true pastor and father of souls. He labored strenuously to safeguard the integrity of the faith and vigorously defended the unity of the Church. He pushed back or at least softened the onrush of the barbarians. That is why he deservedly won the title, "The Great." Saint Leo died in 461 (Magnificat, 137). I like where it said that Saint Leo was a true pastor and father of souls. This is what all priests strive for, to be those true pastors, to lead the flock in the ways of faith and holiness. May Saint Leo the Great intercede for us and help us to always be people of faith, holiness, and prayer. God Bless You!!!

Saint John Lateran

When I was in the seminary at Saint Meinrad School of Theology in Indiana, this feast day was always an interesting one to me. The monks always rang the bells for their respective prayer times and it seemed like all of them rang on this day, November 9, and I guess I did not understand why. I do know now the importance of this feast. The Basilica of Saint John Lateran in Rome is the mother church of Christendom. It is also the Cathedral Church of the Bishop of Rome, the Pope. This Basilica was erected by the Emperor Constantine and has been observed on this day since the twelfth century. The feast was first observed in Rome but later on was extended to the entire Latin Church (Magnificat 125-26). We thank God for this feast day and for helping us realize that we are part of a larger mission. Of course that mission is continuing the work of the church and spreading the Good News. May we continue to do all that we can to build up the church, the body of Christ in our midst. Have a blessed day!!!

Changing Time!

The seasons have changed, leaves are falling from the trees, the air has gotten cooler, and daylight savings ends this weekend. Time also goes in cycles, just like the liturgical calendar of the church. The readings that we are listening to remind us that life is about change and that the end of time is near, but death is not the end because new life always springs forth. We know that at the end of the fall and winter seasons spring will blossom forth with new life. The same is true with death because we are assured that life has changed, not ended. That is the beauty of the Resurrection and that is the faith that we need to live with each day. The changing of time is a reality and it is a time to give God thanks for His goodness in our lives. Let us pray that our faith will always be nurtured and continue to grow as time keeps marching on. Have a blessed weekend!

Saint Martin de Porres

Saint Martin was born in Lima, Peru, of a Spanish father and a black mother in 1579. He studied medicine as a boy and it helped him when he became a Dominican because he was able to help the poor. He led a humble and disciplined life and was devoted to the Holy Eucharist. Saint Martin died in 1639 (Magnificat, 53). After celebrating the communion of saints on November 1, we return to celebrate one saint on this third of November. As the line in the opening prayer says, "May we follow his example and be exalted with him in the kingdom of heaven." What a great example for us: humble, a disciplined life, and a beautiful devotion to the Holy Eucharist. We can also grow in our love for the Holy Eucharist, the presence of our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. It is the Eucharist that sustains us in our journey of life and faith. May we be strengthened by this beautiful devotion to the Eucharist and the intercession of Saint Martin de Porres. Have a blessed day!!!

Feast of All Souls

On this second day of November we remember the souls of all the faithful departed. The first of November called to mind the communion of saints, but now we focus on all who have gone before us. Here is what the Magnificat magazine says about this feast: "The commemoration of All Souls is rooted in the Church's strong conviction that we, the living, have a serious responsibility in love to accompany with prayer those who have died but who must yet complete the purificatory preparation every human being needs to be able to dwell in the all-encompassing love of God" (38). We pray for those who have gone before us and we look forward to the day when we will hopefully all be reunited and live in God's eternal presence forever. God Bless!!!

All Saints Day

A blessed Solemnity of All Saints to everyone! The entrance antiphon for this day says, "Let us all rejoice in the Lord and keep a festival in honor of all the saints. Let us join with the angels in joyful praise to the Son of God." What does it take to become a saint? Listen to our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI: "To become saints means to fulfill completely what we already are, raised to the dignity of God's adopted children in Christ Jesus.. The saints bring to light in creative fashion quite new human potentialities... The saints are themselves the living spaces into which one can turn... There is no isolation in heaven. It is the open society of the saints and, consequently, also the fulfillment of all human togetherness... One might say that the saints are, so to speak, new Christian constellations, in which the richness of God's goodness is reflected. Their light, coming from God, enables us to know better the interior richness of God's great light... Nothing can bring us into close contact with the beauty of Christ himself other than the world of beauty created by faith and light that shines out from the faces of the saints, through whom his own light becomes visible." We may not be canonized saints of the church, but we are called to be saints by word and example. May the holy men and women we celebrate today intercede for us and help us to radiate the light of Christ. God Bless You!!!