|
August 29, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk……..
The readings heard at our weekend Masses all speak wonderfully about the virtue of humility.
According to St. Thomas Aquinas (d. 1226) the word humility comes from the ancient Latin root humus which means “the earth which is beneath us.” Thus, a humble person is a person who has a sharpened sense of their own beginning and end. The virtue of humility has nothing to do with being shy, timid or mediocre. In actuality, humility instills strength and increases confidence. Because humility makes a person cheerful and available to help others, it prevents the development of an inferiority complex.
Humility causes us to see others respectfully while rescuing us from pathetically rummaging for crumbs of praise and admiration which are entirely worthless.
In the Old Testament Book of Job, we learn about the nature humility in a way that is expressed poetically:
"Naked I came forth from my mother's womb, and naked
shall I go back again. The LORD gave and the LORD has
taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD!" (Job 1:21).
To grow in humility two things are needed. First, we need to be able to appreciate our nothingness. Lest we forget, we had nothing to do with entering into the world of time. Second, we need to appreciate all the gifts God has given us, the talents from which God expects real results.
In order to progress along the path of humility, we have to learn to accept the humiliating events of life. Friends, these events are as inevitable as they are necessary. How important it is to ask Our Lord these events serve to unite us to Him! Pray daily that Our Lord will teach us to regard these events as heaven-sent opportunities to make reparation for sins, to purify and restore innocence, and to fill us with His love.
Another way to grow in humility is to live with sincerity. Every day we are to examine our conscience prayerfully. Every day we are to ask God for pardon because our weaknesses are so numerous.
How do we know we are growing in humility? One sure sign is a readiness to change our minds. St Jose Maria Escriva (d. 1975) instructs us that “only the stupid are obstinate; the very stupid are very obstinate.” Earthly situations do not offer only one solution. Other people may also be right. It often happens that others propose answers from a different point of view to the same question. Differing opinions regarding earthly items always are enriching.
We also know we are growing in humility when we admit mistakes.
Humility leads us to a more complete love of God and the appreciation of people. The humble soul knows what God wants and happily wants God’s will to be done. The humble soul is well-balanced, knowing the right place to be and always approachable and helpful.
It was because of her humility that God did great things with Mary. Let the Mother of God and Our Mother teach us how to be humble. Turn to her and ask for her intercessory help to grow in the virtue of humility which truly is God’s precious gift.
August 22, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk……..
I am so proud to be your priest and pastor. When I am at events away from here, I jump at the chance to tell people where I am from and all about the dynamic parish we have. All summer long visitors throughout the area and beyond have expressed how much they have enjoyed joining us for Mass. Here are some parts of notes I have received just this past week:
“I visited your church for the 11:30 Mass on the Feast of the Assumption. The beauty of the liturgy there was refreshing to my soul. The church building is exquisite.”
“I am going to tell my pastor and Pastoral Council about your Second Sunday so we can start this at our parish”
“Mass was terrific – the people were warm, the music was excellent, the church was stunning.”
“I wish I could be a part of a parish that is so alive and filled with the Holy Spirit. I have never seen so many families and young people at Mass.”
Friends, let us continue to worship Almighty God with our whole hearts, and souls and minds every Sunday and help lead others to Christ our Lord.
Thanks to FOSCO CEMENT who generously and expertly applied asphalt to bridge the front parking lot with the new sidewalk near the rectory. In addition, they kindly donated the 5’ x 5’ sidewalk square near the annex entrance to the church.
New this fall! Four foreign exchange students are living with Catholic host families – 2 from Japan, 1 from Korea, and 1 from China. They will be attending SMCC.
More outstanding news from our Catholic school: Enrollment is up this fall, including a significant increase in students attending SMCC.
Fr. Jason is away enjoying a duly earned break. Strange, his elliptical machine is getting the same amount of use.
August 15, 2010
From Fr. Dave’s desk……
While on vacation with my family earlier this month, there were regular late night conversations taking place around a fire pit. For sure, the topics varied wildly and had a differing range of seriousness – religion, politics, parenting, work, sports, etc… In our family, anything and everyone is fair game. After the children were in bed for the night, the adults assembled together to debate and solve the great issues of our lives and day.
One night there was an interesting foray about our Catholic Faith. Not too long ago reported bizarre and outrageous activities of Mel Gibson brought forth a volley of comments about Catholicism. My brother-in-law shared with us a sarcastic comment he had heard at work. Recounting the episode, a colleague of his was rehashing the litany of troubling allegations involving Mel Gibson only to quip”Who knew Catholicism could be so interesting!”
This comment upset my brother-in-law as much as it did me.
Let me frame it differently to make certain the point is not missed. Just imagine the topic was about Bernie Madoff, the guy who swindled people out of millions and millions of dollars with the ponzi scheme. Suppose somebody was recounting all of Madoff’s unethical behaviors and despicable crimes only to conclude with the statement, “Who knew Judaism could be so fascinating!”
What do you imagine to be the outcry that would follow such a preposterous statement? Why, then, ought a similar statement blaming Catholicism as the source of all Mel Gibson’s woes to be any less offensive?
Is Buddhism to be blamed for Tiger’s repulsive and sickening actions? Yes, that does sound ridiculous and if I were Buddhist it would upset me. Where was the outcry against those who sought to posit Catholicism as the cause for Mel Gibson’s fall from grace?
Several influential people have made statements insinuating that Mel Gibson’s misbehaviors were not caused by his sinful soul, his drinking, his dysfunctional childhood – pick your cause as there appear to be many – but rather they are caused by and product of his Catholicism.
Even the seemingly obsessive interest in Mel Gibson’s alarming allegations might be a function of deep prejudice against Christianity and, more specifically, Catholicism.
Hollywood is filled with hundreds of dysfunctional people, many of whom have been found guilty of horrendous crimes. There is no lack of unethical tales and sordid stories to be told about many in this crowd.
So, then, what are we to make of what sure felt like an endless fascination about Mel Gibson’s problems?
How are we not able to conclude that some hold a vicious anti-Catholic bias and recently have used Mel Gibson’s troubles to club Catholicism? Admittedly, this conjecture might be born of the fact that Gibson has been a very public advocate of Catholic Christianity.
Be assured, I am not for a single second defending any of Mel Gibson’s eerie comments and disturbing behaviors which have been reported. Quite the contrary - I hold what most people do that his reported words and actions are as disturbing as they are disgusting.
August 1, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk………
Our life on earth is short. Even my Grandma Glass who is approaching 101 years of age only will have had a brief moment in the course of human history when she passes into eternal life.
The saints sought to keep their mortality before them. While some people might find it morbid to think about their end, doing so inspires us to live more fully. When we live with our end in mind, we stand to discover a more meaningful and memorable passing through the world of time. The most important things really become most important.
Recall a special place that you knew you were at for the last time. Once aware of this, time is no longer wasted there. Instead, everything possible is done to take it all in before you had to leave.
In today’s Gospel the Lord Jesus uses a parable to speak in no uncertain terms about the brevity of our human lives. In the parable, God declares: “You fool! This night your life will be demanded of you” (Luke 12:20). Maybe we still think of death in terms of something remote as if we will live forever on earth. However, listen carefully to Our Lord whose words are directed to every one of us. Friends, our days are numbered. We always are in the hands of God. Within a few years, and maybe even not that many, we will find ourselves face to face with Him.
Meditating on our own end can motivate us to use the time that remains better. It can help us to take advantage of our circumstances in order to make reparation for sins and to become detached from earthly goods. One day, like any other day, will be our last day on earth. Today, thousands of people have died or will die in the most varied of circumstances. Many of these people may have been unaware that their time was up and that they no longer would have time left to improve things and make amends. Some died with their hearts immersed in concerns having little or nothing to do with eternal life. Others died who have been involved in exactly the same activities but have kept their sights on God. It is these latter people who have come into possession of the marvelous “treasures in heaven where neither moth nor decay destroys” (Matthew 6:20).
At the moment of death, the state of the soul is fixed forever. Afterwards it is impossible to change. The destiny which awaits us is the consequence of our behavior on earth. This is the reason why Our Lord frequently warns us to be vigilant and to stay awake!
Death is not the end of existence, but the beginning of a new life. Christians cannot ignore or minimize the importance of our mortal existence since it is the very means by which we prepare for our eternal life with God in Heaven. If we wish to yield a rich harvest before God we have to sanctify our ordinary life and use wisely, generously and gratefully the time we have received as God’s gift. This will be our way to Heaven.
++++++++++++
This past week Vacation Bible School simply was amazing! Thanks to the spirited group of parents who poured themselves out all week to lead children closer to Christ and His Church.
Register as soon as possible for Good Shepherd catechesis. When Level I (ages 3-6) and Level II (grades 1-3) reach capacity, waiting lists will be created. For more information and to register: www.stmarysandusky.com/gs.html
Here is some really good news: enrollment at Sandusky Central Catholic School is up for 2010-2011. Check out the strong and sensible 5 year Strategic Plan (2010-2015) at www.sanduskycentralcatholic.org.
July 25, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk………
Jesus had the habit of praying early in the morning in out-of the-way places. The disciples often would find the Lord Jesus thoroughly absorbed in conversation with His heavenly Father.
It fascinated them and frightened them. In today’s Gospel, one of the disciples says what all of them were wondering after they again had observed Him praying: “Lord, teach us to pray”
(Luke 11:1)
We all will do well to make the same request. Jesus, teach me how to deal with you, tell me what I should ask of you. Like the disciples, we often find ourselves in front of God without knowing what to say to Him or how to speak to Him. At every Mass God truly is present in the Eucharist - Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity. Ask Him how to pray. Humility is a prerequisite for meaningful conversation with God. Long before we can appreciate how much we depend on our God, we first need to acknowledge and admit our limitations.
The Lord answered his disciple’s request with the perfect prayer, the Our Father. He spoke every word carefully and intentionally. He taught them how to put all their trust in prayer to their Father God. Our familiarity with the Our Father makes the words feel like an old pair of shoes that fit so comfortably we forget we are wearing them. It is a Christian favorite. Pray it often and pray it well.
Whenever we talk to God we are most likely are asking for something. This really should not come as a surprise. After all, we are children of God and children always are in need. For His part, God wants only to spend Himself on us.
+++++++++++
On Wednesday, July 28, at 4:30 p.m. our parish parking lot expansion proposal will be decided by the City of Sandusky Planning Commission. This meeting is open to the public.
We need to make our presence known.
The meeting will take place at City Hall - 222 Meigs Street. This is the same building where the police station is located, just south of the tennis courts near Battery Park. An impressive turn out will help the commissioners better understand the importance of our project and strong support it truly has. One citizen in particular has expressed strong disagreement about what we are doing to develop our property and is lobbying for our proposal to be rejected. I am hoping to fill the 100 seat room. Please plan on joining me at City Hall to make the positive statement about our church and city that we want the commissioners to hear.
Thank you for the kindness you showed to the Little Sisters of the Poor who thoroughly enjoyed their time with us last weekend. I simply delight in visitors joining us for weekend Masses because I know how warmly they will be welcomed by you!
My youngest brother and his wife and two boys right now are in the process of moving from Milwaukee to Cleveland. You may not have known since they chose not to have a television special to announce their decision.
Speaking of my family, I will be on vacation with them all July 30 – August 6. There will be 19 of us under one roof for a week on the shore of Lake Michigan. Candidly, I am unsure for whom you should pray!
FYI: there should not be a similar 19 staying in the rectory in my absence. I will leave it to you to keep an eye on you-know-who.
Make it a great week.
July 18, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk………
For centuries, today’s Gospel has been presented as a comparison between the contemplative life and the active life (Luke 10:38-42). In this way to explain the meaning of the story,
the two sisters are presented as depicting rival lifestyles – contemplative versus active or spiritual versus secular. Far too many poor homilies have been preached by priests and deacons
praising the contemplative way as the best way. Before such preaching is finished, listeners are exhorted to be more like Mary and less like Martha. And for those of us who are active – which, by the way, is all of us – we leave church feeling deflated.
Friends, this interpretation misses the point.
You mean to tell me that my own sister and brother-in-law who have five children ages 11 – 5 are less holy [aware of God] than a cloistered monk simply because they have embraced their marriage vocation openly and fruitfully which has resulted in their being quite active all the time?
To understand the story of Mary and Martha properly, recall the Gospel from last Sunday: the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). The Samaritan helped a man in need – that is, he acted. It is important to keep this parable in mind when we are seeking to understand the true meaning of the actions of the two women featured in today’s Gospel.
Contemplative dimensions – deep awareness of God’s real presence - do not result in being at the feet of Jesus and doing nothing. Instead, the mature Christian seeks to find God in daily living, in daily work – not apart from it. Again, the Samaritan acted – albeit after he first recognized the need.
It is very difficult, perhaps impossible, to have a profound interior life if we lack a serious commitment to earn our daily bread.
For far too long there has been a mistaken insistence on the supposed incompatibility between secular work and the interior (or spiritual) life.
It is in the midst of daily work and by means of daily labors - not in spite of them - that God calls us to know Him, love Him and serve Him. Christians are to sanctify the world and sanctify themselves and those around them with a life of prayer that gives divine meaning to our earthly tasks. Properly understood, contemplative and active are not rivalries, but rather complimentary – that is, one strengthens the other and vice versa.
So then, seek to find God in your ordinary lives! Combine the love of Mary with the active drive of Martha.
Kindly allow me to share with you terrific words preached by St. Josemaria Escriva (d. 1975):
“You must understand now more clearly that God is calling you to serve Him ‘in and from’ the ordinary, material and secular activities of human life. Understand this well: there is something holy, something divine, hidden in the most ordinary situations, and it is up to each of you to discover it. There is no other way. Either we learn to find our Lord in ordinary, everyday life, or else we shall never find Him.”
When Jesus responds to Martha it is as if He says, “Martha, you are worried about worldly affairs, but you are forgetting about me. You are deeply concerned about important duties, but you are neglecting the most important tone of all, which is union with God – personal holiness. If those worries lead you to lose presence of God then those worries are not good for you.”
Notice, that Jesus does not condemn Martha. Instead Jesus responds to Martha’s question as to what is most important in life – namely, being aware of the presence of God. How often might Our Lord make the same reproach to us? Nothing ever can justify our forgetting Jesus in our daily work, not even the most important of worldly concerns. We certainly cannot minimize the importance of prayer with the excuse we are too busy.
July 11, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk………
The business the Good Samaritan had at hand was left to wait (Luke 10:26-37). When the dire need of another was seen, the urgent things he had to do were no longer all that important.
He generously gave his time to the person in need. Friends, it not only is a question of time – our interests and the things we like doing are all to take second place to the needs of others.
Let us all work to take this message from God to heart.
++++++++++++
We are a parish who enthusiastically commits ourselves toward helping youth know, love and serve Almighty God and the people of His Church!
Recently Sandusky Central Catholic School unveiled its exciting new 5 year plan to select leaders of the three Sandusky parishes. Catholic education has been the most important ministry of all three parishes since their respective establishments. The new blueprint ensures the continuation of a safe and strong comprehensive pre-K to 12 Catholic education that is marked by living the Catholic Faith, achieving impressive academic successes and inspiring leadership through Christian service.
You have spoken and we have listened! The remarkable success of our Catechesis of the Good Shepherd has led me to authorize the expansion of this amazing program from our current offering for ages 3-6. Beginning this fall, Good Shepherd will be the religious education program for children ages 7-10. Last month, five parish catechists received intensive training in the Montessori-style program and now are certified!
In future years it is our intention to expand Good Shepherd further through grade 6 and to implement the national Life Teen program for junior high students called Edge.
Speaking of our enormously popular Sandusky Life Teen, more and more teens are being led closer to Christ. This summer weekly activities for teens on Tuesday and Wednesday nights have resulted in an impressive regular number of high school students praying together and having great fun. Over 30 Sandusky Life Teen participants will be making the trek to the Steubenville St. Louis Mid-America Conference July 16-18. Thousands of teens from all over the USA will converge in St. Louis for what is certain to be a powerful spiritual encounter with Christ and His Church. Remember to pray for our terrific teens!
Vacation Bible School is right around the corner: July 26 – July 30, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. in the Commons. I registered Fr. Jason and hope you will be sure to do all you can to encourage children ages 4 – 10 to participate.
Let’s make like the Samaritan in Luke’s parable (17:11-19). Would you please send Archbishop Dolan a brief note telling him how much we appreciated his personal letter of thanks for our parish contributions to Catholic Relief Services for their vital work in devastated Haiti? It is no small impression we made to hear personally from the Archbishop of New York and Chairman of Catholic Relief Services.
Most Reverend Timothy M. Dolan
Office of the Archbishop
1011 First Avenue
New York, NY 10022
Just in case you are confused by someone looking a lot like me wandering around with a wife and children, my brother and his family from Indianapolis are visiting and staying in the rectory this weekend. You will be pleased to know that he kindly reminded me to keep my preaching short and try to have a point. Too bad for you I have not always listened to him.
July 4, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk………
What a special gift of God’s making my first year here as your pastor has been! I love being a priest and I especially love being your priest. My love for the priesthood was inspired mightily by the many
impressive priests who have been a part of my lifetime beginning with my great-uncle and priest of 62 years, Fr. Rolland Glass. Memories still are vivid for me of his praying from his breviary, joyously celebrating the Mass, effortlessly caring for and helping people, and constantly urging those whom he encountered to seek
and find the hope and inner peace which Christ Jesus so deeply desires to give to us all. He harbored a real and infectious joy which was something I wanted similarly to characterize my daily living.
While attending Marquette University, I frequently made my way to his parish north of Milwaukee to play golf together, take in walks along the beautiful Lake Michigan shore and root for the Packers after Sunday morning Mass. As a young boy growing up in Wisconsin, he took me to my first MLB game – the Brewers lost to the Tigers after Gates Brown ruined a perfectly fine afternoon with a dramatic home run giving Detroit the victory. His last parish and parish from which he retired as a priest and pastor of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee was…St. Mary’s!
Without the priests God generously put into my life, there is nothing I could have done. Without them, the Church could do nothing, for we would then be without the Eucharist, without Jesus truly present in the Blessed Sacrament.
Throughout the Year for Priests which concluded last month, we have heard wonderful testimonies from Catholics about the terrific difference priests have made in their lives. Many people voiced their appreciation for their dedicated labors and numerous sacrifices. Oftentimes the priest’s work is thankless task, but this past year our priests especially have heard people say thanks. I add my voice to that chorus of gratitude, including special words of thanks to Fr. Jason who recently marked his first anniversary as a priest!
Friends, if we are to recapture our sense of the Lord’s Day, our priests will lead us. We often hear people tease their priests that they only work one day a week – Sunday! Of course, that all is in good fun, for parishioners know that a priest’s work in never done. Yet, Sunday is the day of our greatest work or, more accurately, it is the Lord’s work, and we experience the best priestly version of ourselves when we consecrate the Lord’s Day by leading the people in the Lord’s own sacrifice. Many priests, who prudently sensibly begin preparing their Sunday homilies early in the week, regularly are thinking about the next Sunday. In this sense, they choose to live from Sunday to Sunday with their eyes fixed during the week on the Lord’s Day to come. It is important that our priests share that sense of Sunday with their parishioners so that the Church Herself similarly comes to live from Sunday to Sunday.
As my second year as your pastor dawns, I urge you to join me in being bold and confident in inviting people back to Sunday Mass who have grown distant from it. Let us also encourage each other to make the Lord’s Day a day of rest, a day of the Church, a day for the family. We all will benefit immensely by rededicating ourselves to the weekly priority of celebrating Sunday as the Lord’s Day. So much depends on it. If we let our Sunday observance slide when it is so clear that the Lord desires it, how can we hope to follow the Lord’s will in more difficult things?
A deeper consideration of the theological dimensions of the Lord’s Day may well give rise to charitable actions that further will consecrate Sunday. For example, Sunday might be a time for visiting the sick and the lonely, the infirmed and home bound members of our parish family. Each priest and each parish will find their own ways of celebrating Sunday precisely as the day of the Lord and the day of the Church.
See you at Mass!
June 27, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk………
Today’s Gospel marks a turning point in Luke’s story of Jesus. In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus embarks upon a journey to Jerusalem. In today’s passage, however, we learn that
Jesus’ journey is not only to Jerusalem. Jesus is making His way to Jerusalem because the time is drawing near “for Him [Jesus] to be taken up to heaven” (Luke 9:51). There is one
further word in this verse that warrants our attention: “resolutely” (Luke 9:51). That is, Jesus responds without hesitation to the design of God, cost Him what it may.
In today’s passage, some of Jesus’ disciples suddenly wish to call down fire and destruction upon the Samaritans who refused to welcome Jesus. Friends, that is not the way of Jesus, who leads the way to Jerusalem and, ultimately, to heaven.
The only disciples Jesus wants are those who follow Him freely – not by means of threats or manipulations.
Jesus does not respond to the design of God alone. While there is no hesitating Jesus’ preparedness to go down the strange road which God is opening up before Him, others are called to follow. The Gospel is never only about Jesus. It also is about all who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ.
We, too, have set out on a journey. All the events of our lives stand to lead us back to the God who made us and who called us to be the followers of His Son through our Baptism.
Who then is an authentic disciple? The one who places the priority upon the Gospel and Kingdom of God in their daily living. For sure, there are many important aspects and duties in our lives. God Word makes clear that the greatest of all these concerns is to be our love of God.
++++++++++++
I am pleased to share with you the three most recent books which I have read.
Voices of Silence: Lives of the Trappists Today by Frank Bianco was given to me as a gift upon my return from my week-long retreat with the Trappists at the Abbey of Gethsemani (in Kentucky). It is an engaging, entertaining and behind-the-scenes portrayal of the remarkable men who seek to know, love and serve Christ as members of this venerable religious community.
A Priest Forever by Father Alfred McBride – a superb popular writer - is an uplifting read about real signs of hope which are apparent in the priesthood today for those who dare to look carefully.
Bishop Fulton Sheen wrote The Priest is Not His Own in 1963. Finally reading it I understand well why this work rightly is considered a spiritual classic of last century. Don’t be misled by the title as many of the insights are applicable for all Christians.
What recommendations do you have to share with our parish family?
++++++++++++
I am pleased to report having rediscovered success at the plate. Perseverance. Several younger people kindly gave me advice as to how I might rediscover my swing on Sunday evenings. Suddenly softballs again are finding their way beyond the infield - God is so good! For those keeping score, this is the first team I ever remember being the…well…o-l-d-e-s-t player – gasp!
June 20, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk………
To draw closer to Our Lord we must depend on two
equally important aspects: confidence and reverence.
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (d.1153) explains that confidence and reverence “are the two arms with
which we embrace God.” I sure like that image!
We make our way to God with confidence because we can count on God’s Word always being truthful. At the same time reverence brings us ever closer to God. Reverence or what sometimes Scripture and Church calls “the holy fear of God” is a great source of strength that helps us carry on in our fight against all that offends God. Confidence in God and reverence for God give us proper perspective and enable us to walk in safety this side of heaven.
At 6’8” my father is an imposing man who in his prime commandeered the room soon after he entered. These days he still holds court, though his style is not so pronounced and magisterial as he has become much more…how shall I say it…grandfatherly and relaxed. More than anyone else, dad taught me the Godly attributes of confidence and reverence. In one way, my life is an attempt – poor as it is - to imitate my dad. His walk across the earthly stage has been marked by major adversities: told he had a mere 60 days to live as a young father with four children, surviving a brutal experimental chemotherapy regiment, beating cancer additional times later in life, enduring unforgiving side-effects from a myriad of surgeries and medicines, receiving a kidney from his youngest sister. Through it all he has harbored an unmistakable confidence and reverence, knowing God is to be found in all the challenges of life as well as its joys. He is not a man who needs to lecture about it. Instead, he simply chooses to embrace God in this manner. And that has made all the difference.
June 13, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk………
I still am savoring God’s delights from my week of silence
with the Trappist monks at the Abbey of the Gethsemani in
Kentucky. It is all-too-easy for God’s Word to be drowned
out by the worldly noise that pollutes our day. The Trappist monks structure their day around times for prayer. Then,
whatever time remains is used for manual labors which
keep their monastery self-sustaining.
It strikes me that the opponent tempts us daily to do
otherwise – that is, to work feverishly and only afterwards
give to God whatever is left, if anything. During my days of
retreat it was amazing to enter anew into the cycle of prayer - and not feel captive to a frantic pace. If you want to pray, you have to pray. Let us all remember that good intentions to pray are not prayers that are prayed.
Beginning at 3:15 a.m. and ending at 7:45 p.m., the monks assemble eight times throughout each day in their simple chapel to pray. Every two weeks they beautifully chant all 150 Psalms (our Lord Himself prayed these Psalms). In addition nearly all of the New Testament is read aloud during this same two week period. The fruits of their lifestyle are so readily apparent in their inner peace and unmistakable joy. Answering the deep longing voiced by my favorite band, I can say that they have found what I am looking for.
In a twist of irony, one of the most well-known Catholics in America last century was a member of this cloistered community. In 1948 Fr. Thomas Merton’s (he was called “Fr. Louis” by his Trappist brothers) The Seven Story Mountain became an instantly popular best-selling book. It now is hard to believe that The New York Times refused to put Merton’s book on their weekly list on the grounds that it was “a religious book.” Then, again, the vitriolic anti-Catholic attacks launched without restraint by the NYT today do have a long history.
Including paperback editions and foreign translations, the total sales of The Seven Storey Mountain has reached the multiple millions, and it continues to sell remarkably well year after year. Merton died unexpectedly in 1968. Before I left the monastery, I prayed at his grave which is marked by a simple cross bearing his name – exactly like all the others.
++++++++++++
Near the monastery is the sacred site I long since had wanted to visit. In 1808
Pope Pius VII added four new dioceses to the United States: Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Bardstown (Kentucky). The new Diocese of Bardstown spanned the entire “Northwest Territories” and then some – what would come to be the present states of Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Iowa and Wisconsin. The cathedral was completed in 1819. Although it still remains standing, today it serves only as a parish church under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Louisville.
I was overwhelmed kneeling before the Blessed Sacrament inside the cathedral, realizing suddenly that I was adoring the same Lord Jesus Christ whose Eucharistic Presence brought the Catholic Faith to our part of the country.
Nearby small towns bear Catholic names and identities including Holy Cross, Loretto, St. Francis, St. Mary and St. Catharine.
+++++++++++
Turning our sights closer to home, you no doubt have noticed our parking lot project is moving forward with the removal of some backyard garages. As the summer unfolds we expect to remove more structures. Dedicated and determined efforts on the part of some parishioners looks to have the demolition of dilapidated buildings accomplished without spending any parish money.
++++++++++++
Fr. Jason and I are attending the national Life Teen Convention in Phoenix until Thursday, June 17 (www.lifeteen.com). I made the call to the bullpen to summon the ‘ol right-hander and am thrilled that Fr. Phil agreed to take the mound while we are away!
May 23, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk……...
Signs of the Spirit: Here Come the Younger Generation
Congratulations to our 47 young people receiving the Sacrament of confirmation this weekend! They have prepared well for this great moment and are eager to be sealed
with the gift of Holy Spirit. I received a personal letter from every one in which they outlined
their studies and service. Yes – a personal letter…paper and ink…greeting, salutation and signature. impressive!
I wish sincerely to thank Fr. Michael Billian for graciously administering the Sacrament of Confirmation as the personal representative of Bishop Blair.
It is wonderful to see the increasing numbers of younger people populating our Sunday Masses – your presence is noticeable! Much has been studied and written about Gen-Xers leading a remarkable spiritual renewal that clearly is underway in our Church. Findings include better educated younger people in matters of Catholic Faith and a higher level of commitment to living out their beliefs through Christian service. After the spiritual malformation marking my generation – where making collages from magazines seemed far more important than learning catechism - today’s younger Catholics display an appetite for what the Church offers. In my interactions, they want to know what the Church teaches. They further want leaders who rally to live the faith. One recent book written by Colleen Carroll is well-worth reading if you want to learn more about the spiritual trends of Gen-Xers and their growing influence in the Church. Carroll spent several years interviewing younger Catholics and what she discovers gives us all real cause for a future full of hope. In The New Faithful: Embracing Christian Orthodoxy, Carroll says that increasing numbers of young adults are finding lively fellowship and community worship focused on the Eucharist. She further emphasizes their excitement to discover the Church’s true teachings.
An entirely different and more personally revealing book about the spiritual quest of younger Catholics is found in Tell Me Why: A Father Answers His Daughter’s Questions About God, co-written by Jana Novak and her father Michael Novak. Jana does not hide her struggles with understanding and practicing the Catholic Faith. She reveals about how hard it can be to keep the faith in a style that is as honest as it is sincere. And yet, she also states how inspired she and her younger generation are by both the Catholic insistence of a God who encourages people to think, question, doubt, study, struggle and then, come willingly to Him.
++++++++++++
Kindly remember me in your prayers during my annual retreat May 24 – 29. This year I will be joining the monks at the Trappist Abbey of Gethsemani in Kentucky. Not to worry – their vow of silence will be more than enough to keep me among them only as a short-term visitor: www.monks.org
Congratulations to the many high school graduates of our parish and their families – bravo! We will be celebrating your accomplishment with a special Mass on Sunday, May 30 at 11:30 a.m. For those graduates who will be pursuing college, military service or other work away from here, we ask you to please stay closely connected with us via the web while you are away: www.stmarysandusky.org. You also can “friend” me after your graduation on Facebook. Of course, you always can go old school and send me a letter too!
Make it a great week.
May 9, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk……………
Dear Mom:
Our celebration of First Communion last weekend at
St. Mary’s was absolutely amazing. People looked to be
standing all around the church. In a different setting, this
size crowd, coupled with the warm temperature, would have
made for more than a few impatient people - but not here.
The sense of belonging that people felt made for an
experience of church that simply was great. The moms and
dads stood out in the sea of humanity that flooded the
church – their gigantic smiles gave them all away! What an
awesome day! Just like the family First Communions we
celebrated together the weekend before in Indianapolis, God used the littlest ones to help us older ones stop and marvel at the things that truly are most important.
You are correct: this was my first First Holy Communion as a pastor. (Yes, I know you were a high school English teacher and I suspect I really am not supposed to repeat the word “first” in a sentence like I just did). This also was the first First Holy Communion for Fr. Jason as a priest. How proud and grateful we both are to be their priests! And now we are connected forever with these particular children and their families in such a special and permanent way.
I am thrilled that you and dad will be visiting your moms on Mother’s Day back in Wisconsin. It cracks me up whenever a gasp is uttered after I tell folks that your mom is 100 years old and dad’s mom is nearing 96 years of age. Yes, I will remember to call both grandmas on Mother’s Day – and you too! For sure it means the world to them to have you and dad beside them. Though I am disappointed that I cannot be with you today, I am delighted to know where you are. How I wish I were with you in Fond du Lac!
Motherhood inspires beauty, goodness and truth like no other – it is nothing less than 24/7 love and self-giving. The greatness of motherhood comes out in the total humility that is seen. When problems start getting to me, I just think about the true experience of sacrifice that marks your life. Since my arrival as your first of four children, you have set aside your interests because of your total interest in all of us. Your selflessness makes me want to live for others.
Earlier this week a high school student interviewed me for a paper she is writing. She asked me a really insightful question about how it is that I have the faith that I do. I know faith is God’s gift, but God’s real presence in my life is personal and concrete because of you. Mom, you have given me the faith that I have. From my beginning you made it so and you have spent a lifetime presenting me back to God. Thinking of you makes me want to live more generously and gratefully. You make me want to put others first just like you have done for me, Brian, Mike and Linda.
Thanks for stopping by Sandusky last week and putting some fresh spring touches on the rectory.
Love Always,
Dave
May 2, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk……………
This weekend 42 children of our parish family will receive
Holy Communion for heir very first time. God is so good!
It never ceases to amaze me how God chooses His little
ones to remind the rest of us about that which truly is most
important.
Just as we must nourish our bodies with physical food, so
also do we need to nourish our souls with spiritual food.
My personal preparation to receive the Eucharist has
changed over the years. There was a time in my life when I
mistakenly viewed the Eucharist as a reward-of-sorts for a week well lived, like a gold star given for mortal sin avoided. Now when the Sacred Host is held aloft over the altar and words are spoken announcing to all that “This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world,” I feel a deep longing to receive God’s medicine for my soul – a divine remedy I dearly need and without Whom I have no chance to live well.
Of all our prayers, participating in the Eucharistic sacrifice truly is best. The Lord once said to Blessed Angela of Foligno (d. 1309):
“Make yourself a capacity; I will make myself a torrent.”
Friends, the Eucharist unleashes a supernatural surge of beauty, goodness and truth into our very selves. In order to drink abundantly of what is nothing less than an inexhaustible reservoir of divine grace, we need to mature as persons by turning away from self-absorbed impulses and activities. This happens as we see the Eucharist more as God’s gracious gift and less as our rightful reward.
Without exception the saints loved the Eucharist. It is no surprise that those who embark upon imitating the saints find themselves going to Mass frequently. These people especially are alive to the power of God’s Word and Holy Sacrament. With time, they rightly see the Holy Sacrifice as the very best moment of every day.
But, alas, not everyone is a saint. Among the most common excuses heard from the people who are reluctant to attend Mass, those who easily and with little or no regret disregard their Sunday obligation, are the complaints that “it is not meaningful to me,” and “I don’t get anything out of it,” or “it’s boring.” Listen carefully to these excuses, all of which fail to consider anything wrong within the complaining individual and instead see something wrong with the Eucharistic sacrifice itself.
It saddens me terribly that there also are priests who disregard the Church’s norms for a beautiful, dignified and reverent celebration of Mass. Sometimes homilies are vague rhapsodies of platitudes and private opinions with little doctrinal content and even less spiritual depth. If ever I am an obstacle to your prayer, please love me enough to help me by telling me.
What lies at the center of the boredom complaint? Like most kinds of monotony, disinterest in the Mass is due principally to spiritual deficiencies within bored people. Lacking in human development, they more or less are insensitive to seeing and appreciating the beauty that is right before their eyes. For example, they can read Shakespeare, listen to Beethoven and look upon Rembrandt without being moved by what well-rounded and well-grounded men and women find amazing and inspiring. The awesome wonders of creation leave them cold and unimpressed. In biblical literature they are the ones who have ears yet do not hear and eyes yet fail to see.
April 25, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk……………
Some have wondered if we are going back in time to the
Middle Ages by building a great big moat around the rectory.
Kindly allow me to bring you up to speed with all that is
happening.
For many years the rectory walls have been deteriorating
from water seepage. In recent years, water entry into the
basement has become much worse. The demands of our
parish make it necessary for us to use the basement daily
for meeting, office and storage spaces. Lest Fr. Jason have
to remain in the rectory basement permanently with a bucket
bailing water, it seemed more responsible to employ a
21st century technique to clean and seal the exterior walls so that they once again
are waterproof.
The best expert estimates are that the foundation to the rectory has not seen the
light of day since its original construction in 1891. The excavation revealed
several surprises. First, our ancestors seemed to interpret literally Jesus’ words to
Peter “upon this Rock I will build my church” by building the rectory superbly upon
bedrock! Second the condition of the foundation walls was worse than realized.
Over the years the mortar has deteriorated and the dirt encasing the rectory has
acted like a sponge drawing water into the basement.
If anyone would like to help our important capital improvement project, please
indicate that you would like your special contribution to be credited toward the “2010 Rectory Foundation Restoration”. Help free Fr. Jason from the basement!
After the foundation work is completed and waterproofing accomplished, new
landscaping will be required to recapture the remarkable beauty of our impressive
building.
+++++++++++
Those of you who use the front annex entry near the flag polls undoubtedly are
enjoying the new concrete which has made coming and going so much safer. I
wish to thank Anne Fosco and the good people of Fosco Cement for graciously
donating their expert work.
One of the many great gifts of priestly life and ministry is the honor and privilege I
have to serve my family. This weekend our family is gathering together in
Indianapolis where we will celebrate the First Holy Communion of a niece and a
nephew.
My absence next weekend gives you a much needed break along with the chance
to welcome Fr. John Blaser to our Masses. A venerable longtime pastor who
now is savoring the delights of retirement, Fr. John is with us representing the
Office of Global Concerns which assists in deepening the mission awareness of
Catholics throughout the diocese.
Speaking of the Office of Global Concerns, the director nearly ran me over in his
zeal to speak with me after a recent Mass at the cathedral. How thrilled I am to
report that St. Mary’s contributed the most of all 132 parishes in the Diocese of
Toledo to Catholic Relief Services and the people of Haiti. The Glory of God is
seen remarkably in your generous self-giving that totaled over $18,000!
On Sunday, May 2, at 2:00 p.m., we joyfully will celebrate the First Holy
Communion of our own young people! Please continue to pray for our young
people and their families.
Our final Theology of the Body Adult Study Series event will take place on
Saturday, May 1, in the Commons. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. and the dynamic 30
minute DVD presentation by Christopher West begins promptly at 8:00 p.m. This
final presentation is entitled, “The Language of Sexual Love.” Delicious food,
ample drinks and an inspiring message again will be enjoyed by all participating.
April 18, 2010
From Father Dave’s desk……………
How are we to understand the words of Jesus when he
says, “The truth will make you free” (John 8:32)? The path
to real freedom is found in knowing the truth and living it. The
converse also is true: deceit leads to enslavement. Recall that
the Bible describes the devil as “a liar and the Father of all lies”
(John 8:44).
The villainous disdain for the truth by select media
outlets is shocking and shameful. Recent legitimate news
includes the release of the annual independent audit on Catholic
dioceses in America on compliance with our own Charter on the
Protection of Children and Young People. What? You do not
know anything about this report? How can that be given that the major findings are as impressive as they are substantial? Given the seemingly round-the-clock assault against the Catholic Church by select media outlets, people actually may be surprised to learn that:
The Catholic Church has had in place strict protocols and preventative measures to stop the abuse of minors from happening again. The audit reported that six million children in our schools and religious education programs underwent safe environment training – that’s 96% of the children in our care. Background evaluations were completed on two million priests, deacons, seminarians, educators, employees and volunteers. Dioceses incurred costs of some $21 million to make this happen.
There were six (6) credible allegations of sexual abuse of current minors for the entire year, in a Church of more than 60 million members. Though one is too many, the percent is dramatically lower than experts tell us is the sad national average, and is only known because the Church is open and honest in reporting.
False allegations have eclipsed the good work that Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger did at the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith and later has done as Pope Benedict XVI. Highly respected journalist John Allen accounts that beginning in 2001 (then) Cardinal Ratzinger brought about a profound change in how sexual abuse cases were handled. The details are many, though the effect was clear. It became easier to remove priests who have committed these abominable crimes from ministry very quickly, and often, dismissed from the priesthood altogether. Since his election, Pope Benedict repeatedly has demonstrated that even high-ranking priests are to be held accountable, and has not minced words about the failures of his brother bishops here in the United States and most recently, in Ireland.
Let me be perfectly clear: the Church is not beyond reproach. Deep wounds of our causing need to be healed, spiritual and systemic reforms must be far-reaching, priests need to imitate Jesus and bishops must dare to lead courageously, compassionately and transparently. Jesus meant what he said and said what he meant: “The truth will make you free.”
Friends, recent reporting on Pope Benedict XVI and our Catholic Church in select media outlets has been anything but truthful.
Kindly remember in your prayers Fr. Jason who is making his annual retreat this week at Mundelein Seminary in Chicago.
I am honored and excited to celebrate the First Holy Communion for a niece and nephew next weekend in Indianapolis.
Great hope in our future is seen in our spirited youth who are preparing to receive First Holy Communion (May 2) and the Sacrament of Confirmation (May 23). Please continue to pray for them and their families.
Your generous spirit has made our Second Sunday Food Collection amazingly successful and a vital resource for helping those in our community who are most in need of assistance – thank you!
April 4, 2010
The Joy of Easter
More than anything that could be stated or taught, it is the
true joy of a Christian believer that most makes me want to
know, love and serve the Risen Lord Jesus. Every joyful
person of faith inspires me to find deeper and more lasting joy in my faith.
True joy does not depend on mere physical or material
wellbeing. True joy does not diminish by the presence of
difficulties or the absence of good health. Deep true joy
originates in Christ, in the love that God first has had for us. Rejoice with me in the promise of the Lord that is fulfilled today: “I will give you a joy which no one will take from you” (John 16:22). Take the words of our Lord to heart: nothing – no thing - can take away the joy which God eagerly gives to us.
People who say they are Christian and are not joyful make the Good News seem phony. Just imagine if more members of own parish family dared to seek and find God’s gift of joy – we’d need a whole lot more than 53 new parking spaces!
Being Catholic is not some arduous task or heavy burden that snuffs the joy out of life like a Mass server extinguishes candles. No! Our faith in the Risen Lord Jesus and His Church gives meaning and purpose and joy to life.
In the Easter story depicting Jesus’ encounter with two disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-34), the same Jesus who appears along the way helps the distraught disciples to understand how Jesus’ own sufferings are a part of God’s great plan. Then during the Breaking of the Bread their hearts are filled with joy!
Many of us Catholics in and around Sandusky are comparable to those two disciples at the beginning of the Luke’s Gospel account: downcast, discouraged and lost. Improper boundaries lead to constant fatigue and exhaustion in our daily living. The deep wounds inflicted by the horrible scandal, sin and crime of the sexual abuse of minors and the abhorrent actions of some church officials hurt terribly. More and more people in our area are feeling burdened by financial pressures and future uncertainties.
Are we not at times like those two dejected disciples on the road to Emmaus? They were so absorbed in their own woes, so lost in their mistaken conclusion that the one in whom they had placed their trust was dead, so shocked by the shame, scandal, and scorn of last Friday that they failed to recognize Jesus as He walked right along side of them!
Real as they are, let us not turn inward to ourselves, our worries, our burdens and our fears. Rather, let us turn to the Risen Lord Jesus, who alone is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6). Over and over Jesus tells us “be not afraid” (Matthew 10:26), and assures us that He “will be with us all days, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20), and promises us that “even the gates of hell shall not prevail against His Church” (Matthew 16:18).
This glorious Easter season, let the Risen Lord Jesus turn our sights toward Him just as He did the two disciples.
Friends, we have every reason to be joyful because Christ is walking right alongside us!
March 14, 2010
The Parable of the Father
The popularly known parable of the prodigal son may just be the
most moving of the parables Jesus tells in the Gospels
(Luke 15:11-32). The life experiences of the two sons serve solely
to reveal the heart of the father. A more accurate story title really
would be something like the parable of the father. Nowhere does
Jesus portray the Heavenly Father more poignantly and more
powerfully. The story begins impressively enough with the fact that
the father grants the request of the son and hands over to him his portion of the inheritance. Because such a handing over of wealth happens at death, the son is announcing that, at least in his eyes, his father is dead.
Take a moment and just imagine some of God’s inheritance which He freely has given
us – our existence, our freedom, our intellect, our emotions. That we waste it all and end up in distress and that the distress brings us to our senses is not as significant as the father’s unconditional love – his pure compassion, extravagant greeting and the lavish feast in honor of the son’s return home. It is as if every single day the father awakes praying that today be the day he returns home. Not even the envious and self-righteous older brother receives a harsh word from the father. To him the father only speaks the full truth: “everything I have is yours” (v. 31). Translation: whoever sticks by God truly possesses everything in common with God.
Do not despair: the Heavenly Father will never tire seeking to find His rebellious sons and daughters and bringing them home to Him.
++++++++++++
I am seeking people whose reservoir of compassion inspires a desire to reach out to
grieving families. Specifically, I would like to have 4 – 6 individuals or couples to assist
with planning Funeral Masses. Training will be provided by both Fr. Jason and me
alongside whom you will minister as you learn how to plan the funeral liturgy while
comforting grieving families. Interested parishioners would need to be readily available to meet with the family at the parish office 24-48 hours after we receive notification of a death in order to help the grieving family select readings and songs for the Funeral Mass. A rotation of parishioners will allow this ministry to be cyclic, normally occurring only 2 or 3 times a month for approximately 1 hour each time.
Please note: in our continuing effort to see people at Mass, we gladly are offering Easter
Sunday Mass at 5:00 p.m.
Sandusky Life Teen will be having Eucharistic Adoration in the Gathering Space of Sts.
Peter and Paul Church from 8:00 p.m. on Holy Thursday (April 1) to 8:00am on Good
Friday (April 2). Recall the words of our Lord in the Garden of Gethsemane: “So you could not keep watch with me for one hour? Watch and pray that you may not undergo the test. The spirit is willing but the flesh is week” (Mark 14:37-38).
The Lenten Tri-Parish Penance Service will be held on Thursday, March 25 at 7:00
p.m. at Holy Angels Church. Reminder: we offer the Sacrament of Confession 30
minutes before every Mass, including Sundays. The Confessional is located off the
Blessed Sacrament Chapel (behind the altar).
Here’s hoping my parents recognize me when I travel to Florida to visit them March 15 –
24. Kindly keep close watch on you-know-who while I am away.
March 7, 2010
Stewardship Way of Life
Please join me in thanking Mary Riesterer, who after 24 years of tireless service to our parish family is retiring as our office secretary. When I first arrived here as a green-horn priest in 1993, Mary’s beautiful smile and reassuring words settled my nerves. Since becoming your pastor in July 2009, Mary has helped me to learn what I am to be doing, offering me timely counsel and keeping me headed in the right direction.
If you are able to send Mary a note of thanks please drop it off in the office and we gladly will deliver it to her.
Mary’s retirement leads us to consider carefully our office operations. Specifically we are discussing and deciding how to provide the most timely and complete pastoral care possible. Stay tuned.
Congratulations to our parishioner and St. Mary Central Catholic High School senior student-athlete Michael Gallagher who won the Ohio swimming state championship in the 200 Yard Individual Medley. In the process of earning his gold medal, Michael also set a new state record in the event. He placed a most impressive third place in the 100 Yard Backstroke, in which 3/10 of a second separated third from first place. Michael also competed in two relay races which included two other members of our parish family: James Alexakos and Matt Stahl. I further wish to congratulate parishioner and Perkins High School senior student-athlete Michael Mulvin for his impressive performance in the state swimming competition. These remarkable young men served notice to the entire state that there is something special around here in the water – actung, baby!
Under the spirited leadership of Karen Bush the Catholic Community Supper has relocated to Holy Angels Church and will resume serving hot meals on Wednesday, March 10. The new location makes it possible for our ministry to serve many more people who are in special need of assistance.
Please continue to pray for the men, women and children who are preparing for baptism and full entrance into the Catholic Faith at the Easter Vigil as part of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). During Lent, they will be present at the following Masses: (Sun) 3/7 11:30 a.m., (Sun) 3/14 9:30 a.m. and (Sat) 3/20 4:00 p.m. I encourage everyone now to mark your calendars and participate in the magnificent Easter Vigil Mass on (Sat) April 3 at 8:30 p.m. A reception will follow the Mass in the Commons giving all the wonderful opportunity to congratulate our newest parish family members. I wish to thank Marty Klupp and the members of our RCIA Team as well as sponsors who have given so generously of their time in helping to lead these people closer to Christ.
Make it a great week.
February 28, 2010
The Transfiguration of the Lord
Today’s account of the Transfiguration (Luke 9:28-36) occurs right after Jesus had predicted His passion to the disciples. Jesus strengthens the disciples’ faith, revealing to them in the Transfiguration a trace of the glory His body will have after the Resurrection. Jesus wants them – and us – to realize that His passion will not be the end but rather the route He will take to arrive at the goal of glory.
For a person to arrive safely at their intended destination, they must have some sense of where they are headed. An archer shoots an arrow when the target is seen. Where are you headed?
The disciples misunderstand. They think the glory of God that they behold on the mountain is the end of the story. They wish to build three tents so to capture and hold that glory (vv. 32-33). A voice from heaven booms, making clear that what they had suspected is true: Jesus is the beloved Son of God (v. 35). Friends, it is not enough simply to know who Jesus is. Let us listen attentively to what Jesus demands and make God’s way our own path.
The journey continues in order to arrive at the intended destination. In today’s Gospel, this is where the disciples falter. One is not made “Christian” by simply remaining alone on a mountain contemplating the divinity of Jesus. Followers of Jesus come down from the mountain – however glorious the encounter with Jesus – and join Jesus on His journey of love and service unto death.
++++++++++++
Each year my thoughtful parents send a Valentine’s Day package to their nine grandchildren. As it happened, their shipment this year was delayed and arrived at my sister’s Chicago home a few days late on Ash Wednesday. Nine year old Matt ripped open his gift only to heave a mighty sigh exclaiming, “Oh, that’s just great! I can’t even eat this Hershey bar for 40 days!”
Born a mere eight days apart in the same Wisconsin town of Fond du Lac, my parents celebrate their birthdays in early March. Mom’s mom turned 100 this past January and Dad’s mom is a remarkably robust 95 ½. So what do you think it is about Wisconsin - the cheese, the brats or the beer?
Eleven year old nephew Tom plays the trumpet. Recently he called and asked if I wanted to hear him play a song. Thirty minutes later…
Many of you have prayed tenderly for a long-time dear friend of mine who passed away on Ash Wednesday. Hers was a most remarkable life this side of heaven. Initially diagnosed with cancer in 1996, Gretchen harbored an indefatigable spirit whose generous and heroic markings empowered those whom she encountered. Four times she waged war against cancer and defeated it. Though, most amazing, was her always beautiful and grace-full style which placed others first, no matter how intense her own suffering. A devout Catholic, she lived the faith wholeheartedly and inspired those around her to do the same. Living in the image of Christ – as she dared to live - means that we live for God and other people. How can we better the time of others?
The February SECOND SUNDAY collection totaled some 300 bags filled with items for Heartbeat of Sandusky. Thank you for your inspiring generosity which will do so much to help deserving younger women and children in our own community.
The monthly Theology of the Body Adult Study Series is excellent and worthy of your consideration. The next session is SATURDAY, MARCH 6. Doors to the Commons open at 7:30 p.m. and the entertaining and informative 30 minute DVD clip shown on the movie screen begins at 8:00 p.m. This month we will learn why the Church requires priests to be celibate. Delicious appetizers, scrumptious desserts and refreshing beverages help to complete the fun evening which is for people 21 years of age and over.
February 21, 2010
The Temptations of Jesus
The devil never ceases to exploit the weakness of our human nature.
After having fasted for 40 days and 40 nights in the desert, Our Lord must have been exceedingly weak and very vulnerable. This is no acting job. Jesus’ hunger pangs are as intense as they would be in every person. He is frail and famished. Precisely then – when vulnerability is the greatest - the tempter appears, slyly suggesting to Jesus that He ought to turn the stones lying around Him into the bread He needs and craves to eat.
In saying “no” to the tempter’s scheme, Jesus does much more than decline the food His body requires and wants. Jesus refuses to unleash His divine power to solve a “human” problem. How amazing Our Lord is in humbling Himself and accepting fully His human condition all-the-while remaining fully divine!
Today’s Gospel (Luke 4:1-13) teaches us to be watchful and vigilant, keeping lookout over ourselves as well as remaining on alert over those whom we have a special duty to help. The importance of this in moments of weakness and tiredness – when vulnerability is the greatest - cannot be overstated. Attentiveness gives us a fighting chance to do what is right when we find ourselves in a tough patch. Certain circumstances can be so overwhelming that in our exhaustion we may feel as though we possibly cannot take another step.
Friends, it is precisely at such moments that the devil tempts us most fiercely, aiming to turn us away from God’s plan so that we hurl ourselves down a different path.
In the second temptation, the devil takes Jesus to the Holy City and dares Him to throw Himself off the top of the temple. Once again, Jesus’ humility provides Him with the strength to refuse the request of the devil. Jesus will have nothing to do with performing pointless miracles which are nothing more than demonstrations of vanity. As we grow in the virtue of humility, we become stronger interiorly. The key to rejecting similar temptations of the devil that arise in our own lives is to become increasingly humble. As we rely more on God, more of His strength and power is at play in our daily living.
In the final temptation, the devil tries to seduce Jesus with all the worldly glory and power that any person could desire. Not so fast, my friend! Recall that the devil is the father of lies. Never forget that the devil always promises more than he can deliver - always.
Every temptation is nothing more than a miserable deception.
Here, the devil preys on our ambitions. The worst of all human ambitions may be the desire to get what we want at all costs. Avoid falling down also in worship of material things. When items are valued improperly, we eventually become their slave. Stated differently, material goods cease to be good if they separate us from God and others.
The longing for human power and glory is a relentless struggle. This Lent let us resolve to keep a constant watch against such temptations. Availing ourselves of the traditional Lenten disciplines of prayer, fasting and almsgiving, may we imitate Jesus and come to serve God more obediently and joyfully
February 13, 2010
Preparing Well to Receive God’s Grace
The season of LENT begins on Ash Wednesday – February 17 – with the ancient practice of marking the baptized with ashes as a public and communal sign of penance.
Q. What do the ashes symbolize?
A. The ashes symbolize repentance and mortality. Accordingly, they also serve to remind us of God’s gracious mercy which is given freely to all those who call out to Him with sincere hearts.
Q. From where to the ashes come?
A. Ashes are created from the burned palm branches distributed on the Palm Sunday of the previous year. The priest blesses the ashes and imposes them on the foreheads of the faithful, making the sign of the cross and saying, "Remember, man you are dust and to dust you shall return," or "Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel."
Q. Upon whose forehead can ashes be imposed on Ash Wednesday? What about those people who are not Catholic – can they receive ashes too?
A. Any baptized Christian may receive ashes. Throughout my 17 years as a priest, I have spoken with many people who are unable to receive Holy Communion for a variety of reasons. Their inability to receive Holy Communion is a source of great suffering. It is important for them to have occasions to go forward along with everyone else toward the altar to receive precisely what everyone else receives.
Q. Does it make sense to impose ashes on infants or toddlers (i.e. those who do not yet have an awareness of sin)? Aren’t the ashes an exterior sign that implies an interior desire for repentance?
A. From a child’s perspective, I think it is good for them to receive the ashes simply because they want to participate and belong. For sure, this disposition in young children should be enjoyed as long as lasts, because it doesn’t last that long. Being included really does mean something to a child. I especially notice this when a child reaches to receive the Holy Eucharist during Communion – and sometimes are disappointed deeply when they do not receive the Sacred Host.
Very recently, my cousin explained it in this way during a conversation we shared. “I bless my infant with holy water and make my toddler cross herself when entering a church, as well as bow before the altar and kneel before the tabernacle. Likely, she doesn’t understand these practices much more or less than she would the reception of ashes. But you have to start somewhere.”
++++++++++++
In our culture we prepare to “give up something” during Lent. We might wonder what value there is for us in depriving ourselves of something that in itself is good and useful. We “give up something” that is good so as to make sure that no good thing in our lives somehow becomes more important than God.
Becoming more aware of others and their needs helps us to find God in our everyday life. The Church helps us to grow in this way each Lent by asking us also to “do something.”
January 24, 2010
Odds & Ends
I am filled with awe and gratitude for your remarkable generosity to the people of Haiti. Catholic Relief Services received $10,232 from our parish family – 10,232 more reasons why I am honored to be among you and serving you as your pastor.
Congratulations to our Second Grade parish family members who celebrated the Sacrament of Reconciliation for their first time earlier this week. We are proud of you while being reminded how healing and powerful this Sacrament is for all of us.
Confessions regularly are heard 30 minutes before every Mass, including Sundays. The Confessional is located next to the Blessed Sacrament Chapel, behind the altar in the very back left hand corner of the church.
You will do well to thank Deacon Jeff and Deacon Bill for preaching last weekend which spared you the excessively long meandering homily I was sure to deliver after the devastating overtime playoff loss by the Green Bay Packers. For those who have not heard, I am rooting wildly for whoever is playing against the Vikings. Go Saints Go!
Be sure to check out the beautiful picture board of those adults and children who are preparing to enter the Catholic Church through the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). Please learn their names, recognize their faces and welcome them warmly into our parish family. I wish to thank parish family member and highly-regarded local artist Laurie Rohrbacher for creating the wonderful RCIA display in the Commons.
Also in the Commons you will find computer generated drawings depicting how the parking lot expansion will appear. After viewing the drawings, take a moment just to imagine the increased convenience and safety as you look out the Commons’ windows!
The Women’s Bible Study is open to all who wish to review together the Gospel reading for the next Sunday. The WBS meets in the rectory living room 7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. No knowledge of Scripture is required – only and open heart and mind to receive the beauty, goodness and truth that is God’s Word.
Make plans to see for yourselves the many exciting and impressive additions to Sandusky Central Catholic School during their Open House on Sunday, January 311:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. You can’t spell SUCCESS without SCCS!
The Holy Hour for Life takes place every Tuesday 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. in church. The Rosary is prayed together at 6:30 p.m. followed immediately with Benediction and a Eucharistic Blessing. All are welcome to spend as much time as you are able with Our Lord who truly is present in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.
Most people have heard the "whats" of Catholic teaching, but very few have ever heard the "whys." The Theology of the Body Adult Study Series demonstrates that the Church’s teaching on sex and marriage "makes sense", in part, because it corresponds perfectly with the deepest stirrings and desires of the human heart. Everyone searching for their ultimate purpose in life is welcome to join us for our next session which will be held on Saturday, February 6, in the Commons. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. and the session begins promptly at 8:00 p.m.
January 10, 2010
An Impressive Commitment to Charitable Care
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, charity is the theological virtue by which we love God above all things for His own sake, and our neighbor as ourselves for the love of God” (1822).
Since our inception as a Catholic church in 1855, charitable care has been at the heart of our mission as a family of faith. We earnestly seek to live out our faith by means of a commitment which is Christ-centered rather than self-centered.
Saint Paul teaches that if charity is lacking then we have nothing (cf. 1 Cor. 13:1-4). He goes on to explain that charity is superior to all the virtues and is the first of the theological virtues: “So faith, hope, charity abide, these three. But the greatest of these is charity” (1 Cor. 13:13).
Dear friends, you have good reason to be mighty proud of the charitable care offered today by St. Mary’s.
++++++++++++
The inaugural SECOND SUNDAY food collection last month netted 800 bags of groceries for deserving people in our community. For those who viewed our Commons overrun with grocery bags, the sight was deeply moving. Care and Share was the beneficiary of your generosity which computed to over $20,000 in non-perishable items for those who are less fortunate and in special need. Thanks to all who participated in our new monthly initiative spearheaded by the Pastoral Council members. Here is how Second Sunday works:
Second Sunday – grocery bags with labels attached are distributed to parishioners after all weekend Masses
Third Sunday – grocery bags are collected in the Commons
Third Monday – grocery bags are distributed to the beneficiaries
I wish to thank the fine supportive people at Mark Advertising and Firelands Packaging whose generous donations have helped our newest charitable care ministry.
Please contact the parish office if you are interested and able to help with any aspect of this monthly ministry.
++++++++++++
The CATHOLIC COMMUNITY SUPPER provides a free, warm and delicious meal on Wednesdays 4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. We are closed on the first Wednesday of the month. We currently offer this meal at the First Congregational UCC on the corner of Jefferson and Columbus. Later this spring we will be moving this ministry to Holy Angels Parish. Currently we have seven preparation and serving teams. Members from all parishes are welcome to participate in preparing and serving food.
Please contact our parish office if you feel called by Christ to assist in some manner.
I wish to thank especially the following organizations whose generosity helps us to provide needed food for so many: Routh Packing donates meat, Toft’s Dairy donates milk, Kroger gives us milk and sweets. Kindly support these generous local companies as you are able.
This wonderful social ministry now has been serving people in need for over 20 years.
++++++++++++
PARISH OUTREACH provides direct assistance to members of our parish family facing financial difficulties. In 2009 over 100 parishioners received assistance. All referrals made by parishioners are considered and strict confidentiality is kept. Parish Outreach request forms are available in the parish office. Further inquires will be answered gladly by Deacon Bill Burch bburch@stmarysandusky.org or 419-625-7465 ext. 15.
January 3, 2010
An Open Letter to Tiger Woods
Dear Tiger:
I’ve been working on this letter to you for quite some time. There are certain people I just do not want to disappoint me and you were one of them. When I first heard the reports about your numerous unspeakable acts I felt betrayed. Then I imagined the wave of anger and disappointment that must have engulfed your wife, children and other family members. Those thoughts made my stomach hurt. Our actions always impact others - especially those who are closest to us.
Ratings suggest far too many people are smitten by the morally depravity of soap operas like “Desperate Housewives.” Yet, the vast majority of people still hold long-term commitments to be essential for families as well as for maintaining the fabric of our nation. Being faithful is good. And being unfaithful is not, no matter who you are. Stories of your lewd and selfish actions strike at the very foundations of the sacred trust of married love and fatherhood. Maybe that’s why it hurt so much.
It will take heroic efforts to rebuild the trust you have lost. To make this happen drink the cup of humility. A good father and a loving husband do not act in the manner in which you have been accused. Unfortunately, you do not stand alone. Our debased culture is all too eager to encourage us to do whatever we want for no other reason than we can do it. In fact, one of your very own sponsors tells us to, “Just Do It.” Self-indulgent living does not lead to a life of fullness but only guarantees a desert of regret and restlessness.
You have the chance to reclaim the person you are or, perhaps, discover for the first time the person who you truly are – or rather, to Whom you truly belong. Though a fallen and faulted child of God, you always remain His child, precious and beloved in His sight.
You are not the first person who had so much of this world and found all you had to be not enough. Throughout human history original sin has fueled the urge in us all to be gods. Many people are horribly misled to believe that human fulfillment lies in gaining more sex, more power and more money. When we seek more of this world that more, however much the more is, will never be enough. Things of this world will never satisfy our deepest desires. Never. There is a yearning, hunger, desire deep within us that only can be filled by God. Why? Because every human person is both spiritual and physical. The fulfillment of all human desire only is found with God, never apart from Him.
You have been the topic of conversations everywhere. Indeed, your wealth, fame and achievement have fed monstrous gossip. And no better are those people who delight in learning that someone else is worse than them. “Comparative Christianity” is neither of God nor about Him. Spreading harmful and damaging gossip about others is a twisted way for some to boost their own deflated egos.
There is no denying that gossip harms people, destroys trust and injures friendships. It is no wonder that gossip has been condemned consistently in religious and ethical writings.
As a New Year dawns you have the chance to begin anew, to seek God whom all people need more than most people realize. Dare to do this with the same fiery passion which made you a golf champion. Allow the power of Christ to shape you into the man God created you to be. Indeed, this is the perfect resolution for us all to make.
December 25, 2009
Letting Our Hearts Become a Crib for Him
On that night silent and holy, calm and bright, Jesus, Mary and Joseph are alone.
Suddenly God’s delight bursts forth bringing into their midst the simplest of people. In haste arrive shepherds, who may have been chosen because in their humility they will not be distressed to find the Messiah in a manger wrapped in swaddling clothes. Indeed, their reaction is wonder and joy!
It is precisely to these simple shepherds of the Bethlehem region that the prophet Isaiah spoke long before: “those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them a light has shone” (Isaiah 9:2).
On the first night the prophecy is fulfilled in them alone. This night they are the first and only people to hear the glad tidings and good news.
Today billions of people throughout the world know of God’s arrival in Jesus. The bright light that Bethlehem night reaches many hearts, and yet darkness still remains. The shepherds of the first night wholeheartedly welcome God and they experience great joy – joy that comes from the light and is no less than God Himself. The darkness in the world is overcome by God’s light once and for all (cf. John 1:5).
Rest assured, it does not matter that on this first night, the night of God’s arrival as one of us in all things but sin, the joy of that event reaches only a few hearts for the divine joy is destined for every human heart.
These simple shepherds go around telling others all they had seen and heard – imagine their exuberance! Scripture records the reaction: “All who heard it were amazed by what had been told them by the shepherds” (Luke 2:18).
In the same way Jesus reveals Himself to us in the midst of the ordinary events of every day. Simplicity and humility are required to reach Him. Throughout our lives God gives signs that mean nothing to us unless we make our way across the earthly stage with eyes of faith, seeing Jesus as our Lord, Savior and Messiah which He truly is. Expect, then, to discover Jesus in the simplicity of ordinary life, wrapped in swaddling clothes and laying in a manger, free from theatrical presentations and the like. Everyone who sees Christ – who really sees God made man – feels moved to make Him known straight away and cannot wait to tell others all that has been seen and heard!
In those days it was inconceivable that anyone would make their way before a respected person without a gift. The shepherds bring what they have – perhaps a lamb, cheese, butter, milk and curd. Doubtless it is not far removed from reality to imagine the scene as it is portrayed in the countless cribs of our days and in the Christmas carols which Christians sing with simplicity and which many of us may have made the theme of our prayer.
Mary and Joseph are surprised and delighted! They invite the tepid shepherds to enter and see the Child, to kiss him, to sing to him, and to leave their gifts beside the manger.
This Christmas, what do we bring God? Perhaps that which Our Lady desires more than all else is that we bring to her Child a heart more devoted, more pure, more cheerful, and more compliant to God’s ways.
And as the New Year sets to dawn, there is no finer way to begin 2010 and every day of our lives than drawing closer to Mary. With the confidence of children let us make our way to the Mother of God and our Mother, so that she may help us to seek those things which truly are most important; so that she may give us the impulse to begin again each time we fail because we are so weak; so that she may intercede with her divine Son to lead us to real interior renewal; so that she will pray with us and pray for us to strive to grow in the love of God and in the service of others.
Please join me placing into the hands of Our Lady of Sorrows our earnest desire to identify ourselves with Christ more completely, to sanctify our professional work and to become more faithful and more joyful disciples.
December 27, 2009
Difficulties regarding the health of my father make me ever more aware of the fragility of life and the importance of cherishing that which we have received, most especially our Christian faith and family. For many, these days are marked by challenges some of which can be quite daunting. I think, too, of our brave military men and women who are away from family and country and are in dangerous places to keep us and our nation safe.
Kindly say a prayer for them and their families along with all our police, firefighters and first responders.
May God pour out His choicest blessings upon you, your family and all the members of our parish family throughout this season of grace and the entire New Year.
++++++++++++
Let your New Year's resolutions include growing in your understanding of the Catholic Faith. Several exciting opportunities exist to help make this happen right here in our parish.
The next session of the THEOLOGY OF THE BODY - ADULT STUDY SERIES will be Saturday, January 9 in the Commons. The 30 minute DVD begins at 8:00 p.m. with doors opening and refreshments served at 7:30 p.m.
The WOMEN'S BIBLE STUDY takes place every Tuesday evening 7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. in the Commons. No previous knowledge of Scripture is required, only an open heart toward encountering Jesus and listening attentively to God's Word.
The MEN'S BIBLE STUDY occurs every Saturday morning 7:00 a.m. - 8:00 a.m. in the Lower Room (rectory basement). The coffee is hot, juice is cold and fraternity is strong.
December 20, 2009
Keep Hope Alive
This side of heaven we all struggle mightily. Difficulties do not discriminate. There are moments when there seems to be no end to things causing us to lose heart and despair. Life is tough and, at times, very tough.
Hope is God’s gift that enables us to look at life a certain way. Hope is God’s gift that gives us the ability to look through difficulties, to look beyond them. St. Paul draws our attention to sterling examples of hope seen in the Old Testament beginning with Abraham and continued throughout in the longing of Israel for a Messiah. Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of all human desire, He is God’s Hope-Made- Flesh for us. Whenever we seek to find Christ in our struggles their burdens lessen. St. Paul understands the bruising blows of human life and exhorts us to become more hopeful by striving passionately for the greatest spiritual gifts, to set our sights on heaven. Hope is not a mind-over-matter recipe for an easy way of living. Rather, hope had to do with discovering and experiencing a more fulfilling and meaningful way to life in which the deepest desires for eternal life get us through and beyond all that life this side of heaven can throw at us.
Think for a moment about this. The Christians who did the most for this age – the ones whose contributions shaped human history – were exactly the ones who thought most heavenly things while on earth: namely, the saints.
++++++++++++
- A timely reminder for us all: when we leave church we do so always representing our faith and parish. Some people make determinations about our parish and Catholic Faith based on our actions with them – both positively and negatively. Let’s all give people cause to want to learn more about the Catholic Faith and even to come to Christmas Mass.
- There is a good chance that your favorite pew and parking spot will be occupied by others during the Christmas Masses. How wonderful it is that people still desire so deeply to come to worship the Newborn King and to do so in our beautiful and historic church!
- In a sense our whole life is a continual Advent, that is getting ourselves ready to meet Christ one day. One of the best ways of getting ready to find Christ in this life and afterwards being with him in eternity is making a well-prepared Confession. We are pleased to provide the following special hour-long Confession times before Christmas: (Mon) Dec 21 - 9:00 am, 12:00 pm, 7:00 pm (Tri-Parish Penance Service); (Tue) Dec 22 - 9:00 am, 12:00 pm, 7:00 pm.
- The “Doritos and Little Debbie” drive was so successful for Fr. Jason that I now am looking for an elliptical machine. If you are using one as a clothes rack, I promise it will be put to more vigorous use in the rectory. No questions asked about your usage of such an exercise machine – only gratitude for it to be used in the rectory by one or, maybe even, both priests.
Speaking of our dutiful associate pastor and spirited Buckeye alumnus, Fr. Jason quipped that I have been easier to be around during the 5-game Green Bay Packers winning streak. Should the Packers falter, you just might want to keep the light on for him.
December 13, 2009
No to Gloom, Yes to Joy
A gloomy soul is at the mercy of many temptations. How many sins have been committed in the shadow of gloominess! In my own experience this is so true.
When our soul is happy it spreads happiness and encouragement to others just as a piping hot cup of delicious soup warms the entire body on a cold December day. When the soul is downcast it spreads misery to others and harms them. Such gloominess and misery arise from selfishness, from focusing only on oneself, from laziness and indifference, and from carelessness toward our relationship with Christ and His Church.
As we are unable to forget ourselves we are unable to know and serve Christ. So, too, are we unable to help those who need our help. True and lasting happiness, fulfillment, and meaning is found in Christ. Joy is not generated by our efforts, but rather received as His gift. Anyone excessively self-centered will find it very difficult if not impossible to discover the joy they long to know.
As we live more generously and gratefully we grow in joy. And certainly more than any words however eloquent, joy draws people to God.
St. Paul’s instruction to the earliest Christians are spoken to us as well: “Bear one another’s burdens” (Galatians 6:2). We can often make life more pleasant for other people in little ways which have no apparent importance in themselves, but which show that we consider others, appreciate them, and care for them: a smile, a friendly remark, a word of praise, a thoughtful note, not making a great fuss over unimportant things that would be better overlooked and forgotten. In these ways we can help to make life easier for the people around us.
An important part of our Christian mission is to bring happiness to a world which is laden with sadness because it is drifting away from God.
Let us ready ourselves for Christmas by doing all we can in small ways to bring happiness and peace to those around us. People need to be convinced that Christ really has been born in Bethlehem. Nothing is more convincing that the happiness of the Christian all-the-while real struggles and challenges continue. Our Lady knew such struggles and challenges as she made the arduous trek to Bethlehem which ended with no place made by others for the birth of her Son.
++++++++++++
With my message of self-giving in mind, I am asking for help with Sandusky Life Teen (SLT). Specifically, SLT is in need of a couple new CORE MEMBERS for next semester. This spirited and fun-filled group of adults plans and leads the Life Nights that take place after the SLT Mass (Sundays 5:00 p.m. at Holy Angels Church). This ministry is making amazing differences in the lives of our teens, compelling them to discard the world’s gloomy message and seek the happiness offered to them by Christ. In addition, SLT needs a couple new people to help provide the meals for the teens once-a-month as part of a HOSPITALITY TEAM. Kindly contact our SLT Executive Director Brittany Taylor. Thanks for your willingness to lead teens closer to Christ!
December 6, 2009
Preparing Well for God Himself
Throughout Advent each passing day marks another step forward towards the celebration of our Redeemer’s birth. Since God is coming to us, we have to get ready for Him. Advent is all about our preparing well for the One who is no less than God Himself. I suggest beginning with the end in mind - Christmas. When Christmas arrives, Our Lord should find us with everything in order and our soul fit to receive Him. We must make the required adjustments to correct the course of our lives and turn ourselves to God.
++++++++++++
A thousand thanks to Laurie Rohrbacher along with all the members of our parish family who graciously donated angel ornaments for the amazing parish Christmas Tree created for the Festival of Trees Gala at the State Theater.
Fr. Jason displayed athleticism that would have won the praise of OSU Head Coach Jim Tressel. On one play during the local Turkey Bowl, our young nimble sure-handed associate pastor caught a short pass from me and proceeded to scamper the length of the field, leaving opponents sprawled across the ground in his wake. Touchdown, baby!
During my Home Listening Sessions, comments were voiced to make Holy Day Masses between all three parishes more convenient for people. On December 8 the Holy Day Immaculate Conception Mass offerings are as follows:
(Mon) Dec 7 6:00 p.m.
(Tue) Dec 8 8:15 a.m., 6:00 p.m.
In addition to Confessions heard 30 minutes before every Mass, we gladly are offering the following extra hours during Advent:
(Mon) Dec 21 9:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m., 7:00 p.m. (Tri-Parish Service)
(Tue) Dec 22 9:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m., 7:00 p.m.
There will be no 8:15 a.m. Mass on (Thu) Dec 24.
Confessions will not be heard before Christmas Masses.
On January 1 the New Year begins with the Holy Day Mary the Mother of God and we gladly are offering Masses at the following times:
(Thu) Dec 31 4:00 p.m.
(Fri) Jan 1 9:30 a.m.
The Church front doors have been restored and are back where they belong appearing as bold and beautiful as ever! I wish to thank Bob Fischer and Nick Pasqualini for their labor of love to complete the work along with timely assistance from Al Geason. Thanks also to Bob Rengel for graciously providing the space for the work to be completed.
For your Advent consideration:
Men’s Catholic Bible Study, Saturdays 7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m. Lower Room
Women’s Catholic Bible Study, Tuesdays 7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Commons
No previous knowledge of Scripture is required. Instead bring only an open mind and eager heart to hear God’s Word and apply it more to your daily living.
Mark your calendars now for the next amazing Theology of the Body - Adult Study Series (Sat) January 9 at 8:00 p.m. - doors open with food, drink and music at 7:30 p.m.
November 15, 2009
Praying the Mass More Wholeheartedly
One of the hallmarks of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) was the renewal of the Sacred Liturgy or, as it is more commonly called, the Holy Mass. The aim was to help inspire us to love Christ Jesus more profoundly whenever the Mass is prayed. After all, the Mass is the source and summit of our Catholic Faith and way of life.
The Second Vatican Council set forth the goal for “full, active and conscious participation of the faithful” in the liturgy. This does not mean that we should be a bunch of busybodies at Mass! Rather, what we all are to be is attentive, alert, and awake to the glorious presence of God. We are to give our best to God at every Mass, even when our best is not all that impressive.
Much has been accomplished toward realizing this goal although much work still remains to be done.
In a matter of a few short years to come, the English-speaking church (primarily North America, United Kingdom, South Africa and Australia) will receive a historic text that marks an epic moment in continuing the renewal of the Sacred Liturgy set forth by the Second Vatican Council. The text is a new English Roman Missal which is popularly called the Sacramentary (and known as the “big red book” held by the servers during the Mass).
Some people will ask, “Why do we need a new translation?” In attempting to answer that question, I think it is helpful to remember that when the Second Vatican Council called for the renewal of the Sacred Liturgy over five decades ago, the Mass was celebrated everywhere in the Latin language. In contrast to the majority of my childhood experience of the Mass prayed in the English language, my parents only knew the Mass in the Latin language until after they were married.
The Mass today which is prayed in our church as well as in all English-speaking countries is the translation of the Latin original, which remains the official text of the Roman Rite. It always was presupposed that there would be a learning curve and that the initial translations – most recently done in 1985 – over time, would need to be amended and improved.
In 2001 the Vatican announced that a new translation for English-speaking countries was in order which would more faithfully and literally adhere to the original Latin language. This week the bishops of the United States will be meeting in Washington, D.C., to approve the new translation (November 16-19). If approved – and it certainly appears this will happen – the new translation will be sent to the Vatican where it will be reviewed with painstaking care over many months. Though no specific date has been given for an official launch, it looks to be no later than by Advent 2011 that we will be using the new translation for Mass.
I do not presume that these changes will be easy for any of us. Certainly they will require great adaptation on my part too.
Yet if these adaptations lead us, as they are intended, to a greater sense of wonder, awe, beauty and splendor in our worship of Almighty God, then whatever effort is required will be well worth the sacrifice.
The latest information on the new English Roman Missal is available at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ web site:
www.usccb.org/romanmissal.
November 8, 2009
Praying for the Souls in Purgatory
Traditionally, the month of November gives us pause to ponder our own mortality as well as remembering our beloved who have gone before us in faith. The splendid colors of October give way to the banal haze of November. Almost instantly, the air becomes chilly and sunlight seems rationed as we scurry from the outdoors to inside.
November 2 commemorates the faithful departed, the Feast of All Souls. Just one day previous, the Church has us celebrate joyously and triumphantly all the saints in glory.
The Feast of All Saints sets our eyes on the living – that is, those souls who truly are living because they have entered heaven. The Feast of All Souls places before us with loving affection the dead – namely, those who died in the state of grace, yet need purification before they may enter eternal life. In this way the Church joins us in worship and prayer to the living and the dead. We are connected to them in a real and mysterious way. The altar is the crossroads between life, death, and eternal life. Atop the altar on the first two November days, we offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in honor of the saints and in prayer for those being made fit for heaven.
By means of Her supernatural mission, the Church unites us to God both here and hereafter. The priest is one of God’s key instruments in bringing about this blessed union. On the Feast of All Souls, I especially am conscious of this mission, unworthy as I am of it. We accompany our beloved faithful through the doorway of death, and we earnestly pray to our merciful God for their quick release from purgatory, to be cleansed quickly and fully so to enter into the perfect Joy that lasts forever – heaven!
The Feast of All Souls connects past, present, and future, especially at the altar. All of our lives are in the hands of a God whose mercy endures forever (cf. Psalm 118). Rest assured, the joy of heaven is guaranteed for the holy souls in purgatory, even if the experience of that joy must wait.
Imagine for a moment having the chance to meet the person whom you always dreamed of meeting. Just before you meet the person, you are told that your breath smells and clothes are ratty, but you can still move on to your meeting. Would we all not want to be cleansed first? Now imagine meeting God Himself, the glorified Christ the King? While we may suffer some, purgatory is not about pain, but rather cleansing. Contemporary spiritual writers liken purgatory to sitting in the dentist’s chair where it may be uncomfortable momentarily for the sake of getting what we need.
We can hasten the moment of perfectly and permanently being made clean through our appeals to God, in prayer and penance, on behalf of those whom we no longer see.
On the Feast of All Souls the Church says, “Remember!” We ask Almighty God to grant eternal life to all those who have gone before us, in the hope of our own entrance, one day, into the Land of the Living.
Addendum
I will be attending a conference in Chicago November 8-11 and, then, visit my sister and her husband along with their five children for a couple of days.
Make sure Fr. Jason gets plenty of Little Debbie’s and Dorito’s while I’m away!
November 1, 2009
ODDS AND ENDS
This is the first fall in several years that I will not be able to attend a Green Bay Packer football game at Lambeau Field in my native state of Wisconsin. What fun it was to cheer for my favorite team last Sunday in Cleveland! Their margin of victory had as much to say about the sad state of the Browns as it did the return of the Packers to former glory.
Earlier this week Fr. Jason and I were surprised to discover two large bags with labels on them saying “Trick or Treat.” His bag was filled with every kind of Little Debbie snack imaginable. Mine was packed full of fresh fruit. You decide.
Former Indians and Cy Young Award winners C.C. Sabathia and Cliff Lee both made it to the World Series – of course, on teams other than Cleveland. For Indians fan of which I still stand to be counted, the sore festers mightily as we crow again over what might have been…
Throughout the month of November, we remember especially those members of our parish family who have died this past year. Their names are ascribed beautifully on banners displayed on our balcony to help inspire us all to pray for them and their families. On Monday, November 2, a special Memorial Mass will be offered at 7:00 p.m. for these souls. If you are able to join us for the memorable and meaningful Mass, please do so.
Remember to vote on November 3. The Ohio Catholic bishops have issued the following recommendations for the three statewide issues: 1-Not Opposed; 2-Yes; 3-No.
Having heard regular requests for solid adult education opportunities during the Home Listening Sessions, comes an impressive collection of CD’s now available in the Commons. The suggested offering is a mere $3. Envelopes are provided which can be put in the collection or dropped off at the office.
October 25, 2009
Lord, I Want To See!
Today’s Gospel story is dominated by a single theme: to be able to see (Mark 10:46-52).
Let’s set the scene: Jesus is leaving Jericho with His disciples while a blind beggar by the name of Bartimaeus (bar–tea–MAY–us) sits on the side of the road. His position by the roadside says two things. First, Bartimaeus is stationary; that is, he is not a part of Jesus’ journey, he is not a part of the action. Second, as blind and poor, Bartimaeus is nobody of importance and has nothing.
In contrast to those crowding and pushing around Jesus, Bartimaeus is alone, apart and sunken in his own disappointment. No one know more than he does how needy and helpless he is. And here we have the first condition to becoming a mature disciple of Jesus: not to deceive ourselves, to see ourselves as we truly are. When honest, every human person can recognize a part of themselves in the person of Bartimaeus. After all, we all are dependent on God.
From his disappointment, Bartimaeus recognizes who Jesus truly is. Ironically, it is blind Bartimaeus who sees Jesus more clearly than anyone else present, including the disciples! Shouting, Bartimaeus makes up for what his eyes cannot see and for the road his feet cannot find. He pours his heart and soul into Jesus’ ears. Bartimaeus sees with the eyes of his heart, eyes of faith in God. He sees more deeply than those milling around Jesus who rebuke him. He does not ask for money, food, lodging or clothing – all of which would be sources of momentary relief in his suffering. No! His disappointment makes him bolder not weaker: what he demands through his shouting is no less than the compassion of God. He demands that all of God’s goodness may pour out upon him.
The best version of ourselves is seen when we recognize our need for God, when we acknowledge the disappointments marking our place and turn to Christ Jesus.
The blind beggar Bartimaeus teaches us three essential steps toward becoming more mature followers of Jesus: first, to recognize honestly our human disappointments and our deepest need for God; second, to cry out for the divine mercy to pour upon us like an overflowing torrent; and third, to persevere in the face of opposition.
When Bartimaeus hears Jesus calling him, the blind man throws off his mantle, springs up, and makes his way to the Lord. See the energy true faith in God unleashes! Bartimaeus is not going to waste a single moment in responding to Jesus’ call. We can feel his joy and enthusiasm. After having waited so long, finally his moment arrives to be summoned before the Lord. The gesture of throwing aside his cloak is no trivial detail.
- He wants to go as lightly as possible, without any more baggage, as if exclaiming, “enough already with my disappointment and misery.”
- He wants to leave behind his old life and former ways.
- He wants to hide nothing any longer before God.
His jubilation in hearing the call of Christ makes him spring up like a rocket. He does not lose a single instant worrying about cosmetic touches and the like to make for a more “favorable” presentation before God. No! Bartimaeus wants only to come before Jesus as he truly is, free of illusions and self-constructed images. Lord, I want only to see!
October 4, 2009
Living and Sharing the Faith
Our parish cherishes the call of the Church to provide fun and meaningful ways for members to grow in their understanding and practice of the Catholic Faith.
Here at St. Mary’s we start strong from the very beginning. Each Sunday so many of our little ones can gather for simple lessons and songs and prayers with Children’s Liturgy of the Word during the 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. Masses, while parents and older sisters and brothers can worship at Sunday Eucharist. During these same Sunday Mass times, our pre-school age children have the chance to learn the faith in the remarkable hands-on Montessori style program brought over from Italy called Good Shepherd.
Jesus tells His apostles to "Let the little children come to me." And how we labor at St. Mary’s for Jesus’ instructions to be lived and shared! Our excellent Catholic school includes the Early Childhood Center where children ages 18 months to five years of age receive outstanding opportunities to learn in a spacious, secure and clean facility. Day Care is open 12 months of the year from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Pre-School is in session from August through June making it possible for our little ones to be nurtured marvelously in body, mind and soul.
Our parish reaches out to our grade school students unable to attend our Catholic school with outstanding programs of religious education. Trained catechists work hard to make sure these students have at least 75 minutes of solid religious instruction each week as they contend with all their busy activities. The Holy Sacraments are at the heart of our catechetical efforts. Excellent preparations for Confession, First Holy Communion and Confirmation mark our efforts so that our younger children will be grounded solidly in the faith and live it proudly.
Of course we dare not stop there as a parish! I especially am proud of the important place our parish makes for our high schoolers. Sandusky Life Teen is a part of an international Catholic movement that serves the Church by providing amazing resources and faith experiences that help lead high school teens closer to Christ. This is accomplished through a vibrant Eucharistic spirituality and by creating opportunities for teens to learn and share the faith.
Our younger adults can find numerous outreach opportunities and refreshing initiatives like the Theology of the Body Adult Study Group on the first Saturday night of each month. And as many of them plan to receive the Sacrament of Marriage, they benefit mightily from direct interaction with priests, deacons and lay couples who help them prepare well for married love.
Time and again we hear from our adults of all ages that they realize that faith formation never stops. Weekly Bible Studies for men and women along with numerous service opportunities in and around our parish are available. I wish to draw special attention to our parish Community Supper whose rotating teams provide a weekly Wednesday evening hot meal to those less fortunate in our area at a neighboring Protestant church.
In a world that so challenges the teachings of Christ and His Church, I am encouraged by our parish commitment to understand and live the faith which we have received.
August 27, 2009
ODDS AND ENDS
Briefer and Meaningful Sunday Masses: 7:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.
Sunday Mass is the heart and soul of our Catholic Faith. We want to do all that is humanly possible to inspire members of our parish family to participate regularly in the Holy Eucharist.
Toward accomplishing this end, we will make an effort to accommodate the hectic schedules and needs some people are facing all-the-while being sure to maintain proper reverence of Almighty God.
For a trial basis lasting the rest of the calendar year, beginning Sunday, October 4, the 7:30 a.m. and the 5:00 p.m. Masses will be briefer and meaningful celebrations. During these two Masses some parts which we have been accustomed to singing as a congregation will be recited. Music played will have more instrumental parts, allowing for more personal contemplation. Sacred silence will have a more prominent place in worship. It is our hope and prayer that many members of our parish family will find such a style with more time for reflection and less time singing to their liking.
Briefer and Meaningful Weekday Masses: 8:15 a.m.
Beginning in October, we will begin a trial period of celebrating briefer and meaningful Masses on most weekdays. We wish to do all we can to make weekday Mass possible for more members of our parish family by being more sensitive to time demands which are placed upon you. It is our intention for weekday Masses normally to be no more than 30 minutes.
5:00 p.m. Mass Every Sunday Except Christmas and Easter
Again as a way to accommodate the members of our parish family and help more people to participate regularly in the Holy Eucharist, the Sunday 5:00 p.m. Mass now will be celebrated every Sunday throughout the year except on Christmas and Easter.
Change In Our Collection Tithing Policy
There are many wonderful ways to use well the gifts which God has given us. Please see the bulletin insert for a more complete explanation of our new parish tithing policy.
Personal Milestone
I wish to thank all of you for having helped to make my most recent birthday especially memorable. It is quite a treat to celebrate my birthday on the feast day of our parish: Our Lady of Sorrows, September 15.
On that very day I made my way to the BMV to renew my driver’s license. As fate had it a milestone was passed. For the first time since I began driving my hair color was changed from BRN to SDY. The woman behind the counter tried her best to perk up my deflated spirits by quipping, “at least it’s not GRY.”
Heck, by then I was glad I could still read most of the letters on the line and see the blinking lights! Make it a great week!
My Grandma Nuss turned 95 earlier this week. She told me that the State of Wisconsin renewed her driver’s license through the year 2017. Her candid response: “that’s just plain dumb!”
August 20, 2009
True Christian Greatness
Our Gospel for this week (Mark 9:30-37) picks up where last week’s text left off. Recall Jesus being with His disciples and asking that famous question, “Who do you say that I am?” Having clarified who He is - the Christ - and having clarified the nature of His mission—suffering love seen perfectly in the Cross - Jesus continues His journey alongside the disciples.
The scene today opens with the disciples discussing something among them. We notice that the intensity of their discussion grows quickly like a Lake Erie storm. While we might imagine they are intensely discussing Jesus’ instructions and passionately encouraging one another to take them to heart, we soon learn that what they really are doing is arguing who among them is the greatest.
Are you kidding me?!
How beautifully today’s Gospel reading anticipates all of us, all of Jesus’ present day disciples! Over and over again, we hear all about the path of suffering love. We hear it at Mass, we hear it preached, we hear it taught. My goodness, displayed before us constantly is the image of Jesus Crucified - not only in Church, but so frequently seen in art and jewelry all around us outside of Church. While we might imagine intense discussions taking place among ourselves to take Jesus’ way to heart and passionately encourage each other to make it so, we know how often we think and act just like the disciples. We suffer the same self-absorption. Pride and folly do not discriminate. We pine after power, privilege and worldly honor - arguing who among us is the greatest, positioning ourselves to be seen and noticed and adored.
For sure we do affirm Jesus is Lord, and we do affirm His path of suffering love, and yet, when push comes to shove, we are not always eager to walk His way.
Jesus patiently tries once again to explain and encourage. Taking a child, Jesus places it in the midst of the arguing disciples, and putting His arms around the child, Jesus says to the disciples: “Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me, but the one who sent me” (v.37).
What does receiving a child mean? Well, it means that we are to become like the little child. What Jesus is saying is that grasping, gaining, climbing the ladder, hoarding possessions, holding off rivals - all of that - is the path of disappointment, discouragement and, ultimately, spiritual death. And, furthermore, the path of happiness, contentment, meaning and fulfillment follows the steps of the little child.
Just imagine Jesus crouching down and putting His arms around a little child and then proposing the child as the great model to His disciples! Friends, Jesus is speaking to us.
Children have an extraordinary capacity to find joy in the simplest things and simplest activities. I remember fondly as a little kid growing up in Wisconsin how I could spend hours-on-end inventing imaginary worlds. And in the same backyard hours upon hours would be spent playing baseball and football with kids from the neighborhood. Such games normally would end only when we could no longer see the ball - oftentimes the lost ball signaled the end of the game! In these moments we were not thinking about the past nor was there a worry about what we did not have or what others had that we did not. We were not consumed in bitter rivalries and petty jealousies. We simply were immersed in the present moment, enjoying fully what was right in front of us.
We all can become so preoccupied with what might be, what we don’t have, what other people might be thinking about us. Jesus proposes the child as the great model of discipleship. Live more fully in the present moment.
As disciples of Jesus, we do not set the terms in the Kingdom of God. After all, it is not a Kingdom of our making. Rather, it is God’s gift to us, for us to receive now by means of taking to heart the life, teaching, death and resurrection of Jesus. Only in receiving will we taste the riches that Jesus makes available to us: “If anyone wants to be first, he must make himself last of all and servant of all” (v.35).
August 13, 2009
Christ’s Call To Heroic Evangelization
Every one of the 20 Home Listening Sessions during the summer included a comment expressing a sincere desire to get people back into the pews. You will recall that I stated this as a goal in my pastor letter and am inspired that this priority is shared by so many of you. Certainly, it is a noble and virtuous aim to lead people to Christ, most especially by means of His Holy Sacraments.
OK, now how are we to make this so?
There is only one way to evangelize: we are to fall more deeply in love with Christ Jesus; loving Christ Jesus ourselves to the point that we are willing to die with Him.
Parents, you know already such love is not a lofty ideal, but an astonishing reality as you would rather die than allow your child to be harmed. You know the herculean power of love-unto-death. Indeed, you labor mightily to teach your children to love no less as they grow and mature.
For sure, we can get sidetracked by legitimately good things in our quest to get people back in the pews. Of course, programs to evangelize are good things, but not when they become our will that is imposed upon others. Of course, technology is a good thing and we must use 21st century media outlets to get the message of Christ to all the members of parish family and wider civic community. But make no mistake: technology will never convert a single heart. The same is true with money.
Sometimes we can lean to heavily into thinking that something other than a person will do – a colorful flyer, a new program, a pastor’s letter, an associate pastor’s motorcycle, a cool billboard, a tweet (ask a younger person to explain this one!).
Pope John Paul II (d. 2005) wrote often about the importance of getting people back in the pews and how to accomplish this end.
“It [evangelizing] is not, therefore, a matter of inventing a new program. The program already exists. It is the plan found in the Gospel and the living Tradition. It is the same as ever. Ultimately it has its center in Christ Himself.”
John Paul continues with the plan for effective evangelization. The key is, “in Christ Himself who is to be known, who is to be loved and who is to be imitated. And with Him, then, we transform history until its fulfillment in the New Jerusalem.”
According to John Paul, our getting people back in the pews begins with our knowing Jesus. And when John Paul uses the word “know” he does not mean book learning and the like. Knowing Jesus is the same kind of knowing that a parent comes to have for a child. The parent does not come to know their child from a book. They desire to know their child; time and again they dedicate time to noticing, observing and wondering about their child all-the-while they are with their child. As they become more and more familiar, they come to know their child and the child comes to know them.
Friends, the premier way of knowing anything is to get on our knees and beg the God of the cosmos to grant our request. To know Christ is to pray. To let Him teach us who He is. Love follows because as you come to know Him, you fall in love more wholeheartedly. And it is love that compels us to sacrifice even unto death.
Join me in making a personal commitment to grow in knowledge of Jesus and His Church. When we live out of love for God, everyday difficulties become less and less brick walls and more and more open windows.
The saints never knew they were transforming the world – they never set out to leave their mark in such a way. They only sought to fall more deeply in love with Christ and His Church. The biographies of the saints chronicle their seeking and finding God’s love in daily moments. Amazingly, open windows appear in what formerly were solid brick walls.
The pews will take care of themselves. Let us set our sights on hearts – first setting our sights firmly on Jesus and then making known that He is the One who makes all the difference.
August 30, 2009
Odds and Ends
Beginning Tuesday, September 1, I will lead a weekly HOLY HOUR FOR LIFE 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. in the Church. During Eucharistic Adoration, we will pray together the Rosary promptly at 6:30 p.m. followed by Benediction. Please join us as you are able.
Coming this Fall: an exciting evangelization initiative designed especially to bring back to our parish family members who have lapsed in the practice of their Catholic Faith. Kindly pray for all those members who the Lord God so deeply desires to return to His Church.
FOCUS, the Fellowship of Catholic University Students, is a national campus outreach that meets college students where they are and invites them to examine the meaning and purpose of their lives. Through large group outreach, Bible studies and one on one mentoring, FOCUS staff are equipped to introduce college students to the Person of Jesus Christ and the Catholic faith, empowering them to share His love with the world. Each FOCUS missionary develops a team of “Mission Partners” and in return each FOCUS missionary commits to pray daily for their Mission Partners - by name and to send regular updates on their progress on campus. We are pleased to welcome Laura Gifford to our parish family as our new missionary partner.
Thanks to the family of Al and Ginny Wintersteller for their recent donation of an outdoor statue of St. Francis of Assisi which now keeps vigil in the newly landscaped area on the east side of the garage/front parking lot.
Sandusky Central Catholic School begins on Monday, August 31. Welcome back students, faculty and staff!
Sandusky Life Teen 2.0 launches Sunday, September 13, SLT 5:00 p.m. Mass at Holy Angels Church. Let us all be sure to pray our teens closer to Christ!
NEW! A Women’s Bible Study begins on Tuesday, September 22, 7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. in the Parish Commons. Colleen Wellington and I will lead the women’s group who will be studying together The Gospel of Mark for a total of 10 sessions on every Tuesday night through November 24. This is an introductory experience to the Bible. Prerequisites: only an open mind and heart to all that the Lord Jesus wishes to make happen in your life.
NEW! Theology of the Body Adult Study Group begins on Saturday, October 3, 8:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. in the Parish Commons. Based on Pope John Paul II’s revolutionary teaching and presented by world-renowned speaker and best-selling author Christopher West, this 8-part DVD-based study is designed to give you a solid understanding of God’s plan for humanity—a plan stamped right into our bodies! This once-a-month Saturday evening study is for anyone searching for their ultimate purpose in life, as it addresses the most basic truths and questions of human existence. Most of us have heard the “whats” of Catholic teaching, but very few have ever heard the “whys.” With profound insight and humor, Christopher West demonstrates that the Church’s teaching on sexuality and marriage makes sense, because it resonates with the deepest yearnings of the human heart.
The Men’s Group Bible Study remains open to all men who are seeking to grow stronger in their understanding and practice of the Catholic Faith. We meet on Saturday 7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m. in the Lower Room and discuss together the Gospel reading for Mass the following Sunday. The coffee is hot, orange juice is cold and fraternity is strong.
Make it a great week!
August 23, 2009
Facing The Challenges Before Us With Faith
There certainly are no shortages of serious challenges facing us as Catholics. The final words spoken by Our Lord Jesus to the disciples in Matthew’s Gospel are no less urgent to His followers today:
“Go and make disciples of all nations…teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Mt 28:19-20).
We will do well to listen to Jesus’ words in light of some pressing issues facing us: the vocation to marriage, the state of Catholic parishes and schools, the great number of lapsed Catholics and the secular culture desperate to keep God and His Church out of public life.
It seems to me that the fundamental vocation crisis and the single greatest threat to the Church - far greater than the dearth of priestly and religious vocations - is the failure to see marriage as a life-long, life-giving, loving and faithful union. Far too many younger Catholics are forgoing the Sacrament of Marriage. It is vital that the vocation of marriage be cherished as the gift of God it truly is and all it entails, including the openness to life and the responsibility of the parents to raise their children in the Catholic faith. Religious and priestly vocations will increase as the vocation of marriage is restored to its proper dignity. So many of you personally know the twisted attack upon the human family waged by Satan and secularists. Instituted as a Sacrament by Christ Jesus Himself, marriage is the sign and symbol of our salvation; it truly reflects the marriage between Christ and the Church.
Since the Catholic Faith first arrived in the New World, it has been anchored by parish communities and Catholic schools. These two pillars of our faith have hatched astonishing resources that have advanced our nation - Catholics and non-Catholics alike – with the likes of Catholic hospitals and healthcare systems along with the creation of the largest non-governmental provider of social services in our nation. It is not enough to maintain what we have. We are to strengthen the pillars – more specifically, our parish and our Catholic school - so to fortify other essential faith-based services that the people of our country need.
It gives me chills that the second most identifiable religious grouping on the religious landscape of the United States is people who say, “I used to be a Catholic.” The Catholic Faith is a matter of fact. There is no such thing as a former Catholic. All members of our faith are born into the great family of Catholic Faith just like one is born into a natural family. The Church is the supernatural family and we want those who have left the family of faith to return home. Let us confidently and compassionately welcome home those who properly belong with us at Mass.
Finally, secular forces are trying vigorously to keep God and His Church out of public life. For some people of influence, religion and spirituality are seen as hobbies. Without the voice of Christ, Who is heard in the voice of His Church, everyday life becomes increasing self-centered and secular. Part of the greatness of our nation lies in the fact that religion always has had a respected and expected place at the table of public discourse and everyday life. Let us resist the so-called societal “movers and shakers” who want to muzzle God’s Word.
We have plenty to say and, darn it, we need to say it so that people will come to know and take to heart the teachings of Christ.
August 16, 2009
The Real And Hidden Presence
In Catholic theology, the words of consecration are the indisputable heart of the Mass, from which we have the real presence of Christ. At the moment of consecration, it is Jesus Himself who acts and speaks. Jesus is not seen as present merely as a sign or symbol, but on the altar in truth and in His reality.
The Church gives us a more precise explanation of how Jesus is present at every Mass:
- Jesus is truly present and not simply symbolic.
- Jesus is really present and not only through the faith of the believers.
- Jesus is sacramentally present, that is in His profound reality, which cannot be seen by the senses and not in the appearances which remain that of bread and wine.
Reverence springs naturally from faith in the real presence of Christ. As our faith strengthens so, too, do we increase in tenderness for Jesus in the Holy Sacrament.
St. Francis of Assisi (+ 1226) wrote beautifully about the deep and personal affect of the Holy Eucharist: “Surely, we cannot be left unmoved…God gives Himself into our hands; we touch Him and receive Him into our mouths.” Overcome with tenderness for Jesus in the Holy Eucharist, St. Francis explained that, “It affects me like this because in this world I cannot see the most high Son of God with my own eyes, except for His most holy Body and Blood.”
Odds and Ends
- Deb Geason walked me through the new Atrium location for our Good Shepherd catechetical program (ages 3 – 6). More conveniently located for parents in our Parish Center, the Atrium is progressing wonderfully and already is impressive. Thanks especially to parishioners Tom and Teresa Sloma, Bill Klepper, Duane Sartor, Don Henry, and Jeff Meyer whose generous time and talents are creating an amazing place for young children to learn the Catholic Faith. The Good Shepherd program begins on Sunday, September 13, and again will be offered during 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. Masses.
- Father Jason is away for a week enjoying a well-earned vacation. I accidently opened a kitchen cabinet door and what to my wondering eyes did appear, but an unopened bag of his favorite “family size” Nacho Cheese Doritos. Will someone kindly remind me to replace the empty bag before he returns later in the week?
- More than a few people have asked whether the Solemnity of the Assumption is a Holy Day of Obligation. The answer: this year it is not. According to our bishops, when certain Holy Days fall on a Saturday or a Monday, the obligation to go to Mass is suspended. The first person to email or Facebook me with the correct list of all six Holy Days of Obligation wins the other bag of Fr. Jason’s Doritos.
- Deacon Jeff tells me there have not been any takers yet on the opportunity he extended during my time away for someone to purchase a home on Adams St. or Fulton St. as a way of helping our much needed and earnestly desired on-site parking expansion. God has blessed me with unusually big ears and expects me to use them. Naturally, I welcome any and all calls.
Make it a great week!
July 26, 2009
Faith As It’s Meant To Be
Sometimes we hear comments about the Church that make us bite our tongue. For instance, "Well, I was raised a Catholic"; or, "Oh, I used to be a Catholic"; or, "But I come from a Catholic family"; or, “My parents still are good Catholics.” Ouch!
What do people mean when we hear such things? Actually some people are speaking positively about the difference the Catholic faith has made in their lives. These people harbor a sense of gratitude for the Catholic faith which they practiced at an earlier stage in their life. Almost always their words give indication of heartfelt desire to stop drifting away from the Church and to get back into the practice of the faith.
When I meet people like this I smile from ear to ear and welcome them back to the family! What a joy it is to invite Catholics back to Mass, assuring them that they always belong and always have a place in their family of faith.
In contrast stand others whose very same words mean very different things. With arms crossed and teeth clenched, they speak scornfully and sarcastically about the Church. They muse smugly about their having been freed from Catholic beliefs which for them amounted to nothing more than silly playground games. These people frequently strike me as working hard to convince their own selves that a vague newfound sense of freedom and spiritual enlightenment - which may or may not even include mention of God - is some kind of bold step into adulthood.
The largest religious group in our great nation remains Catholics and, sadly, researchers report the second largest religious group to be former Catholics.
We all will do well to take to heart anew the teaching of Saint Paul who implores us to “no longer be infants, tossed by waves and swept along by every wind of teaching arising from human trickery” (Ephesians 4:14). Human trickery is hardly a relic of the first century for there is no shortage of ungodly, deceitful scheming in our own so-called “advanced” age.
Long before his becoming Pope Benedict XVI, Josef Ratzinger was asked why he remained in the Church. This is a marvelous question for all of us to ponder. Here are a few sentences from his much longer impassioned response:
“I am in the Church because I believe that now as ever ‘His Church’ lives behind ‘our Church’, that we cannot change this situation, and that I can stand by Him only if I stand by and in His Church. I am in the Church because, despite everything, I believe that she is at the deepest level not our Church but precisely ‘His.’”
Mature faith – the kind of faith Saint Paul inspires us to practice and the saints dared to live – has staying power. Mature faith is seen in those who are emboldened humbly, joyfully and gratefully in their Catholic faith. To be sure, mature Christians are well aware of the Church's struggles and imperfections. Concretely, they know that it is the Church that, despite all the human foibles of the people in her, gives us Jesus Christ. They earnestly seek to teach the faith of the Church to their children – her truths, her disciplines, her worship – and to share it also with all those whom they encounter.
When faith ripens, individual believers and whole parish communities suddenly know no strangers.
Now, let’s make it our aim to make this so in our parish.
July 12, 2009
Thank you so very much for your spirited support and enthusiastic encouragement as I begin what is certain to be a remarkable chapter in my priestly life and ministry as your pastor.
Thank you Father Missler, pastor of Immaculate Conception Parish in Port Clinton and the dean of this area of the Diocese of Toledo for representing Bishop Blair at this Installation Mass. Thank you Father Jason, Deacon Bill and Deacon Jeff. Thank you Deb Geason, our Catechetical Leader and Tim Claubaugh our Director of Music – thank you all for the amazing ways you serve the outstanding people of this impressive community of faith.
My beloved brothers and sisters, especially those of you from our parish who have such a special claim on my heart, thank you.
And my dear family, all of whom have traveled considerable distances, thank you. Of all the many, many blessings God has lavished upon me this side of heaven, His greatest gift to me is that I am Bill and Lucille Nuss’ son. I am so glad my brothers and sister and their spouses, nieces and nephews, and dad and mom are here – thank you.
As grateful as I am, there is another claim on my gratitude that towers above the rest and makes all else possible. Above all, I give praise to God, our Father, for raising His Son Jesus Christ from the dead and sending us His Holy Spirit! We know that before all else today is not about Dave Nuss as your new pastor. What we are about today and every day in this historic and vibrant Catholic parish is Jesus Christ and cherishing anew the gift of life He give us as members of His Church.
Not long ago I read a true story about a hermit of some 50 years who had been sought out by a small band of people. It seems these younger people had traveled a great distance to attain the wisdom and learning the devout monk had accumulated through fervent prayer and study over the many years. [With no cell phone, Facebook and tweets, they actually were left traveling to him – call it old school!]. Upon their having found him in his hermitage, the grizzled old monk slowly looked up and summarized his 50 years of prayer and wisdom and learning in two words: “wake up!”.
From the time we are little people, expectations are placed upon us and we strive mightily to make them happen. And for far too many people, human happiness lies in achieving the expectations of others – for example, so much wealth, so much success, so much recognition, etc… And what happens? Well, we work really hard to create it, to create our happiness by means of meeting the expectations others placed upon us. And when the door doesn’t open up for us as we were deceived to believe, we are left desperately trying to knock the door down or to walk away discouraged and defeated.
In contrast, in the great Christian spiritual tradition that is uniquely ours the fulfillment of all human desire has everything to do with watching, waiting, and keeping vigil. The spiritual masters tell us time and again to wake up and remain awake! Happiness – which we all want - is found in our becoming increasingly aware of God, to remain awake and to see the door which God opens before us and, then, to go through it.
It is not about our kicking the door down nor is about our walking away dejected and giving up. Rather, it is all about our being alert and awake so when God opens the door we are ready to go through it. And open it He will!
We see this principle front and center in our readings today. In the first reading from the prophet Amos, Amos explains that he was a simple shepherd and a tender of sycamores. And then for some inexplicable reason God opens a door and invites him to walk through it.
Now, here is Amos’ point: Amos is not vying for the position of prophet. Amos is not the product of a double top secret group training to be prophets. As a kid, Amos is not sent away to summer prophet camps. He is not dreaming about growing up to be a prophet.
He does not see prophet in his career plans. All Amos does is respond when God calls. Amos saw God open a door and dared to walk through it.
How strong the temptation is to embark upon careers of our own making, seeking to fulfill all our human desires by our own efforts - only to wonder why we are so unhappy.
The great Irish writer Oscar Wilde says it wittily in this way: “The only thing worse than not getting what you want is getting what you want.”
Yes! When what I want is not of God’s making, I am better off not wanting it at all.
• How better off I am wanting first what God wants of me.
• How better off we are wanting first what God wants of us.
The very same principle is at play in the Gospel. Jesus calls the Twelve. Said differently, Jesus opens doors for them which they did not see coming.
Jesus calls them and sends them. The word “apostle” means, “to send”. “Post Office” comes from the same ancient word “apostle” [Greek]. To “post” a letter is to send a letter. Jesus’ disciples are like letters sent out,; that is, they belong to someone else, not to themselves.
• Who are disciples? Disciples go where they are told by Jesus to go.
• Who are disciples? Disciples no longer walk their own path.
And now we arrive together at this moment of God’s making! God opens wide the door!
• God deeply desires remarkable things of every one of us.
• God deeply desire remarkable things of our community of faith.
Saint Mary, Mother of Sorrows, pray for us.
July 1, 2009
Gratefully And Prayerfully
I very much look forward to keeping in touch with you by means of this bulletin column whose title is the favorite Scripture verse of one of my Wisconsin childhood Catholic heroes, Coach Vince Lombardi. For those interested, these columns are able to be viewed also on our wonderful parish web site: www.stmarysandusky.org.
First, words simply fail to express the depth of my gratitude for the overwhelmingly warm welcome you have given me. From the March day of the announcement that Bishop Blair had appointed me as your pastor, you have made sure to let me know that I am welcomed and wanted: thank you! Through your greetings, prayers, words, receptions and presence at various events, your encouragement and support have been absolutely marvelous. I find myself not only deeply grateful, but profoundly humbled. Please pray I will be able to live up to the trust you have so beautifully given me.
Second, please allow me to express a particularly fervent word of appreciation to Father Phil Feltman. From the moment I met him right here when I was assigned as a newly ordained priest in 1993, I have respected him immensely. As my first pastor, he inspired me to place the needs of others before my own and to seek God in all things. In the seminary, I learned all about the priesthood; Father Phil taught me how to live and serve as a priest. I have watched in admiration as he shepherded this historic and dynamic parish with accomplishments too many to enumerate over his impressive 18 years of pastoral service.
I thank God for Father Phil’s leadership, and echoing the words of baseball legend, Lou Gehrig, consider myself "one of the luckiest men in the world" to follow him. How glad I am that he will remain close, present and active in his duly deserved retirement.
And, finally, I ask you to renew your resolve to begin each week with Sunday Mass. The Holy Eucharist is the hallmark of our Catholic identity. It defines us as Catholics; it makes us His Church. Confessions will be heard thirty (30) minutes before every Mass including Sunday Masses.
My installation as your pastor will occur next Sunday, July 12, during the 11:30 a.m. Mass. A casual light reception will follow in the Commons. This weekend, our new associate pastor, Father Jason Kahle, is preaching at all the Masses to help us to get to know him better. He is thrilled to be here and I am excited especially to know that we will be working together as your priests.
As I place my future in the hands of the Lord Jesus, these inspired words from Blessed Mother Theresa of Calcutta sound in my heart: “Let God use you without consulting you.”
I am honored by the appointment to serve as your pastor and am filled with hope as I anticipate serving you and your families in imitation of Jesus.
Over the years I have come to know, love and appreciate you very much.
Thank you, God, for having brought me home safely.
|
