Principles

Comedian Groucho Marx quipped, "Those are my principles. If you don't like them, I have others."

You and I have principles. And we also have opinions. I have opinions about what I think is right or wrong or good or bad. But… they're only opinions - I COULD be wrong! I won't try to build my life around my opinions, but I WILL endeavor to stand by my principles.

A 15-year-old boy learned a valuable lesson about life principles. He wrote a letter to "Dear Abby" about finding a woman's wallet that contained $127 as well as the woman's identification. He hopped onto his bicycle and peddled over to her house - about a mile away. He told her he found her wallet and she gave him a big hug. She also gave him twenty dollars.

That evening the boy told his parents about the event and his father said, "I don't think you should have accepted $20 for doing what you should have done. A person shouldn't be rewarded for being honest."

He pondered his father's statement and decided he would return the money. He biked to the lady's home and gave her back the twenty dollars. She didn't want to take it, but he told her she had to - that his father pointed out something to him that he had never realized before. Her eyes filled with tears as she said, "This is one for Ripley."

The boy's question to Abby? "Abby, who is Ripley?"

Is a life built around principles so unusual that Robert Ripley should mention it in his column "Believe It or Not"? When ideals such as honesty and a personal standard of always doing the right thing guide our every action and decision, we actually change. These great principles shape our lives and make us into persons of character. They build self esteem and teach confidence. That boy is fortunate to be raised by a wise father who had the wisdom to say, "Those are my principles."

Martin Luther King, Jr. put it well: "The time is always right to do what is right." Those were his principles. Decide to always do what is right - today and every day - and you will find yourself building a life that matters.

31st Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints and tomorrow we commemorate All the Faithful Departed (All Souls). Both days honor those who have died. On All Saints Day, we celebrate the lives of all the people who are with God in the glory of Heaven. On All Souls Day, we pray for the souls of those who need forgiveness and who long to see the face of God. 

Most of us have favorite saints. My favorite saints are St. Colm Cille (St. Columba), St. Otteran and St. Kevin. The lives of these three Irish priests inspire me in my own priesthood and remind me of my call to holiness. All of us are called to be saints, to be holy people. St. Peter teaches us that we all are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own” and we are to “announce the praises of him who called [us] out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9). Because their holiness is recognized, we tend to put the saints on pedestals and emphasize their superhuman characteristics or wonderworking. This is a mistake. The saints were very real and very human. They had good days and bad days just like the rest of us. They suffered, they were tempted, and they experienced sadness and loss. 

What sets the saints apart is how they dealt with the challenges and obstacles that came their way. We heard in our first reading from Revelation 7:2-4, 9-14, that the saints “are the ones who have survived the time of great distress; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” And in our gospel, Matthew 5:1-12a, the Beatitudes, Jesus challenges us, as he challenged the disciples and all the saints throughout the ages, with his guide to holiness that will get us into the kingdom of heaven. What does it take to be a saint? It takes poverty of spirit, meekness, thirst for righteousness, mercy, a clean heart and the willingness to make peace. For these qualities, we will experience persecution, insults and false accusations. But Jesus promises us that if we strive for these virtues, we can join the saints and our “reward will be great in heaven.” 

All-Holy God, 

you call your people to holiness.

As we keep the festival of your saints, 

give us their poverty of spirit, 

a thirst for righteousness, 

and purity of heart.

May we share with them the richness of your kingdom

and be clothed in your glory.

Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son

who lives and reigns with you

in the unity of the Holy Spirit, 

God for ever and ever. 

AMEN 

Our Greatest Gift

Recently, a friend told me a story about twins talking to each other in the womb. The sister said to the brother, “I believe there is life after birth.”

Her brother protested vehemently, “No, no, this is all there is. This is a dark and cozy place, and we have nothing else to do but cling to the cord that feeds us.”

The little girl insisted. “There must be something more than this dark place. There must be something else, a place with light where there is freedom to move.” Still she could not convince her twin brother.

After some silence, the sister said, hesitantly, “I have something else to say, and I'm afraid you won't believe that either, but I think there is a mother.”

Her brother became furious. “A mother!” He shouted. “What are you talking about? I have never seen a mother, and neither have you. Who put that idea in your head? As I told you, this place is all we have.  Why do you always want more? This is not such a bad place, after all. We have all we need, so let's be content.”

The sister was quite overwhelmed by her brother's response and for a while didn't dare say anything more. But she couldn't let go of her thoughts, and since she had only her twin brother to speak to, she finally said, “Don't you feel these squeezes every once in a while?  They're quite unpleasant and sometimes even painful.”

“Yes,” he answered. “What's special about that?”

“Well," the sister said, I think that these squeezes are there to get us ready for another place, much more beautiful than this, where we will see our mother face-to-face. Don't you think that's exciting?”

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.

1 John 3:1-2 (NIV)

I Asked the Lord to Bless You

I asked the Lord to bless you
As I prayed for you today,
To guide you and protect you
As you go along your way.

His love is always with you
His promises are true,
And when we give Him all our cares
You know He will see us through.

So when the road you're traveling on
Seems difficult at best,
Just remember I'm here praying
And God will do the rest.

Amen​

How We Look at Others

A young couple moves into a new neighborhood.

The next morning while they are eating breakfast, the young woman sees her neighbor hanging the wash outside. “That laundry is not very clean,” she said. “She doesn't know how to wash correctly. Perhaps she needs better laundry soap.” Her husband looked on, but remained silent.

Every time her neighbor would hang her wash to dry, the young woman would make the same comments. 

About one month later, the woman was surprised to see a nice clean wash on the line and said to her husband: “Look, she has learned how to wash correctly. I wonder who taught her this?”

The husband said, “I got up early this morning and cleaned our windows.”

And so it is with life. What we see when watching others depends on the purity of the window through which we look.

Samuel Morse

Wakefield tells the story of the famous inventor Samuel Morse who was once asked if he ever encountered situations where he didn't know what to do. Morse responded, "More than once, and whenever I could not see my way clearly, I knelt down and prayed to God for light and understanding." 

Morse received many honors from his invention of the telegraph but felt undeserving: "I have made a valuable application of electricity not because I was superior to other men but solely because God, who meant it for mankind, must reveal it to someone and He was pleased to reveal it to me."​

Hope

Hope opens doors. Hope draws its power from a deep trust in God and the basic goodness of man. Hope “lights a candle instead of cursing the darkness.” Hope discovers what can be done instead of grumbling about what cannot be done. Hope looks for the good in people, instead of focusing on the worst in them. Hope is a belief combined with a trust that there is something good that will happen – even though we can’t see it yet. Hope is not an illusion. It is not belief in magic. However, hope knows that limits often lie beyond the confines of our fears. At times when we feel our lives are so messed up, we have to get that hope from others. I heard a saying once that hope is being at the deepest darkest part of your life and trusting that when you take your next step, you’ll either step on something solid or you’ll be taught how to fly.

I Said Nothing

In Germany they first came for the Communists,

and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.

Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Catholics,
and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant.

Then they came for me -
and by that time no one was left to speak up.

~ Martin Niemöller

30th Sunday in Ordinary Time

In last Sunday’s gospel, Matthew 22: 15 – 21, the Pharisees and Herodians tied to set Jesus up with a trick question about a conflict between Roman law and Hebraic law and they failed. Not to be daunted, the Pharisees try again. In today’s gospel, Matthew 22:34-40, they attempt to test Jesus on Hebrew law asking, “which commandment in the law is the greatest?" The trick in this question is that there are over 600 laws given in the Old Testament covering just about everything. All of them were supposed to be observed faithfully. 

Jesus answers by quoting two passages from the Torah, Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18, summarizing the most important principles of our faith and the Jewish faith. “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus tells the Pharisees and reminds us that “The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.” 

All the commandments focus on our relationships; our relationship with God and our relationships with each other. God is our creator and should be the center of our universe. We show our love for God by keeping the commandments (1 John 5:2). God created us in his divine image, “male and female he created [us]” (Geneses 1:27). If we truly love God with all our hearts, with all of our souls and with all of our minds, then it is impossible for us not to love other people because we all are made in the image of God. St. John tells us in his 1st Letter, “Beloved, let us love one another, because love is of God; everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God. Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love” (1 John 4:7-8). 

Almighty and ever-living God, 

Strengthen our faith, hope, and love. 

May we do with loving hearts what you ask of us 

And come to share the life you promise. 

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, 

Who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, 

One God, forever and ever. 

Amen.

Peanut

George Washington Carver, the scientist who developed hundreds of useful products from the peanut: "When I was young, I said to God, 'God, tell me the mystery of the universe.' But God answered, 'That knowledge is reserved for me alone.' So I said, 'God, tell me the mystery of the peanut.' Then God said, 'Well, George, that's more nearly your size.' And he told me

A little girl was sitting on the lap of her grandfather. For the first time, the child was really giving her grandfather the once-over. She examined his wrinkled skin, and his gray hair. "Grandfather," she asked him, "did God make you?" "Sure, sweetheart." Then she looked at herself. Smooth skin. Blonde hair. "Grandfather, did God make me?" "Absolutely!" he answered." There was a moment of silence while she thought about the differences between the two of them. "Grandfather," she asked, "don't you think God's doing a better job than He used to?"

A Prayer of Trust

Above all, trust in the slow work of God.
We are, quite naturally, impatient in everything
to reach the end without delay.
We should like to skip the intermediate stages

We are impatient of being on the way to something
unknown, something new;
And yet it is the law of all progress
that it is made by passing through
some stages of instability –
and that it may take a very long time.

And so I think it is with you,
your ideas mature gradually – let them grow,
let them shape themselves, without undue haste.
Don’t try to force them on,
as though you could be today what time
(that is to say, grace and circumstances
acting on your own good will)
will make of you tomorrow.

Only God could say what this new spirit
gradually forming within you will be.
Give our Lord the benefit of believing
that his hand is leading you,
And accept the anxiety of feeling yourself
in suspense and incomplete.


Pierre Teilhard de Chardin S.J.

From the Bible to casinos, seven is often considered to be a magical, perfect, and lucky number. 

Jesus told us to forgive those who hurt us seventy times seven times. Clearly he meant that to mean infinity. 

Genesis speaks of the seven days of creation. Scripture speaks of seven archangels, and the Book of Revelation speaks of the seven seals of Revelation. The Bible is saturated with the number seven. 

Roman Catholics have seven Sacraments: Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Reconciliation, Healing of the Sick, Holy Orders, and Matrimony. 

There are seven Corporal Works of Mercy: Feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, shelter the homeless, visit the sick, visit the imprisoned, and bury the dead. 

And then seven spiritual Works of Mercy: Instruct the ignorant, counsel the doubtful, admonish sinners, bear wrongs patiently, forgive offenses willingly, comfort the afflicted, and pray for the living and the dead. 

We also have the famous seven Wonders of the World, though now there are arguments as to what precisely constitutes that list: Some argue for the original list, the seven Wonders of the Ancient World, others propose the seven Wonders of the Modern World, some speak of the seven Wonders of the Contemporary World, and still others affirm that the real wonders of this world are constructed by nature and they list instead the seven Natural Wonders of this World. 

So what’s the true list? What, in fact, constitutes the seven Wonders of the World? 

Recently this story appeared on the internet: A teacher asked her students to name the seven Wonders of the World. A number of students, with the help no doubt of electronic gadgets, quickly produced the various lists. 

One young girl, however, without any electronic research, produced her own list. The seven Wonders of the World, she submitted, are: seeing, feeling, tasting, smelling, touching, breathing, and loving. 

That list, I believe, reminds us all that the greatest wonder is the gift of life from conception until we meet our Lord face to face. Oh, the wonder of it all.

Joy

Joy is only a thought away. I choose joy.

As I look back on my life, I may notice how my spirits have ebbed and flowed. I may remember days of deep sadness and days overflowing with laughter. There have been periods of optimism and passion, and times of sorrow.

Awareness of my emotions creates an opening for change. As I connect with Spirit, I feel peace, love and happiness flow through me. I notice that when I change my thoughts, my emotions change. When I am feeling sadness, fear, or anxiety, I remember that the choice is mine to keep my mind and heart attuned to Spirit. My every thought, word, and action is an expression of the Spirit within.

I choose joy right here and right now.​

Each day is different and has a surprise in it, like a Cracker Jack box. ~ Alpha English

It's interesting to ponder the notion of surprise. Not every one of them, in old age, is all that welcome. Hearing bad news about a friend or having a special trip we'd been counting on canceled can leave us dismayed and worried, right along with surprised. Seeking solace from others while cultivating a willingness to accept that all things happen for a reason gives us the armor we need to make the best of every situation and disappointment.

It's an interesting image to think of each day as a box of Cracker Jacks. The moments of our lives have been very tasty. Some were sweet, some were a bit salty, and there were always wholly unexpected moments, the surprises that we were ready for even though we may not have imagined as much. We can look forward to the same daily agenda throughout the remaining years.

Does it help to know that there is a divine plan unfolding in our lives? Many of us find comfort in that. All of us can cultivate that belief.

I am ready for my surprise today! It is meant for me at this time.​

Feast of St. Marguerite d'Youville

St. Marguerite d’Youville
(1701-1771)

Born in Varennes, Canada, Marie Marguerite Dufrost de Lajemmerais had to interrupt her schooling at the age of 12 to help her widowed mother. Eight years later she married Francois d'Youville; they had six children, four of whom died young. Despite the fact that her husband gambled, sold liquor illegally to Native Americans and treated her indifferently, she cared for him compassionately in before his death in 1730.

Even though she was caring for two small children and running a store to help pay off her husband's debts, Marguerite still helped the poor. Once her children were grown, she and several companions rescued a Quebec hospital that was in danger of failing. She called her community the Institute of the Sisters of Charity of Montreal; the people called them the "Grey Nuns" because of the color of their habit. In time, a proverb arose among the poor people of Montreal, "Go to the Grey Nuns; they never refuse to serve." In time, five other religious communities traced their roots to the Grey Nuns.

Pope John XXIII, who beatified her in 1959, called her the "Mother of Universal Charity." She was canonized in 1990.

29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

In today’s gospel, Matthew 22:15-21, Jesus spoils a malicious plot by the Pharisees and Herodians by giving them a straight answer to a trick question, “Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?" We all know his response, “repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” This isn’t a statement about the legality of taxes. It is Jesus reminding us that we live in two worlds and each world places certain demands on us. 

As Christians we all have dual citizenship. We are citizens of our country and we are citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven. Each citizenship carries a lot of responsibility. As citizens of the United States of America we have a legal duty to obey national, state and local laws; serve on juries; serve as witnesses when asked to do so by a court; pay taxes and males are required to register with the Selective Service System when they turn eighteen years old. US citizens also have the responsibility to vote and to respect the right of others. When I became a US citizen, I took an oath to defend the Constitution and laws of the United States and when required by law, to bear arms on behalf of the United States and/or perform noncombatant service. 

Our responsibilities as citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven focus on our spiritual obligations. Our first responsibility in the Kingdom of heaven is to put God first in our lives. Jesus reminds us in next Sunday’s gospel, Matthew 22:34-40, that the greatest commandment is "You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” And, we are to love our neighbor as much as we love ourselves. We are to obey the Ten Commandments. We have a responsibility to practice good stewardship by tithing, by sharing our God given gifts with others and by taking good care of all that God has given us. And, as good citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven we are expected to be exemplary citizens of our nation. One of the clearest statements about what God expects of us is found in Micah 6: 6-8, “With what shall I come before the LORD, and bow before God most high? Shall I come before him with holocausts, with calves a year old? Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with myriad streams of oil? Shall I give my first-born for my crime, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? You have been told, O man, what is good, and what the LORD requires of you: Only to do the right and to love goodness, and to walk humbly with your God.” 

God our Father, 

Open our eyes to see your hand at work 

In the splendor of creation, 

In the beauty of human life. 

Touched by your hand our world is holy. 

Help us to cherish the gifts that surround us, 

To share your blessings with our brothers and sisters, 

And to experience the joy of life in your presence. 

We ask this through Christ our Lord. 

Amen 

The Serenity Prayer is well known in most circles. You can find it printed on coffee mugs, plaques, tapestries, cards, etc. I’m sure you’re all familiar with it. “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference”. I cannot begin to count the times I have prayed this prayer. Many times it is part of my morning devotions. I ask God to give me peace for the day to accept the things I cannot change. On more than one occasion I have prayed this prayer under my breath and quickly! When someone was in my face I wanted God to give me peace to accept what I obviously wasn’t going to be able to change.

To accept things that we cannot change is hard for us humans. We have conquered the wildest of rivers with our great dams. We have harnessed the power of the atom. We have found cures and vaccines for many diseases and continue to make great strides in every field. The idea of asking God for peace to accept those things we cannot change is alien to us. Yet there are things I cannot change. I cannot change people. As much as I would like to I simply cannot make people love God and turn to him for help. I can show the way. I can preach the way. I can offer to go with them on the way but I cannot make them change. I cannot change history either. What has happened is done. Not even God rewrites history. It stands as a record of the successes and failures of each of us for all to see. Whether it is people or history or other circumstances, God is able to give us peace in the midst of the situation.

“God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference”.

Here's a trivia question. What was the second name Saul had in Scripture?

"Paul?" Wrong. Paul is the third name Saul had in Scripture.

Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, "Brother Saul, the Lord - Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here - has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit." (Acts 9:17)

You probably spotted it. The second name Saul had was Brother Saul.

It may not seem ...like a big deal to us, but you can bet Saul never forgot the day a man called him Brother for the first time. Imagine sitting in darkness for three days without food, drink, or encouragement and suddenly receiving a kind word. What a gift!

A faithful friend says not simply kind words, but the right words at the right time. Ananias shared the truth with Saul in a very gentle way and baptized him. The first person whom Saul saw after he heard the truth of the Holy Spirit was a God-sent friend.

Ananias showered Saul with some of the most precious gifts you can give another human being. He was there for Saul, he touched him like a friend who cared, and he spoke kindly to him, with the right words at the right time.

Over the next several days, he taught Saul, he encouraged him, and he introduced him to more people who had that same touch, that same kindness, that same love born of the Holy Spirit. What wonderful power Saul discovered in Damascus! The first form of that power he discovered was the power of faithful friends.

Beethoven's Piano

On a visit to the Beethoven museum in Bonn, a young student became fascinated by the piano on which Beethoven had composed some of his greatest works. She asked the museum guard if she could play a few bars on it; she accompanied the request with a lavish tip, and the guard agreed. The girl went to the piano and tinkled out the opening of the Moonlight Sonata. As she was leaving she said to the guard, "I suppose all the great pianist who come here want to play on that piano."

The guard shook his head. "Padarewski [the famed Polish pianist] was here a few years ago and he said he wasn't worthy to touch it."

Retreat Lights

Several priests of various orders were celebrating a liturgy during a retreat. They were Franciscans, Benedictines, Dominicans, Carmelites, and Jesuits.

Suddenly the lights of the retreat house dimmed and went out. The Franciscans burst into a song praising God for the darkness. The Benedictines continued the prayers from memory, without missing a beat. The Dominicans began to discuss light as a signification of the transmission of divine knowledge. The Carmelites fell into silence and started to practice slow, steady breathing. The Jesuits sent one of their guys into the basement to replace the fuse.

Favorite Prayers

Here are some favorite prayers:

Help.
Please.
Show me.
Guide me.
Change me.
Are you there?
Thank you.

Today, I will tell God what I want to tell God, and listen for God’s answer. I will remember that I can trust God.

Holy Trinity Prayer

God for us, we call you “Father.”
God alongside us, we call you “Jesus.”
God within us, we call you “Holy Spirit.”
Together, you are the Eternal Mystery
That enables, enfolds, and enlivens all things,
Even us and even me.

Every name falls short of your goodness and greatness.
We can only see who you are in what is.
We ask for such perfect seeing—
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be.

Amen.

28th Sunday in Ordinary Time

In today’s gospel, Matthew 22:1-14, we move out of the Lord’s vineyard into the King’s banquet hall. Here Jesus presents two parables, the Parable of the King’s Wedding Feast and the Parable of the Wedding Garment. He directs the parable of the King’s Wedding Feast to the chief priests and elders and the parable of the Wedding Garment to us. 

Once again Jesus warns the chief priests and elders that they are about to be disinherited from the Kingdom of Heaven because they constantly refuse his invitation to join him at the feast. This is no ordinary feast. Isaiah describes it in the first reading (Is 25:6-10a) as “a feast of rich food and choice wines, juicy, rich food and pure, choice wines.” There is more than food offered here. At this feast God “will destroy death forever. The Lord GOD will wipe away the tears from every face.” This is the feast of salvation. Not only do the chief priests and elders refuse the invitation to attend the feast, they kill the King’s servants bearing the invitation. So, the King, in a fit of rage, “sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.” Jerusalem was, in fact, destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70. 

The next part of this parable and the Parable of the Wedding Garment contain good news and bad news for us. The good news is that because the leaders of Israel rejected the invitation to join the Heavenly feast, God extends his invitation to all of us. Everyone is invited to God’s Heavenly feast. HOWEVER, God expects us to attend His feast properly attired. What is proper attire for the wedding feast? St. Paul tells us in Ephesians 4:24-28. We are expected to “put on the new self, created in God's way in righteousness and holiness of truth. Therefore, putting away falsehood, speak the truth, each one to his neighbor, for we are members one of another. Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun set on your anger, and do not leave room for the devil.” The wedding garment is our new life in Christ. It is the symbol of our conversion, our repentance and our acceptance of Jesus as our Lord and Savior. 

Father, 

you show your almighty power 

In your mercy and forgiveness. 

Continue to fill us with your gifts of love. 

Help us to hurry toward the eternal life you promise 

And come to share in the joys of your kingdom. 

Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, 

Who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, 

One God forever and ever. 

Amen

 

“Have you ever done something simply on principle, because it was the right thing to do, knowing that you couldn’t explain it to anyone, without there even being a good feeling attached to your act?” 

Karl Rahner wrote that and then added: “If you have done this, you have experienced God, perhaps without knowing it.”​

Perseverance

I like the story of Dack Axselle. In October, 1984, they held the annual marathon in Richmond, Virginia. Some 831 runners started the race, a race that would cover a torturous 26.2 miles. In about three hours, the winner had crossed the finished line, and only a handful of people knew 10-year-old Dack Axselle was still running.

What Dack was doing, however, wasn't really a run. It was more of a fast shuffle. Dack was born with spina bifida, and doctors were sure he would never walk - if he lived at all. But Dack did learn how to walk with heavy leg braces and crutches. He developed a love for running, and he aimed for the toughest race of all.

So as he swung those leg braces down the road of his marathon, more and more people heard that he was still running. Twice near the end he had to stop to change gloves and re-wrap the gauze around his forearms. But each time he got up to race again. Finally, he came to the finish. It took Dack 11 hours and 10 minutes to get there, and the race had officially ended an hour and a half earlier.

The officials, the helpers, those who had run the race earlier had all packed their bags and gone. But as Dack neared the finish line, word spread like wildfire. Officials found the finish line, and put it up again. And more than 1,000 people cheered wildly as Dack pressed on, and many wept when he finally finished his marathon.

More than half the runners with good legs couldn't finish the race, but Dack became the biggest winner of the day - simply because he pressed on toward the goal. It didn't matter that his time was so slow. It mattered only that he finished. Dack said he had modeled himself on St. Paul. In finishing his race St. Paul had gained a new perspective on life. Once a persecutor of Christians, he was suddenly delighted to be part of the persecuted. His encounter with Jesus Christ had so profoundly changed him, it put a new perspective on everything in his life.

When we open Paul's letter to the Philippians, however, more than 25 years have passed. On the downside, Paul was dealing with the usual aging process and a painful "thorn in the flesh." But on the positive side of things, Paul possessed a maturity only time can bring. Part of that maturity was a new perspective, something that gave him encouragement for the long haul. He was determined to cross his finish line in a full run.

If you've been a Christian for a great many years, make it a point to model your life on St. Paul's perseverance. It worked for Dack.

Ancestors

Spirit of my ancestors,
this day I join in acknowledging the blessedness of the many
who inspired me and shaped my faith.

I turn in memory and appreciation
toward those ancestors in my family of origin
who influenced and encouraged me to live as my best self.

I bring to mind others who enriched my life
and led me further on my journey of personal transformation.

I honor all those who sacrificed and suffered
in order for peace and justice to be furthered on our planet.

I give thanks and rejoice for the countless, unnamed persons
those goodness left a lasting mark of kindness and compassion.

May the remembrance of each of these blessed ones
deepen my personal commitment
to leave a trace of goodness wherever I go.

When I depart this sphere of life may I do so
having contributed to individual and world peace
and may this world be a better place because of me and my ancestors​.

Open Arms of Home

A young man returned from military duty in the Middle East. For several months, he had served in a place of great danger, in very unfamiliar and uncomfortable surroundings. When he talked about his joy upon being home, he talked of the simplest things. His recliner fit like a glove, and his bed was nothing short of luxurious comfort. He played ball with his son for an hour, and enjoyed his favorite meal across the table from his wife. The touch of her hand, he said, was beyond description. The greatest comfort he'd ever known wasn't anything elaborate. The greatest comfort was simply being home. It was the comfort of having familiar surroundings after a very dangerous journey.

The disciples and the close-knit circle around Jesus thought they had lost Jesus. They had called him Messiah, and life had been wonderful when Jesus was around. Suddenly, there was the cross, and it was all over. The grave sealed their hopes, and the comfort was shattered.

Then came the cry - "He's alive!" - and Jesus was in their midst. He came with open hands, standing among them, fixing their breakfast, walking with them, encouraging them, thrilling them, leaving them with the smiles of a man come home from war.

Wherever you've been, the Lord's Supper is an opportunity to come home. The battle might have been difficult, and you might not have won every fight. But here is forgiveness, and grace ... and the open arms of home.

A New Beginning

Henri Barbusse tells of a conversation overheard in a dugout full of wounded men during the First World War. One of the men had been terribly wounded, and he knew he has only moments to live. He had a friend with him, one who had already seen a bad start to a bad life. He'd made wrong decisions. He'd already served time in prison. In fact, he was wanted, back home, by the police again. The wounded man, the dying man, pulls the wanted man down, close to his face. He takes his dog tag, his ID chain, and presses it in the hand of his buddy. “Listen, Dominic, you've led a bad life,” he said. “Everywhere you are wanted by the police. But there are no convictions against me. My name is clear, so, here, take my dog tag, take my wallet, take my papers, my identity, my good name, my life and quickly, hand me your papers that I may carry all your crimes away with me in death.”

That is the same offer the Living Christ makes to us through his saving death on the cross - and his life-changing resurrection.

Jesus, the Lamb of God, still offers to take your sins to the cross with him. And because of the resurrection, you can take his good name ... Christ ... you can be a Christian ... and live in freedom.

Bridges of Faith

In 1847, a boy named Homan Walsh went out to fly a kite. Homan was taking part in a kite-flying contest, so he brought his best kite, and plenty of string.

He stood on the Canadian bank of the Niagara River, letting more and more of that string go out, and his little-boy's kite kept going higher, and higher, and higher until it stretched nearly 1,000 feet. When a stranger on the American side of the Niagara Gorge grabbed Homan's string, the crowd that had gathered let up a mighty roar. For the first time in history, people on opposite sides of this great gorge were holding onto the same string. And Homan won $5, the top prize in the contest.

There was much more than $5 at stake, however. In short order, the string was tied to a tree on the American shoreline, and a light cord tied to the Canadian end of the string. The cord was then pulled across the 800-foot span. A rope was tied to the cord, and pulled safely across. To the rope was attached a wire cable, and to the cable, a thicker cable attached. It was the beginning of an engineering victory over one of the greatest natural barriers that had separated Americans and Canadians.

Fifty-foot towers were built on each side of the river, and more cables became a part of the picture. In time, people rode across the river in buckets, for $1 each, and then they walked on a foot bridge for a quarter. But less than a year after Homan's kite first flew across the river, people were safely riding their horse-drawn carriages across the Niagara, on a marvelous suspension bridge that hung 220 feet over the rushing water.

Eventually, there were 15 bridges that spanned the Niagara, six of which are in use today. The thousands of passengers that travel across the multi-lane, high-speed bridges today think nothing of the bridge, some of them so familiar with the path, they barely glance at the scenic view. More than likely, it has never occurred to most of those on the great bridges today that somewhere in the past, just to get this modern-day miracle under way, somebody had to fly a kite.

If great bridges can get their start with a boy's kite and string, then I'll tell you that great spiritual experiences can get their start with amazingly simple decisions.

The Lord's Supper is one of the world's simplest meals. From one vantage point, it might not seem much more significant than a boy flying a kite. It might seem little more than a string of a connection between you and God. Our offer to you today is make that connection. From the smallest beginnings can come great bridges of faith.

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Most of us, at one time or another, have tried to do the right thing only to have it backfire on us. Like the landowner whose vineyard we read about in today’s gospel from Matthew 21:33-43, we try and try only to suffer rejection, humiliation and sometime violence. What should we do? If we followed the advice of the chief priests and elders, we would strike back with a vengeance. The only problem with vengeance is that it doesn’t really heal our hurts and puts us on the same level as those who hurt us. 

What does God do? God gives the workers in the vineyard (us) every opportunity to do the right thing. Although God is very patient, ultimately a time of reckoning does arrive and then, in this parable, God simply removes those of us who don’t follow his directions and gives the vineyard to people who will. 

Why does the landowner put up with his rebellious tenants for such a long time? Why does God put up with us? God’s patience extends out of love: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him (Jn 3:16-17). 

God gives us everything we need to build the Kingdom and produce good fruit. He trusts us to do the work. He gives us second and third opportunities to succeed. And, as St. Paul reminds us in today’s second reading from Philippians 4:6-9, God expects us to perform our tasks with an attitude that is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, gracious, excellent and worthy of praise. If we can accomplish all of this, then we can be assured that “the God of peace will be with” us forever and ever. 

Father, 

Your love for us 

Surpasses all our hopes and desires. 

Forgive our failings, 

Keep us in your peace 

And lead us to the way of salvation. 

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, 

Who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, 

One God, forever and ever. 

Amen​

There’s an old story of the boy who stood on a sidewalk, waiting on a bus. A man walking by spotted the boy, and gave him some gentle instruction. “Son,” he said, “if you’re waiting on the bus, you need to move to the street corner. That’s where the bus stops for passengers.” “It’s OK,” said the boy. “I’ll just wait right here, and the bus will stop for me.” The man repeated his argument, but the boy never moved. Just then, the bus appeared. Amazingly, the bus pulled over to where the boy stood, and the child hopped on. The man on the sidewalk stood speechless. The boy turned around in the doorway and said, “Mister, I knew the bus would stop here, because the bus driver is my dad!” 

When you’ve got a family relationship with the bus driver, you don’t need a bus stop. If your mother is a US Senator, you won’t need an appointment to slip into her office. If you’ve given your heart to the King of Kings, you’re in a royal family of unspeakable proportions​.