If you’re an American Catholic over fifty, you certainly remember beginning and ending your prayers with the sign of the cross while saying: “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” If you were like me, the only ghost you knew was in the movies or in the comics. His name— Casper! He was white; he smiled, floated about, and was, well, friendly! Some other ghosts I knew were on a television show called “Topper.” Remember their names? George and Marian! Boy, are you old!
Maybe this is why some people have only a vague notion of the Third Person of the Trinity. To say that the Holy Spirit is “an invisible friend who floats around with a silly smile” —well, that’s not vague, it’s wrong!
If you can at least understand the question, “Who is the Holy Spirit?” you can then begin to answer it. We say “Who” and not “what” because the Holy Spirit is a Person, not a “thing.” The Holy Spirit is not a part of God; the Holy Spirit is God, as the Father is God and the Son is God; yet, there is only one God. Is that clear? If we’re honest, our answer would be a resounding “No!” The reason for this answer is not because we’re ignorant or uneducated, but rather, we’re human. This means we do not have the capacity to understand everything, at least not now. As people’s personal beliefs are full of myths and misnomers, our Catholic faith is full of mystery.
There are those who laugh at us and say, “How can you believe in something you don’t see and understand?” To these I reply, “How many things in life do we actually see and fully understand?” We know it is dangerous to stick a knife in an outlet; we can see the dangerous effects of a mystery which we have named “electricity.” Yet, while I am grateful for the force which keeps my feet on the floor, I don’t recall any scientist seeing or understanding the mystery we call gravity. This is the reason why since time began, mankind has never ceased to look up and out and in. Whether it is medicine or mathematics, physics or philosophy, stars or snails, astronomy or atoms—the more we look, the more we learn. Yes, mystery is certainly all around us. In fact, we are a mystery unto ourselves.
The time between Ascension Thursday and Pentecost Sunday is nine days. This is where we get the word novena; “novem” in Latin means nine. The first novena wasn’t prayed to Our Lady or to any saint, but by Our Lady and by some saints! They were praying together as Our Lord instructed them to for “the gift of the Father”. After nine days, the gift was delivered—and it didn’t drop quietly through the mail slot! “What was the gift?” you ask. No, you mean, “Who was the gift?”
Fr. Glenn Sudano, CFR
Most Blessed Sacrament Friary, Newark, New Jersey
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Showing posts with label CFR. Show all posts
Showing posts with label CFR. Show all posts
Friday, June 4, 2010
Friday, January 29, 2010
To Be or ...
To Be or ...
In Matthew 13 we read about the people of Jesus' native place. They were so overly familiar with him that they took offense at his teachings and miracles. "Where did this man get all this?", they stated. "But Jesus said to them, 'A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and in his own house.' And he did not work many mighty deeds there because of their lack of faith."
Many people have a "been there, done that, got the t-shirt" attitude towards Christianity. Inspired by this dynamic, Mel Gibson wanted to film The Passion of The Christ in Aramaic. He wanted Christ to strike us afresh, in a new way. When I type "To be or ..." You automatically know the rest, "or not to be. That is the question." Gibson believed that many people do the same thing with Jesus. We are so overly familiar with him that we lack faith.
Pray for the grace to experience the life-giving radicalness of Jesus and his Gospel anew so that he may work many mighty deeds in your life.
In Matthew 13 we read about the people of Jesus' native place. They were so overly familiar with him that they took offense at his teachings and miracles. "Where did this man get all this?", they stated. "But Jesus said to them, 'A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and in his own house.' And he did not work many mighty deeds there because of their lack of faith."
Many people have a "been there, done that, got the t-shirt" attitude towards Christianity. Inspired by this dynamic, Mel Gibson wanted to film The Passion of The Christ in Aramaic. He wanted Christ to strike us afresh, in a new way. When I type "To be or ..." You automatically know the rest, "or not to be. That is the question." Gibson believed that many people do the same thing with Jesus. We are so overly familiar with him that we lack faith.
Pray for the grace to experience the life-giving radicalness of Jesus and his Gospel anew so that he may work many mighty deeds in your life.
God bless,
Fr. Luke Mary Fletcher, CFR
Thursday, January 14, 2010
The Words of Jesus
The Words of Jesus
Perhaps one of the greatest struggles in embracing the gospel is the command of Jesus to let go of our entire life. The control we think we have, the anxiety we often create, our disordered desires that only serve to hurt us, our ideas about ourselves and others and our own will often reveal themselves in the light of the gospel as an illusion, a mask that is surrounded in unreality.
Jesus reminds us that everything that is true and beautiful about life comes from Him. His words alone remove the veil that we so often remain trapped behind. "Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock." Mt 7:24-25
A wise person is one who looks at their life and realizes that by himself they are incomplete and in need of an "other." Jesus Christ is therefore not a crux for "weak" people but the cure and the remedy for the blindness and sickness we live in without Him. Those who listen to His words and build their life upon Him will not be moved despite the trends and fashions that blow through society and leave so many people lost and wandering aimlessly for direction in their life.
Perhaps one of the greatest struggles in embracing the gospel is the command of Jesus to let go of our entire life. The control we think we have, the anxiety we often create, our disordered desires that only serve to hurt us, our ideas about ourselves and others and our own will often reveal themselves in the light of the gospel as an illusion, a mask that is surrounded in unreality.
Jesus reminds us that everything that is true and beautiful about life comes from Him. His words alone remove the veil that we so often remain trapped behind. "Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock." Mt 7:24-25
A wise person is one who looks at their life and realizes that by himself they are incomplete and in need of an "other." Jesus Christ is therefore not a crux for "weak" people but the cure and the remedy for the blindness and sickness we live in without Him. Those who listen to His words and build their life upon Him will not be moved despite the trends and fashions that blow through society and leave so many people lost and wandering aimlessly for direction in their life.
Br. Jeremiah Myriam Shryock, CFR
St. Leopold Friary, Yonkers, NY
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
SAINT ANDREW - Bringing our Brothers & Sisters to Christ
SAINT ANDREW - Bringing our Brothers & Sisters to Christ
Who was the first of the Apostles? Usually we think of Peter because he is at the top of the list, but the first in historical order was Saint Andrew. Andrew, along with another unnamed disciple of John the Baptist, was the first “vocation visitor” invited by Christ to come and see how He lived. He was a fisherman, like his brother Simon-Peter, who was the first person that he went to in order to get him “hooked” on Jesus as well (See Jn. 1:35-42).
Bringing people to Jesus was evidently Saint Andrew’s forte. At another key moment it was Saint Andrew who brought the young man with the 5 loaves and 2 fish to Jesus so that He could multiply them for the crowd (Jn 6:8-9).
Perhaps what is most notable about his efforts is his lack of notoriety. Saint Andrew seems content to fade into the background after he brings people to Christ. He doesn’t get to go with his brother and fellow fishermen, James and John, when they are with Jesus at the Transfiguration or Gethsemane. Maybe he was the responsible one whom Jesus could leave in charge while He was away.
Saint Andrew teaches us that the work of evangelization, being fishers of men, doesn’t call for a lot of recognition. John Henry Newman said that the true estimate of a person’s influence comes more from looking at their private life than their public life. Is anyone more influential than a mother or father upon the life of their children? Edward Leen, in his book on Progress in Mental Prayer reminds us that: We can never know if God shall realize His purpose in us through keeping us hidden or bringing us to light. The soul that seeks to be perfect must consent to be nothing, that is, to be held as nobody. It is wrong to seek to do remarkable things in God's service for the sake of attracting others to that service, (p. 116) As one member on a team of medical scientists said, “It doesn’t matter who gets the credit, as long as those who need it get the cure.”
Many great saints followed this path of hiddenness. For example, Saint Therese and Saint Benedict were not well known during their lifetimes. Saint Bernadette went into the hidden life of the cloister after the famous events took place at Lourdes, explaining that she was content to be like a broom in the hands of her Master, who could use her when needed and then put her back in the closet. She must have pondered the humble hiddenness of the Mother of God, such a central figure in salvation history about whom we really do not know many details.
It is enough to bring our brothers and sisters to Christ and let Him take over from there. It is encouraging that Saint Andrew’s success in evangelization began with his own family. This is not often the case, but he shows us that it is a worthwhile effort. In this case he won over the first pope. His manner of doing so was simply to share his experience of what he went and saw: “We have found the Messiah!” We might not be able to tell a family member how to live the faith, (that is, there is usually an independent spirit among family members in these matters) but we can at least be true to who we are and what God has done in our lives and share that experience with them. It is good to pray that the Lord would send a “fisherman” friend to them, who they might listen to more readily. If all else fails, I know of a woman who sewed a prayer cloth blessed by a priest into her husband’s clothing (unseen of course). Her husband, who had been away from the Church for 20 years, went back to church that Sunday and became a daily communicant!
Saint Andrew’s example also reminds us to be grateful for all of those people who brought us to Christ at crossroads of our lives and then faded into the background. We ask Saint Andrew to intercede for each of them, for our families, and for every person that Christ wants us to bring to Him.
Who was the first of the Apostles? Usually we think of Peter because he is at the top of the list, but the first in historical order was Saint Andrew. Andrew, along with another unnamed disciple of John the Baptist, was the first “vocation visitor” invited by Christ to come and see how He lived. He was a fisherman, like his brother Simon-Peter, who was the first person that he went to in order to get him “hooked” on Jesus as well (See Jn. 1:35-42).
Bringing people to Jesus was evidently Saint Andrew’s forte. At another key moment it was Saint Andrew who brought the young man with the 5 loaves and 2 fish to Jesus so that He could multiply them for the crowd (Jn 6:8-9).
Perhaps what is most notable about his efforts is his lack of notoriety. Saint Andrew seems content to fade into the background after he brings people to Christ. He doesn’t get to go with his brother and fellow fishermen, James and John, when they are with Jesus at the Transfiguration or Gethsemane. Maybe he was the responsible one whom Jesus could leave in charge while He was away.
Saint Andrew teaches us that the work of evangelization, being fishers of men, doesn’t call for a lot of recognition. John Henry Newman said that the true estimate of a person’s influence comes more from looking at their private life than their public life. Is anyone more influential than a mother or father upon the life of their children? Edward Leen, in his book on Progress in Mental Prayer reminds us that: We can never know if God shall realize His purpose in us through keeping us hidden or bringing us to light. The soul that seeks to be perfect must consent to be nothing, that is, to be held as nobody. It is wrong to seek to do remarkable things in God's service for the sake of attracting others to that service, (p. 116) As one member on a team of medical scientists said, “It doesn’t matter who gets the credit, as long as those who need it get the cure.”
Many great saints followed this path of hiddenness. For example, Saint Therese and Saint Benedict were not well known during their lifetimes. Saint Bernadette went into the hidden life of the cloister after the famous events took place at Lourdes, explaining that she was content to be like a broom in the hands of her Master, who could use her when needed and then put her back in the closet. She must have pondered the humble hiddenness of the Mother of God, such a central figure in salvation history about whom we really do not know many details.
It is enough to bring our brothers and sisters to Christ and let Him take over from there. It is encouraging that Saint Andrew’s success in evangelization began with his own family. This is not often the case, but he shows us that it is a worthwhile effort. In this case he won over the first pope. His manner of doing so was simply to share his experience of what he went and saw: “We have found the Messiah!” We might not be able to tell a family member how to live the faith, (that is, there is usually an independent spirit among family members in these matters) but we can at least be true to who we are and what God has done in our lives and share that experience with them. It is good to pray that the Lord would send a “fisherman” friend to them, who they might listen to more readily. If all else fails, I know of a woman who sewed a prayer cloth blessed by a priest into her husband’s clothing (unseen of course). Her husband, who had been away from the Church for 20 years, went back to church that Sunday and became a daily communicant!
Saint Andrew’s example also reminds us to be grateful for all of those people who brought us to Christ at crossroads of our lives and then faded into the background. We ask Saint Andrew to intercede for each of them, for our families, and for every person that Christ wants us to bring to Him.
Fr. Richard Roemer, CFR
St. Crispin Friary
Bronx, NY
Monday, November 16, 2009
Reading Souls
Reading Souls
Throughout history there have been prophets who were given the grace to read souls. The Old Testament is full of examples, one of which is the scene when the prophet Nathan confronted King David for his adultery with Bathsheba and subsequent killing of her husband. This grace to read souls is always ordered to inviting the sinner to repent of sin. David wrote Psalm 51 in repentance for his sin.
Saints John Vianney and Padre Pio are modern day examples of this grace. They could tell you your sins when you knelt in their confessional! The effect was beautiful: people who were hard of heart and unrepentant, ended up converting and repenting. Yet, the absolution which these two saints offered is no different than the absolution one can receive from any Catholic Priest. You had to wait in line for days to make a confession to those two saints. Many priests sit alone for half an hour on Saturdays in the confessional. If we only knew the graces which are available things would be different ... In all of her modern day apparitions, the Blessed Virgin Mary has been encouraging us to go to the Sacrament of Reconciliation at least once a month.
Pray for the grace of a well formed conscience and true contrition for your sins.
God bless,
Fr. Luke Mary Fletcher, CFR
St. Joseph Friary
New York, NY
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
It is true; we are never alone, especially in our moments of pain and suffering.
“The sea rose because a strong wind was blowing. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat. They were frightened, but he said to them, ‘It is I; do not be afraid.” John 6:18-20
Perhaps the greatest hardship of pain and suffering occurs when we convince ourselves that we are alone, that everyone, including God, has forgotten about us and we must face this dark period in isolation from the rest of the world.
However, as months pass and we reflect on those moments with fresh eyes we slowly begin to realize that we were not alone. God was indeed very close to us. Even the most darkest and violent periods of history reveal this to us. How could humanity survive any of the countless tragedies she has faced and will continue to face, if there were not a loving God behind it all, holding back the gates of despair and anarchy from erupting upon the earth?
Jesus’ words to his disciples in the midst of their fear, “It is I; do not be afraid.” (Jn 6:20), are much more than an affirmation that everything will be alright. They are the proclamation that it is Jesus Christ who is the ultimate authority in the universe. It is He who conquers every tragedy, every disaster and every act of violence.
It is true; we are never alone, especially in our moments of pain and suffering.
Perhaps the greatest hardship of pain and suffering occurs when we convince ourselves that we are alone, that everyone, including God, has forgotten about us and we must face this dark period in isolation from the rest of the world.
However, as months pass and we reflect on those moments with fresh eyes we slowly begin to realize that we were not alone. God was indeed very close to us. Even the most darkest and violent periods of history reveal this to us. How could humanity survive any of the countless tragedies she has faced and will continue to face, if there were not a loving God behind it all, holding back the gates of despair and anarchy from erupting upon the earth?
Jesus’ words to his disciples in the midst of their fear, “It is I; do not be afraid.” (Jn 6:20), are much more than an affirmation that everything will be alright. They are the proclamation that it is Jesus Christ who is the ultimate authority in the universe. It is He who conquers every tragedy, every disaster and every act of violence.
It is true; we are never alone, especially in our moments of pain and suffering.
Br. Jeremiah Myriam Shryock, CFR
St. Leopold Friary
Yonkers, NY
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Labor by Br. Jeremiah Myriam Shryock, CFR
Labor
“Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of man will give to you.” (John 6:26-27)
One cannot help to be impressed by the discipline many athletes undergo. They spend hours in the gym, deny themselves certain foods, practice their sport day in and day out and even make sure they have a sufficient amount of sleep so they can function properly.
Yet how short is their glory! It seems that when one person breaks a record, somebody else comes along in a relatively short span of time and topples that record. The former record melts away into history and sooner or later will be forgotten.
Jesus gives us an important principle that is necessary to discern our priorities in life: “Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life.” (Jn 6:27)
It is true everybody needs to eat; everybody needs to buy clothing and other accessories; everybody deserves to go on vacation, etc., but a characteristic of our culture is that we have turned these things into “ends,” and for so many people they constitute their identity and their whole life becomes an endless accumulation of things that eventually crumble right before them.
The question needs to be asked. Am I laboring for food that will ultimately perish? The prophet Isaiah sums it up perfectly, “Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Incline your ear and come to me, hear that your soul may live.” (Is 55:2)
What is your answer?
Br. Jeremiah Myriam Shryock, CFR
St. Leopold Friary
Yonkers, New York
Saturday, October 3, 2009
SAINT MATTHEW - MODEL FOR RENEWAL by Fr. Richard Roemer, CFR
SAINT MATTHEW - MODEL FOR RENEWAL
Why is Saint Matthew’s Gospel in the #1 spot in the New Testament? The first reason may be that it links up so well with the Old Testament. Not only the genealogy that begins Chapter 1 by tracing our roots to Abraham, but throughout his Gospel there are many references to Jesus' teaching fulfilling the Old Law and building upon it. Look for example, at the refrain in Chap. 5 "You have heard it was said...."in vv. 21, 27, 31, 33, 38, and 43 followed by "but I say to you...." There are many other ways that Jewish Christians would have understood Jesus as the new Moses by what Matthew chose to include in his Gospel.There is even a line spoken by Jesus that we only find in this Gospel which sums up this point: "Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the Kingdom of Heaven is like a master of a house who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old" (13:52). This line appropriately describes Saint Matthew himself - not a bad reason for him to include it!
It is a temptation sometimes for Christians to ignore the Old Testament with the mistaken generality "That's the mean God. I prefer the nice God, the merciful One that Jesus talks about." This isn't a new temptation or mistake. There was a heretical teacher named Marcion in the 2nd Century who tried to rid Christianity of the Old Testament for that very reason.
Recently at our St. Anthony's Shelter for Renewal in the Bronx, we were discussing the role of Our Lady during our weekly Bible study. One of our homeless guests asked, "Couldn't God have picked any woman to be the mother of His Son?" Another homeless man, who is Protestant, quickly replied, "No, she had to be from the House of David." That was a helpful introduction from a surprising source to be able to speak with them about God's plan from all eternity and how He gradually brought it about in the fullness of time through Our Lady's “yes.” This is just one of a million examples why it is helpful to know the Old Testament in order to really appreciate the New Testament. At the same time, we believe that the Old Testament cannot be understood correctly without the New.
The history of Sacred Tradition in the Church follows a similar principle. There must be continuity between old and new for authentic renewal to take place. There is a maxim in theology that "the Church's teaching must change to remain the same." We believe that "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever," but the language that draws us into the mystery of the God-man may be adapted and updated to speak to every age.
Recently two of our friars attended a Mass in Latin in Manhattan (nice rhyme, eh?) where the priest was preaching about openness to the Charismatic gifts (which I presume included other tongues besides Latin). I think Saint Matthew would enjoy that kind of mix - the treasures old and new.
Every reform in religious life seeks to follow this same principle of dynamic continuity. One Church historian said that the success of the Capuchin reform in the early 1500's was due to their ability to bring the ideals of the early Franciscans into their age and respond to the needs of the Church at that time. Our Community of Franciscans of the Renewal has a similar goal.
The same principle applies to one's spiritual life in many ways. Although we are called to put on the new man who is Christ without compromise, His grace builds upon nature. It is evident from his Gospel that Saint Matthew had an eye for detail, legal knowledge, a sense of history, a gift of persuasion, and an investigative sense. It's reasonable to imagine that all of these gifts were developed because of his years as a Jewish tax collector. God's plan in the history of each individual is also an adventure of dynamic continuity.
"Something old, something new, something gray, something blue...." - or something like that.
Fr. Richard Roemer, CFR
St. Crispin Friary
Bronx, New York
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