Prayers for all in Newtown CT

As reports of the school shooting in Newtown CT continue to unfold, may the words of Jesus offer comfort and peace.

SCRIPTURE

For you, O LORD, are my refuge. You have made the Most High your dwelling. (Psalm 91)

“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for your selves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light (Matthew 11:28-30).” 

COLLECT

(These prayers are taken from The Order of Christian Funerals)

For the young people
Lord,
Your wisdom governs the length of our days.
We mourn the loss of children in Newtown
whose life has passed so quickly,
and we entrust them to Your mercy.
Welcome them into Your heavenly dwelling
and grant them the happiness of everlasting youth.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen

For all who died
Lord our God,
You are always faithful and quick to show mercy.
Our brothers and sisters
were suddenly and violently taken from us.
Come swiftly to their aid,
have mercy on them,
and comfort their families and friends
by the power and protection of the Cross.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

For the Mourners
Father of Mercies and God of all consolation,
You pursue us with untiring love
and dispel the shadow of death
with the bright dawn of life.

Comfort Your families in their loss and sorrow.
Be our refuge and our strength, O Lord,
and lift us from the depth of grief
into the peace and light of Your presence.

Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ,
by dying has destroyed our death,
and by rising, restored our life.
Enable us therefore to press on toward Him,
so that, after our earthly course is run,
He may reunite us with those we love,
when every tear will be wiped away.

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Advent, week 2. Saint John of the Cross

From a Spiritual Canticle of St John of the Cross, priest

The knowledge of the mystery hidden within Christ Jesus

“Though holy doctors have uncovered many mysteries and wonders, and devout souls have understood them in this earthly condition of ours, yet the greater part still remains to be unfolded by them, and even to be understood by them.

We must then dig deeply in Christ. He is like a rich mine with many pockets containing treasures: however deep we dig we will never find their end or their limit. Indeed, in every pocket new seams of fresh riches are discovered on all sides.

For this reason the apostle Paul said of Christ: In him are hidden all the treasures of the wisdom and knowledge of God. The soul cannot enter into these treasures, nor attain them, unless it first crosses into and enters the thicket of suffering, enduring interior and exterior labours, and unless it first receives from God very many blessings in the intellect and in the senses, and has undergone long spiritual training.

All these are lesser things, disposing the soul for the lofty sanctuary of the knowledge of the mysteries of Christ: this is the highest wisdom attainable in this life.

Would that men might come at last to see that it is quite impossible to reach the thicket of the riches and wisdom of God except by first entering the thicket of much suffering, in such a way that the soul finds there its consolation and desire. The soul that longs for divine wisdom chooses first, and in truth, to enter the thicket of the cross.

Saint Paul therefore urges the Ephesians not to grow weary in the midst of tribulations, but to be steadfast and rooted and grounded in love, so that they may know with all the saints the breadth, the length, the height and the depth – to know what is beyond knowledge, the love of Christ, so as to be filled with all the fullness of God.

The gate that gives entry into these riches of his wisdom is the cross; because it is a narrow gate, while many seek the joys that can be gained through it, it is given to few to desire to pass through it.”

Advent, week 2. Sunday. Word of THE WORD

ANTIPHON

O people of Sion, behold,
the Lord will come to save the nations,
and the Lord will make the glory of His voice heard
in the joy of your heart. (Isaiah 30:19,30)

COLLECT

Almighty and merciful God,
may no earthly undertaking hinder those
who set out in haste to meet Your Son,
but may our learning of heavenly wisdom
gain us admittance to His company,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM (click for full Psalm)

The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy. (Psalm 126: 3).

GOSPEL EXCERPT (click for all readings)

““John went throughout the whole region of the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah: A voice of one crying out in the desert:
“Prepare (ἑτοιμάσατε, etoimasate) the way of the Lord,
make (ποιεῖτε, poieite) straight (εὐθείας, eutheias) his paths.
Every valley shall be filled
and every mountain and hill shall be made low.
The winding roads shall be made straight,
and the rough ways made smooth,
and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”” (Luke 3:3-6)

REFLECTION

“Prepare!” When you think about Advent and its meaning, prepare is certainly among the top 5 words synonymous with this Season and its consequent way of living. Together with the command and action “make straight,” the command “prepare” stand at the forefront of the wildly hope-filled Isaian text declaring (not simply wishing) that God is up to a mighty work, some might even say a ‘re-creation,’ that will transform captivity into freedom. Hymns, oratorios and even Broadway shows have enshrined this powerful prophetic text that all Evangelists use at some point early in the Gospel text to describe the person and the work of John the Baptist (the Gospel of John begins the Isaian citation with the command “make straight” omitting “prepare the way of the Lord.”).

ἑτοιμάζω (hetoimazo) is the Greek verb translated here “prepare.” This is also the same Greek verb used in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew scriptures). Of the family of verbs that speak “to prepare” or “to make ready,” many of these verbs - ἑτοιμάζω included – are linked to the biblical experience “to create.” ἑτοιμάζω, as an action ground in biblical creation, is thus connected to the activity that transforms chaos into cosmos (order) and brings a wholly new reality into existence. What makes ἑτοιμάζω rather unique is that among the verbs “to prepare” that are linked to the Divine activity “to create,” ἑτοιμάζω speaks more of an internal ordering, an internal creating. This is why Origen of Alexandria wrote, “The Lord wants to find in you a path by which he can enter into your souls and make his journey. Prepare for him the path of which it is said, “Make straight his path.” “The voice of one crying in the desert” – the voice cries, “prepare the way (Homilies on the Gospel of Luke).”” This internal work has a particular result in mind: ‘standing tall and firm because God will provide.’ This biblical virtue of ‘standing tall and firm’ is the opposite of being weighed down, hunched over by all sorts of external realities and threats to existence that have sickened life internally resulting in a life devoid of confidence, energy and purpose. Covenant-living people know not only the reality of the threats and consequences that come with them, they know also their personal powerlessness – and – it is in this powerlessness that the people of the Covenant know the providence of God Who “hears the cry of the poor” and lifts them from their misery.

This opens the door to a more precise grasp of the Advent command “to prepare.” As a verb steeped in the biblical experience of Creation, no one of us initiates the work! The preparatory work synonymous with Advent is not a “to-do” list of my own creation. Sure, there are probably great ‘things to do’ on the list, things that are highly noble (for example, the Sacrament of Penance this Season to deal with sin, one’s internal and external chaos, must be tops on the list). Everything on the list however, has to be written by the hand of God and acted in the mode of response. “I” do not drive the bus of Advent preparation. “I” respond to what is asked of me. But how is this done?

We need to examine further the biblical command “prepare” that the Gospel places before us. While Luke along with Mark and Matthew directly quote the prophet Isaiah, the quotation appears to be from the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures. When we take a step back and ponder “prepare” in the Hebrew text of Isaiah, some further light brightens this command for Advent and the whole of Christian living. Isaiah, in proclaiming the hope-filled Word of God to a captive people, employs the Hebrew verb, פָּנָה (panah). פָּנָה means “to turn” and when the verb is used in dealing with people, its meaning is a bit more precise: “turn to face the other.” No doubt some readers might wonder about the other Hebrew verb “to turn” that is often translated “to repent” - שׁוּב (shûb). Shûb expresses “turn” more in the way of a “return.” One knows he or she has lost his or her way and is now moving in the proper direction. Panah is more about turning in the sense ‘to connect to another’ – and in the interest of fair and balanced reporting, panah can also speak about ‘turning away from another’s face.’

Hence one can hold that Advent’s proper preparatory works lies in being turned to the face of another and more specifically the Face of Jesus Christ. Being turned to gaze on the Face of Jesus Christ and to permit ‘connecting with Him’ is precisely what that Wildman of the Jordan – John the Baptist was doing. As people were intrigued by the prophetic word he spoke, he made sure that eventually people – including himself – were connected to Jesus. Beholding the Face of Jesus, gazing into His eyes – being captivated and held by Him is the deeply preparatory work of Advent and indeed the whole of our lives. When the posture of our lives faces Him, He writes the ‘to-do list’ for life. ‘Be prepared,’ ‘be ready’ for a surprise as to what He writes on the list!

Advent, Week 1. Sunday Words of THE WORD

ANTIPHON (click for full Psalm)

To You, I lift up my soul, O God.
In You, I have trusted; let me not be put to shame.
Nor let my enemies exult over me;
and let none who hope in You be put to shame. (Psalm 25: 1-3)

COLLECT

Grant Your faithful, we pray, almighty God,
the resolve to run forth to meet Your Christ
with righteous deeds at His coming,
so that, gathered at His right hand,
they may be worthy to possess the heavenly Kingdom.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God,
for ever and ever.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM (click for full Psalm)

To you, O Lord, I lift my soul. (Psalm 25: 1).

GOSPEL EXCERPT (click for all readings)

“Be vigilant (ἀγρυπνεῖτε, agrupneite) at all times
and pray (δεόμενοι, deomenoi) that you have the strength
to escape the tribulations that are imminent
and to stand before the Son of Man (Luke 21:36).”

REFLECTION

Building on an earlier post, two Gospel actions focus the early Advent experience: being vigilant and praying.

ἀγρυπνέω (agrupneo) translated here as “be vigiliant” literally means “to be without sleep.” In antiquity, the soldier standing guard was the one who went “without sleep.” It was clearly understood that the soldier on duty not only went “without sleep” but was also alert, attentive, and “looked after the needs of those under his watch.” ἀγρυπνέω implied that some peril, generically understood as an external threat, existed and the first line of defense for the citizenry ‘rested’ in the attentive soldier whose work was for the good of others.

δέομαι (deomai) is one of a few Greek verbs that can be translated “to pray.” In its early Greek usage, δέομαι expressed ‘lacking something essential for life.’ δέομαι in this context often conveyed an immediate threat to life and the “asking” (its eventual meaning in later Greek) was a focused honing of all one’s energy and attention to secure the necessary item or help. In many situations when the essentials were provided to someone or to a group, the recipient was drawn into a new relationship with the provider. It was not necessarily ‘paying back’ as many recipients would never be in a position to do so; rather it was more an expression of gratitude for what the other had done in providing for life’s necessities. When the meaning evolves in later Greek “to ask,” it becomes one of the verbs used in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures) and the New Testament “to pray.” Of all the verbs translated “to pray,” the original meaning of δέομαι helps to direct prayer in a proper direction: the essentials of life viewed in the context of salvation.

Together ἀγρυπνέω and δέομαι frame early Advent’s work. In a few short weeks, the celebration of Our Lord’s Nativity will be upon us. Many of the events surrounding His birth as recorded in the Lucan Gospel abound in joy, joy and more joy. Hence a question worth wrestling with in Advent in the light of ἀγρυπνέω is, ‘what external threats are there to authentic joy?’ (For now, the emphasis is on ‘external threats.’ Internal threats will come into view shortly.) Secondly, in the context of δέομαι, ‘do I know what essentials are lacking in my/our life/lives?’ Obviously, ‘answers’ to these questions are not easy to come by and nor should they. The questions call us to an Advent stillness to sharpen the senses as to the assaults on salvation joy and to then rejoice gratefully in the deeper relationship made possible by the One Who Provides, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

With Advent in view, an initial reflection ...

With over 550 million dollars up for chance this past week, Powerball fever easily gripped people’s lives and started the wheels of hope spinning. Reporters asked people in long lines, “Do you know the odds of winning?” Many responded, “I don’t care what they are, I’m going to win! - I have the winning ticket!” You heard confidence in their voice and saw joy on their faces. For many, you also heard generosity as they planned to give a share to family and friends.

In some respects, Powerball fever offered a glimpse – albeit a small one at that – as to the Christian virtue of Hope. Many confuse hope with expectation, wish or desire. Often people ‘understand’ hope as some naïve Pollyanna, whimsical, dream-world approach to living that is disconnected with the cold and harshness of day-to-day living. Hope is the theological Gift from God our Father that fills one with confidence and joy. Hope is the conviction that the Divine Persons are deeply at work in our lives and in the world drawing us to a genuine love through obstacles that each of us believes to be insurmountable. In Advent, Mary – Mother of God – teaches us how to be people of hope. She proclaims with boldness and confidence of the Spirit: “for nothing will be impossible for God (Luke 1:37).”

No doubt, many will quip, ‘Some of that $550 million sure would be nice’ – and yet – there is a part of us that wants ‘something’ deeper. In Advent, especially in this Year of Faith, we are draw to the realization that this ‘it’ is not ‘something’ I/we need – rather, the reality is Someone I/we need: the Person, Jesus Christ. When it comes to this defining relationship of our lives, the prayer following the Lord’s Prayer at every Mass can guide the Advent journey. The Church prays: “Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil, graciously grant peace in our days, that, by the help of Your mercy, we may be always free from sin and safe from all distress, as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.”

• Deliverance from every evil.
• Peace in our days.
• Freedom from sin.
• Safe[ty] from all distress.

Might any of these four be a dream that you nurture deep within, wondering if any or all 4 will ever become a reality in your life? The world repeats and old message: there will always be evil in the world, peace will never come, we will always sin and we will have to find ways to medicate and to cope with distress in our lives. The repetitive and old message of pessimism and despair is real in the sense that anyone of us can give into its life-robbing power. The irony is that in the Face of Jesus Christ, these realities have no power; but WE give them power when we acknowledge their repetitive and old existence. Discovering the singular, unique newness of Who Jesus is, the result is the destroying of evil, the providing of peace, the giving of freedom from sin and leading us to safety from all distress.

Thus we come to the “work” of Advent. Yes, Advent as a way of life is a work, a work of responding to the new creation in our midst that is Jesus. Centuries ago, Saint Irenaeus wrote: “You must realize that He Who was promised has brought something totally new by giving us Himself.” Advent is a way of living life that proclaims boldly Jesus makes all things new (Revelation 21:5) and consequently there is no room for a repetitive, old message of evil, unrest, sin and distress. Allowing oneself to be found by Jesus Christ (in other words, not seeking after as if “I” must find Him) unleashes power that floods life with deliverance, peace, no sin and no distress. It begins by pondering, “how is Jesus new in my life?”

Consider this Advent scheduling a definite time each day for real silence and the praying of the Psalms. Silence gives Our Lord the time and space to work in our lives. The Psalms (especially 42, 46 and 63) can help deepen not only heart but also mind and body into longing for Our Lord and Savior, Jesus. And then prayer-time can be rounded out by real ‘sounds of the Season’ – “Advent at Ephesus.” This recording of chant by a group of Benedictine Sisters is a true gift for Advent (also available through iTunes).

Another venerable Advent practice is the home Advent Wreath. Click here for the Scriptures and Prayers.

Week 34, Sunday. Solemnity: Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe

ANTIPHON

How worthy is the Lamb Who was slain,
to receive power and divinity,
and wisdom and strength and honor.
To Him belong glory and power for ever and ever. (Revelation 5:12; 1:6)

COLLECT

Almighty ever-living God,
Whose will is to restore all things
in Your beloved Son, the King of the universe,
grant, we pray, that the whole creation,
set free from slavery,
may render Your majesty service
and ceaselessly proclaim Your praise.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God,
for ever and ever.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM (click for full Psalm)

The LORD is king; he is robed in majesty. (Psalm 93: 1).

GOSPEL EXCERPT (click for all readings)

“Pilate said to Jesus,
“Are you the King of the Jews?”
Jesus answered, “Do you say this on your own
or have others told you about me?”
Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I?
Your own nation and the chief priests handed you over to me.
What have you done?”
Jesus answered, “My kingdom (ἡ βασιλεία ἡ ἐμὴ, he basileia he eme) does not belong to this world.
If my kingdom (ἡ βασιλεία ἡ ἐμή) did belong to this world,
my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews.
But as it is, my kingdom (ἡ βασιλεία ἡ ἐμὴ) is not here.”
So Pilate said to him, “Then you are a king?”
Jesus answered, “You say I am a king.
For this I was born and for this I came into the world,
to testify to the truth.
Everyone who belongs to the truth listens (ἀκούει, akouei) to my voice.”” (John 18:33-37)

REFLECTION

Dialogues are always revealing throughout Sacred Scripture. Beginning with the conversation between Eve and the Serpent to the dialogue between Jesus and the Woman of Samaria at the Well, the interchange of words between people has been quite noteworthy. In the Johannine pericope proclaimed this Sunday, Jesus’ dialogue with Pilate reveals much in terms of Jesus’ identity, mission and purpose in life. Intrigued by Jesus yet concerned about Rome and the crowd, Pilate nonetheless questions Jesus about kingship. Saint Augustine notes at this point in Jesus’ life: “It was not that Jesus was afraid to confess himself a king, but the phrase “you say” is nuanced enough that He neither denies himself to be a king (for he is a king whose kingdom is not of this world), nor does he confess that he is such a king as to warrant the supposition that his kingdom is of this world. For, since this was the very idea in Pilate’s mind when he said, ’“Are you a king then?” the answer Pilate received was, “You say that I am a king.” For it was said, “You say,” as if it had been said, since you are worldly, you say it in a worldly way (Tractates on the Gospel of John, 115).” What is noteworthy in this dialogue is that Jesus shifts Pilate’s emphasis on king (since Pilate can only think of kingship in terms of Roman rule) to kingdom. In other words, as far as Jesus is concerned, the proper focus is not on Him, but on His way of living, a way of living He (Jesus) described all throughout His Public Ministry as the Kingdom of God.

In this Year of Faith in which we heed Pope Benedict’s call for a New Evangelization, the Gospel experience of the Kingdom is quite central. In fact when Pope Paul VI penned the Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi (On Evangelizing in our Day, a document very important in grasping the methodology of the New Evangelization), he noted the centrality of Kingdom in Jesus’ work. “As an evangelizer, Christ first of all proclaims a kingdom, the kingdom of God; and this is so important that, by comparison, everything else becomes “the rest,” which is “given in addition.” Only the kingdom therefore is absolute and it makes everything else relative. The Lord will delight in describing in many ways the happiness of belonging to this kingdom (a paradoxical happiness which is made up of things that the world rejects), the demands of the kingdom and its Magna Charta, the heralds of the kingdom, its mysteries, its children, the vigilance and fidelity demanded of whoever awaits its definitive coming (Evangelii Nuntiandi, 8).” Clearly, Pope Paul VI sees “the Kingdom of God” has the central experience of Jesus’ Public Ministry; so central that everything in His ministry is grounded in “the Kingdom.” Similarly, the Catechism of the Catholic Church (paragraphs 541 through 556) examines the manifold depth of “the Kingdom” in Jesus’ Public Ministry. Hence, on this Solemnity of Jesus’ Kingship, a consideration of the Gospel reality of Kingdom is most apropos.

1. The “Kingdom of God” is God the Father intervening in a definitive manner. The Kingdom is not necessarily or strictly a specific place, although ‘place’ will be a dimension of the Kingdom as a way of living. The Kingdom is a way of living, an ongoing activity initiated by God the Father in loving concern for beings that have been created in His image and likeness. This is an important dimension of the Greek βασιλεία (basileia, as a verb: “to rule”). We have become addicted to sin in such a way that we cannot break free from its grip by our own power. We have come to enjoy sin too much. Sin’s tentacles have woven deeply into our lives that often we cannot see or think clearly. We may from time-to-time have great desires to rid ourselves of sin, desires that are marvelous but desires that do not contain within themselves the power to effect what is desired. More often than not, however, sin has dulled our senses to Divine Love. Sin has numbed us into complacency and entitlement to the point that we even approach the things of God and Church from a selfish point of view with no regard to the life of faith as engagement with the Divine Persons who call me as an individual and as a community to ongoing conversion manifesting charity and service to the Body of Christ. So powerless over sin, so addicted to the false self we have become that an intervention is needed: the “Kingdom of God.”

2. This intervention is a work of power, a power that transforms and surpasses the power of Creation. God the Father’s work is quintessentially a work of restoration, not annihilation. Ask anyone in construction and he or she will tell you that it is often easier to raze a building and start over than to renovate or restore. Renovating an existing structure that does not have a level, plumb or square line in it makes restoration tedious and time consuming, not to mention the ‘surprises’ lurking behind old plaster and lathe. Yet ask any restorer when the project is complete and most likely she or he will tell you that in spite of its challenges and frustrations, it was and continues to be a labor of love. Such is the Kingdom. Neither Creation nor humanity is destroyed. The Creator does not raze the created order and begin anew. Even though humanity makes continuous choices reinforcing the addiction to sin, the Father – with eyes of loves – gazes upon each human person in such a way that each of us are declared “precious.” So precious are we in the sight of God the Father, that none of us are disposable, expendable or useless. Each of us has a particular vocation in the Father’s plan of salvation and our very being is so precious to the Father that the loving, transforming power of His Kingdom calls us from the addiction to our false selves to our true selves as icons of the Father’s love.

3. This transforming power becomes a way of living, hence not a specific ‘place’ that one can absolutely pinpoint. You cannot use Google Maps or a GPS device to find the Kingdom. The Kingdom is God the Father’s way of living. It is a way of living that is the Son, Jesus. He lives each moment of His life attentive to His Father’s word and will. Spending nights in communion with His Father, Jesus teaches with His life that Kingdom living is living joined, connected, related – whatever words you wish to use – to God the Father. As a way of living, the Kingdom is a radical embrace of the First Commandment: no one nor no thing nor anything we deem important comes before the Father or interferes with our relationship with Him. Kingdom living is life that provides the essentials to a sister or brother in need (Matthew 25) and celebrates, praise and thanks the Father for all that He is doing in life (cf. Luke 1:46-55, “The Magnificat”). It is in this sense that one can speak of the Kingdom as ‘a place.’ Wherever one is when living as the Father commands and bound to the Person Jesus, there is the Kingdom.

4. The Kingdom, as a way of living, has been prepared by the prophets of Old. Many of the prophets called Israel to authentic worship, a message that is still quite valid despite present, misguided and weak arguments that attempt – erroneously – at a division between religion and spirituality. For the prophets, the spiritual relationship formed by the covenant necessarily bound one (religion) freely to observe and practice a continuous, ongoing change-of-heart. The prophets knew that the ‘energy’ required to live justly as a covenant person (spirituality) did not come from within a person by himself or herself. Such living depended upon the mercy of God celebrated and experienced in authentic worship. Such worship then propelled one to be an instrument of charitable service in the world acting, not on one’s own initiative and power, but in the name of God (Christoph Schönborn, God Sent His Son: A Contemporary Christology, page 172-173).

5. The Kingdom, as a way of living, is now definitely revealed and embodied in Jesus. Here, all ambiguity concerning the Kingdom is erased. The Kingdom is essentially a Person, the Person Jesus: “only He can lead us to the love of the Father in the Spirit and make us share in the life of the Holy Trinity (Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 426).” The Incarnation makes the Kingdom a reality in the created order to effect the Father’s loving transformation of everything, most especially the human heart. Responding and living the love revealed to us in Christ Jesus is the essential work and live of the “Kingdom of God.”

Standing before Pilate, Jesus testifies to a final aspect of the Kingdom: apparent powerlessness (Joachim Gnilka, Jesus of Nazareth: Message and History, page 150). In a Gospel that does not have many references to the Kingdom, Jesus – throughout the Johannine Gospel – witnesses with His own life that the way of love is the way of the Cross. It is in His Cross that Jesus’ kingly rule gives His citizens their final lesson of how to live in this unique Kingdom: willingly letting go of self unconditionally to do the will of the One Who has sent each of us into the world.

PREFACE

It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation
always and everywhere to give You thanks,
Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

For You anointed Your Only Begotten Son,
our Lord Jesus Christ, with the oil of gladness
as eternal Priest and King of all creation,
so that, by offering Himself on the altar of the Cross
as a spotless sacrifice to bring us peace,
He might accomplish the mysteries of human redemption
and, making all created things subject to His rule,
He might present to the immensity of Your majesty
an eternal and universal Kingdom,
a Kingdom of truth and life,
a Kingdom of holiness and grace,
a Kingdom of justice, love and peace.

And so, with Angels and Archangels,
with Thrones and Dominions,
and with all the hosts and Powers of Heaven,
we sing the hymn of Your glory,
as without end we acclaim ...

Week 33, Thanksgiving Day (USA). Word of THE WORD

ANTIPHON

Sing and make music to the Lord in your hearts
always thanking God the Father for all things
in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(Ephesians 5:19-20)

COLLECT

Father all-powerful,
Your gifts of love are countless
and Your goodness infinite;
as we come before You on Thanksgiving Day
with gratitude for Your kindness,
open our hearts to have concern
for every man, woman, and child,
so that we may share Your gifts in loving service.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God,
for ever and ever.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM (click for full Psalm)

The Lamb has made us a kingdom of priests to serve our God. (Revelation5:10).

GOSPEL EXCERPT (click for all readings)

As Jesus drew near Jerusalem,
he saw the city and wept (ἔκλαυσεν, eklausen) over it, saying,
“If this day you only knew (ἔγνως, egnos) what makes for peace -
but now it is hidden from your eyes.
For the days are coming upon you
when your enemies will raise a palisade against you;
they will encircle you and hem you in on all sides.
They will smash you to the ground and your children within you,
and they will not leave one stone upon another within you
because you did not recognize (ἔγνως, egnos) the time of your visitation (ἐπισκοπῆς, episkopes).”

REFLECTION

Many parishes in the United States, no doubt, will use the proper Mass of Thanksgiving Day as presented in the Roman Missal on this day that the universal Church commemorates the life of the saintly Roman woman-martyr, Cecilia. (Perhaps the Collect of Saint Cecilia could be used to conclude the General Intercessions.) The Mass of Thanksgiving Day presents a number of choices from God’s Word with the favorite Gospel episode falling most of the time to the “Cleansing of the Ten Lepers” in Luke 17. The Ordo for the United States permits another option for today: the sequential Readings from Revelation and Luke 19:41-44. While a strictly “thanksgiving” theme may not be apparent instantly in Luke 19, there is an aspect of the event that provides a foundation ‘to give thanks’ in an authentic manner.

The major section of the Lucan Gospel is Jesus’ journey from Galilee to Jerusalem. The elements of travel, especially trips involving obstacles that are overcome by Divine Providence and a resilient spirit on the part of genuine disciples, shape many of the insights Saint Luke records. In recording the events of 41-44, Luke is unique among the Evangelists in capturing the weeping Jesus as Jerusalem comes into His view. Jesus sheds not a plastic tear nor a tear of insincerity. κλαίω (klaio), the Greek verb translated here as wept, is connected more properly to the Old Testament experience of lament, particularly the Psalms of Lament and the Book of Lamentations. Lament (and its opposite: praise) are initial, spontaneous expressions of the whole person to a given person, place, object or event. First-responders and medical professionals, especially those working in an Emergency Room, are familiar with lament. Sometimes the sight of a tragedy or devastating news given to another person sparks a lament. People present may ‘hear’ sounds from the person that are unintelligible yet speak of the overwhelming grief that has befallen one. A person may not even know what is coming out of her or his mouth. In other situations, a person may faint on receiving news that a loved one has died. The fainting is not willed; a person does not choose to faint – it happens as an autonomic response to tragedy ‘sensed’ by the whole person.

This is ‘where’ Jesus is. The mere glimpse of Jerusalem in the offing sparks a deep, autonomic response of grief. Why? The people of Jerusalem made a choice ‘not to get’ Jesus and His message of Kingdom living or as the Sacred Text states, “you did not recognize the time of your visitation.” “To recognize” (ἔγνως, [egnos] from γινώσκω [ginosko]) is both a rich and important verb in Greek. There are a number of verbs that are often translated “to know” in English. Briefly, the distinction among γινώσκω (ginosko) and many other “to know” verbs consists in the ‘object’ of knowledge. When γινώσκω is used in the Sacred Scriptures, it often speaks of people ‘getting it.’ γινώσκω is being hit with the proverbial ‘ton of bricks.’ γινώσκω expresses those wow moments of life when the ‘lights go on.’ γινώσκω is not about book knowledge or facts; it has to do more with ‘making connections that establish life, or deepen an existing experience of life.’ γινώσκω is a knowing that impacts one to the core of her or his being and gives one a confidence that is unshaken as the knowing is grounded in being connected, being in relationship with and to another. No wonder, as His Public Ministry winds to a close, Jesus is filled with lament at the choice so many made to block Him from their experience of life.

I mentioned at the beginning that there were aspect of this event that provide a basis or a foundation for authentic thanksgiving. Authentic thanksgiving involves ‘knowing’ on a deep level and certainly a level that involves one’s relationships with the Divine Persons and the whole array of human persons that have become part of life. Authentic thanksgiving is not plastic nor insincere superficiality: it is about taking a good, hard look at the connections that are Divine and human in life and to permit that ‘recognition’ to erupt – not in lament – but in praise! The ‘table’ – so important and sacred a meeting place for Jesus and many people in Luke, – is sacred today (and everyday!) in our homes because it is the place where we first learned the lessons of being authentically human and the vitality of our connection to others. Those lesson and those experience around the home-table prepare us for another meal where we learn the lesson of sacrificial living: the Table of the Lord – the Altar of Sacrifice that has room for all so that we may all ‘get it’ – knowing and connecting with the Person Jesus Who in love, has offered salvation to all. In ‘getting that,’ how can one not sing, shout, proclaim: “Thank you, Lord Jesus!”

Week 33, Sunday. Words of THE WORD

ANTIPHON

“The Lord said: I think thoughts of peace and not of affliction. You will call upon me, and I will answer you, and I will lead back your captives from every place.” (Jeremiah 29:11,12,14)

COLLECT

Grant us, we pray, O Lord our God,
the constant gladness of being devoted to You,
for it is full and lasting happiness
to serve with constancy
the Author of all that is good.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God,
for ever and ever.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM (click for full Psalm)

You are my inheritance, O Lord! (Psalm 16:1).

SCRIPTURE EXCERPT (click for all readings)

“Brothers and sisters:
Every priest stands daily at his ministry,
offering frequently those same sacrifices
that can never take away sins.
But this one offered one sacrifice for sins,
and took his seat forever at the right hand of God;
now he waits until his enemies are made his footstool.
For by one offering (προσφορᾷ, prosphora)
he has made perfect (τετελείωκεν, teteleioken) forever those who are being consecrated (ἁγιαζομένους, hagiazomenous).
Where there is forgiveness (ἄφεσις, aphesis) of these,
there is no longer offering for sin.
(Hebrews 10:11-14, 18).”

REFLECTION

In the current cycle of Scripture for Sunday Mass, today concludes the sequential proclamation from the Letter to the Hebrews. Fittingly, this Sunday’s Sacred Text focuses on Jesus’ sacrificial work that has profound implications for us in terms of our relationship with His Father.

προσφορά (prosphora) is the Greek word typically translated into English as “sacrifice” or “oblation.” Lost somewhere in the contemporary usage of “sacrifice” is Antiquity’s and the Letter to the Hebrews’ clear insistence that the act of sacrifice is voluntary by nature and definition. No outside force, coercion, law or custom shadows the act of sacrifice. ‘That which is given’ in sacrifice is done so freely and unconditionally. As a noun, προσφορά (prosphora) is rooted in the Greek verb προσφέρω (prosphero) which, in the literal sense, is translated into English as “to carry to,” “to lead to” or “to present to.” Within the Letter to the Hebrews this underscores a vital aspect of Jesus’ freely offered sacrifice of Himself. He intends His sacrifice to carry, to lead – ultimately to present all people to His Father. Why? His sacrifice perfects.

The logical question that surfaces here is ‘what does it mean to be perfect?’ The question certainly rose in Jesus’ Public Ministry within the context of His solemn teaching on Kingdom living in the “Sermon on the Mount” (Matthew) and the “Sermon on the Plain” (Luke). Left to ourselves, we ‘invent’ all sorts of meanings and images to describe ‘perfection.’ Some of the Fathers of the Church, Saint Gregory of Nyssa to name one, even wrote a work On Christian Perfection. The key here (as it always is in terms of Christian living) is to grasp the biblical meaning of perfection and more precisely a Gospel meaning of perfection. Fundamentally, perfection has little to do with accomplishing goals I set for myself. How often do any of us think, ‘well – if I can stop doing x,y and/or z, I’ll have it made, I will be perfect.’ Most of us dare not voice that thought as friends and confidants would correct us instantly. While there may be a good or many goods that come with attaining or accomplishing good goals that I set, the difficulty is the fact that “I” (along with “me” and “myself”) am the one who set the goal or goals. Perfection, as a biblical work, is a condition that Jesus’ sacrifice has effected for each and for all.

In pre-Christian Antiquity, the Greeks recognized that τελειόω (teleioo) involved a certain wholeness or completeness. For the reason, the verb was often used in the passive voice indicating that someone or something else was instrumental ‘in bringing one to a state of wholeness or completeness.’ Minimally, one could not ‘accomplish’ perfection on one’s own. Yet in terms of Jesus and especially how this is expressed in the Letter to the Hebrews, this ‘perfecting’ has a very specific orientation that is expressed in terms of relational living. The perfection that is the fruit of Jesus’ one-and-for-all-atoning-sacrifice enables “those who are being consecrated” to “stand before and with the Father.” The act of Christian perfection is a work done by Jesus whereby He carries and presents us to His Father that we may stand before and with the Father.’

It seems so passive; almost as if the believer does nothing and Jesus does ‘all the work.’ Yes in the sense of no, no in the sense of yes. There can be no standing before and with God the Father without the one-and-for-all-atoning-sacrifice-freely-given by Jesus. It is impossible. And (not but, not yet) this work of Jesus requires each believer to seek forgiveness of sins. Like perfection, forgiveness has all sorts of meanings in popular usage. Typically, the Greek noun ἄφεσις (aphesis) is translated into English by the word forgiveness. ἄφεσις (aphesis) is part of a family of Greek words, particularly verbs that convey a sense of moving, sending, letting go and releasing. “To forgive” expresses clearly that one has been unable to move, one has been stuck, one’s life has not grown. In this light, ἄφεσις is an intervention from without or an intervention by another whereby power is brought to a given reality that cuts the restraints that, up to the particular moment, have made any movement impossible. While it is crucial ‘to get’ that ἄφεσις involves another from the outside (in this case, the necessary work of Jesus), the believer must permit the release to occur and to avoid anyone or anything that will restrain or halt movement that is ultimately directed towards union with God our Father.

As many will observe a day of Thanksgiving this Thursday, Jesus and what He has done for us must consciously be on the list of persons for whom we are thankful. Whether one marks this Thursday as a particular day to give thanks, each time Jesus summons us to His Table, He does so to provide us with an opportunity to give thanks, the literal sense of the word Eucharist. There is no better way to demonstrate our gratitude than to seek His life in such a way that He may present each and all of us to His Father.

Week 32, Sunday. Words of THE WORD

ANTIPHON (click for full Psalm)

“Let my prayer come into Your presence. Incline Your ear to my cry for help, O Lord." (Psalm 88:3)

COLLECT

Almighty and merciful God,
graciously keep from us all adversity,
so that, unhindered in mind and body alike,
we may pursue in freedom of heart
the things that are yours.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God,
for ever and ever.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM (click for full Psalm)

Praise the Lord, my soul! (Psalm 146:1).

SCRIPTURE EXCERPT (click for all readings)

“Christ did not enter into a sanctuary made by hands,
a copy of the true one, but heaven itself,
that he might now appear before God on our behalf.
Not that he might offer himself repeatedly,
as the high priest enters each year into the sanctuary
with blood that is not his own;
if that were so, he would have had to suffer repeatedly
from the foundation of the world.
But now once for all he has appeared at the end of the ages
to take away sin by his sacrifice.
Just as it is appointed that human beings die once,
and after this the judgment, so also Christ,
offered once to take away the sins of many,
will appear a second time, not to take away sin
but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await him.”
(Letter to the Hebrews 9:24-28).

REFLECTION

Alexandria’s celebrated third-century evangelizer and catechist, Origen, begins this Sunday’s reflection on the Letter to the Hebrews: “If the ancient custom of sacrifices is clear to you, let us see what these things also contain according to the mystical understanding. You heard that there were two sanctuaries: one, as it were, visible and open to the priests; the other, as it were, invisible and inaccessible. With the exception of the high priest alone, the others were outside. I think this first sanctuary can be understood as this church in which we are now placed in the flesh, in which the priests minister “at the altar of the whole burnt offerings” with that fire kindled about which Jesus said, “I came to cast fire upon the earth, and would that it were already kindled.” And I do not want you to marvel that this sanctuary is open only to the priests. For all who have been anointed with the chrism of the sacred anointing have become priests, just as Peter says to all the church, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation.” Therefore you are a priestly race, and because of this you approach the sanctuary…. Therefore the priesthood is exercised in this way in the first sanctuary and the offerings are offered. And from this sanctuary the high priest, dressed in the sanctified garments, proceeds and enters into the interior of the veil just as we already pointed out above in citing the words of Paul, “Christ has entered not into a sanctuary made with hands but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.” Therefore, the place of heaven and the throne itself of God are designated by the figure and the image of the interior sanctuary (Homilies On Leviticus, 9).”

Throughout the Letter to the Hebrews, a contrast is made between the Day of Atonement ritual (the holiest Day in Jewish life, Yom Kippur) and the uniqueness of Who Jesus is and His sacrificial death. With that contrast, another one – somewhat subtler – exists: accessibility and inaccessibility to Divine Life. In terms of life in the Ancient Near Eastern world, sacrifice was a common practice – originally in the polytheistic traditions and continuing later in the monotheistic world. While scholarly debate studies the purpose of sacrifice in the polytheistic world, it is clear that the monotheistic tradition, beginning with Abraham, viewed sacrifice in a different light. Grounded in the Hebrew verb “to cut,” – berit – covenants, especially the covenant of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob with humanity, had a particular ‘task’ – the cutting away of selfishness from life. The relationship uniquely offered by God to humanity required both an exterior and an interior change of heart. That conversion, made possible by the atoning death of Jesus, makes love possible and in the end defines Christian love.

Stated another way, “It is love “to the end” that confers on Christ’s sacrifice its value as redemption and reparation, as atonement and satisfaction. He knew and loved us all when he offered his life. Now “the love of Christ controls us, because we are convinced that one has died for all; therefore all have died.” No man, not even the holiest, was ever able to take on himself the sins of all men and offer himself as a sacrifice for all. The existence in Christ of the divine person of the Son, who at once surpasses and embraces all human persons, and constitutes himself as the Head of all mankind, makes possible his redemptive sacrifice for all. “The Council of Trent emphasizes the unique character of Christ’s sacrifice as “the source of eternal salvation” and teaches that “his most holy Passion on the wood of the cross merited justification for us.” and the Church venerates his cross as she sings: “Hail, O Cross, our only hope (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 616-617).”

Thus with a continued focus in this “Year of Faith” on the encounter with the Person Jesus, the Letter to the Hebrews this Sunday places His sacrifice in such a focus that the individual believer and the entire community must come to terms with all obstacles – visible and invisible – that weaken the encounter with Jesus. The love that all persons so deeply hunger for is a love born of sacrifice, a most unique sacrifice offered by a most unique Person, Jesus the Christ.

Week 31, Friday. Feast of the Dedication of Saint John Lateran Basilica, Rome

On this day in 324, lands and buildings that originally belonged to the Roman Laterani family were formally dedicated as the Cathedral Church of Rome by Pope Sylvester I. The during the reign of Emperor Nero, the Laterani family lost the property to the Emperor when a family member was accused of some unknown impropriety against Nero. From the the time of Nero to the early years of the fourth century, the ‘ownership history’ is somewhat sketchy as the property eventually passes to Constantine's wife, Fausta. What is clear is that with the Edict of Toleration, the Roman Empire's relationship with the Church changed dramatically. Not only were bishops appointed civil magistrates by the emperor, Constantine also began an aggressive 'renovation' project taking existing Roman buildings and permitting the bishops to use them for places of worship and ecclesiastical gatherings/meetings. New buildings were also constructed during this time and dedicated as Churches to signal the Church’s clear visible presence in the Empire. Robin Jensen notes that this ‘church building campaign’ “symbolized the beginning of Christianity’s transition from a minority community adapting what it had available and expressing itself in familiar terms, to a powerful, wealthy and dominant segment of the population, now able to determine the forms and styles by which it expressed its own cultural identity. The imposing scale and potential grandeur of the basilica design well suited the gradually more elaborate liturgy, even as it reflected the changed social and political status of the church and became a definitive and monumental symbol of the church’s new self-understanding and cultural integration (Christianity: Origins to Constantine, page 585).”

ANTIPHON

“I saw the holy city, a new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” (Revelation 21:2)

COLLECT

O God,
Who from living and chosen stones
prepare an eternal dwelling for Your majesty,
increase in your Church
the spirit of grace you have bestowed,
so that by new growth your faithful people
may build up the heavenly Jerusalem.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM

The waters of the river gladden the city of God, the holy dwelling of the Most High! (Psalm 46, 5).

SCRIPTURE EXCERPT

“Since the Passover of the Jews was near, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. He found in the temple area those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves, as well as the money-changers seated there. He made a whip out of cords and drove them all out of the temple area, with the sheep and oxen, and spilled the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables, and to those who sold doves he said, "Take these out of here, and stop making my Father's house a marketplace." His disciples recalled the words of Scripture, Zeal for your house will consume me. At this the Jews answered and said to him, "What sign can you show us for doing this?" Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up." The Jews said, "This temple has been under construction for forty-six years, and you will raise it up in three days?" But he was speaking about the temple of his Body. Therefore, when he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they came to believe the Scripture and the word Jesus had spoken.” (John 2:13-22).