The Firstborn of All Creation ~ Br. Chip Noon, Novice

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“Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.”

This first sentence of today’s second reading holds all things together in today’s readings, psalm, and Gospel. And it holds all things together in our lives and in our beliefs.

Let me explain.

In today’s first reading, Moses is instructing the people about the laws of God, and how they are to understand and obey them. They are finally approaching the Promised Land and he seems to be urgently trying one last time to impart the glory of God to this stiff-necked people. He has been giving a long and complicated sermon on their duties and responsibilities, then he stops and assures them that what he has been teaching is “not too mysterious and remote” for them. It is not up in the sky, nor across the sea, nor anywhere distant and hard to obtain. He says,

“No, it is something very near to you,
already in your mouths and in your hearts;
you have only to carry it out.”

Then, in the second reading the Apostle Paul is telling the Colossians that Christ Jesus is everything…everything around us, everything from the beginning to the end, everything that we are looking for and that is looking for us.

The third reading likewise gives a similar lesson: Love God and love your neighbor. And the legal scholar then asks, “And who is my neighbor?”

So just as Moses says, we don’t have to search for what is right and holy, it is already within us; and as Paul tells us everything that is can be found in Christ Jesus; so Jesus himself is saying we don’t have to look around and search for those whom we should love because everybody is worthy of this love.

“My task is easy and my burden is light” once again echoes in our ears from today’s readings.

“Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.”

Years ago, when I was questioning everything, believing nothing, wracking my brain for answers that always seemed to be too hard to grasp, especially the existence of God and my place in the scheme of things, my mother told me a story. She said that when she and her older sister were teenagers, they would have discussions about religion, God, the Church, the commandments…you know, everything that youngsters do to find their own place in the world. Her sister, my Aunt Mary, was always the one to be disputatious. She never let a moment go by when she wasn’t throwing doubt in my mother’s direction. She never seemed at peace, my Aunt Mary, and let everyone in the family know it. And it was after one of these contentious talks that my mother decided, without telling her sister, that she was through with questioning. She said she just decided to accept what she had been taught, and what she felt in her heart was right.

And from then on, that’s how she lived. She trusted in God, she trusted her fellow man, she trusted everything. I did ask her about the possibility of being taken in by unscrupulous people and she told me that happened very seldom. She was not naïve about life, but she put her energy into the positive things around her: We don’t need to search for God and the commandments of God.  Jesus is the image of God and is always with us, and every single person is someone to love and be kind to.

She could disarm the most hostile store clerk with a simple, “Gosh, you must be having a really bad day.” And peace would descend. It was amazing to watch!

So why is it that I, and I suspect you too, have to remind myself every day of these lessons? Maybe that’s the way I’m built…just a little thicker in the skull than I should be. But one thing I do know, that when I finally wake up after wrestling with a problem and realize that the solution is right there, it is God whom I have invoked, either subconsciously or consciously. And I know, from years of experience, that calling on God, on Jesus, on the Holy Spirit may not solve that problem, but it certainly allows me to put it in perspective and return to a measure of serenity.

One more thing: in today’s Responsorial Psalm from the daily readings of the USCCB which I use for my sermons, the response is written: “Turn to the Lord in your need, and you will live.”

See, an easy task and a light burden!

Lord, help us today and every day to turn first to you in our need. Help us all to know that you are here in our hearts, and that all of our neighbors carry you within their hearts Help us to love our neighbors, even those who persecute us, as you love us all. In Jesus’ name we ask this.

Amen.

Saint John of Cologne & Companions

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The Reformation gained its foothold in the Netherlands in opposition to the Catholicism of the Spanish princes of the country–not primarily for religious, but rather for political reasons. Anti-Spanish and Calvinist soldiers banded together into lawless armies of pirates, and, unpaid and disillusioned, foraged for themselves in the seaports, looking for plunder.

Reproached by the clergy, they turned on the Church and one band of pirates led by the Gueux laid siege to the city of Gorkum, capturing it in June 26, 1572 after a struggle. For reprisal– because of the city’s determined defense–they gathered all members of the clergy in Gorkum into one miserable prison and set about taking revenge on the priests for their own grievances against the Spanish crown.

The priests were tortured, subjected to all kinds of indignities, and offered their freedom if they would abjure Catholic teaching on the Eucharist and the primacy of the pope. Angered by the endurance of the priests, the Calvinist increased their abuses. Some of the religious were very old and infirm, but one and all, even to an aged Augustinian who was so weak he could barely stand, they bore their martyrdom with patience and sweetness for ten terrible days.

They were repeatedly asked to deny the Real Presence, and just as repeatedly refused, which brought on more and more dreadful tortures. When they continued to refuse, despite a letter from Prince William of Orange ordering their release and protests from the magistrates of Gorkum, they were thrown half-naked into the hold of a ship on July 6, and taken to another city to be killed in the presence of a Protestant nobleman, Admiral Luney, a man noted for his hatred of Catholicism.

After being exhibited to the curious townspeople (who paid to see the spectacle) and subjected to every type of torture, the 19 priests and religious were hanged in an old barn at deserted Ruggen Monastery on the outskirts of Briel. Stripped of their habits and made, like their Master, “the reproach of men and the outcast of the people,” they benefited by their Christ-like sufferings and deaths. Their bodies, mutilated before or after death, were callously thrown into a ditch. The 19 martyrs included eleven Franciscans (called Recollects), two Premonstratensians, one Dominican, one canon regular of Saint Augustine, and four secular priests.

Two of those who died had led less than holy lives, but by their heroic constancy in the hour of trial blotted out the stains that might otherwise have kept them out of heaven. Sadly, there should have been 20 martyrs of Gorkum. One, who weakened and was released after he had denied the Real Presence, lived but 24 hours to enjoy his wretched freedom.

The other 19 gloriously went to heaven. The scene of the martyrdom soon became a place of pilgrimage, where all the Christian world reverenced the men who were so courageously obedient until death. Accounts of several miracles, performed by their intercession and relics, were used for their beatification and published by the Bollandists. Most of their relics are kept in the Franciscan church at Brussels to which they were secretly conveyed from Briel in 1616.

St. John’s companions were:

* Adrian Beanus, O. Praem.

* Adrian van Hilvarenbeek

* Fr. Andrew Wouters, OFM, was a priest at Heinot near Dortrecht. He led a scandalous life, but when the Calvinists tried to compel him to renounce the Catholic faith, he expiated his past by a brave confession, was imprisoned at Briel with the others and hanged.

* Fr. Antony van Hoornaer, OFM

* Fr. Antony van Weert, OFM

* Fr. Antony van Willehad, OFM, from Denmark

* Cornelius van Wyk (near Utrecht), OFM, was born at Dorestat near Utrecht. He took the Franciscan habit at Gorkum as a lay brother.

* Fr. Godefried of Mervel, OFM, was a painter and the custos of the Franciscan house at Gorkum.

* Fr. Godrey van Duynsen, native of Gorkum, was captured with Leonard Vechel and Nicholas Jannsen in Gorkum and sent to Briel, the Netherlands, where they were hanged. Previously, he had been the rector of a school in Paris.

James Lacops, O. Praem., was a native of Oudenarden, Flanders. He was a Norbertine at Middelburg and in 1566 apostatized, wrote, and preached against the Church. Then he repented, returned to his abbey, and was martyred by the Calvinists.

* Fr. Jerome Weerden, OFM, was born in Werden, the Netherlands, in 1522. He spent several years in Palestine as a Franciscan missionary. Jerome was a powerful preacher against Calvinism and at the time of his capture was the vicar of the friary of Gorkum under Saint Nicholas of Pieck.

* Fr. John van Hoornaer, OFM

* John van Oosterwyk, OSA, was a native of the Netherlands who joined the Augustinians at Briel. He was the director and confessor of a community of Augustinian nuns at Gorkum when the town was taken by the Calvinists.

* John of Cologne, OP, was a Dominican religious of his convent in Cologne, Germany who performed the duties of a parish priest in Horner, the Netherlands. When he heard of the plight of the poor priests captured in Gorkum, he left the relative safety of his parish and entered Gorkum in disguise to render whatever assistance he could. Several times he entered the city to dispense the sacraments, and to bring consolation to the priests who were being cruelly tortured. Eventually, he also was taken prisoner and subjected to torture.

* Leonard Vechel (Veehel, Wegel, Wichel), the elder pastor at Gorkum, was born in Bois-le-Duc, Holland. He studied in Louvain, where he earned a great reputation in his theological studies under the celebrated Ruard Tapper, was ordained, and became a parish priest at Gorkum known for his uncommon zeal, piety, eloquence, and learning. He had a remarkable ability to solve difficult problems. He tenderly cared for the poor, especially those that were sick, giving of himself as well as of his substance. He reproved vice without respect of persons, but his meekness and patience disarmed many who had been long deaf to remonstrations. He was in active opposition to Calvinism. He and his assistant Nicholas Jannsen Poppel of Welde, Belgium, were among those seized by a Calvinist mob at Gorkum.

* Fr. Nicholas Janssen Poppel (van Heeze), OFM, a native of Heeze, Brabant, from which he derived the name Nicasius van Heeze, was an associate pastor to Vechel. He was captured with his pastor, Leonard Vechel, and Godrey van Duynsen.

* Fr. Nicholas Pieck–Nicholas was the guardian of the Observant Franciscan house at Gorkum. This eminent, 38-year-old preacher was a native of the Netherlands who studied at Louvain and made missionary activities among the Calvinists his life’s work. He had an intense zeal for holy poverty and mortification, yet his constant cheerfulness rendered piety and penance itself amiable. He is known for repeating, “We must always serve God with cheerfulness.” Fr. Pieck had often expressed an earnest desire for martyrdom, but considered himself unworthy for that honor. He and four other priests were among the first seized when Calvinist forces opposed to the Spanish rule seized the town in June.

* Peter of Assche, OFM, from near Brussels, Belgium, was a Franciscan lay brother at Gorkum.

* Fr. Theodore van der Eem, OFM, from Amersfoort.

Born: Born in Germany in the 16th century

Died: burned, beaten, hanged and mutilated in 1572 at Gorkum, Holland

Canonized: Pope Pius IX canonized them in 1867.

Representation: elevating the Eucharist as he wears a rope around his neck

Blessed Pope Benedict XI

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Nicholas Boccasini was born into a poor family of which we know little else, though there are several different traditions concerning it. One claims that his father was a poor shepherd. Another that he was an impoverished nobleman. Whichever he was, he died when Nicholas was very small, and the little boy was put in the care of an uncle, a priest at Treviso.

The child proved to be very intelligent, so his uncle had him trained in Latin and other clerical subjects. When Nicholas was ten, his uncle got him a position as tutor to some noble children. He followed this vocation until he was old enough to enter the Dominican community at Venice in 1254. Here, and in various parts of Italy, Nicholas spent the next 14 years, completing his education. It is quite probable that he had Saint Thomas Aquinas for one of his teachers.

Nicholas was pre-eminently a teacher at Venice and Bologna. He did his work well according to several sources, including a testimonial from Saint Antoninus, who said that he had “a vast store of knowledge, a prodigious memory, a penetrating genius, and (that) everything about him endeared him to all.” In 1295, he received the degree of master of theology.

The administrative career of Nicholas Boccasini began with his election as prior general of Lombardy and then as the ninth master general of the Order of Preachers in 1296. His work in this office came to the notice of the pope, who, after Nicholas had completed a delicate piece of diplomacy in Flanders, appointed him cardinal in 1298.

The Dominicans hurried to Rome to protest that he should not be given the dignity of a cardinal, only to receive from the pope the mystifying prophecy that God had reserved an even heavier burden for Nicholas. As papal legate Nicholas traveled to Hungary to try to settle a civil war there.

Boniface VIII did not always agree with the man he had appointed cardinal-bishop of Ostia and dean of the sacred college. But they respected one another, and in the tragic affair that was shaping up with Philip the Fair of France, Cardinal Boccasini was to be one of only two cardinals who defended the Holy Father, even to the point of offering his life.

Philip the Fair, like several other monarchs, discovered that his interests clashed with those of the papacy. His action was particularly odious in an age when the papal power had not yet been separated completely from temporal concerns.

The French monarch, who bitterly hated Boniface, besieged the pope in the Castle of Anagni, where he had taken refuge, and demanded that he resign the papacy. His soldiers even broke into the house and were met by the pope, dressed in full pontifical vestments and attended by two cardinals, one of whom was Cardinal Boccasini. For a short time it looked as though the soldiers, led by Philip’s councilor William Nogaret, might kill all three of them, but they refrained from such a terrible crime and finally withdrew after Nicholas rallied the papal forces and rescued Boniface from Anagni.

Cardinal Boccasini set about the difficult task of swinging public opinion to the favor of the pope. Successful at this, he stood sorrowfully by when the pontiff died, broken-hearted by his treatment at the hands of the French soldiers. On October 22, 1303, at the conclave following the death of Boniface, the prophesied burden fell upon the shoulders of the cardinal-bishop of Ostia, who took the name Benedict XI.

The reign of Benedict XI was too short to give him time to work out any of his excellent plans for settling the troubles of the Church. Most of his reign was taken up with undoing the damage done by Philip the Fair. He lifted the interdict on the French people that had been laid down by his predecessor and made an uneasy peace with Philip. He worked to reconcile warring parties in Europe and the Church and to increase spirituality. His reign, short though it was, was noted for its leniency and kindness.

There are few personal anecdotes regarding Benedict, but at least one worth telling. Once, during his pontificate, his mother came to the papal court to see him. The court attendants decided that she was too poorly dressed to appear in the presence of the Holy Father, so they dressed her up in unaccustomed finery before allowing her to see her son. Benedict, sensing what had happened, told them he did not recognize this wealthy woman, and he asked them where was the little widow, pious and poorly dressed, whom he loved so dearly.

Benedict XI died suddenly in 1304. He had continued to the end with his religious observances and penances. Some people believed that he had been poisoned, but there has never been any evidence that this was the case. Many miracles were performed at his tomb, and there were several cures even before his burial.

 

Born: Born in Treviso, Italy, 1240

Papal Ascension: 1303

Died: died in Perugia, Italy, April 25, 1304

Beatified: beatified by Pope Clement XII in 1736

Representation: In art, Pope Benedict wears a Dominican habit and papal tiara, while holding the keys. He is venerated in Perugia.

Finding Faith in the Midst of Flooding ~ The Rev. Dcn. Dollie Wilkinson, OPI

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A few years ago, areas of my home state, West Virginia, faced a severe water crisis. Due to the carelessness of a company tasked with storing chemicals in huge tanks, our water became contaminated. Not only was it not safe to drink, but we could not even use it to bathe or wash clothes. What we all took for granted on a daily basis, became a precious resource that was very scarce. Businesses shut down, schools were canceled and store shelves became bare pretty quickly. But people came together to help each other. Neighbors shared bottled water, people and companies from out of state sent tankers of water and other items to help WV residents cope with this crisis. After about ten days, the water was deemed safe to use, and life began to return to normal.

Last week, West Virginia faced another water crisis. But this one was not caused by the careless actions of man, but by nature. Torrential rains and storms swept through parts of the state, causing so much damage, devastation, and even loss of life. Here are some facts about West Virginia’s devastating weekend flooding:

•The National Weather Service classified West Virginia’s flooding as a “one-in-a-thousand-year-event.”

•As of Sunday, 25 lives had been lost.

•44 of 55 counties in West Virginia were under a state of emergency, mostly in the southeastern area.

•Greenbrier, Kanawha, and Nicholas counties’ residents qualify for Federal Emergency Management Agency aid after West Virginia was declared a federal disaster area.

•In Kanawha County, a temporary gravel road was built to rescue 500 people trapped when the bridge crossing was destroyed by flooding on Thursday.

•Thousands were without power, and more than 60 secondary roads were still closed days afterwards.

•An estimated 8-10 inches of rain led to the massive flooding.

•The Greenbrier Resort, largest employer in Greenbrier County, is closed to the public until further notice but has opened its doors to flood victims and is offering extensive help for its neighbors.

These bare facts cannot give a clear picture of the tragedy and devastation faced by those impacted by the flood waters. As the flood waters recede, the clean-up will last days, weeks, months, and perhaps years. As we watch the news, showing images of towns underwater, mud-caked homes, homes forced off foundations, the twisted metal of vehicles and buildings wrapped around trees, and even a video of a burning house floating downstream, it almost seems surreal. As if this couldn’t possibly happen to us. But it did. I believe one eye witness in Rupert, WV, Davina Agee, best described the scope of the devastation:

“Children were missing parents today, parents were also missing children. One lady escaped her flooding home and slept in her car with two infants and when rescued today, she did not even have shoes. Children were being loaded onto the national guard trucks with people saying, “We don’t know who these children belong to.”There are still people stranded in homes awaiting rescue. People have been without food or water for over 24 hours now. Many are displaced without important medications. Some have lost everything and have yet to even find their loved ones. But our little communities have come together like no other.

Police officers and fireman have been working tirelessly for 36 hours straight. We are feeding the hungry, clothing those that we can, checking on each other and helping as best we can. This is not about a delayed golf game. It’s not about the loss of cars or trucks. It’s not even about the homes or buildings anymore. It’s about the people! The human beings. Who can we save and how can we care for them?! Let’s survive this and help as many as we can.”

When we look at the particulars of this tragedy – 25 lives lost, hundreds of homes destroyed, an entire town under water, it would be easy to seek blame. Though an act of nature, we naturally want to put the blame on someone. And who do we look to blame – God. But this is wrong in so many ways. Our Heavenly Father did not cause the flood. We only have to go back to the first major flood, and the Lord’s response, to see this is true.

Genesis 6:5-22 7:1-17 (KJV)

“And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God. And Noah begat three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits. A window shalt thou make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish it above; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with lower, second, and third stories shalt thou make it. And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die. But with thee will I establish my covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons’ wives with thee. And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female. Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive. And take thou unto thee of all food that is eaten, and thou shalt gather it to thee; and it shall be for food for thee, and for them. Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he. And the Lord said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth. For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth. And Noah did according unto all that the Lord commanded him. And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth. And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood. Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth, There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah. And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth. In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights. In the selfsame day entered Noah, and Shem, and Ham, and Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah’s wife, and the three wives of his sons with them, into the ark; They, and every beast after his kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind, and every fowl after his kind, every bird of every sort. And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life. And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the Lord shut him in. And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and bare up the ark, and it was lift up above the earth.”

We know the rest of the story. The flood waters came, everything on earth was wiped out, and Noah, his family, and all the animals on the ark were spared the devastation. Eventually the flood waters receded, and everyone was able to step on to dry land.

Genesis 8:1-5 (KJV)

“And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters assuaged; The fountains also of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained; And the waters returned from off the earth continually: and after the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters were abated. And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat. And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month: in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, were the tops of the mountains seen.”

So, now you ask – God did it once, why wouldn’t He do it again (such as the recent flooding in WV)? God doesn’t work that way. The flood detailed in the Bible happened for a reason, “And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth,”. But He later goes on to explain why He will not allow that to happen again.

Genesis 8:21 (KJV)

“And the Lord smelled a sweet savour; and the Lord said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake; for the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.”

So while it may be easy to blame the Lord, we now know He only wants to help us, comfort us, be our strength during difficult times. What surprises me, well really it doesn’t, is how so many different people, from all over the state, and across the country, have come together to help those impacted by the flooding in West Virginia. Again, Mrs. Agee says it best:

“People are sending me an overwhelming amount of messages and they all say “thank you for what you’re doing.” Just for the record, I am not to be thanked. I am doing what any red blooded, God fearing, West Virginia girl would be doing at a time like this! I just happen to have resources to tap into and awesome people to help me. I am not alone. God has sent me dozens, if not hundreds, of wonderful people and helpers that are the ones making everything possible. I love my home town and I love the people. I am doing what I love. HELPING PEOPLE! I don’t need to be thanked. The real heroes are the ones that swam in freezing water to save lives; the ones who searched and rescued humans; the ones who got up today and shoveled their lives into trash bags and began to start over; the ones who are grieving loved ones and the ones that still haven’t been rescued yet. Those are the heroes, the ones that are to be recognized and thanked! To God be the glory for all the rescue and relief effort! Thank you to all those helping and recovering. I love you all!”

As we begin the long process of recovering from the recent flood, as we mourn the loss of so many lives, as we strive to rebuild what has been torn apart, we must always look to the Lord, our Heavenly Father, for strength. He will provide for our needs (by sending resources to those who lost everything). He will comfort those who not only lost their homes, but family and friends. And, He will always be there, when all hope seems gone.

 

 

 

 

Different But the Same ~ The Rev. Lady Sherwood, OPI

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Today we as a church and as Christians come together to commemorate St Peter and St Paul.

Many, when thinking about the early church, mistakenly believe that in the times of Peter and Paul,  that the church was filled with love, respect and agreement; but in fact, it was much the same in many ways as the experience we have in churches today.  However, there was turmoil, dissension, and disagreement.  In the times of Peter and Paul, it was even more difficult than we have it today to iron things out, to come to an agreement that it is today, as we have two thousand years of experience helping us to to deal with issues that the church.  In the time of Peter and Paul they didn’t have a history to draw upon to assist them.

Let us look at Peter and Paul. Both Peter and Paul were very gifted church leaders,  however both came from entirely different backgrounds. They each had different educational backgrounds and distinct personalities.  Due to this, some of the churches,  mostly in Corinth, were divided into rival parties depending on whether they preferred Peter or Paul.

What made them so different from each other, these two  great church leaders and Apostles?

Peter was a person who had much less education than Paul.  He was a fisherman by trade and was married with a family. Peter had the blessed privilege of having both known and worked alongside Jesus during his earthly ministry. Peter was a simple man,  who our Lord Jesus chose to lead the other Apostles, but he was also a rather impulsive by nature and would often speak and act without thinking first.

Peter was passionately sincere in his love of our Lord, but seemed to find it difficult to put things into writing and this can be seen if you compare his letters with those of Paul.

Paul, by contrast, was a graduate of the universities of that day. He had been tutored by Gamaliel, who was a famous leader of a school of Rabbis.  Largely due to this, Paul knew the scriptures inside-out and was a person who lived strictly by Jewish law.  He was fluent in Greek,  and knew enough Latin to get by.  Paul had spent his early years persecuting Christians, so because of his experience, he was able to see things both from the Jewish and the Christian perspectives.

Because of their differences, Peter and Paul didn’t always get along of agree with each other and we know from Paul’s letter to the Galatians that the two had a major row in Antioch about the question of whether Jews who had converted to Christianity could eat separately from their Gentile brethren.

Paul was firmly in favour of the principle that both Jews and Gentiles should eat together, because he saw that unless this happened, it would lead to two separate Eucharists, one for the Jews and a separate one for the Gentiles in each church and that from there it would only be a short step to rebuilding the division which Our Lord Jesus, through his cross and resurrection had broken down.

Peter, however, felt differently. He felt sorry for the Jewish Christians because they were expected to leave behind the habits they had done all their lives upon becoming Christian. So, he agreed to eat with the Jews separately and even persuaded Paul’s friend, Barnabas to join him.

So although both Peter and Paul had the best of intentions, they both came to see each other as one who was letting the side down.

However, years later, both Peter and Paul were able to make up their differences.

Even in our churches today we see similar issues.  We have the people like St Peter, who are kind and generous, and who want the church to be a welcoming place where everyone gets on happily together, but in doing so, are a bit too lenient and cause the message of Christ’s salvation to be blurred.

Then we have people like St Paul, who realise that if the truth which is in Jesus is allowed to be obscured or rejected in the cause of kindness, generosity and inclusion, that the church could end up more like a club of kind  people and less like the living Body of Christ on earth, losing the message of salvation.

From their disagreement, we can see that, regardless of our personal beliefs, there are specific truths to which we must cling in order to fully serve the Lord.  As our Lord prayed, so do we:  That we all may be one, as Christ and the Father are One.

Both Peter and Paul were put to death in a great persecution that had broken out in Rome under the Emperor Nero, following a great fire in AD 64, which Nero probably started and blamed upon the Christians.

We know that before this, Peter had wrote his second letter and had come to realise the importance of Paul, just as Paul had also realised the importance of Peter.

Grant, we pray, O Lord our God, that we may be sustained by the intercession of the blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, that, as through them you gave your Church the foundations of her heavenly office, so through them you may help her to eternal salvation. 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.  Amen

Zen Master!!! ~ Br. Chip Noon, Novice

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I have always been struck by the similarities of Jesus’ teachings to the koans of the Zen Masters, who were so popular in my youth. “Two hands clap and there is a sound. What is the sound of one hand?” (Hakuin Ekaku) But this one is immediately applicable to today’s readings: “If you meet the Buddha, Kill Him.” (Linji).

Jesus was a Zen Master of his time.

In the first reading, we have the makings of a typical koan:

Elisha left the oxen, ran after Elijah, and said,
“Please, let me kiss my father and mother goodbye,
and I will follow you.”
Elijah answered, “Go back!
Have I done anything to you?”

As we know, Old Testament scripture pre-figured the life and teachings of Jesus, so here we see the Master saying, “Once you start along my path, there is no going back.” It took a simple question to put Elisha on the right path.

In the Koan, the Master Linji is saying that we are always searching for a tangible presence. But Zen teaches that there is no duality: there is no “here” nor “there”; or, there is no “I am searching for enlightenment” nor “I have found enlightenment.” There is no way to describe enlightenment to ourselves or to others. When we reach it, we will know it…and then have no need to discuss it.

Doesn’t Jesus imply the same as Luke records:

“When asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God will not come with observable signs. Nor will people say, ‘Look, here it is,’ or ‘There it is.’ For you see, the kingdom of God is in your midst.””

So in today’s Gospel we encounter several other koans. In the first, someone tells Jesus he will follow him wherever he goes. And Jesus answers he has nowhere to go.

Then he says to another, “Follow me.” But the man says he has sacred obligations, that is, to bury his father. Jesus says, “Let the dead bury their dead.”

And the third man asks leave to say goodbye to his family, at which point Jesus says, in metaphor, if you look behind, you will lose your way. Keep your eyes ahead to the Kingdom. In other words, you can only plow a straight furrow if you keep your eyes on your work.

To us today, with all that we have absorbed and been taught about our catholic faith, these scripture readings are somewhat intelligible. Some of us have to work at them, others get the meaning immediately. But imagine the followers of Jesus as they hear these off-the-wall comments from their Rabbi. What must they have thought? We know that some went away confused, and we know that some understood and followed.

But we also know that with the descent of the Holy Spirit, the Apostles and Jesus’ followers were given the answers to these mysterious koans. Would that we could have the answers like that!

But wait! What does the Apostle Paul say in today’s reading to the Galatians?
“I say, then: live by the Spirit
and you will certainly not gratify the desire of the flesh.
For the flesh has desires against the Spirit,
and the Spirit against the flesh;
these are opposed to each other,
so that you may not do what you want.
But if you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the law.”

Isn’t he saying what the Zen Master said? You can search all you want in this physical realm for God, you can long for heaven in some far off corner of the sky, you can follow all the rules you want, but The Kingdom of God is right here, right now, within, without…in fact, you are the Kingdom of God.

But finally, there is a corollary to these readings. And that is, “Take up your cross and follow me.” In other words, not only are you expected to forget the past, keep your eyes on the prize, and steer straight for the Promised Land. But you are also expected to do some work along the way. As James tells us: “In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”

Then what about that business of “my yoke is easy and my burden is light”? It seems to me the difference here between what Jesus teaches us and how Zen is practiced is that Zen is focused on the individual’s path to enlightenment. Jesus is telling us we have to bring others along on this path.

How appropriate, then, for Dominicans! If the Kingdom is right here, right now, then we are tasked with showing this truth to everyone we meet, right here, right now. There is no holiday, no time off. As Christians we must live our faith, not simply express it. And when you come to think of it, how hard is that? What kind of burden is it to live in the “now” of our faith and knowledge of God’s magnificent goodness as taught to us by the Son and as impelled by the Holy Spirit?

Lord, as we contemplate the meaning of the lessons of scripture, help us to remember that the Kingdom of God is at hand and that all we have to do is stretch out our hands and grasp it.

Amen.

The Nativity of John the Baptist

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Today, we celebrate the birth of St John the Baptist, the forerunner to the Lord Jesus.

Firstly, let us look together at what the holy scriptures tell us about this blessed and miraculous event in Lk 1:5=25 (NIV):

5 In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. 6 Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. 7 But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old.  8 Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, 9 he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.  11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. 13 But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. 14 He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15 for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. 16 He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”  18 Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”  19 The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. 20 And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.”  21 Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he stayed so long in the temple. 22 When he came out, he could not speak to them. They realized he had seen a vision in the temple, for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak.  23 When his time of service was completed, he returned home. 24 After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. 25 “The Lord has done this for me,” she said. “In these days he has shown his favour and taken away my disgrace among the people.”

So let us now try to picture this joyous scene:

We have the parents, the Jewish Priest Zechariah and Elizabeth who were both advanced in age and were beyond the child=bearing years. Also,  Elizabeth was barren and unable to conceive. The blessings and sheer joy at the birth of their son must have been immeasurable! All the family would have been there celebrating this wonderful event because in those days, the birth of a Son was a major celebration of joy and music. This sadly wasn’t the case in those days for female births.  The Lord our God truly blessed his parents by giving them and also us as a world, John.

But the significance of John’s birth,his life and ministry goes way beyond that of a usual birth. John was sent with a purpose, he was sent to be the forerunner who would pave the way for the coming into the world of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and who would also be the person who later baptised our Lord.   John the baptist shows us by his life how we truly should be living as a child of God, and there are several lessons we can learn from him.  Firstly, whole-hearted belief in Jesus Christ is possible. John could have chosen to believe in and worship any number of gods available to him before Jesus arrived on the scene. But in his life John knew that the Messiah was coming. He believed this with his whole heart and spent his days “preparing the way” for the Lord’s coming (Matthew 11:10). But the road was not an easy one to prepare. Daily he faced doubters of various influence and popularity who did not share his enthusiasm for the coming Messiah. Under hard questioning from the Pharisees, John shared his belief: “‘I baptize with water,’ John replied, ‘but among you stands one you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie’” (John 1:26-27). John believed in the Christ and his great faith prepared him for hardships, but it kept him steadfast on his course until the time when he could say as he saw Jesus approach, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). As believers, we can all have this steadfast faith.

Secondly, anyone can be a strong and devoted witness for Jesus Christ. John’s life is an example to us of the seriousness with which we are to approach the Christian life and our call to ministry, whatever that may be. We pattern our lives after John’s by first examining ourselves to be sure we are truly in the faith (2 Corinthians 13:5). Second, like John, we are to know and believe that “to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21), so we can be fearless in the face of persecution and death. John lived his life to introduce others to Jesus Christ, and knew the importance of repenting of one’s sins in order to live a holy and righteous life. And as a follower of Jesus Christ, he also was unafraid of calling out people such as Herod and the Pharisees for their sinful behaviour.

Thirdly, John shows us how to stand firm in our faith no matter what the circumstances. Paul reminded Timothy that “everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12). But for many of us who live in freedom, persecution takes on a very mild form. As he lived in an occupied country, John had to be aware that anything contrary to utter devotion to the king or emperor was asking for trouble. Yet his message was unchanging, bold and strong. It was John’s belief, his message, and his continual rebuke of King Herod that landed him in prison. While it is hard to know for sure what John was feeling as he sat in prison, we can be sure that he might have had some doubts about the Lord who tested his faith.

Let us look at the examples that we can learn from the birth and life of John the baptist and let us incorporate these lessons more fully within our own lives as the children of God.

Let us pray:

Father, we thank you for sending John the Baptist into the world to prepare the way for the coming of your Son,  Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Help us to learn from the examples of his life and to more fully incorporate them into our own lives, so that just as the life of John the Baptist gave you glory, that our lives may also glorify you.

Amen.

 

 

 

Blessed Innocent V

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Peter of Tarentaise was barely 10 years old when he was admitted to the Dominican Order by Blessed Jordan of Saxony as a boy-novice and sent to Paris to study. Like Saint Thomas Aquinas, Blessed Ambrose of Siena, and other luminaries of the 13th century, he fell under the masterly tutelage of Saint Albert the Great.

He received his master’s degree in theology in 1259, then he taught for some years in Paris, where he contributed a great deal to the order’s reputation for learning. He wrote a number of commentaries on Scripture and the Commentary on the Sentences of Peter Lombard, but he devoted most of his time to the classroom. He soon became famous as a preacher and theologian, and in 1259, with a committee including his friend Thomas Aquinas, composed a plan of study that is still the basis of Dominican teaching.

At age 37, Peter began the long years of responsibility in the various offices he was to hold in his lifetime as prior provincial of France. He visited on foot all Dominican houses under his care, and was then sent to Paris to replace Thomas Aquinas at the University of Paris. Twice provincial, he was chosen archbishop of Lyons in 1272 and administered the affairs of the diocese for some time, though he was never actually consecrated for that see.

The next year Peter was appointed cardinal-archbishop of Ostia, Italy, while still administering the see of Lyons. With the great Franciscan, Saint Bonaventure, assumed much of the labor of the Council of Lyons to which Saint Thomas was hastening at the time of his death. To the problems of clerical reform and the healing of the Greek schism the two gifted friars devoted their finest talents. Before the council was over, Bonaventure died, and Peter of Tarentaise preached the funeral panegyric.

In January 1276, Peter was with Blessed Pope Gregory X when the latter died at Arezzo. The conclave was held in the following month. On January 21, 1276, Peter of Tarentaise received every vote except his own. With a sad heart, he left the seclusion of his religious home to ascend the Fisherman’s Throne as Pope Innocent V.

The reign of the new pope, which promised so much to a harassed people, was to be very brief. But, imbued with the spirit of the early apostles, he crowded a lifetime into the short space given him.

He instigated a new crusade against the Saracens and began reforms in the matter of regular observance. He actually succeeded in solving many of the questions of the Greek schism and in establishing a short-lived truce. He struggled to reconcile the Guelphs and Ghibellines, restored peace between Pisa and Lucca, and acted as mediator between Rudolph of Hapsburg and Charles of Anjou. He restored the custom of personally assisting at choral functions with the canons of the Lateran, and he inspired all with the love that animated his heart.

Had the measures begun by Innocent V had time to be fully realized, he might have accomplished great good for the Church; he did at least open the way for those who were to follow him. Death stopped the hand of the zealous pope when he had reigned only five months. Like his friends Saint Thomas and Saint Bonaventure, he was untouched by the honors and dignity with which he had been favored, and death found him exactly what he had been for more than 40 years–a simple, humble friar.

Born: 1245 at Tarentaise, Burgundy, France as Petrus a Tarentasia

Papal Ascension: 1276

Died: 1277 at Rome of natural causes

Beatified: cult was confirmed by Leo XIII in 1898

 

Blessed Osanna of Mantua

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Osanna Andreassi was the daughter of the wealthy patrician Andreasio. She experienced visions from her early childhood, but kept the experiences to herself. At the age of six, she saw the Child Jesus carrying a cross and wearing a crown of thorns. He told her that He has a special love of children and purity. She was so impressed, as we all would be, that she immediately consecrated her entire life to God.

Osanna begged her father to allow her to learn to read so that she might be able to pray the Divine Office. He refused her request because it was a waste for a woman who was expected simply to raise a family. Osanna couldn’t explain why she wanted to learn; she couldn’t reveal her plans to him. When she was 14 and knew that he was arranging a marriage for her, she furtively went to the Dominican church and received the habit of its tertiaries. When she appeared at home in her religious garb, she explained that she had made a vow and must wear it until she had fulfilled her promise.

Now, this should not be understood as condoning deceit, but it served God’s purpose. Her pious father accepted her explanation for a time. As the months passed he began to suspect what had happened. He had already refused to give her permission to enter the convent, and he was displeased that she should try to live as a tertiary in his own home. Eventually, his father’s heart melted and he allowed Osanna to continue her routine of prayer, penance, and charity for the rest of her life. She was not professed until a few months before her death forty-two years later.

After the early death of both her parents, Osanna spent her fortune in the service of the poor. Her house became a center for people to discuss spiritual matters, for the needy and the sick, for the wealthy and the noble.

It is said that like Saint Catherine, she miraculously learned to read. One day she saw a piece of paper with two words and said, “Those words are ‘Jesus’ and ‘Mary.'” From that time she could read anything pertaining to spiritual matters. By the same sort of favor, she also learned to write.

At age 28 (1477), Osanna received the mark of the wound in Jesus’ side, caused by a long nail. For the next year various of the sacred wounds would appear, including the crown of thorns. Others saw them only on Wednesdays, Fridays, and during Holy Week, but it appears that they were visible to her and caused both pain and joy.

At this time Osanna felt the need for a spiritual director and prayed for one with wisdom, patience, and understanding. She found him during Mass when an interior voice said to her, “That’s the one you need, the one who is saying Mass.” Osanna thought he was too young, but, upon meeting him in the confessional a few days later, all doubts were erased.

Before her death, the soul of Blessed Columba of Rieti, another Dominican tertiary, appeared to her and told Osanna to prepare for death.

Born: January 17, 1449 at Mantua, Italy

Died: 1505 of natural causes

Beatified: November 24, 1694 Pope Innocent XII (cultus confirmed)

Representation: In art, Osanna is a Dominican tertiary wearing a crown of thorns, surrounded by rays of light (not the halo of a saint), a lily, a broken heart with a crucifix springing from it, the devil under her feet, two angels (one with a lily, one with a cross). This is similar to the image of Saint Catherine of Siena, who has a halo. Osanna is the patroness of school girls.