And there was great joy in the city!

3rd Week of Easter (W)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

The Church in Jerusalem is being persecuted by the Jewish religious establishment. Peter and the Apostles are arrested twice and brought before the Sanhedrin to answer charges of heresy and sedition. Both times they are sternly warned to stop preaching and teaching in the name of Christ. Both times they defy the authorities and continue doing what they were sent by Christ to do. B/c the Apostles must obey God rather than men, the persecution is turning violent, and the Church is scattered “throughout the countryside of Judea and Samaria. . .” Saul is dragging Christians out of their homes and putting them in prison. By the standards of the time, none of this is particularly noteworthy. What is noteworthy is the reaction of the persecuted Church. We read in Acts: “Now those who had been scattered went about preaching the word.” Also of note is the reaction of those who hear and benefit from the apostolic preaching: “There was great joy in that city.” How does the persecuted Church defy the threat of prison and violence? How do we answer religious rejection and secular condemnation? We go about preaching the Word. 

The Church's extraordinary answer to persecution is extraordinary only if we fail to understand her purpose. If we believe that the Church's purpose is to create and defend a particular vision of western culture, then preaching the word in defiance of violent secular repression seems extraordinary. If we believe that the Church's purpose is to support the platform of a particular political party, or promote a particular economic system, then preaching the word in defiance of persecution seems extraordinary. If we believe that the Church's purpose is to provide us with a ready-made network of like-minded friends, business contacts, or just something to do on a Sunday morning, then preaching the word in defiance of the law, in defiance of all social pressure to stop seems more than just extraordinary; it's socially suicidal, downright dumb. However, since the purpose of the Church is to preach the word, preaching the word—even in defiance of persecution, esp. in defiance of persecution—is the most natural thing for her to do. Why? B/c when the word of God is preached, there is always great joy. The Good News of God's mercy to sinners always brings with it the blessings of freedom, healing, and peace. 

 It is the Church's nature and purpose to preach the word “in season and out.” If that's not enough to explain her defiance of persecution, then let this be enough: “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.” Where would the hungry go to eat the bread of life if not the Church? How could anyone come to believe if there were no witnesses giving testimony? The Church is in the world to be the living sacrament of Christ, to point to and make present his saving power among the nations. Jesus says, “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life. . .” How does anyone in 2013 “see the Son” and come to believe in him? Through the teaching and preaching and sacraments of his Body, the Church—alive and well 2,000 yrs after his resurrection. In defiance of persecution, social ostracism, ridicule, corruption, scandal, exile, and occasional defeat, alive and well for 2,000 yrs, living in his resurrection to preach the Good News of God's mercy to sinners. Our purpose is not victory. God has already won. Our purpose is to tell the world that He has won, and that He wants us all, everyone to share in that victory through Christ, His Son. 

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God is dead

 We're discussing Nietzsche in class this morning.  Here's his most (in)famous passage:

“God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderers of all murderers? What was holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet owned has bled to death under our knives: who will wipe this blood off us? What water is there for us to clean ourselves? What festivals of atonement, what sacred games shall we have to invent? Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we ourselves not become gods simply to appear worthy of it?”  (The Gay Science)

Though the idea that humans must becomes gods is hardly new, Nietzsche's divine obituary and Kierkegaard's wholesale abandonment of the possibility of rational faith, left us flailing about for a suitable Grand Narrative to replace God and Reason. Unfortunately, as a culture, we chose the decadent straight-jacket of modernist science and pragmatism.   And western civilization has been in moral decline ever since. . .

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Pray for Boston

I've deleted the post about the explosions in Boston. . .just about everything that is being reported is either false or unconfirmed. . .I thought that the info was solid.  Apparently not.

However, the need for prayer is certainly solid enough!

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+Francis and the LCWR

The Holy Father reaffirms the CDF's assessment of the LCWR and the remedies it has recommended:

[. . .]

Finally, Archbishop Müller informed the Presidency that he had recently discussed the Doctrinal Assessment with Pope Francis, who reaffirmed the findings of the Assessment and the program of reform for this Conference of Major Superiors.

[. . .]

So, despite his brown shoes, a love for tamborines, and  being Jesuit, our Holy Father is still Catholic.

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Be a work of God

3rd Week of Easter (M)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

What can we do to accomplish the works of God? Absolutely nothing. . .until we first believe. Belief in the One Whom God sent is the difference that makes all the difference btw “doing a good work” and “doing God's work.” It should go without saying that non-believers can do the same good works that believers do. Non-believers can be morally good people too. Aquinas refers to these folks as “virtuous pagans.” That's not an insult, by the way; he's complimenting these non-believers for their natural virtues and hoping that these virtues will eventually lead them to Christ. So, what's the difference btw a virtuous pagan who feeds the hungry and a Christian who feeds the hungry? Both accomplish a good work. Both satisfy the requirements of natural justice. And the person being fed couldn't care less who gives them something to eat. The difference lies in why the hungry person is being fed. The virtuous pagan is motivated by a merely human desire to be compassionate and acts accordingly. The Christian is motivated by this same desire, but acts for no other reason than to reveal the glory of God. What can we do to accomplish the works of God? Jesus says, “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent.” 

When we believe in the One Whom God sent, we re-order our desires and motivations to reflect a new creation; that is, we re-arrange what we want and why we act in such a way that we become living icons of Christ—human windows into the glory of God. In the same way that the Son reveals the Father, we reveal the Son so that the Father might be seen working in the world. To accomplish this work, our belief in Christ must be more than just a statement of fact, or casual assent. Our belief must be acted upon, made real in word and deed. If we believe in Christ, then we must be Christs in the world. We are his Body—one heart and mind, one faith—doing what he has commanded us to do. When asked by the crowd how God's work might be accomplished, Jesus replies, “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent.” And when you have come to believe in the one sent by God, work out of that belief so that anyone who sees you or hears you will come to know and love the Risen Lord. He says to us, “Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life. . .” 

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What a Bull Dog can do to a baby. . .

OK.  To make up for the Barbarian Baby Slaughtering Smurfs. . .I give you. . .

Baby Covered in Bull-dog Puppies!

If your glucose levels can tolerate it, go here for eight more pics just as Sugary Sweet as this one.
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You know that I love you. . .(UPDATED)

3rd Sunday of Easter 2013
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic/Our Lady of the Rosary

Our Lord asks Peter a question—The Question, actually—the question that makes Peter squirm like a worm on a hot rock: “Simon [Peter], son of John, do you love me more than these?”* We can't help but wonder what went through Peter's head at hearing this question. He must've flashed back to the time Jesus asked the disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” And he answered, “You are the Son of the living God.” He must've remembered rebuking Jesus when the Lord revealed that he would die in Jerusalem, and Jesus yelling at him, “Get behind me, Satan!” He must've remembered Jesus' prophecy that he would deny knowing him three times in the Garden. That memory must've made him blush in shame. His betrayal. Fleeing arrest. Outright lying. Now, the Risen Lord sits with him on the shore of the Sea of Tiberias and asks, “Simon [Peter], do you love me more than these?” Of course, Peter says that he loves the Lord. Could he say anything else? Truly, sitting there in the presence of the Risen Lord, could he confess to any other passion but the love btw friends, friends who willingly die for one another? “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” 

This first answer to the Jesus' question tells us that Peter is confused. “You know that I love you,” so why are you asking me if I love you? All those memories of rebuking Jesus, betraying him, denying him; all those chances to live out the radical love btw friends willing to die for one another; all those flashes of revelation into his teacher's true nature and ministry, the entirety of his short but intense life with this extraordinary man of God—they all collapse into this single, profoundly intimate meeting btw a sinner and his Savior: “Peter, do you love me?” “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” No, Peter isn't confused at all. He's feeling awkward, spiritually clumsy. He wants this moment to end. What can I say to get this over with? Or maybe he's hurt that his teacher thinks he might not love him. He has every reason to doubt that he does. Or maybe Peter is offended by the question, “You know that I love you, Lord,” why do you ask? Why does Jesus interrogate Peter this way? Not once or twice but three times he asks. And three times Peter gives the same answer. By the third time, John tells us, Peter is “distressed.” He's worried. Does the Lord really think that I don't love him? Peter is “grieved” by the possibility, so he answers, a little desperately, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus says, “Feed my sheep.” 

This seaside scene btw Jesus and Peter brings to harvest a number of seeds planted by Christ in the hearts and minds of his disciples. Though Peter is the focus of this interrogation, the other disciples bear their own spiritual wounds and fruits as a result of Christ's teaching. Since he first said, “Follow me” to these fishermen, Jesus has taught them in word and deed to forgive one another, to be at peace with one another, and above all, to love one another. He's taught them to surrender themselves to God by taking up their crosses and bearing up under whatever burdens must be carried. He's taught them to remember him in the breaking of the bread, in daily prayer, in fasting and in taking care of the least among them. He's taught them that being first in God's kingdom means being last in the Enemy's; and that if they love him, if they are truly willing to die for love of him, they will feed those who follow him. Feed my sheep. Feed them with the bread of life. Feed them with the Word. Satisfy their hunger for heaven, their thirst for the truth. This seaside scene btw Peter and Jesus is not only Peter's reconciliation with his Lord, it is also his final exam, his last test as the Lord's favored student. 

As students of Christ, how would you and I do on this final exam? If the Risen Lord were to appear to us and ask, “Do you love me?” how would we react? Would we be confused by the question? Hurt? Offended? Embarrassed? Distressed? Or would we jump at the chance to tell the Lord that we do love him? Would there be that split second btw the question and our answer when we remembered that time when we had the chance to bear witness to God's mercy and didn't? That chance to forgive we let slip away. Would we recall all the times we've denied knowing Christ by failing to love as we should? Those times when we let our pride stand in the way of our humility? Would our failures to give God thanks for our blessings cause us to stutter an answer? Would we blush at our lack of growth in holiness? Our spiritual clumsiness when disaster strikes? Yes, probably; yes, to all of these. And then we'd remember what Christ taught from his cross: all is forgiven; every sin, every flaw and fault, every failure to love is washed away. And we'd say, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” And he'd say to us, “Feed my sheep.” 

When Peter and the other Apostles are arrested by the Sanhedrin, did they remember this profoundly intimate meeting with the Risen Lord? They must've. The high priest accuses them, “We gave you strict orders, did we not, to stop teaching in that name? Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching. . .” Before he responds to the accusation, Peter must've heard Jesus saying, “Feed my sheep.” So, he says to the priests, “We must obey God rather than men. . .” Rather than obey men, we must feed the Lord's sheep. Rather than bowing to your worldly power, we must bow before the glory of God. Rather than surrender ourselves to this world's hatred, we must teach others to surrender themselves to God's love. Peter must've smiled a little, recalling the grilling Jesus gave him by the Sea of Tiberias. Three times he had to confess his love for Christ. Three times Christ ordered him to feed his sheep. And now, here he is, standing before the powers of men, and he understands why Christ put him to the question. Jesus knew that he, Peter, could not feed his sheep if he himself would not be fed. The Lord absolved Peter of his sins, gave him a word of mercy so that when the time came to defy the world, he can so ready to die. I imagine Peter in front of the Sanhedrin, whispering, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” 

You know already, brothers and sisters, that we must obey God rather than men. We know this, but can we do it. More often than not, there is no conflict btw what we must do to satisfy the world and what we must do to satisfy God. But when a conflict arises, do we think immediately of Peter before the Sanhedrin? Do we think of him at the seashore with Jesus? Or do we think instead of all our failures and flaws, all of our sins and then excuse ourselves again from the obligation to put Christ first in our lives? Our failures and flaws cannot serves as excuses. After the death and resurrection of Christ, our sins are forgiven. We can no long demur in our duties to God b/c we are unworthy, or b/c we imagine ourselves to be too irresponsible to love properly. Jesus asks, “Do you love me?” If your answer is, “Yes, Lord, I love you,” then hear him say to you, “Feed my sheep.”

* If you're interested in my take on why Jesus uses the phrase "more than these," check out this daily homily from 2008.

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A pope, a chair, and a Swiss Guard

Great story about Pope Francis and his Swiss Guard!

Read it. . .
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To Crush My Enemies and Hear the Wails of Their Women!

from Facebook
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Ain't got no time for fear

2nd Week of Easter (S)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

In traditional iconography, St. Catherine of Siena is often portrayed carrying a ship on her shoulder. That ship is the Church. It reminds us of Noah's Ark, those who were saved from the flood. Most of us here this morning are sitting in the nave of the church. “Nave” derives from the Latin word, navis, which also gives us our word “navy.” So, the symbolic connections btw a ship on the sea and the church in the world are easy to draw. The disciples get into a boat and head out over the sea to Capernaum. A storm is brewing, the wind is kicking up, and the disciples are worried about capsizing. In response to this imminent danger, the disciples nominate a Task Force to address the crisis. The Task Force appoints a commission to study the problem. The commission selects a committee to hold hearings, and the cmte recommends that a working group issue a report. Eventually, the disciples vote on a draft of the report and release the document under the title, In navi durante tempestas,* “On a Boat during a Storm.” Unfortunately, all the disciples are tossed overboard and drowned. In another version of this story, Jesus appears to his frightened disciples and says, “I Am. Do not be afraid” and the boat arrives safely on the shore.

My irreverent version of John's gospel story is meant to be a little cheeky and a little telling. When the Church confronts a contemporary crisis, whether its a crisis in the Church or with the world, how do we normally proceed? There's really no way to answer that question fully, of course, b/c each crisis presents its unique problems, thus requiring unique solutions. Maybe a better question would be: from what resources do we draw when a crisis confronts us? Even better: to whom do we turn when a strong wind blows up a storm? We humans are designed and built to solve problems, and we manage quite well considering our fallen nature. But the same instinct to solve problems often leads us to cause problems as well. When we flounder around trying to solve spiritual problems with secular tools, we invariably arrive at secular solutions that worsen the original spiritual problem. Jesus' last- minute appearance to the near-drowned disciples shows us the best way to deal with every crisis we encounter: look for the Lord and expect to hear him say, “I Am. Do not be afraid.” In other words, we are reminded again that we, the boat, the sea, the storm, all belong to God. Fear in a crisis is not only futile, it can be deadly—spiritually deadening.

Fear has its natural uses. Being afraid for our lives discourages us from doing all sorts of dangerous things. Leaping out of planes. Swimming in Lake Ponchatrain. Driving in New Orleans. Fear even has its supernatural uses. It makes us wary of sin. Using occult means for achieving our goals. But fear can also prevent us from doing the holy work we've been given to do. It can discourage us from risking our time, talent, and treasure in the pursuit of holiness. We are not baptized to seek spiritual safety, to cuddle close with our devotions and watch the world burn. We are baptized to go out and proclaim—in word and deed—the freely given mercy of God. We are baptized to go out and preach and teach and heal and forgive and be forgiven. BXVI, introducing the Year of Faith, teaches us that we must propose again to the world an encounter the Risen Lord. How? He writes, “. . .we need to renew our preaching with lively faith, firm conviction, and joyful witness.” Filled with faith, conviction, and joy, there is no room in any of us for fear. Leave no room for fear. And if fear should blow your way, stop, look for the Lord, and expect to hear him say to you, “I Am. Do not be afraid.”

* Counting the seconds 'til someone corrects my Latin. . .3. . .2. . .1

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This just in. . .the Pope is STILL Catholic!

Apparently, the Holy Father woke up Catholic again this morning. . .

“Sacred Scripture,” he reaffirmed, “is the written testimony of the divine Word, the canonical memory that attests to the event of Revelation. However, the Word of God precedes the Bible and surpasses it. That is why the centre of our faith isn't just a book, but a salvation history and above all a person, Jesus Christ, the Word of God made flesh. It is precisely because the Word of God embraces and extends beyond Scripture that, in order to properly understand it, the Holy Spirit's constant presence, who guides us “to all truth”, is necessary. It is necessary to place ourselves within the great Tradition that has, with the Holy Spirit's assistance and the Magisterium's guidance, recognized the canonical writings as the Word that God addresses to his people, who have never ceased meditating upon it and discovering inexhaustible riches from it.” 

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The Knox Bible

Along with questions about discerning a religious vocation and requests for my fried chicken recipe, the most frequently asked question from HA readers is: "Father, can you recommend a good translation of the Bible?"

My usual answer is:  "Yes, the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible, RSV." (And you cannot beat the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: The New Testament for excellent footnotes, short essays, and references to the CCC!)

Now, I can add: The Knox Bible.* Translated in the 1950's by Msgr. Ronald Knox, an English priest of astonishing intellect and faith, this translation is his attempt to "English the Bible." You just have to read what he's done in order to understand the gift he's given us.  The Knox Bible includes a booklet of essays written by Fr. Knox, describing the translation process.

Here's my favorite Pauline quote, 1 Cor 13.4-13:

Charity is patient, is kind; charity feels no envy; charity is never perverse or proud, never insolent; does not claim its rights, cannot be provoked, does not brood over an injury; takes no pleasure in wrong-doing, but rejoices at the victory of truth; sustains, believes, hopes, endures, to the last. The time will come when we shall outgrow prophecy, when speaking with tongues will come to an end, when knowledge will be swept away; we shall never have finished with charity. Our knowledge, our prophecy, are only glimpses of the truth; and these glimpses will be swept away when the time of fulfilment comes. (Just so, when I was a child, I talked like a child, I had the intelligence, the thoughts of a child; since I became a man, I have outgrown childish ways.) At present, we are looking at a confused reflection in a mirror; then, we shall see face to face; now, I have only glimpses of knowledge; then, I shall recognize God as he has recognized me. Meanwhile, faith, hope and charity persist, all three; but the greatest of them all is charity.

You really can't ask for better clarity!

* Thanks to a generous Book Benefactor (you know who you are).

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"Elite Panic"

Another explanation for the deafening silence of the MSM on the Gosnell murder trial: the Unwashed Plebs will misinterpret the facts and overreact by demanding political actions that their Enlightened Betters do not approve of:

Elites tend to believe in a venal, selfish, and essentially monstrous version of human nature, which I sometimes think is their own human nature. I mean, people don't become incredibly wealthy and powerful by being angelic, necessarily. They believe that only their power keeps the rest of us in line and that when it somehow shrinks away, our seething violence will rise to the surface -- that was very clear in Katrina. Timothy Garton Ash and Maureen Dowd and all these other people immediately jumped on the bandwagon and started writing commentaries based on the assumption that the rumors of mass violence during Katrina were true. A lot of people have never understood that the rumors were dispelled and that those things didn't actually happen; it's tragic.

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On Not Fitting the Pro-abortion Narrative

On Kermit Gosnell 

On who? If you asked that question then that means the mainstream media has once again been doing its job – of censoring news and covering up important stories. This is one of the most spectacular news items to break in the US recently, yet almost no one knows about it, thanks to all the PC lefties in the MSM. 

This huge story has been almost completely ignored by the pro-abortion mainstream media, but every media outlet in the country is covering this major news item: the weight gain happening to a pregnant Kim Kardashian. Go figure.

[. . .]

Kermit Gosnell faces 43 criminal counts, including eight counts of murder in the death of one patient, Karnamaya Monger, and seven newborn infants. Additional charges include conspiracy, drug delivery resulting in death, infanticide, corruption of minors, evidence tampering, theft by deception, abuse of corpse and corruption.

[. . .]

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Run from every golden crown!

2nd Week of Easter (F)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
Our Lady of the Rosary/St Dominic, NOLA

The 5,000 plus men, women, and children that Jesus feeds with a few fish and a few loaves of bread are all thinking the same thing: “Hey, let's make this guy Jesus our king!” Wanting nothing to do with being a worldly king, Jesus heads for the hills to be alone. Given his power to heal disease and injury, multiply fish and bread, and dispense divine wisdom at the drop of a sandal, why does Jesus run when folks start thinking about putting a golden crown on his head? One reason, one very good reason: the Romans had a nasty habit of lopping off the head of anyone who dared lay claim to a crown. Another reason: the Son was not sent by the Father to rule an earthly kingdom. During his forty days in the desert, Jesus was tempted by the Devil to take up the scepter of secular power, and he refused. Why? B/c he knows that his crown will be made of thorns not gold. And his scepter will be the cross. A kingdom of men ruled by a man will flourish only as long as the man in charge manages to stay in charge. The Christ is sent to establish an everlasting kingdom, a kingdom ruled not by rebels, heretics, and false prophets but by the Risen Lord. It is this kingdom that we are vowed to proclaim. 

 And we find the Apostles doing just that: proclaiming the kingdom of God. They are arrested (again) and brought before the Sanhedrin. Gamaliel persuades the members of the Sanhedrin to release Peter and the other Apostles by reminding them that others had tried to do what the Apostles were doing and had failed. Concerning the Apostle's preaching, he says, “. . .if this endeavor. . .is of human origin, it will destroy itself. But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them. . .” He mentions the false prophet, Theudas and the militant rebel, Judas the Galilean, both executed by the Romans. Gamaliel knows his business; he adds, “. . .you may even find yourselves fighting against God.” The Apostles are flogged, ordered to cease teaching, and released. Did they learn their lesson? No. Luke tell us, they left “rejoicing that they had been found worthy to suffer dishonor for the sake of the name. . .they did not stop teaching and proclaiming the Christ.” And we should be disappointed if they had. After all, infused with the Holy Spirit, the Apostles could do nothing else but teach and proclaim the Christ and the founding of his Father's everlasting kingdom. With no one arresting us or flogging us (not yet anyway), how much easier is it for us to follow their example? 

Despite his obvious power and good will, our Lord runs from the temptation of secular power in order to make it clear that his mission and ministry is all about planting in the sinful soil of this world a divine seed, a seed that will sprout and flourish to produce a harvest of men and women vowed to spreading the Good News of God's freely offered mercy to sinners. To use another metaphor: the Church is an infection in the body of the world, a virus injected into the bloodstream of the Devil's kingdom that replicates and spreads, slowly but inexorably rewriting the DNA of the creation. As followers of Christ, we are the symptoms of this world's Christ-sickness—the holy sneezing, the divine coughing, the righteous fever of a fallen body that can only be cured by dying of Christitis. Both the Church and world loses out every time we fail to proclaim the Father's kingdom, every time we relax in compromise or accommodation, every time we take a beating and slink off to lick our strips. When the world tries to cure itself by killing us, we must remember that the blood of the martyrs seeps into the ground and there the Church flourishes. Bear witness. Bring testimony. Never cease proclaiming the mercy and love of the Risen Lord.

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A long day not yet over!

Much appreciation for the prayers!  The interview/homily/presentation went well, I think.

No hymnals were thrown, no one laughed out loud at me.

I'll keep y'all posted on the outcome.

Now, one more Mass and a mtg with the Young Adult Group. . .
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The Spirit is not rationed

St. Stanislaus
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
Notre Dame Seminary/St. Dominic Church, NOLA

Today's Good News—every day's Good News—is that God freely offers His boundless mercy to all sinners through the death and resurrection of His Christ. And not only does He offer us His mercy for the forgiveness of our sins, He also pours out—with extravagant excess—the gift of His Holy Spirit. And why should God be so generous? Because He loves the world so, that He gives to us His only-begotten Son in death so that we might live, and live eternally. Such love-in-sacrifice cannot be wasted in giving stingy gifts, or by withholding those favors that help us grow to perfection in Christ. God's generosity, by its very nature, is diffusive—spreading, increasing, saturating, and enriching; satisfying and fulfilling every holy desire, every human longing to belong more intimately, to adhere more closely to Him Who is all in all. If a grace can be put to work in speaking His Word or doing His will, then that grace is given. John teaches us, “[God] does not ration his gift of the Spirit.” No rationed gift is worth receiving, therefore, gratefully welcome into your life the lavish gift of God's Holy Spirit. And remember: with gratitude comes generosity. 

As followers of Christ, we are vowed to the graced task of becoming Christs for one another and for the world. Our transformation from worldly sinners to divine slaves is accomplished through the once- for-all sacrifice of Christ Jesus on the cross and his resurrection from the tomb. And if our transformation in Christ is to be made perfect, we not only need the generous on-going blessings of God, we must also generously divide and distribute to others the gifts we receive. After all, we know that love is made perfect in sacrifice. Christ on the cross reveals this truth. The empty tomb of Easter morning reveals this truth. And it is our vowed responsibility as the priests, prophets, and kings of the Father's kingdom to see that the truth of His love and mercy is constantly uncovered, persistently revealed in every word we speak, in every thought we think, and in every deed we do. If the Father's grace-giving generosity through Christ is diffusive (and it is), then the nature of our own gift-sharing must follow His. The Spirit we receive is not rationed, nor measured but freely, copiously poured out. In justice, we give Him thanks and praise. 

Our Father justly receives our gratitude and adoration for His kindness. And in a world made perfect through Christ, we too would justly receive the gratitude of all those with whom we share the fruits of His Spirit. But we know all too well that the world we live in has never been, is not now, and will not always be grateful for the Word shared. Peter and Apostles discovered this truth. Arrested and imprisoned by the Sadducees, the Apostles are charged with heresy. When confronted by their accusers with their disobedience, the Apostles reply, “We must obey God rather than men.” Thus are martyrs made. But there is no help for it. We are new men and women in Christ, and that newness compels us to bear witness, to give testimony to the Good News that no one must remain a slave to sin, no one must remain in darkness, no one must live apart from the sacrificial love of Christ. The Spirit is not rationed, parceled out piece-meal to favored tribes, nations, or races. Nor is the Spirit measured out according to worth or achievement, prestige or popularity. Once for all Christ died on the Cross and rose from the tomb. Bear witness then to graces you have received; be made perfect in love by sacrifice. 

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New OP blog

Student brother, Mariano Veliz, OP has started a blog. . .

Check out his post, From Purgatory to Resurrection

Leave a comment and tell him I sent you!
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Big surprise this morning. . .

Wow. Woke up this morning to discover that. . .the pope is still Catholic!

The homily strengthened the line of continuity between Pope Francis and Pope Benedict; the latter was criticized for affirming, in Dominus Iesus, that salvation comes only through Jesus Christ. 

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Go on. . .get back to work.

2nd Week of Easter (W)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

We could be forgiven if we were to give a little partisan cheer this morning, reading Luke's account of the Apostle's escape from prison. Out of jealousy and fear, the Sadducees lay “hands upon the Apostles” and lock them away in order to silence their preaching. We can grumble about this injustice, even flare up with righteous indignation at such a flagrant violation of the Apostles' human rights. Had we lived back then, we might've started a petition campaign, protested outside the temple, and boycotted paying our temple taxes until The Twelve were released. However, if we were paying attention, we'd take our cue from the angel and skip the public theatrics. Luke tells us that the angel opens the jail and says to the Apostles, “Go and take your place in the temple area, and tell the people everything about this life.” No flaming angelic Sword of Justice? No booming voice from heaven damning the unrighteous? Just “go do your job”? That's it? John writes, “. . .whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.” The only light we have is the glory of God shining through our words and on our deeds. The only approval we should need comes from God, and Him alone. 

Reading Luke's account of the Apostles' imprisonment and escape leaves me wanting a little more, something more dramatic, more Old Testament-like: an earthquake cracking open the jail, or a blinding white fire melting the Apostles' chains. Something truly epic to let the Church's persecutors know that they're messing with power and majesty beyond their comprehension. The way Luke describes the scene in Acts is just. . .boring, if being rescued by an angel can be called boring. I'm ashamed to confess that I'd hoped the angel would shoot bolts of lightening at the guards and melt the offending Sadducees in a cloud of black acid. Instead, the angel just opens the cell door and says, “Go on now, get back to work.” What the angel understands and I'm reluctant to admit is that the work the Apostles have been given to do is not theirs work alone to complete. Nor is it mine or even ours. The Church's enemies—over the centuries—have managed with prison, torture, and death to silence thousands of gospel voices. But the Voice of the Gospel has never been silenced nor will it. “Whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.” 

A work done “in God” is a work done with heaven's approval and help. A work done “in God,” a word spoken “in God” is indestructible. The worker, the speaker can be silenced, locked away, murdered, but the Word and Deed of the Good News lives on through the Church, in the Body of Christ, always free, always in the light of God's truth. A moment's reflection tells us why this is. If God so loved the world that He sent His only-begotten Son to die for us so that we might live, and then arranged our salvation through Christ in such a way that the news of his saving death must be heard to be believed, then it makes sense that that Good News would be permanently proclaimed despite the Enemy's opposition. God's plan for our salvation never rests on a single man or woman, never on a single preacher, priest, or pope but upon the witness of the whole Church, speaking with one heart, one mind the one word of God's freely given mercy to sinners: Christ. So, no, the Apostles' rescue from prison was not an earth-shattering event worthy of being made into a 3-D summer blockbuster movie. Nor does doing our work as followers of Christ warrant a novel or two on the bestseller list. Your cell door is open, go on now, get back to work. 

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And your vegetables?

This is an old joke, but it captures Maggie Thatcher's character perfectly. . .

One evening, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher treats her cabinet ministers to dinner at her favorite club.

The waiter attends to the PM, "Mrs. Prime Minister, may I take your order?"

PM: "I'll have the Beef Wellington."
 
Waiter: "Excellent choice. And your vegetables?"

PM: "Oh, they'll have the same."
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Just let it all go

Solemnity of the Annunciation
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

The Risen Lord has been appearing to his disciples off and on for the past week: Emmaus, Jerusalem, the Sea of Tiberias. He'll make a few more appearances before he ascends to the Father and the Holy Spirit descends at Pentecost. Each time, his message to the disciples and to us is the same: “Peace be with you. Do not be afraid. I'm here. I'm always here.” How fitting then that at the annunciation of his conception Gabriel greets our Lord's mother by saying, “Do not be afraid. . .” It's not that the men and women of the first century were easily frightened. But when the Glory of God—in the form of an angelic messenger or the Risen Lord himself—manifests to deliver His Word, even the stoutest soul will flinch, even the strongest among us will dread hearing what comes next. For Mary, what comes next will set her at the center of salvation history and create out of her immaculate faith a kingdom of mercy and grace. Her courageous Yes to Gabriel's invitation to serve as our Lord's mother resounds through centuries-worth of human hearts, and today we hear her say, “Do not be afraid. . .” 

Some eight hundred years before Gabriel's visit to Mary, the prophet Isaiah spoke the word of God to King Ahaz: “. . .the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel. . .” Emmanuel, God-is-with-us. With God among us as one of us, what is there for us to fear? We take our cue from the Blessed Mother and greet fear with courage. Not reckless bravado or bluster but with the sure knowledge and faith that our Father's loving-care provides; His promise to be with us and remain us always is fulfilled in the coming of His Christ. His kingdom of mercy and grace is established, and flourishes among those who have received the gifts of His Holy Spirit. As subjects and heirs of His kingdom, we are commissioned to do as Gabriel did with Mary: announce the Good News. . .do not be afraid. God is with us. He is always with us. Let go of your past. Let go of your sin. Let go of your need to control. Whatever weighs you down, keeps you in the dark, binds you to the things of this world: let it go. There is nothing and no one in this world that can take you beyond the tomb. Unclench your fists and surrender it all to Christ. Isaiah, Gabriel, the Blessed Mother, all say to you: “Do not be afraid. . .God is with us.” 

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Coffee Cup Browsing

Great interview about the Holy Father, confirming that, yes, the Pope is indeed Catholic.  Sorry, progs. . .

Yeah, the Pope is still Catholic: “But when we start to cut down the Faith, to negotiate Faith, a little like selling it to the highest bidder. . .we take the path of apostasy, of disloyalty to the Lord.”

No, the Holy Father isn't a conservative. . .nor should he be. He's Catholic. I'm not sure why "Spirit of Vatican Two Peace Bongers" are cheering Allen's assessment.

That US Army instructor who lumped Catholics in with Hamas and the KKK as "religious extremists" got her info from the Southern Poverty Law Center.  Figures.

UK media doing the job our MSM won't do: abortionist beheaded infants born alive.

BXVI and +F. . .don't fall for the media narrative that pits them against one another.

MSNBC: "All your children are belong to us." Us being the Community. Um, no.

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Christ: our only rule and measure

2nd Sunday of Easter (Divine Mercy)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

What do we know about Thomas? He's one of the Twelve disciples chosen by Christ to serve as apostles. He's called Didymus b/c he has a twin brother. And we know that he is absent on the night that the Risen Lord appears to his apostles. Oh, and we know that despite having lived and died more than 2,000 years ago, he's a thoroughly modern man. What makes him modern? When told by his friends that Jesus—dead and buried for three days—appeared to them, Thomas proclaims a truly modern standard of truth: “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks. . .I will not believe.” Modern philosophers and scientists would congratulate Thomas for demanding such a sensible and obviously right-thinking empirical standard for assenting to the truth of a claim. Jesus, on the other hand, isn't impressed. Appearing among his apostles a week later, Jesus allows Thomas to test his empirical standard. Now, Thomas believes. Jesus, far from praising his student's rigid need for proof, says, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.” No one here has seen Jesus as Thomas did. Do we believe? And what difference does it make if we do or do not believe? 

It might seem strange for a Catholic priest to ask a church-full of Christians attending a Sunday Mass whether or not they believe in the Risen Lord. Why would any of us be here if we didn't believe? Let me suggest that there is a difference btw “believing that the Lord is risen” and “believing in the Risen Lord.” Simply believing that the Lord is risen is matter of assent, saying, “Yes, I believe that” when asked. Believing in the Risen Lord is also a matter of assent—saying, “Yes, I believe that”—but saying Yes to the Risen Lord entails a commitment far more intimate and demanding that merely saying that he is risen. When prompting Thomas to explore his wounds, Jesus says to him, “do not be unbelieving, but believe.” How does Thomas respond? He doesn't say, “I retract my earlier statement of disbelief and now assent to the claim that you are risen.” No. He exclaims, “My Lord and my God!” Believing in the Risen Lord commits us to submitting ourselves to the rule and measure of Christ as the source and summit of all that we are. A church-full of Christians can easily assent to the fact that the Lord is risen w/o ever committing themselves to being ruled by the Risen Lord. Doubt about the mechanics of the resurrection is the smallest obstacle we face when it comes to bending the knee to Christ our King. 

How does Thomas overcome his disbelief? Through Christ's mercy. It is b/c he is merciful that Jesus allows Thomas to satisfy his doubts on his own terms. We know that this is an act of mercy b/c Jesus says to Thomas, “Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.” Our Lord could've very easily left Thomas stewing in his doubt, left him outside the company of the blessed, and w/o the benefits of genuine belief. Instead, Jesus shows him mercy. Thomas is charged with the sin of disbelief, found guilty, and then pardoned; pardoned for no other reason than for the sake of the Gospel. The Gospel needs Thomas. And Peter and John and James and you and me. So, it is vital that we are not unbelieving but believing, that we are committed—heart, body, mind—to living under the rule and measure of Christ; thinking every thought, speaking every word, doing every deed for the sake of Christ and the spreading of his Good News. What is the Good News of Christ? That God freely offers His abundant mercy to all sinners. With repentance, we receive all that He generosity provides through the once for all sacrifice of His Christ on the cross. His mercy is our freedom from sin and our license to tell the whole world that Christ is Lord and God! 

Not too long after this meeting btw Jesus and Thomas, the apostles find themselves consumed by the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and set upon the world to preach the Good News and accomplish mighty deeds in Christ's name. Luke tells us in Acts that “many signs and wonders were done among the people at the hands of the apostles. . .the people esteemed them. . .more than ever. . .great numbers of men and women, were added to them.” What were these signs and wonders? What exactly were the apostles doing and saying to bring so many to Christ? We know from Acts that the apostles were preaching God's mercy; baptizing those who repented; healing the sick and injured; freeing souls from unclean spirits; teaching the Word and breaking bread in memoriam. They were establishing the Lord's household among those who answered Christ's call to follow him. Why did they do these things? So that all may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through this belief they may have life in his name. When we come to believe in the Risen Lord, when we come to trust in his name, we too accomplish mighty deeds, preach his Good News, and strengthen his household for all who answer his call to repentance and holiness. 

Do you believe? And what difference does it make if you do or do not believe? Do you call on his name in faith? And what difference does it make if you do or do not? After appearing to Thomas and some of the other disciples, Jesus reveals himself again at the Sea of Tiberias. To this group of disciples, Jesus not only reveals himself as the Risen Lord, he also reveals to them why it is necessary to listen to and obey his commands. The disciples are fishing and not having any luck. Jesus—disguised—tells the Beloved Disciple to cast his net over the right side of the boat. He obeys. The catch is so large that they can barely haul it in. At that moment, the B.D. recognizes Jesus and says to Peter, “It is the Lord!” Note that Jesus is unrecognizable to the disciples until the B.D. listens to and obeys his commands. The miraculous haul of fish is a sign for the B.D., and he instantly sees his Risen Lord. What difference does belief make? Belief in Christ makes it possible for us to see his words and deeds speaking and working in our lives. Belief in Christ gives us the courage and strength necessary to repeat his words and deeds, to put his words and deeds to work in building and fortifying his royal household. 

Belief in the Risen Lord means submitting ourselves to Christ as our only rule and measure. The disciples do not recognize the Lord on the road to Emmaus. Nor when he visits them on the shore of the Sea of Tiberias. Nor will Thomas believe that he is risen until he appears in the flesh for inspection. Doubt, worry, fear, pride—all of these cloud the disciples' eyes and plug up their ears. Btw Easter and Pentecost the disciples find it difficult to recognize the Risen Lord b/c they have yet to make Christ the rule and measure of their hearts and minds. Here we are btw Easter morning and Pentecost. Does Christ rule our lives? Do we measure our holiness against his? What does anxiety measure? What does fear demand of its subjects? The Risen Lord gives us one last command before he ascends to the Father, “Peace be with you.” Be at peace. If our hearts and minds are torn apart by dread, or frightened by the unknown, or troubled by our past, then we cannot rest in the sure knowledge that Christ died for us b/c he loves us. And if we cannot rest knowing this truth, then we cannot come to believe in the Risen Lord. Be at peace. . .and come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through this belief you may have life in his name. 

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F1 makes his first curial appointment

Our Holy Father has made his first curial appointment. . .

Father José Rodríguez Carballo, OFM will serve as secretary to the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, meaning the Spanish Franciscan will serve as the point-man for the Vatican's relations with religious orders. 

It is a very good sign that the Holy Father's first curial appt. was made to this Congregation. It signals (I hope) that he is looking closely at the Church's religious orders with an eye toward reform and renewal--REAL reform and renewal. . .not a repeat of the disastrous secularizing upheaval following VC2.

I am looking forward to seeing who he appoints to serve as his Papal Household Theologian.  Traditionally, this position is been held by a Dominican friar since St. Dominic was the first OP to hold it. Let's see if F1 is going to uphold this tradition, or continue to surprise us by appointing. . .say. . .a JESUIT! 

Also, let's pray that our Holy Father appoints a Dominican to serve as his Papal Household Preacher. It just makes sense.  By papal decree, this office is reserved for Capuchins.  But. . .F1 is just full of surprises these days.

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Coffee Bowl Browsing: the Return!

I frequently hear from HA readers that Coffee Cup Browsing is their favorite feature of this blog. Of late, CCB has been woefully absent. Why? Well, it takes a lot of time to find and arrange the links. While I was in Rome (2008-2011), I had a lot more free time to browse the web, sometimes posting as many as 30 times in a week. These days I do well to get a daily homily posted in time for Mass!  

But. . .things are about to change, I hope. I have a job interview this coming Thursday. If I get the job, I won't be tied to a parish schedule. I will still be busy, but the busyness won't be dictated by confession/Mass times and the need to be available 24/7.

So, in celebration of this Spring Time Change. . .I give you:  Coffee Cup Browsing!

A Black Robed Master has decreed that The Pill be made available over the counter.  

Gun control fizzle. . .b/c Americans aren't stupid. We recognize a power-grab when we see one.

Don't tell my father about this group. . .his head will implode.

Um, you bet that a university that employs a "Provost for Diversity and Inclusion" is not going to be friendly to the Church.

Rich socialists hate wealth. . .well, they hate your wealth anyway.

Reliable source on the Scandals, or muckraking anti-Catholic bigots?

Piers Morgan, Zeitgeist Torquemada. . .

What does the US Army think that the KKK, the Catholic Church, and Hamas have in common? 

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The dark joy of gossip

OY! The Holy Father is hitting close to home with this one:

“I don’t know why, but there is a dark joy in gossiping. Sometimes we begin by saying nice things about another, but then we slip into gossip, making the object of our chatter merchandise to be bartered. Let us ask forgiveness because when we do this to a friend, we do it to Jesus, because Jesus is in this friend.”

I learned the Dark Art of Gossiping in grad school. Note: I'd been gossiping long before grad school, but being a grad student in a humanities department made it necessary for me to perfect the art and use it with deadly cunning. That's not an excuse, by the way. It's just the reality. No one survives grad school w/o learning how to gossip strategically. When your whole career depends entirely on the mercurial judgments of not-always-right-in-the-head professors, you learn to sniff out the useful tid-bits and nurture them dearly.

So, why is gossip a problem for Christians? Most of the time gossip arises out of a lack of charity, a desire to hurt someone, or see them fail. Charity is the virtue of willing the Good for another, so there's almost no chance that gossip will result in anything approaching love. 

How to get rid of the nasty habit? Replace it with a good habit. Bite your tongue--mine is deeply scarred. Count to ten before snapping at any Gossip Bait. . .

Suggestions? I'm still working on ridding myself of several Dark Arts I acquired while in grad school. Gossiping is not the worst of the lot. . .

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3 Revelations of Christ

Octave of Easter (Fri)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

What at first reads like a Bad Fishing Story with a happy ending is really a lesson from the Risen Lord on how to go about making disciples. Like most of the dramatic scenes in the gospels, there's depth in the deceptively mundane details of the story. A group of disciples are out fishing and they're not having much luck. Jesus is watching them from the shore. The disciples do not yet recognize their Lord, so they just continue their fruitless efforts to snag some fish. After a while, Jesus says to them, “Cast the net over the right side of the boat and you will find something.” They obey. And the load was so large that they “were not able to pull it in because of the number of fish.” At that moment, the Beloved Disciple recognizes Jesus and says to Peter: “It is the Lord!” Peter jumps into the water and goes to Jesus. The other disciples recognize Jesus when they approach the fire. Notice: the B.D. recognizes Jesus after the miracle occurs. Peter recognizes Jesus after the B.D. identifies him. And the other disciples recognize Jesus after they see him cooking the fish and bread on a fire. This gospel story opens with a simple declaration: “Jesus revealed himself again to his disciples at the Sea of Tiberias.” How Jesus reveals himself to his disciples—and how they recognize him—tells us how to go about making disciples for the gospel. 

First, Jesus reveals himself to the B.D. through his command to cast the net on the right side of the boat. The Greek used indicates that Jesus is telling his disciples to cast their nets on the “graced side” in order to “receive their portion.” The idea here is that when we put our trust in God's grace, we receive an abundant portion from Him. The B.D.'s eyes are opened to seeing truly b/c he obeys-listens in faith. He then “sees” that the stranger is Christ. Jesus then uses the B.D. to reveal himself to Peter. After “seeing” Jesus, the B.D. says to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Peter hears this bit of good news, he girds himself tightly, and casts himself into the sea. . .much like the B.D. casting his net for that huge haul of fish, Peter is casting himself into the world to haul in a huge load of disciples. When one of us “sees” the Lord, we are compelled to testify to his presence. Jesus reveals himself to the B.D. and Peter individually, using sight and sound, word and deed. He reveals himself to the other disciples communally. They come to see him when they join the others over a meal. IOW, when they come together to enjoy God's gifts, they see the stranger as the Christ. 

That stranger on the shore is revealed to be the Risen Lord when one disciple obeys-listens to him with faith. He's revealed to be the Risen Lord to another when the first disciple bears witness to his presence. And all the others come to know him when they gather together and recall the last time they huddled over a fire to share fish and bread. The key to making disciples for the Good News is to be—ourselves—living revelations of Christ in the world. Obey-listen to all that he has taught us. Proclaim his presence among us. Jump into the world and haul in any and all who would know the Lord as Savior. And then come together to be fed at the table of the Lord. At the center of this disciple-making pattern is the willingness/eagerness of those of us who know the Christ to be ourselves living revelations of his presence. It's not enough to point the way. Or draw a map of the way. Or just stand out of the way. How we choose to live—moment to moment—must be in and of itself a revelation, an unveiling of who and what the Risen Lord is for us. For us, he is the Savior. To us, he is our Brother. With us, is the grace of God set upon the world to make known the Father's freely given mercy to sinners. 

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Catholic university rejects Catholic student group for being Catholic

Knights of Columbus not welcomed at Gonzaga University:

“To embrace the diversity and yet endorse a group based on faith exclusivity is a challenge that cannot be reconciled at this time,” Weitz wrote in closing. “It is a decision about social justice, equity, and the desire of the University to create and maintain an environment in which none are excluded.” 

". . .in which none are excluded. . ." except those who do not agree with us.

Told ya.
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When "tolerance" trumps conscience

Expect more of this sort of Tolerance Persecution in the very near future:

Two gay seniors who said they felt alienated by the [GWU] Newman Center's controversial priest will launch a campaign this week to force him off campus.

At least a dozen students, including seniors Damian Legacy and Blake Bergen, say they have left the Newman Center in the last several years because Father Greg Shaffer’s strong anti-gay and anti-abortion views are too polarizing. Shaffer, a Roman Catholic priest, has spent five years preaching to GW students.

The line of attack will be something like this: RC dogma is divisive, polarizing, and alienating to those who must suffer under the Church's disapproving gaze. Since we are a tolerant community that welcomes diversity, the Church must be silenced so that we can all feel comfortable with who we choose to be. No one should be allowed to think, speak, or act in any way that makes anyone uncomfortable. . .except, of course, it's OK for us to make RC's uncomfortable b/c they disagree with us. . .b/c they're all bigots, or something.

And pay special attention to this bit of the story:

And while Legacy said he is now more comfortable with both his sexuality and his religion, and has since become an ordained priest in the Old Catholic Church in October, he said he doesn’t want anyone else seeking Shaffer’s counseling to feel that same torment.

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Why aren't the media covering an abortionist's murder trial?

Once again, bloggers are left to do the reporting that "journalists" are supposed to be doing. But when the Story doesn't fit the Pro-Abortion Narrative. . .all's quiet on the media front.

[. . .]

Case in point: It is no secret that most in the mainstream press embrace abortion rights and take every opportunity to cast pro-life advocates in a bad light—as when they use a politician’s insensitive or mangled words to smear the entire movement. In contrast, the late-term abortionist, Dr. Kermit Gosnell, currently on trial for murder in Philadelphia, is being treated as an obscurity.

For those who may not know, Gosnell is charged with running a veritable abattoir at which clinic personnel allegedly severed the spines of viable babies and killed an abortion patient. Evidence has revealed that fetal body parts were stored at his clinic in jars as macabre trophies. All of this, of course, also grossly violated the laws of the state of Pennsylvania, as well as any reasonable baseline of medical ethics.

The Gosnell story should be huge. But the media has generally looked the other way. As of this writing, the major network nightly news programs have not even covered the trial, and most reporting outside of the Philadelphia area has been sporadic, placed on inside pages, and written blandly—the kind of low-voltage reportage easily lost in the constant white noise of media overload. On March 19, for example, the New York Times reported the start of the trial on page A-17, and has not covered the graphic testimony or provocative allegations of racism by the defense (Gosnell is African-American.)

[. . .]
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Leave no time for trouble

Octave of Easter (Th)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

Cleopas and the other disciple tell the others about meeting a stranger on the way to Emmaus, about listening to his teaching, and then discovering—in the breaking of the bread—that the stranger was with Risen Lord! While they are all talking about the incident, without warning or fanfare, Jesus just appears among them, and says, “Peace be with you.” Luke tells us that the disciples are “startled and terrified” b/c they think that they are “seeing a ghost.” Startled and terrified? I bet! And I bet that they were a bit embarrassed too. Why? B/c despite Jesus' constant reminders that he would always be with them, the disciples were in a slow panic, verging on despair, and ready to give up. Jesus knows all this, so he asks, almost casually, “Why are you troubled? And why do questions arise in your hearts?” A braver soul might have answered, “Why are we troubled?! You were executed and buried; and we heard that your body was missing from your grave. Then we hear that you might not be dead, and now, you're a ghost! Oh, and we're fugitives b/c we followed you. That's why we're troubled.” So, why are you troubled? Why do questions arise in your heart? 

No one here is a fugitive from the law for following Christ. Not yet anyway. No one here is in any danger of being executed, or jailed for claiming an inheritance from the Father. Not yet anyway. No one here is a slave to sin, or subject to death, or bereft of our Father's love. If you were a slave to sin, or subject to death, or bereft of our Father's love, then you would indeed have something to be troubled about. If you're being troubled by the passing things of this world. . .well, you're being troubled by the passing things of this world. We live in this world; we're not of it. Can the temporary nature of these things calm your trouble? Does knowing that worldly trouble fades with time help you at all? Our Lord says over and again, “Peace be with you.” Paul, Peter, John, James, they all say, “Peace be with you.” Think of this as an order, a commandment: Be At Peace! Notice what Jesus does when he sees his disciples' fear. He tells them to touch his wounds. He eats with them. He shows them that all he has taught them about his nature and mission is true; it has all been fulfilled—Moses, the prophets, all of scripture, it has all been fulfilled. If trouble arises then, it arises b/c our trust in God's promises has become shaky, a little rusty maybe. 

This is not to say that real world problems result from our failure to have faith. That's not how God works. Faith is our response to God's offer of mercy. When we believe, when we trust in Him, and receive His mercy, no real world problem can trouble us. Sure, we'll have problems. But they won't trouble us. Why? B/c we trust that all that our Lord has taught us has been fulfilled. B/c we know that we are not slaves to sin, subject to death, or bereft of the Father's love. B/c we know that we are residents in this world but not citizens of it; subject to the laws of men but acquitted by the blood of Christ. The disciples in Jerusalem are troubled b/c they do not yet trust that the Old Covenant has been fulfilled in the New; so, their problems appear to them to be not only made by men but also solvable by men. They can't find a solution, thus the troubling questions and doubts. Christ appears in his glorified body to show them that he has conquered trouble, he has defeated anxiety, doubt, and fear. Christ is with us this evening to show us—again—that worry, confusion, dread, all of these and more have been defeated. Leave no time for trouble. We have work to do. Repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, must be preached in Christ's name to all the nations. You are his witnesses. You are his preachers. So, make no time for trouble. 

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"I liked the fact that they wore habits."

A decent piece on Dominican vocations in the Province of Ireland and the Eastern Province USA from the (usually execrable) NYT:

CORK, Ireland — The Rev. Gerard Dunne has worked for 12 years essentially as a human-resources recruiter — albeit one in a habit cinched with a dangling wooden rosary — for the ancient order of the Dominican friars. Once, his medieval robes may have deterred some. But today he is convinced that the garment is his greatest selling point for enlisting new priests.

Other religious orders largely stopped wearing their traditional garb in recent years, as they tried to attract new followers in secularizing societies. But the friars deliberately went on wearing the robes and promoting the spiritual benefits of shared prayer and a communal lifestyle — with a little help, too, from a chatty blog.

“We made a conscious decision a few years ago to wear the habit because we had no vocations and we were in a bad way,” said Father Dunne, 46, who estimates that he has traveled nearly a half-million miles along Ireland’s country lanes and highways in search of recruits. “If we didn’t present ourselves in an authentic manner, who would join us? And that meant going back to the fundamentals.”

Very often you will hear comments from friars from a Certain Generation that the current allure of religious life is really all about bad economic times and not a return to traditional Dominican life. . .IOW, increased numbers do not correlate with a desire for a stronger religious identity (habit, community, common prayer, etc.).

In tough economic times, the stability of community may also be appealing, and the resurgence for the Dominicans has coincided with Ireland’s economic crisis. But Father Dunne and others said most potential candidates were already prospering in existing jobs in professional fields, and came to the order because of a yearning for greater spirituality.

[. . .]

Matthew Farrell, 38, a former bartender from County Offaly and a novice, said he had sampled other orders, like the Carmelites. “I’ve been searching a long time for a vocation,” he said. “I wanted to get married or wanted to do something else. I tried to visualize myself as a priest.”

But in the end, he said, the Dominicans won out. “The Dominicans have a lot of enthusiasm and energy,” he said, “and I liked the fact that they wore habits."

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Btw Easter and Pentecost

Octave of Easter (W)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

Between Easter and Pentecost, what held Jesus' disciples together? Most of the disciples scattered like scalded cats when Jesus was arrested in the garden. Only John and Mary saw him on the cross. Joseph of Arimathea buried him. Until Mary Magdalene and the other Mary ran back from his empty tomb to announce his resurrection, we see hide nor hair of any of the other disciples. We know from Acts that after Pentecost those who had chosen to remain in his Word and received the Spirit eventually formed a community and began to preach openly. But what held them together for the 50 days btw the resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost? Fifty days. That's a long time for a frightened group of hunted people to remain loyal to an executed leader, especially when that leader was executed at the word of their family, friends, and neighbors. Two of Jesus' disciples—on their way out of Jerusalem—give us a clue. Luke tells us that these two, depressed and despairing, “were conversing about all the things that had occurred. . . [and] while they were conversing and debating, Jesus himself drew near and walked with them. . .” And he did so repeatedly for the next 50 days. 

While walking to Emmaus, Cleopas and another disciple find themselves in the company of a stranger who seems to know nothing about what has happened in Jerusalem over the past few days. They fill him in. Jesus the Nazarene, “a prophet mighty in deed and word” was handed over to the Romans by the chief priests, and crucified. Why are these two so downcast? They answer, “But we were hoping that he would be the one to redeem Israel. . .” The two tell the stranger that two women of their group discovered Jesus' empty tomb three days after his death. But no one had seem him there when they went to investigate. Then the stranger berates their lack of faith and asks an extraordinary question, “Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” Who is this guy that he would know anything about the Christ and what is or is not necessary for his entrance into glory? Who is he to berate Christ's own disciples for the foolishness of their slow hearts? Before Cleopas and the other disciple can even form the questions, the stranger shows them how Christ fulfilled all the promises that God made through Moses and the prophets. How did the disciples stay together btw Easter and Pentecost? Christ never left them! 

We can certainly understand that the disciples would be a little downcast, knowing that Christ has been crucified and buried. They had reports that he had risen, and they had seen the empty tomb. But they were expecting something more dramatic, more spectacular from their Messiah. They held within their hearts and minds his enduring love and words of wisdom, but was that enough to keep them going until the coming of the Holy Spirit? Apparently not. B/c Christ appears to them repeatedly before his ascends to the Father. He leaves Cleopas and the other disciple when they recognize him in the breaking of the bread. Or rather, he leaves them the breaking of the bread so that they will recognize him. We too know what happened in Jerusalem. And we can retell the story as often as we need to. But along the way, we'll be tempted to despair. When that temptation arises, we know where we can find the presence of Christ—in the breaking of the bread, right here at the Eucharist, giving thanks and praise for his sacrifice as we prepare ourselves for our own sacrifices for his name's sake. What keeps us together btw the first Pentecost and Christ's coming again? We know what happened in Jerusalem; we know that Christ fulfilled the promises God made to Moses and the prophets; and we know that he is with us always in the breaking of the bread. 

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Silver cannot save you

Octave of Easter (M)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

Matthew gives us two gospel scenes this evening. Both describe fear. Both describe the nature of truth-telling. And both show us the importance of faithful testimony. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary discover the Lord's empty tomb on Easter morning. “Fearful yet overjoyed” they run back to the disciples to report the good news. The soldiers guarding the now-empty tomb are also fearful. They run back into the city to the chief priests and report the bad news. The two Mary's are “overjoyed” that the Lord is no longer in his grave. The guards are very worried, yet they report “all that had happened.” On their way to report their good news, the Mary's encounter the resurrected Lord. And he says to them, “Do not be afraid.” While the guards are bribed by the chief priests and the elders to lie about what happened to Jesus' body, a story, that Matthew tells us “has circulated among the Jews to the present day.” When we bear witness to the life, death, and resurrection of Christ, our joy must always overcome our fear; otherwise, we will likely take silver to lie for the sake of staying out of trouble. 

In Luke's version of the discovery scene, two angels greet the women and say to them, “Why do you seek the living one among the dead? He is not here, but he has been raised. Remember what he said to you. . .” So, we can imagine both the fear and joy the two Mary's experience upon encountering Jesus. On the one hand, their Lord is missing. On the other, he is risen. And now, here he stands with them, resurrected but not yet ascended. “Do not be afraid” seems to be an understated request! Until you remember what he said to you. I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. My yoke is easy, my burden light. I am with you always until the end of the age. Follow me. What is there for us to fear? Whom should we fear? There is nothing and no one to fear, nothing and no one who can silence the witness of the Church, or intimidate us into telling a story for silver. When it comes to our faithful witness to the resurrection of Christ, the Church has but one voice and one word: “Alleluia!” He is risen. He is risen indeed. Sure, there's plenty about which we could be afraid—street violence, crime, secular persecution, mockery, economic disaster, etc. But fearing these will not save us. However, finding and living in the joy of the resurrection will save us. Such joy will bring us to meet Christ along our way. 

 The guards took the chief priests' silver and told a lie. The Mary's took the word of their Lord and told the truth. Relieved of their fear, the women were left with nothing but their joy. Relieved of their integrity, the guards were left with nothing but their silver. And what are we left with? Two stories. One tells us that the Christ is risen from the tomb. The other tells us that his body was stolen by his followers. One of these stories is false. One of these stories is a paid-for lie told by cowards to give political cover to those who falsely accused Christ and caused his execution. And one of these stories—told again and again—is the founding story of a 2,000 year old faith tradition that has constantly and consistently preached the Good News of God's freely given mercy to sinners. When you bear witness to the life, death, and resurrection of Christ, your joy must always overcome your fear, your greed, your pride; otherwise, you will likely take silver to tell a lie. You might avoid trouble for the moment. But how much more trouble will come when Christ comes again and asks, “Have you been my faithful servant?” Silver in a bag cannot save you. But the wood of the cross most certainly can. 

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The tomb is empty!

NB. When I first preached this homily at the Univ of Dallas chapel in 2006, it was something of an experiment for me. Would the very traditional, very conservative U.D. community respond well to this type of preaching?  They did!  So, I thought I'd try it out on a regular parish. It worked quite well.

Easter Sunday 2013
Fr. Philip N. Powell, OP
Holy Ghost, Hammond, LA

Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Are you here this morning, Church? [Yes] Royal Priests! [Yes] People of God! [Yes] Holy Nation! [Yes] Pilgrim Church! [Yes] Sons and Daughters of the Most High! [Yes], Brothers and Sisters [Yes], then you know what has happened! Christ Jesus the Lord is risen from the tomb! [Amen] He was sold in betrayal by a friend for the price of a murdered slave! He was denied by His best friends when He needed them most! He was falsely accused of blasphemy by His own people, found guilty on perjured testimony, and given to Pilate for judgment! He was bartered for a murderer with a riotous mob and given to Roman soldiers to be scourged! He was crowned with thorns, robed in purple, mocked and spat upon, and hailed as the King of the Jews! And, finally, in the place of Skulls, He was nailed hands and feet to the Cross to die forsaken! But you know what has happened! Christ Jesus the Lord is risen from the tomb! The stone is rolled away. His burial cloth thrown to the ground. The tomb is empty. 

You know what has happened! But do you know what it means? The disciples, seeing the rolled-away stone, the empty tomb and the burial cloth did not yet understand. And it is no simple matter to say “yes” when asked: do you believe in 2013 that a man who hung on a cross, who was dead and buried for three days, has somehow sprung to live and walked away from his grave? How do you say “yes” to that absurdity? How does anyone in their right mind say to “yes” to that!? I say, it is precisely b/c you are in your Right Mind, your righteous mind, that you say YES to the Rolled Away Stone [Yes], that you say YES to the Empty Tomb [Yes], and that you say AMEN to what you know has happened: Christ Jesus the Lord is risen from the dead! [Amen] 

We are not here this morning to celebrate a pagan regeneration myth. Jesus was not raised from the tomb b/c a god of a myth must rise from the dead so the flowers and grains of the Earth might rise in spring. No. We are not here this morning to celebrate the defeat of our subconscious’ death wish. Jesus was not raised from the tomb because our neuroses need fuel for another year. No. We are not here this morning to celebrate the triumph of an archetypal Hero over an archetypal Death. Jesus was not raised from the tomb because we need a Jungian happy-ending to our quest. No. We are not here this morning to celebrate the triumph of empowered self-esteem over the oppressive, patriarchal structures of organized religion. No. Jesus was not raised from the tomb because our pet-ideologies would be empty without some revolutionary symbol of victory. No. 

We are here this morning to celebrate the triumph of New Life over Death, Creation over Chaos, the Goodness of Being over the Evil of Nothingness, the triumph of Freedom over Sin. The tomb is empty because God raised His murdered Son from an ignoble death to New Life. The tomb is empty because the living do not live in the grave! The living have no need of burial clothes! The living say YES to the Father [Yes] and Amen to a glorious life lived in the sure faith of the Resurrection! [Amen] 

It is easy to say YES and AMEN on Easter Sunday.  The account of the Empty Tomb is still fresh in our hearts and minds. The courage of Mary Magdala’s witness to the cowardly disciples still stirs in us. But let’s be honest: the long 50 day march to Pentecost will see our fervor fade, our energy wane, and the alleluia’s of this Easter morning will droop with these lilies. We will find ourselves before long in the Upper Room cowering with the remnant of Jesus’ once mighty band, wondering what idiocy possessed us to witness to the ridiculous notion that a dead man rose to life and starting popping up all over the city and chatting with people. We hope for the coming of the Holy Spirit to put us back in our right mind, but we have fifty days of Easter to live faithfully. How? 

 If Palm Sunday is about welcoming the soon-to-be tortured and executed Lord into our lives and Good Friday is about witnessing His suffering for our sakes and Easter Sunday is about celebrating the New Life of the Empty Tomb, then our fifty days to the coming of the Holy Spirit needs to be about gratitude, about giving thanks. We have immediate access to the abundant blessings of the Father through gratitude. Gratitude does two things for us spiritually: first, gratitude is a confession that everything we are and everything we have comes from the Father—we are completely dependent on Him; and second, when we gratefully accept the gifts we are given by God, we become willing beneficiaries of His abundant goodness. 

We deny ourselves the benefits of the Resurrection by living lives of entitlement (I am deserving w/o costs!), by living lives of victimization (My problems are someone’s fault!), by living lives of denial (That’s not me!), and by living our lives wallowing in hurt (I will never forgive!). Do not deny yourselves the benefits of the Resurrection. 

Practice Easter Gratitude instead! Pray daily to the Father, our Abundant Provider and generous Lord: In You I live and move and have my being. Everything I am and everything I have is Your blessing. This day I offer it all to Your service. Thank you, Lord, for this season of my life, for the gifts You have given me, for those I love and who love me in return. Thank You, Lord, for Your creation, for Your revelation in scripture, for our salvation in Christ Jesus, for the holiness I await in the coming of the Holy Spirit, and for the Church that will rise from the tongues of fire. Make gratitude my constant prayer, Father, so that I may live as a Living Blessing for others. Pray for these in name of our Easter Lord, Jesus Christ! 

The tomb is empty, brothers and sisters! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Are you here this morning, Church? [Yes] Royal Priests! [Yes] People of God! [Yes] Holy Nation! [Yes] Pilgrim Church! [Yes] Sons and Daughters of the Most High! [Yes], Brothers and Sisters [Yes], then you know what has happened! Christ Jesus the Lord is risen from the tomb! [Amen]

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A Prayer for the Easter Season

An Easter Gratitude Prayer

(To be prayed especially btw now and Pentecost Sunday):

Father, our Abundant Provider and generous Lord: In You I live and move and have my being. Everything I am and everything I have is Your blessing. This day I offer it all to Your service. 

Thank you, Lord, for this season of my life, for the gifts You have given me, for those I love and who love me in return. 

Thank You, Lord, for Your creation, for Your revelation in scripture, for our salvation in Christ Jesus, for the holiness I await in the coming of the Holy Spirit, and for the Church that will rise from the tongues of fire. Make gratitude my constant prayer, Father, so that I may live as a Living Blessing for others. 

I ask all these in name of our Easter Lord, Jesus Christ! Amen. 

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Good Friday homily???

OK. . .curiousity is getting the better of me:

My Good Friday homily got no response at all from the congregation, from Facebook, or from HA readers.

Was it that bad?

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