One Way: follow Christ

1st Week OT (S)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

If I were solemnly process to the back of the church and shout, “Y'all follow me!” and then proceed out the door onto Harrison toward City Park, I'd be a little disappointed if I were turn around and discover that I was walking all by myself. I'd be disappointed but not all that surprised. If I were tell you that we were going to visit the Stations of the Cross this morning, shouted “Follow me!” and then started to process to the First Station, I would expect to see most of you right behind me, ready to pray. The only difference btw these two scenarios is that I tell you where we would going in the second and what we would be doing. That bit of information fills in a lot of blanks and makes it a whole lot easier for you to comply. That's not to say you wouldn't wonder why we were visiting the Stations during Ordinary Time. Processing around inside a Church is something Catholics do on occasion. But just walking around outside behind a priest in Mass vestments for no apparent reason? That's just weird. Notice: when Jesus shouts “Follow me!” to Levi, Levi doesn't bat an eye. He gets up and follows. So do the tax collectors, the prostitutes, the adulterers, and thieves. When Jesus says “Follow me,” those who know their sin get up and follow him. 

What's interesting to me about this command to follow is that it would appear to be entirely arbitrary. I mean, why do these sinners need to follow Jesus—literally, walk behind him—in order to have their sins forgiven? There are many instances in the Gospels when Jesus forgives the sins of people who just happen to bump into him, or he finds them sitting around on the street. They don't follow him; in fact, some of them run away after being forgiven and probably never see him again, much less take up their crosses to become disciples. And even some of those who are forgiven and then follow him end up dropping out when it looks like Jesus is getting weird or the Way behind him gets difficult. So, do we need to follow Jesus in order to get our sins forgiven? If your only goal is to be relieved of your sins, then following Jesus—that is, taking up your cross to become his disciple—is unnecessary. Your sins are forgiven. Always have been. However, our goal, our vow goes well beyond just being free from sin. Our goal, our vow is spiritual perfection: to be perfect as the Father is perfect. We are forgiven. Now, how do receive that forgiveness and live lives freed by mercy? In other words, how do we follow Christ? 

Being free of sin is not the same thing as following Christ. We might say that being free of sin is a necessary condition for following Christ not a sufficient one. To follow Christ, to become a student in his school of charity, requires that we get behind him and pattern our lives on his life of sacrificial love and service. The sacraments of the Church prepare us for this sort of life; strengthen us; and keep us fed along the way. And, if we're smart about it, we use the sacraments themselves as a pattern for daily living. We pray always. We make a habit of giving God thanks for His gifts. We forgive those who sin against us. We show the world the joy that comes with discipleship. We live in communion with one another, calling on the Holy Spirit to anoint us and give us strength. We intercede and sacrifice, offering prayer for those who need it. We give what we have b/c all that we have was first given to us by God. Following Christ starts with receiving God's mercy. Where do you go from there? Doesn't matter. You're following Christ. You know how that journey ends. All the stuff in-between is an adventure in growing in holiness. He came to call sinners to righteousness—all of us—so that we might find the Way: the way back to God, the way forward to perfection. 

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Mass Oops!

I celebrated the Mass this morning, but Deacon John preached.

Since Friday is Fr. Mike's day off, I also have the evening Mass. . .where I always preach.

Today, however, one of the other friars in the house was scheduled to celebrate the evening Mass.

Or so I thought.

Thinking that I'd better make sure that this friar--a relatively addition to the community--had remembered that he had the evening Mass, I strolled over to the church only to discover that I'd made a mistake.  

I had the evening Mass. . .and no homily prepared.  So. . .I had to wing it.

This is my longish excuse for not having a homily posted today.

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Email Gremlins

Gremlins have managed to gnaw their way into the Yahoo email system, and I am prevented from replying to emails.

If I owe you an email response. . .you know who you are. . .then bear with me as I await Yahoo's Gremlin Extermination Team to complete their work.

OK.  It's some sort of Firefox 18 and Yahoo techno-tangle.  Yahoo works fine with I.E. 

Fr. Philip Neri, OP
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Coffee Cup Browsing (nel pomeriggio)

Existing CT and federal law didn't prevent the Newtown massacre. Neither will B.O.'s impotent, grandstanding executive orders.

Speaking of asking the question: what gets left out?  "Journalism didn't just die, it went to work for the enemy."

Are gun-grabbers racists?  Hmmm. . .starting to look that way. . .

Universities pushing cultural Marxism. . .even in TX!

Fascinating post explaining why the Free Exercise (of Religion) Clause is more complicated in practice than we thought.

And another excellent piece on VC2's Declaration on Religious Liberty, Dignitatis Humanae.

Today's date is actually January 17, 1712.  I love conspiracy theories.

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Religious Freedom Proclamation: what gets left out?

Much is being made today of B.O.'s proclamation on religious freedom.  As many have already noted, this proclamation comes at a time when the President is doing everything in his power to stifle real religious freedom by replacing it with an anemic "freedom to worship."

B.O. quotes Jefferson's Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. . .or rather, he quotes selected portions of the statute.  Read the entire statute and it will become apparent to you within the first three sentences why B.O. doesn't quote more than he does.

As anyone who's engaged in any sort of textual interpretation knows, the ellipses tell most of the story.  In fact, ellipses beg the reader to ask the question:  what's left out?

For example, here's the first paragraph of B.O.'s proclamation:

Foremost among the rights Americans hold sacred is the freedom to worship as we choose. Today, we celebrate one of our Nation’s first laws to protect that right — the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. Written by Thomas Jefferson and guided through the Virginia legislature by James Madison, the Statute affirmed that “Almighty God hath created the mind free” and “all men shall be free to profess … their opinions in matters of religion.” Years later, our Founders looked to the Statute as a model when they enshrined the principle of religious liberty in the Bill of Rights.

First, note that "religious liberty" has mysteriously, inexplicably become "freedom to worship." Then, note the ellipses. What gets left out?

Here's what gets left out:

Be it enacted by General Assembly that no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief, but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of Religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge or affect their civil capacities. And though we well know that this Assembly elected by the people for the ordinary purposes of Legislation only, have no power to restrain the acts of succeeding Assemblies constituted with powers equal to our own, and that therefore to declare this act irrevocable would be of no effect in law; yet we are free to declare, and do declare that the rights hereby asserted, are of the natural rights of mankind, and that if any act shall be hereafter passed to repeal the present or to narrow its operation, such act will be an infringement of natural right.

Apparently, an Ivy League education and the vaulted heights of the Presidency can deprive one of one's sense of irony.

The Curt Jester notes the irony as well.

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Grasped and healed

1st Week OT (W)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

Mark tells us a deceptively simple story about Jesus healing Simon's mother-in-law. I don't mean to say here that Mark is attempting to deceive us with the story, only that the simplicity of the story itself might lead us to overlook the fullest possible meaning of what's going on in the brief exchange btw Jesus and the feverish woman. Buried in the ordinary language of the story is an extraordinary indication of Christ's ultimate purpose. Yes, he's among us to heal. He causes the woman's physical illness to leave her. And yes, he's among us to lift us up. He takes her by the hand and lifts her up from her sick-bed. But “leaving” and “lifting up” are commonplace English verbs used to hint at not-so-commonplace events. The Greek word we translate as “raised up” is ēgeiren. The same word used in several places in the NT to describe Jesus' resurrection from the dead. The Greek word we translate as “left” is aphēken, expired or died. The same word used to say that Jesus' died on the cross. Mark's simple story of the woman's healing could be translated: “Jesus approached, grasped her hand, and resurrected her. Then the fever died.” The purpose of the Christ among us is to bring about the death of death and the resurrection of the body into eternal life. 

In the presence of the Word made flesh, sin and death have no power. The Word was with God at the beginning. God spoke the Word over the void to create everything that is, and through the Word everything that is remains in being. When he say that the Christ is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, we mean that he is—embodies, makes real, walks among us—as the fullness of life, of living, the fullness of all existing things. That we get sick, injured, and die is not the natural state of man; that is, from the beginning, we are not created to fall apart and expire. Death is not part of man's original nature. Death entered creation through sin, through disobedience; and dying is a process we begin at birth, a path we must travel in a fallen world. However, in the light of Christ, who is Life, that path does not end in death—not our death anyway. The path ends in the death of death and our resurrection into life eternal. If we live with Christ now, we live with him and in him forever, following behind him in sacrificial love to the Cross, the tomb, and on to the Father's feast in heaven. That's Good News! But it's only part of the Good News. 

If the deceptively simple story of Jesus healing Simon's mother-in-law reveals a profound truth about the death of death and the resurrection of the body, then it also reveals another profound truth, a another part of the Good News. The disciples tell the Lord about the fevered woman; then, Mark writes, “[Jesus] approached [her], [and] grasped her hand. . .” I hope you really heard that. Christ, who is Life, went to the sick woman, and he grasped her hand. She did not come to him. She did not hold out her hand. She did not beg for healing. Christ went to her. Christ took her hand. He raises her up, and kills her fever. Along our path of dying and death, it is God Himself who comes to us; God Himself who makes the first move; God Himself who reaches out for our hand. All we need do is move toward Him in turn; reach back and grasp His hand. And in grasping His hand, rise and be healed and then give testimony to our healing. Simon's mother-in-law testifies to her recovery by immediately setting about serving her guests. Is there a better way to witness to the power of Life than serving the One who gives you life and died to give you life eternal? 

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Classes begin

Spring semester starts today at Notre Dame Seminary!

I'm teaching Introduction to the New Testament and History of Modern Philosophy. 

Please offer a quick prayer for the Church's seminarians.  They have a lot of work to do before getting ordained. 

Fr. Philip Neri, OP

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Fishing: it's disgusting

1st Week OT (M)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

Patience. That's what most people would say if you asked them what virtue must every great fisherman must possess. Patience is also useful in hunting and shopping (the indoor version of hunting). Whether you are fishing with a hook or a net, the virtue of patience makes it possible for you to survive one disappointment after another. It also allows you to feel perfectly justified trying again and again: uh, nothing this time. . .oh well, the day is young, let's try it one more time. Having a small cache of patience myself—reserved for driving in NOLA—I find fishing, hunting, shopping to be tedious and pointless. I agree with Dave Barry, who says, “Fishing is boring, unless you catch an actual fish, and then it is disgusting.” Yeah. All slime and gills and eyeballs. A wonderful day by the lake ruined by guts, blood, and the smell of dead fish. So, when Jesus promises to make his followers into “fishers of men,” I want to ask, “Um, Lord. . .do you think you could make me a teacher of men instead, or maybe a spiritual director, something like that?” Fishing, hunting, shopping for souls can be boring, disappointing, even disgusting work. But. . .it's what we all have vowed to do on this trip to holiness. 

When Jesus calls Andrew, James, John, and Simon to join him to become “fishers of men,” they have no idea what he's getting them into. Since fishing is both boring and disgusting, they must've figured that anything would be better than spending a day hauling fish out of the sea. Of course, it would be flippant to dismiss their acceptance of Jesus' invitation simply b/c fishing might be boring and disgusting. What if Jesus sees something in these men that he needs for his mission? What if he sees patience, determination, a willingness to stick with a job until it's done? And what if, when Jesus calls them, these men recognize in Jesus a man who needs—truly needs—these particular gifts? When God calls us to serve Him by serving His people with our gifts, that's what happens: He sees in us a gift that needs to be put to work, and we see in His work a job that needs doing. Jesus turns “fishing” into a metaphor for preaching, teaching, healing, blessing, consoling, feeding—in general, ministering to those who need to see and hear the presence of God, actually feel in the person of His disciples a loving spirit, someone who genuinely expects something extraordinary to happen for no other reason than that God promises it will. 

Andrew, James, John, and Simon don't know it when Jesus walks by but he's been calling them to discipleship since the moment of their conception. That the Son of God actually walks by and uses his voice to say, “Come, follow me” is a privilege beyond measure. That these men are graced so is no reason for us to feel slighted in the least. Sure, they experience an undeniable call, a vocation so unambiguous that it cannot be mistaken for anything else. Our individual calls may be slightly less dramatic and a bit more ambiguous but they no less urgent, no more deniable for being so. Each one of us is called from the moment of our conception to put our individual gifts to work for the glory of the Kingdom. There is no denying this. Each one of us has vowed before the whole Church to be “fishers of souls.” And each one of us renews that vow when we bless ourselves with holy water and approach the altar for communion. What else can we doing here this morning but tapping into the Eucharist in order to bring our imperfections closer to the perfection of Christ? The Letter to the Hebrews reads, “In times past, God spoke in partial and various ways. . .in these last days, he spoke to us through the Son. . .” In this sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving, this morning here at St. Dominic's, the Son speaks to us, “Come, follow me.” Follow him. And the work that needs doing can begin. 

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A Vicar Rants: The Baptismal Rite

I vaguely remember a scene in the 80's movie, Amadeus, when Mozart auditions one of his pieces for the Emperor.

When he finishes playing the piece, Mozart turns to the Emperor for his reaction.  The Emperor sputters something like: "It's got too many notes."  

The Rite of Baptism has too many parts:  too many symbols, too many options, too many "little rites on the side." 

It's too wordy.  Lots of language like this:  "I now do X to demonstrate Y."  The blessing of the water is ridiculously wordy. . .it goes on and on and on and on and on. . .

You have to ask the parents if they really, really want their kid baptized. . .twice.

Too many accoutrements--water, oil, garments, candles, etc.

And like most of the post-VC2 sacramental texts (the Rite of Reconciliation, e.g.) it's stuffed with additional readings and another list of intercessions and three or four additional blessings. 

Mom gets a blessing.  Dad gets a blessing. Then both of them together get a blessing. And then everyone present gets a blessing. 

We do the Apostles' Creed in question form. There are three options for this.

But the really, really, really annoying thing about the new Rite is the rubrics.  You need a doctorate in canon law to decipher and interpret the instructions for completing this rite.  

Someone, somewhere. . .PLEASE. . .pare this monster down.

OK.  Now I feel better.

Carry on. . .

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A people eager to do what is good

The Baptism of the Lord
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

All that the Old Covenant with Abraham promises, the New Covenant in Christ Jesus fulfills. God makes a promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He repeats this promise to their children and their children's children for generations. The promise is delivered again and again by fire, cloud, water, blood; by war and prosperity; by disease and good health; in slavery and in freedom from slavery. And in the voices of the prophets He sends to warn and plead with His people, God speaks one final promise: I will send my Servant to suffer and die for My people; to free them from sin; to show them my mercy and love; and to bring them all back home to Me. The Lord says through Isaiah, “Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one with whom I am pleased, upon whom I have put my spirit. . .” Eight hundred years after Isaiah records this prophecy, Jesus of Nazareth emerges from the River Jordan, baptized by John his herald, and hears a voice from heaven say, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” Thus begins the public ministry of the Christ among God's people and the ministry of God's people among the nations. 

Luke records the moment: “After. . .Jesus had been baptized and was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove.” Recall Isaiah's 800 yr old prophecy, “Here is my servant. . .upon whom I have put my spirit.” As the Holy Spirit descends, Jesus hears a voice proclaim, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” Again, recall Isaiah, “Here is my servant. . .my chosen one with whom I am pleased. . .” These parallels are striking b/c the New Covenant fulfills the Old. In Matthew's account of Jesus' baptism, John refuses to baptize Jesus, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and yet you are coming to me?” Jesus answers, “Allow it now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” The phrase “to fulfill all righteousness” means “to make good on God's promises, to do all that is right in the sight of the Father.” John's public baptism of the Father's Son fulfills the 800 yr old prophecy given to Isaiah. The suffering servant upon whom the Lord places His holy spirit, the one He upholds, is among us, and his mission to save us is begun. What is his mission? How does he save us? And what is our part in this salvation drama? 

The first part of Isaiah's 800 yr old prophecy is fulfilled in Jesus' baptism, so we can argue that the second part is fulfilled in his public ministry. Isaiah prophesies: “I, the Lord, have called you for the victory of justice. . .and set you as a light for the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement. . .those who live in darkness. . .[you] shall bring forth justice to the nations. . .” Hearing this we might conclude that the savior the Lord sends among us is a warrior-king, a battle-prince, one trained to command armies and conquer nations in bloood. And we would be right. However, as we all know, the sword Christ wields is not forged of steel but of light, the light of truth, and the blood he spills is his own. His justice is not a legal settlement, a constitutional amendment, or a defense of natural rights. His freedom is not a license to do as we please and then demand that the neighbors to pay the bill. The prisoners Christ frees are held captive by all the injustices born of from the womb of human disobedience. Therefore, his public ministry is the preaching and teaching of the Good News, the good news that our Father has forgiven our trespasses against Him and only waits for us to receive His freely given mercy. We are the freest we will ever be this side of heaven when we obey the law of divine love. 

Jesus of Nazareth is baptized in the River Jordan so that he can fulfill all righteousness. In obedience to his example and explicit command, we too are baptized and set out on a mission identical to his. Paul writes to Titus, “[God] saved us through the bath of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit [through Christ]. . .” Why? “. . .So that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life.” In the water of baptism, we are made right with God, and we receive as an inheritance the hope of life eternal. We are made righteous heirs to heaven as a gift, a freely given heritage as children of God. What do we do with this gift right now? His grace “train[s] us to reject godless ways and worldly desires and to live temperately, justly, and devoutly. . .as we await [Christ's return].” Jesus, baptized in water and confirmed by the Holy Spirit, “gave himself for us to deliver us from all lawlessness and to cleanse for himself a people as his own, eager to do what is good.” Are we his people, a people cleansed from lawlessness? Are we a people eager to do what is good? Do we live in the blessed hope of his return? 

All that the Old Covenant with Abraham promises, the New Covenant in Christ Jesus fulfills. God makes a promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob make their promises to God in turn: to live according to His laws, in peace with one another, always seeking justice, and honoring Him alone as their heavenly Father. God's promises are delivered again and again in flame, smoke, flood, and tears; through violence and peace; by injury and healing; in exile and deliverance from exile. And from the mouths of the prophets He sends to admonish and beg His people, God speaks one last promise: I will send my Servant to suffer and die for My people; to free them from sin; to show them my mercy and love; and to bring them all back home to Me. That servant, our Savior, has arrived. And though he has long ago ascended to the Father, his public ministry continues. . .in those who are baptized in his name, confirmed in the Holy Spirit, and grow holy on the food and drink of his body and blood. Twenty-eight hundred years after Isaiah records his prophecy; and two thousand years after John baptizes Jesus in the Jordan, we emerge from the waters of baptism and hear a voice say, “You are my beloved sons and daughters; with you I am well pleased.” 

Christ's mission among his Father's people is to preach and teach the good news that all is forgiven. Receive His forgiveness and come home. Christ gave himself to death so that we might know what divine love truly is: sacrifice for another. When we live in obedience to the law of divine love—sacrificing for one another—we are living our days in holy justice, and giving public witness to the power of God's mercy to repair ruined lives; to free souls from sin and death; to shine the light of truth in the darkness, and guide anyone who wants it to His peace. The history of our salvation is scarred with human failure and the ugly consequences of that failure. If we see history repeating itself—the cycle of laxity, licentiousness, debauchery, and exhausted collapse—then our blessed hope in life eternal becomes all the more blessed. But whatever history fires at us, whatever this world throws at us, our mission—baptized and confirmed—it never changes. We bless the Lord. Live in righteousness. Work for peace. Forgive one another. Love one another, especially those who call themselves our enemies. And we never cease in preaching and teaching the overwhelming mercy of God, freely given and waiting to be received. Christ died to cleanse for himself a people to be his own, a people eager to do only what is good. 

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What am I doing wrong? (Updated)

OK. . .what gives?

I've been noticing for the last couple of months that traffic to HA has been dropping. . .

Less traffic is a given during the holidays, but the trend has continued well beyond Christmas and New Years.

Am I doing something wrong? Do I smell bad? Is it my breath? What is it?

Blogspot has done something so that visitors from outside the US are sent to a regional or national address instead of the US address, so maybe the stats are skewed accordingly.

Anyway. . .both the Church and the Order have called upon priests/religious to use the internet to evangelize.  I started HA principally to post my homilies. . .and occasionally to vent a little crankiness (blush).

Since 2005, the number of Catholic blogs has exploded. . .for which I am exceedingly grateful and happy. Maybe it's time for a makeover or a vacation or something? I dunno. . .

So, here are my questions:

1). What am I doing that I shouldn't be doing?

2). What am I not doing that I should be doing?

HA lives to serve the Catholic blogosphere!  

NB.  Update:  Just to be clear:  my worry is NOT about a drop in traffic for the sake of the traffic. I don't link ads on HA or get $$$ from Google.  My worry is that the drop in traffic indicates that I am not doing something needful for HA readers. Thus, the questions above.
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Wishing ain't willing

Friday after Epiphany
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

Let's see if you heard what I heard in the conversation btw Jesus and the leper. Here it is again: “'Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.' Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him, and said, 'I do will it. Be made clean.'” Did you catch it? Both equate leprosy with being unclean; this is, sinful. Both are talking about making the leper clean. Both indicate that Jesus is the one to accomplish this miracle. But none of these is the catch I'm talking about. The leper says, “Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.” Jesus doesn't say, “I do wish it. Be made clean.” He says, “I do will it. Be made clean.” The leper believes that if Jesus makes him clean, he did so b/c he wishes to. But Jesus knows that there's no wishing involved in his mission to forgive sin. It's all about his will and the will of his Father in heaven. So, he wills that the leper be made clean—he moves himself, involves himself, actively goes out of his way to do the cleansing. Do you believe that Jesus merely wishes you were clean? Or do you believe that he wills that you be made clean and then cleans you? 

The difference btw “wishing” and “willing” in English is clear enough. If you don't believe me, consider this: “I wish to pay taxes” and “I will pay taxes.” Hear the difference? Even though the original Greek of this passage uses one verb, the same verb for both “wish” and “will,” I'm grateful, as a sinner and a preacher, for the chance to distinguish them and point out why we should believe that Jesus wills our cleansing from sin. Set against the whimsical nature of wishing, willing is all the more comforting for its certainty. Jesus might have gone about the countryside wishing all sorts of fanciful things to happen. Since he didn't come among us as a genie or a wizard, we can say with confidence that none of them did. What he wished to happen, didn't; however, all that he willed to happen, did. The leper is cleansed. The blind see. The deaf hear. And all of God's children—all of us, from creation to right now—are given the chance to accept and receive God's mercy for our sins and establish with Him a life of righteousness. Have you ever heard yourself say something like, “I wish I could be holy. I wish I could be at peace”? Well, stop it! The leper wished to be cleansed, but the Lord willed it. If you will to be holy, then be holy. If you will to be at peace, then be at peace. 

How many times do you think the leper wished himself clean? Thousands? Millions? Given the slow, rotting nature of the disease and the fact that it made him a social pariah, I doubt there was a second of his many unclean days that he didn't wish himself clean. If you are living with the disease of sin, suffering the consequences of your disobedience, and walking around wishing to be forgiven. . .well, stop it! Stop wishing to be forgiven and understand that you have already been forgiven. Follow the leper's example: come to Christ and receive his will—the will that you be made clean. Jesus may have wished that all the lepers in Judea be made clean. But only one came forward, prostrated himself, and received the Lord's will that he be healed. And that's why we know about him. What do we know about all the lepers Jesus may have wished to be made clean? They died lepers. What do we know about all the sinners Jesus wishes would come clean. . .? Our leper is a victor over his disease b/c he believes that Jesus is the Christ and b/c he asks and receives what Christ wills: his healing and life everlasting. 

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The begotten of God conquer the world

Thursday after Epiphany
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

Our faith is the triumph that conquers the world. Not swords or bullets or boycotts or drones. But faith: our steadfast trust in God's promise that all we need do to win victory over sin is receive His forgiveness through Christ and live in the spirit of love he sent to dwell among us. John announces two triumphs when he writes, “. . .the victory that conquers the world is our faith.” There is the victory over personal doubt and delusion; and there is that victory's win over the world. The first win—the personal triumph—is won against the temptations fired at each one of us from the Enemy's camp, the steady pounding of noise, stench, illusion, and distraction. This battle is won when you and I return the enemy's fire with prayer, good deeds, compassion, and mercy. The second win—our victory over the world—is won against the besieging spirits of despair, hatred, violence, and self-indulgence. This battle is won when all of us together show those besieged by evil the power of hope, love, peace, and generosity. All who are begotten by God conquer the world b/c the world is always defeated in love. 

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a Lutheran theologian martyred by the Nazis at Flossenberg in 1945, wrote, “Being a Christian is less about cautiously avoiding sin than about courageously and actively doing God's will.” Courageously and actively doing God's will certainly entails avoiding sin but carefully maneuvering around temptations is only the beginning of holiness. When Jesus rolls up the scroll containing Isaiah's prophecies, he leaves in the air the ringing word of our mission: bring glad tidings to the poor; proclaim liberty to captives; announce the recovery of sight to the blind; release the oppressed into freedom; and declare a year favorable to the Lord. This is not merely a social justice mission or an agenda for worldly political liberation. That kind struggle hardly needs a Christ. The revolution we fight for seeks the overthrow of humanity's greatest oppressor: the Father of Lies. The one who impoverishes nations families with greed; enslaves the foolish with their own lusts; blinds the innocent with fables of pride and wrath; oppresses the many through envy and gluttony; and declares every year, every day good for rebellion against the One Who loves us despite our disobedience. Simply avoiding sin cannot spark a votive candle much less set loose a firestorm of holiness. For that we must seek to do the will of the Father. 

And what does God will for us? We already know that He wills that we live with Him forever. We know too that He wills for us to live lives of holiness in love so that His glory may increase among the nations. To see His will accomplished, we must, above all, love. Love Him and one another. We've heard this a gazillion-zillion times. It's almost become a formal noise, like the mumbled “hey, how you doing?” we use to greet strangers. But for the sake of Christ and the salvation of your immortal soul, listen: “. . .we love God because he first loved us.” If you love anyone—mom, dad, kids, spouse, anyone—you are able to love them b/c (for the reason that) God loves us all. IOW, when you love someone, you establish and maintain your participation in Divine Love. And it is only through Divine Love—God Himself—that we are saved from sin and made holy. This is why Jesus' announcement in the temple is so important: he is saying, “I am here as promised. The Word made flesh. Love given flesh and bone.” He shows us that we too can be love given flesh and bone. In fact, if we entertain any hope at all of eternal life, we will spend our days and nights finding ways to love better and more, much, much more. Do the will of the Father with courage. And each time you do, witness the Enemy's defeat by love. 

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Grazie, grazie. . .

My mendicant gratitude to two Book Benefactors:

Fr. Paul P. for A Primer on Postmodernism

and

Evandro M. for Redeeming Truth: Considering Faith and Reason

Both of these books will get a very good work-out in the next few years!

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Banish fear forever

Wednesday after Epiphany
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

The gospel reading this evening ends with a sad indictment of the disciples. After Jesus calms the angry sea and rescuing his friends from a watery grave, Mark writes, “[The disciples] were completely astounded. They had not understood the incident of the loaves. On the contrary, their hearts were hardened.” It is sad that they are astounded by Jesus' power to calm the sea and even sadder that they did not understand the signs given to them when he fed the five thousand. As sad as these failures are, it is saddest of all that their hearts have hardened against accepting the truth of Jesus' true nature and mission. What does all this sad failure tell us about the disciples? At the very least, we know why they were so frightened by the storm and by Jesus walking on the water to save them. With hearts hardened against both understanding and love, the disciples are left with no other way to see and feel the world than through fear. They are terrified at the prospect of drowning, and even the appearance of their Master on the waves is not enough to quell their fear. John writes, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear.” Christ is with us. There is no place for fear among us. So, take heart! 

When we say that a heart has grown hard, we mean that it is no longer capable—on its own—of serving its spiritual function: it can no longer love; that is, it can no longer seat Love Himself at the center of the human soul. Without Love Himself seated in the center of our souls, no soul can begin even to dream of seeing and understanding the miraculous signs Christ performs, much less see and understand his true nature and mission. Without Love Himself seated at the center of their lives, the disciples are ignorant and loveless men chosen by Christ to learn and love instead of fear; yet, their fear is what keeps them from learning and loving. Their fear reaches its terrific peak at Jesus' arrest in the Garden, and they surrender to the temptation to abandon him. Only after the descent of the Holy Spirit, the spirit of love between the Father and the Son, do they find their hearts grown large enough to hold all the love they need to take on the Christ-nature and make his mission their own. But now, in a boat on an angry sea, they cry out in astonishment and fear, and they hear Jesus say, “Take courage, it is I, do not be afraid!” Take heart! Christ is with us. And there is no place for fear among us. 

Without Love Himself seated in our hearts, we cannot begin even to dream of seeing and understanding the miraculous signs Christ performs, much less see and understand his true nature and mission. And understanding that nature and mission is more than a matter of historical curiosity. By receiving his body and blood in this sacrifice of thanksgiving, each one of us who receives commits him/herself to taking on Christ's nature and to making his mission our own. We take one more step toward becoming fully human; that is, to becoming more perfectly human, completely giving ourselves over to the Father for His divine purpose. But fear stands btw each one of us and total surrender to God. The spirit of not-knowing-what-comes; the spirit of worry, anxiety, turmoil floats there tempting us to run, to just give up. And no amount of argument, evidence, or tears will move us around those gnawing spirits. John tells us, “. . .one who fears is not yet perfect in love.” So, we know that perfect love moves fear, and there is only one Perfect Love: God Himself. Thanks be to God that Christ is with us always. Now, take one more step toward becoming Christ for one another and banish fear forever. 

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