Is there a seraph serpent in your life?

Exaltation of the Holy Cross
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

At the center of our faith, at the root of the Church stands an absurdity: the Cross. Used for centuries by the Romans to execute the scum of the Empire, the cross is an instrument of suffering and death. That we exalt such a bloody tool of oppression is peculiar. But what makes the cross truly absurd for us is that it is not only a gruesome torture device but it is also our only means of salvation. Much like a scalpel cuts the flesh to remove a tumor and exacts a price in blood to heal the patient, the Cross too exacts its price to save the sinner. For us, for all of God's creatures, that price was paid in full by the blood of Christ. We are healed free of charge, and so we gather this evening to honor the cross of our salvation and to give God thanks for His abundant mercy. Our Lord says, “. . .just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.” We believe. And we lift him up, trusting in his promise of life eternal! 

God's people begin to gripe and moan in the desert, "Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert, where there is no food or water? We are disgusted with this wretched food!” They've forgotten their lives in slavery under Pharaoh and they've forgotten that the Lord rescued them. He sends serpents among them. Many are bitten and many die. They repent and Moses intervenes on their behalf. God offers them healing through an image of the very thing He used to punish them: the serpent. When those who are bitten look at the image of the serpent, they are healed. Thus is set in the minds of God's people the memory that an instrument of punishment can also be a tool for redemption. And thus are we shown that pain, suffering, and death—so obviously useless to the world—can be a way back to God if we travel The Way with repentance in faith. We have been rescued by Christ from slavery to sin. And the way across the desert to perfection is long, hard, and dry; often w/o much nourishment; without much shelter; or a chance to rest. And we are all prone to some whining, a little “woe is me.” And when our complaining gets to be too shrill or too a bit too self-pitying, we might find the occasional seraph serpent waiting for us, ready to bite. A reminder that so long as we have something, anything to lose, we have yet to surrender wholly to God. 

Paul's magnificent hymn on the Incarnation in his letter to the Philippians is a catalog of all that the Son of God surrendered for us so that we might free of sin: “He emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, . . .he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.” If God can love us so fully, so completely that He sends His only Son to pay the price for our salvation; and if His Son can love us so fully, so completely that he willingly empties himself out, makes himself obedient to the laws of death and dying, and then dies on the cross for us, then can we—the sole beneficiaries of his death—lay claim to anything as our own, most especially our very lives? We belong to Christ as his brothers and sisters and as his servants. Everything is his and his alone. If there is a seraph serpent in your life, a biting temptation, or poisonous sin waiting to strike you down, this might be b/c you have failed to enjoy the absurdity of the cross and cling still to something or someone who belongs to Christ. Empty yourselves in surrender so that Christ might fill you with his own thanksgiving. On this most absurd of feasts, look upon the cross and give God thanks for your salvation! 

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Lift High the Cross (A Sunday Homily)

[A Sunday homily for the Exaltation of the Holy Cross from 2008. . .this one has never been preached.  Our Sunday Masses in Rome were celebrated in Italian, so I never presided at one or preached at one.]

Exaltation of the Holy Cross
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
Convento SS. Domenico e Sisto, Roma

Go out, come back. Leave and return. Go out, come back. Exit and enter. Egress, ingress. Exitus, reditus. We are made, and we return to our Maker. How? The Cross. The cross of Christ Crucified is the via media, the middle way from God and the middle way back to God. From God: creation. Back to God: re-creation. Being made and lost, we cannot return to God without God. He set in history—human events, the human story—the means for our return to Him: Christ on the Cross, crucified as one of us, fully human and fully divine—a bridge from here to there. Jesus says to Nicodemus: “No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man.” And Paul writes: “Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, […] emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, […] he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.” Now, we should hear the familiar refrain of our salvation: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” And so we are saved from the eternal return to nothing from nothing; we are made perfect as our Father is perfect; “being merciful, [He] forgave [our] sin and destroyed [us] not.” 

We say: amen. Or do we? If we accept this gift, we say: amen. And then what? Carry on as before? Do we as please? Live in constant regret that we killed God? Try to make a sacrifice worthy of the gift? The poet, Christian Wiman, in a poem titled, “Hard Night,” asks the same question this way: “What words or harder gift/does the light require of me/carving from the dark/this difficult tree?” What words or gifts does the Cross require of us? Paul writes that the coming of the Christ and his obedient death on the Cross, moved God to exalt His Son and to “bestow on him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend […] and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord…” No other words. Let your tongue confess. There is no harder gift to give than the gift given on the Cross. Bow your knees at his name. And then what? It’s not so certain, is it? Once we have confessed the Lordship of the Christ and bent our knees to his rule, what we do next is no certain thing. With the Gift of the Cross in hand, we might worship it, take it around in procession, put it to work for our health and wealth; we might be embarrassed by its necessity or feel imposed upon to react with faint gratitude. Have you ever thought that there had to be a better way? Another way to achieve your eternal life? Something less bloody, something not quite so gruesome? Have you ever been angry with Pilate, the Jewish leadership, the mob that shouted, “Crucify him!”? Perhaps praying before a crucifix, you felt a dangerous rise of bile and wanted nothing more to do with the cruelty of a god who needs blood to love? Or perhaps you felt a dark fear that once we settled in your heart the gift of a bloody sacrifice, you would never be the same again? 

Yet another poet, John Ashbery, writes, “…all was certain on the Via Negativa/except the certainty of return, return/to the approximate.” If we are afraid of the Cross, this is what we fear most: to walk the via media of Christ’s crucifixion means accepting the inevitably of joining him on the Cross. Peter, in a fit of fear and false love, denied the inevitability of Christ’s defeat and, in turn, pushed against the necessity of his own crucifixion. Jesus, knowing the certainty of his Father’s Via Negativa, pushed back, “Get behind me, Satan!” Even then, he was empty, obedient to death, and ready to die on the Cross. Perhaps we show our deepest gratitude to Christ by emptying ourselves, being obedient to death, and preparing ourselves to die in his name. Perhaps. But what does this mean for tomorrow? For today? Sitting in a room, cases packed, shoes neatly tied, waiting for martyrdom? Nothing so quietistic as all that! Paul says that we should bend our knees and confess Jesus as Lord. Walking this path of worshipful praise cannot be good exercise if we fail to do what Christ himself did: feed the hungry, clothe the naked, heal the sick. Add to this preach the Good News of God’s mercy and teach what Christ himself taught and we have beginning for our gratitude, just the barest start to what must be a life given over wholly to the path of righteousness. That’s a lot to fear. Especially when you know that the one you used to be will not be found again. At most you might think to “the return to the approximate.” But why? 

Look at Moses and God’s people in the desert. “With their patience worn out by the journey, the people complained against God and Moses…” Not only are we made and made to return to our Maker, but we are rescued from death by the death of Christ on the Cross and expected then to prepare ourselves for following him to the Cross, obedient to death, bending the knee, confessing his name, and waiting, waiting, waiting for his return to us so we can return to Him. Has our patience worn out from this journey? Do we complain against God and His Church? Our desert is not getting smaller or cooler or less arid. Our days are no shorter. Our nights no brighter. Moses wanders and we follow. And our patience, already silk-thin, rubs even thinner, waiting on the fulfillment of the promise the Cross made in God’s name. While waiting, what do we do? Some of us persevere, walking the Way. Some of us withdraw to wait. Others walk off alone. Still others erect idols to new gods and find hope in different, alien promises. Some let the serpents bite and thrill in the poisonous moment before death. Perhaps most who were with us at first perish from hearts stiffened by apathy, what love they had exhausted by the tiresome demands of an obedience they never fully heard. Not all the seeds will fall on smooth, fertile earth. If those who walked away or surrendered or succumbed to attacks on the heart, if they are out there and not here with us, what hope do we have of going forward, of continuing on to our own crosses in the city’s trash heap? We exalt the Cross. And they are not lost. Never, finally, lost. Unless they choose not to be found. 

We exalt the Cross. Lifted high enough and waved around vigorously enough, even those lost will find it. Even those who, for now, do not want to be found, may see it and be healed, if they will. But they will not see what they must to be healed if those of us who claim to walk the Way do so shyly, timidly, quietly. The Way of Christ to the Cross is not a rice paper path that we must tip-toe across so as not to tear it. Or a shaky jungle bridge over a ravine that we must not sway for fear of falling. Or a bed of burning coals that we must hop across quickly so as to avoid blistering our feet. The Way of Christ to the Cross has been made smooth, straight, and downhill all the way but nonetheless dangerous for its ease. There’s still the jeering mob, the scourge, the spit and the garbage, and there’s still the three nails waiting at the end. But this is what we signed up for, right? It’s what we promised to do, to be. Our help is in the name of the Lord. Bend the knee. Confess his name. Do so loudly, proudly and do so while doing what Christ himself did. Otherwise, who will find us among the jeering crowd, the spitting mob; who will see the Cross if we fail to lift it high?

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"Sorry. . .people of America!"

At this moment. . .it is vitally important for Americans to remember that the terrorists who kill in the name of Islam do not represent every Muslim.   The loons of Westboro Baptist Church do not represent all Christians.  The LCWR does not represent all religious women in the U.S. nor do they speak for every Catholic.  Nor do the Occupiers represent 99% of Americans.

Every identifiable group--religious, racial, political, etc.--has its loose screws, its hot-heads, its fringe elements.   These outliers cannot be allowed to control our response to the group as a whole.

This isn't wimpy liberalism; it's simple rationality and charity. 

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Suffer well to be holy

23rd Week OT (W)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

We easily recognize Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. This is Luke's version, the version where the blessed are starkly contrasted with the cursed. “Blessed are you” vs. “Woe to you.” No serious follower of Christ hopes to be among the cursed, and no one lands in their company by accident or through ignorance. Jesus preaches his famous sermon from the mount—probably many times in many places—so that no one may later claim, “But Lord! I didn't know that I was suppose to be holy! I thought just being a nice guy was enough.” In logical terms, being nice is necessary but not sufficient when pursuing holiness. The Lord's invitation to each of us to begin a pilgrimage toward a holy life is given a more modern translation by the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council. From their document, Lumen gentium, we read, “Fortified by so many and such powerful means of salvation—[the sacraments],—all the faithful, whatever their condition or state, are called by the Lord, each in his own way, to that perfect holiness whereby the Father Himself is perfect”(11). Thus we are called; thus we are warned. 

Let's be clear in our own minds what it means to be holy. Holiness is not about piety; that is, you can behave piously and remain comfortably among the accursed. Who was it that described the Pharisees, in all their pious finery, as “white-washed tombs”? Nor is being holy about morality; that is, you can successfully avoid every immoral thought, word, and deed that tempts you and still remain entrenched among the accursed. Does Jesus ever bless a good moral act in his sermon on blessedness? Nor is being holy about assenting to the truth of dogma or doctrine; that is, you can memorize the Catechism and the Bible, recite them both w/o error in front of the Holy Father, swear you believe every word, and still find yourself playing among the accursed. Even the Devil can quote scripture. Having said all that, being pious, morally good, and orthodox are all necessary to growing in holiness but none of them (nor all of them together) is what it means to be holy. Holiness (blessedness) is principally about how we choose to suffer—that is, how we choose to understand and act on the pain and deprivation we experience while separated from our Father. Who does Jesus say is blessed? The poor, the hungry, those who mourn, and those who suffer for the sake of his Name. 

And why are these folks blessed? What's so holy about being poor, hungry, mournful, and persecuted? There's nothing especially holy about any of these conditions as such. What's special about being poor, hungry, etc. is that each of these states in life offers the ones who endure them the chance to see beyond their earthly limitations and rely completely on the loving-care of God. They are given a clearer vision of what it means to be humble before the Lord than those who might rely on their wealth and good name for comfort. The Council Fathers note that we are all called to holiness regardless of our state in life or the condition of our lives. Any one of us might choose to suffer poorly and attach ourselves to the bottle, the casino, the needle, or some other false god. Or we might choose to avoid pain and deprivation by causing others pain and depriving them of their due. True holiness entails genuine piety, righteous words and deeds, and right belief about the faith. But the next step beyond these necessities is choosing to throw ourselves completely and w/o hesitation on the loving-care of God. We call this abandonment to divine providence humility. The truly humble are already among the blessed. 

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Diagnosing our fears

Besides sweating away several gallons of fluid during the Issac power outage, I spent some time re-reading William Barrett's Irrational Man.  

May I suggest that faithful Catholics do the same?  (At least parts one and two)

Why?

Barrett traces the roots of the West's existential crisis and identifies nihilism* as the source of our deepest personal and cultural anxieties.  B.O.'s 2008 campaign directly addressed these anxieties with an appeal to superficial Hope & Change.  And we bought it.  Well, most of us did anyway.

I'm not suggesting that you read Barrett as a matter of political science but as a plausible diagnosis of what's happening to us as a freedom-loving nation and God-fearing culture.

Many of the political developments in the last half-century arose out of our collective fear of personal annihilation (physical and spiritual), a need for security now that we've sequestered God away from the public square.  The academy's assault on the intelligibility of truth and the rise of the National Security Nanny State push us further and further along the road to serfdom.

I'm not suggesting that philosophical existentialism gives us a solution to our cultural anxieties.  Far from it.  Historically, existentialism served as a diagnostic tool not a treatment regime.  

The only well-documented treatment for the crippling fear of nothingness is God.  While the Nanny State has always failed--will always fail--God does not and cannot fail. 

*Existential nihilism is the philosophical theory that life has no intrinsic meaning or value. With respect to the universe, existential nihilism posits that a single human or even the entire human species is insignificant, without purpose and unlikely to change in the totality of existence. According to the theory, each individual is an isolated being "thrown" into the universe, barred from knowing "why", yet compelled to invent meaning.  The inherent meaninglessness of life is largely explored in the philosophical school of existentialism, where one can potentially create his or her own subjective "meaning" or "purpose". Of all types of nihilism, existential nihilism gets the most literary and philosophical attention. 

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Coffee Cup Browsing

And our descent into the Abyss continues. . .can't say we weren't warned!

Coming to the U.S.: your job or your faith.  Your choice.

An alternative remedy to curing dissident clergy/religious:  sue them for fiduciary malpractice.

ObamaCare described in one (long) sentence.

Rare photo of one of my fav poets, Emily Dickinson.  NB.  Ignore the intentionally provocative headline.  It's a product of 90's feminists inventing history to push an agenda.

This looks oddly familiar. . .didn't something like this happen when Jimmy was Prez?

Russian female choir sings "By the Waters of Babylon" (Ps 137). . .Beautiful!

Religion is an inherently public practice.
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Novena for Religous Liberty

Fr. Frederick L. Miller, Professor of Systematic Theology at Mount St. Mary Seminary in MD has written and published. . .

A Novena to the Mother of God for the Nation

The novena addresses our Blessed Mother and begs her to intervene with her Son for the protection of our God-given religious liberties.

You can download the novena in pamphlet form and print it out.

By Sept 29th (the first day of the novena) I hope I will no longer be this awful Envy-Green color!

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On not forgetting that we have an Enemy

A 9/11 note from Instapundit:

And here’s a passage from Lee Harris’s Civilization And Its Enemies.

Forgetfulness occurs when those who have been long inured to civilized order can no longer remember a time in which they had to wonder whether their crops would grow to maturity without being stolen or their children sold into slavery by a victorious foe …

They forget that in time of danger, in the face of the Enemy, they must trust and confide in each other, or perish.

They forget, in short, that there has ever been a category of human experience called the Enemy. And that, before 9/11, was what had happened to us. The very concept of the Enemy had been banished from our moral and political vocabulary. An enemy was just a friend we hadn’t done enough for — yet. Or perhaps there had been a misunderstanding, or an oversight on our part — something that we could correct. And this means that that our first task is that we must try to grasp what the concept of the Enemy really means.

The Enemy is someone who is willing to die in order to kill you. And while it is true that the Enemy always hates us for a reason — it is his reason, and not ours.

I would add:  When a society loses the ability to remember its past--discards its grounding in history--and lives its God-given freedom as an entitlement, that society has put a loaded gun to its head.  The 9/11 terrorists pulled the trigger. And we're still cleaning up the mess.

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Interpreting the Bible

In our Intro to the Old Testament class this morning, we'll be reading and discussing the 1994 document of the Pontifical Biblical Commission, "The Interpretation of the Bible."

This means I get to use my favorite $15 theological word, hermeneutics.

Ya know, it's the small things in life. . .

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Love is always a public act

23rd Week OT (M)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

Our English translation of this gospel really doesn't capture an important element of the event it describes. What at first reads like a standard “Jesus vs. the Pharisees in the synagogue” story is actually much more complex. This complexity is brushed over by the way the translators chose to translate the manner in which the Pharisees observe Jesus and the man with the withered hand interacting. Our version reads, “the Pharisees watched him closely.” Older versions do a better job: they were “spying.” To describe their behavior as “spying” helps us to understand the question Jesus asks of them, “. . .is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?” Jesus will do good on the Sabbath by healing the man's hand; while the Pharisees do evil on the Sabbath by spying and plotting evil. Jesus will save the man's life; while the Pharisees conspire to take Jesus' life. The more fundamental contrast here btw Jesus and his enemies is the contrast btw secrecy and publicity. When following the first commandment of love, Jesus holds himself (and us) to a higher standard of public behavior. Loving or failing to love are always public events. 

The basic theological difference btw Jesus and the Pharisees comes down to how they answer the question: how do we become righteous?; that is, by what means do we enter into a right relationship with God? The Pharisees teach that entering into a right relationship with God requires that we studiously observe the Law. Jesus doesn't disagree. But he does teach that “observing the Law” requires much more than simply “following the rules.” In order to observe the Law faithfully, we must go underneath the Law, seek out what motivates its rule and regulations, and align ourselves with the living spirit of the Law. What's the one commandment that grounds all the others? The originating rule that motivates all the rules? Love God, self, and neighbor first; then, all the other commandments may be properly observed and righteousness obtained. In fact, love first and then observing all the other commandments comes naturally! And note: there is no way to follow the first commandment of love secretly or privately. Loving God, self, and neighbor is always public, always a public testimony to one's righteousness. 

If following the first commandment of love always entails public acts that witness to your right relationship with God, then your public behavior must be worthy of the one who died to make that relationship possible. Paul writes to the Corinthians about a man in their church who's taken up with his father's wife. It's not clear if this woman is the man's mother or step-mother; regardless, it's an incestuous relationship—a sin that even the pagans of the day condemned. Paul urges the church to toss this guy out so that he might repent and be saved. By tossing him out of the church, the church will also prevent his sin from corrupting the whole body. This is a medicinal move, a cure meant to spare the man and the church from eternal death. The man's public behavior does not give testimony to his right relationship with God; in fact, it does just the opposite: it bears witness to the fact that he is not aligned with Love and threatens—by example—to leaven the church with “malice and wickedness.” Keeping his sin private might stall public scandal, but an injury to a part of the Body is an injury to whole Body. Heal one part, the whole is healed. 

Jesus publicly violates the Law of the Sabbath in order to obey the Law of Love, thus teaching the Pharisees and us that the rules flow from Love as a means for us to love publicly. Just as the Pharisees fail to love when they plot evil on the Sabbath, so the man in Corinth fails to love by sinning. The cure—for the Pharisees, the man, and for each of us—is repentance, confession, penance, and the healing word of God's mercy. 

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Jesuits Bully Archbishop (not exactly!)

Way back in the late 80's I discovered that I'm dyslexic.  By this time, I'd earned a B.A. in philosophy and history and a M.A. in English.  Apparently, I'd found ways to cope.

In case you're wondering what dyslexia looks like to the dyslexic, here' an example. . .

I saw this headline on a Catholic news aggregate site:

"Jesuit university to buy Philly archbishop's residence"

My response, "How does a Jesuit university bully an archbishop's residence?!"

So, then my overactive imagination takes over and I start running scenarios through my head where a black-cassocked university building shoves a purple-surpliced mansion into his locker and gives him a wedgie.

Yea.  That's how my brain "works."  Go figure.

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Stand Strong & Do Not Fear!

23rd Sunday OT
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

Audio File

Hear God's promise. If your heart is weary and your mind confused: Stand strong; do not be afraid! Here is your God! The Lord, He comes to our defense. With justice, with divine restitution, He comes to heal all our afflictions, rescue us from all our foes. Then, will the eyes of the blind see and the ears of the deaf hear. Then, will the beaten and bruised find shelter and the hungry recline to feast. Then, will the tongue of the mute sing and the innocent find protection. Rivers will freely flow in the wastelands, and springs will water the deserts. Thus says the Lord to His prophet, Isaiah. And thus, do we—the adopted children of God the Father; brothers and sisters in His Son; and heirs to the Kingdom through His Holy Spirit—lay claim to this promise and bear faithful witness: the Lord God fulfills His promises and has done so in Christ Jesus. Our ears are open and our tongues set free. We see clearly and speak the truth. Nothing and no one frightens us. As the one body of Christ—living in the world but not of it—we are servants of God and stewards of His mysteries. So, if your heart is weary and your mind confused: Stand strong and do not be afraid! 

We need to this reminder of God's promise of salvation b/c underneath Isaiah's prophesy of renewal is a potentially crippling reality: fear and confusion—if left to fester—will deafen us to the Lord's word and still our tongues in speaking His truth. That Isaiah is given this prophecy is evidence enough that God's people are edging toward spiritual deafness and silence. And it's fear that's pushing them. Amidst every human failure and flaw we can list—war, famine, poverty, political and religious oppression—right in the center of every disaster writhes the dark spirit of fear. Fear drains away hope and attacks faith; it lifts up disorder and discord as the exclusive and inevitable finish-line for being alive. What does the spirit of fear want us to believe about ourselves and our world? To thrive in the hearts and minds of God's creatures, fear must convince us that we are wholly subject to the random workings of a universe w/o purpose; that we are nothing more than the most highly evolved animals currently occupying a delicate fly-speck planet in a fly-speck galaxy; that even as we live and move among six billion other highly evolved animals, we are, in the end, completely alone. And more than all of these combined, fear must convince us that in our aloneness, we are nothing. 

We need Isaiah's reminder of God's promise of salvation b/c fear does its best work when we surrender to the lie that we are nothing. Our philosophers and theologians have given this lie a name, Nihilism. Nihil is the spirit of nothingness, a devil that can possess a single soul, a family, a nation; and it drives one and all to embrace existence w/o meaning or purpose. French novelist and philosopher, Albert Camus, asks the ultimate nihilist question, “Why not commit suicide?” If you are a random genetic accident, an animal who just happens to think, and your life is nothing more than pain and suffering, why not skip to the inevitable end and kill yourself? Nihil speaks the language of despair fluently and sometimes persuasively. In fact, if you close your ears to God's word and refuse to speak His truth, you begin the process of learning Nihil's preferred way of speaking, phrases like “product of conception,” “termination of pregnancy,” “painless expiration,” “acceptable collateral damage,” and “capital justice.”* When you become comfortable using Nihil's voice, you have been emptied of hope, and bereft of faith. Love—God's own life-giving presence in each of us and among us—is abandoned. And what do we get in exchange? Not hate. Not anger. We get Fear. 

He couldn't hear, couldn't speak. Jesus takes him away from the crowd and ministers to his closed ears and his locked up tongue. “Be opened!” And the man hears and speaks, and the crowd is exceedingly astonished. Jesus orders them to keep quiet about the miracle, but the more he insists on their silence, the more they witness to his power, “He has done all things well.” They could not be silent about this miracle of hope. They would not be silent about the awesome power of a loving God. Nor can we. Our silence now is a vanity, a luxury. We cannot afford to pretend that we do not hear God's promise to Isaiah, “Here is your God, He comes with vindication!” We cannot afford the social privileges and cultural power that our collective silence buys us. We cannot hide behind modesty, “tolerance,” or the dubious benefits of accommodation. Jesus frees the poor man's ears so that he might hear. And he frees his tongue so that he might speak. Whether or not he will listen and speak, whether or not he will put these gifts to work for the sake of Christ is his choice. Nihil is at work on him already, encouraging the man's disobedience and silence. And he is constantly at work on us as well. 

Thus, we hear Isaiah prophesy, “Say to those whose hearts are frightened: Be strong, fear not! Here is your God, he comes with vindication; with divine recompense he comes to save you.” And we hear Jesus say to the man who cannot hear or speak, “Be opened!” And we hear the Psalmist sing, “Praise the Lord, my soul!/The God of Jacob keeps faith forever; He secures justice for the oppressed. . .” We heard and we hear. But do we listen, and do we speak? Through all the white noise and violence at us thrown by Nihil and his servant, Fear, do we listen and do we speak? If our hearts are frightened and our minds confused, then listening is not only difficult but probably impossible. If we do not listen to God's word, how can we speak His word? And if we are unwilling to speak, to give witness to His power in our own lives, how will anyone else hear Him speak? God says to us, “Be strong and do not fear!” It's not our own strength that we rely upon. It's not our own words that move hearts and minds toward Him. In that moment of crisis—physical or spiritual—that instant of emergency, it is the Holy Spirit who stands us up and gives us the words we need to speak. This is why there is nothing and no one for us to fear. 

So, how do we conquer fear and clear our minds? A good start to answering this question is to remember God's promise and keep our eyes squarely focused on where we are headed. Of course, we must pay attention to where we are at the moment, but everything we say and do in the moment is given its meaning, its purpose by our final destination. Nihil would have us believe that our end is nothingness. Fear pushes us to panic and passion. As the world around us swirls the bowl, we swirl along with it: we're in it but not of it. With our hearts and minds wholly owned and operated by the Holy Spirit, we believe—we know—that nothingness is not our end. Isaiah's prophecy is fulfilled in the coming of the Christ. And we are his brothers and sisters. Not random collections of thinking genetic material. Not cosmic accidents just eating and breathing 'til we drop dead. But children of a loving God who promises a restoration, a renewal in His mercy. That's the Good News that we must share and share often. Therefore, stand strong and do not be afraid!

* A very attentive parishioner brought to my attention that this sentence appears to draw a moral equivalence btw abortion and capital punishment.  I disagree.  The plain language of the sentence indicates that I am talking about how nihilism encourages us to use sterile, medical, or high-minded terms for what is basically killing.  There is no mention of the relative moral status of the related acts described.  My point is that nihilists' want us to use language that strips killing of all teleological sense.   Besides, there is no moral equivalence btw abortion and capital punishment.

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Stewards & Fools

22nd Week OT (F): Votive Mass of the Sacred Heart of Jesus
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

Paul has spent this week surprising us with his take on the difference btw being “wise in the world” and “foolish for God.” Just yesterday he told us, “If anyone among you considers himself wise in this age, let him become a fool, so as to become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in the eyes of God.” For the followers of Christ, salvation depends on becoming increasingly foolish—as the world sees it. And looking around the internet and cable news, it's clear that the world sees us as Big Fools Only Getting Bigger. From their perspective—atheist, materialist, secular, nihilistic—it's easy to see why Christians in the 21st century would look foolish. We believe all sorts of bizarre things: the existence of angels, saints, miracles, God; the efficacy of sacraments; the intelligibility of truth; objective moral standards; the natural law. Just weird stuff like that. This is why Paul's description of Christ's 1st century followers in Corinth should ring particularly true for us today: “Brothers and sisters: we should be regarded as the servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.” 

We know what it means to be “servants of Christ.” Serving Christ means serving the least among his people, both the materially poor and the spiritually poor. As we have already heard this week: proclaiming the Gospel is doing the Gospel. Word and deed, faith and works. Done for the greater glory of God, there is no difference btw the two. But what does it mean for us to be “stewards of God's mysteries”? In Paul's day, stewards were usually slaves, educated slaves who managed the household of his owner. He was in charge of the other slaves; responsible for shopping, accounts, payroll. In the absence of the owner, the steward was the de facto Head of Household. When Jesus gives the keys to the kingdom of heaven to Peter, he is making Peter his steward, his vicar. Peter and his successors become the ones who manage, administer Christ's Church on earth until he returns. More than anything else in the Church, Christ's steward “manages” the mysteries that bring us closer to God, the sacraments. But what does it mean for you to be a steward of the mysteries? This is where we become better fools for God. 

While the Church has her ordained ministers to manage the sacraments, what mysteries do her lay members manage? The first and greatest mystery that needs careful lay management is one's faith. Faith is the good habit of trusting in God's providence, His loving-care. For a habit to remain a habit, it must be exercised, worked-out—vigorously. This means setting aside, willfully pushing aside, all anxiety about the future. It means setting free the obsessive need to control people and events, to make sure that you get your way. It also means believing w/o empirical evidence, or persuasive argument. Faith never utters the phrases, “Show me” or “Prove it” when it comes to the will of God. In this world, faith is pure foolishness, the greatest foolishness. We are an evidence-based, outcomes-driven culture that demands empirical, verifiable, repeatable results. Faith sees and hears the world with the mind of Christ. The world's wisdom teaches us that we are nothing but our bodies. Faith teaches us—through the dual lenses of enduring hope and sacrificial love—that we are made perfect (body and soul) in Christ. The world fears its limits, loathes its finitude, and works tirelessly to gather to itself any and everything it can to stall annihilation. Faith knows that nothing gathered here will last, nothing won here will bring final victory. As the wise of the world wail against our foolishness, remember: we are stewards of the mysteries of God, His faithful servants, His hard-headed slaves.

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Coffee Cup Browsing (en breve)

Dem convention officials refuse non-political gift baskets from local churches.  These people really just don't get it do they?

Court Prophetess tells the screaming pro-abort mob exactly what it wants to hear. 

"All chair, no substance." Something Really Important and Unprecedented was suppose to happen last night.  [crickets]

Is the Church 200 yrs "out of date"?  Probably.  But the Gospel is eternal and therefore dateless!

When you've tried everything else. . .pray.  (Hint:  you probably shouldn't pray for a schism though).

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Go Out into the Deep! (Homily audio file)

Homily for 22nd Week OT (Wed):  Go Out in the Deep!












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Scary: We are co-workers with God. . .

22nd Week OT (W)
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

Paul writes to the Corinthians, revealing to them one of the scariest truths I've ever heard, “. . .we are God's co-workers; [. . .] God's building. . . .” Upon being reminded of this scary truth, my first thought is, “No, no. I'm one of His more difficult building projects. Over budget, behind schedule, and poorly maintained.” But then it dawns on me that God will not build me w/o me; He will not remove my freedom to participate willingly in my own construction. When and where I fail, I fail to work with God's divine blueprint. How do I get back on schedule, on budget, and well-maintained? Jesus cures Simon's mother-in-law. Others with various illnesses came to him and “he laid his hands on each of them and cured them.” So impressed were the crowds that “they tried to prevent him from leaving them.” But Jesus was sent for another reason. He says to them, "To the other towns also I must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God. . .” When did he proclaim the Good News in this town? He didn't preach or teach. There were no reported debates. So, how exactly did he proclaim the Good News? “He laid his hands on each of them and cured them.” 

If you too are over budget, behind schedule, and poorly maintained as a building project of the Lord, let me suggest a possible reason for your decrepitude: you have made too much of the difference btw “proclaiming the Good News” and “doing the Good News.” I mean, you have either placed Being a Christian over Working as Christian or Working as a Christian over Being a Christian. Simply being as a Christian is well and good. But where are your works? What legacy of charitable action do you leave behind? How much real, living hope have you sown? Simply working as a Christian is well and good also. But where do you place your trust? Why are you working so hard for the poor, the oppressed, the sick? Are you more than a religiousy social worker? In our gospel this evening, Jesus shows us that proclaiming the Good News is doing the Good News. Not simply saying stuff about the gospel but actually working in mercy, charity, and hope. And none of this is possible if we do not acknowledge and celebrate the Christ as our Lord, One to Whom we are obedient. The foundational motivation for all gospel labor must be to give glory to God so that His mercy to sinners may be made evident, plain as day. Every act of gospel labor is precisely an act of gospel labor b/c it is done for the sake for Christ. 

If you are a faithful soul, a thoroughly convicted believer in the Gospel and you are still struggling with persistent sin, dry in prayer, consider this: you aren't working with God to build a better you. If you are a zealous defender of the oppressed, a totally committed activist for justice and you still find yourself frustrated, angry, depressed by failure, consider this: you aren't trusting God, not giving Him the glory through Christ. Catholics can rattle off the phrase “word and deed” faster than most of us can blink. But do we hear what we are saying? The revelation of God in Christ Jesus is given to us in and through his words and in and through his deeds.* Not one OR the other. Both. With ears to hear, we listen to his teaching. With eyes to see, we watch his behavior. What does Jesus say? What does Jesus do? Being a follower of Christ and working as a follower of Christ is always, always about the gospel word-deed. An act done with God. With God an act done. More than His projects, we are fellow project managers. We are co-workers with God for His glory. 

* "This plan of revelation is realized by deeds and words having in inner unity: the deeds wrought by God in the history of salvation manifest and confirm the teaching and realities signified by the words, while the words proclaim the deeds and clarify the mystery contained in them. By this revelation then, the deepest truth about God and the salvation of man shines out for our sake in Christ, who is both the mediator and the fullness of all revelation" (Dei verbum 2).

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Coffee Cup Browsing

Taxpayer funded abortion on-demand, same-sex "marriage," and God deleted.  Dems are off to a great start!

Oh, and we belong to the Gov't.  Had no idea.

An atheist schism?  Well, fundamentalists are known for splitting off into factions.

B.O.'s definition of sin.  Wow.  You can't get more Baby Boomer than that.

Just how Pro-Life is Mitt?

Self-anointed "Messiah" dies.   Or did he. . .?  Hmmmmmm. . .

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A question for my tech-enhanced readers. . .

UPDATE:  Problem solved.  I threatened my laptop with an exorcism and now the little "Sign In" thingie is back where it's supposed to be.  Go figure.  Thanks for the suggestions!

Up until yesterday I could sign into my blogger account from the blog itself.  The little "Sign In" link was on the top right hand side of my browser window.  Now, it's gone.  

Today, I went to my office and clicked on the blog and the little "Sign In" thing was right where it was supposed to be.

So, why does it appear on my office computer but not my laptop?  

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A lifetime acceptable to the Lord

St. Gregory
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

Have you ever had an ancient prophecy fulfilled in your hearing? I haven't; at least, I don't think I have. Wouldn't there be thunder or bells or a flashes of light? Some physical wonder to mark the occasion? When Jesus announces that Isaiah's messianic prophecy has been fulfilled in the hearing of those present, there's not much to mark the event. No angels or raging wind or fiery words written across the sky. Jesus reads the prophecy, rolls up the scroll, hands it back to the attendant, and sits down. The others stare at him for a minute or two and then Jesus says, almost casually, “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.” You almost expect him to ask for a cup of tea. The fireworks don't start until after he is challenged to prove his claim. Those in the synagogue don't want a rational argument or scriptural proof-texting. They want physical evidence. Jesus really riles them up when he reminds them of a time in their people's history when idolatry and the rejection of the prophets gave God reason to send His miracles to the Gentiles. Well, that's too much for these folks. They run Jesus out of town. What he really needed in the synagogue that morning was some showmanship! Or maybe just a crowd ready to hear a prophecy fulfilled. 

 To understand exactly what Jesus laying claim to we need to look at Isaiah's prophecy more closely. So, let's break it down. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me. . .” Here Jesus is saying outright that he is the Anointed One of the Lord. “Messiah” and “Christ” both mean “Anointed One.” He is possessed by the Spirit of the Lord in virtue of having been anointed. Why has he been sent? “. . .to bring glad tidings to the poor.” Who are the poor? In other parts of the Gospels, the poor are the “poor in spirit” and “the humble.” He's certainly talking about the destitute, but the broader category here is “those in spiritual poverty.” Jesus is not announcing the start of a socio-economic revolution. His is a spiritual revolution fought in the flesh. We know this b/c he elaborates, “[The Lord] has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free. . .” All metaphors couched in more or less physical terms, indicating a release from spiritual bondage. We are captives of the Devil; blinded by ignorance, and oppressed by sin. He here's to free God's people from an ancient and obstinate slavery. And not just God's people in first century Nazareth. He was also sent “to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.” 

Now, here's where we come in. A “year acceptable to the Lord” means a Jubilee year, a Sabbath year celebrated every 50 yrs during which all debts are canceled and all slaves are freed. Also during this year, all property is returned to its rightful owner or his heirs. Jesus is proclaiming a spiritual Jubilee for those who heard him fulfill Isaiah's prophecy and for all of his Father's children until the Kingdom comes. All slaves to sin are freed. All debts incurred by sin are canceled. And God's property—that's us—is taken from the Devil and returned to its rightful owner. All of this made perfect sense to those in the synagogue. What they didn't believe was that Isaiah's prophecy had actually been fulfilled by Jesus of Nazareth. Having failed to see and hear who was with them, they ran him out of town and tried to kill him. Is this what we do when confronted by the hard work of the Gospel? Rather than throw our trust to the Lord, we question, doubt, find excuses, and waffle. If so, this is a sure sign that we have not embraced the Lord's Jubilee gift.

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Mass in the Dominican Rite

There will be a Missa Cantata in the Dominican rite on Thursday Sept. 27, 2012 at 7:15PM in the Main Chapel of the Dominican House of Studies.

For more information on our provincial website click here.

Some of our student friars will also be undergoing training in the Dominican rite during these days.  It has been many years since this Mass has been celebrated in our main chapel. Though the Dominican Rite has been celebrated here as early as last year.  
                                     
This Mass directly precedes our September 28-30, 2012 vocation weekend. If you are coming to the vocation weekend and would like to attend this Mass you are welcome to come early, just let me know.

More info here.

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It's Sept 3rd. . .

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Advice for discerning a vocation to religious life. . .

A couple of HA readers have written to ask about vocation discernment.  From 2009, here's my answer:

Q:  What basic questions should those discerning a religious vocation ask themselves?

I get a lot of questions from younger readers about vocation discernment. For the most part, they want to know how they know whether or not they have a religious vocation. I wish it were as easy as drawing blooding, testing it, and announcing the result. If horse had wings, etc. Here are three cautions and a few questions to ask yourself:

Three Cautions

Suspend any romantic or idealistic notions you might have about religious life. Religious orders are made up of sinful men and women. There is no perfect Order; no perfect monastery; no perfect charism. You WILL be disappointed at some point if you enter religious life. You are going to find folks in religious life who are angry, wounded, bitter, mean-spirited, disobedient, secretive, and just plain hateful. You will also find living saints.

Do your homework. There is no perfect Order, etc. but there is an Order out there that will best use your gifts, strengthen your weaknesses, and challenge you to grow in holiness. Learn everything you can about the Order or monastery you are considering. Use the internet, libraries, "people on the inside," and ask lots and lots of questions. Vocation directors are not salesmen. For the most part, they will not pressure you into a decision. They are looking at you as hard as you are looking them.

Be prepared to do some hard soul-searching. Before you apply to any Order or monastery, be ready to spend a great deal of time in prayer. You will have to go through interviews, psychological evaluations, physicals, credit checks, reference checks, transcript reviews, retreats, and just about anything else the vocations director can think of to make sure he/she knows as much about you as possible. Think of it as penance.

Practical Advice

If you are considering religious life right out of undergraduate school, consider again and again. Get a job. Spend two or three years doing some unpaid volunteer work for one of your favorite Orders. These help you to mature spiritually and will make you a better religious. Most communities these days need folks with practical life-skills like managing money, maintaining cars and equipment, etc.

If you have school loans, start paying them back ASAP! For men, this is not such a huge problem b/c most men's communities will assume loans on a case by case basis when you take solemn vows. For some reason, women's communities do not do this as much. Regardless, paying back your loans shows maturity. I was extremely fortunate and had my grad school loans cancelled after I was ordained! Long story. Don't ask.

Don't make any large, credit-based purchases before joining a community. Cars, houses, boats, etc. will have to be disposed of once you are in vows. Of course, if you are 22 and not thinking of joining an Order until you are 32, well, that's different story. But be aware that you cannot "take it with you" when you come into a community.

Tell family, friends, professors, employers that you thinking about religious life. It helps to hear from others what they think of you becoming a religious. Their perceptions cannot be determinative, but they can be insightful.

Be very open and honest with anyone you may become involve with romantically that you are thinking of religious life. One of the saddest things I have ever seen was a young woman in my office suffering because her fiance broke off their three year engagement to become a monk. She had no idea he was even thinking about it. There is no alternative here: you must tell. Hedging your bet with a boyfriend or girlfriend on the odds that you might not join up is fraudlent and shows a deep immaturity.

Be prepared for denial, scorn, ridicule, and outright opposition from family and friends. I can't tell you how many young men and women I have counseled who have decided not to follow their religious vocations b/c family and friends thought it was a waste of their lives. It's sad to say, but families are often the primary source of opposition. The potential loss of grandchildren is a deep sorrow for many moms and dads. Be ready to hear about it.

Questions to ask yourself

What is it precisely that makes me think I have a religious vocation?

What gifts do I have that point me to this end?

Can I live continent chaste celibacy for the rest of my life?

Can I be completely dependent on this group of men/women for all my physical needs? For most, if not all, of my emotional and spiritual needs?

Am I willing to work in order to provide resources for my Order/community? Even if my work seems to be more difficult, demanding, time-consuming, etc. than any other member of the community?

Am I willing to surrender my plans for my life and rely on my religious superiors to use my gifts for the mission of the Order? In other words, can I be obedient. . .even and especially when I think my superiors are cracked?

Am I willing to go where I am needed? Anywhere in the world?

Can I listen to those who disagree with me in the community and still live in fraternity? (A hard one!)

Am I willing join the Order/community and learn what I need to learn to be a good friar, monk, or nun? Or, do I see my admission as an opportunity to "straighten these guys out"?

How do I understand "failure" in religious life? I mean, how do I see and cope with brothers/sisters who do not seem to be doing what they vowed to do as religious?

What would count as success for me as a religious? Failure?

How patient am I with others as they grow in holiness? With myself?

I can personally attest to having "failed" to answer just about every single one of these before I became a Dominican. I was extremely fortunate to fall in with a community that has a high tolerance for friars who need to fumble around and start over. In the four years before I took solemn vows, there were three times when I had decided to leave the Order and a few more times when the prospects of becoming an "OP" didn't look too good. I hung on. They hung on. And here I am. For better or worse. Here I am.

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See that Justice is done

22nd Sun OT 

Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP 

St. Dominic Church, NOLA

AUDIO file

When our power went out last Tuesday around five o'clock, I gave a mighty sigh and prepared myself for a day or two of no A/C, no hot water, no lights. Like any good Dominican would, I went to my bookshelf and asked, “What does one read while a hurricane rages outside?” I rejected poetry—too ethereal for a storm. I rejected current events—what can I do about Iran's nuclear build-up or the collapse of the Eurozone during a hurricane? I rejected theology—that's too much like work for a priest. That left philosophy. It took me about two minutes to find William Barrett's classic 1958 study of European existentialism. Given that Isaac was slowing reducing New Orleans to a Stone Age village, the title of his book seemed more than appropriate, Irrational Man. (After four days w/o A/C and a hot shower, “irrational man” pretty much describes me to a tee)! Barrett argues that as a philosophy outside the mainstream western obsession with science and technology, existentialism challenges the human soul to face the deeply abiding problems of what it means to exist, to simply Be. He writes, “A single atmosphere pervades [all truly human problems] like a chilly wind: the radical feeling of human finitude”(36). At the root of being human is the gnawing truth that we are limited, impermanent. The Psalmist rebuts, “One who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.” 

Living in the presence of the Lord is the Father's promise to His children; it is the one hope that keeps crippling despair at bay. If we cannot and do not live with one another in the hope of the resurrection, then the oppressive weight of our mortality, the various spiritual diseases of our finitude can and will crush us, leaving us broken and dying. Barrett notes that as modern men and women we are confronted by a curious problem: as citizens of an increasingly secular culture we have come face-to-face with this “radical feeling of human finitude” at a time when our science and technology promise us nearly limitless knowledge, nearly limitless control. IOW, as our culture abandons the possibility of life beyond death (abandons God) and falls into mortal despair, we find some glimmer of hope in the power we possess to manipulate our physical world through the tools of material science. Our hope is not in the name of the Lord; our hope is in the name of Genetics, Physics, Chemistry, Nanotechnology—a pantheon for 21st century man, these are the gods who will save our bodies but cannot save our souls. The Psalmist patiently reminds us, “One who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.” 

So, you must be wondering: what does the fragility of human life and our deeply seated fear of nothingness have to do with this morning's gospel? Where's the Good News among the bad? The Good News is that even as we lament the death of our innocence in the face of war, terrorism, and natural disaster; even as we mourn the loss of reason's rule in our politics, our universities, and our media; even as we cry over the impoverishment of our collective imagination to exclude God, the saints, angels, demons, miracles, and the promise of eternal life after death; even as we surrender—as a culture—to the idolatrous practice of depending on science and technology to grant us hope for the future, the Good News remains constant, steadfast: we are creatures, crafted beings, drawn from the dust of the earth and given life by a God Who loved us at our creation, loves us now, and will always love us. This truth is not “worn over” creation like a garment but woven into everything and everyone that exists. God spoke the Word “Love” and we are. And nothing—not economic crises, not princes nor presidents; not wars, terrorist bombs, plagues; not science, technology, genetics; not even hurricanes can change the fundamental constitution of God's creation: we live, move, and have our being in Love. 

That's the Good News. Now that we know the Good News, what do we do about it? Barrett argues that modern man's confrontation with the “radical feeling of human finitude” has hobbled us with indecision and angst—a deadly moral impotence that allows violence and power to thrive in the vacuum abandoned by Christian virtue. Once upon a time, no one in the West denied the existence of God. They argued over His nature, His attributes, His will; but no one argued for atheism. Flowing naturally from a belief in the reality of God came a belief in the natural law—that all things were created to become perfect in themselves. From revelation and the natural law we derived the virtues, those good human habits that define us as loving creatures living in community. And from the virtues we derived natural human rights and legislated through our kings, parliaments, and congresses laws to uphold justice and peace. When a human law violated the natural law, we rebelled and overthrew the human law. There is no moral obligation to obey an unjust law. In fact, there is a moral obligation to disobey an unjust law. Justice always trumps the merely legal. 

What does the Good News tell us to do? Jesus shames the Pharisees for imposing unjust rules and regulations on their people. He quotes Isaiah, “This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines human precepts.” Then he adds, “You disregard God's commandment but cling to human tradition.” Why is their worship vain? The honor they pay to God is from their lips not their hearts. The Pharisees have abandoned hope and embraced regulation; they've surrendered to the lazy spirituality of following rules, thus giving up on the hard work of actually loving one another. Jesus goes to the root of the problem, saying, “Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person; but the things that come out from within are what defile.” A hardened heart, a heart that has willed itself closed to love will produce “evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly.” These are the sins that kill a soul, that murder charity and turn us away from God. James reminds us of our origins, “[The Father] willed to give us birth by the word of truth that we may be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.” We are born of truth and from truth justice flows. We are the firstfruits, the first born from His justice. And it is God's justice that stands with us when human finitude threatens us with despair. 

The Psalmist sings, “One who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.” The Goods New of Jesus Christ does not urge us to do justice. We are not encouraged or hectored to do justice. We are given a simple, elegant choice: do justice and live in the presence of the Lord, or don't. If we love the Lord and love him in service to one another, then justice abides where love prevails. The despair that might dawn on us when we come to realize our mortality, our finitude is nothing when set side-by-side with the promise of eternal life. Barrett is right: modern western men and women are besieged by the problems of that arise when they rapidly and recklessly abandon of God. As lovers of God and followers of His Christ, we are gathered and sent to be missionaries, living reminders that though human beings are finite creatures, we are not yet perfect, not yet made perfect. When we love and act lovingly; when we hope and live hopefully; when we trust God and demonstrate that trust, our creaturely limits are defeated, and God receives the glory. So, “humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you,” and in justice, see God's will done. 

___________________

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We're alive and kicking, y'all. . .

Aight. . .

We're back.

Power went out Tuesday around 8.10pm and just popped back on at 5.30pm today.  That's four days without power (i.e., no A/C) in August in NOLA!  The digital thermometer on my wall reads 91. 

Let's just say that we had a lot of community time together and I got a lot of reading done.

There was no flooding in this part of the city.  No real wind damage either.  Apparently, the problem with this hurricane was its duration over the city. . .it hung around for almost 36 hrs.  Compare this to Katrina which blew through in about 6 hrs.  Oh, and Isaac was a direct hit on NOLA while Katrina hit east of us on the MS coast.

Anyway, all is well here at St Dominic's!  Many thanks for your prayers!

P.S.  More than anything else. . .I am just grateful not to be wet anymore.  I might have grown some mold.  

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Isaac, etc.

Latest bit of news. . .

No mandatory evac of NOLA.  Basically, we're bracing for a really Big Thunderstorm.

Seminary classes are cancelled today and tomorrow.  

All the Hurricane Vets here in the priory are predicting a power outrage lasting two to three days.  

So. . .unless they have generators: no A/C for the local nursing homes, hospices, etc.  Keep them in prayer!

Katrina taught some hard lessons about preparation. . .I'm hearing from parishioners that they are more than ready.  Of course, Lakeview is a moderately upper-scale ward, so we have resources to prepare.  It's the low-lying wards south of the river and closer to the Gulf that will suffer. 

May I suggest a prayer to St. Martin de Porres? 

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Update & Thanks

Still sunny and hot here in the Big Easy. . .no orders to evacuate yet.  Seems like most around here are hunkering down for a Cat 1 hurricane and not much more.  The city gov't is assuring everyone that the levees and canals have been sufficiently upgraded to deal with any serious flooding.  We'll see.

Also, I rec'd a book today from the Wish List, Pelikan's Credo.  No name on the invoice, so I don't know who to thank.  Anyway:  Thanks!

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Be worthy of your call from God

St. Monica
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
St. Dominic Church, NOLA

As we wait for Tropical Storm Isaac to become Hurricane Isaac and make landfall, we read this morning about another storm, an ancient storm, Hurricane Jesus, who plows through the arrogance and hypocrisy of an even older religious mindset. With a storm surge rating a Category Five, Jesus doesn't mince his words; he hits the Pharisees right in the face with all he's got. Three times he uses the phrase “woe to you,” a formula of judgment and condemnation. Three times he bitterly accuses the Pharisees of blindness and hypocrisy, revealing their love of power and prestige. Three times he calls them out for the sin of abandoning their people to the false idol of greed. In a devastating accusation, Jesus says, “You traverse sea and land to make one convert, and when that happens you make him a child of Gehenna twice as much as yourselves.” In other words, he accuses the Pharisees of abandoning God's people—one by one—to the burning landfill of spiritual ruin. This is not our Sunday School Jesus. This is Hurricane Jesus set to make landfall, full force, right up the Pharisee's noses! Their most damaging spiritual fault? They are not worthy of their call from God. 

As men charged with leading God's people to righteousness through the Law, the scribes and Pharisees are set aside by God to provide instruction, direction, spiritual leadership. Their job is to help those who will to enter a covenant-relationship with God, give access to His wisdom and love. Instead, Jesus says, “You lock the Kingdom of heaven before men. You do not enter yourselves, nor do you allow entrance to those trying to enter.” Not only do they themselves refuse to enter the Kingdom, they prevent others from doing so as well. This is a failure in leadership, and more so a disastrous failure to be worthy of their calling from God. With their hearts set to love the power, riches, and celebrity that comes with their calling, the scribes and Pharisees become “blind guides” to a population of blind seekers. Lest we spend too much time and energy sneering at their many failures and forget our own, remember: we are no less vulnerable to this same failing, no less prone to holding onto our access to the Father through Christ, and becoming self-appointed Gatekeepers of the Kingdom rather than Missionaries of the Good News. 

 The scribes and Pharisees are unworthy of their divine calling b/c they have chosen to use the authority of their vocation as a tool to exalt themselves. Rather than exhaust themselves in making sure that every living soul in their charge knows and understands the Law as a means of growing in righteousness, they use the Law to set up more obstacles, higher hurdles, deeper moats. We too are guilty of this when choose to see the Church as a social club with strict membership rules; or as an exclusive retail boutique serving privileged clientele; or as a remnant of the last remaining faithful who must jealously protect God's precious gifts from those we find undesirable. Woe to us if we fail to recognize and give thanks for the inexhaustible gifts of our loving God. Woe to us if we set up social, political, cultural, racial obstacles to those gifts. Woe to us if we preach the Good News but dwell in the hypocrisy. Paul urges us to live lives worthy of our divine calling; to live the Gospel life with grace, reckless abandon; always throwing ourselves on the mercy of God, and forever depending entirely on His never-ending abundance. When we share His Good News without hesitation or worry, we offer Him thanks. Generosity multiplies generosity. Welcome and be welcomed. 

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Audio for 21stSunOT w/comments

Here's the audio file for my homily from the 21st Sunday OT, "Are you prepared for radical transfiguration?"

A couple of parishioners said things like, "Too intellectual for this parish, Father."

Others said things like, "Enjoyed it.  Didn't understand some of it."

A couple encouraged me to preach this way more often.

One faithful soul chastised me for "apologizing" for quoting difficult material from BXVI, "Don't ever apologize, Father, for making us grow!"  Yes, ma'am, said I.

No one dumped on it, but they probably wouldn't say anything too negative to me personally.  Too bad.

As a Dominican, I refuse to coddle Catholics when I preach. . .meaning, no New Age Oprah Pablum; no social-justicey cliches; no "Jesus Loves You" greeting card verse; no Boil It All Down junk.  

  

I want to challenge w/o alienating; dare without being needlessly aggressive.  Catholics are always smarter and tougher than priests think they are.  Give it to them, Fathers.  They can take it.

What say you?

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