O Boże, któryś błg. wyznawcę Twego, św. Bonawenturę, niebiańską obdarzył mądrością i wielkim uczynił nauczycielem w Kościele, prosimy Cię, aby ten, któregośmy na ziemi za mistrza mieli, raczył być dla nas w niebie życzliwym orędownikiem. Amen.
Boże, któryś błogosławionego wyznawcę Twego, Aleksego, przedziwną pokorą natchnął i do życia w ubóstwie zapalił, daj nam, abyśmy pokorę jego naśladowali, a w zasługach jego zasłużyli mieć uczestnictwo. Przez Chrystusa Pana naszego. Amen.
I rarely discuss issues like this. I think the faith is rather clear on war issues. I also think that Jesus Christ’s commands to us are very clear in regard to our duty as Christians. That is why true Christianity is so diametrically opposed to the things that precipitate war and to the conduct of war.
Unless I am mistaken, no Christian in the first centuries of Christianity would stand up to anyone with intent to fight. They stood up of course, but that was to proclaim the truth. Many died for doing so. Most died horribly, but their faith was sure.
By Augustine’s time the Church had developed certain doctrines (Just War Theory) to cover the eventuality of war. Still, on the whole, Christianity, as institutionalized by that time, was reactive to aggression.
To me, war is the product of those who lust for power, control, or who simply have a taste for death and destruction (ala the brutality carried out by some troops, most recently U.S. troops).
This week’s events in Israel, along with the re-invasion of Gaza, are just the next step in the long slide toward self imposed annihilation. The people who built this road, who are the authors of the coming annihilation, are the so-called neo-con drum beaters in the United States and of course the ‘I have my own agenda’ Israelis (and there are others jumping on the bandwagon too).
The new paradigm is war. It is war for any reason, real or perceived. It is proactive, pre-emptive, and out of scale to the reality of the situation. Washington (under the neo-cons) and Tel Aviv (always) have decided that the atmosphere for destruction is right. They have set the tone for the world. Don’t be surprised if the world goes up in flames.
- Civilian death —“ ok
- Disproportionate and random shelling, bombing, bulldozing —“ ok
- Hit civilian targets – ok
- Drop a bomb on a car filled with five kids and a terrorist – ok
- Invading other sovereign countries based on a perception —“ ok
- Blockades —“ ok
- Playing poker with one devil to get the next – ok
- Lies to make it all ok —“ ok
I cannot fathom the idea that we or Israel are so unsophisticated and so inept that we have to bulldoze and use low yield nuclear weapons to get the ‘bad guys’.
Now, I am no pacifist. I hope every terrorist gets a nice hole in their head ASAP. I just think we could use brains to do it rather than brawn. That we could think our way through solutions, rather than bulldozing through them. That we could be a shining example of justice, truth, and civilized ideals, rather than a people who trample on their own rights in order to act like their enemy.
Terror is being committed on all sides and the innocent are the ones being hurt. No matter how you count the bodies, the innocent outweigh the guilty. That’s not just, truthful, or even smart in the long run. If you don’t see your children and grandchildren covered in blood when they relay the pictures from Beirut, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Gaza, or Baghdad, then you are not a Christian or a human being.
For additional information check out Antiwar.com and the Anti War Blog.
Prosimy Cię Panie, niech nas Tobie zaleca modlitwa błg. Jana Gwalberta opata, abyśmy przez wstawienie się jego to osiągnęli, czego przez własne zasługi dostąpić nie zdołamy. Przez Chrystusa Pana naszego. Amen.
Our pastor and I were kindly invited to attend the Funeral Mass in honor of the former Roman Catholic Bishop of Albany and the past executive director of Catholic Relief Services, Bishop Edwin Broderick.
I very much appreciated that Fr. Mike Farano, Pastor of St. Pius X, invited us.
As best as I can tell from our parish history, Bishop Broderick was particularly kind to our Church from an ecumenical perspective —“ long before there was any official dialog between the Roman Catholic and PNC Churches.
I was surprised by the fact that there weren’t more ecumenical guests. It was us and Bishops Daniel Herzog and David Ball from the Episcopal Diocese of Albany (not for long) along with the Very Rev. Marshall Vang, Dean of the Cathedral parish.
We attended in choir dress (cassock, surplice, stole) as did the Episcopal contingent (although Bishop Herzog had a kind of a long red garment on —“ being unfamiliar with Episcopal Church vestiture I’m not sure what it was).
I want to mention my thanks to the Rev. David Mickiewicz who acted as Mater of Ceremonies and took us under his wing, and the Rev. James Kane, Director of the Albany R.C. Diocesan Commission for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, for their kindness.
There were six or seven R.C. Bishops and Archbishops in attendance. The Funeral Mass was presided over by the Current Bishop of Albany, Howard Hubbard.
Not much surprised me during the Mass but there were three things that stood out.
They are still using glass pitchers on the altar to hold the precious blood. I thought that had been stopped and was a no no.
The other thing that stood out was the way people received the Eucharist. Even with all the bowing while walking up it was even less reverent than I remember it. The topper was one elderly nun who walked up with a cane. Because of her condition, not being able to receive in one hand while placing the Eucharist in her mouth with the other hand, I figured she would receive on the tongue. Nope, she received in the right hand and popped Jesus into her mouth like a tic-tac. I almost fell over.
The last thing that really amazed me was when they brought the Bishop’s body out of the church. The assembled clergy spontaneously sang Salve Regina IN LATIN. I joined right in.
Eternal rest grant unto him o Lord and may the perpetual light shine upon him.
Święci książęta, którzy teraz królujecie w niebie z Tym, któregoście tu na ziemi wyznawali Bogiem i opowiadać kazali ludowi pogrążonemu w ciemnościach bałwochwalstwa; uproście nam stateczność w katolickiej wierze, abyśmy zasłużyli być z wami w niebie, i po wszystkie wieki chwalić tam Chrystusa Zbawiciela naszego. Amen.
Rod Dreher blogged this past Sunday on Why liberal Christianity is dying.
Mr. Dreher comments on an article by Charlotte Allen in the L.A. Times on the demise of liberal Christianity, which focused on recent events in the Episcopal and Presbyterian churches.
In Liberal Christianity is paying for its sins Ms. Allen states:
When your religion says “whatever” on doctrinal matters, regards Jesus as just another wise teacher, refuses on principle to evangelize and lets you do pretty much what you want, it’s a short step to deciding that one of the things you don’t want to do is get up on Sunday morning and go to church.
I am very thankful that the PNCC is a stalwart in its teaching of the faith. I am blessed because I am part of the Church.
Having struggled with liberalism, I have deep empathy for what many people are going through. I know the agony of seeing your home destroyed. I know the pain of alienation from the Church you once knew.
Once you make the choice to abandon liberalism and embrace serious Christian orthodoxy you enter a new stage of tension. The world doesn’t really appreciate the Church’s teaching and tradition. It gets in the way of the church-of-whatever-feels-good.
In my own life, adopting conservative catholic beliefs has created many tensions.
Some think that what I believe criticizes them, not just their actions (there is a difference). Some think I have changed – gone from the consummate sinner (bad person, mean, angry, sexually sinful, allowing anything as long as it suited me) to being holier-than-thou.
They are right – I decided to change. Not to be holier-than-thou, but through the grace imparted by the sacraments of Penance, the Word, and the Eucharist to work at being a better father, family member, husband, and deacon. The Church offers these things as worthy pursuits in life, pursuits in keeping with the narrow path to the Kingdom.
Change forces one away from allowing whatever. Change like this is far more demanding, certainly more demanding than liberal Christianity. It is far harder to live the true faith. It is very difficult to face your sins, some of which you may never forgive yourself of. The ‘liberal church’ offers a wide and easy road, low benchmarks, light duty in conversion and repentance. The faith of the Apostles requires loyalty to Christ above all.
Jesus called this choice a cross:
Great crowds were traveling with him, and he turned and addressed them, “If any one comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.
In context, Jesus was not talking about hating people. He was talking about putting Him before all else, even before the things we all believe and feel are most important. That’s a strong message and a powerful demand.
Faith in Christ in the context of the Church’s teaching must come first. That can be a devastating choice.
I recently read an article about preaching at the Pontificator’s site. It makes a point about the difficulty of expressing the faith once delivered. In Kim Fabricius on Preaching point one states:
What is a sermon? Wrong question. A sermon is not a what but a who. A sermon is Jesus Christ expectorate. You eat the book; it is sweet in the mouth but bitter in the stomach (Rev. 10:9-11); you spit out the Word and spray the congregation. When grace hits the mark, it always begins with an unpleasant recoil.
Alvin Kimel responds:
—Jesus Christ expectorate——”now that’s an image for preaching that I haven’t thought of, but it makes the point, doesn’t it? Robert Jenson says that authentic gospel-preaching either generates faith or offense in the hearer.
What the Church believes and professes, the truth of the Gospel, its Tradition and teaching, will offend many. Its teaching is bitter in the stomach, causes us to recoil, and will either lead us to faith or offense.
A true Church is the antithesis of ‘liberal’ Christianity. Seeking to accept all people and reject none, which any true Church does, has been corrupted by the liberals into accepting all behaviors and sins and rejecting none.
As members of the Church we can all do a better job of being charitable. We can focus on preaching and teaching how God’s action and call are meant to move us to achieving the Kingdom. We can focus on ministry, charity, peace, and community building.
What we must not do however is preach and teach that doing any of those things, or having a better and more comfortable life, or all that we want, or friends, family, acclaim, and money, are worth more than Jesus. No brand of liberal Church is worth the harm that kind of choice can do our souls.
In the end, faith in God and His Word must come first, honest orthodox catholic faith.
Tip of the biretta to the Young Fogey.
Spraw to, prosimy Cię, wszechmogący Boże, ażebyśmy obchodząc dziś rocznicę tryumfu św. Felicji i jej synów, za ich wstawiennictwem umacniali się w miłości religji katolickiej i według jej przepisów żyli. Przez Pana naszego Jezusa Chrystusa. Amen.
As the eyes of servants
are on the hands of their masters.
As the eyes of a maid
are on the hands of her mistress,
Our eyes are fixed on the Lord, pleading for his mercy.
Faith and humility are the keys to understanding our lessons from scripture today. The psalmist starts by reminding us of the necessity of being humble before God.
The eyes of the servant must be on his master’s or mistresses’ hands.
When the master or mistress is in need of something the servant comes running. When the master calls out, the servant who is wise will have anticipated, and will be nearby.
This is key for us. We need to keep our eyes, ears, hearts, and attention fixed on our master who is the Lord God. We need to be prepared and active in addressing God’s call to us, the call and command given to us by His very son our Lord Jesus Christ.
My brothers and sisters,
The Lord was speaking about the people of Israel when he sent Ezekiel to them to prophesy.
The Israelites had forgotten where their eyes were supposed to be. They neglected to keep themselves focused on God.
God calls them rebels, hard of face, and obstinate of heart.
Ezekiel became a prophet during Israel’s Babylonian captivity. His first task was to prepare the Israelites for the final destruction of Jerusalem. Of course the Israelites thought he was crazy. They believed Jerusalem would stand forever.
They thought of Jerusalem as a walled fortress and inviolable, rather than as a place for the heart, a place to stand waiting for God’s command, a place to fulfill God’s commands.
In 587 B.C., when Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem, Ezekiel was vindicated before the unbelieving.
Israel had closed itself off from the only right relationship —“ the one with God. They choose to set their own limits, their own paradigms, their own values. They declared their own ‘house gods’ and forgot the altar of the Lord. They not only forgot their history, they rejected God’s saving action throughout that history. They took their eyes, ears, and hearts from God. They loved the Jerusalem of stone rather than the Jerusalem of the covenant.
Frankly, they got comfortable. They got lazy and complacent.
Even so, God did not forget them. He sent Ezekiel to reproach them and to give them hope. God was very matter of fact in sending Ezekiel saying:
And whether they heed or resist, they shall know that a prophet has been among them.
God is without pretense. God is very matter of fact. If fact, He is perfect in every way. Being perfect and desiring our salvation, He has given us all we need to come to Him.
He gave His very Son, His Word. He gave us the totality of scripture and sacred tradition. He left us the Apostles, disciples, the Fathers, and our bishops to train us in the orthodox catholic faith. An orthodox faith that is simply absolute fidelity to the principles and piety, the beliefs and Tradition of the early, undivided Church.
My friends,
God works with us even though we are unformed and undeveloped. God uses every means to draw us to Himself. As St. Paul tells us, He has turned even our sufferings and our temptations to good result —“ if, and only if we keep our eyes, ears, hearts, and attention focused on God. This is total faith, the total giving of ourselves as servants to God so that He may bring us home to heaven.
Paul did this. Paul dedicated himself, and in the process of dedication, prayer, hard labor, suffering, temptation and trials, and finally martyrdom, Paul learned that God’s grace was enough for him. Paul’s words are indeed a boast, a boast we should all work toward. A boast that I pray we may all repeat one day:
I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses,
in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me.
Therefore, I am content with weaknesses, insults,
hardships, persecutions, and constraints,
for the sake of Christ
Brothers and sisters,
The poor people of Nazareth missed it didn’t they? They too forgot where their eyes were supposed to be. They forgot that God works miracles in our life every day.
Do you remember Simeon and Anna. Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the Temple for the ritual purification. Simeon and Anna were there:
Simeon came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform the custom of the law in regard to him, he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying:
“Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word,
for my eyes have seen your salvation,
which you prepared in sight of all the peoples,
a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel.”There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple, but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer.
And coming forward at that very time, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.
Simeon and Anna were people of faith. They prayed daily, studied scripture, and focused their eyes, ears, minds, and hearts on God. When the revelation appeared, the Messiah, Jesus the Christ, they were there and ready. Simeon cried out:
my eyes have seen Your salvation
Simeon and Anna came forward that day in faith trusting in God.
Not so the people of Nazareth.
You might like to think that the people of Nazareth are highlighted today so Jesus can engage in repartee with them and deliver a witty retort about prophets not being welcome in their native place.
The fact is, they are symbolic of way too many people.
No the people of Nazareth are here today to show you the other side of the faith coin. Those without faith, without a love for the teachings of Jesus and the Holy Catholic faith are just like the Nazarenes: They take offense at Him.
No witty retort. No interesting point to debate about growing up next to someone and knowing them too well. No, the Nazarenes took offense at Him. They took offence because unlike Simeon and Anna, unlike the Apostles at Pentecost, they took their gaze off their Lord and God. They forgot what life is really about.
Keep your eyes, ears, hearts, and attention fixed on God. It is not just a way of living, it is the only way of living. All else is death. May you be spared from hearing it said of Jesus:
He was amazed at their lack of faith.
Boże, który wysłuchujesz tych, którzy chowają twoje przykazania i pełnią twoją świętą wolę, pokornie Cię prosimy za przyczyną św. Eugenjusza, racz utwierdzić w łasce swej, i zachować od potępienia wiekuistego. Przez Pana naszego Jezusa Chrystusa. Amen.