Church of St. Mary at Clinton Heights

This evening, we gather in union with Pope Francis and Catholics throughout the world to pray for peace in Syria.

Prayer for Peace – ORDER OF PRAYER

Prayer for Peace – Print Program

Our Lady of Sorrows, pray for us!

Our Holy Father, Pope Francis, has called on Catholics and all people of good will to join together in prayer and fasting on Saturday September 7^th for peace in the world and especially in Syria and throughout the Middle-East. The Pope will lead a vigil on the evening of September 7^th, the vigil of the Birth of the Virgin Mary, between 7-11pm in St. Peter’s Square.

The vigil of prayer will include Eucharistic adoration, the rosary and opportunity for confession. Pope Francis invites all Catholics to join in prayer, wherever they may be.  Regarding the vigil the pope said: “We will gather in prayer and in a spirit of penance, invoking God’s great gift of peace upon the beloved nation of Syria and upon each situation of conflict and violence around the world…” The Holy Father is invoking the prayers of the Blessed Mother under her title, Queen of Peace.

While many Americans are moved by the plight of others via the news media, a consideration of the plight of Christians and the tradition of Christianity in Syria can help to inform and motivate us to pray and sacrifice. Prayers for that peace “which the world cannot give” are most needed as the situation is extremely chaotic.

The conflict between the regime and various rebel groups have displaced over four million within Syria and have caused two million to leave the country altogether. The attendant problems of migration in terms of lack of food, water, and housing, and resultant illnesses are being reported. Many within Syria hope not to be attacked while others are welcoming some kind of intervention.

A brief digest of some news from among the Christians of Syria in recent months:

–In February an Armenian Catholic priest, Michael Kayyal, and a Greek Orthodox priest, Maher Mahfouz, were abducted by gunmen while riding a bus near Aleppo. Later reports claim that Fr. Kayyal was being held by rebels demanding a $250,000 ransom. The whereabouts of these priests is unknown

–On April 22^nd Greek Orthodox Bishop Boulos Yazigi and Syriac Orthodox Archbishop Yohanna Ibrahim were abducted near the border of Turkey and Syria. The driver of their car was shot dead. The whereabouts of the bishops is unknown.

–On June 23^rd Fr. Francois Murad, a Catholic priest and contemplative whose monastery had earlier been destroyed by bombing,  was shot eight times and killed while trying to defend a community of nuns from the intrusion of Islamist rebels who had invaded the nun’s monastery. An Archbishop of the Syrian Catholics said that Fr. Murad had communicated to him that he was offering his life for peace in Syria and in the world.

–In July Italian Jesuit Fr.Paolo Dall’Oglio was abducted by Islamists. His fate is still unknown.

Christians inside and outside of Syria have acknowledged abuses by the Assad regime while also recognizing that some who oppose the government and who have taken up armed resistance are Islamic extremists.  Syria remains, for Christians, a land of witness.

The presence of Christians in Syria is an ancient presence. Communities of Syrian Christian claim as their own some of the great saints of the Church.

One of the greatest conversion stories in the history of the Church is that of St. Paul. As recounted in the Acts of the Apostles, Paul or Saul, as he was then known, was journeying to Damascus to arrest those who had begun to follow Christ. It was on this journey that the Risen Lord appeared to Paul and he was converted. Paul was blinded by the apparition and was led by hand to Damascus. In Damascus he prayed and fasted for three days. In a vision the Lord told a man of Damascus named Ananias to go to Paul. Possibly unique among visions, the Lord gave Ananias a near address, telling him to find Paul in “the street called Straight”. Straight Street still exists in Damascus, Syria. It is there that Ananias visited, laid hands on Paul for healing and that he be given the Holy Spirit. Paul emerged healed and baptized. (Acts Chapter 9) Where Paul walked in the peace of Christ there is now fear.

Luke, a disciple of Paul, was from the city of Antioch, in the region of ancient Syria. Ancient Antioch was a place of learning and tradition hold that Luke was educated in medicine. Christians know him as the author of the Gospel according to Luke and of the Acts of the Apostles. Luke gives us the canticles that the Church sings daily in her Liturgy of Hours: Benedictus, Magnificat, and Nunc dimittis. He speaks too of the important role of women and love for the poor and mercy. He recounts for us the most beloved parables of Jesus, among them, The Good Samaritan, The Prodigal Son, and The Rich Man and Lazarus. Luke gives us Mary and tells us that she pondered the mysteries of Christ’s life in her heart. This is the model for praying the rosary. In the Acts, Luke tells us that it was in Antioch that the disciples of Jesus were first called Christians. Antioch claims St. Peter as its’ first bishop before he went to Rome.

St. Ignatius of Antioch who died in the second century was a successor of Peter as bishop of Antioch and is among the first of the Church Fathers whose writings have come down to us. Ignatius was a friend of St. Polycarp. Tradition holds that Polycarp was a disciple of John the apostle. Ignatius wrote letters bravely asking that his fellow Christians not interfere with his arrest and impending martyrdom at Rome where he was to be fed to lions. He wrote of the Eucharist as “the antidote to death” and “the medicine of immortality”.

The fourth-century Doctor of the Church, St. John Chrysostom was a native on Antioch.  Chrysostom is a kind of nickname meaning “golden-mouthed”, such was the greatness of his preaching. He was later Archbishop of Constantinople. His relics were stolen by crusaders during the middle ages and brought to Rome. In a gesture of peace, amidst prayers for reconciliation, Bl. John Paul II returned the relics to the Orthodox Church in 2004.

In the fourth-century, St. Maron retired to Mt. Nebo near Antioch to live a life of prayer. He soon attracted disciples who came to live in community, following Christ together. Maron was renowned for holiness. His followers later went to spread the Gospel among those who lived in the mountains. These Christians came to be known as Maronite Catholics. The Maronite community has always been in union with the Bishop of Rome.

Also from fourth-century Syria is the Doctor of the Church, St. Ephrem the deacon. Ephrem is known for his hymns, many of which still survive. In those poetic hymns Ephrem wrote on many themes including heaven. He says the paradise of heaven is a place surrounded and walled in by peace. He wrote that those who eat the Body of the Lord “eat Fire and Spirit”. With Ephrem, we sing asking the Lamb of God to grant us peace.

Fifth-century Syria saw one of the most unique saints in history, St. Simeon the Stylite. A “stylite” is a hermit who lives on top of a pillar or rock formation. Simeon eventually lived such a life outside the city of Aleppo in Syria. Atop his column he prayed, fasted, did penance, performed miracles in Christ’s name, and preached. Many came out to see him simply because of the spectacle of a man perched high in the air day in and day out. Apart from the curious who traveled to get a look, there also came  leaders to get advice, others for adjudication of disputes, and still others to listen to a man of prayer. The ruined Church of St. Simeon outside Aleppo is still a tourist and pilgrimage destination where the base of his pillar can be seen.  Fr. Francois Murad, who offered his life for peace, was beginning a new religious community under the patronage of St. Simeon the Stylite in Syria.

The eighth-century Doctor of the Church, St. John of Damascus or, adjectivally, Damascene, defended the making and use of icons as aids to prayer. During his time, the use of icons was being attacked by some Christians as idolatrous. John defended the use of icons based on the mystery of the Incarnation. In taking a human nature to himself, Christ made his body the instrument of our salvation. The body is made holy in Christ. Holy images remind us that God has visited his people. When we pray before an image of Christ, his mother, or the saints we remember John of Damascus who defended the freedom to depict the body of Jesus and the saints.

The suffering of the people of Syria and the saints of this region remind us of what we mean when we speak of the “communion of saints”. Together in Christ we are joined to those who believe in Christ and who are being sanctified in Him. We suffer when members of the Mystical Body suffer. Our unity is also with the saints in heaven who pray for us as we journey in this “valley of tears”. We pray together with the saints for those who do not yet know the peace of knowing and living Christ.

Pray for this Peace.

At the behest of our Holy Father, Pope Francis, this Saturday we will gather as a community to entreat the Lord our Savior, to grant us His gift of peace, especially among peoples who suffer the ruin of war and conflict.  Not only in Syria, but throughout the world, where conflict reigns, may the God of Peace, through our Lady, Queen of Peace, grant us a share in His holy life.  Our prayer at the Church of St. Mary at Clinton Heights will commence at the same hour as our Holy Father prays: beginning at 7:00pm this Saturday with a rosary for peace, a litany for God’s peace, exposition and adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament…and we will conclude with benediction & reposition at 7:45pm.  Additionally, people of goodwill are invited to offer their own personal gifts of fasting and prayer throughout the day in ways they find beneficial.  Please invite othersof any faithto please join with us for this solemn expression of our hope and prayer for peace throughout the world.

(Continuing Fr. Kevin’s musings of these months:)

I remember watching a western with my Baptist mother in which a Gabby Hayes type mountain man walked along holding a shaking forked stick. “What is he doing?” I asked. “Trying to use superstition to find water,” my mother answered. No Baptist could approve of water witchery. When I was about seven years old, I sat on the beach in Maine watching a man hover a modern stick above the sand.  Turning to my father I asked, “Daddy, what’s he doing?” “He’s looking for metal, that’s a metal detector. Probably hoping to find coins or jewelry,” my father answered.

In that moment at a place where shore and ocean met, the romance of swashbuckling adventure fled. Gone were the imagined treasure maps, eye-patches, wooden legs, and pirate booty trunks. Someone soon told me that what the metal detectors most often discovered were soda can tabs.  The thought of digging and finding remain exciting nonetheless. Jesus knew his hearers were excited by the prospect and so he spoke of the Kingdom as a hidden treasure discovered.

News of treasure found is still arresting for the imagination. Over the past twenty years, ancient Roman coin hordes and precious items have regularly been discovered in England.  Many of these treasure stashes were buried while people were in flight from their enemies.  England makes for a great dig.

The treasure beneath England is not only coins, but also history and the remains of kings. On September 12^th 2012, the bones of Richard III were unearthed beneath a parking lot at the former site of a Franciscan friary in Leicester. Shakespeare put into Richard’s mouth the now famous words: “A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!” in a scene taking place just before the king was killed at the 1485 battle of Bosworth.

In recent weeks hope has emerged of the possible discovery of the remains of yet another king, Alfred the Great (d.899). In the Anglican community and among some Catholics he is referred to as St. Alfred the Great.   Alfred is no longer a common name. There is Alfred the butler from Batman, Alfred E. Smith was New York‘s governor, and in New York there is Alfred University, which claims Alfred the Great as a kind of patron. “Alfred”, may no longer be considered a great name to have, but the king’s interests were great.

Among the great king’s interests were the preservation of learning and faith.  England had suffered before and during his time from attacks of Vikings and Danes. Amidst the chaos monastic libraries had been burned and learning was in decline. Alfred, realizing that the language of formal education, Latin, was not widely known, ordered the translation of works to instruct the youth of the realm. Alfred is said to have only learned Latin in his late thirties. He is credited with translating Boethius’ Consolation of Philosophy into Anglo-Saxon. He also turned to the writings of another “great”, Pope St. Gregory the Great.

St. Gregory the Great (d.604) is important to the history of the faith in England as he sent St. Augustine of Canterbury along with monks and missionaries from Rome to spread the Gospel in England. Alfred wrote introductions for his newly ordered translations of Gregory’s Dialogues and Pastoral Rule. Gregory’s Dialogues recount the life and miracles of St. Benedict, the great monastic founder.

Alfred was very desirous that Gregory’s work on Pastoral Rule be used by the bishops in England to help them become good shepherds and stewards of the Gospel.  Gregory wrote that those charged with the care of souls:

“…should be a near neighbor to everyone in sympathy, and exalted above all in contemplation, so that through the depths of loving-kindness he may transfer the infirmities of others to himself, and by loftiness of speculation transcend even himself in his aspiration after the invisible; lest either in seeking high things he despise the weak things of his neighbors, or in suiting himself to the weak things of his neighbors he relinquish his aspiration after high things.”

Gregory is a champion of prudence as throughout his work on pastoral care he calls for the shepherd to be attentive to who the shepherd is called to be, to the real needs of his flock, and to respond to each according to that person’s condition and ability to understand. The shepherd thus becomes lowly and truly becomes good shepherd by the habitual transfer to himself in love the burdens of others, as Christ did, while keeping his hope fixed in prayer on the glory to be revealed.

Gregory and Alfred responded in charity to the needs of their peoples. Alfred saw the need for ignorance to be met with education. It is said that Gregory was motivated to send a mission to England after having seen English youth being sold in a Roman slave market. The truly hopeful serve the suffering. For the treasure of the Kingdom to be found, we must first bow down.

The feast of St. Gregory the Great is September 3^rd, the date of his installation as pope. Among the few popes to be called “great”, Gregory shares the distinction of installation-date-as-feast with only one other, the emerging “great”, John Paul II.

(This post is written by a priest who is in residence in our rectory for the next few months)

This time of year the word is “mum”, or more commonly “hearty mums”. Recently, I accompanied a priest friend to a garden center to get some mums to beautify the parish grounds.  There was certainly less color on offer than in the height of summer, but the mums were ready.

Among the mums, birdbaths, assorted metallic orbs and such were a few statues. There was a statue of the Blessed Mother, looking as close as possible to her image titled Our Lady of Grace; arms opened downward in a gesture of graces being shared. St. Francis’ statue was there with depictions also of birds on his shoulder.  This is Holy Father Francis in the act of preaching to the birds. The third figure was of a bearded hooded man holding a shovel.

My guess is that a number of people have probably looked at the saint with the shovel and thought it simply to be Saint Francis, ready to work.  This saint, however, is the patron of gardeners; his name is St. Fiacre (d.670). Fiacre was a native of Ireland known for the holiness of his life. He attracted disciples who wanted to learn the disciplines of following Christ. The crush of visitors and those looking for a mentor drove Fiacre away from Ireland to France where he hoped to live more alone with God alone.

It is not hard to imagine an Irishman shoveling out manure. But, the origin of Fiacre’s held spade lies in the legend that the Bishop of Meaux, St. Faro, offered him as much land as Fiacre was able to dig a furrow around in one day. He apparently dug quickly and acquired enough land on which to build an oratory in honor of the Blessed Mother, a place of rest for strangers, and a cell apart in which he lived. His property was thus set aside for prayer, contemplation, and active charity.

Centuries after his death, his remains were reburied in the Cathedral at Meaux where his relics were visited by many including Bossuet, St. Vincent de Paul, and Anne of Austria. Cardinal Richelieu kept a vertebra of St. Fiacre as a relic. Perhaps the Cardinal knew something about back pain from garden weeding.

In Paris horse-drawn carriages for hire came to be known as fiacres because of their business first being offered outside the Hotel St. Fiacre.  Horse drawn cabs in Egypt are also called fiacres and a variety of cab in Vienna is called fiaker.  St. Fiacre is therefore the patron of taxi drivers. From the birdsong solitude of the garden to horn blown streets we find a common patron. In Ireland his feast is celebrated on September 1^st. Wish your gardener, gardening loved ones, or your cabbie a happy feast of St. Fiacre, they, like him, probably love and long for solitude.