Church of St. Mary at Clinton Heights

Whenever peopleespecially young peoplecelebrate their birthday, or approach Christmas, they wish for gifts, don’t they?  Well, Pentecost is informally known as the birthday of the Church, whereby Christ fulfills his promise to remain with us as His bodythe Churchby sending the Holy Spirit to enliven and embolden our faith.

So today, as we commemorate the Spirit’s descent upon the disciples at that first Pentecost, we anticipate the Spirit’s hovering over us as well, bringing His gifts to strengthen and embolden us as witnesses of the Church.

Let’s reflect, for a few moments, on the gifts that we are receiving on our birthday celebration today.  Known as the gifts of the Holy Spirit, there are seven which bring us divine assistance from the heavenly throne and the eternal kingdom of God.  They are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and fear of the Lord (also known as “wonder and awe in God’s presence”).

• Wisdom is both the knowledge of and judgment about “divine things” and the ability to judge and direct human works according to divine truth.
  • The gift of wisdom leads the soul of those who have it to see things from God’s perspective. Wisdom is fullness of knowledge through desire for closeness with God, as when a person comes to know Christ’s Passion through one’s own suffering.

• Understanding is penetrating insight into the very heart of things, especially those higher truths that are necessary for our eternal salvation.
  • The gift of understanding gives to the mind of those who have it a charism for apprehending Christ’s public revelation easily and profoundly.  More specifically, the gift of understanding helps those who have it penetrate to the heart of revealed truth even when they don’t fully understand its entire meaning. It gives great confidence in the revealed word of God and leads those who have it to reach true conclusions from revealed principles.

• Counsel allows a person to be directed by God in matters necessary for one’s salvation.
  • The gift of counsel perfects in those who have it the virtue of prudence. It enables them to judge promptly and rightly, as by supernatural intuition, what should be done in difficult situations. It primarily enhances one’s own prudent conduct.  The Holy Spirit speaks to the heart through the gift of counsel and shows those who have it what to do.

• Fortitude denotes a firmness of mind in doing good and in avoiding evil, particularly when it is difficult or dangerous to do so, with the confidence to overcome all obstacles, by virtue of the assurance of everlasting life.
  • The virtue of fortitude, or courage, is firmness of spirit, steadiness of will in doing good despite obstacles in the performance of our daily duty. It suppresses inordinate fear and curbs recklessness.

• Knowledge is the ability to judge correctly about matters of faith and right action, so as to never wander from the straight path of justice.
  • The gift of knowledge perfects the virtue of faith. It enables those who have it to judge the whole spectrum of creatures and objects from God’s viewpoint.

• Piety is, principally, revering God with childlike affection, paying worship and duty to God, and additionally, paying proper duty and attention to all others on account of their relationship to God.
  • The gift of piety perfects the virtue of justice toward God. It infuses an instinctive love for God and devotion to those who are consecrated to God. Piety arises from the Holy Spirit’s personal giving, rather than from our own personal effort or acquired habit.  The gift of piety enables those who have it to see God as a loving Father.

• Fear of God is, in this context, “simple childlike” or chaste fear whereby we revere God and avoid separating ourselves from himas opposed to “servile” fear, whereby we fear punishment.
  • The gift of fear of the Lord confirms in those who have it the virtue of hope and infuses profound respect for God’s glory and selfless love for God. It protects from sin through dread of offending God.  Put simply, when we love God we seek never to offend Him.  This is properly, “fear of the Lord”.

And so we have them: the gifts of the Holy Spirit.  May these gifts wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and fear of the Lordbe shared abundantly with each one of us today, as we celebrate the birthday of the Church!

May they give us divine help in these days when we are called, and enliven us to proclaim God’s marvelous deeds!  Fr. David

Back in the early 90’swhen I was beginning seminary studies in ItalyI distinctly recall my first oral/spoken exam.  I had spent weeks preparing by arguing delicate points of Revelation with fellow students.  We poured over our Italian notes…making sure to understand the particular nuances of terms that we weren’t familiar with in English, let alone Italian.

Anyway, I was in the waiting room, nervously preparing to approach the outer room of renowned Archbishop Rino Fisichella’s office.  It was mid-afternoonhotter and more humid than ever.  I had eaten a good-sized breakfast and only a bit at lunch but I was feeling my nerves growing.

The archbishop’s message board flashed, “ENTRATA” and I knew I was next at the guillotine!  I entered, introduced myself…he didn’t look at me or speak anything of welcome.  I sat.  He chose an index card and read his first question to me.  He spoke quickly in his spiked Italian, thenthank Godhis very broken English repeated the question with some mistakes in pronunciation, but I got it.  He wanted me to defend the proposition that “revelation is credible or believable”…no problem: I had argued this one using his logic for weeks.  But as I opened my mouth to start blurting out my brutish Italian, the only thing that came out was a bit of my breakfast on his office floor!  He was shocked, and I was mortified!  I tried and tried to gather myself, looking for paper towels or something to clean up my attempted response, but to no avail!

Then, softly, the archbishop rose and spoke gently to encourage me to enter into his inner office where his secretary would care for me as best he could…I wouldn’t fail, but he’d give me a chance to rest and recuperate…I would return later to answer his exam.

This second waiting room was a blessing: his secretary was very gentle and brought me an espresso and washcloth.  He gave me a bit of a talk about the archbishop which actually calmed my nerves and made me laugh a bit.  After about an hour, the Archbishop did not call me back into the exam room, but rather came to his private office and began a discussion with his secretary about my exam topic:  I chimed in and argued a few delicate points to the best of my ability.  After about twenty minutes, my professor stood and granted me a “9 out of 10”.  He quipped that the mess in his outer office cost me that one perfect point!

We all have experienced waiting, haven’t we?  We wait at traffic lights; we wait for teenagers to primp and preen in any mirror they pass; we wait for the homily to finally be over…and we wait!  Some of our waiting is distressing, just like my initial waiting for a dreaded exam!  Some waiting unnerves us, but then there is another kind of waiting that is a real blessing.  As a mother awaits the birth of her precious child from her gentle womb; as a parent awaits a child’s first words or steps and then rejoices!  As I waited with the archbishop’s secretary and shared laughs and camaraderie…and then a blessed discussion of theology with all of us.  As an early broth turns into a wonderful feast to e shared with a waiting, hungry family.  Yes, some waiting is blessed indeed.

From our first reading today, we find that the disciples are in the Upper Room again.  They returned there after the crucifixion, and now they have returned there again after Christ’s ascension into heaven…and they are waiting for His promised Spirit to descend upon them.  What are they doing as they wait?  They are anticipating God’s glory shared with them in the Spirit; they pray and pray and sing and pray even more because they are anticipating being overjoyed…and then propelled outward to share such grand blessings with all the ends of the earth!

As today’s members of the Living Church of God, we too are awaiting Pentecostnext weekendwhen we commemorate this blessed sending of the Spirit who enlightens and enlivens us.  This waitingjust like the disciples in the Upper Roomis meant to stir within us a longing and a sure hope that God will fulfill in us His own promise: that we will always be His and He will make His dwelling within each of us.

And, of course, you and I are in another period of waiting at the present time.  Our universal Church awaits the coming of our new Roman Missala blessed renewal of our liturgical worship and prayer at Mass.  Yes, we are waiting, but not in stillness.  We are in a time of preparation, where we will each be given numerous opportunities to grow in our understanding, and most importantly, our appreciation for these great and sacred mysteries.  Please take advantage of these offerings that are exclusive to our parish: yes, we are one of just a small handful of parishes throughout our diocese who have made a conscious decision to offer a multitude of workshops and presentationsthe next of which begins this Wednesday when Brendan Carr will make four different interactive presentations on the intention of the liturgy: that we all become one body, one spirit in Christunited in our assembly, prayer, song and actions.  I encourage each and every one of you to take advantage of these many offeringsthey’re listed on our website, and there are information and registration forms in the vestibule behind you.  Call or email the office to register, but don’t let our waiting be sleepy or un-intentioned: let us be like disciples who await and practice and prepare for the Spirit who will enliven us.

 

May this Spirit of God bless your waiting this week…and in the coming weeks.  May we receive the Holy Spirit of Pentecost next weekend, and allow God’s holy gift of the Spirit to encourage us to be extraordinary disciples today and always!

God bless you, Fr. David

So much of our life seems anything but connected to Jesus and expressive of our love for him.  Our sheer busyness hardly leaves us with a moment to catch our breath, let alone be concerned with loving Jesus!

But, loving Jesus does not require that we pray all the time or that we are consciously aware of Jesus’ presence.  Loving Jesus is a simple matter of keeping his commandments–being gentle and reverent toward others, having a clear conscience, doing good.  Most of us are already trying each day to the things we need to do in order to be good Christians; but we also need to recognize that our good, concrete actions are actually the way we keep the Lord’s commandments.  In other words, his commandments are pretty simple to know: love as he loved, be self-giving as he was, receive others as he did, do the Father’s will as he did.  Most of all, keeping his commandments means opening ourselves to the Holy Spirit–the Advocate of Truth–who dwells within and around us…and who makes us like him.

By these things, we can be sure, that we love the Lord Jesus!

This weekend’s scripture readings are filled with images of priesthood and the work of those who share in this vocation.  Now, you may be presuming that I’m speaking merely of the ordained, ministerial priesthood and, while I am referring to their service as well, I’m particularly cognizant of the priesthood of the baptized.  When the early community was gathered, the Apostles sought the service and discernment of all the disciples…of all the believers.  And those who had faith shared their wisdom and their gifts with the community as they discerned the first brothers to diaconal ministry.  They affirmed such discernment and offered those seven to the community as servants.

In our second reading, we hear that from our baptism, each one becomes a kind of living stone that, joined with other living stones, are planted together in order to become a new creation, a living and vibrant Church with Christ as our head and each of us as members.  Yes, from our baptism we are then made priests of a new order…priests in service and in sacrifice.

Even our gospel reminds us that Christ–again and again–is asking us to place our faith in Him.  Today, as we continue to form the Church, we are imperfect; yet, the Lord invites us still to offer our lives as priests…in sacrifice and in service.  And while are offerings are “ordered” or “collected and received” by our ordained presbyters who then offer to the Father such wonderfully generous gifts, each of us are then able to receive a return from God: grace to continue our priestly work; sanctification for ourselves and the whole Church; nourishment from Christ as we share in His body and His blood.

So, I would imagine that a question may now spring forth: what kind of service or sacrifice is called for from each of the baptized as priests?  I believe that in some very particular and unique way, each of us is called to place our particular talents and unique gifts into the community of all believers.  For instance, as we seek to evangelize more and more into our world…sharing the great gift of the resurrected Christ with others, we may find that by our own words we become inviters or challengers of the environment in which we love, and move, and have our being.  This may be just the simple impetus that is needed for some to feel welcomed into faith.  Or perhaps we might cultivate a new joy that is rooted in our profession of faith…such a joy then becomes contagious and “infects” those with whom we come in contact each day.  And maybe, just maybe, the gifts that we continually receive from God in order that we might be more and more converted to the message of the gospel could be a fountain of reflection from which springs waters of encouragement for those who doubt, those who have fear, those who do not know that faith in Christ is faith in the Living God.

There are lots of ways that we can exercise the priesthood of believers, they maybe sketchy or unclear to us at the present time, but one thing is certain: we are all given the gifts we each need to be priests of Christ Jesus.  And the role of priesthood necessarily includes teaching, preaching and sanctifying.  Do not let this vocation slip passed you: grasp it and enfold into your very life…that you, too, may share in the work of ‘living stones’ that establish the living Church of our living God.

God bless you always!

Fr. David

We’re well into the Easter Season as this third week after the Resurrection commences.  It hasn’t gotten ‘old’, however: this weekend we heard the story of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus.  I wonder if we might take a fresh look from a different perspective: maybe we could consider this second Eucharistic meal–the first sacred sharing after the Resurrection of Christ–and reflect on the “Supper at Emmaus”.

This painting from 1601 by Caravaggio may provide deeper reflection and take you in many different directions: possibly you’re drawn to the external features of the two disciples who look worn out and tired; or maybe the innkeeper with his haggard look, and rough stubble;  perhaps the garments on the painting draw your eye as we see the effect light has on the tablecloth which will bear the sacred meal. All of these pathways to deeper reflection and greater appreciation for the gifts of the Eucharist and Resurrected Glory are valuable, yet I wonder if we might consider one further aspect: the progression of the Meal.

As the meal at the inn progresses, the earlier ‘liturgy of the Word’, if you will, which they shared on the road, flows into a Liturgy of the Eucharist when Christ blesses the bread and wine at the meal table, done in remembrance of the first Eucharistic celebration accomplished a few days earlier in the Upper Room and later fulfilled on the Cross.  “And it happened that, while He was with them at table, He took bread, said the blessing, broke it and gave it to them.  With that their eyes were opened and they recognized Him, but He vanished from their sight” (Lk 24:30-31).

In this painting, Caravaggio conveys the mystery of this sacramental moment by showing the viewer that this particular roll of bread has already been broken.  There is a piece of the bread roll already in front of Christ, and two other pieces, one each in front of the disciples.  The breaking of the bread, another early name for the Eucharist, has already taken place.  Furthermore, the attentive viewer will see that our painter has not placed a piece of the bread in front of the innkeeper.  He stands barely attentive, but more importantly, seemingly without recognition of what has thus taken place in the preceding faith-moment.  If you search the servant’s eyes, you will notice that his view is toward the top of the Lord’s head…he has not yet been drawn into the mystery of the Resurrection, nor the offering of Christ’s whole body and blood.  Still, the offering of the meal is still accessible to him, if he can only see it, appreciate it, and allow himself to be drawn by it and into it.

For us, we are so very blessed that the Lord’s offering of the Eucharist is continually shared: offered in the paschal Triduum of Christ, offered again at Emmaus house, and offered again and again–over and over–in all the corners of the world.  May we see Him, and become one with each other and with Christ.

A blessed continuation of this glorious Easter Season!

Fr. David