May 10, 1998Fifth Sunday of Easter |
The Fifth Sunday of Easter teaches about the early days of the Church, about the universal nature of Faith, the ultimate hope to which we all are called (eternal life in Christ), and the Gospel itself speaks of the universal dimension Christian Charity. By our following the command of Christ to love one another, we can help to make present here and now the ultimate new life and healing which the writer of the Book of Revelation promises. It is worth noting the Book of Revelation is probably one of the most difficult books to understand in the New Testament, and was not written to forecast the end of the world, but rather to reiterate the comfort and strength of God in times of trial, and the fact that the power of God is the ultimate victor over evil. Regarding this book and the Gospel of St. John, a commentary for this Sunday (The Days of the Lord, vol. 3, p. 172) notes:
The Easter Season passes all too quickly as we approach its culmination on the feast of Pentecost-May 31. The Sacrament of Confirmation will be conferred on approximately 112 of our members next Saturday, May 16 at the Cathedral. Archbishop Rigali will then hold his hands outstretched over those to be confirmed and pray "Send your Holy Spirit upon them to be their helper and guide. Give them the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of right judgment and courage, the spirit of knowledge and reverence. Fill them with the spirit of wonder and awe in your presence." Then they will come forth individually and receive the anointing with chrism being addressed by name, followed by be sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit. It is our Church's tradition and teaching that the Holy Spirit is given to us through the sacrament of Baptism. At Confirmation the gift of the Holy Spirit is strengthened or "confirmed," or to put it another way, the power of the Holy Spirit is further released and made manifest through the realization of the gifts and charisms of the Holy Spirit. For those who have been confirmed, we are encouraged to continue seeking a deeper release or manifestation of these gifts and charisms. At Pentecost again this year we will invite all members to renew the sacrament of Confirmation be receiving the anointing sing of blessed oil.
Through the Easter Season we have been reading excerpts from the Acts of the Apostles that might lead us to desire that the power of the Holy Spirit be more realized in our lives as it was in the lives of the early Christians as portrayed in the Acts readings. To help prepare for a renewal of Confirmation -i.e. just as Timothy was urged to "fan into flame" an earlier gift (2 Tim 1:6), we have organized this year ('98-the year of the Spirit) a Pentecost Novena. Please review and set aside time (approximately one hour most sessions) to attend as many evenings as possible. Next weekend we plan to distribute novena booklets that will also enable our members to pray his novena at home at times not convenient to attend the novena service at church. It is through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit that we realize God's promises. Let us take this opportunity to put into practice the gifts of the Paraclete to be our helper and guide.
This weekend we focus a bit more on the gift of understanding - a gift that, more than any other gift of the Holy Spirit, helps us to connect faith with life, or to make concrete and personal the words of said scripture -words that for so many Catholics remain all too often at the level of the etherial or abstract without the Holy Spirit's gift of understanding. The gift of understanding enables a person to penetrate in a wonderful way into a mystery of the Faith into the meaning of words inspired by the Holy Spirit. Thus in this Sunday's readings this gift will help us connect the words of the Acts reading- "We must undergo many trials if we are to enter into the reign of God" (Acts 14:23); or the excerpt from the Revelation reading "See, I make all things new" (Rev. 21:5); or this line from the Gospel "This is how all will know you are my disciples your love of one another" (Jn 13:35).
One such connection on this Sunday, which happens to be also Mother's Day, will be memories of our Mother's love, as expressed in the following piece. In the beginning, the person most likely to have shown us our first picture of God was Mom. For her child, Mom is God -the "source of life and goodness... from whom all good things come."
For example, when you got into trouble-smashed a neighbor's window, dented the family car, brought home the less-than-stellar report card-who did you tell first, Mom or Dad? Most of us told Mom first. After all, Moms are famous for cutting slack-an everyday word for what theologians call grace. Grace is exactly that-love you don't earn. In a mother's love, God reveals his gift of grace.
As a child I would often wake up at night afraid of the dark. The only way I could get back to sleep was to call my mother until finally she came into my room and sat on my bed until I fell asleep. This is just a small example of one mother's special care, love, and sacrifice for a child. It would be impossible to recount everything my own mother has done for me as I know it would be for the rest of us. I often times encourage people to do an inventory of their lives recalling all of God's blessings and to spend time thanking God. We could spend countless hours in prayer thanking God for all the blessings that have come just through our mothers. Mother's Day is a time to do that - to thank God for the love he has poured out on us in our mothers. Not only do we thank God, but we thank our moms as well. Whatever it takes this Mother's Day each of us must find a concrete way to show our own love and thanks. Mother's Day can also call us to more. Perhaps the gift we can give our mothers this day is the decision to call on the phone more often, the decision to help around the house, the decision to speak more respectfully to her. Perhaps what would bring joy to our mothers is to reconcile with a brother or sister, or a father, or even mom herself. It all comes down to Christian love despite the past and even present weakness. Let us today pray for our mothers, living and dead. May we treasure God's gift of love in them and build together a world that honors and reveres the sacred calling of motherhood.
"To keep oneself anchored, out of ignorance or selfish interest, in a traditionalism without evolution is to lose even the notion of the true Christian tradition. The tradition that Christ confided to his church is not a museum of souvenirs to preserve. It comes, indeed, from the past and is to be loved and preserved faithfully, but always with a look to the future. It is a tradition that makes the church fresh, up-to-date, and effective in each epoch of history. It is a tradition that nourishes the church's hope and its faith so that it can keep on proclaiming and inviting all toward the 'new heaven and new earth' that God has promised (Rev 21:1; Is 65:17)." Archbishop Oscar Romero, Assassinated March 24, 1980 by members of US-backed Army of El Salvador
--compiled by Brother Richard OFM
Faces of young first communicants are fresh in our memories this weekend. Easter Vigil baptisms, babies baptized, youth confirmed this Pentecost--all are visible, joyful wake-up calls for our faith lives. There is, though, another group that offers all of us a unique pause for thought. On May 17 at the 9:30 Mass men and women baptized in other Christian traditions will be received into the Catholic Church, confirmed and welcomed to the table of the Eucharist for the first time. Some are familiar faces, in St. Paul pews for years with their families. For others, the journey to Catholic Christianity has been a harder road: alienation from their families, marriage impediments, struggles to understand Eucharist. As we prayerfully remember this group preparing for their Reception, we might be moved to look at our choices. How conscious are we of choosing faith, living in wide-awake intimacy with a God who consciously, tenderly chooses us?
In the Middle Ages, many people had to travel far from home to earn a living. They became servants where work was available, or they learned a trade from someone who was willing to teach them.
Such people were given a special holiday every year. It came on the Fourth Sunday of Lent, on Laetare (rejoice) Sunday. In the liturgy on this day, the city of Jerusalem is called our mother. We rejoice because when Easter arrives, we will be reunited with mother Jerusalem.
Laetare Sunday came to be called Mothering Sunday. On this day, people would go home to see their mothers. Many family reunions were held. People were even excused from the Lenten fast on that day.
The Mother's Day we now celebrate was begun in the early twentieth century by an American woman named Anna Jarvis. After her mother died, she suggested that a memorial service be held in church to honor all mothers. The first such service was held in a Philadelphia church in 1908. Those who attended were asked to wear white carnations in memory of their mothers.
People were so taken with the observance of such a day that in 1914, Congress proclaimed the second Sunday in May as Mothers' Day. Other countries adopted the idea. In England, they restored the old custom of Mothering Sunday in Lent.
A mother provides life and nourishment. On this day, we remember all who are examples of a mother's love.
