August 8, 1999 |
The Gospel for this Sunday is the dramatic account of Jesus calming the storm, and Peter then walking toward Him on the water. There is a lot to be learned from this passage of St. Matthew's Gospel. First of all, in the Old Testament, and in that particular time, God always revealed His presence in nature, and in the elements. The Lord (YAHWEH) was the only one who had power over nature. THUS, FOR JESUS TO CALM THE STORM IS A STATEMENT OF HIS DIVINITY AND A CLEAR STATEMENT OF THE DIVINE NATURE OF CHRIST, which St. Matthew wishes to teach explicitly. Secondly, because it is Peter who gets out of the boat and begins to walk on the water toward the Lord, WE HAVE A STATEMENT OF THE PRIMACY OF PETER, and his leadership role of the 12 apostles. Again, St. Matthew wishes this statement to be made clearly to His Church. Finally, St. Peter becomes a symbol of our own lives. How often do we start out with all the best ideas and intentions, and find ourselves faltering and sinking? All too often it is because we let our fears overtake us, and we take our eyes off of the Lord. The Gospel is a reminder of how we have to keep our sight fixed on Christ all of the time, whenever the storms and challenges of life surround us, and he will never let us sink or falter.
News headlines usually connect with the spectacular, good news, like Mark McGwire or the stock market breaking records, or bad news, reporting lives lost in plane crashes, shipwrecks, earthquakes, heat waves, etc. In the readings from Sacred Scripture God's presence is also often portrayed in the spectacular. Thus in the Old Testament God provides the means of salvation(i.e. deliverance from evil) by such spectacular events as the plagues in Egypt, crossing the Red Sea, etc. In the Israelites sojourn to the Promised Land the presence of God had been manifested in the cataclysms of nature, e.g. thunder, wind, earthquake, fire, etc. But Elijah in today's first reading experiences God as a tiny whispering sound, or in another translation as a sound of sheer silence. Could it be that the intimacy of Elijah's encounter with God in silence empowered him to speak aloud the message of God's truth to all who would listen, allowing God to speak to hearts and transform lives.
In a similar vein, the Gospel story of Jesus calming the storm has multiple layers of symbolism. The disciples are portrayed as afraid and losing faith in the midst of turmoil and opposing forces, yet the focus on Jesus and his power brings about the calm ending the storm-silence that symbolizes peace.
This Sunday's readings offer us the opportunity to consider the role of silence in our lives, or the absence of it. We live in a world that is increasingly loud, so literally loud that hearing disorders, especially among young people, are on the increase. Let me suggest three areas where we might rediscover the value of silence, the Eucharist, silent prayer in Church or Chapel, Retreats or stillpoints throughout our busy days.
The Eucharist is public worship and designed with hymns, spoken prayers, readings, etc. Yet all these elements are supposed to be interspersed with moments of silence. Yet, as one commentary puts it Despite clear directives in the Introduction to the Lectionary and the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, silence continues to be a rare experience in many parish assemblies. We seem almost afraid of silence, so we fill every possible moment with words or music. The presider says ÔLet us pray,' but gives the assembly little or no time to do so before he proclaims the collect. The musicians allow for only five or ten seconds after the reading before they begin the responsorial psalm or the gospel acclamation, etc. (Celebration August 1999)
The practice of setting aside periods of quiet reflection and prayer before the Blessed Sacrament in Church or Chapel is one of the hallowed traditions of our Church. We built a Eucharistic Adoration Chapel in the Rectory lower level with the hope that it would draw many to realize the benefit of setting aside one hour or less a week to reap the reward of the sounds of silence, encountering the Lord in the tiny whispering sound. What began five years ago with a great number of people coming to our Chapel, now seems to be diminishing. Maybe its summer vacations or maybe again the axiom about prayer being difficult because there is always one more important thing to do. Yet the important priority is setting aside time to realize perspective and serenity in quiet prayer. May it be rediscovered like the pearl of great value in a recent Gospel.
The third area to cultivate the sounds of silence would be the practice of finding brief or longer moments of silence in our busy days at work, home, driving, etc. One author has written a wonderful book on this titled STOPPING How to be Still when You Have to Keep Going (Richard Carlson). He speaks of Stillpoints, Stopovers, and Grinding Halts (longer periods such as retreats, etc.) The author believes Stillpoints are life's little moments of gold that, when taken together, can give brilliance and joy to otherwise dull days. Stillpoints are the little times, brief interludes, quick respites, one minute breaks, breathers, intermissions, and lulls.
But they are also intentional and are chosen for a specific purpose. They, as all Stopping, consist as much as possible of doing nothing and in quietude.
What you do during a Stillpoint is simple: You stop doing whatever you're doing, sit or stand, take a deep breath with your eyes open or closed, focus your attention inward, and remember what you need to remember. Stop, breathe, and remember. The remembering part is very flexible, it can also mean remembering a prayer for strength or peace, a message you need to hear at the moment like you can do it, or a self-encouragement like you're okay. Stop, breathe, and remember.
Why be confirmed? Confirmation is necessary for the completion of baptismal grace. By this sacrament we are more perfectly bound to the Church, the people of God and the Body of Christ. We are also given courage and enriched through the special strength of the Holy Spirit.
It is the Holy Spirit that strengthens our faith and helps us to grow in the love and service of Christ. In Confirmation we receive the full outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The gifts of the Spirit help perfect us as human beings as well as members of the Body of Christ. In this day and age the world needs us all to be filled with the spirit of wisdom and understanding, of right judgment and courage, of knowledge and reverence and the spirit of wonder and awe in the presence of our God.
Dr. Harry Kocurek, Pastoral Associate
Step out in faith. That is what Peter did in today's Gospel for the 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time. Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus; but, when Peter perceived how strong the wind was, he became frightened and began to sink. He cried out to Jesus, Lord, save me! Jesus at once stretched out His hand and caught Peter. How little faith you have! Jesus exclaimed. Why did you falter?
How many times have you been caught by the Lord? Probably more than you acknowledge! Peter was willing to step out in faith. Recall times you also found it easy to trust and times when you found it hard to trust the Lord. When is it easier for you to trust God? When is faith more difficult? What do you tend to do when your faith level is low? Are you satisfied with that?
Why are you Roman Catholic? Why do you remain a Roman Catholic? These are good questions with which to examine your faith. You were baptized a Catholic because of other people if you were baptized as an infant; but, you remain Catholic because of other people also. Just think about that statement as you reflect on your Catholicism. How much of your prayer is for others? Pray for those who need prayer most. At your family breakfast table tomorrow, invite each family member to look for someone in need of prayer as they go through their day, whether it is someone they meet, see from a distance, know well, or read about in the paper or hear about on the radio or TV. Then at dinner tomorrow evening, bring each of the people chosen to prayer and offer a special moment of silence for them. Perhaps, someone else is praying for you.
At Mass next weekend, look around for someone new who comes alone. As a family, greet that person before or after liturgy. Invite the person to sit with you or your family in the future.
August 8th is the feast day of St. Dominic, the founder of the Dominicans, who fought against the Albigensian heresy which viewed people as good spirits trapped in evil bodies. August 10 we remember Edith Stein, one of our newest saints, who was born to a Jewish family, was as an atheist intellectual, converted to Catholicism, became a nun and was killed by the Nazis in 1942. August 11 is the feast day of St. Clare of Assisi who was inspired by St. Francis of Assisi at age eighteen to live a life of poverty. Maximillian Kolbe was a priest sent to Auschwitz where he offered his life in place of a husband and father who was condemned to die. His feast day is August 14th. All these saints stepped out in faith.
This week, make a special effort to step out in faith in some way. Pray: Gentle God, you know our wobbly and weak faith. We thank you for your patience with us. We pray for the grace to be ever more trusting in you. Amen.
This week the Church celebrates the feast of St. Lawrence. Lawrence is my Baptismal patron, Michael being my religious name. Lawrence was also my father's name. Naturally I had an early interest in St. Lawrence. The things that I remember are that he was a permanent deacon and one of the most revered saints of the early Roman Church. His name appears in the canon of Eucharistic Prayer I, and by tradition is named immediately after Peter and Paul. As a deacon, his ministry was service and in a special way, services to the poor. He suffered martyrdom in about AD 258. "So what?" you might ask. It interests me that this saint is so honored that at one time in history his feast had a vigil and an octave, sort of like Christmas today. Yet, we hardly know anything about him. It seems unbelievable that he can be so popular without even knowing what I call "basic newspaper facts," like when and where he was born; how old he was; something about his family. There's a story told that Lawrence was responsible for the treasure and financial well being of the Church. When he knew a martyr's death was eminent, he disbursed the Church's wealth among the poor so the Romans wouldn't get it. The Prefect of the city demanded the temporal goods of the Church, supposedly quoting "render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's." Lawrence responded that it would take him a couple of days to round up the Church's treasure. At the appointed time, the Prefect arrived and Lawrence introduced him to the true treasure of the Church: the blind, the lame, the maimed, the leprous, the orphans, and the widows. He had gathered all the poor he had cared for over the years and had them all lined up in rows for the Prefect. The Prefect was not amused and ordered the severest and slowest of deaths. He was to be roasted on gridiron. After roasting on one side for hours, tradition quotes Lawrence as saying, "turn me over, this side is already done." Maybe our curiosity is sometimes misplaced when such an honored saint can be a human mystery, yet remembered throughout the world every August 10th. God blesses!
Father Michael Doyle, OSM
We find in the first reading today the prophet Elijah encountering God. He hears the prophet who was called to bring the people back to the One who had freed them from the worship of false gods.
As we are in this time of summer let us consider how Elijah meets God; not in some major event or act of nature but in the quiet of the breeze. We are receptive to God when there is a major Catastrophe but we are invited, as the prophet, to experience God as a "tiny whispering sound"
(I KGS 19:12).
It is when we are receptive and quiet ourselves is God able to speak to our hearts. Life is so filled with deadlines, demands, necessities for daily life but we also need to look for that quiet moment in order to recognize the God who calls us by name.
Fr. Ron
Celebrate 2000...Youth Need a High Moral Vision... The well-being of the world's children and young people must be of immense concern to all who have public responsibilities. In my pastoral visits to the Church in every part of the world I have been deeply moved by the almost universal conditions of difficulty in which young people grow up and live. Too many sufferings are visited upon them by natural calamities, famines, epidemics, by economic and political crises, by the atrocities of war...
Where material conditions are at least adequate, other obstacles arise, not the least of which is the breakdown of family values and stability. In developed countries, a serious moral crisis is already affecting the lives of many young people, leaving them adrift, often without hope, and conditioned to look only for immediate gratification.
Yet everywhere there are young men and women deeply concerned about the world around them, ready to give the best of themselves in service to others and particularly sensitive to life's transcendent meaning. But how do we help them? Only by instilling a high moral vision can a society ensure that its young people are given the possibility to mature as free and intelligent human beings, endowed with a robust sense of responsibility to the common good, capable of working with others to create a community and a nation with a strong moral fiber.
America was built on such a vision, and the American people possess the intelligence and will to meet the challenge of rededicating themselves with renewed vigor to fostering the truths on which this country was founded and by which it grew. Those truths sustain values which have led people all over the world to look to America with hope and respect.
To all Americans, without exception, I present this invitation: Let us pause and reason together (see Isiah 1:18). To educate without a value system based on truth is to abandon young people to moral confusion, personal insecurity, and easy manipulation. No country, not even the most powerful, can endure if it deprives its own children of this essential good. Respect for the dignity and worth of every person, integrity and responsibility, as well as understanding, compassion, and solidarity toward others, survive only if they are passed on in families, in schools, and through the communications media. [PS 39/2, 1994, 85-86]
Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.
To handle yourself, use your head; To handle others, use your heart.
Anger is only one letter short of Danger.
If someone betrays you once, it's their fault; If they betray you twice, it's your fault.
Great minds discuss ideas; Average minds discuss events; Small minds discuss people.
God gives every bird its food, but He does not throw it into its nest.
He who loses money, loses much; He who loses a friend, loses more; He who loses faith, loses all.
Beautiful young people are acts of nature, but beautiful old people are works of art.
Learn from the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make them all yourself.
The tongue weighs practically nothing, but so few people can hold it.
You hear the expression: "Letting Go and Letting God" quite often. I found the following meditation this week and thought it might be good food for thought.
TO LET GO
To let go does not mean to stop caring - it means I can't do it for someone else
To let go is not to cut myself off - it's the realization I can't control another.
To let go is to not enable - but to allow learning from natural consequences.
To let go is to admit powerlessness which means the outcome is not in my hands.
To let go is not to try to change or blame another - it's the making the most of myself.
To let go is not to criticize and regulate anybody - but to try to become what I dream I can be.
To let go is not to regret the past - but to grow and live for the future.
To let go is to fear less and live more!
Anonymous
Father Murphy
OPEN WIDE THE DOORS THROUGH JESUS CHRIST: The preparation for the third millennium provides us with a privileged historical opportunityto proclaim anew to the world a profound faith that in Christ the Lord can be found the key, the focal point, and the goal of all human history (Gaudium et spes, no. 10). We are invited to renew and deepen our faith in God by deepening our relationship with Jesus Christ, a relationship sustained and nurtured through the presence of the Holy Spirit in our world today.
These preparations provide us with the opportunity to usher in a new evangelization of holiness and service. God is opening before the Church the horizons of a humanity more fully prepared for the sowing of the Gospel...The moment has come to commit all of the Church's energies to a new evangelization...No believer in Christ, no institution of the Church can avoid this supreme duty: To proclaim Christ to all peoples (Redemptoris Mission, no. 3.)
You believe in the light (cf. Jn 12:36)! Do not listen to those who encourage you to lie, to shirk responsibility, to put yourselves first. Do not listen to those who tell you that chastity is passe. In your hearts you know that true love is a gift from God and respects his plan for the union of man and woman in marriage. Do not be taken in by false values and deceptive slogans, especially about your freedom. True freedom is a wonderful gift from God, and it has been a cherished part of your country's history. But when freedom is separated from truth, individuals lose their moral direction and the very fabric of society begins to unravel.
Freedom is not the ability to do anything we want, whenever we want. Rather, freedom is the ability to live responsibly the truth of our relationship with God and with one another. Remember what Jesus said: you will know the truth and the truth will set you free (Jn 8:32). Let no one mislead you or prevent you from seeing what really matters. Turn to Jesus, listen to him, and discover the true meaning and direction of your lives.
You are children of the light (cf. Jn 12:36)! You belong to Christ, and he has called you by name. Your first responsibility is to get to know as much as you can about him, in your parishes, in religious instruction in your high schools and colleges, in your youth groups and Newman Centers.
But you will get to know him truly and personally only through prayer. What is needed is that you talk to him, and listen to him.
Today we are living in an age of instant communications. But do you realize what a unique form of communication prayer is? Prayer enables us to meet God at the most profound level of our being. It connects us directly to God, the living God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, in a constant exchange of love.
Through prayer you will learn to become the light of the world, because in prayer you become one with the source of our true light, Jesus himself.
Pope John Paul II
We expect to find the Lord in the tabernacle or while praying the rosary or in the face of a smiling child or in a breathtaking sunset.
Look, though, at Elijah the prophet in the first reading. The Lord was not in the wind, not in the earthquake, not in the fire, but in a tiny whispering sound.
Look also at Peter in the Gospel. He was so astonished to recognize Christ while he was out fishing that he began to walk on the water toward the Lord.
The fact of the matter is that the Lord is present everywhere in our world, in the sacred as well as in the secular, in both affirmations and condemnations, in saints and sinners, in the expected and in the unexpected.
The key to discovering that presence is in the disposition of our heart. It is being able to hear the Lord saying to us, Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.
How do we dispose our hearts to be open to the presence of the Lord, especially in the unexpected? Here are a couple of my suggestions:
First, an act of faith: We have to state for ourselves and for others that we really do believe that the Lord is present in every positive and negative circumstance of life and in every pleasing and unpleasant person we come across.
Secondly, praying with an open heart: Every day we need to echo the words of St. Ignatius of Loyola: Lord Jesus Christ, take all my freedom, my memory, my understanding, and my will. All that I have and cherish you have given me. I surrender it all to be guided by your will. Your love and your grace are wealth enough for me. Give me these, Lord Jesus, and I ask for nothing more.
Also, a spirit of listening: We are open to the fact that every person and event has the capacity to teach us something about the love of God and to reveal to us a new facet of God's presence.
In addition, random acts of kindness:
We respond to the discovery of God's presence and reinforce that discovery by reaching out to others with kindness and compassion, especially in unexpected and unusual ways.
With this kind of disposition, no longer will the presence of God be a mystery, no longer will the prominence of God in our lives be a fantasy.
Father Benet OFM
Human beings seem always to be attracted to excitement, noise and furor. We may say that we love peace and quiet, but regardless of the amount of bad news on the evening newscast the ratings are there. It is a good thing to be excited about faith and the Church. It is a better thing to realize that God is not always in the wind or the earthquake or the fire. God is often the tiny whisper that can always be perceived in the background (1). Is our faith all furor? Or do we reject the Church because there is too little or too much excitement?
We often practice our faith in loud ways. We are present in the wind of church politics. We are active in the earthquakes of school closings or parish mergers. Are we, however, present in the quiet sounds? Do we use our time, talent and treasure to provide a constant setting? When Jesus walked on the water it was the surrounding sea that was troubled (3). We can be anchors of peace in troubled seas or we can be part of the storm.
