His Word Today: Mary's birthday

Good morning everyone,

Today, the Church celebrates the birthday of the Virgin Mary.  We refer to it as the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin.

The scriptures introduce us to Mary at the time when she has already been betrothed to Joseph  (cf Mt 1:18), but what can we know about her earlier life?  In the Jewish city of Nazareth, not far from the Basilica of the Annunciation, is the International Centre of Mary of Nazareth.  Ingeniously using multi-media presentations and visual arts, this Centre explains who Mary was, how God had chosen her from the very beginning as part of his eternal plan to play a key role in the history of salvation.

As we celebrate the birthday of the Virgin Mary today, let us take some time to ponder the question: If God has sent me to live at this time in history, what part am I meant to play in His eternal plan?  When we have an answer to this question, we come to understand that each one of us is infinitely small but infinitely loved, each one of us is connected with those around us - and perhaps with those we have not yet encountered, and each one of us is part of God's eternal plan.

Have a great day.

His Word Today: Appearances

Good morning everyone,

There are some people in our lives who we admire.  Usually the people we look up to are the ones who model for us the kind of person we all want to be like.  Usually, the ones we look up to are the ones who not only appear to possess the traits we admire, but the ones who somehow have managed to prove their level of sincerity.  This is the gift that Jesus gave to his disciples, the gift he challenged everyone else to seek.  To those who were content with external appearances, but whose behaviour demonstrated a lack of sincerity, his words always challenged. 

When the scribes and Pharisees asked him about the fact that his disciples ate and drank while the disciples of John the Baptist fasted often and offered prayers, and the disciples of the Pharisees did the same (Lk 5:33) he challenged them to see holiness in a different light.

Holiness is a matter of maintaining a relationship with God on a regular basis.  Like other relationships we cultivate with friends and relatives, our relationship with God will be evident to those who witness the way we act and speak.  The discipline of fasting is meant to make us more aware of the need for prayer: to make us more aware of our need to be in relationship with God, not simply to make us look pious.

How are things between me and God?  Do I seek to fast from anything that will hinder my relationship with Jesus, or do I act piously in order to attract the attention of others?

Have a great day.

His Word Today: Make room

Good morning everyone,

Today, we see an example of how Jesus always made room in order to share good news.  He was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret (otherwise known as the Sea of Galilee) and the crowd was pressing in on him ... listening to the word of God (Lk 5:1).  Jesus always wanted to make more room for others, and so, when he saw two boats there, alongside the lake ... he got into ... the one belonging to Simon ... and asked him to put out a short distance from the shore (Lk 5:2-3).

Sound travels very well over water, so putting out into the water would have allowed Jesus' words to reach more people.  In addition, making room on the beach (by moving out onto the water) he would also have made more room for people to gather.  This is a wonderful gift that we can all learn from Jesus' example: always make room for others.

Let us try today to be especially aware of the ways we make room for others in our lives, and let us also be aware of those who help us to find room for others.  In the case of Jesus, he recognized Simon's generosity and rewarded him (cf Lk 5:4) for his willingness to give selflessly of himself.  Recognizing the gifts of others and encouraging them to share those gifts with others is also a blessing that we have received from our God.

Have a great day.

His Word Today: Mother Teresa

Good morning everyone,

Today, the Church celebrates the liturgical Memorial of Saint Teresa of Calcutta.  Born Anjesë (Agnes) Bojaxhiu in the city of Skopje (the present-day capital of Macedonia), she was 18 years old when she joined the Loretto Sisters and moved to Ireland in order to learn English.  She was then sent to India to teach in the Sisters' schools, and it was in the city of Calcutta that she experienced what she referred to as a call within a call, and founded the Missionaries of Charity.

Today, there are more than 4,500 Sisters who are Missionaries of Charity.  They are present in more than 133 countries and all of them are serving the poorest of the poor, striving every day to respond to the call of Jesus from the cross: I thirst (Jn 19:28).

Every day of her life, Mother Teresa sought out the suffering Jesus in the people around her.  She took dying people in her arms only so that they could know that someone loved them; she accepted children whose mothers were too poor to care for them; she created a leper colony where those who suffer from that virulent disease could re-discover their self-worth ... and now the priests and nuns who follow her example continue to serve those who have been rejected by society by helping them - one at a time - to rediscover their dignity in the eyes of God.

May this holy woman help us to courageously draw close to all those who are neglected so that we can recognize in them the suffering Christ, and so that we can help them to remember that they are precious children of our loving God.

Have a great day.

His Word Today: Speak

Good morning everyone,

For any of us who has little people in our lives, today is a big day because they are starting a new school year.  Whether we are teachers, part of the support staff, involved in administration or proud parents and grandparents, we look into the eyes of our children today and see great possibilities.

In the coming days, weeks and months, they will learn many things, including the fact that there are some moments in life when they should speak up - for themselves or for someone else - and there are some moments when they should keep silence.  Knowing how to determine the right time for speech and the right time for silence is a matter of wisdom: something that comes with lots of practice and guidance.  In this matter - as with many others - they (and we) can learn from the example of Jesus.

When Jesus arrived in Capharnaum, he went to the synagogue and taught many things.  Jesus had a knack for sizing up situations.  He knew almost immediately which people needed to be challenged and which people needed help, and he was always willing to come to their aid.  Today's gospel gives us an example of his compassion, describing the way he rebuked evil spirits and compelled them to be quiet, come out (Lk 4:35).

Today, let us ask Jesus to accompany us.  Some of us are marking new beginnings, some of us are taking great strides and all of us need His help so that we can wisely determine the right time for speech and the time for keeping quiet.

Have a great day.

His Word Today: Saint Gregory the Great

Good morning everyone,

Today, the Church celebrates the liturgical Memorial of Saint Gregory the Great.  Pope Saint Gregory was born approximately in the year 540 AD, the son of a Roman senator and therefore a child who was offered much privilege.  He was already a Prefect of Rome at the age of 30.  For a brief while, he entered a monastery, but soon returned to politics.  In time, he was advanced to the highest levels of the Church.  He was named Pope on 3 September 590 and during his 14 years in that office sent a large-scale mission to convert the Anglo-Saxons to Christianity.

He was a talented administrator who managed to bring many groups of peoples - previously at war with one another - together in professing their allegiance to Rome.  We can almost hear Gregory echoing the words that Saint Paul spoke almost six centuries previous to the early Christian community at Corinth: When I came to you, brothers and sisters ... I did not come with sublimity of words or of wisdom, for I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified (1 Cor 2:1-2).

May this revered saint, famous for creating the calendar that we still use today (known as the Gregorian calendar) and for revising the liturgy of his day, creating the style of music known as Gregorian chant and contributing to the development of the Divine Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts which is still in use in the Byzantine Rite, intercede for us and help us to seek the wisdom of knowing Jesus Christ who's disciples we all are.

Have a great day.

Re-orientation

This past week, I was on retreat along with the other English-speaking priests of our diocese.  In the light of the allegations that were leveled against so many priests in the United States in recent weeks, this time apart with the Lord and with our brothers was a welcome gift.

On the very first evening of our time together, our own Bishop encouraged us to give voice to the thoughts and emotions that were being raised within each one of us in the light of these most recent accusations, and for the remainder of the week, our retreat master, His Excellency, Christian Riesbeck, who is currently serving as the Auxiliary Bishop of Ottawa, helped us to focus once again on listening for the voice of Jesus who is the shepherd of our souls.

Each one of us whose souls have been disquieted by recent events needs to find some time to listen for the voice of Jesus.  In today’s gospel passage, he challenged the Pharisees and some of the scribes to recognize that while they were so fixed on following external laws, they had in fact abandoned the commandment of God and focused rather on human traditions (Mk 7:8).  If he were speaking in the language of our times, Jesus would have urged even the Pharisees to confess their sins and to change their ways.

This is exactly what Jesus encourages all of us to do.  We must constantly listen for his voice, calling his disciples and urging us to return to Him.  The Lord has already given us all that we need; all he asks in return is that we heed the statutes and ordinances that he has taught us ... so that we may enter and the land that the Lord, our God, has given us (Deut 4:1-2).

It seems that time and time again, the frailty and the humanity of Jesus’ disciples come to light, and when they do, they cause us all to stop.  These are the times when some difficult questions have to be asked, and some may even be tempted to turn away - that was the subject of last weekend’s gospel – but such moments can also be occasions of grace.

Saint James reminds us today that every generous act of giving ... is from above, from the Father.  Therefore, we should welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save our souls, and we should be doers of the word (Jas 1:17, 21-22).

And how do we continue to put the word of God into action?  Saint James says that we should care for orphans and widows in their time of distress, and that we should keep ourselves unstained by the world (Jas 1:27).  These words apply to all of us.  We must all strive to keep our eyes focused on Jesus.  He is the one who will point out to us the situations where our efforts are needed in order for is word to be proclaimed.  He is the one who will bring to our minds and hearts all those who are in need: widows, orphans, the sick and the suffering.  If we strive every day to listen for his word and to do whatever he tells us, we will also be able to resist the constant temptation to give in to the lure of earthly enticements.