Category Archives: Sacraments

That our relationships be healed….

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This phrase is part of the official prayer for the Australian Year of Grace, which is currently running at the same time as the Year of Faith. During the last few months the number of situations I have been told about where spouses have separated, or where children have estranged themselves from their families, or where couples are undermining future marital relationships by cohabiting runs to far more than the fingers on both hands. The pain generated by these situations is enormous. Given that the good Lord has been continuously drawing my attention to them, perhaps it is time to think about some focused prayer for the healing of relationships.

At the same time that this has been going on, our study group over at www.ofgraceandfaith.blogspot.com has been learning about the purpose and sheer wonder of the sacraments. All of the sacraments are meant to draw us into deeper unity with God and with each other. Everything we do should work towards this, and the ministry of helping people become reconciled with God and with each other is the ordinary task of every believer. Having recently looked at the Sacrament of Penance, it became obvious that you can’t be more reconciled with God unless you are more reconciled with the people in your life; and vice versa. So if we truly want to grow in God’s Grace, we really do need – with His help – to patch up the relationships in our lives. Grudges, feuds, indifference, misunderstandings, quarrels and bitterness all have to make an exit from our lives.

Practically then, what can we do?

The first essential thing to do is to begin the process of reconciliation by going to the Sacrament of Penance and making a good confession, and to then make a commitment to return to that source of Grace regularly – at least monthly.

The second thing to do, particularly if you are an estranged spouse or a spouse whose marriage is going through rocky times, is to do the Double Great Novena (9 consecutive First Fridays and 9 consecutive First Saturdays together – Holy Communion both days of the month (Mass or Communion Service), Sacrament of Penance as close to those days as possible, on the First Saturday 5 decades of the Rosary together with substantial meditations on the mysteries). The Double Great Novena has a whole stack of magnificent promises attached to them, but the most important ones for our purpose are these: 5. Married couples will stay together, and if one has already left, he or she will return. 6. The members of their families will understand each other and persevere in faith. 15. If parents or other members of a family complete this novena, nobody from that family will be condemned to hell. (To read all 33 Promises, find a copy of ‘The Victorious Queen of the World – The spiritual diary of a contemporary mystic Sr Natalia of Hungary)

The third thing to do, particularly if you are hurting from a loved one locking you out of their lives, is to unite your tears with those of Our Lady. Of the various prayers that we pull out of our private ‘prayer arsenal’, the following prayer is one of the ‘big guns’ for especially difficult situations such as these.

The Rosary of Tears

Crucified Jesus! Kneeling at Your feet, we offer to You the tears of the one who, with deep and compassionate love, accompanied You on Your sorrowful way of the Cross. O Good Saviour, grant that we take to heart the teachings given us by the tears of Your Most Holy Mother, so that we may accomplish Your divine will on earth, and may be made worthy to honour and glorify You in Heaven throughout all eternity.

1st Tears. Those of the farewell between Mary and Jesus on Holy Thursday

2nd Tears. Those Mary shed when she heard that Jesus had been condemned to death and rejected in favour of Barabbas

3rd Tears. Those in her eyes and on her face as she met Jesus carrying His Cross to Calvary.

4th Tears. Those Mary shed as she saw Jesus stripped of His garments and as she saw all the wounds, bruises and scourges on His body.

5th Tears. Those Mary shed as she saw the blows driving the nails into the hands and feet of Jesus

6th Tears. All the tears Mary shed as she saw each twinge and tremor of agony of Jesus on the Cross until His death.

7th Tears. The tears Mary shed as she prepared the body of Jesus for burial.

For each set of tears pray,

Once: O Jesus! Behold the tears of the one who loved You most on earth, and who loves You most ardently in Heaven.

Seven Times: O Jesus! Hear our prayers, for the sake of the tears of Your most holy Mother

At the end, repeat three times…

O Jesus! Behold the tears of the one who loved You most on earth And who loves You most ardently in Heaven.

O Mary, Mother of Love, Mother of Sorrows, and Mother of Mercy! We beg you to unite your petitions with ours so that Your Divine Son, Jesus, to Whom we now turn in the name of Your Motherly tears, answers our prayers, and with the graces we ask for, grants us the kingdom of eternal life. Amen.

The fourth thing we can do is to pray for each other’s painful relationship situations, and to seek the prayers of others. So please send a comment seeking prayers – but do it in code so that no one can be offended. For example, please pray for J, for F, and for A who have all recently married and have essentially wiped their birth families from their minds and hearts. Please pray, too, for M.D., J.B, A.H-C, who are separated from their spouses. For K, J, M, C and M, all in various levels of co-habitation.

Our Lady, Queen of Families, pray for us.

 

 

 

 

The answer you have been looking for…

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Do you hear people saying, ‘I don’t know who I am any more!’, ‘I need to find myself’, ‘How I want my relationships to improve!’, ‘I’d like to do something to combat the natural disasters that are happening’? There is an answer, and a very powerful answer, if you read on…

Why this answer isn’t being transmitted all over the world is a real mystery, because it has been sitting in the Catechism of the Catholic Church for over 2 decades, and in the writings of Blessed Pope John Paul the Great. You can verify this at ‘Reconciliatio et Paenitentia’ passage 31 Part V, and quoted in CCC 1469. Here are the Pope’s words in full:

‘…It must be emphasized that the most precious result of the forgiveness obtained in the Sacrament of Penance consists in reconciliation with God, which takes place in the inmost heart of the son who was lost and found again, which every penitent is. But it has to be added that this reconciliation with God leads, as it were, to other reconciliations which repair the breaches caused by sin. The forgiven penitent is reconciled with himself in his inmost being, where he regains his own true identity. He is reconciled with his brethren whom he has in some way attacked and wounded. He is reconciled with the Church. He is reconciled with all creation. As a result of an awareness of this, at the end of the celebration there arises in the penitent a sense of gratitude to God for the gift of Divine Mercy received, and the Church invites the penitent to have this sense of gratitude. Every confessional is a special and blessed place from which, with divisions wiped away, there is born new and uncontaminated a reconciled individual-a reconciled world!’

What a untold gift this Sacrament is!

If you haven’t been to the Sacrament of Penance for a while (or even longer), chances are you have forgotten how wonderful it is to receive God’s forgiveness and what to do and what to say during the Sacrament. If so, please go to the ‘Resources‘ page on this blog and scroll down a long way, and you will find what you need. The subtitle – when you find it – is ‘Provide yourself with words and come’, and underneath that title is a PDF with three choices for a prayer of contrition to use, a tri-fold brochure about how to return to the Sacrament after an absence, and an additional tri-fold brochure containing excerpts of the teaching Jesus gave to St Faustina about the Sacrament of Penance, which are a true blessing to read.

What is sin?

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“What is sin?” This question crops up a lot, and for many different reasons, but it is a question that is always asked sincerely. Mostly it is a plea for clarity as to whether those ‘grey’ areas in a person’s life are really white (pleasing to God) or really black (sinful).

Even in the Catechism of the Catholic Church an exact definition is hard to find. CCC 387 contains ‘Only in the knowledge of God’s plan for man can we grasp that sin is an abuse of the freedom that God gives to created persons so that they are capable of loving Him and loving one another.’ (Now this is true for the first edition of the Catechism, however later editions have a Glossary, and in this Glossary is a definition of sin). In our former Diocesan sacramental programme we gave this similar definition to those preparing for the Sacrament of Penance, ‘We sin when we do not love God and others as Jesus taught us’. I find that this definition extremely useful, easy to describe and easy to understand. CCC 397 goes on to explain sin like this : ‘Man, tempted by the devil, let his trust in his Creator die in his heart and, abusing his freedom, disobeyed God’s command. This is what man’s first sin consisted of. All subsequent sin would be disobedience towards God and lack of trust in His goodness.’

Another way of understanding sin is the concept of ‘missing the mark’. Prior to the coming of Jesus we knew that God expected us to keep the Commandments, but not what we were aiming for in our actions. Jesus then gave us the Beatitudes as our model for Christian behaviour and His example of perfect love. During the sacramental programme we explain it like this: Imagine that you are an archer, and that the target is directly in front of you. If you put your arms out straight and then moved them in an arc 5cms of 2 inches in the direction of the target, the imaginary lines made with your arms would represent the 10 Commandments. Anything within them can be construed as aiming for the target, anything behind them and obviously you weren’t aiming for the target at all and we call that mortal sin (deadly sin which completely ruptures our relationship with God). Anywhere the arrow falls within the Commandments but not on the bulls-eye of the target would be called venial sin. We would call holiness the state of those who hit the target consistently, and who are always aiming to get closer to the bulls-eye – and its absolute centre.

Looking at the actions of Jesus and the choices He made puts everything into perspective. Take for example the time in Mark Chapter 10 when Jesus was teaching about the heavy matters of marriage, divorce and adultery and people brought children to Him. There were many things Jesus could have done. 1) He could have sent the children away quick smart, since He was doing something important and shouldn’t be disturbed 2) He could have asked them to go and play for a while and then come back 3) He could have stopped what He was going, come over, give them a brief greeting and then get back to what he was doing 4) However Jesus did completely stop what He was doing, put His arms around them, spoke to them individually, and gave each child His blessing. Jesus did the most perfect thing. He was generous in showing love to all and to each. And the more you look at the Gospel stories and study the choices Jesus could have made and the choices Jesus did make, the more you come to realise that Jesus always chose to do the most perfect and most loving actions.

So the 10 Commandments as given by God to Moses on Mt Sinai are our best guide to what is gravely sinful matter and to what displeases God the most. Since lots of people don’t know them off by heart any more, or have trouble unpacking what they mean, below is a copy of what the children in the sacramental class receive – with the Scripture text and simple commentary.

CommandmentsPDF

In recent times the importance of the 10 Commandments has been highlighted by the unusual Christmas 2012 message from Medjugorje. Instead of a message from Our Lady, the Christ Child in her arms spoke and said, ‘I am your peace. Live My commandments.’ Every human misery can be traced back to someone breaking the 10 commandments. How easy it is to forget that Jesus was so concerned with eradicating sin, and each and every sin, that He became incarnate for us and died the gruelling, humiliating death on the Cross.

A further question then, often crops up. ‘OK, so I need to take God’s laws seriously, but what about the man made laws? For example, it’s OK If I speed on a road when there’s no traffic, isn’t it?’ We take our cue from what Jesus did. He paid the temple tax. His mother underwent the Jewish purification rites following childbirth, even though technically she didn’t have to. He submitted to the arrest in the garden of Gethsemane and to the decrees of the unjust King Herod and the unjust Pontius Pilate. To please His Father Jesus obeyed the civil authorities, as long as the civil authorities were not asking Him to do something against God’s will. As to speeding with no traffic in sight, St Paul’s teaching would be applicable : ‘Be obedient to the men who are called your masters in this world, with deep respect and sincere loyalty, as you are obedient to Christ : not only when you are under their eye, as if you only had to please men, but because you are slaves of Christ and wholeheartedly do the will of God.’ Eph 6:5-6. When it comes to civil authority the more perfect thing to do is to be obedient – but for serious urgent reasons like getting an injured passenger to hospital as quickly as possible – you would speed as far as not endangering lives would permit.

‘Now what about untidyness and sloppiness at home?’ When more important things are at stake, the lesser things can probably be left behind eg spending 2 hours cleaning your own home instead of being with an ill relative during visiting hours at the hospital wouldn’t be the loving thing to do. Yet even in the few moments we have for getting such small tasks done we should be taking St Therese of Lisieux as a model and trying to do the little things to the best of our ability. Considering that our work, even the least of it, should aim at giving glory to God, we should be offering Him the best we can do in those moments and under those conditions because anything less is unworthy of Him, our Creator, our Redeemer and our Sanctifier. It is important that we get beyond doing the minimum to say we have kept the Commandments and to begin to seek to please the good God in all of our thoughts, words and deeds.

May the intercession of the Saints grant us the light to see where our actions fall short of the mark set by Jesus, and the Grace to acknowledge our faults, to seek forgiveness and pardon from God, and to begin to desire to do the better thing – the one which pleases Him more – rather than the lesser thing. Amen.

VJC On Penance CCC 1446

The Sacrament of Penance is the life-saving plank the good Lord gives us when we make a shipwreck of our lives through sin. CCC 1446.

(For some reason, at present (6-7 Jan 2013+) Google Blogger isn’t letting images be uploaded from the computer – so I need to take this roundabout route to get them to upload via the URL option. Hopefully this source of frustration will not be long in duration.)

Tribunal of Mercy (confessional) at Boolaroo, NSW

Year of Faith: what a simple confessional looks like.

Would God understand?

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Over at the study group (www.ofgraceandfaith.blogspot.com) two weeks ago we spent a long time discussing passage CCC 1387 from the Catechism of the Catholic Church : ‘To prepare for worthy reception of this sacrament (ie the Eucharist), the faithful should observe the fast required in their Church. Bodily demeanor (gestures, clothing) ought to convey the respect, solemnity, and joy of this moment when Christ becomes our guest.’ Every so often the comment would be made – in reference to less than perfect behaviour – ‘But surely God would understand’, and I’m not totally sure that this is the case.

In times past people would dress up to go to Mass, and especially when preparing for Sunday Mass. Afterwards you would change into ordinary clothes, play clothes or work gear. They were full of the awareness that they were going to worship God and that God, being God, deserved the very best they had to offer. They went to Church primarily to be with God, and used the moments before and after Mass to talk to Him in their hearts. In plenty of our churches these days it seems that going to Mass is primarily a social occasion, to catch up with friends and obtain the latest news, and that worshipping God is somewhere down the list of motivations.

‘Well, at least they are at Mass’. Yes, that is a minimum start. But wouldn’t we be horrified by someone who came to interview an important celebrity without doing background research, preparing questions to ask, and dressing in a professional manner?

Why are we so reluctant to set standards of dress when attending the Eucharist? To get into an RSL club there are minimum dress regulations (wear something with a collar, no shorts or thongs), and people abide by them. If you came to a performance of Opera talking loudly, chewing gum and playing a noisy game on your smart phone, the usher would soon escort you elsewhere. We dress up to go and see a performance of Shakespeare. So how is it that ‘anything goes’ is good enough for God, and ’surely He’ll understand that I didn’t bother to look my best for Him because ……. I was running late / remembered to go at the last moment / it’s just one of many things I’ve got to do today’.

Would God understand? When Jesus saw the Temple turned more into a marketplace than a place for worship, He was angry and drove out the money changers and their wares. He was full of zeal for God’s house and for God’s glory. So much did He want His heavenly Father honoured that He gave us ‘Hallowed be Thy Name’ in the Our Father. Honouring God and giving Him our best was a top priority for Jesus, so how is it that we don’t follow Him in this?

Would Jesus understand the ‘Come as you are’ mentality? Given the evidence above, I don’t think so. The popular song of that title was primarily about not delaying our return to God by repentance. It definitely wasn’t about how to dress when going to Mass, and yet those thoughts have seeped in to the collective psyche.

Currently we are collectively shaking our heads over a faith-filled mother who is permitting her teenage daughter to come to Mass in short-shorts and thongs. For all we know there may have been major arguments at home, and the ‘at least she’s here’ argument won the day. These are the teachable-moments that God gives us to remind our children and others that He is both worthy and deserving of our very best, and that offering Him our dregs is insulting to His majesty and glory.

One of the prayers of St Thomas Aquinas captures the attitude of heart that should inform our dress, demeanor and gestures in God’s presence :  ’I give You thanks, Lord, Holy Father, everlasting God. In Your great Mercy, and not because of my own merits,  you have fed me, a sinner and Your unworthy servant, with the precious Body and Blood of Your Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ.’

While we are unlikely to have much success persuading people with words to prepare for Holy Mass more consciously, leading by example is likely to be far more effective. It could be as simple as making a commitment to wear closed-in shoes each time you go to Mass. It could be as simple as putting on a collar and tie for gents and a skirt of ample length for the ladies together with necklines which show no cleavage. It could be as simple as setting aside a good outfit or two for ‘Sunday best’ and choosing when you have new clothes to wear them for the first time when going to Mass. It could be as simple as always putting on clean, fresh clothes before going to Church. It could be as simple as taking off all distracting ear-rings, bangles and jewellery and leaving all mobile phones in the car. When there is a choice between something flamboyant and something less flamboyant to wear, choose the one which will distract fellow worshippers the least. Such simple commitments would powerfully prepare our own hearts for the Eucharist and help us to value it more highly. Then should someone comment or ask why you are making an effort to be presentable at Mass, have your answer ready and give that answer with both truth and love.

In essence it is all about removing ‘practical atheism’ – all of those habitual actions in our lives which fail to mirror the faith we profess. eg If we believe that God is truly present in the consecrated hosts within the tabernacle, then we will behave reverently and prayerfully in Church, relishing that presence, and not exiting Mass as fast after Holy Communion as we can.

Particularly let us take the Solemnity of Christmas as our starting point for showing the good God greater honour in the way we dress and behave at Mass.

Divine Infant Jesus, protect and bless us, and guide us into true worship of the Heavenly Father. Amen.

 

 

 

To baptize or not to baptize?

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In order to become an official member of the Society of Saints, which comprises all of those who have been made children of God through the death and resurrection of Jesus, the sacrament of Baptism is necessary. However there seems to be a growing number of parents who are not seeking membership of the People of God for their children. Why is this?

One of the main arguments appears to be that the parents don’t want to be hypocrites and to begin the initiation of their children into something they themselves either no longer believe in or don’t see as relevant would be hypocritical in their eyes. In addition to this they often say that matters of faith are something their children can decide for themselves when they are old enough. Naturally those with faith who are older and wiser can see some truth in the arguments of these young parents, but also know that there is also a lot wrong with these arguments although they may not be able to explain why.

As to the grain of truth, the Code of Canon Law 868 agrees with them. Baptism can only be administered to infants lawfully if at least one of the parent’s consents and there is some hope that the child will be brought up in the Catholic religion, or without consent if the child is in danger of death.

The big questions then become : Do the parents know enough about Baptism to know what it is they are rejecting for their child? If the parents were married in a Catholic Church, do they realise how serious a thing it is for them to go back on their vow to God and public promise to bring any children up in the Catholic faith? How seriously are the parents going to give their child sufficient information from both sides of the argument for the child to come to an informed decision as to whether to seek Baptism or not? How seriously have these parents come to the decision not to baptize – have they been unconsciously drifting away from anything to do with God? have they done their own homework or are they following their peers because it seems the cool thing to do?

It is very reasonable for faith-filled relatives to worry when someone announces that they will not be seeking Baptism for their child. In the very act of not seeking Baptism they are rejecting God, His ways, and any faith they grew up with. For many it is a proclamation that their lives are too busy with work, sport, and socialising to make a commitment to worship God on a weekly basis with the Christian community. For a minority it might be a protest about living within the behavioural boundaries of the 10 commandments (thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness, thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not covet, thou shalt worship God alone, honour your parents etc).

Perhaps as a Christian community we have not been very vocal in promoting the benefits of Baptism. They do exist. However we are more likely to talk to someone about how great it is to have a relationship with God than we are to speak about how wonderful it is to be Baptised. Only with the recent reflections on Vatican II and the universal call to holiness through Baptism – which came with the start of the Year of Faith – and the ‘Of Grace and Faith’ study group going through the section of the Catechism of the Catholic Church on Baptism (see www.ofgraceandfaith.blogspot.com )have I done any thinking about the benefits of Baptism in a long, long time.

What are the consequences of not being baptised?

Without Baptism you cannot receive any of the other sacraments. This means that you cannot receive the sacrament of marriage and cannot thus feel God’s blessing and power of love flowing through your marriage. This means that you cannot receive the profound gift of sacramental absolution of sins through the sacrament of Penance (Confession). Without Baptism you are unable to truly recite the Our Father as a child of that heavenly Father, only as a creature of the Creator.

Without Baptism you cannot receive the spiritual gifts which come with Baptism. To please God more than human virtue is needed, and the sacrament infuses the supernatural gifts of faith, hope and charity. Speak to anyone who wants to have faith that God exists and you soon come to realise just how big the gift of faith is. As a child of God through Baptism you share in the power of forgiveness won by the death and resurrection of Jesus. Every parent knows that sooner or later their child will be hurt or betrayed badly by others. Lack of forgiveness cripples a person on the inside, and can also cripple them psychosomatically as well. For big hurts a person needs more than the power of human forgiveness, they need a share in the divine power of Jesus in order to be set free. Every parent has also lived long enough to realise that evil and malice exist, and one of the first steps in overcoming an addiction through the 12 step programme is to believe in a higher power. Through the exorcisms in the baptismal rite and through the divine protections given to all children of God the baptised are shielded from many attacks of the evil one and are in a stronger position to reject temptations when they come.

Can someone get to heaven without Baptism? Yes, but it is a far more difficult road. You have to consistently seek truth, goodness and beauty and to act according to the lights that conscience gives. It is similar to the difference between someone with a push-bike (non-baptised) and someone with a motorised pushbike, with helmet, knee and elbow guards, GPS, first-aid kit (baptised) travelling with others on similarly kitted out motorised pushbikes. The destination is heaven, and the baptised have a much greater chance of getting there. A non baptised person participates in ordinary human virtue. By virtue of Baptism into Christ Jesus, every good action of a baptised person in a state of grace acquired immortal value, because due to Baptism consciously or unconsciously those good actions are done in union with Christ and His Church.

The older and wiser members of the faithful sense that letting a child decide matters of faith for themselves is unlikely to produce a happy outcome. Who would let a child determine the right way to cross a busy road as a pedestrian by themselves? Who would let a child determine the safety of a naked flame by themselves? Who would let a child decide for themselves whether studying mathematics was a worthwhile subject or not? Yet we have parents giving children in State Schools permission to not attend Scripture classes from the early years of primary school. How are they going to be able to decide the pivotal question in the meaning of life - the existence of God – if they never get to learn about what the Christian community believes about Him? If God exists then heaven, hell and judgment are real, with eternal consequences. Any wise person knows that ignoring this question is foolhardy.

What is the likely outcome for a child of parents who think they are doing the sophisticated and enlightened thing by letting the child decide for themselves when he or she is old enough? Generally the child will look to the parent’s actions and non actions. If the parents have no room for God in their lives, the chances of a child working out how to include God in his or her life are slim indeed. If the parents could not be bothered to determine for the sake of the child whether God is real or not, why should the child bother? If parents took the time to read the accounts of those who came from atheism to belief in Jesus and compared them to the accounts of those who grew up in Christian homes, drifted a bit and then came to an adult faith, the choice to baptise or not baptise would become much clearer. ‘Atheist to Catholic : 11 Stories of Conversion ‘ compiled by Rebecca V. Cherico, any of the books in the ‘Surprised by Truth’ series compiled by Patrick Madrid, or viewing several episodes of EWTN’s ‘Journey Home’ programme with Marcus Grodi are good places to start such investigations.

On this day, 21 Oct 2012, when seven holy members of the Church are canonized, let us ask them to pray for all the yet-to-be baptised that they may be granted this stupendous gift of God.

We only wait for important things

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Yesterday we had to go on a bit of a pilgrimage, because in this holiday corner of the world there is no Saturday morning Mass to be had anywhere. So into the diocesan CBD we traipsed and went to the cathedral. Awaiting us was something unexpected, and inspiring.

The other thing we needed was an opportunity to go to the Sacrament of Penance. Thankfully there was a regular time slot prior to the Mass on Saturdays. When we finally reached the cathedral it took quite a while to actually locate where the confessionals were. Most confessionals could do with better sign-posting; our new church is almost 5 years old and regulars are still discovering where it is! At the church we went to on Saturday night I couldn’t locate the confessional, even though I knew it had to be there somewhere.

Upon locating the waiting area for the Sacrament we had to do a double-take, because there were over 20 people already in the queue. They were of all ages, genders and nations of origin. An anxious wait then began, because only 40 minutes of official confessional time was left. Admittedly this was a city church, but even so it has been a long time since I’ve seen that many lined up for individual confessions (as apposed to second-Rite celebrations in Advent and Lent.)

Human beings aren’t good at waiting, but each person lined up in the rows in front of us did so without complaint and without fidgeting. None of them gave up and went off elsewhere. By their patience each one silently witnessed to the importance of this Sacrament in their lives. That was inspiring! Answering our pleas, the good Lord arranged for us to take our turn inside the confessional just as the official time slot was up. May He be praised!

On the other hand, the longer I sat the more I appreciated the dedication of this priest within the confessional. Easily he could have sent the penitent before me back to the waiting area with a message that the confessional time was up, and to come back later. This he didn’t do. On the contrary, the priest kept hearing confessions for an extra 15 minutes after the official hour for confessions was over, right up until he had to go and vest for Mass. It has been quite a while since I’ve been privy to priestly generosity of this magnitude.

It’s certainly been quite a while since I’ve waited 40 minutes for the Sacrament of Penance, but it was worth it.

For the gift of being pardoned by God we will wait. However we don’t wait well at traffic lights, or at the entrance to theme parks and restaurant queues. At least that shows we have our priorities right.

May the good Lord bless this confessor and all those like him, and grant His graces to all those who waited with us.

 

 

 

Welcoming penitents with the Heart and smile of Jesus

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Today, 7 May 2012, is the first feast day of Blessed Francesco Paleari, an Italian priest of the Society of Priests of St Joseph Benedict Cottolengo. He was beatified last year on 17 September 2011 by Pope Benedixt XVI. Of all the good he accomplished with God’s grace throughout his lifetime, his ministry in the confessional was the greatest.

It is most timely to reflect upon the holy life of Blessed Francesco in the light of Pope Benedict’s special audience with clergy in Rome a few weeks ago on the 9th of March. He said, ‘The New Evangelisation…begins in the confessional.’…’Dear priests and dear deacons who are preparing for the priesthood, in the administration of this sacrament you are given, or you will be given, the possibility of being instruments of an ever renewed meeting of people with God. All who turn to you, precisely because of their condition as sinners, will experience within them a profound desire: the desire for change, the desire for mercy and, ultimately, the desire for the encounter with Christ and for Him to embrace them once again. You will therefore be collaborators and protagonists of a great many possible “new beginnings”, as many as the penitents who come to you.’

So let’s see how God worked through Blessed Francesco… He was born at Pogliano Milanese, near Milan in Italy in 1863 into a family poor in temporal things but profoundly rich in spiritual things. Each Sunday when the family went to worship God at Mass, they would live out their gratitude for Holy Communion by inviting a poor person to lunch with them afterwards. With example like this it is not surprising that Francesco developed not only a priestly vocation but also a vocation of service to the poor. The religious order founded by St Joseph Benedict Cottolengo was a perfect fit for him, since they ministered to the poorest of the poor.

Early in his seminary days he had a major struggle with homesickness, but the grace of God overcame that. Despite being short in height and slim in build, Francesco’s heart is big with love. Following his ordination to the priesthood, Francesco began his 53 years of ministry within the Order. Very quickly, Francesco became known as the priest who smiles. Children were the first to sense that he had a very special gift in the confessional. Gradually adults of all ranks learned to seek him out in the Tribunal of Penance and to obtain God’s consolation there. How much easier it is to confess one’s sins if you receive a genuinely warm and gentle welcome from your confessor! As with all Saints, prayer was as important as breathing to him. Joined to this was his ardent love for Jesus in the Eucharist and his deep devotion to Our Lady.

Francesco ministered to the sick, poor, disabled and children with learning difficulties under his care with tenderness and with infinite patience. As more people became aware of the holiness of his life, Francesco was called to take on increasing responsibilities as spiritual director of the local seminary, preacher and confessor to communities of nuns, seminary teacher, and roles of service within the diocese. There are, of course, many who desired someone less peasant-like in these roles, and were rather vocal about it. Francesco wasn’t bothered by this, and kept giving of himself to souls in need in imitation of his divine Master. Despite so many tasks before him, Francesco remained full of the peace that passes human understanding and entrusted himself completely into God’s capable hands. Of all things, what Francesco wanted was a share in God’s wisdom, to have God’s eternal perspective on the value of all things. To this end, his constant prayer was, ‘Lord, teach me to be smart.’

In 1936, three years before his death, the good Lord sent him the most difficult trial for a seeker of souls – a period of inactivity due to heart trouble. This was indeed a martyrdom of the heart for Francesco, yet he increased his trust in the Lord and reminded himself that he was like a ball in the hand of God. The stronger the force with which it hits the ground, the stringer it bounces up again. 

Death came via several days of agony on 7 May 1939. As soon as word reached students, priests, bishops, poor people, businessmen etc of his death, they came out in droves to his funeral, eager to honour this priest through whom they had received the mercy, kindness and direction of Jesus. Many had experienced this smiling priest reading their souls, imparting the healing of Jesus and giving them inspired advice for future decisions within the confessional.

May the good Lord grant that we may soon learn more about this priest who welcomed all comers with the warmth, love and welcome of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. May He grant that we may soon share the joy of the news of his canonisation.

Blessed Francesco Paleari, pray for us.

The Door to all things good

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Today, 18 April 2012, is the anniversary of my Baptism. This great sacrament is the Door to all things good, the Key to all of the graces I have received in life. For such an incalculable Gift, I give thanks to God today.

Without Baptism I would never have received any of the other Sacraments that have blessed my way on earth so profoundly. Each and every time I have been able to receive the Sacrament of Penance, the Anointing of the Sick or the Holy Eucharist has only been possible because of Baptism. The singular graces of the Sacrament of Confirmation and Sacramental Marriage, these too were opened to me because of the initial gift of Baptism. So it is only right and just that I give thanks today.

Locally there has been a lot of discussion about the televised debate between Richard Dawkins (atheist – agnostic) and Cardinal George Pell. Yes, it is possible for someone without any faith whatsoever to attain to heaven, but such a person would need to have lived a life of love towards his or her fellow man and to have responded positively to all the inspirations of grace granted to him or her. Living a loving life without the benefit / assistance / power of the Sacraments and the witness of the Christian community is a very hard thing to do.

How sad it is that so many people have no idea of the importance of Baptism, and so neglect to obtain such a great gift for their children – thinking that they can make up their own minds sometime in adulthood!  

Baptism washes away sin, and makes our souls glow with unstained purity. The challenge is to keep that purity unsullied by personal sin. Baptism unites a soul to Jesus Christ the Son of God, and invites the soul to grow in unity with Jesus throughout life. Because of this unity, all of the good actions of a baptised person take on immortal value. Baptism makes a person an adopted child of God, and makes the baptismal day our birthday into the family of God. Baptism makes us a temple of the Holy Spirit. Baptism unites me as a member of the Body of Christ with every other member of the Body of Christ, past, present and future, through the communion of Saints. In any action done by a baptised person then, they represent both Jesus and the Church. Through Baptism a person shares in the priestly, prophetic and kingly mission of Jesus (To pray / intercede and offer sacrifice, to witness to the reality and mercy of God, and to aid the poor and needy). Baptism makes a person an heir to the kingdom of God. Baptism conveys a great protection upon a person from the evil one, because God defends us as His own.  

Who wouldn’t want these marvels of divine grace for their child?

The Church invites her children to give thanks for the incredible gift of baptism. Each baptismal anniversary She offers to the Baptised the gift of a plenary indulgence (under the usual conditions) for renewing their baptismal vows on that day. Only on the 25th, 50th and 60th anniversaries of priestly ordination does the Church offer plenary indulgences. From this can you get some idea of the enormous value that the Church places on the gift of Baptism and the celebration of the anniversary of Baptism? 

Thus I thank God for giving me faith filled parents who sought for me the Sacrament of Holy Baptism. I thank Him for my god-parents and their Christian witness and love. I thank Him for the Church that He has preserved and guided throughout 2 millennia. From Her I receive the Holy Scriptures, the witness of Her Saints and martyrs, the priests raised up to minister the Sacraments, the great treasury of prayers, teaching, doctrine, theology and untold numbers of spiritual benefactors and good examples of Christian life. I thank Him for each and every Sacrament and Sacramental that I have ever received and for each and every priest through whom I have received those stupendous gifts. I thank Him for the ministrations of my holy guardian angel and for the intercession of the patron Saints whose names I was given at Baptism.  

May the good Lord grant that I may be able to live in greater fidelity to these precious Baptismal graces and vows.

All great St Catherine’s, together with the Holy Mother of God, pray for us (and please, continue to pray for me).

 

 

An invitation to hope

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As human beings we are amazingly good at stuffing up our lives, our health, our minds, our relationships – just about anything that crosses our paths. As human beings we are also amazingly good at forgetting where to go to get our stuffed lives fixed. Thankfully our Creater understands us better than we understand ourselves, so He regularly issues us invitations to hope. If we answer an invitation our lives can begin to get repaired and the gloom on our horizon can give way to optimism.

Most of us have come into contact with someone whose marriage is in trouble, or whom we are pretty sure has an addiction to alcohol, gambling, narcotics etc, or whom we suspect are having a difficult time making ends meet or trying to cope with a toxic relationship. Until that person can admit that there is a problem, and then come to the point of desiring to be free of the problem, there is very little that anyone can do to help them. Up until then, he or she is unable to listen to any helpful advice. The catalyst for change generally comes only after hearing the story of someone who has been in the same sorry pit and how they got out of it. It might take a long time for the seed of that story to ripen into action in the troubled person, but it will happen. Such stories are the invitations to hope that God gives us, and which He expects us, as His ambassadors (2 Cor 5:20) to pass on to others. 

How often we forget that the name ‘Jesus’ means ‘Saviour’! The angel of God instructed St Joseph to give the unborn baby in Mary’s womb the name of Jesus, ‘because He is the one who is to save His people from their sins.’ (Matt 1: 21). It is sin that lies at the heart of all the misery in our lives. To get out of that misery we need the power to forgive, or the power to seek forgiveness; the power that heals, restores and makes new (Rev 21:5). Such power comes only from God and was purchased at the immense price of the blood, sorrows, tortures and death of Jesus.   

Here is an invitation to hope issued by Jesus through St Faustina (passage 1602 ‘Divine Mercy in my Soul’): ’Today the Lord said to me, Daughter, when you go to confession (ie. the sacrament of reconciliation), to this fountain of My mercy, the Blood and Water which came forth from My heart always flows down upon your soul and ennobles it. Every time you go to confession, immerse yourself entirely in My mercy, with great trust, so that I may pour the bounty of My grace upon your soul. When you approach the confessional, know this, that I Myself am waiting there for you. I am only hidden by the priest, but I myself act in your soul. Here the misery of the soul meets the God of mercy. Tell souls that from this fount of mercy souls draw graces solely with the vessel of trust. If their trust is great, there is no limit to My generosity. The torrents of grace inundate humble souls. The proud remain always in poverty and misery, because My grace turns away from them to humble souls.’

To access this power requires admitting that we have stuffed up our lives. The reason why pride is so bad is because it stops people admitting that they need help and it also stops them from admitting that they want to change. 

Going to Confession is a lot like going to the doctor, only better. For the Divine Physician to help us we have to tell Him all that is wrong with us, and show Him all of our inner wounds – the self inflicted ones as well as the hurts received from others. He has the power to heal us. Through His intermediary He gives us advice and the medicine of penance (be it prayer, service, restitution or some form of self denial). Afterwards the uplift of grace comes, which helps us resist temptation and helps us to forgive and seek forgiveness of others.

The season of Lent is a time when lots of invitations to hope are issued. Sadly some priests only go as far as talking about the need for conversion, but never talking about what we need to be converted from (sin that leads to misery) and what we need to be converted to (getting out of the pit and living a much happier life under God’s smile). Unfortunately these priests who speak about the need for conversion don’t understand that we in the pews need a far more direct approach. We need to hear that the major step in the conversion journey is going to confession. If we want to kick start our spiritual lives and ask God for a second chance, we need to go to confession – because that is where the grace, healing and bounty of God’s love is found. That is where the Mercy of God meets us right where we are in our sinfulness, heals us, cleans us up, and sets our souls singing for joy with His personal care and attention.

The biggest invitation to hope is issued by God on Divine Mercy Sunday, the Sunday that comes after Easter Sunday. On this day the flood gates of God’s Mercy are wide open. This day is meant to be the great altar call day; the day when God’s priests challenge God’s people to take hold of the transforming power of the Passion, Death and Resurrection in their own lives by making a whole new start with Jesus through the Sacrament of Penance (Confession). On this day miracles of Divine Mercy should superabound to the glory of God. Sadly the great majority of priests have never really taken Divine Mercy Sunday seriously. To paraphrase a famous quote, it hasn’t been tried and rejected because it has never been truly tried. 

Here are some of the promises that Jesus gave through St Faustina: (passage 49b,50a ibid) ‘I desire that there be a Feast of Mercy. I want this image, which you will paint with a brush, to be solemnly blessed on the first Sunday after Easter; that Sunday is to be the Feast of Mercy. I desire that priests proclaim this great Mercy of Mine towards souls of sinners. Let the sinner not be afraid to approach Me. The flames of Mercy are burning Me—clamoring to be spent; I want to pour them out upon these souls.’ (passage 570 ibid) ‘No soul will be justified until it turns with confidence to My Mercy, and that is why the first Sunday after Easter is to be the Feast of Mercy. On that day, priests are to tell everyone about My great and unfathomable Mercy.’ (passage 1521 ibid) ‘Tell my priests that hardened sinners will repent on hearing their words when they speak about My unfathomable Mercy, about the compassion I have for them in My Heart. To priests who proclaim and extol My Mercy, I will give wondrous power: I will anoint their words and touch the hearts of those to whom they speak.’

How I have longed to hear a priest speak about God’s Mercy on Divine Mercy Sunday! That has yet to happen. The most I have heard is a tiny brief acknowledgement as Mass begins or a small announcement about parish devotions at the end. To some it is of no consequence that the Magisterium of the Church has both approved and strongly recommended it. Others want to preach about what they want to preach about that Sunday and won’t consider that they happily talk about God’s love on the Feast of the Sacred Heart and about the marvel of the Eucharist at Corpus Christi. It has to be the priest that preaches of Mercy and leads the faithful in Divine Mercy devotions that Sunday because the priest is the witness par excellence of the Mercy of God in the sacred Tribunal of Penance. He is the one who knows how great God’s Mercy really is because He has absolved so many sins in God’s name. During the homily is when he needs to preach it. We all know that at the Divine Mercy Devotions those that come are already convinced of God”s Mercy and are leading regular sacramental lives. Jesus wants to reach those who are on the fringe, those whose souls are at risk. In the pews on any given Saturday vigil and Sunday Mass there are plenty of them. That’s why the homily that Day is so important, because it is supposed to be the biggest invitation to hope of the whole year of grace.

Even then, should you be so fortunate as to come across a priest who actually preaches about God’s Mercy on Divine Mercy Sunday, they don’t go far enough. To preach of God’s Mercy and then to not offer the Sacrament of Penance to those whose hearts have been touched is plain stupidity. It is a mighty rare priest who tells his congregation that he will be available after Mass for any who want to avail themselves of the Sacrament of God’s Mercy. Multiply them Lord!. If they only preached on His Mercy and generously made themselves available in the confessional afterwards they would see stupendous miracles of grace. If they were really convinced that these promises of Jesus to St Faustina are real, they’d have an assistant priest already in the confessional ready and waiting for pentitents as soon as the homily of Mercy begins. Particularly with the grace of returning to the Sacrament of Penance, if you don’t strike while the motivation is there, and red hot, that motivation dissipates rapidly and may never ever come to fruition. 

So, if you haven’t experienced God’s personal Mercy towards you for some time, get along to the Sacrament of Mercy this week.

If you have experienced God’s Mercy for yourself, tell someone about it – issue them with an invitation to hope. If needs be, change names, dates and places, but get your story of God’s Mercy out there online – on a facebook page, on a Catholic online forum, as an xt3 personal blog.

If there is a priest that you know who might benefit from reading this, send him a copy. They need invitations to hope, too.

Divine Mercy, I trust in You.

St Faustina, pray for us

Father Sopocko, pray for us.

How warm will our hearts be?

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The time of our Holy Communions for Christmas draws near. For some this will be Christmas Eve, for others it will be Christmas Day. For some that Holy Mass will have the noise of many children unused to being in a church, for others it will be filled with choir singing. What matters, however, is the warmth of our welcome of Jesus in Holy Communion.

Here are two excerpts from private revelation that you might find helpful as you prepare for this precious Holy Communion on the birthday of Jesus our Saviour.

From ‘To the Priests, Our Lady’s beloved sons’ message of 24 Dec 1980, passages c & m. ‘But in the evening, as we enter the city which should receive us, every door is closed. At every request of ours a new refusal is ready for us…..Together let us love, let us pray, let us make amends, let us warm up by our love the baby Jesus, Who once again is born for you. Your hearts, which love, are for Him His only comfort, His great comfort.’

From ‘The Message of Merciful Love’, by Mamma Carmela, Friday 20 Sep 1968. ‘My child, see to it that the refusal of Bethlehem is not ever repeated in you, and try to influence the greatest possible number of people to receive Me in Holy Communion, so that for Mary the cruel sorrow She experienced shortly before My birth is not renewed. Let your Communions be so burning with love that they may sere to repair the coldness and bitter refusal that I receive when I knock at people’s hearts.’  

With how much love will we receive Him at our Christmas Communion? Will we tell Him tenderly of our love and gratitude or will we launch straight into telling him of the many needs in our lives and in the lives of others? Will we linger with Him for an extra minute or two after Mass finishes or will we rush out of the Church doors focussed on getting everything ready for our earthly guests. Will we bring His holy Name into conversation at our family gatherings, wil we pray together, or will the Day go by without a mention of Jesus and His birthday at all?

May Mary, His holy Mother, St Joseph and St Francis of Assisi pray for us all, that we might be prepared to receive Jesus worthily, lovingly and tenderly at our Christmas Communion.