Pilgrim Priest

Pentecost Sunday (A) The Catholic Church year begins with Advent. We need a savior but we cannot save ourselves, so we watch and wait for His coming. Hopefully at some point you experience Emmanuel, God-with-you, during this season. We respond to his love by purifying our hearts an Lent, and dying and rising with Christ in Holy Week. After 50 days of Easter feasting, God sends the Holy Spirit. Pentecost is meant to be a renewal of the gift of the Holy Spirit. Why do we not experience the outpouring of the Spirit? Perhaps we are not open to receiving a gift from God. Say with me, "Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of the faithful, and enkindle in me the fire of your Love."

The Holy Spirit is life. Our life breath is a gift from God. As members of the Body of Christ, we must have the life of Christ flowing in us. When we pray, "Come, Holy Spirit," the sense is that I already have the life of God flowing within me. I want more of his life in me.

The Holy Spirit is love. He is the love between the Father and the Son. God loves us through the Holy Spirit, and then loves others through us. The gift of the Holy Spirit gives me the power to love others as Christ has loved me.

God's Holy Spirit is True Life. God's Holy Spirit is True Love. Perhaps today you will have powerful experience of God's love. Or perhaps you will simply experience a deepening of the life and love already given to you. Veni, Sancte Spiritus!

(28 May 2023)

Going Deeper: Where do I most need God's life in me? Where am I most in need of God's love? Invite the Holy Spirit to come into these places.

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The Ascension of the Lord (A) The Messiah will be a new King David and will restore the kingdom to Israel. When Jesus enters Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, the people shout, "Hosanna to the son of David!" Pilate is mocking them with the inscription over Jesus' head. Then he rises from the dead with all power in Heaven and on Earth. Instead of unleashing hell on his enemies, he ascends into heaven. Why?

Jesus' kingdom is not of this world. When Jesus is in the flesh, he can only be in one place at one time. Now through the Holy Spirit he can be in all times and all places. He ascends so the Holy Spirit can descend. To find out what the coming of the Holy Spirit means, you'll need to listen next week.

(20 May 2023)

Going Deeper: Listen to the sequence for Pentecost in English or Latin and pray for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

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Easter, 6th Sunday (A) What does St. Peter mean when he says, "Sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts"? He is inviting us to set apart a special place in our lives for Jesus. Monasteries have a cloister that is closed to the world but open to the heavens. So our hearts must have a place that is open to the presence of God but protected from the world.

Mothers receive a tiny gift of life. They nourish and cherish it, and it grows into a 9-pound baby. In a similar way God's gifts often seem insignificant. But it we cherish them, they will grow strong. Set apart a time in your day and a place in your home for God. Every Sunday at Mass, open your heart to receive God's gifts and then save and treasure that gift.

(14 May 2023)

Going Deeper: Bring a journal to Mass, and journal the one gift you received today. Cherish that gift, meditate on it often, and see what will grow.

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Easter, 5th Sunday (A) We often think of a vocation is a special call from God. Some are called to be priests or deacons, to join religious life or marriage. Many of us keep our heads down and hope God doesn't call on us. Or maybe you have been waiting for a call and wondering why it hasn't come through.

Then you clearly weren't paying attention to our second reading. Jesus has called you to be a living stone in his temple. You are a royal nation, a holy priesthood. You offer to God the daily sacrifice of loving others and serving God in the world. Your sacrifices come together at Holy Mass. You receive the gift of Jesus and you take him to every corner of the county.

A television has nothing to offer unless it is tuned to a signal. In the same way, we are called to be tuned in to God so others see His image in us. Come to Mass; we have good reception. Make time to pray each day. Find ways to reduce the "noise" around you so you can tune in more easily. The Church doesn't just have a vocation; the Church is a vocation. Are you tuning in to your vocation?

(7 May 2023)

Going Deeper: Try fasting from screens and unnecessary cellphone or media usage and see if your reception improves.

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Easter, 3rd Sunday (A) You are driving home from church one day when you suddenly realize that someone is riding in the back seat! You panic, until he introduces himself as none other than Jesus Christ. "I've always been with you," he says, "but you were never able to see me until now." You spend the rest of Sunday together. Monday morning he is still with you, and he plans to join you at work.

As strange as this may sound, the Christian faith is built on this very idea. Jesus is with us, first, because God is everywhere. But secondly, the very same Spirit that connected Jesus with his Father also connects you to Jesus. And third, you became a member of the Body of Christ. You volunteered to reveal Jesus' presence in the world.

The two disciples on the road to Emmaus had left the Christian community. But Jesus didn't stop walking with them. Eventually they have a "Jesus experience" and they turn around and run all the way back to the community. It sometimes happens that people who have given up on regular Sunday Mass encounter Jesus in a profound way. They return to church but sadly only a few parishioners have seen Jesus for themselves. Pray that you can see Jesus, and be Jesus, this week.

(23 Apr 2023)

Going Deeper: Spend the day with Jesus. How does it look or feel different?

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Easter, Divine Mercy (2nd Sunday) The world has moved on from Easter, but we Christians are staying close to the empty tomb. Today the Resurrection teaches us about God's mercy. Our English word comes from a price paid, wages, from merc-, merx merchandise. It is a generous gift of God, like the ransoming of a captive. The Greek word is eleos (as in Kyrie, eleison). It means pity or compassion. The Hebrew word is khesed and it means God's covenant faithfulness even when we are unfaithful. The Latin word is misericordia and it comes from two words, misery and heart.

The very heart of mercy is the Sacred Heart of Jesus. When we suffer, God suffers. As a visible sign of God's invisible suffering we see that the risen Jesus is carrying wounds in his feet, hands, and side. He responds to our rejection, not by rejecting us, but rather by reaching out with compassion and mercy.

Jesus has mercy on Thomas by giving him proof of the Resurrection. Jesus has compassion on us by giving us the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Jesus meets us in Confession, shines light on our misery, and gives us the grace to never sin again. Mercy is Jesus sharing his heart with us. Merciful Jesus, I trust in you!

(16 Apr 2023)

Going Deeper: Why does Jesus still bear wounds even after his Resurrection? Meditate on this question and share your thoughts in the comments below.

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Easter Sunday • I have good news--the tomb is still empty! The empty tomb doesn't really prove the Resurrection. You have to notice the Risen Jesus working in the world.

Brenda Shepherd wanted to join the Catholic Church and she got a little help... from the Holy Spirit. When she joined the Church, she was so radiant with joy, you could see the Resurrection shining on her face. We know the Resurrection is real because of God's continued action in our lives and in our world.

Is our belief in God reflected in our schedule, our budget, or our choices? We often find that we have a hard time fitting Jesus into our lives. But if you put Jesus in first, everything else will fall into place. Start a new life with Jesus as the cornerstone.

(9 Apr 2023)

Going Deeper: Would anything in your life be different if you didn't believe in the Resurrection. Or, for those considering faith, what would change if you did believe in the Resurrection of Jesus from the dead?

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Good Friday of the Lord's Passion • Jesus was the most successful man that ever lived. Was he smarter, stronger, or tougher than the rest of us? No, Jesus was successful because he was obedient. He did his Father's will, and that's what made him successful.

We, too, will be successful if we are obedient. We need three things to succeed: Faith, trusting that our Father knows best; Hope, knowing that things being hard now often means it will be worth later; and Love, our Father loves us and calls us to love others. Gaze on a crucifix, meditate on Jesus' obedience, and ask for in increase of faith, hope, and love.

(7 Apr 2023)

Going Deeper: Spend some time in prayer before a crucifix. Meditate on Jesus' obedience and ask for in increase in faith, hope, and love.

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Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord's Supper • This Mass commemorates so many beautiful things: the welcoming of the holy oils, the institution of the Eucharist, and the gift of the Priesthood. Then we have to go and ruin it by washing feet. Thank you, Jesus, for finding a way to make us all feel awkward.

Last summer I attended a wedding reception where the groom washed his bride's feet. It was tender and beautiful and not at all awkward. Jesus is about to leave his disciples in charge of his Church. Jesus is the perfect Servant Leader, and he wants to give authority only to those who are willing to serve.

I wash feet so that you will know, "I got the memo." But I am also inviting the men, the husbands and the fathers of the parish, to do for others as I do for them. Go home and wash your wife's feet. Wash the feet of your children, the elderly, your employees, the poor among us. We who have authority are also under authority, me to my Bishop and all of us to Jesus. We report to the Lord, and he himself washes our feet. Let us do for others as Jesus does for us.

(6 Apr 2023)

Going Deeper: Go home and wash your wife's feet. Then husband and wife together should wash your children's feet. Are there people in your community who need their feet washed, symbolically speaking?

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Palm Sunday (A) The Latin phrase, "Sic transit gloria mundi" (thus passes the glory of the world), is a sobering reminder that everyone who seeks the glory of this world will end up disappointed. Peter is worried about what people think of him; he winds up weeping bitterly. Judas is motivated by money; he hangs himself. Pilate is motivated by power; he winds up feeling powerless. Even the chief priests, who seem to have gotten exactly what they wanted, have set themselves up for the biggest disappointment in history.

Jesus does not seek the glory of this world. He does his Father's will and seeks the glory of God. Jesus can look back on the Passion and say, "It was worth it. It was all worth it. You were worth it." Joseph of Arimathea had spent a lot of money on a monument to himself. But then he turned it all over to Jesus. Do not seek the gloria mundi. Follow Jesus and you will be able to say, "It was all worth it."

(2 Apr 2023)

Going Deeper: Make plans now to attend the Triduum services: Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Vigil at your local parish church. I promise you the experience will change you.

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