18th October 2019

St Luke, Evangelist

Friday of the 28th week in Ordinary Time. The feet of St Luke the Evangelist are the beautiful feet that bring glad tidings of peace, good news and the message of salvation. Today, the universal Church celebrates the feast of St Luke and rejoices in his gift to the Church.

Who is Luke? “A physician from Antioch, he converted to Christianity and accompanied Paul on two of his journeys. The author of both the third Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles, Luke devotes attention to Christ’s birth and childhood as well as to the universality of Redemption.” (Roman Missal).

The narratives of Sacred Scripture provides us motivation and examples. God chose Luke the Evangelist to labor through preaching and writing a permanent record of salvation history and His love for poor and the marginalized.

18th October 2019

St Luke, Evangelist

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Luke, one of the four evangelists.

Luke’s Gospel is, above all, the Gospel of the Merciful Heart of Jesus. It emphasizes the fact that Christ is the salvation of all people, especially of the repentant sinner and of the lowly.

St. Luke did not personally know our Lord, and like St. Mark, he is not included among the apostles. For this reason, the Gospel chosen for the feast is the account of the sending forth of the seventy-two disciples. They are to go into towns and villages that Jesus intended to visit. Their mission was to inform the people that Jesus was coming and to prepare the way for Him.

These disciples were strongly urged to:

• Pray

• Trust in God’s providence

• Proclaim the Good News, and

• Be obedient to His Word.

By virtue of our Baptism in Christ, we too are called to discipleship: to pray for the reign of His kingdom; to trust in His Providence; to proclaim Christ through our words and actions, and remain obedient to His commands and the teachings of the Church.

17th October 2019

St Ignatius of Antioch

Today is the feast of St Ignatius of Antioch. He is also referred to as Theophorus, meaning “God-Bearer”. St. Ignatius desired nothing more ardently than to suffer and die for the sake of Jesus Christ. Therefore, he often said, “My love is the crucified God.”

By his life, St Ignatius reminds us of the words of Jesus in John 12: 25, “Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” In today’s Gospel, Jesus reprimands those scholars of the law who were building memorials for prophets, but failed to abide by the prophets’ messages and even closed their ears to the word of God.

History is full of prophets and martyrs who made an impact on the world in one way or another. Do we remember their struggles and messages? Are we moved to learn and change, so that we profess an authentic faith?

During this month dedicated to the missions, let us pray for all the prophets and martyrs of today, that like St Ignatius of Antioch, they may bear witness to Christ.

Brief History

St Ignatius of Antioch (- 107)

He was the second bishop of Antioch after St Peter (the first being Evodius). He was arrested (some writers believe that he must have been denounced by a fellow-Christian), condemned to death, and transported to Rome to be thrown to the wild beasts in the arena. In one of his letters he describes the soldiers who were escorting him as being like “ten leopards, who when they are kindly treated only behave worse.”

In the course of his journey he wrote seven letters to various churches, in which he dealt wisely and deeply with Christ, the organisation of the Church, and the Christian life. They are important documents for the early history of the Church, and they also reveal a deeply holy man who accepts his fate and begs the Christians in Rome not to try to deprive him of the crown of martyrdom.

He was martyred in 107 and his feast was already being celebrated on this day in fourth-century Antioch.

Why does Rome have over 900 churches?

Rome, the Eternal City, is known for its plethora of beautiful churches. It is estimated that there are more than 900 churches in Rome, but why do they need so many?

The easy answer is that Rome is the capital city of the Catholic faith. Of course there would be the largest number of churches in the city surrounding the Vatican, but to better understand where all these churches came from we have to look at the history of Catholicism.

Italy’s Wonders notes that in pagan Rome, the people whom the Empire conquered were free to worship in the traditions of their cultures. However, Christians were not afforded this concession.

In the early years of Christianity, the Roman Empire shunned the budding religion and made it illegal to worship Christ. For over 300 years Christian Masses were celebrated in secret, lest the congregation fall under the fierce persecution of the Roman Legion. In hiding, Christians gathered in small congregations, usually worshiping out of the clerics’ houses.

In 313 Emperor Constantine announced that it would no longer be a crime for Christians to worship, but this did not immediately unite all of these small congregations, who had become used to celebrating Mass with their communities. With the edict, which effectively decriminalized the Christian faith, many of the houses where they worshiped in secret were renovated to become full-time churches.

In 380, under the rule of emperor Theodosius, Christianity became the official religion of Rome. This led to a surge of church building, as now that the royal family was worshiping the Christian Triune God, all the people — about one million– needed places to worship as well.

As time went by, more and more houses of Christian worship were constructed to meet the demands of the most populated city in the ancient world. By the medieval era, it became a standard practice for wealthy families to build their own churches. These churches were built on a grand scale and featured splendid art, but it was also a competition between these influential families to build the most beautiful and well attended church.

Today, there are more than 900 churches in Rome, a number that rises to nearly 1,600 if chapels in private residences, palaces, and convents are taken into account. The vast majority of these buildings maintain their function as places of worship and even more of them are enjoyed by tourists.

These ancient buildings stand as a monument to the enduring history of the Catholic Church, in a city that is still about 80% Catholic.

St Teresa of Ávila (1515 – 1582)

She was born in Ávila in Spain and entered the Carmelite convent there at the age of 20, not because of any great attraction to the religious life but because it seemed the most sensible thing to do. At this time Carmelite convents were comfortable places. One was well looked after, had as much contact with the outside world as one wanted, and could keep one’s own possessions. With time, and despite ill-health, she made great progress in contemplative prayer and had a number of mystical experiences, which she treated with great suspicion since she felt that she was not nearly holy enough to be accorded them by God.

Teresa’s prayer life led her to seek a more perfect life, and in 1562, in the face of much opposition, she founded a convent of Discalced Carmelite nuns in Ávila. “Discalced” (“shoeless”) signified their devotion to poverty. The rest of her life is a story of the establishment of more and more Discalced Carmelite convents in the face of intense opposition from the unreformed Carmelites but help coming from the highest levels at the same time. Thus in 1566 the General of the Carmelite Order approved Teresa’s original foundation and permitted her to make new ones. In 1575 the chapter of the Order decided to dissolve them all, and for the next five years every effort was made to destroy Teresa’s reforms and many of her followers (including St John of the Cross) were imprisoned and cruelly treated.

At length, in 1580, and with the support of King Philip II, the Discalced Carmelites were made independent and St Teresa was able to found more new convents. She died, worn out by her efforts, on 15 October 1582.

St Teresa is an outstanding example of how the contemplative life can well up and overflow into action. In addition to all this, she wrote much on the subject of contemplative prayer and her writings are still standard works today. She was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Paul VI in 1970.

A favourite story about St Teresa illustrates the intimate relationship that the saints have with God. When she was on one of her innumerable journeys across Spain, her horse threw her as she was crossing a river. Soaked to the skin she looked up to heaven and said, “If this is how you treat your friends, no wonder you have so few of them!” We should bring everything to God in our prayers, even our reproaches. For a reproach, in the end, is simply our way of offering up to God our incomprehension of what he is giving us.

FULL TEXT: POPE FRANCIS’ CANONISATION HOMILY

Preached on Sunday October 13th, 2019.

‘“Your faith has saved you” (Lk 17:19). This is the climax of today’s Gospel, which reflects the journey of faith. There are three steps in this journey of faith. We see them in the actions of the lepers whom Jesus heals. They cry out, they walk and they give thanks.

First, they cry out. The lepers were in a dreadful situation, not only because of a disease that, widespread even today, needs to be battled with unremitting effort, but also because of their exclusion from society. At the time of Jesus, lepers were considered unclean and, as such, had to be isolated and kept apart (cf. Lev 13:46). We see that when they approach Jesus, they “kept their distance” (Lk 17:12). Even though their condition kept them apart, the Gospel tells us that they “called out” (v. 13) and pleaded with Jesus. They did not let themselves be paralyzed because they were shunned by society; they cried out to God, who excludes no one. We see how distances are shortened, how loneliness is overcome; by not closing in on ourselves and our own problems, by not thinking about how others judge us, but rather by crying out to the Lord, for the Lord hears the cry of those who find themselves alone.

Like the lepers, we too need healing, each one of us. We need to be healed of our lack of confidence in ourselves, in life, in the future; we need to be healed of our fears and the vices that enslave us, of our introversion, our addictions and our attachment to games, money, television, mobile phones, to what other people think. The Lord sets our hearts free and heals them if only we ask him, only if we say to him; “Lord, I believe you can heal me. Dear Jesus, heal me from being caught up in myself. Free me from evil and fear.” The lepers are the first people, in the Gospel, who called on the name of Jesus. Later, a blind man and a crucified thief would do so: all of these needy people calling on the name of Jesus, which means: “God saves”. They call God by name, directly and spontaneously. To call someone by name is a sign of confidence, and it pleases the Lord. That is how faith grows, through confident, trusting prayer. Prayer in which we bring to Jesus who we really are, with open hearts, without attempting to mask our sufferings. Each day, let us invoke with confidence the name of Jesus: “God saves”. Let us repeat it: that is prayer. And prayer is essential! Indeed, prayer is the door of faith; prayer is medicine for the heart.

The second stage of faith is to walk. In today’s brief Gospel, there are several verbs of motion. What is quite striking is that the lepers are not healed as they stand before Jesus; it is only afterwards, as they were walking. The text tells us that: “As they went, they were made clean” (v. 14). They were healed by going up to Jerusalem, that is, while walking uphill. On the journey of life, purification takes place along the way, a way that is often uphill since it leads to the heights. Faith calls for journey, a “going out” from ourselves, and it can work wonders if we abandon our comforting certainties, if we leave our safe harbours and our cosy nests. Faith increases by giving and grows by taking risks. Faith advances when we make our way equipped with trust in God. Faith advances with humble and practical steps, like the steps of the lepers or those of Naaman who, as we heard in the first reading (cf. 2 Kings 5:14-17), went down to bathe in the river Jordan. The same is true for us. We advance in faith by showing humble and practical love, exercising patience each day, and praying constantly to Jesus as we keep pressing forward on our way.

There is a further interesting aspect to the journey of the lepers: they move together. The Gospel tells us that, ”as they went, they were made clean” (v. 14). The verbs are in the plural. Faith means walking together, never alone. Once healed, however, nine of them go off on their own way, and only one turns back to offer thanks. Jesus then expresses his astonishment: “The other nine, where are they? (v. 17). It is as if he asks the only one who returned to account for the other nine. It is the task of us, who celebrate the Eucharist as an act of thanksgiving, to take care of those who have stopped walking, those who have lost their way. We are called to be guardians of our distant brothers and sisters. We are to intercede for them; we are responsible for them, to account for them, to keep them close to heart. Do you want to grow in faith? Then take care of a distant brother, a faraway sister.

To cry out. To walk. And to give thanks. This is the final step. Only to the one who thanks him did Jesus say: “Your faith has saved you” (v. 19). It made you both safe, and sound. We see from this the ultimate goal is not health or wellness, but the encounter with Jesus. Salvation is not drinking a glass of water to keep fit; it is going to the source, which is Jesus. He alone frees us from the evil and heals our hearts. Only an encounter with him can save, can make life full and beautiful. Whenever we meet Jesus, the word “thanks” comes immediately to our lips because we have discovered the most important thing in life, which is not to receive a grace or resolve a problem, but to embrace the Lord of life.

It is impressive to see how the man who was healed, a Samaritan, expresses his joy with his entire being: he praises God in a loud voice, he prostrates himself, and gives thanks (cf. vv. 15-16). The culmination of the journey of faith is to live a life of continual thanksgiving. Let us ask ourselves: do we, as people of faith, live each day as a burden, or as an act of praise? Are we closed in on ourselves, waiting to ask another blessing, or do we find our joy in giving thanks? When we express our gratitude, the Father’s heart is moved and he pours out the Holy Spirit upon us. To give thanks is not a question of good manners or etiquette; it is a question of faith. A grateful heart is one that remains young. To say “Thank you, Lord” when we wake up, throughout the day and before going to bed: that is the best way to keep our hearts young. This also holds true for families, and between spouses. Remember to say thank you. Those words are the simplest and most effective of all.

To cry out. To walk. To give thanks. Today we give thanks to the Lord for our new Saints. They walked by faith and now we invoke their intercession. Three of them we religious women; they show us that the consecrated life is a journey of love at the existential peripheries of the world. Saint Marguerite Bays, on the other hand, was a seamstress; she speaks to us of the power of simple prayer, enduring patience and silent self-giving. That is how the Lord made the splendour of Easter radiate in her life. Such is the holiness of daily life, which Saint John Henry Newman described in these words: “The Christian has a deep, silent, hidden peace, which the world sees not… The Christian is cheerful, easy, kind, gentle, courteous, candid, unassuming; has no pretence… with so little that is unusual or striking in his bearing, that he may easily be taken at first sight for an ordinary man” (Parochial and Plain Sermons, V,5).

Let us ask to be like that, “kindly lights” amid the encircling gloom. Jesus, “stay with me, and then I shall begin to shine as Thou shinest; so to shine as to be a light to others” (Meditations on Christian Doctrine, VII, 3). Amen.’

13th October 2019

Sunday of the 28th week in Ordinary Time.

Do not deny God your sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving.

“And one of them [leper], realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. He was a Samaritan.” (Luke 17: 15 – 16).

The readings of today invite us to focus on gratitude: Naaman the Syrian, cured of leprosy, acknowledges God in gratitude. On the other hand, of the ten lepers cured by Jesus, only one returns to give thanks. The first Reading from 2 Kings and the Gospel from St Luke point us to Prayer of Thanksgiving. “Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine?” Asked Jesus. Was Jesus hurt that ten lepers who were healed of the terrible malady of leprosy walked away without giving thanks. I bet he was. Here is why:

Worship is at the heart religion. At the heart of worship is Thanksgiving. God does not eat steak, barbecue or drink champagne or wine. He has no need for gold or silver. God feeds on: “Sacrifice of thanksgiving.” And again in the same Psalm 50: “Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.” Imperative!

The Church teaches on Thanksgiving:

“Thanksgiving characterizes the prayer of the Church which, in celebrating the Eucharist, reveals and becomes more fully what she is. Indeed, in the work of salvation, Christ sets creation free from sin and death to consecrate it anew and make it return to the Father, for his glory. The thanksgiving of the members of the Body participates in that of their Head.” (CCC 2637).

Perhaps we need to reflect on what we have received and not on what we want, because we have so much to be grateful for. Then, we can make this prayer our own:

“I want to thank you, Lord, for your patience with me, especially when I’m impatient with you, wanting and even demanding that you work on my schedule instead of yours…

Thank you, Lord, for your attentiveness to my prayer, especially when, for long periods of time, I’ve been inattentive to you…

Thank you, Lord, for you faithfulness to me even when I’ve been unfaithful to you in my thoughts, in my words and in my deeds: thank you for your mercy and pardon when I’ve been loose and reckless with all you’ve given me…

Thank you, Lord, for giving me another chance after I’ve blown so many and when I really don’t deserve another: thank you for the grace of all the new beginnings you offer me so generously…

Thank you, Lord, for loving me, especially when I’ve failed to love some members of my own family, my neighbour and my colleagues at work; thank you for loving me, Lord, when I fail to love myself and most of all when I fail to love you…

And thank you, Lord, for bearing with me on that one thing that bothers me so much: be patient as I try to let it go; listen to my prayer as I struggle with it; be faithful in helping me work through it; give me again the grace to be free of it…

Thank you, Lord. Amen”

12th October 2019

God’s word never fails.

It is not easy to confront people about their failings. But the prophet Joel boldly did so without mincing words and yet offered hope to those who were willing to change from their evil ways. He appealed to the good within each to overpower the evil within and without, so that they may enjoy the wonderful life God had in store for them. He assured his people that at the time of judgment, the wicked would suffer the consequences of their evil way, while the just would dwell in the city of God.

“Blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.” (Luke 11: 28).

Do you truly want to be blessed? Do you desire happiness above all things? Let us listen to the Blessed One, the Master teach us the secret of happiness.

First, note that Jesus points to His Mother Mary as a truly blessed One. She is “full of grace.”

Blessedness, happiness (makarios) occurs 15 times in Luke.

In Luke 1: 45, Elizabeth pronounced Mary a blessed One for hearing God’s incredible promise and believing it. In Matthew and Luke, the Beatitudes bring happiness and a blessed state.

Our Gospel pick for today gives us a sure, tried, proven means of being blessed:

“Blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.” Faith comes from hearing the word of God. The word of God is so powerful because God is in His word. The word of God brings wisdom, knowledge, understanding, counsel, piety and fear of the Lord.

Do not forget that another name for Jesus is the “the word of God.”

It is not possible to hear the word of God, understand it and not observe it. This is because the word of God is the word of life. But Jesus added for emphasis in our Scripture for today: “Blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”

All things are established in the will (word) of God and nothing can resist God’s will (word). (Cf Esther 4: 7).

John the Evangelist teaches that observing the word of God is not difficult. “In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.” (1 John 5: 3).

Let us ask God to open our eyes to the beauty of His word and give us the grace to keep it so that we can enjoy happiness here on earth and life everlasting.

Your word O Lord, is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

San Giovanni XXIII (Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli)

(Papa dal 04/11/1958 al 03/06/1963).

Angelo Roncalli nacque a Sotto il Monte, piccolo borgo del bergamasco, il 25 novembre 1881, figlio di poveri mezzadri. Divenuto prete, rimase per quindici anni a Bergamo, come segretario del vescovo e insegnante al seminario. Allo scoppio della prima guerra mondiale fu chiamato alle armi come cappellano militare.

Inviato in Bulgaria e in Turchia come visitatore apostolico, nel 1944 è Nunzio a Parigi, per divenire poi nel 1953 Patriarca di Venezia. Il 28 ottobre 1958 salì al soglio pontificio, come successore di Pio XII, assumendo il nome di Papa Giovanni XXIII. Avviò il Concilio Vaticano II, un evento epocale nella storia della Chiesa. Morì il 3 giugno 1963.

Un breve ma intenso pontificato, durato poco meno di cinque anni, in cui egli riuscì a farsi amare dal mondo intero. È stato beatificato il 3 settembre del 2000 e canonizzato il 27 aprile 2014.

A Roma, beato Giovanni XXIII, papa: uomo dotato di straordinaria umanità, con la sua vita, le sue opere e il suo sommo zelo pastorale cercò di effondere su tutti l’abbondanza della carità cristiana e di promuovere la fraterna unione tra i popoli; particolarmente attento all’efficacia della missione della Chiesa di Cristo in tutto il mondo, convocò il Concilio Ecumenico Vaticano II.

11th October 2019

Jesus the Lord of all.

You can’t complain about getting soaked to the skin, if you chose to venture out without an umbrella despite the warning signs given by the dark clouds, the claps of thunder and the flashes of lightning.

The prophet Joel was called by God to help the chosen people recognize the warning signs of the doom they would bring upon themselves, if they continued their wickedness. Joel was a learned prophet, who had studied the past, which helped him predict the imminent future. This is why, in today’s first reading, he urges his people to heed the signs of the times and change from their sinfulness with prayer, penance and fasting.

“Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” (Luke 11: 23).

Are you for Jesus or against Him? How do you know where you stand with Jesus? Ready for the test?

#1 Are you aligned with the mind of Jesus on the poor and the homeless?

#2 Are you helping as a shepherd to attract people to the Church or scattering them in all directions?

#3 What is your attitude to orphans, widows and immigrants?

#4 Where do you stand on life issues? 50% or 100%?

These are just a few questions. You see clearly that there can be no neutral position on these questions. No “Independents.” You are either working with Jesus or hurting the cause of Jesus. Decide today to work with Jesus in building up His Kingdom.

In today’s Gospel, once again, the people conveniently choose to ignore the sign that Jesus offers them as proof that He had come to bring about the promised kingdom of God. Acknowledging His action of exorcism as a sign would force them to change from their wickedness, and so they demanded more signs.

Those who wait for something spectacular to happen before they decide to change are those who are not really interested in change.

8th October 2019

Mary has chosen the better part.

“Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.” (Luke 10: 41 – 42).

If someone asks you this question: What is the one thing necessary in your life? How would you respond? To be in good health? To have a beautiful family? To have plenty of money? To have a great job or my own business? To have great home with everything in it? To have a pantry filled with good and exotic food?

In today’s Gospel Reading, Jesus invites us to consider carefully our priorities. Martha hurriedly welcomed Jesus in her home and dived right back into the kitchen. When she emerged after some thirty minutes, she said: “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me.”

How do you welcome the presence of Jesus in Prayer? When you read the word of God? In the Blessed Sacrament and in the Eucharist? With an eye on your watch? Anxiously trying to anticipate the next deadline?

There are so many things in life we can’t control. People can’t choose their parents, siblings, their nation of birth, height, or skin color. So many things are beyond our control that we may be tempted to feel insignificant and without hope. Yet we have a great reason to rejoice. We have absolute control over having the Best. We are free to choose Jesus!

When we choose Jesus for ourselves, we choose the Best. No other person can take us away from Him (Jn 10:28-29). Nothing can “separate us from” Jesus (Rm 8:39). Jesus promises us that we “shall not be deprived of” Him (Lk 10:42).

However, the one person who can separate you from Jesus is yourself. When you choose the better portion and put your life in His hands, you allow Jesus to wrap you in His loving embrace. As long as you “fix your eyes on Jesus” (Heb 3:1), you will always see He is the “better portion” (Lk 10:42). Satan, who knows he cannot deprive you of Jesus, then attempts to distract you from looking always at Jesus. If he can get you to focus on distractions like TV, handheld electronic devices, pornography, sports, talk shows, gossip, controversies, worldly pleasures, and other “enticements for the eye” (1 Jn 2:16), he knows you might choose them as your “better portion.” Then you might consider Jesus’ loving embrace as a choke-hold and demand that He take His hands off you. Therefore, every day of your life, choose Jesus anew as your better portion. You shall not be deprived of Him.

Moments of prayer before any task, offer clarity of purpose, give meaning to mission, and bring fulfillment to every accomplishment.

Lord Jesus, open our hearts and minds to the truth that makes us free.