Cristo e’ risorto! Veramente e’ risorto!

Christus resurrexit! Vere resurrexit!

…and he worshiped Him.

“He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and now I can see.”

The Spiritual Battle Continues…

Image: The swords of the Crusades

…Apostates, Heretics, Pagans and Infidels Take Note…The Faithful are Armed!…

“And take unto you the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit (which is the word of God).” – Ephesians 6:17

Today’s Gospel | OF & EF* Ordo

Image: Painting | Saint John holding our Chalice |Note the serpent in the cup

Matthew 20:17-28

As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem,
he took the Twelve disciples aside by themselves,
and said to them on the way,
“Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem,
and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests
and the scribes,
and they will condemn him to death,
and hand him over to the Gentiles
to be mocked and scourged and crucified,
and he will be raised on the third day.”

Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee approached Jesus with her sons
and did him homage, wishing to ask him for something.
He said to her, “What do you wish?”
She answered him,
“Command that these two sons of mine sit,
one at your right and the other at your left, in your kingdom.”
Jesus said in reply,
“You do not know what you are asking.
Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?”
They said to him, “We can.”
He replied,
“My chalice you will indeed drink,
but to sit at my right and at my left,
this is not mine to give
but is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”
When the ten heard this,
they became indignant at the two brothers.
But Jesus summoned them and said,
“You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them,
and the great ones make their authority over them felt.
But it shall not be so among you.
Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.
Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve
and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

* OF | Ordinary Form of Mass (Paul VI 1969 Mass)

EF | Extraordinary Form of Mass (John XXIII 1962 Mass)

Thy Word Is A Lamp Unto My Feet

Matthew 5:11 Blessed are ye when they shall revile you, and persecute you, and speak all that is evil against you, untruly, for my sake:

Matthew 5:44 But I say to you, Love your enemies: do good to them that hate you: and pray for them that persecute and calumniate you:

Luke 11:49 For this cause also the wisdom of God said: I will send to them prophets and apostles; and some of them they will kill and persecute.

Luke 21:12 But before all these things, they will lay their hands upon you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and into prisons, dragging you before kings and governors, for my name’s sake.

John 15:20 Remember my word that I said to you: The servant is not greater than his master. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you: if they have kept my word, they will keep yours also.

Romans 12:14 Bless them that persecute you: bless, and curse not.

To my enemies:

Today’s Gospel, Luke 6:27-38

Jesus said to his disciples:
“To you who hear I say, love your enemies,
do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you,
pray for those who mistreat you.
To the person who strikes you on one cheek,
offer the other one as well,
and from the person who takes your cloak,
do not withhold even your tunic.
Give to everyone who asks of you,
and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back.
Do to others as you would have them do to you.
For if you love those who love you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners love those who love them.
And if you do good to those who do good to you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners do the same.
If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners lend to sinners,
and get back the same amount.
But rather, love your enemies and do good to them,
and lend expecting nothing back;
then your reward will be great
and you will be children of the Most High,
for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
Be merciful, just as also your Father is merciful.

“Stop judging and you will not be judged.
Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.
Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
For the measure with which you measure
will in return be measured out to you.”

I pray for you at every Mass at the Momento. May you find peace and joy.

Move up to a higher position

Nos han invitado a un gran banquete de bodas. La invitación no se nos hizo por medio de un bellamente escrito papel, sino que se escribió sobre nuestras almas por la inmersión en las aguas del bautismo. El Anfitrión del banquete es El que hizo sagrada esa agua purificadora. Y nos acercamos a El humildemente dándole gracias por esta lujosa fiesta. “Ven, acompáñame en mi júbilo”, nos dice. “¿Porque nos ha invitado a nosotros que somos pobres, somos cojos, somos ciegos, y somos lisiados?” Entramos a Su casa e inmediatamente sabemos la respuesta. Ahí en frente de nosotros está nuestro Anfitrión; reinando desde Su trono, Su lugar de honor – Su áspera Cruz.

Nuestras mentes humanas no comprenden esto. Se supone que un cuerpo crucificado, quebrantado, sangriento no tiene nada de júbilo. Tiene solamente dolor. Tiene solamente pesar. En ese quebrantamiento los pobres se convierten en ricos, los cojos, los ciegos, y los lisiados se curan; se curan no físicamente, sino que espiritualmente. Entramos a un mundo espiritual en el tiempo de Dios, en el espacio de Dios. Esta es la definición del Reino de Dios; la invitación, la aceptación, y la comunión con Dios aunque no seamos dignos.

El Reino de Dios – cielo y tierra unidos – sucede aquí mismo. Vean. El Anfitrión aquí en frente, en el centro, en la Cruz, en el tabernáculo, y pronto, sobre el altar. Nosotros somos los invitados rodeados de Sus antiguos invitados por las imágenes de Sus santos, todos aquí juntos en este humilde templo.

El mes pasado les ofrecí dos homilías expresando el deseo del Papa Benedicto que la Misa Católica – el encuentro y la comunión con Dios – recupere su gloria anterior. Durante los últimos 40 años este punto de la vida Católica se ha desviado por el desierto. Nosotros, los fieles de Dios, hasta cierto punto, hemos perdido el conocimiento del porque celebramos la Misa. La naturaleza de sacrificio de la Misa se ha perdido y reemplazada con palabras e imágenes de una simple comida comunal. La casa de Dios se convirtió en la casa del pueblo de Dios. Un “yo estoy bien, tu estas bien” y una falsa ideología de “sentirse bien” reemplazó la teología de salvación. El Papa Benedicto le ha llamado a esto “la dictadura de relativismo”. Es decir que yo valgo como ser humano basado en lo que piensa de mi la persona que esta enseguida de mi, por los objetos que me rodean, y por la sociedad quien me dice donde debo quedar.

Debemos de entrar a este lugar no basándonos por la opinión del mundo, sino que reconociendo que somos de El y de El nomás. Nosotros somos de dios, no Dios de nosotros. Por eso, cuando entramos a Su casa, metemos las manos al agua, recordando la invitación – nuestro bautismo. Encontramos donde sentarnos, doblando la rodilla antes de sentarnos, reconociendo la presencia de nuestro Señor en el tabernáculo. Vemos hacia el ambón y recordamos Su vida. Vemos la Cruz y recordamos Su muerte. Vemos el altar y recordamos Su resurrección. Ante nosotros vemos nuestra salvación en Jesús.

Levantamos las voces en canto y oración, en ambos antiguo y contemporáneo idioma en continuidad y unión con creyentes antepasados. Lo alabamos, le pedimos, y le damos gracias a nuestro Anfitrión. Finalmente, nuestro Anfitrión – Su Cuerpo, Alma, Sangre, y Divinidad - lo digo de nuevo, Su Cuerpo, Alma, Sangre, y Divinidad entra en nuestros cuerpos. El Dios quien nos abarca es abarcado por nosotros. Este es el mayor don que se nos puede dar.

Hace dos mil años se dijo, “Y en una ocasión cuando entró en la casa de cierto gobernante de los fariseos en día de sábado para tomar una comida lo estaban observando detenidamente”. Hoy digamos, “En día de sábado fuimos a comer en la casa de nuestro Dios, y nos observó detenidamente.” Que nuestra autentica participación por medio de la oración en esta Misa haga que nuestro Anfitrión diga, “Amigo sube más arriba”. Que nuestro lugar más arriba sea el cielo.

English

We have been invited to a grand wedding feast. The invitation has come to us not written beautifully on paper, but written upon our souls by our immersion into the waters of baptism. The banquet is hosted by the One who made holy those cleansing waters. And, we approach Him humbly in thanksgiving for this lavish feast. “Come, join Me in my joy” He says. “Why has He invited us; for we are poor, we are crippled, we are blind and we are lame?” We enter into His house and immediately know the answer. There in front of us is our Host; reigning from His throne, His place-of-honor—His rough-hewn Cross.

To our human minds this makes no sense. A crucified broken, bleeding body before us seemingly holds no joy. It holds only pain. It holds only sorrow. In that brokenness the poor become rich, the crippled, blind and lame are healed; healed not in flesh, but in spirit. So we have entered into a spiritual world in God’s time, in God’s space. This is the definition of the Kingdom of God; the invitation, the acceptance, and the communion with God Himself as unworthy as we are.

The Kingdom of God—heaven and earth united—happens right here. Look around, the Host front and center on the cross, in the tabernacle and soon, on the altar. We, the guests surrounded by His guests of ages gone by in the images of His saints, His holy ones…all of us together in this His humble temple.

Last month I offered two homilies expressing Pope Benedict’s desire that the Catholic Mass—the encounter and communion with God—regain its former glory. During the last forty years this highpoint of Catholic life has wandered through a desert. We, faithful people of God, to some degree lost sight of why we celebrate Mass. The sacrificial nature of the Mass lost out to words and images of a simple communal meal. The House of God became the House of the People of God. An “I’m ok, you’re ok” and a false “feel good” ideology replaced the theology of salvation. Pope Benedict has called this “the dictatorship of relativism.” That is, my worth as a human being is based on the perceived worth of the person next to me, the objects which surround me, and the society which tells me where I fit in.

We should enter this place not basing ourselves on the world’s view, but rather recognize ourselves as His and His alone. We belong to God, not God belonging to us. Thus, when we enter into His House, we dip our fingers into the water, recalling the invitation—our baptism. We find a place to sit, genuflecting before we enter a pew, acknowledging Our Lord’s presence in the tabernacle. We look to the pulpit and recall His life. We look at the Cross and recall His death. We look to the altar and recall His resurrection. Before us we see our salvation in Jesus.

We raise our voices in song and prayer, in both ancient and contemporary languages in continuity and union with believers from ages past. We praise, we petition, and we thank our Host. Finally, our Host—His Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity—let me say that again: His Body, His Blood, His Soul, and His Divinity, enter our bodies. The God which encompasses us is encompassed by us. This is the ultimate gift given us.

Two thousand years ago it was said: “On a sabbath Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees, and the people there were observing him carefully.” Today may it be said: “On a sabbath we went to dine at the home of our God, and He observed us carefully.” May our authentic participation through prayer at this Mass have our Host say: ‘My friend, move up to a higher position.’ May our higher place be that in heaven.

The Transfiguration

An underappreciated element in the Rite of Baptism, of both adults and infants, is being clothed in white. It is often done in a perfunctory way, simply because the ritual order calls for it, but with little catechesis. As you pray about the story of the transfiguration, consider how the white garment in which you were dressed at your Baptism links you to the “dazzling white” garment that the disciples saw when Jesus was transfigured before them. As members of the church, we are still wedded into the body of Christ as we were on that first day of baptism. We change some of our habits and values not to earn God’s love, but to enable us to be more ready to recognize God’s love in the many and sometimes odd ways it is made known. As the voice in the cloud said of Jesus, so does God say of you, united to the body of Christ at baptism: “This is my daughter,” “This is my son.” — Martin Connell, Asst. Professor, School of Theology, Saint John’s University

The Transfiguration appears in all three Synoptics, but Mark is the least complicated, textually. In modern scholarship, there has been controversy whether or not the Transfiguration was a post-resurrection occurrence which was transferred to this point, but most people do not subscribe to that theory. Elijah (prophet from the Messianic Age) and Moses (Law) are both strong presences in the story. The Transfiguration in Mark, as well as in the other two Synoptics, functions as a manifestation of Jesus’ divine nature following Peter’s declaration of Jesus’ Messiahship (8:29). That the Transfiguration occurs after Jesus predicts his passion (8:31) and after Jesus’ rebuke of Peter for interpreting Jesus’ mission from a human angle (8:32-33) undergirds the scene as a foreshadowing of the Passion, Death, and Resurrection. – Excerpt from The Committee on Illumination and Text Theological Briefs, The Saint John’s Bible, Saint John’s University

An abomination to the Lord

The eighth commandment of God is: Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor. – Exodus 20:16

By the eighth commandment we are commanded to speak the truth in all things, but especially in what concerns the good name and honor of others. “Wherefore, put away lying and speak truth each one with his neighbor, because we are members of one another.” – Ephesians 4:25

The eighth commandment forbids lies, rash judgment, detraction, calumny, and the telling of secrets we are bound to keep. “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord.” — Proverbs 12:22

A person commits the sin of rash judgment when, without sufficient reason, he believes something harmful to another’s character. “Before thou inquire, blame no man.” — Ecclesiasticus 11:7

A person commits the sin of detraction when, without a good reason, he makes known the hidden faults of another. “A good name is better than great riches, and good favor is above silver and gold.” — Proverbs 22:1

A person commits the sin of calumny or slander when by lying he injures the good name of another. “Devise not a lie against thy brother, neither do the like against thy friend. — Ecclesiasticus 7:13