Parish News

April 30, 2023

In preparing for the upcoming Contemplative Walking series that will begin on Wednesday, May 3, I came across an article explaining the importance of having meaningful conversations. According to the article, the goal of every conversation is a desire to connect on some level with another person. It is a desire to know the heart of another and it is full of hope. In last Sunday’s Gospel we met two of Jesus’ disciples recollecting the events of Jesus’ death as they walked on the road to Emmaus. “We were hoping,” they said, “that he would be the one to redeem Israel” but they wandered it seemed, without hope, for the Gospel tells us that they were cast down. What must they have been thinking and feeling as they walked and talked along the road to Emmaus? Had they learned from the example of Jesus’ life? Were they questioning their faith?

I think we can all identify with the emptiness and confusion that they were feeling in the face of tremendous loss. But something changed for them along the way. They connected with a stranger who set their hearts on fire and this made all the difference!

What are you hoping for as you walk along? Who will you meet that will change your life? How will you respond?

April 16, 2023

One of my favorite scripture passages is Luke 6:37-38 “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.”

The Ugandan theologian Emmanuel Katongole, in his book The Sacrifice of Africa, tells a story about a woman named Angelina whose daughter, along with several other girls, was abducted by the Lord’s Resistance Army in the north of Uganda in 2006. After the girls’ abduction, their parents would meet every Saturday to pray, fast and engage in advocacy for their children, concluding with the Lord’s Prayer. When they tried to pray the prayer, however, they could never say the words “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” How could they, they thought, ever forgive the men who had abducted, abused and kept their daughters in captivity. At one of these gatherings, Angelina told the group that she was convinced that if they could not say those words of forgiveness, they were wasting their time. They knew that they had to get rid of the burden of anger and resentment that was destroying their souls. And so they became intentional about their prayer and gradually found peace, a way to forgive and eventually were able to say the Lord’s prayer in full. 

Many people found this very difficult to understand. How could anyone forgive those people who had done such harm to their children? They could not believe that such forgiveness was possible. Are you from another planet, they asked? The answer, Katongole writes, is yes. In many ways Christian forgiveness is from another planet, it reflects another logic. It reflects the logic of the Cross, the logic of the risen Christ. Can we trust this other logic? Can we love the difficult people in our lives? Can we forgive neighbors, co-workers, spouses, trusted individuals who have offended us? Can we open our lives to strangers at our borders? Can we try to understand those who are different from us?  In the midst of our troubled times, may this other logic guide us in the ways of mercy and forgiveness. (paraphrase of homily Fr. S. Bevins)

April 9, 2023

One of the most profound experiences of Easter that I had was in the Spring of 2002 when I attended Paschal Vespers at the University of Notre Dame. This was my first experience completing the cycle of Easter prayer and it changed the way I thought about life (and the afterlife) forever. The best way to explain it is through the following quote from St. Augustine’s Easter homily (411) that was read as a part of the service.

“Our thoughts in this present life should turn on the praise of God for it is in praising God that we shall rejoice forever in the life to come; and no one can be ready for the next life unless he trains himself for it now. So we praise God during our earthly life, and at the same time we make our petitions to him. Our praise is expressed with joy, our petitions with yearning. We have been promised something we do not yet possess, and because the promise was made by one who keeps his word, we trust him and are glad; but insofar that possession is delayed, we can only long and yearn for it. It is good for us to persevere in longing until we receive what was promised, and yearning is over; then praise alone will remain.”

May you know the joy of Easter. Alleluia!

April 2, 2023

As we approach the holiest week of our liturgical year, I hope that your experience with the WAGES program has helped you to focus on the journey that Jesus took in his public ministry and on his final journey along the way of sorrows. 

Many have said that they experienced an encounter with the living Christ in ways they hadn’t before. By walking his path in the scripture and meditating on his journey, their own experience of walking somehow made Jesus’ journey real for them. 

Theologian Thomas Merton said, “True encounter with Christ liberates something in us, a power we did not know we had, a hope, a capacity for life, a resilience, an ability to bounce back when we thought that we were completely defeated, a capacity to grow and change, a power of creative transformation.”

May we know the freedom of the risen Christ as we continue our journey to Easter.

I have had many wonderful experiences in parish ministry but the most moving encounters have been with the folks who came to the Catholic Church seeking to know God in the person of Jesus. This experience has made a lasting impression on me because, although I am a cradle Catholic, I often struggle with understanding God’s will and how belief in Jesus can make a difference. What I have learned from these “seekers” is to hope and to trust in God’s providence, a kind of surrender in the knowledge that God (and not me) is in control. Having faith in a God who keeps promises can make all the difference!

The Gospel readings over these past weeks have helped me to reflect on my own faith as I pray for and accompany in spirit those who in two short weeks, will come to the Easter Sacraments. In a way, their story of faith is my story too (and maybe yours). For me, the meaning of life in Christ is wrapped up in the Gospel stories that were read during the Scrutinies and are being played out in the drama of everyday life. The journey of a thirsty heart searching for living water, of blind eyes searching for the gift of true sight, and the search to be free from all that burdens and binds our spirits, are stories that can hold meaning for everyone. 

What do you think? What experiences have shaped your life in Christ?