I would like to give a short testimony on the conference last weekend. My Dad, Rick and Linda Chapman, Chase and Laura Dorsey, and I attended Awakening the Domestic Church, a charismatic conference in Norfolk, VA, jointly organized by the New Creation Community and the Catholic Fraternity Communities in North America. The Catholic Fraternity supported the conference with attendance, prayer teams and speakers. I gave a workshop on parenting. Here’s the Zenit news story, Conferences in US Answer Call from Rome for Greater Efforts in Christian Unity, with interviews and links to more details and videos.

Father Cantalamessa was a highlight of the conference speaking at least three times. The videos of his and other talks are at www.adc2014.org. He very wisely informed us that if we wanted to hear the scheduled material that it would be emailed out and then proceeded to talk about what he discerned most appropriate including his personal testimony and the Eucharist. We will be circulating all this material around and posting it on the website so you have full visibility to all the wonderful treasures from the weekend.

One of the reasons I wanted to share a testimony about the weekend is the spirit of unity that I see developing throughout all Christianity.

I forwarded the email link where Pope Francis has started dialoging with some of the non-Catholic groups and the degree of wonderful openness across Christianity and the coming together and the building of relationships. This same dynamic was evident this week of meetings and conference.  My dad attended several meetings and heard amazing testimonies and if I let him up here to share, we would be here another thirty minutes. So we’ll find the appropriate time to have him give that witness.  We heard amazing stories of people that are coming to realize that the things that separated us as Christians are melting away. The Lord is bringing together Catholics and non-Catholics across the world to fellowship with one another.

There were many people that gave testimonies during the weekend about reconciliation, even within the Renewal. Some shared about splits within communities being reconciled, leaders from Word of God and the People of Praise meeting together and even a coming together of the two groups recognized by the Vatican for supporting Catholic charismatics.

The two groups who serve Catholic charismatics are the Catholic Fraternity and ICCRS.  The Catholic Fraternity has focused on communities and fellowships while ICCRS, and the National Service Committees, have focused their service on the broader Catholic Charismatic Renewal (individuals and prayer groups).  We have found that anytime you have two of something you have the opportunity for lack of communication, collaboration or cooperation. But this weekend there was a wonderful coming together of these two groups. Chairman Jane Guenther and Executive Director Walter Matthews joined with the Catholic Fraternity leaders, spending several hours specifically discussing how we, together, could support the Catholic Charismatic Renewal in the United States.

It was a blessing to see that the Lord was bringing about unity across so many divisions. It was a wonderful time to be together with the other leaders in the Catholic Fraternity and witness the Lord’s work of unity!

Cantalamessa Says the Family Is Church's Backbone

ROME, May 08, 2014 (Zenit.org) - Here is the text of an address given last week in Norfolk, Virginia, by the preacher of the Pontifical Household, Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa.

The conference was titled Awakening the Domestic Church and Father Cantalamessa gave three addresses there. This one is called "Family: The Backbone of the Church."

* * *

I divide my address into three parts. In the first part I will focus on God’s initial plan for marriage and the family and how it came about throughout the history of Israel. In the second part I will speak about the renewal brought by Christ and how it was interpreted and lived in the Christian community of the New Testament. In the third part I will try to consider what biblical revelation can contribute to the solution of the challenges that marriage and family life are facing today.

Part I

Marriage and Family: the Divine Projectand Human Achievements in the Old Testament

The Divine Project

We know that the Book of Genesis has two different accounts of the creation of the first human couple, which go back to two different traditions: the yahwehist (10th century B.C.) and the more recent (6th century B.C.) called the “priestly” tradition.

In the priestly tradition (Genesis 1:26–28) man and woman are created at the same time, not one from the other. Being man and woman are related to being an image of God: “God created mankind in his image, in his image he created them, man and woman he created them.” The primary purpose of the union between man and woman is found in being fruitful and filling the earth.

In the yahwehist tradition (Genesis 2:18-25) the woman is taken from the man; the creation of the two sexes is seen as a remedy for solitude: “It is not good that man be alone; I will make him an adequate helper;” The unitive factor is highlighted more than the procreative: “The man will cling to his wife and the two will be one flesh;” Each one is free with regard to their own sexuality and to the other: “Both were naked, the man and his wife, but they were not embarrassed by each other.”

Neither of the two accounts references any subordination of the woman to the man, before sin: The two are on a level of absolute equality, although it is the man who takes the initiative at least in the yahwehist account.

I’ve found the most convincing explanation for this divine "invention" of the difference between the sexes not from a biblical scholar, but from a poet, Paul Claudel:

“Man is a proud being; there was no other way to make him understand his neighbor except introducing him in the flesh. There was no other way to make him understand dependence and need other than through the law of another distinct being (woman) over him, due to the simple fact that she exists.[1]

Opening oneself to the opposite sex is the first step toward opening oneself to others, our neighbors, and to the Other with a capital O, which is God. Marriage is born under the sign of humility; it is the recognition of dependence and therefore of one’s condition of being a creature. Falling in love with a woman or a man is the completion of the most radical act of humility. It is becoming a beggar and telling the other person, “I’m not enough for myself, I need your being.” If, as Schleiermacher said, the essence of religion is the “sense of dependence” (Abhaengigheitsgefuehl) on God, then human sexuality is the first school of religion.

Thus far we have examined God’s plan. Nevertheless, the rest of the Bible’s text cannot be explained without also including the account of the fall in addition to creation, above all what was said to the woman: “I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.” (Genesis 3:16). The rule of the man over the woman is part of man’s sin, not of God’s plan; with those words God predicts it, he does not approve it.

Historic accomplishments

The Bible is a human and a divine book, not just because its authors are both God and man, but also because it describes, weaved throughout the text, both God’s fidelity and man’s infidelity. This is especially evident when we compare God’s plan over marriage and family with the way it was put into practice in the history of the Chosen People.

It is useful to be aware of the human deficiencies and aberrations so that we’re not too surprised by what happens around us today and also because it shows that marriage and family are institutions that, at least in practice, evolve over time, as any other aspect of social and religious life. Following the book of Genesis, the son of Cain, Lemek, violates the law of monogamy taking two wives. Noah, with his family appears as an exception in the middle of general corruption of his time. The very Patriarchs, Abraham and Jacob have children with a number of women. Moses authorizes the practice of divorce; David and Solomon keep a veritable harem of women.

Nevertheless the deviations appear, as always, more present at the higher levels of society, among the leaders, than at the level of the people, where the initial idea of monogamous marriage was likely the norm, not the exception. In order to form an idea of the relationships and family values that are held and lived in Israel we can turn to the wisdom books: Psalms, Proverbs and Sirach. These help us more than the historical books (which deal precisely with the leaders). They highlight marital fidelity, education of offspring and respect for parents. This last value is one of the Ten Commandments: "Honor your father and mother."

The deviation from the initial idea can be seen in the underlying idea of marriage in Israel, even more than in particular individual transgressions. The principal involution is related to two basic points. The first is that marriage changes from being an end to being a means. Overall, the Old Testament considers marriage to be “a patriarchal structure of authority, primarily driven to the perpetuation of the clan. In this sense we must understand the institutions of the levirate (Deuteronomy 25:5-10), concubine (Genesis 16), and provisional polygamy.”[2] The ideal of a communion of life between man and woman, founded on a reciprocal and personal relationship, is not forgotten, but becomes less important than the good of the offspring.

The second great deviation refers to the condition of women: She goes from being a companion of man, gifted with equal dignity, to appearing more and more subordinated to man and serving a function for man.

The prophets played an important role by shedding light on God’s initial plan for marriage, especially Hosea, Isaiah and Jeremiah. They posited the union of man and woman as a symbol of the covenant between God and his people. As a result of this, they once again shed light on the values of mutual love, fidelity and indissolubility that characterize God’s love for Israel. All the phases and sufferings of spousal love are described and used in this regard: the beauty of love in the early stage of courtship (Cf. Jeremiah 2:2), the fullness of joy on the wedding day (Cf. Isaiah 62:5), the drama of separation (Cf. Hosea 2:4) and finally the rebirth, full of hope, of the old bond (Cf. Hosea 2:16, Isaiah 54:8).

Malachi shows the positive effect that the prophetic message could have on human marriage, and especially, on the condition of women. He writes:

“The Lord is acting as the witness between you and the wife of your youth, because you have broken faith with her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant. Has not the Lord made them one? In flesh and spirit they are his. And why one? Because he was seeking godly offspring. So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith with the wife of your youth.” (Malachi 2:14-15)

We have to read the Song of Songs in the light of this prophetic tradition. This represents a rebirth of the vision of marriage as eros, as attraction of the man to the woman (in this case, also of the woman to the man) according to the oldest account of creation.

Part II - Marriage and Family in the New Testament

I. Christ’s renewal of marriage

St. Irenaeus explains the “recapitulation (anakephalaiosis) of all things” performed by Christ (Ephesians 1:10) as a “taking things from the beginning to lead them to their fulfillment.” The concept implies continuity and novelty at the same time and in this sense it is fulfilled in an exemplary way in Christ’s work with regards to marriage.

The continuity

Chapter 19 of the Gospel of St. Matthew alone is enough to illustrate the two aspects of renewal. Let us see first of all how Jesus takes things anew from the beginning.

“Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, ‘Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?’ ‘Haven't you read,’ he replied, ‘that at the beginning the Creator "made them male and female," (Genesis 1:27) and said, "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh" (Genesis 2:24). So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate’” (Matthew 19:3-6).

The adversaries move in the restricted confines of the case-based reasoning proper to different schools (is it licit to divorce the woman for any motive or is a specific and serious motive required); Jesus responds by tackling the problem at the root, going to the beginning. In his response, Jesus refers to the two accounts of the institution of marriage; he takes elements from both, but above all he highlights the aspects of the communion of persons present in both accounts.

What follows in the text, regarding the problem of divorce, also follows this same direction; in fact he confirms the fidelity and indissolubility of the marital bond above even the good of offspring, on the basis of which polygamy, levirate and divorce had been justified in the past.

“'Then why did Moses command that a writ of dismissal should be given in cases of divorce?' He said to them, 'It was because you were so hard-hearted, that Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but it was not like this from the beginning. Now I say this to you: anyone who divorces his wife -- I am not speaking of an illicit marriage -- and marries another, is guilty of adultery'” (Matthew 19:7-9).

In Jesus’ response we can see an implicit sacramental foundation of marriage present. The words “What God has joined” say that marriage is not a purely secular reality, fruit of human will; there is a sacred aspect to marriage that is rooted in divine will. The elevation of marriage to a “sacrament” therefore is not based solely on Jesus’ presence at the wedding of Cana, nor in the text of Ephesians 5 alone. In a certain way it begins with the earthly Jesus and is part of his leading all things to the beginning. John Paul II is also right when he defines marriage as the “oldest sacrament.”[4]

The Novelty

Thus far we have focused on the continuity. What is the novelty? Paradoxically it consists in making marriage relative. Let’s listen to the following text from Matthew:

"The disciples said to him, 'If that is how things are between husband and wife, it is advisable not to marry. But he replied, 'It is not everyone who can accept what I have said, but only those to whom it is granted. There are eunuchs born so from their mother's womb, there are eunuchs made so by human agency and there are eunuchs who have made themselves so for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven. Let anyone accept this who can'" (Matthew 19:10-12).

With these words Jesus institutes a second state of life, justifying it by the coming to the earth of the Kingdom of Heaven. It does not eliminate the other possibility, marriage, but it makes it relative. What happens to it is similar to the idea of the state in the political sphere: It is not abolished, but rather radically limited by the revelation of the contemporary presence, within history, of the Kingdom of God.

Therefore, voluntary continence does not need to deny or despise marriage so that its own validity can be recognized. (Some ancient authors made this mistake in some of their writings on virginity). What’s more, it derives its meaning from none other than contemporary affirmation of the goodness of marriage. The institution of celibacy and virginity for the Kingdom ennobles marriage in the sense that it becomes a choice, a vocation, and not just simply a moral duty to which it was impossible not to submit oneself in Israel without exposure to the accusation of trespassing God’s commandment.

Marriage and family in the Apostolic Church

Just as we have done with God’s original project, also concerning the renewal worked by Christ we intend to see how it was received and lived in the life and catechesis of the Church, limiting ourselves to the reality of the apostolic Church for the moment. Paul is our primary source of information, having had to dedicate himself to the problem in some of his letters, above all in the First Letter to the Corinthians.

The Apostle distinguishes between what comes directly from the Lord and the particular applications that he himself makes when required by the context in which he preaches the Gospel. The confirmation of the indissolubility of marriage is part of the first type: “To the married I give this ruling, and this is not mine but the Lord's: a wife must not be separated from her husband or if she has already left him, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband -- and a husband must not divorce his wife. (1 Corinthians 7:10-11); the guidance regarding marriage between believers and nonbelievers and the provisions regarding celibates and virgins is part of the second type of the Apostle's teaching: “I have no directions from the Lord, but I give my own opinion” (1 Corinthians 7:10;7:25).

The Church has received from Jesus also the element of novelty which consists, as we have seen, in the institution of a second state of life: celibacy and virginity for the Kingdom. To them, Paul, he himself not married, dedicates the final part of Chapter 7 of his letter. Based on the verse: “I should still like everyone to be as I am myself; but everyone has his own gift from God, one this kind and the next something different” (1 Corinthians 7:7), some think that the Apostle considers marriage and virginity as two charisms. But that is not accurate; virgins have received the charism of virginity, married people have other charisms (understood, not that of virginity). It’s meaningful that the Church’s theology has always considered virginity a charism and not a sacrament, and marriage a sacrament and not a charism.

The text of the Letter to the Ephesians will have a noteworthy effect in the process that will bring about the recognition of the sacramentality of marriage:

“This is why a man leaves his father and mother and becomes attached to his wife, and the two become one flesh. This mystery (in Latin, sacramentum) has great significance, but I am applying it to Christ and the Church” (Ephesians 5:31-32).

As the apostolic community grows and consolidates, we see how an entire familial pastoral practice and spirituality flower. The most meaningful texts in this regard are the letters to the Colossians and to the Ephesians. Both of them show the two fundamental relationships that constitute family: the relationship between husband and wife and the relationship between parents and children. With regard to the first relationship, the Apostle writes:

“Submit to each other in the fear of Christ. Women to their husbands, as to the Lord… As the Church is submissive to Christ, so also should wives submit to their husbands in all. Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the Church and gave himself up for her.”

Paul recommended that husbands “love” their wife (and this seems normal to us), but then he recommends that wives be “submissive” to their husband, and this, in a society that is strongly (and rightfully) conscious of the equality of the sexes, seems unacceptable. On this point St. Paul is, at least in part, conditioned by the customs of his time. The difficulty, on the other hand, changes if we keep in mind the phrase from the beginning of the text: “Be submissive to one another in the fear of Christ,” which establishes reciprocity in submission and in love.

With regard to the relationship between parents and children, Paul emphasizes the traditional advice of the wisdom books:

“Children, be obedient to your parents in the Lord -- that is what uprightness demands. The first commandment that has a promise attached to it is: Honor your father and your mother; and the promise is: so that you may have long life and prosper in the land. And parents, never drive your children to resentment but bring them up with correction and advice inspired by the Lord” (Ephesians 6:1-4).

The pastoral letters, especially the Letter to Titus, offer detailed rules for every category of person: women, spouses, bishops and priests, old people, young people, widows, owners and slaves (cf. Titus 2:1-9). In fact slaves were also part of the family in the broad understanding of the time.

In the early Church as well, the ideal of marriage that Jesus proposes will not be put into practice without shadows and resistance. In addition to the case of incest of Corinth (1 Corinthians 8:1), this is borne out by the need the apostles feel of insisting on this aspect of the early Christian life. But overall, the Christians presented the world a new family model that became one of the principal factors in evangelization.

The author of the letter to Diognetus, in the second century, says that the Christians “marry as everyone else does and have children, but they do not abandon the newborns; they have a common table, but not a common bed” (V:6-7). In his Apology, Justin constructs an argument that we Christians of today should be able to make our own in dialogue with political authorities. In essence he says the following: You, Roman emperors, multiply the laws about family, which have proven to be incapable of stopping its dissolution. Come to see our families and you will be convinced Christians are your better allies in the reform of society, not your enemies. In the end, as is known, after three centuries of persecution, the Empire accepted the Christian family model in its own legislation.

Part III - What The Bible Teaches Us Today

Rereading the Bible in a context like the present one cannot be limited to a simple reminder of revealed knowledge, but rather it should be able to enlighten current problems. “Scriptures, as St. Gregory the Great said, grow with the one that reads them” (cum legentibus crescit); They reveal new implications to the measure in which new questions are posed to them. And today there are many new and provocative questions.

Objection to the biblical ideal

We are confronted by a seemingly global objection to the biblical plan for sexuality, marriage and family. How should we react in the face of this phenomenon? The first error we should avoid, in my opinion, is spending the whole time fighting contrary theories, in the end giving them more importance than they deserve. Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagita noted a long time ago that the exposition of one’s truth is always more successful than rebutting the errors of others (Letter VI, in PG 3, 1077A). Another error is to rely too much on civil laws to defend Christian values. The first Christians, as we have seen, changed the laws of the state through their lifestyle. We cannot do the contrary today, hoping to change lifestyles with the laws of the state.

The Council opened a new method, that of dialogue, not confrontation with the world: a method which does not even exclude self criticism. One of the Council documents said that the Church can benefit even from the criticism of those that attack it. I believe that we should apply this method also in discussing the problems of marriage and the family, as "Gaudium et Spes" did in its own time.

Applying this method of dialogue means trying to see if even behind the most radical attacks there is a positive request that we should welcome. It is the old Pauline method of examining everything and keeping the good (cf. 1 Thessalonians 5:21).

The criticism of the traditional model of marriage and family, which have led to the current, unacceptable, proposals of deconstructionism, begun with the Enlightenment and Romanticism. With different intentions, these two movements objected to traditional marriage, seen exclusively as its objective “ends" -- offspring, society, Church; and to little in itself -- in its subjective and interpersonal value. Everything was asked of the future spouses, except that they love each other and choose each other freely. Marriage as a pact (Enlightenment) and as a communion of love (Romanticism) between the spouses was proposed to contradict such a model.

But this criticism follows the original meaning of the Bible, it does not contradict it! The Second Vatican Council took in this request when it recognized as equally central to marriage both mutual love and support of the spouses. John Paul II, in a Wednesday catechesis said:

“The human body, with its sex, and its masculinity and femininity seen in the very mystery of creation, is not only a source of fruitfulness and procreation, as in the whole natural order. It includes right from the beginning the nuptial attribute, that is, the capacity of expressing love, that love in which the person becomes a gift and -- by means of this gift -- fulfills the meaning of his being and existence.”[8]

In his encyclical “Deus Caritas Est,” Pope Benedict XVI has gone even farther, writing deep and new things with regards to eros in marriage and in the very relationship between God and man. “This close relationship between eros and marriage that the Bible presents has practically no parallel in literature outside itself."[9]

We are far from agreeing with the consequences that some today draw from this premise: for example, that any type of eros is enough to constitute a marriage, even that between persons of the same sex; but this rejection gains greater strength and credibility if it is connected to the recognition of the underlying goodness of the request and as well with a healthy self criticism.

Another request we can make our own is that of the dignity of women in marriage. As we can see, it is at the very heart of God’s original plan and Christ’s thought, but it has almost always been neglected. God’s word to Eve: “You will be drawn to your spouse and he will dominate you” has been tragically played out throughout history.

Among the representatives of the so-called gender revolution, this idea has led to crazy proposals, such as that of abolishing the distinction between sexes and substituting it with the more elastic and subjective distinction of “genders” (masculine, feminine, variable) or that of freeing women from the slavery of maternity, providing other means, invented by man, for the production of children. (It is not clear who would continue to have interest or desire at this point in having children.)

It is precisely through choosing to dialogue and engage in self-criticism that we have the right to denounce these projects as “inhuman," in other words, contrary to not only God’s will, but also to the good of humanity. If they were to become common practice on a large scale, they would lead to unforeseeable damages.

Our only hope is that people’s common sense, together with the “desire” for the other sex, with the need for maternity and paternity that God has written in human nature, resist these attempts to substitute God. They are inspired more by belated feelings of guilt in men than by genuine respect and love for women.

An ideal that must be rediscovered

Christian’s task of rediscovering and fully living the biblical ideal of marriage and family is no less important than defending it. In this way it can be proposed again to the world with facts, more so than with words.

Let’s read today the account of the creation of man and woman in the light of the revelation of the Trinity. Under this light, the phrase: “God created mankind in his image, in his image he created him, male and female he created them” finally reveals its meaning, which was mysterious and uncertain before Christ. What relation could there be between being “in the image of God” and being “male and female?” The God of the Bible does not have sexual connotations; he is neither male nor female.

The analogy consists in this: God is love and love demands communion, interpersonal exchange; it needs to have an “I” and a “you." There is no love that is not love for someone. Where there is only one subject there can be no love, only egotism and narcissism. Where God is thought of as Law and as absolute Power, there is no need for a plurality of persons. (Power can be exercised alone!). The God revealed by Jesus Christ, being love, is one and only, but he is not solitary; he is one and triune. In him coexist unity and distinction: unity of nature, of will, of intention, and distinction of characteristics and persons.

Two people that love each other, and the case of man and woman in marriage is the strongest, reproduce something that happens in the Trinity. There two persons, the Father and the Son, loving each other, produce (“breathe”) the Spirit that is the love that joins them. Someone once defined the Holy Spirit as the divine “We,” that is, not the “third person of the Trinity," but rather the first person plural.[10]

Precisely in this way the human couple is an image of God. Husband and wife are in effect a single flesh, a single heart, a single soul, even in the diversity of sex and personality. In the couple, unity and diversity reconcile themselves. The spouses face each other as an “I” and a “you”, and face the rest of the world, beginning with their own children, as a “we," almost as if it was a single person, no longer singular but rather plural. “We," in other words, “your mother and I,"“your father and I."

In light of this we discover the profound meaning of the prophets’ message regarding human marriage, which is a symbol and reflection of another love, God’s love for his people. This doesn’t involve overburdening a purely human reality with mystical meaning. It is not a question simply of symbolism; rather it involves revealing the true face and final purpose of the creation of man and woman: leaving one’s own isolation and “egotism," opening up to the other, and through the temporal ecstasy of carnal union, elevating oneself to the desire for love and for happiness without end.

What’s the reason for the incompleteness and dissatisfaction that sexual union leaves within and outside of marriage? Why does this impulse always fall over itself and why does this promise of infinity and eternity always end up disappointed? The ancients coined a phrase that paints this reality: “Post coitum animal triste”: just like any other animal, man is sad after carnal union.

As Christians, do we want to find an explanation once and for all for this devastating dysfunction? The explanation is that sexual union is not lived in the way and with the purpose in which God intended it. The purpose was, through this ecstasy and fusion of love, that man and woman would be elevated to the desire and have a certain taste for infinite love. They would remember from whence they came and where they were going.

Sin - beginning with the biblical sin of Adam and Eve -, has gutted this plan; it has “profaned” this gesture, in other words, it has stripped it of its religious value. It has turned it into a gesture that is an end in itself, which finishes with itself, and is therefore “unsatisfactory." The symbol has been separate from the reality is symbolizes, bereft of its intrinsic dynamism and therefore mutilated. Never as much as in this case is St. Augustine's saying true: “You made us, Lord, for you and our heart is restless until it rests in you.”

Even couples that are believers don’t come to find this richness of the initial meaning of sexual union due to the idea of concupiscence and original sin associated with the act for so many centuries. Only in the witness of some couples that have had a renewing experience of the Holy Spirit and that live Christian life charismatically do we find something of that original meaning of the conjugal act. They have confided with wonder, to friends or a priest, that they unite praising God out loud, and even singing in tongues. It was a real experience of God’s presence.

It is understandable why it is only possible to find this fullness of the marital vocation in the Holy Spirit. The constitutive act of marriage is reciprocal self-giving, making a gift of one’s own body (which in biblical language means of one’s whole self) to the spouse. In being the sacrament of the gift, marriage is, by its nature, a sacrament that is open to the action of the Holy Spirit, who is the Gift par excellence, or better said, the reciprocal self-giving of the Father and the Son. It is the sanctifying presence of the Spirit that makes marriage not only a celebrated sacrament, but a lived sacrament.

The secret to getting access to these splendors of Christian love is to give Christ space within the life of the couple. In fact, the Holy Spirit that makes all things new, comes from him. A book by Fulton Sheen, popular in the 50s, reiterated this with its title: “Three to Get Married.”[12] From a deeper point of view Teilhard de Chardin had arrived to the same conclusion: “Love is a function between three terms: man, woman and God”[13].

I end with some words taken once again from "The Satin Slipper" by Claudel. It is a dialogue between the woman of the drama and her guardian angel. The woman struggles between her fear and the desire to surrender herself to love:

-       So, is this love of the creatures, one for another, allowed? Isn’t God jealous?

-       How could He be jealous of what He Himself made?

-       But man, in the arms of the woman, forgets God…

-       Can they forget Him when they are with Him, participating in the mystery of his creation?[14]

--- --- ---

On Tuesday, March 4, 2014, while driving to the Collin College Courtyard Center Campus for my night class "Project Management for Healthcare Leaders," I received a clear and explicit direction into my mind that said this to me:

"Do not write, 'I did this and then I did that.' Instead, write it this way:

The Spirit sent this person to me and that person to me.  Write that the Spirit led me here and lead me there."

At that time, I revised the following essay to use that style of expression.  That is why this essay was written the way that it was written. As to the source of that "direction," I will leave that up to the reader and between God and me.

The Holy Spirit Working in My Life

In 1992, the Holy Spirit inspired Joan and Blaine Manker to teach the Life In the Spirit Seminar in their home, where I received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit set me afire and inspired me to commit myself to obedience to all doctrinal and moral teachings of the Catholic Church.

He then received Myra, my bride, into the Catholic Church.  After Myra's fertility surgery, the Lord Jesus appeared to her, and said, "Everything will be all right." Immediately after that, we received the gift of five children (Matthew, Joseph, Kristin, Daniel and Sarah) within nine years.

The Holy Spirit inspired me and my family to serve as lay persons by participating in the Apostolate for Family Consecration (AFC) holy hours, first at St. Anthony Parish, then at the home of the Woodson family. We made two week-long “Familyfest” retreats at AFC's Catholic Familyland in Ohio. We actively participate in pro-life activities at our parish and with the CPLC. 

The Holy Spirit inspired me personally to serve as a Catechist for 6^th and 7^th graders from 1995 to 2006, to become a 4^th degree Knight of Columbus, to attend the Christ Renews His Parish retreat (CRHP I), and to serve on the host teams for CRHP II, III and IV, which included giving the witness of my faith story numerous times.

In 2012, as my engineering job of 28 years began to crumble, the Holy Spirit led me into an extended period of suffering and loss of confidence.  During those hard times, I experienced a profound sense of peace while making personal visits to the residents of a nursing home. I often visited one resident, named Rosemary, with significant dementia, who could tell stories about things that happened 60 years ago with such exquisite detail that when I closed my eyes it felt like I was there!

One day, I encountered a dying, depressed and despairing woman who was angry, cussing and complaining about the food. She said several times, “I just want to die!” and I humored her saying, “Oh Mrs. Iva, I don't think it is your time yet.” She kept saying, “I just want to die!” I felt such compassion for her! After I held her hand for just a moment and then gazed upon her, she leaned forward, bending down all the way to the table and kissed the back of my hand. Then, she straightened up in her chair, looked me straight in the eyes and said "I love you!" That experience shook me to my very core. At that moment, God spoke volumes directly to my heart and I learned that when we allow the Holy Spirit to use our hands, our faces and our voices, he gives us the power to heal, without any effort on our part.  In that place, I met a caring and compassionate man who is loved by many and whose kind words and actions positively affect the people around him.  The man I met there is me. I found my compassionate side and my passion!

In December 2013, I visited my mother at Kathy Hospice in Wisconsin for the last time. As I was leaving, I put on my jacket and turned to walk away. Then, I looked back at Mom again. Though I knew her mind was severely obscured by Alzheimer's, I believe that she clearly knew in her spirit that this was the last time that she would see her baby son on earth. Mom was waving to me and exhibiting an alertness that I had not seen in years.

When I returned to Dallas, I found out from the nurse that Mrs. Iva had “expired.” I found out her full name and searched for her obituary on the Internet, but found nothing. I wondered if she had passed away without anyone knowing or caring.

On January 8, 2013, at 3:05 pm, while my plane was waiting to take off from DFW airport, I finished praying the Chaplet of Divine Mercy for my Mother (Arlene) as she expired at Kathy Hospice in West Bend, WI. Her sister Bernadine had also broken her hip and expired at the same hospice facility at the Hour of Mercy three weeks earlier on December 17, 2012. The probability of two people dying at the Hour of Mercy is 1 chance out of 576. Divine Mercy became the "theme" of my mother's funeral activities.

From the  I-94 / I-43 Interstate elevated freeway in Milwaukee, from National Avenue to Lincoln Avenue, one can see the steeples of twelve of the city's original ethnic churches, including the huge dome of the “crown jewel” of Milwaukee, the Basilica of St. Josephat, built by Polish immigrants and completed in 1901.  This was my mother's childhood neighborhood and this is where her Mass of Christian Burial took place on Monday January 14, 2013.  See the beautiful photos of the Basilica of St. Josephat, her obituary and her Divine Mercy holy card,

In May 2013, the Holy Spirit led my wife and I to the original Divine Mercy image in Vilnius, Lithuania, and to the tomb of St. Faustina near Krakow, Poland, knowing full well that his future vocational plan for me would be to become a “witness to” and an “instrument of” Divine Mercy as a Catholic Chaplain.

My Calling to Become a Catholic Chaplain

In August 2013, the Holy Spirit accepted our son Matthew into Holy Trinity Seminary. At Christmas break, he led Matthew to recommend the praying of the Liturgy of the Hours (morning and evening prayer) to his parents, adding prayers of thanksgiving and praise to their daily routine.

Next, the Spirit sent Jason Evert to teach me what it takes to be a real man and to show me my new identity — that of being like a guardian angel – respecting, protecting and defending the dignity of women. Next, the Spirit sent many graces to me, through the hands of Our Lady, which enabled me to conquer my "most grievous fault." This led Heaven to rejoice, so exuberantly, that blessings and graces began to pour down on my life like a hard-driving rain.  (UPDATE: As of May 25, 2014, the hard-driving rain has continued non-stop and I was accepted into the Masters of Pastoral Ministry graduate program at the University of Dallas on May 20, 2014. All praise, honor, glory and thanks to God!)

The Spirit continued to send Joan Manker to be a mother figure to me. Joan helped me to “discover” myself.  Like a good mother, she always looked for the good in me and told me about it.  Next, the Spirit worked powerfully through a motivational speaker named Terri Frey Maxwell, who inspired me to discover my passion in life and to go after that as my second career.

On Sunday January 26, 2014, the Holy Spirit discarded my engineer's resume and wrote a new resume for me from scratch. In it, he stated that, if I could have any job in the world, it would be:

to assist in the spiritual preparation of people of all faiths who are   passing from this life, in ways that are most meaningful to them.”

He also wrote about how I want to be remembered:

 “by the resident's families as a 'light in the darkness' and as a man of    deep faith who treated people with great love."

On Wednesday January 29, 2014, the Spirit led me to the National Association of Catholic Chaplains website where I watched the video Chaplaincy Ministry— Is God Calling You?  At that moment, the Spirit showed me who he created me to be and showed me how he wants me to serve him. He wrote on my heart, with large white calligraphy, the word "Chaplain." Next, the Spirit led me to the School of Ministry at the University of Dallas to study for my Masters in Pastoral Ministry, the perfect place to study to prepare for lay ministry in the Diocese of Dallas.

In the midst of all that was happening, the Spirit sent Piroska “Patty” Kalaj, who watched my family grow for 20 years from the opposite side of St. Anthony Catholic Church. She suddenly popped up at the Holy Spirit Prayer Meeting, ministered to me, and taught me that I must become an empty vessel giving all credit to the Holy Spirit for every good thing that happens.

In 2000, the Spirit led me to profess Total Consecration to Mary per St. Louis De Montfort. Then, in 2014, the Spirit led me to honor the Pilgrim Statue of Our Lady of Fatima at five Dallas parishes, to remind me that I must be a chaplain with a fervent devotion to Mary. Finally, the Spirit led me to the Pilgrim Image of Our Lady of Czestochowa to remind me not to forget my Polish heritage, through which my Catholicism was received.

Ministry to the Elderly: Building Christian Unity

The specific call to mission (“to be sent to continue the work of Christ”) and to ministry (“to witness to the Good News”) with the elderly in our communities is rooted in one of the deepest longings of the human heart — our longing for our mothers and fathers. In facilities overflowing with mother figures and father figures, we are called to practice the commandment of love and to cherish life in all of its circumstances.  We come as a witness to Christian unity, bearing our Lord's most precious gift to us: Our Heavenly Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, who is understood to be the Bridge to Christian Unity, even by some Protestant pastors such as Lutheran Pastor Rev. Charles Dickson.

Through dialog, we can explain why Mary is the Bridge to Christian Unity and how she is not very different from us. We can affirm that when we get to Heaven we will still have free will — the free choice to do good or evil — but we will be living without a fallen, sinful nature. Each and every soul in the Kingdom of Heaven will be so completely full of God's wisdom and grace that they will always choose to do good. We will remain fully human and yet live for all eternity without ever committing a single sin.

We can shed light on the mystery of the Immaculate Conception by affirming that just as God fills all the souls in Heaven with wisdom and grace, he has the power to provide this privilege to a person on earth, not only after her death, but even from the moment of her conception. We can also explain that Jesus Christ, who atoned for our sins to rescue us from the “pit,” also has the power to preserve a person from falling into the “pit” in the first place, by allowing her to “walk around the pit” instead. By preserving his Mother from our fallen, sinful nature, our Redeemer granted her salvation by a different means. Just like us, the Blessed Virgin Mary needs a Savior.

The call to ministry to the elderly is a call to alleviate what Mother Teresa called “the terrible poverty of loneliness.” Although there are abundant opportunities to visit the homebound and the residents of nursing homes at the parish level, most of these ministries currently only have resources to minister to Catholic residents. To build this ministry into a true witness to Christian unity requires a huge increase in our numbers. This can only be achieved by proclaiming to our society the truth about which activities in life bring true fulfillment and joy. We must show people how to conquer their fear of growing old and fall in love with listening to the life stories and wisdom of the generation that gave us life. Only then will our people come to a new realization, seeing nursing homes as they truly are – places overflowing with precious jewels in human form.

(© 2014 Michael Anthony Tadyshak)

Link to Pope singing at this conference

06/02/2014 VATICAN-Rome (AsiaNews) - Pope Francis has confessed that in his years as Archbishop of Buenos Aires "I did not like the charismatics, I thought they were like a samba school. Then I saw the good they do for the Church and eventually became chaplain of the movement in Argentina. But you must be careful of careerism, internal power struggles and the temptation to control who can and who cannot receive grace. Be stewards of God's grace." This was his message to the fifty-two thousand people from 55 countries gathered for the 37th National Convocation of Renewal in the Spirit, held at the Olympic Stadium in Rome, June 2-3. Below is the full text of the Francis' speech (transcript by AsiaNews).

Thank you so much for your welcome. Surely, someone obviously told the organizers that I like this song: "Spirit of the Living God." When I used to celebrate Mass in Buenos Aires with the Charismatic Renewal, they would sing this song with so much joy. Thank you! It has made me feel right at home. I thank the Renewal in the Spirit, the International Catholic Charismatic Renewal Service and the Catholic Fraternity of Charismatic Covenant Communities and Fellowships for this meeting, which gives me so much joy. I am also grateful for the presence of the first people who had a strong experience of the power of the Holy Spirit. You, Charismatic Renewal, have received a great gift from the Lord: you have been born from a desire of the Holy Spirit as a current of grace in the Church and for the Church. This is your definition: a current of grace.

What is the first gift of the Holy Ghost? The gift of himself, who is love and helps us to fall in love with Jesus. This love changes lives, for it is said “to be born again to life in the Spirit.” Jesus said so to Nicodemus. You have received the great gift of diversity of charisms, the diversity that the Holy Spirit brings to service to the Church. When I think of you I see the image of the Church, but in a particular way. I also think of a big orchestra where every instrument and voice is different, but are all part of a harmony of music. St. Paul tells us, as an orchestra, no one in the Renewal must think they are more important than the other: please! Because if someone begins to think they are more important or greater, then the plague begins. No one can say 'I'm the boss'. You, like the whole Church, you have only one head: the Lord Jesus! Repeat after me: who is the head of the Renewal? The Lord Jesus! The Lord Jesus! And we can say that, with the power that the Spirit gives us, because no one can say that Jesus is Lord without the Holy Spirit.

As you may know, because news travels fast, in the early years of the Charismatic Renewal in Buenos Aires I did not love the charismatics: and I used to say of them “they look like a samba school.” I did not agree with their way of praying and the so many new things that were happening in the Church. After I got to know them and I began to understand the good that Renewal does for the Church. And this story, which began with the samba and moved on, ends in a particular way: a few months before taking part in the Conclave, I was appointed by the Conference of Bishops as chaplain of the Renewal in Argentina.

The Charismatic Renewal is a great power at the service of the Gospel: you have found the love of God for all his children and the love for the Word. In the early days it was said that you always carried a Bible and the New Testament with you: do you still do this today? I'm not so sure! Return to this first love, always carry the Word of God in your pocket read a bit; always carry God's Word. God's people and the people of the Renewal, be careful not to lose the freedom that the Spirit has given us. The danger for the Renewal, as is often said by our dear Father Raniero Cantalamessa, is excessive organization: you need it, but do not lose the grace of allowing God to be God. There is no greater freedom than that: to let the Spirit lead, refusing to calculate everything, and allow Him to guide us where He will, to enlighten us. He knows what is needed most at all times and in every era.

Another danger is to become "inspectors" of God's grace. Sometimes the leaders become perhaps unwittingly administrators of grace deciding who can and who cannot receive it. If some of you are doing this, I beg you to stop doing so! You are stewards of God's grace, not "inspectors." Do not carry out a "customs control" of the Holy Spirit. In the documents you have a guide and a safe route to avoid mistakes: theological and pastoral orientation, ecumenism, service to man. This is a path: evangelization, ecumenism, care of the poor and welcome of the marginalized. And all this on the basis of worship: worship of God is the foundation. I have been asked to tell the Renewal what the Pope expects of you: the first thing is the conversion to the love of Jesus that changes lives and makes the Christian a witness of God's love.

The Church expects this testimony, and the Spirit helps us to live in consistency with the Gospel for our holiness. I expect you to share the grace of the Church in the Holy Spirit. I expect you to evangelize with the word of God, which proclaims that Jesus is alive and loves all men; to bear witness to our ecumenical commitment: to remain united in the love that the Lord Jesus asks us to have for all men, and in the Holy Spirit in prayer, to arrive at this unity. Remember that the Renewal is by its very nature ecumenical: the Catholic Renewal rejoices at what the Spirit realizes in other churches. Be close to the poor, the needy; touch in their flesh the wounded flesh of Jesus.  Be close to them, please.

Seek unity in the Renewal, because it is born of the Spirit and the unity of the Trinity. Who does division come from? The devil. Flee from infighting, please! Make sure that there is none between you. I want to thank the International Catholic Charismatic Renewal Service and the Catholic Fraternity of Charismatic Covenant Communities and Fellowships, the two bodies of pontifical statues in service to the worldwide Renewal, busy preparing the meeting of priests and bishops from around the world for next year. I know they have decided to share the same office and work together as a sign of unity and better manage resources. I rejoice and thank them, because they are already organizing the Great Jubilee of the Year 2017.

Brothers and sisters, remember: worship God, the Lord! This is the foundation. Seek holiness worshiping God in the new life of the Spirit. Be stewards of the grace of God, avoid the danger of excessive organization, go out into the streets to evangelize. Remember that the Church was born with an outward bound spirit that morning of Pentecost. Move closer to the poor and touch in their flesh the wounds of Jesus.  Please do not imprison the Holy Spirit! Live with freedom! Look for the unity of the Renewal, which comes from the Trinity. I invite you all, charismatics of the world, together with the Pope to celebrate your big jubilee, Pentecost 2017, in St. Peter's Square. Thank you!

It was an historic moment as the Holy Father met with over 50,000 Renewal participants from 55 countries in Rome’s Olympic Stadium. His affirmation of love brought great joy and hope to the Renewal as reflected in these words:

• “You were born of the will of the Spirit as ‘a current of grace in the Church and for the Church.’ This is your definition: a current of grace.”
• “You have received the great gift of the diversity of charisms, diversity that leads to the harmony of the Holy Spirit, to the service of the Church.”
• “Charismatic Renewal is a great force at the service of the proclamation of the Gospel, in the joy of the Holy Spirit.”

It is fitting that the first thing Pope Francis would expect from us is:  “conversion to the love of Jesus, which changes life and makes of the Christian a witness of the love of God.” He went on to say: “the Church expects this witness of Christian life and the Holy Spirit helps us to live the coherence of the Gospel  for our holiness.”

Conversion to the love of Jesus is often misunderstood by many to mean “conversion to love Jesus,” which is not a bad thing; however it is a response, not the initiating action of Jesus’ love for us!

“This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 Jn 4:10). More than reminding ourselves of this great truth, it must become the center of our identity. We are loved by God and it is the embrace of this love that changes us.

Most of us have encountered the living God through our baptism in the Holy Spirit and experienced the love of the Father being poured out into our hearts by the Holy Spirit as we surrendered to the lordship of Jesus! Scripture tells us

that we are so dearly loved by the Father that we have become children of God. He is our Abba and we are his beloved! “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1 Jn 3:3).

What I believe  conversion to the love of Jesus means is the process of surrendering our perceptions of ourselves, and the perceptions of how others see us, to the absolute truth of who we really are: beloved sons and daughters of God! This is the work of intimacy with Jesus and he is the initiator of that intimacy! Our part in the work is to clear the deck and become receptive to the infinite ways that God wants to lavish his love upon us. “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love” (Jn 15:9). Remain in my love, stay put, and don’t move from my love. Don’t go back to misperceptions of yourself, remain in my love! Don’t try to become something you’re not or something someone else wants you to be, remain in my love.

Throughout your spiritual journey, remain in his love. Jesus goes on to say: “If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you” (Jn 15:10-12). Conversion to the love of Jesus will transform us to be the witnesses the Church needs and expects. And the Spirit of Jesus will empower us to live this life of intimacy so others may come to know that they too are the beloved sons and daughters of God!

Jimmy Archer is a member of the National Service Committee for the Catholic Charismatic Renewal and a member of the Pastoral Service Team for the Renewal in West Virginia. He and his wife Taffy and son Andrew live in Fairmont, West Virginia.

(© Pentecost Today, Jimmy Archer, Fall 2014, Vol 39, No. 3, p 10, used with permission)

I have had the privilege of being in the Community for around thirty-three years; I’ve grown up here. I’ve been part of the school, junior high, youth group, young adults and much more. But most of all I’ve learned an example of what a real relationship with Jesus looks like. I can stand up here and talk for hours about the Community, about the Covenant that others and my family made to God and the Community and the impact that it made upon my world. But I won’t.

Instead, I want to focus on how in the past six months my view of the covenantal relationship has changed; how it’s matured. I thought I had a great grasp on what covenantal relationship meant. I thought I had understood it. I knew it a little intellectually. I knew this was not something for a day, a year – it’s for a lifetime. This is the promise to God and the Christian Community of God’s Delight. This is not something I could ever take lightly. One thing my mom, Sue Bell, would always say to me is “wanting and doing are different things.”

In the past six months during this discernment process, I’ve had much growth, even if at that time I went before God kicking and screaming going: “Do you really want me to do this Lord? Are you sure?” But I was always reminded of a scripture verse: “Be anxious about nothing, but through all things, through prayer and supplication make your request known to God. Then the peace of God that passes all understanding will cover your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus which gives you strength.”

The more I gave Jesus what was in my heart, the more strength I received. The act of supplication has been hard for me. I wanted to hold on to the anxiety, the apprehension, the fears. This came naturally to me. Instead, I gave them to God, and every time that I let go and let God, the more at peace I became, the more empowered I felt, the more joyful, the more close to the Body of Christ I became. I thought that I knew actually a little bit about the life of the Covenant; after all, I’ve been here thirty-three years. I have lived here as an adult and as a child. Now this is becoming permanent residence.

Many things I’ve pondered and questioned: how could anyone want me to make this Covenant with them? Don’t they know me by now? Can they not see my weaknesses? Don’t they see all my faults? The more I was overwhelmed and questioned this, the more I was shown constant and unconditional love and constant affirmation by others. I realized in a deeper way that love is what I was called to do. In order to love, one must be loved; it is essential, and if God is love what do I have to be fearful of?

I know that there will be hard times; those sandpaper moments when things will be smoothed out. Amen, we need those moments. Yes, I said it - we need those moments and those people in our lives. I could go on for hours about what the Community means to me. I will save that for another time, but know this: know that I truly have been blessed here. I want to thank all that helped me to get to this point, that have taught me, been patient with me, cracked jokes with me and lent a helping hand. It’s because of you that I can stand before you today. May God keep you and hold you in the palm of his hands in my heart.

As I drove to the Mount St. Michael campus on Saturday, March 25, my mind was on my two talks on sharing your faith story for the Women’s Forum. All week, with expectant faith and exuberant joy, I anticipated sharing my witness and some tips for sharing faith stories.

My mental review of my presentation was interrupted by a strong impression – not a voice, but an idea not my own: I was not going to Mount St. Michael to give a presentation but to launch a new ministry.

This impression was not the first time I felt the Lord directing me to launch a ministry in my covenant community of 150 families. In the 1970s, in the height of the renewal and before our Spanish-speaking brothers and sisters formed a separate group, we had more than twice that many families. At that time, the Lord seemed to direct me to ask the leaders if I could create a newsletter for our community. They welcomed the idea immediately. We published an 8-page newsletter. In a few years we were mailing a publication of 16 to 24 pages to an international mailing list.

In 2006, it was time to replace the newsletter with a website. An Internet instructor took the lead as Webmaster and trained me as Website Editor. That training prepared me to launch JOYAlive.net three years ago. Through these ministry experiences I’ve learned that:

God is able to make every grace abundant for you, so that in all things, always having all you need, you may have an abundance for every good work. (2 Cor 9:8)

With so much on my mind, the thought of another ministry made me dizzy. It shouldn’t have been a surprise. Earlier God had planted the thought of giving talks to Catholic groups.  I’d practiced my conversion story for our parish Book Study Group, videotaped it for the CatholicConference4Moms and prepared an RCIA version for a parish in Naples, FL.

How well I know that a full-blown ministry is different than tiptoeing around the diocese speaking to a handful of parish groups when you have time. Ministry is commitment. You need resources. Time. Money. A support group.

Yet here I was on my way to share my heart with the 30-40 women who were coming that day. Forty years ago I committed to serve them and all my brothers and sisters in our covenant community. They are family. From twenty or so parishes we gather on Sunday afternoons to praise and worship, pray and learn together. Most of them attend daily Mass, and many of them are leaders in their parishes.

The Women’s Forum was beneficial to the women who began writing their faith story and then sharing it around their table with others. Yes, and I courageously announced the launch of the new Sharing Your Faith Ministry, surprising the women leaders.

 As I walked down the hall on my way out I was happy that my message was welcomed with enthusiasm. Several leaders of parish groups stopped me to ask for help in taking the tips I gave for sharing a faith story and adapting them to their groups. Other women are finishing their stories to publish onGodsDelight.org or JOYAlive.net.

When God initiates a project, he provides whatever it takes to complete it. God was providing the support group. For him, I could manage the time. The money would work out.

I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus. (Phil 1:6)

I’m not sure what next step to take, but I’m sure if I keep moving the direction will emerge from mistakes and false starts. Prayer support is vital, so I invite all you readers to participate in this new ministry by praying for discernment. I invite you to share the joy!

What advice can you give me on approaching parish leaders to introduce a workshop on Sharing Your Faith Story? What other recommendations can you give me?

(© 2015 Nancy HC Ward)

Photo by Alice Clauss of Terry McDowell, facilitator; Nancy Ward, speaker, and Gretchen Montgomery, music minister, at Women's Forum. MSM, 4-25-15.

Friar’s Corner #740: 7/19/15: Sixteenth of OT; 4^th Week of Christian Prayer

Sunday, July 16 of OT: Jeremiah 23:1-6 (I will gather the remnant of My flock and appoint shepherds for them.); Ps 23:1-6 (The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.); Ephesians 2:13-18 (Christ is our peace who made both one.); Alleluia, alleluia! My sheep hear My voice, says the Lord; I know them, and they follow Me. Alleluia, alleluia! Mark 6:30-34 (They were like sheep without a shepherd.)

Theme: The Lord is my shepherd.

I want to ask the Holy Spirit to increase our gifts of wisdom and understanding. "Come, Holy Spirit come! And from Your clear celestial home, shed a ray of Light Divine!"

Here is a little story about the Good Shepherd. A great Protestant preacher was delivering a lecture about Psalm 23 in a very large auditorium. Toward the end an old man near the front of the crowd kept waving his hand, which disturbed the presentation. Finally the preacher stopped and asked the man what he wanted. The old man stood up and asked if he could read that psalm. He came up and slowly read Psalm 23. Many started to weep openly. The preacher was shocked. As the old man finished, the preacher asked why his presentation was not enough. The old man simply said: "You know the psalm; I know the shepherd."

Do we know the shepherd? Throughout the Old Testament God our Father was basically guiding events. Because of the continued disobedience of the Jewish people, the Father send His Son into the world to show us how much God loves all of His children. Jesus came to love us, teach us, heal us and die on the cross to take away the punishment for our sins and bring us back into good graces in God’s family, into the kingdom of God as opposed to the kingdom of satan. Jesus was only here for thirty-three years and went back to heaven. The Father and the Son then sent their Holy Spirit to guide us to Jesus Who leads us to the fullness of the Trinity in heaven. Our response is to be obedient to God’s plan and follow it in our daily life.

We learn how to follow by reading our Scriptures daily especially at daily Mass and the Prayer of Christians. Especially we see Who Jesus is, how He healed thousands, went to find the lost sheep and taught us how to live. As we follow Jesus guided by His Holy Spirit daily we get filled with some degree of God’s joy amidst the evil of the world evil each day.

Psalm 23:

"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
In verdant pastures He gives me repose;
beside restful waters He leads me;
He refreshes my soul.
He guides me in right paths
for His name’s sake.
Even though I walk in the dark valley
I fear no evil; for You are at my side
With Your rod and Your staff
that give me courage.

You spread the table before me
in the sight of my foes;
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Only goodness and kindness follow me
all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
for years to come."

We see in Mark’s gospel passage today the apostles reporting back to Jesus all that they had done on mission. Jesus took them across the lake to rest alone. Some people noticed what direction the boat was headed and they went around the lake to get there before the apostles got off the boat. There was "a vast crowd." Jesus’ heart was moved with pity for "they were like sheep without a shepherd; and He began to teach them many things." I invite you to come to Jesus often and allow Him to heal, teach and fill you with comfort and joy. Have a blessed week, + Fr. Bob Hilz.

Monday, July 20: (optional memorial of St. Apollinaris, Bishop and martyr, death unknown. Tradition indicates that he was from Antioch, Syria, and a disciple of St. Peter, who ordained him as the first Bishop of Ravenna during the reign of Emperor Claudius. Renowned for his powers to heal in Jesus’ Name, he was frequently exiled, tortured and imprisoned for the faith and finally martyred.) Exodus 14:5-18 (They will know that I Am the Lord when I receive glory through Pharaoh.), Responsory, Exodus 15:1bc-6 (Let us sing to the Lord; He has covered Himself in glory.), Mt 12:38-42 (At the judgment the queen of the south will arise with this generation and condemn it.)

Tuesday, July 21: Ex 14:21-15:1 (The children of Israel marched into the midst of the sea on dry land.), Responsory from Exodus 15:8-12, 17 (Let us sing to the Lord; He has covered Himself in glory.), Mt 12:46-50 (Stretching out His hands toward His disciples, Jesus said, "Here are My mother and my brothers.")

Wednesday, July 22: (memorial of St. Mary Magdalene, no date of death. Magdala was a town near the Lake of Galilee. It is believed that she was a prostitute there. The identity of Mary Magdalene is disputed. Although many of the Western theologians maintained that she and Mary of Bethany were the same person, others such as St. Jerome, Ambrose, Augustine and Thomas Aquinas, leave the question unresolved. The Greeks distinguish between the two Marys and have separate feasts for each one. The Gospel story relates that Jesus drove 7 demons out of her, Mark 6:9. This Mary washed Jesus’ feet with her tears, dried them with her hair and anointed them with costly oil. And it was to her, according to John 20:17f and Matthew 28:1 and 9, and a few other women, that Jesus first appeared on Easter Sunday morning outside of the tomb.) Ex 16:1-5, 9-15 (I will rain down break from heaven for you.), Ps 78:18-19, 23-28 (The Lord gave them bread from heaven.), Mt 13:1-9 (The seed produced grain a hundredfold.)

Thursday, July 23: (optional memorial of St. Bridget of Sweden, Religious Foundress,1303-1373. Here is an exciting visionary, mother, prophetess and foundress of a Third Order Regular group of Franciscan women called the Order of the Most Holy Savior. Bridget was born in Sweden, married at 14 and had 8 children. Her last daughter became St. Catherine of Sweden. She became part of the Third Order of St. Francis. After her husband’s death she began to live a more austere life receiving prophetic messages for popes, royalty and others. Bridget worked to end the popes living in Avignon, France. God wanted them to go back to Rome. She founded the Bridgettines and went to Rome where she was an example of heroic virtue to all. Bridget wrote a great deal about the mystical life and died in Rome.) Ex 19:1-2, 9-11, 16-20b (The Lord descended on Mt. Sinai before the eyes of all the people.), Responsory, Daniel 3:52-56 (Glory and praise forever!), Mt 13:10-17 (Because knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of heaven has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted.)

Friday, July 24: (optional memorial of St. Sharbel Makhluf, Priest, 1828-1898. He was born in a remote Lebanese village and became a Marionite monk. Sharbel was ordained a priest in 1858 and 15 years later moved to a hermitage where for 23 years he meditated on the celebration of daily Mass. Sharbel resisted temptations to wealth and comfort and taught the value of poverty and self-sacrifice. He was beatified at the Second Vatican Council, December 9, 1965, and canonized in 1977 by Pope Paul VI.) Ex 20:1-17 (The law was given through Moses.), Ps 19:8-11 (Lord, You have the words of everlasting life.), Mt 13:18-23 (The one who hears the word and understands it will bear much fruit.)

Saturday, July 25: (Feast of St. James the Great, Apostle. martyred about 42 A.D. He is the older brother of St. John and son of the fisherman, Zebedee and Salome, who was the sister of the Blessed Virgin. He, Andrew, John and Peter were the first followers of Jesus. Some time after Pentecost James and some disciples went to evangelize the Jews in Spain with little success. It was revealed to a 17^th century still incorrupt mystic, Venerable Mother Mary Agreda, in a four-volume work, "The Mystical City of God," that the Blessed Virgin while still living on earth went to comfort James in a vision near the Elbro River. Mary, accompanied by legions of angels, gave James a pillar of jasper marble and told him to build a chapel there so that people could venerate her there. James did build the chapel called Our Lady of the Pillar at Saragossa, Spain. Within the chapel is the marble pillar with an image of our Lady on it. Mary told James to go back to Jerusalem. There King Herod Agrippa had him beheaded. James was the first apostle to be martyred. His disciples took his body back to Spain where it was buried and lost for hundreds of years. Now the place is known as Compostela, "field of the stars," where his body had been discovered.) 2 Corinthians 4:7-15 (We always carry about in our body the dying of Jesus.), Ps 126:1bc-2-6 (Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.), Mt 20:20-28 (You will drink My chalice.)

Sunday, July 26: 17^th of OT: 2 Kings 4:42-44 (They shall eat and there shall be some left over.); Ps 145:10-11, 15-18 (The hand of the Lord feeds us; He answers all our needs.); Ephesians 4:1-6 (There is one body, one Lord, one faith and one baptism.); Alleluia, alleluia! A great prophet has risen in our midst. Alleluia, Alleluia! John 6:1-15 (He distributed as much as they wanted to those who were reclining.)

Catholic Fraternity Conference by David Peterman, Jr.

From April 17^th through 19^th I had the privilege to represent you at a meeting of the North American leaders of Catholic Fraternity communities. I was joined this time by my dad, Neil and Cathy Coward.  The meeting was hosted by our sister Community City of the Lord in Tempe Arizona.  Many members of the City of the Lord served us throughout the weekend and were a significant blessing and witness. I was particularly blessed by the hospitality of Bob and Kathy Carmody who welcomed me into their lovely home and shuttled me to and from the airport and various meetings.

We had a few special guests at this meeting:

• Miky Torres who is on the Fraternity Executive representing the Spanish Speaking North American Communities from Mexico.
• Paul Dinolfo the leader of Work of Christ Community and the national leader of the Sword of the Spirit association of communities.
• Steve Boykewich from the Community of God's Love in Rutherford, New Jersey who are discerning membership in the Fraternity.

The meeting began Friday evening with each community sharing highlights from their community, including Word Gifts that they were hearing from the Holy Spirit.  When it was my turn to share I explained that the Holy Spirit had been speaking a strong message of His love for us balanced by a warning of difficult times coming.  I shared the scripture that we received at the last gathering before Easter (03/29/15) from John 12:27 (“My soul is troubled now, yet what should I say ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But it was for this that I came. Father, glorify your name.”) Here Jesus shows His love for the Father by realizing that His responsibility in the face of trial is not to be saved from the situation but rather to surrender to the Father’s will.  I think this is a particularly strong message for many of our members who are facing significant health and family challenges.  I also shared about two exhortations that we have received: 1) To say “Yes” to what God is calling us to, personally and communally, and 2) To witness who we are as His Delight. He is asking for the surrender of our “Yes” and asking us to live our founding charism of being a people known as God’s Delight.

Several of the other communities shared about very active efforts to serve their local parishes or the dioceses where they reside.  Some were investing in ecumenical collaborations.  Many are prioritizing their young people trying to become more multigenerational.  There was also a strong call to more outreach using the theme ”Called out to boldness.”

On Saturday we discussed our identify and mission as a Catholic Fraternity; heard a testimony from Paul Dinolfo about the life of the Sword of the Spirit communities; heard an update on a collaboration of efforts to generate multi-media Catholic teachings; heard a witness from the City of the Lord team called Simply Ready who are investing in Simplicity (ready to do His work) and Readiness (in case of a natural disaster); and finally, we discussed a document “Fostering Baptism in the Holy Spirit:  A Covenant of Understanding,” which is an effort of the National Service Committee (NSC) to promote unity among the various expressions of the Charismatic Renewal in the United States.  This NSC initiative is part of this year’s theme of Unity as we move toward the Renewal’s 50^th anniversary in 2017.

As leaders, the CCGD coordinators have read and studied the Covenant of Understanding document and individually and collectively discerned that our Community should participate. At the Pentecost Mass on Sunday, May 24th, we affirmed our support for this Covenant of Understanding. By signing this document we agreed to be united by embracing Baptism in the Holy Spirit – as defined by the ICCRS Theological Consultation in which we participated. At the Pentecost Mass the Coordinators signed on behalf of the Community and each attendee had an opportunity to sign a copy of the document signifying his or her own desire for unity in this fundamental covenant. 

GARLAND—Sharing faith-centered stories around Boy Scout campfires and immersing himself in teaching at a Catholic school in Iraqi Kurdistan helped sharpen Richard "Joe" Walshe's desire to become a catechist and, eventually, a religion teacher in a Catholic school. •

Walshe, a parishioner at Good Shepherd Catholic Church since 1980 and a longtime member of the Christian Community of God's Delight, did not stop with the first tier of courses when he felt called to become a catechist.

He went above and beyond the requirements to earn his second catechetical certificate through the University of Dayton Virtual Learn­ing Community of Faith Formation (VLCFF) last year.

"I'd like to go back and do more work," said Walshe, who serves as the business manager at Mount St. Michael Catholic School and has a Master's Level Catechist Certificate from the Diocese of Dallas. "A lot of my initial forma­tion came through the Christian Community of God's Delight. That was the catalyst. That community inspires a lot of people to serve in their parishes."

The CCGD is a Catholic charismatic covenant community devoted to supporting the living of an authentic Christian life.

Walshe, a Garland resident, said that his interest in catechesis also intensified while he was an adult Scout leader for the CCGD.

"During the troop's monthly campouts, it seemed that God was saying, 'You know, I want you to read a story to the boys,'"Walshe said. "God was kind of directing me and picking stories of men who'd had encounters with God. I started reading a story at the end of each campfire. I think the Lord used that experience for me to grow more into a role as a catechist."

Walshe, who currently is not teaching faith formation at his parish while he focuses on earning his teaching certification, said that he enjoyed teaching post-Confirmation faith formation at Good Shepherd.

"I tried to engage the kids," he said. "What I was trying to do more than anything was to make Jesus real to them."

Blanca Alanis, the parish cat­echetical director at-Good Shep­herd, said that Walshe has been a blessing.

"Joe is extremely humble and very knowledgeable," she said. "He and his wife, Kathy, have served the parish in many capacities."

Walshe, who worked in the apparel industry, said that he wants a career transition to Catholic education.

In the summer of 2012, he and Kathy spent seven weeks in Iraq teaching English at Mar Qardakh Catholic School in Kurdistan.

"That was very powerful for me," said Walshe, whose six children attended Good Shepherd Catholic School and Bishop Lynch High School. "There's a part of me that still is in that classroom in Kurdistan. I want to teach. I'm just trying to do it one step at a time."

(© The Texas Catholic, 3-28-13 used by permission)

At the CCCD joint prayer meeting with Communidad Deleite de Dios on August 30, 2015, Edwin and Belkie Velasquez gave their witness.

Belkie: We are new to Community. We started in February of 2012, We start first with the reading of Jeremiah 29:11: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope in the future.” The Word of the Lord. (read again in Spanish by Edwin)

Being in Community has been such a great blessing. All of our family members have noticed a difference in us and, even though they think we are pulling away from them, we try to convince them that we’re getting closer to God and they should follow us. But we’re still working on that. Back when we used to hang out with a bad crowd, our kids would always ask, “Where are we going this weekend? Whose house are we going to party at?” Now, it’s okay, are we going to Mount St. Michael or Santa Clara or things like that. It’s a great blessing. All our family members have noticed that, and hopefully we’ll be a testimony to them and to their families and everybody that’s around us. I pray to God every day is to show me how to reflect his love in everybody that I see, everybody that surrounds us.

He had a lot of work cut out with us, but he is definitely with us and we feel it. We’ve grown a lot. We knew about God before Community, but now we have felt him through retreats, through all of our classes that we take and all the great people in the Community. One thing we’re trying is to go through God’s ways and we’re learning. We’re learning and it’s been a great experience. Since day one we’ve never felt like the outsiders or anything and like. Like the brothers and sisters were saying, it doesn’t matter if I’m new or how long we’ve been there, it’s never felt any different and we’re very blessed to have them. Thank you.

Edwin with Belkie translating: Being in Community has been a great blessing for our family. I had been hanging around a lot with gangs and bad crowds. It’s been three years that we’ve been in Community and it was really hard to adjust to the new life and sometimes it still is, but we know that God wants us here. It’s been a lot of blessings for our family.

One of the great blessings that has been for me and the family is I was taking the RCIA classes. Often, it takes a lot of years to go through those classes. The Lord wanted me to take all the classes in one year. The first day of class, I was the only one who showed up and the teacher told me there would be a lot of students here and she asked me why I think I’m the only one in class today. I didn’t know what to answer and she said, “Well, today is God’s blessing just for you.” I felt like my ears popped after I heard that. More students came after that first day of class but they also kept leaving. They didn’t stay for the rest of classes. All of the rest of the classmates were there either to complete their First Communion or their Confirmation to be able to get married, but at the end, none of them finished it.

At the end, I was the only one standing to complete all the sacraments, my Baptism, my First Communion and my Confirmation. In that same week we also got married. We received the blessing. June 21 was our first anniversary. For us, it’s a great blessing and we see the love that God has for us to come from where we were to where we are now, and the blessings that our family has received since we’ve been here. If I was asked four years ago, I would never have thought that I would be here talking about God or playing songs to the Lord and it’s been a great blessing for our family. Thank you.

Marjorie Callagher Memorial Services

Rosary - All Saints Catholic Church, Dallas, Texas, September 11, 2015

    Sharings: 

• David Peterman Jr. 
• Pauline Nuss  
• Rick Chapman  
• Annie Fuentes 
• Joe and Retta Tinker 
•  Mike and Jeannette Lynch
•  Elizabeth Languell 
• Charlene and Glen Phibbs
• Katherine and Jo Waller       

       Funeral Mass - All Saints Catholic Church, Dallas, Texas September 12, 2015

At the Rosary for Ray Nuss at All Saints Catholic Church on September 9, 2015, sharings were given by Mike Wagner, Elizabeth Languell, Robert Schutz, Danny and Elizabeth Muzyka, Billy Fields, Bill and Diana Morin, Bill Schaad and Bob Montgomery.

Mike Wagner: I want to tell Kevin and Tim and Trisha and Pauline what a privilege it is to be here. You guys have been at every moment in my life that I can remember. Even when we tried to get away from you guys from Kansas – we lived together in Kansas – by-golly a year or two later you show up here in Dallas. We didn’t even know they were here and they turned up six or seven miles from our house. They are the ones that brought my family to the Lord and to the Community of God’s Delight and in every moment and every place in my life growing up, all the way up until two weeks ago, Ray and Pauline have been a part of my wedding, graduation, children’s births, my son going into the Navy -- my entire life. I just want to say what a privilege it is. I used to think Ray married Pauline so she could get him into Heaven because he’s an ornery cuss.

But I think he made it on his own and I just want to tell you what an honorable – and I don’t want to throw these words around lightly – what an honorable man Ray was and is; He is a servant of the Lord and an apostle for the Lord and evangelist. I still want to be him when I grow up but it’s been a privilege being a part of your family and having you as part of our family.

Elizabeth Languell: Father Peter mentioned the Lumen 2000 program. St. John Paul II and his friend Piet Derkson in Holland started this. They asked Bobbie Cavnar to have a school here where people from all over the world could come and learn to make evangelistic videos and television programs. So Bobbie went to Ray and said, “I really want you to go to Africa to find potential students who would be able to serve the Lord in this way.” And I think it’s the only time that I know of that Ray ever said “no” to Bobbie Cavnar. He said, “I’ve never been to Africa, I don’t know anything about media, it’s not me.” But then, it seemed like everywhere he went he heard the song, “Here I am Lord, send me.” Finally, one time when they sang that song in church, Pauline said to Ray, “You know, I think you’ll be going to Africa.” And he said, “I know.” He did go and he made at least six trips there and would find these people and bring them back and they were all wonderful and they loved him so much.

I want to read you just a couple of letters from them. And one is from Patrick Mapuranga from Zimbabwe and he said:

“It is grief and sadness that I have learned of the death of my dad, Ray J. Nuss, whom we also called Ray J. Nuts. What a sad loss indeed. I studied in the United States of America courtesy of the man who identified me as a potentially talented media man. This was a dream come true for me. During my studies the man and Pauline took Sister Dolorosa and me into their home like their own children. Indeed I’m at a loss for words. My prayers.”

And this is from Bibi Muny from the Congo to Pauline, Tim, Kevin and Trisha and the whole family:

“My sincere condolences to you all. I feel so sad. I just can’t believe our beloved Ray is gone. My family and I loved him so much. He loved us back even more. And we have a special bond to this time back in our homeland, Africa. Our first encounter was an answer to my prayers. You know Ray is the one who brought us to the Community of God’s Delight. After we met him in the parking lot of St. Monica Church, after one of Father Don Calloway’s testimonies.  He was such a loving man. I used to tell him that he was my American Grandpa.  My encounter with him had a deep impact in my spiritual growth.  I will miss him dearly.  May God grant him eternal rest and peace.  Praying for you all, may God comfort you all.”

There are many letters like that, but I don’t want to take that much time. Once Ray was at the airport and he saw someone standing off to the side alone. He was from Africa and his brother was supposed to pick him up, but didn’t show up. So Ray said, “Just come home with me.” So he did and he stayed with Ray and Pauline for a couple of days until they were able to reach his brother.

You all know what Ray is like and you’ll hear a lot more and I don’t want to take all the time but he is so special to us.  He is the Godfather of our son Danny (and probably half of the Community kids). I will miss his railroad train whistle and his Donald Duck voice.

Robert Schutz: Ray Nuss, how many hats can a person wear? Ray Nuss, the evangelist, who never stopped talking about the Lord. Ray Nuss, the greeter. who always greeted us at the Prayer Meetings every Sunday. Ray Nuss, the teacher, who taught barber college; I had no clue about that. Ray the gamer, who loved to play board games, card games, it didn’t matter. I witnessed this personally where we played for seven days from sun up until way past sun down in Branson. Ray the salesman, who sold me a set of cookware twenty-five years ago and I used it until I replaced it recently with another set of cookware that Ray sold me. I think Ray can sell ice to the Eskimos, and I bought it hook, line and sinker.

Hook-line and sinker, that’s something I can talk about. Ray loved to fish. Boy! Did he love to fish! I started fishing with Ray, Mike Williams and David Hill who asked us to go out to East Texas and we fished all weekend. They had planned a day, way out in advance and the only I could think of is poor Pauline, because I know every night Ray was going through and organizing his tackle box, getting it ready for the trip three weeks later. It was a wonderful weekend and from then David said, “Let’s plan it again next year.” And that’s all Ray needed. For the next year, every Sunday Ray would relive the weekend and then figure out what they could do better the next time.

A lot of people misunderstand fishing. They think about fishing and say to me how they love to catch fish. That’s not “fishing” that’s catching. Ray loved to fish and it didn’t matter if he caught fish or not. To Ray, fishing was an art. He used two zip-code reels, he had an 808 and a 404 and those were his two reels. He thought these were the greatest reels ever made. When I was growing up, you gave a zip code to someone who was just beginning to fish because they couldn’t tear it up and it didn’t matter if they lost it because it didn’t cost that much. But you couldn’t tell that hardheaded German anything. He thought it was the greatest reel. He could send it back in and get a free new one. It was absolutely the greatest thing. Ray treated his tackle box like a sacred box. He would pull out a lure, he would look at it and you would think it was made out of gold the way he was treating it and he would say, “Robert, this lure) here will catch Blue Gill. I’d say, “That’s great Ray, we’re fishing for sand bass.” He’d throw it in and get another lure out and said, “This one here will catch crappie!” And it would go on. I would love to give Ray a hard time when we were fishing. I would catch a real small fish and I would throw it over at his line and say, “Would you keep your fish on the side of the lake; I need the big ones over here.” It wasn’t long after that a fish came zooming past my space and he said, “Keep your minnows over there.” Ray would be very competitive. He’d keep track of who caught the most fish. He’d say, “I’m Two up on you,” if I happened to get ahead, he’d say, “Well my fish are larger.”

Over the years I fished a lot with Ray, I can’t even think of how long it’s been. I know that even when we moved down to Houston, Ray would come down and go deep-sea fishing with me. We had so much fun. One time we went out with the Peterman’s and my brothers, and he brought his grandson back down with my nephew and we went fishing again. He loved to fish and it didn’t matter what. But it wouldn’t be right if I didn’t tell at least one fishing story about Ray, and David I’m not going to tell about the catfish that it took both you and Ray to pull into the boat that I caught. I won’t mention that one.

Ray was not a fair-weather fisherman like David and I were. David and I would pick the nice warm day, nice calm day but Ray didn’t care; he would go out. One day there was a die-hard fisherman, DK. I think he used dynamite because he would come in with a boatload of fish every time. And DK said, “You don’t want to go today?” And I said, “Ray, it is getting ready to pour. I’m not going out in a boat in the rain.” And he said, “I think we’ve got thirty minutes.” And Ray said, “I’ll go, DK.” They took off, went out. I waited an hour and the bottom fell out of the sky, I mean it was pouring.  I kept looking for them and didn’t see them. Then, all of a sudden, I hear this engine coming. I look and see this boat going as fast as it can, wide open! Two guys pulled in, put the boat in the dock and when I looked it looked like two drowned rats climbing out of the boat. Ray was soaked completely and I went out and said, “Ray, what were you thinking, being out there like that?” And Ray, the way he would talk, lowered his voice and said, “Robert, that guy is crazy! He wouldn’t come in until we got our limit. Then the water started pouring down and we couldn’t see the shore line and he got turned around and started going the wrong direction.” And Ray said, “DK! Where are you going?” And he replied, “I’m lost, I’m trying to find shoreline and I’ll just follow that around until I find familiar surroundings.” And Ray said, “That will take forever! Turn the boat around and start heading this way and I’ll tell you how we can get home!” After that I think Ray became more of a fair-weather fisherman.

I’ve talked about some of the characteristics of Ray Nuss, but there’s one thing for certain when I look out and see so many of his friends is that he was a special friend and that he will be missed by all. Thank you.

Danny and Elizabeth Muzyka

Danny: Elizabeth and I met Ray in 1974 and like so many of you we met him at the door at Bishop Lynch High School. Ray welcomed us as he would all of you with open arms and love as Christ would love. That began a journey in life that carried on past that until in 1975 when I joined Elizabeth and joined the Wagner, Nuss and Arcenaux families for a non-residential household, which was before Elizabeth and I got married. With the wedding, special events began as Elizabeth will share about.

Elizabeth: Actually, just a matter of weeks before Danny came and joined us in this non-residential household, we  heard the story that is so familiar to so many now about when Ray willingly pushed Pauline in a wheelbarrow down Ninth Street to their wedding reception.  When Danny and I started dating and Danny came into household, and when they found out that our wedding reception was going to be only a few miles from the church, they got the idea that they were going to make Danny push me to the reception. So this went on for weeks and every week they would sort of raze us about that. Then as our wedding date came to be established Ray and Pauline told us that they were heart-broken that they weren’t able to come to the wedding, that there had been a Couples’ Retreat already planned and they couldn’t change it. I kind of breathed a sigh of relief.

So we’re at our wedding and we go down to the Kiss of Peace and we’re giving everybody the kiss of peace and there’s Ray and Pauline.  Ray’s got this bigger-than-life smile on his face! And Danny and I were walking back to the altar and I leaned over and said, “You don’t think he brought that wheelbarrow do you?” And he said, “Aw no, they’re going right back to the retreat after the wedding.” After the wedding we got in the car and arrive at our reception and there’s Ray and Jack Wagner and Mike Wagner and Eric Wagner. Danny said, “Sit down and trust me.”

Danny: So many of you know the tradition that was started by Ray and Pauline they brought to us and so many families. Pauline, how many people are signed on that cloth? We had the privilege of taking that inaugural ride and what occurred to me as I was reflecting about coming here today is how Ray lived his life and what Ray handed on to us. We, in our Catholic Faith, rely a great deal on tradition. In Scripture there are two kinds of tradition, the tradition from the law and the tradition that the New Testament clearly says, “I have handed this on to you, what you have heard in word and letter.” Because so many people, only 50% in the world today, can only read so they can’t live by scripture alone, that tradition that was brought here to us was very important. And how does that tradition relate back to us? Almost as if Ray pushing you down Main Street represents Christ caring for His Church. He taught us that. He taught us by example, he taught us to love by his example. He carried you on Main Street. Much was taught and poked fun at that but that was a great tradition that was handed on to this Body, courtesy of you and Ray.

For our family, what we’ve been able to share with some of our other children that have now ridden in the wheelbarrow (supplied by your dear husband, bringing it to College Station) has been a great gift for so many. Ray lived the love of Christ. He exemplified that. He taught it by example. He taught us how to live! We are the ones who have been so blessed by his life and your life.

Elizabeth: Some thirty years ago, my mother died and we felt a loss of that spirit in our lives so we probably out-numbered you here, adopted Ray and Pauline as our children’s “grand-buddies.” It was very special to us and always will. So tonight as we do what Father Peter encouraged us to just pray that Ray will be before the fullness of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We know he’s praying for each and everyone of us.

Billy Fields: My name is Billy Fields and I can’t really remember when I met Ray, but it had to be around 1973. At that time we just clicked, like buckwheat and gravy. We had a lot of fun together. In the early days, each time someone got married in Community, Ray would look for me and say, “Wherever here’s food – there’s Willie;” and “Willie, where’s the food?” and we would share food together and when Rosemary, my wife, and I had our youngest daughter, we asked Ray and Pauline to be their Godparents and they accepted. I have a photograph at home where Ray is grinning from ear to ear as he holds my young daughter in his arms. Over the years, Ray and I just joshed around and kidded around. He would shake your hand and try to squeeze your fingers. Well, I learned early on, that you grab him real good, he couldn’t squeeze your hand and he said, “Hum, you caught on!” Yes, I caught on.

They shared about him going to Africa, bringing back Lumen students. Each time Ray came back he was sure he was experiencing Africa and he put his arm up to mine and said, “Almost there.” I said, “Well Ray, you’re almost there but what about the hair?” He would laugh it off and we just really had a good time together and when things bothered him he’d say, “Willie, come here.” I’d go over to him and he would share with me what he was aggravated about, mostly the air conditioner. And I said, “Ray, I’ll cut the air conditioner off for you.”

And we would talk about our youth. He would share his youth with me and I’d share mine with him. He told me how he met Pauline and I shared with him how I met Rosemary. He shared with me that in his childhood he had a good friend that he met who was an African-American and Ray and I were just very comfortable together. We shared all kinds of things, good and bad, and funny and serious. And I’ll always remember him for being Ray.

Diana Morin: When I think of Ray I have to think of you, Pauline. They, in my mind, always fit together so beautifully. We shared a common journey with them, though twenty-five years apart; Bill and I too married at nineteen and twenty-four, just like them. We started our new marriage in Wichita, Kansas, not far from where they had lived in the early parts of their marriage. Though we didn’t know them in Kansas, we met them in the 1980s here in Dallas at the Catholic Charismatic Prayer meeting. I remembered this connection with Ray immediately. Bill and I had taught Life in the Spirit Seminar for at least three years but he insisted that we go through the one in Dallas and do it just the “Dallas” way. He was very insistent German and he did win my heart with that. Who cannot feel connected to this beautiful couple?

Bill and I cherished every minute with “Poppa Ray” and Pauline and so years ago we decided to build memories with them and celebrate their anniversary, which is August 6^th. It was an evening we always looked forward to every year because we made it extra special. We were always touched with the way Ray would greet you at the door and open your car door and just the delight Ray would have on his face. He loved Pauline and he delighted in her beauty. Their marriage was real; they had the humble gift of what I call imperfection, that gift that we all share with our own moodiness, our frustration. But they had a beautiful abiding love because they were so open to the gifts of the Spirit and a deep trust in his plan for them. We admired their beautiful daily trust in God’s provision. But their love did not stop there. If you ever saw Ray and Pauline on the dance floor or on a date night or sharing wisdom at a wedding reception, you knew that they had such a deep romantic love for each other. They never lost that glimmer in their eyes. On our dates with them, it was like they had a child-like gaze and wonderment about each other, even after so many years had passed by. Their love was human and it was imperfect, but they allowed God to transform them daily, living humbly and accepting the grace to forgive and to love with complete humility.

Bill Morin: Last month we took them out for their anniversary and it was clear that Ray’s life was closing in on him. Even with better hearing aids, his limited vision was making the world much smaller. This was a struggle for an independent man who had spent his entire life making others feel loved and welcomed. Pauline lovingly ordered his food for him and tried to make sure he could see his favorite lobster bisque and time to enjoy it. The roads had clearly reversed but it was a sweet tenderness that allowed him to accept her help. What a great witness for us all, to truly “love until death do us part.” Could you ask for a better witness in marriage? The evening Ray died we went to visit Pauline and shared a few tender moments with her. She said her deepest sadness was that she did not get to tell him goodbye. She needed one more time to tell him how happy she was that he was her husband, her best friend and her lover for all these years. She also said she knew she had to let him go and had begun the process to do so because he now belonged to God.

What a wonderful journey it has been for them! What a great blessing that we were all a little part of their journey. What a great witness to how our spiritual relationship should be with Christ on our own journeys back to home with God in Paradise. This is a quote from St. John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body”:

“Alone, man does not completely realize his instance of being a person. He realizes it only by existing with someone and even more deeply and completely by existing for someone. The communion of persons means existing in a mutual for in a relationship with a mutual gift.”

Ray ran a good race and we should all inspire to run as good a race as he did.

Bill Schaad: I was told I had four minutes! I could tell a few stories about Ray but to me Ray was just a true servant and I tried to sit down and I thought about what to say tonight and I thought I had my thoughts together. So I sat down in front of the computer and as soon as my hands touched the keyboard my mind just went blank. So I said, “Lord, I guess we’ll just wing it then.” But I’ll just say it this way: I could have typed a few words; I could type a thousand words; I could have written a book of all the ways that Ray touched my life, my family’s life. I think if I would sum it up it would just simply say that Ray was a lover of men and the whole human race. Since I couldn’t type words, this morning the Lord brought this song to mind and I think it does a pretty good job of demonstrating how Ray’s love touched the world. Maybe I can sing this:

Creation tells a story that began so long ago
Of love that longed to share its life and hopes that love would grow.
The sun repeats each morning, the story is retold
And just in lights retelling new chapters yet unfold.
Love that’s really given wants to freely be received
And all the love you poured on us can hardly be believed.
And all that we can offer you is thanks,
And all that we can offer you is thanks.

Your care called out a people, your love made them your own,
You freed their hearts and calmed their fears and finally brought them home.
It’s when our trials are ended we must easily forget
That your friendship never ceases, your love shows no regret.
Love that freely given wants to freely be received.
All the love you poured on us can hardly be believed.
And all that we can offer you is thanks,
And all that we can offer you is thanks.

We love you Ray!!

Bob Montgomery:  Hi, my name is Bob Montgomery and I wormed my way up here. Pauline didn’t ask me but I could not miss coming up to talk because I remember clearly the very first time I ever met Ray Nuss. I really can’t tell you when it was, I don’t remember that. I don’t remember where it was either. I don’t remember under what circumstances it was, but there was one thing that just burned itself into my memory about Ray, and that was his handshake. There are very few hand shakes that I remember in my life, most of them are courteous, most of them are quick, they are perfunctory, and they are unmemorable. But no one can forget Ray’s handshake. It was unique because it communicated so much in just a touch and it forced a bond that lasted forever. The first thing that one notices about Ray’s handshake is its energy. You grab his hand and you feel like you’re grabbing onto an electric cord with twenty thousand volts. This tingling sensation goes in your hand because he’s squeezing, like Billy said, but then it goes up your arm and you know that something’s going to happen. You don’t quite know what’s going to happen but you know that it’s going to be something.

My favorite mother-in-law, Pat Wagner, has probably known Ray and Pauline longer than just about anyone in this room, besides their family. She likes to reminisce from time to time about the group that used to hang around together in Wichita and it kind of continued their relationship here. She talks about this group of young marrieds, they did so many things – dates, service and vacations together – and she always uses one description. She said, “They were fun. They were lots of fun.” Wherever Ray was, there was fun. The first time I specifically remember was at my wedding and he came sliding up to me as Gretchen and I were shaking hands with people and he told me about this tradition with the crazy wheelbarrow. We got married in this church and our reception was a mile and a half away -- in January. He told me I had to push her in the wheelbarrow all the way to the reception. And I bought it, hook, line and sinker – just swallowed the hook. And I asked him, “Really? A mile and a half?” And you could see the twinkle in his eye that he was having a lot of fun with me. But if you look at the hundreds of pictures of brides being pushed in the wheelbarrow, you focus on their faces. What you see is an incredible amount of fun.

You notice a lot of things about Ray’s handshake, you notice his strength, and you notice the invitation. Sometimes he would grab your hand and reach around and grab your elbow and kind of pull you in like an invitation to come and be a part of us. It was perfect for the Greeter Ministry and he kind of pulled people in. I noticed that when you would shake his hand, it was like there was an offer, like he was saying, “How can I help?” Over the thirty years I’ve known so many people who have stayed in Ray and Pauline’s house where he was trying to help them, but his offer went further than that. Ray was always present in our Community and in our life together.

One of the things that we really tried to value is the presence of each other at our Gatherings, and Ray was always there. He was present; he shared himself all the time. But a lot of people sometimes show up and they are simply there and simply observe, maybe like someone who is going to the movie and not really participating. But Ray was all in! Every time he showed up he was all in – body, soul, spirit – everything! He’d always ask how he could help. I can’t tell you the number of times where I’ve been participating in or leading an event and Ray’s always there saying, “Can I help? What can I do?” Then he just goes and does it. It was that example of Christians joining in and helping that really helped cause my own conversion. He was one of the men at my Dad’s death that just jumped in. He was all in.

His curiosity about people was amazing with his handshake. If I go in and meet a crowd of ten people and I shake their hands real quick and get their names, two minutes later I ask myself, “Who was that? What was his name? Can you introduce me?” Ray would go into a group, shake everybody’s hand and two months later and you ask, “Who is that?” And he’d say “That’s Bill Smith and his wife is Peggy and his children are Alice and Greg and Jimmy, and their Catholic,” and he could just go on and on about the people. He always knew you and that all added together as affection. It felt like he wanted to be around you, he wanted to know you, he wanted to include you in his life. It all adds up also to confidence. His manly handshake communicated confidence that Christ has won the victory -- confidence that Christ is in control in every circumstance and he just oozed that everywhere he was. Can’t wait to shake that hand again!

Friar’s Corner #752: 10/11/15: Twenty-Eighth of OT; 4^th Week of Christian Prayer.

Sunday, Oct11: Twenty-Eighth of OT: Wisdom 7:7-11 (I deemed riches nothing in comparison to wisdom.); Ps 90:12-17 (Fill us with Your love, O Lord, and we will sing for joy.); Hebrews 4:12-13 (The Word of God discerns reflections and thoughts of the heart.); Alleluia, alleluia! Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Alleluia, alleluia! Mark 10:17-30 (Sell what you have, and follow Me.)

Theme: Fill us with Your love Jesus, and we shall sing for joy. Alleluia!

Holy Spirit, please fill us with more of Your wisdom.

Worldly wisdom according to "Webster’s New World Dictionary," #4 is "a wise plan or course of action." In business this leads to a successful, productive and comfortable life style. In Biblical times this kind of wisdom was written by scribes in royal courts like Egypt. Yet don’t get too close to the Pharaoh because when he dies you will die with him so he has your gifts for his comfortable afterlife. We see this very much in our commercialism and relativism today or you might say “political correctness.” "This comes from a pagan and political worldview. Disciples of Jesus are not called to this.

In Jewish scriptures, the Wisdom literature books describe a God- dimension to that good living. In Jesus’ time, for a Jew to be more well-to-do or wealthy, was the result of a good and wise way of living. Jesus often took objection to that way of thinking, as in Mark’s section today.

Commentators see three areas in these pronouncement stories. All of them relate to worldly possessions:

a) the rich man (vs17-22)

b) a teaching on wealth and the reign of God (vs 23-27)

c) and assurances to those who surrender possessions (vs28-30).

I don’t want to come down on those who have a lot of money. Some of that could be God’s gifts and their own ingenuity in business transactions as long as they were not cheating their poor workers in wages, etc. The question would ”What are they doing with that wealth? How are they sharing it to help some who are very poor, rescue the unborn and respect our planet?”

The rich young man was basing his salvation on obeying the Ten Commandments. We don’t earn heaven by legalism. Salvation is a pure gift of God. We need to accept Jesus and the atonement He won for us, forgiving our sins, by His death of the cross. That brings us into His new kingdom. Then we need to follow Jesus’ basic principles of loving God fully, those closest to us, spouse, children and family, and our neighbors and we love ourselves.

My sense in praying over these pronouncements is that there are layers of people who follow Jesus. You have the apostles who are closest. Then there are two larger groups of men and women who are disciple and students. They get the core teachings about the good news of Jesus. As they evangelize and bring Christ’s message to others they have to adjust the message to their audiences according to time and circumstances. The same is true for us today. I sense these groups became the clergy as the church increased. Peter was married (Jesus healed his mother-in-law early in His ministry). Jesus promised those closer ones:

"There is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the gospel who will not receive a hundred times more in this present age: houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come."

As I have given up having a wife and children, my family has never gotten smaller but larger. I have been adopted into many families through my various assignments. I saw 250 young men every day when I taught high school in Levittown, PA. I think those in these categories were clergy. And add to that today, religious and those single for the gospel.

Most of the world’s population is not called to the clerical state but to be married, sharing a unique love for their spouse. Then they are called to help God create and educate His children to help bring salvation to those around them in the future. The primary key is loving Jesus first as we see Him relating to people in the 4 gospel stories. He was walking through Palestine looking for the blind, crippled, lame and broken, bringing them His fantastic healing love. As Jesus touches our lives and fills us with more and more of His love, we exalt and sing for joy at being loved so much. Every day Jesus’ church offers us more of His love to equip us to take Jesus from the church and be His hands and love, blessing God’s children we meet each day. We need His power to share His love. At times the joy is truly amazing. Yet not all will accept His love any more than they accepted Jesus’ message when He was physically on earth.

Let us find the obstacles in our own lives that keep us from Jesus and rush to be filled with His love, so we can love others more. Have a blessed week. Peace and all good, + Fr. Bob Hilz.

Monday, Oct 12: [We now begin the beautiful letter of St. Paul to the Romans. Amazing!] Rom 1:1-7

(Through Christ Jesus we have received the grace of apostleship, to bring about the obedience of faith among the Gentiles.), Ps 98:1b-4 (The Lord has made known His salvation.), Luke 11:29-32 (This generation seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it except the sign of Jonah.)

N.B.: For those following Jesus’ messages of Divine Mercy, today is the feast of St. Faustina Kowalska <though still not on the U.S.A. calendar>, 1905-1938, Polish religious and Mystic. She was born in Glogowiec near Lodz into a large peasant family. She only had three winters of formal education. After several years working as a domestic servant she entered the Congregation of Our Lady of Mercy. Faustina zealously performed her duties as cook, gardener and doorkeeper. She led an unusually rich spiritual life with various mystical gifts. Through her Jesus expanded the understanding of the love of His Sacred Heart given to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in what we now call Divine Mercy. Her mission was to be Jesus’ secretary of Mercy or love. Jesus gave us an image, novena, rosary, prayer at 3 p.m. and a new feast. God’s Mercy is at the very heart of our Catholic Faith. Her diary is now counted among the outstanding works of mystical literature. She died in Cracow, was beautified by Pope St. John Paul II in 1993 and canonized on Divine Mercy Sunday, April 30, 2000.)

Tuesday, Oct 13: Rom 1:16-25 (Although they knew God they did not accord Him glory as God.), Ps 19:2-5 (The heavens proclaim the glory of God.), Lk 11:37-41 (Give alms and everything will be made clean for you.)

Wednesday, Oct 14: (optional memorial of St. Callistus 1, Pope and Martyr, d + 222. It is said that he was a slave. He was a founder of a bank in Rome where the baths of Caracalla now stand. He was in prison a few times and after he was free he was ordained a deacon by Pope Zephyrinus. He was in charge of the cemetery which later became that of the popes. He was elected pope in 217 but an opposing minority resisted and thus caused the first schism in the Church. During his 5 years as pope he defended traditional Catholic teaching, made changes in penitential practices and in marriage law. Although there was no persecution of the church then he was said to have been martyred in 222. His tomb was not discovered until 1960.) Rom 2:1-11 (God will repay each person according to their works, Jew first and then Greek.), Ps 62:2-3, 6-7 and 9 (Lord, You give back to everyone according to their works.), Lk 11:42-46 (Woe to you Pharisees and scholars of the law!)

Thursday, Oct 15: {memorial of St. Teresa of Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church, 1515-1582. She was born in Avila, Spain, and joined the Carmelite Order. Teresa reformed the order with the help of St. John of the Cross. In those years after her own conversion and following the Council of Trent, she contributed greatly to a renewal of the entire Church. Her highly active life in no way distracted her from an equally contemplative one, as she wrote several outstanding works of ascetical and mystical life. Her spiritual teachings are a guide to a life in union with God. She was declared a Doctor of the church in 1970.} Rom 3:21-30 (A person is justified by faith apart from works of the law.), Ps 130:1b-6b (With the Lord there is mercy and fullness of redemption.), Lk 11:47-54 (The blood of the prophets is required, from the blood of Abel to that of Zechariah.)

Friday, Oct 16: (memorial of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, Virgin, 1647-1690. She was born at Burgundy, France, of a middle class family. At 24 she joined the Visitation nuns at Paray-le-Monial where she advanced in the life of perfection. From December 1673 to 1675 she received remarkable private revelations concerning the Sacred Heart of Jesus: a new image, a new feast, a new novena of Masses and Holy Communions on the First Fridays of 9 consecutive months and an hour of adoration and reparation before Jesus in the Eucharist for the sins of humanity. Jesus wanted to draw all of France into His Sacred Heart and do special things there but King Louis refused. Almost three hundred years later Jesus expanded this understanding of His love and Mercy for humanity with more revelations given to an almost illiterate Polish nun, St. Faustina Kowalska, in the 1930s. Yet St. Faustina is still little known in this country among the clergy. St. Margaret Mary was canonized in 1920.) Rom 4:1-8 (Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteous.), Ps 32:1b-2, 5 and 11 (I turn to You, Lord, in time of trouble, and You fill me with the joy of salvation.)

Saturday, Oct 17: (memorial of St. Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop and Martyr, 50-107. He was probably born in Syria. He may have been a disciple of St. Peter and Paul, or possibly of St. John. One tradition declares that he was the child mentioned in Matthew 18:1-6, who was placed by Jesus among the Apostles. Ignatius succeeded St. Peter as bishop of Antioch. He was called Theophoros (God-bearer). It is in Antioch that the followers of Jesus were first called Christians. He was arrested and sent to Rome under the persecution of Emperor Trajan in 107. He is most noted for the 7 letters he rote to various churches on the way to Rome that are among the earliest and richest Christian writings about marriage, the Eucharist and the Incarnation. He begged people not to prevent his martyrdom since he wanted to get to heaven by that means. He was thrown to wild beasts in the Roman Circus.) Rom 4:13 and 16-18 (Abraham believed, hoping against hope.), Ps 105:6-9 and 42-43 (The Lord remembers His covenant forever.), Lk 12:8-12 (The Holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you should say.)

Sunday, Oct 18: Twenty-Ninth of OT: Isaiah 53:10-11 (If he gives his life as an offering for sin, he shall see his descendants in a long life.); Ps 33:4-5, 18-2 and 22 (Lord, let Your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in You.); Heb 4:14-16 (Let us confidently approach the throne of grace.); Alleluia, alleluia. The Son of Man came to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many. Alleluia, alleluia! Mark 10:42-45 (The Son of Man came to give His life as a ransom for many.)

Nancy Ward: www.JoyAlive.net

by David Peterman, Jr.

I do not think that I have ever taught on the subject of Prayer. I think this is in part because of the immaturity that I feel on the subject. But despite my perceived immaturity, I have continued to endeavor, aided by Lawson Taite as my Pastoral Companion and Fr. Stephen as my Spiritual Director.

My sharing this afternoon is based on reading and practice with a book entitled Prayer: Our Deepest Longing by Ronald Rolheiser. Copies are available on the book table if you are interested. For those who were here last Sunday, this is the same book from which Laurie read the last chapter.

I try to pray in the morning, a time when I am alert. I find a quiet comfortable place and try to focus on the Lord and not let the business of the day distract me. Candidly, much of my “prayer time” is consumed with focusing on God, being distracted and then refocusing. I agree with a statement that the author makes that,

“Prayer (as with love) is only easy for beginners and saints.”

For the rest of us, we have to persevere. Each of us has to find our own routine and make it the most important thing we do all day.

What struck me in the early chapters of this book was his explanation that Prayer was about “experiencing the unconditional love of God,” that the objective of prayer was to “open us up in such a way that we can hear God say to us: ‘I love you!’”

This was a revelation to me. I had never thought of prayer as: being open to God saying “I Love You.” I decided to give it a try. For many mornings during my quiet time, I allowed my thoughts to wander toward ways that God might be saying “I love you.” Over the course of the week I was shown my heartbeat, breath, all 5 senses, my health, Laurie, my girls, my extended family, community, job, friends, home, AC, sunlight, flowers, many, many people and things that I take for granted, and not seen the heavenly “I Love You!”

Another statement that struck me was,

 “Prayer is about lifting our minds AND hearts to God. It is about Love not Insight.”

This was an extension of the earlier point about being open to God saying I love you. The exhortation I heard was to prioritize lifting my heart to Him and not focus on mental learning. My self-examination revealed that I spend a lot of time reading and learning rather than just being in His presence. I have tried to adjust my time to DO less and BE more -- trying to just sit quietly in His presence, open to Him.

Those who know me well understand that it is hard for me to be still. I am always working on the next thing on my To Do list. Maybe my greatest struggle in prayer is seeking solitude. But this is an essential step of prayer. The author states,

“Solitude is not something we turn on like a water faucet. It needs a body and mind slowed enough to be attentive to the present moment. We are in solitude when, as Thomas Merton describes it, we fully taste the water we are drinking, feel the warmth of our blankets, and are restful enough to be content inside our own skin.”

Recently I have tried to put this into practice, trying to slow down enough to notice people and things that I normally miss. For me it does not come naturally but as I have practiced it, I can see progress. For me, after I begin to experience a degree of solitude, the next big challenge is to be content to just remain silent in His presence.

The author reminds that it is OK to experience boredom and distraction. Our response is to preserve and refocus. We do, however, need to be open to the “distraction” of a prompting from Holy Spirit. We will recognize Him in the call to Holiness, Humility, Selflessness, and Joy. If so, have pen and paper nearby and jot down a note and continue seeking solitude.

After starting with a short time of unprompted reflection it is recommended that we read a short passage from scripture (random, from the Gathering, Mass, or devotional) and then ponder/reflect/mediate. It is such a joy for me when the Lord brings opportunities during the day to use or share the insight from that morning’s reflection.

My final comment is what I have most recently been working on -- being open to this experience throughout the day. I was humbled when another brother in Community paused in a conversation to suggest we stop and pray for wisdom. Why, yes, I should be taking more of my every-day decisions, including where I spend my time and what I say, to the Lord for discernment. Regardless of what percentage I did that yesterday, can I do it a few percent more today?

The last chapter, which Laurie read last week, paints a wonderful mystical image of the beloved disciple, reclining on the breast of Jesus: “his ear on Jesus’ heart looking out into the world.” The ideal disciple, our objective, is to be the one who is attuned to Christ’s heartbeat and sees the world with that sound in our ear. Prayer, our deepest longing, is our journey to place our ear that close to Jesus, seeing the world as He does. AMEN

This handout will help you with the structure of your prayer time:

An Approach to Prayer

1. Choose a time of the day when you are alert, find a quiet comfortable place and consider setting an alarm so you are not distracted by the time.
2. Begin with Prayer, Praise, Song -- whatever enables you to turn your focus away from the day and enter God’s presence.
3. Start with an offering prayer. There are many formulas or just use words of dedication where you offer the day and especially this time up to God and pledge your desire that everything you do and say this day be inspired by His presence and calling.
4. Seek solitude. This can involve saying the Jesus prayer or focusing on a candle or icon or just closing your eyes. Allow yourself to become comfortable with the stillness of your surroundings and focus on God. If you become bored or distracted, simply refocus on God and His love for you.
5. Begin with an unprompted silence open to God saying, “I love you.” Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal Himself to you and reveal the Father’s love. During this time be content to just be in His presence. Lift you heart to Him and just sit quietly in His presence.
6. After a time of unprompted reflection read a short passage from scripture (random, from the Gathering, Mass, or devotional) and then ponder/reflect/mediate. Allow the Holy Spirit to bring thoughts to mind that might be a communication of love or joy.
7. When the time you have set aside is over, offer the balance of your day to Him and attempt to be present to Him throughout the day as often as possible.

(Community Gathering, October 3, 2015)

Viola Rose Bezner 1933 - 2015

Viola Rose Bezner of Irving Texas passed to her eternal reward on October 12, 2015 at the age of 82 surrounded by the love of many family and friends.

Viola was born March 2, 1933, the eighth of nine children in a small German settlement, called Lindsay, Texas population 120 at the time.  She was educated at the public school in Lindsay, which was run by the Sisters of Divine Providence, San Antonio, Texas.  She graduated from High School in 1950.  She stayed at home with her parents, helping on the farm, washing dishes mostly for the hired hands, especially during the harvesting months in the summer.  In September of 1950 she went to Nurses Training at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Fort Worth, TX, graduating in 1954.

After graduation she went back to Lindsay and lived with her parents.  She worked as an RN in the hospital at Gainesville, TX.   She was the only registered nurse in the hospital at the time, and as a new graduate, it was quite a frightening experience.

At the end of 1954, she decided to further her education and went into Anesthesia School at Barnes Hospital in St. Louis, MO., because it was the best hospital at that time for Nurse Anesthetist training.  After her graduation in 1957, she stayed on staff, teaching anesthesia, for eighteen months.

From 1960 until 1969, she worked as a Nurse Anesthetist in various hospitals all over the United States, South Dakota, Utah, Tennessee, Arkansas, Colorado to name a few.  In 1967 she retired from her work as an Anesthetist for many reasons, but most importantly because of the moral and ethical issues going on in the field at that time.

In late 1967 she moved to New Orleans, LA, where she taught herself how to be a Court Reporter.  While in New Orleans she worked for the Government as a Court Reporter.  At the end of 1969, she again went back to her home roots in Lindsay and worked for a while as a Registered Nurse in the same little hospital she had worked in 1954.

But then God intervened in her life and on September 13, 1969; she was baptized in the Holy Spirit and her life was never the same.  She became a member of the Christian Community of God’s Delight in Dallas, TX, and became the Secretary of that community in April 1975, and worked in that position until her death.

Viola selflessly served in whatever capacity she was asked.  Her intelligence and tenacity were invaluable to the Community and the work God was able to do through her love and service.  She prayed with untold numbers on the phone, she served guests from all over the world, and she managed an active office for four decades.  

Preceding her in death were her parents, Jake and Elizabeth Bezner, four brothers: Lambert, Wilfred, James, and Arnold.  Viola is survived by a brother Weldon of Lindsay, Tx; sister & brother-in-law Kathleen and Michael Caponi of Park Ridge, IL; and Sisters Anna Rose and Ramona Bezner of San Antonio, Tx.  Viola is also survived by sisters-in-law Johnann Bezner of Gainesville, TX; Laurie Bezner of Hurst, TX; and Joan Bezner of Lindsay, TX and numerous nieces and nephews.  

A rosary and celebration wake for Viola will be held on Thursday evening at 7pm at St. Peter Catholic Church located at 424 W Main St, Lindsay, TX 76250.  A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Friday morning at 10am also at St. Peter Catholic Church.  A reception will be held following the Mass.  Viola will be interred at St. Peter Catholic Church.

Friar’s Corner #753: 10/18/15: Twenty-Ninth of OT; 1^st Week of Christian Prayer.

Sunday, Oct18: Twenty-Ninth of OT: Isaiah 53:10-11 (If he gives his life as an offering for sin, he shall see}his descendants in a long life.); Ps 33:4-5, 18-2 and 22 (Lord, let Your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in You.); Heb 4:14-16 (Let us confidently approach the throne of grace.); Alleluia, alleluia. The Son of Man came to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many. Alleluia, alleluia! Mark 10:42-45 (The Son of Man came to give His life as a ransom for many.)

Theme: Christ brought many into the Kingdom of God through his suffering

Holy Spirit, please give us Your broader vision.

The life of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, is very beautiful and complicated. After creating all things God created human life. Our first parents disobeyed the one directive God required of them. They fell to the lie of satan and lost the exalted position in Eden. All their ancestry inherited their fallen state. Thus we have a wounded human nature that doesn’t do always what is best and what God wants of us.

No human person could correct the mistake. God eventually sent His Son. He took on our human nature in its perfect form. In His human estate to spoke to us clearly and showed us God’s plan. He healed, fed and taught thousands in His public life on earth. Jesus trained and equipped 120 men and women to continue His work. He did not want these leaders to lord it over others, as worldly leaders tend to do. He taught us that greatness was in service to others as Jesus washed the feet of the twelve at the Last Supper.

In St. Mark’s gospel section today Jesus told His disciples that He came to serve and give His life to take the punishment for our sins by His bloody suffering and final death on the cross. God showed us that He accepted the ultimate sacrifice of His Son by raising His body from the dead, glorified in radiant light. He opened the gates of heaven and invited us to come into His new kingdom of service by our repentance for our sins and baptism. As we accept this free gift of God we also will endure some suffering as we die to our old worldly way of doing things. The Holy Spirit enlightens our minds to show us God’s plan for doing things. It is as if the Holy Spirit updates our computer operating system by adding something much greater than Windows 10. As we work at following these new God-given directives we are guaranteed a place with Jesus in eternal life in heaven.

The operations of God’s kingdom found in the New Testament scriptures and church tradition are much different that the operating system of the world and what it considers "political correctness." Let us daily strive to get closer to Jesus so we can joyfully serve others as the light and hands of Jesus working in the world around us. May Jesus give us all the graces we need to do that this week and the rest of our lives. Blessings, + Fr. Bob Hilz.

Monday, Oct 19: (memorial of St. Isaac Jogues, John de Brebeuf and Companion Martyrs, 1607-1646, John de Brebeuf 1593-1649, Charles Garnier, Anthony Daniel, Gabriel Lallemant, Noel Chabanel and Rene Goupil. These French Jesuits were the first missionaries to go to Canada and North America after J. Cartier discovered Canada in 1534. Their mission region extended from Nova Scotia to Maryland. These 8 saints preached the Gospel to the Iroquois and Huron Indians. After being tortured, they were martyred in the area of Auresville, NY, between 1642 and 1649. In the same village where St. Isaac died, Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha was born.) Rom 4:20-25 (It was written for us when it says that our faith in God will be counted.), Responsory: Luke 1:69-71 (Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; He has come to His people.), Luke 11:29-32 (And the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong.)

Tuesday, Oct 20: Rom 5:12, 15b, 17-19 and 20b-21 (If by the transgressions of one person death came to reign, how much more will those who receive grace come to reign in life.), Ps 40:7-10 and 17 (Here I am, the Lord; I come to do your will.), Luke 12:35-38 (Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival.)

Wednesday, Oct 21: (memorial of St. John Paul II, Pope, 1920-2005. How do I summarize the life of the second longest reigning pope in Church history? He was born Karol Wojtyla in Wadowice, Poland. He lost both of his parents and older brother before he was 21. His promising academic career was cut short by WW II. While working, Karol joined the underground seminary and was ordain a priest in 1946 and was immediately sent to Rome for a doctorate in theology. Back in Poland, he had a few jobs and earned a doctorate in Philosophy, which for a while he taught at Lublin University. In 1958, he was made auxiliary bishop of Krakow and attended all of Vatican Council II. Fr. Wojtyla was appointed Archbishop of Krakow in 1964. On October 1978 he was elected the first non-Italian pope in 455 years taking the name John Paul II. He made pastoral visits to 129 countries, promoted ecumenical, which is interfaith initiatives, especially in 1986 with the Day of Prayer for World Peace in Assisi.

He improved Jewish relations by being the first pope to visit a Synagogue in Rome. He visited the Western Wall in Jerusalem and established diplomatic relations between the Holy See and Israel. He also helped improve Catholic-Muslin relations. John Paul went back to Poland three times and encouraged the Solidarity movement, a non-violent revolution against communism. He gave Poland back its Christian soul and saw the collapse of communism in central and eastern Europe by 1989. Three of his best phrases were: "Open wide the doors to Christ,""Be not afraid," and be "a witness for hope." He served as pope for twenty-eight years. John Paul saw the publication of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, wrote 14 encyclicals, five books, canonized 482 saints and beatified 1,338 people. He was an actor, poet, philosopher, theologian, evangelist and one of the most influential men of the last century. He was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI on May 1, 2011, and was canonized on Divine Mercy Sunday, 2014.) Rom 6:12-18 (Present yourselves to God as raised from the dead to life.), Ps 124:1b-8 (Our help is in the Name of the Lord.), Lk 12:39-48 (Much will be required of the person entrusted with much.)

Thursday, Oct 22: Rom 6:19-23 (Now you have been freed from sin and have become slaves of God.), Ps 1:1-4 and 6 (Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.), Lk 12:49-53 (I have not come to establish peace but division.)

Friday, Oct 23: Rom 7:18-25a (Who will deliver me from this mortal body?), Ps 119:66, 68, 76-77 and 93-94 (Lord, teach me Your statutes.), Lk 12:54-59 (You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and sky, why do you not know how to interpret the present time?)

(Franciscan optional memorial of St. John of Capistrano, Friar Priest, 1386-1456. This memorial is historically important since this Franciscan helped lead Catholic armies at Belgrade to stop the Turkish Moslems advance, which would have destroyed most of Christianity west of Turkey. He was born in Capistrano, Abruzzi, Italy. John studied law in Perugia, Italy, and became governor there, bringing peace and justice. Discerning a religious vocation, he joined the Friars Minor in 1416. There was great stress in Europe with the election of an anti-pope and the Hundred Years’ War. John was a great preacher and tried to bring unity among the Franciscan groups. The pope sent him on many missions. With the fall of the declining Eastern Roman Empire at Constantinople to the Turkish Moslems, St. John exhorted the Hungarians to resist the invading Turks at Belgrade in 1456. At 70, he personally led the left wing of the Christian army, praying and encouraging his men. The victory there saved Europe for a time. A plague shortly followed and John died from it, worn out by his work. He left behind 19 volumes of writings and 700 letters. John was canonized in 1630.)

Saturday, Oct 24: (optional memorial of St. Anthony Mary Claret, Archbishop and Founder, 1807-1870. He was born in Sallent, Spain, and ordained a priest. With 5 other men they founded the Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary; the Claretian Fathers. They preached throughout Catalonia. Anthony was appointed archbishop of Santiago, Cuba, by the Queen of Spain. His good pastoral work brought threats to his life and he was recalled to Spain where he died.) Rom 8:1-11 (The Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you.), Ps 24:1b-4b and 5-6 (Lord, this is the people that longs to see Your face.), Lk 13:1-9 (If you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!)

Sunday, Oct 25: Thirtieth of OT: Jeremiah 31:7-9 (The blind and the lame I will bring back: I will console them.); Ps 126:1-6 (The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.); Hebrews 5:1-6 (You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.); Alleluia, alleluia! Our Savior Jesus Crist destroyed death and brought life to light through the Gospel. Alleluia, alleluia! Mark 10:46-52 (Master, I want to see.)

The Sunday Commentary also available from Nancy Ward: www.JoyAlive.net