Pentecost Vigil Podcast

Pentecost Vigil at Christ the King Catholic Church in Ann Arbor, Michigan was incredible this year. What a wonderful time of praise, worship, encouragement, and best of all, the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Fr. Ed Fride's homily was a rallying call to boldly proclaim the message of Pentecost and stop apologizing for being Charismatic.

Now that the sermon is online, I recommend it to everyone who wants to know about what the Holy Spirit has been doing in the Catholic Church. It's almost an hour long, but is time well spent. You can listen or download the message here...

http://ctkcc.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=489322

Christian Sympathy

In the last year, God showed me the healing power of vulnerability. By being honest about my dark feelings, my brokenness, my pain, He used others to help me recover from some deep wounds. In the process, those I've been open to have also found comfort, knowing that they are not the only ones who struggle, doubt, and hurt. Honesty builds community and draws Christians closer together.

Venerable John Henry Cardinal Newman, when he was still an Anglican priest, delivered a homily titled "Christian Sympathy" at the Feast of the Nativity. In it, he explained that hiding our wounds makes our religious beliefs unreal. That fear of facing our shadows results in shallowness. And that just as our Lord lowered Himself to embrace the woundedness of humanity, we too must lower our defenses to each other.

Here are some excerpts from his sermon:

Christians can sympathise with each other, even as by the power of Christ sympathising in and with each of them.

I consider that Christians, certainly those who are in the same outward circumstances, are very much more like each other in their temptations, inward diseases, and methods of cure, than they at all imagine. Persons think themselves isolated in the world; they think no one ever felt as they feel. They do not dare to expose their feelings, lest they should find that no one understands them.

Christians, though they really differ much, yet as regards the power of sympathising with each other will be found to be on a level. The one is not too high or the other too low. They have common ground; and as they have one faith and hope, and one Spirit, so also they have one and the same circle of temptations, and one and the same confession.

Perhaps the reason why the standard of holiness among us is so low, why our attainments are so poor, our view of the truth so dim, our belief so unreal, our general notions so artificial and external is this, that we dare not trust each other with the secret of our hearts. We have each the same secret, and we keep it to ourselves, and we fear that, as a cause of estrangement, which really would be a bond of union. We do not probe the wounds of our nature thoroughly; we do not lay the foundation of our religious profession in the ground of our inner man; we make clean the outside of things; we are amiable and friendly to each other in words and deeds, but our love is not enlarged, our bowels of affection are straitened, and we fear to let the intercourse begin at the root; and, in consequence, our religion, viewed as a social system, is hollow. The presence of Christ is not in it.

God Enters History

God seeks out man in the midst of his worldly and earthly connections and relationships; God, whom no one, not even the purest of men, can discover for himself, comes to man of His own volition and enters into relationship with him... God is the one who acts, and it is He who brings salvation to man. (1)

He [God] has entered into history, has come to meet man, and thus man can go to meet Him. He [man] can unite himself to God, because God has united Himself with man. (2)

Human listening to the message of faith is no passive reception of hitherto unknown information; rather, it is the awakening of our submerged conscience and the opening up of the powers of understanding that are awaiting the light of truth within us. (3)

The longing for the infinite is alive and unquenchable within man. None of the attempted answers will do; only the God who Himself became finite in order to tear open our finitude and lead us out into the wide spaces of His infinity, only He corresponds to the question of our being. (4)

In the revelation of God it is, in the end, precisely a matter of Him, the Living and True One, breaking into our world and thus breaking open the prison of our theories, by means of whose iron bars we seek to protect ourselves against the coming of God into our lives. (4)

~Pope Benedict XVI

(1) The Unity & Diversity of Religions
(2) The Truth of Christianity
(3) Truth-Tolerance-Freedom
(4) The New Questions that Arose in the Nineties
** Compiled in the collection "Truth & Tolerance"

The Call of Christ - St. Padre Hurtado

Christ came to this world not to do his great work alone but with us, with all of us, to be the head of a great body whose living, active cells we are. We are all called to incorporation in him, this is the fundamental level of Christian life… But for some there are higher calls; a call to surrender oneself to him, to live only for him, to make him the norm of one’s intelligence; to consider him in each of one’s actions, to follow him in his endeavors, even more, to make one’s life Christ’s project, Christ’s venture. For the seaman, his life is the sea; for the soldier, the army; for the nurse, the hospital; for the farmer, his land; for the generous soul, his life is Christ’s venture!

This is the essential part of the call of Christ: Do you wish to consecrate your life to me? The problem is not sin; it is a problem of consecration! Consecration to what? To personal holiness and to the apostolate. Personal holiness or sanctity that is a faithful imitation of the sanctity of Christ.

If he calls you what will you do?… I would like you to think deeply about this because this is what is essential in spiritual retreats. Retreats are a call to our deepest generosity. They do not move us through fear, nor do they try to frighten us. They remind us of the commandments because they can do no less than remind us. The commandments are the foundation, the cement for the whole construction, because we are obliged to obey them by the will of God. But they are little more than the cement and one does not live in the cement, there is little beauty in the cement… Retreats are for souls that wish to go higher, and the higher the better; they are for those who have understood the meaning of Love and that Christianity is love, that the great commandment, par excellence, is that of love.

The proof of faith is love, heroic love and heroism is not of obligation. The priesthood, the missions, works of charity are not of obligation under the pain of sin; nonetheless they are absolutely necessary for the Church and are works of generosity. The day there are no priests there will be no sacraments, yet the priesthood is not obligatory; the day there are no missioners, the faith will not advance, yet the missions are not obligatory; the day there is no one to care for the lepers and the poor the distinctive testimony of Christ will disappear, yet these works are not of obligation… The day there are no saints there will be no Church, yet sanctity is not of obligation. What a splendid idea this is! The Church does not live and thrive because of the fulfillment of obligations but because of the generosity of its faithful!

If he calls you what will you tell him? What are you likely to do? Ask, pray to be in the best of dispositions! St. Ignatius asks that the person who enters upon the Exercises have great courage and generosity with God, our Lord. That he desire to be stirred and motivated and to surrender himself completely.

Lord, if in this tormented twentieth century that has emerged from such horrendous butchery: concentration camps, deportations, bombings, the search for more terrible weapons to kill even more, the destruction to obtain riches, more industry, more comfort, more honors, less pain; if in this twentieth century world a new generation were to understand its mission and desire to give testimony to Christ, a new generation that believes and is not limited only to shouts of Christ, conquers, Christ rules, Christ reigns, phrases that mean little without testimony… Where would we find them? Nowhere else but in the humble, silent offering of their lives to make it possible for Christ to rule in the ways in which he desires to rule: in poverty, meekness, humiliation, in his sufferings, in prayer, in humble and self-sacrificing charity.

If Christ finds this generation. If Christ finds even one… Would you want it to be you? The humblest. The most useless in the eyes of the world could be the most useful in the eyes of God… Lord, I am not worth much… but confused as I am, in fear and trembling I offer you my heart. Our Lord entered Jerusalem on the day of his triumph seated upon an ass and he continues faithful to this practice, he enters the souls of the “donkeys” of good will, poor, meek, and humble. Do you want to be Christ’s donkey? Christ does not wish to deceive me, the great venture compels me… It is difficult, very difficult. It is necessary to fight against one’s own passions that desire the very opposite of Christ’s project. They will not die all at once, forever, but must continue to die a little each day.

It is necessary to struggle against the milieu in which we live: our friends, family, the world, attractions… they will all seem to rise up scandalized before the example, though humble and modest, of those who aspire to point out their errors. If you love me you would want to give me what is really good and take away these ridiculous, old fashioned exaggerations “that do more harm than good.” What are these exaggerations for? Why don’t you do what the rest do? Struggle against the scandal of others… struggle against the discouragement of the enterprise, the weariness of age, dryness of spirit, tedium, fatigue, monotony… Yes, you have to struggle but I am here. Have confidence in me, I have overcome the world. My yoke is sweet and my burden light… Come to me all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest… He who thirsts let him come to me and drink. Streams of living water will flow from within him unto eternal life. (Jn 16,33; Mt 11, 30. 29; Jn 7, 37-38.)

I need you… I do not oblige you, but I need you to carry out my plans of love. If you do not come, a work will remain undone because you and only you can do it. No one can take over this work because each has his part in the good that must be realized. Look at the world; how the fields grow yellow, how much hunger and thirst in the world. Look how they search for me even when they persecute me… There is an ardent tormenting hunger for justice, for honor and respect for the human person; a resolved will to make the world jump if necessary to put an end to the shameful exploitation; there are people among those who call themselves my enemies who practice out of hatred what I teach for love… There is a hunger in many for religion, for the spirit, for confidence for a sense of life.

Difficult? Yes! The world will not understand you… It will ridicule you… It will say these are exaggerations, that you have gone crazy. Many said that Jesus was crazy, they dressed him as a fool, accused him of having a devil… and finally crucified him. And if Jesus were to come today to our earth, I am horrified to think about it, he would not be crucified but shot. If he were to come to Chile… they would incite a rebellion against him. What would they say about him in the press, in the universities? Who would do the talking? God willing we would not form part of the chorus of his accusers, nor of those who would shoot him. Difficult? Yes! But only here will we find life. In the great work of Christ each one of us has his place; different for each, but a place in a plan for sanctity, holiness. In the chain of grace that God destines to goodness. I am called to be a link. I can be this link, I can also refuse; what will I do? The answer: I must raise this problem for my consideration in all its depths and respond in all seriousness.

The response of youth

Many will not have the courage to even raise the problem. It will be beyond their capacities but if they would think rather in the strength of Christ…..? If only they would think that they could also be saints with Christ, depending on his strength rather than taking refuge in the cowardice of mere obligation.

Others will give an alms of “something.” Something is better than nothing. But it is not what Christ asks. One mustn’t offer “something” else, insisting that it is as good when Christ asks for something better: nothing but the will of God alone.

The real treasures are the generous ones, those who surrender themselves, and to be sure of doing the will of God, “acting against one’s sensibilities”, they embrace the most difficult in spirit, they ask for it and beg that it will be given them…and they will only abandon that gift of themselves if the Lord shows them their path in other, gentler terrains. But as far as they are concerned, they head right for it!

Meditation on the Kingdom, Holy Week retreat for youth, 1946
Go HERE for more writings by this great saint of Chile

The Power of the Spirit - B16

This power, the grace of the Spirit, is not something we can merit or achieve, but only receive as pure gift. God’s love can only unleash its power when it is allowed to change us from within. We have to let it break through the hard crust of our indifference, our spiritual weariness, our blind conformity to the spirit of this age. Only then can we let it ignite our imagination and shape our deepest desires. That is why prayer is so important: daily prayer, private prayer in the quiet of our hearts and before the Blessed Sacrament, and liturgical prayer in the heart of the Church. Prayer is pure receptivity to God’s grace, love in action, communion with the Spirit who dwells within us, leading us, through Jesus, in the Church, to our heavenly Father. In the power of his Spirit, Jesus is always present in our hearts, quietly waiting for us to be still with him, to hear his voice, to abide in his love, and to receive “power from on high”, enabling us to be salt and light for our world.

Being “baptized” in the one Spirit (cf. 1 Cor 12:13) means being set on fire with the love of God. Being “given to drink” of the Spirit means being refreshed by the beauty of the Lord’s plan for us and for the world, and becoming in turn a source of spiritual refreshment for others. Being “sealed with the Spirit” means not being afraid to stand up for Christ, letting the truth of the Gospel permeate the way we see, think and act, as we work for the triumph of the civilization of love.

HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
World Youth Day - Sydney, Australia

Sunday, 20 July 2008

Approaching Scripture

Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa was appointed by Pope John Paul II as Preacher to the Papal Household in 1980, which capacity he still serves. As part of the Charismatic Renewal he has written many books including "Sober intoxication of the Spirit". This sermon for the 3rd Sunday after Easter captures the Catholic approach to Scripture:

There are two ways to approach the Bible. The first is that of considering it an old book, full of religious wisdom, of moral values, and of poetry too. From this point of view it is absolutely the most important book for understanding our Western culture and the Judeo-Christian religion. It is also the most printed and read book in the world.

But there is another, much more demanding way to approach the Bible, and it is that of believing that it contains the living word of God for us, that it is an “inspired” book, that is, written, indeed, by human authors, with all of their limitations, but with God’s direct intervention. A very human book and, at the same time, divine, that speaks to men of all times and reveals to them the meaning of life and death.

Above all it reveals to them God’s love. If all the Bibles in the world, St. Augustine said, on account of some disaster, would be destroyed and there remained only one copy and, of this copy, all of the pages were illegible save for one, and on this page only one line were legible; if this line were that of the first letter of John that reads “God is love,” the whole Bible would be saved because it is summed up in this statement. This explains how it is that so many people approach the Bible without culture, without great education, with simplicity, believing that it is the Holy Spirit that speaks in it and find in it answers to their problems, light, encouragement, in a word, life.

The two ways of approaching the Bible -- the way of erudition and the way of faith -- do not exclude each other, on the contrary, they must be united. It is necessary to study the Bible, the way in which it should be interpreted (or to pay attention to the findings of those study it in this way), so as not to fall into fundamentalism. Fundamentalism consists in taking a verse from the Bible, just as it sounds, and applying it to today’s situations, without taking into account the difference of culture, of time, and of the different genres of the Bible.It is believed, for example, that the universe is little more that 4,000 years old since this would seem to be what we can calculate from the information that the Bible provides, while we know that the universe is some billions of years old. The Bible was not written as a textbook of natural science, but for salvation. God, in the Bible, adapted himself to the way of speaking of the men of the time so that they could understand; he did not write only for the men of the age of technology.

On the other hand, to reduce the Bible to an object of study and erudition, remaining neutral to its message, is to kill it. It would be as if a man, receiving a letter from the woman he loves, were to examine it with a dictionary, from the point of view of grammar and syntax, and stops at these things, without grasping the love that is in it.Reading the Bible without faith is like trying to read a book at night: nothing can be read, or at least one does not read what is essential. Reading Scripture with faith means reading it in reference to Christ, grasping what refers to him on every page, just as he did with the disciples of Emmaus.

Jesus remains with us in two ways: in the Eucharist and in his word. He is present in both: in the Eucharist under the form of food, in the Word under the form of light and truth. The word has a great advantage over the Eucharist. Only those who already believe and are in a state of grace can receive communion; but everyone, believers and nonbelievers, married people and divorced people, can approach the word of God. Indeed, to become a believer, the most normal route is that of listening to God’s word.

(Zenit News Service)