Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Easter

(Acts 14:19-28; John 14:27-31a)

Perhaps the peace proclaimed by English Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain returning from Munich in 1938 is representative of what the gospel calls “the kind of peace the world gives.”  He had just bartered with Hitler part of the Czechoslovakia for what he hoped would be a stabilized Europe.  Hitler was not appeased, however, and within a year Europe was engaged in history’s deadliest war.  Surely Jesus’ peace is different.

The peace which Jesus presents in this final supper with his disciples is fully realized only after his resurrection from the dead. On that evening he appears to disciples with "peace" on his lips. Then he breathes on them the Holy Spirit who fills them with eternal life.

If this same peace is given to us with the Spirit’s conferral in the sacraments, why do we not always feel it? We need not doubt its presence but should understand that our capacity to embrace it has been compromised by mental, psychological and even physical factors. We worry about what others think; we cannot remember what our spouse gave us for Christmas, let alone God’s many gifts; and our suffering blinds us to the blessings that surround us.  By meditating over God’s goodness a few minutes every day, we can allow Jesus’ peace to fill our hearts.

Monday, May 5, 2015

Monday of the Fifth Sunday of Easter

(Acts 14:5-18; John 14:21-26)

G. K. Chesterton is attributed to have said, “He who does not believe in God will believe in anything.”  He means that the unbeliever may make a god out of a whimsical desire or out of cold cash.  In today’s reading from Acts the Greeks take Paul and Barnabas to be gods.  The two apostles of Jesus have just healed a cripple through the intercession of Jesus.

Paul and Barnabas want no part of the deification.  They try, with only partial success, to explain that there is but one God, the Creator and Sustainer of the whole universe.  They, in contrast, have a mortal nature although they are being saved from everlasting death through Jesus Christ.  Their curing the invalid -- they would tell their hearers – is but a sign of Jesus’ saving grace. 

On the one hand, we must take care not to unwittingly deify that which is mortal or even inert.  We must never adulate an entertainer or barter our soul for pleasure.  On the other hand, we want to find our salvation in Jesus.  As he rose from the dead, he will raise us up.  Because he is the God of the universe, we can count on him.

Friday, May 1, 2015

Friday of the Fourth Week of Easter

(Acts 13:26-33; John 14:1-6)

The Philippines will remember Douglas MacArthur for the words he spoke at his forced departure from the country at the beginning of World War II.  He promised the people, “I shall return,” and he did.  No doubt, some Filipinos joined the resistance to the Japanese invaders on the strength of MacArthur’s promise.  In the gospel today Jesus means to instill such confidence in his disciples with a similar promise. 

Jesus is having a farewell dinner with his disciples.  He does not want them to think that he will forget them.  Rather, he exhorts them to trust that he will come back for him.  Thomas objects that they will get lost in the meantime because they do not know the way.  He assures them that they do: “I am the way and the truth and the life.”  Jesus is the way; that is, following him leads to God.  He speaks the truth; that is, they have not been deceived about the way.  And he conveys life; that is, he has provided them strength for the journey in the Eucharist.

We sometimes find ourselves in bleak situations.  Perhaps we face job termination, mortgage foreclosure, or an “iffy” diagnosis.  We must not cower but be confident.  As Jesus spent his last night consoling his friends rather than seeking pity for himself so we can undergo our trials similarly trusting God.

Thursday, April 30, 2015

Memorial of Saint Pius V, pope

(Acts 13:13-25; John 13:16-20)

For a while the Council of Trent seemed to fall out of favor in the minds of many twentieth century Catholics.  After all, Trent standardized the liturgy to the extent that the common person not knowing Latin could hardly participate in it.  More recent views, however, sees Trent as one of the most effective ecumenical councils in history.  It reformed Church thought and practice when it was being severely tested.  Today the Church celebrates the man who executed those reforms, the Dominican Pope St. Pius V.

Pius was elected pope two years after the end of the council.  One of his priorities was to eliminate extravagance in the papal court.  Another was to assure the clergy reside in their parishes.  He also – to the chagrin of many today -- bolstered the Inquisition and suffered little tolerance for French Protestants and the English queen.  Today Pius V is best remembered for forming the Holy League which stopped the advance of the Ottoman Empire in Europe.  Pius credited the naval victory of Don Juan of Austria at Lepanto in the Greek Mediterranean to the intercession of the Virgin Mary and named the day of the victory, October 7, the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary.

In today’s gospel Jesus tells his disciples that no messenger is greater than the one who sent him.  Seeing the harshness with which Pius V treated the enemies of the Church, we might be reassured by this statement.  Jesus also says that whoever receives his messenger receives him.  Working for Christ, St. Pius V deserves our appreciation for his efforts to renew the Church and to save Western Europe from Ottoman dominance.

Wednesday, May 29, 2015

Memorial of Saint Catherine of Siena, virgin

(Acts 12:24-35a; John 12:44-50)

In English few religious women attain the status of “Mother.”  Blessed Teresa of Calcutta is recognized with that distinction and also St. Frances Xavier Cabrini.  But in general religious women are called “Sister.”  In Spanish-speaking countries, however, the terms “Mother” and “Sister” seem to be interchangeable.  Today the Church honors St. Catherine of Siena, a religious who was surrounded by a large family of men and women who called her “Mother” even though she was younger than most of them.

Catherine lived in the fourteenth century.  At the tender age of seven she is said to have dedicated herself to Christ.  As an adolescent, she was allowed to spend her days in prayer and fasting which turned out to be preparation for a very active apostolate.  When she was twenty-one, she attracted a following of women and men, even priests, whom she directed as a kind of religious superior.  Since childhood, Catherine was associated with Dominican priests who defended her as she became influential from the criticism of citizens.  Soon she entered one of the great issues of the time, the displacement of the pope to Avignon.  Catherine was instrumental in bringing him back to Rome although later the situation actually became worse. Nevertheless, she continued her struggle for Church unity under the bishop of Rome.

Catherine’s spirituality was preeminently Christocentric.  She thought of herself as married to Christ and spent her life building up his body, the Church.  Such dedication could not help spill over to work for a better society.  Today Catherine is recognized as the co-patron of Italy along with St. Francis of Assisi and one of the co-patrons of Europe.