Kathryn Strickler

It is with a heavy heart that I make this post.  I ask all of you, in your charity, to pray for the repose of the soul of Kathryn Strickler.  She was a Junior at Marian who died on Friday from complications due to her diabetes.  Her funeral is scheduled for Saturday evening.
Eternal rest grant unto her O Lord,
And let perpetual light shine upon her.
May she rest in peace, Amen.
May her soul and the souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God,
Rest in Peace, Amen.

In Paradisum deducant te angeli, in tuo adventu suscipiant te martyres...

Lazarus at the door

26^th Sunday OT Year C

    We have often heard it said that the gospel should comfort the afflicted, but afflict the comfortable. Today's reading certainly falls into the "afflict the comfortable" category. Jesus is giving us an important lesson. It simply is not sufficient to worry about ourselves and our own needs. It is an absolute command of the gospel, a command from Christ himself, to love our neighbor. The rich man in the gospel is tormented in the flames for all eternity because he failed to help Lazarus.

    Personally I find this parable particularly difficult to take. If you listen carefully you will notice that the rich man never even notices Lazarus. Jesus tells us that Lazarus was at the rich man's door, but he never says that the rich man walked past him. It never says that the rich man spurned or abused him. It never even says that the rich man exploited Lazarus or did any other thing against him. In other words, the rich man didn't do anything to Lazarus, which is precisely the point. In the sacrament of confession we are quite good at confessing our sins: those actions against God, others, or self. But, when we examine our conscience do we even notice those things that we have failed to do? The scariest thing about the story of Lazarus is that the rich man never even noticed Lazarus. How many people just like Lazarus do we walk by on a daily basis? How often is there some good that we should be doing that we simply fail to do? How often are we wrapped up in the concerns of our own lives, our own families, our own situations that we fail to help those in need?

    Today we will see a video about the annual bishop's appeal. You will see some of the many things the diocese does with the funds collected in the annual appeal. Many of these worthy efforts are like Lazarus sitting at your door. You may not have even noticed that the diocese has had a huge increase in seminarians, but with that increase comes a great need for financial support for their education and formation. You may not have noticed that the diocese is increasing its catechetical efforts, especially toward young adults. You may not have noticed all the many programs the diocese offers to prepare couples for marriage. You may not have noticed the many charitable outreach programs funded by the Bishop's appeal. This video may point out many ways you can help those in need, ways you never noticed before. So that, unlike the rich man in the parable, we will not neglect to help those in need.

Feast of St. Matthew

25^th Sunday OT and Feast of St. Matthew:

    Today in the gospel we hear something we expect: you cannot serve both God and mammon. But, we also hear something we do not expect: the master commended the dishonest steward for acting prudently. I think we all know by now the dangers inherent in money. Money is a tool, it is neutral of itself. However, it is an extremely sharp and delicate tool. Think of all the good you can do with money: support your family, serve the poor, support the parish, etc. But, the more one handles money, the easier it is to slip and be hurt by this tool. It is easy to give in to the prevailing culture of consumerism. It is easy to think that our worth depends on how much we have. It is easy to think that we need the bigger house, the nicer car, the cushy life. Falling for this mentality is quite harmful for our spiritual life. Jesus is exactly right, pursuit of wealth for its own sake becomes a religion with money as its god, making it impossible to follow Christ.

    St. Matthew is a great model and inspiration for us. Do you remember the story? St. Matthew was seated at his customs post, he was a tax collector. In the Bible, a tax collector is synonymous with a person who has bought into the consumerist mentality. They were known for defrauding others. They would charge more than was necessary for the tax and keep what was left for themselves. Yet, when Jesus approached him and told him to follow him, Matthew left behind his job, his wealth, his unhealthy attachment to money, and he followed after Christ. If you ever struggle with consumerism, ask St. Matthew to pray for you.

    But, the other part of the gospel is a bit more troubling. It sounds like Jesus is asking us to be dishonest. We get the example of that crooked steward who knows his days are numbered. So he calls in his boss's customers, rips off his boss to try to find favor with the customers. How is this an example of Christian living? Jesus explains: the children of this world are more prudent than the sons of light. In other words if we look around us we see many examples of people working hard to attain their goals. Think, for example, of world class athletes: they put in long, hard hours to attain their goals. They push themselves, straining to achieve success on a football field. And they do all this for something that is passing: a football game, for example. Yet, do we work that hard for something that is eternal, our eternal life? Jesus is telling us that we should use all of our human ingenuity, our drive, our prudence, our cunning, not only for our own advancement, but also for the spreading of the gospel. We often use our gifts and skills to succeed in work, sports, or society; but, do we use them for the promotion of the gospel?

    Again, St. Matthew is our model. St. Matthew was an educated man. We know this because he was able to write, only a few could write in those days. This made Matthew one on the upper echelon of society. But, instead of using his skills only for his own promotion, he decided to use his gifts and skills for the promotion of the gospel. And look at the result! For 2000 years now Christians have been reading his gospel as a way to grow closer to Christ. At one point in his life St. Matthew was this dishonest steward, using his gifts and skills for his own good; but, after his encounter with Christ he felt it necessary to use his talents for the promotion of the gospel.

    How is God calling you to service? I am absolutely sure that each and every one of you has some special gift, some special skill, that God wants at his service. We might be tempted to use these gifts for our own good, but through the prayers and example of St. Matthew we should put them to use for the gospel.

St. Matthew is our patron saint. This means that our parish should take on the personality of its patron. We too should strive to serve God, not money. To put our gifts at the service of the gospel. If the things we do take us away from our relationship with God, we need to leave them behind and follow the Lord. Ask St. Matthew to pray for us, to help us all leave behind our customs post and follow the Lord.

 

God’s Outlandish Love

24^th Sunday OT Year C

    Today in the gospel we hear one of our most well-loved parables. The parable of the prodigal son always speaks to us. Each one of us hears something different when we hear this parable. Sometimes we feel far from God, our sins and our bad choices make us feel like the prodigal son. Yet we know that we can always come back to God, who is the Father in the story, who catches sight of us while we are still distant. Sometimes we are challenged by the depiction of the older son. Are we ever jealous of God's mercy? Are we judgmental and harsh, when God is loving and merciful? Other times we are inspired by the example of the Father in the story: how many of us are hesitant to rush forward and forgive the person in most need of our forgiveness, especially those in our family. Yes, the parable speaks to every one of us.

But, when I was reading this gospel this week something new struck me about the parable. If you notice Jesus tells three straight parables. In the first two parables the theme is quite easy to detect: we hear that God is the good shepherd who seeks the lost sheep and he is like the woman who seeks after her lost coin. God goes after the lost. Yet, in both stories something else happens as well: the shepherd and the woman both rejoice at the return of the lost sheep and coin. We notice this same thing in the story of the prodigal son. When the son returns the Father throws a great banquet. One theme that runs through these three parables is the great joy of God. God rejoices when the lost return. God rejoices when the sinner comes to his mercy. The central character in the three parables is God, not us. These parables are about God's mercy. Sometimes we lose sight of this fact when we read the parable of the prodigal son: Jesus is trying to teach us about the generosity of God's mercy.

Last week a parishioner asked me if I had been ordained for a year yet. No, I was ordained on Oct 31^st, so not quite a year. But, her question got me to thinking about this past year. It has been quite amazing. To be a priest is more fun than any human being should be allowed to have. And some of the greatest moments I've had over the past year came in the sacrament of confession. I cannot tell you how amazing it is to help people with their burdens. People come to me hurting, sad, weighed down by their sins and because of God's gracious mercy I'm allowed to say to them: I absolve you from your sins. I think that part of what makes these experiences so profound for me, the minister, is that I get a front row seat for the conversation between the prodigal son and the Father, I get to be there when the good shepherd finds the lost sheep, when the woman finds the lost coin. The joy and enthusiasm of God for the repentant sinner flows through me in the sacrament of confession. This joy is a foretaste of the kingdom of God.

If you think about it, heaven is the party described in today's parables. The Father in heaven sent his Son to bring back those who were lost. And when the son returns with all the sinners who trusted in him, there will be an everlasting banquet. This banquet is more than we deserve. No shepherd would throw a banquet when he finds a lost sheep, no woman would call everyone to tell them she's found a coin. But, God's mercy and love is outlandish. He loves us so much that he sent his son Jesus to bring us back to Him, to search for what was lost.

In a few moments we will receive the body and blood of Christ, which is a foretaste of the heavenly banquet. Here at this Mass it is not so much that we find Christ. Rather, Christ finds us. And while we sometimes feel like we are still a long way off, Christ catches sight of us and brings us into communion with him, for he is the good shepherd who came from the Father to seek out what was lost.

The Truth is Beautiful

23^rd Sunday OT Year C

    Jesus never swindles us. No, he tells us right up front the risks involved in discipleship. Whoever cannot carry his/her cross and follow after me cannot be my disciple. These are harsh words from Jesus. But, they are so true. All he is saying is that it is impossible to be a disciple half way. Discipleship includes trial, suffering and self-denial. And when it comes to discipleship, Jesus asks for 100% percent of us: nothing less will do.

This is a strange passage if you think about it. Jesus is not doing much of a pitch job here. Think if we did the same thing with our RCIA program. If we told people all about the difficult side of Christianity: the self-denial and sacrifice that it takes to be a Christian, we might not get too many takers. So, what's Jesus doing in this passage?

Listen again to the first passage: great crowds were traveling with Jesus. These people were already with Jesus. Why were they there? Jesus drew these people. If we understood for just one second the truth of the Incarnation, we would die of delight. Though we were lost and could not find our way back to God, he loved us all the more and sent his only son to save us. Jesus Christ is God!!! If you have never been struck by the amazing beauty of this fact, think about it. Jesus, a man born 2000 years ago to a poor peasant girl named Mary, who traveled around teaching Good News, was not just some preacher. He is God! God became human so that humans could go back to God. It is important for us to listen to the teachings of Jesus, listen to the teachings of the Church, to be formed by the Word of God. But these things all require something fundamental: a basic attraction to Jesus. The good news of the Incarnation is so amazing that if we stop to think about it, we will automatically want to be close to Jesus. The truth is beautiful, and of itself we are attracted to it.

In a similar way, this is what St. Paul is doing in the second reading. In this short letter, Paul is asking a disciple, Philemon, to welcome back Onesimus not as a slave but as a brother. Now Paul, as an Apostle, could have been more direct. He could have commanded Philemon to release Onesimus, but he doesn't do that. Rather, he presents his case in a way that should appeal to Philemon: won't you welcome him back as a brother. Paul is hoping that Philemon will be so attracted to the beauty of the teaching, namely that each human person has innate value, that he will be moved to release Onesimus from slavery.

The Truth is Beautiful! Ultimately, we cannot be Christians simply because our parents wish it, we cannot be Christians simply because it is the right thing to do. We will never follow God's commands and precepts, we will never be able to live out our faith: the cross that Christ asks us to carry will be too heavy, unless we are swept off our feet by the beauty of Christ.

One place where we are always able to encounter this beauty is here at the Holy Mass. Right on this altar we see Jesus! In the Holy Eucharist we encounter the person of Christ, we see his body and blood. Christian discipleship is not for the meek of heart. It takes courage and determination to follow Christ, to pick up your cross and to follow him, to denounce all the things of the world that lead you away from Jesus and cling to Christ. All of these things will be impossible without a deep love for Christ. A love deepened and strengthened by the power of the Holy Eucharist.

Jesus never swindles us. He just stands before us as he is: fully God and fully man. He invites us to follow him. He tells us straight out the cost of discipleship: denial and self-sacrifice. But we must ask ourselves a question: having encountered the beauty of Christ, is there anywhere else we would rather go?

Humility

The goal of Christian existence is actually quite simple: we must become like Christ.

But like all profound truths, this is easy to say and hard to do. Being followers of Christ means that we want to be like Christ, want to follow Christ, follow his teachings, his example. The goal of Christian existence is to emulate Christ.

One of the most difficult aspects of becoming like Christ is that we have to put on the mind of Christ. We have to develop the Christian attitude. This means that we not only need to act like Christ, but we also need to think like Christ, feel like Christ, love what Christ loves. Being Christian is not just about what we say and do, it is about being like Christ to the core of our being.

Essential to developing this Christian attitude is the virtue of humility. We hear about this virtue in our readings today. St. Thomas says that humility consists in keeping oneself in one's own bounds, not reaching out to things beyond one, but submitting to one's superior. This particular virtue is very difficult for us Americans. It is in our very nature to stretch beyond our bounds. We love the rags to riches tale, we believe in the American dream. This nation was founded by men and women who refused to submit to a distant king, they decided to break free. We pick up this attitude, it is in the air we breathe. And, of course, there is nothing wrong with having hopes and dreams and striving beyond ourselves, but this attitude can be contrary to the gospel. This attitude makes it difficult for us to rely upon God, makes it difficult for us to place our trust in God. With this attitude we place ourselves as the center of attention. We neglect those around us. All too often this attitude leads us down the road to depression when our far-fetched plans come to nothing. It is difficult for us to be like Christ with this attitude.

So we need to ask ourselves if we are humble. Are we humble people? Do we care not for our own good but for the good of others? Today's gospel acts like a humility thermometer. We can gain a reading on our own humility when we hear these words. Do we like places of honor? Do we seek attention? Do we have an exaggerated opinion of ourselves? Do we invite so as to be invited?

When I read these words I feel somewhat guilty. I don't feel as though I'm faithful to Jesus' command, I'm not as humble as I should be.

So what do we do about it? How do we become humble? It is perhaps the height of arrogance to think that we can just manufacture humility. We cannot just create humility by our own initiative: Today I will be humble, then I will tell everyone in the world just how humble I am. I will travel around the world touting my abundant humility. I have a friend Fr. Joe who always jokes that he is an abyss of humility.

Humility doesn't work this way. I think that humility is not so much the result of our efforts at attaining humility as it is the result of our relationship with Christ. Humility is a byproduct, if you will, of our relationship with God. The Letter to the Hebrews today tells us that we have drawn near to Jesus, the mediator of the covenant. This is how we learn humility, by drawing near to Jesus. He is the perfect example of humility: though he was in the form of God Jesus did not deem equality with God something to be grasped at; rather, he emptied himself taking the form of a slave and being born in human likeness: thus did he humble himself obediently accepting even death, death on a cross. The closer we grow to Jesus the more humble we become.

Today in the parable it is Jesus who deserves the head place at the wedding feast, he is the Son of God, the true Bridegroom. Yet, it is also Jesus who takes the last place, he decided to suffer and die for our salvation. We deserve the last place, yet by our union with Christ we are called up to a higher place, to the right hand of the Father.

This is the loft goal of humility. If we draw near to Christ, if we seek to emulate him, to put on the mind of Christ, to grow in humility, then we will be united with Christ in this life so as to live with him forever in the life to come: the eternal wedding feast of the Lamb.

In a few moments we will receive a foretaste of that eternal banquet in the Holy Eucharist. Here in the Eucharist we draw near to Jesus to learn from him the ways of humility. We receive Jesus, become united with him, so that we can be united with him forever. God grant us the grace to be humble, Amen.

Cardinal Merry Del Val Litany of Humility:

O Jesus! meek and humble of heart, Hear me.
From the desire of being esteemed,
Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being loved... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being extolled ... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being honored ... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being praised ... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being preferred to others... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being consulted ... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being approved ... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being humiliated ... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being despised... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of suffering rebukes ... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being calumniated ... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being forgotten ... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being ridiculed ... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being wronged ... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being suspected ... Deliver me, Jesus.

 

That others may be loved more than I, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be esteemed more than I ... Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That, in the opinion of the world, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
others may increase and I may decrease ... Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be chosen and I set aside ... Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be praised and I unnoticed ... Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be preferred to me in everything... Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should… Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

The Cross is the Gate to Heaven

Today in the gospel, Jesus is asked if only a few are saved. We are hoping that he would just say: no, no everyone is saved. Rather, he somewhat agrees and says that we need to strive for the narrow gate. Many will seek it but will not be strong enough.

The gate we are looking for is the gate to heaven, the door to God, the door to everlasting life. This reminds me of something. One night I was flipping through the channels and came across CNN and Larry King Live. The guest that night was Pastor Joel Osteen. Have you ever heard of him? He was promoting his book Your Best Life Now: 7 Steps to living your full potential. Now Joel is pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston Texas, where they get up to 45,000 people a week in this church. So Larry asked Joel a question: Will I who am Jewish go to heaven? He was asking if he could go to heaven without believing in Jesus. You could tell that Joel was really uncomfortable, I would be too. He basically answered that he didn't know, for him Jesus was important for salvation, but he didn't want to judge anyone.

Now this answer was ok, not great. I think Larry was looking for a fight and it was probably wise of Joel not to give it to him. Still I have wondered for years what I would have said if I were on the program. What I've decided is that there is a problem with the question. What is heaven? Is heaven the fluffy clouds and our wildest dreams? We talk about heaven often, but do we ever define it? I would define heaven as communion with God. Human beings were made with a capacity for love and communion. These desires can only be perfectly fulfilled in our communion with God.

So this is what heaven means. We were made to be united with God, and heaven is union with God, it is the fulfillment of all our desires. But, we have to ask: why don't we have this communion. If I were made for this communion, why don't I have it automatically? Sin! Original sin messed up our communion with God. Original sin severed the connection between God and humanity. But, God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten Son so that all those who believe in him might not perish, but might have eternal life. Jesus is the only way to heaven. In fact, Jesus is heaven. Heaven means we are united to Christ, part of his body. Our communion with him means perfect communion with God, also known as heaven. There is no heaven apart from Christ. It is not so much that one can go to heaven without Christ, rather there is no such thing as heaven apart from Christ.

I would have told Larry: I don't know if you are going to heaven, but I do know one thing, the only heaven there is is communion with God in the person of Christ. Everyone that goes to heaven will only go to heaven through the person of Jesus. Because it was through his death and resurrection that eternal life is possible.

In the death and resurrection of Jesus we have found that narrow gate. Certainly the way is difficult, for it took Jesus his very death and resurrection. The gateway to heaven is the cross of Christ. If we realize that the doorway to heaven is the suffering of Christ it helps us to understand how we are to enter through that gate. Through the grace of Christ we become strong enough when we bear with our sufferings and trials. Jesus saved the world through his suffering, when we join our suffering to that of Christ, we become strong enough, by God's grace, to enter the kingdom of heaven.

God calls many, in fact God calls all nations. Yet, there is only one way to heaven: through the suffering of Jesus. The only gateway to heaven is the cross of Christ. When we are united to Christ in our sufferings we become united to him forever.

As we turn now to receive the Eucharist we can offer our whole lives to Christ, be more intimately united to him so he can give us strength to enter through the narrow gate of the cross to the everlasting life of heaven.

Assumption of Mary

Solemnity of the Assumption 2010

    Today we celebrate the feast of the Assumption of Mary. This feast commemorates the day that Mary was taken into heaven, body and soul. This is an exciting feast. We should all be quite ecstatic about the assumption of Mary. Why?

    We have to start with the Resurrection of Jesus. Without the resurrection there is no Christianity, there is no Church. Without Jesus overcoming sin and death by his own death and resurrection, there is no good news. The very heart of the gospel is the resurrection. Jesus Christ was raised from the dead. His human body lies in death no more. Rather, Jesus the second person of the Trinity takes to himself a human nature, dies, and rises. This is good news indeed because Jesus extends this life to all of us. Because of our common humanity, all of us have access to eternal life. We have access to the forgiveness of our sins. We believe in the resurrection of the dead.

At every funeral mass I celebrate, I'm struck by the Church's prayers. They are filled with our faith that Jesus has overcome sin and death. And that if we believe in Jesus, if we have faith in him and live as his disciples, we too will overcome sin and death. This is the gospel: God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten son so that all those who believe in him might not perish, but might have eternal life. Every Sunday when we gather here to celebrate the Mass we renew our faith in the resurrection. The Eucharist is the sign and foretaste of the resurrection here and now.

    From the earliest days of the Church, we have held that Mary was taken into heaven, body and soul. What this means is that the promise of eternal life is not some kind of aloof promise. Rather, Mary is already participating in the future life of the Kingdom. The assumption, then, is like the continuation of the Resurrection, the fruit of Jesus' rising from the dead. Jesus rises from the dead and ascends into heaven. In the Creed we say that he waits there so as to return to judge the living and the dead: his kingdom will have no end. The assumption of Mary shows that his reign has already begun.

    When we celebrate the Assumption of Mary we are celebrating the kingdom of heaven. It has already begun. Dwelling on this belief should inspire our faith. It reminds us that if we want to be like Mary, in her blessed life in the kingdom to come, then we need to imitate her here and now. Mary exclaims today in the gospel: my soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my savior, for he has done good things for me and holy is his name.

    Every Sunday when we gather here at Mass we gather in the name of Jesus, to celebrate his resurrection. Today we also remember the fruits of this resurrection bestowed upon his blessed mother Mary. As we receive the Eucharist today we can ask for the grace to be like Mary. We can ask for the grace to be open to God's will, to be a follower of Christ, ready to proclaim God's greatness. So that when our time on earth is done we too might proclaim the greatness of the Lord for all eternity. We ask Mary to pray for us as we say: Hail Mary…

    

Ready or Not…

19^th Sunday OT year C

    Whether we like it or not, the day is coming. It seems to me, the world can be broken into two camps: those who eagerly await that day, those who love to count down the days; and, those who fear its approach, those who are filled with dread at the very thought of it. I'm talking, of course, about the beginning of the School year. For parents, there are those who love to see this day come, those who would wish nothing more than to see their child off to school, so as to gain a bit of peace and quiet around the house. My Mom was this way! Imagine having 11 of us running amok for a whole summer and you would want to see us off as well. Still, there are those parents saddened by the beginning of school, many of whom experience an empty home during the school year. Then there are the kids, most kids probably say they don't like the beginning of school. They don't look forward to getting up early and doing homework, etc. That was me, I hated to see the beginning of the school year: fun time was over. But, other kids really enjoy school, they enjoy spending time with their friends, reading, studying, etc. But, no matter if you are looking forward to that day, or dreading it: the day is coming, we can neither speed up its arrival or delay its coming.

    The same is true about the end of the world. That day is coming. We believe and profess every Sunday that we are waiting for the coming of Christ: He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. We profess this every week. This should be something joyful for us. The coming of Christ should excite us. The day is coming when Jesus will return in his glory, inaugurating the Kingdom of God in its fullness. On that day, death will be no more, sin will be defeated and evil will be wiped out forever. On that day the light of Christ will shine into the dark recesses of all humanity, illuminating it and restoring it to its original beauty. We should long for this day, pray for its coming. Yet, at the same time, this day is frightening. For our Lord will come in Glory to judge the living and the dead. Are we ready for the judgment? When Jesus comes, will he find us to be faithful? Built right into the fabric of Christian existence is this paradox: we both eagerly await the coming of Christ and fear his coming. Peter recognizes this in the Gospel: Lord is this message for others, or for us as well? In other words, do we get out of the judgment? Surely as followers of Jesus, we shouldn't have to worry about the coming of the Savior, right? Don't we get a free pass? No! Jesus is quite emphatic. We as Christians have been given more, we have been blessed to receive the saving truth about Jesus. We know he is coming! There are many in the world who haven't a clue. We know, therefore we, above all, should be ready.

    So, how do we get ready for the coming of Jesus? We will only be ready to welcome Christ on the last day if we are well-practiced at receiving Christ into our lives on a daily basis. We do this through our daily prayer: every day we should invite Christ into our lives, ask him to help us overcome our sinfulness, ask him for the grace to be led by the Holy Spirit. Second, we receive Christ in the sacraments of the Church. We will be ready to meet Christ on the last day if we meet him often in the sacrament of confession, we will be ready to receive his mercy on that last day, if we receive it here and now.

    Finally, our faithful participation in the Eucharist is the perfect way to be ready to welcome Christ at the end of time. At every Mass, we hear God's word, we make known to him our needs, Christ comes to us in the Blessed Sacrament, and we pray every Mass "as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our savior." So, if we are eagerly awaiting the coming of Christ, the Mass helps us to participate in that coming even now. But, if we are weary of the coming of Christ, if the coming of Christ scares us, the Mass should calm our fears and encourage us to seek Christ on a daily basis.

    The kids who have the worst time going back to school are often those kids who sit around doing nothing all summer, while those kids who kept up their reading, prayer, and exercise seem to be ready for the new school year. The same is true for us, if we want to be ready for the coming of Christ, we cannot expect to just sit around and do nothing. If we want to be ready to welcome Christ on the last day, we must welcome him into every day of our lives. Because, ready or not, that day is coming.

Are you ready to die?

Jesus' parable today makes us ask some difficult questions. Are you ready to die? If you life ended today, would you be ready to see Jesus? Do you live every day of your life with this end in mind? We always have this notion that we have more time, we might not.

Are you ready to die?

Alphonsus De Liguroi wrote a whole book called the Preparation for death. I remember being shocked by this book. Here is a quote: "Consider that you are dust, and that you shall return to dust. A day will come when you shall die, and rot in a grave, where worms shall be your covering…" Shocking indeed. So many things seem quite unimportant in light of our impending death. Sounds a bit like our first reading: all things are vanity.

For example, I like to golf: vanity. God's not going to ask me my handicap.

I like to cook, vanity: My bacon artichoke dip will not get me into heaven.

I like football, vanity: even if Coach Kelly leads us to 10 national championships, it is not going to lead me closer to God.

Please don't misunderstand me. There is nothing wrong with these things. We are allowed to have hobbies and interests, but we have to remember that they don't necessarily bring us closer to God, even good things can take us away from God if they distract us too much.

We need to put Paul's words into action. If you have been raised with Christ then seek what is above. If Christ is important to you, he has to be a part of you day, a part of your lives. Your calendar never lies, the things that are important to you can be found on that calendar. How do you spend your time? How do you spend your energy? Some days I spend 4 hours golfing, do I ever spend 4 hours talking to God? I really get excited about football, but do I ever get excited about God? Insert your own hobbies, interests, and those things you spend time on and you see the point. The same is true of possessions. In the gospel, Jesus is not saying that we are not allowed to have things. He doesn't even say that the man shouldn't build bigger barns. What Jesus says is that this man did not care for the things of God. Possessions and money are not bad things, but they can distract us and take us away from our relationship to God. Even good things can lead us astray.

We overcome this possibility by seeking the things that are above: spending time with Jesus, reading about Jesus, watching movies about Jesus, coming to Mass, going to confession, etc. We need to seek holiness, seek God, leave behind our sins, because this is the pathway to eternal life. There is no getting around it; we are all going to die. There is only one name in which we can be saved: Jesus Christ. We need to set our eyes on Christ.

In a few moments we will receive the Holy Eucharist, we will see Jesus. We can ask him to help us to seek the things that are above. We need to live with our end in mind. We know that even good things can distract us from our relationship with God, which should be the most important thing in our lives. Without our relationship with God there is no salvation, no eternal life. Only with firm faith will we be able to answer the questions that will face us all:

Are you ready to die? Are you ready to meet the Lord?

Lord Teach us how to pray…

    Last week in the gospel we heard the famous story of Martha and Mary. "Martha, Martha you are anxious and worried about many things, only one thing is needed." Jesus then pointed to Mary, who was seated at his feet. Only one thing is needed to overcome anxieties and worries: a relationship with Jesus, a life of prayer.

This week our Lord continues the instruction. We need a life of prayer, so Jesus teaches us about prayer. It all begins with the beautiful little prayer of one of the disciples: Lord teach us how to pray. This prayer should be on all of our lips. Lord teach us how to pray. We all need to work on our prayer, no one would say "my prayer life is actually too good…"

Today's readings outline 4 key principles of prayer: Trinitarian, Consistent, Personal, Intercessional.

First, prayer should be Trinitarian. Jesus tells us to pray to the Father and if we do the result will be the gift of the Holy Spirit. Jesus, the son of God, is our model, our teacher in the ways of prayer. He prays to the Father, and teaches us to pray to the Father. We would not be able to pray to the Father without Jesus showing us the way. The Spirit is given to those who pray. So our whole life of prayer should be molded by the Son, directed to the Father and infused with the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Next we hear the story of the man who comes late at night seeking some bread. Jesus gives us this as an example of prayer. At first it seems like Jesus is telling us to badger God until he gives us what we need. But, I would rather like to think of this parable as Jesus telling us that our prayer must be consistent. In other words, we don't just pray one day and say that we have prayed and that should be the end of it. Rather, prayer is a daily occurrence, our prayer must be consistent.

Third, our prayer should be personal. Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened. The things you ask for will be different from the things I need. You will seek different things. Prayer should be personal. Don't be afraid to pour out your heart to God. This is the stuff of prayers, what makes it up: the essence of our lives shared with God.

Finally, we should see ourselves as intercessors: praying on behalf of others. Just as did Abraham, we should seek the good of others in our conversations with God. How many people do you know that need prayers? Are there sick people in your family, are there those struggling financially, are there those who are far from Jesus? These people need our prayers.

If you notice these four aspects of prayer are all found in the Mass. That is one reason that the Mass is the perfect prayer. It is Trinitarian: we offer the Son to the Father in the power of the spirit. Consistent: we pray every week, and every day! The mass is being offered at every hour around the world. Personal: we receive the Lord into our very hearts, souls, and bodies, how more personal can it get? Intercession: we offer our prayers for the Church, the world and those who are in need. The Mass is the great school of prayer. As we celebrate this Mass let us turn to the Lord as that disciple did so many years ago and say: Lord teach us how to pray.