Tuesday, October 24, 2006

Letting God do the Work

In the post, All Day, I set up the Rosary as one of the greatest examples of Prayer available to us as Catholics. At this, both Protestant and Catholic readers have asked for a greater description of the Rosary, both the why and the how we should pray it. So here goes:

Why Pray the Rosary?
The Rosary is one of the most beautiful and effective prayers in the Catholic arsenal. Literally, the name means "garland of roses", but behind the soft, gentle name lies a powerful weapon in our fight against sin and temptation in our lives, and in the world. Used properly, the Rosary is a powerful spiritual weapon used to bring forth many heavenly graces and draw us closer to Jesus and Mary.

On the 8th of March, 2003, Pope John Paul II said,
Today...I am handing you the Rosary beads. Through prayer and meditation on the mysteries, Mary leads you safely towards her Son! Do not be ashamed to recite the Rosary alone, while you walk along the streets to school, to the university or to work, or as you commute by public transport. Adopt the habit of reciting it among yourselves, in your groups, movements and associations. Do not hesitate to suggest that it be recited at hime ... because it rekindles and strengthens the bonds between family members. This prayer will help you to be strong in your faith, constant in charity, joyful and persevering in hope.
Beyond the exortation of John Paul the Great, Mary herself appeared to two men at different times, St. Dominic and Bl. Alan de la Roche, and gave them a total of fifteen promises to those who would pray the Rosary every day. These promises should inspire us to greater devotion. I reproduce them here, but they can also be found at Our Lady's Warriors.org Click the link to read an explanation of each of these 15 promises.
1. Whosoever shall faithfully serve me by the recitation of the Rosary shall receive signal graces.

2. I promise my special protection and the greatest graces to all those who shall recite the Rosary.

3. The Rosary shall be a powerful armor against hell, it will destroy vice, decrease sin and defeat heresies.

4. It will cause good works to flourish; it will obtain for souls the abundant mercy of God; it will withdraw the hearts of men from the love of the world and its vanities, and will lift them to the desire for Eternal Things. Oh, that souls would sanctify themselves by this means.

5. The soul which recommends itself to me by the recitation of the Rosary shall not perish.

6. Whosoever shall recite the Rosary devoutly, applying himself to the consideration of its Sacred Mysteries shall never be conquered by misfortune. God will not chastise him in His justice, he shall not perish by an unprovided death; if he be just he shall remain in the grace of God, and become worthy of Eternal Life.

7. Whoever shall have a true devotion for the Rosary shall not die without the Sacraments of the Church.

8. Those who are faithful to recite the Rosary shall have during their life and at their death the Light of God and the plenitude of His Graces; at the moment of death they shall participate in the Merits of the Saints in Paradise.

9. I shall deliver from purgatory those who have been devoted to the Rosary.

10. The faithful children of the Rosary shall merit a high degree of Glory in Heaven.

11. You shall obtain all you ask of me by recitation of the Rosary.

12. All those who propagate the Holy Rosary shall be aided by me in their necessities.

13. I have obtained from my Divine Son that all the advocates of the Rosary shall have for intercessors the entire Celestial Court during their life and at the hour of death.

14. All who recite the Rosary are my Sons, and brothers of my Only Son Jesus Christ.

15. Devotion to my Rosary is a great sign of predestination.
Our Lady's Warriors.org reminds us that "these promises mean that, by faithfully and devoutly praying the Rosary, Our Lady will obtain for us the necessary Graces to obtain said promises. It is still up to each individual soul to respond to those Graces in order to obtain salvation."

The beauty of prayer, through the Rosary, was described beautifully by fellow Catholic convert, Owen Swain, in the archives of his spiritual oddysey. In a post titled Bead by Bead, he writes,
The fact of the rosary is this, it is not work but rather I rest in the rhythm of the Hail Marys, focusing on the meaning and prayer intention of the specific mystery from the life of Christ and his Mother, it is a realization that causes me to laugh that I ever thought that Catholics work for their salvation, in the sense that Protestants so often accuse Catholics of working for their salvation. In the rosary ours is to be obedient while God does the work of answering the prayer yes, but arguably more importantly as we rest in the rosary God does a work in us. I gave myself over early in faith to the idea that a central point of the rosary is seeing God’s Son through Mary’s eyes because she is our greatest example as devoted Christian. What I gave my self over to in faith, the substance of things I did not then see, I have now begun to see and understand and the speed at which this has happened I can only attribute to the grace of God. I could not have anticipated this and so I laugh a laugh of joy for God and not of derision for my Protestant brothers and sisters or Catholics for that matter who see no place for a holy devotion to the rosary. Yes, I have been taken by surprise in receiving what I asked for.

...

Now, no struggle in prayer, this is new for me. It is a kind of freedom in the spirit that I have not known before and I was a card carrying Pentecostal for over two decades. There is nothing vain in the repetitions of the rosary as the focus is Christ, which is more than one can say for endless list prayers that for all their spiritual sounding tone are at least as much self orriented as they are Christ centric. Instead when prayed with attention, intention and devotion there is an increase of hope, faith and love as well as practical reminders, promtings if you like, about specific intentions or prayer requests as I used to call them.

And by no struggle I mean not that we should not by times be hard at it, struggling in faith or doubt or hope or confession as we pray nor do I mean that setting time aside and getting down to the business of meeting with God is not sometimes an effort of the will. What I mean is that, perhaps to my shame, for the first time in a long time I am drawn to prayer, I want to return to the beads and the meditations on my Lord. What I mean is that as I come to those times my mind does not wander, I am not adrift thinking of what to pray for next or reciting an endless list of items to God and detailing some of them in such a way as if you would think I thought God was unaware of the details. Do you see that?

...

Praying the rosary, even for a novice, is a bit like watching God thread the spirit of his blessed Son into my life, bead by bead. Nothing vain in that.
I echo Owen's sentiments. Through the Rosary, I have grown closer to Jesus, through His Mother, than I ever had achieved at any time in my life before!

How to Pray the Rosary

The Rosary beads are a chain of many beads that form a loop. Trailing from the loop is a small stretch of 5 beads ending with a Crucifix. Where the tail connects to the loop, there is a medal, usually of Mary, or Jesus, or a saint. The one hanging from my rearview mirror has the Eucharistic Chalice with a Host above it. From the medal are ten beads, a slight space, a single bead, another space, ten more beads, etc. In all, there are five groups of ten beads, with a single bead between each group of ten, making four (plus the medal).

Beginning with the Crucifix, we pray the Apostles' Creed (See the prayers below). Then, while fingering the first of the five beads, we pray the Our Father. For the next three beads, we pray a Hail Mary each. On the fifth bead, we pray a Glory Be.

When we get to the medal, we announce the first mystery that we intend to meditate on (the mysteries will be explained below as well). Then we pray another Our Father. For the next 10 beads we pray a Hail Mary each, while meditating and praying about the mystery that we have just announced. When we come to the space between the tenth bead and the single bead, we pray a Glory Be, and then a Fatima Prayer. At the single bead, we announce the next mystery, and start the process over. This continues until all five mysteries are prayed through and meditated upon, and we arrive at the medal again. In the space after the final tenth bead and the medal, we again pray a Glory Be, and a Fatima Prayer, as we have done. Then, at the Medal, we pray a Marian prayer such as the Hail, Holy Queen (which is my preference) or another prayer to Mary of our choice. Then we cross ourselves and go on our way, knowing that we are not walking alone!

The Prayers of the Rosary
The Apostles' Creed
This prayer is a brief summary of our beliefs. It is called "The Apostles' Creed" because it was a summary of their teachings, passed on by the early Church.
I believe in God, the Father Almighty
Creator of Heaven and Earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
On the third day He rose again.
He ascended into Heaven.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Holy Catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
The Our Father
This is the prayer that Jesus taught His disciples, when they asked Him how to pray in Matthew 6:9-13.
Our Father, who art in heaven
Hallowed by Thy Name.
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
And forgive us our trespasses
As we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
Amen.
The Hail Mary
This prayer is also taken from Scripture--at least the first half. The first two lines are Gabriel's greeting to Mary in Luke 1:28, and the second two are Elizabeth's greeting to Mary in Luke 1:42. The second half is a simple prayer asking Mary to pray for us.
Hail Mary, full of grace,
The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women,
And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, Mother of God
Pray for us sinners,
Now, and at the hour of our death.
The Glory Be
This is a simple doxology glorifying the Trinity.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit.
As it was in the beginning,
Is now, and forever will be,
World without end. Amen.
The Fatima Prayer
This prayer was given to the three children of Fatima, Portugal, when Mary appeared to them in a series of visions. She asked them to pray it when they prayed the Rosary. In my mind, it proves the desire of Mary to lead us to Jesus:
O my Jesus,
Forgive us our sins,
Save us from the fires of hell,
And lead all souls to heaven--
Especially those in most need of Thy mercy.
Amen.
The Hail, Holy Queen
This poetic prayer to Mary can cause concern to Protestants, but we must understand that everything that we hold in this prayer is only because of Jesus, and because she brought Jesus into the world in order to be our salvation.
Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy,
Our life, our sweetness, and our hope.
To thee we cry, poor banished children of Eve.
To thee we lift up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears.
Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy towards us,
And show unto us the Most Blessed Fruit of thy womb, Jesus--
O clement, o loving, o sweet Virgin Mary.

Pray for us, most holy Mother of God,
That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Amen.
Those are the prayers of the Rosary. Many Protestants claim that the Rosary violates Jesus' condemnation of "vain repetition" in our prayers, since we repeat each prayer several times (Matthew 6:7-8). However, it is important to understand two things here:

1. Not all repetition is vain. Otherwise, many of the Psalms would fall under Jesus' condemnation, making Jesus a contradiction, since the Psalms are the inspired word of God. See, for example, Psalm 136, where the second line of each of its 26 verses is "For His faithful love endures forever." Now that's repetitious!

2. The focus of the prayer isn't on the words being said. They form a prayerful backdrop for the key part of the prayer--meditating on the life of Christ with Mary. Without this exercise of meditating on Christ, then yes, the Rosary would be vain repetition! The mysteries are the entire point of the Rosary! So what are they?

The Mysteries of the Rosary
By "mystery" it is meant an aspect of our faith that is miraculous, that we cannot comprehend. When it comes to the life of Christ, we will never comprehend how the Infinite, Almighty God could become a Man and live among us. Thus, everything that Christ did is a "mystery". In the Rosary, there are 20 mysteries, divided into four sets of five. One "rosary" is the praying of a set of 5, thus going around the loop.

The mysteries focus on Christ's birth, life, death, and resurrection. When we meditate on each mystery, it is important to focus on it as if we ourselves were there, witnessing the event. How would we have felt, or reacted, in that situation? When we do this, we go right into the pages of the Gospels with Mary, as she shows us her Son more clearly. As such, it is important that we read and learn the stories from the Bible itself. Therefore, I will include the place in the Bible where the story is found.

When we undertake to meditate on a mystery, it is helpful to offer a prayer intention. One will be suggested for furthering virtues in your life, as we discussed in the Seven Deadlies post.

Let us look at each mystery.

The Joyful Mysteries
These five mysteries focus on Jesus' birth and early childhood.

The Annunciation of Gabriel to Mary--Luke 1:26-38
Intention: When meditating on this mystery, pray for the humility of Mary when she responded to God's plan, saying, "You see before you the Lord's servant, let it happen to me as you have said" (Luke 1:38).

The Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth--Luke 1:39-56
Intention: When meditating on this mystery, pray that you would have a greater love for your neighbour (Matthew 22:39). Think of Mary, visiting her pregnant cousin, and helping her to keep house, while she herself is pregnant with the Saviour!

The Nativity of Jesus--Luke 2:1-21
Intention: Pray that Jesus would help you to be poor in spirit (Matthew 5:3), as He Himself was: The King of the Universe born in a barnyard feeding trough! If He would do this for us, what should we do for Him?

The Presentation of Jesus at the Temple--Luke 2:22-38
Intention: The Jewish people had to offer sacrifices of purification for every first-born child. When Mary and Joseph went to offer these sacrifices, two prophets, Simeon and Anna, give testimony to who Jesus is. If Mary and Joseph had not been obedient to even the seemingly minor points of the Law, Simeon would never have seen the Lord's promise fulfilled (Luke 2:26). Let us then pray for willingness to be obedient to Christ's laws.

Finding Jesus in the Temple at the age of 12--Luke 2:41-50
Intention: Jesus' parents lose track of Him on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem for Passover. In their worry they look everywhere, and finally find Him, a 12-year-old, teaching scribes and teachers of the Law! When they find Him, Mary and Joseph are filled with joy and relief. Let us pray that we would also be filled with joy at finding Christ working in our own lives--even in the places we least expect to see Him!

The Luminous Mysteries
These new mysteries, given by Pope John Paul 2 in 2002, highlight key events in the life and ministry of Jesus.

Jesus' Baptism--Matthew 3:1-17; Mark 1:1-11; Luke 3:1-22; John 1:29-34
Intention: At His baptism, the heavens were opened, and God proclaimed His love for Jesus, and sent the Holy Spirit to empower His ministry. Let us pray that we would have a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Jesus Turning Water into Wine at the Wedding in Cana--John 2:1-12
Intention: In this story, we see Mary bringing the servants to Jesus so that He could meet their need, and she tells them the most important piece of advice ever: "Do whatever He tells you" (John 2:5). Let us pray and ask Mary to lead us into a deeper relationship with her Son.

The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God--Matthew 4:23; 5:1-7:29
Intention: Let us pray that we would be willing to proclaim Jesus' Kingdom as He sends us out. Let us pray that we are never too worried about what others think that we would deny Jesus!

The Transfiguration of Jesus--Matthew 17:1-8; Mark 9:2-8
Intention: When Jesus was transfigured, He displayed His true glory for a moment, to Peter, James and John. Let us pray that He would reveal His glory in our own lives.

The Last Supper--Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:7-20
Intention: Let us pray that we would come to know Jesus truly as He gives Himself to us in the Eucharist.

The Sorrowful Mysteries
These mysteries focus on Jesus' suffering and death, which brings us forgiveness for our sins.

Jesus' Agony in the Garden--Matthew 26:36-46; Mark 14:32-42; Luke 22:39-46
Intention: As we meditate on Jesus praying and sweating blood for us, let us pray for true sorrow and true repentance for our sins which brought Him here.

Jesus' Arrest and Scourging--Matthew 26:47-27:26; Mark 14:43-15:15; Luke 22:47-23:25; John 18:1-19:16
Intention: As we meditate on Jesus' suffering, let us realise that it brought us our redemption: "He was being wounded for our rebellions, crushed because of our guilt; the punishment reconciling us fell on Him, and we have been healed by His bruises" (Isaiah 53:5). Let us pray and thank Him for His salvation, and pray that we would understand the value of suffering in our own lives.

The Crowning with Thorns--Matthew 27:27-31; Mark 15:16-20
Intention: Let us pray, as we meditate on Jesus' humiliation, that we will have the strength to stand up for Him, even in the face of ridicule and death.

Jesus' Carrying His Cross--Matthew 27:32-33; Mark 15:20-22; Luke 23:26-32; John 19:17-18
Intention: As we meditate on Christ carrying His Cross, let us pray for the patience that He had in enduring this torture.

Jesus' Crucifixion and Death--Matthew 27:32-56; Mark 15:23-39; Luke 23:33-49; John 19:18-37
Intention: As we meditate on Jesus' death, let us reflect on the care He had for those around Him, even in His agony. Let us pray that we would persevere in our walk with Him always, so that we would inherit the crown of life.

The Glorious Mysteries
These mysteries focus on Jesus' resurrection and His power in the Church

The Resurrection--Matthew 28:1-10; Mark 16:1-13; Luke 24:1-42; John 20:1-21:25
Intention: As we meditate on Jesus' Resurrection, pray that He would increase our faith in Him.

The Ascension--Matthew 28:16-20; Mark 16:14-20; Luke 24:44-53; Acts 1:1-11
Intention: As we meditate on Jesus' Ascension into heaven, let us pray that He would fill us with hope in the angels' words, "Why are you...standing here looking into the sky? This Jesus who has been taken up from you will come back in the same way as you have seen Him go to heaven" (Acts 1:11).

The Outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost--Acts 2:1-36
Intention: As we meditate, let us pray that the Holy Spirit would fill us with a greater love and zeal for God.

Mary's Assumption into Heaven--Revelation 11:19-12:1
Intention: At the end of her life, Mary was assumed bodily into Jesus' presence in heaven so that she who had been graced to be without sin, would not suffer the unltimate consiquence of sin: death. Let us pray for the desire to join Mary and her Son, Jesus, in heaven, so that we would not stray from following Him here on earth.

Mary's Coronation as Queen of Heaven--Revelation 12:1
Intention: Let us pray and ask Mary to increase our trust in her intercession for us, and for the entire Church, of which she is the Mother (Revelation 12:17).

These mysteries of the Rosary, when we pray them, and meditate on them, will lead us to a greater knowledge of Christ, and a deeper relationship with Him. Let us take our cue from Mary herself, and ponder all these things in our hearts (Luke 2:51).

In conclusion, I'd like to leave some tips when praying the Rosary:

1. Set aside a specific time each day for reciting the Rosary, and stick to it. Whether it's in the morning when you get up, or before you go to bed. Maybe when you get home from school, or after you finish homework. Or, possibly, even say a decade on the bus ride to and/or from school.

2. Pray with your heart, not just your lips, so that prayer becomes a joy to you rather than a burden.

3. Announce each Mystery, and name a prayer intention, whether for you or for another, that is specific to that Mystery, such as I've suggested in the listing of each Mystery. But by all means, be creative. My suggestions are just that: suggestions!

4. Pause for a moment to meditate on and visually contemplate the Gospel Mystery being said.

5. Make the Rosary part of a greater spiritual program in your life, that includes Mass, receiving the Eucharist, Confession, reading the Bible, and other things.


And remember, God helps you pray, and He understands when we just can't seem to. To Him, even the very desire to pray is itself a prayer. So stick with it.

God bless!
Pray for me!

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Saturday, October 14, 2006

St. Peter - c. 64

For this post, we're jumping way back to the beginnings of Christianity again, to discuss the big kahuna himself, St. Peter, the leader of the Church and first Pope.

Now, Peter wasn't born with that name. Instead, his parents named him Simon. And Simon was a fisherman, who made his living catching and selling fish in his hometown of Capernaum. But I suspect he wasn't all that great of a fisherman, since at least twice, the Gospels tell us that he spent the whole night fishing, and didn't catch a thing!

After one of these profitless nights, a tired Simon and his colleagues were sailing to the shore of the Sea of Galilee, and on the shore, they see a Man, talking to a crowd of people who are swarming so close to Him that they're almost pushing Him into the water. This Man turns to Simon, and says, "Simon, can I borrow your boat?" Simon lets this Man up so that He can continue to preach and teach about God's love and His Kingdom. Simon listens intently to what this Man has to say, and after He is done His message, Simon makes sure to introduce himself. Jesus says to him, "Hey, let's go fishing!" Simon, tired from the night's work, and knowing that the middle of the day is just a bad fishing time, was probably a little doubtful: "Actually, Jesus, if it's all the same to you, I'd rather go home to bed. I was out all night and didn't catch anything. Do You mind?" To which, Jesus replies, "Come on, it'll be fun!"

So Simon sets out with Jesus for some highly irregular fishing--and it will only become more irregular from this point out! In the middle of the sea, Jesus says to Simon, "Throw out your nets!" Simon again reminds Jesus that fishing is terrible at this time of day, but follows Jesus' instructions anyway. And after catching nothing all night, in peak fishing hours, suddenly now, in the middle of the day, Simon's nets are so full that they're breaking from the catch!

Realising that this just isn't normal, Simon turns to Jesus and says, "Away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!" Jesus, instead, lifts Simon up and says, "No longer will you catch fish, but from now on, you will catch men!" And from that point, Simon gave up his fishing business and accompanied Jesus as He taught about the Kingdom of God, and Simon himself preached and did many signs and wonders.

A little while goes by, and Jesus pulls Simon and the other disciples aside for a pop quiz. There had been a lot of questions about who exactly Jesus was, and so He put those questions to His crew: "Who do people say that I am?" Some replied that people thought He was Elijah come back from heaven. Others said He was a great prophet. Some didn't like Him so much, and thought He was a bit of a wing-nut. So Jesus brought it home: "Who do you say that I am?" Simon, who was one of those kids who always answered without sticking up his hand, blurted out, "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!" And, much to his surprise, Jesus replied by saying, "Hey, you're right!" Jesus continued, saying, "This answer didn't just come from your own mind, either, but God Himself revealed this to you! Because of this, I'm renaming you Peter, the Rock, and on this Rock I will build My Church!" Peter was on top of the world!

But the very next moment, Jesus said, "But first, people are going to begin to hate Me, and they'll take Me away and crucify Me! But I will rise again on the third day." I guess Peter missed the last part, because he immediately interrupted, saying, "What?! There ain't no way, Lord! That ain't gonna happen!" Jesus got right in Peter's face and said, "Get behind Me, satan. You're not focussing on what God wants, but on what you want!" Now, of course, Jesus wasn't calling Peter the devil, but in calling him satan, which means "adversary" or "opponent", Jesus was showing that Peter's mindset was in direct opposition to the will of God. Peter went from a big high, to a very deflated low. And much of the Gospel's record of Peter was a repeated loop of big high, big low as he served God well, and then followed it up with sometimes incredible stupidity.

Perhaps the most famous case of Peter's stupidity was at the Last Supper. Jesus again told them of His impending Crucifixion, so that His disciples would not need to be confused as well as afraid, but know what the plan was. He told them that when it happened, they would all leave Him and scatter. Peter, again speaking out boldly, said, "Never, Lord! Even if all these others leave You, I never will! I'm willing to even die with You!"

I'm grateful that Jesus is so infinitely patient with us. I'm sure He sighed and shook His head, and then told Peter, "I'm telling you, Peter, this very night you will deny that you know Me three times before the rooster crows." And of course, Peter rejected that! "Nuh uh! No way! No!"

Afterward, they went out to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. Well, Jesus prayed. Peter, James, and John fell asleep. Three times. Finally, Jesus (again, eternally patient) wakes them to tell them that the mob is here to arrest Him. Peter, again trying to be the heroic Rock, takes out a sword and starts swinging. He chops off one of the guards' ears! Jesus again, shakes His head and says, "Oh Peter, didn't I tell you not to do that? This has to happen!" With that, Jesus heals the ear of the guard! Meanwhile, Peter and the other disciples take off.

But Peter doesn't go too far, but rather, he follows at a safe distance. He hangs around outside of the courtroom, trying to hear the results of Jesus' trial. As he stands there, someone approaches him, and asks whether he was one of Jesus' disciples. "No way! I got no idea what you're talkin' about!"

A little later, someone else asks the same question, noting that Peter's accent was the same as Jesus' and the other disciples. Again, Peter denies knowing Jesus. Finally, a little servant girl sees him and says, "You were with Jesus!" And big, tough, rocky Peter is so intimidated by her that he curses and swears and denies that he knows Jesus! Then the rooster crowed, and Peter remembered Jesus' words, and ran off weeping.

We know the story--how Jesus was crucified, died, and was buried. On the third day, He rose again, and when, that morning, Mary Magdalene and the other women were going to the tomb to properly embalm Him, an angel was waiting there for them! The angel told them that Jesus had risen, and to go and tell the Disciples--and Peter--that Jesus would meet them in Galilee!

Peter, hearing the news, says to his friends, "Galilee, eh? I'm going fishing!" And the disciples joined him, as he took his boat out of retirement and cast out on the Sea of Galilee that night. They fished all night, and, once again, caught nothing! As they were heading into shore, there was a man walking on the beach. He hollered out to them, "Hey! Catch anything?" Peter probably grumbled a no, and the man yelled again, "Throw out your nets on the other side of the boat!"

Now, I don't know if you know anything about fishing. I've fished a few times, catching nothing, and Jesus' words will come back to me, and I'll try tossing out my line on the other side of the boat. And I still catch nothing! Why? Because fish aren't hiding on the other side of the boat, laughing at you as you cast out on the one side. That's just not how it works. They're not that smart.

So to Peter, this advice had to sound incredibly useless, but he remembered a similar incident of receiving bad fishing advice that paid off big, so he looked at John and said, "Hey, what the heck?" When they did, they caught a huge amount of fish! The Gospel of John numbers them at 153! And this time, the nets didn't break! When John saw the miracle, he says to Peter, "Hey! It's Jesus!" Peter grabs his coat, puts it on, and leaving everyone else to finish hauling in the fish, he jumps out of the boat and swims to shore. Now, I wouldn't be putting more clothes on before I jump in a lake, but hey, it's Peter.

When he gets to shore, Jesus takes him for a walk, and begins talking to him. He asks Peter if he loves Him, to which Peter replies, "Yes, I love you, Lord." Jesus says to him, "Feed My sheep." A little later, Jesus asks again, "Do you love Me?" Peter again answers, "Yes Lord, You know I love You." Jesus says to him, "Feed My lambs." A third time, Jesus asks Peter, "Do you love Me?" Peter's a little upset about being asked a third time, and replies, "Lord, You know everything. You know I love You!" Jesus says, "Tend My sheep."

In doing this, Jesus gave Peter the opportunity to make up for denying Him three times, and each time, Jesus reaffirms His plan for Peter, to lead the Church. Jesus had compared Himself to a Good Shepherd, who lays down His life for the sheep. On the Cross, He had done just that. Now, it was Peter's turn to take over caring for those very sheep.

Afterwards, on the Day of Pentecost, the Disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit. Peter took up that leadership role, preaching Christ to the crowds, and in that first sermon, 3000 people converted to Christianity! And Peter continued to serve and to lead the Church, travelling abroad and beginning churches. Finally, he went to Rome, and began and led the church there. In the 60s, the Emperor Nero came to power, and he hated the Christians. He also seemed to love fire, and parties. And at one such party, he burned down half the city of Rome. When his enemies tried to put the blame on him, though, he said, "Wasn't me! It was, uh, the Christians! Let's kill 'em!" And so a terrible state-sponsored persecution of the Church began, killing many Christians (Nero would often light their bodies on fire as streetlights--big surprise).

The Christians in Rome pleaded with Peter to flee for his safety, since, as the leader of the Church, Nero would certainly be coming after him. And, heeding their advice, Peter fled. But as he left Rome, St. Ambrose tells us that he had a vision, and in it he saw Jesus, carrying His cross back toward Rome. Peter asked Jesus, "Lord, where are You going?" Jesus replied, "I am going to Rome, to be crucified again." Then the vision ended, and Peter knew that Jesus wasn't really going to be crucified again, but that he, as Jesus' representative, needed to return to Rome and continue to lead the Church until whatever happened, happened. So Peter did just that.

When the Romans caught up with Peter, and arrested him, he was slated to be crucified in the Colosseum. But Peter refused that death, saying that he was unworthy to die in the same way that His Lord had. So they crucified Peter upside down, and by his courageous death, he gave glory to God.

St. Peter's story is encouraging to us today. Through it we know that God is ever-patient with us, and always forgiving. Even when we screw up numerous times, God's plan is still true for us, and if we are willing to return to Him, we will find forgiveness and restoration, just as Peter did; and ultimately, our lives and our deaths will be used to the glory of God!

Amen!

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Tuesday, October 10, 2006

Sr. Leonella - 2006 (Sept. 17)

In the last post, I wrote about St. Stephen, the first Christian martyr. This post, we'll be skipping forward to very nearly the latest Christian martyr! She's not on my Get Holy or Die Tryin' t-shirt. She was still alive when it was made! In fact, Sr. Leonella only joined the ranks of martyrs a short three weeks ago, though she seemed to expect it for many years.

Thirty-eight years ago, Sister Leonella decided to consecrate her life to God, and become a nun. She made her perpetual vows and joined the Order of the Sisters of Consolation, and went to Kenya to work in a hospital among the poor and suffering just outside of Kenya's capital, Nairobi. Her infectious enthusiasm and love for her patients and all she met earned her great love and respect in her community. After working there for many years, her fellow sisters even elected her to Regional Superior at the hospital, which she did for 6 years! While she was in that position, she trained new sisters for the work of loving and caring for the poor, and trained them to be nurses in the hospital. During this time, she was able to get the World Heath Organisation to recognise the sisters in her order as validly certified nurses!

After 6 years, in 2001 she took a sabbatical, and travelled to Mogadishu, Somalia, to investigate starting a hospital there through the SOS Village organisation. Her vision became a reality the next year, and she was also in charge of the nursing school there.

In going to Somalia, ravaged by civil war for over 15 years, and still now in a state of uneasy peace and civil unrest, with an Al-Qaida cell vying for political power, Sr. Leonella knew the risks she faced as a Catholic nun. She would often joke, even back in Kenya, that one day there would be a bullet with her name on it. But the risk didn't deter her. Neither did her often poor health or the struggles with governments and bureaucracies. Through it all, she continued to work for and to love the people of Africa. But she wasn't naively unaware of the risks, either. One of her sisters had been kidnapped in the previous year. She was found and her kidnapper sentenced to one year, but this and other attacks and threats to their lives prompted Sr. Leonella to hire a bodyguard to protect her.

On September 17th, 2006, after making the rounds of the hospital she helped begin in Mogadishu, she and her bodyguard were crossing the street 30 feet to her home, where five of her sisters were waiting to have lunch. As she and her bodyguard crossed the street, three gunmen, lying in wait, shot her, killing her and her bodyguard execution-style. When her sisters heard the shots, they ran out of the home to see what was going on. As the gunmen fled, the sisters carried Sr. Leonella and her bodyguard back into the hospital, but it was too late. As Sr. Leonella lay dying, she kept repeating "Pardono, pardono, pardono..." which is Italian for "Forgive, forgive, forgive..." Just like St. Stephen, Sr. Leonella prayed to forgive her enemies, and, at the same time, instructed her fellow sisters, and everyone else around, that they must forgive her killers, too, and not become bitter and hateful.

At her funeral, the Bishop remarked on her life and on her love. He also remarked on the circumstances of her death, and her dying with her bodyguard. He said that if a man and a woman could die together; a black man and a white woman; a Muslim man and a Catholic nun, could die together, then it was a sign of hope that we could live together, in peace.

That's the vision that Sr. Leonella had for Somalia. And through her love, she lived out that vision daily. Pope Benedict XVI echoed Tertullian, when he expressed his prayer that "the blood shed by so faithful a disciple of the Gospel may become a seed of hope to construct authentic brotherhood among peoples."

Many in the news speculated that Sr. Leonella was murdered as a reaction to the Pope's remarks made in a lecture last month about how violence is incompatible with the nature of God, and cited Islam as an example of spreading the faith by the sword. It prompted many protests from Muslims throughout the world, but in Sr. Leonella's case, let's remember again, that she'd already been threatened, and a fellow sister had even been kidnapped, before the Pope had ever made his speech. She didn't have a bodyguard for nothing!

Let us remember Sr. Leonella's legacy of love and forgiveness, and her inspiring courage in the face of many tremendous obstacles! Let us be full of courage in our own lives, as we reach out to help others with the love of God.

Amen.

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Friday, October 06, 2006

St. Stephen - c. 33

We'll begin our look at the lives (and deaths) of martyrs with the story of St. Stephen, since he was the first Christian martyr. Stephen lived at the same time as Our Lord, and, in fact, died about the same year as Jesus Himself was crucified! He may (or may not) have even met Jesus Himself during His earthly ministry.

After Jesus had come, preaching about God, and how to love God and each other, He was crucified. But, since, not being just a normal human being, but, in fact, God Himself, He rose again on the Third day. After this, He commissioned His disciples to complete the work He had started, and to build His Church. He promised them the Holy Spirit, so that they would be able to accomplish His mission.

And so the Church began, on the day of Pentecost, as the Holy Spirit descended and filled the believers. And they, empowered by Him, went out and preached about Jesus, and His love and forgiveness. And many people believed in Him. But the Church knew it was not enough simply to proclaim God's love, but to actually live it out. And the early church in Jerusalem did this radically. Christians would even sell their own valued possessions, and use the money to buy food for the poor! Think about that: going home, and selling your television, your Xbox, your skateboard, your car, or even the computer on which you're reading this! And then, use that money to go and benefit the poor and needy around you!

This is what the earliest Christians were doing. But before long, a problem arose: The early Christians were Jewish, and as they did these loving acts, they made sure that the poor Jewish people of Jerusalem were looked after. But the problem was this: Not all those who lived in Jerusalem were Jewish. And there were many poor Greek people who also were in need. So they came to St. Peter, and asked him to make sure that they wouldn't be overlooked in the daily distribution of food. St. Peter said to them, "I have to run this whole Church, and study the Scriptures in order to teach about Jesus. I can't wait tables, too! But this is a serious problem, so here's what we'll do. We'll appoint seven men to be Deacons, and their job will be to make sure that everyone is looked after fairly and properly.

(Notably, the Catholic Church still ordains Deacons, and their primary vocation is still social justice in the community and in the world--and it began with these seven men, in Acts chapter 6!)

The very first person picked as a Deacon was St. Stephen, and he was chosen, according to the Bible, because he was "full of faith and of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 6:5). The Holy Spirit working in Stephen gave him the humility, the courage, and the love to reach out to the poor with kindness. Now, Stephen was a bright and handy fellow. He could have made a career doing anything. He could have made a terrific living for himself, and been considered very successful in the world's eyes. But instead, he gave it up, in order to serve the poor and lowly. And this choice led many people to wonder about him. What would make a person choose to live a life like that? And they would ask Stephen about it, and he would answer, "A couple of years ago, there was this guy, Jesus, who came, and taught us how to love. He was amazing, doing miracles and wowing everyone. But the authorities became jealous and angry at Him, because He made them aware of their need to change. And rather than change themselves, they chose instead to kill Him. They crucified Him, but He rose again, and told us to carry on preaching and acting out God's love. And because of Him, and His love for us, I'm here helping the poor."

And whenever Stephen had the opportunity, he would tell people about Jesus. But, as I said, Jesus had only been crucified earlier that year. And those people who didn't like Jesus were still alive, and they still didn't like Jesus. And they weren't too fond of those people who talked about Him. So they came to Stephen and they said, "We don't want you talkin' about Jesus anymore. Quit it." And Stephen said, "Uh, no. I love Jesus way too much to stop talkin' about Him." So they said again, "Shut up, or we'll make you shut up!" Stephen replied, "Jesus is just too awesome for me to stop talking about Him!"

But you can't just kill someone who devotes his whole life to serving the poor! Someone like that has way too much respect in society. So his enemies plotted amongst themselves, and they started making up lies about horrible things that Stephen supposedly had done. And they told the authorities, and came back to Stephen, and said, "Because of all the horrible things we say you did, we're going to kill you," and they picked up stones to throw at him.

Now, I don't know about you, but if someone made up a bunch of lies about what a horrible person I am, and began throwing rocks at my head because of it, my first response would be to pick up my own rocks and throw them right back: "Oh, it's on, now!"

But as the mob was stoning Stephen, he did not retaliate, but instead prayed, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." And as he died, he saw a vision, of Jesus standing up in Heaven, welcoming him home (Acts 7:60, 56).

Now, while the world might consider a person who gives up everything in life to follow God, and then ends up killed for it, a colossal failure, we recognise St. Stephen as a great hero. The reason we do so, is because we recognise that Stephen's death is not the end of the story.

As Stephen was being Crucified, he prayed for God to forgive his very killers! That kind of love can only come from the Holy Spirit in one's life! But the amazing thing is, all of us who are Christian have that same Holy Spirit! And as we grow closer to Him, and make ourselves more available to Him, we too will be filled with that same love that Stephen showed. And that love will have serious effects, as we see from Stephen's story. Because as Stephen was being stoned, one of the people in the crowd, one who had a rather large part in instigating the stoning, was a man named Saul.

Now Saul was rather anti-Christian. So much so that, after Stephen died, he went around trying to arrest and even kill other Christians. One such mission of his took him to a town called Damascus--but on the way, Saul had an encounter with Jesus. As he travelled, Saul saw a bright light that knocked him right off his horse, and heard Jesus say to him, "Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" Saul didn't know what to say, and so replied, "Who are You, Lord?" Jesus replied that He was Jesus, and that Saul would go on to Damascus to seek out a Christian, but not to kill him, but rather, this person, Ananias, would pray for him and baptise him, and Saul would become a great witness to Jesus!

In this remarkable way, Jesus answered the prayer of Stephen to forgive his killers, which Stephen prayed as he died, and let me tell you, continued to pray after he arrived in heaven! And Saul was the first one to receive the grace of those prayers, when he was baptised in Damascus, and changed his name from Saul, to Paul.

It was this Apostle Paul who spread the faith throughout the Roman Empire, starting many, many churches, writing nearly half of the New Testament, and finally, dying as a martyr himself, beheaded by the Emperor Nero! This is the legacy that St. Stephen's martyrdom gave to the Church!

And each of us, through the Holy Spirit, are able to live such a heroic life of faith, and to impact our generation with the Gospel of Jesus Christ! We need only to be willing to yield our own lives to the Holy Spirit inside of us!

God bless!

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Wednesday, October 04, 2006

Get Holy or Die Tryin'



I realise that I typically use red to denote the words of Christ from Scripture. However, liturgically, red is the colour worn by the priests on feasts in honour of the Martyrs. Over the school year, when a title on this blog is in red, the post will be telling the story of one such martyr.

Last summer, I went down to the Franciscan University of Steubenville's annual youth conference (which rocked out loud, and we'll be going as a youth group next year!), and while I was there, I explored the gift shop and found the t-shirt pictured above, made by Catholic to the Max.com. I saw it, and had to get it, mainly because St. Jean de Brébeuf topped the second column, and, being a Canadian martyr, my patriotism swayed my decision against other very cool t-shirts. At the time that I bought the shirt, I did not realise that it was, in fact, a parody of 50 Cent: Get Rich or Die Tryin'. I just thought that it was a wicked shirt, with martyrs on the back, and a slogan that we as Catholics should all aspire to: Get Holy, or Die Tryin'.

Now that the school year is back in full swing, and I'm back visiting the elementary schools' senior grades, I've decided, instead of just preachin' at them, to tell stories instead--and the stories I have to tell are those of the martyrs (particularly those on the back of my t-shirt, listed above). Now, there are 44 listings on the shirt, and less than 44 weeks in the school year, so we won't cover all of them. But I will select the ones that I think have the most captivating, inspiring, and challenging tales (a difficult task, in light of the roster--but then, I feel I can be choosy, since the creators of the shirt themselves were choosy. If they included all the martyrs, the t-shirt would need to be a robe, covered front and back with their names!).

The fact that the t-shirt is a parody of 50 Cent's misguided motto adds further depth to the message. 50 Cent reflects the world's view of success: to be rich, successful, famous, and all that. In stark contrast, Jesus in the Beatitudes reminds us that it is the poor, gentle, mournful, hungry and thirsty for righteousness, merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers, and persecuted who are blessed and truly successful.

In the lives of the martyrs that we'll hear about, we will see all of these characteristics lived out as the Spirit of God makes these normal men and women, just like us, able.

While the world would look at a person who gives up their entire life in service of Christ, and is willing to even suffer persecution and death for that, as a fool and a failure, the Catholic Church views these people as Heroes to be looked up to and emulated. These are the Church's greatest success stories, and their impact on this world far surpasses their deaths. The ancient Christian writer Tertullian once remarked that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church. Throughout history, and in our modern world, it is where Christians are persecuted that the Church is strongest and growing fastest.

The examples of the martyrs' lives on earth, and their prayers for the world, in heaven, continue to change the world we live in, in extraordinary ways. May we, filled with the Spirit of God, lead lives such as theirs.

As many a martyr said upon his death:
Long Live Christ the King!

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Tuesday, October 03, 2006

All Day

All Day
Hillsong United

I don't care what they say about me
It's alright, alright
I don't care they think about me
It's alright, they'll get it one day

I love you, I'll follow you
You are my, my life
I will read my bible and pray
I will follow you all day

I don't care what it costs anymore
'Cos you gave it all and I'm following you
I don't care what it takes anymore
No matter what happens I'm going your way

I love you, I'll follow you
You are my, my life
I will read my bible and pray
I will follow you all day

All Day
All Day now
All Day

I don't care what they say about me
It's alright, alright
I don't care they think about me
It's alright, they'll get it one day

I love you, I'll follow you
You are my, my life
I will read my bible and pray
I will follow you all day

All Day
All Day now
All Day

Anyone around can see
just how good you've been to me
For all my friends that don't know you
I pray that you would save them too

All Day
All Day now
All Day
I have to admit, when I first heard this song at a Pentecostal church here in Oakville, I thought it was the most repetitive thing I'd ever heard in my life! And Pentecostals love to accuse Catholics of vain repetition! However, I heard it on the actual cd by Hillsong United, and I liked it better, mainly because, while it was still repetitive (and a little banal), it was somewhat less so, and had a pretty cool bass line.

But it has grown on me, a little. Enough that I can base a talk on it. It does have a good message, even if it is, as I said, rather banal.

The song encourages us to have the courage to proclaim our faith in our world today, no matter what anyone thinks; no matter what it costs. We live in an age where pluralism is good, tolerance has replaced the "golden rule", and absolutes are viewed as narrow-mindedness and backward thinking. Those who believe in, and hold to those absolutes are often ridiculed or branded as fanatical or fundamentalists, or worse. Our Pope, in speaking out against the "Dictatorship of Relativism", has been labelled as a backwards-thinking archaism, who wants to return the world to the Dark Ages, or he has been libelled as a Nazi-sympathiser and a hater of almost everyone. Why? Because he has dared to speak the truth, and not water it down.

But we cannot water down the truth, because it is the Truth that sets us free! We have to fight for the truth, so that others can be set free, as well!

So what weapons do we have? The song, in typical Protestant fashion, gives the bare-bones answer: Bible and Prayer. And they're not wrong, only limited. As Catholics, we rely on the inspired Word of God, the Bible and the Apostolic Tradition handed down unchanged, though developed, since the beginning of Christianity. It is His Word which keeps us stable during the storms of uncertainty and relativism, and cuts through the lies and deceptions of the world. It is the Sword of the Spirit.

Further, we have prayer. In particular, we have that prayer that the saints, and particularly Pope John-Paul II, referred to as our most powerful weapon: the Rosary. Through it, we meditate on Christ's life, and are led closer to Him by His Mother, Mary. Through it, we receive an abundance of grace. Through it, we bind our hearts to God and walk on. Through it, we meditate on the Word of God, and understand its application to our own lives, so that we can live it out effectively in the world.

And so we will read God's Word, and pray the Rosary, daily. Maybe not for long stretches at first--but more and more. It takes discipline, but it is the lazy who will be caught off guard. With so many things competing for our time and attention, we desperately need to take that time and focus on Christ, His Mother, and His Church. Then we won't be intimidated by the world. We won't be ashamed of the Gospel. Then anyone around truly will see how good He has been to us, and they may become more devoted to Him, as we share His word with them.

God bless.

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Another Day, Another Death

Brief note, the Open Forum below this post is still Open. Post, and ask, away!
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Just a note, this piece was written by my buddy, Dave Stoneburgh, who co-writes The Daily Disciple, and co-writes Three Nails with me. I thought this was a well-written, impassioned, inspiring call for us to be bold in sharing our faith, so I'm reproducing it here.
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Someone asked me something tonight. How do you tell someone about Jesus when their beliefs, their possibly conflicting beliefs, are as real to them as Jesus Christ is to you? They might have more faith than you do. Born and raised, how can you tell them that what is fact, is actually wrong. And on top of all that, how do you tell them that if they don't change, it's Hell for eternity? You could avoid telling them. Another day, another death.

In World Religions class, I learned that I had to respect all cultures and their beliefs. I learned that some cultures believed in many gods. They believed in gods of life, death, war, beauty...things that I thought were odd, and foreign, but I musn't say that, because I was to be respectful to them. What they believe is as real to them, as what I believe is to me. What they believed seemed to be that when you die, you would either go to a wonderful afterlife, or you would come back to Earth. Almost every variant I could identify seemed dampened, acceptable...fine. What was the harm if they were right. I would be fine. They would be fine. In the interest of respect, it made sense that I kept my mouth shut. But what if they weren't right? Then it was a big deal. For everyone; thousands of people and their eternal souls. Another day, another thousand deaths.

At home, I was either in front of a television, or the computer screen. I either watched as the media butchered my beliefs in the interest of ratings, or I read the words of hate scattered about the vast cybergraveyard at my fingertips. Casual sex and crime flooded the television that millions of youth found themselves in front of every day. Music videos advertising girls who were advertising their bodies, and men doing drugs and killing each other was what millions more found themselves relating to every night, 5 through 10pm. Web forums of any topic would always find themselves deep within a Christian bashing session at the accidental typing of the word "Jesus". Some of the things I've seen them say; careless, and guiltless behind the mask of anonymity that is the internet. Another day, another million deaths.

How can I tell someone who believes so strongly against me, that Jesus is the only way? After all, if they were to look about the media, or in their schools, they would see exactly how wrong Christianity must be. And what grim alternative is it to go from believing in reincarnation, to believing that their current path will lead them to eternal torture. It would seem that it's easiest to keep our mouths shut. The few of us who know what's right will be rewarded, and the rest can pay the debt for not finding it on their own. Another day, another Christian's death.

You know how we do it? You want to know how we can tell them that everything they believe is wrong? They told us to keep quiet. They told us to be 'respectful'. THEY TOLD US TO SIT BACK, AND WATCH THEM DIE! Those people who believe differently have the option of saying, "even though these Christians don't believe what we do, we're all going to be OK in the end". We do not! Without us, without you, these people; these valuable souls, are condemned to Hell forever! As a Christian, you have no choice, you have no moral choice to make as some would have you believe. It is your duty to save souls. We don't do this as a recruitment mission. We don't do this to keep our numbers large enough. We don't do it to keep the Church revenue coming. We do this because anyone with an ounce of heart in them can't watch as someone falls into the underworld, and suffers worse then we can imagine for...for...forever. We do this, not for us; not for our own hearts. We do this for them. We do this out of love. Any pain they may feel on the journey is a necessity in their eternal bliss. Another day, another life.

They said we were wrong.

I will not stand for these lies! I will not let them tell me to be quiet, to be respectful, to sit down and shut up. There's no amount of 'respect' in the world that could justify allowing someone to die and burn. I want to see all of them in heaven with me! Another day of eternal life...

So, how do I answer the question? How can you tell such an unbeliever about Jesus Christ? I tell you I can, only out of love. I love them like my Savior loves me. I can't earn it, I don't deserve it, but I have it. God loves me, and will always love me. He loves them too. There's nothing they could do to change that. I will keep fighting for them, because their souls are just as precious to me as the souls of my Christian friends and family. I love this world. And though I can't say I love what it, and it's media have done to what I believe, I promise I won't ever sit down, quiet down, and be....'respectful'.

Another day, another smile.


~Dave~

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