Pentecost Sunday_A - Let the Fire Fall_052823

Deacon Tom Writes,

Let the Fire Fall

 

Pentecost Sunday, Year A

Today marks the Feast of Pentecost that celebrates the Holy Spirit’s presence in our church. In fact, Pentecost is considered the "birthday of the church”. The term "Pentecost" comes from the Greek word meaning "the 50th day". It is the day Christianity commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles, fifty days after Jesus’ resurrection.

Pentecost is not just a Christian feast. It is derived from a Hebrew celebration known as, Shavuot, which was held 50 days after Passover and was associated with the first harvest of grain in the spring, in other words, it is a sign of life, a sign or hope, a sign of renewal, ideas and expressions that perhaps have taken on greater significance given the state of worldly affairs.

Pentecost continues to be very important in our Catholic Tradition (capital “T”) because of its identification with the Trinity where God is the Father who created all things; Jesus is the Redeemer of mankind; the Holy Spirit sanctifies all that the Father has brought into being and all that Jesus has redeemed.

The coming of the Holy Spirit into our world continues God’s presence among us. The Holy Spirit, our Advocate, our Helper, brings divine power to enable us to overcome our human weaknesses, our bigotries, our hatreds, our idolatries, rivalries, and jealousies. The Holy Spirit is our champion who awakens within us the divine qualities of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, and faithfulness. We call these attributes the “fruits of the Holy Spirit”. It is through these gifts that we ourselves are transformed and are thus able to cooperate with God in bringing about the transformation of the world into the Kingdom of God, a kingdom of peace and justice, a kingdom where Christ will reign forever over a new heaven and a new earth that we have been created to share.

Today, more so than perhaps ever before, we pray that the Spirit of God, the Advocate, our Helper, friend, and companion be with us to enlighten our minds and strengthen our hearts so that we may be instruments of God’s peace. We pray that our world may see the dawning of a new day that ushers in the Kingdom of God in its fullness.

Come Holy Spirit

Fill the hearts of your faithful

And kindle in them the fire of Your Love.

Send forth your Spirit

And they shall be created.

And You shall renew the face of the earth

O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit,

did instruct the hearts of the faithful,

grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever rejoice in His consolations,

Through Christ Our Lord,

Amen.

As always... Enjoy the day!
Deacon Tom

Please Visit www.deaconspod.com and listen in as the three deacs engage in a contemporary conversation exploring the treasures our Catholic faith has to offer to those thinking of coming into or leaving it.

 

OTHER RESOURCE 

Recommended Reading: Here and Now by Henri J.M. Nouwen is not a faint memory, but happening right here and now, spiritual living takes place in the present; the Spirit meets us in the ordinary. These inspirational reflections by Henri Nouwen succeed in convincing us that God’s presence is reliable.

 

 

Recommended YouTube Video: Living in the Presence of God - part 1b with Fr. Thomas Keating who discusses the practice of Centering Prayer.

 

The Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord_A_052123 - Go, Make Disciples

Deacon Tom Writes

Go, Make Disciples

 

The Ascension of the Lord, Year A

It’s hard to believe that three months ago we were just getting ready for the beginning of Lent. Now, as the Easter season draws to a close we have some perspective to reflect on where our spiritual journey has taken us over that brief but spiritually significant time span.

Were we able to hear God’s voice in the midst of our Lenten journey through the desert? Or gain a new insight about God’s incredible love for us during this Easter Season? Perhaps we have a better sense now of what God is asking of us than we have when we started out. How successful were we in changing some of those habits and behaviors we needed to change about ourselves - our judging and criticizing attitudes, our negative thinking, our inertia for self- reflection, or our sense of superiority, and our propensity to put others down in order to fuel our own ego? Have we succeeded in elimination gossip from our lives?

Three months is not a long time when you think about it, especially if we are trying to measure such things as spiritual growth…. It just not a lot of time. And yet, that’s, at most, all the time that the apostles had to grasp Our Lord’s revolutionary way of thinking about loving, forgiving, and serving one another… friend and enemy alike. The Apostles really were, when you think about it, on the fast track. Once Jesus was gone, that was it. It was all up to them to spread the Word throughout the world.

Imagine if you were the one who Jesus told to, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature.” What would you do? How would you begin?

Well, the strange thing is, this command Jesus gave His hand picked “go-to” guys was meant for you and I also? Yes, we who hear the Word of God today are chosen to carry the message in our times. Jesus is telling us to go into the world and proclaim the Good News to everyone we meet along the way.

In his Apostolic Exhortation on Evangelization in the Modern World , (or as they say in Rome, Evangelii Nuntiandi- December 8, 1975 – the feast of the Immaculate Conception), Pope Paul VI wrote:

“Those who sincerely accept the Good News, through the power of this acceptance and of shared faith therefore gather together in Jesus' name in order to seek together the kingdom, build it up and live it. They make up a community which is in its turn evangelizing. The command to the Twelve to go out and proclaim the Good News is also valid for all Christians, though in a different way…. Moreover, the Good News of the kingdom which is coming and which has begun is meant for all people of all times. Those who have received the Good News and who have been gathered by it into the community of salvation can and must communicate and spread it.”

My brothers and sisters, there is a saying that goes, “Faith isn’t taught, it’s caught.” Jesus’ work of salvation has been accomplished. What remains is our participation in that work that calls us to spread the Good News, to be living witnesses of the faith that we profess, to do as St. Francis was fond of telling his followers….to go out and preach the gospel, and when necessary, use words.

 

Please Visit www.deaconspod.com and listen in as the three deacs engage in a contemporary conversation exploring the treasures our Catholic faith has to offer to those thinking of coming into or leaving it.

 

OTHER RESOURCE

 

Recommended Reading: The Human Condition: Contemplation and Transformation. One of the founders of the Centering Prayer movement, Thomas Keating offers a reflection on contemplative prayer, the human search for happiness and our need to explore the inner world. The spiritual search for God, he says, is also the search for ourselves.

 

Recommended YouTube Video: Living in the Presence of God Fr. Thomas Keating discusses the title topic and the practice of Centering Prayer.

 

 

Sixth Sunday of Easter_Our Reason to Be Hopeful_051423

Deacon Tom Writes

“Our Reason to Be Hopeful”

 

Sixth Sunday of Easter, Year A

 

Hope is such a resuscitating virtue. We cling to hope to keep our hearts beating in troubling times as if it was life preserver and we were adrift in a stormy sea. Hope is what keeps people of faith going when their world is falling apart. You see it in the faces and hear it in the voice of people who have lost loved ones to Covid these past years or from those whose homes have been destroyed by those so called “Atmospheric Rivers” that have plagued California last month or those tornados that have devastated cities throughout the south. Grieved as they are, they inevitably talk about rebuilding not just their homes but also their lives. Hope is what gives them the courage to face a new day.

Hope fuels our dreams also. We hope to get into the college of our choice; we hope to get that perfect job or that promotion. We hope that one day we will meet the love of our life; we hope that a bad situation will be favorably resolved. We hope others will change their ways, their attitudes… or better yet, that we will change ours! No matter what we hope for, we are not likely to give up hope without a fight.

In today’s scripture, Peter advises us, “Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope.” Peter wants us to pay close attention to those things in which we place our hope…. and to be able to tell others why we hope in them. Key to Peter’s advice, however, is that the focal point for Christian hope is Christ. He is the fulfillment of all our hopes. Peter wants us to put our hope in noble things, “...treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor decay destroys, nor thieves break in and steal.” (Mt 6:20)

Yes, we hope for that new job, good things for our children, a good resolution to an illness or bad relationship…but our Christian hope seeks the ultimate goodness that comes from having Christ…. “as Lord in our hearts” (1 Pt 3:15) as Peter says so well. With Christ as Lord of our hearts, our hope will turn to treasures, relationships, and loves that will last forever and provide us ample opportunity to share the reason for our hope with everyone.

Lastly, Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers who are shining examples of self-sacrifice, love and humility to their families and friends. God Bless them with much joy and happiness

Enjoy the day!
Deacon Tom

Please Visit www.deaconspod.com and listen in as the three deacs engage in a contemporary conversation exploring the treasures our Catholic faith has to offer.

 

OTHER RESOURCE

 

Recommended Reading: Beginning to Pray by Metropolitan Anthony Bloom of Sourozh was a prominent writer and broadcaster on prayer and the Christian life, as well as the founder and leader of the Russian Orthodox Diocese of Sourozh. His classic book on prayer leads us into a deeper experience of the one we seek.

 

Recommended YouTube Video: Beginning to Pray - Listen in to hear the wisdom of Bishop Bloom as he guides us on how to have a richer prayer life that draws us closer to God.

 

Fifth Sunday of Easter_A - All Is Well_050723

Deacon Tom Writes,

“All Is Well”

Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year A

The first lesson we hear in today’s readings gives us profound insight into a distinguishing characteristic of the calling we have received. The Apostles find themselves in a crisis. The material needs of some of the members of the fledging community are being ignored. It just so happens (doesn’t it always seem to be the case!) the needs being overlooked are those of a minority group composed of Greek widows. At that time, you may recall, widows were outcasts; they had no standing in the community, and were left on their own to fend for themselves and their children. This was a horrible situation, of course. We read today that this did not sit well with the Apostles and the community! They knew they had to respond in a way that was consistent with the teachings Jesus had left them. Their logical solution...get some help. And thus, we read that after some discernment, the Apostles chose the first six deacons upon whom they imposed the laying on of hands. The word deacon is derived from the Greek word diakonos, which literally means “through the dust” and is often translated as “servant” or “waiter.” This ministry arose out of need to provide for both the spiritual and material needs of the community. Overcoming our worries about our temporal needs provides much comfort for our anxious and troubled hearts. 

In the gospel, Jesus aims at soothing a much deeper worry that troubles our hearts that comes with the death of a loved one. I find this particular passage we hear today utterly amazing. This is part of the “Last Discourse” of Jesus we find in Chapter 14 of John’s gospel. Take some time to read it and reflect on it with this thought in mind: Jesus knows he is about to die. His own words to his disciples that he was going to Jerusalem where he would, “suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised” (LK 9:22) were coming to fruition soon. Yet, 

with this unimaginable, overwhelming burden plaguing his own spirit, Jesus comforts his disciples. He tells them “Do not let your hearts be troubled.” These are powerful words from a man on death row whose concern is not about his own bleak situation, but about the well- being of his followers. Jesus’ hope is that his words put our troubled hearts at rest. We do not have to worry or be concerned about what will happen to him...or us when we face the most significant worry of our lives... what lies in store when we die. 

There is no taking away the heartache we experience when someone we love dies. These words today are a comfort to east this grief by teaching us that God’s plan is to bring us home. Home, such a comforting word, symbolizes where we are all headed when this earthly life is over. In this Holy Thursday – Good Friday experience Jesus teaches us to follow His example. From his washing the feet of his disciples as a humble act of service to his placing his trust in and surrender to the Divine Will of His Father, to his death upon the Cross, Jesus, the consummate teacher, gives us the best example possible on how to live life to the fullest, as we read last Sunday. In his last gathering with his friends, he teaches us how we are to approach death: by placing our trust in God and living each day with the certainty that we are all on a journey and our final destination is our heavenly home. 

So, “Do not let your hearts be troubled.” All Is Well! Even during these crises-filled days. If we look, there are people literally following Jesus’ example: healing the sick, caring for the well being of others, being compassionate and sympathetic to those who have been affected by war, natural disaster, community tragedies and mass killings. We continue to pray for those who are working in so many ways to help us all through these crises and ask God to bless the work of their hands and guide us in ways that we can help. 

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Please Visit www.deaconspod.com for a contemporary conversation exploring the treasures our Catholic faith has to offer.

 

OTHER RESOURCE

 

Recommended Reading: A Big Heart Open to God - A Conversation with Pope Francis (Interviewed by Antonio Spadaro, S.J.). In this historic interview, Pope Francis's vision for the church and humanity itself is delivered through a warm and intimate conversation, and he shows us all how to have a big heart open to God.

 

Recommended YouTube Video:  Praying With the  English Mystics