2007

The prophet Isaiah paints an upbeat scene for us when he proclaims, “Those whom the Lord has ransomed will return and enter Zion singing, crowned with everlasting joy; they will meet with joy and gladness, sorrow and mourning will flee.”

Will that idyllic setting include you and me? That is our hope as we gather here in prayer. Jesus said in the closing lines of Matthew’s gospel, “Amen, I say to you, among those born of women, there has been none greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” Imagine that, no matter how insignificant we may feel in the sight of others, by virtue of our baptism, we are numbered amongst the greatest for we have been graced by God to confront the power of sin in our lives. The joy and gladness of God’s kingdom can be ours.

Yet there is a catch here. Baptism itself is no guarantee to our salvation. I share that caution with parents who ask to have a child baptized. I remind them that baptism is the start of a life long faith journey whose outcome isn’t decided until we cross the threshold of death. There will be times along the way when our relationship with Jesus will be tested. If we keep in mind that no friendship can grow, much less survive, without the mutual efforts of both parties, we can see that sustaining our relationship with Jesus, especially when our expectations are not being met, demands attention and effort on our part.

John the Baptist had his disillusioning moments. Sitting in a prison cell, he is no longer certain if Jesus indeed is the Messiah. Many of the Jewish people were anticipating a mighty revolutionary leader who would overthrow the Romans and restore Israel as a powerful kingdom. He sent his disciples to ask if Jesus is the one who is to come or if they should expect someone else.

Jesus replies, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.” Jesus knows that such a litany will not meet every one’s expectations of the messiah even though what he is doing resonates with Isaiah’s image of a messiah.

Perhaps John the Baptist was reminded of the passage from Isaiah that we just heard when he hears Jesus’ response to his query. Still I suspect that he was surprised by what he heard. Jesus said nothing about sinners being condemned, the temple destroyed, or enemies defeated. The fire that Jesus came to light was the warm and gentle fire of God’s love, not the raging inferno of God’s anger that John had alluded to in his ministry. What John and the rest of us need to remember though is that final bit of advice spoken by Jesus, “And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me.”

Unfortunately, a fair number of our fellow Catholics have done just that. They have taken offense to some teaching of the Church, ranging from birth control to purgatory, thus taking offense at Jesus for the Church speaks today on behalf of Christ. Or they have taken offense to the human side of the Church, choosing instead to forsake what the Church has to offer by walking away from its sacraments, its tradition and the faith community itself.

James advises us to be patient until the coming of the Lord. Some of us are and some of us aren’t. Our response pretty much depends on the role we allow Jesus to play in our daily lives. Those who believe Jesus is the one who can save us, discover through prayer that Jesus has come to free us for an unfettered life of peace, joy and love. Those who don’t endeavor to deepen their relationship with Jesus tend to live their faith minimally, if at all. As a result, they may find themselves left out in the cold someday when they meet Christ as suggested by an anonymous poet who wrote this variation of “The Night before Christmas.”

‘Twas the night before Christ came and all through the house

 not a creature was praying, not one in the house.

Their Bibles were lain on the shelf without care,

        in hopes that Jesus would not come there.

The children were dressing to crawl into bed,

        not once ever kneeling or bowing a head;

And mom in her rocker with baby on her lap,

        was watching a late show while I took a nap;

When out of the East there rose such a clatter,

        I sprang to my feet to see what was the matter;

Away to the window I flew like a flash,

        threw open the shutters and threw up the sash.

 

The light of his face made me cover my head,

        it was Jesus returning like he said.

And though I possessed worldly wisdom and wealth,

        I cried when I saw him in spite of myself.

In the book of life, which he held in his hand,

        was written the name of every saved man.

He spoke not a word as he searched for my name,

        when he said, “It’s not here!” my head hung in shame.

 

The people whose names had been written with love,

        He gathered to take to his Father above.

With those who were ready he rose without a sound,

        while all the rest were left standing around.

I fell to my knees, but it was too late:

        I had waited too long and thus sealed my fate.

I stood and I cried as they rose out of sight.

        Oh, if only I had been ready tonight.

In the words of this poem the meaning is clear,

        the coming of Jesus is drawing near.

There’s only one life and when the last name is called,

        we’ll find that the Bible was true after all.

If there is any prayer that identifies us as Christians, it is the Lord’s Prayer. Short, concise, and to the point, this prayer conveys the essence of what being a Christian is all about. With the opening line, we express our advent hope, “thy kingdom come, thy will be done.”

What image comes to mind when you envision God’s kingdom? For the disciples, there was a hope that Jesus would free their land from Roman oppression but with the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem and the passing of time, that dream faded. The anticipation then became the majestic return of Jesus in the near future and the last judgment at the end of time. The idealism painted by Isaiah, which many call the peaceable kingdom, provides us with yet another image of God’s kingdom.

That passage sounds so uplifting. Isaiah paints a world free of violence and bloodshed; a world that brings together traditional enemies in the animal kingdom will also bring together traditional enemies amongst peoples as well. Centuries old animosity among and between Christians, Muslims, and Jews even though they worship the same God can leave any adherent wondering if the peaceable kingdom is merely an allusion.

Not according to Isaiah! Someday, enemies will come together and there will be peace on earth. But what needs to happen before God’s kingdom arrives becomes real? In no uncertain terms, John the Baptist tells anyone who would listen, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” For years, I read what he said as a warning but it isn’t a warning at all. It is a lesson in logic. If you reform your lives, and that is what repent implies, you will experience the kingdom of heaven! In other words, John is warning us, unless we change our ways, God’s peaceable kingdom will remain an elusive dream.

Paul points out, “Whatever was written previously was written for our instruction, that by endurance and by the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” Yes, everything necessary for our salvation has been accomplished. There is no need for any new revelations from God but we can be such slow learners! Imagine how different our world would be today if Christians in the past had continually endeavored to be an example of reconciliation for others? Can you picture how history could have been altered had past choices never been shaped by bigotry and prejudice?

We are wrong to think that the reprimand John the Baptist levels at the Pharisees and Scribes no longer concerns us. Matthew knew that all Christians, including you and me, needed to hear that same message. “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance.” Put your words into action!

I often suggest to penitents to say the Lord’s Prayer slowly and reflectively as a penance and then carry out the promise that they have just made, which includes forgiving others just as they are asking God to forgive them.  Forgiving our enemies, whoever they may be, along with following God’s will are signs that we mean to reform our lives. Do that and we can do as Paul urges, “Welcome one another, then as Christ welcomed you, for the glory of God.”

Years ago, for my birthday, my younger sister gave me a plaque filled with a timeless message of wisdom on how we can bring about the kingdom of God. It is a message I wish I had read more often and taken to heart, especially when life was bumpy. The passage, entitled Desiderata, was written by a poet from Indiana eighty years ago.

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even to the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexations to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love,
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

Why the Immaculate Conception?

We celebrate tonight (this morning) the feast of the Immaculate Conception. This feast is a holy day of obligation which under the precepts of the Church requires the faithful to attend Mass.

So since you are here anyway, I am going to give you a pop quiz. It is a one question multiple choice quiz. So here goes:

The Immaculate Conception is: 1) the incredible catch by fullback Franco Harris of the Pittsburgh Steelers in a 1972 playoff game against the Oakland Raiders; 2) the commemoration of Mary being conceived without sin; 3) an idea perfectly and successfully presented; or 4) the commemoration of Jesus being conceived without original sin.  Who wants to answer the question?

If you guessed number two, you are right. There is sometimes some confusion about the dogmatic foundation of this feast. Jesus was conceived without sin, but since He was God, it could not be otherwise. Mary, on the other hand, was not God, but fully human. But the Church teaches that Mary was immaculately conceived, even though her parents were not.

Many volumes of theological works over the centuries have been devoted to this issue. The origins of this feast go back to the seventh century. It was universally celebrated in the Church by the end of the 15th century. And on this date in 1854, the belief in the Immaculate Conception of Mary was made an infallible teaching by Pope Pius IX.

Now this is all theologically important, but by now you might be asking, who cares? Why should any of us, here on Whidbey Island in the beginning of the 21st century care if Mary was immaculately conceived or not?

At one level, there is a fairly simple reason we should care. Since Jesus as God was without sin, it would not have made a lot of sense for Him to enter the world as a sinner. He was sent by God the Father to overcome sin and death, and enable us to do the same if we followed the Gospel life He laid before us as a model before He returned to heaven.

Beyond this simple explanation, our Scriptures provide a much richer foundation.  Our first reading from the Book of Genesis reminds us that God intended all of us to live peaceful, sinless lives of love with an all-loving God. By conscious choice, Adam and Eve rejected that life, thereby ushering sin and death into the world. St. Paul in our second reading from the letter to the Ephesians reminds us that the Trinitarian God’s all-embracing love led God the Father to send His only Son into the world to restore the covenant of love with all human beings.

God could have chosen any means to restore that covenant. But because God loved humans so much, He wanted to literally live among them as a human. So the God of love chose to enter the world the human way. But since he was sinless, he needed a sinless vessel. He would need an immaculately conceived and sinless vessel by which to enter into the world. So Mary would receive the incredible grace from God to be immaculately conceived.

But Mary of course, was much more than a physical vessel. Again remembering our first reading tonight, the first Adam and Eve rejected God’s love. The second Adam and Eve were Jesus and Mary. They accepted the call from God to love God and others. The spotless nature of their souls was not immediately clear to the human Jesus and Mary, as demonstrated by our Gospel from Luke this evening (morning). Mary is reported as troubled about her designation by the angel Gabriel as “full of grace,” that is, immaculately conceived and about to give birth to a human Jesus also without sin.  But like Jesus, she agrees to love God and others above all else.  She agrees to play a key role in making possible the opportunity for all of us to overcome sin and death.

Since St. Paul in our second reading stresses that we were intended by God from the beginning of time to be “holy and without blemish in God’s sight,” but that that intention was rejected by the first human beings, how could we now overcome that rejection? Following Jesus’ model of life was of course one answer. But to whom could we look for proof that any fully human being could in fact become “holy and without blemish in God’s sight?”  The answer:  the immaculately conceived Mary.

Put quite simply, if God through the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin, could perfect one human being, God’s graces can also perfect us, offering Mary’s life as a model. Mary as a model of life for all of us is not just a turnkey. Her humanity makes such her model of life interactive with us. Her intercessions on our behalf to the Lord because of her special relationship with God bring us into the reality of the co-redemptive role for Mary as a human leading other humans back to God.

The Immaculate Conception of Mary provides the foundation for the spotless witness of her life to which we are also all called. As a mother, she shows fidelity to her child. As a follower of Jesus, she is the most faithful of witnesses, sharing in the agony of His earthly death, and the joy of His rising from the death.  As she accepts the role as Mother of the Church given to her by her Son on Calvary, she becomes a leader and friend to Jesus’ followers, the mother of the Church, and therefore the Mother of all of us.

The roles of parent, friend, witness to Christ, and model of Christ are all roles to which we are called as well. They are signposts on a successful journey to salvation that Mary achieved. With her help and God’s grace, we can achieve that successful journey as well. And this is why the Immaculate Conception matters to us.

Recovering the Meaning of Advent

On behalf of the staff and pastor of St. Hubert’s Parish, let me wish you a Happy New Year.

Yes, Happy New Year. As many of you know, the first Sunday of Advent begins the Church liturgical year. Sadly, beyond this fact, we live in a time when Advent has lost much of its meaning, or at least the practice of that meaning in our society.

In our secular society, Advent is the merely the run up to Christmas, a time for busy rushing around for ever bigger and more expensive Christmas presents, usually done through crowded shopping centers and malls. The origins of Christmas shopping stemmed from a tradition of exchanging ornaments for decorating homes in anticipation of Christmas. That then led to open markets in medieval towns where people could buy such ornaments. That exchange of ornaments for decorating homes has now been replaced with pedestrians and drivers swearing at each other in crowded parking lots and Christmas presents costing hundreds or thousands of dollars.  

Many of you remember a time when Christmas trees were not set up until Christmas Eve, the actual beginning of the Christmas season. Our secular culture, for reasons having nothing to do with spirituality, has succeeded in no small part in collapsing the Advent season into the Christmas season, and confining the Christmas season to only Christmas Day itself, rather than its liturgical end, which is the Baptism of the Lord, this year celebrated on January 13.  At a time when we might still want to give gifts in the real Christmas season, our secular culture tells us it is time to take them back.

Now I am not saying that putting others first cannot be advanced in some ways by Christmas shopping. At some level we all like receiving gifts. But let me suggest it is far more valuable to for all of us to take a step back and try and recapture the meaning of the Advent season, a season that begins today. Is it still possible that in our hearts and lives we can still actually enjoy and cherish the meaning of Advent?

Let me suggest that the answer is yes. And let me start off by saying that Advent is its own season; it is not part of the Christmas season. I cannot stress this basic liturgical fact enough and so I say it again: Advent is its own season; it is not part of the Christmas season. You may notice that hymns assigned in Advent are not Christmas hymns. Christmas hymns are only assigned at Christmas and through the real Christmas season.

Our Church teaches that the purpose of Advent is threefold. Let us take each purpose in turn. The first purpose of Advent is to prepare oneself worthily to celebrate the anniversary of the Lord’s coming into the world as the incarnate God of love. The word advent comes from the Latin adventur, meaning coming, in this case the coming of the Lord at Christmas. Advent, stresses the spirit of waiting, conversion and hope for the birth of the Redeemer, and the centrality of the Redeemer for the salvation of human beings.

We seek in Advent to be blessed with a spirit of expectation, of anticipation, of preparation, of longing for the coming of the Lord. The spiritual meaning of this is a yearning for a real deliverance from the evils of the world, first expressed by the slavery of the Israelites in Egypt more than three thousand years ago.

Advent represents a symbolic and even real out crying against bitter oppression in the world, which has far from ended. The first reading in Advent Sunday Masses, including today, is nearly always from the Book of Isaiah. The Book of Isaiah stresses deliverance from oppression by turning toward the loving covenant of the Lord.

In Advent, the Lord brings, and calls us to bring, glad tidings to the lowly, to heal the broken-hearted, and to proclaim liberty to captives. As far as I know, these glad tidings have never been about a new Wii, an MP3 player, or some new mechanical or electrical gadget. At the essence of the spiritual meaning of Advent is the real hope for deliverance by a God who heard the cries of the poor and oppressed and brought deliverance through the incredible act of sending Himself through the birth of Jesus. In Advent, we long for God to come and set the world right.

But the world cannot be set right if we have not set ourselves right. So the second purpose of Advent is to make our souls fitting for the Redeemer through a period of reflection upon our sins and seeking reconciliation through the sacrament of the same name, and through forgiving others.

Overcoming sin thus becomes a critical aspect of Advent. Because of this important truth, especially in the Eastern Rite churches in union with the Catholic faith, the season of Advent has always been a time of fasting and penitence similar to the Season of Lent. Penitence is a part of both seasons, symbolized by the color purple in both Advent and Lent, and the stress on the sacrament of Reconciliation in both seasons.

Finally, the third purpose of Advent is to make ourselves ready for God’s final coming as judge, at the passing away of this life, and at the end of the world. This is why Advent is such an important season to respect and commemorate. For it is only as we experience Advent in combination with other liturgical seasons does it take on its full significance and meaning. By experiencing Advent together with Christmas, Lent, and Easter, we come to understand the darkness of sin in our souls, the joy of Christ’s birth, the awful reality of Good Friday, and the Good News of the Resurrection. All disciples of Christ are called to take this journey, a journey that begins with Advent.

Just as Advent has a threefold purpose, it also has a threefold chronological focus. Advent looks backward, looks at today, and looks to the future. The profound essence of Advent is Jesus Christ Yesterday, Jesus Christ Today, and Jesus Christ Forever. It looks back to the first coming of Christ at Bethlehem. We look back in Advent and celebrate Christ made human. We wait to hear again the story of his life and experience his presence as a human being in history. Advent reminds us that Christ came to show us how magnificent life can and should be. He gave us true and valid principles by which we can live true and valid lives.

The Advent season also looks to today, the days we spend on this earth; our lives as Christians.  We are called to be faithful stewards of what is entrusted to us as God’s people; the Gospel life, the service-based love of God and others. Christ has come. He is present in the world today. When Christ left this earth, he did not abandon us.  He remains with us in the Holy Spirit, the Church, the sacraments, the Scriptures and each other. He lives in community with us and keeps his vision of life before us. Advent is a time to become more involved, more anchored in the meaning and the possibilities of life as a Christian community.

And Advent also looks to the future. When Christ comes again, his presence will be among us in all its fullness, a presence that will never end, a presence that will perfect and complete our community with God and each other.  But the Advent season asks: Will we be ready? Advent reminds us to be awake and watchful for that second coming. Our Gospel this morning from Matthew makes clear this preparatory spiritual mandate of Advent.

The diminution of the Advent season by secular society is therefore not only annoying or unfortunate; it is a danger to souls. For it has the effect of viewing Jesus as a historical figure of the past, a figure through which we can satisfy our material dreams. By contrast, when celebrated with solemnity and in a devout manner, Advent instead shows us that Jesus is the Word of God who, in the past, now, and the future continues to shed light on man’s path back to God. Advent reminds us that Jesus’ actions are the expression of the Father’s love for every human being at every time and place.

These brief thoughts on the meaning of Advent represent, I hope, a useful corrective to the secular gutting of the season by the growing materialism of our society. Let us pray that this Advent truly be a season of anticipation, of forgiveness of sins, and most of all, a welcoming in our hearts of the Lord who at Christmas ushered in a time of true joy and freedom that, if we choose, can last forever.
 

In this gospel, Jesus cautions his listeners that the status quo will not always be around. The world as they knew it would come to an end. The majestic temple that stands before them will someday be a pile of rubble. The residents of New Orleans learned that lesson the hard way when Hurricane Katrina left a trail of destruction in its wake. Whatever they owned wasn’t spared from the devastating floods. The same could be said for some folks in Southern California recently when fires swept through without warning.

It is easy for us to be possessive. After all, isn’t that the American dream to own the latest and the best? And if what we own isn’t good enough, Madison Avenue cajoles us into buying even better and fancier products, leaving a fair number of us deeper in debt and feeling less secure.

Once again, Jesus is trying to get us to reexamine our priorities in life. He knows that we can be rather slow learners so he uses the graphic example of the end times to get his point across. Perhaps five year old Jenny can help us reconsider what really matters in life. Shopping with her mother one day, little Jenny sees a necklace of costume pearls. She begs her mother for $5 so she can buy it. Her mother tells her that if she really wants it, she would have to do some extra chores around the house to earn the money.

As soon as they get home, Jenny empties her piggy bank and finds that she has a dollar and a few pennies. Over the next few days, she does more than her fair share of chores; she runs errands for her grandmother and also helps her neighbor pull some weeds in his yard. Soon she has the $5 she needs and the pearls are hers.

And how she loves them! Even though they are inexpensive costume jewelry, they make her feel so dressed up. Jenny wears them each Sunday to church and on special occasions. She takes very good care of her necklace.

One evening as he was tucking her into bed, her father asks if she loves him. “Of course, Daddy, you know that I love you.” He then asks, “Then, can I have your pearls?”

Oh, Daddy, not my pearls! But you can have my new beanie baby, the one I got for my birthday from Aunt Jane.  She’s my favorite.” “That’s ok, honey. I love you, good night.”

A few nights later, after reading her a story, Jenny’s father again asks her, “Sweetheart, do you love me?” “Daddy, you know that I love you.” “Then, give me your pearls.”

“Oh, Daddy, not my pearls! You can have Princess, my favorite doll. She’s the most beautiful doll I have.” “That’s ok. Sleep well, little one,” he said as he kissed her good night.

The next evening, just before bedtime, Jenny comes into her father’s study. With trembling lips and teary eyes, she said, “Here, Daddy, I want you to have them because I love you,” handing him her artificial pearl necklace.

With tears welling up in his own eyes, Daddy takes the necklace. Then he reaches into his desk drawer and takes out a small velvet case. Inside the case is a small delicate necklace. He fastens it around his surprised daughter’s neck. On the gold chain is a real pearl. Daddy had the necklace all the time, patiently waiting for Jenny to give up her cheap necklace so that he could then give her a genuine treasure.

Like Jenny’s father, God endeavors to give us treasures that are far more priceless than our worldly possessions could ever be. Repeatedly both Jesus and Paul urge us to seek gifts that are much more precious and lasting than the world can ever offer; treasures like compassion, reconciliation, justice and peace of mind. But if we want to possess these treasures, we must first deal with our self-centeredness, the source of so much unrest in our lives. God’s treasures are ours for the asking if we would be wise and generous enough to let go of the lesser things in life that we keep clinging to instead. No wonder, Archbishop Murphy often posed the question, “What do I own and what owns me?”

That is why I think of stewardship as being so vital for us. When we become willing to surrender something, God then has the chance to give us treasures that really matter, treasures that will survive any hurricane, earthquake, or blizzard that could disrupt our lives.  When I hear people expressing reluctance to make a pledge, because of the circumstances in their lives, I wonder if they truly believe in that line engraved on our coins, “In God we trust.” Do we?

The love of Jesus Christ cannot be fully realized so long as we cling to worldly goods and earthly priorities. Too often they impede us from putting time aside for prayer and worship, which are our best avenues for getting to know God, the source of the wisdom we need for living life fully. Jesus says, “Don’t be terrified,” yet how often do we panic because we haven’t made the time and space to be truly present to God, thus build up our trust that God cares?

Jesus cautioned his listeners to ignore those who predicted the end of time. Why? Because he has special things in store for his followers before that moment arrives. Sooner or later, our lives will be lost, but the bottom line is this: our life in Christ, that alone, is safe for all time. And ultimately, isn’t that what matters most to us?