Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

Painting by Grigory Gagarin

There are in the Gospel three great Theophanies, a Greek word meaning extraordinary manifestations of the Trinitarian God, two of which bookend the Christmas season. The first: the feast of the Nativity which reveals the Incarnation. This is subtle in that it is a manifestation revealed by angels, shepherds and magi. The Baptism of the Lord, the feast we celebrate today closes the Christmas season. Here, in the Baptism of the Lord, we have the first explicit manifestation of the Trinitarian God: the voice of the Father acknowledging the eternal identity of the Son as the Holy Spirit descends upon Him.

This feast is one of the most extraordinary mysteries of our Faith because it allows us to peer more deeply into the mystery of our own baptism. Let’s look at this closely. John the Baptist declares the coming of Christ and of a new and superior baptism (Luke 3:16). However, despite the substantial difference between John’s baptism and Christian baptism, namely the first being symbolic of an inner disposition and the latter actually effecting by grace what it symbolizes, there is a great similarity: both are about repentance and the forgiveness of sins.

But if that’s the case, we have to ask ourselves, how is it that Christ is baptized? He has no need to repent of a former sinful life, He has no need of contrition! John the Baptist understands this as well when he says in the Gospel of Matthew, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” (Matt. 3:14). We get an answer to our question when our Lord replies to John, by saying, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (3:15). You see, biblical righteousness is the acceptance of Gods will, both as seen in the following the Law and communion with God. This righteousness that Christ is fulfilling is an inauguration of His public ministry by reversing Adam and Eve’s “no” to the will of God by saying “yes.” We see this reversal more clearly in the Holy Spirit descending upon Christ over the waters. Where is the last place we see the Holy Spirit hovering over the waters? Genesis, chapter one, verse two; the creation of the world.

Genesis 1:2, “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters.”

Christ’s reversal is recreating everything. A new world is breaking in, the Kingdom of Heaven is forcing its way into time and space! And by beginning His saving ministry in the context of baptism, He is in this very moment gathering up all of humanity’s guilt and sin and placing it on His shoulders as He stands in the Jordan river. It’s there that He loads the penalty of his passion and death onto his back; the Cross comes into view already today. Pope Benedict in his book Jesus of Nazareth, tells us that He becomes the new Jonah in His baptism by effectively saying, “Take me and cast me into the sea so that you might be saved” (pg. 18).

So how does apply to us today? Again, I defer to Pope Benedict who said that when Christ tells His disciples to baptize in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, it is actually a baptism that incorporates the believer into the Master’s own baptism. So when we look at Christ’s we should see our own (Ibid., pg. 23).

Look at this! Most of us were baptized as children, and the point I’m making still holds true for those who were baptized as adults: we were baptized into repentance for the forgiveness of sins and given the Holy Trinity to dwell in our souls. At each of our baptisms, there truly was a theophany. And while in our broken nature, with blind eyes and deaf ears, we may not have perceived it, the heavens were torn open and the Father looked upon us and said, behold this is my beloved son, this is my beloved daughter and we were given every spiritual gift in heavens (Eph. 1:3). This is more true and real than the air you are breathing!

So many, though, will say, “But, Father, I don’t experience that. I have not encountered God like that.” Read today’s Gospel very carefully… “After all the people had been baptized and Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him…” (Luke 3:21-22). Christ’s identity was there before the heavens were torn open. His communion with the Holy Spirit was there before the Spirit descended upon Him, but it was while He was praying that it was made manifest. You have all of these gifts, gifts of wisdom, counsel, understanding, divine knowledge, fortitude, fear of the Lord, and piety. When we are in a state of grace, God dwells within us. Each and everyone us has the supernatural virtues of faith, hope and love. In our baptisms we were given all of these and divine power to heal and change this world. But as in our Lord’s baptism, did we activate their manifestation? Have we opened the gifts that we were given in baptism?

The only way we will experience the theophany of our baptisms, the manifestation of God, is if we follow the example of our Lord and pray, daily. It was while He was praying, after His baptism, that all was made manifest. Without prayer, you will not experience the profound identity you received at baptism. Without daily prayer and conversation with God, the incredible gifts you were given will lay dormant and you will not experience God’s power. That’s a true statement. To put it bluntly, if you want to encounter the living God, to have your lives changed for the better, to be the courageous, compassionate, and hope-filled sons or daughters that you are called to be, you must pray daily. Your baptism means very little without prayer, a gift unwrapped means nothing. As we celebrate this incredible mystery of Christ’s baptism, remember your own. Recall who you’ve become in baptism, the gift you have been given and let it loose! Amen.

Our Mom is Awesome!

Happy… Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God! My sincere hope this has not caught most of you off guard as it is  Holy Day of Obligation. Most people  right now are like, “It’s a New Year and stuff!” Yes, yes, I know it’s a new year… But it is also one of the great Marian feast days of the Church! Today we celebrate the final day of the Octave of Christmas as we once again reaffirm Mary as Theotokos (Greek for “God-bearer”) or more commonly known as the Mother of God (Mater Dei in our language of Latin).

Boom. Momma Mary!

There are three things you should know about today:

1.) Marian Doctrine is a direct result of orthodox Christology

This day and this doctrine, like most in the Church, arise not simply out of a definition but out of defense of what has always been believed. The arch-heretic Nestorius, bishop of Constantinople in 5th century, decided on Christmas of all days to proclaim to his people that Mary was in fact not the Theotokos, the Mother of God but  Christotokos, the Mother of Christ. You see, Nestorius had a flawed understanding of who Jesus Christ is. Despite the language confusion at the time, he argued that there were two hypostases, persons, in the Christ. Therefore, Mary was mother of the human person of Jesus, not the Divine Person who simply “saddled right up next to” that human person. This was all the result of denying that Jesus Christ is a divine person having two natures (divinity and humanity); for Nestorius that was impossible. To uphold the teaching that Mary was in fact the Mother of God is to uphold who Jesus Christ truly is and furthermore is necessary to maintain unity with the Church that our same Lord established (Creed of the Council of Chalcedon).

2.) She is in fact our mother as well

Through the Sacrament of Baptism we share in the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Because of this, we are cleansed of all sin, in particular Original Sin, so that the Most Holy Trinity may come and dwell in our souls. As if this weren’t enough, the superabundance of God’s goodness comes through again as baptism also incorporates us into the Body of Christ; it makes us part of the Church. If then, we are grafted into Jesus Christ, brought into and become part of his very body, then we, the body, share in all that which the Head has. If She is Mother of the Head, then she is Mother of the Body. We see this in practice of the anointing with Sacred Chrism after the baptism takes place; the newly baptized, who are now part of Jesus Christ, share His identity as priest, prophet, and king. If we share his identity through baptism and anointing, then we too share His mother!

Our Lady of Perpetual Help. Like a good mother, She’s always there!

 

This is not some “late development!” Christians from the beginning understood that in John 19:26-27, Christ was giving us His Mother. Outside of the scriptures, the earliest Marian prayer we have access to historically is the Sub Tuum Praesidium: “We fly to thy patronage, O holy Mother of God; despise not our petitions in our necessities, but deliver us always from all dangers, O glorious and blessed Virgin. Amen.” This is a liturgical prayer from 250 A.D.  The Liturgy was safeguarded in the greatest of ways by the Church and was never a place for doctrinal speculation, which shows that this prayer, this belief, confidence, and love for Mary as a Mother were very well rooted in Christians’ minds from the start. The Church Fathers would delve deeper into this truth by showing Mary as the New Eve, the new Mother of the Living. So have confidence that just as in baptism Christ gave you a new life, He also gave you the most beautiful, perfect, and loving mother, His very own!

3.) Don’t worry!

Some people will say, “Well, I’m afraid that Mary will eclipse Jesus in my prayer.” Ugh… don’t worry, I went through that too. Am I cheating Jesus out of time when I’m conversing with Mary?! I feel like if I love her too much then she will become an idol! First of all, this is straight up scruples, be done with that! Second of all, do you believe Mary is God? Do you believe she is more powerful, more merciful, more loving, more intelligent than God? No… Good! Then you’re just getting to know her. She will never allow you to forget God or love Him less since she will always point the way to Him. If these are a concerns for you, just remember this:

“Never be afraid of loving the Blessed Virgin too much. You can never love her more than Jesus did.” ~ Saint Maximilian Kolbe

So make sure you speak to her today! She’s your mother and if we intend to be good sons and daughters of our Father in Heaven, we should also love and respect the mother He gave us. Besides, the better our relationship with +Mom+ is, the better and more beautiful our life will be… on this side of eternity and the next!

That family looks suspicisiouly like mine…

(Basically my homily for today)

The gospel for the feast of the Holy Family this year is also the Fifth Joyful Mystery of the Rosary: the Finding in the Temple. What a fantastic episode of the life of Christ to be brought to the fore when we turn our gaze to the

Gotch’ya now!

Holy Family! Mary, conceived without sin, ever Virgin, the perfect disciple, lost her Son, who is the Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity and the Savior of the World. Jesus, the Son of God, God Himself, “runs away,” leaving His family in the middle of Jerusalem (kind of like taking off in Times Square). And poor Joseph, whose been charged with the care and protection of the two most important people in history as foster father and husband, the only one in the family with the taint and corruption of sin, is desperately trying to regain control of the situation. For the Holiest of Families, it doesn’t seem like everything is going perfectly!

I think perhaps the reason the Church chose this gospel for this feast is to remind us of the very real humanity of the Holy Family. Jesus Christ, in taking on flesh, in becoming human, really did in fact take on everything we experience as creatures. By doing so, our Lord lifted up humanity to a previously unknown dignity, even beyond that of Adam and Eve before the Fall. Everything our Lord did raised human beings and human actions to a new level. This includes the family. Through his birth, God entered into and became part of a family. It wasn’t pretend, they weren’t playing house, and it wasn’t a metaphor. This is the real deal! Just the same as becoming human placed him square in the muck of our existence, it also meant entering into the craziness of family life.

Mary and Joseph were human persons. With all the limits and finitude which that entails, they were just like us. I’m the oldest of 11 children. Yeah… you can be darn sure that Mom and Dad have forgotten one or two us before. Based off of talking to other parents, this “fun” experience is

Here’s all 11 of us (plus the first grandbaby)!

part and parcel of raising kids. They’re human. Just like the Holy Family. SO often I hear mothers and fathers lament the messiness of their family life, expressing a desire to be like “other” families. Family life is family life is family life. If Mary, Joseph, and Jesus struggled to keep it all together, I imagine all other families will too. If life is messy, you’re right were your supposed to be!

Holiness lies in the struggle. My spiritual director while I was in seminary in D.C. told me that the greatest image of holiness was Jacob wrestling with the angel, and I tend to agree with him. It’s not that we give into chaos, but that we acknowledge the simple reality that we live outside of the Garden. And the struggle is real and chaos is breaking down the door.

The family as such is being beaten to a pulp in our society. Nearly half of all marriages in this country, statistically, end in divorce. The rate goes up in a second marriage. Homosexual “marriage,” having been legally ratified and enjoying large public consent, has done irreparable damage to the next generation’s understanding of what marriage is, what sex is, and more. Marriage is the bedrock of the family. When that is wrecked, the rest of the family becomes collateral damage. Contraception and pornography have crippled people’s ability to be emotionally and spiritually invested in a marital relationship. All of these and more result in the fact that 15 million children in this country grow up with out a father and 20 million without a mother (LifeSite News). The family is being broken down and an attempt is being made to remold it in the likeness of our broken and selfish desires. Promiscuity, drugs, underage drinking, immodesty and relativism… The struggle is real. The chaos is present.

But just as the Holy Family made their way through this world, up Calvary and on to glory, so must we as well. Hope for our families lies primarily in two places: grace and example. Through the mysteries of the Incarnation and the Paschal Sacrifice, “God became man so that man might become God” (St. Athanasius). Grace, God’s presence and action, has the ability, if we are willing to cooperate, to lift us out of our brokenness and allow us to be more than we ever dreamed. There is in fact freedom from selfishness, lust, greed, and pride. Just as surely as death was conquered upon the Cross, so it is with vice. In the same vein though, don’t make the mistake of thinking that because you went to confession and pray that you will not be tempted and won’t continue to fall. But sin is the conscious rejection of God’s grace; it’s a choice. Which do we love more? Only with God’s assistance can we make the choice to struggle against the chaos present and He continually offers it. His grace, obtained through prayer and the sacraments (plug for frequent reception of Holy Communion), will help us make our way through the craziness of this world, out of exile, and to our eternal home in Heaven.

Example is the other place we find hope for the family. The Holy Family sets the bar. Each member of the family was entirely focused on one thing: love; love of God and love of neighbor. Joseph’s obedience to God in caring for Mary and Jesus show us his incredible trust and love of the Father. The result of his relationship with God was a blessing to all the world. Mary’s Fiat, her visit to Elizabeth, her assistance for the couple at the Wedding Feast at Cana, and her presence at the Cross, remind us of the constant need to reach outside of ourselves. Mary teaches us that our love and trust in God must transform into love of neighbor. We must care for others. Christ’s obedience to His heavenly Father’s will in the Incarnation furthermore led to His obedience to Mary and Joseph (who He created before His birth!). This obedience shows us that humility and authentic submission lead to peace and tranquility. Their example is a light in the darkness for families today.

I guess in all of this, what I’m trying to say is that the Feast of the Holy Family shows us God is with us. That’s the whole message of Christmas, Christ is Emmanuel: God-with-us. Our families resemble the Holy Family more than we will ever know, or perhaps it’s that the Holy Family resembles ours more than we will ever know. The goal for us, even amidst the onslaught of our culture to destroy our families, is to imitate that Family that is so like ours. It comes down to this: fathers striving for the holiness and leadership of Joseph, mothers striving for the love and service of our Blessed Mother Mary, and children striving for the loving obedience of the Christ-child. So to all of our families, I salute you on the Feast of the Holy Family! Pray and imitate. Be encouraged and of good cheer… God knows every detail of your experience, it was His too!

 

The Christmas Octave

(Just a little note, since this may not in fact be well understood.)

Merry Christmas! Yep, Christmas was yesterday. And it’s Christmas today. And it will be Christmas tomorrow… And the day after that, too… Doesn’t make sense? Let me explain. We are in the Christmas Octave. This doesn’t mean that there are eight separate feast days of Christmas with a few saints scattered around in there. It means that for Christmas there is one big long feast that will last eight days.

Octave etymologically is a reference to the number eight. In biblical tradition it’s a reference  the eighth day, which symbolizes eternity where time ceases to have meaning. In a sense, what the Church is asking us to do during the Octave of Christmas is to allow time to slow down or stop (at least liturgically, if you have to go back to work, you probably should…). For eight days we freeze time so that we can really invest in the celebration and worship of Christ’s birth. I’ve always thought of it this way: how are we to adequately, in any sense of the word, really enter into one of the most profound mysteries of our Faith in a span of 12-15 conscious hours of the day?! We can’t! So the celebration is extended so that the immensity of the Christmas truth might seep down into our hearts.

So don’t forget, even though the world is still rolling on and Christmas is done, it’s not for us! Merry Christmas!

St. Stephen and the Christmas Martyrs

Martyrs. There’s a number of them right after Christmas… It’s alright if that strikes you as a little odd. Wearing red in the midst of the Christmas Octave should jar us. I do not claim to know what the Church was thinking when She organized the calendar year, but an interesting thought struck me when considering this Christmas oddity. It flows from what I mentioned in my homily for Christmas Eve. The birth of Christ can only be viewed correctly in light of the Cross.

The fundamental truth of the Nativity is that this child was born to die. Taking on human nature was necessary for the sacrifice Jesus would offer on Calvary. His teachings prepared the way for the New and Final Covenant to be inaugurated upon the altar of the Cross. His miracles and healings demonstrated that it was in fact God himself who would save us. Everything our Lord did can only properly be understood when viewed through the lens of the Passion, Crucifixion, and Death of Christ.  In this light, the celebration of martyrs in conjunction with Christmas then makes sense. The Divine Word of the Father did not take on human nature just to share our human “experience” (although that did in fact happen). There was from the beginning a mission (Gen 3:15) that must be accomplished. The martyrs bear witness to the saving truth of this child’s mission, they give testimony to his victory when, as a man, he offered his life and obedience to the Father for us. The white of his birth can only be appreciated by the red of blood.

The first of these martyrs falls today: St. Stephen. He is called theProtomartyr because he is the first to willingly lose his life in testimony to Christ. In honor of his feast day, here is our account of him found in the Scriptures, Acts 6:1-7:60:

“Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, the Hellenists murmured against the Hebrews because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution. And the twelve summoned the body of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brethren, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” And what they said pleased the whole multitude, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Proch’orus, and Nica’nor, and Ti’mon, and Par’menas, and Nicola’us, a proselyte of Antioch. These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands upon them.”

 

“And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith. And Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and signs among the people. Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), and of the Cyre’nians, and of the Alexandrians, and of those from Cili’cia and Asia, arose and disputed with Stephen. But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he spoke. Then they secretly instigated men, who said, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.” And they stirred up the people and the elders and the scribes, and they came upon him and seized him and brought him before the council, and set up false witnesses who said, “This man never ceases to speak words against this holy place and the law; for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place, and will change the customs which Moses delivered to us.” And gazing at him, all who sat in the council saw that his face was like the face of an angel.”

 

“And the high priest said, “Is this so?” And Stephen said: “Brethren and fathers, hear me. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopota’mia, before he lived in Haran, and said to him, ‘Depart from your land and from your kindred and go into the land which I will show you.’ Then he departed from the land of the Chalde’ans, and lived in Haran. And after his father died, God removed him from there into this land in which you are now living; yet he gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot’s length, but promised to give it to him in possession and to his posterity after him, though he had no child. And God spoke to this effect, that his posterity would be aliens in a land belonging to others, who would enslave them and ill-treat them four hundred years. ‘But I will judge the nation which they serve,’ said God, ‘and after that they shall come out and worship me in this place.’ And he gave him the covenant of circumcision. And so Abraham became the father of Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs. “And the patriarchs, jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt; but God was with him, and rescued him out of all his afflictions, and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him governor over Egypt and over all his household. Now there came a famine throughout all Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction, and our fathers could find no food. But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent forth our fathers the first time. And at the second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family became known to Pharaoh. And Joseph sent and called to him Jacob his father and all his kindred, seventy-five souls; and Jacob went down into Egypt. And he died, himself and our fathers, and they were carried back to Shechem and laid in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a sum of silver from the sons of Hamor in Shechem. “But as the time of the promise drew near, which God had granted to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt till there arose over Egypt another king who had not known Joseph. He dealt craftily with our race and forced our fathers to expose their infants, that they might not be kept alive.”

“At this time Moses was born, and was beautiful before God. And he was brought up for three months in his father’s house; and when he was exposed, Pharaoh’s daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son. And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was mighty in his words and deeds. “When he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the sons of Israel. And seeing one of them being wronged, he defended the oppressed man and avenged him by striking the Egyptian. He supposed that his brethren understood that God was giving them deliverance by his hand, but they did not understand. And on the following day he appeared to them as they were quarreling and would have reconciled them, saying, ‘Men, you are brethren, why do you wrong each other?’ But the man who was wronging his neighbor thrust him aside, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? Do you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’ At this retort Moses fled, and became an exile in the land of Mid’ian, where he became the father of two sons. “Now when forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. When Moses saw it he wondered at the sight; and as he drew near to look, the voice of the Lord came, ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and did not dare to look. And the Lord said to him, ‘Take off the shoes from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. I have surely seen the ill-treatment of my people that are in Egypt and heard their groaning, and I have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.’ “This Moses whom they refused, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’ God sent as both ruler and deliverer by the hand of the angel that appeared to him in the bush. He led them out, having performed wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea, and in the wilderness for forty years. This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet from your brethren as he raised me up.’ This is he who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers; and he received living oracles to give to us. Our fathers refused to obey him, but thrust him aside, and in their hearts they turned to Egypt, saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods to go before us; as for this Moses who led us out from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ And they made a calf in those days, and offered a sacrifice to the idol and rejoiced in the works of their hands. But God turned and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: ‘Did you offer to me slain beasts and sacrifices, forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel? And you took up the tent of Moloch, and the star of the god Rephan, the figures which you made to worship; and I will remove you beyond Babylon.’ “Our fathers had the tent of witness in the wilderness, even as he who spoke to Moses directed him to make it, according to the pattern that he had seen. Our fathers in turn brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations which God thrust out before our fathers.”

“So it was until the days of David, who found favor in the sight of God and asked leave to find a habitation for the God of Jacob. But it was Solomon who built a house for him. Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made with hands; as the prophet says, ‘Heaven is my throne, and earth my footstool. What house will you build for me, says the Lord, or what is the place of my rest? Did not my hand make all these things?’ “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. Which of the prophets did not your fathers persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered, you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it.”

“Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth against him. But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing at the right hand of God.” But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together upon him. Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him; and the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. And as they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” And he knelt down and cried with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.”

We will also celebrate the Feast of the Holy Innocents, those children that Herod murdered as he sought to kill the child Jesus. Then there is Pope Saint Sylvester. This great saint was pope as the Roman Empire became Christian and is fabled to have been a great friend of Constantine. And St. Thomas Becket, Chancellor of England and defender of the Church’s rights and freedoms. I hope to touch upon these as their feasts approach, but until then Have a merry and blessed Christmas Octave!

Christmas Eve Homily

Tonight, sitting in the midst of darkness we mark the beginning of its defeat. 2,000 years ago, in the midst of humanity’s twilight, a small flame is struck. Our candles remind us of this. This ancient light pierces through the gloom; fragile as an infant yet more powerful than the sea roaring in all of its might… God has come to earth.

And the Word, the Light of the World, became flesh

God has come to earth… What a profound reality! And this is not a simple act. The Incarnation is a display of God’s awe-inspiring and overwhelming love for each and every one of us. He left the light of heaven for the darkness of a cave, exchanged the glorious Throne for a trough, desiring the relationship of shepherds more than that of angels. This descent is more costly than we could ever imagine… and it is fueled by love for us, for you.

But you see, I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and even more so the Church. Tonight is more than just the birth of special child. It’s marks even more than simply God becoming man. Finally, there is the possibility of peace! Finally, there is the opportunity for reconciliation between God and man! Finally, hope is given and victory is in sight!

The child, Christ our Lord and God, is born for a singular purpose. His descent into flesh in order to raise us up can only be accomplished by his death. The gifts of the wise men clearly testify to this. The gold, frankincense, and myrrh tell us of his identity and destiny: The King of All, shall become the High Priest who will offer his flesh, his very life for our freedom. These truths are brought before our eyes at the very moment he enters this world. This child was born to die.

As we sang at the beginning of Mass, the Gloria, the hymn of the Angelic Armies heard by the shepherds in their fields, we give the Holy Trinity glory and praise. Our Lord’s birth marks the beginning of our salvation to be won by his destiny on the cross. This is the first move. Before this night, an impossible chasm existed between us and our God, between exile and home. There was nothing we could do to repair the relationship, the wounds of sin cut far too deep in our nature for us to return. And so just before we fall into despair over our rebellion, Our Lord rises from His throne, the angels part, and descending into the darkness of our world, He clothes himself in our weary and exhausted flesh. Tonight marks the first steps towards Calvary. And once again, this is done not out of legal obligation, he’s not coming to save face because we messed things up. You and I were created to be His sons and daughters, we were made to love and be loved. Tonight’s condescension of our Lord in the flesh reminds us how much we are loved, we are reminded that it is He who will save us.

But this heroic first move requires us to move as well. Love demands only one thing: love in return. As we meditate on the Mystery of Our Lord’s birth, what it cost, what it meant, what purpose it served, we should allow our hearts to be moved. His dedication to us has never wavered. How often has our fidelity to him been broken. Allow our celebration tonight should move you to recommit your lives to him. Mass, daily prayer, acts of love and conversation. I’m not going to give you a list, though. Love has a creativity that dwarfs everything else. Fall in love with the One who is madly in love with you. Stay in that love, because its there where we find the omnipotent God as a babe, it’s there where we hear the gasps of that babe grown to full stature upon the cross, whispering, “I love you and you are mine.” Praise God for his love and his mercy. Amen.

Hac Nocte Christus Natus Est!

This is the Christmas proclamation for the Feast of the Nativity and it’s worth checking out (this is from the Missal):

“The twenty-fifth Day of December when ages beyond number had run their course from the creation of the world, when God in the beginning created heaven and earth, and formed man in his own likeness; when century upon century had passed since the Almighty set his bow in the clouds after the Great Flood, as a sign of covenant and peace; in the twenty-first century since Abraham, our father in faith, came out of Ur of the Chaldees; in the thirteenth century since the People of Israel were led by Moses in the Exodus from Egypt; around the thousandth year since David was anointed King; in the sixty-fifth week of the prophecy of Daniel; in the one hundred and ninety-fourth Olympiad; in the year seven hundred and fifty-two since the foundation of the City of Rome; in the forty-second year of the reign of Caesar Octavian Augustus, the whole world being at peace, JESUS CHRIST, eternal God and Son of the eternal Father, desiring to consecrate the world by his most loving presence, was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and when nine months had passed since his conception, was born of the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem of Judah, and was made man: The Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to the flesh.”

This Night Christ is Born! Merry Christmas, everyone!

We don’t kill families!

I find it absurd that I feel a post like this has to be written. Apparently we have sunk to the point of moral depravity that to propose killing combatant’s families in order to deter terrorism is legitimate enough to continue to get air time. After listening to this “strategy” being proposed and allowed to continue in a debate instead of being denounced for the profound evil that it is, I found myself dumbstruck. It’s not crazy… It’s evil. After seeing a clip in which a news personality upheld the strategy as well as call in to question certain aspects of the Geneva Convention, I’m enraged. Are we actually having a discussion about this ?!!!

Don’t misunderstand where I’m coming from… The full might of our military should be used to obliterate ISIS. War must be waged against this kind of evil, it’s existence only being maintained in history books as a warning to future generations. I’m not a pacifist and neither is the Church. Human rights violations… Genocide… Only moral deviants and cowards would argue concession or appeasement. Such acts must be met with extraordinary force of the will and the fist.

But we are not barbarians! Should we profess the Catholic/Christian faith, should we proclaim our belief in reason and natural law, should we declare ourselves morally superior to our enemies such a strategy is the most devious and pernicious of lies and error. This idiotic and simpleton “plan,” employing the basest form of the absolutely foolish proposition, “the ends justify the means,” denies our faith, is a traitor to reason, and because of it being cloaked in noble intentions it brings it’s proponents far lower than our enemies in moral credibility.

The Second Vatican Council reminds us, “Nor… does the mere fact that war has unhappily begun mean that all is fair between warring parties” (Gaudium et Spes, 79). Killing non-combatants is an explicit violation of Just War Theory, particularly the fourth principle enumerated in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, par. 2309 (As well as the correct interpretation of the Fifth Commandment!). It’s the very reason that nuclear weapons can never be justified: there is no way of distinguishing between combatants and non-combatants in it’s devastation.

If refusing to employ such a “strategy” leads to our destruction, so be it! Preserve your dignity and Christian honor! Better to die a Christian than live as a barbarian. I remind you of the words of our Lord, “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matt. 10:28). When we stand before the Judgement Throne of God, He will not hear, “But Lord! It was a super haaard decision!”

If you haven’t understood from this rant, here’s the point: it is absolutely unacceptable for any Catholic, any Christian, any man or woman of reason to support a strategy of war that employs the murder of non-combatants to deter the enemy.

 

 

Lord of the World: Read it. Seriously…

Read Lord of the World. Just. Do. It. Lord of the World by Robert Hugh Benson. I first read this book when I heard a one Msgr. Bill O’Connell mention it in passing. It quickly became one of my all-time favorites. The book, for me, was confirmed in its awesomeness when I found out that Cardinal Ratzinger had quoted it. More recently, it has undergone further revival when earlier this year Pope Francis encouraged people to read it. I just finished it… again…

First published in the early 1900’s, Lord of the World is a dystopian novel looking at the rise of the Anti-Christ, the persecution of the Church, and the Second Coming. As Msgr. Benson strains to paint the future while living in a time of swift change, he describes the coming age somewhat prophetically, particularly societal changes (but even some technological!). The son of the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury, Benson was a notable convert to Catholicism and spent his life teaching and writing. While it takes a little effort to become comfortable with his style, I found the book absolutely brilliant.

Who cares, Father? There are tons of books out there! True. For those of us who are trying to keep an eye on the ever blowing winds of societal change, there seems to be little time to pick up a little known book from a man we know nothing about on a topic that is somewhat esoteric. This book, while dark, is worth the effort. You will find this to be true not only because his mastery of the English language is a flippin delight to pour over, but primarily because of the incredible substance of content and inspiring witness of characters facing situations eerily symbolic of our own today.

“Lord of the World” arises from a profoundly Catholic world view, namely that the Holy Trinity brought everything into being and immanently rules over it.

Msgr. Benson describes a world that is more or less divided in half. Conveniently, these distinctions correspond geographically. In the West, roughly Europe and America, we are shown the triumph of Secular Humanism. Christianity is all but tolerated and is a rapidly shrinking minority. The rate of apostasy is unimaginable, amongst the laity and clergy. In a plausible way, Benson describes the philosophical evolution of humanity becoming “God” in the West; we are intellectually and spiritually evolving into perfection. Belief in the supernatural, specifically Catholicism, is seen as not only anti-intellectual and childish, but a benevolently tolerated nuisance. Sound familiar? If you’ve gone to university, 9 out of 10 of you reading this will understand. The East is wrapped in mystic religion, completely cut off from communication with the West, and is described as extraordinarily volatile. In fact, the imminence of war between the two hemispheric ideologies sets the opening stage for the novel. As the story unfolds, the West’s “benevolent tolerance” of religious belief fades and Faith (belief in God, his religion and morality flowing from it) is declared repugnant to human nature and a danger to the sociological and political stability of the community and state. Quite simply, the soft persecution of social disdain slowly mutates into all out persecution.

Benson, as I alluded to earlier, has been called in many ways prophetic. And I think he is, though Lord of the World is not some mystical piece of writing, so don’t interpret prophetic for “God-breathed.” It is not that at all. However, the adjective is appropriate because Benson lays out, one hundred years before his time, the logical conclusions of materialism, rationalism, and communism. The world he describes was shocking to his original audience. Many read it like we might enjoy an outlandish sci-fi thriller; this will never be, but it’s an enjoyable scare. Few could truly envision the marginalization of religious belief and the power of the state being brought against it in America and Europe. Few thought it possible for Man to supplant God. Sure, it was happening in Russia, but they were crazy. No, the West was still seen as a “United Christendom.” Perhaps in some ways it was.

Over the course of a century, that scenario is no more and Benson’s novel begins to leap off the page. Why I recommend this book, why I have read it again and again is not as a blueprint for the coming days, nor as some piece of mystical writing, but because of the characters. While the geopolitical structures of the novel are not real (yet…), nor is the Church so socially powerless (yet…) the basic characters already exist. Oliver Brand, the man who believes in a quasi-spiritual unity of all material things (particularly humanity), matches so many personalities I have met over the years. “The ‘Universe’ is moving humanity forward.” Concepts like karma, anthropomorphic descriptions of nature, and political and governmental agencies giving rights to the environment all move towards the book’s pantheistic and man centered religion. So many in current politics, both in Europe and America, hold to principles that are religious, but not of a supernatural religion. Despite the fact that they haven’t been systematized and promulgated, how many world leaders subscribe to an anthropocentric moral and religious order? Christianity is seen as the religion of backwoods fundamentalists, uneducated ingrates who “cling to their bibles and their guns.” The characters are already there.

Mr. Francis too, an apostate priest who placed himself at the service of the government’s new celebrations of human nature, is already present in our world seminally. All one needs do is google “Synod on the Family 2015.” Mr. Francis did not leave the Church the moment he began to have doubts or disagreements with Church teaching. No… held on for quite some time, causing broad swaths of damage. The rate of apostasy by foot today is incomprehensible. The largest religious denomination in the U.S. are those who have left the Church (10% of Americans are ex-catholics)! We don’t even have the incredible numbers of faithful who have left in Europe. From 1964 to 1970, nearly 70,000 priests left their ministry! Today blatantly heretical ideas and practices are suggested without impunity. The characters are already there.

Yet, as the widespread confusion, evil, and spiritual damage within the story are amply covered, so too does goodness and beauty hold firm. The Kings and Queens of Europe, deposed, holding no thrones, attend to the Pope’s every need. Benson describes their faithful service at the altar and their devotion to God in the face of a world that has absolutely disowned them and it’s inspiring. For pages, their love of the Faith and of God is extolled. The millions that have flocked to Rome are held up as perseverant, poor in spirit, and zealous. They hold to their faith in the midst of a society that sees them as extremists, those who hinder the progress of humanity, and intellectually foolish. Their faith and their joy adorn the story beautifully. Their families are lights in the midst of a dark world. The characters are already there.

And lastly, there is Father Percy Franklin, the main character of the story. His faithfulness and devotion to God and His Church are exemplary. But what I find most endearing about Fr. Franklin is his suffering and struggle. He feels the same temptations that everyone in Benson’s theoretical world does. He struggles with frustration and despair. He weeps over those who leave the loving embrace of God, he weeps over the destruction that is being wreaked within the Church. His faith is tried like gold in fire. And yet, he does not falter. Sustained by his prayer, clutching his faith with all his might, he continues confidently in God’s path. There are so many clergy who witness with clarity the apostasy that is taking place in this country and Europe, and weep. So many priests and bishops have fought and struggled individually with what the rising cultural tides attempt to impress upon us. They endure the shame and incredulity of the world, relying on prayer and God’s grace to maintain the course laid before them by the Savior. Good men, all of them. The characters are already there.

So what am I talking about… I don’t know. This post comes from two things I imagine: love of the book, and frustration with the age we live in. Somewhere in my mind, I see connections. That being said, I know that there are many others who are frustrated and wounded by what is happening to our people, our fellow countrymen and our brothers and sisters in Christ. As a priest, standing in persona Christi, I watch as my bride is wounded both from within and from without. The post comes out of a hope that those who may read the book will be inspired like I was, inspired to pray and to fast, to study and to contemplate; this is all shared so that some may be moved to renew their dedication to God in the face of evil and deepen their intimacy with the one who died to save them and in the end will judge us all… to remember that our Savior will return.

Thanks for telling me about the book, OC. See you at the gates, brother!

Who Needs Priests?

I was asked a few weeks ago why the Catholic Church has priests; they seem a lot like Protestant pastors sans marriage. Who needs priests? I was a little taken aback, but she scored some points when, finding out I was a priest, said sheepishly, “Really? You don’t seem creepy or old! How old are you?!” I’ll be 29 on November 6th… I believe I’m still the youngest priest in my diocese, but I’ll take the compliment. There really wasn’t time to give her an adequate answer but perhaps here something can be said. It’s important to note that last weekend was Priesthood Sunday. Since this post is written by a priest, I think it needs to be said right off the bat, priests need priests too! I can’t absolve myself. I can’t anoint myself. I need priests as much as any other Catholic (one of the perks though is the Mass doesn’t start till I get there, haha).

 

A priest will do all of the things a pastor does. He provides advice, counsels, and teaches. He prepares couples for marriage, baptizes babies, buries the dead and mourns with the family. He preaches far more than any Protestant pastor I’ve ever met! He is a father and shepherd to the People of God. Yet, these things don’t get to the heart of his priesthood, which given the ontological change he undergoes (on the deepest level of the soul) in ordination is inseparable from him. To answer the question of why we need priests, we have to understand what a priest is.

 

Sacrifice, pure and simple. The primary function of a priest is to offer sacrifice. The Old Testament demonstrates this so clearly. From the beginning, the father of a family had a priestly function given him by God (interesting how fatherhood and priesthood seem to go hand in hand). Adam taught his sons to offer sacrifice to God; he was training them in their basic priesthood. It’s over the offering of sacrifice that Cain kills Abel. This priestly connection with sacrifice is true of Noah and his sons, seen in their oblations after the ark lands. The reality that sacrifice was necessary, both as justice in offering gifts to the Lord for his blessing and as expiation for sins in the face of God’s anger over wrongdoing, was so clearly evident that even those who had abandoned Yahweh for false gods continued the practice of priesthood and sacrifice.

 

As God began his rescue op for humanity, he created a holy people, a priestly nation with Abraham. They continued the sacerdotal activity of sacrifice in thanksgiving and contrition. With the giving of the Law, God draws the identity and role of the priest into a more explicit role. While fathers still had a priestly function, Aaron and his lineage were taken from among the people and consecrated, set aside, for sacrifice that would different from those who were not priests. They were ordained, placed in a separate order, fixed around ministry and sacrifice to God. And this role would be more than simply offering sacrifice for himself and his family, but the priest’s primary function would now be to do so for the whole People of God. Just as Moses stood in the breach between God and the people asking for mercy, now the priest would do so liturgically and by his very life through sacrifice. This continued with the Levitical priesthood up until the time of Jesus Christ.

 

If you remember, our Lord told us that He had not come to “abolish the Law, but to fulfill it.” As Jesus Christ closes one covenant to enter into an even greater one, He does not destroy what has come before but transforms it! So Israel, God’s holy and chosen people, would no longer be confined to a specific nation but to all those who would be baptized (the Church). Just as Israel was a priestly people ministering and sacrificing to God, so the new Israel, the Church, would be the same. And just as within Israel there were men chosen, ordained, and consecrated from the people for sacerdotal activity, so it would be in the new Israel. The apostles were chosen by Christ for the annunciation of the imminent coming of God’s kingdom and to be the first priests of the New Covenant. It’s this priesthood that continues unbroken in the Catholic Church.

Those who know the scriptures are aware, however, that Jesus is the one High Priest and His one Sacrifice on the Cross is infinite and super-sufficient for all humanity and all time. So if sacrifice is the primary function of a priest, how is that priests exist in the New Covenant? The sacrifice has already taken place. You see, ordination in the New Covenant is not simply a consecration, a setting aside of a man for holy purposes. No, his soul is radically reconfigured to that of Jesus Christ, Priest, Prophet, and King (substantially different than what takes place in baptism). Because this, when he offers the sacraments (the big 7) he acts in persona Christi, or better it is Christ who speaks and acts through him.

 

Priests of the New Covenant offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, as commanded by Christ at the Last Supper. As Christ perpetually offers his one sacrifice to the Father (this takes place forever because God is outside of time and space), so the priest, when offering the Sacrifice of the Mass, is tapping into eternity, into the one sacrifice of Christ and, not reoffering it, but re-presenting this sacrifice and its grace to the people for their sanctification and to God the Father for blessing and mercy. He does all of this in persona Christi… so it is Christ re-presenting his sacrifice. Insofar as the People of God are still in exile from the Beatific Vision on this earth and in need of sanctification (growth in holiness), the priesthood of Jesus Christ in the priests of the Catholic Church will continue until the end of time. The re-presentation of the Paschal Mystery, the offering of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass will be necessary until the end of time. Padre Pio, a beloved friend of mine ;), once said that it is easier for the world to exist without the sun than without the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. And so, for the Mass to be present, for the sacrifice to be offered there will always be the need for priests.

 

By offering this divine service, Christ sustains His Church through His priests. It’s in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass that Jesus Christ becomes truly and substantially present under the appearance of bread and wine (While He is the priest, Christ is also the victim, the sacrifice). The old axiom, it’s the Eucharist that creates the Church, holds true because it’s there that the Church finds its source of communion and unity; it’s there that the Body of Christ becomes such by consuming the Body and Blood of Christ. In a really long and round about, that’s why we need priests. That’s why the world, whether it knows it or not, whether it believes it or not, needs priests. The sacrifice is offered for the salvation and blessing of all, appealing to God for mercy and forgiveness. And there is need for that sacrifice today more than ever… Pray for and encourage vocations. The world and the Church need priests.