Showing posts with label Easter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Easter. Show all posts

Sunday, April 10, 2016

Our Continuing Mission

Third Sunday of Easter, 2016:

Third Sunday of Easter, 2016

By Deacon Lawrence N. Kaas April 10, 2016

As I'm sure most of you know I always do a certain amount of research and reading before writing these homilies. It happened that I'm reading a homily by a Deacon Ross Braudoin who uses a word I can't recall ever seeing before, and the word is reprise, (spelt, reprise) my dictionary wasn't much help because it didn't have the word either. The best I could come up with was that it's like retelling the story or a development of the story that comes to a final conclusion.

I have heard father Statz say from time to time that good music, or a good homily or a good story is always worth retelling, so is the case with our gospel stories. Deacon Ross, concluded that there are many reprises in the gospels, because these Gospels were written many decades after the initial incidents took place and the Gospel writers were aware of nuances in the stories that were used to instruct the people for which that particular gospel was written.

In the events we hear recounted today, Jesus and seven disciples are at the sea of Tiberius. The seven are fishing. This story is a reprise of a similar incident recorded earlier in which the disciples were also fishing. Then, they had caught nothing. In each case, Jesus instructs the disciples were to fish ... and result is an astonishing large catch.

In the first instance, Jesus used the catch to tell the disciples that they would become "fishers of men." They would bring into the reign of God those who would follow the Lord.

The disciples left everything to follow Jesus.

In the reprise of the catch of fish, Jesus builds on the teachings of the earlier catch. The disciples are ready for a new understanding and a new calling. First, we note that this whole scene takes place in this setting of hospitality. This is a Eucharistic scene. Jesus is the host who welcomes and feed the guests. "A charcoal fire with fish and bread" was very welcoming to fishermen who had spent the night on the sea.

Looking at the course of events and dialogue in this scene, we find a number of important reasons that this was added to the end of John's Gospel (whose first conclusion we read last week).

First, Jesus makes it clear that, as the risen Lord, He is truly a risen human person, not a spirit-person or an apparition. He builds a fire, prepares a meal and has breakfast with them.

Next, the catch of fish gives a lesson. The enormous quantity of fish is a reminder of the gracious bounty of God. Always, with Jesus there is not just enough, there is an abundance, even leftovers.

Finally, the dialogue between Jesus and Peter restates that Peter is to be leader of the disciples. That fact itself is a gracious gift. Peter denied Jesus three times. Peter may now have doubts as to his role among the disciples. Jesus makes it clear that He knows Peter's failures. In his characteristic Love and Mercy, He forgives Peter and restores him to his role of leadership. The threefold "do you love me" gives Peter the opportunity to reaffirm his love and commitment to Jesus.

Jesus had a call and a role for each of the disciples. In His resurrected presence among them, He strengthen their relationship to Him and their resolve to carry on the mission He had begun. That mission was now theirs. It is now ours!

Jesus will reprise His encounter at the sea of Tiberius with us, too, from time to time. In awareness and prayer, we will recognize Jesus standing on the shore of wherever we are in life. He will be gracious, shows Mercy and strengthen us in the work He has set up for each one of us. We can respond with Peter, "Lord, you know everything You know that I love You".

He will say to us follow me!

Be Good, Be Holy, Preach the Gospel always, using words and holy actions!
'Thank you' to Deacon Kaas, for letting me post his reflection here.
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Sunday, March 27, 2016

Another Easter

There have been only three to six major events so far, depending on how you count them: the creation of this universe; humanity's creation and fall; and our Lord's arrival, execution, and resurrection.

There's another big one coming, eventually, and I'll get back to that.

Cosmic Scale


I'm a Catholic, so I take Sacred Scripture very seriously,1 including this:
"God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good. Evening came, and morning followed - the sixth day."
(Genesis 1:31)
We've known that God's creation was big and old, and been impressed, for a long time:
"1 Think! The heavens, even the highest heavens, belong to the LORD, your God, as well as the earth and everything on it."
(Deuteronomy 10:14)

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the sky proclaims its builder's craft."
(Psalms 19:2)

"3 Raise your eyes to the heavens, and look at the earth below; Though the heavens grow thin like smoke, the earth wears out like a garment and its inhabitants die like flies, My salvation shall remain forever and my justice shall never be dismayed."
(Isaiah 51:6)

"4 Indeed, before you the whole universe is as a grain from a balance, or a drop of morning dew come down upon the earth."
(Wisdom 11:22-25)
I also believe that God is infinite and eternal, almighty and ineffable: beyond our power to describe or understand. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 202, 230)

I might not have created a universe as big and old as the one we're in: but God's God, I'm not, and that's a good thing.

As I see it, what we're learning about the cosmic scale of this creation is cause for greater admiration of God's work, and that's another topic. (July 26, 2015; March 29, 2015; September 21, 2014)

Wounded, but Basically Good


I've said this before: God doesn't make junk.

The universe is basically good. So are we — basically. (Genesis 1:26-27, 31; Catechism, 31, 299,)

The first of us — Adam and Eve aren't German — listened to Satan, ignoring what God had said. Then Adam tried blaming his wife, and God, which did not end well. (Genesis 3:5-13)

That was a very, very long time ago. We've been living with the disastrous consequences of their decision ever since. (Catechism, 396-412)

Humanity is still made "in the divine image." (Genesis 1:27)

But loving ourselves, others, and God is a struggle because the harmony we had with ourselves and with the universe is broken. Human nature is wounded: but not corrupted. (Catechism, 355-361, 374-379, 398, 400, 405, 1701-1707, 1949)

True God and True Man


About two thousand years ago, our Lord arrived:
"For God so loved the world that he gave 7 his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.

"For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn 8 the world, but that the world might be saved through him."
(John 3:16-17)
Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Shepherds and Magi thought it was good news, Herod didn't, and that's yet another topic. (January 3, 2016)

The Word has become Flesh, true God and true man. (Catechism, 456-478)

Anguish, Betrayal, Blood, and Death


We reviewed Luke's account of our Lord's final Passover meal last week; and kept reading until Luke 23:55-56, where some women spotted the tomb his body was in.

The whole week has been like that. Friday's Gospel, John 18:1-19:42, was similarly uncheerful:
"1 2 When he had said this, Jesus went out with his disciples across the Kidron valley to where there was a garden, into which he and his disciples entered."
...
"So they laid Jesus there because of the Jewish preparation day; for the tomb was close by."
(John 18:1,19:42)
There's been a lot of anguish, betrayal, torture, blood, and death, in this week's Sacred Scripture.

All four Gospels agree on what happened next, although the accounts don't quite match up: by American standards.2
"1 2 3 On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb."
(John 20:1)
It took time and effort, but our Lord finally convinced the surviving Apostles that they weren't seeing a ghost. Our Lord had stopped being dead. (November 22, 2015; October 18, 2015)

That's where it gets interesting.

The Eighth Day: Life, Death - - -




Two millennia later, we're still celebrating.

Pope St. John Paul II called the Resurrection of Jesus "the fundamental event upon which Christian faith rests ... the fulcrum of history."3

Death, physical death, happens: but it is not the end. (Catechism, 1007, 1010-1014, 1022, 1682)
"7 8 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.

"9 For since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead came also through a human being.

"For just as in Adam all die, so too in Christ shall all be brought to life,"
(1 Corinthians 15:20-22)
What happens next is up to each of us: whether we've decided to accept or reject God's grace, and what we've done with our life. (John 14:15; 2 Timothy 1:9-10; James 2:14-19; Catechism, 1021-1022, 1987-2016)

What our Lord expects is simple, but not easy.

I should love God, love my neighbor, see everyone as my neighbor, treat others as I want to be treated. (Matthew 7:12, Matthew 22:36-40, Mark 12:28-31; Matthew 5:43-44; Mark 12:28-31; Luke 10:25-30; Catechism, 1825)

I try to love God and neighbor because I follow the Man who is God: who died in my place; descended to the abode of the dead; rose from the tomb; and lives today and forever. (Matthew 28:1-10; Mark 16:1-11; 1 Peter 4:6; Catechism, 631-635, 638-655)

We are living in the eighth day of creation, a day of life and hope: and have been for two millennia. (Catechism, 349, 1166, 2174)

- - - and Beyond


There's more to being a Christian than celebrating, and waiting for our Lord's return.4 We're expected to live as if loving our neighbors and loving God matter.

Truly respecting the "transcendent dignity" of humanity, and each person, isn't easy: but it's something we must do. Also building a better world for future generations. The job starts within each of us, with an ongoing "inner conversion." (Catechism, 1888, 1928-1942)

We've made some progress: and have a very great deal left to do.

As I said last year, my guess is that we'll still be waiting and working when the 8.2 kiloyear event, Y2K, and Y10K are seen as roughly contemporary. (December 28, 2014; November 23, 2014; October 26, 2014)


(From Jaime Jasso, via DeviantArt.com, used w/o permission.)

But — the war is over. We won. We're already in "the last hour," and have been for two thousand years. This world's renewal is in progress, and nothing can stop it. (Matthew 16:18; Mark 16:6; Catechism, 638, 670)

More of my take on the best news ever:
1 Reading the Bible is a very Catholic thing:
"The Church 'forcefully and specifically exhorts all the Christian faithful. . . to learn the surpassing knowledge of Jesus Christ, by frequent reading of the divine Scriptures. Ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ.112"
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 133)
It's literally 'Catholicism 101:'
2 As I keep saying, Sacred Scripture wasn't written from a contemporary Western viewpoint:
3 From Pope Saint John Paul II's "Dies Domini" (Day of the Lord):
"...The Resurrection of Jesus is the fundamental event upon which Christian faith rests (cf. 1 Cor 15:14). It is an astonishing reality, fully grasped in the light of faith, yet historically attested to by those who were privileged to see the Risen Lord. It is a wondrous event which is not only absolutely unique in human history, but which lies at the very heart of the mystery of time. In fact, 'all time belongs to [Christ] and all the ages', as the evocative liturgy of the Easter Vigil recalls in preparing the Paschal Candle. Therefore, in commemorating the day of Christ's Resurrection not just once a year but every Sunday, the Church seeks to indicate to every generation the true fulcrum of history, to which the mystery of the world's origin and its final destiny leads...."
("Dies Domini," Pope Saint John Paul II (Pentecost, May 31, 1998))
More about the Resurrection:
4 Our Lord's return, and the Final Judgment, will happen: and is the next major event. As for when it's coming — I have enough on my plate, without trying to outguess God.


(From Wily Miller's Non Sequitur, June 14, 2011 and May 3, 2010, used w/o permission.)

More of my take on Final Judgment and getting a grip:
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Thursday, March 24, 2016

Washing Feet: Love and Service

Holy Thursday, 2016:

Holy Thursday, 2016

By Deacon Lawrence N. Kaas
March 24, 2016

"If I, therefore ... Have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another's feet."

To wash someone's feet in the ancient world really meant something. It was, almost always done, by household servants as a way of indicating the importance of the other person, as a way of showing respect. It was a show of humility and tenderness in submissiveness and deference. The person doing the washing was always "lesser" than the one whose feet were being washed. And the fact that Jesus did it spoke volumes. In a sense he was saying, "you must be a servant. You must be humble. You must come in close to the one in need. You must get your hands dirty. You must (maybe for the first time) think exclusively of the other person."

So what does that look like in this time and in this place?

Maybe it means.....

That the starting point is always the dignity of every single person, no exceptions.

That the happiness and well-being of others is as, or more important, then ours.

That we don't have to win every argument.

That we don't have to have all the answers, and that others have something to teach us.

That the person we like the least is precisely the one we need to help the most.

That we must never be okay with others being lonely and forgotten or unloved.

Maybe it simply means that we should approach every single person we encounter, intent on answering the question, "what can I give? What does this person need from me?" And not what can I get from this person?

How can we possibly do that? Well, it's only possible if God is alive and well within us, shaping all we say and do. And nowhere is that hope more visible than at this altar, at the sacred table whereby our loving Lord and Savior feeds us with his very life, his very self -- our God poured out for us and within us so that we can do all the incredible things he calls us to do. Think about it -- the body of Christ given to the body of Christ so that we can more perfectly become the body of Christ, that is so that each of us can strive to live lives of profound goodness, kindness, generosity, mercy, and love. That's the promise and the challenge of the Eucharist.

So you all be Good, Be Holy, preach the Gospel always using Words and Holy Actions.
'Thank you' to Deacon Kaas, for letting me post his reflection here.
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Tuesday, March 22, 2016

We Killed Jesus

Despite this post's title, I won't be indulging in a guilt trip, or bewailing the decline and fall of practically everybody.1

An incident earlier this month could have been much worse: like the Judenschlacht of 1241 or Hep-Hep riots in 1819.

What happened was bad enough, though:
"The chanting started with a rude taunt: Newton North High School students cheering for their basketball team Friday night shouted, 'Where are your girls?' to the fans of Catholic Memorial School, an all-boys school.

"But the response from the Catholic Memorial fans to their opponents, many of whom are Jewish, left the Newton North crowd horrified and upset: 'You killed Jesus!' shouted about 50 to 75 Catholic Memorial students. 'You killed Jesus!'..."
(Evan Allen, Boston Globe (March 12, 2016))
The Boston Globe article doesn't say how many Catholic Memorial fans were at the game, so I don't know if "the Catholic Memorial fans" refers to all the fans, or some of them. Either way, that was unacceptable behavior.

Catholic Memorial's administration thinks so, too. School brass took "corrective action"2 during and after the game, and my guess is that the lesson isn't over yet:
"Archdiocese of Boston Statement Incident involving Catholic Memorial High School"

"...The Archdiocese wishes to make clear that the behavior of a number of students from Catholic Memorial at the game is unacceptable....

"...Cardinal Sean O'Malley stood in solidarity with hundreds of members of the Jewish community and in affirming the Jewish and Catholic communities' shared heritage of faith...

"...We stand ready to assist Catholic Memorial in providing the student body with the awareness education that is needed to ensure that there is no recurrence of these actions or attitudes."
I put the statement's full text2, and links to more resources3, at the end of this post.

Before talking about being a gentile Catholic, and why our Lord died on the Cross: a tip of the hat to Fr. Robert Carr, on Google Plus, for drawing my attention to this short recording of a Palm Sunday homily.
  • "Who Killed Jesus?"
    Words From Holy Trinity Quincy, MA; PodOmatic, 5:25 (March 20, 2016)

Anti-Whatever Soreheads and Me



(From Watson Heston, via Wikimedia Commons, used w/o permission.)
("History Repeats Itself" — "This is the U.S. in the Hands of the Jews:" editorial cartoon from the April 15, 1896 issue of Sound Money magazine.)

I've mentioned the rabid Christians who helped me learn to love rock 'n roll, and eventually become a Catholic, before. (May 3, 2015; January 11, 2015; September 11, 2014)

The lot I ran into seldom mentioned Jews, or Israel: except in the context of their latest 'End Times' prophecy, where Israel occasionally popped up in the ultimate battle between America and Satan. And that's another topic. Topics. (February 21, 2016; April 19, 2015)

America has had its share of anti-Semitic, anti-Catholic, anti-Irish, and anti-whatever soreheads — yet more topics. (September 6, 2015; June 21, 2015)

I can't reasonably hate Jews, or anybody else. Mainly because —

I Worship a Jew


Jesus is a Jew. That's obvious, from both of our Lord's genealogies. (Matthew 1:1-16; Luke 3:23-38)

They're not exactly the same, and I've explained why the Bible's non-American origin doesn't upset me. (February 21, 2016; October 24, 2014)

Our Lord isn't just ethnically Jewish. While Jesus was here, he lived as a Jew, obedient to God's law: understanding it better than the Pharisees and other control freaks. (Matthew 12:1-5; Mark 2:23-28; Luke 11:52; John 5:6-17; Catechism, 423, 531-531, 582-584, 2173)

I could, by cherry-picking verses like Luke 11:47 and Acts 5:30, claim that God blames the Jews for whatever annoys me.

I really don't need that sort of trouble. Sacred Scripture, Tradition (capital "T"), the Magisterium, and my upcoming particular judgment, are — yet again more topics. (April 12, 2015; March 15, 2015; September 28, 2014; July 13, 2014)

I certainly can't blame 'the Jews' or any other single group for our Lord's death. Not if I take what the Church says seriously.

For starters, some Jewish authorities wanted our Lord dead, others didn't. (Catechism, 595-596)
"1 Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2

"He came to Jesus at night and said to him, 'Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one can do these signs that you are doing unless God is with him.' "
(John 3:1-2)

"Joseph of Arimathea, 19 a distinguished member of the council, who was himself awaiting the kingdom of God, came and courageously went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus."
(Mark 15:43)
Differences of opinion didn't stop after Jesus stopped being dead.
"6 But a Pharisee in the Sanhedrin named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, respected by all the people, stood up, ordered the men to be put outside for a short time,

"and said to them, 'Fellow Israelites, be careful what you are about to do to these men.

"7 Some time ago, Theudas appeared, claiming to be someone important, and about four hundred men joined him, but he was killed, and all those who were loyal to him were disbanded and came to nothing.

"After him came Judas the Galilean at the time of the census. He also drew people after him, but he too perished and all who were loyal to him were scattered.

"So now I tell you, have nothing to do with these men, and let them go. For if this endeavor or this activity is of human origin, it will destroy itself.

"But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them; you may even find yourselves fighting against God.' They were persuaded by him."
(Acts 5:34-39)
I think Gamaliel made sense. (September 14, 2014)

But being right, and making sense, is no guarantee of success. Not in the short run, anyway. I've talked about freedom, McCarthyism, and getting a grip, before, too. (July 19, 2015)

I know enough history to realize that truth wins — eventually. Sometimes we have to be very, very, patient, and that's still another topic. Topics. (January 10, 2016; July 5, 2015; January 18, 2015)

Getting back to our Lord's trial, Pilate was in a highly unenviable position. (November 22, 2015)

The political situation was complicated, the Sanhedrin threatened Pilate during the trial, and "...the personal sin of the participants (Judas, the Sanhedrin, Pilate) is known to God alone...." We must not blame folks who wouldn't be born for another two millennia. Particularly considering what Jesus and Peter said. (Catechism, 596-597)
"Consequently, Pilate tried to release him; but the Jews cried out, 'If you release him, you are not a Friend of Caesar. 3 Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar.' "

"They cried out, 'Take him away, take him away! Crucify him!' Pilate said to them, 'Shall I crucify your king?' The chief priests answered, 'We have no king but Caesar.' "

"So the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, 'Do not write "The King of the Jews," but that he said, "I am the King of the Jews." '

"Pilate answered, 'What I have written, I have written.' "
(John 19:12, 15, 21-22)

Forgiveness and Gentiles


Ill-informed Christians and imaginative editors notwithstanding, forgiveness is not a new idea. At all. (March 13, 2016; December 13, 2015; September 6, 2015)
"[Then Jesus said, 'Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.'] 5 They divided his garments by casting lots. "
(Luke 23:34)

"Now I know, brothers, that you acted out of ignorance, 7 just as your leaders did;

"but God has thus brought to fulfillment what he had announced beforehand through the mouth of all the prophets, 8 that his Messiah would suffer."
(Acts 3:17-18)
I get the impression that one of the early questions wasn't whether Jews were 'saved:' it was whether the Messiah came for Gentiles, too. (January 3, 2016)
"1 Because of this, I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ 2 (Jesus) for you Gentiles -
...
"When you read this you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ,

"which was not made known to human beings in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit,

"that the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel."
(Ephesians 3:1, 4-6)

Sin, Death, Redemption


Sin is what happens when I decide not to do something I should; or decide to do something I know is bad for myself or others, and do it anyway. (Catechism, 1849-1864)

It's not loving God, loving my neighbors, seeing everybody as my neighbor, and treating others as I want to be treated. (Matthew 5:43-44, 7:12, 22:36-40, Mark 12:28-31; Luke 6:31 10:25-27, 29-37)

Humanity is not divided into 'the righteous' who can do no wrong and 'sinners' who can do no right. Reality is a whole lot more complicated.

We're still made "in the image of God," as Genesis 1:26-27 says. We're rational creatures who can decide what we do: spiritual beings with a body made from the stuff of this world. (Catechism, 311, 325-348, 1704, 1730-1731)

Having a body isn't the problem, by the way. Satan and the other rebellious angels are pure spirit, and look what happened to them. (Catechism, 385-395)

Our trouble started when the first of us decided to put their preferences above God's — and we've been dealing with consequences of that decision ever since. (Catechism, 396-412)

I've been over this before, often. (March 13, 2016; February 7, 2016; September 27, 2015)

Seeing anything from God's viewpoint is arguably impossible for a finite creature. We can, however, learn and come to understand the Almighty: to some extent. (Catechism, 27-43, 202, 600)

God, predestination, and Psalms 115, are even more topics. (July 26, 2015; September 21, 2014; July 27, 2014)

I can't 'work my way into Heaven.' I rely on our Lord for salvation. (February 7, 2016)

By dying on the Cross, Jesus took on our sin: and made it possible for each of us to take on our Lord's divine, risen, nature. (Catechism, 599-618, 638-655)

Whodunit


That brings me back to the 'who killed Jesus' whodunit. The solution is sort of like Agatha Christie's "Murder on the Orient Express."

Everybody who was there4 was involved. Some Jews railroaded our Lord through that trial. Pilate, a gentile, tried to let Jesus off; but finally went along with the local authorities. Roman soldiers — more gentiles — escorted our Lord to Golgotha and nailed Jesus to the Cross.

I am there, too, in a sense: every time I fail to love God and my neighbor, every time I "delight in [my] vices and sins." (Hebrews 6:6; Catechism, 598)

Happily:
"...life is eternal, and love is immortal, and death is only a horizon, and a horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight...."
I have one life, one soul, and one chance at eternity. Hope is a virtue, despair is not an option, and hope lasts as long as we live. (Catechism, 366, 988-1014, 1021-1022, 1501, 1817-1821, 2091)

And that is — yes, it's another topic. Topics.

More about taking God seriously:
1 If that phrase sounds familiar, your reading habits may be like mine. "The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody" is the title of Will Cuppy's uncompleted historical satire. It didn't stay uncompleted, obviously, since Fred Feldkamp sorted through Cuppy's copious notes: finishing and publishing the book in 1950.

2 Response to a "troubling incident:"
"Archdiocese of Boston Statement Incident involving Catholic Memorial High School"

"The Archdiocese of Boston has learned of a troubling incident that occurred on Friday evening at Newton South High School, during a basketball game between Newton North and Catholic Memorial High Schools. The Archdiocese wishes to make clear that the behavior of a number of students from Catholic Memorial at the game is unacceptable.

"On Thursday evening of this past week, in observance of the 50th anniversary of the Church's landmark document that overturned the Church's history of anti-Jewish attitudes and teaching, Cardinal Sean O'Malley stood in solidarity with hundreds of members of the Jewish community and in affirming the Jewish and Catholic communities' shared heritage of faith.

"We are pleased that the administration of Catholic Memorial took corrective action immediately during and after the basketball game. This incident, while not representative of the school community, presents an opportunity to promote an important learning experience for the students.

"We stand ready to assist Catholic Memorial in providing the student body with the awareness education that is needed to ensure that there is no recurrence of these actions or attitudes."
3 More:
4 Our Lord's mother is a special case. As I've said before, Mary is as human as I am. Catholics don't, or should not, worship her. I've discussed Mary, mother of Jesus, before:
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Sunday, March 20, 2016

The Messiah We Need

Tiberius was Rome's absentee emperor around the time the Han Dynasty was getting back to business-as-usual, after Wang Mang's brief takeover. I mentioned him before: Wang Mang, I mean. (December 27, 2015)

Meanwhile, Phaedrus was retelling Aesop's Fables in Latin, and Pontius Pīlātus was prefect of the Roman Province of Judea.

That part of the world had been under Roman control since the Battle of Philippi, Armenia wasn't a Roman province yet, but it wasn't the force it had been during Tigranes' reign, and that's another topic.

Tigranes, Tiberius, and Wang Mang, were well-known folks in their day;1 at least in their homelands. Two millennia later, not so much.

Pontius Pīlātus is another matter. He's mentioned each year around this time, when something like 2,000,000,000 folks pay at least fleeting attention to a Nazarene's progress from top-of-the-polls celebrity to executed corpse.

"But who do you say that I am?"


That's because Jesus of Nazareth is one of three very important persons.

Abraham's descendants learned, eventually, that the Almighty was serious about this:
"1 'Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone!"
(Deuteronomy 6:4)
I think God is one, too.

However, I'm a Catholic: so I acknowledge God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

That's one God, three persons; a divine Unity; "...the Father who generates, the Son who is begotten, and the Holy Spirit who proceeds...." (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 253-256, 456-478)

But I don't understand how the Trinity works. Not on an operational, nuts-and-bolts, level. All three were at our Lord's baptism — you can read about that in Matthew 3:13-17 — I talked about the Trinity, tefillin, and metaphor, last year. (March 8, 2015)

I also acknowledge that our Lord is the Son of God, human and divine, "true God and true man." (Catechism, 456-478)

Again, I don't understand how that works; but I agree with Peter.
"8 When Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi 9 he asked his disciples, 'Who do people say that the Son of Man is?'

"They replied, 'Some say John the Baptist, 10 others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.'

"He said to them, 'But who do you say that I am?'

"11 Simon Peter said in reply, 'You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.' "
(Matthew 16:13-16)
Today is Palm Sunday, Holy Week's kickoff. We've been leading up to a really long Gospel reading with this sort of thing:
"5 Jesus spoke to them again, saying, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.' "
(John 8:12)

"So Jesus said (to them), 'When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I AM, and that I do nothing on my own, but I say only what the Father taught me.
"The one who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, because I always do what is pleasing to him.' "
(John 8:28-29)

"So the Jews said to him, 'You are not yet fifty years old and you have seen Abraham?' 23
"24 Jesus said to them, 'Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham came to be, I AM.' "
(John 8:57-58)

"If I do not perform my Father's works, do not believe me;
"but if I perform them, even if you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may realize (and understand) that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.'"
(John 10:37-38)

Last Supper, Messy Death



(Palm Sunday in Mexico, East Timor, South Sudan, and Poland.)

Today's long Gospel reading, Luke 22:14-56 starts with the Last Supper and ends with the women who had come from Galilee with our Lord resting on the Sabbath — after spotting the tomb his body was in.

The short version, Luke 23:1-49, isn't particularly short. It runs from the council of elders accusing Jesus before Pilate to our Lord's death.

Either way, it's a far-from-cheerful account.

So why did our Lord go through all this?2 It's like God told Abraham: "...All the communities of the earth shall find blessing in you." (Genesis 12:3)

Jesus may not have been the Messiah folks expected, but our Lord is the Messiah and Redeemer God promised after the first of us made that disastrous choice.3 (Genesis 3:19-15; Catechism, 397-410, 528)

Jesus is the Messiah we need. (Catechism, 430-435)

Our Lord's messy death, and what happened after that, opened Heaven's gates for you, me, and everyone. Whether we walk in is up to each of us, and that's yet another topic. (Catechism, 597-618, 631-635, 637, 1026, 1739-1742)

Still Celebrating


Our Lord wouldn't stay dead: which is why, two millennia later, we're still celebrating — and passing along wonderful news.

God loves us, and wants to adopt us. All of us. (John 3:17; Romans 8:15; Ephesians 1:3-5; Catechism, 1-3, 52, 1825)

And that's yet again another topic:
1 As a writer, Phaedrus wasn't important the way civic leaders are, but the poet Martial and writer Avianus mentioned him: and his stories lasted considerably longer than he did.

Phaedrus made an important contribution to the current iteration of Western civilization, although it wasn't until fairly recently that we worked out where at least some source material for "Anonymus Nilanti," a collection of Latin beast fables, came from.

2 More about Palm Sunday:
3 As I've said before, often, Adam and Eve aren't German. It's become increasingly obvious that we've passed down accounts of how we lost harmony within ourselves and with the universe for a very long time:
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Sunday, April 5, 2015

Jesus Christ is Risen!

Easter Sunday 2015:

Easter Sunday 2015

By Deacon Lawrence N. Kaas
April 5, 2015

Jesus Christ is risen! This means that life takes on a new horizon. Have you ever thought of yourself as immortal? Have you ever considered that you have "forever" to live? The resurrection from the death of Jesus casts a new light on our human existence. No longer are we bound by finite ends. Our life has an all new endless and brilliant horizon, and we come to share in this new resurrected and glorious horizon gifted us by Christ Jesus through our baptism.

In baptism, we are born into the resurrected life of Jesus Christ, a life that knows no end, no boundaries. Death has no more hold on us. Yes, we still died, but that is not the end of our life. For not only will our souls live on past our death, but our bodies and souls will be reunited and resurrected from the grave on to the glory that we have already seen in Jesus the firstborn of the dead. With this faith, we come to find that urgencies and anxieties that death can put upon our desires for a life come to fade to nothingness as we now see that we have a "forever" to existence---meaning, for all that we could ever yearn.

Sin, likewise, loses its tempting appeal. Sins' allure, makes us believe that it can fulfill our every need in the here and now, and that there will be no greater opportunity to be so fulfilled in the future. The resurrection of Christ Jesus shows us the folly of this allure, unraveling its false logic. The resurrection shows us the opportunity for an endless future of glory and fulfillment, and that the present is not the only opportunity we ever have to satiate our desires. For there is truly a great and majestic glory that awaits all who persevere in Christ Jesus, and with faith, put their hope and a future filled with all the love one could ever desire.

The resurrection gives us our freedom to decide our life's direction, unencumbered by the insidious snares of the devil. The death of Jesus-- just like the death of those who have gone on before us, and who fought so that we may have freedom-- bestows a great and inevitable dignity on our liberty to make choices in regards the direction of our life. It begs the question: "what do we use our freedom for, that was purchased at such a great price?" Furthermore, the resurrection of Christ shows us a great light to guide us in our choices. It shows us a glimmer of the glory that awaits when we use our freedom to embrace, not the fading allurements of the present but an endless glory of resplendent beauty in the future.

The glory of Easter is a future glory. It calls us to wait for fulfillment, to use our freedom to choose the greatest good-- a good that lies not in any temptation before our eyes at present, but for a beauty that can only be attained through holy patient. Easter freedom is a freedom for a better tomorrow. It is, therefore, as an Easter people-- by virtue of our baptism, and nourished in the sacred food of the Eucharist that we journey and live, not for today but for the beauty that awaits!

One last final reflection: Thank God for Easter. We don't have scientific evidence for life beyond the grave, but we do have historical evidence. The respected theologian and author, Wolfhart Pannenberg once said, "the evidence for Jesus' resurrection is so strong that nobody would question it except for two things: first, it is a very unusual event. And second, if you believe that it happened, you have to change the way you live."

He's right, of course. The testimony of those who experienced Jesus' resurrection is so compelling that the only real reason a person might reject it is that it might require them to make a change in how they are living. That too is right, of course, of those who reject this knowledge. It is sad, but they are free to reject the good news of Easter if they so choose. As for me, and, I suspect for you, we will leave this church with "hallelujah" ringing in our ears and in our hearts. Jesus is alive, and because he lives we shall live, too. Easter is Gods light beaming into a dark, dark world. Because Jesus lives, the world is brighter than it has ever been before.

So you all be Good, be Holy, preach the Gospel always using words and holy actions.
'Thank you' to Deacon Kaas, for letting me post his reflection here.
More reflections:
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Death? Been There, Done That


(From Piero della Francesca, via Wikimedia Commons, used w/o permission.)
('Dead? I was, but now I'm better.' No, our Lord didn't say that: not in so many words. (John 20:26-27))

I haven't died, not yet: and I'm still working on the 'dying to myself' that doesn't mean pretending that I'm garbage — and that's another topic. Topics. (November 27, 2011; March 3, 2009)

Our Lord: That's another matter. About two millennia back, Jesus was tortured, executed, and buried: but I'm getting ahead of the story.

Someone named Abram moved out of Ur, changed his name to Abraham, and settled near the east end of the Mediterranean Sea. That was about one and a half or two millennia before the Golgotha incident.

Folks didn't have standardized calendars 35 to 40 centuries back, Western civilization went through two or three resets1 since then — and that's yet another topic. (March 11, 2012)

Abraham made some good decisions — and a really bad one, leading to a domestic dispute we're still dealing with. Still more topics. (August 16, 2011; Another War-on-Terror Blog (October 8, 2007))

A descendant of Abraham, sold as a slave, wound up running Egypt: and saved many lives during a famine. (Genesis 41:40 and following)

A few centuries later, a refugee named Moses had a face-to-burning bush talk with God:
" 'But,' said Moses to God, 'when I go to the Israelites and say to them, "The God of your fathers has sent me to you," if they ask me, "What is his name?" what am I to tell them?'

"6 God replied, 'I am who am.' Then he added, 'This is what you shall tell the Israelites: I AM sent me to you.'"
(Exodus 3:13-14)
Egypt's ruler learned — the hard way — that it's not prudent to ignore what God says, and descendants of Abraham moved back to the east end of the Mediterranean.

"Before Abraham ..."



(From John Martin, via WikiMedia Commons, used w/o permission.)
('Now that I have your attention ....')

More centuries passed, and descendants of Abraham finally got it through their heads that God, the great I AM, is ONE.

Then some Nazarene miracle-worker said, as plainly as possible, "I am God:"
"So the Jews said to him, 'You are not yet fifty years old and you have seen Abraham?' 23

"24 Jesus said to them, 'Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham came to be, I AM.' "
(John 8:57-58)
In a way, it's a bit surprising that folks didn't kill him on the spot. They knew what happened when they worshiped anyone or anything besides the God of Abraham, and didn't realize that Jesus really is I AM.

Our Lord's own disciples weren't all that much quicker on the uptake:
"Philip said to him, 'Master, show us the Father, 7 and that will be enough for us.'

"Jesus said to him, 'Have I been with you for so long a time and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, "Show us the Father"?"
(John 14:8-9)

Jesus Died - - -


Okay. Now I'm back to events we review every Good Friday. Our Lord was railroaded through a trial — two, if you count the interview with Herod — tortured, executed, and buried.

I sympathize, a little, with movie critics who said "The Passion of the Christ" (2004) was 'too violent:' and that all the blood obscured the film's message. Americans have gotten used to nice, clean, 'decently' sanitized versions of our Lord's crucifixion.

But I'm an adult convert to Catholicism, wear a little sculpture of a dead body around my neck, and understand why we have those ghastly, bloody crucifixes. (April 27, 2010; January 19, 2010)

Jesus was dead. Roman soldiers had been running the execution, and knew the difference between a dead body and someone who had fainted, or was pretending to be dead.

About three decades back, JAMA (The Journal of the American Medical Association, a peer-reviewed medical journal covering all aspects of the biomedical sciences) published an analysis of what our Lord went through. It isn't an easy read, but worth the effort. My opinion:

- - - and Stopped Being Dead


For anyone else, that would have been the end. The disciples might have tried to return to normal lives, forgetting as much of what happened as they could — hoping that the authorities would do the same.

But Jesus isn't anyone else. Two millennia later, we celebrate Good Friday and Easter — because our Lord didn't stay dead.

If that seems unbelievable, it should.

It took a series of meetings and working lunches to convince the surviving 11 that our Lord was really, no kidding, break-bread, eat-a-fish, put-your-hand-in-my-side, ALIVE.
"And it happened that, while he was with them at table, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them."

"With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him, but he vanished from their sight."
(Luke 24:30-31)
"While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed, he asked them, 'Have you anything here to eat?'

"They gave him a piece of baked fish;

"he took it and ate it in front of them."
(Luke 24:41-43)
"Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, 'Peace be with you.'

"Then he said to Thomas, 'Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe.' "
(John 20:26-27)
Once they'd been convinced that Jesus had stopped being dead, small wonder that all but John decided that a painful death was preferable to denying that our Lord lives. They'd gotten a glimpse of the big picture, the reality that our Lord has opened a way into God's presence.
"Who will condemn? It is Christ (Jesus) who died, rather, was raised, who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us.

"What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword?...

"...For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, 9 nor future things, nor powers,

"nor height, nor depth, 10 nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. "
(Romans 8:34-35, 38-39)
John might have made the same decision, but didn't have the opportunity. Instead, he lived to a ripe old age, in exile on Patmos, and that's yet again another topic.

The Last Hour — Two Millennia and Counting


Before leaving, our Lord gave standing orders:
"Go, therefore, 12 and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit,

"teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. 13 And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age." "
(Matthew 28:19-20)
Two millennia later, those orders haven't changed.

"Making disciples" isn't the sort of 'convert or die' thing Charlemagne did at Verdun, by the way. We're still cleaning up the mess from that atrocity. (May 18, 2014)

There's more to following our Lord than 'really believing,' reciting Bible verses, or putting loose change in the collection plate.

We're expected to act as if 'Love God, love you neighbor, everybody's your neighbor' is true — and matters. (Matthew 5:43-44, 22:36-40, Mark 12:28-31, Luke 10:25-30; Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1825)

Among other things, that means providing for those in need or in prison, and welcoming the stranger. (Matthew 25:34-35, 1 John 3:15-18)

Truly respecting the "transcendent dignity" of humanity, and each person, isn't easy: but it's something we must do. Also building a better world for future generations. The job starts within each of us, with an ongoing "inner conversion." (Catechism, 1888, 1928-1942)

It's been a long haul, we've made some progress: and we have a very great deal left to do.

My guess is that we'll still be waiting and working when the 8.2 kiloyear event, Y2K, and Y10K are seen as roughly contemporary. (December 28, 2014; November 23, 2014; October 26, 2014)


(From Jaime Jasso, via DeviantArt.com, used w/o permission.)

But — the war is over. We won. We're already in "the last hour," and have been for two thousand years. This world's renewal is in progress, and nothing can stop it. (Matthew 16:18; Mark 16:6; Catechism, 638, 670)

More of the same, pretty much:
1 The Late Bronze Age collapse, about 32 centuries ago, happened right around the time of the Trojan War — which may help explain why we're still not sure how much of our information about that conflict is fiction, and how much is fact.

Western civilization recovered, then about 15 centuries back we had another reset. The watershed event for that is the reign of Odoacer, first king of Italy: after which the Roman Empire didn't, in practical terms, exist.

The European Renaissance, about five centuries ago, wasn't — my opinion — quite as catastrophic a change.
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Marian Apparition: Champion, Wisconsin

Background:Posts in this blog: In the news:

What's That Doing in a Nice Catholic Blog?

From time to time, a service that I use will display links to - odd - services and retailers.

I block a few of the more obvious dubious advertisers.

For example: psychic anything, numerology, mediums, and related practices are on the no-no list for Catholics. It has to do with the Church's stand on divination. I try to block those ads.

Sometime regrettable advertisements get through, anyway.

Bottom line? What that service displays reflects the local culture's norms, - not Catholic teaching.