Family

Dear Parishioners,

My wife and I recently took a trip to Alaska. It was beautiful with tall majestic mountains, silver rushing rivers, and big animals like moose walking around like they owned the place! But beyond the vast scenery espousing God’s presence, there was a theme of family everywhere we looked. We stayed with an old dear friend of ours who lives with her husband and 16-year old son. This took us back to our own children as teenagers, a little funny, a little defiant, but always engaging! There were dinners with aunts who had great spunk and humor. We stayed at a bed and breakfast with the owner and her daughter. The mom spoke about leaving soon for Las Vegas to be with her cancer stricken husband. While we were gone, our granddaughter remained in the hospital. Helping to alleviate our guilt about leaving, my wife’s sister came to help out and then my son-in-law’s parents came until we returned. The Church places much weight on the importance of family, the domestic church. It is the caring and safe place where children grow out of their vulnerability to become their own persons. Christ knew this with his support of marriage, his commandment that we love one another, and his own respect and care for his mother. He showed this when he gave her away to his beloved disciple to protect and cherish at his crucifixion. Family is the place where we all start, learning the faith, developing religious habits, and testing the tenets of sharing and communicating. It is the place where life and faith begin. Those relationships and that learning are tested hard these days. But I have my money on the family! It is a resilient and powerful institution. It stands tall and strong, like the snow capped Alaskan mountains.

Blessings,
Deacon Steve

Offer It Up

Dear Parishioners,

The mystery of human suffering and death has puzzled the human race for centuries. We understand when wicked people suffer but not when it happens to the innocent. There has to be a reason. The first reading (Wis 1:13-15; 2:23-24) states that death and suffering came into the world through the devil (original sin), and once having entered the world, they don’t discriminate between the good and the bad. Otherwise, it would have been unjust for Jesus and Mary to have suffered and died. However, the suffering and death of Jesus redeemed humanity and opened the gates of heaven. It had meaning and value. So, too, can ours if we offer it up to God as a participation in the suffering and death of Jesus. When we suffer pain or disappointment in life, we can either whine and moan or “offer it up” in imitation of Jesus. If we follow our Lord’s example, we can expect to be raised up at the end of our lives. What Jesus did in the gospel with the daughter of Jairus (Mk 5:21-43), he wants to do for us.

Fr. Carl

Happy Birthday, St. John!

Dear Parishioners,

“He must increase while I decrease.”

The Church only celebrates the birthday of three people: Mary, Jesus, and John the Baptist. Since Mary visited Elizabeth right after the Angel Gabriel appeared, and Elizabeth was in her sixth month (Luke 1:36), John was born six months before Jesus on June 24th.

Near the end of John’s ministry as Jesus’ was gearing up, John said of himself and Jesus, “He must increase while I decrease.” (John 3:30) Interestingly that’s what happens these days. The days grow longer after our Lord’s birth; while the days grow shorter after John’s birth on June 24th.

Our attitude should be like John’s. Jesus should increase in importance in our life while our pride and ego should decrease. Then we can give a better witness to our faith as John did.

Fr. Carl

You Are God's Beloved

Dear Parishioners,

The opening line to Henri Nouwen’s book, Life of the Beloved is this: “Dear Friend, being the Beloved is the origin and the fulfillment of the Spirit.” This line starts a beautiful journey into Nouwen’s view of how God sees us as his Beloved. Nouwen articulates the desire of God for us, his children in this one word, Beloved. He describes this relationship of us to God through four other words: Taken, Blessed, Broken, Given. These words mark his actions as a priest during the liturgy but also his relationship as a Christian, whose life is bread for others, taken, blessed, broken and given. I have to say that this book with its beauty, love and wisdom changed my life and opened me up to God in a way that was deeper than I had ever risked before.

As children of God, we are all seeking to understand our role with God, Father, Jesus, and the Spirit. Nouwen’s view doesn’t see that relationship as static but places it in a giving and dynamic transaction. We are in relationship with God and with one another, and there are phases to it, movement in it, and changes as a result of it. Are any of us the same as we were when we first took communion, were baptized or converted? Being open to God has a way of moving us, deepening, teaching, challenging and refining us. And I am forever in God’s debt for the gifts I have been given, the wonderful ones and the challenging ones. I am not going to say more about the book which I believe is Nouwen’s finest work. But if you are looking for something to take on vacation, it is an easy and quick read that may just offer you some needed insight into your spirituality as God’s Beloved.

Blessings,
Deacon Steve

Seeking Mercy and Forgiveness

Dear Parishioners,

“With the Lord there is mercy and fullness of redemption.”

In the first reading (Gn 3:9-15), God has just discovered Adam and Eve disobeyed him. After God had given them the gift of life and a beautiful garden in which they lived, and the only condition being not to eat the fruit of one tree, they caved in to temptation and disobeyed. But what does God do next? Does he punish them right away? No, he starts his plan to redeem the human race. In condemning the snake to crawling on the ground, he predicts the coming of a redeemer, a savior who will do battle with the devil. “He will strike at your head, while you strike at his heel.” In other words, the heel of Jesus will crush the head of the serpent.

God’s first thought is redemption, for with him there is mercy and fullness of redemption. Let us never grow tired of seeking his mercy and forgiveness as we extend the same treatment to those who offend us.

Fr. Carl

Building Up the City of God

Dear Parishioners,

My wife and I returned to Indiana recently for some routine medical checkups and to visit old friends. The trip back is a long one but well worth it. It is a busy several days. Rochelle goes back to her high school where she worked as a Guidance director and participates as a volunteer on senior projects, a necessary project and presentation for seniors. I met up with some of my fellow deacons who were with me during our 5 years of formation. We call it a “fishing tournament,” but it is really an opportunity to be together and share stories and catch some fish at Deacon Tim’s grand mom’s pond. We saw the priest who was our pastor for over 16 years and met up with other friends. The power of this time for us is that here we renew old relationships. Here we are known and we know. These folks are not members of our current church, St. Jane, but they are members of our Church family. We share beliefs and faith, traditions and love for Christ. It is a long way to travel to fulfill the second commandment of Jesus, to love one another. But that is the benefit and the motivation to be here. To be known and to know are qualities at the heart of “love one another.” That is the stuff that sustains relationships. That is the stuff that lets you sit down with someone you haven’t seen in a while and pick up where you left off. That is the fabric of church. Let us work to be known and to know each other. And in the process, let us sustain and heal each other, hear our stories and share our joys, pains and faith. That’s how we build up the city of God.

Blessings,
Deacon Steve

The Most Holy Trinity

Dear Parishioners,

One of the two central mysteries of our faith is the Trinity. The other is the Incarnation (the 2nd person of the Trinity becomes man in Jesus Christ). The word Trinity comes by combining the prefix “tri” with the word “unity” and dropping the “u.” The word formed is “Trinity.” It means three persons in one God. But the Trinity means more than that, for the bible teaches that we are all created in the image of God and so should try to live as the Trinity. We are meant to live in a loving relationship with God and our neighbor.

The Trinity is so central to our faith that we begin and end all our prayers acknowledging the Trinity as we make the sign of the cross (Matthew 28:18-20). Yet how often do we reflect on this great mystery? One way would be to pray the Glory Be each day when we say our morning and evening prayers as we honor God as he truly is.

“Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.”

Father Carl