Holy Family - Year A - 29-30/12/2007

Its nice that the Feast of the Holy Family follows on so closely the celebration of Christ’s birth…..Christmas is a special time for families…  for treasuring the gift of our families, for being close to family and friends… and remembering with love, those who have gone before us… and given us so much love…// 

 

This Christmas I was able to spend some very special time with my family….   and I treasure that….  also,  my brother and sister-in-law Liz and my nephew and nieces are with me over the next few days.. so I get to continue enjoying the gift of family…..    also, my time of sabbatical was a chance to experience the brotherhood and support of fellow priests.. and be renewed and strengthened in that….   I also got to get another angle on how we are all part of a worldwide family in the church….

 

and ....   I have come back confirmed ever more strongly in the belief in the reality and the blessing of the family that is our parish community….. and in many ways this is the key….  since its our being family in the parish and in the wider community that we put into action what Jesus spent his life and ministry showing us so perfectly…..  his real inclusion of others.. all others……..into his family…..and into his priorities…….This is very important… and it is a reality that is much more than words…//   our daily lives are truly meant to be transformed (practically) by Jesus’ message that we are to treat everyone we meet as loved members of his family….

 

Jesus, was born into our world…. and also into a human family….. where he too experienced the joys and struggles of family life……   According to the gospel…..   it may have been a close family…   but things were far  from always being a case of ‘happy families’ ……..rather, The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, faced difficulties, struggles and grave dangers in their early years..…  including having to flee for their lives, as refugees, in order to escape the deadly jealousy and malice of King Herod……who meant to find Jesus and kill him…

 

To Jesus, family meant a lot…….  he had the greatest respect for his parents…. and he was highly critical of anyone who dared to neglect their duty to their parents under the excuse of making some kind of religious vow……    to him.,..  the duties of family were an expression of the mutual duty of care and love that we owe to our families……  

 

But, in another place in the gospel…  Jesus makes a seemingly contradictory statement about his family…. when his mother and other relatives come to see him… they can’t get inside…..    so they call for him and send a message in to him to let him know they are there…. jesus replies…”who are my mother… who are my brothers… they are anyone who hears my words and keeps them… they are my mother… my brother  and my sister……”…

 

But, in fact, it is precisely because family means everything to Jesus, that he can make this stunning claim……..    he loves his family…..   he continues to show care and devotion to his mother, Mary, - also….  the image of God that jesus presents to us… is of a loving community….  Father, Son and Spirit…   three persons in one God….  a family, so to speak…   in perfect union and communion and sharing the one nature…..  of God……   and it is into this community… Jesus invites each of us…..   into the very life of God… to share the life of God as members of God’s family…..

 

So, Jesus is quite literally extending his definition of family…   to include many, many others……   to include (in fact) …ANYONE who would truly respond……  

 

SO, Jesus is by no means putting down Mary nor is Jesus putting down his blood relatives …. rather he is saying…  ‘I really mean to treat anyone who accepts, as my brother, my sister, my mother….  the depth of commitment I share with you, I share with all……’   and I really think one of the keys to Jesus Gospel message is that jesus really meant us as disciples to take this reality very seriously and quite practically…..

 

How would the world be different if all people truly saw each other as if they were related as blood relations……   what would it be like if the people being treated as the ‘least’ in this world were suddenly recognized by everyone as if they were just like my own brother.. my own sister…  my own mother….

 

As I travel along on the road, it always makes me reflect on peoples values reflected in how they are behaving……… and there is much food for thought in observing what goes on in the highways and byways around us……   Who amongst us if we were driving in a car behind our own mother would even think of overtaking them in a way that makes her swerve off the road… none of us would sharply overtake one of our own family members – leaving them well behind…. and  not caring how our erratic or aggressive driving affected them….………..   who amongst us would tailgate our own sister until they almost crashed…..   

 

so presumably.. those crazies in the world who do that…   are not thinking of the people around them as their brother, their sister and their mother…

 

The people who assassinated Bhenazir Bhutto obviously did not see her as if she was like their sister…  a member of their own family….  

but this is exactly what jesus is calling us to do if we are to follow as disciples in the footsteps of Jesus…..  if we are to accept Jesus’ invitation to join his holy family….  Jesus was never into exclusive membership of anything… and so he invites us to be family members of his.. along with everyone else.. there is plenty of room…

 

Mary, that first and most perfect of disciples, rose to the invitation… and became Jesus’ Mother also by becoming his follower…..   and so many others including ourselves are invited to respond to this amazing and wonderful invitation….  Jesus is saying we are all welcome to be real members of his family…. and to be part of God’s life…. and at the same time, we are called and challenged to treat everyone around us, as if they are out relatives… for in Christ.. that is exactly who we are….

 

may this reality continue to have a profound effect on our daily lives…..

 

and the lives of the world…

 

may it give to the world a deeper sense of respect and reverence for the dignity of every human person, and give us a sense of peace that the world longs for and for which it quietly hopes..

 

 

 

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving 22^nd Nov 2007

 

I had my first Thanksgiving Dinner, American style last Thursday, the 22^nd of November.

 

The American college where I have been doing my Sabbatical celebrated their annual American Thanksgiving with a grand banquet where Priests, Students and any expatriot Americans in Rome would come and celebrate their Thanksgiving Day holiday. This is a very special time for Americans to recall when the first Pilgrims had finally established themselves in their new land.

 

It was one of last events to be hosted for us as our Sabbatical time was ending. Most of the priests doing my course had headed home to celebrate Thanksgiving back in the States with their family and friends. This is traditionally a time to be with family and friends on this four-day weekend for them.

 

It was a wonderful way of finishing up my course in Rome.  They had the traditional Turkey dinner with cranberry sauce and the desert was also a traditional favourite of Pumpkin Pie. The guests all sat in tables according to which State of the USA they belonged to and I sat with a table of about six Australian students and priests who are studying at the NAC. This was a nice way to catch up with other Australians. There was a nice mass of Thanksgiving before the dinner.

 

Although this is a traditional American feast, I felt it was a nice festival to stop and give thanks for all the many gifts I have been given in my life and in my family, friends, parishioners and so much more. I spent the day thinking and praying in thanks for so many graces and blessings I have received in my life and thankfully looking back at so many blessings in this time of sabbatical. It was a wonderful opportunity to stop and give thanks for everything, since all life is one great gift and grace.

 

The highlight of the night was when one of the Australian priests there did an Elvis impersonation singing "My Pumpkin Pie" to the tune of "Suspicious Minds" _ it brought the house down, trust the Aussies to upstage an event like Thanksgiving, but it did add a nice flavour to the desert as they brought out the pumpkin pies.

 

The last thing that happened that night was we turned to sing the Salve Regina facing a picture of Mary, but amazingly just as we sung the last note, the table right under the picture buckled and threw a bottle of wine on the Vice Rector for administration. This party really did bring the house down. But anyway, everyone including me had a memorable time and had much to be thankful for.

 

I will remember this night as a nice way to finish up at the College.

 

Cheers

 

Paul

Assisi Notes

Hi everyone,

I have typed up my notes from the presentations we received at our Assisi Retreat,

Hope all is going well,

cheerio

paul

the notes can be accessed here:
http://maryboroughatholicnewsletter.blogspot.com.au/2007/11/assisi-retreat-notes.html

(I also print it here below in case the link no longer works

Assisi Retreat (Notes)

Hello everyone,this is Fr Paul, I have typed up notes I took from our wonderful retreat with Fr John Harris. Again, these notes are my interpretation so apologies if they are different from what he said or what others heard, its just what i heard. Hope these are helpful, thanks everyone for a superb Sabbaticalcheerio always,paul kelly
Assisi IV - TALKS -

Our retreat director at Assisi was the Irish Dominican preacher Fr John Harris. He was excellent.

He started with the gospel passage of the Woman at the Well - Jn 4.

The retreat director said that Assisi was the place where Young men see visions and old men dream dreams.

John Paul II came here with the leaders of other religions because Assisi is a place that allows for the Freedom of the Holy Spirit.

St Francis believed in Real peace, Real joy, and Real hope.

After the horrors of "911" in New York the Pope brought us back here to Assisi and to Francis as a reminder that "here is a place where things can be different from what they are."

The retreat director mentioned how he once was approached by a person he was directing who told him "I don't like you and I don't like the Irish so I am going" but the director said to him - "don't leave Assisi just because of me! Let this town be your Director- let this town speak to you, let St Francis speak to you. It is not about listening to me, it is about you and the Lord. So, reflect, listen, pray, rest, dream dreams, (he paused and said, I don't know so much about seeing visions, he laughed)!. Take this time before you go back to your homes.

This is the place where St Francis met the Lord and it changed his life.

Pope Benedict XVI, in his encyclical "Deus Caritas Est" (God is Love) writes "we have come to believe in God's love... It expresses a fundamental decision. It is an encounter with an event - a person - which gives one's whole life new direction.

To be a "Christian" is essentially to MEET Jesus.

The gospel of John: the woman at the well. It is noon, Jesus is there sitting at the well already - waiting. The woman meets Jesus at the well and this meeting changes her whole life.

Our retreat director said that often a retreat is described as "going into the desert" but he prefers the idea of a retreat as "going to the well, to meet Jesus, to be renewed by living water"

Benedict XVI refers in his encyclical as "people whose hearts Christ has conquered with his love.

Another example : Zechariah (a temple priest) in Luke's Gospel, goes to the temple, it is his turn to perform an important ritual. He is not expecting anything special to happen. He thinks he is just going to go in and come out. But he is shocked, something new and different happens and it changes everything.

In contrast, Elizabeth his wife is expecting something to happen. She doesn't know what but she is a woman of faith, patiently hoping that the Lord will somehow take her shame away.

So, we see two different responses:
- The priest expects nothing or expects what he wants.
- The woman of faith expects something but knows not what.

Now, look at Jesus' words to the woman at the well: "..if you only knew the gift of God.... If you only knew .."

This is a sigh from the very heart of God...the Carus Dei (love of God).."if you only knew what I have to offer you..... What I want to give you......"

If only we truly and completely believed and knew God's love for us.... God's love for You!

A retreat is "time spent with God"

You know God... You love God..... I am not introducing you to God... You know that each of you already have a deep personal relationship with God or else you wouldn't be here. You have spent your lives and your daily work being a conduit for God's grace (everyone who follows Jesus is this too).

Each one of us could spend hours telling our story..... But does anyone really know what it takes for one person any person to "stick at" (persevere in ) their vocation - through good times and bad ??

You have each MET the Lord and this has changed your direction, it has changed your life. We each have this in common. We have met the Lord.

The director said that he doesn't like the new station of the cross "the fifteenth "Jesus rises from the dead" - the reason he doesn't like it is because its not a station its our Faith! We believe and know that Jesus is risen because we have met him. That is why we are here. It is not just about some past events of distant history, its also our present time (here and now) too.
You already have a friendship with Christ, you have come to this place to strengthen and renew this and deepen this friendship.

We are great at saying "God loves you" (itis the catchphrase of Christians) but we must also believe that God loves Me! We must believe that God is here with us- we too can and do meet Christ.

One priest once said to a candidate to priesthood: "you know, you are being ordained to disappear!"
By this saying he meant, "when people leave Mass, when they leave confession, when they finish hearing the homily, they will hopefully say not "what a nice priest he was" but rather that in the experience of these moments : "I have met the Lord!"

We look back at all the great men and women of the Church's history and we are still inspired by their lives and their prayers. Although we may say that we are nowhere like them in greatnes nevertheless, Jesus has asked what YOU (not St John Vianney or St Francis or St Clare) but YOU to bring God's love, healing and forgiveness to people in this time, this place, this age!

God himself chose you to be his minister and to allow Christ to touch his people through you.

" I have met the Lord" - if people can say that after leaving the sacraments.

Our whole priesthood, our whole three months sabbatical, our whole retreat this week is all about "meeting Christ".

So, in this retreat time:
Pray for one another. Pray to the Lord that whatever grace is needed by the others, whatever Grace God intends for them will be given. Prayer is not a sign of defeat - a last resort in disaster. Prayer is the best and most wonderful thing you can do for one another. In prayer you carry another person into that sacred space where ONLY God and you are, and in this sacred, intimate space you speak the name of the one you are praying for.
Give each other that sacred space to be alone, to meet the Lord. Do not be afraid, don't look back, don't look forward but just BE.
Show brotherly (fraternal) love for eachother. This is most important because you and I have just met the Lord.

As for the sacrament of confession, I always tell people, that this should be the one place that you can be safe and secure that you are unconditionally loved. No matter what you may have done, no matter what you are still totally and utterly LOVED.
+++++++
Homily 12/11/2007. ST STEPHEN'S CHURCH. ASSISI.

Fr John in his homily quoted Pope Benedict in a talk he gave at Assisi in June this year on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of the conversion of St Francis. The pope called Assisi a "Territory of Grace". Fr john added that the Mass, wherver it is celebrated is a territory of grace, the highpoint of this territory, as is also our sacred place of prayer where we are individually alone with our God.
++++++

Session II -

Fr john quotes the bible passage where the mother of the sons of Zebedee comes up to Jesus and asks Jesus to grant her sons the places of honour at his left and at his right. Jesus replies that this is not his to grant but it is alloted to the ones the Father grants it.

One of the famouse Giotto frescos has a picture of thrones to the left of and right of Jesus. One tradition has it that perhaps this empty throne is for 'il povoro' the poor one, Francis. In any case, this empty space is an invitation not only to the sone of Zebedee but to each one of us to follow Jesus in his path of love (and true love suffers by nature _it is by no means a sweet cup to drink from but it is a loving cup nevertheless).

Fr john takes up the image of an utterly loving God. God who is all love. God is compared to a mother who loves her baby. So it appears very clear "God cannot but love us!" God cannot help but to love us always and completely. This is not about deserving or meriting it, any more than a child deserves or merits the love of their parent. They parent loves, the child receives.

So, God is like a parent who cannot but love her child. This a real love, a love that does not plaster over faults or weaknesses, but who sees the person as they realy are and loves them unconditionally as their own.

++++++
SESSION THREE

FR john quotes the bible passage from Genesis : "now the serpent was the most cunning of creatures and he spoke to Adam and Eve...you will not die if you eat the fruit...... Later, God came walking in the garden in the cool of the evening....."who told you you were naked?"

This is the second cry from the heart of God (the first is "if only you knew what I an offering you" and now this sigh..from the heart: "who told you you were naked?"...

God left a space in his heart for us - for love - here is the cry from God.
Fr john says this cry from God must be like the look from his friends mother he once saw.. Their friend had been out with them and they other boys had convinced him to break his "pledge" and drink. The other boys jubilantly rushed home to tell the mother that he had had his first drink - fr john says the indescribable look of dismay and sadness that came over that boy's mother's face was like a sigh from the heart "who told him to drink?" (that look from the mother said more than anyone could imagine, of sadness, of history repeating, of the start of alcoholism which did in fact occur and she probably knew better than anyone.....) fr john says he always thinks that this is what God would have meant when he said in the Garden "who told you this? Why have you listened to lying voices? Why have you opened a door that has shut me out?"

God is saying to humanity "who told you that getting me out of the way would give you true freedom?"

This is probably the real sin and tragedy of the Genesis story: the serpent was saying to humans: "if you get God out of the way and if you put YOURSELVES at the centre of the garden then you will be free." but this is a lie.

Interestingly the Genesis account describes God as "coming into the Garden in the cool of the evening." God went looking for his creatures, he desired to be with them in the evening to share their time.

And who does adam blame? Actually, not Eve but rather he blames God! He virtually says "you made the fruit and you made it look good to eat, so its your fault that we weakened!"

God gave us the ability to think, to reason, to reject, God created food and made it good to eat and God gave us the ability to do the things we ought not so its God's fault! (so reasons humanity).

It is like that scene in the death camps where people were being hanged and someone asked "where is God" and another replied "he is there, hanging".
This can mean a few things, including this: when humans replace God with themselves this is the monstrous "god" that is created - an idol of pure evil when humans put themselves at the centre of the wolrd ..the garden look what sheer evil can result. That is life without God.

God who loved us totally and dies for love.

God allows humans to flower. We are given the freedom the absolute freedom to say NO to God and to say NO to even what is good for us. God awaits our Yes. God awaits humanity's "yes" as a bridegroom awaits the yes of his bride.

This is why it is a huge mistake for us to ever say "I will wait until I am perfect before I approach my God. When I have "sorted ourselves out" then we think we are worthy to approach. This is madness. This is human pride gone mad. We all need God, we are loved by God and we do not merit this love. We are beloved and need to approach God in the truth of who we are and where we are here and now, not in some theoretical perfect future which may never come.

We can only go to God THROUGH love and mercy, not of our own "worthiness". This is incredibly liberating to acknowledge that.

Another example: the father of the prodigal son: the father is always running. Note: the prodigal son story is NOT a story of "conversion" - the son isn't sorry, he's just HUNGRY and he knows where he can at least get a feed. This story is about the FATHER!
- THE RUNNING TO MEET THE PRODIGAL SON IS LIKE THE INCARNATION, GOD STOOPS DOWN TO MEET US WHERE WE ARE IN OUR VULNERABILITY, WEAKNESS, SIN AND IMPERFECTION.
- THE ARMS OF EMBRACE FOR THE PRODIGAL SON IS A REMINDER OF LOVE - HOW WE ARE SCOOPED UP BY GOD OUR LOVING PARENT INTO THE ARMS OF LOVE.

Fr john noted: st john of the cross and Teresa of avila both speak of "spiritual progress" but perhaps this can be unhelpful.

For example, in life we go from the utter dependence of babies to the dependence of children to the independence of adults.
In contrast for the spiritual life, it seems to be the opposite: in the spiritual life we start out being totally indepenedent and move towards an understanding of our utter dependence on God. Total reliance on God's love and care. Perhaps that is the meaning of Saint paul's line "when I am weak, then I am strong!"

Fr john then uses the example of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemene. Jesus goes to the garden with his disciples an then takes his closer friends a little further with him and then goes a little further alone and prays. Similar for each of us, we have family, parishioners and friends, each of us have a few friends whom we share all our hopes and fears and then at some points in our lives we can only go into an experience alone in that solitary sacred space. Where no one else is there but God and you.

St Bernard said "the only ones who will understand are the one who sings the song and the one to whom it is sung." each person's relationship with God is unique. No one else can fully comprehend it, no one else can go there.

False prayer= Prayer is not showing off in front of others. Prayer is something that can be conducted with all the discretion that one givers to love and lovers. It has a uniqueness and sacredness that in some ways can never be truly divulged or described to any other human being.

This is why we should never judge another person. You cannot judge- in science one can say with confidence a+b+c=d. But not so with humans. No one can rightly judge. Only God can judge. We can only see the outward actions and consequences of a person. We may see them "fall" but we do not know the lead up to this or how they may have resisted this fall or desired some other result. Only God can see the soul of another person and only God can see into the heart of a person who has 'failed' but perhaps does not want to fall.

John 21 is very encouraging. Peter and the disciples are in their boats fishing. Jesus is on the shore. Peter's reaction is amazing. He has denied Jesus, but when he sees Jesus he does not try to row away in fear and shame. He is clearly overjoyed to see Jesus whom he loves. He thinks nothing of leaping from the boat and swimming to shore to meet Jesus. This is the truth of the man whom Jesus could see into his heart. This can give us great encouragement in prayer - Peter cries out - "it is the Lord!" if we put God back in the centre of the garden, this will free us.

That raises another interesting example - in the gospel where the devil tempts Jesus to leap from the pinnacle of the temple, Fr john raised an interesting insight - if Jesus did leap from the pinnacle of the temple, where would he have landed? The kidron valley? And more specifically the garden of gethsemane. Jesus did eventually end up in gethsemene but 'on the Father's terms, not the devil's terms.' Jesus obeyed the will of the Father in the Father's time. There was no way of shortcutting or short circuiting the way to calvary and the path of preaching the good news that preceded it.

++++
Homily at Chiesa Nuovo.

Are we pilgrims or tourists? Fr john tells the story of priest who had lived in Rome for many years. Fr john asked him what the difference was in recent years. The priest answered. Many years ago the people visiting Rome were pilgrims, making a spiritual journey of devotion. Nowadays the numbers of people are increasing but they seem to be more tourists, seeing the sights as tourist destinations and not as necessarily religiously significant. (i wonder though if in recent years this has changed and now the numbers of pilgrims is again increasing). Nevertheless, it is a good question: are we pilgrims in life or merely tourists? Not just here but also in everyday life.

Fr john preached on the reading of the Ten Lepers. He picked up on the line in the gospel - "jesus was walking along the border between Jerusalem and Samaria". This is an interesting phrase - in his life Jesus walked along the borders and ministered there. We are called to do the same. As priests we walk the borders of people's lives. We live on the borders between death and eternal life, the borders between sin and forgiveness, etc.

Fr john have an example of the most important lesson he ever learnt about preaching. When he arrived in a new parish, there was a lady therewho did everything. She would never let anyone help her and if anyone dared offer, their name would be mud as she would badmouth them from pillar to post. When he arrived, she said "father, I was here before you arrived and I will be here after you go, welcome Father." One day fr john felt he needed to challenge this and so he gave a homily about not badmouthing others and not speaking ill of those around us.. He said that "people have a right to their good name and that we need to be people of encouragement. After mass, as Fr John was taking off his chasuble, the lady came in to talk to him. He was worried she would be upset but rather she said: "that was a good homily father. They needed to hear it" !!!

This is a reminder, in any homily the preacher preaches first to himself and hopefully it might also be relevant to others and others who are disposed to receive the message.

Also, Jesus never called anyone a "sinner". For example, For many people in the church Mary Magdalene is seen as a sinner who converted, but to Jesus she was a Saint who loved much. Jesus always hated the sin but loved the person commiting the sin.

We need to enter (ever deeper) into God's love for us.

St Peter when he meets the risen Lord on the seashore has three questions asked of him:

"...do you love me more than these?"

Note, that of all the questions Jesus COULD rightly have asked Peter, such as "why did you desert me?" "why did you deny me?" - he only asks this question instead: "DO YOU LOVE ME?"

This is the only question he is interested in, the only question he asks, ... It appears to be the only question God really wants an answer to and the only question we can really answer - "DO YOU LOVE ME...more"

Jesus asks Peter DO YOU LOVE ME...more.... More than you did last Wednesday night when you denied me?...more than your own life?

Pope Benedict XVI. In one of his Wednesday morning talks speaks of the Greek words for Love that are used in this incident. Jesus asks Peter twice in a row do you love (agap é=self-giving love) and Peter twice in a row replies "I do love (filié=brotherly love).

Peter is really simply being honest here. In the past Peter would answer Jesus brashly by saying "I would die for you" but after his denials on the night before Jesus died, Peter is more aware of his weaknesses and limitations. He no longer has the brash, reckless confidence to say the things that might just be words. Now, Peter is honest and humble. He admits that at this moment he is only capable of brotherly love, not the full-fledged self-sacrificing love of agape. Jesus shows us that God will meet us where we are because the third time he asks Peter he asks "do you love (filié) me? . God doesn't want us to lie or pretend. He wants us to be open and honest about where we are.

Pope Benedict says: "God lowers himself"

For the moment God is happy with Peter's truthful lesser profession. For the moment! But later Peter will be called to the fuller love and give his life for Jesus.

The three vows made by a religious person make sense in terms of Jesus' question of Peter:

1. Chastity: do you love me more than anyone else.
2. Poverty: do you love me more than any THING else?
3. Obedience: Do you love me more than any of Your plans and more than the way you want things to be.

Whatever our job or role, whether it be for priests a new parish, a new job, a new Diocese.... Or for others, the Lord asks us anew this question: DO YOU LOVE ME?

Fr john said, " if you can't do your job with love then don't get out of bed!

A lot of people get caught up in liturgical arguments or political arguments, but ultimately the real question is "am I doing this with love?"

After all, Jesus knows our suffering, lonliness, weakness, fears... And he still asks one question.. "DO YOU STILL LOVE ME?"

And isn't this the one question we keep asking God, time and again? DO YOU STILL LOVE ME?" We often ask it like this : "DO YOU STILL LOVE ME...despite this or despite that?"

Fr john tells the story of an order of nuns who were shifting from their old building to a new one but there was one problem. One of the elderly nuns would not leave the old. This nun had been a hard working, spartan living nun and now she was confined to a wheelchair. She said she would not go because this new place was too luxurious. Fr john talked with her and asked: "sister, if you got the use of your legs again, would you go back to Africa again if asked?" the sister answered "yes I would walk to africa if I could!". Then he asked "if Jesus asked you to do something difficult would you do it," the nun replied, "I don't like where this is going, but.... Yes" Then fr john asked her: "then why won't you go across the corridor. "Do you love Jesus enough t walk across the corridor?"

He had no doubt that going across the corridor to the new rooms was the hardest thing in the world for that nun to do anything would have been easier. But she did it for love of her Lord. There was no romance in it for her, no joy, but pure love for Jesus, that is the heart of that woman.

+++
Fr john quoted the bible passage: "if your eye/hand/foot causes you to sin, cut it away". This is a disturbing message. Does Jesus really want people to maim themselves for him? No. These three things have a common relation: the eye sees something it wants, the hand graps for the thing it wants and the feet take you to the thing you want. Jesus is reminding us that "our happiness is not OUT THERE SOMEWHERE" / OUT THERE is not where happiness is.

Jesus is saying, what I am offering you is IN HERE (in the heart) and that is where you have to go.

It is inside: "do you love me?"

This question can sound trite but really this is at the heart of our Christian message and the heart of our Christian vocation.

God is love. God is filled with passionate love. By nature love needs to be reciprocated. If it is one way love then it may be an illusion, we may be in love with simply the idea of the other. Real love is about truly and honestly taking the REAL person seriously.

The real definition for love is what God thinks of it. And God's idea of love is that concept of a holy commuion - a coming together a union of God and us. A true coming together, God's love for us and our love for God.

In the scene of Jesus and Peter at the lakeside, after Jesus asks Peter three times "do you love?" peter asks "what about him?" (pointing to the beloved disciple). Jesus replies "what's it to you? I am speaking to you right now, you alone, what I say to another is not you affair." (it is like that saying of St john of the Cross: Be alone, to be alone"). Ultimately we face God one to one.

The issue of solitariness is a big issue in the world today. Lonliness can be a big issue for priests. They may think "when I shut the door at night who cares if I ever come out again?" one monk once complained that if he died the other monks will come and take all the best habits from his closet and bury him in the oldest one!" this can lead to priests filling up their lives with distractions.

One priest joked that the bishop at one priest's ordination must have anointed a particular priest's hands at with motor oil because ever since his ordination he's driven around in the best cars!

But, fr john reminds them, you didn't become a priest because you wanted a nice car or to play Golf well. You became a priest because you positively answered this call from Jesus: do you love me? Follow Me!

We need to support eachother, that is important, and at the ame time recognise there is a certain solitariness but this is not bad.

"Lord, you know everything. You know how much I love you. You know I love you as I love you today .... Not as I did love you yesterday.... Not as I will love you in the future. The only love I can give you is my love you now .... As I am. "

It was easy for St Peter to say to Jesus as they were walking one day: "you are the Christ, you are the Son of God." it was a warm day, they had a full belly and everything was going fine. But at the Circus Caligula in Rome at the ancient Vatican site where Peter eventually met his horrifying end crucified upside down, he probably could only utter these words and finally mean them as "agapé" : "You know everything Lord, you know I love you!"

+++++

Wednesday session.

Fr John told us a story of how he visited a convent and there was one nun who was particularly unwell. She had a form of dementia and she would come in day after day to have a conversation that made absolutely no sense. On the last day, when he was almost beside himself with this behaviour, and when he himself was wondering how to make his prayer after communion more effective. The nun comes in and he is almost about to say he had run out of time and couldn’t stay to speak when she blurted out. “Father, I have this problem in my prayer after communion. I hope it is okay, but I don’t pray anything, I just sit there in silence and let the Lord love me” he was utterly stunned and realized that although this nun had lost her mind, she had never lost her heart. Fr John said, that of all the wonderful things that all the popes and theologians ever said, he learnt more about faith and prayer from that amazing lady than anyone else.

+++

In the Mass for that day, Fr John mentioned that we need to always be disciples of Kindness, Love and encouragement. Above all, this is what we are called to be and to witness to others.

Fr John in the mass also said that St Francis charitable and practical work is unable to be separated from his relationship in prayer and love to Jesus, to God. The Horizontal (practical action in the world) and the vertical (relationship between disciple and God) elements cannot be separated. He did good works of charity and kindness BECAUSE of his deep love and relationship to God, and his deep love for Jesus made no sense whatsoever unless it showed itself of love of neighbour and love of those most in need.

++++++

Final Talk:

FR John quoted the Gospel: Mt 13
Matthew
Chapter 13:18 and following - "Hear then the parable of the sower. The seed sown on the path is the one who hears the word of the kingdom without understanding it, and the evil one comes and steals away what was sown in his heart. The seed sown on rocky ground is the one who hears the word and receives it at once with joy. But he has no root and lasts only for a time. When some tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, he immediately falls away.
The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word, but then worldly anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word and it bears no fruit. But the seed sown on rich soil is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold."

It is good for each of us to ask ourselves – “where am I in this parable?”
If my life is a garden, what is happening in it? Certainly, it is not “all or nothing” – I am not bringing forth fruit in hundred fold in every part of my life, but neither am I completely fruitless in my life, certainly not bereft or empty of God ! I (my life) if like a garden, and with any garden there may be parts of it, parts of my life that are very fruitful and productive and in good shape and other parts might be rocky, and other parts thorny, and other party patchy. If ‘salvation is to come to this house,’ this “garden” of my life – I must let ALL areas of my life be open to God’s grace and action. Every area of my life needs to be open to God sowing the seed of new life and fruitfulness to bring forth new life.

To be truly ‘saved’ – we need to bring the Lord into ALL areas of our life. Into the fears of the past, into the thorny parts of our life or personality, etc. We must not be afraid to let the seed of God’s love, God’s word to grow in ALL areas too, including the rocky relationships where you might think that nothing good can or will ever come of it.

Pope Benedict XVI in his talks speaks of “salvation” as being “healing”. This is also why we now refer what used to be called the sacrament of the sick as ‘the sacrament of healing.’ We are not a machine. We are human beings. We do not have switches that can be turned on and off. We do not have ‘temperature control’ the way a machine does. We are human and we are all in need of healing of one kind or another. Parts that we are ashamed of in our lives, things that we bury away in the garden that is our life – these too need to be brought for healing.

Fr John continued the garden analogy by referring to some people he knew who had this enormous boulder in their back yard. It was too big to move, so they turned it into a feature at the centre of the garden. What cannot be changed, what cannot be moved, can be made a feature and things can grown in and around this immovable reality. The same is true with our lives. We too can allow the Lord to put his presence into those areas of our lives that seem immovable or rocky or the areas of our lives that we have not allowed God to come into and be present to.

Fr John gave an example of a person he used to come across who, for no good reason, he just didn’t like, didn’t feel comfortable around. This person had never done anything wrong to him, he just didn’t like him and didn’t know why. So, he brought this inexplicable part of his life to the Lord and did not hide it in prayer to God. He would say, “Lord, I no there is no reason why I don’t like this person, they have never done me any harm, where are you in all this? Why is this happening Lord? What is the fear that this encounter with this person is revealing in me? What is the preoccupation? Lord, let your seed be in this issue….”

In the Book of Genesis it says, “God came into the garden in the cool of the evening.” God was LOOKING for Adam and Eve. God comes looking for us, in our garden that is our lives. In our ‘interior garden.’ As priests we are given a special privilege to walk with people in their sacred interior garden that is their inner life and their sacred relationship with God. We are invited in to be of service in the garden to help people in the rocky parts of the garden - we don’t FIX the garden, we are only guides and servants, but we help invite the Great Gardener (the great Garden Makeover person – GOD!) in.

Fr John mentioned too, this is a question he often leaves with men training to be priests. He asks them “what is the most important thing to ensure that you enable in the sacrament of confession?” The answer: “Make sure they come back.” Make sure the experience they have does not have them vowing never to return, feeling never able to feel welcome back.

Related to this, HEALING TAKES TIME !

St Thomas Aquinas once said: “Virtues take time to grow.” We are all on a journey of life and it is a journey of discovery, a journey of healing. We, as priests, are there over time to journey with people in the sacred gardens of their lives.

People might say to this: You talk about God’s love and healing, but what about being a disciple to get out there and CHANGE THE WORLD! where does that fit into this?

The answer seems to be: God is interested in PEOPLE knowing that they are loved. If people truly realize this, then this has the power to change the world. St Francis and St Clare are clear examples of that.

The group of people Jesus seemed to lose his temper with most seemed to be the Pharisees. However, it is important to note, Jesus is the great healer and he told us that he came to heal the sick not the well. So, why is Jesus going on about the Pharisees? He must be upset and acting FOR THEM? These people, these Pharisees, their life goal was to be good religius people. They are not there to be the ‘bad guys’ – Jesus is very upset with them because they are HIDING the real truth about religion behind systems. The temple is surely a sacred space, so when he tips over the tables of the money changers he is not rejecting the people, rather he acts this way in THEIR interests as well as others. He is trying to save them. He is saying, you moneychangers are robbing yourselves of your God, you are defiling your own sacred inner space. Jesus, by tipping over the tables and pushing them out of the temple is trying to save them from their own false gods.

Jesus died for ALL, INCLUDING THE PHARISEES!

Jesus does not say from the cross: “Look what your sins have done to me!” No, rather, he is saying: “Look what I am doing for you… out of LOVE” So that you may be FREE !

In another part of the gospel, when Jesus heals someone he says “salvation has come to this house”. So, salvation is about healing.

There are some areas of our lives, our sacred garden, where we won’t take Jesus. However, we ought not be afraid or ashamed about inviting Jesus into all areas, even the parts, especially the parts that we feel are most rocky, most shameful, most thorny!

It is interesting, in John’s Gospel, when Mary Magdelene is standing at the empty tomb she meets jesus but does not initially recognize him. The gospel says, she ‘mistook him for the gardener.” She was actually RIGHT. Jesus is the gardener. Jesus is in search for us in the garden of our lives (pk: to do a complete renovation, a makeover? – remember those gardening rescue shows when a celebrity will show the host their garden and parts of it are beautiful, and parts are just awful, some celebrities even try and steer the garden-rescuer away from the bits that are terrible, but the gardener gets in and exposes the problem areas and starts to treat the areas so that all parts of the garden are fruitful and valuied).

Let Jesus, the gardener, lead us.

In EVERY issue in life …. Bring God in. bring him into the areas he is missing.

Three theological virtues mark our discipleship – St Paul tells us this:

FAITH, HOPE AND LOVE !

Pope benedict XVI says of this:

HOPE: is courage to believe in LOVE in the midst of darkness.
FAITH: is believing in the LOVE truly there in JESUS, even in the cross, and in the love of God revealed in the Risen Lord too.

LOVE: is bringing that LOVE into the world.

Pope Benedict XVI says: LOVE IS POSSIBLE

We know that hate is possible, we know that ENVY is possible…… we must believe that LOVE is possible. Let is expand and seep into the shallow, rocky, thorny parts of our life too. It also needs to seep deeply into the lives of others. Let God’s healing seep into the wounded and scarred parts of life too.

Be at peace in your own inner garden, in that sacred place where you alone are with your God.

Be at peace with your own interiority.

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Final Mass: At the Crypt of St Francis:


When Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Mass in this Crypt, this peaceful place here, the tomb of St Francis, he said that this place was like his “spiritual compass” this place helped him centre himself on his true priorities, and on what was most important. This place can be a spiritual compass for how the world really can be – based on love and peace and forgiveness.

May this place, Assisi, may this time of retreat, and may the Eucharist, which wherever it is celebrated, be your Spiritual compass that directs you to the priorities and message of Jesus good news.

Now, go in peace, go, rebuild God’s church, for as you see it has fallen into disrepair !

Tenth Anniversary of Priesthood (12/11/1997-12/11/2007- )

Hi everyone,

I am off on retreat tomorrow to Assisi for the five days of the weekday. They have certainly left the 'best wine for last' (Jn) on this sabbatical. What an extraordinary place to celebrate and pray and reflect on the ten years of Priesthood I have just completed and launch off into the next ten years, (with the grace of God) and beyond.

It is hard to believe that ten years ago tomorrow, Anthony Mellor and myself rushed into a side door of the Cathedral well after the entrance procession of Priests and Archbishop had gone into the church (they had forgot to call us and had hilariously left us who were to be ordained, waiting in a side room until we realised they had started already and rushed all confused and frazzled into the side door to the amazement and confusion of those around us!!!).  It was a boiling Thursday night on the 12th November 1997 and here I am ten years later celebrating in Assisi (it will be FREEZING). Ah the contrasts!

Last night we had a wonderful blessing. I met up with Fr Anthony Mellor, my fellow classmant and tenth year ordination priest too, and Fr Anthony Randazzo, and Fr Michael McKeaten (all of us Brisbane Archdiocese priests and in Rome) and another priest from South Australia and had a wonderful celebration dinner at the Casa del Clero house for priests in Rome. We talked and enjoyed the meal together and when someone looked at the watch we realised that four and a half hours had just flown by and i had to rush out of the house before the guards had locked me in for the night!  It was a wonderful night to celebrate Anthony and my 10th anniversary. FR Randazzo had even organised a cake with candles for us. What a wonderful gracious kindness.

We all thought of family and friends back home and the parishes and people we have been blessed to serve. In some ways ten years has flown and at the same time I look back and think of all that has happened at that time and the wonderful parishes I have been in.

I pray that God bless us all and our parishes and family and friends with every good grace and blessing on this occasion.

I will be out of contact for the next five days as I go on this pilgrimage retreat at Assisi. Be assured of my thoughts, prayers and complete thankfulness for all the graces we have received and for family, friends and parishioners at home.

God bless you always,


Here's to God's gracious, guiding companionship and love for us always!

Paul

Saint Ignatius of Loyola, Founder of the Jesuits

 Saturday 3^rd November.

 

This morning, we had a very special gift. Fifteen of us signed up to go and celebrate Mass with a Jesuit priest who is spiritual director here at the college. The place of the Mass was in the room where Saint Ignatius of Loyola died. It is now a simple chapel in the same style as the room would have been when it was Ignatius' room.

 

This room is in the Jesuit monastery right beside the Church in Rome called the "Gesu"  (The Holy Name of Jesus) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_the_Gesu . St Ignatius is buried in the church of the Gesu and also are found the relic of the Arm of St Francis Xavier and  also the burial place of a famous Superior General of the Jesuits, Pedro Arrupe.  The Gesu church also has a beautiful picture of Mary (Our Lady of the Way) that Ignatius prayed before often, and only recently the original version of the painting was discovered when it was cleaned, apparently years of overpainting had changed it from its original look and now it is restored to the original form.

 

The room where Ignatius died was where we had our mass and it was truly beautiful. IT was simple and quiet and peaceful and prayerful. The reading for the mass was the reading about "don't take the places of honour at the banquet table, take the lowest place."  Something interesting happened at this that seemed quite amazing to me and made me smile. As we went into the little room, the altar was at one end and there were little stools to sit on on each side along the walls of the room. I didn't want to sit right up near the front of the altar, (this is before we knew what the reading was) and so I sat at the three-quarter's from the altar, near the back of the room.  Before mass started one of our priests asked the Jesuit main celebrant to say a few words about the significance of the room. SO, he said that this was the room in which Ignatius died. He had a humble death because apparently he felt the end was near and asked his brothers to administer the last rites, but they said "plenty of time for that, you are alright, and continued discussing plans for the purchase of a new building. St Ignatius passed away while they were discussing things and they were taken by surprise. He was humble to the last. Then the priest main-celebrant turned and said…  the exact point where St Igantius's bed was, where he passed away… is over there… under that painting on the wall of S Ignatius.   Guess who had just happened to have chosen to sit at this seat?   ME. I was amazed. I had picked the seat at random and assuming the placed he died was where the altar was. Again I was overwhelmed by God's kindness. I had not gone looking for any special places, and here I feel God had graciously and undeservedly handed me a place where I could reflect and concelebrate mass right at the spot where he entered eternal life.

 

In addition, the Italian Jesuit who welcomed us into the building was very kind to me being an Australian and gave us all a beautiful picture of "Mary of Providence" and gave me about fourteen copies (what a wonderful expression of the overwhelming generosity and gracousness of God who again gives us more than we could ever expect, ask for or imagine!).

 

This was a wonderful morning and I took some photos of the room, and Gesu church (whose facade design – the front of the church face - became the model for church designs all over the world).

 

God bless,

 

Paul

 

+++

 

A month or so ago, I sent through Part One on a lecture series on Pope John Paul II's "Theology of the Body"   (I have written up part II if anyone would like to look at the final instalment, and it can be found at this site:

 

http://maryboroughatholicnewsletter.blogspot.com/2007/11/andy-baker-theology-of-body-part-ii.html

 

pk

 

 

Papal Audience 30,000 people brave the rain to see and hear the Pope

Hi everyone,

After getting quite soaked at the Papal Audience, it is nice to get home to the college and read what, in the excitement, I heard only parts of in the Pope's speech. The Pope gave the longest version of the text in italian and then a shortened version in about five other languages.  Please find below a report on his words at the audience we attended.

Also, I have loaded a few more photos from our day on my photo website www.mysteriousthree.com  with special thanks to two priests from our group, Fr JP and Fr Rob W who shared with me their photos of our group and some excellent close-up photos of Pope Benedict,

cheerio

Paul

Comments on Duty to Be Law-abiding Citizens

VATICAN CITY, OCT. 31, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Good Christians must also be good citizens, and this implies even the unpleasant task of paying taxes, says Benedict XVI.

The Pope said this today to the more than 30,000 rain-soaked participants at the general audience in St. Peter's Square. The Pontiff, continuing his series of meditations on the Fathers of the Church, spoke of St. Maximus, the bishop of Turin.

Maximus became bishop in 398, and according to the Holy Father, "contributed decisively to the spread and consolidation of Christianity in northern Italy."

Although there is little biographical information on the saint, Benedict XVI spoke of the contribution of Bishop Maximus based on 90 written sermons.

The bishop lived at a time when life in Turin was at a turning point, said the Pope. The Roman Empire was losing civil authority, and the city was continuously threatened by barbarian invaders.

"The interventions of Maximus in the face of this situation bears witness to his commitment to do something about civil degradation and disaggregation," said the Pontiff. "Maximus, facing the collapse of the civil authority of the Roman Empire, felt fully authorized to exercise a true and proper power of control over the city."

To this end, according to the Holy Father, the bishop dedicated various sermons to the duty of Christians to also be good citizens. "Not only do many Christians not distribute what they have, but they also plunder the possessions of others," Maximus told his flock.

The bishop likened the actions of a Christian engaged in thievery as "a wolf who preys on pigs," and urged his audience to "act like Christians."

Nitty gritty

Benedict XVI noted: "Maximus not only dedicated himself to reigniting in the faithful a traditional love for their native city, but also proclaimed that it was their duty to take on fiscal responsibilities, as serious and unpleasant as they may be.

"In short, the tone and substance of his Sermons assume a mature and growing awareness of the political responsibility of a bishop in specific historical circumstances."

The Pope called Maximus the city's "watchtower," who "'like a sentinel' was situated on the highest rock in the city" to be on the lookout for threats to its security.

Benedict XVI acknowledged that much has changed since the time of Maximus, but "independent of changed conditions, the duties of the believer toward his city and homeland remain valid. The intimate relationship between the 'honest citizen' and the 'good Christian' continues to stand."

Summarizing the address in English, the Pope said: "Christian believers are called upon to carry out faithfully their duties as citizens, working to imbue temporal society with the spirit of the Gospel, and striving to achieve a vital synthesis between their duties as citizens of the earthly city and their commitment to work for the coming of God's kingdom of holiness, justice and peace."

Roman audience and final lecture on 'discipleship'

Papal Audience 31st October 2007, Rome.

 

Hi everyone,

 

Today we all attended a General Audience with Pope Benedict XVI. This was an excellent experience.

 

It started out by having to set off at 8.25am even though the audience was not due to start until 10.30am and we only lived a few minuted walk from Saint Peter's Basilica.

 

We were not sure whether the General audience would be in the Auditorium or outside in Saint Peter's Square. In Summer it is outside because of the good weather and the huge crowds. I suspect that from next week it will be inside since the weather is fast cooling.

 

When we set off I could not decide what the weather would be like and I was thinking we might be indoors. For some reason I decided not to take a coat or an umbrella.

 

This turned out to be a mistake because it rain steadily for most of the time and we ended up being outdoors.

 

We were all dressed up in suits and collars and I was getting very soaked. One kind member of our group who also had an umbrella gave me his waterproof jacket which I wore over my head and that made everything very comfortable.

 

We had excellent seats, We were up at the side raised section right next to the Papal undercover canopy in front of Saint Peter's. Interestingly, in front of  us was a large group of Japanese ladies who turned out to be Buddhists visiting St Peter's. One of our priests ministers in Japan and he talked with them in Japanese. One Buddhist lady was fascinated by the image of the crucifix on the main platform. She said "I cannot comprehend the idea of the person you call God being put on the Cross."  Again this lady captured the sheer scandal of the cross and the sign of the absolute love that God had for us that God would become one of us and love us unto death. This mystery is something we constantly marvel and wonder at.

 

It poured but our spirits were excellent.

 

When the Pope arrived he looked well and energetic and was happily waving to the different groups announced.

 

He gave a talk in about five different languages and was fluent in all of them. Amazing.

 

I reckon we were only 30 metres from him and we got some wonderful photos of him,

 

This is such an amazing experience. Here is the leader of the world's catholics, one of the most reconisable people in the world and yet humble, friendly and only metres from us. Excellent.

 

I got someone to photograph me with the Pope in the background. If you look at the photos I load on my photo site www.mysteriousthree.com   you will see me, looking wet and ragged and the man in white to the right of me, in the distance is the Pope.

 

It was an excellent experience but we were happy to come home and get into warm dry clothes. It wasn't too cold but one cannot be too careful,

 

(also, please find below the final segment of the excellent lecture series on "discipleship. Very inspiring content)

Cheerio

 

Paul

 

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 Fuellenbach Lectures on Discipleship - (final section)  (part VI _ final)

 

Some factors which appear to have been present in considering who to elect in the 2005 Conclave to elect the next Pope :

 

- Cardinal Ratzinger took his office seriously - when he was Cardinal prefect of the Sacred Congregatiom of the Doctrine of Faith he would always meet personally with visiting Bishops on their ad limina visit to Rome - he would not ' as others did ' send a representative.

- if anyone knew what it meant  to "be Catholic," it was cardinal Ratzinger. Who would fill the void left after the 27 years reign of John Paul II?  He would certainlt hold onto the catholic identity.

- in his homily at the funeral for Pope John Paul the world saw another side of the man often badly represented by the media in the past. He was a man of prayer and passion and also a moving emotional element.

 

We believe in "christ has died, christ is risen, christ will come again."  we have a witing hope - nourished by the Spirit who helps us participate now in the world to come (the 'already and the not yet'   ).

 

It is good to preach about the Lord's prayer once in a while at masses.. It is THE PRAYER !!

 

Jesus proclaimed the kingdom of God as having arrived with him. So, what should we do in response? CONVERT ! But, now we need 'guidelines for action'.

 

The "sermon on the mount" (matthew's Gospel)

 

Mt 5-7. This is our Rule of Action and gives us  our guideRule for prayer.  This shows us the pattern of behaviour for those who follow the Lord. Our rule of conduct. The sermon on the mount  also answers the question: "what should a disciple pray for?" - what ought to be the core of your petitionary prayer? What ought we be asking for in our prayer?

 

In response we are given the OUR FATHER. IN THE OUR FATHER ARE a the basic concerns of Jesus' whole message. In some ways it is not the most poetic or "nicest" constructed prayer ever written - it is somewhat abrupt but really the Lord's Prayer is a kind of GUIDE-RULE TO CHECK ALL YOUR PRAYERS AGAINST.

 

FR. F. Mentioned at this point that the intercessions (prayers of intercession/ faithful) for Sunday Mass are really important. Sunday mass is for carefully thought-out  and prepared prayers. Sunday mass is not the time for ad-libbed or 'from the assembly' prayers (which might be more suited to weekday masses) because in the intercessions for Sunday mass we bring the BIG WORLD and its issues to the Lord. At times when people bring their prayers ad-libbed they tend to be about little things like someone's dog who is sick etc. But especially at Sunday mass we are presenting the world and its people to the Lord in prayer! 

 

 

From 1985-1995 a study listed that there had been 6000 publications on the topic of the Our Father. Interest in this essential prayer is immense. (also a lot of writing on the topic of Psalm 23 - the Lord is my Shepherd). These prayers are the most prayed prayers in all Christian churches.

 

As central as the Lord's Prayer is, there is always a danger that overuse may lead us to take it for granted. This is a treasure of inestimable value. It imitates the whole of the teachings of Jesus. So we must not forget to reflect deeply upon it.

 

Interesting to note that the concept of "Father" in the Gospels and the writing of the early church was deliberately COUNTER TO THE  patriarchal and dominating image of Father in the cultures of the time. Here was a different type of Father. Not LIKE  the earthly father. This concept of Father that Jesus gives is a new meaning to a familiar word. It is Jesus' Father that Jesus is introducing us to , not jist any father. Jesus says "my Father and your Father."  - We are drawn into HIS FATHER by being joined into Jesus' life.

 

The concept of a divine "mother" figure at the time of Jesus was always connected to Pantheistic (pagan) religions. The Judaeo-Christian religion insisted on the concept of Father.

 

Listen to the EXPERIENCE  of Jesus that he is trying to express with the words he used.  It is true that God is more like a mothe and whilst Jesus readily used metaphors and images to descibe what God is like he didn't those images as a form of address when relating deeply to the one he called "Abba" "dearest Father" . Jesus, the God  made flesh - incarnate - used incarnate words and to give flesh to his relationship with the one in heaven he used the Hebrew word "abba".

 

This gives meaning to Jesus instruction - "call no one earth your Father" - because , to Jesus, there is NO comparison between earthly fatherhood and God as "FATHER". There is only ONE  Father (God in Heaven).

 

One of the biggest challenges and mistakes we can make is assuming that all cultures have to become like ours. Not all cultures do and see things the same way and they need not all become uniform. Scripture passages such as Galatians 4:6 and Romans 8:14 show that we are being drawn into an "Abba" experience.

 

There is no easy answer to calls by slome scholars that we call God "our mothers to avoid some form of gender bias.  However what we do know is Jesus used the term Father to describe HIS relationship to the one he experienced as Father and that this relationship and meaning for Jesus to the "father" is one stripped of any earthly limitations to the word.

 

The Theologian and writer, Australian Jesuit priest Gerard O'Collins has written a short but excellent book on the Lord's Prayer and he also talks about gender issues in relationship to this prayer. He puts some brakes on feminist interpretations - the Our Father" refers to the Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

+++

 

The "Didache" - a catechetical text written for Jewish Christians around 110 AD says " A Christian should pray the Our Father three times a day (replacing the traditional prayers three times a day -morning, noon, night- of the Jewish faith practise).

 

Later, it was thought for a while that the Lord's Prayer was a prayer that ONLY baptised Christians should pray - for no-one can address God as "father" unless they have the Holy Spirit SO -they thought - if you are not baptised, you are not yet drawn into relationship with Jesus which then makes us able to join and unite in him in calling God our Father.

 

In one of more ancient rite (or eastern rites?) there were twelve different introductory phrases to lead people into the recitation of the Lord's Prayer. This is a reminder of how important, how central this prayer is.

 

It is good to pause before praying the Lord's Prayer; so that the significance can sink in - a treasure is coming _....  To let us know that this is the ONLY one Jesus gave us.

 

This becomes an identity prayer - a sign of our Christianity. Anyone who claims to be Christian and yet does not know  the Lord's prayer is probably an impostor.

 

Matthew and Luke both have a version of the Lord's prayer. Matthew's gospel was written for Jewish Christians - hence his addition of the instruction to have 'less babbling' - less 'going on and on with endless words'

 

Luke's Gospel - Written for pagans who had to learn to pray.

 

The church uses the Matthew version - Matthew is more flowing for recitation. Luke's version is more staccato. Yet their substance is basically the same.

 

This is basically a Jewish structured prayer form -

 

1. Address:  "Dearest Father!" (Luke)

2. Thou petitions: 

        -Name

        -Kingdom. (Matthew adds 'thy will be done'.

3. We petitions:

        -Bread

        -Debts

4. Concluding Request. 'lead us not into temptation'

 

Also, all Jewish prayers had a closing doxology such as "for the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory are yours forever and ever. Amen.

 

The "Didache" adds what would have been here and shows that it was used in liturgy from the earliest times.

 

The Lord's prayer contains a huge basic concern. Summary of Jesus message.

 

Mark and Matthew vary in a couple of places.

 

Every group, every movement- every leader in Jesus' time would have had a distinctive prayer that represented what they were about and gave identity and recognizability to their followers. Whether the leader/group would have been John the Baptist or the Qumran communities or so on..

 

The Lord's prayer comes from a request by Jesus' disciples : "Lord, teach us to pray as John the Baptist taught his disciples to pray?"  (Can you give us an identification tag so we can know who we are and others can recognise."

 

The :"Our Father" is the Christian Manifesto.

 

Let's look at the  elements of the Lord's prayer in detail.

 

1. The Address -

 

To whom does a disciple of Jesus address themselves in prayer.

 

Normally: A Jewish person would stand there with hands outstretched... And pray: " Almighty and ever powerful God.  You who led my ancestors out of the wilderness..... And who taught us to Love you with all our Heart, mind, soul and strength......."

 

Jesus says "cut all that out... Just say..... "Dearest Father........"

 

We are infinitely loved children of God. By being drawn into Jesus we share his relationship within God. A relationship which is "ABBA" (DADDY) TO A DEARLY BELOVED ONLY SON OF GOD.

 

What should one ask for first.

 

John 17: 26.  I have revealed your name and I will continue to reveal it.

 

He reveals who God is and wants to draw us into this relationship. 

 

"Hallowed be thy name."  These are petitionary / begging prayers (not thanksgiving).

 

Keeping God's name holy is very Jewish thinking (the prophet Ezekiel says in the Old Testament, speaking God' words - "you have defiled my name and I will sanctify my name  (when the messiah comes)"

 

Name: This is the TRUE God of Jesus. Therefore Jesus' one desire is if only the whole world would know this - who God is. God's true nature - God's identity - God's name -

 

So  we really pray : Let me know you more and let all know and letthat day dawn wheb everyone knows you and yiur true and full identity and nature and the fullness of the relationship that signifies. Give us this fullness O God. (give us the 'real thing' pleasèf this is what we desire).

 

Your name:

May it be revealed and respected-

- To me

- to all

- ultimately in its fullness.

 

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Now looking at the petition relating to the Kingdom.

 

It is IN experience of the Kingdom - already here but not yet revealed in fullness) that you cry for the kingdom to ARRIVE IN ITS FULLNESS.

 

Let us have enough of the kingdom now to become present to us, so that I can keep pointing to it and keep showing people that the Kingdom is already here (even if not fully revealed). And of course all the while we long and pray that this kingdom come soon in its fullness.

 

Matthew's Gospel adds - "thy will be done"

 

In Hebrew grammar, if you wanted to stress an important point, they didn't underline it, they didn't us capitals or bold print, they would repeat the same point using different words.

 

Matthew - In the heavens - God is the undisputed leader and uler. God Reigns the Heavens= God 'wills' the Heavens.

 

So, it simply says "Let what rules the Heavens _ let it come down to earth.

 

God's will= God's Reign

 

Some exegetes of he Bible see a seed of the Lord's prayer in Jesus'  prayer in Gethsemene :  "Father, let this cup of suffering pass, but not my will, but yours be done."

 

Like the Jewish belief _ if one trule faithful person kept the first commandment perfectly, then God's kingdom would descend to earth and fill it.

 

In the gospels, when Jesus thought of his impending death, he is no hero. Whenever he saw the cross loominh before him - he is extremely upset, horrified. Not simply because of the reality of  suffering and death but the thought of being 'cut off from the love of the father' - this was hell, this was agony to Jesus. Unbearable..

 

In Hebrews -   5:6-8 . In the days of his earthly existence he cried tears to his Father to save him from death.... He had to learn obedience. "

 

Jesus also says in the Gospels "I must be baptised .. And how great is my distress until it is over."

 

Jesus knew that doing the Father's will would be a horror - it would be a dread for him. Jesus says to any who would follow him - You will need to experience like me doing God's will at the expense of your own. You will be tempted to 'play God' because it will be easier to follow you own will than the will of God? And you will cry out like me! Do you think it will be easier for you than it was / is / for me.

 

Jesus never took his humanity lightly.

 

Total commitment to the Father's will out of love - not out of bargaining or reward for sacrifices given _. It is because Jesus LOVED that he suffered so much - even to death.

 

Paul - God made Christ into SIN (into a curse) - into a condemned experience - so that he crucify this and defeat it.

 

Crucified people could hang on the cross for days - for Jesus they even put him on a kind of platform/ seat in order to extend his life and increase his agony. This is why Pilate was so shocked to hear Jesus died so soon. The sheer devestion of being cut off from the Father (even though he trusted the Father was always with him) surely multiplied the agony and accellerated his death - crushed.

 

When anyone commits themselves to Jesus and te Kingdom it will be hard... Strength from God will be needed to persevere.

 

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"give us this day our daily bread"

 

This is NOT just a petition for food (bread)

 

For bread;it must have a link to whole of Jesus' teaching. The Church Fathers already realised this and said in their commentaries "careful."

 

This whole part of the Lord's prayer is really addressing the "table fellowship" 

Of Jesus' ministry.

 

St Jerome who translated the early manuscripts from the original Hebrew language says this really translates as - "the bread of tomorrow, give us today"

 

St jerome translated the gospel of Matthew into Latin using both Hebrew and Greek manuscript versions.

 

So this part of the prayer really seems to mean "the bread which you will give us in your Kingdom, the bread of the heavenly feast of the Lamb, give us this bread today. The word in Hebrew is "mahar". Why did they not translate it more fully. It IS BREAD but it is really something more. More fully it seems to mean: "Give us today enough food that we can make of it a sign of the Kingdom where will one day all eat the banquet feast of heaven together.

 

For early Christians ANY meal was a special meal and a holy occasion. Every meal was a reminder of their table fellowship.

 

Fr F. Tells a story of a family tradition of people he knew. He would often stay for dinner and his place was always set at the top of the table. One day he wasn't staying for dinner but pointed out that there was still one extra seat at the head of the table. The family explained that they had a tradition whereby they always set that extra place ro "remind us of Jesus" and if a guest comes, they sit there.

 

Jesus shares more than a meal with us - he dwells with us.

 

Also, the Lord's prayer says "give Us"  (not "give ME"). We are always called to remember those who have none.

 

A meal, for us, is always a holy event (sacred).  Our petition is also that Jesus will always be present in a meal.

 

We Catholics have always celebrated feasts with a meal. Things are given to enjoy.

 

The Kingdom is compared as a great meal, with enormous festivity.

 

Any meal, party should 'smell of the (joy of the) Kingdom.

 

Fr F. Gave an example in his missionary experiences. Whenever a new house was completed for a community membe®when the time came for them to move in, the whole community and Fr would havea procession with the family to their new house. They would then have a party with all the neighbours at the new house and Eucharist would be celebrated there. The house would be blessed, statues and a little prayer altar would be set up and they would be given a small chalice and paten to remind them of Eucharist and they would celebrate this moving in as like an annual feast day. In this way the people would be connected to and reminded that the values of the Kingdom are in the very centre of Life and that is where Eucharist is to be found and experienced too.

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  FORGIVE US OUR DEBTS:

 

In this part of the prayer - even though we are followers of Jesus, we remain sinners. We are not perfect. We are constantly in need of forgiveness. The Greek language words used in this part are transliterated as "os gar"  which literally means the rather confusing "as we here with". The full meaning of this is "FORGIVE US OUR SINS SO THAT , IN THE RECEIVING OF FORGIVENESS I MIGHT FIND THE STRENGTH TO FORGIVE THOSE WHO FORGIVE ME."

 

Sometimes this line has been interpreted to mean "forgive us only to the extent weforgive others. However, this is not really capturing the meaning. In any case, forgiveness is a divine prerogative. We would not be able to forgive other unless we experience God's loving forgiveness ourselves. So, the better understanding in this passage is "God forgive us, so that we can pass this God's forgiveness to others.

 

TRUE DISCIPLESHIP IS ABOUT

COMPASSIONATE

LOVING

SERVICE.

 

In matthew's gospel the following is added "if you do not forgive others their sins God will not forgive yours. But this can really be saying "if you do not forgive others then you are blocking God's forgiveness to you - you are being a barrier to God's forgiveness wanting to fllow to you and through you to others. This is what it means to offend the Holy Spirit - not allowing the Spirit to do its work.

 

The example for this is the incident in Simon's house where Jesus got his feet washed by the woman. "how many sins must have been forgiven this woman - for one who is forgiven much loves much. " it is out of that profound gratitude that she knows love. Forgiveness is first. Love flows from it. From God's love and forgiveness we are strengthened in order to be able to pass it on to others (we cannot hope to sufficiently thank God for these gifts so we pass them on in love to others).

 

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LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION.

 

You cannot talk of the Kingdom of God without contrasting it with the Kingdom of evil.

 

Mk 1:16-3:12. He came from out of the world to kick out evil from the world and destroy it. There is a battle going on between the two kingdoms. Ultimately the "temptation" spoken of in this prayer is the temptation to despair from the idead that the Kingdom cannot be seen. If we stop hoping and believing that the Kingdom is amongst us then we stop witnessing to it. When the fire goes out! Nothing worse than losing all fire in ministry and only hiding behind the sacraments  with not excitement, no drive.... Deliver us Lord from that temptation to lose faith, hope and love - and trust in the Kingdom being present.

 

Fr. F. Said that he had, in his mind, a theoretical "prayer drawer" where he puts every prayer intention asked for him. Every day he asks God to keep in mind and remember the prayers he has placed in the prayer drawer. God remembers them better than anyone.

 

He asked us to put him into our prayer drawer and when we go through that drawer, when we find a little him in there "pray that the the Fire may never go out!"

 

Then Fr F. ANNOUNCED that there were actually nine beatitudes. The word beatitude means "congratulations" better than "happy". The ninth beatitude is this:

 

"congratulations to the lecturers who have an attentive audience".

 

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Fr.F. Then concluded by presiding at mass with us. In the hoomily he told this inspiring true story. He was pastor of a parish where ther was also an assistant priest. This assistant priest had a superb singing voice and was preparing to  sing the Good Friday Passion Gospel at the 3pm service. A couple of hours before the ceremony the priest cam to Fr. F. And said "I can't do the 3pm service!". 

 

"WHAT do you mean can't?"

 

" I am having a priesthood crisis. I can't do it!"

 

"I bet you were having this crisis last week too but you tell me NOW two hours before the mass?"

 

Then Fr.F. Had an  inspiration in what to reply. He said to the struggling priest: "listen, before you decide whether you can or cannot do the mass, please go and do this- Go up to your room and sing the Easter Alleluia twelve times through!"

 

The priest looked doubtful; "I can't sing the Easter Alleluia, its Good Friday!"

 

Fr F. Replied : "one minute you are having a priesthood crisis and now you are having SCRUPLES! GET UP THERE YOU DUMMY AND SING!"

 

The priest went upstairs and Fr F. Was downstairs. He prayed to God that this might be inspired and felt bad that he may have made him feel worse. After a few minutes silence he could hear the voice of the priest singing upstairs. He sang the Easter alleluia twlelve times through and for good measure the Exsultet Easter Hymn. Moments after finishing the priest rushed downstairs and said: "I can do it. It worked. I sand the words of the Easter hymn and Easter Exsultet and the words and music catapultet me out of my crisis. I can do the mass" .

 

Fr f. Was glad he could do the mass but was unsure as to whether it was a short term reprieve or not.

 

Every Easter for many years Fr Fuellenbach gets a card from this priest and in this card it assures him that he is happy and fulfilled in his priesthood with these words : "the Easter Alleluia stuck! Happy Easter!"

 

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