Father Bill says...March 31, 2009

For Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Lent


On Tuesday mornings, I often celebrate Mass at the Nursing Home – many of the folks from the Assisting Living section join several from the Nursing Home – it is a great Mass – especially good for me – life has gotten difficult for many of the folks – but they truly want to hold onto their faith and they do – some may seem a bit lost until I start the prayers of the Mass and then they join right in with me.

One gentleman from the Assisted Living Section is quite a golf fan – he must have enjoyed it himself but now is getting older and his eye sight is very poor – but he is definitely Tiger Woods greatest fan – we often banter about concerning golf – and today he was all smiles since Tiger won on Sunday after being laid up with knee surgery for several months. I knew all too well that he had watched every moment of the tournament – now he can’t wait until the Masters begins.

And I also had a meeting with the Protestant ministers – concerning the Sunrise Service on Easter Sunday – they decided that the best time would be 6:00 A.M. – I groaned – very silently – I can’t believe – I was hoping for at least 6:30 – Easter is a busy morning – but every since I have been here we here at St. Mary’s have been involved in this Sunrise Service – the Lord better have some special Easter blessings for me this year.

So today – the Old Testament story is a familiar one from the Book of Numbers – I have mentioned it before to you – the story of the Chosen People with Moses in the desert being attached by poisonous snakes – and God tells Moses to make a bronze serpent put it on a pole and all who look at it will not be harmed by the snakes – and today it continues to be a symbol on ambulances – and I noticed the other day – on the jackets of the emts –

The reason this reading is used is that in the Gospel lesson for today – Jesus mentions that just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert to save those people – so Jesus must be lifted up – on the cross – to save his people.

In this particular Gospel – John 8 – St. John remembers Jesus’ effort to convince the people that he has been sent by God to carry out this most important mission – he uses a most interesting element in the story – Jesus says – that you do not know who I AM - that expression must have made the people – especially those learned in the Torah to realize what he was saying – again we go back to Moses – Moses at the burning bush asks God, “What is your name?” – sounds curious to us – God is God – but in those days in that place – the peoples living throughout that area believed in many gods with many names – they were pagans –

God tells Moses that his name is “I AM” – sounds so simple and yet so meaningful – it is the first person present tense of the verb “to be” – God is a person – not an idol – not an animal – but a person – and because he is a person – we can and must have a personal relationship with God – he should become our friend and companion – and God is always present tense – he is not past or future – but present – he did things in the past – but remains present to us – and he will do many things in the future – but is present to us – God is here and now – we can and must get to know our God right now.

Father Bill says...March 30, 2009

Monday of the Fifth Week of Lent


The Scriptures for Monday of the fifth week of Lent are always fascinating – the Old Testament reading is the story of Susanna from the Daniel stories and the Gospel is story from John of the woman taken in adultery. I remember well when I was in high school – going to daily Mass in Lent – we always thought of this Monday’s readings being a bit risqué. However, both are truly wonderful stories.

The American Church in Rome – is the Church of St. Susanna – it is one of the places that you can attend a Mass in English – and in this large, rather Roman Church – are several – I think 10 – large murals – all of the Susanna story.

The Susanna story goes like this – actually an interesting story – since it happened in Babylon – but did include Daniel – the young Jewish boy who makes good a bad situation – Susanna is a Jewish woman – the story says she was well trained in the law of Moses – she is married to Joakim – a very rich man – there are two elders of the people who turn out to be rather bad characters – they try to manipulate an opportunity to fulfill their lustful desires with Susanna – but she refuses – so they accuse her of being with a man other than her husband – in those days such meant the death of the woman – (this will come up in the Gospel story also – the woman being condemned rather than the man) – anyway – they accuse her – and she is immediately judged guilty – but before she can be taken away for execution – Daniel comes along – refuses to accept the situation – and demands a new trial – this time he separates the two elders who have accused her – asking each under what tree they say Susanna with this other man – they give conflicting answers – and Susanna is determined innocent – and the two elders are condemned.

I am absolutely certain that my mother knew this story – because she used this tactic with my brother and myself – whenever something suspicious happened around the house –

The story of the woman taken in adultery is probably more familiar to you – again, the woman is condemned (in our day and age, we wonder where the man is – but that never comes up) – this is the story where Jesus uses the familiar statement – “Let him who is without sin, cast the first stone” – that statement has been used often, in all sorts of situations – they all leave (the Gospel says – beginning with the eldest – seems that the older men are taught their less on in both stories) – and then Jesus asks the woman – “Is there no one here to condemn you?” – she says, “No one, Sir” – and Jesus says to her, “Nor do I condemn you. You may go. But from now on, avoid this sin.”

Jesus forgives and challenges – Jesus forgives in the spirit of the unconditional love of our God – forgiveness that is freely giving with no demands – except the challenge – sin no more – such is the God who loves us so much – that when we turn to the Lord – we discover loving forgiveness – but always a challenge – change your live – seek conversion – you are better than this – you can live a better life.

Father Bill says...March 28, 2009

in preparation for the Fifth Sunday of Lent


This morning I joined twelve men from the parish for a Day of Recollection at a retreat center, the Priory, near Chestertown. We were blessed with beautiful weather – and a most interesting day – twelve men – praying together – sharing their faith with each other – I must admit the tone of the gathering was very different from other such gatherings – quiet and peaceful – to add to the program – a gentleman shared with us the life of St. Peter – he put himself into the character of St. Peter – telling the group about the life of St. Peter – using the events described in the Gospels – but adding so much by his personal asides as well as his gestures and facial expressions – it was well done.

Now – the Scriptures for this Sunday, the Fifth Sunday of Lent – we are drawing closer to Holy Week and Easter – our Scriptures for this Sunday bring us closer to the Holy Week scene – the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Our Savior. As we prepare ourselves for Palm Sunday and Holy Week – we are reminded to keep foremost in our thoughts the Resurrection of Jesus – Our Savior suffered and died to save us – but he conquered death – he rose again – he lives – Jesus risked his life for us – but found new life – and shows us the way to that new life.

There are many people in this world of ours who are willing to risk their lives for what they believe – many have lost their lives in this pursuit of truth – these were willing to risk their own existence in order to protect and preserve that of others. These bear witness to the human capacity of self sacrifice – I have seen this – I have know so many – they are like Jesus.

Jeremiah, in the Old Testament reading, reminds us of God’s covenant – with us – his promise made in love that will never end – not a contract – a contract is about what do I get – a covenant – what do I give? God promises to be God – to love us, his people, unconditionally – for such a covenant, Jesus was willing to die.

Each time we gather for the Eucharist – the covenant is remembered – celebrated – renewed – by each of us – who continue to be grateful for the saving gift of Jesus’ life and death.

The Letter to the Hebrews, describes the death of Jesus – as an act of perfect obedience – in his dying Jesus has become the source of eternal salvation – born into our own flesh, Jesus embraced the human condition fully – and was lifted up so as to draw everyone to himself – a perfect act of sacrificial love and praise – so that we sinners, forgiven and redeemed, are drawn to Jesus – so that we might experience eternal life.

We give thanks for this generous gift – and we are invited to consider whether or not there is anyone or anything for which we too might die – the little deaths of self sacrifice or the big death to self – preparing ourselves for the ultimate death – meeting the Lord.

The grace that Jesus has made available to all of us – will see us through. Each new state of life demands that something in us dies and something new is born.

So – death is part of life – we taste death in moments of loneliness, rejection, sorrow, disappointment and failure. Each day we are creating our own death by the way we live – our task is to find life – new life in the Lord – resurrected life today – to forget self – to die to self – truly brings us to new life in the Lord – when we forget ourselves – we are most free and most happy.

Jesus gave us the example – he gave his life in service of his heavenly father and of us. Jesus’ life wasn’t taken from him – he gave it – out of love of God and us.

LET US PRAY

Almighty God my Father – give me the wisdom and love to be like Jesus – to live like Jesus – but also to be ready to die like Jesus – to die to my self – to die to all that keeps me from you – to die to all that keeps me from being a loving, caring person. I want to love like Jesus – there are so many that are a part of my life – I want to love them Lord – I want to be brave enough to even die for them. This is my prayer. Amen.

Please join me as we say together the Lord’s Prayer.

Father Bill says...March 27, 2009

for Friday of the Fourth Week of Lent


This week I saw my first robins of the Spring – can it be – Spring is here.

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted…(Psalm 34)

The word brokenhearted caught my attention during this morning’s Mass. God promises to be with the brokenhearted – and I suspect all of us – at one time or another – have suffered a broken heart – it is a good word – because no other word can describe the experience – for some it is the loss of a loved one at the time of death – or the break up of a relationship – or some such. I have seen six year olds with a broken heart – they wanted something – or to do something – that seemed like the most important thing in the whole world – but for some reason or other – it couldn’t be – and it was truly a broken heart.

I remember well – when I was at the college – being visited a few times – by some big, strong, hockey player – who had been dumped by some gal – the tears were flowing – a completely new experience for this fellow – he never cried on the ice – no big defenseman could get him to cry – but this attractive woman had accomplished it.

The Psalm tells us that the Lord is near to the brokenhearted – the Lord doesn’t come to us to heal that broken heart – but rather to stand with us – to wrap us in his arms as we work our way through the situation – and I believe the loss – whatever it may have been – stays with us – a man whose son had died as a teen ager told me that the emptiness, the unhappiness doesn’t go away – the heart continues to be broken.

Our help and our solution comes from the Lord – the Lord longs to be with us – the temptation is to run away from God and from people – to build up a wall between ourselves and others –

At Mass this morning I chose the song “Here I am Lord” to begin Mass – and in the second verse we sang that the Lord wants to change our heart of stone and make it a heart of flesh – many may long to protect themselves from a broken heart by making their heart a heart of stone – no feeling, no love – a heart of stone that leads a person to drive others away – to become mean and irritable – remember the song – “Hard hearted Hannah, the vamp of Savannah” – but the Lord longs to change us – the Lord wants to make our heart a heart of flesh – that knows how to love – and, yes, that is vulnerable – the Wizard told the tin man – hearts will not become fashionable until they are made unbreakable –

So it is a true – that we all walk around with this broken heart – and we will only find help and relief in the Lord – it is not bad condition – in fact, it is a good one – because it shows us that we are alive and human and, as the psalm says, close to the Lord. So, our broken hearts bring us close to the Lord – make us more sensitive – and unafraid to reach out to others – to those who need us – for like us they are brokenhearted also.

Father Bill says...March 26, 2009

for Thursday of the Fourth Week of Lent


Today’s Scripture reading reminds us of the story of Moses on Mount Sinai. God is giving Moses the Ten Commandments – then God tells Moses that the Hebrew people – back down on the mountain – have become restless without Moses presence and have gone back to the pagan worship that they learned in Egypt – and God tells Moses that he wants to wipe out all the people and he will start all over forming his Chosen People through Moses.

Moses then haggles with God – he asks God to be God – an interesting idea – he reminds God of the promises made to Abraham and Isaac and Jacob – promises to always remain faithful to the Hebrew people.

Haggling is a curious art for us, Americans – we are not use to it – in many other societies it is a way of life – I know that in Peru it was accepted and expected – I remember well – watching an American tourist who was very angry with a woman who was selling some sort of craft object – he discovered he could have bought it down the line for much less – so he came back to complain – in English, of course – should had no idea what he was talking about – but as I mentioned to him – she was not cheating him – she was proving to be a much better business person – he didn’t enter into haggling with her – and so she promptly sold him the object at the price she asked for – which was probably too high - but she expected a little bit of an argument.

Any way – Moses haggles with God – asking God to remain faithful to the Hebrew people – and God does.

So what does that mean for us? I believe that God can put up with our haggling – but in the long run – does ask us to be obedient and follow the will of Our Lord and God – our prayer is that we can determine the difference – and this is possible only if we are people of prayer.

I don’t know the answer myself – I know that often I strive to haggle with God – I give God every good reason I can think of for something good to happen to those I care about – right now I am worried about friends in North Dakota who are faced with flooding problems – I pray that they may be rescued – that something good will work out – but I am also ready to help them if something does go wrong –

So, today, we walk with Moses – and we ask for some understanding in how to approach our God – Moses was bold in prayer and bold in his leadership of the people – may our faith make us bold but obedient – bold in doing something good with our lives – for those who need us.

Father Bill says...March 25, 2009

for the Feast of the Annunciation of the Lord


No, that isn’t me – but I did go skiing this morning – two hours of glorious spring skiing – the day started out chilly – and then started getting warmer – rather comfortable for skiing – truly Spring skiing – as the morning went on the snow began to get a little heavier – getting near the end of the season – after two hours – my friends, Father Peter and Father Dick decided to call it a day – and I agreed – I haven’t skied that much this year – so I was a little sore – even though it was only a couple of hours – but it was truly good to get out in the Spring air – my doctor told me I needed a little more exercise – outdoor exercise – it would do wonders for my attitude toward life and toward people – we shall see if he was correct –

Today is a Feast day – the Feast of the Annunciation of the Lord – this Feast day reminds us of the story in Luke’s Gospel – the Angel Gabriel visits Mary and announces to her that she is to be the Mother of the Lord – so our feast day celebrates the incarnation of the Lord – and also Mary’s acceptance of her role as the Mother of the Lord.

The Incarnation will always be a challenge to our faith – our Church teaches us that Jesus is the Son of God – God among us – Jesus chose to set aside his divinity for a time to become one of us – a human in every way like us – to live with us on this earth – to experience all that we experience – to suffer and die for us – and then to rise again in the resurrection – showing us the way to new life in the Lord.

Our understanding of the Incarnation is the very foundation of our faith – and life as Catholics and Christians – our existence takes on a new meaning – it is not an empty bunch of years that we live – what we do matters – because Jesus was one of us – how we live our lives matters because Jesus was one of us – when our time comes – our death will matter because Jesus died as we must – and because we are willing to walk with Jesus who willed to become one of us He will lead us to a new life in the Lord.

Our attention to Mary, the Mother of Jesus, is truly important to us also – simply because through her Jesus came to the world – we believe very firmly that she accepted this pregnancy and changed the world by giving birth to the Lord, Jesus – and so Mary is special for all of us – we turn to Mary for we are called to be like her – just as she was willing to bring Jesus into this world – so we must be ready to bring Jesus into our world – we will make our lives better and our world better because we are willing to take Jesus to all those we meet – to put Jesus into all the situations of our lives – to walk always in the path of Our Savior.

Father Bill says...March 24, 2009

for Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Lent



The focus of our Scriptures for today, Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Lent – is on water. Ezekiel pictures the coming of the Kingdom of God as water that comes out of the Temple – which gradually gets deeper and deeper – for a desert people this is a magnificent sign – and the water brings fertility to the whole area –

As I may have mentioned before – the desert soil is rather fertile – but does not receive much water – there was an area near us in Peru – where some country or other had established a program of irrigation to the soil – and it became green – as you were driving up to Arequipa – there would be only rock and sand and brown – until you got to this five or six miles of green – where the irrigating was taking place – and crops were growing and some animals were being raised.

Ezekiel wants us to realize that the water of God’s grace and love can put that kind of new life in us – he can bring us to new life – new enthusiasm – new excitement. It also reminds of Baptism – the new life that is ours because we were chosen by God in Baptism – chosen to be called to a new life in the Lord – designated as one who has the gift of living in the Spirit of Our Savior.

Today’s Gospel recalls a healing story in the life of Jesus – he is at a spot called Bethesda – there is a spot in the old city of Jerusalem that seems to be this spot – there was a pool and near by there were many sick – the story identifies one who was there for over thirty years – which means he had been there before the birth of Jesus – there is some interesting sidelights to the story – Jesus – asks him if he would like to be healed – sounds curious – after thirty years – seems evident – however, I couldn’t help but think that maybe Jesus asked – because if the man was healed he might have to go to work – but who knows –

Jesus heals him – and tells him to pick up his mat and leave – now a new facet is added to the story – it is the Sabbath – it is not allowed to do any work – including carrying anything on the Sabbath for the Jewish observers – so he is stopped – and we find out – he had no idea who Jesus is – that is curious – he is healed and Jesus does not demand an indication of faith or anything – I often think today of those who are away from the Lord in their lives – and feel that God has no use for them – I want to tell them this story – Jesus still cares for them – and would even help them.

Later on in the story – Jesus finds the fellow in the temple – now how would you react if you had been healed after thirty years and met up with your helper – I know how I would have reacted – anyway – Jesus makes a curious demand – that we – all these years later – understand – Jesus says do not sin – or worse will befall you.

I think this is a good story for a time of meditation – take the time to think about the situation – put yourself in the place of this fellow – you are sitting there as you have for years upon years – and along comes this man – you don’t know him but he looks friendly – and he asks if you would like to recover – “are you kidding, Sir” – “I’ve been here thirty years – I’ve been stuck in this place watching people come and go – and I still can’t get around.” “You bet I want to be healed – you can be sure I would like to live a better life – I see the people in town going by each day – I want to be out there with them.” – and then suddenly, he says to me – “Take up your mat and walk.” Woo – suddenly, I feel very different – I feel like I can do it – I must try this out – and then look – I can walk – I can do it – where is that man – why has he walked away – I owe him so much – I need to find him – I must thank him. -----

One more thing – I believe that Jesus often touches our lives with his love and healing touch – even through a person or a situation that we least expect.

Father Bill says...March 23, 2009

this is the chapel at Madonna House, Combermere, Ontario

for Monday of the Fourth Week of Lent

Yesterday afternoon, Sunday, at the regular meeting of the Confirmation class for this year – we had invited a representative of the AA from Clinton County – he brought with him six members – it was a most impressive afternoon – also the Essex county District Attorney was present also – Julie Garcia – She talked first – and offered many important concerns that she has about underage drinking – and some of the problems that she has dealt with in this regard as District Attorney –

Then the AA folks took turns telling us their stories – I must admit that after some of the stories my head was spinning – it was hard to believe that a person had gone through such things because of drinking – then a 26 year old, rather attractive young woman stood up – she began by telling us that when in high school she had been the captain of the cheerleading squad – and then she began telling us of her involvement with alcohol and drugs – and some of the truly unbelievable situations that she found herself in – in fact, she said that – often, as she was drinking or using drugs she thought to herself how have I gotten myself into this situation.

I think that the afternoon just had to be rather impressive for the young people in the Confirmation class – and their parents – we had many parents there also – I have been with friends who have been through drinking problems – and I have heard many of the stories – but there was something rather real about hearing these folks tell their stories – and also watch the young people as they heard the stories – and interacted with the folks afterwards. It turned out to be a good afternoon experience – and certainly gave the Confirmation people something to think about.

Now – a moment about today’s Scriptures – for the Monday of the Fourth Week of Lent - the Old Testament reading is from Isaiah – and is a effort by Isaiah to encourage the Hebrew people by looking ahead positively so that they would work to make their hopes and dreams realities – he points out for them the possibilities of what can be if they will accept the challenges to make their lives better and their nation stronger and more alive. I guess it would be the kind of message that someone should pass along to the leaders of our country – in hopes that they will do the right thing and work through the difficulties of the present time.

The Gospel is a lovely story of healing – Jesus travels back to Galilee – this is his home area – and goes to Cana – this is where he worked the miracle of changing the water into wine at a marriage feast – that is one of those miracle stories that some people who are really not into the Bible never forget – they are always asking me how Jesus changed the water into wine.

But this miracle is the healing of a child – the Gospel writer tells us that a royal official came to Jesus seeking a favor – this is rather interesting for us – if this man was a royal official – then he must have worked closely with King Herod who had no use for Jesus – but somehow this royal official has listened to Jesus and has developed faith in Jesus –

So he asks Jesus to come and heal his son – a bit of a discussion ensues – and then the official urges Jesus to come – and Jesus says to him – you may go home, you child will live – and the man believes Jesus and starts for home – so interesting that his faith in Jesus is rather new found and yet he doesn’t hesitate – he believes Jesus – and on the way home his servant comes and tell him that his child has recovered.

So the question for us today – do I – can I trust Jesus as well as this royal official in the Gospel story – how ready am I to let Jesus know that I am ready to follow him completely and trust him completely and live in his spirit – knowing that this will bring me to happiness.

Father Bill says...March 21, 2009

For the Fourth Sunday of Lent


“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.”

It has been a long time since I have seen the John 3:16 sign at a sports venue – but there is was at one of the basketball games I saw yesterday – by the way my teams did much better Friday than they did on Thursday.

This Sunday’s Gospel is a reading that includes this verse – I am not a great one for verses – I think that it is more important to read the whole chapter – it can be a bit manipulative to just chose a verse here and a verse there and such. However, this verse is an important one – a good one – most acceptable – that gives us the joyous message that God loved us so much.

So the Gospel reading for this Fourth Week of Lent is from John’s Gospel 3:14-21 – Jesus is visited by a Pharisee named Nicodemus – we do not hear about Nicodemus again until after the crucifixion when Nicodemus comes with Joseph of Aremathia to bury the body of Jesus.

Then Jesus refers to an Old Testament story about Moses – a most curious story – seems that as Moses was leading the Hebrew people from Egypt to the Promised Land through the desert – the people are put upon by poisonous snakes – God tells Moses to make a bronze serpent – place it on a pole and all who look upon it will be saved. Jesus says that in the same way the Son of Man will be lifted up – “so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.” This certainly refers to Jesus’ crucifixion – and then comes 3:16 – for this is how we know that God loved the world – he gave his only son – who would die for us – so that we might be saved – and have eternal life. The death of Jesus is always about life – Jesus died and rose again to new life.

And so it is the pattern for our spiritual life in Jesus – life – death – resurrection – new life –

Actually, this is the pattern for natural life on this planet of ours – we see the pattern over and over again as we go through the seasons of the year – life – death – resurrection – new life --- we are rushing toward Spring and Easter – so as the days become warmer – we notice quickly the trees and the grass and the world – are moving toward resurrection – new life.

And so it calls us to discover new life in our lives – this means that we must die – die to sin – die to all that keeps us from God – literally, die – with all of its sufferings – that we through Jesus we will find new life – we will experience resurrection – we will truly come alive in the Lord.

What does this mean? Now, I must speak for myself – I know too many things in my life that truly keep me from God and, therefore, keep me from being truly alive in the Lord. There are many things – experiences – sins – that must die – if they do not, I will die also – I will lose touch with the Lord – if I will ever find new life and resurrection with the Lord – there is much that must die in my life. I must find my own Easter.

One more image given in our Gospel this week - Jesus calls Nicodemus – and all of us – to the light – for only in the light will we see – see what it is that must be changed in my life – and that light is Jesus.

In telling this story John tells us that Nicodemus comes in the night time – in the dark – and Jesus leads him to the light – to the truth – to life – to new life – and so Jesus must become our light – to lead us to life.

LET US PRAY

Almighty God, my Father – lead me and guide me to the light that is Jesus – so that I may see – that I may know – that I may live in your life Lord – May this Easter be a time of resurrection for me to new life. This is my prayer. Amen.

Please join me as we say together the Lord’s Prayer.

Father Bill says...March 20, 2009

for Friday of the Third Week of Lent


Now, I am going to seem a bit distracted today – I am listening/watching the Syracuse NCAA game right now – right now they are ahead – so I will get through this – Please understand I am no expert in the tournament brackets bit – after the first day – I am in last place in three different groups – so I will just sit and cheer for whoever. However, it is a fun time of the year – I have to share something with you – five years ago – at the beginning of Lent – I decided a great act of self denial for Lent would be to give up television completely – I had forgotten all about the tournament – it always comes during Lent – I have chosen different penances since then.

Today’s Scriptures – today’s Gospel concerns the two great commandments – someone asks Jesus – which is the greatest of all the laws – you may remember that in Jesus’ day – the Hebrew religion had over six hundred laws – so this had to be a curious question – however, Jesus handles it perfectly – “Love God above all things – and love your neighbor as yourself.”

These two great commandments of love are the very basis of the teachings of Jesus – the Gospel writers come back to this story often – we follow the two great commandments because God loves us first – God loves us unconditionally – God loves us so much that he sent his only son to this earth to live with us – to die for us – to rise again from the dead.

As I mention often – the task for us to live in this spirit of God’s love – is to know what it means to be a loved person. I know that I bring this up often – so maybe it is a problem for me – however, I do believe that it is very important as a Catholic and Christian – in following Jesus – I will live best in his spirit when I fully realize that God’s loves me – and that I live like a loved person.

I think one way we begin to recognize what it means to be a loved person – is from a negative perspective – when a loved one dies – when a loving relationship is broken – afterwards we know how empty we become – how seemingly meaningless our life becomes –

However, with God – there will never be that end – that broken relationship – from God’s side – his love is unconditional and unbroken – oh, yes, we can break that relationship through our own selfishness – but God never forgets us – it is a message I often repeat to those I meet who are away from the Church – God has not forgotten you – when you are ready – just look over your shoulder – he will be there.

I will continue to think about this – I want to understand better – I want to put it into words better – what it means to be a loved person –

The final step – for me and for you – live like a loved person.

Father Bill says...March 19, 2009

for the Feast of St. Joseph



Today, we interrupt Lent with the Feast of St. Joseph. We do not know a great deal about St. Joseph – but he has become a very popular saint – St. Joseph is the patron of our Sisters of St. Joseph – Sister Sharon is our principal – and St. Ronald is also in residence here – also, when I think of St. Joseph – I think of the wonderful shrine in Montreal – such a beautiful place –

Just learned that one of our retired priests – Monsignor Tom Robillard, 91 years old – died today – he was truly a saintly priest – and touched many people with his gentleness and closeness to the Lord. This comes right on the heels of the death of Father Soucy – Monsignor Robillard was ready to meet the Lord – I still feel rather disappointed in Father Soucy’s death – didn’t seem like it was his time. However, our diocese can be tremendously grateful for the lives of these two wonderful priests.

So, St. Joseph – we do not hear much about in the Gospels – St. Matthew does tell us that he learned in a dream that through the power of the Holy Spirit, Mary, his intended wife, had become pregnant – and urged him not to refuse to accept her as his wife – and so we think of Joseph as the protector of Mary and Jesus – we have the indication that he was a carpenter – in one place – when the people in his own town found it difficult to accept Jesus – they sort of put him down as the son of a carpenter. And actually, Jesus is of the line of David – as the Old Testament Prophets prophesized – through Joseph.

St. Joseph has become one of the more popular saints of the Church – many Churches are named for St. Joseph and many countries, like Canada and Peru, are dedicated to St. Joseph. I might add that personally I have found St. Joseph a wonderful saint to turn to in times of need – I have discovered my prayers being answered often when I pray to St. Joseph – so while I may not know much about him – I do know – if you will pardon the expression – that “it works” to pray to him.

I must share with you my favorite image of St. Joseph that I have ever seen – and I saw it only once – it is a stained glass window in the chapel of a retreat house in Auckland New Zealand – surrounded an image of St. Joseph is all sorts of carpenter tools – and then my eye was caught by a ribbony like line that went all around St. Joseph – however, when you followed it all the way – it turned out to be an electrical cord hooked to a power drill – talk about bringing St. Joseph up to date.

So – St. Joseph watch over all of us – especially all those you need – and lead and guide more vocations to the priesthood and religious life.

Father Bill says...March 18, 2009

This is Wednesday of the Third Week of Lent

I just returned from the funeral of my friend, Father Tim Soucy – it was at St. Peter’s Church, Lowville, NY – a rather long ride – five of us priests – all the priests in this deanery – rode together – so we had lots of company going over – and plenty of conversation.

The Church was filled with people – and a large number of priests – seemed like every priest in the diocese – and the Bishop – I recognized so many people from the days I was once stationed in that parish – and also Father Tim’s family.

I must admit the tone was a bit somber at the beginning – I suspect none of us really knew what to do or say - then after the Scripture readings – Father Mike Gaffney – a very close friend of Father Tim and one of our truly wonderful priests got up to present the homily – we all sorts of wondered what was to be said - Father Mike is a good friend of all of us – and we all knew that he is an emotional person – he had to be feeling truly saddened at the death of such a good friend - – but then he set a happy, loving tone – a tone that was truly celebratory – he took us from tears to laughter and back again. It was an exceptional tribute – I know I – as well as most others – was suddenly relaxed and ready to celebrate the entrance of our friend into Heavenly glory.

I just have to share with you how Father Mike started his homily – he walked down to stand near the coffin for his talk – he paused for a moment – after telling us that Tim loved us all – his family, the people of the parish, the Bishop and the priests – and then as I remember it – he looked at us and said I know the spirit of Father Tim is with us today – I can hear him now – and then he smiled and said that he could here Tim say, “Mike, what a crowd, take up a collection.” – we all laughed, of course – and then he gently wove so many wonderful thoughts together of Tim’s life and of his strong spirituality – of his love of God and closeness to the Lord in prayer – as well as some truly funny incidents that they shared together.

So, now I am ready to take some time and go over this day – to go over this funeral Mass – and to remember the many times that he touched my life. And taking up one of Father Mike’s thoughts – I offer my gratitude to God for placing this exceptional person and priest in my life.

Father Bill says...March 17, 2009

For St. Patrick’s Day


I just returned from the K of C Hall – they had corn beef sandwiches and Irish Stew for lunch – rather good – I am certain that my brother celebrates St. Patrick’s Day more than I do – at least, that is his reputation, ever since college. Despite the Muench name – my mother was Irish – and the Irish relatives all knew how to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day – so I suspect some of the Tipperary Irish has touched our family.

I do remember an incident in Peru – Father Bill Edwards liked St. Patrick’s Day – and had a tape of Irish folk songs – and on this one St. Patrick’s Day we decided to go down town Mollendo to this pub – and he went up to the owner, a friend of ours – and asked to play this Irish songs. I remember well all the young people there wanted to know what they songs meant – they didn’t understand English – must less Irish – I had to smile – they were all drinking songs.

No Irish jokes – however, stay with me a minute – a brief look at today’s Scriptures – the Gospel today is Jesus lesson on forgiveness – he tells the parable of the king who forgives the debt of one of his servants who owed him a great deal because he humbly asked to be forgiven – then this same servant refuses to forgive one of his fellow servants who owes much less – the king discovers this and then punishes the first servant.

The call to be a forgiving people – if there is any characteristic that should demonstrate to the world that someone is a Christian is their readiness to be forgiving. And the reason we forgive – is because we are good people – our forgiveness should not depend on what the other will do or how they will change or whatever – we are ready to forgive because we are good people in the spirit of Our Savior – who forgave his crucifiers – “Forgive them Father, they know not what they do.”

Father Bill says...March 16, 2009

One more remembrance of my friend, Father Tim Soucy


I have been thinking of all sorts of things to say about Father Tim – who was such a good friend – many have sent to me comments and prayers – I truly thank you all for your response – I do what to share one with you from my friend, Maureen – “Oh, how sad and what a great loss. A bright light has been extinguished for sure. I still can hear him laugh, see his bright smile and hear his quick, witty comments. I know our family truly welcomed him and enjoyed all the times he spent with us.”

We will all miss Father Tim – he certainly added a great deal to my life – and the Church of the North Country is a bit poorer today – let us all pray for more vocations to the priesthood in the spirit of Tim Soucy.



For Monday of the Third week of Lent

A brief look at today’s Scriptures – in today’s Gospel, Jesus remembers the story of Naaman from the Book of Kings – that is such an interesting story – Naaman is a Syrian – a general – and well liked by his king – but he has leprosy – a Hebrew slave girl encourages him to go to Jerusalem and the prophet will heal him – so with the blessings of the king he goes to Jerusalem with many gifts for the prophet, Elisha – he goes to Elisha’s house to make his request – Elisha does not come out to meet him – but tells him to go down to the Jordan River and bathe seven times – Naaman is upset – he thinks that there will be a glorious ceremony and he will be healed – he is also upset because the Jordan River is not as nice as the Rivers in his country – he wants to leave – but a servant of his counsels him – basically, he says what do you have to lose – give it a try – so Naaman goes down to the River and bathes seven times – and is healed – and now Naaman praises God and is very grateful to the prophet.

Lesson is simple isn’t it – sometimes God leads us to do something that may seem unusual or meaningless or silly – and yet it turns out to be a great and good moment – changing our lives or the life of someone we love.

Don’t be afraid to follow the Lord wherever he leads.

Father Bill says...March 14, 2009

For the Third Sunday of Lent


This is a model of what the temple would have looked like in Jesus’ day

Getting ready for the Third Sunday of Lent –

getting to the middle of Lent – how is your Lenten program going – I always chide the folks – if they haven’t gotten going with something for Lent – now is a good time to get going.

I decided not to stay up and watch the basketball game last night – so I will watch a replay of the game today – it does make a difference because I know who won – but it will still be interesting to see how it all happened. It reminds me of the days down in Mollendo, Peru – when my brother and my friend, Orel Briceland, often sent me a recorded tape of a football game or a basketball game or golf match – they were so great about that – I continue to offer my gratitude to them – but I do remember a couple of times they made the mistake of telling me who won – took a little of the intensity out of watching it.
I received a gift this weekend – last night, Father Bryan Stitt – whose family lives in the parish – he let me know that he would be here for the weekend to help celebrate his grandmother’s birthday – and he offered to celebrate one of the Masses – it didn’t take much for me to accept – so he will offer the Sunday Mass at Sacred Heart – and many of his old friends from high school days will be so pleased to see him.

And my friend and classmate, Father Joe – called to offer to help me during the many Masses and liturgies of Holy Week – I immediately accepted his offer – so all of a sudden I have all sorts of help around here.

Now – for the Third Sunday of Lent – three great Scriptures for this Sunday – the Old Testament reading from Exodus – God gives the commandments to Moses – one of the things I want to emphasize is that the commandments have a very positive message – it is so easy to think of the commandments as a list of stuff that we are not suppose to do – a very negative spiritual approach.

So I will talk about the Decalogue as a positive message – the First three commandments speak of our devotion to God – our reverence for the name of God and our attention to dedicating a day to the Lord, of observing the Sabbath – the question is How have you responded to God’s ardent love this week? – God loves us unconditionally – so how have we loved God – and dedicated our time to the Lord.

And the fourth to the tenth – our love of God should go hand in hand with our loving care of others – care and respect for parents – that all life is to be revered – faithful ness in relationship – devotion to one’s spouse – honesty in all dealings with others in word and deed.

So the commandment are still good and still important – however, I want to make certain that I emphasize that we live best in the spirit of the commandments by making them a positive effect on our lives – and not just a list of sins.

The second reading is from Corinthians – St. Paul teaches those people and us – Jesus is fully God and fully human – his is one of us – he knows what it means to love, to want, to suffer, to lose, to fear, to hate and to want to run away from it all – and he points out how some think of Jesus as a stumbling block – a source of weakness and foolishness – and so Paul writes, “For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.”

And, finally, the Gospel story of Jesus driving the sellers and money changers from the temple – be sure to get the picture – in those days, the temple buildings were surrounded by a wall and there was a large open space – it was there that the sellers and money changers camped out – and it was these that Jesus drove out.

The Gospel story quotes Psalm 69 in describing Jesus at this moment – “Zeal for your house will consume me.” In this regard, the word house can mean the temple – as we can see – but also God’s household – for us, the Church – the people of God – we can see the zeal of Jesus to reach all of us – protect us – help us – show us the way. Jesus enfleshes zealous love for the members of God’s household – it fills Jesus, consumes Jesus, destroys his life.

Our Lesson – we must respond to God’s love with the same kind of zeal that Jesus demonstrated – by believing and acting toward others with consummate love.

LET US PRAY

Almighty God, my Father – I see today Jesus’ zeal – emotion from my Savior as he demonstrates his desire to make this temple area a place of prayer and not a place of commerce – help me to live with and act with that kind of zeal – may I demonstrate my faith and love and dedication to my Savior by my zealous live. This is my prayer. Amen.

Please join me as we pray together the Lord’s Prayer.

Father Bill says...March 13, 2009

For Friday of the Second week of Lent

This is a picture of the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Italy – the bridge is the home of many gold shops – I did shop there once.

I must tell you about last night – I did something I haven’t done in ages – I stayed up until 1:30 A.M. watching a basketball game – and it was quite a game – can you imagine 7 overtime periods – an exciting game – but I am sort of wiped out today.

This morning – after the morning Mass – we had a holy hour – a time of prayer before the Blessed Sacrament – our diocese has a program of prayer for an increase of vocations – to signify this – the vocation department has sent around the diocese the monstrance that was used at the seminary over the years – this is the sacred unit that holds the Blessed Sacrament – I remember this monstrance from way back when I was a student in the seminary. Some of the students from the school – the junior high students came over for part of the holy hour to join in the prayer. It was impressive for me to see them joined together with adults – praying that our Church will find more priests to keep our parishes alive and strong.

Today’s scriptures – for Friday of the Second Week of Lent – the Old Testament Reading reminds us of the story of Joseph – in Genesis read how Jacob’s sons sold their brother, Joseph, to some a group of Ishmaelites who were traveling to Egypt – as you may remember Joseph works his way into prominence in Egypt – and when a famine hits Israel – Joseph makes it possible for his family to come to Egypt – he becomes their Savior – so Joseph reminds us of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Today’s psalm reminds us that often the rejected stone becomes the corner stone – so Joseph is rejected by his brothers – and then becomes the source of their salvation from famine – and Jesus – often rejected by many – is our Savior – many in his day found Jesus as being weak and insignificant – and yet for us he is Savior and God –

Many today find the message of Jesus of little value – too weak – all of this peace and love stuff – however, we who believe in the Lord – realize that this will always be the path to happiness – the way to make our world a better place – is always in the Spirit of Our Savior, Jesus Christ – those who move from force and violence – bring only suffering and unhappiness.

So Lord – please help me to never forget your Spirit of love and peace – may I reject all that is of violence – may I make this world a better place by living in love – by bringing love to those I meet – by bringing your peace into my family and community – spreading that Spirit and removing hate and violence from the hearts of those I meet.

Father Bill says...March 12, 2009

For Thursday of the Second Week of Lent


I have spent most of the morning at two different diners – I was taken out to breakfast after the morning Mass and then invited to Lunch – I have been very fortunate but must skip supper – as I was leaving one of the places after lunch I met a fellow who gave me a wonderful encouragement about these daily ramblings – he simply said I look forward to reading your message – even before the jokes people send me – I thought to myself – “All right.”

Last evening was the Scripture class – it was a most interesting evening – the reflections offered by many of the folks were truly insightful – so often, they tell me that they do not understand anything about the Scriptures – and, usually, I will discover that really isn’t true – they offer such great ideas. There are many questions concerning the make up of the Scriptures or certain ideas – but as a rule they realize so much about the underlying spirituality.

Today’s Lenten Scriptures again present us with the Jesus’ story about the rich man and Lazarus – I am certain that you remember it – Lazarus is the poor man at the gate of the rich man’s place – he ignores his needs completely, although he has plenty – after death the poor man goes to be with Abraham – but the rich man ends up in what the Scriptures call the netherworld – the rich man asks Abraham to send Lazarus to visit his five brothers that they will change their lives so that they will not end up like him – but Abraham tells him that they have the teachings of Moses and the prophets – but the rich man believes that if they are visited by someone who comes back from the dead they will repent – Abraham says – “If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be convinced even if one should rise from the dead.”

I have discovered that many are truly intrigued with trying to make a connection with someone who has died – I am not certain what they want to learn – often, they tell me they want to be certain that they are okay – we do believe that our prayers do help those who have gone on before us – so that would be the best way to keep our relationship with them alive.

Remember please that this was a story – told by Jesus - to teach a lesson of some sort – listen – listen to the message of Our Savior – lesson to the guidance of Our Lord, Jesus – if you want to know how to be certain of ending up in peace and happiness with God, then live a good life – do good things – make your life filled with the direction that Jesus has given to us all –

This is, of course, what Lent is all about – during Lent we take time for more prayer, for Mass during the week, for opportunities to read the Bible – to spend more time with the Lord – and this will produce an atmosphere, in which we grow and become closer to the Lord and more alive in the Spirit of Our Savior.

Father Bill says...March 11, 2009

For Wednesday of the Second Week of Lent


I found this on my desk recently – one of the kids from school

Another funeral this morning – an older lady, unmarried – who was often at Church until she took sick – one of those nice people that make it easy to want to do all you can do as a priest.

The Scriptures for today’s daily Mass reminds us of what it means to be a great person – a true disciple of the Lord.

The Old Testament reading is from Jeremiah – in the next few weeks of Lent, there will be assigned many readings from Jeremiah – Jeremiah is a pre-figure of Jesus – Jeremiah tried to do so many good things – and all he ever got was suffering and being treated badly by the people – he makes us think ahead to Jesus – who suffered so much in his effort to do good things for people – for all people – for us, people – often, we treat Jesus in a poor way.

The Gospel is interesting also – what does it mean to truly follow the teachings of the Lord – of being a good and true disciple of the Lord – James and John’s mother wants good things for her sons – she wants to ensure them an important place in the Kingdom – obviously, she believes in the coming of the Kingdom of God – and she wants her sons to be right up in front with Jesus.

Jesus warns them – do they truly understand what they are asking for – they are bold – and Christ challenges them that they might have to face suffering, even persecution, in there following of Jesus – to their credit – they accept – they are ready – they are dedicated – they are unafraid.

The next part of reading makes me smile a bit – the other apostles are jealous – they are upset – who do James and John think they are – why they should they get the important positions – what is to become of the rest of us –

Again, Jesus ushers in a challenge – he tries to show them that this whole movement – his whole ministry – is to prepare others to serve – to serve each other – to serve those in need – to make a difference in this world by being bold and unafraid to serve others.

So Jesus says to them – “Anyone among you who aspires to greatness must serve the rest.” --- and he uses himself as the example – his life will demonstrate what he asks of them – “ the Son of Man comes not to be served – but to serve.”

So – like the apostles – we come to the Lord seeking his wisdom to show us the way to live our lives – and often we long to here of wonderful adventures – of spectacular opportunities – and instead the Lord challenges us to serve – to serve others – to make this a better world by our service of others.

OK, Lord – I accept – I know that each day there will be someone who will need me to help or do something – to truly serve – give me the wisdom and the power to carry out your will.

Father Bill says...March 10, 2009

For Tuesday of the Second Week of Lent

This is a picture of Macchu Pichu - the Peruvian sacred city - built on the top of a mountain near Cusco - thought to be a very place of prayer and sacred rituals - I remember visiting there with Father Jay Seymour so many years ago. It is truly an impressive place.

I am in the process of digging into all of my old pictures - and shredding many - nowadays with the digital cameras - can simply delete unwanted
pictures. So I'll be putting up some good ones.

No funerals today – needed the time to prepare a financial statement for the Finance Committee tonight – so far the parish is a float – may God take care of us.

“The Lord says, ‘Now, let’s settle the matter. You are stained red with sin, but I will wash you as clean as snow.’” (Is 1:18a)

This is from the first reading of today’s Mass – the only comment I made was that this meant snow in the middle of winter – the snow today is getting a little dirty with the mud showing through.

This is a week of penance – this second week of Lent – and Isaiah takes up this theme by reminding us that we are all sinners – but that God will forgiven and make us new – that we will be made clean – but at the same time, we will be challenged to make ourselves more alive in the Lord – living better lives – making our world a better place.

In today’s Gospel – Jesus criticizes those who flaunt their faith – who do religious things to get attention – in a day and age when religion is not very popular – maybe there are times when we should let others see that we still believe – that our lives are still guided by our God – that we do want this world to recognize God and the message of Jesus.

This is the section of the Gospel where Jesus seems to exaggerate a bit – telling us not to call anyone Rabbi or teacher or father – except God – I would like to interpret this to mean that we must put God first – and when we put God first then we understand what it means to call someone on this earth our father – or teacher – or Rabbi – it is a good thing to recognize our own father and all of our teachers – always giving God the first place.

Whenever I mention this Gospel passage I always remember that I did call my father – other things – when he was not around, of course. However, it was always because he was important to me – to this day I respect and cherish his memory and the good things he did for me.

Father Bill says...March 9, 2009

For Monday of the Second Week of Lent

This cross is in the garden near the Church of San Damiano in Assisi

This morning there was another funeral. This lady was a wonderful parishioner of St. Mary’s – who also helped a great deal on fund raisers for St. Mary’s School. She was very Italian and that was very important to her – so the family asked that Santa Lucia and Ave Maria be sung at her funeral. And then they asked that the recessional be her favorite song – when that happens to me I am never quite certain what is going to come next – but considering how gentle and faith filled this lady was – I didn’t think it could be too wild – well, it was “Saint Louis, Woman” – well, it went over well – the musician who played it this morning toned it down a bit – and it sounded very good. I suspect there was a wry smile on the face of this lady up in Heaven.

This second week of Lent is dedicated to penance – penance for sin. So the Old Testament reading from Daniel confessed the sinfulness of the whole nation – but complete confidence in God to forgive and challenge the people to live better lives.

Penance is about conversion – penance is not – as the Scriptures make clear is not about wallowing in our sins and considering ourselves bad and worthless – rather – as the Lord forgets our sins – and forgives us – we are challenged to move ahead – to be converted to a new life – to live well in the spirit and love of our God – penance is a challenge – we can be better than this – we can make a difference in our world, if we would discover a new life in the Lord.

The Gospel than describes what should characterize this new life – that we give up judging others – and become a forgiving people. As I so well know myself, this is a real challenge – we must realize that we have been forgiven by the Lord – and so we must become a forgiving people because we are good people – the Lord’s forgiveness and love has made us good people – and so we can reject judging others – and be characterized by our forgiving spirit – there is no place for grudges among the followers of Jesus.

Father Bill says...March 7, 2009

For the Second Sunday in Lent


This past week was a time of meditation on death. I celebrated four funeral Masses – and there will be another one on Monday. Such a week can make a person begin to think a bit too much on death – but than again – we all have to remember that our turn will come. But I must admit that it really gets you down a bit – so, Lord – enough –

Last evening, I joined the seventh and eighth graders in watching a movie – the French teacher, Meghan Jebb, showed them a French movie – it was a good movie – a teacher tries to reach a group of boys in a school for difficult cases by forming a chorus – and he is sort of successful – the more interesting thing was to watch the kids – the movie was shown in the school gym – next to the school kitchen – where the refreshments were – and there was constant motion as the kids moved and came back and such – and I received a constant commentary from two of the girls – that was fascinating to get their take on what was happening.

This Sunday our Scriptures present to us two interesting stories – about sons – Abraham offers to sacrifice Isaac – and the Transfiguration of Jesus – where God the Father announces - “This is my beloved son. Listen to him.”

The Abraham story is sort of difficult to explain – and to give it any relevancy – Abraham is raising his family surrounded by the Canaanite people – who often used human sacrifice – so the thought is that somehow Abraham thought he must demonstrate to God that he was dedicated and faithful by offering his only son. Some scholars believe that the story was repeated often to demonstrate that God did not accept the practice – in fact, it was abhorrent – and so God interferes in Abraham’s attempt to sacrifice Isaac – but it does show that Abraham was truly dedicated to God – although mistaken in his method.

I am not certain what application this should have to our lives – I do believe that each of us should have some people that we are ready to die for – ourselves – but I cannot accept that anyone will ever have to die for me.

The Transfiguration is a spectacular story – and must have been a spectacular moment in the lives of these apostles – a moment of contemplation – to see Jesus in such a special way. And to hear the voice of the Father – “this is my beloved Son. Listen to him.”

The first question we must deal with – have you ever recognized Jesus in such a special way – maybe not like the apostles did – but if we are people of faith – people of prayer – we should be able and ready to recognize Jesus in so many ways, each and every day of our lives – for each of us it will be very different – the only danger is – we will think it is not impossible – and so we don’t recognize God’s attempt to reach us – so join me as we prayer that today I will be aware when my God reaches out to me and has something special for us.

Finally – I want to remind you that you and I can be the ones that God uses to bring his presence to others – may our lives be so filled with faith, full of confidence with God’s hope, full of love – that we will be the instruments that God uses to touch others – our family and friends – that we can truly make a difference – make our world a better place.

LET US PRAY

Almighty God, my Father – I turn to you today – help me to join the apostles on the Mount of the Transfiguration – that I may truly experience your presence in my life – that I may be changed by your spirit and love – help me to live in that Spirit each day – and, hopefully, bring your love and peace to all I meet this day. This is my prayer. Amen.

Please join me as we say together the Lord’s Prayer.

Father Bill says...March 6, 2009

Friday of the First Week of Lent

(Some St. Mary’s students near St. Mary’s School)

This morning I celebrated a Mass for the students – and then a funeral for a 98 year old woman – talk about both ends of life – the children’s Mass is always interesting – at the homily time – I ask questions and try for a little dialogue with the kids – that can always be a bit exciting, to say the least – the reading that was chosen for the school Mass was from St. Paul’s

Letter to the Colossians – this reading included St. Paul’s list of virtues that he hoped the people were building into their lives – he mentions “kindness, humility, meekness and patience – bear with one another – forgive whatever grievances you have against one another. Forgive as the Lord has forgiven you.”

So I took each of these and tried to get the children to share some ideas about them. As a rule the little ones, the first graders are always ready to say something – whether they understand or not – the older ones are a little more difficult to speak up. Anyway – when we got to patience – I asked for an example – and one of the first graders – right in the front row – spoke up – she said it was when you ask your mother to go somewhere – and she gets upset when you ask and ask and ask – so I said how many times do you ask – she thought a moment and said, “A thousand.”

I did spend a little more time on forgiveness – I decided to share my own ideas with this one – I have no doubt that for followers of Jesus – this should and must be our most recognizable quality – Jesus calls us to be a forgiving people – and we forgive because we are good people – so I offered a couple of examples to the children – the woman who sort of bragged to me that she had not spoken to her own sister for over twenty years – I never asked why the grudge – but I did mention that the result of this was that she had become a grumpy, nasty person because she could not be loving enough to offer her forgiveness.

And then I mentioned that I know of many examples of people who have been dreadfully hurt but forgive – a mother whose child was killed by a drunken driver – again, a mother who forgave her son who had ended up in prison – and on and on – and the reason that they could forgive was often simply that they were good people – and this was the right thing to do – and they wanted to be a good person and do the right thing. I am often in admiration of such incidents – and I pray often that I can always be a forgiving person.

There were only a few people in Church for the funeral of this older woman – who had lived such a good life – very dedicated to the parish and attended daily Mass when she was younger – had been involved in the parish and community. Only one son and two granddaughters were there – with several other parishioners and yet, personally, it was a most meaningful funeral for me – maybe because it was such a simple liturgy that I had more time to meditate myself – each funeral I pray that I will have the faith and confidence and love to meet death calmly and patiently when my time comes.

Father Bill says...March 5, 2009

For Thursday of the First Week of Lent

Another funeral this morning – each funeral is so different – the deceased woman’s husband has been truly a dedicated, loving husband – the last few years, the lady has been difficult to take care of (Alzheimer’s) – and he has been there for her – night and day – and so the future will be difficult for him. I suspect that now he will be rather lost – no one to care for – no one to be part of his daily routine. I hope that he continues to visit the nursing home – so many of the residents got to know him.

Each time I celebrate a funeral – I wonder a bit – what will be like for me – what will the dying process be like – will my faith remain strong – will I peacefully be ready to accept whatever my time calls for – I end up praying a bit for myself that I may be accepting and uncomplaining like so many of these folks whose funeral Masses I celebrate.

As for today’s Lenten Mass – the focus is on Prayer of Petition – so our Gospel is that lesson of – ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and it will be opened for you – but we must remember it is not a game – the Lord knows what we need – but still invites us to ask – but we must always depend on God to sort out our petitions – that we may be asking what is good for us –

I remember so often with my father – I could ask and ask – that didn’t me I always got what I wanted – but my father did listen carefully – and then ironed out for me, just what was going to be good for me – and might I add – just what was available.

The most important petition – will always be – Lord, that I may have the strength and faith and confidence and love to accept and deal with whatever today brings into my life – I would like each day to be as peaceful and calm and enjoyable as today – but I know only too well that my time will come – that I must be ready to face some tough days – some sufferings – so today I ask God’s help – on those days I may be too overwhelmed to really ask – I want to have that strong faith, that calm confidence, that peaceful love to deal with whatever I am called upon to face. Keep me strong, Lord.

This is posted on my blog, “Father Bill says…” – found by googling “tipastor.blogspot.com” – or simply “tipastor” – invite you friends to join me there.

Father Bill says...March 4, 2009

This is Wednesday of the First Week of Lent


I don’t know about you but I had a busy morning – I went to the Doctor’s office to give a blood sample – that always seems to be an adventure for me – but Naomi did a great job – and only had to stick me once – so, on the way home – after all I had been fasting – I stopped at the diner in Crown Point – and the Carr’s just happened to be there – so I had breakfast with them – and a wonderful conversation about their memories of life in the parish and the various priests who had been stationed there – then back to the rectory – I was asked to take the religion class for the 8th graders – we considered together the Scriptures for next Sunday – the Transfiguration – in our very up to date, electronic age – having someone’s face shine like the sun and his clothing become white as snow – didn’t really seem to be a big deal – however, we did meet a very important point in the voice of God – spoken aloud – “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” What it means for someone – including Jesus – to hear this said of them by their father or mother. What it means to be appreciated? What it means to be loved? How I should act recognizing that I am appreciated and loved. They gave me lots to think about.

Now – as for today’s Scriptures – Wednesday of the First Week of Lent – the focus is on Jonah – actually – the second part of the Jonah story – that Jesus uses as a sign – God asks Jonah to go to Nineveh – a city of Syria – and preach to them that in forty days the city of Nineveh will be destroyed – Jonah goes and preaches – and after only one day, the king and the people of Nineveh pledge to change their lives and that God will not carry this out. They do and they are saved.

Many ask Jesus of a sign – he says the only sign will be the sign of Jonah – “just as Jonah was a sign for the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be a sign for the present age. Jonah saved the Ninevites by his message – they listened to him and acted – so we must listen to the message of Our Savior and be ready to act on it.

The Jonah story is a wonderful one – in the first part of this short story – God asks Jonah to go to Nineveh – and he runs off on a boat onto the sea – and proceeds to be thrown overboard – is then taken by the great fish to the shore – God asks Jonah again – he goes – preaches one day – and is successful in converting the whole great city of Nineveh.

When God wants you to do something – he will not give up – he will find a way to get to us – and when God wants us to do something – we will be successful – no matter how great or impossible the task seems.

So – listen to Jonah today – he will tell you how wonderful it is when God puts trust and confidence in you – you will be successful – you can change the world.

Father Bill says...March 3, 2009

Father Bill says…for Lent

for the Tuesday of the First Week of Lent

This morning I celebrated the first of this week’s four funerals – I am always nervous about what to say in the homily at a funeral – it is meant to be a homily – usually, a family member offers an eulogy after Holy Communion – but I do like to say something personal at the time of homily. So, I pray a great deal beforehand – and often the Holy Spirit surprises me – and I suddenly get some good ideas – God is so good!

The Gospel chosen for today’s Mass describes the time when Jesus taught the apostles the Lord’s Prayer. Many books have been written about the Lord’s Prayer – and many retreats have been given, based solely on the Lord’s Prayer.

The Our Father is a gift from the Lord – it is so valuable to have these words of Jesus – often, we need to pray and do not have the time to develop our own words – or possibly, the situation is so emotional that it is difficult to find the right words to say – but we always have the Lord’s Prayer – I know only too well how valuable this prayer is – I have been at the hospital bed of someone very sick – the room filled with family and friends – as I suggest the Lord’s Prayer – all are ready and willing to join me – even, the person on the sick bed.

The Lord’s Prayer offers us many challenges – the one that stands out is to be a forgiving person – “forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.” But I believe and know that God forgiveness always comes first – always precedes human forgiveness.

I have just gone in the other room to find a wonderful book, “Throw fire” by Father John Fuellenback, SVD. He has a good explanation of all of this. He reminds us that Human forgiveness is a consequence of God’s forgiveness – we learn to become a forgiving people – because we have seen and experienced God’s forgiveness – unconditional forgiveness by our Savior.

So, he goes on – God’s forgiveness can become real for us only when we are willing to forgive one another. God’s forgiveness can become real for me only if I receive it graciously and let it change my life. In that way I can really forgive others in the power of the forgiving love of God that is here and now present. Being forgiving toward others is a gift from God and a true sign that one has let the power of the Kingdom present into one’s life.

May we truly become a loving and forgiving people – it makes us a better person – and we can help change this other person in the forgiving love of our God.

Father Bill says...March 2, 2009

Father Bill says…March 2, 2009

“The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul;
The decree of the Lord is trustworthy, giving wisdom to the simple.” (Psalm19:8)

This past weekend our parish had four deaths at the Nursing Home – there will be four funerals for us this week. That is a little startling – as you can imagine – for a small parish like ours. Makes a person stop and think a bit – and is a sudden reminder that it is Lent – the Ashes of Ash Wednesday have hardly been washed off – then we are reminded of their meaning – “You are dust and unto dust you shall return.” Each day is a valuable gift from the Lord – may we use our days well.

Then to add to the mix – the Gospel for today’s Mass – Monday of the First Week of Lent – is Jesus’ Parable of the Last Judgment – the sheep are separated from the goats – I guess because Jesus often spoke of himself as the Good Shepherd that the sheep are used to represent the saved – and the goats those who are lost.

This is the reading where Jesus credits the sheep because they fed the hungry, gave drink to the thirsty, visited the sick and imprisoned, gave clothes to the naked, and welcomed the stranger. And then Jesus adds that telling phrase – when the sheep do not understand when they did any of these things to Jesus – “I assure you, as often as you did it for one of my least brothers, you did it for me.” Jesus identifies himself with the others in our lives – and even with the least among them. And Jesus furthers identifies himself with those that we refused to help or care for.

The lesson is rather obvious, and yet, important – we must judge our progress toward sanctity – toward holiness – not just by the fact we have no grievous sinful actions in our lives – but whether we have neglected to live well in the spirit of our faith – have we used well the opportunities we have had to care for those in need – even as simple as visiting the sick or imprisoned.

So – we have Lent – that time to do something for the Lord – more prayer, attending Mass during the week, reading Sacred Scripture – and also – doing something for those in need – for it is then that we are doing something for Jesus.