Taxing Times

It is mid March and high time to get working on the yearly income taxes - a much dreaded task. I know some of you have already received and spent your tax refunds - then there are those - like me - who wait until the end gets close.  I have always done my own personal taxes and as much as I hate doing them - would never think of paying somebody else to do a task that I can do myself.  There are so many good tax preparation programs available these days - should be a simple task for most. It amazes me - the number of people with only a W-2 and claiming the standard deductions - who pay others to do their annual taxes. Perhaps the whole concept scares them - dealing with the government - making an annual recap of income and expenses.  Perhaps one day - tax time will be eliminated - a straight tax - equitable deductions for all - weekly - monthly deductions from paychecks - would bring relief to a very large number of people. Until that time - a task to be completed.

It is not only the annual income tax reporting that creates taxing times for people. Money - a big issue - relationships - with family - friends - neighbors - God - another. So many different issues with which to contend - cope - solve - improve.  Relationship issues - often much greater than money.  How we relate to each other - how we speak - think - act - respond - depends a lot on emotions - versus facts. When overly emotional - excited - angry - communication comes to a halt - progress stops - situation develops. As with all things worth doing - improving our relationships - a top priority. In Lent we seek to work on our relationship with God - His Son - Jesus - The Holy Spirit. We are asked to go to a quiet space - to focus our complete attention on the - Divine. Although difficult for many - a task that is possible - with eyes - ears - open wide - hearts open to the impossible - minds ready to accept the unbelievable. In quiet meditation - contemplation - your relationship with God - need not be - a taxing time.

Deacon Dale 

Dancing With The Stars

Dancing With The Stars is a very popular television show - well trained dancers partnering with various celebrities in an effort to win the dance competition. Some celebrities - much more celebrity than dancer.  Some are awesome dancers - others - not so much. Last night Chicago Cubs fans got a peek at former Cubs catcher David Ross as he attempted to convey his 2016 World Series home run hit into a world class score on the dance floor. It will take a few weeks to see how well he sustains last night's performance. For the average guy or gal - dancing with the stars - a real treat.

When God enters your life He takes control - guides you across the dance floor of life. There will always be dips and twirls - slow baby steps - fast tippy toe movements - as you adjust to your new relationship with Him. As you grow and evolve in your relationship with Him - you will quickly learn that His moves are smooth - gentle - helping you constantly along the way. Dancing with God - you have to let Him take the lead - He knows all the best steps - steps to move you from where you are to a better place in life. What better way to observe Lent - than dancing your way into God's heart.

Deacon Dale 

Dinner Date

One of the pleasures of adult life is the - dinner date - taking your special companion out for dinner - just the two of you - together - alone as a couple. The two of you sharing a special time - together - at a favorite - new - restaurant - eating favorite entries - exploring - new menus. Perhaps an evening celebrating a special event - an anniversary - birthday - new job - promotion - date night - away from work - kids - spending needed time alone as a couple. All couples need a time of respite - time away from obligations - rediscovering each other - reconnecting as individuals.

Jesus loves dinner dates - especially when it is just the two of you - Him - you - together - gathered around His table - altar - sharing bread - wine - Mass - celebrating His gift to you - the world - to all who call Him Lord. Unlike other couples - you can meet Him on a daily basis - always there waiting for you.  As we continue in Lent - as we pray - fast - we look forward - in these special days - when we can share His meal - together.

Deacon Dale 

Lent 103

The Third Sunday of Lent - Water Divine - a precious resource - available to all - for free - unless you buy it bottled. Water rains freely from the sky - anyone may collect it - use it - drink it - bathe in it. Our bodies are 50% - 60% water - the rest is all the good things - bones - muscles - fat -brain tissue.  Although seen as insignificant - we cannot live with out water. We can skip meals - avoid food - but we can only last so many hours without water - before serious damage sets in.  Water is the oil - grease in our joints - the liquid that lubricates our eyes - makes tears - aids digestion - controls our inner furnace - fuels the thermostat of our bodies. It is so important - divinely inspired - that we use it constantly in our daily lives.  In our spiritual traditions - water - used to cleanse - baptize - purify - wash away sins - impart blessings - nourish our spirits - souls. 

For the people of God - water gushed forth from rocks in the desert - saved the people fleeing Egypt - washes away impurities - sins - prepares one for prayer - to name a few. Water is an important element in many religious practices. In Lent - specifically the Third Sunday - water points to the baptism of converts to be celebrated on Holy Saturday when they will be baptized at the Easter Vigil Mass. Water - one of three major focuses in Christian baptism.  As we begin our third week of Lent - we who have been baptized - reflect on what our baptism means to us. For those looking forward to baptism at the Easter Vigil - the focus is on hope - a new life in Christ.

Deacon Dale  

A Rose By Any Other Name...

Frequently quoted - a rose by any other name would smell as sweet - from William Shakespeare's - Romeo and Juliet - is taken to imply that no matter what you would call a rose - it would still have the same aroma - pleasing smell. Juliet - in defense of Romeo's name - stating that the name of a person or object - does not define the characteristics - qualities - of anyone or thing.  On this point Juliet is correct - after all - a name is simply a name.  It takes years - decades - for a name to become common enough that certain characteristics are implied by a name.  When Shakespeare first wrote Romeo and Juliet - it was simply a new play - to be attended - investigated - critiqued - enjoyed - at that time - no significance - importance. Four hundred and some years later - Romeo and Juliet - a classic tale of love and tragedy - a name known around the world.

God not only knows how many hairs are on our heads - our name as well - each and every one of us. There may be millions of people - but each is significant - important - to God. We may share names with other people - no two people are identical - even among twins. When we come to God - He knows exactly who we are - what we are about - what we need. He waits for us to speak - quietly - gently - giving us time - to ask - to receive. In Lent - in the quiet of our hearts - dare to speak your name to God.

Deacon Dale 

Wearing Green

Saint Patrick's Day - time for  the wearing of  the green - showing your Irish pride - ancestry - genealogical roots - connecting to Irish ancestry.  Unfortunately the only green shirt I have - not in the laundry - says "Italia" not "Ireland" so could not wear that today.  Acknowledging that today is Saint Patrick's feast day - not a requirement to wear green. 

Today everyone wants to be Irish - to have an excuse to celebrate - gather with friends - with food - drink - joining together as one - enjoying life. That is as it should be - holiday not required - saint or not - people should be gathering every day to celebrate - life - the possibilities that exist - when two or more are gathered. God asks us to celebrate His creation every day - even during Lent.

Deacon Dale 

Tearing Down Walls

Last year our Home Owners Association in Arizona sent out a request for homeowners to notify them if they had any issues with property cared for by the association. We have a cinder block wall that surrounds our home and the majority of it is cared for by the association. I notified them that I thought there was an issue with one section which seemed to be tipping inwards toward our property. They finally responded - after 10 months - that they would look into this issue.  Happy to report they were out in a matter of a few days to inspect the wall from our side - the community side had been inspected last October.  The decision - tear down a twenty foot section and rebuild at no cost to us. Now we wait and see when this will be done - as we wish to be here during that process - either April this year or January 2018.  When they do the work they will remove the wall - block by block - tearing it down to its foundation - then rebuilding - back up six feet.  The entire work to be done will be completed easily in one day - hopefully straight in line with the remainder of the existing wall.

  

As we journey  through Lent we are asked to examine our lives - to see where we have built walls - keeping others out - locking sins in - putting up barriers to our relationship with God. Time heals all things - so we are told - and in time - most things are healed.  Unfortunately some will not live long enough for time to do its work. As we spend time in prayer - meditation - we need to look inward first - at our lives - our relationships - our walls - before we can start the process of restoration - tearing down - building up. Removing barriers in our lives should be simple - one of  the most complicated tasks known to man. Attitudes - feelings - past history - often confuse the real issues.  Through prayer - patience - perseverance - walls can be torn down - removed - opening us up to everything hidden on the other side.  Need help - ask Jesus - He is awesome at removing - healing all barriers.

Deacon Dale 

Barking Dog

Although the Barking Dog is a great name for a doggie daycare center - a barking dog may very quickly become a nuisance.  I know - I have a dog who loves to bark. Bark to go outside - bark for food - bark to warn when somebody is on our property - bark when his canine cousins come to visit - and almost any other reason he can find to bark. I cannot allow myself to be angry at his barking - that is how dogs communicate. Sure they sit at your feet and beg with those big loving eyes - sometimes they cruise over to you and ask you to scratch their back side - and yes - rolling over on their back so you can scratch their tummy - yes that is all legitimate communication with you -  their best friend. To many people - barking dogs are a pain - no time to accept them for who they are - what they are trying to communicate - only anger at a sound  they cannot understand.

Sorry I Only Speak Dog 

To many people - when Christians talk about God - Jesus - Holy Spirit - Bible - Holy Scripture - accepted with as little understanding - respect - as for a barking dog. Confused by - Church Speak - Salvation - Confession - Forgiveness - New Life - Living Water - Heaven - Hell - nothing more than yapping puppies around the food bowel. For those of us - guilty of Church Speak - patience - demanded if we are to share  the Good News of Christ. Lent gives us that time - to hone our skills - to speak clearly about  that which we have received - to speak in Love - with patience - that all who have ears might hear - the Good News.

Deacon Dale 

Who Is Billy Baker?

So I ask again - who is Billy Baker? No one that I know personally - I recently ran across an article he wrote - Read Article - all about middle aged men. No - it was not about religion - spirituality - fathering - rather about loneliness. According to this gentlemen - men - specifically middle aged men - so overwhelmed with work - family - children - responsibilities - have no time for themselves. At one point in his article - click "Read Article" above  - he mentioned how women can maintain healthy long distance relationships with their female friends via a phone call - whereas men -  not particularly fond of long phone conversations - cannot. He also mentioned that when women talk to each other - they do so face to face - men on the other hand - stand side by side - looking out at the world together. My wife constantly tells me to look people in the face when I talk to them - I am guilty of also doing the side by side conversation thing - a bad habit I picked up years ago while working in the pharmacy - one eye on the computer - task at hand - while fielding questions from patients standing on the other side of the prescription counter - usually at an angle away from me. Bad habits are hard to break - but - in time - hopefully they do go away.

In Lent Jesus - God asks us - men and women - to take time out of our busy lives to talk with Him - face to face - not side by side. Jesus wants to look into our eyes - into the windows of our hearts - to let us know that He sees much deeper into our souls that we can ever imagine. He does it gently - not judging - seeking to heal our troubles - issues - buried deep within. He cannot do this while you are texting - talking on a phone - driving your vehicle - your complete attention is required. This Lent - give yourself a gift - spend some quiet time - alone with Jesus. Go to your prayer closet - sit quietly in Adoration - before the Blessed Sacrament - light a candle - focus your attention - on the Light of Christ. You will find Him - buried deep inside your soul.  Just like Billy Baker - God is real - and is waiting to form an everlasting friendship with you - where you will never be lonely.

Deacon Dale  

Wearing Thin

I must be getting old - reading news articles that make my blood boil -  When did it become acceptable to take others to task for doing what is normally done and socially acceptable. I am referring to a  group of American youth who while attending a sporting event at their school - chose to wear red- white - blue items on what was promoted as - USA - day. Some uninformed - uneducated - teachers from the very school that sponsored the event forced the youth to apologize to the guest school at the competition -  because - that school has students who are refugees. I am sorry but in my dictionary a refugee is someone who has escaped from a place - location - group - which professed - practiced things - which harm those who lived there - residents who - escaped - to the - USA - where they would no longer be oppressed - allowed to live their lives as they chose - freely. For the host school to wear red - white - blue - is more a sign of welcome - support - as opposed to exclusion.  After all - if the refugees were not welcome at that competition - why would they be there in the first place? How does wearing a shirt that proclaims - USA - exclude anyone? As a person who has traveled to many foreign countries - and actually talked with the ordinary people who live there - more than once - have I heard - we love the USA - we love the American flag - they offer us hope - welcome - security - a chance at a better life. So some American teachers think their students are oppressive.  Perhaps they need to think - by their actions - how oppressive they have been not only to their very students - but to those who were invited to the competition. By saying NO to red- white - blue - they have proclaimed that this is NOT for everyone - that the USA does not welcome refugees - foreigners to our soil.

God calls us to be His people - not just Americans - not just Polish - not just Italian - not just German - not just Syrian - etc.. In our diversity of cultures we share the beauty of all God's creation only when we openly - freely share what we have with others. If - we have more - we share - that is what being Christian - American - is all about. It is our legacy as followers of Christ - to go among all the people of the World - to share - our faith - our lives - our school events - to all who will walk through our doors. In Lent we need to stop and ask ourselves - do I welcome all - and if not - why not?

Deacon Dale