Good Friday

What is so good about Good Friday?  In ancient times when our vocabulary was very different - people used the word good to mean someone - something - that was holy.  The two words were interchangeable back then.  As time passed - cultures evolved - language changed - that connection has been lost - except in this particular case.  This Friday - definitely a holy day - time stands still - churches empty - the faithful - isolated in their homes - deprived of religious observances.  This is a memory that will not fade - just as the memory of the crucifixion of Jesus does not fade. 

Today in our own way - we remember that eventful day when Christ was crucified - not for His sins - rather for ours.  Our sins are the metal that held Him to the wood of the cross.  Our sins - the reason He came in the first place.  Our sins - that keep Him nailed there - even today.  Today is the one day - we reflect on what we have done - what we have failed to do - what God did for us.  His Gift to us - forgiveness - reconciliation - resurrection.  Our gift to Him.........?

Deacon Dale 

Holy Thursday

Holy Thursday - the first day of the Triduum - the three holiest days of the Christian year.  No morning Masses today - the only Mass tonight.  We normally wash feet at this Mass - not tonight - all Masses online only - minimal people involved - we do listen to God's word - we commemorate the institution of the Priesthood and Eucharist - things definitely worth celebrating.  Normally - the Blessed Sacrament removed to a place of Adoration - while the altar and tabernacle stripped bare. The Mass - ending in silence - awaiting the events of tomorrow - Good Friday.  Not a lot to say - Jesus has said it all.

Our focus - our relationship to Jesus - God - what we are called to do - what we have done - failed to do.  Have we washed feet - carried a burden for another - offered a drink to the thirsty - given money to the poor.  Have we made an intentional donation to a food pantry - care center - resource center for those in need.  In these days of isolation - sheltering at home - have we called - parents - siblings - friends - anyone - have we accepted - with Grace - our difficulties - thought about those who cannot care for themselves.  These are the three Holy Days - it is up to each of us - to make them - Holy.

Deacon Dale 

It Is Finished - Maybe

Today brings us to the official end of Lent - Thursday marks the beginning of the Triduum - the three holiest days of the Christian liturgical year - Holy Thursday - Good Friday - Holy Saturday. Following those three very special days we begin the Easter Season - marked by the celebration of Easter Sunday. The Season of Easter is the period of 50 days - spanning from Easter Sunday to Pentecost Sunday.  One might wonder - why so long - first 40 days then 3 more days just to get to Easter - why another 50 days?

I could ask - how many days did it take for you to be born - the majority - nine months - 280 days - 40 weeks - of gestation - growing in our mother's womb - just to enter the world - helpless - none of us ready to walk - talk - eat - on our own.  As with most things in life a period of gestation - time spent developing - evolving - preparing - for life.  Many people wrongly think Easter is a day - similar to Christmas only a day.  In reality both Christmas - Easter are seasons - two very special days which deserve our extended attention.  Easter - the one major feast - celebrating life - death - resurrection - new life in Christ - deserves many days to celebrate this miracle of resurrection.  Today Lent ends - tomorrow the next season on our journey to the Easter miracle.

Deacon Dale 

Down Not Out

Right now the entire world is fighting a battle with an enemy that cannot be seen.  When most people are called to fight - arm themselves - prepare for battle - they know what their enemy looks like - where they live - their strong points - weaknesses.  This battle - not like any normal battle. As big - as strong as we may be - nothing to compare when fighting microscopic enemies.  Our strength - our knowledge - our intellect - our faith.

Throughout history - many battles fought - won - lost - by people all over the world.  Some large - some very small.  In all battles - always a winner.  This current battle with Corona Virus - not our first - not our last.  We may be down - feeling subdued - not out.   We have not lost - we will not lose.  In all battles - time determines the final winner.  A few days left in Lent - our 40 days in the desert drawing to a close.  When Jesus was ready to leave the desert - His battle with the Evil One - never gave up - walked away - to fight another day.  Like Jesus - we too will walk away from this battle - like Jesus - victorious - as long as we remember - with Jesus at our side - we may be down - not out.  

Gone MIssing

The one thing I hear the most from Catholics during this pandemic - shelter at home - how much they miss Holy Mass. In particular - receiving Holy Eucharist. It has been estimated that perhaps only one-third of Catholics believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. In simple terms - that the Bread and Wine have in reality been turned into the Body and Blood of Jesus. Very few believe in transubstantiation - the changing of Bread and Wine into the Body and Blood. The majority treat communion as a - symbol - something representing Jesus. Unfortunately more Catholics believe in purgatory - than the Real Presence. Some think this has happened because almost all Catholics have Protestant friends whose belief in Communion is different from that as Catholics - communion - a symbol of Jesus. Thomas Aquinas is one of the first to use the term transubstantiation - when the "substance" of the Bread and Wine is changed into the "substance" of Jesus' Body and Blood. . This is called faith - when visible proof not available. It is interesting that believing in the Real Presence or not - does not make a difference in the fact that it is missed.  So for a few weeks we have been denied receiving communion - imagine when - according to Father Frank O'Dea SSS - Congregation of The Blessed Sacrament - a period from the fourth century on - Christians were reluctant to receive the Body and Blood of Christ. A new kind of vocabulary of awe and fear was attached to the sacred mysteries. This situation was not reversed in any significant way until the early twentieth century with the letter of Pius X urging frequent communion. By the thirteenth century the reception of communion had become so rare that the Church made a law that everyone must receive communion at least once a year. That such a law should be necessary indicates how poorly the Eucharist was understood at that time. Thankfully - through better catechesis - our understanding has improved such that a majority of Catholics now receive Communion almost weekly - some daily.  

Not being able to receive Communion - a special sacrifice for the faithful - pales in comparison to the sacrifice Jesus made on the Cross. In our diocese - typically on this Monday - the bishop would bless the oils used during the liturgical year - Mass not happening as normal.  Social distancing - disrupting all liturgical celebrations during Holy Week.  As mentioned - our sacrifice small in comparison to what the entire world is experiencing.  The Blessing - Eucharist is still celebrated daily - our participation will return in time.  When that day does come - when we are able to once again attend Holy Mass - when we can once again be offered Holy Eucharist - we will be able to respond with our hearty - Amen!

Deacon Dale 

And So It Begins

Today - Palm Sunday - Passion Sunday - marks the beginning of the holiest week of the liturgical year.  Holy Week - all the significant celebrations that brings Lent to a close - leads us to the three holiest days of the year - the Triduum - finally Easter - the Season of Easter that follows.  This week when the bishop blesses the oils used thought out the year - renews his commitment along with his priests - to serve the Church with their entire being - promising to pastor the flocks they lead - when deacons and religious and the laity promise their obedience - heart felt service to the community of believers - the celebration of the institutions of Holy Mass - Holy Eucharist - the Priesthood - the washing of feet - New Life in Christ.  This is the week  that will be - when the Elect professes their belief in the Holy Roman Catholic Church - receive Baptism - Confirmation - Holy Communion.  This is the week when all this should happen - this year - 2020 - the year of the pandemic - putting almost all of this on hold - liturgical celebrations limited to a few who will live stream - to be viewed by the masses - denied the blessing of attending in person.

For probably all of us - the first time - Holy Week - without us in attendance.  To most - an extreme sacrifice - nothing to compare with the sacrifice Jesus made on the Cross - for all of us.  He came for all - many received Him - but not all.  He came to offer us life - life filled with His Grace - not all accepted His Gift. He carried our sins onto the Cross - He endured a fate that none should experience.  This Easter as we feel denied of the graces of Holy Week  - may we be united with Him - Our Lord and Savior - in this once in a lifetime - Easter Sacrifice.  He has endured - we will also endure.  In God - in Jesus - we trust.  It is all in His hands.  Jesus We Trust In You.

Deacon Dale 

Who's God?

It is not unusual for people to argue who God belongs to - as if He is some sort of possession.  Is He a Catholic God - Protestant God - Jewish God - who can claim Him as their god?  In truth He is everyone's God.  This is made very clear in Ezekiel when He says "I will be their God, and they shall be my people".  When He said that - the Christian Church had not even been started.  That was spoken to our ancestors - the people of God who would much later come to recognize Jesus as the Son of God - the Lord of Lords.

As a Christian it is so important that you do not worry about claims by some people that they have exclusive rights to God.  We know - without a doubt - He is our God - Jesus Our Savior.  As we look forward to Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem with Sunday's celebration of Palm Sunday - we rejoice that we are privileged to stand on the wayside - to wave palms - with all the others - who claim Jesus as their Lord.   He is my God - I belong to Him - who do you belong to?  Jesus We Trust In You..........

Deacon Dale  

Tending The Garden

Almost everyone who has a home has some sort of garden to manage.  It might be shrubs - flowers - winding their way around the house - perhaps decorative trees to provide shade.  Those with enough property - often have a separate garden set to the side in which they grow whatever their hearts desire.  Flowers - herbs - vegetables - pretty plants to admire - food to eat.  Whichever garden is planted - needs attention if it will become the garden of one's dream.  Tilling - weeding - fertilizing - irrigating - combined together - insures a fruitful yield.

During Lent we are asked to look at the garden of our lives - what grows in our minds - hearts - what needs attention - what is doing well.  Spending time in prayer - contemplating those things that need work - seeking answers to self improvement.  For those of faith - an easier job than for those with no faith.  With faith - Jesus stands at one's side - guiding - urging - helping to first recognize - then fix what may be needing improvement.  His love is the ground that your faith is planted in - His Holy Spirit - the water that rains down from heaven to nurture the seeds of faith - planted in His love.  As this time of Lent comes to an end - the time to harvest - those seeds planted - now a full grown crop - very near.  A few days more - harvest time.  Now is the time to finish this task - prepare to meet Jesus - face to face at Easter

Deacon Dale 

Rock Of Ages

When we were little kids there would be occasions when an argument would break out between each other.  As in any argument - disagreement - the first tools of battle - words - words carelessly thrown about like balls - sticks - stones.  When words were not enough - actual sticks - stones - whatever was nearby.  Many of us remember the mantra - sticks and stones may break my bones - words will never hurt me - a taunt that physical objects could inflict pain - but words were just words - not fatal in a fight.  So it is as adults that fights start with - words - arguing one point against another - a debate - in most cases a verbal conflict - frequently settled through negotiation - discussion - peaceful resolution.  In those rare moments when peaceful resolution not attained - the argument escalates.  Once escalated - the conflict may become physical - hand to hand combat - worse case scenario - actual battle - war.  Never a winner in war - losses rarely justify the win - peaceful resolution preferred. 

Jesus was frequently the object of anger - those in power - afraid that He would take their power - control - away from them.  In today's Gospel Jesus - once again - in a dispute with some leaders - losing a debate about Abraham - in frustration picking up stones to throw at Him.  Makes one think - for over two thousand years we have not progressed  beyond throwing stones at each other. In this period of Lent we need to reflect - contemplate - those things that caused us to become angry - throw rocks at others.  If recent - now a good time to reconcile - if an old conflict - never too late to say sorry - resolve old conflicts - use those stones to build - rebuild relationships - with family - friends - God.  

Deacon Dale 

A New Normal

Really - this is the new normal?  I certainly hope not - there  is no way that what we are currently experiencing can be called normal.  Isolation - empty grocery shelves - paranoid people all over the place - those who are preparing - those ignoring - no way is this normal.  This is chaos - disruption to what life is suppose to be.  What we are experiencing is a battle - life against death - rational against irrational - brilliance against ignorance.  

This is not the life that God has planned for us - He is not the one who caused this problem.  People - who made mistakes - bad decisions - misinformation - the ones - creating - stirring the pot of confusion - fear.  Worry is not of the Lord.  In John 14:1 Jesus told us "Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me."  In these days of fear - confusion - focus your eyes on Him who saves you - He will not leave you an orphan - He will not leave you alone.  In strength - as people of Hope remind yourself and those around you - Jesus I Trust In You - Amen 

Deacon Dale