Year: 2024

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Gospel: Mark 10: 17-27

As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up,
knelt down before him, and asked him,
“Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Jesus answered him, “Why do you call me good?
No one is good but God alone.
You know the commandments: You shall not kill;
you shall not commit adultery;
you shall not steal;
you shall not bear false witness;
you shall not defraud;
honor your father and your mother.”
He replied and said to him,
“Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth.” 
Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him,
“You are lacking in one thing.
Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor
and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.”
At that statement, his face fell,
and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.

Jesus looked around and said to his disciples,
“How hard it is for those who have wealth
to enter the Kingdom of God!”
The disciples were amazed at his words.
So Jesus again said to them in reply,
“Children, how hard it is to enter the Kingdom of God!
It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle
than for one who is rich to enter the Kingdom of God.”
They were exceedingly astonished and said among themselves,
“Then who can be saved?”
Jesus looked at them and said,
“For men it is impossible, but not for God.
All things are possible for God.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Corporal Jason Lee Dunham was serving with the 3^rd Battalion, 7^th Marines Regiment, during the Iraq War.

On April 14, 2004, his convoy was responding to an attack that happened in a nearby town. Other Marines responded first, detaining several vehicles and suspects. When one of the suspects tried escaping, Corporal Dunham engaged the man in hand-to-hand combat.

During the fight, the suspect pulled the pin out of a grenade and launched it at a group of Marines. Dunham threw his helmet and his body on top of the grenade, shielding his fellow soldiers from the explosion.

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Eight days later, Corporal Dunham died from injuries sustained … at the tender age of 22.

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Today we honor all the men and women who, like Corporal Dunham, never returned home from combat. They offered themselves for the life of our nation: for our families, our children, our freedom, and our future.

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Stories like Corporal Dunham get to the essence of what Christianity is. As Jesus himself says, “There is no greater love than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

Jesus did it. Dunham did it. We should do it.

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While we cannot offer ourselves for the life of the world as Christ did, nor may we be drawn into combat as Corporal Dunham was, we are all called to offer ourselves for the good of others, often in ordinary ways.

How do I give myself away for the good of others?

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May Corporal Dunham and all who sacrificed themselves for us find rest in Christ, who first loved us and gave himself for us. 

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Image credits: (1) Congressional Medal of Honor Society (2) VA News, VA.gov (3) ECWA USA

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Gospel: Matthew 28: 16-20

The eleven disciples went to Galilee,
to the mountain to which Jesus had ordered them.
When they all saw him, they worshiped, but they doubted.
Then Jesus approached and said to them,
“All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.
And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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A few years ago, there was a 70-year-old woman from northern Italy whose name was Marinella Baretta.

Marinella’s neighbors called the police after trees from her unkept garden started creeping over her fence into their yard.

So, the police went and knocked on her door. But, after no answer, they entered and found Marinella sitting at her kitchen table.

She had been dead for more than two years.

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Such a sad story reeks of injustice. 

The loneliness that Marinella must have experienced. The absence of her neighbors. The neglect of society at large captured by a phone call to police – not about the wellbeing of an elderly neighbor, but about a few branches creeping into their yard.

Such behavior begs the question – in fact, the first question human beings ask God in the bible: “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

It’s a question that we as Christians must still answer: “Are we our neighbor’s keeper?”

Are we in any way responsible for those like Marinella – the abandoned, the forgotten, the elderly, the lonely who need a phone call or a visit?

Not by police, but by a fellow neighbor concerned about that person’s wellbeing.

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Perhaps this story hits home because of the fear and loneliness that some of us have felt, albeit to a smaller degree. 

It’s that hollow feeling you get after scrolling through social media for hours on end; the disappointment you feel when no one likes your profile or post on Facebook.

The eerie sound of silence in an empty nest; the lack of a phone call; even the absence of God’s voice in prayer.

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So, what’s the one thing really missing from Marinella’s story? 

Love.

By our very nature, we are relational beings. We need other people. We need to feel affirmed, appreciated, understood, as if we are “number one” to somebody. 

It’s why the first pillar of our parish mission is, “Building Community.” We believe that life is precious; that every soul matters; that every person belongs here.

Above all, that we are made in the image and likeness of God, who is a relational being.

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Today we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Trinity, the truth that God is One in three Persons.

This belief is what makes Christianity utterly unique. No other world religion claims that God is both one and three.

While the Trinity is ultimately a mystery – who really can understand the inner life of God? – it also makes logical sense when considered through the lens of love. 

As Saint John writes, “God IS love.” Not that God is capable of love. Not that God might love you. But, “God IS love.”

And if God is love, then God must be One in Three, because there is the Lover, the Beloved, and the unbreakable Bond they share.

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Think about this in the context of marriage. 

A marriage requires three different components: there is the husband, the wife, and the love that binds them. But if you asked a happily wedded couple, “How many are you?”

They would say, “We are one! One in mind. One in body. One in heart.” That marriage mirrors the Trinity.

Having a best friend is similar.

In order to have a best friend, there must be two friends, and the friendship that binds them. But, again, if you asked them, “How many are you?”

They would say, “Nothing can separate us. We are one!”

They, too, reflect the inner life of God.

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This is why the story of that older, Italian woman, Marinella, is so painful. 

At the end of her life, she appeared to be an island; a solitary soul disconnected from humanity; a relational being made in the image and likeness of her God, yet lacking any tangible sign of love.

It’s why initiatives like our Outreach Ministry matter so much. 

We care for the hungry, the homebound, and the homeless, because we recognize that we are a trinitarian people, fashioned in the likeness of God who is One in Three.

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On this Holy Trinity Sunday, we’re invited to do three things:

Affirm those who love you; give thanks for that bond.

Connect with the disconnected.

And spend time with the Lord, who longs for your heart. 

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As Saint Augustine reminds us, “Our hearts are restless, O LORD, until they rest in you.”

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Image credits: (1) Wikimedia Commons (2) Avelino Calvar Martinez, Fine Art America (3) Unsplash

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Gospel: Mark 9: 41-50

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink
because you belong to Christ,
amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward.

“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, 
it would be better for him if a great millstone
were put around his neck
and he were thrown into the sea.
If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off.
It is better for you to enter into life maimed 
than with two hands to go into Gehenna,
into the unquenchable fire.
And if your foot causes you to sin, cut if off.
It is better for you to enter into life crippled 
than with two feet to be thrown into Gehenna.
And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out.
Better for you to enter into the Kingdom of God with one eye
than with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna,
where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.

“Everyone will be salted with fire.
Salt is good, but if salt becomes insipid,
with what will you restore its flavor?
Keep salt in yourselves and you will have peace with one another.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Nine years ago today – at about this hour – I sat in the garden of the Cathedral and prayed the rosary with our Archbishop and thirteen other men.

“Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death,” we said in unison over and over again.

Finally, the time had come. 

After six years of study, countless hours spent in prayer, discernment, and pastoral service, fourteen of us were about to be ordained priests for the Archdiocese of Newark. 

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There was an unforgettable blend of peace and immense joy in my heart as we processed down the aisle for Mass. 

The Cathedral was full, the choir was singing praise at the top of their lungs, the smell of incense wafted into my nose, as our families and friends gazed in wonder.

That joy in my heart became the first lesson the Lord taught me as a priest: whenever we follow Him, there is joy; there is peace. 

This does not mean that trial or sacrifice won’t come our way, but transcending it all, there is Jesus at the center, who has, “overcome the world.”

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Since that day drenched in grace, I’ve celebrated hundreds of baptisms, anointings, and funerals. I’ve stood with dozens of couples at the altar as they state their vows before the Lord.

Here at St. Pius X, I’ve also been given the opportunity to dream, to envision our future together, and to build the kingdom of God with you day by day. I cannot imagine living a more meaningful life. 

Looking back nine years ago today, if I could speak to myself at the moment of my ordination, I’d say, remember the words spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:

“For I know well the plans I have for you, says the LORD, plans for your benefit, not for woe; to give you a future full of hope. You will find me when you seek me, when you seek me with all of your heart.”

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May we continue to seek the Lord with all of our heart, each in our own way. The more we do, the happier and more joyful we become.

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Image credits: (1) Our Lady of Sorrows, South Orange (2) Today’s Catholic (3) St. Pius X, Old Tappan