Category: Uncategorized

***

Gospel: John 2: 13-22

Since the Passover of the Jews was near,
Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
He found in the temple area those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves,
as well as the money-changers seated there.
He made a whip out of cords
and drove them all out of the temple area, with the sheep and oxen,
and spilled the coins of the money-changers
and overturned their tables,
and to those who sold doves he said,
“Take these out of here,
and stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.”
His disciples recalled the words of Scripture,
Zeal for your house will consume me.
At this the Jews answered and said to him,
“What sign can you show us for doing this?”
Jesus answered and said to them,
“Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.”
The Jews said,
“This temple has been under construction for forty-six years,
and you will raise it up in three days?”
But he was speaking about the temple of his Body.
Therefore, when he was raised from the dead,
his disciples remembered that he had said this,
and they came to believe the Scripture
and the word Jesus had spoken.

The Gospel of the Lord.

***

***

The skyline of major cites is often defined by structures of particular importance. For example, New York City is known for the Freedom Tower. Seattle for the Space Needle. Paris for the Eiffel Tower. And Rome for Saint Peter’s.

While St. Peter’s is an impressive church and a beautiful testament to our Catholic faith – it’s literally built upon the bones of Saint Peter himself – the oldest and most important church in Rome is not Saint Peter’s… 

It’s the Basilica of Saint John Lateran, which is the feast we celebrate today.

***

Etched into the very façade of the church’s entrance are the words: “The mother and head of all the churches and of the city and of the world.”

Saint John Lateran is the oldest church in the Western world. It was the primary residence of the pope until the Middle Ages. And it remains the official church – the cathedra – of the pope, the Bishop of Rome (not Saint Peter’s as is commonly assumed).

***

Today’s feast not only recalls the importance of that church; it also reminds every Catholic of the importance of having their own church to call home.

In that sense, today we also celebrate our parish, the primary place where we encounter God.

For many, this is where their Christian journey began in baptism. It’s where our sins are forgiven. It’s where children receive their First Holy Communion. Where youngsters are Confirmed.

It’s where couples exchange their vows. It’s where we carol at Christmas and cry at funerals. It’s where we gather and worship as one body every Sunday. It’s where we celebrate many of life’s significant milestones.

***

While Saint John Lateran is the oldest church – our Mother Church – Saint Pius X is a scaled-down version of it. The light shines just as bright from our cupola at night; it’s our little heavenly city perched on a hill, reminding us that we are Catholic – and grateful for it.

If cities are defined by their skyline – and particular monuments within it – our town is, in many ways, defined by this church. 

This is a day of gratitude – not only for our parish church, but even more for the people who call it home. May God bless us all. Happy feast!

***

***

Image credits: (1) Newsweek (2) Saint John Lateran, Wikipedia (3) St. Pius X, YouTube

***

Gospel: Luke 14: 25-33

Great crowds were traveling with Jesus,
and he turned and addressed them,
“If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, 
wife and children, brothers and sisters,
and even his own life,
he cannot be my disciple.
Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me
cannot be my disciple.
Which of you wishing to construct a tower
does not first sit down and calculate the cost
to see if there is enough for its completion? 
Otherwise, after laying the foundation
and finding himself unable to finish the work
the onlookers should laugh at him and say,
‘This one began to build but did not have the resources to finish.’ 
Or what king marching into battle would not first sit down
and decide whether with ten thousand troops
he can successfully oppose another king
advancing upon him with twenty thousand troops? 
But if not, while he is still far away,
he will send a delegation to ask for peace terms. 
In the same way,
everyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions
cannot be my disciple.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

***

***

“If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.”

Even when we put this Gospel into the correct context, it’s difficult to live.

In ancient Jewish culture, this verb “hate” meant to “choose” one thing over another. If we are to be Jesus’ disciple, then we must choose God over our family, our friends, even our own life.

One way I try living out this command is by following a simple formula: 1, 2, 3.

***

Put God first. Others second. Myself third.

***

For me, that means beginning my day with at least an hour of prayer.

Then I come here to church and celebrate Mass – both with you and for you.

It’s how I put God first.

The rest of the day is spent in the office, at the hospital, in parishioner’s homes, meetings, or wherever else ministry takes me. I put all of you second.

By day’s end, I take an hour or so for myself.

***

How might you apply that formula – 1, 2, 3 – to your own life?

***

Put God first.

Someone else second – a spouse, a child, a friend in need.

And yourself third.

Mysteriously, doing so leads to life in abundance.

***

***

Image credits: (1) Spreadshirt (2) Bible Verses to God (3) Quote the Walls

***

Gospel: Luke 14: 15-24

One of those at table with Jesus said to him,
“Blessed is the one who will dine in the Kingdom of God.”
He replied to him,
“A man gave a great dinner to which he invited many.
When the time for the dinner came,
he dispatched his servant to say to those invited,
‘Come, everything is now ready.’
But one by one, they all began to excuse themselves.
The first said to him,
‘I have purchased a field and must go to examine it;
I ask you, consider me excused.’
And another said, ‘I have purchased five yoke of oxen
and am on my way to evaluate them;
I ask you, consider me excused.’
And another said, ‘I have just married a woman,
and therefore I cannot come.’
The servant went and reported this to his master.
Then the master of the house in a rage commanded his servant,
‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town
and bring in here the poor and the crippled, the blind and the lame.’
The servant reported, ‘Sir, your orders have been carried out
and still there is room.’
The master then ordered the servant,
‘Go out to the highways and hedgerows
and make people come in that my home may be filled.
For, I tell you, none of those men who were invited will taste my dinner.'”

The Gospel of the Lord.

***

***

We’ve all made different commitments in life and some of them are quite demanding.

For example, there’s marriage, family, friends, work, ministry, sports, leisure, and so on. If we ordered them from most to least important, which commitment would come out on top?

Which one would be second?

We don’t really need to answer the question with words – how we spend our time speaks for itself.

***

In today’s Gospel, we encounter three people who’ve made the same commitment – to attend a friend’s dinner party.

However, when the time for the party arrives, each says to the host, “I ask you, consider me excused.”

One just purchased a new plot of land. Tending his fields became more important than attending the party.

Another just purchased five yoke of oxen. Caring for his animals suddenly became more important.

Another was just married. Being alone with his wife became more important than attending the party – even though they could’ve gone together.

Being attentive to your wife, tending your fields, caring for your animals – these are all good things. But each of these three people fell victim to a timeless temptation: choosing what is good over what is great.

***

This imagery the Lord is using of hosting a dinner party is symbolic of God’s invitation to all of us to join him every Sunday at this Eucharistic feast.

Often, we say “yes,” as we should.

But when do we find ourselves saying, “no?” What, if anything, becomes more important than worship?

It could be one of the many other commitments we’ve made: work, our child’s sports schedule, even feeling tired after a dinner party the night before. When this happens, the Lord falls from first to second place in our lives.

Still, Jesus reminds us, there’s nothing more important than receiving Him together at this Eucharistic feast… Or is there?

***

***

Image credits: (1) Medium, Steven Covey (2) MyPostcard (3) St. Benedict’s Parish