God qualifies those whom he calls February 7, 2010

My Dear People,

There’s an old saying that God doesn’t call the qualified.  God qualifies the called.  Today’s readings are all about being called.

Isaiah sees a vision of the heavenly court and says “woe is me.”  The angel cleanses his lips with a burning coal and, when the Lord says, “Whom shall we send?” he answers, “Here I am. Send me.”

Paul alludes to his call.

Jesus calls Peter and his companions after a marvelous catch.  Peter’s reaction is to drop to his knees and say, “leave me,  Lord, I am a sinful man.”  Jesus says, “Do not be afraid.”

These are common reactions people feel in the face of the Lord’s call.

I’m a sinner. I’m not worthy. Who am I to receive this call.  Leave me. I’m not qualified.

And the consistent response of God is “Do not be afraid.  I will be with you.”

Reflect on this in terms of your own challenges and sense of being called.  Hear God say, “Do not be afraid.  I will be with you.” 

If we reflect long, we will see many very familiar feelings and longings. Think of these stories the next time you might feel a nudge from God or an invitation for someone to some form of ministry.

Love,

Fr. Larry 

Love is what Love does January 31, 2010

My Dear People,

Today’s second reading reminded me of a scene from the movie Forrest Gump.  The young boy Forrest is on the school bus and a girl asks him, “Are you stupid?”  He answers, “Mama says stupid is what stupid does.”  Paul might echo that answer in the second reading.  Love is what Love does.  What does love do?

Love is patient, love is kind.

It is not jealous, it is not pompous,

It is not inflated, it is not rude,

it does not seek its own interests,

it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury,

it does not rejoice over wrongdoing

but rejoices with the truth.

It bears all things, believes all things,

hopes all things, endures all things.

Another favorite author of mine, Gerry May wrote once that love in inseparable from attention and that no one is incapable of love.

When I put these together, it seems to me that if we pay close attention to anyone in a way that is patient, kind, not jealous or pompous or inflated or rude, not seeking our own interests, brooding over injury or rejoicing in the wrong, we will inevitably love them.

A good thirty plus years or more before there were any Gospels, Paul was building church communities and writing letters about the practical problems they were having.  It’s amazing how much love, gentleness, patience, kindness dominates these writings.

Make it a mantra for a while.  Love is what Love does.

Love,

Fr. Larry

Changing Water into Wine January 17, 2010

My Dear People,

The Gospel of Luke will be the Gospel we read on Sundays during the coming year. But, before we get into Luke, we have a slight diversion into the beautiful story of the wedding feast of Cana. Today’s Gospel ends with the saying that Jesus revealed his glory and his disciples came to believe in him.

Ask yourself, how does changing water into wine reveal the Glory of Jesus?  I can think of many more spectacular things.

I know I’ve shared this story before but one of the legends of St. Bridget of Ireland is that she had a cask of beer from which she supplied all the churches in the county with beer for a full year.  I’ve also heard that her idea of heaven was a gigantic lake of beer.

I don’t know if those legends are true but they are certainly Catholic and definitely biblical. God’s presence is always described in wildly sensual terms: a rich banquet, choice wines, a feast for all peoples, the eyes of the blind being opened, the ears of the deaf hearing, the lame walking, what is crooked made straight.

Sometimes we wonder where God is and we need look no further than what is before our eyes.  Taste and see that God is good. Taste the world around you.  Taste life.  Enjoy each little thing you see. The world is here for us to enjoy and to care for. 

One of my favorite writers, Wendell Berry, has a poem in which he says if we want real wisdom, we would go back to the smallness of a garden growing and learn the mystery of how holy and sacred this space is from the plants and animals. 

Love,

Fr. Larry

Why are the Christmas Decorations Still up? January 10, 2010

How many weeks ago was Christmas?  Three.  Why do we still have the Christmas decorations up?  What?  Yeah, you've been waiting on me to help you take them down.  They put a smile on our face.  Because we haven't celebrated the Epiphany?  That was last Sunday.  The feast we celebrate today is the baptism of the Lord.  

By the way, next Sunday ‑‑ look at that window there, that's the one Father Kirkhoff mentioned his family gave ‑‑ next Sunday the Gospel will be the wedding feast at Cana.  

In the ancient church, our celebration of the revelation of Christ had three primary feasts:  Epiphany, which in the east is still the biggest; the baptism of the Lord; and the wedding feast in at Cana.  In all of these, Christ revealed himself.  The last one to come on the scene was December 25.  That's distinctively Roman and had more to do with politics than with faith.  

Does anybody know how December 25 came to be when we celebrate Christmas?  It was a Roman pagan feast.  The Emperor Constantine wanted to use Christianity to unite the empire, and he found that Christianity was divided over the Arian heresy, so he locked all the bishops in a room and said you ain't coming out till you agree.  So they came up with the Nicene creed, and they looked for a feast to celebrate that.  And the Romans celebrated the feast of the unconquered sun on December 25, two days after the winter solstice, so they took that over and made it a celebration of the birth of Jesus.  That's just a little Catholic trivia for those who might be interested.  

But as I was thinking of that and looking around our church at its windows, every one of these windows is in some way a revelation of Christ, isn't it?  In the manger, in the midst of the temple with the teachers of the Law, the wedding feast at Cana, the sermon on the mount, the woman who wept at his feet and dried them with her hair, the children coming to be blessed by Jesus, the last supper ‑‑ I'm sure he didn't hold a gold cup at the last supper ‑‑ the agony in the garden, the crucifixion, and the ascension.

If we had a lot of time, I would ask you -- how many of you here have had your own personal revelation of Christ?  I don't see any hands.  I hope many of you would say that in your own way you've had your revelation.  And they're as rich and varied as all of us.  

Well, today we celebrate the rite of acceptance for three people, and we make it our heartfelt prayer that in this community they will come to their own unique and personal revelation of Christ.  So now I would like to call them forward with their sponsors.