Aug 22 - Queenship of Mary

+ Today we celebrate the memorial of the Queenship of Mary, one week after the Feast of her Assumption into heaven. Mary has been considered “queen of heaven” since the fourth century, in art and in poetry. She was portrayed in royal attire, enthroned with her child Jesus who was himself given “the throne of David to rule over the house of Jacob forever,” a kingdom of which there will be no end.

This feast was established by Pope Pius XII in 1954 after it was initially promoted by Catholic Mariological congresses in Lyon, France, Freiburg, Germany, and Einsiedeln, Switzerland and Pro Regalitate Mariae, an international society to promote the Queenship of Mary, in Rome.

It is only fitting that after Mary took her place near Jesus, her Son the King, that she should be crowned by the heavenly Church as their queen and ours. With such a radiant regent interceding for us, how could our confidence in her motherly prayers ever fail? She is mother of God because of her willingness to empty herself of herself; she is queen of heaven (and earth) because she faithfully kept that posture her entire earthly life. May we imitate her poverty and her humility this day and experience the great depth of her joy at being raised up by her Son, and his Body, the Church, of which she is the fullness and exemplar of membership!

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us always, until we see you face to face in our eternal home with you!

Amen.

Aug 16 - 19th Week in OT - Friday

+ Our gospel passage today is about marriage, real marriage. In our day, the word marriage has been widened, and contorted so much so, that the true meaning of it is on the brink of being lost completely. A convenient juxtaposition of different entities does not constitute “marriage.” Marriage is the total union of two complementary – the parts fit together seamlessly and bountifully beings, human beings, who are anatomically and psychologically reciprocal, commutual, corresponding persons. It was “invented” if you will, “brought into existence, as we must embrace it” by God the Father Himself at the very beginning when he created the man and the woman. United in mind, body, spirit, forming a cohesive unit, for the generation of another being like themselves – a child – this is marriage.

Any other type of coupling, or pairing, or integrated matches, will always fall short of the true essence of “marriage.”

The yearning and passionate desire to enter into such a “married state” – means to be open completely to the possibility of an extended family of your own! This is and always will be the foundation and quintessential relationship in all of civilization.

Jesus reminds us all today in the gospel passage that these things are so, and that we must hold up the ideal – though he is absolutely cognizant of the fact that all kinds of tangential relationships will be formed, as civilizations, human beings, in 2019, try their best to identify who they themselves are and what sort of a totally human interpersonal relationship is best suited for themselves.

The folly of legislating the entire family structure for the assumed “rights” of a small minority of persons makes no sense. We know this in our souls. We are bound to follow the dictates of our souls – which reaches beyond, mind and spirit, and personality!

If we go where God lives in us – then he will explain it much better to you than I can.

Be still and listen for God, be still and hear God, be still and know the truths he shares with you!  

Aug 13 - Sts Pontian and Hyppolitus

+  St. Pontian (pope 230-35) is the first pope to have abdicated, or resigned, his office; and St. Hippolytus was not only the first of thirty-nine anitipopes, but also the only antipope to be recognized as a saint, with a feast on the General Roman Calendar. Pontian was a Roman by birth, son of Calpurnius. All except the last few months of his pontificate had been peaceful because the tolerant emperor Severus was still reigning. After succeeding Severus as emperor in March 235, Maximinus Thrax abandoned his predecessor’s policy of toleration and launched a violent campaign against Christian leaders. He arrested Pontian, the pope, and the antipope Hippolytus, leader of a schism in the Roman church. Both Pontian and Hippolytus were imprisoned in Rome and then exiled to Sardinia to work in the mines.

Since deportation was normally for life and few survived it, Pontian abdicated to allow a successor to assume the leadership of the Roman community as soon as possible. According to the fourth-century Liberian Catalogue, Pontian abdicated on September 28, 235, the first precisely recorded date in papal history. Neither Pontian nor Hippolytus survived the harsh treatment and conditions on Sardinia. Pontian died less than a month after his resignation. It has been suggested that Pontian and Hippolytus were reconciled while in prison or in exile and that when Pontian abdicated, Hippolytus also renounced his claim to be Bishop of Rome and urged his followers to end their schism. Unity was thereby restored to the Roman church!

The readings for Mass today are marvelously fitting: “Beloved, do not be surprised that a trial by fire is occurring among you…rejoice to the extent that you share in the sufferings of Christ so that when his glory is revealed you may also rejoice exultantly. “ “If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first…they will also persecute you as they did me, because they do not know the one who sent me (my Father in heaven).”

We must embrace our trials, tribulations and sufferings, our red crosses in life, as they come to us, either sent by God, or allowed by him, for they always will be turned into gold crosses of victory – for those who believe that Jesus is the Christ – and that he took on all of our suffering, so to transform them!

St. Cyprian said of Sts. Pontian and Hippolytus: “With what praises can I extol you, most valiant brothers? What words can I find to proclaim and celebrate your brave hearts and your persevering faith? Examined under the fiercest torture, you held out until your ordeal was consummated in glory; it was not you who yielded to the torments but rather the torments that yielded to you.”

These two saints have always been among my favorites as today is my birthday (71) – and the spirit of these readings have indeed followed me throughout my life. But to help me carry my load – the load of my personal crosses in life, the Lord graciously teamed me up with one Richard William Steinberg, RN, to form the Joyful Servants of the Cross (of the Nuptial Observance) – in 2005. We helped carry each other’s loads until in February of last year Brother Paul Andre, as he is known in our group – had his red cross of final endurance in his many hospitalizations to the GOLD CROSS OF VICTORY – when he suddenly began a more fullness of his eternal life – and now he awaits us all to join him, to thank and praise God, and his Son, and his Mother and Foster Father – St. Andre – and all the angels and saints – forever in an unspeakable – there are no words to describe it – our final life with God in Paradise!

Brother, I have lived with you and for you for 16 years in this dimension, and 1 ½ as you are in the fuller dimension now, and I will continue to do so until I see you again in the Kingdom!

Our souls have been rescued like birds from the fowler’s snare.

Aug 4 - 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time

+ The second reading today brings us our point of focus: if you were raised with Christ, seek what is above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Think of what is above, what is “out there, what is in here” not of what is on earth. And in the gospel passage Jesus tells a parable with the same punch line: don’t store up treasure for yourselves here below – but be rich in what matters to God – and store up heavenly treasures that will always be there for you.

Regarding the first: Paul is telling the Colossians that if they really, truly and honestly call themselves Christians and believe that when they were plunged into the baptismal waters, they died, and then coming up out of them, rose with him – then from that point on they should be seeing everything differently: beyond, over and above, super-naturally! This is how Christians are meant to see and hear, think and speak and act from that moment on. So, he tells them to put to death the parts of them that are earthly – immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire and greed that is idolatry. You have put on a new self – Christ’s self – so for the sake of God (“for God’s sake!!) – live like it!

Then Jesus again in the parable tells people to stop looking below, gathering and hoarding, and storing and hiding their goods and their possessions: you cannot take it with you: and what you hoard will be distributed in any number of ways that you most likely would not approve of: so stop building bigger barns, and go straight for the sky: consider your spiritual gifts and possessions as the most important: and keep your eyes of faith focused on them in heaven! It is really not that difficult: all it takes is the initial turning away from the vanity of thinking that there is always something more to get, purchase, buy, and negotiate for: then stop worrying – all things will work out in the end – so long as you tune in to the voice of the Lord, and the Spirit – and DO WHAT THEY TELL YOU – trying to live a supernatural life in a natural world!

If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.