Readings:  –  from Thanksgiving Day 

 Sirach  50, 22-24,   May he grant you joy of heart.

Psalm 113,   Blessed be the Name of the Lord forever.

1 Corinthians 1, 3-9,   You were enriched in every way.

Luke 17, 11-19,  Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks? 

 Thanksgiving History: Everyone knows about the first Thanksgiving in 1602 with the Pilgrims and the Indians eating together, the Mayflower, and Plymouth Rock.   Here are 5 facts that people do not hear about usually.

1.  When did Thanksgiving begin?  Our ancestors have celebrated end of harvest feasts of gratitude for centuries.  Lincoln first focused on a national feast; FDR established the national holiday in 1941.

2.  The pilgrims did not know they were pilgrims.  They called themselves saints, and non-saints were called strangers.  The word pilgrim came along in the 18 hundreds, 2 centuries later.  They were not even Puritans, but separatists.  They split off from the Church of England, old Henry VIII's church, and the Puritans did not split off.

3.  The Separatists did not come to establish religious freedom.  They came for religious freedom for their religion and only their religion.  Like the Catholic Church, the Separatists demanded everyone belong to their program.  Failure to conform could result in execution, ala inquisition.

4.  The Mayflower returned to England, was torn apart, and its beams were used to build a barn in Buckinghamshire (just north of London & east of Oxford).

5.  How did the Indians & Separatists communicate?   The Indians were Algonquians & one of them, Squanto had actually lived in Briton some years.  He returned to his tribe and taught his friend Samoset English.  It was Samoset who communicated with the Separatists, & the Indians taught them to raise corn, to fish, and to hunt.  In the first winter half of the 100 Separatists died before the Indians taught them how to survive. 

 

Thanksgiving

It is Thanksgiving this week, Folks, my favorite feast and holiday.   I would like to talk about our blessings. 

It was over a year ago when Chris Dembney walked in here one Sunday and told me about a bike ride he had done for 7 days across Iowa, 500 miles.  He says, “Stack, you would love this trip.” 

I remember telling him, “Chris, you are crazy.  Why would I want to ride 500 miles across Iowa?”  Guess what I did this past July. 

Blessing #1 for me: my health. 

Not only have I been able to ride 500 miles and am ready to sign up for this July.  But I have been able to return to back packing in the mountains.   In 2009 in Matterhorn Canyon, Yosemite, I knew I could never hike again in the mountains with my old, factory issue hips.  2010, January & February, I got the new hips and that August I was back packing in CO with the usual degenerate group.  I still am amazed.

Blessing #2: our community

You people are a Work of Art.   Here is what I see and how you are a blessing.

The generosity.  This little community just this year has contributed  $25,000   to help numerous nonprofits and numerous individuals in financial straits.   This very weekend your generosity is helping in NYC and NJ through Professor Jim Mahar and Bona Responds.  $2000 of your aid was given directly to them last Sunday.  What a blessing.

The warmth.  I do not know how many times someone or a couple has come to me after visiting here.  They always mention the warmth and the hospitality.  What a blessing.

Your child friendly warmth.  Do you realize these kids are growing up in a sacred environment without fear?  What a privilege to watch and help them grow.   Thanks to you parents & grandparents who share your kids with us. What a blessing.

Blessing #3: Rosemary’s recuperation.

January 6 it was when she crashed her Christmas bike and busted her elbow so badly.  The past few weeks she has been riding the same bike around White Rock Lake.  The physical recuperation is remarkable enough.  The spiritual and psychological recuperation has been even more marvelous.

What are 2 or 3 of your biggest blessings this year?

 

 

 

Readings:

1 Kings 17, 10-16,  Please bring me a small cup of water to drink.

Psalm 146,    Praise the Lord, my soul.

Hebrews  9, 24-28, Christ did not enter into a sanctuary made by hands.

Mark 12, 38-44,  The poor widow with the 2 small coins, The Widow's Mite.

 

            Genevieve & Mary say, "Good Morning, Everybody,                     Welcome in."                     

       

Kings:

     Author & date of composition: the work is a compilation of numerous sources put together near the end of the Babylonian Captivity, ca. 555.

    Subject Matter: 1 Kings is part of a 4 book work that includes 1 & 2 Samuel and 1 & 2 Kings.  The 3 kings are Saul, David, and his son, Solomon.

 The work begins with Samuel, the last great judge, continues through the lives of the 3 kings, and finally shows how Solomon’s sons’ squabbles led to the division of the Jewish nation into two states, north & south, Israel & Judah.  Both states were defeated and the people of both were taken into captivity as slaves. 

The people of Israel never returned from Syria.  The people of Judah taken into the Babylonian Captivity maintained their tribal identify and came back to Jerusalem, which had been wrecked.   The Babylonian Captivity ended on a high note when Cyrus of Persia defeats Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon, and allows the Jews to return to Jerusalem.

 

                    Cole, a Master Candle Lighter, at work.   

 

    The Theme: you be good, good things happen to you; you be bad, bad things happen to you.

    Our selection: 2 great prophets lived when the kingdom divided, Elijah & Elisha.  They criticized the bad ways of the sons of King Solomon.  In this selection, Elijah tells the king he is going to send a drought to the king's land.  Then Elijah goes away & meets a poor, starving widow with a son.  Watch what happens.  This is setting us up for the Widow's Mite story in the gospel.

 

            

               Another team of Master Helpers, Kevin & Georgina 

 

Today’s Widow’s Mite

This morning I would like to talk about the two ladies in our readings, the lady with her son getting ready to eat their last meal before dying and the famous Widow’s Mite.  Let's make it contemporary.

A story to exemplify. 

Ever hear about Nathan Bradley?

Narthan Bradley is a policeman.  In fact, he is a GA State Trooper.  He is young, 25 years old, and has been working as a trooper for a year and a half. 

 

           Is that an angel that I see?  Why, Yes, it is Victoria.

 

This past Halloween Saturday afternoon Nathan was on duty when he was called to cover a traffic accident.  He discovers when he arrives that a young couple have been killed.  Somehow he checks out where they live, which was not far away.  He decides to go to their house to report the deaths to whomever lives there.

He goes to the house and rings the bell.  The inside door is opened cautiously and Nathan discovers 4 children aged 13 to 6, all dressed in their Halloween costumes.  The kids tell him their parents have gone to buy some face paint at the corner.

 

             Is that another angel that I see?  Yep, it is Zoe

 

On the spot Nathan makes 2 decisions.  He cannot tell them about their parents’ deaths.  In fact, he decides he has got to make this Halloween special for them . 

So he bundles them into his squad car and takes them first to McDonald’s, hamburgers, milk shakes, the whole deal.  Then he takes them on a tour of the state trooper complex.  They play trick or treat.  Finally they have a sleep-over at the station. 

 

 

    Remember that nice little kid we talked about last Sunday…..

 

During this time a call has been made to a grandmother in Jacksonville.  She is driving up to take care of the kids. 

With the kids bedded down, Nathan is not finished.  To help pay for expenses, like the funerals, Nathan goes on line and sets up a fund on Go Fund Me, hoping to collect $7,000.   As of yesterday, Saturday, one week from Halloween and the accident, the fund had reached $400,000. 

Are there not sensitive and generous people everywhere around us? 

 

                Here he is, like a few years ago, Noah before.

 

3 quick observations on The Widow’s Mite.

Three observations.

First, this is a marvelous call to help and to contribute, not just money, but so much else, my time, my positive strokes of others, my efforts to help kids recover from deaths, like Nathan Bradley. 

 

                 
                  Cupcake of The Week to Mike & Dee.

 

Secondly, watch out.  A trap here.  See Mark’s use of infinite demand?  Am I supposed to likewise contribute all I have, my whole livelihood?  Not quite, which leads to my next point.

Thirdly, want to know why I did not want to take up a formal collection at our liturgies?  Because the churches I was part of as a young boy always pushed money.  These little stories guilted me.   I bet a lot of parishioners are hearing this morning how they should be donating to their parish.  Tithing is the norm, 10%.  It is a really literal approach to the story.

How are you helping others?

Source: I found this story on line, Outlook Express, Friday, 11/6/15.

   
       

Cupcake of The Week to Rosemary on her birthday, the 14th

Introduction: While reflecting on our blessings of the week-

• We are blessed to be alive today, just as those who landed in the Hudson;

• We are blessed to be alive to witness Tuesday the inauguration of a black man where slaves once constructed the buildings.  Our people have grown.

Readings:  1 Samuel 3, 3-19; Psalm 40; 1 Corinthians 6, 13-20; John 1, 35-42   

1 Samuel: This is book one of two books.  The series is 1 & 2 Samuel and 1 & 2 Kings; the characters being Samuel, the last of the Judge leaders of Israel-Judah; Saul, the first king; and King David. 

Authors:  Traditionally it was thought that 3 people wrote the book, Samuel, Gad, & Nathan.  Samuel, chapters 1-25; Gad was King David's historian, & Nathan was an editor.  Contemporary biblical experts think this unlikely & say that the works were put together at least 50 years after the time of the events.

Time:  The events take place ca. 1100-1000 BCE.  The compilation & recording of the events takes place ca. 950 BCE. 

Today's Selection: Yahweh is calling Samuel in a dream.  This ties in with the Gospel where three future apostles are called.  Samuel's parents were Elkanah & Hannah, and Hannah is famous because of a touching story about how she came to have Samuel.  She had been barren for years and even Elkanah's other wife ridiculed her.  One day the prophet Eli heard her crying and praying in the temple.  At first he accused her of being drunk.  Then when he talked with her, he promised that she would have a son. 

Hannah had promised Yahweh that she would dedicate to the temple her son, if she got one.  Consequently, our selection finds Samuel residing in the temple with Eli the prophet.  He would be about 12 years old.

Be aware that while these marvelous stories about Samuel are mythological, the writer is attempting to convey to a simple people lessons in trust in Yahweh.

What are You Looking for?

The theme of our readings this morning is obviously call & response.  Over the years you have heard repeatedly my 3 personal calls, the priest-Jesuit call, East Africa, and marriage.  You have reason to be tired of hearing the same stories.  Consequently, I looked around for sub-themes in the readings, and in my various sources a number of sub-themes came up.  The sub-theme that I want to talk about is stated by Jesus to the two future apostles, Matthew and (maybe) John, "What are you looking for?"  This is certainly relevant to what is taking place this week.  But first three other minor observations.

First, the verb stay is used three times.  The two ask Jesus where is he staying or dwelling.  They find where he is staying.  Then they stayed with him.  Significant to the writer?  So many times the writers have a special agenda in their use of a word.

Secondly, the verb see or looked intently at is used 5 times.  John the Baptist watched Jesus walk by, but really what is said is that he looked intently at.  Then Jesus saw the two.  Jesus tells them they will see.  The two saw where Jesus stayed.  Then when Peter came before Jesus, Jesus looked at him, really looked intently at him. 

Third, 4 o'clock in the afternoon.  In the original language it says 10 o'clock.  This is the eastern way of keeping time, the way I learned in East Africa.  There is another whole time calculation than the Greenwich Mean Time.  In fact, I find it more logical.  What is usually the first hour of daylight or the first hour of darkness?   7 o'clock in our time.  In the east the first hour of daylight & the first hour of darkness is 1 o'clock.  Our 7:00 A.M. & 7:00 P.M. is 1 o'clock of the day or 1 o'clock of the night.

Finally, "What are you looking for?"  Who knows, who cares?  Well, we know.  And we can care because what those two are looking for is basically what we are looking for.  So did they find it?

I would propose that we can say, 'yes, I know what they were looking for."  We are blessed because we have people who have gone before us who have mapped out what we people are looking for.  You may have run into this in psychology 101 or elementary psychology in high school, but it is useful to remind ourselves.  The person who for me mapped it out best is the famous psychologist, Abraham Maslow.  He has five stages of human need or what we are looking for.

Stage 1:  Imagine a pyramid and we are starting at the bottom with the most elemental.  What we are looking for at this stage is biological and physiological.  Namely, food & drink, air, shelter,warmth, sleep.  Our ancestors lived on this stage, but most of us today have this stage under control.

Stage 2:  Safety & security.  I may have shelter, food, and drink, but need a secure place to shelter, eat, and drink.  You may think this applies simply to robbers or security from getting bombed like is going on in Gaza right now, but how many little kids do not find this need stage satisfied.

Stage 3: Love & belonging needs.  I am part of.  A family, a group of peers or friends, a community.  I find acceptance, affection, and love.

Stage 4:  Esteem.  I have achieved, attained status, have reputation & recognition.

Stage 5:  Self actualization.  Self acceptance, acceptance of others and my world, inner peace, more fully alive.

I would observe that all of us in this community have stages 1 & 2 under control and probably also the other three stages in varying degrees.  I suggest that self actualization involves me giving back to others esteem, love, and a sense of belonging.  I also suggest that the usual obstacle to my greater self actualization is my addiction, whatever that may be, alcohol, drugs, food, TV, etc.

There is a little 5 question quickie self assessment that you may take.  I will put a link to it on the blog this evening.  Check it out.

What are you looking for?  Where are you?

AUDIO: http://mysite.verizon.net/reso7rjy/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/2009-01-18.mp3

SELF ASSESSMENT: Download Quick self assessment

Picture 1:  Choir–Wendy, Shonda & Ray, & Celeste

Picture 2:  Birthday & Anniversary–Charlie, Claire & Ray

Picture 3:  Birthdays–David & Alexandra, dad & daughter

 

 

 

 

Sophia says, "Hi, Everybody, Welcome in."

 

 

Readings:

Jeremiah  20, 7-9,    You duped me, Lord, and I let myself be duped

Psalm 63,   My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

Roman s 12, 1-2,  Do not conform yourselves to this age.

Matthew 16, 21-27,  Whoever wishes to come after me, must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.  

 

 

 

And Harper, too, says, "Come in, Folks.  Take this chair."

 

Jeremiah observations–

What:  I think Jeremiah is my second favorite O.T. prophet, behind Isaiah, mostly because he makes whining and complaining into an art form.  I need to take lessons from him.  Not that he did not have enough to complain about.   Jeremiah is one of the Big 3 with Isaiah and Ezekiel.  He is called the ‘broken hearted prophet.’  Here is why.

Time:  Jeremiah lived and prophesied in Jerusalem around 600 before Christ.  Why is this important?  It is some 50 years before the Babylonian Captivity.  Jeremiah had a heart rending life predicting punishment of death and destruction for the Hebrews for their sinful, selfish ways.  Jeremiah predicted disaster, and disaster came in the person of Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon-Bagdad.

Jeremiah wore a wooden yoke as a visual aid to his message.  He may have been ultimately killed by the Hebrews.

Today:  Jeremiah is in top form.

 

 

 

The Best Music, even though they are slacking off, Wendy & Ben.

 

Deny Yourself, Take up Your Cross, and Follow Me

I want to talk this morning, folks, about the line in Matthew, Deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me.  I confess right off, I hate this line.  Can you imagine a loving God creating people to deny themselves and take up a life of suffering? 

Matthew’s line can be very tricky.  It can be approached healthily or in a rather sick way.  I can witness to the latter in my own life.  I have already described how as a young Jesuit I was expected to do penance and deny myself in various ways, like the practice of using little whips to scourge our backs and little chains with points to wear around our thighs.  This was supposed to bring me closer to God.

 

 

Two Very Special People, Wendy & Brandon 

 

 

I can laugh at this now, but I am humbled at how easily I can be snookered.  When I read this line and others like it in the Bible and remember my experiences, I now see the presence of an ancient philosophy that still influences a lot of religious activity today.  The philosophy: dualism. 

The idea is simple.  Reality comes in pairs, hot & cold, dark & light, order & chaos, and, in particular for this discussion, body & soul or flesh & spirit.  So far so good. 

 

 

 

Our Candle Lighter of The Week, Sophia (Ben's daughter).

 

The trouble enters with a judgment about the flesh & spirit.  Specifically, flesh is bad, spirit is good, superior.  Consequently, so that my spirit may reach an elevated plane of purity & perfection, and ultimately closer union with God, I attempt to subdue my flesh by disregarding the body's needs, ultimately aiming to live without it.  Do not give in to pleasure.  How about that!

A couple of facts.  Dualism is identified as far back as 1000 years B.C. and came out of Zoroastrianism, a religion that worshiped one god and believed in an afterlife.  Did it come from Egypt as so much did at that time?  No, from Persia, the area we call Iran today.  Zoroastrianism was widespread until Muhammad arrived on the scene around 650 and established Islam.  Through the ages lots of people picked up on dualism, for example, Plato, Augustine, Descartes, and the early Christians, like Matthew.

However, there is a healthy approach to the line.  A story to exemplify the healthy.

 

 

 

 

Welcome back Vivi, Quera, & Mikala, Teresa and Tom's grandkids.

 

 

Way back when I was living at Jesuit and working as a psychotherapist, a single, divorced mother came with her son, Michael, one day and basically said, “help!”  She had a really active boy about 3^rd grade.  He and his neighbor buddy, a black kid, used to race around our neighborhood and the high school on their bikes.  Great kids.

The years passed and I got to know Michael really well.  One afternoon when Michael was in 7^th grade at St. Monica, we were watering trees with the white truck and the old red water trailer.  I don’t remember who was driving us along the medians, but at one point I can remember to this day, he said to me that if he did not make the entrance exam at Jesuit, his life was no good.  

 

 

 

Let me not ask what these 3 are up to.

 

I did not say anything at the moment.  But later I told him that thinking was baloney.  I said Jesuit did not want kids who said their lives were no good.  If he made it, Jesuit would be a better place.  If he did not, another school would be a better place because they had a tremendous gift in their school. 

He did not get in. 

So Michael went to Bishop Dunne.  He played sports, worked hard to make good grades, and kept in contact with a neat guy who was the admissions director at Jesuit.

He got in as a sophomore.  He did excellently.

 

 

 

The Offertory with Louis & Sandra, John & Mary Jane

 

Next Michael wanted to go to A&M and join the corps.  He did not get in.  He does not test well.  So he went to Tech and joined the Air Force ROTC.  After 4 years there he invited me to the ceremony where he was to get his lieutenant bars.  

The ceremony was in a big auditorium.  Michael was the last.  On the stage with him were his mom and his girl friend, Lydia.  At one point in his personal ceremony Michael turns to the whole auditorium, asks their patience for a moment, turns back to Lydia, drops on a knee, and asks her to marry him. 

Talk about blowing the roof off of the auditorium.  Everybody went crazy.  She said yes. 

 

 

 

It does not get better than this, Vivi, Quera, and Mikala.

 

Now, Michael has long finished his flight training, part of which took place right up at the scene of the Hotter N’ Hell, Wichita Falls.  He has been stationed all over the world, like Aviano, Italy, where we got the name of our dog, Aviana, after a visit there.   He has a little boy and a girl, a beautiful wife in Lydia, and a platinum career as a jet pilot.  

Michael has denied himself a lot of quite legitimate pleasures to achieve some healthy goals.  Even now he continues to keep himself in good physical and intellectual shape.  

So, how do you deny yourself and take up a cross? 

 

 

Best buddies, Sophia and Emma.
 

 

Readings: Genesis 15, 5-18; Psalm 27, The Lord is My Light and My Salvation; Philippians 3, 17-4,1; Luke 9, 28-36
 

Introduction to the Readings

Our three readings today are each very interesting in themselves.  Our first reading, from the book of Genesis is from Chapter 15.  We hear about Abram and one of many times we are told about the descendants of Abram.  Genesis is very interesting reading from Chapter 12 on for several chapters. We hear about the call of Abram, his leaving his homeland with all is possessions including his wife and nephew Lot, their time in Egypt and then the split with Lot, and their dividing up the land.  Then we read about the rescue of Lot and all of the people by Abram.  As a reward, Abram is offered whatever he wants by the kings and he basically says that he wants nothing.  Then we have our reading today, where again we have this promise by God to Abram of many descendants.  One item of interest is towards the end of today’s reading we are told that a “trance fell on Abram”, basically he fell asleep.  In our gospel, the disciples also fall asleep, before a strange vision. 

The second reading is from Paul’s Letter to the Philippians.  This is a very short letter, only four chapters, and something we might consider reading in its entirety during the coming week.  http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/philippians/intro.htm

More about the Gospel later in the homily.

 

   

 

Second Sunday of Lent – Homily

“This is my chosen one, listen to Him” The last time Luke’s Gospel records words from God the Father is right after Jesus’ Baptism, when we hear “You are my Son, the Beloved, my favor rests on you”. 

This gospel passage we have just heard is very interesting.  I want to look back for a moment to last week’s gospel reading about the temptation account.  If you had all been good Jews very familiar with the Old Testament, when I read that account and said that Jesus was lead into the desert for 40 days you would all have immediately thought about Moses spending 40 days up the mountain (Ex 34:26) before receiving the Ten Commandments, the sign of the covenant between God and his people, and also remembered Elijah’s 40 days in the desert (1Kings 19:8) after his great confrontation with the false prophets, and of course (Deut 8:2) the forty years of wandering in the desert after the escape from Egypt.

Today’s reading, often referred to as the Transfiguration, has much to tell us.  Once again we are going up a mountain.  It seems to be where many important things happen in the God relationship.  Whenever Jesus goes off to a quiet place to pray, most of the time it seems to be up a mountain.  This time he takes Peter, James and John, and just as later in the garden of Gethsemane, they promptly fall asleep!  I take this as a source of encouragement, to keep trying.  And to follow with the link you all made with last Sundays 40 days reference, Jesus meets up with the two great prophets of the Old Testament, Moses of the Law and Elijah, THE PROPHET.  Luke wants us initially to view Jesus as Prophet. 

In a section of Luke’s Gospel just before today’s reading Jesus has just told his disciples about his being rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the scribes and being put to death and rising after three days.  In this transfiguration account, that is exactly what Jesus is talking about with Moses and Elijah!  Of course the apostles are mostly asleep during this conversation, and when they wake up, again we have poor Peter putting his foot in it by wanting to erect three tents.  There are a couple of problems with Peter’s suggestion.  The idea that God can be captured and put in a certain place, like a tent, or even a church!  And secondly, that Jesus is far greater than any prophet, which is why the voice comes out of the cloud and tells them the important thing is “to listen”. 

If we carefully read the gospels to try and get a sense of what Jesus was saying, he really didn’t say too much, he mostly did.  And I think that if we listen carefully to the Gospel the message we must come away with as followers of Jesus is not a set of beliefs or creeds but the command to action, to love one another.  To take care of the poor and the sick, to feed the hungry and to clothe the naked, to visit those in prison.  Because “as often as you did it to these you did it to me”. 

At least that is what I hear when I listen, what do you hear?

Acts 13:  Both Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first, but since you reject it and condemn yourselves as unworthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.

Revelation 7:   Then one of the elders said to me, “These are the ones who have survived the time of great distress; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb."

John 10:   Jesus said: “My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me.

 

 

Connie reading from the Acts of the Apostles

Thanks…     

Music,   Ben 

Outreach: $    75.00

Thanks again, Folks, for doing what you can.

 

 

A Mother's Day blessing for all the women

 

 

Rosemary's Blessing:

Suggested Petitions for Mother’s Day

For our mothers, who have given us life and love, that we may show them reverence and love, and others who show us a mother’s love, we pray to the Lord.

For adoptive mothers and for the women who wish to give birth but experience challenges, that they know your care, we pray to the Lord.

For mothers who have lost a child through death, that their faith may give them hope, and their family and friends support and console them, we pray to the Lord.

For those who wish to serve as mothers, but are not able to do so, that they know your comfort, we pray to the Lord.

For mothers who have died, that God may bring them into the joy of his kingdom, we pray to the Lord.

Archdiocese of New Orleans