Readings: Zechariah 9, 9-10; Psalm 145 (second stanza, a favorite); Romans 8, 9-11; Matthew 11, 25-30

Zechariah:  Zechariah is the 11th of the 12 Minor Prophets and lived just when the Hebrews were released from the 70 year long Babylonian Captivity, ca 535-520 B.C.  In Jerusalem he encouraged the people to rebuild the temple.

He was a favorite of the N.T. writers because he is rich in messiah predictions.  Today we have one of those visions. 

Psalm 145, 8-9: Terrific line: “The Lord is gracious & merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness.”

Independence

Last Sunday, June 29th, there was a column in the Points section of the Dallas Morning News.  The writer, Peter Lovenheim of Brighton, NY, described how he became aware that he did not know any of his neighbors.  With all the tools at his disposal to keep in touch instantly with people, even around the world, he was detached & out of touch with his own little neighborhood.

Peter decided to do something about it.  He actually began to invite himself to spend the night at his neighbors and write about their lives and his experiences with them.  Naturally, he was turned down often, but he did find some people willing to take him in and even discovered one woman with cancer needing help she could not get other than through her neighbors. 

It was his first experience of spending the night with an elderly guy, Lou, that turned out to be the article in the paper.  He called it, Why I Woke up in my Neighbor’s Spare Bedroom.  He even describes how he & his neighbors discovered, then helped the elderly lady dealing with cancer. 

I remember when my mom lived in the house in which Rosemary & I now live, how once a year or so there would be a block party and everyone came to have a picnic under the oak trees in someone’s yard or drive.  I also remember that in the neighborhood in which I grew up in University Park we did not have block parties.  However, we did know all the neighbors, or let’s say they all knew Johnny Stack & were wary of him.

I talk about this today for two reasons. 

• First, we have just celebrated Independence Day. We revisited our national roots Friday and have come away proud of what our ancestors did to establish an independent country. As a child I wanted to grow up to be equally independent. Independence equals maturity. Dependence equals immaturity and is something I dread and hate.
• Secondly, as good and noble as independence is, taken to an extreme, independence involves not necessarily maturity, but rather isolation and loneliness. Lovenheim called his original neighborhood situation detachment. I would also call it independence, the opposite of that old dreaded dependence.

I suggest there is a healthy middle ground: interdependence.  The old cliche’ No Man is an Island is only partly true these days.  There are numerous often elderly people living on islands of abandonment in our neighborhoods.  To avoid the either/or trap and focus on interdependence, I suggest two things:

• Pro-activity. I  take the initiative. I  look around. I  pick out my neighbor or neighbors whom I don’t know at all or don’t know well.  I make a move. I  take steps to build a small community.
• Spend time. It takes time to build. It takes time to visit someone or call them or talk with them when I see them. Granted, time is often one of our most precious commodities.  The relationships are worth it.

This is what I see us doing here at San Vino, building community, taking time.  I think one reason why a number of mega-churches have so many people is that the administration sets up multiple small communities, teen-agers, young adults, golden agers, unmarrieds, divorced, etc.  People feel like they belong.  This is why I love to have our seasonal brunches. 

My hope is that no one in our community feels alone on an island.  We know one another and care for each other.

Who is the unknown neighbor in your life?

AUDIO:   http://mysite.verizon.net/reso7rjy/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/2008-07-06.mp3

 

 

 

 

Say Rosemary & Cathy, "Happy Kentucky Derby Weekend and welcome in."

 

Readings:

Acts of the Apostles  2, 14, 36-41  Let the whole house of Israel know.

Psalm 23,  The Lord is my shepherd.  (Beautiful, consoling)

1 Peter 2, 20-25, By his wounds have you been healed.

 John 10, 1-10,  Whoever enters through the gate is the shepherd. 

 

 

 

Welcome back to Dallas, Ann, and to our community.  You are one of our best all time friends.

 

The Three Best

Whenever I go on a trip like the one Rosemary & I just did with Viking on the Elbe River in Eastern Germany, I get questions.  Like, ‘What was the best thing?’  I would like to talk briefly about 3 best things that struck me, a Berlin chapel, a church door, and a concentration camp. 

 

 

 

This bell tower is all that is left of the old gothic Kaiser Wilhelm church in central Berlin.  It is preserved as a remembrance.

 

In the heart of Berlin there used to be a large gothic church called Kaiser Wilhelm Church.  It was bombed badly in the war and all that is left is a large, beat up bell tower.  Bullet wounds and bomb damage from bottom to what is left of the top.   The bell tower has been preserved as is to remind.

 

 

 

Interior of the Kaiser Wilhelm chapel .   The blue ambiance comes from bricks with glass circles tinted blue, very moving.

 

Next to the tower a chapel has been built, very plain, a grey box on the outside.  After looking at prewar pictures of the old church, just for the heck of it, I decide to go inside the rather plain chapel.  I am stunned by the simple beauty.  The curved front wall is made of cement blocks with round blue bottle like glass.   A gold, ascending, larger than life-sized Christ hangs right in the middle.   Simple wooden pews.  The blue and gold ambience was stunning. 

The half destroyed bell tower and the stunningly moving chapel symbolize for me the story of Berlin.

 

 

View of interior from right aisle.  The bell tower in union with this simple chapel symbolize the old and the new Berlin.

 

Second best experience.  Wittenberg and the church where Martin Luther posted 95 theses, exactly 5 centuries ago on October 31.

All my training about this event gave me a misconception.  Namely, that Luther was out to start a church revolution.   Nope.

 

 

Wittenburg, Church door where Martin Luther posted his 95 theses 500 year ago this year.  It was a university bulletin board.

 

The story goes like this.  Luther was a professor at the Wittenberg University.  The church door was a bulletin board.  Professors would post theses which the students were expected to debate the pros and cons of.   Everything was hand written in Latin.  Luther even titled his material as Disputation on the Power & Efficiency of Indulgences.  Disputation is the key word and implied debate of the pros and cons.  It was only later that year or the next that Rome got wind of them and a year later excommunicated Luther and the ideas went viral.

 

 

 

Wittenburg town center.

 

3 samples of theses:

#21.  Those indulgence preachers are in error who say that a man is absolved from every penalty and saved by papal indulgences.

27.  They preach only human doctrines who say that as soon as the money clinks into the money chest, the soul flies out of purgatory.

32.  Those who believe they can be certain of their salvation because they have indulgence letters will be eternally damned, together with their teachers.

 

St. Mary's Church, Wittenberg.  This is not the Luther church which was more of a college chapel. 

 

I spent three years, ’62-’65, studying philosophy at Spring Hill College in Mobile.  There were a hundred plus Jesuits engaged in this process.  We debated theses and we debated in Latin.  I took all my philosophy exams in Latin, written and mostly oral.   We had the church position and we had the adversaries.  We were expected to be able to verbally ace those adversaries.  Luther was probably one of our adversaries. 

 

 

 

A small number of the survivors of Ravensbruck. 

 

This was so déjà vu for me.  I could feel exactly what was going on, no revolt, just debate.  Somebody copied those theses, got them to Rome, and some priest, bishop, or pope over reacted, excommunicated Luther, and a revolt took place among the people.  Could this be taking place today?

 

 

Revensbruck compound & barracks.  100,000 plus women were concentrated here.

 

Thirdly, Ravensbruck concentration camp for women.  For years I have read about the camps, in particular Ravensbruck.  This camp was set up for women and it was this camp where medical experiments were performed on the women. 

 

 

 

Ravensbrook compound.  The camp is 60 miles north of Berlin.

 

We drove straight north out of Berlin about two hours on a beautiful day.  When I walked onto the compound I felt I was walking on hallowed, sacred ground. The barracks have all been removed, but the official buildings are still there, the infirmary, the clothes sewing hall, and the men & women officers’ houses.  I stood on the morning assembly ground and could see it all. 

As human beings we are capable of such horror and such beauty. 

 

 

Ravensbruck today.  The barracks have been removed, but the outlines are still present.  On the left are the work building and the infamous infirmary.  The picture is taken from the assembly area.

 

Readings:

Acts  14, 21-27,  It is  is necessary for us to undergo many hardships to enter the kingdom.

Psalm 145,  I will praise you name forever, my king and my God, plus the great line (8), The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness. 

Revelation  21, 1-5, I, John, saw a new heaven and a new earth.

John 13, 31-33, 34-35,  My sheep hear my voice, I know them, and they follow me.   

 

Leo and his best buddy, John, say, "Hi, Everybody, Come in."

 

Acts, a couple of observations:

1. Remember the three rings of Acts, Jerusalem, Palestine, the World (Mediterranean & Rome)?   Since we are at Chapter 28 of 28, you can guess in what ring we are today, yes, the World.  Paul and Barnabas are in the region of Greece.
2. The author, the same as the Gospel of Luke.
3. The date again, before 70

 

 

             

Genevieve and her best Mommy also say, "Hi, Everybody."

 

Love one another

As you may remember, one of my most favorite lines in all the Bible is the first line in the first stanza of our Psalm 145 this morning, The Lord is gracious and merciful, never gets angry, and is abounding in love.   I read this and I add to it Jesus saying that, This is how they will know you, that you love one another. 

Is this real?   

 

Jan & Cindy have communion ready.  Choose wine or grape juice.

 

What is real is what I heard on the radio yesterday morning, really bad stuff.   Turns out that some professional bike riders were discovered to have developed motor enhanced bikes.  A small motor was inserted into the diagonal bar of the bike.  It was discovered in a race in Italy.

Now I know why these guys race past me at White Rock Lake.   Anybody know of anyone with a motor enhanced bike?  

More seriously, I look around and check out the news.  I read that towns all dear to me have been bombed by some really angry people, Paris, Brussels, Jerusalem.   People doing this think they are making the world a better place. 

 

                             

Healing and Life for Angela.

 

Here at home we have what to me is a horrible political campaign going on.   

In our Catholic Church there is no shortage of hatred of fellow Catholics who disagree with policies or don’t conform to certain norms.   You all know that there are various Catholics who hate me for what I am doing.

Pope Francis is getting push back from Catholics who don’t approve of his ways and his message.  Francis took three refugee families into the Vatican and he got ridiculed.  His economic ideas are certainly meeting with hostility. 

 

 

 

Healing for Sandra.
 

 

So, they will know us by our love for one another?  The Lord is abounding in love?   

Is this just silly religious talk?  In my book, no, not completely. 

We have the examples of hate, which I would propose are often the result of hurt.  But we also have examples of love, respect, and care. 

 

 

Hue, our great sound man. 

 

Francis’ welcome of the 3 refugee families is for me an example.  The two picnics for The Love of Kids, another example.  We have been helping at those two picnics for years.  And there are hundreds of other people who contribute their time and even resources to help these under privileged and handicapped kids.

Look at Jim Maher who comes down here from St. Bonaventure with some students to help with the cleanup of the areas in Dallas that were his by the tornadoes.   They spend a week of their spring break here and they have been doing this for years.

 

 

Elevation.
 

 

 

Doug LeBlanc, Grace’s husband, together with other employees at Ericson, they all gathered on more than one occasion to help a fellow employee whose home had been wrecked by either a tornado or that hail. 

Did you read in the Dallas Morning News about the North Carolina judge who felt he had to sentence a vet with bad PTSD for repeatedly getting drunk.  He gave him 24 hours and then the judge spent the night in the cell with him.   Said he did not want to leave him alone with the PTSD. 

 

                           

May I play that guitar, Daddy?  I think I can do it.

 

 

One final example of a person who inspired me by his grace in failure.  Jordon Spieth went from top of the leader board at the Masters to second.  He had a colossal melt down on the last day.  Nevertheless, he graciously congratulated the winner and helped present him with the winner’s sport coat.

This encourages me to know that there is lots of gracious caring in our world. 

Where do you see God showing his abundance of love?

Readings: 

 Amos 6, 1, 4-7,   Woe to the complacent.

Psalm 146,  Praise the Lord, my sould.

1 Timothy 6, 11-16,  Pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love.

Luke 16, 19-31,  The rich man and Lazarus.

 

 

Amos observations :  (from last week's Mass)

What :  One of the 12 minor prophets, only 9 chapters.

Who: 
the book presents the thoughts and observations of Amos, who was a sheep herder
and a fig farmer.  He was born in the southern kingdom of Judah in a
little town south of Jerusalem, but he is condemning the people, especially the
rich, of the northern kingdom, Israel.

Time: 
Amos was active around 755 before Christ, but his words and message were
revised and edited down through the years, especially during the Babylonian
Captivity, around 555 before Christ.  He lives just before the Syrians
destroy the northern kingdom of Israel, around 700 before Christ.

Message: 
Prayer and sacrifice don’t make up for social injustice and oppression of the
poor by the rich. 

 Today: 
God will punish you rich and prosperous for your abuse of the poor.  Amos
may have seen the threat coming from the Syrians. 

Sources:  Good News Bible, New Interpreter’s Study
Bible, Wikipedia

 

 

Some of Francis’ points in his homily this morning:

1.  The first sin
   of the rich man is that he is blind.  He
   came and went every day and did not even see Lazarus at his doorstep.  Wealth can blind us, too.
2. The second sin of the rich man is that even in Hades
   he still thinks he is significant enough to tell Abraham to order Lazarus to
   warn his 5 brothers.  His self image is
   inflated and blinds him to this character flaw.  Entitlement?
3. The rich man is condemned not because of his wealth in
   itself, but that because of it he feels self righteous.  The trap of wealth, I am better than that one.
4. There may be a parallel in Luke’s mind between Lazarus
   and Jesus, which comes out in the talk between the rich man and Abraham.  Jesus was poor, died, and returned to
   life.  Were Lazarus to die and return to
   life, neither would he be believed, any more than Jesus was believed.
5. There is a play on words with Lazarus.  In ancient languages the name Lazarus could
   be equivalent to Abraham.  Therefore,
   Luke rubs it in: Lazarus may be a personification of Abraham himself, lying on the
   doorstep of the rich man who never sees him.

 The lesson: Who is the Lazarus, who is the poor
person at your own doorstep?

Source:   The Liberating Stories of Jesus, Francis Vanderwall

 

 

Readings:

1 Kings 19, 9, 11-13, Go outside and stand on the mountain before the Lord.

Psalm 85,  Lord, let us see your kindness and grant us your salvation            

Romans  9, 1-5, They are Israelites.  

Matthew 14, 22-33,   Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.     

 

 

Thanks to the Team

Music,  Ben & Shonda

Readers,  Jackie & Patricia, & Buddy, the candle blesser

Gospel & Homily,  Deacon Mike 

Eucharistic Prayer A & B, Stack & John Cade

The Magic Zoom makers, Mike (on vacation) & Richard, Ben & Hue 

Final Blessing, Rosemary

 

 

Download Readings week 19

 

1^st part of Homily

Today’s gospel is a continuation of last week’s story from Matthew about the Lord, with his disciples, feeding the Jews with the fish and the loaves, for the fish are a metaphor for the liturgy of the Word, and the loaves and leftovers a metaphor for the liturgy of the Eucharist. 

 

 

Homily by Mike Carrell

The Lord be with you.

A reading from the holy gospel according to Matthew

After Jesus had fed the Jews, he made the disciples get into a boat and precede him to the other side of the lake. With the crowd dispersed, Jesus climbed the mountain so he could be by himself to pray.

He stayed there alone, late into the night. Meanwhile, the boat was far out to sea when the wind came up against the boat, and they were battered by the waves. At about four o'clock in the morning, Jesus came toward them walking on the water. They were scared out of their wits. "A ghost!" they said, crying out in terror. 

 

Their music just gets better & better.

 

But Jesus was quick to comfort them. "Courage, it's me. Don't be afraid." Peter, suddenly bold, said, "Master, if it's really you, call me to come to you on the water." 

Jesus said, "Come ahead." But when Peter looked down at the waves churning beneath his feet, he lost his nerve and started to sink. He cried, "Master, save me!" Jesus didn't hesitate. He reached down and grabbed his hand. Then he said, "You of little faith, what got into you?" The two of them climbed into the boat, and the wind died down. 

The disciples in the boat, having watched the whole thing, worshiped Jesus, saying, "This is it! You are God's Son for sure!" 

 

 

Tom, Richard, & Hue working their magic.

 

2^nd part of homily

It was Jesus intention for his disciples to follow his example of sharing the fish and preparing the gentiles to also receive the loaves and leftovers, so that Jews and gentiles could become brothers and sisters in Christ. This story teaches the Church that its disciples were to have faith in his words even until the end of time.  The gospel of the Lord.

 

 

There he is, Folks, Mike finally in the wilderness of Colorado, with Rose.

 

Please Remember these special people:

For our Bill & his family,   For Becky's dad just discovered with the virus;  For Cindy recuperating from a procedure some weeks ago;    For Esparzas, Frank & Mary,  For all the medical personnel struggling to treat the tsunami of sick people, in particular, locally, Cindy's staff at Presby, Dallas, and at Frisco Presby, the mother of Harper and Betsy, Kendle, working in labor & delivery;   For Mary & Dave Hall's g-daughter Allison Keller working at St. Lukes, Woodlands,  For Joe Hogan with cancer;  For Loretta's aunt Alicia;    For Sydney;  & For Sir Charlie & Jan;  Shonda's mom & Cody & Ben & all of Shonda's dear family;   for Michelle;

 

 

Two happy campers, Mike & Rose.

 

For Jackie's mom;  For a friend, a neighbor, & a doctor, Karen, with brain cancer; For Rick Turner searching for a kidney donor, Type O neg; For Meredith, cancer free;    For Hue;  For John O'Donnell;    For Dee, and for her daughter, Lisa; For John Schanot's continued health;  For Anthony & Sabrina;    For a young man who is suffering from depression;  John Cade's mother in law, Kalliopi Piskiouli and Lambrini, plus John's daughter, Joey

 

 

Where is that Mike??!!

 

Birthdays:   Carrie Bieda, 62; Stephen Farmer, 30; Marlene; Richard has a new grandbaby, Madeline, congratulations, Carrie

Anniversary:  John & Jean O'Donnell, 62nd;  Ryan McClurg & Grace, 7th  

 

Rosemary's Blessing:

Come, O Dancing God,

Spirit of Life and Love,

of  Beauty and Diversity,

stir up my soul,

bathe me in your light,

and unleash my own spirit

that I may dance with you

and be light for those around me

and reflect your love to all that I meet this week.

 

Edited and adapted from a blessing by Fr. Andrew M. Greeley

 

 

A 2020 broadcasting studio??

 

   

Community Finances, August 9, 2020

Expenses: $1040.00

Outreach   $300.00    (often for Souls Harbor, Legacy, etc.)

Thanks, Folks, for doing what you can.

 

Here is a link to a survey about access to the Sunday Mass.  Please take the survey and let us know how easy/difficult it is to get to the Mass.  Thanks. 

(Take this survey and all your life problems will be solved.  That is what Becky & Mike told me.)

 

  

               

Readings:

Wisdom 2, 12, 17-20,  Let us condemn him to a shameful death.

 Psalm 54,    The Lord upholds my life.

James 3, 16-4, 3, Where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder.  

Mark 9, 30-37, Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me.

 

Victoria and her dear little friend say, "Hi, Everybody, Welcome in.

 

Wisdom observations:  

What:One of the 14-15 books of the deutero-canonical books of the bible.  Not OT nor NT, but in between and the subject of controversy over the centuries.  The “in between books.”  Were they really part of the bible or not?  How do you know?  Catholic church accepts the books.

Subject matter: the book makes use of traditional Jewish material, as well as ideas borrowed from Greek philosophy, in order to teach that God rewards those who are faithful to him.

 

        Emma, joining her pal Tori, also says, "Hi, Everybody."

 

Author: not Solomon, but a Jew living in Alexandria, Egypt who wrote and spoke excellent Greek.  The book is sometimes called “The Wisdom of Solomon.”

Date: ca. 100-200 before Christ.  How do we know these facts?  Because of text analysis.  For example, while the author wrote in Greek, he uses phrases and expressions that have a Hebrew flavor.  Also, he mentions rulers and places that reveal date and locale. 

Our Selection: what a wicked person thinks should be done with a good person–beat & kill.  This links up with the suffering servant poem from 2 Isaiah last week.  Jews think the good person getting beaten is the Jewish race/nation.  Christians think the person is Christ.

James:  presents a pretty negative image of people.  What would be a compassionate image? 

 

And of course, Genevieve, not wanting to be left behind, says, "Welcome, Folks.  It's fun here."

 

Says the child, “Numero uno or last??”

This morning I would like to talk about receiving the child. In particular, I would like to focus on the inner child, the child inside all of us, even in old geezers like myself.  

I also want to say a word about the notion of being  first or last.

To exemplify the points, a story.    I have used the story before.  It is too good to bury.   The story, the musical play Most Happy Fella.

 

                   Zoe, the beautiful candle lighter, at work.

 

The play is about a guy named Tony, middle aged Italian American, successful wine maker from Nappa Valley, and a bachelor.

He eats in a restaurant one evening in, say, Chicago.  He likes the waitress and leaves her a note with his tip, despite his shyness.   They begin a long distance correspondence and start to get close.  Both are looking for partners.

 

                       "Zoe, what is everybody laughing at?"

 

 They decide to exchange photos.  Tony, who has been taking a lot of risk because he is so shy, is afraid to show her his picture.  He thinks he is too old & too ugly.  So he sends her the photo of his handsome young farm foreman.  The foreman has already told Tony he is planning on moving on anyway.

So Tony and his girl decide to wed at the farm.  On the day of her arrival and the big wedding, Tony discovers that the foreman decided to hang around for the wedding & party.  Tony loses it.  He goes out, rolls his pickup, and almost kills himself. 

 

Leo and Kevin welcoming a new member to the community. How many elementary schools have a gorilla just outside of the cafeteria?

 

Meanwhile, girl arrives and thinks the nice foreman is the groom.  In fact, they get rather enamored of each other.  Then Tony is brought in on a stretcher.  Guess what happens then.  I’ll tell you at the end.

Let me make 2 observations about Tony. 

 

                            Two Greats, Shonda & Mike.

 

First, Tony might have had ambitions about being numero uno, but he really thought he was the last, a loser, ugly, and old.  His challenge: get away from thinking best or worst.  Both are traps.  Just accept Tony as okay.

Secondly, when Tony let himself leave the note for the waitress, he was letting his inner child out for a minute.  In his correspondence he was letting that child play.  The child wants to be loved and to play.  Trouble was, the child was not used to getting out and was afraid.   So he tries the picture trick.

 

                        "Don't shoot me, Leo, shoot that gorilla."

 

I can resemble Tony.  Thinking I am first, numero uno in anything, or last, both are traps.  I would propose it is irrelevant.  I am okay just as I am.

Like Tony I have an inner child.  Want to know what the child wants?  Just watch our kids here.  To be loved and to play.  I think this is what I am doing when I ride my bike across Iowa or in the Hotter N' Hell Hundred, and when I hike around  Yosemite.  These are great times for my inner spirit, that is, my inner child. 

 

                                                     The Team
   

So, two questions today:

First, where do you think of yourself, first, last, or just okay?

Secondly, how do you let your own inner child out to play? 

What happened to Tony?  He eventually became a most happily married fella.  

 

 

                                                        Secrets.