Readings:
Acts of the Apostles 8, 5-8, 14-17, There was gret joy in that city.
Psalm 66, Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
1 Peter 3, 15-18, It is better to suffer for doing good, thank doing evil.
John 14, 15-21, If you love me you will keep my commandments..
Good Morning, Harper, and thanks for welcoming us all back.
Unconditional Love ? Certainly !
Did you catch that Psalm 66 ? Can you believe?!
Let all the earth cry out to God with joy!
Shout joyfully to God…, sing praise to the glory of his name,… proclaim his glorious praise. Say to God, “How tremendous are your deeds!
I dream of Matterhorn Canyon, Yosemite, whenever I read or hear that last line.
She's back, Everybody, Sabrina, one of our most special people since she was a little girl. Congratulations on graduation and double congratulations on the double magna cum laude. Congratulations, also, to you two, John and Alison.
And while we are congratulating graduates, congratulations to Karen Anderlick on her graduation and especially with the summa cum laude.
This is a counter weight to the first line of John’s reading, If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
I want to talk about how I went from being a fear based Catholic, Christian, human being, to living without fear.
It all started in my first two years as a Jesuit novice in Grand Coteau, 1958-1960, 60 years ago next year. It is the novice master’s fault.
Congratulations to you, too, Shonda, on the Air Force uniform. All these years we have known each other and this is the first time I see your uniform. You look Quite Striking!
Tony Mangiaracina was the novice master, about 5’1”, ramrod straight, did not walk, but marched in his cassock. He could look very rigid and uninviting. But underneath the rigid exterior, which was mostly what we saw for months, was a softy, all heart. How many times we saw him in tears at special events. Christmas carols always got him.
In those days we, too, lived a really Spartan life, silence except for three nights a week when we could talk at dinner, Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. These three days were also recreation days, like for touch football or handball games. Other days we worked inside the building or on the farm, we studied, and we had periods of prayer. A very monastic life.
The Best Music, Shonda, Bethany, and David.
My awakening took place one afternoon when I went to get permission from the master to drink water. Yes, we had to get permission to drink water at the beginning of each month. We were told this was to teach us obedience even in the smallest things.
Now it so happened that around this time an edict came out from Jesuit headquarters in Rome that smoking was prohibited for all Jesuits. This was no burden for us 50 or so novices because we could not smoke anyway.
But, guess who did smoke. Yes, Tony Mangiaracina.
The Best Teammates, Georgie and Buddy.
On this particular day I went in to Tony’s office, I must have gotten my permission to drink and then chatted a few extra moments. He had two large windows behind his desk, which faced me and the door I entered. Suddenly I see against the light and even smell, guess what, smoke coming out of his right hand desk drawer.
I never said a thing, but I was amused and touched. Tony had put his cigarette into the drawer when I knocked to come in.
At that moment I began to let loose of the fear that I was a sure bet for hell. Like, here was my saintly novice master breaking a commandment that came all the way from Jesuit headquarters in Rome.
Buddies, Cody & Ben, Paul & Carrie.
15 or so years later when I returned to Grand Coteau to establish a spiritual center, Tony was one of my team members. And guess what. He still smoked. The ban had been lifted a year or so after Vat. II.
I am grateful today to Tony and his human nature. I figured bit by bit that if Tony was still going to heaven after being disobedient, I had a chance, too. I began to see that God’s love was not conditional, but unconditional.
So, where are you going, Heaven?
More Buddies, Zoe & Harper