Christmas Eve Homily, December 24, 2013, Midnight

Readings: 

 Exodus 32, 7-11, 13-14,   I see how stiff necked this people is.

Psalm 51,  I will rise and go to my father.

1 Timothy 1, 11-17, I am grateful to him who has strengthened me.

Luke 15, 1-32, The Prodigal Son (The Best).

 

 

Exodus observations :

What : a story, a long parable.  It has 2 parts, the exodus or exit from Egypt
and the years wandering in the desert.

Who: the work is all about Moses, but he
did not compose it.  Rather, it was put
together by a committee during the Babylonian Captivity, 555 before Christ.

Subject: it appears that the purpose of the
work was to encourage the people during the Babylonian Captivity.  It is not history and borrows stories from
other cultures.  For instance, the
parting of the Red Sea comes from a Mesopotamian creation myth and the 10
Commandments resemble the Code of Hammurabi.

Our Subject: The people have been bad, God is
mad at them, and Moses defends the people.

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

 

 

 

The Prodigal Son: A Work of Art

 This story is my favorite parable of the whole Bible.  Note one thing: this is story, not
history.   The author carefully crafts
his work of art to show how much God loves us unconditionally.  Let me give you three observations about the
son, three about the father, and an extra three to show you how astounding this
story is. 

First, the younger son:

 

        1.  He has no right to ask for inheritance.  None. 
By asking he is saying he wishes the father and the older son dead.  A symbolic murder.  Father can kill him for this.

        2.  He works feeding pigs instead of asking for
help from the temple.  This means he
rejects the religious tradition and is considered a traitor not only to the
family, but to the religion.  

    3.  So, as a horrible failure as a son of the
family and a son of the religious tradition, he decides to return.  He makes up his little speech and heads
home.  He is hungry to the point of
dying.  Do this or die.  Many listening Jews would say, Die.  

The Father: he actually commits as many crimes and sins as
the son.

 

    1.    
He runs down the road to
the son when he sees him coming.  A very
undignified action.  Outrageous.  People who emphasize conditional love point
out that the son at least came back. 
Despite this point, all the other elements of the parable point to a
father with unconditional love.

        2.  He embraced and kissed the son.  Huge violation of Jewish religious custom and
law.  By doing this the father positions
himself outside of the religious & cultural community.  He is a reject like the son. 

        3.  He cuts the son’s speech off before he can finish, eliminating the last sentence, “treat me as you would one of your
hired workers.”  And to make it worse, he
orders the servants to bring the finest robe, ring, and sandals. 

 

The robe, the ring, and the sandals:

        1.  The robe: restores the son’s dignity. 

        2.  The ring: gives authority to the son, even
equal to the father and certainly more than before he left.

        3.  The sandals: gives the son freedom.  Slaves were not given sandals so they would
not run away.  The father is doubling the
message he gave when he cut the son’s speech off before he could say the third
part about being treated as a servant.  

 

A word about the older son, because we so often identify
with him.  Two additional and final
points.

        1.  That he tells his father how he feels.  Great. 
In those days, it meant the father can kill him.  Today: communication. 

        2.  What is his challenge: acceptance of his
brother, his father, and himself; focus on gratitude for all he has; move from
trying to be a good boy to loving?  Any
one of these?  Or all?  All.  

I apologize for so much data.  There is even more.  The point is that the story is a carefully
crafted literary work of art that attempts to describe how totally unconditionally
loving our God is.

How does this image of God reflect your image of God? 

 

 

Source: The
Liberating Stories of Jesus, Francis Vanderwall (Dallas’ Open Window will
present Francis Saturday, September 28, for an all day seminar.  Welcome. 
More info below.  Sunday he will
be with us at Vines.  He is an ex-Jesuit
and one of my best old Jesuit buddies.)  
Download Fall 2013 Conference 9-20-13

 

 

 

 

Readings: Ezekiel 37, 12-14; Psalm 130; Romans 8, 8-11; John 11, 1-45.

Ezekiel: Again we make a big jump, from Samuel & David to the prophet Ezekiel. The time is ca. 580 B.C, the time of the defeat of the Hebrews and the Babylonian captivity.  Ezekiel is warning the people of the calamities that come and ends eventually envisioning a new Jerusalem.

How Many More Years You Got to Appreciate?

We hear it said all the time that we have around 75 years of life in us.  That means we got 75 Christmases to enjoy, 75 springs and summers, and 75 Thanksgivings.  And that is from the age of Cameron & Reid, Brady & Trey.  Now you kids who are 10 or 15 only have 65 or 60 more birthdays and Easters.  Those of you 50 have only 25 more Christmases.  I have, guess, only 7 more according to the profile. 

Marriage at 25 means 50 years of fun & companionship.  I got married at 65.  Not much time to experience the fun & companionship. 

Over the past 5 weeks I have talked about some secrets to making marriage work.

 

·       Stay away from divorce, but play,

·       don’t expect a perfect marriage, but work for perfect moments,

·       plan fun and date regularly,

·       empty out the back pack of my junk and keep communicating,

·       give with words, listening, and touch & hugs.

This final discussion is both a summary of the five previous weeks and also a focus on appreciation.  Appreciation for the person who agreed to marry me.  The temptation is to rattle off the Spanish saying, "El amor es Ciego," love is blind.  The response to the temptation is appreciation.  Appreciate the perfect moments, the companionship, and the anniversaries.  Celebrate the appreciation.

We only have a limited number of Christmases & Easters, perfect moments and anniversaries.  Let’s not blow it.  Appreciate each one.

How many more do you have to celebrate?

               

AUDIO: http://mysite.verizon.net/reso7rjy/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/2008-03-09.mp3 

Readings: Acts of the Apostles 6, 1-7; Psalm 33, Lord, let your Mercy be upon Us, as we place our Trust in You; 1 Peter 2, 4-9; John 14, 1-12 

 

Sixth Sunday of Easter – Intro to the Reading

 Because we have been reading from Acts and Peter’s First Letter for the past several weeks I thought today I would focus on John’s Gospel.  It is very different from Matthew, Mark and Luke, better known as the Synoptic Gospels.  They were written earlier than John, and their style is more story or history.  Both Matthew and Luke start their gospels with an account of the birth of Jesus, Mark begins when John the Baptist baptizes Jesus as an adult at the Jordan.  St. John begins his gospel with the cryptic phrase “ in the beginning was the word and the word was God and the word was with God”.  John’s community was a group that had been evicted from the Jewish faith.  Thus in this gospel there is a great deal of animosity between Jesus and “the Jews”.  A few weeks ago I mentioned that one of the features of John’s gospel was to show that each of the major Jewish feasts have been reinterpreted by Jesus.  There is another way to look at the gospel.  The first part can be described as the Book of Signs, where Jesus does a whole lot of miracles.  The second half is the Book of Glory.  It is from Chapter 13 to the end.  But chapters 13 to 17 are the Last Supper and there are long monologues from Jesus to his disciples.  Incidentally John does not refer to them as apostles but always as disciples.  Four chapters are dedicated to the Last Supper.  Our reading today is taken from this section of the gospel.  And some of these chapters are repetitions. It suggests that the gospel has been reworked and added to by later writers, because the theme of not abandoning the disciples in today’s reading comes up again, almost word for word, two chapters later.  If there is anything, which becomes clear in the discussion during the last supper, it is that the disciples just do not understand Jesus’ mission. 

 

Homily

This past Sunday at Notre Dame College, during the graduation ceremonies, the Laetare Medal (“Truth is mighty, and it shall prevail.”) was presented to Sr. Mary Scullion and Joan McConnon for their work with Project H.O.M.E., which they both started some 30 years ago in Philadelphia.  During her acceptance speech, Sr. Mary made the following comment, which seemed to me to fit perfectly with what I wanted to talk about this morning.  She said, “our faith doesn’t give us answers, it gives us courage”. 

 Each of our readings today focus in one-way or another on the early Church.  We have just read from St. John’s Gospel Jesus trying to assure his disciples that even though He is going away, He isn’t going to be far away! 

 In the Acts of the Apostles we hear of early success as the community expands beyond Jerusalem to Samaria and Peter and John being sent to that little community to strengthen them with the Holy Spirit.

 
 

Finally in our reading from the Letter of Peter, Peter is writing to another little community, which needs encouragement.  They are surrounded by non-Christians and are feeling insecure in their faith.

 You would think that having been around for over 2,000 years these feelings of abandonment, weakness and the need for encouragement would be long gone – and yet I feel exactly as those early communities and those disciples felt, so long ago.

 

When Vatican II was held, there was a great sense of excitement.  It was said at the time that Pope John XXIII threw open the windows of the church and the Holy Spirit was able to get back in again.  There was a great sense of renewal and fresh new life in the church. 

 In recent times, with the huge exodus of Catholics from the church, that group who has left would make up the second largest church in America if they were together.  The decline of vocations to the priesthood, the shame and disgrace of the pedophile scandal, and with the current mighty efforts to undo much of what was done at the Second Vatican Council.  The church’s refusal to even consider discussing having women ordained priests, I feel that the Holy Spirit must have gone away again.

 This is why today’s readings are important for me.  I need to be reminded that in spite of all of this, the Holy Spirit is very much alive.  He is present in the hundreds of small faith communities such as ours, which are being formed all over the country.  In two weeks time in Detroit, over 40 of those communities will be gathering as the American Catholic Council to celebrate the 50^th anniversary of Vatican II.  These little communities are led by the Spirit. They are celebrating God’s presence in their midst.  They are doing what we do each week.  Come together, listen to God’s Word, break bread together and reach out to those in need, whether it is the CCAC, the Plano Homes, MyFriend's House, Habitat for Humanity or the people in Tuscaloosa, AL whom you heard about last week.

 It is all of these things, which convince me that we are not abandoned.  The Holy Spirit is very present here in our community and in all of those other communities today.  That presence of the Holy Spirit may not give us the answers, but does give us the courage to follow Jesus’ command to love.

 
Picture 1:   Mass begins

Picture 2:   Offertory with Charlotte & Geri

Picture 3:   Communion Helpers

Picture 4:   Communion  

Picture 5:   Leo with his buddy, Richard

Readings:

Revelation 7, 2-4, 9-14, These are the ones who have survived the time of great distress

Psalm 24, Lord this is the people that long to see your face. 

1 John 3, 1-3,  See what love the Father has bestowed on us.—–

Matthew 5,1-12, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom.

 

 

 

Thanks to the Team,  Ben & Shonda's  

Readers,   Denni & Tom & Buddy, the candle blesser

Gospel,  Deacon Mike 

Homily,  Deacon Mike 

Eucharistic Prayer A & B, Stack & John Cade

The Magic Zoom makers,  Richard & Hue 

Final Blessing, Rosemary

For hosting us at Legacy, Becky

 

 

Download Readings Week 31 All Saints (2)

 

 

Homily by Mike Carrell,   All Saints            

The Mark gospel teaches us how potential saints come alive:  It begins with the unexpected: an accident; a death; a fire, a flood. It is then that a call comes to us; the kingdom of God is at hand; repent. Live the Good News! 

Buddy, this morning, revealed to us from the Matthew Gospel how the beatitudes call us each to be the light in the world, to be saints.

The feast of All Saints teaches us that holiness comes in all sizes and shapes. Saints are rich and poor, young and old, warriors and peacemakers, scholars and those who don’t even know how to read. Every era has its saints as does ours. We read about the struggles our nurses and doctors face day after day to keep patients alive during this pandemic.

 

 

Mary Ellen, Honfleur, France, 2011, one of our Saints.

 

We give thanks to our parents, grandparents, and god parents who gave us names of known saints when we were baptized; they were intended to challenge us to be ready to respond to a call to holiness.

Most of the names of these heroes that we read about in the News have already faded away; however some of our teenagers have chosen not to forget about these holy ones by taking their names when they were and are confirmed.

Praise be to God.

 

Please Remember these special people:

For Alan Stryker;  For John Doherty recuperating from an operation this past week for his back pain;   For David Dinsmore's bad shoulder from a biking accident;  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, The Woodlands,   For Loretta's aunt Alicia;  For Sir Charlie & Jan;  Shonda's mom & Cody & Ben & Leo & all of Shonda's dear family;  

 

 

Mike, how come you did not invite us to this beautiful lake?  Daisy State Park, Arkansas.

For Jackie's mom, sister, & friend, Lynn;  For both Jean & Cliff Wright;  For Rick Turner searching for a kidney donor, Type O neg; For Meredith, cancer free;    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, with cancer,  For the students, teachers, and coaches in our public & private schools.

 

 

 

Birthdays:  John DeGenova, Ed Kless, Karen Anderlick, Ryan McCabe, 19

  

 

Community Finances, November 1, 2020

Expenses: $750.00

Outreach   $200.00    (often for Souls Harbor, Legacy, etc.)

Thanks, Folks, for doing what you can.

 

Home, Sweet Home for Mike & Gerry.

 

Rosemary's Blessing:

 

Gracious God inspire us with the hope in the gift of shalom, the gift of wholeness and the promise of your presence.

Give wisdom to seek nonviolence as an answer to the violence of our lives and world.

Give us courage to seek wholeness in a fractured and divided world, to find reconciliation rather than revenge, to abandon the instruments of violence and death and entrust our lives, our homes and our families to you.

May your presence fill us and others with the thirst for unity, wholeness, and the desire to see all people valued as created in your image.

May we and others receive your shalom, that we might be faithful instruments of your love.

Blessed be your name forever,

Amen.

Rabbi Andrew M. Paley, senior rabbi with Temple Shalom, Dallas.  He emailed this letter to his congregation and gave The Dallas Morning News permission to publish it.

 

Isaiah 66:  Lo, I will spread prosperity over Jerusalem like a river,  and the wealth of the nations like an overflowing torrent.   As nurslings, you shall be carried in her arms,  and fondled in her lap;  as a mother comforts her child,  so will I comfort you;

Galatians 6:  May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

Luke 10: Whatever town you enter and they welcome you, eat what is set before you, cure the sick in it and say to them, 'The kingdom of God is at hand for you.'

Connie reading from Isaiah
 

 

Thanks…     

Music,   Ben & Shonda

John sharing his homily

 

Outreach: $   130.00

Thanks again, Folks, for doing what you can.

 

 

Carrie reading the Blessing

 

 

Rosemary's Blessing:

Wisdom 18: The night of the passover was known beforehand to our fathers,  that, with sure knowledge of the oaths in which they put their faith,  they might have courage.

Hebrews 11:  Brothers and sisters: Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen. Because of it the ancients were well attested.

 

                     

Annette reading from the Book of Wisdom

 

Thanks…     

Music,   Ben  & Shonda

Jackie sharing her thoughts on the readings

 

Outreach: $   160.00

Thanks again, Folks, for doing what you can.

 

 

Mary gets a cookie for her anniversary

 

 

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