Happy New Year?

Well, it’s official. This week I received my first email challenging me to make a New Year’s resolution to lose weight. I wonder how they knew. But from now until the end of the year we will be hearing countless commercials about this diet or that weight loss program. Everyone of them will promise us that we can become thin and trim in just a few short weeks. Somehow the media has tied celebrating the New Year with weight loss. Nevertheless as the New Year approaches people will be talking about making some changes, some resolutions. It makes sense doesn’t it – a new year and a new you. But in reality I tend to think that although some people make these resolutions sincerely for most of us it is just a fun thing to do. We make these promises but we don’t really expect these changes in our life to really happen. We don’t really believe that we can become thin and trim in just a few short weeks. But as Christians we know there is something very good about reflecting on our life and seeing where we might make a decision, a resolution, to change, to grow, to break some patterns that we are not happy with and to start over again.

In the life of our Church this Sunday is like New Year’s Eve. The feast of Christ the King marks the end of the Church Year. The following Sunday we begin a new year as we begin the holy season of Advent. So on this eve of a new Church year let's decide to make New Church Year Resolutions.

What could our New Church Year Resolutions be? I think the best way is to take some time and reflect on this past year and ask God what area or areas in your life might need some change or improvement. Then have confidence that the Lord wants to bless us by showing us some areas to consider.  And that our God will give us what we need to actually put these changes into action. But there is one resolution that we can all make. Our Holy Father has invited the whole Church to focus on the unborn as Advent begins. Pope Benedict is opening Advent this year with what appears to be an unprecedented liturgical focus on the unborn and the gift of human life. Next Saturday evening in St. Peter’s Basilica the Pope Benedict XVI will lead a First Vespers service and a “Vigil for all Nascent Human Life.” And the Holy Father has requested bishops and parishes throughout the whole world to do the same. In response to this invitation many parishes in the Archdiocese are gathering before next Saturday’s Vigil Mass to join their minds and hearts with the Holy Father and Catholics throughout the world by praying the rosary for the unborn. Although we all can’t be in Church next Saturday night we can all stop what we are doing and pray as one family.

And then let’s continue our resolution of prayer for the unborn throughout the season of Advent. Is there a better time to pray for the unborn than in this great season of Advent which culminates in the celebration of the most important human birth in the history of the world – the birth of Jesus.

May all of our New Church Year resolutions bring us true joy and peace throughout this New Church Year.

Called to be Saints!

Channel surfing during the half time of the Eagles game I came across the Game Show Network. Much to my surprise on the TV at that very moment was a silly game show that I used to love to watch - Let’s Make a Deal. Just as I remembered there was Monty Hall in the audience making deals with a crazily dressed audience. Some people actually won some prizes while others got a clunker of a prize. Well it all came down to the big deal of the day – two people who won the most during the show could trade in their winnings for a chance at the grand prize knowing that it was behind one of the three curtains. On this particular show no one picked the curtain with the big prize.

But what if you could see behind the curtain? What if you could see what the prize was? Wouldn’t we all pick that curtain? I know I would.

John’s vision from the Book of Revelation is like a sneak peak behind the grand prize curtain of life – it is a glimpse of the prize that awaits all who faithfully follow the Lord Jesus. Take a look …

Great multitude …every nation, race, people, and tongue … wearing white … palm branches … singing, rejoicing before the throne of the Lamb

This is the celebration of ALL the SAINTS!

You know in many ways All Saints Day is really more for us. I am sure the saints are excited about all of us gathering to worship the Lord and to honor them but the saints are sharing in the heavenly banquet, they have won the prize and they are enjoying eternal life with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The saints don’t need All Saints Day – we do. We need to realize what a tremendous life lies ahead. We need to know that Jesus was serious when He promised to prepare a place for us. So All Saints Day is a day for each of us to pick the grand prize curtain, it is a day to choose to be a saint.

But how … how do we choose to be a saint? Aren’t saints super holy? Doesn’t it require that we do something spectacular? Don’t we have to be successful in all that we do?

Mother Teresa answered these kinds of questions this way, “God has not called me to be successful, He only called me to be faithful.”

This is what is required to be a saint

 - FAITHFULNESS -

WE need to HEAR the Word of God and ACT on it!

But it is not all up to us the Holy Spirit will help us to really hear what God is saying to us and how we are to respond. Then we need to respond by coming forward and receiving Jesus Himself in the Eucharist. He will be the strength and the power we need to be able to put that word into action.

The BE-attitudes are our Gospel challenge. Jesus instructs us on how to act, how to be faithful. We need to be live humbly, with a pure heart, showing mercy and compassion. We need to be peacemakers, and to be  concerned about the welfare of those we encounter. For each day we are in constant contact with others from family members to complete strangers. But our attitude should be the same. “Whatever you do for the least of my brethren, you do for me.” Each person needs to be loved as though we were meeting the Lord Himself. This is what it means for you and I to begin becoming saints.

Simple everyday faithfulness to God’s Word

 by caring for all those we meet.

What a Ride!!!

In one of my favorite movies, Parenthood, the wise grandmother makes an interesting observation about life. She compares life to two very different amusement rides by explaining how she felt when she rode each ride. Thrilled, afraid, excited, fearful were the conflicting feelings she had when she rode the roller coaster. Up and down! Up and down! But even with those feelings she always wanted to ride again because all of the ups and downs were so thrilling. On the other hand the merry-go-round just goes around and around. That's it. No excitement, no thrills just the same thing again and again. Grandma preferred to live the life that is like a roller coaster. There are days when life could not be any better. Everything is going so well. It is almost like living heaven on earth. But then there are days that are the complete opposite. Days that are filled with struggles, disappointments, and sadness.

If I didn't know any better I would think that Grandma was a Phillies fan. This season has been one long roller coaster ride of thrills and disappointments. A perfect game, a league best number of wins, H20, another Eastern Division title are just some of the thrills. But then there were injuries and trips to the DL for player after player. In fact, it seems like most of the team spent some time on the disabled list. But if you asked any one of the more than 3.6 million people who witnessed these ups and downs first hand at Citizens Bank Park I think every person would agree that the roller coaster experience of life is much more exciting than a team that just goes through the motions and packs their bags for vacation on the last day of the season.
Well Phillies fans especially those that thought the ride was over by the San Francisco Bay the team has provided another upward thrill and has extended the ride for ...
Whether the ride ends tomorrow or two weeks from now it has been great. Thank you Phillies for saving us from the boring,  repetitive merry-go-round kind of baseball season. Grandma was right - the roller coaster is the way to go!

A New Hero for the Church

There was a man named Alfred who was born into a poor French Canadian family in the mid 1800’s. At his birth he was so weak that his parents fearing he might die baptized him. This was just the beginning of a life of great challenges. At age 6 his father was killed by a falling tree, six years later his mother died from tuberculosis. The family now parentless was dispersed.

At age 12, Alfred was forced to leave school to learn a trade and to look for work. He began thirteen years of wandering from job to job with few belongings; he was barely able to write his name or read his prayer book. In spite of his physical weakness, Alfred was determined to work harder and harder.

When he was 25 Alfred wanted to join the Congregation of Holy Cross. Because of his uncertain health, his superiors had doubts concerning his religious vocation. Finally, he was accepted and became a Brother with a new name. He was made a porter, a door keeper, at Notre Dame College. He also washed floors and windows, cleaned lamps, brought in firewood, and worked as a messenger.

Soon the sick and broken-hearted started coming to the door where they were greeted by the Brother. He invited them to pray to St. Joseph to obtain favors. Before long, many people reported their prayers were being answered. Brother quickly told the people, “It is God and St. Joseph who can heal you, not I.”

Not everyone was happy about the numbers of sick people who were coming to the door. Parents of the students, officials in the town, and even some members of his own community wanted him to stop what he was doing because many did not really believe that God was at work through this humble man.  But Brother was determined to help those in need to know and experience the love of the Lord. He would simply ask, "Do you have faith? Do you believe that God can do something for you? Go confess yourself to the priest, go to communion and then come back to see me."

Brother spent his whole life speaking of others to God, and of God to others. It is difficult to say at what point in his life work began and ended, and at what point prayer started and ended: the two seemed to flow so naturally one into the other.  Brother’s whole life was focused on God and others.

This humble, sickly servant of God, who his parents thought would die soon after birth, died in 1937, at the age of 92. During those years he touched countless numbers of people, Newspapers reported that more than a million people attended his wake and burial.

This Sunday, October 17, there will be millions rejoicing on earth and in heaven because this day in the city of Rome our Holy Father Pope Benedict is adding Brother Andre’s name to that special list of heroes of the Church. For on this day this humble Brother will be canonized Saint Brother Andre. May we be inspired by this humble servant of the Lord to focus our lives on loving God and loving others.