USCCB Goes on the Offensive Concerning the HHS Mandate

Follow this link to see the USCCB's nationwide bulletin insert, going out to the parishes of the United States, warning of the potential necessity for civil disobedience.  Is our religious freedom at stake to that extent?  The bishops of the United States seem to think so, and most information from the media and from Washington point to this.   A powerful quote from the insert:

What is at stake is whether America will continue to have a free, creative, and robust civil society—or whether the state alone will determine who gets to contribute to the common good, and how they get to do it.

  

These are strange happenings, my friends.  

Mary, Seat of Wisdom, Pray for us!

Ascension Thursday

In the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, the celebration of the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord is transferred to Sunday.  This doesn't, however, keep us from reflecting on this marvelous and important happening of the Church.  Because of this, the Office of Readings for today comes from Friday of the Sixth Week of Easter, and speaks specifically of the Ascension.

As I read the second reading today, from a sermon by St. Leo the Great on the Ascension, it reminded me that often times our culture seeks to overemphasize the human aspect of Christ, and in doing so forgets, or at least underplays, His divine nature.  St. Leo seeks to stress that, for those of us who believe without having seen the risen Lord in the Flesh, the dual natures of Christ -- God and Man -- allow the the fulfillment of a reciprocal relationship between the divine and the human in a way that transcends the tangible:

"While [Christ's] glorified body retained the same nature, those who believed in him was now summoned to heights where, as the Father's equal, the only-begotten Son is reached not by physical handling but by spiritual discernment."

Happy Ascension Day to you, my friend.  May the faithfulness of Christ to His people act as a means to fortify our own faith and surety as children of God.

The Fort

Now that the academic year at St. Meinrad is over and I have returned home for a short respite before leaving for San Antonio, I have a bit of time to reflect.  When I usually reflect, I wonder around, and my back yard tends to be where I do most of the wondering.  As I was walking and thinking, I came to the back corner of the yard, where I spent hours each day in my youth.  In this corner of the yard is "the Fort;" an old playhouse on stilts.  I remember the day I got it.  My brother and I were coming back from visiting my father, and as we drove up to the house, I saw Poppa working on the final touches.

Originally, the Fort had a yellow slide, a merry-go-round, a webbed ladder, a fireman's pole and a climbing rope.  The roof was a blue, yellow, and red striped tarp, and there was a rug ladder that doubled as a draw-bridge. I must have been no older than 7 or 8 at the time.  I fell in love with it, and the adventures of my youth really took flight.

The Fort was one of two things over the years, depending on either what I was learning in classes or what TV shows I was watching.  It started out as a space ship.  "The U.S.S. Marie-Celest" - (I had just seen a documentary about a ghost ship, and I thought this was a cool name).

After a few years, I joined 4-H, and got some chickens and guinea pigs to raise.  With this came the second phase of the Fort -- "Foshland Manor."  I had been learning about the Middle Ages and the feudal system, and so, naturally, the chickens were my court, while my guinea pigs were the "plebians" who lived on the other side of the Duchy of Foshland (the backyard).

When I got out of 4-H, I got rid of the chickens and guinea pigs, and phase three of the Fort was underway -- spaceship again, only this time it was equipped with an engineering room (the old chicken coop butted up next to the fort) with a warp core (made of left-over chicken wire and one of those plastic tubes you whirl around to make the whistling noise).  Behind the captain's chair (a lawn chair) I strategically positioned a battery-powered boom box from which I would play "action music" during times when I was being attacked by aliens.

The last stage was when I came into the Church.  I was about 13 or so at the time, and although I was growing out of stuff like this, I clung to my Fort -- it meant something more than just childhood fantasy.  I moved the chicken coop away from the Fort and made it into a chapel -- "Mater Dei Church" -- and refurbished the Fort, cleaning out the old toys and making it look as much like the old "Foshland Manor" as possible.  I also changed the backyard from a duchy to a diocese...

Today, the Fort is tattered and broken -- the slide, merry-go-round and ladder are gone.  The frame itself is leaning and the tarp that had served as a roof is mostly torn to shreds. The chapel and the Fort are now used to store lawn supplies, and most of those little touches I put up so long ago have disappeared.

There is still a statue of Our Lady behind the chapel, though, and so I took a moment to stop and pray there.  As I reflected in front of her, and looked around me at the memories of my youth, I wished I could go back -- just for a little while -- and relive those times of happiness and innocence.

I then realized what blessings I have now that I didn't have then -- I am a seminarian; I have close friends I did not have before; I have four beautiful nieces and nephews; I am a godfather; and soon I am to be a priest.  I saw the growth in my life since these beautiful memories took place, and I thanked God.

Who could have known back then what would take place since in my life?  Only God.

Happy Feast of St. George!

So, ever since I was little, I've had an affinity for the name "George."  Because of this, I've gotten into the habit of naming everything that is of some importance by that name.  When I was little, I named my first teddy bear "George;" when I was five, I named my invisible friend "George;" when I was seven, and I was baptized in the Methodist Church, I named my guardian angel "George;" when I purchased my first computer, I named it "George;" (the one I'm typing on is "George II" by the way) when I bought my first car, I named it "George;"...

Needless to say, the name is of some significance to me, and when you read about St. George, you come to know why.  The legends that surround him, of his killing the dragon particularly, captures the hearts of little boys everywhere.  Although not much is known of St. George, devotion to him is ancient.  I encourage you to look for more information about him, but I thought I'd at least share this link to get you started.

In the Office today, St. Peter Damian had a great thing to say about George, the Soldier of Christ:

"Clearly what he did serves to teach us a valuable lesson: if we are afraid to strip ourselves of our worldly possessions, then we are unfit to make a strong defense of the faith."

St. George, pray for us!!

John 14

On April 22nd, the St. Meinrad Seminary Schola sang their spring concert.  This recording is a piece sung by a small ensemble from the schola.  It is entitled simply "John 14."  Based primarily on the first verse, with excerpts from other verses in the chapter, this piece was written by me over the course of the past year.

 

Great job to the members of the ensemble.  A special thanks to Peter Bucalo, Ben Syberg and Brian Wideman for singing the solos, Mike Keucher for helping with the recording, and Doug Hunter for the pictures.  Thank you all, from the bottom of my heart.

My Time at the NWCU

About a month ago, I received word that I had won a homily writing contest.  The prize was a paid trip to the National Workshop on Christian Unity, held in Oklahoma City from April 16-19.  After a bit of finagling, I was able to clear my academic schedule so that I could attend this workshop, and, although it has made the rest of this academic year a bit trepidatious, I am very glad I was able to pull it off, for a number of reasons. 

The first, I think, is the most obvious one.  Getting to meet people of the same faith and of different faith traditions in Christianity allowed me to think of the disunity that exists alongside the desire for unity among so many in the Christian religion.  Were there aspects of the workshop that I disagreed with?  Sure, but that's life.  The purpose of it all, namely to strive for better understanding of and respect for each others faith traditions in order to be strengthened in our own, was met for me, and for that I am very grateful.

I'm also grateful for coming to this workshop because of very personal reasons.  Since it has been held in OKC, I was able to return home, staying with my family.  Although I have been extremely busy, I have had the opportunity to simply "be" at home, and that has been something I've needed.

I've also had the chance to grow closer to my diocese as well.  Monday and Tuesday, I got to spend time with my archbishop and with some of the priests of the archdiocese of OKC.  Throughout the workshop, I've had the privilege of "shadowing" Fr. Stephen Bird, pastor at Epiphany Church in Northwest OKC, and we have really grown close.  Thanks, Fr. Bird!

This last point has been something I've yearned for, especially within the past year.  Growing in my formation and my identity as a Roman Catholic seminarian has brought with it a need to come to know and truly love the local church I will serve as a priest.  I've had a small opportunity to do this within the past week, and my desire to continue, to persevere to the priesthood for my diocese, has grown immensely.  

My deep gratitude and thanks to the NWCU for bringing me here, to St. Meinrad seminary for allowing to take the time off, to my parents for putting up with me and spending money on gas for me, to Fr. Bird for guiding me and being my companion in this, and to all who have been working behind the scenes to make this work.

Please continue to pray for Christian unity.  As I said in my homily, "we can only allow the sap of Grace to flow through us is if we are branches still found on the vine."  Pray that branches once separated may be grafted on again, and that new shoots of faith may come forth.  God Bless you!

Breaking News: SSPX One Step Closer to Full Communion

Today the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) has "given its assent to a statement of doctrinal belief presented to it by the Vatican," although the understanding of future amendments has not been removed from the table.  For more info, follow this link.

This is HUGE news, friends.  The possibility of the SSPX coming into full communion with Rome is something that will change the face of Vatican and Traditionalist relations.

SSPX has for many been seen as the "via media" of the traditionalists groups, acknowledging the legitimacy of the papacy while rejecting Vatican II.  With their potential reconciliation will come a void in the traditionalist camp, while affording the Church with well-versed members in traditions and practices that have fallen by the wayside in many respects.

Although a great blessing, this merger will undoubtedly cause tension and division among SSPX members and even among "conciliar" clergy.  Let us pray that this inevitable step is a small one in this truly ecumenical and charitable act, on the part of the Vatican AND on the part of the Society of Pius X.

St. Pius X, pray for your sons and daughters, that they may be one.  Amen.