Fun in Ill Annoy

I don't like the state of Illinois. I have had some of the worst experiences of my life in this state. I know it's not this state's fault but it just seems like bad things happen to me in this state. And tonight I added on to it.

I'm staying in a hotel in one of the suburbs of Chicago and, at 11:44 pm the fire alarm went off. Being an obedient person, I went down to the front desk area and was told not to go out in the cold air. I waited until the fire department came and they had to check out mysterious smoke on second floor. As I was standing in the lobby (which is also partially a bar) I overheard the bartender call the security guard. I looked over and saw the security guard getting in the face of an obviously drunk guy while his girlfriend (I later found out that was who she was) was telling him to sit down. Then a manager came and started pushing him out of the bar telling him that the comments he was making were the reasons someone would get thrown out. I started to walk away and I heard the drunk guy sprint at the other guy. The manager was yelling "Call the police!" and the drunk girlfriend was somehow standing beside me saying she had just punched a guy and her boyfriend was going to go to jail. The fire department called for a police over their walkie talkies and came to help in the bar area. I was cold and annoyed and afraid I would get pulled into a fight that I was trying to get away from. Thankfully, no sooner had the firemen begun to ensure that the drunk guy couldn't do any more damage, then another fireman came to tell us we could go back up to this room.

I've been in a car accident in this state. I've been pulled over for doing 2 miles an hour over the speed limit while going down a hill. The police officer gave me a warning. If I didn't have great friends from this state I would boycott it for the rest of my life. I should probably learn two lessons from this

1. Go outside in a fire alarm
2. Stay in a rectory with other priests

Those tricky Beatitudes

To be a truly "sola-fides" protestant is to believe that our conduct has nothing to do with our salvation. It is, at best, an afterthought. Someone who is saved will act in a certain manner but the act itself does not show a willingness on our part to accept the salvation offered us, a willingness to lead a "saved" life. It's just like the exhaust from a car.

I've always wondered how these Protestants deal with those passages of scripture that seem to intimate the necessity for an active love in order to live a holy life. I'm sure that there are a myriad of ways of answering that question, especially in a group that has eliminated an interpretive magisterial voice. But, the most creative way that I heard this past Sunday came from a pastor preaching about the Beatitudes. I wish I could find his name or something since we could probably also find the text of what he said online. Nonetheless, according to him, the key word of the Beatitudes was "brothers". He said that the way we treat the Jews (Jesus brothers) will be the way we are judged. For the moment setting aside the fact that we are moving back into the realm of works salvation and that Jesus, in teaching in the Galilee, is likely surrounded by both Jews and Gentiles close to the Decapolis) and that there is no use of the term brothers in either Luke or Matthew and that Jesus explicitly includes "whoever does the will of my heavenly Father" as his brothers, there is a larger agenda going on here that we Catholics need to know.

Some Protestants are trying to force an apocalyptic agenda down the throats of the church that involves "restoring" Israel and the Temple so that Jesus will come again. They are sending huge sums of money to Israel in an effort to force this end-times agenda. Yet, ironically, the Catholic Church is the one turning to our younger rebellious brothers and sisters to remind them that you can't force God to do anything simply by putting together what you believe to be the perfect end-times formula. I think this is why the Catholic Church so often emphasizes phrases like "Do not be afraid" and "Do not be terrified" we we have these end-times formula. We do no know when Christ will come and believing that we can somehow coerce him into coming is not just silly, it's heretical.

The Sun of Justice will rise

Apocalypse! End of the World! What images or thoughts come to your mind as you hear these words? Fear? Frustration? I’ve had several conversations with people recently on topics related to these concepts. Some people talk about Nostradamus and how he predicted that the world would end in the not too distant future. I’ve even heard the year 2023 thrown around as when he predicted it would end. Of course, if that date is true, it means that I still have 15 years of sinning before I shape up and get ready for the coming of the Lord. Other people see things like global warming and an ever-increasing need for fossil fuels as leading to the end of the world. They say that if we don’t switch to cleaner, renewable fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions we will bring about the end of the world. Others are concerned about the global terrorist threat and the threat posed by rogue, radical Islamist movements acquiring nuclear weapons. They see the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq as key components to defeating the possibility of the third world war being the charm, if you will. And, while I have no doubt that all of that could bring about the end of the world, I always have to caution people that this is not exactly what we hear in the readings this time of year.

Yet, even as I make that statement, I know that there’s a great deal of hesitancy in Catholic clergy to actually talk about this. Our evangelical brothers and sisters make up for it, however, since some of them seen almost unhealthily fixated on the end of the world. I remember sitting down in Dubuque during college and watching a husband and wife team that would read a passage, usually either from the book of Daniel or the book of Revelation, (You know, those scary books of the bible) and then they would show how world events are directly related to them. Just to give one example that I remember from their program, there is an image of a dragon awaiting the birth of a child. In their interpretation, the dragon was President Clinton and the mother was any mother considering abortion. I was glad to learn in my scripture class that we didn’t share this one-for-one, belief that images in scripture point to concrete people nowadays.

We tend to believe that the images are timeless, that a one-for-one identification of these prophesies is, in general, more detracting from the meaning than adding to it. So, for instance, we hear in the gospel today that “"Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.
There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place; and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.” A fundamentalist would say that the nations Jesus is clearly talking about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the community of nations that were brought to fight against them. They would point to the tsunami that happened a few years ago in Malaysia because of an earthquake and the resulting famine and plagues there, as well as elsewhere, as mighty signs.

I think this is part of the reason that Catholic priests don’t like to talk about this topic at all. We focus on our own mortality or sin and avoid the topic of end times altogether. But, what should we say instead? If I read the gospel right, we shouldn’t be so focused on future events and signs that we lose sight of today. We must pay attention to Jesus when he says, “many will come in my name, saying, 'I am he,’ and 'The time has come.’ Do not follow them! When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end." We shouldn’t be so afraid of the end of the world that we lose sight on today, on the preparation that we can do today. It’s like the distance runner who becomes so fixated on the end of the race that he forgets to look down and notice the pothole right in front of him. We should be constantly prepared for the God whose coming won’t be cloaked in shadows. When God comes it will be as clear as the sun rising in the East. We, Christians, shouldn’t be afraid of that thought. As the prophet Malachi said, “for you who fear my name, there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays.” We have been shown the love of the Son of God who has healed out sins and invites us into a new relationship with God as our Father. Now is the time to repent. Don’t put it off to some fictional time invented by a seer. Now is the time to have reverent love for the God who first loved us and calls each of us by name. Now we are in the end times, a time of hope and reconciliation. Don’t be terrified. By your perseverance you will secure your lives.

Beginning Thanksgiving break

Iowa State gives their students one full week surrounding the Thanksgiving holiday to go home, rest, and relax. It's also a time for the campus ministers to rest and relax. I'm going to use the time to work on the second semester bible study and a project which will likely be my November project for the rest of my life.

I have gone to several priest funerals in my first five years of priesthood and I've noticed something infuriating. Despite our consistent insistence that family members shouldn't give eulogies during mass (it should happen at the wake), priests ALWAYS eulogize their brother priests. So, I'm going to start writing my own homily that the vicar general will read. I don't care who the vicar general will be when I die. I just want people to believe more in Jesus Christ and the salvation he gave to us than in Dennis Miller and any salvation I have...because I have none to give. It probably seems a bit depressing to want to write your own funeral homily but I think it will be similar to my "opus," if you will. It won't be exceptionally long. It will just draw people more to Christ's resurrection than to my own.

sorry for the long absence

I wish I had a better excuse for not blogging but the best I can do it general hectic schedule. October is a busy month for campus ministers. I'm hoping to catch up some in the upcoming months because things have definitely calmed down. I hope to comment upon the news that I heard recently about the sacramentary as well as about something I was thinking about on my walk the other day...if only I can remember it. So, consider the the "please stay tuned" post in my blog.

Antioch...where the Christians were first called Christians

Our staple retreat here is a three day event called "Antioch". It's a typical three day conversion type of retreat that Catholics have been doing since the early to mid eighties. In some ways, the weekend is fairly predictable and the results are pretty good.

What surprises me each year is not that something drastically new happened. It's the connections that are made. People whose faith is drifting decide to start up again. People who need a reason to darken the church find one. It is a truly joyous time to see it happen. And it's always inspiring to me to hear college students talk about their own faith struggles and successes. I see the college students find a connection with someone their own age and see a college student who has been struggling with what message he or she wants to convey finding the voice they didn't know they had. I'm glad that this is moving into being a permanent part of my ministry here at St. Thomas.

I generally get sleep deprived, however, on these weekends so that, by Sunday, I'm a little silly. And the title to this post just cracked me up when I said it on Sunday while explaining where I was. I think they call it being "punch drunk". I just thought it was hilarious. I mean, what were the Christians before they were Christians? What would we be called if Antioch never happened?

Saying goodbye to my son

I learned on Wednesday of the death of my son. He wasn't my biological son since I don't have any of those. He was my spiritual child. Ryan was the type of kid that lit up the room when he entered. He was faithful in terms of mass attendance, even enduring the constant Iowa State Cyclone joke I told despite being a ardent Iowa Hawkeye. He had numerous health problems and died from one of them.

Ryan showed me what it means when they call me father. He often came into my office and unloaded problems onto my shoulders. School was hard and, even though he was not the type of person that gave up easily, he eventually had to go to a smaller school with more personalized attention. I helped him come to peace with that decision and mourned when he left to go across state, vowing that I would stay in touch. Now I mourn that he has left forever. I will miss him.

But, I have learned from him and I will remember him. Whenever I ask someone to hold my book at our 10:00 mass on Thursdays, I will think of how he used to do that. When I see someone walking towards me chewing gum in the student center, I will think of him. I will thank God that he put someone like Ryan into my life and let me be his father.

Why full immersian baptismal fonts aren't necessarilly good for the catholic church

We have a mass at 10:00 on Thursday nights. At the end of mass, before the final blessing, we allow students to make announcements about the events that are coming up. But, we limit the time because it can take up to ten minutes to get through them all. And, I'm exhausted.

There was one student who was taking soooo long to get his announcement in and, when we told him that, he slowed down. So, I flawlessly jumped the font and took the microphone away from him. I handed it on to the next person and started to jump back to the other side.

I say "started" because I FAILED! I ended up with my legs in the font and my torso on the other side. I felt totally embarrassed and wished that I could have just fallen through the floor into the basement. The students made me feel old because they were more worried about making sure I was alright than they were about mocking me. I deserved to be mocked. But, I did get my point across. Keep the line moving!

Sisters of Perpetual indulgence

I heard about this story the other day. To make a long story short, Archbishop George Niederauer of the San Francisco Archdiocese gave communion to two people wearing costumes that made it clear that they openly dissented from church teaching. The group that these two belong to call themselves the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, which is a pro-gay group that dresses in a mock version of the traditional catholic habit that most nuns in this country wore at one time. It's very easy, for this reason, to know who is part of this group and know who is not so people believe the Archbishop should not have given them communion. The fact that he did has caused a great deal of scandal to the church and is a great tragedy. I may be naive but I imagine the Archbishop has no idea what this group really advocates. I watched two incredibly scandalous youtube videos where the group describes themselves and it's so obvious that their mission is completely foreign to the mission of Jesus Christ and his church. If you want to see them, you can click on these two links...

Please don't watch them if you are not an adult!

here

and here

and they'll take you to them. I have the time to research this. I bet the Archbishop had no idea of the true malice this group has for the church. It represents everything that is ugly about the pro-gay movement in the world and seems to cement for me why we shouldn't endorse this movement in any way. It's one thing to say that we shouldn't persecute people for any reason but this group is a great example of why we also cannot accept all movements as genuine and from the spirit. These are lost souls in need of contrition and they openly admit that they believe they want "guilt free" religion in the first video. They say that we just shouldn't feel bad about themselves. We believe all have fallen short of the glory of God.

Let us pray for the people of San Francisco and their Archbishop.

thoughts on the US Catechism of the Catholic church

I discussed chapters 2 through 5 of the US Catechism. It moves from revelation to the relationship of scripture and tradition to the definition of faith. It's moving us toward a study of the creed. The US catechism isn't as definitively connected to the creed as the universal catechism.

I was fascinated with the discussion that happened. We really discussed the chapters and I got them to talk. That never seems to happen in seminars. It was a lot of fun and I feel like I got an important point across, the difference between dogma, doctrine, and theological opinion. People learned a little theology. We clarified the importance of the Magisterium. And all people walked away a little better off.

Which was really good since one of my students died last night and I've had a lot of trouble dealing with it. He was a great young man and I will miss seeing him visit. It was hard to hear that and keep being a priest to everyone else. But they needed me to do that so I did what needed to be done and I'm thankful that God was there through it all.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God

My homily this weekend focused on the idea of thankfulness, which makes sense since the gospel was about lepers that were rather ungrateful. Nine received healing and never went back to thank Christ whereas one, a foreigner, went back to thank him.

I think one of the ways we thank God is in the little things. The phrase "Thank God!" is used more in sarcasm than any other. I suggested that students could thank God after a hard test, that adults could thank God before and after a hard day of work and we could all take the time to Thank God when we turn on and off the TV. I thank God that I remembered to post my homily, even if it's just the summary version.

Poor Jonah

One of my great challenges in ministry is to remember that, just because I've put aside a theological frustration, that doesn't mean others have. For example, the fact that God exists is unquestionable. I feel blessed to know that God exists because of the several ways God has reached out to me to show me his presence. And, the fact that evil exists doesn't nullify God's existence. Sometimes it means that we really don't understand evil and sometimes it means that human beings have free will. I mean, a student getting a bad grade on a test is not an example of real evil. I have trouble not mocking the student that asks why God would allow her to fail the test she just took. Maybe you should have studied harder? MAYBE THIS ISN'T YOUR GIFT!! God didn't give the same gifts to everyone. An evil is when something that should be present (a good) is lacking. Who says that you should have the ability to do advanced mathematics, or science, or theology?

But these are the times when I'm like Jonah. Jonah doesn't want the Ninevites to have the same faith that he has. He doesn't want to go through the arduous task of patiently helping them go from sin to faith. He wants the easy route; to go do what he wants to do. But God didn't just find someone else to be his prophet. He just kept pointing Jonah in the direction of Nineveh. Thank goodness God doesn't give up on me, even as an ordained priest. He reminds me all the time that there is much more that needs to be accomplished.

Two funerals and a first degree induction

My week began and ended with funerals. It was packed and crazy and reminded me of what a normal parish is like. And, in the middle, I was reminded of the beauty of the Knights of Columbus first degree induction.

There are times when priests think of our vocation in terms similar to the secualar world. We think that being a pastor is better than being an associate. And, for some reason, this week I've been falling into that trap instead of being satisfied with where I'm and what I'm doing now. Being an associate pastor has its advantages. It's hard to remember those and not think about the "freedom" that comes with being pastor.

Haggai the prophet

I was really struck by the fact that both yesterday and today had similar readings from this prophet. Yesterday dealt entirely with encouraging the Jewish People to rebuild the temple after their Babylonian Exile and today was meant to encourage them to continue the great rebuilding project.

Both readings were meant to encourage the people to keep building despite frustrations. Yesterday, the frustration was that they wondered if it was worth it. Is it worth rebuilding because

"You have sown much, but have brought in little;
you have eaten, but have not been satisfied;
You have drunk, but have not been exhilarated;
have clothed yourselves, but not been warmed;
And whoever earned wages
earned them for a bag with holes in it."

Translation: You built houses and had a great living and then it was torn asunder by the Babylonians. You probably feel like a failure.

Solution: You should build the house of the Lord so that God will be on your side as you rebuild your house. Worry about God before you worry about yourself.

Then, today, people are looking around and realizing things aren't in their former glory. The Temple, especially, is nowhere close to where Solomon intended it.

"Who is left among you
that saw this house in its former glory?
And how do you see it now?
Does it not seem like nothing in your eyes?"

Haggai reminds the people that God owned all the gold and silver that made that building in the first place. The real treasure in it is the glory of the Lord, the divine presence (Hebrew Shekinah) that will be there.

God wants, in both readings, to encourage his people not to give up when things seem hopeless. We all need to hear this and hear God say this to us.

I can't get this out of my craw...

Last night, Dr. Alveda C. King, niece of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Director of African American Outreach for Gospel of Life, spoke here at Iowa State. I heard it was a great speech but was unable, personally, to attend. I was a little disturbed to learn in this article that Dr. King was "disinvited" by the principal of one that she was scheduled to give in Des Moines. Here's a quote from the above article...

“Of course for public schools, any time there’s any discussion of a controversial issue like sex, religion, in the school, we want to give our parents the option of asking that their student not attend,” said Danielson, who reviewed a copy of the presentation this week. “Quite a bit of it does talk about civil rights, but there is a connection to morals and that’s the part... it was scheduled to take place during the school day, cutting into class time, and we just thought it was best to cancel it.”

I'm not convinced that the fact that there were moral statements involved was enough to get the principal to abandon this speech. There are rumors that a certain abortion advocate pressured her to cancel the thing and that Planned Parenthood, the industry leader of prenatal murder in this country, got its way. My understanding is that Dr. King points out the connection between Margaret Sanger's (founder of P.P.) own racist agenda (she advocated abortion to get rid of the less desirable members of society, which she connected to race) and the presence of Planned Parenthood in lower income areas of society.

It seems deas are never dangerous...until they thwart the opinions of the left. Then we need to shut them up.

A funny, pointless song

I love dogs. But, I heard this song on a new internet radio station and thought it was hilarious.

Again, I love dogs. But, seriously funny.

I SHOT YOUR DOG
by Fred Eaglesmith

Well, hello, neighbor. I been meaning to talk to you.
I been putting it off. It's something I gotta do.
I been living with a secret. Been keeping me awake.
There's just something I gotta say:

CHORUS: I shot your dog. He was on my property.
I thought he was a coyote, on the run.
I been missing some chickens, so I pulled the trigger.
I feel so bad 'bout what I done.

You don't have to say nothin'. I can tell how you feel.
I'd feel the same if it was me.
I'm awfully sorry. If I could make it up to you
In any way, tell me what to do. CHORUS

Got an old coon hound. If it'll make you feel better,
She's comin' in next week. You get the pick of the litter. CHORUS

Almost missing international talk-like-a-pirate day

Argh! Shiver me timbers.

Today is, of course, international talk like a pirate day. I heard it on a podcast that I listen to in the morning and then almost forgot entirely to do anything about it. I mean, I a person that always wears black! Dressing like a pirate is as hard as finding a fake peg leg, eye patch, and stuffed parrot for my shoulder. But, that's only have the battle. We also need to be able to talk like a pirate. That will happen at tonight's mass.

By the way, I'm very excited that season two of the greatest television show of all time is about ready to have its fall season kick off. Heroes begins at 8 on Monday and I'm excited that the executive producer's blog, a man named Greg Beeman, has this to say...

"The last episode of season 1 (Episode 23 “HOW TO STOP AN EXPLODING MAN”) wrapped shooting on last April 25, and aired on May 21st. Before that one was even finished shooting, our executive producers, Tim Kring and Dennis Hammer and Allan Arkush, were clear that we needed to come back strong in the second season – that we needed to give the fans more episodes, more episodes in a row without breaks, and shorter time between breaks."

I may never say a Tridintine Mass, but I'll never understand this...

Last night, I did a session on the US Catholic Catechism for Adults. I spent some time tonight catching up on some catholic news stories. I found this one about a bishop that has forbidden his priests from saying the Old mass in Latin, despite the permission of the Pope.

Law, in the catholic church, is meant to ensure people's rights and restrict people from trampling on the rights of others. This priest has the right to celebrate that mass. The bishop is trampling on that right because...because...uh...because the latin mass will destroy the faith of his people. No, that doesn't seem right.

Because the people would be damaged by not "understanding" the liturgy. Well, that's not necessarily true.

Because it doesn't fit the bishop's particular spirituality. Yeah. That sounds more correct.

He needs to read first Tuesday's reading.

A priest, A Rabbi, and a Minister...

Most of you probably are unaware that the gospel I just proclaimed could have been a lot shorter. You may wonder why it wasn’t, some asking with greater hostility than others. The church offers two forms for this particular gospel, a short form and a longer form. Up until the middle of Saturday morning, I was prepared to read the short form, which does not include the so-called story of the prodigal son, and preach about God’s forgiveness. My attitude was that we’ve already heard the story of the prodigal son a few months ago during Lent. I should read the shorter version to focus more attention on the two other parables. I mean, I know that I appreciate it when priests don’t do things that extend the liturgy too long. One of my biggest pet peeves is when I listen to a homily or reflection that seems to have about four or five different endings. By about the third, I’m tempted to stand up and say, “Okay! We get it! That’s enough!” So, if I figured that if I could get to the point a little quicker this week and sit down, we’d all be winners.

But then I read a darn commentary and it made me ponder the way this Sunday’s gospel connects the story of the prodigal son to the other two parables in a way that the Fourth Sunday of Lent doesn’t. You see, in the fourth Sunday of Lent, we simply hear the story of the Prodigal Son, or Forgiving Father as I like to say. But, this gospel attaches two stories onto the front of it, two stories that may shed more light on the last. You see, Jesus is setting up a pattern that he wants to highlight with this gospel, a pattern that we simply cannot hear without the introduction. In all three parables something is lost. In the first parable, the man lost a sheep. In the second, a woman lost a coin. In the third, a Father loses his Son, and a Son his family. In the first parable, the man searches for the sheep and finally finds it. So, too, the woman cleans her house and finds the missing coin. If she’s anything like me, she probably moved her sofa and found it underneath. And, even the Father gets his son back after he “comes to his senses.” In all three stories, the people rejoice and invite everyone else to rejoice.

But this is when there is a twist. This is when the gospel becomes similar to one of those jokes where a priest, minister, and rabbi that are abundant on the internet. Presumably, everyone celebrated with the man who found his lost sheep. And, even though it probably meant she spent more than she found, the woman had everyone at her “Lost Coin” party. But then there’s the poor Father who realizes not everyone is celebrating for his prodigal boy. His older Son is out sulking.

It’s not at all hard to understand. Someone who finds a lost animal just needs to be more careful with the animal next time. Don’t let him wander off. Put up a better fence. And someone who finds a lot coin should be more careful with their money. Buy a piggybank for goodness sake. But a lost son is a little trickier. What if his conversion is just a little too convenient? What if this son isn’t back to ask forgiveness from his Father but is, in truth, back to take the other half of his Father’s belongings and leave his Father dry? Are we being corrupted by the company we keep or helping them to come to their senses?

It’s hard to seek forgiveness but even harder to give it to others. But, both are integral aspects of our Catholic faith. We constantly pray the prayer, “…forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us…” But do we practice it? It’s easy to give up on people, to believe they are a lost cause. But, we wouldn’t give up that easily on a lost pet, let alone lost livestock. And would you stop looking for a lost paycheck? Probably not. But we probably all know people who seem to have given up on religion for one reason or another. Maybe they’ve been hurt and need someone to reach out to them with the healing touch of the Father that reached out to both his prodigal Sons. Or, maybe they’ve given into the life of dissipation that the Prodigal Son did, believing it more important to go to the bars on Saturday night and sleep in on Sunday than coming to church. Or maybe they’re so focused on work that they believe church would just be a waste of time. Maybe they’ve been gone for so long, they don’t even know how to come back anymore. We can get to the point that we just give up on them. We can sit around waiting for God to do something about them or we can hear the voice of God calling us from judgment to action, from sitting back believing our lives are in so much more in order than theirs to being willing to help them put the church back in their lives. The choice is ours. Will we help everyone celebrate at this eucharistic banquet or will we be happy with those that show up?

Being on youtube

So I found out that one of the families of a couple of kids that I baptized decided to put the video on you tube. You can follow this link to see part one...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NitadzTRYFk

It's in four parts but it really was a neat experience and one that, I hope, will lead more people to baptism. I've seen the boys once since then and I got big high fives from them as they came into church.