“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am meek and humble of heart;
and you will find rest for yourselves.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”

Mt 11:30

I love this reading today as my family and I leave for Creation Fest 2011; I really feel that I am taking a journey into the unknown to spend time with God.  When you read through the pages of the North Country Catholic there are many who are on a journey, who have answered "Yes" to Jesus' request to "Come to me". The recent Deaconate ordinations, the graduates of the Christian Formation programs, the young people who will be attending World Youth Day, the DRE's who attended the lastest CORE meeting at Guggenheim, young people dedicating their life to missions in other countries, and being missionaries to the young of our Diocese by being Camp Counselors. And the hard part is over, when we say YES and we get moving, the rest is easy if we have the key. Jesus gave us that key, he tells us to love God and love your neighbor as yourself, which means, that we put God first, we need not be afraid of anything, especially what others will think of us. We care for that person standing next to us, it doesn't matter what they need, we try to provide it, and we can't forget to love ourselves, learn to forgive ourselves and respect ourselves and offer ourselves a life in which God had designed for us. Anything less is breaking the commandment. Sometimes it is easy to do things for others, and inside live in a place where you can't find anything to praise God for. We can only bring forth from ourselves what we have. Let us pray for one another as we journey with God.

Jesus - Is that You?

We live in a world where if you can't see it, smell it, touch it, taste it, it doesn't exist. We live where everything can be analyzed and tested in order to find out what a thing is made from. Most of us watch magicians and the like, knowing that there is some kind of trick to it, now they are not "magicians" but they are "illusionists", because really it is all based on illusions. When you start thinking about it, it is very interesting where we human being are needing the no nonsense truth, and where we are ok to be duped -- each and every time. (I am not even going to list examples, because I am sure that you can think of a time when you were quite happy with your illusion of a situation, not really wanting to acknowledge the truth).

And so we find ourselves, grappling for meaning in our lives, and we find ourselves in a church. Looking up for answers, a sign, anything. And we get .... quiet.  Real quiet. We go to Mass, sometimes we are in a better than usual mood and we find ourselves actually singing along with the music leader. On a real good day, we will actually respond back the response of the responsorial psalm and join in with the prayers. And then it happens...we see the priest holding up this round wafer (hey that one is bigger than the one I get) and what goes on in your head? Does the word ... "Transubstantiation” come to mind?  How can we align our hearts and our heads at this moment when Jesus himself becomes present with us in this Church, and comes to love and to heal and to encourage us to fulfill God's purpose for us?  And the thing about this, is that if we go through the motions at Mass, and we never ask ourselves, do I believe in the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, the experience of Mass, and Church and community, will always be less than it could be, and what it could be is transformative.

The Eucharist is not a scientific fact, though I think that it could be proven that those who partake in the Eucharist often, are more apt to understand their relationship with themselves and the world better, that they experience more real joy, hope and peace. In John 20:29 Jesus says to Thomas, (the doubting one) "“Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”  For me Jesus words tell me a couple of things, that FAITH is needed to have a real relationship with Jesus, faith to know that He is with me at ALL times, in the happy and the sad, in the difficult and the easy. And that this faith helps me to realize that life is all mystery, I don't understand why the sun shines brightly, but I do not doubt that it will shine tomorrow when I lay down to sleep every night; I do not understand why someone will say just the right word to me to make me feel that I am understood. But it happens, everyday ... when I live in a way that is open to God's blessing and His grace.  I do not always feel the love of my child, but I know that it is there. The other thing that Jesus’ words tell me, is that blessed are we, who live in this world that continually tries to hide Jesus from us, blessed are we who are given the opportunity to rekindle the light of Christ in our Church! We are given the opportunity to SEE him again and to help others SEE Jesus, in you and me by how we move and have our being.

I KNOW that when I Eat of His bread, and Drink of His cup, I am changed, -- CHANGED! And when I am praying afterwards, I do not concentrate on the "WHY" or the “HOW” but I rejoice in the "THANK YOU", for the greatest gift that I could receive, that which will sustain me until He comes again in glory.

Monstrance Traffic

Monstrance Traffic, a photo by michael_swan on Flickr.

Making time for Jesus in our busy life through Eucharistic Adoration.

Eucharistic Adoration: Spending time with Our Lord

This week we concentrate on the Eucharist, the most holy realm in which we can become one with the risen Christ.  We come together as a Eucharistic people, and our parishes become alive in his Word and deed through the great sacrifice – Jesus’ death and resurrection believing that He is with us to the end of time. Parishes flourish when its members really believe in Jesus real presence in the Eucharist and for this gift of life to be holy present, each member must partake in the meal that is offered to us. For Jesus gave us His life, wholly, that we too might have life, and therefore the question is: What will we do for Jesus, in order for Him to be able to work, not only in our own lives but within our church and community.

As a young youth minister, with not much experience, I remember spending much of my time making church “fun”, having pizza parties and game nights, thinking that my job was to bring God into the world of young people. While we were having “fun” not much was changing for the young that were in my care. As I kept reflecting on this I began to realize that God WAS already in their world, that the change would come with the realization that the key was not to bring God to the young, but to bring the young to God and to raise the young out of everyday life -- to bring them to a place that they may know the peace and love of heaven. It was then that I began to understand the importance of offering the Eucharistic experience to the young through Eucharistic Adoration. It was only then, that lives began to change and the young people began to have a deeper love and appreciation for God’s ultimate gift to them.  Pizza parties and lock ins can be found anywhere, the Eucharist could only be provided through the church. This shift made all the difference to my ministry and most important all the difference to the kids I served.

In every parish, the gift of the Eucharist is given in a special way through Eucharistic Adoration, a Holy Hour dedicated to your relationship with God. It is not filled with song, or community prayers, it is filled with silence and an invitation for you to come closer to your loving Father in heaven. A moment from the distractions in life for us to better hear what God is saying to us. I urge you to attend a Holy Hour Adoration, and if that is not possible, to spend some time alone with God in your church with the Blessed Sacrament . . . listening.

I found a great website that can give you more information about how to spend your time with God through Holy Hour of Adoration. (http://www.therealpresence.org/eucharst/pea/holyhour.html)  This site gives a useful guide as to how to spend your hour; it suggests that you divide the hour into 4 – 15 minute sections

                                1 – Reflect on Jesus’ real presence in the mystery of the Eucharist

2 - Devote the time to thoughts and prayers of thanksgiving to God as you grasp the wonder of who is present Really: God is with us! the Emmanuel of Christmas.

3 – Dedicate to petition, talk to God about what you need, what is lacking in your life, especially spiritually, ask him to help you find your purpose and how to live a life worthy of that Sacrifice of the Eucharist.

4 -  Dedicate the last 15 minutes of the Holy Hour to atonement. Why atonement? A look into one's own conscience and the conscience of the world gives the answer. Reflect on how we are contributing to the sins of the world and ask for strength to become life giving in all we do.

Talk with a fellow parishioner who has experience with this devotion and let them be your teacher and your guide. The thing about Adoration, is that yes, you have to plan it into your schedule and you have to get yourself to the church, but just think of the happiness that God will have, because I believe that he smiles each time we give of ourselves to our relationship with Him.  See you at Adoration.

The Eucharist Makes Us Catholic!

  As we journey this week toward the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ on Sunday, we must reflect on what the Eucharist means to us. I think that it is hard for us to believe that this bread and wine that we partake in each Sunday (or at least have the opportunity to) is really Jesus. If we could wrap our minds around it, how would Sunday Mass and my life during the whole week be different? How would we act in our daily lives if we thought that on Sunday we would have a visit from Jesus himself, would we be more apt to live a life that he could be proud of? As a parent I often wonder if I taught my son well, so well that he would live our family values out in the world without me around. Does he live the values because he too understands and buys into them, or because he fears me? Do we sometimes live in a way that we think we can “sneak” around Jesus, like God is not with us every moment? I think that it is the same with our relationship with Jesus Christ. What would we do for Him? Because we have to remember that whatever we do in sacrifice for Jesus we obtain sevenfold for our own good through grace. Think about it, if today we are mindful of others, if we give what we can, if we are more gentle with the people God has given in our care, if we choose to do what is right, our life will be better -- not only our life, but the world will be better.

It is so important for us to remember that Jesus said, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever EATS this bread will live forever.” He didn’t say, “Whoever hangs out with me, will live for ever.” If we hang out with someone or something, it doesn’t really become a part of us, but when we eat something, that which we ate, is no longer visible, and the nutrients from the food enter each of our molecules in one form or another, and then we are different -- either healthy or not.  

We must get our heads and our hearts around this concept, that Jesus is present, really present, in the Eucharist, because the Eucharist, is one of those things that makes us REALLY CATHOLIC!  This week, attend a daily mass if possible, give Jesus a real try, consume Him and have Him consume you, walk this week like Jesus is standing next to you and that you are not alone. Make all decisions with Him.

Come back on Wednesday on ways to bring this into your parish!

Living Pentecost In Your Parish

It is no secret that our parishes are struggling. The decrease in the numbers of priests and religious is compounded by the fact that those who are sitting in the pews are there with a mentality that the church is suppose to serve them, and that someone else will get the work done. Our church has always had a strong foundation of people who would give up their lives for Jesus  Christ’s message, and that message would be brought across the land, fulfilling the commandment that Jesus had given his first disciples. Notice how I use the word “commandment” and not “request”. I don’t think that Jesus had any doubt when he spoke to the disciples that they may choose NOT to carry on His message. Today we live in a world that is much more concerned with “me” than with “us”. We do not think that we should be doing anything that we “have” to do, rather, we ask ourselves many questions and usually find in those questions an excuse not to do things that would make us uncomfortable. We have to remember that Jesus calls us and promises to “comfort” us, not make us “comfortable”. Jesus has already called us to spread this message through our Baptism, if you were baptized in the Catholic faith, it is now your duty to not only spread his message but to know the message. This is where we have a problem today; many, many young adults do not know their faith. We could spend a lot of time in the area of who is to blame, but if we choose to spend our time there, then we all miss out!

I urge you to take a look at what God is calling you to do. Not to ask in a superficial way, but to really get on your knees and ask and listen to what God is saying today. It is my opinion that it is an exciting time to part of the Catholic Church, the windows and doors are WIDE open to those who want to come in and use their talents and gifts for the good of God’s message. What is that message for you? Without taking the time to listen, you will never know. How do we take the message of Pentecost to our parishes? It is easy, your mission this week, is to have a conversation with your parish priest, how could you use your talents to help glorify God? Glorifying God is why we breathe! Our faith is not an “I” statement, it is a “we” commandment, the Church cannot complete its mission without you, no matter how unworthy, unqualified, unchurched you feel. Jesus did not find his followers in the temple, nor at the local library or school, he found them doing what they do each day, ordinary like you and I. There is no question as to “IF” God is calling you… HE IS! Think of a broken piece of glass, shattered on the floor, each and every piece is needed if the glass will once again be put to use, even the smallest piece. You are needed to put this back together.

As a Director of Religious Ed for my parish, I know that soon, your parish will be looking for volunteers. What will your answer be? Will you be part of the growth of your parish? Or Will you be a part of its death? Make a decision now!

Where Are You Going?

Image by Steve Snodgrass via Flickr

I just love the readings for this coming Sunday! Why? Because to me, they are unexpected. Here we have just celebrated Pentecost, this celebration of the coming of the Holy Spirit, we have just celebrated the birthday of the church, and the disciples have been commanded to go and spread the Good News all over the world! What a task to be given, from your Rabbi who has been crucified, risen from the dead, has continued to teach them post crucifixion, has been taken to heaven to be with the Father and just recently, all the disciples were together, all speaking different languages and more than 3000 were converted! Wow, and so I would think that next the scripture is going to have some big revelation of how to go about and convert the rest of the world (did the disciples know how big the world really was?). But instead, we have this kind of short Gospel reading, reminding us of Jesus’ mission in the first place. That He didn’t come to condemn the world, he came so that everyone would truly understand what their purpose was and really understand how much their Father in heaven loves them that He sent his son, to take our sins away from us, so that we would be free to live this promise that God had given, not only to us today, but to our father’s back to the beginning of time.  The first reading tells about Moses climb to Mount Sanai and how he finds God to be merciful and gracious, and Moses hopes that despite people being “stiff necked” that God finds favor and decides to join them on the journey.  The second reading, tells the people to “REJOICE” and to encourage one another, to agree with another and to meet each other with a “holy kiss”.  (Kind of sounds like my mother when she would find me and my siblings in an all out war!) And as you read these passages for this coming Sunday, (Fathers Day, btw) it does make so much sense, because I am sure that once the disciples got moving to spread the “Good News” there were different opinions on how to do it, where to do it, who could be a part of it, etc. and so how fitting that when you start a journey, it is important to take a moment to remember your purpose, what is your mission, where is it that you want to go? And as important, how are you treating those around you as you live out that mission, are you making sure that you take care of those around you, are you encouraging to others, are you meeting people with a holy kiss?  Are  you making sure that this “Good News” is being presented as “good”.  We have to remember that so many times, the Good News is translated more about our actions than our words.  Ask yourself what it means to be “stiff necked” and could this be used to describe you? Do you sometimes get so fixated on something and forget to pay attention to all that is going on around you?

So as we begin this week, let us reflect on our mission. We have been given the gifts, everything we need to make a change in the world, now, where are you going?

Talk to you Wednesday, when we discuss how to bring this message into your local parish.

Blessed are those who have not seen and yet beleived!

We live in a world where if you can't see it, smell it, touch it, taste it, it doesn't exist. We live where everything can be analyzed and tested in order to find out what a thing is made from. Most of us watch magicians and the like, knowing that there is some kind of trick to it, now they are not "magicians" but they are "illusionists", because really it is all based on illusions. When you start thinking about it, it is very interesting where we human being are needing the no nonsense truth, and where we are ok to be duped -- each and every time. (I am not even going to list examples, because I am sure that you can think of a time when you were quite happy with your illusion of a situation, not really wanting to acknowledge the truth).

And so we find ourselves, grappling for meaning in our lives, and we find ourselves in a church. Looking up for answers, a sign, anything. And we get .... quiet.  Real quiet. We go to Mass, sometimes we are in a better than usual mood and we find ourselves actually singing along with the music leader. On a real good day, we will actually respond back the response of the responsorial psalm and join in with the prayers. And then it happens...we see the priest holding up this round wafer (hey that one is bigger than the one I get) and what goes on in your head? Does the word ... "Transubstantiation” come to mind?  How can we align our hearts and our heads at this moment when Jesus himself becomes present with us in this Church, and comes to love and to heal and to encourage us to fulfill God's purpose for us?  And the thing about this, is that if we go through the motions at Mass, and we never ask ourselves, do I believe in the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, the experience of Mass, and Church and community, will always be less than it could be, and what it could be is transformative.

The Eucharist is not a scientific fact, though I think that it could be proven that those who partake in the Eucharist often, are more apt to understand their relationship with themselves and the world better, that they experience more real joy, hope and peace. In John 20:29 Jesus says to Thomas, (the doubting one) "“Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”  For me Jesus words tell me a couple of things, that FAITH is needed to have a real relationship with Jesus, faith to know that He is with me at ALL times, in the happy and the sad, in the difficult and the easy. And that this faith helps me to realize that life is all mystery, I don't understand why the sun shines brightly, but I do not doubt that it will shine tomorrow when I lay down to sleep every night; I do not understand why someone will say just the right word to me to make me feel that I am understood. But it happens, everyday ... when I live in a way that is open to God's blessing and His grace.  I do not always feel the love of my child, but I know that it is there. The other thing that Jesus’ words tell me, is that blessed are we, who live in this world that continually tries to hide Jesus from us, blessed are we who are given the opportunity to rekindle the light of Christ in our Church! We are given the opportunity to SEE him again and to help others SEE Jesus, in you and me by how we move and have our being.

I KNOW that when I Eat of His bread, and Drink of His cup, I am changed, -- CHANGED! And when I am praying afterwards, I do not concentrate on the "WHY" or the “HOW” but I rejoice in the "THANK YOU", for the greatest gift that I could receive, that which will sustain me until He comes again in glory.