24th Sunday of Ordinary Time – Deacon Bob’s Audio Homily

Posted on September 14, 2010 by Deacon Bob

Here, in mp3 format, is my homily from last weekend. Given my server limitations, I had to break the recording into two parts.

Homily Part One

Homily Part Two

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New Feature

Posted on September 13, 2010 by Deacon Bob

I have added a link to my homilies. You can find it to the lower right of this webpage entitled, “Attention! Deacon Bob’s Homilies” under the heading of “Other Pages to Explore.”  It is kind of difficult to see immediately, but I am still learning how to create a good webpage appearance.

Hope you find the link useful! I will try to add on a monthly basis.

Blessings!

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

“The True Measure of Humanity….”

Posted on September 10, 2010 by Deacon Bob

Pope Benedict XVI wrote the following in his encyclical Spe Salvi,

“The true measure of humanity is essentially determined in relationship to suffering and to the sufferer… A society unable to accept its suffering members and incapable of helping to share their suffering and to bear it inwardly through ‘com-passion’ is a cruel and inhuman society” (no. 38).

At the risk of sounding pessimistic, I do have a fear that more and more Catholic practitioners of health care are going to be in situations with employers/ organizations where upholding the Church’s teachings on the dignity of human life will be more and more difficult, and they will be needing to make decisions as to whether they may have to leave the profession or seek employ elsewhere.  Our society is growing increasingly unwilling to embrace suffering as redemptive, and instead see it as devaluing the person who is afflicted and intolerable to family members who are faced with the suffering of a brother, sister, mother or father.

People never lose their dignity, their inherent worth as unique persons loved by God and created in His image. They are denied at times the kind of respect that would affirm that dignity, but they cannot lose their God-given dignity.

More and more, we are quantifying dignity. We are trying to measure it, document it, ration it. It no longer is a given. It no longer has inestimable worth in the eyes of all.

Until we can come to see the suffering of others as windows into which we enter the very life of Jesus, we will avoid it at all costs, and consider those so afflicted as less than worthy of our full attention and efforts.

Suffering is never sought for its own sake. (It is a result of original sin.) To heal the sick and to be present to the dying are acts of charity to which we are called. Suffering can and should lead to a life of love.

That is what Jesus did, and would do today.

Posted in Ethics and Morality | 4 Comments

More on the Social Doctrine of the Church

Posted on September 9, 2010 by Deacon Bob

A few days ago I posted on the common good. The common good pertains, of course, to the Social Doctrine of the Church which saw a rapid development in the nineteenth century with the rise of the industrial society. Today, I would like to make a few comments on this Social Doctrine which aspires to right attitudes about earthly goods and socio-economic relationships.

Central to this social doctrine is the inherent dignity of the human person. All economic and social activity are meant to provide for the needs of human beings. Any social or economic activity that subordinates the basic rights of individuals and groups to the economic or social activity itself, is contrary to human dignity. Economic activity is not meant solely to multiply goods produced or profits earned. Thus, economic activity and social justice are closely related.

Human work is a duty for it is done to honor the gifts and talents God has given us. It is a form of prayer, and an expression of worship of God who orders the work of all humans in accord with his divine plan. In our work, we partially fulfill our potential. Thus, everyone has the right to economic initiative, i.e., to make legitimate use of his or her talents to contribute to the common good of all. The civil government must insure individual freedom and the right to private property, a stable currency and adequate public services so as to assure those who work will enjoy the fruits of their labor. Government also must insure that human rights are respected in the economic sector. 

Business has the obligation to consider not only legitimate profits, but more importantly, the good of the persons under their employ, and the impact their business activity will have on the economic and ecological environments in which they exist.

Access to employment must be open to all. A just wage is a moral requirement based in justice. To withhold it is a grave injustice. Workers have the obligation to contribute to the social security of other citizens, not just their own.

I will post more on this topic in the future. I find that many Catholics have no real understanding of the Church’s teaching in these areas. You will find that the Church is neither “conservative” or “liberal” in her social doctrine. She is both. Her teaching in this aspect of Christian living is extremely challenging for all of us.

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The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Posted on September 8, 2010 by Deacon Bob

Today is the feast Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This feast day, celebrated since the earliest days of the Church, especially in the East and then later in the West, is marker of sorts between the Old and New Testaments.

Between 600 – 700 AD, the faithful from the east (the Holy Land, present day Turkey and its environs, Syria, etc.) began migrating the the west. They were doing so because the Muslims were rising up in the east and occupying the land.  When the Christian faithful made this migration, they brought with them their liturgical practices and celebrations.  One of them was the celebration of the birth of the Virgin Mary, born to Sts. Anne and Joachim.

You may ask, “Why September 8th for this feast? What significance does this have?” Take a look at the calendar.  What day was it nine months ago? Answer:  December 8th, the feast of the Immaculate Conception, the day Mary was conceived without sin. The Church calculated that nine months after her conception, Mary was born.

In the Office today, Psalm 87 in the Office of Readings speak of God’s dwelling.  Truly, God created a perfect dwelling for his Son in the creation of Mary Immaculate. Take some time today, pick up your Bible, and pray over Psalm 87. It is a beautiful prayer that can be seen as descriptive of the Church as a whole, and Mary as the Mother of God.

Blessed Mary, ever Virgin, pray for us now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

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Quote for the Day

Posted on September 7, 2010 by Deacon Bob

“When our hands have touched spices, they give fragrance to all they handle. Let us make our prayers pass through the hands of the Blessed Virgin. She will make them fragrant.” — St. John Vianney, SFO

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Take It Up With God

Posted on September 6, 2010 by Deacon Bob

The pastor of the parish cluster to which I am assigned made the comment in the middle of his homily last Saturday that has just stayed with me since. I am pretty sure this wasn’t the line he was centering his homily around, but homilies have a way of striking different people in different ways.

He said, “Take it up with God!” 

There are many of us who think we can find a way around God’s law, or the “natural law”, both of which govern the essential matters of our lives. We do so by rationalizing, in other words, thinking in distorted ways. Our thinking gets distorted by our paying attention to unreliable sources of information in our outer and inner worlds. When that happens, our choices get misdirected and our passion for life unruly and disrupted.

Unreliable sources of information…… there are so many. How do you decide which news agency to read? How do you decide which doctor or dentist to consult? How do you decide which spiritual leader to follow? How do you decide which feeling you experience is trustworthy as a guide for action? How do you decide which career and vocation to pursue?

I, for one, try to make these decisions based upon the reliable witness of many before me, and by “taking it up with God.”

God had taught us for millennia that we are to worship him each and every Sabbath day, which for us Catholics means Saturday evening or Sunday. It’s not a man made law, it’s God’s law. If we have some rationalization for excusing ourselves from this law, no sense in blaming the pastor or deacon for informing us we are messing up; we didn’t make the law, God did. Take it  up with him.

If we don’t like the law that marriage is permanent and remarriage is impossible if your spouse is alive, don’t get mad at Father or Deacon, take it up with God; it is his law and we are bound to uphold it.

If we rationalize our way out of loving our enemies, we better not get mad at the Church for teaching us to forgive and have mercy; we better take it up with God.

My friends, to whom do you pay attention? Look to the witness of millions of people over the course of the ages. What have they said? Which Church has born this witness for over 2000 years? Maybe it has something to say about the direction of our lives. 

We cannot circumvent God’s law or the law embedded in our very human nature. Let us obey these laws, which in all frankness, are not that burdensome, especially in the face of the long-term consequences of not doing so.

Posted in Fundamental Theology, General Interest | 1 Comment

Quote for the Day

Posted on September 6, 2010 by Deacon Bob

“Want to know how to make God laugh? Tell him your plan.” — local parishioner

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Why Is It So Important to Teach Doctrine? Why Doctrine At All?

Posted on September 4, 2010 by Deacon Bob

Those of us who are charged to teach and preach the Faith need to accomplish two things:  touch the hearts of those who listen; and to teach the doctrine of Jesus and His Church.

Now, some are of the opinion that focusing on doctrine will turn away those who might be apt to listen without it; others are saying that if we don’t teach doctrine, we are dumbing down the Faith and leaving it as a sort of  pablum, or baby food for those who long for the truth.

Why is it so important to teach doctrine? 

Because the whole  purpose of doing so, in fact the whole purpose of doctrinal development, is love.

Love is the end to which all our preaching and teaching is oriented.

God is love.

To quote the Roman Catechism (Preface, 10): “The whole concern of doctrine and its teaching must be directed to the love that never ends. Whether something is proposed for belief, for hope or for action, the love of our Lord must always be made accessible, so that anyone can see that all the works of perfect Christian virtue spring from love and have no other objective than to arrive at love.” 

What this is saying to us deacons, priests, bishops, catechists, parents and religious men and women is that our teaching and preaching must touch the hearts of all who hear us but in doing so, those affections of the heart must then be directed toward him who is truly good, Jesus, so that in him we may be taken up into the Trinitarian life of God himself.

To arouse the affections of love and piety in the people but then to leave them without the direction of doctrine is to abandon the people to their own devices. Many will get lost. Isn’t this what is happening today with so many wandering away from our Catholic faith following other paths that will ultimately lead them to dissatisfaction and unhappiness?

We speak to their hearts to arouse dormant spiritual and intellectual energy; we teach doctrine to show them the way. If we arouse without direction, we are poor shepherds. If we teach doctrine without first having touched the heart, we are philosophers, not shepherds, who can be freely contradicted.

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Deacons at Work, Evangelizing

Posted on September 3, 2010 by Deacon Bob

I ran across a splendid website today, www.thecatholiccafe.com 

Deacon Jeff Drzycimski of the diocese of Memphis hosts this site, which includes a number of interesting podcasts. He is also featured on www.relevantradio.com

You won’t be disappointed with the time you spend with the downloadable resources he makes available.

Thanks, Deacon Jeff!

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Quote for the Day

Posted on September 2, 2010 by Deacon Bob

If God lets you fall in some weakness, it is not to abandon you, but only to establish in you humility and make you more careful in the future.” — St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, OFM Cap.

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The Three Essential Elements of the Common Good

Posted on September 1, 2010 by Deacon Bob

In Catholic social teaching you will read and hear a lot about “the common good.” I think many misunderstand what this term means. Let me try to clarify.

Turning to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), you will find this definition: “By the common good is to be understood ‘the sum total of social conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to reach their fulfillment more fully and more easily’ (Gaudium et Spes 26) The common good concerns the life of all….” (CCC 1906)

Thus, the common good are all those conditions of life necessary for individuals and communities to reach their natural fulfillment. You could probably fill in the blanks as to what those conditions may be, given your own experiences in living in our contemporary world. What we as individuals may need as “goods” can only be known in relationship with the “goods”  common to all people, and the common good of all people must be defined in reference to the human person. (CCC 1905)

The Catechism teaches us that there are three essential elements of the common good.

The first is respect for the human person. Those in authority and society in general must respect the fundamental and inalienable rights of the human person, and should permit each of us to fulfill our vocations in life, including the right to act in conformity with one’s well formed conscience. It is here, in the area of respect for the human person, that those of us in the Americas and in Europe and other 1st world countries are especially challenged.

The second is the social well-being and development of the group. Those in authority are called to arbitrate in the name of the common good, between various interests, but always making accessible to each person what is truly needed for a human life. It is here where many third world countries most especially struggle.

The third is peace. By this, those in authority have the obligation to obtain and sustain stability and security found in justice, protecting society as a whole and the individual person.

As the Catechism tells us, “The common good is always oriented towards the progress of persons. ‘The order of things must be subordinate to the order of persons, and not the other way around.’ This order is founded on truth, built up in justice, and animated by love.” (CCC 1912)

The last sentence regarding truth, justice and love will be the topic of future posts.

Posted in Catechism of the Catholic Church | 2 Comments

Quote for the Day

Posted on September 1, 2010 by Deacon Bob

“There is no more authoritative book to teach us how to grow in God’s love than the book of Jesus crucified.” — St. Maximilian Kolbe, OFM Conv.

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Wisdom of our Elders

Posted on August 30, 2010 by Deacon Bob

I was listening to a television rerun last night.  The scene was a room full of nursing home residents who had been essentially “dumped” into the facility by family.

A few of them commented, “People treat animals better than us. Why do people care more for their animals than their elderly? If they treated their pets like they are treating us, they would be in trouble.”

Then a lone senior voice from the group said, “Because they don’t like themselves.”

Because they don’t like themselves.

That comment struck me. 

Now please believe me that I love animals. I grew up with them and have had many for pets. I abhor animal abuse and neglect. I am extremely concerned about our environment and how we are misusing the Earth. Those are topics for future posts.

But I have often wondered why it is that some who champion animal rights, who are most vocal in treating  pets like family members and who are the most ecologically minded of us also stridently advocate abortion on demand,  rationing medical care for the elderly, and clearly but indirectly imply that the old, the senile, the handicapped have less to offer and thus possess less value than the young and vigorous.

Is it because they don’t like themselves?

Do abortion advocates like their fertility?

Do euthanasia proponents like their longevity in the face of human illness?

Do those who ignore and abandon the elderly like their own mortality?

Have we as a society grown to dislike ourselves?

Are these moral and social evils due in part at least to a lack of self-acceptance?

This ultimately is a test of our faith. We who believe in the redemptive power of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection — if we truly believe — can really only be a people of  joy and gratitude. How can we  dislike ourselves if we have within us God’s presence and love? How can we treat others as less than human when we believe that in them we are called to see Jesus himself?

Posted in Ethics and Morality, Human Development and Life | 4 Comments

Quote for the Day

Posted on August 29, 2010 by Deacon Bob

“If the Lord gives you some prosperity, not only should you humbly thank him, but be well aware to not worsen your situation by vainglory or in some other manner; be aware, in other words, to not enter into conflict with God by offending Him with His own gifts.” — St. Louis of France, Acta Sanctorum Augusti 5 (1868), 546 (My translation of an Italian text.)

I find it an interesting point for meditation: How we can offend God by not giving back to Him the gifts He has given us. We fail to give those gifts back to Him in many ways, but one way for certain is by not humbly recalling from Whom we received them, by vainly claiming authorship of those gifts and talents that we possess through God’s generosity and wisdom.

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