Luke 14:12-14 Feeding Your Faith

Luke 14:12-14  Feeding Your Faith

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On a Sabbath Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees.  He said to the host who invited him, “When you hold a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends… or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors, in case they invite you back and you have repayment.  Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you.”

Reading books on prayer is not the same as praying.  Knowledge of God is not enough to fall in love with God.  We must experience God.  How?  It’s simple, extraordinarily simple. 

If I want to increase my faith, then I must take a leap of faith.  The best part about believing is the surprises that come from faith.   

Every morning I reflect on God’s Word:  His Son and Scripture.  I translate the Lord’s words into my words and the Lord’s actions into my actions.  This is my Morning Prayer and daily bread, and this is what I will give to my parishioners and students.  This is how I increase my faith.  This is how I take a leap of faith.

Recently, at a high school retreat, while the kids where in adoration, a student came up to me and asked for some advice regarding a friend.  I told her that she should go back to adoration, look for her friend and surprise her friend by giving her a hug.  She wasn't sure about my advice.  Well, as soon as she left I left. 

The next day, she came up to me and told me what happened.  As soon as she went back to adoration, her friend came up to her and gave her a hug.  She couldn't believe it.  She couldn't believe that the Lord had told her friend what I had told her. 

Her faith grew that day.  It became alive for the first time in a long time.  

When you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind.  The Lord loves to keep us on our toes, our tippy-toes.  He loves to keep us in suspense.  He loves to throw curve balls at us.  Just when we think we are getting the hang of this Christian stuff, the Lord encourages us, to go one step further, by challenging us.  He loves to challenge our pre-conceived notions by turning our world upside down.  He loves to challenge our love out of love for us.  He does so because, like He told Martha, He wants us to experience the better part; the part about trusting God above all our fears and tribulations and finding the surprise at the bottom of it.   

When was the last time you were surprised by your faith?  If it has been a while, then it means you’re going through the motions:  you're going to Church out of a debt to pay.  It means you're just praying out of an obligation or habit.  And if you're praying out of habit, then you're praying with your mind only and not with your whole body:  mind, heart and soul. 

The commandments are not so much an obligation as they are a prescription.

In today's Gospel, the Lord is not offering us a quick tip to holiness or some “techniques” to rise in stature and in respect.  He is encouraging us to make the most out of life; to learn from the blind, the poor and the crippled.  There is so much to learn outside of school.  There are so many friends to be made outside of my circle of friends.  There is so much more to this world than the places and things I can see, or walk to or buy.  There is so much more to love than my carnal desires. 

There are so many better things in my life than in whom or what I like.

Because of our lack of faith, we have this undesirable tendency to work with the undesirable to make ourselves more desirable.  In other words, we have a tendency to do things for ourselves even when we are doing things for others. 

The Lord is telling us that that is not Christian.

Kids struggle with their faith because they never get a chance to experiment with their faith.  Parents can help their children by encouraging their children to take a leap of faith.   For example, if your child wants to have a birthday party, then encourage him/her to not only invite their friends, but also to invite some people who would never imagine being invited by him/her.   See what happens next.  Try it.  Take a chance. 

If you think about it, the problem with most of our parents and kids today is that they resort to sinning rather than believing.  They are more than willing to take a chance at breaking the commandments (and getting what they want) than take a chance and living by the commandments (and get what God wants).  So they never really get a chance to experience God in their lives or know Him by heart or above all things because they are constantly placing themselves and their fears in His place.

If you want your children to experience God in their lives, then you must show them the Way.  It’s not enough to just teach them "the faith".  Rather, you have to inspire them to His words and actions by your decisions, inspirations, suggestions, mercy, compassion, understanding and unconditional love.  To achieve this, you must continue reflecting on your faith and feeding your faith on God’s word and God’s body.

Luke 13:18-21 Young and Humble

Luke 13:18-21  Young and Humble

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Jesus said, “What is the Kingdom of God like?  To what can I compare it?  IT is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in the garden.  When it was fully grown, it became a large bush and the birds of the sky dwelt in its branches.”

Yesterday, I received a card from a couple who have been trying hard and praying hard to have a baby for some time now.  It finally happened.  The card read:  “It’s a baby!”  At first it struck me as odd that it didn’t read “It’s a girl” or “It’s a boy.”  But after a while, I finally got it.  They could care less what sex their child was.  They were just happy to have a baby.

Babies are cute.  People love to be around them.  It doesn’t matter what they do in front of us or to us.  They can burp in our face.  They can poop in our arms.  They can throw up all over our shirt.  It doesn’t matter what they do.  Nothing they say or do could ever wipe away the joy in our heart or the smile from our face. 

But when babies grow up, they’re not so cute.  Why is that?  Why do kids become so ugly?  It has nothing to do with their physical size or physical appearance.  it has everything to do with their selfishness. 

When the Lord describes the Kingdom of God as being the size of a mustard seed, what he is describing is not so much its physical dimensions but rather its spiritual conditions.  The reason why the Kingdom of God is so small and so great is because God makes himself small so as to be great.  It is the reason why the Lord said:  If you wish to be great, you must make yourself small. 

Babies get everything they need and want and even more.  Why?  Because they ask for nothing.   I keep telling our school kids that if they want to get more from their parents they need to stop asking for more.

I know some parents who are very "concerned" about their kids because they never ask for anything.  So what do they do?  They keep giving them more and more.  Their kids know the secret.  One student never asked for a car and got a car.  One student never demanded more freedom and got more freedom. 

Interested? 

The rule is simple:  If you want to be loved, then start loving.  If you want to be great, then start serving.   If you want to receive, then stop asking and start giving.

If you think about it, the Lord does not demand much from us, except to love Him and to love our neighbor.  Oh, I forgot.  He also asks us to give Him our sins so that He can give us His love.

Be subordinate.  In his letter to the Ephesians (Eph 5:21-33), St. Paul challenges Church leaders to be “subordinate to Christ”.  He goes one step further and challenges members of the Church to be “subordinate to one another”.  He then demands wives take a leap of faith by being “subordinate to their husbands in everything.”  But like everything St. Paul writes, he demands that we do what we do just like Christ did for us.  It is not enough to love.  We need to love as Christ loves us.

The Church is a “sacrament” of the Body of Christ.  Christians are a “sacrament” of Christ’s continual presence in the world.  Husbands are a sacrament of Christ’s unconditional love and sacrifice for His bride (the Church). 

There is no demanding in any of these relationships, only giving of oneself and dying to self.  These are the conditions that make all relationships possible, powerful, beautiful, amazing and ever young and new… like a new born baby.

Like a child, the Kingdom of God will grow from a small mustard seed to a burning bush, but only if it remains forever young and humble of heart.

Luke 10:1-9 Clearing The Way

Luke 10:1-9  Clearing The Way

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The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two disciples whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit.  He said to them, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.”

He was driving home from a football game.  His team had lost (like always) and he was in a bad mood.  Instead of taking the normal (safe) route home, he decided to take a different route.  It was late at night when he noticed a woman on side of the road.  She was waiting.  She was a prostitute. 

This young man, a senior in high school, lived under very strict rules at home.  Although he never complained, he was a bit resentful of his life.  As he was speaking to me, he reminded me of the eldest son in the parable of the Prodigal Son.  Yes, he was a solid Christian man.  He went to church on Sunday.  He prayed before meals.  He was respectful to his elders.  He kept his virginity.  But he wasn’t happy.  He felt like his family was keeping him from the best things in life!

He decided to turn into an abandoned lot.  He stopped the car.  She walked up to it.  He rolled down the window.  He looked at her.  She looked at him.  But when she looked at him, he felt as though she looked right through him.  She smiled at him, shook her head and said to him, “No.  You shouldn’t be here.  This is not for you.  Go home.”

He took off, ashamed of himself and crying as he had never cried before.  A prostitute had saved his soul.

Maybe she was an undercover cop.  Maybe she was a real-life prostitute.  But no matter what, this young man will never forget what happened to him that night. 

Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your Kingdom (cf. Psalm 145:12).  Paradoxically, morals, values and principles are black and white.  People are not.  What is right or wrong is clear.  That people are good or bad is not. 

Of course, much of who we are is connected to what we do.  But instead of focusing on what we do, the Lord focused on who we are.  This is why the Lord was so successful in converting the sinner.  He was able to look beyond the sin and see the broken heart behind every “Sinner”.  By healing the heart, he eliminated the bleeding, the sinning. 

I chose you from the world, to go and bear fruit that will last.  No matter what state of life I am in, I can give glory to God.  No matter what I have done, I can give glory to God.  No matter what work I do, I can give glory to God.  No matter what I have or where I am, I can give glory to God.  No matter how sinful I am, I can give glory to God.  For God chose the weak to make the strong look weak. 

He chose us (the weak) to carry his work along.    

So what do you work for?  Who do you work for? Who’s your boss?  Do you work for heaven and earth or just for earth?  Do you work for God and man or just for man?  When was the last time you invited someone to go to Church with you?  Never??? 

“Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals; and greet no one along the way.”  Leave behind your pride (money = security), your vanity (sandals = image), and your sensuality (greetings = seeking approval).

What I must do is pretty clear.  Who I am is not so clear.  Let’s make it all a lot clearer by clearing the Way of the Lord. 

Mk 10:17-30 Money and Happiness

Mk 10:17-30  Money and Happiness

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Peter began to say to [Jesus], “We have given up everything and followed you.”  Jesus said, “Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the gospel who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age…”

 “Money does not make people happy.”   I agree.  But I know what you are thinking:  “Father, that’s easy for you to say since you don’t have much money.”  Okay.  I admit it.  But don’t take my word for it; take the word of those who had money and gave it all away. 

Millionaire gives away fortune that made him miserable.  That’s the newspaper title.  Mr. Rabeder, 49, an Austrian businessman, is more than just ready to give his money away.  He’s actually doing it, and doing it quickly.  What made him decide to do it; to give it all and rid himself of all his material wealth and luxuries?   

“For a long time I believed that more wealth and luxury automatically meant more happiness.  I came from a very poor family where the rules were to work more to achieve more material things, and I applied this for many years.  But more and more I heard the words:  ‘Stop what you are doing now – all this luxury and consumerism – and start your real life.’  I had the feeling that I was working as a slave for things that I did not wish for or need.” 

The tipping point came while he was on a three-week holiday with his wife to Hawaii.

“It was the biggest shock in my life, when I realized how horrible, soulless and without feeling the five star lifestyle is”, he said.  “In those three weeks, we spent all the money you could possibly spend.  But in all that time, we had the feeling we hadn’t met a single real person – that we were all just actors.  The staff played the role of being friendly and the guests played the role of being important and nobody was real.”

If you think he’s nuts, then I have another one for you.

“Kwik Save” tycoon gives up riches in “pact with God”.  Here’s another headline from a United Kingdom newspaper.  As a young boy, Albert Gubay, was a penniless orphan.  One day, he prayed to God saying, “Make me a millionaire and you can have half of my money.”  A devout Roman Catholic, Gubay became a multi-millionaire.  Just recently, he decided to fulfill his vow to God, but not exactly.  Instead of giving just half of it away, He has decided to give all his money to the Catholic Church.  In fact, he is only holding on to ten million dollars for him and his wife. 

Are they all nuts?  No.  They are not.  They are prudent.  They know a better deal when they see it.  They know the truth.  We should know it too by now.  Money does not make you happy.  Giving it away does!

How do I want people to remember me?  Do I want them to remember me for what I had or what I did?  Or do I want them to remember me for how I loved?  That is the million dollar question.  Actually, this is the rich young man’s question.  The Lord answers his question with an invitation:  Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven.”

Do you want people to treat you well because you have money?  Do you want people to love you because of what you have?  Or do you want to be loved for who you are and how you love?

Thank you very much!  Do you know the song, “Thank you very much!  Thank you very much!  That’s the nicest thing that anyone’s ever done for me.”  Do you remember what musical it comes from?  From Charles Dickens, “A Christmas Carol”, and it is sung by a man who owed Ebenezer Scrooge a lot of money.  He was thanking poor Ebenezer…for dying!

Price of Privilege.  I recently finished a book entitled, “The Price of Privilege” by Dr. Madeleine Levine, PhD.  Although I disagree with her on some of her recommendations, I cannot disagree with her on the statistical data and the clinical facts related to the problems she has seen. 

Many of Dr. Madeleine’s patients are teenagers from affluent households with excellent grades in school, extracurricular involvement and an appearance of thriving in their environment.  But they are suffering from debilitating neuroses, such as anxiety, depression, drug addiction, anorexia and self-harm.  In many affluent communities, external accomplishments such as prestige, power, and money for adults, or grades, clothes and electronics for kids, become more important than happiness.  Children in such communities are more likely to suffer from psychological problems then those who do not.

But money is not the problem; it's the problems that it creates.  And the problem is achievement pressures and emotional isolation from parents. 

Dr. Levine reports that a mother’s own happiness is the key to raising healthy kids, and found that there is an unexpectedly high rate of depression, anxiety, substance abuse, loneliness, and overall unhappiness among mothers of affluent households!  This is damaging to the children as well as to the mother.

How do I want my children to remember me?  For my drinking and drug-related problems? For how I "entertained" them and guests? For what I accomplished or had?  For how flawless I appeared before others? Or for how I loved them?   

The Lord invited the rich young man to follow him and to be happy.  Instead, the poor man decided to walk away sad…“for he had many possessions.”

How many of you feel as though people like you just because of the influence you have or for what you have?  I am sure the rich young man was surrounded by people who were looking to get something out of him:  special favors, privileges, acknowledgments, positions, money, etc. But unlike the people surrounding him, the Lord was not looking to get something from him.  In fact, He didn't want anything from him.  He just wanted him.   

The same goes for us as well.

Mk 10:17-30 Sell What You Have, Come Follow Me

Mk 10:17-30  Sell What You Have, Come Follow Me

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As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”  …Jesus answered him, “You know the commandments…”  He replied and said to him, “Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth.”  Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, “You are lacking in one thing.  Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.”  At that statement his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.

Not too long ago, I was speaking to someone at Toys R’ Us.  They were telling me that board games are becoming a thing of the past.  Very few kids buy them or even ask for them these days.  Instead, electronic counsels and games are hot sellers and cool items. 

But afterwards I asked myself if kids really thought electronic games were better than board games, or if they thought they were a better substitute to an unfortunate reality:  that they only play by themselves; that they never get a chance (or have the time) to play - just play - with their friends or family.       

Today, I spent a lot of time at our Autumn Fair.  I didn’t see a single electronic game or a single sad face among the children.  Why?  Because they were having a ton of fun!

I admit, there was a truck that had every single conceivable electronic game available in it for them.  But I am glad to report to you that while there was light, there was hardly anyone playing.  And I am so glad!   Because our kids, young and old, were having a great time being with their friends and family. 

The activities and food that were at the Fair were pretty much the same games and food I had when I was a child.  A Fair is a Fair and kids are kids who love to be kids as long as they are allowed to be with other kids.  It’s not "what-you-have" that matters, but "who-you-are-with" that counts.

I suspect the rich young man had everything he ever wanted, except for the things that money could never buy.  I wonder if over the years, he had allowed himself to substitute healthy and holy relationships for hard work and possessions.  Maybe he had allowed himself to be defined by others for what he had and what he did, and never for who he was.  And as the rich young man could never imagine for a moment gaining heaven (happy) by having less, neither could he imagine following the Lord by giving up his very own priorities, paradigms, thoughts, work, dreams and aspirations. 

From today’s Gospel passage, it’s clear to see that our possessions have a tendency to keep us away from a real relationship with the Lord, as well as with others. 

The Lord asked this “poor” man a conscience building or conscience busting question:  Do you want your possessions to define your relationship with me?  Do you want your thoughts, dreams and aspirations to define your will over me?  Or do you prefer to have a real relationship with me, based strictly on who I am and who you are?

We all need fellowship.  We were made for it as well as for the Lord.  A few nights ago, I watched a movie with a family.  It was called, “Pirates:  A Band of Misfits”.  I loved the movie for just one scene.  It was the scene in which Charles Darwin was describing his latest scientific discovery and writing it in his journal.  Suddenly, he stopped writing.  He looked up, looked sad, and proceeded to write, “I will never kiss a woman.”  I laughed!!!  Finally!  A movie screen writer wrote honestly about the very human Charles Darwin.

Man was created for fellowship.  He was not created to hold on to things or to study many things.  He was created to love and be loved.  And although the rich young man knew that something was missing in his life; unfortunately, he couldn’t remember exactly what it was.  He knew his possessions were not enough for eternal life (for God), but he was too afraid to lose them in order to find himself and God. 

Sell what you have, and come follow me.  Why must I sell what I have to follow the Lord?  What’s the connection?  It’s our fellowship in Christ’s life.

The Lord did not want this young man to follow Him and then be “known” or “defined” for his great wealth and possessions.  After all, that's not how the Lord is remembered at all.  Instead, the Lord wanted this young man to be known and defined for his great generosity towards the Father…just like Him; and for tremendous sacrifice for the Father…just like Him; and for giving everything away for heaven’s sake…just like Him. 

The Lord wanted the rich young man to become poor so as to become rich…just like Him.  He wanted him to be defined not by what he had or by what he did, but by how he loved.

So do not allow your possessions to define who you are! 

Summary:  May I never allow my possessions - whether material, psychological or sinful - to define who I am.  I will not allow my possessions to possess me!  I refuse to sell myself to follow others.  Instead, I will sell what I have to follow the Lord and love others. 

Luke 11:1-4 Is God A Reality?

Luke 11:1-4  Is God A Reality?

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Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.”  He said to them, “When you pray, say:  Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.  Give us each day our daily bread and forgive us our sins for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us, and do not subject us to the final test.”

A few weeks ago, I went to a volleyball game at Bishop Lynch.  I was invited by a student at John Paul II High School that used to attend my old school and parish, St. Joseph.  While I was watching this awesome kid play against Bishop Lynch, a former student of mine, from St. Monica and who now attends Bishop Lynch, sat next to me and we began to talk.  [I hope you are not confused…as you can see, I’ve been around!]

At a certain point in our conversation I mentioned to my companion that John Paul II had a very good volleyball team.  This student looked over at me and said, “Now Father, is that school named after a Pope?” 

Now, I am not about to blame St. Monica for failing to teach this child the faith.  Nor am I about to blame any teacher for not having taught this child.  What I will say is the following:  no parent can expect a school to teach their child everything.  Parents must be the first educators of their children in what to believe, in how to live and in how to pray.  In fact, the Church proudly calls the family the domestic Church, the place where a child experiences the love and affection of God as Father, Mary as our Mother and Jesus as our brother.

Is this happening?  The data has been rolling in for years now and the results don’t look good at all.

Bishop Farrell, in a gathering of priests, mentioned that only 1% of college students attend Church.  The stats are no better for kids who attended Catholic High Schools.  That’s not good, and there is no excuse for such poor results.  The question is:  Why?

Recently, the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, told a group of more than 260 cardinals, bishops and priests that “being tepid is the greatest danger of Christians.”  How fitting. 

Just yesterday, someone wrote a comment to me that I should give the benefit of the doubt to a young man that did not look me in the eyes or greet me as I walked by him.  [He was waiting for his school bus to take him to his Catholic school.]  So, instead of just walking by him, I decided to stop next to him (actually, I stood in front of him and pretended to “pray to him” - as if I were praying in front of a statue of a saint).  I thought that was a funny way to break the ice, and it kind of - sort of - did.

One commentator wrote, “Well, Father, maybe he is shy.  I was terribly shy when I was a child…Maybe he is scared of priests.  Let’s give him the benefit of the doubt.”  Now, this writer made me think, and think hard about what I was writing. I thought, “Maybe he is shy.  Maybe he is afraid of priests.”  But then I asked myself, "Wait a second, would this have changed anything I did?"  No!  Not at all.  And that is the point of the Holy Father’s speech to cardinals, bishops and priests:  We cannot be tepid or timid in proclaiming the Good News to anyone.

We are so concerned about being wrong that we end up doing little-to-nothing that is holy or right or good.

Let's never give anyone the “benefit of the doubt” when it comes to knowing Jesus Christ.  Why?  Because I prefer to be wrong about someone’s shyness than to be shy about Jesus Christ. 

We cannot ignore the data that is coming in.  We cannot ignore the fact that High School students are a scarcity in our Masses. Why should I think that everyone belongs to the 1% when chances are they belong to the 99%? 

What is there to lose when we reach out?  Let’s say I was wrong and this child was very spiritual and loved Jesus and the Church but was shy.  What would have happened?  Nothing.  If he had lost his faith then he had no faith.  Most likely, he would have laughed and said, “Funny Father”.  But what would have happened if I was being ignored because he had little or no faith?  A lot!  And just maybe I would have wiped a tear, healed a bruise, and chipped away a piece of ice that was surrounding his faith.

“Being tepid is the greatest danger of Christians.” 

Often, I hear parents say, “Well, a lot of teenagers lose their faith in High School and College but most of them come back to it when they are older.”  Now that’s as reassuring as a doctor giving me the prognosis that only 9 out of 10 die from the disease I have. 

The fact that 99% of Catholic High School and College students do not attend Mass, or that most will come back to Church later in life is not at all reassuring to me.  It should not be to any Christian parent either.  As for me, I will not leave it to chance or give the benefit of the doubt to anyone.  I will go out and do whatever it takes to win souls for Jesus Christ.  And by the way, humor is a great way of breaking the ice.

Why are people so afraid to share the Good News with others?  Well Father, they aren’t ready to hear it.  No one is ever ready to hear it.  But we all need it.  The Holy Father asked his audience a question:  “Is God a reality or not?  Why is he silent?”

The answer he gave is the point of today’s meditation:  Because we have done everything possible to keep Him out!  We have made every possible excuse to be silent about Him.    

Luke 10:38-42 Lord, Do You Not Care?

Luke 10:38-42  Lord, Do You Not Care?

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Martha, burdened with much serving, came to Jesus and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving?  Tell her to help me.”  The Lord said to her in reply, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things.  There is need of only one thing.  Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.”

Lord, do you not care?  The Lord cares…that I know.  But I’m not convinced that He cares so much about what we care so much about.  While we stress over a lot of things that maybe are just not worth stressing about, we don’t stress enough what we should be stressing.

Forget for a moment that Martha is working hard in preparing and serving a meal.  Let’s, for a moment, imagine that Martha is a 21^st century woman, wife and mom who doesn’t prepare or serve a meal but rather stresses over picking the right nanny to tend to her only child.  Lord, don’t you care that I pick the right nanny? Now of course I can’t speak for the Lord, but my gut instinct tells me He really doesn’t care.  Or let’s take for a moment our full-time working man who thinks he's a part-time dad and husband.  He puts in extra hours on Saturday and Sunday to get that big promotion at work.  Lord, don’t you care that I make more money than I really need?  Again, I can’t speak for the Lord, but I think it’s a sure bet that He doesn’t really care.   

There is a school for young children in Dallas that by the name of it I thought at first was a French pastry shop.  But then one morning I was surprised to see so many kids getting dropped off to get a pastry, and right before school!  I inquired and found out that my little “French pastry store” was actually an American’s ingenious business plan to start up a very expensive school for the snobbish and lonely children of the very rich and far too busy parent.

Recommendations written by school parents reinforce what I just said:

“If not my wife or I…then [this school]...as slightly (maybe overly) protective parents, we looked at EVERY option. Nanny’s, babysitters, daycares, half days, half weeks, full weeks…Far and away the best decision was [this school].

They stressed.  They looked at every option, except the obvious one; that is, that they downsize to allow someone to stay home and be the most important person in their child's life; that is, the first educators of love, faith and values to their own God-given and precious child. 

Another stressed-out parent writes:  “Our daughter has attended [this school] since she was 7 months and she’s now almost 4 years old.  [This school] has exceeded our expectations and prepared her so well for Pre-K.  I highly recommend [this school] This is not a daycare but the first steps into education.”

Yes, before your child can take his or her first physical steps, they need to be taking their first cognitive steps “into” education, Pre-K. 

Now, I've always understood how some poor families could not afford to have one parent stay home.  But the fact that rich families cannot afford to either is very confusing to me. By the looks of it (and commentaries), it seems as though rich parents are stressed just as much over the right educational options for their child as poor parents are stressed over the lack of options for their child.  Everyone seems to be stressed out, regardless of whether or not they are rich or poor.  So maybe poverty and wealth have nothing to do with stress but being over-ambitious and selfishness do?

This might explain why so many children are on medication for anxiety and stress.  It’s not because their parents are rich or poor, it’s because their parents stress over the wrong things.

We should all take a trip to Finland where children start their education at the age of seven and don’t seem to worry so much about keeping up with other Fin’s.

I don’t think toddlers need teachers to learn skills or a foreign language like French by the time they can pick their nose.  [Of course, there is a French way to pick one’s nose…if you did not already know.]  I think toddlers need their mom and dad to take care of their bloody nose.

Does the Lord care about this?  I don’t think so.  Actually, I know He doesn’t care at all!  But I guarantee you that the Lord does care that we are faithful to our vocation as husband/wife and father/mother.  The good news is that he will hold us accountable for the simple things in life.  The bad news is that most of these things are neglected on a daily basis. 

Did you give your time, attention and affection to your spouse and family?  Did you stress to your children the need to pray to the love of their life?  Did you teach your children how to love as they should? 

If not, then it is time to stress over them...over and over again.

Luke 10:13-16 Listen To Me!

Luke 10:13-16  Listen To Me!

(Click here for readings)

Jesus said to them, “Woe to you, Chorazin!”  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty deeds done in your midst had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would long ago have repented…Whoever listens to you listens to me.  And whoever rejects you rejects me.  And whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.” 

Not too long ago, an old man, working at John Paul II High School, told me when he first learned to pay attention.   He had enlisted in the Army and was given a chance at serve in the 101st Airborne Division.   

The Army instructor made it very clear to all the young recruits.  “Men, listen up!  Jumping out of a plane is very serious business.  Pay close attention at all times.  Follow instructions carefully.  If you don’t, you could pay for it with your life.”  As soon as he had finished these words, the men saw a plane flying directly above them.  As the instructor continued to speak to them, the recruits were distracted at what they saw.  Ten men had jumped from the plane.  As they were falling from the sky, one man’s parachute failed to open.  The recruits could not believe what they were seeing.   They watched in horror as the soldier hit the ground at over 100 mph.  They witnessed blood and guts splatter and scatter all over the place. 

It turned out to be just a dummy.  But it was a lesson he said all the dummies learned and never forgot.

Who do I listen to?  Who will I listen to?  Who will I obey? 

The people of Chorazin and Bethsaida rejected the Lord.  Do you understand?  They REJECTED God!  What happens to us when we reject God?  We end up falling from the sky and breaking apart.  We hit rock bottom and fast!  It doesn’t matter how much we have or how privileged we are.  If anything, the weight of our possessions just makes us fall faster!  And the more privileged we are, the more shocked we become!

We all want to be successful in our lives.  But what exactly does it mean to be successful?  That’s an important question.  If you want to live a successful life, then we better know what success means. 

Success is nothing more than holiness.  The holier you are, the more successful you are.  What could be more successful than being another Christ?  What could be more successful than life-everlasting?  What could be more successful than being the man or woman you were created to be? 

So what does it mean to reject the Lord?  It means to reject His Church. 

“Whoever listens to you [my disciples] listens to me.  Whoever rejects you rejects me.  And whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.”    Wow!  The Lord definitely stands behind his men, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, till death we unite.    

Say whatever you want.  Say to me that you are a very “spiritual” person but not at all “religious”.  Go ahead.  It means nothing.  Say to me that you believe in Christ but not in His Church.  Go ahead.  But know that what you are saying is not at all what Christ said.  “Whoever listens to you listens to me.  Whoever rejects you rejects me.”   

Someone said to me today, “Why should I go to confession with a priest that is a bigger sinner than I am?”  I told that person, “Because he would be very gentle to you!  He’ll probably be able to relate to you better than most others.” 

Let's use our common sense.  Is a doctor disqualified for treating patients because he has cancer?  Is a woman disqualified for being a marriage counselor because she is not married?  Of course not!  Is someone disqualified to forgive because they need forgiveness?

What are you trying to accomplish in your life?  Who is influencing you the most?  Is it God?  Is it your family?  Is it your friends?  Is it the entertainment industry?

I’m so sick and tired of hearing Catholic school teachers (and “Nick Junior”) repeat secular old and stale doctrines to our children.  Why do we keep telling children how important friends are when it is their friends that are causing so many of their problems?  Why are we failing to tell our children how important it is to make friends with their siblings? 

Think about it.  Why are so many girls confused about boys?  Because they never speak to the first boy in their life:  their brother (or father)!  Today, tell your daughter to ask her brother a simple question:  “What do guys usually think about?”  Do it.  So that she will finally know the secret about boys (and most men).  What do boys think about all day long?  “Uh…nothing???”  Yes, that’s it!  Boys don’t have anything on their mind, and if they did, it would be gross.  The secret is finally out and your daughter finally knows (and has no further doubts about it) that most boys are narcissists and pigs!  She just found out what her friends will painfully find out; that is, that boys don't care much about anyone or about anything! 

Why do so many boys have a hard time understanding girls?  Because they never speak to the first girl in their life:  their sister (or mother).  But if they did, then they would finally connect two important dots:  that their sister is actually a girl.  Help them mom and dad!  Why don’t we help them?  Tell your boy to ask his sister what she thinks about all day long.  And the secret will finally be revealed.  He will know that they think a lot more than he does, and that they think a lot about their hair, their clothes, their friends, romance, colorful stuff, etc…  Now they know! 

I think the biggest difference between a movie and life is the script.  In a movie people tell you where to go, what to do and what to say.  But in your life, you have the chance to write your own script.  You can determine what you will say, what you will do, and how you will live.  But since no one is an island, you will have to decide who will have the greatest influence in your life.  Who will it be?  Friends or family.  Secular ideals or God’s Word.  School/Country or Church.  My will or God's Will.

Christ speaks.  You decide.  Best of luck.

Luke 10:1-12 Laborers

Luke 10:1-12  Laborers

(Click here for readings)

Jesus appointed seventy-two other disciples whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit.  He said to them, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.  Go on your way; behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves…cure the sick…” 

He said, “I was tired of it.”  I couldn’t believe it.  I asked him how he could be tired of being a priest?  He said, “It no longer interests me…same old…same old thing.” 

I don't want to sound harsh, but to me, that was the lamest excuse I had ever heard.   For sure, being a priest is not an easy thing.  The vows are not easy to live at all.  But to say “it was no longer interesting to me…same old...same old thing???”  I’m sorry, but no way!  “I was tired of it” is not believable.  Better to say, “It tired me out!”   

Every morning I look forward to spending one hour in meditation with the Lord.  I love it.  It has become a part of my daily life.  To share my meditation with others is just the icing on the cake.  Daily prayer is the most enriching moment of my day.  It is never the same old thing.  How can inching closer to the Lord ever be the same old thing?

To celebrate the morning Mass for the children is always a personal thrill for me.  I love to see their glowing faces, the wild look in their eyes, and, when asked a question, to see their little hands go up as fast as possible and as high as possible, and stay there as if they were holding the world up with their own hand.  And if that were not enough, then to see the confused and bewildered look on their eyes when they are called upon to answer and they respond, “Uh…I don’t know…” 

How can anyone be tired of this?

From there off to High School; to relive the drama and the issues that never seemed to change.   But this time, I know some of the answers and I can help.  I can share experiences and insight that maybe have not been shared before.  I can relate the Gospel to what they are living at this very moment.  And I know it makes a difference in their lives.  I know because I see it and hear it from them.  He was tired of this?

Then I sit to hear Confessions in a tiny corner in the Universe where the human heart can find plenty of comfort, peace and healing.  Where else can someone dare to open their most inner feelings and thoughts; the shameful acts of their past and present?  Must it be tucked away forever?  Can it not be released for good?  Yes.  And when the penitent feels such freedom, they can finally rejoice in tears.  Was he tired of this too?   

The visits to the hospital are, for me, the most challenging and the most rewarding.  I never thought I would be visiting the hospital so often.  It is not an easy thing to do.  The emergency call breaks up your day; catches you at an inconvenient moment.  But it is the one thing that the sick remember and most appreciate you for.  The sick no longer find solace with a doctor, or nurse, or even a family member.  They find solace with a priest praying over them, anointing them and holding their hand.  One visit is often not enough.  They want to see you more and more, which can be a big challenge.  A priest may go to the same hospital over and over again, but it is never the same thing over and over again. 

There is so much more I could say.  But in general, what Christians do must be what the disciples did.  The disciples visited the people that Jesus intended to visit.  He sent them to the poor, the sick, the sinners and the needy before He arrived.  This is the work of a priest and for every single Christian.  We are sent to prepare the way…before the Lord arrives. 

I’m not sure how anyone could ever be tired of this.