Fr. Corapi Conference

I wanted to post about a great day today.

Fr. John Corapi, an SOLT priest who is well known because of his appearances on EWTN and his straight-shootin' style, gave a day-long "retreat" on the subject of the Holy Spirit today in Buffalo. The event was held in the HSBC Arena, a 14 or 15,000 seat arena where the Buffalo Sabres (NHL) hockey team plays. Anyway, the retreat was great and Fr. Corapi was spot on. He is quite a character and pulls no punches; my wife and I enjoyed his four presentations. EWTN's News Anchor, Raymond Arroyo, also gave a 45 minute talk during the event. It was very special.

In my opinion, however, even though Father Corapi was amazing, the two most awesome aspects of the day were the Mass and, later, Benediction. There were about 12,000 people at the event, so the Mass was quite a sight. I have never been at Mass with so many people-- it was really cool. Plus, it was the Feast of the Assumption, which made it even better. Our local Bishop, Edward Kmiec, presided. Following Communion, Fr. Corapi led the entire congregation in a consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary using the formula of St. Louis de Montfort. It was awesome- 12,000 people consecrating themselves to the Blessed Mother! Truly awesome!

Then, at the end of the event, there was Benediction with the Blessed Sacrament. Wow. Again, an awesome sight. To be in that place, with thousands of people, all of us worshipping our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament was just amazing-- for a moment, I thought that this must be what heaven is like. A local parish Priest led the crowd in the traditional Benediction prayers, which were prayed in Latin, as well as the Divine Praises and a couple of traditional songs. It was a fitting end to an amazing day.

Experiences like that give me great hope for the future.

Joy!

Ours is a strange and often dark world, filled with peril. There are wars and rumours of wars. There are daily events that shock the conscience and take one's breath away. Yet, through it all, we Catholics are called to find joy in the sorrow, knowing that we have been saved throught Christ.

The idea of joy amidst suffering always reminds me of a hymn that was a staple at my high school's liturgies -- "How Can I Keep From Singing."

Some quick research revealed that the hymn was written by an American Baptist minister in the mid-nineteenth century. In light of our strange and dark times, I found the words of the song (posted below) quite inspiring.

Remember: There is always joy in Christ!

My life flows on in endless song;
Above earth’s lamentation.
I hear the sweet though far off hymn
That hails a new creation:
Through all the tumult and the strife
I hear the music ringing;
It finds an echo in my soul—
How can I keep from singing?

What though my joys and comforts die?
The Lord my Savior liveth;
What though the darkness gather round!
Songs in the night He giveth:
No storm can shake my inmost calm
While to that refuge clinging;
Since Christ is Lord of Heav’n and earth,
How can I keep from singing?

I lift mine eyes; the cloud grows thin;
I see the blue above it;
And day by day this pathway smoothes
Since first I learned to love it:
The peace of Christ makes fresh my heart,
A fountain ever springing:
All things are mine since I am His—
How can I keep from singing?

As always, Praise God!!

End of the Day Prayer

Everyone knows that prayer is essential to a good spiritual life. Prayer is the food that nourishes the soul and strengthens one's relationship with the Lord. In particular, I think that prayer at the end of the day is crucial. Those moments at the end of the day when I am able to collect myself and place myself before God and take the time to review the day with Him are great. The problem is that, for me at least, those moments are ever so rare.

Despite my best intentions, I frequently find it difficult to engage in any substantial prayers at the end of the day. More often than not, by the time I make it upstairs for bed, I am spent and can barely utter a "thank you, God" before falling asleep! I guess we all have things to work on...

Still, even though I am a flawed end of day pray-er, I thought I would pass along a prayer that I discovered a few years ago in my parish newsletter. I have found it to be a very helpful (and succinct) end of the day prayer that allows me to place myself and my day before God even when I am totally exhausted. I have made it a practice each night to say this prayer in front of the crucifix that hangs on the bedroom wall.

I hope that some of you out there find this beautiful little prayer as helpful as I do!

Prayer for the End of the Day

Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Sacred Heart of Jesus, with all its Love, all its Sufferings and all its Merits.

First - To expiate all the sins that I have committed this day and during all my life. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Second - To purify the good that I have done badly this day and during all my life. Glory be to the Father . . .

Third - To supply for the good that I ought to have done, and that I have neglected, this day and during all my life. Glory Be to the Father . . .

Amen.

Praise God!!

Earthen Vessels

"Brothers and Sisters: We hold this treasure in earthen vessels."

These are the words of Saint Paul in his second Letter to the Corinthians (2 Cor 4:7) and were the first words of the First Reading today at Mass.

"Earthen vessels..."

Sometimes, I think we expect too much of the "earthen vessels" around us. Too often, we expect more than frail humanity can give. We are human. We sin and we fail constantly. So much so that sanctity should be what surprises, not sin.

"We hold this treasure in earthen vessels."

Yet, despite our sinfulness, God wills that we -- frail and fallen men and women -- are to be the ones that hold the treasure of His truth and proclaim that truth to the nations.

Why would God will that "earthen vessels" would hold such "treasure"? Saint Paul immediately gives us the answer: "[so] that the surpassing power may be of God and not from us." (2 Cor 4:7). In other words, the wonders of Christ steadfastly proclaimed by fallen men and women throughout the ages, despite their individual frailty, is a profound testament to the Truth.

Yes, we hold the treasure in earthen vessels, but by the grace of God, we are able to proclaim that Truth and pass that Truth to others. Despite our imperfections, despite our frailties, despite our flaws . . . "we are ambassadors for Christ." (2 Cor 4:20) (emphasis mine).

Praise God!!

Thoughts on the Eucharist

Often while attending Mass, I find myself thinking about something my third grade teacher, Mrs. Elmes, told me when I was goofing around with some friends during a school liturgy some twenty-five years ago. Just before the start of the Eucharistic Prayer, Mrs. Elmes noticed me acting up and came over and said something that I have never forgotten. After the obligatory “be quiet or else,” she said that if I was to give my full attention to the Priest at any time during the Mass, now was the time to do it, because nothing in the Mass was more important than the Consecration.

Over the years, I have come to realize how profound a point my teacher was making. Certainly, there can be little argument regarding the centrality and importance of the Eucharist in the life of the Church. Given this significance, it stands to reason that our utmost attention is required during the Consecration, and that nothing should distract us from the miracle of Christ present during Mass.

Theologian Regis Martin captures this truth in his wonderful 2003 book What is the Church?: Confessions of a Cradle Catholic, where he proclaims:

Let’s face it, here is the most fearful and holy of all mysteries in which our lives as baptized children of God are centered. It is the only mystery, moreover, in which the unseen Lord of the universe — the ineffably transcendent Other — freely consents to become wholly present in an act of perfect, unsurpassed self-donation. Who among us is equal to an event as august as this?

Wow! Clearly, such an event requires one’s full attention!

This critical insight, which invokes the Eucharistic heart of the Church, is one that the Church itself has been making for many years. For example, at the Council of Trent (1542-1563), the Church insisted that Christ is present in the Eucharist in an absolutely singular way (i.e., a presence par excellance) and did not waiver from that stance in the face of multiple protestant teachings regarding a lesser presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Thus, the Tridentine Fathers were aware that Christ’s unique presence in the Eucharist was at the center of the Church’s existence.

The Bishops present at the Second Vatican Council were likewise aware of the Eucharistic heart of the Church, and declared in Lumen Gentium that the Eucharistic sacrifice is the “fount and apex of the whole Christian life.” In this regard, Lumen Gentium echoed the prophetic statements of Henri Cardinal de Lubac, a French theologian, who (nearly a decade before the Second Vatican Council in his book The Splendor of the Church) acknowledged that the Eucharist is “the sacrament of sacraments” and stated that “[w]hen we get down to bedrock, ‘there is contained the whole mystery of our salvation.’”

In this regard, I recall a wise theology professor once stating that “[t]he fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.” I do not recall exactly what he was talking about (oops!), but I have always remembered the phrase. Used in this context, the Eucharist, which is the true presence of Christ, is “the one big thing” that we as Catholic “hedgehogs” must know. The Eucharist is Christ Himself, in all his glory and beautiful self-sacrificing love, ceaselessly present in our midst. The Church, as the Bride and Body of Christ, in all its levels of membership — Militant, Suffering and Triumphant — is unified and continuously fed and strengthened by that presence.

The bottom line is that the centrality and importance of the Eucharist in the life of the Church cannot be overstated. Borrowing again from Regis Martin’s What Is the Church?, the Eucharist is the “irreducibly unique symbol of our faith” and “forms the whole basis of Catholic identity, igniting the spark of that divine conflagration Christ came into this world to set.” Or as another brilliant theologian, Hans Urs Von Balthasar, put it in his short but powerful book Razing the Bastions, “No Holy Communion is like another.” Rather, each communion, each Mass, is a singular event, and one that is super-charged with the Holy Spirit, filling each individual Christian with the grace required to go out and be Christ to the world.

Thus, the Eucharist is indeed the heart of the Church, and, as Mrs. Elmes suggested, we best pay close attention.

Praise God!!

Grace That Sustains

"The will of God will never take you where the love of God cannot sustain you."

Such were the words of wisdom displayed over the shoulder of the woman who checked us in at the registration area of Roswell Park Cancer Institute last Fall. Since then, I have come to learn the truth of those words.

Obviously, a cancer diagnosis (or any serious health issue, for that matter) poses a difficult obstacle both for the person diagnosed and their family. Viewed as a whole, the challenges of treating (and beating) the illness seem insurmountable. Yet, taken one day at a time (and sustained by the grace of God), the "mountain" can be scaled.

Therein lies the wisdom of the words above. The will of God often takes us to places we would not go of our own accord, putting in front of us challenges that seem quite impossible. Yet, God does not simply deposit us at the base of the mountain and leave us to our own devices. He always provides the necessary grace to meet the challenge. Yes! The will of God will never take you where the love of God cannot sustain you!

However, in my experience, grace is most often situation-specific, meaning that one only receives the grace needed in the moment of trial. So, looking at a situation from afar, one often feels as though there is no way he could survive... No way that she could meet the challenge, whether with God's grace or without it. That is because the grace to deal with the situation has not yet been given.

In this regard, I am reminded of the many inspiring Catholic martyrs, who frequently endured unspeakable torments. I believe that the strength and faith that these men and women displayed at the time of trial is attributable to the great graces that God bestowed upon them.

In my own situation, looking back over the past six months, I marvel at the way my family has handled our difficulties. I look at the variety of obstacles we have encountered and overcome and see the hand of God everywhere. I know that God's grace was present because I am certain that we could never have navigated through that time without it.

I suspect that if someone had described these past months to me before I lived them, I would have been overwhelmed and discouraged, wholly uncertain that I would be able to rise to the occasion and meet the challenges. Such feelings would derive, in part, from the fact that I would be viewing the situation without the benefit of the graces I would receive at the appropriate time. Fortunately for us all, God in his great mercy and love, bestows upon his faithful the grace necessary in each moment.

Trust in the Lord. He will not disappoint!

Praise God!!

The Imitation of Christ

Recently, I discovered Thomas a Kempis' The Imitation of Christ, which is certainly among the all-time great Catholic works. It is a timeless work and one that can be read over and over, bit by bit, each time producing great fruit.

Today, in Book 2, Chapter 11, paragraphs 1-3, I came across the following passage, which truly spoke to me:

Jesus today has many who love his heavenly kingdom, but few who carry his cross; many who yearn for comfort, few who long for distress. Plenty of people he finds to share his banquet, few to share his fast. Everyone desires to take part in his rejoicing, but few are willing to suffer anything for his sake. There are many that follow Jesus as far as the breaking of the bread, few as far as drinking the cup of suffering; many that revere his miracles, few that follow him in the indignity of his cross; many that love Jesus as long as nothing runs counter to them; many that praise and bless him, as long as they receive some comfort from him; but should Jesus hide from them and leave them for a while, they fall to complaining or become deeply depressed.

One reason that this passage resonated with me today was the recent shift in the liturgical calendar from the Easter season to Ordinary time. I have been thinking about how we Catholics often refer to ourselves as an "Easter people," but often neglect to consider that we are also a "Good Friday people."

In this regard, we must always remember that Our Lord's invitation to discipleship explicitly contains the cross. Suffering, in one form or another, is part and parcel of being a Christian. For example, in Mark 8:34-35, Jesus said:

Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the gospel will save it.

Too often, it seems, we Christians forget that part of the equation. We forget (perhaps all too conveniently) that there is no Easter Sunday, no glorious Resurrection morn, without the dreadful cruelty and suffering of Good Friday.

In short, to follow Christ-- to "imitate" him -- is to make our own march to Calvary. I humbly pray that God grant will grant us all the strength, courage and wisdom to embrace the cross in our lives and to follow Him in all things.

Praise God!!

Direction For Our Times

For anyone seeking a bit o' spiritual inspiration, I highly recommend the "Volumes", a series of works by "Anne, a lay apostle" who writes from Ireland. Anne, a wife and mother, has been receiving interior locutions for many years and has committed a great deal of those locutions to print. I also recommend her books, particularly "Climbing the Mountain," which I found very inspirational.

If interested, check out the following link: http://www.directionforourtimes.com/

Praise God!!