Making a Joyful Noise on Holy Saturday – 04/19/2013

Making a Joyful Noise on Holy Saturday – 04/19/2013

“There are Christians whose lives seem like Lent without Easter. I realize of course that joy is not expressed the same way at all times in life, especially at moments of great difficulty. Joy adapts and changes, but it always endures, even as a flicker of light born of our personal certainty that, when everything is said and done, we are infinitely loved. I understand the grief of people who have to endure great suffering, yet slowly but surely we all have to let the joy of faith slowly revive as a quiet yet firm trust, even amid the greatest distress: “My soul is bereft of peace; I have forgotten what happiness is… But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness… It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord” (Lam 3:17, 21-23, 26).” (Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium: The Joy of the Gospel)

I return today to these words of Pope Francis that we heard earlier in Lent because I think they reflect what Holy Saturday is about. We sit and wait. Will there be an Easter? Yes, we know that there will be but those disciples and friends of Jesus who lived through this day many centuries ago did not. They lived this day in their grief but they also lived this day in hope. It was a time when they remember the story, it was a time when they hoped, it was a time when joy was conceived in their hearts. Today we live in the hope that once again joy might be conceived in our hearts!

The word that I always use for Holy Saturday is hope. After a long Lent, after the gift of Love which we call Good Friday we wait in Hope on Holy Saturday. The elements of the Easter Vigil which we will celebrate later today all point toward the virtue of Hope.

We retell the story of creation, our creation, of how God so loved us, of how we are created in the image and likeness of God. We retell the story of our release from slavery; How God with a mighty arm brought us from slavery to freedom. We hear how God provides for all those who are thirsty, who are hunger. The rich table, the rich food God provides for us.

On Holy Saturday night we light a new fire. We bless new water. We welcome people, through baptism, confirmation, Holy Eucharist into the community of faith. It is a night of hope for us, for our church, for the world.

I read not too long ago that the most common one-liner in the scriptures is, "Do not be afraid." Someone counted, and it occurs 365 times. In our Gospel for the Easter vigil this one-liner appears twice. First the angel who meets the women at the tomb just after the earthquake tells them, “Do not be afraid.” Then as they go running from the tomb they run right into Jesus who also tells them, “Do not be afraid.” Fear can be a crippling emotion. It can sometimes hold us back from seeing, experiencing and proclaiming the Good News.  The world can throw many experiences, situations and encounters at us that can cause to live our life in fear. The message of our Easter celebration is to not be afraid, have to have hope!

Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul and sings a tune without the words and never stops at all! (Emily Dickinson) We wait in faith today, we wait in love, and we wait to hear the tune of hope that perches in our soul singing a tune of love that never stops. Yes, today we wait...in hope!

Have a blessed Holy Saturday and don’t forget to make a joyful noise with your life today!

Holy Saturday Prayer: Loving God as we wait today make ready our hearts that they may be inflamed with your presence. Enkindle in them the fire of your love. Grace our souls with the song of your hope, a song, and a tune that will never stop. Strengthen us with patience, strengthen us with energy, gift us with wisdom and enliven us with joy. We make this prayer as your faith filled people embraced by your love and dancing to the rhythm of the song of hope! Amen!

A Runner's Thoughts: As runners in faith we always need to persevere. Perseverance requires faith that the path you have chosen is the right path. Where ever it takes us we will grow in the presence of God if we are willing to persevere.

Daily Blessing: Holy Saturday blessings to all! I hope you had a blessed and holy Good Friday. I hope you got to spend a little time in prayer. The liturgy of Good Friday is so simple it is one of my favorite days to just sit in church or chapel and be. I had the great privilege of preaching at two services yesterday and I have to say that being a Passionist there is no great gift than to proclaim the Good Word on Good Friday!

Now it is a time of waiting. My prayer of blessing today is that your Holy Saturday may be rich in the warmth of the sun, that it may be a day when you can hope for all the goodness that Easter is. And may you be blessed with the new life of joy that will enliven the journey of your life in new and faith filled ways! Enjoy your Holy Saturday everyone and please know you are in my prayers throughout this day and always! Peace in Christ's Passion...Fr. Paul

The Stations of the Cross - Good Friday 2014

Need a little prayer time? Couldn't get to church today? Want to spend a little time in prayer? Want to do something a little different for Good Friday? Then stop by www.preacherman.org and take some time this evening to pray and reflect on the Stations of the Cross. It will not take long and it will be a nice way to end your Good Friday...Peace in Christ's Passion...Fr. Paul

Making a Joyful Noise on Good Friday – 04/18/2014

Making a Joyful Noise on Good Friday – 04/18/2014

“To be evangelizers of souls, we need to develop a spiritual taste for being close to people’s lives and to discover that this is itself a source of greater joy. Mission is at once a passion for Jesus and a passion for his people. When we stand before Jesus crucified, we see the depth of his love which exalts and sustains us, but at the same time, unless we are blind, we begin to realize that Jesus’ gaze, burning with love, expands to embrace all his people. We realize once more that he wants to make use of us to draw closer to his beloved people. He takes us from the midst of his people and he sends us to his people; without this sense of belonging we cannot understand our deepest identity.” (Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium: The Joy of the Gospel)

Pope Francis’ words remind us today of what the Cross is all about. He asks us to stand before the Cross of Christ today. He asks us to see and feel the depth of God’s love, of Jesus’ love for us. We are reminded that Christ’s love cannot remind just within us but that it is to be shared!

As I think about John’s Passion today and the other readings (Isaiah 52: 13- 53:12; Hebrews 4:14-16; 5: 7-9; John 18: 1-19:42) we encounter my thoughts take me back to my teenage years. I remember as a teenager several Good Friday's I sat in my bedroom and played the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar from 12 noon to 3 pm. It was my way as a teenager to think of the events of Good Friday before going with my family in the evening to church to celebrate the liturgy of the Lord's Passion. I listen to the words of the songs and pictured the story of Jesus' passion and death. I thought about all the characters involved in the story. I listened to them explain their actions and express their struggles and sorrow. It was liturgy; it was prayer for me at that time of my life.

I am sure some people might cringe at my teenage Good Friday service, perhaps thinking Jesus Christ Superstar was just a musical fad of the 1970's, something that was disrespectful or irreverent to this great story, something that was another sign that this generation was not faithful to the tradition, we were not faithful to what was holy, true and good. There was a lot of controversy around Jesus Christ Superstar especially when it came out as a play and movie. (A note of trivia the first authorized performance of the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar took place on July 11, 1971, in front of an audience of 13,000 people at the Civic Area in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.) Yet as a high school and college student it was a way for me to understand my faith, to experience my faith and to put my faith into the context of my own life, it was my liturgy of the Lord's Passion for me.

I think we all need to find our own way of connecting to the Passion story. We have to find our own way to understand, to feel, the mystery of Jesus' Passion. We have to make the connection with the characters, with Jesus. We might not understand but we need to make the connection, we need to feel the story. We need to find our own liturgy sometimes.

As a teenager Jesus Christ Superstar helped me to feel the story, to make the connection. I knew it was just someone's interpretation of the Gospels. I knew that the songs were not the real story. I knew that this is not how the events happened but for me at that moment of my life it was the best way to make the journey with Jesus. It was the way to feel connected. It was a way to pray. It was a way to honor and keep holy Good Friday.

At this point in life I keep holy Good Friday much differently. I am blessed and honored to be a Passionist and a priest so often I am privileged to lead a community in the liturgy of the Lord's Passion or like this year I have the honor of preaching, of sharing the Good News on this day. Yet even today my thoughts often go back to my days as a teenager sitting in my room or lying on my bed following the story, being touched by the music, being overwhelmed by God's love for me. Perhaps those Good Friday's long ago are the very reason why I am a Passionist, a priest, a man of faith today!

My friends however you remember the Lord's Passion of this Good Friday my prayer for you is that the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ will always be in your heart!

Good Friday peace and blessings to all! I hope you will at least make a visit to Church today, take a little time to sit before the Cross of Christ, and make a joyful noise with your life!

Good Friday Prayers: Today I offer you two simple little prayers to guide you through this day. The first comes from our Passionist tradition it is a simple prayer we utter each day - "May the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ be always in our hearts!"

The second prayer was write by the great Jesuit theologian Fr. Karl Rahner, S.J. - "The Cross of My Lord, Be my Standard, Be my Comfort, Be the Answer to all dark questions, The Light of all nights, The Sign that You have chosen us, The mysterious and sure Sign that we are Yours for eternity. Amen."

A Runner's Thoughts: If we truly want to be a spiritual runner then we must remember that with every time we run we embark  on a path were we can expect surprises, missteps, little jumps and sometimes great leaps toward a personal understanding of God.

Good Friday Blessing: Good Friday morning everyone! I trust you had a blessed Holy Thursday and were able to find a little time to connect with God. I know many of you probably have to work today but hopefully you will be able to take at least find a few moments of quiet to make holy this Good Friday. If you can at least try to make a visit to a church and sit for a little while before the Cross of Christ and remember that God so loved the world that he gave us his only Son. If you can attend the Lord’s Passion Service that would be great, it is one of the simplest and most beautiful liturgies that we have as a Church.

Last night I celebrated with the faith community at St. Barnabas Parish in the Bronx and had the honor of preaching the Good Word. It was a full church and a very prayerful celebration. Today I will return to St. Barnabas for their two Good Friday Services at 3 pm and 7:30 pm. Once again I will be preaching. No other place I would want to be than proclaiming the Good News on Good Friday. I am truly a blessed Passionist today!

May prayer of blessing today is simply that somehow today you are touch by the magnanimous love of God. That you are blessed with the grace to believe in God’s love. A love that is ground in our friendship with Jesus because there is no greater love than for someone to lay down his life for his friends, Jesus laid down his life today for us, his friends. I send my prayers and I ask God's blessings upon all of you and your loved ones. May the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ be always in our hearts! Peace in Christ's Passion today and always...Fr. Paul

PS Check back throughout the day as I pray the Stations of the Cross on line. Perhaps you can take some time to pray with me!

Making a Joyful Noise on Holy Thursday – 04/17/2014

Making a Joyful Noise on Holy Thursday – 04/17/2014

“If we are to share our lives with others and generously give of ourselves, we also have to realize that every person is worthy of our giving. Not for their physical appearance, their abilities, their language, their way of thinking, or for any satisfaction that we might receive, but rather because they are God’s handiwork, his creation. God created that person in his image, and he or she reflects something of God’s glory. Every human being is the object of God’s infinite tenderness, and he himself is present in their lives. Jesus offered his precious blood on the cross for that person. Appearances notwithstanding, every person is immensely holy and deserves our love. Consequently, if I can help at least one person to have a better life, that already justifies the offering of my life. It is a wonderful thing to be God’s faithful people. We achieve fulfilment when we break down walls and our heart is filled with faces and names!” (Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium: The Joy of the Gospel)

These words of Pope Francis reflect the spirit of this most holy day that we celebrate. Yes, Holy Thursday is about the institution of the Eucharist. Yes, Holy Thursday is a special day for priests as we look to this day as a starting point for our life and ministry as priests. Yes, Holy Thursday is a day when we remember the beginning of Christ Passion which will lead to his Death and Resurrection. And yes, Holy Thursday is about a meal, Christ’s last meal, a meal that calls us to remember the history of our faith as God’s people released from slavery and beginning a journey to freedom.

But from my perspective today is about service, about looking beyond ourselves to the gift of God within us and sharing that gift. Pope Francis reminds us that all of us are God’s handiwork. All of us reflect the glory of God.

It was on this day that Jesus showed his infinite tenderness by washing the feet of his friends and by sharing himself in the Eucharist. It was intimacy, tenderness and a gift that defined Jesus life and ministry. As Pope Francis reminds us, it is the very way of life that Jesus calls us to as people of the Gospel.

May this Holy Thursday truly help us to break down the walls and open our hearts that they may be filled with face and names! Have a blessed Holy Thursday everyone and please give a little time to God before the day is over. Don’t forget to make a joyful noise with your life today!

Holy Thursday Prayer: O God, in the fullness of time you revealed your love in Jesus. On this remembrance of the eve of his death, we recall how as a sign of your covenant, Jesus washed the feet of his friends and gave himself as Eucharist.

We pray today that you will give us life through the Eucharist and the gift of your joy to follow Christ in humble service. So that one day we may pass over from this world to your kingdom and enjoy the blessing of eternal joy. Amen!

A Runner’s Thoughts: Run in the presence of God. In order to do this, as you run, simply imagine God is with you constantly on the run. It does not matter how you image God. Just take whatever image of God you have and allow that image to accompany you on your run.

Daily Blessing: Good afternoon everyone! I know I am a little late today but it was a busy morning and I am dragging a little from a long Lent! I hope you are having a blessed Holy Thursday. The sun has been shining all day here in Pelham, it is a little on the cool side though but it is nice to see the sun.

I celebrated a mass with the school children and some other folks at St. Barnabas Parish in the Bronx this morning. In case you are wondering it is allowed to celebrate an earlier mass on Holy Thursday for pastoral reasons. So we used the readings of the day and tried to help the young people understand the meaning and importance of this day. It also helped some older folks who can get out at night to participate in this most holy day! I will head back for the Eucharist of the Lord’s Supper at 7:30 pm this evening as I am preaching all the Triduum services.  

I hope you will be able to get to at least some of the services over the next three days if not for the whole service perhaps just for a short visit so that you might stay in touch with the holiness, blessing and grace of these days. Please make a visit, spend some time in prayer. Take a little break for the busyness of life to be touched by God’s grace!

My prayer of blessing for all of you today is that the infinite tenderness of God might touch your life and that you will be blessed over these most holy days with the joy of the Cross, which springs from the knowledge that we possess an imperishable treasure in perishable earthen vessels. Holy Thursday blessings to all! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul