Daily Thoughts - 09/03/2016

Daily Thoughts: Today's gospel story is an illustration of what happens when we pay attention to accidentals rather than the essentials. The Pharisees profess to not violating a single part of the law, but they are lacking in the heart of the spirit of what the law is there to support. They judge but are lacking in compassion and mercy.

Jesus asks us to be merciful. He is not looking beyond the law and tradition. Jesus' whole life and ministry was an example of how to respond to sin. The religious leadership, some of whom we meet in the Gospel today, were upset because Jesus often spent time eating and drinking with sinners. They were anger because Jesus enjoyed the presence of sinners. The scribes and Pharisees argued that Jesus should shun sinners and that his compassion for them seemed to condone their life styles. These religious leaders didn't seem to understand that love heals; that love forgives and that love builds a community of faith, hope and love.

Pope Francis constantly calls us to be a community that offers mercy and forgiveness. He asks us to build bridges rather than walls, because this is what Jesus has taught us through his words and deeds. We might think that following the letter of the law defines a good religious person yet paying attention to the accidentals does not mean that we have invested in the essentials. Pope Francis asks us to hear Jesus' message that being a good religious means people who are merciful and compassionate. Pope Francis, like Jesus, reminds us that mercy proclaims the presence of God. Being merciful shares the good news of God's mercy. It helps us to lives out our faith and become a friend of God. Our acts of mercy help to make God present to the world.

As we journey through this day let us give thanks for the mercy and love of God who has reconciled each of us, and remains our help and sustains our lives. Let us share God’s love and mercy, freely, generously and with compassion.

Have a great Saturday everyone!

Daily Prayer: O God, help us to bring our worldly concerns under control, so that they never turn our minds from higher things. Help us have earthly things for use but not as objects of our desires. May there be nothing to hold back the desire of our minds and hearts; and do not let the delights of this world entrap us. Amen. (Adapted from a prayer by St. Gregory the Great.)

A Runner’s Thoughts: “When you've had the perfect run, you've cleared your soul.” (Pat Monahan) I would say it doesn’t even have to be a perfect run; sometimes a really tough run or just an ordinary run can still be a way to clear your heart, mind and soul. And when you can clear your heart, mind and soul you are not far from peace!

Daily Blessing: Saturday greetings and blessings to everyone! I hope you are having a good Saturday and that life is going well during these early days of September.

I hope the weather where you are, is beautiful today. The humidity is back up a bit this morning in Pelham but there is a breeze. We are under a tropical storm watch the next few days. They say there will be winds and problems with coastal flooding and beach erosion but not much rain. I guess all of this will make this holiday weekend a little less enjoyable. I pray that life is going well for you and that the stresses and struggles that are always a part of life are not too great for you these days.

On this final Saturday of the official summer season my prayer today is that God’s blessings will rest upon all of you wherever you are, wherever you go and in whatever you will encounter today. I pray your day will be a safe one full of many wonderful encounters. May you have a faith filled day graced with joy, peace and love. May you find the richness of God’s presence in your life today and always. Also I pray that God’s blessings will help you to have a restful and enjoyable weekend. Have a great Saturday everyone! Peace in Christ's Passion...Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 09/02/2016

Daily Thoughts: At times when I look at the Church I think we are always trying to pour new wine into old wine skins or we are trying to sow a new piece of cloth on an old piece of clothing and the results are not so good. We seem to spend a lot of time looking back at how things were, “the good old days” – “the golden age.”  Then we try and hold the present moment in these “days gone by” skins.

Perhaps it is a human condition that we all are afflicted with, that desire to hold on to what we think was good, pure and without problems. People often refer to the “good old days” with a sense of longing and a memory that has forgotten many, if not all, of the struggles, difficulties and problems. We long to put this moment, this time of life back into those “good old days” but it never works.

In the Gospel today Jesus reminds us the new wine needs to go into new skins, in other words we have to be about this moment, this time not the past. We have to patch old with old and new with new. We have to be in the present moment in order to encounter the presence of God in our life today.

Jesus is not negating the old for the new or vice versa. He is just reminding us to always be in the present moment. The Church is alive, it is a living structure and if something is living it needs to grow. If it doesn’t grow it is dead. There is a famous quote from the movie, The Shawshank Redemption, when Andy says to Red, “Get busy living or get busy dying.” Perhaps that is Jesus’ challenge for us today.

So friends let’s get busy living and have a great Friday.

Daily Prayer: Loving God, fill our souls with your holy joy, courage and strength so that we will serve you throughout this day. Enkindle your love in us and then walk with us along the next stretch of road we call this day. We cannot see very far ahead, but when we arrive at the setting of the sun we know you will place a new sunrise before us and with your help and grace we will greet it with peace. Bless this day Lord with you love. Amen!

A Runner’s Thoughts: “An object at rest tends to stay at rest and an object in motion tends to stay in motion.” (Newton's First Law of Motion) The living of life needs a balance between motion and rest, between sound and silence, between company and solitude, but we always need the friendship of God!

Daily Blessing: Friday blessings and greetings to all. We find ourselves beginning this last official weekend of the summer and I hope wherever you are the weather is nice and you are looking forward to a good day and a great weekend. They say the temperature will be in the low 80’s today with less humidity. If they are right, then we should have a beautiful day here in Pelham.

I hope your day is starting off well and that it will be a smooth ride to the evening and the beginning of a nice long holiday weekend.

My prayer of blessing for all of you today is this – As you journey through this day may you be blessed with Christ within you, with Christ behind you, with Christ before you, with Christ beside you, with Christ to comfort and restore you, with Christ beneath you, with Christ above you, with Christ in your quiet moments, with Christ in your moments of struggle, with Christ in the hearts of all who love you, with Christ within of all your friends and every person you meet. May the presence of Christ’s be within you and bless your day, Amen! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 09/01/2016

Daily Thoughts: “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” I am not sure how many times I have uttered these words in my own mind over the last 36 plus years. It seemed very simple 36 years ago, I got rid of most of my possessions and packed up what was left in my little orange Chevy Vega and headed east from St. Louis to Philadelphia to begin my journey into religious life and priesthood. At the time it seemed freeing, liberating. Yet not long after arriving in Philadelphia did the doubts and struggles started, the challenges of letting go of people, possessions and a way of life.

And to make matters more challenging throughout these 36 plus years there have been amazing moments when I have paused and said, “Why am I here? Depart from me, Lord, I don’t deserve this, I am a sinful man!” It is the ebb and flow of life that makes who I am, who any person of faith is a challenge. One moment we are in the midst of everyday life, doing what is expected, doing what we always do and then God seems to step in, in a profound way and we feel humbled, we feel undeserving.

I had one of those moments last summer when I was the sitter for my three grand nieces, ages 9, 5 and 1for about 30 hours. Encountering the gift of life, of creation, the gift of love and the gift of family that these three little women offered me was a humbling experience. The 30 hours with them was a challenging and at times a struggling experience for someone like me who usually only experience this kind of love and family life from a distance. But then you get the opportunity to be with three wonderful little women and you recognize the profound presence of God just like Peter did. And you think to yourself “I don’t deserve this, I am a sinful man!” 

However even though undeserving like Peter and the rest of the crew on the seashore that day each morning I rise and follow Jesus once again. If you happened to encounter God in a profound way today and have that feeling that you don’t deserve it remember you are in good company!

Have a great Thursday everyone…

Daily Prayer: Loving Jesus, you are the love that gives love. You are higher than the highest star, you are deeper than the deepest sea; you cherish us as your own family; you embrace us as your own spouse; you grace us as your own people; you welcome us as your own dearest friends. Let us and all the world praise you today! Amen. (Adapted from a prayer by St. Hildegard of Bingen)

A Runner’s Thoughts: The battles that count aren't the ones for gold medals, the struggles within yourself – the invisible, inevitable battles inside all of us – that’s where it's at. (Jesse Owens) So too in the spiritual life…

Daily Blessing: Thursday greetings and blessings to everyone and happy first day of September. I hope the beginning of this new day and month finds you well and energized for a new adventure! It is a rainy and humid morning here in in Pelham. I didn’t realize we were going to have rain today. They say we will have showers in the morning and then a chance for storms in the afternoon. It is not going to be hot just muggy. I hope the weather is better wherever you are today.

Later this morning I will head to the Wartburg Home for mass at 11:00 am and then it will be on to our parish in Jamaica for the delivery of a new organ for the Lower Church and a meeting about our first taping day for the Sunday Mass. If any of you in the New York area know a painter who is looking for some work could you give them my name and phone number. We need some painting done in the Lower Church and I am having a hard time connecting with a painter.

My prayer of blessing for you on this first day of September is that like Peter in today’s gospel God will bless you with a profound experience of his presence and if it makes you consider your unworthiness that God will give you the strength and courage to continue on! May God bless your day with the richness of love, hope and joy! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 08/31/2016

Daily Thoughts: “We have never preached violence, except the violence of love, which left Christ nailed to a cross, the violence that we must each do to ourselves to overcome our selfishness and such cruel inequalities among us. The violence we preach is not the violence of the sword, the violence of hatred. It is the violence of love, of brotherhood, [of sisterhood,] the violence that wills us to beat weapons into sickles for work.” (Oscar A. Romero, The Violence of Love)

Jesus and Paul in our readings today (1 Corinthians 3: 1-9 and Luke 4:38-44) tell us that they have come to proclaim the Good News. Jesus does it directly and Paul indirectly. Their goal is to bring the Good News to whomever they meet, whether it is the community of believers at Corinth or the people in Capernaum or the many towns beyond.

The Good News that Jesus and Paul bring is the same Good News brought by Bishop Oscar Romero many centuries later. It is the Good News of love. It is the Good News of the Cross. It is the Good News of community. It is the Good News of no more war!

I believe there comes a point in a believer’s life when we need to say enough. Enough violence! Enough war! Enough hate! Enough disrespect for life! Enough bullying! Enough negativity! If we are truly a great silent majority, if we truly want a world based on peace then it is time to say enough with one great voice! It is time to proclaim and live the Good News.

Have a great Wednesday everyone!

Daily Prayer:

Lord, take us where You want us to go;

Let us meet who You want us to meet;

Tell us what You want us to say; and

Keep us out of your way. Amen

(Adapted from a prayer by Fr. Mychal Judge)

A Runner’s Thoughts: “There are no standards and no possible victories except the joy you are living while dancing your run. You are not running for some future reward-the real reward is now!” (Fred Rohe, The Zen of Running) And you are not running for some experience of God in the future when you run you are running with God now! So enjoy the company!

Daily Blessing: Wednesday greetings and blessings to all! I know my musings are a bit late today. It was not such a good night as I am in worry mode these days which often means my brain doesn’t shut off. This mode of mine often means sleepless nights which was the case last night. This too shall pass but at the moment it makes for difficult mornings and days!

I hope your day has started off well. It is a hot muggy day here in the New York area and they say we might encounter some storms this afternoon. As I look out my office window clouds seem to be gathering and they don’t look friendly. Wherever you are may you day be a little more friendly and less stressful than mine!

My prayer of blessing for all of us today is that as we get ready to move on this last day of August into the busyness of September, that God will bless us with some time to pause and take into account our blessings, our gifts. The hopelessness of violence, anger and negativity seem to be all around us but as I have often learned if I pause and take some time away from the busyness of life I many times encounter God’s gifts in very real and wonderful ways. God’s presence is all around us, we just have to not let the noise of the world distract us from God. May God bless us with the gift of his presence today is some small way so that we know we are loved and not alone!

Have a great Wednesday everyone and please know as always you are in my prayers! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 08/30/2016

Daily Thoughts: “Our duty, as men and women, is to proceed as if limits to our ability did not exist. We are collaborators in creation.” (Fr. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J.)

This quote by the great philosopher, scientist, theologian, Fr. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J. came to mind as I was praying with our Gospel for today (Luke 4:31-37).

Jesus in the Gospel today is helping people to experience the gift of God in their lives. His teaching has power and authority. But what gives Jesus’ teaching so much power and authority? We might say it is because he is the Son of God and we would not be wrong. However, we might also say that Jesus’ teaching has power and authority because of how he treated people. In the Gospel today he expels a demon spirit so that a man can get on with his life. Over and over again Jesus takes people where they are and helps them to grow, to recognize the grace and presence of God in their lives.

Jesus knows that limits to our ability do not exist, because anything is possible with God. So let’s live this day in God’s presence. Let’s look beyond what appear to be our limits and let’s work with God to make a better world. Let’s be collaborators with God to bring about peace!

Have a great Tuesday everyone!

Daily Prayer:

All-powerful God, you are present in the whole universe
and in the smallest of your creatures.
You embrace with your tenderness all that exists.
Pour out upon us the power of your love,
that we may protect life and beauty.
Fill us with peace, that we may live
as brothers and sisters, harming no one.
O God of the poor,
help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth,
so precious in your eyes.
Bring healing to our lives,
that we may protect the world and not prey on it,
that we may sow beauty, not pollution and destruction.
Touch the hearts
of those who look only for gain
at the expense of the poor and the earth.
Teach us to discover the worth of each thing,
to be filled with awe and contemplation,
to recognize that we are profoundly united
with every creature
as we journey towards your infinite light.
We thank you for being with us each day.
Encourage us, we pray, in our struggle
for justice, love and peace.
(A prayer for our earth from Laudato Si by Pope Francis)

A Runner’s Thoughts: “The miracle isn't that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start.” (John Bingham) The miracle is also trusting in the presence of God, then finding, embracing and acknowledging that presence as we run!

Daily Blessing: Tuesday greetings and blessings to everyone. It is a beautiful morning here in Pelham and it should remain a rather pleasant day throughout. I hope you are able to enjoy the beauty of nature wherever you are today.

It will be another office day for me. I hope your day has started off well and is not too busy.

I pray all of you will have a great Tuesday no matter where you are or what today will bring! I pray for God’s blessings upon all of you as you go through your day. May God bless all your endeavors, may God be with you in all of your challenges and in all of your struggles. Please trust in the presence of God that you carry within you and don’t be afraid to share your gift. Again, blessings today upon everyone! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 08/29/2016

Daily Thoughts: Today we celebrate The Passion of St. John the Baptism and our Gospel (Mark 6:17-29) is the famous story of Herod and John the Baptist. It is a rather gruesome story, it is hard sometimes to think of a young girl being presented with some one's head and then turning and giving it to her mother. Yet, I guess gruesome things happen in life every day, thankfully not in my life.

I am always struck in this story with the fact that Herod is moved by John, that he likes to listen to him, yet he gives in to the worldly pressure around him. I get the feeling Herod knows that John is right, but his power, his self-importance; his ego will not let him say yes. Herod has surrounded himself with people who push him in the wrong direction. We might say that he gives in to the peer pressure of his time!

Perhaps if Herod had heard St. Paul’s words to the Corinthians that we find in our first reading today (1 Corinthians 2:1-5) he might have acted a bit different. St. Paul reminds the Corinthians that his faith rest not in human wisdom but on the power of God. In other words, St. Paul reminds them to put the focus on God not on themselves.

There is a great line in the Letter to the Hebrews that I reflect on often, "Do not neglect hospitality, for through it some have unknowingly entertained angels." It is great advice! Perhaps it is advice that Herod should have heard or heeded. He certainly had one of God's angels, John the Baptist in his presence.

We need to be aware that God can come to us, be present to us in many ways. We need to trust that God is with us always. We need to remember that we are a community of faith not just individuals and we need to always be aware of the struggles and joys of others because they can often bring God into our midst.

Today we are reminded – “Blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.” May St. John the Baptist help us to see – God as our light and our salvation, and thus never fear!

Have a great Monday everyone.

Daily Prayer:

Loving God,
Enlighten what is dark within us…
Strengthen what is weak within us…
Mend what is broken within us…
Bind what is bruised within us…
Heal what is sick within us…
And lastly – revive whatever peace, joy and love that have died within us…
Amen!

A Runner’s Thoughts: “Being a runner means you are now "free" to win and lose and live life to its fullest.” (Bill Rodgers)

Daily Blessing: Monday greetings and blessings to all. We find ourselves making our way through the last days of August and getting ready to welcome September – my how time flies when you are having fun. In just a week we will celebrate Labor Day, a day some call the end of summer. I know many are already into the school mode but for most in the New York area they get a reprieve until next week. Well regardless of place, age or state of life summer is ending in the northern hemisphere and perhaps if we can we should take some time to enjoy it.

I am expecting a hot but less humid day here in Pelham. I did make it home yesterday afternoon but it was a two-and-a-half-hour journey which should have taken only about 45 minutes. Sometimes I long for a time when I don’t live in New York and have to face the hassle of profound traffic. Some days I just feel beat up by the place! Oh, I guess this too shall pass. In a little while I will be off to my office in Rye Brook. I hope your Monday is starting off well and that you will enjoy a good day weather wise and all other ways.

I pray that God will bless all of you on this Monday. For some it is the beginning of a new school year, for others it is the beginning of a new work week, for others it may be the last week of your vacation and for still others it might be just another day – nothing special. May God’s blessing be upon you wherever you find yourself. May God bless you with the grace you need to live this day and in living this day may you bring God’s presence to all you meet! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 08/28/2016

Daily Thoughts: In a word our readings today at about humility. In our first reading from the Book of Sirach we hear the echoes of traditional Jewish teachings concerning right conduct. Basically these verses say, “Remember who you are and who you are not.”

Remember you are gifted by God and when you remain peacefully grateful you will experience being loved by God and others.

A wise person listens deeply. The wise person searches and allows mystery to be a friend rather than a humiliating enemy which must be defeated or ignored. As water can subdue flames, generosity to the poor extinguishes the fire of past sins.

This way of living life is both instructive and practical. The challenge is always to live out the words of wisdom. You might say it is always a work in progress. Humility is gratitude which allows us to be comfortable in our own skin. When we cover up or withdrawal we are not being humble or shy, we are allowing pride to take over. We are saying that we really should have been created with more gifts and until they appear, we will not.

In our Gospel Luke has Jesus responding to an invitation to dinner at a leading Pharisee’s house. There are two keys that this is not ordinary dinner. First the other at the dinner are watching Jesus with the intent to trap him. These are people I often refer to as the “Temple Police” or perhaps in today’s terms they are the “Liturgical Police”. Jesus notices the pharisaical practices of the guests maneuvering for the places of honor and recognition. So he intensifies their interest in him by telling a story that is aimed right at their insincerity.

The story seems to be about table manners and where one should sit at a wedding feast, however it is really about how one sits at the table of life. Being invited to life means that we are in fact invited and have no entitled rites other than to eat what is placed before us and to sit where they find themselves. The Eternal Inviter to the feast of life will bless those who have eaten well and gratefully for the whole meal. This blessing is the Eternal Host saying, “My friend, move up to a higher position.”

The “higher position” would be a place of honor, which, for Luke, means a place of sharing with the needy the gifts received at God’s table. This image is made more clear as Jesus then turns to the host of the dinner and speaks to him about whom he should invite to such dinners.

Jesus states clearly to the host that when he invites his friends and the wealthy to dine, they can repay you and so you have your reward. The challenge to the host is to use his dining facilities and wealth to care for those who cannot repay him, because then the Eternal Host who has set his table, will then repay him at the eternal banquet.

That which makes a person truly attractive is that comfortableness in their own skin, which is true humility. Just as sitting in a quiet, peaceful place is comforting, walking with people who are comfortable with their own skin often bring peace into our life, you might say it rests us. Remember humility is truth in action, generosity in public, and joyfulness in being invited.

Have a great Sunday everyone!

Daily Prayer: O God, we love you and our only desire is to love you until the last breath of our lives. If our tongues cannot say in every moment that we love you, we want our hearts to repeat it to you as often as we draw a breath. Amen. (Adapted from a prayer by St. John Vianney)

A Runner’s Thoughts: “Looking forward to something is much more fun than looking back at something–and much more constructive.” (Hortense Odlum)

Daily Blessing: Sunday greetings and blessings to all. I hope your Sunday has started off well and that you will be able to give God a little time today! I am finishing up my time St. Ignatius Martyr Parish in Long Beach today. After the noon mass I will be headed home. It has been a wonder two weeks here. I always enjoy helping out and being blessing with time to enjoy the gift of being near the ocean.

My prayer of blessing today is that whatever you are doing today, relaxing, working, traveling, vacationing or just being I pray that God’s blessing will be upon your Sunday filling it with the richness of joy, hope and the goodness of God’s presence. May today be filled with Spirit and life so that you will always live in the presence of God! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul