Pray Always/All Ways

We have nothing but Five loaves and Two fish

2011-07-30T08:32:00.004-05:00

Somone in Greene County gave me a sign that reads ,

"Pray toward heaven but row toward shore."

In the gospel this weekend Jesus needs what little the apostles have, as well as what little everyone else has, in order to feed not just 5000, but probably 25,000 to 35,000, if you are counting women and children. (Look around you in church this weekend, do you see more men or more women and children.) Jesus depends on us not to look at what we lack but what we have and start from there.

Jesus, then gives thanks and gives away what they have, and they in turn give it to others, who, we hope, then would give it to others.

What do you have that needs to be blessed, broken and shared?

So pray to God but look at what He has already given you. Don't be afraid to thank him and then share what you have with others--that is what the Kingdom of God is like!

If you have ears

2011-07-15T07:51:00.002-05:00

"You have eyes but do not see and ears but do not hear."

Earth's crammed with heaven,
and every common bush afire with God,

But only he who sees, takes off his shoes --

The rest sit around and pluck blackberries.

Eliz. Barrett Browning

There is a bright red cardinal taht comes to my back porch, seemingly at the most inopportune times. I try to use the mornings on the back porch for quiet time and prayer. If you know anything about cardinals, you know they can "chit, chit chit" relentlessly. This one sits in the bush right off the porch and I can not pay attention to anything but the bird. Sometiems I think, if I could, I owuld like to reach out and kill it. Here it is disrupting my quiet time and prayer, right?

Let the one who has eyes, see and the one who has ears, hear.

It is like in church when a child cries and people get upset with the child or the child's parents. The child is doing what children do, yet we get upset because the child is bothering us. So we want to get rid of the disturbance, it bothers us. The bird and the child are being what God created them to be and do. The problems is with us, the hearers -- we do not truly hear. Wake up! How many other times are we upset with others when it is our vry selves who have the problem?

From Holy Trinity to Christmas

2010-12-30T09:58:00.003-05:00

It has been a long time since I wrote and I cannot promise that this will be the first of many...
Remember the teacher who asked her students to draw a picture of something they really liked. The kids got to work right away and the teacher walked around to see their drawings--stick figures and houses. When she came to little Mary's desk, the little girl was using every color in the crayon box and was all over the page. The teacher asked what she might be drawing. She was told without hesitation, "A picture of God!"
"You know that no-one knows what God looks like, don't you?"
"They will now!" said Mary.
Are we as confident as Mary? Do we make God visible through the lives we lead? Our responsibility is to go out to all the world and tell the Good News.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

How big is God?

2010-06-01T20:28:00.003-05:00

A little kid asked his mother if God was bigger than they were.

She said, "Yes, God is bigger than we are."

So a little later the kid came around and said, "Sister told us that God is in us. Is that true?"

"Yes." the mother replied.

"Then if God is bigger than we are and is in us, how come he isn't sticking out somewhere?"

That is such a good question. For the Feast of Holy Trinity ask your self if He is sticking out anywhere and if not why?

Who me?

2010-05-12T10:37:00.004-05:00

There is a story about the day Jesus Ascends into heaven. He still has all the marks of his passion and death, so that when he enters heaven everyone is shocked at the amount of suffering he must have gone through. Everyone falls on their knees and is crying. Michael asks him if everyone on earth is aware of all that he suffered.
Jesus told him, "NO there is only a small group around Jerusalem that know."
When he is pressed on how everyone will get to know, Jesus tells them, "I trust Peter, James and John and the disciples will tell the world."
"What if they get too busy, dejected, tired or killed?"
" Then those who they tell will have to pick up the slack." said Jesus.
" Do you have a back up plan?"
"No, I entrust them with the Kingdom as it was entrusted to me. No back up plans."Jesus replied.

You are the plan, are you continuing to tell the world who he is and what he has done? Luckily we do not have to do it by ourselves.

Happy Ascension--now we pray for nine days (novena) for the coming of the Spirit without whom we can do nothing.

GOOD FRIDAY

2010-04-02T07:55:00.003-05:00

A story out of South America to help us put Good Friday into perspective:
Poor family, scrimped and saved to get a piece of land. The day they took possession of the land was a day of celebration. They gathered in their two room shack that would serve as their home, and the father ceremoniously walked off and marked the boundaries of the new property, praying and thankful for what they had. As he laid stones at the corners of the property he noticed something sticking out from under a bush. As he dug it up he soon unearthed a corpus from a crucifix. It had been in the ground a long time. Its hands and arms were gone, and its feet and legs were missing. It was mangled, scratched and cracked, the paint nearly gone. He carried it back to the shack in his arms. He laid it on the kitchen table. Pronouncing it was the first fruit of the land they had bought, what should they do with it? Take it to the church, burn it, bury it again?
The youngest spoke up, "Why don’t we hang it on the wall in the kitchen and put a sign under it?"

"What would you write": tacked underneath this corpus in this home was a sign written in printed block letters: "Jesus had no arms and legs. Will you lend him yours?"

(paraphrasing St Theresa of Avila:)

“Christ has no body now on earth but yours,
no hands but yours,
no feet but yours,
yours are the eyes through which Christ's compassion
is to look out to the earth,
yours are the feet by which He is to go about doing good
and yours are the hands by which He is to bless us now.”

Thi is Good Friday

Learning to celebrate?

2010-03-18T17:16:00.003-05:00

The Prodigal Son:
The father looks at them as equals. No difference! He gives each that which was coming to him--not just to the son who leaves--to both. They both have problems. One son is out of control and squanders everything. His sin is so much a part of him that he has trouble accepting forgiveness, even from the father. The father has to continue to put clothes and sandals on him before he gets it. The other son is so in control (or thinks he is) that when something happens to put him out of sorts so that he cannot deal with it, he thinks he is without sin.
The problem with both of them is that they do not know how to "celebrate". The word comes up like five times in the story and it is always about the need to celebrate. Probably one of the best homilies I ever heard for a Funeral Mass was about the deceased who was Catholic to the core because he always was ready to celebrate. That is supposed to be us too. Oh, 40 days of fast and abstenance--lets celebrate with Mardi Gras and have a big blow out (Catholics started it, now we sit back and accuse others of over doing it. We have forgotten how to celebrate.) Even in the midst of our fasting there has to be the celebrating. We look forward to the joy of Easter, but that joy is with us even now. L:et us be gald and rejoice always. Celebrate!

How does the story end? The story teller says that the story really begins when the story teller stops talking. So now, we have to Celebrate and find out.

Patterns of Holiness

2010-03-07T18:53:00.003-05:00

Mother Teresa used to pass out "business cards" that had her name on it and:
The fruit of silence is prayer,
The fruit of prayer is faith,
The fruit of faith is love,
The fruit of love is service,
The fruit of service is peace.

This was her idea of a "pattern of holiness" that we were to connect in our own daily lives.

We are called continually to enter into unity with Our God, that we may know Peace, Shalom.

It becomes real easy to get hung up along the way and never get there. But the promise is unity and peace; and we are to know the fullness of the promise even now, if we know how to look, and how to bear fruit.

Temptation to More

2010-02-24T13:27:00.003-05:00

Anthony De Mello wrote a small story about an American tourist who complimented a fisherman on the quality of his fish and asks how long it takes to catch them. The man answered that it does not take very long, so the inquiry is made as to why the fisherman doesn’t stay out longer and catch more.
Since the catch is sufficient for his family, the man does not need more. Asking what he does with the rest of his time, the fisherman replies, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs. I have a full life.”
Discontent with the answer, the American offers to buy him a bigger boat so he can catch and sell more fish. With the extra money, a second boat could be purchased and eventually an entire fleet. Then the fisherman could move to Los Angeles or New York and direct a huge enterprise.
The intrigued fisherman asks how long such a process would take and is told about twenty years. “And after that?” he asks. Then he could potentially make millions buying and selling stocks. “And after that?” he asks again.
“After that you’ll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your grandchildren, catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife, and spend your evening drinking and enjoying your friends!”
We are often tempted to acquire more wealth and power. “One does not live on bread alone.” A land flowing with milk and honey may be the land we inhabit already, if only we have eyes to see.

It has been a while!

2010-02-05T15:03:00.004-05:00

I probably would not be writing this if it was not for something that was shared with me today.

Snowbound

A pending snowstorm is changing our immediate futures. Cancellations, early preparations and re-schedulings buzz like downed wires in the frosty air. Within the next twelve hours, people will hasten home to be secure against the storm. Most will not be executing their original Friday and Saturday plans. Most will be "snowbound".

For one thin slice of time, our lives are clearly not our own. We are gathered in the great white arms of Winter and held back from our busy, exhausting itineraries. Two deep questions are buried in our snowy binding: what are we kept from in the storm, and what are we kept for?

I think God does nothing by mistake. I like to imagine what it might have been that God saved me from by keeping me home this Saturday. It might have been as simple as a case of indigestion or as serious as a life-altering accident. But whatever it might have been, I will be turned from it like a child wrapped in her Father's arms. Eyes protected against his loving heart, I will have been kept from something I will never know.

But what will I have been kept for? Gathered in those loving arms, we are kept for love. The divine Snowmaker says, "Wait. Be still. Look here in my eyes. Remember love."

Wherever you are this Friday night and Saturday, snowbound or not, hear the whisper of the Holy One against your storms. Listen in your homes for love. Speak care and gratitude into any icy stillness. Gathered with you are those who wait for your love. It can be so easy to give when we are storm-bound - because we can't really do anything else! Or can we?!!!

Turn the TV off for an hour, make hot chocolate and watch the snow with your spouse. Let the wash wait and bake cookies with your kids instead. Put your computer away and let your kids help sand those old kitchen chairs. So what if you "get nothing done"! Next Saturday will be clear and you can spend the day at the supermarket or Home Depot where nobody loves or needs you!

I know many of our cities will be bright and clear this Saturday. But your storms will come. Even my warm friends in South Carolina will know their hurricanes. Keep these thoughts for those times. Wherever you are and whatever you do this weekend, may Love fold you and your families in its arms and keep you safe. In the storm, may Love teach us to be loving.

Sr. Renee Yann

Disaster/Incarnation

2009-12-17T11:14:00.006-05:00

Megan Mckenna tells the story of a young father who was climbing the corporate ladder pretty quickly and wanted to have his business associates over for dinner. His fear was his young five year old son, who was a bit of a handful. His table manners were anything but gentile. After working with him for weeks on table etiquette, he decided they were going to try for the big dinner. All things began well. His son the perfect gentleman, introducing himself and being quiet. By the time the meal began the young man was starving and the bread basket looked inviting and close enough for him to reach. However it was a bit of a stretch and first went his glass of water; when he pulled back in alarm he spilt the glass of wine of the person next to him into the bread. He then looked to his father, horrified. When the father saw the stricken look of fear on his sons face, he reached over spilled his own water glass and his wine, smilled at his son and said let's clean this up together.

Our God and Father does not want fear, but open hearts that are willing to clean the mess up together with him. Merry Christmas!

Thank You

2009-11-25T10:17:00.002-05:00

There are basically three kinds of givers:

grudge givers who do not want to give, but do so because they are afraid of somekind of retribution.

duty givers who give because they feel they are obligated to give.

and thanks givers who realize all they have as a gift and give willingly because they were first given to.

Be forever giving Thanks, not just to God but to, with and for all.

Thank You!

The ones the Son shines through

2009-11-02T11:54:00.003-05:00

A young mother raised her daughter with the hope that she would come to know and love God. As a little girl her daughter loved to walk through the old church at the end of the street, with its Gothic spires and stained glass windows. As they would walk up the isle, her mother would tell her about the windows and the saints represented there: St. Francis, St Claire, St Dominic, St Theresa, St Paul etc. It was like a Litany of the Saints and their lives. The little girl listened but was more amazed by the dazzling light-show of the sun shining through the stained glass windows with its rainbow effects.

As the little girl grew older and the family moved into the suburbs the mother decided she would like her daughter to go to Catholic School. As all the other kids seemed to have been in the school for a long time and knew their faith much better than she, the girl refused to participate in any conversations about faith, until the Feast of All Saints. The teacher asked, "Who are the Saints?" The girl raised her hand and was full of excitement, when called upon she said, "They are the ones the sun shines through!"

The teacher loved her answer and developed the whole class around her response. When the mother came to pick her up that day the teacher was delighted to tell her about the class on Saints and her daughters excellent response. A bit embarrassed the mother explained her daughter's answer; but the teacher reaffirmed her and told her it was the best answer she could have received. "They are the ones the Son shines through."

At The Cross Roads!

2009-10-14T15:55:00.008-05:00

We just came back from a High School Retreat during the Columbus Day free school day. We spent the day in Greene County and God could not have smiled on us in any better way. No rain, clear night for stars, cool but not cold weather, no sun rise(?), the hill to heaven, but new life in abundance: who could have imagined two sets of twin lambs born while we were there at the Spaulding Farm. The second set while we watched!

We sat at the crossroads; water, wilderness and on the way. With the many choices of our lives, we asked if we were on the right road. What will we choose? I pray we choose life (as Moses said). The biggest complaint was it was not long enough! That sounds pretty positive from a group of high school students on a religious retreat.

God in a Box

2009-09-30T13:18:00.003-05:00

Do you want God to be placed in a box?

A young child came home from Catholic school with a question for her mother: "Sister said, 'God is every where.' Is that true?"

The mother thought for a moment and said, "Yes, thats right."

The young girl, standing with her hands seemingly folded behind her back, gently said, "'Sister said, 'Even when I am alone in my room God is there with me.' Is that true?"

"Yes," replied the mother.

"So, God is here right now?" she asked?

"Yes, definitley."

The little girl pulled a mayonaise jar, the ones with the air holes in the lid for lighting bugs, from behind her back, clapped on the lid and said, "Gotcha!"

Her mother asked her what she was going to do with that, and she said she would put it on her night stand so she always knew where to find God.

Do we act any differently: only crying out when there is an emergency, never uttering a cry of joy or blessing or thanks. Not only do we cry out at the worst of times but it is then that we blame God, who has not abandoned us, but whom we have abandoned (or just left him sitting on our night stand, in jars of our own making, until we need him next?)

Who am I?

2009-09-19T07:39:00.002-05:00

Who would you believe to tell you the truth about who you are?

Jesus asked what others said but then asked his closest friends who they say he is?

If you take the challenge to ask yourself who you are as Jesus does, you may find you are actually asking three questions:

Who do I think I am?

Who do others (those closeset to you) think I am?

Who does God say I am?

For Jesus there was no difference between how he saw himself and how his Father saw him. But what about how others saw him? They had only a glimpse of the whole picture. Revelation is the unveiling of a fuller picture of who he is?

Who are you?

Milli Vanilli: Is it live or is it Memorex?

2009-08-29T08:54:00.004-05:00

If you can remember the scandal of Milli Vanilli lip syncing and winning Grammy Awards for it, then being stripped of the Awards because they were not the true singers at all; you may get an idea of what "you give me lip service but your hearts are far from me" is all about. How much of what we do, especially in areas of religion, is just going through the motions, lip syncing, if you will? And what do you do to change your hearts to be like Christs'?

Or does the commercial for Memorex cassette tapes make a case for how you worship God? Is it live or is it taped, where we go on automatic pilot and forget about why we do what we do, leaving a mere copy of ourselves to give praise to God?

What we are called to is a commitment of the heart, whereby we acknowledge that we are not always there, and have to try and do better if we are to remain in this wonderful relationship God has chosen us for. He cannot force it, he only offers it freely. We are not being asked to lip sync this, but to look at what the relationship with God demands. And it is all about love: the love God has for us, the love we have for God and the way we express that love to others. Stay awake, be aware of what you are doing, do not enter into this journey of faith lightly.

How do you receive?

2009-08-12T21:01:00.004-05:00

In Peru we had various food kitchens that provided food for the hungry. The people came drawn by the bread to eat, but they had a choice as to how to receive:

-Those who were really hungry, they ate what was served, no questions

-Those who ate part of what was served and saved the rest for later, not knowing where the next meal would come from

-Those who were served but took what they were given and shared it with those who needed it more

-Those who looked to see if they liked what was being served and often threw it away, because they did not like the simplicity of it.

We are drawn by the bread of life every time we celebrate Eucharist. How do we receive?

Why do we get away?

2009-07-21T07:28:00.002-05:00

I am looking at getting away for a while. Most of next week will find me by a cool river or stream fishing, relaxing, resting. With the continued hectic pace of our lives the call to come away to an out of the way place may seem very inviting. But do we ever get there? Are our vacations so full and active that we need to rest from our vacations? Do we know how to rest?
This past weeks gospel has Jesus saying come away and rest, but they never get there because of the needs of the crowds. They try to go, but the crowd beats them to where they are going. So Jesus teaches them many things.
So what are we seeking in getting away? Can there be a resting even in the midst of the hecticness of our lives? Can learning somethng new answer the call to rest? Maybe it is in the singlemindness of the call, focus on one thing, put multi-tasking aside for just a while. Concentrate on one thing. In that there is rest a plenty.

Boxed In

2009-07-04T06:53:00.005-05:00

Have you overheard some one's description of you and thought,

"They certainly cannot be talking about me?"

Your response may be one of anger at the injustice of it all; or one of enlightenment from realizing there may be some truth in what was said.

Either way change is needed.

Nobody likes to be "boxed". It is limiting and dehumanizing; but we all do it, have done it and will have it done by others.

There is the old saying that we have to walk one mile in an other's shoes before we can really know them. The complexities of our lives define who we are and unless we are willing to share the stories of our lives with others, we may never be truly known by anyone. How and to whom you choose to share your stories is as important as how and who shares their stories with you.

Why was Jesus not accepted in his home town?

By his own people? They refused to listen.

"Ephatha, be open!"

Feast of Trinity

2009-06-08T07:08:00.004-05:00

Prayer For,With, and In

Review your whole day and think of the best thing that has happened. Give thanks to God the Father who gifts us with all good things.

Review your day and think of the worst thing you did, how you hurt others, neglected those in need, some sin; and ask Christ our savior for forgiveness.

Think about tomorrow and what lies ahead, what task you need help with, what power or direction and pray to the Holy Spirit for the assistance needed.

In God we live and move and have our being God, who is For us, With us, and In us.

Pentecost

2009-05-29T18:44:00.003-05:00

Time flies like the Wind, where ere it wills.

So what do you do when you receive a gift?
Are you focused on the gift or the giver?
Maybe that depends on the gift!

So, when the giver becomes the gift ...
It all has to do with why we were given the gift of the Spirit?
Not for our own purpose but for the build up of the Body of Christ, the Church. If all we do is relish our own gift or even envy the gift someone else received, the gift becomes a source of contention and division. Is it still a gift? Is it of the Spirit? Pray for those gifts. The temptation to take credit for our own gifts and to envy the gifts of others are as old as life itself. From the garden, Cain and Able... it goes on.

How do your gifts and talents benefit the rest? Your gifts are God-given, and the best way to give thanks to God is to use them in His service and the service of others. What are some of the prime passions and talents that God has giveb you? How do you use them?

FISHING

2009-01-22T17:53:00.004-05:00

Who would have thought it, in the middle of winter here in western PA -- fishing! In Fsherman magazine has coined "location, location, location"as their legendary claim to successful fishing. It is all about where you are, not what you have in your tackle box, what kind of bait you use or how willy a fisherman you may be. If you believe that, what might "I will make you fishers of men" mean?

From conception to death there are key times in which we have a better chance for the big catch. Consider the times when Christ most affected peoples lives, as when they were young, stressed, on the fringe, sick or dieing, feasting or fasting. It was all about being in the right place at the right time. When was he needed the most? When do we need him the most? When are you most likely to be caught? Where does the church spend most of its time and energy?

Snow

2009-01-12T19:54:00.003-05:00

What a little snow will do to lift one up. Just got back from Colorado and a little ski trip to put one on top of the world (Winter Park is close). We had a great trip and the resounding experience was one directly out of Exodus 3 ""Do not come any closer," God said. "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground." We were surrounded by snow (no burning bushes) but the feeling was unmistakeble- we stood on Holy Ground and God was present.

Have you ever tried to take off your shoes in the wilderness, a snowy mountain may be most wild? It is never easy and you are forced to look at where you place every step, for what you may destroy or step on. Has any one stood elsewhere? Look around, be surprised by the presence of God. I came back with a new appreciation of what has been placed before me, always! Know that you too are on Holy Ground. Peace this year.

Watching Waiting and Listening

2008-12-07T21:15:00.003-05:00

Moving out was hard, moving in is harder. One is needed before the other however. One is a process of emtying, the other a process of filling up. Doing both at the same time is more difficult than I ever imagined. In the past I always had time to empty myself before I moved on, in fact I usually asked to be moved. This change unlike others was thrust upon me, and was so fast that I hardly had time to prepare in any way for the change of assignments. This one I accepted but hardly asked for. And there in lies the difference.

Maybe that is why this Advent seems like such a blessing to me. In the watching and waiting and listening of Advent, my perspective on this change changes me. I hope I am approaching this new assignment with an emptiness rather than a preconceived idea of what has gone on before. So far, as with any parish I have been involved with, there are good people, hungry people, searching people--we all have problems, but we share that common heritage, we are people. It is from the hunger and the searching that the new growth is able to come in and fill us up. We need to make room for Christ to come again into our busy lives, by becoming less busy. we need to make the space for him to fill. We are like the people sitting in darkness waitng for the light. If it were light already would we anticipate the coming of a greater light. In this holy darkness, there is a blessed light. It starts small, and grows to change all things. It begins to fill us up with what we need not with just what we want. This is a holy time.

I still struggle with the emptying.

to blog or not to blog?

2008-11-20T11:22:00.004-05:00

Here is the deal: I have been told that the use of a blog is limited as an evangelization tool. In fact many bloggers are now moving toward the use of tools such as "facebook" or "my space" (for whatever reason I am not sure). I am not sure that I get the online communities or understand their possibilities. I tried, but it seems more like Greek to me than Greek itself. I posted a facebook profile and keep getting peoples hits on it and do not know what to do with them. so they just sit there and I get more requests from people who want to be "my friend" on facebook, I accept and then still do nothing. So I am requesting emails ( I have not done this before because I thought as long as I was here at OLOJ I would continue posting the odd blog, now I do not know, do I continue blogging?) Here is how this will work, I set up an email site with hotmail--it will not be a new email address for me for long, but for the next couple of months I will monitor it. When it dies I will let you know. That new address is mcg1nn1s@live.com You can copy this and put it in your email addresses and let me know what you think about the blogs, if you wish, or about facebook or what ever. I do not promise a response to every email. I am just trying to figure out if I should continue. Thanks

Good or Bad?

2008-11-10T09:55:00.003-05:00

At this point most people are aware that I am to be moved from Our Lady of Joy and reassigned to St John Neumann as of Nov 24. Many people have been shocked by the sudden change, but many are suppportive, and that is what is called for.
I look forward to the possibilities of a new parish, but it never lessens the feelings of loss and grief over leaving a parish that has loved and cared for me. I realize that many of you look at it and only see something bad. Well, maybe you need to read this:
Good or Bad?
When the farmer's horse ran away, his neighbor came to console him. "That was a bad thing that happened to you!" he said. But the farmer's answer was, "Who knows what is good or bad?" The next day the horse returned, but not alone; he brought with him a whole herd of wild horses. And the neighbor hurried this time to congratulate his friend. "This is a good thing that happened to you!" Again he answered, "Who knows what is good or bad?" The next day, the farmer's son mounted one of the wild horses to break it in, but he was promptly thrown and broke his leg. Again the neighbor came, this time to say, "That was a bad thing that happened to you!" And again the answer was, "Who knows what is good or bad?" The fourth day after the accident, the imperial army came to recruit his son for the army, but after seeing his injury they did not take him. Again came the neighbor with congratulations, and again the farmer's answer, "Who knows what is good or bad?"

I leave but do not really go that far. I would appreciate your prayers for both Our Lady of Joy and St John Neumann. Nobody is fond of change, yet daily we are thrust into new situations, and we are challenged to focus on the possibilities of New Life: Resurrection!

Last Days of Summer

2008-09-18T16:41:00.005-05:00

The days are getting shorter for sure, as we approach the equinox. The nights are getting cooler as the first day of Autumn approaches. Have you taken the time to notice? Have you enjoyed the days any more, or savored the nights a little longer? Just the other night we had the Harvest Moon (no not the song by Neil Young). The big orange orb hung on the horizon for what seemed like an eternity the other night before it lit up the whole night sky. We have had some beautiful clear evenings with stars in abundance. If you can get to a dark hill spend some time looking up, especially as the moon begins to wane. It is all part of the cycle of life (no not the song from Lion King). The writers of those songs had to figure it was pretty special though to be able to write such inspiring stuff. Maybe we need to read some of the nature psalms (Psalm 19, 29, 92, 96, 97, 98, 104 for just an example) or look up the "Canticle of the Sun" in the church missalettes. St Francis was in awe when he wrote it, "The Heavens are telling the Glory of God..." Enjoy!

School Starts

2008-08-27T10:32:00.003-05:00

I noticed this week at Mass how many kids were coming out with somewhat dour faces, but the parents right behind them had a special smile. I do not remember any of the kids saying they were excited about school starting, but I did not think I had to ask the parents; it showed!

I wonder how many other little things affect us so much that we are unaware of?
Does our outward disposition speak volumes and we are unaware?
Could our faith experience be something that is shared by our outward appearances?
When was the last time you remember someone smiling after church?
Are friends or family even aware that we go to Church?

We are evangelizing every moment of our day--it is either positive or negative.
What might you do this week to let your light shine and influence others in a positive way?
Can you let Christ shine through you?

PARISH FESTIVAL

2008-08-11T15:54:00.002-05:00

This weekend August 15 & 16 is our parish festival. It is an important fund raiser for the parish but provides a lot of fun and community building along the way. We hope to see you there to enjoy the fun and the food. You may even get to dunk the priest.

Water Water Everywhere

2008-07-16T07:37:00.005-05:00

Jesus goes to the shore and sits down, and great crowds gather around him forcing him into a boat so he can teach them. What is happening here? It may be an "enacted parable?"

What happens when you go to the shore--You have a chance of getting wet! Yet how many people year after year go to the shore, the beach, the pool and never go in? Its too cold, its dirty, What is in there? What ever, they do not get wet by their own choice. (So too, how many people week after week hear the Word of God but are not changed by it: Never go in, never listen with an ear toward change? Its too boring, did not like the speakers voice, daydreaming about what has to be done later?)

The parables of Jesus are meant to get us wet--change our lives, baptize us into a new life with Christ. Can we let that happen, can we choose to get wet? If we have ears we should listen.

First Day of Summer

2008-06-21T04:53:00.003-05:00

Just like the first day of Winter this first day of summer is an important day to reflect, one with the longest day the other with the longest night. Our reflections on the winter solstice shortly turn to our Christmas celebration and the return of the son (sun). The first day of summer shortly turns to our celebration of the Birth of John the Baptist (June 24th) and the one who prepares the way. In many countries around the summer solstice there are traditions of bonfires, called St. John's Fires, to mark the nights around the solstice. It is again a preparing for the son (sun). Six months apart, these two nativity feasts have much in common and a lot to reflect on. We look back in history to the Birth of the Savior at Christmas. With these St. John Fires we are challenged to look forward to Christ's coming again, and are asked if we are preparing the way, as John did? Are we working to build the Kingdom of God here on earth in preparation for the coming again of Christ? We pray the Lord's prayer over and over, asking that "thy Kingdom come," but do we do anything about it?
Good summer reading should probably include the three chapters of Matthew's Gospel that outline Christ's ministry, Chapters 5, 6, 7. This begins with the Beatitudes and moves on through the Sermon on the Mount. If we are to celebrate with John the Baptist and await the coming of Christ we should be preparing the way.

Hottest Homilies!

2008-06-09T06:45:00.003-05:00

Best homily I ever heard on a hot day:
God loves you.
He wants you to share his love with others.
On your way home today buy a quart of ice cream.
Invite your neighbors over to share it.
God loves you!
(In a hot unairconditioned church it was always appreciated.)
Airconditioned or not, enjoy it.

Rain, Rain, Go Away

2008-05-21T07:59:00.004-05:00

I woke up and the sun is shining! I did not know what to do. It’s a miracle. How many days of rain? Yet, the weather man is telling me it will rain later today. Surprise, surprise. I started planting my garden early this year during those nice days in April. With all the cold weather and rain not much has grown (weeds). During those fifty days of Easter celebrations did we grow? More questions.
I know this will be the start of the summer season, with Memorial Day weekend coming up. Where does everyone go during that time? There is a definite drop off in attendance during our Sunday masses. I encourage you to come to church and pray with us during the summer too. The schedule remains the same, we will be there waiting for you. And God, well God is with us always, even in the rain!
Sunday, June 1, 3-5 pm we will have our "picnic on the lawn" in front of the rectory--you are welcome to come and share the sun, the music and the fun.

2008-05-08T08:05:00.002-05:00

If a picture is worth a thousand words, I want to share this with you from our trip to Peru:

Chimbote, Peru Visit

2008-04-21T12:07:00.004-05:00

I am leaving Tuesday, April 22 to visit SanLuis Gonzaga Parish in Chimbote, Peru. My stomach has been in knots for days now and I keep trying to ready myself by studying more Spanish and looking through old books and notes to prepare me for the language and the culture shock. Just the language itself can exhaust me. But I look forward with great delight to be with some of my friends that I became very close to in a very short period of time.

There are three people from the parish going with me, Maureen, Judy and Patty. We are focusing on it being a missionary trip; to see what is going on and how we might better be able to respond to the needs of the parishes we visit, and how God is involved in this whole thing. We will visit Villa El Salvador near Lima for the first few days before traveling the six hours north to Chimbote. In Chimbote I do not know what to expect. There have been many changes since I was down there last. I will be staying in a different parish, Cristo Rey, that is very close to San Luis and La Maternidad de Maria. I will try to update you from Peru when I get the chance.

Keep us in your prayers.

Old Parable

2008-04-09T07:47:00.004-05:00

An old parable concerns two friends: a mud pie and a dry leaf.
One day, they decide to pilgrimage to the holy city.
Knowing the wind and the rain
will be their enemies on the pilgrimage, they devise a plan for protection.
When the wind blows,
the mud pie will sit on the dry leaf, and when the rain pours, the leaf will sit on the mud pie to keep it dry. The plan worked fine, until one day the wind blew and the rain poured at the same time. The result?
The leaf blew away and
the mud pie dissolved into nothingness.
To be "poor in spirit" means to realize that we cannot go through life alone. There will be times when even our friend can't help us. We will need God.

The Faith of Thomas

2008-03-28T15:00:00.000-05:00

It is one of the great ironies of Christianity that the apostle, Thomas, has become known as “doubting Thomas.” Thomas makes possibly the most perfect and complete acts of faith in the New Testament. “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28)

Thomas remains forever a symbol of the power of doubting. He is a model of how doubt can sometimes lead one to the truth much more effectively than blind faith can.

His most important single step is to be willing to confront the possible truth. If Thomas had not been willing to come face-to-face with Jesus, he would never have known that Christ had risen. When facing Jesus, if he had refused to engage in a confronting dialogue, he may never have known that this was really the same person with whom he had walked the streets of Jerusalem.

In the best sense, I encourage everyone to be a "doubting Thomas." But we must be willing to carry out our doubts as did Thomas. Doubt that seeks to confront has far more power to lead one to truth than dull acceptance which seeks not to be bothered.

Two weeks/Two wolves

2008-03-10T20:38:00.007-05:00

You have two weeks left before Easter.

They can possibly encompass your whole Lenten journey:

Do we move toward Resurrection and new life,

or towards death and destruction?

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson

about a battle that goes on inside people.

He said, 'My son, the battle is between

two 'wolves' inside us all.

One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow,

regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity,

guilt, resentment, inferiority,

lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

The other is Good. It is joy, peace,

love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness,

benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.'

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: 'Which wolf wins?'

The old Cherokee simply replied, 'The one you feed.'

Amazon River Explorer

2008-02-13T15:22:00.002-05:00

It was a life long dream to visit the Amazon. He studied about it and prepared. When he finally gets to go, the trip changes his life forever. After a year or so of traveling the length of the river he returned home to a hero’s welcome. But they noticed something was different, he had changed. There was a calmness a peace about him that they wanted. Even when they questioned him he could not fully explain what the trip did to him, all that he had experienced.

Yet, a day did not go by that he was not reminded by a certain smell, or the way the light reflected on the water, or someone or thing would catch his eye and remind him. He remembered and lived in a continual satisfaction.

He encouraged others to seek the same experience, to make the trip, see for themselves. But they always had 1001 excuses. They wanted to hear the stories over and over again. Yet in the telling something was lost.

He decided at one point to draw a map for a few he thought were truly motivated in going. The map was of the whole river trip, marked with falls and rapids and the places of specific stories he had told, but the beauty of it all alluded him.

The map, rather than being used for a trip, was enlarged and hung in the townhall, and all the townspeople made copies of it, that they kept in their homes. They proclaimed themselves to be Masters of the Amazon and followers of its explorers; because they had studied and heard the stories, they thought they knew the rapids, the falls and the particular beauty of the place.

The explorer began to dread the day he ever drew the map.

What would you think of such a town?

Beit Benedict, the House of Benedict

2008-02-08T09:46:00.000-05:00

Before he died, Pope John Paul II wrote, "Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem" (Mk 10:33). With these words, the Lord invites the disciples to journey with him on the path that leads from Galilee to the place where he will complete his redemptive mission. This journey to Jerusalem, which the Evangelists present as the crowning moment of the earthly journey of Jesus, is the model for the Christian who is committed to following the Master on the way of the Cross. Christ also invites the men and women of today to "go up to Jerusalem". He does so with special force in Lent, which is a favorable time to convert and restore full communion with him by sharing intimately in the mystery of his Death and Resurrection.

Our Lent this year will take on the flavor of following Christ to Jerusalem. “Longing for Peace...” How often we find ourselves praying, hoping for peace. Now there is an opportunity to do something for peace! We are teaming up with the Dormition Benedictine Abbey on Mt. Zion in Jerusalem to help build an Interfaith Peace Academy, Beit Benedict.

On the first Friday of the Lent, immediately after the Stations of the Cross, Sr. Susan Jenny will do a presentation for us on how we can help; of the history and the possibilities; and the need to work for Peace.

On Friday, February 15 at 7:30 pm we will be hosting a benefit concert to benefit Beit Benedict. Rory Cooney, a noted liturgical composer and singer Theresa Donohoo will present a concert “Change our Hearts” at Our Lady of Joy. All proceeds will go to the construction of the Peace Academy. Tickets are $15, in advance, $20 at the door.

Dis-ease

2008-01-28T08:09:00.000-05:00

We live in a culture that stresses the importance and significance of the individual, while at the same time downplaying the importance of God. These two cannot go together without creating an intolerable restlessness, an ache inside each of us.

A fundamental dis-ease results when the truths that are revealed by God are taught in a world that proclaims independence of God.

What happens when we are raised to believe that we are, each of us, precious, special and meant to leave a lasting mark on this earth ... and we live in a world in which we are obscure, unknown, homogenized, taken for granted and deprived of meaningful self-expression?
What happens when we are taught that our lives have deep significance and that our personalities, our dreams, our pains, our joys, and our loves have infinite importance ... and we live in a world which cannot give us this sense?

What happens inside us when we sense how precious are our individual stories, in all their unique intricacies, and we live in a world which is not interested in our stories and is bored when we begin to speak of ourselves?

What happens when we are told by our world that our daydreams are true and that we are infinitely precious, but that same world, precisely because it no longer relies on God to give us that preciousness, cannot offer us a sense of specialness?

What happens? In brief, we get very restless. We become deeply and hopelessly dissatisfied. The joys that our lives do give us tend to pale and be insignificant because we feel that they and we, are small-time, small-town, obscure, too little known and recognized.

Our world teaches us that we are significant and precious, but then deprives us of the one thing that can make us so, our God! This sets off an incurable ache.

Only God can give us the sense of our own preciousness and ultimate significance. Only in a life deeply rooted in prayer and in relationship with Christ will our aching and dissatisfaction cease.

Lent already? Almost.

2008-01-16T13:24:00.000-05:00

I do not know if you looked at your calendar recently but...Lent is just three weeks away and Easter this year falls on one of the earliest dates possible--this year March 23. This does not happen very frequently because the Easter date is determined by the first weekend, after the first full moon, after the vernal equinox. you may not find this very interesting but it means that here at the parish we have been working on Lent since the day after Christmas. It will get here before you know it.

We have been placed in a very fortunate situation this year as we approach Lent. We have been asked to sponsor a Benefit Concert for an Interfaith Peace Academy, Beit Benedict on Mt. Sion, Jerusalem. Continually in our liturgies we pray for Peace, but now we are being asked to do something for Peace. The initiative for this project was requested by youth in and around the Holy Land. The Benedictine Dormitian Abbey had been approached to help build this Academy. Through contacts with Seton Hill College and the Benedictine Order, Our Lady of Joy has been asked to help with this project.

Our Lenten season will be focused on this Peace Journey--"Journey to Jerusalem". We will walk with Christ to his final destiny of his Passion, Death, and Resurrection in Jerusalem. As part of that journey we are asking parishioners to contribute to a weekly second collection that will benefit this project. We will also be sponsoring a Benefit Concert by Rory Coony, "Change our Hearts" here at Our Lady of Joy on February 15 at 7pm. Donations are $15 for the concert. On the Friday preceding this concert there will be a presentation by Sr. Susan Jenny explaining about how we can help to work for peace in our time and why this project is so important. On the Wednesdays of Lent, Gini Grommes and myself will be conducting Reflections on the Way of the Cross, at 7 pm in the Fr. Marchukonis Hall.

As always Lent is meant to be a challenge, and full of grace. Hopefully you will accept this challenge and journey with us to Jerusalem (the City of Peace).

CHRISTMAS

2007-12-23T08:21:00.000-05:00

Once upon a Christmas Eve, a man sat in reflective silence, before the fireplace, pondering the meaning of Christmas. "There is no point to a God who became man," he mused. Why would an all-powerful God want to share even one of his precious moments with the likes of man? And even if He did, why would He choose to be born in an animal stall? No way! The whole thing is absurd! I'm sure if God really wanted to come down to Earth, He would have chosen some other way.
The man was suddenly aroused from his reverie, by a loud racket outside the window. He looked out, and saw a small gaggle of geese frantically honking and aimlessly flopping about in the snow. They seemed dazed and confused. Apparently they had dropped out, in exhaustion, from a larger formation, on its way to a winter home in Mexico.
Moved to compassion, the man tried to "shoo" the poor geese into his warm garage. The more he "shooed", the more they panicked. If they would only realize I'm only trying to do what is best for them, he thought to himself. How can I make them understand my concern for their well-being?
Then he had this thought. If, for just a minute, I could become an ordinary goose, and communicate with them....
Suddenly he remembered Christmas, and a smile came over his face! The Christmas story really didn't seem so absurd.‑
As he pictured that Christmas scene ... the ordinary looking infant, the stable crib, he knew the answer to his Christmas problem.
God had become one of us, to tell us in human terms, that we can al understand... that He loves us.

May that love reach out and touch your lives, filling them with His Peace and Joy. "For God loved the world so much, that He gave His only Son, so that anyone who believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. "John 3:16

Advent

2007-12-10T14:58:00.000-05:00

An ancient story tells of the Buddha being threatened by a bandit as he traveled a remote mountain road. Buddha had no money to give him and the bandit informed him that he would then take his life. Buddha bowed and requested at least that his dying wih be granted. The theif said he would if he could. "Please," Buddha requested, "cut the branch off of that tree," pointing to a large pine.
The bandit laughed and said, "Easily done," and he slashed away.
"Now," the Buddha continued "put it back together again." The bandit laughed again, and then when he saw that the Buddha was serious, he mocked him and said he was insane, stupid and ignorant because that was impossible.
But the Buddha looked at him and said that he, the thief, was the one who was stupid and insane because it is easy and stupid to destroy mindlessly, to kill and cut off and stop growth. What is truly hard-work that needs imagination, skill, and grace is to heal, to create and to restore to life. The thief was stopped dead in his tracks, fell to his knees, and asked to become a disciple, to learn this kind of skill and power. His long creative apprenticeship began.

Isaiah 42: 6-7 Isaiah the prophet quotes the Lord:

I formed you as a covenant of the people,

a light to the nations,

to open the eyes of the blind,

to bring out prisoners from confinement,

and from the dungeon,

those who live in darkness.

I am the Lord, this is my name.

And so our Advent begins--come Lord Jesus.

When Where How and Who?

2007-11-24T10:28:00.000-05:00

Where am I going – I do not know the way.

How will I get there – I lack the strength.

When will my life end – has it begun?

I am certain of one thing –

the “where, when, and how” of news paper articles

is not what is important in Christ.

It is always about the “Who.”

Who will I be with – who will be with me?

Who will help me – who will I help?

Who am I with now?

I may die by myself, but never alone,

But with a communion of saints..

Communion is not just the reception of a piece of bread

Made Holy through consecration—transubstantiation.

It is a reception of a “Host”-- a community of people.

The Body of Christ – a union of souls.

It is about the “who” that we become

through our communion with this “Host” of people.

It is the way of death also,

To be through Him, with Him and in Him,

In unity with the Holy Spirit,

All the days – Glory!

Feeling like a log 11/14

2007-11-14T08:21:00.000-05:00

This past week I felt like a log—just being there not really able to do that much. I had flu like symptoms with a nasty cold. If I look at how productive I was, I can only laugh. I am anything but a happy camper when I feel this way. I think I would rather be left alone and not be bothered. It is only after I start feeling better that I realize how lucky I am that people do not let me have my way. There were days I went to the kitchen and there was fresh soup, or food dropped off. Notes were left on email and on the phone expressing their concern.

How fortunate I am to have people around me who helped out, looked over me, and got me through it. That probably is not the case for most people in the world when they get sick: NO WORK, NO FOOD.

God's persistence, not ours?

2007-10-25T08:49:00.000-05:00

This past Sunday's Gospel, you may remember, dealt with the widow who wears the judge down by her persistence. We have a tendency to identify with the widow; but maybe the widow is the example of God and we are the unjust judges who are told to do justice. God is the one who does not give up on us and persistently chases after us, relentless. The hound of heaven who does not get off track, or loose the scent.

"I try to forget you, Lord:
but you keep stalking me. Why?
I guess that's what love is all about.
If you love like that, Lord,
then you must be God.
And because you are God,
you have the power to reach me, to touch me, to change me,
to make me over.
Lord never give up on me,
even should I give up on you."
from an anonymous poet

How honestly can we pray this prayer?

Psalm 139

2007-10-08T07:16:00.000-05:00

"Lord you examine me and you know me. You know if I am standing or sitting. You read my thoughts from far away. Whether I walk or lie down you are watching. You know every detail of my conduct. The word is not even on my tongue, Lord, before you know all about it. Close behind and in front you fence me round, shielding me with your hand. Such knowledge is beyond my understanding. If I asked darkness to cover me, and light to become night around me, that darkness would not be dark to you, night would be as light as day. It was you who created my inmost self, and put me together in my mother’s womb. For all these mysteries I thank you, for the wonder of myself, for the wonder of your works."
Some people can read this and feel comfort, and give thanks. Others read this and feel as if they are being confined, almost suffocated. Where are you?

We are what we love!

2007-10-04T08:20:00.000-05:00

We are what we love (not just what we eat). Some would have St. Francis of Assisi loving animals more than people or seemingly more than God. That is just not true. His love was for God, and because of that love he loved what God has made. He saw in people the presence of God in a special way and desired to build up the church with these living stones, that we might all give praise to God.

If we love God, in whose image we were created, we discover ourselves in him and we cannot help being happy: we have already achieved something of the fullness of being for which we were destined in our creation. If we love everything else but God, we contradict the image born in our very essence, and we cannot help being unhappy, because we are living a caricature of what we are meant to be.

BEFRIEND THE SILENCE

2007-09-24T13:24:00.000-05:00

On Thursday evening, September 27, we are asked to join with the whole Diocese of Pittsburgh in a Holy Hour of Prayer. It is a time of prayer to be in communion with the whole church and in particular with Bishop Zubik, who will become the 12^th bishop of Pittsburgh on Friday. This Holy Hour will be a time to pray in word, song and silence. For most of us the hardest part of that time will be the silence. The silence creates an itchiness and nervousness in most of us. It is not a full and rich silence, but it is empty and hollow. Silence can be like a gaping abyss during a worship service. The thought that invariably goes around is, “When will this be over?” Imposed silence can often create hostility and resentment. Many times the feeling is that the majority want to keep on talking. And so many times silence is avoided precisely so as to ward off the anxiety it provokes.

The purpose of all ministry is to reveal that God is not a God of fear but a God of love. If we can gently and carefully convert the empty silence into a full silence; the anxious silence into a peaceful silence; and the restless silence into a restful silence, then we could have a real encounter with the loving Father who speaks in silence. What a power that would bring to our lives and our prayer. Silence has to be recovered as a quality of the heart. It can stay with us even while we speak. It gives power to our words, keeping our hearts anchored in the future world, allowing us to speak a creative and re-creative word to the present world that has difficulty with both silence and with God.

Please pray with us and our new Bishop, even if you cannot be with us in church on Thursday evening.

To be light or leaven?

2007-09-12T07:54:00.000-05:00

When Jesus speaks about care for ‘the little ones’, 'the poor in spirit', he includes in their number his own followers. In many parts of the world the church is indeed a little presence, inconspicuous and barely noticed. Jesus does not want his missionaries, including the bishops and Pope, to concern themselves with honor and respect. They too are ‘little ones’. I have misgivings about this?

Some feel the church should aim to be a strong presence and a power-broker, able to have its way in public matters? History shows instances of many attempts to coerce people into virtuous behavior in the name of religion.

How does that square with Jesus’ words about our being a leaven in the world? This is not a simple matter. We want to profess the Lord before people, and make our voice heard. But when we strive for a public voice the way advertisers do, we risk compromising the word, and adapting to values other than Christ’s.

Lord, what do you ask of me, to be a light or a leaven, to shine in public, or to work invisibly? Make me easy in the role you assign me. Guide me, Lord, in this difficult balance between being the light of the world and the unseen leaven. Does that put us back to Martha and Mary again?

Tragic Loss 9/5

2007-09-05T08:52:00.002-05:00

Homily for Louis DeFabio

As I look out over this congregation brought here by the common bond of the tragic death of Louis, a friend, a relative. I know that words are inadequate to temper our grief. Therefore, I want to try and make my words brief and address them to three groups of people. The first words concern Louis; the second concern Louis's friends and peers and classmates who are here—to the great credit of your friendship and sympathy for his family—in great numbers; and the third concern all of us, but especially Louis's family.

As for Louis, I presume that no one here is unaware that he took his own life. I think we ought to say that out loud so that we can hear it publicly and not just whisper this open secret among ourselves, and so that we can try to deal with it. But I want to share with you that often this deed, in the confused mind of a troubled person, is done out of love. A misguided and wrong-headed love, but love nevertheless.
The thinking of a person who is deeply troubled frequently goes like this: I am a burden. I'm hurting people. I'm in the way. I'm making a mess of things. I'm unhappy and making others unhappy. I worry those nearest to me. It would be kinder for everyone if I took the burden off their shoulders, if I weren't here, if I ceased to be. That's the understandable but backwards logic that often is at work in a person so troubled he or she doesn't see or think clearly.
It's at least good to know that, as painful as suicide is for us, at bottom there is the truth that it is often done out of love and concern for others. It's not good thinking, but bad thinking that nevertheless has its roots in charity, not malice. And we ought to remember that about Louis. His tender love, as he understood it, did him in.

As for you young people here in such great numbers, Louis's friends and companions: for you Louis's death raises a question. It is this. What are you going to do about your friend's death? I mean, after the pain and the shock, after the anger—maybe at Louis himself, probably at God—after the hurt and tears, what are you going to do about your friend's death? It's easy to cry in his memory. What are you going to do with your life in his memory when your tears have dried?

I want to share with you the story of Puccini, the great Italian writer of such classic operas as Madame Butterfly and La Bohoeme. It seems when Puccini was fairly young he contracted cancer, and so he decided to spend his last days writing his final opera, Turandot, which is one of his most polished pieces. When his friends and disciples would say to him, "You are ailing, take it easy and rest," he would always respond, "I'm going to do as much as I can on my great masterwork and it's up to you, my friends, to finish it if I don't." Well, Puccini died before the opera was completed. Now his friends had a choice. They could forever mourn their friend and return to life as usual—or they could build on his melody and complete what he started. They chose the latter. And so, in 1926 at the famous La Scala Opera House in Milan, Italy, Puccini's opera was played for the first time, conducted by the famed conductor Arturo Toscanini. And when it came to the part in the opera where the master had stopped because he died, Toscanini stopped everything, turned around with eyes welling up with tears, and said to the large audience, "This is where the master ends." And he wept. But then, after a few moments, he lifted up his head, smiled broadly, and said, "And this is where his friends began." And he finished the opera. You see the point—and the point of the question I asked you: What are you going to do about Louis's death? What are you going to do about his unfinished masterpiece? Will it be, in a month or so, life as usual? Or can you build on his humor, his ability, his fun, his unrealized dreams? I would suggest that if there is any fitting response to the shock of your friend's death it is life, your life, a life that's lived better, a life lived more selflessly, a life that makes a difference, a life that is honest and decent, a life that makes beautiful music for Louis and for the Lord. Across the chasm of death you can make Louis live. The music doesn't have to stop here today and doesn't have to be buried with Louis. You have your choice.

Finally, to all of you, to all of us, but especially to Louis's family, in this sad moment I leave you with an image of hope, of perspective. Our Lord is the Good Shepherd, for God there are no lost sheep—only sheep looking to be found. Our God is the reader of hearts who knows what is in our hearts. If we who knew Louis continue to love him—can we imagine God loving him any less? The one who said, “Come to me all you who labor and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy and my burden light. “ from Wm Bausch

Each Day is a Gift

2007-08-26T11:02:00.000-05:00

Each day is truly a gift given, but do we receive the gift as we should? Is it more like a chore, a labor, a job, something we endure?
What is the first thing you do when you get up in the morning? Some people do not even remember, some people never even think about it. I still remember the homily given to us in high school by a priest who asked that very question. It made an impression upon me, because up to that point I never even thought about it. It just happened.
But when you think of the day as a gift, it is like an approaching birthday or Christmas. You look forward to it wondering what you might get, what the gift might entail. Look out the window; smell the fresh air; welcome the sun; live your life expecting each moment to bring with it another sign of God's presence. How can it not turn out to be a great gift, a great day when we live it expectantly? Even in the midst of pain or suffering there can be the gift of God's presence. Please do not overlook it.
The truly remarkable thing about this is that it is there every day. Each one is different. Each one is meant to be a gift. And we go on thinking they are all the same. Look again, live expectantly, live always with wonder and the joy that it brings in the discovery of another gift. God does love us beyond our wildest imagining.

Festivals

2007-08-09T13:39:00.000-05:00

We look forward to festivals as times of celebration, entertainment and amusement. But spiritually we need festivals to nourish our souls, to change our perspectives, to let us walk a little lighter on the earth (even if it is the money we have donated along the way). In the past all else would stop for a festival. It was of such importance that people would schedule everything else around them. Now because we call everything a festival, it just becomes another thing to put on our schedules. People begin to think no big deal. I am amazed at how many people from Our Lady of Joy have never even visited our festival. To me it is mind boggling not to try and show your self for even a little while. You are invited! You are needed to make it complete—if it is our festival, how can we have it without you?

Our festival is coming up shortly, this Friday and Saturday evening, August 17 and 18, we invite you to celebrate with your parish family. It is the weekend after the Feast of Mary’s Assumption into heaven. It is not what you do at festivals, that is so important; it is the people who are there, and we are your parish family. Come and join us. Dunk someone in a dunk tank; eat some good food; play a little bingo; let the kids enjoy the games; listen to some music; polka at Saturday nights mass at 4pm; you cannot win if you do not play!

Schedule explosions!

2007-07-25T07:07:00.000-05:00

I always looked forward to summer time as a time to slow down and relax. What happened? I guess I keep thinking I am still in school, because just the opposite seems to happen. My mind is in vacation mode but my schedule tells me otherwise. I am trying to get used to the whole Martha and Mary thing in Luke’s gospel, trying to incorporate both. Unfortunately, Martha seems to have my ear. I only complain about how much I have to do and isn’t there anyone to help me. The other side of that is if I were not busy I would be wondering what was I doing wrong.

This past weekend I did get quite a few comments about the Martha and Mary gospel and homily. People were saying how they thought I was talking directly to them. Sorry, I was not preaching at anybody but myself. Those homilies that are for me seem to hit home to a lot of people. HMMM.

You can tell this is summer because my little entries here keep getting smaller and smaller, so I look for filler like this. God Bless you all. Enjoy the rest of the summer which is rapidly moving to fall.

VACATION SUNDAYS

2007-07-13T06:54:00.000-05:00

Family life becomes a different animal once school is out and the schedule eases. Yet, there is one area of family life that must not yield to the slower, freer pace of summer days. Sunday remains a day to keep holy. The temptation is to forget this Sabbath attitude and turn Sunday into a second Saturday. We could fill our Sabbath with yard work, baseball tournaments, catching up on laundry, grocery shopping… the list is endless. However, the Shepherd leads us in another direction. We are called to set aside the seventh day as a day of rest and prayer.

How can we accomplish this radical approach when the rest of the world is headed in a different direction? First, Sunday Mass is non-negotiable. Surprisingly, many young Catholic families are unaware that it is not an option. Reassert your desire to begin your week at the sacred table. Nothing produces a healthy and holy family with more ease than giving God a place in your family life. Sunday Mass is a gift you give your children and a pattern that is imprinted on their hearts.

DID YOU MISS THE BUS?

2007-07-06T08:38:00.001-05:00

For the past few weeks we have had a yellow school bus parked outside our garages that we bought from the Plum School District ($1100). Yesterday at 6 am we watched the bus pull away. Did you miss it?

The bus did not leave empty! In fact it was loaded to the top of the windows with everything from shoes, toys, sheets and linens to carpeting. All donated for outreach to the Appalachian Region of Western W. Va. And Eastern KY. Sister Peterworth asked for the bus in a wish list she sent us. Fr. Beiting has use of anything we send him in his warehouse that stocks the thrift stores in the three county area of Western KY where he continually works with those in need. I mention those to whom we send the stuff because what they do is remarkable. Their work is certainly made easier by a group of dedicated workers here at Our Lady of Joy, loosely associated with the Outreach to the Poor Ministry. The poor live everywhere, and are not only located in KY or W. VA. We are as active in our own community with the Plum Food Bank and St Vincent De Paul, as well as the Jubilee Food Kitchen. The group has grown and the ministry has flourished. They always look for more help and more people to help.

Although the bus is gone, there is lots of work still to be done. If you have some free time and are interested in helping out, give us a call and we will put you in touch with some dedicated workers who make this kind of stuff happen, and they have fun doing it. Pray for them that they may continue to reach-out and help in the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

PEOPLE (past, present, future)

2007-06-29T11:06:00.000-05:00

In the past couple of weeks I have had the pleasure of getting together with people who knew me a while ago, some a long while ago. Just the faces alone brought back all kinds of memories of my past: where I have been, what I have done, and all that has been accomplished (or not). At times they can be joyful reunions or painful gatherings, but they focus me on where I am now.

Just in this past week I officiated at a wedding for my niece in my home parish. I was re-introduced to people I had not seen in since before my seminary days (that goes back to when I was 12 years old.) It was a joyful occasion, but I was left with a sense of sadness because of those who were no longer with us, those who were greatly missed. Then a friend and her family came in from Denver to visit. I spent the day with the family at Ohio Pyle. So much of the conversation was about the past, people we knew and had known. One of my friends from language school in Bolivia was in town for a retreat and called me out of the blue. We got together, saw a play and talked long into the night: past, present and future hopes were discussed.

These were just some of the people; there were those I visited in Waynesburg when we went to work with Habitat for a Saturday, where I met so many people from St. Ann Parish again, and there are many more, especially those who are part of my everyday life. In all of these meetings the talk revolved around choices and how important they are for what we become and what we will be. All of those choices were influenced by the people with whom we surround ourselves, our own histories and that of our families, our openness to what is important and most real.

Choices are so much apart of life! What will I choose? Who will be the ones to influence my choices? What does God want me to choose?

Rain Showers

2007-06-20T06:12:00.000-05:00

It is another evening right after the strong thunder showers, sitting on my porch and taking in the smells. If you have not traveled for extensive periods of time, you may not know that South Western Pa has its own unique sounds and smells. When they are absent they become greatly missed. We all too often do not even notice.

When I first went to South America for language studies I was living in Bolivia at about 9,000 feet above sea level. Cochebamba was a beautiful city but dirt poor. I did not realize even then that something was missing. But for my birthday someone from home sent me a bag with the smells of SW PA. It had pine cones and acorns, leaves and weeds, there were grass clippings and soil. You could literally close your eyes, sniff and know you were in Penn’s Woods all over again. One of my class mates was also from the Johnstown area, when I asked him to close his eyes and smell, he immediately said, “Home!”

You may not think you know what I am talking about, but unfortunately, we sometimes only miss what we take for granted, in their absence. Do not let a summers evening go by without at least standing outside, listening for the distinct sounds, smelling the unique air, and if it is summer looking for the lightning bugs—so unlike any other place in the world. And it is all yours, free!

A Prayer for Praying All Ways

2007-06-11T06:21:00.000-05:00

Lord, who among us can pray always?

The practical things of life

beds to be made, meals to be prepared,

a job to be held down, cars to be repaired —these demand that I not spend all my time

on my knees before You.

Show to me, Ever-Present God,

how I can pray all ways and at all times,

and so, pray always. Reveal to me, Lord,

that nothing is foreign to You,

who are the creator of all that is,

and since all things have come from You,

the very use of them, with awareness,

can be the very truest of prayers.

Help me to be awake

to Your continuous movement about me: in all the actions of creation,

in all the dynamics of discovery;

in work and play,

love and study,

within sleep and music,

feasting and fasting.

May I strive each day to expand the limits of my times of prayer

until that blessed time when each hour —day or night, asleep as well as awake —will be spent in awareness of the Mystery.

With gratitude and praise,

in petition and adoration,

in a living communion,

I aspire to live my life

praying all ways and always.

I make this prayer in the name of Your Son, Jesus, who lives with You and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen

(from Edward Hays--Pray Always)

Holy Trinity

2007-06-01T06:16:00.000-05:00

In school we were tested about our understanding of Trinity. We were given a whole semester studying Trinity. But no where were we told how to preach on Trinity. Yet our God is Trinity, and as our God goes so go we. By learning about God, we learn about who God created us to be. We imitate our God! If God is a warring God, we will be war-like. If God is vengeful, we will seek revenge. You were created in the image and likeness of God, remember. Therefore if God is Love, we will be loving. God is Trinitarian, that is relational; in relationship fully giving and fully receiving--can we be any less?

One of the earliest Greek analogies of Trinity was “to dance.” You do not dance alone; dancing seeks a partner. “God is the dance.” We have been graced with participation. To exclude ourselves is to deny God. To be the individualist that our society demands, is to be everything that Christ taught against. God reveals who God is so that we might better understand who God created us to be: Children of God! Let your life be part of the dance.

PENTECOST

2007-05-26T08:47:00.000-05:00

To experience or know the Spirit is not to possess the Spirit. We are constantly reminded by these symbols of the Spirit's presence: water, wind, or fire. They stretch us and make us use senses long forgotten. We continue to think that our sight is the most important. Maybe we need s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d beyond recognition.

My vacation has reminded me again of vacations past, where what I see is not always what is most important even though at times what I see is overwhelming (The Little Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania is a pretty awesome place).

Some people see a beauty in this place
The green of the Emerald Isle
Reds and yellows making orange
Leaving white
Areas of shade and light.

Some people see a beauty in this place
Rocks worn with time
Trees e radically growing
but knowingly placed
Birds seeking life.

Some people see a beauty in this place
But never know its source or strength.
Perhaps they need but close their eyes
And feel with senses long misplaced--
To know the Spirit.

I encountered the wind, the water and fire!

“If a man does not keep pace with his companions"

2007-05-19T09:24:00.000-05:00

“If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.” Henry Thoreau

Is it the heart beat of God, or the sound of His breath? The proclamation of His Word that continually brings life into the world that we listen for? Or do we even take the time to listen for something different. Our lives are filled with noise that all can be explained, documented, even recorded. Should we listen for something else; should we look for something that cannot be seen? Await the touch that cannot be explained? The mystery of one who hears a different drummer is never explained. As Christians, do we hear differently; see what others do not? Do we even take the time to try? Is there importance to this? I can only ask, “Do you pray?”

George Eliot wrote: “If we had a keen vision of all that is ordinary in human life, it would be like hearing the grass grow or the squirrels heart beat, and we should die of that roar which is the other side of silence.”

I leave for vacation today: hoping to listen! Or is it a retreat?

What Is Most Real?

2007-05-14T08:37:00.000-05:00

What do you consider most important right now? What are the most upfront issues in your mind? Why? We can get stuck in thinking that what is before us now is the most real thing in the world, and the only real thing. But can you imagine times when because of heightened emotion; whether of love, pain, suffering or beauty, all of a sudden you were very clear as to what was most important? The clarity of those moments allows us to come in touch with that which is most real, unfortunately we only see this as a fleeting moment. Somehow within our prayer life we need to get back to that which is most truly Real. We need to sharpen our focus, widen our perspectives to see more brilliant, more significant, more detailed, more Real.

This is the invitation of Christ to see, with his eyes, the world around us as gift. It frees our spirits, allows us to give thanks and to spend more time with those things that are truly important. We have to want this new perspective, this new vision of the world. Unfortunately it only comes with letting something else go: how important I feel I have become: unable to be out of touch, needing instant communications at every moment, me as the number one thing around.

Spring has Sprung

2007-05-05T12:15:00.000-05:00

At first I thought this would be real easy, but coming up with something new to write about each week is not easy without some kind of springboard, something to launch me into an idea worth writing about. So the idea of Spring has stuck in my head all week, especially with this glorious first full week of seemingly Spring type weather. Everything is coming alive again, the trees are putting forth their floral bouquets, the plants are coming up out of the cold lifeless earth and if you planted a garden—it is finally starting to turn green. Do you want to be out there?

Did you ever notice how often the Gospel stories take place outside? Go back and look at some of the Psalms and see how they use nature as a way to come to know, honor, praise and thank God. Look again at the story of creation and watch it take place right before your own eyes every morning as the first light starts to replace the darkness and empty void. How the days of creation are recreated for us minute by minute as we await the sun. So you wish that God would give you a vision or talk to you like he did with the saints of old? It does not get any more miraculous than the sun coming up each morning, whether we want it to or not, “Here comes the Son”. How many stars of the night time sky make us feel particularly small in the whole universe? Yet we are loved and cared for like no other part of creation—as Christ became like us in all things but sin. God becomes incarnate in our daily lives when we open our eyes with faith that says He will be with us until the end of time.

Take a hike! Get out of here! If you are reading this you have been sitting here too long already. Go fishing; ride a bike; sit on the porch if you have to sit; even if it is raining (do you remember growing up and dancing in the rain, singing, “the rain makes you grow!”? Or was that only the McGinnis’ because we were so small? Who among us would do that now? Maybe only saints or lovers of God and lovers of all that God has gifted us with). Ahh, another Spring, or is that resurrection?

50 Days of Resurrection Hope and Joy

2007-04-30T09:08:00.000-05:00

We on earth exist in a state of contradiction between cross and resurrection. Surrounded by decay, we nonetheless hope for perfection, a restoration of all things. We have no proof that it can ever be attained, only a sign in history, the foreglow of the raising of Christ from the dead. Yet if we can sustain faith in that glorious future, it can transform the present.

This belief is our root, our source and power-base, and it is the source of holiness that is the power expressed daily in our lives. Because of the Resurrection we live on impossible hope, with faith that is not rational in the face of evil and injustice rampant in the world and yet superbly rational once the meaning of what the resurrection might mean for the earth begins to reveal itself in history and the community of believers.

Karl Rahner wrote this prayer: "God has entrusted this last, deepest, and most beautiful word to the world, in the Word made flesh. This Word says: “I love you, world, man and woman. I am there. I am with you. I am your life. I am your time. I weep your tears. I am your Joy DO not be afraid. When you do not know how to go any further, I am with you. I am your anguish, because I suffer it Myself. I am in your need and your death, because today I began to live and die with you. I am your life. I promise you: For you, too, life is waiting. For you, too, the gates will be open.”

JOY

2007-04-24T08:05:00.000-05:00

Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians 5:3

Rejoicing always is an imperative virtue, one so essential that without living it one is seriously crippled. In his letter to the small convert community of Christians of Thessalonica, Paul told them they were to practice not one, but three imperative virtues! Not only were they to rejoice always, but they were to pray ceaselessly and give thanks—regardless of whatever happened—since these were God’s will. These three imperatives present a serious challenge because they are God's will for us. They are indeed divine imperatives, a Trinity of imperatives.. Since any one of them (let alone all three) seems impossible, Paul followed immediately the admonition, "Do not quench the Spirit!"

You may find books about praying always or giving thanks for everything, but rejoicing or being joy-filled is not so easy to find. Realize that joy is a choice. A willful decision you make even in the midst of sorrow, pain or persecution. People can make believe they are joyous, put on a happy face or be carefree about what they say and do, and yet not be truly full of joy. Christ says “I came that you might have joy and your joy be complete.” He helps us make the choice through the Spirit to be joyful people. It begins with a life of prayer that helps us realize that God is the source of all gifts; it is the result of on overflow of God’s gifts; and being thankful for the gifts.

Pray-er

2007-04-18T20:10:00.000-05:00

The spoken request of Jesus, "Pray always," challenges us to learn how to "pray always" and to master the art of learning how to pray in all ways and at all times. This does not mean that we must enter some monastery but rather that we must find a new definition of prayer. To pray has, over the centuries, meant to engage in vocal or in silent prayers. Praying has meant being faithful to special times of prayer that are set aside from the daily routines of life. But can we abandon all other activities of family, life and work to continually and solely engage in such times of prayer? What He does call us to is a life lived in communion with Him and with His Father. That living-communion is itself prayer

We look for ways to pray all ways. To pray always is to find oneself involved in prayerful communion with God while feasting and fasting, while having fun and at play, while playing the fool and while crying. The different activities of our daily lives are not distractions from prayer but rather the source of prayer.

Such around-the-clock praise and prayer requires various virtues: to transform the mysteries of pain and suffering into worship we need to be patience; to live in simplicity is to know the Spirit of the God of Love; all communion with God leads us to behave like gods, to be compassionate.

When prayer becomes the pattern for all that we do, then we will find that compassionate service will be natural to us. Until we have learned how to pray all ways the danger is that we will replace prayer with work and some acts of kindness. But if these activities, regardless of how much good seems to be happening, are separated from a heart that is praying, they cease to be fruitful and redemptive. They become simply good deeds.

Awaken your heart to all the different ways in which you can pray as you care for your home, go about your daily work and live out your unique vocation. It is only a beginning; may it be a pattern for prayer that knows no hour or day but is alive always.

*Adapted from Edward Hayes

If it will happen?

2007-04-18T11:29:00.001-05:00

I am starting this in hopes that those who choose to enter will do so with an open mind and heart. Willing to pray as they read. There are always those who need our prayers yet our ability to find out who we want to pray for or who needs our prayers is always limited by the ability to stay in touch. Communications are so important today! The most recent shootings at Virginia Tech seems to cry out to us how important keeping in touch is. But there is always the problem-

Where do we choose to get our information?
What will give us the information we want or need?
How long do we have to look?

Knowing what you are looking for is as important as knowing where to look these days.

I am not looking for a large reader base but I am looking for a faithful group who can pray along together as we go through life knowing that there are others who share the same needs and values.

So, today I begin. Will I continue?