The Role of a Priest - St. Jean Marie Vianney

“A priest goes to heaven or a priest goes to hell with a thousand people behind him.”

-       St. Jean-Marie Vianney

This Sunday the Church celebrates the feast of St. Jean-Marie Vianney, the patron saint of parish priests. He was born in central France in 1789 and grew up in the tumultuous years following the French Revolution. During his childhood it was illegal for priests to celebrate Mass, so he and his family went to secret Masses celebrated by faithful priests in people’s homes or barns. The courage of these priests instilled in him a great love for the priesthood.

By the time Jean-Marie was a teenager it was no longer illegal to celebrate Mass and he was able to begin his studies for the priesthood. He did not excel in his academic studies, but he persevered through the challenges placed before him and he was ordained a priest. He spent his first three years of priesthood as a vicar (assistant) working for Fr. Balley, but when the holy old pastor died, Fr. Jean-Marie was made the pastor of Ars, which was a small village of fewer than 250 people.

His early years as curé of Ars were marked by many challenges. The community was very apathetic and lukewarm in its faith. Most people had stopped going to church during the years of the revolution and did not return when the revolution ended. Most people preferred to spend their leisure time at the bars or being entertained, and few were interested in worshipping God. As Fr. Jean-Marie began to win some souls back to God, he experienced a lot of opposition. Some people told lies about him and spread rumours and others even threatened him with physical violence.

Eventually, however, he won over the little town, and word of his holiness began to spread. Pilgrims began travelling from across France to visit the Curé d’Ars and, especially, to go to him for confession. By the end of his life he was hearing confessions for 12-16 hours a day! His success in winning souls for God did, however, also prompt some jealousy among his brother priests. Once, there was a petition sent around to all of the priests asking them to vouch for Fr. Vianney’s unworthiness to be ministering as a priest. The petition accidentally found its way to the home of Fr. Jean-Marie, and, in his humility, he signed it. Of course, the bishop did not remove him from his ministry.

As St. Jean-Marie well knew, the priest is an intermediary between God and his people. Many people today are confused about what a priest is. They want many things from priests (e.g., comfort, encouragement, psychological help, fundraising solutions, etc.) and those things are all fine and good, but what is essential is that the priest makes God present. Most importantly, this is done through baptism, by which we become children of God, the celebration of the Eucharist, in which we receive the Body and Blood of Jesus, and in confession, in which we receive the mercy of God.

St. Jean-Marie Vianney, pray that we will seek God above all else.

Blessed is the Fruit of Your Womb, Jesus

“Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!’” (Lk 1:41-42)

As a few of our parish children will receive their first Holy Communion this Sunday, it is good for us all to reflect on the meaning of receiving Holy Communion. In the brief excerpt above from the Visitation we are given an image of true Holy Communion. By the prompting of the Holy Spirit, Elizabeth exclaims, “Blessed is the fruit of your womb!” St. Bede the Venerable contrasts this declaration with the original sin of Eve. Satan told Eve that the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil would make her like God and that God was withholding that gift. In her pride Eve grabs the fruit and takes it for herself. Adam, then, joins her in the sin, and together they are expelled from paradise. Mary, on the other hand, receives God into her womb through Her “fiat”, when she hears the Word of God and believes that it will be fulfilled in her. Mary, indeed, became like God when she embraced His will and received Divinity into her womb. By His grace Christ remained in Mary throughout her earthly life, until, at the end of her earthly sojourn, she was Assumed into paradise. You see, God did want Adam and Eve to be like Him; however, they did not follow His will. Instead, they reached out and tried to take divinity for themselves.

Communion, properly received (that is, with a soul cleansed by confession and with a body showing due reverence) is the reception of God into our body and soul! Under the appearance of bread and wine God gives Himself to us so that we may become like Him. This is not mere symbolism; it is reality. Today, however, many people receive Communion in the spirit of Eve rather than the spirit of Mary. Communion is approached as though it is something we are entitled to and it is taken without proper preparation of the soul and body.

Most importantly, we cannot receive Communion if we have serious sin on our soul. Confession must be a regular part of our spiritual life; otherwise, we are just like Adam and Eve grasping at divinity instead of receiving Him. Our physical dispositions are also important. The Church still teaches that we must fast (except from water and necessary medicine) for at least an hour before receiving Communion. We should be physically hungry when we receive Communion to remind us of the spiritual hunger that we should have for Our Lord. The moment of receiving Communion from the priest should also be one of reverence. The custom of receiving Communion in the hand is permitted; however, this permission comes with the danger of potential carelessness and irreverence. Sometimes people grab the Host or accidentally drop the Host and there is also the danger of particles of Our Lord clinging to the hand only to be wiped away onto the floor or clothing. This is why the preferred way to receive Communion is directly on the tongue. Receiving Communion directly on the tongue is a physical way to show the reverence for Our Lord that should be in our hearts when we receive Him in Communion.

If, perhaps, you think this way of thinking is just my opinion, I will share a few words from Cardinal Robert Sarah, the prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, from a talk he gave to the priests of the Archdiocese of Toronto this past summer:

“[Receiving communion on the tongue], far from being something obsolete and belonging to the past, is nothing less than a humble act of adoration, reverence, love and worship by each communicant at the most intimate moment of the Mass. I strongly recommend that we rediscover its appropriateness for the Church in our own times and form our people, particularly our children, in this practice so as to foster these dispositions. We cannot do enough to promote greater reverence towards Our Blessed Lord in the Sacrament of the Altar.” - Robert Cardinal Sarah, “The Priest as ‘Pater Liturgicus’”

I invite you to reflect over the Christmas season on the importance of receiving Our Lord properly disposed in body and soul. God desires to dwell in us. He wants us to share in His divinity, but we must receive Him following the model of Mary, not Eve.

Divine Mercy - Closed Doors, Open Wounds

“Thomas answered and said to him, “My Lord and my God!” (Jn. 20:28)

Today, the Second Sunday of Easter and Divine Mercy Sunday, we complete our Divine Mercy Novena and we end the Octave of Easter. It is a day to celebrate and a day to pray for God’s mercy. I have offered each of the days of the Novena for the prescribed intentions, but my intention for the whole Novena is a deeper conversion of faith among my parishioners, family, and friends. Jesus promised to St. Faustina great blessings would be poured out on those who have devotion and promote devotion to His Divine Mercy.

The passage from John’s Gospel began, “On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you” (Jn. 20:19). We’re encountering much fear and many locked doors these days. And yet, Jesus can pass through these locked doors and bring His peace into the midst of fear. There is nothing to fear when we rely on God’s mercy.

Thomas was not with the others when Jesus appeared. He refused to believe, unless he saw the marks of the nails and the wound in Christ’s side. Thomas was afraid and his fear led to doubt. Jesus passed through that fear and doubt, and He prompted one of the most profound exclamations in all of Scripture,”My Lord and my God” (Jn. 20:28). Can there be any doubt as to the identity of Jesus? He is Our Lord and Our God! He is the one who passes through locked doors to find us, and He is the one who allows us to place our shaking hands into the wounds of his hands and side.

Now, you may say, ‘He passed through locked doors for the apostles and He showed them His hands and side, but does He really do that for us as well?’ Today, we can see quite easily one way in which Jesus passes through locked doors via modern media communications. Through television and the internet, the Word enters our homes and dwells amongst us. We must be grateful for these means of receiving Christ, and yet, in the midst of receiving Him into our homes through these technologies, His wounds should be all the more evident to us, because His Body, the Church, is torn apart. We are meant to be gathered together to worship Him in the Church, but we are separated. The Body of Christ is most perfectly manifest in the solemn celebration of the Eucharist, with the presence and participation of all the faithful. Despite Christ being able to enter our homes via modern technology, we must still see the wounds and long for them to be healed.

There are many wounds in the Body of Christ, and sin is the cause of Christ’s wounds. As we continue this time in the desert, this time of purification, it should become more evident to us where the deepest wounds are in the Body of Christ. In our examination of our own conscience, we should become more aware of the ways that we have failed to live as Christ commands and the ways that we have wounded His Body. This is a profound opportunity to pray for God’s mercy. Jesus said to St. Faustina, “My Heart overflows with great mercy for souls, and especially for poor sinners…[I]t is for them that the Blood and Water flowed from My Heart as from a fount overflowing with mercy. For them I dwell in the tabernacle as King of Mercy” (Diary, 357).

Overcoming Envy's Allure

This is Jesus’ first homily in the Gospel of Luke, and it’s so controversial that they want to kill him. Why do they respond so negatively to His words? Many of the early Church fathers attribute the response to envy. Envy is when we experience sorrow over the good that someone else possesses. That sorrow then leads us to anger or hatred toward that person or even despair over our own lack of good.

In this case they envy Jesus because they do not believe there is anything special about Him. They believe He has no right to speak to them the way he does, because they believe that they are better than Him. When he speaks with authority to them, they are offended and they become angry at Him.

Envy is something that we all struggle with at times. It’s easy to compare ourselves to others and feel envious of their possessions, their appearance, their family, their job, or anything else, but why do the good things that other people have make us envious? One reason is that we feel their good is depriving us of that good, for example, we often feel that other another’s wealth is somehow depriving us of money. Another reason is that we don’t think they deserve the good that they have. We think they didn’t earn it. Also, we think we deserve it more than they do. We think we are better than them, so we should have more.

In the lives of the saints, there is a woman who exemplifies someone who did not allow envy to consume her. Even though she had many reasons to be envious, St. Elizabeth of Portugal was a model of charity. Despite her husband’s infidelity, and the envy that was consuming her son, St. Elizabeth turned the temptations to sin into opportunities to grow in virtue. She dedicated her time to works of charity and education. She used the gifts that God had given her to make the world a better place: she funded the building of churches, a hospital, a convent, an orphanage, she helped improve the country’s laws and agriculture, and to increase literacy. St. Elizabeth is the patron saint of those who struggle with envy.

When you notice yourself tempted to envy there are a few simple habits you can develop to prevent that envy from turning into anger, hatred, or despair. The first is to pray for the person. Say a prayer of gratitude to God for the gifts that He has bestowed on that person and that He will give them the grace to use the gifts well. Another is to use the temptation to envy as an opportunity to thank God for the gifts in your own life. Perhaps He hasn’t given you the same gifts as someone else, but He has given you many gifts, so thank Him. Lastly, we must use temptations to envy as opportunities to grow in humility. We are weak and frail creatures. We don’t have everything and we never will. We need to accept our limitations and ask God to help us become better.

Developing these simple habits turns every temptation toward envy into an opportunity to grow in virtue.

The Return From Exile

The books of Ezra and Nehemiah are two of the lesser known books of the Bible, but they are actually very important to understanding God’s plan of salvation. They recount the three waves in which the Jews returned to Judah from their exile in Babylon. These three waves take place over the course of almost 100 years (538 BC - 444 BC).

The book of Ezra begins with King Cyrus, prompted by God, making a decree that the Jews should return to Judah and rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem. He even tells his own people that they should assist the Jews with silver, gold, and other necessities to complete the task, and he returns the vessels that were taken by Nebuchadnezzar from the former Temple. The next several chapters describe how Zerubbabel led the first wave of Jews back to Jerusalem and, despite opposition from those who had taken over the land, rebuilt the Temple. The book also makes reference to the importance of the prophetic ministry of Haggai and Zechariah during the time of rebuilding the Temple.

Following the completion of the Temple (537 BC), Ezra led the second wave of exiles back to Jerusalem. Ezra was a scribe, and he was well educated in the Law. Their journey was perilous because they were travelling without military escort, but Ezra emphasizes that through prayer, fasting, and trusting in the Lord they reached Jerusalem safely. Upon his return, Ezra begins the moral reform of the Jews. He condemns those who married gentile women and calls them to repentance. The fall of Israel began through Solomon’s infidelity to the law; therefore, if they hope to rebuild Israel, they must repent and become faithful to the law.

The third wave of exiles to return was led by Nehemiah. The book of Nehemiah begins by describing his return to Jerusalem and his recognition that God was calling him to lead the people in rebuilding the city walls. He became the governor of Jerusalem and, through obedience to God’s law and despite the opposition of many Jews and enemies of Jerusalem, he rebuilt the walls in 52 days, which was seen by all as a work of God.

The pairing of the reading from Nehemiah with with Lk 4:14-21 on the 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time reminds us that the fullest interpretation of these books is found in Christ. Jesus reads from Isaiah, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord” (Lk 4:18-19). The exile in Babylon is symbolic of the alienation from God that we experience when we sin. The sins of the Israelites were the cause of their physical exile, but, more importantly, their sins also destroyed their relationship with God. Jesus says, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing” (Lk 4:21). Jesus reconciles man to God (i.e., he brings us out of exile), and the books of Ezra and Nehemiah show us the structure of that reconciliation.

The return from exile begins with the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem. It is necessary to have a physical centre of prayer and worship that unites and focuses the religion of the people. Individual prayer in their own homes was insufficient to keep the Israelites faithful. They had to repent of having worshipped false idols and resume right religion. Likewise, when we sin, we are tempted to separate ourselves from the rites of the Church. If we are to return to the Lord, we must continue to pray and worship Him according to the rites that He has prescribed; namely, we must repent, go to confession, and resume going to Mass.

The second phase of the return from exile is to become re-acquainted with the Law and begin ascetical practices. The Jews had ceased studying the Word of God, and so they were ignorant of what God had taught them. They were also accustomed to trusting their own power instead of relying on the Lord. The same is true for those who fall into sin and depart from God’s ways. The return requires a discipline of prayer, fasting, and study. If we want to stay close to the Lord, we must know His Word and we must be disciplined. For us that means knowing Scripture and Tradition, and, through prayer and fasting, cultivating the soil of our heart and mind so that the Word will take root. Ignorance of the Bible and ignorance of the teachings that have been passed down to us through the Church is a sure path back into exile. We must know God in order to love Him, and in order to know Him we must study His Self-Revelation in Scripture and Tradition.

The third phase of the return from exile is rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. For the Jews, this was the most challenging aspect of the return. Many Jews and gentiles opposed Nehemiah’s efforts. The walls provoked fear because they indicated that the Jews wanted to separate themselves from everyone else. Many people interpreted the walls as a sign of aggression towards outsiders and subversion of imperial authority. Walls remain controversial today, and yet God is telling us that they are essential to the return from exile. Building walls means clearly defining an identity. In order to be Catholic, we must know what is Catholic and what is alien to Catholicism. Nehemiah makes clear that the walls aren’t an impenetrable barrier - there are gates! However, the gates are guarded and there is discretion regarding what is allowed in and out of the city. Being a true Catholic doesn’t mean totally closing ourselves off from outside influences, but it does mean being as vigilant as a soldier in guarding our hearts and minds against what is foreign to Christ and His Church.

Once again, Christ is the path from exile back to God. He is the New Temple - Through the Sacraments we enter the Temple and are united to Christ. He is the Word made flesh - Through prayer, fasting, and study, we come to know and love the Word. His bride, the Church, is the New Jerusalem - We must know what is and is not Catholic. The Apostle John says in Revelation, “[The New Jerusalem] had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels” (Rev 21:12). This is the structure of our return from exile.

They Have No Wine

I enjoy the way that John begins the story of the wedding feast at Cana because he presents Mary with a mysterious authority that’s subtle and humble but clearly essential to the narrative. He does this first by introducing Mary before Jesus: “[T]he mother of Jesus was there; Jesus also was invited to the marriage, with his disciples” (Jn 2:1-2). Jesus has just begun his public ministry and he has a few disciples, but Mary, without being a public figure, is presented as the primary guest. This primacy is emphasized in the interactions that follow. Mary informs Jesus that, “They have no wine.” Jesus responds, “O woman, what is it to you and to me? My hour has not yet come” (Jn 2:4). It’s a puzzling response, and I will return to it later, but for now I want to focus on what happens next. Mary says to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you” (Jn 2:5). These are the last words that Mary speaks in the Gospel, and they are powerful. Who is this “woman”, and why is her authority a prerequisite for the servants to obey Jesus?

The wedding feast at Cana isn’t, of course, just a nice story about Jesus saving a party. God planned the event and John is recounting it so that we may learn more about how God works. The first thing that we should recognize is that Mary’s role is real. God has placed her in the story of salvation for a reason. She is the means by which he chose to enter the world, and she remains, even after Jesus is an adult, an intermediary between him and those in need.

At a deeper level, Mary is the New Israel, the new bride of God, and she is interceding on behalf of old Israel - the other people at the party. Old Israel is out of wine. That’s what Isaiah is speaking about in the first reading: “For as a young man marries a virgin, so shall your builder marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you” (Is 62:5). Because of old Israel’s infidelity, God allowed her to be taken into exile, but he promised that he would vindicate her. Mary is already vindicated, she is the Immaculate Conception, and she is interceding on behalf of those who are still in exile. This reality is alluded to when Jesus says to her, “O woman, what is it to you and to me?” Mary has already received the new wine through a special privilege of grace; however, in order that others will be drawn to the new marriage, Jesus performs his first “sign”, changing water into wine, which points ahead to the new marriage that will take place between God and his people.

This “new marriage” is what Jesus is referring to when he says, “My hour has not yet come” (Jn 2:4). In the Gospel of John, whenever Jesus says, “my hour”, he is referring to his crucifixion. Therefore, his response to his mother indicates that he already intends to give them new wine. His Precious Blood, poured out on the cross to save us from sin, is the new wine. And, of course, as Jesus says later in John’s Gospel, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you” (Jn 6:53). This is the reality presented in the Eucharist. The Mass is the re-presentation of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, which is also the celebration of his marriage to the Church at which he gives us the new wine.

At Mass, under the appearance of bread and wine, we receive the Body and Blood of Jesus. During the wedding feast at Cana Jesus changed water into wine. Both the appearances and the substance were changed. If he had merely added colour and flavour to the water, the steward could not have said, “Every man serves the good wine first; and when men have drunk freely, then the poor wine; but you have kept the good wine until now” (Jn 2:10). Changing appearances is one thing, and changing the substance is another. In the Eucharist God leaves the appearances of bread and wine, but he changes the substance (i.e., transubstantiation). Even though we do not see the change in substance, we know by faith that it has taken place. The wedding feast at Cana is a sign pointing us to this deeper reality.

Seeing Ourselves at the Epiphany

The story of the Magi is an icon of salvation history. Each of the figures in the story encapsulates a major figure in salvation history.

First, the Magi are the best of what it means to be a gentile. They were searching for God using the means available to them, science and natural religion, and their honest search leads them to Jerusalem. There they seek the assistance of the Jewish leaders and by accepting revelation, the Word of God, they find Mary and Jesus in Bethlehem. In Bethlehem they worship Christ.

Second, Herod is the worst of what it means to be a gentile. He bought his kingship and when he hears about the messiah he is afraid and tries to kill Jesus. 

Third, the people of Jerusalem are the lukewarm and indifferent. When they hear about the messiah they do nothing. They are afraid and so they stay at home and continued along with the status quo.

Fourth, the Scribes and Chief Priests are stubborn Israel. They hear about the birth of the messiah, they know where he is, they have studied God’s law and prophets, but they do not go to find him. They are satisfied with keeping God at a distance.

Fifth, Mary is the best of Israel. She is the new Israel, the perfect bride of God. She faithfully receives the messiah and presents Him to the world. 

If we are honest with ourselves we will probably recognize times and aspects of our lives that we are all five of these people. There are times that we are genuinely searching for God and we use the gifts that He has given us in order to find Him. There are also times, however, when we would rather not find Him because we know that he will ask us to make changes in our life that we are unwilling to make. Maybe we ignore certain teachings of the Church because they are too difficult for us or maybe we think we know better than the Church. There are also times, of course, when our faith shines through and we show Christ to others with our words and actions. This is the goal - to be like Mary in every aspect of our life. To be receptive to God’s will and to share Christ with others.

Obedience to THE FATHER

“He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart.” Lk 2:51

Family life isn’t simple. It can be messy. Husbands sometimes sin against their wives. Wives sometimes sin against their husbands. Children sometimes sin against their parents and parents sometimes sin against their children. The family is supposed to be where we learn how to love and live virtuously; however, because we are all sinners, there may also be family sins and vices that we acquire.

This weekend the Church places before us the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. We are asked to ponder the mystery of their life together in order that we may be more like them. Interestingly, St. Luke tells us a story from the childhood of Jesus showing us that things didn’t always go smoothly in the Holy Family. He isn’t telling us that Jesus or Mary sinned, we know they were both sinless, but he is telling us that Mary and Joseph didn’t always understand God’s plan. Mary and Joseph, like us, had to live by faith and discern God’s plan for them.

One of the biggest challenges for families is to keep all of the different aspects of life in the correct order. Work, sports, recreation, school, church, friends, etc. are all vying for time, and it’s easy for some things to take more time than they should. One of the lessons that we learn from this Gospel is that Jesus is very clear about what comes first. He is defined by His relationship to the Father. He IS the Son of the Father. Everything else flows from that fundamental truth. By our baptism we are made sons and daughters of God, and that is supposed to be the fundamental relationship that defines us. It is the truth that must be placed first and everything else flows from it.

One of the traditional ways that the Church uses to help us learn how to order our lives correctly is the rosary. When we pray the rosary it isn’t supposed to be just rhyming off Hail Marys and Our Fathers. The prayers are merely the frame for our meditation. Each of the mysteries is meant to be an avenue through which we earn how to relate to God. There are three passages in Luke’s Gospel in which he tells us that Mary “pondered all these things in her heart.” When we pray the rosary well we are, like Mary and with Mary, pondering the mysteries of God in our heart.

For example, when praying the fifth Joyful mystery, the finding of the Child Jesus in the temple, you can ponder the feelings of Mary and Joseph as they searched for Jesus, not knowing where he was. Ponder the joy they felt upon finding him. Ponder the amazement of the elders as they conversed with this incredible 12 year old. You can also relate it to your own life: “Mary, I don’t know how to get my own children to see what is most important. Please pray that they will find Jesus in the temple.”

Keep pondering the ways of the Lord in your heart, and He will show you how to find Him.

The Immaculate Conception, John the Baptist, & Arresting Strangeness

This weekend the liturgy presents us with two striking figures: It’s the Third Sunday of Advent, so the Gospel focuses on John the Baptist, but this weekend is also the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, so we are encouraged to ponder the mystery of Mary who was conceived without original sin.

JRR Tolkien, the author of The Lord of the Rings, coined an interesting literary term: arresting strangeness (cf. Tolkien, Essay on Fairy-Stories). He says that one of the advantages of the fantasy genre is the ease with which an author can utilize arresting strangeness. This is when the oddity of a character or scene stops us in our tracks and we are forced to ask, “What is going on here?” This technique is used effectively when the arresting strangeness draws us into a deeper truth contained within the character or scene.

Although Tolkien coined the term arresting strangeness, God was using the technique long before The Lord of the Rings, which Tolkien himself points out. The Bible and our Tradition are filled with true stories that should continually make us stop and ask, “What is going on here?” The trouble is that we have gotten so comfortable with the strangeness of the stories that we are no longer arrested by them.

We have two big examples this weekend. The first is the Immaculate Conception. The tradition is that Sts. Anne and Joachim were married for forty years, but they had no children. They were ridiculed for their infertility, and they were told that God had cursed them, but then they conceived a child (cf. The Protoevangelium of James). Do you think the people of Nazareth shrugged their shoulders when they heard the news that Anne was pregnant? No. They stopped in their tracks and asked, “How can this be? What is going on here?” God chose Anne and Joachim in their old age to be the parents of Mary so that we would all know it was by His grace that she was conceived. They were forced to ask, “Who is this woman? How can this be?”

The story of the conception of St. John the Baptist follows the same pattern. The people of Bethlehem knew there was something special about John, and that continued to be the case throughout his life. St. Luke beautifully utilizes the technique of arresting strangeness. He sets the scene for his introduction to John’s adult ministry by listing the big names at the time: the emperor, the governor, the king, and the high priests. This was the standard way for a classical historian to set the scene for the triumphant introduction of a hero, but then St. Luke turns the technique upside down and says, “the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the desert” (Lk 3:2). Everything about John is meant to make us stop and ask, “What is going on here?” Why is he in the desert? Why is he at the Jordan? Why is he wearing camel skin and eating locusts? Why is he baptizing? And why is he calling people to repentance? Next week I will discuss some of the answers to these questions, but for now the point is that we must stop when we see strange things and look for an explanation to the strangeness. We must realize that God is offering us a window into His mystery.

The Church is full of strange things that are meant to make us stop and ponder a mystery: We walk through the doors of the church and the first thing we do (hopefully) is dip our fingers into a bowl of water and make the sign of the cross. That is a strange thing to do! Why do we do it? Then we walk up to our pew and we (hopefully) genuflect toward the tabernacle. What for?  Why do we have a huge statue of a dead man hanging on a cross? Why all the statues? Why an altar? Why is the altar higher than the rest of the church? There are, if the parish has kept the traditions of the Church, innumerable examples of strange things we do that should make us stop and ask, “What is going on here?” The problem is that we have become so familiar with these things we no longer stop to ask, “Why?” Unfortunately, because many priests and people don’t know the answers, they have also stopped the practices.

It’s been interesting in the past couple of weeks preparing for the Nativity pageant, which will take place prior to the Christmas Eve Mass. Almost all of the kids are completely unchurched, so they are constantly asking me questions about what things are and why I am doing certain actions. The Church isn’t anything like their normal experience. It’s sad to see that they haven’t learned these things, but it’s also exciting to see their openness to the mysteries that are being made available.

Now, we are in a difficult place today as a Church. The number of people practicing their faith is declining rapidly. It’s easy to blame others - the sins of priests and bishops, Hollywood, the schools, the internet, and I am not saying that there’s no fault in those places; however, improving the situation in our own parish won’t happen by complaining about things outside of our control. Therefore, I am going to give three simple examples of how reclaiming arresting strangeness in our own lives will make us holier and bring people back to the Church.

1. Make the sign of the cross and genuflect with reverence. When a non-Catholic sees us make the sign of the cross, it should prompt him to say to himself, “That really seemed to mean something. I wonder what?” Much of the time I think people see Catholics make the sign of the cross and they say to themselves, “That was a strange spasm. He might want to get that checked.” Similarly, the genuflexion is meant to be a sign of reverence for Christ, who is present in the tabernacle. Therefore, if you believe that He is present and you are able to get your knee to the floor, then please get your knee to the floor.

2. Go to confession. Has a non-Catholic ever asked you if you go to confession? Have your kids ever seen you go to confession? The Church recommends that we go to confession once a month. The minimum requirement is once per year to be considered a practicing Catholic. Confession is a gift that allows us to know without a doubt that we are forgiven of our sins and Christ is giving us His grace to avoid future sin, and yet most Catholics avoid the sacrament. Why? Sure, it takes humility to go to confession, but humility is the foundation of the spiritual life. The world needs to know that Christ offers the forgiveness of sins, and the only way they will learn that is if we actually live as though we believe it.

3. Keep the Lord’s Day Holy. This is so simple and it should be easy, and yet it’s not for most people. God has asked us to set aside a day for rest - a day to worship Him and to rest from work. That should be liberating news, but we so easily lose sight of what’s truly important. Missing Sunday Mass for anything other than serious illness or really bad weather, is a serious sin. If we miss Sunday Mass for work, vacation, preparing a meal, sports, or whatever it may be, we are saying that those things are more important than our relationship with God. I guarantee you, that if you are faithful to keeping the Lord’s Day Holy, people will think you are strange, but they will be intrigued. I can also guarantee you that if you aren’t faithful to keeping the Lord’s Day Holy every week, it’s unlikely that your family or friends will think much about you telling them that they should go to church.

I am not saying that we are doing any of these things for the sake of being seen or to draw attention to ourselves. We do these things because they are the means by which God makes us holy. We are all called to be holy, the Latin word for holy is sanctus, which means set apart. It’s a natural consequence of being set apart that people will think we are strange; however, in God’s providence that strangeness can be a means of drawing others into a relationship with God. This Christmas, don’t be afraid to be strange. “Prepare the way of the Lord.”

Perpetual Virginity of Mary, and the Birth of the Church

One of the often forgotten Catholic beliefs about Mary, the Mother of Jesus, is that she is “Perpetual Virgin” - virgin before, during, and after the birth of Jesus. Most non-Catholic Christians do not believe in the perpetual virginity of Mary. The obvious argument against the Perpetual Virginity of Mary is that there are a few references in the Gospels to the “brothers and sisters” of Jesus. Dr. Brant Pitre, in his book “Jesus and the Jewish Roots of Mary” gives a thorough explanation of our belief that Mary is “Ever-Virgin”, so if you’re interested in a longer explanation, please read his book. For my part, I want to give a simple defense of our belief and to explain why it is important.

Why do some of the Gospels refer to the brothers and sisters of Jesus, if Mary didn’t have any other children? The Greek words used to describe brothers and sisters in the Gospels are adelphoi and adelphe. These can be translated both as “brother and sister” and “male cousin and female cousin”. Even today in English we see a common parallel in our use of the words brother and sister to refer to those who are not biological brothers and sisters. Certain ethnic groups commonly use “brother and sister” in this way. As Christians we often use “brother and sister” to refer to other Christians, since God is Our Father and we are brothers and sisters in Christ. This simple argument is defended by the fact that some of those referred to as “brothers” of Jesus are also said to be the sons of “the other Mary” (Mt. 27:55-56). For more information defending the perpetual virginity of Mary, please refer to Dr. Pitre’s book.

Why does the perpetual virginity of Mary matter? Dr. Pitre gives three reasons. The first is because it’s the truth, and the truth always matters. Reality is reality and we must conform our thoughts to reality, not our own opinions and preferences. 

The second reason is that Mary’s virginity, like Jesus’ virginity, points forward to heaven. In heaven we are all married to God: “For when they will be resurrected from the dead, they shall neither marry, nor be given in marriage” (Mk. 12:25). This is not to say that marriage is bad. Marriage is a Sacrament that points ahead to the union we are meant to have with God in heaven. Mary was already living that union with God here on earth. As an aside, this is also the reason why priests don’t get married.

The final reason is that Mary is a symbol of the Church. This is also why I am writing on this topic on the Feast of the Presentation. Mary has no biological children, other than Jesus, so that she is clearly the spiritual mother of all Christians. Simeon says to Mary in today’s Gospel, “a sword will pass through your own soul” (Lk. 2:35). We believe that Mary was spared from labor pains when Jesus was born; however, she experienced those pains when Jesus was on the cross. Mary is the Church and the Church gives birth to new life by suffering with Jesus on the cross. The world wants to run from suffering, but Mary and Jesus show us the truth. Mary, with Jesus, is the most courageous person in the Bible because she most perfectly embraces the cross. By her union with Jesus on the cross, the Church was born, and Mary became the Mother of the Church.