And the winner is.....Bishop Kurtz!

As "predicted" by our friend "Whispers" in one of yesterday's postings, the current Bishop of Knoxville will be packing up his mitre and crosier for a move to the Archdiocese of Louisville (KY). Archbishop Joseph Kurtz was raised just a little northeast of DC in Shenandoah, PA. It is from that neighborhood that the Jesuit, Fr. Walter Ciszek, SJ, grew up. He was the Jesuit imprisoned in Russia for years during the days of WWII. I worked with a classmate of his while at the Papal Foundation. The Archbishop was always mentioned as a truly holy priest. In August he will celebrate his 59th birthday. Looks like the Holy Spirit did not take a day off today!

Daily Reflection: June 12, 2007

In the Gospel reading for today we come upon a familiar few verses. In particular, "You are the light of the world." Now that you have read that sentence has there been a moment yet today when you thought of yourself as a light to the people you live with, work with, play with?

Consider the lives of the saints ... select any one or two for a moment. There you encounter a man or woman who strove to be a light to those around them.

And how can you be a light to those around you in our busy world today? The key or clue might be to open up the word busy. How can I take even just a minute or two to let another person know that they matter? How do you help a friend who has been hurt by someone? Just rush on past? Or take the time to let your light shine? And we should remember that it is not just your light that has the opportunity to shine. You are allowing the Holy Spirit to work through your goodness, your care, your concern.

Don't be so busy that you cannot let your light shine in the heart of another person. It is your giving someone else the opportunity to glorify God our heavenly Father.

The Reverend Deacon "Tony"

Prime Minister Tony Blair is scheduled to meet with Pope Benedict XVI later this week ... his final official state visit before surrendering his walking stick to Her Highness, Queen Elizabeth. Much speculation has been growing in the homeland that the PM might be about to make a switch that, in fact, seemed to have been in the works before his election as PM. The switch: from the Church of England to the Roman Church. Indeed, the fact that the PM has inquired about becoming a Roman Catholic Deacon has fueled the rumor mill.

Now will the PM's friendship with our GB and the fact that his brother made a switch of faiths have any impact upon the man soon to be the former Commander in Chief????

The Mystery Stick!

"Now about that walking stick you gave me, Mr. President." Yep, that is what the stick posted earlier was ... a walking stick made by a homeless man that was given to President Bush.

Patient Pope vs. Impatient Romans!

Pazienza, pazienza!

Roma non construita illa giornata!

CATHOLIC NEWS has produced an article related to the impatience of many different offices and individuals in the Vatican with the slow and studied steps of His Holiness to complete a number of issues. Specifically there is unrest that a long awaited document on the Church and its relationship with the Chinese government, a motu proprio concerning the possibility of celebrating a Mass in Latin according to an earlier directives and the appointment of another "batch" of new Cardinals. Interesting reading and keeping up with the ripples in the Benedictine style of papacy.

Baseball? What is it?

You figure it out. I am late getting to a dentist appointment! But my first reaction: a baseball bat that never made to the Texas team President Bush used to own! Second thought: a kind of horn? Lastly, a scroll that has the answer to the Iraq dilemma!

40th Anniversary: Fran and Paul Byers

CONGRATULATIONS! Forty times over!!!

Yesterday, Fran and Paul Byers, celebrated their 4oth wedding anniversary with their wedding party and a few very close friends and family. Fran is just finishing a lengthy term of service on the OLV Pastoral Council.

The group gathered for a luncheon at the Mayflower Hotel where 40 years ago to the day they brought friends and family together to celebrate their wedding day.

Here Fran and Paul look admiringly at their son, Paul, who is sharing with the group some of his wonderful thoughts about Mom and Dad.

DAILY REFLECTION: St. Barnabas 6 11 07

How often does it happen that the message preached by some of the tv evangelists and the corner preachers is quite negative. The prophets of doom and gloom: "repent" is the major theme. Hell fire and damnation either give people a sad picture of a loving God or drive them away from God.

Jesus did not send the early apostles out with the message. Barnabas was sent with Paul to spread "good news" not hell fire! Like most of the disciples, Barnabas was a convert. He gave all that he could of himself and what he had to be a worker in the vineyard for Jesus. His name can be understood to mean what he became: "son of exhortation." No doubt he learned much from St. Paul. A brief biography follows.

The painting was done by Botticelli in 1490 AD.

Saint Barnabas was a Jew from Cyprus. The Holy Spirit destined Barnabas to a universal mission, as it was he who introduced St. Paul to the other apostles, paving the way for that broad apostolate of St. Paul's which required the approval of the pillars of the Church. He was with Paul in the first missionary journey and at the first Council of Jerusalem. After having converted many souls to Christ, Barnabas died in Cyprus during Nero's reign; tradition has it that he was stoned to death. His name is included in the Roman Canon (Eucharistic Prayer I).

Source: Daily Roman Missal, Edited by Rev. James Socías, Midwest Theological Forum, Chicago, Illinois ©2003

REFLECTION: Corpus Christi

One of the experiences of our lives that has significance to us not just today but everyday is a meal. It is usually through the experience of a meal that we nourish our bodies. But there is much more to a meal than the intake of food to strengthen us. A meal is often an opportunity for us to give nourishment not only to our bodies but to our spirits as well.
When Jesus would gather with his disciples each year along with other Jewish families for the Passover meal, it was for more than eating and strengthening their bodies. The Passover meal was a sacred time for them to renew their belonging to God’s chosen people and to each other. Think back to the many Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day dinners you have shared with your families. There was much more to those events that chowing down with a large turkey and all the other parts of those meals. In my family we always gathered to be family. I don’t think there was a prouder moment for my parents than on those days as we gathered together and then sat down for would often be a two or three hour time together. At the last Passover meal that Jesus shared with his disciples, he gave to them a present of his presence.
This is what we Catholics celebrate today in all our Church around the world regardless of cultural differences. The solemnity of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ celebrates the present of his presence among us in the Eucharist.
The Eucharist, as we know, is his gift of self, Jesus’ self-giving in his Body and Blood that we share in every Eucharistic liturgy as well as his giving of himself to us in divine grace when we present ourselves before him in the Blessed Sacrament through adoration and prayer.
This giving of himself in the Eucharistic meal and in the experience of the Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament are moments for us to nourish our spiritual lives, our spiritual needs.
When you and I gather together in this or any church or chapel, we are coming together as a family seeking spiritual nourishment for our souls as well as for the nourishment of our sense of community. We gather together as a diverse community of believers who express our creed by presence, by sharing the gift of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ.
So often I hear myself saying to others, when I am about to go to the sacristy to prepare for Mass, that I have to celebrate Mass. It is surely acceptable for me to say that "I have to say Mass now." However, don’t I forfeit an opportunity for myself and the persons I might be speaking with by including in those words a sense of obligation? Just as I hear so many parishioners, especially the younger set say "We have to go to Mass."
Again something special seems to have been forfeited in those words with that sense of obligation. We lose the opportunity to remind ourselves that we are about to share in an extraordinary gift – the gift of Jesus self to us.
It is the same with Eucharistic Adoration. There is given to us the extraordinary presence of Jesus Christ for our adoration and praise. I know that if I go downtown to see the original Declaration of Independence, I feel that I am seeing something of history. I am seeing the document that has become the basis for our nation. But, I do not adore that document as I adore Jesus Christ present in the Blessed Sacrament.
St. Paul’s words are important: "For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes." When is this "as often"? "As often" as we come together, like this morning to share the Eucharistic meal; "as often" as we remember with gratitude all that Jesus did to save us; "as often" as we sense our being sent by the Holy Spirit to be the Body of Christ in service to others: "as often" as we do all of this, we receive the present of Christ’s presence in our lives. "As often" as we partake of the gift of himself in meal or adoration, we are nourishing our souls and our felt need to have him present in our very being.

DAILY REFLECTION: June 8, 2007

Here are the two major characters in the Book of Tobit or Tobias as some call it: Anna and Tobit. In the readings for today liturgy ( Readings ) there is much jubilation. What we have is a scene somewhat similar to that story Jesus used in describing the welcoming of a father whose son returns to him after a rather terrible life.

Anna, like the father, would look out each day to see if Tobiah, their son, would be coming home. In the scene today there is in the words of the responsorial psalm, "Praise the Lord, my soul."

While away from home, Tobiah took a wife, had some harrowing moments with a particular fish which he eventually overcame. As to be expected, Tobiah cut out part of the fish's organs to use to drive away evil spirit's and to bring back to rub on his father's cataracted covered eyes.

What we can gain from this episode is an appreciation of a son's fidelity to his parents, particularly his father. Likewise we can see an example of trust in God's care for us -- that it is not always an immediate response to our call for help but that in due time there is a miracle.

Lastly, surely the natural food and medicine folks among us might be saying, "See, we told you there is much value in fish oils!"