Thomas Caffrey

‘Visione di sant’ agostino’ (vision of Saint Augustine) (1502) by Vittore Carpaccio

 

“I wept at the beauty of your hymns and canticles, and was powerfully moved by the sweet sound of your Church’s singing. Those sounds flowed into my ears, and the truth streamed into my heart: so that my feeling of devotion overflowed, and the tears ran from eyes, and I was happy in them.”

After you read this quote by Augustine of Hippo, does the word ordinary come to mind?  Not a chance. “But Tom,” you say, “We are in Ordinary Time” (the We in this case is the Roman Catholic Church). “Ahh, true enough” I respond; “but it is also true that the Church defines Ordinary in a way that is clearly extraordinary to common English usage.” For most of my life I thought the Church’s Ordinary Time was, well, just ordinary. I thought of it simply as the continuation of the usual pattern of participation in the Blessed Sacrament and the Sacrament of Reconciliation, without realizing how purposeful, intentional and ordered my faith journey should be toward spiritual growth and the subsequent witness that growth would evidence. As usual, I had much to learn…

Despite its status as the lingua franca of the world, the English language sometimes has significant limitations. For example, when we speak of “love” we generally mean the romantic “in love” (although I have, on countless occasions, told my children that I love them). Yet the Greek language has four words that represent four types of love: Affection love, Friendship love, Romantic love and Divine love. Likewise,  the English “ordinary” refers to something common and of no special value, a definition that contrasts greatly with the definition used in the Roman rite of Catholicism. The Latin Ordinalis refers to a numbered series, and has Ordo as its root from which we get the English word order. Thus it is during this time of the liturgical year that we restore a regular order from the great feasts and central mysteries of Christmas and Easter, and their preparatory fasting and penance periods of Advent and Lent. Instead, as the Church teaches us, Ordinary time helps us understand how to live with Emmanuel (“God with us”) as he walks among us after the Incarnation of Christmas, and then helps us prepare in watchful anticipation of the Second Coming of Christ after the Resurrection of Easter Sunday.

The spiritual growth that we and the Church experience after the Resurrection is symbolized by the green vestments worn by the priests and deacons.

Therefore, during the Ordinary season both the biblical passages and liturgical traditions help us to deepen our relationship with Jesus Christ, and walk his way. And it is from this encounter with him that we and our lives are transformed. Not ordinary at all!

Please share with me your experiences of transformation after Christmas and Easter, and if your new understanding of those extraordinary Ordinary times could make you echo the joy, happiness and blessedness of St. Augustine.

 

Amen

Tom

 

Make Way for the Lord!

In ancient Israel, prophets mediated God’s revelation, message and word to his people. These revelatory communications could come into the prophet’s consciousness, one transformed by God, via visions, dreams or other forms of sublime awareness. Once the prophet understood the revelations, God had him (and, rarely, her) use his human abilities to transmit these understandings to his community. Some prophets resisted God initially, as they were overwhelmed by the task at hand and the future prospects of committing to it (“Uh, thanks Lord; but I can think of a thousand other things I’d rather do than inform members of any community, let alone mine, that they are sinners and had better change their ways–or else.”)

 In Isaiah’s case, once he became possessed by the spirit of God’s glory , via his word, the drafted prophet was able to see the great chasm between that glory and human sinfulness–and couldn’t do it:“In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphim…with two wings they covered their faces…and they were calling to one another: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.’  At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. ‘Woe to me!’ I cried. ‘I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.’ Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, ‘See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.’ 

“In the wilderness prepare
    the way for the Lord!
Make straight in the desert
    a highway for our God”

Of all the prophets, John the Baptist is the greatest. How do we know? Because he received the greatest 3rd party endorsement in history–from the Son of God:

“But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and one who is more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written: ‘Behold, I send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way before You.Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist! Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 

The greatest prophet and the greatest Person at work

What is Jesus of Nazareth doing? Why is he there?  For the same reason he is here: “Emmanuel;” because he is “God with us.” The Christ came as the ultimate manifestation of God’s love. His great humility is demonstrated by this desire to experience the ritual of repentance and the conversion it brings–despite being free of sin. The Apostle John wrote:

“In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his one Son into the world, so that we might live through him.”

This great act of charity prompted the Father to declare,

“This is My beloved Son, with Whom I am well pleased.”

But as history makes clear, there would eventually be the greatest act resulting from the greatest of those theological virtues: the Crucifixion! And the foreknowledge of this act no doubt contributed to the Father’s great pleasure in his Son.

We, too, must share in this pleasure! Through our conversion from sin, belief in the Son and modeling him, we become the adopted children of God–and become like God!

St John, in his first letter:

“See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now; it does not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when he appears we shall be like him.”

St Athanasius, in his treatise On the Incarnation from the early 4th century:

“He, indeed, assumed humanity that we might become God. He manifested Himself by means of a body in order that we might perceive the Mind of the unseen Father. He endured shame from men that we might inherit immortality.” The great saint was not suggesting we become the same essence, nature and substance of God, nor equal to the Divine; rather, as adopted children of God we share in the graces from him and then extend them to others.

St Peter, in his second letter:

“His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness…by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, that through these you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of passion, and become partakers of the divine nature.”

St Paul, reinforces our being made in the image and likeness of God:

“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to another.”

Can you imagine your baptism in a different light, now that you know the greatness behind the sacrament? Will your worship of Jesus’ Baptismal Mass change, as a result of this new knowledge? I hope so, and welcome your comments to that end.

Amen

Tom

The perfect family…?

 

For the past two weekends we had special Christmas celebrations: the Feast of the Holy Family, a day during which we honor the family unit of Jesus Christ, Blessed Mother Mary and Joseph, and Feast of the Epiphany (“revelation from above”). In the Eastern Catholic Church the feast is known as Theophany (“revelation of God”), one that culminates in Jesus’ Baptism.

The Holy Family offers us a role model, above all others, that we should emulate to form our “domestic church,” something Luke seems to imply in Acts (18:8). While the Bible does not specify “domestic church,” our God-given intellect makes it easy to interpret biblical ingredients and come to that conclusion. It’s kind of like saying that while “Trinity” is not mentioned in the Bible, its ingredients are mentioned many times–such as in Matthew, in the passage known as “The Great Commission” (despite the fact that that title is also not in the Bible!). During my theology training this subject would frequently come up during our discussions, and I would illustrate by making a hypothetical case based upon logical deduction. For example, were I to hear objections at saying the Holy Family frequently ate “cake” despite that word not appearing in the New Testament, I would explain that since the text reference indicated they ate meals made of eggs, sugar, flour and water, they ate cake!

In the image shown above, does this family look perfect? Of course–at first glance. After all, bronze has enough malleability to shape and portray each figure into the exact manner desired and imagined by the artist. And I’ve seen many paintings and sculptings of the Holy Family, and none of them suggest the struggles that are part of every human family–including theirs–as each member struggles to find his or her way through life. Of course that is probably true of any family portrait, since it represents only a moment in time and one that is completely orchestrated and planned. I know that neither of my children had halos, and there exists no photos showing either me holding a cross or my wife wearing a modesty scarf to over her head.

A trouble-free family experience? Sacred Scripture tells us that Joseph planned on divorcing the pregnant Mary, albeit quietly, because although they were pledged to each other in betrothal they had not a consummated marriage. Later, both Joseph and Mary lost track of their young child, as Jesus, doing what countless children have done over the ages, went off on his own (to the temple). Had that happened today, Israel’s Child Welfare Services may have made sure that our Lord and Savior would be raised by two foster parents! And certainly no parent could imagine their child predeceasing them, let alone being tortured beforehand.

***

Immediately below is one of the most memorable sights I experienced during a two week trip to Italy with my children: the Pieta, in St. Peter’s Basilica.  Michelangelo’s masterpiece also portrays artistic perfection, as its beauty and meaning evoke overwhelming sadness and love.

 

 

For most of my married family life we had experiences of holiness, and the associated joys from them. But since we are imperfect rational creatures who don’t operate on instinct, we also came to know the sorrows associated with our imperfections; and the greatest consequence of sin’s intrusion was our breakup from a divorce I desperately did not want. So we know what it is like to be both whole and broken. We also know that our response to the consequence of sin should not be more sin, but holiness (easier said than done). For my children and me, the challenge was to transcend the resulting sadness and damage and live as well and as holy as we could. Did we succeed? It’s too soon to tell because we’re still living. But it isn’t too soon to say that we’ve had some successes at living holy. How? By trying to follow St. Paul’s instructions to us via the Colossians: “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

 

***

 

The perfect child…!

The Feast of the Epiphany remembers how God’s first revelation of himself to the Magi was a revelation to the wider world, since they were the first gentiles to encounter the Christ. In this tradition we find that the “foreigners” accepted on faith and trust the baby as divine and royal, while Herod did not. And so we have the great communication by the Creator to his creation, in which he reveals himself to us as Jesus the Christ and Son of God. This feast is part of an ancient tradition, one that began before the first official celebration of Christmas in the early 4th century.

But what led these Wise Men, these astrologers, to the Nativity? In his book The Star of Bethlehem, Rutgers University astronomer and numismatist Michael Molnar reports on his exploration into this question and his findings, prompted serendipitously after he came upon (a midnight clear…?) an ancient coin that showed a ram looking behind him toward a star. Molnar argues that the image portended a royal event of great magnitude, as that ram, or Aries as the Wise Men would have known, symbolized the kingdom of Judah (land of Judea, and Christ’s region).

These men believed that the event would be a regal or messianic birth, when Jupiter was eclipsed by the moon. Since the Magi were from the East (Persia), Jupiter would have to be in that part of the heavens. Molnar’s calculations put this eclipse on April 17, 6 B.C., simultaneous to when the planet was in the east. Contemporaneous records indicate the day of this event as one “befitting the birth of a ‘divine and immortal’ person.” Whoa…but it gets better.

In the epilogue of his fascinating book, Molnar concludes, “The Star of Bethlehem turned out to be very different from what I expected…We can be assured that the extraordinary conditions of April 17, 6 B.C. were as real and dramatic as any blazing comet or exploding supernova. Unlike those spectacular but terribly foreboding or meaningless apparitions, the portent formed in Aries by Jupiter and other celestial bodies conveyed a joyous, wondrous message about a regal and divine birth in the kingdom of Herod the Great. Now we can look at the star above a crèche at Christmas and know that there was indeed a Star of Bethlehem (emphasis added).”

I find great joy in the use of and results from our reasoning power, to unfold greater understanding of God’s revelation of himself to humanity. So friends, I’d welcome your responses to this post, and how it compares with your understanding of these two wonderful Feast days. God bless us.

Amen.

Tom

 

“Santa Claus is coming, to town…” Wait! Stop!

I know, I know; it probably seems that you’ve heard that Christmas jingle–and many others–play from the speaker system of virtually every store since, well, shortly after Labor Day. Retailers know their game:

“Let’s put up the decorations and play those happy tunes, in the hopes that Almighty Dollar will arrive here soon!”

Or…

‘Twas a month before Christmas when all through the store, not a shopper was restraining and so leaving quite poor…”

During Christmas season when my children were very young, Maureen, (aka, “Dancer”) would hum along with the aforementioned tune and then belt out “TO TOWN!” with a voice that dwarfed her size. I always got a big kick out of her rendition.

But, of course, Santa is not the person for whom we are waiting…

 

O come, O come, Emmanuel

O come, Thou Wisdom from on high

O come, Thou Day-spring, come and cheer

O come, Thou Key of David, come

O come, O come, great Lord of might

O come, Divine Messiah

Dear Savior haste!
Come, come to earth

At Your great name, O Jesus, now,
All knees must bend, all hearts must bow

The Advent of our God
Our prayers must now employ,
And we must meet Him on His road
With hymns of holy joy.

 

As the title of this post suggests, the four sacred weeks of Advent prepare us for the celebration:

The anniversary remembrance of Christ’s first coming, otherwise known as the Incarnation and the in-breaking of God into human history, which is represented by The Nativity and which we celebrate on Christmas (Christ Mass) Day:

The Mass readings for our Advent liturgy (Latin liturgia, for “public worship”) make clear the anticipation of the Savior in the words of our Old Testament prophets and evangelists of the New Covenant:

Jeremiah: “The days are coming, says the Lord, when…I will raise up for David a just shoot…”

Psalmist: “…And for you I wait all the day.”

Psalmist: “Marana tha! Come, Lord Jesus!”

And He came!

Caravaggio, 1600/1609?, Palermo, Italy

 

 

If we take a moment to consider this event and its significance, we should become overwhelmed by its awesome meaning. In his book, The Mystery Of Faith, Reverend Michael Himes ponders the meaning of the Incarnation when he meditates on St Paul’s Letter to the Philippians (2:6-8) saying, “This is, without question, the most extraordinary compliment ever paid to being human.”

The desire of God to become human should cement the dignity each of us was given at the moment God created humanity, a reality made clear in Genesis when God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness” (1:27), by making us creatures with moral reasoning, free will and the ability to have a relationship with Him.

 

The Early Church Fathers wrote great homilies on the Incarnation of God. For example, St Ignatius wrote, “On this account also they (Old Testament prophets) were persecuted, being inspired by grace to fully convince the unbelieving that there is one God, the Almighty, who has manifested Himself by Jesus Christ His Son, who is His Word…”

How about you–and me? Do we believe? Do we give our free will assent to the God who descended into human history to become one of us? I hope we do, because only then can we truly say:

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Amen

Tom

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Those who think they know the Garden State from only the window of their car while traveling along the New Jersey Turnpike are, as my late father used to say, “Turnpike Tourists.” It is easy to make fun of New Jersey while passing the many gasoline refineries on their way through the state to “somewhere else,” ignorant of the beauty that lies beyond the tankers and tarmac and the fact that their machines use those two products! However one result of NJ politicians raising the gas tax (along with all the other confiscatory levies), will be increasing numbers of residents traveling the state’s roadways on their merry way to becoming former residents!

Last weekend, on the Feast of Christ the King, I traveled the other main highway in New Jersey en route to the beautiful hamlet of Cape May, driving the Garden State Parkway until the curiously numbered “Exit 0.” And this Cape of Cornelius Mey is in the top tier of beauty in my home state.

Arriving in town I maneuvered my car into a curbside parking space of a quiet, shaded neighborhood, one that seemed to be guarded by the giant sycamore tree sentinels and blanketed with their large, crisp and recently-shed leaves. After tightening my scarf against the chill autumn air, I began strolling the quaint neighborhoods with my camera at the ready.

Almost immediately that tool went into action, as I began snapping photos of this or that garden feature to consider implementing at my home next spring…

then the accompanying architecture of the Victorian-style and Gingerbread houses…

and the approaching “clop, clop, clop, clop” of the horse and carriage.

I was thoroughly enjoying my stroll around the neighborhoods, partly because of the beautiful Christmas decorations on the houses and small shops as well as the good spirits of the people strolling here and there. Soon, though, I heard the peeling bells of the Catholic church, Our Lady Star of the Sea,  announcing to everyone the approaching 6:00pm Mass that I would attend.

This “church on the mall” is a looming edifice constructed in Gothic and Romanesque style of gray granite, stained glass and Carrera marble (taken from the same marble quarry used by Michelangelo), whose bell tower rises 80 feet above the ground.

 

The purpose of my earlier emphasis on “everyone” is to make clear that the bells were–and always are–an invitation to all, letting them know they are welcome into this particular house. Our Lady’s church welcomes persons of all faith and no faith backgrounds, to experience a community of believers in Jesus Christ. While those who are not Catholic could not participate in the sacramental aspect of the Mass, they could witness the experience of what the Catholic Church refers to as the “Source and Summit” of the faith and the Sacrament to which the other sacraments are oriented:

Holy Eucharist in the most Blessed Sacrament.

 

Catholics also refer to this sacrament as Holy Communion, because we share this banquet (Eucharist means “Thanksgiving”) of God with our brothers and sisters. The celebration was beautiful, in part because it was shared with like-minded pilgrims on a faith journey.

But almost a week later I was struck by a great contrast between the beautifully decorated houses I saw earlier in the day and the house named for Our Lady: Notwithstanding the warmth, beauty and coziness of those neighborhood houses, none invited me inside them; but this single house, one that was devoid of lights, tinsel and wreaths, made me feel most welcome–and even fed me!

As Jesus, the Bread of Life, teaches us in chapter 14 of the Gospel of John:

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms. If that were not so would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you…”

Just five days later I attended a funeral Mass for my Uncle Jack Mooney, and was amazed that the Gospel reading for that good man was none other than…John 14!

Lord, help us to not be troubled when we are not invited into these houses, or into others that may seem to invite us by their outward appearances. Instead, help us to invite those around us into our places, that they may know our encounter with you by their encounter with us. Finally, help us to believe your promise that you have prepared a place for those who believe in you–with you!

Amen.

Tom