Belief in God is a Good Bet

Caravaggio's Doubting Thomas

We continue to celebrate the Easter miracle for six weeks, despite the coronavirus mantras, e. g, sanitize hands often, maintain social distance and stay home. Our Easter mantra is Jesus Christ lives, and because he lives, we live!

Have you ever witnessed an Easter miracle? A depressed person resurrected to hope; someone with an alcoholic addiction resurrected to sobriety; a troubled marriage resurrected to renewed love; an estrangement bridged; a terrible wrong forgiven.

We can help create little Easter miracles like that. Think about how, and then do it.

Now the word of God carries us back to the beginnings of Christianity, to a community faithful to Jesus Christ – the way, the truth and the life, a community that worshiped together and shared what they had. These early Christians should inspire us to do the same.

The letter attributed to Peter speaks about our new birth in the life-giving waters of baptism: God gifted us with an imperishable heavenly inheritance. Our faith empowers us to overcome hardships and attain our “goal”: salvation, life eternal with the triune God.

In the Gospel according to John, we have a post-resurrection appearance of Jesus in a house where the apostles hide behind locked doors. Jesus suddenly appears here not merely a spirit or ghost; nor was he simply resuscitated. Jesus was the same person that the apostles knew before but his earthly body was transformed. It was, as Pope Benedict XVI phrased, an “evolutionary leap” into a new of spiritual embodiment.

The risen Jesus  then bestows upon the disciples the energizing Spirit, the abiding peace, and the overwhelming mercy of God. But skeptical Thomas wasn’t there. We know little about him, yet “doubting Thomas” is easily identifiable with many people today, because to be human is to question, to ask for concrete evidence.

A week later Jesus appears again, Thomas sees the light and makes that awesome declaration of faith: “My Lord and my God.”

We are born to be in relationship with God. Otherwise, we will experience an emptiness, an unrest, a feeling something is missing. St. Augustine captured this spiritual hunger eloquently: “Our hearts are restless until they can find rest in you, O God.”

We all need a loving, ongoing relationship. But no human relationship will satisfy us completely, because God created us to live in relationship with Him. Yes, God made every human being in His image. Somehow we broke that relationship and clouded that image with sin. Good and bad, generosity and selfishness, light and dark, all live within us.

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” Jesus re-established our relationship with God through his death/resurrection. Where there was death, we find life. There was an empty tomb, we find hope.

We all cry out for reconciliation and peace, healing and mercy, which we celebrate today— Divine Mercy Sunday. We yearn for truth and peace and justice, and only in Jesus can we truly find it.

Jesus has freed us from death and nothingness so that we can be in relationship with God forever. He founded a church, a community of disciples, to continue God’s work. In this community God transforms us through the sacraments into new creatures, called to live as His sons and daughters.

One final word regarding Thomas the questioner. Various indicators point to God. The order in the universe presupposes an “orderer” like a watch presupposes a watchmaker, hope presupposes a future; and so forth. There are also signs that point to no God—for example, genocide or the holocaust or even pandemic disease. But faith in God is a calculated risk.

Blaise Pascal, a French mathematician, inventor, and philosopher, “wagered” like this:
One does not know whether God exists.
Not believing in God is bad for one’s eternal soul if God does exist.
Believing in God is of no consequence if God does not exist.
Therefore, it is in one’s interest to believe in God. Think about it. In other words, faith in God is a good bet.

At a funeral mass, we hear the words, “For those who believe, life is not taken away, life is merely changed.” Let us pray that our faith in God will empower us to exclaim every day, “My Lord and my God.”

The Purpose of my Life

Rublev's Icon of the Trinity

Happy Fathers Day! The word “father” or “dad” evokes various images and traits. I think of qualities my father possessed in abundance (qualities all good fathers possess): Love, commitment, communication, spirituality. We spent time together. And my father had a good sense of humor.

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, the feast of the triune God, the fundamental and distinctive truth of Christianity. We begin every liturgy “In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” and are sent forth at the end with the blessing of the “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.”

Now when we hear the word “God,” what images do we think of? The Bible gives us many. A walking companion. As loving as a mother. A God who wants to share his wisdom with us. The parables of the good shepherd and the prodigal son are balanced with the parable of the last judgment.

The images cannot capture fully the inexhaustible reality of God.

And no human relationship can completely satisfy us. St. Augustine wrote, “Thou hast made us for Yourself, O God, and our hearts are restless until they find rest in You.” Yes, we were born to live in relationship with God -- the triune God.

The book of Proverbs personifies wisdom as a woman, as creative energy, as a playful companion of God who witnesses the mighty acts of God. The early Christians saw Jesus in this wisdom image, God’s Word made flesh among us. St. Paul waxes eloquently about the saving work of Jesus Christ. Through him we have a right relationship with God.

In the Gospel, Jesus alludes to the mystery of the triune God: The Spirit that comes through Jesus and the Father will guide us into all truth.

The mystery of the triune God (one yet distinctive in modalities or movements of "persons"--Father, Son, and Spirit--none is the “other”; a God who is love) invites us to reflect upon our relationship with God and one another.

We are forever trying to make better sense out of our lives. Especially in moments of crisis, people often ask fundamental questions: What is the purpose of my life? Where is my life going? Through the cycle of our own human development, at times, we wonder. We accomplished so little, and now it is almost over. What was it all about? Life seems marred by too many tragedies.

We also have awesome experiences. A starry sky, the joy of friendship, the golden rays of a sunrise or sunset, the accomplishment of a goal. Such experiences can take us out of ourselves and into the presence of an awesome power. We begin to experience the transcendent dimension of our lives.
Yes, a purposeful and gracious God is responsible for this magnificent universe and for our very lives. Yes, this God became flesh in Jesus and is alive among us by the power of the Spirit.

This triune God, the model of self-giving love, empowers us to reach out in love to one another with compassion, forgiveness, a ready smile, a kind word, a helping hand.  And in reaching out in love, we become like the triune God in self-giving love.

Pray for the grace today, to quote the musical Godspell, to see God more clearly, love God more dearly and follow God more nearly in our daily lives. Amen.

The Spirit of God within Us

St. Peter's Basilica  Holy Spirit Window

Today we celebrate Pentecost – the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples of Jesus in Jerusalem. The lesson of Pentecost is that the triune God lives in us; and we in God. Yes, as St. Paul taught: we are living temples of God.

There's not much to see visually on Pentecost Sunday. But the description I like best is “breath of God” or “gush of wind.” Not destructive like a hurricane, but life-giving. It's “catching” the Spirit of God. It's feeling the Spirit moving wherever it wants to recreate whatever it touches.

The vitality of the Spirit is within us. It inspires us, moves us, so that we can be a channel of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-discipline.

Pentecost concludes the Easter season and begins the mission of the Church, the people of God, you and me, to continue the saving work of Jesus Christ until he comes again. We can continue that work by embodying the gifts of the Spirit: wisdom (to recognize what truly matters in life), intelligence (to discern what's true), courage (to stand up for what's right), compassion (for the needy), good judgment (to do right), and wonder and awe (to worship the great God of this universe).

“Pentecost” is a Greek word meaning “fiftieth” – the fiftieth day after Passover. The Hebrews initially celebrated after harvesting the spring wheat. Later they associated the festival with the covenant God made with their forebears on Mt. Sinai. Pentecost gradually celebrated one aspect of the entire paschal mystery.

The Book of Acts describes how the Jews had come to Jerusalem to celebrate the festival. Suddenly the Spirit -- described in images of wind and fire (symbolizing power and energy and vitality) -- was poured out and emboldened the disciples to preach the Gospel fearlessly in Jerusalem and throughout the known world.

The letter of Paul to the Christian community at Corinth in Greece speaks about the gifts the Spirit bestows upon us: all for the common good.

The Gospel according to John describes a post resurrection appearance of Jesus where he breathes upon the disciples (as God breathed life into us in the Book of Genesis) and in that gesture bestows the Spirit.

It’s an awesome truth of our faith: the God of the universe, the triune God, lives within us. So we are new creatures, with a destiny beyond this earthly life: eternal life with God. That life has already begun. And to see what the Spirit can do, look at the early disciples: transformed from cowards locked in an upper room into heroes proclaiming from the rooftops that Jesus Christ is gloriously alive.

Let us pray that the Spirit will empower us to live the results of the Spirit’s presence. The same Spirit of God who spoke through the prophets, overshadowed the Virgin Mary, enlivened the disciples, and lives within the Church community and guides human history toward its ultimate fulfillment—a new heaven and a new earth—that same Spirit lives and breathes within us and can transform us ever more fully into "living temples of God."

So we pray today,
“Come, Holy Spirit anew into our lives,
and re-energize us so that we can see God more clearly, love God more dearly and follow God more nearly. Amen.”

Every Picture Tells A Story

Rembrandt's Return of the Prodigal Son

This Sunday is known as Laetare Sunday. Laetare is a Latin word meaning “rejoice.” Why rejoice? Because we are close to our salvation, the Easter mystery.

In modern times, Easter is often boiled down to eggs and the Easter bunny. Many people ask, what’s the connection?

Originally, eggs laid during Holy Week were saved and decorated and then given to children as Easter gifts. Chocolate eggs appeared in the 19th century. And the Easter bunny? Rabbits usually give birth to a big litter, so they became a symbol of new life. Legend had it that the Easter bunny lays and hides eggs. Thus, the Easter egg hunt. So much for folklore.

What does the word of God say to us today? In the Gospel, the parable of the prodigal son has many levels of meaning, inviting us to see ourselves in the characters.

The younger son asked his father for his inheritance, squandered it—and then he “comes to his senses.” An amazing phrase! He realizes his true identity as a beloved son. His father unconditionally forgives and loves him and gives him a party.

The older son is “angry,” critical, finding his father’s generosity incomprehensible. Was the older son really listening to his father, and following his example? His father affirmed that “everything I have is yours.”

This parable may move us to ponder forgiving someone. If we can’t forgive on our own, pray for the grace to participate in the forgiveness of Jesus, who pardons those who come to him and try to start their lives afresh.

And who is this Jesus who loves and forgives us unconditionally?  Did you ever wonder what Jesus really looked like? Great painters give us different portraits. The Gospel writers Mark, Matthew, Luke, and John also give us different portraits, and various ways to bring forth Jesus. They faced a unique challenge. How portray someone completely human and yet completely divine? Moreover, they wrote to different audiences. Which Gospel is most authentic and best reflects the historical Jesus? They all do.

Mark was the earliest, shortly after scores of Christians perished during the persecution of Emperor Nero. Mark thought he ought to write who Jesus was, what he taught, and what he did. The Jesus in Mark is very human: the Messiah who suffers so that we can live forever. What happened to Jesus, Mark says, can happen to us too. Luke’s and Matthew’s portraits are similar.

In the Gospel of John, Jesus is noble, majestic, and divine. Remember how this Gospel opens: in the beginning was the Word. Yes, Jesus is completely human and completely divine. Jesus in John is the revealer of the mystery of God, the face of God among us.

Jesus, the God-man, is more than any one person can adequately describe. And so, each of us might ask: how do I reflect Jesus in my daily attitudes and behaviors? Rediscover a portrait of Jesus by prayerfully reading and listening to the Gospel. Let the portrait fire you up to become an ever-more-faithful disciple.

Working Together to Achieve a Greater Good

MLK Jr.'s "I have a Dream" Speech at Lincoln Memorial

During the weekend of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, I reflect upon King’s dream of "sitting down together at the table of brotherhood." And why not? We are all created in God's image.

St. Paul, in his letter to the Christian community at Corinth, notes the many gifts we have for the common good, for building up community. Yes, people working together can accomplish so much. An airplane involves teamwork. So does our Catholic community. And our legislators might benefit from St. Paul’s advice to seek the common good in their deliberations.

In the Gospel according to John, the first sign Jesus worked was in the town of Cana in the region of Galilee. There are different levels of meaning in this story. On one level, Jesus, his mother, and the disciples have simply been invited to a local wedding. Mary, in some ways, could be a wedding planner.

On another level, Mary appears as our mediator, interceding with her Son on our behalf.

On a third level, the water made wine symbolizes the breaking in of the kingdom of God—the symbolic wedding banquet at the end of time.

And on a fourth level, this first sign is one of seven in which the author points to Jesus as “the revelation” of God to us.

Yes, there can be many levels of meaning in scripture.

In light of the wedding at Cana, I would like to reflect briefly upon the sacrament of marriage. Often people are looking for the perfect this or that and forget that life is not perfect. I doubt there’s such a thing as the “perfect” marriage. Marriage is a work in progress.; we're a work in progress.

Marriages can be described in three stages: first the honeymoon; then disillusionment; and then the initial partnership can either break up or become true love. Their relationship can become a covenant where they live for each other, for God, and for others (e.g., their children). And that is true love.

True love can emerge only if we forgive, work out compromises, disagree without being disagreeable, compliment each other regularly, accentuate the good, clarify our essential core values, accept differences (our way isn’t the only way), and communicate regularly.

Don’t let children eclipse our primary vocation to love one another. Try to find balance, between work, family, and personal time.

When sorting through an argument, always distinguish between behavior and negative judgments about that behavior—for example, you’re late for the birthday party (behavior) versus you’re the most inconsiderate person I know (negative judgment). Name-calling will not bring us closer.

As with most things in life, we continually must work at good relationships—sticking together in tough times and  with confidence that times will get better and we’ll reemerge closer.

The wedding of Cana invites not only husbands and wives but all of us to reflect upon our relationships with one another. How can we cherish and support and re-energize that?
Above all, make room for God.

Merry Christmas

Rembrandt's Adoration of the Shepherds

Every year we relive the wonderful Christmas story. The Gospel according to John summed up this magnificent story in a single line: The Word became flesh.

That takes us back in our imaginations to the beginnings of the human family, in Genesis: when man and woman walked with God, had friendship with God and one another. But somehow man and woman lost that friendship, they fell from grace: they hid from God.

But in the midst of ancient Israel’s fidelities and infidelities to the covenant, God never reneged on his promises. And so the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.

The Word of God for the Christmas liturgies is like a prism through which is refracted the multiple facets of this great mystery of the Incarnation.

Isaiah proclaims glad tidings: the people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. Paul writes that the grace of God appeared in Jesus Christ who made us “heirs” to the promise of eternal life. In the Gospels according to Matthew and Luke, the Virgin Mary gave birth to her son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger.And the Gospel of John sums up the meaning of Christmas: the Word became flesh. That is God’s greatest gift to us.

Some gifts really transform the lives the people: gifts of teaching, of listening and supporting, of sharing time and experiences, of compassion and forgiveness and affirmation. This begins in our own families and workplaces and communities: enduring gifts that we can always give to one another.

The Word became flesh. That single line changed our destiny. Christmas means not simply God in Bethlehem centuries ago, but God within us. We carry within ourselves Emmanuel, God with us. How? By virtue of the life-giving waters of baptism.We gather to proclaim the awesome Word of God, to celebrate the presence of the living Christ.

That great truth of our faith, God within us, challenges us always to look for the good in ourselves, in other people and in all situations in life.

And who is the ultimate good-finder? God so loved us that he became one of us. Yes, Jesus had a unique relationship. He was God-man. A healer, a teacher, a peacemaker. Think of all the people in the Gospels that Jesus met: the blind, the leper, the lame, the sinner, the forgotten. And Jesus found goodness in all of them where many didn’t.

The promised Messiah has come, He is in our midst mystically in the word proclaimed and the sacrament celebrated, and He will come again in power and glory at the end-time. In the meantime, pray this Christmas season that the Lord will help those who doubt to find faith; those who despair to find hope; those who are weak to find courage; those who are sick to find health; those who are sad to find joy; and those who have died to find eternal life in God.