I have to recount an experience I had one Mass during the doxology.
The doxology is where the priest lifts up the Body and Blood of Christ, and the deacon in silence assists the priest to elevate the Sacred Chalice. The priest then intercedes for the people to the Father where He is glorified, "Through him, and with him, and in him, O God, almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, for ever and ever."
It must have been some time in November where on the early morning before I was to assist at Mass, I pricked my middle finger looking for, of all things, a safety pin in the bathroom. It hurt.
Then, a couple hours later, I accidentally pricked my thumb. That hurt, too.
These hurts, however, were very small. In both instances, I turned it into an act of penance and offered these up as a very small Cross to make reparation for my sins.
I didn't put band-aids on them because the bleeding stopped after I washed the wounds.
So at that particular Mass, I had gone up to Father to receive the Chalice for the doxology. The elements had just been consecrated.
I lifted up the Chalice in the usual manner and remained silent as is proper to the deacon, and while the priest was praying the "Through him, and with him, and in him" prayer -- the doxology -- I saw that my thumb was naturally joined with my middle finger.
Here, with my thumb and middle finger joined, I saw residue of my own blood in my fingernails.
It reminded me of my early morning pricks and touched my heart. I thought of how very insignificantly little my little pricks were that morning compared to the sufferings and wounds of Jesus, whose Precious Blood I was holding, and I also thought about the Four Iraqi Boy Martyrs who were martyred for the Faith recently. When asked to renounce their Faith, they said no and "We love Jesus."
For those of you who like music and poetry, you may
be familiar with a poem that was written in 1865 called “The Hand That Rocks
the Cradle is the Hand That Rules the World.”It is credited to William Ross Wallace. In that poem, Wallace repeats over and over in
the refrain: (quote) “The hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the
world.” (end quote)
The same person that gives birth to and raises a
child exerts an incredible authority and influence in that person’s life and
therefore the affairs of the world.Mothers
and even those with motherly roles carry a certain moral authority that no
other person can really ever exercise.
We put pictures and images of our mothers around our
houses or in our wallets or on Facebook or other social media.We are proud of our mothers and we honor –
not worship – mothers.
Let us take a second example also from human wisdom,
but this time let us take the image of human courtship.We as a society look down on men who simply
impregnate a woman and then leave her and abandon her without taking
responsibility.The idea of using another
person’s body and then discarding it does not sit well for reasonable people
and does not respect the dignity of the woman.
I use these two examples about mothers and women to
make this one simple point: Authentic following of Christ means having a
profound devotion to and love for the Mother of Christ.
For the past 2,000 years of Christianity, the Mother
of Jesus has always – ALWAYS – been honored as an essential component of what it means to be Christian.The first Christians honored her, and so we
too should honor her.
As we enter the final and Fourth Week of Advent,
dear brothers and sisters, today’s Gospel reminds how to prepare for the birth
of Jesus by looking at the hand that rocks cradle of Jesus, savior of the world.The past few weeks of spiritual preparation
for Christmas we looked at the figures like John the Baptist and
Elizabeth.Today, we focus on Mary.
There are three lines for the Gospel to help us
develop a true devotion to the Mother of Jesus.The Gospel today focuses on what is called the Annunciation from Luke
Chapter One.Here, we see the beginnings
of what we call the “Hail Mary” or the Angelic Salutation Prayer: “Hail, full
of grace.The Lord is with you.”The Second Vatican Council said here that
Mary “was enriched by God with gifts appropriate to such a role” (LG 56).In order for Mary to give her free assent of
her faith to the announcement of her vocation, it was necessary that she be
wholly carried by God’s grace (Cf. Catechism
490).The Bible shows that Mary is full
of God’s grace.(Ke-chari-tomene in the Greek. And Gratia Plena in Latin.“Llena
eres de gratia” in Spanish.Or “napupuno
ka ng grasya” in Tagalog. Actually, the Greek Ke-chari-tomene shows something unique by “having been graced”
already.)This is the first point: Mary
is full of grace or she is one who is “having been graced”.
The second is when Mary asks how she would conceive a
baby in her womb and the angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.”During the Nicene Creed, we publicly profess
to the world, “and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and
became man”.The liturgy calls for us to
bow during this line honor the Incarnation of Jesus in Mary’s womb.
And that leads to the third and last line for our
reflection of the Annunciation.Having
been graced already, ke-chari-tomene,
having been preserved from sin, she gives her “yes” to God.“Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.May it be done to me according to your
world”.All the world hinged on this
moment.Mary’s “yes” – her consent – is
the dawn, the beginning, of salvation history.Mary is like the gentle dawn in the morning, not the morning sun itself
(that’s Jesus), but she is the first rays of the sun on a silent morning.Meditate on this the next time you watch a
sunrise.When she gives her “yes”, she
is the New Eve.The first Eve, like the
first Adam, disobeyed God.The first
Adam and Eve, our first parents, gave their “no” to God.But the Second Adam, Jesus, and the Second
Eve, Mary, would reverse the first and original sin through their loving and
free “yes”, a “yes” that is “full of grace”.(Ke-chari-tomene!)
And for Mary to give her most complete and free and
perfect consent, she is “full of grace”.And when one is “full of grace” there is no ounce of sin in her “yes”.It is a perfect “yes” that represents you and
me and all humanity.
I know someone who, when he proposed to his now-wife
to marry him, wanted the best “yes” from her—a “yes” unstained by any ulterior
motives – the most perfect “yes” that a newly engaged woman can give.
So having been herself immaculately conceived by God,
and redeemed from the first moment of her conception, Mary gives what is called
in the “obedience of faith” that we see in the Second Reading from Paul’s
Letter to the Romans.Faith is an act of
loving obedience where one’s will is united to the will of the Father.
Mary’s “yes” in Latin is called her “Fiat”.And at that moment Mary gives her “yes”, her
consent to GodAccording to the
tradition, it is at this moment that she becomes pregnant with Jesus.God is incarnate in the womb of the NEW Ark
of the Covenant.According to the
Fathers of the Church, the new ark is Mary.
In the first reading, we see the beginnings of the
Old Ark of the Covenant.Before the
Temple was built in Jerusalem, King David wanted to build a resting place for
the Covenant.And just as the Old Ark carried
the presence of God, Mary now is the new ark that carries the new and
everlasting covenant in her womb.
And in a few moments, when we receive the Holy
Eucharist, which is the True and Real Presence of Jesus, we too will carry
Jesus within us, in the womb of our souls.Mary, the Church, you and me, are all images and an icon of the ark to
carry God within us.
Now there are some practical ways to develop a true
devotion to Mary. The first is liturgical.The liturgy is the official prayer of the Church.Whenever there is a Holy Day of Obligation
set for the Mother of Jesus, keep in mind that these holy days carry the same
weight as a Sunday Mass, and there are a few of these throughout the year on a
non-Sunday (like the Assumption or Immaculate Conception or Mother of God on
Jan. 1).Let’s celebrate these days as a
community and not neglect these.
The second is the holy rosary.(Hold up rosary.)The Rosary is a Bible-based prayer.The rosary is a Bible-based prayer.The rosary takes the scenes from Jesus’s life
and turns it into prayer.The Hail Mary,
the words of which are taken from the Bible, as we saw in today’s Gospel, are
used, “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you.”
The great saints of the Church are those that had a
strong loving devotion to the Mother of Jesus.Pope St. John Paul the Great devoted his entire papacy to her.Also, look at John the Beloved Disciple, the
Apostle loved the most by Jesus … is the one that took care of his mother.(pause)Let us be like the Beloved Disciple whom Jesus loved most.
The third devotion is called devotion to the
Immaculate Heart of Mary.The Heart of
Mary is also in the Bible.It is a heart
that was pierced by a sword.Mary
pondered these things in her Heart.One
way to live the Bible is to pray the rosary which is based on the Bible.This can be done, for example, on the drive
to work in the car using your fingers, or throughout the day.This can also be done by a practice called
the “First Five Saturdays.”This is
where one attends Mass, goes to Confession, and meditates on the mysteries of
the rosary for five straight Saturdays.I will personally myself show you how to pray the rosary if you need
help praying this.Give it a try if you
haven’t done this yet.It will work
wonders in your life!
And the final way is called consecration to Jesus
through Mary.All true devotion to Mary
leads to Jesus.
As we come to the close of our preparations for the
birth of Jesus, let us take time to look not at the cradle yet, but that hand
that cradled Jesus ever-so lovingly in her arms.
Mary, I am all yours, my queen and my mother, and
all that I have is yours.Lead us and
the whole world to your Baby Son.We,
too, like you, give our “yes” to God.O
God, may your will be done to us, according to your word.
My first-born son served Benediction & Holy Mass for the first time (and with me as the assisting deacon) on Wednesday, December 17, 2014, at St. Catherine's parish in Vallejo, California.
This was part of my family being one of the sponsors of the nine-day novena of 7pm Masses in preparation for the birth of Our Infant King.*
As a father, I cannot help but glow with pride for my son-- heck, any parent would. My wife was happy, too, and was critically part of the preparation process.
I think only now do I get a sense of what my parents must have felt when they saw me as an altar server in my youth.
* * *
That night, my thoughts and emotions varied from rehearsal to the recessional hymn:
During the Benediction, I was so excited having my son with me that my voice cracked when I chanted/intoned the prayers for Benediction. My altar boy son was kneeling on my left, and I kind of saw his role as one of gaining his first experience serving with me as I led Benediction.
At times, I had to discreetly motion him to move or whisper to him to stay kneeling at certain parts. John Paul didn't incense or ring the bell for his first time as an altar boy for Benediction but rather to simply be a presence before the Real Presence.
Before and after Mass, people made remarks of how cute he was in the vestments and were taking pictures. I knew that, in a certain sense, he was representing young kids his age who might one day be interested in being altar servers.
I myself was delighted and am grateful to Auntie Agnes Lobo, wife of Deacon Pete Lobo, for making arrangements to borrow the size eight cassock and surplice from the neighboring St. Vincent's parish.
* * *
During Mass, he and I interacted more during the Liturgy of the Eucharist.
When Father Jess Soriano handed my son the somewhat-large and fragile flagellum (which contained unconsecrated wine) during the Offertory, I had an intense, nail-biting and wide-eye moment in the few seconds before John Paul walked over and handed the the flagellum to me where I was stationed by the altar.
From the people as gifts, to the hands of the priest, to the altar server, to the deacon for preparation, and then to the priest, and eventually consecrated and offered to God the Father through Christ in the Spirit, and then back to the people to feed their souls, the unconsecrated wine that is the fruit of the earth and work of human hands -- through the words and actions of the priest at consecration -- becomes the adorable Sacrament of Love which is the real and true Blood of Jesus Christ. If we do not eat His flesh or drink His blood, then we have no life in Him.
So um, yes, this was the MOST intense three-seconds of the Mass for me!
I was relieved that he didn't drop the delicate container. There is a story of St. Dominic Savio who, one day while helping as an altar boy during Mass, tripped over his cassock and dropped the vessels used for Mass. I think this was one part of Dominic Savio that I didn't want to emulate.
Later, when the other two altar servers were preoccupied with putting other vessels away, John Paul helped me put away the water cruet after the purification of the vessels. Perhaps my remembering both the wine and water roles that John Paul played is most significant, since the deacon's ordinary role is to administer the Chalice of the Lord's Precious Blood.
* * *
Thank you, God, for this gift. It confirms my life's choices as an altar boy myself from 1987-1997 (ages 12-22) and more importantly as a practicing Catholic since my pre-teen years. It validates my family's life choices hitherto.
I have to take a step back from this beautiful day and all that happened. I have to wonder out loud if the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council realized that, when they restored the permanent diaconate and opened it to married men, they would see the fruit of a father-son transformation into servants.
A few months ago, when John Paul told us that he wanted to be an altar boy during dinner, he remarked, "We will serve together as father and son." So on that rainy evening, we were servants. We were servants at the source and summit of the Christan life, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, a re-presentation of Calvary, Calvary made present today and throughout time until the end of time in a un-bloody manner.
Without the Eucharist, the Church simply would not exist and Jesus' death on the Cross and Resurrection would be forgotten by the world.
So that night, united to the First Mass which was the Last Supper of the Lord, my first-born son John Paul and and I were together "servant-servant of the High Servant" who Himself came to serve and not to be served.
[PHOTOS HERE]
_________________________
*According to the interim parochial administrator, Fr. Vincent, St.
Catherine's currently is the only parish in the diocese that does not
have altar servers. The issue of using youth altar servers has formally
been on the agenda for consideration over the past year but has been
tabled with all the transitions at the parish taking place. So as a
parent, I was happy to see the parish use servers for the nine-day Misa
de Aguinaldo.
"The Four Last Things" (Death, Judgment, Heaven, Hell)
Homily #14
Version #1: 10am Mass
This video recording has poor audio quality and sounds muffled. The audio version above sounds better.
Version #2: 12pm Mass
St. Basil the Great Roman Catholic Church, Vallejo
* * *
HOMILY
Living with the End in
Mind: Christ the King & the 4 Last Things
Deacon
Dennis Purificacion
Solemnity
of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe
November
23, 2014
Two weeks ago, we celebrated Veteran’s Day and this
Thursday we’ll celebrate Thanksgiving Day.I know that many of you here at Mass have served in the military.You may also have family members and friends
that have served.I’d like to take a
brief moment to start my homily by asking you to please stand.We want to say thank you for your sacrifices
as guardians of freedom and justice in the world.(We know that your service has not been
easy.)
In the military, there is one common purpose that
matters: the mission.The mission is the
central objective of what keeps the military focused and is all that matters.
Moving from the military to the business world, one
business model adopted can be taken from leadership speaker Stephen Covey from
his nationally best-selling book Seven
Habits of Highly Effective People.One of those habits is to begin with the end in mind.When starting a project, one begins with the
end in mind.
So let us use the idea of a military “mission” or
the business world’s “beginning with the end in mind,” and let us reflect on our
end or our mission in the Church.How do
we begin with the end in mind?
Well, today, we celebrate the end of the current church
liturgical calendar 2014.(Next week, we
begin a new church liturgical calendar 2015 with Advent.)
Today, the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King
of the Universe, the Church keeps our end in mind.
This is the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.At the First Coming of Jesus Christ, which we
celebrate next week with Advent, we celebrate Jesus’s first coming into the
world as a cute little baby, PERSECUTED and in POVERTY.
But at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ at the end
of the world, he’s not going to return as a little helpless baby in obscurity,
in total weakness, where nobody knows about it.
Rather, he is going to return in POWER and GLORY,
and all of the world will know
about it.
As we see in the Word of God today, it is written in
the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, “As for you my sheep, says the Lord God, I
will judge between one sheep and another, between rams and goats.”The First Reading prepares us for the Gospel
where the Son of Man comes in GLORY, with all the angels with him, he will sit
upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before
him.This is also called the General
Judgment (Judgment Day).
Here, we see what are called the 4 Last Things:
Death, Judgment, Heaven, Hell.
At the moment of DEATH, where the soul is separated
from the body, we experience what is called a Particular Judgment.Particular Judgment is different from General
Judgment.At Particular Judgment, each
soul enters into one of three states: heaven, purgatory, or hell.
Purgatory is a temporary state of the soul where it
is, in the words of St. Paul, purified like a burning fire.The souls there are both joyful and sad (in a
manner of speaking).Joyful because any
soul that goes to purgatory cannot go to hell anymore and is destined for
heaven, but sad in a sense in that they are not there yet.They still need to be purified, because
nothing unclean can enter heaven.At the
Second Coming of Christ, purgatory will end and souls there are resurrected to
eternal life.
But they desperately need and ask for our prayers
now in this life.This is why November
is the month to pray for departed souls of our family and friends.Having Mass
offered for the repose of their souls is the BEST way souls in purgatory
benefit from the prayers of those of us who are still living.
Souls that are in heaven await the resurrection of
their bodies.Souls that we know are
currently in heaven are those canonized by the Church, while those souls that
are in the state of eternal separation from God are part of the society of the
damned where they, too, await the resurrection not unto eternal life but unto
eternal death, as we see in the Gospel today.Their bodies will not be gloried like the righteous.
There is a mistaken notion even in the Church –
among church members (not the teaching of the Church) – that somehow everyone
that dies automatically goes to heaven.And this is not true.Unfortunately, not everyone goes to heaven.And we must pray and make sacrifices for the
conversion of those, here on earth, who do not want to be with God in heaven.
The image of Jesus sitting on the throne returning
in glory can be seen in church art, such as on the wall of the church at St.
Basil’s here in Vallejo.Next time you
go there, look at the picture of Christ.He doesn’t have a happy look on his face.He is not a happy camper.He is seated on a throne next to two angels,
St. Michael the Archangel and St. Uriel the Archangel, with a very strict
looking face.These images should remind
us of keeping the end in mind, that we have been entrusted with a mission by
Jesus Christ to share the message of salvation with everyone we can.Compare this image with the Sacred Heart of
Jesus or the Divine Mercy image of Jesus where his face is that of a loving
Savior.But in the Second Coming of
Christ image, the image conveys that He is returning in glory not
as a merciful
savior but as the JUST JUDGE.
That is why conversion is NOW.That is why mercy is NOW!The Kingdom of God is at hand.
When we die, it will be too late to convert, to tell
Jesus we are sorry, and to change our ways!At the moment of our death, that’s it!We already defined ourselves for all eternity.“Penance, penance, penance!”
If you’ve been away from God, and you’re listing to
this homily, make that moment right now.Repent!And believe in the
Gospel.
Reflect on this when we say the Creed today.Two other great images of the Second Coming
of Christ can be seen at the Cathedral of Christ the Light in Oakland which
shows a very ancient image of Jesus returning in glory.At the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception
in Washington, D.C., Christ returns as the Judge of the Living and the
Dead.And his kingdom will have no end.All the injustices of the world will be
rectified on that day…Judgment Day.
And so, as we begin Advent next week, we begin with the
end in mind.Our mission is to spread
the name of the Good Shepherd.The Lord
is my Shepherd; there is no other Shepherd
I shall want.He is the only Savior of the world…no other world religious
figure can bring people to heaven.Jesus
is the King of the Universe, Our Savior, and of our lives.
[We have present here a group of folks who are on a
journey in their life of Faith.They are
part of the Church’s official process to receive the Sacraments called the Rite
of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA).Over the next year, they will be dismissed after the Liturgy of the
Word.
Our mission as Catholics is to invite others into
our Catholic family to receive the fullness, the richness, the beauty and joy
of the Catholic Faith.Also, if you know
people who’ve been away from the Church – for whatever reason – this is a good
time to invite them back to the Church which is their home, and to let them
know that something is missing when they are not here at Mass.]
Together with Mary, the Mother of Mercy and the
Mother of Our Savior, the first and perfect disciple of Jesus Christ, let us
begin with the end in mind, so that one day, we will hear those blessed words
from our Savior, Shepherd, and Judge: “Come, you who are blessed by my
Father.Inherit the kingdom prepared for
you from the foundation of the world.”Whatever
we did to the least of the Lord’s brothers and sisters, we did to Jesus.And let us fervently pray that we, too, will
inherit eternal life.And dwell in the
house of the Lord all the days of our lives.Amen!
______________
Purificacion, Dennis. "Homily #14: Living with the End in Mind: Christ the King and the Four Last Things" blogged on www.marysdeacon.blogspot.com on November 23, 2014 (Vallejo, CA: St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church, November 23, 2014).
My wife and I prayed Lauds (Liturgy of the Hours) together this morning.
When I started the Invitatory Psalm, my heart was not into the prayer. My will was but not so much my affective side.
I then stopped in the middle and thought about how two lovers in love with each other do not talk this way with each other the way I was praying. I also thought about how I first began to practice my faith and how I did not talk to God this way.
So I put my heart into the prayer.
And then for the hymn one of my favorite hymns was listed, "The Church's One Foundation." I believe this was composed by an Anglican. I used these lines in my wedding vows to my wife many years ago.
The lines which affected me most this morning were as follows:
Though with a scornful wonder / Men see her sore oppressed / By schisms rent asunder / By heresies distressed /
Yet saints their watch are keeping / Their cry goes up, "How Long?" / And soon the night of weeping / Shall be the morn of song.
It is the Feast of the Dedication of St. John Lateran today. Before St. Peter's Basilica, this was the Pope's cathedral.
After Lauds, I played dominoes with my kids. It was fun.
At the 10am Mass on September 28, 2014, I attempted to chant the Gospel. The main purpose was to "test run" how it would go with the Auxiliary Bishop present later at the 12pm Mass.
Boy, I'm sure glad that I did it at the 10am instead of at the 12pm!
With the way I was trained, it was mono-tone with a drop in note at the very end of a significant paragraph. I've done it before twice without being nervous, but this time it was evident that I was nervous. And I'm not sure why.
Part of me thinks that the people are not used to it. Another part of me thinks that it was because it was a packed church that was standing room with a seating capacity of 750+ parishioners or so. Perhaps it was simply the fact that it was a long Gospel, and I do better with shorter Gospels. In any event, it was a lesson in humility.
The first time I saw it done was by an African-American deacon at the Vatican on TV. That left an impression on me, and at the time I was a teenager.
I also want to see if I can chant or intone other parts of the liturgy proper to the deacon like at a Good Friday service or the Easter Vigil.
The first time I did it, which you can see HERE, I was fine. The second time, which I did in the Byzantine rite when I visited Father Anthony's parish (as seen HERE), I was for the most part fine, too.
I had a mixed reaction from the parishioners. Some told me that I was nervous while others told me to continue. Well, I am new after all. It's truly a learning process.
A very WARM WELCOME to you, esp. if you love the Giants and/or are a 49er Faithful!!
For me, it all started with Darryl Strawberry, Joe Montana, Jerry Rice and Head Coach Bill Walsh in the 80s. And the teams are STILL at it!!
Strawberry is now an ordained Protestant minister, and Montana is a parishioner at our Bay Area Catholic parishes.
And here's special shout out to my Dad who was the first 49er Faithful and to my Papa Hardie for helping me with some of my sports facts. Thanks for helping my homily go from sports to God. I think about 1,500+ people heard this over a total of 3 Masses.
BTW, I was semi-joking about the Raiders in my sermon, and I'm sure things will look up soon, so keep your heads up, Raiders fans and hang tough!
Let's go Giants!!!
CLICK HERE FOR DEACON DENNIS'S SHORT HOMILY/SERMON:
Version #3 (12pm Mass)
Legendary SF 49er Quarterback Joe Montana Wearing SF Giants Outfit
Version #2 (8am Mass)
(This homily was a lot slower than the 12pm homily.)
Version #1 (Sat. 5pm Mass)
* * *
HOMILY #13: Moral Relativism v. the Greatest Commandment
(Alternative Title: SF Giants & the Joy of the Moral Life)
30th Sunday in Ordinary Time
October 25, 2014 @ 5pm Mass
October 26, 2014 @ 8am & 12pm Masses
San Francisco Bay Area sports teams are some of the finest
teams in the country.Two teams with
great records right now are the Giants and the Niners.(Sorry, Raiders fans, maybe next homily
cycle!)[wink]
I recently taught some kids how to play baseball.I noticed that those who really had fun
were those who understood some basic rules of the game.They needed to know how to do a base
hit.They learned how to do a sacrifice
hit to bring a team member on 3rd base to home plate.The
rules did not exist to restrain their
freedom-- but to make players free
[emphasize].
Without these basic rules, there would be chaos.What if 49er quarterback Colin Kaepernick or
Joe Montana all of sudden started throwing the football to the referees instead
of to the wide receiver or what if Pablo Sandoval started throwing the ball to
the pitcher?What if these athletes
started screaming, “What does it matter?!It’s all the same.//Seven yards versus 1 yard…One base or two
bases…It’s all relative. Besides it’s only one game.The coach will understand.”
No, of course not, that is silly.No real sports fan would say that this type
of relativism works in a game; otherwise, it wouldn’t be real football or
baseball.
I’ve exaggerated this real life example to make one
simple point: If we don’t like being a relativist in sports or in other areas
of our lives; then, all the more we should not be moral relativists in keeping
God’s Commandments.In today’s
Gospel, we hear Jesus telling us the greatest Commandment in the law, which is
to love God with all our whole heart, soul, and mind, and our neighbor as
ourselves.Our Lord Jesus Christ in John
14 said to us, “If you love me, you will keep my Commandments.”Thus, it is in our keeping
His Commandments that we practically show our love for God.
For some reason, in society, when
people talk about the moral law and the Commandments, some like the idea of
moral relativism.But we must be on
guard against moral relativism, which will prevent us from loving God and keeping
His Commandments.
Moral relativism says that morality
just comes from culture or whatever we make of it.Here, human beings decide what is right or
wrong.We say, “It doesn’t matter.All human actions are equal.Or I can pick and choose which commandments
or Church teachings fit me.It’s
relative.”
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI said that
relativism
is like letting oneself be "tossed here and there, carried about by every
wind of doctrine.”
He said that we, however, have a
different goal: the Son of God, the true
God and true man. He is the measure of true humanism. … we must guide the flock
of Christ to this faith. And it is this faith - only faith - that creates unity
and is fulfilled in love.
The
opposite of moral relativism is seen in today’s Gospel.The love of God and neighbor is the opposite
of the “love of one’s ego”.Jesus shows that
God’s law makes us happy in this life and in the life to come.
Jesus
summarizes the law as love of God & love of neighbor.How can we practically keep God’s
Commandments, which are not intended to restrict our freedom, but to make us
truly free, for freedom isn’t doing whatever we want to do whenever we
want to do it, but true freedom is “being able to choose and do the good we’re
supposed to do.”
Here are
some concrete ways we can show God we love Him and thus, keep the first and greatest
of all the commandments mentioned in today’s Gospel. Commandments One, Two and Three have to do
with loving God specifically, and Commandments Four through Ten have to do with
loving our neighbor.I will just focus
on these three Commandments to love God today.
The First
Commandment is this:I am the Lord your
God.You shall not have other gods
besides me.One way to keep this is through
prayer, faith, and by putting God first in every area of our lives.Do we give God the first moments of our day
in prayer when we wake up in the morning?Do we make time for spiritual reading each day to nurture our personal
relationship with God?
The Second
Commandment: You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.Why is it that most of the time God’s holy
name is mentioned in public or in Hollywood movies it is used as a cuss word? We
can strive to bless His Most Holy Name more.And if we ever hear God’s Name being used in vain, we ourselves can add
an aspiration, or make it into a prayer, such as “Jesus Christ, have mercy!” or
“Blessed be God.”We can offer prayers
of love and adoration of the Most Holy Name of Jesus in reparation for all the
times we hear God’s name being used in vain, especially in casual conversation.Going to Adoration, too.
The Third
Commandment: Remember to keep holy the Sabbath day.We can joyfully follow the moral law of love
of God when we make it a priority to go to Sunday Mass, especially as a family,
and to avoid unnecessary work on that day, so that we can truly make time to
reflect on God’s goodness to us and thank Him for all of His blessings.
In the
Commandments, God does not command the impossible.On the contrary, we are commanded to
love.The Ten Commandments are not the "Ten Suggestions".They show us very specific and concrete
ways to love God and each other.Just
as parents give their children rules to follow to help guide and protect them
from harm, Our Heavenly Father gives us the Commandments to follow to help
guide us and protect us from harm, so that we will be happy with Him in this
life and in the next.The Commandments
will make us happy, even if they are sometimes difficult to live—(That is why
He gave us the 7 Sacraments, especially the Holy Eucharist, and
Reconciliation, to help us keep the 10 Commandments).Like the rules of sports and life, God’s
commands make us happy and truly free.If
we wish to love God and keep His Commandments; then, let us, entrust ourselves
to Our Blessed Mama Mary, who will help lead us to her Son.Like the Psalmist, we, too, will say, “I love
you, Lord my strength.”
May the
Holy Eucharist and the Sacrament of Reconciliation help us to love God and neighbor and fight the moral relativism
of our society!And whether or not we
are Giants or Niners fans, let us remember that just as a 49er fan is called a
49er Faithful, let us Christians be all the more not just 49er Faithful but “Christian
Faithful” in love with God’s commandments.
Let us
live the words of Our Lord Jesus Christ: “You shall love the Lord your God with
all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind and with all your
strength.And you shall love your
neighbor as yourself.”
__________
APA citation of this site:
Purificacion, Dennis. "Homily #13: SF Giants & the Joy of the Moral Life (Moral Relativism v. the Greatest Commandment)," blogged at www.MarysDeacon.blogspot.com on October 27, 2014 (Vallejo, CA: St. Catherine's Catholic Church, October 25-26, 2014).
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