Trinity: Christians Trying to Fathom God

Trinity: Christians Trying to Fathom God

Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity -- May 30, 2010

Proverbs 8:22-31 II Corinthian 13:11-13 Matthew 28:16-20

Second reading

Brothers and sisters, rejoice. Mend your ways, encourage one another, agree with one another, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the holy ones greet you. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you.

The word of the Lord Thanks be to God
Alleluia, alleluia.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew

Glory to you, Lord.

The eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had ordered them. When they all saw Him, they worshiped Him, even though some of them doubted. Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ
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Introduction Liturgical cycles

The Nation’s liturgical cycle begins tomorrow, May 31, with Memorial Day summoning us to remember our war dead, and initiating the season of summer with picnics in parks. The cycle peaks with the Fourth of July celebrating our freedom. It wanes with Labor Day and the falling leaves of autumn. The cycle ends with Thanksgiving Day as “over the river and through the woods to grandmother’s house we go” to give thanks for family and food. The Church’s liturgical cycle began with the Father sending the Son in the Advent-Christmas season. It continued with the Son returning to the Father in the Easter-Ascension season. The cycle peaked last Sunday with the feast of Pentecost which has the Father and the Son sending us the Holy Spirit. So at the end of her cycle the Church positions a feast dedicated to the mystery of the Blessed Trinity.

A war over the Blessed Trinity!

In the eleventh century, theologians fought a theological war over the mystery of the Blessed Trinity. The fierce dispute was about whether the Holy Spirit proceeds equally immediately from the Father and the Son (according to the Western Church), or whether the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son (according to the Eastern Church). Imagine, staying awake all night over something like that! In 1014 the Western Church officially declared that the Holy Spirit proceeds equally immediately from the Father and the Son, and not from the Father through the Son. That declaration was the straw which broke the camel’s back. In 1054 the Western Church (Rome) officially broke away from the Eastern Church. To this very day the two are not in communion with each other. Imagine, going to war over the Blessed Trinity--that family of Father, Son and Holy Spirit who are always in loving communion with each other, and who invite us to join their love circle.

A tug of war

There’s always a tug of war between mystery and theology. Mystery says God cannot be fathomed. On the other hand, theology says, “That might be true, but I’m going to try anyway.” And so there’s Islamic theology: that’s Muslims trying to fathom God. And there’s Jewish theology: that’s Jews trying to fathom God. And there’s Christian theology: that’s Christians trying to fathom God. St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) is the Church’s most renowned and prolific theologian who wrote volume after volume about the unfathomable God. At the end of the day, however, he felt the tug of war between God’s mystery on the one hand and his attempt to fathom it on the other. As he was offering Mass on the feast of St. Nicholas, December 6, 1273, a profound mystical experience came over him, and he declared to his long-time secretary that he could write no more. “All that I have written,” he said, "seems like straw to me." The renowned and prolific Swiss theologian Karl Barth (1886-1968) had for his bottom-line Deus totaliter aliter: God is totally other: He is totally other than what we think, say, or write about Him. Despite his bottom line, Barth proceeded to write volume after volume about the ineffable God. But at the sunset of his life, he too made fun of his theological pretentiousness and said, "The angels are laughing at old Karl Barth.”

Having God down pat

Sometimes in the tug of war between mystery and theology, God’s mystery happily wins over theology, as it did with unpretentious Aquinas and Barth. Sometimes, however, it’s man’s pretentious theology that wins over God’s mystery and destroys it. Whenever we have God down pat, whenever we have Him neatly figured out, then we have destroyed the mystery of Him who “lives in unapproachable light.” (I Tim 6:16) Then, in fact, we have tamed our God, have cut Him down to size and have Him doing our bidding. Such a God we cherish as an obedient child.
Meister Eckhart (1260-1328), a thirteenth-fourteenth century philosopher, theologian and mystic, didn’t have God down pat; mystics never do. A friend writes: “Eckhart had an insight which most Catholics and worshippers of all types fail to grasp. The insight was that God is MYSTERY. When it comes to God we simply do not know. That stance, however, is beyond the ken of most people. It thwarts their desire for certainty. It pains them not to be certain about and cozily comfortable with an easy list of the things to believe. Anybody who insistently calls attention to God’s mystery will be hated by those who have God down pat. You know what they did to Meister Eckhart[1].”

At the end of the day, Eckhart was a mystic, and mystics specialize in not having God down pat. At the end of the day, it was Eckhart, not God, who was the obedient child.

A Muslim has God down pat

Osama bin Laden, the world’s most wanted man, is an ardent Islamic believer. With great fervor he professes that “There is no God but Allah, and Mohammed is his prophet.” Anyone who doesn’t profess that is an infidel. That fervent religious spirit inspired in great measure the horrific event of 9/11 in which two 747s brought down two towers and murdered three thousand innocent infidels in Lower Manhattan. Bin Laden has his God down pat and has destroyed His mystery. He has tamed his God, has cut Him down to size and has Him doing his bidding. Such a God bin Laden cherishes as an obedient child.

A Reverend has God down pat

In October of 1998, near Laramie, Wyoming, two skinheads tortured and murdered Matt Shepard, a 21-year-old student at the University of Wyoming and a gay man. At his funeral the Rev. Phelps, inflamed with homophobic hate, picketed Shepard’s funeral with a sign which read: “God hates fags and buries them in hell—Romans 9:13.” Phelps has his God down pat and has destroyed His mystery. He has tamed his God, has cut Him down to size and has Him doing his bidding. Such a God he cherishes as an obedient child.

We have God down pat

Less blatantly than bin Laden or Phelps, we also have our God down pat. When we know that God prefers Christians over Jews or Muslims, then we’ve got God down pat and have destroyed His mystery. When puritanical moralists know that sexual purity is God’s greatest moral value even before justice and peace, or when they know that God concocts AIDS to punish immoral sinners, then they’ve got God down pat, and have destroyed His mystery. When we are so privy to God as to know that He countenances no other birth control method than that of abstinence, then we’ve got God down pat, and have destroyed His mystery. Again, when we are so privy to God as to know His sexual preferences (i.e., He prefers male priests over female priests, or celibate priests over married priest), then we’ve got God down pat, and have destroyed His mystery. We have tamed our God, have cut Him down to size and have Him doing our bidding. Such a God we cherish as an obedient child.

A Jewish priest who didn’t love

In his first letter John writes, “Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love.” (I Jn 4:8)

Jesus told us a parable about a Jewish priest and Levite who did not love, and therefore didn’t know God. Both were on the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. Both had a doctorate in theology from the University of Jerusalem, and the priest was going to Jericho to deliver an important theological paper there. Suddenly they came upon a poor man waylaid by robbers and left half-dead. With a ton of theology in their head but not an ounce of love and compassion in their heart, they glanced at the poor man lying there and passed him by. (Lk 10:30-32) Despite their doctorate in theology, they didn’t know God, for John writes, “Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love.” (I Jn 4:8)

A Jewish CEO who loved

Conversely John writes, “Whoever loves is a child of God and knows God.” (I Jn 4:7) Jewish CEO Aaron Fuerenstein’s fabric mill in Methuen, Mass burned down a few days before Christmas of 1995. He didn’t take the insurance money and run. Instead, he held on to all his 2000 employees (the majority of them Christians), gave them all a Christmas bonus and kept paying their health insurance and weekly salaries until the mill was rebuilt. This modern-day saint, who’s still in the Old Testament, quotes his prophet Micah who calls him "to act justly, with loving kindness, and to walk humbly with thy God." (Mica 6:8) Though Jewish Fuerenstein doesn’t know the first thing about “the Holy Spirit who proceeds equally immediately from the Father and the Son,” he does, indeed, know God, for John writes, “Whoever loves is a child of God and knows God.” (I Jn 4:7)

Conclusion Trinity – a good attempt

At the end of the day, Trinity (Christians trying to fathom God) is a good attempt. John says, “God is love.” (I Jn 4:8) But loving requires more than one person. So there’s a plurality of persons in God. God is a family of Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and all of them are busy loving one another, and they invite us to join their family of love.

Again, Trinity (Christians trying to fathom God) is a good attempt. It has rich overtones. It speaks of God as a loving Father. That lays an axe to bin Laden’s God who hates infidels, and to Rev. Phelps’ God who “hates fags.” Trinity also speaks of God as a Son born of the Father from all eternity, and born also in time of Mother Mary in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king. Trinity speaks of a Son who in the fullness of time was born into the human condition and became Emmanuel – God-with-us. That’s a far cry from the gods of ancient Greece and Rome who were always up in their high heavens, and who not only were not with us but often were against us. Trinity also speaks of God as an abiding Holy Spirit who dwells within us. That’s the good news that on the arduous journey of life with its many twists and turns we are not alone, but are always more than our lonely selves.

[1] Meister Eckhart was tried as a heretic in 1327. Before the verdict was handed down Eckhart disappeared

The Ascension - A Farewell Turned Into Joy

The Ascension – a Farewell Turned Into Joy

Ascension - May 16, 2010
Acts 1:1-11 Eph 1:17-23 Luke 24:50-53

First reading from Acts

Dear Theophilus in my first letter I told you about Jesus’ life and teaching, and about how He returned to heaven after giving His chosen Apostles further instructions from the Holy Spirit. During the 40 days after His crucifixion He appeared to the Apostles from time to time in human form and proved to them in many ways that it was actually He Himself they were seeing. And on these occasions He talked to them about the Kingdom of God. In one of these meetings He told them not to leave Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit came upon them in fulfillment of the Father’s promise -- a matter He had previously discussed with them.

He reminded them, “John baptized you with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit in just a few days.” And another time when He appeared to them, they asked, “Lord, are you going to free Israel [from Rome] now and restore us as a free nation? ”He replied, “The Father sets those dates, and they are not for you to know. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be witnesses of my death and resurrection in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

When He had said this, as they were looking on, He was lifted up, and a cloud took Him from their sight. As the Apostles were looking intently at the sky, suddenly two men dressed in white garments appeared and asked them, "Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky? Jesus has gone up into heaven, and some day, just as He went, He will return!”"

The word of the Lord
Thanks be to God

Alleluia, alleluia.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke
Glory to you, Lord.

Jesus said to His disciples: “Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And behold I am sending the promise of my Father upon you; so stay there in this city until you are armed with power from on above.”

Then he led them out as far as Bethany, raised his hands, and blessed them with uplifted hands. After blessing them, He was taken up into heaven. And His disciples returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and spent all their time in the Temple giving thanks to God.

The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ

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Introduction
Ascension Thursday on a Sunday

Acts says that “For 40 days after His death Jesus showed Himself to the Apostles many times.”(Acts 1:3) 40 days after Easter Sunday gives us a Thursday for the Ascension. However, the feast (`a holyday of obligation’) in some places has been moved to a Sunday for the convenience of the faithful.

The farewells of life

Ascension is the feast of Jesus’ farewell to His Apostles as He ascends into heaven. Life is filled with farewells. We say farewell to prized friendships which reluctantly end, simply because people must go their separate ways. We say farewell to friendships which turn bitter on us and can’t be repaired. We say farewell to a pet dog who thought we were God, but whom we had put down because we loved him so much. Topping the list of all life’s farewells is the death of a loved one. That’s the supreme and ultimate farewell in which all our other farewells mystically participate. Orthodox theologian Nicholas Baerdeyev wrote that, “All farewells have the taste of death about them.”

The Ascension: a continuation of the Incarnation

In his book Jesus Ascended: The Meaning of Christ's Continuing Incarnation, Gerrit Scott Dawson writes the bodily ascension of Jesus into heaven seems too fantastic to believe. He asks: Did Jesus really rise up bodily into the sky and then disappear? After thirty-three years of life in human flesh (which ended up with His head crowned with thorns and body crucified on a cross) why would He want to `hang around’ any longer in human flesh? Why wouldn’t He want to drop His body like `a hot potato,’ and then get back to being the Son of God without the drag of our human flesh?

It boggles our minds, he writes, to think that Jesus is in heaven “still in our skin suit,” still wearing our humanity, still flesh of our flesh. For Dawson the bodily ascension of Jesus is nothing less than a continuation of the Incarnation – a continuation of God’s bodily presence in our midst. He who took on our flesh has never let go of it. He who “did not cling to His divinity but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant” (Phil 2:6-7) did, indeed, cling to His humanity as He ascended into heaven.

A liturgical correction

Because the bodily ascension of Jesus is a continuation of the Incarnation, pedantic Roman liturgists made a little liturgical correction: In times past, after the reading of the Ascension gospel, a server would dramatically snuff out the Paschal candle positioned in a prominent spot during the Easter season, as a symbol of the risen Lord’s bodily presence and appearances for 40 days. (Acts 1:3) Then the server would whisk the smoldering candle off to some dark closet in the sacristy where it remained out of sight until the next Easter Vigil of Holy Saturday. That liturgical gesture wordlessly proclaimed, "He's left us! He’s gone!”

But since Jesus does not leave us in the Ascension but is ever-present through His Holy Spirit of Pentecost, liturgists decided that the Paschal candle should not be snuffed out and whisked away on Ascension Day. Rather, it should remain in its prominent spot in the sanctuary until Pentecost Sunday. Then it should not be relegated to some dark sacristy closet, but should be moved to a visible spot near the baptismal font. There it should stand as a visible reminder to us at Sunday Mass through the year that Jesus has not left us, but is always in our midst, especially as we baptize the little ones into Christ. (Gal 3:27)

It is interesting to note that until the 4th century, the feasts of Ascension and Pentecost were but one feast. That communicated the sense of one single divine transaction in which the human visible body of Jesus ascending into heaven was immediately exchanged for the descending of the Holy Spirit of God. An old Latin antiphon comes to mind: O Admirabile Commercium! Oh Happy Exchange!

Farewells & the taste of death

My father, an Italian immigrant, came to Milwaukee in the early 1900s. Leaving behind a brother and a whole Italian community in Milwaukee, he migrated north to Manitowoc where he got a job in the shipyards. Not long after, sorrow hit our home: our mother was taken from us, and our home became a house without a soul. Sorely missing the Italian community he left behind, my father with my sister and me would make an annual pilgrimage back to that far-off metropolis of Milwaukee which was `Little Italy’ for my father. That was back in the old days when there were no SUV’s but only Model T’s, which you actually cranked to get started. That was back in the old days when a trip from Manitowoc to Milwaukee was more like a trek or safari.

When our visit to `Little Italy’ came to an end and we were bidding farewell, my father always wept, and I always wept with him. At the time, I didn’t know why we were weeping, but I do know now. We were weeping because we were reluctantly leaving behind a poor but very rich Italian community, and we were going back to a home which had become an empty house. We were weeping also because down deep we intuitively knew what Baerdeyev meant when he wrote that, “All farewells have the taste of death about them.”

If, indeed, Baerdeyev is right, then how strange was Jesus’ farewell at the Ascension. It didn’t have the taste of death about it. It didn’t make the Apostles weep, as we wept when we bade farewell to `Little Italy.’ Instead, Jesus’ farewell to the Apostles in the Ascension turned into great joy! Luke writes, “After Jesus was taken up into heaven, the Apostles returned from Bethany to Jerusalem filled with great joy, and they spent all their time in the Temple giving thanks to God.“ (Lk 24:25)

A farewell waiting to turn into great joy

A friend writes about her husband’s final illness and death -- that supreme farewell in which all other farewells mystically participate.

My husband couldn’t talk the last 6 months of his life. He would try to tell me what he needed, but couldn’t. Though he couldn’t tell me what he needed I knew his needs. I got him an erase board on which he could write, whenever he needed something. But it got to the point when he couldn’t even use his arms or hands. It was truly heart-wrenching. Though he fully knew what was going on, he was trapped in his

body.

I am looking forward to the moment when I will be with my husband again. Every day I wake up one day closer to seeing him again. I miss him every moment of the day. With obvious deep faith she believes that her sad farewell of her husband will be turned into joy one day. Every day she trusts in Jesus’ promise that, “You will be sad, but your sadness will turn into joy.” (Jn 16:20)

Conclusion

Waiting for a farewell to be turned into joy

When we come to Mass next Sunday, May 23, 2010, it will be the Solemnity of Pentecost. The Easter candle will no longer be lit, as it was for all the Sundays of Easter. It will no longer occupy the prominent place in the sanctuary which it did during Easter season. But neither will it be whisked out of sight. It will, instead, be moved to a spot near the baptismal font. There we will see the candle every Sunday at Mass, and it will remind us that Jesus who ascended into heaven has kept His promise not to leave us orphans. (Jn 14:18) He has gone to prepare a place for us in His Father’s house which has many rooms, so that where He is now we may also be. (Jn 14: 1-3)
It is that promise which consoles the woman who wakes up every day with the consoling thought that she is one day closer to seeing her deceased husband again. On the feast of the Ascension she is waiting for her farewell to her husband, like the Apostles’ farewell to Jesus, to be turned into joy.

Mother's Day: Peace and Mothers

Mother’s Day: Peace and Mothers

Sixth Sunday of Easter, May 9, 2010
Acts 15:1-2, 22-29 Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23 John 14:23-29

Alleluia, alleluia.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to John
Glory to you, Lord.

Peace – His gift to us

Jesus said to his disciples: “Whoever loves Me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him. Whoever does not love Me does not keep my words. Yet the word you hear is not mine but that of the Father who sent Me. I have told you this while I am with you. The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you. Peace I bequeath to you, my own peace I give to you, a peace the world cannot give. This is my parting gift to you.

Set your troubled hearts at rest and put away your fears. You have heard Me say, ‘I am going away, but I will come back to you.’ If you really love me, you will be very happy for Me, for now I can go back to the Father, who is greater than I am. I have told you this before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe [in Me].”

The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Introduction:
5th Sunday of Easter & Mother’s Day

In the church’s calendar, today is the 5th Sunday of Easter. As in last Sunday’s gospel, the note of Ascension Thursday (May 13) is again being struck: “I am going away.” Struck also is the note of Pentecost Sunday (May 23): “But I will come back to you.”

Mother’s Day: A day honoring peace

But in the nation’s calendar, today (2nd Sunday of May) is also Mother’s Day. The commercial world stamps its spirit on all our national and religious holidays, and we lose feel of their original inspiration. That’s certainly true of Christmas and Easter. It’s also true of Mother’s Day. It wasn’t invented by the Florists’ Association or by the Telephone Co. Historically, it originated in mothers protesting the killing of their sons in war! Historically, Mother’s Day began as an anti-war movement.

Julia Ward Howe (1819-1910), famous especially for authoring the lyrics to the Battle Hymn of the Republic, would yearly organize Mother’s Day meetings in Boston, Mass., and encourage mothers to rally for peace; she believed that mothers bore the loss of human life more painfully than anyone else. In 1870 she issued a Mother’s Day Proclamation which, at heart, was a day honoring peace. It reads in part:

Arise then, Christian women on this day! Arise, all women who have hearts. Say firmly: "We will not have great questions decided by irrelevant agencies. Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn all that we have been able to teach them of charity, mercy and patience. We, the women of one country, will be too tender towards those of another country to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs.” From the voice of a devastated Earth a voice goes up with our own. It says: “Disarm! Disarm!”

At the end of the day, Mother’s Day was originally about honoring peace –that gift which the world cannot give but which is Jesus’ parting gift to us. (Jn 14:27)
Mother’s Day: a day honoring mothers

It was, however, Anna Jarvis (1864-1948) who got Mother’s Day inscribed on the calendar as a national day honoring mothers. She had an extraordinarily selfless and compassionate mother named Ann Jarvis (1832-1905) who lost eight of her twelve children before they reached adulthood. Ann organized Mothers’ Work Day Clubs in several towns in 1858, which provided money, medicine and housekeeping assistance for mothers who were ill. She urged her clubs to remain neutral during the Civil War, hoping to form oases of peace in a land devastated by a terrible war. After the war, she organized Mothers’ Friendship Day to help reconcile a nation torn apart.

Anna, her daughter, who never married, was intensely devoted to her selfless and compassionate mother. Two years after her mother’s death, on May 12, 1907 in her mother’s Methodist church, she conducted a service honoring her mother. She passed out 500 white carnations - one for each mother in the congregation. That seeded our present day tradition of mothers wearing carnations or roses on Mother’s Day -- a red one for a living mother or a white one for a deceased mother.

The daughter then embarked on a mission to establish a national holiday honoring all mothers. Through her efforts the first official Mother's Day ceremonies were held in Philadelphia on May 10, 1908. Six years later, 1914, President Woodrow Wilson signed a Congressional Resolution setting aside Mother’s Day as a national holiday to be celebrated on the second Sunday in May. That’s how Mother’s Day ended up emphasizing mothers instead of peace.

Gifts truly sacramental

o on this Mother’s Day 2010, as we pay tribute not so much to peace as to mothers, we wonder what gift we can give them. The commercial world has a long list of suggestions: cards, flowers, phone-calls, chocolates, money, etc. At the end of the day, these gifts are either sacramental, or they’re not. That is to say, either they signify something more profound than the gifts themselves, or they don’t. When they don’t, the gifts are simply substitutes for the profound thing, and they’re given mostly to calm a guilty conscience.

A Mother’s Day story

On April 26, 1997, I had to put down my dog Tina who for many years filled in the lonely spaces of human existence for me. Despite my grief, early in the morning a few days later I had to shop for groceries – a very mundane task for me at that moment. After gathering the food for which I had no appetite I went to the one-only-opened checkout counter where a clerk was waiting to check me out. He was a young Afro-American (color is part of the story). His name was Vernon, and everybody knew and liked him. Immediately he noticed my glum countenance. Tearfully I told him I had just put my dog Tina down. Suddenly he reached for his wallet, opened the cash register, did a transaction and then returned the wallet to his pocket. Not knowing what he had done, I handed him my money. He refused saying, "I've taken care of it!” Think of it! Here was a young black man, a blue-collar worker, who didn’t make fifty dollars an hour, and he was paying for a white man’s groceries!

What greater gift…?

Though that happened a good 13 years ago I remember it vividly, and I recount it as a great Mother’s Day story. Every year Vernon, a check-out- clerk in a supermarket, wonders what he should give his mother on Mother’s Day. What greater gift could he possibly give her than what he has already given her?! In his person he has already given her a son who is an unselfish and compassionate human being -- a son who poured the oil of compassion upon me in my need -- and a son who will surely pour the oil of compassion upon her as well in her hour of need. Whatever gift he gives her on Mother’s Day will be truly sacramental; it will signify something more profound and more expensive than the gift itself.

On the other side of the coin, what greater gift could his mother possibly give Vernon than what she has already given him, for `the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.’ Vernon, good fruit that he is, has come from a good tree. (Mt 7:17) On Mother’s Day we cry out to Vernon what the woman in the crowd cried out to Jesus one day: “Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts that nursed you.” (Lk 11:27)

Another Mother’s Day story

On December 6, 1984 a bus full of school kids was going west on Wisconsin Ave, in Milwaukee, WI. It was about 3:30 in the afternoon and only l0 degrees above zero. A tattered and torn woman entered. She was pregnant, and what’s more, she was barefoot! When the bus pulled up to 124th and Bluemound Road, a kid stepped up to get off. His name was Francis, and he was about 14 years old -- the typical age when kids supposedly have no brains in their heads and are utterly selfish. Strange to relate, he, too, was barefooted, and he had his shoes in his hands! Then in front of all his peers, who were laughing at the barefoot pregnant woman, he said to her, ”Here, M’am, you need them more than I do!” And then he stepped out barefoot into 10 above zero weather.

It was later reported that the kid’s mother was really ticked off when he showed up shoeless that evening. He had pestered his parents for the sneakers, and they had cost a good $70. Her immediate reaction was anger when he came home without the costly sneakers. But at the end of the day, both mom and dad were so proud they nearly burst!

What greater gift…?

When five months later Mother’s Day rolled around, what greater gift could Francis possibly give his mother than what he had already given her? In his person he had already given her a son who is an unselfish and compassionate human being -- a son fearless of peer who had poured the oil of compassion upon a barefoot pregnant lady on a bitterly cold winter day -- and a son who will surely pour the same oil of compassion upon her as well in her hour of need. Whatever gift he gives her on Mother’s Day will be truly sacramental; it will signify something more profound and more expensive than the gift itself.

On the other side of the coin, what greater gift could his mother possibly give Francis than what she has already given him, for `the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.’ Francis, good fruit that he is, has come from a good tree. (Mt 7:17) On Mother’s Day we cry out to Francis what the woman in the crowd cried out to Jesus one day: “Blessed is the womb that bore you and the breasts that nursed you.” (Lk 11:27)

Conclusion:
Honoring peace and mothers

Today, we honor mothers who beget unselfish and compassionate sons like Vernon and Francis. Today we honor also mothers who seek peace -- mothers who do not want their sons “to unlearn all that they have been able to teach them of charity, mercy and patience” -- mothers who don’t want their sons “to be trained to injure others.” (Howe’s Proclamation) Today, Mother’s Day, May 9, 2010, with Julia Ward Howe we honor peace, and with Anna Jarvis we honor mothers.

A New Commandment I Give You...

“A New Commandment I Give You…”

Fifth Sunday of Easter, May 2, 2010
Acts 14:21-27 Revelation 21:1-5 John 13:31-35

The second reading from Rev. 21: 1-5

Then I, John, saw a new heaven and a new earth. The former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. I also saw the holy city, a new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, God’s dwelling is with the human race. He will dwell with them and they will be his people and God himself will always be with them as their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain, for the old order has passed away.” The One who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.”

The word of the Lord
Thanks be to God

Alleluia, alleluia.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke
Glory to you, Lord.

As soon as Judas left the room Jesus said, “My time has come; the glory of God will soon surround Me—and God shall receive great praise because of all that happens to Me. And God shall give Me His own glory, and this so very soon. Dear friends of mine, I shall not be with you much longer. You will look for Me, and as I told the Jewish leaders, `Where I am going you cannot follow.’ A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

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Introduction
The first note of the Ascension struck

At the Last Supper Jesus knew His hour had come to leave this world. After Judas, His betrayer, left the room, He said to the Apostles, “Dear friends of mine, I tell you I shall not be with you much longer.” He was referring to His leaving the Apostles in His impending death on the cross. But on this fifth Sunday of Easter, His words (“I shall not be with you much longer”) also strike the first note of the upcoming feast of the Ascension[1] when Jesus takes leave of His Apostles as He ascends into heaven. (Lk 24:50-53)

A new commandment

At the Last Supper, Jesus conferred a parting gift upon the Apostles: “Friends of mine, a new commandment I give you: Love one another as I have loved you.” These words reflect the last line of the second reading: “Behold, I make all things new.” (Rev. 21:5)

The commandment to love one’s neighbor is an old one. Already in the Old Testament the Israelites were commanded to, “Love your neighbor as you love yourself.”(Lv 19:18) (That, indeed, is a high standard, since we’re all very adept at loving ourselves.) What’s new, however, is that Jesus commanded His disciples to love one another as He has loved them. (That’s not only new; it’s also a very high standard.) How much did He love them? At the Last Supper “He showed the full extent of His love.” (Jn 13:1) He rose from the table, girded Himself with a towel, washed their feet, and commanded them to wash each other’s feet, as He washed theirs. (Jn 13:4-15)

Only 1 commandment

In the sixth century B.C., Buddha gave his followers 8 commandments or paths to follow.[2] In the sixth century A.D., Mohammed gave Muslims 5 commandments or duties to perform.[3] In the Old Testament, Moses on Mt Sinai received 10 commandments carved on 2 stone tablets for the people of Israel to observe. (Ex 20:1-17; Dt 5:6-21) In the course of time, rabbinical tradition, seeking to ritualize God's presence in the most insignificant details of human life compiled an accretion of 713 major commandments and a whole constellation of minor rules and regulations – a burden which weary Israelites found too heavy to carry. Things haven’t improved too much; the new Code of Canon Law (the Church’s handbook of laws), promulgated in 1983, contains 1752 canons!

In the New Testament, Jesus does, indeed, multiply the loaves and fishes (Lk 9:10-15), but He doesn’t multiply commandments. He is, in fact, a new Moses, and He holds in His arm only 1 stone tablet, and on it is written only 1 commandment.

One day a teacher of the Law, trying to trap Jesus, asked, “Teacher, which is the first most important commandment of the Law?” Jesus replied by quoting Scripture -- Deuteronomy 6:4-5: “You must love the Lord your God, with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.” Then without being asked and in the same breath, He quoted Scripture again --Leviticus 19: 18: “And the second most important commandment is this: `You must love your neighbor as you love yourself.’ On these 2 commandments depend the whole Law of Moses and the teachings of the prophets.” (Mt 22:34-40) Jesus melded 2 commandments into 1, thereby serving notice that we can’t claim to love God, if we don’t love our neighbor. In his first letter John writes, “Whoever says `I love God,’ but hates his brother is a liar.” (I Jn 4:19)

A liar

Rev. Fred Phelps is founder of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas . Phelps and his little gang of followers passionately hate gays. He claims that most natural disasters and terrorist attacks are God's punishment upon a society that tolerates homosexuality. Because the US tolerates gays, he and his few followers picket the funeral of fallen US soldiers, and they carry signs with such slogans as `God Hates Fags’ and `Thank God for Dead US Soldiers.’ If the Rev. Phelps claims to love God , he is a liar, for “Whoever says I love God, but hates his neighbor is a liar.” (I Jn 4:19)

A signature commandment

Jesus gives us a new commandment, and He gives us only 1 commandment. He also gives us a signature commandment: “By this will all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” His words gave rise to a favorite Christian hymn:
And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love
They will know we are Christians by our love

Feuerstein

Aaron Feuerstein was CEO and owner of a fabric mill in Methuen Mass., which burned down in December of 1995. He didn’t take the insurance money and run, but stuck with his 2400 employees and continued to pay them in full, at 12 ½ dollars an hour and at a cost of 1 ½ million dollars a week. What’s more, he promised to rebuild their factory and put his people back to work. That so stunned corporate America that it couldn’t resist the temptation to name him `CEO of the Year.’[4] Feuerstein, a devout Jew, doesn’t know what all the notoriety is about. He says he was simply heeding the prophet Micah who calls him "to act justly, with loving kindness, and to walk humbly with thy God.” (Micah 6:8)

In its marrow, the command to love our neighbor has nothing to do with having `a good feeling’ about him, but it has everything to do with doing good to him. At the end of the day, however, there does come `a good feeling’ at having done good to our neighbor. At the end of the day, `a good feeling’ always comes upon Feuerstein who did good to his employees, and it helps him to sleep contently at night. Loving your neighbor is a signature commandment: “This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” Because of Feuerstein’s love for his 2400 employees this devout Jew is a true disciple of Jesus.

Quinn

In the morning newspaper Jerry Quinn, who owns a bar and restaurant in Boston, read an article about Franklin Piedra, a 33 year-old Ecuadorian, suffering from chronic kidney failure, and in need of a 100,000 dollar kidney transplant which he can’t afford. Quinn, who has been saving his money for a major down-payment on a two-bedroom apartment in a suburban part of Boston with a river view and all, decided instead to forfeit a new home and pay for the transplant.

In its marrow, loving our neighbor has nothing to do with having `a good feeling’ about him, but it has everything to do with doing good to him At the end of the day, however, `a good feeling’ always comes upon Quinn who did good to Piedra, and it helps him to sleep contently at night in his old house. Loving your neighbor is a signature commandment: “This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” Because of Quinn’s love for Piedra this bartender is a true disciple of Jesus.

Conclusion
A signature commandment for us

Loving one’s neighbor was a signature commandment for a devout Jew and an unselfish bartender; it made them disciples of Jesus. It’s also a signature commandment for us; it also makes us His disciples. In its marrow, loving our neighbor has nothing to do with having `a good feeling’ about another, but it has everything to do with doing him good, or at least wanting to do him good. At the end of the day, that helps us also to sleep contently at night.
[1] Ascension Thursday, May 13, 2010
[2] The paths of Right Knowledge, Right Aspiration, Right Speech, Right Behavior, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, Right Absorption.
[3] Shahada: proclaiming there is no God but Allah; Salat: praying five times daily; Zakat: giving alms; Ramadan: fasting;; Hajj: making a pilgrimage to Mecca.
[4] Time magazine , January 8, 1996