Famous . . . or Infamous?

Fr. Andrew Hofer, OP and my classmate Fr. Jim Gallagher, CSC recently alerted me to the fact that the Congregation for the Clergy in Rome has been watching me!

Thankfully, it doesn't seem that I have run-afoul of the powers that be. Rather, video of a Mass I celebrated at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, was briefly used in a video on the priesthood produced by the Congregation for the Clergy. Take a look - I appear ever so briefly at the 9:20 mark:

Homily for the First Sunday in Lent (C)

As we begin our forty days in the desert of Lent, our Gospel reading gives us an account of Jesus’ forty day fast in the desert and the temptations that were visited upon Him by Satan. Since our season of Lent seeks to model itself on the fasting and prayer of Jesus, we should pay close attention to the things the Devil tempts Jesus with – because they are in fact the same root temptations we all face – and we should also understand the point of Jesus’ desert journey and of our being tested as well.

St. Luke makes the point, at the very beginning of today’s Gospel, that the Holy Spirit is with Jesus and leads Him into the desert. It is in accord with the designs of the Spirit that Jesus, and that you and me, are allowed to experience times of temptation and testing. Why, because God is playing games with us? No, because it is through trial and testing that we discover the truth of who we are.

We say as much about athletes, or artists or political and military leaders, who face some adversity or challenge, some temptation to come off course, to give up on the mission they have laid out before them. Their greatness lies in overcoming such temptations and trials, discovering their true strength, and fulfilling their high calling.

So what is it that Jesus discovers about who He is when He is tempted in the desert? What is it that we are meant to learn about ourselves when we undertake our Lenten fast, and strip away the distractions of food, or alcohol, or video games or whatever it is that we fast from and are in turn tempted by?

The clue lies in the fact that St. Luke says: Jesus “returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert.” Well, what had happened at the Jordan? Jesus had been Baptized by John and had heard His Father’s voice from Heaven saying, “You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased!”

That’s who Jesus really is, and by virtue of Baptism, that’s who we really are as well. The Spirit leads Jesus into the desert, and calls us to our yearly Lenten fast, so that we can put away those things that keep us from hearing the Father’s voice in our lives – so that we can overcome the temptations of the ego, which convince us that we can rely on ourselves, and we recommit to following God’s will for our lives, and accomplishing the mission He has for us.

It’s in that light that we can examine and understand the three temptations that Jesus must overcome in His battle with Satan in the desert.

After forty days of fasting, in which St. Luke says, “He ate nothing,” Jesus is terribly hungry. So the first test the Devil offers is tempting Jesus to use his power to provide food for Himself: “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”

This is the temptation that all of us face to be obsessed with taking care of ourselves and looking out for number one – the temptation to root our lives in the physical and bodily pleasures that we sometimes imagine can sustain us and make us happy.

But in the first of His three responses to the Devil, all of which are taken from Deuteronomy, Jesus says, “One does not live on bread alone” (Dt. 8:3). Elsewhere in the Gospels Jesus also adds: “but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.” It is not our taking care of ourselves that completes us; or food, or drink, or creature comforts, or the things we have that define us or give us happiness. It is the word of God’s love; it is His will for our lives that makes us who we are and gives us fulfillment.

Jesus is then shown all the kingdoms of the world in all their power and glory. The Devil says, “I shall give to you all this power and glory . . . if you worship me.” This is the temptation to power and to prestige – the desire to control others and to have others be so impressed with our achievements, so amazed by our talents, that they admire us and worship us.

Jesus responds with “the most fundamental affirmation of Israel’s faith:” the words of the Shema, “You shall worship the Lord, your God, and Him alone shall you serve” (Dt. 6:13).

The power and glory of this world have indeed been handed over to the Evil One, and they are passing and fleeting. The only lasting power and glory is for us to admit our weakness, to be truly dependant as all children are, to worship and serve God alone, and to rely on His power at work in us, thereby being taken up into His everlasting glory.

Finally, atop the Temple in Jerusalem, Satan once again challenges Jesus to prove that He is the Son of God by miraculously demonstrating His power: “throw yourself down from here” and have the angels of God save you.

This is, perhaps, the most fundamental of all the temptations, which is why St. Luke records it last. It is the temptation; as old as the snake in garden; to make ourselves God, to control God and have even Him serve us as we see fit. Jesus again quotes Deuteronomy (6:16): “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.” And having failed to lure Him off course, St. Luke says that Satan departed from Him, “for a time.” Of course, the Enemy returns, tempting the Lord again in much the same ways, as Jesus nears the completion of His mission in the Cross.

In the face of each temptation, Jesus corrects the Tempter and reminds us that the heart of righteousness consists in knowing who we really are, and living out of that identity. It is living as the beloved children of God: in total commitment to God’s will. It is serving Him alone and relying, not in great deeds of our own, but on God alone.

Our culture so often tempts us into believing that we can achieve personal fulfillment through material success. Our Lenten fasts remind us that we cannot live “by bread alone.” Our culture tries to convince us that we are self-sufficient islands. Our Lenten penances remind us that we are weak and must rely on God’s strength.

During the season of Lent we go into the desert with Jesus and mediate on the mystery of our Baptism and we face the challenge of remaining true to who we are in the face of the world’s temptations. We confess the ways we have sometimes fallen prey to temptation and failed to live as beloved children of God. Now we celebrate this Eucharist as nourishment for our desert journey and prepare for the renewal of our Baptism in the waters of Easter.

Blessed Brother Andre Bessette to be Canonized

Earlier today, in Rome, the Holy Father announced that Blessed Brother Andre Bessette, C.S.C. will become the first Holy Cross saint, and the first saint from Quebec, Canada when he is canonized on October 17, 2010.

Announcing this great news, our Superior General, Most Rev. Hugh Cleary, C.S.C. said:

"Our entire Congregation of Holy Cross rejoices with the universal Church: Brother Andre, the miracle worker of Montreal, is the first formally recognized saint among us! Brother Andre’s early life was marked by physical frailty, poverty, illiteracy and family tragedy. Amidst them all, prayer was his peace and joy. His parish priest encouraged the orphaned Andre to seek the consecrated life as his vocation for he believed it was there that Andre would find his true home and deepest fulfillment. In recommending Andre, his pastor told the Congregation of Holy Cross that he was sending them a saint. And so it was. God chooses the weak and makes them strong. Andre was strong in faith, mighty in zeal. His humility allowed the healing strength of God to fill his being and thus bring healing to others. Through the intercession of St. Joseph, Brother Andre taught us all to pray and so to find the strength needed to live our lives in the truth of God’s love."

As you might expect this news is garnering significant attention in the Catholic world, and in the press in Canada. For more information, you can see articles at CNS, and at the University of Notre Dame's website, among many others.

". . . Not as external agent, but as participant . . ."

Yesterday and today, Bishop Kevin Rhoades of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend has been making a a sort of apostolic visit to the University of Notre Dame. He presided at a Mass of Welcome in the Basilica yesterday and greeted the faculty, staff and students of the University at a reception under the Golden Dome. This evening, he presided at the Holy Cross community's Mass in Corby Hall and joined us for dinner. I am grateful to have been able to concelebrate both liturgies.

Today's Observer does a good job of summarizing the visit, and the bishop's homily from the Mass of Welcome.

Photo Credit: The Observer

The salient point of these celebrations must certainly be what the Bishop said in his homily: “I believe, as Pope John Paul II said, that bishops should be seen not as external agents but as participants in the life of the Catholic university.”

Father John Jenkins, C.S.C. himself noted in his words of welcome, that Bishop Rhoades comes to Notre Dame not merely as our "friend" or our "guest," but as our bishop. He also noted that in the University's gift of a crozier (or pastoral staff) we can see that it is sometimes the role of the bishop to "prod" and direct.

It strikes me that both Bishop Rhoades and Father Jenkins rejected, each in their own way, the terrible inadequacies of the infamous Land O' Lakes Statement, which said:

"To perform its teaching and research functions effectively the Catholic university must have a true autonomy and academic freedom in the face of authority of whatever kind, lay or clerical, external to the academic community itself."

We must hope and pray that we are witnessing the dawning of a new day in the relationship between the University and the Church - a day that rolls back the ill effects of the Land O' Lakes Statement and asserts once and for all that "one cannot have communion with the Church unless it is with the local bishop" (as Bishop Rhoades succinctly put it in an interview with The Irish Rover).

Homily for the Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time (C)

I think it’s true that all human beings want to live lives of greatness. Young people especially, with their enthusiasm and idealism, don’t want to settle for mediocrity; they want to live lives that are extraordinary and remarkable – lives that shape and change the world for the better.

Today’s Gospel makes the invitation to do just that – to “put out into deep water,” as Jesus says, “and lower your nets for a catch.”

So often, our self-doubts and negative attitudes, our fear of humiliation and failure cause us to stay safely on the shore, or to wade only so far into calm, shallow waters. Like Peter, we are convinced that there’s nothing more we can do: we have “worked hard all night, and caught nothing.”

Our three readings today offer us a different way forward. Together they lay out the pattern of all Christian discipleship, and tell us that the invitation to “put out into the deep” is indeed made even to us here today.

Our readings show us that when we experience the presence of Christ, and encounter Him in our lives, we become more aware of our sinfulness. But despite our weakness, we also experience; in a completely unmerited way; Christ’s mercy and grace, and in turn, we are sent on mission to extend His reign.

There is a strand of modern spirituality – and I think it’s especially true in our American culture – that says that all will be right with us, if only we think that all will be right. It’s a sort of self-help gospel that preaches the power of positive thinking and our own ability to control our destiny and be the great people we all want to be.

I think real life proves the emptiness of such a spirituality: if it were that simple, we’d all be fulfilled and happy all the time. So it’s no surprise that this isn’t at all where our readings today begin.

Rather, in our first reading, the prophet Isaiah, experiences a vision of the Lord and exclaims, “Woe is me, I am doomed! For I am a man of unclean lips.” In the presence of God he becomes more, not less, aware of the fact that he is not god, but a weak and sinful creature.

St. Paul too, in our second reading, writes to the Corinthians, “I am the least of the apostles, not fit to be called an apostle because I persecuted the church of God.” Paul recognizes that his sinful past has not earned him any of the gifts he has received from God.

And in today’s Gospel, St. Peter is astonished at the miraculous catch of fish – in humble fear of God’s awesome power he says: “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”

The lesson of the entirety of the Scriptures is that we cannot make ourselves right, or save ourselves, or fulfill our own destinies – the only one who can make us right, can make us all we were meant to be, and all we hope to be, is God.

It’s true: the more we come into God’s presence – the closer we come to the light of Christ’s truth, the more aware we become of our sinfulness. We become less sure of ourselves, less confident in our own power and control.

And yet all the saints show us that this realization is never crippling. It is not about guilt or self-deprecation, or self-loathing. In fact, the saints show us that quite the opposite is true – this encounter with Christ and acknowledgement of sin is in fact empowering. It teaches us that we cannot rely on ourselves, or on our own power, but rather we must rely solely on God. Only He can empower us and forgive us. And we clearly see in today’s readings just how ready He is to do this.

Immediately after Isaiah confesses his unclip lips an angel comes to him in his vision, and places a burning coal upon his lips. “See,” the angel says, “now your wickedness is removed, and your sins purged.”

St. Paul too, writes in his letter that, “by the grace of God, I am what I am, and His grace has not been ineffective.”

And in the Gospel, Jesus does not tell Peter that he’s wrong –that he’s not a sinner or that he’s really not all that bad in the end. What Jesus does say, very simply and powerfully is: “Do not be afraid.” In other words, ‘Refuse to be mastered by your sins, Peter – know that I am more powerful than any sin or death.’

All three of our readings also make clear that Christian spirituality never stops with this awareness and forgiveness of our sins. We can always be sure that the final stage of Christian discipleship is that we are sent out on mission. God has a job for each and every on of us to do – to bring the same grace and love we have experienced to the rest of the world. It is only for us to answer that call, to cooperate with the grace we have been given.

And so in Isaiah’s vision, he hears the Lord ask: “Whom shall I send?” And with confidence Isaiah replies immediately: “Here I am, send me.”

And in his letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul makes clear that he has not been doing his own bidding, but rather has been sent on mission. He says, “I handed on to you as of first importance what I also received.”

Finally, in the Gospel, Jesus calls Peter and the apostles to join Him in mission, promising them that, “from now on you will be catching men.” And St. Luke records that “they left everything and followed Him.”

Friends, these three steps encapsulate the entirety of the Christian life. They show us the pattern that every Christian’s life should take, whether we are called to be a spouse or a parent, a teacher or a doctor, or any other way of life or occupation. What is more, they are the necessary ingredients of a truly great life and vocation, because they are built upon God’s greatness, not our own.

This is perhaps especially true for men and women whom God calls to the consecrated life – to life as a priest, brother or sister in a religious community.

Today the Church in the United States is observing World Day for Consecrated Life: a day inaugurated in 1997, by Venerable John Paul II, to provide an opportunity for all the People of God to come to a greater “knowledge of and esteem for the consecrated life.”

In a world that tends to be focused on the here-and-now, consecrated religious are called to witness to the kingdom that is yet to come in its fullness.
They do so not by any power of their own – not by any grace they have merited – but rather by laying down the entirety of their lives. By the vows they profess, consecrated religious show forth in the Church and the world, “the characteristic features of Jesus – who is the chaste, poor and obedient one.”

This is indeed a remarkable and extraordinary life: to be the presence of Christ in the Church and the world!

Some of the young men and women here today – and others listening or reading on TV or on-line – are even now being invited by the Lord to “put out into the deep, and lower your nets for a catch.” Christ is inviting you to be His presence in the world, and to call others to life with Him, by consecrating all that you have and all that you are to Him.

My advice to you is simple: “Do not be afraid.” Answer with Isaiah, “Here I am, send me.”

Brothers and sisters, may this Eucharist give all of us the courage and strength that is required to “put out into the deep” – and the faith that prepares for an abundant catch.

Homily for the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple

February 2nd is only Groundhog's Day in the secular world. In the life of the Church, yesterday was the great Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple . . . otherwise known as Candlemas.

At our Old College Mass last night, we were joined by a number of Holy Cross, Saint Mary's and Notre Dame students, and at the beginning of the Liturgy, we observed the traditional blessing of candles, which gives the feast its more popular name:

In the darkened chapel, the Light of Christ was spread amongst the congregation, and the prayer of blessing was prayed over the candles:

God our Father, source of all light, today you revealed to Simeon your Light of revelation to the nations. Bless + these candles and make them holy. May we who use them to praise your glory walk in the path of goodness and come to the light that shines forever.

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

My homily for the evening gives a bit more of the context:

As we heard in our opening rites, today’s Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple, comes forty days after our celebration of the Lord’s birth at Christmas – and marks the day on which, according to the Law of Moses, the firstborn son of Mary was presented and dedicated to the Lord.

Because this feast celebrates a manifestation, an epiphany of Jesus Christ, it is linked thematically and liturgically with the celebrations of Christmas, and Epiphany and the Baptism of the Lord, and it properly concludes the Christmas season. Our blessing of candles reminds us of the Christmas star that the Magi followed to Bethlehem, and turns our minds and hearts to the Light of the World whom they found in the manger.

The Church also marks today (or in this country, this coming Sunday) as World Day for Consecrated Life. Inaugurated in 1997 by Venerable John Paul II, this day “promotes knowledge of and esteem for the consecrated life by the entire People of God, and gives consecrated persons (or those discerning a call to religious life) an opportunity to return to the sources of their vocation.”

It’s no mistake that this Day for Consecrated Life coincides with this feast, because we celebrate Jesus being dedicated to the Lord – and religious life is itself an "eloquent icon of the total offering of one's life.” Those called to consecrated religious life, “show forth in the Church and in the world, by means of the evangelical counsels they profess, the characteristic features of Jesus -- the chaste, poor and obedient one.”

In so doing, consecrated religious remind a world that tends to be focused on the here-and-now – that tends to regard the goods of this world as ends in themselves – that, as the prophet Malachi says in our first reading, “He is coming, the Lord of hosts – but who will endure the day of His coming?”

In other words, consecrated religious witness in this world to the kingdom that is already in our midst, and that will one day come in its fullness. Like the prophets Simeon and Anna, we witness to the presence of the Lord in our midst, and announce the day of His coming.

This will never be easy. This will always be, in every time and place, countercultural – because no human culture is fully imbued with the kingdom. As a result, all of us who witness to His kingdom will, from time to time, have to suffer in our witness.

And so we take as our model, and special patroness, the Blessed Mother – who so perfectly shows us what it is to be consecrated to the Lord, and whose own heart was pierced with the sword of suffering.

We pray through her intercession for the fidelity of all consecrated persons, and for an increase in vocations to religious life and consecrated virginity. May we who discern and live the consecrated life joyfully give over our entire selves as a light to the nations.

Mundelein Seminary Shootout 2010

Notre Dame's daily, The Observer, also covered the seminarian basketball tournament held this weekend at Mundelein Seminary in Chicago. I traveled with all of our Old Collegians, and the majority of our seminarians at Moreau, to attend the 10th annual Seminary Shootout.

Back in the day, yours truly cheered our men on as we won two of the first three championships at this tournament - and then I played on Moreau's third championship team!:

Unfortunately, Holy Cross hasn't had as much luck since Fr. Bill Miscamble handed the reigns over to Fr. Pat Neary. We haven't won the tournament since! - and we tease him about this pretty mercilessly. But, of course, the tournament is about much more than competition. It really is a wonderful chance for seminarians throughout the Midwest to get together for fellowship and fun.

And we had one heck of a cheering section . . .

Mundelein Seminary is also a beautiful location to spend a weekend. The seminary campus was constructed in 1921 by Cardinal Mundelein - and its neo-classical architecture is meant to indicate the compatibility of Catholicism and the American experiment.

I was also very glad to have the opportunity to spend time with Fr. Bob Barron, who teaches on the faculty of Mundelein Seminary. Fr. Bob spent a sabbatical year living with us at Moreau Seminary when I was a newly professed religious. A number of us seminarians developed a fast friendship with Bob and remain grateful for the influence he had on us as we prepared for ordination. We've stayed in touch through the years, but this was the first time we've been able to see one another in awhile.

Fr. Barron not only teaches and writes, he also has a thriving and effective ministry of evangelization through digital media. His radio show, podcasts, webpage, YouTube videos, and now his Catholicism Project are phenomenal gifts to the Church in this country. I encourage you to use these resources, as I do, and to assist Fr. Barron with your prayers and financial support.

Prof. Ralph McInerny - R.I.P.

Yesterday morning I concelebrated the Mass of Christian Burial for Prof. Ralph McInerny, the legendary professor of philosophy and author of innumerable scholarly works - who is perhaps best known as the author of the wildly successful Father Dowling murder mystery series.

Prof. McInerny was quite possibly the greatest Thomistic philosopher of his generation. As Fr. Marvin O'Connell noted in his eloquent homily, the milieu that nurtured Prof. McInerny's intellectual life and faith is largely gone - and so it's doubly hard to imagine someone being capable of filling his shoes.

Sadly, as Prof. McInerny himself witnessed, even his beloved Notre Dame has suffered the grave effects of this death of Catholic culture. In his later years, Prof. McInerny often spoke out against the diminishment of Catholic identity on our campus and the loss of a distinctly Catholic contribution to the life of the academy.

As we pray for the eternal repose of his soul, we also pray that the Lord will raise up more philosophers, theologians, scholars and teachers who are zealous for the intellectual patrimony of the Church.

Siegfried Hall . . . Leading the Way, Yet Again

The new bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend celebrated Mass on Sunday evening in Siegfried Hall. This was the bishop's first public Mass on the campus since being installed, and he couldn't have picked a better place to begin his ministry among the students of Notre Dame. I'm sure, too, that Fr. John and the Ramblers showed him tremendous hospitality. Read all about it in the Observer article at the link above.