Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time
“For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, and Mission.” Does this sound like church jargon to you? It might, but it is not. Pope Francis has convoked a Synod. The theme of the Synod is, “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, and Mission.” This Synod is a two-year process. It was solemnly inaugurated by Pope Francis on the 9th – 10th of October 2021 in Rome and this weekend, each local Church is invited to be integral to the preparation for the Synod. The final stage of the Synod will be the celebration of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, in October 2023, which will be followed by the implementation phase in every local Church.
Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time
The story of the rich man coming to Jesus and asking, “What must I do to inherit eternal life,” is one of the most compelling stories in gospel of Mark. In the upcoming verses, Mark will contrast this story with the story of the blind beggar who left everything a followed Jesus. But today, it’s all about the rich man.
Let me offer three points for reflection:
Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
A few days back, I was in conversation with a very distraught mother whose husband had just sought a divorce. Besides the trauma of a failed marriage and every other complexity that comes along with it, she was very concerned about not being able to receive Holy Communion. She said, “I have been a Catholic all my life. I am sad that I cannot receive Communion.” This happens to be a common misconception about marriage and divorce among Catholics – that divorced Catholics cannot receive communion. I gently explained to her that she was not barred from the Sacraments. A divorce does not bar anybody from the Sacraments. It is contracting another marriage without an annulment that creates problems. Moreover, I said to the mother, “This is when you need God the most. Please, do not keep yourself away from the Church or the Sacraments.” Her road ahead is still filled with difficulty but she was relieved that she would not be alienated from the church and the Sacraments.
Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Do you consider yourself to be a be a generous person? And why? Is it because you easily give money to those who need it, or because you easily forgive others, or because you volunteer considerable amount of your time to social organizations, or because you use your natural talents to help others?
Generosity is a big word. It includes a huge range of attitudes. Moreover, one may be generous in one area and be very tight-fisted in another. For example, one may donate wealth easily but be very stingy with compliments or encouraging others. One may donate time but be very jealous of other people’s accomplishments. Let me return to my original question. Do you consider yourself to be a generous person?
Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
“Where do the wars and where do the conflicts among you come from?” (James 4:1) We have little knowledge about the actual happenings in James’s community, but whatever was going on, it compelled James to pose this rhetorical question to his readers. With all the conflicts raging in the world, in our nation, and in the church, it is a truly pertinent question for us too. Really, where do the wars and where do the conflicts among us come from?
Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
A J Jacobs is a New York journalist. He is also a Jewish agnostic. He decided to do a radical experiment – a year of living biblically. He attempted to follow every rule of the Bible literally for an entire year. The way he ate, talked, dressed, thought, and touched his wife – he did everything biblically. He did it because he wanted to see if he was missing anything. He said later in an interview later that the hardest thing to do was avoiding the sins we commit every day: lying, gossiping, and coveting. But the greatest lesson he learnt was the power of behavior over thinking. Following Descartes’ famous line, “I think therefore I am,” we normally believe that thought influences behavior. But Jacobs says that the opposite is even more powerful. He said that most of us do underestimate the power that behavior has to shape thought. “It’s astounding. I watched it happen to myself. For instance, I forced myself to stop gossiping, and eventually I started to have fewer petty thoughts to gossip about. I forced myself to help the needy, and found myself becoming less self-absorbed. I even watched it happen with prayer. After a year of praying, I started to believe there’s something to the idea of sacredness. It was remarkable. Thus, if you want to become someone different, just start acting like the person you want to be.” Jacobs now calls himself a “reverent agnostic.”
Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time
Over the last few months, much data has been revealed about the state of Catholicism in the archdiocese of Cincinnati. The data offers little comfort. Catholicism is on the decline. We can assume that the data applies to the rest of the United States. When the data was first revealed at the priests gathering, my initial reaction was pure shock. I was prepared to hear news that Mass attendance was declining, but it was the extent of the decline that made it shocking. Those of you who attended the Beacons of Light Town Hall meeting, either online or in person, perhaps, had the same reaction. To be honest, I am not only shocked, but sad and afraid. The implications of the data are unnerving.
Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
It is no more a question of speculation whether organized religion is losing its influence and power in the West. The data that the Archdiocese of Cincinnati has shared in preparation for the implementation of the Beacons of Light initiative is stunning. Moreover, we say can with great certainty that the data about the Archdiocese of Cincinnati is true also of the rest of the country. Data reveals that in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, between 2010-20, Mass attendance declined 22.5%. At the same time, total number of parishioners also declined. People accessing sacraments declined 19.4%. There was a 19% decline in Baptisms, 23.8% decline in First Communions, 21.5% decline in Confirmations, 27.9% decline in weddings, and 4.5% decline in funerals. Enrollment in Catholic schools also declined 13.7%. The data is shocking but not surprising. We have known all along that organized religion was on the decline.
Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
I want to share gut-wrenching stories from my ministry last week. Both these stories are end of life stories, so let me caution you that they are going to pull at your heart strings too.
The first story is the story of a middle-aged woman, who, thirty years ago was involved in a car crash. After thirty years of pain management and dealing with debilitating disability, she had reached a point of no return. Her system was shutting down and the medications could not help her manage the grueling pain. She finally made a decision to tell her family that she couldn’t continue anymore. Her mother and five sisters were present when I reached the hospital to administer the sacrament for the last time. Tears rolling down her cheeks she looked right into my eyes and said, “Father, I just want this pain to be gone!” She knew that this means allowing life to take its course. It hit me hard at that very moment. What does it mean when someone knows that the decision they are making is going lead to death?
Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The feast of the Assumption of Mary is a very interesting feast. First of all, compared to the other great feast of the Church, this is a feast of modern times. This doctrine was defined by Pope Pius XII only as late as November 1950. Second, this is a non-biblical feast in the sense that there is no biblical data to support the bodily assumption of Mary into heaven. The first reading from Revelation used for this feast, for example, was not originally written in reference to Mary. The woman rescued from the dragon is the Church. This passage is about the liberation and redemption of a persecuted church. Only in retrospect does the church apply this scripture passage to Mary. Third, except for the virginal birth of Jesus, all Marian feasts are historical developments. Whether it is the feast of the Immaculate Conception, or the feast of the Assumption, at some point, the church discerned that Mary’s life, her faith, and what God accomplished in, through, and for her, need to be integral to the life of the church. Thus, here we are celebrating the feast of the Assumption.
Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Scripture Readings
These are very busy months, weeks, and days. For me, the last few years have been this way. There simply aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done. But I am not the only one. Everyone is busy. I don’t know how you parents balance home, work, children, family, school, and so much more. The pandemic has added even more stress on families. Really, how do you do it?
My focus, though, is just a little different. Besides all you and I ‘do,’ what is at the core? When all is said and done, what remains at the center of our being and existence?
Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
I am Fr. Satish Joseph. I am originally from India. I was ordained in India on the 25th of April 1994. After travelling the length and breadth of the country for five years preaching parish missions and facilitating many retreats, I arrived in the US on June 6, 2000. My goal was to pursue my master’s in communication at the University of Dayton. Immaculate Conception Church opened its doors to me and I have live there since.
Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Abundant generosity. When I say, ‘abundant generosity,’ can you recall an instance or personal experience of abundant generosity? I think of Fr. Don Giuseppe Berardelli. During the early days of the pandemic, when Italy was ravaged by the Coronavirus pandemic, the country was short of ventilators. The 72-year-old Fr. Berardelli gave up his ventilator so a younger patient could survive. That’s abundant generosity. It’s the kind of generosity that blows us away. Can you recall an experience when someone was so generous toward you that you were blown away?
Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Last Tuesday, I was sitting at the South doorsteps of the Church, waiting for those who might show up for the RCIA inquiry session. A parishioner drove up to the steps and handed me a Rallys food packet. It was a fish sandwich. Now, be honest with me. Do I really look that bad? Have I really become that pathetic?
I really believe that this parishioner was caring for me than feeding the homeless. I have no idea how he knew I was at the steps, but it was so heart-warming. Part of me was embarrassed but part of me was deeply touched. Somebody cared enough to break Rallys with me.
Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
As I prepare my homily each week, it is common that, thematically, the scripture readings pull me in different directions. My experience this week was little different. No matter which way I looked at it – thematically, I found it compelling me in a single direction - “He [God] chose us” (Eph 1:4). Even though the people the readings describe are biblical stalwarts, today the focus is not on them as much as on the fact that God choses them. Consequently, what is true of them is also true of us.
Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Perhaps you remember that last Sunday we heard two miracle stories in the gospel reading – the story of the healing of the woman who had been ill for 12 years, and the little girl who was raised to life. Both these stories were inspired by faith – the first miracle, by the faith of the woman who believed that she would be healed simply by touching Jesus’ garments; the second by the faith of Jairus, a synagogue official. Jesus commended both these people for their faith. Especially to the woman, Jesus had said, "Daughter, your faith has saved you" (Mk 5:34). For that matter, all of Chapter 5 of Mark is made up of stories of faith. In Chapter 5, the story before the stories of the woman and Jairus’ daughter is the story of a demoniac who was possessed by Legion (a multitude of evil spirits). In that story, even the Legion acknowledged Jesus’ power and confessed that Jesus was the Son of God. He cried out “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?” (Mk 5:7).
Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Graciousness - excellence of manners or social conduct. The synonyms of graciousness are kindness, courteousness, politeness, affability, benevolence. Perhaps you will agree with me that the pandemic brought out the best and worst in people. For example, during the time of mask and social distance mandates, some people showed up in church with one motive – to violate the mandates and test the resolve of the community to implement it. On the other hand, the graciousness of our community also came to the fore. The cooperation of our people, the willingness to be inconvenienced to keep others safe, and the willingness to follow safety protocols was truly exemplary. And then there was the financial generosity that flowed like river. Strangers donated time and resources to help those who lost jobs, those were confined at home, and those who were ill. Finally, when the parish made a collection for the those who did not benefit from the covid relief checks, the parish collected more than three times the goal. These is what scripture calls graciousness.
Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time
In my homily today I would like to focus on the story of Jesus calming the storm (Mk 4:35-41). I would like to concentrate on the introduction to the story. Mark tells us that “As the evening drew near, Jesus said to his disciples: “Let us cross to the other side” (Mk 4:35).” I would like focus only only this one proposal Jesus makes, "Let us cross to the other side."
This weekend, the Archdiocese of Cincinnati celebrates it bicentenary, two hundred years since its founding. It has an amazing history, and I would like to begin this homily with a brief history of the archdiocese.
The first Catholic diocese west of the Allegheny Mountains was established in 1808 in Bardstown, Kentucky. Because the territory it covered was enormous, in 1821, Pope Pius VII decided to divide the Bardstown Diocese to better serve the growing population of Catholic settlers, immigrants and Native Americans. Thus, the Archdiocese of Cincinnati was created, with Father Fenwick, a travelling missionary priest, as its first bishop. It would be the eighth Catholic diocese established in the United States and encompassed Ohio, Michigan and parts of Wisconsin. The first two parishes of the Archdiocese would be St. Joseph in Somerset and Christ Church in Cincinnati. Emmanuel Church was Dayton’s first parish.
Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Freddie Figgers is an inventor, an entrepreneur, and a telecoms millionaire. His present net worth is close to a billion dollars. This story is not about him but the people who are responsible for his success – Nathan Figgers, a maintenance worker and his wife, Betty Mae Figgers, a farm worker. They picked up Freddie near a dumpster when he was two days old. He had been abandoned as a newborn baby in Quincy, North Florida.