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Like Gentiles or Tax Collectors

September 9, 2023

23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Victor Feltes

Jesus teaches us today about how to practice fraternal correction. In short, if a brother or sister in the Church sins against you, approach him or her privately. If that fails to persuade, come again with one or two others. If that does not work, bring the matter to the Church. And “if he refuses to listen even to the Church,” Jesus says, “then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector.” Jesus says to treat an obstinately unrepentant Christian like “a Gentile or a tax collector.” What are we to make of this?

How would the Jewish crowds hearing Jesus’ preaching treat Gentiles or tax collectors? The Old Covenant kept Jews and Gentiles (that is, non-Jews) separate. For example, archeologists have found stone signs from the Jewish temple dating to the Gospel era which warned Gentiles or foreigners not to enter its inner courts. Those signs’ chiseled, red letters declared in Greek: “No foreigner is to enter within the stone railing [balustrade] around the sanctuary and the enclosure. Whoever is caught will himself be responsible for his ensuing death.” Without full conversion to Judaism, Gentiles in those days could not enjoy full communion with God’s people. Meanwhile, Jewish tax collectors were viewed as collaborators with Israel’s enemies, traitors harming their own people, and shunned. So how would the early Church respond in the case of a persistently unrepentant Christian?

In the First Letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul addresses a scandalous matter brought to him concerning the Church in Corinth. He writes, “It is widely reported that there is immorality among you, and immorality of a kind not found even among pagans — a man living with his father’s wife,” that is, his stepmother. I imagine if you had asked this romantic couple why they were together, they might have answered, with sincerity, “We love each other!” They might have said what they were doing made them happy. They might have even said, “All love is love.” How would St. Paul answer? In today’s second reading from God’s inspired word, he says, “Love does no evil to the neighbor; hence, love is the fulfillment of the law.” But not all things called “love” are loving in accord with Christ’s commands. Not all pleasures lead to true and lasting happiness. Not all paths lead to God.

In the case of that scandal at Corinth, St. Paul the Apostle declares to the Church:

“The one who did this deed should be expelled from your midst. I, for my part, although absent in body but present in spirit, have already, as if present, pronounced judgment on the one who has committed this deed, in the name of our Lord Jesus: when you have gathered together and I am with you in spirit with the power of the Lord Jesus, you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord.”

St. Paul excommunicates the man. It is a strong response because grave sin is serious business. (The man’s partner who goes unmentioned was apparently not a member of the Church.) The goal of an excommunication, beyond the spiritual welfare of the community, is the sinner’s conversion and salvation. St. Paul’s loving hope was that this offender’s sufferings would eventually lead to the salvation of his soul. For better or worse, formal excommunications are uncommon today. Nevertheless, just because one’s body remains inside the church building does not mean his or her soul remains with Christ. If we are living in grave sin, we need to repent and go to confession. And if someone else gravely sins, we could be called, with discernment and prayer, to share the truth in love.

When Jesus says to treat the unrepentant like “a Gentile or a tax collector,” recall how he himself treated Gentiles and tax collectors. Though not yet converted, he loved them. He cared about them and wanted to draw them to himself. He wished for them to change their ways and eventually come into full communion with him in his Church. If we are prayerful and loving, Jesus will enable us to correct the errant in a Christ-like way, and perhaps they will be saved.

Like our Lord appointed the Prophet Ezekiel in today’s first reading to be a watchman for the house of Israel, the Lord may call on you to invite sinners to change their way. As a watchman who loves God’s holy city and wishes the blessed number within her to grow, without abandoning your post on the walls of truth, encourage those who are spiritually outside of her walls to pass through the gate of mercy.

Posted in Catholic Church, Chastity, Culture, Homily, Jesus Christ, Love, Marriage and Family, Repentance, Sunday Homilies | Leave a Comment »

Jesus’ Praising & Rebuking of Simon Peter

September 3, 2023

22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Victor Feltes

When Jesus asked his disciples, “Who do you say that I am,” Simon answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church.” Jesus changed Simon son of Jonah’s name to “Rock,” or “Petros” in Greek, which we render as “Peter.” In the entire Old Testament, God changed the names of only three people: Abram to Abraham, Abram’s wife Sarai to Sarah, and Jacob to Israel, so the changing of Simon’s name is a big deal in salvation history. Jesus then declared to Peter, “I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in Heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in Heaven.”

In last Sunday’s readings we heard of how in the days of the Prophet Isaiah the Lord chose “Eliakim son of Hilkiah” to become chief steward of the royal house, that is, prime minister for the reigning Davidic king. The Lord declared, “I will place the key of the House of David on Eliakim’s shoulder; when he opens, no one shall shut, when he shuts, no one shall open.” The holder of that office possessed plenary power under the king throughout the kingdom and reportedly carried a visible key indicating this authority that he would pass on to his successors.

The great Doctor of the Church, St. Augustine of Hippo, taught that the New Testament is concealed in the Old and that the Old Testament is revealed in the New. In the Old Testament, the Lord gave Eliakim “the key of the House of David” and authority to open and close. Likewise, Jesus Christ the new Davidic king gave Peter “the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven” and authority to bind and loose. Eliakim’s authority extended throughout an earthly kingdom, but Jesus promised Peter that his earthly decrees for the Church would also be confirmed in Heaven. Eliakim would become, in the words of the Lord through Isaiah, “a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.” St. Peter became the Church’s first “pope,” a title which comes from the Greek word for a “papa” and an office held today by Peter’s successor, our Holy Father Pope Francis. Jesus foresaw that without a visible shepherd his Christian flock would inevitably scatter. Like Moses for the Hebrews in the desert, or like King David for God’s people in Israel, Christ established a chief shepherd for his Church on earth through his popes, beginning with St. Peter.

That highlight moment for Simon Peter is followed this Sunday in St. Matthew’s Gospel by a very humbling event. Jesus begins revealing to his disciples that he must suffer greatly from the Jewish leaders, be killed, and be raised on the third day. So Peter takes Jesus aside and starts rebuking him, “God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you!” Jesus turns and says to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! (That is, “Get behind me, Adversary!”) You are (being) an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does but as human beings do.” Notice how Jesus here reproaches Peter differently than how he once rebuked Satan in the desert, to whom he said, “Get away, Satan!” Jesus does not cast Peter away but tells him to “get behind me,” that is, “Follow me again.” Whenever you or I go wrong, Jesus calls us to follow him anew. Satan wants you to fall and stay down, but Jesus wants you to rise again.

Why was Simon Peter praised last week and why was he corrected today? First, Jesus tells him, “Blessed are you, Simon…. Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you but my heavenly Father.” Now, Jesus reproves him, “You are thinking not as God does but as human beings do.” Peter was praised for accepting the truth God had revealed and rebuked for trying to substitute his own ideas for God’s will. In today’s second reading, St. Paul urges us:

“Do not conform yourselves to this age
but be transformed by the renewal of your mind,
that you may discern what is the will of God,
what is good and pleasing and perfect.”

Who in this age could correctly discover these things in our world apart from Christ’s one Church built on rock? Our Catholic Faith is a religion revealed by God with infallible teachings about what is true and how we are to live. Being faithful can be a cross, but our Lord always sees us, and he will repay each person according to our deeds with punishments or rewards. Jesus tells us, “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” To get fully behind Christ and receive his endless blessings, receive everything that God has revealed to us through his Holy Catholic Church.

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“Deny Yourself, Take Up Your Cross, & Follow Me”

September 2, 2023

22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

In the lives of each one of us, there is a cross. The cross can be caused by someone else or brought upon ourselves due to our own decisions. Sometimes the cross is neither the fault of others nor ourselves. We are human and are not perfect like God? Whatever the cause, Jesus said, “Whoever wishes to come after me, must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” To be the true disciple of Christ we must take up our own cross and follow Him. Today’s readings encourage us to overcome all obstacles and to surrender ourselves completely to God.

In the first reading, the prophet Jeremiah lamented, “Lord you have seduced me, and you have overpowered me.” He complained about his mission. “Lord God, you did not tell me it was this difficult.” Of course, at the beginning of his call, he resisted God, saying, “Lord truly I do not know how to speak, I am only a boy.” However, God chose him even from his mother’s womb. (Jer 1: 4) Faithfulness to God sometimes brings us pain, trials, and disappointment. Despite all this suffering, God shields and blesses us.

In the second reading, St. Paul invites us to “offer yourselves as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God.” Submit yourself to God without resistance; this total submission is essential to a life of righteousness, joy, peace, and victory in Christ. We have to live as true Christians. Our daily lives must conform to the will of God. All our actions must be for the honor and glory of God.

In today’s gospel, we see the irony of life. Last week, St. Peter proclaimed that Christ was the Messiah but today Jesus said, “Get behind me, Satan.” Christ rebuked Peter for being an obstacle to His mission. Jesus explained to his apostles, that even though he is the Messiah, He has to undergo humiliation, suffering, and violent death at the hands of the Jewish authorities in Jerusalem. After correcting Peter, Jesus announces the three conditions of Christian discipleship: (1) deny yourself, (2) take up your cross, and (3) follow me.

First, denying oneself means, at every moment of our life, we must say no to self and yes to God. We must give first place to God whatever we do or say. Secondly, Jesus tells the disciples to take up their cross; this means our Christian life is a sacrificial service. We must abandon our personal ambition in order to serve God. We have to sacrifice our time and talent for Him. We must be constantly aware of the demands of God and the needs of others. We must accept the pains and difficulties of Christ and others. Finally, Our Christian life is a constant following of our Lord. Constant obedience in thought, word, and action to Jesus.

As true disciples of Christ, we need to ask ourselves every day, “Did I sacrifice a part of my time, and talents for Christ and others? Did I practice self-control over my thoughts, words, deeds, and use of mass media? Did I train my children in the faith?” Encourage them to spend some time together as a family praying and reading the Bible. Try to teach your children and others by your example of forgiving others and asking pardon for your own sins and failures. We must follow Christ by denying ourselves, taking up our crosses, and following Him in this way.

Posted in Christian Perfection, Homily, Sacrifice, Sunday Homilies | Leave a Comment »

Christ Chooses to Make us Great

August 27, 2023

21st Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

God has all power and authority over earth and heaven. He is the source of all that lives and moves in this world and the next world. Authority for civil and religious leaders comes from God, so that they might govern His people and take care of the spiritual and material welfare of His children. The Lord could have found many different ways to establish His church. He could have entrusted it to the angels. Instead, the Lord puts the church in the hands of the faithful. Though He is all-powerful and has authority over everything, He needs to appoint a faithful person to work in His name.

In the first reading, God sent the prophet Isaiah to tell Shebna that the keys of authority would be taken away from him because he was not faithful to the Lord and His teaching. In his place, God exalted the humble and faithful Eliakim. The Lord demands faithfulness to His ways and His word.

In the responsorial Psalm, King David thanks God for having raised him from lowly origins and given him authority as a King over the people of Israel. In the second reading, St. Paul points out that God is the Source of all authority on earth and in Heaven. Again, St. Paul invites us to discipline ourselves because bad things still happen to good people.

In today’s Gospel, we have Peter’s confession about Jesus. “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Peter was the first one to recognize Jesus as the Messiah, the Christ who came to save all his people. Jesus was pleased with Peter’s answer and said to Peter, “Blessed are you, Simon son of John.” Again, Jesus explained to His disciples that He was not a political Messiah. Rather, He is a Messiah who must suffer, die, and be raised to life again.

St. Peter was a man who grew in his faith. He was a fisherman. He was neither wealthy nor educated. When Jesus called Peter and his brother Andrew, they left everything and followed Him. Throughout Peter’s three-year journey with Jesus, He had moments of faith and doubts. When Jesus appeared to the disciples, walking on the water, Peter had enough faith to get out of the boat and come to Jesus. However, once he started having doubts, his faith began to shake and he began to sink. Immediately, Jesus stretched out his hand and saved him.

On the night of Jesus’ crucifixion, Peter denied Jesus not once but three times. Prior to this denial, Peter claimed that he would never deny Jesus and that he would even die for him. Even during Christ’s darkest hour, when he was dying on the cross, Peter was nowhere to be seen. He and most of the apostles had abandoned Jesus when he needed them the most.

Despite all of Peter’s shortcomings and failures, Jesus saw the best in him. Jesus saw so much potential in Peter that He made him the first leader and ‘Rock of His Church.’ If God used a man like him, it causes us to think that God can use our lives for greatness, too.

Eliakim in the first reading and St. Peter in the Gospel reading are prime examples of someone who was considered inadequate or not worthy enough to serve God. Jesus did not look at Peter’s inadequacy, he looked at His heart. When we feel inadequate or unworthy of Christ’s love, we can look at St. Peter. God looks at our hearts and invites us to be faithful to Him.

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The Keys to the Kingdom

August 26, 2023

21st Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Victor Feltes

The great doctor of the Church St. Augustine of Hippo taught that the New Testament is concealed in the Old and that the Old Testament is revealed in the New. We see an example of this in our readings. In the days of the Prophet Isaiah, the Lord chose “Eliakim son of Hilkiah” to become chief steward of the royal house, that is, prime minister for the reigning Davidic king. The Lord declared, “I will place the key of the House of David on Eliakim’s shoulder; when he opens, no one shall shut, when he shuts, no one shall open.” The holder of this office possessed plenary power under the king throughout the kingdom. He reportedly carried a visible key indicating this authority that he would pass on to his successors.

In our gospel today, when Jesus asks his disciples, “Who do you say that I am,” Simon answers, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus replies, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church.” Jesus changes Simon son of Jonah’s name to “Rock,” or “Petros” in Greek, which we render as “Peter.” In the entire Old Testament, God only changed the names of three people: Abram to Abraham, Abram’s wife Sarai to Sarah, and Jacob to Israel, so the changing of Simon’s name is a big deal in salvation history.

Jesus then declares to Peter, “I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in Heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in Heaven.” In the Old Testament, the Lord gave Eliakim “the key of the House of David” and authority to open and close. Likewise here, Jesus Christ the new Davidic king gives Peter “the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven” and authority to bind and loose. Eliakim’s power extended throughout an earthly kingdom, but the Lord promises Peter that his earthly decrees for the Church will also be confirmed in heaven. Eliakim would become, in the words of the Lord through the Prophet Isaiah, “a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.” St. Peter became the Church’s first “pope,” a title that comes from the Greek word for a “papa” and an office held today by Peter’s successor, our Holy Father Pope Francis. Jesus knew that without a visible shepherd his Christian flock would inevitably scatter. Like Moses for the Hebrews in the desert, or like King David for God’s people in Israel, Christ establishes a chief shepherd for his Church on earth through his popes, beginning with St. Peter.

Yet, this highlight moment in Simon Peter’s life is immediately followed by a humbling event in St. Matthew’s Gospel, which will be our gospel reading next Sunday. Jesus starts revealing to his disciples that he must suffer greatly from the Jewish leaders, be killed, and be raised on the third day. So Peter takes Jesus aside and begins to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you!” Jesus turns and says to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! (That is, “Get behind me, Adversary!”) You are (being) an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.” Notice how Jesus here reproaches Peter differently than how he rebuked Satan in the desert, to whom he said, “Get away, Satan!” Jesus does not cast Peter away. He tells him to “get behind me,” that is, ‘Follow me again.” Whenever you or I go wrong, Jesus calls us to follow him anew.

For what was Peter praised by Jesus and for what was he corrected? First Jesus tells him, “Blessed are you, Simon…. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.” But later Jesus reproves him, “You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.” Peter was praised for accepting the truth God had revealed and rebuked for trying to substitute his own ideas for God’s will. In today’s second reading, St. Paul reflects, “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How inscrutable are his judgments and how unsearchable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord or who has been his counselor?” Our Catholic Faith is a revealed religion with infallible teachings about what is true and how we are to live. Who could discover all of these things correctly apart from Christ’s one Church built on rock? Jesus says, “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself… and follow me.” To get fully behind Jesus Christ, always accept what God has revealed to us through his Holy Catholic Church.

Posted in Catholic Church, Christian Perfection, Homily, O.T. Figures, St. Peter, Sunday Homilies, Typology | 1 Comment »

Testing Hearts

August 19, 2023

20th Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Victor Feltes

A Canaanite woman calls out to Jesus, “Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is tormented by a demon.” And Jesus, surprisingly, ignores her. She persists and his annoyed disciples complain: “Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.”

Jesus replies, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” This is similar to what Jesus said in this gospel five chapters earlier, when sending out his apostles to proclaim “the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” Jesus had instructed them, “Do not go into pagan territory or enter a Samaritan town. Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” But now Jesus is in pagan territory meeting this non-Jewish woman.

She approaches him and does him homage, pleading, “Lord, help me.” Jesus replies, “It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” “Please, Lord,” she parries, “for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.” Jesus praises her great faith and grants her request, and the woman’s daughter is healed that very hour.

Many people draw mistaken conclusions from this episode. If Jesus initially ignores her and then likens her people to “dogs,” must this mean that Jesus is prejudiced or racist? Did Love Incarnate, through whom all persons were created, lack love for this woman, her suffering child, and their people? That is not the Jesus whom we know.

Did the Incarnate Word forget his mission until he met this woman and realized, “Oh, maybe I’m supposed to save the Gentiles too.” No – as the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches, “Christ enjoyed in his human knowledge the fullness of understanding of the eternal plans he had come to reveal.” (CCC 474) Jesus knew who he was and what he had come to do — to bring salvation to the whole world, to the Jews first and then the Gentiles. So why does Jesus resist the Canaanite woman, ignoring her, then rebuffing her, and saying that thing about the dogs? He did it for our good and her greater glory.

The Book of Proverbs says, “The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and the Lord tests hearts.” (Proverbs 17:3) The purity of precious medals is proven by melting them. Our Lord likewise tests hearts. “But why,” one might ask, “would an all-knowing God bother to test anyone? It doesn’t tell him anything he doesn’t know already.” The testing of precious metals and the testing of hearts not only reveals to everyone what is inside them, but purifies and improves them. In the intense heat of a crucible or a furnace worthless dross separates off or burns away. Our Lord sometimes allows us to face adversity and challenges to purify and improve us. He was doing the same with her.

Though Jesus and this Canaanite woman were strangers, he knew her. Jesus knows all of us through and through. (John 2:24) He is not trying to insult her and make her walk away (that is why Jesus uses here a diminutive Greek word for dogs better translated as “little dogs, puppies, or doggies.”) He is playing hard to get in order to elicit something greater in her. St. Augustine wrote: “She was ignored, not that mercy might be denied but that desire might be enkindled; [and] not only that desire might be enkindled but… that humility might be praised.”

Jesus appears to have been testing the apostles as well. Why was their request of Jesus to “send her away,” rather than compassionately interceding for her, saying, “Lord, might something be done for her daughter?” In the end, we and the apostles are shown through her the wideness of Jesus’ mercy and love, and that persistence and humility in prayer and in life are praiseworthy and lead to our greater blessedness in Christ.

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Glimpses of our Future Glory

August 17, 2023

Solemnity of the Assumption
By Fr. Victor Feltes

The Church of Jesus Christ celebrates our Blessed Mother Mary. For instance, we mark her conception, her birth, and today the beginning of her life in glory. It is fitting the Church does this since her Lord commands us: “Honor your Father and mother.” And when the people we love have birthdays or anniversaries, we love to celebrate with them. Today we celebrate how the Virgin Mother of God was assumed body and soul into heaven.

She is the icon of the Church, the beginning and image of the Church’s coming to perfection. We are happy for Mary, but what we see in her is good news for us too. She is a sign of sure hope and comfort for our future, for what awaits for us in our resurrection to glory. To unpack what I mean, consider what the Blessed Virgin Mary has been up to in the centuries since her Assumption.

Enthroned beside her Son in a place of close intimacy and high honor, she is an intercessor for us, her spiritual children. How many children does Mary have? The Book of Revelation says “her offspring [are] those who keep God’s commandments and bear witness to Jesus.” Therefore, she has many, many millions of children. And how many “Hail Marys” and other prayers are sent her way every minute? Yet we believe that she hears us without becoming overwhelmed and that she knows each of us personally, as a mother knows her children. We also have reason to think that Mary has not merely remained in heaven for nearly 2,000 years, but has been active here below.

Though we are not obliged to hold belief any particular Marian apparition (since none of these later events belong to the ancient Deposit of the Faith) the Church has judged many proclaimed appearances of Mary to be credible, or “worthy of belief.” These apparitions offer us clues about Mary’s life now and what life will be like for us in resurrected glory.

In her Church-approved apparitions, the Blessed Virgin Mary comes in varying appearances. For example, in her appearances to St. Juan Diego in 1531, Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico had darker skin and black hair and wore traditional clothing indicating she was with child. In her appearances to the Belgian immigrant Adele Brise in 1859 near Green Bay, Wisconsin, Our Lady of Good Help had white skin and blonde hair in different apparel.

In Mary’s Church-approved apparitions she also speaks in varied languages. For instance, to St. Bernadette Soubirous at Lourdes, or the three shepherd children at Fatima, she did not speak ancient Aramaic, Hebrew, Greek, or Latin. She spoke to them in their local dialects. Mary resembles her seers and speaks their mother tongues because she is the mother of each of them.

Mary’s apparitions suggest a saint in his or her glorified body will have the power to change its age or appearance. Mary remains a woman, but race presents no barrier and different languages are no hindrance to communication. And if our glorified consciousness will become like hers, it will be no strain to know and be close friends with more than a billion people at once. Won’t that be wonderful?

Another detail that seers of Mary’s apparitions agree on is that she is now exceedingly beautiful. During the years of her life on earth, Mary may have looked quite ordinary. We do not imagine that Jesus Christ had to be the tallest, most muscular, or handsomest man who ever lived, so Mary need not have been the most beautiful woman alive either. In this fallen world, the holy can look ugly while the wicked can look very attractive. But now there appears to be no mismatch between Mary’s inner and outer beauty. This interior beauty is called holiness.

After our resurrection, the abundance (or lack) of holiness we have cultivated with God within us will be seen in our endless beauty (or ugliness) forever. The glory we are called to in Christ is like Mary’s and that gives us reason to rejoice with her today all the more.

Posted in Blessed Virgin Mary, Christian Perfection, Feast Day Homilies, Heaven, Homily, Resurrection, Supernatural Phenomena | Leave a Comment »

The Voice & the Noise

August 13, 2023

19th Sunday of Ordinary Time
By Fr. Victor Feltes

When God visits the Prophet Elijah at Mt. Horeb the Divine Presence is preceded by powerful winds, quaking earth, and raging fire. Yet the Lord is not in the wind, nor the earthquake, nor the fire. Then there is a tiny whispering sound. Hearing this, Elijah goes forth to speak with God. In today’s gospel, Jesus calls Peter to “Come” forth to him out of the boat. Peter begins walking on the water, but seeing how strong the wind is he becomes frightened, begins sinking, and shouts “Lord, save me!” Jesus immediately stretches out his hand, lifts him up, and speaks to him. There is a common theme in these two episodes. In these encounters with God, Elijah and Peter must distinguish the Divine Voice from the noise. God is speaking to us, or he would like to. How can we listen without getting distracted or misled?

What do the demons want? They want the worst for us. They don’t want us listening to the Lord. They want us fully preoccupied with less important things. They want us too afraid or too discouraged to take good steps forward. How much time do we waste obsessing on things that don’t matter? How often do we worry about things that won’t happen? And how easily do we accept the lie that life cannot be better, that there’s nothing we can do? When our eyes and ears drift away from Jesus we sink. He chides us, ‘O you of little faith, of small trust in me, why do you doubt?’ Today I wish to share three great mens’ true discernment stories.

My first story is one about the 19th century saint, John Vianney, the patron saint of parish priests. His humble holiness and miraculous ability to read souls made crowds flock to his small French town for confessions, which he would hear for hours on end. His faithful fruitfulness made him a target of demonic harassment. Apparently, typical temptations were ineffective against him, so sometimes they would assault him as he tried to sleep at night, but Fr. John would take this as a good sign. It usually meant some “great sinner” was coming to town the next day to be reconciled to God in the confessional.

I have encountered people whose emotions very much did not want to go to confession or attend a spiritual retreat yet they could think of an actual good reason not to go. So they come, and experience God’s grace, and it’s more wonderful than they imagined! Who do you think was influencing their feelings in hopes they would not come encounter and listen to God? Emotions can be helpful and powerful fuel in your gas tank, but let your informed conscience and sound reason hold your steering wheel.

My second discernment story is about our former bishop, Cardinal Raymond Burke. He saw a need for a richer devotional culture in our diocese and felt peace and joy in the thought of establishing a pilgrimage shrine. He has a personal devotion to Our Lady of Fatima and initially pursued a shrine dedicated to her 1917 Portuguese apparitions, but nothing was coming together. So he revised the plan, opting to create a Marian shrine dedicated to Our Lady of Guadalupe and her Mexican apparitions in 1531. With that adjustment, everything began falling into place; a donation of beautiful land and financial contributions resulting in the shrine we know today. So not all obstacles come from the enemy. Some hindrances can be God’s providence to channel us into doing his will.

Midway through my time in seminary, I really believed for good reasons that priesthood was my calling, yet I still could easily question my vocation. (How could I be sure?) I would go in circles doubting myself with no greater clarity or benefit. So I decided to say to God, “Lord, this is my fair warning and my RSVP: I intend to continue towards ordination, but if that’s not what you want please make it obvious or impossible for me. If it’s not your will, I don’t want it to happen.” I left it to him, and after that I felt much more peace, and here I am now. Peace is a strong sign that you’re doing the will of God.

My third discernment story is about of St. Joseph. You will recall that when he learned that Mary was with child (either because he doubted her and thought her unworthy of him, or else because he believed her and thought himself unworthy or her and her holy child) Joseph concluded he should not be Mary’s husband. However, it only took an angel’s visit in one night’s dream to get Joseph back on the right track. This is because Joseph was a just man who wanted to do whatever God willed. God is supremely intelligent, powerful, and creative; so he can provide a clear sign if he needs to. However, having a heart and mind open to doing God’s will is a necessity.

You cannot see God’s signs with your eyes closed shut. You cannot hear him if you refuse to listen. God prefers to speak to us with a tiny whispering Voice, but if we ignore him he may allow some disruption in our lives. Those figurative winds, earthquakes, and fires are supposed to get our attention so that we will heed him and listen to his Voice. Our psalmist says, “I will hear what God proclaims; the Lord — for he proclaims peace. Near indeed is his salvation to those who fear him…” Fearing God is not about terror, but regarding and respecting him. Those who do, seek God’s will. They hear his Voice and listen, and thereby gain his blessings.

Posted in Discernment, Elijah, Homily, St. Peter, Sunday Homilies | 1 Comment »

Jesus Saves Us From Sinking

August 12, 2023

19th Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

God’s presence is usually felt in tiny and small ways. He comes to us in gentle, little ways, and He will be with us when we need him the most. Jesus expects from us the openness to call on him for help and he will be there to support us and guide us. He wants us to be aware of his voice in our life, which often goes unnoticed. Jesus is always there with his guiding and supporting hands.

The background of the first reading is that, after the death of Solomon, the northern tribes broke away from the tribe of Judah and from its priests. They formed an independent country called Israel. As the years passed, many of the Jews in this country lost their Faith in Yahweh. Their seventh king, Ahab, married Jezebel, the daughter of a pagan king. He allowed her to build a temple for her god Baal and then she encouraged him to take part in idol worship and immorality. During this time, the prophet Elijah was sent by God to Israel to bring His people back to true worship. Having faith and confidence in Yahweh, he defeated and killed the 450 pagan priests of Baal on Mount Carmel.

For this reason, Queen Jezebel sent murderers to kill the prophet Elijah. However, God saved him from the dangers and gave him food through an angel. He fled for forty days and forty nights to Mount Horeb. Once there, he realized that the presence of God was not in the thunder, earthquake, or fire but in a tiny “whispering sound.” Elijah acknowledged God’s presence by covering his face and coming out of the cave where he had taken shelter. The first reading remains us that we have to experience God’s presence in our lives. We must listen carefully to everything going on around us because we encounter God in all the small events of our life. Failure, as well as success, offers us the opportunity to feel the presence of God, who saved the Prophet Elijah’s life.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus approaches his disciples walking on the water. The disciples are terrified by seeing someone walking on the water so they cried out in fear. Jesus reveals himself to them, saying “Courage, it is I. Do not be afraid.” Encouraged by the words of Jesus, Peter is the first to respond. At his invitation, he walks towards Jesus across the water, but his courage fails and begins to sink. Jesus reaches out his hand to him and saves him. The Gospel ends with Jesus calming the storm and being acknowledged as the Son of God by the disciples.

“Courage! It is I Do not be afraid.” Jesus speaks these same words to us every day in our life. The gospel invites us to deepen our faith and maintain our focus on Jesus. We need to fix our eyes on Jesus.

We need to realize that the presence of Jesus is always with us. He gives us peace even in the storms of life. The storms of anxiety and worries about the future, storms of sorrow, storms of doubt, storms of tension, storms of anger and despair, storms of temptations, and storms in family relationships. So, try to feel the presence of God always in your life.

We need to imitate the short prayer of sinking Peter, “Lord, save me,” or the prayer of the mother of the possessed girl, “Lord, help me,” or the blind man’s prayer, “Son of David, have mercy on me,” or the repentant sinner’s prayer, “Lord have mercy on me a sinner.” We must begin every day by offering all our day’s activities to God and asking for His grace to do His will. Then we must conclude every day before we go to sleep by asking God’s pardon and forgiveness for our sins.

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The Transfiguration of Jesus

August 8, 2023

Feast of the Transfiguration
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

Today we celebrate the feast of the transfiguration. When God the Son, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, came down to earth to suffer, die, and rise again for our redemption, He took on human flesh. In doing so, He veiled His divine glory and appeared like anyone of us. What a grace for Sts. Peter, James, and John to see Jesus transfigured. They got a preview of the glory of heaven. It was also a preview of the glory we all hope to share in heaven.

Jesus shared the special grace with Peter, James, and John. Just before receiving this special grace, Jesus transfigured, Jesus told his disciples that he must suffer greatly, be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and rise after three days. Peter rebuked Jesus for saying this and Jesus responded, “Get behind me, Satan. You are thinking not as God does but as human beings do.” The disciples had to learn that Jesus was not the type of messiah they were expecting. What a shock! They needed this grace now. They left everything to follow Jesus and he had just told them he would be killed. They needed reassurance, and Jesus did not let them down. They received grace now on the mountain as they saw Jesus transfigured.

These three disciples, Peter, James, and John, were invited on three separate occasions into three privileged moments in the life of Jesus. They were present at the house of a synagogue official Jairus when his daughter was brought back to life. Again, they were with him in the agony of the garden. Finally, they were present at the Transfiguration where Moses and Elijah were also present speaking with Jesus about his approaching death. These disciples would have liked to remain on the mountaintop, but they did not want to stay in the Garden of Gethsemane. Here we can all identify with the apostles because in our mountain–top experiences of joy we also want to stay. And then in the moments of trial, we want to flee.

Now they hear the words of the Father, “This is my beloved son, listen to Him.” They have a task to listen attentively to his words and put them into practice.

The transfiguration was the mountain–top experience of the apostles which prepared them for their future trials. The glory they saw on the high mountain helped them understand that the Lord’s Passion was not the end of His mission. The Mass is our mountain–top experience which prepares us for the trials of the day. The Mass is not a transfiguration but a transubstantiation, in which bread and wine are transformed into the Body and Blood of Jesus. Now we say with St. Peter “Lord, it is good for us to be here” And we do not want to leave. But it is not to be. Soon we will hear the words, “The Mass is ended, go in peace to love and serve the Lord.” So we pick up our cross and leave to face the trials of the day.

As the disciples had wonderful movements with Jesus, we too meet Jesus in a most intimate way every time we receive Jesus in the Eucharist. It is the time when we are close to Jesus.

We also meet Jesus in the Scriptures as they touch our hearts. Jesus speaks to us now when we read the scriptures. And we meet Jesus in a very special way in all the sacraments.

We all want change. We all want to be transformed and yet we find it difficult to do so. May the transfiguration event inspire us to return to Jesus for He alone can lead us and transform us so we can see His Glory.

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Feast on the Transfiguration

August 5, 2023

Feast of the Transfiguration
By Deacon Dick Kostner

Today we celebrate the Transfiguration. Peter, James and John are invited by Jesus to join him on the mountain. They are invited to share an experience with Jesus and see that Moses and Elijah are still alive and conversing with Jesus. Is this a dream they say to themselves? And then, they witness an epiphany, a revealing of who Jesus, their friend, really is. They hear the voice of God from a cloud, shouting a truth: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him!” The three men are in awe, they feel special but are confused and do not understand why they cannot share this experience when Jesus tells them to be silent, until he is raised from the dead.

Although they are confused Peter relates their feelings when he proclaims, “Lord, it is good that we are here!” Folks, we too need to reflect upon the fact that we too can share in and experience the Transfiguration for through our baptism we have received a personal invitation like Peter, James and John, to join Jesus on the mountain. We, too, are special people and members of the Holy Family; we too can experience that Jesus does not live in the sky, but is really with us every minute of every day here on earth all we need to do is open our eyes and ears and as the Father said, “Listen to Him.”

As I reflect on this Gospel the first thing that came to my mind was our Church and Eucharist. Jesus calls to us and says, “Folks, you are special to me, please come with me and we will climb out of this world and rise way above it on a mountain I have created for us, and we can vacation from the problems and trials of this world to the peace found only at the home of the family of God.” A mountain place that He has named, “Church.” Mass is for us a mountain escape. A place for us to join people who are family to us to pray, and listen to Jesus speak to us through Scripture and celebrate as a family, a meal with Jesus, with our friends, sharing our love for each other and pledging support for each other as we all journey on the road to salvation.

The second thing that came to my mind as I was doing my morning prayer intercessions a week or so later, was the great gift God shares with us which are his creatures here on earth. The prayer read, “Lord show us your goodness, present in every creature, that we may contemplate your glory everywhere.” The birds, and animals are many times directed by God to help mitigate for us the problems of life, and how although we are maybe confused or even frightened by their existence and intelligence, we are awed by the joy they give to us by allowing us to, join them on a mountain and receive a mini-vacation from the challenges of life. What a gift God gives to his Holy Family.

I believe God gives to all of his creatures vocations. For us, Jesus gave us an 11th Commandment to love others as he has loved us. For animals their vocation is to display to us God’s goodness through his love and care for those creatures as well as his love for us humans as his children.

I had previously told you about my holy cat who taught me the virtue of being patent with others even if they hate you. I have witnessed a hen duck whose mate was run over and killed by a car, sit by her mate in the middle of the road for three day’s before leaving his side. And look at our police departments and how they have learned to ask the help of our canine friends, to make this world a safer place for us to live and to give us comfort. Finally, how about the resident cat I read about a few years ago who was given the vocation and ability to know when people in the nursing home it lived in were about to die, and who would sit with that resident until they died to give them comfort. The staff had indicated that this cat had a 98% record of knowing who would die within three days of when it took up residency with a patient.

Although this world has a lot of challenges for us to bear let us fear not for we have been invited to join Jesus and his creatures, and experience God, and the Transfiguration on a “mountain” with family and friends. When climbing the mountain and experiencing an epiphany, I encourage you to say a prayer that I have named the prayer of St. Peter, “Lord, it is good … that we are here! And as the Father directed us to do, I do listen to you!” Amen.

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Blessed Life — Funeral Homily for Maria Boehm, 85

August 1, 2023

By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

On behalf of the parish community of St. Paul’s, I would like to extend our sincere condolence and sympathy to the members of Maria’s family. I would like to assure you of our continued prayers. Life has merely changed not ended. She is now with Jesus, His Blessed Mother, and all the saints to whom she was so devoted. She is now enjoying the presence of family and friends who have preceded her in death.

In the readings, we just heard from the book of Prophet Isaiah, God will destroy death forever, and the Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces. God is so merciful and generous toward his people. In the second reading, St. Paul describes the life of Christians, if we live, we live for the lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord. So then, whether we live or die, we are God’s people.

In the Gospel, we have blessedness today. The Beatitudes describe as blessed, those simple followers of God that quietly, faithfully, and patiently wait, thirst and hunger for all that is good under heaven. When I spoke with Maria’s family, the overriding memory of her and the words they used when describing her life were words of simplicity, faith, and love.

Maria Boehm was born on April 7th, 1938, in Romania. During the Russian invasion, the family fled to Germany but they did not want to be communist. While her mother was working for the rich family cooking and gardening, they built a small structure in the garden and moved with her family. During this time, Maria Boehm met her first husband Kenneth who was an American serviceman and Maria married Kenneth on March 17th, 1956. They moved together to America, Maria learned English by watching soap operas. Together with her husband Kenneth, they raised four children. After the death of Kenneth, she married a long-time family friend John whose wife passed away five years prior, and helped raise his children. John and Maria together enjoyed their life by loving each other with their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

In the family gathering, Maria shared her talents as a homemaker; she loved cooking, and food was her way of sharing love with others. She took pride in her flowers, she use to collect angels, she was a devout Catholic, Maria was forever the caregiver, tending to the garden, feeding the birds, and was an Eucharist minister at St. Jude’s Catholic Church at New Auburn.

Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. Maria was a gentle and simple woman with a lot of love. Maria was kind and showed no jealousy, she did not seek her own. Maria did not rejoice in unrighteousness, but she rejoiced with the truth. She bore all things quietly, believed all things sincerely, and hoped all things even death. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy, God quietly, mercifully, and gently took Maria home with him. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

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Victory Over the Sirens’ Song

August 1, 2023

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Victor Feltes

This morning, I wish to recount two tales from Greek mythology which shed light on how we can fully live the Gospel. I want to tell you the stories of how Odysseus and his ship’s crew and Jason with his sailors each survived encounters with the mythical Sirens. The Sirens were beautiful half-woman/half-bird creatures who would sing from their island to passing ships. Their song was so alluring and entrancing that sailors would jump overboard and drown in the sea or steer their vessels into deadly shipwrecks on the rocks.

In The Odyssey, the poet Homer tells how Odysseus on his epic voyage wished to hear the Sirens’ song but also wanted to survive with his men. So Odysseus instructed his crew to tie him to the ship’s mast telling them that, no matter how much he might beg them, they were not to untie him but bind him down all the more. Then Odysseus put wax into the ear canals of all his men so they could not hear the Sirens’ song. While rowing their ship past the Sirens, Odysseus pleaded to be released, but his crew faithfully followed his previous instructions until the Sirens were left far behind them and all of them survived.

In the Greek tale of Jason and the Argonauts, Jason and his crew survived the Sirens using a different approach. Aboard their ship was a great musician named Orpheus, a master of an ancient harp called the lyre. As they passed the Sirens’ island, Orpheus plucked the strings of his instrument. And though the Sirens’ sang their evil song, Jason and all his men were so engrossed in the beauty of their friend’s music that none of them were drawn to the Sirens’ temptation.

So we see three strategies reflected in these tales: Odysseus tying himself to the mast, his men keeping wax in their ears, and Jason and his crew being captivated by something more beautiful.

Some people approach certain sins like Odysseus, asking, “How far can I entertain this temptation without falling? How much can I enjoy this sin without suffering consequences?” But having such a divided heart makes it is very hard to restrain oneself. Others, with more success, approach such sins like Odysseus’ men by giving temptation no hearing. They are not seduced by temptation because they prudently avoid its near occasions. They know where they are weak and adjust their habits accordingly. This strategy should have some place in aspects of all our lives. However, the third strategy against the allure of sin is best of all: to be led by, delighting in, and loving the holy, good, and beautiful.

Jesus says, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” The person in Christ’s parable sacrifices joyfully because he so values the treasure he has found. Jesus says, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.” A wise merchant can peacefully trade everything else for one most beautiful and desirable thing, to his great personal profit. Jesus, God, is the Pearl of Great Price. Christ’s Kingdom and life with his saints is the treasure we have found.

Let us pray: “Lord God, help me to love you more — your goodness and beauty and love — and to love all that you love as you love it.” Ask Jesus Christ to grow and deepen your love so that as you journey on your life’s voyage your faith may not be shipwrecked but be lived in fullest freedom with peaceful, loving joy.

Posted in Christian Perfection, Culture, Homily, Literature, Love, Parables, Sunday Homilies, Valuable Pearl | 1 Comment »

Spread the Good Seed

July 16, 2023

15th Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

Jesus’s favorite way of teaching was by using stories and parables. The story makes it more approachable and leads us to discover it for ourselves. We recall stories much more than abstract things; today’s gospel narrates the familiar parable of the sower and the different kinds of soil on which the seed falls. This story encourages us to reflect on our own lives and our response to the good news of God’s loving reign. It invites each of us to ask, what kind of soil am I?

Today Jesus speaks about four types of land, path, stones, thorns, and the last is good ground. The seed fallen on the path stands for those who hear the message of the kingdom of God but do not understand it, thus the evil one comes and snatches it away. The evil one does not want the seed of the Gospel to sprout in the heart of man.

The second is that of the seed fallen among the stones, this represents the people who hear the word of God and understand it immediately, but when trials and tribulations arise, these people give up immediately.

The third is that of the seed fallen among the bushes with thorns; Jesus explains that this refers to the people who hear the word but care about the world and the temptation of riches, being choked. Finally, the seed that fell on the fertile soil represents those who hear the word, accept it, cherish it, and understand it.

The enemy of our life here is ignorance, trials, tribulations, focus on money, possessions, pleasure, comfort, and indifference. All these may lead to the seed of God’s word to wither and die, or be carried away by the winds of the world.

Jesus invites us to have good dispositions be docile to His word, grow, and bear fruit in us. Today we must ask ourselves how our heart is. Which soil does it resemble? That of the path, the rocks, the thorns? It is up to us to become good soil and bear good fruit for us and for our brothers and sisters.

Today we must examine ourselves, Am I a catholic who actively practices my faith and love of God? or am I simply someone who attends church on Sundays and just identify as a catholic without truly living out my beliefs? Do I truly understand and put into action the teaching of Jesus as found in the Gospel?

Let’s remember that for a plant to grow, it needs to be watered, cared for, and protected from bugs or diseases. To practice our faith, we must nurture it by reading scripture and continually deepen our prayer, the sacraments, and ongoing education, in order to live our faith well. As St. Jerome says ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.

At the same time, we are also sowers for people who rely on us. Do we make an effort to teach others about the faith through our prayers, actions, and words? Our words and actions have the power to do both good and harm, they can build up or cause scandal, they can inspire or discourage, can bring souls closer to Christ, or push them away. So try to be good soil and sower of the word of God to His people.

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Seed, Soil, & Fruit: Parish Transformation

July 16, 2023

15th Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Victor Feltes
(As preached at St. Paul’s Parish)

Imagine if St. Paul’s Parish had turned out very differently than what we see today. Imagine if we had not only failed to reach our capital campaign pledge goal for renovating this church — imagine we had never even attempted it. Imagine unmet maintenance needs all around our campus: Our church roofs in desperate need of re-shingling. Our church attic lacking proper insulation. Our undercroft walls in clear need of refreshing. Our crumbling parking lot in need of repaving. No digital sign promoting our parish on our front lawn. Imagine there was never a new extension added between our church and the school. The gym, library, computer lab, and other rooms were never built. They would not be needed now anyway, since our school closed down years ago. All our grade school children enrolled in the secular public school.

A lack of sufficient volunteers ended our CCD/religious education program, teen youth ministries, and Vacation Bible Schools. Sunday Masses’ Children’s Liturgies never even began. Our Thrift Sale pavilion building, likewise deprived of sufficient volunteers, became used for nothing more than storage. At parish funerals, no resurrection singers in the balcony, nor ladies providing luncheons for the mourners after. No Family Life Committee meals marking each year’s marriage anniversaries and dearly departed souls. No Sojourner House evenings, no KC or PCCW events, no Fall Festival. No Eucharistic Adoration, no prayer chain, no prayer shawls, and few Communions being brought to the homebound. Not only no associate priest coming to our parish, but also no priestly vocations coming out of our parish. And many more lost things than this. Imagine all these things gone and the resulting missing goodness.

The good things we enjoy in our parish are the result of the seed Jesus speaks of in our Gospel. He is the Sower who goes out to sow, but some seed falls on hardened hearts and quickly gets gobbled up. Some seed falls on weedy hearts and gets choked by the worldly fears or earthly desires living there. Some seed falls on shallow hearts and is betrayed as soon as trials or difficulties come. But the Sower’s seed has found rich soil in some, in the hearts of those who listen to his word and understand it, bearing fruit a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold in our parish.

Now ordinary soulless soil cannot choose to change, but you can! Make a decision of your will and invite the Sower to cultivate you. Ask Jesus to help you to believe and understand him. Ask him to calm your fears and disordered desires. Ask him to deepen the personal connection between you. With Jesus Christ, you can change the sort of soil you are in order to bear more fruit with him. The Sower sows the seed in hopes it will produce much fruit, and along with it, more seed. Together with the Sower, we should scatter seed too.

Imagine a St. Paul’s Parish of tomorrow greater than we see now: Each pew of our renovated and beautified church filled on Sundays. More families worshipping here with their children. A full set of altar servers and a choir for every Sunday Mass. Our great Catholic school, enrolled to its full capacity. New parishioner initiatives and efforts to bless our community. And scores of your relatives, friends, and neighbors returning to the Church or joining her for the first time.

Is this not what the Sower of the seeds wills for our parish? He desires each of us to play a part in his mission, and our role is simple. Pray to God and offer sacrifices for these good things to come be. Pray earnestly to those around you and boldly invite them to join us. (Remember how the Sower casts the seed all around him on every ground.) And be living saints, whose lives, devotion, words, and deeds, bear good and lasting fruit for yourself and others, thirty, sixty, or a hundredfold.