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What did Jesus Sing at the Last Supper?

June 1, 2024

Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ – Corpus Christi
By Fr. Victor Feltes

The Last Supper was a Passover meal. Jesus says so when he instructs two of his disciples, “Go into the city and a man will meet you, carrying a jar of water. Follow him. Wherever he enters, say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says, “Where is my guest room where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?”’ Then he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready. Make the preparations for us there.”

The disciples found the upper room following the sign of a water jar. At the start of Jesus’ public ministry in Cana there were six stone water jars. As his ministry comes to its climax, there is a seventh water jar. The number seven symbolizes “fullness” or “completeness” in the Bible, like the sum of seven days is the completion of one full week. At the wedding feast of Cana, Jesus changes water into wine. At the Last Supper, Jesus changes bread and wine into himself.

“While they were eating, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, gave it to them, and said, ‘Take it; this is my body.’ Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, [and] said to them, ‘This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many….’ “Then,” St. Mark writes in his gospel, “after singing a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.” St. Matthew recounts the same detail: “Then, after singing a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.”

This presents a mystery: what hymn did they sing at the Last Supper? Would you be curious to know what lyrics Jesus was singing on the eve of his Passion? Since the Last Supper was a Passover meal, we have a well-founded answer to that a question. For thousands of years, the Jewish people have traditionally sung Psalms 113 through 118 at the ritual Seder meal for Passover. So Psalms 113 through 118 were very likely psalms which Jesus prayed at the Last Supper.

This Sunday’s responsorial psalm consists of passages from one of these, Psalm 116. Contemplate Jesus saying these words:

“How shall I make a return to the Lord
for all the good he has done for me?
The cup of salvation I will take up,
and I will call upon the name of the Lord.

Precious in the eyes of the Lord
is the death of his faithful ones.
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid;
you have loosed my bonds.

To you will I offer sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and I will call upon the name of the Lord.
My vows to the Lord I will pay
in the presence of all his people.”

Jesus is the Son of Mary, “the handmaid of the Lord.” He offers up the cup of salvation which contains the gift himself, a gift offered up to God the Father and offered up for us. The Jewish rabbis taught that all temple sacrifices would end with the coming of the Messiah or Christ except one: the thanksgiving sacrifice. In Greek, the word “Eucharist” means “thanksgiving.” Today across the nations, from the rising of the sun to its setting, the Holy Mass is Christ’s enduring thanksgiving sacrifice.

St. Luke notes how at the Last Supper, “when the hour came, [Jesus] took his place at table with the apostles and said to them, ‘I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you…’” Jesus spoke this to the apostles yet he speaks these words to us as well. The Last Supper, the Cross, the Holy Mass are all mystically joined as Christ’s one great sacrifice for all. Jesus Christ is really present, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity, in his Holy Eucharist, and he eagerly desires to share this Passover feast with you.

Posted in Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Jesus Christ, Last Supper, Real Presence, Sunday Homilies | 1 Comment »

The Most Holy Trinity

May 26, 2024

Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

Today we celebrate one of the greatest mysteries of our Christian faith, the Holy Trinity. This celebration reminds us that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are working together. No amount of philosophical debate or scientific research can fully explain it. We must see a mystery only with the “eyes of faith.” Celebrating this great feast, we ponder what it means for us that God is “Trinity.” in the Bible God reveals himself as a relational, loving, and compassionate God. He reveals himself to his people through his servant Moses, proclaiming his name and his essential qualities: “The Lord, the Lord, a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger and rich in kindness and fidelity.”

God is our Father, a loving and compassionate Father; he is the creator and giver of all life. All the good comes from him and through him. In him, through him, and with him all things exist. He is the one who cares, the one who waits for the Prodigal son to return and forgives completely and immediately. He is the father of truth, the Father of love, and compassion, and the Father of justice.

God communicates his love not in an abstract way, but in Jesus. His saving love is made most evident in the sacrificial Death of Jesus on the Cross. Jesus did not come into the world to condemn us but to save us. God the Son as a human being we can see, hear, and touch. Jesus Identified himself with the weak and the ordinary people. Though he is God, he emptied himself took human nature, and lived with us, so that he might open for us the way to true and unending life.

God created the plan of salvation, Jesus put the plan into action, and the Holy Spirit implements it in our daily lives. The Holy Spirit is the invisible force that allows us to accept Christ and what he did for us. The Holy Spirit allows us to walk with God along the straight and narrow path in our new relationship. The Holy Spirit reminds us of what Jesus did on earth. The Holy Spirit is infinite and indefinite. It can be everywhere and with everyone all of the time.

Since our baptism, we share in the love and relationship between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in a very special way. We were baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Through our baptism, God adopted us as his sons and daughters. Therefore, we are caught up in the love between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Let us respect others and ourselves because we are created in the image and likeness of God. Let us have the firm conviction that the Trinitarian God abides in us, that He is the Source of our hope, courage, and strength, and that He is our final destination. Let us practice the Trinitarian relationship of love and unity in the family relationships of father, mother, and children because by baptism we become children of God and members of God’s Trinitarian family.

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Three Pillars

May 26, 2024

Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity
By Fr. Victor Feltes

Sacred Scripture proclaims, “God created mankind in his image; in the image of God he created (us); male and female he created (us).” And our Catholic Faith teaches the divine image is present in every human person. The image of God also shines forth in the communion of human persons, communion in the likeness of the union of the Trinity’s Divine Persons among themselves. We are finite and sinful while God is infinite and perfect, yet we reflect his image and likeness in many ways: as individuals, as families, and as the Church of Jesus Christ.

Each one of us, made in God’s image, “possesses the dignity of a person, who is not just something, but someone.” Like God, we can know things, choose freely, and love. Like God, we can fashion things beyond ourselves, we can enter into relationship with others and reign over Creation. One psalmist in the Book of Psalms asks God: “What is man that you are mindful of him, and a son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him little less than a god, crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him rule over the works of your hands, [and] put all things at his feet.” These words proclaim the glory of human persons, but also foretell the coming of Christ, who called himself “the Son of man.” Jesus Christ reveals to us that which was veiled yet always true before: God is not the solitary oneness of a single person but a unified oneness in three eternal Persons. This revelation of the Trinity opens our eyes to how the image of God is reflected among us not only individually but communally, such as in a family and as in the Church.

In the beginning, when God created the first human person, he saw that it was not good for the man to be in utter solitude. So, perhaps because it was the bone closest to his heart and core, God brought forth the woman from the man’s rib, ‘bone of his bone, flesh of his flesh.’ This is a reflection of God where, “God from God, Light from Light,” the Son is eternally begotten of the Father. God the Father lovingly gives all that he is to the Son and God the Son gives himself back as a total gift to the Father. And from this mutual self-gifting love, the Holy Spirit eternally proceeds. This is likewise reflected in marriage, where a husband and wife gift their whole selves to each other and a third distinct person can proceed.

Jesus Christ the Bridegroom founds the Church as his Bride, unites us in her and makes us fruitful, yet even though he makes us one he does not make us all the same. There are more than a billion Catholics spread across the earth. We have different strengths, cultures, and treasures, “different gifts according to the grace given to each of us.” No one of us mere creatures completely manifests the infinite goodness of God. But united together as his holy Church, our diversity of goods more fully reflects God’s glory.

God has created mankind in his image; in the image of God he has created us. So reverence each and every human person he has made, honor the holiness and fruitfulness of marriage, and celebrate the plethora of goodness present in the Church. For all of these are God’s creations, pillars of Christian civilization, and each one reflects the glory of our Triune God.

Posted in Adam and Eve, Catholic Church, Creation, Feast Day Homilies, Holy Trinity, Homily, Marriage and Family, Sunday Homilies | 1 Comment »

The Dying Seed Bears Fruit — Funeral Homily for Marianna Greenlee, 88

May 21, 2024

By Fr. Victor Feltes

Jesus told his disciples: “Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.” In what sense does a scattered or planted seed die? The seed is burst open by the plant’s first sprout and roots. The nutrient-rich meat of the seed is consumed by the plant’s growth and its shell of the seed dries out and decays. The seed sprouts and grows; first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear, bearing much fruit. The seed becomes the plant, but that original seed dies, in a sense, by offering up all that it is and all that it has.

In one of his parables, Jesus remarks how a man who scatters seed on the earth “would sleep and rise night and day and the seed would sprout and grow, he knows not how.” Gradually, quietly, and mysteriously, the seed and plant interact with the soil and sun, the moisture and air to produce a fruitful yield. These parables are reflected in the life of Marianna.

88-year-old Marianna is one of the most impressive ladies I have ever celebrated a funeral Mass for. After graduating as a Regis High School valedictorian, she went to UW-Eau Claire to earn her bachelors in education. There she would meet Tom Greenlee, her husband of 57 years, with whom she raised their six children. She taught many kindergarten, elementary, and high school students through the years, but that’s not all. She and Tom worked together in extended-stay volunteer programs around the country, with the Christian Appalachian Project in Kentucky, with the Gullah Geechee Nation in South Carolina, and for Focus on the Family in Colorado. They served in the Diocese of La Crosse’s Prison Ministry program, volunteered at the Chippewa Valley Historical Museum, and hosted Catholic Cursillo retreat gatherings.

What is the dynamic which produces amazing fruits like these? This little story contains a big clue: In 1998, when Tom and Marianna were celebrating their fortieth wedding anniversary, they pranked their family at the party by announcing they would be seeking an annulment of their marriage so Marianna could join a nunnery and Tom could join a monastery. And their children were not sure at first whether they were joking! This goes to show seriously this couple kept our Catholic faith.

A plant’s fruitful yield grows gradually, quietly, and mysteriously, through interactions with heaven and earth. Just as the plant depends upon air and water, soil and light, to live and grow, so we need Jesus Christ and his grace, his sacraments and daily prayer, his love for us and a love for him, to grow and produce good fruits on earth. But everything starts with the dying of the seed.

“Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.” We die, in a sense, by offering up all that we are and all that we have to God, saying, “Not my will, but yours be done.” Jesus teaches, “Whoever loves his life (always doing what they prefer) will lose (their life), and whoever hates his life in this world (choosing God and goodness over ease) will preserve (their life) for eternal life.” Pray for Marianna and learn from her, so that your life may be truly fruitful too. Remember what Jesus teaches and promises: “Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there also will my servant be. The Father will honor whoever serves me.”

Posted in Christian Perfection, Funeral Homilies, Homily, Parables | 1 Comment »

Holy Spirit Unites Us

May 18, 2024

Pentecost Sunday
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

Pentecost was a game changer. Just look at the behavior of the disciples before and after Pentecost. Before the descent of the Holy Spirit, the early Christians were timid and afraid. After the coming of the Advocate, they were fearless even to death. Before the death of Jesus, He said, “When the Counselor comes, whom I shall send you from the Father, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness to me; and you also bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning.” (John 15:26-27) After the reception of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the disciples fearlessly bore witness to Jesus despite the cost.

Pentecost is an ongoing celebration of the gift of God’s Spirit, who is always with us, inseparable from believers. The fire that was ignited in the hearts of the disciples gathered in the upper room in Jerusalem continues to enflame in the hearts of all who have been gathered together here today. The Church is our upper room where we come together in communion of faith and love. The disciples gathered behind closed doors because they were uncertain about the future and were too frightened to publicly proclaim the risen Lord. Without a doubt, we have a lot in common with the first disciples.

Let us look at the Apostles, some of them were fishermen, simple people accustomed to living by the work of their hands, but there were also others, like Matthew, who was an educated tax collector. They were from different backgrounds and different social contexts, and they were from different names like Hebrew and Greek. In terms of character, some were meek and others were strong and excitable. They all had different ideas and emotions. They were all different. Jesus did not change them. He felt their difference and now he unites them by anointing them with the Holy Spirit. The union comes from the anointing at the Pentecost; the Apostles understand the unifying power of the Spirit. They see it with their own eyes when everyone, though speaking in different languages, comes together as one people, the people of God.

Let us focus on ourselves, and what it is that unites us, what is the basis of our unity? We too have our differences, for example, opinions, choices, and sensibilities. What unites us are our beliefs and morality. But there is much more, our principle of unity is the Holy Spirit. He reminds us that first of all, we are God’s beloved children, all the same, in this and all the differences. The Spirit comes to us, in our differences and difficulties, to tell us that we have one Lord Jesus and one Father and that for this reason, we are brothers and sisters.

Like the disciples after Pentecost, it is our job to bear witness to the Gospel. In humility, when we cooperate, the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit will come alive and assist us in carrying out this mission. May God the Holy Spirit inspire every one of you until the day you hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a little, I will set you over much; enter into the joy of your master.” (Matthew 25:21)

Posted in Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Pentecost, Sunday Homilies, Unity | Leave a Comment »

Welcoming the Holy Spirit

May 18, 2024

Pentecost Sunday
By Fr. Victor Feltes

On Pentecost, about one hundred and twenty people, including the Blessed Virgin Mary and the apostles were together in the upper room. There on this day, the third Person of the Trinity “appeared to them as tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them,” and “they were all filled with the Holy Spirit.” Yet this was not actually the first time Mary or the apostles had encountered the Spirit.

In response to Mary’s fiat, to her saying “Let it be done to me according to your word” at the Annunciation, the Holy Spirit descended to conceive the Christ Child within her. And we hear in today’s gospel how on Easter Sunday evening Jesus visited the apostles in the upper room, exhaled on them, and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.” So Mary and the apostles had each received the Holy Spirit before, sort of like us on this Pentecost Sunday.

We received the Holy Spirit at our baptisms, and received him again at our confirmations, and we can always encounter him anew. Since the Holy Spirit is an infinite Divine Person we can always receive more from him. So how can we receive the Spirit and his gifts more abundantly? Here are three ways:

First, ask for the Holy Spirit and his gifts in prayer. Prior to Pentecost, Jesus’ disciples had been praying for nine days—the Church’s first novena. They prayed to receive the promised Gift of the Father of which Jesus had spoken, to be “clothed with power from on high.” The disciples’ Pentecost joy and courage, the manifested miracle of speaking many languages, and that day’s three thousand conversions won were all fruits of the Holy Spirit in answer to their prayers.

A second way to welcome the Holy Spirit is to prepare a place for him. At Jesus’ baptism, the Spirit descended upon him in the likeness of a dove. Offer the Holy Spirit a hospitable place to land with you. If we are combative towards a dove or simply being too noisy, the bird will not approach us or stick around for long. So renounce all hostility towards God and cultivate peace within your house that his peace may rest on you. In other words, renounce your sins and go confession, and focus more on quieting your soul and dedicating time to daily prayer.

A third way to be touched and changed by the Holy Spirit is to expect and watch for his influence. The Holy Spirit descended on Pentecost in the likeness of fire. Fire transforms everything it touches. It causes other objects to radiate heat like itself, to shine like itself, to become fire like itself. If you ask for the Holy Spirit and his gifts and you are open to his influence, watch with eager expectation for him to inspire, empower, and transform you.

Back in my college days, one afternoon I was lying on my bed praying rather apologetically to the Holy Spirit. I said, ‘Holy Spirit, you’re like the most neglected Person of the Trinity. You’re just as much God as the Father or the Son but we direct much more prayer and worship to them than you. And when we do pray to you it’s because we want something, but you’re not just some divine vending machine. I’m sorry.’ Then I heard in my mind these words: “I am gift.” Now whenever you possibly receive a heavenly message, it is wise to check its truth in light of true Catholic teaching, since God will not contradict himself. So I considered that statement seemingly from the Holy Spirit: “I am gift.”

From all eternity, God the Father gives all that he is to his Son and the Son gives himself back as a total gift to the Father. And from this mutual exchange of self-gifting love, the Holy Spirit eternally proceeds. The Father and the Son send the Holy Spirit to earth as a gift to sanctify and transform us so that we may participate in the life of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit rejoices to be gifted. He is gift. And when we ask for his gifts we are inviting his presence—for how could his gifts be manifested someplace where he is not? So from this I concluded the Holy Spirit does not begrudge us asking him for his great and holy gifts.

On this Pentecost Sunday, what gifts do you desire of the Holy Spirit? Pray for his powerful presence, like Mary and the apostles did. Turn away from sin and cultivate quiet peace, offering a welcoming place for the Holy Spirit to land. And watch with eager expectation for the transforming effects of the Spirit’s fiery influence.

Posted in Christian Perfection, Feast Day Homilies, Holy Spirit, Homily, Pentecost, Sunday Homilies | 1 Comment »

The Graduation Party of the Holy Family

May 12, 2024

The Feast of the Ascension
By Deacon Dick Kostner

You have heard me say many times that “Family” is God’s plan for our salvation and the key to heaven. It is through family that we receive mentorship and instruction from Jesus on how to live a life bringing us happiness in this life and the key to heaven for all eternity. As I reflected upon the Ascension of Jesus into heaven I realized that this act of Jesus was his way of telling his disciples and us that we are ready to begin our “ascension” into God’s Kingdom. It’s time for us to celebrate our readiness to begin to share the good news with others of the Gospel message that Jesus tells us will bring us to fulfillment and life with him in heaven.

It is through family that we learn that we are called to care for others more than caring for ourselves. It is through family that we humans are gifted with the ability to co-create with God in bringing about new life. It is through family that we learn to share our gifts of faith and time to help others overcome life struggles. Today we also celebrate Mother’s Day. A time when we thank our mothers for not only giving us life, but also for their gift to us of giving up their desire for time for themselves for the welfare and happiness of their children. Jesus himself refers to them when he calls his Church and Mary our mother and his followers as his brothers and sisters.

Our readings today have Jesus telling his disciples and us that we are ready to begin our ascension into heaven. He has given us his teachings and sacraments. He has instilled in us his gift of wisdom. He has adopted us as his brothers and sisters though our baptism into His Holy Family and today he tells his followers that its time for us to begin our solo takeoff to our ascension into heaven. He gives us the power to bring others into the Holy Family. The power to drive out demons and speak many languages. The power to heal the hurts of others, and to lay hands on the sick to overcome their illnesses. He promises to send his very spirit to aid us when we are uncertain or afraid. Bottom line is that today is our Graduation our license to go out into this crazy world and to love others as Jesus has loved us. We are called into service. Our compensation for this will be out of this world.

Let me share with you my “out of this world experience” I recently was gifted with, as a Deacon and as an attorney. In February Barb and I decided to take a few days off and go with some friends to Arizona. We were to fly out of Eau Claire on a early Sunday morning flight. We arrived before daylight and were directed to get our boarding passes from one of three airport attendants. We got in line with 190 other people when all at once one of the airport attendants eyeballed me and pointed out to the other attendants, “Look, that guy is my Deacon!” Everyone turned around to look at me and then she said with a smile, “ That guy is the Deacon at my Church.” One of the other attendants said to me “she needs a Deacon, I could tell you some pretty nasty stories about her.” I told him that it sounds like she needs to go to confession but that Deacons are not allowed to forgive sins but I would be willing to hear her sins but I would require a fee for only the priests do that for free. Everyone laughed and we moved on. I felt like a rock star. Jesus had given me a thumbs up for my ministry as a Deacon. But my story continues.

All 190 of us boarded the plane and I was given the isle seat on the left side of the plane and Barb had the isle seat on the right side of the plane. We were seated at the rear of the plane where the bathrooms were located. About an hour into the flight I noticed a woman walking towards me from the front of the plane. As she got closer I recognized that she was one my clients from the Sand Creek area who had just lost her husband about a year earlier and whose funeral I had attended. I had done their legal work for over 30 years. As she got closer to me she looked twice at me and then recognized who I was. She yelled out, “Dick”, and threw her arms around me and gave me a big hug. Everyone around us looked at me including Barb. After she left Barb asked me ,“Who was that?” my response was, “oh, just a client.” God gave me another thumbs up for my vocation of being a deacon whose service area extends far beyond the walls of a church altar.

I was flying high and truly humbled and the last time I felt that happy was when I had found out that I had passed the Bar exam. God gives to the Holy Family out of this world “thank yous” when he is proud of his Family Ministers. It is time folks to start our ascension into heaven knowing that it might be scary, and thinking that we are not ready, but the time clock keeps ticking, but I promise you that you will feel great when others thank you for giving of your time and ministry so that they too can experience the joy of their “out of this world” ascension experience of ascending up the stairs to heaven. And to all the Mothers of our Parish both living and deceased and on behalf of all of us here at St. Paul’s, I wish to thank you and may God bless you for your sacrifices and your mentorship of love! Happy Mother’s Day!

Posted in Ascension, Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Motherhood, Sunday Homilies | Leave a Comment »

The Ascension of Our Lord

May 12, 2024

Feast of the Ascension
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

Today, we are celebrating the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord. Jesus, after his resurrection, spent forty days with his disciples instructing them and encouraging them as they prepared for the mission. The Ascension of Jesus into Heaven completed his earthly work of our redemption. Jesus proved two things. First, he proved that he was the promised Messiah. Secondly, he proved that through him who overcame death, persons who persevere in their living faith in Jesus, also overcome death and inherit the Kingdom of God.

In today’s First Reading from the Acts of the Apostles Luke explains how for forty days, Jesus had appeared to his disciples after his resurrection, presenting himself to them and convincing them that he was alive. During this time, he explained to them the Scriptures and spoke about the Kingdom of God. He ate and drank with them and spent his time with them strengthening them in their ministry. He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem until they had been baptized with the Holy Spirit promised by the Father. Through his actions, Jesus was opening the eyes of his disciples about his mission. Some of them, even at this time, did not fully understand him and asked for the day of the political restoration of Israel. With immense patience, he told them that this restoration is in the eternal plan of the Father. Jesus then told the disciples that they would receive power when the Holy Spirit came upon them and they would be his witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

In the second reading of today, Paul reminds the Ephesians of the marvelous generosity and goodness of God who had made them Christians and sharers-to-be in the glory of Christ, who was the eternal glory of God. St. Paul prayed that God would enlighten their minds to try to understand and appreciate the marvelous things God had done for them through the incarnation, death, resurrection, and finally the ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The feast of the Ascension is not to commemorate a departure but the celebration of the living and lasting presence of Jesus in the church. Jesus tells the disciples of the present situation as he gives the command to “make disciples” of people everywhere. He now introduces them to his mission as he passes on his authority to his disciples. Pentecost will be the confirmation of this. They now have the power to reconcile sinful persons with God and with the community and to decide who is not yet ready for reconciliation and full participation in the community’s life. Hence there are four aspects to this mission which Jesus gives in today’s Gospel: to evangelize, that is, to communicate the life and vision of Jesus, to continue the healing mission of Jesus both physical and spiritual, to experience the power of the Holy Spirit, and experience the presence of Jesus.

Jesus’ Ascension marks the end of his physical presence on earth, but it also marks the beginning of his spiritual presence in our lives. Just as Jesus was taken up into heaven, so too we will be taken up to be with him one day. The Ascension reminds us that our ultimate citizenship is in heaven, and we are called to live as pilgrims on earth, longing for our true home. The Ascension also reminds us of the importance of prayer and the need to continually seek God’s presence in our lives.

Posted in Ascension, Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Sunday Homilies | Leave a Comment »

Jesus Is Always Your Friend

May 5, 2024

6th Sunday of Easter
By Fr. Victor Feltes

At the Last Supper, Jesus told his apostles, “I have called you friends…” He calls them friends and he does not lie; what Jesus speaks is true. And then he tells them, “You are my friends if you do what I command you.” But what if we, or they, do not do what Christ commands? Does the Lord remain a friend towards us even when we are not being a friend towards him?

It appears Judas Iscariot was not at the table with the other apostles when Jesus spoke those words. Sometime after Jesus had kneeled down and washed their feet, Judas went out into the night to arrange for his betrayal. The passages we hear at Mass from St. John’s Gospel today are set two chapters after that. Jesus foresaw that Judas would freely choose to betray him, and God would go on to work great good from that betrayal, but these facts make the grave sin of Judas no less wrong. Later that night, in the dim light of the Garden of Gethsemane, Judas singled-out his rabbi for the arresting soldiers through a greeting and a kiss. Revealingly, St. Matthew records Jesus’ reply to Judas: “Friend, do what you have come for.” Even as Judas was betraying him, Jesus calls him “Friend.”

Jesus declares “no one has greater love than this, than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” And that is what Jesus did for us and the whole world. St. Paul writes in his Letter to the Romans how this proves the Lord’s love for us: “Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person, though perhaps for a good person one might even find courage to die. But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.” St. John agrees in our second reading that “in this way the love of God was revealed to us: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might have life through him. In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins.”

Like the Good Samaritan towards the robbers’ victim, Jesus Christ loved us before we had done anything to merit his love. But one might ask, “Does his love for us remain the same now?” Yes, for the Letter to the Hebrews says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” If we wander, he is like the father in the Parable of the Prodigal Son waiting and longing for our return. Like a mother hen, he yearns to gather us together under wing. And whenever our Good Shepherd can carry home one lost sheep to his fold, he rejoices greatly with all of Heaven. In light of this divine love for us, how should we respond?

Jesus told his disciples to “remain in my love. … If you love me, you will keep my commandments. … If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love…” So first, we must to recognize and receive the incredible love he always has for us. Then, remaining in that love, we love him in return. This mutual love inspires how we act towards him and other people. And through living this beautiful way of life we remain in his love. Jesus says, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” Jesus teaches the greatest commandments are for us to love God with our whole selves and love our neighbors as ourselves. “This I command you: love one another. … As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.”

The Church Father St. Jerome records how when St. John the Evangelist lived at Ephesus that apostle became unable to walk due to extreme old age. His disciples carried him in their arms with difficulty into the church. He could not muster the breath to preach many words. He would simply say to the congregation, week after week, “Little children, love one another.” Over time, his hearers became annoyed from hearing the same message over and over. They asked, “Master, why do you always repeat the same exhortation?” John answered, “Because it is the Lord’s command, and if this be done all is done.” As St. John wrote his New Testament letter: “Beloved, let us love one another, because love is of God [and] God is love.”

Jesus Christ is always a loving friend toward you, so be his faithfully loving friend in return, and a true friend toward all others, willing their greatest good.

Posted in Homily, Jesus Christ, St. John the Evangelist, Sunday Homilies | 1 Comment »

Remain In My Love

May 4, 2024

6th Sunday of Easter
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

Since Easter, we have been reading and reflecting on the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus and the apostles’ proclamation of the Gospel. Last Sunday we heard how the apostle Barnabas spoke on behalf of Paul and encouraged the other disciples to accept Paul’s conversion as genuine and welcome him into their community despite his past reputation. (Acts 11:19-26)

In the first reading today, St. Peter teaches us that God shows no partiality in His love. God loves everyone, both the Jews and the Gentiles. He wants everyone to be saved through His son Jesus. When Peter preached, the Roman army officer, a devout and kind man named Cornelius was the first non–Jew to become a believer in Jesus. According to Acts of the Apostles, Cornelius who was at prayer at about mid-afternoon had a vision. The Angel said to him that God was very pleased with all his prayers and kindness to the poor, (10:4) for his faithfulness God revealed His salvation to him.

At the same time, Peter had a vision, with various creatures in it. A voice from heaven told Peter to get up and eat. But Peter refused because his religious beliefs told him some of the animals were unclean. (10:14) The voice said to him not to call anything unclean that God has made clean. (11:15) While Peter was pondering over what he had seen, Cornelius arrived at his home. The Spirit encouraged Peter to go with the visitors to see Cornelius. Whatever the vision meant, Peter believed that God had a purpose; he understood God was removing barriers that were previously set in stone by his culture and religion. Through the conversion of Cornelius, the church began to embrace people from every nation and race. God used Cornelius, his family, and his friends to break down the barrier between them and the Gentles. The change did not come from a human plan but from God’s will and guidance.

The joy of the disciples, however, will be complete only if they love one another as Christ has loved them and if they continue to circulate to each other the love of Jesus that they have received. The love of Jesus for his disciples is the love of a friend. Friendship is mutual and manifests in love. Jesus manifests his love by laying down his life for his disciples. He wants us also to love each other as friends, willing to lay down our lives for each other. This is the Church—the community of Jesus’ friends. Our love must not be mere words or thoughts. When Mother Theresa of Calcutta was asked by journalists: ‘How can we solve the world’s problems?’ Her reply was simple: ‘Go home and love one another.’

We need to cultivate an abiding and loving friendship with Jesus. We need to express this love in our relationships with others by loving them and offering them trust, faithfulness, equality, forgiveness, joy, and sacrifice. We need to be persons for others: Jesus demonstrated the love of God, his Father, for us by living for us and dying for us. As Jesus’ disciples, we are to be persons for others, sacrificing our time, talents, and lives for others. The most effective way of communicating God’s love to others is by treating everyone as a friend.

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The Fruitful Trials of St. Paul

April 28, 2024

Fifth Sunday of Easter
By Fr. Victor Feltes

Imagine if Osama bin Laden, after masterminding terrorist attacks, had repented and begun proclaiming Jesus Christ and the Gospel? Christians might understandably still be afraid of him and wary of his claimed Christian conversion. In the first century, prior to his famous conversion, St. Paul had intensely persecuted God’s Church and tried to destroy it. At the stoning of St. Stephen the Martyr he had guarded the cloaks of the murderers. Before encountering Christ on the way to Damascus, he was “breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples.” He had sought and obtained letters from the high priest empowering him to arrest any Christians he found in that city and take them back to Jerusalem as prisoners. So after his conversion, when “he arrived in Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, [but] they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple.”

Yet it was all real and true. The amazing conversion of St. Paul, that fierce enemy of the early Church, is an authentic miracle in real history which has borne true fruit in Christ. St. Paul founded and fostered early Christian communities, wrote more books of the Bible than any other man, and had a hand in saving many souls. He also discovered good fruits for himself, including Christian peace and joy. St. Paul told the Philippians he had exchanged everything from before as if it were mere rubbish for “the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.” Such are fruits of a life in Christ.

Jesus tells his disciples in today’s gospel, “I am the vine, you are the branches.” He says, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit…” Notice how Jesus says God prunes those who are in him. Pruning clips off of a vine branch certain shoots or leaves in order to help the branch to be healthy and grow and produce more and better fruit. If vine branches were conscious, self-aware like us, how would this pruning feel? Painful, I imagine. Even if a branch loved producing fruit and wished to produce much more, how would a vine branch feel about such pruning if it did not understand this pruning’s purpose? There is a danger for a Christian who expects only comforts in this life and is surprised by the coming of any trials.

Consider the life of St. Paul. He suffered and endured many trials. Five times he received thirty-nine lashes from Jewish foes, three times he was beaten with rods, one time he was stoned, three times he survived shipwrecks, and ultimately he was beheaded by the Romans. St. Paul was not always liked, even by fellow Christians. It appears some Christians at Corinth said things like, “His letters are severe and forceful, but his bodily presence is weak and his speech is contemptible.” St. Paul’s letters reflect that the first Christian communities were far from perfect and they gave him many stressful problems to deal with. He writes of having beautiful mystical experiences but also of a “thorn” in his flesh and physical illness. St. Paul’s life was not always comfortable. However, he wrote to the Philippians, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”

When St. Paul, now amongst the saints and angels in heaven, looks back on all his troubles and beholds all their good fruits, does he believe that it was worth it? Of course he does. And he cheers us on alongside that “great cloud of witnesses,” prayerfully interceding for us to “persevere in running the race that lies before us while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus.” In both good times and in bad, Jesus counsels us to remain in him. “Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit… By this is my Father glorified…” And in this will be our glory too.

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Abide in Me & I in You

April 28, 2024

5th Sunday of Easter
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

Today we are invited to remain in Christ as branches on a vine. We do this by recognizing that God is at work in everyone and by striving to keep His commands and to do what is pleasing to God. The Christian life sounds easy and yet is a challenge for us all.

In the First Reading of today, we heard how Paul and the disciples of Jesus were trying to bear much fruit. When Paul arrived in Jerusalem and tried to join the disciples, the disciples avoided him with great fear. They knew that he had a reputation for persecuting the Christians. They were unable to believe that Paul was now one of them. Barnabas came forward and took Paul to the apostles. On behalf of Paul, he explained to the apostles how Jesus had spoken to Paul on the way to Damascus. Now Barnabas testified his spiritual joy by sharing with the others the Divine intervention of Jesus in the life of Paul. We all know what a difference Paul made to the Church. Jesus pruned St. Paul, and he bore many fruits.

In today’s gospel, Jesus uses the familiar image of the vine and the branches to teach us lessons about our Christian life. First, the image reminds us that God is the real owner of everything that we have. He is the vine grower. He does to us what is good and right. We belong fully to God. We should not allow our selfishness and pride to make us think that we have absolute control over our lives. Rather, we always have to be open to God’s action, confident that he knows fully what is good for us.

He is the vine and we are the branches. A branch cut off from the vine will wither and die. So it is with our life as disciples. We live fully and become fruitful only by remaining in Christ. In the gospel of John, the word “abide” appears several times: “Abiding in God,” “abiding in Christ,” and “abiding in his Word.” We need to abide in Christ because apart from him, we can do nothing.

The image tells us that to stay healthy and fruitful we need pruning. Vine growers know that the act of pruning is good for the branch. If the branch is not pruned for a long time, it becomes wild and produces no good grapes. Sometimes in our lives, God intervenes with the cross to challenge us and make us grow. To take away our pride, sometimes God allows us to fail to make us grow stronger in faith.

We are called to remain in Jesus, to be in communion with him. We are also to be pruned; what is useless in our lives is to be cut off. Our pruning is our self-denial and purification. We have to be open to pruning so that we can be healthy and fruitful for the Lord.

Like Paul, we believe in the name of Jesus Christ, God lives in us, and we live in him. We become branches of the true vine, Jesus Christ. Then with the psalmist, we can confidently sing: “You, Lord, I praise in the great assembly.” Alleluia!

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Good Shepherd

April 21, 2024

4th Sunday of Easter
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

Many leaders work for money and without any concern for people. Some of them take advantage of people for their selfish motives. But not Jesus. He has shown us the kind of leadership everyone needs to follow. First, He knew His followers by heart. Then He served them, taught them, and trained them. He didn’t run away from them even when His own life was in danger.

“I am the good shepherd.” Jesus goes on to describe what a good shepherd does: He lays down his life for his sheep. He knows his sheep by name and his sheep know him. They are not just numbers or faceless beings; they are deeply known and cared for. This teaches us about the value of individual attention and recognition. There is a close relationship between masters and their animals. They speak or give signs to the animals and the animals understand and follow instructions. The masters keep watch over the animals and do everything they can to protect their animals from any kind of danger.

Jesus is our shepherd and laid down his life to save us. He speaks to us through the Scripture. In John 10:5 and 27, Jesus says, “They will never follow a stranger; in fact, they run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” In Jesus’ voice are words of peace, love, faith, healing, unity, mercy, justice, truth, repentance, holiness, and eternal life. The good shepherd loves his sheep and makes sacrifices. Jesus says that other sheep do not belong to His fold. These people He must lead too. It does not matter if they reject Him again and again. One day, they too will know Jesus as their good shepherd.

As we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday, let us ask the Lord that we may be his good sheep, listening attentively to his voice, and following his example of self-giving love. Jesus gives us the example of a good shepherd who shows his concern and care for his sheep. Here we have Jesus as our model who offered to sacrifice his life for his chosen ones. He is the one who goes after the lost sheep leaving the ninety-nine to bring it back to the fold.

Today, let’s pray for our spiritual shepherds: the pope, the bishops, the priests, and the religious. We pray for our first shepherds, our parents, and our second shepherds, our teachers. We pray for our political and economic shepherds. We pray for shepherds in various institutions and establishments. May they all be guided by the voice of the Good Shepherd. Jesus did not use his authority and Divine power to rule and control people, but to set them free. Let us approach Jesus with trusting Faith so that he may free us from evil.

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He is our Good Shepherd

April 21, 2024

4th Sunday of Easter
By Fr. Victor Feltes

Today, St. John the Baptist’s Parish is celebrating First Communion. So, my homily for these six little ones is a little simpler and a little shorter, but still with big lessons for everyone. Jesus tells us in our gospel, “I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me… and I will lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep… These also I must lead, and they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock, one shepherd.” Jesus is our good shepherd and we are the sheep of his flock. He calls us, he gathers us, and he rescues us to save us.

Jesus calls us.
Sheep hear their shepherd’s voice and follow him when he calls them. Jesus calls us to follow him. He says, “My sheep hear my voice… and they follow me,” and that “everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” If you love the truth and goodness, then you will love Jesus. But if you love lies and sin, then you will not follow him. Never lie, because lies belong to Satan and darkness. Always be honest, because Jesus is the truth and light. Love Jesus, his truth and his goodness, and every time he calls you will follow him. Jesus say, “If you love me, you will do what I command.”

Jesus gathers us.
A shepherd wants all of his sheep to be together in one group. When his sheep are together as one flock he can lead them throughout the countryside, guard them from any dangers, and feed them so that they can live. Jesus calls people to be members of his one Church from all around the world. In his Church, Jesus leads us through this world, guards us from evils, and feeds us with his Eucharist. The day of one’s First Communion is a very special day, but it is only the first of many such Communions. Jesus wants to gather us in his Church for Mass every single Sunday.

Jesus rescues us.
One of Jesus’ famous parables is about a shepherd who goes out into the hills or desert searching for a lost sheep. And when he finds that one lost sheep he joyfully places it on his shoulders and carries it home. Jesus wants to find and rescue everyone who is lost; every person who does not know him and everyone who has wandered off from him. He tells us there is great joy in heaven over any sinner who comes home though the Sacrament of Baptism or the Sacrament of Confession. It is not the will of the Lord that you would be lost. So if you are distant, come home.

Jesus Christ is our good shepherd who loves us. Unlike a hired man, whose sheep are not his own and who only works for pay, Jesus was willing to fight our enemy and lay down his life for us because he loves us. And Jesus loves us still, giving us his very self in this Holy Eucharist today.

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Lord, Let Your Face Shine on Us

April 18, 2024

3rd Sunday of Easter
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

We have been reading and reflecting on the appearances of Jesus to his disciples, and the experiences of those disciples. Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene who was weeping by the gravesite of Jesus. Mary Magdalene did not recognize Jesus. She mistook Jesus to be a gardener. Jesus opened her eyes to recognize him. The effect of the experience was that Jesus made her the first bearer of the good news of his resurrection.

Jesus appeared to the two men returning to their village called Emmaus. They did not recognize Jesus. They mistook him to be a stranger. Their eyes opened to recognize him at the breaking of bread. The effect of the experience was that Jesus empowered them to go back to Jerusalem to share the good news of his resurrection with the other disciples.

Today, we read that Jesus appeared to his disciples and they mistook him to be a ghost. He opened their eyes and sent them to be witnesses to the power of his resurrection. He said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures. And he said to them, “Thus it is written that the Messiah would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.”

Peter preached these words of Jesus as we see in the first reading. Peter said, “Repent, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away.” Peter who was fearful and denied Jesus three times became transformed by the power of the resurrection. He began to preach boldly to the Jews whom he feared.

Many people in the world do not know Jesus and do not experience him. Some see Jesus as a gardener; some as a stranger, and others as a ghost. They can only know him and experience him through us who are his followers. We are to share the good news of the transforming power of the resurrection to the world.

Jesus needs us as witnesses to continue his mission. Jesus needs Spirit-filled followers to be his eyes, ears, hands, and feet, to bear witness to his love, mercy, and forgiveness through our interactions with our brothers and sisters.

We must daily invite Jesus and the Holy Spirit to help us, especially when we read the scriptures. Therefore, let us pray with the psalmist today: “Let the light of your face shine on us, O Lord.” The light of His face will illuminate and cast away the shadows of ignorance from our minds, increase our faith, and finally, make us firm witnesses to the resurrected Christ.

Posted in Homily, Resurrection, Sunday Homilies | Leave a Comment »

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