This week we turn to the third and final point of reflection inspired by Pope Francis and Pope St. John Paul II.  Having looked to the past with gratitude and having recommitted ourselves to living the present with passion, we now embrace the future with hope.

To aid in our reflection for this week, we can turn to the Pope who served in between the two already mentioned, Pope Benedict XVI.  Pope Benedict wrote a very beautiful reflection on the topic of Christian hope in his second encyclical, Spe Salvi (Saved in Hope).  At the conclusion of the first section, the Holy Father writes about the day-to-day hopes that we have, none of which are bad.  But they are limited.  He then provides the following key understanding of Christian hope:

[W]e need the greater and lesser hopes that keep us going day by day. But these are not enough without the great hope, which must surpass everything else. This great hope can only be God, who encompasses the whole of reality and who can bestow upon us what we, by ourselves, cannot attain. The fact that it comes to us as a gift is actually part of hope. God is the foundation of hope: not any god, but the God who has a human face and who has loved us to the end, each one of us and humanity in its entirety. His Kingdom is not an imaginary hereafter, situated in a future that will never arrive; his Kingdom is present wherever he is loved and wherever his love reaches us. His love alone gives us the possibility of soberly persevering day by day, without ceasing to be spurred on by hope, in a world which by its very nature is imperfect. His love is at the same time our guarantee of the existence of what we only vaguely sense and which nevertheless, in our deepest self, we await: a life that is “truly” life. (31)

It can be an interesting exercise to notice how often we use the word “hope” in our daily vocabulary.  We have so many hopes that help to keep us moving forward.  We must, however, not fall into the trap of thinking that the fulfillment of these hopes will ever be enough.  Only in God can our deepest hope be fulfilled, and only in Him can we truly live.  When we embrace that truth, our future becomes so much brighter.

Look back at the quote above and notice the following sentence: “God is the foundation of hope: not any god, but the God who has a human face and who has loved us to the end, each one of us and humanity in its entirety.”  It is this mystery of God who has a human face that we celebrate at Christmas.  God, the source of our hope and life, has come down into our human condition to become one of us, such that we can look upon Him face to face.  This is truly remarkable!  Many of us will be setting up our nativity sets in our homes soon, and I encourage you to practice the custom of keeping the baby Jesus hidden away until Christmas.  In the days leading up to Christmas, as you look at the scene, let your hearts be filled with hope as you look forward to finally seeing Him lay in the manger on Christmas morning.  Let that be the driving hope in these final days, surpassing other hopes such as what you might get for Christmas presents, or being able to see family members.  All of those are good, but they all fall short of the hope that we have in seeing our God face to face.  When you finally are able to place Christ in the scene, why not give Him some sign of your affection, for in doing so, you are embracing the one who is the fulfillment of our hope.  May that embrace spur us on to persevere on this journey with joy as we look forward to the final goal of our hope, seeing Him face to face in Heaven.

Father Alford    

Feast Day: December 7^th  

Last week, we were able to recount the dramatic shift that happened in the life of Theodosius and Ambrose when, between the years of 374 AD and 381 AD, they both went from being young, popular Roman civil servants to becoming Emperor and Bishop respectively. But climbing the social ladder-of-power was not the most substantial change that occurred in their lives during those years.  Nor was the political promotion they each received the shift that would have the greatest consequences for later history.  The most impactful event in either of their lives during those years was that they each were baptized.  They were set free from original sin; they were made sons of God; and they were given the gifts of Faith, Hope, and Love. 

This month we are investigating the topic of the virtues, and so we look to these men as examples of how the theological virtues can operate in someone’s life.  (We will save the other virtues, specifically the cardinal ones, for next week).  Both Ambrose and Theodosius, in an age that was debating whether Jesus was God, and with all the pressures of the world on their shoulders, chose to be baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and with that interior transformation complete, they then began to practice in their actions and demeaner the exterior transformation that befits a Christian. 

I don’t mean to argue that both of them suddenly were perfect, and yet in the months after receiving this first sacrament, what do we see them doing: upholding the fullness of the faith and responding to the horrors of their day with an exceptional amount of vision, patience, even mercy.  (Theodosius convenes the council of Constantinople, and promulgates the Codex Theodosianus, calling for faith in the Trinity.  Ambrose convokes the synod of Aquileia, and writes De Fide defending the orthodox faith).  In the moment, neither man could have quantified how much grace had changed them, and yet their actions – in retrospect – depict individuals who had allowed themselves to be redirected by those theological virtues. The question would be whether they stayed true to those virtues in times of testing that would come.

In 383, Gratian (the emperor of the West) was killed by Magnus Maximus, placing Gratian’s 12 year old heir, Valentinian II, on the throne.  The boy, and his mother (who acted as his regent), were Arian, and within two years were attempting to takeover Catholic Churches for the use of the Arians.  (She, Justina, still hated Ambrose for his helping to appoint an orthodox bishop to Sirmium, whom they had clashed with years before, and couldn’t stand his strident defense of Jesus’ divinity and all the corollaries from that).  Ambrose stubbornly barricaded himself inside the Church, and sent this scathing reply to the Emperor who had soldiers at his door:

“If you demand my person, I am ready to submit: carry me to prison or to death, I will not resist; but I will never betray the church of Christ. I will not call upon the people to succour me; I will die at the foot of the altar rather than desert it. The tumult of the people I will not encourage: but God alone can appease it.”

Valentinian backed down and Ambrose continued to teach his congregation the simple songs that upheld the full-faith he had so boldly defended.  The political situation being what it was, Valentinian and Justina’s schemes were derailed further by Maximus coming for them with an army.  They fled, and were only rescued by the happily orthodox Theodosius sweeping in from the East. This year, 388, seems to also be the time when our two characters first meet in person!  It was not the last. 

In 390, after a riot took place in Thessalonica (in which, it seems one of his military leaders was killed), Theodosius sent in troops to punish the city, and they brutally murdered thousands of the Thessalonians as they were gathered in their town circus.  This, just as much as Valentinian’s heresy, was contrary to the Catholic faith, and so we now find Theodosius outside Ambrose’s Cathedral, not with an army threatening to storm the altar, but humble and contrite for his sins.  Ambrose forced the Emperor to wait 6 months before accepting his contrition as forthright and allowing him to return to Holy Communion.

Theodosius would eventually become the last single person to rule the entire Roman Empire, dying in 395, in Milan, repentant and faithful to the end.  Ambrose would die 2 years later, still archbishop of that same city, where so many of the crises and characters of the previous decades had crossed.  Both men were sorely tried in the virtues of their baptism, we should expect the same for ourselves.  Regardless of the trials we face, God will provide the courage, and clemency, we need to remain faithful.

– Fr. Dominic Rankin’s favorite songs are Advent hymns.  There is something so gentle and powerful in their heralding the coming of Christ.  Ambrose composed one of the greatest of these hymns, Veni Redemptor Gentium.  Here are the final 3 stanzas (translated into English).  The divinity of the Christ child has not been forgotten here!

5. From God the Father He proceeds,
To God the Father back He speeds;
His course He runs to death and hell,
Returning on God’s throne to dwell.

6. O equal to the Father, Thou!
Gird on Thy fleshly mantle now;
The weakness of our mortal state
With deathless might invigorate.

7. Thy cradle here shall glitter bright
And darkness breathe a newer light,
Where endless faith shall shine serene,
And twilight never intervene.

In last week’s bulletin article, I introduced a threefold theme proposed by both Pope Francis and Pope St. John Paul II, that we as Christians are encouraged to: 1) Look to the past with gratitude; 2) Live the present with passion; and 3) Embrace the future with hope.  In this second reflection in the series, we will reflect on how to live the present with passion.

As I mentioned last week, it can be easy for us to get stuck in the past, remembering our faults and failures, those missed opportunities for doing good.  Our focusing on the past is not always remembering our failures, though.  Sometimes we focus on the good memories of the past, what we were once able to do, the opportunities we had, and we can get struck wishing those days were back.  The same can apply to the future.  We can become paralyzed thinking about what might or might not happen in the days, months, and years ahead.  The uncertainty of the future might frighten us, causing us to tun in on ourselves and so do nothing.  Or, the future might excite us, causing us to want to get to what lies ahead as soon as possible, ignoring our present obligations and needs.  By focusing too much on the past or the future, we have little energy to dedicate to the present, and it is only in the present that we are able to actually do anything.  When considering this tension, I am often reminded of the following anecdote: “Why worry about the past which you cannot change, and the future which may never come.  Live in the present!”  This is very good advice, and very much rooted in our Christian outlook.

The overarching theme for the end of Ordinary Time and the beginning of Advent is the necessity of being prepared, not so much for the celebration of Christmas, but for the Second Coming of Christ which will come at an unknown day and unknown hour.  With that in mind, the best thing to do to be prepared is to be attentive to how we are living our lives in the here are now.  Tomorrow, next week, next month, or next year should never be something we say when it comes to living our Catholic faith.  None of us is guaranteed tomorrow, so now is the time to live as disciples of Jesus.  And not just live as His followers in name only, but to live our lives intentionally and passionately.

There is a line from the Prophet Isaiah that is used on the First Sunday of Advent in the Year B Cycle of Readings which applies to this very well: “Would that you might meet us doing right, that we might be mindful of you in our ways” (Is 64:4).  To adapt this line to match our theme, we can say something similar to the Lord: “Would that you might find us living our faith passionately when you come to us, whenever and however that might be”

During this Advent season, this can be a good topic on which to reflect.  Are we too focused on the past or the future, such that we are not living the present well?  It does not have to be this way.  We can make the conscious decision now to live in the present by making our faith the foundation for all of our thoughts, words, and actions, letting the love of Christ enflame our hearts so that we will in turn love Him and our neighbor with charity and mercy, and so to be truly prepared to meet Him when He comes.

Father Alford     

Feast Day: December 7^th  

The year was 374 AD, and our story begins with two eminent men who have recently received minor positions of authority in the Roman Empire.  Flavius Theodosius, just now turning 37 years old, recently received his own independent command in the Roman army, stepping out from under the shadow of his father, Theodosius the Elder, a high-ranking general in the western Roman Empire.  He quickly wins victories over the Sarmatians (East of Rome, in modern day Serbia; not to be confused with the Samaritans, the remnant of Jews left behind after the Exile who did not worship in Jerusalem and instead settled 25 miles north of Jerusalem on Mt. Gerizim).  Higher up in the empire chaos reigns as various men grapple for command, clearing out opponents (including the Elder Theodosius by 375), though shortly thereafter Gratian comes out on top and becomes Emperor of the Western Empire and the Theodosian family again falls under imperial favor.  It is at this same junction that, north of Rome, the 35 year old Aurelius Ambrosius, also a popular, well-educated young man, is entering into his second year as governor of the province of Aemilia-Liguria.  His headquarters is the city of Milan, just 9 decades prior chosen as the capital of the Western Roman Empire by Diocletian.  

But God had different plans for these two up and coming Roman civil servants.

Let’s stay with Ambrose for the next stage in our story.  Later in 374, the bishop of Milan (an Arian, he preached that Jesus was not Divine!) died, holding onto his See until the bitter end, and throwing the city into tumult as the Christian factions fought over who would become their shepherd.  Governor Ambrose steps into the fray to calm the crowds and somewhere above the din two words were heard: “Ambrose, bishop!”  The upright civil servant blanched at the thought – his family was Christian, but he had not even been baptized – and yet, despite his attempt to avoid the crowd’s acclaim, all were convinced he would make a good successor to the apostles and within a week he was baptized, ordained, and consecrated the next bishop of Milan.  We can presume that the holy water and oils upon the new Bishop Ambrose had dried somewhat by the time 379 came around, for that was the year that another death sent ripples through history.  This time it was Valens, the emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, and uncle of Gratian, who was still emperor in the West.  Valens, even more than the heretical Archbishop Auxentius, died surrounded by enemies.  His army was overwhelmed in battle with the Goths and his body was lost amidst the carnage. Theodosius, a popular and proven general, was named joint-emperor with Gratian, and sent to the Eastern Empire to hold back the Visigoth hordes.  One twist to his story, which is now eerily similar to Ambrose: Theodosius falls deathly ill shortly thereafter and chooses to be baptized a Christian.

And so we come to the 380s.  Theodosius is slowly brokering peace with the Goths, winning them over by his justice and generosity and incorporating many of their tribes within the empire rather than decimating the roman legions to try and defeat them.  He, along with Gratian (and Gratian’s second-in-command, Valentinian II) issue in 380 the Edict of Thessalonica professing and protecting Nicene Catholic Christianity, against the various heresies which were bubbling up around the Empire alongside of Arianism, and so the Roman empire receives this text from their emperor(s), who many still consider as part of the pagan pantheon:

It is our desire that all the various nations which are subject to our Clemency and Moderation, should continue to profess that religion which was delivered to the Romans by the divine Apostle Peter, as it has been preserved by faithful tradition, and which is now professed by the PontiffDamasus and by Peter, Bishop of Alexandria, a man of apostolic holiness. According to the apostolic teaching and the doctrine of the Gospel, let us believe in the one deity of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, in equal majesty and in a holy Trinity. [Gratian, Valentinian, and Theodosius, Codex Theodosianus, XVI.1.2, 380AD]

If the emperors could be faulted for heavy-handedly enforcing Christian doctrine by imperial decree over the coming years, perhaps our parallel character this week, Ambrose, offers us the Church’s reaction to this changing scene.  There, in Milan, the good bishop is patiently preaching the Arians back into the fullness of the Christian faith, convicting them by his humility, charity, and piety (and, sidenote: he also introduces popular musical :  

Let us likewise deal kindly, let us persuade our adversaries of that which is to their profit, “let us worship and lament before the Lord our Maker.” For we would not overthrow, but rather heal; we lay no ambush for them, but warn them as in duty bound. Kindliness often bends those whom neither force nor argument will avail to overcome. [Ambrose, De Fide, II.XI.89, 380AD)

Notice that both men, after following a secular career for years, chose baptism and to offer for God’s purposes their energy and skill.  Notice too that the gift they received of faith, hope, and love, does not automatically transform them into saints.  The years to come will give them chance to follow the path of Christ, or not.  We will return to their story next week!

– Fr. Dominic Rankin bit off more than he could chew this week.  Even just sticking with history and the theological virtues, we ran out of space.  Still, Ambrose remains our saint and friend, and won’t mind if more of his story waits until the next time! 

In 2014, Pope Francis issued an Apostolic Letter to All Consecrated People on the Occasion of the Year of Consecrated Life.  In that letter, he invited them to do three things during that year:

1. Look to the past with gratitude
2. Live the present with passion
3. Embrace the future with hope

The Holy Father seems to have been inspired by something one of his predecessors, Pope St. John Paul II, had said during his Pontificate at the conclusion of the Great Jubilee Year of 2000, when he wrote:

Duc in altum! These words ring out for us today, and they invite us to remember the past with gratitude, to live the present with enthusiasm and to look forward to the future with confidence: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and for ever”

(Heb 13:8).  (Novo millennio ineunte, 1)

I find that threefold approach to the Christian life a beautiful and simple summary of how each of us should live each day.  As we begin a new liturgical year together, I would like to look at these three points over the next three bulletin articles.  Not only do they apply well to our lives in general as Christians, but I think they also help us to live this season of Advent in a more fruitful way.

We therefore begin by looking to the past with gratitude.  In particular, we look at this past year in our lives and in our parish.  Our human tendency is to think first of the negative things that have happened.  Some of us has lost loved ones.  Some of us have experienced suffering in some fashion.  Perhaps some of us have lost our jobs, or maybe a relationship with somebody close to us has been damaged.  Ok, that may be the case, but let us start with gratitude.  Where has the Lord blessed you this past year?  Some of you may have welcomed new members to your family with the birth of a child or a grandchild.  Perhaps you have welcomed a new member to your family through marriage.  Some of you may have started new jobs.  Perhaps you accomplished something of which you are very proud.  With regards to our faith, consider how many times you have been fed with the Bread of Life in the Eucharist, or how you experienced the freedom that comes from receiving Christ’s mercy in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  If we take the time to intentionally look back over the last year, I am certain each of us can find something for which to be grateful.  Even if you struggle to identify your blessings, our faith reminds us of something beautiful: “We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” (Rom 8:28)  We can therefore thank God for everything He has allowed to happen to us, even those hard things, for God can and does use all of them for our good, despite our understanding how He is doing so.

As we have just celebrated Thanksgiving this past Thursday, may that spirit of gratitude carry us into this new year of grace, trusting that the Lord who has been so good and generous to us over the past year will continue to bless us in the year ahead.

Father Alford     

This Sunday is the first Sunday of advent. Advent is the first of the five liturgical seasons in the Church’s calendar. The four others are Christmas, Lent, Easter, and Ordinary Time. These five liturgical seasons have various unique elements that make each of them especially important in the spiritual life and growth of individual members of the Church. One of the distinctive elements of the season of advent is the first readings that come from the book of Isaiah. Isaiah is the prophet who, despite his unworthiness for the call of God, answered, “Here I am, send me” when God was looking for someone to send to minister to his people. (Is 6:8).

Isaiah, one of the most prominent prophets in the Old Testament bible, was called by God to minister to the people at a critical time in the history of Israel. It was a time of confusion, faithlessness, and sociopolitical unrest. There were many misunderstandings, wars, and desecration of holy places across the northern kingdoms and beyond.

In the midst of all that, God needed to send a loyal and courageous prophet for a unique prophetic ministry among his people. This ministry would involve declaring the impending doom that awaits sinners who persist in their sinfulness and the proclamation of the sovereignty of God among the people. In proclaiming God’s power, the chosen prophet shall also announce the coming of the Son of God – the Emmanuel. This Son of God shall save sinners if they repent from their sinfulness and accept God as their Lord and Savior. The task was enormous and would require someone of high intelligence, holiness, and integrity. Although highly unqualified in every way, God chose and sent Isaiah for this prophetic ministry.

Isaiah was the least qualified. In Isaiah 6:5, he cried out: “Woe is me. I am doomed. For I am a man of unclean lips, living among a people of unclean lips….” Isaiah was humble enough to acknowledge his absolute unworthiness for the ministry that God called him. But as God wills, “He calls the unqualified and qualifies them. He chooses the weak to strengthen them.” (Is 40:29; 1Cor 1:27).

Almost every day from this weekend until Christmas, our first readings shall come from the book of Isaiah. The Church intentionally arranged these liturgical readings this way to help us prepare in humility and joyful anticipation, the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. While this humility defines the circumstances surrounding the birth of our Savior, we also see it in the Prophet Isaiah. He humbly acknowledged his unworthiness for the call of God. After this act of humility, the Prophet also had the courage to say, “Here I am, send me,” when God was searching for whom to send.

As we begin this season of hope, let us ask God to grant us the grace of the virtues of humility and courage. HUMILITY to acknowledge God’s blessings, love, and mercy in our lives. And COURAGE to accept and welcome God’s will and plan for our lives.

Feast Day: November 30^th 

Besides knowing that was chosen by Jesus to be an apostle, and the traditions that the Church has passed down carefully every since his martyrdom on an X-shaped cross (a “crux decussata” as the Romans would have known it) in Patras (within the area thought to have been evangelized by Andrew around what is now Turkey and Greece), we have three scenes given us in the Gospels to get to know this older brother of Simon Peter.  In the first, we find that Andrew is a fisherman (he is now the patron saint of all who have followed him in that occupation), and one of the disciples of John the Baptist.  

One of the two who heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his brother Simon, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him, and said, “So you are Simon the son of John? You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter).

[John 1:40-42]

The focus quickly shifts to Peter, and yet we find here that Andrew was actually one of Jesus’ first disciples, and had the courage and clarity to see right away that Jesus, yes, of Nazareth, was the Messiah.  I love how he describes this encounter and realization as “finding” the Messiah.  It is true for us as well that we must seek Christ in order to find Him.  He does not hide from us!  But, the happenings of our lives can overshadow His presence to us, and we must continuously strive to find Him anew, to discover Him more fully, to know Him more fully, to love Him more completely.  Yes, we much find Jesus every day!  Fast forward a few chapters, and we find ourselves with Andrew at one of Jesus’ most famous miracles: 

Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a multitude was coming to him, Jesus said to Philip, “How are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” This he said to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little.” One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what are they among so many?”

[John 6:5-9]

Still overshadowed by his brother, Andrew’s words flesh out the boldness that we already saw in Capernaum: he has the gumption to bring a laughable solution to an immense problem, but to leave the situation in Jesus’ hands all the same.  Now Andrew goes beyond following and finding, he must bring also his futility to the Lord.  Can we follow Andrew this far, or do we hesitate to be inadequate before Jesus?  Christ does not just want our fidelity; He also wants our frailty!  Do I tell Him about my inadequacy?  Do I trust Him enough to open to Him my own lack of trust? And lastly:

Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. So these came to Philip, who was from Beth-saida in Galilee, and said to him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew went with Philip and they told Jesus. And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If any one serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there shall my servant be also; if any one serves me, the Father will honor him.

[John 12:20-26]

To struggle to find Jesus is one thing.  To risk our frailty before the Lord is another.  But now Andrew goes further and allows Jesus to work through his friendships.  Philip, it seems, wasn’t willing on his own to bring the Greek group to Jesus, but Andrew, as always, had the nerve to risk it.  He had done this first with Peter, then with the little boy and his fish, and now these foreigners.  Each would never have met Jesus if Andrew hadn’t intervened.  Do you and I have that courage?  Do we act on it?  Do we invite our own friends into friendship with Jesus?  We will never be “ready” to do so, knowing everything about the Lord!  Andrew sure didn’t, but he still was man-enough to just bring people to Jesus.

– Fr. Rankin seriously wondered how this fourth saint would successfully tie together an unpredictable month trying to understand human conscience and freedom through the lives of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, St. Albert the Great, and St. Clement I.  And here he does!  Do we consider the Gospel an imposition that we can’t propose anew to a relative, friend, or acquaintance?  Do we think it a burden that limits our freedom?  We must not!  Our freedom is fulfilled in Jesus!  We are never more free than when we are His disciples, and abide in obedience to, and like, Him.  That is our Christian belief, let us live in that faith every day!

When he was installed as our bishop in 2010, Bishop Thomas John Paprocki chose the date of his installation for June 22, the liturgical feast of Ss. John Fisher and Thomas More.  These two saints serve as special patrons for our bishop who is both a bishop (like St. John Fisher) and a lawyer (like St. Thomas More, patron saint of lawyers).  Bishop Paprocki has shared on several occasions that his favorite movie is A Man for All Seasons, a story about the life of St. Thomas More who suffered martyrdom for his obedience to Christ and His Church in the face of pressure from the King.  There is a line from the movie that always strikes me where St. Thomas More says the following before his execution: “I die his Majesty’s good servant, but God’s first.”  

These words serve as a great motto for us to live by in our lives as Catholics.  We should strive to be good citizens of the country in which we live, not intentionally trying to rebel against our leaders.  At the same time, we have an even greater obligation to be faithful servants to the one who exercises the greatest authority over us, Christ our King.  Ideally, the laws of our nation and world should be in accord with God’s divine law, but we know that this is often not the case, thus our need to advocate for changing laws and practices that lead society away from God’s law so that our world can experience the truth and freedom that His law brings.

As the Church celebrates this last Sunday in Ordinary Time, the Solemnity of Christ the King, it is fitting that our Family of Faith topic for this month is freedom.  As mentioned above, when we submit ourselves to God’s will and His law, we are set on a path to true freedom.  In a culture that often confuses freedom with doing what one wants, the Church proposes to us a definition of freedom as doing what one ought.  Staying obedient to the laws of Christ and His Church guarantees protection from the enemies that try to assail us in various ways.  Christ our King reigns victorious and He desires for us to share in that victory.  In a world that questions and doubts those in authority, we should have no fear in trusting in the authority and rule of Christ our King, for His is a kingship of service and love toward His beloved children.  By following His will for us, we become more fully who He intends us to be and will experience a peace and joy that this world cannot give, perhaps not in this life, but certainly in the life to come.

During this week, as we look to Christ our King and consider His rule over us, it might be good for us to spend some time praying with Psalm 119.  Every verse in this long psalm refers to the law in some fashion.  The psalmist extols the goodness of the commandments of God, rejoicing as he strives to obey His word.  May our hearts have a similar longing to follow the path of the Lord, that we might be able to say at the end of our lives like St. Thomas More: “I die my country’s faithful citizen, but God’s first!”

Father Alford     

As Thanksgiving draws near, many people ask me if we celebrate Thanksgiving in Nigeria and how? It is a natural curiosity for people to ask questions like this to those they know come from cultures and places other than the United States. Sometimes, I am inclined to say no, we do not celebrate Thanksgiving in Nigeria. But that answer will either be incomplete or wrong. While Thanksgiving is an American thing, for the most part, many other cultures and nations have celebrations at various times of the year that are very similar to the American fiesta of Thanksgiving.

In the Igbo nation of Nigeria, the former Republic of Biafra, the “New Yam Festival” known as the “Iri Ji or Iwa Ji” in the Igbo language is very similar to the American Thanksgiving. The Iri Ji is a thanksgiving festival to God for a good harvest at the beginning of the harvesting period. It takes place for about three days in different towns and kingdoms across the Igbo nation anytime between July and September. Since July through September is a long vacation (summer vacation) in Nigeria, schools are not in session. But because the Iri Ji is a town and kingdom-based celebration, it is not a work-free day for workers except, in some cases, for farmers.

The American Thanksgiving and the Igbo Iri Ji are very similar both in cultural origins and essence. American Thanksgiving is farmers-based in origin. It lasted for three days in the early stages of the holiday. In the same way, the Igbo Iri Ji was farmers-based and somehow still is. And it typically lasts for three days. Both fiestas focused primarily on thanking God for his blessings upon humanity. In his words, President Abraham Lincoln explained in the document that made the American Thanksgiving a national holiday that Thanksgiving is a time to render “Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.” 

So, yes. We celebrate thanksgiving in Nigeria – in the Igbo nation of Nigeria where I grew up. It is not as popular as American thanksgiving because it is not a national holiday like American Thanksgiving. Also, the Iri Ji is not celebrated at the same time across Igboland as the American Thanksgiving, which is celebrated on the same day across the United States. Therefore, various cultures and nations around the world may have other names for their thanksgiving. But they indeed have celebrations like the American thanksgiving where the people give thanks to God for all the blessings of life.

It will be good to remind ourselves that this thanksgiving, we should be giving thanks to God for the many blessings he has given us in this life. The life we live, the friends and family we have, our Catholic faith, education, jobs, and businesses, and the many things we have and enjoy in our world today. All these are reasons to be grateful to our family and friends and especially to God. To express our gratitude, let us choose to stay away from our sinful and bad habits, forgive people who have wronged us, ask for forgiveness from people we wronged. Let us pursue peace and justice in our thoughts and actions. And finally, let us reach out to people and extend some goodwill, kindness, love, and compassion. May you and yours have a memorable thanksgiving this week. Amen.

Feast Day: November 23^rd

“Linus, Cletus, Clement, Sixtus, Cornelius, Cyprian, Lawrence, Chrysogonus, John and Paul, Cosmas and Damien…”  This week, on the 23^rd we celebrate the Clement of this list, and the following day, on November 24^th, we get to honor Chrysogonus.  These early saints have been listed in our Roman Canon (Eucharist Prayer I) for most of the Church’s history, probably some 1500 or 1600 years!  Not to leave Chrysogonus, the 4^th century Roman martyr out – perhaps we’ll come back to his story another time – but this week we turn the clock even further back to make the friendship of Clement.  He is the earliestof the Apostolic Fathers – the bishop-teachers who were the first after the apostles to annunciate and explain the faith.  He, the Bishop of Rome, from 88 to 99 AD, knew St. Peter personally and was the fourth bishop of the eternal city (after the aforementioned Linus and Cletus), (according to another Apostolic Father, St. Irenaeus, who we met already back in June, and who several decades after Clement, emphasized the importance of those earliest, and preeminent bishops and martyrs.)

As with so many early saints, we don’t have much more than an outline of his personal story, yet we have the entirety of a letter that Clement wrote to the church at Corinth, correcting and teaching and encouraging, as does our Holy Father down to our own day in what we now call encyclicals.  So, we have here a beautiful example of the Pope’s munera (purpose/office/charism) already cherished in the first days of the Church!  Throughout this long letter we have references to Paul’s letters to the Corinthians, as well as Romans, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Titus, 1 Timothy, and Hebrews and Acts, besides references to Christ known in the Gospels.  We have most of the New Testament here referenced before the turn of the first Christian century!

But I turn to Clement today not so much for his theology, or ecclesiology, or where he fits into Christian history, but to continue our discussion of anthropology.  What has the vocation sought, and found, by St. Frances Xavier Cabrini have to do with the musings of St. Albert the Great on our soul and body, and what do either of them have to do with this 4^th pope and his words to the Church of Corinth?  All of them fit together around this great question: “what is man that You [God] are mindful of him, or the son of man that You care for him?  You made him a little lower than the angels; You crowned him with glory and honor…” [Psalm 8:4-5]  God calls us, God cares for us, God created us … with glory, and beauty, and intelligence, and creativity, and freedom.  This is the mystery we discover in ourselves.  It is this reality that we see as we walk through the twists and turns of life as God’s turns us into saints.  And it is this glorious creation and care that is visible in nature, and imprinted upon our nature.  

And, this month as we wrestle with these questions of freedom and dignity and conscience and call, that whole question is already summed up two-thirds of the way through Clement’s words to the Corinthians: “Let every one of you, brethren, give thanks to God in his own order, living in all good conscience, with becoming gravity, and not going beyond the rule of the ministry prescribed to him.” [Pope Clement I, Letter to Corinthians, #41]  He gives the example of the Jewish sacrifices, how they are offered only in Jerusalem, and the different sacrifices are offered by the various ranks of priests.  Of course, this fits well with the rest of the letter where, amongst other things, he speaks at length on the structure of the Church, and who has the authority/responsibility at each level to pass on the Gospel (including his own authority, over the entire Church, including Corinth), but he also speaks specifically to each of us as well. If you were puzzled by the meanderings of Frances’ discernment or the cerebral musings of Albert, let this line from Clement clarify things: 

1. God created us with freedom – the ability to choose (a gift that we should use to choose what is truly good).  When you feel the weight of that gift, consider how happy God is when you use it well!
2. Each of us, the Lord entrusts, with a realm of responsibility – above all else, this is the souls we are meant to direct towards heaven (our own firstly, then those within our vocation, then our friends and coworkers).  Don’t be overly concerned with all the problems out there; stick with those God has given you!  
3. And, He has placed within our heart a conscience – formed by the Revelation found in Scripture and proclaimed by the Church (which should direct our actions).  Focus on forming it properly, and following it faithfully, and God will lead you on the path He desires!

– Fr. Rankin would struggle to name his favorite Church in Rome, or the most beautiful, or the most important … but the Church of San Clemente (where this venerable Pope is now buried, and which bears his name) does fit one superlative: most psychotic.  The “modern” basilica, built in the 1100s, sits on top of a 4^th century basilica, which sits on top of a temple to Mithra, which sits on top of a prior Christian house-church, which was built over the top of a Roman mint, which was itself built on top of some other building which burned down in the fire of 60 AD…  If you visit it, you can see all those different personalities for yourself, just go down the stairs.