Since priest assignments were announced this spring, I have been asked many times by parishioners, students, family, and friends, “Why are you studying Canon Law?” Fr. Peter Chineke and I will both begin programs of study in Canon Law this fall, with Fr. Peter studying full-time at Catholic University in D.C., while I will be studying online through St. Paul University in Ottawa in a part-time capacity. 

First, I’ll address the question, “What is Canon Law?” Canon Law is a collection of laws of the Catholic Church; the current edition was promulgated by the pope in 1983. Every society or group has laws, rules, and regulations; the Catholic Church is no exception in this regard. It may be surprising that the Church’s laws are relatively simple compared to other bodies of law! There are 1752 “canons” (a word that comes from a Greek word for law) in my Canon Law book. Pope Francis has updated some laws recently, so I will need to purchase an updated edition soon. Sometimes the Catholic Church is criticized for having too many rules, but in reality, the Church’s legal system is extremely simple compared to our state or national laws. Consider that the Catholic Church has over a billion members, and one small book contains the laws that help to keep the Church functioning smoothly!

I often refer to the final Canon of the Code, which reminds us all why Canon Law exists in the first place. In part, this Canon reads, “having before one’s eyes the salvation of souls, which is always the supreme law of the Church.” Over 2000 years, the Church has a lot of experiences in her collective memory, and the Church has made certain rules to better foster encounters with God, which bring about the salvation of souls! When I was in the seminary, one of our favorite professors was our Canon Law teacher. Just like any legal study, Canon Law can sometimes be known for being boring or tedious. However, our professor, Msgr. Ramacciotti, was a very engaging and hilarious teacher. He would come up with funny and memorable examples, and we discussed a lot of hypothetical marriages between “Joe Catholic” and “Mary Methodist.” There was once a big lecture at the seminary by a visiting bishop, and the topic was Canon Law. Msgr. Ramacciotti introduced the lecture and questioned how anybody could think Canon Law was boring. Citing the final canon of the code, he asked us, “why do you think the salvation of souls is boring?!” 

A practical reason that Bishop Paprocki has asked Fr. Peter and me to study Canon Law is that our diocese will eventually need more canon lawyers. Currently, there are four priests in our diocese who practice Canon Law. Two of these priests finished their studies relatively recently, while two of them may be described as more “experienced”! I have heard from canon lawyers that much of their time is spent investigating marriage cases. You may have heard about declarations of nullity in the Catholic Church, when a Church tribunal declares that a supposed marriage was actually invalid from the beginning, thus freeing the person to enter a true marriage with somebody else. Although marriage law is only one small part of Canon Law, it demands a lot of attention because of the current state of marriage in our culture, and the practicality that many Catholics in our diocese are married or have been legally divorced. 

Some parts of Canon Law apply to all Catholics, while other sections may apply only to those in religious vows, clergy, or those accused of canonical crimes (Ouch!). One of my favorite sections of Canon Law when I was in the seminary was the section on the College of Cardinals and how they relate to the pope. The whole world watches the Vatican when the Cardinals convene to elect a pope, and Canon Law directs a lot of what goes on during that time. 

Canon Law can actually be some interesting reading. I would encourage you to read some of the laws regarding the sacraments, especially the Eucharist! Go to your search engine and look up “Canon 897, Code of Canon Law,” and that is the beginning of the section on the Eucharist. Unlike some legal systems, Canon Law is easily understood, and not much technical training is required to benefit from reading parts of it. I know this topic is not of interest to everyone, but to those who have read this article, thank you! Please say a prayer that Fr. Peter and I will be good students in Canon Law, to help in our local church’s goal of working for the salvation of souls. 

Feast Day: July 21^st | Patron of his hometown, Brindisi, Italy | Often pictured in Capuchin habit, writing with a quill, holding the baby Jesus, or carrying a crucifix.

Lawrence is one of those hard saints to emulate.  Born to devout parents, he grew up an intelligent and pious boy and by the age of 16 entered the Capuchin order and quickly mastered not only those studies but he also easily became fluent in Latin, Hebrew, Greek, German, Bohemian, Spanish, and French. While still a deacon his preaching was so moving that he was asked to travel all over Italy preaching in the largest and most popular cities in the country, something he would continue to do after he was ordained a priest at the young age of 23. It was said that he had memorized the entire bible, in its original language, and so over the course of his life he would be called to preach all over Europe, bringing countless people back to the true faith by his clarity, depth of scriptural and patristic insight, and capacity to relate his sermons to the varied congregations he addressed. Over the following decades, he would hold many of the highest positions in the Capuchin order and on one famous occasion also rode out in front of Christian armies defending Hungary against a Turkish invasion. He carried only a crucifix, but came away without a scratch, and the Christian armies faced 4-to-1 odds against them, but came away with the victory.

How can you or I emulate that?! Where in our lives do the graces – of fluency in language, ecstasy at Mass, defense amidst battles, eloquence and knowledge and convincing words … – where in my life would those graces even go?  I don’t even ask for such tremendous gifts, sticking with just requesting the graces needed for my daily duties. “Give me this day my daily bread”: the basic grace of being patient, attentive, generous, and faithful … of perseverance in prayer, of trust in God, of love of neighbor. I struggle to carry my daily cross enough even without 80,000 Turks bearing down on me. I struggle to communicate the Gospel to one person in spiritual direction, much less to crowds who don’t want to hear it.  I struggle to stay prayerful when saying Mass for the nuns, ecstasy and sublime contemplation seem unlikely.

When getting to know a great saint like Lawrence, we are faced with a difficult situation: we must both accept that Lawrence was given graces that we have not, but at the same time we must not give up the call that God speaks to us to live a life of heroic sanctity. How can we stay both humble, and bold?  Both content/trusting, and magnanimous? How is it every “enough” to spend my morning on email and laundry when Lawrence was reading the Old Testament in Hebrew and leading armies into battle?!  May I point out a simple, but transformative, truth? Notice that every one of those wondrous graces in Lawrence’s life was so that he could love. Being a saint is easy, it only requires love. “Love one another as I have loved you.” “Love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and your neighbor as yourself.” “What you did for the least of my brethren, you did for Me.” “Whoever gives a cup of cold water to one of these little ones to drink because he is a disciple – amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward.” 

Fr. Dominic Rankin struggles to be a saint just like everybody else. He faces the same attack and same lie that we all do: “you aren’t smart enough … holy enough … productive enough … courageous enough … trusting enough … humble enough … loving enough … to be a saint.” Thing is, the lie is easily denounced: sanctity doesn’t depend on me, it depends on Jesus. And He is enough for me to become a saint.

If you have been paying much attention to the Catholic media (local and national) over the past several months, you may have noticed news about the Eucharistic Revival that is now underway.  This effort, promoted by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, will take place in a few different phases:

1. Year of Diocesan Revival: June 19, 2022 – June 11, 2023
2. Year of Parish Revival: June 11, 2023 – July 17, 2024 
3. National Eucharistic Congress:  July 17-21 2024 in Indianapolis
4. Year of Going Out on Mission: July 21, 2024 – Pentecost 2025

Here in our diocese, we will observing a diocesan Year of the Eucharist from December 8, 2022 through December 8, 2023, with a very special Diocesan Eucharistic Congress and Mass at the Bank of Springfield Center on October 28, 2023.

So far, very few things have been set in stone with regards to how these various phases and celebrations will take place, but that should not deter us from jumping right in with our participation in this important time of Eucharistic renewal.  One aspect of Eucharistic devotion that has and will continue to be emphasized throughout the revival is the importance of Eucharistic Adoration.  Spending time in the presence of the Eucharist (exposed in the monstrance or reposed in the tabernacle) can have a very profound impact on our lives, deepening our relationship with Jesus and enflaming our hearts with a greater desire to receive Him in the Eucharist.  When I was discerning entering the seminary, I was blessed to live in a parish that had Perpetual Adoration, meaning that I could stop in to visit Jesus at any time.  It was during those visits that I grew more in my faith than the hours I spent reading or listening to Catholic radio.  It is a practice that I pray will increase in the life of the faithful in our parish and our diocese over the next few years.  Currently, we have Eucharistic Adoration at the Cathedral from 4 pm – 5 pm every Tuesday and Thursday.  We are going to look closely at how we can expand these times, but also know that the church is open throughout the day and spending time with the Lord, present in the tabernacle, is equally powerful in deepening our love for the Eucharist.  

Regarding Eucharistic Adoration, I’d like to share the following quote from Venerable Fulton Sheen that I came across recently on the topic of praying a Holy Hour in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament:

So the Holy Hour, quite apart from all its positive spiritual benefits, kept my feet from wandering too far. Being tethered to a tabernacle, one’s rope for finding other pastures is not so long. That dim tabernacle lamp, however pale and faint, had some mysterious luminosity to darken the brightness of “bright lights.” The Holy Hour became like an oxygen tank to revive the breath of the Holy Spirit in the midst of the foul and fetid atmosphere of the world. Even when it seemed so unprofitable and lacking in spiritual intimacy, I still had the sensation of being at least like a dog at the master’s door, ready in case he called me.

May we all come to desire to be “tethered to the tabernacle” during this time of Eucharistic Revival!

Father Alford

This past Independence Day, I noticed in the Ordo (the little book with daily instructions for Mass) that in place of the intercessions at Mass, I could use a version of the prayer that was written by Archbishop John Carroll during the presidency of George Washington. Archbishop Carroll is pictured in a stained glass window alongside Washington in our Cathedral. During the Revolutionary War, Washington sent then-Fr. Carroll along with Benjamin Franklin on a diplomatic mission to Canada, and the Founding Fathers’ respect for Fr. Carroll played a part in his being the first Archbishop of Baltimore. I thought this prayer was a powerful reminder of the duty I have as a citizen to pray for my civic leaders. St. Paul commanded us to pray for our leaders, which is something I need to do more often. Let’s start by praying this prayer for our president and governor by name. 

We pray, O almighty and eternal God, who through Jesus Christ has revealed thy glory to all nations, to preserve the works of your mercy, that your Church, being spread through the whole world, may continue with unchanging faith in the confession of your name.

We pray Thee, who alone are good and holy, to endow with heavenly knowledge, sincere zeal and sanctity of life, our chief bishop, the pope, the vicar of Our Lord Jesus Christ, in the government of his Church; our own bishop, all other bishops, prelates and pastors of the Church; and especially those who are appointed to exercise among us the functions of the holy ministry, and conduct your people into the ways of salvation.

We pray O God of might, wisdom and justice, through whom authority is rightly administered, laws are enacted, and judgment decreed, assist with your Holy Spirit of counsel and fortitude the president of these United States, that his administration may be conducted in righteousness and be eminently useful to your people over whom he presides; by encouraging due respect for virtue and religion; by a faithful execution of the laws in justice and mercy; and by restraining vice and immorality.

Let the light of your divine wisdom direct the deliberations of Congress, and shine forth in all the proceedings and laws framed for our rule and government, so that they may tend to the preservation of peace, the promotion of national happiness, the increase of industry, sobriety and useful knowledge; and may perpetuate to us the blessing of equal liberty.

We pray for his excellency, the governor of this state, for the members of the assembly, for all judges, magistrates, and other officers who are appointed to guard our political welfare, that they may be enabled, by your powerful protection, to discharge the duties of their respective stations with honesty and ability.

We recommend likewise, to your unbounded mercy, all our brethren and fellow citizens throughout the United States, that they may be blessed in the knowledge and sanctified in the observance of your most holy law; that they may be preserved in union, and in that peace which the world cannot give; and after enjoying the blessings of this life, be admitted to those which are eternal.

Finally, we pray to you, O Lord of mercy, to remember the souls of your servants departed, who are gone before us with the sign of faith and repose in the sleep of peace; the souls of our parents, relatives and friends; of those who, when living, were members of this congregation, and particularly of such as are lately deceased; of all benefactors who, by their donations or legacies to this Church, witnessed their zeal for the decency of divine worship and proved their claim to our grateful and charitable remembrance. To these, O Lord, and to all that rest in Christ, grant, we beseech you, a place of refreshment, light and everlasting peace, through the same Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Savior.

Amen.

Feast Day: July 14^th | Patron for the Sick, Hospitals, Nurses and Doctors, and those with gambling and other addictions | Often pictured as a priest with a wound on his leg tending an ill person.

In 1575, Camillus, a strapping 25 year old young man, was working at the Capuchin friary in Manfredonia Italy (just north of the “heel” of the boot, on the East coast). He had served in various armies around Italy with his father ever since he was a young man, and had just left Rome’s San Giacomo hospital for treatment of wounds endured in that service. But he wasn’t disciplined, nor a disciple.  Camillus had a stubborn and rebellious streak ever since he was a little boy, saddening his mother who passed away when he was still little, and – always being taller than his peers – had ran off to the army at the age of 13, embracing all the worst vices he could find, cussing and gambling and carousing.  His father also died during those critical years of his young-adulthood and Camillus continued down the deadly game of risking his life, gambling away his possessions, and selling his soul to wherever pleasure was to be found. 

Even nearly losing his life in shipwreck in 1574 did not dislodge him from this way of life, and so it was that he found himself, destitute and injured, working on the grounds of that capuchin friary.  One of the friars had the perception to see in this man a spark of grace that even Camillus’s mother and father were unable to foster. As they made their way up the rugged road to San Giovanni Rotundo (to another friary, where, in a few more centuries, Padre Pio would live), that friar chatted with Camillus and at some point called him out for his sins. “God is everything. The rest is nothing. One should save one’s soul which does not die.” As the rocks of the Gargano mountains scraped the sky above, the reality of God finally pierced Camillus’s heart. He slid from his saddle, threw himself on the ground, and all those unprayed prayers finally broke free: “Lord, I have sinned. Forgive this great sinner! How unhappy I have been for so many years not to have known you and not to have loved you. Lord, give me time to weep for a long time for my sins.”

His prayer was answered. He attempted to join the Capuchins, but his past decisions haunted him. A wound on his leg received while a soldier of fortune would not heal, and with such a condition, he could not be admitted to vows. We can ask why they didn’t allow this converted, convicted, transformed soul into their community? He felt called to become a friar, why would a leg wound exclude him?! How unfair, how unaccepting, how cruel. The unfortunate fact is that each of us can make decisions that impact our future, change our path, limit our options, but they never stymie God!  Camillus could not become a friar, but that closed door was an invitation to deeper surrender. He went back to Rome, returned to the hospital where before he had been kicked out for quarreling with other patients and staff, and began to aid those in the most dire straits. This was a hospital for the incurables, for those with no means, and no hope of recovery, and while the ulcer on Camillus’s leg continued to pain him, he worked to love those others in pain. He found a spiritual director, an awesome priest, Philip Neri, and formed a group of men dedicated to give wholehearted care to the abandoned and neglected patients at this hospital. Eventually, Camillus would be ordained a priest, and the group would become a legitimate religious order. Their symbol was a red cross upon their priestly cassock; their charism was to pour themselves into the care of those who were sick and dying. They would board ships carrying the bubonic plague; they would stand guard over the recently deceased to be assured that they had indeed passed into eternity; they would care for the wounded in the middle of battles, on one occasion, their medical tent and everything in it was obliterated in the midst of things except that red cross. Camillus remained injured his entire life and was known to crawl to the sick when his leg would not support him. He died, still leading the order, and still caring for the sick, in 1614.

– Fr. Dominic Rankin was intrigued to find that 250 years after the Camillians had chosen the red cross to be the symbol of medical care in the middle of disasters, the Geneva convention would choose it for the same purpose. There is no direct connection between their choices, but it is a beautiful thing that one of the most iconic symbols in the world is the Christian cross, once a symbol of death, now a symbol of love, care, sacrifice, and healing.