The Family Tree

Bishop Oddo Bernacchia †

Deceased

Events

Date	Age	Event	Title
14 Mar 1880		Born	Fano
19 Sep 1903	23.5	Ordained Priest	Priest of Fano, Italy
24 Jun 1924	44.3	Appointed	Bishop of Larino, Italy
5 Oct 1924	44.6	Ordained Bishop	Bishop of Larino, Italy
28 Oct 1924	44.6	Appointed	Bishop of Termoli, Italy
1960	79.8	Retired	Bishop of Larino, Italy
19 Mar 1962	82.0	Retired	Bishop of Termoli, Italy
19 Mar 1962	82.0	Appointed	Titular Bishop of Sebela
13 Nov 1964	84.7	Died	Bishop Emeritus of Larino, Italy

a priest for 61.2 years a bishop for 40.1 years	Principal Consecrator: Bishop Giustino Sanchini † Principal Co-Consecrators: Bishop Luigi Ferri † Bishop Geremia Pascucci †
Episcopal Lineage / Apostolic Succession: Bishop Oddo Bernacchia † (1924) Bishop Giustino Sanchini †	Principal Consecrator of: Bishop Costanzo Micci †

Pope St. Pius X

Pope St. Pius X (Latin: Pius PP. X) (June 2, 1835 -August 20,1914) born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto, was the 257th Pope serving from 1903 to 1914, succeeding Pope Leo XIII(1878–1903). He was the first pope since Pope Pius V (1566–72) to be canonized. Pius X codified Catholic doctrines to inspire conformity in the church and rejected modernism. His most important reform codified Church law in a central fashion. He was a pastoral pope, encouraging personal piety and a lifestyle reflecting Christian values. He was born in the pastoral town of Riese. Issued decrees on early Communion (age 7 instead of 12 or 14 as previously). Destroyed the last vestiges of Janenism by advocating frequent and even daily Communion Reformed the liturgy, promoted clear and simple homilies, and brought Gregorian chant back to services. Revised the Breviary, and teaching of the Catechism. Fought Modernism, which he denounced as “the summation of all heresies“. Reorganized the Roman curia, and the other administrative elements of the Church. Worked against the modern antagonism of the state against the Church. Initiated the codification of canon law. Promoting Bible reading by all the faithful. Supported foreign missions. His will read: “I was born poor; I lived poor; I wish to die poor.”

St. Bernard of Clairvaux

St. Bernard one of the most illustrious Christian teachers and representatives of monasticism in the Middle Ages, was born at Fontaines, near Dijon, in Burgundy, in 1091. The son of a knight and vassal of the duke of Burgundy who perished in the first crusade, Bernard may have felt for a time the temptations of a military career, but the influence of a pious mother and his own inclinations towards a life of meditation and study led him to the cloister. While still a youth he is said to have been "marvelously cogitative" ("mire cogitativus," St Bern. Op., vol. ii. col. 1063), and the ascendancy of his mind and character were soon shown. He joined the small monastery of Citeaux in 1113 when twenty-two years of age, and such were the effects of his own devotion and eloquent enthusiasm in commending a religious life, that he drew after him not only his two younger brothers, but also his two elder ones, Guido and Gerard, both of whom had naturally taken to soldiering, and the elder of whom was married and had children. The effect of his preaching is said to have been that " mothers hid their sons, wives their husbands, companions their friends," lest they should be drawn away by his persuasive earnestness. (courtesy 1902 Encylopedia) He was recognized as an outstanding preacher and orator, and many of his sermons have been preserved and excerpted in Holy Liturgy.Throughout his life, Bernard remained a devoted servant of our Blessed Mother. He often admonished the Faithful to seek her protections, blessings and grace. Despite wishing to remain a humble Apostle of Christ, Bernard’s personality and vigor could at times arouse some of his contemporaries to question his humility. Never the less, Bernard arose with the same vigor to proclaim his love for Christ, and his work for God. The Benedictine philosophy and teachings were a constant in Bernard’s life. Because of this devotion, Bernard became a great confidant and friend of Suger, Abbot of St. Denis, home of the famous Benedictine Abbey near Paris.
In 1125 William, abbot of St. Thierry, asked Bernard to write something which would defend the Cistercians against the charge of slandering the Cluniacs and, at the same time, criticize Cluniac laxity. The result was the Apology, which begins by condemning self- righteous criticism and then proceeds to ridicule Cluniac excesses in food, clothing and buildings. Only the section on buildings is included here: "But these are minor abuses. I shall go on to major ones which seem minor because they are so common. I say nothing of the enormous height, extravagant length and unnecessary width of the churches, of their costly polishings and curious paintings which catch the worshipper's eye and dry up his devotion, things which seem to me in some sense a revival of ancient Jewish rites. Let these things pass, let us say they are all to the honor of God. Nevertheless, just as the pagan poet Persius inquired of his fellow pagans, so I as a monk ask my fellow monks: "Tell me, oh pontiffs," he said, "what is gold doing in the sanctuary?" I say (following his meaning rather than his metre): "Tell me, poor men, if you really are poor what is gold doing in the sanctuary?"

There is no comparison here between bishops and monks. We know that the bishops, debtors to both the wise and unwise, use material beauty to arouse the devotion of a carnal people because they cannot do so by spiritual means. But we who have now come out of that people, we who have left the precious and lovely things of the world for Christ, we who, in order to win Christ, have reckoned all beautiful, sweet-smelling, fine-sounding, smooth-feeling, good-tasting things-- in short, all bodily delights--as so much dung, what do we expect to get out of them? Admiration from the foolish? Offerings from the ignorant? Or, scattered as we are among the gentiles, are we learning their tricks and serving their idols?

I shall speak plainly: Isn't greed, a form of idolatry, responsible for all this? Aren't we seeking contributions rather than spiritual profit? "How?" you ask. "In a strange and wonderful way," I answer. Money is scattered about in such a way that it will multiply. It is spent so that it will increase. Pouring it out produces more of it. Faced with expensive but marvelous vanities, people are inspired to contribute rather than to pray. Thus riches attract riches and money produces more money. I don't know why, but the wealthier a place, the readier people are to contribute to it. Just feast their eyes on gold-covered relics and their purses will open. Just show them a beautiful picture of some saint. The brighter the colors, the saintlier he'll appear to them. Men rush to kiss and are invited to contribute. There is more admiration for beauty than veneration for sanctity. Thus churches are decorated, not simply with jeweled crowns, but with jeweled wheels illuminated as much by their precious stones as by their lamps. We see candelabra like big bronze trees, marvelously wrought, their gems glowing no less than their flames. What do you think is the purpose of such things? To gain the contrition of penitents or the admiration of spectators?

On vanity of vanities, yet no more vain than insane! The church is resplendent in her walls and wanting in her poor. She dresses her stones in gold and lets her sons go naked. The eyes of the rich are fed at the expense of the indigent. The curious find something to amuse them and the needy find nothing to sustain them.

What sort of reverence is shown to the saints when we place their pictures on the floor and then walk on them? Often someone spits in an angel's mouth. Often the face of a saint is trampled by some passerby's feet. If sacred images mean nothing to us, why don't we at least economize on the paint? Why embellish what we're about to befoul? Why decorate what we must walk upon? What good is it to have attractive pictures where they're usually stained with dirt?

Finally, what good are such things to poor men, to monks, to spiritual men? Perhaps the poet's question could be answered with words from the prophet: "Lord, I have loved the beauty of your house, and the place where your glory dwells" (Ps. 26:8). I agree. Let us allow this to be done in churches because, even if it is harmful to the vain and greedy, it is not such to the simple and devout. But in cloisters, where the brothers are reading, what is the point of this ridiculous monstrosity, this shapely misshapenness, this misshapen shapeliness? What is the point of those unclean apes, fierce lions, monstrous centaurs, half-men, striped tigers, fighting soldiers and hunters blowing their horns? In one place you see many bodies under a single head, in another several heads on a single body. Here on a quadruped we see the tail of a serpent. Over there on a fish we see the head of a quadruped. There we find a beast that is horse up front and goat behind, here another that is horned animal in front and horse behind. In short, so many and so marvelous are the various shapes surrounding us that it is more pleasant to read the marble than the books, and to spend the whole day marveling over these things rather than meditating on the law of God. Good Lord! If we aren't embarrassed by the silliness of it all, shouldn't we at least be disgusted by the expense? (Courtesy of Medivial Sourcebook) Much is owed to Bernard for fearlessly condemning some of his contemporaries who scorned the Sacrament of Marriage. He is to be given credit for the solid groundwork he laid for the future recognition of the sanctity of this Rite, both in the Church and Juris Prudence.On August 20, 1153, Bernard died after a period of great suffering. He is buried in his Monastery of Clairvaux, and his tomb is a shrine for the Faithful. He was named "Doctor of the Church" in 1830. The proclamation of his Canonization as a Saint took place on January 18, 1174.

Most Reverend Alfred Clifton Hughes

Last evening I had the opportunity to speak with Archbishop Alfred C. Hughes, the retiring Bishop of the Diocese of New Orleans. In fact, tomorrow The Most Reverend Gregory M. Aymond, a native of New Orleans will be installed as the new Archbishop. I had the pleasure of meeting Archbishop Hughes in the Spring of 1997 when he was the Bishop of the Diocese of Baton Rouge He confirmed my son Caleb, who just yesterday entered the Notre Dame Seminary. The following years we would talk again each Spring as I was a Confirmation catechist at the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Denham Springs. We shared a few things in common; we are both natives of Massachusetts and both Red Sox fans. I found him to be a delightful man with a deep sense of spirituality. In May 2001, he became the new Archbishop of New Orleans. I remember so vividly seeing him during the coverage of Hurricane Katrina and all the turmoil that occurred after that horrific disaster. As I said to him last night, that sort of event is not usually found in the job description and game plan of the task of overseeing a diocese. But all that is in the past and Archbishop Hughes was at peace last night and will be living at the Notre Seminary giving spiritual direction to those young future priests. God Bless you Archbishop Hughes for your faithful years of service to the Church as Shepherd to its people. You are in our prayers.

What Do You Want Me to Do for You?

They came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus, sat by the roadside begging. On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, son of David, have pity on me." And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he kept calling out all the more, "Son of David, have pity on me."Jesus stopped and said, "Call him." So they called the blind man, saying to him, "Take courage; get up, he is calling you."He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. Jesus said to him in reply, "What do you want me to do for you?" The blind man replied to him, "Master, I want to see."Jesus told him, "Go your way; your faith has saved you." Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way. Mark 10: 46-52
In meditating on this passage in Mark's Gospel there are two thoughts that jump out at me. First, Jesus is asking us like he asked the blind man "what do you want me to do for you"? and what is the blindness that I possess? In my prayer and contemplation am I even asking Jesus the question and perhaps what I really need for Him to do for me is to first identify my blindness. I am may not be aware that I am not seeing the truth in any particular area of my life. I may be blind to the fact that what I keep asking Jesus to do for me is detrimental and not conducive to improving my vision. So here I am in a noisy crowd, its 2009, I, too, am being rebuked by a secular society, and a lot of things are happening in the world, will I call out to Him to stop and have pity on me. I will make it my prayer, will be it be your prayer too?

God Bless You Uncle John

I don't quite know where to begin so I'll start when I was a young boy. My grandmother affectionately known as "Nana" lived some 60 miles away. We would visit her on occasion maybe once or twice a month. It was a time to meet aunts and uncles, cousins and long lost relatives. My Aunt Marie (my mom's sister) & Uncle Fred moved from Cambridge, Massachusetts to Arlington, MA and bought a triple decker home. For some odd reason my Nana lived on the third floor. We would quietly go up to visit her. She was so wonderful to us. She always had something hidden away for us, candy or a toy. We would get nothing less than the royal treatment from her. My mother had two older brothers Tom & Frank, and an older sister Marie. One day we heard whispers about John Riley. When we inquired my mother politely told us that he was her younger brother and that he died in World War II. Years later when we were older we found out that he was shot down in a B-17 bomber over Italy. They said he was a tail gunner. One thing for sure Nana never spoke of John. There was too much pain in the memory of him. Flash forward to February 2007. One afternoon was I was "surfing" the internet, the thought struck me. I wonder if I could find out anything about my Uncle John. I had no clue how I was going to start but after only a few minutes I found a website within the National Archives website that displayed Army enlistments for World War II. I knew he was from Suffix County and I knew he was in the Army Air Corp, so I plug in his name John Riley. I got plenty of John Rileys but the combination of the Army Air Corp and Suffix County registered one hit. The enlistment date was 1941. I called my mother and confirmed that it was the correct year. With that I began my journey to discover just what happened to my Uncle John. I searched to see if there was a website that could give me the names of any serviceman buried in a foreign cemetery. I discovered a database at American Battle Monuments Commission. I plugged in his name and to my disappointment I got zero - no results. No John Riley, from Massachusetts buried overseas in any Italian cemetery. Then it occurred to me, what if his name was misspelled. I plugged in John Reilly and there was a John Reilly from Massachusetts buried at the Florence American Cemetery, Florence, Italy. When I clicked on his name up came the information on him, his unit and grave location. The most important information however was his service#. I ran to find the original enlistment record and to my joy and excitement the service numbers matched! This was in fact the John Riley from Suffix County. From there the information exploded I found a website of survivors and children of the 334th Bomber Squadron, 95th Bomber Group. I inquired about Uncle John and a wonderful lady sent me a CD with pictures of earlier B17's that my uncle had been a crew member of. I sent away for the Air Force Official Accident reports, and while waiting for them to arrive I discovered shocking news. John's flight and crew was mentioned in a book " The Schweinfort-Regensburg Mission" by Martin Middlebrook. I had already discovered all the names of the crew members and the pilot's name Lt. Robert Hayden, when I read on page 274 " Lieutenant Robert Hayden's plane in the 95th Bomb Group went down. There should have been plenty of time for its crew to parachute safely but the tail gunner opened his parachute too early and was caught on the tail. Three other gunners were presumably unnerved by the sight and refused to jump. All four were killed when the plane crashed." Unbelievable but there was more to the story. When the official accident reports arrived I was able to piece together what happened by testimony by the survivors. My Uncle John was not a tail gunner that was Earl Moorer. After seeing their fellow gunner dangling and being smashed to death bouncing off the tail of the aircraft, they decided to take their chances and go down with the plane, the four perished. But I discovered yet another fact, several eye witnesses gave testimony that my uncle shot down a Focke-Wulf FW- 190 German fighter during the mission. He truly was a hero having saved the plane before it eventually crashed! After many years I had discovered the truth about my Uncle John who died August 17, 1943 in Parma, Italy. On April 8, 2008 while visiting Florence, Italy my wife and I paid a visit to Uncle John Riley's grave site, along with his fellow gunners, Earl J. Moorer, Charles Hill, Jr., and Kenneth J. Mears. On that day I swore that I would keep his memory alive. What about the name mistakenly misspelled? My grandmother when informed of his death realized the spelling error in the documents presented to her, she had been too distraught to tell them to change it. She did not want his body returned and thus he remained in Italy. Today is exactly 66 years from that fateful day. Requiem in Pacem, Uncle John Riley.

Hope in Christ

Thus says the Lord, I am about to create new heavens and a new earth; The things of the past shall not be remembered or come to mind.

Instead, there shall always be rejoicing and happiness in what I create; For I create Jerusalem to be a joy and its people to be a delight;

I will rejoice in Jerusalem and exult in my people. No longer shall the sound of weeping be heard there, or the sound of crying;

No longer shall there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not round out his full lifetime; He dies a mere youth who reaches but a hundred years, and he who fails of a hundred shall be thought accursed.

They shall live in the houses they build, and eat the fruit of the vineyards they plant.

In my life as a follower of Jesus Christ, of the many reasons to be thankful for my faith perhaps the greatest reason is Hope. Each and everyday you and I bring the Gospel to others is a day of rejoicing. Everyday that we grow in our love for God and He grows in our heart is a day of rejoicing. Every day we lift high the cross of Christ is a day of rejoicing. Every day we carry our own cross is a day of rejoicing. The great gift of Hope is ours to treasure, no matter how devoid the world is of it and the darkness it lives in.

Homily on Mary's Assumption by St. John Damascene

But even though, according to nature, your most holy and happy soul is separated from your most blessed and stainless body and the body as usual is delivered to the tomb, it will not remain in the power of death and is not subject to decay. For just as her virginity remained inviolate while giving birth, when she departed her body was preserved from destruction and only taken to a better and more divine tabernacle, which is not subject to any death . . . Hence I will call her holy passing not death, but falling asleep or departure, or better still, arrival. . . .

"Your stainless and wholly immaculate body has not been left on earth; the Queen, the Mistress, the Mother of God who has truly given birth to God has been translated to the royal palaces of heaven. .

"Angels and archangels have borne you upwards, the impure spirits of the air have trembled at your ascension. The air is purified, the ether sanctified by your passing through them. . . the powers meet you with sacred hymns and much solemnity, saying something like this: Who is she that comes forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, elect like the sun? [cf. Cant 6:9] How you have blossomed forth, how sweet you have become! You are the flower of the field, a lily among the thorns [Cant 2.1] . . . Not like Elijah have you entered heaven, not like Paul have you been rapt to the third heaven; no, you have penetrated even to the royal throne of your Son himself . . . a blessing for the world, a sanctification of the universe, refreshment for those who are tired, comfort for the sorrowing, healing for the sick, a port for those in danger, pardon for sinners, soothing balm for the oppressed, quick help for all who pray to you. . .

“Good Mistress, graciously look down on us; direct and guide our destinies wheresoever you will. Pacify the storm of our wicked passions, guide us into the quiet port of the divine will and grant us the blessedness to come.”

----St John Damascene

St. John Damascene was one of the last of the Early Church Fathers. He died in 749AD and was proclaimed a Doctor of the Church by Pope Leo XIII in the 19^th century.

Being Transformed

Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
- Paul's Letter to the Romans Chapter 12: 1-2
St. Paul is exhorting us to renewing our mind. The word renew as defined by the dictionary as to restore to a former state; make new or as if new again. What is the former state? I believe it is the childlike trust that Jesus describes in Matthew 18:1-5. Your mind is influenced by many things; what you read, what you hear, what you see, an emotional experience good or bad, your friends, your family, your spouse. If your the input is the daily news, the rubbish that makes up most of television today, and your heart is invested in the earthly treasures of wealth, power and material goods how can you be renewed? If the people you hang around and work with have not God in their lives how can you be renewed? If you only read the newspaper, books on making money, new age gurus, pop psychology, romance novels and not the Word of God, how can you be renewed? If your life is about you first and your sole purpose is to work to acquire material things how can you be renewed? Being transformed is a process, it is a movement in the direction of God. It is imperative to recognize whether you are moving or not. One way is to do a daily examination of yourself - am I acting in a way that is evident that the Holy Spirit is working in my life. Another way is to get spiritual direction - allowing someone to listen to what is going on in your life and to give you direction as to which way to go. Read the Bible, Scripture is God speaking to us, guiding us, correcting us, leading us on a path to Him. Pray - time must be set aside to converse with God, to let Him know that you love Him, need Him, trust Him, and desire Him to grow more and more in your life. As John writes(Chapter 3:30) He must increase, but I must decrease.

Preparing His Room

"Lord, I am not worthy that should come under my roof" Matthew 8:8 For myself there has been this ideal of living the Christian life. Most of what it consists of in my mind's eye is daily prayer, striving to obey God's commandments, participating in the Sacramental life, attending Mass as often as possible, Eucharistic Adoration, helping the poor, serving the Church and others. Those actions describe the exterior Christian life, but what I am discovering through spiritual direction is that all of those actions I describe must be guided by an interior spiritual life. St. Paul speaks of "For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want." The will to do good and live that ideal Christian life often fails me. In my failure I have been discouraged and distracted. This is precisely what the Evil One wants. That is why dependence on oneself will always fail you. I now think that what is necessary is to prepare a room in my heart for Christ. I think in this manner, suppose you were to have a very special guest visit and stay with you. You would begin by cleaning your house, freshening it up with new drapery and flowers. Your desire is to make your guest comfortable and feel that your home is truly his or her home. You would be so excited anticipating their arrival. In the interior of my heart I wish to prepare a room for Christ. He is my special guest and there is much to do in preparation of His arrival. In contemplating His arrival, I can search myself and see what I am doing to make Him feel wanted. By examining my actions daily, I can see whether it is a clean house He's coming to or is it messy with all the junk that I've put into it, feelings of inadequacy, anger, impurity, selfishness. My invitation has been sent, I desire Christ to enter my house even with my unworthiness. It is only by uniting my will to His can I do anything worthwhile.

Sharper Than Any Two-Edge Sword

For the word of God is living, and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and quick to discern the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and laid open before the eyes of him with whom we have to do.
--Hebrews 4: 12-13
The Word of God which we call the Bible, and God are not distinct and separate. That is why the Church tells us to know Sacred Scripture is to know Jesus. How often do we turn to Scripture for answers to our problems of daily life? God, who is the source of all knowledge and wisdom, who in the Incarnate of Jesus and in His Holy Word has an understanding of man which is much more insightful and honest than what our modern guru's or philosophers can tell you. If you have a particular family, work, or life dilemma, read your Bible and see what God has to say about it. You may discover that you can delve into areas of yourself spiritually that have not been discussed or read about, or even imagined any where else. God knows you and can help you know yourself. Life is about being true to God and yourself and there is no other source that can tell you that than Sacred Scriptures. Shut off Dr. Phil, leave Oprah to herself, stop reading the end of the world and how to prepare for it, or how to survive in difficult financial times. God has he answer and He's waiting patiently for you.

The Honored

The Honorable Judge so and so. Honor - from Merriam-Webster dictionary 1. a good name or public esteem, (REPUTATION); a showing usually merited respect (RECOGNITION) 2.PRIVILEGE 3. a person of superior standing 4. one whose worth brings respect or fame (CREDIT) synonyms : HOMAGE, REVERENCE, DEFERENCE. In our society people are honored for many different reasons; service to government and country, academic achievement, heroism, first responders, policeman, fireman, an elected office warrants the title of Honorable, judges, prime ministers, parliamentary offices. In any case, and rightfully so, human beings are honored for character, actions and achievements or their high rank. In today's Gospel (John:24-26) Jesus tells his disciples "whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there also my servant will be. The Father will honor whoever serves me"

A Hollow Space to Be Filled

A cup must be empty before it can be filled.
If it is already full, it can't be filled again except by emptying it out.
In order to fill anything, there must be hollowed-
out space.
Otherwise it can't receive.

This is especially true of God's word.
In order to receive it , we must be hollowed out.
We must be capable of receiving it,
emptied of the false self and endless demands.


When Christ came, there was no room in the inn.
It was full. The inn is a symbol of the heart.
God's word, Christ, can take root only in a hollow.

-William Breault, SJ

TRANSFIGURATION

The Transfiguration of Christ is the culminating point of His public life, as His Baptism is its starting point, and His Ascension its end. Moreover, this glorious event has been related in detail by St. Matthew (xvii, 1-6), St. Mark (ix, 1-8), and St. Luke (ix, 28-36), while St. Peter (II Pet., i, 16-18) and St. John (i, 14), two of the privileged witnesses, make allusion to it.

About a week after His sojourn in Caesarea Philippi, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John and led them to a high mountain apart, where He was transfigured before their ravished eyes. St. Matthew and St. Mark express this phenomenon by the word metemorphothe, which the Vulgate renders transfiguratus est. The Synoptics explain the true meaning of the word by adding "his face did shine as the sun: and his garments became white as snow," according to the Vulgate, or "as light," according to the Greek text.

This dazzling brightness which emanated from His whole Body was produced by an interior shining of His Divinity. False Judaism had rejected the Messias, and now true Judaism, represented by Moses and Elias, the Law and the Prophets, recognized and adored Him, while for the second time God the Father proclaimed Him His only-begotten and well-loved Son. By this glorious manifestation the Divine Master, who had just foretold His Passion to the Apostles (Matt., xvi, 21), and who spoke with Moses and Elias of the trials which awaited Him at Jerusalem, strengthened the faith of his three friends and prepared them for the terrible struggle of which they were to be witnesses in Gethsemani, by giving them a foretaste of the glory and heavenly delights to which we attain by suffering. (courtesy of Catholic Encyclopedia)

Dedication of St. Mary Major Basilica

St. Mary Major is one of the four Roman basilicas known as patriarchal cathedrals in memory of the first centers of the Church.
St. John Lateran represents Rome, the See of Peter; St. Paul Outside the Walls, the See of Alexandria, allegedly the see presided over by Mark; St. Peter’s, the See of Constantinople; and St. Mary’s, the See of Antioch, where Mary is supposed to have spent most of her life.

One legend, unreported before the year 1000, gives another name to this feast: Our Lady of the Snows. According to that story, a wealthy Roman couple pledged their fortune to the Mother of God. In affirmation, she produced a miraculous summer snowfall and told them to build a church on the site. The legend was long celebrated by releasing a shower of white rose petals from the basilica’s dome every August 5th.

Mary was raised to the dignity of Mother of God rather for sinners than for the just, since Jesus Christ declares that he came to call not the just but sinners.

--St. Anslem

Cure d' Ars

Today we commemorate the feast of St. Jean Marie Vianney, the Cure d' Ars. The Pope inaugurated the Year of the Priest on June 19th by presiding at Vespers in St. Peter's Basilica, where the relics of the 'Cure d' Ars' were brought for the occasion by Bishop Guy Bagnard of Belley-Ars, France. With the announcement the Pope has declared St. John Vianney the Universal Patron of Priests on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of his death. In his comments the Holy Father emphasized the constant struggle for moral perfection that dwells “in every truly priestly heart.” St. Jean Vianney was a model of a priestly heart. He had many obstacles to overcome not only in becoming a priest but in his duties as a priest. He was entrusted with a parish in the town of Ars, in the Diocese of Belley. He cared for his parish in a remarkable way, by his gift of preaching, his personal mortification, prayer and good works. He was skilled in the confessional box and would hear confessions for hours on end, for many came for his counsel. Pope Benedict in his letter proclaiming the Year of the Priest, says "The priesthood is the love of the heart of Jesus”, the saintly Curé of Ars would often say. This touching expression makes us reflect, first of all, with heartfelt gratitude on the immense gift which priests represent, not only for the Church, but also for humanity itself. I think of all those priests who quietly present Christ’s words and actions each day to the faithful and to the whole world, striving to be one with the Lord in their thoughts and their will, their sentiments and their style of life. How can I not pay tribute to their apostolic labours, their tireless and hidden service, their universal charity? And how can I not praise the courageous fidelity of so many priests who, even amid difficulties and incomprehension, remain faithful to their vocation as “friends of Christ”, whom he has called by name, chosen and sent? On this day please pray for all priests. We are truly blessed in the Diocese of Baton Rouge, with a Good Shepherd in Bishop Muench and many good and wonderful priests. The US Catholic Bishops Conference has given us this prayer:

Dear Lord,

We pray that the Blessed Mother wrap her mantle around your priests and through her intercession strengthen them for their ministry.

We pray that Mary will guide your priests to follow her own words, “Do whatever He tells you” (Jn 2:5).

May your priests have the heart of St. Joseph, Mary’s most chaste spouse.

May the Blessed Mother’s own pierced heart inspire them to embrace all who suffer at the foot of the cross.

May your priests be holy,filled with the fire of your love seeking nothing but your greater glory and the salvation of souls.

Amen

Anima Christi

SOUL of Christ, sanctify me.
Body of Christ, save me.
Blood of Christ, inebriate me.
Water from the side of Christ, wash me.
Passion of Christ, strengthen me.
O good Jesus, hear me.
Within Thy wounds, hide me.
Separated from Thee let me never be.
From the malignant enemy, defend me. At the hour of death, call me.To come to Thee, bid me, That I may praise Thee in the company Of Thy Saints, for all eternity.
Amen.

The Bread of Life

I am the Bread of Life. The Gospel of John for the next three weeks is known as the Bread of Life Discourse when Jesus instructs his disciples about the Sacrament of the Eucharist which he will institute at the Last Supper. In today's readings Jesus says "do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you." He then tells them that the manner Moses gave them was not from Moses but "my Father gives you true bread from heaven." In the following weeks again Jesus speaks to His disciples, " I am the living bread that came down from heaven; who ever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world." And finally the Jews quarreled among themselves saying "How can this man give us flesh to eat?" Jesus replies "Amen, amen I say to you unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you don not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life and I will raise him up on the last day." In giving Himself to the world Christ has provided our souls the spiritual nourishment that the world cannot give us. The Eucharist is the source and summit of the Christian's spiritual life as the Church tells us. Feed yourself with the Bread of Life. God Bless

St. Ignatius of Loyola More Relevant Today than Ever

Today is the feast day of St. Ignatius of Loyola, who as I have written this week, has given us the gift of his order The Society of Jesus (the Jesuits), his spirituality from the Spiritual Exercises, and his great example of living a life centered on the Trinity, Christ, and the Eucharist. Like St. Francis he abandoned what was his aspirations and attachments and chose rather poverty, chastity, and prayer. His spirituality is more relevant today in 2009 than ever. The distractions from living in a culture that is wrought with an over abundance of materials, information that is false and contrary to Christ's Gospel, and a secular mindset of relativism and atheism, can only be overcome by a life that is contemplative, that is focused daily through the Examen, and strengthened through the knowledge of discerning and by living the sacramental life. The following are two prayers by St. Ignatius which shows us his understanding of surrendering to God totally and showing the gratitude for the gift of one's life:

Take, O Lord, and receive my entire liberty, my memory, my understanding and my whole will. All that I am and all that I possess You have given me: I surrender it
all to You to be disposed of according to Your will. Give me only Your love and Your grace; with these I will be rich enough, and will desire nothing more.

Lord, teach me to be generous.
Teach me to serve you as you deserve;
to give and not to count the cost,
to fight and not to heed the wounds,
to toil and not to seek for rest,
to labor and not to ask for reward,
save that of knowing that I do your will.

Above is the painting by Andrea Pozzo, a wonderful fresco in the Church of St. Ignatius in Rome. If you ever have the opportunity to do a pilgrimage to the Eternal City visit this wonderful church and you will be astounded by this incredible painting. St. Ignatius is being carried up into heaven and I believe that at the same time he is lifting us up to God. Ad maiorem Dei gloriam

For the Greater Glory of God

St. Ignatius established the principle and foundation of his Spiritual Exercises:

Man is created to praise, reverence, and serve God our Lord, and by this means to save his soul.

And the other things on the face of the earth are created for man and that they may help him in prosecuting the end for which he is created.

From this it follows that man is to use them as much as they help him on to his end, and ought to rid himself of them so far as they hinder him as to it.

For this it is necessary to make ourselves indifferent to all created things in all that is allowed to the choice of our free will and is not prohibited to it; so that, on our part, we want not health rather than sickness, riches rather than poverty, honor rather than dishonor, long rather than short life, and so in all the rest; desiring and choosing only what is most conducive for us to the end for which we are created.

Ignatian spirituality is incarnational; it views the world as a place where Christ walked, talked and embraced people. It views the world, therefore, as a place of grace, a place of being able to give life to others. We are called to find and to pursue how God wants other men and women to be forgiven, to be free, to utilize all their talents and opportunities in ways which build up this world as a place where faith, justice, peace, and love can flourish.

At the same time, Ignatian spirituality is realistic. The world Christ faced was also a world of cruelty, injustice and the abuse of power and authority. Consequently, Ignatian spirituality affirms our human potential but also is dedicated to the ongoing, day-in-day-out struggle between good and evil. The Jesuit norm is: to find where God will best be served and where people will best be helped. (courtesy of St Igantius Catholic Church, Boston, MA)

It is by developing our spiritual life, that we can best serve God, discover and live out our true vocation, evangelize, and live the Gospel.

Ad maiorem Dei gloriam - For the Greater Glory of God

I am the Resurrection and the Life

Martha whom we honor today, is described in the Gospel of Luke as asking Jesus " Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving" Jesus replies "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things" On reflection of this passage I can certainly parallel this to my own life.There are the times that I place the burdens (work, home, family) and the anxiety they bring over my relationship with Jesus. In keeping up with this week's reflection on St. Ignatius and his spirituality, I would like to discuss the significance of Scripture meditation and contemplation in Ignatian Spirituality. In the Spiritual Exercises there is a great deal of time contemplating Christ through way of the scriptures. On the first day of the third week the instructions read: The first Prelude is to bring to memory the narrative; which is here how Christ our Lord sent two Disciples from Bethany to Jerusalem to prepare the Supper, and then He Himself went there with the other Disciples; and how, after having eaten the Paschal Lamb, and having supped, He washed their feet and gave His most Holy Body and Precious
Blood to His Disciples, and made them a discourse, after Judas went to sell his Lord.
The second, a composition, seeing the place. It will be here to consider the road from Bethany to Jerusalem, whether broad, whether narrow, whether level, etc.; likewise the place of the Supper, whether large, whether small, whether of one kind or whether of another.
The third, to ask for what I want. It will be here grief, feeling and confusion because for my sins the Lord is going to the Passion.
You can see that in the contemplation of the Scriptures it is imperative to see the persons, hear the words, and observe the actions. Placing oneself in the narrative. I will write here my thoughts over contemplating John's Gospel account of the Raising of Lazarus in Chapter 11

So the sisters sent word to him, saying, "Master, the one you love is ill." When Jesus heard this he said, "This illness is not to end in death, but is for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it."Jesus demonstrates that even in a terrible situation, the death of a friend that our life is about giving glory to God the Father.

So the disciples said to him, "Master, if he is asleep, he will be saved."But Jesus was talking about his death, while they thought that he meant ordinary sleep. So then Jesus said to them clearly, "Lazarus has died. And I am glad for you that I was not there, that you may believe. Let us go to him." Jesus is saying to me that He is glad to help me in my faith journey so I too will believe.

When Jesus arrives, Martha who in the above account from Luke is worrisome, has learned her lesson and comes out to greet Jesus while Mary stays behind. I too can learn from Martha what are truly the important things.

In the discourse that follows you can almost detect Jesus seeing just where Martha is in her journey and likewise Martha is cautious in her responses. Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.(But) even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you." Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise."Martha said to him, "I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day. How many times has my faith been lacking asking Jesus "if only you had done this or that"

Jesus then announce what the Truth is "I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" My answer is yes Lord I do believe, for in You is my Hope & my Salvation.

In this meditation and contemplation one can go very deep into Scriptures discovering truths about God, man and ourselves , even mystical revelations. St. Ignatius gave us a wonderful gift in learning to pray with the Scriptures. God Bless

Basic Discernment

To conquer oneself and regulate one’s life without determining oneself through any tendency that is disordered (Spiritual Exercises) As I have grown in my journey to the heart of Christ, I have realized that only in cooperation with the Holy Spirit, is there the grace that is necessary to recognize my sinfulness, to recognize apostolic opportunities, and the ability to read and contemplate Scripture as well as meditate in prayer. In our secular world that we live, work, and play in there are a multitude of voices that can take even a person with good intentions and turn them into one who is working not for the betterment of the Kingdom of God, but rather helping the Evil One accomplish his plan. St. Ignatius realized that it was necessary to carefully discern and test those influences to see if one was "moving towards God." From Father Timothy Gallagher's The Discernment of Spirits we read " The early Christians community knew, too, that it had to discern and test the various influences that affected it. St Paul understood that only through the Spirit could the community differentiate authentic from false prophetic utterances and charismatic phenomena. Even leaders has to pass the test the test of the Spirit, for they could sometimes be false and deceitful workers". " The early Christians were thus exhorted to follow the Spirit, and to be guided by the Spirit" How do we know we are working in cooperation with the Holy Spirit and not being fooled? St. Ignatius established a " Set of Rules" for becoming aware and understanding the "movements" which are caused in the soul. Jesus says in Matthew 5:48 "Be you therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect". Through a method of discerning you can recognize your failings, make decisions that are bringing you closer to God, develop a deeper prayer life, and work daily towards the perfection we should all strive for. God Bless

St. Ignatius of Loyola Week

On Friday of this week we celebrate the life of St. Ignatius of Loyola. I thought that I would for each day comment on his life, his spirituality, and what we can learn from this great saint. I am by no means an authority on Ignatian Spirituality, there are many great resources both in writing and on the web. I am strictly speaking from my own experiences and how they have fit nicely into what I have learned so far. From the Jesuits of New Orleans Province, here are some excerpts from their brief biography:
Inigo de Loyola was born in 1491 in Azpeitia in the Basque province of Guipuzcoa in northern Spain. He was the youngest of thirteen children. At the age of sixteen years he was sent to serve as a page to Juan Velazquez, the treasurer of the kingdom of Castile. As a member of the Velazquez household, he was frequently at court and developed a taste for all it presented, especially the ladies. He was much addicted to gambling, very contentious, and not above engaging in swordplay on occasion. In fact in a dispute between the Loyolas and another family, Ignatius and his brother plus some relatives ambushed at night some clerics who were members of the other family. Ignatius had to flee the town. When finally brought to justice he claimed clerical immunity using the defense that he had received the tonsure as a boy, and was therefore exempt from civil prosecution. The defense was specious because Ignatius had for years gone about in the dress of a fighting man, wearing a coat of mail and breastplate, and carrying a sword and other sorts of arms - certainly not the garb normally worn by a cleric. The case dragged on for weeks, but the Loyolas were apparently powerful. Probably through the influence of higher-ups, the case against Ignatius was dropped.

Eventually he found himself at the age of 30 in May of 1521 as an officer defending the fortress of the town of Pamplona against the French, who claimed the territory as their own against Spain. The Spaniards were terribly outnumbered and the commander of the Spanish forces wanted to surrender, but Ignatius convinced him to fight on for the honor of Spain, if not for victory. During the battle a cannon ball struck Ignatius, wounding one leg and breaking the other. Because they admired his courage, the French soldiers carried him back to recuperate at his home, the castle of Loyola, rather than to prison.

His leg was set but did not heal, so it was necessary to break it again and reset it, all without anesthesia. Ignatius grew worse and was finally told by the doctors that he should prepare for death.

On the feast of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June) he took an unexpected turn for the better. The leg healed, but when it did the bone protruded below the knee and one leg was shorter than the other. This was unacceptable to Ignatius, who considered it a fate worse than death not to be able to wear the long, tight-fitting boots and hose of the courtier. Therefore he ordered the doctors to saw off the offending knob of bone and lengthen the leg by systematic stretching. Again, all of this was done without anesthesia. Unfortunately, this was not a successful procedure. All his life he walked with a limp because one leg was shorter than the other.

During the long weeks of his recuperation, he was extremely bored and asked for some romance novels to pass the time. Luckily there were none in the castle of Loyola, but there was a copy of the life of Christ and a book on the saints. Desperate, Ignatius began to read them. The more he read, the more he considered the exploits of the saints worth imitating. However, at the same time he continued to have daydreams of fame and glory, along with fantasies of winning the love of a certain noble lady of the court, the identity of whom we never have discovered but who seems to have been of royal blood. He noticed, however, that after reading and thinking of the saints and Christ he was at peace and satisfied. Yet when he finished his long daydreams of his noble lady, he would feel restless and unsatisfied. Not only was this experience the beginning of his conversion, it was also the beginning of spiritual discernment, or discernment of spirits, which is associated with Ignatius and described in his Spiritual Exercises.

The Exercises recognize that not only the intellect but also the emotions and feelings can help us to come to a knowledge of the action of the Spirit in our lives. Eventually, completely converted from his old desires and plans of romance and worldly conquests, and recovered from his wounds enough to travel, he left the castle in March of 1522.

I was, from a child, always fascinated with the human mind. What made people different? What made one man a coward and another brave. I had a wonderful Catholic upbringing but was never exposed to St. Ignatius teachings (I wish I had) I sought the truth in psychology. I was fascinated by Freud, Fromm, Adler, Maslow, Jung, Skinner, and Rodgers. A bevy of psychological theories explained to me theses differences among individuals. I pursued the field in college and post graduate school but after a while I began to believe that although there was much useful information and skills to be had there wasn't any one particular school that explained everything. When my son joined the Jesuits last year I began to step up my reading of St. Ignatius, his Spiritual Exercises, Examen Prayer, I read a marvelous book by Father Robert Spitzer (a Jesuit) titled "The Five Pillars of the Spiritual Life" and even did a two part presentation on it last November at Adult Education at our church. I have posted here about the Examen Prayer see Febuary 10, 2009. Here are some other thoughts...I have made a profound change in my life over the last several months in that I discovered by way of examing my spirtual life that I find much joy in thinking and speaking about my Catholic faith and about Jesus and the good news of the Gospel and not much joy in all the other things in the world today. Last July I began volunteering as an extraordinary minister of the Holy Eucharist at Our Lady of the Lake Hospital and the joy that the Holy Spirit has brought to me has been nothing short of miraculous. I am aware of these things where as previously I would not take notice of what Ignatius calls Consolations. My point is this: you too can discover where you are in your spiritual life and what you derive joy in. You can by doing some simple exercises take grasp of your spiritual life and make conscious movements towards God. You can find greater awareness in your prayers and especially in Scripture reading. St Ignatius believed that gratitude was the starting point in your spiritual life. I had always practiced this but never realized it. I truly give thanks to God for my life and for each and every day that He as given me as a gift. I consider it an honor to be one of His creations and now I use this gratitude to desire to be closer to Him. I will be making a retreat soon and will share what I have learned. I will being posting bits and pieces of this wonderful spirituality. If you haven't been exposed to it or have haven't experienced it in a whiole I hope this will be helpful. God Bless.