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October 6, 2016

How Can a Demon, Driven Out, Return with Seven More? A Meditation on a Puzzling Parable

The Gospel for Friday of this week (27^th Week of the Year) features the puzzling parable about the cast-out demon who returns with seven others. What is most puzzling, is that finding the house (soul) “swept and clean” brings further trouble. One would think that a house that is swept and clean would be a good thing!

For reference, here is the parable:

When the unclean spirit has gone out of a man, he roams through waterless places in search of rest; and finding none, he says, “I will return to my house which I left.” And when he has come to it, he finds the place swept and clean. Then he goes and takes seven other spirits more evil than himself, and they enter in and dwell there; and the last state of that man becomes worse that the first (Lk 11:24-25).

How can we understand this parable? As is often the case, recourse to both the subtleties of the Greek text and the context can help us.

1. The Greek Text

A puzzling aspect of examining the Greek text is that what some Greek texts describe with three adjectives, almost every English translation renders with only two. Why is this? Because some of the Greek manuscripts lack the third word, which translates as “empty.”

While I can read the Greek text of the New Testament with relative ease, I am not an expert in ancient Greek or in the relative value of differing Greek manuscripts. The translation as either “swept and clean” or “swept and ordered” is almost universal among English renderings of this text. (See HERE for an example.)

I happen to believe that the inclusion of the word “empty” is essential, because otherwise something very important is left out. Let’s look at the description of the “house” (soul) to which the demon returns:

καὶ ἐλθὸν εὑρίσκει σχολάζοντα, σεσαρωμένον καὶ κεκοσμημένον.
Kai elthon heuriskei scholazonta, sesarōmenon kai kekosmēmenon.
And having come, it finds (it) empty, swept, and put in order (ornate).

The fact that the house (soul) is empty is the chief problem. Empty things need filling. Sadly, if good things do not fill empty spaces, then evil things do. This seems to be at the heart of the Lord’s warning.

A second issue is the translation of the word “kekosmēmenon.” Does “ordered,” or “put in order” really capture what the word is trying to convey? Most of us hear the word “order” and think of either systematic or moral order.

However, the Greek lexicon defines the root of kekosmēmenon, kosméō, as “to beautify, having the right arrangement (sequence) by ordering; to adorn, make compellingly attractive, very appealing (inviting, awesomely gorgeous).” Kosméō is also the root of the English word “cosmetics,” which are things that adorn or “order” the face.

Thus, the “order” described in this passage is more an order related to beauty. Hence the translation “ornate” may better capture what is meant by this word than either “clean” or “orderly.” So as we read this parable, we should consider that the description of the house as “swept and clean” may lack the subtlety of the Greek words. And while we should be wary of etymological fallacy, the original root meaning (kosméō = cosmetic = ornate, rather than merely “ordered”) ought not be wholly forgotten!

With these in mind, let’s consider the richer possibility that the Lord describes the “house” (an image for the soul) in three ways:

Empty

This is the key description that some ancient manuscripts omit. And yet it is the main problem. An empty house is a vulnerable house. An empty house, devoid of human presence, can no longer repel threats or repair damage that make it vulnerable. But more significantly from the standpoint of grace, an empty house, devoid of the presence of God, is a vacuum ready to be filled with demons and with every form of human sin, pride, and confusion.

Empty buildings are vulnerable, open to attack by termites, extreme weather, mold, and rodents. Just as an uncultivated field goes to weed, so an unattended house slides into decline and decay. So, too, goes the empty human soul, a soul devoid of the presence of God, of gratitude to Him, and of openness to His satisfying presence.

Yes, here is the spiritual lesson: let the Lord and the good things of the Kingdom of God fill every void, every empty space! Emptiness is too easily filled with evil things.

Consider a man who gives up alcohol for Lent. He does well by ending a lawful pleasure and making greater room for God. But what if God, or something of God, does not fill the space? Usually something of the devil, or something of the flesh, will fill it. Perhaps he will think, “I am approved because I, by my own power, have given this up.” But sadly, pride fills the empty space rather than God. The man’s new state is worse than before he gave up the lawful pleasure!

Swept

It is good if a person has, by God’s grace, been able to sweep sin from his life. But praise be to the Lord, not to the man or woman! Otherwise this is an open door for pride. Perhaps the sinner who succeeds in a Lenten observance will say, “Look what I have done! I am approved and am better than others who are less committed!” In this way grace is snatched by Satan. The house (soul), swept and in good order, must also be filled with humble gratitude to God. Thus the Lord warns of a house that is “swept,” but empty of humility and gratitude.

Ornate

While some translate this as “ordered,” it would seem that, given the context, ornate would be a better rendering. Hence we are warned to beware of vanity and also of esteeming beauty more than charity. The warning is for those who, though they appreciate beauty, become smug and disdainful of all others who do not share their aesthetic preferences.

Thus a connoisseur of fine wine may scoff at people who enjoy wine sold in a box (“cow”) or who like White Zinfandel. And God forbid that they prefer beer! In this way, an appreciation for the finer things (like wine) becomes pride and leads to the last state of the man being worse than the first.

Beauty and the appreciation of it has its place, but if it cancels charity, the last state of the man is worse than the first.

One may appreciate the beauty of the Latin Mass, but if love for the aesthetic causes one to scorn a priest who forgets to bow at the Gloria Patri or who wears gothic vestments instead of the preferred Roman fiddlebacks, then the love of beauty (a good thing) destroys charity (a better thing).

2. The Context

It is edifying to consider the contextual setting in which the Lord places this parable: an answer to those who pridefully rebuked His casting out of a demon (attributing it to Beelzebub). Just prior to the parable of the empty house and the seven demons is this event and subsequent rebuke:

Jesus was casting out a devil, and the same was dumb; and when He had cast out the devil, the dumb man spoke. And the crowds marveled. But some of them said, “By Beelzebub, the prince of devils, He casts out devils.” And others, to test Him, demanded from Him a sign from heaven. But He, seeing their thoughts, said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and house will fall upon house. If, then, Satan also is divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? Because you say that I cast out devils by Beelzebub” (Lk 11:14-16).

These religiously observant people (a good thing) had allowed their lives, all swept and clean but empty, to be filled with doubt, scorn, and pride.

That they followed the Law was a beautiful thing. Their lives were swept clean and ornate, but empty. And the emptiness was filled with pride and cynicism.

All of us who are religiously observant should pay particular attention to this. During Lent, many undertake certain practices and purifications. Beware that these mortifications do not create a space that, though clean, is empty and vulnerable to being filled with pride, greed, lust, anger, gluttony, envy, and sloth … the seven ugly cousins of the sin we were trying to drive out in the first place! Failure to fill the gap with God opens us up to all seven deadly sins.

Watch out! The devil can use even our piety to ensnare us in his seven-fold bondage. Do you engage in some active purifications? If so, you do well. But be sure that the space opened, all swept and ordered, is filled with God, with humility, and with gratitude. Otherwise it will too easily be filled with seven ugly demons and sins: pride, greed, lust, anger, gluttony, envy, and sloth.

Is this a parable decoded or muddled? You decide. The comment section is open, swept and clean!

October 2, 2016

Never Give Up: St. Augustine’s Stirring Call to Pastors

Today I would like to present excerpts from a stirring sermon that St. Augustine delivered to the priests and people of Hippo. In times like these we must all be reminded of the need to preach the Word of God even if the recipients of that word revile us, labeling our very proclamation of love “hate speech.” This is not new; St. Augustine calls us to be resolute and to preach the Word of God in season and out of season. This encouraging message is particularly appropriate for clergy and for all might grow discouraged. Augustine’s words are shown in bold print, while my commentary is in plain text.

[The Lord says:] The straying sheep you have not recalled; the lost sheep you have not sought. In one way or another, we go on living between the hands of robbers and the teeth of raging wolves …. The sheep moreover are insolent. … And in light of these present dangers we ask your prayers [From a sermon on pastors by St. Augustine, Bishop (Sermon 46, 14-15: CCL 41, 541-542)].

Whatever the specifics of St. Augustine’s era, the difficulty of clergy today is to preside over a flock that on the one hand is pursued by the raging wolf of hostile and scoffing secularism, and on the other is robbed of strength by dissension from within. While a hostile world is to be expected, internal dissension is not and is thus even more painful.

In contentious times such as ours, the poison of the world infects the flock and some of God’s own people begin to take up the voice and demeanor of the wolf. In certain times and places, a priest who strives to disclose the errors of the world will be resisted and scorned, referred to as intolerant or hateful. Even some of his own parishioners will resist him and spread talk among the flock that he is not a good priest for the times or for his parish. He will be dismissed by some as out-of-touch or be discounted as “too political.” Some may even walk out as he speaks about controversial issues that are referred to as political but are in fact moral: abortion, euthanasia, same-sex “marriage,” and so forth. Others may write letters to the bishop criticizing him. And while the scoffing of the world is expected, the insolence of the flock is even more discouraging.

Thus St. Augustine says here, “We ask your prayers.” Some priests can fall prey to hostility in sinful ways. Some may give way to anger, which can infect evangelical joy. They will engage in mere argumentation and fall prey to indiscriminate sermonizing. They go from being the Church militant to being the Church belligerent.

More common, and usually more deadly, is when a priest reacts by withdrawing from the battlefield altogether and no longer preaching on any topic considered controversial. He does not seek to correct the straying sheep because it might make them angry, and he is not willing to bear the emotional burden of this resistance or to brave the stormy waters of controversy in order to call to them.

Silent pulpits are all too common today. A priest who is silent from the pulpit may tell himself that he is protecting his people’s feelings by not upsetting anyone. In reality, though, he more comes to resemble the false shepherds denounced by Jesus, the ones who do not really care for their sheep but rather run when the wolf approaches.

The effect on the flock (and the world) is devastating, because Catholics, who are called to be light in the darkness, have come to resemble the darkness. Catholics are indistinguishable from the general populace in terms of our views on the most critical moral issues of our times. Even Catholics who have not caved in to all aspects of the cultural revolution are often ill-prepared to make a defense for the hope and truth that is in them.

Augustine calls some of the sheep “insolent.” The Latin root of the word lends it a meaning of being unaccustomed to something. Thus one who is insolent scoffs at what he does not understand. The straying sheep are often insolent as a result of poor catechesis.

Ignorance of the faith in the pews, along with pressure from a culture that loudly and effectively proclaims its views, present an enormous challenge to pastors. Without persistence and fortitude, many of our clergy can become resigned to mediocrity and inaction.

Thus the urgent request of St. Augustine on behalf of all clergy: “We ask your prayers.”

Augustine then goes on to set forth a model of a shepherd’s heart for his sheep (especially the straying ones) that all clergy should emulate.

The shepherd seeks out the straying sheep, but because they have wandered away and are lost they say that they are not ours. “Why do you want us? Why do you seek us?” they ask, as if their straying and being lost were not the very reason for our wanting them and seeking them out. “If I am straying,” he says, “if I am lost, why do you want me?” You are straying, that is why I wish to recall you. You have been lost, I wish to find you. “But I wish to stray,” he says, “I wish to be lost.”

Yes, with the help of others a good priest seeks out the lost, the confused, and the broken. Many will say that they are not ours or that we should leave them alone. Others will say, “If you don’t approve of what I do and consider me lost and a sinner, why do you want me?” But it is precisely because they are lost that we seek them.

We do not “disapprove” of sinful behavior so that we can sinners off, but so that we can summon them, restore them to the flock from which they have strayed. Why would one search for what is not lost? It is what is lost that is sought. Our disapproval of sin (regardless of how others choose to interpret it) is no different than a doctor’s disapproval of toxic behavior that can lead to cancer; he will caution us to avoid such behavior and to come to him for healing if the cancer has already set in.

Sadly, many today base their fundamental identity in sinful behaviors and interpret our searching for them as an offense, rather than as an act of loving concern.

St. Augustine captures their attitude well: “But I wish to stray, I wish to be lost.” He then he sets an answer that summons us to perseverance:

So you wish to stray and be lost? How much better that I do not also wish this. Certainly, I dare say, I am unwelcome. But I listen to the Apostle who says, “Preach the word; insist upon it, welcome and unwelcome.” … I dare to say, “You wish to stray, you wish to be lost; but I do not want this.” For the one whom I fear does not wish this. And should I wish it, consider his words of reproach: “The straying sheep you have not recalled; the lost sheep you have not sought.” Shall I fear you rather than him? Remember, we must all present ourselves before the judgment seat of Christ.

This is a powerful reminder to every priest and every Christian. Do not lose your zeal for souls. Do not give up. Preach till the day you die, whether your words are welcomed or not.

And even should you lose your zeal, never forget that the Lord has not lost His. We will all report to Him one day to render an account of our lives. Priests, above all, must be stirred to zeal. And if our own love for God and for souls should flag, at least let a holy fear of the day of judgment move us!

Love is the better motive, but failing that, may we be moved by the fear of the Lord and of the day we shall be called to account for our ministry. Further, we must not fear the anger of men more than the indignation of God should we fail Him in the goal for which He ordained us.

Steeled and motivated by this, Augustine concludes with a stirring summons to resolve:

I shall recall the straying; I shall seek the lost. Whether they wish it or not, I shall do it. And should the brambles of the forests tear at me when I seek them, I shall force myself through all straits; I shall put down all hedges. So far as the God whom I fear grants me the strength, I shall search everywhere. I shall recall the straying; I shall seek after those on the verge of being lost!

Amen. Stir in us, O Lord, a zeal for souls. Give us your own love and strength. May we desire souls with your very desire for them!

September 26, 2016

Job and Suffering

We are beginning to read from the Book of Job in daily Mass. One of its core issues is the problem of suffering and why God allows it. If God is omnipotent and omniscient then how can He tolerate evil, injustice, and suffering of the innocent? Where is God when a woman is raped, when genocide is committed, or when evil men hatch their plots? Why did God even conceive the evil ones and let them be born?

The problem of evil cannot be answered simply; it is a mystery. Its purpose and why God permits it are caught up in our limited vision and understanding. Scripture says that “all things work together for the good of those who love and trust the Lord and are called according to his purposes” (Rom 8:28). But how this is often difficult for us to see. Anyone who has ever suffered a tragic and senseless loss or has observed the disproportionate suffering that some must endure cannot help but ask why. And the answers aren’t all that satisfying to many.

As in the days of Job, we cry out for answers but few are forthcoming. In the Book of Job, God speaks from a whirlwind, questioning Job’s ability to even ask the right questions. In the end, though, He is God and we are not. This must be enough for us and we must look with trust to the reward that awaits the faithful.

One of the most perplexing aspects of suffering is its uneven distribution. In America as a whole, there is much less suffering than in many other parts of the world. And even here, some go through life strong, wealthy, and well-fed while others suffer crippling disease, sudden losses, financial setbacks, and burdens. And while a lot of our suffering comes from our own poor choices and/or lack of self-control, some of it seems unrelated. The most difficult suffering to accept is that inflicted on the innocent by third parties who seem to suffer no ill effects: parents who mistreat or neglect their children, those who exploit the poor or unsuspecting for their own gain exploited, etc.

Suffering is hard to explain simply or to merely accept. I think this just has to be admitted. Simple slogans and quick answers are seldom sufficient in the face of great evil and suffering. When interacting with those who are deeply disturbed by the problem of evil, a healthy dose of sympathy, understanding, and a call to humility will be more fruitful than forceful rebuttal.

A respectful exposition of the Christian understanding of evil might include some of the following points. (Note that these are not explanations per se (for suffering is a great mystery) and they are humble for they admit of their own limits.)

The Scriptures teach that God created a world that was as a paradise. Although we only get a brief glimpse of the Garden of Eden, it seems clear that death and suffering were not part of it and that Adam and Eve caused their entry, despite being warned that this would be the result of eating from the forbidden tree.
Even in Eden the serpent coiled from the branch of a tree called the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. So even in paradise the mystery of evil lurked.
In a way, the tree and the serpent had to be there. We were made to love; love requires freedom; and freedom requires choice. The yes of love must permit of the no of sin. In our rebellious no both we and the world unraveled, ushering in death and chaos. Paradise was lost and a far more hostile and unpredictable world remained. From this fact came all of the suffering and evil we endure. Our sins alone cause an enormous amount of suffering on this earth, the vast majority of it by my reckoning. The suffering caused by natural phenomena is also linked to sin—Original Sin, wherein we preferred to reign in a hellish imitation rather than to serve in the real paradise.
The link between human freedom and evil/suffering also explains God’s usual non-intervention in evil matters. To do so routinely would make an abstraction of human freedom and thus remove a central pillar of love. But there is mystery here, too, for the Scriptures frequently recount how God did intervene to put an end to evil plots, to turn back wars, and to shorten famines and plagues. Why does He sometimes intervene and sometimes not? Why do prayers of deliverance sometimes get answered and sometimes not? Here, too, there is a mystery of providence.
The lengthiest Biblical treatise on suffering is the Book of Job. There, God shows an almost shocking lack of sympathy for Job’s questions and sets a lengthy foundation for the conclusion that the mind of man is simply incapable of seeing into the depths of this problem. God saw fit to test Job’s faith and strengthen it. In the end Job is restored and re-established with even greater blessings; it is a kind of foretaste of what is meant by Heaven.
The First Letter of Peter also explains suffering in this way: In this you rejoice, although now for a little while you may have to suffer through various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold that is perishable even though tested by fire, may prove to be for praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:6-7). In other words, our sufferings purify us and prepare us to meet God.
Does this mean that those who suffer more are in need of more purification? Not necessarily. It could also mean that greater glory is awaiting them. The Scriptures teach, Therefore, we are not discouraged; rather, although our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison (2 Cor 4:16-17). Hence suffering “produces” glory in the world to come. Those who suffer more, but endure it with faith, will have greater glory in the world to come.
Regarding the apparent injustice of uneven suffering it will be noted that the Scriptures teach of a great reversal when many who are last shall be first (Mat 20:16), when the mighty will be cast down and the lowly exalted, when the rich will go away empty and poor be filled (Luke 1:52-53). In this sense, it is not necessarily a blessing to be rich and well-fed, unaccustomed to suffering. The only chance the rich and well-heeled have to avoid this is to be generous and kind to the poor and those who suffer (1 Tim 6:17-18).
As to God’s apparent insensitivity to suffering, we can only point to Christ, who did not exempt Himself from the suffering we caused by leaving Eden. He suffered mightily and unjustly but also showed that this would be a way home to paradise.

I’m sure you can add to these points. Be careful with the problem of evil and suffering; there are mysterious dimensions that must be respected. The best approach in talking to others may be with an exposition that shows forth the Christian struggle to come to grips with it. The “answer” of Scripture requires faith, but the answer appeals to reason. Justice calls us to humility before a great mystery of which we can see only a little. The appeal to humility in the face of a mystery may command greater respect from an atheist than would “pat” answers, which could alienate them.

September 9, 2016September 9, 2016

Lessons Against Fascination with Evil

The video below is a trailer for an upcoming movie. I can’t comment on the full context of the movie (since it hasn’t yet been released), but there are several important messages in the trailer. Allow it to bring forth in you a salutary fear; don’t be fascinated by the cheap parlor tricks of Satan or the Hollywood depiction of them.

Let’s take away four lessons from the trailer.

As the trailer begins, it seems that some scam artists have drawn in gullible people with fake séances and other forms of divination. There are hidden people who speak and make noises in order to convince the “customers” that the dead are actually being contacted.

Lesson One: Never dabble in the occult, even as a ruse or a joke. Those who do so often discover that the spirits they invoke in jest are deadly serious and quite real. Never invoke dark sprits and never seek information from the dead. Evil spirits can and often do masquerade as the souls of the departed; it’s a deception.

As the trailer progresses, things get very ugly. The characters go from lies and ruses (which are sinfully ugly enough) to an encounter with the Father of Lies. One of the characters, noting the abnormal behavior of a young girl asks, “Who are you talking to?” Believe me, you don’t want to know!

Lesson Two: Calling out to the dark world beyond often brings a response, and a very dark one at that.

As the trailer unfolds it seems that things get bad very fast. One of the characters says, “Something is happening that we can’t understand.”

Lesson Three: Satanic powers are masters of deception. All the parlor tricks (levitation, slamming doors, etc.) are meant to incite fear. But the real battleground is the mind and the very subtle deceptions of the Evil One. He subtly takes up the personality of the possessed soul and makes it difficult to understand who is really talking. Indeed, something is happening that is very difficult to understand, except perhaps for a trained exorcist. Even an exorcist enters the battleground with humility and careful discernment, rooted in considering the counsel of others on the team. For this and other reasons, an exorcist should never work alone. He should have an assistant priest and a team to assist him, to observe, to advise him, and to pray.

At one point in the trailer the priest says, “… you’ve opened up a portal.”

Lesson Four: Never open a door to the occult, even in a playful way. Ask not, lest you be answered, seek not lest you be found. Don’t joke or revile evil spirits (cf Jude 1:9). Our only message to them should be this: “In the name of Jesus, the Lord, be gone!”

Keep your eyes on Jesus and the saints. Do not be fascinated by demons or any aspect of darkness.

Movies like this one can incite a salutary fear, but they can also encourage an undue fascination with devilish things. No one who has ever assisted in an exorcism shares any of this fascination at all. Exorcisms are usually lengthy, tedious, and exhausting. There is no dramatic music, and things are never finished in a convenient 90 minutes. It’s an ugly process that weighs heavily on the participants. The demons usually shift quickly from cheap parlor tricks to subtle psychological deception.

If you chose to see this movie, please learn these lessons. Shed any fascination; there is nothing fascinating about evil. It is depressing, dark, and difficult to endure.

Remember that the Lord is more powerful that any satanic force. If you should ever encounter such evil, even through no fault of your own, summon the Lord and repeatedly declare aloud, “Jesus is Lord.” The sacraments, Holy Water, and other sacramentals are also very helpful. Do not panic, just have a salutary fear such that you keep a healthy distance from any dark powers.

Use care when watching this trailer. Let it provide you with information, but don’t let it fascinate you.

September 7, 2016September 7, 2016

Where Does Our Sense of the Eternal Come from in a Finite World?

A common reading at the funeral Mass is this powerful one from the Book of Ecclesiastes:

I have considered the task that God has appointed for the sons of men to be busied about. He has made everything appropriate to its time, and has put the timeless into their hearts, without man’s ever discovering, from beginning to end, the work which God has done (Eccl 3:10-11).

Somewhere in our hearts is something that the world cannot, and did not, give us. This passage calls it “the timeless.” We also refer to it as eternity or even infinity.

But where did this concept come from? The world is finite. Time here is serial. Things have a beginning, a middle, and an end. We do not experience anything of the timeless. Rather, everything is governed by the steady ticking of the clock. Every verb we use is time-based. Everything is rooted in chronological time. Yet somehow we can grasp the timeless. Yes, we do know it.

The experience of “forever” does not exist in this world, but it is still there our minds and hearts. There is no way to travel through time here in this world. Yet instinctively we know that somehow we can. Science fiction and fantasy novels often feature going back to the past or into the future. The world could not teach us this because we are locked in the present and have never actually travelled in time. Somehow, though, we know that we can do it.

The word “eternity” comes from the Greek word “aeon,” which means “the fullness of time.” It is not just a long time; it is all time: past, present, and future all at once. If you look at a clock you’ll notice that at the center dot, 10 AM, 2 PM, and 6 PM are all the same, even though 10 AM is in the past, 2 PM is now, and 6 PM is in the future. This is aeon, eternity, the fullness of time; this is timelessness.

From whence did we get such a concept? The world cannot give it, for the world does not have it. Nothing can give what it does not have. The world is finite, limited, and time-bound—not timeless. It cannot, therefore, give what is infinite or “timeless.” If we have such a notion it must come from outside time or in the fullness of time, something that contains the full sweep of time all at once. But what is outside time?

August 15, 2016

The Blessing of Pilgrimage – A Journey in Faith!

This coming March (19^th – 30^th), Patrick Coffin (of Catholic Answers) and I will lead a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. You are invited to come! Details are available here: Catholic Holy Land Pilgrimage.

As I prepare for that trip I recall that one of the greatest moments in my entire life, and certainly in my life as a priest, was celebrating Holy Mass in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, at the Latin altar on Golgotha, the very site of the crucifixion. Not far away, just at the other end of the Church was the site of the resurrection. I was overwhelmed to think I was at the very site to which every Mass points.

The site of the crucifixion and burial of the Lord is well documented both archaeologically and historically. A large church was built over the site in the Byzantine period (the period just after the Edict of Constantine). Parts of the current church date back to the 7^th century. At one end of the church is a tall hill, covered over by the church structure but reachable by steep stairs. At the top of the platform high up in the church, the rock face of Calvary is exposed and there is a hole (under the Orthodox altar) through which pilgrims can reach to touch the rocky spot where the cross stood. Just six feet to the right of that is the Roman Catholic (Latin) altar where I was privileged to celebrate Mass with my parish group (see photo at right).

A pilgrimage is not a vacation; it is not a mere trip—it is a journey in faith. It is designed to grow our faith and confirm it. We pray and celebrate Mass every single day. Each day we visit several sites that we have always heard about and read in the Scriptures, both the Old and New Testaments.

There is nothing like walking through the streets of ancient Capernaum, standing in the ruins of the synagogue where the Bread of Life discourse was given. What an amazing experience to sail the Sea of Galilee, or go to Nazareth and look into the archeological remains of the simple home where the Angel Gabriel visited Mary! What a view from Mt. Tabor down into the Jezreel Valley, the “Valley of Armageddon”! It is nothing short of glorious to be in the hill country of Judea and walk the steep hill up to the Church of the Visitation. Jericho, too, never fails to amaze. And what an experience to go back up to Jerusalem and sit on the Mount of Olives, looking over the Kidron Valley! Ponder that our Lord sat here as well, looking down on ancient Jerusalem. Yes, what a view! Imagine spending time in quiet prayer in the Garden at Gethsemane and thinking of that difficult night for our Lord more than 2,000 years ago.

The Holy Land—there is just nothing like it! Even though I’ve been there twice, I still can’t wait to go back.

Another strong impression from my previous visits to the Holy Land is how very Catholic it is. To go to the many sites is to “enter” the Catholic Church, at least physically. At almost every site, a Catholic church dominates the scene: at Capernaum (where the loaves and fishes were multiplied), at Cana, in Nazareth, on the Mount of the Beatitudes, on Mt. Tabor. In all these places there is only one church building, and it is a Catholic church building. In Jerusalem, too, most of the sites have a Catholic church on or adjacent to the site: The Mount of Olives, Dominus Flevit (where the Lord wept over Jerusalem), the Garden of Gethsemane, the house of Caiaphas, the place of the trial before Pontius Pilate.

I wonder what Protestant Christians experience as they visit site after site and see, once again, a Catholic church (Blessed Sacrament and all) either at the site or literally on top of it. And in the few sites where the church is not Catholic (Bethlehem and Holy Sepulchre) it is the Orthodox who oversee it. In both cases there is a strong Roman Catholic presence. I do not intend to convey a triumphalist attitude, but only to say that I feel very proud and happy to be a Catholic when I’m in the Holy Land. Almost every site is fundamentally a Catholic site.

Gratitude for the Franciscans – We ought to be very grateful to the Franciscans of the Holy Land for the wonderful care they provide for these holy sites. They have been most kind to the groups I have led, allowing us to say Mass as well. At each site they are hospitable to people of every faith. They keep the churches clean and the holy sites in good repair. They have also accommodated archeological research and have been most helpful to the process of verifying the authenticity of the sites.

Please consider visiting the Holy Land. The pilgrimage that Patrick Coffin and I will lead takes place early next year (March 19^th – 30^th 2017). We will visit all the crucial sites: in Galilee, up north, in Jerusalem, in Bethlehem, in Jericho, and the Dead Sea down to the south. If you’ve never been before, I assure you that your life will be changed as all the sites you have always heard of are suddenly right before your very eyes.

More information on the trip is available here: Catholic Holy Land Pilgrimage.

Patrick Coffin put a video invitation together that you can view here:

June 8, 2016

It’s Time to Shine or It’ll Be Over Soon – A Meditation on Being Called the Light of the World

In the Gospel yesterday (Tuesday of the 10^th week) the Lord describes what a Christian is and what He expects of us. He uses two different metaphors: salt and light. Yesterday’s post considered the metaphor of salt.

Today let’s consider the metaphor of light. The Lord says,

You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house.

Much that can be said about salt can also be said about light. You don’t light light. It is the darkness that needs the light. Light is meant to be seen. There are too many undercover Christians, secret agent saints, and hidden holy ones. Jesus didn’t light our light to have it hidden under a basket out of fear or secrecy. He wants the Church to shine; he wants you and me to shine. He wants every Christian to be a light so that it’s like a city on a hill! He wants us to shine so that we can’t be hidden.

If we don’t shine, then the world is dark. This is because we are not just a light, we are (in Christ) the light. If you want to know why the world is in darkness, you don’t need to look very far. We often like to think that things are a mess because the wrong party is in power, or Hollywood is too secular, etc. But if we are the light of the world, then the world is dark because we are not shining the light of Christ. Light scatters darkness; it does not blame the darkness. This darkness has happened on our watch. As a Church we have been too content to hide our light under a basket. This is why the world is dark. If we collectively do our work, the darkness does not stand a chance. But too many—clergy and lay—are fearfully silent while the purveyors of darkness are loud and proud.

To all of this Jesus simply says, “You are the light of the world.”

Let’s look at some details of the light. Jesus goes on to say, Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father. Notice four things about this light:

The CAUSE – Notice that little word “let.” We are to yield to Christ, to allow him to shine through us. He is the cause of our light. Let your light shine. There’s an old Gospel song that says, “When you see me trying to do good, trying to live as a Christian should, it’s just Jesus, Jesus in me.”

The COST – The purpose of light is to shine, but there is no shining without burning. Shining costs us something. It may be Christ’s light but He shines through us. This means sacrifice on our part. It means letting him use us. It means not always sleeping when we want to. It means not just sitting at home and saying “Ain’t it awful.” It means getting out and getting involved. It means being “out there” and risking a few things. It means being targeted and visible. It means being identified with someone (Jesus) who is hated by many. And in a world that prefers the darkness to light (cf John 3:19-21) it means being called harsh, out-of-touch, and hateful. There is no shining without burning.

The CONCRETENESS – Letting our light shine is no abstract thing. Jesus speaks of deeds. It involves concrete behavior. Your light shines by the way you live, the choices you make, the behavior you exhibit. The light shines when Christians get married and stay married, stay faithful to their commitments, and are people of their word. Our light shines when we tell the truth instead of lying, live chastely instead of fornicating, and behave courteously and respectfully. It shines when we respect life; it shines when we stop our reckless behavior. Our light shines when we clean up our language, give to the poor, and work for justice. Our light shines when we refuse to view pornographic, violent or degrading materials. Our light shines when we love instead of hate, when we seek reconciliation and pray for our enemies instead of seeking vengeance. Our light shines when we walk uprightly and speak the truth in love, without compromise. That’s when our light shines.

The CONSEQUENCE – God is glorified when our light shines. We do not act or get involved merely to satisfy our own anger or to fight for our own sake. We are light so as to glorify God. It is not about our winning, it is about God shining and being glorified. Too often when we do get involved we merely seek to win an argument rather than to glorify God. We can get involved in order to be praised rather than to have God glorified. We need to pray for good intentions, for it is possible to do the right thing for the wrong reason. The desire result is God’s glory not our glory.

Pass the salt and turn on the lights! It’s time to shine or it’ll be over soon. It’s zero-dark-thirty. Are you ready to shine?

February 10, 2016

An Early Lenten Meditation on Spiritual Warfare

As we begin Lent, we do well to recall that we are engaged in a great and dramatic battle for our souls. The opening prayer for Ash Wednesday Mass makes use of the image of a military “campaign” and mentions weapons and battle: Grant, O Lord, that we may begin with holy fasting this campaign of Christian service, so that, as we take up battle against spiritual evils, we may be armed with weapons of self-restraint. The First Sunday of Lent lays out the tactics of the devil in terms of temptation, and relates how we must be prepared to refute and resist such things.

Every ancient prayer manual and guide to spirituality until about fifty years ago had at least one large section devoted to what was known as Pugna Spiritualis (spiritual battle or spiritual warfare). In more recent decades, many spiritual books have either downplayed or completely deleted references to spiritual battle or spiritual warfare.

Many modern approaches to faith, religion, and spirituality prefer to emphasize consoling themes rooted in self-esteem and affirmation. To be sure, the authentic faith can and does offer great consolation, but the truest and deepest consolation often comes after one has persevered along the sometimes-difficult path, along the “narrow way” of the cross. But too many today, in the name of affirmation and pseudo-self-esteem, are all too ready to excuse or even support grave moral disorders rather than fight them.

It is true that the Holy Father would have us focus on mercy this year. And so we should. But, paradoxically, mercy is a tactic of battle. Satan would “love” nothing more than for us to hold grudges and intensify our divisions through prideful resistance. He would prefer that we despair of God’s mercy or despair that it is even possible for us to live apart from sinful habits. Thus mercy is a tool of tactical genius; it breaks the cycle of negativity and sin and robs Satan of victories and of souls, snatching them back from the downward spiral of anger and despair.

Mercy does not mean saying that God doesn’t mind what you do. Rather, it means that saying that God loves you despite your sins and is extending to you a way out of the misery your sins have caused.

Grace and mercy are marvelously extended to us, but it is repentance that opens the door to these gifts. Repentance, too, is a battle tactic, because it embraces God’s daring move to break the satanic cycle of anger and despair. Repentance (metanoia) most literally means to come to a new mind, to a new way of thinking. Repentance is accepting God as our general and following His battle plans for our life. It is recognizing that sin is awful, but that grace and mercy are still extended to us and that we ought to accept and depend upon them. By unlocking grace and mercy, repentance deals serious blows to satanic plans and powers. To repent is to engage in the battle on the right side of the war.

In our times it is rare to hear spiritual realities being spoken of in warlike terms. Many prefer softer terms and images. Some are even outright offended at concepts such as spiritual warfare. Many hymnals have dropped older hymns that reference being on the battlefield for the Lord, or being soldiers in the army of the Lord.

With spiritual battle having been removed from many people’s spiritual landscape, the idea that the Lord would summon us to battle, or to ask us to choose sides, seems foreign, intolerant, and uncompassionate.

Even more dangerous, these modern conceptions not only distort Jesus, but they downplay the presence and influence of Satan. This is a very, very bad idea. Even if we cease fighting against Satan, he will never cease his sometimes very subtle attacks on us.

Jesus called consistently for prayerful, sober vigilance against the powers of evil and sin. Like it or not, we are in a battle. Either we will undertake the battle soberly and vigilantly, or we will be conquered and led off like sheep to the slaughter.

Contrary to the modern spiritual approaches, Christianity has been a militant religion since its inception. Jesus was exposed to every kind of danger from the beginning. Herod sought His life. Satan tried to tempt Him in the desert. Many enemies plotted on all sides as He worked His public ministry, misrepresenting Him, levying false charges, and conspiring to sentence Him to death (eventually succeeding, though only for a moment).

And as for Jesus, so also for His mystical Body, the Church: Saul, Saul why do you persecute me? (Acts 9:4) Jesus warned that the world would hate us (Luke 21:17, John 15:20), that in this world we would have tribulation (Jn 16:33), and that we should watch and pray lest we give way to temptation (Matt 26:41). He summons us to persevere to the end if we would be saved (Mk 13:13). Jesus rather vividly described the kind of struggle with which we live when He said, From the time of John the Baptist until now, the Kingdom of Heaven has suffered violence, and men of violence take it by force (Matthew 11:12). Indeed, no Christian until the time that Jesus returns can consider himself dismissed from this great spiritual battle, this great drama in which we exist, this battle between good and evil.

Unpopular theme or not, we do well to remember that we are in the midst of a great cosmic and spiritual battle. And in that battle we must be willing to choose sides and fight with the Lord for the Kingdom of God. Either we will gather with Him or we will be scattered. We are to fight for our own soul and the souls of those whom we love.

In Lent we move toward the awesome battle we call the Paschal Mystery, in which Jesus will conquer Satan’s pride by humility and obedience. We are reminded once again of the great cosmic battle that the Lord waged and that is still being waged today. Though already victorious in His mystical Body the Church, the Lord in His faithful members still suffers violence, rejection, and ridicule. Lent is a time to reclaim territory from the evil one, to take back what the devil stole from us. We are to advance the glory of God’s Kingdom through the fruits of great spiritual struggle, sacrifice, prayer, fasting, preaching, and an extensive missionary campaign to which the Lord has summoned and commissioned us.

The battle is on; the struggle is engaged! To spiritual arms, one and all! Fight the good fight for the Lord.

Still not convinced that we are at war? Let the Lord pull back the veil just a bit and let you look at what’s really going on. The final words of this article will not be mine; they will be the Lord’s. Here is described the cosmic battle that is responsible for most of the suffering and confusion you experience:

A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child the moment he was born. She gave birth to a son, a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.” And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days. Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say, “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.” When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s reach. Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent. But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus (Rev 12).

Here’s a great video reminding us that the Church is more a battleship than a cruise ship: