Reflections on the feast of St Michael the Archangel

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Year C   

29 September 2013

St. Michael Archangel,
St. Gabriel Archangel,
St. Raphael Archangel

Feast












First Scripture reading:
Amos 6:1.4-7.

Thus says the LORD the God of hosts: Woe to the complacent in Zion! Lying upon beds of ivory, stretched comfortably on their couches, they eat lambs taken from the flock, and calves from the stall! Improvising to the music of the harp, like David, they devise their own accompaniment.
They drink wine from bowls and anoint themselves with the best oils; yet they are not made ill by the collapse of Joseph!
Therefore, now they shall be the first to go into exile, and their wanton revelry shall be done away with.

Ps 146(145):7.8.9.10.

The God of Jacob keeps faith forever,
Secures justice for the oppressed,
Gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets captives free.

The LORD gives sight to the blind.
The LORD raises up those who were bowed down;
the LORD loves the just.
The LORD protects strangers.
The fatherless and the widow He sustains,
but the way of the wicked He thwarts.

The LORD shall reign forever;
Your God, O Zion, through all generations. Alleluia.

Second Reading: 1 Tim 6:11-16.

But you, man of God, pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and gentleness.
Compete well for the faith. Lay hold of eternal life, to which you were called when you made the noble confession in the presence of many witnesses.
I charge (you) before God, who gives life to all things, and before Christ Jesus, who gave testimony under Pontius Pilate for the noble confession,
to keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ
that the blessed and only ruler will make manifest at the proper time, the King of kings and Lord of lords,
who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, and whom no human being has seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal power. Amen.
Luke 16:19-31.
Jesus said to the Pharisees: "There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen and dined sumptuously each day.
And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores,
who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps that fell from the rich man's table. Dogs even used to come and lick his sores.
When the poor man died, he was carried away by angels to the Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried, and from the netherworld, where he was in torment, he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he cried out, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me. Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering torment in these flames.'
Abraham replied, 'My child, remember that you received what was good during your lifetime while Lazarus likewise received what was bad; but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented.
Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established to prevent anyone from crossing who might wish to go from our side to yours or from your side to ours.'
He said, 'Then I beg you, father, send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest they too come to this place of torment.'
But Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.'
He said, 'Oh no, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.'
Then Abraham said, 'If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead.'"

 Commentary of the day :

If I was in the parish today, the congregation would be getting an earful about the amazing miracle of birth that’s changed my world this week on September 24^th and about how impressed I was with my gorgeous wife’s courage during the procedure.

But if you want to read about it you can see my other blogged article at:

http://kevinmatthewlee.blogspot.com/2013/09/everyone-loves-baby-but-mine-is-best.html

Today is the birthday of my youngest sister Monica who is fifteen years younger than me so growing up I took special care of her. She can recall all the games I played with her and Mary (our next sister up from Monica), the adventures I took them on as well as listening to her difficulties. So on the feast of St Michael and the other archangels I always remember her as well as the police whose feast day it is too (under the patronage of St Michael).

The Gospel message which I want to share with you today is just one point. The rich man in the parable Jesus told was sent to hell not because he didn’t go to Africa to feed the starving people, or because he did anything wrong. He was sent to hell because he ignored the plight of the poor man outside his gate. He didn’t hurt him or even tell his dogs to lick Lazarus’ sores. He just did nothing. 

In the mind of Jesus, apathy is a sin of omission. It’s a crime worthy of eternal damnation. So be careful Tony Abbott what you DON’T DO for those people seeking genuine asylum from unjust regimes. They are outside your gate calling for help and you turn them away…

Criminal neglect.

Constitution on the Church in the modern world « Gaudium et Spes »  

"Lying at his door was a poor man"

God intended the earth with everything contained in it for the use of all human beings and peoples. Thus, under the leadership of justice and in the company of charity, created goods should be in abundance for all in like manner. Whatever the forms of property may be, as adapted to the legitimate institutions of peoples, according to diverse and changeable circumstances, attention must always be paid to this universal destination of earthly goods. In using them, therefore, man should regard the external things that he legitimately possesses not only as his own but also as common in the sense that they should be able to benefit not only him but also others.


On the other hand, the right of having a share of earthly goods sufficient for oneself and one's family belongs to everyone. The Fathers and Doctors of the Church held this opinion, teaching that men are obliged to come to the relief of the poor and to do so not merely out of their superfluous goods. If one is in extreme necessity, he has the right to procure for himself what he needs out of the riches of others. (Here the ancient principle applies...: “In a case of extreme necessity everything is held in common and must be put to common use.” Clearly, for a precise application of this principle, all the necessary moral conditions must be present.) Since there are so many people prostrate with hunger in the world, this sacred council urges all, both individuals and governments, to remember the aphorism of the Fathers, "Feed the man dying of hunger, because if you have not fed him, you have killed him," and really to share and employ their earthly goods, according to the ability of each, especially by supporting individuals or peoples with the aid by which they may be able to help and develop themselves.

Cosmas & Damian

Mass Readings and reflections for Thursday, 26 September 2013

Thursday of the Twenty-fifth week in Ordinary Time

Saints Cosmas & Damian, Martyrs († c. 283) were brothers, born in Arabia, who had become eminent for their skill in the science of medicine. Being Christians, they were filled with the spirit of charity and never took money for their services. At Egaea in Cilicia, where they lived, they enjoyed the highest esteem of the people. When the persecution under Diocletian broke out, their very prominence rendered them marked objects of persecution. Being apprehended by order of Lysias, governor of Cilicia, they underwent various torments about the year 283. They are patron saints of pharmacists. 

Haggai 1:1-8.

On the first day of the sixth month in the second year of King Darius, The word of the LORD came through the prophet Haggai to the governor of Judah, Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, and to the high priest Joshua, son of Jehozadak:
Thus says the LORD of hosts: This people says: "Not now has the time come to rebuild the house of the LORD."
(Then this word of the LORD came through Haggai, the prophet:)
Is it time for you to dwell in your own paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins?
Now thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider your ways!
You have sown much, but have brought in little; you have eaten, but have not been satisfied; You have drunk, but have not been exhilarated; have clothed yourselves, but not been warmed; And he who earned wages earned them for a bag with holes in it.
Thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider your ways!
Go up into the hill country; bring timber, and build the house That I may take pleasure in it and receive my glory, says the LORD.

Ps 149(148):1-2.3-4.5-6a.9b.

Sing to the LORD a new song
of praise in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel be glad in their maker,
let the children of Zion rejoice in their king.

Let them praise his name in the festive dance,
let them sing praise to him with timbrel and harp.
For the LORD loves his people,
and he adorns the lowly with victory.

Let the faithful exult in glory;
let them sing for joy upon their couches;
Let the high praises of God be in their throats.
This is the glory of all his faithful. Alleluia.

Lk 9:7-9.

Herod the tetrarch heard about all that was happening, and he was greatly perplexed because some were saying, "John has been raised from the dead" ;
others were saying, "Elijah has appeared"; still others, "One of the ancient prophets has arisen."
But Herod said, "John I beheaded. Who then is this about whom I hear such things?" And he kept trying to see him.

 Commentary of the day :

Today is the birthday of my brother Brendan who is also a priest but ten years after me. He hasn't spoken to me since my hiatus with the Catholic priesthood owing to my decision to marry. He thinks I am bound for hell. Sad to say, many righteous people feel that God is like the Old Testament no chances, wrath-filled deity and despite preaching mercy and forgiveness they never offer it. Jesus gives stern warning to those who follow that view of Christianity: "the amount you measure out will the amount you are given back" (Matthew 18:31-33)

Today's Gospel shows the attitude of many of my Twitter followers who claim not to believe in God or Jesus but have a healthy respect for those who reverently do. They are however dissuaded from following a faith because of the poor examples of the representatives putting themselves forward as "faith leaders" e.g. Joseph Ratzinger and George Pell.

I watched an interesting documentary on Australian Muslims' divorces last night and watch three Sheiks sitting in judgment over a couple who were seeking a divorce. I was totally turned off by the suggesting that they are paid for their services as the Sheiks sat pen in hand ready to decide on this unfortunate couple's fate.
A couple showed their certificate of divorce to show the Sheiks that this was for them only a formality, the Sheiks were furious.  They are losing their influence over their people who have adopted an attitude which welcomes Western permissiveness.
When the decision went against one group of Islamic Sheiks from another faction they said, "We don't care what the Australian government decides, we don't accept the divorce. What's in it for us?" It was weird and made me realize that there are so many versions of religion that are driven by power struggles and greed rather than the good of humanity.

 Catechism of the Catholic Church § 31-35

Herod keeps trying to see Jesus

Created in God's image and called to know and love him, the person who seeks God discovers certain ways of coming to know him. These are also called proofs for the existence of God, not in the sense of proofs in the natural sciences, but rather in the sense of "converging and convincing arguments", which allow us to attain certainty about the truth.

These "ways" of approaching God from creation have a twofold point of departure: the physical world, and the human person. The world: starting from movement, becoming, contingency, and the world's order and beauty, one can come to a knowledge of God as the origin and the end of the universe. As St. Paul says of the Gentiles: “For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. Ever since the creation of the world his invisible nature, namely, his eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made” (Rm 1,19f; cf Ac 14,15f; 17,27f; Wsd 13,1f)….

The human person: with his openness to truth and beauty, his sense of moral goodness, his freedom and the voice of his conscience, with his longings for the infinite and for happiness, man questions himself about God's existence. In all this he discerns signs of his spiritual soul; this soul... can have its origin only in God. The world, and man, attest that they contain within themselves neither their first principle nor their final end, but rather that they participate in Being itself, which alone is without origin or end. Thus, in different ways, man can come to know that there exists a reality which is the first cause and final end of all things, a reality "that everyone calls God" (St Thomas Aquinas).

Man's faculties make him capable of coming to a knowledge of the existence of a personal God. But for man to be able to enter into real intimacy with him, God willed both to reveal himself to man, and to give him the grace of being able to welcome this revelation in faith. The proofs of God's existence, however, can predispose one to faith and help one to see that faith is not opposed to reason.

A disciple is never above his master

Friday of the Twenty third week in Ordinary Time 13 September 2013 St. John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church 1 Tim 1:1-2.12-14. Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our savior and of Christ Jesus our hope, to Timothy, my true child in faith: grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I am grateful to him who has strengthened me, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he considered me trustworthy in appointing me to the ministry. I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and an arrogant man, but I have been mercifully treated because I acted out of ignorance in my unbelief. Indeed, the grace of our Lord has been abundant, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Ps 16(15):1-2a.5.7-8.11. Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge; I say to the LORD, "My Lord are you." O LORD, my allotted portion and my cup, you it is who hold fast my lot. I bless the LORD who counsels me; even in the night my heart exhorts me. I set the LORD ever before me; With him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed. You will show me the path to life, Fullness of joys in your presence, The delights at your right hand forever. Luke 6:39-42. Jesus told his disciples a parable : "Can a blind person guide a blind person? Will not both fall into a pit? No disciple is superior to the teacher; but when fully trained, every disciple will be like his teacher. Why do you notice the splinter in your brother's eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own? How can you say to your brother, 'Brother, let me remove that splinter in your eye,' when you do not even notice the wooden beam in your own eye? You hypocrite! Remove the wooden beam from your eye first; then you will see clearly to remove the splinter in your brother's eye." Commentary of the day : Saint Cyril of Alexandria (380-444), Bishop, Doctor of the Church Commentary on Saint Luke's Gospel, 6 ; PG 72, 601 (trans. ©Friends of Henry Ashworth) "When fully trained, every disciple will be like his teacher" “The disciple is not above his teacher”... So then, if the Master does not judge, why are you judging? He came not to judge the world, but to take pity on it (Jn 12,47). What he is saying, then, is this: "If I do not pass judgment, neither must you, my disciple. You may be even more guilty of the faults of which you accuse another. Will you not be ashamed when you come to realize this?" The Lord uses another illustration for the same teaching when he says: “Why do you look for the speck in your brother's eye?” With compelling arguments he persuades us that we should not want to judge others, but should rather examine our own hearts, and strive to expel the passions seated in them,. asking this grace from God. He it is who heals the contrite of heart and frees us from our spiritual disorders. If your own sins are greater and worse than other people's, why do you censure them, and neglect what concerns yourself? This precept, then, is essential for all who wish to live a holy life, and particularly for those who have undertaken the instruction of others. If they are virtuous and self-restrained, giving an example of the gospel way of life by their own actions, they will rebuke those who do not choose to live as they do in a friendly way, so as not to break their own habit of gentleness.

 

Love Your Enemies, and pray for them...?

Mass Readings & Reflection for Thursday 12 September 2013

Thursday of the Twenty-third week in Ordinary Time
The Most Holy Name of Mary

Coloss. 3:12-17.

Brothers and sisters: put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if one has a grievance against another; as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do.  And over all these put on love, that is, the bond of perfection.
And let the peace of Christ control your hearts, the peace into which you were also called in one body. And always be thankful.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.
And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Ps 150(149):1-2.3-4.5-6.

Praise the LORD in His sanctuary,
Praise him in the firmament of his strength.
Praise him for his mighty deeds,
Praise him for his sovereign majesty.

Praise him with the blast of the trumpet,
Praise him with lyre and harp,
Praise him with timbrel and dance,
Praise him with strings and pipe.

Praise him with sounding cymbals,
Praise him with clanging cymbals.
Let everything that has breath
Praise the LORD! Alleluia.

Lk 6:27-38.

Jesus said to his disciples : "To you who hear I say, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.
To the person who strikes you on one cheek, offer the other one as well, and from the person who takes your cloak, do not withhold even your tunic.
Give to everyone who asks of you, and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you.
For if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them.
And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same.
If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit (is) that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, and get back the same amount.
But rather, love your enemies and do good to them, and lend expecting nothing back; then your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
Be merciful, just as (also) your Father is merciful.
Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and gifts will be given to you; a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing, will be poured into your lap. For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you."


 Commentary of the day :
 

This is without a doubt the most difficult of Jesus' statements to follow.

How can you love someone who abuses you, or curses you, hits you, lies about you or even kills one of your family? But Jesus expects His followers to trust that its the best way.

I have met so many people who were victims of abuse or were imprisoned during war and the ones who amaze me are those survivors who have said, "But I forgive him.."

They are no longer victims, they are victors. They have proven to me that they are better human beings than I could ever be. They are able to understand that only when you allow yourself to let of your pain or hurt, will you set your pride free and in so doing, you will gain a happiness and peace that can not be taken away.

If there is someone you have been deeply hurt by, try today to take a few moments to pray for them. I have, and already I feel better..

As one wise person told me (and is quoted in my upcoming book, "Being Good Enough"):

Holding a grudge and seeking revenge is like burning down your house to kill a rat.

Now read what Pope John Paul II had to say:

 

"Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful"

There are many passages in the teaching of Christ that manifest love-mercy under some ever-fresh aspect. We need only consider the Good Shepherd who goes in search of the lost sheep (Mt 18,12s; Lk 15,3f) or the woman who sweeps the house in search of the lost coin (Lk 15,8f.). The Gospel writer who particularly treats of these themes in Christ's teaching is Luke, whose Gospel has earned the title of "the Gospel of mercy"...

Christ, in revealing the love - mercy of God, at the same time demanded from people that they also should be guided in their lives by love and mercy. This requirement forms part of the very essence of the messianic message, and constitutes the heart of the Gospel ethos. The Teacher expresses this both through the medium of the commandment which He describes as "the greatest” (Mt 22,38), and also in the form of a blessing, when in the Sermon on the Mount He proclaims: "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy" (Mt 5,7).

In this way, the messianic message about mercy preserves a particular divine-human dimension. Christ - the very fulfillment of the messianic prophecy - by becoming the incarnation of the love that is manifested with particular force with regard to the suffering, the unfortunate and sinners, makes present and thus more fully reveals the Father, who is God "rich in mercy" (Eph 2,4). At the same time, by becoming for people a model of merciful love for others, Christ proclaims by His actions even more than by His words that call to mercy which is one of the essential elements of the Gospel ethos. In this instance it is not just a case of fulfilling a commandment or an obligation of an ethical nature; it is also a case of satisfying a condition of major importance for God to reveal Himself in His mercy to man: "The merciful...shall obtain mercy."

Jesus often spent the whole night in prayer to God

 

Tuesday of the Twenty-third week in Ordinary Time 10 September 2013
St. Nicholas of Tolentino († 1310)

St Paul's letter to the Colossians 2:6-15.

Brothers and sisters: as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in Him, rooted in Him and built upon Him and established in the faith as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.
See to it that no one captivate you with an empty, seductive philosophy according to human tradition, according to the elemental powers of the world and not according to Christ.
For in him dwells the whole fullness of the deity bodily, and you share in this fullness in him, who is the head of every principality and power.
In him you were also circumcised with a circumcision not administered by hand, by stripping off the carnal body, with the circumcision of Christ.
You were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.
And even when you were dead in transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, he brought you to life along with him, having forgiven us all our transgressions;
obliterating the bond against us, with its legal claims, which was opposed to us, he also removed it from our midst, nailing it to the cross;
despoiling the principalities and the powers, he made a public spectacle of them, leading them away in triumph by it.

Ps 145(144):1-2.8-9.10-11.

I will extol you, O my God and King,
And I will bless your name forever and ever.
Every day will I bless you,
and I will praise your name forever and ever.

The LORD is gracious and merciful,
Slow to anger and of great kindness.
The LORD is good to all
And compassionate toward all his works.

Let all your works give you thanks, O LORD,
And let your faithful ones bless you.
Let them discourse of the glory of your Kingdom
And speak of your might.

Lk 6:12-19.

Jesus departed to the mountain to pray, and he spent the night in prayer to God.
When day came, he called his disciples to himself, and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named apostles:
Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew,
Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called a Zealot,
and Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.
And he came down with them and stood on a stretch of level ground. A great crowd of his disciples and a large number of the people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and even those who were tormented by unclean spirits were cured.
Everyone in the crowd sought to touch him because power came forth from him and healed them all.

 Commentary of the day :
 

Have you ever spent the whole night in prayer? We used to have the annual all night vigil in our parish which was surprisingly under attended. I say surprisingly because if its only on once a year, why wouldn't people want to take advantage of an opportunity to commune with God for a whole night and ask for His guidance?

Jesus did it every time He had a big decision He needed to make, like choosing the Twelve.

Did He make a mistake choosing Judas? Did His prayer time fail Him?
There is something very comforting about being alone with Jesus in the Tabernacle late at night. I did it every night before sleeping. In fact, even the nights I drank excessively, I could not go straight to bed without at least spending a few minutes with our Lord (although I am sure I didn't say much). Just knowing Jesus is still here with us is very encouraging.
If I didn't find it incredibly peaceful for my soul, I would have stopped the practice long ago.

I often spent many night vigils in the time leading up to my decisions such as marrying my wife and leaving priesthood. I also made long vigils before I chose priesthood.

Did I make a mistake? I don't think I did. I have spent more time in prayer than most of you reading and I have given more time in service to God's people than most of you. And I do not regret any minute of that time & I pray that God is still guiding me now in the steps of a new journey where unclean spirits still abound.
 

The words of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997), founder of the Missionary Sisters of Charity from her book, "No Greater Love", on page 10 well summarise what I am trying to convince you of:

We cannot find God in noise or agitation.... In silence He listens to us; in silence He speaks to our souls. In silence we are granted the privilege of listening to His voice:
Silence of our eyes.
Silence of our ears.
Silence of our mouths.
Silence of our minds.
In the silence of the heart
God will speak.

Silence of the heart is necessary so you can hear God everywhere - in the closing of the door, in the person who needs you, in the birds that sing, in the flowers, in the animals. If we are careful of silence it will be easy to pray. There is so much talk, so much repetition, so much carrying on of tales in words and in writing. Our prayer life suffers so much because our hearts are not silent. I shall keep the silence of my heart with greater care, so that in the silence of my heart I hear His words of comfort and from the fullness of my heart I comfort Jesus in the distressing disguise of the poor.

Praying the Psalms with song

Monday of the Twenty third week in Ordinary Time 9 September 2013

St. Peter Claver, Priest (1580-1654) - Memorial

Coloss. 1:24-29.2:1-3.

Brothers and sisters: I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ on behalf of his body, which is the church, of which I am a minister in accordance with God's stewardship given to me to bring to completion for you the word of God, the mystery hidden from ages and from generations past. But now it has been manifested to his holy ones, to whom God chose to make known the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; it is Christ in you, the hope for glory.
It is he whom we proclaim, admonishing everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.
For this I labour and struggle, in accord with the exercise of his power working within me.
For I want you to know how great a struggle I am having for you and for those in Laodicea and all who have not seen me face to face, that their hearts may be encouraged as they are brought together in love, to have all the richness of fully assured understanding, for the knowledge of the mystery of God, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

Ps 62(61):6-7.9.

Only in God be at rest, my soul,
for from him comes my hope.
He only is my rock and my salvation,
my stronghold; I shall not be disturbed.

Trust in him at all times, O my people!
Pour out your hearts before him;
God is our refuge!

Lk 6:6-11.

On a certain sabbath Jesus went into the synagogue and taught, and there was a man there whose right hand was withered.
The scribes and the Pharisees watched him closely to see if he would cure on the Sabbath so that they might discover a reason to accuse him.
But he realized their intentions and said to the man with the withered hand, "Come up and stand before us." And he rose and stood there.
Then Jesus said to them, "I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?"
Looking around at them all, he then said to him, "Stretch out your hand." He did so and his hand was restored.
But they became enraged and discussed together what they might do to Jesus.

Commentary of the day :

John Michael Talbott sings a very beautiful and moving rendition of the Psalm we have in today’s Mass.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAiGAyp22JI
A lot of other people agree because it has had close to three hundred thousand views!

I regret every Mass I ever celebrated that did not have a sung Responsorial Psalm. As you know the word psalm means song and the psalms were written as hymns (some of them even carry instructions for the instruments to be used).

As one comment to the above You Tube video from a non-Catholic says, the song carries a real anointing from the Holy Spirit. I always advised people who came to me with unsolvable problems to sing the psalm I selected and feel the Presence of God comforting and guiding them towards a miraculous discovery. They never once were disappointed.

St Paul today says something which always made me wonder what he meant: “I am making up for what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ” as if Jesus didn’t suffer enough!

I am still suffering for the people of my parish in Glenmore Park who are still feeling like sheep without a shepherd. I continue to provide these daily Mass readings and reflections for those who want guidance or support in prayer. I recognise its only about 20 people who view them each day, but you are still worthy of my concern and prayers. Please know that I am praying with you in your difficulty.

The Gospel is quite poignant. Jesus broke the laws of His synagogue to heal a man on the Sabbath. Similarly I broke a church law to show my desire to heal the Church and help it overcome its obsession with hanging onto the imposition of priestly celibacy which has allowed so many paedophiles and sexual deviates to impersonate priests just so the hierarchy can keep up its façade of holiness. Be Church people, don’t just go to church!

Saint Athanasius (295-373), Bishop of Alexandria, Doctor of the Church
Against the pagans, 40 ; SC 18

Healing on the sabbath day symbolizes creation's consummation

This world is very good, as it has been done, and as we see it taking place, since that is what He wills; and this we can hardly refuse to believe. For if the movement of creation were irrational and the universe were borne along without plan, a man might fairly disbelieve what we say. But if it subsist in reason and wisdom and skill and is perfectly ordered throughout, it follows that he that is over it and has ordered it is none other than the Reason and Word of God...

Being the good Word of the Good Father he produced the order of all things, combining one with another things contrary, and reducing them to one harmonious order. He, being “the Power of God and Wisdom of God” (1Cor 1,24), causes the heavens to revolve and has suspended the earth and made it fast, though resting upon nothing, by his own will (cf Heb 1,3). Illumined by him, the sun gives light to the world, and the moon has her measured period of shining. By reason of him the water is suspended in the clouds, the rains shower upon the earth and the sea is kept within bounds, while the earth bears grasses and is clothed with all manner of plants (cf Ps 104[103])...

But the reason why the Word, the Word of God, has united Himself with created things is truly wonderful... For the nature of created things... is of a fleeting sort, and weak and mortal, if composed of itself only. But the God of all is good and exceeding noble by nature,— and therefore is kind... Seeing, then, that all created nature, as far as its own laws were concerned, was fleeting and subject to dissolution, lest it should come to this and... be broken up again into nothingness... he did not leave it to be tossed in a tempest in the course of its own nature. But because God is good he guides and settles the whole Creation by his own Word... lest that should come to it which would have come but for the maintenance of it by the Word — namely, dissolution—for “He is the Image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all Creation, for through him and in him all things consist, things visible and things invisible, and He is the Head of the Church” (Col 1,15-18).

 

Last election comment in relation to Mass Readings today

Following the Scripture Readings, I will make my last comments about Election result.

Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year C  8 September 2013

Wisdom 9:13-18.

Who can know God's counsel, or who can conceive what the LORD intends? For the deliberations of mortals are timid, and unsure are our plans. For the corruptible body burdens the soul and the earthen shelter weighs down the mind that has many concerns.
And scarce do we guess the things on earth, and what is within our grasp we find with difficulty; but when things are in heaven, who can search them out?
Or who ever knew your counsel, except you had given Wisdom and sent your holy spirit from on high?
And thus were the paths of those on earth made straight, and men learned what was your pleasure, and were saved by Wisdom.

Ps 90(89):3-4.5-6.12-13.14.17.

You turn man back to dust,
Saying, "Return, O children of men."
For a thousand years in your sight
Are as yesterday, now that it is past,
Or as a watch of the night.
You make an end of them in their sleep;
The next morning they are like the changing grass,

Which at dawn springs up anew,
But by evening wilts and fades.
Teach us to number our days aright,
That we may gain wisdom of heart.
Return, O LORD! How long?
Have pity on your servants!

Fill us at daybreak with your kindness,
That we may shout for joy and gladness all our days.
And may the gracious care of the LORD our God be ours;
Prosper the work of our hands for us!
Prosper the work of our hands!

Philemon 1:9-10.12-17.

I, Paul, an old man, and now also a prisoner for Christ Jesus,
I urge you on behalf of my child Onesimus, whose father I have become in my imprisonment, I am sending him, that is, my own heart, back to you. I should have liked to retain him for myself, so that he might serve me on your behalf in my imprisonment for the gospel, but I did not want to do anything without your consent, so that the good you do might not be forced but voluntary.
Perhaps this is why he was away from you for a while, that you might have him back forever, no longer as a slave but more than a slave, a brother, beloved especially to me, but even more so to you, as a man and in the Lord.
So if you regard me as a partner, welcome him as you would me.

Lk 14:25-33.

Great crowds were traveling with Jesus, and He turned and addressed them, "If any one comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.
Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.
Which of you wishing to construct a tower does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if there is enough for its completion?
Otherwise, after laying the foundation and finding himself unable to finish the work the onlookers should laugh at him and say, 'This one began to build but did not have the resources to finish.'
Or what king marching into battle would not first sit down and decide whether with ten thousand troops he can successfully oppose another king advancing upon him with twenty thousand troops?
But if not, while he is still far away, he will send a delegation to ask for peace terms.
In the same way, everyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple."

Kevin's Commentary of the day:

Did you feel like you woke up in a better Australia today?

You did, even if you don’t feel it yet. Some say it feels like after the Berlin wall fell down in Germany. 

Hate to say it but I didn’t expect the Australian people to turn toward Tony Abbott as convincingly as the saviour they think he might be.

Despite my public disagreement with the manipulative hold that many self-righteous Catholics have over the Liberal Party, I have never embraced the Labor invective just because I was dirty on the party for dumping me as their choice for the seat of McMahon.

I am not at all upset to have been spared the wasted energy that would have been expended by Ray King, Jaymes Diaz and Andrew Nguyen contesting seats in the election. To be totally honest, as I watched the week’s media melee rushing to dig dirt on people who looked like being bolters for the Coalition, I was relieved I am not mixed up in the unstable world of politics. There’s a proverb that accurately describes political wranglings, today’s news is tomorrow’s fish & chip wrapping.  I am relieved that the Party was not rewarded for shunning me and not listening to my warnings re: Greenway, McMahon and Fowler but totally stunned by the community’s choice for Lindsay. Just goes to prove the song “Folks are dumb where I come from…” But I give it to her, the pendulum for change swung fast in her electorate as it did across most of Australia.

If you want my humble opinion (and I think you do if you bother to read my commentaries and blogs) Liberal didn’t win government, Labor lost it.

What was the reason? Two major factors stand out for me.

Kevin Rudd’s ego and the sideshow which was the marriage equality stance.

As a practicing Catholic Christian and believer in all Jesus said, I think this statement of Jesus summarises the true Christ-following position on a contemporary morally-polarising issue:

“God made them male and female. That’s why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined with his wife, the two become one body. Therefore what God has joined together, let no man divide”.

Jesus was quoting Genesis, the first book of the Bible. If you believe in God, then this is God’s view, and it’s not humanity’s right to have a contrary opinion. If you disagree with God’s law then you would be wrong and have a similar status to the footy player who argues the rules with the referee. You will never win. You will be penalised.
Jesus, quoting His Father, did not say “…a man leaves his parents and is joined to another human”. It is clearly gender specific.

So many people make wrong choices, and this is just one of them. To those who say, ‘I didn’t choose my orientation’, maybe not but you can choose what you do about it. I feel a very strong desire to mate with many different women. It’s the way God made me. But He still commands me not to. Many pedophiles claim the same right to have sexual intercourse with willing children.
I have met a few pedophile priests who vehemently protest that God “made me this way”. Society says they are ‘wrong’ to have that orientation. That was the view of Corey Bernardi too, that we blur the lines and slide down the slippery slope if we authorise homosexuality.

To legitimate marriage for homosexuals within two generations of the act being unlawful would be too rapid a mind shift for many people. And I believe I speak for a moral silent majority that believe it would be a direction that is extremely wrong for our society to take at this juncture in an already very much divided religious landscape. There was no outspoken protest against Rudd’s Q&A comments but certainly some minds were made up that night: Rudd is a man of no principles.

Also in the back of people’s minds as they waded through the propaganda pamphlet foisting volunteers was Rudd’s lies. “I will not contest the leadership again” is one that stuck out in my mind.

Tony Abbott for all his bravado and self-assuredness has yet to prove his leadership ability but I am prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt since most of Australia believed in his ability to redirect Australia for greater prosperity, despite him not giving much away in terms of promises or policy detail.

I don’t think many of you have built a tower in your lives speaking as one who has, I knew how important it was to finish it once I started. I think that’s what drove Tony Abbott. Once he became Party leader, I am sure he saw it as his personal ambition to achieve it by whatever means it took. Labor made his job easier with all their divisive in-fighting and betrayals. Who was confident that Kevin Rudd wouldn’t ruin our international reputation further by his self-aggrandising public foolishness resulting in him being ousted by his rivals once again?

Finally, the point of the Gospel: Jesus warns us from building our castles on this earth. Something that became clear to me from rabid tweets by vitriolic atheists and anti-life campaigners who attacked me for my stance against Islam, homosexual marriage and abortion is that there are many excusably ignorant people in Australia.

Their anti-religious views are a product of growing up in a culture with no clear standouts when it comes to models of virtue. There are no really good leaders in the Catholic Church and there are very few great spiritual leaders in our schools. We falter because we are given incongruent arguments defending priestly celibacy while we know there are many frauds wearing chasubles on Sunday. The Catholic people have voted with their bums and absented them from the pews by their thousands (compared to when I used to preach). The Catholics are sick of being treated like the Labor party treated the Australian people, like mugs. We see what’s wrong and we complain but no one is listening.

I suggest we put our focus more clearly on an eternal perspective and realise that we are just travellers here, exiles from Heaven on a journey home.

Stop thinking that a stronger economy with less debt and more toys is going to make us better as a nation. The only progress we need to be making urgently is in our relationship with God and His designs for our future. We need to remind more humans of the call of Jesus for a radical conversion of heart and not be so preoccupied with what a small section of the community want.

This was the crux of Labor’s problems. By getting side-tracked by some people’s issues they lost sight of the bigger picture and more urgent problems.

Tony Abbott’s dignified wife made the point clearly on some TV interview I now forget when she said, “It’s a conversation that needs to be had but we are a long way from deciding on it…” She was clearly choosing her words carefully aware that Cardinal Pell will be vetting her response in their next policy meeting.

Penny Wong you are a nice person and probably strongly believe in your right to have your union sanctified. But from your own admission you are not as good a Christian as you should be, and if you spent less time agitating for what you believe is good for you or fair for you, and more time trying to help others who have no voice, get what’s important and necessary for them, then maybe people might have empathised with you more.

I always have reservations about people whose axes are being ground only to cut down a better tree for themselves to build with. A two-term Government that has allowed jobs to be lost and debt to rise to the point where a growing number of people are struggling to survive as I witnessed even in our community at Glenmore Park (and as shown on last week’s Four Corners) doesn’t deserve the chance to try better next time.

So let’s give Tony Abbott a chance to finish the tower he started to build when he lost the last election. Please pray as I did last night that the country will return to the values that have kept us the envy of the rest of the world. And please people, do not allow yourself to be fooled into thinking that growing numbers of   

 
Philoxenes of Mabbug (?-c.523), Bishop in Syria Homilies, no. 9 ; SC 44

“Being His disciple”

Listen to God's voice pushing you to come out of yourself to follow Christ... and you will become a perfect disciple: “Whoever does not renounce all he possesses cannot be my disciple.” After that, what is there to say? What answer can you give? All your hesitation and questioning falls flat before this single saying... And elsewhere Christ says: “Anyone who forsakes his life in this world will keep it for eternal life... If anyone serves me, my Father will honour him” (John 12,25f).

Again, He says to His disciples: “Get up, let us go!” (Jn 14,31). By these words He shows us that neither His nor His disciples' place lies here. Where are we going, then, Lord? “Where I am my servant will also be” (Jn 12,26).

If Jesus cries out to us: “Get up, let us go!” who would be so foolish as to stay here with the dead bodies in their tombs and dwell among the dead? Therefore every time the world tries to hold you back, remember Christ's words: “Get up, let us go!”... Every time you feel like sitting down, staying put, being happy to stay where you are, remember that insistent voice and say to yourself: “Up you get! Let's get going.”

Because, in any case, you have to go. But go as Jesus went: go because he tells you to and not because the laws of nature carry you away in spite of yourself. Whether you like it or not you are on the way of those who are leaving. Leave, then, because your Lord tells you to and not necessitated by constraint. “Get up, let us go!” This voice arouses the recumbent; it is the trumpet voice casting out the sleep of laziness with its cry. It is a force, not a word. All at once it clothes the one who hears it with new strength and pushes them on from one thing to another in a winking... “Get up, let us go!” Do you see how he, too, accompanies you? What are you waiting for?... God is calling you to set out alongside him.