The Vineyard: Friday of the Second Week of Lent (Genesis 37:3-4, 12-13a, 17b-28a; Psalm 105:16-17, 18-19, 20-21; Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46)

The vineyard in our Gospel reading today has always been seen as one of the symbols of the Catholic Church.  In fact, paragraph 755 of the Catechism says the following:

“The Church is a cultivated field, the tillage of God. On that land the ancient olive tree grows whose holy roots were the prophets and in which the reconciliation of Jews and Gentiles has been brought about and will be brought about again. That land, like a choice vineyard, has been planted by the heavenly cultivator. Yet the true vine is Christ who gives life and fruitfulness to the branches, that is, to us, who through the Church remain in Christ, without whom we can do nothing.”

The vineyard of the Catholic Church is intended to be the reconciliation of all mankind with God.  This reconciliation is ultimately, of course, through the Paschal Mystery: the passion, death, and resurrection of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.  The Paschal Mystery reconciles all matter, all time, and all space to God.   We, as Catholics, have the extreme and unique privilege to participate in that ultimate reconciliation through our active participation in the Mass.

The people that come into the vineyard are meant to be grafted to the vine through Baptism and nourished then through the Eucharist.  But, it is up to us to bring people into the vineyard.  Bringing people into the vineyard is what the great commission is all about.

The pearl of great price, the Eucharist, is meant to be shared with the whole of humanity as we bring more people into the vineyard.  That is how we are to be good tenants of the vineyard.  

To be good tenants of the vineyard, we share this great gift of divine reconciliation with others, walking with them in their journey to and with Christ, ensuring the ancient olive tree continues to grow.

Conversely, the bad tenants of the vineyard tell us that faith is a personal matter and that we should not share our faith with others.  The bad tenants of the vineyard tell us the Church should not weigh in on social justice issues, political issues, and other societal and cultural concerns.  The bad tenants of the vineyard count on the silence of the good tenants.

We know differently.  We know that while our faith may be personal, it is not meant to be private.  In the great commission, Jesus Christ challenges us, and even commands us, to go forth boldly in our homes and communities, wearing the joy of the Gospel on our sleeves…to be agents of reconciliation to the world…calling His children home.

As it says in paragraph 845 of the Catechism: “To reunite all his children, scattered and led astray by sin, the Father willed to call the whole of humanity together into his Son's Church. The Church is the place where humanity must rediscover its unity and salvation. The Church is ‘the world reconciled.’”

Brothers and sisters, the Kingdom of God has been given to us to produce its fruit.  At the same time, we remember that Jesus said the laborers are few.  In His words, we recognize that we need more good tenants in the vineyard to gather the harvest.  It is up to us, as the good tenants, to find them.

Let us spend time this Lent pondering and discerning what gifts has God given to each and every one of us to help the Church be fruitful?  Let us spend time this Lent pondering and discerning what gifts God has given to each and every one of us to invite others to be a more active part of our parish community?

Working through us to produce fruit in His vineyard, allowing us to be agents of His reconciliation with creation, is just one of the many marvels of the Lord.

Thanks be to God!

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Liabilities of Sin: Friday of the First Week of Lent (Ezekiel 18:21-28; Psalm 130:1-2, 3-4, 5-7a, 7bc-8; Matthew 5:20-26)

In 1953, a Saint Louis Jesuit priest named Edward Dowling began to document the similarities of the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous to the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius of Loyola.

In his analysis, Father Dowling discusses two liabilities involved in the sins we commit:   The first liability he refers to as reatus culpae, which refers to the personal guilt of the sins we commit.  The other liability he refers to as reatus poenae, which refers to the obligation of restitution for the sins we commit.

Our first reading refers to reatus cuplae.  

As I break this down, I would like to first reiterate some things I said a few weeks ago.  

There are certainly times in our lives when we are tempted to think we know better than the Church.  That temptation may lead us to choose to break one of the Ten Commandments or choose to not follow one of the Precepts of the Church.  Objectively speaking, when we make that choice, we have committed a mortal sin.  We have turned from the path of virtue to do evil.  At that point, none of our virtuous deeds can be remembered because we are no longer in a state of grace.

Because we are no longer in a state of grace, we have been effectively cut off from the grace of God.    We are no longer in a relationship with God, until that relationship has been repaired in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Some of you have been in other talks where I have mentioned one of my favorite scenes from the show, “The Chosen”.  Mary Magdalene had effectively turned from the path of virtue to do evil. She had returned to her sinful way of life.  

Jesus sends Peter and Matthew to find Mary in order to bring her back.  When she comes back, she is very hesitant to approach our Lord as she is filled with guilt and shame.  Our blessed Mother Mary holds her hand, encourages and strengthens her, and leads her into a private room with Jesus where her contrite heart meets the Sacred Heart.  Jesus gives her absolution, pardon, and peace.  

That is what happens when we receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  In the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we sacramentally turn from the sins we have committed and resolve to live by His statues.   

Through the priest, we sacramentally encounter Jesus in the confessional just as Mary Magdalene encountered Him in that private room.  We receive absolution, pardon, and peace from Jesus.  Through the voice of the priest, we hear Jesus say “I absolve you of your sins!”  

At that point we hear those words of Jesus, none of the crimes we have committed will ever be remembered against us.  We are brought back to the path of virtue, to live out the sacramental life of the Church.  Our life of grace is restored.  Our relationship with the Father is restored.  We can be at peace.

But, there is that other liability of sin, reatus poenae, which we see a reference to in our Gospel reading.

When I was  kid, we played a lot of baseball, which translated to a lot of broken windows.  

When a window was broken, of course we had to confess to our parents that we had broken a window.  We were generally forgiven right away although there was some immediate penance involved such as cleaning up our mess and being sent to our rooms.  But after all of that, the window still had to be replaced.  The forgiveness from my parents did not somehow fix the window.  Additional action was necessary.

The same is true for our spiritual lives.  When we receive absolution for our sins, we are forgiven and our crimes are forgotten.  But, the hurt we caused to others or how we otherwise impacted others through our sinfulness does not simply disappear as a result of our Sacramental absolution.  We need to be willing to make amends to those we have hurt, even if it means paying the last penny in purgatory.

Making proper amends to those we have hurt can help alleviate feelings of guilt, remorse, fear, and shame that some of us may continue to carry in spite of receiving the graces of Sacramental Reconciliation.  Further, making amends in accordance to God’s will only aids us as we progress in holiness.

Whether you are growing spiritually through a particular rule of life such as the 12 Steps or the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises, or if you are like me and you are simply trying to live out the Sacramental life of the Church to the fullest extent possible, reatus culpae and reatus poenae are two important realities in our quest to grow spiritually and to ultimately obtain the promises of Christ.  

After all, if the Lord marks our iniquities, who can stand?

Thanks be to God!

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Heart of Queen Esther: Thursday of the First Week in Lent (Esther C:12, 14-16, 23-25; Psalm 138:1-2ab, 2cde-3, 7c-8; Matthew 7:7-12)

The first reading is an excerpt from the Book of Esther where Queen Esther, who is Jewish but is married to the Persian emperor, is appealing to God through prayer to deliver her uncle and the Jews residing in the Persian empire in the wake of the Babylonian exile.  This occurred about 500 years before the birth of Christ.

The emperor, Ahasuerus, had been misled by a prideful servant named Haman.  Haman convinced Ahasuerus that the Jews were undermining his authority and therefore he issued a decree ordering their destruction.

Queen Eshter is ultimately the hero of the story, as God works through her to soften the heart of Ahasuerus and ultimately spare the Jewish people of the destruction.  

Queen Esther took great personal risk to save the Jews.  Ahasuerus had no idea that Esther was Jewish when he married her, nor when he issued the decree.  If her true heritage was to be discovered, he might just as well execute her and the Jewish people would have still perished.

Queen Esther was very aware of this risk.  This is the mortal anguish she was wrestling with in the reading.  Her story reminds us that courage is not an absence of fear, but rather persevering to do what is morally right in the face of fear.  Courage is stepping out of our comfort zone to do what is morally right, even when we face the full force of the world, the flesh, and the devil when we do so.

Queen Esther shows us that if we are in a state of grace, God will give us what we need to offer salvation to those around us.  But we must be open to and responsive to the grace of God working in our lives.

Our reading also shows us that Esther felt that she was alone in her mission, but that she had everything she needed. This reminded me of how fortunate we are.  We are in a strong parish.  In many ways, we are the envy of the area.

At the same time, we are starting to see many of the signs and trajectories that other parishes were seeing 20 years ago.  Signs and trajectories the other parishes ignored, and are now closed.  

The Persian empire of today is slowing eroding our flock.  Offering them immense portions of bread and fish, but only giving them stones and snakes.  Even many that we see sitting in our pews on Sundays are carrying around the stones and snakes of the secular worldview.  

We need to take on the mission of the new evangelization with the heart of Queen Esther.  Our people are at risk of being destroyed just as hers were.

That is our challenge.  As we as a parish pivot from maintenance to mission, let’s take on the courage of Queen Esther to let go of what we thought it meant to be Christian.  

Let’s take on the courage of Queen Esther to come out into the world to meet people where they are, to develop a relationship with them, to build trust and openness with them, and walk with them to a true encounter with Christ.  

Let’s take on the courage to reimagine how we (and the ministries we are in) serve this parish during this time of extreme need.  Let us have the courage to let go of something that may be very good, but would allow us to take on something else even better, namely missionary discipleship.

Esther’s uncle asked her “Who knows—perhaps it was for a time like this that you became queen?”  I think that is our question as well.  Perhaps it was for a time like this that we have become Christian.  A time to don the badge of missionary discipleship in a time of urgency and crises.  A time to don the badge of missionary discipleship in a time where the children of God need to desperately return to the table of grace where they can receive the good things our heavenly Father has for them. 

If we have the courage to allow Him to work through us as missionary disciples, He will save our people from the hand of our enemies; turn our mourning into gladness and our sorrows into wholeness.  

Thanks be to God.

My Disciples Will Fast: Friday after Ash Wednesday (Isaiah 58:1-9a; Psalm 51:3-4, 5-6ab, 18-19; Matthew 9:14-15)

The Gospel passage where Jesus makes it abundantly clear that His disciples will fast is one that seems to catch my attention when I hear it read.  It always make me reflect back through history on how fasting requirements within the Church vary and have changed over the years.  

Even today, other Rites of the Church actually have much more stringent fasting requirements throughout Lent compared to the requirements we have in the Latin Rite.  As you know, we have only two days of required fasting, Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, with of course those days along with every Friday during Lent being a day of abstinence from meat.   

That said, we are invited and even encouraged to practice fasting and abstinence more often, particularly on Fridays throughout the year, which continue to be considered a day of penance in honor of the Passion of Christ.

In consideration of our readings today, I thought it would be a good opportunity to take a moment to reflect on why Jesus may have made the point that His disciples will fast and why the Church requires the practice of fasting and abstinence to be part of our spiritual lives.   

Saint Teresa of Avila sums it up well when she said, “Restraint at table is often the first line of defense against the spirit of the world.”  Let’s break it down.

1.  Fasting helps us temper our temptations.

Let’s face it, we live in a culture that seems to continually seek instant gratification in all things.  The practice of fasting and abstinence teaches our senses to ignore this cultural programming by focusing instead on our need for God.

Further, the practice of fasting and abstinence gives us a spiritual defense against the seven capital sins; particularly gluttony.  In those times we are tempted to fall to a capital sin, the practice of fasting and/or abstinence can give us an alternative focus to avoid the temptation.

The idea is that if we can learn to control our appetites, if we can learn to control our hunger, then we can learn control all of the temptations to capital sins; anger, lust, pride, and so on.

2.  Fasting helps us grow in gratitude.

An attitude of gratitude is immensely important for our spiritual life.  The practice of fasting and abstinence helps develop this attitude of gratitude in that we come to a deeper appreciation for the food that we ultimately consume.  This appreciation can then spread to all of the other gifts and blessings God gives us in our lives.

3.  Fasting can be a very powerful form of prayer.

To give us an idea of how powerful of a prayer fasting can be, Jesus tells us in the Gospel of Matthew that some unclean spirits will only come out through prayer and fasting.  And, in Acts of the Apostles, we see how important fasting was as part of a prayerful discernment process in the early Church.

Prayer, fasting, and almsgiving are all intended to be practiced hand-in-hand (which is one of the themes of the first reading).  

When we practice fasting, abstinence, and/or almsgiving, we can offer that sacrifice in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for any prayer intention: in reparation for our sins and the sins of others, our marriages, our families, a holy soul in purgatory, vocations, or as an expression of love for Jesus Christ.  Really, any prayer intention on our heart can be conveyed through the practice of fasting and abstinence.

4.  Fasting can strengthen us in virtue.

Not only can the practice of fasting and abstinence help us temper our temptations and help us be more grateful, but it can go beyond that to strengthening our virtues.  Acceptance, patience, fortitude, temperance, and humility are just a few examples of virtues that are often exercised and strengthened through the practice of fasting and abstinence.

5.  Fasting spiritually empties us.

If we allow it, physical hunger can become a manifestation for spiritual hunger and a deeper longing for God.  This is one of the reasons why we have the Eucharistic fast before Mass.  We want to make sure we are truly spiritually hungry for the Lord when we come here to receive Him in the Bread of Life.

Similarly, the practice of fasting and abstinence regularly helps us nurture this sense of spiritual hunger…a hunger that can only be satisfied by God’s grace.  Fasting and abstinence helps us make room in our psyche for the strength, love, and presence of the Holy Spirit in order that we may be a true temple of the Indwelling Trinity.

Ultimately, the self denial involved in the practice of fasting and abstinence helps us follow the model of John the Baptist in that we decrease in order for Jesus to increase through us to the world around us.

These are just a few examples of how fasting on a regular basis aids us in our spiritual lives.  Ultimately, the practice of fasting and abstinence is a gift Jesus has given to His disciples in order to foster a deeper relationship with God and to seek Him more earnestly with a humble and contrite heart.

Thanks be to God!

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