Deacon's Reflection Corner 

What can I do at home, in my parish to increase reverence for Jesus in the Eucharist?

1. Don't come to communion if you are not in a state of grace
2. observe the one hour fast prior to receiving
3. Be in a properly prayerful and prepared disposition, mentally, physically, spiritualy.
4. Spend time in prayerful thanksgiving right after communion - don't run out the door.

Do you remember the promises you made at your wedding?
Well pardner, let me help you remember .....

• something about freely and wholeheartedly, without coersion?
• something about loving and honoring until death?
• something about welcoming children and raising them in the Faith?

Jesus tells us "Whoever wishes to be my disciple must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me."  

I thought that if I just said I believe in Him, ask Him to be my savior and if I read the Bible once in a while, I'll be in great shape!  Oops .... I guess not.

But, I'm Catholic so I thought if I go to Mass on Sundays and Holy Days, confession and Holy Communion once per year, then I'll be in great shape!   Oops ..... I guess not, (especially if I don't even do that).

So what ARE these crosses that Jesus is telling me I need to pick up and carry, and why? I's an imitation of Christ in willingly accepting undeserved suffering, ridicule, or inconvenience for His sake. The reason is that it draws us closer to holiness by the end of our life and holy we must be to enter heaven.

Why is Jesus' question important to each of us?

Because who you think Jesus is affects everything about your life!

If you think he's just a good man - you'll likely ignore him.
If you think he is God Himself- you'll may miss his message.
If you think he's both God and man, you have to pay attention to Him and paying attention to Him changes your life.

In Matthew 19:16-22 today Jesus tells the rich young man (who has led a good life and followed the commandments) that there is one more thing he should do to attain heaven.
He tells him to sell all that he has, give it to the poor and then follow Jesus.
Whoaa .... Lets think about that - is Jesus telling us to make ourselves paupers?  This could be bad if we are the breadwinners of our families.

Maybe what He is telling us is that if there is anything that stands as an obstacle to us following Christ, we should identify it and get rid of it.  This could be riches, material goods, our own egos, our bad habits, our indifference to His commands .... identify it and get rid of it.
 

Are you less naive and more discerning about your government, leaders and policies?
Are you a better employee, parent or student?
Are you a better boss, more empathetic and patient?
Are you closer to God in prayer and spirituality?

Then pardner ..... you're a better person for going through the pandemic.

There are a lot of bad things happening in the world right now - seemingly at an ever intensifying pace.
How is a Catholic called to react to such things as civil unrest, statue desecration, church burnings and mocking of Christ and the saints?

Focus on the "big picture" - knowing that God is in charge and that nothing on earth or in hell can separate you from Him who loves you and provides for all your needs.

Follow Christ's example of prayer and isolated reflection and prayer, followed by acts of love of your own.

When we don't understand what Christ taught us, and what the Church teaches us about death and afterlife, then we do a disservice to our loved ones who have died. They need, want and deserve our prayers.


 

This is a question oftentimes asked by someone who wishes to justify their unwillingness to acknowledge an authority that is supreme to their own.  In this week's Gospel, Jesus hints at the answer to this question.

The answer is ..... YES.
I think it all depends on our own attitudes toward our sins ....
If I am acutely aware of my sinfulness in my everyday life, then I suspect God will be more merciful to me than I think I deserve.
If however, I consider my sins to be minor and of little consequence without regard to how they offend God, then I suspect I will be surprised at how just God is to sentence me to a lengthy term in Purgatory .... or worse.

We will all appear before the judgement seat of Christ.

At judgement I expect to have to admit my complicity in every act of evil that I ever contributed to .... every act of selfishness, every denial of the truth, and every evil act of others that I enabled.

No politician or political issue is worth losing my soul over.... I refuse to be complicit in evil by voting for a politician or party who has already told me they're in favor of an evil.  Nope - not gonna do it.

Moral Choices Require Facts and Timely Deliberation - Are you more influenced by events of the last month more than the past 4, 8 or 10 years?  Do you get your facts from more than one network or internet site?  Do you only decide in the booth? 
 
Moral Choices Cost You Something - Does your decision do something for you while taking away from someone else? Are all the things you like about a candidate/party of equal importance to the things you dislike about the opponent?  What skin do YOU have in the outcome?

Moral Choices Require Good Examples and Advice -Whose example do YOU follow? The Gospels? Church teaching? Your parents voting traditions? Who are your mentors on a given issue, and what’s their skin in the game?  Do you really want to be complicit in the evil done by the person you put in office?

Moral Choices Require Deliberation EACH Time - Do you vote the way you do because you always have?... even if the facts have changed since you started voting?  Is it out of fear of change, laziness, habit or pressure from family or friends?
 

• Our primary citizenship is in heaven
• We are to respect legitimate secular authority
• We are to give government its due, but not at the expense of giving God His due
• We are to vote in GOOD conscience
• We are to be a present and active force for good in society

• Does religious freedom mean practicing your faith as you see fit in private but not bringing it into the public sphere or informing your public actions?
• Does it mean accepting or tolerating the religious practices of others in order to avoid conflicts?
• What does Jesus teach us about all this?

Isn't it natural to prefer to be with people like me (whoever you are)? Does that make me a racist?

If I intentionally do bad things to people who are not like me, is my race, profession, religion or country also guilty?
 

Remember that scary movie from the 1950s, where all across America people changed overnight into someone their loved ones didn't know - even though they looked the same?

Has that been happening to you regarding political issues, social norms, faith and morality?   

If so - you're not alone!  
We are in the middle of a spiritual war of good vs evil, and have been for a long time - but the battle is ramping up.
Are you in the fight?  Are you even aware there is a war?

Jesus tells us to be aware, do not worry and be watchful!

Where do they come from?
Everything I see playing out on the news regarding abuse of police authority, violation of civil rights and rioting and looting seems to be the absence of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Where in all this do we see Fear of the Lord, or Wisdom, or Piety, or Understanding, or Fortitude, or Counsel, or Knowledge? We should pray "Come Holy Spirit, and renew the face of the earth".

Christ acts in our lives through the Sacraments He gave us and these Sacraments require physical presence, matter form and disposition.  While video Masses are convenient and, in a limited way, kept us connected ..... they are NOT a substitute for the real thing.   Coming to church is not merely a social event, some scripture readings, fellowship and a sermon - it is an encounter with the living Christ in His Sacraments.

Are we modern Christians as aware of our own mortality and dependence upon God and His divine providence as our forefathers in faith were? 
 
There are shrines and monuments all over the world testifying to God's intervention in human affairs, including protection from famine and plague ...but what will our monuments be after this pandemic passes?

• Will they be monuments to only noble human effort? (don't get me wrong - our healthcare workers, teachers and others have sacrificed greatly)
• Will they be more reliance on "science" than God's intervention? (don't get me wrong - I've worked as a scientist all my life, but it comes up short on the ultimate issues)
•  ..... or will our monuments be faithful children and grandchildren who observed our faith-filled reaction to the pandemic and took the Faith to heart and into future generations?

1 Cor 15:14 - …. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, and your faith is also vain. 
John 6:40 …. Now this is the will of my Father – that of all He gave me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up on the Last Day – and this is His will, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have life everlasting and I will raise him up on the last day.
 
PRACTICAL EFFECTS OF THE RESURRECTION

1. It Induces Us To Live Rightly-

• To put our trust in Him and no other
• To act on our trust by following His commands
• Who else has the words of everlasting life?

2. It Induces Us To Have Respect For Our Bodies

• Why would we abuse or mutilate what will last forever?
• We respect and honor bodies of the dead by burial and entombment – not keeping or sprinkling ashes unlike pagans.

3. It gives us hope and joy when there’s no natural reason for hope or joy

• How can we otherwise go on when a loved one has died?
• How can the mother of a child killed by a drunk driver forgive the driver?
• How can we face a terminal illness with confidence and peace?

You see, Christ’s Resurrection and the hope and promise of our own really do affect how we live our lives.

 “How does Christ’s Resurrection mean that I will be resurrected?”  Put another way – Of course Christ rose – He’s God after all …. But I’m not…… so why would I think I’ll rise, just because Jesus did?

My favorite early Church Father – St. Athanasius wrote  “On Incarnation”.  In it, he explains ….. the second person of the Trinity had to take on flesh in order to die, so that He could rise…. To show us our destiny.
For Athanasius …. Our personal destinies are tied up in this mystery of God becoming human in Christ, Christ dying and being raised ….. and in me being connected to God by virtue of Him being human.

A quote  from  “On Incarnation” gives an example of how God’s presence in humanity changes all of humanity by returning us to our original dignity, capable of resurrection.
“When a great king has entered into some large city and taken up residence there, the entire city is held worthy of a great honor, and no bandit or enemy can any longer descend upon the city and subject it.
On the contrary, the city is then considered entitled to all care because of the king taking up residence in a single house there.
So too with the Monarch of all.  He has come into our city and taken up residence in one body among his peers, therefore the whole conspiracy against mankind is checked, and the enemy is done away with”.
 

Proofs of the Resurrection of Christ fall into four general categories:

1. Arguments of Logic
2. Public Nature of the Events
3. Failure of Skeptics to Suppress the Story
4. Dramatic Changes in Behavior of Christ's Followers

1. For detailed info on the logical arguments, which are too numerous and detailed to discuss in this video, find the writings of St. Justin Martyr on the internet.

2. What happened with Jesus was not a private revelation to only a few individuals, His execution was public, a matter of record and His physical, live body and self was seen by hundreds after He rose.

3. A hoax could not be perpetuated for so long, and the spread could not have happened so fast in light of all the attempts to suppress it if it were not true.

4. His followers believed in His Resurrection enough to die horrible deaths as a result.  Nobody in their right mind does that for a hoax.


 

It's true, Easter Sunday has come and gone.... but Easter and our celebration of the Resurrection of Christ continues for eight more weeks!  So, while you may not have had time this past weekend to truly deep-dive into the significance of the Resurrection, you have eight more weeks to do so, and I plan to help you with some video reflections each week.

We need to understand the Resurrection as more than a historical event that we commemorate every year ..... we need to understand how it affects our Faith, our own bodies and souls - and what's in it for us.

I'd like you to prepare for the next several videos by starting to think about where YOU stand on the matter of the Resurrection and you can do that by beginning to think about some of the same questions I have reflected upon personally over the years:

• What is my belief in the Resurrection based upon?
• Of course Jesus rose from the dead  He's God after all, but what does that mean for ME?
• Do we need to believe in the Resurrection  to be good Christians?
• Is it necessary to understand all the technical aspects of the Resurrection in order to believe it?

There are 7 corporal works of mercy and 7 spiritual works of mercy that we Catholics are supposed to be practicing in our daily lives …… 

1. Feed the hungry,  2.) Give drink to the thirsty,  3.) Clothe the naked,  4.) Shelter the homeless, 5.) Visit those in prison, 6.) Comfort the sick, 7.)  Bury the dead

1. Instruct the ignorant, 2.) Counsel the doubtful, 3.) Admonish sinners,  4.) Bear wrongs patiently,  5.) Forgive willingly, 6.) Comfort the afflicted,  7.) Pray for the living and the dead.

 So – I ask you this week as we make our way through Holy Week, please reflect on the 7 SPIRITUAL works of mercy, listed below and how you can apply them in your daily isolation as we approach the Holy Triduum.

So, You’re Finally On a Spiritual Retreat!
This period of isolation and social distancing can have all the right elements of a spiritual retreat ….. if we will just use it that way.
A good spiritual retreat involves secluding ourselves from all the busyness of life that prevents us from experiencing God.  It would also include some spiritual enrichment (usually scripture, lectures, reading), and also quiet time for private prayer and reflection ….. so that we can discern what God is saying to us through His inspiration of our intellects and spirit.
I encourage you to use this time of isolation wisely to deepen your faith and spirituality, because once we get through all this we’re going to be probably busier and more distracted than ever as we try to come back to a normal state of being.
Try to find some time each day for praying the rosary, or for reading Scripture, or books by or about the saints.  Go to some good Catholic YouTube resources and learn more about your faith, and then spend some time reflecting, meditating (thinking) about what you have read or watched …. And be open to what God is inspiring you toward.
Go to YouTube and type in a search for the following, and see where it takes you.
 
YouTube Channel Presenters
Brian Holdsworth
Matt Fradd
Michael Matt
Taylor Marshall
Patrick Coffin
Bishop Robert Barron  
 
Website Resources
New Advent                        http://www.newadvent.org/
New St. Thomas Institute    https://newsaintthomas.com/
LifeSite News                      https://lifesitenews.com
Lepanto Institute                  https://lepantoin.org
Word on Fire                      https://wordonfire.org

This message is for all Fathers and Heads of Households in the parish, whether men or women. In this time when we are unable to participate in the sacramental life of the Church YOU have a big role to play in maintaining the spirituality of your family.

The parish is doing its part to help, but you must also lead in your families …. You can do that by :

1. Watching and participating in the recorded video Masses – you know the prayers, respond to them.

2. Pray the rosary as a family sometime during the day Sunday – if you’re not comfortable with it, there are helps on the website.

3. Discuss the homilies from the recorded Masses, as well as the reflections from our parish website.

We have to remember what Cardinal DiNardo said about remembering that Sunday remains the Lord’s Day and we need to keep it holy.

We may not have the sacraments for a while – but God is NOT limited to His sacraments.
 

Corona Virus Self-Isolation – Deacon John C. Evanoff

The Best Lent I Ever Spent?

If you are like me, the penitential season of Lent always seems to arrive before I’m ready for it and is almost over before I really get into it. Not so this year!

It seems that with the emergence of the COVID-19 virus the entire world has been fully immersed in the spirit of Lent – the challenge for us Catholics is to recognize this fact and appreciate it for what it appears to be.

First of all, the timing of events is eerily supernatural – the onset for the West was near the beginning of Lent and is expected to peak during Holy Week or Easter. “Whoever has ears, let them hear” (Mt 11:15)

Secondly, the panic buying of items I think I cannot live without has made me realize that most of what I have in life is not within my power to create, produce or acquire. “Every good and perfect thing is from above” (James 1:17 and 4:13)

Thirdly, self-isolation has become an intentional act of self-deprivation which has the effect of making me appreciate all the more what I am “giving up” and gives me an opportunity to spend my time wisely and distinguish the good from the bad. “Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil..” (Mt 4:1)

Lastly, knowing that everyone else is in the same situation can create a more charitable heart in me and greater solidarity with those whose lives I couldn’t relate to before. “If anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart …” (1Jn 3:17)

God has given me the conditions to experience the best Lent I ever spent – will I realize it?