Bulletin Article for November 24, 2013

In the Gospel this weekend, we are provided a highly unfamiliar image of what we normally would think when it comes to the word “King.” Hanging in agony, naked, beaten, and bloody, Jesus redefines what a King is. Historically, a King was about a self-centered, self-absorbed despot whose sole purpose was to acquire great power and wealth. In our modern era, the word King or royalty brings to mind ribald headlines in supermarket tabloids of the misbehavior of spoiled, pampered, pompous brats. However, Jesus reveals that a King is about the total giving of oneself in love and service to others. The gold thrones, rich tapestry, the bejeweled crowns of precious metal, and the opulence of many possessions stand in stark contrast to a throne of cruel wood from which Jesus rules with his head crowned by a circlet of sharp thorns. The awesome power of monarchs who command vast armies pales in comparison to the power of Jesus’ greatest weapon, mercy and love. The bravest of Kings remembered in human lore are but meek cowards in comparison to Jesus, who vanquished the power of Sin in the world forever. Paradoxically, it is the cross not a crown that is the greatest sign of royalty. As St Cyril of Jerusalem writes about the cross, “It is a sign for the faithful and a terror for the demons. On the cross, Jesus triumphed over them; and so, when they see it, they remember the crucified: they fear Him Who crushed the heads of demons.” St Cyril continues, “Let us not be ashamed of the Cross of Christ, but even if someone else conceals it, do you carry its mark publicly on your forehead, so that the demons, seeing the royal sign, trembling, may fly far away. Make this sign when you eat and when you drink, when you sit down, when you go to bed when you get up, when you speak, - in a word, on all occasions.” Upon bearing this most royal of signs of Kingship, may we pray as did St Francis of Assisi to carry on the royal mission of Jesus, who is Christ the King, “Most High, glorious God, enlighten the shadows of my heart, and grant unto me a right faith, a certain hope and perfect charity, sense and understanding, Lord, so that I may accomplish Your holy and true command.”

Fr Kevin Clinton's statement/homily for November 17, 2013

Pastor's Statement on Clergy Sexual Abuse

October 12, 2013

[Fr. Kevin Clinton, our pastor, has asked me to share this message with you.]

This week a parishioner who was born, raised and has been actively Catholic all her life called me to seek some perspective on her relationship with the larger Catholic church. 

She was very confused, deeply trouble and struggling with feelings of betrayal by Church leadership.  I know her well.  She is intelligent and passionate about her family life and the children of our community.   As she started to speak it was evident that she was out-raged by events in the upper echelon  of our Archdiocese. 

However, the early minutes of our conversation had to be interrupted. The parish receptionist informed me that the Chaplain of our hospital had a family in the emergency room with a 76 year old person dying.    They wanted me to come immediately.   I excused myself and  immediately left to do the prayers for the dying with the family at the hospital.  When I was done I called the parishioner back and we began our conversation again.   

Our conversation and my prayers for a dying man helped each of us get a better perspective on who we are and what is important. 

These past three weeks I have been meeting with the 17 people who form the Parish Coordinating Council of the St Wenceslaus church site.    We are hearing a series of reports from all the sectors of our parish's life.  There's lots of wonderful things that we do.  All of us come away feeling grateful for the health and the activity of this faith community.   We will continue our meetings and talk about how we can keep the ministries of our parish going as well as strong and healthy. 

A few weeks ago I spoke at the end of Mass about how alarmed I was to hear a detailed report on my radio about the misjudgment and mishandling by Archdiocesan leadership of another sexual violation of children by a priest.  I got out of bed that morning remembering the life of our local catholic community and the many good things that happen here at the grass roots.  I regarded the chaos and disclosures within Archdiocesan administration

as a "storm" over my head.  I asked myself and suggested to you, that we focus on keeping our faith community healthy and strong and not let the storm over our heads get us down. 

However, the events of the past week reveal to me that it is not a storm over our heads, 

it is more like a Archdiocesan hurricane and the eye of the hurricane at this time

is over New Prague!   I couldn't imagine that things could get worse--but they did this week. 

In the bulletin you will received this week, is a request from the Archdiocese that if there is anyone abused by Fr. Clarence Vavra when he was here as a priest for 11 months in 1979 or at any other time, you are to call the indicated phone number.    I am sorry, but that requested is late in coming--by 34 YEARS.    And to be fair, church authority did not know of the behavior until 1995--so maybe it is 18 YEARS late. Nevertheless, I am embarrassed and shocked to pass that request to you at this time. 

In our parish bulletin there is also an important message from the Archdiocese with detailed information about the problems of the church associated with Fr. Clarence Vavra.  The message also directs you to the website of the Archdiocese for even more detailed information.    

Both you and I need to sort ourselves out and be accurately informed by facts as we receive them.  While I say that, I am not going to tell you not feel what you feel--especially when it includes feelings of betrayal and out-rage.  However,  my vocation is to serve the life and the ministries of our parish community.     There are many issues that I can give myself to and my life gets wrapped around the issue's axel.  I have  to be careful of how I react to things above me, or far away from me that I cannot control. It may be the functioning of the federal government or how the Vikings are not winning.  Being a priest of this Archdiocese along with over 200 priests and 170 deacons makes an Archdiocesan hurricane very hard to deal with.     

But even though I am a priest of the Archdiocese, I am first and foremost to pastor our parish at St. Wenceslaus and the Western Catholic Community.  This is where the grass roots of the church are--rooted in the lives of people living in this faith community.    This is where the grace of God is personally and actively present in the day to day real lives of people.  This is where my head and my energies are to be largely spent.    This is where God especially touches you and me in the life of a grounded worshipping community.  These days I am working to keep my feet on the ground of our parish.  The overhead hurricane is blowing away the illusions of a medieval church authority culture.   Vatican II taught that the church is the "people of God" and the "people of the church form the Body of Christ" in the here and now.  

I do not know what the end result will be of the hurricane, but I want our feet  to stay on the ground where the grass roots of faith are alive.    Jesus himself had great trouble with the dynamics of the faith community he was part of.  But he did not give up on it.  He did not abandon his roots. He was passionate in challenging it to do what it was suppose to do.    The gospel today said to us:  "By your perseverance you will secure your lives."    I ask you to recognize the need we have to care for each other and to protect and care for our local parish community and persevere in asking for  appropriate reform of  church authority.    The  hurricane above us is will rearrange things. We need that authority to function better than it has .  

While at the hospital this week doing the prayers for the dying, a family member asked that our parish community also remember during Mass at St. Wence their  dying loved one as well as a recent spouse who died.  I said of course we would.    Despite the hurricane above, the faith continues in the grass roots. 

Bulletin Article for November 17, 2013

I remember years ago, my dad complaining about the onset of winter. I couldn’t quite understand his negative attitude toward that season then, but of course, I was much younger, my joints more supple, and arthritis had yet to take up residence in my body. Now, in my 60’s, I quite understand my dad’s lack of appreciation for winter. It’s not so much the nuisance of the cold, the snow, the ice and its affect on a much older and well worn body that has caused this change in my appreciation. There is a barrenness to the tone color and the color of winter. The only sounds nature offers is the wail of bitter cold wind, and the crunching of snow under one’s feet. The color palate of winter is equally barren consisting mostly of white, grey and black. This fasting from sound and color produces an intense longing for birdsong and the bright colors of green foliage and flowers. As dismal a picture as this may seem, perhaps winter is exactly what we all need at this time of year. For without winter, how would we come to appreciate fully the gifts of sound and color that spring and summer give us? Would not we take them for granted? It is not by accident that the scripture we hear in church at this time of year possesses a rather somber quality. These are the readings of the eschaton, the end times, when the Church and all of Creation awaits the Second Coming of Jesus. There is a yearning in the scriptures for something more than what this life offers. There is an intense longing that stirs deep within us to experience Jesus first hand with all the sights, colors, sounds and wonders that his disciples experienced long ago. The only difference between awaiting the coming of Jesus and awaiting the coming of spring and summer, is that we will never tire of the joy and peace the Second Coming of Jesus brings. As we sing at Mass, “Save, us Savior of the world, for by your Cross and Resurrection you have set us free.” Come, Lord Jesus, come.

Bulletin Article for November 10, 2013

In the second reading today, we hear these words from St Paul,

“the Lord is faithful; He will strengthen you and guard you …

May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the endurance of Christ.”

These words of St Paul certainly hit home, don’t they? Last weekend, we heard tough news about Fr Dave, someone known and loved by many.   We learned that he  was involved with serious misconduct long ago.  He experienced what all of us need to know of ourselves—that we are sinners. We learned that he held himself accountable for his past misconduct and has since led an exemplary life of a servant leader who compassionately leads from within his own brokenness. We also learned that in spite of what our own sinful pasts may be, with the grace of God and the desire to fully live the potential with which God gifts us, we can, by the grace of God,  rise from past mistakes and live lives in service to God and to others.

Christian history is filled with a long and honorable line of holy human misfits. This line includes St Peter of Galilee, St Paul of Tarsus, St Francis of Assisi, St Ignatius of Loyola, and, among many others, I would also include Fr Dave of Randolph, MN, and, hopefully, Deacon Bob of Chicago (my birth place). During Fr Dave’s leave of absence, Fr Kevin and Fr Jerry Burger will continue to celebrate Mass with us on the weekends.  As Deacon, I will do my best to provide the leadership needed within our parish community until the time that the Independent Ministerial Standards Board, with the approval of Archbishop Nienstedt, completes their re-examination and re-certifies Fr Dave for public ministry once more.  

St Paul is correct, God, indeed is faithful, watching over us and providing us with the strength to persevere. May the Lord direct our hearts, and the heart of Fr Dave, to the love of God and the endurance of the “one who loved us first,” that one being our Lord, Jesus Christ.

Homily for the 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C

HOMILY FOR THE 29^TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME, 2013 YEAR C

There was a hit song by the Rascals many years ago called, “How Can I Be Sure.” The beginning lyric of the song is, “How can I be sure, in a world that’s constantly changing? How can I be sure, where I stand with you?” The song is about two lovers. The male wants desperately to trust his love to his girlfriend. He admits that he is only happy when she is around, without her he wants to die, however, can he really trust his love to her? Can he really trust her love for him? This never gets resolved in the song. At the end of the song, he asks the question, “How can I be sure, I’ll be sure with you?”

Does this describe our relationship with God? Do we really trust our love to God? Do we really trust that God loves us back?

We hear about trust in the story of the Israelites going into battle. Moses is told by God that the Israelites will win the battle over their enemies as long as he raises his hands high. Military generals and strategists would look at this battle plan of Moses with abject horror. Moses is not an ignorant man. In spite of what military wisdom would dictate, Moses trusts in the wisdom of God, even when it seems like utter folly. So he goes to a hill overlooking the battlefield, raises his hands and Joshua engages Amalek in battle. As long as he keeps his hands raised the battle goes well for the Israelites. But, Moses is an old man and after a while, his arms tire and his hands begin to drop and the battle turns against the Israelites. So Aaron and Hur quickly come to his aid and have Moses sit on a large rock and standing on either side of him, supports his hands in the air until the battle is finally won by Joshua. Moses had faith in God and in having faith, trusted what God told him.

In the gospel Jesus tells the parable about the widow who harangues a corrupt judge until he finally settles a case in her favor. Jesus reminds us that we must pray always trusting that God hears our prayers. Though it may seems that at times God is deaf to our prayers, God does answer our prayers. Then, Jesus ends this lesson with an alarming question. When he returns in glory at the second coming, will he find faith on earth?”

So we come back to the question, do we really trust God? The words faith and trust are interchangeable in the gospels. When Jesus cures people in the gospels, he most often uses the words, “Your faith has saved you.” When Jesus uses the word “faith” he is not referring to some dogma or creedal statement, he is referring to the trust that the sick person had in him. Whether it be the paralytic lowered through the roof on a stretcher, the woman with the hemorrhage, the raising of Lazarus from the dead, or any other miracle, the key to the healing is the person’s faith in Jesus to heal them. The question that Jesus poses to you and me is that if he were to come back right now, today, would he find that we really trust him, do we really have faith in him.  In the end, faith is all about trust.

It is easy to trust in God when we are healthy and everything is going our way. Where our faith, our trust in God gets tested is when we find ourselves in the dark times, when it seems that God has abandoned us. “How can I be sure? I really, really want to know. I really, really want to know?” cries the lover in the song.

How can I be sure, during the times when it seems that God is not answering my prayers? We may find ourselves feeling like the prophet Jeremiah. “God you have duped me, and I allowed myself to be duped,” cries the prophet Jeremiah at his most depressed. The people are persecuting Jeremiah, making life an utter terror for him. He cries out, “I wish I had never been born!” Nevertheless, Jeremiah perseveres and carries on. We are born with free will. We can turn our backs on God and walk away from God, but, where does that get us? Will not the darkness in our lives only grow as we walk away from the light of God?

I remember when I was first diagnosed with the MRSA infection, I was praying fervently to God that the infection get cured and I would not have to have my artificial hip taken out. I knew what the worse case scenario was, and I didn’t want to go there. What I didn’t know at the time was that I had the worse, worse, case scenario. The infection didn’t get cured, it grew more serious. Not only was the hip taken out, but the infection didn’t go away. The antibiotics continued to fail, and I was facing a reality that the infection could possibly kill me. In the darkest of those times, while I was confused as to the method by which God was answering my prayers, my trust in God did not wane. I had no other option than to trust that God always had my best interests at heart, even if that might end in my dying.

For hope at these moments, I looked to Jesus dying on the cross. Jesus cries out in agony on the cross, “My God, my God why have you abandoned me?” God the Father does not answer Jesus’ pleas at that moment. Even though Jesus is dying, Jesus does not lose trust in God the Father, but to his last breath, entrusts his life into the hands of his loving Father. God the Father finally answers Jesus’ prayer by raising Jesus from the dead.

How can I be sure? It is more than just believing in God. It is matter of trusting in our God. Fr Donald Cozzens in his book, Notes From the Underground, suggests that whenever we say the word “believe” as we recite the creed, we think the word, “trust”.  “I trust in one God, the Father almighty. I trust in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God. I trust in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life. I trust in one, holy catholic and apostolic Church.”

The more we use the word “trust” in our relationship with God, the more we will be following the path of Jesus. As we heard last week in Paul’s second letter to Timothy, “This saying is trustworthy: If we have died with him we shall also live with him, if we persevere we shall also reign with him. But if we deny him he will deny us. If we are unfaithful he remains faithful, for he cannot deny himself.” “How can I be sure?” I can be sure, because I trust in God.