There is no coherence to these thoughts; take them separately, or pitch them, as you will.
I read a devotional post recently praising the Blessed Mother and the Holy Spirit as ‘consolators.’ It’s a beautiful image, especially for the Holy Spirit in the great Pentecost Sequence (Consolator optime the best Consoler). But I think most people think that a synonym for “consolation” is “comfort,” and this is a misunderstanding.
[Editor’s note: this essay is based on notes that were intended for this past weekend’s homily, but I forgot about the guest speaker for Catholic Charities!]
All of this past Sunday’s readings have the flavor of the past season(s)—Isaiah 40 reminds us of Advent; Titus was the reading for Midnight Mass on Christmas; Luke is a throwback to John the Baptist (Advent) and the actual celebration of the Baptism of the Lord. This is not redundance: it is a summing up of the season(s). It offers us promise and fulfillment.
At the end of November I took all of our “Ordinary Time” vestments to be cleaned, knowing that with the purple of Advent and the white/gold of Christmas they wouldn’t be needed for a while. But beginning this Monday, it’s the default color of choice for a few weeks, until Lent begins on 3 March.
What is the beginning of a new calendar year for Catholics? Liturgically, it is the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. Devotionally, it is a World Day of Prayer for Peace. Both of these deserve attention.
I enjoy solving crypto-quotes, and occasionally I find one that touches me for some reason. A few days ago, I encountered one that is the genesis of this essay. It comes from a person named Roy T Bennett: The most important thing is this: to be able at any moment to be free to choose a life that makes you happy.
Backdrop #1: Digory’s Mother is dying of cancer. Because of “a series of unfortunate events,” Digory has brought an evil queen/witch into the newly created land of Narnia. The creator/redeemer God-figure, the lion Aslan, confronts Digory and charges him to help repair the damage.
Backdrop #2: CS Lewis’s own Mother died of cancer when he was very young…
This Monday, 11-11-24, is Veterans’ Day. It is a day we honor all those who serve or who have served in the armed forces of our country. This is distinct from Memorial Day, marked to commemorate those who have died in their service.
This weekend and week mark our parish’s special commemorations of our dearly departed beloved—family, friends, acquaintances (perhaps even strangers and enemies). We take the time, especially in November, to pray for all the deceased (“…whose faith You [God] alone have known”), as our liturgy reminds us.
…both men [Peter Abelard and his servant, Thibault] suddenly stood still.
“My God,” said Thibault, “what’s that?”
From somewhere near them in the woods a cry had risen, of such intolerable anguish…
“It’s a child’s voice,” he said. “O God…”
This version from the King James (“Authorized Version”) is the response of James and John to Jesus’ question, “Can you drink…? Can you be baptized…?” And on these few words St John Henry (Cardinal) Newman, while still an Anglican and Vicar of St Mary the Virgin, the University church of Oxford, preached one of his greatest sermons— “The Ventures of Faith.” Its text easily found on the internet—I strongly encourage you to find it and savor it!
Today’s Gospel offers us what is to me one of the saddest scenes in the entire New Testament. A man (simply a man in Mark; in Luke he is an official; in Matthew he is “the rich young man”) asks Jesus about eternal life. They dialogue, and then comes the devastating conclusion: Jesus, looking at him, loved him… At [Jesus’] statement his face fell, and he went away sad…”
October is the month specially designated in our Archdiocese for Child Protect renewals. People previously certified are expected to renew their certification, typically by going to the Archdiocesan website, clicking the appropriate box, watching the video, and answering a couple of questions. The range of topics has been wide, from issues of safety on youth outings to warning signs that abuse of one kind or another might be going on in the home to inappropriate relationships between adults and under-age young people (aka, “grooming”).
Pope Francis recently was quoted as saying that all authentic religions are paths to God. He added that conflicts about “mine is true; yours is false” only produce conflicts that historically end in bloodshed. He didn’t need (and I don’t need) to belabor that final observation!
There is an old story about a person coming to a priest to confess telling a lie. The priest tells him to gather up a basket of feathers, go to the center of the town, throw them up in the air, and then come back. Having done this, the priest then tells him to go back and gather up all the feathers. “That’s impossible,” the person responded; “They’re everywhere, and I can’t possibly recover them all.” “And that is the way it is with the lie you told; you can never undo it.”