Deacon Larry

 

Nativity of St. John the Baptist

Is 49: 1-6; Acts 13: 22-26; Luke 1: 57-66, 80

Dc. Larry Brockman

A Herald.  That’s what St. John the Baptist was, a herald of things that needed to be heard- God’s herald.  In the prophecy of John given to Isaiah, God said:  “I will make you a light to the nations that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth”.  And again, as Paul says:  “John heralded his coming by proclaiming a Baptism of repentance”.  John the Baptist, inspired by God, fulfilled the Isaiah prophecy by heralding the coming of Jesus.  Ultimately, John paid for it with his life.  But he heard his call and followed it.  Some listened, but many did not.   

Now the idea of a Herald is not a something just of the past.  It is a living phenomena, one that is always present in society.  God used many heralds during the days before the birth of Jesus.  They were the prophets of the Old Testament.  Moses heralded the Exodus and settling of God’s chosen people in the promised land.  Elijah and Elisha, Samuel, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, all the Old Testament prophets, were heralds of things to come- draughts, wars, times of favor, exiles, the Messiah.  After God rose from the dead and established his Church, the age of prophesy of the coming of the Messiah may have ended.  But the age of heralds of God’s word certainly did not end.

Indeed, we have had God’s heralds amongst us continually over the ages.  Many of the saints were heralds, leaving us a legacy of what they heralded- people like St. Patrick, and St. Francis of Assisi.  Some heralded their inspirations on the nature of God- people like Thomas Aquinas and Augustine; or their warnings on injustices such as discrimination and poverty- people like Martin Luther King and Mother Theresa.  It would be naïve to assume that the age of God’s heralds is over.  And in fact, each generation, each age, experiences problems- problems symptomatic of the secular world that we live in, a world in which Satan works constantly to tear down the emerging kingdom of God by undermining the wonderful works of God. 

And so, God continues to send us heralds like John the Baptist, heralds who will tell the truth,  God’s inspired truth. Just like the people in Israel of the Old Testament; and just like the people in John the Baptist’s time, we are challenged to listen to these heralds of truth.  We are challenged to find God’s truth among the many voices of the secular world.  Who is heralding God’s truth in an age when millions of people are aborted?  Who is heralding God’s truth in an age when runaway spending beyond our means is sanctioned by governments?  Who is heralding God’s truth about rights versus privileges in society?  Who are the modern day heralds- the true messengers of God?

 

Thursday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time

Sirach 48: 1-14; Matthew 6: 7-15

Dc. Larry Brockman

The “Our Father” – the core message of today’s Gospel.  It is God made man’s instruction to us on how we should pray.  If any of you have a copy of the New Catechism of the Catholic Church, there’s a wonderful section that summarizes the depth and richness of this simple prayer.  The catechism quotes the great Doctor of the Church,  St. Thomas Aquinas, for example, who says “The Our Father is the most perfect of Christian Prayers, because it not only instructs us on how we should make our petitions to God, but it also tells us what the right order, the right sequence, of our prayer should be”.  How awesome is that!  

When you heard the “Our Father” proclaimed this morning when the Gospel was read, did you think to yourself- “Oh yes, I know that prayer”; or did you think of it as something as profound as St. Thomas Aquinas described?  Indeed, once and a while, we need to step back from the familiar things of our Faith and contemplate them with some intensity.  The “Our Father” is one of those things.   

First, the “Our Father” is very short, direct, and comprehensive, not at all like the babbling of the pagans.  Second, it refers to “Our” Father, not “My” Father; and so, as we are being told how to pray, the emphasis is on the community, not on us as individual prayers.  Third, the sequence has our relationship with God in the proper order:  First, an offering of praise to God; then an emphasis on the divine will over our will; only then do we ask for what we really need- starting with sustenance and ending with forgiveness for our sins.  These are the two things Jesus says we need the most.  Notice that in the last paragraph of today’s Gospel, which is not part of the prayer itself, Jesus repeats and emphasizes our need to forgive  In order to merit God’s forgiveness.  And lastly, the prayer ends as we ask for avoidance of temptation.   

The “Our Father” can become a mechanical prayer, one that is recited from rote memory, and not a prayer of the heart.  But, when we understand it as a guide, a formula that gets to the heart of a proper relationship with God, then, it is anything but a rote prayer.  It is the most perfect Christian Prayer. 

 

Thursday of the 10th Week in Ordinary Time

1 Kings 18: 41-46; Matthew 5: 20-26

Dc. Larry Brockman

So, our righteousness must surpass that of the Scribes and Pharisees?  Interesting, because although the Scribes and Pharisees don’t fare well in the Gospel stories, they were actually pretty righteous folks compared to most of the others in their time and day.  Now the thing they emphasized was the letter of the law- what was written literally.  We have people who focus on the literal interpretation of the Bible today as well, and many of them seem pretty righteous from what we can see.  So, what’s the problem? 

Well, Jesus makes it pretty clear that it takes more to be His follower than obedience to a literal interpretation of the law.  He uses “Thou shall not Kill” as an example.  What Jesus says is that we must avoid all semblances of hostile feelings against our neighbor.  We must expunge hostility from our hearts.  That means we shouldn’t call a person an imbecile (that’s what raqa means); or call someone a fool; or hold anger against a neighbor, or not settle a dispute with a neighbor.  Wow, those are pretty tall orders, aren’t they? 

Which of us is beyond calling someone an idiot, or worse, when they cut in on us in traffic;  or which of us doesn’t have a neighbor that we have problems with; and which one of us doesn’t hold on to anger when somebody, especially a family member, hurts us.  It would seem that all of us who are human deal with these problems continually.  So, are all of us doomed? 

I think the key here is attitude, because, although the Pharisees and Scribes were more righteous than the average Joe in their day, their attitude was often one of self righteousness, of arrogance, rather than sincerity and humility.  Their self righteousness was driven by knowledge, because they were more knowledgeable of scripture and God’s Law; or by power, because they held and enjoyed positions of prominence in Society.  They were deluding themselves into feeling righteous, because they had just dealt with the external appearances of complying with the law; and not internal soul searching over the depth of the law. 

And so Jesus is urging us to internalize these commands of His, like “Thou Shall Not Kill”.  We need to hunger for what the full meaning of the commandments is, open always to searching our consciences.  That way, the commandments will be written in our hearts, not just our minds. 

When you do that, then you realize just how human and weak you are.  It’s a real lesson in humility.  We are all in this world together, all struggling to achieve salvation.  And so, everybody gets angry, thinks people are imbeciles or fools, hold grudges, and avoids settling disputes- everybody.  We are all guilty of these things.  But we are all forgiven- as long as we forgive others too.  And that is true Righteousness.   

Thursday of the 9th Week in Ordinary Time

2 Timothy 2: 8-15, 9-12; Mark 12: 18-34

Dc. Larry Brockman

“But the word of God is not chained!”  Such is Paul’s reaction to his enchainment and imprisonment. Rather than be concerned for himself, Paul is writing letters to Timothy urging him to go forward with the spreading of the Word of God.  Paul is more concerned for others than he is over his own fate, namely, being chained and imprisoned for doing the same thing.  Such courage! 

Today we celebrate the feast of Charles Lwanga and companions. These Ungandan Christians suffered martyrdom in 1885 for spreading the Word of God, exhibiting great courage as well.  But just as Paul predicted, the word of God remained unchained.  Because Christianity continued to spread in Uganda, even up until today.  In fact, there are many vocations to the priesthood there, with many African priests coming to our country to help fill our need for priests.  And yet, even today in places like Uganda, it can be dangerous to be a Christian. 

Looking over the history of the Church, I cannot help but be struck by an interesting fact:  In places where the people are persecuted for their faith, and in times when there is great suffering, many people seem to be more zealous and more courageous about their Faith.  So, I ask myself why?  And also, why is the Word of God received so well by others in the same difficult times?   Is it because when folks are comfortable with their lives they don’t need God?  And so, turning the situation around, when life is not easy, people feel more of a need for God? 

Maybe it’s because when life is filled with clutter, the kind of clutter that comes from comfort:-  lot’s of money and things and time and resources to enjoy the things of the world, then there’s no urgency to hear the Word.  But Paul’s words for Timothy today about the rewards for dying unto Christ and gaining everlasting life would make so much more sense to you if you were just trying to eek out a living, or just trying to survive for your faith. 

Priority for God is the issue- just what is our priority for God?  Well, the Gospel message today seems to be ever so appropriate.  Because no matter how well off or oppressed we are, our first priority should always be loving God.   If we love God, than truly the Word of God will be unchained. 

 

Thursday of the 8th Week in Ordinary Time

1 Peter 2: 2-5, 9-12; Mark 10: 46-52

Dc. Larry Brockman

Blindness!  Something all of us fear.  Imagine what it would be like not to see in this beautiful world of ours: God’s creative work in nature- the mountains and the sea; God’s gift of life- a newborn baby; God’s energy manifest through the wonderful works made by the hand of man.  And yet, even worse than physical blindness is spiritual blindness.  Jesus often criticized the Pharisees, who knew the law of the Lord, but didn’t see the intent of the law.  They suffered from spiritual blindness!  And likewise, he praised the children of the world, whose innocence and openness made them receptive, and not blind.   

Bartimaeus was a truly lucky man.  He was fortunate enough to be open spiritually to Jesus message.  Because he had trained himself to be discriminating about what his senses told him, he had to be discriminating- he couldn’t see.  And so, he was open to the “pure spiritual milk” that Peter was talking about.  Not only was he blessed by his faith, but his physical blindness was healed as well.   

Lest we be too critical of the Pharisees, It is fair to say that all of us can suffer from the same kind of blindness.  First, it is easy for us who do see to be blinded by what we see and have seen.  It’s a kind of sensory overload- sight, sound, and all of the other senses bombarded by so much all day long, all the time.  Second, we hear and see some things so often that they don’t register with us, and their meaning can escape us.  And lastly, we are blinded by expectations based on what we have heard and seen. 

Propaganda works like that.  If you show people something often enough, and tell them something often enough, they can be convinced that it is true, even when it isn’t.  Real truth, real understanding, is something that is a gift from God.  And so, us “sighted” folks need to be careful.  We need time out occasionally- time to close off the loud noises and the vibrant sights; long enough so that we will be open to the “pure spiritual milk” that Peter talks about;  time in which we put aside our prejudices and expectations and what everybody else is doing and saying; so that we can reflect on what our conscience tells us, and what God is urging through His Spirit.  Only then can we truly say, “I see”. 

Thursday of the Third Week of Easter

Acts 8: 26-40; John 6: 44-51

Dc. Larry Brockman

“They shall all be taught by God”.  Such was Jesus’ quote from the prophets.  Such is Jesus affirmation that the prophets were right.  So, God is constantly teaching his people- all of them.  Catholics, Protestants, Jews, and Muslims;  Hindus, Taoists, and Buddhists; even Cultists, Agnostics and Atheists.  Whatever people may characterize themselves as, and whether they like it or not, God is teaching them constantly.  It’s just that they may or may not know it; and they may or may not be responding to it, and even when they are inclined to be responsive, they may not respond in the proper way. 

Our Easter joy comes because we not only hear God calling us, but we believe and are seeking out the Word of God.  That’s why Jesus tells the disciples that:  “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him up on the last day”. 

I think the Ethiopian Eunuch is a great example of how this works.  Here is a man who travels far from home, and is praying sincerely to the Hebrew God, even reading and studying the scripture.  He has heard God calling him, he wants to believe, and he is seeking God’s word and its meaning.  And how does God answer Him?  Does God talk directly to him? Not as far as we can see.  Rather, He sends a man- Philip, to unravel the scripture for him, and convert him to Christianity. 

How does all this apply to us?  Well, you and I are being sent out on a Mission too, just like Phillip.  Now that we have experienced the Easter joy, the Risen Christ, and the promise of everlasting life, we need to share our faith with others.   We may not have an angel of the Lord tell us where to go or what to do like Philip did, but we do have a God that puts us in the exact place he wants us at the just the right time for somebody, sometime, and somehow. so that the Word of God will come alive for that somebody.   It could be in the grocery store- someone who strikes up a conversation and needs help; it could be at work or at school; it might even be just something we do that others see even when we are unaware of it.  That’s how God works.  And that’s how we can evangelize.

 

Thursday of the Second Week of Easter

Acts 35: 27-33; John 3: 31-36

Dc. Larry Brockman

Obedience!  Obedience to what we hear and feel God wants us to do.  Obedience to the truth, no matter what the wisdom of the world says.  That’s the common thread in today’s two readings.   

Just a few nights ago,  Jane and I watched the film “Judgment in Nuremburg”.  Neither of us had seen the film all the way through before.  The film depicted 5 Nazi judges being tried before a tribunal of American Judges for going along with the Nazi agenda in their judgments,  rather than ruling on the basis of universal justice that comes from above.  Four of the judges were truly corrupt in one way or another.  They were either motivated by greed or power or politics or weakness.  But one of the judges had been a paragon of virtue prior to the Nazi takeover.  He was staunchly supported by the German people.  His defense was based on his belief that it was better to compromise some of your principles, so that you can still have some influence, to do what you can to soften the blow, rather than stand on principle and be removed.  In the end, all 5 judges were convicted because the tribunal felt that as soon as one begins to compromise the truth, then that is a slippery slope to disaster.  The dire consequences of the compromise judgments of the Nazi judges clearly established that.

The Apostles could have been quiet because the Jewish leaders told them to shut up or face the consequences.  They could have looked for opportunities to speak up when it was prudent, and kept quiet when it was threatening.  But they were not silent; they spoke up boldly because Jesus had told them to proclaim his message everywhere.     

Whether we like it or not, each of us is placed in the same position as these Nazi judges and the Apostles every day of our life.  We are given the opportunity to speak up when something isn’t right.

For example, what do we do when we see the way some people treat their co-workers or fellow students; or we hear unchallenged “pro choice” words of a neighbor or work associate; or we hear someone criticizing or defaming our religion or church.  What do we do?  Do we speak up; or are we silent? 

 

Thursday in the Octave of Easter

Acts 3: 11-26; Luke 24: 35-48

Dc. Larry Brockman

A message of repentance!  Even during the Octave of Easter, our readings tell us to repent?  I quote:  “Repent and be converted”.  These are Peter’s words to the people.  And they echo down through the ages to us.  Yes, Jesus suffered, died, and was buried, and then rose from the dead and appeared to the Apostles.  And yes, the joy of the resurrection and life everlasting belongs to all of us.  But, we must first repent, be converted, and show that we believe.  This is the essence of Peter’s message.

He gives the example of Jewish History, about how God’s word was available throughout Jewish history through the prophets.  But people did not listen, they did not really believe, and as evidence of their disbelief, they weren’t following the Word of God as proclaimed by the prophets.  They just didn’t get it; they didn’t understand. 

The story in the Gospel echoes a similar theme.  The two Emmaus brothers are telling an incredible story to the other Apostles, some of whom, namely Peter and John, saw that the Lord was not in the tomb.  But despite their first hand exposure to Jesus, and all the words he used to describe how he would fulfill the prophesies, they didn’t get it; they didn’t understand what the empty tomb meant.  They were probably asking- what does it all mean?  Then Jesus appeared to them in the Risen state, and explained it bit by bit, abd sent them off to convert the world. 

About this time in our Easter experience, the joy of the Resurrection has taken hold  But that joy should be followed by the same kind of sobering question.  Yes, Jesus rose, but what does it all really mean?  It means that we, too, have got to really believe, even though we didn’t see it happen, and we have to follow that belief by a commitment to spread the joy of the Resurrection throughout our world by converting our fellow man. 

And who is it that needs conversion?  It’s our neighbors and friends who pay lip service to Easter and it’s meaning; and it’s our business associates and schoolmates who do the same.  Why is it important?  Because God wants us to help him bring all people into his heavenly Kingdom,by preaching forgiveness through repentance of sins and by spreading the good news, the Gospel.  And how do we do it?  By accepting our responsibility to repent- by changing our ways; by the way we live our lives- our example to others as a witness to our faith; and by our enthusiasm for our faith- by living out our Easter joy despite the trials of life. 

 

Holy Thursday Reflection

2010

All of us are going to taste death, just as Jesus tasted death.  But after death, all of us have the potential to be crowned in glory, just as Jesus was crowned in glory.  Jesus showed us the way.  And what was the way that Jesus showed us?  It was simply to do the will of his Father as we discern it. 

When we hear the passion read, we hear the story of Jesus’ agony in the garden as a prelude.  Yes, Jesus experienced intense agony over his perception of God’s will for him- the horrible suffering and death on the cross.  But Jesus understood that the work of salvation would be made perfect by his subjugating His will to that of His Father.  And so, he bore the suffering as a human that was allotted to him, even though he was God himself. 

That’s a hard road for all of us to follow- to endure the suffering that is ours in life-  the crippling or painful physical or mental state that comes with age; the limiting and constraining circumstances that we find ourselves living in; the imperfect people and relationships that are the center of our specific world.  These, and many more things bring us suffering that we cannot avoid, and in some cases, must not avoid, if we are to fulfill God’s will for us.  But, as we agonize over the suffering that is ours, remember this.  Remember the Glory that awaits us as sons of God as we are made perfect through suffering. 

 

Thursday of the Second Week of Lent

Jer 17: 5-10; Luke 16: 19-31

Dc. Larry Brockman

“Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings, who seeks his strength in flesh”.  Can you imagine these words of Jeremiah ringing in the rich man’s ears?  How that would make him feel?  I can, but as prophetic as they were, somehow I don’t think the rich man would have heard them while he was living.  Even if he was a synagogue or temple going Jew at the time, he probably would not really have heard them.  Because when things are going well for you, as they were for the rich man, these words just kind of go in one ear and out the other. 

We tell ourselves, yes, but I am not really trusting in human beings, nor am I seeking strength in the flesh.  I am just trying to live the life God gave me- and that takes time and effort to maintain.  The reality is that most of us are so much immersed in our own lives, trusting in the small circle of friends and family we have, and trying to control our lives, by maintaining a solid job and finances, that we are not do not get involved in the pain and suffering of those around us.  Just like the Rich man in the story, we see the Lazaruses of our day alright-  the guy across the street that lost his job, the family next door where the mom has breast cancer, the kid down the block whose parents are struggling with his drug problem; but our first priority is ourselves, and the security of our own families.  We sympathize, but generally do not get involved.  The rich man does not object to the scraps that Lazarus got from the table, but he did not actively move to help Lazarus, and it can be that way for us too. 

Now Lent is a good opportunity for us to reflect, to reflect on our lives and on our needs versus our wants.  That’s why we fast and abstain and give something up for Lent.  So that we can become more sensitive to what’s going on around us, and not so absorbed in ourselves.  In today’s world, we don’t have to look very far to see the pain and suffering.  There are a lot of Lazaruses out there in our neighborhoods.  So, take a moment to reflect.  What is going on around you that cries out for help?  Not just money- the almsgiving of the pocketbook, but the almsgiving of the heart.  Recall the closing lines of Jeremiah:  I, the Lord, probe the mind and test the heart, to reward everyone according to his ways, according to the merits of his deeds”.