Deacon Larry

 

January 25, 2009

Conversion of St. Paul

Acts 9: 1-22: 1 Cor 7: 29-31 ;Mk 16:15-18

Dc. Larry Brockman

As Pope John Paul II said: “Faith is strengthened when it is given to others!”.  This is the challenge left to us as we close out this special year that was dedicated to St. Paul- to pass our faith on, and so, to strengthen it in ourselves.   

Now, we just heard Paul’s conversion story.  Here was a man who hated Christians, and voraciously persecuted them.   Even as he headed towards Damascus and was struck down, he was on a Mission to destroy the Christians there.  But, Jesus turned Paul around, and Paul became the great evangelizer of the Gentiles.  This proves that if, if you listen to the voice of God in your life, you can be converted to do His will.  All of us get those calls-  the catalyst may be a wake-up call from God like Paul had, or in the inspiration of someone in our lives, a relative or caretaker, or the messages we hear from the Church at the Liturgies.  But all of us are called to evangelize, just like Paul.  The Gospel makes that very clear:  “Go into the whole World and proclaim the Gospel to all creatures”.   

There are two related messages in today’s scripture I’d like to pursue.  First, it is never too late to convert someone, no matter how hard hearted; no matter how stubborn.  You and I can do it.  You can, with God’s help convert the most stubborn of souls.  You do it by sticking up for our faith with conviction and consistency, and through prayer- fervent prayer, even in the face of what seems like insurmountable obstacles.  There are many examples.  Take St, Augustine for example.  Augustine was a sinner who was a womanizer.  But his mother St. Monica prayed constantly for his conversion.  He was converted, as was Paul, in a moment of enlightenment sparked by a child on the seashore.  And he went on to become a great Doctor of the Church, proving that nothing is impossible for God for those who believe.     

Second, everyone is called to evangelize, and because God isn’t just kidding about everyone’s call, it is God’s intent that everyone’s work will have an effect.  Jesus words in the Gospel are not just directed to the Apostles.  They are directed towards all of you.  The example set by the early Christians- the martyrs who died for their faith; and the great early Christians who showed their love, converted Western civilization to Christianity.  So, everyone can, and does have an effect.   

Now there’s a specific mission that our Bishops are calling us all to take on this weekend.  This mission is a great example of how these two messages can be applied with good effect.  As you may have already heard, the US Bishops are conducting a postcard campaign this weekend   To fight efforts to pass the Freedom of Choice Act, or FOCA.  This act, disguised as an effort to add to our freedoms, would actually hurt freedom by any reasonable measure.  Here is what FOCA would do:  FOCA would greatly extend the reaches of Roe v. Wade in both its legislative scope and its promotion of abortion rights.  FOCA would invalidate existing laws which protect a woman from unsafe abortion clinics and require that they be given adequate information about the risks of abortive surgery.  FOCA would require federal funds to pay for abortions- your taxpayer money.  FOCA, because it would be federal legislation, would force the states to allow “partial-birth” and other late-term abortions even if there were state laws against them.  FOCA would require states to offer abortions by non-physicians.  FOCA would bar laws that protect the right of conscientious objection to abortion by a medical provider.   FOCA would deny parents an opportunity to be involved or informed about their daughter’s decision to have an abortion, even when under age. 

The new Congress has many more pro-choice advocates than before.  And so, our Bishops are rightfully concerned that abortion advocates will push for FOCA.  Yet, polls continue to show that most Americans oppose abortion.  It is a national disgrace that 4,000 babies are aborted every day in this country,  Especially since only 5% of these have been shown to be the infamous “exceptions” that we hear so much fuss about.  Exceptions like rape and incest and the health of the mother are just an excuse for the other 95% of the abortions.  So we, the majority, need to stand up and be counted.   

In addition, President Obama has vowed, yes that is vowed, to sign FOCA if it passes Congress.  Mr. Obama has said publicly that it is beyond his pay grade to determine when life begins, and has opposed measures to safeguard surviving near full term fetuses plucked out of the womb by an abortionist.  President Obama has the worst pro-life voting record in the senate.   

So, I propose a twofold mission that is a direct application of the two messages in today’s scriptures.  First, we all need to stand up for what is right, and evangelize in deed.  That you can all do, and see the effects of your actions, by participating in the Bishops postcard campaign against FOCA.  I will tell you how in just a few moments.     

Second, we need to convert Mr. Obama to a right to life advocate!  Hard as that may seem, we can do it by our prayer, and dedication to the principles of life.  We can hope, and pray, that the example set by millions of Catholics in the postcard campaign, and the efforts of many of our Evangelical and other Christian brethren who oppose this bad law, will prevail, and that Mr. Obama will see, as we firmly believe, that Life begins at conception.  But let’s not forget the power of our collective prayer.  

 When we finish this communion service today,  I have postcards for you.  These postcards are already addressed to your two senators, Martinez and Nelson and your Congressman, Alan Grayson.  All of you who are registered voters can help.  Just take one of the post card card sets and pen.  Sign these cards in the three places designated, and add your contact information in three places- address and telephone number.  Then leave the cards with me.  I will add them to our Parish’s postcards.  Our parish goal is 3000 postcard sets, by the way.  Imagine, with thousands of parishes throughout the USA, what an impact that we can all have- millions of postcards testifying to our faith and our commitment to Pro-Life.  Indeed, “Faith is strengthened when it is given to others!”- your faith as well. 

September 28, 2008

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Ez 18: 25-28; Phil 2: 1-11; Mt 21: 28-32

Dc. Larry Brockman

Imagine.  Just imagine how furious the Chief Priests and Elders were after Jesus tells this parable.  You see, these were the people who were the spiritual leaders of the Jews.  They were looked up to as examples for the people to follow.  They were equivalent to the Pope and his Magisterium.  They interpreted the scriptures and they taught the people.  Everyone respected them.  And yet, Jesus calls them hypocrites right in front of everyone and proceeds to complement the perceived sinners of the time because Jesus says they, the sinners, listened and saw the truth, yet the Chief Priests and Elders did not see the truth.     

Why- why didn’t the Chief Priests and Elders see the real thing when it was there for them and yet the sinners did see it?  I can think of a number of reasons: Self righteousness, complacency, and pride stand out. 

When you are part of the establishment, and have “made it”; then you might have a tendency to project that you have the answers- not just a few, but all of them.  That’s self righteousness.  When you have undergone a trial, triumphed, and managed to regain control, regain stability in your life; then you can become complacent.  And when you look around at others, and perceive that you’re on the right track, but think everyone else is messed up except you; then you are proud.  These are all part of what it must have been like to be a Chief Priest or Elder.  Anything that would shake this stability, that would crack their solid foundation, their comfort as esteemed leaders, well, that would be too hard to swallow.  It would be just so much more convenient not to listen, and to remain complacent, and to be proud of your current good fortune.  In other words, you could miss the truth because you weren’t really interested in anything that disturbs your own truth.   

The sinners, on the other hand, were like people with a terrible tooth ache.  They were hurting; and in need of relief from that hurt.  So, when they heard the real truth, it was like the nerve was struck with a pick.  That truth was covered with sincerity and conviction.  That’s what people said about Jesus teachings.  And so, many of these sinners were eager to respond.  It was a matter of frame of mind.  The sinners, not the establishment, had the right frame of mind.   

Now of course, this parable is somewhat of an exaggeration.  Not all the Chief Priests and Elders were bad;and certainly, not all the sinners were good.  But the exaggeration makes an important point for us.  Namely this: just when you think you’ve been through life’s trials and have everything under control; just when you think you’ve passed through the rapids on the river and made it to the other side, think again.  In fact, that could be a great time to really listen for the truth, because it is then, when you are comfortable, that you are not in the right frame of mind to listen for the truth.  It is then that you could become a hypocrite. 

But today’s Old Testament reading gives some important insight about God’s system of justice.  You see, God’s system of Justice is always looking forward.  What is important is that we do his will always- not just yesterday, but today, and every day.  In the words of the great Yogi Berra, “It ain’t over till it’s over”.  And as long as all of us are alive, it ain’t over.   

What can you do to assure that you don’t become a hypocrite like the Chief Priests and Elders?  You can strive to have the right frame of mind always.  You can strive to always be sincere from this day forward.  First, be sincere in your relationship with God.  Don’t try to impress God or put on a show for him.  Simply open your hearts to him, like little children, and he will be there for you with the truth.  Second, in your relationship with yourself.  Never lie about the reasons you do things, making false excuses or immaturely passing the buck.  Take responsibility for your own actions, good and bad,   As Christ said, the truth will set us free.  Third, be sensitive in your words to others.  It is so easy to distort the truth when you talk.  We like to flatter people, or make them admire us, and so we say things that aren’t really true.  We don’t have an obligation to tell everything to everyone, but we always have an obligation to be truthful in what we choose to say.   

During the French Revolution, a particularly harsh man, the Marquis de Condorset, tried to escape justice and the Guillotine by posing as a peasant in disguise as he worked his way to the French border.  Near the border, he looked for all the world like a peasant as he entered an Inn.  But, in front of a throng of impoverished peasants, he ordered a 12 egg omelet at that Inn, and so, gave himself away.  Life is like that.  Hypocrisy gives itself away. 

  August 31, 2008

22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Jer 20: 7-9; Rom 12: 1-2; Mt 16: 21-27

Dc. Larry Brockman

Believe it!  “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up their cross, and follow me”.  Whoever- that’s you and I, not just Jesus and his disciples some 2000 years ago, but you and I, right here and now. 

For most people, the name of the game is to avoid the cross.  People will go out of their way to avoid pain, confrontation, suffering, and taking a stand that makes them unpopular.  Possibly because they don’t recognize that it is their cross. 

Jeremiah is a good example of a person who recognized his cross.  His cross was to bear witness to the Word of God- to be a prophet.  But he didn’t want to do it, because his prophecy was not popular.   It frightened and threatened the establishment.  And so, he had to shout it out, over the protests of his people.  Jeremiah knew he would be abused if he spoke up.  But, Jeremiah could feel the urging of the Lord.  It was a strong urge, one that kept haunting him.  And so, he embraced his cross, and spoke up anyway.  We find out later that he was thrown into a cistern- a well, and abandoned to die.  So, suffer he did before he was finally rescued by the king.   

Now I know that all of you want to follow Jesus.  But what exactly can you and I do about your crosses?  Well, first, recognize your cross.  Then, embrace it, don’t run away from it.  Clearly, the word “cross” here is a symbol.  It doesn’t mean being dragged up a hillside and hung on a physical cross.  It does mean many other things, among which are:  Following God’s will for you, not your own desires; or being satisfied with the life you’ve been give, and not being bitter that you don’t have another kind of life.   

If your cross is something the Lord is calling you to do- like Jeremiah was called to be a prophet, don’t keep putting it aside and avoiding it.  We have Paul’s advice from the second reading:  “Do not conform yourselves to this age, but be transformed by renewal of your mind”.  Yes, when you become committed to Jesus, and you sincerely want to follow after him, he will renew your mind, through His Spirit, and you will be given the gifts of the Spirit- things like strength, and understanding- to help you through whatever you are being called to do.  But you have to recognize that you are being called, and not run away from it. 

Perhaps, you have been called to speak up about a wrong, or to come to the aid of someone in need, or follow a nudge to a different vocation.  Whatever that call is, it is that voice in you that, try as you may, you can’t ignore, just as Jeremiah couldn’t ignore it.   

Another cross you might be called to embrace is forbearance.  I think this is a cross most of us have at one or more times during our lives, because it includes sickness, disability, demands from our loved ones, mental suffering- anything that stops us cold.  Stops us cold from our agenda, and forces us to submit, or to forbear the challenges of life.  These crosses are made more difficult when others tell us we can avoid them,  The voices of others take many forms- like you did something wrong to cause this; or you can take the easy way out; or it’s not your responsibility.  But sometimes, these crosses are just the way it is.  They are the life dealt to us.  The great St. Augustine said something very insightful:  “There is more courage in a man who faces rather than flees the storms of life, and who holds cheap the opinions of men”.  Courage is what the Spirit gives us to face these crosses in our lives- courage to forbear these kinds of crosses. 

Finally, our perspective on life can play a big role in how well we look at crosses.  If your perspective is that life can always be managed to produce happiness, then these crosses cause bitterness and disappointment.  But uninterrupted joy is reserved for Heaven.  The road to heaven is paved with crosses, just as it was for Jesus.  In the words of St. Margaret Mary:  “Nothing unites us so closely to the Sacred Heart of Our Lord, Jesus Christ, as the cross, which is the most precious pledge of His love”. 

June 29, 2008

Saints Peter and Paul

  April 27, 2008

Sixth Sunday of Easter

Acts 8: 5-8, 14-17; 1 Peter 3: 15-18; Jn 14: 15-21

Presented 4/24/08 at Westminster Tower

Dc. Larry Brockman

Did you know that all of you share something in common with Phillip?  You see, Phillip was evangelizing the Samaritans.  That’s what the first reading was all about.  And, by virtue of your Baptism, you, too, are all called to be Evangelizers.  That means you are all called to bring people to the Faith just like Phillip. 

By the way, that is a theme of our whole Diocese this year- Evangelizing.  There’s a Diocessan festival in works at OCCC from May 8 to May 10.  Thousands are expected to attend, and the theme is our need to Evangelize.

Now I know many of you think that evangelizing is for someone else.  “Certainly not me!” you think, “What can I do”?  “I am not going to bring thousands of Samaritans to the Faith”.  Well, take a closer look at what Peter has to say in the second reading.  Peter is talking about evangelizing, too.  First, Peter says that you should always be ready to give an explanation of your hope.  Hope- let’s look at the hope part.  All of us that are here at this Service- we are here because we have hope.  We believe that Jesus is risen from the dead, and that he went to the Father, and that he is coming back to take us to the Father with him- if we love him by keeping His commandments.  We all have that hope, right?   

Next, Peter says that when we give an explanation of our hope- that means we do it; we are not silent.  Then we do are to do it out of our conviction with gentleness and reverence.  All of us can do that, no matter what our status is- young or old; healthy or not; married or single; whatever.  It does take courage, and we’ll get to that.  Because Peter goes on to say that you may have to suffer- suffer because of your testimony to your faith and hope.  And that just goes to show that the world hasn’t changed much in the last 2000 years.  Because people now, just as people then, have to suffer when they tell an inconvenient truth or they stand up for their belief.  Peter’s contemporaries were put to death by the Roman emperor.  Fortunately, most of us here won’t have to suffer that way.  But, when you are called upon to defend your hope and your faith, you may have to suffer in other ways- or to make a sacrifice.  It can be as simple as making a commitment to attend Mass or this Communion Service- that can sometimes involve a sacrifice; or living with a disability or an illness.  If you bear those circumstances with dignity and maintain your Christian faith and hope throughout, then you are evangelizing others.  You see, people are watching how you behave in difficulties.  So, you can be evangelizing them whether you know it or not.  Of course, when you stand up to people who challenge you, just as the people of Peter’s time you are also evangelizing.  It can be things like defending the right to life; defending marriage; the Eucharist; the trinity; and that Jesus really is God and became man.  All of you have discussions with others about your faith like this.  And when you defend your faith, with gentleness and reverence, you are evangelizing.   

As I mentioned, you can do it, but it does take courage- courage to bear pain; courage to say or do the right thing, courage to be gentle and reverent.  Where can we get the kind of courage we need?  Well, all things are possible if we are filled with the Spirit.  In the Gospel, Jesus tells his disciples that he will send the Spirit, the advocate.  We know that the Spirit is real; and has power to work through us.  Look at the story of Phillip again.  One man, so filled with the Spirit, that he cast out many devils; one man who converted the Samaritans, a people who were considered hopeless by the Jews at that time.  Yes, indeed, the Spirit of God is the source of the courage and wisdom we need.  And, He is just a prayer away. 

March 30, 2008

Second Sunday of Easter

Acts 2: 42-47; 1 Peter 1: 3-9; Jn 20: 19-31

Presented at Westminster Tower 3/27/08

Dc. Larry Brockman

I want to ask you a simple question.  Do you believe that the sun will go down tonight?  Well do you?  (Pause for response)  Yes, of course you do.  But you know something-   You don’t actually “believe it”,  Rather, you know it-  you know it.  It’s a sure thing, isn’t it?  You have seen it, over and over, so you say you “believe it”; but your experience has shown it to be so, and what you really mean is that you know it. 

Indeed, there is a big difference between “knowing” and “believing”.  Believing involves an act of faith.  It means accepting something you can’t prove.  It means accepting something you don’t know as a fact; something you accept as a fact- without hard evidence, without proof.  Like the fact that there is a God; like the fact that Jesus is God become man;  Like the fact that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah;  Like the fact that Jesus Christ died and rose from the dead; and like the fact that you receive the body and blood of Jesus at Communion.  These are all things that you have to believe, they are not things that you “know”.   

Today is Divine Mercy Sunday.  Each year, the second Sunday of Easter is designated as Divine Mercy Sunday.  Peter talks about Divine Mercy in the second reading.  Peter says, and I quote:  “Blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy gave us a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead”.  There are two key things that Peter said: he talks about God’s great mercy, and he talks about the new birth to a living hope we all receive through the resurrection.  Now the mercy part of Peter’s statement is very important.  You can’t earn everlasting life through your own efforts.  No, it is a gift from God-   And that is the essence of the great mercy Peter is talking about.  God freely gives us that gift.  He gives us that gift out of his Mercy alone.  But, only if you believe- believe that he is the one God, that Jesus is God and man; that Jesus was his Messiah; that Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead, and that his life after that resurrection will be shared with all of us, and indeed, is already being shared with all of us through the Eucharis.  That is the living hope that you all receive through the resurrection- if you believe.   

We are told two stories today about faith and belief:  First, the story of Thomas.  If your honest, then you know that there is a little bit of the doubting Thomas in all of you.  Each year the Church goes through Advent, Christmas, Lent, Holy Week, and Easter celebrations to remind us of the essentials of our Faith.  But do we really believe them?  Do you really believe them?  Most of us would rather have the kind of proof that Thomas said he wanted, because most of us only want to accept what we know.  The real challenge you have as Christians, though, is to believe without seeing, just as Christ tells Thomas.   

The other story is the one from Acts.  This is a story about the early Christians.  These people actually believed.  Most of them were not eye witnesses themselves, no.  But, they believed on the strength of the teaching of the Apostles.  Just as you are called to believe on the strength of the teaching of the Apostles recorded in the Scriptures and handed on in the teachings of the Church.  These people experienced the awe and joy of the Easter promise.  They waited in joyful expectation of the second coming of the Lord, because they actually believed in that promise.   

The Easter season is a time for all of you to abandon your need to know that Jesus was resurrected, and embrace your faith in the fact that Jesus was raised from the dead.  It is also a time to reflect on the Divine Mercy of God.  Because no matter what you have done- no matter how great your sin and whatever hold it might have on you, all you need do to merit that gift of Divine mercy is to ask for God’s forgiveness, and believe in him.  Know that in just a few minutes, you can experience the living hope of the resurrected Jesus when you go to Communion.   

March 9, 2008

Fifth Sunday of Lent

Jn 11: 1-45

Westminster Tower

Dc. Larry Brockman

I’d like to start by thanking Chaplains Jane and Erin for inviting me.  I have found that this wonderful organization is the embodiment of what it means to be ecumenical.  They strive to do their utmost to encourage all the residents in their own individual faith experiences.   And yet, these Chapel services build that special sense of unity amongst all the faiths by sharing what’s common among us-  the living Word of God.    

Can you put yourself into the shoes of Lazarus?  My wife had a heart valve replaced six years ago.  She experienced one of those “near death experiences”.  Although she tries, she can’t quite communicate in words what she experienced.  But I can see in her eyes that it was something very special.  She talks about experiencing unbelievable joy.  And then, she was told that she was going back.  And I also know that she has not been the same.  No, she has a much deeper faith, and God and his will for her matter much more now than ever before.  I believe Lazarus had the same feeling.  Let me explain: 

In the culture of Jesus time,  It was generally believed that the soul left the body after 3 days.  So, by waiting as long as Jesus did, 4 days, nobody could claim that Lazarus had not died.  The Pharisees were, well, totally blown away.  And that explains why Jesus waited as long as he did.  It wasn’t because he didn’t know what would happen; and it wasn’t because he was insensitive to Martha and Mary.  No, it was because he wanted this incident to be clearly understood as a miracle; one that would give glory to God.  And He wanted to show them that he was who he said he was- The Son of God. 

This miracle was powerful- it moved and it touched many people.  And so, the Pharisees were frightened at the number of people Jesus had touched.  Ironically, the Pharisees fulfilled the parable in Luke’s gospel about another Lazarus.  This other departed Lazarus is told that:  “If they do not believe Moses and the Prophets; then neither would they be convinced if someone is raised from the dead”.  Indeed, the raising of Lazarus simply hardened the Pharisees; it didn’t convince them.  And they went away plotting to kill both Jesus- and Lazarus.     

Now it’s possible that one or so of you may have had a “near death experience” like my wife.  And you may have had the same kinds of feelings.  Because most of the people who have had the experience have one of two consistent paths to talk about- either stepping into the light, and incredible joy; or stepping into the darkness, and fear.  If so, you understand what Lazarus felt- rising, and stepping into the light with Jesus at the end of the tunnel!  And yet, I’ll bet that most of you have not had such an experience.  But, most of you have gone through a faith conversion.  You’ve accepted Christ as your savior, and you have been “born again”.  That brought you a feeling of indescribable joy.  And, you don’t want to go back.  There’s no happy return to that previous life.  Yes, all of you experience a resurrection of a kind, when you accept Jesus, and turn away from death to sin.   

But, there’s much more to the Lazarus story than that.  Because it also prefigures Christ’s Resurrection; a Resurrection to everlasting life.  In fact there are many parallels between the raising of Lazarus and the rising of Jesus.  First, there are mourning Mary’s in both stories-  Lazarus sister in this story, and the Mother of God in Jesus’ story.  The mourning Mary’s tell us something about faith.  In fact, both Martha and Mary showed great faith when they both independently said:  “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”  Yet, it was limited faith- limited faith.  They understood that the body would be resurrected on the last day.  But they did not understand that only death brings resurrection to everlasting life,  And so, the death of Lazarus brings tears.   

In fact, the Bible says “And Jesus wept” (The shortest verse in the Bible).  Some say it was a natural human emotion from losing someone who was close to him.  Perhaps, but there’s another view.  You see, the death of Lazarus, and the whole scene surrounding Martha and Mary- the town, the Jews, the crowd, the whole scene- was a clear and unmistakable sign of the power of Satan.  The power to bring chaos between various factions and to cause physical death.  That could surely have caused Jesus to weep.  And raising Lazarus would show the Glory of God in the face of that evil;  Just as the raising of Jesus showed that Glory of God on Easter Sunday.   

Second, both were buried in a cave for three days.  I have already talked about what that meant to the Jews at the time- a perceived separation of the soul from the body, the certainty of death.  Then there’s the similarity in the burial clothes.  Both were wrapped head to foot and anointed.  But there is a difference, too.  Lazarus was raised with the burial clothes still on, symbolizing the fact that he was returning to physical life.  But Jesus clothes were carefully rolled up and left behind, symbolizing the new, everlasting life to which we are called.   

Lastly, the apostle Thomas is given a cynical role in each story.  His faith is found lacking in both stories- faith in the first case that Jesus can return to Judea lest he be captured by his enemies; and faith in the second case that Jesus was risen at all.  It would seem to us that Thomas, and indeed the other apostles were hard headed because over and over Jesus had foretold his story.  “I will suffer and die and be resurrected on the third day; I am the Resurrection and the Life, whoever believes in me will be saved”.  And yet they just didn’t get it.   

But do we get it either?  Do we understand what life and death are all about?  Have we really listened to what these Resurrection stories are telling us?  Be honest- the idea of death, certain that it is, is frightening, something that we don’t want to think about.  We don’t want to hear that we are going to suffer; and that we are going to die, even if we hear that we will be resurrected to everlasting life.  Because, most of all, we are afraid of death.   

I heard a preacher recently who said something very interesting.  He said that the bible tells us, in various ways, not to be afraid, 365 times- once for every day of the year.  Think about that.  We are consistently told not to be afraid; to believe in Jesus; to go where he leads you; and to be not afraid.    As we go into the last couple of weeks of Lent, reflect on whether you truly get it.  Whatever your circumstances- young or old; healthy or not; suffering or not; you are where you are today by the Grace of a loving God.  And you can resolve to believe in Him and trust him.  Be not afraid.  And imagine that you are Lazarus walking out of that grave.