wpengine

Memorial of Saint Athanasius,
Bishop and Doctor of the Church 

Scripture:

Acts 12:24-13:5a
John 12:44-50

Reflection:

The Easter season readings that occur today, on the memorial of St. Athanasius (born around 296; died May 2, 373), are a just tribute to his dedication as a teacher and pastor challenged to overcome the Arian heresy of his day.  He was Bishop of Alexandria, the intellectual and cultural center of the Roman Empire.  He had become bishop of Alexandria five months following the Council of Nicaea, which was convoked in order to deal with the teachings of Arius, a priest of Alexandria.

Arianism taught that the Second Person of the Trinity was created sometime before the Incarnation of Jesus.  As created being, Jesus could not be equal or "co-equal" to the Father.  The Council of Nicaea responded with the declaration, enshrined in the Nicene Creed, that Father and Son were "consubstantial" ("shared substance"). 

In upholding the declaration of  Nicaea, Athanasius was caught in the political ramifications of the religious argumentation.  The Emperor Constantine, toward the end of his life accepted to lobby with Athanasius for the restitution of Arius to the priesthood in that See city.  Athanasius stood firm in opposition, and this led to the first of several condemnations of Athanasius by hearings which were led by influential Arian sympathizers, if not believers.  Successive emperors, after Constantine, might be Arian or sympathetic to Arians; there was never a doubt that political power struggles underpinned many of the efforts to keep Athanasius in exile.  Four periods of exile occurred in his life, but he recovered his See each time, and eventually expired on this day in 373.

What in these readings of the season honors the memory of Athanasius?  In the first reading, we hear of the Holy Spirit’s prompting: "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them."  And they did, in prayer and with the laying on of hands.  From the Apostolic times, the Church is convinced that the Spirit of God calls ("vocare", "vocation") singular individuals for a particular share in the Mission of Christ’s Church.  The brief synopsis I gave for the life of Athanasius tells us that he was the Bishop of Alexandria.  It should be added that he accepted this call at hardly the required age of 30; although relatively young, once ordained as the Bishop of Alexandria, and although sent into exile four different times, he never abandoned his people.  He lived his conviction that God had asked this service of him. 

Last Sunday the Church celebrated a World Day of Prayer for Vocations.  We acknowledge that vocations are the fruit of prayer.  With the example of St. Athanasius before us, we also acknowledge that a true vocational discernment, for every service in the Church’s Mission, requires age-appropriate maturity, reverence and a willingness to put all of one’s strength in the hands of Christ’s Church.  The Church had such a person in St. Athanasius. 

 

Fr. Arthur Carrillo, C.P. is the director of the Office of Mission Effectiveness for Holy Cross Province.  He lives in Chicago, Illinois. 

Scripture:

Acts 11:19-26
John 10:22-30

Reflection:

In today’s readings I am struck by the contrast between what is happening in Acts and what is happening in John – the startling contrast between the Greeks, non-Jews, joyfully and fully accepting the Lord Jesus as the Christ, and the Jews in the temple area disbelieving both the words and the works of Jesus himself, refusing faith and rejecting him.

These Greeks in Antioch took to the word of the Lord so eagerly that eventually news of them reached the disciples in Jerusalem, who then sent Barnabas to check on them.  He was so amazed and overjoyed at their faith that he took off to Tarsus to find Saul and bring him back to Antioch.  The two of them remained there a whole year, building up the church with these non-Jewish converts to Jesus the Christ.  And it was there that the disciples of Jesus were first called Christians.  This story in Acts is filled with the wonder and joy of the Resurrected Lord.

But in John we have the sad rejection of faith from the very ones to whom Jesus was first sent.  "If you are the Christ, tell us plainly," they demand of him.  But the kind of Christ they want is not the Christ he has to offer.  Thinking they are in the right, they, the chosen people, reject him and his Father – they know better.  Neither his words nor his works move them; he must conform to what they expect of the Christ.

Through this Eastertide I have been constantly struck by how much what is going on in our own church today parallels what is happening in the Scripture readings.  We have been contemplating first all the wonderful things the newly inspired disciples of the Lord have been working among the people as they proclaim the crucified and risen Lord.   Then, immediately upon that, we see the refusal of the religious leaders, the Sanhedrin, to acknowledge their mistake and accept the wonders happening before them.  Instead of listening to people like Gamaliel and Nicodemus, they hound the disciples as much as they dare and try to shut them up.  In our church today are we witnessing the same thing with the Vatican and our American Sisters?  

The CDF has just unloaded the results of their three-year investigation upon the LCWR – and calls for them to submit to five years regulation by an Archbishop and two bishops, to have their rules and regulations revised, their assembly plans inspected, their proposed speakers vetted for approval or rejection, meanwhile accusing them of giving scandal. Yet the worst scandal ever to hit the church, the cover-up of the clerical abuse of children by John Paul II, the CDF, and our own hierarchy continues without a word.  The files remain sealed and locked, both in the Vatican and in our dioceses.  How do I, a member of this one body the church, "speak the truth to the Pope and Bishops honestly, in love," as St. Paul advises?  Is a letter to the Papal Nuncio in order?  How do I come to the support of our Sisters and the LCWR?  A letter to LCWR promising daily heartfelt prayer and penance?  "To speak the truth honestly – in love" . . .

Br. Peter A. Fitzpatrick, CFX, a Xaverian Brother, is a Passionist Associate at Ryken House, St. Xavier High School, across the creek from Sacred Heart Passionist Monastery in Louisville,Kentucky.

 

Scripture:

Acts 11:1-18
John 10:1-10

 

 

 

Reflection:

"I am tired of hearing about men with the ‘courage of their convictions.’ Nero and Caligula and Attila and Hitler had the courage of their convictions…But not one of them had the courage to examine their convictions or to change them, which is the true test of character." – Sydney Harris

Yes, it is not difficult to find people who have the courage of their convictions.  What is rare to find are people who have the courage to reexamine their convictions.  St. Peter, the first pope, had this second brand of courage. 

Peter went through much of his life regarding Gentiles as unclean.  He thought they were unworthy of his association.  This was part of his tradition.  But new circumstances (and a dream) forced Peter to reexamine his convictions.  And he came to a new conclusion.  "I begin to see how true it is that God shows no partiality." (Acts 10:34)  This was such a significant change for Peter that Luke relates it twice in the Acts of the Apostles. (cf. Acts 10 and 11)

Today’s reading is a challenge to everyone in authority in the church.  They are responsible for teaching and defending the faith.  But they should not rely on blind obedience.  God has gifted human beings not only with wills to choose but also with minds to think.  Sometimes new circumstances and the Spirit working among the faithful requires leaders to reexamine their convictions. 

Jesus confronted the leaders of his time.  Some were "teaching as doctrines human precepts." (Mark 7:7)  It is an easy thing to do for those who seek security and order.  But when church leaders are open to listen, dialogue, and pray with their people, the church will be lead to "have life and have it to the full." (cf. John 10:10)

Fr. Alan Phillip, C.P. is a member of the Passionist Community at Mater Dolorosa Retreat Center, Sierra Madre, California.   Visit his website at : http://www.alanphillipcp.com/  

Scripture:
Acts 14:5-18
John 14:21-26

Reflection:
"He listened to Paul speaking, who looked intently at him, saw that he had the faith to be healed, and called out in a loud voice, "Stand up straight on your feet." He jumped up and began to walk about."  (Today’s selection from Acts)

My experience of healing has not been that dramatic, but I have seen how love can heal. I remember Johnny (not his real name). At one point in my teaching career, I was in charge of three reading labs and one math lab where we individualized the instruction for each student at our school. I felt very responsible for these labs. The school, along with a $10,000 grant had spent thousands more to set them up. Every teacher was daily taking their class into one or two of these labs. The Principal had made a big investment in these labs and commissioned me to make them work.

I was walking down the hall one afternoon when I heard what sounded like a riot, coming from room 201, the first lab we had set up. I rushed into the lab determined to find out what the problem was and to resolve it. There was Johnny, fighting with two other students. Now Johnny was a big, fat kid who didn’t pay much attention to his appearance and truthfully was not liked by many, if any, of his classmates.  What made it worse, Johnny had a younger brother, Petey who was cute, mild mannered and liked by most of his classmates. I could see that I had to straighten Johnny out once and for all. Before I could do that though, I had to reestablish some order. I told Johnny to go across the hall to an empty classroom and wait for me. I then proceeded in my professional teacher manner to reestablish order and get everyone back on task. I was good at that. What I wasn’t so good at is what came next. I proceeded across the hallway and into the classroom where I faced Johnny sitting there waiting for me. I was all ready to lay into him when he burst out crying: "Nobody likes me, I’m fat and I’m ugly." I was speechless. I started to cry. Everything he said was right. I put my arms around Johnny and held him for a moment and then said: "Let’s go back and start over."

Johnny did fine and I was healed.

The word "love" is used seven times by Jesus in today’s Gospel reading. I’m thinking there might be some connection between this "love" Jesus talks about and the healing each of us along with Paul are able to effect in our worlds today.

 

Dan O’Donnell is a Passionist Partner and a longtime friend of the Passionists.  He lives in Chicago.  

Scripture:
Acts 4:8-12
1 John 3:1-2
John 10:11-18

Reflection:
"I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I will lay down my life for the sheep." 

These words from today’s gospel reading are some of the most treasured in our Christian faith.  However I have to admit that I know very little about herding and caring for sheep.  I have attempted to "count sheep" but that’s about it!  So when John relates what Jesus said about the good shepherd, I have to rely on what others have told me about sheep and what I’ve seen at the Kentucky State Fair. 

Sheep are docile, produce wool and can be "herded", unlike our pet cats Solomon and Gabriel.  Sheep need a certain amount of protection from predators.  So, a "good shepherd" looks out for the sheep and takes care of them.  But "laying down my life for a sheep" (or either one of our cats), I’m not sure I could go that far!

"Laying down one’s life" for anyone or anything is a rare, remarkable, unique act of love.  I recently met an individual in my tornado disaster relief work for the Red Cross who did exactly what a "good shepherd" would do; he protected the lives of others and it cost him a broken back, great physical pain and life threatening injuries.  I was honored and humbled to meet and talk with him.  His only voiced concern was over the folks he tried to protect who did not make it.

Most of us will not experience this kind of a dramatic moment in time when we must choose to sacrifice our own life for the life of another.  However we all are "recipients" of the greatest sacrifice of all, the sacrifice of our good shepherd Jesus who gave his life for us on the cross.  I really don’t have to know about sheep to reflect on this sacrifice; I simply have to look toward the cross.  As members of our Passionist Family let us give thanks today and every day for the overwhelming act of love God has given us in Jesus crucified, our good shepherd!

 

Terry McDevitt, Ph.D. is a member of our Passionist Family who volunteers at the Passionist Assisted Living Community in Louisville, Kentucky.

 

Scripture:

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

Reflection:

There’s not much I remember about serving the Latin Mass except how many rubrics there were to follow.  The priest’s introduction of "Introibo ad altare Dei" gave way after the server’s "Ad Deum qui laetificat juventutem meam" to lots of mumbling as the priest raced through the prayers at the foot of the altar.  There was the Epistle side and the Gospel side, and the lifting of chasubles.  And there was the art of not causing personal injury with the paten to a communicant at the communion rail.  

The Mass ended with "Ite, missa est."  We translate this as "Go forth, the Mass is ended."  Another option is "Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord," which captures better what is supposed to happen at the end of the celebration of the Eucharist.  We are sent.  Not sent away, but sent to live what we just celebrated; to be what we just received.  We are sent to be Christ in our world.   

Today’s two readings really work well together. The Gospel from John is part of the Bread of Life Discourse.  "The bread that I will give is my Flesh for the life of the world."  The first reading from the Acts of the Apostles retells the story of Phillip being sent to explain the scriptures to the eunuch he meets along the way.  

Our celebration of the Eucharist is meant to be effective.  The real presence of Christ in the Eucharist should be leading us to make Christ real in our world.  By going to Mass, we encounter Jesus resurrected from the dead who then sends us out to be the Bread of Life for a world that is all too often poor, hungry, sad, and burdened.  Like Phillip, whom the angel sends to proclaim the Gospel to the Ethiopian eunuch, we are sent…Ite, missa est…to comfort the brokenhearted and grief-stricken, welcome those marginalized by society and left by the side of the road, feed those hungry in both body and soul, and reconcile those among our family and friends who are estranged and resentful.  

Like Phillip and the rest of the disciples, we don’t have to look far and wide for where we are able live out the Eucharist.  Those to whom we are sent are those with whom we live and work.  We are going to encounter them along the road we each travel.  We just need to remember that we have been sent…Ite, missa est.  And to that the choirs of angels sing, "Deo gratias."

 

Robert Hotz is a consultant with American City Bureau, Inc. and is the Director of The Passion of Christ: The Love That Compels Campaign for Holy Cross Province.

Scripture:

Acts 3:13-15, 17-19
1 John 2:1-5a
Luke 24:35-48

Reflection:

"As soon as I lie down I fall peacefully asleep, for You alone oh Lord bring security to my dwelling." Psalm 4: 9

I used to have a problem with fear. I remember being afraid of the dark when I was a little kid, but it became even more distressing after I got married and had kids. It started when Jim had to be out of town one week each month for work and I was home alone with the kids. I would wake up in a cold sweat, paralyzed with fear. I didn’t know why, and I didn’t know what to do.

God’s Word came to the rescue. I learned that not only does the Word of God teach us about God, but it also has power to accomplish what it says! All we have to do is find the scriptures that fit our situation and then begin to speak the verses aloud when we come up against our problem.

Here are some of the verses I found to help me battle my problem with fear:
"Fear is useless, what is needed is trust." Mark 5:36b
"He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him." Psalm 31b
"I sought the Lord and He answered me and delivered me from all my fears." Psalm 34:5

The more we learn and speak the Word of God, the more we begin to believe it and claim the truth of it for our lives. As I spoke these verses over and over, I began to believe that God really didn’t want me to be afraid anymore. Psalm 4:9 – the verse that I started this reflection with – became the verse I prayed and believed each night before I went to sleep.

My victory over fear came when I understood the verse: "Perfect love casts out fear." (1 John 4:18) God showed me that He is perfect love, so if I cling to Him, and keep my eyes on Him, the fear flees. I have been tempted to fear many times since I learned these verses, but because I have taken God at His Word and believed His truth for my life, I am no longer afraid. Thank you Lord!!!

 

Janice Carleton and her husband Jim live in Portland, OR and partner with Passionist Fr. Cedric Pisegna in Fr. Cedric Ministries. Janice also leads women’s retreats. She is the mother of 4 grown children and grandmother of 6. Visit Janice’s website at http://www.jcarleton.com/ or email her at [email protected]

Scripture:

Acts 5:27-33
John 3:31-36

Reflection:

"We must obey God rather than men." Acts 5: 29

In the Readings for today’s Mass, the Church continues to help us understand more profoundly the implications of Jesus’ Passion, Death and Resurrection. In the Gospel, we see Jesus giving testimony as to his origin as the Son of God and to his mission, which is to offer Eternal Life to those who believe in Him. (John 3:31 ff) At this point in time, the Apostles are just beginning to hear this teaching and have not yet accepted it into their hearts and minds. It would take them a long time to do so. The event which changed everything for them was the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus. In the space of three days, the disciples of Jesus went from followers to leaders, from being the behind-the-scene people to being the persons up front, from being those in the background to those who now took center stage. This, indeed, was a dramatic change in so many different levels.

So it came to pass that the boastful Peter, so brave one moment and so fearful the next, now finds himself giving testimony about this Jesus of Nazareth that died and rose from the dead before the most important leaders of his time. These leaders threaten him with prison and command him to keep quiet about this Resurrected Christ. Peter, John and the rest of the followers of Jesus could not keep quiet. They had to give testimony to what they had experienced as followers of Jesus. We, too, need the grace to be transformed into bold preachers of God’s Word. We need to experience the Resurrected Jesus in our daily lives for that transformation to take place.

I am in the country of India at this moment. One of our Passionists was taking me around the city of Bangalore and telling me of the tensions that exist between the different tribes and religions in India. In February and March, I was in Vietnam and China. I have visited Cuba. In each of these countries, we have brave Passionists who are not afraid to speak out the message of Jesus and obey God. All of these are countries that limit the message that people of faith can deliver.

But these are not foolish people. They are a prayerful people, prudent people, people who know how to discern what the Gospel message is and what it is not. The message that Jesus preached from the first moments of his Resurrected Life was a message of Peace, Forgiveness, and Reconciliation. These people have learned how to preach, by word and deed, the core Gospel message without bringing needless pain or suffering to the people of God. They have discerned well the difference between obeying God rather than obeying their own agenda, being faithful to God rather than faithful to a message that will bring the spotlight to them rather than to God.

May we always follow that directive of St. Francis of Assisi: Always preach the Gospel, and use words if necessary!

 

Fr. Clemente Barron, C.P. is a member of the General Council of the Passionist Congregation and is stationed in Rome.