Deacon Tom’s homily for November 16^th and 17^th

 

 “BY YOUR PERSEVERANCE YOU WILL SECURE YOUR LIFE."

 

       We have certainly seen way too many instances of violence, war, and natural disasters in our world.

 

       When it comes to crimes of violence and terrorism – we might ask: what has 2,000 years of Christian teachings and beliefs accomplished?

 

       There certainly seems no less evil in the world today than at the time of Jesus. 

 

       It is also true that our personal life can be a microcosm of world times. We each have our own personal wars and disasters of the spirit. 

 

       What is it that will bind up our brokenness? What is it that will heal the wounds we all experience and live with?

 

       After 2,000 years – what does Christianity have to offer the world?

 

WHAT DOES CHRISTIANITY HAVE TO OFFER TO YOU AND ME?

 

 

       As bad as some of life circumstances and events can be, they none the less seem to call forth God’s living and compassionate presence among us, within us, and through us!

 

       Whether it is the first responders and firefighters rushing into the collapsing World Trade Center Towers, or the task force of aircraft from around the world bringing food, medicine, and medical care givers to the Philippines; or in our personal life, acquiring the spiritual resolve to return our life to God; it is God’s compassion and mercy that becomes experienced in these times of great trial and need.   

 

       There is no denying that the world we live in, and the life we live, can be both terrible and tender. 

 

       Jesus’ final words in today’s Gospel are: 

 

“By your perseverance you will secure your lives." (Luke 18:18)

 

    ·        Jesus teaches this truth –

·        Jesus calls us to act on this truth –

·        Jesus lived and experienced the hatred, the pain, the disappointments, and the love, that are all part of human life.  

 

HOW WE ARE EXPECTED TO “PERSEVERE?”

 

        At the Mass, we celebrate the pinnacle of our Catholic faith. 

The Catechism of the Catholic Church states,

“In the most blessed sacrament of the Eucharist

the body and blood,

together with the soul and divinity,

of our Lord Jesus Christ

and, therefore, the whole Christ

is truly, really, and substantially contained.”

 

       By what authority does the Church proclaim and teach this “real and substantial presence” of the living Christ?

 

       On that night before Jesus was tortured and then executed – on that night of the Lord’s Last Supper, he took ordinary bread and giving thanks to God, said the blessing, broke the bread and gave it to the disciples, saying:

 

“Take this, all of you, and eat of it,

for THIS IS MY BODY . . .”

 

       When supper was finished, he took the chalice containing wine - and once more giving God the Father thanks, handed the chalice to his disciples, saying:

 

“Take this, all of you, and drink from it,

for THIS IS THE CHALICE OF MY BLOOD,

DO THIS IN MEMORY OF ME.”

 

       This is a key doctrine of our Faith and a teaching that sets Catholics apart from most other Christians.

 

       Today, we like the people Jesus is speaking to, experience this real and living presence.

 

       When we come forward to receive Holy Communion, we not only ‘receive’ but we are ‘received into’ the very essence of the living Jesus Christ.

 

 

WE RECEIVE THE GRACE NECESSARY TO PERSEVERE.

 

 

       I would like to say a few things about the proper manner we receive the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ.

 

       First there is the Eucharistic Minister – who has the honor and the blessing of answering Jesus’ call to, “feed my sheep,” Mark 6:37.  They have the honor to hold the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ and the privilege to distribute it as Jesus did on the night of that last supper; an honor and grace that is beyond all human comprehension.

 

       When you approach the minister of Holy Communion, reverently bow – acknowledging the moment of this great sacredness. Preferably this bow is done while the person in front of you is receiving Communion.

 

       When the minister of the Eucharist announces: “The Body of Christ” or “The Blood of Christ,” you express your faith and belief in that reality by proclaiming and saying: “Amen.”

 

       Saying “Amen” is a declaration and the affirmation, of your belief in this real and living presence of Jesus Christ.

 

       Saying “Thank You” does not proclaim this belief and acceptance of this doctrine of our Catholic faith.

 

       Saying “Thank You,” in this circumstance is not the proper response. 

 

       When receiving in the hand – hold your hands up as in a gesture and symbol of profound gratefulness. 

 

       If receiving on the tongue, extend the tongue far enough out so that the Host can easily be placed on it. 

 

       Immediately upon receiving, swallow the entire Host and Precious Blood in the presence of the Eucharistic Minister before moving on. 

 

IT IS THIS GIFT OF GOD that makes it all possible for us to preserve in our journey of life to eternal salvation.

 

IT IS THIS GIFT OF GOD that fortifies us in our struggle to lead the life God calls us to.

 

IT IS THIS GIFT OF GOD that gives us the grace to continually re-direct our lives back towards God – to return to God’s grace regardless as to how many times we have failed in the process.  

 

 LET US PRAY:

 

We give thanks to you, our God, because of your constant love for us, you have given us your promise and the means to achieve everlasting life.  Amen.  

 

  

 

    

 

FAITH AND THE HUMAN SPIRIT

And God said:

“Do you still trust me?” 

"Do you still believe I have what is best for you?”

On Sunday, November 10^th - CBS Morning Show showed a video of the Stand Up for Heroes Concert.  It is the most inspirational video I have ever seen – I have watched it more than a half a dozen times.  You can watch it at: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=50158847n

The video begins with a 15 or 30 second advertisement – we can be thankful that someone is paying the cost of showing this awesome testimony of sacrifice, courage, faith, and hope.

The featured song, Hallelujah is available on i-tunes.

 

OUTRAGEOUS!!  HYPOCRISY!!

The astonishing hypocrisy of Medicaid opponents

as reported by Jack Lessenberry,

political Commentator

and professor of journalism at Wayne State University.

 

          You know by now that the Michigan Senate has finally voted to approve expanding Medicaid benefits.

POOR RECEIVE AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE

          Eventually nearly half a million of our citizens [those who earn less than $15,000.00 per year] will have at least basic health care, these are people who do not now have health care. The benefits in terms of human decency and a healthier workforce are enormous!

MISDIRECTED THINKING?

          Those who opposed Medicaid expansion said they didn’t think we should burden future generations with another “entitlement cost.”  **

BUT, HATRED WINS THE DAY!

          Many of them also admitted their opposition was based on their hatred of President Obama’s Affordable Care Act, which they continue to oppose even though it was passed by U. S. Congress, and passed constitutional  scrutiny of the United States Supreme Court.

Sore losers, or are they just plain “Losers!!”

          14 of the 18 senators who lost by voting against the expansion of health care by voting “No” - now, however, are determined to do something spiteful to hurt both the state and the poor.

$7 MILLION DOLLARS A DAY!

          After the expansion of health care was approved, 14 senators voted against giving the bill immediate effect. This means that instead of health care benefits beginning on January 1, 2014, when the Medicaid expansion officially begins, Michigan won’t be able to take part until April 2014. Because of this spiteful and horrendous action by these senators, our state stands to lose $7 MILLION DOLLARS A DAY in money Washington is making available.  That means our State of Michigan (You & Me) will lose six hundred and thirty million dollars in January, February and March. That is $630,000,000.00 dollars!!

LOSERS!

** HERE IS THE WORST PART!!

          Brian Dickerson of the Detroit Free Press has reported that every one of the eighteen senators WHO VOTED AGAINST expanding Medicaid to the poor – VOTED FOR GIVING ALL BUT ONE OF THEMSELVES LIFETIME HEALTH CARE – AT TAXPAYER'S (OUR) EXPENSE. 

The Hall of Shame!

         The 13 senators who successfully voted themselves lifetime health care benefits and voted to make the state and the poor who suffer financially before getting basic health care under Medicaid – are as follows:

Darwin Booher of Evart

Jack Brandenburg of Harrison Township

Bruce Caswell of Hillsdale

Judy Emmons of Sheridan

Mike Green of Mayville

Joe Hune of Hamburg Township

Rick Jones of Grand Ledge

John Moolenaar of Midland

Mike Nofs of Battle Creek

Phil Pavlov of St. Clair

John Proos of St. Joseph

Dave Robertson of Grand Blanc

Tonya Schuitmaker of Lawton

 NOT SO MUCH PURE MICHIGAN

– JUST PURE DISGUST!

          As a citizen of this beautiful State of Michigan, the above listed senators bring me immeasurable embarrassment, and demonstrate unbelievable fiscal irresponsibility for our beautiful State of Michigan. 

Pure Michigan  – Pure Disgust!

 

 

 

 

 

Do you believe in “Angel” Priests?

            A  Missouri car crash last weekend that left a 19-year-old woman critically injured, and the world wondering about the identity of the "angel" priest who prayed with her until rescuers could free her from the mangled wreck -- and then disappeared.

            Officials are still scratching their heads over the cleric, who appeared out of nowhere. Perhaps more mysteriously, the local fire chief said he does not appear in any of 80 photos from the accident scene.

 “Will someone pray with me?”

            The crash went global after reports of the mysterious priest who stepped forward when Lentz asked someone to pray with her while firefighters struggled to free her from the wreckage.

            “The fire chief, Raymond Reed, had stepped back and came up to me and said he was concerned because he was out of options. His tools weren’t working and by that time, it was almost an hour and said I don’t know how we’re going to get her out,” Ralls County Sheriff’s Deputy Richard Adair told KHQA.

 “I Don’t want to send the wrong message!”

            Then the priest appeared – although the highway was blocked for two to three miles and emergency responders were not letting anyone past the roadblocks.

            “He came and he asked to anoint the girl in the car,” Adair said. “My first thought was that it would possibly send the wrong message to Katie that maybe we had called a priest and thought she wasn’t going to make it. So I went back and talked to the priest and told him we were worried she would think we’d given up hope. He said, ‘I just want to anoint her and so we just let him come up to the scene.”

            Witnesses said he anointed Katie and her rescuers with oil, prayed with them and asked them to remain calm.

            At that point the Hannibal fire department pulled up with fresh equipment and was able to free Katie. After getting her in the Air Evac helicopter, rescue workers said the priest was nowhere to be found.

 “Angel” Priest disappears!

             Fire Chief Reed said the department took 80 photos of the scene and the priest did not appear in any of them.

            The Diocese of Jefferson City says it has not located the priest involved. “Out of respect for the privacy of any priest who may have been involved and does not wish to come forward, the Diocese does not plan to further investigate this incident. The Diocese is grateful that a priest was able to exercise his ministry in this manner and requests prayers for healing of the victim, as well as prayers of thanks.” said Deacon Dan Joyce.

 

Reported on FoxNews.com on August 9, 2013

UPDATE August 12, 2013

MYSTERY SOLVED.

            The “angel priest” who appeared at the scene of a Missouri car crash, anointed and prayed with the teenage victim, then vanished has been identified as Rev. Patrick Dowling of the Jefferson City Diocese.
 

          A press release provided to FoxNews.com by the diocese said Father Dowling had been travelling Highway 19 between Mass assignments in northern and central Missouri when he arrived near the crash scene Aug. 4.

         The arrival of the unidentified priest, who seemed to come out of nowhere, then attend to the victim before disappearing just as mysteriously, touched off nationwide speculation about the identity of the “angel” cleric.

 

IN THEIR OWN WORDS!

 

A HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE STUDENT

REFLECT ON THE JOYS AND CHALLENGES

THAT COME WITH LIVING OUT THEIR FAITH

IN THE MIDST OF REAL LIFE.

Everything I Can Do

Living with Down syndrome
By Joey Kane

One special thing about me. . .

 is that I have Down syndrome. Down syndrome means having an extra chromosome in my body. It’s the way I was born. My parents told me that when I was born on Aug. 9, 1995, the doctor looked at my hands and eyes and confirmed that I had Down syndrome. This was not a surprise to my mom and dad because they knew I was going to have Down syndrome. That’s because of a test that had been done before I was born.

I don’t really think of myself as having a disability

          Having Down syndrome is the same as having a disability. My teacher, Mr. Beall, talks about people having disabilities. He says that it does not matter if you have a learning difference because everyone should be treated the same. Other people think and say I have a disability, but I don’t really think of myself as having a disability because I feel I fit in with other people. You should not think that you can get away with stuff just because you have a disability. If you are late to class, you should get detention just like everyone else does.

Everyone can share their talents,

even if they have Down syndrome.

          I have Down syndrome because I think that God wanted me to have it. I didn’t decide I wanted to have it. Some people think that because I have Down syndrome I can’t do what other people can do. But that is not true. Everyone can share their talents, even if they have Down syndrome. My theme song is “Anything You Can Do (I Can Do Better).”

One of the things that makes me different. . .

is that I have more trouble at school than other people. It is hard for me to take notes in class. It is hard for me to see the board because I have bad vision. I need more time to take a test because it takes me a long time to read the questions. The small print on tests also causes problems for me. Other things are also hard. It’s hard for me to remember my classmates’ names. It’s hard for me to find the right metro bus to get on. I won’t be able to get a driver’s license because my vision is not good enough to drive.

When I play X-Box I probably surprise people.

          Some people say that those with Down syndrome don’t have good eye-hand coordination. But when I play X-Box I probably surprise people because I do have good eye-hand coordination.

          Some people may think that I would be treated badly because I have Down syndrome. My experience has not been this way. God tells everyone to treat people equally, and I think that most people act in this way. I don’t feel as if people make fun of me or make me feel bad just because I have Down syndrome.

I can do things that other people can do. . .

even though I have a disability. I can swim, play basketball, play Ping-Pong, be good at math and give hugs to people. I can go to college, but I need to qualify for accommodations because of my learning disability. I am awesome at prayer because I love people and I know God loves me. I like sports like football, basketball, baseball and soccer. I love the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, the Gonzaga Bulldogs, the Washington Huskies, the Seahawks and the Mariners.

Last summer I worked for the Seattle Mariners.

I can work just like other people. Last summer I worked for the Mariners. My job was handing out items at baseball games. I handed out things like bobble-head dolls, posters, backpacks, trading cards and T-shirts. I got paid minimum wage: $9.04 an hour, plus I got half-price food. Because I did such a great job, my boss asked me to come back for the 2013 season.

I think service is what God wants me to do.

Another job I had was working at Mount St. Vincent’s. This is a nursing home where I would talk to people, help them get to places and bring trays of food to them. I also cleared off tables. This job gave me a good chance to make friends and do service. I think service is what God wants me to do, along with following the commandments.

I would like to do something where I am with the team.

          Also, I had a job watering my neighbors’ plants for the whole summer. Twice a week I had to water plants and flowers so that they would not die. I got paid $5 each time. Someday, I will have a job where I work almost every day. I hope it is for the Mariners. I would like to do something where I am with the team. That way I would get to meet the players.

I don’t think that having Down syndrome would be a problem.

          I might be a teacher someday. I would like to teach little kids because they are cute. I would want to teach math. I don’t think that having Down syndrome would be a problem in doing this.

Another way I am the same as other people. . .

is that I like food. Maybe I like food more than most other people. I really like pizza, pasta, gold fish, hot dogs, ramen, french fries, hamburgers and milkshakes. If I were a babysitter, I would probably order pizza for the kids and myself.

People can look at me and know that I have Down syndrome.   

But they don’t see me as having Down syndrome. They see me as myself. I can recognize people with Down syndrome. Mostly it is the shape of their face and how they walk. When I look in the mirror I don’t see myself as having Down syndrome.

God loves me because God made me.

          He made me just the way I am, and he loves me just the way I am. Because I have a good sense of humor, people feel more comfortable around me. Sometimes someone in my class says that he feels embarrassed to be around me. On the other hand, this same person asked me to sit at his table. This is a good example of the way it should be. I should be treated as if I don’t have Down syndrome. In fact, I do not even think of Down syndrome as being a disability, but many people think it is.

 

I think people know I’m a good guy

even though I have Down syndrome.

This is the first time I’ve really talked about having Down syndrome. I don’t tell people because I guess I think people know I’m a good guy even though I have Down syndrome. Not to be cocky, but I’m a popular guy.

 

Joey Kane is beginning senior year at

John F. Kennedy Catholic High School

in Burien, Wash.

 

          Below is a reflection by Matt Kane, Joey's brother, on the way Joey has changed his view on life.

  What Joey’s brother Matt says about him.

By Matt Kane

          The grandest and most spectacular acts of social justice often seem to occur in foreign lands and involve the improvement and preservation of thousands of lives, but the most meaningful act of social justice in my own life occurred much closer to home. It succeeded in saving the life of only one.

           Some 17 years ago my parents were confronted by a physician who wanted to discuss the fate of a soon-to-be-newborn baby. It had recently been discovered that this baby would be born with Down syndrome, and the physician assured my parents that there was still time to abort. Today it is estimated that 60 percent to 90 percent of babies with Down syndrome are aborted, but for my parents this was never an option. My younger brother Joey was born on Aug. 9, 1995.

          Reflecting on this act of social justice invokes a reflection on the importance of not only my brother’s life, but of the right to life itself. When my parents chose life for Joey, they knew that many trials and challenges lay ahead, but they were able to embrace the possibility of difficulty and accept whatever God had in store for them. They could not have foreseen the immense love and joy Joey’s presence would create in our family and our community in the coming years. Living and growing up with Joey has given me a rare perspective on the value of life. Over the years I have watched him sculpt the very foundation of our family into one of profound patience and tolerance, and he continues to influence the way I interact with others inside and outside the family. He is a testament to the effects of social justice, and I cannot imagine the void that would be left in my own life if my parents had not recognized the value of Joey’s.

          The invariable aspects of human-kind define who we are as a people, but the unique and subtle differences by which we are individually defined make us who we truly are. As I reflect on how much Joey has changed the way I see the world, it saddens me to think of all those whose differences not only cost them their lives, but also the opportunity to change the lives of others. Without diversity our world would be stagnant and our thoughts without purpose, for it is often through our differences that we are able to enrich the lives of those around us. While it is true that my parents’ act of social justice saved the life of only one person, it served to transform the lives of countless people in my community, whose world would be a little less bright, less full, were it not for Joey.

 

Matt Kane, who is beginning senior year at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind., is the brother of Joey Kane.

 

 

"In the early days of the western United States,

a masked man and an Indian rode the plains,

searching for truth and justice."

"Return with us now

to those thrilling days of yesteryear,

when from out of the past

come the thundering hoofbeats

of the great horse Silver!

The Lone Ranger rides again!"

"Come on, Silver!

Let's go, big fellow!

Hi-yo Silver! Away!"

If you grew-up in the 40’s listening to the Lone Ranger on the radio -  WXYZ Detroit, The Mutual Broadcasting Company – then you might, like me, will find the latest movie one of the most entertaining movies ever! My wife, who fell asleep during the movie Skyfall – not only stayed awake but, like me, laughed through the entire movie, a thoroughly enjoyable time!

The movie has spectacular scenery and the special effects are awesome!  The humor with Johnny Depp as Tonto is the best ever.

So Kemosahbee, don’t miss this movie! Yes it is totally crazy and you have to use your imagination (old time “radio listeners” are naturals at this!) I had tears of laughter streaming down my face through the entire movie.  Don’t be swayed by the critics – remember they are paid to criticize (I guess if they didn’t criticize, they would be called “praisers!”)

I give this movie 20 stars!

 

Many of my friends give me 'static' about always going to, or talking about, the Old Mission Peninsula in Grand Traverse Bay, Michigan - Well, here is just one of the reasons (yes, more will follow) - the Sun Rise over East Bay!