A foreshadowing

This past week I have had two opportunities to get a small taste of my forthcoming assignment as the Associate Director of the Office for Vocations.

On Wednesday I returned to St. Anthony High School in Effingham for a career fair, where I set up shop with a vocations booth, complete with posters, brochures, a display board, and sour balls (they didn't last long).

Throughout the career fair many of the boys - freshmen through seniors - came over and said to me, "So, tell me why I should be a priest," in the hopes of stumping me with their friends grinning around them.

Turning the tables on them, I replied, "The real question is this: Why shouldn't you be a priest?"

I was met with blank stares and white faces, while their friends continued grinning. Until I posed the same question to them. I very much enjoyed watching their faces go white, too.

None had a good answer, and they knew it. Perhaps several of them were trying to ignore the Lord's call.

I reminded them - I'd told them this many times before - that until they knew why they should not be a priest that they should keep praying and thinking about the priesthood. Only one tried to refuse.

Yesterday I snuck away from my parish Koinonia retreat to attend a part of the Thinking of Priesthood day in Springfield. Twelve (12) men came for the day, eight (8) of whom were high school juniors or seniors; until three or four wanted to attend the day, but were unable to due to work or family obligations.

I was very impressed with all of the men who for the day of discussion and reflection. The future of the priesthood is bright, indeed!

The Lord is certainly calling men to share in his priesthood, now it is up to us to help them respond with courage and generosity.

Does excommunication send one to hell?

Jimmy Akin, the great Catholic apologist who seems to know a good deal about everything, has posted a video in which he answers the above question:



It's always a little odd to see the faces behind the voices.

I want this book!

And so I have ordered a copy.

Over at Ignatius Insight, Carl Olson provides us with the introduction to a new book from Ignatius Press that I cannot wait to get my hands on, The Spirit of Father Damien: The Leper Priest - A Story for our Times by Jan de Volder.

The introduction follows, with my emphases and comments:

Father Damien has been canonized, 120 years after his death. Already during his lifetime, the Belgian priest enjoyed world renown for his holiness. The extraordinary witness of his voluntary banishment with the lepers of Molokai spoke to the nineteenth-century imagination. When news of his death came on April 15, 1889, the Times of London demanded that the world not have to wait forty years for his beatification. Yet it took more than a century for the formal process of his beatification and canonization to be completed. The Catholic Church prefers to take her time, and Father Damien's temperament did not correspond perfectly to the traditional image of a "pious and holy" life. He indeed was no "porcelain saint" , [1] as Belgium's Cardinal Godfried Danneels has put it. It is probably due to the tireless advocacy of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, who has meanwhile been beatified herself, that Damien's canonization happened at all.

The canonization Mass, celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI on October I I, 2009, in Saint Peter's Basilica, was attended by thousands of pilgrims from around the world, including King Albert II and Queen Paola of Belgium; Herman Van Rompuy, then the Belgian prime minister and soon to be elected the first president of the Council of the European Union; and several cabinet ministers. U.S. president Barack Obama sent a presidential delegation that was headed by the U.S. ambassador to the Holy See and included the bishop of Honolulu and a U.S. senator from Hawaii. Also in attendance were leprosy patients from Molokai. [And me!] The procession to place Damien's relic on the altar included the Hawaiian woman whose recovery from cancer a decade earlier was attributed by the Vatican to Damien's miraculous intercession. [2] [And me!]

In his homily, the pope said that Father Damien's missionary activity, which gave him so much joy, reached its peak in charity. "Let us remember before this noble figure that it is charity which makes unity, brings it forth and makes it desirable. Following in St Paul's footsteps, St Damien prompts us to choose the good warfare, not the kind that brings division but the kind that gathers people together. He invites us to open our eyes to the forms of leprosy that disfigure the humanity of our brethren and still today call for the charity of presence as servants, beyond that of our generosity." [3] Following the Eucharistic celebration, the pope went out into Saint Peter's Square to greet some forty thousand additional faithful who could not fit inside the basilica. He urged them to pray and help those involved in the battle against leprosy and "other forms of leprosy that are due to lack of love because of ignorance and cowardice". [4]

A lot is known about that noble figure and his missionary activity. Damien left behind 212 letters, which already in the first year after his death were collected together. Every time period has shown interest in him, right up until today. Countless biographies in numerous languages have been published, while theater performances and films about his life have been made. Is there anything new to say about him?

Perhaps there is. In this book we go in search of the spirit behind Father Damien's extraordinary life. We seek to understand why today, at the start of the twenty-first century, he remains so appealing. In 1936, when his body was returned to Louvain, Belgium, via San Francisco and Antwerp, his appeal was understandable. During the five days that Damien's body reposed in San Francisco's cathedral, a steady flow of visitors paid homage, while in Belgium unprecedented crowds witnessed the transfer of his body to his native land. The immense popular interest fit seamlessly into the Catholic mass culture of the time in Europe and suited the nationalist feeling that wanted Belgium's own hero to rest on the country's own soil. Afterward the transfer drew a lot of criticism. Did Damien not belong to the Hawaiians? Or to all the earth's lepers?

But with time, Damien's star has not faded. His witness seems to have become even more powerful. How did he survive the secularization of the West? Is that perhaps not the greatest miracle of his life?

Why did Belgians, who in the past few decades have in large numbers stopped practicing their traditional Christian faith, nonetheless choose Damien as their "Greatest Belgian" in 2005? Is that not remarkable for a man who, other than a big heart and great faith, did not have a lot going for him, whether intellectually or in his appearance?

What is there in his life that speaks so deeply to our contemporaries? Not just to people in Belgium and the United States, but across all national borders? Not just to Christians, but also to people of other faiths and of no faith? Damien's popularity transcends many boundaries. What is it in his life that strikes a universal chord?

Perhaps his life speaks to us because it confronts postmodern men with their flaws and weaknesses. Damien was a man who was all of a piece. How starkly does that contrast with the often fragmented existence of our contemporaries? Damien was a man who made decisive choices and remained faithful to them until the end. What a contrast with our indecisiveness. Contemporary men want to try a bit of everything, to have as many experiences and get as many kicks as possible. What does Damien's self-giving to the outcasts of humanity teach us about what makes a human life worth living? Damien was a doer, someone who was not afraid to get his hands dirty: he built churches, houses, and schools and cared for the lepers with his own hands. But most of all, he built up the community of God amid the poorest. Perhaps that also speaks to the heart of our contemporary Church, which all too often, especially in the West, has become a Church obsessed by administration.

Damien was through and through a child of his age. He shared the missionary dreams of the Church of his time as well as the civilizing work carried out by the expanding Western world. After decolonization, that strong missionary tradition was criticized. For was the missionary not the spiritual accomplice of the colonizer, trampling often—with the best intentions—valuable local cultures? Was the missionary's approach not paternalistic and thus condescending?

In some cases there might indeed be something to such accusations. Yet simplistic critiques have a way of dying down again. Our contemporaries appear to be a little more open to the incredible adventure that induced ordinary young men and women to sacrifice their lives for people on the other side of the world. One sees that many missionaries, in their loving approach, did not regard thelr flocks as savages but as fellow human beings whom they often deeply loved. More than just the gaining of souls, their mission also focused on the full well-being of the local population. Damien was a pioneer in this regard, or rather a real missionary with his heart in the right place. Moreover, he evolved: if at the start of his mission he had aimed mostly at winning as many souls as possible for the true Catholic faith, gradually his compassion and love for all men grew, including for those who ultimately did not embrace his faith.

Damien's dedication to the outcasts of Molokai, his efforts to introduce new medical techniques, showed that he deeply valued the material side of life and bodily health. Yet he was more than a development worker. He shared his very life with those pariahs on the margins of the world, treating them with his own hands, not hesitating to touch them with love, until finally he became a leper himself and died from the disease.

With his life, and the celebrity that came his way, he put leprosy on the map. His contribution has been important in generating the energy needed to conquer the disease and eradicate it—a battle that still has not been entirely won. Above all, it showed something universal, something essential in Christianity: namely, that in love for the poorest, lived as self-giving until death, lies a road to salvation. Neither Islam nor Buddhism produces this kind of saint.

The Christian martyr contrasts sharply with the martyrs exhibited in various extremist religious movements today. The latter look with contempt on their own lives in order to destroy the lives of others and bring them down into the grave with them. The Christian martyr gives his own life in order to save the lives of others. It is a testimony that depends not only on events, on context—it is a universal testimony that withstands the ravages of time and transcends space.

For that reason, it is perhaps a good thing that Rome waited more than a century for Father Damien's beatification and canonization. For his extraordinary witness has become even more powerful as the historical context of his life has become further removed from us. Father Damien was a man of his time. With his canonization he becomes a universal example, a saint for our time.

Notes:

[1] Cardinal Godfried Danneels, "Pater Damien op weg naar heiligverklaring—Kardinal Danneels dankt de paus [Father Damien to be canonized—Cardinal Danneels thanks the pope]", Brussels, July 3, 2008, Press office of the Belgian Bishops Conference.

[2] In addition to Father Damien, four other blesseds were canonized at the Eucharistic Celebration: Rafael Arn‡iz Bar—n (1911-9138), a Spanish member of the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance; Zygmunt Szszesny Felinski (1822-1895), a Polish archbishop and founder of the Congregation of the Franciscan Sisters of the Family of Mary; Francesco Coll y Guitart (1912-1875), Spanish priest of the Order of the Friar Preachers and the founder of the Congregation of the Dominican Sisters of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary; and Marie de la Croix (Jeanne) Jugan (1792-1879), French virgin and founder of the Congregation of the Little Sisters of the Poor.

[3] Pope Benedict XVI, homily at the canonization Mass, St. Peter's Basilica, October 11, 2009 (Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2009).

[4] "On the Canonization of 5 Saints", Zenit.org, October 11, 2009, http://www.zenit.org/article-27157?l=english.

Quick, go buy a copy.

I hope I don't encounter this in my future ministry

I have never been a fan of so-called "liturgical dance," both because I find it tacky and distracting, and because it isn't allowed. Today, though, there is a news story from Khartoum offering one more reason not to like liturgical dance: assassin dancers (with my emphases).

An assassination attempt on Cardinal Zubeir Wako, the Catholic Archbishop of Khartoum took place on Sunday. The attack happened as the Cardinal was leading the Eucharistic celebration at the Comboni Playground in Khartoum.

A suspect, who was identified as Hamdan Mohamed Abdurrahman, infiltrated the congregation and joined the liturgical dancers in front of the altar. He made his way to the front of the group and held up a dagger within four steps of Cardinal Wako, before he was spotted by the Master of Ceremonies, Mr Barnaba Matuech Anei who was next to the cardinal, who caught and disarmed him. He was then handed over to the security guards who had missed him earlier.

Maybe I should take a self-defense class before becoming the Master of Episcopal Ceremonies in January.

Capello tip to Fr. Ray Blake.

Epic fail

Last week the Holy Father Benedict XVI established a new office of the Roman Curia, the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization with his motu proprio Ubicumque et Semper (Always and Everywhere).

This new Pontifical Council has been given the charge "to study and foster the use of modern forms of communications, as instruments for the new evangelization." And yet, the office of the Archbishop-President does not have an Internet connection. Typical.

This is neither helpful to the new council, nor encouraging for it's future work.

More good news...

...in already great story you won't likely hear from the mainstream media, but thankfully the Catholic News Agency provides it to us (with my emphases):

Cypress, Texas, Oct 14, 2010 / 05:56 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On Wednesday, the world watched in anticipation as 33 Chilean miners finally began to emerge through a narrow shaft, drilled half a mile below the earth. The extraordinary man who helped save them, Drillers Supply International co-owner Greg Hall, is also training to become a deacon in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston next February.

CNA spoke to his wife Angelica Hall (with whom he runs Drillers Supply) on Wednesday, about her husband's service to the Church, and the role their Catholic faith had played in helping them plan the rescue.

While the trapped miners were surviving on food rations lowered into a shaft too small to pull them to safety, Greg Hall was working --and praying-- to determine how a larger opening could be drilled. “We're prayerful people,” Angelica Hall remarked. “Prayer is a part of our daily life … and part of our community at Christ the Redeemer Catholic Church.”

Mrs. Hall explained that her husband's drilling supply company, which opened its Chilean branch in 1993, normally provided the supplies for gold, copper and silver mines. But in almost 25 years of business, she said, “this is the first time that we were involved in a mine rescue.”

“There was a crossover from Greg's expertise and drilling in Chile, (and) what our parts and our drill pipe could do,” she explained. Hall's engineering expertise “was able to cross over in making a shaft to get to the miners.”

The unprecedented rescue took months of planning, since even the smallest error or miscalculation could have caused rocks to slide or cave in-- trapping the miners forever. Mrs. Hall said her husband was grateful to play his part, having volunteered his expertise after initially hearing that a rescue was unlikely.

“He's kind of a take-action guy,” she told CNA. “We try to help if we have the skills and the talents to help.” Both faith and service to others, she said, “have been a part of our entire marriage.”

The same risk-taking spirit will lead Mr. Hall to become Deacon Hall, on February 12 next year. His wife recalled how her husband was first “an usher-greeter, then he was a lector,” before being asked “if he'd ever considered the diaconate.” She said that although her husband hadn't thought about it, “we just went forward in faith a step at a time.”

“Our formation has been six years and we're in the last semester. Hopefully, Greg will be ordained February 12th.”

With everything going on, she said, her family's life had been “quite an amazing ride.”
Noting the Biblical significance of 33 miners being pulled alive from their potential tomb after a 33 day drilling operation, Mrs. Hall told CNA that “the significance of that number” --the same number of years Jesus lived before his death and resurrection-- “has not been lost on us.”
She expressed amazement and gratitude that the opportunity to save dozens of lives had emerged in the ordinary course of “our everyday walk,” a fact that she said is proof that “God uses ordinary people in their ordinary lives.”

A weekend of blessings

This past weekend I had the pleasure of serving as the Spiritual Director on Great River Teens Encounter Christ #268 back in Quincy.

Prior to the weekend, I snuck back to a soccer game in Effingham Tuesday evening and mentioned to one of the players that I would be on the retreat and was looking forward to it. I was a bit taken aback when he reprimanded me for not inviting him to the retreat.

After a few phone calls arrangements were made for him to attend the retreat. By the end of the first day he wanted to come on another TEC weekend; he has already sent in his papers.

The second blessing came in the form of a note given me during the retreat from one of the members on the service end of the weekend. He mentioned that I was the spiritual director on his first TEC weekend and that, because of my example, he wanted to become Catholic; he had grown up in a nondenominational home and hopped around from church to church and loved what he found in the Catholic faith. Notes like this bring great joy to a priest and leave him quite humbled.

Disappointment is...

...opening a box from your favorite liturgical tailor expecting to find a set of chasubles for your church but finding instead three pairs of black pants.

To be fair, I did order the pants.

I felt like a boy at Christmas opening what he thought was the best toy in decades but found instead a rock.

Theology on Tap Comes to Springfield

From the Office for Youth and Young Adult Ministry:

“The Catholic Politician, the Catholic Voter” on Tuesday, October 26, 6:30 PM at the Brickhouse Grill in Springfield.

Neither the Republican Party nor the Democratic Party fully align with the teaching of the Catholic Church. With current issues like abortion, affordable health care, financial support for the poor, and traditional marriage, how do we as voters decide whom to elect? And how does our faith influence our politicians and their decisions on policy-making? Is it tough to live a Christian life with all the compromises needed to get things done? This is sure to be an interesting topic leading up to the mid-term elections.

Guest speakers include:

•Fr. Chris House, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception
•Karen Hasara, former state senator and Springfield mayor
•Ossie Langfelder, former Springfield Mayor
•Frank Lesko, Springfield Ward 4 Alderman

Illinois' race for governor

Recently the Catholic Conference of Illinois submitted a survey to the candiates running for election as Governor of the State of Illinois.

The survey consisted of questions related areas of concern to Catholics, namely: the Ultrasound Opportunity Act (HB 5743/SB 1338), tuition vouchers (SB 2494), the abolition of the death penalty (HB 5687/SB3569), same-sex civil unions (SB 1716) and immigration.

Of the five candidates, only one did not respond to the survey, Governor Pat Quinn (D); Gov. Quinn was contacted several times by the Conference but never responded. It would seem the Governor is not concerned with the interests of Catholics.

Senator Bill Brady (R), Scott Lee Cohen (I), Lex Green (L) and Rich Whitney (G) responded to the survey.

The Conference has compiled a summary of their responses in a one-page document; the Conference has asked this summary to be inserted in parish bulletins over the next several weeks. It will go in my bulletins next week.

The Conference has also posted the full responses of Sen. Bill Brady, Scott Lee Cohen, Lex Green and Rich Whitney on its web site.

On cars

Since I announced my new appointment as driver to the Bishop, three of my former students have asked me what sort of car I will drive when driving the Bishop to and fro (though not in those words).

Yesterday afternoon I drove His Excellency to Carrolton, Illinois for the 150th anniversary of St. John the Evangelist Parish. Even though I spend two hours driving the car, I have no idea what it was, neither make nor model. I should maybe pay more attention to such things.

On a vaguely related note, I received a letter today from a car dealership in Springfield that is looking to a number of Toyota Matrices (the plural of Matrix), which I own. Mine is a 2005 with 106,000 miles. The letter say the Black Book Appraisal Guide (I'm not sure what that is) says my car is valued at $8,110 and they're willing to pay more for it.

For the past several months I've wondered if this was a good time to trade in my car for something different. Can someone who knows more about such things than me offer advice?

Bitter sweet - a new home for Claire

When I adopted Claire, my sweet puppy, I knew the day might come when I might not be able to keep her, but I did not think that day would come so soon. When I assume my duties as driver to the Bishop, Master of Ceremonies, and Associate Director of Vocations, I will not be able to keep Claire because there is no real space for her in the Cathedral rectory.

When I took up my duties as Pastor of Holy Cross Parish, while remaining Pastor of Sacred Heart and St. Patrick Parishes, I wondered if I should keep Claire; there was a couple of days when I was with Claire for only an hour each day, and not all at once. I asked a trusted priest-friend what he thought; he told me that had had a couple of dogs and that, though he would not be getting another dog, would not have changed anything at all. Tonight I know what he means.

I have been looking for a new home for Claire and hoping she could move in sooner than later. There are several reasons for this. First, I wanted her to move while I am still excited about the new assignments, thus giving me a bit of time to get used to life without her. Second, I wanted her to move while the weather is still decently warm and before the busy-ness of the Christmas season arrives. Third, I wanted her to move soon because I will be away a lot in the next month and a half, helping with several retreats and taking a vacation in my beloved Hawai'i. I was also hoping that someone I knew would adopt Claire so that I could visit her from time to time.

Thursday I filled out the "surrender papers" returning ownership of Claire to the Effingham Animal Rescue Sanctuary from which I adopted her. It wasn't easy filling out that form, but I knew it would be better for Claire.

I am certain today that Saint Francis of Assisi intervened in finding Claire a new home.

Two of my college friends are married, have four children, live in Springfield and are members of the Cathedral parish. She has apparently loved Claire for some time now, ever since she saw her pictures on Facebook. He has known this for a while and thought it would be good to surprise her and the kids by adopting Claire. They have a large house and a big, fenced in yard. He told her the plan and she couldn't keep it from the kids. I will deliver Claire into their care Friday afternoon before heading to Quincy for a Teens Encounter Christ retreat.

Claire will be very happy with them and will enjoy playing with the kids very much. And since they live just a few blocks away from the Cathedral, I will get to see Claire - and them - often.

Thank you, St. Francis!

Where's my new hat?

One of my cousins recently asked if my assignment as driver to the Bishop comes with a new hat. She suggested this one:

Homily - 3 October 2010

The Twenty-seventh Sunday of the Year (C)

Today, as we observe this Respect Life Sunday, Christ the Lord teaches through his parable, “We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do” (Luke 17:10). With these words, he teaches how we are to live each day so as to conclude each day well.

The faithful servant is the one who carries out the will of his master, the one who knows what he is obliged to do and do so not with grumbling and complaints, but with devotion and love.

Those servants who are found faithful are found so because they have chosen to place the will of their master above their own. So must it be with us; we must choose daily to be faithful servants of Jesus Christ by following his will in all things.

We know that of all of the choices we make in life that not every decision is of equal importance or of equal consequence. Whether I have cereal or fruit for breakfast is not as important as whether or not I am faithful to my spouse. Clearly, marital fidelity comes first, for the good of the spouses; for the good of the children; for the good of the Church; indeed, even for the good of the world.

We also know that “there are some things we must never do, as individuals or as a society, because they are always incompatible with love of God and neighbor” (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship: A Call to Political Responsibility from the Catholic Bishops of the United States, 22). Such actions are intrinsically evil and must “always be rejected and opposed and must never be supported or condoned” (Ibid., 22).

One example – sadly becoming ever more frequent – is adultery. It is never permissible to be unfaithful to the marriage covenant and society can never condone adultery because it – in and of itself – is evil, wrong and immoral, always and everywhere; it violates the common good. First, it denigrates the dignity of the individual person by treating another person as nothing more than an object for pleasure; adultery denigrates the well-being of society by harming the stability and security of the family, the foundation of society.

Our obligations as servants of Jesus Christ follow us even into the voting booths. As it is in daily living, so it is in those booths: some issues carry greater weight than others and some actions can never be morally performed. We call this the hierarchy of values.

The first among these is the protection of human life, which includes abortion, euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research, human cloning and many others. The Church has always taught that "the direct and intentional destruction of innocent human life from the moment of conception until natural death is always wrong and is not just one issue among many. It must always be opposed” (Ibid., 28).

Every Catholic, therefore, has a moral obligation to do what he or she can to protect every human life because “a legal system that violates the basic right to life on the grounds of choice is fundamentally flawed” (Ibid., 22). Such a political system is flawed because “the right to life implies and is linked to other human rights – to the basic goods that every human person needs to live and thrive” (Ibid., 28).

Consequently, it is not possible – nor has it ever been - for a Catholic to support abortion, euthanasia or other things that are contrary to life, contrary to the divine will, and contrary to the common good. Nor is it permissible for a Catholic to vote in favor of a politician because of his or her positions on these “issues.” To support such policies places one outside the Church, outside of the communion of the teaching of Jesus Christ; by supporting such policies, one has stepped off the path laid before us by Jesus Christ.

Any Catholic – politician or not – who refuses to accept a central tenet of the Christian faith must not present him or herself for Holy Communion. To do so would be one great lie, for when we say, “Amen,” to “the Body of Christ,” we say that we not only believe in the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist – Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity - we also say that we believe, accept and hold all of the teachings of the Church or that we at least give the assent of faith to them.
In insisting upon this the Church is not using the Eucharist as a political tool; rather, she seeks to stop one of her children from committing a sacrilege by receiving the Body and Blood of the Lord unworthily thereby bringing death upon themselves (cf. I Corinthians 11:27). Withholding Holy Communion is not a punishment but a medicinal discipline to lead the one who has sinned in such a grave manner back to the fold of Christ. It is a protection both for the individual sinner by keeping him from committing further sin, but also for the whole Church by guarding against scandal.

Some will undoubtedly say, “Father, you’re crossing the line of separation of Church and State.” Such is not the case for what we are discussing is not a matter of Church and State but of faith and politics.

Faith requires something of us. It requires that we love both God and neighbor and that every decision we make, every word we speak and every action we perform, be in keeping with the love of God and of neighbor, even in the voting booth. Faith can never be laid aside, for we are servants of the Lord at all times and in every place.

At the most recent World Youth Day held in 2008 in Sydney, Australia, the Holy Father told us, “Life is not governed by chance; it is not random. Your very existence has been willed by God, blessed and given a purpose” (Pope Benedict XVI, Address at the Welcome Ceremony, 17 July 2008).

We know this to be true, for if we consider our own individual existence we know that none of us chose to be born. Exploring the depths of our hearts we know ourselves to be creatures and that there is therefore a Creator, the Creator who knows us, who loves us and who wants us. We know that “each of us is the result of a thought of God. Each of us is willed, each of us is loved, each of us is necessary” (Ibid., 24 April 2005).

It is precisely because we are creatures that we cannot claim a right to end the life of any man, woman or child. We are not the Creator.

In speaking these words some will praise me and others condemn me. I speak these for neither praise nor condemnation, but because they are the truth, the truth of the Gospel. And because these words are true I must speak them, for at the end of my life, I, too, want to be able to say to the Divine Master, “I am an unprofitable servant; I have done what I was obliged to do” (cf. Luke 17:10). Amen.

A brief annoucement

This past Wednesday evening I received a telephone call from His Excellency, the Most Reverend Thomas John Paprocki, Bishop of Springfield in Illinois.

He called to ask me to be the Master of Episcopal Ceremonies, his driver, and the Associate Director of the Office for Vocations, with residence at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Springfield, Illinois, effective January 11, 2010.

Shortly before he called me, he asked Father Christopher A. House to serve as the Pastor of Holy Cross Parish, Auburn; of Sacred Heart Parish, Virden; and of St. Patrick Parish, Girard, effective January 11, 2010, while retaining his various duties with the curia.

Father House and I are both pleased to accept these assignments and are excited at these new works in the vineyard of the Lord.

Paprocki responds to Planned Parenthood

In today's issue of the State Journal-Register the Most Reverend Thomas John Paprocki reponds to an invitation and criticism from Planned Parenthood given through the SJ-R's article on a march and protest outside of the Planned Parenthood building.

The text of his editorial - titled "A counteroffer to Planned Parenthood" - follows, with my emphases:

In response to my challenge to Planned Parenthood at our peaceful prayer march to their clinic last Friday, Pam Sutherland, vice president for public policy for Planned Parenthood, is quoted as saying, “Any patient who is considering abortion gets an ultrasound, and we ask if they would like to see it” (The State Journal-Register, Sept. 25).

If so, I welcome this change in Planned Parenthood’s policy, since this has not always been their practice.

In light of this change, they should also have no problem supporting the Ultrasound Opportunity Act (HB 5743), introduced by 18 co-sponsors in the Illinois House. The Ultrasound Opportunity Act would require abortion facilities to offer a woman seeking an abortion the opportunity to view her baby in an ultrasound and would set standards for the quality of the ultrasound image. The facility would also be required to document the woman’s response to the offer. I await Planned Parenthood’s endorsement and support for this bill.

Sutherland also invited me to work with them “to help reduce the need for abortion by making sure women have access to comprehensive birth control.”

I decline the invitation since I don’t buy into the myth that contraception will reduce abortion. In fact, the contraceptive mentality does just the opposite.

Instead, I invite Planned Parenthood to join the majority of Americans who oppose abortion on demand.

Most Rev. Thomas John Paprocki
Bishop of Springfield in Illinois

Around the blogosphere

• Dominican friar Graham Hunt used a photograph from the Mass of Installation of the Most Reverend Thomas John Paprocki in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in his post explaining the recessional of the Mass
• Greg Erlandson asks, "Has CNN no shame?"
• A Catholic Mom in Hawaii suggests how we can ask for a stamp of Father Damien.

What the Pope Knew

Greg Erlandson offers his thoughts about CNN's "What the Pope Knew." In part, he says in his post, "CNN's missed opportunity":

Most compelling about the special were the conversations with the victims. To hear them describe their shame, to see their anger all these years later at what priests did to them, is to be reminded yet again that terrible crimes were done and many lives were damaged, even ruined. That fact no one can deny.

It is unfortunate that, even in the television wasteland of weekend evening cable, CNN did not see fit to make a real contribution to a better understanding of the crisis. It would have helped, for example, if Tuchman had shed light on the Church’s own understanding of canon law regarding ordination, the priesthood and sexual abuse violations.

CNN could also have talked at greater length with bishops like Archbishop Weakland and Bishop * Cummins of Oakland to find out why they found it so hard to supervise abuser priests with the authority they always possessed. And Tuchman might have documented the many changes the Church has made to safeguard children and root out dangerous priests, while putting it all within a larger context: How society has grown in its understanding of the crime of sexual abuse, and how other organizations, like the Church, have been improving their safeguards as well, often looking to the Church for advice on how to do this.

If CNN had been less focused on bolstering a lawyer’s self-serving efforts to build a case and had sought to update the public’s understanding of a scandal, it might have actually performed a service, instead of tarnishing its own fading reputation for solid reporting.

The rest of his thoughts can be read here.

Homily - 26 September 2010

The Twenty-sixth Sunday of the Year (C)

Dear brothers and sisters,

Said Abraham to the rich man now suffering torment, “My child, remember that you received what was good during your lifetime while Lazarus received what was bad; but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented” (Luke 16:25). Are we then to infer from this statement that the afterlife is simply a reversal of the present life? Of course not!

While a reversal is indeed the case here, we need not be too simplistic with this story. We need not assume the rich man found misery in the life to come simply because he was rich in this life; likewise, we should not assume that Lazarus found comfort in the life to come simply because he was poor. Rather, Lazarus found comfort because – in the midst of his poverty - he was close to God; the rich man found misery because – in the midst of his riches – he was apathetic to the needs of the poor and, therefore, far from God.

The Psalmist today sings, “The LORD raises up those who are bowed down; the LORD loves the just” (Psalm 146:9). Lazarus received his comfort because he had been bowed down; the rich man received his torments because he was not just.

It must be remembered that it was the dogs that came to clean Lazarus’ sores; the dogs treated him as an equal and one of their own, while the rich man dined sumptuously and lifted not a finger to care for the poor man dying at his door.

Commenting on this passage, Saint Jerome said to the rich man:

Most wretched of men, you see a member of your own body lying there outside at your gate, and you have no compassion? If the laws of God mean nothing to you, at least take pity on your own situation and be in fear, for perhaps you might become like him. Give what you waste to your own member. I am not telling you to throw away your wealth. What you throw out, the crumbs from your table, offer as alms (Saint Jerome, On Lazarus and Dives in Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, ed. Thomas C. Oden, et al (Downers Grove, Illinois: Inter Varsity Press, 2003), 260-261).

How easy it would have been for the rich man to help Lazarus and it would have cost him nothing, save a small amount of time; yet, he offered him no assistance. Of him, Cyril of Alexandria said, “The rich man was crueler than the dogs, because he felt no sympathy or compassion for him but was completely unmerciful” (Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary on Luke III in ibid., 261).

Here, then, we come to the reason for the rich man’s torment: he showed no mercy to Lazarus. In another place, the Lord Jesus declared, “the measure with which you measure will be measured out to you” (Matthew 7:2). In this life the rich man showed no mercy and so in the life to come he received none.

Last Sunday we considered the authentic common good of society and our obligation to promote and safeguard it, given the circumstances of our lives. We saw that the common good always involves three things: first, respect for the individual person; second, the well-being and development of society; and, third, peace, by which is meant security and stability. It is easy to see that in his lack of compassion toward Lazarus, the rich man violated the common good on all three levels and for this reason he suffered eternal torment.

The Lord Jesus Christ has told us the way to share the comfort Lazarus received, and still more besides: it is the way of the love of God and of neighbor.

At the Last Judgment he will separate humanity into two groups, as a shepherd separates sheep from goats. To those on his right, who provided for the needs of the poor, he will say, “Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:40). But to those on his left, who did not provide for the needs of the poor, he will say, “‘Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.’ And these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life” (Matthew 25:45-46).

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops have reminded us that “in the Catholic Tradition, responsible citizenship is a virtue, and participation in political life is a moral obligation” (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship: A Call to Political Responsibility from the Bishops of the United States (2007), 13). We must use our political voice under the guidance of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, for our salvation may well depend on it. Will we use our voices for good, for the aid of those most vulnerable among us, or will we use our voices for evil, for selfishness and greed?

The rich man cared only for himself and for his riches and found great torment after his death. Let us learn from his example and show compassion toward the weak and poor among us. Let us use our voices for good, that we might help to build a just and civil society and that the Lord may raise us up and seat us at his table in his heavenly kingdom.

If we participate in the political realm united in all things to the faith of Jesus Christ, we will heed well the admonition of the Apostle: “keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ” (I Timothy 6:14). Amen.

From this weekend's bulletin

Dear brothers and sisters,

May the Lord give you peace!

As you know, Bishop Paprocki gathered with the priests of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois this past week for our annual Convocation. It was a time to reflect on ways we can renew our preaching and a time for us to visit and reconnect with each other.

In the midst of the Convocation I was called to Springfield to visit a parishioner in the hospital. I mentioned to a few priests the situation and excused myself from the sessions and readily made the drive to for this pastoral visit.

As I drove the short trip from Decatur to Springfield it occurred to me that I was about the only priest in the Diocese not gathered in Decatur (some of our retired and elderly priests did not attend the Convocation, for reasons of health). It was a strange and discomforting thought; while it is necessary for priests to gather together for prayer, study and fellowship from time to time, my thoughts that morning seemed somewhat ominous of the future that may be ours: we may well be facing a not too distant future where priests are spread thin, both geographically and in terms of the time they will have for pastoral work, which brings me to the purpose of these words.

On Saturday, October 16th, the Office for Vocations is sponsoring a “Thinking of Priesthood Day” to help young men (juniors in high school or older) consider whether or not the Lord is calling them to priestly service. As of this Tuesday evening, 35 invitations have been sent to young men across the Diocese who have either voiced interest in the priesthood themselves or who have been recommend by others; I submitted three of the names and will soon send in another.

At a recent meeting of the Region 12 Planning Committee, one of the members said, “The Church needs to do more about vocations.” I responded quickly and passionately with the same questions I recently posed to you in one of my homilies: When was the last time you fervently begged the Lord for more priests? When was the last time you actively encouraged a young man to think about the priesthood? How many future priests have been contracepted, aborted or actively discouraged over the past forty years? Priests do not simply fall out of heaven; they arise from within families of faith.

The Church is doing what she can to encourage young men to answer the Lord’s call with generosity and courage; we know with certainty that the Lord has not stopped calling men to his service. It is, rather, that those who are being called are not answering his call, often times because of a perceived lack of support from their families and friends. What have you done for vocations lately? The Knights of Columbus are right: Vocations are everybody’s business.

I answered the call of the Lord because of the support of my fellow parishioners who repeatedly encouraged me to think about the priesthood; without their encouragement, I do not think I would have seriously considered the priesthood. Because of their support, I have found the Lord’s will for my life.

Won’t you do the same for another young man? If you know a young man whom the Lord might be calling to his service, encourage him to consider the priesthood. Give me his name and address and I will get him an invitation to the Thinking of Priesthood Day. The Lord wants to give us the priests we need, but we must cooperate with the grace he gives. May the Lord raise up from within our pastoral unit many priests who will dedicate their lives to him with joy and zeal.