Me? Are you kidding?

Posted on December 21, 2014 by Friar Musings

The angel Gabriel was sent from God…And coming to [Mary], he said, … now at this point you’re expecting me to say “Hail, full of grace!” For good reasons, we Catholics hang on to that translation which is rooted in the Latin Vulgate “Ave gratia plena” – literally “hail, full of grace” – but that is not what the original Greek (Chaire kecharitōmenē) says. A literal rendering from the Greek would be “Rejoice, highly favored one.” So let’s start over: The angel Gabriel was sent from God…And coming to [Mary], he said “Rejoice, highly favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Continue reading →

Desire and Joy

Posted on December 14, 2014 by Friar Musings

Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thess 5:16) It is the 3^rd Sunday of Advent, Guadette Sunday. Rejoice always, I say again, rejoice, for the Lord is near. With all apologies to Pharrell Williams and his Grammy award song, “Happy,” we not told to be happy, but are to “rejoice,” to be joyful. There’s a difference. Continue reading →

The Path of Hope

Posted on December 7, 2014 by Friar Musings

I have been wondering about cities, towns and villages – or more specifically, why they are where they are. Cities along the sea-coast, more particularly, on inlets, rivers, and bays leading to the ocean make sense to me. They are places with harbors, protection from direct ocean storms, access to fresh water, and other factors. Water certainly plays a major role in locating cities – not only for drinking purposes, but for transportation and strategic control of an area. The Shawnee nation understood that. The three rivers area of western Pennsylvania was the center of the Shawnee nation. Today, we call that center Pittsburgh. Continue reading →

Once we have seen…

Posted on November 30, 2014 by Friar Musings

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope that many of you have just enjoyed the gathering and comfort of family and Thanksgiving. And just as we are in that soft afterglow of family and friends, with Christmas scenery and music serenading our senses, we hope this good spirit can be sustained for the next 30 days. If only we could jump straight to Christmas. I mean, why not? All the stores have made the jump, the malls are decorated, and everything about our secular world tells us to race ahead to the finish line, get it all done, get ready for Christmas, buy your gifts – the finish line is there for the crossing. Continue reading →

The Same Question

Posted on November 23, 2014 by Friar Musings

Here on the last Sunday of the Liturgical Year, as we celebrate Christ the King, the first image we are presented is that of the shepherd and his sheep. The Prophet Ezekiel proclaims: “Thus says the Lord GOD: I myself will look after and tend my sheep…I will rescue them from every place where they were scattered.” (Ez 34:11-12) It’s good that God is looking out for us, for the lost sheep, for the strays, and the ones who have lost their way. Isn’t good that God is looking for them! What about us? We’re here in church. Aren’t we one of the faithful, a spiritual seekers, the ones paying attention to our life in God? Yes? Well that is how we see ourselves, yet Ezekiel insists that it is God who seeks out all of us. OK…that’s good, but can’t we prize the spiritual maturity we possess? Can’t we get a little credit here? Continue reading →

What’s yours is yours…

Posted on November 16, 2014 by Friar Musings

“To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one – each according to his abilities.”

Let me paraphrase the opening of our gospel to make a point or two. “A man going on a journey call in his servants and handed over to them his possessions. To one he gave five pounds of $1,000 bills. To another, two pounds of $1,000 bills, and to a third, one pound of $1,000 bills – to each according to their gifts, talents and abilities – he did not give one them more than he or she could handle.” Continue reading →

The House We’re Building

Posted on November 9, 2014 by Friar Musings

The Lateran Basilica in Rome is not the oldest church in Rome – that honor seems to belong Santi Quattro Coronati (314); but then that depends on what sources you believe. Old St. Peter’s, the original church on the spot where the current St. Peter’s stands dates to 324, the same year as St. Lorenzo and St. John Lateran. In fact, the Lateran Basilica is the Cathedral of the Diocese of Rome – the place from where the Bishop of Rome, Pope Francis, leads his diocese even as he leads the church universal. Continue reading →

Bless their heart

Posted on November 2, 2014 by Friar Musings

Part of the blessing being a parish priest is that you are invited into some of the most intimate moments of a family’s life. There is perhaps none more intimate and intense than the moments when illness passes through uncertain diagnosis, to one which blurs into the final days of a life. It is part of a life of ministry to be into a family whose loved one’s days are numbered. It is a privilege to journey with the family are they prepare for the loss that surely and steadily this way comes. In those times, Hope can seem more tentative, more distant; perhaps hovering on the edge of disappointment. Continue reading →

Standing Idle

Posted on September 21, 2014 by Friar Musings

Certainly, this parable is about the generosity of God and a good preacher would do well to develop that thought. Me? I’ll do something else. I was captured by the scene when the landowner goes into the marketplace and finds people there and asks them: “Why do you stand here idle all day?” Too often we assume they got up late or were not industrious enough, or did not want it bad enough. Certainly our recent and current financial times can help us re-imagine the scene. We all know friends, family members and associated who are “idle all day,” unemployed or underemployed, unable to use their gifts and talents because there is no opportunity available, or apparent – and they are just waiting, hoping that a generous “landowner” will come and give them an opportunity. Just the chance to use their experience, their God-given talents. Continue reading →

A Posture in Life

Posted on September 14, 2014 by Friar Musings

Who among us wants to be known as a condescending person? I suspect that the likely answer is “no one among us.” In modern American English usage it has an almost exclusively negative connotation. Merriam-Webster definition of condescending is “showing or characterized by a patronizing or superior attitude toward others; showing that you believe you are more intelligent or better than other people.” In other words, a condescending person probably thinks that we should be considered honored that they would stoop from their position of power, privilege, and prestige to speak to us. I mean, really, is there a world in which being condescending is something we would want to imitate? Continue reading →

friarmusings

the musings of a Franciscan friar…

Category Archives: Sunday Morning