He was a shepherd tending his flock He saw a wondrous sight It was a bush that was on fire But there was something strange about it The bush was on fire, but it was not burning up
He thought to himself “I must go over to look at this remarkable sight, and see why the bush is not burned.” (Ex 3:3) As he got closer to the bush, he heard a voice. “Moses! Moses!... Come no nearer! Remove the sandals from your feet for the place where you stand is holy ground.” (Ex 3: 4-5)
The voice was that of God The God of Moses’ father, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Moses was afraid The Lord proceeded to tell Moses that he had heard the cry of the Isrealites And that He was going to send Moses to free them from their oppressors the Egyptians
Moses wasn’t too excited about the idea He told God that If he went to the Isrealites That they would ask him what God’s name was
“God replied, ‘I am who am.’ Then he added, “This is what you shall tell the Isrealites: I AM sent me to you.” (Ex 3:14)
“I am the good shepherd” (Jn 10:11) We hear Jesus refer to himself as “I am” a number of times in the gospels I am the way I am the truth I am the light I am the bread of life
When Judas and the soldiers approach Jesus in the garden, and he asked them who they were looking for Jesus replied, “I AM” When Jesus said this, the soldiers “fell to the ground” (Jn 18: 4-9)
When Jesus is referring to himself as “I am” He is referring back to the name of God in the encounter with Moses and the burning bush Jesus is referring to himself as being God Jesus knew who he was Jesus knew himself
How well do we know ourselves? Socrates tells us that, “The unexamined life is not worth living.”
Have you examined your life? Do you know who you are? Many of us are trying to find our way in the world Teens and young adults are just beginning to look for their purpose in life
Mom, dads, grandmothers and grandfathers, friends and family We can all help our young people to find their purpose To find their way To help them discover their vocation
Now is the time to discuss it with them Now is the time to think about having a family Or maybe living the life of a religious by being a nun or a monk Now is the time to think about being a priest
Mom, dads, grandmothers and grandfathers, friends and family You are the one who needs to start the conversation about vocations And now is the time
Recently, I had the opportunity to substitute teach for a high school English teacher One of the assignments that she left the class was to write some poems One poem was called an “I am poem” One student asked me what to do I said that they should self reflect and be introspective
A few of the students shared their poems with me They were good And I felt honored that they would share something so personal with me And I felt inspired to write an “I am” poem Here it is:
I am because of I AM I am a son, grandson, and brother I am part of a family I am loved I am because of I AM
I am because of I AM I am a husband I am a father…a dad I am a farmer I work, and I rest I am because of I AM
I am because of I AM I am a student I am a teacher I learn, and I teach I am because of I AM
I am because of I AM I am fallen I am a sinner I am saved I am because of I AM
I am because of I AM I am a Christian I am a Sunday school teacher and youth leader I help with marriage retreats I tell stories to kids with cancer I am because of I AM
I am because of I AM I listen I pray I try to follow The Way I am because of I AM
I am because of I AM I am a child of God I am a work in progress I am because of Jesus I am because of I AM
3rd Sunday of Easter April 14, 2024 Acts 3:13-15; 17-19; Ps 4; 1 Jn 2:1-5a; Lk 24: 35-48
“The two disciples recounted what had taken place on the way, and how Jesus was made known to them in the breaking of the bread” (Lk 24)
“Cuando los dos discípulos regresaron de Emaús y llegaron al sitio donde estaban reunidos los apóstoles, les contaron lo que les había pasado por el camino y cómo habían reconocido a Jesús al partir el pan.” (Lk 24)
The breaking of the bread The two travelers on the road did not recognize Jesus until they sat down and ate with him
Eating… Why do we eat? Is it just to gain nourishment? When we eat, we do more than just nourish our bodies
Eating is important for our bodies But eating is also important for our hearts, minds and souls Our lives revolve around the meal
When we eat with our families We are forming a family community Meals can be informal and intimate like just between a couple Or they can be a grand celebration like a birthday or anniversary
When we want to honor someone We invite them to share a meal with us When we see an old friend We want to have a meal with them
Jesus ate many meals with his friends I’m sure they told stories, and laughed at their meals Jesus ate with all kinds of people He ate with the rich And he also ate with the outcast and the sinners
His disciples were there when he fed the five thousand They were there when he ate with the Pharisees And they were there when he ate with the tax collectors Sharing a meal with Jesus must have been a grand experience
“One of the holiest things we can do is share a meal together” (Priest on the Camino) The couple on road to Emaus did not recognize Jesus until they shared a meal Until he broke the bread The story of the Road to Emaus has many Eucharistic references
And we see Jesus appear to his friends after his Resurrection They can’t believe it Jesus asks them to touch him See the wounds in his hands and feet
Jesus asks for bread and fish And eats in front of them They see that even though he died Now, Jesus is fully alive!
Today, we will share a meal together The holiest of all meals The Supper of the Lord Jesus will again be with us in the breaking of the bread For He is the Bread of Life
2nd Sunday of Easter or Sunday of Divine Mercy April 7, 2024
Acts 4:32-35; Ps 118; 1 Jn 5:1-6; Jn 20:19-31
They were avoiding Judea The leaders of the Jews did not like his teaching And they were trying to arrest and kill him
So Jesus and his disciples went back across the Jordan river To the country and people they were familiar with While they were there Jesus got word that a friend of his was very sick And He wanted to go back to Judea to and help his friend Lazarus
His disciples didn’t like the idea They were reminding Jesus that the last time they were in Judea The Jews were trying to stone him
But Jesus was insisting that they go And out of nowhere a voice of one of the disciples supports Jesus and says… “Let us also go to die with him.” (John 11:16) His name was Thomas He must of been brave and courageous, for he was willing to go and die with Jesus (John 11)
But in today’s gospel, we see a different Thomas He is a skeptic He doubts the Resurrection He hears the other disciples tell stories of how Jesus appeared to them And he doesn’t believe He says he won’t believe, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side.” (John 20: 25)
I’m thankful for Thomas the Apostle He reacts to the story of the Resurrection like many of us would “I won’t believe it until I see it.”
And a week later Jesus appears to Thomas and the other disciples Notice Jesus is patient and kind with this friend who at one time was willing to die for him But is now a skeptic Jesus does not rebuke or chastise Instead He offers His Peace, “Peace be with you”
He encourages this Doubting Thomas to… “Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side…” This same side were He was pierced by the sword This same side which when pierced flowed water and blood As the second reading from 1 John tells us “This the one who came through water and blood, Jesus Christ” (1 John 5)
“‘The origin and growth of the Church are symbolized by the blood and water which flowed from the side of the crucified Jesus.’ ‘For it was from the side of Christ as he slept the sleep of death upon the cross that there came forth the ‘wondrous sacrament of the whole Church.’’ As Eve was formed from the sleeping of Adam’s side, so the Church was born from the pierced heart of Christ hanging dead on the cross.” (United States Catechism for Adults, 114)
And what does Thomas do? He believes And he makes the most beautiful statement He looks at Jesus and says, “My Lord and my God!” (Jn 20:26)
He believes! He understands! Jesus is risen from the dead Jesus is Lord and God!
I like the TV shows where they flip houses You know, the ones I am talking about There is a group of people who go into a messed-up house They tear down lots of things And then they repair it. Building the house back up to its new former glory
Seems to me like that is just what the ladies in the gospel were doing today What they were doing was not unusual In fact, back in those days It was perfectly normal to go to a tomb after death And basically do a little remodeling Cleaning up, if you will There would have been good-smelling flowers that would be used to decorate the tomb. And also oils that would be used to anoint the body
But, there is a surprise waiting for the women. And it is safe to say that a great transformation has taken place. Not only for the women present But also for the apostles, disciples, and the rest of humanity
Brian is a young man about 8 years old He had been attending mass all of his life, as well as catechesis classes He had also done a lot of individual studies regarding the faith He learned the Hail Mary and the Our Father It would be safe to assume that Brian knew everything that there was to know about the Catholic faith. He would often wonder if… By 8, he knew all there was to know.
But this year was different for Brian Because he was participating in first communion after Easter He was excited and had been preparing for that day for a long time now 2 months to be exact
He watched the priest give out communion every Sunday He knew exactly how to hold his hands Amen…. He had practiced saying it loudly in the mirror. He was ready
But, at the Easter Vigil, he heard something that shocked and surprised him. He saw the transformation of the women… yes But, where was Jesus? Why isn’t he there? I mean, isn’t this the feast of all feasts And we don’t even have Jesus present in the gospel
It was at that moment that Brian began to wonder And, honestly, he wondered throughout all the baptisms and confirmations He was even still wondering at the beginning of the prayers at the altar Where was Jesus? Why is he not in the gospel on the Easter Vigil?
He saw the bread and wine. And he heard, truly heard, the words the priest said
“That they may become the Body and Blood of your Son our Lord Jesus Christ.”
It was at this moment that Brian realized he was just like the women in the story. Transformed… and the mystery of the resurrection became truly real to him in the body and blood on that altar. The Eucharist
Jesus is risen The tomb is empty And in a minute we will have proof of that resurrection In the Eucharist The true Body and Blood of Christ
Yes, transformation for us has occurred as well No longer must we fear death No longer must our lives hang in the balance, waiting for a savior Through his death and resurrection Jesus has transformed our livelihoods Into lives of hope and beauty With the promise of a heavenly kingdom awaiting us
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me I once was lost, but now I’m found Was blind, but now I see
‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear And grace, my fears relieved How precious did that grace appear The hour I first believed
Wow! The Passion of our Lord is amazing And today, I want to share something with you from my favorite homily It is an ancient homily And even to this day, we still do not know the author’s name
Exerts from an ancient Homily
Something strange is happening; there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silent because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh, and he has raised up all who have slept ever since the world began. God has died in the flesh. And hell trembles with fear.
For your sake, God became your son; The Lord took the form of a slave He whose home is above the heavens descended to the earth and beneath the earth. For our sake, for the sake of man, God became like a man without help, free among the dead. For the sake of us, who left a garden, God was crucified in a garden.
See on his face the spittle Jesus received in order to restore us to life. See there the marks of the blows he received in order to refashion us. On his back, see the marks of the scourging he endured to remove the burden of sin that weighs upon our back. See Jesus’s hands nailed firmly to a tree.
Rise, let us leave this place. The throne formed by cherubim awaits us. The bridal chamber is adorned, the banquet is ready, the eternal dwelling places are prepared, and the treasure houses of all good things lie open. The kingdom of heaven has been prepared for you from all eternity.
Master and teacher that is how the disciples know Jesus In fact, many times in the gospel, they call him those names, often But, also, Jesus says he is something more And it is interesting to me that the “more” is an action What is this action Jesus is demonstrating for us? I know a monk who is in wonder when he thinks about our parishes and our people I have talked with him often about my hometown And, when he thinks about our communities He is amazed at how they work together And the support that is shown here for each other In his mind, and in mine, Gruver and Spearman Is a unique place Where people participate and live in community A community that focuses on others A community that lives a life of service Our Church is also filled with many people who serve the Church We have ushers who help people find a seat There are people who help set up the mass There are servers Deacons who live a life of service There is also a priest Who gives his life in service of the Church Jesus is showing us through actions That there is more than being just a master and a teacher There is also serving Serving is the action that Jesus shows us “Knowing that the hour had come to leave this world and return to the Father, in the course of a meal he washed their feet and gave them the commandment of love.” (CCC 1337) This life of love and service brings us into discipleship with Christ However, my brothers and sisters The mass also shows us something more It provides for us the foundation of our Catholic faith The Eucharist “In order to leave them a pledge of this love, in order never to depart from his own and to make them sharers in his Passover, Jesus instituted the Eucharist as the memorial of his death and Resurrection” (CCC 1337) Jesus is still serving us today in the Eucharist At every mass The table is set The consecration is said And Jesus gives himself to us Through His Body and His Blood In the Holy Eucharist This great feast That we participate in every Sunday But, especially today on Holy Thursday Leads us into the very heart of Christ A heart of service Through this Eucharist We experience service in the highest Through The Cross The Death And The Resurrection Of Christ our savior
Easter Sunday March 31, 2024 Act 10:34a, 37-43; Ps 118; Col 3:1-4; Jn 20:1-9
The door burst open and in rushed Mary She was out of breath and could hardly speak Mary took a deep breath and then hurriedly told them her news
“They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they put him.” Peter and John look at one another and they don’t say a word They stopped what they were doing and ran out the door
They ran all the way to the tomb Their minds raced “What’s going on?” “What is Mary talking about?”
John was faster than Peter When he got to the tomb, he saw the stone rolled away And he bent down to look inside He could see the burial cloth of Jesus.
When Peter arrived, he went right into the tomb He also saw the burial cloth, and the cloth that covered his head And he noticed that is was rolled up and in a separate place
John followed Peter into the tomb He looked around “He saw and he believed” (John 20)
Today, we hear the story of the resurrection of Jesus from the first witnesses We hear about Peter and “the other disciple” (who many think is John the writer of the gospel) Peter and John had been with Jesus from the beginning of his ministry They had left their fishing boats and their livelihood to follow him
They had listened to him preach the good news They had eaten with him They watched as he fed the five thousand And they helped gather the leftovers
They saw him walk on water, heal the sick, and raise the dead They were with him when he criticized the religious and ate with the sinners And they watched as he was nailed on a cross to die Peter had denied him The other disciple was at the foot of the cross with the Mary the Mother of Jesus And today, they see for themselves His tomb is empty
And now after His death Jesus appears to them in His Resurrection They are living witnesses to the life, the death, the burial and resurrection of Jesus And they are called to preach his name And testify that “he is the one appointed by God as judge of the living and the dead” (Acts 10)
“All God’s people, through their Baptism, participate in Christ’s office of priest, prophet, and king.” “A real prophet, by teaching and good example, leads others to faith.” (U.S. Catechism for Adults, 117) Like Peter, John, and Mary Magdalene, we are all called to be witnesses to our faith
You being present in the service today is a witness to your faith
Being a witness to our faith is not always easy The world and even our culture sometimes push back and make it hard “There is much in our culture that is good and favorable to faith and morality. The freedom to practice our faith is a treasured principle of our society.’ But “in many ways, attitudes and actions in the United States have fostered a ‘culture of disbelief.’ The culture in which we live is, in many ways, individualistic, secular, and materialistic.” (U.S. Catechism for Adults, 16)
To be a Catholic Christian in the Texas Panhandle is to be counter-cultural To go against the world around us Many of our friends don’t understand our faith
They have never heard of Lent They politely tell us that we have some dirt on our forehead on Ash Wednesday Many of our friends don’t know about the days of fasting Or abstaining from meat on Fridays The school cafeteria might even serve meat on a Friday during Lent
To be a Catholic Christian during Holy Week isn’t easy The schools still have activities on Good Friday like track meets and baseball games Most Protestant churches do not observe Holy Week like we just did We just finished a church service that lasted three days!
Many of our friends would think we are crazy to go to church three days in a row If people think we are a little crazy, we are in good company Many thought the first witnesses, the apostles were crazy too But many were convinced they were not crazy Why? Because of the way they lived Because of the way they loved
Sharing the Gospel does not mean that we just talk about it Sharing the Gospel is living and loving side by side with all around us Sharing the Gospel is helping others, praying with them, eating with them
For many of our friends and neighbors, today is the first and last day of Easter But for Catholic Christians the Celebration of Easter has just begun Our Easter Season will last for fifty days until the Feast of Pentecost
We have spent forty days of Lent in prayer, fasting, and almsgiving Can you spend fifty days feasting and celebrating the resurrection during Easter?
To feast for fifty days… That would be going against the culture…
To feast for fifty days… That would be Catholic
To feast for fifty days… That would be a witness to Christ
The old farmer told his harvest crew to move the trucks close to the highway as the sun was setting He could see a cloud bank building in the west There was a possibility it would rain
Sure enough it did rain that night But the harvest could continue where it hadn’t rained The trucks were on a good hard road and could be moved to the next location
“Red sky in the morning, sailors warning Red sky in the night, sailors delight.”
We recognize the signs of nature around us “God speaks to man through his visible creation… Light and darkness, wind and fire, water and earth, the tree and its fruit speak of God and symbolize both his greatness and his nearness.” (CCC 1147)
Have you noticed the signs and symbols today? Today, we begin the holiest week of the year. Today, we begin a journey with Jesus during His Passion
We walked with him as he entered Jerusalem in triumph We hear the people cheer him… praise him “Hosanna in the highest!”
We then hear the dramatic reading of his crucifixion We hear the same crowd shout, “Crucify him!” We are in that crowd
This week we will remember The last supper, the washing of feet, praying in the garden, the crucifixion, the death and burial of Jesus We will recall the history of creation, the history of our salvation There will be signs all around us. Light and darkness, fire and water God helps us to understand not only through his Word, But also through these signs and symbols
This week we have the opportunity to immerse ourselves in a liturgy that is full of signs and symbols I encourage your to be present physically, mentally, and spiritually as we remember, the last supper, the crucifixion, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ
He is our salvation
Listen again to the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Philipians
“Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil 2:6-11)
Her dad turned the pickup down the dirt road Dad looked straight ahead His arm was resting on the window with his elbow hanging out
They stopped at the edge of the wheat field When she got out of the pickup, she could feel the breeze and the sun The wheat was waving at her in the wind It looked like a sea of golden waves
Dad walked slowly into the wheat The wheat was more than knee high on her dad But it came up to the chest of the little girl
Dad stopped and pulled a head of wheat off the stem He rubbed the head in his hands threshing the wheat When he opened his hand, he blew the husk away All that was left was tiny brown seeds.
He took one of the seeds and put it in his mouth She could hear it crunching in his mouth He gave her a kernel And said, “Try it.”
She tasted the wheat It was hard and crunchy Dad said, “It’s ready to harvest.”
Earlier in the fall, she remembered planting wheat seeds just like the one she held in her hand And those seeds had turned into a golden sea of wheat
That seed had to die To produce that field of wheat
Farmers understand Jesus When he says a grain of wheat must die to produce much fruit
We too must die We will die a physical death But there is also another way of dying A dying to self Dying to our old way of life And living for Jesus
When we die to ourselves, Jesus becomes our priority Jesus becomes first in our life We give the Lord our first We give Him the beginning of our day with prayer
When we die to ourselves, we see Jesus in others We love our neighbor, and we serve him
When we die to ourselves, we begin a new life A new life in Christ A life of love A life of grace A life of mercy
When we die to ourselves We lift Christ up for all to see
These forty days The neverending feeling of a desert Now, I don’t know about you, but it is sometimes hard for me to get behind the image of a desert during Lent I come from a small town in the Panhandle of Texas It is dry there Hot often There isn’t ever much rain The wind blows constantly In fact, windburn is a true thing that I experience regularly The land is flat, and you can see 360 degrees for miles and miles To me, the desert can often feel like home Don’t get me wrong, though, I don’t want to downplay this image of Lent However, I just like to see Lent with a different image And that image, my brothers and sisters, is the Ark
Noah and the flood We have all heard the story before Noah built an Ark at the instruction of the Lord He filled it with animals Gathered his family together and shut the doors Noah and his family lived in that Ark for a while until the waters rescinded Then they began sending out birds The family landed and emerged on dry ground with a promise from God that he would never flood the world again That is where our first reading today picks up Just a ride in a boat with animals That is how I sometimes picture Lent
However, when we think more in-depth about this boat ride You and I both know that it isn’t just some leisurely ride There are two things that are often overlooked about that boat ride of Noah Two things that would make me regret ever going The noise And the smell Can you image Now, the boats back then aren’t the Carnival cruises we see today No, those boats are made of wood, and their design… basic And just imagine the pens and the stalls that had to be made for so many animals Animals, mind you that are not just your simple house cat But animals that make noises day and night Seems like it would be enough to drive a person… well, maybe a little crazy And with all those animals comes food And with that food and those wet conditions come a particular type of smell that I imagine is not pleasant Maybe that boat ride wasn’t so great all those years ago In fact, there is only one way to describe that Ark of a boat after such a long journey Dirty
Sometimes, our lives can be like that as well On the outside, things just look like we are taking a joyful boat ride through Lent But on the inside, our very soul is dirty and needs to be cleaned
My brothers and sisters… if you haven’t figured it out by now The dirty inside of that boat represents the sin in our own lives And like a boat filled with animals Sin can often make the interior of our lives noisy or unclean This is the real reason why using Noah as the image of Lent is so interesting Because Noah and his family emerged from that boat and were themselves clean by sacrificing to God
The sacrament of Reconciliation is how we imitate Noah and his family Through reconciliation, we are made clean again, and the sins of our lives are washed free We are no longer hampered down by the dirty noisiness of a boat But rather come out a new… washed in the blood of our savior, Jesus Christ
When was the last time we went to confession? I imagine that the answers vary And that is a good thing because going to confession is an interior decision A recognition that one’s interior needs to be washed clean My brothers and sisters, Lent is a great opportunity to visit the Sacrament of Reconciliation and participate in confession. Not only because it is a time of renewal in the Church But also because the readings during Mass provide us with examples of people who went through this cleansing Excepted God’s forgiveness And were better for it
It takes a lot of bravery for a family like Noah’s to Build a boat Collect animals Get in the boat And maintain it through all those storms Coming out on the other end basking in the grace of God
Participating in the sacrament of Reconciliation takes the same type of bravery Plan out the time Reflect on your sins Get in the confessional Tell God you are sorry for your sins But, emerge on the other end basking in the grace of God
Noah and us… not so different In fact united United in hope for the grace and mercy of God
Mary Mail 