Dramatization of Our Lady of Guadalupe - St James Catholic Church - Tupelo, Mississippi

Dramatization of Our Lady of Guadalupe - done at 5:00 am in the morning on the 4th Sunday of Advent - December 22, 2013.  We have such a wonderful Hispanic community here at St James in Tupelo.  We love their enthusiasm and joy.  They did a great job celebrating Our Lady this year.  

Celebrating the Mother of God - and Our Mother

Scenes from St Matthew Catholic Church in Ripley, Mississippi during the celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe.  It was a very joyful celebration for our community - a great celebration of Mary Our Mother.

12/30/2013 – Sixth day in the Octave of Christmas – Luke 2:36-40

      What does our faith call us to do?  Some approach their faith in looking at the obligations or demands it puts on us. Others look at the bare minimum they must do in order to live out their faith.  As a priest, it edifies me to see those in our parish who are called to specific devotions and practices to live out their faith, such as those who pray weekly in the presence of the blessed sacrament, or those of you who faithfully come to the daily mass to be fed by the Eucharist and God's holy word. 

         Today, we hear of a widow named Anna who never left the Temple area, who worshipped God through fasting and prayer day and night.  Obviously, this was Anna's calling, since I doubt she would have been able to persevere in such deep devotion without her faith or without a call from God.  While many were not able to recognize Jesus as the Son of God even in the midst of his public ministry, Anna and Simeon were able to instantly recognize Jesus as the child who would bring redemption to the people of Ancient Israel, the child who was foretold by the prophets.  We're told that Anna was a prophetess herself: her simple act of love and prophecy still speaks to us so strongly today.

         Where is God calling us in our lives to live out our faith?  Where are we called to go beyond the bare minimum?  Just as Anna saw Jesus' true identity in the little baby who was brought to the Temple by his family in accordance to Jewish law for the Jewish purification ritual, where do we see Jesus in our world today?  Where is the baby Jesus present among us?

12/29/2013 – La Sagrada Familia – Sirácide 3,2-6, 12-14, Colosenses 3,12-21, Mateo 2,13-15, 19-23

      En nuestro mundo, muchas personas piensan que la celebración  de Navidad termina con la misa en el 25 de diciembre.  Pero, en realidad, la Navidad es un tiempo litúrgico en nuestra Iglesia muy rico con muchas celebraciones – y empieza con las misas de la Noche Buena y del día de Navidad.  En este tiempo de Navidad celebramos la Sagrada Familia, María – la Madre de Nuestro Señor, la Epifanía – que es la celebración de los tres reyes magos, y el bautismo de Nuestro Señor.  Hoy, en nuestra celebración de la Sagrada Familia – María, José, y Jesús – escuchamos el Evangelio de San Mateo, y pensamos en el cuarto domingo del Adviento, cuando escuchamos sobre la visita del Ángel de Dios a San José sobre la nacimiento de su hijo que viene. Hoy, escuchamos sobre la visita del Ángel a San José en un sueno otra vez, con instrucciones que él necesita hacer para proteger a su familia.  Cuando reflexionamos en la fiesta de la Sagrada Familia, probablemente pensamos en la harmonía de nuestras familias.  En las otras lecturas de hoy, escuchamos sobre las características que debemos tener en nuestra familia.  Sirácide dice que debemos tener el respeto y la reverencia con nuestras familias, que necesitamos obedecer a nuestros padres.  También, San Pablo nos explica que como miembros de una familia de fe, debemos mostrar la compasión, la humildad, y la paciencia a nuestro prójimo.

      Hay una palabra que podemos mirar en esta celebración hoy día – es la palabra “santo.”  Celebramos la Sagrada Familia hoy – pero que significa para ser “santo?”  Usamos la palabra “santo” en nuestras vidas – cantamos el “Santo Santo” en la misa cada domingo en la misa – pero tal vez no estamos seguro en el significado de la palabra “santo” para nosotros como seguidores de Cristo.  Muchos creyentes podemos creer que “santo” significa “ser aparte del mundo.”  O pensamos que para ser santos, necesitamos orar de rodilla todo el día.  Para ser “santo” no significa que caminamos todo el día con un aura, que  no podemos tener diversión en nuestra vida.  Para vivir una vida santa, no necesitamos estar estoicos, pero para ser santos, esta característica de santidad puede refinar y definir nuestra identidad como seres humanos.  Para ser santos, no necesitamos negar nuestras emociones – ser santos eleva nuestras emociones.  En muchos sentidos, una persona santa es la persona mas gozosa del mundo.

      En nuestro viaje de fe como católicos, tenemos la llamada de asistir a la misa cada domingo, de orar y formarnos en nuestra espiritualidad, y de hacer obras de caridad y misericordia como frutos de nuestra fe.  Pero, nada de eso es la definición de santidad.   La santidad es la manera que podemos responder a la llamada de Dios, la manera que el Espíritu Santo nos guía en nuestro camino.  Dios guiaba a María, José, y Jesús en su llamada para ellos, en su viaje a Egipto y a otros lugares como parte del plan que Dios tiene para ellos, en su regreso a Nazaret donde Jesús creció con sus padres en la fe judía.  En el espíritu de María, José, y Jesús, en el espíritu que ellos vivían en santidad, tenemos esta llamada de santidad también, para vivir cada momento en nuestra vida en esta llamada, para vivir en la meta de ser discípulo de Cristo en el frente de nuestra mente.  En santidad, rendimos a la voluntad de Dios en nuestro deseo de recibir esta santidad como don de Dios.  En nuestra llamada de santidad, uno de las cosas mas importante es para conocer cuando necesitamos decir “si” y cuando necesitamos decir “no” en nuestra vida. Como María, José, y Jesús, en la manera que ellos vivieron en santidad, seguimos nuestro camino en todas sus dificultades, en todas sus luchas, y en todas sus tensiones, pero como reflexión de la fidelidad que tenemos en la voluntad de Dios.

1/1/2014 – Mary, Mother of God – Luke 2:16-21, Numbers 6:22-27

       There are few feasts or solemnities in our Church that have the same readings each year, but we start the new year off with the same readings each year for the solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God.  It is wonderful for us as Catholics to ask Mary for her blessing and her prayers as we start off the new year of 2014.

     In the reading from the book of Numbers, we hear God give Aaron & his sons, the priests of Ancient Israel, a special blessing that they are to pass on to his people: that the Lord will bless them and keep them, to let his face shine down upon them and be gracious to them, to look upon them kindly and to give them peace.  I pray that we may feel this sense of blessing as we start off the new year, feeling that we are indeed the people of God, called to proclaim his kingdom to the world.

     From the time of Jesus' public ministry to the days of the early Church after his death & resurrection, there was much debate & discussion about Jesus' true identity, about his divinity and humanity.  The Council of Ephesus settled this matter in 431 as it declared that Jesus was a person with two natures, both human & divine.  The Council approached this discussion by declaring that the Blessed Virgin Mary was the “Theotokos,” the “God-bearer”. 

     That the Blessed Virgin Mary was central in affirming a truth about Jesus shouldn't surprise us, since she always points to her Son and leads us closer to him.  Because of Mary's divine maternity, she is intimately a part of her Son's union with all of humanity that comes about through his incarnation, through the Word of God made flesh.   By God's grace, Mary is not only the Mother of God, but our mother.   Like any true mother, she carries in her heart many things about us as her children, just as she pondered in her heart the things the shepherds told her about Jesus.  Through Mary's example of faithful discipleship and through her intercessory prayers, we learn from her how to become true believers in God's holy word, to have hope and love in God.  Mary's devotion as the Mother of God is not done through meaningless motions and piety, but in her love, obedience, faith, hope, and charity.

     In his Encyclical Redemptoris Mater, Pope John Paul II concluded by quoting the Alma Redemptoris Mater antiphon that is traditionally prayed after night prayer from the first Sunday in Advent until the feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple.  In reflecting on this prayer, John Paul II states that the Church sees Mary maternally present and sharing in the many complicated problems which today beset the lives of individuals, families, and nations.   The Church sees Mary helping the faithful in the constant struggle between good and evil, to ensure that they "do not fall," or, if they do fall, that they are able to rise again.  May we pray together to Mary, the Mother of God, asking for her prayers, for her help and guidance:

Loving mother of the Redeemer,
You are the gate leading to heaven,

You are the star of the sea,
assist your people who have fallen yet who strive to rise again.
To the wonderment of nature you bore your Creator,
Yet remained a virgin after as before.
You who received Gabriel's joyful greeting,
have pity on us poor sinners. AMEN.

12/31/2013 – María, Madre de Dios – Números 6, 22-27; Lucas 2, 16-21

      Hoy, en el ultimo día de 2013, celebramos un año nuevo.  El primer de enero también es la jornada mundial de oración por la paz. Cada año en el primer día de enero, el Papa anuncia un mensaje de paz a toda la gente del mundo.  Cuando yo estaba en Roma con un grupo de jóvenes de nuestro diócesis en 2011, yo recuerdo esta experiencia de escuchar al mensaje de paz del Papa Benedicto.  También, en nuestra Iglesia Católica, en nuestra misa de hoy, celebramos la solemnidad de Santa María, Madre de Dios. 

       En la primera lectura del Libro de los Números del Antiguo Testimento, escuchamos a una bendición que Dios da al pueblo de Israel.   Dice esta bendición: “El Señor te bendiga y te proteja, ilumine su rostro sobre ti y te conceda su favor; el Señor se fije en ti y te conceda la paz.” Dios expresa su fidelidad y su bondad a su pueblo con esta bendición.   La encarnación de Jesús en nuestro mundo, nacido de la Virgen María, es una bendición para todos los hombres.  Cuando María escuchaba el mensaje divino que los pastores han recibido, María conservaba este mensaje en su corazón y meditaba sobre su importancia.  Con su encarnación, con el papel de María en la historia de salvación, Dios está con nosotros. 

      En esta solemnidad de hoy, podemos reconocer que nuestra Iglesia Católica quiere comenzar el nuevo año las intercesiones de la Virgen María y  la protección de nuestra madre.  En el año 431, en el Concilio de Éfeso, en la ciudad de Éfeso donde la Virgen María ha pasado sus últimos años después de la muerte de Jesús, había la declaración que en Jesús había una única persona – una persona divina y humana al mismo tiempo -  por lo que bien podía afirmarse que: “La Virgen María sí es Madre de Dios porque su Hijo, Cristo, es Dios.”

     El título “Madre de Dios” es el titulo principal y más importante de la Virgen María, y de este título depende todos los demás títulos que ella tiene.  María es “Madre de Dios.” Y en nuestra vida de fe, en nuestra piedad popular en la Iglesia Católica, María es “Madre Nuestra.”  Por esta razón, con gozo y con fe, podemos comenzar este nuevo año con la protección y el cuidado de nuestra Madre.  Y en esta Jornada por la Paz le pedimos, sobre todo, que María, nuestra Madre y la Madre de Dios, nos enseña los caminos y los pasos para construir un mundo donde reine la paz, una paz fruto de la justicia y de nuestra fe. 

12/29/2013 – The Feast of the Holy Family – Sirach 3:2-6, 12-14, Colossians 3:12-21, Matthew 2:13-15, 19-23

      Today is the first Sunday of our Christmas season.  Even though the Christmas season is only 2 ½ weeks long in our Church’s liturgical year, we have a group of special celebrations within this time.  Today we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family, and then we celebrate the Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God on January 1, and then the Epiphany, and the Baptism of the Lord on the next two Sundays.  As we hear the Gospel today from Matthew as we celebrate Mary, Joseph, and Jesus as the Holy Family, we think back to the 4^th Sunday of Advent, when we heard about the Angel of the Lord coming to Joseph in a dream to tell him about the upcoming birth of Jesus. Today, we hear about the Angel appearing to Joseph again in a series of dreams after the birth of Jesus, instructing him as to what he needs to do in order to protect and take care of his family.  When we think about the feast of the Holy Family that we are celebrating today, we probably think about the harmony and nurturing of the families in which we grew up, and if we are adults, the families that we are developing now ourselves. In the other readings we hear today, we hear of attributes that we should aspire to in our families.  Sirach tells us that we should have respect and reverence with our families, that we should honor and obey our parents, while St Paul advises us that as members of a family of faith, we should show compassion and kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience toward one another.

      The one word that struck me when I was thinking about today’s celebration was the word “holy.”  We celebrate the holy family today, but what does it mean to be holy?  We throw the word “holy” around so much – we even sign the “Holy Holy” every time we celebrate mass together – but perhaps we are not quite sure what the word “holy” really means for us as followers of Christ.  Many believers may mistakenly believe that to be holy, we need to run away from the world.  Or that to be holy we need to be in church praying on your knees all day long.  Being holy doesn’t mean walking around with a halo, not being allowed to have any fun, or despising the things of this world.  Being holy is not about withdrawing from the world or about being stoic all the time, but rather being holy bring us life and refines who we are as human beings.  Being holy does not put a damper on our emotions, but rather elevates them.  Holy people are probably the most joyful people you can meet.

      On our journey of faith as Catholics, we are called to attend mass, to spend time in prayer and in spiritual formation, to do good works of charity and mercy as a fruit of our faith.  However, none of those things are what really define holiness.  Holiness is all about how we respond to God’s call for us in our lives, how we are guided by the Holy Spirit in our lives.  Mary, Joseph, and Jesus were led by God in their lives, as they traveled to Egypt and to other places as part of God’s plan for them, as they then returned to Nazareth where Jesus was raised by his parents in the Jewish faith.  In the spirit of the way Mary, Joseph, and Jesus lived their lives in holiness, we are called to be holy as well, to live each moment of our lives in what God is calling it to be, in living with the goal of being a disciple of Christ in the forefront of our minds.  In holiness, we surrender to God’s will, we desire holiness as a gift from God, In our call to holiness, one of the most important things is knowing when to say yes in life and knowing when to say no.  In holiness, we engage in life.  Like we saw in Mary, Joseph, and Jesus, in the way they lived lives of holiness, we engage in life in all of its difficulties, its struggles, and its tensions, but we do so in a way that reflects the fidelity we have to the will of God. 

12/24/2013 – Christmas Eve – Luke 2: 1 – 14

         We welcome everyone to our Christmas Eve celebration here at the St James the Greater Catholic Church in Tupelo, Mississippi.  Christmas is a time of year when many visitors and family members come to worship with us, to celebrate Christ’s birth into our world.  As we welcome all of you to our Eucharistic celebration this evening, we hope you will feel the warmth and hospitality of our community of faith.  We are very thankful for all the children and youth who have participated in the singing of carols this year – it has made our celebration very special this year.

         Each Christmas Eve, we hear the story of Jesus’ birth from the Gospel of Luke, so there are no surprises in the story we hear tonight.  We are all familiar with Mary and Joseph traveling to the city of Bethlehem due to a census being taken by the Roman empire, in how they were forced to spend the night in a poor, humble stable because there was no room for them in the inn.  Jesus, the Son of God made incarnate in the world by being born by the Virgin Mary, came into his earthly existence not in some grand palace or in a mighty castle, but in the place where animals live. Shepherds and animals were present at his birth, not kings, not noblemen, not the rich and powerful of society.  Jesus was not born in a comfortable bed with fine linens, but instead in a manger.  A manger, in fact, is food trough where the animals ate, so it foreshadows the way that Jesus’ body will become the spiritual food that nourishes us in the Eucharist, as we partake of his body and blood that are transformed from the bread and the wine that we give back to God as gifts on the altar. 

         If you look at a lot of the spiritual writings on the internet or in Christian magazines this time of the year, there is a lot being written about how we have the need to rediscover the true meaning of Christmas in our lives, because Christmas has been so overtaken by our secular world.  If you look at the message that our modern society puts forth, Christmas has been transformed into a secular holiday where shopping and presents and parties seem to take the focus away from its religious and spiritual significance.  Christ was born in that humble stable in Bethlehem more than 2000 years ago, but how is he born in our hearts and in our lives today?  That is really the big question we need to ask tonight.  Is Christ being born in Black Friday sales and trips to Walmart and the mall?  Or, is Christ being born in the way we reach out to others in this holy season and in the way the values of our faith permeate our lives? It is our job – in fact the duty of every Christian – to proclaim the message of Christ to the world today.  If being a disciple does not have an affect on our lives, if we do not reflect the Gospel in the way we live, then I don’t think that Christ’s birth has much significance at all for us.

         We are called to celebrate Christ the light in our lives tonight.  But it is not a light that came to our world only once upon a time so long ago.  It is a light that shines tonight here with us in our church during the Christmas season, a light that is to shine for all of eternity.  But, in order to feel the true meaning of Christmas, we need to feel that light shining in our lives, to feel the responsibility to bring that light to others.

         I remember a Christmas Eve mass that took place when I served as a missionary in South America. I was in the small village of San Francisco de Onzole deep in the interior of the rain forest – a village with no electricity and no running water at all.  As we processed to the church in the middle of the night in order to begin our celebration of Christmas eve, I couldn’t believe how dark everything was. We sat in the middle of the church with just a few candles giving off light – with the beating of drums and joyful singing filling the night air.  In one sense, this felt so far away from the United States from where I had lived and had grown up – in the big cities of Los Angeles and Chicago. But in another sense, I felt a unity in my Catholic identity, where I can be attending mass as a missionary half a world away, celebrating the way that Christ the light entered the world as a little baby in the manger in Bethlehem so many centuries ago.  It is amazing that the joy of Christ’s birth brings joy and good news to so many different corners of our world.  I saw the light of Baby Jesus being born in the hearts and in the joyful voices of those celebrating Christmas in that remote village in the jungle.  It is up to all of us to not only recognize the Christmas that is here around us, but to bearers of that spirit to the world – not only on Christmas day – but every day.