8 May 2020 – Friday of fourth week of Easter – Acts 13:26-33, John 14:1-6

     Paul had been a persecutor of the disciples of Christ.  He was present at the stoning of Stephen. In fact, in the reading we heard from Acts last week, we heard that Paul (who was then called Saul) consented to the execution of Stephen.  Paul, before his conversion, searched out the followers of Jesus and had them arrested for practicing their faith.  Then, after a miraculous epiphany in which the voice of Jesus cried out to him, Paul became one of the great missionaries of the early Church.  I think it is safe to say that Christianity would not be what it is today if it was not for Paul and his enthusiasm.

         Paul did not know Jesus directly during his earthly ministry.  He was not present at Christ’s crucifixion or at his resurrection.  Yet, Paul has become a believer, and his voice cries out to us today, summarizing our belief in the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, in the salvation we receive from him. 

         We meet Jesus in different ways and different forms on our earthly journey in our modern world.  Jesus' death and resurrection was 2,000 years ago, but the risen Christ is here with us today.  Christ calls out to us today in the Gospel today: “Do not let your hearts be troubled.”  We may be very troubled at what we see going on in our world today, but he tells us to have faith and hope.  

         Our faith harkens back to Christ’s life and ministry, to his rising from the dead, but our faith also lives in the present.  Pope Francis spoke about the Holy Spirit in a homily he gave during the Easter season, how the Spirit moves us and pushes us forward.  Sometimes this can make us uncomfortable and uneasy, but our faith is not to make us complacent but rather shake us up sometimes, the way the Holy Spirit pushed Paul from being a prosecutor of Christians to a brave missionary of the faith.   We may want to tame the Spirit that is working within us, but we must not forget that the Spirit can move us in unexpected and surprising ways. 

4 May 2020 – Monday of 4th week of Easter – Acts 11:1-18, John 10:11-18, Psalm 42

      Just like in our Gospel yesterday, our Gospel today talks about Jesus as the Good Shepherd.  Jesus as our Good Shepherd is juxtaposed to the message we hear in the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles, which addresses the issue of the Gentiles being excluded from God’s plan of salvation. This was a big issue facing the Early Church, one that perhaps we don’t quite understand today.  It is easy to make judgments against certain groups of people, isn’t it.  We sometimes think that the group we are in is blessed or chosen by the Lord in a special way.  We can view God’s mercy in a similar way, in wanting the rules enforced when they apply to other people and other situations, but wanting mercy when the rules are applied to us and to our situations. The psalmist states today: “Athirst is my soul for the living God.”  Can that apply to everyone, or just a select group of people?  Pope Francis, in his Apostolic Exhortation The Joy of the Gospel, states this: “The Eucharist, although it is the fullness of sacramental life, is not a prize for the perfect but a powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak.”  May we open our hearts to God – to his presence in our lives and to his love and mercy – both for us and for others.

3 May 2020 - Reflection for Good Shepherd Sunday and World Day of Prayer for Vocations - Bulletin Reflection

        Today, we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday, recognizing Jesus as the Good Shepherd who leads us and and guides us in our life of faith.  I remember being in Spain hiking on the Camino, seeing the shepherds guide their flocks of sheep with their dogs, with the sheep obediently following the shepherds.  When I encountered the shepherds and their flocks in Spain, I always thought of Jesus as our Good Shepherd. 
       In addition to this being Good Shepherd Sunday, this weekend we celebrate the World Day of Prayer for Vocations.  Pope Francis always speaks about the importance of encounter in our lives of faith.  Our faith is more than Creeds and Doctrine.  At its foundation, our life of discipleship must be rooted in an encounter with Christ, according to Pope Francis. In our lives of faith, we are called to have a relationship with the person of Jesus. 
        Pope Francis uses the image of encounter in speaking about the World Day of Prayer for Vocations:  “The Lord’s call is not an intrusion of God in our freedom; it is not a ‘cage’ or a burden to be borne.  On the contrary, it is the loving initiative whereby God encounters us and invites us to be part of a great undertaking.  He opens before our eyes the horizon of a greater sea and an abundant catch.”
       Just as Jesus called a group of fishermen to be his first disciples in Ancient Israel, Jesus calls each one of us to step away from the shore, to follow him on the path that he has marked out for us.  Jesus calls us to a vocation that he chooses for us out of joy - for our joy and for the joy of those around us. 
        We all have the different gifts and talents that God has given us.  We all have our particular learning style and personality.  Some of us are called to become ordained clergy in the Church, to live a consecrated religious life, or to be lay leaders in the Church.  Some of us are called to be teachers.  Some are called to be musicians.  Some of us are called to live out the sacrament of matrimony and to raise a family.  Some all called to consecrated celibate life. 
        On this World Day of Prayer for Vocations, Pope Francis invites us to join together in prayer and to ask the Lord to help us discover his plan of love for our lives.  May God grant us the courage to walk on the path that he has chosen for each one of us.

10 May 2020 - fifth Sunday of Easter - Acts 6:1-7

      Today, we celebrate the 5^th Sunday of the Easter season.  During the Easter Season, most of the first readings we hear in both the daily and Sunday masses are from the Acts of the Apostles.  These readings explain how the Early Church developed and grew.   Most Catholics remember that the Second Vatican Council called us to modernize the Church and to read the signs of the times as we interact and dialogue with the modern world in which we live, but we often forget that it also called us back to the teachings and traditions of the Early Church, to the faith that was passed down to us by the apostles and those first believers.

      Our reading from Acts today tells us how this early community of believers grew, how these first Christians responded to the reality around them when they realized that the widows of the community needed their help. They choose 7 of the members to serve in this outreach ministry in their faith community. God always meets us in our reality – that is one of the things I as a priest always tell my parishioners.  We live out our faith in the reality of the world, and sometimes that really is complicated. We know that our reality is very complex right now.  We really don’t know what is going to hit us from day to day, do we? This past week, we commemorated the anniversary of the tornado the hit my parish of St James in Tupelo back in 2014.  I can remember that day so vividly.  There was so much damage to our parish.  For months we were clearing debris and fallen trees from our property.  It seemed like the clean-up and recovery would never end.  I couldn’t even get back into my rectory for more than a week.  I remember how that unanticipated event changed my reality and the reality of my parish so much, and so much we did had to respond to that reality.  

      In a reflection on the Early Church depicted in the Acts of the Apostles, Pope Francis stated that each individual Christian cannot understand himself as a believer in the faith apart from the community of believers, that we are so intrinsically connected to that community.  Just as we cannot understand a Christian detached and isolated from his community, we cannot understand Jesus by himself either, because he did not fall out of the sky like a superhero, according to Pope Francis, who certainly has a way with words and imagery.  Jesus walked the earth as a human being and as the Son of God with the people of Ancient Israel.  Jesus is a intrinsic part of our human history.  Just as we have been hearing about the history of the Early Church in the Acts of the Apostles, I have been thinking about our history here in the state of Mississippi, including our Catholic history here in our Diocese.  Learning about those from Lebanon, Italy, and Louisiana who brought their Catholic faith to Mississippi in the late 19^th and early 20^th century, the priests who came over from Ireland, about the history of the Civil War battlefields, about the influence of the Mississippi River and Blues music, and the great Mississippi authors such as Walker Percy, William Faulkner, and Eudora Welty – all this has been incredibly interesting for me. One of my favorite Ole Miss professors, Dr. Andy Mullins told us a quote from William Faulkner as we were sent out to teach high school in the Mississippi Delta: “To understand the world, you must understand a place like Mississippi.” What a great quote that says so much.  

      As we think of the readings about the Early Church that we hear each Easter season, we are called to realize that the history of our Early Church is a part of us – it has shaped and molded our faith and our modern Church. It helps us understand where we came from and where we are going.  It helps us understand and approach the complicated reality we face in our lives. So as we hear about these stories about the Early Church, as we hear about how those apostles very compassionately and pragmatically responded to the needs around them out of the values of their faith, let us all take heart as we recognize our own history and respond to our own realty and the reality of the world around us.  Let us feel the communion and fellowship that we have together as disciples of Christ.  What we are going through in this pandemic will be a part of our history, both for ourselves and future generations.  And how we respond in our faith will become part of our history as well. 

Prayers of the faithful - 3rd week of Easter - 29 April 2020

Lord Jesus - you call us to a life of discipleship - Lord have mercy. 
Christ Jesus - you call us to seek you in the midst of our reality - Christ have mercy.  
Lord Jesus - you are the resurrection - Lord have mercy. 


Priest: Our joy is in Christ’s rising from the dead.  In our Easter joy, let as present our prayers to God the Father: 
1. That Pope Francis, Bishop Kopacz, and all our church leaders inspire the members of the body of Christ to deeper reverence and prayer. 
2. That pastors may lead and serve their flock entrusted to their care with humility and wisdom. 
3. That governmental leaders reach out to their people in this challenging time in hope and unity. 
4. For all those who are sick and need healing in their lives, especially those suffering from COVID-19.  We give thanks for our medical professionals, first responders, and those on the front lines. 
5. For those prophets who God has sent to us, that we may let their message enter our hearts. 
6. For the repose of the souls of the faithful departed. 
7. For those prayers we hold in our hearts today. 
Priest: Father, you know the many needs of your people.  Hear and answer the prayers that we make through your son Jesus Christ, our Lord forever and ever.  AMEN.  

Sacrament of reconciliation - St Jude Catholic Church - May 2 and May 3 - 2020

Facebook Live schedule - St Jude Catholic Church - Pearl, Mississippi

Prayers of the faithful - 3rd week of Easter - 28 April 2020

Lord Jesus - you call us to be witnesses for our faith - Lord have mercy. 
Christ Jesus - you bring us joy and hope - Christ have mercy. 
Lord Jesus - you are the son of the Father - Lord have mercy. 

Priest: Dear brothers and sisters, filled with paschal joy, let us pray earnestly to God. As God graciously listened to the prayers and supplications of his beloved Son, may he now be pleased to look upon us in our lowliness.

1. For Church and her leaders, may our lay and ordained leaders have the strength to govern wisely the flock entrusted to them by the Good Shepherd. 
2. For the whole world, in the midst of a pandemic, may we find hope in our risen Lord.  And may the risen Lord give our governmental leaders the wisdom and strength they need at this time. 
3. For our brothers and sisters who are suffering right now, for those who need healing in their lives, may they find healing and strength.  We pray for our medical professionals and those working on the front lines to provide us basic services.  
4. That the Christian faithful may bear witness in confidence to the resurrection of Christ.  
5. For the repose of the souls of the faithful departed.  
6. For those prayers we hold in our hearts.  

Priest:  O God, who know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the desires of those who cry to you; and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ, our Lord forever and ever.

prayers of the faithful - third week in Easter - 27 April 2020

Lord Jesus - you bring us your Father’s love - Lord have mercy. 

Christ Jesus - you gather your flock with joy - Christ have mercy. 

Lord Jesus - you give yourself to heal us and bring us strength - Lord have mercy. 

Priest: The Lord grants favors to those whom he loves.  We make our prayers known to our loving God with hope.

1. For all who follow Christ, that their faith in the resurrection of Jesus may deepen. 

2. For missionaries and for all believers, that we may spread the Good News about Jesus, and that the joy of Easter may fill them with fresh zeal.  

3. For people who suffer, in mind, body or spirit, that they may experience divine healing and new strength.  We pray especially for those suffering from the pandemic.  

4. For our children and our families.  For our youth preparing for confirmation, our children preparing for 1st holy communion, those in our ALPHA program, and the adults in our RCIA program.  May the Lord accompany all of them on their journey.  

5. For those who have died recently, that God’s light may shine on them perpetually.

6. For the prayers we hold in our hearts.  

Priest: O God our salvation, your glory shines throughout the world to bring joy to your people: hear our prayers and grant us your all-powerful grace, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

3 May 2020 – Cuarto domingo de Pascua – Domingo del Buen Pastor - Juan 10:1-10

      Para nosotros, Pascua es un tiempo especial.  La realidad de Pascua significa que somos personas transformadas. Somos transformados en la resurrección de Jesucristo.  Somos transformados en la vida nueva que tenemos en él como nuestro redentor y nuestro salvador.  Somos transformados en el camino que tenemos como discípulos de Cristo. Todos estos domingos hasta el día de Pentecostés son domingos de Pascua para recordarnos que Pascua no es un solo domingo pero un tiempo litúrgico en la vida cristiana.  En verdad, Pascua no es un día de celebración, sino una manera de vivir cada día.

       Nuestra vida cristiana comienza  con la Pascua.  Sin Pascua, solo hay silencio, solo hay la muerte, solo hay nuestra vida terrestre. Pero, con nuestra vida en Jesucristo, podemos tener alegría y gozo en una manera profunda que es muy diferente de gozo y alegría terrestre. Tenemos este gozo y alegría porque Cristo ha resucitado, porque Cristo ya viva con nosotros y en nuestros corazones. 

      Hoy, el cuarto domingo del tiempo de pascua, es el domingo de Buen Pastor. Jesús es nuestro pastor que vive.  Jesús es la puerta que nos introduce a la salvación del Padre como dice el Evangelio de hoy que él es la puerta de las ovejas en su rebaño. No hay otro camino ni otra puerta en nuestra vida de fe porque somos discípulos de Cristo.

       Si Jesús es el pastor de nuestra vida de fe, tenemos que existir en relación con el, tenemos que vivir en la luz de sus valores y su autoridad, porque el es el pastor y nosotros somos sus ovejas. Podemos contestar en nuestros corazones, en nuestra acciones, y nuestra palabras: Si, Jesucristo es mi pastor. Escuchar la voz de Jesucristo, nuestro Pastor, es reconocer su autoridad y su importancia en nuestra vida, comulgar con su mensaje, dejarse guiar por él y saber distinguir su voz entre los miles de voces que nos convocan de todas las partes del mundo. C. Seguir la voz de Cristo es ser su discípulo humilde, es ser miembro comprometido de su iglesia y es pertenecer a su rebaño.  Conocerle es experimentar su amor, acoger el don de la vida eterna que tenemos en él, ser su amigo, compartir su mesa y comunicarse con él diariamente en nuestras oraciones.

      Este fin de semana, también, celebramos la jornada mundial de oración por las vocaciones en la Iglesia Católica.  El papa Francisco dijo que una vocación no nace en ella misma y no vive por ella misma.  Un vocación viene del corazón de Dios y crece en la tierra fecunda del pueblo fiel, en la experiencia de amor fraterno.  Cada persona tiene una vocación en su vida de fe.  Hoy, oramos en una manera especial por las vocaciones al sacerdocio y la vida religiosa consagrada.  Estas vocaciones son llamadas de Dios y crecen en nuestras familias y en nuestras parroquias. Pero, cada discípulo de Cristo tiene una vocación en la fe, no solo los sacerdotes, las monjas, y los diáconos. Debemos reconocer también la manera que los padres pueden ayudar a sus hijos para escuchar la llamada de Dios y tener un ambiente de oración en su casa donde una vocación puede nacer y crecer.

      Este domingo, el Evangelio nos invita a escuchar la voz de Cristo, nuestro Buen Pastor, a seguirla y a conocerla.  El Evangelio nos invita a reconocer que Jesucristo es la puerta del nuestra salvación y la puerta de nuestra comunidad de fe, la iglesia de nuestro Cristo, nuestro Señor.

27 April 2020 - Monday of the third week of April - Acts 6:8-15

       We continue to hear about the development of the Early Church in the Acts of the Apostles in our first reading at mass today. Today we hear about Stephen proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ to the crowds. Stephen worked wonders and showed signs to the people. Yet, certain officials met Stephen’s wisdom with jealousy and hatred. The Jewish officials even presented false witness against Stephen with the animosity that they stirred up against him.  

Unfortunately, we know how this is going to end.  We know that Stephen is going to be martyred for the faith.

       So often, prophets are condemned for the message that they bring and for the words of truth that they speak.  However, it seems that in our present modern age, it can be difficult to recognize who is the true prophet and who is bringing a message that mocks the Word of God. Tolerance and truth are one thing, but if they are not rooted in the Word of God and have no foundation at all, what are they? 

       Our reading from the Acts of the Apostles calls out to us today across time and space. How are we living out God’s word in our lives with wisdom and courage and strength?

Prayer - RADIATING CHRIST

Radiating Christ

Blessed John Henry Newman (1801-1890) was an Anglican priest who converted to the Catholic Church in 1845 and was ordained a Catholic priest. Newman was a theologian and Church historian who devoted his life to Catholic education and pastoral work. He was named a Cardinal by Pope Leo XIII in 1879.  He was canonized by Pope Francis last October.  The following prayer, known as Radiating Christ, owes its origins to Cardinal Newman.  This prayer was a favorite prayer of Mother Teresa.  I recently came across this prayer in a book I am currently reading: Becoming the Answer to Our Prayers by Shane Clairborne and Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove: 

Dear Jesus, help me to spread your fragrance everywhere I go. Flood my soul with your spirit and life. Penetrate and possess my whole being so utterly that all my life may only be a radiance of yours. Shine through me and be so in me that every soul I come in contact with may feel your presence in my soul. Let them look up and see no longer me but only Jesus! Stay with me and then I shall begin to shine as you shine, so to shine as to be a light to others; the light, O Jesus, will be all from you; none of it will be mine: it will be you shining on others through me. Let me thus praise you in the way you love best: by shining on those around me. Let me preach you without preaching, not by words, but by my example, by the catching force, the sympathetic influence of what I do, the evident fullness of the love my heart bears to you.  Amen.  

I love this prayer.  I can see why Mother Teresa liked it so much.  As I reflect upon this prayer, I think of how there are some blessing that can come from what we are going through right now.  We in the Catholic Church are looking at new ways to reach out to people in our faith.  We are also looking at the traditions of our faith to bring us comfort and encouragement.  Blessings to all of you this week.  

Father Lincoln 

Reflection for the third Sunday of Easter - Cycle A - The Road To Emmaus - Luke 24:13-35

Third Sunday of the Easter Season 

Imagine that we are on the road to Emmaus with the other two disciples.  Cleopas and his companion are full of fear, confusion, and uncertainty.  They tell stories about Jesus, even though their hopes ended with his violent death.  Even though they have heard that he has been raised from the dead, they are still trying to figure out what that means.  Now he has appeared to some of the women of their group of disciples.  They wonder: Is this some sort of fantasy?  Or is it some sort of trick the Devil is playing on them. 
     The disciples in the Early Church had a lot to figure out.  This was a new reality that they did not yet understand.  Cleopas and his friend felt comfortable talking to Jesus on their journey.  Jesus brought understanding and encouragement to them as they walked and talked together.  They were comforted by his very presence, even though at the time, they did not realize it was Jesus himself.  Sometimes on our journey of faith, we feel comfortable and encouraged.  But, sometimes, we change on our journey of faith, or the world changes around us.  We are confronted with a new reality that we cannot make sense of and that we cannot understand.  I think that most of us had been chugging along on our journey of faith, having a routine and feeling a sense of comfort with our relationship with God.  But, then, the pandemic hit.  Schools, businesses, restaurants, and churches are all closed.   We don’t know where all of this is going, do we?  

But like the disciples on the road to Emmaus, God is there with us to help us make sense of things.  When we are confronted with a changing reality, there are new opportunities, new blessings, and room for growth and development.  Perhaps some of us are now realizing how much we have taken our faith for granted.  Perhaps we are looking at new, creative ways in which we can live out our faith.  Perhaps the new technologies we are using to keep in touch with our faith can serve us even when public masses and public church activities resume.  Perhaps we are realizing the importance of community in our life of faith.  Let us reach out to God during this time.  He will help us make sense of thing. 

3 May 2020 - Homily - Good Shepherd Sunday and World Day of Prayer for Vocations - 4th Sunday of Easter - John 10:1-10, Psalm 23

      The fourth Sunday of Easter is known as Good Shepherd Sunday. Today is also the World Day of Prayer for Vocations as declared by our Catholic Church. Some of our readings today directly talk about shepherds, helping us to reflect upon the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd who devotedly takes care of his flock. The title of the parish priest, "pastor," actually means “shepherd”.   A shepherd leads, feeds, nurtures, comforts, corrects, and protects his flock—responsibilities that belong to every church leader.   Christ’s disciples in the Early Church had seen him as the fulfillment of the ancient Jewish vision of a good shepherd. Paul and many of the other early disciples saw Jesus as the shepherd of all peoples, not just the Jews, as they wanted everyone to be invited to be members of God’s flock.  

     Throughout Israel’s history, the Jewish people had many shepherds that God selected to lead them and guide them on their journey. The Jews had a very interesting legend that has been passed down through the generations to explain why God chose Moses to be the leader of His people. It explains that when Moses was tending the sheep of his father-in-law in the wilderness, a young lamb ran away.  Moses followed the lamb until it reached a ravine, where it found a well to drink from. When Moses got up to it, he said: “I did not know that you ran away because you were thirsty.  Now you must be weary.”  He took the lamb on his shoulders and carried it back.  Then God said: “Because you have shown pity and mercy in leading back one of a flock belonging to another man, you shall lead my flock Israel.”  In our faith we are comforted by the images of shepherds, whether it be the image of the Lord as the Good Shepherd in the 23rd psalm, the image of Moses shepherding the people of Israel, or Jesus as the true shepherd who has love and concern for his people.  

     In praying for vocations today, on Good Shepherd Sunday, hopefully it is obvious to all of us that our Church today is in great need of good shepherds, the shepherds who are totally committed to the Way of Jesus.  We are very proud to have a member of our parish, Andrew Bowden, as a seminarian, and Mark Bowden, in the diaconate formation program. Pope Francis leaves us these thoughts on this occasion: “Dear friends, on this day in particular, but also in the ordinary pastoral life of our communities, I ask the Church to continue to promote vocations. May she touch the hearts of the faithful and enable each of them to discover with gratitude God’s call in their lives, to find courage to say ‘yes’ to God, to overcome all weariness through faith in Christ, and to make of their lives a song of praise for God, for their brothers and sisters, and for the whole world. May the Virgin Mary accompany us and intercede for us.” As we are asked to pray today that our Christian communities will be graced with good shepherds and good pastors, we are called to not narrow the term “vocation” to those who feel called to the priesthood or to religious life as a sister or brother or monk.  We in the Church emphasize that every single baptized person has a vocation, with each being called by God not just to a vocation in which he lives out his professional life or trade, but also in a specific role in the Christian community and in the wider community.  Indeed, unless we Christians see that vocation as something that we are all called to, it is not likely that there will be enough people to meet the service needs of our Christian communities.  Our Christian communities can only grow and thrive when every member makes a contribution to the well-being of the whole. I will close our homily today with this prayer for vocations that I adapted from the  National Religious Vocation Conference:  

      Holy Spirit,  stir within us the passion to promote vocations to the consecrated life, societies of apostolic life, diocesan priesthood, and permanent diaconate.

       Inspire us daily to respond to your call with boundless compassion, abundant generosity, and radical availability.

Help us to remember our own baptismal call to rouse us to invite the next generation to hear and respond to your call.

Inspire parents, families, and lay ecclesial ministers to begin a conversation with young Catholics to consider how they will live lives of holiness and sacred service.

       Nudge inquirers and motivate discerners to learn more about monastic life, apostolic life, missionaries, and cloistered contemplative life.

       Ignite our Church with the confident humility that there is an urgent need for religious sisters, brothers, deacons, and priests to live in solidarity with those who are poor, neglected, and marginalized.

       Disrupt our comfortable lives and complacent attitudes with new ideas to respond courageously and creativity with a daily 'YES!'  Amen.

2 May 2020 - St Athanasius - Saturday of the 3rd week of Easter - John 6:60-69

       We hear the disciples of Jesus say in the Gospel today that his teachings are hard for them to understand.  Jesus is talking to them about his identity as the Son of Man, about him giving his disciples his body and blood, about his relationship with the Father.  At the end of this passage, it says that many of the disciples went away dejected, not being able to understand his teaching and returning to their former way of life.   Jesus’ human and divine identity was the subject of a great deal of discussion and controversy in the Early Church.  The Arian heresy arose as a part of this controversy, named after Arius, a teacher and presbyter who lived in Alexandria, Egypt in the 4th century.  Arius argued that Jesus was a created being with divine attributes rather than a being who was eternally divine.  Arius and his beliefs were labeled as heresy at the Council of Nicea in 325.  Jesus’ eternal divine nature was professed in the Nicene Creed.  I bring up the Arian heresy because the saint we celebrate today, Athanasius, was instrumental in defeating the Arian heresy.  Athanasius was a strong voice in this debate in his role as Bishop of Alexandria, an important leadership position in the Early Church.  This controversy and debate was so heated in the Early Church that Athanasius was exiled five different times for his defense of the doctrine of Christ’s divinity. His writings on the Arian heresy are considered important theological works in the history of the Church, earning Athanasius the title of Doctor of the Church.  Among his celebrated writings is the Life of St Anthony, a biography of the famous Desert Father.  This biography of Anthony and his teachings are said to have had a great influence on the development of monasticism in the Western Church.  We celebrate St Athanasius today and unite our prayer to his. 

1 May 2020 - St Joseph the worker - John 6:52-59

      Today, we celebrate St Jospeh the worker, a great feast day in our joyful Easter season.  You may remember that back in Lent, we celebrated the feast day of St Joseph, the spouse of Mary, on March 19.  Today’s feast was established by Pope Pius 12th in 1955 in order to foster deep devotion to St Joseph amongst the Catholic faithful, and also in response to the celebrations for workers on May 1 that were held in Europe in communist countries. St Joseph, the foster father of Jesus here on earth, is an example of the holiness of human labor in his work as a carpenter.  Through his patience, perseverance, strength, and industriousness, Joseph would have not only trained Jesus in his work as a carpenter, but also in the values of the Jewish faith.  We Catholics are not only called to be capable, well-trained, industrious workers, but we are to bring the values of our faith to our workplace as well.  In the Gospel today, we hear from the bread of life discourse from the 6th chapter of John's Gospel, in which Jesus tells us that when we partake of the bread and the wine in the Lord’s supper, we will truly eat his flesh and drink his blood, in which we will reside in Jesus and Jesus will reside in us.   Jesus says this in the name of his heavenly Father, the heavenly Father in whom Jesus has life, the life that we have in Christ.  As we honor St Joseph the worker today, as we honor Christ’s foster father, we honor his example of faith and we honor his son in whom we have life.  

29 April 2020 - Wednesday of the 3rd week of the season of Easter - John 6:35-40

       We have only four female Doctors of the Church, one being St Catherine of Siena, the saint we celebrate today. Catherine is quite a remarkable woman who lived in Italy way back in the later half of the 14^th century.  Catherine is held in such high esteem that she has been named the patron saint of Italy and the co-patron saint of all of Europe.  She was the youngest of 25 children. She felt the call from God in her life in a special way early on, as she had a vision of Christ when she was only 7 years old. 

      Catherine lived in a very tumultuous era in which the Pope was in exile in France and there was much disunity amongst the Catholic faithful.  Although Catherine felt the call to live as a Dominican tertiary and to care for the poor and the sick, she also felt God calling her to bring unity to the Church.  She wrote hundreds of letters to the pope, to kings, and other powerful world leaders, counseling them on their duty to make peace and to bring unity to the Church.  She even traveled to Avignon, France on a mission to bring the pope back to Rome.  

      Though Catherine died at the young age of 33, she is remembered for her leadership and courage.  She was an unlikely choice to bring counsel to such powerful men in the Church and government, but that is what God called her to do.  Catherine of Siena once said: "If you are what you are meant to be, you will set the world on fire!”  

      In the Gospel today, we hear a message that is central to Christ’s teachings: “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”   We are to called to have that same devotion and faith that Catherine of Siena had in her lifetime.

28 April 2020 - Tuesday of the third week of Easter - Acts 7:51-8:1A

       Six years ago on this date, I remember being at the hospital in Tupelo visiting some parishioners when all of our telephones started vibrating.  There was supposed to be tornadoes heading toward the town southeast of Tupelo about fifty miles away, but they switched course and were headed our way. I had been in two bad tornadoes already, but I did not expect anything bad.  I thought it would just pass by us.  As I ran out the entrance of the hospital, the receptionist told me - please told tell me you are going out there.  I told her that I had to return to my church.  It was really windy out there, hard to drive on the road, but I still thought nothing of it.  When I got back to the church office, everyone had left, and the cats and I were there alone.  Suddenly, it hit.  I gathered Mary Woodward and Blessing and headed down to the basement.  When I emerged from the basement a little while later, I saw utter destruction.  I tried for over a half an hour to leave our church office property, but there was so much debris and trees down, I could not even get off the property.  A city workers came and helped me out.  Our parish of St James was directly hit by the tornado.  It felt like it took forever to recover and repair. 
       I also think of another destructive event that took place on April 29 back in the year of 1992.  It was right after my mom passed away, when I lived with my dad before he moved into a nursing home.  I worked for a CPA firm that year.  I was in downtown LA on the morning of April 29, 1992 having the final meeting with an audit client.  When I was leaving downtown LA, the Rodney king beating trial verdicts were announced - not guilty.  By the time I had crossed into Orange County that afternoon on my drive home, I was listening to the radio as there were numerous reports of violence all across Southern California.  My sister Heather and I were glued to the TV that evening as we saw what was happening in our little corner of the world.  When so many people feel like their voices have been taken away and that they don't even matter any more, the result is the Los Angeles riots.  
       These are two tales of violence and destruction from my own experiences as we hear of the stoning of Stephen in first reading from the Acts of the Apostles.  Some of our destruction can come from nature, such as the 2014 Tupelo tornado.  Some of our destruction can be man made, such as in the stoning of Stephen and the Los Angeles riots.   We remember St Stephen today as a martyr for our faith.  And someone who was willing to give up his life rather than renounce the Gospel of Jesus Christ.   We see destruction of a different kind today, of a pandemic that is killing people and tearing down our economy and our way of life. The community turned against Stephen and his message.  We are called to turn to our community, to be in solidarity together, to help each other.  May we hear this call. 

26 de abril de 2020 - tercer domingo de la temporada de pascua - Lucas 24:13-35

      Dos discípulos de Jesús viajan por el camino. Esta vez, el camino de estos discípulos no conduce a la sanación de un enfermo o al encuentro con Jesucristo como hicieron en este camino muchas veces antes. El camino este día por estos discípulos es un camino de desconcierto y frustración, un camino sin esperanza y sin claridad. 

       Estos dos discípulos en el camino de Emaús representan a muchas personas que han tenido contacto con Jesucristo en sus vidas en Israel – con sus milagros y sus curaciones y su entusiasmo. Ellos no pueden comprender que el Jesús de la cruz sea ese Dios que ellos se imaginaron.  El dolor y el sufrimiento son realidades de la vida humana. Son puertas que no queremos abrir. Nosotros conocemos esta realidad en este momento en nuestro mundo.  Aquí en Mississippi, en todos los partes de los Estados Unidos, y muchos países del mundo, hay una crisis, una pandemia.  Hay muchos enfermos, muchos muertos, y destrucción económica en todo el mundo. Nuestra realidad ahora y la pandemia en el mundo pueden decir eso: El dolor es algo malo, seguramente, pero el dolor puede dar un motivo de salvación.  El dolor puede darnos un oportunidad para mirar las bendiciones de Dios en nuestra vida. Los dos discípulos iban por el camino a Emaús llenos de dolor y tristeza.  No tenían un sentido de gozo y resurrección en este camino después de la muerte de su maestro. Jesús se puso a su lado en el camino, pero no le reconocían. El dolor cerró sus ojos y sus corazones.  Los dos discípulos le contaban a Jesús su versión de lo que había ocurrido, pero una versión sin esperanza.  Se sentaban a la mesa con Cristo y de nuevo tomaba el pan y dando gracias a Dios, lo partió y se lo dio. En ese momento se les abrieron los ojos y le reconocieron.  Antes de su muerte en la cruz, el último gesto que tuvo Jesús con los Apóstoles fue la cena.  Ahora, en la realidad de la resurrección, Cristo hace de nuevo el gesto de la fracción del pan, que alimenta, que salva, que abre los ojos a toda la humanidad. 

       Hay crisis y mucha destrucción en nuestra comunidad y en el mundo.  Pero, en este momento, podemos reconocer que hay muchos tipos de encuentros con Cristo en nuestra vida.  Tuvimos el rostro de Cristo con nosotros con la ayuda de muchos miembros de nuestra comunidad.  Los trabajadores en las tiendas y los profesionales en los hospitales están aquí por la comunidad. Muchas personas quieren ayudar en esta crisis.   La Eucaristía también es un lugar especial del encuentro con El.  La vida cristiana – la Eucaristía - la misa - es la intersección de la Cruz y la Resurrección.  Cristo resucitó y la resurrección tiene una realidad en nuestra vida. Pero, ¿donde está Jesucristo ahora?  Cristo no está en el sepulcro. El sepulcro esta vacío.  En verdad, la resurrección no es un retorno al pasado. El verdadero encuentro con Cristo está hoy en la Palabra, en la Eucaristía, en la profesión de fe que hacemos como una comunidad, en el pueblo de Dios.  El Señor está en la vida nueva que ha llegado en la transformación del sufrimiento de este mundo.   El Señor está en la esperanza que tenemos esta semana en la mitad de nuestro dolor y nuestros sufrimientos.   Tenemos un encuentro con el camino de salvación en la realidad de nuestra vida.  Como los dos discípulos en el camino a Emaús, podemos reconocer la presencia de Jesucristo con nosotros en muchos sentidos. 

Prayers of the faithful - Second week of Easter - 20 April 2020

Lord Jesus - you bring us God’s love and mercy - Lord have mercy. 
Christ Jesus - you are the son of our heavenly Father - Christ have mercy. 
Lord Jesus - you call us to be born again - Lord have mercy. 

We now bring our prayers to our loving and mercy God: 
1. We pray for Francis our Pope, the communion of Bishops, and all the clergy and lay leaders - may they help us all be ambassadors for Christ. 
2. We pray for all Christians. That we may embrace the corporal and spiritual works of mercy, part of our baptismal call.   
3. We pray for all people of good will in this time of crisis in the world. That the entire human family may recognize our common bond to work for justice and the good of all peoples. 
4. We pray for all the sick.  For those afflicted by COVID-19.  For our medical professionals, first responders and men and women in the military. 
5. We pray for all those enslaved by their past sins or decisions. That the wounds of Christ may encourage them to seek his surpassing love for them. 6. We pray for all those who have died. That the Lord in his mercy may welcome them into his dwelling. 
7. For the prayers we hold in our hearts. 
Heavenly Father, out of our lives of discipleship, we humbly present these prayers to you through your Son Jesus Christ, our Lord forever and ever.  AMEN. 

24 April 2020 - Friday of the 2nd week of Easter - Acts 4:34-42

       In our first reading, the apostles rejoice in that they had been found worthy to suffer dishonor at the hands of man for the sake of the Gospel and the name of Jesus. The disciples left the Temple area after they had been flogged and ordered by the Sanhedrin to stop preaching the Gospel. However, Peter and the other apostles continued their preaching with even more enthusiasm.  What a great example of faith their witness is for us today. 

The apostles rejoice at the dishonor they suffered because they did so for the honor they were giving Jesus.  So often, so many of us think that we shouldn’t suffer at all for our faith, that we shouldn’t have to make any sacrifices for the faith.  But, through all we are going through right now, not even being able to go to public mass at our parishes, I think we are appreciating the sacrifices many have to go through in order to practice our faith.  Even though we are not able to have public masses, we at St Jude, through technology, have been able to stream masses over the internet in order to continue to connect with the people.  Previously, I have heard some Catholics in our Diocese complain when we were not able to have a mass when it was convenient for them to go according to their schedule, even though there were other masses over the weekend they could have attended.  Now, perhaps we will better understand the sacrifices and accommodations we are called to make for our faith.  

The other thing that struck me about the first reading was the testimony that the Pharisee gave the Sanhedrin, of how the movement and popularity of other false messiahs died with them.  He tells the Sanhedrin to just let the followers disperse to preach his Good News.  If Jesus is a false messiah, his movement will just naturally lose energy because he is not around anymore.  But is Jesus really is the Messiah and the Son of God, so states the Pharisee, then there is nothing they can do to stop it.  

If Jesus really is the Messiah in our eyes, we are going to want to spread his message to others.  We are going to have energy and zeal to give testimony, no matter what opposition we have.  Let us go therefore and proclaim his Good News!   

20 April 2020 - Monday of the third week of Easter - Acts 4:23-31, John 3:1-8

      So, Nicodemus, one of the rulers of the Jewish people, comes to Jesus at night to ask him some questions.  Her problem comes at night because he is afraid.  He does not want people know that he has come to Jesus to learn from him.  Then, the talk soon turns to being born again, being born of water and the spirit. Well, we all know as Catholics, that the term “born again” has a certain meaning within Evangelical Christian circles.  But, to be honest, even though we Catholics do not use that term in the same way that our Evangelical Christian brothers and sisters do, we do see ourselves as being born again in the sacrament of baptism, as we go into the waters of baptism, die with Christ, and then rise to new life in him.   And what about being born in the spirit.  Again, I think it is difficult talking about the Holy Spirit in concrete terms, isn’t it.  Sometimes the Spirit comes to us in very strong profound ways, just as in the first reading, when Peter and John are gathered with the people, the presence of the Holy Spirit is so strong that the whole earth shakes.  Yet, we can feel the presence of the Holy Spirit in a lot of different ways in our lives. And the Spirit can move in us in different ways as well.  In these strange times when we priests are not able to have public masses, the Spirit has led me and the staff here at St Jude to some very creative ways as to how we reach out to our flock and how we feel God’s presence in our lives, all the while still being able to function as a community of faith and as disciples of Christ.  Yesterday, when we had a prayer service for Divine Mercy Sunday outside of mass, praying the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, I definitely felt prompted by the Spirit to do that.  Thus, we have to be open to the Spirit working in our lives and calling out to us.  Being open to the Spirit begins with a life of prayer.  It begins with reading Sacred Scripture and studying the faith.  It is not difficult.  But it does take commitment and persistence.  May the Lord open our hearts and minds to the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  

22 April 2020 - Wednesday of the 2nd week of the Easter season - John 3:16-21

Today, we hear the familiar verse of John 3:16 - “God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son.”  I thought immediately of Divine Mercy Sunday, which we just celebrated last Sunday.  Out of God’s love for us, we are called to show love and care for God’s creation as well.  Today, April 22, is the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. To me, the spirit of Earth Day should be aligned to the spirit of God's love and mercy.   Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin had the original inspiration to start Earth Day back in 1970.   Unfortunately, like a lot of things, it perhaps is a day that has been politicized too much.  But, indeed, we in our faith, in the spirit of St Francis of Assisi and many recent popes, including Pope Francis, are called to look at the ways we as individuals and as a society take care of God’s creation.  I would like to read a prayer that I have adapted from the Sisters of Mercy and the Catholic Health Association in honor of earth day: 

We are called to see ourselves and each other as earthen vessels created by God.  As earthen vessels, we bring and care for God’s gift in the world.  Our world is indeed fragile and in need of our love, support, and attentiveness.  May our hands align with God in caring for his creation here on earth.  Let us pray for: 
Trees, plants, crops, and forests.  
Rivers, Oceans, streams, and ponds. 
Air, wind, climate, and weather.
Sun, clean energy, and prevention of global warming. 
Animals, especially those that are endangered. 
All humankind.  
Recycling and prudent and moderate personal consumption. 
Proper use of chemical and disposal of toxic waste. 
The earth and unity.  

Creator God, we thank you for all of creation.We ask your forgiveness where we have failed to be just stewards. We ask for your guidance in restoring the face of the earth. May we learn to live in harmony, safety and the just sharing of resources among all so that we may achieve the kingdom of God.  Peace be to this community. Peace be to this land. Peace be to all people. Amen.

18 April 2020 - Prayers of the faithful - Octave of easter

Lord Jesus - You are the glory of the Father - Lord have mercy.  

Christ Jesus - You give hope to the hopeless - Christ have mercy. 

Lord Jesus - You give us strength and courage - Lord have mercy. 

Priest: We present our prayers to our merciful Father: 

1.We pray for the Church -the bride of Christ. That we may be faithful to our Savior and proclaim the joy of his Resurrection, We pray to the Lord. 

2. We pray for our Parish family. That renewed through the Easter mysteries, we live as servant and we live for Christ, We pray to the Lord. 

3. We pray for all those who have been preparing for the Easter sacraments, who are going to have reception of the sacrament delayed because of the pandemic. That they continue to prepare in hope and joy and feel our love reaching out to them. We pray to the Lord. 

4. We pray for all who are struggling in their faith right now in this time of crisis. That Christ, risen from the dead, may call their name and lead them back to the faith, We pray to the Lord. 

5. We pray for all those who have suffered tragedies. For those who are struggling with addictions. That the wounds of Christ may give them encouragement, We pray to the Lord. 

6. We pray for the sick and the sorrowful. For those individuals and families affected by COVID-19. That this Easter season, the Lord may heal them, body, mind, and spirit. We pray to the Lord. 

7. We pray for all those who have died. That Christ may shatter their chains and bring them to his banquet in the Father’s house. And for those prayers we hold in our hearts.  We pray to the Lord. 

Priest: In this Saturday in the Octave of Easter, we present these prayer to you heavenly Father through your son, Jesus Christ, our Lord forever and ever.  AMEN. 

25 April 2020 - St Mark - Mark 16:15-20

        Today, on the feast day of St Mark, we hear from the end of Mark’s Gospel.  Was Mark a member of Jesus’ group of close disciples who followed him in travels around ancient Israel?  We are not entirely sure, but it seems that Mark accompanied Barnabas and Paul on their travels, that he founded the church in the great ancient city of Alexandria, Egypt where he died.  We also know that Mark is the Evangelist who wrote the earliest Gospel, probably around the year 70 AD.  The Gospel of Mark was probably used as a source for the writers of the Gospels of Luke and Matthew.  Mark’s Gospel has definitely had a very strong influence on how Christianity developed.  Mark’s Gospel does not have a lot of details of Jesus’ appearances to his disciples after his resurrection.  At the empty tomb, an angel tells Mary Magdalene and the two other women: “Go and tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him, as he told you.’”  Jesus goes before us as well.  Like the message that Peter and the disciples received, we  also are called to meet Jesus on our journey.   We are called to take up our crosses, to go into the world and to preach the Gospel.  

       As we reflect upon St Mark today on his feast day, perhaps Mark’s Gospel and his example of faith will give us courage and inspiration on our journey.  We know that this pandemic has been a very difficult time for all of us as individuals, as families, and as a society.  However, with regards to our faith, perhaps the current circumstance that we are facing are forcing us to think out of the box, to think of new and creative ways to live out our faith and to reach out to others in the faith.  Mark and the original group of disciples faced a lot of uncertainty and fears as well.  We have nothing to fear.  But we do have the responsibility to preach the gospel.