October 11, 2009
We read about the heart-rending account of the rich young man who seeks to know the secret of life from Jesus only to walk away unable to commit to that which will give him the greatest meaning in life. We are sympathetic to the young man who gives up on the relationship with Jesus. He walks away in finality. For the man, it is all or nothing – no middle ground. The laws and teachings that he cherishes have no room for the radical type of fulfilling friendship to which Jesus calls him. His world turns upside-down because the laws do not provide him with full completion of his true self and he walks away shattered and in need of restructuring the order of his life.
I am saddened at times by some of the priests and leaders (lay and clerical) of our church who overly value the church teachings while seemingly relegating the love of Christ or the movement of the Spirit to the background. (This happens in every faith community, not just Catholics, and it is natural for us to fall in love with the good intentions of our church.) Our relationship with Christ has to be primary and we have to let, as the Letter to the Hebrews suggests, “the word of God…penetrate and discern reflections and thoughts of the heart” for it is “living and effective.”
The author of Wisdom was given prudence to ask for the spirit of wisdom as the most fortunate and desirable quality. A wise person knows what he or she desires as wisdom can provide for a fuller meaning in life. Unfortunately, the young man cannot see what or who it is that stands before him calling him into eternal friendship. Jesus sends him to go learn from the poor, some who do possess this wisdom, so that he can finally experience the deepest longing of his heart. Once we give our heart to Christ, we can fully receive the living Word of God that will give us back our life. No one has ever become poor by being generous.
Quote for the Week
To honor Teresa of the Child Jesus, I offer you one of her most touching quotes and a basis for Christian mysticism.
Let nothing disturb you,
Let nothing frighten you,
All things are passing away:
God never changes.
Patience obtains all things.
Whoever has God lacks nothing;
God alone suffices.
Original Spanish:
Nada te turbe,
nada te espante;
todo se pasa,
Dios no se muda.
La pacientia todo lo alcanza.
Quien a Dios tiene nada la falta:
solo Dios basta.
Themes for this Week’s Masses
We begin to read from Paul’s Letter to the Romans this week, and Paul immediately tells us that we have authority from heaven to bring about the obedience of faith among the Gentiles. Paul reveals to us that many claimed they knew God, but did not give Jesus the same glory of God, but that God will repay everyone for his works, first the Jews, then the Greeks because it is by faith that one is justified. Paul upholds Abraham as one who believed in God and was righteous. Abraham believed in God, hoping against hope.
As we continue with Luke, he points out that this generation is disbelieving because they demand a sign of the source of Jesus’ authority. Those is curiosity are looking at rituals and customs, while Jesus is instructing them on what is necessary to do, like giving alms as a way of cleansing one’s soul. Jesus laments those who do not grasp the reality of God’s inbreaking presence among them; the people want the blood of the prophets. He then shows how much God cares for them and notices even the smallest hair on one’s head. He encourages them to trust that the Holy Spirit will guide them.
Saints of the Week
On Wednesday, we honor Callistus I who was once a slave and become Pope in the early 3rd century. Because he fought against the Adoption and Modalist heresies, he was martyred in 222.
On Thursday, Teresa of the Child Jesus is celebrated as a doctor of the Church. She was a mystic, a Carmelite nun, and a writer of the Counter-Reformation. She reformed the Carmelite Order along with John of the Cross and created a stricter application of the reforms in the Order of the Discalced Carmelites.
Friday is the day to remember Mary Alocoque, a Salesian Visitation Sister who is known for her devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. With Claude de la Colombiere, S.J., the two were able to increase the devotion across Europe.
Ignatius of Antioch’s memorial is set on Saturday. He was a successor to Peter as the bishop of Antioch and martyred by throwing him into an area of wild animals who tore him apart and devoured him. He wrote letters in the early church to talk about the nature of Christ and the Christian way of life. Inigo de Loyola was so inspired by him that he took the name Ignatius for his own.
This Week in Jesuit History
• October 11, 1688: King Louis XIV forbade all correspondence and interchange between the French Jesuits and Fr. Thyrsus Gonzalez, the Spanish General Superior of the Society.
• October 12, 1976: The murder in rural Brazil of Joao Bosco Burnier, SJ, who was shot and killed by soldiers for protesting the torture of two poor women.
• October 13, 1537: At Venice the Papal Nuncio published his written verdict declaring that Ignatius Loyola was innocent of all charges which had been leveled against him by his detractors.
• October 14, 1774: A French Jesuit in China wrote an epitaph to the Jesuit mission in China after the suppression of the Society. It concludes: "Go, traveler, continue on your way. Felicitate the dead; weep for the living; pray for all. Wonder, and be silent."
• October 15, 1582: St Teresa of Avila died on this day -- the first day of the new Gregorian calendar. She always wished to have a Jesuit as a confessor.
• October 16, 1873: About two weeks after Victor Emmanuel's visit to Berlin, where he had long conferences with Bismark, rumors reached the Society in Rome that all of their houses in Rome were threatened.
• October 17, 1578: St Robert Bellarmine entered the Jesuit novitiate of San Andrea in Rome at the age of 16.
Annual Cheverus Retreat
The faculty at Cheverus attended their 17th Annual Cheverus Retreat on Friday, October 9th at Marie Joseph Spiritual Center in Biddeford Pool. Fr. James O’Brien, S.J. was the guest retreat director.
Stained-Glass Windows in the Chapel
Yeah! The stained-glass windows in the Cheverus Chapel are repaired. Thank you to all of your who generously donated to the prompt repair of the windows. We are very glad to worship in the space that is enhanced by your caring munificence.
Grandparents’ Day
Over three hundred grandparents joined the school for liturgy on Thursday, October 8th in the Keegan Gymnasium. Grandparents then enjoyed a hearty brunch before they visited classes for the day.
Happy Columbus Day
Enjoy your Columbus Day weekend. We honor Christopher Columbus who, sailing from Spain, landed in the New World in 1492. It is also Thanksgiving Day in Canada and a day that many Native Americans celebrate as their own heritage day.
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