The Way God Works

Pax Christi vobiscum! Come Holy Spirit!

Amazing story to share with you, and this takes us back to a bit before Christmas.

So first, the background information. There are several families that sit/walk around outside of the University I attend in Rome, and they are always asking for some help ("qualche specie" - "some change"). A lot of people have given them the unfortunate title of "gypsy," which, while it may have some sort of historical root, has become a name meaning, "Someone who is just trying to pull one over on me, so I can ignore them." Now, some of them may be trying to pinch an extra buck here and there, and they may not always be telling the truth. The fact is, however, that they are poor, and the Gospel tells us to help the poor. It doesn't tell us to audit their taxes and see where they spent their money. And we should always love our neighbor, even if that's only with a listening ear. Okay, my soapbox is getting a little flimsy from standing on it for so long, so back to the story.

Well, there is one family in particular that spends a lot of time out front, and they have two young boys both under the age of 4. Some of us seminarians have decided to make sure they always get the food and other things they need, so we chip in every once in a while so they are taken care of. Well, as it turns out, they were hoping to get back to Romania so that the husband could see his mother, who is sick and in the hospital there. They were also hoping to catch up with their family, and get some medical attention with help from the government of their homeland. The husband had already collected something like 200 Euro to get back, but he needed more to pay for the 4 bus tickets.

Now for a little more background: Many of us, as you know, were going to be headed to the Holy Land starting the Friday before Christmas, and the last chance for the Romanian family to get back home was that Saturday, the day after we were set to leave. So his days were numbered with many potential helpers leaving before he would get the money.

Some guys heard about this, and one guy even went around trying to collect some money for the family. He was able to collect a little, but not too much--at least not enough to add up to what the family still needed. So he put that small amount, 20 Euro, in an envelope, and put it under the door of a guy who was not going to the Holy Land and would therefore be able to deliver the money to the family.

Well, I heard this whole story later from a friend of mine, who we will call Jack, who told me how the rest of it played out. Jack was the guy who received that one envelope with 20 Euro in it, but, as it turns out, he also received 2 or 3 other envelopes that same Friday morning, all of which were slid under his door during the night by guys who were heading to the Holy Land. None of the guys knew about the other ones, they simply all felt called to offer some money, and they thought Jack was the best guy to deliver it. Jack told me that one of the guys who had slid an envelope under his door had written in the envelope, "You know that guy that sits out in front of the Greg [our University]? I can't explain it, but this is supposed to go to him."

So that Friday morning, after all the Holy Land go-ers had departed, Jack met up with the guy whose family still needed a substantial amount of money to get home to see his mother. And he asked him, "How much money did you still need to get home?"

Disappointed that he was not going to be visiting his mother, the man responded, "I was so close, but I still need 120 Euro, and it's just too much."

Jack told him, "That is the exact amount I have in these envelopes."

Amazing. God answers prayers, and He uses us, with whatever openness we have, to deliver exactly what we need. Now, that family is back in Romania, spending time with their Mother/Grandmother, and hopefully they enjoyed the holidays together. The husband and father is also seeking some medical help while he is back home.

God really does move in our hearts to give others what they need. Yes, it stings a bit some times, but it's amazing to see/hear the results. As Jack tells it, the man practically did backflips when he heard the news. He was going to be able to see his mother at Christmas! And yes, it did require an openness on the part of some of the seminarians, but we gain more from the whole thing: we get the chance to practice love. That is what the poor always offer us, the chance to be loving, to grow in love. And so we should thank them more often than they thank us.

Again, Happy New Year, and please pray for our upcoming final exams (still from first semester...it's Italy, remember?). God bless!

So Happy, I Can Barely Move

Pax Christi vobiscum! Come Holy Spirit!

Consider my New Year's Resolution met for the month of January. Only 11 months to go....

Okay, so in this post, I thought I'd change the pace a bit, and offer you a reflection on the Gospel of Mark from a passage that I was praying with earlier today. So you know the drill: everyone get out your Bibles...even you Catholics out there (it's the big white book under all the other books on your coffee table...you know, the one with your family marriage history in it?). Okay, here goes something.

First, the passage is typed out here, because I don't know how many of you actually follow links that I post (shameless soliciting for comments attesting to this fact, *cough *cough). This is from Mark 2:1-12, but I will only post Mark 2:1-5, for the very excellent reason that my reflection only focuses on these verses. The reflection itself immediately follows:

"When Jesus returned to Capernaum after some days, it became known that he was at home. Many gathered together so that there was no longer room for them, not even around the door, and he preached the word to them. They came bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd, they opened up the roof above him. After they had broken through, they let down the mat on which the paralytic was lying. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Child, your sins are forgiven."

"Child, your sins are forgiven."

With what tenderness these words were said! How moved was the Heart of God with Love of His creature that longed to be close to Him! Fighting crowd, roof, and his own weakness, with the help and faith of his friends, the paralytic draws close to His Savior.

And yet if the paralytic longed to be close to His Savior, how much more did the Savior long to be close to Him. Nothing compares to the gap of infinity bridged by the Lord in His Incarnation, His kenosis* of Love.

Taking on the limits of human flesh, boundless love was bound to one place. Every crowd He taught left others untaught. Every roof under which He stayed shut out the heavens above. And who was more limited? He or the paralytic? For though the paralytic could not walk, the God of all the Universe could only walk to a small portion of His creation. How desperately He longed to heal and forgive them all, and yet He too was practically paralyzed. If only all creation would seek Him who was seeking all creation!

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*kenosis: The self-emptying of the Second Person of the Trinity when He became man, especially referred to in St. Paul's Letter to the Philippians (2:7). Yes, I am in seminary.

So there it is. It all came to me in prayer. Just a work of inspiration. The only thing I ask is that if you plan to use it in a Homily (I'm speaking now to a very specific group of individuals), please site the Source (i.e. not me...though you can send any "loving contributions" my way if you think royalties are necessary.)

God bless!

Happy New Year!

Pax Christi vobiscum! Come Holy Spirit!

Happy New Year! Welcome to the year 2009! The year you've all been waiting for--simply because it hadn't come until now.

Here are my 2009 New Year's Resolutions:

1. Spend less time on the internet


2. Update blog more often


3. Find some way to make both resolutions work at the same time

Basically, I hope to be providing you all with more updates more often, at least every 2 weeks. That would be ideal. And I figured the new year is the best time to start.

In all honesty, I do enjoy setting a goal for the year, but a spiritual goal, and not just a resolution to exercise more often (that's for next year). I think it's awesome, though, to bring something you struggle with to God in prayer and ask Him to lead you through it throughout the course of the year. We all take time to grow, and a year's a pretty good chunk of time in which to do it. And the best way to grow is when God works that growth in us. So I figure it's a two-for-one deal. Offer Him the desire to grow in patience (not all at once) or the fear of surrender (surrendering surrender?). When we say in prayer that this year is "The Year of Surrender," it gives us permission to work patiently toward a goal, and it gives God the permission to accomplish it within us. That's my little tidbit for the start of the year. Now, time to get to the gym.

But first, I wanted to let you all know that our pilgrimage to the Holy Land was amazing. There's too much to say right now, so I will have to parcel it out a bit.

One thing I want to say right off the bat: I prayed for all of you at the Holy Sites in Galilee and Jerusalem. Yes, they are real places and not just creative locations for God-made-man to work some awesome miracles. They really exist, and it was powerful to spend time in those locations; it changed the way I read the Gospels.

For instance, we were able to visit the Mount of the Beatitudes on the edge of the Sea of Galilee. This is the place where Jesus taught the crowds, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven," and all of the other "Blesseds" or Beatitudes. Basically, He was both outlining the way to be happy and offering consolation to those who already experienced these things. So the Beatitudes told those "who mourn" that they would be comforted, but it also meant that those who take on an attitude of mournfulness would be spiritually comforted. Does that make sense? In other words, those already mourning would be consoled, both now and in the next life, but others could purposefully decide to mourn, for their sins or those of the world, in order to receive the consolation that comes only from Christ. It's hard to go into it all here, but please read and pray with Matthew 5. Here's a picture from the Mount itself:

You can see the mountains in the distance, which would have been seen in the background by those looking on Christ as He taught. And they would have seen the city of Tiberias, which rests on the mountains in the distance. So as Jesus taught that "A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden" (also in Matthew 5), they would have been able to glimpse a very large city set on a mountain which cannot be hidden (unless your camera isn't zoomed in enough...but it's there, trust me). The point being that as Jesus taught the crowds, He related things to them in ways that were accessible to them, in ways they would have understood. In fact, all of the cities of that time were set on hills, and most of them still stand that way. So this analogy came easily for people in that time and place.

This fits perfectly, in fact, with the Mystery which we now celebrate in this Christmas season, the Mystery of the Incarnation: God became man in a particular time and place. The way He taught and teaches us, therefore, relates with that particular time and place. His teaching, like Himself, is incarnational. It takes flesh so that we can understand it. This reflection on Christ's humanity struck me all throughout the Holy Land.

And through this, another thought continually came to mind: It all actually happened. Now you may be thinking, "Paul, shouldn't you, a seminarian, have already believed this?"

And I would respond, "Yes, of course, I did already believe it, and now I do believe it. Capisci?"

Basically, the reality of it sunk in even deeper than I could have imagined. It all really happened in a real place. The story of Jesus Christ is not just a nice story with tidy little moral implications. No. It actually, really, historically happened. Capernaum is a real town where Jesus taught and performed mighty miracles. Unfortunately, the people of Capernaum did not repent and believe, as Christ lamented in the Gospel of Luke, stating, "And as for you, Capernaum, 'Will you be exalted to heaven? You will go down to the netherworld.'" (SEE Luke 10:15; this is also a reference to Isaiah 14:13-15) And all that exists today are some excavated ruins of that town. Coincidence? I think not....

But it was just beautiful to be there, absorbing it all, soaking in the sights, sounds, and smells of the countryside of Galilee. And it's no wonder God chose to become man there: it's beautiful. The landscapes are captivating, and there is a strong sense of peace about the place, but that might have something to do with the fact that God lived there for a period of time...which at least ups the resale value of a place for sure.

So there are some of my early reflections on our Pilgrimage to the Holy Land. And now for everyone's favorite part: pictures. God bless, and Happy New Year!

It begins...

This was the happiest place in that whole airport.

The Sea of Galilee itself. Just think: Jesus might have looked at the exact same view. I mean, He looked at the exact same Sea and mountains, but He may have even stood in the exact spot where I took the picture.