Sunday, July 31, 2011

Trust a reward in itself

Bulletin Article 7/31
If I were to ask you, “What is trust?” How would you respond? Trust, like love, is a word that is understood, but hard to describe. Trust can be paired with faith or belief in something. These words cannot be confused as synonyms. My trust in God is solidified because of my faith in Him. I believe that He is the creator of the universe; I believe that His son Jesus was born of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and that He suffered, died, and rose again. Due to the face that I believe this, I trust that God is who He says He is and He will do what He says He will do. These words are relatable, but not interchangeable.

The first instance of trust in our lives is when we are little babies. We are completely reliant on our parents. All a baby knows is “I cry and mommy or daddy brings me what I need.” As a baby, we have no inclination of the outside world or responsibility. Babies completely trust their parents. That trust develops as we grow. When we take our first steps or learn to ride a bike, we trust that our parents will be there if we fall down. As we get older, we learn that trust is something special because it can be broken.


The readings this week and next week are completely about trust. This week we hear about God being the ultimate provider. He asks that we give all that we have in order to feed His flock. How apprehensive are we when He asks us that? Look at the disciples. They are asked to give all the food they had to this large crowd. If I were Peter, James, or another disciple I would think, “No way. It’s been such a long day. I am hungry. If I give away my food I will have nothing.” But look at how Jesus rewards their trust. So many times we look at this passage as God providing for the crowd. However, what does He provide for His disciples who gave all they had? “they picked up the fragments left over—twelve wicker baskets full.”

Jesus rewards our trust beyond our wildest dreams. The Disciples went from having to share 5 loaves and two fish between the 12 of them. Now they each had an entire basket full of food. The Lord knows the longings of our hearts. He knows the simple desires we have—the small and the big. He asks us to trust Him with what He has given us. All we need to do is give it back to him and allow Him to multiply it.

Sunday, July 24, 2011

The Kingdom of Heaven is Like...

As a kid, did you ever think about what Heaven must be like? Has that image changed as you got older? For me, I always tried to envision what Heaven must look like. What does it smell like in Heaven; what are the restaurants like? I never could get a picture of it in my mind. I always thought of the journey from this life to Heaven as if I were reaching land on a ship. For instance, I thought that when I died, my soul would come ashore to a beautiful island. As I disembarked the ship, I would be greeted by all of my loved ones who have gone before me. In some way or another we all have similar visions of Heaven where we are finally reunited with those who have already died.

This week’s gospel has no mention of reunions. In fact, it can scare us a bit. “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a net that collects fish of every kind…the good are kept and put in buckets…the bad are thrown away.” In today’s world, it is very difficult to know what is right. We have so many different voices telling us what to believe. When we were kids, we listened to what our parents and teachers told us. When we became young adults we listened to our professors, supervisors, and bosses. Who is right? What is the voice of truth? Who do we listen to if we want to be among the “good fish”?

The voice of truth is rarely heard because it is most often spoken in a whisper. God calls out to us but not over all the noise in our lives. We must take the time to silence the noise and listen only to Him. Whether it is 5 minutes in the morning, on the drive to work, or a half hour on our lunch break, we must strive to listen to the voice of truth. Rather than taking our prayer time to ask God for things we need, try asking for an understanding heart that can hear His words. (Like Solomon in the first reading today). Then and only then will we hear the voice of truth say, “Because you have asked for this—not for a long life for yourself, nor for riches, nor for the life of your enemies, but for understanding so that you may know what is right—I do as you requested. I give you a heart so wise and understanding that there has never been anyone like you up to now, and after you there will come no one to equal you.” Then, I guarantee you, we will be among those good fish.

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

4th of July vs. Independence Day

Bulletin Article July 3

Independence Day is hardly used to describe the 4th day of July anymore. In fact, most people simply refer to it as “The 4th.” Most people associate this holiday with barbeques and vacations. Yet, there is something left to be desired when we ignore the true title of the day. Tomorrow we celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence, which was an extremely gutsy move by the Second Continental Congress (the governing body of the 13 Colonies).

However, even these brave politicians realized that their power meant nothing compared to the power of Almighty God. In fact, in 1779, the holiday was celebrated on a Monday because the 4th of July fell on a Sunday—the Sabbath day. This Sunday’s First Reading speaks of the humble leader God would send His people. We know this leader to be Christ, who taught by example of what it meant to serve. The American colonists established a government based on serving its people. It claimed that we are born with natural rights and if a government restricted or impeded on these rights or the good of its people, they could break from it.

As a Catholic, who happens to hold a degree in American History, I am partial to Charles Carroll, a relative of the first bishop of the first diocese in the United States. He was the only Catholic to sign the Declaration (in fact, many Catholics were forbidden to hold political office in many states at the time) and the only signer to put the town he lived in. His signature reads, “Charles Carroll of Carrollton”. He believed in the cause so much that, with full knowledge of the consequences, he let the British know exactly who he was. We need more Catholics like that today.

In a country which is become so “PC” we cannot even say the Pledge of Allegiance in schools, it is time for Catholics to stop being on the defensive. Stop apologizing for your faith. We must recognize that we are dependent on God because we are independent from the world. Being Catholic is not a disease, it’s a blessing and an honor. Being Catholic is as much a part of your identity as your nationality. We are not just Americans, we are CATHOLIC Americans (notice that Catholic comes first). We are part of something much bigger than anything else in the world. We belong to a community that has given more aid to suffering people around the globe than anyone else. We support what people know to be self-evident truths but are too afraid to stand up for. We respect all life even though this gets little to no coverage in the media. We provide schools and hospitals all over the world. Our Church honors saints who have given their lives for what they believed in. Isn’t it time for you to do the same?