Dad’s Lenten Blog

Thoughts during Lent

Tag: blessed-mother

  • The Path to Heaven

    Sometimes in Mass I can’t help but to watch the communion line. I think all of us have the same feeling when a small child is brought to the priest and is blessed. It’s such a great feeling inside. Or maybe when we see a young boy serving on the Altar, it gives me a sense of hope in the future.

    Mom and I were always amazed and very happy that when all of you were little, you each had such love for Jesus and Mary. It was almost supernatural. We use to think that you guys as infants could see angels when we were in Church. Each of you loved to stare at and kiss my Miraculous Medal. You had a sense of its holiness and worth.

    I can remember putting each of you to bed and saying our prayers. Even in your cribs, a sense of calm, of peace came over you as I made the Sign of the Cross.

    Why is this universal? We are certainly not the only ones who have seen this in our children.

    Well I think that first and foremost, these little ones have not yet been corrupted by life’s choices, by its falsehoods, by the world. They are the ultimate purveyors of truth. They can see truth and don’t understand untruth. Each of there feelings are real, if injured, they cry, if their feeling are hurt, they frown, if they see something funny, they laugh. When they say they “I love you”, it melts your heart because you know it’s so true.

    When they pray it is from the heart. Maybe they make a mistake, maybe they don’t do it just right, but it’s straight from the heart.

    Children believe because it’s true. Sure, we try to catechise as much as we can. But when they are so little its just simple. “Jesus loves you” and “the Blessed Mother loves you”.

    And they believe.

    Why is this so important?

    “And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them and said, ‘Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me.’”

    Jesus is calling us to be like a child. To simplify. To rid ourselves of all the trappings of life and just see the truth. Why do we want to complicate everything? No, Jesus wants us to be like we were when we small children. That is what we have to work towards. How can we love like a child loves? How can we shed ourselves of what the world sees? How can we pray like a child prays?

    Jesus gives us the answer. It’s in humility and in love.

    There are fleeting moments in life where you get to experience a very small piece of joy, What heaven must be like for all eternity. I’ve been so fortunate to have many of those moments with each of you and your mother. And almost all those moments came when you were saying your prayers as a little girl or a little boy. It fills my heart just thinking about it.

    So next time you see a small child in church or you are with your niece and nephews or friends’ children take a moment and pray with them or talk to them about Jesus. I think you’ll be surprised how much they’ll teach you about how to get to heaven.

  • The Perfect Fit

     He was the perfect fit.

    Saint Paul, then called Saul, could not have a better resume. He was a Pharisee, he was wealthy and interestingly enough, a Roman citizen. This man dedicated his life to killing and torturing as many Christians as he could find. Who better to be the chief persecutor.

    I’m sure he gained fame with both the Romans and the Pharisees for his pursuits. He also must’ve struck fear wherever he went. If I close my eyes and think back to what life must’ve been like in Israel at that time. I can imagine very simple and probably hard life. it seems to me that whole family would probably work to keep food on the table and a roof over their heads.

    It’s in these homes I think the Christianity took hold. These fortunate people more than likely heard the words of Jesus personally. How life-changing, how impactful, how extraordinary that must’ve been. But now think of what it would’ve been like a year, or two years after Jesus was crucified. Those who believed knew that Jesus had conquered death in His Resurrection. It was in this belief that their lives were transformed. “ Love thy neighbor, as I have loved you“, took on  a new meaning. I just have to believe that all of those early Christians would’ve stood out in a crowd. Peaceful, caring, tolerant, loving, hopeful. Qualities that may have set them apart from non-believers.

    Easy prey.

    And Saint Paul (Saul) was ruthless. We just get a snippet of his persecution of those early disciples of Jesus. But I imagine he targeted not just men, but women and children, whole families. Torture and death. He probably thought by this path of cruelty, these Christians will eventually fade away.

    It’s just an incredible event. Really think about it. That Jesus, soon after his Resurrection and Ascension into heaven, chooses maybe one of the most important figures in the early church. Who is that person He chooses, Saint Paul, ( Saul ). Of all the people, all the early disciples, even the first apostles, Jesus chose him.

    Of course, we know the story of Paul’s conversion on the road to Damascus. Now, think about several weeks later after his conversion. Paul goes and visits  the first apostles. Peter, James, John, all of them knew this man and what he had done. Can you even conceive of their astonishment at his conversion? I could just imagine him going to Peter and asking for confession.

    We just don’t know how God can turn suffering into good. We don’t know why God chooses people like Saint Paul. But by Saint Paul’s example, we can be confident in one thing. Jesus can open even the most hardened heart.

    We don’t know how many years he lived after his conversion, but we do know Saint Paul became one of the most important apostles, certainly the most prolific. He went out and preached the Gospel for many years under intense persecution. All of the people, Jews and non-Jews alike, would have known of his past. And as they listened to this man preach the good news they must’ve hung on every word.

    It’s amazing how God works because……… he was the perfect fit.

  • The greatest Yes

    Their times in your life, many of them just fleeting moments, when you’re asked to do something that is either uncomfortable, inconvenient, or just plain hard. It could be a simple as getting up off the couch and doing a chore for Mom and or me. Maybe something much more difficult. Each of us has a story. At one time or another we had to make a decision. Yes, or no.

    Sometime today I want you to close your eyes and picture this scene. 

    In a small ancient town, over 2000 years ago, there is  a small, nondescript house, probably with stone walls and dirt floors. Inside, maybe there were just a couple of rooms. In one of those rooms there’s a young girl, maybe 13 or 14 years old. I’d like to believe she’s praying.

    All of a sudden, there’s an intense light. A man appears in the room. She is very frightened. The man kneels at her feet and bows his head. His words, “Hail Mary, full of Grace!“.

    We are so used to watching science fiction and monster movies and supernatural ghost stories with great CGI. Just imagine for a second what it would’ve been like for a young girl back then to experience this. Her heart racing with fear of the unknown and of what’s happening before her.

    Then, on top of this frightening moment, the man tells the young girl that she has been chosen by God to give birth to the savior of the world, the Messiah, the Christ, Jesus. At this moment in history, the Jewish people in Israel were under occupation by the Romans, so the prayer for the Messiah to deliver them from oppression was on everybody’s lips for decades. This message from the man to the young girl must’ve been incredible shock.

    Above all else, this young girl must have been so confused and fearful because she had never been with a man. But the man said, “Be not afraid”! 

    In this tiny, humble room, this young girl was asked do to do something very difficult, fraught with issues. How could she explain this? What would she tell her fiancé, Joseph??? What would her parents say? What thoughts must have been racing through her mind. 

    What would her response be???? I believe all the angels heaven stopped at that moment and were listening and hoping. She had free will to say yes or no.

    This was the moment that would change everything, forever.

    Her response, “ Behold, I am the handmade of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word“.

    At that moment, which we celebrate today, heaven must have rejoiced. 

    This young, simple, and innocent girl from a small, poor, insignificant town loved God and trusted Him. No matter what the repercussions.

    Today, we celebrate the Solemnity of the Annunciation. Today we celebrate like the angels did at that moment. Why?

    Because Mary said Yes.

  • A Good Vintage

    There is something special about really good wine. Where it came from, somewhere in the hills of France or Italy or California. And there, grapes were harvested, processed, and eventually bottled some times 10 or 20 years earlier. And when one of those wines are opened, its like they have a life of their own, as the air touches the wine for the first time in years the wine comes to life and the flavors just get better and better.

    Why is wine interwoven in our faith and in a bigger sense all human history? I don’t know. But it absolutely plays a huge part. The most significant is the fact of transubstantiation. It is wine, that becomes Christ blood. Jesus could’ve chosen any liquid, water, grape juice, anything, but he clearly chose wine.

    But outside of the Eucharist, it is Jesus‘s first miracle that has such deep meaning for me. It’s not necessarily about the wine, as it is about Jesus‘s mother, Mary.

    There are very few words that that Mary speaks in the Bible. They are all very substantial. But I do love the the night of the wedding in Cana. 

    So, these wedding feasts go on for days and I imagine a lot of wine is drunk. And as we all know the story, the hosts somehow run out of wine early.

    Though the Bible doesn’t specifically say it,  we have to believe that Mary senses the anxiety of the hosts. And so She goes to Jesus and simply says “they have no wine“. That’s it. Maybe She didn’t have to say another word. He knew what She was requesting because She and Joseph were the only ones in the world who knew who Jesus was. What was Jesus‘s reply? “ Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come”.

    Whoa! That was pretty tough response. Almost a rebuke.

    But then something amazing happens, Mary just turns to the servant standing near and says “do whatever he tells you“.

    We know the story, Jesus tells the servants to fill six jars that held 30 gallons each, with water. ( ok, I had to look that up ; -) That would be like 180 gallons. And with the His first miracle, turns that water into wine. And when the master of the wedding tastes it, he can’t believe the quality! Can any of us imagine how good that wine must have been!

    But not only did Jesus fulfill Mary’s request to help someone else. He fulfilled in a way that was bountiful. 180 gallons!!!!! That must have been some wedding.

    Mary is our mother. And as any good mother, She is concerned always for the well being of Her children. A mother senses things about her children. So when Mary senses what was happening, the embarrassment and bummer for all the party goers and the bride and groom, what did She do? She went directly to Her Son. And He could not turn Her away.

    Why do we ask our Blessed Mother to pray for us? Because She loves us only a mother could. And Jesus can’t say no to His mother. She knows what is good for us. What is good for our souls. And She wants us to be with Her Son, forever, in Heaven.