Life as a living reflection of the Dynamic Mystery of the Trinity

Myth as Mystery, His Story, History, My Story, Mystery

The Story of Sin–History does not have to repeat itself.

Sin is something I know about and can write about without speculation or guesswork.  As a sinner, I was conceived;  I thought, spoke and acted in sinful ways that are just becoming clear to me at this late stage in my life.   ”Only God can reveal sin. ”(Cenacle of Divine Providence School of Spirituality)  I rejoice that my sin is being revelaed to me.  I can confess it be absolved and gain freedom in areas that have been cloaked in darkness and hidden from my mind for my entire life. 

 God in His mercy has revealed the story of my sin to me. I see the the root of my sin as multi-layered, three-pronged which penetrates to the depths of my being.  The outer layer which was formed first has its roots in Original Sin.   Within this original portal for the lie of Satan to enter formed the next geological layer:  generational sin.  The third and final category is the above ground manifestation of my own making: personal sin.

Feast of the Holy Rosary October 7, 2007

St. Bernard of Clairvaux

Doctor of the Church 

The child to be born of you will be called holy, the Son of God, the fountain of wisdom, the Word of the Father on high. Through you, blessed Virgin, this Word will become flesh, so that even though, as he says: I am in the Father and the Father is in me, it is still true for him to say: “I came forth from God and am here”.
In the beginning was the Word. The spring was gushing forth, yet still within himself. Indeed, the Word was with God, truly dwelling in inaccessible light. And the Lord said from the beginning: I think thoughts of peace and not of affliction. Yet your thought was locked within you, and whatever you thought, we did not know; for who knew the mind of the Lord, or who was his counsellor?
And so the idea of peace came down to do the work of peace: The Word was made flesh and even now dwells among us. It is by faith that he dwells in our hearts, in our memory, our intellect and penetrates even into our imagination. What concept could man have of God if he did not first fashion an image of him in his heart? By nature incomprehensible and inaccessible, he was invisible and unthinkable, but now he wished to be understood, to be seen and thought of.
But how, you ask, was this done? He lay in a manger and rested on a virgin’s breast, preached on a mountain, and spent the night in prayer. He hung on a cross, grew pale in death, and roamed free among the dead and ruled over those in hell. He rose again on the third day, and showed the apostles the wounds of the nails, the signs of victory; and finally in their presence he ascended to the sanctuary of heaven.
How can we not contemplate this story in truth, piety and holiness? Whatever of all this I consider, it is God I am considering; in all this he is my God. I have said it is wise to meditate on these truths, and I have thought it right to recall the abundant sweetness, given by the fruits of this priestly root; and Mary, drawing abundantly from heaven, has caused this sweetness to overflow for us.

This excerpt from a homily by Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (Sermo de Aquaeductu: Opera Omnia, Edit. Cisterc. 5 {1968, 282-283) is used in the Roman Office of Readings for the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary on October 7. 

“We should meditate on the mysteries of salvation.” Taken from a sermon by St. Bernard, abbot

Saint Bernard of Clairvaux: born in 1090, probably at Fontaine-les-Dijon, near Dijon, Burgundy; monk and mystic; founder and abbot of the abbey of Clairvaux; among the most influential churchmen of his time; died at Clairvaux, Champagne, 1153; canonized, 1174.

This commermorative feast was established by Pope Saint Pius V on the anniversary of the naval victory won by the Christian fleet over the Turks at Lepanto  in the late 16th century.  The victory was attributed to the help of the holy Mother of God whose aid was invoked through praying the rosary.  The celebration of this day invites all to meditate upon the mysterirers of Christ, following the example of the Blessed Virgin Mary who was so singularly associated with the incarnation, passion and glorious resurrection of the Son of God, as well as with many of the events in his public ministry which we now meditate upon in the luminous mysteries added by Pope John Paul II.

Katie and Justin’s Wedding Day

September 15, 2007

2:00 Nuptial Mass at Our Mother of Good Counsel Church

7:00 reception at the Hotel duPont

Father Cantalamessa on the Joy of Fatherhood

Words from Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa on fatherhood

Father Cantalamessa on the Joy of Fatherhood

Pontifical Household Preacher Comments on Sunday’s Readings

ROME, SEPT. 14, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of a commentary by the Pontifical Household preacher, Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa, on the readings from this Sunday’s liturgy.

* * *

His father ran out to meet him
24th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Exodus 32:7-11, 13-14; 1 Timothy 1:12-17; Luke 15:1-32

In this Sunday’s liturgy the entire 15th chapter of Luke’s Gospel is read. The chapter contains the three “mercy parables”: the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son.

“A man had two sons”: Anyone who has even the most minimal familiarity with the Gospel on hearing these five words will immediately exclaim, “the parable of the prodigal son!”

On other occasions I have focused on the spiritual significance of the parable; this time I would like to consider an aspect that has received little attention, but which is very relevant at this moment and close to life. At the bottom of the parable is simply the story of a reconciliation between father and son, and we all know that such a reconciliation is essential to the happiness of fathers and children.

Who knows why literature, art, theater and advertisements all concentrate on a single human relationship: the erotic one between man and woman, between husband and wife? It would seem that this is the only thing in life.

Advertisements and the cinema do nothing else but cook up the same dish using a thousand sauces. But we leave another human relationship, that is just as universal and vital, unexplored, one that is another great source of the joy of life: the relationship between father and children, the joy of paternity.

The only piece of literature that really deals with this theme is Franz Kafka’s letter to his father. Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev’s famous novel “Fathers and Sons” does not actually treat of the relationship between natural fathers and children but between different generations.

If we serenely and objectively look into the human heart we will find that, in the majority of cases, a good, understanding, and untroubled relationship with his children is, for a mature, adult man, no less important and fulfilling than the relationship between a man and a woman. We know how important this relationship is for both sons and daughters and the tremendous void that is left by its disintegration.

As cancer usually attacks the most delicate organs in men and women, so also does the destructive power of sin and evil attack the most vital relationships in human existence. There is nothing worse in the relationship between a man and a woman than abuse, exploitation and violence, and there is nothing that is exposed to deformation like the relationship between fathers and children: authoritarianism, paternalism, rebellion, rejection, lack of communication.

We should not generalize. There are beautiful relationships between fathers and children and I myself have known various ones. We know, however, that there are also more numerous negative cases and difficult relationships between fathers and children. In the prophet Isaiah we read this exclamation of God: “I raised and reared these children but they have rebelled against me” (Isaiah 1:2). I believe that many fathers today know from experience what these words mean.

The suffering is reciprocal; it is not like the parable in which the fault is entirely the son’s. There are fathers whose most profound suffering in life is being rejected or even despised by their children. And there are children whose most profound and unadmitted suffering is to feel misunderstood, to not be esteemed, to be rejected by their father.

I have focused on the human and existential implications of the parable of the prodigal son. But we are not only dealing with this, that is, with the amelioration of the quality of life in this world.

The undertaking of a great reconciliation between fathers and children and a profound healing of their relationship is something that is important for a new evangelization. We know how much the relationship with an earthly father can influence, positively or negatively, one’s relationship with the heavenly Father and thus the Christian life as well.

When the precursor, John the Baptist, was born the angel said that one of his tasks would be “to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the hearts of the children to the fathers” [cf. Luke 1:17]. Today this is a task that is more important than ever

Feast of St. Matthew

September 21, 2007

Denis is 36 years old today. 

Fathering Truth, Mothering Sorrow: The birthing of the Triumph of the Cross through the Power of the Holy Spirit

We worship you, O Lord and we adore you becasue by your Holy Cross you have redeemed the world. 

Betrothal, Engagement and pre-nuptial Preparation

On the occasion of   the betrothal of our older son Vincent dePaul to Kali Alexander

  

Betrothal  (excerpt from the Catholic Encyclopedia)     Publication information:      (Written by Andrew B. Meehan. Transcribed by Susan Birkenseer. )  The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume II. Published 1907. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Nihil Obstat, 1907. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., Censor. Imprimatur. +John M. Farley, Archbishop of New York

(Latin sponsalia).

The giving of one’s troth — that is, one’s true faith or promise. Betrothal, in the Catholic Church, is a deliberate and free, mutual, true promise, externally expressed, of future marriage between determinate and fit persons. It is a promise, compact, or agreement — not merely an intention; and, like all contracts, it must be entered into with deliberation proportionate to the obligation which it begets; it must be free from force, substantial error, and grave fear. The promise given must be mutual; a promise on the part of one only, with acceptance by the other, does not constitute a betrothal. The consent, of course, as in all contracts, must be true, or sincere, not feigned; it must be given with the intention of binding oneself, and this intention must be expressed verbally, by writing, or by action, in person or by proxy. Lastly, this contract, like matrimony, can exist only between two definite persons whose capacity is recognized by the Church; that is, between whom there is no matrimonial impediment, either as regards the licitness or validity of the contract. The betrothal is a promise of future marriage, and hence it differs from the marriage contract itself, which deals with that state as in the present.