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One of our deacons had a perfectly serviceable homily about persistence in prayer, but I would like to direct your attention to Fr. Edward Fox’s homily posted on his blog, “Bonfire of the Vanities,” today. It’s really good stuff, and one of his points about the sin of Sodom bears repeating:
And he preached on real chastity, and the need to go to confession. Good work, Father!
Excellent sermon at a NO Mass. The priest said that all Catholics were to be people of prayer, as that is what we do. He noted that we live in a world like Abraham, where evil is more obvious and that the need for being a friend of God and interceding is of the utmost importance. The priest, whose name I do not know, emphasized that the apostles, who watched Christ daily and noticed that He would go away to pray, were Jews and used to praying a lot. Yet, they were humble enough to ask Christ how to pray, as they wanted to know how He prayed. The good priest encouraged all not to give up on prayer, but to be persistent. He challenged the congregation, of which I was one of the “youngest”, to set aside time for daily prayer. Nice, simple thoughts.
The sermon was about the Pharisee and the publican.
The Pharisee is a holy person, so why does Our Lord tell us to be like the publican (a sinner)?
It is possible to be too holy. Our humility has to be greater than or equal to our piety. True holiness lies in the middle of the road. We have to realize who we are in the sight of God–that we are sinners and must pray for humility. Humility is the key. We owe God everything.
The Publican and Pharisee. We received a very standard gloss on the passage.
Made me wonder, however, if this is one of the Gospel lessons most lost on people.
Phariseeism seems so rampant. How do bona fide Pharisees interpret their relationship to this passage, when its read at Mass? When Our Lord talks about adulterers and thieves, obviously adulterers and thieves present at the Mass must reflect on their conduct. But how many Pharisees pause to reflect?
And isn’t Publican and Pharisee one of the most universal lessons in the Gospels. Shouldn’t it give us all cause to reflect? How many do? I’d surmise most of us see ourselves as generous, sincere, Publicans.
At Mass today, Father preached about prayer. About how the faith had been kept in Ireland during the days of persecution under Oliver Cromwell – without priests and religious the people clung to the Rosary.
He told us about his grandmother, who would get out the family photo albums and, with her grandchildren gathered around her, would regale them with memories of the members of the family in years past. He said that praying the rosary is like looking at the “photo albums” of Jesus’ life with His mother.
That really struck a chord with me.
There are 3 essential qualities to prayer: humility, confidence and persistence (if I heard him correctly.)
Sometimes we pray “Our Father, Who art in Heaven”, when what we really mean is “Our Debtor, Who art at our beck and call”. This is not humble prayer.
Which are we: the publican or the pharisee? In truth, both, at times.
After unpacking the Lord’s Prayer, Father concluded with, “At our judgement, we won’t be judged on how perfectly we prayed, but how consistently we prayed”.
Ours was on humility. Take home points: “Don’t proclaim your holiness for all to see; be holy, and God will see.” And “if you have to announce to everyone what you are doing, then you are not doing it right.”
People of Sodom were inhospitable.
Lin says:
People of Sodom were inhospitable.
I would say that trying to sodomize guests is definitely an example of a lack of hospitality. Only Lady MacBeth can top that one.
At our NO Mass about persisting in prayer, not to give up if we don’t feel we pray as well as we should, but to continue trying, God hears all our prayers, strive for holiness, and to pray for what God wants to give us, not necessarily what we want which may not always be what’s best for us.
Our Deacon blessed my new rosary after Mass, and we had a nice conversation about the value of the Rosary as an aid in our prayer lives. Taking the time to pray my daily Rosary sometimes seems like self-indulgence when I have other obligations to take care of, but I view the time spent as an investment. I always come away from the Rosary feeling refreshed and re-energized. Father also mentioned Purgatory as being a place we should be happy to find ourselves in at our life’s end, as it means we’ve almost made it to our desired destination. With that, I had a chat with our daughter about praying for her parents when we pop off, with a view to springing us out of Purgatory.
Archbishop Sample thanked “Cantores in Ecclesia” for keeping chant and sacred polyphony alive in Portland for the past thirty years, and promised to be their good friend. He said that sacred polyphony and especially chant can give mass-goers a sense of heaven and aid in their sanctification. Mass was heavenly.
(Not quotes, but the idea that I came away with) Americans have always been individualistic. That’s a bad thing. And that’s why praying by singing and “acting” is better than just praying to God by yourself. Because “Church” is all about togetherness, just not us together with God.
Not my parish. Thank God. I was in a nearby town for Saturday vigil mass getting ready to drop my daughter off at the airport this morning at 4:40 a.m. on her way to Our Nation’s Capitol for the National Assn. of Pastoral Musicians convention. I’m afraid that since I pick her up at the airport next Saturday about 4:45 p.m. and Mass is at 5:30, I’ll hear more from this priest next week.
We were reminded of Abraham’s talk with GOD before entering Sodom and Gomorrah, when GOD tells him that even if there are ten righteous people he would spare the city, and that the innocent of Abraham’s people should not go to the city to find righteous people. This gave me a lot to think and pray about with regards to current events and being mindful of the things my children are exposed to on a daily basis.
Father also talked about the power of prayer (“ask and you shall receive”) and continually putting our trust in GOD through prayer.
It was the best sermon I’ve heard from this new priest at the NO here.
We had a pastoral letter from the Bishop of Shrewsbury, re-affirming the Sacrament of Marriage, calling the recent same-sex “marriage” act a “seismic shift” away from the Judaeo-Christian morality which has been the backbone of English law since Augustine arrived in AD 597. The new legislation would not change the Church’s teaching. We may well begin to feel like aliens in our own land; but the domestic church will survive, flourish, and re-convert England. There is much to pray for.
He also quoted from Archbishop Nichols’ reflection “The Narrow Gate”, on the same subject. Well worth a read.
I focused on the three lessons of prayer found in the readings–the necessity of selflessness, service, and humility for effective prayer. St Augustine writes, “Man is a beggar before God.” True. But do we know how to beg effectively?
http://hancaquam.blogspot.com/2013/07/lord-teach-us-to-pray.html
Fr Philip Neri, OP
We had the readings for the 10th Sunday after Pentecost (EF) with the Gospel of the Pharisee and the Publican. In our sinful state humility is difficult for us. But to be humble is to be truthful about oneself, our total dependence on God and our sinful nature.
Slightly OT, but Father mentioned 2 seminarians who are brothers of the Cantor for our EF Mass at the Basilica of Sts. Peter & Paul, Lewiston ME and are just beginning their second year of studies at the FSSP Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary. Given that each seminarian is expected to contribute upwards of $7000 a year toward their tuition and they have little opportunity to make income on their own due to their study schedule, he asked for whatever financial support we can provide, noting the importance of supporting these 2 traditional vocations. Any readers wishing to support them should send donations to Our Lady of Guadalupe seminary with “Hatttrup” (the brothers surname) on the memo line.
Our homily was on prayer as well. The point I took home was not only persistence in prayer — but to be specific in our requests.
Persistence in prayer, and trust.
Last night, I had to attend a 7pm Mass at a very progressive parish. The priest basically ad lib most of the Mass, but his homily was very poignant. He was talking about set prayers or memorized prayers versus prayers that I are created as you go along.
He was a seminarian during the tumultuous 60s and he was not “in to” memorized prayers but tww particular instances move him. The first experience was while trying to make up while sitting next to his father who was on his deathbed. While trying to ad lib a prayer, his father started to pray the “Our Father.” He realized that that prayer although memorized and repeated often was an automatic response and that it gave him comfort during that time.
His next experience was while participating in an AA meeting. The lecturer during one his talks pulled out his rosary. He told the audience that many of them may find memorized prayer out of fashion, but that during the times when he was drinking, the rosary was the “only chain that connected him to heaven.” With that the homily was over.
Tim in NC. Did you go to Sacred Heart in Dunn? Fr P also spoke of Abraham and his humble questions of Our Father regarding who He will save and if the innocents pay the same price as the guilty (Sodom). Turns out no, the innocent and virtuous ones are protected and the guilty are punished. Strive to be virtuous even amongst evil, and be humble (like Abraham) in petitioning Our Lord and you will be protected.
The Holy Father told us to “go, boldly, to serve”, and then further explained these 3 points.
(Yes, I was there! \o/)
Since for some reason there’s no English translation yet, I’ll write a summary:
1. Go:
To go is not optional, it is a request from the Lord. Now, not later, “when we have the time”. It is a command, but it comes from the power of love, from the fact that Jesus gave Himself, not just a bit, but entirely, so as to show God’s love and mercy. “For woe is unto me if I preach not the gospel”.
(The same point from the Way of the Cross, where he, quite angry, asked us: “Do you want to be like Pilate, who did not have the courage to go against the tide to save Jesus’ life, and instead washed his hands? Tell me: are you one of those who wash their hands, who feign ignorance and look the other way?”)
2. Boldly:
Just like the prophet Jeremiah was afraid at first, we must not be afraid, because the Lord is with us. Also, we must not be by ourselves, but live in community, and to feel the company of all the Church and the Communion of Saints. He then told the bishops and priests to help the youth with this mission.
3. To serve:
The psalms talked about “singing a new song”, and the Holy Father said that this song is not made of words or melodies, but our own lives.
(This image immediately made me think of the beautiful beginning of The Silmarillion, where Ilúvatar creates everything with a song.)
Saint Paul became a slave to everyone, in order to win as many people as possible. To evangelize means to testify personally God’s Love and overcome our egoism, bending to wash the feet of our brothers, just like Jesus did.
Fuquay Steve, Yes I was at Sacred Heart in Dunn. There are usually many facets to Fr P’s homilies along with practical advise and encouragement to deepen our relationship with Christ and his Church. I wish my parish back in Atlanta displayed the same depth of reverence we experience we enjoy at Sacred Heart. Let us always pray for the renewal of the Church.
jravago: Thank you for that…I can cite examples both in my father’s life and my life in which we heard the prayer’s of nonCatholics/nonbelievers during dire situations: the Our Father, and the Rosary…stunning because we didn’t KNOW THEY KNEW THEM, and their prayers during situations of near-death have demonstrated to me that there is Hope until the end….even a tiny bit.