theROCK

Come Back to the Cross

Two years ago, as our mom began her journey home to God, she held court in the ICU room. There were conversations with spouses, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. One by one the five of us, her children, entered alone to listen. A strong and loving woman with remarkable faith, she chose her words carefully so there could be no argument. Arguing was pointless, you were not going to win, besides, she was usually right. She opened her prayer book, instinctively brought to the hospital, and handed me the prayer "Come Back to the Cross."

Dear Lord, you became man, suffered, and died to win salvation for all souls.

Look graciously on the souls of those who have drifted away from You and the faith.

Grant them Your grace to see the errors of their ways and return to the fold of Your care

Teach me to stay close to them during this trying time and strive to convert them by action and prayer more than by words that may antagonize.

O sweet Jesus, I trust You to do everything to bring Your children back to You. Amen.

Mom said, “Michael, you need to get them back to Jesus, get them back to His Church. Get the babies baptized.”  Thanks mom. That isn’t too daunting. But isn’t this what we are ALL called to do? Is there a better time to start than Lent? Is there a better image than THE Cross? You share your favorite restaurant, movie, recipe…why not your faith?

In my early 20’s, I was lost, distracted. Working Sunday mornings was a good rationalization. I was busy. God would understand. Decades later, a framed prayer in my office reads: “Lord, I shall be very busy today. I may forget Thou, but do not Thou forget me.” Yep, it was mom’s, She is still teaching me.

Add these prayers to your daily conversation with God. Share it with those who need to see it. Seek the lost or distracted during this Lent; family, friends, or acquaintances. God will provide the words.

LISTEN to their story…it is still being written and Jesus has the lead role.

SHARE your story of how Jesus is your rock; how He gives you the strength to face the challenges of this world.

PRAY WITH them. It may be awkward at first, but both will move past it.

JOIN them during the Triduum and at Easter. Join them the Sunday after Easter.

There are three players in this story, Jesus, the lost, and those called to “Be Christ” and walk with the lost (that is all of us). Thankfully, all is possible with and through God. He gave His only Son for us. The least we can do is give Him our hearts and tell His story.

Change

Are you still scrambling with what to give up for Lent? I decided to give up coffee and 6 hours later found myself unable to do that. Knowing God’s forgiveness, I reflected more on what I need to do that will change my heart. For we know that prayer, fasting and almsgiving is the church’s invitation for us to enter deeply into the mysteries of the suffering, death and resurrection of our Lord. But there is more to just “giving something up.” It is about CHANGE and adopting the life of Christ given to us. 

We see little signs of change in nature: buds on the trees and bulbs beginning to bloom in spring. It’s a reminder for us that new life emerges from the dormancy of darkness. Journeying with the Elect (those to be baptized at the Easter Vigil) and witnessing their change is truly a gift. We see how Christ is active in drawing them to himself; their hearts open for the many God-winks in daily life, their eyes open to see how God is working in their lives, and their ears open to the voice of the  Holy Spirit.

Fr. Dennis said we should not come to Communion unless we want to be changed. As we walk toward the altar to receive Jesus, He enters our lives in a tangible way and changes us into his image. That change may be small but it is effective. What change do we seek? What change do we need?

Prayer allows us to ascend the mountain as Jesus did in the gospel account of the transfiguration and to hear the voice of God. Imagine what it was like for Peter, James and John to witness our Lord’s transfiguration, to reflect on the experience, and later to share it with others after his death. It changed them forever and cemented their deep relationship with Jesus. 

Reflecting on the change we need in our lives, let us think about where we fail. Could it be our judgement of others or harboring grudges? Could it be our selfishness or self-absorption? How effective can we be when we allow the noise of the world to overpower us? Practicing little virtuous habits will result in big changes in our lives.

God chooses to work through us, as flawed as we are, to share Jesus with others. Come away from your busy life and spend some time in prayer, in silence, and encounter the One who loves you unconditionally. Bring your brokenness, your lack of faith or even your sinfulness to Him who wants to change you with his Love. 

A Matter of Life After Death

It’s been a difficult year health-wise for many of my family members and friends. Regular updates about diagnoses and surgeries, tests and treatment plans has my mind thinking about Life and Death more than usual. A lyric comes to mind from my favorite band Rush: “learning that we’re only immortal . . . for a limited time.”

We live our days one day at a time and don’t like to think about death because the afterlife is a giant question mark of unknowns. As Catholics, we believe quite profoundly in Life AFTER Death. Our souls are destined to exist for eternity.

At a recent staff meeting we discussed an article about the “Nones.” Nones being those who have no affiliation with a formal religion.  Atheism is on the rise, with more Americans rejecting the notion of God entirely, much less that Heaven and Hell are real. Another well-known quote comes to mind: "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." ~ Charles Baudelaire

Every one of us likely knows someone (or is that someone) who has experienced first-hand some inexplicable/miraculous event that transcends the corporeal and can best be described as Divine Intervention.   It is a matter of faith to recognize the handprint of God in those moments.  It is a matter of fact that sometimes things happen that defy that which our human minds and science can explain. Miracles are the proof that God is with us.

Jesus’ earthly life and His words through the Gospel accounts assure us that eternal life with HIM is within our reach and that there is a reckoning for those who embrace sin and evil. So for the faithful, we recognize that what we’re doing here on Earth really is about salvation. OUR salvation. But in all honesty, whether a person believes or is a NONE, for every human being ever conceived, eventually life on Earth ends and the souls’ Eternity begins.

God alone is the judge for a soul’s eternal life. We all sin and we must seek Reconciliation. This is how we reconcile our mortal minds with our own mortality. 

Jesus told us directly how to reconcile ourselves with God: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”  Mt 22:38-40

If  we truly follow these commands, when illness threatens body, soul is still at peace.