Give Us A Chance

A new group of RCIA inquirers has begun meeting here at Saint Ambrose on Tuesday nights.  We call the first “stage” of RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) the inquiry stage because at this point, those who are participating in the process are checking out the Catholic Church.  They are deciding if this is a good fit for them, if this is what is right for them at this stage of their faith journey.

At this point, the inquirers are giving us a chance.  Obviously, we want to put our best foot forward.  We want to show the best side of the Catholic Church and why it is a great “place” to call “home” (even though the Church with a capital C is much more than just the physical building).  This can be tricky, especially given the events and scandals of recent months and years.  But as one of our newly baptized Catholics who received the sacraments at the Easter Vigil in April said to us at about this time last year, the Church is more than the actions of some of its priests.

Our inquirers have taken the first step.  They are giving us a chance.  And whether the average parishioner in the pew realizes it or not, the entire parish is a participant in forming each new potential member of the Catholic Church.

Help us help them give us a chance, and put our best foot forward.

God Helps Those Who Help Themselves

My Hungarian grandmother had an oft-used saying when she felt like someone was not doing all that they were able to do:  “Don’t be that helpless!”  She would say this in her thick Hungarian accent with an air of exasperation.  It has been almost nine years since my grandmother passed away, but I think of her saying often.  She never meant it in a bad way, but it usually made me stop and think, what else could I be doing right now to help myself?

You may have heard the saying, “God helps those who help themselves.”  What does that really mean?  Does God only help those who have done everything in their power and turn to Him as a last resort?  Does God look at someone and think, well, they could do X, Y, and Z still, and until they do, I don’t need to intervene?  That doesn’t fit with our belief in a loving God.

So, who does God help?  Whose prayers does He readily answer?  He answers all of our prayers, but it may not be the answer we want.  The answer may be “no” or “not right now.”  But, by the same token, God never gives us more than we can handle.  He helps us according to our abilities at the given moment.

So, yes, God helps those who help themselves, but if we turn to Him, He will not fail to answer our prayers.  In the Fatima Prayer, often added at the end of rosary decade, we pray “Lead all souls to heaven, especially those in most need of Thy mercy.”  Let us strive to do our best, live our best lives in accordance with God’s will, and to reach out to God when we are in most need of Him.

Busy Weekends? Look for an Alternative

One of the odd things about working for the Church is you need to have “alternative weekends.”  Often, church employees work Sundays, and some also work Saturdays, so it is important for them to find other days during the week to take as a “weekend” instead.  It is particularly tricky for priests because they have daily obligations as a function of their vocation.  But, even priests should get a “day off” and vacation time.

Most of us who work for the parish have carved out our alternative weekends.  My weekend is typically Friday and Saturday.  Having worked in an environment that was very emotionally, mentally, and even physically taxing at times, I am pretty protective of my weekends.  Most of my evenings are taken up with a commitment of one kind or another as well, so I need to guard my time off.

In the United States, there is a culture of workaholism.  In order to live the American Dream we feel like we need to work all the time.  The sad part is that people sometimes have to work two or more jobs just to make ends meet.  So, we get in a mindset that if we aren’t working there must be something better to do with our time than just sitting around.  In fact, there is a certain amount of stigma aimed toward those seen to be “slackers” or taking advantage of the system.

The reality is that we live in a culture that glamorizes work to the point of pushing people toward mental and emotional breakdown, and we have developed this mindset in relatively recent decades.  That isn’t healthy.  That isn’t sustainable.  If you look at other cultures, they place value in people for their potential as human beings, not in their employability.  Quality of life is not determined by one’s ability to work, but by one’s opportunities for growth as a whole person.

Faith can be an important aspect of our lives that might be pushed aside in favor of work.  Make sure you are giving yourself the opportunity to rest and recharge.  Remember, Elijah heard God in “a light silent sound” (1 Kings 19:12 NABRE translation) or, as we may be more familiar, “a still small voice” (KJV translation), not in hubbub.  Give yourself a chance to be quiet and attentive to what God is trying to say to you.  If that means finding alternative weekends for yourself, make that a priority.  Your faith, as well as your body and your sanity, will thank you.

New Neighbors

Several people in our neighborhood moved in the spring and the summer.  New neighbors are moving in slowly, and the For Sale signs are coming down.  It can be hard for my family to get to know new neighbors, especially as we don’t share the predominant faith of our neighborhood, and thus do not see them as regularly.  We have to be cognizant of that fact and make an extra effort if we want to really get to know people on our street.

The same goes for new coworkers, though typically one spends more time with them.  Still, we may need to be more aware of habits we have developed which might put others ill at ease.  In both cases, we need to make an effort to be friendly and welcoming.  It is usually an adjustment when new people come into our lives, but if we make a conscious decision to be open to new things, it is beneficial for everyone.

As Catholics, we have a special call to welcome the stranger.  How can you welcome the “strangers” you encounter in your life?

Monica, Augustine, and Ambrose

This week, the Church celebrated two feast days, which are intimately linked with the patron saint of our parish, Saint Ambrose:  Saint Monica and Saint Augustine.

Saint Monica was the epitome of the patient wife and mother.  She also bore witness to the power of prayer.  Though it took many years, her husband finally converted to Christianity about a year before he died.  Monica’s prayers for her son, Augustine, eventually led to his conversion and baptism as well.

Saint Augustine went on to lead a momentous life as chronicled in his autobiography, Confessions.  His book was the first of its kind, in that it detailed his spiritual development.  It inspired future generations of saints to write similar books, such as Saint Therese of Lisieux’s Story of a Soul.  Augustine became a Catholic, a priest, and a bishop in quick succession, and today is recognized as a Doctor of the Church.

Saint Ambrose featured in both Monica and Augustine’s life quite prominently.  He was Monica’s spiritual director, and he was a key figure in Augustine’s conversion to Catholicism.  I think it is safe to say that without Ambrose, there would be no Saint Augustine.

Let us all strive to be patient, like Monica, repentant like Augustine, and fervent like Ambrose in our day-to-day lives.

Spread Too Thin

I have mentioned before on this blog that I have a talent for being able to remember and recite lines from movies at length.  This week, a particular line from Bilbo Baggins in The Fellowship of the Ring is coming to mind.  (The line also features in the book, if I recall correctly.)  Bilbo tells Gandalf, the wise old wizard, that he feels “thin, sort of stretched, like butter scraped over too much bread.”

It is important to know what one’s limits are.  It is equally important to set boundaries so those limits are not exceeded.  Otherwise, one can experience irritability, burnout, and/or exhaustion.  It may seem like this is an especially “grown up” or American problem, what with our culture of “work-aholism”, but it can affect kids just as much.

If kids are involved in a lot of extracurricular activities, going back to school can be tough, because now, they have to juggle being in classes most of the day, homework, and all of the fun things they want to be involved in after school.  Kids can burn out just like adults can, but they don’t necessarily have the same coping mechanisms that adults do.  Therefore, it is the adult’s responsibility to set boundaries and limits for their children.

Keep this in mind as kids finish their first week back at school.

Assumptions

Today, the Universal Church celebrates the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  Paragraph 974 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) gives us a brief summary statement regarding this:

“The Most Blessed Virgin Mary, when the course of her earthly life was completed, was taken up body and soul into the glory of heaven, where she already shares in the glory of her Son’s Resurrection, anticipating the resurrection of all members of his Body.”

CCC paragraph 966, which the previous quote summarizes, refers to the “Dormition” of Mary, which is the name the Byzantine Liturgy, or Eastern Rite, uses for the Assumption.  The idea behind the “Dormition” of Mary, is that she “fell asleep” (i.e., she died) and then was taken up into heaven.  However, given our long separation from the actual event, it is impossible for us to know whether Mary actually died first, or if she was taken up into heaven in the same manner as Elijah was in 2 Kings 2:11.

So, why do we call today’s feast The Assumption?

Today, the word assumption has come to refer to the human tendency to believe something to be true or an event to have happened, regardless of whether it is actually true or has actually happened.  One is often warned not to assume anything.  When we use the term Assumption to describe today’s feast (again, note the difference between the word with a capital A and the word with a lowercase A), we are implying another, perhaps older definition of the act of assuming.  Through Mary’s Assumption, God took her to Himself in heaven, setting her apart, not only as the mother of Jesus, but as our mother as well.  In heaven, Mary is ideally placed to intercede for us to Jesus, her son.

As Catholics, we do not worship Mary, but we do pray for her intercession, as we might invoke any other saint’s intercession for a specific need.  But with Mary, we are especially blessed, because she hears all our needs and is able to take them directly to her son, Jesus, who is God.

So, today, we honor Mary, our mother, and her special position in heaven.  Don’t forget that today is a Holy Day of Obligation.  If you haven’t been to Mass yet, join us at 6:30 pm.