26th Sun of OT Year B Homily

In our Gospel of Mark we hear three times about the punishment that can be found inside the fires of Gehenna. We are told that fire and worms will consume the flesh of the sinner and therefore a soul should do everything in its power to cut off what leads it to sin while on this earth. When a living creature dies it quickly returns to the earth from which it came. As the flesh begins to rott away the animal will quickly begin to smell and be taken control of by worms. This grotesque imagery should be the same thing that we think about when we think about sin and its effect upon the soul. It is not pretty! Christ is warning us within this Gospel to examine our lives and to pray for conversion of heart if it is necessary within our lives. To live a life of conversion we are not commanded to chop pieces of our body off, but are being warned that now is the time to do away with sin and to turn our hearts towards the light of Christ. Through our relationship with Christ we will not rott away, but will be preserved for eternal life.

If we were to continue reading from our Gospel passage we would be told: "Everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good, but if salt becomes insipid, with what will you restore its flavor? Keep salt in yourselves and you will have peace with one another." Salt is able to bring purification to meat, so that it will not rott away and be consumed by the worm. The meat after being salted can also pass through the flame and be ready for consumption. May we allow the salt of wisdom to enter our hearts and souls, so that we may begin to turn away from our sinful desires. May each of us be cleansed by the fire of the Holy Spirit who gives grace to our soul, so that we can move away from our sinful desires and the death that it brings to our souls. In this manner we can be led away from all of our temptations to sin because we are allowing wisdom and the grace of the Holy Spirit to enter into our lives. In the light of these two objects we cast off all that leads us into sin and trust in Christ all the more.

The Epistle of Saint James is giving this same warning to us. In this epistle we are being instructed to turn away from all things which we place before Christ. Money, our job, sports, lust, food, gossip, and all sins that disconnect us from God. All of these sins that seem so easy to fall into must be turned away from if we will ever be able to desire to receive the gift of eternal life that has been bestowed on us through Christ's sacrifice upon the cross. To the cross we are able to look and see that at the point of death Christ was concerned with more then storing up treasures for Himself. He instead was concerned with offering Himself as a sacrifice of love for each person who continues to fall into sin. From the cross we realize that eternal life has been granted to all of us, and therefore we should feel compelled to turn away from sin's grasp all the more. Through having the strength to turn away from sin's grasp we will turn totally into relationship with the righteous one who loves us dearly.

Yes the task may seem to be burdensome, but it can be accomplished if we are willing to give ourselves totally to Christ out of love. Out of love we are able to be preserved from death through wisdom and the grace of the Holy Spirit. In our Responsorial Psalm the wisdom of The Lord was mentioned that gives joy to out hearts and leads us towards being blameless and innocent in the sight of The Lord. In our first reading from Numbers we encounter Moses and see that Spirit of The Lord that was bestowed upon him was also given to the seventy elders as they were moved to prophesy. Moses did not desire to silence the Spirit that was given to these souls because he realized that the Spirit of The Lord should be bestowed upon all people. Here and now the Holy Spirit desires to come into our hearts and souls to aid us away from the grasp of sin. Sin's hold may seem to be very powerful, but the grasp of the Holy Spirit and that of wisdom is much stronger.

If we find ourselves this day to be on the outskirts of God's grace due to our participation in sin; we should not feel as if no hope lies in store for us. Christ continually desires us to turn away from sinfulness and thus always extends His hand of mercy to us. In both our first reading and our Gospel we see documented proof of this invitation that is being given to us. In Numbers a controversy broke lose because people were receiving the grace of the Spirit. In the Gospel of Mark controversy broke lose because people other then Christ were bringing healing into people's lives. Moses was able to see the necessity of allowing these people to share in the grace of the Spirit. Christ was able to see that division should not exist because He is at the center of all things. May we allow Christ to lead us away from the division caused by sin and allow us to enter back into unity with Him. Through our cooperation with the grace of the Holy Spirit and that of wisdom this goal can be possible for each of us to accomplish.

On this day may we continue to move ourselves away from sin and the death that it brings to our souls. Only through placing our trust in Christ will we be preserved from its influence within our lives. With trust fully placed upon Christ we will be led forth in wisdom and by the Holy Spirit to conquer all of our sinful influences. The more that we purge ourselves of these influences and draw ourselves towards Christ's love the less we will dwell in the state of sin. Sin is powerless compared to the cross of Christ which conquered it for all of us to receive salvation if we are willing to embrace it. May we be willing to embrace the mercy of God on this day as we prepare ourselves for the day of judgment when we desire to inherit the treasures of Heaven.

George Maestas Funeral Homily

On this day we gather to mourn the loss of a beloved friend and family member. We come here to pray for the repose of the soul of George Maestas through this funeral liturgy. We pray for all his family gathered here especially for his wife Betty, Eddie his brother, and his children Paul, Becky, and James that they might find comfort from the sorrow that is currently being felt within their lives, and we pray for all gathered here that we may be renewed in our commitment to Jesus Christ in light of the reality of death that lies in wait for each of us. During his journey of faith George was strengthened through his love of the Church and its Sacraments. This could be seen through his relationship and example that he showed to his family and to all those who had the opportunity to encounter him. As a proud member of the Knights of Columbus he was devoted to making the pillars of the order manifest to this community and to the world. The pillars of charity, unity, fraternity, and patriotism could be observed within his actions.

For those who had the opportunity to know George we know that he suffered greatly. His suffering did not come and end with a blink of an eye, but it continued to endure for many years. He spent many days inside of the hospital and had the reality of his own death upon his mind each day. Due to this he trusted inside of his faith all the more. From baptism George entered into the life of the Church and went forth into the world attempting to live a life worthy of this calling. He desired to be nourished each day by the Holy Eucharist. He trusted in the healing power of the Anointing of the Sick and the graces that it bestowed upon his soul as he prepared for death and the hope of his Heavenly reward. He also trusted in his vocation in life which was that of marriage. He allowed each of these Sacraments to connect him to God and to give preparedness to his soul as he prepared himself for his death that would come at an unknown hour that seemed to forever draw closer.

For each of us here we also know they we are vulnerable to death. There is no escaping its grasp, but through the faith that we share we are given hope from the darkest of hours. We are able to glance upon the cross and see Christ crucified and realize that on the third day Christ rose again in fulfillment of the Scriptures and then Ascended into Heaven to dwell with His Father for all ages. As we glance upon the reality of the unknown hour of death may we allow ourselves to do everything that is possible to prepare for this moment. May we not allow ourselves to continue to feel content with going through lives motions without preparing our lives for the one thing that we are entitled to. In our Gospel we encounter ten virgins who were awaiting the arrival of the bridegroom, but half came unprepared and thus missed the very thing that they had hoped for. We cannot allow ourselves to continue to walk along acting as if nothing out of the ordinary will happen to us. George was an example of this reality for each of us.

We must be like the five virgins who came prepared to meet the bridegroom. These virgins did everything in their power to prepare themselves for his arrival. Taking after the trust that George placed within Sacraments of the Church we should do the same. Confession is present within the life of the Church to cleanse the soul of all sin. When we know that the possibility of death could be right around the corner we can place out trust in Christ through the Anointing of the Sick. The Holy Eucharist is present to bring nourishment to our souls and to strengthen us as we prepare for life and its many challenges. No matter what our status in life is we must trust now in Christ and the healing that He brings into our lives. We must trust in the cross and the hope of the Resurrection of the Body that will take place. If we can trust inside of this reality we will be able to find comfort within our lives as we face death. We will realize in this light that hope does exist for all of us to be prepared for this unknown hour.

The Lord is our Shepherd and on this day we draw close to him. All of our wants and needs we place inside of His healing hands. We commend George to this place to receive the mercy of God as we continue to pray for his soul. All of us here who mourn the loss of a beloved family member and friend come to Christ the Shepherd to receive healing in this time of loss. To Christ our Shepherd we look as we prepare ourselves to meet Him one day in the life that will come.

25th Sunday of OT Year B Homily

For our second week in a row we hear Jesus predict that He will suffer and die upon the cross. It is odd that right after telling His disciples about his suffering upon the cross that Christ finds himself once again explaining His destiny. Last week Christ presented the reality of the cross to His disciples so that they could understand who He truly was. This week Christ desires to get the point across to His disciples that they must also suffer and thus they to will be powerless and vulnerable. The cross is indeed the object that Christ will suffer and die upon, but each of His disciples will join Him upon it as they give witness to their faith. The disciples of Christ would become enshrined within history not because they sought out superstardom, but because they served the Gospel to the point of meeting a martyrs death. For the disciples to arrive at this reality they had to surrender themselves fully to Christ and decide to follow Him by living out humility and service within their own lives.

Each of us here can defiantly feel the tension the lies within our lives concerning this call to humility and service. On one hand we desire to be humble and to give of ourselves, but on the other hand we often allow sin to seep into our lives and effect us to do the complete opposite. We live in a tension where the humility that we strive to live out often seems to be silenced to make way for our own needs and desires. In acting within this manner we are placing ourselves at the center of the world instead of allowing Christ to remain at the center of all of our actions and deeds. In giving service to the Gospel we are not sent into to the world to reach that status the we currently give to an NFL athlete, but are called to lower ourselves like a servant before The Lord. As servants sent out to serve Christ above all things we are truly allowing ourselves to live out the Gospel message within our lives. Living a life dedicated to humility and service we will become truly liberated from all that keeps us from being able to enter into true love.

In our Letter from Saint James we are reminded that we ask, but do not receive because we are asking wrongly and thus are worrying about our passions. Our disordered passions are the very thing that keeps us from being able to truly enter into a relationship of love with God. There are many good things inside of the world, but we often get caught up with them and thus place these wants and needs before our relationship with God. If we allow the virtue of humility to enter our lives we will begin to see how much we have to be thankful for and therefore how much we actually rely upon God. When we commit ourselves to service we should be giving of ourselves through humility by drawing ourselves towards conquering our passions for the sake of God's Kingdom. If we can allow humility and service to enter into the daily actions of our lives we will be able to turn towards God's love not demanding that our needs may be met, but trusting that through our relationship with God and perseverance our needs will be heard.

Our reading from the Book of Wisdom agrees with out need to allow humility and service to work through our actions. This reading observes that many people claim that they are willing to hand themselves fully over to God, but when tested they turn away from their claims. Christ was tested upon the weight of the wood of the cross and was willing to die upon it for each of us. As we allow humility and service to go at work within our lives we cannot trust only when we desire to, but we each must continue to invest ourselves into it fully. To fully invest ourselves in this manner we will be given the strength needed to allow our lives to be transformed in the light of Christ's passion and death. From the challenge of the cross we realize that we are each called to something far greater then being content with going through the motions of giving service to ourselves. We will realize in this light that we are called not to be first, but to become a servant to all whom we encounter.

In order to become servants to all whom we encounter we must learn how to grow in humility and in service. Through the grace of God we have received this invitation that we have been invited to share with Christ in the moment of His greatest vulnerability and selflessness. We become vulnerable and selfless as we give of ourselves through humility and service. The parish community offers to us many opportunities to give of ourselves in this most profound manner. We have the food pantry and the White Elephant on our parish property where we are able to make a small investment with ourselves that produces many unseen fruits. The many people who help in these areas often go unnoticed to the common eye, but they definitely are offering a lot to those who are in need. Our Church and this city offers many ways that we can give of ourselves to those who are in need. If we open our hearts and souls to Christ and allow ourselves to be drawn towards humility and service we will begin to see the beauty of giving of ourselves not for gain, but totally out of love.

Taking up this challenge from our Gospel to give service to one another out of love; may we all find our source of strength within God. May we allow ourselves to come before Him in prayer, so that we can be strengthened as we partake in our mission of service. If we partake of this mission towards service while leavening prayer out of the equation we will be chasing after our own pride where we will be exalted. Through placing our trust in Christ through prayer we will act out with humility as we realize that we are not the source of the world. In this realization that we come to realize through our humility and service we are able to see that we are able to conquer all of our jealousy and hatred. May we therefore allow The Lord to uphold our lives as we allow ourselves to join with the vulnerability and selflessness of Christ through our humility and service.

Mon of 24th Week of OT Homily

1st Reading: 1 Cor 11:17-26,33

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 40:7-10,17

Gospel: Lk 7:1-10

We must never allow ourselves to become the focal point of the Mass. We may do a good job reading the scripture, but we must do so giving glory to God instead of to ourselves. The same holds true for our music and preaching because all must lead towards Christ instead of leading towards ourselves and our own needs. At the Mass Christ is the focal point to which we direct all of our attention. Christ present inside of the Eucharistic Sacrifice is the divine object for us to base our faith upon. We therefore come to this place desiring to humbly come to Christ instead of desiring to be exalted by our own actions.

Saint Paul wrote to the Corinthians with the hope that they would realize the importance of the Mass. It was his hope that these people would not take the actions taking place casually, but that they would allow themselves to enter fully into it. It was his hope that these people would approach the Eucharistic meal through humility. In our Gospel the centurion offers a familiar remark as he exclaims "Lord I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof." In his exclamation he realizes the great humility that it takes to allow Christ to enter into our lives. None of us are worthy for this gift, but Christ desires to enter into our hearts and souls.

As we approach the Altar of God within this Mass may we take to heart the words that we will proclaim. Prior to the reception of Holy Communion we will exclaim as the centurion did "Lord I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed." With these words taken to heart we come to receive Christ into our lives through humility and realize that it is Christ who is held at the very center of this Sacrifice of the Mass,

Cardinal Dolan's Prayer

I am a bit slow on getting this posted here, but believe this to be an important prayer to read. It was given by Cardinal Dolan at the conclusion of the Democratic Convention held on September 6, 2012.

With a “firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence,” let us close this convention by praying for this land that we so cherish and love:

Let us Pray.

Almighty God, father of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, revealed to us so powerfully in your Son, Jesus Christ, we thank you for showering your blessings upon this our beloved nation. Bless all here present, and all across this great land, who work hard for the day when a greater portion of your justice, and a more ample measure of your care for the poor and suffering, may prevail in these United States. Help us to see that a society’s greatness is found above all in the respect it shows for the weakest and neediest among us.

We beseech you, almighty God to shed your grace on this noble experiment in ordered liberty, which began with the confident assertion of inalienable rights bestowed upon us by you: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Thus do we praise you for the gift of life. Grant us the courage to defend it, life, without which no other rights are secure. We ask your benediction on those waiting to be born, that they may be welcomed and protected. Strengthen our sick and our elders waiting to see your holy face at life’s end, that they may be accompanied by true compassion and cherished with the dignity due those who are infirm and fragile.

We praise and thank you for the gift of liberty. May this land of the free never lack those brave enough to defend our basic freedoms. Renew in all our people a profound respect for religious liberty: the first, most cherished freedom bequeathed upon us at our Founding. May our liberty be in harmony with truth; freedom ordered in goodness and justice. Help us live our freedom in faith, hope, and love. Make us ever-grateful for those who, for over two centuries, have given their lives in freedom’s defense; we commend their noble souls to your eternal care, as even now we beg the protection of your mighty arm upon our men and women in uniform.

We praise and thank you for granting us the life and the liberty by which we can pursue happiness. Show us anew that happiness is found only in respecting the laws of nature and of nature’s God. Empower us with your grace so that we might resist the temptation to replace the moral law with idols of our own making, or to remake those institutions you have given us for the nurturing of life and community. May we welcome those who yearn to breathe free and to pursue happiness in this land of freedom, adding their gifts to those whose families have lived here for centuries.

We praise and thank you for the American genius of government of the people, by the people and for the people. Oh God of wisdom, justice, and might, we ask your guidance for those who govern us: President Barack Obama, Vice President Joseph Biden, Congress, the Supreme Court, and all those, including Governor Mitt Romney and Congressman Paul Ryan, who seek to serve the common good by seeking public office. Make them all worthy to serve you by serving our country. Help them remember that the only just government is the government that serves its citizens rather than itself. With your grace, may all Americans choose wisely as we consider the future course of public policy.

And finally Lord, we beseech your benediction on all of us who depart from here this evening, and on all those, in every land, who yearn to conduct their lives in freedom and justice. We beg you to remember, as we pledge to remember, those who are not free; those who suffer for freedom’s cause; those who are poor, out of work, needy, sick, or alone; those who are persecuted for their religious convictions, those still ravaged by war.

And most of all, God Almighty, we thank you for the great gift of our beloved country.

For we are indeed “one nation under God,” and “in God we trust.”

So dear God, bless America. You who live and reign forever and ever.

Amen!

23rd Sun of Ordinary Time Year B Homily

1st Reading: Is 35:4-7

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 146:7-10

2nd Reading: Jas 2:1-5

Gospel: Mk 7:31-37

The rite of baptism states: "The Lord Jesus made the deaf hear and the dumb speak. May he soon touch your ears to receive his word, and your mouth to proclaim his faith, to the praise and glory of God." While saying these words the minister is told to touch the ears and mouth of the child being baptized with his thumb which helps to draw attention to the profound action that is taking place. This profound action draws itself from today's Gospel passage where Christ brought healing into a man's life who was in need by bringing healing to his ears and voice to his lips. This segment of the baptism is known as "ephpetha" which in English means " to be opened." Through this action the minister of baptism is pointing towards our need to have Christ give us the ability to hear, so that we in return can speak. The reception of baptism is to give new life to a person as they enter into the full reality of the Church. Through baptism we are given the ability to hear Christ and to respond to His voice with our words of praise.

In our Gospel Christ is not keeping His distance, but takes it upon Himself to enter into an intimate relationship with this man. With our senses we are able to keep our distance, but when we touch we must enter into an intimate relationship with another. We can smell and be far away or see and keep our distance, but in in order to touch we must come into contact with something. Christ came into contact with this man and through His intimate touch was able to bring healing into the man's life. From the intimate touch of Christ the man's ears were opened and speech was given unto His lips. This same exchange is given unto us when we allow the Sacraments of the Church to work within our lives. At the heart of all of the seven sacraments of the Church is Christ who desires to use these seven gifts to enter into an intimate relationship with each of us. "The Sacraments have been instituted as a special means through which we are to receive the grace merited to us by Christ."

Through Holy Orders the priest is able to bring the Sacraments to the people of God. The priest may be far from holy, but through his ordination is able to make the Sacraments manifest in the lives of many people. No matter what the life of the minister may be we can trust that they are valid because Christ is the one who operates through them. Christ is the person who desires to enter into an intimate relationship with all of us and therefore allows the Sacraments to touch all of our lives. Through the reception of the Sacraments we are able to allow Christ to enter into an intimate relationship with our lives by giving us the ability to hear his voice and be able to respond to the gift that has been given to our souls. The Seven Sacraments are able to give assistance to our souls on our journey towards Christ. "The soul is brought into spiritual life by baptism, it is strengthened by Confirmation, nourished by the Holy Eucharist, helped by Penance, helped at the hour of death by Anointing of the Sick, guided by God's ministers through Holy Orders, and is given a body in which to dwell by the Sacrament of Matrimony."

Saint Paul reveals in his Letter to the Romans that "Faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ." Through the reception of each of the seven Sacraments we are being given the spiritual assistance inside of our lives to hear the word of Christ and thus feel the need to enter into the world bringing the word and testimony of Christ to all people whom we encounter. In our culture many voices exist which attempt to buffer out the voice of Christ, but we therefore must trust in the Sacraments all the more. The more that we make time to take advantage of the Sacraments of the Church, that have been given to us by Christ, the more we will be able head into the world hearing Christ's voice and giving the testimony of the Gospel to all people whom we encounter. Trust inside of the Sacraments will give aid to each us as we grow rich inside of our faith.

On this day may each of us be opened to the Sacraments and the many graces that they bring into our hearts and souls. May we trust that through Sacraments we can truly come into relationship with the divine and allow ourselves to be fully nourished by Christ. Through baptism we have been invited into this relationship because hearing has been given to our ears and voice have been given to our lips as we bring the Gospel into the world. As we continue to strive in this spiritual journey that has been given to us through the waters of baptism we must draw upon the other Sacraments of the Church. We come here to be nourished by Christ's Body and Blood, but when fail along the way we must continue to trust in Christ's infinite mercy. This mercy is found inside of the Sacrament of Reconciliation where we are brought back into union with Christ and His divine love. May we allow ourselves to be open to the intimate touch of Christ that comes into our lives today in the form of the Sacraments. May the Sacraments open our ears to hear the word of God and give voice to our lips as we allow our souls to praise the Lord.

Wilbur Hitchcock Funeral Homily

A tree is a very interesting object because it can reveal a lot about itself. If we were to chop one down and take a glance at its rings we would be told a lot concerning its story. We would be able to count each individual ring and come know its age. In studying these rings we can begin to understand the history that lies behind this tree because we come to know many facts about what was taking place within the world. The spacing of the rings for example can tell about rainy seasons or the lack thereof that were taking place in that particular year. Our lives and how we lived them reveal a lot about ourselves. Today this funeral Mass is offered for Wilbur Joseph Hitchcock. For those here who were blessed to know this man we know that he lived for many years and experienced a lot during his lifetime. To pick up the wonderfully written obituary and read it we would know that this man's years upon this earth offered a lot to the countless amount of people who were blessed to know this man and hear his laugh.

On this day we are forced to feel a sense of loss. I especially join with the family in my greatest sympathy. To his sons, daughters, grandchildren, and the rest of his family we join our prayers with you during your time of need. To all here who worked, worshiped, and laughed with him I join with you in your day of loss. Like that tree that continuously reveals itself through its rings we know that Wilbur would continuously reveal himself through his many stories and love for knowledge. In the 89 years that he was blessed by God to live he experienced the many things that would take place within the history of the world and would even have the opportunity to serve in the Marines during World War II. In the days that lie ahead their will be a lot of time for family and friends to come together and reveal the many stories that made up this man's life. At this moment we come together on his behalf and pray for the repose of his soul as he makes his final journey towards his Heavenly reward.

It is through the wood of the cross that a lot is revealed concerning death and our path towards salvation. The cross was the instrument through which Christ bowed His head and breathed His final breath. It was upon the wood of this tree that the sins of the world were gathered together and a Sacrifice was given towards God out of love. All the sins of the world were gathered upon the wood of the cross and from it shun the light of salvation that was presented to all who glanced upon its wooden beams. At the moment of Christ's death the veil inside of the temple was torn into two pieces and people could finally hope to come into contact with the divine. It was the veil of the temple that symbolized humanity's separation from God, but now that had been ripped apart we can finally hope to come into relationship with Him. Our journey of life continuously reminds us of how fleeting our lives truly are, but upon the wood of the cross hope is given that death is not the end.

It was three days following Christ's death upon the cross that Christ conquered death through His Resurrection. It is from the Resurrection of the Body that hope is given to each of us who are here today. This funeral Mass is filled with many symbols of hope which take our hearts and minds to the reality of drawing ourselves closer to God and His Heavenly plan for us. This funeral is filled many symbols which draw our minds towards baptism. This white garment upon the casket reminds us of the purity of the Sacrament, the water sprinkled upon the casket remind us of the waters that cleansed his soul, and the white candle placed before the casket connects us with the Resurrected Christ of Easter Sunday. At this Mass we use the symbol of incense which symbolizes all our prayers being gathered together and rising towards Christ in Heaven. This day we pray that our prayers will rise up to God like burning incense bringing before him all of our sadness and asking for the comfort that we desire. We also pray for Wilbur and his soul that he may one day achieve his Heavenly reward as he continues to draw himself closer to the Lord who is his shepherd. May we continue to draw ourselves to the wood of the cross and all that it reveals to us in our journey of life.

22nd Sun of OT Year B Homily

1st Reading: Dt 4:1-2,6-8

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 15:2-5

2nd Reading: Jas 1:17-18,21-22,27

Gospel: Mk 7:1-8,14-15,21-23

We are a people who love to follow after traditions. Our Church is filled with them, our nation is filled with, and the way that we move about with our lives is filled with them. These traditions make us feel comfortable and for the most part make sense to why they are done when you think about it. Tomorrow we will celebrate Labor Day and it only makes sense that people will be off work for that day. We are also at the start of the football season and it makes sense to why Rocky Top is played each time that the Volunteers score a touchdown. It would not make sense for them to play it when the other team scores a touchdown because at those moments we have nothing to celebrate. No matter what it is that we are attracted to within our lives it can become harmful to ourselves when we lose the sight of their true meaning of these traditions. We cannot allow ourselves to walk through life living up to traditions while we allow our hearts to move further away from Christ.

There must be a correlation between what is going on within our hearts and what we present on the outside. We cannot enter into the Church and put on our "Church face" only to remove it once we walk outside the doors. By the fact that we have come to this place to be nourished by God's Holy Word and by the Sacrament of the Altar we should be able to fully integrate these elements into our lives. To integrate these elements into our lives is not to say that we are self righteous and better then others, but is to agree with the Prophet Isaiah who was quoted in our Gospel as saying: "This people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines human precepts." This quote from Scripture is a reminder for each of us to back up what we preach. We cannot tell people that we believe one thing and then go out and do something contrary to that message because in doing so we are having multiple personalities going at war with each other.

We are a Church which contains many little reminders which represent the reality of our faith. Whenever we make the sign of the cross we are expressing our belief in the Holy Trinity and are asking It to come into our lives to guide our prayer. We stand during the proclamation of the Holy Gospel because these were words that were spoken by Christ Himself and therefore are set apart from the other readings found inside of Scripture. Fridays are a day of penance and we are called to offer sacrifice within our lives, so that we can begin to put our passions to rest and finally be able to move towards Christ. For these few examples given many more exist within the Church which bring our minds to the reality of Christ. In following after these everyday gestures we must allow our minds to have direction for what we are doing instead of allowing ourselves to put nothing into it. To put nothing into the faith that we express would be to allow ourselves to go out into the world unchanged by the fact that we are Catholic.

Today the Gospel of Saint Mark presents us with the Pharisees who knew the laws that they as Jews were required to follow. Despite knowing the laws which bound them they had a lack of integration going on within their hearts. These rules were removed from their true meaning and thus they were unable to express their full reality. As they faced off against Christ and His apostles they were unable to accept God and God's word into their lives. All of these rules led up to one ultimate authority who now stood before them, and yet they were unable to get it. They remained content with where they were and thus were unable to experience the fullness of life that could of been found with Christ. Christ extended an invitation to them to turn away from their own sinfulness and to follow after Him. He gave them a challenge to not separate their laws from what was going on within their hearts. We cannot allow ourselves to follow after rules and practice without allowing any change to take place within our hearts.

This past week our parish community entered into its week of prayer. Through this week we have taken time out of our busy schedules to be challenged concerning our need for the growth of prayer within our lives. Prayer is the way that we can draw closer to Christ because it is through this action that we desire to unite ourselves with Him more and more. Following our noon Mass this week of prayer will come to a close, but the challenge to grow in our life of prayer remains. We must continue to grow towards Christ, so that we can begin to experience the fullness of life that can be found within this relationship. Our life of prayer will aid us in our daily battle of turning away from evil and drawing ourselves closer to good. Through prayer we will be able to walk into the Church fully integrated into what is going on before our eyes. It will give us the assistance to go into the world not wearing a "face" that contradicts what we experience here at this Mass.

May we accept the invitation that has been extended to us by Christ this day. May we no longer feel content with going through the motions of being Catholic, but may we allow ourselves to enter fully into it. Through this relationship may our hearts be truly transformed, so that our lives will mirror that of Christ. Our lives can only mirror this relationship when we allow ourselves to turn away from sin and when we allow ourselves to be drawn closer to Christ through prayer. In a few moments we will receive Christ in the Holy Eucharist within our lives and will be sent into the world to be unmoved by the fact that Christ has come to dwell amongst us. May we allow Christ to come here and dwell with us today and not allow our traditions to get in the way, but instead to use them to enhance our relationship with Christ. When we allow our traditions to not mindlessly control us we can begin to dwell in presence of the Lord who brings justice into our lives.