Rosary for Life Reminder

Please remember that the Diocese of Knoxville's 4th Annual "Rosary for Life" will be this Saturday, January 11, at 10am. This year the location for the rosary will be at the Planned Parenthood in Knoxville which is located at 710 North Cherry Street Knoxville, TN 37914. This rosary will be led by Justin Cardinal Rigali.

If we remember back to the past three times this event was held we will remember that it was done at the abortion facility in Knoxville. That facility has since been closed which shows the importance of our prayer. If you are unable to attend this event please remember that you can still pray a rosary from the comfort of your own home for this cause.

Holy Name of Jesus Homily (Extraordinary Form)

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Holy name of Jesus. We join with the blessed Mother during this feast on the eighth day when a child is brought into the temple and is given his name. The wondrous name that was given to this child was Jesus. As we would see at the nativity many people would flock towards the manger to give this child proper adoration. This list includes the shepherds, Anna the prophetess, and the magi as is celebrated on tomorrow for the Epiphany. All of these figures would give proper adoration to Christ and would follow Sacred Scripture in the reality that "God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." According to Saint Bernard of Clairvaux: "the sweet Name of Jesus produces in us holy thoughts, fills the soul with noble sentiments, strengthens virtue, begets good works, and nourishes pure affections."

Concerning the Holy Name of Jesus many pious traditions have developed throughout the Church. One of these traditions is the bowing of one's head at the name of Jesus. Also, when the Holy Name is blasphemed it is a traditional response to pray: "Sit nomen Dómini benedíctum!" ("Blessed be the Name of the Lord"), to which the reply, if overheard, is "Ex hoc nunc, et usque in sæculum!" ("Now and forever!"). Another tradition is the use of the monogram of "IHS" which points towards the devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus. To see "IHS" written upon a vestment, in Church art, or other locations should always bring our minds to this Most Holy Name which is being venerated this day. Devotion to any of these three traditions would help us, our own families, and the society that we live within to rediscover the importance of this Holy Name.

In society we have lost the value of having honor for holy names. We see this so easily played out in the course of the day through people who blaspheme the name of God, Mary, Joseph, or Jesus so carelessly. These names are taken in vain due to being upset, shocked, or simply because it is funny. The recent influx of texting has led many to so quickly be able to use the letters "OMG" without offering a thought to what they are committing. When I attend a movie it is normal to see these letters be used to show how it is disrespectful to text inside of a theater. I agree completely with this action as being disrespectful to those around us, but want us to know how disrespectful it is to take such a beautiful name as that of God, Jesus, or one of the saints in vain. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church we are told: "Blasphemy is contrary to the respect due God and his holy name. It is in itself a grave sin." We must therefore be aware of our words and if need be realize the importance of showing due respect to the Holy Name.

Instead of the carelessness of falling into the use of blasphemy we should heed those words that were heard earlier from Saint Bernard of Clairvaux. The use of the Holy Name should make us reflect always upon holy thoughts. If we are on the verge of falling into sin we should use the Holy Name as a reminder of the true virtue that we are in search of. If we struggle with the loss of hope we should turn towards the Holy Name to be given what we are currently lacking. If we are afraid let us turn towards the Holy Name to discover comfort. Devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus will always lead us towards the light of Christ and put to rest each fear, sin, or struggle that we will ever face inside of this life. "Blessed be the name of the Lord. Now and forever!"

Epiphany Homily

Merry Christmas and happy New Year to all of you. Christmas is a season that is filled with many great traditions. In each of our homes we can probably think of some of these traditions that we have developed or have inherited from our own families. Maybe these traditions deal with when gifts are to be unwrapped, a certain food item that will be appear on the menu, a show that must be watched, attending Midnight Mass, or something else. Many Slavic nations have the tradition on this day to have the priest come and bless their home and then to write CMB along with the year over their doorpost with chalk. CMB is the first letter of each name of the three magi (Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar) and also means Christ bless this house in Latin (Christus Mansionem Benedicat). Some of our traditions are very apparent while others may be quite confusing if someone walked in upon them without a proper explanation to help them delve into the true meaning that is being revealed. Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Epiphany which is also filled with a lot of great symbolism.

 

The complexity of this solemnity is shown from the very start through its name. Epiphany comes from a Greek verb which means "to reveal." Indeed through the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh being bestowed upon Christ by these magi, who were lead forth by a star, there is a lot that is being revealed to us. On Christmas it was revealed that God loved us so much that He was willing to take on human flesh to come and to dwell among us. And on this Epiphany Sunday we are having a revealing of all that will and has taken place through God's willingness to enter into the world, through the reality of the Incarnation. As with family traditions or even things that take place within the Church there is often a lot that is being revealed, but we can miss these things very simply, because we get stuck with what we see or do instead of seeing what is being revealed. The Epiphany is about more then magi, a star, gold, frankincense, and myrrh because this solemnity is revealing a great truth into our lives.

Hidden behind these different objects we have a great truth that is being reveled to the world. This little child, named Jesus, is more than any simple child. On the occasion of the Epiphany we find many symbols which explain Christ's mission on this earth including His eventual death upon the cross. The gift of gold was bestowed upon Him to show His true kingship. With this gift we can see that Christ is worthy of all our praise and that He rules this world as the King of Heaven. Secondly, frankincense was offered to remind us of the divinity of Christ. It was incense that was fitting to be offered in the worship of the temple and so it was also fitting to offer this gift to point towards the reality of Christ's divinity. Finally, the gift of myrrh was brought to this child which reminds us of his own humanity and eventual death upon the cross. It would be myrrh that would be used to prepare a body for its burial. These magi bearing these gifts were drawn to this manger by the light of a star, which is the light of Christ, which brought them to this place to reveal such wondrous truths about this child's life.

I hope that when we hear the story of these magi that we will remember the complexity of their message. Their message was not just about the giving of gifts, but was about the meaning that lied behind the gifts that were offered. In our Catholic tradition we have so many sights which bear wondrous meaning if only we would begin to prevail ourselves to them. Today, for example, I proclaimed the announcement of moveable feasts prior to this homily. Within it we heard many dates, but in reality we should realize that it is Easter and thus the Resurrection of Christ's Body that is central to this message because these dates rely upon this event. Our Mass is filled with many mysterious symbols that can open our hearts wide to the mystery of Christ if only we will not rush through them, but instead allow them to prevail ourselves to these mysteries through our attention and study. May we this day open ourselves up, ever-the-more, to have these mysteries of the faith extended into our lives, so that we may better be able to proclaim the reality of the Incarnation to the world by our lives.

Announcement of Moveable Feasts

Know, dear brethren,

that, as we have rejoiced

at the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ,

so by leave of God's mercy

we announce to you also,

the joy of his Resurrection,

who is our Saviour.

On the 5th day of March will fall Ash Wednesday, 

and the beginning of the fast of the most sacred Lenten season.

On the 20th day of April

you will celebrate with joy Easter Day,

and the Paschal feast of our Lord Jesus Christ.

On the 29th day of May

will be the Ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ.

On the 8th day of June,

the feast of Pentecost

On the 22nd day of June,

the feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. 

On the 30th day of November,

the First Sunday of the Advent

of our Lord Jesus Christ,

to whom is honor and glory for ever and ever.

Amen.

Mary, Mother of God Homily

Merry Christmas and happy New Year to all of you. Today we close our octave of Christmas with our attention placed upon the same mystery that was celebrated on Christmas Day. On December the 25th we celebrated the reality that God chose to take on human flesh and thus came to dwell among us. On this day, January the 1st, we again remember the reality of the Incarnation through the Blessed Virgin Mary. The whole octave of Christmas is about the continuation of our celebration of Christmas Day and therefore nothing should be any different with the day that is being celebrated this morning. Today we gather for this celebration of the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God where our attention is not ultimately turned towards Mary, but instead to the manger where God chose to come and dwell among us through the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. As we flock towards our Lord we cannot help, but to come through the intercession of our Blessed Mother.

Many fundamentalists are shocked when they hear this title attributed to our Blessed Mother. Maybe even a few of us are confused upon the meaning of a title that is so rich with theology. There should be no shock found here because this title stresses the very mystery of the Incarnation that we dwell upon during the season of Christmas. This title does not mean that Mary actually gave birth to the first person of the Holy Trinity, but instead that she gave birth to the second person of the Holy Trinity who is both fully divine and fully human. This great honor of being the mother of God was not one bestowed upon her by the Church, but instead was an honor that was given to her by God Himself at the Annunciation. From this celebration we should realize that our devotion to Mary is always leading us into a deeper relationship with her Son. Therefore this day that we celebrate takes us to the very mystery of the Incarnation through the motherhood of Mary.

Saint Paul points the reality of this motherhood out to us when he says that "God sent his son, born of a woman." This event that he is pointing out to us through the Blessed Virgin Mary is the reality of the Incarnation when God came to dwell among us. It was through this reality that we were all destined to be freed from the slavery of our sin. Mary gave her unending "yes" to God at the Annunciation which allowed her to become the "theotokos" which in English means the "God-bearer." Through her "yes" she brought God into the world to bring about the reality of salvation for each of us. If she is not truly the "God-bearer" then Christ is not God, but only merely human. And if Christ is merely human then we have nothing to celebrate on Christmas because none of us would of been redeemed from our sin. But instead we are able to triumphantly proclaim this day that Mary is indeed the Mother of God because her Son is indeed the second person of the Holy Trinity and thus we have been redeemed.

And so as we enter into this new year we have so many dreams and hopes for new opportunities. As we enter into this new year in pursuit of these may we not forget about the reality of the Incarnation that is being opened wide for us today by our Blessed Mother. All of our dreams and the new opportunities that face us in this new year should be discovered through the manger of Christ that she brings us towards. From this place we truly have so much to discover. In our gospel Mary reminds us of this through the reality that she reflected upon all these things in her heart. May we join with her in reflecting upon these same mysteries in our own hearts. When we join ourselves with our Heavenly Mother our hearts will always be opened wide to Christ. With the beads of our rosaries held triumphantly in our hands we will join with our Mother as she opens wide the mysteries of the life of her Son into our lives. 

From these mysteries that have been brought about from the reality of the Incarnation we will always come to encounter the face of Christ in our lives. It is through Mary that we will always be brought deeper into the heart of these mysteries for she was truly the one that was chosen by God to be the "God-bearer." With our hopes and desires for the year ahead may we always be joined with her and in return find ourselves laying at the floor of Christ's manger for the comfort that we are in search of. It was in 431 at the Council of Ephesus that Mary as the "theotokos" was affirmed by the Church and from the joy of this affirmation came a sea of people shouting from the streets: "Praised be the Theotokos!" As we enter into this new year with our own hopes and fears may we to come to shout: "Praised be the Theotokos!"