2019 September Reflections

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• THE MISTAKEN ATTACHMENT TO STATUS

  FR PASCHAL SCOTTI

  Drawing on one of his favorite classics movies, the 1944 film, “Between Two Worlds,” Fr. Paschal’s Sunday homily (September 1) addressed the theme of social status in the week’s gospel (Luke 14:7-14). The film eventually reveals that its characters, seemingly aboard a cruise ship destined for America, are in fact dead and awaiting judgment. The socially climbing character, Mrs. Cliveden-Banks, was particularly representative of the self-centered interest in status. Her fate in the movie is to be given the palatial home she so desired, but to have to live in in alone. And while Mrs. Cliveden-Banks may represent the ambitions of the upper class, Fr. Paschal notes: “It is not just the rich, the well-to-do, the nouveau riche… who care about status. All people care about status… How people look at us; how people judge us; The externals of who we are and what we are…  It is amazing when you study history how important status is. People die for it; people fight for it; people kill for it. …Gradations can be important… even to the poor, to the smallest gradation: …  We might think being a mole-catcher is not very impressive, but to the mole-catcher, being a rat catcher is a couple of steps below… We care about how people see us, and that can be a great danger.  External realities… are not about good or bad, vicious or virtuous, holy or evil… and how God sees you. Virtue and holiness… can make you far, far more a friend of God and a sharer of the divine nature. And He will then say to each of us: ‘Friend, come up higher.’”

• LABOR DAY: ON JOSEPH AS DISCIPLE

  ABBOT MATTHEW STARK 

  Abbot Matthew offered the following comments from Pope Saint John XXIII on the occasion of a votive Mass of Saint Joseph this Labor Day (September 2). “When we reflect upon it we see that this is what St. Joseph and his devoted followers have to do: to remain faithful to the Lord Jesus, and never to lose heart when confronted with the apparent success of the enemy of all good, or when they see the sudden eclipse, we mean, of right judgment, of good conscience, of generous activity… Temptations are strong, and dangers grave.  So it was yesterday, so it is today, and so it will always be. Lust is threefold: the lust for money, for this, above all, wields a terrible power over men; the lust to dominate others, which is irrepressible; and the lust for the pleasures of this life which makes us weak and tolerant of evil. It is no use just talking about it. Whoever wishes to save himself, find shelter in his Father’s house, and preserve the precious gifts of nature and grace which God has bestowed upon him, has only to model his soul according to the eternal doctrine of the Gospel and the Church, thus following the beloved example of St. Joseph’s humble life. To learn to obey, to learn to keep silence, to speak, when need arises, with moderation and courtesy – this is what St. Joseph teaches us.” (Pope Saint John XXIII, Discourses)

• ON OUR PATRON: SAINT GREGORY THE GREAT

  FR. MICHAEL BRUNNER

  On the Abbey’s patronal feast of Pope Saint Gregory the Great (September 3), Fr. Michael noted that Gregory was one of those few popes who are known as “great,” though he adopted the title of “servant of the servants of God.” “He is rightly known as ‘great’ for many good reasons:  the look and sound of the liturgy, the functioning of the Roman Catholic church as we know it – are largely his work. But he is important to us here at Portsmouth Abbey especially for two reasons. From him we have the great store of knowledge of the life of Saint Benedict. And secondly, he was inspired to send a commission to the Anglo-Saxons, headed by Saint Augustine of Canterbury, and was insistent and persistent, in the face of Augustine’s hesitancy, in not turning back – Augustine not wishing to confront such barbarians in England. If Saint Augustine is the father of monasticism in the English church, than Pope Saint Gregory is the grandfather or godfather. Gregory wrote a lot, more than can be addressed in this brief homily, but one line in his writing strikes me as prophetic for today: ‘No one does more harm in the church than he who has title or rank of holiness and acts with perversity.’ May we all strive for holiness and truth, following in the example and in the wise teaching of Pope Saint Gregory."

• JESUS CHRIST - THE PRIMORDIAL SACRAMENT

  FR. GREGORY HAVILL

   “Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the Body, the Church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he himself might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile all things for him, making peace by the Blood of his cross through him, whether those on earth or those in heaven.  (Col 1:15-20). Fr. Gregory draws our attention to these verses in his homily given on Friday (September 6). “These verses of the letter of Saint Paul to the Colossians are some of the most absolutely magnificent verses of the New Testament. I highly recommend reading them over and over, using them as a source for your meditation – a tremendous description of Jesus Christ and who He is for us. Jesus Christ: when He  became incarnated in the world He became the “Primordial Sacrament.” What the means is a material element containing the divine reality: that’s a definition of a sacrament. Christ is the primordial sacrament in His incarnation, true God and true man. For this reason the entire created universe points us toward God, toward the divine. The entire created universe therefore is a theater for the work of God, especially in our souls, the place of development in ourselves toward the divine, if we continue to retain our relationship toward God.

• RECOVERING THE GOSPEL

  FR. PASCHAL SCOTTI

  As we see in today’s first reading (Col 1:21-23; September 7), the Christian message is called "the Gospel." The word “gospel” comes from an old English word, meaning “good news,” a direct translation of the Greek word “evangelion” – “good news.” For the early church the Christian message was good news. But if one is being honest, the gospel, for a vast chunk of the Christian world, is not seen as good news, but as bad news – very bad news in many cases. It is not surprising, as much of our world is already “post-Christian.” What was it that made people, at least some people, think this was good news? Those who have studied the sociology of the early church say it is not as we might imagine: the marginal, the poor, the peasant, slave, etc. But it was the entrepreneurial, the more ambitious middle class, you might say, people seeking to achieve worldly success; people who could pick and choose the religion they wanted to follow. And God knows there were lots of them in those days, of every sort. And Christianity is not the obvious choice – it was much more severe in many respects. It was much more counter-cultural, in many respects, than others they could have chosen. But they chose that instead. Why, is the question. Why would you do that? Well, they thought it was worth their efforts, that there was sufficient compensation for the sacrifice they would surely have to make. The sacrifice was not just for a better meaning of life, who they are and where they are from, but also one of more direct compensations, of spiritual benefits, spiritual powers, supernatural gifts and graces. That makes it far, far more worth your effort. So if you have already achieved worldly success, there is only so much you can gain, and there is a massive difference. But spiritual benefits, significant spiritual benefits: that is worth the sacrifice. That is worth all the things you have to do to make this a living true value. Unfortunately, we approach Christianity not from its origins, but from its backside, the end of history, you might say. What we see of Christianity is very different than they would see it. We have to recover what makes it distinctive, what makes it unique, what makes it special, and the awesome power that comes from that acceptance, that conformity, to live the Christian gospel. If we live the Christian gospel, we will be very different people, much better people – if we are faithful, if we persevere. Because God can do all things, and for each of us, we are called to that eternal and present destiny of happiness.

• RENUNCIATION
  FR EDWARD MAZUSKI 

  Sunday’s Mass marking the welcome Mass for new boarding students presented the challenging teaching of Christ to “hate your father and mother… even your own life.” (Luke 14:25-33). Fr. Edward’s homily addressed the authentic meaning of renunciation in this teaching, pointing to the example of Peter Claver. “In what ways did St. Peter Claver renounce his life and order his life to God? One renunciation was on entering the Jesuits, into a clerical order dedicated to serving the Church, the body of Christ. There is another renunciation in being asked to practice the obedience he was vowed to by moving across the Atlantic to serve the Church in the New World. There is a renunciation in confirming his dedication to the Jesuits by taking solemn vows. Then there is a great renunciation, what he was ultimately canonized for, in dedicating his life to service to the poorest of the poor: in truly living as a neighbor to those who were abused and beaten so that their owners could get rich... There are thousands of other examples of heroic holiness that can be found throughout Church history... What grace is God giving us, and how do we accept it? …One is our participation in Christ's saving sacrifice through the sacraments that not only cleanses us of the most disordered attachments we have: our sins, but also opens up God's point of view by raising us with him and making us a member of His body. Another is prayer that enables us to directly open our hearts to God by raising our thoughts to him.” (Read the full homily here.)

• WELCOME HOLY SPIRIT 

  FR. MICHAEL BRUNNER

  In his homily to the school to begin the academic year, Father Michael exhorted students to be open to the workings of the Holy Spirit, and not to underestimate what they can achieve. Drawing on the history of the Children’s Crusade of 1212, he said, “Crusades of young people today do not need to end in abject failure. It was the school children and teenagers of Birmingham, Alabama, facing police clubs, firehoses and dogs, who brought an end to racial segregation there. …What can you do, you ask? Look at Greta Thunberg, and her crusade to slow down climate change, a crusade joined by thousands of teenagers in Europe. You can do great things, you can make more real God’s kingdom on this earth, God presence and power in your own life, if you listen, pray and respond to the Holy Spirit working in your life and your world. Don’t be afraid to think big. The Prophet Joel speaks of the youth having visions. At least have a vision: a vision of God and your unique, gifted place in his creation. Blessed are the eyes that see what you can see.” (Read the full homily here.)

• CHRIST, THE FULLNESS OF DIVINITY 

  ABBOT MATTHEW STARK

  The epistle we read this morning (Tuesday, September 10) says that in Christ, the Word made flesh, the whole of divinity dwells in bodily form. (Colossians 2:6-15). This is something Saint Augustine says in the same vein: “He so loved us that, for our sake, He was made man in time, although through him all times were made. He was made man, who made man. He was created of a woman whom he created. He was carried by hands that he formed. He cried in the manger in wordless infancy, he the Word, without whom all human eloquence is mute.” (Augustine, Sermon 188, 2). May He have mercy on us.

• HOLINESS AND THE FREEDOM TO RESPOND TO GOD

  FR. PASCHAL SCOTTI

  “Today is the feast of Saint John Chrysostom, great fourth century bishop and Doctor of the church. He was famous as a great preacher, and the name “Chrysostom” – “Golden Mouth” – refers to his great eloquence, his power of speech. You can say many things about Saint John Chrysostom, but I think one can certainly say that the Gospel reading today (Mark 4:1-10, 13-20: the parable of the seeds on various soil) the one selected for this feast, is one he would very much approve of. Because he, like all of the early fathers, was a great believer in man’s power and capacity to respond to the gospel. They did believe in original sin and were not unaware of this reality, but believed that we have the power of freedom: the capacity to respond to God’ grace, God’s gift, God’s word, and to do so in ways that seem incredible, because God holds the power for us to make it happen. And there was all this preaching on this very topic… In the West, they became obsessed with the problem of predestination, with corruption. In the East, they believed that God is so good, God is so generous, He allows us to partake in free will, to be essential elements in our salvation, our eternal life; even to be divinized, transformed, Godlike. So we are given a great message in today’s gospel: we are called to holiness, to be saints. Many things impede this. The devil can tempt us, trials and tribulations, the lure of riches, worldly desires - all of these things can impede our holiness, our sanctity, prevent us from fulfilling the word sent to us, the grace given us, the power and gifts given us. It is up to us to respond, it is in our power… So on this day when St. John Chrysostom is honored, let us honor him, and try to become saints.” (Homily given on Friday, September, 13: Feast of John Chrysostom)

• THE EXALTATION OF THE CROSS

  Abbot Matthew offered the following reflection on the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross (Saturday, September 14): Our Lord says to the apostles, and to all His disciples, that if we wish to be His disciples, we will take up our cross daily and follow Him. This is a reflection by the Cistercian author, Michael Casey, on that notion: “We do not have to repeat Calvary, but we cannot escape our personal and corporate measure of suffering. Suffering is the most universal of human experiences; nobody escapes it. But we are to be inspired by the example of Jesus and strengthened by his grace to carry whatever burdens life lays on our shoulders: weakness, sickness, fragility, incompetence, failure, sin. We do not have to seek the cross; it will find us quickly enough.” May our crucified Lord Jesus grant us mercy and draw us to Himself. (quotation from Balaam's Donkey: Random Ruminations For Every Day of the Year, p. 303)

Father Paschal reminded us of the importance of Monday’s saint (September 23), Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, “probably one of the most extraordinary people of the twentieth century.” He noted that Padre Pio, an Italian Capuchin (Franciscan) friar, was known for “extraordinary supernatural gifts, preternatural gifts - bilocation, being two places at once, all across the globe, reading souls, healings, miracles of every sort. He bore the stigmata of Christ as St. Francis himself had.” For this impressive remarkable character, thousands of people waited for weeks for him to hear their confessions. “Even now, in Rotondo where he lived, after all these years, plenty of pilgrims still come, because Padre Pio still delivers, and that’s important.” In our times it is hard to compete with all of the competing voices, but “if you can deliver, if you are the real thing, there is nothing you won’t do. Even the Communists loved Padre Pio.” The sanctity we see in Pio, and in so many others, leads us to ask: why the saints? Why do we have these saints? “To inspire us, to give us strength. And God knows in these dark ages when more and more scandal happens, it is good to know these saints are real, these miracles are real, these supernatural acts are real, well-documented.” Fr. Paschal directs us to “the best book on Padre Pio,” surprisingly by an American Lutheran minister, C. Bernard Ruffin, a volume now in many editions: Padre Pio: The True Story (which he encourages us to read, although the chapter on Pio’s spirituality, he notes, is the only questionable one). It is important indeed to know the true story: “you can only really be inspired by the saints and helped by the saints if you have the full reality, the honesty, the truthfulness – of what they really had to suffer.” And Pio had to suffer a lot, even within the church. There are impressive stories here: of appearances after his death, incredible healings, all well-documented. “The Saints are God’s light to guide us in these dark ages” – even with corruption and sin at all levels of the church – the saints still are able “to give inspiration to hope and persevere.” We should strive to imitate them and the things they do – “not necessarily the stigmata, the bilocation, etc.” – but to become friends of God. “So: the saints inspire us the more we know about them, their true situation, leading to holiness and to better deal with the things around us. So let’s imitate this great saint, Padre Pio: his prayers and devotions, his acceptance of suffering. It may not lead to bilocation, but we will truly be friends of God.”

The Lord tells us in the gospel (Lk. 8:19-21) that those who hear the word of God and act on it are those who, in a word, are his family. When and if we fail, as inevitably we will fail from time to time, in this hearing and doing, Saint Augustine says to us: “Be assured that you can never be perfect in this world, unless you realize that it is impossible for you to be perfect here. Therefore, your aim in life should be as follows: always try your best in doing what you have to do, so that you may reach the heavens. Never get tired of trying, because there is always room for improvement.” May we never grow tired of hearing God’s word and trying to act on it.
 

          First, our response to Jesus requires us to imitate Him and His love. And in this light, St. Vincent said, “Jesus willed to be born poor… (and) made himself the servant of the poor and shared in their poverty.”  Born in an age when many chose the priesthood as a means to live a comfortable life, Vincent not only embraced poverty but developed missionary projects, founded several hospitals, collected relief funds for the victims of war, and ransomed over 1,200 galley slaves from North Africa. Vincent also said, “It is our duty to prefer the service of the poor to everything else and to offer such service as quickly as possible.” He was zealous in conducting retreats for clergy at a time when there was great laxity, abuse, and ignorance among them. He was a pioneer in clerical training and was instrumental in establishing seminaries.

          Secondly, our response to the Truth of Christ means that we are called to love others to the same degree as Jesus Himself and, again, we see the powerful witness of today’s saint. Vincent was by temperament a very irascible person—even his friends admitted it. He said that, except for the grace of God, he would have been, “hard and repulsive, rough and cross.” But he became a tender and affectionate man, very sensitive to the needs of others.

          Pope Leo XIII made him the patron of all charitable societies. Outstanding among these, of course, is the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, founded in 1833 by his admirer Blessed Frédéric Ozanam.