November 9th, A Note from Fr. Walt

       There are several hundred churches in the eternal city of Rome.  Among them, of course, is the largest church in Christendom:  St. Peter’s Basilica.  Anyone who has visited the Vatican has stood in awe at the

magnificence of this basilica.  Among the other great churches we call basilicas are the Basilica of St. Mary Major, the Basilica of St. Paul outside the walls and the Basilica of St. John Lateran.

       Today, November 9th, we are celebrating one of those basilicas, the one that is dedicated in honor of St. John the Evangelist, more commonly called the Lateran Basilica.  It may seem unusual to us that the celebration of the Dedication of this Basilica should take

precedence over our regular Sunday Liturgy.  Another aspect that may seem unusual is that the feast has the title of ‘The Dedication of the Basilica of the Savior,’ yet it is the one and the same church dedicated to St. John the Evangelist.  It is only occasionally that this feast falls on a Sunday.  We probably wouldn’t take notice of it when it comes on a weekday.   

        So what gives this feast day such importance?  There are a number of reasons, among them is the fact that this particular church is also the Cathedral Church of the Diocese of Rome.  Every Diocese in the world has a cathedral.  In Our own diocese, it is the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Rochester.  In New York City, it is the more famous St. Patrick’s Cathedral.  I am sure that in some remote areas of the world, the cathedral church is a very small church, perhaps due to the poverty of the area of its location.

       The significance of the Basilica of the Savior, or St. John’s Basilica, is precisely because it is a cathedral church.  It is the seat of the Diocese of Rome and consequently it is the mother church for the Roman diocese and Pope Francis is its Bishop.  Read over the texts of the scriptures for today’s feast and you will discover the importance of the cathedral church.

       In the first reading from the Book of Ezekiel, the imagery is very rich in speaking about the flowing water that comes out from the temple, running into the sea; and when the rich pure water reaches the salty water of the sea, it gives life to all the creatures of the sea.  The trees and plants that grow along the banks of the river are watered by the life-giving springs that nourish these plants.  Both the water which gives life and the plants that have healing powers represent the sacramental life of the church that nourishes and heals.  The sacraments of Baptism and Eucharist, Confirmation and Anointing, all give and sustain life.  The sacrament of Reconciliation brings healing to the sinner.

       In the passage from the Letter to the Corinthians, our second reading today, St. Paul reminds us that we ourselves are the temples of the Holy Spirit and the Spirit of God dwells in us.  This tells us that we are not only celebrating a structure in today’s liturgy, but the life-giving Spirit of God that is within us.

       Finally the passage of the Gospel, taken from the Gospel of St. John, gives us the scene where Jesus cleanses the temple in Jerusalem.  The words of Jesus give strong evidence for his love for the Father’s house.  “Take these out of here and stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.” 

        Jesus, by his action, is reminding us that every place

of worship is a sacred place and that we should remember this and remind ourselves at the same time, that we are living temples and the Spirit of the Lord dwells within us.

Fr. Walt Wainwright

November 2nd, A note from Fr. Scott

          Not long ago, I read an article written by a woman who said that when she was young she would read all the Reader’s Digest Condensed Books.  It wasn’t until years later that she realized that “condensed” didn’t just mean “shortened”.  The proper people at Reader’s Digest Condensed Books also removed any offensive material, especially language.  She cited as an example William Shakespeare’s classic “MacBeth” in which Lady MacBeth, overwhelmed with guilt, would cry out, “Out, d___ spot!” (taking a cue from the proper people of Reader’s Digest Condensed Books I will let you fill in the blank).  The Reader’s Digest version read, “Out, crimson spot!”

          As the author of the article recalled the Condensed Books I couldn’t help but think of the time (early 70s) when my mother read the condensed version of Erich Segal’s “Love Story”.  It was a rather sad and moving story and her reading of it made her want to see the movie, so she went with her sisters.  Of course, the original book was rife with vulgarities and the movie followed suit, much to my mother’s dismay: she would have preferred the cleaned-up condensed version.

          I thought of that article while I was on my annual retreat last week.  I go to Stella Maris Retreat Center in Skaneateles, NY, and take part in a silent directed retreat.  Silence is kept except for participation at daily Mass and a daily meeting with one’s director for about 45 minutes.  The rest of the time is spent praying, sleeping, eating, reading, and going for walks around the neighborhood.  (If it sounds like a vacation, it’s not.  Deep prayer is hard work.)  It happened to be a rainy week, so walking around the neighborhood involved avoiding raindrops and negotiating wet sidewalks. 

          One day I went for a lengthy walk up and down the small inclines strewn throughout the area.  As I started down a small incline, I must have been deep in thought, for I didn’t notice that part of the sidewalk was slate or shale or something of that nature—petrology/geology is not my strong suit.  At any rate, whatever it was, it was extremely slippery when wet!  My foot slipped, I lost my balance and subsequently fell to the ground.  (When one is 60ish, falling is not a pretty picture.  I admit I lack the grace of a ballet dancer—or even someone on “Dancing with the Stars”.)  I didn’t fall on my backside, thank goodness, or even face-first—also thank goodness.  I fell on my left knee, twisting my toes in an odd way to prevent further descent, leading to some limping for a few days.  But all in all, my pants took the worst of it, especially around the left knee area: dirt and what looked like black soot.  I decided I would just let it dry and wash it when I got back to Elmira.

          After returning home, I sprayed the pants with “Oxi Clean”, let it soak in for a while, echoed Lady MacBeth’s “Out, d___ spot!”, and then threw them in the washer.  They came out less than clean.  The stains remain.  I don’t know what was on that wet sidewalk, but it was like indelible marker.

          While my pants will no doubt forever be stained, fortunately the Catholic Christian life reminds us that no matter what sins may stain our immortal soul, God is the great stain remover—as long as we acknowledge our sinfulness, ask for forgiveness, and are truly sorry, there is nothing God won’t forgive.

          Years ago I remember reading a spiritual writer who said he tried every religion the world over before he decided which one he would embrace.  He became Catholic, because, he said, it’s the most forgiving of all faith traditions.

          It’s not really a faith tradition that’s forgiving; it’s God that’s forgiving—the Holy Spirit has clearly revealed that to the Church—because God wants to free us from the burdens that sin places on our hearts.  Even if the head denies sinfulness, the heart knows and sin leads to a restlessness of spirit within us.  Such restlessness can stain us for life (we all know people who never seem at peace), unless we turn to God, the great stain (of sin) remover.

          Have a blessed . . . and God-filled . . . week . . .

November 16th, A note from Fr. Scott

          Years ago I realized that no one does anything without a reason.  We don’t always like to admit our motivation—sometimes we aren’t even sure what our motivation is—but there is a reason for doing what we do.

          I watch “Revenge”.  Or to be more accurate, I DVR “Revenge” and watch it at some later time.

          It’s not my usual preference in television programming.  Just the title goes against most everything in which I believe.  There’s no room for “revenge” in Catholic Christianity if we understand the Gospel correctly.  The acting in the show is less than riveting; the plot lines strain credibility to the max; there is probably one likable character in the whole menagerie (who isn’t even the centerpiece of the show).  It seems preposterous to me that it’s in its 4^th season on television.

          So why do I watch?

          For one simple reason: I know one of the screenwriters.

          Or I did know one of the screenwriters some years ago.

          His name is Joe and he was a student at Ithaca College.  He had a difficult time the first month away from home—homesickness affects many a student in the beginning, but he toughed it out and did very well.  Early on he became part of the Catholic community and we hired him to work in the Catholic offices at Muller Chapel. 

          Joe was bright, had a great sense of humor, was a terrific worker, and loved all things entertainment: movies, music and television.  I don’t remember the exact title of his major, but it had to do with television.  Joe watched a lot of TV growing up—I was amazed at how many television theme songs he knew by heart!  He also had a wonderfully compassionate heart (something missing from the characters on “Revenge”).  He wasn’t sure what he wanted to do in television, but his dream was to work in television.  I remember him telling me one time that one of his professors suggested he pursue screenwriting. 

          When he first went to LA, he got a job working with the crew on the long-running show “ER”.  He never wanted to be an actor; he wanted to work behind the scenes, although one time “ER” used him as an extra in a scene.  And then came “Revenge”.  A friend told me that Joe was writing for the show, so I started to watch in the second season.  I’m not sure how the writing works because different people get credit for different segments.  Somehow they must work together plot-wise, although the strained plotlines might suggest lack of communication.

          Anyway, Joe is the reason I watch “Revenge”.  It takes me back to my years at Ithaca College.  I never wanted to go there as a chaplain and yet it turned out to be a great experience.  I loved working with young adults, so filled with hope and determination, questions and compassion.  I had a great rapport with the other Catholic Chaplain, Mary.  Those were good years.

          But I wouldn’t want to go back.  Because we can’t recapture the past.  We can learn from the past and we can be inspired by the past, but we can’t recapture it.  We can only go forward.  Jesus once said, “No one who sets a hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God.”  In other words, if you are plowing a field and keep looking behind, you’ll never keep to a straight path; you’ll go off course.  We follow Jesus Who leads from the front, not from the back. 

          Nostalgia has its place, but we’re doomed to failure if we try to recapture the past.  We can only go forward.  While the past may look a lot better than the present in some ways, that doesn’t mean the future can’t be bright.  With eyes and ears and minds and hearts set on Jesus ahead of us, we can only be people of hope.  With eyes and ears and minds and hearts set on Jesus, revenge truly makes no sense.  With eyes and ears and minds and hearts set on Jesus, our motivation will be positive—and incidentally, we’ll be going in the best direction possible.

          Have a blessed week . . .