The Prophet Like Moses

St. Mark's gospel, in which the demons recognize Jesus right away but human beings generally don't, forces the question upon us, "Who do you say that I am?" My homily for this weekend is posted here.

A Little of the Ludwig Van

So said Alex, as the way to end a perfect evening, and I agree. This version by none other than the great Brazilian thrash metal band, Sepultura:

Ah, the "saddest of all keys." Now that's two random references from favorite movies.

Franciscan Blogroll

Check out the fascinating and erudite Breathing with Both Lungs.

The Superbowl and the Culture of Death

From several places, especially Historical Christian--which I recommend to everyone--I heard this morning of NBC's rejection of this beautiful Superbowl ad:

Of course it's a little flawed. One isn't against the crime of abortion because of the possibility that a child will be someone talented or important, or could contribute much to the world, but because life is the original gift of God, and the only appropriate response to this 'original blessing' is gratefulness. Nevertheless, the ad takes a clever rhetorical strategy, hoping that those who participate in the happy and wholesome uplift Obama has brought might become willing to extend that hope to the unborn as well.

The Veil

In these days when we have been reading the letter to the Hebrews at weekday Masses, I have to admit that my fascination with the "letter" has been renewed. If I had the same Mass each day, I might have even tried to preach it straight through. Today's passage is almost overwhelming:

Brothers and sisters:
Since through the Blood of Jesus
we have confidence of entrance into the sanctuary
by the new and living way he opened for us through the veil,
that is, his flesh,
and since we have “a great priest over the house of God,”
let us approach with a sincere heart and in absolute trust,
with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience
and our bodies washed in pure water.

I'm amazed by this idea of the flesh of Christ as a "veil." It is the veil, perhaps, between heaven and earth, between the human and divine united in his Person. When this veil is torn upon the Cross, the perfect delight and blessing pour out upon the world in the form of the Lord's Precious Blood. Conversely, we are given the opportunity to enter into the divine realm by crawling into the entrances that the wounds of Christ become. "Within thy wounds hide me," prays the Anima Christi. The Lord's Passion and death break the veil between human and divine and offer us the opportunity to share in the divinity which Christ humbled to share in our humanity.

In this spirit I offered the votive Mass of Christ the High Priest this morning, with the preface of the Holy Eucharist I:

As we eat his body which he gave for us,
we grow in strength.
As we drink his blood which he poured out for us,
we are washed clean.

Baby Names

One thing about being a parish priest is that you get a sense of what people are naming their babies. I have honestly been surprised by the lack of diversity:

A quarter of all the baby boys I have baptized have been named Matthew or Andrew.

Of all of the girls, an impressive 23% have been named Madison.

Also a Man with Faults and Sins

Way back in this post, when I was blogging the overwhelming experience of concelebrating with Benedict XVI, I tried to reproduce the spontaneous, touching words the Holy Father spoke at the end of Mass. So I was delighted to receive the Christimas gift of an edition of all Benedict's homilies and addresses during his time among us here in the U.S.A. Here's the actual text of what he said at the end of the Mass for priests and religious at St. Patrick's Cathedral here in New York:

At this moment I can only thank you for your love of the Church and Our Lord, and for the love which you show to the poor successor of Saint Peter. I will try to do all that is possible to be a worthy successor of the great Apostle, who also was a man with faults and sins, but remained in the end the rock for the Church. And so I too, with all my spiritual poverty, can be for this time, in virtue of the Lord's grace, the Successor of Peter.

It is also your prayers and your love which give me the certainty that the Lord will help me in this my ministry. I am therefore deeply grateful for your love and for your prayers. My response now for all that you have given to me during this visit is my blessing, which I impart to you at the conclusion of this beautiful Celebration.

Check out the book here.