Connecting the Dots

 In my last entry, I had been thinking about a statue of St. Francis Xavier in our church.  Now I have been a member of this church since 2007 -- 15 years -- and I have never up until now given a thought to St. Francis Xavier or to that statue.  

Last night, I awoke around 1:30 with a new understanding.  St. Francis Xavier had been trying to tell me something, but it took me a few days to make the connection.

A couple of weeks ago, one of the members of my garden club lost her husband.  I attended the funeral service, but then with the advent of Thanksgiving, I put the event behind me.  Other than the monthly meetings of the garden club, I have no contact with this woman, and therefore I know her only slightly.  Her name is Frances Xavier _______.  

Although she has been known all her life as "Frances," when she joined the garden club a few years ago, she asked us to call her "Xavier," which we have done.  Because of my unexpected reflections on St. Francis Xavier a few days ago, I suddenly realized during the night that Xavier is undoubtedly experiencing loneliness and heartbreak, especially at this time of the year, Thanksgiving and Christmas.  I have been living my life without another thought of what she must be going through.

God is amazing! He will use anything at hand to move us to do His work.  In this case, it took a sudden awareness of a statue to awaken my mind and heart to the suffering of another person.  Now, if he will just show me the next step......

There Are People Out There.....

 In my office, there is a small nook with a comfortable chair where I can sit and gaze at a variety of family photos --- each one of which brings back a special memory.  For some reason this morning, as I sat in my office, I began thinking about all the statues in our church, especially the one of St. Francis Xavier, missionary to the Orient.  I am sure he is there because our church includes a large Vietnamese population who are greatly devoted to this saint.  

With the plethora of saints closer to home, I would not ordinarily think of St. Francis Xavier.  However, I know the outlines of his story, and remembering his courage, I said a quick prayer to him this morning, asking for the grace to meet others as they are, adapting to their ways rather than insisting on my way.  

The brief experience this morning caused me to reflect on the criticism which some Protestants will throw at the Catholic church -- for "worshipping statues."  The statues (along with pictures and relics) bring back family memories for those of us who know the stories.  They remind us that there are people out there who love us -- because we belong to the same family -- and who are ready to help us.  We are inspired by their stories and example; we are given hope in situations that they had to overcome themselves. 

Upon her deathbed, St. Therese of Lisieux said, "I will spend my heaven doing good for those on earth."  Those in heaven are still close to us. They still pray for us and send assistance when we ask for their help. But not only the canonized saints -- the same is true for the ordinary saints, those who died full of faith and hope in Jesus Christ.

As my mother was taken into surgery during the last week of her life, she raised her hand.  The nurses called to me that she wanted me, and as I turned around, I saw her make a large sign of the cross in blessing. I understood at that moment that her blessing was not only for me, but for all of her children. Should not her blessing continue in heaven?

There is a familiar saying, "out of sight, out of mind." Our statues remind us of those family members who still love and bless us from heaven, even though we may not think of them because they belong to past ages.  Without those reminders, we might remain forever ignorant of our rich inheritance and the graces available to us through their intercession.  There are people out there who love us; it would be wonderful if all of us could say, "I have friends in high places!"

Why Wouldn't We Believe Him?

I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me (Jn.14:6)

"I'm sure He didn't say, 'I am THE Truth'," a friend once said to me.  Behind her words lay, I think, a common cultural acceptance that there are many truths -- and for that matter, many ways -- into the heart of God, and that it is a sign of elitism, even snobbery, to insist that one way is superior to another.

And yet, there is the inscription over the door of a university in Germany: There are many doctrines, but one Truth.  Suppose there are multiple gods, as in India, for example. In that case, there may be multiple pathways and multiple truths expressing the limited boundaries of those gods, whose jurisdictions do not impose on one another.  But we are unable to follow every one of those paths to reach every one of those gods in our lifetime.  Therefore, wherever we end up, we have still reached only a partial truth, not THE TRUTH.

If we accept that there is but One God, Creator of heaven and earth and all that is within them, there can be only one Truth, one Path, one Way to that God.  Or to put it another way, that God is Lord of all our paths, able to guide us to Himself from wherever we begin -- in some analogous way, like "All roads lead to Rome."

As Lord of Creation, Jesus is able to guide us to the Father.  He alone has 'the words of everlasting life." He goes after the straying sheep, those who have lost THE WAY:  I have come to seek and to save what was lost.  He has not come to judge our wrong beliefs, but to correct them, to bring us back into the household of the Father.

No one comes to the Father except through me.  No other religious leader has ever made such a claim.  "Believe what I tell you," they might say, but never "I am the Way."  No one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son reveals Him.  There is no other way; there is no other path than the one already given to us in the Son of God.

The question is, "Why can't we believe that?"  Was there anything in the life and death of Jesus of Nazareth to indicate that He was lying or deluded when He made such a statement?  Was there anything grandiose or self-seeking in Him that would lead Him to overstate the case?  "I AM THE TRUTH."

It seems to me that we either accept His words and come to Him to find the Truth of Who God Is, or we reject His words and go after our own Truth.  

  

The Family of God

 God of peace, with Jesus as the capstone you draw us together as members of your household.....

We recently missed our regularly-scheduled weekend Mass, and my husband wanted to attend the 7:00 am Vietnamese Mass instead.  My first thought was that I would miss the social connection I always experience at Sunday mass -- seeing the people I know and recognize, finding out how people are when I don't see them very often, etc.  In addition, I knew that I would not understand a word, as the entire Mass and homily are in Vietnamese.

My actual experience, however, was quite different from my expectation.  In spite of my not understanding the language, I was drawn in by the music and the warmth of the congregation.  Of course, I knew the rubrics of the Mass, so worship was not a problem, but entering into the difference in cultural expression of the worship was a real joy.  The Vietnamese bow to the priest and to one another at the kiss of peace, whereas the Americans wave, point to one another, and grin.  The Vietnamese chant every response of the Mass, and their participation seems to be full and heartfelt.  I left Mass feeling "at-one" with the people and with God.

Most of us consider attending Mass to be a solitary event, I think.  What we experience but fail to reflect upon is how much we are drawn together as a family by our worship of the One God.  Despite our backgrounds and cultural differences, our common worship makes us one family.  St. Paul addresses this issue in the book of Ephesians:

For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the ...dividing wall of hostility....His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility...For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit....And in him, you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit (2:14ff.)

Most of us give little thought to the Covenant God has made with us through Jesus Christ --- mainly because the word "Covenant" has little meaning to us today for a variety of reasons.  Especially in the western culture, we tend to think in terms of individualism rather than family.  But God's plan has always been to make us part of His own "family" -- the Trinity.  We are to be one with Him, as the Son and the Spirit are One with the Father.  Our place at the family table is in Jesus Christ, as members of His Body.  Rather than separating us from one another, our differences add to the richness of our relationships.

There is no other place on earth we can experience this oneness except at Mass, where there is no "first place" at the table of the Lord.  All are welcome; all are accepted; none are excluded.  All of us have access to the Father and to one another.  If we go to Mass often enough and long enough, we will eventually begin to discover and to experience the gift of family!

The God Bearers

 Ignatius of Antioch was known to the churches of Asia Minor as "Theophorus," a Greek word meaning "God-bearing."    An ancient document detailing the final journey and death of Ignatius testifies to the significance of his name.  As Ignatius was hauled before the emperor Trajan, the conversation was recorded:

Trajan:  "And who is Theophorus?"  

Ignatius:  "He who has Christ within his breast."

Trajan: "Do we not seem to you to have the gods in our minds, whose assistance we enjoy in fighting against our enemies?"

Ignatius: "You are in error when you call the demons of the nations gods.  For there is but one God, who made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that are in them: and one Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, whose kingdom may I enjoy."

Trajan: "Do you mean Him who was crucified under Pontius Pilate?"

Ignatius: "I mean Him who crucified my sin, with him who was the inventor of it, and who has condemned all the deceit and malice of the devil under the feet of those who carry Him in their heart."

Trajan: "Dost thou then carry within thee Him that was crucified?"

Ignatius: "Truly so; for it is written, 'I will dwell in them, and walk in them'." (2 Cor. 6:16).

Trajan: "We command that Ignatius, who affirms that he carries about within him Him that was crucified, be bound by soldiers, and carried to the great Rome, there to be devoured by the beasts, for the gratification of the people.

Theophorus-- the God bearer.  It seems to me that this is our calling, our mission, our purpose -- to be all of us God bearers to our world.  Like Mary, to be overshadowed by the Holy Spirit, that Christ be incarnated in us -- flesh of our flesh, bone of our bone.  That wherever we go, to bear within us God Himself.  To bring His wisdom, His love, His passion for the world and its people to each situation in which we find ourselves. 

The Son of God took on Mary's flesh.  Should He not also take on ours?