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Sundays | Thy Sins are forgiven | Page 9

Category Archives: Sundays

Let’s Rise Together

Easter Sunday
        Beloved in Jesus Christ,  yesterday, Holy Saturday, there was a great silence on the earth.[i] All kept silence, because the King was asleep; God had fallen asleep in the flesh;  
        but today the hearts of the Christian people rejoice, because Christ has Risen! It is EAster. He has conquered the Devil who enslaves us, he has conquered sin which destroys us, he has conquered death – …. which worries us.   
        He has gone to search for our first parents, to open the gates of heaven to Adam and Eve  and the so-many others waiting since the beginning of the world.  An ancient writer says, Jesus goes to Adam and Eve, he approaches carrying his cross, the weapon of victory. At first they are afraid,  but Christ takes them by the hand and raises them up saying:  ‘Rise, O Adam, let us leave this place, Awaken sleeper, rise from the dead.’  
        Friends, Easter is the greatest day of the year. This good God, who has lowered himself to be one of us – who has taken on our flesh – who lived our life, who suffered as we do, and died – he has defeated now the greatest fear of mankind: death. This was the reason that, upon hearing that Jesus had actually done it – conquered death – when Peter and John heard, they ran as fast as they could to the tomb. John went into the tomb with Peter, and it says ‘he saw and believed.’  
        So many people wrongly believe that our eternal destiny is to be  some kind of floating soul,  up there, somewhere –  not true: this is a heresy, a lie. That is a temporary state. The Lord’s plan for us is the wonderful resurrection;  Christ did not rise from the dead in order to show off or something.  It wasn’t even just to prove his Divinity; it was to lead the way for us, to show us our future, to give us the pure hope of the beautiful world to come.    
        The Resurrection of Christ means our own resurrection in two ways: freed from sin, and freed from death. In each case, we become a New Creation.  Freed from sin in this life – he offers it, all we have to do  is say yes to the forgiveness that has been won for us. Freed from death – this we live by hope in this world,  and reality in the next world.   
        St. Melito tells Christ’s attitude toward us: ‘I did not create you to be a prisoner in hell. rise from the dead, I am the life of the dead, for you are in me and I in you;  together we form one person, and we cannot be separated.’  The promise of our own resurrection in the world to come is really what makes life worth living.  
        Some time back, a friend asked me where I wish to be buried when I die. I hadn’t really thought about a grave. But I could croak anytime, so… figuring I should attend to this, I emailed my siblings,  and asked if there are any extra plots available where our parents are buried.  My sister sent me a message right back: ‘There are plenty of plots there with Mom and Dad, she said,   please plan on using one of them,   it would be nice for us to rise together at the resurrection!  
        You know, I felt a great happiness to see that message of hers. Her strong faith in the resurrection and the world ahead made me very happy.  And she put a smiley face after ‘resurrection!’  ‘It would be nice for us to rise together at the resurrection.’  
        It would be nice for all of us – to rise together. May the prayers of the Blessed Virgin bring us the joy and hope of the resurrection of the dead,  and the life of the world to come. Amen.

Entrusted to the prayers of Mother Cabrini


[i] adapted from the Roman Breviary, Holy Saturday, Melito of Sardis

Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday
Beloved in the Lord, the Great Temple of Jerusalem at the time of Christ, had many important gates for entry.  The grandest of these, was the Eastern Gate  which can still be seen today.[i]  In Jesus’ time it was called the Beautiful Gate.  It was at this gate that Anne and Joachim,  the parents of Mary, famously met each other.   
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Now according to ancient Jewish tradition,  the Cloud of God’s Presence, used to appear through this gate and will appear again when the Messiah comes. The Prophet Ezekiel: ‘Then he led me to the gate and … the glory of the Lord entered the temple, by way of the gate which faces east.[ii] And so the ancients believed that when the Messiah comes,  he would pass through this, the ‘Beautiful Gate.’    This belief was so strong, that in an affront to Jews, the Moslems sealed the Eastern Gate, to dash their hopes of a coming Messiah.  But as we know, this was too late, because the Messiah has already come.  
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Today is Palm Sunday; we remember Jesus riding into Jerusalem, and it is for sure, that he entered by the Eastern Gate, the Beautiful Gate, causing the people to rejoice and wave palms.  As we will see this Holy Week, the rejoicing was short-lived, because the Messiah had come to suffer and die; this is how he will free us from the chains of hell and Satan.          This Week we walk with the Lord in his Passion.  Thursday, the Mass of the Lord’s Supper commemorates when Christ gave us the Holy Mass and the ordained Priesthood.   Then the Blessed Sacrament will be carried through the church to a place decorated with flowers, like a garden.  Jesus goes to the Garden of Gethsemane where he prays. The disciples fell asleep that night, but we will stay awake, and pray with him.  
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Then, Good Friday.  It is ‘Good’ because it is the day of love; it is the day when the Lord lays down his life for his friends.   
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Holy Saturday, Jesus’ body is in the tomb, and where goes his soul? To the land of the dead; to those waiting for the gates of heaven to be opened.  Waiting, are Abraham, and Moses and Sarah and David,  and especially two others, who have been waiting a very long time: Adam and Eve.  
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Then on Easter, we will see the Good News. We will see that with Christ, we can be resurrected; we will have the hope of being resurrected in the New World to come.  
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Fr. Luke Winkelmann

[i] constructed over the older one in the 6th century

[ii] Ezekiel 43:1-4

A good death – so we may rise

Beloved in Jesus Christ,  During the civil war of Spain, in 1938, the future St. Josemaria Escriva[i] was already trying to guide young people on the path of holiness – even during the war. Now it came to light that one of those young people, was going to be denounced by the Territorial Administrator; this Administrator, Don Jorge, had a vendetta against the boy’s father; and so denouncing him would surely mean his death. Continue Reading →

The Divinization of Man

Beloved in Jesus Christ,  
At the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday, as the priest puts ashes on your forehead,  he traditionally says,  ‘Remember that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return.’  This is a reminder of our own mortality; that this body will eventually disintegrate to dust.  Speaking about this phrase, Pope Benedict said a few years ago:  “this is not only an invitation to humility,  but also an announcement of the path to salvation. When God said to the human race,  ‘You are dust and to dust you shall return!’  he is not referring only to our death,  but he announces a path of salvation which will travel through the earth.’ Continue Reading →

Fight the Devil

1st Sunday of Lent
Beloved in Jesus Christ, We are presented in the gospel today with this scene  of Jesus being tempted by none other than Satan. Our Lord of course resists the Devil, he shows us what victory over temptation looks like. Continue Reading →

Encountering Jesus in the Holy Eucharist

8th Sunday in Ordinary Time:
Beloved in Jesus Christ, You may have seen all the signs on doors of the Church notes in the bulletin – our parish has been promoting visits to our Adoration Chapel.  If you are not aware, just a half-block west at the Convent, we have a secret place to pray, our Chapel.  All hours of the day and night, people stop by to pray. Continue Reading →

Living the 10 Commandments

6th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Beloved in Jesus Christ, being a Catholic man or woman, means having faith; faith is believing all the teachings of Holy Mother Church; But in the Sacred Scriptures, St. James says, ‘What good is it, if a person has faith, but does not do good works? So – if a person really has faith, he will live a moral life as well. Today in the Gospel, Jesus teaches us a lot about how we are to live; and what is he teaching? It is really the 10 Commandments. Continue Reading →

Sanctification of Work

5th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Beloved in Jesus Christ,[i]
Back in the 1930’s, St. Josemaria Escriva  visited the city of Burgos,[ii] in Spain with a group of young men that he knew.  One day, exploring that historic town, they went up inside the great Cathedral, built in 1221. Reaching the very high towers, St. Josemaria pointed out to those young people, the beautiful, detailed lattice-work of stone that could be seen high up there. ‘This, he said, was evidently the result of patient and laborious craftsmanship; but the workers did this, knowing that none of this beauty could be seen by the people down below. Continue Reading →

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