Spread the good news

John 20: 11-18

"But Mary was standing outside near the tomb, weeping. Then, as she wept, she stooped to look inside, and saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had been, one at the head, the other at the feet. They said, 'Woman, why are you weeping?' 'They have taken my Lord away,' she replied, 'and I don't know where they have put him.' As she said this she turned round and saw Jesus standing there, though she did not realise that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, 'Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?' Supposing him to be the gardener, she said, 'Sir, if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and remove him.' Jesus said, 'Mary!' She turned round then and said to him in Hebrew, 'Rabbuni!' -- which means Master. Jesus said to her, 'Do not cling to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to the brothers, and tell them: I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.' So Mary of Magdala told the disciples, 'I have seen the Lord,' and that he had said these things to her."

Transformed by the resurrection

3/4/2021

Some people have commented that they have not seen any blogs from me in a while.

But I teach. And I want to give my students a solid Roman Catholic education. They are the future: we count on them to bring the Gospel message of truth and love. We are Christians: and teach others what Christ taught; and to live ourselves the message of the Gospel. There is but one Saviour: Jesus. The message has not changed.

Is this not what the Acts of the Apostles tell us in our First Reading: “You know the message…” To whom does “you” refer? The Apostles? Us? The Apostles are the witnesses and recorded what they observed, namely, the empty Tomb. And following the Apostles, our faith tells us we can believe their testimony and teach others the same: our Saviour was risen from the dead.

Of course, this presupposes faith. If people lack faith, or if they are skeptics, or doubt, how will they come to have faith. To believe is the work of Grace; but also the effort of our intelligence.

But Christians are a people of hope; we even hope for the conversion of others to the Christian faith, to accept what God wants to give them – and us – Eternal Salvation. This is why Jesus came into the world.

Conversion is for sinners. Spiritual and moral transformation from sin to sanctification --possible by God’s grace -- if we are humble enough to acknowledge we need help. If we do not believe we are sinners, then, we have no need for a Saviour. We have no need for the Gospel, for this message of salvation. The Gospel of Our Lord is about being saved from sin. This is why Jesus died. Christ did not come for the righteous but sinners. Christianity is more than humanism where we are “nice” to each other; our religion is about bringing the fullness of truth to others which means to live in light and not in darkness -- Jesus is the light; and to offer the love of Jesus to others which is self-giving love takes the shape of the Cross.

Does the Birth of Christ change our lives?

24/12/2020

I thought for Christmas I would write something more personal. Today (December 24th) was the deadline for grade submission for my university classes. As I looked at my students’ results, I thought overall the students did quite well. But my concern was for the “C” students. “C” is a passing grade but if you want to apply for a scholarship or a graduate programme “C” is not only useless, but the grade also becomes an obstacle. Moreover, “C” lowers the GPA (Grade Point Average). Do I want to be the professor who is the cause of a lowered GPA? I do struggle with this thought. It could ruin a student’s future. A grade, a course, a transcript can affect a student for life; makes me reflect on what I have done to help the student over the course of the semester.

As part of my Advent discipline, I decided to be up by 3:45am and be at the gym by 4:15am. Discipline is always good for the mind and body. I listened to spiritual podcasts (Bishop Fulton Sheen) during the workout, so the gym turned into a retreat. In our Dominican House we have a chapel where I celebrate daily Mass and I can have daily Adoration. Between reading, marking, and praying, the day goes by rather fast. Our Dominican community has prayers and meals together 2 to 3 time/day.

During my 1-hour Adoration I was reading a prayer of reparation for all those who committed offenses against the Blessed Sacrament, against God, against His Saints. Then, I looked at myself and I began to wonder if I sinned against God by the sin of omission: What have I failed to teach? Where could have I helped someone (a student or others) and I failed to? In this state of recognising I did not do as much as I could have to keep --or lead -- my students on the path of truth, I decided it would be best to go to Confession, especially as a preparation for Christmas. I normally go to Confession once ever two weeks so in prayer I realised I should return to Confession for these sins of omission.

I realised that God gives us many opportunities to live in grace and holiness. Our inclination is thinking we need to be “doing something” or “be somewhere else” to grow in sanctity. In fact, our sanctity, our growth is being exactly where we are; being who we are. But being who we are as God sees us and knows us. As we existed in His mind before our birth. Growing in sanctity does not mean “escape” to somewhere else but living our vocation exactly where we are and who we are. This is what the Saints had done in monasteries, convents, as spouses, as lay individuals. God gives us daily opportunities to grow in holiness; the question is, what do we do with these opportunities. It does not mean to become someone else, but to be God’s image of “me.”

Removing the clutter

5/12/2020

I was marking assignments on the significance of the Last Supper; one of my students focussed on the humility of Jesus. He highlighted the fact that Jesus, on his last evening with the Apostles, chose to wash their feet. This, of course, was taken from St. John’s Gospel. The students were also asked to carefully examine St. Luke. The fact this student was struck by the humility of Jesus in spite of other fundamental elements of the Last Supper made me reflect on the radical humility in the life of Our Saviour.

I emphasise “humility” as a fundamental quality manifesting the person of Jesus because humility extends to the last acts of His human life in continuity with the events surrounding Jesus’s birth. In the 2nd Sunday of Advent we hear Isaiah proclaiming, “Prepare the way for the Lord,” words identified with St. John the Baptist (Mark 1:3; Isaiah 40:3). But who is this John the Baptist? He is considered a prophet by his contemporaries and his disciples. He lived the radical life of an ascetic anticipating the coming of the Messiah. Detached from the world, John the Baptist prepared himself and others for Jesus: repentance, cleansing, and detachment. Repentance of sins acknowledges that one is a sinner -- we actually do have sins to be forgiven! This prepares us for Jesus, as John the Baptist had done. Forgiveness also means the mind and heart are cleansed of clutter. Interior purification leads to making daily changes. John lived off locusts and honey! An aesthetic diet for someone dwelling in the desert. John the Baptist’s life and language reflected a humble preparation for “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me.”

I have always been astonished and overjoyed visiting poor countries the openness to prayer, the dependence on God, the value attached to the Sacraments. “Why, I ask myself?” Because their hands are not full with their possessions. They have room to pray, to hope, to ask, and to be thankful. With material well-being we become “cluttered” and self-sufficient. We no longer “need” God. It requires “humility” to say, “I need you.” “I need you, Lord, without you I cannot move forward.” It requires humility to say “someone is greater than I.”

In God’s plan to save us He showed that humility is the route of salvation. The Son of God is prepared for a stable. Divine Kingship is not shown in human terms of power, wealth, and fame to impress us with superficial “crowns.” Ugliness of pride is what separated the first man and woman from God (Genesis 3), and so it will be radical humility that will reconcile man with God. Humility is our path to salvation following Christ.

"A Capable woman"

14/11/2020

We have reached the end of Ordinary Time. The end -- end times -- preparing for who is to come reflects Sunday’s readings --- 33rd Sunday is “the end.” This year our end readings might appear rather apocalyptic: with the rising cases of Covid, with uncertainly and anxiety caused by the US elections, with rising tension experienced with radical Islam, with our society’s sexual ethics that are a return to paganism, indeed, the world is shaky, or perhaps being shaken by God.

Who is this “capable wife,” the woman whom Proverbs speaks of? One phrase that makes this woman truly “capable”: “but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” These verses we find at the opening of Proverbs: “Fear of Yahweh is the beginning of knowledge; fools spurn wisdom and disciplines.” (Proverbs 1:7). The “capable” wife, like all believers, as the foundation of her decisions and actions, is fear of God. Everything flows from this relationship of filial love.

“Fear” is often thought of in terms of “threats” that cause “trembling”; but this is not the kind of fear of which Proverbs speak. The fear corresponds to God as Creator, the loving Father who creates our soul, our very being, and the one who sustains our life. And so, fear as it has been properly understood, is a filial towards God, so God is both cause and end of our actions.

ALL SAINTS! ALL SOULS! OUR PRAYERS!

1/11/2020

On All Saints Day the Roman Catholic Church celebrates its Saints and on All Souls Day and during the following nine days we remember and pray for our deceased family and friends.

At the Solemn Mass before us we have the Communion of Saints: we celebrate the Saints as the true heroes of our world The Saints are heroes of Christian virtue and this is why they are patrons of our Churches, reflect our windows, and drape our altars. They are martyrs, dedicated men and women, who gave their lives to Confess the Truth, and to live by the Truth of Christ. This means that the Saints, while they may have been persecuted, surrounded by errors, and the stinking rot of sin, continued to strive for holiness following the teachings of Christ and Apostolic tradition of the Church.

Neither Christ nor His Church tolerates errors because by living the lie of sin, we refuse Eternal salvation. People who strive for holiness are aware of the challenges, the obstacles, the frustrations, but we do not give up. We believe in God’s grace. We believe in the salvific blood of our Saviour. We live in a world to which we bring the light of the Son of God, His Gospel, and the hope of Eternal life that only Christ can give us. But Christ’s message is an invitation to Christ’s divine banquet. Some accept the invitation. Some do not. Refusing the invitation of Our Lord means is to refuse His love, His Grace, fundamentally, the Truth because He is the Way the Truth and the Life.

Our Lady of Victory/Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary -- Ora pro nobis

6/10/2020

Today, October 7th, the Roman Catholic Church celebrates a great feast, in fact, a “Solemnity”! We give thanks to the Blessed Virgin Mary for interceding for Christian Europe when Ottoman Muslim fleets off the shores of Greece engaged in battle against the Catholic Alliance in 1571. The Dominican Pope, St. Pius V, secured a Catholic League of the Papal States, Venice and Spain/Austria /Italian states. The Pope and his alliance sought to put an end to Ottoman/Muslim attacks and terrorising raids on Italian territories and the Croatian coast. In fact, the Ottomans were making inroads into Christian territories in the Mediterranean stretching across Cyprus attacking as far as Malta and by land into the north, in Hungary and Poland.

Pope, Pius V asked the faithful to pray the Rosary and ask for Mary to intercede for Christian Europe as Ottoman/Muslim armies continued to expand west. The attacks had been going on since the 8th century and the naval battle of Lepanto could have very well changed the religious demography of Europe. European Catholicism could have been eradicated similar to Christianity in North Africa -- all but disappeared (with the exception of Egypt). Like Byzantine Christian capital Constantinople in the 4th century, Rome was now the coveted prize of the of Catholic Christianity.
Wars are disturbing. They are a tragic reality of history when peoples, civilisations, attempt to defend themselves from aggressors. We won’t know the power of prayer, the intercessory role of Mary, if we forget out history. We will forget that we are indebted to the martyrs who died for the Christian faith as a testimony of their faith in Christ, the testimony they leave us of truth, love and courage.

Challenged-Corrected-Cleansed

5/9/2020

If we think of our childhood prohibitions that we deliberately violated we will find, “Don’t tell me what to do!”

I remember one incident when I was six-years-old when my father was at work. My mother had an appointment in the afternoon, and she specifically told me to stay home. As soon as she left, I went to see a friend of mine so we could go fishing; neither my mother nor my father would know. Well, as I watched him cast his net into the water, I made the mistake of standing a few meters behind him: the fishing hook landed in my arm where it got stuck. I was brought to emergency to remove the hook; what was supposed to be an “unknown” fishing trip my parents found out about. I still remember the event as a punishment from God for disobedience. It was so very clear. Disobey, and you will be punished.

I mention childhood disobedience because deviant behaviour is not only learned. It’s already a capacity within us. We are morally formed by six-years old, to say, “Yes, I will.” Or, “No, I no I won’t.” This is why a child at six-years-old is prepared for the Sacrament of Confession. So, why does a child or adult disobey? From childhood we make choices based on what we think is best. Underlying, of course, “You don’t need to tell me,” and “I know what is best,” there is pride. We can see this pride already present in the child whose first word of negation “No!” -- to refuse to listen. The first man and woman refused to listen to God, their loving Creator (Genesis 3:1-6). We are born with original sin, cleansed of original sin at baptism, but the affects of original sin remain throughout our life.

Ezekiel 33 teaches about the responsibility of “correction.” Something we find difficult today knowing the reaction we can expect: “Don’t tell me what to do…” We find two common social reasons for not correcting others: 1. Who am I to tell someone else what is right and wrong (implying what to do)? 2. It’s really none of my business (meaning I shouldn’t get involved); and two psychological reasons: 1. we want to be affirming and supportive; 2. we want to create positive thinking. The psychological motives stem from the “I’m OK, you’re OK” psychology of the 1970s that has been a moral disaster: everything is OK. We are reaping the errors today of this moral relativism. But Ezekiel makes it clear: we have a responsibility to correct others, “…if you warn the wicked person to turn from their ways.” Yes, Ezekiel is a prophet and at baptism we are also baptised into the prophetic ministry of Christ. Correct actions presuppose someone teaches what is right and wrong which is the role of parents, and the Church community. Teaching/instilling values has also been traditionally the role of Catholic schools and educators. But today with social pressure and government ideologies Catholic valuesare being increasingly challenged.

The one with the keys

22/8/2020

Roma, August 23, 2020

We take for granted the daily experience of “keys”: locking and unlocking doors at home, our car, at work. But the mechanical act changes when we are “locked out.” We think of how to get in or who can let us in… suddenly, these keys we can’t find seem so precious. Imagine if you are locked out of your house standing at your front door; you ring the doorbell but nobody is home, wondering whom you might call for help. It’s getting late and dark.
From the sidewalk a man who has been watching asks if you need help. You tell him you’re locked out and he replies: Oh, here, I have the keys, I’ll let you in.
You should feel grateful but it feels creepy -- a complete stranger has the keys to your house and unlocks the door. You are the only one with the keys. Only you can unlock the door with the keys. Nobody else. The door unlocked…he disappears.
Keys symbolise authority: the one who has the keys has access to locking and unlocking the door. It’s not just anybody who has possession of the keys; rather, someone who has been given the keys. The whole point of locking means that not everybody is allowed in. And by unlocking you are determining who goes in, the office, the car, the house. And for those who do not have the keys because they are not entrusted with the responsibility and authority of locking and unlocking, they simply must wait for the one who has the keys.
When Peter answers Jesus’ question, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter expresses his faith by speaking courageously. Unlike the other disciples who could not answer Jesus the second time, Peter could, and he does. I imagine there was a great silence as nobody had answered except Peter; they all listened to Peter’s answer that was responding directly to Jesus’ question: “But who do you say that I am?” Interesting that nobody could answer; the only answer the other disciples had was what others had said about Jesus, that Jesus was one of the great prophets. How often this grave error resurfaces like Satan the great Deceiver confusing Jesus with a prophet; a widespread error since the time of Jesus and that continues to spread – that Jesus is not more than a man. Jesus makes it very clear that Peter gave the correct answer, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” This is the answer to Jesus’ identity. Should anyone ask who Jesus is, or who sounds confused, or spreads errors, the answer to Jesus identity is the one Peter gave: “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

“Blessed are you among women”: Mary taken up to Heaven

15/8/2020

Roma, Assumption of Mary, 2020

In some countries the Assumption of Mary is not only observed as a a Solemnity in the Catholic Church but also a Day of Obligation where RCs are required to attend Mass. In Europe, countries include Austria, Croatia, France, Germany (southern), Italy, Poland, and Spain, in Latin America, Chile and Guatemala, and Africa, Cameroon, Gabon, Senegal, where the Assumption kept as a national holiday! What is referred to as Assumption Day is celebrated as a national holiday in 48 countries across the Catholic world!

So what’s so special about Mary? After all, there isn’t a whole lot about her in the Bible. And there is no mention of the Assumption anywhere in the Scriptures. Yet, what is written about Mary has tremendous depth and implications for our salvation. The Bible contains key Marian passages in the New Testament and even prophesies in the Old Testament, but I will focus on the Solemnity being celebrated August 15th -- the Assumption of Mary.

Revelations 12 identifies a woman with a crown of twelve stars around her head in the pangs of giving birth. The woman refers to the Virgin Mary because she is the one giving birth to a male child who is to rule the nations. This male child is Jesus; the mother, is Mary. This woman with 12 stars, therefore, symbolises Mary for only she gives birth to Jesus and no other. Twelve stars refer to the disciples, the early Church. St. John who writes the Book of Revelation, knows shortly after Jesus’ birth, Jesus was endangered by Pilate who had babies slaughtered looking for the “newborn King.”

The Apostles were similarly persecuted and executed as they brought the light of Jesus into a dark world. And so, Satan, Pilate,the anti-Christ who follows, are there to devour the baby; and to crush the Church. This woman who carries Jesus in her womb carries our salvation -- an innocent baby in her womb. The symbols of the crown of 12 stars, we can think of Mary as surrounded by the Apostles after finishing her life on earth, when Mary is taken up into heaven.

St. Paul’s letter highlights the first fruit in 1 Corinthians 15 of Jesus saving act; Mary, the Mother of Jesus is the first fruit of His saving power: Jesus is the first to be resurrected but Mary is the first of creation to be saved. Mary is the first of salvation because with Mary’s yes to God’s plan, the Holy Spirit descended upon her (Luke 1:26-38); Mary is first because Mary gave Jesus His flesh; Mary is first because she is without sin; and so Mary is the first of creation to be take up into Heaven.

What is your fear?

8/8/2020

Roma, August 9, 2020

We have all been shocked and devastated with the massive explosion in Beirut. Ammonium nitrate that had been stocked at the port was ignited and triggered a blast visually comparable to an atomic bomb! Over 150 people killed and 300, 000 left homeless. The port explosion has stretched Lebanese to its limits. Fragmented by religious strife between Christians and Muslims since the outbreak of the civil war in the 1975, southern Lebanon became the base of Hezbollah, Muslim extremists targeting Israel; Lebanon absorbed Palestinian refugees and more recently refugees from Syria. This Middle Eastern democracy is associated more with the Christian west in terms of religious outlook, freedom and tolerance, and is home to the earliest Christian communities. Decades of political instability and regional havoc, compounded with rising inflation have been catastrophic enough. Now a chemical earthquake!

Besides Beirut, another tragic event appears on the list of “what’s going on?” News reports more interested in celebrity lawsuits and royal disputes meant few people heard about the Cathedral chapel explosion in Managua, Nicaragua. At the end of July a petrol bomb was thrown into the Cathedral where the Blessed Sacrament was kept with the Blood of Christ Crucifix. The sacred image had been preserved and venerated in the Chapel for four hundred years, an image of popular devotion among Nicaraguans. In the year 2020 hatred for Catholicism manifests itself with a petrol bomb burning up the Chapel. All the sacred objects in the Cathedral chapel were destroyed by the bomb. This is not an isolated incident in Nicaragua but a series of sacrilegious acts showing hatred towards Catholic beliefs and practices.

In the month of June, anarchists across the United States vandalised, desecrated, and succeeded in removing Roman Catholic figures: statues of Queen Isabel of Spain and the Italian explorer Christopher Columbus, while mindless mobs drummed, “take it down.” Vandals sacked Rome in the 5th century, and once again vandals are taking down statues of Monarchs, Explorers and Saints. St. Junípero Serra who was canonised by Pope Francis had in the 1700s established missions across California to evangelise the indigenous population. Once again vandals hostile to Catholicism desecrated St. Junípero’s statue to the three-word beat, “take it down.” But it does not end here. In July, Jewish, Muslim and Black protestors in the city of St. Louis, Missouri, a city named after St. Louis of France, mobilised themselves to have the statue of St. Louis removed from the city.

© David Bellusci