In an Instant

               My days tend to fly by in a flurry of activity related to my family responsibilities, work, volunteer obligations and recreation. These summer days and weeks seem to run into each other, passing quickly.  Sometimes, something happens that distinguishes a particular day, or hour or instant from the others.

               Last week a friend of a friend’s family experienced tragedy.  A young man, recently graduated from college, was killed in a traffic accident. In an instant, a family was changed.  Death became a reality to his parents, siblings, girlfriend and friends. 

               Also last week, my teenage son was traveling in Italy when he and four companions were approached by a friendly young man.  “Want some?” he said as he opened his hand to show a bag of cocaine.  My son and his friends declined and walked away. This reaction is what I would expect from my son, but how could his life been changed in that instant?

               The tsunami in Thailand and last summer’s deracho in Washington D.C. are also times when lives were changed in an instant.  Without warning, a weather incident caused damage, injury and loss of time.

               I have especially been thinking about a specific instant in my life which occurred nearly five years ago.  The Pastor of our parish had invited himself over for desert.  As he was leaving, I stepped out on our porch to say a final goodbye.  He walked down our stairs, paused and turned around.  When I looked in his eyes, I knew he had something important to say. 

               “I just want to bring more people to Jesus,” were the words that tumbled out of his lips.  Those words broke through the wall that I had built between God and myself.  In an instant, my life was changed, irrevocably.  The past five years have been the most joy-filled, peaceful of my life. 

               So in these days, so filled with activity, I attempt to find some time to take a deep breath and enjoy my family and friends. Finding time to say thanks to God for all the good he has given me is important, because we never know how our lives can be changed, in an instant.

Only 6 More Months of Shopping Before Christmas!

Today is half way between Christmas 2013 and 2014.  Last Saturday evening, as I was coming home on the Metro I began to speak with a number of teens, all wearing the same shirt.  They were from Dallas and here in DC on a "mission" trip.  I thought of one of my favorite poems that is appropriate any time of year.  It is by Howard Thurman and reminds us that the work of Christmas is EVERYDAY!

"The Work of Christmas"

When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flock,
The work of Christmas begins:

To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among brothers,
To make music in the heart.

Praying in the shadow of the US Capitol

On a perfect summer evening, in the light of a full “super” moon, with the US Capitol as a background, I joined hundreds of men, women and children to pray for protection of our religious freedom.  At this event, hosted by the Knight s of Columbus, we lifted our hearts and minds to God ask we asked Him to protect the rights of Christians.

               A couple of hundred faithful individuals, coming from Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia gathered to pray Compline, the night prayer of the church, lead by Dominican Brothers studying at the Dominican House of Studies.  Baltimore Archbishop William from Baltimore who leads  the USCCB’s  Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty spoke a few words and led us in the prayer by St. Thomas More and the prayer for Religious Freedom (both found at the bottom of this post).

               The words of both St. John Fisher and St. Thomas More were read and religious and lay people lead the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary.  The hundreds who attended, ranging from infants to septuagenarian, held LED tea light candles.  The Dome of the U.S.  Capitol was a beautiful back drop of the event.  One participant commented, “Who wouldn’t want to pray for religious liberty on the lawn of the Capitol?”

               This is one of hundreds events that will be held during the Fortnight for Freedom.  The final event will be a mass to be held at the Basilica of the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Northeast DC on July 4^th.

 

Prayer by St. Thomas More written while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London

Give me the grace, Good Lord
To set the world at naught. To set the mind firmly on You and not to hang upon the words of men's mouths.
To be content to be solitary. Not to long for worldly pleasures. Little by little utterly to cast off the world and rid my mind of all its business. Not to long to hear of earthly things, but that the hearing of worldly fancies may be displeasing to me. Gladly to be thinking of God, piteously to call for His help. To lean into the comfort of God. Busily to labor to love Him.


To know my own vileness and wretchedness. To humble myself under the mighty hand of God. To bewail my sins and, for the purging of them, patiently to suffer adversity. Gladly to bear my purgatory here. To be joyful in tribulations. To walk the narrow way that leads to life. To have the last thing in remembrance. To have ever before my eyes my death that is ever at hand. To make death no stranger to me. To foresee and consider the everlasting fire of Hell. To pray for pardon before the judge comes. To have continually in mind the passion that Christ suffered for me. For His benefits unceasingly to give Him thanks.


To buy the time again that I have lost. To abstain from vain conversations. To shun foolish mirth and gladness. To cut off unnecessary recreations. Of worldly substance, friends, liberty, life and all, to set the loss at naught, for the winning of Christ. To think my worst enemies my best friends, for the brethren of Joseph could never have done him so much good with their love and favor as they did him with their malice and hatred. These minds are more to be desired of every man than all the treasures of all the princes and kings, Christian and heathen, were it gathered and laid together all in one heap. Amen

Prayer for Religious Liberty

O GOD OUR CREATOR, from your provident hand we have received our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  You have called us as your people and given us the right and the duty to worship you, the only true God, and your Son, Jesus Christ.

Through the power and working of your Holy Spirit, you call us to live out our faith in the midst of the world, bringing the light and the saving truth of the Gospel to every corner of society. We ask you to bless us in our vigilance for the gift of religious liberty.

Give us the strength of mind and heart to readily defend our freedoms when they are threatened;

give us courage in making our voices heard on behalf of the rights of your Church and the freedom of conscience of all people of faith. Grant, we pray, O heavenly Father, a clear and united voice to all your sons and daughters gathered in your Church in this decisive hour in the history of our nation, so that, with every trial withstood and every danger overcome—for the sake of our children, our grandchildren,

and all who come after us—this great land will always be “one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen

Half Time

               As my son was driving me to school last month, we began to talk about the end of the school year.  How many days are left, which classes will not have exams, which exams will be the toughest were all topics we discussed. I was being driven to school by my son for the final Sophomore Coffee of the year, and he was at the steering wheel because he has his driving permit.

               At the school, the principal and school counselors ran us through the gamut of end of school activities, the exam schedule and the important dates for the summer.  As a sophomore parent, there weren’t any surprises, only reminders about the variety of activities and due involved in the end of the year.  At one point in the meeting I thought, “It’s almost half time”. 

               Two years ago, we were in the throes of finishing his 8^th grade year as we anticipated the transition to high school.  This would be a new venture for our family, since he would be attending an all-boys Catholic school, after nine years of public school.  This meant wearing a uniform, purchasing books and becoming a part of a new community.

               This “half time” summer will be one of exploration and growth.  He will journey to Italy with his Latin Class, serve as a Senior Counselor at the National Zoo’s summer camp, play Legion baseball, travel to Atlanta with his youth group, complete his Eagle project and on Aug 1^st begin football practice.  It is a summer packed with activities, but allowing for some leisure to spend with friends and family.

               At “half time”, I’ve taken the time to pause and reflect.  DeMatha Catholic High School and its teachers are truly making my son a “gentleman and scholar”.  He is no longer a boy.  He has plans for his future and is willing to work hard and take risks in order to achieve that future.  He understands that life is full of choices, meaning that a decision to go in one direction will mean giving up going in another direction.  His faith in God continues to grow.  I sometimes marvel that the little boy, born to my husband and me, is now this funny, intelligent, athletic, reverent young man.

               I pray every day for Mary and St. Michael to keep him safe and protect him from evil.  I know of the challenges that face him and yet am confident that he is gaining in the skills that he will need to face the future.  I am grateful for this gift of “half time” to reflect on the gift of being a mother and promise to enjoy this gift each day.  

Tobit

               To my delight, the daily mass readings began with Tobit this morning.  There is something about this book that intrigues me and makes me joyful.  The brief book (13 chapters) details the lives of a good family who gives to others and wants to remain faithful to God.

               I did not learn about Tobit growing up, since it is not included in the protestant version of the Bible.  Even after I began Catholic, I didn’t focus much on “those books that the Catholic Church added to the Bible.”  (It didn’t occur to me for years that it was the protestant leaders that removed books from the Bible!) Four years ago, I was introduced to Tobit through the readings at daily mass.

                I enjoyed the book so much that I proposed to my family that we read a chapter each night after dinner. My then twelve year old and my husband rolled their eyes at each other, but acquiesced to my suggestion.

               Over the course of three weeks or so, we read a chapter each night after dinner.  The book includes Tobit, a father who leaves his dinner table to go bury the dead.  He also sleeps outside and loses his site because bird defecates in his eyes.  His son, Tobias, goes on a journey to get salve that will bring back his father’s site and is accompanied by the Angel Raphael.  This son decides to marry a woman who has had seven other husbands, all who have died on their wedding night.

               Want to know more?  The book can be found between Nehemiah and Judith in the Old Testament.  If your family has not opened the Bible recently, this is a lovely way to begin.  You can find Tobit on line at http://www.catholic.org/bible/book.php?id=17.

               Two additional personal reflections: 

By the time we got to the tenth chapter, my son was the one who said, “Are we going to read Tobit tonight?”  His comment warmed my heart.

As I was cleaning out our guest bedroom a few months after we read Tobit, I showed my son the program from our wedding.  He was looking at it and said, “Mom, you had a reading from Tobit at your wedding?”  Yes, in fact we did!

               What to know more about the Bible?  Participate in Jeff Cavin’s Bible Study Timeline.  That dust will come off the Bible and it will bring salvation history to life for you.