A New Feature--P.R.A.Y. This Sunday's Gospel

One of the features that I mention in How To Get The Most Out Of The Eucharist is something I call "P.R.A.Y.":

What are some concrete steps we can take that will help us get the most from the Word of God? Here are a few that can easily be remembered by using the word P.R.A.Y. ...

P ... Prepare by studying Scripture and coming to a better understanding of how Catholics approach and interpret the Word... The less familiar we are with the Word that we hear proclaimed at the Eucharist, the more likely we are to be distracted by what we hear rather than fed.

R ... Read the Mass readings beforehand... If we read beforehand we can better listen when the readings are being proclaimed, and it is more likely that we will truly hear what God wishes to say to us.

A ... Attend to what is being read to us at the Eucharist. Listen in a way that acknowledges that God wishes to speak to you at this Mass...

Y ... Yield to what God is asking of you and respond with a "yes." Every celebration of the Eucharist is a renewing of the covenant between God and us. God waits for our response.

Beginnning this week, I offer an outline for those interested in preparing for the upcoming Sunday's Gospel by hightlighting this P.R.A.Y. model here:

Thirty Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Matthew 25:1-13

P. Prepare

Of Foolish Virgins and the Bridegroom

1. This parable of Jesus' is only found in Matthew's Gospel.

2. Most Kingdom parables have are concerned with the present, this one is concerned with the future. "The Kingdom of heaven will be like..."

3. The wedding practice mentioned in the parable was not the norm in Jesus' day. Bridesmaids did not wait for the groom, nor were latecomers rejected. We might infer from this that the Kingdom's way is not our way.

4. Although the virgins appear the same at the beginning, some our proven to be foolish at the appearance of the groom.They are wrong in thinking that the groom will come soon (obviously the groom is Jesus and the second coming is his appearance) but in fact the wise virgins do not expect a quick coming of the groom and are prepared with extra oil for their lamps.

5. The foolish virgins, i.e. followers of Christ think that accepting the invitation is enough but more is demanded.

6. What does the "reserve oil" represent:

Augustine thought it was love which is God's gift but our responsibility. Chrysostom took it to be almsgiving and our treatment of the needy (which will come up again in the same chapter of Matthew's Gospel).

7. In Matthew's Gospel being a disciple of Jesus is tough. How does this conflict with our view of what following Jesus means? Are we more like the foolish virgins who think our relationship with Jesus is enough?

8. Throughout Matthew's Gospel Jesus envisions there being two types of Christians within the Church: those who take seriously the constant repentance and those who do not.

9. The Father's interepreted the virgin's sleep as death which reminds me of a homily I once heard about the priest never seeing a U-Haul trailer attached to a hearse, but it turns out that in this parable we do take it with us and will what we take be enough?

10. In the parable the groom finally arives in the middle of the night (when it is darkest, in a culture that did not have electricity and having the "light" was an absolute necessity to venturing out).

11. At the moment of his coming the Church suddenly becomes very individualistic, as in other parables of Judgement--all now depends upon what we did, not our group. Here the Church is communal, we are to help one another but at the moment of Judgement it is all changed.

12. There comes a moment when it is too late to repent--the message of the parable is don't wait until it is too late, and be prepared, take stock of what you are doing with the relationship that you have with Christ. Is your lamp burning? Are you running on "Full"?

R. Read

Read Matthew 25:1-13 slowly. Several times if necessary. Then think about it. You might want to read it again before you go to Mass on Sunday.

A. Attend

Listen to all of the readings at Mass. How does the First Reading and Responsorial Psalm add to what the Gospel says? What speaks to you as you hear the Gospel proclaimed? What in the homily touches you or adds to what you were already thinking?

Y. Yield

How can you recommit your life to Jesus and be ready for his coming? What concrete steps can you take this week to be aglow with His love? Ask Jesus to fill you in the Eucharist.

Pope to Strip Universities of Catholic Title?

From a Talk Given at Notre Dame by the Secretary of the Vatican Congregation of Education.

From LifeSite.Net:

The Vatican's number two education official predicts that Pope Benedict XVI will follow a path of "evangelical pruning" of secularized Catholic colleges and universities, declaring them no longer Catholic.

Archbishop Michael Miller, secretary of the Vatican Congregation for Catholic Education and former president of the University of Saint Thomas in Houston, addressed officials and faculty at the University of Notre Dame on Monday.

Miller said that his prediction was based on an examination of the new Pope's writings and approach. The Pope has argued "that it might be better for the Church not to expend its resources trying to preserve institutions if their Catholic identity has been seriously compromised," Miller said.

In the Holy Father's view, "the measure of an institution can be judged by its Catholic integrity," Miller said. If the institution secularizes, "it might be a matter of truth and justice that such an institution is no longer upheld. . . . [I]f a Catholic institution is no longer motivated by a Catholic identity, it is better to let it go."

Feast of All Souls

From the Office of Readings:

Death was not part of nature; it became part of nature. God did not decree death from the beginning; he prescribed it as a remedy. Human life was condemned because of sin to unremitting labour and unbearable sorrow and so began to experience the burden of wretchedness. There had to be a limit to its evils; death had to restore what life had forfeited. Without the assistance of grace, immortality is more of a burden than a blessing.

The soul has to turn away from the aimless paths of this life, from the defilement of an earthly body; it must reach out to those assemblies in heaven (though it is given only to the saints to be admitted to them) to sing the praises of God. We learn from Scripture how God’s praise is sung to the music of the harp: Great and wonderful are your deeds, Lord God Almighty; just and true are your ways, King of the nations. Who will not revere and glorify your nature? You alone are holy; all nations will come and worship before you. The soul must also desire to witness your nuptials, Jesus, and to see your bride escorted from earthly to heavenly realities, as all rejoice and sing: All flesh will come before you. No longer will the bride be held in subjection to this passing world but will be made one with the spirit.

Above all else, holy David prayed that he might see and gaze on this: One thing I have asked of the Lord, this I shall pray for: to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, and to see how gracious is the Lord.

St. Ambrose after the death of his brother.

On the Beach in Sydney

Pope's All Saints Angelus

Will visit the tomb of Pope John Paul II as well as other popes.

From Asia News Net Italy:

The new life received in Baptism is not subject to the corruption and power of death. For those who live in Christ, death is the passage from an earthly pilgrimage to the homeland of heaven, where the Father welcomes all his children “of every nation, race, people and language” as we read today in the Book of Revelation (7:9). This is why it is very meaningful and appropriate that after the feast of All Saints, all the faithful who have died are commemorated tomorrow. The “communion of saints” which we profess in the Creed, is a reality which is built down here, but which will be manifested fully when we see God “as he is” (1 Jn 3:2). It is the reality of a family tied by profound links of spiritual solidarity, which unite the faithful who have died to those who are pilgrims in the world. A bond which is mysterious but real, fed by prayer and by participation in the sacrament of the Eucharist. The souls of the faithful meet in the mystical Body of Christ, overcoming the barrier of death, praying for each other, realizing in charity an intimate exchange of gifts. Through this dimension of faith may be understood also the practice of offering prayers of suffrage for the deceased, especially the Eucharistic sacrifice, a memorial of the Easter of Christ, who opened the road to eternal life for believers.

Uniting myself spiritually with those going to cemeteries to pray for their deceased ones, I too will go tomorrow afternoon to ray in the Grotte Vaticane at the tombs of the popes, which crown the sepulchre of the Apostle Peter, and my thoughts will be especially for the beloved John Paul II. Dear friends, the tradition of these days of visiting the tombs of our deceased ones is an occasion to think about the mystery of death without fear, and to cultivate that incessant watchfulness which allows us to face it serenely. The Virgin Mary, the Queen of Saints who we turn to now with filial confidence, will help us in this.

A Moment Frozen in Time

We spent part of last week attending the National Catholic Youth Conference in Atlanta. One moment from all that I experienced continues to stay with me, perhaps I might say even to haunt me. While Joseph, Katie and I were walking back toward the exhibit area where Amy and Michael were, we suddenly notice a quiet and people stopping (in an environment that was much like walking through midtown Manhattan on a weekday). Then enmasse young and old dropped to their knees.

Advancing were youth holding signs "Silence and Kneel"…everyone obediently did so as cassocked men holding candles, one swinging incense advanced in front of a coped priest with humeral veil wrapped around the base of a monstrance held the Eucharistic Body of Our Lord aloft.

Those who have seen the movie "The Mission" with one of the best scenes ever filmed about the spiritual life will remember Jeremy Irons playing a priest holding the monstrance in the midst of battle all around him, himself falling and an indigenous man picking up the monstrance and continuing the procession. That is what popped into my mind as I instructed young Joseph to make the sign of the cross as Jesus passed in our midst.

I'll bet that when all is said and done, I'm not alone in this being a moment that will be remembered by all. What is more I have realized that these Catholic prayer moments are the solid foundation that most Catholics never forget--long after they have forgotten most of what they were taught.

There is a lesson here for those of us who try to pass on the faith to our children--introduce them to Christ, like disciples on the road to Emmaus let Christ the stranger teach them, open the Scriptures to them so that they might recognize him in the breaking of the Bread--that they may pick up his Presence and carry it through the streets of life where a battle wages.

Such catechesis is the lesson plan of saints--may all the saints pray that we might take up that charge!

New Mass Translation

Whenever the new ICEL translation of the Mass is approved, (it could be as soon as next year), much catechesis will be needed. This translation will be radical--but very good! The aims of the translation are to put it back in line with the Scriptures that the Latin and most other translations preserve. The opportunities to use this time of transition before the translation appears to catechize and teach people about the Mass are endless. If you are in a position to catechize your parishioners begin doing so now…do not wait until the last moment!

The bishops of this country had a number of issues with the first new translation that was done by the new ICEL committee. interestingly the latest does not give into most of those "issues" but rather explains the rich theological significance of the changes and particular choice of words. So instead of "Let us prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries" "Let us acknowledge our sins that we may be made ready to celebrate" is defended because as the Bishop's reply the action of the Mass is as much God's as it is ours and "prepare" makes it sound as if it is all our work. That one little snippet shows why this new translation will facilitate the beginning of a great renewal within Catholic liturgical life in the English speaking world.

Before anyone blames Pope Benedict for this--remember this is a Pope John Paul II initiative.

BOOKS ABOUT THE CATHOLIC MASS BY THIS AUTHOR.