What We Can Learn From Airplanes!

It has been reported that commercial airplanes, like those that fly from Chicago to Los Angeles, are off their flight plan over 90% of the time.  You can easily see why: from cross winds, jet steams, to various weather conditions and storms.  But, even though they are constantly off course, they still make it to their destination.  How?  The airplanes are constantly being corrected by computer instruments to correct the airplane's bearings. 

Our Spiritual lives can be very similar.  If we acknowledge that God has a specific plan for us, then we can also acknowledge that we too are off the path over 90% of the time as well.  Just like airplanes, we encounter the cross winds of sin, we encounter the crazy storms of life.  We too need to constantly make self-corrections, we need to constantly turn back to the Lord!

We see this in the Gospel from this past weekend in the story of Zacchaeus.  Zacchaeus was a chief tax collector in Jericho.  Two things needed to be pointed out; first the town of Jericho and second the position of chief-tax collector.  Jericho was seen as a place of sin.  It was the town the Israelites had to overcome to enter into the Holy Land.  Unlike the holy city of Jerusalem built 1800 feet above sea level, Jericho was found 1200 feet below sea level.  Within 18 miles that separate the two towns, one would have to descend from Jerusalem, the holy city, to get to the town of Jericho.  The descent was not only a sign of physical descent, but spiritual fall.  Next, Zacchaeus was a chief tax collect.  He worked for the Roman Empire, the very oppressors of the Jewish people and faith.  So, not only was Zacchaeus in a town known for sin, but he held a position that was the worst of all!

Scripture says Zacchaeus was short in stature and so he didn't approach the Lord, but he had the full authority of the Roman guard at his disposal.  He could of went directly up to the Lord because of his authority.  But instead he climbed a tree, because he only wanted to see Jesus at a distance. He had strayed from God's plan and you can see how he felt unworthy to see God face to face.  But Zacchaeus small action to see Jesus led to something powerful.  And just like the prodigal Son, God runs out to Zacchaeus.  Jesus tells Zacchaeus to come down quickly for he must stay in his house.  Well what happens, when people enter another person's house?  They share a meal!

God continues to work the same way in our lives and we can see this in the Sacrament of Reconciliation and Eucharist.  In the Sacrament of Reconciliation, there is always a hesitation to go!  We, like Zacchaeus, don't jump to go to the Sacrament.  We know we have strayed from our path, and may sometimes feel unworthy to be in God's presence.  Yet once we enter, it is God who comes to us.  He forgives us our sins and tells us that He must stay with us!  And this is where the Sacrament of the Eucharist follows.  He invites us to share a meal!  He comes into our house, our hearts and feeds us with himself in the Eucharist! 

It is clear that we don't always follow the Lord and we fall of the path God planned for us, but it doesn't mean that the Lord doesn't stop calling us back to himself.  It's time to correct our bearings once again and set our hearts on our ultimate destination: to be with the Lord!

The Need to Acknowledge Our Own Brokenness, Our Need for a Savior

In October 2005 I started to notice a growth in my neck.  By November, it had continued to grow and I remember asking my sister, as she was finishing her residency program in Family Medicine, to examine it while we were driving back from Tennessee from our Thanksgiving break.  She could feel the growth, but without exams, she felt it was something that needed to be drained.  As I went from internal medicine; to a neck, throat, and ear specialist; they finally got me to a surgeon and then an oncologist. I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma.  It was amazing how quickly we went from diagnosis to treatment.  It cancer had spread from my neck to my abdomen, which eventually led to 12 chemo treatments over 6 months. 

What is clear in medicine is also clear in the spiritual life.  We can't seek treatment, until we know what is wrong, or until we even identify that something is wrong!  That's the struggle with our culture today.  We are not willing to say something is wrong with ourselves.  Our culture, society will say everything is fine, everything is okay!  Yet, I only have to point to our political candidates to prove that statement as false!  Our culture, our society is not okay! We, ourselves need the Lord more then ever.

When I was on a college campus doing my missionary work, I encountered a student who encompasses exactly what we are facing today!  The college student was not Catholic, but was attending Catholic retreats.  He had been living the college life he wanted by partying hard on the weekends.  He had a girlfriend, was studying business, and had an internship all lined up for the summer.  I remember asking/challenging him to consider going deeper into the Catholic faith, but he knew what that would involve: change!  He flat out told me that his life was great and there was no need to change!  (Again, you can't seek the great physician if you don't know if anything is wrong).  That following week the Lord pierced through his false reality.  His girlfriend broke up with him, his internship fell through, and things were seeming to fall apart!  It was then, we were able to have deeper conversations, about loneliness, brokenness and the need for the Lord!

This weekend's Gospel is challenging us just like I had challenged that college student.  The Gospel was the contrast of  prayer between the Pharisee and the Tax Collector (Luke 18:9-14).  The Pharisee relied solely on his works and felt justified by how he lived his live, while the tax collector knew he needed to rely solely on God.  The Lord is asking us to seek him and to rely solely on him!  Let us not be like the Pharisee, who couldn't not see his own brokenness and illness.  Let us be like the tax collector, acknowledge our need for a savior and call upon him; Jesus, Son of the living God, have mercy on me a sinner!

What's with Moses and Amalek, Can We Get back to Me?

This weekend the Catholic Church proclaimed in their first reading the story of Moses and Joshua fighting Amalek.  Of course we know this story right?  If you are like me, you didn't learn about this battle in history class.  So the answer to that question is No!  But then, why is it so important that it be proclaimed in every Catholic Church around they entire world reaching to over 1 billion Catholics?!  Moses and Joshua, representing Israel, was called to fight not only for their existence, but for their very faith.  The question we need to ask ourselves is, "Are we willing to fight for our faith?"  Even Jesus asked that to his disciples, "But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” (Luke 18:8).

Now, living in the United States we are truly blessed with Freedom of Religion.  We have the right to assemble and practice our faith and we are not killed for our Catholic/Christian faith unlike other places throughout the world.  In Saudi Arabia, a US and Western ally, will not let anyone practice Christianity openly and freely.  You will be jailed.  If you are Kurd in Iraq, you are persecuted by Turkey, ISIS and Iran.  If you are Coptic Egyptian, one of the Oldest Christian rites, you can be beheaded on the shores of Libya.  In Yemen, 4 Missionaries of Charity were killed for serving the poor and dying in that country.  We may feel that those things are isolated events and will never become our problem, but just a couple of months ago a Catholic Priest was killed in France for offering Mass; for being Catholic.  There may come a time in the US, where we will need to stand for our faith that will cost us our lives, but that's not the fighting I want to talk about.

Another battle we could discuss is the need to fight for our faith within the political spheres of our country.  This is an election season, which has the ability to direct our politicians, and hence our future actions within our country.  My parish has over 3,800 crosses in our front lawn, representing the number abortions that happen every day in the United States.  This is something that is very saddening because we know that each person, from the moment of conception is uniquely made.  We know this from experience.  If my parents had 1,000 kids, there would not be another me!  There are 7.2 billion people in the world.  Can you account for anyone being exactly identical or a replica of another human being that has ever been, ever is, or ever will be?  The answer is NO!  Each life is sacred and uniquely made, divinely inspired, and therefore has a place in this world! 

But again that's not the fight I think is the most important.  What I want to ask is, are we willing to fight for God in our own lives?  In our job, families, friends, and more importantly in our sacred schedule!  If we are truly honest with ourselves, we constantly downplay the significance of putting God in our daily lives.  How much easier is it for me to find time to watch the entire Cubs game than heading over to the chapel to pray or opening the Scriptures.  How easier it is to turn on Netflix after a long day, then actually taking the time to give thanks to God for the day He had given me?  As a priest, I can tell you that the struggle is real!  How much more then do we need to be encouraged to fight this day! That's the importance of the first reading  and why it being proclaimed through the world.  Let us fight to make our faith a priority!