July 31, 2022
18^th Sunday – Abbot Daniel Maloney, OSB

Many people are interested in gaining more money and material goods.  One example of this is the many people who buy lottery tickets in the hope of winning a big jackpot.  This desire for more money may not bring us much happiness.  One survey several years ago showed that a number of people who won the lottery were not happy with the results.  They had to deal with relatives, friends, and others who showed up looking for financial help.  Some of the winners ended up going bankrupt, and several said they wished they had never won.  Money and material goods do not bring us lasting happiness.  This is a theme in the readings today.  In addition, the desire for money can be harmful.  True happiness comes from storing up treasures for heaven.

The first part of today’s Gospel, which is taken from the Gospel of Luke, warns against greed.  Some man came to Jesus to have him intervene so that the man’s brother would share his inheritance with him.  This seems to make money and property more important than family unity.  Jesus raises the question, “Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?”  It is not part of the mission of Jesus to bring people wealth.  Jesus warns us to guard against greed, “for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.”  According to the dictionary, greed is “a selfish and excessive desire for more of something (as money) than is needed.”  Greed, sometimes called avarice, is considered to be one of the seven capital sins.  Capital sins are human passions and desires that lead to many other sins.  The desire for wealth is more dangerous than wealth itself.  The First Letter of Timothy, Chapter 6, verse 10, says, “The love of money is the root of all evils, and some people in their love for it have strayed from the faith and have pierced themselves with many pains.”  The desire for money and possessions can lead us into trouble.  While we are need some material goods, the desire for more than we need can be harmful.

The desire for money and wealth can be futile and not worth all the effort that one may put into it.  This is a theme in the first reading today from the Book of Ecclesiastes  The narrator of this book stresses the vanity or lack of lasting success of many human endeavors.  He mentions that the one “who has labored with wisdom and knowledge and skill” must eventually die and leave the property to one “who has not labored over it.” This raises the question, “what profit comes to man from all the toil and anxiety of heart with which he has labored under the sun?”  The author of Ecclesiastes seems to advocate moderation in our desire for wealth and the need to take time for the simple joys of life.  Jesus echoes this theme in his parable about the Rich Fool.  This parable describes a rich man whose land had produced a rich harvest.  He wonders what to do, since he does not have enough space to store his harvest.  He decides to tear down his barns and build bigger ones.  He will store there his grain and other goods.  He will be able to say to himself, “Now as for you, you have so many good things stored up for many years, rest, eat, drink, be merry!”  But God says to this rich man, “You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you; and the things that you have prepared, to whom will they belong?”  The rich man does not seem to consider that he will eventually die and leave his possessions to others.  In the Old Testament, the term “fool” applies especially to one who does not believe in God or acts in a way that does not take God into account.  The fool thinks only of himself and not of God or of others.

Jesus sums up the parable of the Rich Fool by saying, “Thus will it be for all who store up treasure for themselves but are not rich in what matters to God.”  We may wonder what it means to be rich in what matters to God.  Jesus is making reference to Jewish religion and piety.  In Jewish religion, the three important works of religion are almsgiving, prayer, and fasting.  Of these, almsgiving seems to be the most important.  This involves doing good works that benefit others, especially the poor or others in need.  There were Jewish rabbis who said that our good works go with us when we die, even though we have to leave our material goods behind.  The Book of Revelation (14:13) says, “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.  Let them find rest form their labors, for their works accompany them.”  As Christians, we need to be concerned with doing good to others.  This involves sharing our material goods, but also our spiritual goods.  Saints often do things that will enrich our spiritual lives.  Saint Jean Vianney, a parish priest in France in the 19^th century, heard confessions for many hours every day for many years and helped many sinners to repent and to live a life of faith.  Our second reading today from Saint Paul’s Letter to the Colossians, tells us to seek what is above, to think of what is above, not of what is on earth.  Saint Paul goes on to say that we should “put to death” evil desires and put on the new self that comes to us through Baptism.  To be rich for God involves living a holy life, having virtues that lead to good deeds.

In our Eucharist today, let us be thankful for the spiritual riches that God gives us through his Son Jesus.  We pray that we will be able to avoid greed and all excessive desire for more than we need.  We pray that God will give us the grace needed to do the things that will make us rich in what matters to God.  We pray that our good deeds will go before us and help us to be welcomed into Christ’s kingdom when we pass from this life to the next.
 

July 2, 2022
14^th Sunday – Abbot Daniel Maloney, OSB

Some professions have a training program, such as an internship or practicum.  At a monastery, we start as a candidate and spend a year as a novice before we make any vows and become a monk. When I was a deacon at St. Meinrad in 1967 and 1968, another deacon and I ministered at a Catholic Newman Center at Vincennes Junior College in Vincennes, Indiana.  I worked with college students, which came in handy later, as I spent many years on a college campus.  Today we hear about Jesus sending out seventy-two disciples in pairs to every town and place that he intended to visit.  He had also sent out the twelve apostles to preach in various towns and places.  The training experience would be helpful to the disciples of Jesus when they went forth to preach the Gospel message after the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus and the founding of the Church.  We also are disciples of Jesus.  The instructions that Jesus gave to his disciples can apply to us today in various ways.  Jesus is telling us today that we are sent to proclaim the Gospel to others, and that we have to depend on divine providence and the help of others.  He also tells us that we should expect difficulties, but we should rejoice in the blessings that we receive.

First of all, we have to remember that we are sent to proclaim the Gospel to others.  The Second Vatican Council reminded us that, through our Baptism and confirmation, we are all called to holiness and to share in the mission of the Church in some way.  The disciples went out in pairs, which is an indication that sharing our faith is a community effort.  We can share our faith in different ways.  Some may preach and some may do acts of charity, such as healing the sick or being teachers.  We may be giving support to others who may have a more active ministry.  Here at the abbey, we minister to people who come here in different ways, such as providing meals and a place to stay.  Some people may pray with us or receive spiritual guidance.  Those of us who are involved in a parish can minister to others in some way.  We all may be asked to explain our faith or our vocation to others.

Secondly, we have to depend on God’s providence and on the help of others.  Jesus told his disciples that they should travel light, and eat what was given to them.  They were to be satisfied with the lodging they were given.  Here at the abbey, we depend on benefactors, on lay employees, and on others.  Above all, we have to rely on God’s grace and on divine providence.  God often provides people and resources to assist us in what we are called to do.

Thirdly, Jesus warns us that we should expect difficulties.  Some people will reject our message and our efforts to help them or others.  Christians have often faced persecution.  Friday was the feast day of Saint Oliver Plunkett, an Irish Catholic bishop in Ireland, who died as a martyr on July 1, 1681.  The English government executed him in England because he functioned as a Catholic bishop in Ireland, which was against the English laws at that time.  We have people in our own society who are opposed to Catholic teaching on moral issues.  In recent weeks, some Catholic churches, some Catholic schools, and some pro-life centers have been vandalized.  Jesus tells us that when some people reject us, we should minister to others, if possible.  Saint Paul mentions in the second reading today that he suffered in his efforts to preach the Gospel. He bore the marks on Jesus on his body, as he had been beaten many times, and stoned on one occasion.

Lastly, we should rejoice for the blessings we have.  The first reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah tells the Israelites to rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad because of her.  This message seem to be directed to Jewish exiles who were returning to Jerusalem or had recently returned there from Babylon.  They would receive many blessings from God, such as having the Temple rebuilt and being able to worship the Lord and to keep the Jewish law.  When the seventy-two disciples returned from their mission, they rejoiced that even the demons were subject to them.  This was due to the power of Jesus.  However, Jesus tells them that they should rejoice because their names are written in heaven.  We should rejoice over any success in our ministry or being able to assist others, but our biggest joy should come from sharing in the life of the Holy Trinity and having the hope of eternal life in heaven.  We should give credit to God for what we are able to accomplish and rejoice in the blessings that God gives us.

Our liturgy today reminds us that we are disciples of Jesus and we have a mission to carry out.
We are to rely on the help of divine grace and on the assistance of others.  We should expect difficulties in carrying out our mission, but God can help us even when others may reject us or our message.  In our Eucharist today, let us rejoice that God calls us and blesses us. Jesus gives us the hope of eternal life in heaven.  May Jesus help us to live as his disciples, even when we face difficulties, and may we someday experience the fullness of Jesus’ kingdom in heaven.

 

June 26, 2022
13^th Sunday - Abbot Daniel Maloney, OSB

This past week, Father Valerian and I attended the General Chapter for the American-Cassinese Congregation.  The meeting was held at Saint Benedict’s Abbey in Atchison, Kansas.  One of the junior monks was our driver on the way to the airport in Kansas City, Missouri.  This monk mentioned that he had been born in Canada, but when he was a small child, his whole family became members of the Catholic Church.  His father had been an Anglican priest and a teacher in Canada, but when he joined the Catholic Church, he and the family moved to the United States.  The monk’s father obtained a teaching position in this country. The monk’s father and the whole family left everything behind to follow Jesus more closely.  Today’s liturgy tells us that following God’s call should be our top priority, despite the sacrifices that may be involved.  We have to follow the example of Jesus and be led by the Holy Spirit, rather than by our own desires.

First of all, answering God’s call should be the top priority in our lives, despite the cost involved.  In our first reading today from the First Book of Kings, we hear about the prophet Elijah, who lived in the norther kingdom of Israel in the 9^th century before Christ.  Elijah had gone to Mount Horeb, also known as Mount Sinai, to renew his commitment to the Lord, the God of Israel.  Among other things, Elijah was instructed to appoint Elisha as his successor.   On his return to Israel, Elijah found Elisha and put his cloak on Elisha.  Elisha took this as a call to become a prophet and an attendant to Elijah.  Elisha had twelve yoke of oxen, but slaughtered them, boiled their flesh, and gave the food to the poor.  Elisha then followed Elijah as his attendant and future successor.  Elisha left his family and possessions behind to answer God’s call.  In the Gospel reading from the Gospel of Luke, we learn that Jesus “resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem,” even though he knew that this would lead to his suffering and death.  Jesus was willing to fulfill the mission that his Father had given him, despite the cost.  In a similar way, we are called to answer God’s call, especially the call to become a disciple of Jesus, despite the cost involved.  The Gospel of Luke mentions some of the sacrifices that may be involved.  When someone said to Jesus that he was willing to follow Jesus “wherever you go,” Jesus reminded him “the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”  If we follow Jesus, we have no promise of security or a comfortable life.  When Jesus said, “Follow me” to another man, the man replied that he wanted first to go and bury his father.  This seemed to mean that this man wanted to wait until his father died before he would follow Jesus.  Jesus replied, “Let the dead bury their dead.  But you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”  The call to follow Jesus overrides some usual family responsibilities.  Finally, another man wanted to say farewell to his family before he would follow Jesus.  Jesus tells him not anyone who looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.  Thus, the call to follow Jesus takes priority over other things, even our own family.

Yet, we have to follow the example and teaching of Jesus in our decision to become his disciple.  Our Gospel reading today mentions a Samaritan village.  Samaria was located between Galilee and Judea.  It would be the shortest way to go if one wished to go to Jerusalem.  However, the Samaritans had their own religion, and they were not usually friendly to Jewish people who wanted to go to Jerusalem.  One Samaritan village that Jesus entered refused to welcome him because he was headed to Jerusalem.  The disciples James and John wanted to call down fire from heaven, as the prophet Elijah had once down, to destroy this village.  Jesus rebuked them.  Jesus taught us to love our neighbor as ourselves, even enemies.  As followers of Jesus, we are to seek the good of others, even if they oppose us.  The early Christians set a good example in this regard.  Saint Paul in the second reading today from his Letter to the Galatians tells us that we should use our freedom to serve others.  Saint Paul mentions that the whole Jewish law is fulfilled in one statement, that is, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”  Saint Paul goes on to say we should live by the Spirit.  This is opposed to following the desires of the flesh, that is, our own selfish desires.  Catholic institutions, such as schools and hospitals, are to serve everyone, even those who are not part of the Catholic faith.  We will have to make sacrifices if we are to serve the needs of others, no matter who they are.

In our liturgy today, we are reminded that we are called to be disciples of Jesus.  We should make this our top priority.  We should also follow the example and teaching of Jesus, which involves seeking the good of everyone, even though they may be opposed to us.  We pray that Jesus will give us the grace and help that we need to be his faithful disciples.  May we someday experience the fullness of the kingdom of God.
 

June 5, 2022
Pentecost – Abbot Daniel Maloney, OSB

Recently, Pope Francis named twenty-one new cardinals, sixteen of whom are eligible to vote in the next papal election.  One interesting aspect of this is that these cardinals come from all over the world.  There are several from Asia, including one from India, one from Singapore, one from East Timor, and one from Mongolia, where there are only 1,400 Catholics.  There also new cardinals from Ghana and Nigeria in Africa, some cardinals from Italy, France, and England in Europe, one cardinal from Brazil, and one from the United States.  The selection of these new members of the College of Cardinals reminds us somewhat of the first Pentecost of the Christian era, which is usually regarded as the beginning of the Catholic Church.  In the account of the Pentecost event given is the Acts of the Apostles, Saint Luke says that there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven were staying in Jerusalem at that time.  The Holy Spirit came upon the apostles and others who had been gathered in one place.  The apostles and others began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to speak.  Those devout Jews from every nation were astounded, because they could hear these disciples of Jesus speaking in their own language.  This Pentecost event was a sign of what was to come.  While the Church began in Jerusalem, with Jewish disciples mainly from Galilee, eventually the Church would spread to all areas of the world, the Church would include both Gentile and Jewish converts, and many members of the Church would speak a variety of languages.

In the Jewish calendar, there were three major feasts, namely, Passover, around the beginning of spring, Pentecost 50 days later, and the Feast of Booths, which was a harvest festival later in the summer.  Pentecost at first was known as the Feast of Weeks, and it a celebration of the First Fruits, the harvest of some early crops.  By the time of Jesus, it also was a celebration of the Old Covenant that was given to Moses and the Hebrew people on Mount Sinai.  For the Church, Pentecost was the beginning of the New Covenant that comes through Jesus and the gift of the Holy Spirit.  At the Pentecost celebration 50 days after the Resurrection of Jesus, there were only about 120 disciples, but these were able to have a major impact due to the power of the Holy Spirit.  According to the second chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, St. Peter gave a sermon to the people, and about 3,000 converts were made that day and were baptized.  The Church got off to a great start.  Last Sunday, we celebrated the Ascension of Jesus, which referred to the last public appearance of Jesus to his apostles.  Before Jesus ascended into heaven, he told the apostles and others that they would receive power when the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they would be his disciples in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.  The word “power” in Greek is dunamis, from which we get the word “dynamite.”  The gift of the Holy Spirit is spiritual dynamite that enabled the apostles and other leaders of the Church to carry out the mission that Jesus had given them.

The description of that first Pentecost makes reference to the diversity of people and to the diversity of gifts given by the Holy Spirit.  There were religious Jews who had come to Jerusalem for the feast from all over the Roman Empire, but they could understand the apostles speaking to them in their own language.  With the passage of time, the Church would spread to people all over the world, even though there were many languages involved.  A big help to the spread of the Church was the gift of many gifts to members of the Church, and these gifts are still at work today.  We have the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit that are given to all Christians at Baptism and confirmation, gifts that are mentioned in Isaiah 11:2.  These include gifts such as wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord.    In the second reading today from St. Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians, Chapter 12, St. Paul makes reference to nine spiritual gifts.  These include such things as the gifts of tongues, prophesy, healing, discernment of spirits, miracles, and other special gifts that are not given to every Christian and do not always operate for the person who may have that gift.  They are given for some benefit or for the common good. Some saints, such as St. Pio (Padre Pio), had many of these gifts, and sometimes other people have them.  People also have many natural gifts that can help the Church carry out its mission.

Despite a diversity and a variety of gifts given to different members of the Church, yet the Holy Spirit can bring about unity in the Church.  The apostles and early disciples were able to have unity despite personal differences.  St. Paul became a Christian apostle and missionary, even though he had once persecuted the Church.  The early Christians were all of a Jewish background, but they eventually could have a bond of unity with the Gentile converts that came along, despite the fact that Jews and Gentiles were normally enemies and did not associate with each other.  After the Second Vatican Council, those of us who are Catholics could feel a spiritual bond with Christians from other backgrounds, such as those Christians who were Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, or Protestant.  Indeed, the Holy Spirit is bringing about a greater unity among Christians and helping us to work together for the common good in regard to various social problems.

So, today we once again celebrate the feast of Pentecost as the beginning of the Church.  We give thanks that there are now over a billion Catholics and about two billion Christians in the world.  We pray that the Holy Spirit will continue to bless us and other members of the Church.  May the Holy Spirit help us to use our gifts to carry out the mission of the Church, and may the Holy Spirit help bring about greater unity among Christians.  May the Holy Spirit sanctify us and help us to accomplish our goal of everlasting life in heaven.