BIG C CATHOLICS

Fr. René J. Butler, M.S. La Salette Missionaries of North America Hartford, Connecticut ( Click here for Sunday’s readings ) When a child asks you what an unfamiliar word or expression means, you may well find yourself beginning the explanation with, “Well, it’s something like...” You start with something the child already knows, in hopes of providing the appropriate insight. This is a natural and quite universal teaching method; recognizable images and interesting stories have always sparked understanding. It should not amaze us, therefore, that Jesus used this approach so often, thirty-two times that we know of, in three Gospels. Surprisingly, there are no parables in John, and only four of Jesus’ parables occur in all three of the other Gospels. Some of the parables have a moral, such as, “So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives his brother from his heart,” at the end of the parable of the unforgiving servant. In other cases the evangelist gives us th

Fr. René J. Butler, M.S. La Salette Missionaries of North America Hartford, Connecticut ( Click here for today’s readings ) This is one scary Gospel. It is part of the inspiration for the Sequence we used to sing at funerals, Dies irae, dies illa ... “That day will be a day of wrath.” Near the end, the text reads: Grant me a place among the sheep, and take me out from among the goats, setting me on the right side. Can it be that our eternal fate depends on our response to those in need? Does faith no longer count for anything? No, faith has not lost its preeminent place. It is precisely as believers that we are challenged to put faith into action. The Letter of James has the famous passage: “If a brother or sister has nothing to wear and has no food for the day, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well,’ but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it? So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” And

By Fr. René J. Butler, M.S. La Salette Missionaries of North America (Ezekiel 18:25-28; Philippians 2:1-11; Matthew 21:28-32) Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. (Matthew 16: 24-25) These words of Our Lord come very close to those of the prophet Ezekiel: “You say, ‘The Lord’s way is inscrutable, mysterious, and above all, not fair!’” This week we are confronted once again with the question of God’s fairness. It is a matter of expectations. Jesus had only one expectation for his life: to accomplish his Father’s will. Even when, in the Garden of Gethsemane, he asked to be spared the suffering that lay ahead, there was no hint of blame. He was, as St. Paul writes, obedient to the point of death. Like the parable in today’s Gospel, the message of Christ presents opposing scenarios—refusal to

Fr. Charles Irvin Diocese of Lansing ( Click here for Sunday’s readings ) All of us, I am sure, have read recent accounts about the decline of interest in religion among Americans. A recent survey reports that 20% of Americans have no religious affiliations at all and feel no need of God or belief in God. It seems they feel that they are self-sufficient; God is not necessary. So why are we here? Our motives are many and mixed. Some are here in their need seeking God’s help. Some are here seeking God’s forgiveness, others out of love of God, others out of thanksgiving for all that God has done for them. Some are here simply out of a sense of duty and others out of mere habit. All of us are looking forward to everlasting life with God in heaven. In the opening prayer of today’s Mass, we heard the words: “Help us to embrace the world that you have given us, that we may transform the darkness of its pain into the life and joy of Easter.” In the first reading from the prop

Fr. René J. Butler, M.S. Provincial Superior, La Salette Missionaries of North America Hartford, Connecticut ( Click here for today’s readings ) This is one scary Gospel. It is part of the inspiration for the Sequence we used to sing at funerals, Dies irae, dies illa ... “That day will be a day of wrath.” Near the end, the text reads: Grant me a place among the sheep, and take me out from among the goats, setting me on the right side. Can it be that our eternal fate depends on our response to those in need? Does faith no longer count for anything? No, faith has not lost its preeminent place. It is precisely as believers that we are challenged to put faith into action. The Letter of James has the famous passage: “If a brother or sister has nothing to wear and has no food for the day, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well,’ but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it? So also faith of itself, if it does not have

By Fr. René J. Butler, M.S. Provincial Superior, La Salette Missionaries of North America (Ezekiel 34:11-17; 1 Corinthians 15:20-28; Matthew 25:31-46) Hungry, thirsty, naked, stranger, sick, in prison. That’s the checklist Jesus uses in the famous judgment scene in Matthew’s gospel. There is another list, in today’s reading from Ezekiel, where the Lord catalogues all the things he will do for his sheep which, as we find in the preceding verses (not included), the official shepherds have failed to do. But, as with other lists in the Scriptures, these are not exhaustive. They point us in a certain direction and allow us to see beyond the list, to draw up “new, improved” lists according to the world we live in. This is exactly how many Religious Orders came into existence. Some literally feed the hungry and clothe the naked. Some meet other, equally urgent, needs. Interestingly, though hunger and sickness are specifically mentioned in the message of La Salette, the perspec

By Fr. René J. Butler, M.S. Provincial Superior, La Salette Missionaries of North America (Ezekiel 18:25-28; Philippians 2:1-11; Matthew 21:28-32) Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. (Matthew 16: 24-25) These words of Our Lord come very close to those of the prophet Ezekiel: “You say, ‘The Lord’s way is inscrutable, mysterious, and above all, not fair!’” This week we are confronted once again with the question of God’s fairness. It is a matter of expectations. Jesus had only one expectation for his life: to accomplish his Father’s will. Even when, in the Garden of Gethsemane, he asked to be spared the suffering that lay ahead, there was no hint of blame. He was, as St. Paul writes, obedient to the point of death. Like the parable in today’s Gospel, the message of Christ presents opposing

Fr. René J. Butler, M.S. Provincial Superior, La Salette Missionaries of North America Hartford, Connecticut ( Click here for today’s readings. )  I have always thought I would like to be on a jury. There is something fascinating about trying to find the truth amid the conflicting claims. I was called to a jury pool only once, but it was a Friday, and by 1:00 p.m. everyone was sent home. The scenario in today’s Gospel at first seems the same. But in this case I would not be at all interested. What is the difference? A jury is anonymous, unacquainted with the persons involved, and can ideally be objective. In a local Christian community, however, people know each other, have personal opinions on the issues, etc. I am told (but have been unable to verify) that there was a time in French Canada that Catholic families would take their disputes to the pastor for him to adjudicate. Often enough the result was disastrous, not resolving the issue but only creating hostility t

Fr. René J. Butler, M.S. La Salette Missionaries of North America Hartford, Connecticut (Note: This homily is based on the readings for the Easter Vigil. The Old Testament readings cited are the third, fourth and seventh of those proposed in the Lectionary.) ( Click here for Sunday's readings ) Where to begin? There are so many readings to choose from, a real embarrassment of riches. A preacher can almost “pick a text, any text,” and just start talking. There are, however, certain phrases that jump out at me this year. Let’s see where they lead. In Romans, Paul declares emphatically: “Death no longer has power over Jesus.” A famous poet has expressed it even more powerfully and absolutely: “Death shall have no dominion.” That is what the women in the Gospel story found out. There they were, on their way to pay their final respects by completing the anointing of Jesus’ corpse. And then, out of the blue, an angel says, “He is not here,... he has been raised!” The message

Fr. Charles Irvin Senior Priest Diocese of Lansing ( Click here for today’s readings ) All of us, I am sure, have read recent accounts about the decline of interest in religion among Americans. A recent survey reports that 20% of Americans have no religious affiliations at all and feel no need of God or belief in God. It seems they feel that they are self-sufficient; God is not necessary. So why are we here? Our motives are many and mixed. Some are here in their need seeking God’s help. Some are here seeking God’s forgiveness, others out of love of God, others out of thanksgiving for all that God has done for them. Some are here simply out of a sense of duty and others out of mere habit. All of us are looking forward to everlasting life with God in heaven. In the opening prayer of today’s Mass, we heard the words: “Help us to embrace the world that you have given us, that we may transform the darkness of its pain into the life and joy of Easter.” In the first read