Information
September's Mass for Men
September 2, 2017
7:30am
Bishop Jacobs' house
107 Albany Dr., Houma, La
Fellowship afterwards
Bring a friend.

“You created us for yourself and our heart is not quiet until it rests in you.” (St. Augustine) As we continue our day to day journey, we need to remember this statement. It reminds us of what Jesus said: "Where your treasure is, there will your heart be." Many times we get caught up with the day to day struggles and difficulties of life that we fail to remember that eternity is our goal and being with God is our ultimate destiny. Paul reminded us to keep our eyes on the prize, which is life with God forever. Yes, we are to live in the present moment, but it is always with our eyes on the Lord.

“When we call God our Father we ought also to act like sons

and daughters. If we are pleased to call him Father, let him in
turn be pleased to call us sons and daughters. We should live like
the temples of God we are, so that it can be seen that God lives
in us. No act of ours should be unworthy of the spirit. Now that
we have begun to live in heaven and in spirit, all our thoughts
and actions should be heavenly and spiritual.”( St. Cyprian) This
is the ideal towards which we should strive. Reaching towards
this ideal takes discipline and conscious intentionality. Jesus
himself gave us the ideal upon which St. Cyprian’s words are
based. “Be perfected as your Heavenly Father is perfect.” This is
not an impossibility, no more so than any of the present Olympic
records cannot be reached and broken. Our vocation is to be
holy as God is holy, so that we can share in his holiness
eternally. It happens in the present moment. “Live like the
temples of God we are.”

From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised. Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, "God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you." He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do."

Prior to this, Jesus asked the disciples, "Who do people say I am?" Peter responded: "You are the Messiah." But the Messiah Peter was thinking about was not the Messiah Jesus was called to be. He would not be a political or military messiah, but a suffering servant who would lay down his life freely out of love and obedience for the salvation of people.
Peter’s refusal to accept Jesus’ understanding of a suffering servant Messiah, who would die a cruel death but rise again, is seen by Jesus as a distraction from Satan. It was an attempt to divert Jesus from the Father’s call to him. It was the continuation of the temptations in the desert.
What were the times we did not understand God’s plan in our lives but were distracted by a subtle ploy of Satan to deflect us from what God desired of us?
How do you think Peter felt when Jesus rebuked him in this way? What would you feel if Jesus said the same to you?

"Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself take up his cross, and follow me.

To deny oneself is to remove oneself as the center of one's focus and instead to make God’s plan our focus.
What crosses have you had to embrace on your spiritual journey? How has your life been affected and transformed by these crosses?

For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? Or what can one give in exchange for his life? For the Son of Man will come with his angels in his Father's glory, and then he will repay everyone according to his conduct.

What do these words of Jesus say to you?
Jesus makes clear that the condition for being a true disciple is the willingness to give up one’s life for him.
What are you being called by God to give up in your life so that you will find real meaning in your life?
Like the disciples, we hear sometimes part of and not the whole message. They stopped listening at the point of his predicted death, but they did not hear the resurrection. We hear Jesus speak about the cross but we do not remember the reward after death: life everlasting in glory.
What resolution do we make in response to the words of Jesus?

"Apart from the cross, there is no Christ, but apart from the cross, there can be no Christian either.” (Pope Francis) Just as the cross was central to the life and ministry of Jesus, so it is for each Christian. We cannot talk about Jesus without talking about the cross. Just as there is no resurrection without the cross. The same is true about one who is truly a follower of Christ. Christ made this clear when he said: "Unless you take up your cross daily, you cannot be my disciple." Jesus did not relish in the cross. He relished in the Father's will which included the cross. So too with us. Our focus is to embrace the will of the Father, which includes the cross.

“God loves each of us as if there were only one of us.” (St. Augustine) Sometimes the obvious truth is right in front of us. God sees, accepts and loves us as individuals. He knows and calls each of us by name. He has written our name on the palm of his hand.  The same is true about Jesus' death on the cross. Yes, he died to save the whole world. But he also died to save me personally.  We have to try to remember this when we feel alone and abandoned. God's love has not changed. Knowing this, we need to try to rest in his personal love for us. And above all, give him thanks for his love for me.

"Our most painful suffering often comes from those who love us and those we love. The relationships between husband and wife, parents and children, brothers and sisters, teachers and students, pastors and parishioners - these are where our deepest wounds occur. Even late in life, yes, even after those who wounded us have long since died, we might still need help to sort out what happened in these relationship. The great temptation is to keep blaming those who were closest to us for our present, condition saying: "You made me who I am now, and I hate who I am." The great challenge is to acknowledge our hurts and claim our true selves as being more than the result of what other people do to us. Only when we can claim our God-made selves as the true source of our being will we be free to forgive those who have wounded us." (Henri Nouwen) The blame game doesn't change anything. Underneath all the scars and wounds inflicted upon us by others is the true person of worth, made in the image and likeness of God. If a gold bar is encrusted in mud and grime is cleansed, then the true identity and value of the bar is recognized.  So it is with each of us. The scars of the past only hide our true identity, they don't determine this identity. Forgiveness is the cleansing agent that makes the difference and frees us to be who we are in the eyes of God. 

"One thing we know for sure about our God: Our God is a God of the living, not of the dead. God is life. God is love. God is beauty. God is goodness. God is truth. God doesn't want us to die. God wants us to live. Our God, who loves us from eternity to eternity, wants to give us life for eternity.
When that life was interrupted by our unwillingness to give our full yes to God's love, God sent Jesus to be with us and to say that great yes in our name and thus restore us to eternal life. So let's not be afraid of death." (Henri Nouwen) Why are many people afraid of death? Is it because they are aware of their sinful life and thus fear the judgment of God? Have they forgotten that Jesus died for their sins? All they need to do is sincerely repent of their sins, confessed them, and be restored back to oneness with God. From then on they need to choose to follow the path set for them by Jesus as they grow in the life of God. If they fall, the same grace is offered to them. Do not fear death but long for eternal life.

“Apart from the cross, there is no other ladder by which we may get to heaven.” (St. Rose of Lima) She understood the truth in Jesus’ words about the need to take up our cross daily if we wish to be his disciple. Embracing these happenings in our life enables us to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. Through death to self enables life in Christ to grow

within us. Alone we can't do this. But that is why he told St. Paul: “My grace is sufficient. In your weakness is my strength.”

Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi

It is called Caesarea Philippi to distinguish it from the town of Caesrea in Samaria. The former town was originally called Paneas It was rebuilt by Philip, a son of Herod the Great. It is situated about twenty miles north of the Sea of Galilee at the base of Mt. Hermon. When it was rebuilt by the tetrarch Philip he changed the name to Caesarea Philippi in honor of the Emperor Caesar Augustus and in honor of himself.

and he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?"

Notice Jesus equates himself with the title of Son of Man. This title is found in the prophet Daniel.

They replied, "Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."

In Mt 14:2 Herod had wrongly identified Jesus as Elijah, because of his prophetic and charismatic personality.
Others thought he was Elijah who was believed to return before the Messiah.
Some identified Jesus with the great prophets of old because of his message.

He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"

This is the same question Jesus asks each of us. The answer to this question determines our relationship with Jesus.
Simon Peter said in reply, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
As we will see, it is very significant that Peter was the one who spoke up. For he has been chosen by God to be the head of the Church to be established by Jesus.
To say that Jesus is the Christ means that he is the Messiah. To say that he is the Son of the Living God indicates Jesus’ unique relationship to God in the eyes of Peter.
As we will see, to say the right words is not enough. We must also embrace the full meaning of what we profess. Peter gave the right answer but his understanding of what it meant for Jesus to be Messiah was not accurate.
Jesus said to him in reply, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.
Jesus acknowledges that Peter’s answer came through the revelation of God and not through human reasoning. To proclaim Jesus as Messiah was a bold move on Peter’s part.

And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.

For Peter’s faith proclamation—even though he didn’t understand the full impact—Jesus rewards him with the new position of the head of the Church the Messiah would establish.
The powers of darkness will attempt to destroy it, but will be unable, because it is established by the God/Man and not just by a human being alone.

I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."

The keys signify the authority that Peter is given by Jesus. See Is 22:15:25.
Then he strictly ordered his disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.
This passage is foundational to our understanding as Catholics to the primacy of Peter as the Vicar of Christ on earth as well as the authority given to Peter and his successors in governing the Church.
What does it mean for Jesus to be the Messiah in your life?

“In this matter We do not wish to propose a new truth to be

believed by Christians, since the title and the arguments on which Mary’s queenly dignity is based have already been clearly set forth…From early times Christians have believed, and not without reason, that she of whom was born the Son of the Most High received privileges of grace above all other beings created by God…And when Christians reflected upon the intimate connection that obtains between a mother and a son, they readily acknowledged the supreme royal dignity of the Mother of God.” (Pope Pius XII). A week ago we celebrated the Solemnity of the Assumption of Our Lady into heaven. Today's Feast is in a sense the culmination of the many personal graces God blessed Mary with. The central focus of these graces is God’s call for Mary to be the Mother of Jesus, the Savior of the world. By God’s choice Mary is crowned as Queen of Heaven and earth. “And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon was under her feet, and on her head was a crown
of twelve stars.” (Rev 12:1) What should our response be?
Thanksgiving to God for his graces to Mary and thanksgiving to Mary for responding to those graces. We continue to ask for her intercession as we continue our journey to the fullness of life with God.

"Nothing would please us more than to see our beloved children form the habit of reading the Gospels - not merely from time to time, but every day." (St Pope Pius X) St Paul tells Timothy and us: "You have known the sacred Scriptures, the source of the wisdom which through faith in Jesus Christ leads to salvation. All Scripture is inspired of God and is useful for teaching--for reproof, correction, and training in holiness so that the man of God may be fully competent and equipped for every good work."(2 Tim 3:15-17) Reading and reflecting on the Word of God should be as part of our daily routine as is eating and sleeping. We read other materials for work and pleasure, for knowledge and information. But do we read the Word of God for our edification and sanctification? What would happen? We may "be fully competent and equipped for every good work."

"They deceive themselves who believe that union with God consists in ecstasies or raptures, and in the enjoyment of Him. For it consists in nothing except the surrender and subjection of our will - with our thoughts, words and actions - to the will of God." (St Teresa of Avila) Wasn't this the life and teaching of Jesus? Embracing the will of God for me in the present moment brings me into union with God in a way that the world does not begin to understand. The initial sin of the human race was: "I will not be obedient to God in all things." The redemption of human beings came through the obedience of Jesus to the will of the Father, even to the death of the cross.  What united Jesus in his humanity to the Father was this act of trust and surrender. What reflected Mary's true identity as the Mother of Jesus was hearing the word of God and acting on it. As we surrender to the Father's will, especially in those areas which we don't understand, we will be one with the Father. This is the singular path to holiness.

Information:
August Mass for Women
Saturday, August 19, 2017
Bishop's House
107 Albany Dr.
Houma, La.
8:00am
Fellowship afterwards
Bring a friend.

Twentieth Sunday of Ordinary Gospel A


At that time, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon.
Tyre and Sidon are cities on the Mediterranean Sea in non-Jewish or pagan territory.
Jesus withdrew to provide rest for himself and the disciples.
And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out, "Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is tormented by a demon."
Being a Canaanite woman indicates that she is non-Jewish.
Jesus’ reputation as a healer has preceded him, even though he sought anonymity.
But Jesus did not say a word in answer to her.
Both Jesus’ initial non-response and his later apparent tone when he addresses her seems out of character.
Jesus’ disciples came and asked him, "Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us."
The disciples’ remarks are probably more typical of how we may have handled the situation if we were there.
He said in reply, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."
Jesus first acknowledges his primary call from the Father is to the Israelites, the Chosen People.
But the woman came and did Jesus homage, saying, "Lord, help me."
This gesture of homage is very significant. It says that she recognizes Jesus more than just a healer but a holy man close to God. She may have seen something in Jesus that the apostles had not grasped.
He said in reply, "It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs."
This sounds harsh coming from Jesus. But it is another way of saying that his first mission is to the Jews and not the Gentiles.
She said, "Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters."
The woman doesn’t take offense. She is more concerned about her daughter than about her own feelings. She too acknowledges that in Jesus’ eyes the Jews are his primary concern. But she pleads with him to show mercy on her and her daughter. She is persistent and steadfast.
Then Jesus said to her in reply, "O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish." And the woman’s daughter was healed from that hour.
Jesus was stretching her, calling her to a deeper faith. He was not playing games with her nor putting her down. Instead, he was inviting her to a greater expectation.
Her faith in Jesus’ mercy and love even towards one who was not worthy was what freed her daughter to experience the healing/deliverance.
What application can you make in your personal life from your reflections?
Where is Jesus stretching you when you come to him with your concerns?

"That the virtue of humility consists in the knowledge of certain truths, I had already recognized. These truths are: that I am nothing, that I can do nothing but sin, that I depend on God for everything--for existence, conservation, movement, and grace. What is more, I am most happy in my dependence on God, and I prefer to depend entirely on God rather than on myself." (St. Anthony Mary Claret) Someone else has said, I am who I am in the eyes of God, nothing more, nothing less. Humility does not consist in degrading ourselves but seeing ourselves as God sees us. It is the virtue that allows us to live in the truth of my relationship with God and others. St. Paul states it thus: "I warn each of you not to think more highly of himself than he ought. Let him estimate himself soberly." (Roms 12:3)

The Solemnity of the Assumption of Our Lady is part of the mystery revealed by the Holy Spirit to the Church. In virtue of Mary's unique role as the Mother of Jesus, True God and True Man, Mary was gifted with salvation at the moment of her Conception in her mother's womb. She was immaculately conceived free from Original sin and given the unique grace to remain free from personal sin throughout her life. For the Son of God to be conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of Mary, it was necessary, in God's divine providence, for Mary to be the perfect human vessel to conceive and nurture Jesus, our Savior. Thus, freed from Original and personal sin throughout her life by grace, Mary doesn't suffer the consequences of death, the corruption of the body. Just as Jesus was sinless, though he died, he rose from the grave gloriously without the corruption of his body. So too, Mary by God's grace. Her assumption into heaven body and soul incorruptible unites her with Jesus' resurrection and ascension. All is a grace of God. As she is assumed into heaven, one day our bodies will be resurrected and reunited with our spirits, sharing immortality eternally with Jesus and Mary. Thank you, Jesus, for this revealed mystery. Thank you Jesus and Mary for going before us and preparing our way.

“The most deadly poison of our time is

indifference.” (St. Maximilian Kolbe) He said this about seventy years ago and it is even more so true today. At the time he was dealing with the indifference of people to the actions of Nazism, especially to Christians and Jews. Today, we are dealing with the indifference of Catholics to secularism and atheism. Jesus identified this indifference of his time with the word, lukewarm. How indifferent or lukewarm are we to the rising tide all around us of subtle persecution? Are we like the frog in a pot of water, calm and indifferent to the slowly heated water around us, until it is too late to react when are cooked? Pray for wisdom to know what God wants each of us to do not to be indifferent
to the rising tide of secularism and atheism. Two things come to mind: pray to grow in holiness of life and to be the disciple witness that Jesus calls each of us to be, witnessing our faith in a public way.

“We become what we love and who we love shapes what we become. If we love things, we become a thing. If we love nothing, we become nothing. Imitation is not a literal mimicking of Christ, rather it means becoming the image of the beloved, an image disclosed through transformation. This means we are to become vessels of God's compassionate love for others.” (St. Clare) If God is the object of our love, then that love will transform us into becoming the fullest person we were created to be. The love of God and the love of others will become more than a command but a way of life, leading us to the fullness of life. This is the path Jesus, in his humanity, walked, lived and taught. To be a disciple is to follow and act on his example in the present moment. “We become what we love and who we love shapes what we become.”

"Often we speak about love as if it is a feeling. But if we wait for a feeling of love before loving, we may never learn to love well. The feeling of love is beautiful and life-giving, but our loving cannot be based in that feeling. To love is to think, speak, and act according to the spiritual knowledge that we are infinitely loved by God and called to make that love visible in this world. Mostly we know what the loving thing to do is. When we "do" love, even if others are not able to respond with love, we will discover that our feelings catch up with our acts." (Henri Nouwen) God loves us unconditionally and independently of our response. St. Paul tells us that when we're sinners Jesus died for us out of love. Too often we condition our love with an expectation of being loved in return. Jesus addressed this when he said don't invite to dinner those whom you expect you in return. Rather invite those who cannot pay you back. We also become offended  and resentful when our love is taken for granted. How would we feel if God treated us this way? Did Jesus not say: "The measure with which you have been given, measure in the same to others." There is only one standard for love: God's. 

“There is a state of resting in God, an absolute break from

all intellectual activity, when one forms no plans, makes no
decisions and for the first time really ceases to act, when
one simply hands over the future to God’s will and
‘surrenders himself to fate’.” (St. Teresa Benedicta of the
Cross) To surrender oneself totally into the hands of the
unseen God of the universe is scary. There is an innate
need for each of us to be in control of our own existence.
To surrender in trust to God seems to go against every
thing we have been told or feel at the moment. If I
surrender myself into the hands of God, what will remain
of me? Jesus answered this haunting question. “If you
hold onto your life, you will loose it; but if you loose your
life for my sake, you will have life abundantly.” Mystery!!!
Surrender and be set free.

Nineteen Sunday in Ordinary Time Gospel Mt 14:22-33

Then he made the disciples get into the boat and precede him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. After doing so, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray.
Is prayer that important in our lives in fact? How often do we imitate Jesus: to take quality time in prayer after expending ourselves for others?

When it was evening he was there alone. Meanwhile the boat, already a few miles offshore, was being tossed about by the waves, for the wind was against it.
When were the times in our lives that we felt tossed and turned in the storms of daily existence? What was the most recent storm?

During the fourth watch of the night he came toward them, walking on the sea.
The Romans divided the night hours between 6pm and 6am into four equal parts called "watches." The fourth watch of the night was between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m.

When the disciples saw him walking on the sea they were terrified. "It is a ghost," they said, and they cried out in fear.
If this happened to us, would our response be any different? What are the "ghosts" that cause us to be afraid?

At once (Jesus) spoke to them, "Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid."
"Do not be afraid": a continual exhortation of Jesus to the disciples and to us. Yet, no matter how often we hear it, we still experience fear.

Peter said to him in reply, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water." He said, "Come." Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus.
Have we experienced a moment of faith like that?

But when he saw how (strong) the wind was he became frightened; and, beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!" Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught him, and said to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"
To take our eyes off Jesus is to allow fear to take over in our lives.

After they got into the boat, the wind died down. Those who were in the boat did him homage, saying, "Truly, you are the Son of God."
They could say this after the experience. But how soon they would forget. Isn’t that true in our own lives?
What do we learn from this event and apply in our own lives?

“A man who governs his passions is master of the world. We must either command them or be enslaved to them. It is better to be the hammer than the anvil.” (St. Dominic) Our passions are part of our life. How we deal with them will determine whether we are their master or their slave. As master, they can be directed towards good. As slave, they will lead us to evil. We can only master our passions with the grace and strength of God, directing them for his service. If we become enslaved by our passions, we will forget our true identity, believing lies rather than embracing truth. As slave, we will prefer the darkness rather the light.

“Do not receive Christ in the Blessed Sacrament so that you may use him as you judge best, but give yourself to him and let him receive you in this Sacrament, so that he himself, God your savior, may do to you and through you whatever he wills.” (St. Cajetan)  In the Eucharist, we are assumed into Christ, even though we consume him. In this mysterious union, Jesus shares his divine life with us in a deeper way, so as to prepare us to share it eternally. We surrender to him in this union, so that we can be in his will throughout the day. We are his. We belong to him. Jesus gives himself to us so that we may give ourselves to him for his glory and honor. More than any other form of prayer, thanksgiving should be primary, along with adoration and praise. Petitions should be, in a sense, in passing. It is our time to be with him and for him and not the other way around.

Information:
Men's Monthly Mass
August 4, 2017
Bishop Jacobs' House
107 Albany Dr.
Houma, La
7:30am
Bring a Friend. 
Fellowship afterwards

" Whenever you begin any good work you should first of all make a most pressing appeal to Christ our Lord to bring it to perfection." (St. Benedict) What would happen if we would offer a short prayer to God whenever we begin a project or an activity? Would it sanctify our effort? Would this practice help us to keep Jesus consciously in the forefront of our thoughts and actions throughout our day? On the other hand, what happens when we don't do this? The difference should be obvious. Like anything new, it will take discipline and practice before this will become a healthy part of our life. Why not start now?