11-6-07
Greetings!
This past Sunday morning I preached at Evergreen Church, an Assembly of God congregation. (Yes, you read that first line correctly—and no I haven't lost my mind!) Talk about once in a lifetime opportunities!
The Assembly of God pastor was finding that many of his flock had a real animus toward the Catholic Church, and knew this was not healthy, spiritually or otherwise. To his credit, he decided to "tag-team" with some Catholics in doing a 3-week series of talks. The focus was to be on the Catholic Liturgy, and what unites all Christians. Fr. Derek Sakowski, who helped facilitate this effort, preached the 1st two Sundays, and yours truly did the last.
For me it was a golden opportunity. You might recall one of Archbishop Fulton Sheen's famous statements:
…"There are not over a hundred people in the United States who hate the Roman Catholic Church; there are millions, however, who hate what they wrongly believe to be the Catholic Church."
To help clarify some things, and indeed show that there are areas of common ground is always fruitful.
There are certainly significant theological differences between Catholicism and the Assembly of God—and we certainly don't want to minimize them. However, much of the time we don't focus enough on what unites us---and indeed work together on common ground—particularly the life issues. It's obvious the world badly needs a united Christian message.
One of the things I discussed was Jesus' final prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane—John 17:19-23, which is His prayer for Unity among His followers. I then highlighted aspects of the Catholic Liturgy that express the same realities they hope aspire too in their own lives.
After my presentation, which included the Nicene Creed, the Assembly of God pastor, pointed to the Nicene Creed and stated "this is what we believe as well."
I'm not convinced the national Assembly of God would agree with that assessment, but nonetheless, it was a fruitful encounter, serving to clarify and unite, while seeking to overcome the many misconceptions that are out there.
If you have an exceptional amount of free time, you can go to their website: http://www.ecsp.org/ click on "Media" and then podcasts, where you can listen to the series. The first two Sundays are uploaded and I imagine mine will be later this week.
And may we continue to pray, as Jesus did, that all who follow Him, "may be one."
Tony Dungy, head football coach of the Super Bowl Champion Indianapolis Colts, is widely admired for his upstanding character, strong Christian faith, and gentle tongue. The latter quality is not normally associated with coaches. Even the hallowed Vince Lombardi, daily Communicant and all, was not known for his mildness of speech. One of ESPN's popular sports shows is called "the Best Damn Sports Show Period." For understandable reasons, they had been trying to get Dungy to appear on the show for some time. He recently acquiesced on the condition that they change the name of the show. And for one day, the day he was on, they did…to "the Best Darn Sports Show Period." Good for Coach Dungy!
You'll recall the Gospel reading from this past Sunday contained the account of Zacchaeus encountering Christ and converting. Pope Benedict had some edifying comments on the passage.
Meeting Christ Changes Everything, Says Pope
Reflects on Conversion of Zacchaeus the Tax Collector
VATICAN CITY, NOV. 4, 2007 (
Zenit.org).- Meeting Christ is a life-changing moment, said Benedict XVI in a Gospel reflection on the conversion of Zacchaeus the tax collector after his encounter with Christ.
The Pope said this today before reciting the Angelus with a crowd of some 50,000 who had gathered in St. Peter's Square. The Holy Father recalled that Zacchaeus was considered a public sinner and was despised by all, but he had a great desire to see Jesus at Jericho.
"The Lord turned to him, calling him by name: 'Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house,'" recounted the Pontiff. "What a message in this simple phrase!"
"Jesus calls by name a man who is despised by all," said Benedict XVI.
In telling Zacchaeus that he wishes to stay at his house "today," the Lord is saying that Zacchaeus' "moment of salvation is now," added the Pope. He explained that "the Father, who is rich in mercy, wants Jesus to go and 'seek out and save what was lost.'"
"The grace of that unforeseeable moment was such that it completely changed Zacchaeus' life," the Holy Father pointed out.
He said that the passage of the Gospel is one that shows "that love, flowing from the heart of God and working through the heart of man, is the force that renews the world."
Why are we so hasty to pull feeding tubes—and indeed kill people? Another amazing story below:
Comatose Mesa man walks out of hospital
Wife had pulled his feeding tube after a week
Rich Dubek
12 News
Oct. 19, 2007 10:55 AM
Doctors said he had only a small chance of recovery. His own wife pulled his feeding tube after a week. But Friday, Jesse Ramirez walked out of the Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix, alive and recovering.
It has been an amazing five months for the US postal employee and father of three who was literally at death's door when he was critically injured in a horrific accident. Jesse and his wife Rebecca were in their SUV when Jesse lost control and crashed into a Chandler pottery store. Rebecca suffered only minor injuries, but Jesse was airlifted to a hospital with a fractured skull and face, punctured lungs and broken ribs. One week after the accident, and following a couple of surgeries, Rebecca Ramirez pulled Jesse out of the hospital and moved him to a Mesa hospice. Rebecca then made the decision to pull his feeding tube and Jesse went six days without food or water.
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12 News then received an e-mail from Jesse's cousin, Kalee Dickey from New Mexico, who told us Jesse's family needed our help. Dickey said that the family completely disagreed with Rebecca's decision to remove Jesse's feeding tube. They thought it was way too early to make that life or death decision, they believed Jesse was still fighting and could still pull through.
Jesse's parents, Jesse Sr. and Theresa Ramirez cried during our television interviews, telling us they were told they did not have power of attorney- Rebecca did. Jesse's co-workers at the post office also did TV interviews, telling us Jesse deserved a chance to live. They questioned his wife's actions. But all had prepared themselves for the inevitable, that Jesse would die and there was nothing they could do.
But one day after our story aired, the family called to tell us Mesa hospice officials put Jesse's tube back in and the courts were now involved. A judge later ruled that the tube must stay in, until they work through the legal issues of the case. While those things transpired, family members reported that Jesse was now opening his eyes, and making hand gestures. Clearly no longer in a vegetative state, he was communicating with family. In court, it became official when a court appointed guardian announced that Jesse was indeed alert and awake. He was then transferred to a rehab center to begin the long road to recovery.
Rebecca Ramriez appeared at the first court appearance, but she has refused all requests for interviews. We don't know why she decided to pull his feeding tube so soon. According to the original police report, she told investigators the couple had been fighting before the accident and and she tried to jump out of the SUV because she "feared for her life."
How much Jesse remembers now is unclear. And there may be more to this story than we know. But this is clear- Jesse Ramirez has many friends and family members who refused to give up. And Jesse is still alive.
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Phil Kosloski is a seminarian for the Diocese of LaCrosse. He is currently studying for the priesthood in Rome. We were blessed to have him live at St. Peter's Parish this past summer. This past Monday, he had the opportunity to serve Mass for Pope Benedict XVI.
Below is the description he sent of his experience. The enthusiasm is tangible and inspiring!
Greetings in Christ!
Well, I served for the Pope today!! The Mass was for the deceased Cardinals
of the past year, so not only was the Pope there, but all of the Cardinals
in the area were also there. On the other hand it was a much smaller Mass
than usual in St. Peter's as it was not open to the general public and it
was at the Altar of the Chair(however, our classmates were able to attend
and were pretty close). About 2,000 were in attendence.
The 10 of us seminarians here in Rome from SJV were the only servers today,
so we all got some job of importance. My job was with the incense and I had
the boat with the incense (while John Norman had the thurbile with the
charcoals).
A couple of Monsignors were the MCs and directed us before Mass on what to
do. One of them was American and helped one half of us, while Monsignor
Stefano, who knows very little English, told us what to do. It actually
went quite smoothly after a few practice runs before Mass. During Mass
there were no major mistakes that anyone could notice, so it went well.
Before Mass, we all were waiting in this one room off to the side, and then
we realised, with the vestments laid out, that this was the Pope's vestry
and he was going to come in. So he walked in (he is quite short) and his
first thing was to put incense in the thurible, so I needed to open the boat
and he then spooned out the incense and then we left. During Mass, I had to
kneel down immediately before the Holy Father at one point before the
Gospel, where he put more incense in the thurible. And then again I had to
come right up next to him at the altar where he did the same. During the
consecration, we all were in front of the altar and myself and John were
directly in front of the Pope's view, watching him the whole time of the
Eucharistic Prayer. Then finally we all recieved Holy Communion from the
Holy Father.
I have posted some pictures below on my flickr account which our fellow
students took of us during Mass. There were also professional photographers
taking pictures which we can order, and also a DVD which we can buy. That
will be later on, however.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pakosloski/
<http://www.flickr.com/photos/pakosloski/>
Also, you can check out the official photos on:
www.fotografiafelici.it
<http://www.fotografiafelici.it>
After Mass, a few of the guys who were serving got the chance to be in the
vestry where the Pope took of his vestments. He then turned to them and
asked them why they were in Rome (in English). The four guys were dumb
struck that the Pope talked to them, but eventually stammered out that we
are studying for a semester here in Rome. Then they got the chance to kiss
his ring.
Wow, what a day!!!!!
Pax Christi,
Phil
God bless you! Phil Lawson For the latest info on St. Peter's, check out the parish website: www.saintpetercatholic.com (You can also find old editions of the Areopagus here)
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