Our Sacred Cross

"A Prophet is not without honor, except in his own house, amongst his own kin." When we as Christians were dutifully vested with a sacramental awareness of the gospel, we were called to witness to it. The testimony of the life of christ is to be our testimony every day, in the way we live our own lives, in the way we treat others and in the way we care for the less fortunate. It is a calling that expects us to leave the confines of closed doors and serve others. We have a golden opportunity in america to do just that. In a time where vice is becoming more mainstream, it has become easier to be in a situation in which you can provide a valuable witness to Christian life. Get out of your comfort zone, stand up and show the world how wonderful and how loving God is, and how he calls everyone of us to his grace and to be united in his holy perfection in heaven.

The easter season continues to remind us to look upon our journey as one of faithful redemption. Eventually we get to the point where Jesus has left humanity all it needs and he turns over leadership of his church on earth to people. Today, April 25, 2015, is the feast day of St. Mark the evangelist. A cousin of Barnabus, he was close to Paul as he begun his missionary work. His gospel was told from the perspective of peter, of whom he was a disciple. Peter is the rock, the person with whom this church was trusted by Jesus himself.  Peter is a glistening example of the redemptive grace God offers us. A man who denied Jesus in his greatest moment of suffering, he was given a choice and he chose repentence and forgiveness. This is exactly why his storydiverges from the Judas story - because Judas had the chance to be forgiven and chose death. We learn a lot about the backstory to our early church from St. Mark because of the witness he gives to St. Peter's account. He wrote his gospe

"Forgive those who trespass against us." Someone mentioned to me this week how much they liked the Episcopalian church because it was so non judgmental. My counter is that in everything we do, we are judged. We're expected to adhere to a particular standard in school, in our careers, at home with our families, in public. The list could go on for a while. Life is all about making judgements. It's a good thing too, because there is a right and a wrong in this world and both exist in abundance. Here's where many catholics (and most christians) differ from the general population. There is also forgiveness. We're called to make some very difficult choices on that matter too. It means transcending what traditional human emotion might dictate that we do: Offer mercy even to those we think may not deserve it. Mo'ne Davis, a thirteen year old child sports prodigy, was subject to an incredibly callous, crass, harassing, hate filled twitter message rece

“And the king will say to them in reply, “Amen I say to you, whatever you did for the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” Matthew 25:40 We're not judged by how well we treat our friends. Virtue demands a much higher standard. We don’t have to like everyone we encounter, but we do have to love them, and be able to recognize that they are indeed people God created and loves. This principle applies even to those who consider themselves enemies of us and our way of life. We love and pray for our enemies. It’s a difficult calling, but one that Jesus embraced during his crucifixion when he prayed for his executioners. Good wins by being good in the face of evil. Charity wins by being charitable even when it’s difficult, especially when it’s difficult.  I can’t help but notice during Jesus’ ministry how he seeked the least in society at every opportunity he could, whether it was the tax collector Zacchaeus, who was despised by many during this time, or the leper

“One acts rich but has nothing, another acts poor but has great wealth” Proverbs 13:7 Blessed are the Poor in Spirit. Some of the poorest people in the world have the most money. The more one looks for satisfaction in the things of this world, the less grounded one becomes in the things necessary to attain eternal life. Is it a sin to have a lot of money in this world? No, but the challenge of living a life according to God’s standard increases. I can’t help but think of my time on midnight run two years ago when I read this passage. I had the opportunity to meet and help out, in at least a small way, people who had seemingly lost everything. It’s still difficult for me to understand the depths of which one has to fall to end up on the streets, homeless. I can’t imagine living a life like that and being happy. Every single homeless person I met however, was happy. Somehow, without all of the things that I subconsciously deem essential to life, they can remain happy and whole p

"And to love him with all your heart, with all your understanding, with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself' is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices. (33) and when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding, he said to him 'You are not far from the kingdom of God'" Mark 12:33 I like the conflict Jesus has with many of the scribes and pharisees throughout the Gospels because it fits lent so well. There's a difference between glorifying God and glorifying one's self. I often feel like it's the people who are under-appreciated for the work that they do who are the closest to God (parents, clergy, lay ministers, everyday ordinary people). It's charity motivated by love, not glory or recognition that is best in the eyes of God. There are numerous examples of this in scripture going all the way back to the sacrifices offered by Cain and Abel. Earlier In this passage a scribe, trying to challenge Jesus, asks him w