John 12:44-50

Jesus cried out and said,
“Whoever believes in me believes not only in me
but also in the one who sent me,
and whoever sees me sees the one who sent me.
I came into the world as light,
so that everyone who believes in me might not remain in darkness.
And if anyone hears my words and does not observe them,
I do not condemn him,
for I did not come to condemn the world but to save the world.
Whoever rejects me and does not accept my words
has something to judge him: the word that I spoke,
it will condemn him on the last day,
because I did not speak on my own,
but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and speak.
And I know that his commandment is eternal life.
So what I say, I say as the Father told me.”

——————————————————————

Jesus clearly identifies Himself with the Father in this part of the Gospel of John.  If we believe in Jesus, we believe in the Father.  If we see Jesus, we see the Father.  What a gift that is to treasure!  Our God, the Creator of the Universe, has allowed us to get to know Him through the Incarnation.  Jesus of Nazareth, born of the Virgin Mary, is the perfect reflection of the Father.  What do we see in Jesus?  Unconditional love, divine mercy, the desire for unity, the Prince of peace, seeker of souls, the King of kings.

Jesus describes Himself as the “light” so that we no longer live in the darkness of this world.  Jesus came to show us the way to the Father.  Once we know the way, it is up to us to follow Him.  If we do not follow the Light of the world, then we condemn ourselves.  It is not Jesus who ever condemns us – it is our responsibility.  God is love.  Jesus did not come to condemn the world, but to save it.

So the question is – do I know the way? 

Do I know the person of Jesus?

Do I try to follow His Light in my daily life?

Do I walk in darkness or the light?

Lord, we thank you for showing us the Light, for you are the Way, the Truth and the Life.  Help us to know You, to follow You, to serve You.

Have a blessed day!
Fr. Burke

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Acts of the apostles 11:19-26

Those who had been scattered by the persecution
that arose because of Stephen
went as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch,
preaching the word to no one but Jews.
There were some Cypriots and Cyrenians among them, however,
who came to Antioch and began to speak to the Greeks as well,
proclaiming the Lord Jesus.
The hand of the Lord was with them
and a great number who believed turned to the Lord.
The news about them reached the ears of the Church in Jerusalem,
and they sent Barnabas to go to Antioch.
When he arrived and saw the grace of God,
he rejoiced and encouraged them all
to remain faithful to the Lord in firmness of heart,
for he was a good man, filled with the Holy Spirit and faith.
And a large number of people was added to the Lord.
Then he went to Tarsus to look for Saul,
and when he had found him he brought him to Antioch.
For a whole year they met with the Church
and taught a large number of people,
and it was in Antioch that the disciples
were first called Christians.

——————————————————————–

This reading from the Acts of the Apostles highlights why I enjoy this book of the Bible so much.  The enthusiasm of the early Christians is so contagious.  They kept their focus on our Lord Jesus Christ.  They encouraged one another continuously.  And their numbers grew because of their efforts.

The early disciples’ lives revolved around our Lord Jesus Christ.  It was their whole focus.  In our busy daily lives it is so easy to lose our focus.  Let us reflect on these questions:

1)     How often do I think of Jesus in my daily life?

2)    How often do I pray and communicate with our Lord daily?

3)    How often does Jesus come up in my daily interactions with others?

The early disciples continuously encouraged one another.  They went out and evangelized and then gathered together to share experiences.  They gained energy from one another.  They learned from one another.  They knew they were never alone in this venture.

1)     How often do I gather with other Christians for encouragement and inspiration?

2)    Do I have friends that encourage me in my walk with Jesus?

Finally, through the actions of the disciples – their teaching, preaching and example – the number of Christians grew dramatically.  St. James says, “Faith without works is dead”.

1)     How often do I share my faith with others through teaching, preaching or example?

2)    Are people coming to know and love our Lord Jesus through my actions?

Let us keep the same fire that burned deeply in the hearts of the early disciples.  It takes time and energy, but there is nothing more important that you will ever do in your life.

God bless,

Fr. Burke

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Acts of the apostles 11:1-18

The Apostles and the brothers who were in Judea
heard that the Gentiles too had accepted the word of God.
So when Peter went up to Jerusalem
the circumcised believers confronted him, saying,
‘You entered the house of uncircumcised people and ate with them.”
Peter began and explained it to them step by step, saying,
“I was at prayer in the city of Joppa
when in a trance I had a vision,
something resembling a large sheet coming down,
lowered from the sky by its four corners, and it came to me.
Looking intently into it,
I observed and saw the four-legged animals of the earth,
the wild beasts, the reptiles, and the birds of the sky. I also heard a voice say to me, ‘Get up, Peter. Slaughter and eat.’
But I said, ‘Certainly not, sir,
because nothing profane or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’
But a second time a voice from heaven answered,
‘What God has made clean, you are not to call profane.’
This happened three times,
and then everything was drawn up again into the sky.
Just then three men appeared at the house where we were,
who had been sent to me from Caesarea.
The Spirit told me to accompany them without discriminating.
These six brothers also went with me,
and we entered the man’s house.
He related to us how he had seen the angel standing in his house, saying,
‘Send someone to Joppa and summon Simon, who is called Peter,
who will speak words to you
by which you and all your household will be saved.’
As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them
as it had upon us at the beginning,
and I remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said,
‘John baptized with water
but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’
If then God gave them the same gift he gave to us
when we came to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ,
who was I to be able to hinder God?”
When they heard this,
they stopped objecting and glorified God, saying,
“God has then granted life-giving repentance to the Gentiles too.”

———————————————————————————–

Today we have a beautiful story with several elements:

1)     The apostles’ cautious approach to the Gentiles at first.  They were concerned that Peter ate with uncircumcised people.   In the early Church, they were still trying to figure out how to interact with the rest of the world.

2)    Peter’s openness to the Holy Spirit.  Peter was at prayer when he was told that it was permissible to eat meat that was considered unclean to the Jews.  As he listened to the Spirit and followed through, men were brought to the Lord.  So often God speaks to our hearts.  Are we praying and spending time in silence to hear this voice?  The salvation of others hangs in the balance.

3)    God’s desire that all might be saved.  It became clear to the apostles that Jesus came to save all people.  This was revolutionary thinking at the time.  But this is something for us to be thankful for today.  We may not be Christians if it weren’t for Peter acting on this vision.  We may not be Christians if it weren’t for St. Paul’s mission to the Gentiles.  Who is out there waiting to know Jesus through my words or actions?

Have a blessed day.

Fr. Burke

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John 6:52-59

The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying,
“How can this man give us his Flesh to eat?”
Jesus said to them,
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
unless you eat the Flesh of the Son of Man and drink his Blood,
you do not have life within you.
Whoever eats my Flesh and drinks my Blood
has eternal life,
and I will raise him on the last day.
For my Flesh is true food,
and my Blood is true drink.
Whoever eats my Flesh and drinks my Blood
remains in me and I in him.
Just as the living Father sent me
and I have life because of the Father,
so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me.
This is the bread that came down from heaven.
Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died,
whoever eats this bread will live forever.”
These things he said while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.

——————————————————–

Today we continue with the Bread of Life discourse in the 6^th chapter of the Gospel of John.  Jesus has just told the crowd several times that He is the Bread come down from heaven and “unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood, you have no life in you”.

Imagine being in that crowd that day.  You have heard so much about this Jesus.  Maybe you’ve heard His teachings.  Maybe you’ve seen a miracle.  But now He is saying that you must eat His flesh and drink His blood.  Now He’s gone too far – He’s talking about cannibalism.

But Jesus continued without hesitation.  “For my Flesh is true food, and my Blood is true drink.  Whoever eats my Flesh and drinks my Blood remains in me and I in him.”  Of course, He was referring to the Eucharist – one of the greatest gifts given to the world.  Jesus thought of a way that He could remain in us and us in Him – through receiving the Eucharist – His Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity contained in the Bread of Life.  And if we eat this Bread, we will live forever!

If we continued in this passage, most of His followers left at this point.  They couldn’t take this any longer and left, with only the twelve remaining.  But Jesus didn’t call them back, saying, “Wait, I was just speaking metaphorically.  Come back and I will explain this in a way that is easy.”  He let them walk away and then asked the twelve, “Will you leave me too?”  In other words, Jesus was saying to them, “I know this is difficult, but do you trust me?  Do you believe me?”

Why is this so hard for us to believe?  We believe that God became man in the person of Jesus. We believe that He was born of a virgin.  We believe that He suffered, died and rose from the dead.  Why is it so hard to believe that Jesus can give us of Himself in the Eucharist?  Is anything impossible with God?  I am Catholic today because of the Eucharist.  I am a priest today because of the Eucharist.  Most of the converts to Catholicism that I have spoken to are Catholic because of the Eucharist.

Do you believe this is true?  Can it be true?  I’m going to side with Jesus.  If He tells me this is true, I believe Him.  He asks us to trust Him.  Jesus asked us to place our faith in Him – to see not with our physical eyes, but to see with our eyes of faith.

Thank you, Lord, for the gift of yourself in the Eucharist.  I am forever grateful…

Peace,

Fr. Burke

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Acts of the apostles 8:26-40

The angel of the Lord spoke to Philip,
“Get up and head south on the road
that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, the desert route.”
So he got up and set out.
Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch,
a court official of the Candace,
that is, the queen of the Ethiopians,
in charge of her entire treasury,
who had come to Jerusalem to worship, and was returning home.
Seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah.
The Spirit said to Philip,
“Go and join up with that chariot.”
Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said,
“Do you understand what you are reading?”
He replied,
“How can I, unless someone instructs me?”
So he invited Philip to get in and sit with him.
This was the Scripture passage he was reading:

Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter,
and as a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
In his humiliation justice was denied him.
Who will tell of his posterity?
For his life is taken from the earth.

Then the eunuch said to Philip in reply,
“I beg you, about whom is the prophet saying this?
About himself, or about someone else?”
Then Philip opened his mouth and, beginning with this Scripture passage,
he proclaimed Jesus to him.
As they traveled along the road
they came to some water,
and the eunuch said, “Look, there is water.
What is to prevent my being baptized?”
Then he ordered the chariot to stop,
and Philip and the eunuch both went down into the water,
and he baptized him.
When they came out of the water,
the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away,
and the eunuch saw him no more,
but continued on his way rejoicing.
Philip came to Azotus, and went about proclaiming the good news
to all the towns until he reached Caesarea.

________________________________________

I am writing this from the beautiful setting of St. Meinrad Seminary in southern Indiana, where I am visiting with our five seminarians studying here.

The first thing that strikes me about Philip is that he was listening to the angel of the Lord.  In other words, he was probably praying and opened his heart to God’s promptings.  How in tune are we to the voice of the Lord?  This Sunday we will hear about Jesus as the Good Shepherd.  He knows His sheep, but do we know Him?  Sheep get to know the voice of their shepherd by spending time with them.  Their ears are acutely attuned to the voice of their shepherd.  We too have to spend time in prayer to know when the Lord is speaking to us in our hearts.  This doesn’t happen by accident, but it takes practice, discipline and an open heart.

Secondly, Philip knew his faith.  He knew Jesus and was ready to speak to anyone about Him.  He was ready to open up the Scriptures to this eunuch.  Do I know Jesus personally?  Do I know the Scriptures well enough to explain them to people who don’t know Jesus?  Again, this doesn’t happen by chance, but it takes hard work, time and study.

Finally, Philip brought this eunuch to Jesus through the saving waters of baptism.  He cared about the soul of this person so much that he wanted them to be saved in Jesus Christ.  Is that the driving force in my life?  Am I so enthusiastic (which means “full of God”) that I can’t wait to share my faith so that others know Jesus Christ?  This is not about us – but it is because we love Jesus that we love others.  We are all sons and daughters of the same God.  Therefore, it is my responsibility to lead my family to Jesus.

Take time to reflect on Philip’s prayerful attitude, his study of the Lord, and his apostolic action.  These are the three key elements to the Christian life – prayer, study and action.  How am I doing in these areas?

Blessings,

Fr. Burke

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1 Peter  5:5b-14

Beloved:
Clothe yourselves with humility
in your dealings with one another, for:

God opposes the proud
but bestows favor on the humble.

So humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God,
that he may exalt you in due time.
Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you.

Be sober and vigilant.
Your opponent the Devil is prowling around like a roaring lion
looking for someone to devour.
Resist him, steadfast in faith,
knowing that your brothers and sisters throughout the world
undergo the same sufferings.
The God of all grace
who called you to his eternal glory through Christ Jesus
will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you
after you have suffered a little.
To him be dominion forever. Amen.

I write you this briefly through Silvanus,
whom I consider a faithful brother,
exhorting you and testifying that this is the true grace of God.
Remain firm in it.
The chosen one at Babylon sends you greeting, as does Mark, my son.
Greet one another with a loving kiss.
Peace to all of you who are in Christ.

______________________________________________________

Today is the feast day of St. Mark the Evangelist.  Mark is mentioned in this reading from St. Peter, who refers to Mark as “my son”.

Peter is very practical in this letter:

1)     We should be humble.  God humbles the proud and lifts up the lowly.  Many of the saints tell us that humility is the most important virtue in the spiritual life.  Every gift, every talent, every minute we have comes from God.  How can I make a worthy return to God for what He has given me?

2)    We are to be vigilant.  The devil is prowling like a roaring lion, wanting to devour us and keep us from God.  If we remain steadfast in faith, the Lord will see us through any trial.

Am I truly humble, giving all credit to the Lord for my gifts and talents?

Do I put on a false humility, saying, “I’m not good for anything”?  This denies the gifts God has given me.

Am I aware that the devil is seeking to destroy me?

Am I vigilant?  Do I desperately seek God every day in prayer, in the Eucharist, in my dealings with others?

Have a blessed day!

Fr. Burke

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Acts of the apostles 7:51-8:1a

Stephen said to the people, the elders, and the scribes:
“You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears,
you always oppose the Holy Spirit;
you are just like your ancestors.
Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute?
They put to death those who foretold the coming of the righteous one,
whose betrayers and murderers you have now become.
You received the law as transmitted by angels,
but you did not observe it.”

When they heard this, they were infuriated,
and they ground their teeth at him.
But Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit,
looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God
and Jesus standing at the right hand of God,
and Stephen said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened
and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
But they cried out in a loud voice,
covered their ears, and rushed upon him together.
They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him.
The witnesses laid down their cloaks
at the feet of a young man named Saul.
As they were stoning Stephen, he called out,
“Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
Then he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice,
“Lord, do not hold this sin against them”;
and when he said this, he fell asleep.

Now Saul was consenting to his execution.

__________________________________________________

Stephen knew the consequences of his words.  As you re-read the words of Stephen to the elders and the scribes, you can understand why they were angry.  He was telling them the truth and the truth hurt.  Not only did he tell them that they opposed the Holy Spirit, which was condemning, but that they and their ancestors killed the prophets that God had sent to them.  They were “stiff-necked” and did not observe the law handed down to them.

Of all the things Stephen said, accusing them of not observing the law must have hurt the most.  They prided themselves on trying to follow the letter of the law as handed down by Moses and Abraham.  But Stephen was telling them that they were missing the point – they killed the prophets and the Son of God – all while trying to observe the law.

Imagine yourself as an elder of his time.  You hear this man accusing you and your ancestors of murder and you think you have been a faithful Jew your whole life.  They were infuriated as we probably would also.  But the difference is that we know the full truth, that Stephen was speaking the truth.

The consequences were clear and Stephen knew that his life was in danger.  But he never backed down.  By the power of the Holy Spirit, he preached the truth with love boldly and gave his life up in the process.  “For what good is it to gain the whole world and lose your soul in the process?”

While they were stoning Stephen he kept his focus on the Father, just as Jesus had done.  Likewise, he forgave his killers just as Jesus had forgiven them from the cross.  Incredible humility and faith!  And there stood Saul, who took some part in these murders.  But later he would become Paul and one of the greatest evangelizers in world history.

Am I like the Jewish elders who hold fast to the law while forgetting to love the people right in front of me?

Are my heart and ears open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit in my life?

Am I afraid to speak the name of Jesus Christ?

Do I persecute the prophets of God by my words, actions or inactions?

Do I stand by in silence like Saul or do I stand up for truth and justice?

The Lord is calling us today to be His voice in a darkened world.  Our culture is moving so far away from Jesus and the values of the Gospel.  Are we standing by silently allowing this to happen?  Or are we speaking up for truth, for life, for Christ?

Have a blessed day,

Fr. Burke

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Acts of the apostles 5:34-42

A Pharisee in the Sanhedrin named Gamaliel,
a teacher of the law, respected by all the people,
stood up, ordered the Apostles to be put outside for a short time,
and said to the Sanhedrin, “Fellow children of Israel,
be careful what you are about to do to these men.
Some time ago, Theudas appeared, claiming to be someone important,
and about four hundred men joined him, but he was killed,
and all those who were loyal to him
were disbanded and came to nothing.
After him came Judas the Galilean at the time of the census.
He also drew people after him,
but he too perished and all who were loyal to him were scattered.
So now I tell you,
have nothing to do with these men, and let them go.
For if this endeavor or this activity is of human origin,
it will destroy itself.
But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them;
you may even find yourselves fighting against God.”
They were persuaded by him.
After recalling the Apostles, they had them flogged,
ordered them to stop speaking in the name of Jesus,
and dismissed them.
So they left the presence of the Sanhedrin,
rejoicing that they had been found worthy
to suffer dishonor for the sake of the name.
And all day long, both at the temple and in their homes,
they did not stop teaching and proclaiming the Christ, Jesus.

——————————————————————————–

Sorry I missed the last few days.  I was in St. Paul, MN visiting our seminarians there.

Today we have an interesting interaction between Gamaliel, a Pharisee, and the rest of the Sanhedrin.  Gamaliel was very respected so they listened intently to what he had to say.   They were trying to figure out what to do with the apostles, who continued to preach the name of Jesus and were attracting many followers.

Should they beat the apostles?  Should they release them?  Should they demand that Jesus’ name never be spoken of again?  All of the above?

Gamaliel reminded the Sanhedrin that others have come along claiming to be the Messiah.  They had gathered disciples, but when they died, their followers disbanded.  They would be smart to allow the same thing to happen with Jesus’ followers.  If He was a fake, the group would eventually fall apart.  If He was God, then they obviously would be better off not fighting against God.  Very wise counsel!

Of course, we know that Jesus is and was God.  We know that the group did not disband, but the Church now numbers over 1 billion followers.  Gamaliel was smart not to fight against this group!

So they flogged the followers and released them.  And the apostles rejoiced for having been mistreated in the name of Jesus.  Wow!

Do I rejoice when people mistreat me for being a Christian?

Do I preach the Good News of Jesus Christ without counting the cost?

Do I back down from preaching for fear that I will lose my reputation or others will think less of me?

Take time to reflect on the early followers.  They were bold.  They were fearless.  They stopped at nothing to share the name of Jesus with everyone.

God bless,

Fr. Burke

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Acts of the apostles 4:32-37

The community of believers was of one heart and mind,
and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own,
but they had everything in common.
With great power the Apostles bore witness
to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus,
and great favor was accorded them all.
There was no needy person among them,
for those who owned property or houses would sell them,
bring the proceeds of the sale,
and put them at the feet of the Apostles,
and they were distributed to each according to need.

Thus Joseph, also named by the Apostles Barnabas
(which is translated Ason of encouragement”),
a Levite, a Cypriot by birth,
sold a piece of property that he owned,
then brought the money and put it at the feet of the Apostles.

—————————————————————————-

Isn’t this a great vision of what Church is all about?  The early believers were “of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they had everything in common.”  This is the model for religious communities that take a vow of poverty.  Individual members own nothing, but everything is held in common. 

This is so counter-cultural, isn’t it?  Our culture teaches us to claim everything as our own and share nothing in common.  We are extreme individualists, looking out only for ourselves.  Granted, those who have families are responsible for providing for our families.  But how much is enough?  Do we have to be independently wealthy to feel comfortable?  Are there other people that I can help with the gifts that God has given me?

We hear in this reading from the Acts of the Apostles that the believers preached the Gospel by their lives, great favor was accorded them, and there was no one among them that was left in need.

How do we put this into practice today?  You may be thinking that this impossible in this day and age, especially as people who live in this world and culture.  I believe this reading calls each of us to take a good look at all that God has given us.  Is there anything – time, talent or treasure – that I can offer to others who are in need?  I find that the more generous I am, the more God blesses me.  But these blessings are not meant for me – they are meant to be given away as well.  We become conduits of God’s great blessings for those around us.

However, if we cling to the gifts of God, they fall like sand through our clenched hands.  The Lord will take away what we have and give these gifts to those who will share them with others.

Can I offer my time helping at a local homeless shelter or food pantry?

Are there gifts and talents that God has given me that I can use to help others?

How can I help others financially?

Am I building up the Kingdom of God around me?

When we come face to face with God, He is not going to ask us about our personal wealth, but I think He will ask us about how we used our gifts to make this a better world.

Have a blessed day,

Fr. Burke

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John 21:1-14

Jesus revealed himself again to his disciples at the Sea of Tiberias.
He revealed himself in this way.
Together were Simon Peter, Thomas called Didymus,
Nathanael from Cana in Galilee,
Zebedee’s sons, and two others of his disciples.
Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.”
They said to him, “We also will come with you.”
So they went out and got into the boat,
but that night they caught nothing.
When it was already dawn, Jesus was standing on the shore;
but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to them, “Children, have you caught anything to eat?”
They answered him, “No.”
So he said to them, “Cast the net over the right side of the boat
and you will find something.”
So they cast it, and were not able to pull it in
because of the number of fish.
So the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord.”
When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord,
he tucked in his garment, for he was lightly clad,
and jumped into the sea.
The other disciples came in the boat,
for they were not far from shore, only about a hundred yards,
dragging the net with the fish.
When they climbed out on shore,
they saw a charcoal fire with fish on it and bread.
Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you just caught.”
So Simon Peter went over and dragged the net ashore
full of one hundred fifty-three large fish.
Even though there were so many, the net was not torn.
Jesus said to them, “Come, have breakfast.”
And none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?”
because they realized it was the Lord.
Jesus came over and took the bread and gave it to them,
and in like manner the fish.
This was now the third time Jesus was revealed to his disciples
after being raised from the dead.

—————————————————-

Jesus had already appeared to the apostles twice after the resurrection.  I find it interesting that Peter and the others decide to go fishing.  This could simply mean that they needed to eat.  Or could it mean that they were going back to their way of life before Jesus?  Don’t we do this sometimes in our lives?  We have a powerful experience of Jesus and then we go back to our way of life.  Not only do we go back to our previous jobs, but sometimes spiritually we revert to our old way of life.  Notice they did no good fishing their old way.

So Jesus appears to them and gives them some pointers and they catch a huge group of fish.   And once Peter hears that it is Jesus, he dives into the water.  I think this is full of meaning.  Water symbolizes God’s grace, new life, rebirth.  Peter experiences all of that.  But as I was praying with this gospel reading, I couldn’t help but think that Peter was becoming one of the fish.  The fisherman became a fish – of Jesus.  He was captured by the King of the Universe, and his life would never be the same.  Once he was captured, Peter then became a fisher of men.

Am I doing my own thing?

Have I returned to my old way of life after encountering Jesus?

Am I trying to do things my way?

Have I jumped into the water all the way, giving my life completely over to Jesus?

Has my heart been captured by Jesus?

Have a blessed day!
Fr. Burke

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