The First Commandment reads: “I, the Lord, am your God…You shall not have other gods besides me. You shall not carve idols for yourselves in the shape of anything in the sky above or on the earth below…”(Ex. 20:2). Some Christians today think that this commandment forbids us to use statues and images (pictures) in our devotion. But there are a few important differences. The First Commandment forbids making an image of GOD Himself. No one can pretend to make an image of God who is transcendent and incomprehensible. He is totally different from any object in nature. Our Christian statues and images are of the Incarnation of God, beginning with Christ Himself, and then, secondarily, of the good men and women who lead us to God, beginning with Mary, the Mother of Jesus and his first Disciple, and continuing with saints through the ages. And, most importantly, these statues and images do not take the place of God, but lead us to Him through making more present to us the men and women who are so close to God. God leads us to him through the human imagination, and we venerate the memory of Mary and the saints, whose sole desire is to draw us into deeper relationship with the One God. We sit at their feet. We gaze into their faces. We are drawn into the light of holiness. - - - Fr. Jim
"Halloween" is a contraction of "All Hallows Eve," and it designates the vigil (the night before) of All Hallows Day, more commonly known today as All Saints Day. ("Hallow," as a noun, is an old English word for saint.) All Saints Day, November 1, is a Holy Day of Obligation, and both the feast and the vigil have been celebrated since the early eighth century, when they were instituted by Pope Gregory III in Rome. Some of the traditions pre-date Christianity by many centuries. Celtic (Irish) practices included lighting bonfires, carving turnips (and, in America, pumpkins), and going from house to house, collecting treats, as carolers do at Christmas. But the "occult" aspects of Halloween—ghosts and demons—also actually have their roots in Catholic belief. Catholic Christians believed that, at certain times of the year (Christmas is another), the veil separating earth from Purgatory, Heaven, and even Hell becomes more thin, and the souls in Purgatory (ghosts) and demons can be more readily seen. Thus the tradition of Halloween costumes owes as much, if not more, to Christian belief as to Celtic tradition. As parents, if we are concerned about frightening our children, we can play dress-up as saints (or other crazy characters) and celebrate the Fall harvest time as well – with hot apple cider and pumpkin pie! Theologically, we do celebrate the thin veil that separates the dead from the living – all are part of the Communion of Saints. This is nothing to be afraid of, because between us “there is an abundant exchange of all good things” (CCC 1475). - - - Fr. Jim
Pope Francis has summoned bishops to Rome from across the world to gather for a Synod on the Family, the first one meeting this month and the second to meet in 2015. The words “synod” and “council” are similar in meaning, but synod has generally come to be used for a gathering of bishops to discuss a particular matter of faith, morals, or Church discipline. Recent synods have discussed the Eucharist (2005), the Bible (2008), and the new evangelization (2012). The current synod promises to encourage debate about the pastoral challenges in the modern world, where the notion of “family” has encompassed but also transcended the traditional model (mom, dad and two kids) to include single parents, de facto unions of cohabitation, and gay couples, all of whom are raising children in loving homes. In addition, the pain of exclusion from the Eucharist is very real among Catholics who have divorced and remarried and are in all other aspects faithful Catholics. In these important meetings, the Church seeks to find ways to be compassionate, while, at the same time, grounding itself in its 2000-year-old theology and tradition. Happy indeed are the ones “whose delight is the law of the Lord and who ponder his law day
Psalm 8:3 reads: “Out of the mouths of babes and infants, you have fashioned perfect praise.” But sometimes, in a crowded church on Sunday mornings, that “perfect praise” can be a bit overwhelming! If you are a parent, when your baby begins screaming (praising) in church, please be conscious of those around you and walk your child to the front entryway or outside of the church until they calm down. You have certainly fulfilled your Sunday obligation already by being present with the community, regardless of whether you are inside or outside the church sanctuary. And to make this easier, we should offer places at the ends of the pews for mommies and daddies to easily get up and down as they need to do. For my part as a preacher, I will do my best to just keep preaching until nap time! Ha! Children and babies are gifts from God, to be sure. But like every gift, we should enjoy them in their proper place and manner. - - - Fr. Jim
At the Catechetical Congress last Saturday, our speaker said that most adults (“grown-ups”) can point to 4 or 5 adults that made an impact on them in their formative years. Often enough, one of those persons is their teacher of religion. I don’t even remember his name or what he said exactly, but I remember my junior-high R.E. teacher at St. Mary’s Church in Longview, Texas, where I grew up. He was a lay man, a volunteer, who wasn’t really involved in the parish in any other way except teaching us hoodlums. He would give a short lesson and then we would discuss it as a class. No books, no papers, no films. I was a typical adolescent – I would come to class sometimes lonely, often confused, usually hurt by someone, maybe ecstatic and excited, and always vulnerable. Every high was really high and every low was really low. But this man was gentle and clear about the love of his faith. That really impressed me. If you think about it, the R.E. class is the only formal place in a young person’s week where they are free to ask questions of faith, to hear stories of God’s love for us, to pray and learn to pray, to be dis-engaged from a world that is so electronic and manufactured. “Love, then, consists in this: not that we have loved God, but that he has loved us.” (1 Jn. 4:10) Adolescence is a delicate ride through some bumpy storms. It is so nice to have a guide who can help direct our path. - - - Fr. Jim
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Fr. James Chamberlain
Pastor of Saint Catherine of Siena Catholic Church Archives
January 2019
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