• Bulletin Board, Announcements, Calendar
• Editorial - Op Ed
• Welcome and Website Protocol
• Article Archive

Print this page

Article Categories

• Book Reviews
• Open Letter
• Editorials
• Notes, Quotes & Comments
• Pastor's Study
• Project Millstones
• Sidebar Comments
• Weekly Message

Links

Liturgy
This link will keep 'parishioners-at-large' in touch with current creative liturgy sources and resources that respect a variety of 'traditions' within the Church.

COMMONWEAL Magazine
A 'lay' Catholic weekly publication with an accent on an intelligent analysis and commentary on curent issues, trends and concerns of interest to Catholics.

National Catholic Reporter
A national Catholic lay newspaper covering events not usually covered or presented with a clerical bias in the local diocesan press or but of concern and interest to Catholics.

Survivos' Network for those Abused by Priests or Religious
A National Network of self-help support groups for people abused by clergy or religious.

Bishop Accountability
Vital information about the disclosure of sexual abuse and related issues affecting Catholics in the pew and the manner in which Bishops continue to exempt themselves from accountability

Voice of the Faithful
A 'movement' of lay Catholics 'inspired' by the abuse scandal calling for greater accountability of bishops to 'Catholics in the Pew.'

Search

Daily Scripture

+ 21st Week in Ordinary Time

Every day is a gift and a blessing.

Readings: I Corinthians 1:1-9 Psalm 145:2-7 Matthew 24:42-51

I give thanks to my god always on your account for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus, that in him you were enriched in every way, with all discourse and all knowledge, so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gifts as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.” [I Cor 1:4-5, 7]

My mother used to say that every day is a gift and a blessing—an opportunity for grace indeed, many graces.

I suppose it’s all according to one’s perspective. The greatest challenge in life is to find something to be thankful for every day. This is particularly difficult during stressful times and certainly during illness of one kind or another.

I think I may have shared difference between a hermit and a nightclub performer. The hermit wakes up at dawn and says, “Thank you, God!” The nightclub entertainer wakes up at noon and says, “Good God, morning?”

There is so much going on in the world at large and in our own particular worlds to bring anxiety and stress. It’s hard work to maintain balance. An active spiritual life based on the confidence that nothing can happen today that can defeat us if we are grounded in the belief that God’s presence is abiding but it’s difficult and sometimes terrifying to let go.

I still remember the first time I road my two-wheeler bike without my dad holding on to the seat. We started off—I, confident that he hand was firmly attached to the seat. I had ridden almost a full block before I realized that he had let go and there I was, gliding down the street. It’s that way with God. We just need to remain conscious that God’s ‘hand’ is not a crutch but that God’s grace within us is real.

Some days it seems as if we are starting all over again.

Rededication of Assumption Church

Saturday September 22, 2007

Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi, Lex Servandi

[1 Kings 8:22-23, 27-30 Psalm 46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9 1 Ephesians 2:19-22 Matthew 5:23-24]

The Dictionary of the Bible describes a temple as piece of land marked off from common uses and dedicated to a god. The temple was viewed as an architectural structure that separated the building from common everyday activities. “House of the Foundation of Heaven and Earth.” [Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible, edited by David Noel Freedman, Grand Rapids Michigan, 2000]

Two most important features of ancient temples were the mountain on which it was constructed and heaven toward which the building soared.

In virtually all cultures temples were either the architectural representation of the primordial ground of a world mountain or some combination of the two. The mountain and the temple were inseparable. [Ibid.]

Moses received the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai. Elijah encountered God on Mount Carmel. And there are many other ‘mountain top’ experiences in which God communicated to significant biblical figures, e.g., it was on Mt Moriah that Abraham encountered God when he was about to sacrifice his son, Isaac.

The mountain, a powerful earthly center and point of contact with the heavens became a gathering place for the celebration of seasonal rituals and for renewal ceremonies at the New Year.

We still hear people serious about their spiritual journey say that they are going up to the mountain to commune with God. If you climb to a very high place in the Rockies or the Alps, you know that the silence can be deafening and there is a sense of the sacred and that you are standing on holy ground. It’s an awesome experience.

Incidentally, the biblical word for ‘fear’ is rightly translated as ‘awe’ rather than to be afraid.

The Temple is where God and humanity meet for a divine exchange—one that clarifies for humanity its call to participate in the Divine plan for the salvation of the world. It is the place where the greatest of our ancestors became aware of their call to partner with God in the work of creation and salvation.

With the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, Jewish worship moved into synagogues that became centers for divine encounters, worship and instruction.

The earliest form of Christian worship was celebrated in ‘house churches’ in the homes of prominent Christians who opened their homes for the celebration of the Eucharist. But with the Edict of Constantine and the increase in the number of believers, Christians moved into the basileia which were in effect the town meeting places. The word ‘basilica’ comes from the Greek word ‘basileia.’

The basilica became the public place where the Divine Liturgy was celebrated—the original meaning of the word liturgy is akin to the Latin word, ‘opus’ or the work of the people – worship of God and the service of humanity through works of justice and charity.

There is an ancient axiom or expression that evolved within Christianity: “Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi,” literally translated as the ‘rule of praying is the rule of believing. In other words, the rule of prayer or worship gives evidence of what the assembly of worshippers believes as the people of God. The place of worship or what we now call ‘church’ speaks loudly about what we believe as a faith community.

We are a Sacramental Church with Baptism and Eucharist as the primordial sacrament. They make us who we are as Christians. This is why we paused at the new baptismal font now located midway down the center aisle of the Church during the entrance rite this morning. We enter the community of faith through our baptism into the priesthood of Christ.

Then we processed to the Eucharist table that is the most prominent appointment in the Church. It was interesting that as we processed into the nave of the church, the sun was shining directly on the Eucharist table—it is the focal point of our gathering and the ambo, the ‘table’ where God’s word is proclaimed is located prominently near to the Eucharist table at the same height.

The Liturgy is the work of making something beautiful for God through ritual signs and symbols that nurture faith and inspire our response to God and lead to Christian Service beyond he walls of the Church.

When discussing the wedding ceremony with engaged couples, I usually ask them what they would like to hear their guests say as they leave the Church after the ceremony has concluded. With a bit of prodding from me, they say such things as, “it was uplifting; we felt included and that we were full participants in the wedding ceremony and recommitted to live our vows; it was joyful but reverent; it was relaxing but not casual.” In other words, the liturgy did not conclude with the ceremony but continued in their engagement with the world as they left the Church. This is what we hope will take place every time we gather for worship, especially on Sunday, the Day of the Lord.

You will notice that the tabernacle has been relocated to the apse of the sanctuary. There has been much discussion among liturgists about the proper location of the tabernacle. The official liturgical instructions suggest that it be located in a prominent place, preferably in a chapel where it can easily be found upon entering the church.

In the early Church, the tabernacle was a small container where the Eucharist bread left over from the Eucharistic celebration was reserved so that it may be taken to the sick by the deacons or deaconesses of the house communities to the sick. Later when the Christian liturgy went public, as it were, the Eucharist was reserved in a side chapel as it still is today in many if not most Churches in Rome.

The point is that the church is the principle gathering space for the celebration of the Eucharist during which we become the bread that we break, and the blood that we drink poured out for the salvation of the world. We are the ‘body of Christ.’

The tabernacle remains the place of reservation for the Eucharist for private prayer and meditation but also as a reminder that we are the extension of Christ in the world, temples of the Holy Spirit, nourished by the bread that makes us one.

You are strangers and aliens no longer. You are fellow citizens of the saints and members of the household of God. You form a building that rises on the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Christ himself as the foundation stone. Through him the whole structure is fitted together and takes shape as a holy temple in the Lord; in him you are being built into this temple, to become a dwelling place for God in the Spirit. [Ephesians 2:19-22]

Therefore, celebrate what you believe, live what you celebrate.