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Patience is a gift not easily obtained

Sunday, March 26
26 Mar 2017

This year I asked God to give me a particularly difficult and challenging Lent. Let’s just say he has been answering my prayer continually since Ash Wednesday. Numerous times in the past few weeks I have found myself entering into a new challenge (or a new chapter in a continuing challenge) wishing I could do something to resolve things as quickly as possible. Of course if I could make that happen, I would be missing incredible opportunities for grace and growth in my spiritual life.

How many times have we tried to “wish away” the more challenging and uncomfortable times in our life? We wish for quicker healing from illness or injury, we wish the week-end or retirement would come faster, we wish we could graduate sooner, we wish winter was over, etc., etc. Then one day we arrive at the point we were wishing for and we look back at “the good old days” and wish we were back there now.

Patience is a gift not easily obtained. At some time or other we recognize the need for patience but we want it to happen at the snap of our fingers. In other words, we want to be able to turn patience on and off like the kitchen faucet. Of course we all know that is not how patience happens. It happens, well, by being patient.

In the midst of my personal Lenten challenges I was reminded of a prayer I ran across several years ago. This prayer has helped me through many rough spots in my life and I want to share it with you. I hope you will find it helpful at some time in your life as well.

Patient Trust

Above all, trust in the slow work of God. We are quite naturally impatient in everything to reach the end without delay. We should like to skip the intermediate stages. We are impatient of being on the way to something unknown, something new. And yet it is the law of all progress that it is made by passing through some stages of instability – and that it may take a very long time.

And so I think it is with you. Your ideas mature gradually – let them grow, let them shape themselves, without undue haste. Don’t try to force them on, as though you could be today what time (that is to say, grace and circumstances acting on your own good will) will make of you tomorrow. Only God could say what this new spirit gradually forming within you will be. Give Our Lord the benefit of believing that his hand is leading you, and accept the anxiety of feeling yourself in suspense and incomplete. 

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, SJ 

Let’s not wish away the blessings of Lent. Let’s bask in the challenges it offers and praise God for the gift of patience. 

Deacon Bill Radio

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In God We Trust

Tuesday, July 26
26 Jul 2016

Take any U.S. currency and you will see the words “In God We Trust.” Our founding fathers chose this statement. More than 200 years later it is still printed on our money. Hopefully we will not abandon this tradition.

With extreme violence and conflict seemingly an everyday occurrence in our country, and around the world, we could easily be convinced that not many people still place their trust in God. As people of faith we know this is not true. In considering our first reading today from Genesis, I am reminded of Yogi Berra’s famous line that “it seems like déjà vu all over again.” The people of Sodom and Gomorrah had strayed so far from God that Abraham had to boldly intervene to negotiate their safety.

When we find ourselves getting discouraged or caught up in the emotions of the day we need to stop what we are doing, draw nearer to God as Abraham did, and give thanks that our God is a god of patience and love. God does not ignore or overlook evil but he continually offers every person the opportunity to experience His love and His mercy. We need only to place ourselves in front of a crucifix to be reminded of the depth of God’s love for us. Jesus offered himself up for all of us, not just those who live a life of continuous faithfulness. The sins of all people, for all time, were nailed to the cross with Christ in one sacrifice of love for all time. As Christians we pray that those who presently take matters into their own hands rather than trusting in God will experience a change of heart.

At his installation as Bishop of Rome, Pope Benedict XVI said,

“The world is redeemed by the patience of God. It is destroyed by the impatience of man.”

God is eternally patient with us. Let us be patient and trust that God will not abandon us to a world of chaos, hatred and destruction.

This week has been designated as National Natural Family Planning Awareness Week. This may not seem as though it has anything to do with the rest of this bulletin letter but, in fact, it is very closely connected. Much of the trouble we are experiencing in this country, and around the world today is due to a lack of respect for other people. We so often forget that we are all created in the image and likeness of God. In 1968, Blessed Pope Paul VI issued the papal encyclical Humanae Vitae. In that encyclical he predicted many of today’s problems would result through a proliferation of contraception. When we use or manipulate others we undermine their human dignity and our own as well. Although the encyclical is now almost 50 years old, it is still very relevant. Check it out.

May God bless all of us,
Deacon Bill Radio

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Vacationing With God

Saturday, June 25
25 Jun 2016

This week we officially entered summer. With all the 90 degree days we’ve had already it kind of took me by surprise that the season of summer had not yet even started. Although the summer season is just as long as the other seasons on the calendar, somehow it seems a lot shorter as we fill it up with outdoor projects, summer activities and maybe even some vacation.

Vacation can take many forms. Students are on a rather lengthy summer vacation from school. Families may take some time to get reacquainted with each other by going somewhere together or just hang out at home without the daily demands of their regular jobs. According to Webster’s dictionary the word “vacation” is defined as; 1) suspension of normal activities, 2) freedom or release from duties and 3) usually used for rest, recreation and travel.

Do you have vacation plans for the summer? If so, what do you hope it will do for you? Will you catch up on your rest, go somewhere you’ve never been before, learn more about a place or thing that you’ve developed a curiosity about? All those things can be very good for us. Planning a vacation (or just even our activities around the house for the summer) can be very exciting. The planning can often be as much fun as the actual activities being planned.

No matter what we are planning for the summer, let’s not forget to include God in our plans. God never takes a vacation from watching over us and we should never stop giving praise and thanks to Him for all He does for us. “Vacation” may include freedom from other duties but we still have a duty to God. Suspending your normal activities during a vacation should not include suspending participation at Sunday Mass. The website masstimes.org can give you the location and Mass times for a Catholic Church wherever you are going to be.

While we are on the topic of vacations, here are a few more ideas. How about taking a mini-vacation with God? Maybe we can dedicate a day or two of our annual vacation to making a retreat or attending a Day of Reflection at Broom Tree Retreat and Conference Center. Maybe we could devote a day to some charitable activity like volunteering at the Bishop Dudley Hospitality House, working on a Habitat for Humanity project or spending time with an elderly relative or neighbor in need of some attention.

There are many ways we can devote part of our vacation to spending time with God in some way outside of our normal activities. Let’s do something extraordinary during “Ordinary Time” this summer and invite God to join us on vacation.

May God bless and protect you and your family this summer,

Deacon Bill Radio

in Bulletin, Deacon Bill Radio /by

Give Thanks for the Sacrifice

Saturday, May 28
28 May 2016

Corpus Christi and Memorial Day Weekend

What an exciting time of the year this is! There are graduations followed by job opportunities or preparation to move on to college. There are summer vacations, weddings and favorable weather for many outdoor activities. For many, this time of year represents a new lease on life. As we celebrate major milestones personally and as families, let us make sure we don’t forget what it took to get us to this time in our lives. It took sacrifices (some small and others very big) from many.

This week-end presents us with some very special opportunities to remember the sacrifices others have made for us. In fact, their sacrifices were as big as it gets because they gave their lives for us.

Monday is our national holiday known as Memorial Day. This holiday was established in 1868, three years after the end of the Civil War. Originally it was known as Decoration Day and survivors of Civil War soldiers placed flowers on the graves of the Civil War dead. It was not until after World War I that the day was expanded to honor those who gave their lives in all American wars. Think of the enormous sacrifice each of these men and women made to protect all of us. Memorial Day is an important reminder of those sacrifices. It is important that we remember each of these people who gave their lives for us. Let us give thanks for their sacrifice and pray for them on a regular basis.

This Sunday we celebrate the Solemnity of the Precious Body and Blood of Christ. We remember the incredible gift Jesus gave us by offering his life for us so we can share eternal life with him. He continues to give us the gift of his Precious Body and Blood every day in the sacrifice of the Mass. Just as our body needs food and water to nourish us physically, Christ’s Body and Blood gives us the nourishment we need to make our pilgrim journey through this life to the life promised by Jesus for those who love Him.

As Catholics we know that what was bread and wine is changed to Christ’s Body and Blood at the consecration at every Mass. We crave the nourishment the Eucharist offers us. By receiving and consuming Christ’s Body and Blood at Communion, we become one with Him as we return to our pew to pray. As we leave Church at the conclusion of Mass we are taking Christ into the world with us. If we let Him, Jesus is also taking us with him to change those around us and the entire world. Let us not take for granted the power of Christ’s Precious Body and Blood. And let us not forget to give thanks to Him for sacrificing His life for us so we may have the gift of His Body and Blood to sustain us as we make our way home to Him.

God bless you all,
Deacon Bill Radio

in Bulletin, Deacon Bill Radio /by