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XV Sunday in Ordinary Time – (A) – July 16, 2023

Frackville, From the Pastor /

The key to the proper reading of today’s Gospel is one word: to understand. The Word of God, if it is to bear fruit in our lives, must first be well understood. Maybe here lies the answer to our various doubts and frustrations related to the fruitlessness of faith? The lack of understanding of the word of God means that the effects of preaching the Gospel cannot be seen.

This understanding of the word of God doesn’t have to rely on intellectual learning and linguistic and theological analyses. On the contrary: it is about trusting and humbly accepting what God has hidden from the learned and revealed to the simple. To understand the word of God means to first grasp its essential meaning, that is the Good News about salvation, about who and how it was accomplished; about God’s love, which is expressed through mercy, and about how to respond to this love. The word of God received in this way bears fruit.

Therefore, two factors are needed: the effort of the sower who preaches the word, and the effort of the hearer who receives the word. The word itself is a reliable factor, perfect, because it comes directly from God, it has an objective value, an absolute truth. The sowing of preaching the word of God should be abundant, even lavish. This task already belongs to bishops and priests, although to some extent also to lay people, who should bear witness to faith with their own lives. It will depend on our joint commitment, prayer, zeal and dedication whether the word of God will reach people’s hearts in a clear and convincing way or not.

But despite the zeal of the witnesses of the Gospel, this is not always the case. There is still the human factor in the listeners – that is, indifference or bad will; and obstacles from the world and Satan. Jesus loyally warns about them. Man is free and responsible for his decisions – good or bad. The quality of life, and ultimately salvation, depends on human choices and consequences. Therefore, we must be aware of the difficulties in order to be able to resist them.

First, we must understand the word of God; its promises, exhortations, instructions, understand who is its author and addressee. Without understanding, there will be no effect. Then we have to learn how to transform feelings into decisions and their persistent implementation. Momentary enthusiasm is not enough if it is not followed by concrete actions. It is known that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. And finally, we have to be resistant to temptations, stresses, fears and threats. God is stronger than all of this. If we trust Him, our faith will bear fruit in this life and the next.

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XI Sunday in Ordinary Time – Father’s Day (A) – June 18, 2023

Frackville, From the Pastor /

First, let’s look at the revealed truth: God created man to be the family leader, breadwinner, and protector. This is what is said throughout the Holy Scripture. Moreover, the father of the family is an icon of God himself for his family, especially for children. A telling example: one of the authorities of psychology writes in a report: “When I ask my patient – what is your relationship to God, very often I hear that God is with other people, but not with me. When I ask again – how close your father was to you as a child, almost every time the answer is the same – my Father was never close to me!” The same is the truth of scientific research and observation. One of the experts in this matter writes that we should not delude ourselves. No measure of a father’s professional success can compensate for his failure at home. And he advises fathers, “Priorize your lives based on who’s really going to cry at your funeral.” The physical presence of the father at home is absolutely necessary for the proper development of children. Research shows that a father’s influence on children helps them build positive self-esteem, avoid premature sex, alcohol, drugs, and cope better with stress at school. How many stones, enormous in their eyes, often beyond their fragile strength, do your wives and children have! So many worries, frustrations, stresses, fears. They need a father who will help them to remove them, who will put faith in their hearts that they can also gradually remove them by themselves! The authority that a father has in the eyes of his children, and especially in the eyes of his daughters, is unique, and that kind of authority a mother doesn’t have. Many fathers make a cardinal mistake here. They feel that they must try to earn the title of hero in the eyes of their children. Nothing more wrong. The father, by virtue of being a father, is automatically a hero in the eyes of his children, especially girls, and will always remain so, as long as he is faithful to their mother and to them, lives in truth and does nothing to lose this status in the eyes and hearts of his family.

A father has a very important role to play with his sons. By his own example, he teaches them how to (or not) treat a woman when they are adults. The way a father respects and loves his wife will fundamentally influence on how his sons view women in their personal lives, how they deal wisely with their sexuality, how they speak respectfully with women, and how they treat them appropriately.

Especially in the eyes of his daughter. If the father humiliates the mother in front of her, then his daughter will begin to regret that she was born a girl and will begin to hate her femininity, which will be negatively reflected when she is a teenager and a woman. A father who abuses his mother verbally or physically will make his daughter believe that as a woman she is a plaything in the hands of a man and that she deserves to be beaten and molested. Fathers need to understand that their daughters need daddy to cuddle them, carry them in his arms, tell them how much he loves them and how proud he is of them, talk to them, listen to them, even if it tires him, because you know how much girls need to talk and how much they need, especially the father, and not just the mother, to have time for them and listen to them carefully. Just like that girl whose daddy was the boss of a big company. Daddy told little girl to write St. Nicholas a list of gifts she wants for Christmas. What was his surprise when the girl wrote one sentence in a letter to Santa – “I am asking you, Saint Nicholas, for my Dad to have at least 15 minutes for me every day. I want nothing more!” The role of a father is to be there for his children, to encourage them, to defend them against depression, to help them overcome stress, to help build a positive self-esteem. Be a father – always and in every situation!

Many parents, especially fathers, fall to the trap set by a market-oriented society. Good parents always want their children to be happy. They are bombarded from everywhere with information that true happiness is to have. So they give to their children and they give endlessly. And with giving, children’s psychological problems grow. Scientists are sounding the alarm, saying that never before has the level of frustration, nervous breakdowns, aggression and depression among children been as high as it is today. Fathers, you must awaken from this poisoned mental lethargy. Children will be truly happy only when they look beyond themselves, when they understand that they have a purpose in life and a mission to fulfill by doing good for others. There is more happiness in giving than in receiving! In a politically correct world, it is inconvenient to talk about the critical role of the father in forming his children in the Faith. Scientific research conducted independently by various centers, the results of which are not spoken about because they are inconvenient and destroy the basis of anti-father and anti-family propaganda, prove conclusively that the father has a fundamental influence on the development or killing of faith in his children.

In families where the mother attended church regularly on Sundays, children’s attendance depended on the father’s participation. When the father attended church regularly, the children attended regularly in 33% of the families. When the father did not attend at all, only 2% of families attended church regularly with their mother. And in 60% of the families they did not go to church at all. The children identified with their father’s religious indifference more than with their mother’s piety.

Fathers, take this well to your heart. Only you can remove the stone of your children’s religious indifference by the example of your personal religiosity. Nobody can replace you in this. No priest, no catechist, not even your wives. The religiosity of your children depends to a large extent on your living faith, practiced every day. So it is you who are to lead common prayers at home, read the Holy Bible with children, explain the catechism, liturgy, go to church with children, sit in a pew together with children, show them by your example what it means to pray devoutly, to be generous for the Lord God, to confess, to receive the Holy Communion in front of their eyes. If you don’t do it, the children will be convinced that all this religiousness is not an important thing, it’s a thing for children, because it’s not important for our Dad. And you will roll a stone over the grave of their religiosity, which will be difficult for them to roll back later, and may not succeed at all. Dear Fathers, sursum corda! Don’t desert! Christ is truly risen! Follow His example and your families will follow you.

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Corpus Christi Sunday (A) – June 11, 2023

From the Pastor /

The Lord God, concerned about the good of man, gave us 10 signposts to heaven, and among them is – “Remember to keep the Sabbath, the Lord’s day holy“. God knew how much trouble a man would have with keeping this commandment, so He used the word – Remember! The Church, also concerned about the happiness of man, asks us to remain faithful to God and devoutly participate in the Holy Mass on Sundays and holidays. It is our holy duty, therefore, not only to attend the Holy Mass, but also to participate in it devoutly. However, you can see people who, instead of participating in the Holy Mass, are occupied with some other things: watching phones, looking at watches, ehhh, ehhh. There are also those who do not care about the final blessing and leave the Holy Mass earlier. Some of us have lack of faith the Blessed Sacrament and rarely receive it. They are deaf to the call of Christ – “Take and eat, this is my body, Take and drink, this is My blood”. They come to church and go away hungry. Jesus is not only for the elect. He is for each of us. He knows that you are weak, tired of life, that you sometimes lack strength and cannot cope with many things in life. It happens sometimes that a husband drinks, the son is difficult to bring up, the sick mother needs help, the unemployed father looks for support, the disabled child expects care. In these and many other situations, the Eucharist is the remedy for our human illnesses, weaknesses and needs. The Eucharist is the source of our strength to bear our own and others’ burdens of the cross. It is not easy and it often exceeds our strength. So why do we rarely feed on the Body of Christ?

Jesus doesn’t want to dwell in gilded tabernacles, He does not want to be alone in the most beautiful churches. Christ wants to live in our hearts and be our daily bread, so that we have the strength to live our lives well. He wants to be our life companion. So what if we go to church, listen to the Gospel, and do not practice our faith. What kind of witness do we give to our children and young people? They watch whether their mother and father receive the sacraments, Holy Communion, whether they pray. Because of the First Holy Communion, we give our children great parties, we buy them great gifts, and then these children are not at Sunday Mass and they do not accept the Lord Jesus. Why? Because we disregard the third commandment of God and do not come to church with them. The father and mother, by their own example, show the child the way to God. We must ask God for conversion. You cannot be a good person if you do not go to confession, attend Holy Mass and receive the Eucharist. Because you have no religious life in you.

Many of us go to psychologists instead of confession. Remember that you can only talk to a psychologist, while in the sacrament of penance you receive the grace of forgiveness, peace and the gift of healing your soul from all weaknesses. The sacrament is the grace of the Lord. The grace through which Jesus lifts up your spirits and gives you new hope for a better tomorrow. Only when you accept this grace in the sacrament of penance will Jesus heal you from sin and pour the gift of joy and peace into your heart. You cannot carry the burdens of sin for years, because they will cause the curvature of our moral backbone, and thus all mental illnesses, depression and lack of meaning in life. Sometimes we don’t go to confession for many years, and then we’re surprised that everything in our lives has collapsed, that our marriage has fallen apart, that our son or daughter has gone astray and don’t go to church, that our husband or wife looks into a glass. We are surprised at this, but why do we not believe in God? We often say that we are believers but not practitioners. What is faith if it is not expressed in our daily lives? Jesus wants you to be like Him. He needs you to be His witness. In order to change yourself and others for the better, you have to follow Jesus.

Once, on the street of Calcutta, Mother Teresa found a girl, she was 6 years old, she was hungry, she had not eaten for several days. Mother Teresa gave her a slice of bread and she ate it slowly, one crumb at a time. Why? Because she was afraid that when the bread ran out, she would be hungry again. We, living in America, throw tons of bread into the bins. As we do this, let us think of those who are dying of hunger, let us think of those who lack our love, our mercy. Just as Jesus in the Eucharist is good to us and feeds us to the full, let us also be bread for those who live among us. They not only want bread, clothes, a roof over their heads, but above all our kindness and love. So let’s be their daily bread.

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IV Sunday of Easter (A) – April 30, 2023

Frackville, From the Pastor /

Peter, a Galilean fisherman, the disciple of Jesus, the witness of the Resurrection, cries out: Save yourself from this perverse generation! There is concern in his cry, not judgment. This is what Jesus taught. He healed the sick in the body. He healed sick souls. He raised the dead. He revived dead consciences. He fed with a bread. But first, with a word of truth, for He saw that “they were like sheep without a shepherd.” The apostles learned from Jesus caring for man. That is why Peter cries out: “Save yourselves!”. But does that mean: run away or stay yourself in your circle? Not at all. Peter’s call is actual even today. We need – remaining in the world – to save ourselves and whoever we can from the evil lurking around us.

Who will lead us? There must be someone whose voice the sheep will listen to. Someone who will know them by name. Someone who will lead them and lead them to a safety place. This is what Jesus said, pointing to himself. And He called himself the Good Shepherd, and the gate of the sheep. But He is not among us. Is He? And the promise: “Behold, I am with you always, until the end of the world”? We take this promise seriously. He is with us. But a man needs the presence of someone real in the dimension of time and space. And that’s our problem. Ours – people of every era. We need leaders and guides. How many times in the history of the world have Jesus’ warnings against those who are thieves and robbers come true. The last century was tragic – the world followed imposters who managed to deceive entire nations. So how can we save ourselves from this perverse generation? Whom should I follow to have life and have it abundantly? Not to go astray like a sheep, but to be converted to the Shepherd and the Guardian of our souls?

Christians have an answer that has been proven for centuries. Pointing to Jesus as the Good Shepherd, they call pastors those among themselves who, in the name of Jesus, lead them along the paths of the Gospel. No one can appropriate this dignity to himself. It is determined by the authority of the Church, which is rooted in the apostolic tradition.  And pastors, leading the people, should be the first to follow Jesus. Sometimes they are saints, sometimes they are sinners. Sometimes they are great in spirit, other times they are small because of human errors. But still needed. Without a shepherd, however poor, the flock will be scattered. No human society can exist without a leader. In this particular community that is the Church, however, the word “leader” is out of place. That’s why we used to talk about pastors. How many wonderful, great and even holy pastors has the Church had and still has? And if sometimes they do not live up to the mission entrusted to them, we must not forget that each of them “is taken from people, for people is established … He is subject to weakness. And for its sake he should offer sacrifices for sins as for the people as well as for himself.” The sacrifice is, in fact, one: Christ bore our sins on the wood of the cross and by the Blood of His wounds we were healed.

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Nativity of the Lord’s Day (A) – December 25, 2022

Frackville, From the Pastor /

Christianity is not a narrow faith. The Gospel tells us that every human being is enlightened by God, whether they recognize God or not. Members of other religions, and people without faith, have light. The light of reason, of goodness and of truth is found in everyone, but many do not realize it as the light of God. Therefore God sent John the Baptist to witness and speak for the light, so that everyone might believe. The second reading reminds us that “At various times in the past and in various different ways, God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets.” But now God has spoken through God’s Son, Jesus, who came to live among us: “The Word was made flesh.” This is the belief grasped by St Thomas, who on seeing Jesus after his resurrection murmured, “My Lord and my God”, words we might utter silently when the host and chalice are raised above the altar at Mass. 

Why was Jesus born? Why did God send Him into the world? The Gospel tells us that to all who accepted Him “he gave power to become children of God”. Those who recognize that the light within them, the desire to do good, the desire to love, the desire to seek the truth, is implanted by God really have become “children of God”. When we grasp this we are impelled to adore the God who made us, the God who is the light within us, the source and origin of love, beauty and goodness. The wonder of Christmas is that, like the ancient Roman devotees of Saturn, we know how to celebrate with singing and dancing, with feasting and fun, and exchanging presents as signs of love. Like them, gathering round their temple to rejoice in the light, we too gather here to rejoice in the light of the world. Christ came down to earth in order to raise us to heaven. He lived an earthly life so that even on earth we might begin to live the life of heaven as children of God.

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Second Sunday of Advent (A) – December 4, 2022

Frackville, From the Pastor /

St. John the Baptist doesn’t care about words! And yet he was listened and had great authority, because he confirmed his words with the testimony of his own life.

Undoubtedly, the Holy Spirit also confirms his words, by giving them a power of conviction that no human words had a power by itself. People were aware that they were standing before the prophet, that John was fulfilling a mission commissioned by God Himself. Very important was what he preached and the power with which he did it. Therefore, crowds flocked to him from afar, even though his words were certainly not flattery. But the truth, even when it is hard, is more attractive than empty flattery.

The Jews did not understand the essence of their faith or the heritage of Abraham. They considered the mere fact of belonging to the Jewish nation, and thus to the descendants of Abraham, to be a sufficient guarantee of salvation, and even a reason to be proud and a title to various privileges.

Meanwhile, the descent from Abraham not only does not determine anything, but also obliges. Abraham was justified on the basis of his radical and unconditional faith. Abraham’s inheritance is above all a commitment to faith, to total trust and obedience to God. Many understood and fulfilled this, but there were also those who considered this noble vocation and the dignity of the child of Abraham as circumstances exempting them from personal efforts of faith for the sake of external appearances of religious life.

This is why John the Baptist placed so much emphasis on the authenticity of conversion. It was the only chance to return to God. If even this act were to be reduced to formalities and appearances, then there would be no salvation left for a man. And the conversion will be authentic if it bears fruit in the form of a change of life attitude. Baptism with water was only a sign of repentance: it expressed the desire of man to lead his life differently. The baptism of Christ announced by John was supposed to have and has a real power of purification: if a man with humility and faith humbles himself before Jesus, then the action of the Holy Spirit, like fire, will cleanse us of human weaknesses and faults, and make us perfect before God.

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Christ the King (C) – November 20, 2022

Frackville, From the Pastor /

Believers, and at the same time systematically participating in religious practices, are the part of society that is definitely more active in various fields of social life and more willing to speak out on important matters than the so-called statistical man. Nevertheless, this activity is not at all impressive. According to the data of various research centers, it affects only about 7-10% of believers. So many declares belonging to various organizations, movements and church associations. How many actually work in them, speak publicly, react when something wrong happens? It’s very different with it.

The Gospel read on the Solemnity of Christ the King is kind of remorse for all those who stand aside. It begins with a dramatic sentence that illustrates the tragedy that unfolds on Golgotha precisely in the face of human passivity, and perhaps even indifference. “When Jesus was crucified, the people stood and watched.” The evangelist says little. He records only a few words. Very eloquent though.

As we gaze upon the people who stood and watched, we must ask ourselves about our personal reactions to various events. We are certainly not a society indifferent to human miseries of a material nature. In the face of various tragedies and in the face of needs that arise in many places and on various occasions, we react vigorously and show ourselves to be very generous. It’s even worse when it comes to values. Especially our Christian ones, firmly rooted in faith. In the name of the so-called tolerance, we are ready to keep silent, pretend that there is no topic – after all, you must not offend anyone; everyone must be respected.

The problem is that silence is not necessarily a sign of respect. By remaining silent, you can lose your self-respect. And by shutting your mouth in the face of evil and injustice, take the blame of others on yourself.

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Thirty Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (C) – November 13, 2022

Frackville, From the Pastor /

Another mysterious prisoner was brought to the prison overcrowded with people. He voluntarily placed himself in the hands of the guards. After some time, the amazing news began to spread among the prisoners that this newcomer was able to free from prison anyone who wanted to be released. There is only one condition, you have to trust him completely. The path he proposes is difficult, it leads through death. However, you should not be afraid, because he can bring even the dead back to life. Moreover, he guarantees that, outside the prison walls, he will lead all liberated ones to a new, wonderful, happy life. Who will risk and follow him? Some trusted the mysterious prisoner and followed him. Others mocked him and those who trusted him. They were all considered madmen. People preferred not to risk and take up the use of prison life. After all, you can accustom to everything, including a prison.

Prison is a temporal world. A strange prisoner who came voluntarily into this world is the Son of God – Jesus Christ. He came in hiding, like all the other prisoners. He was born like any other human, suffered like other people, even in death He did not differ from us. However, His words about eternal life were puzzling, His deeds were astonished, which surpassed the abilities of ordinary mortals, the news of His resurrection forced one to reflect the most. Twenty centuries have passed since the Son of God came to earth as a prisoner. Some people risk, believe Him and follow Him step by step, to the threshold of death, which they cross with the hope of a resurrection to a new life. Others do not take risks, they only count on earthly life.

Centuries pass, and in the walls of the prison the news of His first mysterious, hidden, unrecognized coming is crossed with the news of His second coming in the divine majesty of glory. The Son of God will come into this world once more, but no longer in secret, not as a prisoner, but as Lord and God. He will come to reward those who have believed in Him. He will appear on earth surrounded by the saved. He will show everyone the riches, glory and happiness of those who believed His words. It will be an hour of happiness and despair. Happiness to those who risked and believed in Christ immediately after His first coming, and despair for those who did not risk, did not reach out for a different, new life and stayed to care for temporal things.

Faith is a risk. However, this is not a great risk. It is based on the word of God, and He has never misled anyone. Whoever trusts in God, whoever trusts in Him, will never be disappointed. In this situation, the risk of faith becomes a great certainty.

We are a group of people who took the risk. We believed Christ. Do we follow Him willingly and persistently today? Are we not whining? Have we not been charmed by mortality? Which life do we care more about: temporal or eternal? Many gave up, they did not have the courage to follow Christ to the end. They forgot that the day of reward for the persistent is coming. On this day, those who followed Christ for some time and then fell away voluntarily will despair the most. They were so close to happiness and they gave it up themselves.

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Twenty Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time (C) – October 16, 2022

Frackville, From the Pastor /

Increasingly, you can hear that our era has lost faith because people go to church less often, confess little, and are increasingly critical of the Church in everyday life.

When, instead of succumbing to stereotypes and superficial judgments, we may take a look around us, see our parish churches and people we know well, it turns out that the reality near us looks completely different.

“Will the Son of Man find faith on earth when He comes?” This kind of question sounds perhaps a little scary. There is a hint of hopelessness in it. However, this is not about scaring and upsetting. They need to be heard as an invitation and encouragement to each of us. The question of Jesus, which concludes the parable, which says that we must always pray and continue without ceasing touches our consciences. This question is not followed by an answer – it is intended to stimulate the thinking of every person, every church community, every generation. Each of us has to find the answer. Christ wants to remind us that the goal of man’s life is to meet God, and in this context He asks if, when He returns, He will find souls ready to receive Him in order to enter the Father’s house with Him”.

When we read today’s Gospel in this very personal way, there will no longer be a note of hopelessness, but of genuine hope. Only, when everyone feels the eyes of Jesus on themselves and hears that this is not an abstract question, but a call addressed to each one of them, it will take on a completely different, new meaning.

“Will He find the faith on earth?” – this is a question about my faith and the sense of responsibility for this gift in every single person. How long we will – with the full responsibility – start from us, instead of looking around and seek this faith in our surroundings, then so long Jesus’ question will not sudden or frighten us, but can help to awaken even greater zeal and strengthen our hope.

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Twenty Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time (C) – October 2, 2022

Frackville, From the Pastor /

Today’s liturgy recalls two essential aspects of Christian life, which are faith and service. Without faith, it is impossible to please God or to be saved. One must constantly pray for the faith. We find an example of such a prayer in today’s Gospel. The apostles asked Christ: Increase our faith. His union with the Father in prayer, they felt that by their own strength they were unable to comprehend God’s mysteries or fulfill the vocation they had been given. Lord, increase our faith – this is one of the simplest, but also the most important prayers of the Church. Meanwhile, many Christians, when asking God for health or for the successful settlement of difficult matters, forget about faith, treating it as something obvious, once gained forever. The gift of faith that we received at the Baptism we must constantly multiply. If we had the faith like a mustard seed, it would move mountains and replant mighty old trees, that is, it would do what seems humanly impossible.

The faith is invisible. It cannot be seen or measured. There is also no spiritual ammeter that would measure its intensity. We recognize the faith by fruits. That is why Jesus combines the doctrine of faith with the encouragement to develop the attitude of a servant who is guided by selfless love. St. Catherine of Siena expressed this truth very well: “Love is like a maid who washes dirty dishes in the kitchen.”

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