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» In Light of Faith
 
Exaltation of the Holy Cross, September 14, 2008
by Richard Linneberger
In his book “The Greatest Generation,” Tom Brokaw begins: “When the United States entered World War II, the U.S. government turned to ordinary Americans and asked of them extraordinary service, sacrifice, and heroics. Many Americans met those high expectations, and then returned home to lead ordinary lives.”
Many women and men emptied themselves of their careers, families, friends and opportunities and some gave completely of themselves — even to the point of dying for a cause, for a purpose. Service, sacrifice and heroics.
The ordinary person did the extraordinary. They truly “emptied themselves.”
In today’s second reading St. Paul reminds us that Jesus “emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness.”
Jesus gave of himself completely — totally emptied himself of the glory of being God to becoming a human like us. In doing so, Jesus showed the depth of his love for humanity.
Few, if any of us, will ever have to “empty our self” so completely like others have. We may not be called to empty ourselves of our career, family, friends or opportunities. Or give our life by dying for a cause, a purpose or even for the love of another.
However, we are called to “empty ourselves” in other ways. Quite simply put: What is “filling up” my life that leaves little room for anything else?
What do I need to empty in my life so that the love of God can fill me up?
Now take a moment to look inside yourself and ask the question: What is something that I have within myself that creates a barrier for me to let God in?
What is something that I have within myself that creates a barrier for me to let others in?
What are the barriers — what is “filling me up”?
Abbot Jerome z, O.S.B., gives one obstacle: “To empty oneself as Jesus did is to be rid of self-centeredness.”
Can you name your barriers?
If we can name those things that need “emptying out” of our lives, the next question then surfaces: What do I need to be “filled up with” to replace that emptiness? Can you name at least one thing?
Once you have named an area in your life that needs “filling up” anew, pray for the Holy Spirit to come into your life.
Please pray with me:
Come, Holy Spirit, empty my heart from that which keeps me from being in union with God and from my sisters and brothers.
Holy Spirit, fill my heart and kindle in it the fire of your love.
Send forth your Spirit and fill my life with the bounty of your love.
Renew the face of the earth and renew my heart. Amen.
May your life be renewed and filled with love!
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Home as a family’s sacred place
by Mary Hood Hart
Unless you count summers, our daughter Katie hasn’t lived at home since she attended boarding school at age 16.
She’s 25 now, working full-time as a high school teacher, financially independent, established in another city, on her own.
When we spoke the other day, I asked her when she might come for a weekend visit. We hadn’t seen her in several weeks.
“I’ve been wanting to come home,” she said. “I’ll try to work out a visit soon.”
I couldn’t help notice she used the word “home” to describe where her father, younger sister and I live.
It seemed remarkable that she still thinks of this as home, even though the house we live in now is not the one she grew up in, and she hasn’t lived with us permanently for the last nine years.
When Katie first moved away as a high school junior, I eagerly anticipated her homecoming, and I did what I could to make her arrival for holidays and summers welcoming and warm.
In those early years, before she became financially and emotionally independent, it was natural and expected for her to be home whenever she wasn’t in school. But now that she’s graduated college and joined the work force, she is completely free to choose how much time she would spend in the company of her family.
She has a steady boyfriend, a good job and faithful friends where she now lives. She’s built a life there. Yet at least for now she calls our place “home.”
There will come a time, in probably the not too distant future, when the place her father and I live will no longer be “home” to Katie.
The word home refers to so much more than a location, a structure. We’ve lived in the same area for all 27 years of our married life, yet Jim, the kids, and I have moved to a different home four times.
I never had much attachment to the actual homes we lived in. It has never bothered me to pack up and move on. And, while I don’t miss the features of a particular home, no matter the location, there are aspects of home life I couldn’t do without.
When it comes to creating a home, certain features of home life are indispensable in all the places we’ve lived, regardless of the size or location, regardless of how the bedrooms are decorated or the living area furnished.
What are indispensable are the rituals and relationships established and nurtured within the walls. These rituals and relationships are what make home a sacred place.
In our home, a top priority has always been the ritual of family meals. Now, when three of our four children live elsewhere, we make it a point to eat together on the night of an adult child’s homecoming.
Especially since my cooking skills have improved, I take great pleasure in preparing meals for the homecoming, often selecting a favorite of the child who’s coming home.
The ritual of preparing the meal offers me an opportunity to savor the anticipation of the upcoming arrival. Of course, if the homecoming involves a holiday, the meal is even more elaborate and special.
The ideal scenario is for everyone to linger around the table talking long after the food’s been consumed. Relaxed in each other’s company, we are able to restore the connections that we shared when all lived under the same roof.
Another important ritual when the adult children come home is attending Mass together. Now that Katie and Jimmy are grown, we don’t pressure them to come to Mass with us, but we are heartened that, almost all the time, they choose to. To be together again for Mass, something we shared weekly for many years when they were all living at home, is an experience I cherish.
Two of our four children are now adults, on their own. Their coming home to visit is something they will choose to do, not something they need to do, nor something I should pressure them to do through guilt or manipulation.
Once they have families of their own, they will parcel out their visiting time; in-laws and the needs of their own children must be considered.
But for now, while they still think of our place as home, I hope to make their visits a true homecoming.
Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote: “Where we love is home, home that our feet may leave but not our hearts.”
No matter the location, the structure, may this home always be a place of love.
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Prophetic voices
by Barbara Hughes
It’s a speech we typically associate with January 20, not August 28. Images of the Lincoln monument, not a football stadium, come to mind.
And yet history was made, not in the Nation’s Capital but on the opposite side of the country in the Mile High City as one man’s dream came to life.
Invesco Field rolled out the blue carpet and a black man took the podium, not to rally the country around his dream of a color blind America but as the first African American to accept the nomination for President of the United States by a major political party.
Regardless of your political persuasion, it’s impossible to deny the magnitude of that moment.
Not even Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. dared to give voice to such a dream.
Those of us who have never felt the sting of racism may never fully appreciate the depth of the victory that we witnessed. But as television cameras captured tear-stained faces of African Americans in the audience, hearts were moved and history was made.
Aside from the Gettysburg address, I don’t know of any speech that has been quoted more often or has helped turned the tide of a country more than the “I have a dream” speech.
Both Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr. gave hope to those whose lives bore the scars of slavery and the wounds of war. Their moral compasses steered the country when the storms of injustice threatened to destroy all that America holds dear.
They were willing to take risks and it paid off. Sadly each died by an assassin’s bullet.
It’s a reminder that the price of freedom often demands the ultimate sacrifice, and not only by those who wear the military uniform. Prophets rarely witness their words become a reality and yet their voices live on inspiring generations, guiding those who have the courage to continue to carry their passion into the future.
Historians report that before Dr. King took the stand, it had been arranged that if the tide turned against him, Dr. King’s microphone would be silenced and in it’s place the song. “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands” would be played.
As it turned out the voice of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was allowed to fill the airwaves and his challenge “Let freedom ring” became an anthem that has become synonymous with this 20th century prophet.
It’s a reminder that God is at work in the world. He has the whole world in his hands and he continues to call people to all that they can be.
Scripture did not end with the Book of Revelation. It continues to be played out in the hearts and the lives of every person who turns to God and understands that we were created to become more than they could ever imagine.
From Moses to Elijah from Isaiah to Jeremiah to John the Baptist, the voices usually came from those who knew suffering. They came from humble beginnings and they spoke with an authority that was greater than their own. Often they did so reluctantly. They grew into their roles and no excuse was accepted.
Moses had a stuttering problem, Jeremiah declared he was too young, Jonah tried to flee and Elijah hid in a cave, but in the end God won out. Not because prophets don’t have a choice, but because the Spirit anoints those whom it calls.
And yes, we have all been called. We have been baptized with water and anointed with the Holy Spirit. We have been called to uphold the Gospel and to further the Kingdom.
This is no small task. We are not all called to be great orators, or to lead countries as heads of state.
We may never hear the roar of the crowds call our name or be pursued by television cameras and newspaper reporters. But be assured that we are all called, each in our own way, according to the circumstances of our lives.
It matters little whether we are minister or mother, cleric or cashier, we have been called and anointed.
Not unlike Jesus, who when he proclaimed “The spirit of the Lord is upon me; He has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor; liberty to captives, sight to the blind and to proclaim a year of favor from the Lord,” the crowd became indignant. How dare a lowly carpenter’s son declare himself a prophet?
Being a prophet doesn’t come cheap nor does it win popularity. This is evidenced by the Old Testament prophets, by John the Baptist and by Jesus, the culmination of every prophetic voice before and after.
They answered the call and because they did each person is called to search their heart for the prophetic voice that God has entrusted to them.
And as we take up this challenge, let us not forget to pray for the prophets that have been inspired to throw their hats into the ring.
Let us pray that they will be guided by divine Wisdom and that they will not have to pay the ultimate price. May they be safe and lead us in the ways of God.
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Copyright © 2008 The Catholic Virginian Press. Articles from Catholic News Services, including Fr. Dietzen’s column, may not be reproduced due to copyright considerations.
The Catholic Virginian is a biweekly publication serving the people of the Catholic Diocese of Richmond. This website includes some, but not all, of the articles from the print version of The Catholic Virginian.
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