In terms of a feast in the Catholic Church, today’s Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ  (“Corpus Christi” in Latin) is a fairly recent one.  We all know that the Body and Blood of Christ are present at each Mass, but the addition of this special feast to the Church calendar was primarily due to the petitions of a Belgium nun named Juliana of Liège who lived in the 13th century. From a young age, Juliana had a great love for the Blessed Sacrament and longed for a special feast in its honor.  Her desire was increased by a vision she had of the Church under the appearance of the full moon having one dark spot.  The spot signified the absence of a day specifically honoring the Blessed Sacrament.  In 1208 Juliana also had a vision of Christ in which He instructed her to institute the Feast of Corpus Christi. The vision was repeated for the next 20 years, but she kept it a secret. When she finally told her confessor, he relayed it to the bishop. 
Juliana petitioned a number of bishops and priests to institute the Feast, including Robert de Thorete, the Bishop of Liège. Since bishops could order feasts in their dioceses, Bishop Robert convened a synod in 1246 and ordered a Corpus Christi celebration to be held each year.

The celebration of Corpus Christi became universal only after Juliana and Bishop Robert died. In 1263 Pope Urban IV (also from Liège) investigated claims of a Eucharistic miracle at Bolsena, in which a consecrated host began to bleed. In 1264 he issued the papal bull making Corpus Christi a feast throughout the entire Latin Rite.  This was the very first papally sanctioned universal feast in the history of the Latin Rite.

While the institution of the Eucharist is celebrated on Holy Thursday, that particular liturgy also commemorates the washing of the apostles’ feet, the institution of the priesthood and the agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.  Corpus Christi was established to be specifically focused on the Holy Eucharist.

A new liturgy for Corpus Christi was composed by St. Thomas Aquinas. This liturgy has come to be used not only on the Feast of Corpus Christi itself but also throughout the year at events related to the Blessed Sacrament. The famous hymn that Aquinas composed for Vespers of Corpus Christi, Pange Lingua, is also used on Holy Thursday during the procession of the Blessed Sacrament to the altar of repose. The last two verses of Pange Lingua are also used as a separate hymn, Tantum Ergo, which is sung at Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament along with O Salutaris Hostia the last two verses of Verbum Supernum Prodiens, Aquinas' hymn for Lauds of Corpus Christi. Aquinas also composed the propers for the Mass of Corpus Christi, including the sequence Lauda Sion Salvatorem, which we sing today.

So we thank Holy Mother Church for the great feast we celebrate today.  It’s a feast of food! I’m not talking about today’s fish fry; Jesus becomes our food!

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Friendship and love are the keywords in the Gospel this weekend.  Even before Christ, these were heavily discussed topics among Greek philosophers and Roman orators. Friendship was so important to Cicero that he once said “Without friends no one would choose to live, even though he had all other goods.” But what is friendship? The Greek philosopher Aristotle mentions three “types” of friendships:  the first type is where there is a quality in a person which gives me pleasure (I like this person because she’s funny), the second type is where the other person is useful to me in some way (I like this person because he takes me fishing), and the third type is when I recognize the goodness in another person that causes me to desire to be that person’s friend.  In the first two types, I am really concerned about whether the other person is either pleasurable or useful to me. The “friendship” is directed toward how the friendship affects me.  In the third type of friendship, it is not the pleasure or the usefulness that I desire, but the person that I love.  That’s true friendship, and that’s where we find love.

Over the centuries, many writers have tried to make distinctions about the various words that the Greeks had for love: eros, philia and agape. They tried to put them into categories, saying that eros meant erotic love, philia meant fraternal love and agape more closely meant the love that is God. In reality, the use of these words overlap throughout Sacred Scripture.  Love is a very difficult thing to define. We say that “God is love,” and be correct, but the truth is that we see love more easily in actions: the acts of showing love.

In a recent encyclical, the Holy Father gives us two words that show love: “compassion” and “consolation.” Both of these words come from Latin words with the prefect “con/com” meaning “with.”  Since “passio” means “suffering” and “solatio” means “alone,” then compassion means “to suffer with” and “consolation” means “to be with someone who is alone.” As Christians, each of us has an obligation to give to the poor and to support the mission of the Church with donations, but love is most perfectly demonstrated in our individual actions toward others. And more often than not, actions of love involve a sacrifice on our part.  Being with people who suffer – either physically or mentally – and spending time with those who are alone are two important ways of showing love.  And sometimes that means loving someone who we don’t consider “loveable.” That’s when we can reflect on a prayer I recently heard: “Love me when I least deserve it, because that’s when I need it the most.” Love someone who needs it this weekend.  In doing so, make God present.  Because where love is, there is God.

Rev. Msgr. Christopher H. Nalty

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. In the early days of the Church there was no special day to honor the Holy Trinity, but that changed in the 3rd century when the Church was confronted with one of the first great heresies: Arianism. Although this heresy would seem strange to us today, it basically stated that God the Father was always existing but that He was separate from the lesser Jesus Christ, who was created by Him. Then, the Father, working through the Son, created the Holy Spirit, who was subservient to the Son as the Son was to the Father. This belief was definitively declared to be false by the Nicene Council in 325 A.D.

Without going into too much theological depth about the controversy, we can simply affirm the Nicene Creed which we recite each Sunday. In the Creed we declare that we believe in one God: “the Father, the Almighty”; his Son Jesus Christ, who is “God from God” and “one in being with the Father”; and the Holy Spirit who “proceeds from the Father and the Son” and who “with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified.” But this isn’t the only time we proclaim the Trinity. In fact, each time we make the sign of the Cross we are praying “In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Notice that we use the singular case for “the Name.” This is our declaration of our belief in the Holy Trinity: One God in Three Divine Persons.

The Holy Trinity can seem like a difficult concept to contemplate, and it is best described as a mystery. But this shouldn’t trouble us, because the infinite grandeur of God is obviously so much greater than our finite minds can comprehend! However, the Holy Trinity is revealed to us in God’s plan of salvation to bring us back into the relationship we had with Him before the Fall. And the “agent” of that plan is none other than Jesus, the only Son of God, who became a man, suffered, died and rose again to bring mankind back into a perfect relationship with the Father in the embrace of the Holy Spirit.

There is no greater place to contemplate the Holy Trinity than in the presence of Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist. When we pray before the exposed Blessed Sacrament (as on our weekly Tuesday Holy Hours or at next week’s Corpus Christi Procession) we pray in union with Jesus Christ asking the Heavenly Father to grant us the gifts of the Holy Spirit. That places us on earth within the Divine embrace of the Most Holy Trinity!

Rev. Msgr. Christopher H. Nalty

www.goodshepherdparishnola.com

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Pentecost:

When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled, they were all in one place together. And suddenly there came from the sky a noise like a strong driving wind, and it filled the entire house in which they were. Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues,
as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim. Acts 2:1-4

Pentecost commemorates the Descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles, an event which occurred fifty days (including Easter Sunday) after the Resurrection. Historically and symbolically, Pentecost is related to the Jewish Festival of Weeks, celebrating the day (occurring fifty days after the Exodus) on which God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses on Mount Sinai. Recalling the Exodus, Jesus gave us freedom from slavery to death at the Resurrection. Fifty days later, the Holy Spirit writes the law on our hearts. The word “pentecost” is actually a Greek word meaning “fiftieth.” In the past this Sunday was also called “Whitsunday” because of the white garments worn by those who were baptized on the vigil.

The celebration of Pentecost is often referred to as the Church’s “birthday,” and its celebration goes back to Apostolic times. St. Irenæus wrote about it in the early 2nd Century, and Tertullian spoke about it as being well established around the year 200 A.D.

In parts of Italy it is customary to scatter red rose leaves from the ceiling of churches to recall the miracle of the fiery tongues. It is even called Pascha rossa because of the red colors of the vestments used on Pentecost. In some places in France it is customary to blow trumpets during Mass, to recall the sound of the mighty wind which accompanied the Descent of the Holy Spirit.  We might not have trumpets for Mass, but we certainly have the red vestments. Thank God for the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and Happy Birthday!


Rev. Msgr. Christopher H. Nalty

This week we celebrate “Independence Day,” the “birthday” of the United States of America.It’s a day when we celebrate our “Freedom.” The Declaration of Independence was the document by which the people of the New World cast off the “yoke of slavery” of their former ruler – the King – and formed a government based on very important truths: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

I’m sure we all have fond memories of celebrating this day with fireworks, hot dogs, picnics and family.But it’s always good to remember the spirit behind the Declaration. Freedom is ultimately rooted in God-given truths, and apart from them there can be no authentic freedom. As Jesus said: “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” (Jn 8:31-32).

Neither an individual nor a country that does not remain rooted in objective truth can live in true freedom. If we are serious about our faith and our citizenship as Americans, we should understand the Christian concept of freedom: “Freedom is the power, rooted in reason and will, to act or not to act, to do this or that, and so to perform deliberate actions on one’s own responsibility. By free will one shapes one’s own life. Human freedom is a force for growth and maturity in truth and goodness; it attains its perfection when directed toward God, our beatitude [true happiness]… Freedom characterizes properly human acts. It is the basis of praise or blame, merit or reproach.The more one does what is good, the freer one becomes. There is no true freedom except in the service of what is good and just. The choice to disobey and do evil is an abuse of freedom and leads to “the slavery of sin.”(Catholic Catechism, 1731-1733)

One of the most common errors of our time is to confuse true freedom with “license.” L icense means doing whatever one wants, regardless of whether it is right or wrong.But we are not morally free to do whatever we want. Only when rooted in truth and acting in truth can we hope to be free. I remember the famous “Russian” comic from the 1980’s, Yakov Smirnoff.He used to say (in broken English): “What a county, America! We have choice!” And he was right.But our choice must always be directed to what is good and just. Choosing to do evil is not freedom. Some choices are wrong. On this Independence Day weekend, let's thank God for our freedom, but let's not sit idly by while the forces of darkness divorce freedom from truth. Let us live as Christian people with true freedom by doing good and avoiding evil. By doing so, we are being the most authentic Americans possible – those committed to those inalienable rights from God: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.May God bless America!

Rev. Msgr. Christopher H. Nalty

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Ascension, which is the elevation of Christ into heaven by His own power in presence of His disciples. In Sacred Scripture, this occurred on the fortieth day after the Resurrection – which was actually last Thursday, traditionally called “Ascension Thursday. However, the celebration of the Ascension has been moved to Sunday to encourage a more active participation in the Feast. In terms of modern aviation, I guess Jesus’ flight got postponed for three days!

The Ascension was prophesized by Christ’s own words. In John 6:63, Christ asks the Jews: “What if you were to see the Son of Man ascend to where He was before?” and in 20:17, He says to Mary Magdalen: “Do not touch Me, for I am not yet ascended to My Father, but go to My brethren, and say to them: I ascend to My Father and to your Father, to My God and to your God.”

Tradition has consecrated the place of the Ascension as Mount Olivet near Jerusalem, since the disciples are described as returning to Jerusalem after the Ascension from “the mount that is called Olivet.” (Acts 1:12). Christian piety memorialized the event by erecting a basilica over the site. The original basilica was destroyed by the Persians in 614, rebuilt in the eighth century, destroyed again, and rebuilt a second time by the crusaders. This second basilica was also destroyed by the Muslims, leaving only an octagonal structure which encloses the stone said to bear the imprint of the feet of Christ. It is now used as a small oratory.

And next Sunday we will celebrate Pentecost, which occurred nine days after the Ascension (and is the origin of the word “Novena,” for nine days of prayer), when the Holy Spirit descended upon the Apostles and Mary. As part of our Pentecost celebration, we will welcome to our parish Father Paulinus Iwuji of the Order of the Sons and Daughters of Mary Mother of Mercy (SMMM) as part of the Archdiocesan Missionary Plan. The purpose of the plan is to educate us regarding the missionary work of Christ, to solicit prayers and financial support for the missionaries, and to harmonize missionary efforts and guarantee a fair distribution of aid. Father Iwuji is part of a growing religious order with over 80 seminarians serving in Africa, and he will be here to help us to understand his mission. In doing so, he will also help us remind ourselved of the universality of our church and our own responsibility to take part in the Universal Mission of Christ to bring the message of Christ to all of the nations of the world (Mt. 28:16-20). Pray the Novena this week! Come Holy Spirit!

Rev. Msgr. Christopher H. Nalty

www.goodshepherdparishnola.com

“Lamb of God” is one of the titles given to Jesus in the New Testament by John the Baptist. It refers to Jesus' role as a sacrificial lamb atoning for the sins of man, harkening back to ancient Jewish Temple sacrifices in which a lamb was slain during the passover (the "Paschal Lamb”), the blood was sprinkled on the altar, and the whole of the lamb was eaten. As we prepare for Holy Week, we’re called to reflect upon Christ as Lamb of God.  The link between the Paschal Lamb and Christ is made explicit in 1 Corinthians 5:7. For Paul, Christians are saved by Christ as their true paschal lamb.

The Old Testament also testifies to the earlier practice of sin offerings as a possible means of atonement. Lambs could be used in these offerings (e.g. Leviticus 4:32-34 and 5:6), and this link is strongly suggested by John 1:29 and 1 Peter 1:19. Just as in Judaism sins could be forgiven through the offering and the pouring out of the blood of an "unblemished" lamb, so Christians are freed from sin by the blood of Jesus, the unblemished Lamb of God.

As we approach the days of the Passion of Christ, we are also reminded that Jesus is the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53, who remains silent “like a lamb led to the slaughter” (53:7) and “gives his life as an offering for sin” (53:10). Acts 8:32 specifically cites Isaiah, and strengthens the idea of Jesus as a sin offering.  And don’t forget that the offering of Mass is the Sacrifice of Christ. Remember to “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”  Happy are those who are called to His Supper. And what is our response?  “Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word, and I shall be healed.”

This Sunday is the Feast of Divine Mercy It is dedicated to the devotion to the Divine Mercy promoted by St. Faustina, and is based upon an entry in St. Faustina's diary stating that anyone who participates in the Mass and receives the sacraments of confession and Eucharist on this day is assured by Jesus of full remission of sins.

According to the notebooks of Saint Faustina, Jesus made the following statements about this day: "On that day the very depths of My tender mercy are open. I pour out a whole ocean of graces upon those souls who approach the fount of My mercy. The soul that will go to Confession and receive Holy Communion shall obtain complete forgiveness of sins and punishment. On that day all the divine floodgates through which grace flow are opened. Let no soul fear to draw near to Me, even though its sins be as scarlet. My mercy is so great that no mind, be it of man or of angel, will be able to fathom it throughout all eternity." (Diary of Saint Faustina, 699)

The devotion was celebrated unofficially in many places for some years.  However, on April 30, 2000 (Divine Mercy Sunday of that year), Pope John Paul II canonized St. Faustina and designated the Sunday after Easter as Divine Mercy Sunday in the General Roman Calendar, with effect from the following year. He also decreed a plenary indulgence associated with this devotion. Pope John Paul II said he felt a closeness to St. Faustina when he was writing his letter Dives in misericordia. He died during the vigil of the Divine Mercy Sunday in 2005.
Instructions on how to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet, using as a Rosary

“Motherhood” is the first concept we understand as a child. Our earliest experience of love is the embrace of our own mother. And the love of our mother becomes the defining experience that helps us to understand God’s love for us. A Jewish proverb says that: “God could not be everywhere, and that’s why He created mothers.”

The safest and surest thing in the world is a mother’s love. It doesn’t have to be acquired or deserved. Even when it’s rejected, it still stays strong. The heart of a mother is a deep abyss at the bottom of which you will always find forgiveness.

And motherhood has the greatest potential influence on human society. Our mother’s embrace awakens our original sense of security. In her kisses, we first experience affection. In her empathy and sympathy we receive assurances that love exists. And these earliest memories stay with us for our entire life. They never go away. An old Irish proverb says: “A man loves his sweetheart the most, his wife the best, but his mother the longest.” How true is that? Even if our mother is long deceased, the love never passes away from our heart.
When I was little and one of my sisters or my brother would get mad at my mother, she would say “Fine. If you don’t want me as your mother, then go to Dorignacs and get a new mother; they’re in the section right next to the vegetable aisle.” Nobody ever dared look in that area of the store. Nobody wanted a new mother.

This Sunday remember that “Mother’s Day” doesn’t have the apostrophe after the “s.” It’s not a day to honor “all mothers.” It’s a day for each of us to honor our own mother. If she’s alive, then go visit or call her. If she’s passed away, maybe you can bring flowers to her grave. Or say a prayer for her. And try not to forget her today. But if you do, then remember that the only mothers who are safe to forget on Mother's Day are the good ones.

That being said, I am happy to honor all of the mothers of our parish this Sunday. Jesus said to His first priests: “Everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands for the sake of my name will receive a hundred times more, and will inherit eternal life.” And sometimes I feel like I have those 100 mothers right here at Good Shepherd Parish! And I’m thankful for you. But I’m also thankful that I actually do have the best mother in the world. Happy Mother’s Day, Mom! And just in case you wondered, a few years ago I checked out that aisle at Dorignacs. And I’m not trading you in. You’re the best Mom ever! I love you!


Rev. Msgr. Christopher H. Nalty

As I mentioned in the bulletin and during Mass over the last two weeks, this Sunday is our parish “Ministry Fair.” It’s a chance to see the different ways that the members of Good Shepherd Parish serve the Church and each other. And it’s a chance to find some way to get involved in the mission of Jesus Christ.

In the documents of the Second Vatican Council, there were tremendous exhortations for the lay faithful to actively participate in the life of the Church.  This participation begins in the Sacred Liturgy, where we actively seek to encounter Jesus Christ in Word and Sacrament. That doesn’t mean we all need a “job” during Mass; it means that we are attentive and reflective when we hear the readings, and that we prepare ourselves devoutly to receive Holy Communion, and that we do not neglect to make a prayer of thanksgiving afterwards. We find our “mission” in the Church in our personal encounter with Christ. Just like the first followers of Christ, we learn from Him and we go forth joyfully to spread that Good News to others. In fact, that’s the origin of the word “Mass.” The Latin dismissal “Ite, missa est” can be translated “The Mass is ended, go in peace,” but it might be more appropriately translated “Go forth! It is the mission!”

What is the mission? Primarily, it is to announce to the world that we have a savior, Jesus Christ, who never left us and who constantly draws us into a personal relationship with Himself. But another part of the mission is to participate in works that spread faith, hope and charity to those who feel separated from God’s love. At this week’s ministry fair, I hope that you might consider “how you can repay the Lord for His goodness to you,” as it says in Psalm 116. Reflect on the charge that the Church has given to you in the excerpt from Apostolicam Actuositatem (“On the Apostolate of the Laity”) as printed in the bulletin and on the website. The first joy of Gospel comes from hearing God’s word and taking it into your heart. But as the Apostle John tells us, our joy is made complete when we share it with others. (1 Jn 1:4).

 
Rev. Msgr. Christopher H. Nalty