Celebration of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper

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Dear Brothers and Sisters!

“I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer” (Lk 22:15). With these words Jesus began the celebration of his final meal and the institution of the Holy Eucharist. Jesus approached that hour with eager desire. In his heart he awaited the moment when he would give himself to his own under the appearance of bread and wine. He awaited that moment which would in some sense be the true messianic wedding feast: when he would transform the gifts of this world and become one with his own, so as to transform them and thus inaugurate the transformation of the world. In this eager desire of Jesus we can recognize the desire of God himself – his expectant love for mankind, for his creation. A love which awaits the moment of union, a love which wants to draw mankind to itself and thereby fulfil the desire of all creation, for creation eagerly awaits the revelation of the children of God (cf. Rom 8:19). Jesus desires us, he awaits us. But what about ourselves? Do we really desire him? Are we anxious to meet him? Do we desire to encounter him, to become one with him, to receive the gifts he offers us in the Holy Eucharist? Or are we indifferent, distracted, busy about other things? From Jesus’ banquet parables we realize that he knows all about empty places at table, invitations refused, lack of interest in him and his closeness. For us, the empty places at the table of the Lord’s wedding feast, whether excusable or not, are no longer a parable but a reality, in those very countries to which he had revealed his closeness in a special way. Jesus also knew about guests who come to the banquet without being robed in the wedding garment – they come not to rejoice in his presence but merely out of habit, since their hearts are elsewhere. In one of his homilies Saint Gregory the Great asks: Who are these people who enter without the wedding garment? What is this garment and how does one acquire it? He replies that those who are invited and enter do in some way have faith. It is faith which opens the door to them. But they lack the wedding garment of love. Those who do not live their faith as love are not ready for the banquet and are cast out. Eucharistic communion requires faith, but faith requires love; otherwise, even as faith, it is dead.

From all four Gospels we know that Jesus’ final meal before his passion was also a teaching moment. Once again, Jesus urgently set forth the heart of his message. Word and sacrament, message and gift are inseparably linked. Yet at his final meal, more than anything else, Jesus prayed. Matthew, Mark and Luke use two words in describing Jesus’ prayer at the culmination of the meal: “eucharístesas” and “eulógesas” – the verbs “to give thanks” and “to bless”. The upward movement of thanking and the downward movement of blessing go together. The words of transubstantiation are part of this prayer of Jesus. They are themselves words of prayer. Jesus turns his suffering into prayer, into an offering to the Father for the sake of mankind. This transformation of his suffering into love has the power to transform the gifts in which he now gives himself. He gives those gifts to us, so that we, and our world, may be transformed. The ultimate purpose of Eucharistic transformation is our own transformation in communion with Christ. The Eucharist is directed to the new man, the new world, which can only come about from God, through the ministry of God’s Servant.

From Luke, and especially from John, we know that Jesus, during the Last Supper, also prayed to the Father – prayers which also contain a plea to his disciples of that time and of all times. Here I would simply like to take one of these which, as John tells us, Jesus repeated four times in his Priestly Prayer. How deeply it must have concerned him! It remains his constant prayer to the Father on our behalf: the prayer for unity. Jesus explicitly states that this prayer is not meant simply for the disciples then present, but for all who would believe in him (cf. Jn 17:20). He prays that all may be one “as you, Father, are in me and I am in you, so that the world may believe” (Jn 17:21). Christian unity can exist only if Christians are deeply united to him, to Jesus. Faith and love for Jesus, faith in his being one with the Father and openness to becoming one with him, are essential. This unity, then, is not something purely interior or mystical. It must become visible, so visible as to prove before the world that Jesus was sent by the Father. Consequently, Jesus’ prayer has an underlying Eucharistic meaning which Paul clearly brings out in the First Letter to the Corinthians: “The bread that we break, is it not a sharing in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one bread” (1 Cor 10:16ff.). With the Eucharist, the Church is born. All of us eat the one bread and receive the one body of the Lord; this means that he opens each of us up to something above and beyond us. He makes all of us one. The Eucharist is the mystery of the profound closeness and communion of each individual with the Lord and, at the same time, of visible union between all. The Eucharist is the sacrament of unity. It reaches the very mystery of the Trinity and thus creates visible unity. Let me say it again: it is an extremely personal encounter with the Lord and yet never simply an act of individual piety. Of necessity, we celebrate it together. In each community the Lord is totally present. Yet in all the communities he is but one. Hence the words “una cum Papa nostro et cum episcopo nostro” are a requisite part of the Church’s Eucharistic Prayer. These words are not an addendum of sorts, but a necessary expression of what the Eucharist really is. Furthermore, we mention the Pope and the Bishop by name: unity is something utterly concrete, it has names. In this way unity becomes visible; it becomes a sign for the world and a concrete criterion for ourselves.

Saint Luke has preserved for us one concrete element of Jesus’ prayer for unity: “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and when you have turned again, strengthen your brethren” (Lk 22:31). Today we are once more painfully aware that Satan has been permitted to sift the disciples before the whole world. And we know that Jesus prays for the faith of Peter and his successors. We know that Peter, who walks towards the Lord upon the stormy waters of history and is in danger of sinking, is sustained ever anew by the Lord’s hand and guided over the waves. But Jesus continues with a prediction and a mandate. “When you have turned again…”. Every human being, save Mary, has constant need of conversion. Jesus tells Peter beforehand of his coming betrayal and conversion. But what did Peter need to be converted from? When first called, terrified by the Lord’s divine power and his own weakness, Peter had said: “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!” (Lk 5:8). In the light of the Lord, he recognizes his own inadequacy. Precisely in this way, in the humility of one who knows that he is a sinner, is he called. He must discover this humility ever anew. At Caesarea Philippi Peter could not accept that Jesus would have to suffer and be crucified: it did not fit his image of God and the Messiah. In the Upper Room he did not want Jesus to wash his feet: it did not fit his image of the dignity of the Master. In the Garden of Olives he wielded his sword. He wanted to show his courage. Yet before the servant girl he declared that he did not know Jesus. At the time he considered it a little lie which would let him stay close to Jesus. All his heroism collapsed in a shabby bid to be at the centre of things. We too, all of us, need to learn again to accept God and Jesus Christ as he is, and not the way we want him to be. We too find it hard to accept that he bound himself to the limitations of his Church and her ministers. We too do not want to accept that he is powerless in this world. We too find excuses when being his disciples starts becoming too costly, too dangerous. All of us need the conversion which enables us to accept Jesus in his reality as God and man. We need the humility of the disciple who follows the will of his Master. Tonight we want to ask Jesus to look to us, as with kindly eyes he looked to Peter when the time was right, and to convert us.

After Peter was converted, he was called to strengthen his brethren. It is not irrelevant that this task was entrusted to him in the Upper Room. The ministry of unity has its visible place in the celebration of the Holy Eucharist. Dear friends, it is a great consolation for the Pope to know that at each Eucharistic celebration everyone prays for him, and that our prayer is joined to the Lord’s prayer for Peter. Only by the prayer of the Lord and of the Church can the Pope fulfil his task of strengthening his brethren – of feeding the flock of Christ and of becoming the guarantor of that unity which becomes a visible witness to the mission which Jesus received from the Father.

“I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you”. Lord, you desire us, you desire me. You eagerly desire to share yourself with us in the Holy Eucharist, to be one with us. Lord, awaken in us the desire for you. Strengthen us in unity with you and with one another. Grant unity to your Church, so that the world may believe. Amen.

© Copyright 2011 – Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Homilia Benedykta XVI w trakcie liturgii Wieczerzy Pąńskiej, 21 kwietnia 2011

Crism Mass is the only liturgical service in the Church in the morning of Holy Thursday. It is celebrated in cathedral churches around the world by the Bishop and his priests.  The Pope, as Bishop of Rome, as well as other Bishops in their dioceses, blessed the oils to be used in the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, Anointing the sick and Holy Orders, throughout the coming year.

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Dear Brothers and Sisters,

At the heart of this morning’s liturgy is the blessing of the holy oils – the oil for anointing catechumens, the oil for anointing the sick, and the chrism for the great sacraments that confer the Holy Spirit: confirmation, priestly ordination, episcopal ordination. In the sacraments the Lord touches us through the elements of creation. The unity between creation and redemption is made visible. The sacraments are an expression of the physicality of our faith, which embraces the whole person, body and soul. Bread and wine are fruits of the earth and work of human hands. The Lord chose them to be bearers of his presence. Oil is the symbol of the Holy Spirit and at the same time it points us towards Christ: the word “Christ” (Messiah) means “the anointed one”. The humanity of Jesus, by virtue of the Son’s union with the Father, is brought into communion with the Holy Spirit and is thus “anointed” in a unique way, penetrated by the Holy Spirit. What happened symbolically to the kings and priests of the Old Testament when they were instituted into their ministry by the anointing with oil, takes place in Jesus in all its reality: his humanity is penetrated by the power of the Holy Spirit. He opens our humanity for the gift of the Holy Spirit. The more we are united to Christ, the more we are filled with his Spirit, with the Holy Spirit. We are called “Christians”: “anointed ones” – people who belong to Christ and hence have a share in his anointing, being touched by his Spirit. I wish not merely to be called Christian, but also to be Christian, said Saint Ignatius of Antioch. Let us allow these holy oils, which are consecrated at this time, to remind us of the task that is implicit in the word “Christian”, let us pray that, increasingly, we may not only be called Christian but may actually be such.

In today’s liturgy, three oils are blessed, as I mentioned earlier. They express three essential dimensions of the Christian life on which we may now reflect. First, there is the oil of catechumens. This oil indicates a first way of being touched by Christ and by his Spirit – an inner touch, by which the Lord draws people close to himself. Through this first anointing, which takes place even prior to baptism, our gaze is turned towards people who are journeying towards Christ – people who are searching for faith, searching for God. The oil of catechumens tells us that it is not only we who seek God: God himself is searching for us. The fact that he himself was made man and came down into the depths of human existence, even into the darkness of death, shows us how much God loves his creature, man. Driven by love, God has set out towards us. “Seeking me, you sat down weary … let such labour not be in vain!”, we pray in the Dies Irae. God is searching for me. Do I want to recognize him? Do I want to be known by him, found by him? God loves us. He comes to meet the unrest of our hearts, the unrest of our questioning and seeking, with the unrest of his own heart, which leads him to accomplish the ultimate for us. That restlessness for God, that journeying towards him, so as to know and love him better, must not be extinguished in us. In this sense we should always remain catechumens. “Constantly seek his face”, says one of the Psalms (105:4). Saint Augustine comments as follows: God is so great as to surpass infinitely all our knowing and all our being. Knowledge of God is never exhausted. For all eternity, with ever increasing joy, we can always continue to seek him, so as to know him and love him more and more. “Our heart is restless until it rests in you”, said Saint Augustine at the beginning of his Confessions. Yes, man is restless, because whatever is finite is too little. But are we truly restless for him? Have we perhaps become resigned to his absence, do we not seek to be self-sufficient? Let us not allow our humanity to be diminished in this way! Let us remain constantly on a journey towards him, longing for him, always open to receive new knowledge and love!

Then there is the oil for anointing the sick. Arrayed before us is a host of suffering people: those who hunger and thirst, victims of violence in every continent, the sick with all their sufferings, their hopes and their moments without hope, the persecuted, the downtrodden, the broken-hearted. Regarding the first mission on which Jesus sent the disciples, Saint Luke tells us: “he sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal” (9:2). Healing is one of the fundamental tasks entrusted by Jesus to the Church, following the example that he gave as he travelled throughout the land healing the sick. To be sure, the Church’s principal task is to proclaim the Kingdom of God. But this very proclamation must be a process of healing: “bind up the broken-hearted”, we heard in today’s first reading from the prophet Isaiah (61:1). The proclamation of God’s Kingdom, of God’s unlimited goodness, must first of all bring healing to broken hearts. By nature, man is a being in relation. But if the fundamental relationship, the relationship with God, is disturbed, then all the rest is disturbed as well. If our relationship with God is disturbed, if the fundamental orientation of our being is awry, we cannot truly be healed in body and soul. For this reason, the first and fundamental healing takes place in our encounter with Christ who reconciles us to God and mends our broken hearts. But over and above this central task, the Church’s essential mission also includes the specific healing of sickness and suffering. The oil for anointing the sick is the visible sacramental expression of this mission. Since apostolic times, the healing vocation has matured in the Church, and so too has loving solicitude for those who are distressed in body and soul. This is also the occasion to say thank you to those sisters and brothers throughout the world who bring healing and love to the sick, irrespective of their status or religious affiliation. From Elizabeth of Hungary, Vincent de Paul, Louise de Marillac, Camillus of Lellis to Mother Teresa – to recall but a few names – we see, lighting up the world, a radiant procession of helpers streaming forth from God’s love for the suffering and the sick. For this we thank the Lord at this moment. For this we thank all those who, by virtue of their faith and love, place themselves alongside the suffering, thereby bearing definitive witness to the goodness of God himself. The oil for anointing the sick is a sign of this oil of the goodness of heart that these people bring – together with their professional competence – to the suffering. Even without speaking of Christ, they make him manifest.

In third place, finally, is the most noble of the ecclesial oils, the chrism, a mixture of olive oil and aromatic vegetable oils. It is the oil used for anointing priests and kings, in continuity with the great Old Testament traditions of anointing. In the Church this oil serves chiefly for the anointing of confirmation and ordination. Today’s liturgy links this oil with the promise of the prophet Isaiah: “You shall be called the priests of the Lord, men shall speak of you as the ministers of our God” (61:6). The prophet makes reference here to the momentous words of commission and promise that God had addressed to Israel on Sinai: “You shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Ex 19:6). In and for the vast world, which was largely ignorant of God, Israel had to be as it were a shrine of God for all peoples, exercising a priestly function vis-à-vis the world. It had to bring the world to God, to open it up to him. In his great baptismal catechesis, Saint Peter applied this privilege and this commission of Israel to the entire community of the baptized, proclaiming: “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, that you may declare the wonderful deeds of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light. Once you were no people but now you are God’s people” (1 Pet 2:9f.) Baptism and confirmation are an initiation into this people of God that spans the world; the anointing that takes place in baptism and confirmation is an anointing that confers this priestly ministry towards mankind. Christians are a priestly people for the world. Christians should make the living God visible to the world, they should bear witness to him and lead people towards him. When we speak of this task in which we share by virtue of our baptism, it is no reason to boast. It poses a question to us that makes us both joyful and anxious: are we truly God’s shrine in and for the world? Do we open up the pathway to God for others or do we rather conceal it? Have not we – the people of God – become to a large extent a people of unbelief and distance from God? Is it perhaps the case that the West, the heartlands of Christianity, are tired of their faith, bored by their history and culture, and no longer wish to know faith in Jesus Christ? We have reason to cry out at this time to God: “Do not allow us to become a ‘non-people’! Make us recognize you again! Truly, you have anointed us with your love, you have poured out your Holy Spirit upon us. Grant that the power of your Spirit may become newly effective in us, so that we may bear joyful witness to your message!

For all the shame we feel over our failings, we must not forget that today too there are radiant examples of faith, people who give hope to the world through their faith and love. When Pope John Paul II is beatified on 1 May, we shall think of him, with hearts full of thankfulness, as a great witness to God and to Jesus Christ in our day, as a man filled with the Holy Spirit. Alongside him, we think of the many people he beatified and canonized, who give us the certainty that even today God’s promise and commission do not fall on deaf ears.

I turn finally to you, dear brothers in the priestly ministry. Holy Thursday is in a special way our day. At the hour of the last Supper, the Lord instituted the new Testament priesthood. “Sanctify them in the truth” (Jn 17:17), he prayed to the Father, for the Apostles and for priests of all times. With great gratitude for the vocation and with humility for all our shortcomings, we renew at this hour our “yes” to the Lord’s call: yes, I want to be intimately united to the Lord Jesus, in self-denial, driven on by the love of Christ. Amen.

© Copyright 2011 – Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Msza Krzyżma Świętego – homilia Benedykta XVI, 21 kwietnia 2011

Fr. Astor L. Rodriguez CM is a Vincentian priest since 18 years. A zealous and vigorous, deeply committed to youth ministry and always enjoying contacts with other people. An Excellent, talented preacher. His sermons, as you will notice, are very special experience for everyone who listens to them. Native in Brooklyn, NY with Puerto Rican ancestors. He is parochial vicar in St. John the Baptist parish, Brooklyn, NY He speaks Spanish fluently, unfortunately he does not speak Polish except for few words.

Listen to Fr. Astor’s talk:
DAY ONE – Monday, April 4
DAY TWO – Tuesday, April 5

Thanking our Confrere from other part of Brooklyn we back up pastor of St. Stanislaus Kostka, Fr. Marek Sobczak CM in his words, “Thank you Fr. Astor! We would like to thank you for finding time to be with us and for sharing with us your faith and love for Jesus! Thank you for leading us on our spiritual path toward Easter!”

Watch some pictures from the Eucharist lead by Fr. Astor Rodriguez CM

Podobnie jak w ubiegłym roku postaramy się co tydzień udostępnić Wam nagrania kazań pasyjnych z kościoła św. Stanisława Kostki na Brooklynie, w Nowym Jorku. Będą one umieszczone jako poszczególne wiadomości na stronie głównej oraz zakładce «HOMILIES & SERMONS», gdzie znajdziecie także kazania pasyjne z 2010 roku. Przypominamy także, że treść nabożeństwa z dołączonymi nagraniami znajdziecie w zakładce «GORZKIE ŻALE».

Kazanie Pasyjne – 1 Niedziela Wielkiego Postu 2011

Lent has begun. It is the time of going into the desert, time of reflection and repentance. It is the time to meet Merciful God. According to Polish tradition Gorzkie Zale and Stations of the Cross are the most important devotions during the Lent. Sermons on Passion of Christ are  essential part of the devotion, which usually is celebrated in Polish.   We realize, some of You cannot attend it due to various reasons. Also, we realize for those of You who are not speaking Polish it might be somehow inconvenient, but we invite you to join your neighbors in this time of meditation and prayer. In the first, so called Passion Sermon, this year Fr. Jan Szylar CM preaching in the St. Stanislaus Kostka Church, Brooklyn, NY said, “we will look at the values which lacked makes our Christian life impossible. We will take a look at manifestation of faith, hope, and love, truth, and obedience in time of Christ’s Passion as well as their denial: disbelief, despair, hatred, lying, disobedience.” This Sunday’s theme was “Belief and Unbelief”.

As we did last year, we are delivering sermons preached during Gorzki Zale devotion on our webpage (they are in Polish).  Each Sunday sermons during Gorzkie Zale might be listened to or downloaded from here or from «HOMILIES & SERMONS» subpage of our website. Text of the Gorzkie Zale (Bitter Lamentations) in Polish, including performance by Polish Military Choir is available at «GORZKIE ŻALE». English translation is coming soon.

We deliver sermons preached in St. Stanislaus Kostka Church, Greenpoint, NY. Preacher this year is Fr. Jan Szylar CM. The sermons are in Polish only.  We believe our offer will be helpful in your spiritual pathway through the Lent.

We invite you warmly to watch full time video recording
of the Vespers from Vatican Television – CTV:
VESPERS, SAINT PETER’S BASILICA, FEBRUARY 2, 2011

Dear brothers and sisters!

In today’s feast we contemplate the Lord Jesus whom Mary and Joseph take to the Temple “to present him to the Lord” (Luke 2:22). Revealed in this evangelical scene is the mystery of the Son of the Virgin, the consecrated One of the Father, who came into the world to carry out his will faithfully (cf. Hebrews 10:5-7).

Simeon points to him as “light for revelation to the Gentiles” (Luke 2:32), and proclaims with prophetic word his supreme offer to God and his final victory (cf. Luke 2:32-35). It is the meeting of the two Testaments, the Old and the New. Jesus enters the ancient Temple, He who is the new Temple of God: He comes to visit his people, bringing to fulfillment obedience to the Law and inaugurating the end times of salvation.

It is interesting to observe close up this entrance of the Child Jesus into the solemnity of the Temple, in the great “coming and going” of so many people, seized by their endeavors: the priests and the Levites with their turns of service, the numerous devotees and pilgrims, desirous of encountering the Holy God of Israel. None of these, however, notice anything. Jesus is a child like others, first born son of two very simple parents. Even the priests are incapable of accepting the signs of the new and particular presence of the Messiah and Savior. Only two elderly people, Simeon and Anna, discover the great novelty. Led by the Holy Spirit, they see in that Child the fulfillment of their long expectation and vigilance. Both contemplate the light of God that comes to illumine the world, with their prophetic gaze open to the future, as proclamation of the Messiah: “Lumen ad revelationem gentium!” (Luke 2:32). In the prophetic attitude of two old people is the entire Ancient Covenant, which expresses the joy of the encounter with the Redeemer. On seeing the Child, Simeon and Anna intuit that it is in fact Him, the One Awaited.

The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple is an eloquent icon of the total donation of the life for all those men and women who are called to reproduce in the Church and in the world, through the evangelical counsels, the characteristic features of Jesus virgin, poor and obedient” (postsynodal apostolic exhortation “Vita Consecrata,” No. 1). That is why today’s feast was chosen by the Venerable John Paul II to celebrate the annual Day of Consecrated Life. In this context, I address a cordial and grateful greeting to Archbishop João Bráz de Aviz, whom I recently appointed prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, with the secretary and the collaborators. I greet affectionately the Superiors General present and all consecrated persons.

I would like to propose three brief thoughts for reflection on this feast. The first: the evangelical icon of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple contains the essential symbol of light; the light that, coming from Christ, shines on Mary and Joseph, on Simeon and Anna and, through them, on everyone. The Fathers of the Church linked this radiation to the spiritual journey. Consecrated life expresses this journey, in a special way as “philocalia,” love of divine beauty, reflection of the goodness of God (cf. ibid., No. 19). Resplendent on Christ’s face is this beauty. “The Church contemplates the transfigured face of Christ, to be confirmed in the faith and not risk dismay before his disfigured face on the Cross … she is the Bride before her Spouse, sharing his mystery, enveloped by his light, [from which] are gathered all his children … But a singular experience of the light that emanates from the Word incarnate are certainly those called to the consecrated life. In fact, the profession of the evangelical counsels places them as sign and prophecy for the community of brothers and for the world” (ibid., No. 15).

In the second place, the evangelical icon manifests the prophecy, gift of the Holy Spirit. Simeon and Anna, contemplating the Child Jesus, perceive his destiny of death and resurrection for the salvation of all peoples and proclaim this mystery as universal salvation. Consecrated life is called to this prophetic witness, linked to its twofold attitude, contemplative and active. Given to consecrated men and women, in fact, is to manifest the primacy of God, passion for the Gospel practiced as a way of life and proclaimed to the poor and to the last of the earth. “In the strength of such primacy nothing can be preferred to personal love for Christ and for the poor in which He lives. True prophecy is born from God, from friendship with Him, from attentive listening to his Word in the different circumstances of history” (ibid., No. 84). In this way consecrated life, in its daily living on the paths of humanity, manifests the Gospel and the Kingdom already present and operative.

In the third place, the evangelical icon of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple manifests the wisdom of Simeon and Anna, the wisdom of a life dedicated totally to the search of the face of God, of his signs, of his will; a life dedicated to listening and to proclaiming his Word.

“‘Faciem tuam, Domine, requiram’: thy face, O Lord, do I seek” (Psalm 26:8). Hence, the consecrated person witnesses the joyful and laborious commitment, the assiduous and wise search of the divine will” (cf. Congress for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life, Instruction The Service of Authority and Obedience. Faciem tuam Domine requiram [2008], No. 1).

Dear brothers and sisters, be assiduous listeners of the Word, because every wisdom of life is born of the Word of the Lord! Be scrutinizers of the Word, through Lectio Divina, because consecrated life “is born from listening to the Word of God and accepting the Gospel as its norm of life. To live following the chaste, poor and obedient Christ is in this way a living “exegesis” of the Word of God. The Holy Spirit, in the strength of which the Bible was written, is the same who illumines the Word of God to men and women founders with new light. From it flows every charism and every rule is an expression of it, giving origin to itineraries of Christian life marked by evangelical radicalism” (postsynodal apostolic exhortation “Verbum Domini,” No. 83).

Today we live above all in the most developed societies, a condition often marked by a radical pluralism, by the progressive marginalization of religion from the public sphere, by a relativism that touches fundamental values. This calls for our Christian witness to be luminous and consistent and for our educational effort to be ever more attentive and generous. In particular your apostolic action, dear brothers and sisters, must become a life commitment, which accedes with persevering passion, to wisdom as truth and beauty “splendor of the truth.” Be able to orient your life with wisdom, and with trust in the inexhaustible possibilities of true education, and the intelligence and the heart of men and women of our time to the “good life of the Gospel.”

At this moment, my thought goes with special affection to all consecrated men and women, in every part of the earth, and I entrust them to the Blessed Virgin Mary:

O Mary, Mother of the Church,
I entrust to you consecrated life,
So that you will obtain for it the fullness of divine light:
That it may live in listening to the Word of God,
In the humility of the following of Jesus your Son and our Lord,
In the acceptance of the visit of the Holy Spirit,
In the daily joy of the Magnificat,
So that the Church is built by the holiness of life
Of these your sons and daughters,
In the commandment of love. Amen.

[cf: ZENIT, Libreria Editrice Vaticana]

Our Advent journey continues

There are resources how to bake excellent cake, how to make Christmas tree decorations, palette of Christmas cards is larger than our senses can catch. And there are spiritual resources, the most important ones in this time especially for Christians. It’s important because Advent is the time of waiting and time of preparation for the Incarnation. It the time we have to make our hearts ready to sing Gloria in Excelsis Deo!.

In this ocean of resources and offers here are some we would like to recommend you and encourage you to make your milestones on the road to miraculous manger.

❈  ❈  ❈

✠ Our Polish speaking readers can listen to Sunday homilies from St. Stanislaus Kostka Church, Greenpoint, Brooklyn, NY.
Naszych polskojęzycznych gości zapraszamy do wysłuchania niedzielnych homilii głoszonych w kosciele św. Stanisława Kostki na Greenpoincie, Brooklyn, NY

Fr. Stanislaw Szczepanik CM, Director of Daughters of Charity, Province of Puerto Rico was the preacher on First Sunday of Advent. This homily, in Polish, refers to the Feast of Miracuolous Medal as well.
Ks. Stanisław Szczapanik CM, Dyrektor Sióstr Miłosierdzia Prowincji Portoryko był kaznodzieją w I Niedzielę Adwentu. W swym kazaniu odwoływał się również do obchodzonego wcześniej święta NMP Cudownego Medalika.

• Homilia na I Niedzielę Adwentu – 28 listopada 2010

Fr. Marek Sobczak CM, Pastor of St. Stanislaus Kostka preached on Second Sunday of Advent
Ks. Marek Sobczak CM, proboszcz parafii św. Stanisława Kostki był kaznodzieją w II Niedzielę Adwentu

• Homilia na II Niedzielę Adwentu – 5 grudnia 2010.

Fr. Lukasz Sorys CM, Vocation Director from Holy Name of Jesus Parish, Stamford, CT gave the homily on Third Sunday of Advent. It was the first day of Advent retreat.
Ks. Łukasz Sorys CM, promotor powołań, parafia Najświętszego Imienia Jezus głosił homilię w III Niedzielę Adwentu, która jednocześnie rozpoczynała tegoroczne rekolekcje adwentowe

• Homilia na III Niedzielę Adwentu – 12 grudnia 2010.

Fr. Jan Urbaniak CM, Vicar St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish, Brooklyn, NY preached on Fourth Sunday of Advent.
Ks. Jan Urbaniak CM,Wikarusz parafii św. Stanisława Kostki głosił homilię w IV Niedzielę Adwentu

• Homilia na IV Niedzielę Adwentu – 19 grudnia 2010.

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✠ Holy Father, Benedict XVI has addressed crowd gathered on St. Peter’s Square during the Angelus prayer on November 28, First Sunday of Advent with his message for this time of waiting and preparation:

• Read the ANGELUS MESSAGE ON FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT (English)
• Przeczytaj PRZEMÓWIENIE NA ANIOŁ PAŃSKI W PIERWSZĄ NIEDZIELĘ ADWENTU (polski)

❈  ❈  ❈

✠ The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is providing a downloadable book of scriptural reflections for Advent and Christmas featuring the words of Pope Benedict XVI from homilies, speeches and other addresses during his papacy. The 37-page document includes a scripture quote and a reflection from the Holy Father for every day of Advent, which begins on Sunday, November 28, 2010, through the 7th Day in the Octave of Christmas, December 31, 2010. “Advent & Christmas with Pope Benedict XVI” is a preview of the upcoming publication “A Year with Pope Benedict XVI,” which will be available soon from USCCB.

• Download “ADVENT & CHRISTMAS WITH POPE BENEDICT XVI”

Independent Trade Union SOLIDARITY in Poland is celebrating 30th Anniversary this week. On this occasion the special concelebrated Mass in Polish was given at 11:30 AM, Sunday, August 29 in St. Stanislaus Kostka Church, Greenpoint, Brooklyn, NY. Fr. Marek Sobczak CM, pastor, presided and Fr. Jan Urbaniak CM was concelebrant. In this way the parish commemorated the events from 1980, when after over two weeks of nation wide strike and workers’ protest communist authority was forced to sign agreement with new workers organization. The agreement guaranteed creation of trade union, first such behind Iron Curtain not controlled by the communist party and government. This victory in peaceful battle ignited the light of freedom and change which lead Poland and other East European countries to get rid of the communist regime. Thanks to to this victory, after 30 years Poland is enjoying freedom, democracy and membership in European and world organization as strong and proud nation. August 31, 1980 was one of the most significant and important events in Polish history in at least 20th century.

The liturgy was a unique character and the church was decorated for the occasion. A commemorative wrath with white and red sashes and “SOLIDARNOŚĆ” (Solidarity) inscription on it, was laid in front of the altar. Various flag bearers and Solidarity representatives were lead to the church by priests and altar servers. As usual, members of the Sea League (Liga Morska) dressed in white uniformed bearing flags were present as well as few representatives of local Polish-American organizations and veterans.

Fr. Sobczak gave the homily during the Mass. At the beginning he reminded the moments from Pope’s John Paul II first visit to Poland in 1979 with the significant words which later often were reminded as encouragement for Poles to change their situation and struggle for freedom: “June 1979. A huge crowd of Poles gathered in Victory Square in Warsaw, and millions on television with bated breath, listening to the homily of Pope John Paul II, in which these important words were heard: ‘Let Thy Spirit descend and renew the face of the earth. This land.”

“Spirit descended and filled the hearts of Poles with hope”, he continued. “Wind of renewal blew, with the strength of Chinook from the Tatra Mountains to the Baltic Sea. And in August 1980, after years of sprouting will of independence, the “Solidarity”, which led to great changes in Poland and Europe was born. For years, Polish people bent under the burden of totalitarian, communist regime, now straightened out, matured, and got strong and learned how to live again. In fact, freedom, so longed, redeemed by blood and martyrdom, in prisons and through intimidation, was not given to us only – but as John Paul II taught us, both the Pope and Countryman, – but also the set point. We started fulfill this preset lesson of freedom.”

Fr. Marek has also reminded two other great Poles, Servant of God, Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski and Blessed Fr. Jerzy Popieluszko. He recalled Cardinal Wyszynski’s words on foundation of SOLIDARNOŚĆ, “the present society wakes up from sleep and no-will, because it recalls responsibility for the Nation, looks for initiatives and solutions; in front of us we must see the whole Nation, the society, the country, we must save the Nation and the family…” and next other remarkable words of blessed martyr, Fr. Jerzy, “we cannot talk about building the common motherhouse, when human rights are not respected and human dignity is demeaned… planned authorization, battle against God and what was from God is the battle against human greatness and dignity; thus great is man for bearing the dignity of God’s child”.

At the end of homily, again he quoted John Paul II from his homily in Gdansk, “Solidarity means one and other; if it is a burden, it is a burden carried together, in community. And so, it is never one against the other.”
Finally, the Pastor of St. Stanislaus Kostka said, “may the passage from the significant work of Adam Mickiewicz, “Pan Tadeusz”, encourage us by the spirit to struggle for renewal in the nation… in book one the Chamberlain holds talk to the Judge:

Ah, I remember the times when on our fatherland
there first descended the fashion of imitating the French;
when suddenly brisk young gentlemen from foreign lands
swarmed in upon us in a horde worse than the Nogai Tatars,
abusing here, in our country, God, the faith of our fathers,
our law and customs, and even our ancient garments.
Pitiable was it to behold the yellow-faced puppies,
talking through their noses–and often without noses
–stuffed with brochures and newspapers of various sorts,
and proclaiming new faiths, laws, and toilets.
That rabble had a mighty power over minds,
for when the Lord God sends punishment on a nation
he first deprives its citizens of reason.
And so the wiser heads dared not resist the fops,
and the whole nation feared them as some pestilence,
for within itself it already felt the germs of disease.
They cried out against the dandies but took pattern by them;
they changed faith, speech, laws, and costumes.
That was a masquerade, the license of the Carnival season,
after which was soon to follow the Lent of slavery.

To read the whole homily text go to St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish website or click on the PDF link below:

Tekst homilii na Mszy św. z okazji 30 rocznicy NSZZ SOLIDARNOŚĆ

“To do or not to do”

Homily closing the General Assembly
by Superior General, Most Rev. Gregory Gay CM
July 16, 2010

Missal Readings: Is. 52:7-10, Ps 95, 1Cor 1:26-31, 2:1, Mt 25:31-46

«download the homily in PDF»
«watch the closing Mass (with recorded homily)»

“To be or not to be, that is the question?” so wrote Shakespeare. And what is our question? From the perspective of this General Assembly, from the motivation of its theme Creative Fidelity to the Mission, I would dare to say that our question is to do or not to do? Yes, that is our question, my brothers, to do or not to do the mission that the Lord Jesus Christ has entrusted to us as missionaries, priests and brothers, in the Congregation of the Mission.

“He went about doing good” (“Pertransiit benefaciendo.”) Our historians claim that this is the first motto that Saint Vincent de Paul chose for the Congregation of the Mission. In imitation of Jesus Christ, focused on the Word of God, Vincent de Paul was struck by this phrase from the Act of the Apostles. It was Peter who proclaimed how God had anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power and “he went about doing good.”

My brothers, “doing good” is what we have focused on in this General Assembly: how we have done good, how we can be better at doing good, and in what ways we might be able to accomplish that good, being faithful to our heritage and yet ever creative in its expressions. In my report to the General Assembly on the state of the Congregation of the Mission in these past six years, I said simply but clearly that one of the most important developments, not only for the Congregation but also for the Vincentian Family that we had worked on with much intensity, was and is the question of systemic change. Systemic change, as I said, is a contemporary way that we live out that which motivates us to do good, the charity of Jesus Christ crucified.

Fears have been expressed, saying that such a focus on systemic change we might become like another NGO. Such is not the case when we have clear what it is, Who it is that motivates us to do what we do. The need is for us to make that connection, that integral relationship between contemplating the goodness of the Lord, deepening our knowledge of His love for us, and transforming that to loving action for the poor both by word and by deed, through evangelization and service of the poor.

Gentlemen, let me recall for you what Saint Vincent has said to the Congregation about the Common Rules Chapter 1, Art. 1. “If there are any among us who think they are in the Mission to evangelize poor people but not to alleviate their suffering, to take care of their spiritual needs but not their temporal ones, I reply that we have to help them and have them assisted in every way, by us and by others, if we want to hear those pleasing words of our sovereign judge of the living and the dead: ‘Come, beloved of my Father; possess the kingdom that has been prepared for you, because I was hungry and you gave me to eat; I was naked and you clothed me; sick and you assisted me. ‘ To do that is to preach the gospel by words and by works. That is the most perfect way. It is also what our Lord did, and what those should do who represent Him on earth.”

The basis of our renewal, that is of our Creative Fidelity to the Mission is tied into: our love of God, being men of prayer: our love of the Congregation, being men who work at community life, that is participative and unifying: and men who draw close to the poor in order to listen to them, to be moved by their requests of us, being their servants: with a desire to be obedient to them as our lords and masters and therefore to open our hearts to that transforming experience of God’s love that takes place in our interaction with those who are poor. And we do so as a community. We do so motivated by God’s love.

As we are nourished by God’s word let us be nourished by God’s Body and Blood and go forth bearing the Good News. Let us do so as bearers of peace with a humble confidence that it is God who works in us, He who gives us the courage to break with our fears, being made afresh and moving forward, being only concerned to do what Jesus Christ did, “going about doing good” for these the least of our brothers and sisters. So be it for the Congregation of the Mission as it embarks upon a new era, a new period of six years of following Jesus Christ, evangelizer of the Poor.

At 9:00 a.m. (0300 EST), Monday, June 28

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Opening Homily for General Assembly by Superior General, Most Rev. Gregory Gay CM
June 28, 2010

Misssal Readings: Ecclesiastes 4:1-10; Psalm 33 ; 2 Corinthians 8:7-9; Luke 4:16-22

The Word of God is a two-edged sword, and my heart has been pierced by what the Lord has said to us today in these readings as we begin this 41st General Assembly, invoking the presence of the Spirit of the Lord Jesus .

Our goal: creative fidelity to the mission. It is the Spirit that has anointed us to be good news to the poor as the Spirit has anointed Jesus Christ. Vincent de Paul invites his missionaries to do what the Lord Jesus did when he was here on this earth. I was challenged by the comments of the author of the first reading. He speaks about “the tears of the victims with none to comfort them.”

My brothers, as a Congregation, where are we? Are we running to the victims of oppression, war and violence to come to their aid? Or are we among the victimizers? It is easy to determine if we are oppressors from a direct position; it is more difficult to be able to say if we are among those who oppress in an indirect way,
either by our protecting our own comfort zones and living a style of life that therefore makes life difficult for others, or simply for sins of omission.

Have we become so entrenched in our apostolic experiences, in our mission, doing the same old thing? Has the salt lost its flavor? Sometimes such is the case. I’ve seen it in my travels throughout the Congregation, I have reflected a great deal with the Council on different issues and situations throughout. Many times it comes
down to the fact that we are only interested in doing our own thing. We are that “solitary man with no companion.” The reading concludes by saying, “Woe to the solitary man, for if he shall fall, he has no one to lift him up.”

Yes, my brothers, let the Word of God challenge us today, because it says two are better than one. “If the one falls the other will lift up his companion.” And I say that three is better than two. And the whole community united in its support one of another is the best of all. Our Constitutions call us to look at the mission in this way. Community for mission.

The second reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Corinthians challenges us to look beyond our own personal interests, testing the genuineness of our concern for others. As Jesus became poor, we are called to become poor, poor with the poor. Not that we are called to share their same misery, but rather to feel their misery, to show our solidarity, and then rather than give them a hand out, give them a hand up. So let us look beyond our own interests, see the situation of the poor today, of those who are oppressed; become one with them and therefore, with Jesus, become rich in His love.

From an historical perspective one might say that Saint Vincent de Paul was led to God by his experience of the poor. Yet when we look more deeply into the life of the Saint, we can say from the perspective of faith that it was God who led Vincent to the poor. And it was God’s love that enabled him to experience more deeply in his oneness with them.

My brothers, God continually leads us to the poor. That’s our vocation. That’s why the Spirit of the Lord has come upon us. We have been anointed to bring glad tidings to the poor. We pray that in this General Assembly we let it be the Spirit of the Lord Jesus that leads us to an ever greater commitment as brothers, united in the evangelization and service of the poor. And may we do so in a way that is creatively faithful.

As we gather around the table of the Lord, to be nourished by his Word and nourished by the gift of the Eucharist, let us ask the Lord to strengthen our love one for another, that love He first had for us, as we go forth to proclaim “a year acceptable to the Lord.” May He help us to stretch that year into at least the next six years.

[tekst homilii po polsku, przeczytaj TUTAJ]