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Archives: February 2018
For this Sunday’s readings click on the link below or copy and paste it into your browser.
http://usccb.org/bible/readings/030418-year-b.cfm
Our Church has always taught that Jesus is true God and true man. In this Sunday’s Gospel --- the familiar story of the cleansing of the temple --- we get a glimpse into Jesus’ humanity. We are told that Jesus “found in the temple area those who sold oxen, sheep and doves, as well as the money changers seated there. He made a whip out of cords and drove them all out of the temple area, with the sheep and oxen, and spilled the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables, and to those who sold doves he said, ‘Take these out of here and stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.’”
In addition to being a good example of Jesus’ humanity, what are we to make of this incident? First, it would be wrong to use this incident to justify our own outbursts of anger. I say this because Jesus’ anger was directed at a situation, not a person. It was not hurtful or vengeful. It was very controlled, specific and limited in duration. And its purpose was not to offend or put down. Rather, the point and purpose of Jesus’ anger was to call people back to the reason they came to the temple. The temple was not a place to conduct business; rather it was a place where people could worship and attend to their relationship with God. Jesus’ anger reminded them (and us) of this fundamental truth.
Our first reading this Sunday is taken from the Book of Exodus. It is the story of God giving the Ten Commandments to the Israelites. And as we all know, the third commandment is “Remember to keep holy the Sabbath day.” Clearly the people in today’s Gospel were not heedful of this commandment.
Our second reading this Sunday is taken from the first letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians. In blunt and stark terms, Paul reminds us that “Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are called, Jews and Greeks alike, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God.”
Questions for Reflection/Discussion:
- Have you ever used Jesus’ display of anger to justify your own anger?
- How do you keep holy the Sabbath day?
- I suspect that for people who don’t come from a Christian background, the idea of a crucified Savior could be a stumbling block. How would you explain Jesus’ crucifixion to a non-Christian?
Currently, nearly two million young people who qualify as Dreamers are anxiously waiting for lawmakers in Washington, D.C. to come up with a bipartisan bill ahead of the March 5 deadline, when protections for DACA youth expire.
Archbishop Hebda has asked all people of good will to call their federal lawmakers on Monday, February 26, and urge them to move forward with debate on legislation to provide relief to Dreamers – those young people who were brought to the U.S. by their parents without proper documentation. For more information, vistit the Archdiocesan website.
- Replaced three original 1913 boilers with new more efficient equipment.
- Renovated the Rectory and School buildings with central air conditioning, replacing 35 window units.
- Updated to LED lighting in the campus interior and exterior including the bell towers, church sanctuary, and lower level.
- When have you had a “transfiguring” moment in your life?
- In what way has the grace of that moment helped you to face any difficult situations you encountered later in life?
- When have you felt God asking you to do something difficult or something you didn’t want to do?
The season of Lent is a time for reflection and meditation on the meaning of Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection. The sacred Psalms offer a beautiful, prayerful Lenten devotion in word and song.
Join us Fridays in Lent for Mass at 6:00pm and Stations of the Cross at 7:00pm.
Thank you to those who shared their gifts to create the video:
Johan van Parys: Director of Liturgy & Sacred Arts Liturgy
Walter Tambor: Contemporary & World Music, Piano
Julia Vikesland: Cantor, Parishioner
Jonathan Vikesland: Video Filming/Editing, Parishioner
For this Sunday’s readings click on the link below or copy and past it into your browser.
http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/021818.cfm
This weekend we begin the season of Lent. For the next six weeks, through our acts of prayer, fasting and almsgiving, we will try to show our desire to “repent and believe in the Gospel.” Each year on the first Sunday of Lent, we always read one of the accounts of Jesus’ Temptation in the Desert. This year we read Mark’s account. Now since Mark’s was the first Gospel written and also the shortest, it doesn’t include the details that Matthew and Luke include in their Gospels. Mark merely says: “The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert, and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan. He was among wild beasts and the angels ministered to him.” The lack of details is not meant to minimize the reality of the temptations Jesus faced in the desert. They were real and Jesus struggled with them. For Mark, though, the important thing was not the temptations Jesus faced, but that fact that he overcame them and afterward began his public ministry by proclaiming: “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the Gospel.”
In each of our lives, we too face temptations, but because of Jesus, and the grace he offers us, we are can overcome them and follow the way of Jesus.
Our first reading this weekend is from the Book of Genesis. It takes place immediately after the story of the great flood. The flood waters have receded and God establishes a covenant with his people. We are told: “This is the sign that I am giving for all ages to come, of the covenant between me and you and every living creature with you; I set my bow in the clouds to serve as a sign of the covenant between me and the earth.”
Our second reading this weekend is taken from the first Letter of Saint Peter. In this reading, Peter reminds us that the great flood “prefigured baptism, which saves you now.”
Questions for Reflection/Discussion:
- While we all face temptations in our lives, some people seem to resist them more successfully than others. Why do you think this is?
- Where do you need to repent this Lent?
- I take great comfort in the fact that God has made a covenant with us. At times, though, I also worry that I am not living up to my end of the covenant. Have you ever felt this way?
Basilica Welcomes Transfer of Memory Exhibition
For this Sunday’s readings click on the link below or copy and paste it into your browser.
http://usccb.org/bible/readings/021118.cfm
In our Gospel this weekend, we read the story of a healing of a leper. Now at the time of Jesus, leprosy was a terrible curse. It was a disfiguring and crippling disease. There was no cure for it, and since people didn’t know how it was spread, lepers were forced to live apart from others in isolation and loneliness. Thus, the leper in our Gospel today took a great risk in even approaching Jesus. Yet we are told that “A leper came to Jesus and kneeling down begged him and said: ‘If you wish, you can make me clean.” We are then told that “Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand, touched him and said to him, ‘I do will it. Be made clean.’” The leper was cleansed. Jesus told him to tell no one and to go show himself to the priests so that they could certify that he was no longer a leper. Instead of remaining quiet, however, the leper went off and began to “publicize the whole matter.”
There are three things to note in this Gospel. First, the leper came to Jesus in complete honesty and clear desperation. He knew he needed Jesus, and his request conveyed his raw, naked need. Second, Jesus knew the leper needed to be healed, but he also knew he lived apart and alone in isolation without any human contact. I believe it is for this reason that Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him. Jesus knew that he needed human contact as much as he needed to be healed. Third, I believe the leper went and publicized his healing after Jesus told him to tell no one because he had been touched in a profound way by God’s grace. When this has happened to us we just can’t keep it to ourselves.
Our first reading this weekend provides the background for our Gospel. It is taken from the Book of Leviticus and it details how lepers were to be dealt with. They were to make their abode “outside of camp,” and they were to cry out “unclean, unclean” when someone approached. To understand this treatment it is helpful to remember that at that time illness or hardship were believed to be the result of sin. Something bad happened to you because you had sinned.
In our second reading we continue to read from the first letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians. In the section we read today, Paul reminds people to “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.”
Questions for Reflection/Discussion:
- Have you ever approached Jesus in prayer with the raw need of the leper?
- Jesus knew that the leper needed to be healed, but he also knew he desired simple human contact. He offered the leper both. Has Jesus ever given you something you didn’t realize you needed?
- What is one concrete thing you can do to imitate Christ?
Immediately upon hearing Jesus’ call, Andrew, Simon Peter, James, and John left their boats and nets to follow Him. But in modern times it can be more confusing for us to heed Jesus’ call. We are surrounded by more distractions, more messages, and more noise. In the cacophony of texts, emails, advertisements, and social media posts which make up our daily lives, it is hard to find enough stillness to hear and discern God’s call.
Yet we must remember “God is not the wind or the earthquake or the fire. God is the gentle blowing” (1 Kings 19:12). It is our human challenge to be still and attentive enough to hear God. Basilica Young Adults group member Sunoh Choe recognizes to this challenge, saying “we live in a time with diversity of thought, differing lifestyles, competing priorities, and plenty of distractions. Life has more purpose when we incorporate ‘spiritual food’ into our lives.”
ENGAGEMENT OF YOUNG ADULTS
A 2014 Religious Landscape Study by Pew Research Center study shows growing rates of religiously “unaffiliated” people, most noticeably in the young adult demographic. Some estimates state US Catholic confirmation rates (typically between ages of 16-18) are less than half that of baptisms (often at birth or early childhood).
Because The Basilica is a recognizable landmark in the midst of a bustling urban center, it has long been a popular parish for young adults. Currently 21% of our parish members are between the ages of 23 and 37, commonly known as Generation Y or Millennials.
The Basilica intentionally reaches out to members in this age group to deepen engagement for many reasons. Young adults are constantly reshaping and redefining our secular world. Their perspectives and needs must be considered in our parish community as well. To paraphrase our vision statement from the prophet Jeremiah, in their well-being we will also find our own.
Basilica pastor Fr. John Bauer cites Saint John Paul II’s urging to “open wide the doors for Christ” as a reason The Basilica dedicates resources toward ministry for young adults. In his invitation to World Youth Day, Pope Francis recently told young people, “God is also watching over you and calling you, and when God does so, he is looking at all the love you are able to offer.”
BASILICA YOUNG ADULTS
Basilica Young Adults (BYA) is a Basilica group for social activities and service for people in their 20s and 30s. A visit to their web page or their social media page shows a dizzying array of opportunities each week varying from bible studies, speaker events, and sandwich making for our neighbors in need to sand volleyball and happy hours. The group’s coordinator and Basilica staff member Ben Caduff says there is intentionally “a spectrum of opportunities with something for everyone and a wide variety of on-ramps to participation.”
Rooted in the variety of BYA activities is a focus on religion and spirituality. “The Basilica attracts a diverse group of people in backgrounds, careers, skills, personalities, and stages of faith,” Choe observes. “The group recognizes the personal faith journey each person is on, and everyone is welcome,” adds Caduff. “People can feel comfortable getting more involved.”
Members say authentic relationships are a key difference between BYA and other non-religious social groups. BYA member Grace Kane explains, “within our one triune God we can see how relationship is integral to faith.” Core to all BYA events is the invitation for attendees
to grow in their faith and their relationship with God and Jesus. Participants share a common yearning for authenticity and actively living out their faith, even if they are still seeking answers. Kane defines relationship in this context as “being open, receptive, attentive, and loving.”
This focus creates a unique sense of welcome, community, and belonging because, as BYA member Kyra Knoff notes, "two or more are gathered." In one another they find a group of people intentionally building strong relationships with each other, with God, and with their Catholic faith. Despite modern technology which can promote impersonal communication, BYA members heed the Gospel call to real face-to-face relationships.
Full article BASILICA Magazine, Fall 2017, page 22
by Melissa Streit
www.mary.org/sites/default/files/assets/files/2415-2482-basilica-magazine-fall-2017.pdf
The award-winning BASILICA magazine is sponsored by The Basilica Landmark, a 501(c)(3) corporation whose mission is the preservation and restoration of the historic Basilica of Saint Mary and it campus. BASILICA is published twice a year (spring and fall) with a circulation of 20,000.
For advertising information please contact Peggy Jennings.