Letter to Families - Commentary, Part II

Our continuation of our reflection on Pope John Paul II's Letter to Families leads us to consider the place of prayer. The pope begins by pointing out that family life has the potential to be a prayer, that families are the root of prayer (part of the reason the Church calls the family "the domestic church"). He continues:

"It is significant that precisely in and through prayer, man comes to discover in a very simple and yet profound way his own unique subjectivity: in prayer the human 'I' more easily perceives the depth of what it means to be a person."

-Letter to Families, 4

The pope reflects his personalist philosophy here. In the tradition of the personalist philosophers of the 20th century, he points to the I-thou relationship, whereby one person (the 'I') becomes more self-aware the more deeply they enter into a relationship with the other. For instance, if I stand alone by myself, I may be self-aware, but it doesn't seem like anything special. When, however, I am in relation to another person, I begin to realize that I have an inner life that is unapproachable to the other, and that they too have that inner life, that subjectivity. The pope is making the point that this is especially true in the relationship between God and man, where there is far less in common, and we can only be filled with awe over how entirely "other" God is. Prayer makes us aware of God's otherness, that aspect of Him which cannot be approached and is completely intangible, shrouded in mystery (and thankfully, that part of Himself which He has graciously chosen to reveal to us). In a certain paradoxical sense, the closer we get to God, the farther we may see ourselves from Him. It is easy for a person beginning the spiritual journey to see God on one's own level, but as the relationship develops, one finds God infinitely beyond, and yet intimately close. I digress...

Pope John Paul II extends this subjectivity to the family. As the Trinity is one family (analogously), so the human family is a distinct subjective unit. Prayer within the family helps the family together to grow in awareness of its subjectivity with regard to God. I would speculate that the individual members of the family, all aware of this subjectivity of the family, would then grow closer amongst themselves, as if aware of the solidarity they have as one unit in relation to God. So prayer truly brings families together. Thus the pope continues:

"This subjectivity finds its first and fundamental confirmation, and is strengthened, precisely when the members of the family meet in the common invocation: 'Our Father.' Prayer increases the strength and spiritual unity of the family, helping the family to partake of God's own 'strength.'"

-Letter to Families, 4

Pope John Paul II contrasts this unity of the family in prayer with the forces at work in the world to break down the family:

"Unfortunately various programmes backed by very powerful resources nowadays seem to aim at the breakdown of the family. At times it appears that concerted efforts are being made to present as 'normal' and attractive, and even to glamourize, situations which are in fact 'irregular.' Indeed, they contradict 'the truth and love' which should inspire and guide relationships between men and women, thus causing tensions and divisions in families, with grave consequences particularly for children. The moral conscience becomes darkened; what is true, good and beautiful is deformed; and freedom is replaced by what is actually enslavement."

-Letter to Families, 5

Naturally, at the heart of these programs (keep in mind that the letter is translated into the British usage of the English language, thus it reads "programmes") is an attack on prayer, and in order to achieve that, an attack on faith, while at the same time distracting the family with things considered "more worthy" of the family's time (how often as a youth minister I have found myself competing with soccer games!). It is vital for the modern family to shut off the television and pray, but this is hard to bring about even in one individual (I admit that I struggle with it!), let alone a family. I am convinced that we need to return, in some spiritual sense, to the Catholic ghettos that once existed. I'm not saying that the Catholic family should be poor and unable to afford shelter, medical care, or the like. What I am saying, however, is that the Catholic family should be spiritually poor, giving, and especially filled with prayer. Only then will we see change for the better in our Church, our society, and our world.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah Murphy

Good Problems

At any given moment, there exists in my mind a battle between optimism and pessimism. A part of me sees something bad, another sees it in a good light. Today, I was struck by yet another such situation, something one of my good volunteers calls "a good problem to have." We have been announcing for a month or longer our youth trip to Six Flags, which will be tomorrow. Of course, calls started coming in at the last moment, as was to be expected. Our parish bus only seats 25, and as the requests continued to pour in, it became increasingly clear to me that I would need to cap the number or find some additional transportation. By God's grace, we were able to do the latter, and we still had to cap the number after reserving enough spots to fill our bus and two SUVs. This, as you can see, is a problem, but it is a good problem to have.

How generous is the Lord in His providence!

With the virtue of hope, I can only pray that optimism wins out the battle in my soul at all costs.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah Murphy

The Reformation of the Diocesan Website

Web design has been on my mind as I collaborate with a friend who designs websites on the redesign of my own parish website, so naturally, one thing that popped into my mind yesterday as I typed about the new bishop was the need of the Diocese of Shreveport for a fresh look to their little street address along the information superhighway. This morning, I mentioned it to a coworker and when we visited the diocesan website, we found this: Diocese of Shreveport.

What a pleasant and timely surprise! We both laughed at the coincidence, but upon further investigation, I did a little more laughing on my own. It was well-known among employees of the diocese that the website was long out of date and that many things had not been updated in quite some time, so I felt the bishop must have noticed when I read a little part of his commentary on the first page: "On On March 12, 2008, my life changed in a single moment due to an unexpected phone call from Archbishop Pietro Sambi, the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States. He called to inform me the Holy Father, Benedict XVI, had chosen me to be the second Bishop for the Diocese of Shreveport. I was overwhelmed, but in the next moment I assured Archbishop Sambi I would accept. We exchanged a few words and I hung up the phone. For the next few moments, I just sat there trying to take it all in. Then I went to the Internet and searched for the Catholic Diocese of Shreveport; and for the first time, I saw the Diocese I am now called to serve. Paging through the website..."

How funny is that? Here I was commenting on our need of a new website and it turns out it was the first thing from our diocese the new bishop laid eyes on! Perhaps he had been of the same opinion as I, but one thing is for sure, if he asked for the changes that have been made, he has good taste.

God bless,

Micah Murphy

Letter to Families - Commentary, Part I

In my Scripture Study for this last Sunday, I mentioned that the family is a model of the Trinity. As an extension of this, I would like to take some time to comment on Pope John Paul II's Letter to Families, which is filled with wonderful theological reflections and practical insights on the nature of human families. This will be a topic of ongoing discussion. Without further delay:

"...man is the way of the Church.

With these words I wanted first of all to evoke the many paths along which man walks, and at the same time to emphasize how deeply the Church desires to stand at his side as he follows the paths of his earthly life. The Church shares in the joys and hopes, the sorrows and anxieties of people's daily pilgrimage, firmly convinced that it was Christ himself who set her on all these paths. Christ entrusted man to the Church; he entrusted man to her as the "way" of her mission and her ministry.

Among these many paths, the family is the first and the most important. It is a path common to all, yet one which is particular, unique and unrepeatable, just as every individual is unrepeatable; it is a path from which man cannot withdraw. Indeed, a person normally comes into the world within a family, and can be said to owe to the family the very fact of his existing as an individual. When he has no family, the person coming into the world develops an anguished sense of pain and loss, one which will subsequently burden his whole life. The Church draws near with loving concern to all who experience situations such as these, for she knows well the fundamental role which the family is called upon to play. Furthermore, she knows that a person goes forth from the family in order to realize in a new family unit his particular vocation in life."

-Letter to Families, 1-2

Here we read that the Church is in solidarity with man, and given that place by Christ. The Church must then be involved in the life of the family in a special way, since this is something fundamental to human existence.

Pope John Paul II makes the obvious yet often overlooked observation (his favorite type of observation) that every human person has a family at least on the biological order. He also points out that family is the root of vocation, not only by being a community in which we usually feel our first calling to God's will, but in that family is where we end up in realizing our vocations. So family is at the beginning and end of all things, just as the Trinity is the source of our life and also, if we live gracefully, the "place" of our eternity.

"The divine mystery of the Incarnation of the Word thus has an intimate connection with the human family."

-Letter to Families, 2

Indeed, Jesus Christ chose to become incarnate through a family (as JPII points out in an unquoted section of text). As such, a central part of His mission is the salvation of the family. Over the next few weeks, I hope to elaborate on His plan to bring the human family into the embrace of the divine family, the Holy Trinity, and so offer to every family the precious gift of salvation, which is not only being saved from evil and sin, but a healing gift that makes every family whole, fully able to cooperate in the fire of divine love of the Holy Trinity. Keep your eyes open for more.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah Murphy

His Excellency Michael Gerard Duca, Bishop of Shreveport

What a perfect day for an ordination! Of course, I'm referencing the wonderful and most blessed reception of the Sacrament of Holy Orders by our very own (and very new) Bishop Michael Duca. The chrism is still fresh on his head and the memories are still fresh in my mind.

First impressions were everything. Imagine thousands of people turning up for a Mass in the Shreveport Convention Center. Imagine walking in and seeing banners of every color adorning the makeshift nave and sanctuary (not my personal favorite as far as decorations go, but one has to acknowledge they did very well, given that it was held in a convention hall). Imagine a nice, traditional altar, a solemn cross (not a resurrexifix...this gives me hope!), and an ornate cathedra. Imagine over 20 bishops, together with all the priests and deacons of the Diocese of Shreveport, all walking in procession with plenty of Knights of Columbus (as well as the Order of Malta and some others I didn't recognize), including the Metropolitan Archbishop of New Orleans and the Apostolic Nuncio Pietro Sambi. Imagine untold numbers of priests, religious, and seminarians from Dallas and the surrounding area, and a whole flood of native Texans, all crowding in to honor their gift to the Church of Shreveport. Imagine, at the end of this great procession, a humble, lowly Italian priest, a monsignor of the Diocese of Dallas, walking slowly toward the rest of his life. It was a sight to behold.

After a little typical microphone humor (why is it that Catholics never seem to be tech-savvy?), the liturgy was underway, and we heard the readings, the Gospel on the Good Shepherd, and the homily. Then we saw it, the ordination, the chrism, the Book of the Gospels, the Miter, the Crossier, the Cathedra. It was a rite only the Lord Himself could top, and so He saw fit to come to us in the Most Blessed Sacrament.

For those who could not make it, a few key notes:

1. The liturgy was masterfully performed. As I've noted before, I'm not a huge fan of multi-cultural liturgy, except when the cultures represented are present (which they were in this case). The bishop showed great taste in his liturgical choices, as if to show that he could both appreciate and rise above the liturgical preferences of his new flock; for those of us who are more traditional, there were several Latin hymns, for those who are more contemporary, the familiar "Mass of Creation" set the tone; for those who spoke Spanish, there were a couple hymns in that language; it was as if he was trying to send us a message, that he is open to being a collaborator on liturgical matters, but at the same time, not willing to make the liturgy into something irrelevant or "fluffy." Nowhere was there a song speaking of "singing the Church into being" or other such theological nonsense popularly advocated by contemporary musicians. There was simply good liturgy. It did not fit my own desires perfectly, but it was good, and I was pleased.

2. As a friend of mine said, the bishop did not "play his cards." Now, I still have it on fairly good authority that our bishop is orthodox, and this is good, because we all know how responsible orthodoxy has been of late for producing vocations (compare the vocations per capita in the dioceses of St. Louis, Wichita, Lincoln, Arlington, Peoria, Phoenix, and Baker with the vocations per capita in dioceses not known for orthodoxy, which I will not be so daring as to name). As a former vocation director and rector at a seminary (which, I understand, has a reputation as fairly traditional), Bishop Duca is no doubt aware of the statistics. Regardless, in a diocese where many Church employees are split on the matter or orthodoxy, the bishop has chosen for the time being to keep his cards at least somewhat hidden. That is not to say that he necessarily has an agenda or anything to hide, but that he has the good pastoral sense to find where things stand. Regardless, the bishop spoke very well and very intelligently on his duties as bishop, leading me to believe that there are wedded in him a worthy intellect and a humble, friendly disposition. I am quite positive these will be two strong traits which will, in time, be reflected within the Diocese of Shreveport.

3. There is no indication how much time will pass before Bishop Duca begins making moves. Those of us working in the Diocese of Shreveport are aware of several immediate needs, namely, a diocesan director of religious education (we are without one presently, and Bishop Duca, if you're by any small chance reading this, as a graduate of Steubenville, I'd be happy to go interview people for the position at my alma mater), a new website (or at least someone who will update the current one so that the Easter greeting from two years ago can finally come down), vocation awareness material, a decrease in the tax the diocese places on the tithes at individual parishes (a whopping 19%, keeping us from doing many of the things we need to do on a parish level), and, last but not least, an approach to Protecting God's Children that isn't paranoid (honestly, it's almost to the point where everyone who comes to Church is going to have to be certified).

4. When I first came to work in the Diocese of Shreveport, I was discouraged by the lack of a bishop. Without that capstone, that leadership in our community, it is difficult to have hope for one's ministry. I found it a pleasing surprise that Bishop Duca chose as his motto: "Hope in the Lord." I find it a fitting motto, and I do indeed now have an increased sense of hope, because of the wonderful new bishop with whom the Lord has blessed us.

Your Excellency, we salute you and honor you as our new bishop, and wish you many years of ministry and all the wisdom of the most gracious Spirit of God.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah Murphy

PS - Unfortunately, the fact that it was an episcopal ordination did not keep people from walking out immediately after Communion (and before hearing the new bishop's speech). What a shame! What an insult to our new bishop, not to mention Our Lord. St. Philip Neri had the correct approach, I am convinced: when a woman walked out after Communion on one occasion, he sent the acolytes after her with the candles, through all the streets of the town, "go in procession with her, for she bears our Lord, and we must honor Him even when she will not."

Sunday Scripture: The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

Readings for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

Today's readings reflect the gradual revelation of the Most Holy Trinity. Many passages could have been chosen, but I think the readings we have are a great way to contrast the revelation of the One True God in the Old Testament with the revelation of the Triune God in the New Testament. Together, these truths reveal much about God, but they also wrap Him in yet another shroud of mystery, a truth so far beyond human comprehension that only faith in His Word can overcome all difficulty.

I would like to start by specifically taking a look at the second reading, in which the Triune God is manifestly invoked. This invocation, you may recognize, is used quite often in Mass. It is a nutshell version of what I like to call the Trinitarian Dynamic (which I will explain later, if requested). The Holy Trinity is truly a wonderful mystery, a mystery which has taken many millenia to reveal.

Among the other popular Old Testament passages that reveal the Trinity is that of Abraham meeting the three angels (Genesis 18). The famous iconographer Andrei Rublev wrote an icon (icons are written, not painted) of the Holy Trinity that has gone down through the ages as one of the great Trinitarian masterpieces (a very worthwhile explanation can be found here). It has long been the Tradition of the Church that this Old Testament event was a revelation of the Holy Trinity, each angel representing one of the Persons of the Holy Trinity. Nevertheless, the Hebrews were not privy to an explicit pronouncement of this most central doctrine, and so we Christians are highly privileged (and with that privilege comes the obligation to evangelize).

Let's take a moment to understand the Hebrew idea of God's unity. Essentially, God revealed Himself as one, and even as a jealous God (meaning that He would, sometimes quite literally [cf. 1 Samuel 5], knock off other gods). He told Moses, "I am who am" (Exodus 3:14), and this is a clear indicator of His unity. If there are multiple gods, and one of them is being itself, then only that one could ever be a true god, since the others are all lacking in being and rely on the being of that one god. What if they all shared being equally? Well, aside from being silly, that would create another dilemma: you would essentially have multiple gods with various traits of being divided amongst themselves. None of them would effectively have the "being" market cornered. None of them would truly be in the way that God is. So it is logical that as long as there is such a thing as absolute reality, of authentic being, then there must be one, simple (i.e. not divided into parts), supreme being.

However, we also know that God is love (1 John 4:16). Love, as anyone knows, requires more than one person. So the Church teaches that the Godhead has Father and Son (and the Holy Spirit, whom I'll address later). How does this jive, though, with what we just said about the unity in God? There must be one, simple divine nature. We can't divide God's being among the Persons of the Trinity. What solution can we find? The secular world talks of time-shares, lending, and other win-win situations, where every man can have what he needs, if only he would share with others. That's all well and good, but it's not divine. God doesn't look to compromise or to share, God looks to give, and to give entirely. God is capable of being both one and three without division or difficulty precisely because God loves. The Father doesn't need to split off a part of His being to give to the Son; He gives Himself entirely, selflessly, out of love. This is why the Church has always taught that the Father and the Son have the same nature. That doesn't just mean that they are the same type of being, both divine (as we can say humans have the same nature because we have the same type of being, human); this means something entirely different. The divine nature is one and undivided. It is "possessed" (that word fails to capture the necessary meaning) entirely by the Father and the Son for all eternity. The only way for this to happen is if the Father and the Son dwell in one another, so that they hold the divine nature in one another in themselves. Jesus declares as much in John 14:11 (and in John 15, He says that we can share in that).

By way of analogy, let's suppose that the Father and Son are in time. The Father gives Himself entirely to His Son, His whole nature. The Son gives Himself entirely back. If we imagine this as the Father handing Himself to the Son, we would say that He holds Himself in His hands. So we have an image: the Father, holding His very nature, offering it to the Son. This is the act of supreme love, and in it we see the "Bond of Love," the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is in the giving of self; the gift of love within the Godhead is so powerful, so complete, that there is a moment when, in transit from the Father to the Son, the divine nature is possessed by another Person, the Holy Spirit (remember, this is an analogy, there is no "moment," let alone "moment of transfer" in the Holy Trinity).

So, what do we know about the Holy Trinity? If each of the three Persons is exactly the same in nature (as they appear to be in Rublev's icon), how can they be distinct? Again, I turn to the icon. Notice the eyes: two of the angels gaze at each other while the third looks on the two of them. The love is in the eyes; the Father and the Son love one another and the Holy Spirit participates in and flows from that love. So, since the early Church, have we believed that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are distinct only in one way: through their relationships. Only the Father is "Father" in the relationship, only the Son is "Son," and only the Holy Spirit is "Holy Spirit."

There are obvious parallels in the life of the family. A father and mother love one another and give themselves to one another completely, and from this, a child is born, their bond of love, who is a "mixture" of the two of them, containing in a genetic way their whole (bodily) nature, somewhere in his make-up. So what if parents strove to love one another better? Perhaps the children would themselves be more filled with love, more capable of living a Christian life. What if parents looked at their children as models of the unity they should have with one another, since the children are manifest unions of their parents? Would families be closer? If parents respected their children and treated them as the fruit of their love, would families be closer? I believe we have much to learn from the Holy Trinity, and only by coming into contact with the Holy Trinity will we allow God to transform our families for the better.

Further Reading: The Divine Family: The Trinity and Our Life in God and the Quicumque (or "the Athanasian Creed")

His Servant and Yours,

Micah Murphy

PS-After I wrote this, I discovered the following commentary on Zenit: Trinity is a School of Relations. It's a good read.

"Smoke of Satan" and Liturgical Abuse

Catholic World News is carrying a story on Pope Paul VI's statement on the "Smoke of Satan" and its true meaning. You can read the article here.

What I find most interesting is the Cardinal's point about creativity and the limelight. Those who know me realize that I am fond of traditional liturgy and traditional architecture. On a side note, ecclesial architecture is a hobby of mine. The following is an image from a church (please feel free to tell me what you think) I am currently working on using Google's Sketchup Program:



I have often commented that the ecclesial architecture of the mid-20th century was lacking because there was a movement in art (and architecture) at the time that said true art was an expression of the soul. Now, there is some truth to that, and I'm not against it, but clearly ecclesial art should be an expression of God's "soul," of that reality that lies in the depths of the divine life. The Eastern Catholic Rites, which I admire, though I admit I do not fully understand them, have long guard the importance of sacred architecture, identifying the sanctuary as a heavenly place that should not be taken lightly, and should, to some extend, be separated from the nave of the Church (which is why I favor altar rails). In the South, there is such a loss of understanding of Church architecture that many Catholics here call the whole Church the sanctuary (a definition borrowed from our proximate Baptist and Methodist neighbors). This, however, is not the Catholic definition of a sanctuary. The assembly, the congregation, is seated in the "nave" (from the Latin for "ship"), while the priest leads the liturgy in the sanctuary, which is demonstrative, iconographic even, of heaven. The modern lapse in artistic standards, whereby beauty came to be a matter of self-expression rather than expression of that which is truly beautiful, has caused many poorly designed churches, including the chapel at my own alma mater, Franciscan University of Steubenville (which looks like, depending on with whom you speak, a spaceship, a half-open can of tuna, or, in the words of my ecclesiology professor Fr. Giles Dimock, "a bunker").

Let me be clear: Vatican II was a good and much needed council, and its teachings and declarations were right-on. There are many good things to the liturgy, and even to modern church architecture, but it is nowhere near where it should be.

So what is the point, Micah? Are you just rambling again about some matter of personal preference? No, my point is simply that I believe the Cardinal is correct; creativity and limelight have maligned the liturgy as it is practiced in the Latin Rite, just as they have maligned sacred architecture. A church should be an icon of heaven, a place in which truth and beauty stand immortal, ineffable, and utterly immutable, and the liturgy should be a sacrament of the life of heaven, where we can come into contact with Jesus Christ, the living icon of the unseen God, and be entirely transformed from glory into glory.

As the good Cardinal points out, we have wrecked the ship of the Church on the shelf of our pride, hidden far beneath the murky depths of Satan's smoke. Let us pry it from what would be its watery grave, and launch it out to sea once more. Let us cast into the deep!

His Servant and Yours,

Micah Murphy

Photos

Just a little update from a sonogram last week, for those who are keeping tabs on the baby's development:

Baby Murphy, evidently sucking his/her thumb

The same picture, but with commentary

Baby Murphy, all lookin' like an alien

The same picture, but with commentary

Baby Murphy, evidently flipping off his/her parents

The same picture, but with commentary

His Servant and Yours,

Micah Murphy

Holy See Launches Latin Section on Vatican Website

Ever wondered what specific words were used by the popes in their encyclicals, exhortations, motu proprios, or other writings, but couldn't find the original Latin online? The Holy See has just launched a new section of their website devoted to Latin documents.

Click here to check it out.

I, for one, plan on using this resource frequently. Let the conjugating begin!

His Servant and Yours,

Micah Murphy

Pentecost

For those who don't know, Pentecost is from the Greek name of a Hebrew Feast (the "Feast of Weeks," ending the fifty day (7 weeks plus on day, thus the Hebrew name) period following Passover (the commands for the feast are described in Leviticus 23). As we Christians have our feasts as the fulfillment of what liturgies God placed among the Hebrews, our Pentecost is also fifty days after Easter (the fulfillment of Passover).

How, though, does the falling of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles correlate with the Feast of Weeks? Well, we are told in Acts 2:1 that our first Pentecost happened the day the apostles were celebrating the Hebrew Pentecost in prayer, so there must be some significance. I am personally convinced that the common thread is harvesting. The Feast of Weeks was a harvest festival, where man would offer his first fruits of the harvest to God. Jesus frequently used parables relating the Kingdom of God to a harvest and evangelization to sowing seed (Matthew 13, Matthew 9:35-38). The apostles had not yet done this, because they were waiting for the Advocate (or Paraclete, not, by the way, a parakeet or a pair-o-cleats). Having received the Holy Spirit, the Apostles were able to go out and preach the Gospel to all people, all four types of soul, and they reaped a harvest immediately ("Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand persons were added that day" -Acts 2:41).

So what is Pentecost for us? Pentecost is a challenge for us to receive the Holy Spirit and ask Him to work in our lives according to His will (not to use Him as if He was "the force"). Pentecost is a call to prayer and evangelization. Will you take up the challenge?

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, and enkindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit, and they shall be created, and you shall renew the face of the earth.

Please, Holy Spirit, anoint me!

God bless,

Micah Murphy

A Reflection on the Occasion of My Wife's Graduation

Jennie graduated in December with her degree in theology from Franciscan University of Steubenville, but she's only been able now to attend a ceremony. It was a good deal of fun, and there was much excitement to be had.

Graduation is a mark of growth, of moving on from one thing to another. For me, this last weekend was an opportunity to see how things have changed, how the hopes I once had have not been disappointed in the events that have since transpired. When Jennie finished her studies, she had a different last name, only one ring on her finger, and a very flat tummy. Now, she has my last name, two rings on her finger, and a slightly larger tummy, bulging with fresh life.

I was especially reflecting on this as we were together in bed one morning over the weekend. I looked at her and was admiring her beauty when I found my hand wandering to her stomach. It's different being married and having a child on the way; the baby belly makes a man realize how much things are changing. It really hits home, especially when you go to hug your wife and realize there's this little bump that wasn't there before, and that inside that bump is this person that's (in a sense) half you, and to whom you'll be connected the rest of your life. That fact that your being and your very existence paved the way for this other being, this other existence...it all hits you, and if these thoughts find a man who has his heart in the right place, it simply brings this whole new fervor to life.

Things change so very quickly. One era ends and another begins. One life continues completely different from the way it had, and another new life begins having no past with which to be compared.

Graduation and marriage are not only ceremonies, but crucibles, so that those who pass through them come out different, stronger ideally, than they were before. They are a time for life to blossom so that new life can generate once more and the whole creation prolong itself just a little longer.

Think about whether your hopes and dreams from years ago have come true and what things have changed. Thank God for the good changes and ask for grace to fix the bad.

God bless,

Micah Murphy

...And Now, We're Back...

Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to apologize for the last week. I had to put in extra hours to make up for a day I was planning to miss at work, all so that my wife and I could attend her graduation ceremony from Franciscan University of Steubenville. Let me tell you, the trip to from Shreveport to DFW was as tiring as it was scary. After an 11 hour day of work, I had to drive the 3.5 hours to the airport through a nasty wall cloud, which so abruptly came upon me that I thought I had crashed into something. This continued for nearly half-an-hour, during which I was forced to drive 30mph down I-20. It was not pleasant.

Then we arrived at the hotel around midnight and went straight to bed, only to wake up the next morning at 6am. We flew first to Charlotte, NC, en route to Pittsburgh (could there be a more round-about way of arriving at one's destination?). It was, however, worth it. We were picked up by old friends and the chaos of a half a bagillion hugs finally set in.

However, I was unable to edit my blog, not only because we were surrounded by many more important things, but because my wireless card all-of-a-sudden stopped working, and for whatever reason, has started working again just as suddenly and uexpectedly. Go figure.

I will not, therefore, post a Sunday Scripture article for this Sunday, although Pentecost is so very important. This is due to the fact that I have been up since 5am, traveled by plane for 5 hours, crossed time zones, then drove for 3.5 hours back to Shreveport, only to attend Mass (nearly collapsed into a sad, tired heap on the pew). For whatever reason, I am currently experiencing a burst of energy for the cause of which I have no account.

However, I will share with you one reflection, and then I'll write briefly on Pentecost in another article (it will not be based on today's readings, though, or at least not exclusively).

God bless,

Micah Murphy

PS - I went with Nick (PhatCatholic) over at PhatCatholic Apologetics to see Ironman over the weekend while I was in Steubenville, but they changed the times on us. Instead, we watched Speed Racer. All I can say is...is speed his name, or is speed what the directors were using to come up with all the colors and flashing sequences in the movie? The plot was actually surprisingly good, but the graphics...made it like being stuck inside a pinball machine for two hours.

Sunday Scripture: "I Pray for Them"

This Sunday, May 4, 2008, I will be using the readings from the Seventh Sunday of Easter, which would be the default readings in any diocese which celebrated the Ascension on Thursday as is the norm. The readings may not match up with what you hear in Mass.

Readings for the Seventh Sunday of Easter, May 4, 2008

The readings this Sunday show us two particular things: prayer and perseverence through suffering. Despite the fact that Jesus is about to enter into His Passion in the Gospel reading, He speaks confidently with the Father, knowing that He will persever to the end, and prays that His Father glorify Him. For this reason, this and following chapters are traditionally called the "Book of Glory" in St. John's Gospel.

As we know, Pentecost (next Sunday, May 11th) is when we celebrate the descent of the Holy Spirit. It follows immediately after this Sunday's reading from Acts. In the Gospel, it is Jesus' prayer that comes right before His Passion and Glory. In the Book of Acts, it is the prayer of the Apostles that comes right before they receive the Advocate, who will lead them to proclaim the Gospel and also undergo much suffering, which will in the end be their glory as well.

It's no coincidence that these readings have been put together. What specifically does Jesus say He is praying for? Jesus is praying for His followers. He is praying not only for His glorification, but for theirs, and so we see that His prayer has born fruit. His prayer has led Him through persecution, and by modeling prayer for them, He was able to make them prayerful people, able to gather strength from prayer in order to preach the Gospel.

What about the prayer of the apostles? It's a participation in Christ's prayer before His Passion and Glory. The first reading and the Gospel tell us that prayer is necessary, and we know why from what we know is about to happen in both those passages: tribulation. The second reading, then, by telling us how to behave through persecution, points to the other readings: if you want to persevere in sufferings for Christ, pray! It's what Jesus did! It's what the apostles did!

The Holy Spirit is about to descend from Heaven! Pray to receive His gifts anew this Pentecost, so that you will be willing and able to preach Christ, even in the midst of suffering!

His Servant and Yours,

Micah Murphy

Those Crazy Christians...

Mark Shea wrote a great little piece for the National Catholic Register entitled Christian Sanity. I don't want to ruin it for you, so click the link and read it yourself.

When you're done, ponder this question: what is the correlation between the things people complain about with regard to Christianity (or use as reasons against Christianity) and the things the culture at large values? How many modern societal values are exactly opposed to the Christian way of life? I think Mark Shea is on to one example, of course, and it's a pretty funny little irony that the early Christians were hated for being inclusive of those usually marginalized, while modern Christians are hated for being "exclusive."

Of course, this brings up another important point. Christianity is not really so much exclusive as it is "chosen," to use Mark's word. And, has he points out, those chosen are chosen precisely for the sake of the unchosen. Today, we live in a world where the Church is accused of being "exclusive," but she is no more exclusive than she was then. The early Church was inclusive because it sought out all people. The modern Church is just as inclusive. The early Church was inclusive of all persons, but exclusive of all sins. The problem is that, as I have pointed out previously, people today identify themselves by their sins. If the Church today excludes sins, or tries to practice "hate the sin, love the sinner," people automatically believe that they as persons are excluded. It's no surprise, either, since we have had a couple centuries of popular philosophy telling us that who we are and what we do is all pre-determined. Those who commit grave sins believe that they have no choice; it's simply what they do. If the Church is going to challenge them to change, then the Church is going to have to live without them, and since they can't help themselves, it's the Church's fault for not accommodating them. These are the lies of the modern era.

The Church turns no one away, but she does expect those who seek God to turn away from sin. "God loves you enough to embrace you the way you are, but He loves you too much to let you stay that way." This needs to be our understanding of what it means to be chosen by God. Until we get that point across, very few will want anything to do with God's chosen people.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah Murphy

PS - by 'inclusivity' I do not mean a happy little pow-wow where we all sing uplifting Church songs that neuter God and call Him an "it" or the like.

Happy May Day!

Today is May 1st, the first day of the month traditionally dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Because I am trying to follow the way of life of St. Joseph, I must take Mary into my home (Matthew 1:24). By this I mean to say that I am hoping to renew my old practice of praying the Rosary daily, something I have struggled with for some time. Additionally, while I was at church today, I saw a book of quotes by Bl. John XXIII; in one of them, he said that we learn obedience and silence from Joseph, as well as love of Mary. Traditionally, January is dedicated to the Holy Family, but I would like to make May a month of the Holy Family in my life. Any recommendations?

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

A Note to My Readers

To those of you who read this blog, thank you for your prayers. My wife seems to have gotten over the horrible morning-sickness stage of pregnancy and is doing quite well now, allowing us to focus more on getting excited about the wonderful gift of God growing in her womb.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah