Praying with the Sikh Community

 

Last Sunday, I was invited by our veterinarian Dr. Graywal to attend his Sikh community worship service. A Sikh house of worship is called a gurdwara. Typically, a gurdwara includes a commercial kitchen as well as a hall for community worship and meals.

As I entered the gurdwara, I removed my shoes and washed my hands that reflect the community’s way of showing respect for their scared space. I was next given a cloth to cover my head. Sikhs greet one another bringing their palms together at chest level (known as Anjali) and slightly bow their heads in a humbling and respectful way. They greet one another with the Punjabi salutation—Sat Sri Akal (roughly translated as “Blessed is the person who says God is Truth.”) The essence of this gesture is the belief that the divine exists within each one of us. As Catholics, I like this greeting and might introduce this gesture at all my Masses reminding people that “I see Christ in you.”

Dr. Graywal explained that the word Sikh (pronounced "sick") means 'disciple' or 'learner.' The Sikh religion was founded in Northern India in the fifteenth century by Guru Nanak Dev Ji and is distinct from Islam and Hinduism.  Sikhism is monotheistic and stresses the equality of all men and women.  Sikhs believe in three basic principles; meditating on the name of God (praying), earning a living by honest means as well as sharing the fruits of one’s labor with others. Sikhism rejects caste and class systems and emphasizes service to humanity. 

As I entered the gurdwara sacred space the men were wearing turbans. Turbans are worn to cover their long hair and with respect to God. The Sikh turban (dastar) is a crown of commitment and dedication to serve all humanity. It is an article of faith that represents honor, self-respect, courage, spirituality, and piety. 

 Salvar Kamees is a Sikh women's wear. Salvars are baggy loose fitting pants with ankle cuffs called ponche. The salvar is worn beneath the kamees, a dress top which is available in as many styles as there is imagination, and color, often decorated with embroidery. The very devout tend to wear simple prints or solid colors with a little embroidery, as an expression of humility. 

The Sikh faith is committed to the equality of women, as it defines God as gender neutral, perhaps one of the few major world religions to do so. There is no activity in a gurdwara or within the community that is permitted to a man but not to a woman. There is no religious function from which women are barred at any time of their lives.

Entering the main prayer hall, I felt an uplifting and soothing feeling. Musicians playing traditional Sikh devotional music filled the room with a beautiful sublime song. Many sat and prayed on rugs on the floor, while others bowed and placed offerings before a raised platform containing the Guru Granth (the holy book). I sat cross-legged and felt the peace and calm, being careful not to point my feet towards nor turn my back on the Guru Granth. 

After the service, I took part in the Langar. Langar is a beautiful tradition that takes place every day in every Sikh gurdwara around the world. Langar refers to full vegetarian meals that are funded and prepared completely by volunteer worshipers and served to anyone who wishes to partake in them. The kitchen was a hum of activity as people stirred giant pots filled with lentils. Back in the sacred space of worship, people shared in the great meal, and everyone pitched in to the dishes. The sense of true community and care was profound. As Catholics, we enjoy our Lenten Friday fish meals or once a year Spaghetti dinners. Perhaps, we need to start offering breakfast buffets or dinners after Sunday Mass to reflect our love for one another.

 Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who are Baptists, Lutherans, Jewish, Sikhs , Roman Catholic, Polish National Catholic and all faith traditions who gather each week to give you praise and thanks. My humble thanks to Dr. Graywal and all the members of his faith community who graciously welcomed me to their worship service and sent me home with a lots of homemade Sikh foods.

 

 

 

 

 

Why Do We Allow Weeds in Our Garden?

 

I wonder if Jesus is a terrible farmer or is he trying to make us think?

Jesus says that the kingdom is like somebody who sowed good seed in the field, but then found that there were weeds growing along with the wheat.  The field workers ask if they ought to pull up the weeds, but the owner says, “No, you would risk pulling up some of the good stuff at the same time.  Just wait till harvest and then we’ll sort it out.”

It is a ridiculous approach.  It is the opposite of what you would actually want to do.  Most of us know from experience that if you don’t control the weeds in your garden, by the end of the summer you might not even be able to find your peppers and tomatoes for all of the weeds.

In this world, there is good existing alongside the bad.  There are weeds among the wheat. Of course, we like to think of ourselves as the wheat, the good person, while the weeds are the bad guys. The question for us is, “What do we do about those weeds?” Another question that might make us uncomfortable, what about the weeds in my life?

We all have wheat and weed within us. I think we are both. We are all capable of great things and terrible things.  It might be more helpful to think of the wheat and weeds being mixed up – in our world, in our community, in our church, even within ourselves. We might ask ourselves: Why do we allow weeds in our garden?

Thank God, He is patient. Thank God, He is loving.  Thank God, He is merciful.  That’s the good news of this Gospel.  That Jesus sees the potential within each of us to be a weed or abundant fruit – and keeps giving another chance, keeps waiting, Because even when we’ve made a mess of things, even when our sins have caused a mess in our lives and hurt others, He can create something new.   

So much is messed up in our world right now.  But before I let that completely unsettle me and go down unproductive rabbit holes where I start making judgments and suggestions to the Lord on how things ought to be, I’ve learned it’s then that I need to stop… And to come back to being grateful, for example, knowing that the Lord has given me more time – to be attentive to my own weeds in my garden.  And maybe that’s the Lord’s hope, His plan – how much better would the entirety of His garden look if we all were to do the same?

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who have many gifts of wheat like joy, kindness and compassion. We are grateful for these graces. However, when the weeds appear like impatience, anger and judgment let us learn to pray to be honest with ourselves and ask Our Lord for wisdom to burn the weeds out of our garden and grow to be abundant fruit.

 

 

Are You Big Hearted

 

This past Sunday, I shared some thoughts with Fr. Erick about giving the “dreaded money talk” to his parishioners. 

 

Scientists tell us that every second, inside the sun, the equivalent of 4 million elephants are being transformed into light, an irretrievable, one-time gift. The sun is giving itself away. If this generosity should halt, all energy would eventually lose its source and everything would die and become inert. We, and everything on our planet, alive because of the generosity of the sun.

 

The sun reflects the abundance of God, a largesse that invites us to also be generous, to have big-hearts, to risk more in giving ourselves away in self-sacrifice, to witness to God's abundance.

 

But this isn't easy. 

 

Instinctually, we fear and we horde. Because of this, whether we are poor or not, we tend to work out of a sense of scarcity, fearing always that we don't have enough, that there isn't enough, and that we need to be careful in what we give away, that we can't afford to be too generous.

 

But our God is generous, and wasteful beyond our fears and imaginations. Nature too is stunningly overwhelming and generous. We see this in the biblical parable of the Sower: the Sower, God, whom Jesus describes, is not a calculating person who sows his grain carefully and only into worthy soil. This Sower scatters seeds everywhere: on the road, in the bushes, in the rocks, into barren soil, as well as into good soil. He has, it seems, unlimited seeds and so he works from a generous sense of abundance. We see that same abundance in the parable of the vineyard owner, where the owner, God, gives a full day's wage to everybody, whether they worked the full day or not. God, we are told, has limitless wealth and is not stingy in giving it out.

 

God is equally generous in forgiveness. In the parable of the Father who forgives the prodigal son we see a person who can forgive out of dignity and calculated cost to self. And we see this same largesse in Jesus himself as he forgives both those who executed him and those who abandoned him during his execution.

God, from everything we can see, is so rich in love and mercy that he can afford to be wasteful, over-generous, non-calculating, non-discriminating, and big-hearted beyond our imaginations.

 

And that's the invitation: to have a sense of God's abundance so as to risk always a bigger heart and generosity beyond the fear that has us believe that we need to be more calculating because things seem scarce.

 

My good friend Steve who comes every two years to maintain our water conditioner, choose to return a second time when I found moisture on the floor behind the tank. He diagnosed and repaired the problem and when I asked “how much for the repair?” he simply said “no charge.” Instead of money for his time and travel, in exchange I gave him two referrals. One to Hickey Freeman to get nice clothes for a wedding and the name of the washer and dryer company that farmers use that’s built to last. He was estatic and truly grateful with this gift of information.

 

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who are “big hearted.” I have never met a truly generous man or woman who didn't say that he or she always received more in return than he or she gave out. To be generous and big-hearted we have to first trust in God's abundance and generosity. What will you give today that resembles God’s gift of love for you?

 

I Will Give You Rest

 

Last Sunday, I shared Jesus’ teaching about acts of kindness that will not go unrewarded. Last Monday morning, a retired teacher and forester came to my farm to cut down a hanging log that smashed the tractor windshield. Later in the afternoon, I listened to Sarah’s fear that her parish in Las Vegas will need to look for another church building.

On the Fourth of July, our fire chief helped change a flat tire on a trailer stranded in front of his house. The tourist had no spare so he gave him a tire to get back home. Later on the 4th, Fr. Don called that a former parishioner of mine from 47 years ago returned from hospital in Florida. She is good friends with his wife Yvonne. I thought it might be nice to send her a gift but instead of flowers I remembered the afghans volunteers at the cathedral sewed for the sick. I now have a beautiful afghan that I will put in the mail this morning.

Then on Wednesday, I received an email from a dear friend in Farmington who regretfully received a bill for 1.2 million dollars for his wife’s heart surgery. He is a compassionate caregiver to his lovely spouse but their insurance is challenging the hospital billing. Once again, I am sadly aware that our medical system in this country is broken. Later in the afternoon, I drove my wife for her first physical therapy appointment to cope with a chronic back pain. By coincidence, Maggie, my neighbor, also comes to this PT office and missed her appointment thinking it was later in the week. I shared with the office staff that Maggie’s sister is her “uber” driver and gave the staff her cell phone number to schedule future visits. Then at the end of the day, a package arrived from Fr. Erick. To my surprise and delight, it was bottle of imported tequila from Mexico in thanks for helping him in his challenging ministry.

This Sunday, we hear Jesus teach: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke

upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”

Make no mistake, Jesus knows we sometimes carry heavy burdens. But Jesus is saying, “Your burdens are so much of your own making. Why do you burden yourself so cruelly? Come here. Take up the burden, the yoke I have for you. I have an easy yoke and a light burden. Yes, my child, in your life you will have to carry a burden, but why not carry my yoke? I assure you it will immediately put you in eternal life, and it will be a light yoke, an easy yoke. Come on, try me. You will find rest for your souls.”

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends whose acts of kindness help others bring relief of their burdens. We have a shoulder to lean on when our burden is too much to bear. Be at ease my friends, for Jesus is callin: “Come on, try me. You will find rest for your souls.”

I wonder if in the life of Jesus anyone ever gave him any special gifts?

 

 

Random Acts of Kindness

 

In our gospel passage, Jesus tells his disciples that "whoever gives a cup of cold water to one of these lowly ones because he is a disciple will not want for his reward". In other words, no act of kindness, no matter how small, will go unrewarded. 

 

As disciples of Christ , we are invited to see others as potential disciples, persons who may see Christ in our acts of kindness to them. And, in the true Spirit of one hand not knowing what the other does, these acts should be performed even when the recipients cannot reward us.

 

I am returning from Rochester after providing a critical incident debriefing and get a phone call in my car. It’s the case manager from my neighbor case manager home care agency who informs me that she has received a notice that Maggie’s Medicaid will be cancelled June 30^th. She says she doesn’t understand why Medicaid informed her with only two days notice. This is outrageous since Maggie has been receiving this benefit for over a decade. Why is it being terminated? Maggie’s has one sister and I am her advocate when it comes to helping get her benefits like food stamps, a wheelchair, emergency life alert necklace, or her cell phone doesn’t work. The case manager suggests to contact social services. In the meantime, I call Maggie’s sister and learn that they had filled out some forms and took them to social services a month ago. What the paperwork was all about she had no idea?

 

I called social services and of course you get a voicemail to leave a message that says keep it short be and leave a number. “Margaret J., Medicaid cut off in two days, please help, call my number.”

Now I call in reinforcements and send a prayer to her guardian angels. My reply was a voice mail from social services. Sorry we can’t talk to you because of HIPPA. The privacy laws prevent this worker from discussing her case with me. So, I fax her a power of attorney and wait again to discuss her case. I get a call from her sister who shares that the social service case worker called her to explain that the cancellation was a mistake. Maggie is not losing her Medicaid. I get a return call from social service who tells me to wait till 10am tomorrow to call back her home care rep that her Medicaid benefits will not be terminated. I look at my cell phone and the clock reads 3:59pm. Thank you angels.

 

Just as our Lord noted in today's gospel, an act of kindness need not be something done on a grand scale, but something as little as a glass of cold water. All that is needed is some thoughtfulness, with a dash of understanding and compassion thrown in for good measure.

 

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends grateful to Brad who repaired the basement light, Susie who donated the bird seed, Denny who shared his homemade maple syrup, Jeff who repaired the broken tractor, John who cut down the fallen trees. Your acts of kindness keep me safe and sound. May your acts of kindness bring a smile to all you touch by your thoughtfulness and compassion.

 

 

What Are You Afraid Of?

In most studies, people’s number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two. Does that sound right? This means to the average person, if you go to a funeral, you’re better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.

What are you afraid of?

In the gospel, Jesus warns the disciples to be wary of those who seek, not to destroy the body, but those who wish to destroy the soul. In other words, those who wish to crush our spirit.

Jesus contrasts two kinds of peace: a peace that he leaves us and a peace that the world can give us. What is the difference?

The peace that the world can give to us is not a negative or a bad peace. It is real and it is good, but it is fragile and inadequate.

It is fragile because it can easily be taken away from us. Peace, as we experience it ordinarily in our lives, is generally predicated on feeling healthy, loved, and secure. But all of these are fragile. They can change radically with one visit to the doctor, with an unexpected dizzy spell, with sudden chest pains, with a surgery that didn’t go as planned, with the loss of a job, with the rupture of a relationship, with the suicide of a loved one, or with multiple kinds of betrayal that can blindside us. We try mightily to take measures to guarantee health, security, and the trustworthiness of our relationships, but we live with a lot of anxiety, knowing these are always fragile. We live inside an anxious peace.

What Jesus offers is a peace that is not fragile, that is already beyond fear and anxiety, that does not depend upon feeling healthy, secure, and loved in this world. What is this peace?

The phrase Jesus repeats more often than any other throughout the Gospels is “Be not afraid.” Why because He knew more than anybody else that the measure of your life will be the measure of your courage, following Jesus requires incredible courage. It will take incredible courage to be counter cultural, incredible courage to follow the dreams He gives you. It will take incredible courage for you to strive every day to become a better version of yourself and to help the people you love do the same. A deep genuine relationship with God banishes our fears and fills us with the courage to live a great life.

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends, for I believe that something wonderful is about to happen in your life. I believe that faith overcomes fear. We worry about the future God says I hold the future, we worry about failure, God says walk in my ways and I will bless you. So again, what’s your worse fear? What are you afraid of? What’s preventing you from being who God intends you to be because deep down you know that’s God’s power is greater than your fear.

 

The Ordination of Fr. Erick

 

Two weeks ago, I shared my humble privilege to serve as the archdeacon and present to the bishop Deacon Erick who would be ordained a married Catholic priest in the Polish National Catholic tradition. The following article was published in the Las Vegas Hispanic newspaper about this historic ordination.

“In an emotional religious ceremony held at the headquarters of the Divine Mercy parish, on Wednesday, June 7, 2023, Erick Heredia's ordination as a Priest was carried out.
 
Before numerous representatives of the clergy, led by the bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo-Pittsburgh, John Mack, Erick Heredia became pastor of the Polish National Catholic Church (PNCC).
 
Father Erick will be exercising his pastoral ministry at Divine Mercy Polish National Catholic Church located at 3844 Meadows Lane, in the vicinity of The Meadows shopping center.
 
Bishop John Mack asked him during the sermon to "Live a life that is worthy of the calling you have received. Walk humbly in love and charity. Embrace with mercy the faithful of the church. And in your home, share the spirit of God that unites and liberates you."
 
For his part, Pablo Castro, as a proud native of Morales, Mexico, expressed that, "The ordination of Father Erick is a transcendental, historic moment, not only for the people of Morelos, but for the entire Hispanic community to have a new priest. People will have a new religious ally."
 
Many people agree that we are living in difficult times; violence, drugs and lack of moral values lead us into a destructive spiral. "In this church, they have programs that seek to rescue young people from the clutches of alcohol and drugs, not only is it coming to Mass, but the faithful have the opportunity to take advantage of the mental health services they have here," he stated.
 
On the other hand, Guadalupe Loyo Malabar, one of those who attended the ordination ceremony, commented that, "As a mother, the pastoral guidance of Father Erick will make us unite under the spiritual mantle of the priest; for parents and children who take the wrong path, it will be a great refuge of assistance. We are proud that we have another Hispanic priest in Las Vegas.”

As the Vocation Director and friend to Fr. Erick, the following photo shows the moment I laid hands on my brother priest and more special, when Fr. Eric offered me his priestly blessing. What is even more touching is the photo when he blesses his mom and she kisses her son's hands.

 

 

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends and especially pray that more laborers will answer the call to serve as deacons and priests. Yes, the laborers are few but i believed there are many who wish to come and serve. If you feel you haver a vocation, call or email me anytime.

What Are You Thirsting For?

 

I am extremely humbled that on June 7^th, I will have the privilege as the “archdeacon” to present to the parishioners of Divine Mercy Polish National Catholic Parish, Deacon Erick Flores to be ordained as a Catholic priest and new pastor of their church.

 

In Las Vegas while the illusion of happiness is the invitation to come and win the jackpot that could change your life. In reality, the real crisis for local residents is that their water supplies may soon run dry. Despite the record snowfalls and floods in California, their reservoirs are at record low levels and the residents and visitors will thirst for water.

 

Jesus spoke alot about water and he used water images. People lived in a desert and the people understood how difficult it was to get water. To get water people could not just walk into a store and buy a bottle of water. The reality was that water in the time of Jesus was extremely scarce. It was difficult to come by. They had to dig wells and they had to go to these wells wherever they were. They probably had to go to the center of their village where the wells were located and they had to draw out the water and most likely wait in line for other people to draw out their water. Jesus is using this image because it is something they have to think about every day.

 

We all have thirst and we all have hunger. The bushman of Kalahari desert in South Africa talk about two kinds of hunger. There is a great hunger and a little hunger. The little hunger yearns for food, clothing, and shelter and the greatest hunger of all is the hunger for meaning.

 

I think hunger and thirst can be used interchangeably because the people of our time are hungry for meaning, we are thirsty for meaning.

 

There’s only one thing that makes human beings profoundly bitter and that is a life without meaning. And that’s what’s our culture is doing thrusting a life without meaning, chasing the illusion that happiness is winning a slot jackpot, or a roulette table, or a bet on a sports game, a life without meaning.

 

There’s nothing wrong searching for happiness but far more comfort to the soul is something greater than happiness or unhappiness and that is meaning because meaning transfigures all. Once you realize what you are doing has meaning for you it is irrelevant if it makes you happy or unhappy for you are content.

 

Deacon Erick vocation to the priesthood will give his life meaning bringing the good news of Jesus to people who have felt abandoned, broken, discriminated and empty. His meaning will be to bring his people comfort in their pain, hope in times of trail, and love in moments of despair.

 

Father Erick will preach: “On the last and greatest day of the feast, Jesus stood up and exclaimed, “Let anyone who thirsts come to me and drink. He who believes in me as the Scripture has said, out of his heart shall flow rivers of living waters.” Now this is what Jesus said about the spirit which those who believed in him were to receive.

 

So that you have enough water otherwise you will die and the people you love will die this incredible, scarce resource is abundantly available in Jesus.

 

We are all desperately thirsting for something. Do you know what it is? And who or what or where do you imagine will satisfy this thirst. Jesus is saying if anyone is thirsty, let them come to me and drink. Whatever your thirst is, you likely know it or if you don’t know, take time and go away in silence and reflect what it is for you.

 

Pray to God: “I am thirsty, please satisfy my thirst.” That’s the invitation Father Erick will bring to all his people in his parish and visitors from around the world. Yes, people from around the world will come to Divine Mercy to satisfy their thirst, to satisfy their hunger.

 

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends, and especially Deacon Erick as he prepares to be anointed with your spirit to bring the good news, comfort, mercy and meaning to all your people to satisfy their thirst and satisfy their hunger.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good Bye Does Not Mean the End

 

Ascension Thursday is the most under-understood mystery of religion.

 

Because we experience many painful goodbyes in life. There are so many times when someone we love has to go away, or we have to go away. There are many times when, for whatever reason, someone has to move on and irrevocably change a relationship. Almost always this is painful, sometimes so painful that it leaves us feeling restless and empty, as if all the color, energy, and joy have gone out of our lives.

 

The pain in this kind of letting go is often excruciating, as parents know, but to refuse is to deny the opportunity for new life.

 

But, as we know, usually this isn't the end of the story. Most of the time, after the restless, dark heartache of a painful goodbye has worn off, we experience the opposite, a deep joy in sensing now our loved one's presence in a different way.

Parents experience this when their children grow up and leave home to start lives of their own. At first, when a child leaves home to go to college, to get married, or to take a job elsewhere, we are often left with a restless heartache that leaves us feeling empty. But, after a while, especially when our child, now an adult comes back to visit us our heartache can just as quickly disappear because our loved one, now no longer a child, can offer us a richer love and presence than he or she could when they were little. The pain of losing someone turns into the joy of finding something deeper in the one whom we thought we had lost.

 

When Jesus was preparing his disciples for his ascension, he told them: "It is better for you that I go away! You won't understand this now. You will grieve and have heavy hearts, but, later, this will turn to joy and you will understand why I have to do this because, unless I go away, I can't send you my spirit."

 

This is the experience of the people of Divine Mercy when their pastor chose to leave their church. Initially, they were in shock, disbelief, angry and deeply feeling lost and abandoned. That’s how I found this congregation in February with tears in their eyes and empty hearts. My mantra, “one day at a time” and trust in the spirit of Jesus that you will get through this trauma. Now let’s fast forward to what occurred this past week.

 

Erick, a parishioner, had been working side by side with their pastor and he felt the pain of lost and disbelief. However, he was determined that the parish would not close permanently. In March, after a two-week hiatus, Divine Mercy reopened its doors and welcomed all people Mexican and Anglo back to church. I flew to Las Vegas to help bring First Communion to over 70 children, yes you read that right, 70 beautiful children. Then a week later, Bishop John flew to Las Vegas to confirm 40 young adults and incarnate Erick as a deacon to serve the parish while the search began for a new pastor.

 

Well, from their moment of darkness and heartache when their former pastor chose to leave, the spirit was nurturing a vocation inside the heart of Deacon Erick to become a priest. So the journey began and with the help of Fr. Don who zoomed instructions in the PNCC tradition to this humble man of faith, Bishop John called Erick last Tuesday and informed him that he would gladly come to Divine Mercy to consecrate him a Catholic priest. Erick shared with me that he sobbed on the phone in joy and said “of course” another “God Moment.”

 

So the lesson in faith is that good bye does not mean the end of a relationship or in this case a parish. Rather, the paradox of presence and absence in love is a great mystery. We need to be present to each other physically, but we also need to be gone from each other at times. We bring a blessing both when we visit someone and when we leave after the visit is over. Presence is partly predicated on absence and there is something of our spirit that we can only give by going away. Why is this so?

 

Because absence is sometimes the only thing that can purify presence. When we are physically present, there are always certain tensions, irritations, disappointments, flaws in our bodies, and faults in our character that partially block full love and blessing. That's why we rarely appreciate our loved ones fully, until they are taken away from us.

 

Absence can help wash clean. What the pain of absence does is stretch our hearts so that the essence, the beauty, the love, and the gift of the one who is absent can flow to us without being colored by the tensions, disappointments, and the flaws of everyday life. 

 

As well, the other's absence can work to stretch our hearts so that we can receive him or her in a way that more fully accepts and respects who he or she really is. In the case of this parish’s former pastor, his absence stretches the people of Divine Mercy need for forgiveness.

 

The Ascension of Our Lord is about going away so that his loved ones can fully receive his spirit. It's about the mystery of saying goodbye, when goodbye isn't really goodbye at all, but only love's way of taking on a different modality so that it can be present in a way that's deeper, purer, more permanent, less-clinging, and less-limited by the tensions, disappointments, inadequacies, wounds, and betrayals that, this side of eternity, forever make our intimacy a work in progress.

Now the “good news” even gets better. Last Thursday, on the Feast of the Ascension, Deacon Erick was interviewed on a Spanish radio station and announced to the people of Las Vegas that Bishop John Mack, the Buffalo-Pittsburgh Bishop of the Polish National Catholic Church will be coming to Las Vegas to ordain him a Catholic priest on Wednesday, June 7^th at Divine Mercy Catholic Parish, another “God moment.”

 

This will not be a private ceremony, but rather a joyous occasion for Deacon Erick. his family from Mexico, the faithful Divine Mercy parishioners who stuck around to see what was going to happen to this parish, and a calling to all the former parishioners who have strayed away to return and  attend this once in a lifetime spiritual ceremony. An ordination to the Catholic priesthood of a local parishioner. In celebration of this event, I received notice that nine priests from around the country plan to attend the ordination in support of their brother priest.

The people at Divine Mercy are no strangers to the pain of saying goodbye to friends. But they are a resilient faith community and they want all their Mexican and Anglo friends to come back to Divine Mercy and join them in prayer and service so that we follow the words of our Jesus that “ALL MAY BE ONE.”

Mark your calendars and save the date. Wednesday, June 7^th (TIME OF MASS TBA). Let Today’s Sonshine go viral on the internet, in others words please forward this Sonshine to all your family and friends as well as all of Las Vegas to join this parish for this once in a lifetime spiritual event in which Jesus is truly present on Divine Mercy’s altar in the love and faith of all its people so that “WE ALL MAY BE ONE.”

 

 

 

Mother's Day is Tricky

 

A church service on Mother's Day is tricky. If it only honors mothers on that day, I start to wonder if the church's message is that a woman's highest achievement is marriage and family. Where does that leave other women, who are childless?

Bottom line: mentioning Mother's Day in worship is just tricky. There's no formula. So perhaps it would be more practical to celebrate that most families are messy. Perhaps we simply admit that it's a difficult day for many. Or we acknowledge that God is keenly aware of all that we hold in our hearts.

I think an interesting idea to incorporate into a Mother's Day service would be to not only honor mothers, but to profile other women from different backgrounds and walks of life—artists, poets, women in government, female mentors, women who work in their career or community, women who care for an aging parent, or women who work with young adults. There could even be a special place in the service where someone who's struggled with infertility or who has lost a child, can read a poem they wrote that speaks to their circumstances and what this day means to them. It would sobering, for sure, but it would offer a more realistic and balanced view of what womanhood truly is, and would convey the real joys, passions, ambitions, and pains of many women on Mother's Day.

I have been writing Deacon Erick sermons who serves at Divine Mercy in Las Vegas. As I reviewed my past sermons on Mother’s Day, I shared the following blessing for all “nurturing women” in his parish. I have used this blessing for many years when I served as pastor at Holy Family in North Java.

There is a story about a woman whose mother taught her many prayers and this was one of my favorites. She was about six years old at the time and was sitting outside on a block of concrete, and she was crying. She didn’t even know why. She was just crying and crying. Her Mother came along and said, “What’s the matter?” She said, “Nothing, leave me alone!” Her mom did - and then she really started crying!

About 15 minutes later her mom came back and sat beside her. “You know,” she said, “I have to tell you something. There are going to be a lot of times in your life when you are going to cry, and you won’t know why. You won’t understand and neither will anyone else.

Then, she said she was going to teach her a prayer for the times when she was crying and didn’t know why. She made her get off the cement block and stand up. She said, “Now, put your arms around yourself. “She did but it wasn’t good enough.
         

“You’re just folding your arms” she said. “Put them all the way around yourself. Cuddle your body. Hold yourself the way you would hold baby in your arms.

“Now, after you have a real good hold of yourself, close your eyes and begin to rock yourself. Rock yourself real good, the way you would a baby, and just keep doing it. When you grow up, no matter how old you are, and you are crying and you don’t know why, I want you to rock yourself just like this. As you do it, remember that you are God’s little child, and that God understands why you are crying even if no one else does. And, remember, too, that God holds you close just the way you are holding yourself because God loves you very much. Then just keep rocking yourself and be comforted.”
         

Now isn’t that a good prayer? This woman still says it today when she feels bad.

With all the “nurturing women in the front of the church rocking themselves I recommended it for each woman.  Just stand wherever you are - in the kitchen, in the bathroom or outside in the barn - and wrap your arms around yourself, tight as you can and rock yourself.
         

 

 

We Miss Our Grian

 

Yesterday afternoon, I found myself digging my eighteenth grave for a beautiful kitty by the name of Grain. She was the “queen” in our home of eight fur balls. For thirteen years, since we moved to East Bethany, she would perch on the window sill watching the outside birdies and squirrels snacking on the bird feeder or she enjoyed basking in the sun up on the shelf in the guest bathroom.

Grian would sleep next to my wife’s pillow at night and she would come for breakfast and lick the butter off of her toast in the morning. So here is a prayer for all our furry companions who have blessed our homes.

O Lord our God, we come before You this day in sadness. Grian who brought us so much joy in life, has now died. Her happy times in our family’s embrace have come to an end. We miss Grian very much.

Help us, O God, to remember the good times with Grian. Remind us to rejoice in the happy times she brought to our home. I am reminded of the time my relatives came to visit and they didn’t pay attention and left the outside porch door open and Grain snuck out of the house into the woods.

Later that evening, we looked for Grian and she was missing. We checked under the beds, in the closets and came to the conclusion she had somehow found her way outside. I remember calling out into the night, into the woods, “Grian, where are you girl, come home to mommy and daddy.”  

Then a miracle, I saw two white eyes sparkling in the distance. She had wandered into the woods to explore her new found freedom. We were simply glad that she was safe and no coyote or owl had made her an evening meal.

We pray now in gratitude, to you God, for creating Grain, for entrusting her to our care, and for sustaining her in our love for thirteen years. We understand that all that lives must die. We knew that this day would come. And yet, O God, we would have wanted one more day of play, one more evening of to pet and nuzzle with our little girl..

O God, as we have taken care of Grian in life, we ask that You watch over her in heaven. You entrusted Grian to our care; now, we give her back to You. May she find a happy new home in Your loving embrace.

As we remember Grain and all the kitties buried in our pet cemetery, may we love each other more dearly. May we care for all Your creatures, for every living thing, as we protected the blessed life of Grian, may her memory bless our lives with love and caring forever. Amen.

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends whose pets have found a home with You, We miss them all and believe that we will see them when we are called into your glory. In honor of their devotion and care, please forward the names of all your pets so that we can join our prayers in gratitude for all the love they have given us in this life.