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Author: Steven Stechschulte

Viva Cristo Rey!

Posted on by Steven Stechschulte

By Fr. John Celichowski, OFM Cap.

The life of Blessed Miguel Pro wasn’t long—he was only 36 years old when he died—but it was full. He ministered in his native Mexico during a time of rampant anticlericalism and persecution of the Church. Under the rule of President Plutarco Calles, the government required all priests to register with the state and banned all religious celebrations outside of church buildings.

Since the time of the Caesars, there have been rulers and governments in various places that have sought to suppress the Church and limit its power, and they have often attempted to make themselves gods or demigods. Thankfully, there have always been those who have resisted such idolatry, some to the point of shedding their blood.

Miguel Pro, a young Jesuit priest, was such a person. He placed his faith in Jesus’ warnings and assurances in today’s gospel passage. In the moments before his death by firing squad, he was offered a blindfold. He refused. When photographers sent by the President gathered to take pictures of what they assumed would be his ignominious death, he extended his arms in imitation of Jesus crucified and cried out, “¡Viva Cristo Rey!” or “Long live Christ the King!”

That government in Mexico was eventually driven out.

The life of Bl. Miguel Pro is a testament that the Lord remains with, for, and in those who turn to him. ¡Viva Cristo Rey!

 

Dedication of the Lateran Basilica

Posted on by Steven Stechschulte

By Fr. John Celichowski, OFM Cap.

In the 18th century, more than 1400 years after the Lateran Basilica was first dedicated, Pope Clement XII had an inscription placed over the entrance. It was, of course, in Latin; and it proclaimed this massive cathedral the “mother and head of all churches of Rome and the world.”

Now under the patronage of St. John the Baptist, the Lateran Basilica continues to serve in that role. As the cathedral church of the Bishop of Rome, the Pope, it is a place that every Catholic from anywhere in the world can call home.

We all need places to call home. One of the timeless tasks of any disciple of Jesus is to make and be a church that more and more people can call home. At the same time, the Lord also asks us to make a home for him in our hearts.

Like the temple of Jerusalem in Jesus’ day, our hearts can become corrupted by preoccupations with worldly concerns. The things that impede our mission and communion with God and others need to be driven out. We pray for God’s mercy and the grace we need so that, like the temple in Ezekiel’s vision, the waters of the Spirit can flow through us and into our world.

Good Shepherd

Posted on by Steven Stechschulte

By Fr. Tom Zelinski, OFM Cap.

This past Sunday, the 4th Sunday of Easter, we celebrated “Good Shepherd Sunday.” This is always the case with the 4th Sunday because there is always a Gospel with imagery about Jesus as Shepherd. It is interesting to me that the image of Jesus as Good Shepherd has remained so popular and appealing to people down through the centuries. Most of us have no direct contact with sheep or shepherds, and yet there seems to be some sort of comfort or assurance that people feel with this kind of imagery.

There is of course the famous 23rd Psalm which is a favorite prayer of many people. “The Lord is my shepherd. There is nothing I shall want.” It is a prayer of confidence, especially in difficult times.

In the Sunday Gospel we hear Jesus saying that his sheep hear his voice. They follow him and he gives them eternal life. Who are these sheep? Ourselves, of course. Do you and I hear his voice? The voice, the message, indeed comes to us in many different ways. First of all it comes through the scriptures and then through the traditions of the Church.

But the voice of the Shepherd also comes to us in many ways in our life experiences. It starts with our parents and what they try to teach us as little children and as we grow up. The voice comes to us through other teachers, pastors, coaches, mentors all through life. The voice comes to us whenever anyone tries to do good for us and to help us along the way.

We, in turn, become that voice, as we also reach out in any manner of love, compassion, instruction to other people.  And so, Jesus says “My sheep hear my voice.”  The voice, the message is always there in one way or another. We need to keep listening.

In these days of warfare and news of violence and civil strife, can we hear a voice of sanity, of peace, of justice coming through all the noise? Let us indeed keep listening for that voice of our Shepherd.

Life and Peace

Posted on by Steven Stechschulte

By Fr. Tom Zelinski, OFM Cap.

This past Sunday, the 4th Sunday of Easter, we celebrated “Good Shepherd Sunday.” This is always the case with the 4th Sunday because there is always a Gospel with imagery about Jesus as Shepherd. It is interesting to me that the image of Jesus as Good Shepherd has remained so popular and appealing to people down through the centuries. Most of us have no direct contact with sheep or shepherds, and yet there seems to be some sort of comfort or assurance that people feel with this kind of imagery.

There is of course the famous 23rd Psalm which is a favorite prayer of many people. “The Lord is my shepherd. There is nothing I shall want.” It is a prayer of confidence, especially in difficult times.

In the Sunday Gospel we hear Jesus saying that his sheep hear his voice. They follow him and he gives them eternal life. Who are these sheep? Ourselves, of course. Do you and I hear his voice? The voice, the message, indeed comes to us in many different ways. First of all it comes through the scriptures and then through the traditions of the Church.

But the voice of the Shepherd also comes to us in many ways in our life experiences. It starts with our parents and what they try to teach us as little children and as we grow up. The voice comes to us through other teachers, pastors, coaches, mentors all through life. The voice comes to us whenever anyone tries to do good for us and to help us along the way.

We, in turn, become that voice, as we also reach out in any manner of love, compassion, instruction to other people.  And so, Jesus says “My sheep hear my voice.”  The voice, the message is always there in one way or another. We need to keep listening.

In these days of warfare and news of violence and civil strife, can we hear a voice of sanity, of peace, of justice coming through all the noise? Let us indeed keep listening for that voice of our Shepherd.

The Paschal Mystery

Posted on by Steven Stechschulte

By Fr. Tom Zelinski, OFM Cap.

This past Sunday, the 4th Sunday of Easter, we celebrated “Good Shepherd Sunday.” This is always the case with the 4th Sunday because there is always a Gospel with imagery about Jesus as Shepherd. It is interesting to me that the image of Jesus as Good Shepherd has remained so popular and appealing to people down through the centuries. Most of us have no direct contact with sheep or shepherds, and yet there seems to be some sort of comfort or assurance that people feel with this kind of imagery.

There is of course the famous 23rd Psalm which is a favorite prayer of many people. “The Lord is my shepherd. There is nothing I shall want.” It is a prayer of confidence, especially in difficult times.

In the Sunday Gospel we hear Jesus saying that his sheep hear his voice. They follow him and he gives them eternal life. Who are these sheep? Ourselves, of course. Do you and I hear his voice? The voice, the message, indeed comes to us in many different ways. First of all it comes through the scriptures and then through the traditions of the Church.

But the voice of the Shepherd also comes to us in many ways in our life experiences. It starts with our parents and what they try to teach us as little children and as we grow up. The voice comes to us through other teachers, pastors, coaches, mentors all through life. The voice comes to us whenever anyone tries to do good for us and to help us along the way.

We, in turn, become that voice, as we also reach out in any manner of love, compassion, instruction to other people.  And so, Jesus says “My sheep hear my voice.”  The voice, the message is always there in one way or another. We need to keep listening.

In these days of warfare and news of violence and civil strife, can we hear a voice of sanity, of peace, of justice coming through all the noise? Let us indeed keep listening for that voice of our Shepherd.

A Lonely Figure

Posted on by Steven Stechschulte

By Fr. Tom Zelinski, OFM Cap.

This past Sunday, the 4th Sunday of Easter, we celebrated “Good Shepherd Sunday.” This is always the case with the 4th Sunday because there is always a Gospel with imagery about Jesus as Shepherd. It is interesting to me that the image of Jesus as Good Shepherd has remained so popular and appealing to people down through the centuries. Most of us have no direct contact with sheep or shepherds, and yet there seems to be some sort of comfort or assurance that people feel with this kind of imagery.

There is of course the famous 23rd Psalm which is a favorite prayer of many people. “The Lord is my shepherd. There is nothing I shall want.” It is a prayer of confidence, especially in difficult times.

In the Sunday Gospel we hear Jesus saying that his sheep hear his voice. They follow him and he gives them eternal life. Who are these sheep? Ourselves, of course. Do you and I hear his voice? The voice, the message, indeed comes to us in many different ways. First of all it comes through the scriptures and then through the traditions of the Church.

But the voice of the Shepherd also comes to us in many ways in our life experiences. It starts with our parents and what they try to teach us as little children and as we grow up. The voice comes to us through other teachers, pastors, coaches, mentors all through life. The voice comes to us whenever anyone tries to do good for us and to help us along the way.

We, in turn, become that voice, as we also reach out in any manner of love, compassion, instruction to other people.  And so, Jesus says “My sheep hear my voice.”  The voice, the message is always there in one way or another. We need to keep listening.

In these days of warfare and news of violence and civil strife, can we hear a voice of sanity, of peace, of justice coming through all the noise? Let us indeed keep listening for that voice of our Shepherd.

Praying

Posted on by Steven Stechschulte

By Fr. Tom Zelinski, OFM Cap.

This past Sunday, the 4th Sunday of Easter, we celebrated “Good Shepherd Sunday.” This is always the case with the 4th Sunday because there is always a Gospel with imagery about Jesus as Shepherd. It is interesting to me that the image of Jesus as Good Shepherd has remained so popular and appealing to people down through the centuries. Most of us have no direct contact with sheep or shepherds, and yet there seems to be some sort of comfort or assurance that people feel with this kind of imagery.

There is of course the famous 23rd Psalm which is a favorite prayer of many people. “The Lord is my shepherd. There is nothing I shall want.” It is a prayer of confidence, especially in difficult times.

In the Sunday Gospel we hear Jesus saying that his sheep hear his voice. They follow him and he gives them eternal life. Who are these sheep? Ourselves, of course. Do you and I hear his voice? The voice, the message, indeed comes to us in many different ways. First of all it comes through the scriptures and then through the traditions of the Church.

But the voice of the Shepherd also comes to us in many ways in our life experiences. It starts with our parents and what they try to teach us as little children and as we grow up. The voice comes to us through other teachers, pastors, coaches, mentors all through life. The voice comes to us whenever anyone tries to do good for us and to help us along the way.

We, in turn, become that voice, as we also reach out in any manner of love, compassion, instruction to other people.  And so, Jesus says “My sheep hear my voice.”  The voice, the message is always there in one way or another. We need to keep listening.

In these days of warfare and news of violence and civil strife, can we hear a voice of sanity, of peace, of justice coming through all the noise? Let us indeed keep listening for that voice of our Shepherd.

Lenten Scriptures

Posted on by Steven Stechschulte

By Fr. Tom Zelinski, OFM Cap.

We are at the beginning of Lent. At this time I think it is helpful to review the structure or schedule of the Gospel readings for the weekday Masses of Lent. There is a pattern to these that I have always found helpful.

For the first three weeks of Lent, our Gospel passages are taken from the Synoptic Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke. These readings are seen as lessons for discipleship. Of course we are to be disciples of Christ all year long, but sometimes Lent might give us more motivation to reflect on our lives and to see how we are doing as we try to take up our cross to follow Christ in our daily living.

The Gospels can present an ideal that perhaps most of us will never fulfill. One author suggests that it may even be good for us to stumble a bit and fail in our Lenten projects. This can always be a reminder that we need a savior and that we don’t become holy through our own efforts.

Then in the fourth and fifth week of Lent our Gospels turn to a focus on the mystery of Christ. These readings are taken from the Gospel of
John. We center on the person of Christ and what he might mean for us as we walk with him toward the events of Holy Week.

Of course, whether we are thinking of our own discipleship or reflecting on the person of Christ, the focus is always more on him than on ourselves. May we all deepen our relationship with Christ in this Holy Season.

Lent

Posted on by Steven Stechschulte

By Fr. Tom Zelinski, OFM Cap.

Another Lent approaches. This is one of the ways by which Christian people mark our journey through life. With Lent, people often think of doing something special or different to aid in their spiritual life. Of course we are called to honesty and continuing conversion all year long.

But the coming of Lent, based on custom and memory, perhaps stirs a little more motivation for some gesture or practice that can add to our personal and spiritual lives.

It is common to “give up” something during Lent. Often that is some food or a habit like drinking alcohol or smoking. These are good if they help us in our relationship with God and other people. Moving something out of our lives can remind us of our dependence on God, who alone can fill our human emptiness.

However, other thoughts might come to mind. For example, on a positive note, what can we add, what can we give to other people and to the world around us? There is so much news about anger and violence in our world, including right now more news of war and destruction. Perhaps Lent can be a time for us to bring some peace to our local world, to the people around us.

“Make me a channel of your peace” is part of a famous prayer. How can I bring more peace, more compassion, more kindness to the people near me? Besides giving up something for Lent, perhaps we can give something positive and life-giving to our brothers and sisters.

Advent

Posted on by Steven Stechschulte

By Fr. Tom Zelinski, OFM Cap.

We come again to the season of Advent. It is good for us to look again at the basic themes of the season. As we know, “Advent” refers to “approaching” or “coming toward.” God in several ways has come to us and continues to do so. Of course, God is always with us. But in our perception and imagination, there is a sense that we need to experience more of God.

We do this every year. Our liturgical year is a repetition of familiar things. It is good to repeat, and recognize that it’s not “the same old thing” every year. Something has happened to us, simply in living through another year. So in this season, there is always something old, something new.

It is good to repeat the old, the familiar. There is stability and comfort in that. Our human spirits need the comfort of the familiar. We have memories of Advent and Christmas of the past. We rejoice in the familiar story of the birth of Christ. We rejoice in all that story has meant to us from the time of childhood.

And yet, as adults, we need to be challenged by the constant theme of our unfinished lives: God in Christ has more to do with us. And so, we need the ringing message of early Advent. Stay awake! Be alert! The Kingdom is at hand! We have heard that message before, but it continues to call to us as we proceed on our journey.

So let us rejoice in the familiar, comfortable things of this season, but let us be ready for the new thing which God wants to do in us. Come, Lord Jesus!

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