Feast of the Holy Family

This feastday is always celebrated on the Sunday following Christmas with very rare exceptions. The focus today is on family. It focuses on both marriage and priesthood. Both are intimately linked with family...physical and spiritual. The concept of family has been attacked in our society today. Jesus, through his own earthly family, demonstrates the importance of the "traditional" family to the world. Thus, families must come to see the impact their influence has on society.

Today is a special opportunity for all families. Today, gather the members of your family together and consecrate your family to the protection of the Holy Family using the following prayers:

O Jesus, our most loving Redeemer, who came to enlighten the world with Your teaching and example, willed to pass the greater part of Your life humbly and in subjection to Mary and Joseph in the poor home of Nazareth, thus sanctifying the Family that was to be an example for all Christian families, graciously take to Yourself our family as it dedicates and consecrates itself to You this day. Defend us, guard us, and establish among us Your holy fear, true peace, and harmony in Christian love; in order that by conforming ourselves to the divine pattern of Your family all of us without exception may be able to attain to eternal happiness.

Mary, dear Mother of Jesus and our Mother, by your kindly intercession make this, our humble offering, acceptable in the sight of Jesus, and obtain for us His graces and blessings. O Saint Joseph, most holy Guardian of Jesus and Mary, help us by your prayers in all our spiritual and temporal necessities; that we may be enabled to praise our divine Savior Jesus, together with Mary and you for all eternity.

Until next time...a blessed Christmas and God bless.

posted by: crossman at 08:22 | link | comments |
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Feast of the Holy Innocents

This may seem to be the worst place to insert this feastday. But it actually fits quite well. Christmas is a time for children. This is a day in which we can focus upon them once again. Children are a sign of life and hope, of joy and innocence, of true and "unconditional" love. The Feast of the Holy Innocents should help us to recognize how prescious life is and how we are all Children of God. It should remind us of the baby Jesus in the manger and the innocence of all children. It should cause us to pray for an end to abortion and embryonic stem cell research that kills these innocent children.

I would ask everyone to spend time with a child or a young person this day. Read to a boy or a girl, play basketball with an adolescent, go to the movies together, or, perhaps, just listen to him or her. The day need not be extravagant. Simply making time to be with them and giving them your attention will make their day quite meaningful. Until next time...a blessed Christmas and God bless.

posted by: crossman at 08:01 | link | comments (1) |
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Feast of St. John the Apostle

Today we celebrate the Feast of St. John the Apostle who knew Jesus more intimately than anyone (other than his mother). His Gospel is the single source of our knowledge of Christ's pre-existence as the Word of God, his "mission" to bring light to the world and the sacred truth that Jesus is the Bread of Life.

I encourage you to attend Mass as a family today. If you cannot attend Mass, gather together as a family today and pray the following prayer: God our Father, you have revealed the mysteries of your Word through John the apostle. By prayer and reflection may we come to understand the wisdom he taught. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. Until tomorrow...a blessed Christmas and God bless.

posted by: crossman at 07:49 | link | comments |
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Feast of St. Stephen the Martyr

Today we celebrate the Feast of St. Stephen the Martyr. One wonders why the Church would celebrate the feast of a martyr on the Second Day of the Octave of Christ’s nativity.  I remember a comment made of the late Pope John Paul II about this feast. He said, , “The Church calls the day of martyrdom a dies natalis (day of birth)." I like this idea that by virtue of Christ's death and Resurrection, the death of the martyr is a birth in Heaven. Secondly, on Christmas we celebrate the birth of Jesus: the Word made flesh. St. Stephen was martyred for proclaiming Jesus...for proclaiming the Word to the world.

On this day, I suggest we recognize that we are all called to proclaim God's Word. Take a few minutes with your family to read from Scriptures. Read the Martyrdom of St. Stephen which is found in Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59. Stephen died praying for those who killed him, so take a few moments to pray for those who are your enemies. Until tomorrow...a blessed Christmas and God bless.

posted by: crossman at 08:37 | link | comments |
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Silent Night...I think not!

Christmas Eve will be anything but silent here at Prince of Peace. Being a parish with over 10,000 parishioners, we have to have numerous Masses for Christmas. In fact, we actually have simultaneous Masses at 4:00 PM. Fr. Frank will have Mass in the Church and I will have Mass in the Parish Hall. Basically, he will begin his Mass when the Church is full and they will begin to herd everyone else downstairs to the Parish Hall where I will start Mass at 4:00 PM. Additionally, we have a 6:00 PM, 8:00 PM and Midnight Mass as well as an 8:00 AM and 11:00 AM Christmas Day Mass.

To make things even more hectic, Archbishop Joseph Naumann will be celebrating the 6:00 PM Mass. So, Fr. Frank and I will be concelebrating that Mass with him. I also have the Midnight Mass so it will certainly be a busy evening.

Since it looks as if I am going to be fairly busy, I want to wish all my readers a safe and blessed Christmas filled with great joy, time with your family and also time with the Lord. Merry Christmas and God bless.

posted by: crossman at 08:07 | link | comments |
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A blessed Advent to you!

I hope you are having a wonderful and joyful Advent in Day begins what is known in the Church as the Octave of Christmas. The Church celebrates Christmas for eight days following December 25th. Personally, I think everyone should adopt this idea so I can get presents for eight days in a row!!! However, the Church celebrates these eight days because the Nativity of the Lord is the highest solemnity of the Church and is not simply a single day event.

Even more interesting, though, is that five of these eight days following Christmas also have their own feasts that specifically relate to Christmas. They are:

Dec. 26 - Feast of St. Stephen the Martyr

Dec. 27 - Feast of St. John the Apostle

Dec. 28 - Feast of the Holy Innocents

Dec. 30 - Feast of the Holy Family (this feast always falls on the Sunday immediately following Christmas)

Jan. 1 - Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God

I have decided that on each of these days I am going to post a short entry of how this feast day is associated with Christmas and also post an idea of how you can celebrate the day together as a family. Hopefully, this will give us an opportunity to celebrate Christmas as a holy day of the Church that connects us to every element of our faith. I hope this will ensure that Christmas is not simply one day in the year when Wal Mart is closed and when I get lots of gifts. Until next time...God bless.

posted by: crossman at 07:57 | link | comments |
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What Catholics Believe: Part 3

This is the last post on the conversations I had with Joe in October. I am glad I was able to post it before the real business of Advent starts this week. So, our conversation continued:

Joe: "Just one more today. I don't understand confession. Why do Catholics think they must go to a priest to confess their sins? Why do priests think they can forgive sins? Only God can forgive sins."

Fr. Chris: That's a difficult one for many people to understand, even Catholics. Let's start with saying that only God can forgive sins. While this is true, it isn't complete. Ultimately, God forgives our sins. But that authority to forgive sins in His name is given to us as well.

Joe: "Where do Catholics get that idea?"

Fr. Chris: Christ himself gives priests the power to forgive sins. After his resurrection, Christ appears to the Apostles and says to them "Receive the Holy Spirit. Those sins you forgive are forgiven. Those sins you bound are held bound" (A reference to John 20: 22-23). He gave them the power to forgive sins after his resurrection because he was ascending to heave shortly. Someone had to continue to forgive people's sins in his name just like he did for the adulterer and the lepers and so on.

Joe: "Ok. So the Apostles were given the power to forgive sin. But priests are not the Apostles. The Apostles are dead."

Fr. Chris: You're right. The Apostles are dead and I am certainly not an Apostle. But if the power to forgive sins was only for the Apostles then what happened after they died? Does that mean we couldn't have our sins forgiven because we were born after the Apostles?

Joe: But he said that specifically to the Apostles. Not to anyone else.

Fr. Chris: That's exactly my point. If only the Apostles could forgive sins and he knew they were going to die, why give them that power at all. Only those who lived when the Apostles did could have their sins forgiven. But if that power to forgive sins was passed from the Apostles to their successors then Christ had a way to continue to forgive sins forever.

Joe: "Oh. I see."

Fr. Chris: We know that there were successors to the Apostles. For example, Christ's choice of St. Paul as an Apostle, even though he wasn't there when Christ gave the Apostles this authority, is confirmed by St. Peter. Then, St. Paul, as an Apostle chosen by Christ himself, appoints Timothy and Titus during his journeys. We see the structure and authority of the Church beginning to be built right in the New Testament.

Joe: "So, you are saying that priests are able to forgive sins because of the authority passed down from the Apostles throughout the centuries?"

Fr. Chris: Essentially that is correct.

Joe: "Man, I have a lot to think about. We better stop for today. I have enough stuff to last me a month."

Fr. Chris: That is a lot to digest. If you have any questions before we meet again just email me or call. I will post this on the blog site as soon as I can."

Joe: "Ok. I will call you about setting up a time to meet again. It may be after the holidays, though…"

We talked about what he was going to do for the holidays and a little about how he thought this was going so far, but I don't see any reason to post that stuff.

Well, that brings us up-to-date on my conversations with Joe. I am sorry it took me so long to post this last part of the talk. Joe is excited about meeting again after the first of the year. So, I encourage you again, to post your thoughts and insights to this last conversation. Thanks again for your patience with this. Until next time…God bless.

posted by: crossman at 08:02 | link | comments |
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What Catholics Believe: Part 3

I bet you didn't think I would actually make my post when I said I would. Well, I did and hopefully I will do a better job of that in the future. This is the last post on the conversations I had with Joe in October. I am glad I was able to post it before the real business of Advent starts this week. So, our conversation continued:

Joe: "Just one more today. I don't understand confession. Why do Catholics think they must go to a priest to confess their sins? Why do priests think they can forgive sins? Only God can forgive sins."

Fr. Chris: That's a difficult one for many people to understand, even Catholics. Let's start with saying that only God can forgive sins. While this is true, it isn't complete. Ultimately, God forgives our sins. But that authority to forgive sins in His name is given to us as well.

Joe: "Where do Catholics get that idea?"

Fr. Chris: Christ himself gives priests the power to forgive sins. After his resurrection, Christ appears to the Apostles and says to them "Receive the Holy Spirit. Those sins you forgive are forgiven. Those sins you bound are held bound" (A reference to John 20: 22-23). He gave them the power to forgive sins after his resurrection because he was ascending to heaven shortly. Someone had to continue to forgive people's sins in his name just like he did for the adulterer and the lepers and so on.

Joe: "Ok. So the Apostles were given the power to forgive sin. But priests are not the Apostles. The Apostles are dead."

Fr. Chris: You're right. The Apostles are dead and I am certainly not an Apostle. But if the power to forgive sins was only for the Apostles then what happened after they died? Does that mean we couldn't have our sins forgiven because we were born after the Apostles?

Joe: But he said that specifically to the Apostles. Not to anyone else.

Fr. Chris: That's exactly my point. If only the Apostles could forgive sins and he knew they were going to die, why give them that power at all. Only those who lived when the Apostles did could have their sins forgiven. But if that power to forgive sins was passed from the Apostles to their successors then Christ had a way to continue to forgive sins forever.

Joe: "Oh. I see."

Fr. Chris: We know that there were successors to the Apostles. For example, Christ's choice of St. Paul as an Apostle, even though he wasn't there when Christ gave the Apostles this authority, is confirmed by St. Peter. Then, St. Paul, as an Apostle chosen by Christ himself, appoints Timothy and Titus during his journeys. We see the structure and authority of the Church beginning to be built right in the New Testament.

Joe: "So, you are saying that priests are able to forgive sins because of the authority passed down from the Apostles throughout the centuries?"

Fr. Chris: Essentially that is correct.

Joe: "Man, I have a lot to think about. We better stop for today. I have enough stuff to last me a month."

Fr. Chris: That is a lot to digest. If you have any questions before we meet again just email me or call. I will post this on the blog site as soon as I can."

Joe: "Ok. I will call you about setting up a time to meet again. It may be after the holidays, though…"

We talked about what he was going to do for the holidays and a little about how he thought this was going so far, but I don't see any reason to post that stuff.

Well, that brings us up-to-date on my conversations with Joe. I am sorry it took me so long to post this last part of the talk. Joe is excited about meeting again after the first of the year. So, I encourage you again, to post your thoughts and insights to this last conversation. Thanks again for your patience with this. Until next time…God bless.

posted by: crossman at 10:46 | link | comments |
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What Catholics Believe: Part 2

Finally!!! I have a few spare minutes to sit down and post the rest of the conversation I had with Joe clear back in October. I apologize to my readers for being so slow with this. I talked with Joe about my being so slow on this and he was cool with it. He said his life has been just as busy as mine these past couple of months. I encourage you to re-read the previous posts before starting on this one. We were talking about the saints and then our conversation shifted:

Joe: "But, what about Mary? She is treated different than the other saints. If what you say about the saints is true, I can understand the statues and prayers, but Catholics say she was born without sin and that she is the Mother of God. They go against the bible."

Fr. Chris: I can understand why you might think that way, but they both really are biblically based. Let's begin with Mary being born without sin. The Catholic Church professes that at the moment of Mary's conception she was preserved from original sin by a unique sanctifying grace bestowed on her by God.

Joe: "But that doesn't make any sense. First, nothing in the bibles says that Mary was born without sin and secondly, the bible says that all have sinned." (This is a reference to Romans 3:23).

Fr. Chris: There is a biblical reference to Mary being born without sin. When the angel, Gabriel, visits Mary he greets her with the words, "Hail Mary! Full of grace." Most people think that the angel is simply telling Mary that she is special and Gabriel is but it is more than that. To be full of grace would mean that she is complete of grace. A glass of water, when full, cannot hold more water. If Mary is full of grace how can she sin? Isn't it only through God's grace that we can resist sin? If she is complete with grace then how can she sin? She has all the grace necessary to resist sin.

Joe: "Even if she was full of grace, something had to be missing. She still had to sin. The bible says that everyone has sinned."

Fr. Chris: The problem with that is that not everyone does sin. Think of a little baby. A child below the age of reason cannot sin. He or she cannot distinguish right from wrong and so if they were to die they couldn't have sinned.

Joe: "Well, I guess that's true. So, maybe it means that everyone has original sin? Then Mary couldn't have been conceived without original sin?"

Fr. Chris: The Church very specifically says that at the moment of her conception, God graced her by preserving her from that original sin. That doesn't mean she couldn't be conceived without original sin. Instead, it means God protected her from that original sin at the moment she was conceived.

Joe: "How could God do that?"

Fr. Chris: I don't have a clue how He did it, but since God is omnipotent He certainly can do it.

Joe: "That's true. I certainly can't argue with you there. I'm going to have to think about that one more. I don't know if I quite grasp it yet, but I do see where you are coming from."

Fr. Chris: You mentioned not understanding why Mary is called the Mother of God.

Joe: "Yes, but I want to think about what you said some more before talking about that. Ok?"

Fr. Chris: That's fine with me. I'm here to answer whatever questions you have. Anything else?

I will stop here. Again, I apologize for taking so long to get this posted. I apologized to Joe a couple of times and he was actually kind of glad I didn't post the rest of this right away. He said it gave him some time to think about things and read what we had talked about already. It helped him a lot he said. I have one more part of the conversation to post and I will do that tomorrow or Tuesday. Until next time…God bless.

posted by: crossman at 11:47 | link | comments |
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Everybody's vacation spot

I am away from PoP for a few days to get some much-needed rest and relaxation before the real hustle of Advent gets underway. For my vacation spot I chose the ever popular Des Moines, Iowa. No, I am not joking. I am in Des Moines this week. Actually, I came to Iowa to see my friend, Dan, who was at Kenrick seminary with me for three years and who is going with me on my vacation cruise in January (you didn't know about my vacation...more to come on that in future blogs).

Anyway, I needed a few days away and we have a mission priest at the parish this week. Since he is saying the Masses then I was not needed (I'm not needed :( how sad). Its actually no cooler here than it is in Kansas although they have about a 1/4 inch of ice on the ground. It's been here since Saturday, so it's not as if the roads are icy or anything.

I am planning on visiting the Basilica of St. John today (www.basilicaofstjohn.org) and I also plan on going to their Catholic store, Divine Treasures, to look around. So, I thought I'd blog today. It seems that the only time I can blog anymore is when I have some time away. I will post another blog tomorrow or Thursday. Hopefully, this will get me back into the habit of blogging at least twice a week. Until next time...God bless.

posted by: crossman at 10:39 | link | comments |
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