Prayer for Healing Victims of Abuse

This week Pope Francis has summoned the heads of all the Bishops’ conferences throughout the world to the Vatican for a summit on clerical sex abuse. Let us keep in our minds and hearts those who have been victimized by Priests and pray that our leaders will be open to the Holy Spirit. A prayer is provided below:

God of endless love,
ever caring, ever strong,
always present, always just:
You gave your only Son
to save us by the blood of his cross.

Gentle Jesus, shepherd of peace,
join to your own suffering
the pain of all who have been hurt
in body, mind, and spirit
by those who betrayed the trust placed in them.

Hear our cries as we agonize
over the harm done to our brothers and sisters.
Breathe wisdom into our prayers,
soothe restless hearts with hope,
steady shaken spirits with faith:
Show us the way to justice and wholeness,
enlightened by truth and enfolded in your mercy.

Holy Spirit, comforter of hearts,
heal your people’s wounds
and transform our brokenness.
Grant us courage and wisdom, humility and grace,
so that we may act with justice
and find peace in you.
We ask this through Christ, our Lord. Amen

Watch Out for Email Scams

This week, people from several Brooklyn Heights organizations, including our church and other churches in the area, received emails urgently asking people to buy gift cards and send the codes via email. These all purported to be from organization leaders, but came from fraudulent email addresses. Stay safe by keeping these tips in mind:

1. We will only ask for contributions from our online giving site on WeShare, https://stcharlesbklyn.weshareonline.org or the sites on the Diocese’s Giving page, https://dioceseofbrooklyn.org/giving/ , or we will ask donations to be physically brought to Mass or the Rectory Office.
2. Check to see if the request comes from someone you trust: even if the From: name is someone you know, the email address may not be their address. Be wary if the message is poorly worded or does not “sound” like something the sender would write.
3. If in doubt, don’t hesitate to independently confirm the email – give them a call or text or ask in person. You can always call the Rectory at (718) 625-1177.

Continue reading “6th Sunday Ordinary Time – Weeping” →

Reminder: Bishop’s Visit at the 9 AM Mass this Sunday. Please join us to welcome Bishop DiMarzio. As it is the Feast of St. Blaise, the traditional Blessing of the Throats will be offered en globo – we can all use the help at this time of the year.

From Pope Francis:

Moreover, in the social web identity is too often based on opposition to the other, the person outside the group: we define ourselves starting with what divides us rather than with what unites us, giving rise to suspicion and to the venting of every kind of prejudice (ethnic, sexual, religious and other). This tendency encourages groups that exclude diversity, that even in the digital environment nourish unbridled individualism which sometimes ends up fomenting spirals of hatred. In this way, what ought to be a window on the world becomes a showcase for exhibiting personal narcissism…

“Message from the Holy Father Francis for the 53^rd World Day of Social Communications”

http://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2019/01/24/190124b.html

 

Update on Renovations: Continue reading “4th Sunday Ordinary Time – Called to be Faithful” →

Sacraments:

Infant Baptisms:

Infant Baptisms are normally scheduled for the 11:15 Mass on Sundays. The next Baptism will be on February 24^th. There will be no Baptisms on Sunday during Lent. The next Sunday Baptism will be on Easter Sunday, April 21^st at the 11:15 Mass. There will be no Baptisms on April 28^th. The regular schedule will begin again on Sunday, May 26^th.

If your family is unable to attend on these dates, we will try to accommodate another, non-Sunday, date. A required Parent Class is held on the 2^nd Sunday of each month.

Marriage:

Please contact Fr Smith as soon as possible. A destination wedding still requires the Parish to collect the documents and provide the instruction.

 

Lent Faith-Sharing Groups

Again for this coming Lent, St. Charles is organizing small groups of individuals who would like to participate in prayer, reading and reflection on scripture, and discussion of our faith, in preparation for Easter.  Past participants will tell you it is a great experience!  Sessions meet weekly starting after Ash Wednesday (March 6) and concluding before Holy Thursday (April 17).  They last about an hour and there is no need to attend every session.  One group will meet Sundays at 8 am –you can join that group, or we’ll schedule groups for any other time there is demand!  If interested, please sign up on the sheets in the back of the church, or contact Jane Olson ([email protected]) or contact the rectory.

Food Pantry Collection:

Last weekend, in addition to the canned food donated at the back of the church, we collected $2,050.00 to help replenish the Catholic Charities’ Food Pantries. On behalf of Msgr. LoPinto, we are truly grateful for your contributions. Let us pray that people will come to their senses and this will never be necessary again.

Reminders:

Meet & Greets after each Mass this Sunday, January 27 – coffee and breakfast after 9 am and 11:15 am Masses; wine and cheese after 7 pm Mass.

Bishop’s Visit – Bishop DiMarzio will be celebrating the 9 am Mass next Sunday, February 3. Please come to welcome him to our parish.

 

 

First Reading:

Third Sunday of the Year

Jan 27, 2019

Nehemiah 8:2-4a, 5-6, 8-10

 

Many times in the last few months we have read from the prophets who accompanied the Jews returning to Jerusalem after the exile in Babylon. Today we will read from Nehemiah, a Jewish layman who was governor of Jerusalem around 425 BC. Although not a historian in our sense of the word, he does provide a wider context than the prophets. Also, as an administrator, he provides another perspective.

He is usually and correctly linked with Ezra. Ezra was a priest who reestablished worship, and as we will see today reemphasized the power and meaning of the Law. Ezra would have begun his work In Jerusalem around 450 BC but he is usually depicted as working with Nehemiah. The section we read today is narrated by Nehemiah, but speaks of the activities of Ezra.

At this point in Nehemiah’s story, the walls of Jerusalem have been rebuilt and what we would now call an income stream established to maintain them. Now that safety has been assured, there were no more excuses for religious laxity. So:

² On the first day of the seventh month, therefore, Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly, which consisted of men, women, and those children old enough to understand. Nehemiah 8:2

The seventh month is not chosen accidentally. It is a time of festivals: the “Day of Atonement” and “Feast of Booths”. The feast of Booths celebrates the first Exodus in which the Jews were freed and given the law to sustain and guide then. The Jews have again experienced an Exodus and will again receive the law.

This is to be all people – “men, women, and those children old enough to understand”. They will be asked to make a commitment to God and to themselves. Ezra then reads the Law to them. This depiction may sound familiar for two reasons:

First, we have seen it before. King Josiah in the time of Jeremiah (622 BC) “found” a copy of the Law when renovating the temple which had been lost to the people and called them together to read it to them. (2 Kings) Ezra is seen indeed as the new Moses and he or his disciples provided the final revisions of the Torah – or Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible – and the historical books such as Kings.

Also, people who have attended Synagogue services will see great similarities to the synagogue services of today. Ezra stood on a raised platform with community leaders on either side, opened the Torah and interpreted it for them. Please note that we do not know when synagogue services began, but the Law as the means by which the People are maintained is a legacy of the exile when they did not have temple worship. Although they now have the temple again, they recognize that most Jews will be unable to participate in its worship and that emphasis needs to be placed in local communities. This becomes more important when the priests of the temple are found to be so corrupt that even if the sacrifice offered there is valid, it is less and less satisfying.

⁹ Then (Nehemiah, that is, His Excellency, and) Ezra the priest-scribe (and the Levites who were instructing the people) said to all the people: “Today is holy to the LORD your God. Do not be sad, and do not weep”- for all the people were weeping as they heard the words of the law. Nehemiah 8:9

The reading of the Law was not without effect. We must remember that there was much grumbling among the people about the difficult conditions. This of course is reflected in the discontent of the ancestors as they left Egypt and in the desert “yearned for its fleshpots”. The immediate reaction to the reading of the Law was recognition and remorse.

Thus, the importance of both Nehemiah, the “civil” authority, and Ezra, the “religious”, assuring the people that God is forgiving and that they should receive the Law with joy and celebrate it, not with sack cloth and ashes, but with a feast.

This is key, but Nehemiah has more to teach us. After he established security and assisted Ezra in a religious revival, he returned to Persia. Those whom he placed in positions of importance were not able to lead the people and they became lax in observing the Law. Their faults included working on the sabbath, insufficient care of the temple and the unjust withholding of wages from the temple workers. Upon his return, Nehemiah addressed these failings quickly and efficiently.

This reminds us of some issues about reform. Reform begins when people realize that the previous ways of doing things no longer work. This can be for many reasons, but the recognition of malfunction is always the same. It can also be addressed in many ways, but however sincere the intention, the work is not completed until it has been institutionalized. The boring details of who reports to whom, how long does someone serve and the countless other items of procedure and administration are critical for success. Even then reform requires constant vigilance and commitment.

We see this all around us. Our system of government requires people to enter public service. This is ironic at best to say when many who supply key services for us have been asked to work without pay. This is a frightening example of institutional failure.

Let us look at the church. My generation grew up with Second Vatican Council. We were filled with hope and expectation of miraculous change. But many of us did not take law and the simple running of the machine seriously. It didn’t seem important until 2002 when we realized that we did not have an institutional response to clerical abuse.

The Jews returned to Jerusalem with great prophets, but they would not have succeeded without committed administrators. Neither will we.

 

Food Pantry
As a result of the Government Shutdown, many federal employees (including our own parishioners) have had to resort to food pantries and other meal support. If the shutdown continues through February, SNAP/Food Stamps will not be distributed in March, which will place even more people in need. 

Catholic Charities’s food supplies have been particularly depleted over the past week. Msgr. LoPinto has asked us to make an emergency appeal for canned food donations. Please bring your donations to the back of the church after Mass or you may bring them to the Rectory during the week. Alternatively, you can donate online at https://stcharlesbklyn.weshareonline.org/CatholicCharitiesFoodPantry . 100% of your donation will be used for Catholic Charities’ Food Pantry.

If you are in need of food, visit the Catholic Charities Food Pantry in our parish at 191 Joralemon Street, 1st Floor (around the corner from the Church) on Thursdays from 9:30 AM – 3 PM. A list of other Catholic Charities’ sites and times of operation are at https://www.ccbq.org/what-we-do/taxonomy/term/13/food-pantry-services.

Sergio Sandi – Beethoven Sonatas Recital – Saturday, January 19th, 7:30 PM at the church.
Suggested donation $10. See here for more information.

Meet & Greets – Sunday, January 27 after each Mass
Our next Meet & Greets will be next Sunday, January 27. We will be offering coffee and breakfast after the 9 and 11:15 AM Masses, and wine and cheese after the 7 PM Mass. Please join us for hospitality and fellowship!

Bishop’s Visit – Sunday, February 3, 9 AM
Bishop DiMarzio will be visiting St. Charles on Sunday, February 3rd, and will be celebrating the 9 AM Mass that day. Please join us to welcome him together as a parish community that morning. While we will still have the 11:15 AM and 7 PM Masses as usual, it’s also Super Bowl Sunday, so perhaps the 9 AM Mass will best fit your schedule that day.

Winter Storm Warning
Snow, ice, and high winds are forecast for Saturday night and Sunday. We anticipate all Masses and activities to be held as scheduled, but please take into account your personal safety in your travel decisions.

 

First Reading

Second Sunday of Ordinary Time

Isaiah 62:1-5

 

Today’s reading from Isaiah is remarkably uplifting poetry, all the more amazing in that it is essentially a motivational talk to encourage the Judeans to plant crops and pay taxes. It is, though, more powerful than that.

We have read Isaiah many times in Advent and Christmastide and have discovered that several people used the name, and the one we read today wrote around 500 BC from Jerusalem. He was among the Jewish leaders who accepted the invitation of King Cyrus of Persia to leave Babylon and return to a devastated Jerusalem. When there, they could rebuild their temple and nation. Whatever romantic illusions they may have had were set to rest by the realities. Funding was never as great as they desired, those who took over the land in their absence –the Samaritans – were first suspicious and then hostile and the sheer extent of the task proved very discouraging. They were also reminded that they were a very small part of a very large empire which demanded taxes for its treasury and food for its soldiers.

In the section immediately after what we read today, we hear:

8 The LORD has sworn by his right hand

and by his mighty arm:

No more will I give your grain

as food to your enemies;

Nor shall foreigners drink your wine,

for which you toiled.

9 But you who harvest the grain shall eat it,

and you shall praise the LORD;

You who gather the grapes shall drink the wine

in the courts of my sanctuary. Isaiah 62:8–9

 

From this we may infer that the food grown by the newly restored Judeans was taken by the Persian authorities, and Isaiah is assuring them that God will help them.

Today, we hear Isaiah call to his people.

 For Zion’s sake I will not be silent,

 and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest,

 until her vindication emerges in brightness,

 and her salvation as a flaming torch

 

He is repeating the familiar idea of reversal.  The Jews were once captive but will now be so changed that they will need a new name:

Nations shall behold your vindication,

and all kings your glory;

You shall be called by a new name

pronounced by the mouth of the LORD.

3 You shall be a glorious crown in the hand of the LORD,

a royal diadem held by your God.

4 No more shall men call you “Forsaken,”

or your land “Desolate,” Isaiah 62:2–4

 

Yet not any new name, Jerusalem will become the “wife” of God himself:

 

But you shall be called “My Delight,”

and your land “Espoused.”

For the LORD delights in you,

and makes your land his spouse.

⁵ As a young man marries a virgin,

your Builder shall marry you;

And as a bridegroom rejoices in his bride

so shall your God rejoice in you. Isaiah 62:5

Isaiah is telling his people that that they must deepen their understanding of their relationship with God. It is not a contract or an arrangement. It is a covenant in the deepest sense: God and his people will share a common life. This is the motivation to continue to rebuild the temple and reestablish the people: a call to the deepest intimacy,

This has taken on a very contemporary resonance. The (ongoing) shutdown of government has many people, including some of our own parishioners, working at very critical jobs without pay. As these are people with options – indeed may have taken a reduction in salary to serve the public sector – we should thank them for their service, but still might wonder – why they are doing this? Some I would assume are responding to a vision that motivates them to do more than what makes common sense. There are, thank God, people in every age who do.

This week we celebrate the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. Every biography of Dr King notes the shear amount of detail work he had to do to accomplish his goals. By any purely rational calculus he and those who followed him were squandering their lives. Yet, he articulated a vision that made it seem not only a reasonable, but a natural course of action.

I reread Dr King’s “Letter form a Birmingham Jail” every year at this time. It is addressed to well-meaning white clergymen who felt that Dr King was impatient and that as he was on the right side of history, he only had to wait. One favorite section below is a reminder to all of us in a difficult time about inevitably:

“… The teachings of Christ take time to come to earth.” Such an attitude stems from a tragic misconception of time, from the strangely irrational notion that there is something in the very flow of time that will inevitably cure all ills. Actually, time itself is neutral; it can be used either destructively or constructively. More and more I feel that the people of ill will have used time much more effectively than have the people of good will. We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people. Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be co-workers with God, and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation. We must use time creatively, in the knowledge that the time is always ripe to do right. Now is the time to make real the promise of democracy and transform our pending national elegy into a creative psalm of brotherhood. Now is the time to lift our national policy from the quicksand of racial injustice to the solid rock of human dignity.

When we hear a prophet like Isaiah or MLK, we need to ask about our own vision both as individuals and as a Parish. Both knew that God was on their side, but that if He was kind and merciful, they must be just and wise. Scripture says: “Where there is not vision the people die”. (Proverbs 29:18) This is a diagnosis, but also a prescription. It requires us to look at what we believe, but for the prophets emerging from the Hebrew bible, it requires us to examine how closely our vision compares to the Word of God. If the vision is ours alone, we shall be both desolate and forsaken; if it is God’s, we shall be a glorious crown in the hand of the LORD, a royal diadem held by our God.

The Epiphanies 

Epiphany derives from a Greek word for “making manifest or shining forth”. We celebrated the Solemnity of the Epiphany last Sunday with the commemoration of the Three Kings. Here, Jesus is revealed, “made manifest’, to the world. Yet, there are other events in which He also shines forth. The Church has recognized this by celebrating two other “Epiphanies”. In the “Baptism of the Lord” which we celebrate this weekend, the voice of the Father comes from heaven and says: “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased”. Here, Jesus is acknowledged as a member of the Trinity. The third is the first miracle at the wedding feast at Cana. Here, the power of Jesus to heal is proclaimed, but also the realization that the clearest manifestation of his reality will not be seen until his death and resurrection. We will read this next week. In the present selection of readings, this order is maintained only in Year C and so we will not celebrate the three Epiphanies again for another three years. I ask you to think about these manifestations, and ask yourselves when Jesus has shined in your own lives. To recognize this in Church, a few Christmas trees will be left in the Sanctuary, and the recessional hymn at Mass next week will be “Joy to the World”.

First Reading:

The Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7

Jan 13, 2019

 

The return of the Jewish leaders to Jerusalem was obviously an important event for the Jews. Isaiah, who has a wider view of history, shows us in today’s reading that we must also see it from the perspective of “world” history, God cannot move without disruption. To understand this, we must begin with Chapter 41.

Isaiah is creating a trial scene in which God is the prosecuting attorney and judge. The first case is “who liberated the Jewish People?” As we proceed, note that the proper scriptural passages are placed on the side but only a small section is written out. Hebrew poetry is a bit repetitive to our ears.

Summons to trail 1 41:1

Keep silence before me, O coastlands;

you peoples, wait for my words!

Let them draw near and speak;

let us come together for judgment. Isaiah 41:1

 

“Coastlands” refer to the trading peoples of the Mediterranean world – they are not Jewish.

 

Legal questioning 1 – 41:2-4

² Who has stirred up from the East the champion of justice,

and summoned him to be his attendant?

To him he delivers the nations

and subdues the kings;

With his sword he reduces them to dust,

with his bow, to driven straw. Isaiah 41:2

This is Cyrus, the king of Persia who conquered Babylon and will offer the Jewish leaders an opportunity to return. Yet, it is the God of the Jews who is in control.

 

⁴ Who has performed these deeds?

He who has called forth the generations since the beginning.

I, the LORD, am the first,

and with the last I will also be. Isaiah 41:4 (NAB)

 

Election and reassurance of Israel 41:5-20

⁸ But you, Israel, my servant,

Jacob, whom I have chosen,

offspring of Abraham my friend—

⁹ You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth

and summoned from its far-off places,

You whom I have called my servant,

whom I have chosen and will not cast off— Isaiah 41:8–9 (NAB)

Cyrus has been obedient to God’s will and has been rewarded with victory, but the Persians are not the chosen people. It is the people of Abraham who God has recalled from the ends of the earth and have his special favor. Note also that he refers to them as servants. They are chosen and important, but because they have a role.

Many beautiful lines follow but they reinforce the idea that the God of Israel is the Lord of History but as we have seen many times before He demands justice from his people.

Summons to trail 2 41:21

Having established that Israel’s God has worked his will, we begin the second trial, “Are there other Gods?”

²¹ Present your case, says the LORD;

bring forward your reasons, says the King of Jacob Isaiah 41:2

 

Legal Questioning 2 41:22-29

 

Now the “other” gods are on trial, or more specifically their idols:

 

²³ Foretell the things that shall come afterward,

that we may know that you are gods!

Do something, good or evil,

that will put us in awe and in fear. Isaiah 41:23

 

They cannot, therefore:

 

²⁴ Why, you are nothing and your work is nought!

To choose you is an abomination. Isaiah 41:24 (NAB)

 

He uses Cyrus as an example. He called him and the “other gods” did not even know it:

 

²⁶ Who announced this from the beginning, that we might know;

beforehand, that we might say it is true?

Not one of you foretold it, not one spoke;

no one heard you say, Isaiah 41:26 (NAB)

 

From this He concludes that they do not exist. This is the earliest clear statement that there are no other gods

 

²⁹ Ah, all of them are nothing,

their works are nought,

their idols are empty wind! Isaiah 41:29 (NAB)

 

Election and reassurance of Israel 2 42:1-9

We now come to the section for Sunday’s reading.

We have seen in 41:8 that God has called His servant. He returns to this when explains to the people what accepting Him as the only deity really means.

¹ Here is my servant whom I uphold,

my chosen one with whom I am pleased,

Upon whom I have put my spirit;

he shall bring forth justice to the nations. Isaiah 42:1 (NAB)

 

He is speaking to the Jews who returned to Jerusalem not to a king, or indeed a prophet. As we saw last week the Kings and the traditional leaders failed. They failed to be just to their own people and thus could not fulfill their calling to bring justice to the nations. If the God of the Jews is truly the only God, then he is truly the ultimate course of Justice and peace.

³ A bruised reed he shall not break,

and a smoldering wick he shall not quench,

⁴ Until he establishes justice on the earth;

the coastlands will wait for his teaching. Isaiah 42:3–4 (NAB)

 

It shall not be by their own power; certainly not by traditional military might. A plant shall not be crushed by their own efforts, but the power of God will transform the pagans of the Coastlands who, in the quiet of their hearts, await the message that will set them free as well.

⁶ I, the LORD, have called you for the victory of justice,

I have grasped you by the hand;

I formed you, and set you

as a covenant of the people,

a light for the nations, Isaiah 42:6 (NAB)

 

By His covenant, sharing of life with His people, He will make them into a light for the nations: the way His name will be known.

Through them he will do for the world what he did for Israel

⁷ To open the eyes of the blind,

to bring out prisoners from confinement,

and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness. Isaiah 42:7 (NAB

 

Through our covenant with Jesus, we have joined the Jews in the responsibility of being the light to the nations. As Pope Francis reminded the U.S. bishops on their retreat which concluded last Tuesday, this will be done with a firm commitment to justice. In its clearest form, this means our care for those who are poor and whose needs are not even seen. As of this writing, the “Partial” government shutdown is still in effect. There are contract workers who will never be paid and who are in desperate straits as it is. I  wonder how many congresspeople and bureaucrats, as well as the President and Cabinet members, know the names of the people who clean their offices? Do they know if they have children and can they pay their bills? Or are they as interchangeable as the desks and chairs? The people of Abraham will be visible and will be a light to the nations, but only if we care for those who invisible.

Meet & Greets – Sunday, January 27
Our next Meet & Greets will be on Sunday, January 27. We will be offering coffee and breakfast after the 9 and 11:15 AM Masses, and wine and cheese after the 7 PM Mass. Please join us for hospitality and fellowship!

Bishop’s Visit – Sunday, February 2 3
Bishop DiMarzio will be visiting St. Charles on Sunday, February 2nd 3rd, and will be celebrating the 9 AM Mass that day. Please join us to welcome him that morning.

The Pope and the Bishops:

This week the Bishops of the United States are on a religious retreat suggested by Pope Francis. Their Retreat Master is Fr Raniero Cantalamessa, the official preacher to the Papal Household  and thus preacher to the Pope. Pope Francis has also written to them a most bracing letter. You may find the letter in full at: http://www.usccb.org/about/leadership/holy-see/francis/upload/francis-lettera-washington-traduzione-inglese-20190103.pdf

We would all benefit from reading this part as a parish:

[What we need as a Church] requires not only a new approach to management, but also a change in our mind-set (metanoia), our way of praying, our handling of power and money, our exercise of authority and our way of relating to one another and to the world around us. Changes in the Church are always aimed at encouraging a constant state of missionary and pastoral conversion capable of opening up new ecclesial paths ever more in keeping with the Gospel and, as such, respectful of human dignity. … [The Church] needs bishops who can teach others how to discern God’s presence in the history of his people, not mere administrators.”

All who wish to have a place in Church leadership should listen to these words. I certainly will.

Fr Smith

 

 

First Reading

The Epiphany

Jan 6, 2019

 

Last week we saw the Jewish people move from clan and chieftain leadership to a monarchy. Although this occurred around the year 1000 BC, the book of Samuel revealed a rather sophisticated understanding of the strengths and weakness of each system. This week, we see how the Jews adapted to knowing that they would not have a king in the foreseeable future and an even more sophisticated analysis of the consequences.

This section of the book of Isaiah was written about 500 BC in Jerusalem. It is a difficult time. The Persians invited the leaders of the Jews to return after a generation in exile, but as their subjects. The books of Ezra and Nehemiah give the background to this and it is obvious that many of those who returned were not happy. They were uncertain why they were there and what they were supposed to do.

The author instructed them very shrewdly. The residents of Jerusalem would have prayed the Psalms probably from memory. They would have known Psalm 72, part of which reads:

O God, give your judgment to the king; 

your justice to the son of kings;

That he may govern your people with justice,

your oppressed with right judgment,

³ That the mountains may yield their bounty for the people,

and the hills great abundance,

⁴ That he may defend the oppressed among the people,

save the poor and crush the oppressor.  Psalm 72:2–4

 

What does this mean when there is no king? Simply that the entire people, or at least those residing in Jerusalem, have taken on the role of King. As usual with the Old Testament, we first see this negatively. In the chapter immediately before what we read this week:

 

¹ Lo, the hand of the LORD is not too short to save,

nor his ear too dull to hear.

² Rather, it is your crimes

that separate you from your God,

It is your sins that make him hide his face

so that he will not hear you. (Isaiah 59:1-2)

 

These sins are from injustice:

 

No one brings suit justly,

no one pleads truthfully;

They trust in emptiness and tell lies;

they conceive mischief and bring forth malice. Isaiah 59:4

 

The verdict of Deuteronomy is always present. When the people act justly, they prosper; when they do not, they falter. It is easy to blame a corrupt political or moral system, but the prophets will not have it. This is partly true, but nothing can exempt anyone from acting justly.

 

Also, common however in the Old Testament is the promise of reversal – that the reward for justice is prosperity and respect among the nations. We see that in the opening verses today:

 

¹ Rise up in splendor! Your light has come,

the glory of the Lord shines upon you.

² See, darkness covers the earth,

and thick clouds cover the peoples;

But upon you the LORD shines,

and over you appears his glory. Isaiah 60:1–2

 

The light is the presence of God which accomplishes all things, including the gathering of all the tribes – traditionally the task of kings.

 

⁴ Raise your eyes and look about;

they all gather and come to you:

Your sons come from afar,

and your daughters in the arms of their nurses. Isaiah 60:4

The respect of the nations is more than just words, these are physical people, and everything must be in physical terms.

For the riches of the sea shall be emptied out before you,

the wealth of nations shall be brought to you.

⁶ Caravans of camels shall fill you,

dromedaries from Midian and Ephah;

All from Sheba shall come

bearing gold and frankincense,

and proclaiming the praises of the LORD. Isaiah 60:5–6

Note the reference to Sheba, and remember that the queen of Sheba brought gifts to King Solomon. This reflects the past; interesting, however are the feelings towards the foreign nations.

During the exile, Ezekiel wrote:

You have admitted foreigners, uncircumcised both in heart and flesh, to my sanctuary to profane it when you offered me food, fat, and blood; thus you have broken my covenant by all your abominations.  Ez 44:7

 

In the passage which follows what we read today:

⁷ All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered for you,

the rams of Nebaioth shall be your sacrifices;

They will be acceptable offerings on my altar,

and I will enhance the splendor of my house. Isaiah 60:7 (NAB)

 

and

¹³ The glory of Lebanon shall come to you:

the cypress, the plane and the pine,

To bring beauty to my sanctuary,

and glory to the place where I set my feet. Isaiah 60:13

For this author, they rebuild the Temple and provide the offerings. This reflects Isaiah 49 on the vocation of the people of Israel:

⁶ It is too little, he says, for you to be my servant,

to raise up the tribes of Jacob,

and restore the survivors of Israel;

I will make you a light to the nations,

that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth. Isaiah 49:6

Last week, we saw that the transition to Kingship could only be accomplished for Jews with the aid of a prophet. We see the same here. There is much conflict and contradiction, but a path is found not by administrators or soldiers or priests but by prophets.

As we begin 2019, we may feel like the Jews in Jerusalem asking: “what happened”? Who will make sense of this? In Jewish and Christian terms, “Where are our prophets?” When Pope Francis addressed Congress in 2015, one of the four Americans he mentioned was Abraham Lincoln. As the Civil War, the bloodiest and cruelest upheaval our country has ever faced, was coming to an end, Lincoln wrote in his Second Inaugural Address:

With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation’s wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan  to do all which may achieve and cherish a just, and a lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations.

His interpretation of the moment that charity and generosity were needed, not violence and revenge, was an extraordinary and unwanted insight. It was prophecy in action. Like Isaiah over two millennia before, he was perhaps the only person who could see it clearly and say it eloquently. Enough who heard Isaiah followed him and Judaism has survived and prospered. We have perhaps not followed Lincoln closely enough, which is why the Pope had to include Martin Luther King in his address – enough so that we have stumbled by. Given the gravity of our situation, God will send us  prophets who will share extraordinary and unwanted insights as well.

Will we hear? Will we follow?

Meet & Greets + Children’s Nativity Pageant

This Sunday, we will have our monthly Meet & Greets after each of the Masses. We will serve breakfast after the 9 and 11:15 PM mass, and wine and cheese after the 7 PM Mass. The Children’s Nativity Pageant will be held during the Gospel at the 11:15 AM Mass – this is a highlight of our Family Faith Program each year. Our special guests will be young adults from St. Vincent Services. Please join us for fellowship and good cheer in this special season!

Connecting at St Charles

Do you work insane hours? Do you travel so much you don’t know where you will be next week much less where you will attend Mass? Do you feel that you really don’t belong to any Parish and want to feel more connected to St Charles? Please join us this Monday, Dec 17th,  7:30 PM at 31 Sidney Place (The Rectory) Parlor Floor

Fr John Gribowich, a resident at St Charles who is continuing his studies in media at the University of California Berkley, will assist us in developing ways to connect with each other. He will be joined by Davd Plisky from DeSales Media.

I hope and pray that you will be able to attend.

Christmas Collections

Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens was recently featured in the New York Times Neediest Cases column for its Intern and Earn program, which gets 16-24-year olds back on track in their home, school, or career lives. Read more at https://nyti.ms/2zG3cJW (free article). The second collection at Christmas will be dedicated to Catholic Charities.

We are also continuing to have the following collections:

• Christmas Collection and Christmas Flowers for our Church – Give online at https://stcharlesbklyn.weshareonline.org/ChristmasSpecialCollection or use your mass envelope.
• 7th Annual Toys for Tots drive at the The Custom House  – Unwrapped Toys & Gift Cards to be distributed by Catholic Charities. Drop off at The Custom House at 139 Montague Street by December 15th.
• Family Faith Program Collection of Winter Hats, Scarves, Gloves for St. Charles Seniors – drop off unwrapped items at box at front of church by Sunday, December 16.

Thank you very much for your support!

Fr William Smith

Pastor

 

Third Sunday of Advent

Dec. 16, 2018

Zephaniah 3:14-18a

 

Today we read from the Book of the prophet Zephaniah. He is rarely quoted directly but will be somewhat familiar to classical music enthusiasts for providing the opening words to the Dies Irae, a hymn which was part of the old Requiem Mass.

A day of wrath is that day

a day of anguish and distress,

A day of destruction and desolation,

a day of darkness and gloom,

A day of thick black clouds

 

Zephaniah 1:15

 

He does however have much to teach us that is particularly suited to the Advent season.

He gives us a brief autobiography at the beginning of his book.

 

The word of the LORD which came to Zephaniah, the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah, the son of Amon, king of Judah.

Zephaniah 1:1

He is very well connected – a descendant indeed of the good king Hezekiah (716-687 BC), he also dates himself to the reign of the reforming king Josiah. (640-609) This would make him a slightly older contemporary of Jeremiah and Ezekiel. As we have seen before this was a time when the military power of Assyria was diminishing. The Jews were able to take some breathing room not only to attempt to obtain greater political autonomy but also greater religious independence. During the reigns of Manasseh and Amon (687-640) many foreign elements were added to Jewish worship and practice. This was good politics but bad religion. Zephaniah was the first prophet since Isaiah, and he encouraged King Josiah to purify religious practice. Much of the first chapter of Zephaniah is virtually incomprehensible to us because it speaks of pagan religious practices that were successfully purged from Jewish worship. For instance, “the Lord will punish all who leap over the threshold”, (Zephaniah 1:9) This refers to the worship of the pagan god Dargon. The effect however is familiar:

12 At that time I will explore Jerusalem with lamps;

I will punish the men …

Who say in their hearts,

“Neither good nor evil can the LORD do.”

 

Zephaniah 1:12 (NAB)

 

Once worship is adulterated and tradition weakened, ultimately belief is surrendered and God may seem irrelevant. It is Zephaniah’s message that the Lord is always a player.

For Zephaniah, the fish stinks from the head down.

1 Woe to the city, rebellious and polluted,

to the tyrannical city!

2 She hears no voice,

accepts no correction;

In the LORD she has not trusted,

to her God she has not drawn near.

3 Her princes in her midst

are roaring lions;

Her judges are wolves of the night

that have had no bones to gnaw by morning.

4 Her prophets are insolent,

treacherous men;

Her priests profane what is holy,

and do violence to the law. Zephaniah 3:1–4

 

A fairly comprehensive list and a realistic evaluation. Bad leaders bring bad ends. Realistic also is Zephaniah’s address to the poor:

 

2 Before you are driven away,

like chaff that passes on;

Before there comes upon you

the blazing anger of the LORD:

Before there comes upon you

the day of the LORD’S anger.

3 Seek the LORD, all you humble of the earth,

who have observed his law;

Seek justice, seek humility;

perhaps you may be sheltered

on the day of the LORD’S anger.

 

Zephaniah 2:2–3

 

This reveals a unique feature of the Old Testament. The Lord is concerned about the poor and the marginalized, and calls those who are rich and prosperous to task for the means by which they obtained and maintained their prosperity and position. Characteristic as well is that – as we have seen before – the prophets will call down God’s wrath on foreign nations.

 

4 For Gaza shall be forsaken,

and Ashkelon shall be a waste,

Ashdod they shall drive out at midday,

and Ekron shall be uprooted.

Zephaniah 2:4

It goes on for quite a while and is very comprehensive, but is balanced by the oracles against the Jews themselves. As the history of the Jewish people clearly shows being the Chosen people is not a free pass. All are subject to the justice of God, but also his mercy. After He has shown His wrath on the nations, He will make them His own:

9 For then I will change and purify

the lips of the peoples,

That they all may call upon the name of the LORD,

to serve him with one accord;

10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia

and as far as the recesses of the North,

they shall bring me offerings.

Zephaniah 3:9–10

 

The Jews will be the means he will use to accomplish this:

 

11 On that day

You need not be ashamed

of all your deeds,

your rebellious actions against me;

For then will I remove from your midst

the proud braggarts,

And you shall no longer exalt yourself

on my holy mountain.

12 But I will leave as a remnant in your midst

a people humble and lowly,

Who shall take refuge in the name of the LORD;

13 the remnant of Israel.

They shall do no wrong

and speak no lies;

Nor shall there be found in their mouths

a deceitful tongue;

They shall pasture and couch their flocks

with none to disturb them. Zephaniah 3:11–13

Here we see an important theme in the first testament. The Jewish people are not chosen for themselves, but to be the light to the nations and the means by which all people will come to know the Lord. Thus, Zephaniah speaks of a remnant that will live in Jerusalem after the others have been removed.

This is where our reading today begins. Before examining it, we need to look at a bit of editing. As we have seen before, the final editing of many of the books in the first testament was after the exile about 500 BC. Most scholars believe that this section was added as a fitting conclusion to the book.

It is a shout of joy for the saving work of God. It is also a very realistic one. We believe that God has entered into history and reveals himself through it. It takes time to see that those who live as if God matters will be vindicated. That what may have seen immediately as disaster was a means of holiness and that the God who is in our midst will:

¹⁸ as one sings at festivals.

I will remove disaster from among you,

so that none may recount your disgrace.

Zephaniah 3:18 (NAB)