Monday

Pope Benedict XVI on the Epiphany

From the Vatican Information Service:
THE WORD OF GOD IS THE TRUE STAR IN OUR LIVES

VATICAN CITY, 6 JAN 2011 (VIS) - In the Vatican Basilica at 10 a.m. today, the Pope presided at Mass for the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord.

In his homily Benedict XVI explained that the Magi "were probably wise men who studied the skies, but not in an attempt to read the future in the stars; ... rather, they were men who sought something greater, who sought the true light, the light capable of indicating the path to follow in life. They were individuals who were certain that the creation contains what we could describe as God's signature, a signature that man can and must seek to discover and decipher".

Referring to King Herod, the Pope described him as a "a man of power", to whom "even God appeared as a rival; indeed, a particularly dangerous rival Who sought to deprive men of their living space, of their autonomy, of their power. ... Herod is a unsympathetic figure to us, one we instinctively judge negatively because of his brutality. Yet we should ask ourselves whether there is not perhaps something of Herod in us too. Perhaps we too, at times, see God as a kind of rival. Perhaps we too are blind to His signs, deaf to His words, because we believe that He puts limitations on our lives and does not allow us to dispose of our existence as we wish".

"When we see God in this way", the Holy Father continued, "we end up feeling dissatisfied and discontented, because we do not allow ourselves to be guided by the One Who is the foundation of all things, We must remove all idea of rivalry from our minds and hearts, the idea that giving space to God is a limit to the self. We must open ourselves to the certainty that God is omnipotent love which takes away nothing, which threatens nothing. Quite the contrary, He is the only One capable of offering us the chance to live a full life and to experience true joy".

The Magi, the Pope went on, "being wise men, also knew that it is not with a mere telescope but with the eyes of profound reason which searches for the ultimate meaning of reality, with the desire for God moved by the faith, that it is possible to meet Him. Or rather, this is what makes it possible for God to approach us. The universe is not the result of chance, as some people would have us believe, and contemplating it we are called to read something more profound therein: the wisdom of the Creator, God's endless imagination, His infinite love for us.

"We must not", Benedict XVI added, "allow our minds to be constrained by theories which are always limited and which - if we study them well - are not in any way in competition with the faith as they cannot explain the ultimate meaning of reality. In the beauty of the world, in its mystery, its greatness and its rationality we cannot fail to read the eternal rationality. And we cannot but allow ourselves to be guided by the world to the One God, Creator of heaven and earth. If we see things in this way, we will see that the One Who created the world, and the One Who was born in a grotto in Bethlehem and continues to live among us in the Eucharist, are the same living God Who calls us, Who invites us, Who wants to lead us to eternal life".

For the Magi "it seemed logical to seek the new king in the royal palace". Yet "the star guided them to Bethlehem, a small town; it guided them among the poor, among the humble, to find the King of the world. God's criteria are different to those of mankind. God does not show Himself among the powerful of this world, but in the humility of His love, the love which asks us to welcome it in our freedom, in order to transform us and enable us to reach the One Who is Love".

"In the end, for the Magi, it was vital to listen to the voice of Holy Scripture; only that could show them the way. The Word of God is the true star which, in the uncertainty of human discourse, offers us the immense splendour of divine truth", said the Pope.

And he concluded: "Let us allow ourselves to be guided by the star, which is the Word of God, let us follow it in our lives, walking with the Church where the Word has pitched its tent. Our path will always be illuminated by a light which no other sign can give us. And we too will be able to act as stars for other people, a reflection of that light which Christ caused to shine upon us".

About this blog

Please remember the Faith Communities that have been God's own Family and yours...

One of my favorite Christian artists is a singer/songwriter called Michael Card. His song “So Many Books” has always been a favorite of mine. During my time in the novice period of formation as a Dominican tertiary I particularly enjoyed the song. The chorus sings to us thus: “So many books, so little time…so many hunger…so many blind. Starving for words they must wait in the night, to open a Bible and move towards the Light.” As a young learner I looked to the “books” of the printed word for knowledge as many young people do. I searched for meaning in the texts of what I called tradition.

As I matured and grew in age and wisdom I came to understand the lyrics of the song of life a little differently. I understand now that the greatest books ever written are written not by man but by God and that these books are not all found in the canonical Bible. These great works of the Father are found in the form of his own children. Your life is part of God’s great library. Each person represents a volume in the encyclopedic work of life. People are God’s tradition. Now as a bishop, I see God’s wisdom in the men and women who have walked before me. I see the beauty of God’s love in all that the older generations have worked to build up for those who come after them. I believe it is the duty of bishops to preserve Tradition by preserving what has been handed to us from our elder brothers and sisters in God.

Memory is important in tradition. We honor our fathers and mothers by remembering them. Parish communities act as libraries in that they house the books of the families of God. In recent years we have witness the downsizing of many dioceses throughout the US. I lament this trend because when the parish fades out of history there is a danger that we will forget those people who were God’s instruments in bringing the parish into the world. I wish my little community of believers had the ability to save all those parishes from extinction.

This little blog is part of my effort to remember the parishes throughout our land that have played a crucial role in building up the library of God’s love for his people. I will post a link to Mass readings and sometimes I’ll offer a brief commentary or I will post other news or information that may be of interest to readers. Along with this information I will sometimes post a section entitled “We Remember” which will highlight memories of a particular parish community, priest, or bishop. I write this blog as a person of love and faith, not as any official minister. This blog is not connected to the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy or any diocese or parish, nor is it my intention to lead anyone to believe it is so connected. It is however rooted in the love God has for his children and the communities that have breathed his love into the world for countless generations. It is also my personal gift to those men and women of history who deserve to be remembered.

As a young priest and eventually a bishop in the independent Catholic movement (a movement that has enjoyed much attention in recent years due to the efforts of Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI to welcome many “wandering bishops” back home to the Church), I have come to appreciate the beauty of God’s people. It is not uncommon in the independent movement for bishops and pastors to be younger than those in the mainstream Catholic Church. I have never questioned this trend because of the fact that Jesus began his public ministry at age thirty and because the first apostles were either younger or not much older than the thirty-year-old-Jesus. I have always found a certain beauty in this trend because I have been able to minster to men and women of older generations. This is a privilege because it has afforded me the opportunity to live out the command to honor father and mother in a deeply spiritual way. Even though some may jeer at the practice of ordaining younger men to the order of bishop, it is a tradition that more closely follows the example of the ministry and choice of Jesus.

I believe that God gives his Son in the form of youth so that Hope can be visible in the community. What do I mean? Jesus comes to us as a man in his thirties and by doing so reaches into the community of the young and the community of the older. He is in essence the bridge of that which has been called the “generation gap.” He gives hope to the very young and to the very old in that he represents the future for both groups. For the young he is what they aspire to be. For the old he is the embodiment of what they leave as their legacy of love to the world.

I have had the honor of ministering to many members of the faithful who, by the labor of their lives, paved the way for those like me to inherit the joys of the Kingdom. I hope that this little web page will also expose me to more of the love and wisdom of the generations of elders that I seek to cherish and honor. If you have a story you would like to share about the history of your faith community of a special minister who touched your life, e-mail me at dominicanvocations@hotmail.com and I will do my best to share it with the world in the form of this blog site.

I also encourage you to start your own “We Remember” effort by means of your own web page or blog or by commemorating the history of your faith family in some other way. The Catholic tradition in Southern New Jersey will be celebrating its Diamond Jubilee in 2012, so now is the perfect time to begin to collect and publish your memories of the past 75 years of the Tradition of God’s People here at home.

Be assured of my prayers for you and your faith communities. Please pray for me.


With hope for the future, I am,
+ Tomas Martin, OPD
Bishop of the OPD Community