Archive for February, 2008
Eight Truths Every Catholic Should Know: The Sacramental Workings of Christ
Thursday, February 28th, 2008
“The Catholic Miscellany”
Editor’s Note: This is the fifth of a series of columns Fr. Jeff Kirby is writing for Lent.
Fifth Truth:
“The Sacramental Workings of Christ”
Many of us know people who leave the Catholic Church for one of the newer Protestant megachurches. When asked why, the explanation is often that God never seemed real to him or her in the parish. These people say they never felt a personal relationship with God, and thought all the ceremonies and formalities of the Catholic Church just got in the way with direct contact to God.
Sadly, these individuals see the sacraments as cold rituals that are empty of any meaning. To them the sacraments are useless, and fail to help them know and love Jesus Christ.
Is this a proper view of the sacraments? What is their proper place in the life of the disciple and of the Church? Can they help us to know and love Jesus Christ?
A sacrament is a visible sign of invisible grace, instituted by Christ, entrusted to the Church, and brought about by the power of the Holy Spirit. The seven sacraments begin and sustain the life of the believer in Jesus Christ.
Disciples are called to have faith and to nurture a life of hope and love. We are called to recognize that God knows, loves, and serves us, and that he calls us into a relationship with him. This relationship encourages us to make an effort to know, love, and serve God in return, and to surrender our lives and desires to him.
The sacraments, rather than empty ceremonials, are actually radical encounters with the Lord Jesus and intense dispensations of grace. They follow the natural order of creation. They truly establish, renew, fortify, and carry us throughout our lives.
Our relationship with the Lord Jesus is begun at baptism, when we are cleansed of sin, adopted by God the Father, and made a member of Christ’s body. The sacraments of penance and the Eucharist make Christ radically present to us in our journey of faith. Confirmation strengthens us and endows us with the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Holy matrimony and holy orders bless us with the grace necessary for us to live our life’s vocation in a manner worthy of Christ’s presence. The anointing of the sick heals us in Christ and prepares our souls for departure from this life and judgment in the afterlife.
Throughout our lives, the sacraments make Jesus present to us. Rather than a barrier, they serve as a means to help us come to know the Lord Jesus. They make him real, tangible, and approachable.
The sacraments are Christ’s arms and legs; his eyes and ears. They are his heart and his embrace to us in this life. They slowly sanctify us and transform us more into the likeness of God.
As life’s struggles, failures and successes come and go, God’s sanctifying grace, flowing through the sacraments, artfully shapes us and molds us.
The sacraments make us fit to be with Christ forever in his heavenly kingdom.
The Rev. Jeffrey Kirby is the parochial vicar at St. Mary Help of Christians parish in Aiken. Please visit: www.jeffrey-kirby.com.
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Unusually Early Easter
Thursday, February 28th, 2008
“The Aiken Standard”
Suzanne R. Stone
Staff Writer
If you haven’t gotten your Easter bonnet with the frills upon it yet, now’s the time. Easter Sunday falls uncommonly early this year.
This year’s Easter Sunday will be March 23, the first time it has fallen on that date since 1913 and the last time it will be on the 23rd until 2228. The earliest that Easter Sunday can fall is March 22 of any given year, and the latest it can occur is April 25. Coincidentally, this year’s Easter Week also coincides with the weekend of the Aiken Spring Steeplechase, with the March 21 Mad Hatters Ball falling on Good Friday and the Steeplechase taking place on March 22, the eve of Easter Sunday.
“Next year Holy Week is the same week as Masters week, and that happens much more commonly,” said Dr. Fred Andrea III of First Baptist Church of Aiken. “When Masters week and Easter coincide, it puts more demands on people’s attention and time. I wouldn’t anticipate a problem this Easter Sunday, since the Steeplechase will be over by then.”
The date of Easter Sunday is determined by a formula: the first Sunday after the first full moon to follow the Spring Equinox, also known as the Paschal Full Moon. Because the date of the Spring Equinox varies from year to year, so does the date of Easter Sunday. The formula was developed by the early Church as an answer to the “Easter Controversy,” according to Father Jeff Kirby of St. Mary Help of Christians Catholic Church.
“The ‘Easter Controversy’ was the debate over how to blend the Jewish observance of Passover and the Christian observance of the Resurrection. In Christian theology we call the Resurrection ‘The New Passover,’ so the early Church wanted to connect the two but also show that this was something new. It was resolved with this formula because the date of the Spring Equinox also determines the date of Passover, and it was a real source of peace when it was finally resolved,” he said.
Kirby noted that while the Eastern Orthodox Church also uses the Paschal Full Moon formula, it obtains its date from the Julian calendar rather than the more familiar Gregorian calendar. The Eastern Orthodox Church’s Lenten season begins on March 10, and Easter Sunday falls on April 27, a week after Passover. The Jewish feast of Passover begins at sunset on Saturday, March 19, and continues all day Sunday, March 20.
“The way the liturgical calendar works, the Christmas season doesn’t come to a complete stop until Feb. 2, the feast of the presentation of Jesus in the temple. We ended the Christmas season on Feb. 2 and had Ash Wednesday to begin Lent on Feb. 6,” Kirby said.
“This year is unique in that Christmas and Easter are as close together as anyone alive will be able to remember. In the Church’s teachings, Christ’s life is one mystery, so this is a unique opportunity to teach how closely related those two events in Christ’s life were – that he was born to that he might die for us,” he said. “You don’t get that opportunity very often.”
Andrea observed that Christian sects have many ways of observing the events of Easter week. Some observe Good Friday with a tenebrae service, a candlelit service in which readings on the life of Christ are punctuated by the extinguishing of candles, concluding in total darkness to symbolize the loss of Christ’s light from the world.
Other services are designed to emphasize the 14 stations of the cross; First Baptist will display a series of paintings by Nigerian artist Bruce Onobrakpeya depicting the stations of the cross, given to the church last year, during Holy Week. Some churches also do a Saturday night Easter Vigil, awaiting the arrival of Easter Sunday, and/or a sunrise service.
“Every Christian church observes Easter Sunday, but not all of them do all or most or, in some cases, any observes of Holy Week,” Andrea said.
“Because we follow the liturgical calendar, our members are on top of it, but I can imagine churches that don’t have a Lent season’s members might be caught off guard by the early Easter,” said Kirby.
Contact Suzanne Stone at sstone@aikenstandard.com.
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Eight Truths Every Catholic Should Know: Shepherds in Christ’s Name
Thursday, February 21st, 2008
“The Catholic Miscellany”
Editor’s Note: This is the fourth of a series of columns Fr. Jeff Kirby is writing for Lent.
Fourth Truth:
“Shepherds in Christ’s Name”
A young couple asked me once about the church’s teachings on sexuality and marriage. They were perplexed and wanted some explanation. I referred to the positions of the church as the teachings of Christ. The gentleman stopped me and asked how I could argue that these were from Christ. Aren’t these just the opinions of the church?
The above encounter raised important questions: What is the relationship between Christ and the church? What authority and responsibility did Christ give to the shepherds of his church? What is the church’s role in contemporary society?
In his earthly ministry, we know that Christ arranged for the community of his disciples to be served and led by the apostles, their co-workers, and the deacons. The Lord Jesus intimately formed the apostles, and bestowed upon them his own offices of priest, teacher, and shepherd. Jesus established a hierarchy and assured the apostles: Those who hear you, hear me; and those who reject you, reject me.
From the Acts of the Apostles and the letters of St. Paul, we see this constitution and internal structure of the body of Christ on earth. The Church would be led by weak human beings empowered and guided by the Holy Spirit.
As the apostles died, successors were named and the apostolic office instituted by Christ continued. It will remain in existence until the Lord Jesus returns in glory.
These successors of the apostles are bishops, and the successor of St. Peter is the pope. The apostolic office, held by these shepherds, solemnly teaches, sanctifies, and governs in Christ’s name and by his authority. It interprets, applies and celebrates the mysteries of faith given by Jesus.
As shepherds of Christ’s flock, the pope and bishops speak and act on behalf of God and of the whole body of Christ. Oftentimes they are simply referred to as “the church” since they encapsulate, unite, and summarize the whole Christian community.
The voices of these shepherds are the voice of Christ, who is our chief shepherd, and the disciples are called to listen and adhere to their teachings and instructions.
The disciples of Christ are called to give the obedience of faith to all dogmatic pronouncements of the church, such as on the dogma of Christ’s divinity; they are called to give religious assent of mind and will to all areas of the ordinary teaching authority, such as in the realm of artificial contraception; and they are called to give religious respect to all prudential judgments of the church, such as in the church’s view on the war in Iraq.
The apostolic office is an extension of Christ’s service to his body and to humanity until he returns in glory.
The shepherds of Christ’s church are not perfect or flawless, but they have been chosen and blessed by God to teach, govern, and sanctify in his name. Disciples of the Lord Jesus are called to draw close to their shepherds, listen to them and adhere to their teachings, which are the teachings of Christ.
The Rev. Jeffrey Kirby is the parochial vicar at St. Mary Help of Christians parish in Aiken. Please visit: www.jeffrey-kirby.com.
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Entry for Sunday, February 18, 2008
Monday, February 18th, 2008
Praised be Jesus Christ!
I want to thank Zachary, Neal, Lizzy, and William for answering the question from two weeks ago. Neal and Lizzy nailed it: the word “lent” simply means “spring.” In other languages of the world, the season we call Lent is known as the “Forty Days.”
This language difference leads to our question for this week: why does Lent have forty days? Where does this custom come from?
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Eight Truths Every Catholic Should Know: The Church as the Body of Christ
Thursday, February 14th, 2008
“The Catholic Miscellany”
Editor’s Note: This is the third of a series of columns Fr. Jeff Kirby is writing for Lent.
Third Truth:
“The Church as the Body of Christ”
In a recent discussion with a family member, the question of church attendance was brought up. This family member told me that it wasn’t important which church a person attended, as long as they attended a Sunday service.
I asked if the Branch Davidians or other popular cults were included in such an open Sunday option. He told me that they were not included. I was interested in his exclusion of these groups and asked him why they couldn’t be an option. The question led to a long and difficult conversation on what the church is, and what it is called to be.
What is the church of Christ? Is it whatever we want it to be, or whatever we think might be significant? How does Jesus want his church to look? How does the Catholic Church see itself within the various popular understandings of the church? What are its claims in the midst of our contemporary religious relativism?
Simply put, the church is the visible community of disciples surrounding the Lord Jesus Christ. Adopted by baptism, the community becomes the mystical Body of Christ, completed and perfected by Christ as the head.
Through Jesus, the church includes not only the vast portion of its living members, but the many believers who have died in Christ through time. The full body lives as a breathing communion of saints.
The body of Christ on earth, as the community of believers, has been given a definite shape and mission by the Lord Jesus. He intends the church to be a source of help in the salvation of the believer as a member of his body.
The New Testament speaks of the church. Wishing to stress the oneness of God and the oneness of Jesus’ redemption, the Scriptures often speak of the church in the singular form. The Gospels show the Lord Jesus’ intention to found a single, visible body of disciples.
In the Acts of the Apostles and the letters of Sts. Paul and John, the early church can be seen in its seminal order and expression. St. Peter and the apostles play a prominent and governing role. The church identifies its unity by prayer, adherence to the apostles’ teachings, the celebration of the Eucharist and the practice of good works.
The Catholic Church identifies itself with this one visible church founded by Jesus Christ 2,000 years ago. It shows that only within itself can all the features of Christ’s Church be found and only within its expansive history have all of them been consistently lived out.
The Catholic Church asserts that the one church of Christ, which was founded on St. Peter and the apostles, subsists in the Roman Catholic Church, guided by the pope and bishops of the world, as the successors of St. Peter and the apostles.
In a pluralistic society, it’s a challenge to present this truth. The claim that there is only one visible body of Jesus, and that it is the Catholic Church, is considered by many as an exclusivist assertion of self-importance.
The claim, however, is not made out of an attempt to dominate or argue superiority. The Catholic Church makes the claim out of humble gratitude to the Lord Jesus for his teachings and the means of salvation.
The truth of the church’s claim is significant because it is an assurance to the community of its disciples that it is the Lord’s Body, and not a modified human invention.
It affirms that the church’s beliefs now are the same as those given by Jesus to the apostles. It reminds us that the church is endowed with the Holy Spirit and is a credible witness and teacher to us in our search for answers and in our struggles of discipleship.
The Rev. Jeffrey Kirby is the parochial vicar at St. Mary Help of Christians parish in Aiken. Please visit: www.jeffrey-kirby.com.
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Eight Truths Every Catholic Should Know: The Lordship of Jesus Christ
Thursday, February 7th, 2008
“The Catholic Miscellany”
Editor’s Note: This is the second of a series of columns Fr. Jeff Kirby is writing for Lent.
Second Truth:
“The Lordship of Jesus Christ”
In a casual conversation some time ago, a good friend of mine told me that she was looking into Asian religious practices. I was intrigued, and asked her to tell me more. As the discussion moved on, I was alarmed by her growing excitement over Eastern spiritualities. This friend was a Christian, and I wrongly thought that her interest was merely cultural. It became very obvious to me that she was investing a lot of religious conviction and heart into these Asian beliefs and practices.
Eventually I inquired how her assent to these non-Christian beliefs complemented her acknowledgement of Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and how they fit into her life as a disciple of the Lord Jesus. This dear friend of mine told me that they were “all the same.” She supposed that the polytheism of the far East and its system of beliefs and practices were “the same” as the monotheism and theology of the Christian religion.
Needless to say, this comment prompted a very long discussion.
Towards the end of our discussion, I asked her: Don’t you realize that when you declare Jesus of Nazareth as Lord and Savior, you also acknowledge all other claims of divinity to be false? She thought such a claim was arrogant and narrow-minded.
From the Fall of man in the Garden of Eden, the world was given a promise that it would be ransomed and readmitted into God’s family. The whole history of Israel, as the Chosen People, is the drama of the promise, the struggle of fidelity to its decrees, and the anticipation of its fulfillment. Israel’s waiting is the waiting of all humanity. It is the waiting of each person.
In the fullness of time, God sent his Son to be born of a woman. Jesus of Nazareth fulfilled the prophecies of old, and began to preach the kingdom of God. He revealed to humanity the Triune nature of God: that God is both the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God himself is forever a communion of Persons, a divine Family. To all who believed in him, he gave them the power to be born again and adopted by God the Father.
In accepting the lordship of Jesus Christ, a person acknowledges, “Here, in this One, only in Him, are my hopes and the hopes of humanity fulfilled. In him, only in Jesus, can I find the full answers, complete meaning, and ultimate purpose of my life and the life of humanity.” The person realizes, “Jesus is my savior and the redeemer of the world. Only in him am I am saved from the trends of this world, from the emptiness of sin, from the lies of the devil, from my own fallenness and weakness.” The Christian knows: “I need the Lord Jesus to help me, convert me, and walk with me.”
How can inquiries into Eastern or New Age spiritualities complement this total assent to Jesus Christ? It would seem that something of the Christian conviction would have to be lessened or compromised. Almost as if to say: “Jesus is good and he can help me, but he isn’t enough. There are some other spiritual approaches and deities out there that might be able to help me, or even help me more. Jesus isn’t everything. I have to look into other things. Maybe I can find God or myself better in something or someone else.”
This diminishing of belief is contrary to the teachings of the Lord Jesus and of the eternal plan of God for humanity and for each person. I believe this because I am Christian and I assent to the truths of the Christian religion. Jesus is enough.
It’s worth periodically reminding ourselves of what being a disciple of the Lord Jesus is truly all about. In saying “Jesus is Lord,” we say that he is everything, and in him alone is our salvation and hope.
The Rev. Jeffrey Kirby is the parochial vicar at St. Mary Help of Christians parish in Aiken. Please visit: www.jeffrey-kirby.com.
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Entry for Sunday, February 3, 2008
Sunday, February 3rd, 2008
Praised be Jesus Christ!
Today’s Gospel reading was the powerful teaching on the Beatitudes. What a blessing to receive these teachings again as we prepare for the Lenten season. The Beatitudes call us to repentance and conversion. What a great preparation for Ash Wednesday!
I want to thank Carter and David for responding to last week’s question. David correctly recalled that the disciples “accepted the call” from Jesus, and Carter summarized well: the disciples “immediately followed Jesus” and we can learn from them to “trust God and follow his ways.” Good answers from both students. Thank you for your work.
Here’s a new question: In a few days we will enter the season of Lent. What does the word “lent” mean? You might recall that the term is only used in English-speaking countries. Good luck!
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Entry for Friday, February 1, 2008
Friday, February 1st, 2008
Praised be Jesus Christ, now and forever!
I want to thank Edward from Clemson for his comments in reference to yesterday’s blog entry. Edward was a student at Bishop England High School when I taught there, and a graduate student at Clemson while I was there this past summer. He’s a smart guy, and his comments offer an opportunity to clarify my comments from yesterday.
My main critique was about adults who seek to re-live their youth and young adulthood vicariously through today’s young people and youth culture. To put it bluntly: adults who refuse to grow and act their age.
By insisting on mature adults who stand on their own in Christ, I was not encouraging aloof or disconnected adults. I certainly believe that adults need to respect and seek to understand young people on the young people’s own terms, and adults should seek to comprehend where youth and young adults are thinking and coming from. But these attempts cannot be for personal affirmation but authentic concern and service to youth and young adults.
Parents, and adults who seek to teach or minister to youth and young adults, should constantly ask themselves: Whose needs are being met? We stand in service to the younger generation. Obviously, we might receive consolations and affirmations in parenting or ministering, but these can never be the goals. As in true religion, we worship the God of consolations, not the consolations of God. So, in parenting and ministry, we serve the youth and young adults, and not the consolations or rejuvenation we might receive from such service.
With all that said, it must be repeated: parents, and adults who seek to serve the young, must be approachable. The youth and young adults must be listened to in their own terms, and they must know that they are respected, loved, and cared for. The adult must be real, truly him or herself, and have something helpful to offer the young person. We see this heroically lived and exemplified in the life of Don Bosco.
In my own life and ministry, I have always tried to live this challenge. At Bishop England High School, I sought to be an adult with my own life and culture, but also involved with the youth culture around me, with active attempts to see its positive points and areas for discussion and engagement with young people. I sought to teach and edify the young people, so that they would want to grow in Christ and seek to become better people and Christians. Both elements are essential: possessing one’s own life, and knowing the life of another, or nothing beneficial happens. Perhaps poetically it could be said: The adult must have an adult heart, but a heart for young people.
We have to be ourselves (or what we’re called to be), and we have to be able to offer the young person the Gospel with love, stability, and credibility. As the Scriptures teach: we cannot give what we do not have, and what we have must be spoken in love.
I’d like to invite any further comments from my friend in Clemson, or from any other readers.
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