You, The Church

By "You" I mean you the reader; you who have not been attending Mass for a long time; you who does not feel a connection with the faith so fully professed by the Catholic Church. Yes, you are still part of The Church, just not actively participating in Mass.

There are a myriad of reasons why we "fall away," but whatever the reason or reasons may be you are still part of The Church.

The work of God in our world depends on our willingness to share God's love with our neighbor, our spouses, our sons and daughters, coworkers, fellow shoppers,... everyone.

In this feast of Pentecost, when we celebrate the fulfillment of Jesus' promise to be with us until the end of time, I could not help but notice the importance of community. St. Paul reminds us that we are members of One Body and that as such we have a specific function that is important to The Body.

In today's second reading we listened to what St. Paul had to say to the community in Corinth: 

"As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body..."  (1 COR 12: 3B-7, 12-13)

So if you can imagine for one moment the effects a missing one of your big toes, or a kidney, or one of your ears, then imagine how much better The Church would be if you could help to restore its fullness by returning to Mass. 

Help the Divine Healer do its job. He needs you and is ready to welcome you back.

Anxiously Waiting for You!

Fear of rejection? Have no fear! The God of love - the God Who IS Love - will never reject you.

"Whoever loves me will keep my word, says the Lord, and my Father will love him and we will come to him." (JN 14:23).

"we will come to him..."

I didn't understand the desire that grew in me to return to Mass; at least not at the time. I was afraid of not knowing what to say at Mass and of getting funny looks. But something inside of me kept tugging at me. There was something greater than people's stares or fumbled prayers that gave me the courage to give it a go.

I now know, and after much prayer and meditation, that the "something" stirring in me was God Himself. He didn't care about where I had been or what turns my life took; all He wanted for me was to return to Him.

He is also anxiously waiting for you. He wants you to bring everything - EVERYTHING - with you and share it with Him. Don't leave anything behind for He wants to share your happiness, your sorrows, and you fears.

Do not be afraid for Jesus' promise is that the Father will love you.

Rough Patches, Pruning and Good Fruit

"The reason I stopped going to Mass is because God never heard my prayers. I prayed very hard but God somehow chose to ignore my pleas during a very rough patch me and my family went through."

This is one of the many reasons I hear people give for not going to Mass anymore. There are variations to the theme: "God punished me," "why does He allow me to go thorough this?"

I asked similar questions whenever my wife offered words of hope as we were in danger of losing our home. "What good is prayer and doing all these Catholic things if I am still have to deal with no income and a bunch of creditors on my back?"

Well... Yeah! Why?

I couldn't help but remember how I felt during those endless days, weeks and months as I listened to the Gospel this past Sunday. This is from the Gospel of John where Jesus describes Himself as the True Vine. "I am the vine... Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing."

What really got me thinking was right at the beginning of the reading: "I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit." (emphasis mine).

Fruit growers will selectively and very carefully prune their trees regularly. Pruning ensures that the tree grows correctly, that fruit-producing buds receive the right amount of sunshine, and that the branches holding the fruit are strong enough to hold them.

If the tree looks unpromising or fails to yield any fruit is removed to make space for one that does.

When you go through your rough patches consider that the Father is pruning you. He sees so much potential in you that He wants to make sure you get just enough sunshine, that your spiritual growth is on the right path, and that your heart will be able to sustain all the good fruit that you will eventually yield for His greater glory. 

With all our faults and failings...

Sometimes we feel completely unfit to present ourselves to God. This was especially true for me when I started to consider my return to the Catholic Church. It is not that I denied the faith; just that I stopped attending Mass. I still, at times, feel unfit.

And then... I remember how Jesus presented Himself to the scared Apostles right after His resurrection.

According to the Gospel of John He showed Himself twice to them: once when Thomas was not with the rest of the gang, then once again while he was there. (John 20: 19-29)

In both occasions Jesus did something that reminded me of when I went to visit my stepfather at the hospital where he was recovering from surgery. He wanted everyone that came to visit to see his wound. Why? Why is it that people that have undergone surgery want to show you the stitched-up wound?

Well Jesus did exactly the same! He showed them - twice - His pierced hands, feet and torso. He even asks Thomas to put his fingers on His wounds!!

It seems to me that this is a very human reaction. I imagine how proud someone would feel after going through the trials of surgery and coming out victorious on the other end.

In Jesus' case, I don't think it was a matter of pride but another way for Him to show how human He is. He indeed took on the human experience and, on our behalf, died in the Cross taking our sins with Him. 

Jesus, by coming back to us with His wounds is telling us - giving us permission - to present ourselves to Him with all our scars, wounds, and stains. He takes us and loves us just as we are.

So do not stay away because of how unfit you feel. What better way to return than presenting yourself to Him? Show Him your wounds and let Him reconcile you into Himself. You will then be nourished by His precious Blood and Body that heals every wound.

"A small step in the midst of great human limitations can be more pleasing to God than a life which outwardly appears in order and passes the day without confronting great difficulties. Everyone needs to be touched by the comfort and attraction of God's saving love, which is mysteriously at work in each person, above and beyond their faults and failings." (Gaudium Evangelii, 44, emphasis mine)

The Wake

King Offa - Image from The British Library: www.bl.uk

I wonder what the followers of Jesus were thinking about after He was buried. Holy Saturday is the day we wait. We wait because we know that the story did not end with His death; it marks the beginning of something new, or rather something old that was renewed.

It is a time to consider life not from the perspective of the tomb but from that of the observers; from the periphery rather than the center.

Think of the times when you were at a wake. There's lots of talk among friends and family of the deceased. Most of the talk revolves around his or her life; accomplishments, anecdotes, their impact on our lives and the lives of others.

Certainly there is also talk about what happens next - the future - and how we carry on. I suppose His disciples and apostles were no different in that regard. He was such an important figure in their lives that they committed their memories to writing the Gospels.

I too take the time to consider the events of my parish and the Church as I have experienced them. What comes to mind today is what I have been pondering since the beginning of Lent: how can we become more welcoming, inviting and vibrant in our faith? More importantly, what I am willing to do to in this regard?

Catholics Returning Home is perhaps the most important thing I can think of at this point in life. I know how scary and difficult we perceive the process of returning to be. I know because I've been there. I had to figure my way back on my own, and now that I've been back for a few years I want to offer help to others in similar situations.

I am always interested in learning about what keeps Catholics from re-engaging with their faith and Church, or what makes them go somewhere else. Here's an article I found in Our Sunday Visitor website OSV Newsweekly, "Three ways parishes can experience a revival of faith" by John Michael Talbot.

Your thoughts?

Mercy

Abandonati by Luigi Nono (1850-1918)

"The call of Jesus pushes each of us never to stop at the surface of things, especially when we are dealing with a person. We are called to look beyond, to focus on the heart to see how much generosity everyone is capable. No one can be excluded from the mercy of God; everyone knows the way to access it and the Church is the house that welcomes all and refuses no one. Its doors remain wide open, so that those who are touched by grace can find the certainty of forgiveness. The greater the sin, so much the greater must be the love that the Church expresses toward those who convert."

"I am convinced that the whole Church will find in this Jubilee the joy needed to rediscover and make fruitful the mercy of God, with which all of us are called to give consolation to every man and woman of our time." (Pope Francis, Jubilee year of Mercy) 

Welcome!

I am glad you found your way to Catholics Returning Home at Mary, Mother of the Redeemer Catholic Church.

Allow me to be the first to welcome you back. 

You have achieved a major milestone in your spiritual journey just by actively considering a return to our wonderful Church. You have said "Yes!" to that "something" that got you here.

I know how it feels. I didn't know what to expect upon my return. Would I be welcome? Would I be admitted? Would I have to go through some sort of special ceremony to be considered as a full member of the Church? It had been so long! So many things happened throughout the years... Confession? It would take hours...

But because of my "Yes!" to God I had no choice. At that point I knew - really knew - that nothing would keep me away from the intimate embrace of Jesus Himself in the form of the Eucharist. Oh what an embrace it was!

By the grace of God I've had the chance to accompany many in their journey back. That's what Catholics Returning Home is all about. It is about finding out together how to respond to God's call after all these years.

I pray first, that God gives you the grace to know His love for your; and second that we can be helpful companions in your journey.