Spiritus Sanctus

7th Sunday of Easter (Year A)
Acts 1:12-14 | Psalm 26(27):1,4,7-8 | 1 Peter 4:13-16 | John 17:1-11

It is a blessing for you when they insult you for bearing the name of Christ, because it means that you have the Spirit of glory, the Spirit of God resting on you. (1 Peter 4:14)

Mahatma Gandhi never said this:

First they ignore you,
then they laugh at you,
then they fight you,
then you win.

He really didn’t.

But these 16 words have a surprising connection to us Catholics. Obviously, they coincide with St. Peter’s words for today, but their underlying thread also links intimately with our Christian lives.

More on that later.

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St. Peter tells us that it’s a blessing to be persecuted as Christians, as indeed many of our spiritual ancestors were put to the test of faith.

But what if the opposite happens to us, and the above observation never gets past its very first stage? What if our Christianity were completely ignored?

What if we did not stand out from the crowd?

The crowd who pays no heed to the tired elderly who need a seat?

The crowd who treats the service personnel around us with disdain, or even as menial servants?

The crowd who berates the hospitality ministers at church, when their parking instructions conflict with our desire to be gone before the final blessing at mass?

The crowd who treats the Body of Christ as just a wafer, blatantly ignoring the frequent exhortations to first make peace with God in the Sacrament of Reconciliation?

We can be better Christians than that.

We must be better Christians than that.

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Back to Gandhi.

He coined an intriguing term for his unique political vision: satyagraha. It’s a philosophy of nonviolent civil resistance that inspired Martin Luther King, Jr. during the years of the Civil Rights Movement in America, as well as many other social justice movements in the past decades.

Satyagraha literally means “holding firmly to the truth”.

Brothers and sisters, are we holding firmly to the Truth that is God’s love for all mankind, the love that we are commanded to share with our fellow beings?

When we hold firm to this Truth, when it becomes our moral and spiritual bedrock, when it truly becomes part of our daily lives, the words in Fr. Peter Scholtes’ famous hymn will come true:

Then they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love,
Yes, they’ll know we are Christians by our love.

Amen.

Friday of the 6th Week of Eastertide
Acts 18:9-18 | Psalm 46:2-7 | John 16:20-23

A woman in childbirth suffers, because her time has come; but when she has given birth to the child she forgets the suffering in her joy that a man has been born into the world. (John 16:21)

I’ve experienced despair several times in the service of God over the last year, and especially during the transition to new parish “management” over the last few months. I’ve blogged about my worries during some of those periods, but I don’t think I’ve ever really examined what happened after.

In every case I can recall, that sorrow turned to joy, when our united song of praise to God continued, despite every worry about things falling apart due to lack of participation and commitment.

I pray that this “streak” will continue, because another conflagration is blooming within my parish, and this one may not be so easy to put out. It would be unfair to all involved to reveal details at this stage, but when most folks are pushed to the edge of their endurance, they’ll either push back hard…or just leave.

I don’t know what will happen, but I know I promised my Creator that I would Do His Work. The trick, however, is to get others to go along with what I think is the Work, especially when (as others have pointed out) I no longer hold the necessary authority to effect by fiat, and I’m facing a steadily rising chorus from my loved ones to not get involved.

I’m left with persuasion, but I’m pretty sucky at cajoling. Ah well…

Lord, the path You asked me to follow is getting harder by the day, but You promised that You would be always with me, that I just need to trust in Your boundless love and open myself up to the Advocate that You sent, the Holy Spirit who inflames hearts and rules minds.

Help me open myself up to Your love, and share that love in turn with my companions on this difficult journey, that we may not be led astray by personal desires or convenience or ease, but always be walking the Way of Truth and Life with our brothers and sisters, forever facing our eventual reunion with You. Amen.

The Ascension of the Lord
Acts 1:1-11 | Psalm 46(47):2-3,6-9 | Ephesians 1:17-23 | Matthew 28:16-20

And know that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time. (Matthew 28:20)

This simple line just inspired a new personal litany…

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Lord, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

Christ, have mercy.

Christ, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

God the Father of Heaven.

Have mercy on us.

God the Son, Redeemer of the world.

Have mercy on us.

God the Holy Spirit.

Have mercy on us.

Holy Trinity, one God.

Have mercy on us.

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When we are washed clean of sin…

Be with us, Lord.

On each day at school…

Be with us, Lord.

When we receive your Precious Body and Blood…

Be with us, Lord.

When we are sealed in our faith…

Be with us, Lord.

When we fall in love…

Be with us, Lord.

When we fall into despair…

Be with us, Lord.

When we promise to be true to each other…

Be with us, Lord.

When we raise our sons and daughters to follow Your Holy Way…

Be with us, Lord.

When we commit ourselves to become Your shepherds to others…

Be with us, Lord.

When we reconcile our sinful selves with Your heavenly grace…

Be with us, Lord.

When we are in need of Your healing touch…

Be with us, Lord.

In the last hours of our earthly existence…

Be with us, Lord.

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Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.

Spare us, O Lord.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.

Graciously hear us, O Lord.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.

Have mercy on us, O Lord.

Christ, hear us.

Christ, graciously hear us.

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Lord Jesus Christ, You are our help and our shield. Be with us in our need, guide us in your Holy Way, and never let us forget Your boundless love for us, now and forever. Amen.

Wednesday of the 6th Week of Eastertide
Acts 17:15,22-18:1 | Psalm 148:1-2,11-14 | John 16:12-15

Since we are the children of God, we have no excuse for thinking that the deity looks like anything in gold, silver or stone that has been carved and designed by a man. (Acts 17:29)

“Daddy, what does God look like?”

Do you swallow hard, and point to the nearest stained-glass depiction of the Almighty?

“Really? He looks weird…”

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I was reflecting on this very question as I was riding the train this afternoon, when I was inspired by a whole bunch of leaves flying past the window in front of me.

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What does air look like?

Nothing, really.

Then how do we know it exists?

By its effects on the world around us;
flying leaves, soaring birds, living beings.

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As long as we live, we’ll never really understand God’s appearance. Ezekiel and John (in Revelations) painted vivid word-paintings that tried to describe their visions of God, but I think we don’t need to resort to such fantastical imagery.

All we need to do…is to look around us.

That harried mother, trying her best to care for her noisy and demanding children.

Those migrant workers quietly cleaning our block each day.

That tired face staring back at us in the bathroom mirror.

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What does God look like?

Well, us, really.

How do we know that?

Because of His effects on the world around us,
through our individual words and actions.

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“Daddy, what does God look like?”

Actually, He looks like you and me.

“Really?”

Really. Now how about we go out and show Him to the world?

Amen.

Tuesday of the 6th Week of Eastertide
Acts 16:22-34 | Psalm 137(138):1-3,7-8 | John 16:5-11

Late that night Paul and Silas were praying and singing God’s praises, while the other prisoners listened. (Acts 16:25)

…

WHAT?!?! Oh sorry, I couldn’t hear you from the music blasting in my ears.

Yesterday, a BBC Music article dripping with nostalgia appeared in my Facebook feed, courtesy of a primary school classmate: 40 photos that prove the 80s were the best decade.

Just before I wrote this post, I tried listening to a few of my favourite songs from that decade. It was a short trip down memory lane…and a bit of a “meh”.

Then I switched back to the latest Catholic Stuff You Should Know podcast, and sank into the dulcet tones and amusing banter between two priests from Denver, Colorado.

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Whenever I ride the train by myself, I often end up standing near youths with head-banging mega-death black-grunge noise leaking out around their massive headphones. At other times, random people play Tamil dramas or Cantonese music at full blast from their smartphones.

Sometimes, they annoy their fellow passengers enough to attract angry stares, but I usually ignore them, choosing instead to focus on one of several Catholic podcasts. If you’re looking to spend some time listening to the Word of Life, especially others’ reflections on them, I can recommend the following examples of aural salvation.

I’ve already mentioned Catholic Stuff You Should Know, hosted by diocesan priests associated under the Denver Companions of Christ. It’s a fun hour-long listen if you’re not in a hurry to get to the subject for each week, and while it presents an American-centric view of diocesan clerical life, it makes you wonder what the Singapore Catholic scene might look like, if our own priests socialized like these shepherds do.

Also from the Colorado highlands, the Lanky Guys podcast is presented by two, well, lanky guys from Denver. One is a priest who claims to “improvise homilies after staying up too late watching movies”, while the other teaches lay people at the local seminary. If anything, they’re even more laid-back than the companionable priests above, and their weekly podcasts appear early each Friday, in time for us to listen to their reflections on the upcoming Sunday’s liturgy.

For those in a perpetual hurry, Catholic Bytes is tailored to your busy schedule. Twice a week, various priests currently studying in Rome take 5-10 minutes to explore various aspects of Catholicism for the benefit of lay listeners. No fluff, just stuff, and if you don’t even have 10 minutes to spare, they recently introduced 60-second speed explorations. Quick! Quick! Subscribe now!

And for those of us who keep telling ourselves that we’ll read the Bible, but never get around to it, the Catholic Bytes priests put together a Bible in a Year podcast, so that you can at least listen to the Good Book on the go, with introductory material from the Knox Catholic Bible translation.

Even if you’d prefer to read with your eyes, you might want to take note of their reading order, and start with the more accessible New Testament. I can confirm from first-hand experience that most folks who start with Genesis grind to a frustrated halt somewhere in Leviticus.

And if you want deep dives into our faith that are nevertheless reasonably accessible, Matt Fradd records Pints With Aquinas, a weekly thought experiment involving the good Doctor of the Church St. Thomas Aquinas…and beer. I won’t spoil the experience by explaining any further, but this is a podcast that requires your undivided attention. Trying to listen to Fradd’s expositions on the go will likely be an exercise in frustration.

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That’s the stuff that fills my earholes each day. What Catholic audio material do you listen to? Please share in the comments section below, and thanks for listening reading.

Amen.