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faith | Deacon Allen Tatara Catholic Speaker - Part 12

faith | Deacon Allen Tatara Catholic Speaker - Part 12

On the Inside; On the Outside


 
Jun 06 2019
Love0

Write it Down!

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A couple in their nineties are both having problems remembering things. During a checkup, the doctor tells them that they’re physically okay, but they might want to start writing things down to help them remember.

Later that night, while watching TV, the old man gets up from his chair and asks his wife, “Want anything while I’m in the kitchen?”

“Will you get me a bowl of ice cream?” “Sure.”

“Don’t you think you should write it down so you can remember it?” she asks. “No, I can remember it.”

“Well, I’d like some strawberries on top, too. Maybe you should write it down, so as not to forget it?”

He says, “I can remember that. You want a bowl of ice cream with strawberries.”

“I’d also like whipped cream. I’m certain you’ll forget that, write it down?” she asks.

Irritated, he says, “I don’t need to write it down, I can remember it! Ice cream with strawberries and whipped cream – I got it, for goodness sake!”

Then he goes into the kitchen. After about 20 minutes, the old man returns and hands his wife a plate of bacon and eggs. She stares at the plate for a moment and says, “Where’s my toast?”

Have you ever had that feeling like you’re forgetting something? It happens to me all the time. But let’s face it: we’ve got a lot of stuff going on in our lives and it’s hard to remember everything. Between work, school, family, kids, church, social activities, home projects, etc., we often feel like something is missing. We feel like we’ve forgotten something important, but we just can’t remember what.

Today’s reading (Deuteronomy 6:4-9) reminds us to stop, take a deep breath, and feel the loving presence of God in our lives. When we truly feel God’s love, we can’t help but love God in return. But sometimes, in the midst of our crazy-busy lives, we forget to love, thank, and praise God for who God is and what God has done for us. We forget to live the Gospel, to be kind to our neighbor, and to be Christ to all we meet. We forget to love others like God loves us.

Maybe what we all need is a little reminder. What if we wrote down notes for ourselves reminding us to pray, or to notice that God is standing right next to us; or to thank God when something good happens to us; or to be strong in faith when temptation comes our way? Writing things down activates a part of our brains that helps us focus on these things – and God should be our top priority.

Let us remember to love the Lord with our whole heart, our whole being, and our whole strength. Write a note on our arms, doorposts and gates of our houses, if we must. God is worthy of our praise, and that is something worth remembering.

May 16 2019
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Repping Jesus

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If you follow the contemporary rap music scene, you may recall hearing the word “represent” quite frequently. For example, “You gotta represent” means that one should be publicly candid about one’s social status or geographical origin; to acknowledge and even be an example of one’s roots. A different form of represent is often called “repping.” This means representing, glorifying or praising. For example, a sports fan who wears his team’s colors is “repping” his team – or he is uplifting, praising, glorifying, and representing them all at the same time.

There are so many groups, platforms and causes that we can represent in our lives. There are so many different things that we are “repping” for – the things that drive us to be more passionate, active and involved. But are we also remembering to represent our faith?

In John’s gospel (John 13:16-20), we are told that whoever receives Jesus receives that one who sent him; and whoever receives the one Jesus sends also receives Jesus. This means that if we are “representing” Jesus to others, we are not only sharing Jesus but we are also receiving the gift of Jesus ourselves. And I cannot think of a better gift than that.

Today, let us bring to prayer these questions: are we representing Jesus in our day-to-day lives? Can others see that we are Catholic Christians by the way we live? Do we show the world that we sons and daughters of the Lord by the actions we take? When we are “repping” Jesus, we are representing, uplifting, praising, and glorifying Christ to others – for it is in giving when we truly receive.

Apr 25 2019
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Peace Be with You

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My father passed away in 2014, and there are still so many days when I miss him dearly. About a year ago, I was at a busy shopping mall when I noticed a man from a distance that looked exactly like my dad. I couldn’t believe my eyes, and since this man was far away, I needed to get closer to see if it was really him.

As I made my way through the crowd, my heart began beating rapidly. I began sweating and my mind was racing with fear and questions. As I approached, he turned around, made eye contact with me and then vanished into the crowd. It wasn’t him, but the similarities shook me to my core.

As I walked away, I felt deeply troubled, and I wondered what would I have said or done if it was indeed my father.

Today, we hear how the disciples thought that they saw a ghost because Jesus had died, and now he was standing right in front of them again – very much alive. (Luke 24:35-48) They had so many questions on their minds. Their hearts were filled with uncertainties and they began doubting themselves, their faith, and their mission. Jesus appeared and gave them peace, reassuring them that everything was going to be just fine.

Our lives are filled with so many questions, problems, and struggles. We get scared and often find ourselves lost. It is during these times when we need to remember that Jesus is right here with us. All we have to do is reach out to him in prayer and he will show us the way.

Jesus is offering us his peace. If we accept this peace, Jesus will open our minds to His word; and that Word will guide us and give us the courage to overcome whatever darkness comes our way. May God’s peace lead us to the brightness of each new day.

Jan 23 2019
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A Life of Joy

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When I was in junior high, my mother asked me one day to clean my room. I decided to go all-biblical on her because we had just talked about today’s gospel in religion class. I said to her, “Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come.” (Kids – do not try this at home!) I honestly didn’t know how quick her reflexes were or how strong she was until that very moment when her hand quickly smacked across my face. That was not a joyful experience.

Something that was a joyful experience happened a few years later. I bought my parent’s a wall calendar – and their reaction was truly priceless. It was called “Nuns Having Fun,” and it was filled with a variety of images of fully-habited nuns doing fun things. There were nuns in bumper cars, nuns on roller coasters, nuns having snowball fights, nuns skeet shooting, and on and on. My favorite was a group of nuns running in the ocean, arms up in the air with the biggest smiles on their faces! It was a really goofy calendar, but it brought up a great point: the Christian life isn’t a life of suffering, but it’s a life of joy!

And we can see this in our Gospel today. A lot of things are going on. It is Jesus’ first public miracle and it really kicks off his public ministry. It also shows us the deep relationship that Jesus had with his Mother. And the transformation of water into wine reminds us of the Eucharistic imagery that we experience during the Mass. But one detail that is overlooked is that Jesus was doing all this at a wedding feast! This is no small thing. Jesus lived a life of joy – and he actually went to parties! (OK, so he went with his mom, but still!) It shows us that Jesus wasn’t a stranger to the good and fun things in life. It’s important for us to remember that the good things in our lives are gifts from God.

There are two distinct parts in our gospel that I want to point out: one, Before Christ; and another, After Christ. The first scene that St. John describes is one of emptiness, and the second, on the contrary, is marked by abundance. And what brings about the difference between these two time periods is key: it’s the intervention of Jesus.

The marriage feast had come to a complete stop because they ran out of wine. Wine is a symbol of celebration and happiness. No wine meant that they had no joy. There were experiencing emptiness!

Mary noticed this, so she turned to Jesus for help. Though he initially hesitated, Mary trusted that Jesus would make everything right and instructed the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” The rest, as they say, is history. Jesus changed water into wine and saved the hosts from disgrace.

But of course, the point isn’t just the wine. The wine is a “sign.” As we look at our own lives, we can’t help but notice that the wine always runs out. Whatever the gains, life always brings losses. We grow up and we grow old. We have children (sometime in pairs). Children grow up and lose their innocence. Parents see their kids leave home (and sometimes come back again). We find jobs; and sometimes we lose jobs. We work and work and work until one day, we find ourselves facing retirement. Our body parts eventually lose the battle against gravity and we lose hair where we want it and gain it where we don’t. Aches and pains become more frequent, so we moan in despair. And no one gets out of here alive. Add all the technology you want, but our human resources eventually come to an end. That’s the bad news.

The good news – the great news: the resources of God never run out! New energy springs out of weariness, new opportunities emerge from failure, and new hope arises in the ashes of doubt and despair.

Jesus asks the servers to fill the six empty stone jars with water. (Interesting fact: six is a symbol of chaos, imperfection and evil.) When they drew out some of the water, they discovered that it was the best wine! The party could continue! There is abundance, order and celebration – all because of the intervention of Jesus.

The question for us is how do we keep our water jars filled?

We first must continually invite Jesus into our lives. We need to pray daily and believe that God is always right by our side guiding us every step of the way.

If we trust Jesus, our wine – or our happiness – will never run dry because when we realize that God is our first love, the wedding feast never ends.

And that superior quality of wine that he transformed is the quality of life that we will find in and with Jesus. We no longer feel abandoned because we are espoused to a God who gets involved in our lives by entering into it constantly so that he can share in our little and big joys.

And this brings me back to my original point: that the good things of life are gifts from God. God gives us so many good things and so many causes for joy for a reason – to draw us back to him. They give us little hints about what true communion with God will be like. Jesus didn’t just change water into wine to keep the party going, but to draw us into the mystery of God’s power and love. And what greater love does our bridegroom have for us then his ultimate sacrifice on the cross. As we approach this altar today to receive Jesus, let us thank God for our earthly joys, and to remember that when we entrust our lives to Jesus and do whatever he tells us, we will discover an abundant life that is overflowing with love, happiness and immeasurable joy!

Dec 27 2018
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Eyewitness for Christ

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Back in college, I spent some time as a reporter for The Daily Herald newspaper. I covered village board meetings, park district meetings and the like. But every now and then I was given the opportunity to cover breaking news. And I remember from my journalism classes that in these situations, interviewing an eyewitness was extremely important because they had personally seen something happen and could give a first-hand description of it. That would help make the story more believable.

Today on the Feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist, I am reminded of my reporter days. What I really love of John’s writing style is his ability to place the reader directly into the story – as if we were right there with John. He writes from an eyewitness point of view. He does this so that we can identify with what is happening and help us to believe what has taken place.

That is essentially the role of an apostle, and that is what we are called to do each and every day. We need to be Jesus’ eyewitnesses to the world. We must help others see that Christ is in their lives, to know that the Lord is always with them, and that Jesus will never leave our side no matter what we do.

Each of us is called to be a disciple, and that’s not always an easy thing to do. But when we become an eyewitness for Christ and bring the Good News of Jesus to others, we will find a joy like we’ve never experienced before.

Dec 17 2018
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Groping, Hoping and Waiting

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Not too long ago, I was at the grocery story waiting in line to check out. All was good with the world when suddenly I noticed that the checker ran out of change and had to call a manager; and I had to wait. So, I switched to another lane and quickly learned that the person in front of me had some sort of problem. The checker had to call for a price check, and I ended up waiting and waiting and waiting.

We get so easily frustrated and impatient with the little things of life, especially this time of year: the irritations of what happens around us, the daily struggles with our own attitudes, and the busyness of the season. These small, seemingly innocent circumstances have a way of piling up until we finally explode from the pressure.

What would happen if we were to put all this behind us and just focus on our relationship with God? Instead of groaning and complaining, we chose to be joyful and giving. What would happen if we lived every moment as a prayer, being in constant communication with the One who is to come and the One who is already here? Perhaps we would live our lives with more happiness, thankfulness, peace and love.

Lord, we come to you just as we are – right where we are. Help us to use these remaining days of Advent to constantly seek you, perhaps even grope for you as we patiently wait with hopeful anticipation.

O come, o come, Emmanuel!

Dec 13 2018
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Rules to Live By

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After going on a couples retreat at the Benedictine monastery St. Meinrad, I wanted to learn more about the Rule of St. Benedict. I bought a book that described the three vows that convey the core of the Rule. These are stability, obedience, and conversion of life.

Stability is a calling to remain where we are and to find grace in each relationship, place or situation. Basically this means that we can find God at the very center of our lives including in our family, friends, marriage, church community, etc.

Obedience is the ability to listen to what God is saying and responding to what we hear. We need to figure out what God is asking us to do and then respond to that call.

Conversion of life is really the balance to the concept of stability. While stability calls us to remain, conversion of life calls us to change and grow. We’re not fully the person God created us to be; so we need to open ourselves – which enables God to change our hearts.

We hear this same message in today’s readings. We need not fear for the Lord is always with us. We must find God in our daily lives, rejoice in Him being there, and then have the ears to listen to what He wants us to do.

In these remaining weeks of Advent, let us focus on remaining present and faithful to others. Let us listen and respond to God’s direction for us. And let us remain open to being transformed so we can experience conversion of life as we await the One who is to come. With Christ all things are possible; without Christ, nothing makes sense.

Nov 15 2018
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St. Albert the Great

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Albertus Magnus, or St. Albert the Great, was born in Germany in 1206. He was fascinated by the relationship between faith and science so he studied astronomy and biology and loved logic and math. Therefore, he is the patron saint of medical technicians and scientists.

His family could afford the best education for Albert. But when he graduated, he joined the Dominican order over his family’s objections. (Ironically, the Dominican’s relied on begging and charitable donations to survive.) Albert was made a bishop of Regensburg, Germany in 1260 and was an advisor to the pope, but resigned after less than three years asking to return to teaching.

As a teacher, one of his most famous students was Thomas Aquinas, who was later canonized a saint. Albert helped prepare Thomas to write his books on theology which are still studied today.

Albert also helped Thomas to understand that God had given him the gift of intelligence that he could use to help others know and love the Catholic faith, and for Thomas to believe in his own talents.

The Gospel (Luke 17:20-25) reminds us that the kingdom of God is within our reach. We just have to decide if we want to receive it or not. However, it does not come by watching. We need to make a move. Therefore, we are called to use our gifts and talents to help bring the kingdom to others by living the gospel. We must help others discover that the love of Jesus can change their life; and that our world is in desperate need of Jesus right now!

Today, the Church honors Albert as both a saint and a great teacher. May we realize our calling to be great teachers of our faith as well – bringing the kingdom to others by the way we live our lives.

Oct 18 2018
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Cool Hand (St.) Luke

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In 1967, Paul Newman starred in the prison drama Cool Hand Luke. Luke Jackson (Paul Newman) knows how to win at poker, even with bad cards, by using his smarts and playing it cool. When Luke finds out his mother has died, he plots his escape; when he’s caught, he simply escapes again. Soon, Luke becomes a symbol of hope and resilience to the other men in the prison.

On the Feast of St. Luke, we are indebted to him for so much information about the early Church, but we know so little about him.

He was of Gentile origin, a Greek from the city of Antioch in ancient Syria, and he made his living as a physician, and he was the companion of St. Paul. But Luke is mainly known as the author of the third Gospel and the book of the Acts of the Apostles. It is in these writings that we will find three reasons why he has become a symbol of hope and resilience to all of us.

First, he had a special love for Mary, the mother of Jesus. It is from Luke that we have most of what we know about Mary: her steadfast faith, her child-like trust and obedience to God’s will, her generosity and readiness to serve others, her acceptance of God’s plan, and her pondering prayerfulness.

Second, he focused in on Jesus’ compassion and mercy for those who suffered. As a doctor Luke was very familiar with sickness and suffering. Luke calls us to be aware of the needs of each other, and especially those without the necessities of life, for those who are lost, and for anyone who is sick or suffering.

And third, he had a passion for evangelization. Luke wanted to spend his life spreading the good news about Jesus, both in his writings as well as in his journeys with St. Paul.

May we strive to be more like Cool Hand St. Luke: cool-headed, independent, individualistic spirit that won’t submit to the power of the evil one. May we be a symbol of hope to others by having a deep-seeded faith like Mary, taking care of those who are less fortunate, and spreading the good news about Jesus to everyone.