A Priest First, and Always

Rev. Theodore  M. Hesburgh, C.S.C.

Veni Sancte Spiritus.  Come, Holy Spirit.

With these daily words of prayer, Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C., implored the Holy Spirit to fill the hearts of thefaithful and to kindle in us the fire of God’s love.  Last night, at theage of 97 and after 71 years of priestly ministry in the Congregation of HolyCross, Father Ted has gone home to the Lord. 

(from statement of Notre Dame President Rev. John Jenkins, C.S.C.)

Personal note:  Fr. Ted was a Catholic priest who brought together in one special man the identity of the American Catholic.  In the mid 1970's, during late night strolls on the campus, I recall often seeing the light from his office under the Golden Dome. Working, studying, praying, he was ever dedicated to the service of God, Country and Notre Dame. 

JMJ

Creche at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church, Pismo Beach, CA
(c) 2012 On Being Roman Catholic in America

JMJ - Jesus, Mary and Joseph.  The Holy Family.  Years ago, and perhaps still today, Catholic school children wrote JMJ across the top of every paper.  The Most Reverend Fulton J. Sheen popularized JMJ as he wrote the initials across the top of the blackboard during his weekly television series.  Once, as he "signed in" as a guest on the popular television show, What's My Line? he wrote JMJ and then his own name.

The Holy Family--Jesus, Mary and Joseph--models the love of the family unit, which instructs us in the perfect Love of our Triune God found in the relationship of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.  During Christmastide, we are reminded of the formational love of the Christian family, which love, by its example, teaches us to reach out to all "men of good will."  

In establishing the tradition of the nativity scene, St. Francis continues to teach the world about the love of the Holy Family.

Mary, Full of Grace - Patroness of the United States

Immaculate Conception - Side Altar, Basilica in Denver, Colorado (C) 2012 On Being Roman Catholic in America

 



On December 8, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, we celebrate Mary, full of grace.  We celebrate Mary's participation in salvation history by her faithful "yes"--her acceptance, fiat, of God's will.  On this day, of all days, we are reminded that our relationship with God, the Creator, begins at the moment of our conception.  We ask Mary, Patroness of the United States, to pray with us for an end to the evil that promotes a cultural of death, and especially to safeguard and protect the child in the womb.

Respect Life Sunday

Litany to Mary (click picture)

 

On "Respect Life" Sunday, we are reminded of the beautiful prayer of John Paul the Great, entrusting the cause of life to Mary, "Mother of the living."

Deeply Gladdening

Can a university be both Catholic and American?  While too many Catholic universities in the United States have failed the test of late, the answer is surprisingly simple:

Is not a big part of our gladness and pride this happy morning of graduation a grateful recognition that this university does indeed exude such “ecclesial communion and solidarity?” That this university is both CatholIic and American, flowing from the most noble ideals of truth and respect for human dignity that are at the heart of our Church and our country? That a university’s genuine greatness comes not from pursuing what is most chic, recent, or faddish, but what is most timeless, true, good, and beautiful in creation and creatures? That the true goal of a university is to prepare a student not only for a career but for fullness of life here and in eternity?

123rd Annual Commencement Address

  Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York

  East Portico, Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

  May 12, 2012

In his moving commencement address, Cardinal Timothy Dolan also speaks of marriage in the context of "the law of the gift."

Read the full commencement address here.

Our Queen Mother

Stained glass window, The Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, Denver, Colorado
(c) 2012 On Being Roman Catholic in America

As we enter into the month of May, we have an opportunity to contemplate—and celebrate—the many mysteries of Mary, Mother of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and Queen of Heaven.   Mary, under the title of the Immaculate Conception, is the patroness of the United States of America.   Maria, ora pro nobis.

Sacrifice and Sacrament

The Eucharist is a sacrifice inasmuch as it is offered up, and a sacrament inasmuch as it is received.

One of the many gifts to us from Blessed John Paul the Great was his declaration of the Luminous Mysteries, an invitation, through Our Lady’s Most Holy Rosary, to contemplate the mysteries of the Kingdom of God. On Holy Thursday, observed today, the culmination of the Luminous Mysteries comes to mind. The last decade, the fifth mystery, is the Institution of the Eucharist: Christ present with us—Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity. In the breaking of the Bread, we realize: The kingdom of God is at hand.

No Masters, No Gods

No Masters, No Gods. This pithless expression of humanistic philosophy fit nicely across the bumper sticker; its comprehensive message presumably serving as the Summa on the topic of God and man. Yet on that same topic, we find in Mary’s fiat (from Latin “let it be done”) true freedom: In being open to, accepting of, and trusting in God’s plan, Mary freely conformed her will to God’s will. With her “yes,” Mary achieved the triumph of human free will over the tyranny of the self and to that world to which the self clings with grasping fingers.

On the significance of Mary’s fiat, read, Bl. John Paul the Great.

Ave Maria

The feast of the Annunciation normally falls on March 25 (informing us that Christ's birth is just 9 months away!)  Because today is Sunday, the feast day will be observed tomorrow.  The mysteries of the Annunciation are many and wondrous, among them:  God's intervention in human history; Mary's fiat; the beautiful Magnificat; the fulfillment of ancient prophecies; the affirmation of the sanctity of life in the womb, and more.  Ave Maria, indeed.