Reflection for the 2nd Sunday of Advent 2023

John the Baptist appeared in the desert proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

Welcome as we enter the second week of our new Church year and this Advent.

Last week, Prime Bishop elaborated on Advent as a transitional time between a focus on the last things, being ready for Jesus’ return at the end of time and our need for personal preparation right now so we may best welcome Jesus anew into our lives.

As St. Paul noted in our Epistle last week, we are prepared for this task of readiness by the enriching grace we have in our knowledge of Jesus. Paul reminded us that we have this time to focus on what we have learned about Jesus and the opportunity to put that knowledge into action.

This week calls us deeper into the active engagement we are to have as the people of Christ – Christians. Today, Peter sets the stage regarding the kind of people we are to be, a people: conducting ourselves in holiness and devotion, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God.

Now it may occur to us – how do we hasten God along? Besides what we might think, it is the actual work we are to do in building the Kingdom of God so the saying Maranatha, Come Lord Jesus will come to fruition.

We build the Kingdom by this: taking action that contributes to the purposes of God here and now, in our community, among friends, family, and coworkers. Among the many Kingdom building actions we need to engage in are: Evangelism: bringing people into the kingdom; Benevolence: showing the love of God to others through our charity and kindness; Having godly relationships that show the reality of the kingdom by example.; Encouraging love and good deeds; Building up knowledge of God by study, reading of scripture, and practice; Regular worship; Carrying out the corporal and spiritual works of mercy; and… Doing all in the Name of the Lord, being dedicated to Him.

The Oxford Dictionary tells us that fruition is the point at which a plan or project is realized and the action of producing fruit occurs. Indeed, Advent is about that. The Blessed Virgin carries within her the fruitfulness that will save us all. So too, like John we must go out and proclaim a fruitful message: Prepare yourselves, Christ is in our midst, and He waits for you. Join me in knowing Him.

Bible Study for the 1st Week of Advent 2023

This week’s memory verse: Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.

Romans 13:11
  • 12/3 – Psalm 62:5
  • 12/4 – Matthew 24:44
  • 12/5 – Matthew 24:42
  • 12/6 – Matthew 24:13
  • 12/7 – Philippians 4:6
  • 12/8 – 2 Peter 3:8
  • 12/9 – Psalm 5:3

Pray the week: Lord Jesus, Thank You for this time of anticipation and expectation. Help me to be awake and engaged in the work You have asked me to do. Amen.

Reflection for the 1st Sunday of Advent 2023

Jesus said to his disciples: “Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come.”

Welcome as we begin a new Church year and enter the shortest Advent season in a while.

Advent, a season of expectation and anticipation can last from 22- and 28-days and this is a 22-day one.

I suppose that for a people who are to live in expectation and anticipation a much shorter time to wait is kind of nice. We only have to hear ‘are we there yet’ for 22-days.

A compressed schedule may be experienced in a few different ways. Some might spend the time valuing each day of expectation more deeply. Some might choose to rush through it, not paying too much attention. Some might choose to live frustrated, focused solely on getting ‘there.’

Of course, the Church is solidly recommending that we value each day of expectation more deeply for there are not too many of them.

That recommendation comes from thousands upon thousands of years of experience from the Old Testament period through today. The Holy Spirit guides us in doing what is right and in the end, what is best for us. 

The other approaches each diminish our experience of God and thus our lives. Not paying attention, rushing, being frustrated, let’s just get there approaches take our eyes off God and fill us with such unease that we draw into ourselves becoming blind to the very gifts being offered to us.

Jesus enjoins us to be alert, to stay awake and to watch. To be busy about our work for Him.

That command is not about arriving at the goal. Jesus will take care of that, but about our growth as a people confident and trusting in God. That type of attitude leads us to grow into the image of God, to act (it is not about sitting around) by living Jesus’ way most fully, and to deal with those things in us that must change – our very inability to be patient with God’s timeline.

Much of the history of the Old Testament is about waiting and becoming; lessons learned, repentance undertaken, and to be prepared for the Messiah. Speaking of waiting, the time between the last prophet and Jesus was about 500 years of silent waiting, yet each moment had value for growth.

As St. Paul tells us, we have been enriched in the knowledge of Christ so that this time may be grace filled, focused on what we have learned, and engaged in the work that helps us be ready for welcoming Him again. 

December 2023 Newsletter – Anticipation

And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.

I was listening to religious radio the other Sunday, just after Thanksgiving, and the commentator mentioned that we are now in the Christmas Season. Now, I am not a Negative Nelly, correcting everyone for such mistakes. I am happy that they recognize the need to celebrate the season. The better question, Why the rush?

If you are old enough you might remember the days when the decorations were put up on Christmas Eve or in the week before Christmas. Folks prepared for Christmas by living with a sense of anticipation. Anticipation – the old ketchup commercials where they sang Anticipation while the ketchup slowly trickled out of the bottle. Anticipation like in the heart of a child awaiting Christmas morning, a bride her wedding, parents the birth of a child. Those and many other occasions we each know very well.

We Catholics know something of anticipation. In every Holy Mass we await the living presence of the Lord Jesus and our receiving Him in Holy Communion. We live seasonally anticipating the celebration of the key moments in our Lord’s life which encompass our salvation history. It does not all happen right away. Advent calls us to a spirit of anticipation. The Holy Church guides us through this season focusing on our Lord’s coming and echoing Psalm 130: I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope.

Let us imagine our keeping of this time of anticipation. What awaits us? A grand celebration of forty days beginning Christmas Day and lasting until February 2nd. We will together celebrate those moments of salvation history that focus on family, the impoverished that first met Jesus, and His revelation to the nations. On the other hand we can meet Christmas exhausted, throw out the tree the next day, and miss all Jesus revealed to us. So, let us celebrate by keeping this time of anticipation for if we do the peace of Christ will indeed reign in our hearts.

Think December is busy? You’ll be right. Our schedule is jam packed with activities that help us anticipate Christmas and the Christmas Season. Advent begins a new Church year. We have our Charity Organ Concert on December 3rd at 4pm to support Blessed virgin Mary’s fire recovery fund. Come share in our annual Vigil / Wigilia Dinner on December 10th. Rorate Masses (Holy Mass by candlelight only celebrated Wednesdays at 7:30am) throughout Advent help us prepare. Come help us decorate the church in our Greening of the Church. Read a portion of St. Ephraim the Syrian’s Stanzas on the Nativity and engage in charitable giving of food and clothing for those in need. Too much to mention here, so check it all out in our December 2023 Newsletter.

Call For Papers – 23rd Scholars’ Conference

The Commission On History And Archives of the Polish National Catholic Church is pleased to announce the 23rd Scholars’ Conference to be held April 18-19, 2024, in historic Scranton, Pennsylvania. A virtual opportunity will also be available.

Academic scholars, representing the social sciences, are invited to submit proposals for individual papers related/devoted to the Polish National Catholic Church, its associations, its outreaches, and various independent movements that preceded or are contemporaneous with the Church and related subjects. Selected papers will be presented and subsequently published in the PNCC Studies Journal. The deadline for submissions is January 31, 2024.  

Additionally, we are pleased to offer an alternative to formal paper presentations with the addition of poster presentations. Details on submission are listed below. Graduate student presenters will be eligible for a $500 stipend/scholarship and free meals.

Register today by Email to the Prime Bishop’s secretary or by calling or 570.346.9131.

Thank you for your consideration and we look forward to hearing from you.

Bible Study for the Last Week in Ordinary Time 2023

This week’s memory verse: “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

Matthew 6:33
  • 11/26 – 1 Corinthians 4:20
  • 11/27 – Psalm 145:13
  • 11/28 – Hebrews 12:28
  • 11/29 – Luke 12:32
  • 11/30 – John 18:36
  • 12/1 – 2 Corinthians 5:17
  • 12/2 – Luke 17:20-21

Pray the week: Lord Jesus, I praise, glorify, and worship You alone. You have my fealty and my life. Grant that all I do may be according to Your will and may magnify Your Holy Name. Amen.

Reflection for the Solemnity of Christ the King 2023

“Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was…’” 

Welcome as we conclude this year’s Ordinary Sundays with this great Solemnity dedicated – as all things are – to Jesus Christ our King.

In some churches this Solemnity is dedicated to Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. Kind of funny when one thinks about it, how we as His people add on levels of detail to Jesus’ Kingship, trying to make Him as big as He really is by adding more and more adjectives.

The real point is that we can never define Jesus’ Kingship well enough, nor should we try, but rather spend our time as we have throughout this Ordinary Time focused on listening to, obeying, and witnessing to Jesus the King by our very lives.

Jesus, our King, and only true ruler taught us to live His Father’s way of generosity. He has told us that we will be held accountable for living up to doing things His Father’s way. He calls us again and again to turn, repent, and get back on track.

We hear Ezekiel telling us about God’s help in getting us back to where we need to be: As a shepherd tends his flock when he finds himself among his scattered sheep, so will I tend my sheep. I will rescue them from every place where they were scattered. I will seek the lost, bring back the strays, bind the injured, and heal the sick. 

Picture that, God among His scattered and wandering people. Immediately He sets to work in saving us. Well, that is what Jesus did.

Having been saved and reminded to stay awake, prepared for our Master’s return, with access to the many graces the Holy Spirit provides as He seeks, brings back, binds, and heals us, Jesus tells us what His return in judgment will be like.

In each instance He will judge how great our generosity has been. Welcoming, feeding, providing drink, clothing, visiting – all that stuff we do right here is our parish, but more important than that is the reason we do all those things. If it is just for points or to earn credits for heaven, we would be wrong. Rather, in each instance Jesus’ words must ring true – we are doing it for Him. We must see Him in each act of goodness and be Him to those we help. This must ring true – whatever you did you did for Me.

Organ Blessing and Charity Concert for Church Affected by Arson

On Sunday, December 3rd at 4pm the Most Rev. Anthony Mikovsky will be present to bless our new organ. Following the blessing, a concert of organ music will be presented. The concert will raise funds to support Blessed Virgin Mary parish in Latham, New York which was affected by an arson fire this past May.

The arson attack destroyed the parish’s storage garage and parts of the church and its kitchen. A free will offering will be taken up at the concert to assist in fire recovery. A reception will occur after the concert.

Bible Study for the 33rd Week in Ordinary Time 2023

This week’s memory verse: As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace

1 Peter 4:10
  • 11/19 – Romans 12:6-8
  • 11/20 – James 1:17
  • 11/21 – Exodus 35:10
  • 11/22 – Proverbs 25:14
  • 11/23 – Jeremiah 1:4-8
  • 11/24 – Ephesians 2:10
  • 11/25 – Romans 8:28

Pray the week: Lord Jesus, Thank You for the gifts You have given me. Grant that I may employ them to carry out Your will. Give me the insight to see what grace accomplishes. Amen.

Reflection for the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time 2023

“A man going on a journey called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them. To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one– to each according to his ability.”

Welcome as we continue our journey of study and re-commit ourselves to the work of following, witnessing to, and sharing Jesus.

Jesus taught us to live His Father’s way and calls us to accept responsibility for godly generosity and our own follow through.

For the past two, and again this Sunday, we have shifted our focus from God’s generosity to how well we live up to God’s way of doing things. We are asked to stop and think and figure out any gaps that exist between God’s way and our way. Where we have lost sight, we are called to recommit.

Last Sunday we concluded by recommitting to staying awake, preparing for our Master’s return with responsibility, and fully accepting the accountability we have before God.

We see this theme again today. The servants were given stewardship over the master’s treasure. They were to act responsibly with it and were to cause it to grow.

If it is not too obvious – we are the stewards of our Heavenly Father’s treasure – His kingdom in which we dwell. We are to set to work and our obligation for which we will be held accountable is its growth.

I want to look a little deeper at the servant who failed, who ended up outside and cut-off.

Jesus’ parable tells us that each was given “according to his ability.” Now perhaps this servant wasn’t the brightest bulb. Perhaps he was not the most astute at his job. The master did not give him much. Yet his master gave him a share.

We could fall back on that as an excuse. I don’t have the knowledge, skills, or abilities. I don’t really understand this job of kingdom building. I am not good with words. But God thinks you are.

I’ll throw this one out – Pygmalion in Management. It is a concept based on the Ancient Greek story of Pygmalion, a sculptor who fell in love with a statue he had carved. The expectation he had of the statue brought it to life. So it is with teachers and bosses. Those under their care tend to live up to their expectations.

God expects us to live up to His expectations of us. After all, He finds us worthy of the blood of His Son.