Reflection for the 6th Sunday of Easter 2014

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Let us see who
has given witness

Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed the Christ to them. With one accord, the crowds paid attention to what was said by Philip when they heard it and saw the signs he was doing.

Philip was one of the first seven deacons of the Church. The proto-martyr Stephen had just been executed by stoning (Acts 7). Saul and his men were going house-to-house, dragging out Christians and bringing them to trial, throwing them in prison, and killing them. By Acts 12 we see James the brother of John killed by Herod. The Church historian Eusebius tells us that James the Just, the Apostle and so-called Brother of the Lord was placed on the pinnacle of the temple, thrown down, then clubbed and stoned – for he would not forsake the Lord.

Leading him into their midst they demanded of him that he should renounce faith in Christ in the presence of all the people. But, contrary to the opinion of all, with a clear voice, and with greater boldness than they had anticipated, he spoke out before the whole multitude and confessed that our Savior and Lord Jesus is the Son of God. But they were unable to bear longer the testimony of the man… they slew him.

Philip was among those scattered in the first major persecution of the Church. Being scattered did not prevent him, or any of these others, from witnessing to the faith. Each of those we read about, and the countless number of Christians whose names we will never know, proclaimed the word and kept the faith in good times and bad.

This proclamation of the word and witness were not an accident. It was prompted by faith in the promises of Jesus. These witnesses lived in the Spirit Who had filled them with His gifts and strengthened them for the task.

Jesus promised those who would be baptized, who would come to Him in faith, would never be left orphans: And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always. They would always have what is necessary to witness.

The Spirit has drawn men and women – and us – to give witness. Thus, while the Church may have been scattered in persecution (persecution that still exists in many places to this day) witness has never ceased.

As we reflect this weekend on those who have given their lives in witness to national freedom, let us also reflect on those who are giving witness to the truth that surpasses country and nation. Whether we live in relative safety or are among the persecuted – are we giving witness to the truth? Let us abide in the Spirit and ask that He give us the courage to give testimony always and everywhere.

Åš+P Jane Kopec

Our sister in Christ, śp. Jane Rivers Swinson Kopec, 93, passed away on Bright Tuesday, April 22, 2014 at the Ellis Residential Center after a brief illness.

238Å›p. Jane was born in Warsaw, NC on April 7, 1921 to Erasmus and Bessie Swinson. She attended Campbell College in Buies Creek, NC and went on to study and graduate from Highsmith’s Hospital in Fayetteville, NC as a registered nurse. She met her husband, Dennis, when he returned from Pearl Harbor and was stationed at Seymour Johnson Air Field in Goldsboro, NC. They moved to Dennis’ hometown of Schenectady where they raised their three children. Jane and Dennis were married for 61 years until Dennis’ death in 2005. While raising three children, Jane worked as a nurse for 38 years at Ellis Hospital. In retirement, Jane enjoyed taking trips with her husband to Wildwood, Branson and revisited Pearl Harbor as an anniversary gift from their children. She enjoyed shopping trips to Reading, gardening and attending the summertime music events in Central Park. She most enjoyed going to the Racino with her son, Dennis. She was a member of the Colonie Elks Club, Niskayuna Senior Citizens and a longtime member of the Holy Name of Jesus Polish National Catholic Church in Schenectady. She loved her weekly worship and coffee hours with her dear family and friends.

śp. Jane was preceded in death by her beloved husband, śp. Dennis and her beloved son, śp. Garry. She leaves her loving son, Dennis, Jr. (Donna) of Yanceyville, NC; her devoted daughter, Linda (Darryl, Sr.) DePaula of Niskayuna; her daughter-in-law, Deborah Kopec of Niskayuna; her cherished grandchildren, Rebecca and Rachael Kopec, Alyssa and Darryl DePaula, Jr.; and her sister, Martha Fields of Greenville, NC. She is also survived by many loving nieces and nephews. May she rest in peace with her precious husband and son.

Relatives and friends are invited to attend the funeral which will begin Friday morning at 10:15 at the Gleason Funeral Home, 730 Union Street and at 11 a.m. at the Holy Name of Jesus Polish National Church where the Holy Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated. The funeral home will be open Friday morning from 9:15 until 10:15 for those who wish to call. Burial will be in Most Holy Redeemer Cemetery, Niskayuna. Memorial contributions may be made in her memory to the Holy Name of Jesus Polish National Catholic Church, 1040 Pearl St., Schenectady, NY 12303.

Eternal rest grant unto her O Lord.
And may the perpetual light shine upon her.
May her soul and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace.

Reflection for the Solemnity of the Resurrection

Easter Look Screen

They found the stone rolled away from the tomb; but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were puzzling over this, behold, two men in dazzling garments appeared to them. They were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground. They said to them, “Why do you seek the living one among the dead? He is not here, but he has been raised.”

Scripture goes on to tell us:

Then they returned from the tomb and announced all these things to the eleven and to all the others… but their story seemed like nonsense and they did not believe them.

The disciples we incredulous at news of Jesus being risen, and much of the world is incredulous to this day.

If we look at Jesus with human reasoning alone we can make a very strong case that all of this is too incredible to believe.

We do not have the benefit of being among the women who entered the empty tomb, who had the advantage of an explanation from dazzling angels. We do not have the benefit of being in the company of Peter and John as they ran to find an empty tomb. We do not have the privilege of walking along the road to Emmaus with Jesus and having Him reveal Himself in the breaking of the bread. Yet we have the eyes of faith.

Here we are, looking at an empty tomb and hearing the words of the resurrection proclaimed and sung. Here we are, having rushed to church this morning to see the empty tomb. Here we are, to share in the breaking of the bread, and to recognize the reality of the Lord among us.

We aren’t incredulous. We are here, this morning for two important reasons. The first is that we have received the gift of faith. The second is that we continue live, see, and respond because of faith that He is truly risen.

We value the gift of faith – faith in a God that loves us enough that He would sacrifice His Son’s life so that we might have eternal life. Faith that this Christ was more than a prophet, more than a wise man, more than good teacher, but God Himself that came among us, died for us, and because of His obedience to the Father was raised again – showing us our glorious destiny.

Many cannot believe it. If they hear, ‘Christ is risen!’ they respond, ‘No way!’ They remain incredulous. Our faith is foolishness to them.

For us, a people living in faith, the ancient greeting of Easter, the greeting we proclaim to each other is Christ is risen! to which we all reply, He is truly risen!

April 2014 Newsletter – Holy Week, Easter, and more

It is April and our newsletter has arrived. It is filled with information on so many holy and exciting events. We start by looking at Low Sunday and what fellowship really means. We invite you to take part in this wonderful and holy season, to connect and enter into fellowship with Jesus and us right here in Schenectady. Lots of other news too including new movies, our Basket Social, and legends. You may view and download a copy right here — April 2014 Newsletter.

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Reflection for the 4th Sunday of Lent 2014

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May my sight
never falter

“We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. We do not know how he sees now, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him, he is of age; he can speak for himself.” His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone acknowledged him as the Christ, he would be expelled from the synagogue.

Jesus cures a man born blind.

Rather than being thankful for this tremendous miracle, the Pharisees argue about the nature of Jesus – is He good or evil. They formed arguments to refute the goodness and holiness of Jesus, to show that He was not from God. They went so far as to summon the man’s parents, hoping they would testify that their son wasn’t really blind, or that this wasn’t their son. They testified that it is their son and he was indeed born blind.

The parents wouldn’t go so far to admit that Jesus had cured their son; they were afraid of losing their social standing.

The Pharisees were trying to disprove what had happened. The parents were trying to avoid what happened. Everyone was closing his or her eyes before the man born blind, a man who could now see.

The man born blind gives solid testimony and states the facts: I was born blind. Jesus made mud, told me to wash, and now I see. Jesus is a prophet. I will not pass judgment on Jesus, as you would have me do. All I know is that I was blind and now I see. Then he stands up and rebukes the blind Pharisees:

“This is what is so amazing, that you do not know where he is from, yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if one is devout and does his will, he listens to him. It is unheard of that anyone ever opened the eyes of a person born blind. If this man were not from God, he would not be able to do anything.”

Their blindness was so deep that they cursed him and threw him out.

We must take care to avoid blindness. We must not harden our hearts and shut our eyes to what is obvious. When we do falter in seeing, we must repent of our blindness.

Our Lenten journey calls us to recognize the blindness in our lives. Is it judgmentalism and legalism – living like the Pharisees and believing that we have all the right answers and everyone else is sinful and wrong? Is it fear, like the man’s parents, such fear that we hold back from bearing witness to God’s truth? Let us call upon Jesus. Jesus who said, “I came into this world for judgment, so that those who do not see might see.” Let us ask Jesus for the ability to see and ask for His healing. Let us ask Him for courage and the grace to never falter in seeing rightly.

Annunciation of the B.V.M.

121_Annunciation02Today, March 25th, is the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the B.V.M. On this day let us remember that God always offers us a choice. In order to carry out His plan for humanity’s salvation He needed the cooperation of the Blessed Virgin. The angel came to her and presented God’s plan to her. She was not forced or coerced into saying yes to God’s plan. In fact, her life would become more difficult if she said yes. Still, she did say yes to God.

God constantly asks of us. He calls us to follow Him, to live in His way. It isn’t always easy, yet God gives us the grace we need to follow Him loyally. Pray this week for Mary’s intercession so that we may receive the grace to say yes to whatever God asks of us.

Reflection for Ash Wednesday 2014

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Brothers and sisters:
We are ambassadors for Christ,
as if God were appealing through us.
We implore you on behalf of Christ,
be reconciled to God.

Is it possible?

How might we go about being reconciled to God?

Being reconciled to God is not something we can accomplish based on our merits. We could stand and pray all day, lead the holiest of lives, give to charity, fast, do good works – yet we would still fall short of the glory of God. St. Paul says this very clearly in his letter to the Romans:

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23)

Even if we spend our entire lives striving for perfection in God’s eyes, we will fall short. We will sin. It may be by anger, or even pride – thinking that we are somehow special and set apart in God’s eyes. Those little evils will creep in. It is our human nature. So then how might we be reconciled to God?

Hope won in Christ

Being reconciled – being redeemed – was accomplished once and for all in the sacrificial death of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

Jesus’ coming and His entire work were focused on the goal of reconciling us. His sacrificial death was the culmination of this reconciliation. Before He died He journeyed through the streets and countryside of Israel and by mighty works, wonders, and signs He showed forth the power of God. In His glorious resurrection He left us the hope, the promise of what we will be.

Yet, as Paul says, we must do something to be reconciled to God. What is it?

Faith

Paul told the Romans that our first step, the key moment in our lives, comes when we make a profession of faith in Jesus. The first, foremost, and most important thing we must do is to be regenerated by a personal proclamation of faith in Jesus, asking Him forgiveness of our sins, and committing our lives to Him.

To show the necessity of faith Paul holds up the example of Abraham. He says: “Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed.” Abraham’s act of faith in God was credited to Him as righteousness. If we have any hope for righteousness, for a share in the reconciliation Jesus won for us, we must believe. To be reconciled we must believe – that is what we must do!

Following

From that act of faith we must commit to lives lived in accord with Jesus’ teaching.

Before He died Jesus journeyed through the streets and countryside of Israel – and did not place His focus on simply producing mighty works, wonders, and signs. That would have made Him a side show. Rather His primary mission on the road to Jerusalem was focused on teaching us how we should live, how we should conduct ourselves as His followers. To be reconciled we cannot simply profess faith and then go on living as if we had not been reconciled. To be reconciled means to be changed, to be on a lifelong journey of transformation. As regenerated beings, reconciled beings, we are called to a journey toward lives lived in full accord and unity with Jesus’ way of life.

Lent

Lent, this annual forty day period of renewal, is our moment of renewed reconciliation. If we take these days and this time seriously we will use them to reconcile our day-to-day lives to the faith we once declared. We will use them get back on the journey reconciled persons are to live. We will work toward the reconciled life we promised we would live.

The way of Lent

Our Lenten exercise – our sacrifice is a set of practices that help us to unite ourselves with Jesus. To be like Jesus, to follow His way, and to call to mind all that Jesus experienced and taught, we fast like Jesus, pray as Jesus taught, are generous as Jesus was generous, forgive as Jesus forgave, and remain watchful for His return. 

Lent, taken seriously, trains our way of living and cleanses us of the failures and abuses we committed over the past year. It is our opportunity to show forth our reconciliation. It is our chance to reclaim lives as reconciled beings. In our Lenten practices we work to build lives re-committed to Jesus and thankful for Jesus’ reconciliation.

Do not use this time in vain:

We hear Paul’s call, his proclamation that this is a very acceptable time; now is the day of salvation. This Lent, as every day of our lives, is the day of salvation. Each day of Lent let us be thankful for our reconciliation. Each day we must commit to doing all necessary to stick to our journey as reconciled men and women; a journey toward lives lived in full accord and unity with Jesus’ way of life.

Let us fast, pray, forgive, and be watchful and generous each day. Let us bless the Lord each day for our reconciliation that frees us from guilt (have faith in Jesus’ forgiveness). Let us bless the Lord each day for freedom from fear (nothing has power over us, not even death).

Each day let us acknowledge that we have been chosen by God – the Holy Spirit called us to reconciliation by faith. Each day let us remember that God asks us to use our gifts and abilities to make unique contributions to our faith family. Each day let us be confident that while our sins make us subject to judgment, Jesus’ blood make us worthy and beautiful in the eyes of our heavenly Father.

Let us wake up each day and shun retirement and complacency – each of us in the family of faith is here for God’s reasons. He has called us to work, for a purpose that does not end until the day we die.

Paul reminds us that we must not: receive the grace of God in vain. This Lent is about how we work, journey, and live in accord with the destiny God opened to us when we by faith accepted His reconciliation. What we did and received by faith – reconciliation – we must now live.

Reflection for Quinquagesima Sunday 2014

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Lord, can I trust
in You, even if?

Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you.

There are two key things to consider when we reflect on God’s care for us. How far God’s love surpasses any human love and how far our commitment must go in response to His love.

Even the worst of prisoners, people who have done horrible things, still get visits from their mothers even after long years in prison. When other friends and family have given up and dropped away mom is still there.

As a child and even a young man, when I heard “Can a mother forget her infant,” I couldn’t imagine a mother ever forgetting her child or acting without love toward him or her. I felt that even if I did the worst of things my mom would still be there for me. She was, through many of my indiscretions. Looking back though I know I was immature, for look at the evils we have seen mothers commit. Most aren’t new, some are. Yet we still stand aghast at the evils some mothers do.

This makes God’s reassurance even more powerful. His love and care for us surpasses all human love, even the love of a mother for her child. Mom loved me and forgave me, yet even if she didn’t, God does.

God’s love is perfect and He wishes only to give that love to us, to care for us, to keep us in His care not just today – but forever. That is our true hope – an eternity of perfect, all encompassing, love in God’s presence.

The past three Sundays we have heard readings from Matthew 5. Now we are in chapter 6; still part of the Sermon on the Mount and still addressing similar issues: the life style of a disciple who, belonging to Christ, must live in the present while anticipating the fullness of the kingdom of God.

Over these weeks we learned about relying on Jesus as well as our family in faith. We learned to live maturely in the mystery of love. We learned that our every action, thought, and response, every routine, must be one with God’s way – making God’s perfection apparent in every part of our lives. Now we focus on how a disciple is to trust in the Lord. We learn to look forward with trust, beyond the needs of today, with full faith and trust in God.

This is a time of high worry about jobs, financial security, and how we might fulfill our ordinary needs. We still must work to provide for what is needed for our families and ourselves. This is normal. But Jesus is warning about a preoccupying or consuming worry that makes us less concerned about our eternal salvation and the promise of unending life just so we can have a better today. Our total commitment must be for Him and His perfect love.