No Knowing

Here we are, at the conclusion of this little project. One month with the challenge to spend just five more minutes with God. To make yourself a bit more aware of God’s presence in your life. To acknowledge God’s presence in the world. To challenge yourself to more fully live your faith in the world. To give thanks for all that God has blessed you with.

The journey with Christ does not end today. It is a journey that continues until our dying breath. Like most things, this blog will now transition. With the conclusion of this series and the conclusion of the liturgical year, we are on the eve of Advent. Tomorrow the daily Advent reflections written by a wide spectrum of parishioners will offer you a way to journey through Advent while continuing to take one step closer to God.

J.R.R. Tolkien wrote in The Fellowship of the Ring, “It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.” This is a good reminder for us on our faith lives. We must pay attention to where our feet are and where we are heading. The world is full of that which wants to push us off course. May you mind your feet and walk ever more closely with your God.

Sights of Color

Today is Black Friday - a day normally associated with getting up before the sun rises, standing in long lines for a store to open, racing around a store gathering up the deals...all to get what we want. Black in this context signifies money being spent, revenues growing and moving retailers "into the black."

Black is a solemn color, frequently marking a major passage. For Catholics, black is normally a sign of mourning. We see it used on Good Friday and the recent All Soul's Day.

Our day of thanks with family is now in the rear view mirror. We are now off on a race for the next month to "get ready for Christmas." Perhaps we can pause on Black Friday as a moment to prepare for the upcoming Season of Advent. Consider reflecting on who you want to "be" during Advent in addition to all you need to do and what you want.

Maybe get up early and be thankful for all you have been given by God and how you can share it with others. And if you do go out on Black Friday, spread the "thank you's" generously today and throughout the Advent Season.

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JUST FOR FUN - HOW IS COLOR USED IN OUR FAITH?

As Catholics, we use color as an important signal of the various parts of our liturgical year. We see it in our priests' vestments and the colors of decorations and flowers present in the church.

• White and gold - Most appropriate for Christmas and Easter - Symbol of purity, it is used on all Feasts of Our Lord except those relating to the Passion, all Feasts of Our Lady, and on the Feasts of Saints who are not Martyrs.
• Red: For on feasts of the Passion of Jesus and for the Holy Spirit, representing red tongues of fire, in addition to being worn for the feasts of martyred saints, who shed their red blood for Christ.
• Green: The color of vestments used during ordinary time. (Ordinary time is the rest of the year that’s not the Christmas or Easter season)
• Purple or violet: Symbol of penance, it is part of Advent and Lent, and along with white and black, these colors may also be used at Funeral Masses
• Rose: These are a substitute for violet on the Third Sunday of Advent and the Fourth Sunday of Lent, the color rose may be worn as a sign of anticipated joy.

Blessings for a Happy Thanksgiving!

In the spirit of the holiday and our Year of Mercy:

Be Blessings

Most of us are probably double checking that the turkey is defrosting or that our reservations are set or that we have the right channel for the big game. We are looking forward to a day off work and a day spent how we like, surrounded by people we care for, enjoying a bountiful meal.

Most of us probably don’t know what it is like to be a refugee. Most of us probably don’t know what it is like to exist in a giant camp, with a flimsy tent protecting us from the cold and the rain. Most of us probably don’t wonder whether the aid workers will have enough supplies to offer us our daily meal. Most of us, thankfully, are not refugees.

Thanksgiving of 1943, Norman Rockwell painted this Refugee Thanksgiving cover for The Saturday Evening Post. 

As we prepare to celebrate our abundance, our blessings, there are 65.3 million refugees*. This exceeds even the record number of displaced persons from World War II, the time of Rockwell's painting. There was a refugee team at the Olympics; if those 65.3 million people were a country, they would be the 21st most populated country. You might be surprised to learn that Turkey, Pakistan, and Iran have the greatest number of refugees they have allowed into their nations. The fourth on that list, Lebanon, a country of just 4 million, hosts 1.1 million refugees.

As we give thanks, may we remember those who are thankful merely to be alive, to have escaped war, torture, terror, and the specter of death. May we remember that we are called to welcome the stranger to our table, whether it be for a simple meal or a new home in our nation.

Let us give thanks for our blessings.

Let our actions be blessings to those without home or shelter or nation.

*Statistics from this article

In Christ Alone

In Christ alone my hope is found,
He is my light, my strength, my song

- Opening lyrics to In Christ Alone

Listen to Glad sing “In Christ Alone” and take some time to reflect on what God has done for you!

What does it mean to be a Comforter? A Cornerstone? What does it mean to be bought by His Precious Blood?

God wants nothing more than a relationship with us. What can you do today to get “one step closer” to Him?

Amy Greene

Stewardship Associate

Joy and Peace

Take a moment to read Philippians 4:4-9.

I love that this section that focuses on giving thanks to God has the header of joy and peace in my Bible. I think that these things are closely woven together: gratitude, joy, peace. Each feeds the other.

Recognizing all that we have to be thankful for and offering our thanks, daily, for those blessings leads to a sense of joy and peace. If all we focus on are the things we wish we had or that which is just out of our reach, we will never be at peace, never able to recognize the holiness in the present moment.

Today, spend some time with this passage from Philippians.

Spend time today praying and pondering upon, “whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”

Let your prayers of thanks be heard. 

Let your heart rest in God’s peace. 

Let that peace become joy.

Give Thanks

Thank God for coffee! - a routine thought on an early morning after a late meeting the previous evening. Thank God! - a sigh from the depth of our soul when we hear good news after a night of uncertainty. Thank you - a note we write after receiving a gift. Thanks - a quick word tossed over our shoulder to the stranger who held the door for you.

We offer thanks and gratitude for little and large things. We use the words, “Thank you,” perhaps just out of routine.

In this week where our whole nation spends a bit more time focusing on giving thanks, take some time to find the meaning behind those simple words.

• Take a minute to list five things you are grateful for today.
• Take a minute to thank God for the people you are blessed to know.
• Take a minute to thank God for the physical blessings in your life, such as your home, work, and belongings.
• Take a moment to thank God for the encounters you had with God in the past week.
• Take a moment to thank God for the immeasurable love God has for you.

The Deepest Gratitude

Before reading today’s reflection, spend a moment reading the Mass readings for this Sunday’s Mass.

Brothers and sisters:

Let us give thanks to the Father,

who has made you fit to share

in the inheritance of the holy ones in light. 

He delivered us from the power of darkness

and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,

in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Colossians 1:12-14

This week the United States celebrates Thanksgiving. We spend a day focusing on family, friends, turkey dinners, football, and the start of the holiday season.

Yet, as Catholic, as all Christians, we are called to look to a greater source for our gratitude. We have a God, a Father, who sacrificed himself so that we may have eternal life. We are offered redemption, forgiveness, and life everlasting. 

Take some time to offer God your thanks for salvation. Offer your thanksgiving for God’s forgiveness. Give thanks for the unimaginable love that sacrificed for you.

In the face of such generosity, what else can we offer besides the deepest gratitude?

Embrace the Call

In Luke 6:36, we hear "Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful" as Jesus is sharing lessons on the need to express love for enemies. We often struggle with this mandate as extending mercy to those who have shown us hate or harm is so much more difficult than providing it to those in need (e.g. the hungry, the homeless).

A new Catholic-produced one-hour documentary, "The Face of Mercy," explores real-life stories of people who have stood in the face of evil and shown mercy. Produced by the Knights of Columbus, it is now running on various ABC-affiliates through mid-December.

The overview of the film as described with the YouTube trailer:

"Pope Francis has inspired millions by urging the world to embrace Mercy. The essence of this call is revealed in The Face of Mercy, an extraordinary new documentary film narrated by Jim Caviezel. 

Meet the woman who found freedom in forgiveness after seeing her family wiped out by genocide; the former-NFL linebacker who walked away from football to share Christ’s mercy with the homeless; the baseball player who traded MLB ambitions for the monastery; and the young widow who chose mercy towards her husband’s killer. 

These moving testimonies offer compelling proof that Divine Mercy is not some abstract theology – it is alive, it is present, and it will transform the world."

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE TRAILER AND LEARN MORE ABOUT THE FILM

A Key

The older I get, the more I notice how much I enjoy giving. Sure, opening a present on Christmas morning is great! But what’s even better – much better – is watching my 5-year-old niece open the present that I gave her. The pure delight of seeing her enjoy something I picked out especially for her is the best gift I could ever ask for. The look on my husband’s face when he realizes that I remembered something he mentioned months ago, and put it under the tree for him, is priceless. The joy of watching my sister enjoy something she loves, but might not have been able to afford, is gift enough for me. This is what Christmas is about. It is better to give than to receive. 

What gifts do you get from Holy Name Cathedral? Beautiful liturgies, meaningful opportunities for spiritual growth and development, the chance to serve others less fortunate than you, comfort in times of distress, and a community of devoted Catholics in the heart of Chicago, just to name a few. The clergy, staff, and lay leadership work tirelessly to ensure that our parishioners and visitors alike feel at home here. What gifts do you give to Holy Name Cathedral? Your weekly or daily attendance at mass? Your volunteer hours that keep our many programs vibrant and thriving? What about giving of your treasure?

As we approach the end of the year, please consider your monetary giving to your parish. Everything we have is a gift from God. Sharing of ourselves and our financial resources is a loving and just act, a way to give back in gratitude, a way to say THANKS BE TO GOD for all he has blessed us with. If you give regularly using your offering envelopes or online – thank you! We are so grateful for your faithful generosity. If you do not give regularly, please consider supporting Holy Name in that way. An easy way to do that is by committing to monthly automatic contributions. The advantage for you is not having to keep track of your envelopes or checkbook, and the advantage to the parish is a consistent amount of money that we can depend on each month for the operations of the Cathedral.

If you’re interested in auto-giving, please click here to sign up. You can also call me, Amy Greene, at 312-573-4467 with any questions, or for help with setting up your monthly contribution.

Amy Greene

Stewardship Associate

Seeing Things Differently

Sometimes engaging our faith leads us to look at the world entirely differently than those outside of our Catholic faith. We see the same world, the same problems, the same joys, but they look a bit different to us, these common place things have a bit of a difference in meaning.

Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh embodies this for me. A familiar scene - a small town at night - becomes wholly other through the eyes and paint of Van Gogh. Suddenly the stars become beacons and the wind a brush through the heavens. The common trees look to be more like seaweed, swirling in a cosmic ocean, not some common fir tree in a field.

Recognizing God in our lives challenges us to look at the world differently - to see the world as God does. We are called to see the presence of Christ not only at Mass but in the homeless person on the street or the cab that cut us off in our evening commute. We are called to see the holy in the church steeple and the steel skyscraper. We are called to see the immense love of God for us and the immense need to love one another.

May you see a Starry Night when you look up. May you see the world, not as it is, but as God sees it. May you work tirelessly to build God’s kingdom on earth.

Control

As humans, we often struggle facing our daily challenges while maintaining our commitment to live as a Disciple of Christ. And sometimes, we wander off into territory where we begin to use our human perspective to define what is our path. The never-ending and seemingly growing global and national strife and divisiveness can distract us and create even more conflict and separation.

But the reminders that God is in control is all around us. It is God that continually calls us to embrace our faith and lead a life of mercy. We have people all around us that need our help. We are called to get out of the stands and onto the field to become an active Disciple of Christ.

Noelle Garcia and her husband, David McHugh, wrote the following song, Control, that is the perfect reflection for today.

Take a listen and reflect on what God is calling you to do, to become. Are you resisting an embrace of His view?

Click Here to Listen to Noelle Garcia's song Control

Verse 1

We're fighting wars, exploiting the poor

We play God in matters of life and death

Then we wonder... What are we fighting for?

In our dying breath there's things that matter more, things that matter more.

Refrain

There's still a wideness to the skies

In the beauty of the sunrise

Reminding us there's so much we don't know

The awesome fury of the wind

Reminds us once again

That God is in control, Lord, You are in control

Maybe we're not on the front lines,

But there are people in our own lives

Needing love and forgiveness, needing our presence

But we play God in judging hearts, hearts we cannot see

Hearts we cannot see

Bridge:

What if they were Jesus?

What if they are wounded?

What if they are scared?

Would you turn away, not even lift your eyes to pray

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Noelle uses music, story, witness, and prayer to spread the Gospel. Her ministry is lived through her vocation as wife and mother to three (and one on the way!) beautiful children. Her husband, David, often travels with her as fellow musician and speaker. Learn more about her work and music by visiting her website: www.noellegarciamusic.net.

Giving off the top

Maybe you’re not used to thinking of prayer as a form of stewardship. But dedicated time for prayer is a crucial step toward becoming closer to God! The time we commit to the activities in our lives is a big indicator of their importance to us. How much time do you spend watching TV or on the internet? How much time do you spend on hobbies? How much time do you spend cultivating relationships with others? God wants you to cultivate your relationship with Him as well. 

The key to stewardship is planned giving – giving off the top, not “what’s left over.” That’s what can be hard about prayer. We all pray now and then, but having a regular prayer time every day can be difficult. Not that it’s all that hard to pray. It isn’t. Prayer is usually enjoyable. But our daily schedules can get full and when the day comes to an end, we realize that our prayer time got squeezed out again. 

The fate of our prayer time day after day – whether it’s “planned giving” or “what’s left over” – is a good measure of whether we’ve made stewardship part of our lives. In his First Letter to the Thessalonians, Saint Paul urges us to “pray without ceasing.” This does not mean we have to attempt to pray all day long, but rather that we’re in it for the long haul – day in, day out.

Spend some quiet time with God today. Adore Him, confess your sins, give thanks, and ask for guidance. He loves spending time with you.

Amy Greene

Stewardship Associate

One Step Closer - Engage

The amazing group of volunteers that helped to form this month’s concept for the series of One Step Closer struggled for some time with what to call this week’s theme. We tossed around words like engage, apply, live...none were fully applicable. I still am not completely happy with the word choice. 

However, that discomfort at failing to find the perfect title actually has led me to understand more deeply what we are trying to offer this week.

We will spend this week with the challenge to respond to the encounters we have with God, to live the call to discipleship in our daily lives through our words and actions. This task is huge. It is impossible to sum up in one verb. I think that is the reason we couldn’t find the one word that we felt was the right word. 

If we encounter God. If we acknowledge God’s presence in our lives. Then we need to respond - we need to live differently. We need to change and grow. We need to be disciples. If the first week was about being open to God’s presence and the second focused on the inner effort to acknowledge God’s presence, then a way to see this week’s focus is the outward actions and words we are called to live in response to God’s presence. This is where the call to be disciples necessitates doing the work of disciples in the world.

Take a minute to reflect on the moments you acknowledged God’s presence last week. 

Take a minute to think about how you responded to God in those moments. 

Take a minute to see where you might be in need of spiritual change and growth. 

Take a minute to ask God for that which you need to be a disciple. 

Take a minute to discern where you are being called to do the work of a disciple in your daily life. 

Perseverance

Before reading today’s reflection, spend a moment reading the Mass readings for this Sunday’s Mass.

Perseverance and minding our own business. These seem like exclusively contemporary issues. Yet today we hear them addressed by the letter to the Thessalonians, one of the earliest texts in the New Testament, and the Gospel. 

We are quick to compare ourselves to others. Whether we look to find fault in the other or we look to put the other on a pedestal to our own detriment, we are missing our call as Christians. Paul writes urging the Thessalonians to work hard within their own role of society - be it a business owner, tradesman, or housewife. These first century Christians were to mind their own business - the business of their salvation and growing as disciples of Christ without judging their neighbor or coveting what the person next to them owns. If we do look to our neighbor’s business, it should be solely to love them and help them journey into deeper relationship with Christ.

In a town that hosts a marathon and waited 108 years for a beloved baseball team to bring home the World Series championship, we understand something about perseverance. Do we bring that same level of preparation, practice, dedication, and long-range vision to our faith?

Where in your life might you need to stop paying quite so much attention to the business of others?

What is the business that Jesus is calling to you to mind in your daily life?

How can you focus on perseverance in your faith journey?

Active Knowledge

The parable of the Good Samaritan provides insights into what God expects from us in making choices when faced with difficult situations. Two people chose to ignore the half-dead man lying in the road. The Samaritan, in violation of contemporary "rules," showed compassion, going out of his way to ensure this stranger was cared for and had a safe place to heal. He showed mercy and compassion.

This week we have been exploring the idea of Acknowledge as the next step in our journey as Disciples of Christ.” By definition, it means "to say that you accept or do not deny the truth or existence of (something)” The etymology of the word comes from Middle English “admit or show one’s knowledge.” 

Acknowledge requires that we are in a state of active inquiry and demonstrate our understanding. God is always trying to connect with us in our daily lives, presenting an unending set of opportunities to accept His presence. This is what the Good Samaritan was facing, and he chose the merciful way. 

Fr. Louis Cameli observes in his book Rejoicing in Mercy, A Prayer Commentary on the Gospel of Luke, “What must I do to inherit eternal life? The path to eternal life is a path that “shows mercy” to others…it is a life of compassion and mercy directed toward others. That is the key to eternal life.”

What are the difficult situations in your life?

Are you able to acknowledge God's outreach to you in this moments?

How well are you living a life of mercy and compassion?

Dignity and Respect

As we come to the end of Pope Francis’ Jubilee Year of Mercy, it is important to discern what we have learned and how we carry it forward. Pope Francis continues to encourage us to push more deeply into mercy. Listen to his words in one of his last jubilee celebration:

“I ask your forgiveness if I have ever offended you with my words or for not having said something that I should have,” the pope said Nov. 11 during an audience with pilgrims attending special Year of Mercy events for people who are homeless or otherwise socially excluded. Read more...

Many of us perform acts of mercy to care for others. We do it to help others. Many times it is on behalf of the needy, just one or two steps away from the intended recipient. Perhaps it is a generous donation of money to a food pantry, volunteering a precious Saturday morning packing food for the hungry, donating clothes for the homeless or fundraising for a charitable organization.

These are all beautiful acts of mercy as they are making important contributions to help others. But there is another level for you to incorporate - directly helping another person. A direct 1:1 outreach to let the person know you care, that you know they are there. It is an encounter with dignity and respect.

What makes this type of merciful act so special is the direct acknowledgement of one of God's children. Perhaps one of the most difficult aspects of being homeless or being hungry is that many who pass you every day just pretend that you are not there. This sense of invisibility hurts and makes their situation even more difficult.

There are many ways to show mercy directly to someone in need. We unfortunately have many homeless people in our downtown neighborhoods. Do you acknowledge them or glance away? One very special program is right here in River North at Catholic Charities. Every Thursday and Friday night, a team from Holy Name Cathedral gather to create and serve a hot meal to 130 people. The meal is marked with prayer, warmth and grace. 

Consider this next time you pass a homeless person - acknowledge them, share a blessing, treat them with dignity and respect. Volunteer at a Catholic Charities supper to provide both spiritual nurturing as well urgently needed meal. You will discover something new in yourself. 

Are we so different?

Nearly all the figures in Marc Chagall’s White Crucifixion are facing away, or even moving away from the crucifix. Each individual is shown in a state of movement, of fleeing or burning, hiding or blaming. Everyone is moving. Only the face of Jesus on the cross is serene, jarringly peaceful, hauntingly resigned.

Everyone is running around. The travesties and tragedies are all the participants can focus on in this painting. No one acknowledges that at the center of their world rests Christ.

Are we so different? Though the travesties and tragedies may be a bit different from that which Chagall painted in 1938, the essence is the same - we treat each other abominably. We ignore the suffering of others, especially if the other looks different or acts differently from us. 

Yet, just as in this painting, in the center of our world rests Christ on the cross. The sacrifice for all people. The God who loves each of us regardless of our worthiness or unworthiness, no matter what race or creed we claim, no matter who we voted for yesterday. Our God hangs on the cross, love at its most pure, offering the only hope for our world.

Take a moment to acknowledge Christ’s immense love for you...love for those around you...love for those who you find so difficult to love.

And perhaps take some time to head to our own Art Institute here in the city and see this work of art in person.

Acceptance

The Samaritan Woman at the Well (John 4:4-26) offers us many insights into God's love for us, no matter who were are and no matter what we have done. Accepting this is something we often struggle with. But we can clearly see that Jesus reaches out to this Samaritan woman who is an outcast in her own society. He values her even though she dismisses her own value. 

Acknowledgement of God's love means we accept it unconditionally. It is not that we feel His love when we think we "earned" it. Bishop Barron shares four key lessons from this story that reveal how we can gain strength from an unending source of love: "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (John 4:13-14)

Click Here to watch Bishop Barron's insights into the the woman at the well

The One Who Returned

Take a moment to read Luke 17.11-19

Here are 10 people who encountered Christ. They called out to Jesus. Jesus healed them. Yet only one returned when he realized he was healed. Only one took the time to return to Jesus and acknowledge the power of the encounter. 

I don’t blame the other nine. They must have been so thrilled to be healed - they could now return to their families, participate in community life again, be normal. They might also have been a bit scared - how were they healed? Would the Jewish authorities question them like they did that Jesus person?

The stranger, the Samaritan, returned with thanks and praise for Jesus, acknowledging that which had been done for him. A stranger was able to see that even the welcome of the community and the fear of judgment pales in comparison to the miraculous encounter. 

May you be the Samaritan today. May you see the encounters with God in your life and be brave enough to return to God with thanks and praise.