”YOU DID IT TO ME”

During the Advent Season, which to me is very special time of year….At Holy Mass, the readings we hear are always from the Prophet Isaiah……Before we go into what Isaiah had to say today….Let’s look at briefly what a prophet is because Isaiah was consider one of the greatest of the Old Testament Prophets - I believe there are some misconceptions surrounding what exactly a prophet is…A prophet is simply someone who speaks the Truth…..Easy enough right? - Wrong!…….Each and every baptized Catholic is called to be a prophet in this world…Our "job" is to - Know the Truth….Speak the Truth….Live the Truth…And now for the tough one - Suffer for the Truth…..How do we do that because clearly when we “look around” that is not happening the way it should be - Let’s be honest here….We can only live this way by and through God’s grace….This is a subject I hammer home constantly in these reflections - Why?…Because our modern world “thinks” it can self manufacture grace - Wrong!….Grace is a gift from God…Grace elevates our flawed human nature - We all need it and without it we stumble and fall….With that said, now let’s look at what Isaiah had to say today……………”On that day the deaf shall hear the words of a book; And out of gloom and darkness, the eyes of the blind shall see”……..Is Isaiah talking about when Jesus returns or is he talking about now?……Clearly, when Christ returns in his glory, we all will “see” but when that happens - Its too late…..We need to “see” and “hear” NOW….......We need to greet Christ in his return properly.....…How do we do that?…..Before we all make plans on how we are going to “change”….....We first need to encounter the Lord - I mean really encounter him….How do we do that?…..Let’s explore one way that can happen……In the Gospel of Matthew Jesus tells us something VERY important - This is on “the final exam”, so pay attention here…..Jesus tells us….”What you do to the least of these - You do to ME!”….....Notice the word ME…..When we help the poor - Not by writing a check - That is too easy - I am talking about helping them with our own two hands - Getting to know them as people…......When we do that, even if we are not practicing Catholics living in the state of grace - Something happens!…......We encounter the living God……And that encounter “opens a door” to Sacramental living……Mother Teresa would teach her sisters….”The entire Gospel can be summarized and taught in five words….”YOU DID IT TO ME”……If during this Advent Season we extend “a hand” to the helpless - Something will happen inside of you….A “door” will open…A “light” will “go on”…..That is the first step….And all good things start with one forthright step forward

“Behold, our Lord shall come with power; he will enlighten the eyes of his servants.”

Jesus tells us in Scripture……”The poor you will always have with you”…….Why did Christ focus in on this statement?…..Well? - Have you ever thought that “if” circumstances were even slightly different in your life - You could have easily been no different than those people we see on streets today…Would if your parents died when you were young?…….Would if you had an accident that affected your mind or body?……Would if a horrific event was to happen in America: a war, a plague, a natural disaster? (Read the news - this happens all the time around the world)….If those events were to happen - Where would you be today?….We have to understand, which most don’t…That everything we have is a gift - And all gifts given to us are to be used…Also, if we as Catholics claim to love God - We MUST love our neighbor…And to do that, we must "see" God in our neighbor……This requires a clean heart to “see” in this way……………Over the six years that I would travel to India during the Advent Season, “word got out” that this “Crazy American” (That Crazy American was me - If you have not figured that out already) was traveling to Kolkata each December and as a result strangers would reach out to me…Some would give me money, which I gave to Mother Teresa’s sisters…And some, believe it or not, would ask if they could travel along with me - I of course agreed and took them along…One year this very rich woman reached out to me…Her name was Jude....Jude was in her mid-thirties, and her mother just died….She “somehow” heard about me and asked if she could come along…Jude was not exactly the kind of person one would think would be interested in such a trip….She was a very “corporate person”…......She made tons of money in the Insurance Business…..And was not even a practicing Catholic…But because of the death of her mother, she felt she needed to “do something”….....So she came along with me to Kolkata to serve the poor…..I will be honest, when I first met Jude, I had my doubts she was going to be able to “cut it” in one of the poorest cities in India…..But after a few days of “adjusting”, Jude fit right in……….After two weeks serving the poor, Jude flew home back to New York City, a few days earlier then I did…I remember the big smile on her face the day she left for the airport……Jude did not have that same smile the day we arrived in Kolkata - She was still mourning the loss of her mother…..Now for the question to all the readers of this reflection - What caused this change in Jude?…It clearly was not the “luxury hotel” Jude stayed in during her stay in Kolkata - What happened to her?…I will tell you what happened - Jude experienced, in a small way God, through her service of the poorest of the poor…....Remember these words I noted above in this reflection…….”YOU DID IT TO ME”……..God will never be outdone in generosity…....When we give God an “inch” - He gives us back a “yard”!

“And their eyes were opened. Jesus warned them sternly, "See that no one knows about this." But they went out and spread word of him through all that land.”

Today we hear from the great prophet Isaiah…He tells us that the Lord’s people will be “woken up”…..But how?…What will spark this awakening?…..As we say in New Jersey - “There are many ways to skin a cat”…..We need to have an authentic encounter with the Lord….Until that happens - God is simply just a word and our religion will be reduced to mere habit…..The words of the Gospel must come alive for us - But how?……Serving the material poor is one of those ways…..Something “happens” to us when we extend a hand to those who can never repay us…..Its a powerful life changing encounter…..From this encounter, we just may realize that God is real - He is not just a word……..This is the key - We must come to understand that God is real - Why? - Because he is!…From that point, we grow confident…And from that confidence, we even will grow bold….All from that one simple encounter……”What you do to the least, you do to me” - Jesus was not kidding when he said that - Just as Christ is fully present in the Blessed Sacrament - He is present in the material poor…......We encounter the living God when we encounter the poor……………….”YOU DID IT TO ME”…………..JMJ

https://www.holywaterbooks.com/catholic-men-will-save-america.html

Build your life upon God - And it will last - No need to “hit the cement” to understand that gravity is a reality

Today at Holy Mass in the Gospel of St Matthew a line is “drawn in the sand”….Jesus tells us very clearly (notice the word clearly) that it is not enough to just say we believe in God - We must act upon that belief….And if we do and build a life upon Christ, that life will last and bear fruit…..“Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. And everyone who listens to these words of mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely ruined”……..For those who read this reflection and have “been around the block” - Look around objectively for a moment if you can - It should be very clear that this statement made by Christ proves itself to be true…….There is an old saying in New Jersey…….”Every dog has his day”……Again - So true……When we build our life on the “shifting sands” of this world, a day will come, usually when we least expect it too, when “our world” comes crashing down……One does not have to be a religious person to have seen this play out time and time again…With family…With friends….With neighbors…As well as with those in the mainstream media…….God’s way works!…..God gives us the Natural Law and the teachings of the one Church he founded, the Catholic Church to help us, not to make us miserable - Sadly, the world for 2000 years does not believe that statement to this very day....…And keeps building upon “sand”, producing the same results each and every time…..In the first reading from Mass today taken from the Book of Isaiah….We are told how God’s laws protect us - From who? - Primarily our self!…………….“A strong city have we; he sets up walls and ramparts to protect us. Open up the gates to let in a nation that is just, one that keeps faith. A nation of firm purpose you keep in peace; in peace, for its trust in you. ”Trust in the LORD forever! For the LORD is an eternal Rock. He humbles those in high places, and the lofty city he brings down; He tumbles it to the ground, levels it with the dust. It is trampled underfoot by the needy, by the footsteps of the poor”….........We can ignore this reality all we want - But reality does not change because we say it does....…The Catholic Church has outlasted all its enemies: The Roman Empire, Napoleon and the French Revolution, Hitler and the Nazi Party and Stalin and the USSR….Just to name a few…..This is “the rock” Jesus references to build your life upon….A life built upon this rock lasts….Ignore this at your own peril….God plays the “long game”….And he always wins that game - Don’t you think its time to join the “winning team”!?!

“Seek the LORD while he may be found; call him while he is near”

Why do Hollywood marriages fail?…..You would think that those who have “everything” would also have strong and lasting marriages - But as we all know that is not the case….Most, if not all Hollywood marriages fail - That is reality….All their money, their good looks, all the comfort that is enjoyed by these famous couples do not help them to stay married - Why do you think that is the case?….If anyone can stay married it should be them - Right?....Wrong!....Why is that? - Because all those “creature comforts” can not be utilized to build a lasting life upon - The mistake of many…..Marriage is a Sacrament, not because I said so, but because God said so…And marriages that are lived out sacramentally last…The statistics can not be debated!….Why is that?….Because we as human beings are all born flawed……We need God’s grace, each and everyone of us…And when we build a life upon that grace - It lasts…Its really that simple……Our world is not convinced….We “think” we are the exception to the rule or we “bury our head in the sand” and reality plays out right before our eyes over and over again…..Why is that? - The world likes the “idea” of God, but does know who God really is - Why would I say that? - Because when we get “below the surface” - The world has convinced itself that God is some kind of an ogre, who gave us “rules” to live by that will make us miserable…If you think that, you have been “tricked” by the “guy downstairs” - So tell “that guy” to “beat it”…..…..God came to give us life and give it abundantly!…..Building a life upon our shared Catholic faith is a life that not only lasts, but brings with it lasting and deep joy…..Such a life just does not “look” like the life the secular world convinces us we “need to have” in order to be happy….We have been brainwashed by Hollywood and the media….Its very ironic and I will leave you with this thought…Our world “takes advice” from people who in many cases “fail”in life…Hollywood, Sports figures, and CEOs…Many of these people have “all the toys” but destroy their families and children in the process…Society “listens to them” while ignoring the teachings of Christ given to us by the Catholic Church….The old lady in the last pew at daily Mass in any Catholic Church in America can tell you more about life then most Hollywood Directors and CEOs can…....Who are you going to listen too?…..Because who you listen to will determine a lot.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven”

Today St Matthew in his Gospel tells us that we must build our life upon God…..Here is the “deal”….....The Natural Law and the teachings of the Catholic Church have been proven to work....…Sorry, to all those who refuse to face facts - Just look at the things that last the test of time - That should tell any objective person everything they need to know - But sadly we are not objective….....Here is another fact - The laws of God apply to you, whether you acknowledge them or not….....Its like gravity…You can swear up and down that there is no such thing as gravity….....But what happens when you “jump off the roof of your house”?….......What happens is - You “hit the cement”…Exactly!…Build your life upon God - And it will last - No need to “hit the cement” to understand that gravity is a reality………..JMJ

https://www.holywaterbooks.com/catholic-men-will-save-america.html

Everything we have to become the people we were born to be was given to us - Have the courage to make it happen!

Today the Universal Church commemorates the life of St Francis Xavier SJ…..He was a founding member of the Society of Jesus…..This man was force of nature!……Many probably do not know this - But the popular cartoon super hero series known as the “X-Men” was inspired by Francis Xavier’s life……As a young man he was a great athlete (He was a javelin thrower) and a scholar…He met St Ignatius Loyola at the University of Paris…..It was there that the Jesuit Order was formed…..Francis Xavier came from a a noble and wealthy family…......He had “all the gifts” and he gave up “the world” to be a solder for Christ…And a solder he certainly was!…Besides St Paul, no one probably covered more ground then him…He traveled to the Far East and established Catholic Communities in India, Ceylon, Malacca and Japan….He died near the coast of China in a simple hut…….The man was literally a force of nature!…So here is the question to ponder today….If Francis Xavier decided to “go into business” after college using all his gifts (He certainly had them!) do you think we would be talking about him today?….If he did make that decision (as most do), sure, he would have become very rich…He had “all the gifts”…….But then what?…..Not a soul would have remembered him….He would have become completely forgotten…Instead, Francis Xavier used his gifts to build the Kingdom of God….....And build he did!……So what about us?…….…..”But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides”....Do you believe that? - If not - You should!

“Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, went up on the mountain, and sat down there………Great crowds came to him”

God works in mysterious ways!…..In a million years when the young Francis Xavier went off to the University of Paris would he have imagined that he would become a great Catholic saint that would travel the world…..It all came down to one word - YES!…..What about us?……While we all have responsibilities…We have to provide for our families, raise our children, pay bills, etc…I get it!….But outside of all that - What do you live for?….What will be your legacy?…..Francis Xavier figured it out - How about us?....Today at Holy Mass in the Gospel of St Matthew Jesus was preaching to large crowds of people…..The people flocked to him in great numbers - Why do you think that was the case?…..Why? - Because the Truth is written on every human heart….And when someone presents the Truth to others, there is something magnetic about it….There is an old saying…..”Authenticity sells”….People can smell a phony from a mile away….And there was nothing phony about Jesus’ words nor was there nothing phony about Francis Xavier…....So here is the question - Why are we not like this our selves?….The answer - We are afraid!…….Fear does not come from God and fear keeps us from being the people we were born to be……..So “take off your mask!”……Freedom is inside of you…..And if you become who you were meant to be - You will set the world on fire!

“He ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, gave thanks, broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, who in turn gave them to the crowds……….They all ate and were satisfied”

What is a Catholic Saint?….To put it simply - A saint becomes the person God created them to be…..We ALL have God’s DNA surging through our veins but sadly most people “bury it”……We settle for second best….Saints do not take that “trade off”…......Never settle - Do not follow the crowd - Follow Christ will reckless abandon!…..Everything we have to become the people we were born to be was given to us - Have the courage to make it happen!……….JMJ

St Francis Xavier pray for us!

https://www.holywaterbooks.com/catholic-men-will-save-america.html

And then you will “see”

Today at Holy Mass we hear in the Gospel of St Luke about the importance of sight…What is it that makes us see?….How can two people look at the same thing and see something completely different?…….Jesus tells his friends that what they “see”, many people will never “see” - How can that be? - Let’s explore this idea but first what did Jesus say about this subject in the Gospel……”Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I say to you, many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it”……..Hmmmmmmm!…….....The Truth is written on every human heart…Its up to us to either “see” by and through that Truth or bury it under “stuff”…….This is how we see…..Each of us is capable of “seeing” what Christ shows us ….It simply is up to us - To remove “the stuff” that blocks our vision……When we “see” through the “lens of God” and live our life through that “lens”, we avoid many of the “potholes” of life…..Our society today equates living a good life with money, raw intelligence and status - The reality is, while those material things can make us comfortable, they will not make us fulfilled - There are plenty of miserable rich people - Trust me - I work with tons of them….All the attributes that the world grounds its very existence upon and values can still lead a person into a “pothole” due to a lack of vision….Just because a person is smart, does not mean they will “see” properly, which in turn will guide their life choices…..Looking through the lens of God guides all our decisions and choices, leading one to a happy and complete life…....Who we marry, what we do with our time, how we spend our money…..All these choices make for a good life and they happen only because we “see” properly…....This is why forming our children in our shared Catholic faith is the most important thing we as parents can do for them…….A child could be gifted beyond all telling, but if they do not “see” the world through the “lens of God”, even if they are off the charts intelligent, there is a strong likelihood they will make many “dead-end decisions”….Think about it - What we value usually forms the kind of person we become…..This all comes down to what we “see”…And what we “see” determines who we are and eventually where we end up.

“For although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike.”

I come from a simple people…Most of the people in my family did not go to college…I am the son of a barber, who was the son of an immigrant from Southern Italy, who worked in a factory……While many of the people in my family did not have great amounts of wealth nor did they have a profound education to boast about…What they did have served them well…They had faith - They had common sense - They built strong family bonds - They lived within their means….And because of all that - They thrived!……I like to called what I have seen in my family - “The art of living”….In America today, we have no idea how to live any more….We have lost the “art” of how to live well…..Again, I have seen people in my own family, who had a fraction of what many “worldly people” I work with have, yet, the members of my family had an infinitely better life…..The Reciniello’s had strong and lasting marriages…They were filled with authentic joy….And they died with dignity surrounded by loved ones…How can this be?…How can a person live a life with “next to nothing” have all those wonderful things that every person dreams about? - Yet - Many “gifted people” miss out on?….It all comes down to what we “see”……And what we "see" drives how we live and what we value…..A clean heart allows us to “see”…..Its really that simple…..So how can we create a clean heart within our self?….Again - Its easy….......We live a Sacramental life….Jesus gave us all everything we need to do this….First we are baptized…And then as adults we continue to “reconnect with God” by frequent Sacramental Confessions and feeding on the Body and Blood of Christ at Mass…....This is how we create a “clean heart” within our self - And this is how we “see”…..There is no “magic dust” or fancy formula to it…..….”The art of living” is not something we can buy - Its a lifestyle learned at the foot of the cross….I have seen this “art” lived out right before my eyes...…”Wipe away the dust” from your eyes…..So you can “see”

“Behold, our Lord shall come with power; he will enlighten the eyes of his servants”

Today at Mass we are reminded as Catholics just how fortunate we are…..We have Christ fully present in the Blessed Sacrament….Jesus tells us in the Gospel today…..”Blessed are the eyes that "see" what you see”…..I am going to let the reader of this reflection in on a little secret…Until you KNOW deep within your soul that Jesus is fully present in the Blessed Sacrament, your faith life will not drive your everyday life….Reading the Bible and praying daily is a good thing....…Its another thing to KNOW that Jesus is fully present in a consecrated host by a Catholic Priest…And when we “feed” on Christ's flesh at Mass, when we are in the state of grace after a Sacramental Confession - This is how we not only will “see” the world differently but we are empowered through grace to live differently…I am telling you the secret here to the “art of living”!….So how do we acquire eyes to “see” Christ in a consecrated host?…..A good question!……Here is my advice….......As we say in New Jersey - My "2 cents"........Sit before the Blessed Sacrament exposed on the altar of a Catholic Church - Search one out - You can find one if you try….…You do not have to be a practicing Catholic to do this…In fact, you do not even have to believe in God to do this…....The first thing you are going to notice when you walk into a Church with the Blessed Sacrament exposed on the altar is - There is a tangible peace felt in the air….....That is your first “sign” that you are in the right place….....Next thing you do - Say these words before the Blessed Sacrament and then say nothing else….”God - If you are really here and truly present in this piece of “bread” show me because I do not see you”….....Say that and nothing more…And then just sit in silence and listen to your heart for a few minutes…If you do that consistently….You will get your answer…And then you will “see”……………JMJ

https://www.holywaterbooks.com/catholic-men-will-save-america.html

One of the greatest revelations of my life was this - God is God and I am not…Once you get that down…..The rest is not as hard as you think

Today at Holy Mass in the Gospel of St Matthew, Jesus encounters a Roman soldier who believes that he is God…Keep this in mind - This was unprecedented!…..Not to mention the soldier had extraordinary faith - But here is the point I want to bring out in this reflection - The soldier recognized Jesus’ authority as God - Amazing!…So here is the question for the day - Do we recognize that authority?…..Why is that so important?……Because heaven is God’s house - We all want to “get in that house” right?….If we do, we need to recognize Christ's authority……"Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed. For I too am a man subject to authority, with soldiers subject to me. And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another, 'Come here,' and he comes; and to my slave, 'Do this,' and he does it." When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, "Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith”………No matter who you are…No matter how smart…No matter how physically strong…No matter how rich - We all die!….And when we do, we end up in one of two places - This is reality!…Now here is the part we conveniently “forget”…....We have NO AUTHORITY to determine which of the two places we end up in - God determines that…..Here is something else to consider - God is not impressed by what school you went too, where you work or how much money is in your bank account….He will ask us one thing - Did you recognize my authority by the way you lived out your life?…..To think otherwise as a Catholic is to not have a mature faith….Let’s take this discussion one step further….Before Jesus ascended to heaven, he gave authority to St Peter…..How do I know that? - Let’s look in the pages of Scripture……..”I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”….What does that mean?…..It means this - The Pope has authority - Like it or not - And WE do not!….In addition, based upon that statement from Christ, the one Church that he founded - The Catholic Church - Has authority as well……”Whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” - What does that mean?…That means the Church determines “the rules” as to how or if we get into heaven…..Let me stop here because I KNOW I just “ruffled some feathers”….The Deposit of Faith does not change - As Catholics its our job to simply pass it on - We have no authority to change it……Now I “get it” - Modern man does not like to be told what to do - Sadly, even when what is told to mankind is in their best interest……Trust me - “I get it”….But as we say in New Jersey - “Get over it”!

“Come and save us, LORD our God; Let your face shine upon us, that we may be saved.”

Many people know who Padre Pio is…..For those who don’t - He was an Italian Priest who lived in the 20th century who bore the wounds of Christ on his body….When people heard about how his hands would bleed when he presided over the Mass, crowds of people would come and sadly some would come for the wrong reasons…This caused trouble and some in the Church thought Padre Pio was a fake…..As a result, some within the Church wanted to investigate the wounds on Padre Pio’s body…..And while they did their investigation, he was not permitted to say Mass or hear confessions for his people - This hurt him deeply…And this went on for ten years!…Keep this in mind - Padre Pio did not do anything wrong - But - He accepted this order in deep humility....…For an Italian, that is a small miracle in and of itself! (I'm Italian and from New Jersey - Bear with me here!).........Why is this important?…..Because Padre Pio recognized the authority behind the order……And in time (God’s time), all those who doubted him were silenced!….And I am sure God used that time to make Padre Pio that much more holy….Why bring this story up?…I always think of this story when someone in the Church, someone with authority says something or does something that goes against the Deposit of the Faith…In time - God’s time - Their statements / actions will be corrected…Why? - How can I say that with such certainty?…Here is why…….”And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven”……..There is an old saying….."Man will have his hour but God will have his day”…….We as Catholics MUST understand that our Church does not belong to us - We are just members - It belongs to Christ himself……”His house - His rules” - Trying to fight against God is like trying to stop the ocean from crashing against the shore - Its impossible!.....Accept reality and accept God on his terms…This is how we find peace and this is how we will find eternal life as well

“For over all, the LORD's glory will be shelter and protection: shade from the parching heat of day, refuge and cover from storm and rain.”

Today at Mass we hear the words of a pagan soldier…His words are very famous - I know you are familiar with them and have heard them before……..”Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed”…This man understood who he truly was - I sinner!…He understood that he had no authority to save himself…That he had to rely solely upon the mercy of God….This man “got it” - He figured it out!…..How about us?….Do we think somehow we have the authority to “negotiate” with the creator of the Universe?……One of the greatest revelations of my life was this - God is God and I am not…Once you get that down…..The rest is not as hard as you think…………….JMJ

https://www.holywaterbooks.com/catholic-men-will-save-america.html