They looked in and saw. He was gone. The tomb was empty. The white burial cloth was folded up and laying on a stone. Scripture says they “did not yet understand that he had to rise from the dead.”

So “where is he? Where did he go?” Jesus, we want to know where you are.

I remember when my father died in 1988. He had been declining for some months and the night he passed my sister and I sat with him as he breathed his last. (Many of you have had that scary but holy moment.)

It was so weird. I remember thinking about the large personality he was. How he loved birds, gardening, Italian spaghetti, his country, and his Catholic Faith. How dad hated military parades, foreign cars, squirrels, and the New York Yankees.

I looked at his hands that night, hands that fired a gun in Patton’s 3rd Army, cut my hair as a kid, played catch in the yard, and took my hands in his, the day I became a priest. His deep baritone voice called your name like no one else “Dad, where are you?” I kept wondering. “Where did that voice go?” Don’t we all ask that when someone we love is gone? We feel the space they lived in, the chair, the porch, the work bench. The disciples must have felt a similar loss as they peered into the empty tomb.

Our Christian faith proclaims something quite extraordinary. Something that science (physics, biology, astronomy, and chemistry) cannot verify or prove (or disprove) . . . Jesus Christ is risen from the dead.

Each of us must look inside ourselves for this one. Why do I believe? Is it because the Pope says so? OR because that’s just what I was taught? OR It makes for something nice to teach the children? I hope that’s not your answer.

May I suggest an answer? Because we have seen a love that surpasses all reason, a love so strong and pure that it could only come from a source beyond the human heart. (It’s not the love in romance, not the love of hobby or pastimes, not the love of beauty or art.)

This past week we have watched a human being love like God. It’s a love never seen or imagined before him. Jesus died giving witness to a God who loves us in a totally selfless way. He endured scourges and spitting, he forgave his murderers from the cross, he emptied himself totally at the will of God his Father . . . so that the invisible love of God might become visible to us by the obedience of his Son.

And there’s more . . . we believe that Jesus is alive because countless men, women, and children have experienced the love of Christ in their own lives and have in turn given that love to their neighbor. We’ve seen the love that is Christ.

Have you seen it? Have you seen or felt His love working in this world? Of course you have!!

• The mother who risks her own health for the health of her baby
• A soldier who’s mission puts his life at risk so that “no one is left behind”
• The friend who visits you in the hospital, the psych ward, the county jail
• A sister who forgives your unkind words
• The priest or nun who acts like Christ and makes you want to go to heaven
• The poor person who gives more to the needy than you do
• Foster parents who save the lives of young people
• Your spouse who really loves you despite all your faults
• The quiet hope that comes to you when you sit in an empty church
• The first responder who runs toward danger when all others flee
• The little child who laughs and plays with friends in a refugee camp far from her home

“We have seen the Lord!”, John 20:18, cried Mary Magdalene. So have we.

Easter graces to you.

Fr. Tim

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Today we are experiencing two miracles of life.

1. Nature is returning to give us another season of life on this good earth. And
2. The Holy Spirit comes again to assure us of God’s love.

Jesus Christ is risen from the dead.

We’ve experienced a spiritual poverty this past year. Haven’t we? What have we learned? Let it be the fact that God will never abandon us for He walked this same earth.

Now He lives to intercede for us.

“Do not be afraid”, He says. “I am with you.”

A Blessed Easter to you all!!

Fr. Tim

Something quite wonderful has happened in the world of theology these past fifty years. Just prior to Vatican II (1958-1965) some German theologians were working on a new way of explaining who Jesus is and how he achieved the salvation of the human race. It keeps the traditional doctrine of Christ, of course, but adds a new dimension – – – from below.

Most notable in this regard was a theologian named Karl Rahner who, in his Foundations of Christian Faith, proposed an “Ascending Christology” which would compliment the traditional “Descending Christology” of the Catholic Church.

The traditional way of viewing Jesus is as the Eternal Word. From all eternity he has existed with the Father and the Holy Spirit. “True God from True God. Consubstantial with the Father”, we recite in the Creed. Full of divinity and power he “comes down from heaven” and is born among us.

The problem with a “Descending Christology” is that it tends to overshadow Christ’s real humanity. The danger is to see Jesus as basically “God in human clothing”.

God uses the humanity of Jesus like a cloak or instrument to work out the divine plan. Jesus’ solidarity with humanity in its real struggles and sufferings can be lost and obscure the critical role of his real humanity.

In “Ascending Christology”, God unites to himself a real humanity in Jesus Christ. Scripture and our Catholic Faith tell us Jesus is human in every way but sin.

What does this mean “like us in all things”? Some guidelines for thinking about the nature of Jesus were hammered out at the Council of Nicea in 325 AD.

The Council said Jesus has two natures: the nature of God and the nature of man. These two natures are hypostatically (inseparably) united in one divine person (the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity). Two natures, one divine person. This means our human nature is forever united to God in the Blessed Trinity!

“Ascending Christology” attempts to see Jesus from below in his humanity. (It is meant to compliment, not replace the former.) If Jesus truly has a human nature then he must have a human consciousness; he thinks as humans do. He must reason, ponder . . . figure things out. Jesus could not have known the world as we know it today through science. When asked when the “end would come?” Jesus said, “I don’t know. That has not been given to me.” If his consciousness is truly human, then it is finite, limited. He was tempted (Luke 4).

What I find so inspiring is Jesus smells like us. He really suffers, rejoices, grows angry, and fearful. And yet . . . . he accomplishes the mission he knows he has been chosen to do, namely, in his death and resurrection. Surely Jesus is absolutely exceptional in his humanity. He knew himself to be more than a prophet. He embraced his role as Savior of humanity. But he did all these things as a human being. (How touching that he needed someone to help him carry his cross.) We are saved by one like us!

And so I can turn to Jesus who knows my limited human heart because he had one of them as well.

Dear Jesus. Truly you know the human heart. Give me courage when my heart grows faint. Give me Faith when all seems dark. Give me Love when my heart is empty. Give me Hope that, in the end, “all will be well.

Because you did it Jesus! You died for us and now you live!

Let Him come to you this week.

Fr. Tim

Some time ago, in a previous parish, I lived and worked with an old retired pastor. He was revered as a priest who knew his parishioners and had that “golden touch” with people who were troubled or lost. People flocked to him to receive his gentle wisdom.

He had one particular habit however that bugged me. At the end of every mass he celebrated on Sunday he’d tell the congregation, “Be sure to share your smile”. It was his sign off. People waited for these last words from him.

As for me I thought how “corny” it was. It was just too simple. I mean for all the problems we face, for all the worries we have for the coming week, for all the problems of the world . . . all you can say is “share your smile”?!

Over the years I have come to realize the old priest was right. A smile has a hidden spiritual power. It speaks a universal language. Everyone knows what a smile means. Webster defines it as “a favorable, pleasing, or agreeable appearance; characterized by an upward curving of the corners of the mouth.”

And what does this “upward curving of the mouth” say? It says “you’re worth it. You are not invisible. You’re a fellow human being and I’m sending you my good wishes.”

It can literally change a person’s day. Suddenly someone has seen me and cares enough to offer me a tiny “be well”. A smile disarms us of our fears, touches us briefly with kindness, and becomes a light in the midst of gray and shadow.

Some people have that gift in spades. They have a wonderful smile.

I remember a seminarian who sometimes worried whether he had the pastoral skills needed but who had something the rest of the class lacked – – – he had a magical smile that brightened any room he walked into.

You just feel better when someone smiles at you, don’t you? So why don’t we do that more often? I think it’s because:

1. We’re afraid. We’re afraid of being “misinterpreted” or frowned upon or ignored.
2. We’re self- absorbed. “I’ve got too many things on my mind right now. Too much to do. You stay in your lane; I’ll stay in mine.” And
3. We think we have an ugly smile. Forget it. A real smile is never ugly.

So how do we get over our fear and self-absorption in order to give the gift of a smile? Some thoughts:

• Your smile is a tiny gift, which any person is worthy to receive.
• Someone giving you a smile lifts your spirit, right? So do that for someone else.
• Giving a smile is an act of kindness and makes you a better person. (And it often lifts the mood of the smiler!)
• It costs nothing.
• You’re prettier when you smile.
• Don’t care or expect it to be returned.
• The best dogs can do is wag their tail – – – only people can smile (so what’s holding us back?)
• A smile softens everything. It takes the edge off clumsy words or awkward moments.

So I’m going to work on my smile this new year. I’m not going to expect people to return it. After all it’s a gift. And should I forget maybe your smile will remind me.

So I’ll end this column like that old pastor . . . “be sure to share your smile.”

God’s smile upon you.

Fr. Tim

Part of our training to become priests was to experience real life trauma in people’s lives. The thought is to get the man out of the pulpit and sanctuary and put him in a situation that is seriously out of control. See how this fellow handles tears and tragedy . . . can he still be a positive agent for the Faith? Can he help people whose life has just been crushed with tragic circumstances?

So off we went for a summer. We were chaplains for hospitals, jails, psych wards, others to first responder chaplaincy’s (police, fire, EMT).

I traveled to Dallas, Texas, to Parkland Memorial Hospital, an excellent 800 bed county hospital. One of the duties of the new chaplain was to be on-call over the week- ends. (Basically, you were called in on any human upset the head nurse thought necessary). All kinds of stuff happened, especially with a full moon.

One memorable night brought the death of an elderly, long suffering Grandmother. Though quite poor, she had raised a large family and they in turn were busy raising families of their own. They’d all been keeping vigil as the grand lady weakened daily.

About 3 in the morning I was called to the waiting room to help the family deal with Grammie’s death. Children and grandchildren were all there. The room was jammed – thirty people I’m guessing.

Just as I’d feared, they were going nuts. Screaming and crying, “Oh Grammie, how could you leave us?” The men were the worst. I remember one fellow in cowboy hat and boots on his hands and knees banging his head on the wall. Others were pulling at their hair (I’d never seen that before).

So what do you do? Fear and panic filled the room. One person’s cries caused others to howl. They were freaking out. This ship was sinking fast. I really can’t say I said a prayer – – I just went with my gut.

“Be quiet!!!!!!!” I yelled as loud as I could. Two or three times . . . “Be quiet!” Finally, the howling stopped and these big tough cowboys were all looking at me. (I had no idea what should come next). “God help me.” I thought.

Then came His grace. Somehow I thought . . . “give them something to do.” But what? “Men, comfort the women.” (As I said, the women were doing pretty much ok. But it got the cowboys out of themselves for that moment.) In a flash, everybody was hugging someone. Sanity came slowly back.

And that friends was a moment of grace far away from the pulpit and the altar. It was God in the Here and Now. God in the mess.

Have you experienced Him there? In a difficult moment with your spouse? Your child’s meltdown? Some unexpected incident? Bad news about a friend or loved one?

How does God help? Generally, I think God gives us something “to do”. Something really simple; like . . . say something. (Don’t say “Be quiet!”). How about . . . “I’m so sorry”, “You must feel terrible”, “Do you mind if I sit with you?” OR, perhaps just to listen, to touch (when appropriate).

Just something to break the awful tension of the moment – – your gentle voice can heal in the simplest of ways. Be that safe place for someone.

So what’s your situation? Married? Children? Student? Single? Sad? Feeling blessed? Need money? Worried?

Whatever and wherever you find yourself – – – There is God’s Spirit – this present moment.

We can wish we were somewhere else. Perhaps it was our thoughtlessness or selfishness that got us where we are. In the end it doesn’t matter. What matters is “right now”. God is with you.

Don’t be afraid.

Fr. Tim

A wise and holy priest once told me that there were times when his only felt connection to God came in listening to his conscience. Prayer is dry and without feeling, the mass becomes “routine” with no inspiration, the Church seems terribly slow and out of touch with real life . . . . God seems so distant.

At such moments the only light that shown in his darkness was the light of his conscience. Sometimes God lets this happen. So let’s look at “Conscience” to see how we might meet God.

First off conscience is “a judgement of reason” which moves a person to do good and avoid evil. “It recognizes the authority of truth” pointing to God the Supreme Good. “When he listens to his conscience, the prudent man can hear God speaking.” (Catechism of The Catholic Church. P 438).

Think of a lantern you carry into a dark room. The light makes visible what is real and present. “Reason” is that light humans have in their very nature. It is our ability to swim in an ocean of truth.

Reason must be accompanied by freedom and will. Without these two an act has no responsibility (morality) attached to it. Without freedom an act is coerced. With- out our will we haven’t chosen or “owned” the act; it is merely accidental or unintentional.

So how does all this connect me to God? Well . . . following my conscience is to experience the “messenger of Him, who, speaks to us behind a veil.” (John Henry Cardinal Newman 1885).

The problem today is we lack the training to become sufficiently “present to ourselves”. There is a certain “interiority” required to hear and follow the voice of our conscience. It comes from prayer, quiet time with our- selves, good reading, virtuous friendships.

Kids especially, need help putting down their iPhones to listen to their own thoughts and feelings – – their own personhood. This quiet opens the door for the Holy Spirit with his gifts to present the knowledge and practice of the interior law.

Parents. You have the best seat in the house when it comes to teaching conscience. You are there to help your child “listen to that voice in your heart.” You are there to celebrate and praise the times your child “does the right thing” (thus adding to the voice of conscience that they just heard and followed).

You are also there when the voice of conscience went unheeded and dishonesty or meanness came forth. Parents you need to sit and lovingly help your child “see and hear” that inner voice. Not every instance require this teaching moment but sometimes God just puts it on a platter for you. Use it! Share a suitable moment from your life when you listened (or didn’t) to your conscience. A true life story from mom and dad!

In the end you are giving your child a compass, a tool that will guide them in moments of temptation and confusion. You give them a connection to their true selves and to God. “For man has in his heart a law inscribed by God . . . it is his most secret core and sanctuary. There he is alone with God whose vice echoes in his depths.” (Vatican II, Gaudium et Spes #16).

God’s got you . . . quit squirming!

Fr. Tim

My mother loved the Italian crooner, Perry Como (I’ve just lost half of you!). His theme song went something like, “Dream along with me. We’re on the way to the stars.” Mom would swoon. Dad would roll his eyes.

So what shall we dream? Let’s dream about what life may look like by the end of this year. (Remember now, these are hopes and dreams . . . we’ll see what happens!)

What would life be like? (I’ve almost forgot how it used to be). After Covid, with no masks and no social distancing, you could . . .

• Let little children run into your arms to hold them tight.
• Whisper private thoughts close to a friend’s ear. No masks of course.
• Dinner together with friends at a restaurant. We order a plate of cheese cake with 4 forks and all dig in!
• Come to mass at Holy Trinity. Better go early to get a seat. Real hand shakes at the Greeting of Peace.
• Weddings, baptisms, funerals – – – everybody is there to love and support!
• Coffee Hour after mass. Big donuts and getting news from friends.
• Travel to see friends and family. “Daddy, can we swim in the pool?” “Of course you can.”
• Seniors at Holy Trinity travel by bus to Skaneateles for a boat ride and dinner.
• Teenagers have an overnight at Camp Stella Maris to get their spirits renewed.
• Trips to Frontier Field, Bills Stadium, Regal Cinema . . . share popcorn? Sure!
• The huge parish picnic on the North Field. Your deviled eggs (yum!). Big bowl of Dorito’s, . . . dig in!
• Holy Trinity Snow-Ball III. Music, food, dancing (imagine that!)
• Baby-sitting is back.
• Consoling people . . . with your arm around them.
• Slumber Parties for kids.
• Altar Servers, choirs, parish greeters are all back. Okay. Enough with the dreaming. Here we are, early March, still cold, still masked. So what do we do? We smile. We pray. We reach out. As for the pan- demic, this too shall pass.

Let’s be better people . . . a humble, gentle people when we can finally shake hands (not bump elbows).

In the meantime see below . . . . Fr. Tim

Lenten Speaker Series: Survival Guide.

Sunday evenings at 7 pm. in church and Livestream.

March 7: Getting Vaccinated

Everything you need to know. Mark Malahosky, pharmacist at Trillium Pharmaceuticals, will show us the way to get your shots and answer any questions you may have.

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March 14: Mental Health for Youth.

A panel discussion with a Crisis Hot line Counselor, Webster middle school teacher, and a Family Counselor and psychologist. Discussion will focus on the unique emotional pressures our young people experience in these days of remote learning and social distancing. Help for troubled teens.

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March 21: What’s Happening to my Faith?

Fr. Tim and Fr. John will discuss what steps we can take to actually deepen our faith in these days of Livestream masses.

Sundays. 7 pm. Livestream and in Church

The Gospel tells us Jesus was led into the desert to be tempted by the devil. There he fasted for forty days. That was the first Lent. That’s where Catholics get the forty day period we observe each year. Well guess what? It’s kinda been Lent since last March.

That’s right. If Lent is to be a time of “going without” for the sake of getting in touch with God, these last 11 months have already been a very profound season of penance. So now we add one more reason to due penance? Oh goodie.

These past months have been difficult for all of us. Perhaps for the first time you have experienced real suffering. What does our faith teach us?

Years ago, St. Pope John Paul II was visiting the critical care unit in a hospital in Rome. He spoke to seriously ill patients, encouraging them and challenging them to see the hand of God in their suffering. “Don’t waste this time of suffering”, he said.

Don’t waste our suffering? What could this possibly mean?

It really is a pivotal decision we make about life. Is my suffering a sign of an absurd and cruel world? Something to be avoided at all costs? Something that makes my safety most important? OR, is my suffering a part of a life lived in union with Christ? A burden to be carried in love?

Jesus told us suffering would be something that happens to all of us. “If you would be my disciple, you must take up your cross and follow me. For in saving your life (hoarding life), you will lose it. In losing your life for my sake, you will find it.” Matt. 16:25

St. Paul tells us that to share in the joy of Christ’s Resurrection we must first share in His sufferings. Good Friday must happen in order to have Easter Sunday.

So back to that hospital room . . . “don’t waste your suffering.” To waste it would be to curse it, to see no hope in it, to grow bitter. To “use” your suffering would be to give it as an offering to the Lord (He first did the same for me).

Parents, you use your suffering as a gift of love for your children. Sleepless nights, endless worry, trips to doctors and counselors, untold money spent, etc. Soldiers, police officers and first responders, you suffer for all of us: on the battlefield, on our streets.

It costs you doesn’t it? But you do it because you love. It is your holy duty which you promised you would do.

This is where suffering is not wasted! It’s redeemed. Jesus Christ is the only one to show us this. Christ on the cross shows us a love (God’s love) never imagined before. And He invites us to give Him our suffering as a sign of our union with Him. It’s only a return on the love He showed us first.

St. Peter was so touched by our “sharing” in the death of our Lord and His Resurrection that he wrote, “Friends, do not be surprised at the painful test you are suffering, as though something unusual were happening to you . . . be glad, you are sharing in Christ’s sufferings, so that your joy may be full when his glory is revealed.” 1 Peter 4: 12, 13.

So what is this joyful thing that happens? The reward of having loved.

So let’s start slow this Lent. You might say goodbye to one small thing that you know needs to go (perhaps just an “attitude” ). Make a conscious offering of it to God.

Lent. Let’s roll!!

Fr. Tim

Romans 7: 14-25 (Read it!)

The older I get the more interested I am in what moves people to want what they want. What is it that resonates in a person that makes them want to spend their time and money on some object or activity?

It starts with our appetites. Certain things are built into us that create a readiness for something that appeals to the senses or the imagination. Most things come to us this way. Smelling bacon in the morning starts a wonderful process that leads to breakfast.

Other things appeal to our spiritual senses. Telling the truth. Being faithful, courageous, or generous. These things have True Value as do. . . people, family, faith, country.

Now there’s a problem. Sometimes the “lower senses” of our physical nature can overpower our higher sensibilities. (try being patient when you haven’t eaten all day!). Other appetites insist we possess certain things: a new cell phone, lap top, puppy, vacation spot, etc. These can have a certain urgency that creates a “want” before we realize it.

So, what’s wrong with wanting something? Nothing at all. It’s how God made us. The problem comes when “wanting” is for something I shouldn’t have. This can cause a real tussle. “But I WAAAANT IT!”, we cried as children (as our parents wisely hid the candy, or ordered the TV turned off). And thus began the life long struggle to achieve the proper balance between need and want.

As a priest I get a bird’s eye view of this struggle when hearing confessions. People come to confess their sins. Most often sin starts by “wanting” something that is contrary to what is right and good.

This wanting is VERY powerful, eventually it can out- weigh the attraction to the higher good. The good loses its appeal. We fall prey to a desire that takes us away from who (in our right mind) we really want to be. I do not do the good that I want to do.

So how can we stop wanting what is bad for us? It comes in finding something I want more. Something in us has to be bigger than the powerful desires for booze, sex, possessions, prestige, popularity, etc.

The problem is at the feeling level. I can know an ideal is good but not FEEL it. What can give us, not just the knowledge about what is right, but the felt “wanting” to do it?

The answer of course is love. Love in the form of LOYALTY. Think for a moment of those people who are privileged to have your love and loyalty . . . your spouse, the children, your best friend. Think how many times you walked away from something you really wanted because of your love for them. In most cases it wasn’t even close! (Her need for braces far outweighed your wanting that vacation trip).

Finally . . . God wants to be in that same privileged place as your daughter or friend. He wants us to walk away from some of our wants because of our love for Him. Jesus did this very thing in the garden. “Father please. Take this a way…but not what I want…help me to want what YOU want.”

It’s a grace from God to want what He wants. Ask for it. His will for us is our peace.

Fr. Tim

Aren’t there times when you just can’t take it anymore?

The name calling, the half-truths, the bullying and humiliating? Makes you want to scream . . . or curse. It doesn’t matter your political or religious views; whatever opinion we hold, it seems we’re headed for an unpleasant confrontation.

Even in the Church we can experience a bitter exchange of ideas and opinion. Take the abortion debate. Someone who might advocate legislation that would limit but not eliminate abortion is “anti-life”. On the other side, those who work for Pro-life legislation are labeled “self righteous”, “anti-feminist”, “women oppressors”.

How unfair these words are. There is no middle ground. One is either a patriot or a traitor. We’ll never come closer to solving these issues as long as we treat each other this way.

Look, we know our faith teaches (and we firmly believe) that human life is sacred from the moment of conception. Abortion is wrong. There is no debating that. How- ever . . . many people (and people of good will) do not have that element of Faith that guides our life. They have come to view abortion as permissible, claiming abortion effects only one human person . . . the mother. The child in the womb has yet to reach personhood so the argument goes.

HOW can we best move people to consider what human life is and how it begins? How can we create a culture that once again sees life in the womb as having a Right to Life?

Two ways, it seems to me – – spiritually and politically. (There are wise heads to guide us politically. The US Bishops Conference is taking a strong stand here in Washing- ton.) The spiritual part is why I’m writing. Words can build up or tear down. We need to be careful.

Have you seen the bumper sticker . . . “My child is an honor student at . .. “? And the rejoinder to it on another bumper? “My child kicked the crap out of your honor student.” I mean what’s bothering this person? Why would you want to be in someone’s face about their child’s grades?

Are you seeing the problem? There are REAL differences of opinion in the public square. Okay . . . so how do we discuss them in a way that can lower the temperature and bring us to a clearer view of the real issues?

Scripture says this rancor and bitterness must not be the way we should deal with others, even those who
one would consider one’s “enemy” get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, outcry and slander,

along with every form of malice. Be kind to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God has forgiven you…. “ Ephesians 4:31

This is not describing some lukewarm way of entering the public debate that fears making waves. No, our participation is to be enthusiastic, joyful and full of conviction. But it is to be matched with an equal desire for fairness and kindness in the debate.

Hope your week holds God’s blessing for you.

Fr. Tim