Friday, July 10, 2020
Feast of St. Veronica Giuliani, Virgin
Dear Friends,
Tomorrow is the Feast of St. Benedict (480 – 543 A.D.). A native of the Umbria on the Italian peninsula, his life coincided with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the rise of the Dark Ages across the continent of Europe. Benedict’s response was to create small communities rooted in piety, learning and civility that could sustain themselves through the cultural murk. Thus, was born Western monasticism. Thus, was sown the seeds of a new civilization: Christendom.
Amid our increasingly post-Christian society, we too can see the contemporary necessity of creating small communities of faith and reason that are capable of both weathering the present cultural tumult and of fostering a new civilization of love. While many people do remarkable things in the most difficult of familial situations, (and for that they have my admiration and prayers) the building block of any sustainable cultural renewal has to be the married family. Why? Let me explain.
Jesus’ teaching on marriage was revolutionary. Women were considered, in nearly every culture, as property. But Jesus tapped into the best teaching of the Book of Genesis and declared that there is found the real will of God: “God made them male and female. For this reason, a man shall leave his father and mother [and be joined to his wife], and the two shall become one flesh. So, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, no human being must separate” (Mk 10:6-9).
(Marriage by Nicholas Poussin (1637 - 1638), National Galleries of Scotland)
Even though God is neither male nor female, the creation of male and female and their union represent a true icon, a true image of God. While the Book of Genesis also notes that each one of us, either male or female, is created in the image of God, there is something remarkable about the union of man and woman. Their perpetual fidelity to each other signals the eternal fidelity of the persons of the Blessed Trinity to each other. Here we see the complete equality of the man and woman.
The couple’s exclusive love for and commitment to each other points to the union of Christ and his body, the Church. St. Paul even calls marriage a “great mystery” that points to this very loving union (Ephesians 5:32).
And the fruitfulness of the married life imitates the very abundance of love and grace which flows from God to all of us, his sons and daughters, a fruitfulness which we are all to provide back to God. This fruitfulness means that children are not our property, but rather always gifts from God, given us for a time so that we might form them in true love.
Friends, Jesus attended the wedding in Cana and provided the best wine for the couple. If he is fully invited to our weddings that wine will continue to enrich our married lives with a vintage which will help overcome all the shortcomings each of us bring to marriage. Marriage is not easy and the life of the family, that Domestic Church, where we raise our children, can have many difficulties. Yet, accompanied by the Lord, we can walk along that path with our spouse to fulfill our true calling. Then the couple’s one-flesh union will truly be seen as a rich mystery which prepares all of us for the final “wedding feast of the Lamb” (Revelation 19:9).
Assuring you of my prayers, I am sincerely yours in Christ,
+ Earl
Bishop of Lansing
Six Days of Prayer and Fasting: Today is the Diocese of Lansing's sixth and final day of prayer and fasting in order to seek peace, justice and reconciliation for all the peoples of the United States.
Yesterday, Bishop Boyea offered Holy Mass to mark the anniversary of the death of Venerable Augustus Tolton (1854 – 97), a former slave who became the first black priest in the United States, and to pray for his canonization.
To know more about this initiative click here. Meanwhile, a prayer card to Venerable Augustus is attached below.
Meanwhile, yesterday also saw the Diocese of Lansing announce that 39 African-American students will become the first recipients of the new school scholarship named after Father Tolton.
The Venerable Augustus Tolton Scholarship was launched in October 2019 by Bishop Earl Boyea. It is aimed at increasing the number of Catholic African American students in the diocese’s 32 schools. It provides needs-based tuition assistance of $500 per student.
To congratulate the winners of the new scholarship, here's a great video message recorded by the Director of the stage production “Tolton: From Slave to Priest”, Leonardo Defilippis, and the play's lead actor, Jim Coleman.
Watch: This week has seen Bishop Boyea lead a daily online meditation upon Seven Words of Jesus to the Churches as recorded in the Book of Revelations. Today was the final installment with Jesus' seventh and final letter sent to the Church of Laodicea (3:14-22). If you find this meditation useful, the other six can be found at the Diocese of Lansing YouTube page.
Read: Hooray for summer! Ice cream, swimming pools and bike rides are familiar things on the summer to-do list, but a few things will look a little different this summer. And since there may be no Vacation Bible School (VBS) at your parish, why not try an at-home VBS with your children on the all-important sacraments of initiation? Sheri Wohlfert explains how in this month's edition of FAITH Magazine, the official publication of the Diocese of Lansing. Click here to read.
