Beloved brothers and sisters,
                                                         I Want to be Rich!

I want to be rich! Is this aspiration a vain one? It is not if we do not see wealth as the supreme good. It is lawful and noble to work hard to make a lot of money. The danger lies when the acquisition of wealth becomes an absolute life goal. The endless pursuit of wealth sooner or later "becomes an obstacle to individual fulfillment and to man's true greatness. Both for nations and for individuals, avarice is the most evident form of moral underdevelopment" (Paul VI. Populorum Progressio, 19).

Having wealth is not the problem. Attitude towards wealth is the problem. The greed for money, to have and to hold on to it, leads to its worship and idolization. When our soul and society are money-driven, we lose sight of the Creator whom we should make our ultimate goal. To what do I ascribe absolute worth? To what do I invest most of my time and energy? Is the accumulation of wealth my utmost priority? The parable of the rich fool is an instruction on letting spiritual wealth be our ultimate goal. Human happiness will not be found in the accumulation of wealth. The incredible treasure to lay up for ourselves is richness toward God. This spiritual goal means building up a spiritual empire of virtue.

Do I want to be rich? Yes. I want to be rich above all in the sight of God. I want to accumulate spiritual treasures because it is the only treasure that lasts eternally. Material wealth is fleeting and temporary, but spiritual wealth has lasting value. Indeed, the moral act of giving to those in need from our material wealth gives it spiritual dividends. If we have material wealth through our hard work and God's grace, we should expend it generously towards restoring human dignity to the poor in our society. The use of our wealth in the service of the poor among us rather than in indulgence in selfish pleasure is one of the primary goals of Pope Francis' pontificate- wealthy Christians and nations should use their God-given wealth, the fruits of their labor, in the service of the poor. In this way, they lay treasure in heaven through their material wealth. We must stand with Pope Francis in his desire for the church: "How I long for a poor Church for the poor!" For this reason, I want to be rich.

In Christ,

Fr. Bernard, OP
 

 Beloved brothers and sisters,
                                                                          Pray Persistently
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The theme of persistence in prayer runs through the liturgy of the word for this Sunday. From Abraham’s bargaining with God (Gen. 18:20-32) to Jesus’ teaching on how to pray (Lk 11:1-13), followers of Jesus are instructed not only to pray but to pray persistently. One of the moments that stuck with me during the Vacation Bible School (VBS) held in our parish this past week was a skit performed by our parish volunteer youths. The performance on day two of VBS began with Abby (playing the role of Mrs. O, a classroom teacher) telling her students that for the day’s lesson, they were going to learn about prayer. The class unfolds with a discussion on prayer. Prayer is not “rocket science,” it is simple, explains Mrs. O. She goes further to say that God is always listening to our prayers, whatever form they come in. God always listens to our prayers. This is true. Even when we don’t feel so, God listens. Then why do we need to keep asking, seeking, and knocking to get God to answer our prayers?
Praying persistently is a given in the life of a Christian. God is not absent or deaf. He is alive and living, yet Jesus and the Bible encourage us to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thes. 5: 17-19). Praying consistently is a sign of our deep and personal relationship with God. It demands an ongoing conversation with our Father, Abba. In addressing God continually in prayer, we are not only signifying our dependence on him but establishing our love for him. When you love a person, you look forward to speaking with the one you love as often as possible. Also, when you love a person, you are most likely to confess that love in words: “I love you.” It is the same with the life of prayer. We persist in prayer to confess our unending love for God. Also, the more frequently we turn to God in prayer, the more we become aware of his will and are more disposed to accept his will. Praying persistently opens us up to more of God’s plans and grace. Prayer transforms our perception and changes the world. But these transformations happen the more we humbly turn to God in prayers.
Last Sunday, we aligned ourselves with Mary by sitting at the feet of Jesus to listen to him. We may add to that humble listening disposition today by speaking words of prayers to Jesus, whom we have and will continue to listen to. We are invited to ask him for our needs, seek his face and blessings, and knock persistently at the door of his mercy and love. We should never take a break from praying. In all seasons, in all conditions, in abundance and dryness, the love of God should urge us to remain in our prayers. Prayer is the key to a robust and healthy relationship with God. Without earnest and frequent prayers, we become susceptible to the influence of the diabolic one. We can only stay in love with Jesus and resist the lure of sin and the devil when we pray persistently. As Catholics, we pray the Lord’s Prayer frequently. Let us never start our day or let a day go without praying the prayer Jesus taught his followers because it contains all the essential things needed for our spiritual growth. With deep faith and affection, and from a place of love and devotion, and in the power of the Holy Spirit, pray “Jesus is Lord,” or any other ejaculatory prayer throughout the day. I can guarantee that you will grow in your faith in God and love for his Kingdom.
 
Through Christ, Our Lord,
Fr. Bernard, OP
 

Beloved brothers and sisters,
 
                                       Listening to Jesus
 
Our gospel reading for this Sunday is about Mary and Martha. Mary listened with delight to the sweet wisdom coming from the words of Jesus, the Word who took flesh (Lk 10:39), while Martha was more attentive to hospitality toward Jesus. We need to stress that Jesus does not condemn the hospitality displayed by Martha. Instead, Jesus draws our attention to the more important act of listening to his words rather than getting anxious or worried over the cares of the body and temporal affairs. Jesus’ remonstration of Martha is not a case of raising the act of contemplative listening to the Word of life and putting down an active life of hospitality. Instead, Jesus instructs us to do both. We heard in our Gospel on the Good Samaritan last week that Jesus cares for service and acts of hospitality. He, however, does not want our preoccupation with the latter to lead to worries and anxiety to the point of ignoring the more critical act, that is, listening with our whole heart to the words of Jesus.
 
We have the example of Mary, the mother of Jesus, in the second chapter of Luke’s Gospel ( 2:19). The Bible says that Mary pondered the words of Jesus in her heart. We must find time and place to listen to Jesus speak to our hearts. God wants us to keep his words with a generous heart (Lk 8:15). It is vital to discipleship to spend time with Jesus in silence listening. We should set aside time and place daily to listen to Jesus speak to our hearts. We must cultivate the art of silence to be enriched by this spiritual practice. Scriptures are also of vital importance in attempting to listen to Jesus. We can engage in spiritual exercises of Lectio Divina. We have one planned for the parish in Fall. Be on a watch out for this.
 
I am writing this message from Lagos, Nigeria. In a few days, I will return home to the United States. I have had one of the best vacations of my life. After being away from my home country, from family and friends for six years, these past three weeks have been refreshing and reassuring about the importance of family and friends in living a healthy life. I am thankful for your prayers and support. But, it is now time to get back to action. But, listening comes first.
 
 
In Christ,
 
Fr. Bernard, OP
 

 
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
 
                                                                        Go and Do Likewise 
 
"Go and do likewise " (Lk 10:37), Jesus says to the scholar of the law who puts him to text. He asked an important question: "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" but he asked with a bad motive. Irrespective of the intent, the question is a fundamental one for how we see our life here on earth. We must live in the presence with a long term view of living eternally in heaven with God. What do we need to do to gain eternal life? 
 
To live eternally after the life here and now is tied to what we do in the name of Christ. As Christians, Christ calls us to bear witness to acts of love and mercy (hence,  we need to revisit the seven corporal and spiritual works of mercy). Jesus quotes the torah to the scholar of law, he quotes from books of Deuteronomy and Leviticus, love God and love your neighbors as yourself. 
 
I'm aware we have heard this message over and over but we can see that the message has not been well engrained in us. There are people around us yet to experience our acts of love, mercy and compassion- in a Christlike way. Our church, towns and country need more Christians who will take care of suffering neighbors. We need devout Catholics who not only pray but Catholics who also pour wine and oil on wounds of their neighbors. We see sights of horror and pain as we go about our beautiful cities but we also see struggling neighbors in our cities. I see them in New York,  here in Elizabethtown, and here in Abuja, the capital city of Nigeria (I'm writing this message from Abuja). Each time you see those suffering neighbors, pay attention to what the Holy Spirit says to you about them. He will instruct you in the mandate of Jesus to be a Good Samaritan who bandaged the wounds of his suffering neighbor. Look around you and, "go and do likewise."
 
People need love and mercy from us. Will you revisit the Catholic corporal works of mercy this week? Check the Catechism of the Catholic Church or just google it. Show Christlike love and mercy today and always. May God reward our acts of mercy with eternal life.
 
With love from Abuja, Nigeria. See you all next week. 
 
Fr. Bernard, OP