Easter Sunday is the day of the “Alleluia!”  After forty days of Lenten sacrifice and fasting, we finally arrive at the most important day of our liturgical year, and the only word we have to express our inner joy is “Alleluia!!”

 In the old Greek version of the Book of Tobias, in the Septuagint Greek translation of the Hebrew psalter, and in the original Greek of the Apocalypse we hear about this most holy word. It is part of the earliest Christian liturgies of which we have record. 
 It is a word composed of the divinely acclaiming verbal form Allelu and the divine pronoun term Ya (for YHWH or Yahweh).  So, preserving its radical sense and sound, and even the mystical suggestiveness of its construction, it may be literally rendered, “All hail to Him Who is!”--taking “All Hail” as equivalent to “Glory in the Highest,” and taking “He Who is" in the sense in which God said to Moses: “Thus shalt thou say to the children of Israel; WHO IS hath sent me to you.”  The ancient Jewish and Christian tradition all point to the conclusion the “Alleluia” belonged to the Hebrew liturgy from the beginning as a divinely authorized doxology.  As to when it was first formed, much evidence points to it being one of man's most ancient formulas of monotheistic faith--the true believer's primitive Credo, primitive doxology, primitive acclamation.  That in part would explain remarkable fondness for its liturgical use. As a rule the Church uses it wherever joy is to be emphatically expressed, especially as to triumph or thanksgiving.

 The “Alleluia” is a great characteristic of Easter, as it has an important place in all of the liturgies, constantly appearing at the beginning and end, and even in the middle, of psalms, as an instinctive exclamation of ecstatic joy. 

 The very sound of the words should be held to signify a kind of acclamation and a form of ovation which mere grammarians cannot satisfactorily explain; this is the reason why the translators of the Old Testament have left it untranslated, and the Church has taken it into the formulas of her Liturgy or of the people who use it at any time or place where joy need be expressed for God’s greatness and love!

Many of you know that I am a 1984 graduate of the University of Notre Dame.  And many of you know a little about the controversy surrounding Notre Dame’s invitation to President Obama to be the speaker and to receive an honorary law degree at this year’s graduation ceremony.  Since you’re reading about it at other places, I thought I might address it here.
Many people are justifiably happy that race relations in the United States are at the point where our country can elect a minority as President.  And President Obama brings many important gifts to that office, most particularly his intellect, his education, his eloquence and his ability to inspire people.  But President Obama’s policies on the important issues of human life are inconsistent with basic principles of natural law – that it is immoral to kill innocent human beings.  This isn’t about “Catholic dogma”; we’re talking about the natural law.  The President’s recent policies have opened up Federal taxpayer funding for abortions as part of our foreign policy; they have opened up funding for experimentation on human embryos; and they threaten “conscience clauses” that allow health care workers to refuse to take part in medical procedures (like abortions and sterilizations) that offend their moral conscience.

By honoring President Obama, Notre Dame is tacitly presenting him as someone to be admired and emulated.  Yet, the President’s own policies are inconsistent with what it means to be Catholic.  It is this type of conflict that the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops desired to avoid when they issued a directive in 2004 that “The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles.  They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions.” In giving the award and recognition to the president, Notre Dame is acting in defiance of this directive.

Be assured that the bishops don’t intend to “shun” the President.  In fact, they seek “engagement” on the political issues facing our country and world.  It is for the bishops (and us priests) to try and form the consciences of people so that they can make choices based on sound moral and social teaching.  The bishops are committed to maintain communication with public officials who make daily decisions that touch issues of human life and dignity.

So should President Obama be allowed to present his views at Notre Dame?  Yes, as long as such views are presented alongside Catholic moral teachings so that consciences might be formed.  But should he be honored for those views?  Unfortunately, he should not.  And that is why I pray for him daily at Mass. Nobody wants him to be a great president more than I do.  But his heart needs to be awakened about the sanctity of each human life.

“Can you not stay awake with me one hour?” (Mt. 26:40) Jesus asked His apostles on the night of Holy Thursday as he prayed in agony in the Garden of Gethsemane. The Altar of Repose is a tradition in the Church where the Eucharist consecrated in the Mass of Holy Thursday are reserved for Holy Communion to be given on Good Friday.

On this most holy night, we are called to make a vigil at this Altar where Jesus is in repose and “stay awake with Him for one hour” to remember the Agony in the Garden in prayerful solidarity. A longstanding tradition of the Church has been for the vigil to continue over the night, but it must end before sunrise on Good Friday.  This year, Good Shepherd Parish will keep that vigil.

Sign-up sheets are on the tables in the back of church after Mass. And you will notice that the “Hanemann Family” has already signed up for the hour from 5:00 a.m. until 6:00 a.m.  My Mother is a Hanemann, and our family has kept the tradition of this hour since the entire family was at St. Rose of Lima Parish in the late 1800’s.  So if you’re in the church at 5:00 a.m., don’t be surprised when over 100 people show up for the last hour!

It was a common custom in many lands of the ancient Middle East to cover in some way the path of someone thought worthy of the highest honor. In 2 Kings 9:13 Jehu, son of Jehoshaphat, was treated to this honor. Each of the four Gospels report that the people of Jerusalem gave Jesus the honor of walking on a covered path. However, in the synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) we hear that the people lay their garments and cut rushes to place on the street. Only the Gospel of John specifically mentions palm fronds.

So what is the significance of the palm? The palm branch was a symbol of triumph and of victory in Jewish tradition, and is treated as such in other parts of the Bible (e.g. Leviticus 23:40 and Revelation 7:9). Based on this significance, the scene of the crowd greeting Jesus by waving palms and carpeting his path with them has given the Christian celebration its name. It shows the freedom desired by the Jews, and their desperation to have political freedom. In fact, they were welcoming their “Messiah,” which they expected to be a great king who would free them from the oppression of foreign rulers. The entry of Jesus into Jerusalem included chants from Psalm 118 and 148:1. The Hebrew hoshiiah na’ (I beseech you, save now) was changed in Greek to hosanna, which became a famous Christian term, and had a huge Messianic significance.

The palm is a symbol of victory for us as Christians. Since we recognize that Jesus is the Messiah (a word which we normally use in the Greek translation – “Christ”), we recognize that has achieved a victory for us. But the victory is not over earthly rulers. It’s much bigger. It’s the victory for eternity – a victory He has won over sin and death. It’s a victory that gives us Eternal Life.

A few years ago, I was in Rome, and my parents came to visit me in the weeks before Easter.  Since my Dad is a permanent deacon, he sat next to me on the altar when we went to celebrate Mass at the beautiful church of St. Alphonsus near St. Mary Major where the original image of Our Lady of Perpetual Help is enshrined.  As it came time to read the Gospel, my Dad came and asked for a blessing, and then he began to solemnly intone “Al-le-luia!  Al-le-luia!” I quietly said:  “Shhh!  We don’t say that now.  It’s Lent!” To this he remarked that since we were celebrating a Solemn Mass of Our Lady of Perpetual Help (a “Solemnity”), then it was allowed.  Well, some of the Catholics of Rome got a lesson in American Catholicism that day! 

As my Dad learned later (through some help from a “certain priest”), the Alleluia is never sung during Lent in the Latin rite.  In fact, a lot of people take care not even to say the “A-word” during Lent. 

Why is that?  Well, the Alleluia is a word of joy to recognize God in all of His Heavenly Glory. During Lent, our focus is on the Kingdom coming, not on the Kingdom having come. The readings for Lent focus heavily on the spiritual journey of Old Testament Israel toward the coming of Christ, and the salvation of mankind in His death and resurrection.

We are also on a spiritual journey, toward the Second Coming and our future life in Heaven.  In order to emphasize that journey, the Church removes the Alleluia from the Mass during Lent.  During this austere season, we no longer sing with the choirs of angels; instead, we acknowledge our sins and practice repentance so that one day we may again have the privilege of worshipping God as the angels do.

The Return of the Alleluia comes triumphantly at the Easter Vigil when the triple Alleluia is chanted before the Gospel, and everyone present responds with a triple Alleluia.  The Lord is risen! the Kingdom has come!  Our joy is complete!  In concert with the angels and saints, we greet the risen Lord with shouts of “Alleluia!”  This year when my Dad proclaims the “Alleluia” at the Easter Vigil, that certain priest who explained all of this to him will be wearing a smile of Easter joy!

Today marks the beginning of our Holy Week celebration.  And if you’ve rarely experienced the events of Holy Week, consider doing so this year.

On HOLY THURSDAY we will celebrate the Mass of the Lord’s Supper at 7:00 p.m., the Mass commemorating the institution of the Holy Eucharist where Jesus also washed his Apostle’s feet.  This Mass begins the Sacred Triduum, and it is when the Eucharist is taken out of the main Tabernacle and “reposed” in another altar to commemorate the arrest of Jesus and imprisonment of Jesus.  This year we will have Adoration at this Altar of Repose from the end of Mass until the sun rises on Good Friday at 6:00 a.m.

The GOOD FRIDAY service with Veneration of the Cross begins at 3:00 p.m.,the hour of the death of Our Lord, and Stations of the Cross will take place at 6:30 p.m. Finally, the EASTER VIGIL Mass at 8:00 p.m., which will be preceded by Confessions at 6:30 p.m. There will be no 4:00 p.m. vigil Mass, and Masses on EASTER SUNDAY will be at 8:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

This Sunday’s feast commemorates an event mentioned by all four of the Gospels: the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem in the days before His suffering and death.  According to the Gospels, before entering Jerusalem Jesus sent two disciples to retrieve a colt.  He then rode the colt into Jerusalem, and the people lay down their cloaks and small branches of trees in front of him. The people sang Psalm 118:  “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.”  In order to commemorate this event, palm fronds are blessed and a procession enters the church singing, re-enacting the entry into Jerusalem.

However, the “official” name of this Sunday is “Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord.” Last week and next week are part of what the Church has referred to as “Passiontide.” The “Passion” is the word that that Church as used from the earliest centuries to refer to the suffering and death of Jesus. Since last Sunday we have been using the Mass Preface for the Passion of Our Lord, and today we will remember his suffering and death as we prayerfully read the events of His Passion.  May our meditation on the suffering and death of Christ allow us to more fully appreciate the Glory of Easter!

It’s hard to believe that it’s only two weeks until Easter Sunday! Next weekend is Palm Sunday, and then we begin Holy Week. I know that there is a very strong group in our parish that attends all of the events of Holy Week, but many Catholics limit themselves to the bare necessities: Holy Days of Obligation. If you’re one of those who have never really experienced each of the events of Holy Week, consider doing so this year. On Thursday we will celebrate the Mass of the Lord’s Supper at 7:00 p.m., the Mass commemorating the institution of the Holy Eucharist where Jesus also washed his Apostle’s feet. This Mass begins the Sacred Triduum, and it is when the Eucharist is taken out of the main Tabernacle in the church and “reposed” in another altar to commemorate Jesus being arrested in Gethsemane and locked in a cell. This year we will have Adoration at this Altar of Repose from the end of Mass until the sun rises on Good Friday at 6:00 a.m. Then, on Good Friday we will have the Good Friday service with Veneration of the Cross at 3:00 p.m.,the hour of the death of Our Lord. Stations of the Cross will take place at 6:30 p.m. Finally, we will have the Easter Vigil Mass at 8:00 p.m., which will be preceded by Confessions at 6:30 p.m. There will be no 4:00 p.m. vigil Mass, and Masses on Easter Sunday will be as usual at 8:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

There will be sign-up sheets at the back of church this weekend for those who will respond to the plea of Jesus “to stay awake with me one hour.” (Mt. 26:40) on Holy Thursday. It is one of the most solemn nights of the year to contemplate Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane as he prepares for his Passion and Death. Please consider taking one of the hours to fill out our Holy Thursday Vigil. And please consider attending all of the events of Holy Week, which is the most important week of the year for all Catholics.

This Sunday is “Laetare” Sunday, which comes  from the introit (the introductory antiphon) of Mass “Laetare Jerusalem" ("O be joyful, Jerusalem"). We are called to have a restrained joyfulness because we’re halfway through the pilgrimage of Lent and getting closer to Holy Week. While we should strengthen our resolutions regarding our penitential sacrifice, we can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

The rose vestments testify to this special Sunday which also has several other meanings attached to it throughout the centuries.  Since the Jews frequently referred to the city of Jerusalem as “Mother Jersusalem” the early Christians began referring to the Church as “Mother Church.”  And since Jerusalem was mentioned in the introit, Lætare Sunday began to known as “mothering” Sunday.

Years ago, in remembrance of the “Mother Church,” people often visited the church where they were baptized (their personal mother church) and even made a special effort to visited their own mothers. In many ways, Mothering Sunday might be a better day for Catholics to remember their own mother than American Mother's Day, which is a twentieth century innovation without a connection to our faith.  So whether you’re in the church where you were baptized or not (mine is St. Francis Xavier), or whether your mother is alive or has passed away, remember that you are a child of Holy Mother Church, which was given to us by Christ as the means of our salvation. But come to think of it, it might not be a bad day to remember your Mom, and perhaps bring her some flowers. Roses, of course.

Last week, I admit I might have thrown a “curve ball” to you – I changed the liturgy without exploding my reasoning: I decided to distribute the Eucharist only under one species during Lent.

Let me tell you the reasons behind my decision. It started on Ash Wednesday, when I was pleasantly surprised by the large crowds that came for Mass and ashes. When I saw the crowds, and realized that everyone would come to the altar twice (one for ashes and once for Communion), I decided that it would be faster if we had 4 stations for ashes and 4 stations for the Body of Christ (rather than two for the Body and two for the Blood, since we only had 3 Eucharistic ministers). After all, most people didn’t anticipate a 90 minute Mass on Ash Wednesday! This “short term” decision led me to reflect that the Lenten liturgies are meant to be more “sparse” and “solemn” (i.e. no Gloria, no Alleluia). So I decided that our Lenten liturgies would be sparser, more solemn and shorter. And one way to accomplish was by distributing the Eucharist only under the species of bread.

But there are other reasons behind my decision. First of all, while receiving Communion under both species is more perfect from the point of view of the sign, it is important to remember the Church's teachings that Christ is received whole and entire under either species. Thus, one's Communion is perfectly complete when it is received under the species of bread alone.

There has been one thing for which I have received the most complaints since I have been here at Good Shepherd Parish: our sound system. It is something that one usually takes for granted, and it has become a thorn in my side. One of the most important things that a pastor does is to preach the Sunday Mass, and your not being able to hear me makes my job very very difficult!  After dealing with a variety of expert and inexpert technicians, I finally got in touch with the company that installed the system, and they came out to inspect it several weeks ago.  They made some adjustments and checked the wiring, but some of the original components have been removed or replaced.  With an eye toward restoring or replacing the entire system, they are coming out again on Friday. If there is no improvement in at least part of the church next Sunday, then I am thinking of getting another professional company involved. Please know that your frustration level with the audio system is only exceeded by my own. As I told the president of that company, I am at DefCon 4!

What’s the Big Deal with Stem Cells???

Last week, President Barack Obama gave a speech wherein he reversed a policy which strictly limited the Federal money that could be spent on research involving embryonic stem cells. As someone who has followed this issue over the last several years, I thought as your pastor, it would be good to briefly explain the science, ethics and morality involved in his decision.

Let’s start with a few facts: (1) AREN’T STEM CELLS JUST STEM CELLS? No. President Obama’s speech is not about “stem cells” per se. There are different types of stem cells. Some stem cells come from living adults, and some stem cells come from destroyed human embryos. There are no ethical arguments against doing research on adult stem cells that are voluntarily donated for research purposes. On the other hand, embryonic stem cells can only come from the destruction of a living human embryo. Since each human embryo has the same potential to become a human being as each of us had at that point in our lives, destroying that embryo destroys the same potential that we had at the same stage of development.

(2) DOLLARS AND SENSE. Notwithstanding the fact that many Americans find the idea of experimenting on human embryos to be morally repugnant, it is currently legal in the US to experiment on human embryos. There’s no law against it. President Obama’s policy change isn’t about the “legality” of that research; it’s about the expansion of the use of our taxpayer dollars to pay for this very controversial research. It’s about paying for things that Catholics consider immoral. We’re talking about human embryos, not lab mice.

This week we celebrate the “Rite of Election” when the new catechumens will be inscribed in the “Book of the Elect.” In the early Church, the word  “Catechumen” was the name applied to those who had not yet been initiated into the sacraments, but who were undergoing a course of preparation for that purpose. The word can be found in Galatians 6:6: "Let him that is instructed (katechoumenos, the “catechumen”) in the word, communicate to him that instructs him [the (katechounti, the “catechist”) in all good things." Other parts of the verb “to catechize” occur in 1 Corinthians 14:19; Luke 1:4; and Acts 18:24.   Since the acceptance of Christianity involved belief in a body of doctrine and the observance of the Divine law  (“Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations . . . teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” Matthew 28:20), some sort of preliminary instruction must have been given to the converts depending upon whether they were Jews or pagans.  As the Church grew, this instruction and process became longer and more elaborate.

In this week’s Gospel we hear a story about Jesus forgiving sins. In the long history of religion, Jesus was the first person to claim that one's sins can be forgiven by God here on earth. While there is hardly a virtue or moral teaching of Christ that cannot be found in the beautiful writings of Aristotle, Socrates, Plato or Cicero, the idea of forgiving sins on earth was so novel that the scribes called it “blasphemy” – literally speaking evil of God!

Last Sunday, the Holy Father spoke about rediscovering the value of Confession for the forgiveness of sins.  Commenting upon the Gospel reading from last Sunday’s Mass, in which St. Mark recounts Jesus' miraculous healing of a leper, the Pope explained how "according to ancient Jewish Law leprosy was considered not just as an illness but as the most serious form of ‘impurity.’ It was the priest's task to diagnose it and declare as unclean the sick person, who then had to leave the community ... until his recovery, if any, a recovery that had to be properly certified. Leprosy, then, constituted a kind of religious and civil death, and its cure a sort of resurrection.

“In leprosy,” he added, “we may see a symbol of sin, which is the true impurity of the heart and has the power to distance us from God.  It is not in fact the physical sickness of leprosy, as established by the ancient laws, that separates us from Him, but guilt, spiritual and moral evil. ... The sins we commit distance us from God and, if not humbly confessed with trust in divine mercy, they go so far as to produce the death of the soul.”  The Holy Father then observed how Christ during His Passion “would become as a leper, made unclean by our sins, separated from God: and He would do this for love, in order to obtain reconciliation, forgiveness and salvation for us.”

“In the Sacrament of Penance the crucified and risen Christ, through His ministers, purifies us with His infinite mercy, He restores us to communion with the heavenly Father and with our brothers and sisters, He makes us the gift of His love, His joy and His peace.” Benedict XVI concluded by inviting the faithful “to make frequent use of the Sacrament of Confession, the Sacrament of Forgiveness, which we must increasingly rediscover today in the value and importance it has for our lives as Christians.”

During Lent, I will hear confessions after the 8:00 a.m. Sunday Mass until the 10:30 a.m. Mass, and then again after that Mass. May we together rediscover the value of Confession and the forgiveness of sins.

This Sunday we hear the story of Jesus healing a man struck with leprosy. Leprosy is a chronic infectious disease caused by the bacillus leprœ, and is characterized by the formation of growths in the skin, mucous membranes, peripheral nerves, bones, and internal viscera, producing various deformities and mutilations of the human body, and usually terminating in death. Without treatment, people with leprosy are visibly disfigured and often have significant disability; they have long been feared and shunned by others.

Since leprosy is mentioned so often in the Bible, most of us in developed countries think of it as something from the past.  Not so.  During 2007, over 250,000 new cases were reported. About 90% of these cases occurred in the following eight countries: India, Brazil, Indonesia, Congo, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Nepal, and Ethiopia. In 2006, 137 new cases were reported in the United States. Cases occurred in 30 states, but over half occurred in six states: California, Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New York, and Texas. Almost all cases of leprosy in the United States involve people who emigrated from developing countries.

While in seminary, I visited a leper colony outside of Calcutta, India run by Mother Teresa’s order, the Missionaries of Charity.  Once you got over the physical conditions of the lepers living there, and once you were told that the leprosy was not contagious for healthy people without continuous close contact, you could see the lepers as fellow human beings created in God’s image. But fear in India keeps lepers and non-lepers apart.  No one will go near a leper, let alone touch one.  Just as in Biblical time, they must live apart from others.  It is a fear of a terrible disease and the gruesome effects that it brings.  In the Gospel today, Jesus not only goes near the leper, but he stretches out His hand and touches Him.

Although there are very few lepers in the United States, conditions still exist that keep us apart from our neighbors.  Examples might be skin color, the amount of money we earn, the amount of education we’ve received, or the social “status” we have.  One of the best parts about St. Stephen Church is diversity.  Our congregation goes across the spectrum of racial, economic and social lines.  We’re a nice slice of New Orleans!  But that’s not something to rest on.  We still need to drop our fear of the unknown and reach out to those we don’t know.  Don’t let anything separate us from each other.  Be like Jesus and stretch out your hand and touch someone new today.  How will we ever know the inner beauty of each other without looking past the surface!