This video is one installment of a 4-part series on the Theology of the Body presented by Fr. Mike. For free access to the entire series, please visit https://www.ascensionpress.com/tobtalk/
If the deepest secret of God is that God is love, and he made you in his image and likeness, then what’s the deepest secret about you? You are made for love. What does it mean to be human? What was God’s original plan for humanity? For relationships? For marriage? For sex? Why is the body important? In these four lessons, Fr. Mike leans into the teachings of St. John Paul II and Christopher West, unpacking the mysteries of the human heart, the human body, and relationships. In this first lesson, we learn about the origins of the Theology of the Body, what it means, and why what we do with our bodies matters. We are taken back to the beginning in Genesis Chapters 1-3, the creation of Adam and Eve. Despite their differences as male and female, we discover how they were equal in terms of dignity yet complementary in their differences.
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If this information is as fascinating to you as it is to us, you can dive deeper with Christopher West and the @TheologyoftheBodyInstitute
Last week we celebrated the Ascension of our Lord and 10 days after that we have Pentecost. At the Ascension, Jesus took the body and human nature He received from the Blessed Mother to Heaven. The human nature He suffered with, taught, healed, died, and rose with was taken up to Heaven. So, He needed a new body because the one He took from Mary was in Heaven. He uses the human nature we received at our Baptism to teach, to heal, and to console down through the ages to make His love known to all the world. Whatever your vocation, He uses your human nature as a part of His new Body. Sometimes people call the Church an “it.” No. The Church is a “Who.” Scripture says that. In the book of Acts, when Saul was persecuting Christians, Jesus asked him, “Why are you persecuting me?” He did not say, “Why are you persecuting an organization, club, community gathering, or Christian group.” He said, “Why are you persecuting Me?” It is His Body that people persecute.
Now, we are our Lord’s human nature. We are His arms and legs depending on what part of the mystical body we occupy because of our vocations and the Sacraments. Throughout the ages, He has used our human nature to bring His love to everyone. He takes our human natures and uses them as His own to proclaim His message, to teach, and to heal. We are the Body of Christ in Stanly County. People heard the Apostles speaking in every tongue. Now, if you come to the 12:15 Spanish Mass, you can listen to me speak in every tongue. It’s very charismatic. You will hear me speaking Spanglish with a French accent. I can order in a Mexican restaurant and the people I’m with are usually very impressed, “Oh wow! You speak Spanish.” But the wait staff just shake their heads. I’m not great with languages. I barely made it through Canon Law because you needed to know Latin. Latin was pretty easy for me since I always had a dictionary.
At Pentecost, our Lord sends the Holy Spirit Who gives the gift of tongue to proclaim His love. How do we proclaim His love? Do we have to learn every language on the planet? What is the universal language? How do we reach all these people? That’s easy. God gives us the ability to do that. “Oh wow. You speak in other tongues?” Yes, and no. That’s part of the lawyer in me. I speak, or try to speak, one language. “What’s that?” I’ll give you an example. When I was the pastor in Statesville, I received a call from a Hospice nurse who said, “Father, so and so has died. Would you go speak to the family?” I said, “Sure!” I went, and I got there before the Hospice nurse and funeral director. So, I talked to the family and said a prayer over the body. When the funeral director and the nurse arrived, I helped them take the body to the car. Then the nurse and I stripped the room and put everything back in its place. The one thing you don’t want is for the family to come into the room and see the bed linens where their loved one had been. So, we stripped the room and put it back to how it was originally before their loved one got sick. The nurse took some of the medication and flushed them. However, some of the drugs were unopened and OTC (over the counter). Technically, the nurse was supposed to take them back to Hospice, but she said, “Father, do you know anybody who could use them?” She wasn’t supposed to do that. I told some priests that story and they said, “Well, we’d never do that!” Yeah, I know. Chumps. But because I helped that nurse, I got to help other people with the medicine. That’s the universal language and how you reach people by acts of love. When I helped that nurse, it was spontaneous and not a part of my job, but I did it because it had to be done. Show that love. It can be understood in any language. Here’s another example: Years ago, I was going through the hospice unit making my rounds. Two paramedics came in with a stretcher and a new patient. The nurses were busy as they always are. One of the paramedics said, “Where do you want him?” Not “Hello” but “Where do you want him?” I said, “Room 3.” I went with them, and one took the side sheet, another one had the head, and I had the legs. 1 – 2 – 3, and we got the patient onto his bed. And because I did not have gloves on and had touched the patient’s skin, I went to the sink and washed my hands. One of the paramedics approached me and said, “Thank you, Father.” When we do what is right, other people see it. You don’t do it because you will be noticed or thanked; you do it because it shows God’s love.
The third and last point I’ll make is that the Holy Spirit comes to unite all human natures into one body. Not different bodies but one body to reverse what sin has done. What does sin do? Sin divides. Remember the Tower of Babel? They all spoke different languages and could not communicate with one another. It separated humanity. The Holy Spirit calls us to unite in one faith. In the military, Protestant chaplains were in awe of Catholic chaplains because they looked at our congregation which was similar to what I see here, and they saw people from almost every continent in the world. There were some whose English was not that good. It worked out great for me because there were these Korean ladies who would make vegetable Yaki Mandu. Oh yeah! It was killer. I didn’t realize it was fried, but it was wonderful. When I was sent to Gitmo for my Spanish lessons – it didn’t work out well, but I went – and other chaplains were amazed at how much the people there loved me. First, they didn’t know me; give them credit for that. But they loved me because I was their priest. “Do they understand what you are saying?” Some did because they were very educated. The chairman of my “parish council” was a brain surgeon who trained in Russia. I asked our doctors if the Cuban doctors were any good and if I should let them touch me. “Oh, they are very good. They trained in Russia.”
We are all one. In the last 30 – 40 years, there has been a tendency to separate the Church to make it more relevant and meaningful. You cannot make Christ more meaningful, okay? You cannot make the Mass more meaningful; that’s blasphemy. We have a bad habit of hyphenating people. “I am Spanish-Catholic.” “I am Irish-Catholic.” Really. Did you come from the Old Sod (Ireland)? “No.“ Do you like ‘Danny Boy’? “Oh yeah.” Well, first of all, you haven’t been in church for 50 years so shut up. And second, I hate that song!! People wanted to play it at funerals and the bishop said, “No!” We are not of different faiths only country of origin. There is no different faith for Vietnamese-Catholics. They are Catholic. “I am Canadian-Catholic.” It’s colder there; I’ll give you that, but you are still Catholic. Are we Albemarlian-Catholics? Are we Stanly County-Catholics? Are we Oakboro-Catholics? No! We are all Catholic. They seek to break up the Faith. We have to have a different Mass for each language. That’s why Latin was good because it united everybody which is why we should go back to it. We are all one faith; there is no such thing as hyphenated-Catholics. That’s a sin and it’s blasphemy. The Holy Spirit came to do the exact opposite . . . to unite us all. It’s like soldiers – there are no hyphenated soldiers – we are all soldiers. I remember one chaplain who got up and said, “We need more black chaplains.” I said, “Excuse me. When did the Army go color-coded with chaplains?” He couldn’t answer. He was a colonel but not my colonel so I couldn’t have cared less. Little bigot.
We are not color-coded or area-coded. We are all Catholic by the grace of the Holy Spirit Who unifies the Church and by that unification, Christ continues His teaching and ministry. We have one Faith, one Church, and one Lord. To say otherwise is denying the gift of the Holy Spirit. What evidence do we have of the Holy Spirit? By babbling, “I have the gift of the Spirit”? No. The fruits of the Spirit are works of love.
How will you apply this message to your life? _______________________________________
You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to AnnunciationCatholicAlbemarle.com, clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” and then “Sermon Notes.” On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.” Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.” Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at OLA.Catholic.Church. Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”
Our love and suffering as Christian disciples, like the Lord’s on the cross, does not happen in vain. As the Franciscan scholar Zachary Hayes stated so clearly, “We become like what we love,” and that transformation recasts the categories of our ordinary experience into something else, something greater, something more than what we had originally expected. This is not to deny the real pain, loss, and trauma that can accompany suffering, but it does suggest that the meaning of human experience is deeper and more significant than we think.
Like Francis of Assisi, we too can be transformed by the power of love and embrace the call to Christian discipleship with passion. The task at hand is to see that the Word continues to call us to move beyond ourselves, to enter into an evermore intimate relationship with God, to make God’s story our story, to work for justice and peace in our world, and to embrace the love and suffering that comes with following Christ.
—from the book The Last Words of Jesus: A Meditation on Love and Suffering by Daniel P. Horan, OFM
People say, “Women have no power in the Church.” No, but women have more courage. Look at the Gospels and the courage of women. Can you imagine how the women who went to the tomb felt? That is the transforming power of faith. Now, I know we have law enforcement here. We also have medical people, the fire department, and combat veterans. They can tell you what would happen to a dead body after three days in the Palestinian heat especially one with open wounds. You aren’t going to want to be near it. Whew! There is no amount of Vicks Vapor Rub or Febreze that will cover up that stench. But their love for Christ triumphed over their natural reluctance to do what we would say is disgusting. Their love for the Lord gave them the courage to overcome their reluctance to go to the tomb and anoint the Body of Jesus. I’m sure they knew exactly what they were getting into. During that time, life was a lot more brutal and harsher than it is today. We live a much cleaner life. That’s what faith does. Faith can transform our fear into love. The women were going to the tomb to do a proper work of mercy for our Lord. They didn’t have to, but they did. And because of their love, these women were the first to behold the empty tomb and the resurrection. Afterward, they brought Peter and John to the tomb, and Peter went inside.
I’m old enough now to hide my own Easter eggs. As time passes by, you realize that your celestial discharge is approaching. We have a natural fear of death. We were never supposed to die. Our first parents are responsible for that; however, we have helped with the sins we have committed after baptism. Sin brings fear, and sins committed after baptism increase that fear. But the love of God can transform that fear and turn it into a longing, not to leave our loved ones behind, but to go be with the Beloved. God wants us to be with Him, and He offers His love to transform our fear into love. In the Gospel of Saint John, Jesus said, “I am going now to prepare a place for you, and after I have gone and prepared you a place, I shall return to take you to myself, so that you may be with me where I am” (John 14:2-3). We will go to join our good Lord, all those who wait for us, and all the saints who prayed for us.
I had an interesting episode of God’s Mercy last Thursday while doing my rounds at the hospital. We have a new hospice chaplain, and when I saw him, I wanted to say, “I was here before you came, and I’ll be here after you leave. You’re the sixth hospice chaplain I’ve seen come through here.” I’ve been at the VA hospital for quite a while. But he’s a great guy, and he told me there was someone for me to see in the hospice unit. I said, “Okay.” So, I went in to talk to the patient. He was in very bad shape and did not make it to the weekend. He had been in Vietnam. He had been Baptist, became a Catholic, became a priest, left the priesthood, was laicized, and got married. I’m not sure where the lady was, and I didn’t bother to ask. But he made his peace with God. Father Elkhart from Sacred Heart came over and heard his confession. I talked with him for a while, or as much as I could because he was in such discomfort. I gave him the Apostolic Pardon because I take care of my own. He was a soldier, and I was a soldier. That is God’s mercy. He wants us to be at peace.
The resurrection is true, and its power is still alive and active. Our Lord offers us His life. If the resurrection wasn’t true, then all of this would be worthless. He gives us the gifts to change what we have caused by sinning. Even sin cannot compete with God’s plans. All He asks for is our cooperation to draw ever closer to the Sacred Heart of His Son so that we can be transformed. Those fears we have, and we all have fears, of leaving this life and going to God will be changed. The transforming power of God’s love elevates us above and beyond our natural fears and limitations. The resurrection is true. His power is still active. Christ is risen.
You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to AnnunciationCatholicAlbemarle.com, clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” and then “Sermon Notes.” On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.” Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.” Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at OLA.Catholic.Church. Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”
We have a young man in our parish who is in his fourth week at Paris Island, and you know, I may be enjoying it a bit too much! “Oh, Father, it’s so hard there!” No, not really. It’s unpleasant, but it’s not that hard. Your worst day at Paris Island is infinitely better than your best day in Vietnam, Iraq, or Afghanistan. It’s not that bad. You won’t get hurt unless you do something extremely stupid. However, never underestimate the power of people to be stupid. We can become, what one writer says, overly sensitive, which is a grave character defect. We are sensitive about some things but not sensitive about others. I get these emails at the Veterans Hospital (VA) about proper pronoun usage. “Oh! You called me by the wrong pronoun!” Well, I thought ‘jerk’ fit you pretty well. Do you know what I’ve been called in my life? In the military anything soldiers said that was prefaced with ‘sir’ and that ended with ‘sir’ was appropriate, and I would take it. “Sir, you are a bleeping idiot, Sir.” Understood. Very good. Carry on.
“Oh, oh, the opera of anxiety!” Really? All that drama with the psychiatric condition you have. Really? We are highly sensitive about the wrong things. Today you heard a short recitation of the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the Roman soldiers, this was just another day at the office. They did this all the time. They were trained professionals, just ask Saint John. There was nothing special about Jesus’ death except that the Roman soldiers recognized it at the end. Until then, Jesus was just another schmuck who had been sentenced to death, and they were just doing their job. They did three that day; it wasn’t a big deal. But we are here, and we are sensitive to His Passion.
Now, I’m old, and I’m lucky to be so because a lot of people have wanted to kill me during my life and not just my family. Go to YouTube and watch “Jesus Christ Superstar.” One part of the story is about Pilot counting the lashes that were inflicted on our Lord during the scourging at the pillar. One thing about lashing – when you are hit with a belt, it stings. However, the Romans used a flagellum that had nail spikes attached to each cord which would dig into and rip away the flesh. As a result, the wounds would not coagulate with the blood, so the bleeding would continue. Eventually, you would die of suffocation because you lacked the strength to hold yourself upright. That was one of the things the Romans inflicted upon people, and it was not a fun way to go. That is suffering. It’s not when someone hurts our feelings, “Oh, my goodness! I’m so hurt! They didn’t call me by my proper pronoun!” Grow up! You have no idea about hurt and about pain. If you read the Passion, and I especially like ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’, you get an idea of what happened and begin to understand the pain that Christ endured. After our Lord’s Passion, we cannot say, “My sin only hurts me. I don’t hurt anyone else, just me.” Uh no. “I have no sin.” Then you don’t need to come to church. Don’t anybody start running for the doors!
Love has a sound. Think about the Passion and meditate on it. The sound of love is the drip, drip, drip of blood that flowed from the sacred wounds of our Lord on the Cross and onto the ground. That is the sound of love being poured out for us. Mary was the first one to be washed in the blood. Love also has a smell. It is the smell of blood. At our Lord’s Passion, they smelled, they heard, and they saw divine love. This is the price of sin that we try to minimize so much. Not only the white lies – the color coded sins which I never studied – but any sin. This is how much God loves us.
Look at the Passion, and you will see the price of love. All that misery translates into what we need . . . His love for us, and the love to restore us to God’s friendship. Do you have any idea of the agony He endured? The Romans were pretty good at their jobs and intentionally prolonged death. Think about the agony our good Lord endured when He didn’t have to, but He did so out of love for us. Look at the Crucifix and that is how much God loves us. It’s what our sins have caused. That’s the price of sin that our Lord paid for us because we could not. Think about how much we have taken for granted the depth of our sins and the magnitude of His love.
How will you apply this message to your life?_________________________________________
You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” then “Sermon Notes.” On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.” Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.” Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at ola.catholic.church. Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”
The Gay Pride Movement is everywhere, but what is behind it – love or sin? What do you need to know and what does the Church teach about it? Fr. Chris Alar explains what is happening and why in this part of his Woke Series. Streamed live on Jul 15, 2023
