Proud to be Catholic, proud to be Vietnamese

In persecution, Vietnamese Catholics in Hanoi bring back the beauty of Catholic traditions, ones that overcome the evil communist government that is still ruling the country.

- Ready for martyrdom: 8 people on trial, thousand standing outside with palm leaves in hands, symbol of Christian martyrdom. Each wears a cross and image of Our Lady. They are ready to stand up for justice and truth to the point of self-sacrifice.

- Unity: 8 people on trial, thousand came to show solidarity outside, vigil prayer offered two nights before with thousands attended, another vigil with a crowd of 3 thousand offered 1 week before in a city far away, and during the day, different Masses, prayer services were offered for them throughout the country and even abroad.

- Self-sacrificing shepherds: priests and religious led the procession to the trial house and stay with them until the end of day, many priests in the city concelebrated Mass that morning to pray for the 8, archbishop sent his personal secretary to be present at the site, bishop from other city sent notes to encourage and congratulate after,


See pics here
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hFaNWDuuQ4A1hcYeEtbf3GoGu5AwD94UDVSO0

and here
http://www.vietcatholic.net/News/Html/61817.htm

Evil still exists in the world, the communists still rule the country, but the Vietnamese Catholics have made a statement that, I think, shakes them to the core: we live in a reality that is more powerful than any evils in the world.

Viet Catholics are ready to stand up for truth and justice

8 parishioners of Thai Ha will be tried on Dec 8, 08 by the government, accused of obstructing public order and destroying public properties. Six of them are in this picture, the other two are still held in jail before the trial.

Prayer Vigil to support the Catholics who will be tried by the government

Fellow Catholics holding palm leaves, symbol of Christian martyrdom. Vietnamese Catholics realize that this is an opportunity for them to witness their faith to the government, even to the point of martyrdom.

Mary Magdalene (a different homily)

Disappointment and confusion- who has not experienced at least once in life? Looking at our life stories, can we deny their existence? Being uprooted from a place and a culture where you grew up, then being placed in a totally new place and new culture you had never known of before, disappointment and confusion are the daily reality.[1] But when one sees hundreds of these people gather faithfully every week to worship God, he must wonder what it is that these disappointed and confused people experience in their worshiping that keeps them coming back. Have you ever asked yourselves such question? To be honest, some may come to Church every week because they want to be connected to their community and their culture in this foreign land. There is nothing wrong about that. But there has to be something more in this faithful community. There has to be Someone who holds everyone together despite all the disappointments and confusions they may experience. Maybe the story of Mary Magdalene encountering the risen Christ in the Gospel[2] can help us reflect on our own faith.

The Mary Magdalene in the Gospel today has always been believed to be the same woman who weeps and uses her hair to wipe her tears that fall on Jesus’ feet. Even though there is no text in the Bible to prove such, it has always been the belief from the early Christian Church[3], as well as in the more contemporary Bible commentaries[4]. Another significant tradition in the Catholic Church is that she is given the title “Apostle of the Apostles,” because of her story in this Gospel passage[5]. The other Gospel reports that as soon as she could after the Sabbath, Mary Magdalene, together with some other women, visited the tomb. Though John’s version of the story does not indicate whether there were other women with her or not, but one thing we can conclude: she saw the empty tomb, went away to tell Peter and John about it, they came and saw what she told them then left, but she came back and remained at the empty tomb[6]. She stayed behind and wept. Here we see the image of a Mary Magdalene who loves Jesus so much and so personally. Furthermore, John tells us that she wants to touch Jesus after recognizing Him. These details are what make many Scripture scholars in the Catholic tradition believe that this Mary is the same Mary that weeps and wipes Jesus’ feet before he was crucified, and the same who remains at the cross when everyone else has left Jesus[7]. It is the personal and powerful love for Jesus that makes her come back the second time, and remain at the tomb[8].

John writes that Mary “bent over to look into the tomb.” John wants to build the expecting mood in the readers – expecting for the resurrection of Jesus, just like the expectation of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus[9]. John clearly knows how to help readers relate their life stories with the stories and the messages He wants to convey in His Gospel[10]. The death of Jesus causes her disappointment; the empty tomb causes her confusion; but her reaction is to keep coming back and remain at the empty tomb. Her reaction is to keep looking and hoping, though she does so while weeping. Isn’t it the story of our lives, the lives of those who may experience disappointments and confusions, yet keep feeling the urge to reach out, expecting to encounter some great news? Mary Magdalene’s love-filled reaction reflects the wonderful nature of human beings that we all share. Deep in our being, there is a tendency that keeps us searching and reaching out to touch our Origin, our Creator, the true goodness and true fulfillment. It is so deep yet so powerful that we keep doing that despite the confusions and disappointments in life. Many theologians believe that we are created from the goodness of God, and the yearning to be united with God is the nature of our being[11].

The good news is that it is not only we who are searching and reaching out. The Gospel passage continues: Jesus appears to Mary but she does not recognize Him at first; but after Jesus calls her, “Mary,” she recognizes him. When Mary is unable to recognize God, God finds a way for her to recognize Him. So we see that God is also reaching out to us. “Why are you weeping?” and “What are you seeking?” These are the questions asked by a loving shepherd who knows His sheep and know how to reach out to His sheep. This is the wonderful love story between God and men. The passage says that Jesus calls her by name, “Mary.” It confirms that Jesus is the good shepherd who calls his sheep by name. Then Mary responds: “Rabboni!” She recognizes Jesus as the teacher, just as a sheep recognize her shepherd[12]. After recognizes Jesus, Mary wants to hold on to Him, but Jesus does not let her, because He has not “ascended to the Father.” John wrote His Gospel after a long life reflecting on the deep mystery of Jesus’ life. In this passage, He wants to present the theology of a Christ who is from God, and after His rising from the dead, is re-united in full glory with God[13]. So the ascension is used to describe as the coming back into this union, rather than the linear development of the story: dying, rising, then coming back to the Father, etc. Jesus knows Mary is clinging on a Jesus who just rose from death, the same Jesus that she experienced before (thus she wants to touch him as she did when weeping and wiping His feet). But this risen Christ is no longer the one before the resurrection. He wants to invite her to know another Christ who is in His true glory in the union with the Father. When reading this, we can’t help but remember the promise Jesus makes before the final sacrifice. He says that He has to come back to His Father so that the Holy Spirit will be sent to those He loves, and when the Holy Spirit comes they will remember everything Jesus taught and will be strengthened to do what Jesus asked them to do[14]. Jesus wants to invite Mary to enter into the most perfect relationship of the Trinity. Men were actually first created from this relationship, but, because of the fall of Adam, have lost it. Now that relationship is restored by the Paschal Mystery of Christ. The greatest news for human beings is that Jesus’ Father is also our Father: “I am going to my Father and your Father,
to my God and your God.[15]” This is the theology of resurrection and of Jesus’ good news that John wants to communicate to us[16].

Jesus then commissions Mary to go back and tell others of this great news. Mary has been the person who carries the news about Jesus. She is the one who earlier told the apostles of the empty tomb; she is now the one who will tell them the risen Christ with His true identity in the glory of Father. That is why Mary Magdalene is called by the early Fathers “Apostle of the Apostles.” We have seen the faith journey of Mary and her encounter with the risen Christ, and hopefully we can relate them to our own. Her story gives witness to a loving God who does not stop reaching out to us as we are reaching out to seek for Him. What we are incapable of doing – reaching the true God – Jesus has done for us through His Paschal Mystery: suffering, dying, rising and ascending to the Father. What was true for Mary Magdalene two thousand years ago is also true for us today. When we bring our life stories to God, full of disappointments and confusions may they be, Jesus that we are seeking will reach out for us, and through His Paschal Mystery at each Eucharistic celebration will invite us again and again to enter into the perfect relationship of the Holy Trinity, the one that we were once created[17].


Notes:

[1] This homily targets parishioners who are first-generation immigrants in the US, age range 30 – 70.
[2] Gospel reading on the Feast of Mary Magdalene, July 22, 2008: John 20:1-2, 11-18.
[3] Ronald Brwoning, Who’s Who in the New Testament, p 299. Also International Bible Commentary: A Catholic and Ecumenical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century, 1498.
[4] The International Bible Commentary: A Catholic and Ecumenical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century, 1498.
[5] The International Bible Commentary …, 1498; also Women in Scripture: A Dictionary of Named and Unnamed Women in the Hebrew Bible, the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books, and the New Testament, 122.
[6] The International Bible Commentary …, p 1498.
[7] Ronald Brwoning, Who’s Who in the New Testament, 301.
[8] Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: John II – XXI, 343.
[9] The New Interpreter’s Bible: General Articles & Introduction, Commentary, & Reflections for each Book of the Bible, 842.
[10] This is my reflection based on the literary criticism of John’s writing style. I found that this literary criticism, which is a part of the historical critical method in interpreting the Bible, is important in understanding the Scriptures. See The Pontifical Biblical Commission, The Interpretation of the Bible in the Church: Address of His Holiness John Paul II and Document of the Pontifical Biblical Commission (Boston: Pauline Books & Media: 1993), 35-40.
[11] One of the themes from the Fundamental Theology as I have garthered.
[12] The New Interpreter’s Bible: General Articles & Introduction, Commentary, & Reflections for each Book of the Bible, 842. Also The International Bible Commentary …, 1499.
[13] The New Interpreter’s Bible: General Articles & Introduction, Commentary, & Reflections for each Book of the Bible, 843.
[14] Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: John II-XXI, 347.
[15] John 20: 17b.
[16] The New Interpreter’s Bible: General Articles & Introduction, Commentary, & Reflections for each Book of the Bible, 843.
[17] I choose to begin the homily by bringing up a relevant reality in the parish (immigration history) as a problem and tight that into the Good News and of the Eucharistic Liturgy at the conclusion. This is a deliberate approach to giving homilies suggested in: Bishops’ Committee on Priestly Life and Ministry, Fulfilling In Your Hearing: the Homily in the Sunday Assembly (Washington, DC: USCCB, 2005) 23-28.

Mary Magdalene

Two of the more recent successes in the cyberspace that are considered phenomenal are “myspace” and “facebook.” What common between these two, as well as the many earlier successes, are their capacity to build networks of friends regardless of geographical locations and regardless of the members’ backgrounds. Within these networks, people who may have never seen each other in real life can exchange information, pictures, video clips, discuss different topics, buy, send and receive “virtual” gifts, etc. As far as members, one can find in these networks youngsters sharing stories of their latest crush in school, as well as some doctors sharing pictures they took at their latest vacations. I am not trying to analyze the success of this phenomenon, but would like to suggest that it points to a very deep yearning of every human beings – the yearning to feel connected and belonged.

Why do we get together with friends at a coffee shop, or spend hours on the phone with them, if not for building connections, from which life stories are shared, and from which everyone can be assured that their friends know what is going on in each other’s life. Mary Magdalene came to see Jesus for the first time, she was also in such condition as we are in. She brought her life stories to Jesus, the life stories that almost no one of her time, and maybe even this time, would approve and would want to share. They are the stories of brokenness that are caused by brokenness, they are the stories of sufferings and slavery, they are the dark stories of human beings, and too often they leave deep scars in each and every soul. She brought those stories to Jesus in the hope that Jesus would hear her and know what is going on in her life; and Jesus did not failed her. He understood what she was just another victim of brokenness caused by sin; but not only that, He also knew human souls are capable of reaching out, in their limited way, for God’s mercy through their faith. He then enters the relationship with her and makes up for what is missing. He listens, He understands, He consoles, He forgives, and He defends her. Could you ever ask for a better friend than that? Mary Magdalene was overwhelmed by that loving friendship in Jesus. Such friendship is now the force that sets her out in a new life: free from sin and its slavery. That friendship starts from a very personal encounter, so strong and deep that when the resurrected Christ, as we witness in the Gospel today, calls her by her name, “Mary,” a personal gesture between friends, she immediately recognizes Him.

We were talking a minute ago about the wonderful communication means on the Internet today. They are actually serving their purpose of connecting people, but obviously this connection is not complete, and definitely not perfect. Not too long before their invention, there had been blogs, then xanga. They are like online diaries where you can post not only your writings but also media files. But these inventions were not the first inventions. There had also been emails and Instant Messanger before them. These communication means are constantly changing, one replaces the other for better solutions and better services. But there is still that emptiness and loneliness deep inside regardless of how many hundred friends one may have on the Internet, yet alone in the real world. The friend Jesus that Mary Magdalene found in her life is different. Her friend is so extraordinary that she did not recognize Him at first when He just rose from the death. According to the commentaries in the New American Bible, Jesus was immediately united with the Father since the moment he rose from the dead; the ascension is actually just the termination of his physical presence on earth[1]. Jesus has entered into His full glory at the resurrection. He has washed away all our sins when on the cross blood and water flown from His pierced side. That is the moment that Baptism is established. Jean Daniélou also posits that at Baptism, we are given new life by the Holy Spirit, free of sin and full of grace[2]. The Holy Spirit has enabled us to be God’s adopted children. That is why we can cry out in our prayer, “Abba, Father!” (Rm 8: 15-15). The Paschal Mystery of Christ has restored the sonship that has been lost since the fall of our father Adam. The suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus have started a new life, a life that is filled with God’s life. Mary Magdalene’s friend, who is also our friend, can give us the very life of God.

In this friend, the deepest need to be connected is satisfied. But that is not all of the good news yet. After Jesus rose from the dead, He is able to send the Holy Spirit to His followers, and He did not stop doing it ever since. Every time He appears to the disciples, He breathes on them to send them the Holy Spirit. Now things are even more excited when the Holy Spirit comes, and even Jesus agrees with that. “Amen, Amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me will do the works that I do, and will do greater ones than these” (John 14:12). That same Spirit who anoints Jesus, and whose power Jesus has used through out his ministry on earth, the Agent of His resurrection, is now personally given to His friends. With this Holy Spirit, the sacrifice of Jesus more than two thousand years again will happen again in a moment at the Eucharistic table. Scott Hahn suggests that these works are what Jesus means when He says “greater works” than his own works[3]. The new life as children of God will begin again every time someone receives Baptism. Sins will be forgiven ever and ever again. Vocations in life, whether marriage vocation or priestly vocation, will be empowered and confirmed again and again. The Holy Spirit will come with all of the true gifts necessary for a life in grace through Confirmation. The life of grace will be made available and easily accessible to all his children in the world. The life determined for us from the beginning, and promised to be fulfilled in the end has been made possible to start right here in this world.

What do we have to do to receive such wonderful gift of new life and the forgiveness of our sins? The answer is we cannot do anything much, really. God alone can save us and give us this new life. The only thing we have is our faith and trust in God. The Church teaches that “sinners are justified by faith in the saving action of God in Christ. By the action of the Holy Spirit in baptism, they are granted the gift of salvation, which lays the basis for the whole Christian life. They place their trust in God’s gracious promise by justifying faith, which includes hope in God and love for him.[4]” The friend of Mary Magdalene in the Gospel today, who is also our friend, is like none other before and after. His saving mission is accomplished through His self sacrifice. He has done something that a Creator could do. He again confirms that He is the Lord of all the universe, the creator of all. The almighty God who has been there before time and who will be forever in His fullness of glory. He is also the personal God who calls Magdalene by her first name, so does He us our first names. What a great deal Mary Magdalene has. The same is true with us. The Lord of the universe and our Creator is our personal friend. We do nothing to deserve such grace; there is not anything we could do that make us worthy of such gift. The only thing we have to do is to open ourselves, totally open, and come to that wonderful friend with an open heart. We come with our faith and trust, regardless of our brokenness and weakness. Just come to Him, and He will do the rest, the rest that is beyond what we can comprehend.

[1] The New American Bible, Wichita, KS: Dvore & Sons, Inc., 1987; and Catholic Bible Publisher, 1970. See commentary on p. 1166.

[2] Jean Daniélou, The Bible and the Liturgy (Notre Dame, IN: Notre Dame University, 1956): 3-17.

[3] Scott W. Hahn, “Temple, Sign and Sacrament: Explorations in John’s Gospel,” Letter & Spirit 4, (2008): 70-91.

[4] “The Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church Joint Declaration of the Doctrine of Justification (31 October 1999),” The Christian Faith in the Doctrinal Documents of the Catholic Church, 7th edition, edited by Jacques Dupuis, 844-852, (Bangalore, India: Theological Publications in India, 2001): p 847.

What's with the picture on top of this blog

You may wonder.

It's St. John Bosco, and in case you don't know who he is, you should google search learn about this marvelous man.

John Bosco is a saint of the Roman Catholic Church who lived in Italy in the 19th century. The Church honors him as a holy man who could find and provide examples for others the holiness in an apostolic Christian life. The world honors him as a great educator whose approaches and methods are still so much relevant to today's youth and to the current education situations. His spirit and his works are still very very much alive and vibrant all over the world today, especially in and through the great network of Salesian family that includes a religious congregation for priests and brothers, another one for the sisters, an association for lay people, and numerous other religious groups and orders and associations, who, though were not founded by JB himself but, were founded on the foundation of his spirituality and his apostolic approaches and spirit. Needless to say, youth themselves, yes, I said youth, take a great part in this network. Maybe not too strong in the US, but look for those Salesian Youth Movement groups all over the world and you see what I mean.

So how is he personal to me except for the fact that my middle name is actually John-Bosco? It's God's providence that my father picked him as my patron at my baptism when I was a baby myself. My Salesian life started before I enter the Salesian Congregation (the SDB's) and continues after I left them.

Wherever I am, whatever I'm doing or will be doing, I'm a Salesian, and that is not just something I am emotionally attached to. The memory of my adolescent years confirms it, my paths in life, whether educational path, professional path or spiritual path, confirms it. My temperament and my personality confirm it. The great peace and joy from my prayer and sacramental life confirms it. My associations confirm it. To tell you the truth, I've been waiting to see whether there is something that doesn't confirm this vocation of mine ... So far the good God has not sent that sign over yet.

So how do I sum up what it is about this man and his spirituality that I am attached to? I'm afraid I can't summarize them within the "unlimited capacities" of blogs. It's his approach to holiness, it's his lively faith in God and the Blessed Lady, it's his humanism, it's his ministry approach, it's his love for young people and for others he lived with, it's his spirit so much alive in his contemporaries and my own contemporaries, ... I remember there is a comment for the Constitutions he wrote for his Congregation of men. It goes something like, and I am paraphrasing, the Preventive System (the name of his educational pastoral system) is not a system of kindness, but it is kindness being lived out in any system. I shared that thought with my community almost ten years ago. I've been living with that wisdom ever since, and continue living it now.

My life before and after

I'll let You be the Lord

Having three warm meals a day within the four walls of a seminary, it's easy to forget that some parents out there are worried they might not be able to put food on the table for their children tomorrow. I want to do something for you, parents, but it's not my time yet. I can only be there with you in spirit to hear your worries...

My residence and the college are interconnected. I could get to the classrooms without going outside at all. At 8:30 every morning I sit in a classroom and listen to some wonderful lectures from some great professors. Some friends of mine at the same moment are also sitting in a college classroom somewhere in the world, however, their minds are usually distracted by the debts they owe their schools, or by the concern whether they can find a job they like to do after graduation. I want to do something to help you study, friends, but it's not my time yet. I can only be there with you in spirit to share your concerns ...

I have a spiritual director/confessor that I can easily pour my soul and heart to. I have some intelligent academic counselor who can help me with my academic curiosity. I know when I pick up the phone now and call some friends home, we'll have a great time talking and catching up. It's easy for me to forget that the young people that I came to know before and will encounter in the future are often desperate for someone they can trust, some leaders they can follow, some role models they can admire, some worthwhile direction they can invest their lives to. I want to be in your midst, and if I can't be one of those you need then at least point you to where you need to go, but it's not my time yet. I can only be there with you in spirit, and let you know I understand your desperation.

I can't do anything for my people, but You can both be there and do something for them.

I'll let You be the Lord.

Some Praise and Worship sessions by our band

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbwpYtvjmOo



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=siMFE5NNeYA



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LN1opSb6kbM



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZz0mc2psqI



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBVL2NqsM9U

A Cause for Celebration

I missed out anh Tho's ordination in Stockton, CA last week. I had planned to come but the plan just didn't work out. Ordination Mass usually does my soul good when I have a chance to re-examine my belief in the sacramental life. I know I would have also enjoyed seeing so many good old friends through the Salesian family network. It doesn't matter how long I have been away from them, physically, and it doesn't matter what I am doing in life now, I always feel at home being around them and spend time with them. If I can't create the Salesian spirit where I live now, I think I should move to a town where there is the Salesian presence. I just thought of this from my last retreat. I just happened to share the same retreat experience with some high school students. But during the retreat, I just couldn't feel like a Salesian in front of young people any more. Of course with the kids at my church, I'm comfortable being around them, talking, playing, working, praying with them... because I'm their HT, their teacher. Family spirit in the community context ... Probably that is what missing? I don't know.

I do have a community to which I belong. I just sometimes wonder why people come together in my community: Common interest? Common missions? Common faith? Common fears? Common history and tradition? ... Which of such commonalities can bring forth life and spirit that can sustain the community and make it a faith-filled one? That makes me wonder sometimes whether I'm going the right direction when trying to create so many activities for the kids to do these years.

I have in the past established and maintained some meaningful personal relationships with people in my community, but I just wonder if I'm still doing it now the way I'm running my group. I just feel like I'm too caught up with the organizing events to have time for real and personal relationship with the people I'm working for and working with. Maybe that is what missing!

We all need that real presence and real relationship to make our lives meaningful, and that can't be done without the sacramental aspect of our coming together. I want that presence in my life, and want to be that presence to the people in my life.

Congrats, a Tho! Wish you continue being a great Salesian priest.