For Whom Is The Mass For?

So I'm currently on a trip to the Philippines and truthfully it has been quite tough from the humidity, to being homesick, to adjusting to anything and everything; things haven't gone the smoothest. But today, I probably had the biggest highlight of this trip so far, and it was something that I have done countless times everywhere I've gone. I went to mass.

#24MoreDays
I really enjoyed this series back in the day

Now, you might be asking, "Alphonse, you're in the Philippines and your biggest highlight is going to mass? What about the ocean, what about the food, what about the people? You go to mass every Sunday, and sometimes more than that." See for the past 2 Sundays we've gone to mass but they were celebrated in Bisaya (a Filipino dialect), and me being me, I don't understand Bisaya... at all... Of course, because I've been to many masses I could still keep up with all the parts of the mass and I could still participate by responding in English. And ultimately, God is still the same God here as He is in Canada; He doesn't change because my physical location changes. But today's mass was different.

Let's back up a bit to today's Gospel. It is the story of Jesus feeding the five thousand with the five barley loaves and two fish. When I did my Lectio Divina this morning two things stood out to me. First, God told me to be attentive to the signs (this is one of the main themes of John's Gospel) of His love for me. Second, "Gather up the fragments left over, that nothing may be lost" (John 6:12). I'll dive a bit more into these two things later in this post.

Here's a picture. It says a thousand words.

So in my last post I said that I would talk a bit more about prayer, and I guess that's what I'm going to do in this post except I'll focus it a bit more on the mass specifically. I guess the question I wanted to ponder was "why should we pray?" Does God need to hear my praise, or my wanting, or my gratitude. God is perfect. He knows my thoughts even before I think them (see Psalm 139). So why pray? Well, I want to suggest that the answer to that question is the same answer to why we should uphold the third commandment: "Remember the sabbath day" (Exodus 20:8) (or if you want to ask the same question differently, why do we have to go to mass on Sunday). Well, you don't have to go to mass on Sunday, you do have free will, but before you decide to start skipping Sunday mass consider this (and please don't go around saying Alphonse told me to skip Sunday mass because I didn't, don't skip Sunday mass). We already said God is perfect. He doesn't need our praise, intentions, or thanks. So why did He make it a commandment (not a suggestion!) that we remember the sabbath (ie. go to mass on Sunday)? If God is loving and He did not do it for Himself then that can only mean one thing: He did it for us.

Wait, hold up. You're telling me that going to church for an hour (also factor in getting ready time); listening to some boring homilies (actually they aren't all that boring at all); listening to plain music (I think it's quite beautiful actually); and switching between standing, sitting, and kneeling (exercise is good for you) (also one of my sayings is "as the body, so the soul" but we can talk about that another time) is good for me? It's for my benefit to lose one day of my week (ok exaggeration... but not so much in some rites I think)? Yes, going to mass every Sunday is for your benefit. Why? Because the mass is where we encounter God, and encountering God transforms us. God gave us the mass and commands us to celebrate it because He knows we need Him.

Today's mass was special for me because it was celebrated in English (mostly). I didn't think that a mass being celebrated in English could have such an impact on me, but it did, and for that I will probably never forget this mass (Thanks Vatican 2!).

who knew that a church/chapel in the mall would be where
I'd experience such a life-changing thing, eh?

1. Sign of God's Love for Me

The transformation that occurs in our hearts when we regularly go to mass and seek Him out in prayer is that we desire God, we learn to yearn and long for him, we experience a turning back to Him. That was made apparent to me when I realized my hunger for God today. Going just two Sunday masses in a language I could not understand created a spiritual hunger. While I had been present at mass upholding my obligation to be there and participating as I could, in my humanness I failed to feel truly immersed in the celebration. That changed at this mass. By the Gloria, by the line "Glory to God," I was in tears. I was crying because it felt like my heart had longed for so long to proclaim along with all God's people "Glory to God!" All those masses that I had attended reoriented my heart to where it should be facing. It made me long to praise and glorify God. Being "unable" to do so (because of my human weakness I felt I was unable), created a thirsting for my heart to give praise where it is due. God does not need my praise, glory, attention, or love; but I sure as heck need to give it to Him.

2. "Gather up the fragments left over, that nothing may be lost"

Because of the absence of words that I could understand in the masses of the past two weeks, I grew to appreciate the words that I could understand in today's mass. Actually, more than just appreciate, I grew to treasure what I could understand. In today's Gospel, the creating of more bread and fish out of nothing is miraculous. It is a sign of the presence of God's grace. That is why I think Jesus says, "Gather up the fragments left over, that nothing may be lost." We ought to treat grace as so precious so not to lose a single shred of it. The words I could understand became a sign of God's grace and mercy for me. Every single word became like a crumb that fell from God's table towards me, and in gratitude, my heart treasured these words and held them closely so not to let any of these drop to the ground. Grace is a mercy that we don't deserve, so we should treat it so preciously.

These are two ways that I have experienced spiritual transformation by attending Sunday mass, but it took God bringing me to the other side of the world and having a hard time being here for me to realize it. To be aware of it is also a grace and mercy from God. If you have not been attending Sunday mass regularly, it's not too late. Come home. If you have been attending Sunday mass regularly, I encourage you to reflect on how God has transformed you.

Glory to God!

...And with that my God be praised!

P.S. Pray for me please! While I have experienced a huge mountaintop experience, I don't expect my time here to plateau and stay as a mountaintop. I will be lifting you up in any and all of my sufferings.

The Catholic Hero

HAPPY EASTER! 

HE IS RISEN, ALLELUIA!

One of the things that I (and many other anime fans) have been looking forward to fervently is the return of the hit anime, "Boku No Hero Academia" (My Hero Academia). Well, guys, the show comes back... wait... it's already back.... GUYS. BOKU NO HERO ACADEMIA IS BACK...

IT'S BACK!!!

Ok putting that aside for now (breath Alphonse breath), a while ago, I really wanted to make a blog post about this show because I saw that super heroes are really popular. Hollywood is spitting out Marvel films like crazy and Boku No was taking over as the next premier Shounen, after Naruto, Bleach, One Piece (well this one is still going strong I guess). Then a thought came to mind: what does it mean to be a hero?

Queue the greatest hero in history and the great celebration that commemorates what He did for us: Jesus Christ and Easter. How fitting that My Hero Academia, a show about super heroes, returns during Easter, a time of celebration over the greatest hero ever.

Easter is the crown jewel of our Lenten journeys. The Lenten season builds up to and climaxes in the Easter Tridium. Then the Easter octave begins, 8 days of Easter. EIGHT. DAYS. That is how big the Easter celebration is! But it doesn't end after that. Then we enter into the Easter Season. This was a time that the disciples rejoiced and stayed close to the Resurrected Lord Jesus. They saw Him in all His glory, ate with him, broke bread with him. How wonderful, how joyful! But what happens after?

The crown jewel, the summit, the climax of the Easter Season is Pentecost. This is a time when the disciples were filled with the Power of the Holy Spirit; they literally became super heroes. THAT is what happened to us at our Confirmations. We became super heroes... ok maybe more accurately, we gained the ability to become heroic, but many of us did not realize that. At our Confirmations, Jesus says to us:

"You can become a hero." So I ask you again, what does it mean to be a hero?

In episode 2 before All Might tells Izuku he can become a hero, All Might says all heroes have one thing in common: "their bodies moved before they had a chance to think". I thought that to be interesting because most heroes are recognized by their impulsive reaction to evil: fight the evil, save the citizens. But if we are called to become heroic, what action do we take before we have the chance to think?

There are a whole bunch of things that we could think of that would be worthy of a Catholic hero, but let me bring up just one: prayer. Prayer is one of the most heroic actions we can do. Prayer? I mean sure, but isn't that just me talking to myself sometimes, or just some wishful thinking? What can prayer really accomplish?

The Power of Prayer

Let me start with this. The greatest super hero ever prayed. That's right, even Jesus prayed! (Matthew 14:23, Mark 1:35, Mark 6:46, Luke 9:18, Hebrews 5:7, etc.). 

Now you might be wondering, what kind of things did Jesus pray for? Well, He prayed for all sorts of things!

-In Matthew 19:13-15, Jesus lays hands and prays for children

-In Luke 22: 31-34, Jesus prays for Peter's faith to be strengthened

-In Mark 14:36, Jesus says a very powerful prayer: "Abba, Father, all things are possible to thee; remove this cup from me, yet not what I will but what thou wilt"

But Alphonse, that's Jesus praying. I mean He's Jesus, and well, I'm not. What good will MY praying do?

"For truly, I say to you, if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'move hence to yonder place,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you." -Matthew 17:20-21

Prayer will strengthen your faith, and your faith will make nothing impossible to you. That is the power of prayer.

Now before, I get flack like, "Oh Alphonse, but I can't fly," or "I can't be in multiple places at one" (St. Joseph of Cupertino, St. Padre Pio), nothing being made impossible does not mean that God will allow all things to be done at our disposal, at our will, and for our own desires. "For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven." -Ecclesiastes 3:1 (this is a verse often for funerals but it's applicable here). God will accomplish what He wants, when He wants. The question is will you be ready?

I encourage you, in the midst of your joy, celebration, and jubilee, to pray. Enter deeply into prayer and see what the Father has for you.

Welcome back Deku-san

...And with that may God be praised!

P.S. I will probably be making a part 2 about prayer, stay tuned!

Zuko, A Redemption Story

Buckle up, this one's a long one. Years ago, I wrote about Frodo Baggins (from LOTR) and how he is actually a great character. Frodo doesn't get a lot of love compared to other characters from LOTR, such as Samwise or Aragorn. What makes Frodo great though, is how his shortcomings make him so human; that in his imperfection and inability to do what is right, we see a bit of ourselves. In the end, he doesn't even have ability (or you may say, grace) to make the right decision (to destroy the ring). Because of this, Frodo falls to the side when compared to characters who excel in their morality and execution. 

Zuko is a lot like Frodo. In Zuko's character we see someone who was once evil, struggled to make the right decisions, and becomes good. However, unlike Frodo, Zuko is a beloved character (perhaps because in the end, he makes all things right). Zuko's redemption story can be likened to the spiritual journey that we are called to make.

Zuko, Crown Prince to the Fire Nation

There's A Spot For You!

When looking at Zuko's character, it is important to consider another character who is closely related to him: Iroh. If we are like Zuko, Iroh, who is like Zuko's "adopted father", is like our Heavenly Father. Now let me say, my grade 12 English teacher used to always tell us that you can find Christ-like and father-like figures in most stories, but that does not mean that they will resemble them 100%, otherwise, you might as well retell the story of God and mankind exactly as it is written in the bible. Please don't take this comparison too literal; Iron is not a one to one representation of God the Father. 

But there is a lot that points to Iroh being like our Heavenly Father. Aside from the abundance of calm, wisdom, and love that Iroh exudes, we can note he had a son, an only begotten son. His son, Lu Ten, dies in the war, and Iroh is extremely grieved by this. But through his son's death, an opportunity for Zuko to become his "adopted son" appears. Similarly, it is through Christ's death that we have a chance at adoption as sons and daughters of God the Father (CCC 1). 

If Iroh is like God the Father, then who is the father of lies, the deceiver, the evil one (this isn't too hard to guess)? It is Zuko's biological father, Fire Lord Ozai. Wait... if you're saying Zuko is son of the evil Fire Lord, what does that make us? Yes, it is what you think. Through original sin, when we are born, we are slaves to sin. That is why through Christ's death (and the sacrament of Baptism) we can become adopted. Because of original sin we didn't belong to God the Father.  

Worst father ever...

But even after Baptism (and many confessions), concupiscence, the inclination to sin (CCC 405), exists. We are drawn to evil, and are called to resist it. Zuko undergoes this trial many times. Zuko feels that he must earn back his worldly honour and respect, but most of all, he feels he must earn back his father's (the Fire Lord's) love. Isn't that essentially what sin is like? We feel a desire, a longing for something that is good but pursue it in the wrong places, or the wrong ways (like hunting the avatar). The devil feeds us lies about how we ought to be and encourages us to chase the things of the world. But in all this mess that Zuko experiences he misses one important thing, his uncle's love. 

The love that Iroh shows Zuko is like the love that God shows us. We are completely unworthy of it, yet it is still there. In fact, there is absolutely nothing Zuko could do to stop his uncle from loving him, and likewise, there is nothing we could do to stop God from loving us. We are loved not because we have earned it but because it is out of love and for His love that God made us (CCC 358).

Eventually, Zuko has his turning point and realizes that his father's "love" is useless, it's fake, it wasn't ever true love. He begins to repent, and after confronting his father about his lies, he rushes to seek his uncle's forgiveness, only to find that he is gone...

Zuko's epic lightning moment

Forgiveness Is Not Enough

Zuko now sets off on a new adventure. a real pursuit of redemption and salvation, to seek out forgiveness and reparation for his sins. Once we realize our own sinfulness and turn back to God, forgiveness is not a problem. We will be forgiven if that is what we seek (go to confession!). But you see, Zuko doesn't realize this at first, and it takes a conversation with Toph for him to realize: he didn't need to earn his uncle's forgiveness. We are given forgiveness freely because we are loved (so go to confession!). Everything else that we do after the forgiveness part is distinct to forgiveness, that is the penance and reparation: showing God we are serious about our turning back to Him. 

Toph's affection hurts

This section is entitled "Forgiveness Is Not Enough", not because I think forgiveness is unnecessary. No far from it, forgiveness of sins is a necessary step in our spiritual journey, but forgiveness alone is not enough for salvation. What was the ultimate goal of Jesus' death on the cross? It was not forgiveness of sins alone, it was the reparation of a broken relationship. You see, forgiveness is only the beginning of a relationship with God. 

So back to penance and reparation. For this I want to share with you a Gospel reading, Mark 4:1-20 The Parable of the Sower (or also, Matthew 13:1-23 or Luke 8:1-15). In this parable, seeds fall along a path and get eaten by birds, others on rocky ground and wither away due to a lack of rooting, others among thorns that choke the plant, and finally, others in good soil where it grows plentifully. I want to focus on the seeds that get dropped among the rocks. 

"the ones sown upon rocky ground, who when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy; and they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away" Mark 4:16-17.

How long does it take to produce good soil? If our souls have been sullied with sin and we become like the rocky ground, how long does it take to make our souls a place of good soil? Well it's not an exact time, and it is different for everyone, and can only be accomplished through the grace of God, but it takes a really long time, it's a process. We do not become holy over night. Penance and reparation are the next steps after forgiveness to becoming like good soil, to becoming holy. 

Zuko undergoes this process. In the last book/season, there are a string of episodes where Zuko takes a couple of "field trips" with members of Team Avatar. It is through this that he demonstrates to others and to himself, that he is serious about change.

Out With The Old And In With The New!

Sometimes it is hard to see if we are making progress in our journey of holiness and that is why I think visual aids are nice, like tv shows, like anime, like, more specifically in this case, Zuko. You see penance and reparation are hard and arduous journeys to undertake, but how do I know that I am headed in the right direction? It's not just about choosing what is hard. Plenty of things are hard in this world, not all of which are good. For this, let's look at one of Iroh's lines after Zuko sets Appa free in Ba Sing Se:

"Your critical decision- what you did beneath that lake. It was in such conflict with your image of yourself that you are now at war within your own mind and body"

or in more biblical terms:

"Put off your old nature which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new nature, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness" Ephesians 4: 22-24.

We will know we are headed in the right direction when we come into direct conflict with our old selves. When we seek to change we wage war against the old way of life. To navigate this change, and make sure it is a good change, we must grow in two attitudes: humility and obedience (personally, these are two that I want to grow in, so please pray for me!). Humility to know that you cannot turn back to God with only your own strength (and so we need grace), and obedience to listen to God to do whatever it takes. 

Zuko may be a fictional character, but take heart that the path forward is made known to you through this fictional character. I believe that if we look hard enough, fictional secular works reveal to us, man's longing after God. So as we set out to turn back to God, keep focused on the goal: to be a son or daughter of God, to be in relationship with God, to love God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind.

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind" Luke 10:27

...And with that, may God be praised!