My Daily Musing

And I'm proud to be an American,
where at least I know I'm free.
And I won't forget the men who died,
who gave that right to me.
~Lee Greenwood



And they who for their country die
shall fill an honored grave,
for glory lights the soldier's tomb,
and beauty weeps the brave.
~Joseph Drake



"A man good enough
to shed his blood for his country
is good enough to be given
a square deal afterwards..."
-Theodore Roosevelt

   We pray as we remember this day all of those who have fallen in order to preserve our freedom. So many suffer and die for the sake of freedom. Let us pray that, some day, armed conflict will no longer be necessary. Let us pray that, some day, the world will live in peace.
   Let us pray, as well, for the forgotten. For the families and friends of prisoners of war and of those missing in action, that they may receive knowledge of what has happened to their loved ones.
   Let us never forget those heroes who have paid the ultimate price for us!

   For the past couple of weeks, we have had a concrete pedestal right outside of the back entrance to the parish office. There used to be irises, rose bushes, and an evergreen in the spot. The garden club took out all the plant life so that the pedestal could be poured.
   Parishioners and staff members have been asking me, "What is going to be put there." My answer has been, "Wait and see."
   Well, the wait is over.
   Yesterday, one of our parishioners came with his group of scout volunteers to complete his Eagle Scout project. Where once was a pedestal now stands a statue of St. Thomas Aquinas (Patron of Catholic Education). He wanted to put up a statue of St. Thomas More, our parish patron, but, quite frankly, we could not find one! So, since we have a parish school, we settled for the next best thing.
   As parishioners came to Mass last night and as they will come today, they now see a statue at that entrance along with some plants that have been put into a newly sculpted project.
   The scouting program is such a great experience for young men and women to learn great skills and put those skills to use. The program helps shape young lives.
   To all of you who are involved in the scouting program, keep up the great work. To all of the adults who are a part of the program as leaders and adult volunteers, thank you for taking your time to perform such a good work. Our youth of today are going to be better people because of you.
   And to Evan, who completed his project yesterday, I say: Thanks, dude. It looks great!!!

   Last night at 7:00 p.m. we had a Baccalaureate Mass for our 8th grade students. It was a last time for them to gather together as a class in prayer at Mass.
   This morning at 10:00 a.m., we will have Commencement exercises in our school gymnasium and "turn them loose" onto the world!
   Good luck, Class of 2010. May God go with you into the next phase of your lives!

   Today is the anniversary of my ordination to the priesthood. On May 28, 1983 Bishop Andrew G. Grutka, D.D., the first bishop of the Diocese of Gary, ordained me to the priesthood at the Cathedral of the Holy Angels in Gary, Indiana. Long ago called to the Lord, I take this moment to remember him fondly for getting me through my seminary studies and ordaining me. Thanks, Bishop Grutka!



   After the ordination Mass, I went back into the Cathedral to give the traditional "First Blessing". This picture is of me giving my mom a blessing.



   My grandmother bought the chalice that I have used for twenty seven years now. Here is a picture of her presenting the chalice to me at my Mass of Thanksgiving held at St. Mary Church in Griffith on Sunday, May 29, 1983.



   After the Mass of Thanksgiving, Msgr. Zollinger (the pastor of St. Mary Church as well as the Vocation Director of the Diocese of Gary at that time) hosted a lunch for my family and friends. Here is a picture of me with my grandmother, mom, and dad. They have all been called to the Lord through the years, grandma at the age of 102, mom after suffering from Lou Gehrig's disease, and dad, who died from cancer. Rest in peace. Till we meet again!



   Please join me on this day of my ordination anniversary in praying for those men who have been ordained priests, those who are presently in formation in the seminary, and those who are being called by the Lord, that they may have the courage to say "Yes" to God. The priesthood is a wonderful vocation!

   On my day off yesterday, I was vegging out in front of the television at night. I went to the "On Demand" section of Comcast and dialed up one of the Dirty Dozen movies.
   The premise is that twelve people who faced death sentences in military prison were given a chance to perform what would amount to a potential suicide mission. If successful, they would win their freedom.
   I was wondering, during the movie, what I would possibly do if given the same choice.
   Then I realized that I HAVE been given the same choice.
   After all, you and I are under a death sentence. If we do not accept the mission given to us -- the mission to follow the Lord faithfully -- we will most certainly die. And our death is eternal.
   But, following our leader, we have the opportunity for freedom from that awful sentence. We have the opportunity to live forever with the Lord.
   You and I are under the same sentence here on earth. The Lord is giving us an opportunity to win our lives. What will your choice be today?

   Good Lord in heaven above . . . is it really May 26th already?!
   I have absolutely no clue in God's green earth how the time has flown by so quickly. In a couple of days (Friday evening) we will have the Baccalaureate Mass for our 8th graders. The next day, Saturday, is commencement.
   Next week, a week from tomorrow to be exact, is the end of the school year for the remainder of our students.
   After that, summer kicks into high gear.
   We will be preparing for the festival and I will be preparing, at the end of June, for a 10 day pilgrimage to "Catholic Germany" with the highlight of the pilgrimage being in Oberammergau for the Passion Play that is done every ten years.
   When we return from the pilgrimage, it will be time for Vacation Bible School and then, before you know it, school will begin again at the end of August.
   This is just too much for me.
   My parents always "warned" me about getting older -- like you can really stop that from happening! -- and said that time would only get faster each year that I got older.
   In another year or two, I will be moving at warp speeds!
   But the one thing remains constant. You and I are moving, no matter how fast or slow, toward eternity. We will spend that time either with or away from the Lord.
   Let us make today count. Tomorrow will get here soon enough . . . but we may not be part of tomorrow. So let us make sure that we live for the Lord today!
   I will remember you in my prayers and ask you to remember me in yours that we spend our time preparing to meet the Lord.

   Yesterday was extremely hot and humid. I remember waking up and finding out that it was already 72 degrees (and that was around 4:00 a.m.!) Last night it was still 90 degrees around 9:00 p.m.
   That's hot!
   In my books, that's very hot!
   And the humidity does not help any at all either.
   But this kind of heat always reminds me about Msgr. Hildebrandt preaching to us when I was a young child at St. Mary's in Griffith. In that awfully un-airconditioned church, he would look at us and say, "You think it is hot here? You certainly wouldn't like hell!"
   That always made us think. And, perhaps, to quit complaining for a while.
   He was right.
   If I hate the heat right now, I had better try staying out of hell.
   So I will not complain about the heat today. Instead, I will apply myself to some extra praying.
   I hope your day is relatively manageable today!

   Who cares!
   I keep hearing people get soooooo excited about different sports and their teams.
   All right . . . some of that excitement may be legitimate.
   But what really sticks in my craw is not half the excitement, not a quarter of the excitement that some people put into their sports teams is put into their faith, into any kind of belief in God.
   You want to stick with a winner?
   Stick with Jesus.
   He has a perfect track record. He has destroyed death and restored life. There is absolutely no team that can possibly come close to Him. He is the perpetual winner.
   That is one reason why the devil does not attempt to go against God. He knows that he is on the losing team.
   So if he has no chance against the winning team, he goes after the fans.
   He wears on them and promises them so much other stuff, hoping to distract the people from the fact that God alone can give them what they truly want and what they truly need.
   So take your Hawks. Take your Cubs. Take your Bears. Take whatever team you want.
   Me? I'll take the Lord!

   Today is the great Feast of Pentecost. It is considered the birthday of the Church.
   As we celebrate the outpouring of the gifts of the Holy Spirit today, we ask God to keep us open to all the possibilities of the Spirit and to help us to use His gifts wisely.

Come, Holy Ghost, Creator blest,
and in our hearts take up Thy rest;
come with Thy grace and heav'nly aid,
To fill the hearts which Thou hast made.

O Comforter, to Thee we cry,
Thou heav'nly gift of God most high,
Thou Fount of life, and Fire of love,
and sweet anointing from above.

O Finger of the hand divine,
the sevenfold gifts of grace are thine;
true promise of the Father thou,
who dost the tongue with power endow.

Thy light to every sense impart,
and shed thy love in every heart;
thine own unfailing might supply
to strengthen our infirmity.

Drive far away our ghostly foe,
and thine abiding peace bestow;
if thou be our preventing Guide,
no evil can our steps betide.

Praise we the Father and the Son
and Holy Spirit with them One;
and may the Son on us bestow
the gifts that from the Spirit flow.

   This is crazy.
   We have flood warnings and dense fog warnings in effect this morning. It is dark and gloomy and looks really yucky out there. Even though it is supposed to get up to the mid 70's today, it is going to be a relatively lousy one.
   The weather here is just a reflection of the weather around the world. The news is talking about the hurricane season forming its first storm. Worries abound about what the storms will do in regard to the massive oil spill still going on. So many people are questioning what is happening.
   Three people were rescued after floating in the ocean for two days when their boat was overturned by a wave.
   Nearly 160 people have died in an Air India accident when a plane overshot a runway in rainy conditions.
   What is happening? What is going to happen? So many worries...
   I guess the only question that could be asked in the midst of all of this is just this: Are you ready?
   We never know when we are going to be called by the Lord. We never know what will happen to us or when.
   The best we can do to be ready is to live in readiness every day, every moment of our lives.
   That is not easy to do, but it is what the Lord asks of us.
   Are you ready for whatever life throws your way today? If not, return to the source that gives us the strength, grace, and peace that we need.
   Have a great day!

The changes in the weather fronts is bringing about a lot of pain.

Ugh . . .

Sinus headache from the bowels of Hades.

Can't even think straight.

No entry today.

Sorry.

   Why is it that so many people think that, just because you try to be as nice as possible to everyone, that makes you weak.
   Why can't a "strong" person be a "nice" person as well?
   It seems that people only think you're serious when you threaten or demand your own way.
   I prefer to believe that Jesus, the dictionary definition of "niceness", is strong.
   I believe that attempting to follow Him is a good thing.
   I believe that, even if people take advantage of you because your try to be kind, the best thing to do is to be kind.
   Give it a try today.
   Instead of demanding your own way, which is pretty much the way of the world, let the soft, kind voice of Jesus speak to you and bring you the peace and calm for which every person longs.

   Yesterday afternoon and evening was just soooooooo nice!
   We had the celebration for our priest jubilarians. I'd way we had about sixty priests in attendance. For a diocese that only has 85 priests or so, that's a great number.
   It was also wonderful seeing one of our own who had become a bishop and is now retired: Bishop Carl Mengeling. He drove down from Lansing, Michigan to support his brother priests and after dinner drove back home because he has Mass tomorrow morning.
   Another visitor, and someone celebrating his 50th anniversary this year, was Msgr. John Morales. He flew in from California yesterday and will be here until Thursday morning. He and two other priests came back to our rectory after dinner and we chatted up a storm until a little before 10:00 p.m.
   For me, that is very late, especially since I have the early Mass this morning. But if they stayed later, I would still be up talking.
   It is so good to gather with the brethren and just enjoy one another's company.
   Priests today do not get much of a chance to do that anymore. There are too few priests and we are always so busy at our own places that we have gotten out of the habit of taking time to support one another.
   This just reminds me that I have to find the time to meet with the guys a bit more than I do.
   I hope you have the opportunity to spend some time with people you care about today. It can be so refreshing!

   This afternoon, at a special Mass at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Hessville, the bishop and clergy of the Diocese of Gary is getting together to celebrate with and honor our Jubilarians. Let's hear it for:

2010 JUBILARIANS

25 YEARS
Reverend Selvaraj Selladurai
Reverend Charles A. Mosley
Reverend David G. Nowak

40 YEARS
Reverend Anthony Janik, O.F.M.

50 YEARS
Reverend Myron Lowisz, O.F.M.
Monsignor John F. Morales
Reverend Robert B. Evers
Reverend Gerald A. Sroka

55 YEARS
Reverend Leonard J. Kronkowski
Reverend Alphonse F. Skerl
Monsignor Richard F. Zollinger

61 YEARS
Reverend L. William Peil

62 YEARS
Monsignor Vincent L. Lengerich

63 YEARS
Monsignor Edward F. Litot

64 YEARS
Reverend John W. Daniels

65 YEARS
Reverend Casimir Borcz, OCD

67 YEARS
Reverend Matthew J. Kish

68 YEARS
Monsignor F. J. Melevage

75 YEARS
Monsignor Ignatius L. Urbonas June 15, 1935
(100 years old on December 5, 2010)
   God bless each and every one of our Jubilarians as well as all the men who serve the Diocese of Gary as priests!

   Yesterday was a really special day for me.
   Since mid-June of 2009, we have been in what Pope Benedict XVI proclaimed the Year For Priests. That year was designated for the faithful to show their priests that they care about them and the spiritual leadership that they provide.
   Yesterday, May 16th, our parish, under the leadership of the Parish Pastoral Council, hosted an appreciation day for the priests and deacons at our parish.
   It began with the Noon Mass. Both of the priests (Fr. Rick and myself) as well as the three parish deacons were together in the sanctuary for Mass. Many of the servers and masters of ceremony were also dressed and attended the Mass. The choir, which usually sings at the 10:00 a.m. Mass, also attended the Noon Mass and supplied wonderful music.
   A few fourth degree Knights of Columbus also came to the Mass and served as an honor guard.
   After the Mass, a couple hundred parishioners gathered in the parish gym for a luncheon to honor all of us.
   The lunch was a fun affair. It was a simple buffet meal (fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, salad, rolls and butter) along with several desserts to choose from. Coffee, lemonade and iced tea were served for refreshments.
   Our choir sang three songs before lunch as well.
   It was nice to be with a group of people who wanted to do nothing more than show some appreciation for what we do on a day to day basis at the parish.
   I tell you, I really needed that!
   If you are one of the people who were a part of that day and are reading this now, thank you so very much for making my day.