(Pope John XXIII “Moonlight Speech Window of the Apostolic Palace, October 11, 1962)

This past Saturday we had the privilege of seeing the moon at its closest in over 30 years. I want to thank Chris Allen for sharing her privately taken pictures of the moon. We use them with her permission. It reminded of a beautiful and impromptu speech that Pope John XXIII had given from the window of the Apostolic Palace on the evening of the opening of the Second Vatican Council. Through the great research of a blog called Whispers in the Loggia, I give you the actual video of the speech (in Italian) and the English Translation. Enjoy!

Translation:

“Dear sons and daughters,

I feel your voices! Mine is just one lone voice, but it sums up the voice of the whole world.

And here, in fact, all the world is represented here tonight. It could even be said that even the moon hastens close tonight, that from above, it might watch this spectacle that not even St Peter’s Basilica, over its four centuries of history, has ever been able to witness.

We ask for a great day of peace. Yes, of peace! ‘Glory to God, and peace to men of goodwill.” If I asked you, if I could ask of each one of you: where are you from? The children of Rome, especially represented here, would respond: ah, we are the closest of children, and you’re our bishop. Well, then, sons and daughters of Rome, always remember that you represent ‘Roma, caput mundi’ ['Rome, the capital of the world'] which through the design of Providence it has been called to be across the centuries.

My own person counts for nothing — it’s a brother who speaks to you, become a father by the will of our Lord, but all together, fatherhood and brotherhood and God’s grace, give honor to the impressions of this night, which are always our feelings, which now we express before heaven and earth: faith, hope, love, love of God, love of brother, all aided along the way in the Lord’s holy peace for the work of the good. And so, let us continue to love each other, to look out for each other along the way: to welcome whoever comes close to us, and set aside whatever difficulty it might bring.

When you head home, find your children. Hug and kiss your children and tell them: ‘This is the hug and kiss of the Pope.’ And when you find them with tears to dry, give them a good word. Give anyone who suffers a word of comfort. Tell them ‘The Pope is with us especially in our times of sadness and bitterness.’ And then, all together, may we always come alive — whether to sing, to breathe, or to cry, but always full of trust in Christ, who helps us and hears us, let us continue along our path.”
–Pope John XXIII
“Moonlight Speech”
Window of the Apostolic Palace
11 October 1962

I find the speech to be truly father like from a Pope who truly loved his flock. Pope John XXIII was really a good soul who cared deeply for his people and this impromptu speech showed it. I also found the image of the hundreds of thousands of faithful carrying candles to the Vatican to be very moving. It is a great visual reminder to me that our lay people really are called to be light to the world, or as our beloved late Holy Father Pope John Paul II reminded us that our lay people are “leaven in the world.” It is also a great time to pray for our beloved Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI as he continues to do such a great job leading us. I personally love and admire the work that he does (with so much love and charity) reaching out to others in reconciliation and renewal.

This second picture from Chris Allen shows the moon as it departs prior to the dawn of a new day. Wow! Chris, I hope that you got some good rest! Thanks for the pictures. Thanks to each of you, my parishioners and friends for bringing the light of Christ out to the people, in spite of the darkness of error and sin. You really are a light to the world!

You’re the Best! Fr. Brad

Today is a wonderful day in the life of our Church, as we celebrate the Feast of Saint Joseph the Worker, begin the Month of May dedicated to our Blessed Mother, and today celebrate with great joy the first anniversary of the Beatification of Blessed Pope John Paul II. What a great day!

I truly love Blessed Pope John Paul II! He has been a tremendous source of inspiration for my life and for many, many Catholics! He was such an authentic witness to never losing hope in the midst of such suffering and despair! He had such a tremendous depth of a prayer life! He loved people and throughout his life was truly blessed by so many deep friendships. He was amazing!

Three things that he said (many times) during his pontificate that really are now core to me are:
Be not Afraid!
Duc In Altum! (put out into the deep!) and
Totus Tuus! (may we be totally yours)

These things have been so helpful as I have grown in the Priesthood and grown being a Pastor! I would encourage you daily to think about each of these three things and to truly not be afraid to follow the Lord wherever he may lead, to put out into the deep, especially when we are tired, or we have tried our level best – without success, and to grow into being totally yours Dear Lord and not partially or sort of yours. May we continue to grow in the path of deep holiness, unafraid to follow you wherever you lead!

On this day may Blessed Pope John Paul II intercede with the Lord on your behalf!

Abundant Blessings!

Fr. Brad

Happy Easter! It is so nice to have Spring like weather around!

Happy Easter! I personally love the Easter Season. It is a great time to remember the triumph over death by our Lord! It is a great time to remember that the Sufferings of the present are as nothing to be compared to the glory to be revealed in us. It is a most wonderful time when the trees blossom, the bulbs begin to pop out and we see green grass! I love our tree right outside of our 1966 building. It is always great to see it in bloom.

The Spring is also a great time for me to bring out of the garage my 1967 Mustang. As you know the firefighters from Colorado Springs Fire Department completely restored my mustang as a thank you gift to me about 4 years ago. It is such a beautiful car. Recently I needed some electrical work done on the care with a number of other issues. I was fortunate to find a company up in Denver called Classic & Performance Mustangs Inc. They did a great job on the all of the items on my checklist, did a great job communicating with me about some of the items that they saw that needed attention, were wonderfully friendly and extremely reasonable in terms of their charges. I would certainly recommend them if you need service for your older mustang.

Let me tell you that when I get into that car, it brings me back to my High School and teenage years. Of course it was a different mustang and of course gasoline was 29 cents a gallon. My mustang is such a cool car to drive and there is nothing like the feel of a 289 v8 with dual exhausts, and with listening to great music over the radio. Wow, am I blessed!

Life is great! Fr. Brad

As we journey during this Holy Week with the Lord, I would invite you to pick a “character” from the Life of Jesus to journey with. Perhaps it is the Blessed Mother and the sorrows that she bore. Perhaps it is Pilate, who washed his hands of the matter. Perhaps it is Judas, who betrayed the Lord, and did not believe that the Lord would ever forgive him. Find a character and journey with that character for this Holy Week.

I personally like to walk with St. Peter. Here’s the model that I like to use. It comes from the Book “Characters of the Passion” by Archbishop Fulton Sheen. Archbishop Sheen points out that there were five stages in Peter’s Denial and Fall:

1. First, Neglect of Prayer
2. Second, Substitution of action for prayer
3. Third, Lukewarmness
4. Fourth, Satisfaction of material wants, feelings and emotions
5. Fifth, human respect

Take a look at each of these five points. Are we doing the same things that Peter did?

In the wisdom of Archbishop Sheen, he says “if there be the steps away from the Faith, what are the steps back to its embrace? They are:

1. First, Disillusionment
2. Second, Response to grace
3. Third, Amendment
4. Fourth, Sorrow

Have we ever experienced any of these in our own lives?

The other thing that I like to reflect on in the life of St. Peter is that despite radically sinning and denial of the Lord, that he never lost hope in the Lord’s ability to forgive him. Unlike Judas who lost hope and committed suicide, Peter never lost hope. Neither should we ever lose hope in the mercy and the love of the Lord.

Again, pick a character of the Passion and journey with them this Holy Week.

Fr. Brad

This morning this headline caught my attention as I read ESPN. It drew me to read a great article by Howard Bryant published on March 21, 2012 and you can find it on ESPN.com. Howard begins his article,

“In 1972, following his performance in the first of the three “The Godfather “ movies, Al Pacino became a superstar. A quarter century later, when the legendary film trilogy was released in a DVD box set, Pacino gave a riveting interview about the process by which he landed the role of Michael Corleone, one of the most iconic characters in screen history.

Pacino talked about how the studio hadn’t wanted him in the role. Paramount wanted Ryan O’Neal, James Caan, Martin Sheen, or Robert Redford ahead of him. Pacino said he thought about quitting because of the enormous, smothering negativity, said it was difficult to do good work knowing that the studio heads did not believe in him. “I remember saying I don’t respond well to being around where I’m not wanted ,” Pacino said. Only the faith and tenacity of the director, Francis Ford Coppola kept him in the role and the film wound up making Hollywood history.”

I don’t think that any of us really respond well to being around where we are not wanted. I know that I have found it true in my life. In his article about Tim Tebow, Howard Bryant from ESPN, in a clear and precise fashion, that John Elway did not believe in the ability of Tebow to be a front line quarterback. I would invite you to read the article in total. I found it to be a paradox that while John Elway praised Tim Tebow, especially after his trade, that the pictures of Tebow were unceremoniously removed from Bronco headquarters prior to the announcement of the signing of Payton Manning. Somehow the words and actions do not seem to match up.

Spiritually, how do you survive working in a culture where you are either not the favorite, where you wind up to be the one hired by someone else who has since moved on and now the people that you work with are not thrilled with you, or how do you survive in an environment where you are not wanted.

1. I hope that you will have the graced gift of someone who truly believes in you, like Al Pacino found in Francis Ford Coppola. Who knows you and your potential.
2. Sometimes with the grace of God, you realize it is time to move on and that God has greater plans for you, then if you stayed in your own little comfortable world. I have found that true in my own life and with the help of others have moved for my own betterment.
3. Know your own gifts, know your own talents, know your own limitations, Be yourself authentically – don’t try to be someone else.
4. Be a man or woman of deep prayer, trust and willing to put out into the deep.
5. Know that you are going to have in your spiritual life moments of desolation and moments of consolation. For us priests, the first year of being in a new parish can be the absolute worst year of our life, as we can wind up in a culture where we truly feel not welcome, or wanted. Persevere – it does get better.
6. Take the longer view when looking at life. God does not always work with straight lines. If you look in a longer view spiritually you will find that those places that we have been are usually formative in preparing us for some future.
7. Get out on the field every day and give it your all.
8. Know that if you study the lives of the Saints, many of them had people who really did not believe in them and actively persecuted them. Strive to be saints!

I personally wish Tim Tebow well in his journeys. I am working on my next blog which will be a personal reflection of my encounter with another great man of faith and a great NFL Coach. His name is Don Shula.

Stay tuned!

Fr. Brad

On Sunday March 11th, our High School Youth dedicated their evening towards helping the poor and the most abandoned. They participated in a program called Kids against Hunger. Each of the teens in the High School Program helped to package meals for the less fortunate in the world. Collectively they packaged 4,270 meals. Through the program they are sending 19 boxes for food to Uganda and gave 3 boxes of food to the food pantry.

Congratulations to the Mary Jo Fry, Seminarian Jason Keas and the entire High School Youth program for participating in this great program. You really are making a difference in the world!

This Lent continues to be a holy time of sacrifice and care or the poor and most abandoned. I also want to thank the Elementary and Mid School Program for participating in the Lenten Rice Bowl Program.

Fr. Brad

This past Sunday we heard the story of our Lord driven by the Spirit out into the desert, tempted by Satan, among the wild beasts and ministered to by the angels. As I reflected to you in the homily, all of us in our own life are going to face arid, or desert times in our life. All of us are going to face difficult times in our life. All of us are going to face suffering in our life. All of us are going to face temptations in the midst of suffering. All of us are going to walk with someone whom we love that is going to go through suffering.

As I reflected in the homily, the scriptural verse about being surrounded by the wild beasts is a good reminder of the presence of desolation in our life. We are going to have those difficult or sad moments in our life. The scriptural verse about being ministered to by the angels is a reminder that we are going be receive consolation in the midst of the desolation. It is usually those moments of consolations that give us the strength to persevere. As I said to you last week, that while I cannot promise that you will not go through those times of desolation, it is my fervent hope and prayer that the moments of consolation will outweigh the moments of desolation.

Today we hear the story of Abraham being put to the test. In each of our lives we are all going to be put to the test in some way or another. St. Julian of Norwich reminds of

“You will not be overcome.
God did not say you will not be troubled.
You will not be belabored.
You will not be disquieted;
But God said, You will not be overcome.”

May we never lose hope and may we persevere in times of trouble.

Fr. Brad

(Executive Director of Catholic Charities of Central Colorado)

Dear CC Board members,

We are about to enter into the wonderful season of Lent! I know many of us have memories – perhaps current perceptions – of Lent as a time simply to “give things up,” or put some things we enjoy out of sight. Some others of us may not think much differently about Lent than we do any other time. Yet, we are given an awesome gift with this season. And because we are serving the poor, I know Christ means for Lent to deepen our relationship with him. We serve those who are deprived of so much in their lives and usually deprived of love, most of all. In suffering his passion and death, Christ was deprived of everything in a way that, I am convinced, gives him special affection for those we serve. Blessed Mother Teresa put it like this, “On the cross He was deprived of everything. The cross itself had been given Him by Pilate; nails and the crown, by the soldiers. He was naked. When He died He was stripped of the cross, the nails and the crown. He was wrapped in a piece of canvas donated by a charitable soul, and He was buried in a tomb that did not belong to Him.” Jesus felt abandoned and rejected by nearly everyone and He knew poverty like no other person in human history in dying for our sins!

So, my prayer for you is that you will find amazing ways to let God enter your lives more deeply this Lent, especially in little things; for God’s presence is surely in the whisper.

I’d also like to share a reflection that appeared in this month’s Magnificat devotional magazine. I think it captures the right spirit for a meaningful Lent and a life well lived:

Taking Up Our Cross

I think that the best thing of all is your devotion to our Lord. It is to give ourselves to him that we must come. It must be under the inspiration of his unselfishness, of his service to God in man and of man in God, that we seek to join ourselves to him: there were those who followed because they had been fed in the wilderness. This wasn’t enough. “Signs and wonders” are not good enough proofs; the only great proof is that people have followed him down narrow lanes and over uneven paths and wearing thorns and carrying their cross. It is along that line then that you must pray that he would help you to give yourself to him, patiently, indeed serenely. You won’t then bother about arguing or the need of it. You will just follow where he leads you, sure that all will be well: “Be not solicitous (anxious).” For the past, remember his injunction to let the dead bury their dead; for the future, remember that the morrow, so he said, would take care of itself. All that’s to be done is to hold oneself in the Everlasting Arms or rather be held by them. The rest is peace that comes of having nothing left.

–Father Bede Jarrett, O.P.**

**Father Jarrett (1934) was a Dominican priest from England renowned for his preaching, his lectures, and his many books on theology and spirituality.

Thank you for all you do for Catholic Charities. May God bless you and your families!

Mark

Mark C. Rohlena, Esq.
President/CEO
Catholic Charities of Central Colorado

Normally I like to blog about different events either in my life or in the life of this very vibrant parish. This time I would like to share with you an Urgent Message from Cardinal Designate Timothy Dolan and a letter from our Bishop Michael Sheridan.

First, here’s the video message from Cardinal Designate Dolan:

Now an important letter from our Bishop which I personally ask you to take time to read.

Both Cardinal Designate Dolan and Bishop Sheridan are asking you to stand up as Catholics and protect our sacred rights and duties. Please visit the USCCB website for more information on what you can do – http://www.usccb.org/conscience.

Thanks, Fr. Brad

The Lord has given and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord. (Job 1:21)

Early this morning my 14 year old Chesapeake Bay Retriever Ginger passed away in her sleep. I was entrusted with the care for Ginger about 4 years ago when my Mom passed away from complications of a massive stroke. My Mom and Dad were entrusted with the care of Ginger for most of her years. My sister Ruth Ann actually found Ginger when she came into her home as a rescue dog. The Lord really gave us a great dog to care for. In fact I believe that my Mom was able to live alone for three and a half years following the death of my dad because she felt safe with Ginger around. Ginger was a gentle guard dog who took care of Mom. When Mom passed, my sisters allowed me to take Ginger home to Colorado and the picture above is Ginger experiencing her first snow. She actually loved the snow and it was sometimes hard to get her in. As you saw on the webpage a few weeks ago, Ginger and Susie really got along together and certainly enjoyed trips to the cabin and to the dog park.

This morning as I drove to the vet with Ginger’s remains, that scriptural verse from Job came to mind. The Lord gave me Ginger, even for a shorter period then I would have liked. The Lord has seen to take her away, probably because my Mom and Dad missed their dog and wanted her home. Blessed be the name of the Lord! Today I just reflected on the blessings of having Ginger in my life. Today I have been blessing the name of the Lord and thanking him for all the blessings that I richly, but undeservedly enjoy.

Please keep me in your prayers.

Fr. Brad

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house not a creature was stirring, not even Fr. Carlos!

Our teens and young adults had sung Christmas Carols to those in the Nursing Homes and sang to Sue Herman and Family!

Our Environment Committee had worked long hours to make our new Church look pretty for our First Christmas in our new Church!

Andy had come by on his tractor and cleaned the foot of snow from our Parking Lot!

Our office was closed, the phones stopped ringing with people inquiring “what time is midnight Mass?” (This year 9pm).

So in the blessed quiet of the moment, Fr. Carlos, Deacon Tom, Deacon Chuck and my very hard working staff and I want to wish you a Very Merry Christmas! Thanks for the sacrifices that you made to get us into our new Church! Have a happy, holy, blessed, and prosperous new year!

Merry Christmas to all! And to all a good night!

As you know I arrived back late last night from a pastoral visit to the Archdiocese of Kingston, Jamaica. Myself and a brother Priest were invited by the Archbishop of Kingston to look at the possibility of establishing a Sister Parish. I will certainly blog about this more in the future. I am very grateful to the Archbishop for his invitation, his own personal hospitality shown to us and to the great hospitality shown to us by the people whom we encountered.

I had the chance to spend an afternoon as well with the Missionaries of the Poor who do such great care with the poor and the most abandoned in Kingston. Wow, I would certainly encourage you to look them up on the web and to offer them your financial support and prayers. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, let me tell you a story about Donovan!

At one of the several places of care that I visited, I walked in and immediately began to say hello to each resident and ask how they were doing. I personally love that very human touch. As I was doing this I heard a voice say from across the room “Hi Father!” I turned and there was Donovan. Donovan is the young man seated in the wheelchair. He told me that several years ago he had met Pope John Paul II when he had visited Jamaica. So we both had a time to share our memories and love for this great Pope! What still strikes me is that Donovan radiated joy in the midst of such suffering and pain. He had that radiating joy that made you leave joyful!

As we get so close to Christmas I tend to meet so many Catholics and others who do not radiate joy! Sadly they radiate unhappiness, impatience, especially since they are not getting all that they want, when they want it.. Donovan to me is a great example for us, or radiating joy. You can really tell that Jesus is with him as he goes through each day. I would strongly encourage you to send a monetary gift to the Missionaries of the Poor to help them as they care for the poor.

What a great early Christmas gift this trip was for me! Fr. Brad

We know that Saint Francis of Assisi was credited with beginning and encouraging the use of the Manger scene at Christmas time.

It is written –

“What he did on the birthday of our Lord Jesus Christ near the little town called Greccio in the third year before his glorious death should be especially noted and recalled with reverent memory…Blessed Francis sent for this man…about fifteen days before the Birth of the Lord and he said to him If you want us to celebrate the present feast of our Lord at Greccio, go with haste and diligently prepare what I tell you. For I wish to do something that will recall the memory of the little Child who was born in Bethlehem and set before our bodily eyes in some way the inconveniences of his infant needs, how he lay upon the hay where he had been place…The Manger was prepared, the hay had been bought, the ox and the ass were led in. There simplicity was honored, poverty was exalted, humility was commended and Greccio was made as it were a new Bethlehem. The night was lighted up like the day, and it delighted men and beasts. The people came and were filled with new joy over the new mystery. The people came and were filled with new joy over the new mystery. The woods rang with the voices of the crowd and the rock made answer to their jubilation…. The solemnities of the Mass were celebrated over the manger and the priest experienced a new consolation…”

Merry Christmas!

May we have in our homes a Manger Scene. May we have, as the people of Greccio had experienced, experience abundant and resounding joy remembering the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ!

In Christ!

Fr. Brad

An Advent Reflection from St. Francis of Assisi – Second Sunday in Advent

Sometimes in the midst of this Advent Season we get so preoccupied with finding the right present for a particular person and unfortunately we tend to stress out as human beings. As we pull into a particular shopping mall our stress level comes up because someone took our parking spot that we were ready to pull into. Or we get impatient on the checkout line. Or someone took the last of the particular item that we were looking for. There doesn’t seem to be enough time in the day…

St. Francis teaches us two lessons:

“Where there is patience and humility, there is neither anger nor disturbance.“
Saint Francis of Assisi, the Admonitions XXVII: Virtue puts vice to flight.

So a great Advent Lesson is to be have both patience and humility.

So in this Holy Season of Advent and Preparation it can be so easy to have lots of cares and worries. St. Francis talks about setting aside cares and worries.

“In the holy love which is God, I beg all my brothers… after overcoming every impediment and putting aside every care and anxiety, to serve, love, honor and adore the Lord God with a clean heart and a pure mind in whatever way they are best able to do so, for that is what He wants above all else.”
(St. Francis of Assisi, the Earlier Rule XXII An Admonition to the Brothers, 80)

May the Peace of Christ be with you!

Fr. Brad

The Holy Season of Advent begins for us!

Today we as a universal church begin a new Year with this most liturgical Season of Advent. Advent is a time of preparation not only for the Second Coming of the Lord, but also a time of remembrance of the Birth of Christ. It is a time of waiting, preparation and hope. It can be a very holy time in our life if we choose to prepare ourselves wisely. I know that this can be a very busy time in our lives as we prepare our own houses for Christmas by putting up lights and a Christmas Tree. A lot of people are frantically running around trying to find the “perfect present” for someone whom we deeply love. The malls seem to be so crowded, the people whom we encounter seem to be so rushed, so unfriendly.

If we deeply love Jesus Christ, our Lord, this most holy season of Advent really becomes a time or waiting for the Lord, watching for the Lord, preparing for the Lord. I invite each of you to be somewhat countercultural and incorporate and Advent Wreath in your house, find and use and Advent Calendar, pray Morning/Evening and Night Prayer (you can sign up for I Breviary to download to your computer, I phone, I pad – You are on it anyway all day). I would encourage you to get to Confession (– call Fr. Carlos or I for a Special Appointment, or come on Saturday from 4:15-5:15pm).

I would encourage you to watch spiritually enriching programs on TV. HBO had a great special entitled Top Ten Monks. I would encourage you and your family to watch this great special about these Cistercian Monks in Austria. They really live in the world, but not of the world. I would encourage you to watch a glimpse of this on You Tube – enjoy. I really enjoyed their authenticity and their peace.

May this be an incredible time of holy preparation for us all!

Happy Advent!

Fr. Brad