PRAYER in the Life of a Christian Fausto B GOMEZ OP ‘BRISTIAN LIFE IS: Prayer is essentially SPIRITUAL LIFE, needed in the life of every which is walkingac- Christian — priest, religious cording to the Holy Spirit. PRAYER: NEED AND OBLIGATION or lay person. We all NEED to pray We are God’s children, baptized in the Blessed Trinity. We are weak and needy: “Beggars of God” (St Augustine), “Apart from me, you can do nothing,”Jesus says (Jn 15:5). One of my students writes: “Prayer is a must, and it is the of our strength (like boosters and medicines).” We need to pray especial- ly now when there is too much conflict. struggle September 2015/LIFE TODAY and debates ...1 e are one body and soul? Our bodies need physi- eal food to live and stay strong. Our souls need spiritual food to be alive in God. To those who followed Jesus expecting physical food — bread and fish — He tells them: “Do not work for the food that perishes but for the food which lasts, and which gives eternal life . ..” (Jn 6:25-27), We are OBLIGED to pray always We believe in God, hope in him and love him. There- fore, we have to pray. Jesus tells us: “Pray always and | never lose heart” (Lk 18:1). After the Ascension of our Lord, the apostles, together with some women including Mary our Mother, went to the upper room to pray. “With one heart all these joined constantly in | Prayer” (Acts 1:12-14). Tn our hurried life, weneed to go to the upper room to pray. St Paul says: “Pray) constantly” (1Thes 5:17). | ‘The Lord asks us to pray al- yoeways, that is to pray daily: actually or virtually, and ex- ternally or internally. “In faith, hope and charity, the constant desire of love *"' makes us pray continually” (St Augustine). “Desire, without ceasing, the blessed life, which is none other than eternal life” (St Augus- tine, Letter to Proba; in Of: fice of Readings, I, 29th Monday). Praying ceaselessly is the actual or virtual desire of charity and consequently, the constant intention of doing all things for the glory of God (1Cor 10:31; St Tho- mas Aquinas, II-II, 93, 14). Praying ceaselessly, for the Russian pilgrim, means to remember God at all times and in all places and circumstances, MoDthS Jesus was a prayerful person. As we see in the Gospels, He prayed always, especially « when making an impor- tant decision or celebrat- ing an important event; * before encountering the scribes and Pharisee (Lk 5:16); * before choosing the twelve apostles; * before Peter’s confession (Lik 9:28); * before teaching his dis- ciples to pray (Lk 11:1). Mary was very prayer- ful: she kept in her heart and meditated on every- thing that happened around Jesus. St Dominic always talked with God or of God. “Never asking for a reward, he just talked about the Lord.” All the saints are prayerful persons. We have to pray DAILY WHAT ir Heans We pray today, now, this moment, which is the only thing in our hands. Hence, our prayer is not yesterday or tomorrow but today. “If ) today you hear his voice, harden not your heart” (Ps 95:7-8), How LONG for an individual prayer? Ten, fifteen, twenty, thirty minutes? It is up to each one of us. What is essential is to be faithful to it, daily, so that we may acquire the good habit of prayerfulness and will never leave it. We can LEARN topray “ov How do we learn to pray? Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta says: “By praying.” Saint Padre Pio of Pie- trelcina answers: “By pray- ing always.” Is it difficult to pray and to contemplate? The Master of Novices answered a novice by giving him the two great laws of contemplation: “The first law is to pray; and the second is to keep at it.” LIFE TODAY / September 2015PROPER ATTITUDE IN PRAYING Zz ies, oF PRAY prayer should be Mana Taw Fe . oe Ee Prayeristhe 44) offered with a ure be recollected, not scat- language of hum! o indiand beactee tered. Prayer time is God’s resent before : : time, quality time eae A Without humi- And ith buming ee lity, progress in zeal, with lose attention, prayer is not pos- with fear and reverence ang sible (of St Teresa of with the deepest humility, Avila, Interior In another classic of Castle, 7M 4, 8). Spiritual theology, The Way In the actual of the Pilgrim (n6), the anonymous Russian author presence of God, we tells us what a true prayer are humble. We are sinners like the should be. publican (Mt 6:5-6). i We are humbly Prayer time is penitent. “Lord, Iam resting time sorry,” and ask his for- Let us take seriously the giveness (Mt 6:14-15). words of Jesus to the “Pardon your neighbor —_ apostles: “Come away to any wrong done to some lonely place all by | you, and when you yourselves and rest for a | pray your sins willbe \hile" (Mk 6:31). | forgiven” (Si 28:20). “Let ws not forgot that preven involves God also needed to resti“He | 2 * rested on the seventh day | \total trust inGod gherall thework Hehas | God is our Father done” (Gen 22). t who loves us, We are ‘The famous Christian his children and we doctor Paul Tournier says | work hard tobe child- that silence helps him much | like. in coming closer to God. | Prayeriseffective Prayer helps him realize medicine against pride that two things go into the anda “holier-and-wiser- making of a professional: | than-thou” attitude. competence and compassion September 2015/1IFE TODAY aES D pgs fe NATURE AND KINDS OF PRAYER ayer is“one thing that the table of the Eucharist. It can conquer God” (Ter- ig sacrifice and sacrament, tullian). It is “the lifting up? of mind and heart to God” (St John Damascene). It is like the breathing of the soul, feeling God’s presence in our lives and communicat-” ing with him. Prayer is the language of the heart in love with God, St Teresa of Avila, still an incomparable master of prayer, defines prayer: “A dialogue of friendship, being alone many times with the One we know that loves us.” She could not under- stand why the whole world does not try to approach God through this particular friendship, Prayer is personal ” and communitarian ¢ We need both: we are per- sons and social beings, in- dividuals and children of God. We belong to God’s Family. ‘The celebration of the *fioly Eucharist is the com- munitarian prayer par excel- dlence during which we take communion at two tables — the table of the Word and an act of thanksgiving, wor- ship, petition and atone- ment for our sins, The first Christians were asked: “Why do you cele- brate the Breaking of the Bread when you know that, if caught, you will be sent to jail?” Their answer: “We are) Christians. We cannot Fe without the Eucharist.” For them the —o was a mystical experience, the experience of the sweet- ness of God. ‘The Sunday Eucharist is an experience of God! Prayer is vocal and mental, external internal, with svortia) or in silence Prayer is talking but mostly listening. What matters in prayer is that it is done properly, ‘We need to be aware of who is talking; to whom he is talking; and what he is saying (St Teresa of Avila); to be aware of God and of one’s self, of God’s love and our poverty. ‘God says to St Cathe- rine: “I am He-who-is, you are she-who-is-not.” To wien Prayer is addressed to God, to Jesus, to Mary, to the saints (ef CCC, 2664-2672) Prayer and devotion are the two main acts of religion. through which we relate to. and unite with God, All prayers are Trinitarian Prayers: “Through Christ our Lord, in the Spirit, to God the Father.” Devotion is primarily to God and secondarily to the saints. (We pray to the saints so that they will join their prayers to ours), ‘We recall St Teresa’s words: “Few devotions and much devotion.” She had a few devotions that aided her much (especially the devo- tion to Our Lady and to Saint Joseph), but cautioned against useless devotions, “From silly devotions deliver us, Lord,” she says. As Christians, we ought to have a special devotion to Mary, whois also our Mother and the disciple of disciples, LIFE TODAY / September 2015Ey How about praying to needy, so we ask for God's a ae the souls in purgatory? help—for ourselves and for ike bil ieee Traditional answer: We others. ‘i ee broth =m pray for them, but not to ‘The well-known saying Mane inches > them f i " i = = em for they do not enjoy, “Mens sana in corpore We pray for all: for our as yet, the vision of God (see _is not just that, but: ‘Oran- ‘St Thomas II-II, 83, 4, 3). dum est ut sit mens sana in Church and our com- munities, for our families, But theologian K.Rahner —_corpore sano” (Juvenal) — i answers in the positive, “We pray to have a sound for sinners, for the souls in mind in a sound body” (Juan purgatory, and for those Prayer is very often Manuel de Prada, ABC, have wronged us. intercessory September 8, 2013). We are sinners and | NOTES ON SOME METHODS OF PRAYER | Different methods Lectio Divina is still Sample way of prayer of prayer very popular throughout the In our fast-paced world, Whatis the best method world —for monks, priests, many of us do not have of prayer? Any method or religious men and women, time, particularly for long kind of prayer is good as and for lay faithful. periods of contemplative Jong as the result is good ~ This very rich prayer has prayer. I suggest a shorter increase in love of God and _ four parts: and very fruitful kind of con- ighbor. The best method Reading (attentive templative prayer. is one suited to us. spiritual reading, especially, Sit comfortably, close your ‘These methods areuse- _ the Holy Seriptures); eyes, feel your breath,ex- | fal: Meditation (reflective perieuce the preeence of * Pray with the Bible (read, _thinking: what does this God through faith. Listen refleet, and respond); mean to me?); tohim. + Pray with Mary (the Prayer of the heart * Like a mantra repeat a Rosary, the Angelus); (dialogue with God: giving sree, a wondechul wort + Pray like the Russian thanks, asking for forgive- “Jesus.” Repeat “Jesus” pilgrim (repeating: “Lord _ness, petition, and praise); slowly, time and time Jesus Christ, have mercy Contemplation (silence, again; “breath” Jesus (the on me a sinner”); love, adoration). Jesus of Advent, of Christ- * Lectio Divina (Divine One part made explicit mas, of Lent, of Easter; tbe Reading). today: Action (good deeds), Crucified and Risen Lord) September 2015/ LIFE TODAY Ed+ Try hard to expel from your heart the thoughts of an always fertile imagina- tion (“the crazy one of the house,” according to St Teresa). * Do not force things, relax, listen to the Holy Spirit, say what comes to you: “Sorry, Lord,” “Help me Lord,” “I tove you Lord,” “Thank you, Lord.” + Above all, keep silent. Meet God at the depth of your soul, of your entire being. Listen to God's sounds of silence. We search for God. We long for him: “Like a parched land, my soul thirsts for |, you" (Ps 143:6). | a rn Anselm Grun, a modern mystic, advises us: “I sit silently before God; I let God Took at me and I look at him. ‘As I look at God, I forget myself. I feel loved; just that.” St John Vianney, the saintly Curé of Ars, daily saw an old man praying ‘after Mass: he did not move his lips; his eyes were on the altar. The holy priest asked him: “What do you do kneel- ing at the rear of the Church every day?” The old man answered: ‘I talk to God,” “And what do you say?” Old man: ‘Nothing. I just look at him and he looks at me!” We must have a place for God in our heart, for with him “your heart will rejoice and your limbs regain vigor like the grass” (Is 66:14). ‘We need silence in our hurried life and we need to lis- ten to “the sounds of silence” (cf Lk 10:38-42), “I will be silent and let God speak within” (Meister Eckhart), Make pauses of silence daily. These can help us ex- perience God in a sunset, in the smile of a child, ina poor beggar, in the suffering patient, or in our co-pilgrims on the journey of life. Do not rush, smell the flowers on the way and contemplate the tenderness of God. Pope Francis sums up his preferred prayer life as follows: “[ pray the breviary every morning. | like to pray with the psalms, Later, I celebrate Mass, I pray the Rosary, What I really prefer is adoration in the evening, even when I get distracted and think of other things, or even fall asleep praying. In the evening, between seven and eight o'clock, Istay in front of the Blessed Sacra- ment for an hour in adora- tion. I pray mentally even LIFE TODAY / September 2015when I am wi from vocal prayer Wo Oye en posiving ana dentist ora into mental prayer, and raise (cf Simon Chan, ge the day” (Interview by An from mental prayer into com 183), : tonio Spadaro SJ, Editor, templative prayer. As we ‘St John of the Cross in. Civilta Cattolica, Rome, srton ie leet vites us to reach deep within } August 2013). Ee aoe our souls and get back in Praying isajourney _ prayer is our selfishness; Sa ae oe a » ni in. Hopefully we pray better “selflessness. _ as we go along from sae As we mature in faith we eae kind of prayer to another. move from self-centered to pray si re The classical process is this: prayers to God-centered prayers, from petitionary THE FRUITS OF PRAYER 'n his Diary of a Country the promise of Jesus: “Any- Certainly, God always Tris , author Georges thing you ask from the answers. However, his ‘Bernanos puts these words ‘Father, He will grant in my answers may not be what we want as his ways are not in the lips of the main char- acter, a humble priest: name . .. Ask and you will receive” (Jn 16:23-24; cf Mt 7:1). He did not say, maybe “When has any man of prayer told us that prayer you will receive, but you will, }) has failed him?” receive what you asked for. | Prayer cannot fail! ‘The promise of Jesus“ Why is it that at times refers primarily to the we do not seem to receive giving of the Holy Spirit, from God what we ask for? _the granting of good things, Using the parable ofthe “We are quite confident that. corrupt judge and the per- if we ask him for anything, sistent widow, Jesus tellsus and itis in accordance with “the mecessity of praying al- his will, He will hear us” ways and not losing heart.” (Jn 5:14). “Whatever we ask Ifthe corrupt judge listened him, we shall receive, because to the persistent widow how —_we keep his commandments, much more will God the and live the kind of life that Father listen tous? We have _ he wants” (1Jn 3:22), September 2015/LIFE TODAY eee our ways (Is 55:8; cf CCC, 2736-2737). God, our Father in heaven, knows what is good for us not just today or tomorrow, but throughout. our lives (cf Lk 18:1-8; of Mt ‘T:1-12; Mk 11:23-24), St Basil affirms: “If you) asked and did not receiveit| | is because you asked for \ something that is not good; or you asked for it without | faith, or it is not convenient for you; or you did not per- Severe in asking” (see St | Thomas, II-II, 83, 15).When we ask something 7 Prayer leadstoa ») from God, we must say — like Jesus — “Your will be done,” not ours!, Faith as- sures us that God always: gives us strength, Jesus said: “By their fruits you will know them.” ‘The goodness of prayer comes not from thinking much or saying many prayers, but from loving much, Prayer is a humaniz- ) ing and divinizing process: a process to change the silky caterpillar of our soul into ~ the white butterfly of God. (St Teresa, Interior Castle: MB, 2, 4). growing rejection of sin One fruit of prayer is our firmer resolve to say no to sin! “One cannot sit the con- traries, God and sin, at the same table” (St Teresa), Prayer is especially help- ful against temptation, “Watch and pray” (Mk 14:38). Prayer leads to the ,) practice of virtues Prayer, indeed, is the mother of all virtues (St Catherine of Siena). Prayer strengthens us to practice and defend basi¢ ,) values such as life, truth, freedom, justice and solidarity. It aids us in acquiring the virtues that help us prac- tice the basic ethical prin- ciples of human life, such as respect for every human being, truthfulness, stewardship, justice, love. Above all, prayer is the +) practice of love, the virtue of virtues: “Put love where there is none, and you will reap love”; “In the evening, you will be examined on love” (St John of the Cross). ‘Genuine prayer entails the practi : love of God and love of neighbor, particularly the less for- tunate neighbor. St Vincent de Paul says: “Looking after the sick is praying.” ‘True prayer is necessari- ly linked to compassion. 7) Prayer, together with almsgiving, can furnish us with countless good things from above; they can quench the fire of sin in our souls and can give us great freedom (St John Chrysos- tom, The Seventh Baptismal Instruction), LIFE TODAY / September 2015TT ml 5 Prayer is a source of ~ strength to carry our cross Prayer with love makes our cross bearable and even Joyful. Jesus says: “If you want to be my disciple, deny yourself, take up your cross and follow me.” Prayer helps every Chris- tian carry out the duties of his/her wocation. « Prayer leads to good work Work needs the breath- ing of prayer to become a prayer, and certainly prayer time is never wasted time. “We need this deep connec- tion with God in our daily life, How can we obtain it? September 2015/LIFE TODAY By prayer” (Blessed Mother ‘Teresa of Calcutta; of Benedict XVI, DCE, 36). Prayer gives: meaning to our work and to all our ac: tivities. Pope Francis tells us: “Pray and work...” “prayer, interior space, prolonged moments of adora~ tion, prayerful encounter with the Word, sincere con- versation with the Lord .. . are needed so that our words do not become mean- ingless" (EG, 262). Prayer must not replace work, but animate, purify, improve our work, including our professional work. If we are prayerful, our work be- comes a prayer: our work is our participation in God’s creation, and, therefore, our work must be competent work, the mission of a true vocation, asa passion of love. Prayer helps us love our work and the people we work with. Khalil Gibran, a philo- sophical essayist, novelist, and mystic poet, says that those who work without loving their work should not work, but ask for alms at the entrance of the temple. How come our prayers do not bear fruit? Often our prayers do not, seem to be heard. Perhaps, we do not follow the recipe Jesus tells us not to like the hypocrites who pray to be seen and applauded (cf ‘Mt 6:5); not like those who are too talkative before God, who multiply words to be heard (cf Mt 6:7). We pray as Jesus taught us: “Our Father who art in heaven,” (Mt 6:9-13). St Thomas Aquinas points out that the benefits of prayer are: remedy from evils; * attainment of what we desire; and * establishment of friendship with God. To obtain these benefits, however, certain conditions need to be met, namely; * confidence; * rectitude; * order; * devoutness; * humility (The Aquinas Catechism, “On theCONCLUSION re do not leave prayer, Wey in an emergency of love! Joseph Cardinal Ber- nardin states: “Jesus” work, at times, interfered with his sleep, but never with his prayer” (The Gift of Peace, 1997). St Teresa of Avila ad- vises us: “Never leave .. «there is always remedy for those who pray ... prayer is the royal road toheaven.” We are sinners so we ask God's forgiveness, Prayer leads to penance; and the virtue of penance, to the Sacrament of Penance. Prayer is the best way to purify, to change, to renew, that is, to be faithful to one’s vocation. ‘We persevere in prayer, even (and especially) when we struggle in life. Prayer leads to personal and community or family change. We can ask others to change; but, unless we change, we can- not truly ex- pect change, ek kK OK The story ofagreatMus- _—Let.us close this reflec- lim mystic goes: tion by praying the prayer As a young man he Jesus taught us (Mt 6:9-13); Prayed: “God make me a revolutionary to change the ee os heaven, won oeiite eas ced hallowed be thy name, are: thy Kingdom come, ae ney aay thy will be done on earth ose around me.” Bu ; ; as itis in heaven, sly perceptible change! Give this day “God, Lane our daily bread, and sell? Only then had ho be- forgive us our trespasses gun to hacige Linas? Kia as we forgive those who mai aa ; trespass against us, and ‘die willn, lead us not into temptation, oa wil i Merry, but deliver us from \ Ly evil. Amen. tially, Ze se LIFE TODAY / September 2015Cent emma Effective Prayet Life ‘HY ARE OUR PRAYERS NOT ANSWERED? How can we get our prayers answered? To have an effec- tive prayer life there are other requirements as well. First: family unity In Peter 3:1-7, Simon. Peter says that when family unity is violated and there is not an earnest effort to al- leviate that disunity, the prayer lives of the people in- volved are negatively im- pacted. He instructed wives to be loyal and submissive to their husbands. This is not some kind of dogmatic pos- sessiveness where the hus- band sets himself up as ruler and everybody in the family must work to please him. It simply means that the husband is the spiritual leader in the home and that the wife and the children are to look to the hus- September 2015 /LIFE TODAY ATILIO V ALICIO band/father for spiritual leadership — for direction. He is not a dictator. Peter says to husbands: “Dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honor unto the wife.” Get to know what the scripture teaches. Know her needs, not by emo- tion, but by knowledge. Be- come more aware of all the facts necessary to be a suc- cessful husband. ‘The husband is to honor the wife. That means he lifts her up above everybody else in the world, besides the Lord. He talks about her as the most important person in his life, outside of Christ. In every dispute, including with the children, he takes the side of his wife. When the wife has a hus- band who honors her, who never yells at her, who is never unkind to her, who respects her under all cir- cumstances; and the hus- ‘band has a wife who loves him and is submissive to him, and who sets him above every other person in her life, both have done much to enhance their prayer lives. Second: healthy personal relation- ships ‘This is not just in the family, but outside the fami- ly. Keeping good, wholesome relationships going with everybody is not easy in this fast-moving world. There are a lot of difficult people out there (it could be me, it could be you). But God is pleased when brethren ‘dwell together in unity. We cannot make people love us, but we can love everybody. We can turn every stone over. As long as there is one thing we haven't done to patch up and heal a bad relationship, don’t go to God expecting to have power in prayer. TC—Eo Let us stop and think over those preceding words, Jsany member of the family of God angry with us? If we want an effective prayer life, we must make an all-out at- tempt to heal the breach, Third: liberal attitude toward God When covetousness and materialism dominate our life, so that we are not liberal with God in offer- ings, our prayer life is hindered. Fourth: life of forgiveness This old flesh of ours is by nature retaliatory. Somebody does something bad a to us and we want to pay him back. Our first Tesponse ought to be forgiveness, Our Prayer life will not have the maximum effectiveness available to us until we have truly forgiven — not Just in words but also in our hearts! Fifth: reading the Word of God ‘When we sin against God, when we fail to read his Word in a systematic way, we hinder our prayer life. I canot imagine starting aday without God. How could we come to God in prayer later that day, when we need help from him, if we did not have time to lis- ten to him that morning? ‘eall have our ups and downs in life. Some- times the bad days stack up one after the other. Just keep on doing all the practi- cal things that are right. Keep our family’s unity strong. Keep our relation- ship in God's family healthy and wholesome. Always lean to forgive under whatever circumstances. Avoid materialism. ‘These are simple things, but I believe herein lie most of the problems that are wrecking our prayer lives —the prayer lives of God's people. ‘These are things we can begin today. Then we can expect God to begin answering our prayers. LIFE TODAY / September 2015Pe CRTATLYNG ee Sunday Sermons: Ordeal or Deliverance? THE ESSENCE OF SUNDAY SERMONS ERMONS are nothing more than a pastor's at- tempt to translate the gospel messages to our times. It entails the pastor's desire to lead his flock in the right way in accordance to the teachings of Christ. He per- forms this by personally reflecting and integrating these messages first to his own life. Only then can he facilitate the congregation to reflect and integrate on the same messages in their own lives, too. ‘September 2015 /LIFE TODAY EARNEST L TAN ‘The pastor is effective in so far as he is able to model his own striving to live out the gospel messages of Christ. This means that he is im- mersed in his own reality as well as the reality of the com- munity and world around him. This includes confront- ing as well as disclosing his own struggles in his effort to reach the ideals of the gospel. This entails honesty with his own incongruences and incon- sistencies between his words and actions, This involves authentic witnessing that he can only fully achieve libera- tion through the help of Christ. Only then can they together — the clergy and the congregation — become one in their collective effort to be more Christ-like in their ways as they turn to Jesus Christ for strength, healing, redemp- tion, inspiration and hope. everal Filipino films de- pict scenes where men automatically walk out once the priest commences his ho- mily in the pulpit. They troop outside the church patio to smoke or chat. This has become a stereo- type in our culture. Often this becomes a commentary of our men who perhaps resist the idea of being preached to and further reminded of their sins. Let us, however, tum the tables around. Let us focus this time on the priests and the kind of homily that they offer us. Cler- gies used to be the “untouch- ables” where even a slight negative comment about them would court flaks and criticisms. In the spirit, however, of the Vatican's recent call for clergies to come up with good homilies, let us critique them with regards to this.‘We attempt this not to put them down. Rather we take on the role of a playful court, jester who pokes fun at their jeaders in order to point out certain truths. Normally this could cost their lives, Their demeanour, however, spares them as they utilize humour which helps rub off any tinge of meanness that may come with their message, DIFFERENT TYPES OF SERMONS She following is a listing of some of the most common type of sermons that I have observed from our clergies: “Fire and Hell” Sermons This is the classic style that is consistent with cler- gies who are in the First Vatican mode. It utilizes what | term as the Theology of ‘Guilt and Fear’ to motivate the faithful to veer away from temptation and sin. Its approach is to prick the conscience of the faithful 80 that they will not stray from the right path. This can easily be detected by thenum- ber ofreferences that thecler- sy makes on Satan and hell. The problem with this type of sermon is that the con- Sregation is treated like little children. “Comedy Bar” Sermons This type of sermon swings to the other end of the pendulum. The clergy who feels pressured to court ap- Proval and acceptance from the congregation strains hard towin them. They resort to entertain- ing the people by telling jokes in the pulpit. This may cer- tainly get the audience's at- tention. The clergy certainly won't be considered as boring. They however stray away from the message of the gospel reading. “Political Activist” Sermons ‘The clergy who utilizes this type of sermon manages to weave in their political agendas with the gospel mes- sages. ‘While we cannot fully eom- partmentalize politics from faith, the priest can at times go too far with this. This be- comes their sole message every Sunday. Those who are not poli- ticized can be shaken and agitated. This may prompt them to walk out. I have heard some churchgoers say this; “There goes Father again with his politicking. Let’s just take the next Mass.” “Anger and Hate” Sermons This type of homily is nothing short of the ventila- tion of the priest. The con- gregation has to endure the lashing out of their angst-rid- den clergy. At times this is born of a burnt-out case. LIFE TODAY / September 2015One tiny incident, ie, a baby crying, can trigger the Priest to cite ali tany of things to be angry and hate about, We end up serving them by being their “garbage dump” of unwanted emotions, “Closetea” Sermons This homily reflects the limited world of the priest. His lack of exposure to the World is indicated by his ex- amples, He talks only about his problems within the four walls of the parish, Attimes it Tedounds to petty issues in the convent. He can be so out of touch with reality that the congregation feels so out of touch with the clergy. “Philosophical” Sermons This type of homily is dished out by intellectual priests. They offer brilliant exhortations about the gospel with clear references and re- searches, They can beimpres- sive with their academic backgrounds, The congregation usually leaves the church uttering Praises for the priest, In reply to the query — “What was his homily about?” September 2015 /LIFE TODAY — the most likely ree would be— “I dont know. Bui ‘it was good!” “All About Me” Sermons The clergy who resorts to this type of homily is a nareis- sist, He can be so full of him- self that his sermons are sole- ly focused on him and his ac- complishments. It is indeed poignant to hear personal stories ofa cler- gy. It is especially touching if’ we witness to his personal struggles and epiphanies. In this case, however, his pur- Poseis to showcase himselfas the star — “Hey, look at me!” This defeats the ., . of homilies which is 4 g°% the congregation ty ie and his gospel Messages, “Unprepared” Sermons This type of sermy often characterizeg by a mere paraphrasing ofthe, pel reading of the priest, This redounds to a cle, who has not done his home. n ig work. He becomes redundany He owes it to the congrogatiy, as the leader of the flock t, share his reflections on 1, gospel. Yet he short-changes his people,EEE WHEN SERMONS BECOME AN ORDEAL ‘othing is perfect in life. Our clergies are not per- fect. So are we. What then should we do when Sunday sermons become an ordeal to sit through? Consider the situation as an exercise in humility Tremind myself that I am not the one called and chosen by God to stand in the pulpit before the congregation, This priest was the one chosen, im- perfect though he may be. ‘This thought grounds me and puts me in my place. | am aware that my criticizing can lead me to a condescending position where I think I am better. I have my opinions and I am entitled to that. My opinions, however, are not necessarily right. This ser- mon may not work for me. It may, however, work for others, Look beyond his weak- ness and recognize his other charism Tacknowledge that giving homilies is a charism, Not every clergy is blessed with this gift, I, therefore, offer ac- ceptance for his weakness as much as I offer acceptance for my own weakness, Once, a popular priest known for his wonderful homilies shared his lament with me. Any priest who comes after him suffers in comparison to him, At times they had to rehash his homilies in order to meet the congregation's expectations. He was pained by the fact that he was the cause of other clergies’ suffering. He offered then to explore a Theology of Charism where we help the congregation recognize each clergy’s own unique gifts. Having this in mind, I look at what the priest before me is good at. One priest Imet was to me the most boring homilist. But I still admire him because he was so warm and loving. He was very pas- toral as he went around the community, “wasting time” with the families, His flock’s love more than compensates for his weakness in the pulpit. Overlook form and detect substance Sometimes a priest ac- tually makes some very good Points in his homily. Untor- EE tunately it is lost in the man- ner by which he communi- cates it. I, therefore, make the conscious effort to listen and pick out the essential points being put across. I overlook the bad jokes, the wrong selection of stories or the highfaluting words or termi- nologies. I concentrate in- stead on the core message that is being sent to me. Tune out and tune in There are occasions where the homily seemingly not only lacks form but sub- stance as well. In this oc- casion, [permit myself to tune out, I utilize this part of the Mass to tune in instead and make my ownreflection of the gospel reading. Put things in perspective I remind myself that I am not attending Mass for the homilies alone. This is just one aspect of the liturgy, Ifthe Priest disappoints me in his homily, Tet. itgoandcompen- ‘Sate for it on my own later, I listen to the readings in the Liturgy of the Word and com- memorate Christ’s love in the Liturgy of the Eucharist, LIFE TODAY / September 2015Cee CTA STC Give feedback Priests should not be spared of corrections. If they put the faithful through an ordeal every Sunday with their bad homilies, then they should be challenged to im- Prove on this area. The problem is that we have a culture that promotes hierarchy. As such, we do not believe that we have the authority to correct someone in ahigher position. We need, however, to realize that a priest is not a king but a ser- vant leader who should be open to their people, When the priest is not a personal friend, I do not have the courage to give him feed- back. This is why I appreciate churches that place sugges- tion boxes where Ieangivemy comments. ‘With priests who are my friends, I do not hesitate to offer my feedback. I am, how- ever, very conscious of the manner by which I give my feedback. 1 makesure that my feedback is specific to what I did not like in the particular sermon, not a general attack on his ability. T also offer suggestion as to how I believe the clergy can improveit. For instance, Itold September 2015/LIFE TODAY riest: “I did not like your Bat joke to illustrate your point as the joke came Aeron as demeaning to certain sec tors of society. I hope you refrain from jokes that tend to poke fun at certain people.” Or at times I say, “I ap- preciate your points in the homily but I found it too long. Tbelieve that you had already clinched it in the first part. You could have done away with the second part.” It is worth mentioning at this point that feedback should not only be given on the negative. We should also make it a habit to give our clergies feedback on the posi- tive. I try to affirm Clergieg with, “Treally appreciate y.,, homily today because asia, from being short and cong, your personal story ‘ me because I could Telateto it Thank you for your sharing» Exercise your prerogative In the last analysis, we have the prerogative to decide which Masses toattendtoang which priests to listen to, In the words of some faithful, ‘Ir I will only sin when I attend this particular priest’s Mass, I might as well move to the other parish.” In truth, not all clergies are authentically spiritualEw this often reflects in their lies. We have the right to the pastor, whom we “il look up for guidance, J am normally very to- and patient. Only in (a instances did I walk out. Apriestonce started lambast- ing the whole congregation over a minor irritant. But he began a tirade of racist remarks against my people. I had to puta line there. Another time, a charis- matic priest went on for more than an hour. I had to leave not only because I had an ap- pointment but also because it wasan “all about me” sermon. CONCLUSION en I have the occasion to address clergies, I candidly tell them what I ex- pect of them as a lay person. I always make this appeal: “The only thing that you real- ly have to prepare for in the Mass is your homily. The rest of the liturgy is in a way routine and you can already conduct it with your eyes closed. So please put in some effort to this,” In the film, “Mass Ap- peal,” Fr Farley was assigned to reign in a young deacon who was too radical and out= spoken for his own good. He thought at first that he was called to minister to this Seemingly “disturbed” youth. He ends up finding out the deacon was like an angel sent to him to shake him off from his own complacency in his exalted position. In one scene, Deacon Dol- son gave a radical but sound sermon. He questioned the congregation for focusing on making so much money in- stead of taking care of their soul, The flock was in an ‘uproar. One lady complained ‘to Fr Farley: “I came here for ‘you, not to be preached to!” Back at the rectory, he confronts the deacon about his fiasco. “What happened in the pulpit? ‘The deacon replied, “I dont know, The Spirit moved me!” Suddenly the news of the collection came in. He said, “Will you look at this. The collection went down 30% today. It is no accident that the collection comes after the sermon, It is like a Nielsen rating!” ‘This scene is quite hu- morous but at the same time thought-provoking. It makes us think about the fallibility of priests. Indeed some cler- gies say things in the pulpit in order to please people and let them hear what they would like to hear. They choose to stay safe. Thisis the case of Fr Farley, He even used the col- lection as the basis for his ac- tions and decisions. At times, we need some- one fresh and young like the deacon to remind us to simply allow the Spirit to move us. In the end, everything is a mystery. We may not know that God’s grace can also work even with a most boring homi- ly. To a lay person like me, what dol look for ina sermon? Tome, it all boils down to one thing — sincerity! So long as the clergy is earnest and sincere in what he is tasked to do, it is okay with it, He may not be the most charismatic homilist, He may not be earth-shaking in his style. He may not rock my world, What matters more is his speaking from his heart. Saint Paul said: “If I have the eloquence of men or of angels, but speak without love, I am simply a gong booming or a eymbal clashing” (1Cor13:1). ‘This is in essence what I expect from a priest's homily — to see one in place of hear- ing one. LIFE TODAY /September 2015 el