Lincoln’s Log 12-6-2020

The Hope of Advent

“‘Comfort, give comfort to my people, says your God.”
Is. 40:1

[Note: Due to my schedule and early holiday bulletin deadlines, I am writing this Log a few days before Thanksgiving.]

As I write this my heart is experiencing the tug of war between hope and despair. This tension has become familiar over the last several months. For example, I read in the news about a promising vaccine and further down the page about the health and economic challenges of the coming winter. I look outside and see the sun shining, but I know the grey of winter will be coming. My heart and my mood vacillate between a cautious optimism and the depths of despair. For me, this is the mood of Advent.

Advent is always a season of waiting and of promise. It can handle this type of tension. Today’s second reading reminds me that “with the Lord one day is like a thousand years and a thousand years are like one day” (2 Pt. 3:8). The journey we are on is a long one filled with tension. This is not a surprise. We can be patient and sit with the tension. But there is more than just stoic endurance for us this Advent.

The real good news that Advent brings is that this tension is leading us somewhere. We are people of hope because we are on a journey that has a destination. Several years ago, Pope Benedict reminded us that, “the present, even if it is arduous, can be lived and accepted if it leads towards a goal, if we can be sure of this goal, and if this goal is great enough to justify the effort of the journey” (Spe Salvi #1).

Advent reminds us that there is a goal and that it will justify the struggles and tensions we experience on the way. The Second Letter of Peter puts it this way, “According to His promise we await new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells” (2 Pt. 3:13).

This tension in my heart is an invitation to hope. The promise of God’s coming Kingdom is great enough, and his promise sure enough, that I will live this Advent filled with hope. The struggle is real, but the promise is sure.

May God bless you on your Advent journey.

Peace,

Dcn. Lincoln
Parish Pastoral Leader

Lincoln’s Log 11-29-2020

Watch!

“‘What I say to you, I say to all: ‘Watch!’.”
Mk. 13:37

Have you ever heard of bi-modal sleeping? Historians and archeologists tell us that prior to the 19th century, many people around the world divided the night into two segments with a period of being awake in between. For example, they would go to bed shortly after the sun went down, but rise again a few hours later for a couple of hours in the middle of the night, and then return to bed until morning. This is sometimes referred to as the “second sleep.”

A recent article on the second sleep states that:

During this waking period, people would relax, ponder their dreams, or have sex. Some would engage in activities like sewing, chopping wood, or reading, relying on the light of the moon or oil lamps.

Medieval monks used to rise in the middle of the night for prayer (called Vigils) and then return to bed. I know many people who, when they are battling insomnia or just can’t sleep for some reason rise to pray. Some even tell me they start praying the rosary while lying in bed and gradually drift back to sleep. One person told me her mother said the angels finish the rosary if you start it and then drift off. I love that idea!

Keeping vigil, that is rising in the night for prayer, is a powerful spiritual practice. It enables us to find some quiet and watch for the Lord’s coming. It is a practice that just about anyone can begin, whether you watch for the Lord for a few minutes as you drift back to sleep or rise from your bed and pray. Some of us are called to vigil when our anxieties or racing minds just won’t let us fall back asleep. Follow that call to keep vigil!

Prayer itself is a form of being awake. When we pray, we wake ourselves up to the reality of God’s presence. It is not surprising that Jesus tells his disciples to keep watch.

Advent is a special time for us to pray and keep watch. Follow Jesus’ call to keep vigil. You might be surprised at what you discover.

Peace,

Dcn. Lincoln
Parish Pastoral Leader

Lincoln’s Log 11-22-2020

Final Judgment

“‘As for you, my sheep, says the Lord God, I will judge between one sheep and another, between rams and goats.”
Ez. 34:17

“Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.”
Mt. 25:45

In this weekend’s Gospel (Mt. 25:31-46), we hear Jesus’ last formal teaching before his death on the cross. These words of our Lord have power. They convict us and challenge us to deeper conversion.

Like so much of what Jesus says, his final teaching isn’t what we expect. Instead of a judgment based on prayer, belief, or anything even remotely “religious,” as I would have expected, the final final judgment is based on how we have treated “the least” even when these actions aren’t motivated by our love for Jesus (remember, they didn’t recognize him!). What ultimately matters is loving as Jesus loves.

Why is this the bottom line?

When we love as Jesus loves we put on the character of God. When we love, we become like God and when we fail to love we are like something other than God (which ultimately will perish). “Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love” (1 Jn. 3:8 emphasis added). We have been created to love. It is our destiny and our ultimate calling. Love is the essence of who we are called to be. It is our character, not just God’s, if we allow God to shape it.

It is our hidden actions that reveal who we are, our character. It is easy to pretend for a while if someone is watching, but our character reveals itself when we do not think we are being watched, when we are doing what comes naturally.

Everything we do forms the character we will be judged on. It is important to pray and believe and all the other good things we do. But the importance of these things lies in their effect on our character. Are they helping us to become more like Jesus?

Jesus’ final teaching is about the person we become. Are our decisions and actions helping us to become more like Jesus?

Peace,

Dcn. Lincoln
Parish Pastoral Leader

Lincoln’s Log 11-15-2020

Gift and Responsibility

“‘His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master’s joy.”
Mt. 25:21

Responsibility is not a word we usually associate with gifts. We love gifts, but we don’t like responsibility. We enjoy gifts but associate them with freedom from responsibility. “It’s a gift. I can do whatever I want to with it,” we think to ourselves. Imagine being required to give a report on what you did with last year’s Christmas presents! Can’t we just enjoy our gifts?

This week’s Gospel reminds us that the gifts we have received from God aren’t given to us for our benefit. We may enjoy the gifts God has given us, but God has given us these gifts to benefit others. Like much of what Jesus teaches, we discover that when it comes to gifts, “it’s not really about us” at all. Everything is about the Kingdom of God. Our lives and our gifts are part of a much bigger reality than we can imagine. We are called to not just enjoy our gifts, but also to risk using them for the kingdom.

And it doesn’t matter what the gift is. We may not like it. We may think it is a useless gift. We may be embarrassed by it or be afraid to use it. But what we think about our gift doesn’t matter. No matter how small or seemingly useless the gift is, it has a glorious destiny. It is destined to help build God’s kingdom. St. Teresa of Calcutta (aka Mother Teresa) is often quoted as saying,

“Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.”

This is good news! If you want to find lasting joy, find a way to use your gifts, whatever they are, to serve others, and help build God’s kingdom. There is a new kind of freedom that we discover when we give our gifts away. It is freedom from ourselves and the freedom to love.

“Come, share your master’s joy.”

Peace,

Dcn. Lincoln
Parish Pastoral Leader

Lincoln’s Log 11-8-2020

Stay Awake!

“‘Stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour. ”
Mt. 25:13

“On the last day Jesus will say: ‘Truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.’”
Catechism of the Catholic Church #678

For the next several Sundays, the readings for Mass are taken from the twenty-fifth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew. This is Matthew’s final chapter before he begins telling the story of Jesus’ passion and death. The chapter’s theme is the final judgment.

Judgment is a scary idea. When we think about our final judgment before God we are forced to consider our lives from the perspective of eternity. The question, “what is important in the eyes of God?” comes to the fore. We cannot take this lightly. Our lives and our decisions matter.

This awareness that our decisions matter is what Jesus means when he commands us to “stay awake.” There is a temptation to numb ourselves to the weight of our actions. The truth is, we ignore our conscience and the teachings of the church and the scriptures at our own peril.

The good news is that Jesus makes it clear what our judgment will be based on. Jesus is a compassionate judge who judges us based on how we have treated “the least” among us. The more we allow our hearts to be formed by Jesus’ compassionate heart, the more natural mercy and compassion become. We begin to “stay awake.”

A key tool to form our hearts after Jesus’ compassionate heart is the Examination of Conscience. This simple practice helps us to awaken to what is important to Jesus. Click here for an Examination of Conscience based on the church’s social teaching. It is a fantastic tool to help you to “stay awake” to the compassionate heart of Jesus.

Take some time to examine your conscience this month. How have you treated “the least” among us? What is Jesus’ invitation to grow in compassion and mercy?

Peace,

Dcn. Lincoln
Parish Pastoral Leader

Lincoln’s Log 11-1-2020

Jesus’ Compassionate Heart

“‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied.”
Mt. 5:6

As we turn our calendars to November, we also turn our attention to the great social justice stream that flows from the heart of Jesus. His compassionate and merciful heart challenges us to break out of ourselves and consider the world we live in. During his ministry, Jesus reached out to those who were the most vulnerable of his society. We must do the same. God sent prophets to his people to call them to live out the covenant demands to care for the “widows and orphans.” We must heed the call of the prophets.

Our Popes and Bishops continue to remind us of this great social justice tradition of the church which flows from the heart of the Gospel. Recently, Pope Francis wrote:

“Our defense of the innocent unborn, for example, needs to be clear, firm and passionate, for at stake is the dignity of a human life, which is always sacred and demands love for each person, regardless of his or her stage of development. Equally sacred, however, are the lives of the poor, those already born, the destitute, the abandoned and the underprivileged, the vulnerable infirm and elderly exposed to covert euthanasia, the victims of human trafficking, new forms of slavery, and every form of rejection. We cannot uphold an ideal of holiness that would ignore injustice in a world where some revel, spend with abandon and live only for the latest consumer goods, even as others look on from afar, living their entire lives in abject poverty.” (GE #101 emphasis added)

As we reflect on the Social Justice Tradition this month. We remember that a disciple of Jesus lives a compassionate life. They seek justice, compassion, and peace in every area of life from the personal to the social to the global. The activities of a disciple are motivated by the love of God and neighbor Jesus’ taught (Cf. Mk. 12:31). Disciples work to bring all relationships into harmony, unity, and balance.

Together, let us grow as disciples who live out of the compassionate heart of Jesus!

Peace,

Dcn. Lincoln
Parish Pastoral Leader

Lincoln’s Log 10-25-2020

The Law and the Gospel (Kerygma)

“‘Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?’ Jesus responded, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment.’ ”
Mt. 22:36-38

Last week, I wrote that the heart of the Gospel “is not primarily about words or doctrines or laws or structures or systems. The Gospel is about a person.” Our reading from Matthew’s Gospel this week clearly makes this same point.

When asked by a scholar of the law about the greatest commandment, Jesus does not point to any particular behavior that is commanded, but rather to a person’s relationship with God. Rather than behavioral compliance, Jesus roots greatness in a personal loving bond with God. This bond affects the person at every level (heart, mind, soul, strength). Jesus interprets the law in the context of love.

What does this mean for us?

It means that everything we do needs to be rooted in an ongoing encounter with our loving God. This is the Gospel. It is personal. It affects every level of our being. It changes our behavior, not because of our own willpower, but because of the grace of God given to us in Jesus. We do not initiate this relationship. “In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins” (1 Jn. 4:10). We are called to respond to this invitation to a new way of life.

St. Augustine famously said, “Love God, and do what you will.” As we respond to the loving invitation of God to new life, we are transformed and our actions become more loving. The law can show us what love looks like, but it cannot change our hearts. Only the Gospel, a loving encounter with Jesus, has the power to change our hearts.

Today, right now, take a moment to invite Jesus into your heart and into your life. Give Him permission to affect you at every level and change the way you think, feel, and act. Say “yes” to the Gospel and live a life of love!

Peace,

Dcn. Lincoln
Parish Pastoral Leader

Our Pilot Podcast is finally here!

EHK Interview Dean Gruner of Common Ground – Exploring His Kingdom

Join Lincoln as he interviews the retired CEO of Theda Care and Co-Chair of Common Ground, Dean Gruner. They discuss the exciting new initiatives to empower and support the practice of dialogue in our community. Find out more about Common Ground here.

1. EHK Interview Dean Gruner of Common Ground 34:25
2. Our Sister Parish with Sr. Stephanie Spence 28:15
3. EHK Homily 32nd Sunday Ordinary Time – Fr. Jack Mullarkey 16:13
4. EHK All Soul's Day Homily 11-2-2020 09:29
5. Fr. Jack Mullarkey Homily 11-1-2020 All Saints 12:10

Lincoln’s Log 10-18-2020

Why Kerygma?

“For our gospel did not come to you in word alone, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with much conviction. ”
1 Thes. 1:5b

Last week in this Log we looked at some of the core scriptural expressions of the Kerygma. This kerygma is the core content of the Gospel message. But why is the church returning to this basic proclamation?

The reasons are pretty simple. The kerygma is the seed from which everything else the church does flows. The kerygma is an encounter with Jesus Christ. As Paul writes to the Thessalonians (above), the Gospel is not primarily about words or doctrines or laws or structures or systems. The Gospel is about a person. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI said it this way,

Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction. (Deus Caritas Est #1)

Everything we do is changed by our encounter with Jesus. The kerygma proclaims and makes present this encounter which opens up “a new horizon” and gives our lives “a decisive direction.”

As we reboot faith formation (now called Discipleship Formation), we return to the seeds of faith so that we can find our new horizon and direction. We are hoping to make this year a foundation to build on. The heart of the Gospel must be our guide. As our church teaches, “At the center of every process of catechesis is the living encounter with Christ” (GDC #75). As we reboot, I want to challenge each of us to return to the seed of our faith.

For a fuller explanation of the Kerygma, visit the St. Thomas More Facebook page and the Discipleship Formation playlist. You can also tune in to the “Exploring His Kingdom” podcast. But most importantly, open your heart for a new beginning. The seed of God’s love has been planted in you at baptism. Return to the source and encounter the Lord anew!

Peace,

Dcn. Lincoln
Parish Pastoral Leader

Lincoln’s Log 10-11-2020

The Kerygma and a Podcast

“On that day it will be said: ‘Behold our God, to whom we looked to save us! This is the Lord for whom we looked; let us rejoice and be glad that he has saved us!’”
Is. 25:9

Our church is taking a good, deep look at the way we make disciples. One of the key insights that has come out of this exploration is that we need to return to a focus on the basic proclamation of the gospel. This core proclamation, often called the kerygma, is the heart of our faith. As disciples, this kerygma forms our own heartbeat as well.

So what is it?

There are lots of ways to explain and proclaim the core of the Gospel, but here are some short lines from Scripture which take us straight to the heart of Jesus’ mission:

• “Jesus is the Son of God, Emmanuel, God with us” (Cf. Mt. 1:23)
• “The kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe the gospel” (Mk. 1:15)
• “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (Jn. 3:16)
• “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly” (Jn. 10:10)
• Jesus of Nazareth “went about doing good and healing all (Acts 10:38)
• “Jesus our Lord, who was put to death for our trespasses and raised for our justification” (Rm 4:25)
• “Jesus is Lord” (1 Cor. 12:3)
• “Christ died for our sins” (1 Cor. 15:3)
• “The Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Gal. 2:20)

Which of these verses speaks most deeply to you?

This month in our Discipleship Formation, we will be focusing on the kerygma, the core of the Gospel. Consider committing one of these short verses to memory. Let it roll around in your heart and mind this month. Also, explore the question of the week and be sure to share a meaningful meal, pray, read the bible, and share your faith with someone.

Another resource to consider is listening to the “Exploring His Kingdom” podcast. You can listen to the trailer here.

Peace,

Dcn. Lincoln

Parish Pastoral Leader