Month: August 2022

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Twenty-Third Sunday of Ordinary Time

This Sunday’s Gospel from St Luke (Lk. 14: 25 – 33) is one that I as a preacher run a mile from.

First, I am instructed to “hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself,” in order to become a disciple.

But wait!

There is more, “whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.”

How to win friends and gain followers!

Commentators rush to explain that the Semitic expression “hate father and mother” does not actually mean that in English.

It means “to love less.”

So why do English translations still say “hate”?

Literal translation often sounds absurd.

What is behind the Semitic expression is no less real – at times belonging to Jesus will mean difficult decisions.

And then, too, we are called to carry our cross!

I remember well a news item in the New Zealand media in the year 2016 of a man taking a cross the length of the country.

In an interview the husband and wife explained “We’re walking the length of New Zealand with the cross and sharing the gospel along the way to those who would like to hear,”

If you look carefully at the illustration, what you notice is that at the foot end of the cross there is a wheel!

I am not wanting to deride the individual in any way, however, I do wonder if there is another Semitic expression I have missed that somehow translates ‘carry’ to ‘wheel’?

I am reminded of the story of the king and queen visiting the monastery of the great Zen master, Lin Chi.

They were astonished to learn that there were more than 10,000 monks living there.

Wishing to know the exact number, they asked, ‘How many disciples do you have?’

‘Four or five,’ Lin Chi replied.

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Twenty-Second Sunday of Ordinary Time

Once upon a time the mayor of a town invited all the people of the town to a banquet.

Among those who showed up was a man of great distinction.

His name was Daniel.

Daniel had taught at the university for many years; Daniel had also written and published many books.

As well as being a great scholar, Daniel was also very wise, and this wisdom brought with it a real sense of humility.

Daniel knew that he knew a lot, he also knew that there was an awful lot he didn’t know.

When he arrived, the mayor greeted Daniel and invited him to the top table, “we have a seat ready for you,” exclaimed the mayor.

Daniel thanked the mayor but said he would find his own seat, and, you may have guessed, Daniel chose to sit at the back of the hall, among the poor.

When other distinguished guests arrived, they were shown to the top table.

Eventually, the banquet hall was filled.

Then, suddenly, at the last minute, a very distinguished person arrived.

The mayor had no option but to take the man to the only vacant seat – a seat next to Daniel.

“But this is the bottom table,” the man protested.

“No, this is the top table, “ the mayor replied.

“I don’t understand, “ the man said.

“Wherever Daniel sits, is the top table.” Replied the mayor, and he continued, “it is not the place that honours the guest; it is the guest that honours the place.”

Each Sunday, we are invited to a banquet – the banquet of the Eucharist.

Here Jesus is the host, and we are his guests.

Here there are no special places, you can sit where you wish.

Here privilege, status, title, and rank have no meaning.

Differences count for nothing.

In the kingdom of God every place is a place of honour.

The notorious gangster Al Capone opened a soup kitchen during the Depression.

During November and December, Al Capone’s soup kitchen kept regular hours, serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

On Thanksgiving Day 1930 more than 5,000 hungry men, women, and children were fed with a hearty beef stew.

The kitchen was demolished in the 1950’s but used to be located at the corner of 9th and State Street, in Chicago, Illinois.

The site is now a parking lot.

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Twenty First Sunday of Ordinary Time

The island of Ovalau is one of Lomaiviti Islands in the group known as Fiji. The major town on Ovalau is Levuka and it has an airfield, known as Bureta Airport, located some 14 miles from the township of Levuka.

Two important elements make flying in and out of Levuka a matter of contingency. Firstly, flights onto off the island depended on the condition of the runway. Heavy rain would cause major holes to develop on the runway itself.

Secondly, somewhat ‘unusually’, at check-in, persons and luggage were both weighed! Small 8-seater planes were used, and so weight distribution was critical.

When I was living on Ovalau I did not use the flight service with any regularity, however on one occasion I was needed in Suva with some speed. So, I booked and paid for a flight. On the day I was to fly, I was driven to the airport, presented myself and my bag, gave my name for the seat I had purchased only to be told, “Sorry, Saka (the Fijian word when addressing a priest) we are full! We have our maximum weight!” “But, I have a ticket!” I protested! “Saka you must show up on time. The first eight are taken!” (Local rules, which of course everyone knows!!)

It is certainly a very narrow gate!. Booking a seat does not ensure you! Paying for that seat does not ensure you! This Sunday’s Gospel from Luke (13: 22 -33) reminds us that “once the owner of the house has got up and shut the door” that is it!

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14th Sunday of Ordinary Time – the Assumption

In Aotearoa Maori culture, meeting houses (whare nui or whare puni) are symbols of tribal prestige and are often named after, and seen as the embodiment of, a tribal ancestor. The structure itself is seen as an outstretched body, with the roof’s apex at the front of the house representing the ancestor’s head. The main ridge beam represents the backbone, the diagonal bargeboards which lead out from the roof are the arms and the lower ends of the bargeboards divide to represent fingers. Inside, the centre pole ( poutokomanawa) is seen as the heart, the rafters reflects the ancestor’s ribs, and the interior is the ancestor’s chest and stomach. Whare are richly carved, and these carvings will be particular to the local tribe (iwi), and will declare “this is our house”.

At Pukekaraka  in the township of Otaki, an hour north of Wellington city, there lies a meeting house which shares its whenua (land) with the Catholic Church. Things are different at Pukekaraka. There is a meeting house (wharepuni) which has been there since 1905, and there is not a carving in sight! The meeting house follows the same design as wharepuni throughout the country, however the whare is bereft of carvings. The name of the meeting house is “Hine nui o tea o katoa”, and in the name is the reason for no carvings. Translated the name means ‘Mother of all the world’. In other words, no one iwi (tribe) or whanau (family) can lay claim to Mary as “our” ancestor. She (Mary) does not belong to us, we belong to her! What I find of great interest here is that the Marist Maori Mission was established at Otaki in 1841. In 1894 the Sisters of St Joseph had established a school there to teach (and board), local children. The whare was built in 1905. Within 60 years the local people had a sense of Mary belonging to everyone, “ o tea ao katoa”.

Ko Hāta Maria, te Matua Wahine o Te Atua

In Aotearoa – New Zealand, in Māori culture, meeting houses (whare nui or whare puni) are symbols of tribal prestige and are often named after, and seen as the embodiment of, a tribal ancestor. The structure itself is seen as an outstretched body, with the roof’s apex at the front of the house representing the ancestor’s head. The main ridge beam represents the backbone, the diagonal bargeboards which lead out from the roof are the arms and the lower ends of the bargeboards divide to represent fingers. Inside, the centre pole (poutokomanawa) is seen as the heart, the rafters reflect the ancestor’s ribs, and the interior is the ancestor’s chest and stomach. Whare are richly carved, and these carvings will be particular to the local tribe (iwi), and will declare “this is our house.”

At Pukekaraka in the township of Ōtaki, an hour north of Wellington city, there lies a meeting house which shares its whenua (land) with the Catholic Church. Things are different at Pukekaraka. There is a meeting house (wharepuni) which has been there since 1905, and there is not a carving in sight! The meeting house follows the same design as wharepuni throughout the country, however the whare is bereft of carvings. The name of the meeting house is “Hine Nui o te Ao Katoa”, and in the name is the reason for no carvings. Translated the name means ‘Mother of All the World’. In other words, no one iwi (tribe) or whanau (family) can lay claim to Mary as “our” ancestor. She (Mary) does not belong to us, we belong to her! What I find of great interest here is that the Marist Māori Mission was established at Ōtaki in 1841. In 1894 the Sisters of St Joseph had established a school there to teach (and board), local children. The whare was built in 1905. Within 60 years the local people had a sense of Mary belonging to everyone, ‘o te ao katoa’.

On the 15th of August, 2021, at the initiative of the New Zealand Bishops’ Conference, the country of Aotearoa/New Zealand was rededicated to Our Lady Assumed into Heaven. The country was originally dedicated by Bishop Jean Baptiste Pompallier when he celebrated the first Mass on the whenua known as Aotearoa on 13th January 1838.  Mary, the mother of Jesus, was never a Roman Catholic, we have however laid claim to her and made her ours! This rededication is not a rededication of Catholic New Zealand; that was not Bishop Pompallier’s intention, nor is it the intention of our present Bishops. This is a rededicating of our land and its people to the care of Mary, the Mother of God. Pukekaraka is the birthplace of the Church of Wellington so it is fitting Ko Hāta Maria, Te Matua Wahine o Te Atua  [Mary, Mother of God] began her journey (Te Ara a Maria) at Pukekaraka.

This Sunday, August 14th, our Church is invited to celebrate the Feast of the Assumption. This celebration will coincide with a Mass of Dedication of St Mary of the Angels Wellington as the National Shrine to Mary, Mother of God, Assumed into Heaven.  This concludes the year-long hīkoi (journey) of the specially commissioned artwork throughout the country’s six dioceses.