Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

     Why do people look for substitutes for God? And in the end do they really find happiness and peace?  The answer to the second question is emphatically NO, but the answer to the primary query is much more complicated.  Both the reading form Exodus and the Gospel of the Prodigal Son invite us to ponder this dilemma.  One of the reasons may be that people look for quick and immediate answers to the problems that beset them.

    When Moses went up the mountain of Sinai he remained there for 40 days in conversation with God.  The Israelites became impatient.  They demanded an immediate response from God and in the interim, they decided to fabricate their own notion, and how ridiculous it was, of God as a grass-eating calf.   We might think that rather peculiar, but what about the “golden” idols we create for ourselves that are just as vacuous.  Wasted time and effort are sunk into similar worthless pursuits.  

    The Prodigal (extravagant spending) son in the parable also has an impatient and arrogant heart.  Basically he is saying to his father:” I wish you were dead so I can get my cut of the will.”  The living father also is extravagant more in love and mercy than in money  when he bankrolls his son and then begins his interior suffering.  He hopes that the wayward son will return.   The son soon realizes that his idols have turned to dust and reduced him to a miserable existence.  Do we ever think that our Heavenly Father may be “suffering” for the loss of His children?  Many today are pursuing idols bereft of compassion, mercy, and love and the sad emptiness of their lives are preparing them for disastrous consequences.  May the pertinence of these words from Sacred Scripture touch the hearts of the lost and speedily bring them back to the Father’s house.

      Within the past month many of our parishioners have rallied together for our very successful fund-raisers.  From golf-tournament and bake sales at St. Joseph, to penny social at St Bernard, and the flea market at St John/St. Mary Magdalen, and the upcoming Spaghetti dinner on September 24th., how good it is to see our faithful pitching-in for the love and prosperity of the parish.  Thanks to all who participated in any way and may that wonderful enthusiasm continue to flourish.

With Blessings,

Father Langan

Faith Formation registration is due now. Please include late fee. Faith Formation starts on Sept. 11th for the Damascus and Honesdale program at the CFCC (329 Cliff St.) from 9 – 10:10am. See you there! Registrations are available at the back of parish churches, the parish office and online at honesdalecatholic.com (faith formation tab).

September 3-4

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

    Have you ever exaggerated in order to make a point or to bring attention to something of great significance?  How about a “fish tale”?  Did a ten inch mackerel become a twenty pound bass?  We call that hyperbole and it was a common way for people to express themselves in first century Jewish culture.  It was not a lie but certainly a startling way to emphasize something.  What today we would call shock-value!

     On occasion, our Blessed Lord does the same thing to get people’s attention but also to stress an important truth.  Both last Sunday’s Gospel and today’s convey the “hard sayings” of Jesus.  His language wakes people up and challenges them to make a choice.  First to recognize and believe that He is God-in-the-flesh, and secondly to make a choice in following Him as a disciple.   The choice has a cost, and that cost is putting the Lord before all other persons and/or possessions in this life.

    Always Our Lord respects our free will in the choices we make but very often those choices limit rather than expand us.  With short-sighted choices we look for immediate gratification and thus a fleeting happiness.  There is temporary satisfaction and before we know it, we are looking for the next thing to fill the emptiness.  How very self-deceptive and exhausting.  But when we make our choice to follow Christ, by putting Him first above all, there comes a freedom and joy that cannot be met by anyone or anything in this world.  Sure, there is a cost.  We give up in order to  get more than we could ever imagine.  After all, He made us.  He knows what is best for us and His plan and destiny for us exceeds the puny and sometimes destructive choices we make for ourselves.  May all your choices begin with what God wants and you will never be in want.

With Blessings,

Father Langan

This is a reminder that the St. John’s Flea Market will begin on Thursday, September 1 at St. Mary’s Parking Lot.

Dates and times are as follows:

September 1 9 A.M. – 4 P.M.

September 2 9 A.M. – 4 P.M.

September 3 9 A.M. – 1 P.M.

August 27-28

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

  As the new academic year begins, we might take a step back and ask: “what is the purpose of education?”  I am sure there are many answers to be offered from different perspectives but all may converge on one: “to make a better life for oneself”.  This, of course, is an admirable aspiration but does it really reflect the purpose of opening one’s mind to the truths that surround us, or, is it merely utilitarian? In other words: “do I learn in order to succeed?  So much in life today is motivated by the desire to be recognized, to receive adulation for one’s accomplishments rather than the desire to serve.  How then, does that form a person’s character?  The answer may be found in the Scripture today from the Book of Sirach.  His teachings for the young generation are simple and straightforward: be a humble person.

    Frequently, though not always directly, Our Lord addresses the absence of humility either among His detractors or even His closest followers.  There is always the tendency to put oneself first, as we hear in the Gospel parable.  These parables are meant to draw us out of ourselves and see the bigger picture of our purpose in life.  How we answer that question is the real mark of humility because we are basically saying:”  Here I am Lord, do with me what you will”.   We come around then to understand what education is all about.  That is, I’m here to serve the Lord and follow whatever path He has destined for me.  

     To all of our students, May God show you the path to follow and be humble enough to use your learning for His glory and the building up of His Kingdom.  You will never regret it.

With Blessings,

Father Langan

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Do some things in life make you squirm?  Do you try to shake off something that feels uncomfortable either physically or mentally?

Perhaps even the word of God can  cause the same reaction.  Today we hear in the letter to the Hebrews and in the Holy Gospel things that can make you squirm.  When we hear those words about discipline an unease can come upon us.  Who in the world likes discipline?.  Its no accident that the words   “disciple” and “discipline” come from the same root: Latin “disciplina” meaning “teaching.”  As disciples of the Lord, we are taught through discipline.  We need that discipline when we are tempted to compromise our ethics or ignore our conscience and do something we shouldn’t or fail to do something we should.  Hebrews reminds us today that God’s discipline is given out of love, to keep our conscience strong and our feet on the narrow path.

In the holy Gospel Our Lord tells us to continue the journey of Faith by “coming through the narrow door”.  That, of course, requires discipline.  The discipline of shedding our sinful barnacles that we have allowed to attach to us and keep us from moving swiftly and unencumbered to final destiny.  Confession scrapes the hull of our souls and permits us to continue the journey.   There is always the danger of presuming the mercy of God.  Indeed He is all merciful but sometimes that mercy requires discipline.  Our heavenly Father wants only what is best for us and if at times that requires us to be disciplined then in humble surrender we trust Him to do what is best for us. Let us not try to squirm out of the discipline God may prescribe for us but be confident that we will be better as a result.

With Blessings,

Father Langan

This year’s flea market dates are September 1, 2, and 3. Donations may be dropped off beginning August 19 and placed on the side porch of the Parish Office. We will not accept couches or upholstered furniture, computers, televisions, broken or chipped pieces of glass. Jewelry items will be accepted.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

      Truth and goodness, evil and falsehood cannot meet.  There is no, nor can there be, compromise between them.  We hear in the Gospel today startling words from our Lord.  He, Who has come to bring healing, and put an end to the estrangement between God and  mankind speaks about division  and discord even in families.  Does the Lord want this?  Of course not. But the reality is that if we long for the truth, the truth that sets us free from self- deception and self-centeredness, then we can expect there to be controversy, rejection and division.  Our Lord, therefore, calls us to be steadfast.  There is suffering in living the truth that Christ has revealed to us.  The present faddishness of the world wants to draw us away from the paths of holiness and righteousness.  And of course it is very tempting at times, especially when it involves those who are close to us.

     Nonetheless, we are called to be witnesses of the Gospel.  We recall that the word “witness” in Greek is martyr and though we may not ever shed our blood for the sake of the Gospel we do share in the suffering that comes from being faithful to the Lord.  Let us, therefore, be of good cheer as the martyrs past and present for the Lord has asked us to share and bear the cross with the hope that others will do so as well.

 With Blessings,

 Father Langan 

August 6-7

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Prominent in the Sacred Scriptures today, though not always specifically mentioned, are the three theological virtues of Faith, Hope and Love. And as St. Paul reminds us the greatest of these is Love.  The first two are pertinent to this world.  Faith is our response to God’s call and revelation.  In the Book of Wisdom, our first reading.  The People of Israel, who are still in captivity, place their trust and faith in the revelation from God through Moses that they will be delivered from the deadly plague.  Wisdom reflects on the “Passing over” of the angel of death as a prelude to their being set free.  They trust in the extraordinary ritual of slaughtering a lamb, marking their doorways with its blood and then hoping that they will be spared. And so they are because of their trust, faith and obedience.  They do not know what will come next but they have hope that God will fulfill His promises.  Hope, then, is the virtue of expectation.  We may not know what is to come but we trust God, have Faith in Him.  Why? Because He loves us and always wants and plans what is best for us.

In the letter to the Hebrews, written by an unknown author but nonetheless part of the canon of Sacred Scripture,  we have the example of Abraham and Sara, who in spite of what seems to be logical, place their faith and hope in God.  So often we want immediate, verifiable, concrete answers to the conundrums of life. Because of this there is little room for hope and faith.  Therein lies the tension that we all experience and it is precisely there that the Lord is calling us to trust in Him.

In the Gospel, our Lord encourages us to live the life of Hopeful expectation.  He, not we, are in control of the future.  Always He assures of His love and that should give us confidence to place our faith in Him and though we may have to “walk through the valley of death”, in the end all will be well.

This week Monday and Thursday two very important saints are celebrated, St Dominic, founder of the Order of Preachers and St.Clare, who with St Francis of Assisi founded the Franciscans, Third Order.  Best wishes to all our Lay Dominicans and if there is anyone interested in joining our Dominican lay order please speak with Father Langan.  We meet the second Sunday of the month at 1 PM for prayer study and mutual spiritual support.

Remember our upcoming Golf Tournament sponsored by the parishioners of St. Joseph, Rileyville, Saturday, August 27.   Contact  Kathy and Augie Stile, 570-224-4934.

This year the Solemnity of our Blessed Mother’s Assumption is not a holy day of obligation since it falls on a Monday.  The Mass schedule will be 7:25 AM, 12:05 PM and 6 PM.  All Masses will be at St. Mary Magdalen.

With Blessings,

Father Langan

July 30-31

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

     All of the readings from the Sacred Scriptures today portray the great spiritual “tug-of-war”.  Ecclesiastes, also known as Qoheleth, stress the vanity of pursuit of the passing things of this world.  St Paul’s address to the Colossians warns against the passions that so often cloud one’s judgement that leads to the using of other human beings for personal gratification.  And Our Blessed Lord reminds us of the futility of exalting self and neglecting the needs of others.  The Word of the Lord is indeed a wake up call for the world but sadly, It continues to fall on deaf ears

.

    Growth in the spiritual life calls for an honest and thorough assessment of one’s life.  The guidepost  for this discernment is always the Sacred Scripture and if one is not acquainted with the Word of God through reading, hearing and reflection how can there be any progress in making the journey to our heavenly home?  In this tug-of-war then, we have to allow the love and mercy of Christ to pull us forward.  We keep our ears and hearts focused on Him and even though we sometimes may be pulled through the “mud” the grace of our Lord, which we receive from the Sacraments, will refresh and restore us. 

     In these dog days of summer pull out your Bible; sit down with the Word and let Jesus speak to you.  It’s the best cooling- off there is.

With Blessings,

Father Langan