Censings

Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time / Feast of Saint Francis October 01 2017 10:30 AM Saint Cecilia Catholic Community Rev. David Justin Lynch Ezekiel 18:25-28 Psalm 25:4-9 Philippians 2:1-11 Matthew 21:28-31        + In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, AMEN.        Humility. That’s a very, very, difficult, extremely difficult, concept for humanity generally, particularly in the United States of America. Our culture communicates a message that sounds like this. “Be a winner.” “Be better than the next person.” “Be First.” That’s called the “achievement ethic”. It supports our meritocracy, that vertically rates everyone an everything. But all of that is the exact opposite of humility, not what the life and message of Jesus teaches us.        Today’s Gospel relates an encounter between Jesus and the high priests and elders of the Jerusalem templ...

LABOR DAY CELEBRATION September 03, 2017 Saint Cecilia Catholic Community, Palm Springs CA Rev. David Justin Lynch Sirach 38:27-32A  Wisdom 10:15-19, 20b-21 1 Corinthians 3:10-14 Matthew 6:19-24        + In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, AMEN. When I meet someone new, one of the first questions I ask is, “what sort of work do you do?” I ask that because more than anything else, our work, or lack of it, at least partially, describes who we are.  The response to that question gives me an insight into someone’s soul.   What work one does is part of one’s identity. The work we do is bound up with our dignity as human persons. Human dignity is the cornerstone of Catholicism. Psalm eight sings our praises. We were created “a little lower than the angels and crowned with glory and honor,” and given dominion over all creation.  Catholicism gets its focus on human dignity from Jesus Him...

August 27, 2017 Emmaus Community, Olympia, WA Rev. David Justin Lynch Isaiah 22:19-23 Psalm 138:1-3;6-8 Romans 11:33-36; Matthew 16:13-20             +In the name of God, our Father and Mother, Jesus our Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit, AMEN. At least a few of you may have come to church expecting an excoriation of the Roman Catholic Church about the mischief of Petrine Primacy.  I’m not going to go there. Instead, I will look at today’s readings on a much deeper level. I see today’s Gospel as about faith, the rewards of being faithful, and by implication, the universality of Jesus’ call to all Christians. I see Peter as representing all of us, and Jesus’ response to Peter as addressing the entire church, not just clergy. When someone asks, “What faith are you,” most of you would respond, “I’m Catholic.” That is how I’m tempted to respond as well, but that’s not how I do respond. One of the most misused wor...

Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time July 09, 2017 Saint Cecilia Catholic Community, Palm Springs CA Rev. David Justin Lynch Zechariah 9:9-10  Psalm 145:1-2;8-10;14-15 Romans 8:9-11;13  Matthew 11:25-35 This past week, we celebrated the Fourth of July. For many, that was a joyous occasion to celebrate the founding of the United State of America, a time to “Rejoice greatly”. Many of you may already be familiar with at least some of the words in today’s First Reading, as you might recall them from the soprano aria in Handel’s Messiah called, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion.” Now you know from where Handel’s librettist, Charles Jennens, found the words for that particular segment. The clergy of the churches of our conservative sisters and brothers no doubt preached this week that the United States is a “Christian” nation. However, that’s not true. Its founding mothers and fathers were mostly Deists. Most prominent were James Madison, Thomas Jefferson and Jam...

TWELFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME June 25, 2017 Saint Cecilia Catholic Community, Palm Springs, CA Jeremiah 20:10-13  Psalm 69:8-10,14,17,33-45  Romans 5:12-15 Matthew 10:26-33 Rev. David Justin Lynch BE NOT AFRAID Today’s reading are about fear, and how we deal with it. What exactly is fear? According to the magazine Psychology Today , fear   is an emotional response induced by a perceived threat, which causes a change in   brain   and organ function, as well as in behavior. Fear can lead us to hide, to run away, or to freeze in our shoes. Fear may arise from a confrontation, or from avoiding a threat, or it may come in the form of a discovery. Some fears are good-to prevent danger, like being afraid to touch a hot stove or to cross a street while cars are coming at us. However, fear in many contexts is not productive. It doesn’t build bridges and it doesn’t bake bread. It gets in the way of ministry. Our present age is marked by lo...

E aster Sunday – Year A  April 16, 2017  Saint Cecilia Catholic Community Palm Springs CA   Acts 10:34A; 37-34 Psalm 118:1-2;6-7;21-23 Colossians 3:1-4 John 20:1-9  Rev. David Justin Lynch  + In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.   When I was growing up in the 1960’s and 70’s, the news reports were full of all kinds of reports about “liberation”. Women’s Liberation. Black Liberation. Asian Liberation. Native American Liberation. Mexican Liberation. Even Men’s Liberation. Everyone wanted to liberated from something. In this context, “liberation” means “the act or fact of gaining equal rights or full social or economic opportunities for a particular group.” But liberation is more than that. Dictionary dot com defines liberation as, “the act of setting someone free from imprisonment, slavery, or oppression”; and “freedom from limits on thought or behavior.”  The 1960’s and 70’s popularized a con...