The King's Corner

I am writing to you, children, because your sins have been forgiven for his name’s sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have conquered the Evil One. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong and the word of God remains in you, and you have conquered the Evil One.  Do not love the world or the things of the world.  If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, sensual lust, enticement for the eyes, and a pretentious life, is not from the Father but is from the world. Yet the world and its enticement are passing away. But whoever does the will of God remains forever. (1 John 2:12-17) Interesting that in this first letter from this writer called John there is no reference to mothers or young women.  Perhaps because J

Beloved: The way we may be sure that we know Jesus is to keep his commandments. Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps his word, the love of God is truly perfected in him. This is the way we may know that we are in union with him: whoever claims to abide in him ought to walk just as he walked.  Beloved, I am writing no new commandment to you but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. And yet I do write a new commandment to you, which holds true in him and among you, for the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.  Whoever says he is in the light, yet hates his brother, is still in the darkness. Whoever loves his brother remains in the light, and there is nothing in him to cause a fall. Whoever hates his brother is in darkness; he walks in darkness and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded

Why, who makes much of a miracle? As to me I know of nothing else but miracles, Whether I walk the streets of Manhattan [or Cape Cod], Or dart my sight over the roofs of houses toward the sky, Or wade with naked feet along the beach just in the edge of the water, Or stand under trees in the woods, Or talk by day with any one I love, or sleep in the bed at night with any one I love, Or sit at table at dinner with the rest, Or look at strangers opposite me riding in the car, Or watch honey-bees busy around the hive of a summer forenoon, Or animals feeding in the fields, Or birds, or the wonderfulness of insects in the air, Or the wonderfulness of the sundown, or of stars shining so quiet and bright, Or the exquisite delicate thin curve of the new moon in spring; These with the rest, one and all, are to me miracles, The whole referring, yet each distinct and in its place. To me every hour of the light and dark is a miracle, Every cubic inch of space is a miracle, Every square yard of the

On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we do not know where they put him.” So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first; he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in.  When Simon Peter arrived after him, he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there, and the cloth that had covered his head, not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place. Then the other disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and he saw and believed. (John 20:1-8) Curious reading selection for today so soon after Christmas.  We jump from the cradle to the tomb.  Such is life: we are born and then we die.  We hope much will be accomplished during all the intervening years, such as loving and living a faith-filled

“Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” by Robert Frost  Whose woods these are I think I know.  His house is in the village though;  He will not see me stopping here  To watch his woods fill up with snow.   My little horse must think it queer  To stop without a farmhouse near  Between the woods and frozen lake  The darkest evening of the year.  He gives his harness bells a shake  To ask if there is some mistake.  The only other sound’s the sweep  Of easy wind and downy flake.  The woods are lovely, dark, and deep.  But I have promises to keep,  And miles to go before I sleep,  And miles to go before I sleep. As I get older, I tend to reflect more on poems.  Nostalgia?  Wiser?   More insightful?  Perhaps a little of each.  I never used to pay any attention to most poems, or to understand them, but I do get this one by Frost. According to one reference: Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening is one of Robert Frost’s finest poems. It was written in 1922 and was published in 1923 in his volu

I repeat here Thursday's CCT column by Lawrence Brown, one of my favorite writers and a person I respect.  His piece is entitled: "What ‘keeping Christmas’ means in times like these." (begin) Recently, I find it takes a lot of energy to stay positive; our politics and our civic discourse have become so toxic. I fear we may have bitten so deeply into the forbidden apple we may be past halfway to getting ourselves kicked out of the garden. Thank goodness, they run Jimmy Stewart’s old classic 'It’s a Wonderful Life' at Christmastime. I referred to it recently in a column while praising Dan Wolf. Stewart plays the reluctant owner of a tiny savings and loan who joins with his sweetheart to finance low-cost homes for former slum-dwellers. They’re there with flowers and a prayer when every new homeowner moves in.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. A man named John was sent from God. He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light but came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world came to be through him, but the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, but his own people did not accept him. But to those who did accept him he gave power to become children of God, to those who believe in his name, who were born not by natural generation nor by human choice nor by a man’s decision but of God.

Zechariah his father, filled with the Holy Spirit, prophesied, saying: “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; for he has come to his people and set them free. He has raised up for us a mighty Savior, born of the house of his servant David.  Through his prophets he promised of old that he would save us from our enemies, from the hands of all who hate us. He promised to show mercy to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant. This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham: to set us free from the hand of our enemies, free to worship him without fear, holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life. You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way, to give his people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins. In the tender compassion of our God the dawn from on high shall break upon us, to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

Father Donald Cozzens has died from Covid-related pneumonia.  He was vaccinated.  I've admired Cozzens' dedication to the priesthood and his honesty.   The following article was authored by Edward P. Hahnenberg, Breen Chair in Catholic Theology at John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio. Published by America Magazine on December 13.  Father Cozzens passed away on December 9. (begin) I first met Donald Cozzens as a doctoral student interested in ministry. I picked up The Changing Face of the Priesthood as soon as a copy arrived at the library and read it that afternoon. At first, I didn’t know what to make of this beautiful book. Here was a seminary rector calling out clerical culture, a former vicar for clergy grieving the betrayal of children—not only by priest perpetrators, but by church structures devoid of accountability. Here was a committed celibate taking up the taboo of sexual orientation, a spiritual director describing an Oedipal conflict between priests and bishop

What follows is an article by Jim McDermott published on December 20 by America Magazine.  It’s entitled “Joe Biden’s Oval Office ‘Hagar the Horrible’ cartoon is filled with Catholic hope and expectation.” This cartoon and President Biden’s perspective should help many of us deal with stormy waters we all face in our lives.  Our President's waters have been and continue to be quite churned, as are the very choppy waters our Church and nation endure.   BUT, we have hope as noted by Biden in this article's last passage: "And in that reality [fear and trepidation], Mr. Biden also finds the seed of a great and eminently Christian (and Christmastime) kind of hope. Rather than a reason for complaint, hardship is our opportunity. 'It’s been in the most difficult of circumstances that the soul of our nation has been forged,' he said on Thanksgiving Day 2020. 'Why not?' is not the callous response of an unfeeling God but an expression of expectation, of what this ha

  Mary set out in those days and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, “Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.” (Luke 1:39-45) Many babies "leap for joy" in their mothers' wombs.  Tragically, many do not make it to the cradle.  Blessed is the fruit of these mothers' wombs.  Blessed are these many mothers among women struggling to decide whether to give birth to their blessings. Deacon David Pierce 

The LORD spoke to Ahaz: Ask for a sign from the Lord, your God; let it be deep as the nether world, or high as the sky!  But Ahaz answered, “I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!”  Then Isaiah said: Listen, O house of David! Is it not enough for you to weary men, must you also weary my God? Therefore, the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall name him Emmanuel. (Isaiah 7:10-14) It’s curious that the reading for today provided by the USCCB is the preceding.  However, when referencing Books of the Bible and then Isaiah from the same USCCB website, we find the following:

On the fourth week of Advent, we light the final purple candle to mark the final week of prayer and penance as we wait for the birth of our Savior. This final candle, the “Angel's Candle,” symbolizes peace. It reminds us of the message of the angels: “Peace on Earth, Good Will Toward Men, and Women of course. Our first reading is from the last of the four great prophets, Micah, who lived in the 8th century before Christ, perhaps the mid-700s. This reading is about someone bringing peace: “He shall stand firm and shepherd his flock by the strength of the LORD, in the majestic name of the LORD, his God; and they shall remain, for now his greatness shall reach to the ends of the earth; he shall be peace.”   Micah was of humble origin and a fearless champion of the cause of the oppressed and underprivileged. He was blunt and could not remain silent while the stench of social sin offended both God and man. He was a prophet of social justice.

Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will raise up a righteous shoot to David. As king he shall reign and govern wisely, he shall do what is just and right in the land. In his days Judah shall be saved, Israel shall dwell in security. This is the name they give him: “The LORD our justice.” Therefore, the days will come, says the LORD, when they shall no longer say, “As the LORD lives, who brought the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt”; but rather, "As the LORD lives, who brought the descendants of the house of Israel up from the land of the north”– and from all the lands to which I banished them; they shall again live on their own land. (Jeremiah 23:5-8) Jeremiah wasn’t speaking of Jesus.  Jeremiah lived in 650 B.C.  Nevertheless, his words and prophecy were adopted by Gospel writers to describe Jesus.  

A holy one said to a merchant, “As the fish perishes on dry land, so you perish when entangled in the world.  The fish must return to the water, and you must return to the spiritual.” The merchant was aghast. “Are you saying I must give up my business and go into a monastery?”  And the holy one said, “Oh, no, no, never.  I am saying, hold onto your business but go into your heart.” Sister Joan Chittister has said: “We are each given only one life. The spirit we bring to it, the heart we put into it, is the measure of its value, whatever else we do with it to make a living.  It isn’t difficult to be good at what we do.  What is difficult is to be great about the way we do it…How I am, the environment around me will be: full of arsenic or full of the warmth of the Spirit.” We “fishes” must return to the water this Advent.  Our fisher of men and women understands we will perish in worldly entanglements unless we do so.  We must go into our hearts where we will be full of the warmth of the

Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote this poem entitled "The Ballad of the Oysterman."  Cape Cod is famous for its oysters and its fishermen.  Being retired from the Division of Marine Fisheries, now for about two years, I sometimes think of the men and women who farm the sea, especially along Cape Cod shores.  Oysters are great fare at Christmastime.  So, here's that poem as our lead up to the time when we celebrate the birth of Jesus, our fisher of men and women. It was a tall young oysterman lived by the river-side,   His shop was just upon the bank, his boat was on the tide;   The daughter of a fisherman, that was so straight and slim,   Lived over on the other bank, right opposite to him.     

At that time, John summoned two of his disciples and sent them to the Lord to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” When the men came to the Lord, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you to ask, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?’” At that time Jesus cured many of their diseases, sufferings, and evil spirits; he also granted sight to many who were blind.  And Jesus said to them in reply, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the good news proclaimed to them. And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me.” (Luke 7:18-23) “…the poor have the good news proclaimed to them….”   What is this good news Jesus proclaimed?  His followers knew.  They schooled under his wisdom that pointed towards values of generosity, experiments in how to live, and bonding with each other such as at fellowship meals

  This Advent we'd all like a booster.  Perhaps not all of us want that shot in the arm.  Still, we all need a shot in the arm of hope for the future of our loved ones and those who are our neighbors, including all Americans with differing political views.  Our democracy needs a boost only we can provide, provided we set aside our tribal thinking and promote the common good. Deacon David Pierce

What follows is Father Richard Rohr's "Shadow Work in the Gospels."  He describes Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung’s concept of the shadow and how it is present in Jesus’ teachings. (begin) The ego wants to eliminate all humiliating or negative information in order to “look good” at all costs. Jesus calls this self an “actor,” a word he uses fifteen times in Matthew’s Gospel, though it is usually translated from the Greek as “hypocrite.” The ego wants to keep us tied to easy and acceptable levels of knowledge. It does not want us going down into the “personal unconscious” or, in Jung’s term, our “shadow self.” The shadow includes all those things about ourselves that we don’t want to see, are not yet ready to see, and don’t want others to see.  We try to hide or deny this shadow, most especially from ourselves. Jung asks: “How can I be substantial if I fail to cast a shadow?” He makes clear that the unconscious is not bad or evil; it is just hidden from us. Jung describes sha

The crowds asked John the Baptist, “What should we do?” He said to them in reply, “Whoever has two cloaks should share with the person who has none. And whoever has food should do likewise.” Even tax collectors came to be baptized and they said to him, “Teacher, what should we do?” He answered them, “Stop collecting more than what is prescribed.” Soldiers also asked him, “And what is it that we should do?” He told them, “Do not practice extortion, do not falsely accuse anyone, and be satisfied with your wages.” Now the people were filled with expectation, and all were asking in their hearts whether John might be the Christ. John answered them all, saying, “I am baptizing you with water, but one mightier than I is coming. I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.” Exhorting th

William Shakespeare wrote many sonnets.  Here is one followed by an interpretation, not mine, but is that of an expert on Shakespeare’s writing.  This sonnet is entitled “Love’s Not Time’s Fool.”   Let me not to the marriage of true minds Admit impediments. Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove O no! it is an ever-fixed mark, That looks on tempests and is never shaken;

The poet Willam Blake poses important questions this Advent.  His poem "On Another's Sorrow" was written in 1789.  Do we see another's sorrow and then provide kind relief? Can I see another's woe, And not be in sorrow too? Can I see another's grief, And not seek for kind relief? Can I see a falling tear, And not feel my sorrow's share? Can a father see his child Weep, nor be with sorrow filled?

It's time for giving more thought to our neighbors.  Are we good neighbors?  Rudyard Kipling enlightens us. The man that is open of heart to his neighbour, And stops to consider his likes and dislikes, His blood shall be wholesome whatever his labour, His luck shall be with him whatever he strikes. The Splendour of Morning shall duly possess him, That he may not be sad at the falling of eve. And, when he has done with mere living, God bless him! A many shall sigh, and one Woman shall grieve!  But he that is costive of soul toward his fellow, Through the ways, and the works, and the woes of this life, Him food shall not fatten, him drink shall not mellow; And his innards shall brew him perpetual strife. His eye shall be blind to God's Glory above him; His ear shall be deaf to Earth's Laughter around; His Friends and his Club and his Dog shall not love him; And his Widow shall skip when he goes underground! Deacon David Pierce

After the man, Adam, had eaten of the tree, the LORD God called to the man and asked him, “Where are you?” He answered, “I heard you in the garden; but I was afraid, because I was naked, so I hid myself.” Then he asked, “Who told you that you were naked? You have eaten, then, from the tree of which I had forbidden you to eat!” The man replied, “The woman whom you put here with me she gave me fruit from the tree, and so I ate it.” The LORD God then asked the woman, “Why did you do such a thing?” The woman answered, “The serpent tricked me into it, so I ate it.” Then the LORD God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, you shall be banned from all the animals and from all the wild creatures; on your belly shall you crawl, and dirt shall you eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike at your head, while you strike at his heel.” The man called his wife Eve, because she became the mother of all th

Comfort, give comfort to my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and proclaim to her that her service is at an end, her guilt is expiated. Indeed, she has received from the hand of the LORD double for all her sins. A voice cries out: In the desert prepare the way of the LORD! Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God! Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill shall be made low. The rugged land shall be made a plain, the rough country, a broad valley. Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken. A voice says, “Cry out!” I answer, “What shall I cry out?” “All flesh is grass, and all their glory like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower wilts, when the breath of the LORD blows upon it. So then, the people is the grass. Though the grass withers and the flower wilts, the word of our God stands forever.” 

80 years ago: FROM History Magazine (begin) At 7:55 a.m. Hawaii time, a Japanese dive bomber bearing the red symbol of the Rising Sun of Japan on its wings appears out of the clouds above the island of Oahu. A swarm of 360 Japanese warplanes followed, descending on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor in a ferocious assault. The surprise attack struck a critical blow against the U.S. Pacific fleet and drew the United States irrevocably into World War II With diplomatic negotiations with Japan breaking down, President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his advisers knew that an imminent Japanese attack was probable, but nothing had been done to increase security at the important naval base at Pearl Harbor. It was Sunday morning, and many military personnel had been given passes to attend religious services off base. At 7:02 a.m., two radar operators spotted large groups of aircraft in flight toward the island from the north, but, with a flight of B-17s expected from the United States at the time,

The desert and the parched land will exult; the steppe will rejoice and bloom. They will bloom with abundant flowers and rejoice with joyful song. The glory of Lebanon will be given to them, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.  Strengthen the hands that are feeble; make firm the knees that are weak. Say to those whose hearts are frightened: Be strong, fear not! Here is your God, he comes with vindication. With divine recompense he comes to save you. Then will the eyes of the blind be opened, the ears of the deaf be cleared. Then will the lame leap like a stag; then the tongue of the mute will sing. Streams will burst forth in the desert and rivers in the steppe. The burning sands will become pools, and the thirsty ground, springs of water.

  In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the desert.  John went throughout the whole region of the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah: A voice of one crying out in the desert: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low. The winding roads shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.” (Luke 3:1-6) Do we know someone who is struggling with pre-Christmas depression?  Let's fix it!  Let's smooth out their rough roads and make straight th

I provide here a column by Lawrence Brown, a teacher who taught my two boys for many years.  His CCT column was entitled: “Are there too many liberals in education?” I provide his views partially because of what he referenced in his last remark about one critic saying: “God is not in public schools, nor in you.” I continue to be amazed at many people’s uncivility and intolerance of different views.  I try to be tolerant, but it ain’t easy in today’s culture “wars” and on divisive political battlefields. (begin) What makes a 'local' columnist local isn’t that we write about local things. You can write us and we’ll write you back. National columnists rarely do. My recent column about teaching history generated a lot of feedback, much worth sharing. Judith wrote, 'Parents may not be qualified to ‘dictate’ to school boards or educational leaders with regards to curriculum, but they certainly do have the right to question what is being taught in the classroom and voice their co

Thus says the Lord GOD: But a very little while, and Lebanon shall be changed into an orchard, and the orchard be regarded as a forest! On that day the deaf shall hear the words of a book; out of gloom and darkness, the eyes of the blind shall see. The lowly will ever find joy in the LORD, and the poor rejoice in the Holy One of Israel. For the tyrant will be no more and the arrogant will have gone. All who are alert to do evil will be cut off, those whose mere word condemns a man, who ensnare his defender at the gate, and leave the just man with an empty claim. Therefore, thus says the LORD, the God of the house of Jacob, who redeemed Abraham: Now Jacob shall have nothing to be ashamed of, nor shall his face grow pale. When his children see the work of my hands in his midst, they shall keep my name holy; they shall reverence the Holy One of Jacob and be in awe of the God of Israel. Those who err in spirit shall acquire understanding, and those who find fault shall receive instruction.

We should listen to Snoopy.  Too many of us are despondent during Advent and the Christmas season as sad memories bring us down.  Suicides are commonplace.   Let's find the courage we need in the form of Jesus Christ who saves us from ourselves, provided we listen and hear his voice. Deacon David Pierce

On this mountain the LORD of hosts will provide for all peoples a feast of rich food and choice wines, juicy, rich food and pure, choice wines. On this mountain he will destroy the veil that veils all peoples – the web that is woven over all nations. He will destroy death forever. The Lord GOD will wipe away the tears from all faces. The reproach of his people he will remove from the whole earth; for the Lord has spoken. 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! For the hand of the LORD will rest on this mountain. (Isaiah 25:6-10) “He will destroy death forever” is to cancel out the sentence of death given in Genesis 3:19 where it says: “By the sweat of your brow, you shall eat bread, until you return to the ground from which you were taken. For you are dust and to dust you shall return.”