VATICAN CITY Pope Benedict’s Angelus message from the 23d Sunday in Ordinary Time:

Dear brothers and sisters!

At the heart of today’s Gospel (Mk 7, 31-37) there is a small but, very important word; a word that in its deepest meaning sums up the whole message and the whole work of Christ. The Evangelist Mark writes it in the same language that Jesus pronounced it in, so that it is even more alive to us. This word is “Ephphatha,” which means, “be opened.” Let us look at the context in which it is located.

Jesus was travelling through the region known as the “Decapolis”, between the coast of Tyre and Sidon, and Galilee, therefore a non-Jewish area. They brought to him a deaf man, so that he could heal him – evidently his fame had spread that far. Jesus took him aside, touched his ears and tongue, and then, looking up to the heavens, with a deep sigh said, “Ephphatha,” which means, “Be opened.” And immediately the man began to hear and speak fluently (cf. Mk 7.35).

This then is the historical, literal, meaning of this word: this deaf mute, thanks to Jesus’ intervention, “was opened”, before he had been closed, insulated, it was very difficult for him to communicate, and his recovery was ‘”openness” to others and the world, an openness that, starting from the organs of hearing and speech, involved all his person and his life: Finally he was able to communicate and thus relate in a new way.

But we all know that closure of man, his isolation, does not solely depend on the sense organs. There is an inner closing, which covers the deepest core of the person, what the Bible calls the “heart”. That is what Jesus came to “open” to liberate, to enable us to fully live our relationship with God and with others. That is why I said that this little word, “Ephphatha – Be opened,” sums up Christ’s entire mission.

He became man so that man, made inwardly deaf and dumb by sin, would become able to hear the voice of God, the voice of love speaking to his heart, and learn to speak in the language of love, to communicate with God and with others…..

The more common error is that the will of the child gets stamped out by a parent being too firm, and constantly saying no, so that the child never makes her own choices. This opens the child up to many hurts. Psychologist Martin Seligman says the main factor in whether a person gets permanently hurt or not doesn’t seem to be the severity of the situation. People go through tremendous crises–prison camps,  murders, rapes—and they can grow from them. Others get wiped out by just a minor thing. They fall down the stairs and for the rest of their life they’re afraid of everything. According to Dr Seligman it isn’t the severity of the situation but whether people feel helpless and out of control. If they don’t sense they have a will, that they’re in charge, then anything can just come in and wipe them out. That’s why this stages is so important. It builds that inner confidence and resiliency. Because I have a self, I can bounce back on my own two feet. Nothing is going to wipe me out. With my will I can say no to all the ways a situation is paralyzing me and begin to grow by making the choices I can make rather than be passively depending on the situation to change.

A healthy will fosters physical and emotional health. Many believe that dependency illnesses (addictions) have roots in a wounded sense of autonomy. –Healing the Eight Stages of Life

A hymn sung, two takes, by a visiting Brazilian younger Franciscan brother. Beautifully done during the offering at St Paul Shrine during a weekday Mass.  The brother accompanied his voice with guitar. Nicely done.  Nice to feel the energy of young men emboldened by the active/contemplative life of a consecrated Catholic religious vocation. This first take is from a pop culture master, classic rock-n-roll maestro Van Morrison. The second I admire for the absence of individuality, the emptiness of personality while demonstrating fullness in authenticity and sincerity–a lack of regard for greatness opting for worship–becoming less in order to become more–the embracing of the sanctuary,altar, tabernacle (reposed Eucharist), and Crucifixion as images to be adored.

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.

Lord Jesus Christ
We have gathered in this community
Because we seek to know your will
And carry it out in our lives

We often become intensely aware
Of the wide disparity between what we should be doing
And what we actually find ourselves doing
In our relationships with loved ones
As well as those with whom we work and play

By the work of your Holy Spirit
Give us the insight to face the true motives
For our attitudes, words, and actions.

Help us to overcome our selfishness and envy
So that we may be a blessing to others
Rather than a stumbling block to their spiritual growth
Amen

A study in morality centered in the Catholic Catechism

Human virtues are firm attitudes, stable dispositions, habitual perfections of intellect and will that govern our actions, order our passions, and guide our conduct according to reason and faith. They make possible ease, self-mastery, and joy in leading a morally good life. The virtuous man is he who freely practices the good.

The moral virtues are acquired by human effort. They are the fruit and seed of morally good acts; they dispose all the powers of the human being for communion with divine love.  –Catechism of the Catholic Church