“Keep yourself in training for a godly life. Physical exercise has some value, but spiritual exercise is valuable in every way, because it promises life, both for the present and for the future.”
- 1 Timothy 4: 7-8
When I was 33 years old, the age Jesus suffered and died, I decided to train rigorously for my first and only Pittsburgh Marathon which took place on May 7, 1995. At age 50, instead of running in the Pittsburgh Marathon (taking place today, May 6, 2012), I will be running to Heritage Valley Sewickley Hospital for surgery. Three days after my birthday, I went for a prescreening colonoscopy only to receive a positive result which set me on the course for more testing. Ten days later I was sent back to the hospital for a CT abdomen/pelvis exam, which once again indicated a positive finding. Two weeks later, at the hospital again, an MRI gave a third positive result and indicated that there was a 2.8 cm low density mass along the menial wall of the cecum. The mass would have to come out. My oldest brother Dave, a doctor in Minnesota, assured me that this is not a dangerous nor difficult surgery but a dramatic one since it is happening to me. Dr. Michael Felix, a surgeon at Sewickley Hospital, will perform the procedure on Tuesday, May 1, Feast of St. Joseph the Worker. The doctor informed me that I would be hospitalized 3-5 days and would have a follow up visit 7-10 days later. I will be recuperating at a friend’s house following surgery. I am happy that Fr. Harry Bielewecz, a 1974 graduate of our St. Joseph School, has got me covered here at the parish.
After six weeks of apprehension and uncertainty, I was at first disappointed and disillusioned at the initial prognosis. Then, in the face of an imminent surgery, I was surprised. And now I am grateful for the doctor’s confidence and reassurance which has alleviated any of my exaggerated fears. During a conference with Dr. Felix, he said it was important that we stay on top of the situation in order to keep in check any further complications which could develop later. I told the doctor I felt this is the same, too, in the spiritual life: unless we keep our spiritual house in order, it can easily fall into a state of deterioration. I was moved by the personal touch and concern of Dr. Felix and delighted when he said he treats everyone the same way.
I think sometimes God gives us "time outs" in life for a reason. Like most of us, we don’t like red lights which make us stop and yellow flashing lights which make us slow down with caution and yield. We prefer instead to race through life on green: go, go, go. But when illness or suffering strikes us, it makes us all too often experience the harsh reality of pain on earth. No life is immune or exempt from this cross. Suffering ever reminds us that we are human. It teaches us that in our body we are on earth.
I learned though this experience that in an accelerated society which can be very depersonalizing and dehumanizing at times, it is important to develop healthy interpersonal relationship where no person becomes a faceless or nameless number, since we are all created in the image and likeness of God.
This Fifth Sunday of Easter could be called “Fruity Sunday." In our Gospel of John 15, as the vine draws nutrients from the ground, so we draw our strength from Christ. Jesus tells us that whoever remains in Him will bear much fruit. To bear the cross is to bear fruit. To be fruitful, and to “bear much fruit” or fruit in plenty, we must sow seeds of faithfulness. What are your favorite fruits? Grapes, cherry, banana, orange, apple, peach, lemon, cantelope, watermelon? On the Internet, there is a list of 152 fruits starting with “acai” and ending with “ziziphus mauritiana.” But Jesus is more interested in fruits of the Spirit rather than fruits growing on a tree.
I recall as a child playing stickball in three families’ yards. In one, Mr. Opal grew a peach tree. He said he enjoyed peaches his entire life long. Peach cobbler, peach pie and the simple the fruit of the peach. He had never planted a seed in his life so he thanked the previous owner for having planted the peach tree there in order that his family could enjoy its fruits. If our lives are grafted to Christ and rooted in Christ, we grow abundantly in the spiritual life. But like any tree, in order for more fruit to grow, we must be pruned and cut back. In St. Paul’s letter to the Galatians (5: 22-23), he notes the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self–control. To the degree that we are sowing these seeds in our life as Christ’s disciples, we remain in Him and He in us.
What a great joy it is for the Church to extend its leaf of the table to welcome 15 First Holy Communion children at the Noon Mass this Sunday as they receive Jesus in the Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist, traditionally called First Holy Communion. At our Pre-Cana Class last week, at which 57 couples attended, a 31 year-old man named Chad McMillen, a First Communicant of mine from a generation past, recalled the day and thanked me for bringing Jesus to Him 24 years ago. The next day I told 7-year old Zachary Jozwiak, a First Communicant of this present generation, that I was sorry I would not be there for his big day, but had a friend, Fr. Harry, who was better, and that he was the bus driver when I was in the seminary. Not only did Fr. Harry drive the bus safely, but he served us well. I know he will serve our children well on their special day.
Right before the 4:00 PM Vigil last week, with 400 people packed into our church, with all the presenting couples and 57 attending couples, I raced to the rectory to get my mail. Lo and behold, I found a complimentary copy of my favorite author, Sr. Melanie Svoboda, SND, entitled "When the Blue Heron Flies." Her poem entitled “No Matter What” anointed the assembly:
No matter how far you’ve strayed, God will find you.
No matter how deep your anguish, God will comfort you.
No matter how serious your illness, God will heal you.
No matter how grave your sin, God will forgive you.
No matter how low you have fallen, God will raise you up.
No matter how weak you are, God will give you strength.
No matter how stubborn your will, God will urge you forward.
No matter how cold your heart, God will warm you.
No matter what, God will keep on loving.
