St. Jude Thaddeus by Anonymous

Sermon: Find Time To Pray

A sermon by Rev. Kenneth Shuping of St. Jude Catholic Church, Christiansburg, Virginia, U.S.A., given February 8, 2009 (source link here).

Jesus cured those who were sick. He healed those possessed. He traveled all over the countryside preaching the Word of God. He spent His life giving of Himself, caring for others. And we hear how he rose early in the morning, the only quiet time of the day that was left to Him, and found time to pray.

That's so important in a busy life: to find time to pray. Jesus remains centered on His mission, on His relationship with His Father in heaven, taking time to feel that communion in prayer.

In the story of Job, we hear of a man who suffers so much, who asks "Is not life on earth a drudgery?" where the work never seems to end and yet, he continues to turn to God, asking, seeking understanding, and remaining in faith. Without faith, the endless trials of life can leave us hopeless.

In the writings of St. Paul today, we hear of a man who offers himself completely as a slave to all for the sake of the gospel; a man who's driven to work constantly for the coming for the kingdom. His work has purpose. His work has a foundation in Christ. So, even though his work is tiring, Paul feels the reward. His need to preach, his obligation to share the word of God, is a burning desire inside of him that he can't silence. It comes from the realization that God has loved him, and has become man for Paul's salvation. And in feeling that love from God, which is totally selfless and totally giving, Paul needs to return that love. Paul feels the need to love in a way that's totally giving. So, he tries to become "all things to all, to save at least some." He tries to imitate the love he's found in God. This is what motivates his work, and sustains him so that life is not just a drudgery.

This centering on the reality of God's love for us helps us to understand what life is all about. It reminds us that God has loved us first, so that we can know what love truly is and respond in love to God. Remember that God is love: a deep, personal love of each one of us; a love that comes to us without merit, unearned, when we're still in our mother's womb still unable to recognize and appreciate that love; a love that remains with us even when we've proven our lack of merit by turning away from God through selfishness, through sinfulness; a love that always offers forgiveness; a love that risks itself by standing by us even in our sinful condition and following us into death.

This is the kind of God we have. God is love. How often do we remember that? How often do we take time from our busy day to reflect on how much God loves us?

"Rising very early before dawn, Jesus went off to a deserted place where he prayed."

When's our quiet time, when we can reflect on God's love for us? Where's our deserted place where we can set aside the anxieties and the noise and the urgency of trivia, and remember the depth of meaning in our lives?

And once we've carved that space out of each busy day to remember God's love, to pray, how do we respond to that love? How do we bring that reality of love into the rest of our day?

When Jesus had finished His prayer, He said, "Let us go on to the nearby villages that I may preach there also. For this purpose have I come." To share that love with others. Because loving our neighbor, is the way that we return that love that God's showered on us. And yes, Jesus had a very busy day and become tired from His work. And yes, St. Paul was constantly at work and suffered hardships. But they weren't slaves to the drudgery of life, waiting for their wages. Their work came from a burning desire within them to share the love that is God.

Love of neighbor leads us deeper into that encounter with God, because it leads us deeper into love. Closing our eyes to our neighbor blinds us from the love of God.

Find your own deserted place where you can get away from distractions. Find your own time before dawn, or after school, or in the quiet of the night when you can pray and remember God's love for you. Then take that love with you into your busy day and share it with everyone
you meet.

Sermon: The Power of Love

A sermon by Rev. Karen Siegfriedt of St. Jude the Apostle Episcopal Church, Cupertino, California, U.S.A., given October 26, 2008 (source link here).

Jesus said: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. And a second is like unto it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

I met a priest who came from a large Italian family from back east. Each of his parents had eight siblings, all of whom were married. This meant that he had 32 aunts and uncles as well as 54 cousins. Each year on the first Sunday of December, this clan would meet at a restaurant where they would begin their reunion with a mass, followed by a catered dinner. It was a time of great joy and celebration. While many of his relatives were remarkable, there was one aunt and uncle who stood out for him. After many years of marriage, this particular couple acted like they were just coming back from their honeymoon: doting on each other & tenderly caring for one another.

This uncle had a very important business which he created and grew to success. His work gave great meaning to his life and he was very generous with his earnings. After many years of marriage, his wife became very sick. Instead of putting her in a nursing facility, her husband took her home to care for her. There he would bath her, feed her, and give her the emotional support that she needed. Why did he work so hard and care so much for his ailing wife? It was the power of love!

After awhile, his wife improved and he returned to work in the business which meant so much to him. But then his wife became ill once more. He made a decision to sell his business and to spend his primary time and energy taking care of her. Why would he sell his business rather than hire a home health aid? Why would he give up his meaningful career? It was the power of love!

One evening while upstairs in their bedroom, he heard a noise in the basement. He ran downstairs, opened the door, and immediately a ball of fire came out at him. The force of the fire threw him several feet, injuring his arm and leg. His hair and clothes were on fire but all he could think of was his wife lying upstairs in her bed. He quickly rolled himself over and patted himself down to put out the fire on his body. Then he struggled upstairs. Though he was a man of small stature and his wife had limited mobility, he carried her downstairs, safely to the outside. How could a man who was so injured carry another person down a flight of stairs, not even considering the danger to his own life? It was the power of love.

Once outside, he carried his wife over to his neighbor’s house to insure that she would be safe if the entire house were to blow up. But while carrying her up the porch stairs, he slipped on the steps and they both fell. The fire engines and the ambulance finally came. And as he was being put on a stretcher he insisted that the medics attend to his wife first and foremost. How could he possibly consider the other when he was in such pain himself? It was the power of love!

By the time he was evaluated at the hospital, he had little hope of survival. His lungs were seared and there were burns all over his body. They told him of his prognosis but he did not want to die. He was determined not to give up but rather to live in order to take care of his wife who needed him. How could he be so determined in that weakened state? It was the power of love.

The doctors decided to put him on a respirator and induce a coma for two months. It was “touch and go” every step of the way. But when the two months were over, he recovered his health and was reunited with his wife. It was the power of love that had sustained him and healed him.

God’s love is like that. Christ’s love is like that. It never ends. In fact the Christian path is all about love. And the good news is that when we are baptized into this power of love, we are given the grace to love God with our whole heart and our neighbor as ourselves. And while this sacrament gives us the grace to love abundantly, it does require us to have an open heart. Are you committed to letting this power of love take over your life and the life of your child? What will it take for you to say yes? Let’s take a look at today’s readings to gain some insight on what it means to follow the great commandment to love.

The Book of Leviticus was given to Israel so that its people might live holy lives in fellowship with a holy God. The Jewish people were to be a blessing to other nations and were required to follow a way of life that would guarantee their well being. For modern-day readers, this book of Leviticus is very challenging because many of its laws were written in the context of a patriarchal society. Many folks begin reading the bible from the beginning with enthusiasm, but by the time they read the book of Leviticus (which is only the third book) they run out of steam. But what I find most helpful about the book of Leviticus, is that it speaks about the importance of both love for God and love of neighbor.

Christians seem to be split on which of these two is most important. Some Christians focus on faith and love of God to the exclusion of social justice and love of neighbor. Other Christians focus on ethics and justice but fail to grow in love of the Lord and in holiness. Both positions are deficient.

Our reading today begins with the command: “You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.” [Lev. 19] When we say that God is holy, what does this reveal about the character of God? The scriptures tell us that God is compassionate, gracious, abounding in love and mercy. And on the justice side, God is also intolerant of evil, sin, and destruction and tries to purify creation. And because we are also called to be holy, we are called to purify ourselves and to develop the qualities of compassion and graciousness, abounding in love and mercy. To imitate God in these virtues is one of the ways we love God. To love God means to place God at the center our lives; the ultimate point of reference for human life. One of the ways we can learn how to move out of the center and allow God to take this rightful place is through prayer, worship, and praise. These will be some of the promises we will make today as we renew our own baptismal covenant.

But loving God is not enough. Loving our neighbor is inseparable from loving God. The 19th chapter* of Leviticus explores holiness in regard to how we are to treat our neighbor; specifically with regard for the poor and the rich, regard for the truth, regard for the employee and the helpless. It culminates with the injunction to love your neighbor as yourself. This injunction goes right to the core of the matter. It declares that the state of one’s heart toward one’s neighbor is the determining factor in being holy towards one’s neighbor as God is holy. No one is to hate one’s brother or sister. It would be better to openly rebuke another person rather that to brood or to build up resentment. Offering a rebuke when someone has done something wrong is done out of concern for the whole community.

In a modern interpretation of Leviticus, this love of neighbor is summed up in our baptismal promises to seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving our neighbor as ourselves. It includes “striving for justice and peace among all people, and respecting the dignity of every human being.”

I think people make the Christian religion far too difficult. It is simply a way of life. Love God and love your neighbor. Everything else is a commentary on this great commandment.

Article: LSU tackle Ciron Black playing for more than just a title in 2009

A story from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Danny Thomas' legacy and offering of thanks to St. Jude Thaddeus (see source link here), authored by Andy Staples of Inside College Football at SI.com.

Tailback Charles Scott didn't decide whether to return for his senior season at LSU until he heard from the behemoth who paves his path to the end zone. "Of course, I was looking at if Ciron was leaving," Scott said in January. "If I'd have my big boy back."

Scott's big boy, LSU left tackle Ciron Black, has started 40 consecutive games at the sport's most physically demanding position in a conference that has produced the past three national champions. If he had chosen to go to the NFL, no one would have blinked. But Black felt he had more to accomplish. He wants to receive his degree in December. He wants a crack at a second national title. He wants to play one more season for Mikey.

Like so much in college football these days, the friendship between Black and Mikey Conger began with a post on an Internet message board.

Hey Michael, I recently saw your story and wanted to have the honor to write in your guest book. My name is Ciron Black. I am the left tackle for the LSU Tigers football team. I'm also number 70 and I saw you wearing that jersey number, that's a great number by the way :). You know some people see us as heroes because of how we play but the truth is people like yourself are the real heroes. I see all the small problems I face are nothing compared to the hardships that you may go through. God has a plan for all of us and for some reason he put it on my heart to write you tonight ... if it is at all possible I would love to talk to you. My number is xxx-xxx-xxxx anytime day or night if you need someone to talk to. Hang in there buddy and just know that anything is possible through Christ.

Your Friend,

Ciron Black

P.S. I would love to write your name on my wrist tape as I get ready to take the field on Jan. 7th for the national championship. Let me know if that is OK.

When Black, then a sophomore, posted that message on Mikey's page at CaringBridge.org in December 2007, 8-year-old Mikey lay in a bed at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis. A reaction to a chemotherapy treatment had rendered Mikey paralyzed, nearly blind and unable to speak. Doctors had told Mikey's mother, Laurina, to plan on at least another year at the hospital. Knowing Mikey was an LSU football fan -- his parents named him after Mike the Tiger -- some friends of the family sent messages to several LSU players to keep Mikey in their prayers. Black, the son of two ministers from Tyler, Texas, did more than pray. After reading about Mikey's battle with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia on CaringBridge.org, he posted the above message to Mikey's guestbook.

Laurina remains convinced a desire to watch the BCS title game helped Mikey heal faster than anyone expected. "He knew that the LSU football team was getting ready to play that game," Laurina says. "That was a push. That was a real incentive for him to get well." So, too, was the care package that arrived from Baton Rouge. It contained the game ball Black had received for his role in the SEC championship game win against Tennessee, signed by the entire LSU team. "That's why we play the game," Black said. "For people like him."

Mikey watched the Tigers beat the Buckeyes from his hospital bed. In the third quarter, a Fox camera showed Black's left forearm wrapped in athletic tape with "Mikey" scrawled in marker. Later that month, Mikey went home. Not long after, Mikey met Black face-to-face. Though Mikey was confined to a wheelchair, he never let it dampen his spirits. "He never would let you know that he was hurting," Black says. "He always had a smile on his face."

When Mikey turned 9 last July, his parents took him to LSU to see the national championship crystal ball. Tipped off the Congers were visiting, Black and LSU coach Les Miles greeted the family with a birthday cake. Mikey, on his feet again, ran to Black and hugged him. The 314-pound lineman found himself wiping away tears. A few months later, Mikey and his father came to a game at Tiger Stadium. Black, in his third year as a starter, suddenly felt like a freshman playing his first game. "I don't think I've ever felt that nervous," Black says.

While the Congers celebrated a football season away from hospitals and chemo, the Tigers suffered on the field in a rebuilding season. Despite a wealth of talent, they went 8-5 (3-5 in the SEC). That wore on Black and his teammates, and it had more than a little to do with Black's decision to return. "We have a horrible taste in our mouths," Black said. "Last season, that's not us. That's not how we play. A lot of things went wrong. There's nobody to blame but ourselves."

Now Black returns to a team with a settled quarterback situation -- sophomore Jordan Jefferson has taken ownership of the starting job -- and an established back -- Scott ran for 1,174 yards and 18 touchdowns in 2008 -- taking handoffs. John Chavis, who spent the past 14 years coordinating Tennessee's defense, has come to Baton Rouge to restore the Tigers' roar on that side of the ball.

Mikey, meanwhile, should get plenty of chances to watch Black play this season. Earlier this month, he visited St. Jude and his doctor declared his disease remains in remission. "I'm not done yet," Mikey boasted to his mother's delight. This fall, Mikey, who just turned 10, will enter third grade. Black, meanwhile, will continue to refine his game. If Black helps bring LSU another national title, he'd happily dedicate it to the boy who inspires him every day. "I love him," Black says. "I'll be friends with him until the day I die."

June Messages of Thanks

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