EASTER, PENTECOST, CORPUS CHRISTI

Hello to one and all.  I have been quiet for a long time.  Lately I have been slowly awakening because I have been challenged by some interesting questions that have come my way from the Internet.  Some 4+ years ago I discovered the online question and answer community called "Quora."  I got involved with some of the questions and lately my responses have been distinctly impregnated with our Catholic spirituality.  I is almost like I have been elbowed by the Lord above and His Advocate.  I have come to realize just how much common sense there is in the presence of the Holy Spirit.  I is so natural to refer this common sense to the stories that are housed in the Sacred Scriptures.

Over the last month the Spirit has been elbowing me to reflect on the mission that was given to me in my 30 year career of Human Resources Management.  When I changed my life's focus, I had to prepare myself for life in the "real world."  In those days, the Internet was nothing but a gleam in Bill Gates' and Paul Allen's eyes.  I "studied" the Help Wanted Ads morning noon and night.  I picked the brains of our "real world" uncles, aunts and cousins.  I nearly burnt the church down with the volume of candles I lit.  I actually enrolled in a community college to take a semester of algebra so that I would not have to admit that I had not passed in high school.  I did pass = C+😉😕😏 with the generous help of Laura Dion, now a senior electronics engineer with Qualcomm.

After some three months I was able to pass an interview at a famous Japanese company named Kyocera.  This is a name constructed Kyoto and ceramics.  As it turned out, not only did I do well in the interview held in the board room and lasting 2 hours, but I later found out that I had projected a positive outlook on life. It also turned out that I had correctly answered the key question correctly.

After the interview it became clear to me that despite the lack of a core Catholic presence, the company was managed according to admirable moral values.  My supervisor/mentor was a graduate of Georgetown U, a Jesuit institution.  His grandfather was a Presbyterian minister and a poet of deep talent who was mainly dedicated to spiritual flights of visionary expressions.  It was clear to me that this was a blessing from God. 

I could write many paragraphs about the life lessons I learned in the six years that I worked there.  That is not my intention for now.  What I have promised myself to do for now is to dwell on the "Acts of the Apostle" not just during my stay at Kyocera, but during my senior managerial life as a human resources Missionary.  I have no intention to tell the dark tales of a human resources director.  Over the next month or so, I invite you to join me and enjoy the positive side of a lay missionary's life. 

Enjoy yourselves and you'll find out why there is to be no crying at my funeral.

QUID EST VERITAS?

Russian proverb:  "It is better to be slapped by the truth than to be kissed by a lie."

The two year old boy on his grand father's lap has already been told that it is not OK to lie.  He hasn't yet had to suffer the consequences that visit people who do lie.  Later on, in not too many years he will come to know what happens to those who lie and get caught in the falsehood that they proclaimed.  He has grown to be the 82 year old author of these simple lies and is telling you now, that Camay bath soap sure tastes BAD.  As I write this, the sensation of the Camay memory is actually bringing goose bumps to the nape of my neck.  It was my mother's favorite punishment against lying and swearing.
That should have been bad enough, but being the stiff necked, proud, I'm "smarter than you are" kid, I can still feel the pain of a well planted right hook from the kid down the street who caught me lying to him once.  I also remember the edict from my father that I had to submit one half of the money that I might receive at Christmas to the offering basket at Church one year when he caught me lying.
Now, here's why I am telling you this.  There is a high placed political operative by the name of Michael Flynn who lied to the FBI, who is now in court over the facts (the true facts) and his defense is, "The FBI didn't warn me not to lie."
What?  Have you ever heard such a heap of stercus taurorum in your life?  Does a successful(?) 60+ year old man have to be warned not to lie?  Can such a person be so naive and daring as to try to defend himself by blaming the FBI for not warning him that lying can bring on much greater punishment?  Sheeesh!
As it turns out, he is not the only one who downplays the value of the truth.  The president of the country and his flacks are all afraid of falling into "perjury traps."  What?  How can you perjure yourself if you tell the truth?  If you don't want to tell the truth because it would incriminate you, plead the 5th to protect yourself.
Frankly, it is shiveringly disgusting to hear such immoral expressions taking root in our society.  Jesus had to put up with the distortion of the truth, so we are not experiencing anything new.  All we are left with is the famous question, "Quid est veritas - what is truth?"
Finally, if you don't agree with me, just Don't Cry at My Funeral

THE BEGINNING IS THE DOOR TO THE END -- LE DÉBUT EST LA PORTE À LA FIN

Here we are, at the end of another liturgical year.  It is November and we are living in the commemoration of those who have gone before us.  We Catholics are sure that every year we will spend a month of our lives preparing for the birth of Our Lord and Savior by reflecting on the mystery of the spiritual life for which we are all preparing.  We pray for our own understanding of this mystery by offering our own joys and sorrows to those who have already reached the rest of their existence in eternity. 

We lift up our hearts and souls to God in a search for deeper personal understanding of the Crossing, all the while asking Him to burnish those who have died and are still in the process of being purified for their entry into the final, glorious and everlasting face-to-face beatific vision.  With our soul and heart reaching out to Him, we take the opportunity to thank Him for the grace of purification, purgation if you will, so that our beloved who are in Purgatory being prepared for their entry into His Divine Presence can "graduate" as quickly as possible.

This period of our life on earth is also a moment of "Purgatory".  It is a moment when we fearlessly look death in the eye and ask God to teach us about it.  It is our opportunity to prepare ourselves spiritually for the inevitable experience.  It is a moment that the Church provides for us every single year, just one month before we get to prepare ourselves for the arrival of the One who is coming to assure us that Eternal Happiness is in fact, possible for us.  Every year, for as long as we live, we are taught by our Faith that the beginning always starts with our heart and mind focused on the end.  Not just with what regards heaven, but for anything that we do in life.  Anything that we do, we do because we desire the result.  

Therefore, let us spend this time in the company of the souls of the Communion of Saints, praying and suffering along with them.  This way, we will all share in the cleansing preparation required for the entry into Eternal Glory in the Divine Presence of God.  

Along the way, remember, there is to be no crying at my funeral.

Nous voici à la fin d'une autre année liturgique. Nous sommes déja au mois de  novembre et nous vivons la commémoration de ceux qui nous ont précédés. Nous, catholiques, sommes certains de passer a chaque année, un mois de notre vie à nous préparer à la naissance de notre Seigneur et Sauveur en réfléchissant au mystère de la vie spirituelle à laquelle nous nous préparons tous. 

Nous prions pour notre propre compréhension de ce mystère en offrant nos propres joies et peines à ceux qui ont déjà atteint le reste de leur existence dans l'éternité.

Nous élevons nos cœurs et nos âmes vers Dieu dans la recherche d'une compréhension personnelle plus profonde de la Traversée, tout en lui demandant de polir ceux qui sont morts et qui sont encore en train d'être purifiés pour leur entrée dans le monde final, glorieux et éternel. La vision béatifique, face-à-face. Avec notre âme et notre cœur, nous saisissons cette occasion pour le remercier de la grâce de purification, de purgation, si vous le souhaitez, afin que notre bien-aimé qui se trouve dans le Purgatoire soit préparé à son entrée dans a la Présence Divine aussi tôt que possible.

Cette période de notre vie sur terre est aussi un moment de "purgatoire". C'est un moment où nous regardons sans peur la mort dans les yeux et demandons à Dieu de nous apprendre ce qu'elle signifie. C'est notre opportunité de nous préparer spirituellement à l'expérience inévitable. C’est un moment que l’Église nous accorde chaque année, un mois avant que nous puissions nous préparer à l’arrivée de Celui qui vient nous assurer que le bonheur éternel est en fait possible pour nous. Chaque année, aussi longtemps que nous vivons, notre foi nous apprend que le commencement s'engage toujours avec notre cœur et notre esprit concentrés sur la fin. Pas seulement avec ce qui concerne le ciel, mais pour tout ce que nous faisons dans la vie. Tout ce que nous faisons, nous le faisons parce que nous désirons le résultat.

Par conséquent, passons ce temps en compagnie des âmes de la Communion des Saints, priant et souffrant avec elles. De cette façon, nous participerons tous à la préparation de la purification nécessaire pour entrer dans la Gloire Éternelle dans la Présence Divine.

En chemin, souvenez-vous, il n'est pas permi de verser les larmes a mes funérailles.

ONE MORE ANGEL TO PROTECT US -- UN AUTRE ANGE POUR NOUS PROTÉGER

Adieu, cousin Joe.

The Good Lord has decided to let one of his friends come into His Palace.  This is not a judgement on my part, just an opinion.  From what we (Belle and I) could see, the Lord and Savior of us all would not leave the door shut after having his loving servant in grace-filled agony for so long.
I am not given to eulogy because I know that it does not form part of my purview before the Eternal judge's seat, but I am allowing myself this one dare when it comes to Joseph Bachand  MS.
There are very few people to whom you extend the invitation to be a relative rather than just a friend.  Joe fell into the category of "cousin" shortly after we had come to know one another a little while.  Since my paternal grand-mother was a Bachand, Joe and I decided that we were cousins.  So we lived for the short time that we knew one another.  I was honored that he agreed.
Belle and I are blessed that our last moments with him were spent on the Holy Mountain of La Salette where we were serving as volunteers.  Not long after we left we received the news of Joe's diagnosis.  I knew then that we had said our last human, cousin to cousin good-bye.
Today Belle and I are quietly lifting our spirits up to the heavenly abode in the hope that together with our cousin Joe we can enjoy the Divine Presence even if
Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror dimly, we humbly await the time when  we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, 1 Cor 13;12

May God bless Joe with eternal bliss.

+++++++++++++

Le Bon Dieu a décidé de laisser un de ses amis entrer chez-lui dans son palais. Ce n'est pas un jugement de ma part, juste un avis. De ce que nous (Belle et moi) avons pu voir, le Seigneur et Sauveur de nous tous ne laisserait pas la porte fermée après avoir soumi son serviteur dévoué à une agonie remplie de grâce pendant si longtemps.

Je ne suis pas un partisan des éloges funèbres parce que je sais que cela ne fait pas partie de mes attributions devant le siège du juge éternel, mais je me permets d'oser celui-ci quand il s'agit de Joseph Bachand MS.

Il y a très peu de connaissances à qui vous faites l'honneur  d'être un membre de la famille plutôt qu'un simple ami. Joseph est tombé dans la catégorie de "cousin" peu de temps après que nous nous ayons connus.  Comme ma grand-mère paternelle était Bachand, Joseph et moi avons décidé que nous étions cousins. Nous avons donc ainsi vécu pendant le temps très court où nous nous sommes connus. J'ai été honoré qu'il a accepté.

Belle et moi sommes heureux que nos derniers moments passés avec lui se soient déroulés sur la montagne sacrée de La Salette, où nous étions bénévoles. Peu de temps après notre départ, nous avons reçu la nouvelle du diagnostic de Joseph. Je savais alors que nous avions dit notre adieu, cousin à cousin.

Aujourd'hui, Belle et moi élevons tranquillement nos esprits vers la demeure céleste dans l'espoir qu'avec notre cousin Joseph, nous pourrons jouir de la Présence Divine même si

Nous voyons actuellement de manière confuse, comme dans un miroir ; ce jour-là, nous verrons face à face. Actuellement, ma connaissance est partielle 1 Cor 13;12.  Ainsi, humblement nous attendons ce jour-là, quand nous le connaîtrons parfaitement, comme nous avons été connus.

Que Dieu bénisse Joseph avec le bonheur éternel.

AS YOU LIVE, SO YOU DIE

It has been quite a while since I have opined on this space.  The life and death of John McCain bring to mind a dictum that I have carried with me from the moment that I first heard it some 60+ years ago. It is the title of this reflection...Our death defines who we are.  It is a mystery that we all have to live and a truth that we can easily find within ourselves.
I spent a lot of my earlier years in a family that experienced a period of two decades during which most of my closest first degree relatives died of acute heart attacks.  In fact all but my sister Jeanine and my God-Mother Grace died that way.  Nevertheless, the dictum applies to them as much as to anyone else. The lives that they lived before the final event is graven in our memories by the mysterious chisel of the process that leads to death.
Consider John McCain.  Two or three days after he terminated the medcine that was keeping him alive, he died.  He decided that the artificial life that he was experincing through the effects of modern medicine was not true to the life that he had lived in the natural environment of pain and suffering that he had inherited from his war time experience.  He must have decided that if his internal bravery was not enough to keep him upright, he would detach himself from the pharmeceuticals and accept to battle on his own.  This time, as he was sure would happen, the attacker won.
I dare say that there are precious few of us who will forget the definition of self that is graven into our own beings.  Some for good and some for less than good, but each and everyone bright and long lasting.  Each and everyone of us is introverting our image of ourselves and asking ourselves and wondering if our death will be kind to our biography or not.
So, fear not the death that will define you.  Challenge the evil potter and give yourself over to the potter who fashions beings who are kind and loving, generous and brave, just but mercifully forgiving.  Now that's a definition that will get us somewhere.

Finally, remember that you are reading the thoughts of the one who reminds you that there is to be no crying at my funeral, no matter what the definition turns out to be.