Fr. Steve’s Reflections

Next Sunday, December 18th at 2:00 PM we will celebrate our annual Advent Communal Reconciliation. This service is offered twice a year, once now before Christmas and in the spring of the year before Easter. Also each day from December 19th through Friday, December 23rd Private Confessions will be available in the Chapel. The Sacrament of Reconciliation is the Sacrament of God’s mercy and compassion. Sins are not the focus of our attention; our eyes are focused on God, a gracious and merciful God who seeks to draw ever closer to us. Sometimes people talk about “their search for God”. In … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – December 11, 2022

The Christmas Season begins at various times in various places. In northern Europe the Christmas Season begins on the Feast of Saint Martin, November 11th. This time of preparation for Christmas is known as ”Saint Martin’s Lent.” In southern Europe the Christmas Season begins on the Feast of Saint Nicholas, December 6th or the Feast of Saint Lucy, December 13th. These times mark the time of the final harvest and the time live stock are brought to market. In the northern regions this occurred a month before the final harvest occurred in the south. It was a time to feast. There was no … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – December 4, 2022

This weekend we begin a new Church year with the opening of the Season of Advent. Advent is, in part, a kind of “new year” celebration for the Church. In the last weeks of “the old year” and the first weeks of  ”the new year” the liturgy of the Church focuses on the final coming of Jesus in glory and the fulfillment of God’s plan for creation. As a society we shun death, we push death under the rug, we are hesitant to speak of death. Parents often find their children unwilling to have the conversation about funeral plans and estate plans. Yet Christian practice and tradition has always … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – November 27, 2022

A few weeks ago I received an invitation to attend an Eagle Scout Court of Honor. Over the years I have received such invitations regularly.  This invitation was really special. This Court of Honor was given for two young women – the second and third girls in the city of Saint Paul to have achieved this rank. One of the scouts is Lucy Dosch, a member of Saint Matthew’s parish. Only two percent of scouts achieve this rank.  It is the highest advancement in scouting. In becoming an Eagle Scout, the scout must undertake a project which leads to the betterment of the community. Over the years … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – November 6, 2022

October 11th is the Feast of Saint John XXIII. This grandfatherly figure was a revolutionary. He desired to see the Church become a significant presence and voice in a rapidly changing world. On the evening of January 25, 1959, following the Solemn Vespers on the Feast of Saint Paul, he simply announced that it was his intention to convene an ecumenical (universal) church council – something that had not been done since 1870. The purpose of the Council was not to condemn a heresy (as so often was the case with Church councils) but to explore new avenues, new approaches, a new voice to … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – October 9, 2022

October 4th is the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. On October 4, 1965 Pope Paul VI visited the United States and spoke at the United Nations calling for an end to the rage of war. Pope Paul: “War, never again. Never again war!” This was the first time a Pope set foot on the soil of the USA. At noon on October 4th Pope Paul called on President Johnson at the Waldorf Astoria. They spent an hour together. Many of Johnson’s advisors urged him to seek the help of Paul VI in brokering a negotiated end to the Vietnam War. Johnson was stubborn and would not enlist the Pope’s assistance. Pope Paul … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – October 2, 2022

Next Saturday, October 1st, following the 4:15 PM Mass, a blessing of animals will take place in the square outside the church, around the Saint Matthew statue. This blessing has been a practice here and is being re-established in honor of the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi – whose feast is October 4th. Pope Francis has called us to see the care for creation as an essential part of being a human being – the realization that you and I are part of the creation of God, along with the land and sea, the fish and wild life, the flora and fauna, etc. Francis challenges all people to set as a … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – September 25, 2022

On the weekend of September 24 and 25 we will celebrate the Feast of Saint Matthew, Patron of our Parish Community. In 1886 The Church of Saint Matthew was established as a Daughter church of the Mother church of German Catholics – The Assumption. Other Daughter churches also sprang from the Assumption – Saint Bernard, Saint Agnes, Saint Francis de Sales and Guardian Angels. For 136 years Saint Matthew’s Community has tried to truly be a visible sign of God’s love on the West Side of Saint Paul. Many generations have been a part of the story of our parish – a story that changed and developed … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – September 18, 2022

On September 11, 2001, at 8:45 a.m. on a clear Tuesday morning, an American Airlines Boeing 767 loaded with 20,000 gallons of jet fuel crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. The impact left a gaping, burning hole near the 80th floor of the 110-story skyscraper, instantly killing hundreds of people and trapping hundreds more in higher floors. As the evacuation of the tower and its twin got underway, 18 minutes after the first plane hit, a second Boeing 767—United Airlines Flight 175—appeared out of the sky, turned sharply toward the World Trade Center and … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – September 11, 2022

Thursday, September 1st was the beginning of meteorological Fall; and this weekend – Labor Day weekend – is the beginning of the Fall routine. Labor Day is time to recognize the power and work of organized labor in the betterment of social life. Since 1891 the Catholic Church has affirmed the value of collective bargaining and the right of workers to organize. In the late 1800s a handful of captains of industry (known as “Robber Barons”) held the reigns of economic life in the United States. One such “Robber Baron” was our own James J. Hill – The Empire Builder. Today, 131 years later, the … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – September 4, 2022

What about this Latin Mass? The Latin Mass is not about Latin. One could celebrate the Vatican II Mass in Latin if one wanted to. It is not the Latin Mass, it is the “Old Mass”. The “Old Mass” is not just another way of celebrating Mass, but an expression of a pre-Vatican II mentality that dates to the Council of Trent. “It’s not about Latin, it is about the meaning of Church, stupid.” It is not possible to say that one recognizes the truth of the Second Vatican Council and at the same time not accept the liturgical reform born out of the Council. The reality of liturgy is intimately joined … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – August 28, 2022

In the 27th chapter of the rule Saint Benedict wrote for his monks, he writes about the need for the Abbot to care for the weakest. He wrote: “They (Church leaders) are to imitate the loving example of Jesus, the Good Shepherd who left the ninety-nine sheep in the mountains and went in search of the one sheep that had strayed. So great was Jesus’ compassion for its weakness that “he mercifully put it on his shoulders” and carried it back to the flock (Luke 15:5).” The Christian life is for human beings. Those who exercise authority in the Christian community are to see themselves as healers … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – August 21, 2022

This weekend we celebrate the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. She is a saint because she truly accepted who she was and who God chose her to be. The following, from Bryce Lungren, Wyoming’s Cowboy Priest, writes about finding within your self the seeds of holiness. Father Steve Adrian Father Bryce Lungren cares for cattle, but he also cares for the souls of his Wyoming parish. He is known as “The Cowboy Priest” He writes: “My whole motto is sonship, and that means that God calls me, calls me by name and according to my nature. He calls me as ‘Bryce.’” When I first … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – August 14, 2022

Next Saturday, August 13th, is the Annual Saint Matt’s Mass in the Park with Buffet following. This annual event usually takes place on the weekend closest to the Feast of the Assumption, August 15th. The relaxed atmosphere of the park provides a different experience of prayer and liturgy as well as an opportunity to visit with fellow parish members and their families and friends. The Men’s Club provides the meat; the Rosary Society provides the table setting (paper plates and plastic cutlery). You are invited to bring a side dish and beverage. Bring a lawn chair; or a blanket if you plan to … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – August 7, 2022

If you or your son were students at Cretin High School in the 1960s you may have taken a course from Brother James Miller or Brother Jim Miller may have coached you in football. He was known for his ability to fix almost anything. He oversaw the maintenance work at Cretin. Students called him “Brother Fix-it”. James Miller grew up on a dairy farm in Wisconsin. He met the Christian Brothers when he attended high school. Later he joined the Order in 1959. He taught at Cretin and in 1969 was sent by the Order to Central America. In Nicaragua and in Guatemala Brother Jim helped build a number of … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – July 24, 2022

Pope Francis warns against hypocrisy, it jeopardizes the unity of the Church. Francis says: “Hypocrisy can be called the fear of the truth, that it is better to pretend than to be yourself. It can suffocate the courage to openly say what is true.” He warned: “hypocrisy flourishes in the environment where interpersonal relations are lived under the banner of formalism.” Pope Francis warned both those who exercise authority in civil life and those who exercise authority in the life of the Church. He warns: “Brother and sisters, a frequent defect in those who have authority, both civil and … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – July 17, 2022

By this time the annual array of graduation parties and receptions are over, or mostly over. I write this reflection as an open letter to 2022 graduates. You have been through two years of a totally unexpected life – no one was prepared for it. COVID-19 turned everything upside down. You have been through it, and God willing you survived. You had the experience of finding yourself in unexpected situations; not a bad prelude to the next challenge in your life. You may be going to another school, or entering the military, you may be taking a “year off” to earn some money for tuition a year … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – July 10, 2022 – an open letter to 2022 graduates

This weekend we celebrate our citizenship, our independence. Pundits, politicians, commentators and Monday morning quarterbacks all seek to grab our attention and tell us what this day is all about. It is pretty simple. Today we commemorate that moment in July of 1776 when a rag-tag group of people took a stand and declared they and their neighbors to be free and self-determining. July 4th marks the birth of the nation. That Declaration confirmed us as a people, a United States. Individual freedoms were affirmed, the rights and value of the individual were asserted. These rights and values … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – July 3, 2022

Are you a follower of Jesus? How do you become a follower of Jesus? Fr. Gerhard Lofink says “there is no New Testament noun for followers of Jesus.” The word used is disciple. Disciple means student; and to be a disciple means that you are under the tutelage of a teacher. Jews had many opportunities to find a teacher, yet when a teacher was chosen the student pledged fidelity to the teacher. Disciples learned to see the world, and to hear words through the eyes and ears of the teacher. The teacher was a life mentor to the disciple. In the New Testament we have some incidents in which a … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – June 26, 2022

June 5, 70 AD was the day Titus breached the middle wall of the city of Jerusalem and destroyed the Temple – a date and event that would forever alter the religious life of Jews. The Temple and temple worship was at the very heart of Jewish religious life. Three times a year a Jew was required to come to Jerusalem and offering sacrifice at the Temple. The priesthood of Israel, from the time of Moses, was the guarantor of the Temple worship of God’s people. The Jerusalem Temple was the second largest building in the world – second only to the Temple of Karnack in Alexandria, Egypt. The … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – June 5, 2022

May 29, 2022 Seventh Sunday of Easter Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in service of their country. It's difficult to prove the origins of this day as over two dozen towns and cities lay claim to be the birthplace. Regardless of the location of origins or the exact date, one thing is crystal clear – Memorial Day was borne out of the Civil War and a desire to honor our dead. On the 5th of May in 1868, General John Logan who was the national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, officially proclaimed it in his General Order … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – May 29, 2022

May 22, 2022 Sixth Sunday of Easter The month of May is traditionally dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. May is a month of growth, when nature is reborn. This month is a fitting time to reflect on the Virgin Mary’s role in salvation and to honor her as the Mother of God. The tradition of dedicating May to Our Lady is centuries old, dating back at least 700 years. The reason is associated with the particular season of the year. May is certainly known for its springtime beauty. It is associated with flowers and blossoms, with trees that spring back to life, and grass which sprouts. It … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – May 22, 2022

May 15, 2022 Fifth Sunday of Easter This is the 131st anniversary of Rerum Novarum. May 15, 1891 Pope Leo XIII defends workers’ rights and property rights in the encyclical letter Rerum Novarum, the beginning of modern Catholic social teaching. Rerum Novarum is the Latin opening words and the title of the letter and means “On the Condition of Labor”. Although the Encyclical follows the church’s traditional teaching concerning the rights and duties of property and the relations of employer and employee, it applies the teaching to modern conditions. It opens with a description of the … [Read more...] about Reflection from Father Steve – May 15, 2022