Living Our Royal Priesthood through Spiritual Sacrifices
Transcription
Living Our Royal Priesthood through Spiritual Sacrifices
PHONG TRÀO THIẾU NHI THÁNH THỂ VIỆT NAM MIỀN ĐÔNG BẮC HOA KỲ TNTT MDB MANA ISSUE 64 JULY 2015 CHIA SẼ TRỢ ÚY – WORDS FROM A CHAPLAIN Living Our Royal Priesthood through Spiritual Sacrifices by Br. Phaolô Chu Trọng Phước, SDB At an interfaith conference on ecology last year in Jerusalem, a woman rabbi asked me: why can’t women become priests in the Catholic Church? I reflected on this question and I came to the conclusion that though women may not become ordained priests in the Catholic Church, they share in the royal priesthood of Jesus Christ through their Baptism and Confirmation. Let us understand the meaning of this royal priesthood by looking at Sacred Scripture and the teachings of the Church. Speaking of the baptized, Sacred Scripture declares: “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy people” (1 Peter 2:9). The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that “Jesus Christ is the one whom the Father anointed with the Holy Spirit and established as priest, prophet and king. The whole People of God participates in these three offices of Christ and bears the responsibilities for mission and service that flow from them” (CCC 783). This means that any baptized person is a priest, a prophet and a king in Christ. Furthermore, “the baptized, by regeneration and the anointing of the Holy Spirit, are consecrated to be a spiritual Ý LỰC CỦA THÁNG / THEME OF THE MONTH - Cầu cho các nhà lãnh đạo trong lãnh vực chính trị biết dùng quyền bính của mình để phục vụ hòa bình cho các dân tộc và làm phát triển các quốc gia yếu kém chậm tiến. - Pray that political leaders use their authority to promote peace for all people and help advance countries currently underdeveloped. L.M. Giuse Nguyễn Tuấn Linh Tuyên Úy TNTT Miền Đồng Bắc - Cầu xin cho sự trách nhiệm trong chính trị được thể hiện tại các cấp độ trong hình thức bác ái. - Pray that political responsibility may be lived at all levels as a high form of charity. - Trong bối cảnh bất bình đẳng xã hội, xin cho các Kitô Hữ tại Nam Mỹ luôn làm chứng cho tình yêu dành cho người nghèo khổ và luôn đóng góp cho một xã hội huynh đệ hơn. - Pray that, amid social inequalities, Latin American Christians may bear witness to love for the poor and contribute to a more fraternal society. Đức Thánh Cha Phanxicô Đức Giáo Hoàng Giáo Hội Công Giáo TNTT MDB MANA | Issue 64 2 house and a holy priesthood” (CCC 784). In the Rite of Baptism of a child, just before the anointing with chrism oil, the priest says: “As Christ was anointed Priest, Prophet, and King, so may you live always as members of his body, sharing everlasting life.” In the Baptism of an adult, the Explanatory Rite states that “the anointing with chrism is a sign of the royal priesthood of the baptized and that they are now numbered in the company of the people of God” (RCIA 214). Thus, we can see that each baptized Christian is identified as a priest in Christ. Now, let us look at the mission of the royal priesthood. When a baptized Christian, whether a man or a woman, offers as spiritual sacrifices his/her daily life and work in the world for the salvation of souls, he/she acts as a priest. In the TNTT tradition, the four pillars of our Eucharistic spiritual life are: prayer, communion, sacrifice, and apostolic work. As I reflect on these pillars more and more, I realize they are very much the works and sacrifices of a priest: • PRAYER: As Christians, each of us is called to pray always and everywhere. From the “rising of the sun to its setting” we are called to offer to God prayers and sacrifices of praise, adoration, and thanksgiving for all the blessings he has given us; even in our dreams, we can pray to God! Not only do we pray with our mouth, but with our hearts and our whole body as well. Let all our thoughts, words, actions, and renunciations be prayers offered up to a loving God. A priest is primarily a person of prayer. So any Christian man or woman is a person of prayer. • COMMUNION: By participating in Mass, we participate in the one sacrifice of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. Why was it necessary that Jesus sacrificed Himself for us? It is because our sins separate us from God, and so by Jesus’s sacrificial death, we are redeemed and given new life in His Resurrection. This communion with the Body and Blood of Christ is a very intimate way of uniting ourselves with God. A priest is one who is united with God by living “with Him, in Him, and through Him.” A priest is called to celebrate this Eucharist every day. Any Catholic man or woman can celebrate the Eucharist every day by participating in daily Mass. • SACRIFICE: By our spiritual sacrifices, we imitate Jesus in atoning for our sins and the sins of others; though Jesus was sinless, he humbled himself and was made sin for our sake. So, what are spiritual sacrifices? In the Old Testament, sacrifices involved the slaughtering of animals. As followers of Christ, we no longer need to do this because Christ himself was slaughtered as a sacrifice for all of us. In imitating Christ, we make spiritual sacrifices by avoiding sins, daily renouncing our bad habits, and accepting of the daily hardship and inconveniences of life. A priest is called to make sacrifices in his own life for the sake of the people. So any Christian man or woman can make spiritual sacrifices on behalf of others by praying for others and offering up one’s suffering for good of souls. In the Mass, we hear the words of the celebrant: “Pray, brethren (brothers and sisters), that my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God, the almighty Father”. Immediately, we respond: “May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands for the praise and glory of his name, for our good and the good of all his holy “When a baptized Christian, whether a man or a woman, offers as spiritual sacrifices his/her daily life and work in the world for the salvation of souls, he/she acts as a priest.” TNTT MDB MANA | Issue 64 Church.” These words tell us that the true sacrifice on the altar is the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ that is being offered up for our salvation. Thus, all of our spiritual sacrifices must imitate this self-giving sacrifice of Christ. • APOSTOLIC WORK: The mission of the priest is to preach the Good News. One preaches by good words, good deeds, and living a good life. In the rite of ordination of a priest, the ordaining bishop exhorts the candidate “…by your preaching and example you help build up the edifice which is the family of God.” This task of preaching, Jesus entrusted to the Twelve Apostles and all whom they ordained to do so. Though the formal preaching of the Word of God is usually done by those who are ordained, however, the living of the Word of God is to be done by everyone! To put it in another way, every baptized person is called to live the Word of God in one’s person, that is, to allow the Word to “become flesh” in each of us. Often non-Christians are converted to God by the witnesses of those Christians who live their faith boldly and fearlessly whether in life or in death. The real apostolic work now in this day and age is to live our faith zealously. We do so by striving to unite ourselves with Christ through constant prayers, frequenting the sacraments of Confession and Communion, and doing works of charity. St. Francis of Assisi sums it up nicely by saying “preach always, when necessary, use words.” As we can see, God the Father calls each of us to live the royal priesthood of Jesus Christ by means of these spiritual works and sacrifices. So to answer the question posed by the woman rabbi: a baptized woman can live a priestly life by zealously living her faith. By living the four TNTT pillars above, she can participate in the royal priesthood that Christ gave to all Christians. The usual excuse that one gives for not living the faith zealously is: “Well, I’m not a priest or a nun, so I don’t have to be so religious.” This is a wrong understanding of our Christian faith! By our Baptism, God the Father calls us to become one with Him in Christ and Christ calls us to “be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt 5:48). Of course, we can fail at times, but the Holy Spirit helps us to realize that our weaknesses teach us to depend and trust wholeheartedly on God who is our strength and our salvation. 3 Ý CẦU NGUYỆN - PRAYER INTENTIONS Xin cho các vị lãnh đạo các quốc gia biết đặt quyền lợi của người dân lên trên, để giúp tái lập hòa bình trật tự và nhân phẩm con người. Please send prayers to [email protected] TIN TRONG MIỀN - REGIONAL NEWS - Đại Hội Nghĩa Hiệp I July 2-5, 2015 Niagara University 5795 Lewiston Rd.Niagara Univ, NY 14109 - Hành Hương La Salette July 24-25, 2015 National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette 947 Park St., Attleboro, MA 02703 - Hội Nghị Huynh Trưởng MĐB August 22, 2015 Saint Ambrose Church 240 Adams St., Dorchester, MA 02122 - Hành Hương Lòng Chúa Thương Xót August 29, 2015 National Shrine of the Divine Mercy 2 Prospect Hill Rd., Stockbridge, MA - Hành Hương Fatima September 4-5, 2015 Basilica of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima 1023 Swann Rd., Lewiston, NY - Họp Mặt Trợ Tá Giuse II September 12, 2015 Our Lady of Vilna Church 153 Sterling St., Worcester, MA 01610 HOAN HÔ - SHOUT OUT Hoan hô Tr. Antôn Huỳnh Bảo và Tr. Anna Phạm Trinh thuộc Đoàn Saviô đã tuyên thệ vào hàng ngũ Huynh Trưởng cấp 2 HS! Chúc mừng tân Ban Chấp Hành Đoàn Bernadette, MA, nhiệm kỳ 2015-2018! Đoàn Trưởng: Mathêu Phạm Mathew Phó Quản Trị: Philip Niri Vũ Paul Phó Nghiên Huấn: Giuse Đàm Khoa Thư Ký: Têrêsa Vũ Quỳnh Thủ Quỹ: Maria Phạm Trinh Nguyện xin Thiên Chúa dìu dắt và chúc lành cho quý HT trên con đường phục vụ! TNTT MDB MANA | Issue 64 4 HÌNH ẢNH ĐÓ ĐÂY – PICTURES HERE THERE Chúc mừng Tr. Bảo và Tr. Trinh thuộc đoàn Saviô đã tuyên thệ vào hàng ngũ Huynh Trưởng cấp 2 ngành Hiệp Sĩ! 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