El Salvador
Nicaragua
It was a great trip!
 |
| Planting corn with my good friend Franklin, he's the one plowing! |
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Finally... some pictures from my recent trip to El Salvador and Nicaragua
Here are links to some pictures from my recent trip with my sister Libby to El Salvador and Nicaragua:
El Salvador
Nicaragua
It was a great trip!
El Salvador
Nicaragua
It was a great trip!
Highlights of Two Years at St. Michael Parish and Catholic Campus Ministry
Here is the text of the letter I wrote for the bulletin insert this weekend:
“Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.”
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
Dear St. Michael Parish,
On my last weekend of service here at St. Michael’s, my heart is heavy at the thought of leaving, but also excited at the adventures that lie ahead. Above all, my heart is full of praise and thanksgiving for the rich gifts given to me here by our gracious and loving Father through each one of you.
My first thanks go without question to Father Larry Van Damme, our pastor. He has been a friend and mentor to me since he was appointed to St. Mary and St. Joseph Parish in Iron Mountain as a newly ordained priest in 1993, my home parish. To have his example, friendship, encouragement, and guidance during my first two years of priesthood has been a rare and precious blessing. Only a very few times have I been in the chapel to pray before him. He has had to live with me in the rectory, no small penance! Neither my room, my office, nor my schedule have been models of tidiness and order, but he has borne with me very patiently. We have celebrated Mass together, sat in adjacent confessionals, paddled our kayaks, and sat up for many long hours talking of life and ministry and God’s mercy. I forgive him for eating all my leftovers! I know I have learned a great deal and am a better man and a better priest because of his generous friendship.
After Father Larry, I have probably spent the most time working with Catherine Hardenbergh, our pastoral and campus minister. Cat also grew up in Iron Mountain, and we already knew each other from the Youth Encounter Movement. We have spent long hours late into the night with the NMU students. Cat has generously shown me the ropes and taught me out of her years of campus ministry experience, along with helping me navigate the many details of parish life. I admire her commitment and generous love for the students and parish, as well as her courageous balancing of family and ministry.
It has been a pleasure, too, to work and pray with Deacon Dennis Maki. He and Father Larry and I all share the same birthday! Deacon Dennis has been consistent in generosity and fidelity. I have been particularly struck by his devotion to the inmates of Marquette Branch Prison, and it has been inspiring to collaborate with him there.
Serving at St. Michael’s, Catholic Campus Ministry, and Fr. Marquette School means being part of a very large team of staff and volunteers, and a member of a large and varied parish family, far too many good and loving people and groups to list in any adequate way here. It is only the lack of space that keeps me from continuing this list for dozens of pages. You welcomed me, taught me, and were patient and forgiving. I have seen you offer generous and loving service without counting the cost. It is with you that I have experienced my first weeks and months of joy at celebrating the Eucharist, of awe at God’s infinite mercy in the Sacrament of Penance, of humility in the Anointing of the Sick. It is with you that I have discovered the enormous variety of needs in a parish, God’s generous grace, and the challenge of navigating such bountiful opportunities with wisdom and discernment.
Some of my greatest joy and fun has been with the youth of the parish and Catholic Campus Ministry. With the school, the middle school youth group, the Scouts, CCM, the Frassati Society, and in other ways I have had the privilege of praying, laughing, eating, and learning with you young men and women. Whether in Mass, retreats, trips, or on snowshoes, I see great hope for our Church in you. God is calling you to holiness and joy in His Church… do not be afraid!
To each and every member of this parish I offer my deepest and heartfelt thanks. It is hard to believe that two years have already passed by, yet they have been so very full. We will never outdo the Lord in generosity… but let’s keep trying! Know that you will be in my thoughts and prayers; please keep me in yours.
God Bless,
Father Ben Hasse
benjhasse@yahoo.com
Along with this letter, I included a number of photos highlighting the many blessings of these past years... this link will take you to those photos and quite a few more in a Facebook album (no need to have an account to view these photos): Highlight Photos on Facebook
Corpus Christi: Will we receive the nourishment we need?
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It is a joy to be preaching to you on the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ - Corpus Christi. By God’s generosity, yesterday was my 33rd birthday. Sometimes people get stressed out around their birthdays’, but I just like to think of it like a caveman… another year without getting eaten!
In these days after Pentecost, the Church puts before us a number of the key mysteries, the deepest and most beautiful truths of our faith…last Sunday, the Most Holy Trinity, and now, the Eucharist. This series will conclude with the celebrations of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus this Friday, and the Immaculate Heart of Mary on Saturday. They are connected: out of the dynamic and infinite and perfect love between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, God’s grace overflows and He
sends Jesus to save us through Mary’s self-surrender. From Jesus’ pierced side flowed out blood and water and the Church was born. From the Church we continue to receive the Eucharist, Jesus Himself, and we are drawn into the love of the Trinity. These feasts map out for us the very life of grace!
You very likely have heard the phrase before, but it bears repeating. The Second Vatican Council calls the Eucharist the very “source and summit” of our faith… the font from which all grace flows and the goal and peak towards which we bring everything in our hearts and lives. The Eucharist is to be our life and our joy. As we hear in the first reading, we do not live by bread alone, but by every word from the mouth of God… in the Eucharist real bread becomes the WORD MADE FLESH, Jesus, the Word of the Father. God in His mighty humility comes to us under the appearance of simple food and drink, and the spiritual nourishment He gives us is JUST as necessary as physical nourishment.
In our wealth and comfort, I think some of these images begin to loose their edge. When we hear of the Israelites hungry and thirsty in the desert, most of us have little context to understand this! When I returned to El Salvador recently, everyone commented appreciatively on my round belly, some even patted it proprietarily! The folks there are close enough to knowing real hunger to see my belly as a sign of regular meals! To say “¡Mira, que gordo!”, “Look at how fat you are!” isn’t meant to be derogatory… in a sense, it’s admiration!
Listen, then, to what Jesus says about His Body and Blood in the Gospel, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you.” Let that sink into your heart… The Eucharist is not a nice fringe benefit of the Gospel… it is not a nice ceremony to fill out the preaching… it is not merely a symbol of something that happened long ago. Somehow so many of our separated brothers and sisters miss this passage as they study the Bible with so much real love and zeal. The Eucharist is the essential Spiritual Food without which we starve to death. “Amen Amen…unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you DO NOT have life within you.” These are very strong words… do we take them seriously? Do we approach this altar with reverence, hungry to receive the grace we need? Do we prepare our hearts with prayer? Do we examine our hearts to see if we are disposed to receive communion? Do we attend Mass to receive the Eucharist only when it’s convenient? If we face life’s frequent trials and difficulties without the Eucharist, it’s as if we’re trying to run a marathon on an empty stomach… it DOESN’T work!
As I complete two years of service among you this week, I am full of gratitude for the gift of priesthood, an
d the great gift of beginning my priesthood here with you. I have tried to serve you generously, and I have received far more than I have given. First and foremost, a priest is ordained to provide the People of God with that which is not possible without him… the Eucharist, and the forgiveness of sins. It is an enormously humbling thing to speak the words of Christ, “This is my body,” and to know that Christ works through me to bring us His Body and Blood. It is an enormously humbling thing to hear a person confess their sins and to say those words, “I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” To serve in God’s name is a joy, and a constant invitation to gratitude and humility. God’s grace makes me very aware of how little I am before the Lord and how much I need Him.
Perhaps my greatest daily sorrow is to see so many people who do not receive - who do not seek - the enormous grace that God longs to give them in Confession and in the Eucharist. St. Paul tells us clearly what is offered to us… a participation in the body of Christ, in His Blood, and then unity with each other in Him. This is what our hearts most long for, God, and we are offered it at every Mass. Do we pause, do we wonder, do we grasp what we are offered! God HIMSELF! As I prepare, now, to celebrate this Sunday Eucharist for the last time among you, this then is my plea to you… do not receive these gifts in vain… do not approach this altar merely out of habit, do not approach without examining and opening your hearts to the healing and mercy that we ALL need. Do not take for granted the Bread from Heaven that comes to you now. God HAS NOT ABANDONED US in our distress, but we have OFTEN abandoned Him. We have chosen to be here and yet our openness can become deeper, wider, and more complete. Then we can bring this gift to the whole world. Jesus offers us infinite grace, if we will but receive it with open hearts. Listen again to Jesus’ beautiful promise, “Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever.”
Homily Outline for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ: Corpus Christi
26 June 2011
It is a joy to be preaching to you on the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ - Corpus Christi. By God’s generosity, yesterday was my 33rd birthday. Sometimes people get stressed out around their birthdays’, but I just like to think of it like a caveman… another year without getting eaten!
In these days after Pentecost, the Church puts before us a number of the key mysteries, the deepest and most beautiful truths of our faith…last Sunday, the Most Holy Trinity, and now, the Eucharist. This series will conclude with the celebrations of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus this Friday, and the Immaculate Heart of Mary on Saturday. They are connected: out of the dynamic and infinite and perfect love between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, God’s grace overflows and He
sends Jesus to save us through Mary’s self-surrender. From Jesus’ pierced side flowed out blood and water and the Church was born. From the Church we continue to receive the Eucharist, Jesus Himself, and we are drawn into the love of the Trinity. These feasts map out for us the very life of grace! You very likely have heard the phrase before, but it bears repeating. The Second Vatican Council calls the Eucharist the very “source and summit” of our faith… the font from which all grace flows and the goal and peak towards which we bring everything in our hearts and lives. The Eucharist is to be our life and our joy. As we hear in the first reading, we do not live by bread alone, but by every word from the mouth of God… in the Eucharist real bread becomes the WORD MADE FLESH, Jesus, the Word of the Father. God in His mighty humility comes to us under the appearance of simple food and drink, and the spiritual nourishment He gives us is JUST as necessary as physical nourishment.
In our wealth and comfort, I think some of these images begin to loose their edge. When we hear of the Israelites hungry and thirsty in the desert, most of us have little context to understand this! When I returned to El Salvador recently, everyone commented appreciatively on my round belly, some even patted it proprietarily! The folks there are close enough to knowing real hunger to see my belly as a sign of regular meals! To say “¡Mira, que gordo!”, “Look at how fat you are!” isn’t meant to be derogatory… in a sense, it’s admiration!
Listen, then, to what Jesus says about His Body and Blood in the Gospel, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you.” Let that sink into your heart… The Eucharist is not a nice fringe benefit of the Gospel… it is not a nice ceremony to fill out the preaching… it is not merely a symbol of something that happened long ago. Somehow so many of our separated brothers and sisters miss this passage as they study the Bible with so much real love and zeal. The Eucharist is the essential Spiritual Food without which we starve to death. “Amen Amen…unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you DO NOT have life within you.” These are very strong words… do we take them seriously? Do we approach this altar with reverence, hungry to receive the grace we need? Do we prepare our hearts with prayer? Do we examine our hearts to see if we are disposed to receive communion? Do we attend Mass to receive the Eucharist only when it’s convenient? If we face life’s frequent trials and difficulties without the Eucharist, it’s as if we’re trying to run a marathon on an empty stomach… it DOESN’T work! As I complete two years of service among you this week, I am full of gratitude for the gift of priesthood, an
d the great gift of beginning my priesthood here with you. I have tried to serve you generously, and I have received far more than I have given. First and foremost, a priest is ordained to provide the People of God with that which is not possible without him… the Eucharist, and the forgiveness of sins. It is an enormously humbling thing to speak the words of Christ, “This is my body,” and to know that Christ works through me to bring us His Body and Blood. It is an enormously humbling thing to hear a person confess their sins and to say those words, “I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” To serve in God’s name is a joy, and a constant invitation to gratitude and humility. God’s grace makes me very aware of how little I am before the Lord and how much I need Him. Perhaps my greatest daily sorrow is to see so many people who do not receive - who do not seek - the enormous grace that God longs to give them in Confession and in the Eucharist. St. Paul tells us clearly what is offered to us… a participation in the body of Christ, in His Blood, and then unity with each other in Him. This is what our hearts most long for, God, and we are offered it at every Mass. Do we pause, do we wonder, do we grasp what we are offered! God HIMSELF! As I prepare, now, to celebrate this Sunday Eucharist for the last time among you, this then is my plea to you… do not receive these gifts in vain… do not approach this altar merely out of habit, do not approach without examining and opening your hearts to the healing and mercy that we ALL need. Do not take for granted the Bread from Heaven that comes to you now. God HAS NOT ABANDONED US in our distress, but we have OFTEN abandoned Him. We have chosen to be here and yet our openness can become deeper, wider, and more complete. Then we can bring this gift to the whole world. Jesus offers us infinite grace, if we will but receive it with open hearts. Listen again to Jesus’ beautiful promise, “Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever.”