Author Archives: Bill Dalgetty

“To Whom Shall We Go?”

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With our fractious society today and its many advocacy groups and competing agenda’s, where do we go for truth, moral righteousness and peace?

We have Right to Life vs Planned Parenthood, the Little Sisters of the Poor vs the government health care mandates, freedom of religion vs the demands of the LGBT community, and of course political parties advocating opposing positions on a host of issues.  In this election year, no single candidate seems acceptable to a majority of the voters.

We have fad diets, fad clothing and fad entertainment; lists of what’s in and what’s out at the beginning of each new year; and more choices on social media than we have time to use.

The Gospel of John reports that at one point many of Jesus’ followers started to grumble about some of his teachings and no longer followed him.  Jesus asked the Twelve whether they wanted to leave him also.  Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.  We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.” (John 6:68-69)

Both as individuals and as a society, we are constantly looking for meaning and purpose, but the world around us takes us to and fro, and tosses us around like a small boat on a stormy sea.  Everyone seeks peace, but there can be no peace until the love of God is fixed in everyone’s heart.

In our early 40’s while our children were still young, my wife and I faced a decision as to how we wanted to live our lives as a married couple and family.  We had each experienced a personal encounter with Jesus and a renewal of the power of the Holy Spirit on an individual basis, but how were we going to live as a family?  We believed that God was calling us to put him at the center of our marriage and family.  We thought of the words of Peter, “Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.”  Like the apostles, we have tried to follow that call.

Looking back after many years, I would attribute a number of blessings to this decision: two more children added to our existing three daughters including a son and a special needs daughter who has taught us so much about God’s love and ways; career choices attempting to follow God’s will that allowed more time for family and him; involvement in Christian ministry; four of the children married and raising Christian families of their own; thirteen grandchildren to love and pray for.

Of course we have made mistakes and there have been our share of challenges along the way, but God has remained absolutely faithful in his care and provision for us.

“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.  But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you as well.” (Matthew 6:31-33)

“Do You Love Me?”

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If Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved him in order to redeem the three times Peter denied Jesus, how many times would Jesus need to ask us?  

Most Bible commentators seem to confirm that the threefold challenge to Peter was designed to parallel his threefold denial.   With each question Peter protested, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

Denial can take many forms.  There is the direct denial as Peter had done when he denied that he knew Jesus and was one of Jesus’ disciples.  (Matthew 26:69-75)  Then there are more subtle forms of denial such as failing to speak up when our Christian beliefs are challenged or when explicit anti-Christian conduct by others is taking place in our presence.

Jesus did not mince words on this subject. “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven.  But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.”  (Mt. 10:32-33) While there have been times when I have spoken up to defend my faith, I can think of times when I have not.

The more subtle forms of denial are the times when we have failed to live up to “greatest” commandment.  Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” (Mark 12:30)  This is not a passive love.  It involves our inner self (soul and heart); our intellect, thought, reason and will (mind); our action, determination and perseverance (strength).

To help us understand how to love an unseen God in such a complete and total way, Jesus gives us a human illustration in what he describes as the second commandment to “Love your neighbor as yourself.”  Love of self, or survival, is one of the first laws of nature.  It is instinct.  We don’t even have to think about it.  The love Jesus is calling us to embrace, however, is to overcome the instinct of putting self first.  This is of course consistent with what he said earlier to the disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”  (Matthew 16:4)

While I hesitate to think how often I have failed to love according to this standard, God does give us opportunities to love in this way.  Last week I was thinking of a friend who has been recovering from back surgery.  While I had visited him in the hospital, I had had no contact with him in the two weeks since he had been home.  The thought occurred to me (from the Holy Spirit no doubt) that I should call him and offer to bring by a couple of subs so we could have lunch together.  He said yes, we had a delightful time catching up with one another, and I had a chance to pray with him for his continued recovery.

While we may never reach perfection in our love of God and the people he puts in our lives, we should still strive for it, so we can say, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”  

“Stay with Us”

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Have you ever experienced the presence of the Lord and not wanted to let go of the moment?

Two of the disciples had such an experience on the road to Emmaus where they were walking and discussing the events of Jesus’ death and recent reports of angels appearing to some of the women saying that he was alive.  Jesus comes up alongside of them, though they do not recognize him.  He asks what they are talking about and observes how slow of heart they are to believe all that was written about him.  He then explains what Moses and the prophets wrote about him.

As they approached the village and Jesus acted as if he was going farther, they asked him to stay with them.  They subsequently recognize Jesus when he breaks bread, but he then disappears from their sight.  As they later observed, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:32)

Has your heart ever burned within you, indicating the presence of God?  Perhaps being in the presence of a very holy person; possibly a sermon or a word from a friend that opens your eyes to something that needs to change in your life; maybe the word of an innocent child that reflects a profound truth; perhaps a word of scripture that jumps off the page, an extraordinary act of love experienced from another person, or the gentle whisper of the Holy Spirit providing assurance to persevere in a time of suffering.

Many years ago after the burial of my father, my mother, brother and I were riding out of the cemetery in the funeral home’s limo back to town, and I started to have this overwhelming sense of joy.  It was in the middle of January, on an overcast, cold day.  The snow drifts along the road were covered with soot from the windswept plowed fields of northern Iowa.  It was a bleak dreary scene.

Yet, here I was, inexplicably experiencing this heightened level of joy.  I said to my mother and brother, “I know this sounds odd, but I have a great feeling of joy.”  They both looked at me, but said nothing.  The next morning while I was praying in my father’s bedroom, the following words came into my mind, “The reason for your joy yesterday was because your father is with me in heaven.”  

My heart burned within me as I heard those words and recalled the joy from the prior afternoon.  It was the Lord, and I wanted to hold onto every word I heard.

When Jesus later met with the disciples, he promised he would be with them always.  This promise is also meant for us.  If you have never experienced your heart burning within you from Jesus’ presence, open the door of your heart and invite him in.  He is always tarrying outside, waiting for your invitation. Like the disciples on the road, let us say, “Stay with us.”

Why Do You Believe?

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After Mary Magdalene reported to Peter and “the other disciple” that Jesus’ body had been taken from the tomb, they ran to the tomb.  Peter went in first and found the strips of linen lying there along with the burial cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head.  Then the other disciple went in, and the Apostle John reports of himself, “He saw and believed.” (John 20:8)  

What was the reason for John’s belief?

Did he now recall the times when Jesus had explicitly said he must suffer, die and be raised from the dead?  Was it because of his close relationship with Jesus that he now had an epiphany, connecting Jesus’ past words with the experience of seeing an empty tomb?  The answer is that we don’t know for sure and can only speculate, but it does trigger the question of what is the reason for our belief.

Is it because of the upbringing and training by our parents?  Is it because of our own investigation and analysis of scripture, the historical record, archeological discoveries and scripture scholar commentaries?  Is it a combination of one or more these things PLUS God’s grace?  

I believe that God created us with a built in desire to look beyond our physical existence — a DNA that seeks understanding of who we are and why we exist.  As St. Augustine observed of God, “You made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”  

I was raised Baptist in the faith of my father, attending Baptist Sunday School from the time I was a toddler until age 13, at which time I became a Roman Catholic, the faith of my mother.   I never seemed to question my faith in Jesus as the son of God, born a real human person of the Virgin Mary.  I readily accepted that he suffered the horrible death of crucifixion and was raised to new life by the power of God.

As an adult there was a time when my faith began to take a back seat to my career.  Then one October evening I met the person of Jesus in a very personal and real way, and subsequently experienced the release of the power of the Holy Spirit in my life.

What was the reason for this renewal of my faith?  Was it the frustration with the sin and disorder in my life and the willingness to change?  Was it the example of my wife coming home from a Life in the Spirit Seminar full of joy four nights in a row? Was it the prayers of my wife and a devout mother?  Was it God’s love and grace?

I believe it was all of the above, but God’s grace was the driving force.  God may use a particular circumstance, the words of a friend or stranger, an experience of failure or suffering, the words heard in a scripture or a sermon, or the forgiveness and love of a friend.  Like John, God wants all of us to see the empty tomb and believe that Jesus has been raised from the dead, conquering death and equipping us to live a life serving God and one another with love and truth.

“Crucify Him!”

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If you were present at Jesus’ trial, where would you see yourself?  

Would it be with the disciples who fearfully followed at a distance?  Would it have been with Pontius Pilate who found no basis for the charges brought against Jesus, but did not have the courage to resist the crowd’s demands for crucifixion?  Would it have been with the crowd shouting, “Crucify him?”

If I had never met Jesus, I would have likely been with the crowd.  Have I not demonstrated my lack of support for Jesus in my sins?  Have I not denied him in my failure to love and serve others on various occasions?

Even if I had met Jesus, I would have been no different than the disciples, following at a distance out of fear, or like Pontius Pilate, going along with the crowd.  How many times have I failed to speak up for Jesus or my Catholic faith in a hostile environment?

Unfortunately, the crowd seldom gets it right.  How often do we see conventional wisdom that is not wise, popular opinion that does not reflect the truth, and consensus that leads to the wrong result?  

Lest we think that the opinions of the crowd are not becoming more hostile to our Christian faith, a recent study by the Barna Group released in February, found that 45% of non-religious adults (atheists, agnostics and religiously unaffiliated) agree with the statement that “Christianity is extremist.”   More than 50 % of all U. S. adults were found to believe that the following practices were “very” or “somewhat” extreme: attempting to convert others to their faith; teaching their children that sexual relationships between people of the same sex are morally wrong; praying out loud in public for a stranger; or protesting government policies that conflict with their religion.

So, how do we resist the crowd of our culture that is becoming increasingly prone to crucify Jesus in its actions and beliefs?  Acknowledge and repent of our sins, commit or recommit our lives to Jesus Christ and seek the release of the power of the Holy Spirit received in our baptism.

It is the Holy Spirit that convicts us, gives us the courage and the power to resist both the crowd and sin.  It wasn’t until I personally experienced the renewal of the Holy Spirit in my life that I was given understanding, motivation and power that makes it now possible for me to resist the crowd.  I am still capable of stumbling if I don’t stay close to Jesus in daily prayer, the sacraments and surround myself with other like-minded Christian brothers and sisters.  But with God’s grace and mercy through the Holy Spirit, I am better equipped to say no to the crowd and yes to Jesus.

The crowd yelled, “Crucify him!” But the crowd got it wrong.  God redeemed the wrong and took the cross, a symbol of Roman cruelty and oppression, and transformed it into a symbol of love, sacrifice and hope.

“I Am Doing a New Thing”

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Do you like to hold on to things of the past?  

While some memories may be pleasant to recall, past hurts and sins can be painful.  Dwelling on them can lead to anger, resentment and self-condemnation.  Isaiah says, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.  See, I am doing a new thing!” (Isaiah 43:18-19)

God’s work did not end with his creation.  Jesus said, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working.”  (John 5:17)  God never stops creating.  He is constantly doing new things.  Through his Son, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, he loves, forgives, teaches, heals and guides.  He also invites us to join with him in taking care of his creation.  In all of this he is always looking forward, not backward.

Our sin interferes with God’s creation and work, but fortunately God provides a remedy through repentance and forgiveness.  Once we acknowledge our sin and seek to change, God offers forgiveness.  Sometimes even though we have repented of sin and received forgiveness, we have difficulty letting go of our sin.  Since sin often has consequences, sometimes these consequences keep reminding us of our past sin.

While it is natural to regret our past sin and mistakes, once we acknowledge them and are forgiven, it is time for us to move on. That is what God does.  Jesus told the woman caught in adultery that he did not condemn her and that she should go and sin no more. (John 8:11)  While I still have regret for some of my past sins, I have moved on and seek to live the life that God is calling me to live today.

That life includes loving and caring for my wife of 52 years, supporting an adult child with special needs, and being available to love and encourage four other adult children who are raising families of their own.  It includes being a good steward of the time, talents and resources God has made available to me to serve him in family, work and ministry.

In each of these areas, God is always seeking to do something new to further his kingdom on this earth.  As spring approaches, we see God’s constant renewal in nature, with the budding of trees and the popping of daffodils out of the soil.  So to with us, he is always seeking to do something new – providing  new opportunities for us to love, forgive, teach, heal, guide – always looking forward, advancing his creation “on earth as it is in heaven.” 

St. Paul says, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”  (2 Cor. 5:17)  May we embrace God’s desire to do a new thing in us each day.   

Being Washed by Jesus

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How willing are you to be served?

As Jesus came to Peter at the Last Supper to wash his feet, Peter said, “’You shall never wash my feet.’  Jesus replied, ‘Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.’”  (John 13:8)

How hard it is for us to accept being served by someone in authority, particularly when the service involves a menial task usually done by a slave or servant!  It upsets our paradigm.  A servant serves his master.  An employee serves his or her boss.  Jesus, the master and teacher, was turning that paradigm upside down.  Peter was the first to proclaim Jesus to be the Son of God.  How could he allow the Son of God to wash his feet?  Unthinkable!

From earliest childhood, we are taught to be self-sufficient.  A young child proudly proclaims, “I did it by myself.”  One of the challenges of a disabling illness or injury is having to depend on someone else to do things for you that you would ordinarily do yourself.

Several years ago our family was traveling from New York to the Midwest.  We alerted a former friend from law school and his wife that we would like to stop by to see them.  They expected us to stay with them overnight, but we decided to check into a motel, not wanting to impose upon them.  They were offended, interpreting our decision as a rejection of their offer of hospitality.  To use Jesus’ words, we were rejecting having a “part” with them.

Like so many of Jesus’ words and actions, his example offers multiple lessons for us.  While we need to be willing to receive service, it is even more important for us to serve.  When the disciples were arguing about who among them was the greatest, Jesus told them that “whoever wants to be great among you, must be your servant.”  He also reminded them that “the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve.” (Matthew 20:26, 28)

In David McCullough’s biography of Harry Truman, he tells the following story.  At a special reception Truman held for Stalin and Churchill at the Potsdam Peace Conference near the end of World War II, Sergeant Eugene List, an American concert pianist, played a Chopin waltz.  List asked if someone in the audience would be good enough to turn the pages.  Truman jumped to his feet, waived off another volunteer and did the job himself.  In a letter to his wife, List later wrote, “Imagine having the President of the United States turn the pages for you!…But that’s the kind of man the President is.”  

May we choose to follow both lessons from Jesus’ washing the feet of his disciples – having a desire to love and serve the people in our lives, and responding with gracious acceptance when being served by others.

Holding Up Our Leaders

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How do you support people in leadership – bosses, community and government leaders, pastors, etc.?   

The Book of Exodus reports that when the Amalekites attacked the Israelites in the desert at Rephidim, Moses stood on top of a hill with his arms raised and the staff of God in his hands.  As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but when he lowered his hands the Amalekites gained in the fight.  So Aaron and Hur had Moses sit on a rock and they held up his hands until sunset, and the Israelites won the battle. (Exodus 17:8-16)

A number of years ago in my morning prayer time, I found myself praying for my boss who headed up the legal department of the marketing and refining operations for a large international oil company employing several hundred lawyers.  He was an exacting boss, but a good person with great integrity.

While praying, I received the thought, “Why are you limiting your prayers just for your direct boss – why not his boss and the entire management team including the CEO and board of directors?  Pray for wisdom, integrity and love in how they oversee the operations of the company.  Your prayers can impact areas and operations of the company far beyond your immediate responsibilities and sphere of influence.”

At the time, this was a new revelation to me.  As Christians in the workplace, we have the opportunity through prayer to impact more than just the confines of our particular job or position.  We can intercede for God’s grace to impact even our bosses and the decisions they make.  We may not always see the direct results of our prayers, but we should never underestimate the power and influence they bring to the workplace.

Praying for our leaders is a way for us to hold up their hands in the battle they face in doing their jobs with righteousness, integrity and excellence. 

All kinds of leaders need our prayers.  Pastors and spiritual leaders are in particular need of our prayer support.  One of the first statements Pope Francis made after his election as he greeted the throngs in St. Peter’s Square was the request for people to pray for him.  He continues to repeat this request to nearly every individual and group he meets.

Governmental leaders also need our prayer support.  Their positions make them especially vulnerable to temptations involving pride and corruption.  Regardless of my respective politics, I regularly pray for the president’s protection, righteousness, wisdom and humility.  Remember the words of Jeremiah to the exiles in Babylon, “Work for the good of the country to which I have exiled you; pray to Yahweh on its behalf, since on its welfare yours depends.” (Jeremiah 29:7 JB)

Like Aaron and Hur, let us support the hands of our bosses, pastors, and leaders in community and government with our ongoing intercession and prayer.

“Listen to Him!”

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How do you listen to God?

After describing the transfiguration of Jesus and the appearance of Moses and Elijah speaking to him in the presence of Peter, James and John, Luke’s Gospel reports that a cloud covered them and a voice came out of the cloud saying, “This is my Son whom I have chosen; listen to him.” (Luke 9:35)

It appears that God was directing his remarks to the three apostles.  Peter was focusing on his delight of being present to witness the miraculous appearance of Moses and Elijah.  He makes kind of a silly offer to make shelters for Jesus, Moses and Elijah as if they were going to continue to hang around physically after having completed their mission to speak to Jesus.

In almost the form of a rebuke, God lets Peter and the others know that their friend, Jesus of Nazareth, is God’s very own son whom he has chosen.  He emphatically commands them to listen to his Son.

This is a command that is applicable not only to the apostles who spent three years with Jesus, but also their successors and followers, including us.  Do we listen to Jesus?  How do we listen?

There are multiple ways in which Jesus can speak to us.  He can do so directly by putting thoughts in our minds through the presence of the Holy Spirit.  He can speak to us through our reading of scripture and other spiritual writings.  He can speak to us through others.

Let me share a recent experience.  In the middle of the night about a week ago, I awoke and could not go back to sleep.  As I tossed and turned, a good friend of mine kept coming to mind.  At first I just dismissed it as a random thought in my quest to go back to sleep.  But thoughts and a picture of him in my mind kept persisting.  I wasn’t going to sleep and the thoughts of him were not going away.  I started to wonder if something was wrong for him.  Was he experiencing some health issues?  Was he in physical danger?

I was prompted to start praying for him – if it was a health issue or if he had an accident, I prayed that God would protect him from serious illness or injury and get him the medical care he needed.

The next day I was shocked to receive an e-mail that my friend, who was on a mission trip repairing houses, fell from a ladder that very morning, incurring a concussion and seven cracked ribs.  The timing was beyond coincidence.  Fortunately, a co-worker was present who arranged for immediate emergency transportation to the hospital.  He is now on the road to recovery. 

I can only conclude that the Holy Spirit was bringing my friend to mind and prompting me to intercede on his behalf before the accident even occurred.  I thank God for his grace and mercy, and for the Holy Spirit that led me to listen.

Battling Temptation

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How do you fight temptation?  The Gospel of Luke reports that Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.  (Luke 4:1-2)

If Jesus, who shared our humanity, needed the Holy Spirit to resist the temptations of the devil, how much more do we?  Certainly, our fallen humanity makes us subject to all kinds of temptations.  The list is lengthy.  St. Paul says, “The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies and the like.” (Galatians 5:19-21)

Other sins are more subtle, such as checking our faith at the door of our workplace, not taking time to listen to someone who is hurting or failing to be kind and respectful in our relationships.  These sins of omission can be just as destructive to others and us as the more obvious sins of commission.

There was a time in my life when I let my work and career take precedence over my wife and family, but fortunately I was invited by a priest and a group of nuns to be prayed with for the release of the power of the Holy Spirit.  Experiencing the presence of the Holy Spirit in a more personal and real way opened my eyes to both the sins of omission and commission.  The Spirit gave me an entirely new perspective in how God was calling me to love and serve him through my family, work and ministry.

Experiencing the fullness and presence of the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential to resisting the devil’s many temptations. 

We all have different propensities to sin, but Jesus came to forgive and free us from our sins through the power of the Holy Spirit. I can personally testify that Jesus can set you free of a nagging, persistent sin.  Ask Jesus with all your heart to take a sin from you, and he will do so!   

Last week I received word that one of the nuns who had prayed with me years ago had died on Christmas Eve.  Her name was Sister Pauline Cinquini of the Sisters of Charity, part of the St. Elizabeth Ann Seaton House of Prayer in Scarsdale, New York.  She was truly a woman of God, using her gifts of love, teaching and music to bring the renewal of the Holy Spirit to countless people for more than forty years.

I will never forget her reassuring words of God’s love and forgiveness on an October evening years ago that, together with the power of the Holy Spirit, changed the course of my life forever.   I know she is in the presence of the Father, and as Paul says in 1 Cor. 1:9, we have not heard, seen or conceived what God has prepared for her.

By Jesus’ example in the desert, let us fervently seek the Holy Spirit in order to resist the temptations of the devil.