Power Came Forth

September 9, 2008

Memorial of St. Peter Claver, priest

Now indeed (then) it is, in any case, a failure on your part that you have lawsuits against one another. Why not rather put up with injustice? Why not rather let yourselves be cheated? Instead, you inflict injustice and cheat, and this to brothers. Do you not know that the unjust will not inherit the kingdom of God? 1 Corinthians 6:7-9

A great crowd of his disciples and a large number of the people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and even those who were tormented by unclean spirits were cured. Everyone in the crowd sought to touch him because power came forth from him and healed them all. Luke 6:17-19

Piety

We are all God's children…we are His disciples made in His image. When you look at me, you should see God in me. My actions should reflect my love for God. When I look at you, I should see God in you. Your actions should reflect your love for God. Spiritual growth cannot take place if a conscience effort to make change is not adhered to. God should be reflected in our daily work, our daily word, and our daily prayers. Just try to make your gumbo without shrimp or crabs, people will notice. Try to make changes without God, people will notice. (By Rev. Michael P. Jacques, SSE, VF, Pastor, St. Peter Claver Catholic Church, New Orleans)

Study
http://www.usccb.org/nab/090908.shtml

Power is an interesting concept. Today’s readings give us a reason to reflect on its significance (or lack thereof). St. Paul was complaining about how the early Christian community would turn to secular judges to iron out disputes. Instead, he wanted them to work out their differences within the community.

As Jesus prepares for the Sermon on the Plain, we get a taste that he too holds power but it is a power which does not come from outside but rather from within. “Power came forth from him” and healed all around him.

Sometimes, eternal power unchecked is not a benefit. After all, it is such power which can enslave us. We have to break free from its grip. Jesus is about to unleash a magic formula (the Beatitudes) to break free of such power and to empower the powerless. St. Peter Claver dedicated his life to freeing people from such power. He was a Jesuit missionary who dedicated his life to the end of enslavement of the children of God. After studying in Majorca, Spain, he set out for the new world.

According to Catholic Online:

In 1610, he landed at Cartagena (modern Colombia), the principle slave market of the New World, where a thousand slaves were landed every month. After his ordination in 1616, he dedicated himself by special vow to the service of the Negro slaves-a work that was to last for thirty-three years. He labored unceasingly for the salvation of the African slaves and the abolition of the Negro slave trade, and the love he lavished on them was something that transcended the natural order.

Boarding the slave ships as they entered the harbor, he would hurry to the revolting inferno of the hold, and offer whatever poor refreshments he could afford; he would care for the sick and dying, and instruct the slaves through Negro catechists before administering the Sacraments.

Through his efforts three hundred thousand souls entered the Church. Furthermore, he did not lose sight of his converts when they left the ships, but followed them to the plantations to which they were sent, encouraged them to live as Christians, and prevailed on their masters to treat them humanely.

Shortly after Hurricane Katrina passed Louisiana, Beth and I visited New Orleans and were in search of Sunday Mass during the visit. While staying in the Vieux Carre (French Quarter), we found a small church nearby that friends Fred and Taffy Burgess told us about and joined its congregation for Mass. The church was the parish of St. Peter Claver. Located in the middle of one of the poorer sections of the city, its parishioners were among those who were most affected by the floods and devastation.

Originally built in 1852, the church property, which included a school rectory and the church building was purchased by the Josephite Fathers in 1920 to serve the African-American population in the area. The new church was dedicated to St. Peter Claver, the saint who spent a lifetime working for the good of the African-American. (Washington’s St. Joseph Seminary where we have held recent Cursillo weekends is also run by the same order.)

The spirit of St. Peter Claver lives on in this humble parish. It is the largest African American Catholic parish in the state of Louisiana. The parish remains “a beacon of hope” in this inner-city community. Now, they are fighting enslavement from the powers that unleashed hurricane destruction, crime and poverty.

If you are in New Orleans, visit the church and you will see the welcoming hospitality as if you were in your own hometown church. It will become for you a church-away-from-church.

Action

The families of St. Peter Claver cannot rebuild alone. First there was Katrina then there was Rita. Then last month there was Fay. Last week there was Gustav. And now we have our eyes on Hurricane Ike with Josephine not too far behind. There are many sister parishes which have joined with sweat equity as well as capital investment to return St Peter Claver and its surrounding neighborhood to their prior strength. Will you help them to continue their good work well into the third millennium with a contribution of your time, talent or treasure? You can prove that power does not come forth from political, economic or social resources but rather from the spirit of the Lord that dwells in all of us if we but reach out to touch him like the crowds did on the plain of Tyre and Sidon.