Oct 23 – Memorial for St John of Capistrano, priest
John of Capistrano was a Franciscan friar and Catholic priest from the Italian town of Capestrano, Abruzzo. Famous as a preacher, theologian, and inquisitor, he earned himself the nickname “the Soldier Saint” when in 1456, at age 70, he led a Crusade against the invading Ottoman Empire at the siege of Belgrade with the Hungarian military commander John Hunyadi.
Elevated to sainthood, he is the patron saint of jurists and military chaplains, as well as the namesake of two Franciscan missions — one in Southern California, and the other in San Antonio, Texas.
- – Wikipedia
Eph 4:1-6
Lk 12:54-59
There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God who is Father of all, over all, through all and within all.
Last month, we spent 20 days in Spain, celebrating our milestone year on earth. I had spent the better part of 10 months planning for this ‘epic adventure’ of ours, creating an Excel file with details of each stop, as we navigated our way from Barcelona to Santiago de Compostela and back by train, automobile and an internal flight.
On our return leg in Barcelona, I had planned for us to attend the International Mass held on Sunday mornings at the Sagrada Familia. We had heard about the queues that form and planned to arrive more than an hour before mass started, so as to get a seat. Working backwards, we also worked out what time we should wake up in order to take the metro from our hotel.
However, as we approached the plaza facing the Nativity façade, we saw security personnel waving away people. I asked one of them if we could join the queue for mass and was told that the queue was closed. Apparently, people had already started to queue since 5am. When I heard this, I broke down. I couldn’t believe that on the penultimate day of our pilgrimage, we would not be able to attend mass in this beautiful cathedral. Granted, we had already visited in the past, but we had never attended mass there.
Collecting myself (I actually broke down a second time), we decided to head to the Catedral de Barcelona because we were early enough. So we hopped on the metro back towards the Gothic Quarter. As we entered the sanctuary, I noticed a distinct lack of people and wondered how sad it must be that this equally magnificent cathedral (we had visited the day before and spent a good 2 hours walking the grounds) was ‘not as significant’ compared with the Sagrada Familia.
Brushing away the thought, I got on my knees and started to pray the rosary. Then, as I began the 3rd decade, He said to me, “Why be one of the many, when you can be one of few.” I immediately started to tear again. Till today, I am processing the words He spoke into my heart; there are quite a few perspectives to take, especially in view of my various ministry commitments.
Brothers and sisters, we all know full well that God is omnipresent and that he transcends space and time. I get that we each have our ‘favourite church/chapel/pew/seat’…even a favourite priest(s). I believe that sometimes, we need to be reminded that it really doesn’t matter which church/service/mass we attend because ultimately, it is about being faithful to God, who is present in our hearts. Indeed, it is more important that He resides in our hearts, rather than in a beautiful cathedral or in a run-down chapel.
Needless to say, I left that particular Sunday mass with a much lighter heart and with a renewed joy. And, we even made it back to our hotel in time to enjoy a proper breakfast. God truly has a wonderful way of reminding us that He is in charge…always.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Desmond Soon)
Prayer: Heavenly Father, continue to inspire in us the belief that you are always present in our hearts, no matter the form of celebration we attend. That it matters not how grand the environment is, but that what matters is for us to always prepare our hearts to receive You.
Thanksgiving: Thank you, Lord, for constantly reminding us what truly matters in our prayer life.
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