Sorry better late than never....

I ask for pictures of alumni and significant moments in their lives then it takes me months to put them up.... SORRY....

Congratulation !!!!
Jen and Patrick O'Malley

CUA Alumni who journeyed to South Buffalo for the wedding....

Elizabeth Fetty 2005 and Ed Rogers 2004

I was happy to get a chance to spend sometime with Edward and Elizabeth last night. We did a lot of reminiscing. They were both very involved in the pastoral life on campus while they were students here at Catholic.

Edward is currently a very successful Youth Minister in Virginia. He has been there a couple of years. This year they are even starting a Mission Trip to Latin America. In the near future he hopes to study psychology and get his Master's Degree.

Elizabeth is currently working as an actress and choreographer (is that spelled right the spellchecker didn't get it?) She even helps train law enforcement officers by acting out scenarios. I can't imagine Elizabeth as a criminal but who knows. I think she is currently working in a dinner theater performing in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. It is not small task to make a living Acting in DC but Elizabeth is doing it.

Mr. and Mrs. Kevin Wise

It was a priviledge for me to witness the wedding of Kevin and Bridget Wise. It was held on March 29th in Immaculate Conception Church in NW Washington. It was wonderful having a chance to meet their families and spend those special moments with them.

A few of the CUA Alumni at Kevin and Bridget's Wedding

Me (Fr. Bob) with some of some of our CUA Basketball Alumni and even national champions at Kevin and Bridget's wedding. March 29th 2008 at Immaculate Conception Church Washington DC

There were lots of almuni and I wish I would have had a chance to visit with them but I had to return to the Esto Vir / Gratia Plena retreat in Najemoy MD. The only one I had a chance to talk with briefly Will Morely who a Police Officer for the 6th District in DC. He said that he saw me driving with a van load of Asian women and almost pulled me over. I was confused about that until I remembered I had taken the Nursing Students from the Catholic University of Korea to the 12th Street Station for some ice cream this summer... they were definitely a van full of Asians.

06'from Erin Curry

On to the interesting things.

I am a Catholic Worker, and you seemed to know a little bit about what that means (voluntary poverty, personalism, monasticism, hospitality, pacifism). Casa Juan Diego, which is the name of the house, is a place for immigrants. I live in a shelter (although we prefer to call it a house of hospitality), which is a two-story, square, brick building, very simple, usually not very clean, and always FULL of life. Right now there are 9 women and 15 children. A lot of the women are battered; victims of domestic violence are a big chunk of our population. The women tend to be undocumented (aka ILLEGAL - quick, build a wall!), scared, depressed, crazy, funny, loving, loud, disrespectful, grateful (or not) and in need of every kind of service you can think of. I am a case manager in that regard. I am also a mediator (which I've learned is also a profession), an interpreter (in court, in the store, at the passport office, in doctor's appointments - you name it), a translator, and I run a part-time, volunteer medical clinic. I'm not sure what a medical assistant does, but I'm close to positive that I do it. I am also a chauffer, and I drive around the great city of Houston often.

I could list many other things I do also, more mundane things, like organize donations, balance checkbooks, answer a phone and a door, cook, clean (I usually get stuck doing the really nasty stuff), and babysit. We have a food distribution once a week on Tuesday mornings, early. Today I scooped rice. At the bottom the rice had gotten wet and formed into dark, moldy masses.

I also am very familiar with weevils, cockroaches, grain worms, moths, and larvae.

We say morning prayer. I sing at the mass we have in Spanish every Wednesday night in the men's house. We have been reading the Pope's new book, Jesus of Nazareth. Mark and Louise Zwick are very familiar with Communio theology, and have written for a publication put out by David Schindler, who I'm told runs the JPII institute. We talk about those kinds of things a lot. I'm certainly getting another philosophical/theological education here.

I could tell you so many things, but I know you are still a busy man, busier than I am.

So, like many of your homilies, this email has 3 objectives -

1. I really need to know if I need a yellow fever vaccination or not

2. I wanted to tell you this stuff, let you know I care that you know about me, and that I blame some of my desire to serve God's people on you, and

3. We are in need of volunteers. I know there are kids coming to you, looking for things to do after school. Tell them about this. They should have a semi-solid base in Spanish, and the ability to produce 3 recommendation letters.

I am a missionary. I did not leave the country; I did not make a 2 or 3 year committment. I have a community, a beautiful community. At least tell them to contact me.

Erin Curry 06

(Sorry for the OLD Picture !!!)

The Next Step... Wednesday Night Adoration Homily

Wednesday Night Adoration Homily
Gospel
Jn 8:31-42

May the peace of Christ reign in our hearts

The Gospel today is rather interesting.. When you read the first sentence it says that Jesus is talking to the Jews who believed in him.... so you expect that it will be a pleasant conversation however it quickly goes in the opposite direction.

Yes the people Jesus was speaking to believed in him.
Belief is the first step in discipleship
However Jesus seemed to be asking them to take the next step and they balked.
They balked because they felt that as children of Abraham they were guaranteed a special place in God's kingdom

It may seem strange at first that a person would feel justified by their nationality or affiliation to a great religious leader in the past.... but when you think about it people still do that all the time

How often have we heard
"I'm Catholic"
even if I don't go to Church....
"I'm baptized..."...

Dr. Laura on the Radio once decimated a man who claimed to be Catholic but didn't go to church.
She said something like..." if you got a black belt in Karate when you were 19 and didn't practice it and then tried to use it when you were 39 it won't have the power to save you. If you don't use it you loose it"

All of us here go to church...
In fact you are even here on a Wednesday night at adoration...
(above and beyond the call of duty)

Yet holy ones it is also possible for us to just go through the motions.
It is also possible for us to claim I believe,
I go to Church regularly.... I'm a good person I'm set
Sound familiar

We have to be so careful that we don't fall into the sin of the Jews who "believed" in Jesus but didn't feel the need to go any further.

We have to be so careful that we go beyond just believing.

Jesus was trying to help the Jews understand that the next step is to remain in his word.

To listen to him
To enter into a relationship with him
To lives our lives constantly trying to live as he would have us live
and love as he would have us love.

When we meet someone important to us we listen to every word that falls from their mouths and we ponder them.

This begs the question.... How often are we that attentive to the Word of God and the living tradition of our faith.

If somehow we are able to transcend the rat race of everyday live... and remain in the presence of God, in other words remain in His Word.....
Then Jesus promises us that the truth will be revealed to us and we will be free

Free from loneliness... for we can never be alone
Free from what others think because we realize that it doesn't really matter
Free from our sins because the Gospel, the good news, promises us that we can be freed even from our weaknesses.

Just as Jesus was asking the Jews to take the next step...
So he asks us...
Have we incarnated our belief into our lives
Do we live it beyond the confines of weekly mass

Do we remain in His Word...

Dan Mckenna 2006

I have spent far to much of the last two years at work. I worked for the New Hampshire Democratic party, and then got myself elected as a State Rep. (my term ends in December,) I left the party to work on Governor Bill Richardson's campaign in New Hampshire, he's a great guy and the campaign was to short lived, but that's a different story all together. Now I'm working as interim director of the Senate Caucus here in NH, until September when I hope to go to law school, applications are due this weekend. Overall it has been a ton of work, early mornings and late nights but I believed in it and had some amazing experiences along the way that will stay with me forever.

Most importantly I got engaged a year ago this week! We are getting married in April, I'm looking forward to that!

I heard that you aren't sending a group of people to Panama any more, that you've moved to other places. That must have been a tough decision. Not a day goes by when I don't think about some part of Panama, from saying grace over a small dinner with people who were truly thankful, to picking chiotes, killing chickens, celebrating my birthday, or saying night prayer as group. I don't know if you have heard any news from Panama or if you are still in touch with Father Jaun, but I'd be interested to hear an update if a group does go back or you do hear updates. Those two trips to Panama definitely had an impact on me and I'll always be glad you brought me both times.

This is sort of a disjointed email as I read back over it, but I just wanted to say Hello. Sometimes CUA seems so far away and sometimes it seems like yesterday, but this is an email I've been meaning to write for some time.

Peace,
Dan McKenna