Liturgy is our entry point (Dr. Tom Neal)

   When God became flesh in the womb of Mary, he joined not just human nature but the whole created order to himself. By his violent death, burial, and Resurrection, Jesus set all of creation free from the bonds of violence, death, and corruption, precisely by planting infinite mercy into the finite heart of fallen creation. At Pentecost, Jesus opened up this torrential mercy flowing from his risen Body to all of humanity, inviting each of us, through faith and Baptism, to freely cooperate with him in planting this limitless mercy into violence, death, and corruption. 

   And so making all things new. 

   This happens above all on Sunday, in the bread-wine-alms of the Eucharist offered, profound symbols of what priestly humanity has gathered in its six days of mercy-drenched secular work. In these symbols, the whole of creation is brought by us to God for a final consecration into the everlasting kingdom. It is in the celebration of the Eucharist that Jesus draws all things to himself, though-with-in us. 

   Yet... the accomplishment of all of this hinges on our daily yes to God, our feeble willingness to Ite, to go with the grain of God by living in harmony with his economy, his action, his will, his plan, his Christ, to save the world by consecrating it through our beautiful, faithful, truthful, hopeful, merciful, loving, kind, just, generous, peaceful, courageous, selfless, gentle, compassionate, pure, sacrificial, humble, surrendered lives. Through lives that manifest the full range of meaning compressed into these dense words of consecration: For this is my Body which will be given up for you; the Chalice of my Blood, which will be poured out for you and for many.

   In those words is the whole meaning of consecration, which is our one life mission. 

   This Christ-like way of life, this path of divine-human synergy, is what we call liturgy. Liturgy is our entry point into the divine-human labors of the God-Man, the Master Carpenter who forever labors to join heaven and earth, justice and mercy, eternity and time, God and humanity, man and man, creation and Creator. 

--Dr. Tom Neal, 

Mass and Creation: 

See, I Make All Things New 

Image source 1: Photos taken by Jackie Bacon after the Palm Sunday liturgy, 2020, during which Mass was celebrated by Fr. Pat with only two ministers in attendance; as Fr. Pat mentioned at the end of his homily yesterday (August 21, 2022), the crowd attending outside in their cars were a joy to see at the end of the service.  https://www.facebook.com/mountcarmelmv/photos/a.3012501658811236/3012501772144558 

Image source 2:  Live-stream of Mass, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Mill Valley, August 21, 2022.