Small Seeds and Great Growth

Recent events have inspired me to put a post from my Scripture Readings Reflection blog onto my Paul Ponders blog.

On Sunday, June 13, 2021, the Oak Park middle schools held their 8th grade graduation ceremonies.  That same Sunday, the readings at Mass focused on seeds and their growth.

Jesus presents some marvelous imagery in the parables in the Gospel reading.

The farmer plants seeds and does his part tending to them, but then the process of the seeds becoming plants in full bloom unfolds in ways beyond his control or understanding.  Then there's the incredible reality of how the tiny mustard seed becomes such a large bush.

It is truly marvelous to think of how God is similarly at work in our lives.  While we can't see God, He reveals Himself to us, so that we walk by faith, not by sight, as St. Paul writes, striving to please God in this life as we journey toward the judgment.

As we devote our lives to putting faith into action through righteous deeds, God is at work in ways that we can't fully understand or control, though we know His work is really happening because of the fruits that come to bear.  Ultimately, God mightily declares Who He is through these deeds, doing what He alone can do.

Yet we marvel at how God invites us to be transformed so that even our small deeds of righteousness, kindness, and compassion can be part of His plan to advance the Kingdom of God on Earth, which is not a place, but a way of life.  By faith, we open ourselves up to how our deeds can be part of God's plan to advance the Kingdom by making God known.  So we constantly strive to do good works, ready for God's action through them.

At the June 13 ceremonies, 27 of the students I taught in RE class this past year graduated from both Brooks and Julian Middle Schools.

As a Religious Education teacher, part of my role is to plant seeds, and then open up to how God does His part to bring them forth to fruition.  By faith, I recognize that the seeds planted during their time in RE class will come to fruition, though I know not how it happens, and even if I'm not there to see the fruition.

Furthermore, I recognize in my experience that so many seeds were planted during my middle school years, especially in becoming a person of deep faith, which have born great fruit over the past 16 years, and I marvel to think of how God has been at work in wondrous ways that He alone can do.

I also recall how I was part of the first group of students to start middle school in 6th grade and then attend 7th and 8th grade in middle school.  I planted seeds that became part of the middle school experience in Oak Park today.

It's been great to teach RE for middle schoolers so I can connect with today's middle schoolers and see how the schools have turned out from the foundation I helped lay, even as I help to continue building on the foundation by accompanying my students in their faith journey at a time when I experience significant growth in my life.  And now I get to be part of the work of handing on the faith, which is something truly wondrous.

At Julian and Beyond

Once again, the Circle of Life has brought me back to June 8, the anniversary of the day in 2005 when I had my last day as a student at Percy Julian Middle School and graduated.

I was well aware that something special had happened during my time as a Julian student, and as I mark the 16th anniversary of my 8th grade graduation, I marvel at what has become of it.

I had been shaped in so many significant ways during my years at Julian in those characteristics that are so important in describing fundamentally who I am as a person.  The years since, especially since graduating from ValpU, have had abundant opportunities to put to use those characteristics in giving of myself to others.

One great example happened 9 weeks ago, on April 6, when I served as an election judge for the municipal elections in Oak Park.  As with the previous four times I've worked at a polling place, I was assigned to serve the 16th precinct at the Maze Branch Library.  For me, there is a distinctly spiritual aspect to serving as an election judge at that location, because my home parish of Ascension is located in precinct 16.  And there are many parishioners who live in that precinct and who I see on Election Day.

I saw a few fellow Knights of Columbus come to vote, along with the parents of my former Religious Education students, and even some parents of students who I was currently teaching at the time in grade 8 class.  It was great to have that opportunity to connect with them, and made all the effort I put into the long day worthwhile, especially when meeting one mom who I had never had the chance to meet.

One couple came by about half an hour before the polls closed, three of whose children have been my students in RE class. Their oldest had just turned 18 earlier in 2021, making this day the first election she was eligible to vote.  As I talked with the mom, she told me her daughter had missed the deadline to register.  When I informed her that she could register right then and there on election day, she was clearly unaware of this possibility, and she immediately contacted her daughter about coming to register and vote.

After the parents left, their daughter walked in a few minutes later.  I made sure to offer some pomp and circumstance to her arrival into the room before I sat down at the e-pollbook to register her.

The excitement of the moment was not lost on me one bit, that after having taught her in RE class years before, and even being present for her Confirmation, I could be a witness to another important moment in her life, and be part of that process by registering her.  That moment really stands out among all the memorable interactions of that day.

As I reflect on Election Day, April 6, I see so many of the most important aspects of my life converging.  I served at the Maze Branch Library, which was the place I first came to appreciate the role of libraries and the impact they have on my life, ever since my Kindergarten class took a field trip there.  I then opened myself up to the opportunity to serve my community by volunteering there during the summers in my teen years.

And then I was back at Maze to serve the community by working as an election judge, exercising my civic duty, contributing to the democratic process of the republic of the United States.  It was in middle school that I came to first appreciate the story of the USA, and how I could take my part in upholding it.  With that sense of patriotism, I was so excited to vote for the first time almost 12 years prior to this year's election day, and just about a half-mile away, when I walked into the Oak Park Conservatory to vote for the first time on Tuesday, April 7, 2009, which was also a municipal election day.

Furthermore, it was also in middle school that I came to first appreciate my faith in a deep way.  It seemed fitting that after becoming even more zealous for faith while at ValpU, I would go back to middle school by teaching RE to current middle schoolers.

I have realized my middle school experience in a profound new way by being part of handing on the great gift of faith to others, especially my students.  And it was so exciting in the case of this one former student, after having taught her, to hand on a sense of civic duty and patriotism by registering her to vote, and be there for her first time voting.

Indeed, it's experiences like Election Day and each week of RE class that give me so much reason to celebrate my 8th graduation 16 years later, because of what I've made of it.

10 Years as a Deacon

I had an early start on the morning of Saturday, June 4, 2011, for a very important day.

Bob Marben, a beloved and active member of the St. Teresa's community in Valparaiso, had discerned the next step for his life was to answer the call to serve as a deacon, which culminated in his ordination to the diaconate on that day 10 years ago, along with several other men.

When I found out not too long before that day about the Mass, I decided, almost on a whim, to attend.

I rode the South Shore Line from downtown Chicago to downtown Gary, which meant catching the early morning departure from the Millenium Station at 8:40 so I could be in time for the Mass.

Once I arrived in Gary about an hour later, I waited for Dan and Ann Ruggaber to pick me up at the station and take me the rest of the way to the Cathedral of the Holy Angels.  While waiting, a car pulled over on the street by me, and a window rolled down.  My initial thought was that someone was going to ask me for directions.  Instead, I was pleasantly surprised and delighted to hear the greeting of Father Kevin from inside the vehicle, who was on his way to the ordination Mass.

A few minutes later, Dan and Ann arrived, and we made our way there.

It was a hot summer day, and the sanctuary was the one part of the Cathedral's facilities that wasn't air-conditioned, which made it feel like my home parish at Ascension during the summer months.

Notably, I had just been at this Cathderal exactly 6 months prior for the ordination Mass of Father Ted.  Much of the music was the same, with prayerful lyrics speaking to God's calling in our lives.  Father Ted was also there, and during the communion procession, he helped direct the flow of attendees toward the Eucharistic minister stations.

One part of the rite of ordination for deacons includes the line: "Believe what you read, teach what you believe, and practice what you teach."

Father Matthew Spencer discussed this line on his program St. Joseph's Workshop on Relevant Radio.  One major idea of his discussion was that these words apply to all the baptized:  We are called to read the Word and come to a life-giving belief in it, and then to hand it on to others while also putting into practice the very Words of God.  God has brought life by speaking His very Word to us, and we're called to be transformed by that Word to be a blessing in the world.

I heard another deacon, Lendell, once remark that a deacon's role is to be an icon of Christ, which manifests itself in how the deacon assists at Mass in proclaiming the Gospel reading and during the Eucharistic prayer, along with other acts of service in the community.

The St. Teresa's community is so blessed to have Bob Marben.  And so it was an even greater joy that he discerned this next step to serve the community in a more involved way.

Thinking of Deacon Bob brings me a sense of joy.  Whenever I go back to St. Teresa's, when he sees me, his face lights up as he greets me with words like, "Paul, the beloved apostle!"

It was just like during my time as a ValpU student.  Often, he would commend me for the way I offered my services to the community, especially as a lector.

I'm glad I was there to be part of this important moment in his life of faith, as yet another example of how meaningful it has been to be part of the St. Teresa's community, whose people have truly revealed God and His kindness to me in profound ways.  I'm thankful to God the church has Bob as one of many faithful servants functioning as deacons.

How Jim Beautified the Church on Earth

Over the past few weeks, Ascension Church has had extra decorations in place to celebrate Easter Season, which a group of volunteers helped place on Holy Saturday morning as part of an annual custom.

Similar efforts happen annually each year right before Advent starts and in the days leading to the Feast of the Nativity.

For many years, these decorating efforts were spearheaded by Jim Wojcik, a dedicated member of the Ascension Parish community.  I think of him not only because of the recent decorations in Church, but also because today, June 4, is his birthday.

Jim volunteered in many ways at Ascension, including as the head of the Art and Environment Committee.  Then, in 2014, he started working on staff in the parish office while retaining his duties with liturgy and decorations.

A few months ago, he took leave of this life to enter into the fullness of the Church in Heaven.  Yet as I look at the decorations in Chruch, I still think of him and how he had such a special touch for making our beautiful church look so splendid in celebration of the special liturgical seasons.

He would spend a good deal of time arranging the poinsettias for Christmas Season and the Easter lilies for Easter Season so they looked just right.

The liturgical seasons are one major reason I love being Roman Catholic. So I find great meaning in assisting with the decoration efforts, so that I can enter more fully into the liturgical life of the Chruch as we cycle through the seasons, and set the tone to help others do the same.

And so I gladly went up to Jim many years ago when I was a teen and asked Jim about helping with the Art and Environment Committee/

Father Hurlbert, recent pastor of Ascension, remarked in eulogizing Jim that he was a rather private person, not even disclosing many details about the cancer that took him to the end of his life.  But because I worked so closely with Jim for decorating efforts and other liturgical functions, I was blessed that I got to know him so well. 

I could see that Jim was such a dedicated member of the parish community, and he really loved being at Church.  He once remarked something to the effect of how he felt like he had gotten his dream job when he was hired to work at Ascension, which came after many years of employment at the University of Chicago.

He spent several hours at church each weekend, especially on Sunday mornings, arriving early to help get set up for the 7:30 Mass and staying until after the 11 AM Mass.  When it came to special liturgies, like important religious holidays and also Confirmation Masses, he was there to oversee the many extra details involved and to ensure everything ran smoothly.  At one point, he trained me and some other parishioners to serve as a thurifer during Masses at particular times of the year.

He also had a deep grasp of theology, and embraced the deeper meaning behind the days throughout the liturgical calendar, so we saw eye to eye as such.

I also recall his bravery the one time I went up with him and some others into the dome to hang up a large green banner at the conclusion of Easter Season.  In subsequent years, he stayed down below and sent others up, including me--I liked the thrill of it anyway.

It's clear that even those who never had the chance to interact with Jim benefitted from the fruits of his labors.

Jim was so kind to recognize my efforts, offering me a card and a small gift when I came to help with decorating efforts.  He also affirmed me in other ways, like offering compliments to how I served as a lector or in other roles.

I'm sure that when Jim left this life, he went into the very presence of God, who told him, "Well done, good and faithful servant.  Come, share your Master's happiness".  Indeed, he gave so much to edify the church on earth, and I'm sure he is fully enjoying participation in the Church in Heaven right now.

I'm sure he's experiencing the reality of the famous Rublev Trinity icon, taking his place at the table with the Three Persons of the Godhead--one of several icons put out throughout the course of the year for Masses, and also for Taize prayer services.

Happy Birthday Jim! Thank you for all you did for Ascension.

Thanks be to God.