Visible light is electromagnetic radiation within the electromagnetic spectrum that the human eye can perceive. Its brightness is measured in lumens and foot-candles, categorized by color temperature and comes from all different sources like the sun, fluorescent bulbs, LED’s, and even from a firefly. So it can be confusing when God asks us to be a “light to the world” because He didn’t give us a spec sheet on the design specifications or give us a photometric lighting plan for our internal light. Thankfully, in today’s episode, Father Cusick walks us through how we can shine a light into the darkness and brighten up our world.
Visible light is electromagnetic radiation within the electromagnetic spectrum that the human eye can perceive. Its brightness is measured in lumens and foot-candles, categorized by color temperature and comes from all different sources like the sun, fluorescent bulbs, LED’s, and even from a firefly. So it can be confusing when God asks us to be a “light to the world” because He didn’t give us a spec sheet on the design specifications or give us a photometric lighting plan for our internal light.
Thankfully, in today’s episode, Father Cusick walks us through how we can shine a light into the darkness and brighten up our world.
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Text From Homily:
Father Hurley mentioned it was a year ago, that the live stream mass began here at 10 o'clock Chicago time. And those of us who preside at mass would come out in those first three, four weeks and it was a freak show because there was nobody here.
This is a place on Sunday that was packed to the rafters all the way back since the mid-eighties before the church was restored. The people restored it by their presence.
Now many of you who I've connected with St. Pat's virtually, and you're out there again today on the other side of those two little cameras up here, you may never have been here. And there's a chance, that those of you who have never come to Old St. Pats in the flesh, sometime, if you're in Chicago, you may wind up saying, "you know, during that shutdown I'd watch mass occasionally or regularly, uh, on live stream from Old St. Pat's in Chicago, I think I'd like to stop by and see the place." Well, if you were to come here now you'd think that it's a real trendy neighborhood. And in many ways it is. But there are some of us, maybe some who are here today who remember it as anything but trendy.
There was not a park across the street with a statue commemorating st. Pat's sister city in Ireland. Instead, there were five buildings that led the way to a little parking area. And at the end of the first building here at Adams and Desplaines, was it shipping dock.
And under the shipping dock was a nighttime accommodations for those who were short on cash.
As a matter of fact, the last of the flop houses, it was empty by then, was on the corner, next corner, Monroe and DesPlaines. Thank God it was empty by then. It was our rat hole. And people paid to sleep there. Disgusting. But that was the neighborhood.
And once the rush hour was over, and people working east of the Chicago river would exit their buildings, get into their cars, get on the expressway, which is right behind this building, you could have slept every night in the middle of the street at Adams or DesPlaines and there's a good guarantee you would not ever been hit by a car. Nobody, literally nobody, came to this side of the river and this far next to the expressway.
It was a terrible place. Old Saint Pat's had a policeman outside on the corner.
His beat was DesPlaines and Adams to Monroe. Translated, his beat was St. Patrick's church.
Southside to the north side, that was it and there was another police officer in the rectory.
Because the housekeeper was murdered in that rectory when this was the drags of the city. Her name was Betty Walch. Her sister peg survived. Balmed up six hours in surgery but she healed, returned because this was her home, to wait on Fr. Steve O'Donnell, who was the aging pastor of Old St. Pats.
It was a tough place and there was, like a year ago, nobody in this building.
Father O'Donnell, many days, would celebrate mass with no people.
It was a tough place to be. It began to transform itself, very slowly.
And one of the transformations took place on the next street, when the Illinois Institute of Technology opened a law school and a business school.
And one day after daily mass, I was standing at the bottom of the stairs and a guy who's walking with a stroller, there's a baby in the stroller, and I was probably more fascinated by the baby, there were no babies down here, there were no kids down here, and the only thing you would have in a stroller would be a bottle.
So I'm looking at the kid and I got talking to the dad. The dad has a PhD in law or LD in law, whatever the proper terminology is, teaching law at the law school. There was nobody with a doctorate in law ever hanging around DesPlaines street, I guarantee you.
Well, another day, oh, you'd get all kinds around here, and one day, the rectory doorbell rang. And the rectory in those days, the office part was two doors down. And what, when Father Wall got here was an abandoned building. It was the convent. It was a terrible building. But he moved the offices over there.
The bell rang and I happened to be there and I came up and it was a lady and she said, "excuse me, Father, I need to go to confession." Exact quote. So I ushered her in and we had a little room where the sisters once stayed with a few chairs, nothing matched. Sat down and she immediately got up, went on her knees, right next to the side of my chair.
She said, "Father, I remember that we're supposed to say how long it was since our last confession. In all honesty, I have no idea. It's been a long, long, long time ago." Oh, she began to enter into the darkness of her life. And as she began, I couldn't help, but think my language, certainly not hers.
She had discovered, for some reason that day, a new moment of light. And that light revealed to her that day that it was time to enter into the darkness because only in light can you really see what's in the dark and do something about it.
So, in no particular order, in no particular dates or times, she laid out before me, the priest a dark life. And while doing that on her knees, I could see tears coming down the sides of her eyes, across her cheeks, into her arms. She finished. Gave her absolution.
I said, "can I ask you a question." she said, "yes, Father." I said, "do you believe that God forgives you?" she paused. "Yes Father, I think that's why I'm here." I said, "can I ask you a second question?" "Please do." "Can you forgive yourself?" it was a very long pause. Very long. She said, "Father, I'm not sure." A light led her here. The one who brought light into the world. The Son of the author of light in creation. And yet, though she believed, the power of darkness in every one of us is very, very strong. And by saying that she's not sure she could forgive herself she was saying, I think I have to hold on to what I put before you and outside of myself.
My language, not hers, because I'm not sure I can live totally in the light. A light came into the world. People choose to live in darkness. You see, the way I looked at things, if she said, "yes, I can forgive myself."
There's another problem. Now you'll have to forgive everybody. Now the light that you accepted that rids the world of darkness,
now belongs to you and to me. And we have to be bearers of that light to everyone else. But if we choose to stay in darkness, we can choose to keep everyone else in darkness. Because we know the truth, but we prefer the dark.
Ladies and gentlemen, God does not condemn us. You heard that. God showers us with light.
Showers us with so much light and so much love that he sent his Son to show us how to live in the light. How to live in love. How to let go of darkness. Even the darkness that led to this.
Well, what did the light show us in this? Faithfulness. Love to the very end. No darkness. That's what the world can see. We have a God who believes in us. We can choose to live in the dark. We can choose to live in the light. I can't make that decision for you. And you cannot make it for me. It's between me, myself, and I - the human Trinity, over which we have almost total control.
So it's the same two questions. Do you believe that God's light shines on you, loves you, forgives you? And you forgive yourself? Can you live in God's love and will you be a light to the world? Three of you have to answer that. Me and myself and I. But remember, there is such a loving, light full God as ours.
In the name of the father and of the song. And of the Holy Spirit. Amen.