Jesus took Peter, James, and John
and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves.
And he was transfigured before them,
and his clothes became dazzling white,
such as no fuller on earth could bleach them.
Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses,
and they were conversing with Jesus.
Then Peter said to Jesus in reply,
“Rabbi, it is good that we are here!
Let us make three tents:
one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
He hardly knew what to say, they were so terrified.
Then a cloud came, casting a shadow over them;
from the cloud came a voice,
“This is my beloved Son.  Listen to him.”
Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone
but Jesus alone with them.

As they were coming down from the mountain,
he charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone,
except when the Son of Man had risen from the dead.
So they kept the matter to themselves,
questioning what rising from the dead meant.

The Transfiguration, by Raphael, c. 1520 , Public Domain Mark 1.0, No Copyright.

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ!

A blessed Day of the Lord, blessed Day of Rest, a blessed Domenica to you.

At approximately 3am on the night of February 26, 2021, an individual soul – and let us pray for him – desecrated sixteen blessed statues around the grounds of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Basilica. The desecration has been well-documented by the media. Bishop David Bonnar and Monsignor Robert Siffrin have visited, and a statement from Bishop Bonnar was offered to those present for the Noon Mass, for whose remarks I am grateful.

Like the Transfiguration of Christ, Our Lady of Mount Carmel here in Youngstown, perched upon its own mount, reflects the Glory of God, powerfully captured in depictions of His angels, and in His Saints, Saint Joseph, and the Blessed Mother. And even though 3am, February 26rh, 2021 was a time of extreme darkness, opposed to the Light of Christ and opposed to the Gospel, St. Peter remarks in today’s Gospel passage, “It is good that we are here!” Let us once again pitch our tents here upon this mount.

Testify to the Light is the title of the pastoral letter dated February 16th, from our Bishop David Bonnar, 6th Bishop of the Diocese of Youngstown. He reflects, and I agree as a priest, as a pastor, and as a member of the one-billion-plus faithful around the world, that in this darkened hour in the secular history of our world, now more than ever, we as the Catholic Church must testify to the light of Christ. He alone dispels the darkness that plagues the world!

My brothers and sisters in Christ, on this the Second Sunday of Lent, on the mount of the Transfiguration of the Lord Himself in Glory, renew your own personal light of daily prayer! I have remarked before, and I will always have a deep appreciation of, years ago the elders of this parish would sometimes leave behind their book of prayers, carefully wrapped in rubber bands and bursting with prayer cards, and I would receive a frantic phone call from the parishioner to see if they had left it in church. And upon finding it again, he or she would offer a, “Oh, thanks be to God,” and come get it. That was a good sign! A worn prayer book.

Renew your commitment to prayer: communal prayer, the Sunday Mass – we all need a reminder that even though the dispensation due to Covid-19 is in place, that when the dispensation is over it is the mandate of the Lord Himself to worship Him especially in the holy Eucharist on Sunday under the pain of serious sin. Daily Mass, frequent participation in the Sacraments, and the daily light of prayer. The daily light of prayer!

That prayer, no matter where it resides – on an iPad, in that well-worn prayer book wrapped in rubber bands, or otherwise: renew and have that daily routine!

And yes, Mount Carmel – this Mount Carmel – is a garden for the Light of Christ, through Mary. This site is the site of the Mass, offered daily. It is the flowers, the processions, socials, Italian Festivals, all to build up the community of the faithful and family. It is the light of Jesus, reflected in Mary, the Saints, the Angels, the faithful. It is the glory of God.

On this mount, this morning, let us remind ourselves of the absolute necessity of prayer in our lives. It captures the glory of God and the light of faith. On this mount!

Monsignor Michael J. Cariglio, Jr., Rector, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Basilica & Saint Anthony Parish

God put Abraham to the test.
He called to him, “Abraham!”
“Here I am!” he replied.
Then God said:
“Take your son Isaac, your only one, whom you love,
and go to the land of Moriah.
There you shall offer him up as a holocaust
on a height that I will point out to you.”

When they came to the place of which God had told him,
Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it.
Then he reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.
But the LORD’s messenger called to him from heaven,
“Abraham, Abraham!”
“Here I am!” he answered.
“Do not lay your hand on the boy,” said the messenger.
“Do not do the least thing to him.
I know now how devoted you are to God,
since you did not withhold from me your own beloved son.”
As Abraham looked about,
he spied a ram caught by its horns in the thicket.
So he went and took the ram
and offered it up as a holocaust in place of his son.

Again the LORD’s messenger called to Abraham from heaven and said:
“I swear by myself, declares the LORD,
that because you acted as you did
in not withholding from me your beloved son,
I will bless you abundantly
and make your descendants as countless
as the stars of the sky and the sands of the seashore;
your descendants shall take possession
of the gates of their enemies,
and in your descendants all the nations of the earth
shall find blessing—
all this because you obeyed my command.”

R. (116:9) I will walk before the Lord, in the land of the living.
I believed, even when I said,
“I am greatly afflicted.”
Precious in the eyes of the LORD
is the death of his faithful ones.
R. I will walk before the Lord, in the land of the living.
O LORD, I am your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid;
you have loosed my bonds.
To you will I offer sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
R. I will walk before the Lord, in the land of the living.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people,
In the courts of the house of the LORD,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
R. I will walk before the Lord, in the land of the living.

Brothers and sisters:
If God is for us, who can be against us?
He who did not spare his own Son
but handed him over for us all,
how will he not also give us everything else along with him?

Who will bring a charge against God’s chosen ones?
It is God who acquits us, who will condemn?
Christ Jesus it is who died—or, rather, was raised—
who also is at the right hand of God,
who indeed intercedes for us.

It has long been a Catholic understanding that when circumstances prevent one from receiving Holy Communion, it is possible to make an Act of Spiritual Communion, which is a source of grace. Spiritual Communion is an ardent desire to receive Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament and lovingly embrace him at a time or in circumstances when one cannot receive Him in sacramental Communion. The most common reason for making an Act of Spiritual Communion is when a person cannot attend Mass. Acts of Spiritual Communion increase our desire to receive sacramental Communion and help us avoid the sins that would make us unable to receive Holy Communion worthily.

Spiritual Communion Prayer

My Jesus, I believe that you are present in the Most Holy Sacrament.

I love you above all things and I desire to receive you in my soul.

Since I cannot at this moment receive you sacramentally,

Come at least spiritually into my heart.

I embrace you as if you were already there

And unite myself wholly to you.

Never permit me to be separated from you.

Amen.