Michael Sliney

Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends in Christ,

     “For surely the confidence of a notorious sinner honors God most of all, for he is so convinced of God’s infinite mercy that all his sins seem no more than an atom in its presence.”  (St. Claude

de la Colombiere)

    Wright Patterson Air Force Base.   Having served in the Army Air Corps in WWII, my dad was so excited to accompany me on this week-end trip with the Cub Scouts.  As our school bus passed the sign above, our Scout Master pointed to a fallen B-52 bomber off to the right and said, “Gentlemen, if any of you tries to check out that plane, there will be severe consequences.  Don’t even think about it.”  My friends and I smiled at each other, and within 6 hours we were climbing through the greasy cock-pit and checking out the controls and empty bomb shells…cool stuff!  Our Scout Master wondered why it had taken so long for us to collect “firewood” and within a few minutes he had us marching single file line, hands in the air, back to camp.  I marched past my dad, and although I sensed a little disappointment, I also sensed a lot of love and understanding.  My sin seemed “no more than an atom in his presence.”

Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends in Christ,

     “Do not, my child, approach Jesus Christ with the hope of bending his will to yours: what I desire is that you yield yourself to him and that he receive you, so that he, your Savior, may do with you and in you whatever he pleases.”  St. Cajetan

       The Holy Spirit is like a master sculptor.  At times he strikes hard and with aggression, other times, it is more refined and slower, but the goal is to bring out the image of Christ buried within.  The key is to be true to who you are.  If you are married, be faithful to your spouse, focus on your kids and don’t dream about other options.  If you have a career, be ethical, fair and hard working.   He will always push you to be, like Christ, selfless and magnanimous.  Don’t look for easy and immoral escape routes from your duties and obligations…let the master sculptor strike when and where he prefers: he knows what is best for us!!

Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends in Christ,

     “And they ran out of wine, since the wine provided for the feast had all been used, and the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.'”  (Jn 2: 2,3)

    Personally, I am not capable of saying “no” to my mom.   When she asks me for anything from the heart, and looks me in the eyes, I simply cannot say “no”.   I do not have a wife or kids, but I do have a mom, and she is the only one who has unique access to my heart.  Christ, too, is a priest.  The Blessed Mother will always be his mom and she will always have special access to  his heart.  To Jesus through Mary!

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends in Christ,

     “Do not be afraid of Christ!  He takes nothing away, and he gives you everything.  When we give ourselves to him, we receive a hundredfold in return.  Yes, open, open wide the doors to Christ- and you will find true life.”  (Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI)

    Christ cannot be outdone in generosity.   During the World Youth Day in Germany, our group of 40 High School and college kids helped promote Confessions well into the night.  These kids kept the Confession lines full all night and as a result, they were exhausted the next day.   As we joined the nearly 1 million pilgrims leaving after the Mass, we soon realized that we would be waiting for a really long time.  The buses were all stuck in large back up and the police were struggling with crowd control.  I saw a narrow dirt road in the distance and signaled to our kids to go there and within seconds an empty bus came through the brush and opened the doors for our group, and the bus was actually going where we needed to go…a small miracle and a clear sign that God noticed our efforts from the night before.

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

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