Sliney Central

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

Inspirational thoughts

Take the Plunge!

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends in Christ,

     “The words printed here are concepts. You must go through the experiences.”  St. Augustine

    The first time I jumped into the deep end of a swimming pool, my dad was in the water at a distance, but I had to swim out to him.  I had real fears of sinking to the bottom, of taking in water…but it all worked out.  This is the spiritual life…you need to jump in and commit, and little by little, you will experience the joy and freedom of flying across the water of life, being gently propelled by the grace of God. Trust in Christ, and take the plunge!!

Joyful obedience

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends in Christ,

     “There are no galley-slaves in the royal vessel of divine love–every man works his oar voluntarily! ”  St. Francis de Sales

   One of the disadvantages of being the youngest is getting the household chores when your older siblings go off to college.  I was given the task of cutting the grass in 7th grade and continued straight through High School.  In the beginning, I tried to avoid this chore and kept myself intentionally “busy” caddying, golfing or playing with my friends to postpone this task as long as possible.  Then my mom pulled me aside and said, “Michael, you know how important it is to your dad to have the grass cut every week, and you know when it needs to be cut.  Is it too much to ask that you do this on your own, without being constantly told?  It would make your dad very happy!”  I soon began to “oar voluntarily”, and even offered it up for souls, and it really wasn’t so bad!

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

We are Pilgrims

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We are Pilgrims

By Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

 

 

A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of visiting a woman at Mount Sinai hospital. Her 19-year-old daughter had spent her life battling a series of life-threatening illnesses. She had never been able to speak and in just a few hours, she was about to be taken off life support. In addition to this tangibly heavy burden, this woman had also lost her husband during the terrorist attack on 9/11.

 

Trying to offer a little comfort, I said, “Thank God you are a woman of faith. Your daughter has never really been capable of sin, given her debilitating condition since birth, and from what I understand; your husband was a very good man. I will pray they may be re-united in heaven.” She radiated a deep peace, but with sorrow in her voice, she gently said, “Fr. Michael, thank you for coming. My Catholic faith is everything to me. I simply cannot understand how anyone can get through even one day without faith. My daughter was never able to speak and she was in constant physical pain, but I know God had a plan for her. She helped so many people along the way…My hope and prayers are that she will soon join my husband in heaven.” A soft smile broke from her face and she looked like a little angel…that’s what Faith can do!

 

During one of my many conversations with my dad in our kitchen, he stopped cutting up the onions for his “Saturday afternoon chili”, looked me in the eyes and said, “Michael, don’t get too caught up in this world. We are blessed to live in a nice neighborhood, all of our material needs are more than being met, you are safe and comfortable. But we were not made for this world. We are pilgrims, and God made us to be with him for all eternity in heaven.” Ten years later, It gave me tremendous consolation to hear from my mom that his last words on earth were, “Germaine, let’s have a moment of silence, I feel like I am in heaven.” Shortly afterwards, he died of a blood clot.

 

Lent is almost over, and the focus now shifts to Easter, the Resurrection and eternal life in heaven. In heaven, our aching and tired bodies will appear in their vigorous and glorified form, there will be no head-aches, no colds, no mosquito bites or poison ivy…and everyone there will be super kind, charitable and pleasant. Most importantly, we will continue the friendship we began with Christ here on earth in the warm company of his Blessed Mother. Christ will totally fill our hearts with his peace and joy, and it will never get boring or stagnant. In the words of St. Augustine, “Our hearts are restless and they can only rest in you.” Now is the time to start building our heavenly bank account and purifying our soul from anything that is not Christ. He is waiting, he has your room reserved and he ardently hopes to see you prepared for this eternal encounter.

Special experience

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends in Christ,

“If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.”  CS Lewis

    During one of my home visits, I asked my mom if she ever had an experience of God in prayer.  She said, “Yes, Michael.  Once I was praying in the chapel in front of the tabernacle and I felt a warm peace and joy come into my heart.  It is hard for me to explain but it was like being in heaven.  I have never been happier and this was a moment that I will never forget…”

Priestly celibacy

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends in Christ,

     “People in the world think that the vow of chastity makes us inhuman, makes us become like stones, without feelings.  Each one of us can tell them it is not true.  It is the vow of chastity that gives us freedom to love everybody instead of simply becoming a mother to three of four children.  A married woman can love but one man; we can love the whole world in God.”  Blessed Mother Teresa

    Several years ago, I was interviewed by ABC news on the issues of priestly celibacy, and I was glad to have been given this opportunity to defend this beautiful religious vow.  I couldn’t agree more with Blessed Mother Teresa’s statement above.  It certainly is a sacrifice to be celibate, but it also allows us to love more people in an “undivided”, pure and holy way.  My heart belongs to Christ, and “in Christ, I am to love the whole world in God.”

Envy

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends in Christ,

     “As a moth gnaws a garment, so doth envy consume a [person].”  St. John Chrysostom

     Don’t waste time and energy being envious of things that in the big picture really do not matter: good looks, material possessions, attractive personalities, etc… Rather, focus on the higher gifts, the deep virtues of others, and try to learn from them and imitate them, instead of trying to bring that person down!