A People to
People Thing
It’s amazing
how God works to build his kingdom. God plants things in you to share and
spread, that’s the source of this reflection.
The readings
are about the kingdom of God. Ezekiel speaks of God planting a shoot on a mountain.
A prophesy of how God’s chosen his people will stand tall and bear fruit for
the whole world.
Jesus tells two parables. One is about scattering seeds. The second is about
a mustard seed. These two parables Jesus explains are about the kingdom of God.
Let me tell you a story about peace and building of the kingdom of God.
First, the mustard seed:
Fr. Philip Cascia
was a small town parish priest at St. Anthony’s Parish, in Prospect, CT. (pop. 8000.) He was an advocate for the homeless.
On a trip to
Washington DC to lobby for a bill that addressed the issue of homelessness, he
had the opportunity to lunch with several Senators. During their mealtime conversation,
Fr. Philip made a joking remark about the peace process, ''We'd do better
bringing my Catholic high school wrestling team to Russia than if we tried to
sneak in Bibles.”
The Senators
held him to it and sent his wrestling team to Russia. Wrestling the best in
Russia, they were beaten badly; but they accomplished more for peace than diplomacy
had. President Ronald Reagan personally asked Fr. Philip to continue the
program.
The mustard seed was planted. The seed
became Intersport USA; an international exchange program with high school
athletes promoting world peace.
Now, the story of the shoot that God planted:
One of Fr. Philip’s
first trips was to Vietnam. Before the plane landed, it was intercepted by
military jets and escorted to an air base. Soldiers took Fr. Philip to an
interrogation room. They insulted and accused him of being a Vatican spy. The
soldiers threaten the priest with the fierceness of the soon to arrive commander.
When the Vietnamese commanding general arrived, a new verbal assault began. At
the most intense moment, the commander stopped and ordered the guards to leave.
Alone with
Fr. Philip, the general knelt and kissed the priest’s hand saying, "My
mother always prayed that God send me a priest, no matter where I was. When I
saw you get off the plane, I knew you were sent by God."
Fr. Philip
heard the general's confession. The soldiers returned and the interrogation continued.
In the end, the general allowed Fr. Philip to continue on his journey, and even
re-fueled the plane.
God can take
the small shoot, like the
prayers of an unknown mother of a powerful Vietnamese Commanding General and
set them on a mountain. Like a towering
mountain cedar, the general’s faith provided shade and protection.
This mustard
seed and shoot were important to each other, both working for the kingdom of
God. Meeting this General allowed Fr. Philip to finish his trip. Intersport, USA
touched the world.
This organization
allowed the young priest to scatter seeds in all the places God sent him. He
made over 130 international trips. He wasn’t a politician or a diplomat; he just
scattered the seeds God gave. Seeds that sprouted and grew, yielding fruit.
This peace
through sports organization represented the United States and reached out to
the world. It was responsible for the first raising of an American flag by the
Vietnamese government since before the war. Fr. Philip was the first American
to receive a Diploma of Appreciation from the Soviet Union.
It was not
just an outreach between countries. Fr. Philip was Christ and the Church touching
the world. His relationships helped Pope John Paul II visit Cuba. He was in the
room during the meeting between Mikhail Gorbachev and Pope John Paul II.
Fr. Philip once
said the realization that “People are people, and this is a people-to-people
thing” is what helps bring peace.
A priest in
a small parish and unknown to most people, he was nominated for the Nobel Peace
Prize for planting seeds. They were seeds of peace. They were seeds of the
kingdom of God. Seeds that started as a joke but seeds that God made fruitful
to grow his kingdom. Fr. Philip Cascia died at the age of 56.
St. John
writes in his 1st letter “Whatever is born of God conquers the
world. And this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith.”
By our faith
and in God’s grace, we have the seed to grow the kingdom of heaven in us. We can
plant and nourish it, or scatter it about. Our prayers will nourish the shoots
of faith in us and in others. My brothers and sisters, we do all of this by
living our faith.
St. Paul
writes “we walk by faith;” “are courageous;” “and we aspire to please God.” In
these we share the life we live and the love of Christ. We scatter the seeds of the kingdom of God; tiny
seeds like Fr. Philip’s. Our prayers will nourish shoots of faith, like the Vietnamese
mother’s prayers that bore fruit through her son the General.
Bring peace and
the love of Christ to those around us - It’s a people to people thing – the building
of the kingdom of God.
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