CROSSING BOUNDARIES

 

Muslim Leaders Invited to Catholic Mass (Gaudate Sunday) by Bishop Mhasi, December 14, 2025

They Asked If Their Children Could Attend the New Catholic School To Be Opened In 2026

The woman came and did Jesus homage, saying, “Lord help me.” Jesus said to her, “It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs!” She said to Jesus, “Please Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps from the table of their masters!”

Matthew 15:21-28

Well, since I didn’t see anybody laughing or even smiling when I read it, I guess I will have to explain today's gospel story which I consider one of the funniest in the whole New Testament! 

First of all, however, I suppose I should give you a little background. This is the first and only time Jesus is reported as being outside Jewish territory. Jesus deliberately went there to get away from the demands of the crowds who were constantly pursuing him and to get away from the hostility of the Scribes and Pharisees. He needed some quiet time to think and pray about the terrible days he had come to realize that were ahead of him. By leaving Jewish territory and entering Gentile territory, he assumed that very few of his fellow Jews would follow him.  

No sooner than Jesus had crossed the border, a woman who had heard about him and the wonderful things he could do for hurting people, showed up and came up to him asking for help for her afflicted daughter. She was not only a Gentile, she was a Canaanite Gentile and Canaanites were ancestral enemies of the Jews.

The text says that Jesus didn’t say a word to her in to answer to her request! Maybe it was because Jewish men were forbidden to speak to women in public? Maybe he was just trying to pull himself together and think about how to help her? In any case, imagine that moment of awkward silence as they stood there in a stand-off – Jesus not saying anything and her not leaving!  Not being able to stand that awkward silence, the disciples of Jesus intervene. “Jesus, tell her to get out of here and quit calling out after you!” Not dissuaded by their angry rebuff, the desperate woman approached Jesus, bowed to him and said simply, “Lord, help me!”  

Here's where the fun starts! It loses something in translation so I am going to have to try to explain it in such a way that you’ll get the humorous exchange. Jesus says something quite awful-sounding to her, but you have to imagine him smiling and winking knowingly at her as he says it. Both Jesus and the woman knew, and everyone standing around knew, that the Jewish nickname for Gentiles was “dogs.” Jesus says to her in response to her request, “It is not right to take food that belongs to Jewish children and give it to “dogs” like you!” (Wink! Wink!) The slang word he used here is similar to the "b" word we have for “vicious females!”  

She must have picked up on Jesus winking at her as he was saying out loud what everybody looking on was thinking about her. Instead of using the “b” word for a female dog, in her answer she uses the word for “little puppies” or cute “household pets.” “Please, Lord, for even “little puppies” like me don’t mind eating the scrapes that fall from their master’s table!” (Wink! Wink!) It almost like she is saying to the smiling Jesus, “Just help me because harmless little "puppies" like me don’t mind eating left-over scraps from Jews like you!”

I have always imagined them laughing and hugging each other afterwards as Jesus says to her, “O, woman, great is your faith! Let it be done as you wish!”

Remember, this story takes place outside Jewish territory. The significance of this story is that it foreshadows the going out of the gospel to the whole world; it shows us the beginning of the end of all the barriers between God and the peoples of the world!

We have a long way to go, but some of us remember the days when we Catholics believed that all non-Catholics would probably not make it to heaven? Others of us will remember the days when many Protestants thought we Catholics would certainly not make it to heaven because we did not have that “born-again” experience that they had!

Just to remind you of how far we have become, let me remind you of what the Catholic Church actually teaches today about other religions. These words come from the Vatican Council II documents.

The Document of Ecumenism says this: “Catholics must joyfully acknowledge and esteem the truly Christian endowments from our common heritage which are to be found among our Protestant brothers and sisters.  Nor should we forget that whatever is wrought by the grace of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of our separated brothers and sisters can contribute to our own edification.” (That's worth repeating!) Wow! We have come a long way, haven't we? I have benefitted greatly by what I have learned over the years since those post-Vatican II years. I preached one whole summer in Crater Lake National Park under the auspices of the United Church of Christ. I got more help in leaning to preach from them than I did from Saint Meinrad Seminary! I got my Doctorate in Parish Revitalization from the Presbyterian Church seminary in Chicago! It was because of what I learned from Presbyterians that I was able to do what I did to revitalize the Cathedral of the Assumption parish downtown in the 1980s and 1990s! 

The Document on Non-Christian Religions says this: “The Church rejects, as foreign to the mind of Christ, any discrimination against others, or harassment of them, because of their race, color, condition of life or religion.” (That too is worth repeating!) Wow again! We have come a long, long way, haven't we? It was because of that Vatican II Document that we were able to start the Cathedral Heritage Foundation, now called the Center for Interfaith Relations, which is still functioning around our Cathedral downtown for almost 50 years now! 

Would that we would all dedicate ourselves to living what the passage today from the Gospel of Matthew tells us and what the Church clearly teaches us in our relations with other peoples and their religions!  Yes, indeed, we have come a long way, but we still have a long way to go!  Let us especially reject those loud screeching voices today who want to take us back to the way things used to be - from the tolerance and ecumenism of today to the intolerance and religious bigotry of yesterday! I don't know about you, but I'm certainly not going back to those days! 

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In case you did not see it the other day, here is a little video to prove what "crossing boundaries" can do to help heal Christian/Muslim conflicts in one place on the other side of the world. Catholic and Muslim children singing together "We Are Happy Today" and giving a "thumbs up" sign when the new Catholic school that we have help build opened on July 30, 2026

                                                  expand the screen and turn up the volume to hear the singing

 

CHURCH CHAT #41

 

OLD ST. THERESA OF AVILA - MY BELOVED HOME PARISH

LEFT TO RIGHT

Old rectory (now Retreat House), rectory garage (now storage), Johnson Hall (parish hall), present church (dedicated in 1861), Gazebo (in honor of my parents), Family Life Center (old school).

PRESENT CHURCH INTERIOR TODAY

OUR HISTORY

St. Theresa of Avila Church in Rhodelia is the oldest Catholic church in Meade County, where Maryland Catholic settlers began arriving in the late 1700s. Traveling missionaries said Mass in the pioneers’ log homes (called stations). The first recorded visit was in 1805.

Devoted Catholics built a log church called St. Theresa in 1818 on the banks of the Ohio River in Breckinridge County. Local baptismal records start in 1824. The congregation relocated in 1826 to a more central site in Meade County, closer to most parishioners’ homes. There, they constructed a second log church, recalled by a large wooden cross in the “old cemetery.” Many baptisms, first communions, and confirmations are recorded from Bishop Benedict Joseph Flaget’s visit in 1827. St. Theresa’s congregation was the largest in Meade and Hardin counties when Father Charles Ignatius Coomes was assigned to these missions in 1830. Here he located his headquarters, becoming the first resident pastor.

Parishioners supplied materials and labor, constructing the present church under the direction of William Kelly, architect of the Cathedral of the Assumption. In use by summer 1857, it was dedicated June 16, 1861 by Bishop Martin John Spalding. The parish added the “new cemetery,” a parish hall, the present rectory, and a new school in the twentieth century.

St. Theresa Academy opened as a boarding and day school in 1866. The Sisters of Loretto, the first teachers, were succeeded in 1870 by the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth. (Old St. Theresa Academy below where Father Bob Ray and myself attended our first couple of grades)

Though the Meade County Board of Education took it over in the 1950s, the Sisters of Charity continued teaching at the school until it closed in 1993. By that time, St. Theresa had educated our children for more than 125 years. St. Theresa/Cross Roads School when it closed in 1993 below. 

New Family Life Center With New Porch and Central Entrance

Today, the parishioners of St. Theresa, numbering about 500, share much common history and, like their ancestors, a strong sense of ownership for their parish.

My brother, Mark, had these cards made to give out to those who came

to the annual St. Theresa Picnic on August 8, as a sign that their

support was very much appreciated. 

AMAZING FACT: A NEW YOU EVERY FIVE YEARS OR SO!

I have been proud to say that I have tried to re-invent myself every few years as my work situation changes over time and I take on something new. I would say I have done it at least 10 times so far - and at least three times since I have retired in 2015. 

What I didn't know is the fact that every five years or so I get a new body to go with it! Here is a detail about my physical body that I heard a long time ago, but did not realize how often it happens! Here is an amazing fact I read about on a health and wellness website on the internet the other day. 

"Every five years or so, the human body basically does a Ship of Theseus. That is to say, within that time, every single cell in your body is replaced with new cells. So you are not the person you were seven years ago. You have all the same memories, scars, and you have the same DNA, but you are made up of completely different body parts."

The only problem with that fact is that I may have completely different body parts, one cell at a time, but my body keeps looking older and older, not to mention, weaker and weaker! 

HANGING IN AND HANGING ON

 

Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus. But when he 

saw how strong the wind was, he became frightened; and, beginning to sink, he 

cried out, "Lord, save me!"

Matthew 14:22-33

Even though I have been a priest for fifty-six years now, I have never forgotten that I was ordained during one of the most tumultuous periods of modern church history. I have been reminded of it almost every day! As I was being ordained in 1970, many priests and Sisters were leaving. In days previous, their leaving was certainly looked down on and some who left were given a religious cold shoulder socially! Before my day, priests and Sisters were placed on pedestals. Staying was praised and rewarded. Then, about the time I was ordained, the tables flipped. Those who left were admired for their courage, while those of us who stayed were pitied for our cowardice! Personally, I do not want to go back to those so-called "good old days" of pedestals! I would much rather be in the ring where the real struggles are taking place. In the words of Theodore Roosevelt, I would rather be "the man who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly...."

I was in the thick of all that leaving as I was preparing for my First Mass. I decided right then and there that I needed an image that would remind me to “hold on” no matter how much the winds howled and how deep the water rose! I was adamant that my tombstone would say in the end, “Ronald Knott, Priest!” The image of “solid rock” seemed to be one I could identify with! It so happened that there was a popular Quaker Hymn at guitar Masses back then that seemed to fit my needs. I had it sung at my First Mass and I have sung it, or listened to it sung, on every one of my 56 anniversaries. That hymn is called “How Can I Keep From Singing?” It talks about being “anchored to a rock” in spite of the "darkness and chaos" of the world around us, all the while hearing the faint, but steady far-off music, that sings of joy and hope.

My life flows on in endless song;

Above earth's lamentations,

I hear the real, tho' far-off hymn

That hails a new creation;

CHORUS

No storm can shake my inmost calm

While to that rock I'm clinging;

Since love is lord of heaven and earth,

How can I keep from singing?

Through all the tumult and the strife

I hear that music ringing;

It sounds an echo in my soul—

How can I keep from singing?

Although the tempest loudly roars,

I hear the truth, it liveth.

What though the darkness 'round me close,

Songs in the night it giveth.

When tyrants tremble, sick with fear,

And hear their death-knell ringing,

When friends rejoice both far and near,

How can I keep from singing?

On my 25th Anniversary, I chose today's gospel reading about Peter’s walk on water and how he was able to accomplish that feat by keeping his eyes fixed on Jesus, rather than how deep the water was or high the winds blew! I had learned, by my 25th anniversary, that the secret to surviving constant change was having something solid to hang onto and that there was nothing more solid and dependable than clinging to Jesus the "rock!” That required "having your priorities straight," as we say today!

After my 25th anniversary, I started publishing my own books. To encourage myself even more, going forward, I chose the Greek word "sophronismos," from Paul's Second Letter to Timothy (1:7). Sophronismos means, "the ability to know what to do in the face of panic" or "knowing how to keep your cool under pressure." (Ah, yes, that's exactly what I need going into old age "the ability to control myself in the face of panic.") I want to be able to handle any storm without being upset and falling apart all the time! As a reminder, I named my little publishing company "Sophronismos Press."

Timothy, fellow missionary of Paul, was a young man who faced his own crisis at the beginning of his ministry and offers us a model of fidelity in spite of crushing disappointment. In his second letter to Timothy, Paul writes to a young man who wants to give up and come home. His ministry was bordering on being a total failure. Paul reminds Timothy that the Spirit gives pastoral ministers three things during difficult times to help them continue their work: dunymis, agape and sophronismos. Dunymis means "strength." Agape means "a practical support kind of love rather than a sentimental feeling."  Sophronismos means "the ability to control oneself in the face of panic."

Every priest, every religious, every married person, indeed every believer, if he or she is to survive and thrive in today’s church and in today's world, must find that peaceful center, that inmost calm that no storm can shake, that anxiety-free place where one waits in joyful hope, that place of grace under pressure, that solid foundation on which they can withstand any storm, that peace of mind and heart that only God can give. This is why our prayer life is so essential! Our relationship with Christ is that "sure foundation" where we can withstand any storm headed toward us!

These times of crisis are a normal part of life whether it's in ordained ministry, religious life, marriage or membership in a faith community. These crisis times are not signs that we have made a mistake, but signs that we are on the right path. If they are normal and to be expected, then we need to develop the inner strength to face them, deal with them and overcome them. I actually feel sorry for those who have nothing solid to hang onto these days! Eleanor Roosevelt put it this way, “You gain strength, courage and confidence every time you look fear in the face. We must do the thing we think we cannot do.” In other words, we must be able, like Peter, to "walk on water!" Why must we do it? In the end, we must not forget the gospel’s final words of Jesus to us, “I will be with you always.”

No storm can shake my inmost calm while to that rock I'm clinging!

 

 

 

CHURCH CHAT #40

LOCAL HEROINES OF HISTORY

Pictured are Sisters of Charity of Nazareth Catharine Siena Speak, Emmanuel Dyer, Mary Leander Eiting, Mary Clarissa Reith, and Christiana Snyder with others in 1905-1906 who lived at St. Helena Convent and served as nurses at Camp Zachary Taylor during the Influenza Pandemic in the Fall of 1918.

The Sisters of Charity of Nazareth were some of the first to answer when the 1918 Influenza Pandemic hit. At its onset, a number of SCNs were already volunteering at various hospitals, orphanages, and military camps. When influenza struck these camps, there were far more ill than there were nurses to care for them, most notably at Camp Zachary Taylor in Louisville, KY. At Camp Taylor, many women religious from around the area were called on for their aid, numbering eighty-five Sisters in total coming from five congregations. Thirty-four of these were Sisters of Charity of Nazareth. Due to such a large influx of both patients and nurses, barracks were converted into makeshift hospitals for the soldiers and housing for the Sisters, as well as other lay nurses.