by Fr. Brian Wirth,
Director of Rural Life
Two Sundays ago during the 11th Week of Ordinary Time, the Communion Antiphon stated: “Holy Father, keep in your name those you have given me, that they may be one as we are one.” (Jn. 17:11)
In light of this, I’m reminded of a story that I recently heard:
Growing up on a farm was a young boy whose father gave him a bucket calf. A bucket calf is a recent newborn taken from its mother and fed with a bottle and a bucket. The father told his son he had permission to raise the calf. When he raised it to 800 pounds, he could sell it and keep the money — a good deal for a young boy. So the son took the bucket calf and started to raise the animal.
However, the calf got sick. The son tried feeding the calf more milk, which was a mistake. Then, he decided to keep the calf inside the barn, which also was a mistake. Shortly after, the calf died and the son sat in the barn and cried. His father came to the barn and said: “Son, why are you crying?” “Dad, I tried to raise the calf you gave me and it got sick. I tried everything I could. I tried my best.”
His father said: “No, you didn’t. You didn’t try your best. Trying your best would have been to ask me.” Then his father gave his son another bucket calf. The son took the calf and he began to care for it, but this calf got sick also. The son told his father and he said: “OK, we are going to try to nurse it back to health. They gave the calf medicine, a proper diet, fresh air, but it still died. Though sad, the son didn’t sit and cry this time.
The son didn’t cry because his father was with him in it all. And that was everything the son ever needed to know about God the Father.
There are many lessons to gain from this true story. In this month of June in which the Church wholeheartedly celebrates the Sacred Heart of Jesus, through the many Corpus Christi processions that took place, the ongoing Eucharistic Revival and National Eucharistic Pilgrimage routes (which just traveled through all three Nebraska dioceses last week), and the National Eucharistic Congress happening in Indianapolis this July, Jesus desires to make one thing abundantly clear:
As the Victor over Sin, Death, and Satan, Jesus, in the Supreme Gift of his Eucharistic Heart desires to spend time with his brothers and sisters.
However, it is not just Jesus who wants to spend time with us. During his public ministry, Jesus constantly reminded his disciples that he came to do one thing: The will of the Father. What is the will of the Father? In the words of the Communion Antiphon, Jesus goes further: “[I pray] that they may all be one, as you Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me.” (Jn. 17:21).
Therefore, brothers and sisters, we are constantly reminded that through the Eucharist, and particularly through Eucharistic adoration, Jesus desires to incorporate us into Himself via the Holy Spirit, so that we may always be united to the Father.
Arguably Jesus’ greatest teaching on the Trinity is in John’s Gospel account during the Last Supper. Fittingly, it is within the Mystery of the Eucharist that the Mystery of the Trinity becomes unveiled to us by faith within the Mystery of Faith at every Mass. In our worthy reception of the Eucharist, by grace we as God’s Beloved are granted complete access to all three Persons of the Trinity.
In this Divine manner, as His Beloved Children, all of us are granted the grace of having the Father with us in it all, in the highest of highs, the lowest of lows, and everything in between.
Whether exercised physically or spiritually, the bond between a father and child, or the graces of unity within the family can never be highlighted enough as they are arguably the greatest blessings that God the Father has bestowed upon us in His Providential care.
In light of having recently celebrated Father’s Day and the goodness of rural life, many of my greatest memories are with my dad and grandpa on the farm and on Sundays. With them, I was able to experience all of the ins and outs of farm life as well as learn the importance of working hard, critical thinking/learning, and asking questions. As in the story above, life is too short to try to figure out life by ourselves.
In the times when things are difficult and nothing goes right and there are family disputes concerning the farm and we feel alone, it is important to remember that all of us are children in need of our Father. We must remember that our faith is never rooted in isolation; it is rooted in the rich soil of communion and relationship.
Therefore, as we continue to progress through these summer months, as in the story, may we never forget to “try our best.” May we never forget the goodness of our earthly fathers. Above all, let us always remain in the embrace of our Heavenly Father through the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus.
“Holy Father, keep in your name those you have given me, that they may be one as we are one.”
