We live in a tri-level home. The older we get the more challenging the stairway  has become. Aside from that, our grandson plays basketball for his high school. The bleachers at some older gyms are rickety, and in some schools there are no rails to aid in guiding your steps. Even with railing, I have to be very careful and sometimes need some assistance getting to my seat. It’s not that I’m out of shape; but fear has set in from climbing up the older bleachers and almost losing my footing.

The Bible mentions stairways many times as an allegory. Going up represents reaching a higher level of spirituality. When Jacob woke up from his dream, he realized that he had had a holy encounter with God. He took the stone that he used as a pillow and anointed it with oil. He named it Bethel, which means “the house of God.” The Lord reassured him in the dream that He would be with him and protect him wherever he would go. (Gen 28:10-17)

⁵¹ And he said to him, “Amen, amen, I say to you, you will see the sky opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.

In the New Testament Jesus gives reference to Jacob’s encounter in His future Transfiguration.

Many of my dreams are about climbing a staircase with broken steps, and, in spite of this I continue to climb. I understand why the Lord gives me these dreams; it’s because I need to persevere in prayer until I reach a revelation from God.

Vineyards 

Normally,  it takes three years for a new grapevine to produce good grapes. Grapes need to be pruned in order to produce good  fruit. Likewise we, too, need to go through a process of growth before we can produce good spiritual fruit.

John 15:5   New American Bible (Revised Edition)

⁵ I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.

Grape Picker

When I was in my early teens our mother would take us up to Fresno to visit our cousins. We would always go during grape picking season. The grapes we picked were used for raisins. I did not like picking grapes but in spite of this I complied for two reasons: we got to spend time with our cousins and we got to keep some of our earnings to purchase school clothes.

There is a certain way these grapes had to be harvested.  The cut grapes would go from a bind onto paper trays for drying in the sun. It was important that these grapes were placed on a smooth surface; otherwise it would change the integrity of the grape. Many times my foot would make an indentation in the soil; this had to be smoothed out or we would get reprimanded by whoever was overseeing the work.

Admittedly I was, and still am, a complainer. My mother must have grown tired of my pitiful laments. So finally all of my complaining paid off, and I was elevated to babysitting my younger sister and cousins. Life was good!

Making the Connection

Comparatively speaking, I can finally make the connection of the vineyard and how the Lord was pruning us and getting us ready to bear good fruit. In contrast,   grapes do not grow from seeds. Grapes are engrafted from other grape cuttings. We, too, are engrafted into the family of God. God would never exclude anyone from being part of His family.

Romans 11:17   New American Bible (Revised Edition)

¹⁷ But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, a wild olive shoot, were grafted in their place and have come to share in the rich root of the olive tree, ¹⁸ do not boast against the branches. If you do boast, consider that you do not support the root; the root supports you.

Santa Barbara

We love visiting Santa Barbara. Our roots are deep because both of our children were born there. Though I rarely go into the Pacific Ocean, I love to be near her. The sounds of the crashing waves, the loud seagulls flying overhead are a small part of what this beautiful city has to offer.

God had His hand on Santa Barbara; her beauty beckons for her to be noticed. We walked for miles, frequented our favorite restaurants but it’s the beautiful Pacific Ocean that I love. In late summer, the Pacific keeps her boundaries at bay but lets you know she is in charge. The ocean praises God with each pounding wave.

Who is Saint Barbara?

Saint Barbara was a beautiful young woman whose pagan father kept in a tower to protect her. Then she professed her faith in Christianity. In his outrage, her father had her tortured and he himself beheaded her. On his way home from the execution, her father was struck by lightning and reduced to ashes.

Patron Saint

Saint Barbara is invoked in thunderstorms and is the patron saint of artillerymen, fireman, prisoners and miners.

Junipero Serra

To understand the history of Santa Barbara, California we must talk about Saint Junipero Serra, the Spanish Fray who came to establish the Missions in California.

This holy man of God was in charge of overseeing farmland, livestock and infrastructure from San Diego to San Francisco. It’s no surprise that our state owes a lot of our agricultural expertise to the Franciscans.

California Crops

California produces more crops than any other state. There are over 400 types of fruits and vegetables, including nuts. California produces 80% of the worlds almond’s. Almond milk, almond butter and my favorite, Almond Joy candy bars –  all developed  because the Franciscan padres brought the first almond tree from Spain. In order to celebrate Palm Sunday, the Franciscans planted the first palm trees at the Mission San Diego de Alacala.

Mission Grapes

In order to have Mass the Franciscans needed wine for communion. Catholics will never use anything other than real wine for communion. This has been a practice since the Last Supper. In 1779, Saint  Junipero Serra planted California’s first vineyard at Mission San Juan Capistrano.

Mission grapes were also grown by the monks of the Santa Barbara Mission in the hills of Santa Barbara County. The last of the Mission grapes were at the San Gabriel Mission in the San Fernando Valley.

El Camino Real

El Camino Real/The Royal Road was built so that Junipero Serra could travel from San Diego to Carmel and to secure safe passage for travelers.  This road also paved a way to reach and convert Native American tribes to Catholicism. Saint Serra used this road to check on the progress of the Missions.

Bad Press

It’s not surprising that  Junipero Serra has received bad press these past couple of years because of the protest of  Saint Serra’s alleged abuse of Native Americans. This  attack is really aimed at the Catholic Church. There is no historical truth to charges that this priest took advantage of the Native Americans. Moreover there is  proof that Saint Serra defended the rights of the Native Americans. The Monks and indigenous people learned from each other because both had much to offer. The Catholic Church offered a covering and protection for the indigenous people.

If a lie is repeated often enough, it becomes easy to convince others.

I could never express my disbelief and anger when this saint’s statues were defecated and torn down. The truth will always prevail. Always!.

This is an excerpt written by Archbishop José H. Gomez addressing his concern over the removal of Saint Serra statues:

St. Junípero came not to conquer; he came to be a brother. “We have all come here and remained here for the sole purpose of their well-being and salvation,” he once wrote. “And I believe everyone realizes we love them.” …

St. Junípero was 60 years old when he traveled 2,000 miles from Carmel to Mexico City to protest the injustices of the colonial system and demand that authorities adopt a “bill of rights” that he had written for the native peoples. That was in 1773, three years before America’s founders declared this nation’s independence with those beautiful words:  “all men are created equal … endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights.”

Mission Santa Barbara

I was not going to miss Mass, so we made plans to attend the 9:00 a.m. service at the Mission. I told Mike we needed to get there early because it was going to be a packed service. He never believes me. As we made the left turn into the parking lot, this Mission always majestically makes a grand appearance. We parked and walked up several steps to be greeted by a Franciscan priest. On our way in I could hear the choir practicing and from the outside it sounded beautiful.

We sat toward the front and Mike was surprised to see the church pews quickly  filled. With the opening hymn came the priest and the altar servers; one was carrying the Franciscan San Damiano Cross. The liturgical music quickly filled the atmosphere and I felt as though we were part of this great invitation in welcoming the Holy Spirit.

My Prayer

Dear Lord, with all the fake news that is being spread throughout the world, I ask that You would intervene and reveal truth so that our history will not be distorted by lies. I pray that those who believe that Saint Serra came to abuse the indigenous people would come to the understanding that he was sent by God to do His work. Amen.

The Garden of Gethsemane

The Hebrew meaning for Gethsemane is “oil press.” The Garden of Gethsemane is located in the Mount of Olives. This same oil was used in the lighting of the Temple lamps and for the anointing of kings. Jesus was called the Messiah, which means “the anointed one.”

In order to get the fullness of the olive it  must be crushed three times. As Jesus goes into the garden to pray he asked his disciples to stay awake and pray. Three times He found them sleeping.  Jesus knew what He had to face; the agony in the garden, where He would be crushed like the olives for the weight of the sins of the world. In Jesus’ case, He was crushed until His sweat turned into blood.

Luke 22:44   New American Bible (Revised Edition)

⁴⁴ He was in such agony and he prayed so fervently that his sweat became like drops of blood falling on the ground.

The Church of All Nations

I have visited the Garden of Gethsemane many, many times and I have received new revelations with each visit. This magnificent church is also referred to as the Basilica of the Agony.  With the help of twelve nations, this church was reconstructed in 1920- 1924. Of course the United States had a hand in this because we are truly a benevolent nation. The other countries donating were Argentina, Brazil , Chili, Mexico, Italy, France, Spain, England, Belgium, Canada and Germany. The name, The Church of  All Nations, was built with 12 nations and, like the 12 apostles, it means complete.

Walking past the olive trees is one of my favorite sites to visit. Archaeologists believe that some of these olive trees were around in the time of Jesus. An interesting fact about an olive tree is that when cut it will continue to grow. These century old olive trees are still producing olives.

As you walk into  the small basilica the focus is on the huge boulder located at the altar. This stone is believed to be where Jesus wept. To be at the same site that our Lord wept blood and to be able to pray and weep at the same spot is truly joyful.

The rock of agony is surrounded by a crown of thorns made of wrought iron. Depending on who is guarding the rock, we could usually enter through the gates to kneel and pray. I could spend hours interceding for others; but sometimes, to allow others an opportunity to do the same, we were ushered out.

Olive Branches 

Through the grace of God after so many years of visiting the Garden of Gethsemane, I finally got the courage to ask a Franciscan priest if we could have branches from the olive trees. I still have some of these leaves and I treasure them. I’ve shared with my students throughout the years as a small Christmas gift. I will do so this year as well.

My Gethsemane

In no instance am I comparing myself to Jesus in a His agony in the Garden of Gethsemane. But many times I find that I have to go deeper into my Gethsemane to reach a higher spiritual level. That may come across as heavy for some but in reality it’s attainable for all. Our world is filled with so many distractions which cause us to inadvertently take our eyes off  our calling. In my case, I get a shaking in a dream to redirect my path.

Getting Back Into the Spirit

The Lord gives me warning dreams whenever I step out of the spirit into the world. These dreams are often confusing, and I’m always finding a way to get out of the situation.

This is the most recent  dream:

I had a baby, and I was responsible for him. The baby was very dirty; he looked as if he had not had a bath in days. I quickly put him in the bathtub but in the commotion, I was distracted. I started to do other things. Then I remembered the baby. I ran in and started scrubbing the dirt off of him.

What does this dream mean? This is my interpretation: the baby represents something new that has been entrusted to me. I failed to pay attention to the baby. The outcome of my neglect was that things with the baby were not right.

The Classes

I have volunteered to teach First Holy Communion and Confirmation classes at St. Norbert.  So, after this dream, I started to review some of the lessons. Preparing for something God has entrusted me with, I must  have a pure and yielding spirit.

Since I struggle with dates and times, I quickly posted all the dates of the class in my phone calendar with a reminder.                          .

The Distraction

It’s easy to unwillingly open the door to distraction. Mine come in different forms such as unnecessary shopping or trying to find something entertaining on Netflix. I like true life stories and documentaries, but I love romantic comedies.

No More Garbage

In almost every case, a spirit of perversion is introduced in the third or fourth segment of romantic miniseries. I’m disgusted with Turkish, Italian and Jewish miniseries. They are following the same script of  some American moviemakers who are doing a wonderful job of destroying entertainment. Their agenda is for us to always accept a sinful lifestyle as the norm.

Prayer

I pray a lot. But sometimes I need assurance from the Lord, so I go  deeper into the garden. Alone, I separate myself from the world and pray. I usually start with a Rosary and then continue to add other petitions. Part of my calling is to pray for others.  Many times I feel a burden to pray for our nation and the crazy politicians who are running it.

My first priority is always for my family. I pray for their health, favor in their workplace, for our grandchildren to do well in school. I also pray for the future spouses for our grandchildren because God has the perfect man or woman set aside for them. I pray for the spiritual direction of many. For those who do not understand who they are in God’s Kingdom, I ask the Lord to reveal Himself in a dream to them..

Be the Light

We all could use a little crushing.  Always remember that the oil from the olive trees was used for lighting. We are the light that can never be extinguished.