In Spirit and in Truth.  Doing what is right and good 

even in times of great discord in the family, 

in society, or in the fraternity or chapter.

 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for such the Father seeks to worship him. ²⁴ God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.  John 4: 23-24.  He who walks blamelessly, and does what is right, and speaks truth from his heart[.]   Psalm 15:2

“…true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and [in] truth… .” John 4:23.  Christ made this statement to the woman at the well.  The purpose here is not to examine the depth of meaning as expressed by Our Lord in His discourse with the woman, but to look at why truth matters, why as Lay Dominicans our behavior must accord with objective reality even in times of deep discord be it in the family at home, our family at church or our family in the lay fraternity. 

Objective truth and examining personal behavior.

To worship the Father “in spirit and in truth” was examined by St. Thomas Aquinas, in his Commentary on St. John, that what is necessary for true worship is to be spiritual, “with fervor of spirit; ‘I will pray with spirit, and I will pray with my mind’ (1 Cor 14:15); ‘Singing to the Lord in our hearts” (Eph 5:19).”  

St. Thomas also noted that worship must necessarily be, “in the truth of faith, because no fervent spiritual desire is meritorious unless united to the truth of faith. . ..”  It must also be without pretense or hypocrisy.  St. Thomas notes, that such worship requires, “three things: first, the fervor of love, secondly, the truth of faith; and thirdly, a correct intention.”  Commentary on the Gospel of St. John, Part 1, Chapter 4; St. Thomas Aquinas (LINK (Accessed 09.04.2023.)).   In his Catena Aurea, St. Thomas attributes to Theophylact of Ohrid, an 11^th Century Byzantine archbishop, a perspective that worship in spirit stands for action, and worship in truth for contemplation. Catena Aurea, Gospel of St. John, Chapter 4; St. Thomas Aquinas (LINK (Accessed (09.04.2023.)). 

Worship in spirit and truth is more than simple bodily gestures and rituals, but it is interior worship carried out in the fullness of Christ’s revelation.  A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture, Thomas Nelson & Sons, New York (1953), p. 988.  In this way, He desires our hearts and our minds to align to the objective reality of God the Father, our prayers and our actions conform to objective reality, e.g. truth.  As such, it should also impact our behavior and relationships with our respective families. It is lived in our lives, in following the truth in obedience, not only loving God wholly but also in loving our neighbor as ourselves.

St. Paul tells that through Christ, we have come to trust Christ as our faith and hope are set on Him, and through grace it brings about the obedience of faith.   Romans 1:5; 16:26. He also says that each of us have been purified by obedience to the truth, “so that you have genuine mutual love, love one another deeply from the heart.”  1 Peter 1:22. St. John says, “let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.”  1 John 3:18. See, also, 1 John 4:19-21. 

When conflict arises.

In human affairs, conflict between persons, families, and society will arise.   James 4:1-9.  Yet, how do each of us, as individuals, take responsibility for our personal behavior? How do we respond?  In his book on Knowing the Love of God, Fr. Garrigou-LaGrange, O.P., he writes about conflict within a monastery or convent, stating that with regard to the religious life, a “[m]onastery is not yet Heaven; it is only the novitiate of Heaven, a school of perfection.” It is a path to Heaven, but not yet realized. This reality relates to our own church, home, family, and even our local fraternity.  

            As history and the Scriptures, even the Saints quarreled in the midst of discord.   In the 16^th Century, Sts. Philip Neri and Charles Borromeo could not agree as to the Oratians in Milan, so one departed to Rome and the other stayed in Milan, both going their separate ways doing the work of God. 

            In the books of Acts, its author, St. Luke recalls the conflict between the apostles Paul and Barnabas, noting

And Barnabas wanted to take with them John called Mark. ³⁸ But Paul thought best not to take with them one who had withdrawn from them in Pamphylia, and had not gone with them to the work. ³⁹ And there arose a sharp contention, so that they separated from each other; Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus[.]  

(Acts of the Apostles 15-37-39).  Disagreements will arise in every area of human life, including the local lay chapter or fraternity. 

 How to handle conflict within a Chapter.  Matthew 18.

            It happens, where conflict between members of the Chapter will arise for a variety of reasons.  It may be personal, based on principle, or other motivations.  The first thing is to pray.  Fr. Garrigou-Lagrange tells us to look at our neighbor through the eyes of Faith; and to treat one another as if each is in a state of grace, saying,

This is charity, if we restrain our rash judgment, we will accustom ourselves to seeing our neighbor with the eyes of faith, with a pure eye which is the very eye of God, and we will see in our neighbor the temple of the Holy Spirit, or at least, the soul which he wants to approach and dwell in.

When it comes to others, we are called not to judge, more accurately not to condemn. Never presume evil of others without it first having been objectively proved. Nemo praesumatur malus, nisi probetur.  Even then if the truth be proved, be careful with your words for it is God’s part to judge others; for when in judging others you may bring condemnation on yourself. Romans 2:1. “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven[.]” Luke 6:37. “Those who guard their mouths preserve their lives; those who open wide their lips come to ruin.” Proverbs 13:3. It is necessarily admitted that our minds evaluate facts, circumstances, and the acts and fruit of other people; yet when we condemn it is more than simply discerning facts and circumstances; it is like a judge in a courtroom, declaring focused legal findings and conclusions as to the evil of another person, in your mind condemning them to an immutable denunciation, foreclosing mercy or grace. 

            Even in the midst of conflict, do not forget that, “all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.”   Romans 8:28. 

 In civil law, there is the “clean hands doctrine,” which upholds the principle that a party to a case, may be denied his petition to a court of equity on the ground that the party’s conduct has been unfair, dishonest, or fraudulent and deceitful in his conduct before the court. The legal doctrine recognizes the ancient Christian principle, “[d]raw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” James 4:8. In other words, if you want God the Father to listen to your prayers, first do not judge but put away your rash judgment, gossip and anger, go to confession, and purify your heart. Humility recognizes that no one is without sin.  

            Matthew 18.

The Holy Bible tells us how to approach those persons that we may disagree, where it says, “If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses.” Matthew 18:15-17. Where you have been offended by the words or conduct of another person, go and speak to that person, in truth, about your offense. Do so with affection and reverence, yet truthfully pointing out the offense, the harm, or the wrong that has occurred. That person may accept your words, or you both may learn the truth of what really happened, or true intentions and meanings of things. 

 St. Paul, in the Book of Ephesians speaks to us, when dealing with difficult people and difficult circumstances. As he says, 

with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.  

Ephesians 4:1-6  

As noted in Ephesians 4:25-26:  ^“So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another. Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger[.]”

And, in Ephesians 4:17-32, St. Paul states, 

Now this I affirm and insist on in the Lord: you must no longer live as the Gentiles live, in the futility of their minds.  They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of their ignorance and hardness of heart.  They have lost all sensitivity and have abandoned themselves to licentiousness, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.  That is not the way you learned Christ!  For surely you have heard about him and were taught in him, as truth is in Jesus.  You were taught to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to clothe yourselves with the new self, created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another.  Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, ²⁷ and do not make room for the devil.  Thieves must give up stealing; rather let them labor and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the needy.  Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear.  And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were marked with a seal for the day of redemption.  Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you. 

This is no pollyannish dictum that seeks positivity by denying the truth.  There are times and days in life when people disagree, and conflict abounds. There are times it becomes necessary to depart from one another, as we see in the Bible; yet one must struggle first to find the ground, if any, upon which discord can turn to agreement.  If that is not possible, then the Bible gives us a path to righteousness even amid disagreement.  In all things charity.  It is Fr. Garigou-LaGrange noted that the “infallible signs of progress in charity are the hatred of sin and the configuration to Christ by means of progress in all the virtues and gifts of the Holy Spirt.” 

Mr. John Keenan, OP, JD

President, Lay Provincial Council

The Most Holy Name of Jesus 

    Western Dominican Province

Revised April 24, 2025

The Church will celebrated the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ later this year; at which time we recall Our Lord’s words, “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him[.]”  (John 6:56). The Holy Scriptures say each person should be well disposed to received Holy Communion, having examined their respective conscience before receiving Communion. (1 Cor 11:27-28).  When received unworthily, as in a state of mortal sin, one places himself under judgment, which is a discipline in this life to avoid condemnation in eternity (1 Cor. 11:29-32).  

When a person receives Holy Communion unworthily yet whose deadly sins arise from public acts or statements that lead to scandal in the public domain—especially about the lives and innocence of children in the womb (Mark 9:42)—that person too is under Christ’s discipline of judgment that Scriptures note in Chapter 11 of First Corinthians.

What does this sober scriptural admonition tell us of the Holy Eucharist? That the Holy Eucharist is the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ, otherwise such discipline that St. Paul speaks of make no sense.  It tells us of the excellence of Christ, of His True Presence and the banquet of divine nourishment.  The Holy Eucharist is not the consumption of any earthly matter, but the food that leads to eternal life.  This nourishment purges our sins and immerses our souls in the love and virtue with every spiritual gift.  Behold, He remains with us to the end of time: in the tabernacle, in Adoration, and in the reception of the Holy Sacrament of the Altar.  This is not the food of the world with its charms that evade the truth, but the food of Heaven.

St. Thomas Aquinas reminds us that “the delicacy of this sacrament in which spiritual sweetness is tasted in its very source, in which is brought to mind the remembrance of that all-excelling charity which Christ showed in his Sacred Passion[.]”  

It is upon this Eucharistic mystery that the True Presence of Jesus Christ, is a memorial that reminds each person to live life in truth and experience Christ, now and at the time of our own death.  It is the proof that our destiny is Heaven as we are the sons and daughters of God the Father, which enables us to cry in prayer, “Abba, Father.” (Romans 8).  

The Holy Mass is truly a blessing, giving us a part in the day of the Lord’s visitation—our salvation—if each one of us but captures the opportunity and runs the race of salvation in this life, to win eternal life in the next. (Hebrews 12:1).

As lay Dominicans, in the light and tradition of our holy father, St. Dominic, we are called to pray for people in the public domain to live in an honest and consistent way in the Holy Eucharist.  We are also called to live on the road to Holiness; so, let’s join in the Eucharistic life with Jesus Christ, regularly attending Reconciliation, be present with Him at Adoration and when receiving Holy Communion, so as to live our life joyfully in Him, with Him, and through Him.

Mr. John C. Keenan, OP, president

Lay Provincial Council

The Most Holy Name of Jesus (Western Dominican) Province
 Friday, August 26, 2022

+MONDAY within the OCTAVE OF EASTER, APRIL 21, 2025

Dear Priors and Prioresses and LPC Representatives: Please forward this email to your Chapter members and Dominican friends.*  

“Alleluia, the Lord is risen as he promised, alleluia!”  

At 6:15 a.m. this morning, checking the DailyWire, rubbing my eyes I espied the headline, “Pope Francis is Dead at 88.” After all the Pope had been through the last three months, and his Easter appearance at St. Peter’s Square — then gone! God rest his soul! One can say much of the Holy Father, there is much good and one I recall with fond memory is his declaration of the extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy in 2015. Of his writings, one favorite is his most recent encyclical "“Delexit Nos” published on October 24, 2024. 

As Third Order Dominicans are called to pray for the Deceased of the Order of Preachers, as well as our families, friends, and others, really everyone that has gone before us in the friendship of Almighty God; how great is the call to pray for the repose of the soul of Pope Francis. 

Below are three things you and your Chapter can do, as encouraged by our provincial promoter, Fr. Augustine Hilander, O.P., to pray for Pope Francis and the repose of his soul: 

1. PRAY FOR THE REPOSE OF THE SOUL OF THE HOLY FATHER FRANCiS: 

Requiem aeternam dona ei, Domine.

Et lux perpetua luneta ei.

Rquiescat in pace. Amen. 

     Eternal rest grant unto him/her (them), O Lord. 

     And let perpetual light shine upon him/her (them). 

     May he/she (they) rest in peace. Amen. 

2. RECEIVED FROM FR. AUGUSTINE, PRAY ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING INDULGENCED PRAYERS: 

Byzantine Tradition  

Prayer for the Deceased 

God of the spirits and of all flesh, who have destroyed death and annihilated the devil and given life to your world, may you yourself, O Lord, grant to the soul of your deceased servant N. rest in a place of light, a verdant place, a place of freshness, from where suffering, pain, and cries are far removed. Do You, O good and compassionate God, forgive every fault committed by him in word, work, or thought; because there is no man who lives and does not sin. You alone are without sin and your justice is justice throughout the ages and your word is truth. Since you, O Christ our God, are the resurrection, the life and the repose of your deceased servant N., we give you glory together with your un-begotten Father with your most holy, good, and vivifying Spirit, now and always and for ever and ever.

Syro - Antiochian Tradition

Intercession for the Deceased from Liturgy of St. James 

Lord, O Lord, God of the pure spirits and of every flesh, be mindful of us all, of those we have remembered and of all we have not remembered and who have left this world with glorious faith. Give repose to their souls, to their bodies, to their spirits. Save them from future damnation and make them worthy of the joy, which is in the bosom of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, where the light of your countenance shines, where pain, anguish, and cries are banished. Do not impute to them any fault; do not enter into judgment with your servants, because no living being is justified in your sight and because no man on earth is immune from sin and pure of every filth except for our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, through whom we, too, hope to obtain mercy and the pardon of our sins and of those of our deceased. Give rest to their souls; cancel our faults and their faults committed before you willingly or unwillingly, consciously or unconsciously. Grant them rest. Forgive, O God, and pardon the voluntary and involuntary sins committed consciously or unconsciously by word, work or omissions, by secret thoughts, or publicly, deliberately or through error and which your holy Name knows. Grant us a Christian ending without sin and unite us at the feet of your elect when you will, where you will and how you will, without us having to blush for our sins because in this as in all things your holy and blessed Name, the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ and of the Holy Spirit, be praised and glorified now and for all ages. Amen.

Maronite Tradition

A Prayer for the Church 

Glory to your mercies, O Christ our King, Son of God, adored by the universe. You are our Lord and our God, the guide of our life and our blessed hope. You founded on earth a holy Church, in the image of the one above; According to this image you formed it; with love you made her your spouse; in your mercy you have exalted her; through your suffering you brought her to perfection. May her loving beauty not be obscured; may her great richness not be impoverished. Remember the promise made to Peter and fulfill your words in reality. Fortify her gates, secure her locks, exalt her dignity, raise her ramparts; bless her children, protect her faithful; confirm her priests and overcome all those who hate her

3. PRAY THE OFFICE OF THE DEAD, AT THE SAME TIME, INDIVIDUALLY OR AS A CHAPTER, AT THE SAME TIME OR AFTER THE HOLY MASS HELD BY YOUR PARISH CHURCH, HELD FOR THE PURPOSE OF PRAYING FOR THE REPOSE OF THE SOUL OF HOLY FATHER FRANCIS. Some parishes will hold such a Holy Mass this week or next. 

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And, while prayer for Holy Father Francis; during the interregnum, please pray that the Holy Spirit will inspire the election of the next Holy Father. Here is a suggested prayer:

Prayer for the Election of a Holy Pope

In the Month of Mary and Under Her Immaculate Mantle

O Most Holy Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—

we adore You, we praise You, and we thank You

for the abiding care You show for Your Church

through the gift of the papacy.

As the Church prepares to elect a new Supreme Pontiff, we entrust this sacred moment to Your divine providence.

Grant us the miracle of the conclave:

stir the hearts of the Cardinal Electors with the fire of a new Pentecost.

Let the Holy Spirit descend upon them with tongues of flame, that they may discern and choose a shepherd after Your own Heart—the one You have already chosen.

O Mary, Mother of the Church and Queen of the Apostles, in this month of May, so tenderly dedicated to your honor, we turn to you with filial confidence.

You appeared at Fatima to three humble shepherds, warning of the trials to come upon the Church, but also assuring us of your promised triumph.

You called us to prayer, penance, and sacrifice—

and you promised that in the end, your Immaculate Heart would triumph.

Watch now over the cardinals, as once you watched over the Apostles in the Cenacle.

Intercede, dearest Mother, for the restoration of sound doctrine, that truth may be proclaimed with clarity and courage. Implore the renewal of Christian morals, that purity, integrity, and charity may be reborn in every soul.

Beg your Son for the restoration of the sacred liturgy, that it may once again form saints and sanctify the world.

Gather your children into one fold under one shepherd.

Heal wounds, dispel confusion, and restore unity in Christ.

å
Through the heart of the Holy Father yet to come, let the dawn of your long-promised triumph begin.

O Virgin Most Powerful,

we await with hope the new Vicar of Christ.

Clothe him with holiness, humility, and apostolic courage.

May he be a father to the poor, a voice for the faithful,

a guardian of the sacred, and a light in the darkness.

Come, Holy Spirit—

come through the Immaculate Heart of Mary,

and renew the face of the Church.

Amen. - Composed by Father Jay Finelli 

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In closing, let’s pray for Pope Francis, that the college of Cardinal be granted the inspiration of the HOLY SPIRIT in the election of the next Holy Father, for the next generation!

Have a blessed Eastertide! In peace and faith, 

John

Mr. John Keenan, O.P.

President

Lay Provincial Council

Holy Name of Jesus Western Dominican Province

*UPDATES: If your Chapter has held an election, or has changed officers due to other reasons, please update the Executive Council, by sending an email, with the name, office, and contact information of new officer, to; 

Fr. Augustine Hilander, O.P., at [email protected]; Alejandra Barajas at [email protected]; and John Keenan at [email protected]. Updates help everyone to stay in touch.