Guest Posted September 17, 2008 Share Posted September 17, 2008 ((Westminster Cathedral, Holodeck 1, USS Ronin))::The Cathedral was full, but every person in it was frozen. Jack had been there for several minutes, just staring at the tabernacle from the back. He could barely see it, but couldn't stop thinking about what it was inside of it. His God fully present in what looked like little wafers of bread, offering himself as a living sacrifice to His people. It was a hard concept to really internalize, but each time he received it, especially since joining Starfleet when it'd become harder to get to attend mass regularly, it became more meaningful to him. He might've pried himself away from the back and begun the simulation, but he was waiting for Lt. Rogers to join him. After what had happened, both men had decided they needed to relive the mass they'd gone to at Westminster after the Captain, their true Captain, Idril Mar, had fallen ill.::::Entering the holo Cathedral, Will blessed himself with the holy water. He felt an affinity for the older forms of worship. Tracing a small cross with his thumb over his forehead, lips, and breast, he whispered the appropriate prayer.::Rogers: May Christ's words be in my mind, on my lips, and in my heart.::Spotting Jack siting at the back Will slid into the pew beside his friend. It was strange but after attending Mass in the real Westminster Cathedral Will couldn't help but think of him as a friend. Jack was still as irritating as all get out at times. However it was something that Will was beginning to accept as part of the interaction of their personalities. Will's mother had certainly been happy to hear he had started attending Mass again and seemed to give Jack the credit.::Rogers: Sorry I'm late, some last minute paperwork.::Jack simply smiled softly, tiredly, and addressed the computer.::Kolk: Begin simulation.::As the crowds returned to life and settled into their pews, the Priest and his presiding deacons processed down the aisle to toward the altar, a large crucifix being lifted in front of the procession by a pair of young boys in white robes. Once there, the priest addressed the pilgrim congregation. ::Priest: Each time I say mass, I like to begin by reminding those in my parish and especially those who are visiting for elsewhere in the galaxy, that it is not I nor my fellow priests who call you to this assembly. It is God. Since the beginning when the Devil caused sin to enter into the universe, destroying the unity of God's creation, God has responded, not by destroying us for our disobedience, but by giving us the means to restore that unity and to share in the inner life of the Trinity as He meant us to when He formed us out of the clay. Welcome. To a piece of heaven.::He paused, and then began the mass.::Priest: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.::Everyone, including the two Lts, crossed them selves and joined him in saying...All: Amen.::Always one to delve into the meanings of things, Will pondered the meaning to himself. The five open fingers representing The Five Wounds of Christ. He also rather liked the interpretation that the recently appointed Andorian Cardinal had expressed. The vertical representing the union of the spiritual realm and the physical plane and the horizontal all the races in the universe. Not exactly main stream Church Canon perhaps but it would certainly be interesting if the next Pope was a non-human. Will pulled his attention back to the Mass.::Priest: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.All: And also with you.::As the mass went on and the liturgy unfolded, the great conversation between God and His people was once again rehearsed. God called the people to Himself, the people recognized their need for forgiveness and asked for His mercy. God forgave them and they praised and thanked Him, then His Words was read and His message for them was explained by the Priest.::riest: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.All: And also with you.::The metaphysical arguments over whether they were actually really receiving the Mass via a holo deck aside, Will thought that this next part was very cool. By uploading the holo recordings of the actual Mass they could actually choose the most appropriate Homily or let the programme decide for itself.::Priest: Brothers and Sisters in Christ, In the Sacrifice of the Mass we meet Christ Jesus in the fullest way possible in this life, really, truly and substantially in His Body and Blood, which we also call the Eucharist, from the Ancient Greek word for "thanksgiving". In today's Gospel according to St. Matthew, chapter fourteen, verses thirteen to twenty-one, our Lord gives a great sign of the gift of the Eucharist in the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and the fishes. As some teach erroneously today, this is not a "miracle of human generosity", it is a miracle plain and simple. Our Divine Lord, according to His Divine power, takes five loaves and two fish and multiplies them to feed more than ten thousand people. Our Lord is moved with pity for us, as He was for the crowd. He cures our sickness as he did for them. But the first priority in the kingdom of God is the curing of those illnesses which exclude us from the happiness of eternal life and destroy the unity of heart and spirit that God calls us to even in this life.::It seemed that the computer (or Jack?) had picked a Homily relating to receiving Mass and their concerns over Captain Mar's condition.::Priest: It is our sins, and our sins alone, that will keep us from forever enjoying God's love. And without His love and grace, we often find ourselves turning to selfishness and hurting those around us. That is the reason for the gift of the Sacrament of Reconciliation (also called Confession) and Christ's Body and Blood. We do suffer greatly from our ailments of body and mind, but if we let Christ cleanse us and guide us into new life, we will never succumb to the mistake, as so many do, of being concerned first with our physical well-being. Our spiritual good comes first, because our eternal well-being is our greatest treasure, as we learned from the parables of the kingdom last Sunday. This miracle shows that God's grace is poured forth for all. "The miracles of the multiplication of the loaves, when the Lord says the blessing, breaks and distributes the loaves through His disciples to feed the multitude, prefigure the superabundance of this unique bread of His Eucharist." As we read, "All those present ate their fill. The fragments which remained ...filled twelve baskets." We must eat our "fill" of the Eucharist, each Sunday and in weekday Mass when we are able, that the superabundance of God's life and love will be ours. He longs to give us that gift, for He knows how stressful and tiring our lives can be, and how much the Evil One desires to tear us away from Him and bury us in despair and self loathing. But if we let Him fill us with Himself and the grace that that union brings as often as we have the opportunity, He will always give us the strength to persevere despite all opposition. And, though we may fail time and time again, He always waits patiently in the confessional to pick us up off the ground and wash us clean.::It was so easy to think that the incredible Medicine of the 24th Century was going to fix up the Captain. But what if that wasn't what was intended for her? What if she wasn't going to come back to them? It was a very uncomfortable thought. Intellectually Will understood the Homily. But accepting that physical healing was not always God's plan was something that was not easy to do.::...=====Lieutenant Jackford B. Kolk Lieutenant William RogersChief of Flight Operations & Chief of Security USS Ronin - NCC-34534 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salak Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 (edited) My one main question... Ronin registry? NCC-34523 last I checked.Good sim though. Edited September 23, 2008 by Salak Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Picky, picky, picky... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James T. Kolk Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 It's the last thing I type. Who looks at the last thing they type? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 24, 2008 Share Posted September 24, 2008 I bet Salak just skipped to the end... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salak Posted September 24, 2008 Share Posted September 24, 2008 (edited) I look at all of it... perfectionist, remember? Though not gonna compare it to a real mass, given how long they get. Lost count how many times I've fallen asleep in church. Edited September 24, 2008 by Salak Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James T. Kolk Posted September 24, 2008 Share Posted September 24, 2008 I summarized for a reason... well, a couple, really, but yeah. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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