Category: October

Aaron Renninger is a 78 -year -old veteran who served his country in the Army, as well as the Marines. He grew up in the Fountain Hill section of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and decided to quit school and enlist in the Marines.  Times were tough for his family and Aaron thought that by enlisting, there would be one less mouth to feed!  So in December, 1962 at the age of 17, Aaron arrived at Parris Island, South Carolina, where he remained for three months. For the next few years, he was stationed at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. In 1963 he was deployed to Cuba, where his first assignment was performing guard duty at the border.

Next, eschewing a luxurious Mediterranean cruise, Aaron took a few NATO cruises to France and England. While onboard as a pasttime, Aaron lifted weights, bench pressing 460 pounds and having a dead lift of 675 pounds! Upon his return,  his next orders sent him to Okinawa for one year, where he was attached to  Supply Unit E5. Later, Aaron requested to go to Vietnam, and while in Da Nang, he was assigned to a trucking company.  Because of his superb physical fitness, the colonel asked him to form a 16 -man team to escort convoys. During that time, split decisions had to be made that sometimes led to heartache. All three of Aaron’s brothers were stationed in Vietnam at the same time and, fortunately, they all returned home safely.

After his discharge,Aaron found a job working with his uncle installing insulation in the Martin Towers in Bethlehem. Then for six months, Aaron got a job at a dairy farm in Hecktown that was rent-free. For the next two years he traveled to cities installing phone equipment into Verizon buildings. Then, due to  family issues, he quit this job to be with his wife.

Later, Aaron joined the Army reserve unit and was transferred to Germany, where he worked as an in-service recruiter.  Then he was transferred to Italy, traveling from there to Greece and Turkey to continue his assignment.

 When  he returned to the States, Aaron was stationed in Alabama.  He retired as a Master Sergeant in 1992, having served 17 years as an Army recruiter, and 7-8 years in the Marines.

Aaron  resides in Lehighton, Pennsylvania, with his wife of 60 years. They have three children, six grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren.

Some of Aaron’s awards are:

Combat Service Medal (Vietnam)

Combat Action Medal (Vietnam)

Good Conduct (Marine Corps)

Presidential Unit Citation

Expert Rifle (Marine Corps)

Expert Pistol (Marine Corps)

My brothers and sisters in Christ, in today’s Gospel we hear about Jesus performing a miracle with a deaf man. We don’t know much about this deaf man  whom Jesus cured. We do know that his infirmity had placed him in a position of isolation. Not only was he cut off from the sounds of the world and the voices of his fellow men, but he was also unable to communicate with them. To this victim’s infirmities Jesus declares, “Ephphata!” which means “Be opened!” And, as stated in Mark 7:34, “At once the man’s ears were opened; he was freed from the impediment and began to speak plainly.”

Jesus  says, “You have the commandment, You shall love your countryman but hate your enemy. My command to you is, Love your enemies, pray for your persecutors.”

We hear the words, but are we listening?

Jesus says, “You have heard the commandment, An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. But what I say to you is, offer no resistance to injury. When a person strikes you on the right cheek, turn and offer him the other.”

We hear the words, but are we listening?

“Love one another as I have loved you.” “If a man wished to come after Me, he must deny his very self, take up his cross, and begin to follow in My footsteps.” “The last shall be first and the first shall be last.”

 We hear all these words, but are we listening?

Our ears may be wide open to hear God’s Word, but unless our hearts are open to receive the message and act upon it, we are not listening: we are deaf spiritually. In today’s Gospel story, Jesus cured the man’s deafness and speech impediment. So it is with our spiritual deafness, but when we become true listeners of God, we also become doers of the Word of God.

“And in the naked light I saw ten thousand people, maybe more. People talking without speaking, people hearing without listening.” These words come from Sounds of Silence, my favorite song by Simon and Garfunkel. They truly truly reflect what Jesus is telling us in today’s Gospel: people’s failure to communicate honestly with one another, people’s failure to hear without truly listening to the needs of our fellow man.

Listen to Jesus’ words! But, be prepared. The more you listen to Jesus, the closer you get to Him. The more you listen to Jesus, the closer you will get to one another. And that, my brothers and sisters in Christ, that is the real miracle!