Taking All of our Concerns to the Lord

In today's responsorial psalm, David says to God: "You are my God. In your hands is my destiny; rescue me from the clutches of my enemies and my persecutors."  That is Jeremiah's plea, also, as he realizes that the people are out to kill him. He goes to the Lord in his distress and says to Him: "Heed me, O Lord, and listen to what my adversaries say. Must good be repaid with evil that they should dig a pit to rake my life? Remember that I stood before you to speak in their behalf, to turn away your wrath from them."

Jeremiah and David both have developed a very close relationship with the Lord. They are not hesitant to pour our their souls to the Lord. They are honest with the Lord and speak to Him as to a best friend!  God has, in fact, become their best friend. May you and I, likewise, take all of our sorrows, our joys, our concerns, anxieties, worries to the Lord, trusting that God will act on our behalf, as we act on God's behalf and the behalf of others!

In the Gospels we, also, see how real the apostles are with Jesus. They keep no secrets from the Lord, even begging for privileged positions in Jesus' kingdom.  James and John go to Jesus, to God, as a child goes to his/her father, asking for whatever they desire. Of course, as with James and John and their mother, they are not exactly seeking what Jesus can give them. Neither do we, at times, realize that our motivations need to be purified.  On this journey, like Jesus, we will "drink the chalice" of suffering. James and John both suffered for the Lord's sake. James, in fact shed his blood for the faith! John was exiled because of his preaching about Jesus!  What we do know that as we go through this valley of tears God is at our side, His hand in our hand, guiding us, strengthening us, encouraging us and, when necessary, carrying us through the "turbulent" waters of life.

Heeding God's Prophets of Old and of Today

In today's first reading, Isaiah 1: 10, 16-20, the prophet is speaking to the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, begging them to "cease doing evil; learn to do good. Make justice your aim," Isaiah says to them: "redress the wronged, hear the orphan's plea, defend the widow. Come now, let us set things right, says the Lord.  Though your sins be like scarlet, they may become white as snow; though they be crimson red, they may become white as wool."

Those same words are addressed to us, the citizens of today's world: Cease doing the evil of human trafficking. Make justice toward the poor and the oppressed our aim.  Hear the plea of orphans, refugees, and undocumented immigrants brought here to the United States as children. Defend our children. Listen to the outcry of our young people for reasonable laws that ban the use of automatic weapons.  Isaiah invites us to "set things right" with one another and with our God!  Now is the time to turn from evil and do good as individuals, as a nation, as a people whom God is waiting to save for all eternity. Will we heed God's voice expressed above?  Isaiah issues the following warning to the people of Sodom and Gomorrah: "If you refuse and resist,  the sword will consume you: for the mouth of the Lord has spoken."

In today's responsorial psalm God poses the following questions: Why do you recite my statutes, and profess my covenant with your mouth, though you hate discipline and cast my words behind you? When you do these things, shall I be deaf to it? Or do you think that I am like yourself? I will correct you by drawing them up[the sacrifice of goats] before my eyes. He [She] that offers praise as a sacrifice glorifies me; and to  him [or her] that goes the right way I will show the salvation of God."

Help us, Lord, heed the voice of the prophets of old and of our day, as well, lest we, too, perish by the sword, by famine and war, by the onslaught of natural disasters!

A Great and Awesome God

Today's first reading, Daniel 9: 4b-10, begins as follows: "Lord, great and awesome God, you who keep your merciful covenant toward those who love you and observe your commandments! We have sinned, been wicked and done evil; we have rebelled and departed from your commandments and your laws."

God is addressed by Daniel, by you and me and all humankind as "great and awesome!"   We sinners are talking to an "awesome and great God!" All of us, like Daniel, have sinned before God. Our ancestors have sinned! Every nation has sinned, has worshipped idols, has sought strength and comfort, not from God, but from material things, earthly things. We have lorded ourselves over others.  We have, as a nation, as individuals, as a church, as a society, as a nationality, resorted to violence even to the point of war, flexing our muscles. We have alienated ourselves from God and one another.  We have engaged in manslaughter, in various forms of violence, in prejudice, and unjust behaviors. We have been merciless, arrogant, greedy, pride-filled and haughty. We have judged others, condemned them, and on and on and on! And, with Daniel, we say: "Lord, great and awesome God,  you who keep your merciful covenant toward those who love you and observe your commandments! We have sinned, been wicked and done evil; we have rebelled and departed from your commandments and your laws."

In today's responsorial psalm, we pray: Lord, do not deal with us according to our sins. Remember not against us the iniquities of the past; may your compassion quickly come to us, for we are brought very low.  Help us, O God, our savior, because of the glory of your name; deliver us and pardon our sins for your name sake....[W]ith your great power free those doomed to death." And God does and wills it!

What a great and awesome God, a God of love, a God of compassion, a God of mercy.  We are asked to be merciful, compassionate, merciful and love as is our God!

Faith, Trust,Obedience

Today's first wading, Gen. 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18, we are told the story God testing his servant Abraham.  He asks him to take his only begotten son to the land of Moriah and there "offer him up as a holocaust o a height that I will point out to you.  My initial reaction is one of horror!  Then I read on to realize that God was only testing his servant.  After Abraham had prepared the altar, bound his son, and was about to slaughter him, God intervenes, calling out: "'Abraham, Abraham!....Do not lay your hand on the boy...Do not do the least thing to him. I know now how devoted you are to God, since you did not withhold from me your own beloved son.' As Abraham looked about , he spied a ram caught by its horns in the thicket. So he went and took the ram and offered it up as a holocaust in place of his son.....[B]ecause you acted as you did in not withholding from me your beloved son, I will bless you abundantly ad make your descendants as countless as the stars of the sky and the sands of the seashore; your descendants shall take possession of the gates of their enemies, and in your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing--all this because you obeyed my command."

Wow! What faith! What trust! What obedience!  You provided the ram for the holocaust! No way did you intend Abraham to kill his only begotten son!  But it seemed like it at first! I was appalled, Lord! Appalled! "How could you?" I asked myself!  And you really didn't! How truly you can say to a me: "My thoughts are not your thoughts nor are my ways your ways."

How many times when things get tough do I not lose faith and trust and, yes, obedience! How often do I not abandon going to the "Moriahs" that God asks me to go to, testing my faith, my trust, my obedience!  And how often I fail the test! I forget at those times who God really is--a God filled with compassion, love, mercy, a God who has got my back! He had a plan for a holocaust that would save me forever: His only begotten Son death and resurrection. As Jesus climbed the hill to Calvary carrying the wood, as Isaac carried the wood up the hill in the land of Moriah,  He was the lamb to be sacrificed. There was no other!  It was Jesus' obedience unto death, Jesus' trust in the Father unto death and into the resurrection, Jesus' love even through death that restores my obedience, my trust, my love of God. In Jesus' death, I, too, die; in His resurrection, I, too, rise to new life!

God's Unsurpassable Lovde

In Sarah Young's meditation in Jesus Calling for Feb. 24, Jesus says to us: "Be still in the light of My Presence, while I communicate Love to you."  In the liturgy that I attended today, the homilist emphasized God's love for each one of us.  The thought that keeps running through my mind is: "Even if you were the only person, Dorothy Ann, I would have died on that cross on Calvary just for you. I would have given my life only for you. My love for you is that profound, that deep, that wide, that high.  No lengths of expressing my love for you is too much for me. As you ponder the cross, remember that I am loving you beyond measure and always will!"

God is saying the same thing to you, as you read this!  Bask in God's love in the silence of your room, in the silence of a church, in the silence of nature!

Trusting and Loving God to Dying for God's Sake

In today's responsorial psalm, Psalm 130, we pray:  I trust in the Lord; my soul trusts in his word." For me, trust and love are synonymous!  If I trust God, I love God. And if I love God, I trust God.

For me, Jesus, the new Adam,  models trust in God.  He said "yes" to God to the point of death on the cross.  The first Adam, on the other hand, says "no" to God, believing that in saying "no" to God  true freedom would be found. The opposite is true, and Jesus models that opposite, namely, that in saying "yes" to God we find freedom. It is in losing one's live that one saves it, Jesus teaches us, and in saving one's life that we lose it.  He also  teaches that the grain of wheat must die to bear fruit.  Every day we have opportunities to die to self, to lose ourselves,  to bury the "grain of wheat," for the sake of the other, giving our all for the sake of the common good, as Jesus gave His all on the cross and rose to new life, to wholeness, to ultimate freedom.

Am I willing to say "yes," that is, to die to self, as often as necessary each day and thus rise to new life, to a new sense of freedom?  Or am I a person who sets out each day to say "no," believing as Adam and Eve did, that by saying "no" I am free? Jesus said "yes" to dying on the cross and in that dying rose to new life, to new freedom, and showed us the depth,  the height, the width, and length of God's love. To what lengths, depths, heights, widths will I go to love as God loves?  Am I coming to realize that it is by saying "yes" to "losing one's life" that one "saves it" and that, yes, the grain of wheat needs to die to bear fruit that will last, a fruit that includes authentic freedom and a rising?

Living in God

In reflecting upon Sarah Young's meditation for Feb. 20 in Jesus Calling, in which she writes as though Jesus Himself were speaking directly to us and I believe that He is. God says to us in this meditation: "I reside in the deepest depths of your being, in eternal union with your spirit....I am Christ in you, the hope of Glory."  I am reminded of what the author of Acts  17: 28 says to us: ...in God we live and and move and have our being."  Years ago I was given a pencil with a fish wired to the top of it.  I was told that the meaning of this is that we live in God as fish live in water. A fish in water? It is totally dependent upon its being in the water. Apart from water, a fish dies! Its life is then over here on earth! In applying this idea to us as living in God, we, too, apart from God are nothing. Everything we are is of and in God: without being in God, we do not exist anymore than a fish out of water!

God is our sustenance! God is our life! God is our hope. Our potential to live and generate life, to expand our existence by creating new life is in God!  We can expand our life by developing our talents, fine-tuning our talents, sharing our talents--human connectedness is essential to this process.  We also expand our life by expanding and entering more deeply into relationships. Without our connectedness to others (and to God, of course) we also die, shrivel up developmentally. An infant deprived of the tender loving touch of a human being is negatively effected and, yes, will die without human intervention and loving care!

O, the wisdom of our God, in whom we live and move and have our being!  God, I believe,  is Power and Glory and positive, creative Energy, which is shared with us.

The "Sheep"/"Goat" Population

In today's Gospel, Matthew 25, 31-46, Jesus tells us that, "when the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him."  Some of us will be "sheep" and some "goats."  The "sheep" and the "goats" will be separated--the "sheep" on the Lord's right and the "goats" on His left.  The "sheep" will have inherited "the kingdom," for, as Jesus says to them:  "For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothes me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me." To the "goats" on His left, He will say: "Depart from me...into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and is angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, stranger and you gave me no welcome, naked and you gave me no clothing, ill and in prison, and you did not care for me."

In the first reading, Leviticus 19: 1-2, the Lord says to Moses: "Speak to the whole assembly of the children of Israel and tell them: Be holy, for I, the Lord, your God, am holy."  The Lord then spells out what it means to be holy.  In the Gospel, Jesus also spells out what it means to "[b]e holy," as the Lord God is holy.

To whom did I/you give food today? Whom did we nourish and/or nurture by our words or actions?
Whom did we clothe with words of love, understanding, patience, kindness? Or whom did we  actually physically clothe? Were we a welcoming, caring presence to anyone imprisoned in despair, fear, grief or other difficult emotions?  Was I, were you a "sheep" or a "goat" today?

A Covenant from God, our Creator, our Savior, our Sanctifier

In today's first reading, Gen. 9: 8-15, God tells Noah that he is establishing his covenant with humankind. The sign of that covenant--never to again destroy the earth and all that is in it by a flood--is the rainbow.  In the New Testament, the sign of God's covenant is Jesus dying on the cross once and for all: "the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous, that he might lead [us] to God," St. Peter  says to us in the second reading of today's liturgy (1 Peter 3: 18-22).  "Put to death in the flesh," Peter goes on to remind us, "he was brought to life in the spirit. In it he also went to preach to the spirits in prison, who had once been disobedient while God patiently waited in the days of Noah during the building of the ark, in which a few persons, eight in all, were saved through water."In Christ Jesus all are saved.

Jesus took on sin, nailed it to the cross--all sin--so that, through Christ Jesus we may know our holiness in God! When God looks at us He sees the righteous persons we are in Christ Jesus.  He delights in us, as He knows us in Christ Jesus, His Son, who redeemed us in His blood!  Do I know myself--do you know yourself--in that way?  Are we so focused on sin and weakness that we forget who we truly are in Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior?  Or do we see both our holiness in Christ Jesus and our sinfulness apart from God?   Do we seek God above all?  Do we cling to God, the
Rock of our salvation?

Heeding the Voice of our God

In today's first reading, Isaiah 58: 9b-14, the Lord says to us through the prophet Isaiah:  "If you remove from your midst oppression, false accusation and malicious speech; if you bestow your bread on the hungry and satisfy the afflicted; then light shall rise for you in the darkness and the gloom shall become for  you like midday; then the Lord will guide you always and give you plenty even on the parched land. He will renew your strength, and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring whose water never fails...."  In the responsorial psalm we acknowledge our human situation, saying to the Lord: "I am afflicted and poor....Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I call upon you all the day....[Y]ou are good and forgiving, abounding in kindness to all who call upon you...[A]ttend to the sound of my pleading" for all enslaved by sin, selfishness, greed, lust, leveling false accusations at others, engaging in malicious speech, and oppressing the poor and needy of this land --all who are enslaved in Satan's lies, who have fallen into his traps!

In the Gospel Acclamation, God says to us through the prophet Ezekiel, "I take  no pleasure in the death of the wicked,...but rather in his [her] conversion, that he [she] may live!"  May each of us be open to being converted by God's grace to abandon evil and do good and to know when we are being deceived by Satan and embrace the truth.

The Fasting Willed by God

In today's first reading, Dt. 58: 1-9a, the Lord says to us: Lo, on your fast day you carry out your own pursuits and drive all your laborers. Yes, your fast ends in quarreling and fighting, striking with wicked claw....[T]he fasting that I wish [is]: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke; sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed and the homeless; clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own....

The Lord, I believe, is speaking directly to the U.S. and other nations that are quarreling and fighting about passing legislature that will "release those bound unjustly, untie the thongs of the the yoke; set free the oppressed, break every yoke; share...bread with the hunger, shelter the oppressed and the homeless; clothe the name...and not turn your back on your own."  Our government, I believe, is carrying out its own pursuits by oppressing undocumented immigrants brought here to the States as children. They "strike with wicked claw," I believe, by stealing money from the poor to line the pockets of the rich and then lying about the tax reform bill and the health care benefits they promise.

God sees through the lies, the corruption, the crookedness!  God reads hearts! God also sees the tears of the afflicted, the neglected, the sick and needy ones of our nation--those tears and cries of anguish pass judgment on those engaged in wickedness and who "turn their backs on their own."

With the psalmist of today's responsorial psalm, I pray:  Have mercy on me [and on the government of the U.S.];  O God in your goodness; in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense [and that of our government officials and all U.S. citizens].  Thoroughly wash me clean from my guilt and of  my sins cleanse me [also, Lord, thoroughly wash the U.S., its politicians and all U.S. citizens clean of their guilt and of their sins cleanse them. Turn their hearts away from evil toward good. May they repent and do good!]

Choose Life

In today's first reading, Dt. 30:15-20, we are told that God has set before us life and death. "Choose life,...that you and your descendants may live, by loving the Lord, our God, heeding his voice, and holding fast to him."  Yesterday a young man chose death by killing 17 young men and women. This young man is allegedly mentally ill.  He was allowed to legally purchase an automatic weapon and was determined, according to a face book message, to become a professional school shooter.  Why, I ask, are automatic weapons sold to anyone and are we not choosing death by allowing such purchases to occur?  Automatic weapons certainly are not used to kill deer or other animals sought for food!  They are used to kill people! I ask myself the following questions: So what goes here? Is it that producing and selling weapons of mass destruction puts millions of dollars in the pockets of the rich? Is it that allowing every human being to possess a gun, for any reason,  also creates millions of dollars of profits in corporations that produce these weapons? Is it that gun lobbyists promise millions to politicians who, in turn, refuse to pass gun legislation lest substantial donations diminish? I also wonder whether we are refusing to learn from, and listen to, other countries where only those in law enforcement, those in the military and those hunting game for food possess guns and where there is nothing of the violence we see in our country?  I ask: is it that citizens in those countries are a priority, not making millions and making the rich richer at the expense of the poor and at the expense of victims of gun violence,  both those who lose their lives and families and friends who mourn these losses?

In today's first reading, Dt. 30: 15-20, Moses says to us:  "Today I  have set before you life and prosperity, death and doom. If you obey the commandments of the Lord,  your God, which I enjoy on you today, loving him [by loving and protecting others], and walking in his ways, and keeping his commandments, statues and decrees [do not kill and, I would say, do not promote killing],...the Lord, your God will bless you...If, however, you turn away your hearts [from what is right] and will not listen, but are led astray and adore and serve other gods [greed, consumerism, materialism, gluttony, lust, wealth accumulated illegally, through deceit and corrupt choices, and at the expense of the poor, etc.], I tell you now that you will certainly perish...."

Is the United States on the path of destruction, courting death and doom, promoting death, intentionally or unintentionally? Am I, or you, on a path that depletes life by our disobedience, our refusal to follow the voice of good spirits prompting us to do God's holy will,  to love as God loves, to be compassionate as God is compassionate? Are we on a path that shows a lack of concern for the rights of all people, all races, all genders, all nationalities, the rich and the poor, immigrants and non-immigrants, the young and the old? Am I, are you, living lives of rebellion against what we know puts us in right relationship with God, with self and others?

"Chose life...by loving the Lord, your God, heeding his voice, and holding fast to him" (Dt. 30:19).)

Turn to the Lord with our Whole Hearts

In today's first reading, Joel 2: 12-18, the Lord says to us through the prophet: "return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, and weeping and mourning; rend your hearts," the Lord says, "not your garments, and return to the Lord, your God. For gracious and merciful is he, slow to anger, rich in kindness, and relenting in punishment....Blow the trumpet in Zion! Proclaim a fast, call an assembly; gather the people, notify the congregation; assemble the elders, gather the children and the infants at the breast....And say, 'Spare, O Lord, your people, and make not your heritage a reproach....'  Why should they say among the peoples, 'Where is their God?"

Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. This Lent, may we as a nation return to the Lord with our whole hearts. Let us acknowledge our sins before God. "Perhaps he will again relent and leave behind him a blessing." No doubt, in my mind, peoples throughout the world are saying of the U.S.: "Where is their God?" as they witness greed, avarice, narcissism, pride and arrogance, deceit and corruption, violence and hatred erode the values upon which this great nation was built by our forefathers and foremothers.

"Be merciful, O Lord," for we have sinned," we pray in today's responsorial psalm, Psalm 51.

May you and I personally return to the Lord, asking mercy for the ways in which we have succumbed to the sins of hatred, greed, narcissism, pride, lust, avarice, gluttony, selfishness, deceit and/or any others ways in which we are not in right relationship with God, self and others.  During this Lenten season, let us heed the Scriptures above and remember what St. Paul says to us in today's second reading, 2 Cor 5: 20-6:2:  "We are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us."
St. Paul asks us to "be reconciled to God" and reminds us that God the Father "made [Jesus, His Son] to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him."

Through Christ Jesus, you and I are "the righteousness of God."  Do our behaviors and attitudes, our interactions with others, reveal this truth?

God, our Protector, our Rock of Salvation

In today's first reading, James 1: 12-18, St.James clearly informs us that God does not lead us into temptation. Our desires do. "Each person is tempted when lured and enticed by his desire. Then desire conceives and brings forth sin, and when sin reaches maturity it gives birth to death."  That is why in today's Entrance Antiphon we pray:  "Be my protector, O God, a mighty stronghold to save me.  For you are my rock, my stronghold!  Lead me, guide me, for the sake of your name. (Cf. Ps. 31 (30): 3-4). In the responsorial psalm of today's liturgy, Psalm 94, we proclaim "blessed" the person whom God instructs: "Blessed the man [woman] whom you instruct, O Lord, whom by your law you teach, giving him [her] rest from evil days.  For the Lord will not cast off his people, nor abandon his inheritance; but judgment shall again be with justice and all the  upright of heart shall follow it. When I say, 'My foot is slipping,' your mercy O Lord, sustains me; when cares abound with  me, your comfort gladdens my soul."

O, the greatness, the love, the care, the compassion of our God!  God be praised, thanked, glorified, honored and worshipped by you and me every day of our lives.

Faith and Love

In today's first reading,  James 1: 1-11, St. James reminds us that God gives "generously and ungrudgingly."   Therefore, James says to us, "if you lack wisdom, ...ask [and it] will be given [to  you]...[A]sk in faith, not doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed about by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord, since he is a [person] of two minds, unstable in all  his ways."

Am I a unstable person, a person "of two minds," one moment believing and the next moment doubting?  Or am I strongly rooted in Christ Jesus, my God and Savior? Knowing who Jesus is, I will stand firm in my faith!

In today's Gospel, Jesus is upset with the Pharisees who begin an argument with Him and want a sign from heaven to test him. "Why," Jesus asks, "does this generation seek a sign?"  Imagine the frustration Jesus is experiencing!  Why a sign? Perhaps we will understand this passage better by likening it to a family situation.  Imagine a family member--spouses and/or children--constantly demanding a sign of love. No matter what the other does or does not do, the demands keep coming! Such demands, such doubts in each other and in God can destroy faith and poison marriage and family relationships!  On the other hand, if I am working at deepening my love for God, others and self--if I am doing all that it takes to deepen love for others, God, and self-- then  I do not need a sign! And for sure, I do not need to test others by arguing with them about who they are, from whence they have come and whether or not their love and intentions are pure, as did the  Pharisees repeatedly challenge Jesus!

"You Are My Valentine," says the Lord!

How "beautiful you are, my love, how beautiful you are" (Song of Songs 1: 15)!
As "a lily among thistles, so is my love among the maidens (Song of Songs 2: 2).
Pleasantly, "In his longed-for shade I am seated..." (Song of Songs 2: 3).
Pleased am I that "the banner he raises over me is love" (Song of Songs 2: 4).
Yes, "My beloved lifts up his voice, he says to me, 'Come...my lovely one, come'" (Song of Songs 2: 10).


Vineyards "are in flower." "Come, then, my love, my lovely one, come" (Song of Songs 2:15 & 13)
Alas, "let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet and you face is beautiful" (Song of Songs 2: 14).
Lo, I ask you to "be my beloved," says the Lord (Song of Songs 2:17).
Enclosed, are we, in a garden of love--God's love! "Let my beloved come onto his garden, let him taste its rarest fruits" (Song of Songs 4: 16)!
No way will I give myself totally to anyone but to my Beloved:  "I am my Beloved's, and His desire is for me" (song of songs 7:11).
To me, Jesus says: "Open to me...my love, my dove, my perfect one...." (Song of songs 5: 2).
I "am my Beloved's, and my Beloved is mine. He pastures his flock among the lilies" (Song of Songs 6": 2)
Now, again, hear the Lord say to you: "How beautiful you are, how charming, my love, my delight" (Song of Songs 6: 7).
Every day, I ask God to "set me like a seal on your heart, like a seal on your arm. For love is strong as death,...The flash of it is a flash of four, a flame of Yahweh Himself. Local no flood can quench, no torrents drown" (Song of Songs 8: 6-7).
'So, I will seek the Lord who seeks me, His beloved!

Daily awakened, I will listen for my Beloved's voice of love!
Always in need of love, I know that my Beloved lives within me, walks beside me, and behind me, hemming my in and keeping me from harm.
Yes, my Beloved is always with me as Lover, as Redeemer and Sanctifier!

The Power and Need of Intercessory Prayer

In today's Gospel, Mark 7: 24-30, a Greek, a Syrophoenician by birth, begs Jesus to heal her daughter, who is possessed of "an unclean spirit."  Initially, Jesus dismisses her, calling her a derogatory name given to non-Jews of His time, much like, in our days, foreigners are dismissed and help is first given to U.S. citizens, not to undocumented immigrants.  The woman, however, is not put out. She insists that Jesus help her daughter. When Jesus says to her: "Let the children be fed first. For it is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs," she retorts with "Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children's scraps."  She is not put off! It is like she says to Him: "Please, Lord, have some pity for humankind. My daughter deserves a healing as much as Jews do!"  Jesus is amazed at the faith of this woman and her persistence.  He heals her daughter, making her whole, freeing her of the "unclean spirit"!

Do you and I believe in the power of intercessory prayer, as did this Syrophoenician woman?  Do we have the self-confidence of this woman who is not deterred by derogatory remarks to persistent in what we believe is our responsibility to stand up for another and/or for ourselves?

We have many examples that testify to the power of intercessory prayer: persons healed at the shrines of Fatima and Lourdes, people like St. Augustine who are converted through the prayers of a mother/father, and many others miracles that have taken place throughout history.

As we reflect upon this Gospel, we might also ask ourselves:  Of what "demons" do you and I need to be freed? What healing do we need from Jesus? Are their persons in our lives in need of healing and do you and I realize how important it is to prayer for them?

Wisdom Admired and Recognized

In today's first reading, 1 Kings 10: 1-10, the queen of Sheba visits King Solomon to see for herself this King, of whom people spoke so highly.  She had heard about his wisdom and came to see for herself.  She was amazed. Every subject about which she inquired, King Solomon's explanation gave witness to the wisdom with which God had blessed him.  "Your wisdom and your prosperity surpass the report I heard. Blessed are your men, blessed these servants of yours, who stand before you also and listen to your wisdom. Blessed be the Lord,  your God whom it has pleased to place you on the throne of Israel. In his enduring love for Israel, the Lord has made you king to carry out judgment and justice."

First of all, whom do you consult for wisdom, for insight, for knowledge of subjects in which you are interested?  Do you have the humility of Queen Sheba to seek out wisdom greater than yours? Notice Queen Sheba's response! First of all, she recognizes King Solomon's wisdom and blessings. Are you able to affirm others for the gifts God has given them or does pride or jealousy hold you back?  Secondly, Queen Sheba gives praise to God, from whom Solomon received his wisdom and riches. Do you recognize all good--that of other persons and your own--as coming from God?

As you apply this reading to yourself, you might ask yourself the following questions: who are the wisdom figures in your life?  When was the last time that you acknowledged the gifts God has given to your spouse, your children, your coworkers, yourself?  And, when you see good in others or in yourself, to whom do you give the credit?

Faithfulness

In today's first reading, 1 Kings 8:  22-23, 27-30, begins with Solomon "stretching forth his hands towards heaven, [praying:] 'Lord God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below; you keep your covenant of mercy with your servants who are faithful to you with their whole hearts.'"  We then encounter a story in today's Gospel of persons who were not "faithful...with their whole hearts"--the Pharisees who disregarded "God's commandments but [clung] to human traditions." Jesus confronts them: "How well you have set aside the commandment of god in order to uphold your tradition!  For Moses said, 'Honor your father and you mother and whoever curses father or mother shall die.' Yet you say, 'If someone says to father or other, 'Any support you might have had from me is qorban,' [that is dedicated tho God),  you allow him do do nothing more for his father or mother. You nullify the word of God in favor of your tradition."

It is easy to fall into the trap of nullifying the word of God in order to follow man-made traditions. It is being done before our very eyes by those who dismiss taking care of the poor and needy in favor of the rich and following "party lines"--it's a tradition to do so, some argue.  God's commandments are ignored in favor of the party. The right thing to do is ignored in favor of peer pressure. "Everyone does it," some say and thus justify their actions to break the commandments and love as Jesus loved.

When and how do I fall into this trap, going along with whatever when I know God is calling me to faithfulness to the Commandments and to the teachings in the Gospels!

Feast of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple.  We also celebrate World Day of Consecrated Life! Mary and Joseph presented Jesus in the Temple, as was a customary ritual in their religion. We may think of it as parents today presenting their child/ren for baptism. As Jesus entered the Temple in the arms of his parents, the prophet Simeon and prophetess Anna recognize Him as the Messiah, the one who will save His people Israel and all of humanity from their sins.  Simeon longed for this day before he died and when it happened he said to God: Now you can dismiss your servant in peace.

May you and I, over and over again, recognize the Messiah in our lives and accept Jesus into our lives each day as well. Then when the time of our earthly pilgrimage comes to an end, we, too, will be able to say to God: Now you can dismiss your servant in peace.

Today, we also celebrate Consecrated Life Day in honor of priests and women and men religious called to consecrate their lives to the Lord forever! As with Abram, the call to serve the Lord unreservedly as His servants meant leaving our homelands. For some that meant leaving their native country for mission territory. For all, it meant leaving home to serve wherever one's diocese or religious community needed one to serve the Lord. Many times, a person was asked to surrender his/her dream to serve God in one's cherished profession and asked to embrace another.   In my religious community, those Sisters who ended up becoming teachers instead of nurses, or vice versa, speak of how blessed they were in following God's will as expressed through their superiors, as we believe firmly that one of the ways God reveals His will was through legitimate authority, be that one's religious superior or the bishop, if called to priesthood.

How did I know that I was called to consecrate my life to the Lord as a woman religious?  One day, at age 14, out of the blue as I was sitting on the grass outside of the elementary school that I attended, the thought came to me: "Become a Sister." I began that journey by entering a high school that was only for girls intending to become a Sister of that religious community. I never regretted answering that call. Many years later, possibly in my 30's, I was in prayer one day and, as sometimes happens, my identical twin, in spirit, joins me. During that hour of prayer, she told me that my religious vocation was a gift from her. She wanted me "to have the intimacy with God that she experiences in heaven."  Wow!  I certainly have a way to go to reach that goal but the greatest gift of religious life for me is the opportunities to grow in that intimacy through daily celebration of the Mass, an annual 8-day retreat (a vacation with God alone), daily spiritual reading, a spiritual renewal day each month with the Sisters with whom I live, learning each day in community life to love and forgive as Jesus teaches in the Scriptures,  pouring oneself out in sacrificial love on a regular basis, as life makes demands upon me as a community member (Trinitarian self-giving).

As I was called to religious life, my siblings were each called to marriage, to pour themselves out in self-giving, self-sacrificing love of that state in life!

What is your calling?