In the first reading, 1 Thes 4: 1-8, St. Paul exhorts the Thessalonians in the the name of Jesus to conduct themselves in ways that please the Lord. "For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. This is the will of God, your holiness: that you refrain from immorality, that each of you know how to acquire a wife for himself in holiness and honor, not in lustful passion as do [those] who do mot know God; not to take advantage of or exploit a brother or sister in this matter..."
You and I also know that God's will for us is our holiness, nothing less than that! What does holiness look like? It may be a father playing basketball with his teenage son, a mother coloring with her seven-year old daughter, a husband helping his wife prepare the evening meal, a wife tending to her paralyzed husband, grandparents babysitting their grandchildren, an adult being a faithful, dependable employer; a family attending Sunday worship services, persons making choices that improve their physical, mental and spiritual well-being (choices that lead to wholeness or holiness), and on and on!
What is holiness for you? What, obviously, would you not describe as holiness?
Friday, August 30, 2019
Thursday, August 29, 2019
Abounding in Love
In today's first reading, 1 Thes 3:7-13, St. Paul tells the Thessalonians that he is praying that God may increase their love for one another and that they will abound in love for one another as well! Imagine Jesus saying to you:
"(Insert your name), I ask you that your love for others increases and that you abound in love so that you will be blameless in holiness when, with all the saints, you enter my Presence eternally. That necessarily means that I want you, also, and above all, to increase your love for yourself. Why? Because without loving yourself, you will be unable to extend love to others. Healthy love of self is a prerequisite to loving others. When you thrive in love for yourself, you are nonjudgmental of yourself, gentle, caring, and understanding of self. You then, also, care for yourself with appropriate eating, exercising, relaxing, and sleeping and also by developing supportive relationships. Healthy self-love is also reflected in the way you dress. Self-respect, an essential part of love, abounds and, so, too, then, does respect for others. I want all of this of you!
"When you enter my Eternal Dwelling Place in heaven, I will give you a glorified body, revealing that my love for you, then and now, is plentiful. In short, I want you to imitate me on earth in how you relate to yourself and others. And my love for you is unconditional. So, too, must yours be!"
"(Insert your name), I ask you that your love for others increases and that you abound in love so that you will be blameless in holiness when, with all the saints, you enter my Presence eternally. That necessarily means that I want you, also, and above all, to increase your love for yourself. Why? Because without loving yourself, you will be unable to extend love to others. Healthy love of self is a prerequisite to loving others. When you thrive in love for yourself, you are nonjudgmental of yourself, gentle, caring, and understanding of self. You then, also, care for yourself with appropriate eating, exercising, relaxing, and sleeping and also by developing supportive relationships. Healthy self-love is also reflected in the way you dress. Self-respect, an essential part of love, abounds and, so, too, then, does respect for others. I want all of this of you!
"When you enter my Eternal Dwelling Place in heaven, I will give you a glorified body, revealing that my love for you, then and now, is plentiful. In short, I want you to imitate me on earth in how you relate to yourself and others. And my love for you is unconditional. So, too, must yours be!"
Wednesday, August 28, 2019
St. Augustine: From Sinner to Saint
In today's first reading, 1 Thes 2: 9-13, St. Paul exhorts and encourages the Thessalonians to "walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into his Kingdom and glory!" "The word of God," which St.Paul preached, "is...at work in [those hearers] who believe," then and now!
Like the Thessalonians, you and I are also called to enter God's Kingdom and glory. We received that call at our baptisms. St. Paul asks us to "walk in a manner worthy of... God." Who, we might ask ourselves, comes to our mind when we think of someone who walks in a way worthy of God? In today's feast, that of St. Augustine, we are given an example of two persons--St. Augustine himself and his mother, St. Monica. Both walked worthily of their calling to enter God's Kingdom and glory.
"Walking in a manner worthy of the God who calls us into his Kingdom and glory" does not, obviously, mean always living an exemplary life! It does mean, however, turning from evil and choosing good, which St. Augustine did! Before his conversion, St. Augustine's life was anything but saintly. And some aspects of his life following his conversion have also been difficult to swallow, so to speak, namely, his use of "force to compel orthodoxy; his tendency to disdain sexuality, the body, and women's body, in particular" (Ellsberg, Robert, All Saint, the Crossroad Publishing Company, New York, 2004, p.372) taint his saintliness.
However, if Saint Augustine can turn from evil and do good, so, too, can you and I! Sinners, we all are! We are on a journey of faith, knowing that the "word of God is at work in those who believe." Isaiah tells us that God's Word does not return to God until it has done the work God sent it to do, that is, to turn our hearts from evil to good and to deepen our intimacy with the Lord. God waited for Augustine to turn to that which truly saves, God himself who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. God-substitutes do not work!
Like the Thessalonians, you and I are also called to enter God's Kingdom and glory. We received that call at our baptisms. St. Paul asks us to "walk in a manner worthy of... God." Who, we might ask ourselves, comes to our mind when we think of someone who walks in a way worthy of God? In today's feast, that of St. Augustine, we are given an example of two persons--St. Augustine himself and his mother, St. Monica. Both walked worthily of their calling to enter God's Kingdom and glory.
"Walking in a manner worthy of the God who calls us into his Kingdom and glory" does not, obviously, mean always living an exemplary life! It does mean, however, turning from evil and choosing good, which St. Augustine did! Before his conversion, St. Augustine's life was anything but saintly. And some aspects of his life following his conversion have also been difficult to swallow, so to speak, namely, his use of "force to compel orthodoxy; his tendency to disdain sexuality, the body, and women's body, in particular" (Ellsberg, Robert, All Saint, the Crossroad Publishing Company, New York, 2004, p.372) taint his saintliness.
However, if Saint Augustine can turn from evil and do good, so, too, can you and I! Sinners, we all are! We are on a journey of faith, knowing that the "word of God is at work in those who believe." Isaiah tells us that God's Word does not return to God until it has done the work God sent it to do, that is, to turn our hearts from evil to good and to deepen our intimacy with the Lord. God waited for Augustine to turn to that which truly saves, God himself who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. God-substitutes do not work!
Tuesday, August 27, 2019
Consciously Seeking God in Silence or Solitude
In today's responsorial psalm, we ask God how we can escape His spirit. The answer is that it is impossible to escape from God. God is everywhere: in the heavens above and the earth below, in the light and in the darkness, in the day and in the night, in the nether world and in the farthest limits of the sea, in the core of every human being, in all of creation, and in every situation we encounter here on earth!
Human beings try to escape God's sight and God's presence by keeping super busy. What the compulsive activist does not realize is that he or she is actually searching for his/her God! There is an insatiable hunger within each one of us to know God, find God and be with God. To achieve that goal, as far as humanly possible, one needs to withdraw from frenetic activity and enter into solitude. "Be still and know that I am God," God tells us in Psalm 46:10--The Jerusalem Bible).
When was the last time, you or I sat down quietly and listened to the stillness found, for instance, in nature, in churches, in a quiet place in our homes or on our decks, a place where we are not distracted by TV, i-phones, i-pads, computer games or any other gadget or addictive activity that we grab onto to escape the emptiness within and around us.
Let us, each day, choose to be quiet for 5-10 minutes to know that God is God and we are not! One of my retreat directors said to me: There is nothing more like God than solitude. Let us ask God for the grace to consciously seek Him above all in 5 or more minutes of solitude each day!
Human beings try to escape God's sight and God's presence by keeping super busy. What the compulsive activist does not realize is that he or she is actually searching for his/her God! There is an insatiable hunger within each one of us to know God, find God and be with God. To achieve that goal, as far as humanly possible, one needs to withdraw from frenetic activity and enter into solitude. "Be still and know that I am God," God tells us in Psalm 46:10--The Jerusalem Bible).
When was the last time, you or I sat down quietly and listened to the stillness found, for instance, in nature, in churches, in a quiet place in our homes or on our decks, a place where we are not distracted by TV, i-phones, i-pads, computer games or any other gadget or addictive activity that we grab onto to escape the emptiness within and around us.
Let us, each day, choose to be quiet for 5-10 minutes to know that God is God and we are not! One of my retreat directors said to me: There is nothing more like God than solitude. Let us ask God for the grace to consciously seek Him above all in 5 or more minutes of solitude each day!
Monday, August 26, 2019
Chosen to a Life of Faith, a Labor of Love and Endurance in Hope
In today's first reading, 1 Thes 1:1-5, 8b-10, St. Paul says to the people: We give thanks to God always for all of you,... unceasingly calling to mind your work of faith and labor of love and endurance in hope of our Lord Jesus Christ,...knowing...how you were chosen. For our Gospel did not come to you in word alone, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with much conviction. ...In every place your faith in God has gone forth...."
As I reflect upon those words, I think of my parents. They, too, "were chosen." Like the people of Thessalonia, "the Gospel did not come to [them] in word alone, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with much conviction." Their faith was alive and well. It was powerful and changed their lives. They endured all that they encountered in life with the same faith that Jesus had in God's will for Him and thus they were survivors, not victims of suffering. The sufferings that my parents endured in their lives deepened their faith and dependence upon God and one another.
How do you and I cope with suffering? Is suffering a catalyst that nurtures our faith and dependence upon God and each other, making us spiritually strong individuals? Or do we use suffering to feel sorry for ourselves, to vent our anger upon others, and to play the "poor me" role in life? Suffering itself is not harmful. It is the way we cope with pain and suffering that can harm us or others. The choice is ours!
It is also important to remember that God does not send us pain or suffering. Such comes to us through sin. Jesus Himself suffered, as all of us do, because of sin in the world, in his case because of sin in the leaders of his time who were jealous of Him and therefore determined to put him to death. He was a threat to their power and therefore they found a way to destroy Him, so they thought, in death. Jesus teaches us to approach suffering and death in faith, knowing that these realities of life here on earth do not have the last say. God does and God gives new life in spite of and through that which causes us pain and leads to a dying and rising--new life here on earth or to eternal life in heaven!
As I reflect upon those words, I think of my parents. They, too, "were chosen." Like the people of Thessalonia, "the Gospel did not come to [them] in word alone, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with much conviction." Their faith was alive and well. It was powerful and changed their lives. They endured all that they encountered in life with the same faith that Jesus had in God's will for Him and thus they were survivors, not victims of suffering. The sufferings that my parents endured in their lives deepened their faith and dependence upon God and one another.
How do you and I cope with suffering? Is suffering a catalyst that nurtures our faith and dependence upon God and each other, making us spiritually strong individuals? Or do we use suffering to feel sorry for ourselves, to vent our anger upon others, and to play the "poor me" role in life? Suffering itself is not harmful. It is the way we cope with pain and suffering that can harm us or others. The choice is ours!
It is also important to remember that God does not send us pain or suffering. Such comes to us through sin. Jesus Himself suffered, as all of us do, because of sin in the world, in his case because of sin in the leaders of his time who were jealous of Him and therefore determined to put him to death. He was a threat to their power and therefore they found a way to destroy Him, so they thought, in death. Jesus teaches us to approach suffering and death in faith, knowing that these realities of life here on earth do not have the last say. God does and God gives new life in spite of and through that which causes us pain and leads to a dying and rising--new life here on earth or to eternal life in heaven!
Saturday, August 24, 2019
Learning a lesson from Nathaniel
In today's Gospel, John 1: 45-50, Philip finds Nathaniel sitting under a fig tree and tells him that they have found "the one about whom Moses wrote in the law, and also the prophets, Jesus son of Joseph, from Nazareth." Nathaniel initially is sarcastic and replies: "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Philip says to him: "Come and see!" Nathaniel has two choices: one, refuse, and stay stuck in his prejudice responding to the invitation with: "Absolutely not! I am not interested in meeting anyone from Nazareth. The reputation of that place is horrible!" Or, responding as he did by accepting Philip's invitation to come and find out for himself. Jesus spots Philip and Nathaniel coming toward him and says of Nathaniel: "Here is a true child of Israel. There is no duplicity in him." Shocked, Nathaniel asks: "How do you know me?" (emphasis mine). And Jesus says: "Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree." With that statement from the Holy One, the Son of God made man, Nathaniel's eyes are opened and he professes his faith in Jesus, proclaiming that Jesus is "the Son of God; ...the King of Israel!" Nathaniel's life is changed forever. He stays is transformed by listening to His every word and following Him, who is the Way, the Truth and the Life.
Just as Jesus knew Nathaniel through and through, so, too, does He know you and me. No matter where we are, under which"fig tree" we are sitting, He sees us and loves us! Many times, God uses
other people to invite us to get to know Him intimately, to follow His way of life, to embrace the Truth of who He is and what He wants of us, as He used Philip to call Nathaniel. At other times, He uses us to invite others to know the Way, the Truth and the Life that Jesus is for each one of us.
Do we, like Nathaniel, respond positively? Or do we, as did Nathaniel initially, respond with sarcasm and, unlike him, walk away, having nothing to do with Jesus or His way of life? How open are we to letting God use us to invite others to Himself and His way of life? Are we a model, as was Nathaniel, and would Jesus say of us, as He said of Nathaniel: (insert your name), is a true child of Israel, in our case, a true child of God, a true Christian? If not, why not?
Lord, may we truly recognize you as the Son of God and, like Nathaniel, follow you and get to know you intimately! May we be open to invitations to "Come and see," as Nathaniel was and thus encounter You, the one true God, the Holy One, the Way, the Truth and the Life in situations or persons we might otherwise avoid, judging wrongly, dismissing such with: "Can anything good come from that person or that situation"! And may we, also, let You use us to invite others to grow in their relationship with You!
Just as Jesus knew Nathaniel through and through, so, too, does He know you and me. No matter where we are, under which"fig tree" we are sitting, He sees us and loves us! Many times, God uses
other people to invite us to get to know Him intimately, to follow His way of life, to embrace the Truth of who He is and what He wants of us, as He used Philip to call Nathaniel. At other times, He uses us to invite others to know the Way, the Truth and the Life that Jesus is for each one of us.
Do we, like Nathaniel, respond positively? Or do we, as did Nathaniel initially, respond with sarcasm and, unlike him, walk away, having nothing to do with Jesus or His way of life? How open are we to letting God use us to invite others to Himself and His way of life? Are we a model, as was Nathaniel, and would Jesus say of us, as He said of Nathaniel: (insert your name), is a true child of Israel, in our case, a true child of God, a true Christian? If not, why not?
Lord, may we truly recognize you as the Son of God and, like Nathaniel, follow you and get to know you intimately! May we be open to invitations to "Come and see," as Nathaniel was and thus encounter You, the one true God, the Holy One, the Way, the Truth and the Life in situations or persons we might otherwise avoid, judging wrongly, dismissing such with: "Can anything good come from that person or that situation"! And may we, also, let You use us to invite others to grow in their relationship with You!
Friday, August 23, 2019
The Self-sacrificing Love
In today's first reading, Ruth 1:1, 3-6, 14b-116, 22, Naomi and her husband Elimilech, natives of Bethlehem, moved to Moab. They bore two sons, Mahlon and Chilion. These sons married Moabite women, one named Orpah and the other Ruth. Naomi's husband died, as did her two sons. Following the death of her sons, Naomi decides to move back to Bethlehem and tells her daughters-in-law to stay in their native country. Ruth, however, insists on staying with Naomi, saying to her: "Do not ask me to abandon or forsake you! For wherever you go, I will go, wherever you lodge I will lodge, your people shall be my people, and your God my God."
What self-sacrificing love on the part of Ruth! Ruth leaves all that is familiar to her and goes to a foreign land, a country that is not her own. As an immigrant in Bethlehem, she encounters hatred and prejudice and is saved by a kinsman, her future husband Boaz.
In the Gospel, Jesus is asked which commandment is the greatest of the laws. Jesus responds that the greatest commandment is to love the Lord our God with our whole heart, our whole mind, and our whole soul and that the second commandment is like it: Love our neighbor as we love ourselves. Ruth models both commandments: Love of God totally and love of neighbor to the point of sacrificing all for that person.
These scripture passages challenge us to ask ourselves the following questions: Do we allow ourselves to fall in love with God, to love God totally, that is, with our whole mind, our whole heart, our whole soul? Do we love ourselves and, if not, why not? What do we need to do to fall in love with ourselves--the good and the bad, the beautiful and the ugly part of ourselves? Do we love our neighbor as we love ourselves? Furthermore, are we like Ruth, willing to leave all for the sake of another person and, like her, open to learning more and more about the one true God? And finally, are we like Boaz, willing to get to know the stranger and protect such persons from being oppressed by hatred and prejudice against them?
What self-sacrificing love on the part of Ruth! Ruth leaves all that is familiar to her and goes to a foreign land, a country that is not her own. As an immigrant in Bethlehem, she encounters hatred and prejudice and is saved by a kinsman, her future husband Boaz.
In the Gospel, Jesus is asked which commandment is the greatest of the laws. Jesus responds that the greatest commandment is to love the Lord our God with our whole heart, our whole mind, and our whole soul and that the second commandment is like it: Love our neighbor as we love ourselves. Ruth models both commandments: Love of God totally and love of neighbor to the point of sacrificing all for that person.
These scripture passages challenge us to ask ourselves the following questions: Do we allow ourselves to fall in love with God, to love God totally, that is, with our whole mind, our whole heart, our whole soul? Do we love ourselves and, if not, why not? What do we need to do to fall in love with ourselves--the good and the bad, the beautiful and the ugly part of ourselves? Do we love our neighbor as we love ourselves? Furthermore, are we like Ruth, willing to leave all for the sake of another person and, like her, open to learning more and more about the one true God? And finally, are we like Boaz, willing to get to know the stranger and protect such persons from being oppressed by hatred and prejudice against them?
Thursday, August 22, 2019
Mary, Queen of Heaven and Earth
Today, we Catholics celebrate the Feast of Mary, queen of Heaven and Earth. The Gospel of today's liturgy is from Luke 1: 26-38, which tells the story of the Annunciation. An angel, a messenger from God, appears to Mary at age 13 or 14 and tells her that she is "highly favored." "The Lord is with you," she is told. The angels' message disturbs Mary. She asks herself what this message could possibly mean! Assuredly, the angel tells Mary to not be afraid. She "has won God's favor! Listen," the angel says to her. "You are to bear a son, and you must name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David; he will rule over the the House of Jacob forever and his reign will have no end." What? Mary must have said to herself. "...[H]ow will this come about," Mary asks the angel. "...I am a virgin?" "The Holy Spirit will come upon you...and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow. And so the child will be holy and will be called the Son of God." The angel then tells her that her elderly cousin Elizabeth has also conceived and is in her sixth month of pregnancy. "For nothing is impossible with God." Mary then says to the angel: "'I am the handmaid of the Lord,...let what you have said be done to me.' And the angel left her."
Imagine being this teenage Jewish girl! Imagine "the Holy Spirit [coming] upon" this teenager and "the power of the Most High [covering her] with its shadow." At that moment, while betrothed to Joseph and not yet married, she conceives the Son of God. Mary is pregnant not by man but by God's power and will! She has been chosen to be the Mother of God!
What does Mary do? Learning that her elderly cousin Elizabeth is six month's pregnant, Mary leaves Nazareth to assist her cousin and confide in her! She stays with Elizabeth until John the Baptist is born and then returns to Nazareth three month's pregnant!
At some point, Joseph, her husband-to-be, is told by an angel to not be afraid to take Mary into his home as his wife and that the child she is bearing has been conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit (See Matthew 1:20-22)! With Mary, Joseph learns to trust God deeply and that "nothing is impossible with God!"
How trusting are you and I? How does the story of the Annunciation touch our hearts? Do we recognize that Mary is Queen of heaven and earth, Queen of our hearts and minds and wills? Do we confide in Mary, as Mary confided in her cousin?
Imagine being this teenage Jewish girl! Imagine "the Holy Spirit [coming] upon" this teenager and "the power of the Most High [covering her] with its shadow." At that moment, while betrothed to Joseph and not yet married, she conceives the Son of God. Mary is pregnant not by man but by God's power and will! She has been chosen to be the Mother of God!
What does Mary do? Learning that her elderly cousin Elizabeth is six month's pregnant, Mary leaves Nazareth to assist her cousin and confide in her! She stays with Elizabeth until John the Baptist is born and then returns to Nazareth three month's pregnant!
At some point, Joseph, her husband-to-be, is told by an angel to not be afraid to take Mary into his home as his wife and that the child she is bearing has been conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit (See Matthew 1:20-22)! With Mary, Joseph learns to trust God deeply and that "nothing is impossible with God!"
How trusting are you and I? How does the story of the Annunciation touch our hearts? Do we recognize that Mary is Queen of heaven and earth, Queen of our hearts and minds and wills? Do we confide in Mary, as Mary confided in her cousin?
Monday, August 19, 2019
The Gift of Free Will Given us at Birth
In today's first reading, Judges 2: 11-19, we are reminded of how Israel became ensnared in worshiping false gods, Baals. The consequence was that God "allowed them to fall into the power of their enemies around about whom they were no longer able to withstand." God likewise respects our free will, even when we use it to make poor choices. As we choose the false gods that society offers us or that our "friends" convince us will increase our freedom and/or prove our adulthood--when we are deceived into believing that God substitutes will give us the peace we crave--we, like the Israelites, will get to a point where we are unable to withstand the power of Satan! With the psalmist, let us cry out: "Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people" (Psalm 106). And, with the good thief on the cross, let us turn to the Lord and ask to be remembered by Him in His Kingdom! God, the psalmist tells us, has "regard for [our] affliction" when we cry out to Him, come to our senses and abandon our false gods.
Saturday, August 17, 2019
Serving the Lord Completely and Sincerely
In today's first reading, Joshua 24: 14-29, Joshua assembled the people and exhorts them: "Fear the Lord and serve him completely and sincerely." Not halfheartedly! Not only when it is convenient! Don't pretend to be serving Him when you really are serving other gods! "Cast out the gods your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. If it does not please you to serve the Lord, decide today whom you will serve, the gods your fathers served beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose country you are dwelling. As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord."
"Decide today whom you will serve!" The same challenge is placed before us! Decide today! Stop procrastinating! Stop serving other gods because they please you or because your ego is your "king," your savior from all that distresses you! Stop serving other gods because others are doing so and you want their approval! Today, you are to make a decision to serve God, the Lord, or serve false gods, pseudo gods, God substitutes! What will your decision be?
Joshua reminds the people that they "may not be able to serve the Lord, for he is a holy God; he is a jealous God who will not forgive your transgressions or your sins, [Joshua warns]. If, after the good he has done for you, you forsake the Lord and serve strange gods, he will do evil to you and destroy you." Resolutely, the people respond:"We will serve the Lord!" What is your resolve?
Serving God will not be an easy journey. We will, like Jesus, face opposition; for some, even death for God's sake. The journey is an uphill climb, a climb up to Jerusalem with Jesus. We are not alone on this journey! Along the way, we will meet critics, persons who will challenge our resolve and tempt us to abandon our commitment to serve the Lord. We also will fail at times, abandon our resolution. However, we know from Jesus that God is a forgiving God, a God of compassion, slow to anger, a God who has pity on us, as modeled by His Son Jesus, the Christ!
May you and I, with Jesus, in good times and bad, remain steadfast in our resolve to serve the Lord, and not other gods. May we live by faith, a resolve of our wills, and not by our emotions! They are passing, like clouds by day or night! Like Mary, our mother, who said "Be it done to me according to your will," may we also surrender our wills to God's will!
"Decide today whom you will serve!" The same challenge is placed before us! Decide today! Stop procrastinating! Stop serving other gods because they please you or because your ego is your "king," your savior from all that distresses you! Stop serving other gods because others are doing so and you want their approval! Today, you are to make a decision to serve God, the Lord, or serve false gods, pseudo gods, God substitutes! What will your decision be?
Joshua reminds the people that they "may not be able to serve the Lord, for he is a holy God; he is a jealous God who will not forgive your transgressions or your sins, [Joshua warns]. If, after the good he has done for you, you forsake the Lord and serve strange gods, he will do evil to you and destroy you." Resolutely, the people respond:"We will serve the Lord!" What is your resolve?
Serving God will not be an easy journey. We will, like Jesus, face opposition; for some, even death for God's sake. The journey is an uphill climb, a climb up to Jerusalem with Jesus. We are not alone on this journey! Along the way, we will meet critics, persons who will challenge our resolve and tempt us to abandon our commitment to serve the Lord. We also will fail at times, abandon our resolution. However, we know from Jesus that God is a forgiving God, a God of compassion, slow to anger, a God who has pity on us, as modeled by His Son Jesus, the Christ!
May you and I, with Jesus, in good times and bad, remain steadfast in our resolve to serve the Lord, and not other gods. May we live by faith, a resolve of our wills, and not by our emotions! They are passing, like clouds by day or night! Like Mary, our mother, who said "Be it done to me according to your will," may we also surrender our wills to God's will!
Friday, August 16, 2019
The Goodness and Mercy of our God
In today's first reading, Joshua 24: 1-13, Joshua summons the people and enumerates the many ways in which God blessed them: protecting them from evil, blocking their enemies from destroying them or doing harm to them, snatching them, so to speak, away from idolatrous behaviors or delivering their enemies into their power, so as to defeat them in battles. He even thwarts curses against them and causes the one asked to curse them to bless them instead (See today's first reading).
In the responsorial psalm, we pray: God's "mercy endures forever." As God showed great mercy to the Israelites, so, too, does he show such to you and me. We, too, are delivered and protected from evil, especially from evil within us: deceit, resentment, jealousy, pride, lust, laziness, hate, gluttony and so much more. When we do fall into the traps Satan sets for us, God is there to pull us out of the pit, so to speak, to save us, restore our integrity and make us whole again, healing our broken spirits and binding up our wounded self.
Let us, in the words of the psalmist, "[g]ive thanks to the Lord of lords, for his mercy endures forever....[he frees] us from our foes" (Psalm 136) every day and every night! Why? Because God is good and merciful, slow to anger and full of kindness! His love is infinite and unconditional!
In the responsorial psalm, we pray: God's "mercy endures forever." As God showed great mercy to the Israelites, so, too, does he show such to you and me. We, too, are delivered and protected from evil, especially from evil within us: deceit, resentment, jealousy, pride, lust, laziness, hate, gluttony and so much more. When we do fall into the traps Satan sets for us, God is there to pull us out of the pit, so to speak, to save us, restore our integrity and make us whole again, healing our broken spirits and binding up our wounded self.
Let us, in the words of the psalmist, "[g]ive thanks to the Lord of lords, for his mercy endures forever....[he frees] us from our foes" (Psalm 136) every day and every night! Why? Because God is good and merciful, slow to anger and full of kindness! His love is infinite and unconditional!
Thursday, August 15, 2019
God Has Done Great Things for Mary and for Us!
Today we celebrate Mary's assumption into heaven! God does not allow her body to return to dust or to rot in the grave! God's purest mother "stands at [Jesus'] right hand, arrayed in gold!," we [pray in the responsorial psalm of today's liturgy! In 1 Cor 15: 20, St. Paul reminds us that "Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep." Mary, too, is one of those firstrfruits who have fallen asleep.
Elizabeth, Mary's elderly cousin whom Mary visited immediately after being impregnated by the Holy Spirit with the Son of God taking on human nature in her womb, recognized Mary as " the mother of [her] Lord." As Mary entered her house, Elizabeth, "filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice," saying "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb...[T]he moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled."
Mary also recognizes her blessedness and the great things the Lord was doing in her life and, I believe, in the life of all of us. She says to Elizabeth in her Magnificat:
"My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me
and holy is his Name."
Those great things culminate in Mary's Assumption into heaven, where God has prepared a great and a safe place for His Mother. God has also prepared a safe place for you and me, saving us in the same way that Mary was saved from the one described in today's first reading from Revelation: A dragon "stood before the woman about to give girth, to devour her child, destined to rule all the nations with an iron rod. Her child was caught up to God and his throne. The woman herself fled into the desert where she had a place prepared by God." That place was heaven for her when she completed her mission here on earth and will be for us, as well, when we, likewise, complete the work God has given us to do here on earth!
May you and I , like Mary, give birth to that which brings healing, love, joy and peace to that part of the world which we temporarily inhabit! May we grow in confidence that the one who wants to snatch "the child" from us will and has been defeated by Jesus, our Savior and God-with-us.
Elizabeth, Mary's elderly cousin whom Mary visited immediately after being impregnated by the Holy Spirit with the Son of God taking on human nature in her womb, recognized Mary as " the mother of [her] Lord." As Mary entered her house, Elizabeth, "filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice," saying "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb...[T]he moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled."
Mary also recognizes her blessedness and the great things the Lord was doing in her life and, I believe, in the life of all of us. She says to Elizabeth in her Magnificat:
"My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me
and holy is his Name."
Those great things culminate in Mary's Assumption into heaven, where God has prepared a great and a safe place for His Mother. God has also prepared a safe place for you and me, saving us in the same way that Mary was saved from the one described in today's first reading from Revelation: A dragon "stood before the woman about to give girth, to devour her child, destined to rule all the nations with an iron rod. Her child was caught up to God and his throne. The woman herself fled into the desert where she had a place prepared by God." That place was heaven for her when she completed her mission here on earth and will be for us, as well, when we, likewise, complete the work God has given us to do here on earth!
May you and I , like Mary, give birth to that which brings healing, love, joy and peace to that part of the world which we temporarily inhabit! May we grow in confidence that the one who wants to snatch "the child" from us will and has been defeated by Jesus, our Savior and God-with-us.
Wednesday, August 14, 2019
Journeying to the Promised Land
In today's first reading, Deuteronomy 34: 1-12, Moses is shown the Promised land but not allowed to enter it, as the result of falling short of the faith God expected of him as leader of His chosen people. Good and evil, faith and doubt, love and a deficit of love exists in each one of us and was/is present in all ages. Such strengths and weaknesses exists in all religions, in all families, in every society and culture, in every human being who shares life with us here on this earth. We need each other. The good in another challenges the evil in me and in you and vice versa. The strengths we witness in another gives us the courage to rise above our own weaknesses. Another's faith strengthens my faith and yours and vice versa. We all meet God's expectations and fall short of what God desires of us! The only constant is God and God alone!
In today's responsorial psalm, we pray:"Blessed be God who filled my soul with fire!" That fire inspires, strengthens, purifies us, as it did Moses. Though denied entrance into the promised land that God promised his chosen people here on earth, Moses did enter the Promised Land of eternal life. Like Moses, you and I may not enjoy "promised lands" here on earth that we see others enjoy, yet the promised land of eternal life is not denied those of us who believe in Christ Jesus, repent of our sinful behaviors, choose good over evil and accept the gift of salvation. May our souls be "filled with [the] fire" of longing to see God face to face eternity!
In today's responsorial psalm, we pray:"Blessed be God who filled my soul with fire!" That fire inspires, strengthens, purifies us, as it did Moses. Though denied entrance into the promised land that God promised his chosen people here on earth, Moses did enter the Promised Land of eternal life. Like Moses, you and I may not enjoy "promised lands" here on earth that we see others enjoy, yet the promised land of eternal life is not denied those of us who believe in Christ Jesus, repent of our sinful behaviors, choose good over evil and accept the gift of salvation. May our souls be "filled with [the] fire" of longing to see God face to face eternity!
Monday, August 12, 2019
Blessed by God with an Abundance
Today's first reading calls us to "fear [reverence] the Lord, [our] God, and follow his ways exactly, to love and serve the Lord, [our] God, with all [our] heart and all [our] soul, to keep the commandments and statues of the Lord...for [our] own good."
Yesterday, August 11, I had the privilege of celebrating my 60th jubilee as a vowed member of the Sister of the Sorrowful Mother! Sixty years of being blessed by God with an abundance! Truly God gives a hundredfold to those who follow Jesus in their respective vocations: consecrated life, priesthood, marriage or the single life. God is never outdone in generosity to those who reverence Him and strive to "follow his ways exactly, to love and serve the Lord, our god, with all our heart and all our love, to keep the commandments and statues of the Lord." The majority of us can thank our parents for this gift of reverence of our God!
The gifts I received are truly that: gifts freely given and which found their way into my life because of my parents. Mom and dad passed the faith on to me and my siblings and modeled living their faith in God, in one another, and in themselves.. What gifts they were in their faithfulness to one another, their love of their children and their willingness to sacrifice for us! Nothing was too much for them! I am grateful to them for all of this and especially for teaching us children that "if there is a will, then, there is a way." Self-pity was not in the bag, so to speak! "Just do it" was a motto we were taught long before Niki ever existed!
I never realized as a child that Jesus''determination to do whatever the Father asked of Him was what guided my parents, though this was not put in words. They followed Jesus' way "as exactly" as a human being is capable. They knew their dependence upon God, as evidenced by their faithfulness to weekly worship with a community of believers, their involvement in their parish, weekly confession and daily prayer at home, especially the daily praying of the rosary. They carried "the cross," as life was not easy for them, by any stretch of the imagination. Nor has life been easy for any of my siblings. Following the example of our parents, all of us persevered through the tough times of our lives. We are who we are, strong Christians, as a result of the way we coped with the "Calvaries" of our lives over time.
God be praised and thanked and glorified!
Yesterday, August 11, I had the privilege of celebrating my 60th jubilee as a vowed member of the Sister of the Sorrowful Mother! Sixty years of being blessed by God with an abundance! Truly God gives a hundredfold to those who follow Jesus in their respective vocations: consecrated life, priesthood, marriage or the single life. God is never outdone in generosity to those who reverence Him and strive to "follow his ways exactly, to love and serve the Lord, our god, with all our heart and all our love, to keep the commandments and statues of the Lord." The majority of us can thank our parents for this gift of reverence of our God!
The gifts I received are truly that: gifts freely given and which found their way into my life because of my parents. Mom and dad passed the faith on to me and my siblings and modeled living their faith in God, in one another, and in themselves.. What gifts they were in their faithfulness to one another, their love of their children and their willingness to sacrifice for us! Nothing was too much for them! I am grateful to them for all of this and especially for teaching us children that "if there is a will, then, there is a way." Self-pity was not in the bag, so to speak! "Just do it" was a motto we were taught long before Niki ever existed!
I never realized as a child that Jesus''determination to do whatever the Father asked of Him was what guided my parents, though this was not put in words. They followed Jesus' way "as exactly" as a human being is capable. They knew their dependence upon God, as evidenced by their faithfulness to weekly worship with a community of believers, their involvement in their parish, weekly confession and daily prayer at home, especially the daily praying of the rosary. They carried "the cross," as life was not easy for them, by any stretch of the imagination. Nor has life been easy for any of my siblings. Following the example of our parents, all of us persevered through the tough times of our lives. We are who we are, strong Christians, as a result of the way we coped with the "Calvaries" of our lives over time.
God be praised and thanked and glorified!
Saturday, August 10, 2019
An Abundance of Graces for Every Good Work
In today's first reading, 2 Cor 9: 6-10, St. Paul confidently says to you: "God is able to make every grace abundant for you, so that in all things, always having all you need, you may have an abundance for every good work....The one who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply our seed and increase the harvest of your righteousness."
We see this fulfilled and prophesied for us through Christ Jesus: in the life of His Mother, in whom and through whom "every grace [was made] abundant"; in the first miracle of the loaves (Mark 6: 30-44), the second miracle of the loaves (Mark 8: 1-10), in His sending of the disciples out in twos to preach the Good News and having all they needed to do so; in the many, many miracles performed by Jesus in healing the sick and raising the dead to life, in Jesus' sufferings and death and resurrection ("the harvest of our righteousness"); in the sending of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2: 1-13).
Let us reflect for a moment on the statement: "God is able to make every grace abundant for you."
"Every grace"! Not just a grace but "every grace!" For you, for me, might that not mean, in part, the following:
We see this fulfilled and prophesied for us through Christ Jesus: in the life of His Mother, in whom and through whom "every grace [was made] abundant"; in the first miracle of the loaves (Mark 6: 30-44), the second miracle of the loaves (Mark 8: 1-10), in His sending of the disciples out in twos to preach the Good News and having all they needed to do so; in the many, many miracles performed by Jesus in healing the sick and raising the dead to life, in Jesus' sufferings and death and resurrection ("the harvest of our righteousness"); in the sending of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2: 1-13).
Let us reflect for a moment on the statement: "God is able to make every grace abundant for you."
"Every grace"! Not just a grace but "every grace!" For you, for me, might that not mean, in part, the following:
- The grace of existence itself and multiplying good works as a human being with intelligence
- The grace of being one's unique self and developing that uniqueness
- The grace of being faithful to our vows (marriage, religious, priestly)
- The grace of strengthening our faith
- The grace of doing what is right and good and just and loving and caring and helpful
- The grace of helping the poor in need
- The grace of parenting with patience, wisdom, understanding and compassion
- The grace of growing in holiness
- The grace of deepening our intimacy--at-oneness, union--with the Lord, with our spouse/fellow religious, with others with whom we share life on this planet; growing in sacrificial self-giving and loving of others for God's sake and also growing in intimacy with oneself, that is, growing in self-knowledge and self-reflection
- The grace of seeing God in all things created: all human beings living on planet Earth, the plant and animal kingdom, the universe itself
And much more because "the one who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply our seed..."--in particular, seeds of good works for the sake of the Kingdom!
Friday, August 9, 2019
Knowing that God is God and There Is No Other
In today's first reading, Deuteronomy 4: 32-40, God asks Moses: "Did anything so great ever happen before? Was it ever heard of? Did a people ever hear the voice of God speaking from the midst of fire, as you did, and live? Or did any god venture to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by testings, by signs and wonders, by war, with his strong hand and outstretched arm, and by great terrors, all of which the Lord, your God, did for you in Egypt before your very eyes. All of this you were allowed to see that you might know the Lord is God and there is no other."
God, undoubtedly, did great things for the people of Israel, the people of the Old Covenant! Why? So that they would "might know the Lord is God and there is no other." He has also done great things for the people of the New Covenant, for you and I, so that we, too, "might know the Lord is God and there is no other!" What are those things? Conceiving Mary without sin. Sending the second person of the Blessed Trinity to take on human nature in Mary's womb, Mary, who was chosen to be the mother of God Incarnate. Showing us, through Jesus, the way to the Father, the way to live holy lives, ways to grow in holiness and grace! Showing us, through Jesus, how to deal with the effects of sin: conflicts, rejections, persecutions, condemnation, "crucifixions," death itself! As people looked upon Jesus on the cross and witnessed His death, they said: Truly, He is the Son of God!" In that moment the people knew that "the Lord is God and there is no other."
That we "might know the Lord is God and there is no other," we, too, experience what the Israelites experienced: God rescuing us "by his strong hand and outstretched arm." By "testings, signs and wonders, by war," within ourselves, our families, nations, religions, cultures, races, and so on,
we come to believe that "the Lord is God and there is no other." Only with God's help, with God being our warrior, do we overcome the hatred, the prejudice and the resentments that lead us, individually, nationally and internationally to commit violence acts against others.
In what ways have you, have I, "heard the voice of God speaking from the midst of fire"; or what "testings,...signs and wonders,...great terrors" did God do for you or me that we "might know the Lord is God and there is no other"?
God, undoubtedly, did great things for the people of Israel, the people of the Old Covenant! Why? So that they would "might know the Lord is God and there is no other." He has also done great things for the people of the New Covenant, for you and I, so that we, too, "might know the Lord is God and there is no other!" What are those things? Conceiving Mary without sin. Sending the second person of the Blessed Trinity to take on human nature in Mary's womb, Mary, who was chosen to be the mother of God Incarnate. Showing us, through Jesus, the way to the Father, the way to live holy lives, ways to grow in holiness and grace! Showing us, through Jesus, how to deal with the effects of sin: conflicts, rejections, persecutions, condemnation, "crucifixions," death itself! As people looked upon Jesus on the cross and witnessed His death, they said: Truly, He is the Son of God!" In that moment the people knew that "the Lord is God and there is no other."
That we "might know the Lord is God and there is no other," we, too, experience what the Israelites experienced: God rescuing us "by his strong hand and outstretched arm." By "testings, signs and wonders, by war," within ourselves, our families, nations, religions, cultures, races, and so on,
we come to believe that "the Lord is God and there is no other." Only with God's help, with God being our warrior, do we overcome the hatred, the prejudice and the resentments that lead us, individually, nationally and internationally to commit violence acts against others.
In what ways have you, have I, "heard the voice of God speaking from the midst of fire"; or what "testings,...signs and wonders,...great terrors" did God do for you or me that we "might know the Lord is God and there is no other"?
Tuesday, August 6, 2019
Jesus' Transfiguration: Do I Get it?
Today we celebrate the feast of the Transfiguration of our Lord on Mount Tabor! On this Mount, Jesus spoke to Moses and Elijah about his impending death, His agony on the cross, His crucifixion. How difficult it must of have been for Jesus. He tried to share his pain with this apostles. But they simply did not get it! It was important for Jesus to be able to talk to someone who would understand what he was going through. His Father knew that and arranged for this meeting with Moses and Elijah!
Jesus takes Peter, James and John with Him up to Mount Tabor. As Jesus begins to pray, His face "changed in appearance and his clothing became dazzling white. And behold, two men were conversing with him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of his exodus that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem." The three apostles fall fast asleep! Only when they became fully awake did they see Jesus' "glory and the two men standing with him." Baffled and not knowing what to say, Peter blurts out a request: Jesus, let us build three tents here--one for you, one for Elijah and one for Moses. As he was speaking a "cloud came and cast a shadow over them, and they became frightened when they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, 'This is my chosen Son; listen to him.'" Then, all of a sudden Peter, James and John are alone with Jesus and "[t]hey fell silent"!
Even on Mount Tabor, the three apostles do not get it, as obvious from Peter wanting to build three tents there for Jesus, Moses and Elijah! They sleep! How often do you and I not get it and are truly asleep to what is going on spiritually. How often are not our eyes closed to God at work in our world, in our lives, in the lives of others, in our church, our society, our families. How often are we not living in a fog, so to speak, or simply are too busy focused on our desires, whatever they may be--building tents or doing whatever, babbling anything because we don't know what to say. Yes, we easily miss the point of what God wants and how ordinary reality, every day, is being transfigured into a reality of God's Presence and God's power at work!
"Be still and know that I am God," the psalmist tells us in Psalm 46:10!
Jesus takes Peter, James and John with Him up to Mount Tabor. As Jesus begins to pray, His face "changed in appearance and his clothing became dazzling white. And behold, two men were conversing with him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of his exodus that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem." The three apostles fall fast asleep! Only when they became fully awake did they see Jesus' "glory and the two men standing with him." Baffled and not knowing what to say, Peter blurts out a request: Jesus, let us build three tents here--one for you, one for Elijah and one for Moses. As he was speaking a "cloud came and cast a shadow over them, and they became frightened when they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, 'This is my chosen Son; listen to him.'" Then, all of a sudden Peter, James and John are alone with Jesus and "[t]hey fell silent"!
Even on Mount Tabor, the three apostles do not get it, as obvious from Peter wanting to build three tents there for Jesus, Moses and Elijah! They sleep! How often do you and I not get it and are truly asleep to what is going on spiritually. How often are not our eyes closed to God at work in our world, in our lives, in the lives of others, in our church, our society, our families. How often are we not living in a fog, so to speak, or simply are too busy focused on our desires, whatever they may be--building tents or doing whatever, babbling anything because we don't know what to say. Yes, we easily miss the point of what God wants and how ordinary reality, every day, is being transfigured into a reality of God's Presence and God's power at work!
"Be still and know that I am God," the psalmist tells us in Psalm 46:10!
Monday, August 5, 2019
The Compassion of our God!
In today's Gospel, Matthew 14: 13-21, when Jesus returns from a deserted place where he had been grieving the murder of his cousin John the Baptist, Jesus meets a crowd of people, about 5000 men plus women and children. "When...he saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them."
Jesus is likewise moved with pity for you and me and vast crowds of people that assemble for political rallies, for sport's events or any other kind of entertainment, for religious gatherings or family reunions, weddings, or funerals; those gathered at our borders and in modern-day concentration cams, those detained in cages and locked up in overcrowded prisons!
Jesus, I believe, weeps for all of us and especially for those suffering at our hands. Imagine Jesus looking on when a person faces violence--physical, verbal, emotional abuse--at the hands of an out-of-control policeman/woman, a jealous lover, a clergy person, a corrupt politician, a gun-wielding mentally ill person, an out of-control family member or co-worker. Jesus, I believe, weeps when he witnesses these scenes and especially when a person loses his/her life because of our violent behavior.
In today's responsorial psalm, Psalm 81, the Lord says to us: "If only my people would hear me, and Israel (you and me and all people) walk in my ways, quickly would I humble their enemies (especially those within us); against their foes I would turn my hand." Each one of us depends totally upon the Lord to "humble our enemies" and "to turn his hand against our foes". We need God's help, always, to do good and avoid evil. And when we fall into sin, we need to ask God, the other person against whom we have sinned and ourselves for forgiveness.
God forgives us. Do we forgive ourselves and one another?
Jesus is likewise moved with pity for you and me and vast crowds of people that assemble for political rallies, for sport's events or any other kind of entertainment, for religious gatherings or family reunions, weddings, or funerals; those gathered at our borders and in modern-day concentration cams, those detained in cages and locked up in overcrowded prisons!
Jesus, I believe, weeps for all of us and especially for those suffering at our hands. Imagine Jesus looking on when a person faces violence--physical, verbal, emotional abuse--at the hands of an out-of-control policeman/woman, a jealous lover, a clergy person, a corrupt politician, a gun-wielding mentally ill person, an out of-control family member or co-worker. Jesus, I believe, weeps when he witnesses these scenes and especially when a person loses his/her life because of our violent behavior.
In today's responsorial psalm, Psalm 81, the Lord says to us: "If only my people would hear me, and Israel (you and me and all people) walk in my ways, quickly would I humble their enemies (especially those within us); against their foes I would turn my hand." Each one of us depends totally upon the Lord to "humble our enemies" and "to turn his hand against our foes". We need God's help, always, to do good and avoid evil. And when we fall into sin, we need to ask God, the other person against whom we have sinned and ourselves for forgiveness.
God forgives us. Do we forgive ourselves and one another?
Sunday, August 4, 2019
Being Wise or Foolish?
Today's liturgy readings, Ecclesiastes 1: 2; 2: 21-23, Col 3: 1-5, 9-11, Luke 12: 13-21, as well as the responsorial psalm, Psalm 90, all speak to us of what is important to God, what matters and what life here on earth is all about.
Ecclesiastes speaks about vanity. One person labors strenuously, applying all of one's energy and skills to productivity and, when he/she leaves this earth, leaves the results of that work to one who has not labored at all. In the Gospel, a rich person is thinking of building larger barns to contain all of the possessions accumulated over the years--this person has been very productive and needs more storage space. This individual's plan is, then, to enjoy life, saying to oneself: Now you "...have so many good things stored up for many years, rest, eat, drink and be merry." God says to such a one: "You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you; and the things you have prepared, to whom shall they belong? Thus shall it be for all who who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich in the things that matter to God."
Am I storing up material things, renting more storage space for all that I have accumulated while neglecting the things of God, ignoring the needs of my neighbor for love and kindness, for understanding and compassionate caring, for honesty and forgiveness? Am I scrambling each day to store up things which the world says is important or am I growing "rich in the things that matter to God"?
The responsorial psalm of today's liturgy reminds me that I will return to dust and that I need to remember that, to God, "a thousand years...are like...a watch in the night." The psalmist reminds me that God makes "an end of [us] in [our] sleep; the next morning [we] are like the changing grass, which at dawn springs up anew, but by evening wilts and fades." With the psalmist let us pray: "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain wisdom of heart....Fill us at daybreak with your kindness, that we may shout for joy and gladness all our days." May we share that joy and gladness with others. May we make a difference in the lives of others today by the love we give to them, by our honesty and compassion. May we spend time with others today in a way that brings them joy, relieves their pain or suffering and glories God.
Saturday, August 3, 2019
Fear and Pride: Opposition to the Spirit Guiding our Conscience
In today's Gospel, Matthew 14: 1-12, we are confronted with how much fear can interfere with our faithfulness to God and lead us to ignore our conscience and the Holy Spirit's guidance in doing what is right. In Herod's case, out of fear of the people who have grown to highly respect John the Baptist as a prophet, Herod refrains from killing him. He considered doing so because John the Baptist confronted him on marrying his brother's wife Herodias (he killed his brother Philip for that reason).
Fear also is the basis of his decision to grant his daughter's request, when, on his birthday, he is so delighted with a dance she performed for him that he promises her anything she asks of him. She consults her mother who asked for the head of John the Baptist to be brought to her on a platter. Afraid to not keep the oaths he made and also afraid of his guests' reactions to going back on his promises, Herod ordered John the Baptist's head brought to his wife Herodias, who also wanted John the Baptist dead because of his disapproval of their marriage.
Oh, my God, what fear and pride will prompt us to do! Help us, Lord, recognize the "Herods" within us. Help us recognize how fear and pride can and does interfere with our faithfulness to You, to others, and to our true selves in doing what is right and just. Help us be honest with ourselves and others when it is fear or pride directing us to act contrary to our conscience and to Your holy will for us. Help us, also to realize that when we protest too much about another person's challenges that such protestations may very well indicate that fear and pride are at work within us.
Thursday, August 1, 2019
God's Presence
In today's first reading,Exodus 40: 16-21, 34-38, Moses, following God's commands, erects a Dwelling for the Lord. A "cloud covered the meeting tent, and the glory of the Lord filled the Dwelling...Whenever the cloud rose from the Dwelling, the children of Israel would set out on their journey. But if the cloud did not lift, they would not go forward;only when it lifted did they go forward. In the daytime the cloud of the Lord was seen over the Dwelling; whereas at night, fire was seen in the cloud by the whole house of Israel in all the stages of their journey."
God is also with us "in all the stages of [our] journey"--sometimes as a Cloud and sometimes as Fire, even when our eyes are veiled from seeing God clearly or not at all! We could learn from the Israelites to not go forward when "a cloud" hangs over our life but to wait until the cloud lifts. "Wait upon the Lord" and we shall be saved, we are told in the Scriptures.
Let us pray for the grace to learn to wait for the Lord's directions. Let us call upon the Lord to show us the way when "the cloud or clouds" fog our vision, making impossible for us to see which way to turn, or what decision to make. May we have the humility to know when we don't know and to avoid pretending that we do know when in fact we do not have a clue!
God is also with us "in all the stages of [our] journey"--sometimes as a Cloud and sometimes as Fire, even when our eyes are veiled from seeing God clearly or not at all! We could learn from the Israelites to not go forward when "a cloud" hangs over our life but to wait until the cloud lifts. "Wait upon the Lord" and we shall be saved, we are told in the Scriptures.
Let us pray for the grace to learn to wait for the Lord's directions. Let us call upon the Lord to show us the way when "the cloud or clouds" fog our vision, making impossible for us to see which way to turn, or what decision to make. May we have the humility to know when we don't know and to avoid pretending that we do know when in fact we do not have a clue!
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