In today's first reading, Acts 8: 26-40, "the angel of the Lord spoke to Philip: 'Get up and head south on the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, the desert route. So he got up and set out."
Our Guardian Angel directs us just as with the angel directed Philip. We might hear such direction as: "Get up and make that call to your son/daughter, your grandson/granddaughter, your sister/brother. Get up and help your spouse!" Philip got up immediately and set on the road from Jerusalem to Gaza. Hope prompt are you/am I in following the angel's direction?
As Philip approached a chariot returning home from worshiping in Jerusalem, there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the Candace, reading from the book of Isaiah. "The Spirit said to Philip, 'Go and join up with that chariot.' Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said, 'Do you understand what you are reading?' He replied, 'How can I, unless someone instructs me?'"
Philip needed a threefold trust: trust of the Spirit, trust that it was safe to approach a total stranger and trust that he, Philip, would be able to instruct the eunuch properly! Where and how did Philip develop such confidence? First of all, he spent three years sitting at Jesus' feet, listening to Him explain the Scriptures. Second of all, he learnt to trust the Spirit's lead from Jesus, who was led by the Spirit into the desert, into His ministry, and to the cross and over whom death had no power! Thirdly, he had confidence in the commission given to him by the Risen Christ before His ascension into heaven when Christ said to the apostles: Go out into the whole world and preach the good news and know that I am with you always until the end of time.
What Jesus the Christ did for Philip He also does for you and me. Before His ascension into heaven, Jesus the Christ was not only speaking to the apostles but to you and me as well! When the Risen Lord sent the Holy Spirit upon the apostles at Pentecost, He also sent that Holy Spirit upon you and me! How strong are you, am I in exercising our faith in Christ Jesus when an angel or the Spirit directs us to do the Father's will of assisting others, instructing others, strengthening others, comforting others?
May we learn from Philip!
Thursday, April 30, 2020
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Nothing and No One Shall Be Lost
In today's Gospel, John 6: 35-40, Jesus says to us: "Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and I will not reject anyone who comes to me, because I came down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of the one who sent me. And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything of what he gave me, but that I should raise it on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him on the last day."
Wow! The promises of the Lord, we know, are true. So when Jesus promises us that everything given to Him by the Father will come to Him, he is promising that you and I will come to Him in faith, in love, in trust! And not only that! Jesus will not reject us. Rejection is not in God's nature! His arms are spread wide open to receive us as a parent opens wide his/her arms to receive a child! He receives us with delight and with love! We may have fallen into one of Satan's snares and gotten hurt. God is waiting with open arms to comfort us, heal us, and reveal His infinite love for us. Jesus tells us that nothing and no one given to Him by His Father will be lost to Him. In fact, we will be raised with Jesus on the last day of our lives! The Father and Jesus eagerly await that day for all who believe in Jesus, the Christ, the Savior of the world!
I believe! Do you?
Wow! The promises of the Lord, we know, are true. So when Jesus promises us that everything given to Him by the Father will come to Him, he is promising that you and I will come to Him in faith, in love, in trust! And not only that! Jesus will not reject us. Rejection is not in God's nature! His arms are spread wide open to receive us as a parent opens wide his/her arms to receive a child! He receives us with delight and with love! We may have fallen into one of Satan's snares and gotten hurt. God is waiting with open arms to comfort us, heal us, and reveal His infinite love for us. Jesus tells us that nothing and no one given to Him by His Father will be lost to Him. In fact, we will be raised with Jesus on the last day of our lives! The Father and Jesus eagerly await that day for all who believe in Jesus, the Christ, the Savior of the world!
I believe! Do you?
Tuesday, April 28, 2020
Jesus, the Bread of Life!
In today's Gospel, Jesus tells his disciples that He is the Bread of Life come down from heaven and whoever comes to Him will never be hungry and whoever believes in Him will never thirst (John 6:24)! In John 6:52-57) He says to us: "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. whoever east my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him." Hearing this, many of the disciples stopped following him.
It is not uncommon for many Catholics to walk away from the Eucharist, no longer believing that the bread and wine are changed by the Holy Spirit into the body and blood, the soul and divinity of Christ at the consecration of the Mass! Some walk away for other reasons! Jesus, I believe, says to them what he said to those who walked away when Jesus made the above statement: "'Does this (for whatever reason one walked away from the Eucharist) shock you? What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the spirit that gives life--and it is the Spirit that changes bread and wine into Christ at the consecration), while the flesh is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you (through the priest at the consecration of the Mass) are spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe.' ....Jesus then turned to the Twelve, 'Do you also want to leave?' Simon Peter answered him, 'Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.'"
If God removed the veil from our eyes, we would see that the priest truly is Christ and it is Christ who says to us at the moment of the consecration: Take and eat; this is my body. Take and drink; this is my blood poured out for you!" From that, through the grace of God, I cannot and will not walk away! For me, the Mass is where we do, in memory of Jesus, what He did on Calvary: gave His all for us so that we, in turn, can give our all to others in love. And I need to be fed, nourished, strengthened and purified by "true food," the Eucharist, every day, for that reason.
It is not uncommon for many Catholics to walk away from the Eucharist, no longer believing that the bread and wine are changed by the Holy Spirit into the body and blood, the soul and divinity of Christ at the consecration of the Mass! Some walk away for other reasons! Jesus, I believe, says to them what he said to those who walked away when Jesus made the above statement: "'Does this (for whatever reason one walked away from the Eucharist) shock you? What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the spirit that gives life--and it is the Spirit that changes bread and wine into Christ at the consecration), while the flesh is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you (through the priest at the consecration of the Mass) are spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe.' ....Jesus then turned to the Twelve, 'Do you also want to leave?' Simon Peter answered him, 'Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.'"
If God removed the veil from our eyes, we would see that the priest truly is Christ and it is Christ who says to us at the moment of the consecration: Take and eat; this is my body. Take and drink; this is my blood poured out for you!" From that, through the grace of God, I cannot and will not walk away! For me, the Mass is where we do, in memory of Jesus, what He did on Calvary: gave His all for us so that we, in turn, can give our all to others in love. And I need to be fed, nourished, strengthened and purified by "true food," the Eucharist, every day, for that reason.
Monday, April 27, 2020
Believing in the One God Sent!
In today's Gospel, John 6: 22-29, the disciples ask Jesus what they can do to accomplish the works of God and His response is: "This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent." Jesus does not say that the work of God is that I make sacrifices, that I build churches or synagogues, that I accomplish great things that bring me praise or that puts my name in Who's Who or in the Guinness book of records. Just believe in Jesus, the One God sent! For us humans "to just believe" is difficult because our egos want more than that! The busier we are and the more we accomplish, many times, is what satisfies us and also feeds our ego's craving for more and more and more of that which is measurable and plausible and praiseworthy! Just believe, Jesus says! That is the work of God!
This does not mean that Jesus discourages us from doing that which builds the Kingdom, the things He modeled for us! Jesus teaches us how to be human and what humans are asked to do if they want to experience the fullness of life that Jesus came to give us and by which He saves us! Jesus taught us how to deal with evil, not by becoming violent ourselves or by punishing evildoers but by patiently enduring suffering and forgiving those who inflict suffering upon us. He taught us to return good for evil, kindness and rudeness, love for hatred. He taught us that suffering and death has no power over us, as He rose from the dead and entered eternal life, sitting at the right hand of His Father and ours, His God and ours. You and I are doing the work of God when we believe in the One God sent!
This does not mean that Jesus discourages us from doing that which builds the Kingdom, the things He modeled for us! Jesus teaches us how to be human and what humans are asked to do if they want to experience the fullness of life that Jesus came to give us and by which He saves us! Jesus taught us how to deal with evil, not by becoming violent ourselves or by punishing evildoers but by patiently enduring suffering and forgiving those who inflict suffering upon us. He taught us to return good for evil, kindness and rudeness, love for hatred. He taught us that suffering and death has no power over us, as He rose from the dead and entered eternal life, sitting at the right hand of His Father and ours, His God and ours. You and I are doing the work of God when we believe in the One God sent!
Sunday, April 26, 2020
"What Are You Discussing as You Walk Along?"
Today's Gospel, Luke 24: 13-35, recounts the story of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. They are totally distressed at the crucifixion and death of Jesus, the One they were hoping would "redeem Israel," that is, free them from Roman rule and occupation of their nation. Their hopes for being a kingdom in their own right, having their own king, their own freedoms and control of their own future was dashed when Jesus was "handed over by Israel's chief priests and rulers to the Romans, who subjected him to the cruelest form of death in their time.
Everything seems lost at this point. "And it happened that while they were conversing and debating, Jesus himself drew near and walked with them, but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him." Jesus asked them: "What are you discussing as you walk along?" The disciples must have thought that this guy was crazy. Where has he been that he does not know what happened three days ago! How could he not know, they must have wondered! The disciple named Cleopas responds to Jesus: "Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know of the things that have taken place there in these days?" Jesus plays dumb and asks: "What sort of things?" Patiently, he listened to the disciples tell the whole story, including that the tomb was found empty! Finally, exasperated, I would think, Jesus says to them: "Oh, how foolish you are! How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke....Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them what referred to him in all the Scriptures." When they finally reached Emmaus, Jesus pretends to keep on walking. They stop him, asking that he stay with them. After all, "the day is almost over." He obliges them and has an evening meal with them. At table, "he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them." Their eyes were opened at that point and they recognized Him, "but he vanished from their sight. Then they said to one another, 'Were not our hearts burning within us while he spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us?'"
Wow! The humility of our God! And God relates to us in the same way. He wants to hear our story. He wants to know what is troubling us! He wants us to relate the details and not assume that there is not need to tell Him what we are thinking. This encounter of Cleopas and his companion tells us jhe opposite. God wants to know what it is each day that we debate about, are concerned about or disturbed about! Tell Him! We need to be as humble as Jesus was when He asked the question: "What are you discussing as you walk along?" That is what Jesus asks us each evening. He wants to know what occupied our minds and what were the subjects of our debates during the day! May we be humble enough to tell Jesus everything. Only then will He show us their meaning in the Scriptures and interpret them through the eyes of faith! Only then will our eyes be opened to recognize Jesus in our midst and at our sides!
Everything seems lost at this point. "And it happened that while they were conversing and debating, Jesus himself drew near and walked with them, but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him." Jesus asked them: "What are you discussing as you walk along?" The disciples must have thought that this guy was crazy. Where has he been that he does not know what happened three days ago! How could he not know, they must have wondered! The disciple named Cleopas responds to Jesus: "Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know of the things that have taken place there in these days?" Jesus plays dumb and asks: "What sort of things?" Patiently, he listened to the disciples tell the whole story, including that the tomb was found empty! Finally, exasperated, I would think, Jesus says to them: "Oh, how foolish you are! How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke....Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them what referred to him in all the Scriptures." When they finally reached Emmaus, Jesus pretends to keep on walking. They stop him, asking that he stay with them. After all, "the day is almost over." He obliges them and has an evening meal with them. At table, "he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them." Their eyes were opened at that point and they recognized Him, "but he vanished from their sight. Then they said to one another, 'Were not our hearts burning within us while he spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us?'"
Wow! The humility of our God! And God relates to us in the same way. He wants to hear our story. He wants to know what is troubling us! He wants us to relate the details and not assume that there is not need to tell Him what we are thinking. This encounter of Cleopas and his companion tells us jhe opposite. God wants to know what it is each day that we debate about, are concerned about or disturbed about! Tell Him! We need to be as humble as Jesus was when He asked the question: "What are you discussing as you walk along?" That is what Jesus asks us each evening. He wants to know what occupied our minds and what were the subjects of our debates during the day! May we be humble enough to tell Jesus everything. Only then will He show us their meaning in the Scriptures and interpret them through the eyes of faith! Only then will our eyes be opened to recognize Jesus in our midst and at our sides!
Saturday, April 25, 2020
Jesus, a Model of Humility
In today's first reading, 1 Peter 5: 5b-14, St. Peter says to us: "Beloved: Clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for God opposes the proud but bestows favor on the humble. So humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time."
Jesus models for us what it means to clothe oneself in humility. Here is the Son of God hidden in our humanity. He is like us in all things but sin. Most people, as they encountered Jesus during his short thirty-three years here on earth, did not know who he was, did not recognize him. They even accused him of being blasphemous, claiming to be God but being only a human being like them. Jesus did not argue with them and, in fact, remained silent before Pilate and his executioners. We are even told in the Scriptures that Jesus learned obedience from what He suffered and are reminded that we, too,
will learn obedience from what we suffer. Jesus showed us the way to be fully human, to be humble and obedient to the will of His Father and ours!
Jesus, the Son of God, is hidden today, as well: hidden in the piece of consecrated bread, hidden in each human being, hidden in all of creation, hidden in the events of our day! What humility! He does not shout out, claiming to be the One, in fact, doing good through us, in us, for us and around us. He does stand up and shout: I DID THAT GOOD DEED THROUGH YOU! WHY ARE YOU TAKING CREDIT FOR WHAT I AM DOING IN YOU, THROUGH YOU AND FOR YOU? Nor is Jesus offended by our egos claiming credit for what good is being accomplished by God at work in us.
Lord, help us in this battle with our egos. Our spirit selves recognize that it is You doing the good in and through us but our egos, like Adam and Eve's egos, insists on being God! When we allow our egos to be in control, to assume power that belongs to You and You alone, we lose our sense of peace and the joy of being Your partner, Your companion, Your servant. Yes, we cast ourselves out of the paradise of cooperating with you!
Jesus models for us what it means to clothe oneself in humility. Here is the Son of God hidden in our humanity. He is like us in all things but sin. Most people, as they encountered Jesus during his short thirty-three years here on earth, did not know who he was, did not recognize him. They even accused him of being blasphemous, claiming to be God but being only a human being like them. Jesus did not argue with them and, in fact, remained silent before Pilate and his executioners. We are even told in the Scriptures that Jesus learned obedience from what He suffered and are reminded that we, too,
will learn obedience from what we suffer. Jesus showed us the way to be fully human, to be humble and obedient to the will of His Father and ours!
Jesus, the Son of God, is hidden today, as well: hidden in the piece of consecrated bread, hidden in each human being, hidden in all of creation, hidden in the events of our day! What humility! He does not shout out, claiming to be the One, in fact, doing good through us, in us, for us and around us. He does stand up and shout: I DID THAT GOOD DEED THROUGH YOU! WHY ARE YOU TAKING CREDIT FOR WHAT I AM DOING IN YOU, THROUGH YOU AND FOR YOU? Nor is Jesus offended by our egos claiming credit for what good is being accomplished by God at work in us.
Lord, help us in this battle with our egos. Our spirit selves recognize that it is You doing the good in and through us but our egos, like Adam and Eve's egos, insists on being God! When we allow our egos to be in control, to assume power that belongs to You and You alone, we lose our sense of peace and the joy of being Your partner, Your companion, Your servant. Yes, we cast ourselves out of the paradise of cooperating with you!
Friday, April 24, 2020
Doing Much with Little!
In today's Gospel, John 6: 1-15, a large crowd, about 5000 men, not counting women and children, is approaching Jesus and Jesus asked Philip: "Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?" John tells us that Jesus asked Philip that question to test him, as he knew what he would do! Philip says to Jesus: "Two hundred days' wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little." Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter points out to Jesus that there is a boy there with five loaves of bread and two fish, "but what good are these for so many?" We know the rest of the story. Jesus asked that the people recline on the grass there. He then takes the bread and the fish and feeds the crowd with twelve wicker baskets of food left over!
Just as Jesus involved his apostles and the boy in the miracle, so, too, does he involve us when, without us, he easily could do whatever he intends to do all along. God wants us, including children, to be his partners! And furthermore, the little we have is no deterrent to responding to need, no matter how great that need or how large the crowd is.
Who am I in this Scripture passage? Jesus who sees the crowd approaching and seeks ways to meet their need for "food"? A member of the crowd who needs to rely upon others to get what one's needs met? Philip who is being tested by Jesus and challenged to find a solution? Andrew who notices the boy who has some food--am I that attentive? The boy with the food and who gives the little he has to Jesus, not really knowing what Jesus will do with it? A member of the crowd whose hunger is met by Jesus? Am I, the "bread" and "fish"being broken and shared with others? Or am I all of the above at different times of my life and, even, at different times of one day?
Notice that Jesus is key to this story. Is Jesus key to your life/to mine? Also notice that the apostles and the boy are also key to this story! Do I, do you, realize that we cannot make a difference on our own, that is, that we need each other! Notice, as well, that the little you or I have can make a huge difference. We have seen this during the crisis we are facing with the coronavirus. Someone decides to find a way to get food that farmers are forced to let rot in their fields and, before long, several semi-trucks are involved in getting the food to persons facing a shortage and not able to put food on their table for their hungry children!
Lord, may our trust in you, in others and in ourselves increase. May we have the courage to share the little we have, to do whatever we can, and not let doubt in ourselves or others or You stop us from recognizing a need and responding to it in some way, no matter how little we have to share!
Just as Jesus involved his apostles and the boy in the miracle, so, too, does he involve us when, without us, he easily could do whatever he intends to do all along. God wants us, including children, to be his partners! And furthermore, the little we have is no deterrent to responding to need, no matter how great that need or how large the crowd is.
Who am I in this Scripture passage? Jesus who sees the crowd approaching and seeks ways to meet their need for "food"? A member of the crowd who needs to rely upon others to get what one's needs met? Philip who is being tested by Jesus and challenged to find a solution? Andrew who notices the boy who has some food--am I that attentive? The boy with the food and who gives the little he has to Jesus, not really knowing what Jesus will do with it? A member of the crowd whose hunger is met by Jesus? Am I, the "bread" and "fish"being broken and shared with others? Or am I all of the above at different times of my life and, even, at different times of one day?
Notice that Jesus is key to this story. Is Jesus key to your life/to mine? Also notice that the apostles and the boy are also key to this story! Do I, do you, realize that we cannot make a difference on our own, that is, that we need each other! Notice, as well, that the little you or I have can make a huge difference. We have seen this during the crisis we are facing with the coronavirus. Someone decides to find a way to get food that farmers are forced to let rot in their fields and, before long, several semi-trucks are involved in getting the food to persons facing a shortage and not able to put food on their table for their hungry children!
Lord, may our trust in you, in others and in ourselves increase. May we have the courage to share the little we have, to do whatever we can, and not let doubt in ourselves or others or You stop us from recognizing a need and responding to it in some way, no matter how little we have to share!
Thursday, April 23, 2020
God of Abundance
In today's Gospel, John 3: 31-31, John reminds us that God "does not ration his gift of the Spirit." We see the abundance of God's Spirit in parents caring for their children, in first responders going to help the sick or someone suffering from a natural disaster or in an accident on the highway. We see the Spirit at work in our families and friends, our teachers and students, healthcare workers, counselors, human service providers, in persons working agricultural jobs, in construction workers, plumbers, retailers, policemen, firemen, scientists, actors/actresses, journalists, in priests and ministers and so many more.
The Spirit's gifts are obvious in the way others and we ourselves embody God's love, God's patience, God's compassion, God's understanding, God's forgiveness. This abundance is so obvious in times of crisis. My mother would often say: "What would we do without our faith?" That is the same as saying: "What would we do if God rationed the gifts of the Spirit?" No way could God do so, as that would be contrary to His nature. He is an Almighty God. He is infinite love and infinite mercy and infinite compassion!
Lord, open my eyes to your gifts and how you shower those down upon us in all circumstances of our lives and especially in times of suffering!
The Spirit's gifts are obvious in the way others and we ourselves embody God's love, God's patience, God's compassion, God's understanding, God's forgiveness. This abundance is so obvious in times of crisis. My mother would often say: "What would we do without our faith?" That is the same as saying: "What would we do if God rationed the gifts of the Spirit?" No way could God do so, as that would be contrary to His nature. He is an Almighty God. He is infinite love and infinite mercy and infinite compassion!
Lord, open my eyes to your gifts and how you shower those down upon us in all circumstances of our lives and especially in times of suffering!
Wednesday, April 22, 2020
"Glorify the Lord and Together Extol His Name" (Ps. 34)
In today's responsorial psalm, Psalm 34, we pray: "Let my soul glory in the Lord; the lowly will hear me and be glad. Glorify the Lord with me, let us together extol his name. I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Look to him that you may be radiant with joy, and your faces may not blush with shame. When the poor one called out, the Lord heard, and from all his distress he saved him. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. Taste and see how good the Lord is; blessed the man who takes refuge in him."
We witness the truth spoken in that psalm in today's first reading, Acts 5: 17-26. The Apostles were in prison for preaching about the resurrection of the Christ. "[D]uring the night, the angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison, led them out, and said, 'Go and take your place in the temple area, and tell the people everything about this life.'" And so, early in the morning, the Apostles, who are supposed to be in jail, are out in the temple area teaching about "this life," as instructed by the angel of the Lord.
Like the Apostles, we, too, are protected by angels and, many times, are led out of the prison of our fears, prejudices, anxieties, and despair to talk about the faith, to share our hope and to show love to persons scorned, rejected, or spoken ill of by others, as Jesus, the Risen Christ, was by so many unbelievers!
And, sometimes, God uses us to be an "angel" to others, opening doors that otherwise would remain closed to them or encouraging them to take their rightful place and share their life stories!
We witness the truth spoken in that psalm in today's first reading, Acts 5: 17-26. The Apostles were in prison for preaching about the resurrection of the Christ. "[D]uring the night, the angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison, led them out, and said, 'Go and take your place in the temple area, and tell the people everything about this life.'" And so, early in the morning, the Apostles, who are supposed to be in jail, are out in the temple area teaching about "this life," as instructed by the angel of the Lord.
Like the Apostles, we, too, are protected by angels and, many times, are led out of the prison of our fears, prejudices, anxieties, and despair to talk about the faith, to share our hope and to show love to persons scorned, rejected, or spoken ill of by others, as Jesus, the Risen Christ, was by so many unbelievers!
And, sometimes, God uses us to be an "angel" to others, opening doors that otherwise would remain closed to them or encouraging them to take their rightful place and share their life stories!
Monday, April 20, 2020
Coming from God!
In today's Gospel, John 3: 1-8, Nicodemus, a rule of the Jews, comes to Jesus at night, not wanting others to know that he was seeking Jesus. There was much about Jesus that caught Nicodemus' attention and he acknowledged such: "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one can do these signs that you are doing unless God is with him." Jesus says to Nicodemus: "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless one is born from above, he cannot see the Kingdom of God." Jesus explains further when He says: "Amen, amen, I say to you unless one is born of water and Spirit he cannot enter the Kingdom of God. What is born of flesh is flesh and what is born of spirit is spirit...." You and I are "born from above," that is "born of Spirit," by virtue of our baptisms. That birth empowers us to see God's Kingdom, to see the Spirit at work in the signs and actions of others, just as the Spirit worked signs and wonders through Jesus. People were healed! Cripples walked again. The deaf began to hear. The blind to see!
How often are you and I not awakened by the love and kindness, the forgiveness and generosity of a neighbor, a spouse, a child, a co-worker! We have examples of the Spirit at work in thethousand and thousand of healthcare workers around the world risking their lives to save others from dying from the coronavirus. We have many people working in human service professions to help those struggling with mental illnesses find light again and a myriad of persons in the teaching profession encouraging students to believe in themselves and their capabilities to succeed in life! Parents around the world sacrifice sleep to tend to their infant children or to a sick child or a child scared of "monsters" under the bed! How many spouses, like Nicodemus, have not said to their husband/wife: God sent you into my life; I am so blessed by you. Is that not like saying: "You come from God"?
God be praised and glorified and thanked for the many ways in which the Kingdom of God is revealed in our midst by others and by ourselves!
How often are you and I not awakened by the love and kindness, the forgiveness and generosity of a neighbor, a spouse, a child, a co-worker! We have examples of the Spirit at work in thethousand and thousand of healthcare workers around the world risking their lives to save others from dying from the coronavirus. We have many people working in human service professions to help those struggling with mental illnesses find light again and a myriad of persons in the teaching profession encouraging students to believe in themselves and their capabilities to succeed in life! Parents around the world sacrifice sleep to tend to their infant children or to a sick child or a child scared of "monsters" under the bed! How many spouses, like Nicodemus, have not said to their husband/wife: God sent you into my life; I am so blessed by you. Is that not like saying: "You come from God"?
God be praised and glorified and thanked for the many ways in which the Kingdom of God is revealed in our midst by others and by ourselves!
Sunday, April 19, 2020
God's awesome mercy!
In today's second reading, 1 Peter 1: 3-9, St. Peter gives praise to God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ for "his great mercy" in giving "us a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for [us] who by the power of God are safeguarded through faith, to a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the final time."
WOW! THE MERCY OF GOD! First of all, God gives us a new birth, a second birth, if you will, and this is birth into eternal life, a life that is "imperishable, undefiled, and unfading." That immortal life,which does not fade in brilliance, is "kept in heaven" for you and me. If it is kept in heaven, no one can defile it, neither you nor me nor anyone else. And, since it is kept in heaven, no one can destroy it or steal it from you or me. The only way we lose it is by denying Jesus Christ, our God or denying God PERIOD! Secondly, you and I "are safeguarded through faith," a faith freely given us in our baptism! Safeguarded for what? For "a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the final time." We are in that final time. You and I might not recognize salvation that comes to us moment by moment. However, God is at work saving us all of the time through the good we do to others, the love we show toward them, our acts of forgiveness, and through the good others do to us and the love they express to us by how they treat us as well as ask and give forgiveness. We are also being saved by our faith and hope in the Lord Jesus Christ hidden in everyone and every thing! And by our gratitude for God's goodness, the goodness of others, our own goodness--all gifts from a loving, caring, compassionate God of mercy!
Thank you, Lord!
WOW! THE MERCY OF GOD! First of all, God gives us a new birth, a second birth, if you will, and this is birth into eternal life, a life that is "imperishable, undefiled, and unfading." That immortal life,which does not fade in brilliance, is "kept in heaven" for you and me. If it is kept in heaven, no one can defile it, neither you nor me nor anyone else. And, since it is kept in heaven, no one can destroy it or steal it from you or me. The only way we lose it is by denying Jesus Christ, our God or denying God PERIOD! Secondly, you and I "are safeguarded through faith," a faith freely given us in our baptism! Safeguarded for what? For "a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the final time." We are in that final time. You and I might not recognize salvation that comes to us moment by moment. However, God is at work saving us all of the time through the good we do to others, the love we show toward them, our acts of forgiveness, and through the good others do to us and the love they express to us by how they treat us as well as ask and give forgiveness. We are also being saved by our faith and hope in the Lord Jesus Christ hidden in everyone and every thing! And by our gratitude for God's goodness, the goodness of others, our own goodness--all gifts from a loving, caring, compassionate God of mercy!
Thank you, Lord!
Saturday, April 18, 2020
Ordinary persons who are "Companions of Jesus"!
In today's first reading, Acts 4: 13-21 the leaders, elders and scribes were amazed at what Peter and John had done, seeing them as simply ordinary men, "companions of Jesus"! All they had to boast of in the eyes of these secular men was Jesus the Christ! They were not highly educated men. They were fishermen. That is all in the eyes of people who had no faith in Christ Jesus!
When the elders, the leaders and the scribes sternly rebuked Peter and John and forbade them to speak of Jesus, their response was: "'Whether it is right in the sight of God for us to obey you rather than God, you be the judges. It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.' After threatening them further, they released them, finding no way to punish them, on account of the people who were all praising God for what had happened."
You and I have the same credentials as Peter and John. We are ordinary people and "companions of Jesus"! Do we have the faith of Peter and John? Do we believe in the Christ as Peter and John did? It looked so simple: the crippled man was begging for silver and gold and Peter and John said to him: We don't have that to give you. What we do have, however, we do share with you. In Jesus' name, rise and walk! And the crippled man took Peter's hand, got up and walked, jumping around praising God for the healing power that overpowered his crippled state!
People in our lives are also freed of that which cripples them when we share God's love with them by loving, forgiving and lending help to them, when we encourage them to rise up to the occasion, support them in the good that they do, challenge them when they are allowing human weakness to hold them back from doing good and so on! We may not recognize the "miracle" God is doing through us but that does not negate His work in us and in others!
When the elders, the leaders and the scribes sternly rebuked Peter and John and forbade them to speak of Jesus, their response was: "'Whether it is right in the sight of God for us to obey you rather than God, you be the judges. It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.' After threatening them further, they released them, finding no way to punish them, on account of the people who were all praising God for what had happened."
You and I have the same credentials as Peter and John. We are ordinary people and "companions of Jesus"! Do we have the faith of Peter and John? Do we believe in the Christ as Peter and John did? It looked so simple: the crippled man was begging for silver and gold and Peter and John said to him: We don't have that to give you. What we do have, however, we do share with you. In Jesus' name, rise and walk! And the crippled man took Peter's hand, got up and walked, jumping around praising God for the healing power that overpowered his crippled state!
People in our lives are also freed of that which cripples them when we share God's love with them by loving, forgiving and lending help to them, when we encourage them to rise up to the occasion, support them in the good that they do, challenge them when they are allowing human weakness to hold them back from doing good and so on! We may not recognize the "miracle" God is doing through us but that does not negate His work in us and in others!
Friday, April 17, 2020
"It is the Lord!"
In today's Gospel, John 21:1-14, the Risen Jesus, that is Christ, appears to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias. Peter and his friends were out fishing all night long. As they approach the shore at dawn, Jesus is standing there and asks: "Have you caught anything" and they answer "no"! He then suggests that they cast their nets on the right side of the boat and the catch is extremely large. At the large catch, the disciple who Jesus especially loved says: "It is the Lord." As they come ashore, they notice a charcoal fire with fish on it and bread. Yes, Jesus is in the process of making them breakfast and ask for some of the fish they had just caught!
Christ is alive in each one of us! And, yes, this morning He made breakfast for us through the love and care of our spouse or for others through our own care, or through our employees if we live at an assisted living or nursing home facility. God is always at work in those who live by faith! Christ has no hand or feet but ours. His love and care, His compassion and understanding, His response to those in need comes to others through our generosity, our caring, our noticing the needs of another and responding with love! Jesus provides shelter for the homeless through our generosity. He heals others through the healing touch that is given them through us. He comforts a child or a grieving person through us. He lifts burdens through our willingness to do so!
Let us be the hands, the feet, the heart of Christ in a broken, wounded, hurting, needy world of persons who rely on our generosity, our love, our caring, our understanding, our forgiveness, our dying to selfishness and pride and greediness.
Christ is alive in each one of us! And, yes, this morning He made breakfast for us through the love and care of our spouse or for others through our own care, or through our employees if we live at an assisted living or nursing home facility. God is always at work in those who live by faith! Christ has no hand or feet but ours. His love and care, His compassion and understanding, His response to those in need comes to others through our generosity, our caring, our noticing the needs of another and responding with love! Jesus provides shelter for the homeless through our generosity. He heals others through the healing touch that is given them through us. He comforts a child or a grieving person through us. He lifts burdens through our willingness to do so!
Let us be the hands, the feet, the heart of Christ in a broken, wounded, hurting, needy world of persons who rely on our generosity, our love, our caring, our understanding, our forgiveness, our dying to selfishness and pride and greediness.
Thursday, April 16, 2020
Acting out of our Awareness of Christ or our Ignorance of His Presence
In today's first reading, Acts 3: 11-26, Peter draws attention to the people's amazement that the crippled man is able to walk, saying to the people: "You denied the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. The author of life you put to death, but God raised him from the dead; of this we are witnesses." It is the people's ignorance of Jesus as the "author of life" that led to their demand for his execution and it is this same ignorance that led to their amazement that the crippled man was restored to wholeness of life.
Christ continues to be "the author of life" to this day and works through you and me whenever, because of our belief in Christ, a life of faith, hope and love is restored! However, it is also our ignorance of Christ present in every person and every thing that leads to life being diminished and, in some cases, even destroyed, whether that be the life of a human being, an animal or a plant! When ignorance leads to us making poor choices, let us heed Peter's call: "Repent,..., and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away, and that the Lord may grant you times of refreshment and send you the Christ already appointed for you, Jesus, whom heaven must receive until the times of universal restoration of which God spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old...You are The children of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your ancestors when he said to Abraham, In your offspring all the families of the earth shall be blessed." We are that blessing when we respect life and, seeing Christ in all things and all people, are witnesses to Christ resurrection.
Christ continues to be "the author of life" to this day and works through you and me whenever, because of our belief in Christ, a life of faith, hope and love is restored! However, it is also our ignorance of Christ present in every person and every thing that leads to life being diminished and, in some cases, even destroyed, whether that be the life of a human being, an animal or a plant! When ignorance leads to us making poor choices, let us heed Peter's call: "Repent,..., and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away, and that the Lord may grant you times of refreshment and send you the Christ already appointed for you, Jesus, whom heaven must receive until the times of universal restoration of which God spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old...You are The children of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your ancestors when he said to Abraham, In your offspring all the families of the earth shall be blessed." We are that blessing when we respect life and, seeing Christ in all things and all people, are witnesses to Christ resurrection.
Wednesday, April 15, 2020
Our Faith Makes a Difference, as did Peter's and John's
In today's first reading, Acts 3: 1-10, Peter and John are about to enter the temple for the three o'clock prayer hour. A man crippled from birth asks the apostles for alms. Peter replies: "I have neither silver nor gold, but what I do have I give you: in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean, rise and walk."And he does so! People are amazed when they see this man walking and praising the Lord!
You and I are also blessed with a power to heal that which cripples us or cripples another! The healing may not be as drastic or obvious to the naked eye as in the case of the man healed by Peter and John but no less real! Where we see it is in the eyes and lives of little children who are touched by our generosity, our attention, our taking time to interact with them and respond to their requests that we play with them or listen to their stories or push them on a swing or play catch with them o throw them pitches! We see the power of the Spirit flowing from us to another when we lend a helping hand to an elderly person or bring a meal to a shut-in! We see the Spirit's power when we cuddle with a loved one, put our arms around a person who is lonely and needs someone to show that he/she cares.
Yes, we are blessed with spiritual wealth beyond our imaginings! Let us use this wealth in small ways and see rich "returns."
You and I are also blessed with a power to heal that which cripples us or cripples another! The healing may not be as drastic or obvious to the naked eye as in the case of the man healed by Peter and John but no less real! Where we see it is in the eyes and lives of little children who are touched by our generosity, our attention, our taking time to interact with them and respond to their requests that we play with them or listen to their stories or push them on a swing or play catch with them o throw them pitches! We see the power of the Spirit flowing from us to another when we lend a helping hand to an elderly person or bring a meal to a shut-in! We see the Spirit's power when we cuddle with a loved one, put our arms around a person who is lonely and needs someone to show that he/she cares.
Yes, we are blessed with spiritual wealth beyond our imaginings! Let us use this wealth in small ways and see rich "returns."
Tuesday, April 14, 2020
Encountering the Risen Christ and Sent to Announce His Rising
In today's Gospel, John 20: 11-18, Mary Magdalene is standing outside the tomb weeping. She is looking for Jesus but does not find Him. When she looks into the empty tomb, two angels are sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet where Jesus had been put wrapped in burial cloths. The angels say to Mary: "Woman, why are you weeping?" Mary replies: "They have taken my Lord, and I don't know where they have laid him." She turns away from the tomb and sees a man standing behind her. She thinks that he is the gardener. He asks her: "Woman, why are you weeping?" She says to the man: "Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him." The risen Christ says to her: "Mary"! And immediately she recognizes the "gardener" as Jesus. He commissions her to go announce the good news of His resurrection to the apostles and to tell them that He is "going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." Mary follows Christ's instructions and tells the disciples: "I have seen the Lord."
Would you or I have gone to the tomb looking for Jesus? Or would we have remained in hiding afraid of the Jews? Nothing stops Mary Magdalene. She is going to find the body of Jesus, her Lord, Master and intimate friend, and give him a proper burial. She certainly is going to save him from being further disrespected by anyone! She gets to the tomb. It is open and empty. She panics! Where is the body? What has happened to him? Where has he been taken? Who took him? As she looks more closely, she sees two angels sitting where the body of Jesus had been lain. And they engage her, wanting to know why she is weeping! Did she forget that Jesus had said that after three days He would rise again? In her anxiety, she turns away from the empty tomb and behind her is the Risen Christ, whom she does not recognize until He speaks her name. She then knows!
God knows each one of us by name, as well! God knows when we are searching for Him. He also knows how often we do not recognize Him in our midst. It is only when we have allowed Jesus to become our best friends and He calls us by name that our eyes are opened to His Presence! May we take time each day to deepen our relationship with the Lord. Let us also look for Christ each day in the people we encounter!
Would you or I have gone to the tomb looking for Jesus? Or would we have remained in hiding afraid of the Jews? Nothing stops Mary Magdalene. She is going to find the body of Jesus, her Lord, Master and intimate friend, and give him a proper burial. She certainly is going to save him from being further disrespected by anyone! She gets to the tomb. It is open and empty. She panics! Where is the body? What has happened to him? Where has he been taken? Who took him? As she looks more closely, she sees two angels sitting where the body of Jesus had been lain. And they engage her, wanting to know why she is weeping! Did she forget that Jesus had said that after three days He would rise again? In her anxiety, she turns away from the empty tomb and behind her is the Risen Christ, whom she does not recognize until He speaks her name. She then knows!
God knows each one of us by name, as well! God knows when we are searching for Him. He also knows how often we do not recognize Him in our midst. It is only when we have allowed Jesus to become our best friends and He calls us by name that our eyes are opened to His Presence! May we take time each day to deepen our relationship with the Lord. Let us also look for Christ each day in the people we encounter!
Sunday, April 12, 2020
Happy Easter!
Halleluia! Christ is risen!
Alleluia! Jesus has triumphed over sin and death! and so shall we!
Powerfully, an earthquake shook the earth when an angel descended and rolled back the stone and sat upon it and announced Christ's resurrection!
Powerfully, Jesus was raised from the dead! We, too, shall rise from that in us that is dead and, at the end of our lives, enter eternal life with Jesus!
Yesterday, Holy Saturday, was a sad day as our Tabernacles were empty as we contemplated Jesus' death on Good Friday when Jesus was crucified. Today, He is alive as the Risen Christ. Death has no power over Him.
Eternal life, for those who believe in Him, was secured by Jesus' life, death and resurrection!
Alas, the tomb is empty. Jesus has risen as He said!
Sadness has vanished. Our Savior is risen and goes before us day after day, preparing the way for us to experience His resurrection in our lives!
Today, may we seek the Lord in the persons we encounter and in the events of this day where the Risen Christ resides!
Even though we are unable to be with loved ones because of the coronavirus, let us rejoice that the Risen Christ is with them and us. God is at work in this trying time and will bring us new life through what we suffer now.
Risen and alive is the Lord. Announce the Good News by your life!
Alleluia! Jesus has triumphed over sin and death! and so shall we!
Powerfully, an earthquake shook the earth when an angel descended and rolled back the stone and sat upon it and announced Christ's resurrection!
Powerfully, Jesus was raised from the dead! We, too, shall rise from that in us that is dead and, at the end of our lives, enter eternal life with Jesus!
Yesterday, Holy Saturday, was a sad day as our Tabernacles were empty as we contemplated Jesus' death on Good Friday when Jesus was crucified. Today, He is alive as the Risen Christ. Death has no power over Him.
Eternal life, for those who believe in Him, was secured by Jesus' life, death and resurrection!
Alas, the tomb is empty. Jesus has risen as He said!
Sadness has vanished. Our Savior is risen and goes before us day after day, preparing the way for us to experience His resurrection in our lives!
Today, may we seek the Lord in the persons we encounter and in the events of this day where the Risen Christ resides!
Even though we are unable to be with loved ones because of the coronavirus, let us rejoice that the Risen Christ is with them and us. God is at work in this trying time and will bring us new life through what we suffer now.
Risen and alive is the Lord. Announce the Good News by your life!
Chosen to Witness to the Risen Christ
Today's first reading gives witness to the fact that, on the third day after Jesus was crucified and died, He was "raised...and granted that he be visible, not to all the people, but to us, the witnesses chosen by God in advance, who ate and drank with him after he rose from that dead"! That is you and I chosen in our baptism to know and profess the risen Christ, to eat and drink of His body and blood, soul and divinity in Holy Communion at every Mass or Liturgy that we celebrate! You and I, men and women, have been "commissioned...to preach to the people and testify that he is the one appointed by God as judge of the living and the dead. To him [we] bear witness, that everyone who believes in him will receive forgiveness of sins through his name."
Women were the first to proclaim the resurrection of Jesus and it was Mary Magdalene and another woman who was commissioned by Jesus to let the apostles know that He had risen: "After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven...[T]he angel said to the women..., 'Do not be afraid! I know that you are seeking Jesus the crucified. He is not here, for he has been raised just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, 'He has been raised from the dead, and he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. Behold I have told you.' Then they went away quickly from the tomb...and ran to announce this to his disciples" (Matthew 28:1-9).
How do you announce Jesus' resurrection in your life and in the life of your loved ones and to all those who have contact with you? Do others know the Risen Christ because they know you? If not, why not? If yes, give praise to the Risen Christ, who reveals Himself to you and to others through your love, your compassion, your understanding, your faith and trust in the Lord, your forgiveness, and your generosity in giving of yourself to lift burdens and spread the Good News of the Gospel!
Saturday, April 11, 2020
The Lord is Risen!
I started reading The Universal Christ by Father Richard Rohr and he introduces the book with the following quote from Caryll Houselander that speaks of her experience of seeing Christ in every one and every thing:
"I was in an underground train," Houselander begins, "a crowded train in which all sorts of people jostled together, sitting and strap-hanging--workers of every description going home at the end of the day. Quite suddenly I saw with my mind, but as vividly as a wonderful picture, Christ in them all. But I saw more than that; not only was Christ in every one of them, living in them, dying in them, rejoicing in them, sorrowing in them--but because He was in them, and because they were here, the whole world was here too, here in this underground train; not only the world as it was at that moment, not only all the people in all the countries of the world, but all those people who had lived in the past, and all those yet to come.
"I came out into the street and walked for a long time in the crowds. It was the same here, on every side, in every passer-by, everywhere--Christ.
"I had been haunted by the Russian conception of the humiliated Christ, the lame Christ limping through Russia, begging His bread; the Christ who, all through the ages, might return to the earth and come even to sinners to win their compassion by His need. Now, in the flash of a second, I knew that this dream is a fact; not a dream, not a fantasy or legend of a devout people, not the prerogative of the Russians, but Christ in man...
"I saw too the reverence that everyone must have for a sinner; instead of condoning his sin, which is in reality his utmost sorrow, one must comfort Christ who is suffering in him. And this reverence must be paid even to those sinners whose souls seem to be dead, because it is Christ, who is the life of the soul, who is dead in them; they are His tombs, and Christ in the tomb is potentially the risen Christ....
"Christ is everywhere; in Him every kind of life has a meaning and has an influence on every other kind of life. It is not the foolish sinner like myself, running about the world with reprobates and feeling magnanimous, who comes closest to them and brings them healing; it is the contemplative in her cell who has never set eyes on them, but in whom Christ fasts and prays for them--or it may be a charwoman in whom Christ makes Himself a servant again, or a king whose crown of gold hides a crown of thorns. Realization of our oneness in Christ is the only cure for human loneliness. For me, too, it is the only ultimate meaning of life, the only thing that gives meaning and purpose to every life.
"After a few days the "vision" faded. People looked the same again, there was no longer the same shock of insight for me each time I was face to face with another human being. Christ was hidden again; indeed, through the years to come I would have to seek for Him, and usually I would find Him in others--and still more in myself--only through a deliberate and blind act of faith."
Happy Easter!
"I was in an underground train," Houselander begins, "a crowded train in which all sorts of people jostled together, sitting and strap-hanging--workers of every description going home at the end of the day. Quite suddenly I saw with my mind, but as vividly as a wonderful picture, Christ in them all. But I saw more than that; not only was Christ in every one of them, living in them, dying in them, rejoicing in them, sorrowing in them--but because He was in them, and because they were here, the whole world was here too, here in this underground train; not only the world as it was at that moment, not only all the people in all the countries of the world, but all those people who had lived in the past, and all those yet to come.
"I came out into the street and walked for a long time in the crowds. It was the same here, on every side, in every passer-by, everywhere--Christ.
"I had been haunted by the Russian conception of the humiliated Christ, the lame Christ limping through Russia, begging His bread; the Christ who, all through the ages, might return to the earth and come even to sinners to win their compassion by His need. Now, in the flash of a second, I knew that this dream is a fact; not a dream, not a fantasy or legend of a devout people, not the prerogative of the Russians, but Christ in man...
"I saw too the reverence that everyone must have for a sinner; instead of condoning his sin, which is in reality his utmost sorrow, one must comfort Christ who is suffering in him. And this reverence must be paid even to those sinners whose souls seem to be dead, because it is Christ, who is the life of the soul, who is dead in them; they are His tombs, and Christ in the tomb is potentially the risen Christ....
"Christ is everywhere; in Him every kind of life has a meaning and has an influence on every other kind of life. It is not the foolish sinner like myself, running about the world with reprobates and feeling magnanimous, who comes closest to them and brings them healing; it is the contemplative in her cell who has never set eyes on them, but in whom Christ fasts and prays for them--or it may be a charwoman in whom Christ makes Himself a servant again, or a king whose crown of gold hides a crown of thorns. Realization of our oneness in Christ is the only cure for human loneliness. For me, too, it is the only ultimate meaning of life, the only thing that gives meaning and purpose to every life.
"After a few days the "vision" faded. People looked the same again, there was no longer the same shock of insight for me each time I was face to face with another human being. Christ was hidden again; indeed, through the years to come I would have to seek for Him, and usually I would find Him in others--and still more in myself--only through a deliberate and blind act of faith."
Happy Easter!
Mary's Sorrows
Let us imagine Mary's sorrows. She might say to us:
My sorrow in watching my Son being beaten, spit upon, kicked,insulted, fall beneath the cross, His wounds split open and bleeding, His being nailed to the cross, His dying on the cross in indescribable agony! My only son! The Son of God! God Incarnate!
How could anyone hurt him, crucify Him among criminals, much less treat Him as a criminal! How could anyone mock Him, spit on His face, pluck His beard! How could anyone make fun of God!
My son was silent! What could He say in the front of such evil. My heart broke as I watched Him suffer so! The cruelty of sinful persons was difficult to fathom and to see such cruelty leached on my Son was excruciating painful:
An innocent man!
A holy man!
An honest man!
A just man!
A good man!
The Son of God!
The second person of the Blessed Trinity!
A just God!
A forgiving God!
A merciful God!
One who healed the sick,
gave sight to the blind,
raised the dead to life,
cast out evil,
cast out Satan,
calmed the sea,
fed thousands,
pardoned our offenses!
Father, forgive them. They know not what they did to my Son and not what they do to each other when sin possesses them.
O Mary, Mother of Sorrows, pray for us now and forever!
My sorrow in watching my Son being beaten, spit upon, kicked,insulted, fall beneath the cross, His wounds split open and bleeding, His being nailed to the cross, His dying on the cross in indescribable agony! My only son! The Son of God! God Incarnate!
How could anyone hurt him, crucify Him among criminals, much less treat Him as a criminal! How could anyone mock Him, spit on His face, pluck His beard! How could anyone make fun of God!
My son was silent! What could He say in the front of such evil. My heart broke as I watched Him suffer so! The cruelty of sinful persons was difficult to fathom and to see such cruelty leached on my Son was excruciating painful:
An innocent man!
A holy man!
An honest man!
A just man!
A good man!
The Son of God!
The second person of the Blessed Trinity!
A just God!
A forgiving God!
A merciful God!
One who healed the sick,
gave sight to the blind,
raised the dead to life,
cast out evil,
cast out Satan,
calmed the sea,
fed thousands,
pardoned our offenses!
Father, forgive them. They know not what they did to my Son and not what they do to each other when sin possesses them.
O Mary, Mother of Sorrows, pray for us now and forever!
Friday, April 10, 2020
Mary and God: No Strangers to Sorrow,
My heart is heavy as I consider the hundreds of people who die of the coronavirus each day. This day, 2000+ years ago Mary stood beneath the cross of her dying son. Now, in 2020, she stands beneath the cross of so many of her sons and daughters dying of this horrible disease and grieves with the parents, siblings, sons and daughters, grandchildren and other relatives and friends of those losing their lives to this virus. She knows the sorrows of each, as she herself is no stranger to sorrow!
Just as Mary could do nothing but stand and watch, so, too, family members can do nothing either but stand and watch a loved one die. And in many cases can not even do that, as they are not allowed by the bedside of the sick person!
God, too, knows our sorrow and grieves with us! Why, we ask, doesn't God remove this scourge from the face of the earth? Why did he not stop the crucifixion of His only begotten son? Perhaps the answer to that question is the same answer. Our salvation depended upon Jesus being obedient to God unto death. Jesus, we are told in the Scriptures, learned obedience from what He suffered! Are we, too, to learn obedience to God from what we suffer? Are we, in fact, suffering this horrible virus because of the many, many times that we walked away from the challenges of surrendering to God's way of living here on earth? Have we made serious mistakes that led to this pandemic?
Jesus, we know, did not make any serious mistakes while He walked, lived, taught among us here on earth. His honesty, His confrontation of evil, His building the Kingdom of love and peace that He was sent to build, His healing of the sick, His driving out of demons, His way of challenging the people to live the spirit of the law and to realize that the letter of the law can, at times, kill led the chief priests, the scribes or teachers of the law as well as the leaders and elders of the nation to feel threatened by Him and jealous of Him and therefore were determined to destroy Him, which they did on the first Good Friday 2000+ years ago!
Jesus, may the crisis which we are now experiencing because of the spread of this virus be a wake up call for us. May our eyes be opened to the fact that, like you, none of us will escape death however it comes to us. However, may we also realize that death is not the end of our life but the beginning of a new resurrected life in heaven with You. I ask for these graces in your name. Amn
Just as Mary could do nothing but stand and watch, so, too, family members can do nothing either but stand and watch a loved one die. And in many cases can not even do that, as they are not allowed by the bedside of the sick person!
God, too, knows our sorrow and grieves with us! Why, we ask, doesn't God remove this scourge from the face of the earth? Why did he not stop the crucifixion of His only begotten son? Perhaps the answer to that question is the same answer. Our salvation depended upon Jesus being obedient to God unto death. Jesus, we are told in the Scriptures, learned obedience from what He suffered! Are we, too, to learn obedience to God from what we suffer? Are we, in fact, suffering this horrible virus because of the many, many times that we walked away from the challenges of surrendering to God's way of living here on earth? Have we made serious mistakes that led to this pandemic?
Jesus, we know, did not make any serious mistakes while He walked, lived, taught among us here on earth. His honesty, His confrontation of evil, His building the Kingdom of love and peace that He was sent to build, His healing of the sick, His driving out of demons, His way of challenging the people to live the spirit of the law and to realize that the letter of the law can, at times, kill led the chief priests, the scribes or teachers of the law as well as the leaders and elders of the nation to feel threatened by Him and jealous of Him and therefore were determined to destroy Him, which they did on the first Good Friday 2000+ years ago!
Jesus, may the crisis which we are now experiencing because of the spread of this virus be a wake up call for us. May our eyes be opened to the fact that, like you, none of us will escape death however it comes to us. However, may we also realize that death is not the end of our life but the beginning of a new resurrected life in heaven with You. I ask for these graces in your name. Amn
Jesus Bore the Guilt of Us All
Today's first reading, Isaiah 52: 13-53: 12, speaks of Jesus upon whom "the Lord laid...the guilt of us all." Isaiah describes his appearance as follows: "[T]here was in him no stately bearing to make us look at him, nor appearance that would attract us to him. He was spurned and avoided by peopled, a man of suffering, accustomed to infirmity, one of those from whom people hide their faces, spurned, and we held him in no esteem."
That is the look of sin as seen by onlookers and as recognized in ourselves if we are open to seeing sins' ugliness! The horror of sin has been shown to us many times: the images of war, of those slaughtered in war, those killed by murderers, by persons seeking revenge or acting out of jealousy. We seen the ugliness of sin within ourselves when we cheat, lie, are verbally abusive, entertain gossip and so on! Sin is not pretty at all! It robs us of our beauty and also does the same to those against whom we sin. Our spirits are dimmed by sin. Our attitudes harmed by such.
What does God see? I believe that He looks upon us with pity, as "sheep" without a shepherd, as Jesus described His "flock". I believe that He looks upon us with compassion and says to us, as He said to His executioners: "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. Often, it is in retrospect that we realize the effects of our sins. Before we commit sin, however, Jesus knows their effect upon us and upon the victims of our sinful behavior. He grieves, I believe, and is ready to help us get up, as Simon helped Him on His way to Calvary! He is there to wipe our brows, as Veronica wiped His. He is there and gazes upon us with love, as He gazed upon the women and His mother and the disciple whom He loved following Him to the hill where He was crucified for our sins.
As ugly as sin is, that much more beautiful is our redemption from sin, our being raised to new life by Jesus' death and resurrection! Grace triumphs and sin loses its power. Satan, on Calvary, was defeated! God reigns! God lives in us and takes possession of us, rejoicing in His work as Creator, Redeemer and Sanctifier of us all!
That is the look of sin as seen by onlookers and as recognized in ourselves if we are open to seeing sins' ugliness! The horror of sin has been shown to us many times: the images of war, of those slaughtered in war, those killed by murderers, by persons seeking revenge or acting out of jealousy. We seen the ugliness of sin within ourselves when we cheat, lie, are verbally abusive, entertain gossip and so on! Sin is not pretty at all! It robs us of our beauty and also does the same to those against whom we sin. Our spirits are dimmed by sin. Our attitudes harmed by such.
What does God see? I believe that He looks upon us with pity, as "sheep" without a shepherd, as Jesus described His "flock". I believe that He looks upon us with compassion and says to us, as He said to His executioners: "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. Often, it is in retrospect that we realize the effects of our sins. Before we commit sin, however, Jesus knows their effect upon us and upon the victims of our sinful behavior. He grieves, I believe, and is ready to help us get up, as Simon helped Him on His way to Calvary! He is there to wipe our brows, as Veronica wiped His. He is there and gazes upon us with love, as He gazed upon the women and His mother and the disciple whom He loved following Him to the hill where He was crucified for our sins.
As ugly as sin is, that much more beautiful is our redemption from sin, our being raised to new life by Jesus' death and resurrection! Grace triumphs and sin loses its power. Satan, on Calvary, was defeated! God reigns! God lives in us and takes possession of us, rejoicing in His work as Creator, Redeemer and Sanctifier of us all!
Thursday, April 9, 2020
The Holy Eucharist Given to Us at Jesus' Passover Supper
Today we celebrate the feast of Holy Thursday, the day that the Lord instituted the Holy Eucharist when, at the Passover Supper with His disciples, He "took bread, and after He had given thanks, broke it and said, 'This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.' In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.' for as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until He comes." At every liturgy the priest consecrates the bread and the wine which, in the consecration, the bread and the wine becomes the body and blood, soul and divinity of the Lord. Through the priest, the Lord then says to us: Take and eat and take and drink: "This is my body that is for you...[and] this cup is the new covenant in my blood," poured out for you. Each participant at this holy banquet then receives the Holy Eucharist, which is the body, blood, soul and divinity of Christ. What a gift! What a meal! What awesome nourishment. And what a gift to be part of this holy banquet until Jesus comes again and in the act of celebration proclaiming, in faith, the death and resurrection of the Lord!
I thank my parents and religious education teachers and the priests of my childhood for passing on this faith to me. And I thank God for giving me this gift of faith through them! May my faith deepen day by day until my death in the Lord Jesus and my entrance into eternal life!
I thank my parents and religious education teachers and the priests of my childhood for passing on this faith to me. And I thank God for giving me this gift of faith through them! May my faith deepen day by day until my death in the Lord Jesus and my entrance into eternal life!
Wednesday, April 8, 2020
"Surely , it is not I" or Is it?
In the Gospel Acclamation of today's liturgy, we pray: "Hail to you, our King: you alone are compassionate with our errors." We witness this compassion in today's Gospel,in which Jesus reclines at table, celebrating the Passover meal with both his betrayer and the one who would later that night deny Him vehemently three times! Jesus is cognizant of both men's future behavior and He says to the Twelve: "Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me." A shock wave goes through the room and each of the twelve in turn asks Jesus: "Surely it is not I, Lord?" Even Judas poses that question to Jesus! Jesus simply, caringly and lovingly responds to him, saying: "You have said so!" Perhaps Jesus is hoping that Judas will repent of his plan.
Imagine yourself sitting at this banquet, one of these especially chosen persons very close and dear to Jesus. You hear the One you love, the One you have followed closely for three years, the One from whom you have learned so much about love and truth and justice say: "One of you is going to betray me tonight to those who are seeking to kill me. Yes, one of you is going to hand me over to these evil men. I will then be arrested, condemned and put to death by way of crucifixion!" Unbelievable but the truth! One of the twelve men whom Jesus chose to carry on His mission when He returns to the Father will abandon Him to men jealous of His popularity, threatened by the increase of followers who cling to His every word and believe in Him as the Messiah.
That betrayer is you and me when we choose sin over righteousness, lies over the truth, hatred over love, a corrupt way of living over doing what is good and right, a promiscuous lifestyle over a disciplined way of living as Jesus lived!
And how often have we not said to the person who catches us in sin, as Judas said to Jesus: "Surely it is not I...?"
Imagine yourself sitting at this banquet, one of these especially chosen persons very close and dear to Jesus. You hear the One you love, the One you have followed closely for three years, the One from whom you have learned so much about love and truth and justice say: "One of you is going to betray me tonight to those who are seeking to kill me. Yes, one of you is going to hand me over to these evil men. I will then be arrested, condemned and put to death by way of crucifixion!" Unbelievable but the truth! One of the twelve men whom Jesus chose to carry on His mission when He returns to the Father will abandon Him to men jealous of His popularity, threatened by the increase of followers who cling to His every word and believe in Him as the Messiah.
That betrayer is you and me when we choose sin over righteousness, lies over the truth, hatred over love, a corrupt way of living over doing what is good and right, a promiscuous lifestyle over a disciplined way of living as Jesus lived!
And how often have we not said to the person who catches us in sin, as Judas said to Jesus: "Surely it is not I...?"
Tuesday, April 7, 2020
Food for Thought--IV
The coronavirus crisis and the crisis of Jesus sufferings and death:
Condemned to death, Jesus freed us from eternal death.
On the cross, Jesus prayed: "Father forgive them for they know not what they do."
Remember me when you get into your Kingdom, the good thief prayed!
On the way to Calvary, Jesus said to the women: "Weep not for me but for yourselves and your children."
Never will I deny you, said Peter to Jesus and, filled with fear, ended up denying Him three times!
Afraid, the apostles all fled--only John stood with Mary at the foot of the cross!
Verily, "this is the Son of God," the fearful onlookers said when an earthquake shook the ground and darkness covered the earth after Jesus' death.
In cooperation with Satan, Judas betrayed Jesus and then, in despair, took his own life.
Resurrected, Jesus triumphed over fear and death.
Until the coming of the Spirit on Pentecost, the apostles hid behind locked doors for fear of the Jews.
Secure in their faith by the outpouring of the Spirit on Pentecost, the apostles went forth to spread the Good News of Jesus' resurrection and did so with incredible boldness and courage, not afraid anymore to express their faith in Christ Jesus.
Following the crisis of the coronavirus, I pray that we will no longer be afraid to put God first in our lives and proclaim our faith in Christ Jesus by living just and upright lives for each other's sake!
Condemned to death, Jesus freed us from eternal death.
On the cross, Jesus prayed: "Father forgive them for they know not what they do."
Remember me when you get into your Kingdom, the good thief prayed!
On the way to Calvary, Jesus said to the women: "Weep not for me but for yourselves and your children."
Never will I deny you, said Peter to Jesus and, filled with fear, ended up denying Him three times!
Afraid, the apostles all fled--only John stood with Mary at the foot of the cross!
Verily, "this is the Son of God," the fearful onlookers said when an earthquake shook the ground and darkness covered the earth after Jesus' death.
In cooperation with Satan, Judas betrayed Jesus and then, in despair, took his own life.
Resurrected, Jesus triumphed over fear and death.
Until the coming of the Spirit on Pentecost, the apostles hid behind locked doors for fear of the Jews.
Secure in their faith by the outpouring of the Spirit on Pentecost, the apostles went forth to spread the Good News of Jesus' resurrection and did so with incredible boldness and courage, not afraid anymore to express their faith in Christ Jesus.
Following the crisis of the coronavirus, I pray that we will no longer be afraid to put God first in our lives and proclaim our faith in Christ Jesus by living just and upright lives for each other's sake!
Monday, April 6, 2020
Food for Thought---III
The Psalms certainly contain food for thought as we navigate through the threat of the corona virus. Here are some possible helps:
Come back, Yahweh, rescue [our] soul[s] (Ps 6:4).
Our strength,come quickly to [our] help (Ps 22:19).
Rise, Yahweh, save [us, our] God (Ps 13: 7).
Our soul awaits Yahweh; he is our help and shield (Ps 33:20).
Now, break your silence, Yahweh....Do not let them say, 'Now we have got him down' (Ps 35:22).
Assign your Love and Faithfulness to guard [us]
(Ps 81:7.
Verily,God is our shelter, our strength, ever ready to help in time of trouble (Ps 46: 1).
I rely on you, do not let me be shamed (Ps 25:2).
Relieve the distress of [our] heart[s], free [us] from [our] suffering. See [our] misery and pain
(Ps 25:17).
Up,wake up, come to [our] defense, Lord, [our] God, side with [us] (Ps 35: 23).
See, Yahweh is a stronghold when times are hard. Those who acknowledge your name can rely on you. You never desert those who seek you, Yahweh (Ps 9-10: 9-10
Come back, Yahweh, rescue [our] soul[s] (Ps 6:4).
Our strength,come quickly to [our] help (Ps 22:19).
Rise, Yahweh, save [us, our] God (Ps 13: 7).
Our soul awaits Yahweh; he is our help and shield (Ps 33:20).
Now, break your silence, Yahweh....Do not let them say, 'Now we have got him down' (Ps 35:22).
Assign your Love and Faithfulness to guard [us]
(Ps 81:7.
Verily,God is our shelter, our strength, ever ready to help in time of trouble (Ps 46: 1).
I rely on you, do not let me be shamed (Ps 25:2).
Relieve the distress of [our] heart[s], free [us] from [our] suffering. See [our] misery and pain
(Ps 25:17).
Up,wake up, come to [our] defense, Lord, [our] God, side with [us] (Ps 35: 23).
See, Yahweh is a stronghold when times are hard. Those who acknowledge your name can rely on you. You never desert those who seek you, Yahweh (Ps 9-10: 9-10
Sunday, April 5, 2020
Food for Thought--II
Come to Me all you who are burdened and I will give you rest.
On Me lean. I am your Savior and your God. There is no other.
Rely on Me to meet all of your needs, to comfort you in your sorrow, to heal your wounds and make you whole.
Only in God will your soul be secure, safe, and strong and thus able to withstand the storms of life.
Never lose sight of Me as Creator, Redeemer and Sanctifier, the one in whom fullness of life resides.
Always turn way from sin; repent and believe in the Gospel and you shall be saved.
Very often you have erected idols from which you hoped you'd find peace and to no avail.
I alone am God. I am the Light of the world, the Truth that gives life, and the Living Water that rises up into eternal life.
Rend your hearts, not your garments.
Until you turn to Me with your whole heart, your whole mind, and your whole soul you shall be anxious and afraid!
Saving you is what I am about in all the events of your life. Trust Me and you will live secure in My love!
On Me lean. I am your Savior and your God. There is no other.
Rely on Me to meet all of your needs, to comfort you in your sorrow, to heal your wounds and make you whole.
Only in God will your soul be secure, safe, and strong and thus able to withstand the storms of life.
Never lose sight of Me as Creator, Redeemer and Sanctifier, the one in whom fullness of life resides.
Always turn way from sin; repent and believe in the Gospel and you shall be saved.
Very often you have erected idols from which you hoped you'd find peace and to no avail.
I alone am God. I am the Light of the world, the Truth that gives life, and the Living Water that rises up into eternal life.
Rend your hearts, not your garments.
Until you turn to Me with your whole heart, your whole mind, and your whole soul you shall be anxious and afraid!
Saving you is what I am about in all the events of your life. Trust Me and you will live secure in My love!
Saturday, April 4, 2020
Food for thought--I
C----Could this pandemic be a wake-up call?
O----O, let us turn back to God with our whole heart, our whole soul and all our strength!
R----Return to the Lord, your God and Savior!
O----O, let us not delay!
N----No--turn back to God now
A----And repent of your blindness and deafness to doing what is right!
V----Vain are your pursuits away from the Truth!
I-----In vain do you seek security in humankind! R----Remember: you are nothing without God!
U----Useless is the help of humans
S-----Since God alone saves!
O----O, let us turn back to God with our whole heart, our whole soul and all our strength!
R----Return to the Lord, your God and Savior!
O----O, let us not delay!
N----No--turn back to God now
A----And repent of your blindness and deafness to doing what is right!
V----Vain are your pursuits away from the Truth!
I-----In vain do you seek security in humankind! R----Remember: you are nothing without God!
U----Useless is the help of humans
S-----Since God alone saves!
"They will be my people and I will be their God" (Compare Ezekiel 37: 21-28)
In today's first reading, Ezekiel 37: 21-28, God says that He "will take the Israelites back...." They shall no longer "defile themselves with their idols, their abominations, and all their transgressions. I will deliver them from all their sins of apostasy, and cleanse them so that they may be my people and I may be their God." Is that what God is doing through the coronavirus? Is he using this disease to turn us away from our "sins of apostasy," and to cleanse us so that we may be His people and God may be our God forever, and not the idols to which we have come--the accumulation of more and more material things, the multiplication of hedonistic, pleasurable experiences; wealth and the becoming of millionaires and billionaires, dominating and controlling others, being superior to others?
All of us are vulnerable to the coronavirus. No one is exempt. And to overcome this virus, we need to work together as one nation, one people, one world! All survive in cooperation with one another or no one survives. We are called to turn away from the sins of exclusion, domination, control, one person being superior to another, lording it over others and all the sins associating with these behaviors! God is God. There is no other God but God! May this virus cause us to fall down on our knees to the one true God and beg forgiveness and deliverance from this evil and the evil of of worshiping our egos and not doing what is best for each other in love!
All of us are vulnerable to the coronavirus. No one is exempt. And to overcome this virus, we need to work together as one nation, one people, one world! All survive in cooperation with one another or no one survives. We are called to turn away from the sins of exclusion, domination, control, one person being superior to another, lording it over others and all the sins associating with these behaviors! God is God. There is no other God but God! May this virus cause us to fall down on our knees to the one true God and beg forgiveness and deliverance from this evil and the evil of of worshiping our egos and not doing what is best for each other in love!
Wednesday, April 1, 2020
Challenges to our Faith
In today's first reading, Daniel 3: 14-20, 91-92, 95, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are asked to sacrifice to a golden statue that the king set up: "Be ready now to fall down and worship the statue I have made.....[If you don't", he says to them,] "you shall be instantly cast into the white-hot furnace;and who is the God who can deliver you out of my hands?" When the three men refuse, the king has the furnace "heated seven times more than usual and had some of the strongest men in his army bind" them and throw them into the furnace. The King is amazed as he peers into the furnace and sees four men unbound walking around in the furnace. He asks his nobles: "'Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?' 'Assuredly, O king,' they answered. 'But,' he replied, 'I see four men unfettered and unhurt, walking in the fire, and the fourth looks like a son of God.'" The king then praises God!
I can imagine the king raging against these three men. "How dare they refuse what I ask of them?" As his anger mounted, he increased the heat of the furnace and called forth his strongest men to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Is that not what our egos do when someone refuses to "worship" us and do what we ask of them? Does not our ego, at that point, become like this furnace heated 7xs greater than usual? In some cases does not the rage lead to violence of some kind, even murder?
This passage also challenges us to look at the faith of the three men who stand up against the king and do not flinch in the face of death, a horrible death in fact! "There is no need for us to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If our God, whom we serve, can save us from the white-hot furnace and from your hands, O king, may he save us! But even if he will not, know, O king, that we will not serve your god or worship the golden statue that you set up."
How strong is our faith in the face of danger? temptation? bullies? wickedness? Do we stand so firm in our faith that all we need to do is calmly state our position; or do we need to loudly defend ourselves?
I can imagine the king raging against these three men. "How dare they refuse what I ask of them?" As his anger mounted, he increased the heat of the furnace and called forth his strongest men to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Is that not what our egos do when someone refuses to "worship" us and do what we ask of them? Does not our ego, at that point, become like this furnace heated 7xs greater than usual? In some cases does not the rage lead to violence of some kind, even murder?
This passage also challenges us to look at the faith of the three men who stand up against the king and do not flinch in the face of death, a horrible death in fact! "There is no need for us to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If our God, whom we serve, can save us from the white-hot furnace and from your hands, O king, may he save us! But even if he will not, know, O king, that we will not serve your god or worship the golden statue that you set up."
How strong is our faith in the face of danger? temptation? bullies? wickedness? Do we stand so firm in our faith that all we need to do is calmly state our position; or do we need to loudly defend ourselves?
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