Lessons from Today's Liturgy

In the Entrance Antiphon of today's liturgy, Saturday of the first week of Lent, , we pray: "The law of the Lord is perfect; it revives the soul. the decrees of the Lord are steadfast; they give wisdom to the simple"  (cf. Ps 19 [18]: 8). How absolutely true! Whenever I  do what the Spirit directs me to do,  even in the smallest of things, my soul is revived. I am uplifted and energized by following the Spirit's inspirations in something as insignificant, perhaps, as keeping my plants watered--insignificant, that is, in regard to tasks to be done but certainly not insignificant to the plants that depend upon my charity towards them!  In the Collect of today's liturgy, I am reminded 1) to turn my heart to God, my eternal Father, and 2)  to always do the one thing necessary: carry out works of charity and that doing so dedicates me to the worship of God, my Creator! Yes, even watering the plants is an act of charity pleasing to the Lord, my God, and an act of worship!

Being obedient to the Spirit is also addressed in today first reading, Deuteronomy 26: 16-19. In this passage from Deuteronomy Moses says to the Chosen People, and that includes you and me:  "This day the Lord, your God, commands you to observe these statues and decrees. Be careful, then, to observe them," Moses says, "with all your heart and with all your soul," not haphazardly, by any stroke of the imagination!  God wants our all! This agreement "to walk in [God's] ways...and to hearken to his voice," includes a stipulation and a promise from God Himself.  God says to us through Moses: "You are to be a people peculiarly his own...and, provided you keep all his commandments, he will then raise you high in praise and renown and glory above all other nations he has made, and you will be a people sacred to the Lord, your God, as he promised."

Being risen on high in praise and renown and glory is yours, and mine, as we have been made "sacred to the Lord" through the blood of Jesus poured out for us on Calvary. Through God's mercy poured out upon us in Jesus' death on Mount Calvary, you and I have been raised high with  Christ.  Like Him, we, too, following our death, will rise to new life in our resurrection. Death will have no power over us anymore than it had any power over Jesus.  We belong to Him, and to Him alone. We truly are "peculiarly his own."

Being "peculiarly his own" means that we are expected to step up to the plate in terms of following Jesus' example. In today's gospel, Matthew 5: 43-48, Jesus spells out what that means: "You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust." Yes, as Jesus did on the cross in praying for His executioners, not condemning them but forgiving them and welcoming the sinner into eternity, we, too, are to intercede for and wish our enemies well, treating them the same way we treat our friends!

Learning from the Ninevites!

 In today's first reading, Jonah 1: 1-10, the people of Nineveh were told that within 40 days the city would be destroyed .  When the people of  Nineveh heard this, they "proclaimed a fast and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth.  When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes."  Not only that, the king also ordered that  "every man shall turn from  his evil way and from the violence he has in hand. Who knows," the king thought, "God may relent and forgive, and withhold his blazing wrath, so that we shall not perish.  When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he repented of the evil that he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out." 

What would you, what would I, do if we were told that within 40 days our lives would be over if we did not repent and leave sin behind? Would we, like the Ninevites, begin to fast and pray differently than we are now doing? Would we change our way of thinking and acting?  Would be become more fervent, more disciplined, more loving, more generous, more caring, more forgiving of others and of self? Would we live more by faith than by sight? Would we choose the road most traveled, following the crowd,  or the road less traveled, even if we are the only ones on that path because it is the path God has mapped out for us?

You and I might say: "Lord, give me a sign!"  And we know God's response, as given by Jesus in today's Gospel,  Luke 11: 29-32:  "[N]o sign will be given...,except the sign of Jonah. Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to [you]...   "A]t the preaching of Jonah, they repented, and there is something greater than Jonah here."

As we pray in today Gospel Acclamation, Jesus says to us:  '"R]eturn to me with your whole heart for I am gracious and merciful" (Jl 2: 12-13).  It's like Jesus is saying: "Stop playing games with me by asking for a sign. You know what to do! My law is written on your hearts. And besides, I live within you and walk beside you!"

Teach Us How to Pray, Lord!

 In today's Gospel, Matthew 6: 7-15, Jesus reminds us that God the "Father knows what [we] need before [we] ask Him". Therefore, we are to keep our prayer short and  "not babble on like the pagans do."  Rather simply pray as follows:

Our Father who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy name, thy Kingdom come, 

thy will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven. 

Give us this day our daily bread; 

and forgive us our trespasses,

as we forgive those who trespass against us; 

and lead us not into temptation, 

but deliver us from evil"

Our Father/Mother God, hallowed be your name! Praise be to You, O God! May your Kingdom be realized here on earth as in heaven, that is, a Kingdom of justice and peace! May all on earth be one, one with one another and with God, as in heaven!  May your will be done here on earth as in heaven, that is, may all peoples be treated with equality,  loved beyond measure and unconditionally! May Your will  be done here on earth as in heaven for all men and women regardless of creed or religion, race or ethnicity, status or gender, rich or poor; that is, may all men and women be recognized as a son or a daughter of God, as a brother or  a sister to Jesus Christ.

May everyone be given his/her daily bread. May no one go to bed hungry or die of starvation!  Forgive us for contributing to anyone suffering here on earth: suffering because of injustice, prejudice, hatred, another person's greediness, lust for power and control; suffering because of our indifference and selfish accumulation of unnecessary wealth that deprives others of what they need to put food on their table, to give their children what they need to do well for their own children! 

And, finally, Lord, keep us from calling into Satan's trap of temptation that brings evil to ourselves or to others. I ask this in Jesus' name!  Amen!

Who Do You Say Jesus Is?

 In today's Gospel, Matthew 16: 13-19, Jesus asked his disciples: "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?' They replied, 'Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.' He said to them, 'But who do you say that I am?' Simon Peter  said in reply, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.'"

Jesus puts that same question to me: "Dorothy Ann, who you say that I am?" "Jesus, You are the Son of God, the second person of the Blessed Trinity, the Word made flesh, the Word that created the universe and all that is in it. You are my Creator, God.  You are God who is hidden in the consecrated host: body and blood, soul and divinity of Christ, my Lord and God.  You are the One God made flesh who was crucified on Calvary and rose from the dead three days later, destroying death and sin forever!  You are God who dwells in the very core of my being, where You and I are one."

How do you answer Jesus' question: Who do you say that I am?

Make Known to Me Your Ways, O Lord!

 In today's responsorial psalm, Psalm 25, we pray:  Your ways, O Lord, make known to me; teach me your paths, guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my savior. Remember that your compassion, O Lord, and your love are from of old. In your kindness remember me, because of your goodness, O Lord, thus [you show]sinners the way. [You guide] the humble to justice, and [you teach] the humble [your] way."

God's compassion is revealed to us, also, in today's first reading, Genesis 9: 8-15, where God promised Noah never again to destroy the earth and all that is in it by a devastating flood: "When I bring clouds over the earth, and the bow appears in the clouds, I will recall the covenant I have made between me and you and all living beings, so that the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all mortal beings."

The flood waters from which Noah and eight other people were saved prefigured our baptism. In that sacrament, a sign of our redemption, we were saved by Christ Jesus, who "suffered for sins once, the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous, that he might lead [us] to God. Put to death in the flesh, [Jesus] was brought to life in the Spirit"  and you and I with Him (compare today's second reading: 1 Peter 3: 18-22).

In today's Gospel, Mark 1: 12-15, the "Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert..., [where] he remained...for forty days, tempted by Satan. He was among wild beasts, and the angels ministered to him."   Like Jesus, you and I are often driven out into the desert of our lives. At those times it can feel like we are "among wild beasts."  It is in those deserts that God send angels to minister to us, guide us, comfort us and teach us that we do "not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God," (the Gospel Acclamation of today's liturgy).  

Lord, when the Spirit drives me out into a desert, please "make known to me" your ways. In those moments of difficulty, when the light seems to have gone out, or at least is seriously dimmed, "teach me your paths, guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my savior. Remember that your compassion, O Lord, and your love are from of old. In  your kindness, remember me, because of your goodness, O Lord" (Psalm 25).

A Compassionate and Merciful God

 

 Today's Gospel acclamation, Ez 33:11, proclaims that God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked... but rather in [their] conversion, that [they] may live."  The news, invariably, brings wickedness to our attention: someone committing violent crimes against another human being, exploiting the poor, withholding justice, violating human rights in various nations throughout the world, including the U.S.., destroying other people's property, and so on!  God, the prophet Ezekiel tells us, takes no pleasure in the of criminals but delights and waits for their conversion, "that [they] may live!"

God is a merciful, compassionate God. He waits for each of us to turn to Him, to repent and believe in the Gospel! And, yes, He invites the sinner, the criminal, to follow Him, as He did Matthew in today's Gospel (tax collectors, in Jesus' time, were known for exploiting the people, stealing from them by demanding excess revenue and then pocketing some of the money).  When the Pharisees and their scribes witnessed Jesus calling Matthew and then dining with him and fellow tax collectors, they complained, asking: "'Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?' Jesus said to them in reply, 'Those who are healthy do not need a physician, but the sick do. I have not come to call the righteous to repentance but sinners.'"

Jesus came to reveal the true nature of our God, a God filled with compassion, seeking to dine with us and to make us whole, to cure our illnesses, that is, those weaknesses that lead us into sin!  As a Divine Physician, God excels in accurate diagnoses of our condition and knows exactly where healing is needed!

"Where Are You?"

 

In today's first reading, Genesis 3: 9-24, we are given the dialogue that occurred between God and Adam following his disobedience to the Lord.  "'Where are you,'" God called out to Adam.  "'I heard you in the garden; but I was afraid, because I was naked, so I hid myself.' then [God] asked, 'Who told you that you were naked? You have eaten, then, from the tree of which I had forbidden you to eat!' the man replied, 'The woman whom you put here with me--she gave me fruit from the tree, and so I ate it.' The Lord God then asked the woman, 'Why did you do such a thing?' The woman answered, 'The serpent tricked me into it, so I ate it.'"

And the blame game goes on to this very day, as does the hiding when we do something wrong!  As with Adam, we feel "naked" when we go against our consciences, that is, when we follow our will and not God's!  And like both Adam and Eve, we find someone or something to blame for our wrongdoing! Also, true, is that God, to this very day, looks for us when we have gone astray. "Where are you?" God asks each one of us. We cannot hide from God! God knows that we are afraid, that we know that when we have done wrong, and He comes in search of us. Not to condemn us but to restore us, to heal us, to make us whole again and to protect us from Satan's trickery! God takes our side against Satan! God comes to help us every time and any time! 

Yes, there are consequences when we sin, as there were for Adam and Eve and for Satan who corralled them, so to speak!  Jesus assumed responsibility for our disobedience to God, offering His life and death to show us the way back to God and to assure us that sin and death do not have the last word! Resurrection does. We will rise from our sinful ways and return to what is right and just and the loving thing to do. God is there to strengthen us to leave sin behind and to follow Jesus, who is our Way, our Truth, and our Life back to God!

 

The Wonders of God's Creation

 Today's first reading, Genesis 1: 1-19, tells the story of creation!   "In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless wasteland, and darkness covered the abyss, while a mighty wind swept over the waters."  The sacred writer then goes on to describe in detail God's creation: "God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light . God saw how good the light was." God said let there be this and that and the next thing. And following His creation of all these things--light, darkness, earth, the seas, sun, moon and stars, plants and animals, human beings (male and female)-- "God saw how good" everything was!

God continues to create to this very moment, having put His creative powers in the core of  all that He initially brought into being and continues to bring into existence!  And God sees that it is good, every time!  God's creative energies are at work moment by moment: in every every man and woman,  seed-bearing plant and in every  animal, fish of the sea and birds of the air. Not only are new persons, plants, animals, fish and birds brought into existence every day but those in existence are renewed every day, as well!

WOW! And so, in today's liturgy, we pray in the responsorial psalm, Psalm 104:  "Bless the Lord, O my soul! O Lord, my God, you are great indeed! You are clothed with majesty and glory, robed in light as with a cloak. You fixed the earth upon its foundation, not to be moved forever; with the ocean, as with a garment, you covered it; above the mountains the waters stood. You send forth springs into the watercourses that wind among the mountains. Beside them the birds of heaven dwell; from among the branches they send forth their song. How manifold are your works, O Lord! In wisdom you have wrought them all--the earth is full of your creatures; bless the Lord, O my soul! Alleluia!"

GOD BE PRAISED FOREVER AND EVER AND EVER! AMEN!

Jesus' Example of Coping with Life's Difficult Moments

 In today's first reading, Job 7: 1-4, 6-7, e encounter a depressed Job.  All of the tragic episodes in his life got to him. That is not uncommon.  Life can be overwhelming at times! Job lashed out at God! that, too, can happen! I remember during a very difficult time in my life when I thought God was going to wipe out my family--I was, obviously in acute grief. After expressing my anger at God, I felt terrified--would God strike me dead, I wondered! In prayer, I  heard God say to me in my thoughts: "Your anger is not a problem for me. You are the one troubled by  your anger. Not me!"  I have learned since then that it is important to be honest with God. Another time, when I was hiding my emotions from God in prayer, I heard in my thoughts: "Be honest with me. I know what you are feeling. Don't hide them from me." 

God transcends our anger and understands the circumstances that lead us into anger and/or depression. He meets us in those pits of negative emotions and brings us to the surface, as He did with Job.  Through Christ Jesus, God brings us to a place where we can, with the psalmist, pray:  "Praise the Lord, for he is good; sing praise to our God, for he is gracious; it is fitting to praise him" (Today's responsorial psalm, Psalm 147). And God will give us as much time as we need to get to that point, to climb out of the pit into which we may have climbed!

In today's Gospel, Mark1: 29-39, Jesus teaches us how to deal with life when it gets overwhelming, when we are pressed by the crowd (be that  human crowds or the crowd of negative emotions) and need space to sort things out and clear our minds! Jesus finds a private place away from people and communes with His Father!  We can and need to do the same if we are to maintain our peace of mind and be able to serve others well!

God's Compassion Is Boundless

 Today's Scriptures, Hebrews 13: 15-17, 20-21, the responsorial psalm, Psalm 23, and the Gospel, Mark 6: 30-34, reveal to us a God full of compassion, kindness, and love; in short, a God who cares about us, knows our neediness, and responds generously. Paul says to us in Hebrews: God will "furnish you with all that is good, that you may do his will." Paul then prays for us: "May [God] carry out in your what is pleasing to him through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and every. Amen."

That prayer does not go unanswered! God does, in fact, carry out in us what is pleasing to him and does, also, furnish us with all that is good! Why? So that we are empowered to do God's will, which is to engage in activities that are pleasing to him, and which respond, in love, to the needs of others and our own needs, as well!  If we fail to respect our personal needs, we will not be able to respond lovingly to the needs of others. Deprivation of personal needs for love, forgiveness, joy and peace--all that is good--depletes our ability to give these gifts to others. Jesus recognized that truth when He says to us:  Love the Lord, your God, with your whole soul and your neighbor as yourself.

How generous is God, a God who furnishes us with "all that is good."  Jesus is God and shows us the nature of God in today's gospel, Mark 6: 30-34. At the end of an exhausting day, Jesus says to his apostles: "Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while."  He says the same to us when we are exhausted from a day's work or from years of pouring ourselves out to others in challenging ministries, without costing the cost! In fact, some of our Sisters who worked in our hospitals gave of themselves 24/7, taking on one shift after another when others were unable to come in to work because of a sick child or sick themselves.  "Come away and rest  by yourselves to a deserted place and rest awhile." Perhaps that is what God intends quarantine to be for those of us, temporarily, set apart from the rest of the community!

Following that exhausting day, Jesus and the apostles got into a boat and sailed off to a quiet place on the waters to get away from the crowds.  However, the crowd took note of the direction they were going and met them on the opposite shore. "When Jesus disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them,...and he began to teach them many things." The generosity, the kindness, the love, the compassion of our God knows no limits!

Avoiding Truth and the Consequences of Doing So

 In today's Gospel, Mark 6: 14-29,  Herod, we learn, is very perplexed by John the Baptist, whom his wife, Herodias,  wanted put to death but feared the people's reaction, as they had grown to love and respect John. (Herodias was Herod's  brother's wife).  Herod was trapped when, delighted by his daughter's dance performance, promised to give her anything she asked of him. When given this promise, the daughter went to her mother, Herodias, and asked her advice. Herodias told her daughter to ask for the head of John the Baptist, whom Herod had imprisoned. And thus it happened: John the Baptist was beheaded and his head brought to Herodias on a platter, as she had requested!

OMG! we may be saying to ourselves!  Jealousy, anger and hatred, when entertained, can lead to treacherous ends--yes, even to murder! Every human being, ourselves included, are capable of doing disastrous deeds. If, like Herodias, we do not face the truth in our lives and feed our anger, we, too, are capable of harming others and, ultimately, ourselves. Truth sets us free! Lying to ourselves and not taking responsibility for our wrongdoing will lead to the web Herodias and Herod constructed for themselves.

May  you and I have the courage and the humility to face the truth about ourselves and about our choices! May we come to the Lord with open hearts and minds, seeking to be set free of that which has the power to block us from the truth!

The Eucharist: Countless Angels In Festal Gathering

 In today's first reading, Hebrews 12: 18-19, 21-24, Paul reminds us that we "have approached Mount Zion and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem and countless angels in festal gathering, and the assembly of the firstborn enrolled in heaven, and God the judge of all, and the spirits of the just made perfect, and Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and the sprinkled Blood that speaks more eloquently than that of Abel."  When you and I attend Holy Mass, we truly "approach Mount Zion...,the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem...[C]ountless angels in festal gathering" join us, as the Spirit through consecrated priestly  hands transforms the bread and wine into the body and blood, soul and divinity of Jesus.  In the Eucharist, Jesus, "the mediator of a new covenant, and the...Blood [of Jesus] speaks more eloquently that than of Abel." At Mass,  we remember Jesus' pouring out His blood for us on the cross and then, in the resurrection, destroying death. We then, in the sacrament of Holy Communion, respond to Jesus' invitation: "Take and eat; this is my Body. Take and drink; this is my Blood poured out for you."

What a grace! What a privilege to be part of the Eucharist at every Mass!  Thank you, Lord!

Seeking God in Times of Quarantine

 Today we celebrate the presentation of the Lord in the Temple to be consecrated! It is a time when Mary and Joseph were told by the prophet Simeon that a sword would pierce their hearts. During this pandemic, many people have been "pierced by the sword" of being separated from their loved ones and, some, have been quarantined because they have contracted Covid-19 or have been in direct contact with someone with the disease.  That has led me to reflect upon this situation by creating the following acronym:

Quietly, quarantine invites us to surrender to God's will

United with Jesus

And His blessed Mother.

Rich in God's mercy is this quiet time

And filled with God's Presence.  

Never may we abandon God or  believe that we are left

To sink into the pit of frustration.

In that pit, if we go there,  God awaits us and redirects us to the Light!

Named "Beloved" by God,  let us remember that we are

Empowered to bring to life the best in us during this time of separation from those we love and about whom we care deeply!

This time in quarantine is holy ground!

It is never a time without God but is 

Meant to lead us to deepen our relationship with our Redeemer God.

Even though we may encounter the temptation to question why God has allowed this pandemic to invade the entire world, may we never lose faith in God's power to bring good out of what seems to be evil.

Determination in the Light of Adversity!

 As I read today's Scripture readings, Hebrews 11: 32-40 and Mark 5: 1-20, my reaction led me to cry out: OMG!  In the first reading, Paul speaks about prophets "who  by faith conquered kingdoms, did what was righteous, obtained the promises; they closed the mouths of lions, put out raging fires, escaped the devouring sword; out of weakness they were made powerful, became strong in battle, and turned  back foreign invaders. Women received back their dead through resurrection. Some were tortured and would not accept deliverance, in order to obtain a better resurrection. Other endured mockery, scourging, even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, sawed in two, put to death at sword's point" and "the world was not worthy of them," says Paul!  In the Gospel, Jesus encountered a man possessed by a Legion of demons. On one could help this man. "Day and night among the tombs and on the hillsides he was always crying out and bruising himself with stones."  "...he had frequently been bound with shackles and chains, but the chains had been pulled apart by him and the shackles smashed, and no one was strong enough to subdue him."

Could life get any worse, I asked myself! Then I thought of Jesus, who chose to become one of us, to enter our world, experience all that we experience: man's inhumanity to man, the demons' determination to afflict us and, yes, the power of the resurrection! 

Life can throw us curve balls and we can even get hit my one, knocked off our feet, so to speak, sometimes taken out of commission for a while. Sometimes we seem to, initially, be unable to get up but get up, we do!  Yes, life can be overwhelming from time to time! But we, too, are strengthened in our weaknesses, made strong by the battles we endure and take on! We, too, can experience resurrections from that which seems to have the power to zap positive energy away from us! However, at the end of a horrible day, we turn off the lights, go to sleep and wake up refreshed, restored, renewed in our hope and trust and determination to begin again all in God's name and by God's power at work in us throughout the night and now at the beginning of a new day!  God be praised!