Going to the "Mountaintop" to Listen to God

In today's Gospel, Matthew 17: 1-9, Jesus takes Peter, James and John up a high mountain by themselves.  Jesus is transfigured before them, his face bright as the sun and his clothes white as a bright light.  they see Jesus in His glory and in conversation with Moses and Elijah. Peter is so excited that he says to Jesus: Lord, let us build three tents here: one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.  Suddenly a cloud covers them and they hear a voice say: This is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased. Listen to Him. Hearing the voice of God, the disciples fall to their knees frightened. Jesus touches then and says:  "Rise, and do not be afraid."  they look up and see only Jesus.

Like Peter, James, John and Jesus, this mountaintop experience was to bolster their spirits, as the time was nearing for Jesus to go up to Jerusalem, where He would be crucified.  We need and are given these "mountaintop" experiences in order that we, too, will be strengthened to pick up our crosses and go "up" to the Calvaries of our lives.

Just as Jesus invited Peter, James and John to the mountaintop with Him, so, too, does He invite us to come away with him to a high mountain.  Every day, however we choose to seek God's face, we need to take time out for prayer, be that in the solitude of nature, in a quiet place at work, or dropping into an  empty church on our way home from work.  Or, possibly, while at work, we might slip away
at lunch time to speak to the Lord, thanking Him for the graces of the morning and asking for guidance before we take up our responsibilities for the afternoon.  Jesus wants to touch our hearts and speak to us, just as He spoke to the apostles. Just as the three apostles heard the Spirit say to them: "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased; listen to him," so, too,do we need to listen to Jesus. It is important to create that kind of quiet in our lives to hear God's voice.

When was the last time, you or I sought the kind of solitude in which God's voice can be heard?

God as Protector and Guide of our Families

In today's  Gospel, Matthew 2: 13-15, 19-23, we are told that the magi completed their visit to Mary and Joseph and the infant Jesus.  The holy family was, at that point, in danger, as Herod was seeking a way to kill Jesus. Why? Because he perceived Jesus, the Messiah King and Savior of the world, as a threat to his power and kingship. Watching over the holy family,  God sends an angel to direct Joseph: "'Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you'....Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night, and departed for Egypt....When Herod had died, behold, the angel of the Lord [again] appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, 'Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the the land of Israel, for those who sought the child's life are dead.'"

Just as God protected the holy family, so, too, does God protect our families!  God is as solicitous for us made holy by Jesus' death and resurrection as He was for the biological holy family of Jesus, Mary, His mother, and Joseph, his foster father! God elicits the help of each parent, grandparent, and other relatives to secure the protection of His children. How sad when we let Him down. God, I believe, weeps when we abandon our responsibility to secure the well-being  of a child, including a child in its mother's womb.  God, I believe, weeps over immigrant children in cages, separated from their parents or when families are turned away from countries in which they are seeking asylum so as to raise their children in  in what they believed would be safe places. He weeps over children who are trafficked and/or sold to slave labor camps and abused in so many other ways. 

God, help us, as you helped Mary and Joseph protect Jesus. May we, like Joseph, be listening to Your instructions. May we let You be our Guide and Protector and use us as your reliable and responsible partners. I ask this in Jesus' name.

Following God's Lead or My Own

In today's first reading, Jonah 1: 1-2:2, 11, Jonah flees from God much like a small child dashes away from its parents when they want the child to do something that is unpleasant or difficult to do.  In Jonah's case, God asks him to "[s]et out for the great city of Nineveh, and preach against it; their wickedness has come up to me."  In an attempt to get away from God, Jonah boards a ship going in the opposite direction away from Nineveh.   On the sea, a terrific storm arises,  The turbulence is so horrific that the ship is about to sink.  The crew members determine that the problem is Jonah and,  in an attempt to save their own lives, throw Jonah overboard. A quiet comes over the waters and all is well for the crew but not so well for  Jonah. He is swallowed up by a huge fish which coughs Jonah up on the shores of Nineveh!

The theological message of this story is quite obvious. God is in charge of our lives and has sent us here to carry out His will both in small things and not-so-small things. When we rebel and choose our own will above God's, our lives are thrown into turmoil!  We lose our peace of mind, tossing and turning at night, for instance, unable to sleep.

When was the last time I refused to follow God's plan for my life? How have I rebelled? What kind of turbulence has my disobedience caused others in my life?  We might also ask ourselves what needs to be "thrown overboard," so that we restore our relationship with God and one another!

Spirituality of today's Scriptures

Today's Scripture readings (Jonah 3:1-10 and Lk 10: 38-42) are about listening to the voice of God directing us to do His will.  Jonah is given a second chance to get it right. "Go to Nineveh and you will be told what to say," God tells Jonah.  St. Francis of Assisi, whose feastday we celebrate today, has a similar experience. He, like Jonah and the Ninevites, was running away from what God wanted of him when, through a dream, God redirects him. He is to become a soldier of Christ, not a soldier of military might and glory, as he intended.  Likewise, Mother Frances Streitel, Foundress of the Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother, is taught on several occasions to let go of her will and follow God's. When, as a young sister she grew lukewarm in her observance of the rule, God brought her back, as God brought back Jonah and the Ninevites in today's first reading. In the Martha and Mary story, Jesus draws Mary to Himself.  Where are we in the spiritual journey: on a road to worldly glory, on a road that leads to estrangement from God, on an escape route?  Or are we, like Mary, seeking God's instruction; like Jonah, being given a second chance; or, like the Ninevites, repenting of our wrongdoing and our rebellious attitudes and returning to the Word of God?