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!