"The Temple Filled with the Glory of the Lord" (Ezekiel 43: 1-7ab)

 In today's first reading, Ezekiel 43: 1-7ab, the prophet shares a vision  he has of "the glory of the God of Israel coming from the east."   Every  morning, the sun rises from the east. Is God not hidden in the sun, as He is hidden in the consecrated host, I wonder!  Ezekiel goes on to share more of the vision, saying:   "I saw that the temple was filled with the glory of the Lord."  In our baptism, we died and rose with Christ and were transformed into the Temple  of  God.  The Spirit of God dwells within our very beings and, yes,  we are "filled with the glory of the Lord."  Our eyes are veiled so we do not see that glory but it is no less real, as real as the sun shining but not seen because it is hidden by clouds!
In the last lines of today's first reading, Ezekiel hears a voice saying to him:  This "is where my throne shall be, this is where I will set the soles of my feet; here I will dwell among the children of Israel forever." Yes! God dwells here on earth with us forever, as He promises His disciples right before He is ascended into heaven: Behold,  "I am with you always, until the end of the age" (Matthew 28: 20).
Where is God? Right here, standing before you and beside you. Right here, closer to you and me than our breath! Right here, living within your very being! "Where am I when you suffer," God asks? "I am suffering with you! That is where I am! Where am I in this coronavirus pandemic?  I am in it with you, struggling, as you do, to eradicate this plague from the earth! I am suffering, crying, weeping, struggling with you do! We are one!"
Why don't you, God, take it away?  You are God!  "I am not a magic wand that you can wave over the pandemic and it is gone.  No, I am God Incarnate, God-with-you, God-in-you! I am your Strength and your Light, your Wisdom that guides you in how you cope with this plague and what you do to limit its spread!Trust Me! Rely upon Me! Know your dependence, your vulnerability, your need of me and live wisely, humbly and lovingly!" 

God Is an Imminent God, an Approachable God, a Caring God

In today's gospel, Matthew 14:22-33, Jesus asked the the disciples to precede him to the other side of the sea, while he stayed behind to dismiss the crowd of over 5000 people that had just been fed with a miraculous multiplication of five loaves and two fish.  Several miles out on the sea a treacherous storm hits the boat with waves powerful enough to sink it.  Struggling to stay upright, the disciples notice someone walking on the waters and coming toward the boat. They are terrified.  Could it get worse than it is, they must have wondered. Then, Jesus says to them: "Fear not, it is I". Peter immediately says to Jesus: "If it is you, Lord, bid me come to you on the waters".  And Jesus says: "Come." Peter bravely gets out of the boat and walks on the water toward Jesus. The winds are strong and Peter, overcome with fear, takes his eyes off Jesus. Focusing on his fear, Peter begins to sink and cries out: "Lord, save me". Jesus stretches forth his hand and pulls Peter up, saving him from drowning.

You and I are like Peter at times. It is so easy to focus on our fears, to take our eyes off of Jesus. We can then get tangled up in our problems and, as our frenzy increases, we sink further and further into the "churning waters."  Waters are certainly churning in our world today and the storms are predicted to intensify: the storms of the coronavirus, the political storms, the protests against wearing masks, the stormy debates about returning to person-to-person learning, opening more and more businesses, the  avoiding large crowds and on and on! Storms may be raging in our families, our communities, our churches around any one of these issues or others causing fear among us.

I believe that whatever is happening in our world is a means of learning. What lessons do I need to learn from the chaos around me and within me? What steps do I need to take to regain a sense of balance in my life, to deepen my faith, to strengthen my trust in an imminent God, a caring God, an approachable God, a God who draws near to me on the stormy seas of my life this day?

"Fear not," Jesus says to me. "It is I; come to me!"

A God of Infinite Love, Mercy and Compassion toward All

In today's Gospel, Matthew 15: 21-28, a Canaanite woman from the region of Tyre and Sidon approached Jesus, calling out to Him: "Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is tormented by a demon."

Initially, it looked as though Jesus ignored her, as He does not respond to her request at first., so it seems.  Jesus' disciples are annoyed by this foreigner and say to Jesus: "Send her away,  for she keeps calling out after us."  In Jesus' times foreigners were referred to as "dogs." Jesus uses this expression and says to her: "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel....It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs."  The woman is not taken aback. She says to Jesus: "Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters."  Jesus, amazed at this foreigner's expression of faith, says to her: "'O woman, great is your faith!  Let it be done for you as you wish.' And her daughter was healed from that hour."

What a lesson for Jesus' disciples! No one is excluded from God's infinite love, compassion, and mercy. Those considered "dogs" by the Jews would be treated as compassionately as the Jews themselves! Gentiles as well as the Jews have equal access to Jesus' healing power!

Redemption is for all men and women in our day as well. Those toward whom you and I might not want to show mercy are shown mercy by God. Those excluded by society, put down by the powers that be in our world, those scorned and treated like "dogs" are treated lovingly, compassionately, and mercifully by God. His love, compassion and mercy are abundant toward all of His creation: men and woman alike, the rich and the poor alike, blacks and whites and all colors alike, criminals and noncriminals alike, young and old alike, the universe itself and all that dwells therein. 

Consequences of Making Choices, Good or Bad

In today's Gospel, John 12: 1-11, Mary and Martha invited Jesus to dinner--possibly in gratitude that He raised their brother Lazarus from the dead.  Martha served, Lazarus reclined at table with them and Mary lavishly anointed Jesus' feet with expensive perfumed oil prior to the meal, I assume.  Judas Iscariot, one of the invited guests, strongly objects to Mary's use of expensive oil to anoint Jesus' feet: "'Why was this oil not sold for three hundred days' wages and given to the poor?' He said this not because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief and held the money bag and used to steal the contributions. So Jesus [rebukes Judas, saying] 'Leave her alone.'"

Corruption, deception, thievery are evils that anyone of us, in any lifestyle or in any vocation is capable of falling into as we follow Jesus!  For Judas, the choices that he had been making all along led to a tragic end. We do not all of a sudden commit grave sins. Such are preceded by lesser evils, but evils none the less. They weaken our resolve and our efforts to do good.  Spiritual muscles, like physical muscles, if unused, atrophy!

What are we doing to strengthen our spiritual "muscles"?  Daily prayer, reflection upon the Scriptures, attendance at weekly and, if possible, daily liturgy, faithfulness to our vows--religious, priestly or marriage vows--in how we choose to love others for their own sake and for God's sake are important ways to become strong spiritually! Allowing ourselves to do as little as possible,  being slovenly in how we meet our responsibilities, cheating here and there, telling "white"lies, making choices that we know are wrong but "no one will know," seeing what we can get away with without being caught or confronted,  is much like what Judas did with the money bag: the results could be disastrous, or certainly not pretty!