The Vocation of Mothers and of All Women

Today is Mother's Day. We celebrate the woman God destined to bring each of us, men and women, into the world. Each of us is a word of God, as Jesus is the Word of God.  As I reflected on my mother and who she was for my siblings and me, the following came to me in a dialogical prayer with my mom:

"Happy Mother's Day, Mom! Thank you for mothering me to this very day."

"You are welcome, Dort. And thank you for being a spiritual, caring and loving mother to so many children, big and small, young and old.  In your work as counselor you mothered many!  Thank you!"

"You are welcome, Mom.  Mom you taught us to serve others, to help others, to care, to provide for other people's needs. Mom, you gave us strength, love, faith and confidence!  Thank you!"

"You are welcome, Dort! Do not lose faith. I know you struggle with how the Church has treated women and even how Mary's culture treated her.  Be not discouraged.  As a disciple of Christ, as a baptized Christian, you are sent to bring Good News to others, to proclaim Christ's resurrection, to open the Scriptures as much as any priest ordained by a bishop. You are asked to carry our your baptismal vocation without the public recognition given to a priest. Your vocation as a woman was  confirmed  by Jesus, who called women to spread the Good News and to proclaim the resurrection--in fact the first person to proclaim the resurrection was a woman."

"God does not will that you live out your call in the public eye but privately. Your vocation  to proclaim the Good News, to share your faith in Christ Jesus, to bring others to Christ--the call of every priest ordained by a bishop--was  given to you at your baptism.  Cherish your call, Dort, to do as Mary, the mother of Jesus, did,  that is  to bring Jesus to the world, and also to do as Mary Magdalene did, proclaim the Good News of Jesus' resurrection.  Proudly, carry out the role God has ordained for you as a woman. The baptismal call to proclaim your faith and to share the Good News is as real and as needed as the call a priest receives in his ordination by a bishop!"

"Thank you, Mom, for these words of wisdom!  You certainly brought Jesus to me by your works of faith and love and hope in Christ Jesus; and you brought me to Jesus! In every way as a mother you lived out the call you received at your baptism!   Thank you!"

"You are welcome, Dort! I love you!"

"I love you, too, Mom!"

Being a Disciple of Jesus

The entrance antiphon of today's liturgy, describes the call of James the Apostle, whose feast we celebrate today:  As he walked by the Sea  Galilee, Jesus saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother mending their nets and called them" (cf. Mt. 4: 18, 21). And they followed the Lord and never left Him.

James and John were ordinary fishermen.  Nothing out of the ordinary, like all of us.  We are common folk whose hearts God knows!  He sees what we are made us--He is our Creator--and He knows of what we are capable, in spite of our shortcomings, our weaknesses, our fears, our misguided ambitions.  In the case of James and John, they commanded Jesus through their mother, that, in heaven,  one sit at his right and the other at his left in the Kingdom. Jesus replies:  "You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink"  (Matthew 20-28)?

Following Jesus, in any vocation, is not about being treated to special positions above others. Service, after the example of Jesus, means a self-emptying, a giving of ourselves for the sake of the other. In Jesus' case, self-emptying entailed being a victim of other people's jealousy, a jealousy that led persons to succumb to the evil of putting Jesus to death, getting Him, so to speak, out of their way of the power they coveted!

Power struggles are part of life. In fact, prior to their total conversion into what it means to be a disciple of the Lord, James and John and the other apostles strove for power over one another. Jesus says to them in today's Gospel:  "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and the great ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave. Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many"  (Matthew 20: 20-28).

Whom are you serving? For whom are you willing to give your life?

Sent forth as Disciples of Jesus

In today's Gospel, Luke 10: 1-9,  Jesus commissioned 72 disciples to go forth in His name.
"Go on your way; behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves. Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals; and greet no one along the way. In whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this household. If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to
you....Whatever town you enter and they welcome you, eat what is set before you, cure the sick in it and say to them, 'The Kingdom of God is at hand for you.'" 

Jesus is saying to you and me, as disciples of Jesus, that our work as disciples of Jesus will not be easy, as we are being sent as lambs among wolves.  Risks and dangers are part of the terrain! We are sent to build God's kingdom just as Jesus did!  To be effective, it is important that we maintain our personal peace--we cannot share what we do not have! We also need the gift of discernment to recognize when another is not open to the peace we bring in God's name. If there is no openness, we need to move on, maintaining the peace God has given us.  Furthermore,  persons and places we visit are to be left in better shape than before our visit. And, yes, after our visits, those we spent time with should come to know that the Kingdom of God is real!

The Challenge of Discipleship

In today's second reading, Philippians 2: 1-11, St. Paul admonishes us to do "nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his [her] own interests, but also for those of others."  Paul's statement--"but also for those [the interests] of others," implies that it is important to meet one's own needs and the needs of others. Self-neglect will lead to anger and resentment.

In terms of doing "nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather humbly regard others as more important than yourselves,"  we have Jesus as an example of these behaviors. "Christ Jesus,...though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped [vainglory]. Rather, he emptied himself [for our sakes]  taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross" [regarding us more important than himself].

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."  Jesus teaches us, by example, to follow God the Father's way, as He, in fact did throughout his life for our sakes.  As a disciple of Christ, you and  I are challenged to set aside our pride and selfishness and, with the courage, wisdom, humility, and generosity of Jesus to do as He did--give our lives for others! May God give us the graces today to follow Jesus' example.

The Cost of Discipleship

In today's first reading, Acts 14: 19-28, we are told that Jews from Antioch and Iconium arrived to the place where Paul was proclaiming Christ. These Jews won over the crowd and stoned Paul, leaving him for dead. When disciples of Jesus surrounded Paul, he got up.  These disciples with Paul left for Derbe, where they strengthened the faith of others, exhorted them to remain true to the faith. They also reminded the disciples of Jesus in Derbe that they would suffer much for their faith but not to waver.

I am left when several questions: Do I strengthen others in the faith or do I weaken other's faith by my lack of love and compassion, by my impatience, by my judgmentalism? Do I make life difficult by my grumbling or complaining when I encounter difficulties?  Do I realize that discipleship is costly? And, do I realize, that, like Paul, I sometimes need other disciples to help me get up when I am down?

Jesus tells us before returning to the Father that, like Him, our journey of faith will encounter hard times.  Many times, the difficulties we encounter are unexpected: friends and family turn against us or we are shunned because of our beliefs. Doors are closed in our faces when we think that what we are doing is something to be welcomed or appreciated, or, at least, not blocked.

Jesus says to us not to be afraid, for He has conquered the world, that is the ruler of this world, Satan. We, too, empowered by the Holy Spirit, will overcome the world of sin, of selfishness, of fear--of all that is not of God. And, like Jesus, we will learn obedience from what we suffer,as did St. Paul, St. Francis of Assisi, Mother Frances Streitel, the Foundress of my religious community, to name a few.

These are my beliefs! What are yours?

Being a Disciple of Jesus

In today’s first reading, Jeremiah 18: 18-20, we are told about the people of Judah’s plot to kill Jeremiah: “Come, let us contrive a plot against Jeremiah. It will not mean the loss of instruction from the priests, nor of counsel from the wise, nor of messages from the prophets. And so, let us destroy him by his own tongue; let us carefully note his every word.”   Jeremiah asks God to spare him this kind of suffering:

                Heed me, O Lord,

                And listen to what my adversaries say.

                Must good be repaid with evil

                that they should dig a pit to take my life?

                Remember that I stood before you

                To speak in their behalf,

                to turn away your wrath from them.

               

Obviously, Jeremiah is a prefiguration of Jesus. Throughout Jesus’ public ministry, the scribes and the Pharisees plotted to put Him to death by his own words.  ”Carefully, [H]is every word” was noted.   Like Jeremiah, Jesus begs His Father to take note.  In the Garden of Gethsemane, “he threw himself on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, this hour might pass him by. ‘Abba, Father! For you everything is possible. ‘Take this cup away from me. But let it be as you, not I, would have it.”

How willing, when I encounter suffering, am I to pray: “Abba, Father! For you everything is possible. Take this cup away from me. But let it be as you,  not I, would have it”?

In today’s Gospel, Matthew 20: 17-28, Jesus tells the Twelve that they are on their way up to Jerusalem. “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death, and hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and scourged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.”

You and I, throughout our life time, also are on our way to Jerusalem.  And, like the Twelve, we don’t always get it (See today’s Gospel)!  Sadly, we could, like them, still be clamoring for first place, for places of privileges, for special favors that put us above others, as in the case of James and John, who, through their mother, begged to be given special privileges in Jesus’ kingdom, which at that point they still believed would be an earthly one!

For what am I clamoring? Do I realize that, as a follower of Jesus, I, too, am going up to Jerusalem, where, through the process of dying and through death itself, I will be raised to a new life of grace, a life where good triumphs over evil, where I am put in right relationships with God, self and others, where there are no more tears or suffering,  and where sin will not prevail?

God's Request of Us this Lent and Always

“Be merciful to me for I have sinned,” (Luke 18:13) are the words of the tax collector!  These words come to me as I reflect on today’s first reading, Isaiah 58: 1-9a. The people are complaining that God does not notice their fasting and the ways in which they afflict themselves. God responds by reminding them that “on your fast day you carry out your own pursuits and drive all your laborers. Yes, your fast ends in quarreling and fighting, striking with wicked claw….Do you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?  The Lord then tells us what kind of fast He wants of us, what is acceptable to Him and gets His attention. “This, rather, is the fasting that I wish: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke; sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed and the homeless; clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own.”

Who have I bound or imprisoned "in a cold cell”  by  attitudes of jealousy, by anger and resentment, by withholding love, by a lack of gratitude, by distancing myself from them, by setting myself above them, by acting superior and unworthy of them?  Have I placed yokes upon others, expecting them to reach perfectionistic standards and, in pride, to be perfect as I am perfect, and thus refuse to serve them in any way? Who will experience freedom today because of my generosity, my forgiveness, my gratitude, my genuine service? Who will experience relief from their oppression and hunger because of my nonjudgmental  actions and thoughts today? Whose nakedness and shame will decrease or be covered today because I took time to listen to their heartbreak without criticism or without giving advice but showing empathy?

The Challenge of Total Discipleship

"Lord, open my mind to know you, my heart to love you and my will to follow you," is my prayer this morning as I reflect on the Gospel of today's liturgy, Mark 10: 17-27.  A young man excitedly approaches Jesus and says: "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" And Jesus reminds him of the commandments, which the young man, in turn, says he has observed all of his life. Then Jesus says to him: "You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." The man's face falls in sadness and he walks away. In his mind Jesus is asking too much; he is not ready to take that next step of unmistakable discipleship.

What is it that keeps  us from growing more deeply in our surrender to God's will as it manifests itself in our marriages, in community life, in our priesthood, brotherhood, sisterhood, in our vocation to the single life? What is that something that gets in our way of committing ourselves to being more faith-filled, trustworthy  disciples of Jesus? What blinds us and deafens us to the call to be more loving, forgiving, understanding, compassionate,self-giving?   What draws us away from working for a just society where all men and women, all races and cultures are treated with respect and where each person's human dignity matters?


What is that "one thing" we are lacking?  Open our minds, Lord, to the answer the Spirit is ready to give us as we ponder that question!


And let us, today, salute those men and women who have given their all in defense of this country and those who have returned from service physically handicapped and struggling with PTSD, depression and suicidal tendencies as the result of the trauma of active duty in war zones: being shot at, killing other human beings, dodging land mines and bullets, seeing their buddies/comrades killed, and witnessing the atrocities of war beyond the understanding of those of us spared such misery.

Bringing Strength to Others

In today's first reading, Acts 18: 23-28, Paul is traveling through "the Galatians country and Phrygia, bringing strength to all the disciples."  Today, God has given each of us a "territory," through which to travel: our families, our religious community, our parish community, our civic community.  What will I bring to those with whom I interact? Hope or hopelessness? Joy or sadness? Comfort or misery? Peace or discord? Mercy or mercilessness? Forgiveness or revenge? A humble disposition or a self filled with pride? Love or hate? Warmth or coldness? Acceptance or rejection? My strengths in the Lord or my weaknesses? A God-centered approach or self-centered narcissism?

Paul and those traveling with Him as missionaries encounter a "Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, an eloquent speaker,...[who] was an authority on the Scriptures."   With an ardent spirit, he instructed the people in "theWay of the Lord ," speaking and teaching accurately about Jesus, though he only knew John's baptism.  When Pricilla and Aquila, missionaries with Paul, heard him, they took him aside and explained to him "the Way of God more accurately."

Note the role of women in missionary activity, in spreading the news about Jesus, in explaining "the Way of God."  Also note Paul's inclusion of women in the work of spreading the Gospel, speaking about it, instructing others about Jesus.  And all Pricilla and Aquila did, Paul did, and Apollos did led others "to believe through grace."

All is grace! And all are called to be proclaimers of the Good News! What role are you playing to make Jesus better known? to bring others to Jesus?

Work for That Which Endures

In today’s Gospel, John 6: 22-29, following the multiplication of the loaves, Jesus’ disciples had gotten into a boat and sailed across the sea to Capernaum but Jesus did not go with them. He stayed behind and, out on the sea, the disciples see “him walking on the sea.”   The crowd that witnessed the multiplication of the loaves set out to find him and when they do, say to Him:  “Rabbi, when did you get here?” Jesus answers: “Amen, amen, I say to you, you are looking for me not because you saw signs but because you ate loaves and were filled.” Then Jesus makes a statement that, again, reveals who He is. He says: “Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him the Father, God, has set his seal.” The crowd does not recognize Jesus as the one upon whom God has set his seal. They do not recognize Him as the Messiah, the One sent by God to sit forever on the throne of David as King of a Kingdom that is not of this world. Hence Jesus says to them: "You are looking for me not because you saw signs but because you ate loaves and were filled.”

For what reason am I a disciple of Christ? For what reason am I a member of the Church founded on the apostles with Jesus as its head? What am I seeking in my church life?  For what or whom am I looking? A Messiah who frees me from my sinfulness? A Messiah who teaches me how to love and forgive? A Messiah who is preparing me to be part of a Kingdom that is not of this world?  Or, like the crowd, am I only seeking to be filled of things that do not transcend this world? Am I only looking to "feel full emotionally--a feel-good religion," not a relationship with God that demands that I empty myself for others as Jesus did, excluding no one.

Discipleship: Its Challenges, Hopes, and Fears

In today’s Gospel, Mark 6: 7-13, Jesus sends his disciples out in twos to spread the Good News, to heal the sick and cast out demons.  Sometimes they succeeded. At other times they did not.  On the Lake of Geneserath, when they encountered a storm, they  doubted that Jesus cared that they could have drowned, as He was soundly asleep in the stern of the boat. Awakened by their frightened call, Jesus quieted the raging waters and confronted them on their lack of faith.

The apostle’s faith and trust in the Lord would continue to be tested.  One of them denied Jesus; another betrayed Him.  All of the apostles doubted the resurrection and, except for John, ran away in the heat of the battle. No one but John stood beneath the cross on Calvary. In the Garden of Gethsemane, the three apostles that Jesus took with Him fell asleep during His agony. 

Sound familiar?   We, too, walk that same journey of faith. At times, we do not succeed. Our efforts leave no results that we can see. We fall asleep, inattentive to that which calls out for our love, our caring, our encouragement!  Doubts assail us. Our faith is shattered from time and time as we encounter setbacks, failures, and challenges that baffle us. When I fail in these ways, I wonder what I would ever do if I faced persecution, martyrdom, torture for the sake of Christ. Some of our fellow Christians do and are being tortured, persecuted, martyred as I write this. Lord, I know, you stand at their side. You also stand at my side through the daily experiences of every day. When I am weak, You are strong.  I believe that even when my faith seems buried beneath the “rubble” of life. I believe that, Lord, even when, like the apostle in that terrifying storm, I cry out to You:  “Don’t you see I am about to die in some way, that I am desperately in need of your intervention”. Even when I say: “You have abandoned me, Lord,” I still, deep down somewhere in my being, I believe.

Who are you and whose are you?

In today’s Gospel,  John 1: 19-28, John is approached by leading citizens of his day, wondering who he is.  “Who are you?” John immediately clears the air, as he knows that they are searching for the Anointed One, the promised Messiah.  He says: “I am not the Christ.” They continue to press him to reveal his identity. “What are you then? Are you Elijah?....Are you the Prophet?”  He answers an emphatic “no” to each of those questions.   “What,” then, “do you have to say for yourself?”  “ I am the voice of one crying out in the desert, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord.”

“What do you have to say for yourself?” I recall being asked that question by my parents when I had done something of which they disapproved.  I stood there filled with shame for the wrongdoing I had done. In the first reading,  1 John 2: 22-28, John encourages us to “remain in him [in Christ Jesus], so that when he appears we may have confidence and not be put to shame by him at his coming.” Part of remaining in Jesus is remaining on the path to truth, listening to the Spirit’s guidance and, not only hearing that voice, but doing what the Spirit directs us to do.  “If what…[I] heard from the beginning [that Jesus is Lord of heaven and earth, that Jesus came to save us, that He comes to us in the sacraments, hidden in the consecrated bread and wine, active in the Scriptures] remains in…[me], then…[I] will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that he had made us: eternal life.” 

I do believe, Lord. Help my unbelief!

Learning to do Good

In today’s first reading, Isaiah 1:10, 16-20, the prophet spells out the fast God desires of us; namely, that we “cease doing evil; learn to do good.  Make justice…[our] aim: redress the wronged, hear the orphan’s plea, defend the widow.”    In today’s Gospel, Mt. 23: 1-12,  Jesus challenges us to, not just teach others to do these things, but to do them ourselves as followers of Christ.  We are not in this world to place burdens on others , as the Pharisees did (see today’s Gospel, Mt. 23: 1-12) but to lift them ourselves.  Neither are we, as did the Pharisees, to “widen …[our] phylacteries and lengthen…[our] tassles,”—wearing our religion, so to speak, on our sleeves. We are not here to simply and ostentatiously assume places of honor, to be addressed as “Father,” “Sister,” “Brother,” “Mother”.  We are here to  become like our Father in heaven and like Jesus, to whom we are brother , sister, and mother when we do the will of our heavenly Father  (compare Luke 8: 21); that is, we are called to wash the feet of our tired, crippled neighbors,  our overly burdened family members, in short, to be servant of all, to humble ourselves and “raise” others up, as Jesus rose us up on the cross. We are here to learn to forgive others as Jesus forgave his persecutors. Like Jesus, we are  here  to be “poured-out wine” and “broken bread” for the sake of others  who are weighed down by the difficulties of life, those who may be suffering persecution, enduring injustices or  “withering”  under the  violence of war, domestic abuse, slave labor, human trafficking or any other  criminal activity. “Come, now,” God says to us in Isaiah 1: 10, 16-20, “let us set things right….”

How will be able to what God is asking of us? God, as promised in Ez. 18: 31, “will give…[each of us] a new heart, and a new spirit…[God] will put within…[us.]  …[God] will remove the heart of stone from…[our] flesh and give…[us] a heart of flesh.”

 

"Hot" Discipleship

Both of the readings in today’s liturgy, Rev. 3:1-6, 14-22 and Lk 19: 1-10, are invitations to conversion, to a change of heart and mind.  In Revelation, God tells us that He will not settle for “lukewarmness,” for apathy,  lethargy, or  half-hearted discipleship. “I wish you were either cold or hot…[B]ecause you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.” 

Am I caught in an “I don’t care attitude” when another invites me to commit to Christian living--to being honest and upright, to being transparent in a spousal relationship,  to being loving and caring, forgiving and respectful, to building relationships within community if I am a member of a religious community? 

Zacchaeus, a tax collector, working for the Romans, was known  for extorting money from his fellow Jews. He was, in short, a crook, one engaged in cheating, in being deceitful and conniving.  He was also a man who must have heard about Jesus and wanted to see him. Being short in stature and knowing Jesus was coming down the road, Zacchaeus climbed a sycamore tree in the area. Jesus spotted him and invites him “to come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.” Jesus invites. Zacchaeus accepts the invitation.  As a result of his encounter with Jesus, Zacchaeus is converted totally—no half measures anymore. He repents of his sinful ways, makes restitution for his crimes against his fellow Jews, and  promises Jesus to give back 4xs the amount he extorted from others in the payment of taxes to the Romans.

That kind of transformation is what happens in our lives when we truly let Jesus, our Savior, into our “houses.”  Am I willing to risk a visit from Jesus? Am I willing to have my lukewarmness, my apathy, my half-hearted discipleship transformed into full discipleship?  Am I willing to have my indifference transformed into being  “hot” in building the Kingdom of God here on this earth, in the world that I occupy: my home, my workplace, my parish, my community?

The humility of God

In today’s first reading, Philippians 2: 5-11, St. Paul puts before us Jesus’ model of humility.  “[T]hough he was in the form of God, [Jesus] did not regard equality with God something to be grasped.”  Every day, false sacreds emerge for us. Those might be anyone or anything we elevate to the level of the Sacred, anything or anyone we put on a  sacred pedestal, as the serpent elevated the fruit on the tree in Paradise. “Eat of it, devour it, possess it, and you will be like God,” Satan insisted.  This temptation surrounds us every day. Someone gets an award; we do not.  Our mouths water! Someone is given recognition or praised in our presence while we stand in the background, hardly noticed, if acknowledged at all.   Our hearts ache.  Someone outperforms us, or we imagine being outperformed. We feel a twinge of jealousy or envy. If only we were this person or that person, if only we had this job or that job, this degree or that degree, these opportunities or those opportunities, we tell ourselves; then, we, too, would accomplish great things! Etc. Etc. Etc.

 This is not the path Jesus models for us. It is not what religious life is about nor what being a Christian is about. Jesus, Paul reminds us, “…emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and, found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.”  He wasn’t here to show us how to gather accolades.   All of those  aspirations to be “Kings” and “Queens”  in our own right, to belong to an exclusive club, are deaths to which we  must die and rise with Christ in humility and love.  Jesus calls us to repentance and to conversion. Are we open today to being transformed by Christ and reconciled with God in the depth of our being, not on the pedestal of something/someone  we elevate to replace the Divine in our lives. What a challenge! Something only grace can accomplish in us.