Giáo Phận
Phú Cường – Năm Hiệp Thông Giới Gia Trưởng
Bước vào mùa chay, chuẩn bị đón mừng lễ kính Thánh
Giuse trong năm Hiệp Thông. Giới gia trưởng giáo phận Phú Cường đã quy tụ về
Nhà Chung giáo phận để tĩnh tâm dọn tâm hồn, lãnh nhận hồng ân Chúa ban.
Chúa nhật ngày 9/3/2014, 8 giờ chúng tôi thấy đã có nhiều đoàn xe từ các tỉnh
Bình Long, Tây Ninh xa xôi, gần có Củ Chi, Bến Cát tiến vào khuôn viên nhà
chung giáo phận Phú Cường, các anh em này phải đi từ rất sớm để có mặt ở đây,
vào giờ này.
Sau khi làm thủ tục ghi danh và ổn định chỗ ngồi trên
lầu I, cha đặc trách Tôma Trần Đức Thành giới thiệu chương trình cùng tuyên bố
khai mạc. Nguyện xin Chúa Thánh Thần soi sáng mở lòng trí cho chúng con được
thông hiểu các điều Chúa truyền dạy.
Cùng khai mạc có cha Gioan Baotixita Bùi Ngọc Điệp,
cha Giuse Phạm Văn Hòa và hơn 600 anh em giới gia trưởng toàn giáo phận.
Thắp lửa hiệp thông là bài hát mở đầu cho buổi tĩnh
tâm có điệp khúc như sau:
Hãy thắp lên
ngọn lửa hiệp thông. Hiệp thông trong Chúa, trong Giáo Hội và Giáo Phận Phú
Cường. Hãy thắp lên ngọn lửa hiệp thông, chung sức xây đời bằng gương sáng từ
đời sống gia đình.
Mở đầu buổi
tĩnh tâm là mục chia sẻ. Hiệp thông để truyền giáo là bài do cha Jb. Bùi Ngọc
Điệp chia sẻ. Theo đó cha cắt nghĩa Hiệp thông là gì?. Là hiệp nhất nên một, là
chia sẻ trách nhiệm, là tham gia công tác, là thông cảm tha thứ, chấp nhận
nhau.vv…
45 phút chia sẻ của cha đã lắng sâu vào người nghe,
từ đó mỗi người thêm hiểu biết mình hơn,
thông cảm với anh em mình hơn và nhất là với những anh em chưa cùng đoàn chiên
Chúa, để những người này họ nhận biết Chúa nơi anh em. Được biết, trong giờ
chia sẻ có các cha ngồi giải tội.
Sau giải lao, 10 giờ30 mọi người tập chung ở nhà
nguyện trên lầu 4. Tập hát 10 phút, tiếp theo là thánh lễ.
Thánh lễ đồng tế được chủ sự bởi cha Tôma. Mở đầu cha
chủ sự mời gọi anh em gia trưởng hãy lắng đọng tâm hồn, dâng lên Thiên Chúa
phút giây linh thiêng này để được Chúa thương nhậm lời.
Bài giảng chúa nhật I mùa chay do cha Giuse Phạm Văn
Hòa chia sẻ, đại ý như sau:
Đức Giêsu với bản tính loài người, sau 40 ngày chay
tịnh, Ngài cảm thấy đói. Ma quỷ lợi dụng đã đến cám dỗ Ngài, nhưng Ngài đã vượt
thắng.
Năm xưa ma quỷ đã cám dỗ được ông Adong bà Evà, ngày
nay chúng cũng cám dỗ mỗi người chúng ta.
Cám dỗ không
thể làm hại được người ta khi người ta không theo cám dỗ ấy, và điều đó lại
càng hiệu nghiệm hơn khi có ơn Chúa.
Chống trả chước cám dỗ làm cho ta vững vàng hơn trước
mặt Chúa.
Lạy Chúa, xin cho chúng con biết dùng lời Đức Giêsu
đã dạy là kinh Lạy Cha, là phương thế
giúp chúng con chống trả chước cám dỗ. Amen.
Đông đảo anh em rước lễ cũng là một tín hiệu vui,
nguyện Chúa chúc lành mãi mãi.
Thánh lễ kết thúc sau phép lành, mọi người cùng hát
bài Cầu Xin Thánh Gia “Giuse trong xóm nhỏ khó nghèo thủa xưa….”.
Sau giờ cơm trưa và nghỉ giải lao. Đúng 13 giờ, anh
em lại tập hợp ở hội trường để thảo luận và chia sẻ kinh nghiệm do cha Matthêu
Nguyễn Thanh Yên phụ trách. Trong phần này, anh em đã nêu lên những thắc mắc
hoặc kinh nghiệm để giúp cho sự hiểu biết được rộng rãi hơn.
Gần 2 giờ chia sẻ, mọi mệt mỏi được đánh tan bởi sự
vui vẻ và hóm hỉnh của cha phụ trách và anh em. Thật là một buổi tĩnh tâm đầy
yêu thương.
Mọi người chia tay lúc 15 giờ. Hẹn gặp nhau trong lần
tĩnh tâm lần tới.
Tôma
Đỗ Lộc Sơn
His Word Resounds
Reflections on
the Sunday Gospels - Cycles A – B – C
Albert Cylwicki, CSB
ALBA -
HOUSE NEW - YORK
Nihil
Obstat:
Rev.Harry
S. Benjamin S.T.L. S.S.I.
Censor
labrorum
Imprimatur:
+
Most Rev. Matthew H. Clark, D.D.
Bishop
of Rochester
January
11, 1988
FOREWORD
FOREWORD
The gospels and the documents of Vatican II
encourage us to “read the signs of the times” This collection of reflections
offers some examples of discerning how God’s word resounds in films, plays,
television programs, books and newspapers.
Some examples used to introduce these reflections
on God’s word are of enduring value – great historical figures, classic
literature, landmark films, etc. Other examples are of necessity quickly
outdated – election results, current award, recent disaster, etc.The latter are
offered to suggest to the reader areas where more contemporary examples can be
found by keeping abreast of current events. Tos how the connections between
Scripture and contemporary life. I’ve tried, on the one hand, to avoid getting
too technical or theoretical, and, on the other hand, to focus on practical
applications. Without the constant encouragement
of two Sisters this math teacher would never have tried his hand at writing a
book. My deepest appreciation to Sr. Nolantia Zola, SSJ – TOSF, my eighth –
grade teacher in literature, and the late Sr. Emma Hvozdovic, SSCM, my teaching
colleague for many years.
Also, I thank Dorothy Kubik and Anita Tortorella
who with their criticisms and corrections, helped prepare the manuscript, and
the following pastors who welcomed me into their rectories during my sabbatical
so I could complete this word: Msgr. Edward Creighton of San Diego, Fr. Frank
J. McNulty of Roseland, N.J., Msgr. Anthony Jaworowski of Philadelphia, and Fr.
Casimir Szatkowski of Chicago.
Finally, I am grateful to my own Basilian teachers
and confreres who have inspired me over the years, and to Bishop Ricardo
Ramirez for writing the introduction.
This book is dedicated to my parents, Vicent and
Victoria, in whom God’s word resounded so strongly that the echoes are still
heard in my life.
Albert
Cylwicki, CSB.
INTRODUCTION
It is a pleasure to introduce this valuable volume
of homilies based on the Gospel readings. Not only will this collection provide
good resource material for homilies, but it will also serve as a mediation
guide for those who will not be preaching God’s word. This book is an excellent
means for growth in spirituality and an opportunity to follow God’s word
throughout the liturgical year.
These short mediations are successful in bringing
the light of God’s word to real life situations, and making the word or God
alive. As a matter of fact, this is what good homilies are supposed to do.
Fr. Cylwicki’s background as a high school teacher,
university instructor and preacher is obvious in the way these homilies have
been written. He has provided his readers with great clarity and order in these
meditations and has done it interestingly. One cannot teach without keeping
one’s hearers interested.
Fr. Cylwicki concentrates his thoughts remarkably
well in a few words. At the same time, he remains faithful in directing his
readers to the challenges of the Gospel. The Gospel does not simply console or
pacify, it basically challenges and points out directions for personal and
communal growth. Fr. Cylwicki is faithful to this principle.
Pope Paul VI in his apostolic exhortation, Evangelii Nuntiandi, raised these
difficult questions:
What is the effectiveness to day of the innate
force of the Gospel message which can penetrate to the death of man’s
conscience?
To what extent and in what manner is the power of
the Gospel able to transform the minds of the men of this century?
What methods and approaches should we employ in
preaching the Gospel to insure that it will achieve its full effect? (no.4)
Pope Paul VI answers his own questions beautifully.
Part of the answer is in these words:
It is necessary to keep before our minds the
heritage of the faith which the Church must translate whole and entire and at
the same time seek to present this heritage to the men of our time in the form
which is at once clear and convincing. (no.3).
Homilists of these post – Vatican II times are more
and more responding to challenges such as those made by our recent popes when
they exhort us to zealous preaching of the Gospel. Our parishioners themselves
are demanding good homilies more and more. The current emphasis on good
preaching is why books such as those by Fr. Cylwicki are so important. They
assist us in bringing together the word of God and the life of people. In this
way, the preaching of God’s word remains vitalizing in our times.
I read once that a homilist has to have the
intuition and the skill of a poet. With the intuition of the poet goes the
ability to see every bush as a burning bush and hear God’s voice everywhere.
Poets can see in every bush the burning presence of God and in every happening
his protective hand.
Fr. Cylwicki has certain poetic qualities. His
examples are, as we mentioned above, crystal clear and fit beautifully in the
totality of the message which he wants to convey. Like a poet, a good homilist
has to be clever with words, not in order to be popular or to capture the
attention of hearers, but to bring freshness and timeliness to God’s word in
our day. Fr. Cylwicki provides us with good models for doing this.
May the words of these pages serve as an
inspiration, especially to the bearers of God’s word.
Bishop
Ricardo Ramirez
Diocese
of Las Cruces , New Mexico
April,
1987
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Quotations from the following works were used by
permission.
Barclay, William, The Daily Study Bible Series. Philadelphia
The
Gospel of John.
The
Gospel of Luke.
The
Gospel of Mark.
The
Gospel of Matthew.
Brett, Laurence, Share the Word. Washington
Cylwicki, Albert W. “Homilies on the Liturgy of the
Sundays and feasts.” Homiletic and
Pastoral Rewiew Nov. 1972; April 1983; Nov, 1984; Oct, 1985.
The
Doubleday New Testament Commentarry Series. GardenCity:
Image Books, 1978.
Achtemeiter, Paul. Invitation to Mark.
Karris, Robert, Invitation
to Acts.
Karris, Robert, Invitation
to Luke.
MacRae, George, Invitation
to John.
Senior, Donald, Invitation
to Matthew.
The
Interpreter’s Bible. 12 volumes, Nashville
The
Jerome Biblical Commentary. Englewood
The Jerusalem New York
The
New American Bible. Washington
The
Pelican New Testament Commentaries. Baltimore
Caird, J.B. The
Gospel of Luke.
Fenton, J.C. The
Gospel of Matthew.
Marsh, John. The
Gospel of John.
Nineham, Dennis. The Gospel of Mark.
Taylor, Michael. John: The Different Gospel. Stalen Island
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1st Sunday of Advent waiting
2nd Sunday of Advent Do It Now
Christmas Midnight Mass Be Not Afraid
Holy Family Shane
2nd Sunday of Lent PEAK EXPERIENCE
2nd Sunday of Advent_ROCK STARS
A Cycle
Samuel Beckett’s play waiting for Godot focuses on two main characters, Vladimir
The two other characters appear on the stage. Vladimir Vladimir
Advent celebrates our Lord’s
coming in three ways: first, in past history, when he was born a man; second,
in the present time, when he comes at Christmas; third, in the future, when he
will return at the end of time.
The first reading from Isaiah speaks of the Old
Testament waiting for the “days to come” when the Messiah would bring wisdom,
light and peace. Jesus fulfilled this expectation when he came as man, an event
which is now past tense for us.
The gospel makes a quantum leap into the future as
Jesus speaks of his coming at the end of time. As we wait for this coming,
Jesus urges us to be vigilant and ready, for his coming will occur when we
least expect it. In a sense, this final and future coming of Christ is a
process, one that will begin for us personally when we die and time will end
for us.
For the
moment, we are still living in a “mean – time” that is, the time between
Christ’s coming in past history to share humanity and his coming in the future
to lead us into glory. Lest our waiting in this “mean – time” be empty and
meaningless, as is seemed to be for Vladimir
As human
beings we always wait because our lives are never complete in themselves. There
is always more to come. One of the purpose of Advent is to teach us how to wait
– with patience, expectation and optimism. And while we wait we don’t have to
waste time. We can pray or make plans, or just simply relax and reflect.
Another purpose of Advent is to instruct us how to
recognize our Lord’s coming – in the duties we carry out, or in the things that
happens to us, or in the people we meet.
It isn’t only at the time of death or at the end of
the world that our Lord’s coming will happen when we least expect it. Our Lord
comes in surprising ways even while we’re waiting in a doctor’s office for an
appointment, or in a cashier’s line at the supermarket, or in a bus station or
airline terminal.
During Advent we have to discipline ourselves to
see Christ in everyone and in every situation. Our waiting then will not be one
of frustration, but rather one of readiness and anticipation
2nd Sunday of Advent DO IT NOW Mt 3: 1-12
According to its label, Drambuie was the liqueur of
Prince Charles Edward, the famous “Bonnie Prince Charlie” In a recent magazine
Drambuie was advertised as: Why wait for your promotion or next raise? Why wait
for the holidays? Why wait for tomorrow?
In other words, now
is the time to enjoy Drambuie. Now is
the time to sip this smooth liqueur. Now is
the time to savor its distinctive taste. Typical of many ads, there is a note
of urgency in the Drambuie commercial. Tomorrow may be too late. Act now!
Today’s Scripture too has a note of urgency in it,
not for the purpose of selling a liqueur, but for the purpose of arousing us to
reform our lives. In the gospel John the Baptist appears with his spiritual
commercial pitch: “Reform your lives. The reign of God is at hand…Prepare the
way of the Lord….Even now the a is laid to the root of the tree.”
In other words, John the Baptist is saying: “Why
wait for the prophet Elijah to return? Why wait for the promised Messiah to
come?
Why wait for the Kingdom of God
More specifically, John the Baptist might be saying
to us: “If you’re planning on making a Christmas confession, do it soon and
don’t delay. If you’re thinking about getting reconciled with someone, do it
now and don’t put it off. If you’re wondering about doing something nice for
someone, do it now and don’t wait for tomorrow. If you’re considering fasting a
little and praying more, do it now and don’t dilly – dally”.
There is a verse written by Omar Ibn Al Halif which
says: “Four things come not back – the spoken word, the sped arrow, time past,
the neglected opportunity”.
That’s the same message as the Drambuie ad: Why
wait for some important occasion to enjoy this liqueur? Do it now before the
opportunity passes and may not come back. That’s the theme of John the
Baptist’s message to day: Why wait to reform your lives? The kingdom of God
So why should we wait until we feel like it before
we call, write, or invite a friend or relative we haven’t seen or talked to in
a long time? If we wait until we feel like it, one of us may die before it ever
happens.
Why wait until the New York
NOW is the time – not tomorrow – to welcome Christ
into our lives by doing good to other people. NOW is the time – not tomorrow – to become more
Christ – like by making ourselves more loving and caring persons.
3rdSunday of Advent KEYQUESTION Mt
11:2-11
Some critics acclaim Shakespeare’s Hamlet as the greatest play of the
modern world. In this tragedy Hamlet is the prince of Denmark
Hamlet’s perplexing question has become a
Shakespearean classic. Scripture too poses some key questions about the mysteries of life, and today’s gospel gives
us a good example. John the Baptist sends his disciples to Jesus to ask the
question: “Are you he who is to come, or do we look for another?” This is by no
means a casual question of identity, but a critical question whose answer
affects our entire destiny. As such, it is a timeless question, a contemporary
question, an ultimate question.
Today we are the ones who are asking: “Are you the
expected one, Lord, who gives meaning to our life, brings us fulfillment, and
completes our incompleteness? Or are we to look for another? Are we to look for
meaning in materialism? Are we to find fulfillment in self-indulgence? Are we to
seek our completeness in drug addiction? Are you he who is to come, or are we
to look for another?” During Advent
we wait expectantly for the coming of Christ at Christmas. We wait expectantly
because we are aware of our poverty and emptiness, conditions described in the
first reading from the prophet Isaiah. In a sense, the landscape or our life is
sometimes like a desert when we feel terribly lonely, or like parched land when
our activity is barren of the fruit of good works. At times our eyes are blind when we fail to
see the opportunities we have in our present situation. Our ears are deaf when
we don’t listen to God’s word or to cry of the poor. Our hands are feeble and
our knees weak when we lack courage to meet our commitments. Sometimes we become
lame and a burden on society when we can carry our own load and don’t. We
become dumb when we can protest against injustice and don’t.
But we must not allow our weaknesses and failures
to discourage us. Rather, they should make us desire Christ’s coming all the
more. At least this is the attitude of the liturgy, and it should be ours too.
In the first reading we are told by Isaiah: “Things are going bad, but you will
see the glory of the Lord. So be strong and fear not.” In the gospel Jesus
says: “Go back and report what you hear and see. The blind recover their sight
and the deaf hear. Cripples walk and dead men rise to life”. In other words, we
don’t have to stay the way we are – weak, blind or crippled. Our Savior is
coming at Christmas to bring us strength, light and healing. We don’t have to
look for another. Jesus is the one who is to come. We need no other. He is our
way, our truth, and our life.
Moreover, our question becomes a mission. Once
we’ve experienced his presence and power in our lives, we are sent to share
these with others. “Go back to your homes and neighborhoods and place of work.”
Our Lord says, “and report what you have seen and heard. Tell them too that I
am indeed the one who was to come, and that they need look for another”.
4th Sunday of
Advent
Mt 1:18-24.
GOD IS WITH
US
According to Russian author Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn,
militant atheism is central to Communist policy. He says:
To achieve its diabolical ends, Communism needs to control a population
devoid of religious and national feeling, and this entails the destruction of
faith and nationhood.
Nowhere is this more true than in Lithuania Lithuania Siberia . In a letter smuggled out
from prison he wrote: These ten years of want and suffering will be the crown
of my priesthood. Let us pray for one another, so that we do not crumble under
the cross of the Lord. This Lithuanian
priest’s faith is similar to the prophet Isaiah in today’s first reading. The
historical setting is the troubled reign of King Ahaz of Judah, the Southern
Kingdom. On the one hand, Judah
is threatened by a coalition between Israel ,
the Northern Kingdom, and Syria
The prophet Isaiah is urging King Ahaz not to put
his faith in foreign alliances, but in God. To persuade the king to have firm
faith in God, Isaiah gives him a sign – a young woman will bear a son who will
be named Emmanuel, a name which means
“God is with us”.
In other words, despite the impending foreign invasions, the child will
be a sign that God would ultimately intervene to save his people. God would be with them and the nation would survive.
In the gospel, Matthew sees Isaiah’s prophecy fulfilled in the birth of Mary’s
son Jesus. Jesus is truly Emmanuel – God
with us – entering human history in human form. This fact is so fundamental
to Matthew’s faith that the Emmanuel theme
marks not only the beginning of his gospel with the birth of Jesus, but also
its end with the ascension of Jesus: “Know that I am with you always to the end
of time” (Mt 28;20). It is faith in Emmanuel that enables Fr Svarinskas and
his Lithuanian people to survive in spite of apparent suppression. It is their
belief that God is with them that
enables people like the Lithuanian and Poles and Czechs to endure in spite of
Communist oppression. How else can we explain their deep Christian devotion and
fierce national pride after being plundered, persecuted and partitioned for so
many centuries?
And what of us? Do we have faith
in this central message of Christmas? Do we really believe that God is with us? As he was with the
people of Judah
Christmas –
Midnight Mass (A,B,C) Is 9:1-6 Lk 2:1-14
BE NOT AFRAID
One
Magic Christmas is a Walt Disney movie which tells the story of a
Christmas skeptic, a young wife and mother named Ginnie Grainger. Hard times
have come upon Ginnie: her husband Jack has been laid off; she is on the verge
of losing her own jog as a supermarket checker; they and their two children
must move out of their company – owned house bye New Year’s Day.
It’s easy to
see why Ginnie has lost the Christmas spirit. But a Christmas angel named
Gideon intervenes. In a dream or vision, Gideon takes Ginnie through some
frightening experiences, including the apparent death of her husband.
With Gideon’s help her little girl Abbie brings
back a letter from the North Pole. When Ginnie reads the letter she realizes
that it is the very letter she herself had sent to Santa Clauses as a little
girl 26 years ago. Ginnie then remembers and recovers the Christmas spirit.
As she awakens from her dream or vision she meets
her husband, who as it turns out, had really only gone for a long walk around
the block. The miracle is completed when Ginie can once again say and mean,
“Merry Christmas”.
One of the key lines in One Magic Christmas is the Christmas angle’s words: “Don’t be
afraid”, which he says to the little girl Abbie. These words were also spoken
by the angel to the shepherds in the Christmas gospel: “Do not afraid. Listen,
I bring you news of great joy…Today in the town of David
“Don’t be afraid” was also the message of the
Lord’s angel when he spoke to Marry telling her that she would be the mother of
Jesus, and again when he spoke to Joseph in a dream telling him to take Mary as
his wife even though she was with child.
“Don’t be afraid” is God’s message to us this
Christmas too. Times might be tough for us as they were for Ginnie in the
movie. But whatever problems we have, whether in health, finances, work or
relationships, the Lord’s message is: “Don’t be afraid, I bring you tidings a
great joy. A savior is born for you”.
In the other words, we must never lose the
Christmas spirit, for it is our faith in a savior that enables us to cope with
any difficulty. Jesus may not save us from our problems in the sense of undoing
a death, restoring some loss, or mending a broken marriage, but he will inspire
us to discover fresh life, find other opportunities, and enter new
relationships.
There is another way in which “Don’t be afraid”
could be God’s Christmas message for us. Perhaps there is some decision we have
to make about our home or education, or some challenge we’re hesitating to
undertake.
Like Ginnie in the movie or the shepherds in the
gospel, we may have to leave fear behind
and step out in faith to make that
decision, face that challenge, or begin that adventure.
There is nothing then that we need to be afraid of.
We can always say and mean, “Merry Christmas” – not by magic – but by the
mystery of God’s grace. Christmas is the promise that God will be with us in
our struggle – not with the make – believe problems and challenges of the
movies – but with the real problems and challenges of our everyday lives.
SHANE
The movie Shane
starting Alan Ladd has become a frontier classic. Shane is a mythical
American hero who fights for the rights of defenseless homesteaders being
terrorized by a lawless cattleman and his hired gunmen. Shane himself is an
ex-gunslinger who is searching for something to give meaning to his life.
At first he merely befriends the Start family, who
take him in as a hired hand for their farm. But when trouble begins, Shane
becomes their defender and savior. He risks his life for Joe and Marion Start
and their son Li’l Joe in order to save their pride and property from the
ruthless cattleman.
The movie Shane
is more than a cowboy legend. It is also a modern parable about a
Christ-figure and about family life. Shane is a Christ-figure in the story, not
in the sense of his use of guns and fist fights, but in the sense of a celibate
man who defends the powerless, risks his life for them, and then rides off
alone to help someone else.
The film Shane
also has much to say about family life, and even suggest some similarities
between the Start family and the Holy Family. For example, the first names of
the husband and wife – Joe and Marion – correspond to the names of Joseph and
Mary in Matthew’s gospel. Also, the violent threats to the Start family and
their homestead are not unlike the dangers the Holy Family ran into with King
Herod.
We not be able to imitate the Starts in these
respects, but there are other aspects of their family life in the movie Shane that we can emulate.
First, the Start’s lifestyle was marked by simplicity. As frontier people they
didn’t have the luxuries that we enjoy. Yet, because they had to work hard for
their basic necessities, they seemed to appreciate them more than we do. With
few material comforts to distract them, they seemed to be more in touch with
spiritual values.
Second,
there was solidarity in the Start
family. They tenaciously stuck together when the times got tough, and they
supported their neighbors through adversity and death.
Third, the
Starts enjoyed intimacy. There were a
lot of deep feelings and signs of affection shared by the family members. They
feared for and worried about one another’s welfare and let this be known.
Fourth, a
profound loyalty characterized their
relationships. Joe and Marion were so devoted to each other as husband and wife
that Shane never appears as a rival but only as a genuine friend of the family.
Their loyalty and purity have a healing effect on Shane. In spite of his shady
past as a gunfighter, Shane is moved by his experiences with the Start family
to do something noble and generous – not for himself this time, as he had
always done in the past, but simply and purely for Marion, Joe and Li’l Joe.
Perhaps
this sums it up. A good family life will be marked by simplicity, solidarity, intimacy and loyalty. But most of all it will bring out the best powers and
capacities. When we are loved by our family, we discover resources and
strengths we never dreamed of, much as Joseph did in the gospel when his wife
Mary and his child Jesus were threatened.
Moreover,
when we have a sense of belonging to a family, we know that we have something
to live for and that we will be mourned when we die. It was this that Shane
searched for, and he found it in the Start family.
As a Christ-figure, the hero Shane became an
integral part of the Start family and its protector and savior. May we never
forget that Jesus plays this role for every family. But before he can be our
family’s protector and savior, we have to invite him in and allow him to become
an intergral part of our family life.
January 1 – Mary, Motherof God (A, B, C) Lk
2: 16-21
WOMAN OF THE YEAR
Lauren Bacall once starred in a long – playing
musical comedy entitled Woman of the
Year. She played the role of a celebrated television talk show hostess,
Tess Harding, who knows and interviews all the in – people like the president,
the pope, Fidel Castro, Jean-Paul Sartre, and others. When Tess is selected by
NOW, the National Organization for Women, for their Woman of the Year award, she sings a song by the same title.
Today we honor another woman as we begin a New
Year. Her record is unbroken and unparalleled. For almost two thousand times in
a row she has been singled out as the Church’s Woman of the Year. She is Mary, the Mother of God.
Mary is not a celebrity like the fictional Tess
Harding played by Lauren Bacall on Broadway, or like the real Barbara Walters
who commands her own salary on television. But Mary is a saint, she was
selected by God himself, and her son is Jesus, the Incarnate Word of God.
As St. Paul says,
in the second reading: “When the designated time had come, God sent forth his
Son born of a woman” (Gal 4:4). Or, as the angels announced to the shepherds in
Luke’s Gospel, a Savior is born to them, the messiah and Lord, and he is none
other than Mary’s infant lying in the manger in Bethlehem
In one of his New Year’s Day addresses, the late
Pope Paul VI considered today’s feast as a conclusion, a crowning of the
Christmas mystery. In remembering the Nativity of Jesus, we can’t help
recalling the mother who gave birth to him. Moreover, Mary is given to us as
our mother, too, so that she might teach and support us, especially as we start
a new year.
We don’t know how many more years we have left.
After all, our present life is but a prelude to eternity. For some of our
friends or relatives who died last year, there will never again be a new year,
but only eternity.
So Mary is given to us as a mother to teach us how
to use our remaining time wisely, not waste it; to spend it sensibly, not
squander it; to employ it carefully, not recklessly.
We need Mary as mother to support us on our journey
through the new year. We need her faith when we don’t see a way; her hope when
we run into a dead end; her love when others leave us. Pope Paul VI summed it
up when he said that Mary is given to us as a mother “to accompany us on our
tiring pilgrimage through life”.
Mary won’t win any awards this year like Lauren
Bacall did, but can she at least win the affections of our hearts? Mary won’t
be seen on television this year like Barbara Walters will, but can she at least
be seen in our lives by the way we practice her virtues? Mary won’t ever be
voted by NOW, the National Organization for Women, as their Woman of the Year, but can she at least
have a vital part in our devotion?
May Mary’s memory never leave us; may her image
inspire us; and may her prayers bring us peace.
2nd Sunday
After Christmas (A,B,C) Si
24: 1-4, 8-12 Jn 1: 1-18
LIGHT IN DARKNESS
The
Lady of the Lamp is a television movie in which Jaclyn
Smith plays the role of Florence Nightingale. Although she was brought up in
the elegant surroundings of high society in England England
When the Crimean War broke out in 1854, Florence
The way Florence Nightingale brought light into the
darkness of hospital wards gives us some insight into the way Jesus brought
light into the darkness of the world. Today’s gospel says: “the real light
which gives light to every man was coming into the world. The light shines on
in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it”.
Since these verses are part of the Prologue to
John’s gospel, they describe poetically the new creation taking place through
Jesus. In the first creation story in genesis, God made light when there was
nothing but darkness. Now Jesus comes to re-create the world and dispel the
darkness that still exists with the brightness of his light.
There are different kinds of darkness: the darkness
of deeds – doing something evil or
hateful, and then trying to hide it; the darkness of ignorance – not knowing what to do or say or where to go; the
darkness of a meaningless life – not
having any goal or sense of direction; the darkness of disbelief – not accepting Jesus into our lives as Savior; the
darkness of death – dreading the
event because we don’t see any hope beyond the grave.
Jesus came as the light of the world to dissipate
all these forms of darkness, and to give his light to every one of us so that
we, too, can overcome them in our lives. With his revealing light we can see
our deeds as the really are,
acknowledge the wrongs we have done, and repair some of the damage or hurt
we’ve caused.
The light of his truth and teachings removes ignorance as an excuse for not knowing
who is the neighbor we should help, or for not speaking up in defense of human
fights. The light of Jesus illumines the way we should walk to find meaning and purpose in life. He shows us
how to lose our life in order to find it.
Jesus has the power to destroy the darkness of our unbelief, if only we open our hearts to
receive the light of his gift of faith. The glory Jesus will manifest at hiss
resurrection will drive out the darkness of death;
this light too he will share with us so that we can overcome the darkness
of the grave.
Live John the Baptist and Florence Nightingale, we
are called to be witnesses of this light, and it doesn’t mean just decorating
our homes and trees with Christmas light. It means carrying the light of Christ
we bear in our minds and hearts into the world – the worlds of government and
entertainment; the worlds of industry and the military; the worlds of finance
and business. It means making the Christopher motto our own; “It is better to
light one candle than to curse the darkness”.
Epiphany
(A,B,C) Is 60: 1-6 Mt 2: 1-12
GIFTS
In O. Henry’s classic story “The gift of the Magi”,
a wife sells her beautiful hair at Christmas time in order to buy a watch chain
for her husband. He in turn sells his watch in order to buy a pair of combs for
her hair.
Times have changed since O. Henry wrote that story.
In recent years popular Christmas gift for children have include Cabbage Patch
dolls and Gentle Giant Mr. T kits, while for adults they’ve included home
computers and videocassette recorders.
Christmas gift – giving began with the story in
today’s gospel. Astrologers from the east followed a star in search of a
newborn king of the Jews. When they found the Christ – child the opened their
coffers and presented him with gift of gold, frankincense and myrrh.
In his commentary on this gospel, Fr. Laurence
Brett points out that Matthew never tells us how many Magi there were, but the
three gifts he mentions led to the conclusion that the Magi were three in
number also.
Nor does Matthew make any mention of camels in
connection with the Magi. But since the first reading from Isaiah describes
caravans of camels coming from Midian and Ephah, eventually the three Wise Men
were pictured as riding on camels to make their journey.
Another author, Abbot Marmion, interprets the
symbolism of the three gifts fo us. First, gold is most precious of metals, a
symbol of royalty. The Magi
acknowledged the newborn Christ as king, a title that would later appear above
Christ’s head on the cross. Second, incense is associated with prayer and
divine worship. The Magi professed their faith in Christ’s divinity as Son of God, the Word made flesh. Third, myrrh was used
to dress wounds and embalm the dead. It symbolized the humanity of Jesus, his capacity to suffer and die for us.
But Abbot Marmion goes further. He says that the
three gifts also symbolize what we should present to Christ. First, the gold
signifies the loyalty and fidelity we owe to our Prince of Peace. Second, the
frankincense symbolizes our prayers to the Lord and our worship of him in the
liturgy. Third, the myrrh represents the gift of our suffering and sorrow
whereby we share in his passion.
But what if our coffers are empty because we
haven’t been very faithful, or prayerful, or patient in suffering? Then we
still have Jesus Christ to offer as our gift to the Father. In the Prayer over
the Gifts we ask the Father: “Accept the offerings of your Church, not gold,
frankincense and myrrh, but the sacrifice and food they symbolize: Jesus
Christ, who is Lord forever”.
In other words, though we might be poor in good
works, Christ will enrich us with himself in the Eucharist. Though we may be
destitute as far as devotion is concerned, Christ will supply what we lack.
We need ever be discouraged, then, to approach the
Father. He doesn’t expect us to bring computers and video recorders as gifts.
He wants our hearts to love him and our neighbor. He isn’t interested in
whether or not we have a Cabbage Patch doll to give him. He’s interested in our
prayers and in our problems.
The Father doesn’t care where or how far we’ve come
from. He wants to send us on our way like the Magi – overjoyed at having found
his Son Jesus and strengthened for the rest of our journey through life.
Baptism of the
Lord Is 42: 1-4,6-7 Mt 3: 13-17
PRESS CONFERENCES
When likable Lou Holtz was announced as the new
head football coach at the University of Notre Dame, he was touted as on who
would restore the school’s football program to its tradition of excellence.
Whenever a new leader appears on the scene, whether
it is a new coach of a team or a new president of a corporation, a press
conference is usually held to proclaim that leader’s qualifications and
potential. Such press conferences usually create some excitement about the
leader’s identity, and arouse our expectations with glowing promises about what
this leader will accomplish.
Today’s event of our Lord’s baptism is something
like this. It’s as if God himself called a press conference to reveal his Son
Jesus as the long – awaited Messiah and to give us a preview of what his
mission will accomplish.
In the gospel, after Jesus is baptized, the Spirit
descends like a dove upon him and a voice from heaven announces who he is:
“This is my beloved Son. My favor rests on him”.
In the first reading from Isaiah we hear the
glowing promises of what Jesus will do: he will establish justice, open the
eyes of the blind, bring out prisoners from confinement, and protect those who
have been bruised.
Our Lord’s baptism is part of the Epiphany cycle
because it is a significant manifestation of his person. Jesus appears before John at the Jordan
As already pointed out, there is a twofold
dimension to our Lord’s baptism. First, it declares who he is – God’s own Son. Second, it declares what he will do – God’s own works. Similarly our own
baptism is also twofold. It not only proclaims publicly our new identity as members of the Church, but
also empowers us to do good works as
Jesus did.
In his book Christian
Sacraments and Christian Personality, theologian Bernard Cooke comments on
the anointing with chrism that takes place immediately after we are baptized
with water.
This anointing,
this conferring of the Holy Spirit, this Christ-ing
constitutes our appointment to the Christian vocation. Henceforth, the
baptized is irrevocably set aside for that apostolic life with Christ as
Messiah initiated, and to which he admits us in order to complete his messianic
work.
Cooke goes on to say that our baptism is not an
action which happens once and has no further significance for our life. Rather,
all the significance of this sacrament passes dynamically into the daily living
of the Christian.
In other words, it is not enough for us just to
accept baptism passively as something done to us. We must also allow it to
become an operative power within us impelling us to act as Christ did: by
bringing relief to people whose lives are like bruised reeds; by opening the
eyes of people blinded by false promises; by freeing people imprisoned by
social injustice.
It is not enough for us simply to be members in
good standing by paying our parish dues. We must also put ourselves at the
service of the parish: by showing sympathy to those who have lost a loved one;
by assisting the sick and shut-ins; by volunteering our help in parish
projects.
We may never become celebrities who can call press
conferences to extol our successes. But we can become saints by living out our
baptismal promises. We may never see any doves or hear any voices approving our
good works. But that doesn’t matter, because in faith we know that if we follow
Jesus now in his ministry, later we also will share in his glory.
1st Sunday of
Lent Gn 2: 7-9, 3: 1-7 Mt 4: 1-11
WINDS OF WAR
In the novel Wind
of War the leading character, Capt. Victor (Pug) Henry, is tempted to
commit adultery. It’s war time, he’s separated from his wife and family, and he
has a military female companion named Pam. As his war time friendship with Pam
becomes a threat to Pug’s fidelity to his wife back home, Pug has to make a
decision. He says,
I know this
kind of chance won’t roll around again in my life. If I love you enough to have
an affair with you behind my wife’s back, then I love you enough to ask hear
for a divorce. To me the injury is the same.
Pug decides against adultery, and so he and Pam go their
separate ways.
In today’s readings we have two other temptation
stories. In the first reading from Genesis, Adam and Eva are tempted by the
serpent and fall. In the gospel, Jesus is tempted three times by Satan, but
triumphs.
Commentators parallel the three temptations of
Jesus with the desert experiences of Israel Israel
Our Lord’s three temptations can be summarized
under the heading of substituting the
lesser for the greater. In fact, it seems that all temptations entice us to
prefer a lesser good over a greater good, the superficial over the real, and
the trivial over the tremendous.
For example, the first temptation to turn stones
into bread is not so much a temptation to indulge one’s appetite – whether a
real appetite for food, for Jesus was hungry; or a symbolic appetite for sex,
for Jesus was a man – but rather a temptation to substitute the lesser for the
greater, namely, bread for the word of God.
When God provided manna in the desert for the
hungry Israelites, he was teaching them that life – real life, the fullness of
life – was not dependent on bread alone, but rather on his all-powerful word
and promise. Jesus, too, proclaims this principle when he quotes the book of
Deuteronomy: “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes
from the mouth of God”. (Dt 8:3).
In the second temptation Satan tries to lure Jesus
into substituting his ways for God’s ways, and his views for God’s views. The
Father wanted a messiah who would be humble and minister to his people. Satan
suggests being a Messiah who would be spectacular and do tricky things, like
throwing himself off temple peaks to be caught by angels.
In the third temptation Satan tries to seduce Jesus
into substituting worldly power and glory for God’s power and glory. The Father
wants Jesus to achieve power and glory through his suffering and death on the
cross. Satan insinuates that Jesus can have can have instant success by simply
worshiping him.
All three temptations are different attempts to substitute some lesser good for a greater. Where
the Israelites failed in their tests in the desert, Jesus now triumphs. He is
the new Israel
Today it is we who are the pilgrim people of God
making our exodus from Lent to Easter in the narrow sense, and from time to
eternity in the wider sense. We, too, experience the same temptations along the
way. Sometimes we are attracted to infidelity like Pug in Winds of War, to excessive drinking, or to cheating in financial
matters. At other times we are deluded into selfishly getting our own way,
taking unfair advantage of others, or pretending people don’t have real needs.
In all cases we are tempted to substitute the lesser for the greater, the superficial for the
real, and the trivial for the tremendous. That’s why we need fasting to focus on what is the greater,
prayer to see what is really real,
and service to others to experience
the tremendous.
2nd Sunday of
Lent Gn12:1-4
Mt 17:1-9
PEAK EXPERIENCE
George Bernard once attended a concert given by the
violinist Jascha Heifetz. Shaw wrote the following letter when he got home:
Dear Mr.
Heifetz, my wife and I were overwhelmed by your concert. If you continue to
play with such beauty, you will certainly die young. No one can play with such
perfection without provoking the jealousy of the gods. I earnestly implore you
to play something badly every night before going to bed.
Beneath George Bernard Shaw’s humor is a
description of what psychologists term a peak
experience. The violinist Heifetz had played with such beauty that his
music moved Shaw and his wife to emotional depths they never knew existed. It
was an evening of ecstasy for them, a peak experience they would never forget.
Today’s gospel tells the story of another peak
experience, namely, our Lord’s transfiguration in the presence of his three
disciples. The transfiguration story abounds with symbols which indicate that
it was a peak experience for them.
The high mountain recalls the Mount
Sinai revelations of the Old Testament. The dazzling face of Jesus
suggests the face of Moses during the Exodus and the angels at the empty tomb
of Easter. The cameo appearances of Moses and Elijah that the law and the
prophets are now fulfilled in Christ. The falling down to the ground by the
disciples anticipates their homage when they will behold the risen Lord later.
Finally, only Matthew calls the whole experience a vision, reminiscent of the
visions of the book of Daniel.
What was the purpose of this peak experience for
the disciples? Why would Jesus give them a preview of his glory? To answer
these questions we have to look at the context of the transfiguration story. It
follows immediately upon our Lord’s prediction of his own passion and death,
and his declaration that his disciples must deny themselves and take up their
cross.
Our Lord’s transfiguration seems intended to
strengthen the disciples’ faith so that when Christ dies on the cross, they
will be able to look beyond his death to his resurrection. Moreover, when they
have to endure their own hardships for him, they will be able to see beyond
their sufferings to the glory that awaits them.
When we have to experience hurt or pain, failure or
brokenness, loss or death, we can survive because of our faith that all these
things will ultimately be transformed. Our vision of the glory that awaits us
will not remove our troubles and difficulties, but it will keep us believing
and trying in spite of them.
When marathon runners “hit the wall” around the
20-mile mark, they feel like giving up. But if they can somehow envision the
finish line and the cheering crowd awaiting them, then they can fine deep down
inside themselves the necessary strength to continue running to the end.
That’s something like what the transfiguration does
for us. It gives us a glimpse of the glory that lies ahead of us, a glimpse so
powerful that it can keep us going when we want to quit, call up extra strength
when we think that we have none left, and renew our hopes when everything seems
hopeless.
Our memory of the transfiguration will not always
be a peak experience, like listening to Heifetz play the violin, but it will
empower us to carry our cross and follow the lord. Regardless of the tasks or
challenges that lie ahead of us, we can take them on with confidence because
our Lord says to us as he said to his disciples: “Get up. Don’t be afraid. Let
us go to Jerusalem
3rd Sunday of
Lent Ex 17: 3-7 Jn 4: 5-42
LIVING WATER
Hermann Hesse’s book Siddhartha narrates the wanderings of a man in search of inner
peace and self-realization. As a Brahman boy Siddhartha had everything –
intelligence, handsome features, wealth – but he was restless. So he renounced
his wealthy family and set off to seek happiness.
In succession he tried the asceticism of the
Eastern monks. The way of enlightenment under the Buddha, the pleasures of
sensual indulgence, and the luxuries of wealth, but all of these only left him
disappointed and disillusioned.
Disgusted to the point of despair, Siddhartha
considered committing suicide in a river, when he suddenly hear from the depths
of his subconscious a Brahman word (Om) that begins and ends all prayers.
The remembrance of that word awakened Siddhartha’s
slumbering spirit to realize anew that all is divine and that loving devotion
to the universe is the key to happiness. The water of the river helped him die
a symbolic death to his old life of futility and emptiness and be born again to
a new life of fulfillment and happiness.
In today’s gospel, water is one of the main themes.
Tired and thirsty from his journey, Jesus asks a Samaritan woman for a drink of
water. This simple request for ordinary water becomes an occasion for Jesus to
talk about another kind of water, namely, living water that becomes a fountain
within us, springing up to provide eternal life.
In a booklet on the gospel of John, Fr. Raymond
Brown writes:
Living or
running water, spring water, is greatly prized in Palestine
Like the Samaritan woman and Siddhartha, we thirst
for meaning in life. Too often, though, we try to quench our thirst with
stagnant water. We go to the cisterns of excess in drink, drugs, sex, work or
material possessions. We think that five husbands, or five cars, or five
stereos or five of whatever will satisfy our thirst for human fulfillment.
But none of these things satisfy us completely.
They always leave us thirsting for better things – like the peace that comes from experiencing Jesus
personally; or the freedom that comes
from following him; or the joy that
comes from serving his people.
When we drink of the water that Jesus gives – the
water of his word in the Scriptures;
the water of his Spirit in the
sacraments; the water of his presence in
prayer; the water of his grace in
ministry – we will never be thirsty.
Instead, his life – giving waters will become a
fountain within us, springing up to refresh people around us, to relieve the arid
lives of the poor, and to nourish the hearts of the lonely.
Like a river, these life – giving waters will flow
out from us to supply the needs of others and make them bloom. Following the
lead of the Samaritan woman, we will go out and bring others to Jesus: “Come,
see the Messiah, drink his water, and never be thirsty again”.
4th Sunday of
Lent 1S 16:1,6-7, 10-13 Jn 9:1-41
SPITITUAL BLINDNESS
Leonard Gershe’s play Butterflies Are Free is about a young man who is blind from birth
and about a lovely young lady who is a divorcee. To tear himself away from his
overprotective mother, Don Backer occupies a shabby one – room apartment. He
tries to support himself by being a singer-composer.
Along comes Jill Tanner who was married for six
days at one time and consequently, doesn’t want any more deep involvements with
men. Nevertheless, because she is affectionate and friendly, she falls in love
with Don, and this in spite of his blindness. But when he asks to marry him,
she is afraid of getting hurt again and hesitates to say “Yes”.
Don tells her that even though she has eyes to see,
she, and not he, is the one who is really handicapped, because she is afraid to
step out in faith and make another commitment to love someone. His own faith
and courage eventually convince Jill to open her eyes and see the freedom from
fear she can have as well as the wonderful possibilities of their life
together.
Gershe’s play about this young man who is blind
from birth has some similarities to today’s gospel story. A man who was born
blind meets Jesus and has his eyes healed. He then becomes a symbol of the
struggle between light and darkness, good and evil.
In his commentary on John’s gospel, R.H. Lightfoot
points out that the light –darkness conflict is introduced in the Prologue:
“The Word came to be the light of men, a light shining in the dark, a light
that darkness could no overpower” (Jn: 1:4-5).
Lightfoot then proceeds to show how this light –
darkness conflict is personified and dramatized in the man born blind and the
Pharisees in today’s gospel story.
On the one hand, the man born blind moves
progressively from darkness to light. Initially he refers to Jesus as simply
the man who healed him. Next, he
describes Jesus as a prophet. Then
during his interrogation he insists that Jesus must be from God. Finally, in the last scene, he believes in Jesus as the Son of Man.
On the other hand, the Pharisees, who thought they
had the light, gradually plunge deeper into darkness. At the first inquiry,
they acknowledge the miracle but are
upset by the violation of the Sabbath. During the second interrogation, they cast doubt on the authenticity of the
miracle. Finally, during the third questioning, they threaten and maltreat the
man born blind.
Are we like Jill in Butterflies Are Free or like the Pharisees in the gospel? We have
eyes to see, but are we not sometimes blind and in the dark? We walk in
darkness whenever we close our eyes to our fears, insecurities and selfishness,
or whenever we refuse to face the truth about our hangups, addictions and
greed. We walk in the dark whenever we fail to see the sufferings of the poor,
the sick and the abandoned, or whenever we ignore the lonely, the oppressed and
the downtrodden.
Would that we were more like the sightless Don
Baker in the play or like the man born blind in the gospel, so that we could
walk in the light even though we might be enveloped by darkness.
Light shines in us every time we see more than
meets the eye, have a vision of our unlimited possibilities, or make commitments
with daring and courage. Light shines through us every time we brighten our
surroundings or other people’s lives. As St.
Paul says in the second reading, we are children of the light whenever we
“produce every kind of goodness and justice and truth” (Ep 5:9).
Only Jesus could say, “While I am in the world, I
am the light of the world”. But all
of us can say, “White I am in the world, I will not be overpowered by darkness.
I will at least be a light in the
world”.
5th Sunday of
Lent Ezk 37:12-14 Jn 11:1-45
DEATH BE NOT PROUND
John Gunther’s book Death Be Not Proud tells the story of his son’s last year of life.
At sixteen, when most young people are dreaming about their future, John
Gunther Jr was dying from a brain tumor.
The boy’s quiet courage in his encounter with death
prompted critic Judith Crist to write: “His story is a glowing affirmation of
the nobility of even the shortest of lives”. Book reviewer Walter Duranty of
the New York Herald Tribune said: “To
read Death Be Not Proud is to grasp
the meaning of man’s power to defy Death’s hurt; to be filled with confidence
and emptied of despair”.
Like John Gunther Jr, Jesus to had something to say
about ling and dying. But unlike John Gunther, Jesus could make the fantastic
claim that he himself is the resurrection and the life, and that whoever
believes in him will never die.
For the last two Sundays we’ve been hearing Jesus
make some starling I AM statements: “I AM the living water….I AM the light of
the world”. Today we hear another strong I AM statement: “I AM the resurrection
and the life”.
Christ’s assertion is just as relevant for us today
as it was for Martha and Mary in the gospel and for the Gunther family, because
death is just as destructive in our day as it was in theirs. Close to home we
see our dearest relatives die from cancer and our youth killed in ca accidents.
We read about people in distant parts of the world being wiped out by war,
starvation and disease.
We also experience other forms of death whenever we
see marriages end in divorce, religious vocations terminated by departures, and
careers cut short by unemployment. We suffer a kind of death every time our
environment gets polluted, parochial schools close from lack of funds, and big
cities decay from crime and violence. Indeed, we too need to hear that Jesus is
the resurrection and the life.
Because we experience death in so many ways, we can
help but wonder: Is there any meaning to life, or is it just an absurd
existence? Is there some glorious destiny for us, or is this all just a futile
endeavor?
In today’s gospel Jesus claims to answer these
questions. In effect he says, “You have a suspicion that life does somehow
continue and that death is not the last word. I have come to tell you that your
suspicions are correct. Like Lazarus you will rise from the dead. You have an
intuition that life, however short, does have meaning and value. I have come to
tell you that your intuition is true. If you have faith like Martha and Mary,
you will see the glory of God”.
As the Mass continues, we reaffirm our faith in our
Lord’s words. No matter how hopeless our situation may be, with the prophet
Ezekiel we believe that out of it the Lord will somehow bring new life. No
matter how disillusioned we may be, with St.
Paul
Palm Sunday Mt 21:1-11 Mt 26:14-27:66
OBERAMMERGAU
With only three interruptions caused by war, the
Oberammergau Passion Play has been staged every ten years since 1634 in
fulfillment of a vow made by the villagers for deliverance from a plague.
Although our liturgy here today is not of the same
magnitude and prestige as the Passion Play at Oberammergau
The palms that we blessed and the Passion according
to Matthew that we read draw us into the drama of Holy Week, not merely as
spectators, but as participants. The palms we hold and take home with us are
signs that we are willing to march with Jesus, not only in moments of triumph
and glory, as when he entered Jerusalem with the crowd crying, “Hosanna to the
Son of David!” but also in moments of suffering and agony, as when he was
condemned to death with the crowd crying, “Crucify him!”.
On the one hand, it is easy to praise God when we
are enjoying success, are felling healthy, and are surrounded by a loving
family and a circle of friends. Nonetheless, even in these favorable
circumstances, blessing God is important to make us realize that he is the
source of these gifts and that we should use them for his glory.
On the other hand, it is difficult to believe in
God when we are discouraged by repeated failure, suffer from sickness and pain,
or feel abandoned by everyone. But it is precisely in such moments that we
really participate in the passion of Christ. We then know from personal
experience why Jesus prayed in the garden, “My Father, if it is possible, let
this cup pass me by”, or why on the cross he cried out, “My God, my God, why
have you forsaken me?”
Moreover, it is also in such moments that we
experience the power of Christ’s passion – to say “yes” to the Father’s will when
out world seems to be collapsing, and to expect that soon we will see the glory
of God reveal itself in some way.
Today’s reading of the Passion ended on the dismal
note of death – Jesus died and his tomb was sealed with a stone. Sometimes
that’s the way our day ends: on a dismal note, for we still suffer our pain,
hurt from our losses, or feel terribly lonely.
However, Passion Sunday is not the last word of the
Jesus story. Rather, it is only the first word of a Holy Week that will reach
its climax next Easter Sunday. The final word will not be the death of Jesus,
but his rising from the dead.
So too, no matter how many of our days seem to end
in a depressing way, they are not the last of our story. Rather, they are only
a prelude to triumphs we have yet to experience in this life, and they point to
that ultimate victory which will be ours in the next life.
There we will again process with palm branches, not
to mark Christ’s triumphal entry into the earthly city of Jerusalem ,
but our own victorious entrance into the heavenly city of Jerusalem
Easter (A, B,
C) Ac 10: 37-43 Mt 28: 1-10
HOLD MY BODY DOWN
The all – black musical Your arms too Short to Box With God is Vinnette Carrol’s vibrant
version of what the gospel of Matthew would have been like, if it had been
written with a little bit more of that old – time religion. With buoyant negro
spirituals and exciting choreography, Your
arms too Short to Box With God celebrates the life, death and resurrection
of Christ.
In the final scene of the first act, Jesus has just
risen from the tomb and is standing high at the back of the stage in a glow of
yellow celestial light. With a thunderous voice the risen Lord sings a song
entitled, “Can’t No Grave Hold My Body Down”.
That song sums up the joyous news of Easter. We
hear an angel sing it for Jesus as he greets Mary Magdalena and the other Mary
at the tomb: “Can’t No Grave Hold My Body Down”. You can almost sense its
rhythm keeping pace with the two women as the hurry to tell the good news about
Jesus to the disciples: “Can’t No Grave Hold My Body Down”.
Two days before, Christ enemies had done their
worst to him. They had him bound in the garden, scourged at the pillar,
crucified on the cross, hand pierced with a lance. But neither death nor a stone
seal nor an armed guard could contain Christ in the grave. He was raised from
the dead by God his Father.
This good news of Christ’s resurrection is
symbolized by the Easter lilies that decorate our homes and churches. All
through the winter these flowers lay buried in the cold, frozen earth. But with
the spring sunshine, showers and breezes, these lilies come alive break through
the ground and bloom. No ground can hold these lilies down. No ground can
contain their new living blossoms.
What can we learn from the lilies of the fields?
What can we learn from the musical Your
arms too Short to Box With God? Two things.
First, we can learn something about our own
resurrection. Easter is not only a celebration of Christ’s rising from the
dead, but is also an anticipation of our own rising one day from the dead.
Because we already share in the risen life of Christ through baptism, “Can’t No
Grave Hold My Body Down” either. When we die, our body will decay and
disintegrate, but it is not destined to stay that way. By the power of God’s
grace our bodies will rise again to be clothed with immortality and
incorruptibility.
In his book Hymn
of the Universe, Fr. Teihaird de Chardin says that if we are to be
assimilated into God, he must first break down the molecules of our being so as
to recast and remold us. It is the function of death to bring about in us this
required organic decomposition, so that the divine fire can descend upon us and
bring about our transformation. In this way the power of death to cause our dissolution
and extinction is harnessed by God to accomplish our resurrection and
re-creation.
A second thing we can learn from the lilies and the
black musical is what they tell us about our present life. Before we die in the
radical sense, we die many times in a lesser sense. Every time we suffer a
loss, fail in some enterprise, or are disabled by an illness, we die a little
bit. But if we have faith, “Can’t No Grave Hold Our Spirit Down”. “We discover
new dreams to pursue, new challenges to take on, and new reasons to try again.
Every time we are overwhelmed by problems, discouraged by disappointments, or
beset by worry, we are diminished in some way. But if we really believe that
“Can’t No Grave Hold Our Spirit Down” we find that the impossible becomes possible
and the unreachable becomes reachable. With Christ we rise again!
2nd Sunday of Easter Ac 2:42-47 Jn 20:19-31
TAKE YOUR HANDS
Several years ago a Joy of Life program was put on by the University
of St Thomas in Houston Houston
But of all the people who appeared in that Joy of Life program the one who stole
the show was a 6-year-old mentally deficient girl. When the spotlight focused
on her, a sign on hear back could be read: “I am retarded, but I am glad I am
alive”.
What an affirmation of faith on the part of her
parents! Their 6-year-old child was retarded, but they were glad she was alive,
and they made her feel glad that she was alive. It was an affirmation of faith
comparable to Thomas’ in the gospel: “My Lord and my God”.
In fact, their faith surpassed the faith of Thomas.
He believed because he saw the Lord. These parents believed even though they
had not seen the Lord. Thomas had to touch our Lord’s hands and side before he
believed. These parents could touch our Lord only by faith. Every time the held
their retarded daughter they believed that they were touching the Christ living
in her bye baptism.
Their affirmation of faith is what Jesus praised in
the gospel when he said: “Blessed are they who have not seen and have
believed”.
If only we could take Christ’s words seriously,
there would be no has one of their teenage daughters get pregnant. Or one of
their sons becomes hooked on drugs. The first reaction of the parents may be
anger.
But Jesus seems to be saying that they should take
their fingers and feel their daughter’s pregnant womb, and take their hands and
touch their son’s needled arm. “Do not persist in your unbelief, but believe”,
Jesus says. “Believe that I want, not their rejection, but rather their
reconciliation”.
Sometimes a family has an alcoholic father or a
neurotic mother. The children may feel resentment or hostility towards them.
But our Lord seems to be saying: “Take your hand and support my staggering
body. Take your fingers and calm my shattered nerves”.
So it doesn’t matter what the situation may be.
With faith we can say with the disciples: “We have seen the Lord. We believe
that the Lord is risen and lives in his people”.
It doesn’t matter whether the issue is infidelity,
immigration, abortion, or AIDS. With faith we can hear Christ say: “Don’t
persist in your unforgiveness, your prejudice, your cruelty, or your fear. Take
your hand and find some way to forgive from the heart, to release aliens from
oppression, to protect the unborn in the womb, or to minister to a dying AIDS
victim”.
During the liturgy we profess our faith in the presence
of Christ in the Eucharist. We see only bread, but we say with Thomas: “My Lord
and my God”. At the end of the liturgy we will be sent to “love and serve the
Lord” – to love and serve the Lord in mentally deficient 6-year-old children
and in teenage rebels; to love and serve the Lord in alcoholic parents and in
senile grandparents.
We are challenged not to persist in our unbelief,
but to believe to believe in the risen Lord, and to believe that he still lives
in his people. Do we have enough faith to take our hands and touch him in his
people?.
3rd Sunday of Easter Ac 2:14, 22-28
Lk 24: 13-35
THE GRASS IS GREENER
In one of the Peanuts
comic strips, Lucy and Linus are standing before a hill. Lucy says that one
day she will go over that hill and find the answer to her dreams. But Linus
answers with his usual realism. He says that perhaps there is another little
kid on the other side of the hill who thinks that all the answers to life lie
on this side of the hill.
The point of this Peanuts parable is that life always seems better on the other side
of the hill. The grass always looks greener in another field. Might not this
parable be applied to the two disciples in the gospel on their way to Emmaus,
and in some sense to us?
The two disciples were leaving Jerusalem
Indeed, the events that happened in Jerusalem
Are we much different from Lucy looking beyond some
grassy hill? Are we much different from the two disciples who left Jerusalem
When he became Pope, John Paul II never expected
that he would be the target of an assassination attempt. When Frank Borman
became president of Eastern Airlines, he never expected the company to suffer
financial losses. Such people must feel at times like leaving their Jerusalem
All of us must feel disappointed sometimes at the
unexpected outcomes in our lives. All of us must feel at times like leaving the
Jerusalem
We don’t have to leave the surroundings of our Jerusalem
Consequently, it is foolish to wish that unexpected
in our lives had turned out differently, or to think that we have to go
elsewhere to encounter Christ. Why not open our eyes to recognize his presence
in our midst before he vanishes from our sight? Why not open our hearts to
welcome him in as we discover him in each other?
In his poem “The Kingdom of God”, Francis Thompson
wrote:
O world invisible, we view thee.
O world intangible, we touch thee.
Does the fish soar to find the ocean,
The eagale plunge to find the air,
That we ask of the stars in motion,
If they have rumour of three there?
Not where the wheeling systems darken,
And our benumbed conceiving soars,
The drift of pinions, could we hearken,
Beats at our own clay – shuttered doors.
4th Sunday of
Easter Ac 2: 14,
36-41 Jn 10: 1-10
GATEWAYS
The United
States Golden Gate
Bridge in San
Francisco , and the other is the stainless steel Gateway Arch in St. Louis
The Golden Gate
Bridge spans the strait between the
Pacific Ocean and San Francisco
Bay St. Louis is
considered a symbol of 20th – century steel structures, just as the Eiffel Tower
in Paris
If Christ were speaking today he would probably use
either of these two gates for his image instead of the sheepgate image of this
Sunday’s gospel. In another of one of his famous I AM statements he says: “ I AM
the sheepgate. Whoever enters through me will be safe”.
Although we might prefer a more contemporary gate
image, we can learn much from our Lord’s sheepgate metaphor. A sheepgate
allowed a shepherd to lead his flock into a sheepfold or corral, where it would
be safe from attacks by predatory animals and secure against marauding thieves.
By identifying himself as a figurative sheepgate, Jesus claims that anyone who
comes through him will be safe. Safe
from what?
The first kind of safety we need is safety from
harm. Sometimes this may mean protection from harm in our outer world, from
accidents, injury or sickness. More often it means safety from harm in our
inner world, from discouragement, depression or despair. Even though we may be
wounded in our outer world, the Lord will never let us be destroyed in our
inner world.
A second kind of safety we can count on is safety
from negative influences. There are all kinds of sinister influences in the
world trying to rob us of our faith and ideals. For example, corrupt government
officials threaten our quest for justice and freedom; greedy investors
undermine our desire to share and help the poor; misguided entertainers distort
our sense of decency. It is not easy to follow Christ faithfully in a world
hostile to gospel values. We need Christ’s reassurance that our faith and
ideals will ultimately prevail.
A third kind of safety we need is safety from
worry, anxiety and self – pity. Excessive concern can drain our energy and
immobilize us. If we are too worried about our health, finances or
relationships, we can’t function productively, advance in personal growth, or
deepen our life in the Spirit. Only Christ can make us safe from being
dominated by worry, overwhelmed by anxiety, or paralyzed by self-pity. Only
Christ can help us to live fully with joy and enthusiasm.
In one of his talks, dream – analyst Robert Johnson
tells how he helped a woman who was troubled by demons. He told her to draw in
circle every time a demon began to disturb her and to imagine herself inside
that circle. According to Jungian psychology, a circle is a primitive symbol of
safety. The woman followed Robert Johnson’s suggestion, was gradually freed
from her demons, and went on to live a healthy life.
Perhaps Christ’s gate and sheepfold imagery is
another variation of this primitive symbol of the circle of safety, but a
variation that brings it to fulfillment Jesus is not just like a sheepgate or a
circle. He is the sheepgate. He is our safety in any trouble. He is our fullness of life.
5th Sunday of
Easter Ac 6: 1-7 Jn 14:1-12
DO NOT BE TROUBLED
During the Second World War, Prime Minister Winston
Churchill gave some of the most stirring speeches of all times. For example,
after England had suffered a
demoralizing defeat at Dunkirk
Victory at all
costs, victory in spite of terror, victory however long and hard the road may
be, for without victory there is no survival. We shall not flag of fail. We
shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France
With words like that, Churchill aroused the hearts
of his people to remain undaunted, even though they were on the verge of
destruction. He encouraged them not to lose faith, however fierce the fight
became.
In today’s gospel Jesus gives one of his own
stirring speeches. The scene is the Last Supper, his disciples are present, and
the time is the eve of his darkest hour, the day of his death. And yet, in
spite of knowing that the worst is about to occur, Jesus tells his disciples:
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Have faith in God and faith in me”
These words are some of the most reassuring in the
whole Bible. Nonetheless, for many of us these words are not reassuring at all.
In fact, they seem unrealistic. How can Jesus tell us not to be troubled?
Doesn’t he realize all the troubles that afflict us?
On the international scene our security is
threatened by the possibility of nuclear war. On the national scene our peace
is disrupted by increasing violence and crime. On the urban scene our property
is jeopardized by rising costs and unemployment.
In our personal lives we have troubles with our
work and troubles with our marriage, troubles with our children and troubles
with our parents, troubles with our car and troubles with our health.
We even have imaginary troubles to add to our real
ones. We imagine failure and loss, and we become afraid. We imagine criticism
and rejection, and we become paralyzed. True, these things may never happen.
Still they upset our peace of mind.
Doesn’t Jesus realize all the troubles that disturb
us? Aren’t his words unrealistic? The answer is that Jesus does know about
them, and that is why his words are relevant and, indeed, reassuring, Jesus
know about troubles because he himself experienced them.
He had troubles with the Pharisees who twisted his
words, troubles with his disciples who understood so little, troubles with
Judas who betrayed him, troubles with Peter who denied him, troubles with fear
of his impending death.
Yet, in spite of all these troubles, Jesus was able
to say with calmness and confidence: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Have
faith in God and faith in me”.
The faith Jesus recommends is not an escape from
reality. Rather, it is a declaration that even if the worst does happen, we
will not be destroyed by it. Even if everything seems to be collapsing, we will
not be crushed.
Our faith is an affirmation that even if others
leave us, Jesus never will, for he has promised to lead us to the place he has
prepared for us, so that where he is, we also may be.
6th Sunday of
Easter Ac 8: 5-8 Jn 14: 15-21
TRIPLE CROWN WINNERS
Up until 1987 only eleven horses had won the
coveted Triple Crown in thoroughbred racing. That is, only eleven horses had
finished first in the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness, and the Belmont Stakes.
The first two horses to accomplish this extraordinary feat were Sir Barton in
1919 and Gallant Fox in 1930. The last two were Seattle Slew in 1977 and
Affirmed in 1978.
What is it that makes some horses winning
thoroughbreds? Why is it that some horses have more speed, strength and stamina
than other horses?
Essentially, of course, these traits have to come
from within the horses themselves: from their own inner capacity and from their
inherited gene structure.
Still it seems that they also need help from
outside. To become champions, they need the help of expert trainers and
skillful jockeys to activate and develop their inner powers.
It is the same with us. Born human, we have within
us capacities to love, learn, choose, work and so on. But we need the help of
parents, teachers and friends to activate and develop these capacities so that
we can reach our full human potential.
That is why we need the Holy Spirit and why Jesus
promised to send him to us: “I will ask the Father and he will give you another
Paraclete – to be with you always; to remain with you and be within you”.
According to Peake’s
Commentary on the Bible, the word paraclete
means one who is called to our side as a helper was often a legal counselor
in a court of law. In another sense, the Holy Spirit is a special kind of
helper who is always with us to help us activate and develop our inner
capacities.
Moreover, the Holy Spirit is given not only to be
with us at our side, but also to dwell within
us. His seven gifts are not some magical cloak we put on our outside, but a
new source of life and power that operates from within the very depths of our
being.
What are some of the ways in which the Holy Spirit
helps us?
First, we become conquerors. With the Holy Spirit working within our hearts there is
no obstacle we cannot overcome in order to grow and expand – whether that
obstacle is fear or laziness, drugs or alcohol, a physical handicap or an
emotional disorder.
Second, we become more creative. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit we discover more
beautiful and harmony in the universe and are able to express our vision in new
works of music, art, literature and science.
Third, we become more compassionate. Whenever we encounter hunger, sickness or
unemployment, the Holy Spirit prompts us to do something personal to alleviate
these pains experienced by other people.
Fourth, we see things with greater clarity. The Holy Spirit dwelling within
us opens our eyes to see things from God’s point of view – the shortness of
time and the length of eternity; the wisdom of discipline and the foolishness
of selfish indulgence; the value of prayer and the waste of worry.
Praise God for giving us the Holy Spirit to dwell
within us as a helper. We may never win things like Triple Crowns or Academy
Awards, but with his help we will reach a peak in personal growth and enrich
the lives of people around us. We may never be given gold medals at Olympics or
honorary degrees at graduation, but we become more Christ – like as the Holy
Spirit transforms us from within.
Ascension Ac 1: 1-11
Mt 28: 16-20
STILL WITH US
In his book He
Leadeth Me, Jesuit priest Walter Ciszek chronicles his spiritual odyssey of
twenty – three years in Russia, five of which were spent in the dreaded
Lubyanka prison in Moscow and ten of which were spent in the harsh Siberian
slave labor camps. Fr. Ciszek was finally released from Russia in 1963 in exchange for two Soviet spies
held in the United States
Fr. Ciszek’s book tries to answer the question,
“How did you manage to survive in Russia
Today’s gospel must have been especially meaningful
to Fr. Ciszek. As Jesus in about to ascend into heaven he speaks his final
words to his disciples: “Know that I am with you always, until the end of the
world”.
In his study of Matthew’s gospel, Fr. Donald Senior
underlines the significance of the with
you phrase. The beginning of Matthew’s gospel was marked by the revelation
that Jesus would be called Emmanuel, that
is, God – with – us. This theme of
God’s abiding presence in the person of Jesus is now matched at the end of
Matthew’s gospel bye our Lord’s own promise: “Know that I am with you always, until the end of the
world”.
This keynote of Matthew’s gospel, namely God – with – us, explains somewhat why
Matthew has no ascension story as such. The evangelists Mark and Luke write
specifically that Jesus was taken up to heaven, but not Matthew. Although
Matthew sets the scene for the Ascension, he stops short of actually saying
that Jesus ascends.
Perhaps this is Matthew’s way of stressing the staying of Jesus with us, as opposed to
his going away to heaven. It may be
Matthew’s way of calling attention to our Lord’s new, invisible presence in our
midst – a sacramental presence transcending all barriers of time and place, as
opposed to his historical, visible presence limited by space and time.
We are dealing here with a paradox, a mystery. In
one sense, Jesus has gone away by
ascending into heaven. But in another sense, he is still with us here on earth. Our Lord’s going away, his Ascension, is most important to us because it
confirms his claim to be God’s own Son; it completes the cycle of Incarnation –
Redemption – Glorification; and it gives us hope of one day following him.
But equally important to us is our Lord’s abiding presence. Whenever we read his
word, break his bread, gather to pray in his name, and minister to the least of
his brethren, we experience his being –
with – us, here and now. Whenever we deny ourselves for him, carry our
cross after him, or suffer persecution because of his name, we know that he is with us to support, encourage and inspire
us.
In the familiar story entitled “Footprints” a man
at the end of his life wanted to know why in tough times there was only one set
of footprints in the sand. After all, the Lord had promised to walk with him
all the way. The Lord replied to walk with him all the way. The Lord replied by
telling him that he never left him in times of trial. When the man saw only one
set of footprints, it was then that the Lord carried him.
The Lord was with Fr. Ciszek for twenty – three
years of hardship in Russia
7th Sunday of
Easter Ac 1: 12-14 Jn 17: 1-11
ALFIE
The movie Alfie
tells the story of a British playboy bye the same name. During the film, Alfie
has affairs with five women, his “birds” as he calls them. In all of these
relationships Alfie avoids getting too deeply involved or attached, even though
one of his “birds” give birth to his child and another gets an abortion.
Alfie’s philosophy is to take care of yourself first and to live for your own
pleasures, even if you have to use or hurt other people in doing so.
But when he is confronted with the possibility of
his own death because of an illness, Alfie begins to reflect on the meaning of
his life. His questions are summed up in the lyrics of the song Bert Bacharach
wrote for the movie: “What’s it all about, Alfie? Is it just for the moment we
live? What’s it all about?”
If we were to ask these questions – not of Alfie
the Playboy, but of John the Evangelist – we would get his answer in today’s
gospel: “Eternal life is this: to know the
Father as the only true God, and him whom he has sent, Jesus Christ”.
This is what life is all about – to know the Father and his Son Jesus. Life
is not just for the moment – in knowing God
we already have eternal life. Some of us find John’s answer so simple that we
don’t take it seriously. So we seek the answer elsewhere. For example, Alfie
sought it in drugs; John DeLorean in financial power.
In a sense John’s answer is simple. To live fully,
to have eternal life, it is sufficient to know
God. Yet, in another sense, his answer is most sublime. The Jerome Biblical Commentary says that
to know in the Bible is not just
perceiving or being aware of someone. To
know also implies personal experience, intimacy and commitment. Thus, in
Genesis we read that Adam knew his
wife Eva and she conceived a child.
Contemporary psychiatrist Paul Tournier also talks
about this profound kind of knowing in his book To Understand Each Other. He says that emotional incompatibility in
marriage is a myth. In his opinion, emotional incompatibility is really a
failure to get to know and understand
one’s spouse – a failure to spend enough quality time with them, to share their
feelings and values, to experience things together, to dream their dreams.
If this kind of knowing is essential between husbands and wives, it is no
less so between God and us. To know God
requires an intimate relationship, a deep union and a radical commitment. It means
spending time with him in prayer, listening to his word in Scripture and
experiencing his power in the sacraments. To know God means discovering his beauty in creation, feeling his
presence in people and discerning his hand in what happens to us.
In the musical The
King and I, there is a song called “Getting to Know You”. If we sang that
to the Lord we would be putting John’s gospel into music: “To know you, Lord, is our source of happiness in this life and our
destiny in the next life. To know you
gives meaning to our brief life now and anticipates the fullness of life
later”.
“What’s it all about, Alfie?” “To know the Father as the only true God,
and him whom he has sent, Jesus Christ”.
Pentecost
(A,B,C) Ac 2: 1-11 Jn 20: 19-23
FIRE
Fire is an awesome element. It can both destroy and
create. Under arsonists, fire can burn down homes and villages. Under skill
workers, fire can transform materials into ceramics, steel and glass.
For example, Steuben glass in noted for its
distinctive designs, extraordinary clarity and remarkable strength. It took
Steuben craftsmen almost a year to complete the massive “Great Ring of Canada”
as our nation’s gift to Canada
Although many talents were used to fashion that
Steuben glass, it would not have been possible without fire. Technicians can
put together the right combination of sand, alkalis and oxides, but only fire
can transform these ingredients into clear glass. Artists can create a design
for glass, but only fire can give it actual shape and form.
Because fire has such immense power to transform
and create new possibilities, it is an apt symbol for the Holy Spirit. Thus, in
the first reading from Acts we hear how the Pentecost event was marked by the
signs of a strong wind and tongues of fire.
In his commentary Invitation to Acts, Fr. Robert Karris writes:
The Spirit’s
coming, an interior experience, is described exteriorly “like a powerful wind”
and “like tongues of fire”. In Jewish tradition wind and fire are symbols of
God’s presence, as, for example, in God’s supreme revelation on Mt. Sinai
Beside its power to transform, fire has other uses
that make it indeed a suitable sign for the Holy Spirit. In cold weather we
gather around a campfire or fireplace to get warm; the heat generated by a fire
has led to its association with love, affection and passion.
A fire lights up, brightens and illuminates space
to dispel darkness. We use fire to purify precious metals like silver and to
sterilize wounds in emergencies. Because fire consumes and turns matter into
itself, it is put to work to get rid of waste and refuse.
Besides having properties that make it useful, fire
has the capacity to arouse certain feelings in us. Fireworks inspire awe, vigil
lamps devotion, fireplaces togetherness and bonfires excitement.
There is especially one property of fire associated
with the Holy Spirit that seems suggested in the gospel: the power of fire to
spread and grow and not be contained. Jesus said to his disciples: “As the
Father has sent me, so I send you”. Then he breathed on them and said: “Receive
the Holy Spirit”.
As the fire of the Holy Spirit inflames the hearts
of the apostles, it cannot by its very nature be contained. So the Lord is
sending them to spread this fire to others, to pass on his Spirit to others.
Pope John Paul Ii emphasized the importance of
spreading the fire of the Holy Spirit when he addressed the youth of Scotland
There is no
place in your lives for apathy or indifference to the world around you. Christ
counts on you, so that the effects of his Holy Spirit may radiate from you to
others and in that way permeate every aspect of the public and the private
sector of life.
In his book Not
I, Not I, But the Wind That Blows Through Me, Peter DeRosa expressed much
the same idea this way:
Whoever rights
wrongs, feeds the hungry, cares for the dispossessed …whoever is sensitive
towards the numerous little heartaches people suffer, is an envoy of Christ.
And whoever shares in Christ’s mission, shares in the Fire of the Spirit. A
parent or teacher who helps youngsters to be sensitive to beauty, enables them
to love truth, to honor sincerity, is also a Paraclete, a light and fire.
Let us pray again that the Holy Spirit will come to
fill our hearts and kindle in us the fire of his love, so that the Lord can
send us to spread that fire and renew the face of the earth.
Holy Trinity Ex 34: 4-6 Jn 3: 16-18
THREE, YET ONE
In his brilliant series The Ascent of Man, author Jacob Bronowski devotes an episode to mathematics
under the title “The Music of the Spheres”. He shows historically how man’s
ascent in civilization was marked by an increasing understanding of
mathematical patterns which he saw reflected in the harmonies of music, for
example, or in the motion of the spheres around the sun.
One of the most fascinating geometric discoveries
by the early Greeks was the fact that three fixed points, not all on the same
line, determine uniquely one and only one triangle, one and only one plane, and
one and only one circle. Why this should be, we don’t know. All we can do is
observe it as a fact and apply it to the real world in art, architecture,
engineering and science.
Even more mysterious is our belief that there are three Persons, yet one and only one God. Why this should be, we don’t know. All we can
do is accept it as a revealed fact and apply it to our Christian life.
Today’s readings are part of this Trinity
revelation. In Exodus we read about God announcing his name to Moses as Yahweh,
and then giving us the meaning of that name as a God who is merciful and
gracious. In the second reading, St.
Paul
Finally, in the gospel of John, Jesus tells
Nicodemus that god his Father so loved the world that he sent his only Son.
Recall that last Sunday on Pentecost we also read in John’s gospel that Jesus
breathed on his disciples and said: “Receive the Holy Spirit”.
In his book The
Theology of the Trinity, Laurence Cantwell devotes a chapter to
interpreting the Trinity in the light of the universal religious sense of
mankind.
This sense of religion makes itself felt first in a
feeling of awe at finding ourselves in a world we did not make. We see evidence
of God’s hand in creation, but we don’t see God himself. Our awe expresses
itself in worship.
Second. A religious sense is felt by an insight
into God’s presence at the heart of the world. Poetry, music, art and human
love awaken in us an awareness of divine presence in our very midst. We
perceive that human activity has a divine dimension.
If the first religious sense can be characterized
as vertical, pointing beyond the world, then the second way
can be characterized as horizontal, pointing
the way within the world. In the
first way we look at God as that mysterious source from which creation came –
the Father as we would say. In the
second way, we see god as a presence within creation – the Son as we would say.
There is a third dimension to the ways a religious
sense is felt, a depth dimension
whereby we detect a presence within
ourselves. Great artist, for example, testify to an inspiration from within
their very being which moves them to creative activity. This divine spark
within us we call the Holy Spirit.
No matter where we look, then – up into the universe, out into this world, or inside our own hearts – we sense the
presence of a mysterious God who is three,
yet one.
In every dimension of our existence God reveals
himself to us in order to Surround us with his light, share with us his life
and draw us into his love. May we always praise the Father for creating us, the
Son for redeeming us and the Holy Spirit for sanctifying us.
FOOD FOR THE WORLD
The book No
Need for Hunger is a study published by Jonathan Garst in which he says
that we have solved the food problem technologically. It is the political and
economic problems which impede the flow of this advanced technology from one
country to another. Garst claims that by working together the scientist,
industrialist, salesman and farmer could feed the world.
In another study done on food and famine, Professor
Dando of the University of North Dakota concluded that while previous famines
were the result of human causes such as politics or economics. At this moment
more than two – thirds of the world’s population is hungry. Unless we solve the
food problem, we will soon be facing famine on a global scale, according to
Dando.
Indeed, we need food for our body to live. But as
Christians we also need another kind of food for our spirit to live. The food par excellence for our spirits is the
sacrament of the Eucharist, the food of Jesus himself under the form of bread.
In the gospel Jesus says: “I myself am the living
bread come down from heaven. Anyone who feeds on this bread will live forever.
The bread I will give is my flesh, for the life of the world”.
When we reflect on world hunger it teaches us
something about the Eucharist. Without adequate food for our body, we become
weak and cannot work; we become easy victims to disease and sickness. Without
food we quickly lose interest in anything cultural or spiritual; we lose our
freedom and become enslaved by poverty and injustice. In other words, without
food we cannot live a full human life and enjoy health, work, learning and
freedom.
It is no different in our life of the spirit.
Without the food of the Eucharist we become weak and incapable of reaching out
to help others; we become easy victims to temptation and depression. Without
the bread of life we quickly lose interest in reading Scripture and in praying;
we lose our freedom in the Spirit and become enslaved by the materialism of the
world. In other words, we need the Eucharist to become fully alive in our life
of the spirit.
In the first reading from Deuteronomy, we heard how
God allowed the Israelites to be hungry in the desert and then fed them with
manna. He did this to show them that “not by bread alone does man live, but by
every word that comes forth from the mouth of God”.
In his commentary on today’s gospel. Fr. Donald
Gelpi says that by eating the food of the Eucharist we show in effect that we
no longer draw our life simply from the things of this world – no longer do we
live by bread alone, or by beer, or by television, or by cars, or by balanced
budgets, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. And the supreme
Word of God became flesh in Jesus, who is now present in the Eucharist.
This is the meaning of the bread of life – a Spirit
– filled people of God who feed on the Eucharist in faith as a sign of their
total dependence on the Lord as the ultimate source of their life.
Not only that, but it is a people sharing its bread
with others – bread for the hungry by helping the poor; bread for the oppressed
by fighting for justice; bread for the lonely by offering friendship; bread for
the despairing by giving encouragement.
Yes, there is No
Need for Hunger – physical or spiritual – if only we get our scientists,
industrialists, salesmen and farmers working together with the help of our
governments; if only we become a Spirit – filled people who feed on the
Eucharist and share it with others. Pray that we may truly become a people of
faith who live on the real food that is Jesus himself and find ways to fulfill
each other’s needs.
2nd Sunday of
the Year Is 49: 3, 5-6
Jn 1: 29 – 34
NICKNAMES
Nicknames are popular descriptive titles given to
people in addition to or in place of their regular names. For example, Babe
Ruth as the Sultan of Swat in baseball, Red Grange as the Galloping Ghost in
football, William Cody as Buffalo Bill in cowboy lore, Teddy Roosevelt as the
Bull Moose among presidents, and General Patton as Old – Blood – and – Guts in
the military.
Nicknames usually capture some key characteristic
of a person’s identity or give a condensed description of their outstanding
qualities. Thus Ivan the Terrible conjures up images of ferocity and violence,
while the Little Flower, Therese of Lisieux, reminds us of gentleness and
kindness.
Today’s readings give us some biblical nicknames
for Jesus.
In the first reading, Isaiah calls him God’s Servant, and the proceeds to identify
his mission. Through his Servant the
Lord will show his glory, gather Israel
In the gospel, John the Baptist dubs Jesus as the Lamb of God, and then he, too, goes on
to describe the Savior’s mission. As the Lamb
of God, Jesus will take away the sin of the world, baptize with the Holy
Spirit and demonstrate that he is in fact God’s Chosen One.
In his Pelican commentary on this gospel, John
Marsh concludes that in this one word lamb,
the evangelist has drawn together overtones of meaning from Old Testament
prophecy, current Passover practices and the apocalyptic hopes of the times.
First, Old Testament prophecy. In Isaiah 53 the Servant is crushed for our sins and is
led like a lamb to the slaughter.
Nevertheless, because of his suffering he will take away the sins of many and
win pardon for their offenses.
Second, current Passover practices. Every year the
Jews re-enacted the Paschal story of Exodus 12. They slaughtered a year – old
male lamb without blemish and sprinkled
its blood on their doorposts. They then prayed that the Lord would pass over
their homes as he destroyed their oppressors.
Third, the lamb
in apocalyptic literature. In the book of Revelation the lamb is first
slain as a victim for our redemption but then becomes a victorious conqueror
who takes his seat upon God’s throne.
Now that we know where John the Baptist got his
nickname for Jesus, so what? Let’s face it – the Lamb of God is not exactly a popular title suggesting strength,
such as Richard the Lionhearted. But if we look more closely, we will see that
the title Lamb of God does, in fact,
stand for courage.
Although the Suffering Servant in Isaiah 53 went in
silence to his sacrifice, he also went in strength
and by his own choice. As followers of Jesus, can we take up our cross
freely, with dignity, and in strength?
The paschal lamb was a means of liberation for God’s Chosen People from
the oppression of Egypt
The Lamb of the book of Revelation is a conquering Lamb – a Lamb who makes war
on poverty and hunger, and who battles against immorality and corruption. We
witness to the Lamb every time we fight for human rights, stand up for decency
and protest incompetence in government.
The Lamb of
God is more than a nickname. It is a challenge for us to keep on taking
away the sins of the world so that it can truly be baptized with the Holy
Spirit.
3rd Sunday of the
Year Is 8: 23-9;3 Mt 4: 12-23
FISHERMEN
In one of the finest films ever made, The Older Man and the Sea, Spencer Tracy
plays the lead role of an aging fisherman. Based on Ernest Hemingway’s novel by
the same title, this movie depicts man’s struggle against insurmountable odds.
As the Old Man in Hemingway’s saga, Spencer Tracy
battles for hours to catch a great fish, only to have it attacked by sharks as
he tows it toward shore. By the time he reaches shore, only the backbone of the
giant fish is left.
The Old Man beaches his skiff, shoulders the mast
and trudges up the hill to his shack. He says: “Man is not made for defeat. Man
can be destroyed, but not defeated”.
Today’s gospel begins with the story of some other
fishermen. The setting is the Sea of Galilee in the land of Zebulun
Walking along the shore, Jesus calls them to leave
their fishing nets and to come after him. He promises to make them fishers of
men. They immediately abandon their boats to follow him.
Why would Jesus choose fishermen as his first
disciples? It certainly wasn’t for their educational background or their
training in Scripture. Such men would be found in the synagogues, not by the
seashore. It certainly wasn’t for their glamour. Glamorous fishermen are only
found in ads drinking Cutty Sark Scotch or using Old Spice After – Shave
Lotion.
No, the first disciples were probably chosen
because they were like the Old Man in Hemingway’s story. Not pious, but good
men down deep. Not easily discouraged, but patient and persevering. Not self –
indulgent, but hard working. Not educated, but full of wisdom.
And like the Old Man, they would come to know that
“man is not made for defeat”. Through their experiences with Jesus, these first
disciples would learn that “man can be destroyed, but not defeated”.
For the next three years they would observe Jesus
teach, preach and heal. They would then see him crucified but risen from the dead
and ascend into glory. Indeed, they would come to know through their Jesus –
experience that “man can be destroyed, but not defeated”.
Moreover, after Pentecost, when they received the
power of the Holy Spirit, these fishermen would embark on their own mission to
catch men for Christ. They too would heal, preach and share with others their
hope of eternal glory.
Although we may not be fishermen like the first
disciples or Hemingway’s Old Man, we too are called by Jesus to live for him,
not just earn a livelihood. We are invited to leave behind our old securities
and launch out with him onto a larger sea in life.
In other words, we are called to be witnesses for
Jesus and fishers of men and women for him. And we fulfill our ministry
whenever we reach out in love to heal others by words of comfort in their times
of sorrow or by gestures of encouragement in their moments of crisis.
We witness to Jesus whenever we proclaim the
indestructibility of hope by bouncing back from our own losses or by starting
anew after a tragedy. We draw others closer to the Lord whenever we pray
together as a family or forgive one another’s offenses.
To be fishers of men and women is more than a
metaphor. It is a mission from, through and in Christ.
4th Sunday of
the Year Zp 2: 3; 3:12-13 Mt 5: 1-12
BE HAPPY
Robert Schuller has become one of the foremost
preachers on television and his Crystal Cathedral one of the most familiar
churches on the American scene. Much of his popularity stems from his
optimistic approach to the gospel message of jesus, and approach he sums up as
“possibility thinking”.
Schuller’s positive point of view is reflected in
his best – selling book The Be – Happy
Attitudes, a commentary on the eight beatitudes our Lord teaches in today’s
gospel.
The first beatitude in Matthew’s listing is:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit; the
reign of God is theirs”. Schuller renders this as: “I need help; I can’t do it
alone”. Certainly material poverty does not make us happy, but poverty of
spirit does – that realization of how empty we are before God and how much we
need him to fulfill our lives.
The second beatitude is: “Blessed are the sorrowing; they shall be consoled”.
Schuller translates this as: “I may be hurting, but I will bounce back”. Sorrow
and pain are part of everyone’s life. But rather than allow ourselves to be
defeated by them, we can, in the words of Schuller, find a way to “turn our
scars into stars”.
The third beatitude is: “Blessed are the meek; they shall inherit the land”.
Schuller interprets it to mean: “I’ve got to remain calm, kind and corrected”.
Meekness does not mean weakness; instead it means blending strength with
gentleness and combining courage with calmness.
The fourth beatitude is “Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for holiness; they
shall have their fill”. Schuller rephrases it as: “I really want to do the
right thing”. In a consumer – oriented society, our appetites are played upon
to want more and more of everything. But happiness can only be found at a
deeper level where we hunger and thirst for the things of God – his word, his
presence, his peace.
The fifth beatitude is: “Blessed are they who show mercy; mercy shall be theirs”.
Schuller rewrites it as: “I’m going to treat others the way I want them to
treat me”. This beatitude challenges us to show compassion, understanding and
forgiveness to others – for we, too, stand in need of support, affirmation and
encouragement from them.
The sixth beatitude is: “Blessed are the single – hearted; they shall see God”.
Schuller restates it as: “I’m going to keep the faith flowing through me all
the time”. Since the basic meaning of single – hearted is pure, unmixed or
unadulterated, we become single – hearted when we commit ourselves completely
to God’s cause.
The seventh beatitude is: “Blessed are the peacemakers; they shall be called
children of God”. Schull. O takes it to mean: “I’m going to be a bridge
builder, a peacemaker”. We may argue about strategies to follow, but we cannot
argue about getting involved in some way in peace and justice issues.
The eighth beatitude is: “Blessed are those persecuted for holiness sake; the reign
of God is theirs”. Schuller expresses it as: “I’m going to be happy anyway”.
Although we may not be persecuted for our faith like Christians living under
Communism are, we suffer from more subtle forms of attack on our Christian
values through the media and advertising. We too need to be just as committed
and courageous.
Whether we prefer Matthew’s version of our Lord’s
eight beatitudes or Robert Schuller’s formulation is not important. What
matters is that we find our happiness through them. Problems and pain are part
of everyone’s pilgrimage. But by taking a positive approach to them through the
beatitudes or be-happy attitudes, we can truly be happy people.
5th Sunday of
the Year Is 58: 7-10 Mt 5: 13-16
SALT AND LIGHT
On July 16, 1981 a beautiful 19 year – old girl was
killed in an automobile accident near Houston Nancy
For example, one of her boyfriends wrote:
Her purity,
freshness, enthusiasm, and most of all her ability to love bathed all of us who
were around her. She was truly a joy. Nancy
Another boyfriend from college wrote:
We all loved Nancy
Nancy Powell lived only nineteen years, but her
memory continues to inspire all who knew her. She was the kind of person Jesus
could point to in today’s gospel and say: “Do you want to be the salt of the
earth and light of the world? Then be like her”.
In other words, if we want to add flavor to
people’s lives and brighten up their existence, then we should speak and act in
ways that will have these effects. When people like Nancy Powell come into a
room, their presence brings peace and joy. When they leave, life seems more drab
and dull. When we are with them, we feel affirmed and energized. When we are
separated from them, we feel a little lonely and flat.
When we go to work or come home, do people feel
better because we’re around, or do they get nervous because they expect trouble?
What kind of flavor or light do we bring with us? This is the personal sense in
which disciples can be salt and light for Jesus.
Besides adding taste to food, salt also preservers
it from spoiling. In a world growing more and more corrupt because of greed,
injustice and lust, we are called as disciples to preserve such Christian
values as sharing, human rights and decency. In a world decaying because of
dishonest, disloyalty and disrespect, we have to be committed to preserve our
Judaeo – Christian traditions of integrity, responsibility and care.
Besides illuminating our homes, lamps are also lit
to serve as guides on streets and waterways. In a world darkened by abortion,
nuclear arms and ecological pollution, people need us as guides to find
solutions compatible with the gospels. In a world dimmed by unemployment,
hunger and hostilities, we have to take leadership roles to brighten the
world’s horizon.
It is an awesome task to transform the social
order. But it is a task in which Nancy Powell wanted to share. She was studying
to be an elementary school teacher. Like her we should have confidence because
it takes only a tiny pinch of salt to have a tremendous effect, and it takes
only a tiny flame or light to dispel darkness over a vast area.
All of us can be that kind of salt and that kind of
light. Thank God for high call to be signs of his presence in the world. Praise
God for the opportunities we have to give glory to him.
6th Sunday of
the Year Si 15: 15-20 Mt 5: 17-37
EMBODY THE LAW
In Gilbert and Sullivan’s light opera Princess Ida, one of the characters
sings: “The law is the true embodiment of everything that’s excellent. It has
no kind of fault or flaw. And I, my Lords, embody the law”.
If we shift from comic opera to serious gospel,
this rhyme helps us to understand the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus did not come
to abolish the law and the prophets, but to fulfill them.
Law
and prophets here was a summary description of God’s revealed
word in Scripture. Being a good Jew, Jesus recognized that they were “the true
embodiment of everything that’s excellent”.
For example, the Ten Commandments embody reverence
for God, his name and his Sabbath day. They embody respect for parents,
marriage, life, property, human rights and truth.
It is this kind of reverence and respect that Jesus
came to fulfill. But he would do so in a new way, with a new teaching and with
a new authority.
First, Jesus does it in a new way because he embodies in his own being all that is excellent
in the law. By word and deed Jesus shows us what it means to respect the weak
and protect the poor. Some satire is involved when Gilbert and Sullivan’s
character sang: “And I embody the law”. But with Jesus it becomes a serious
statement.
Second, Jesus fulfills the law with a new teaching. His demands for
discipleship far surpass the demands of Old Testament law. A deeper kind of
holiness is expected of his followers. Not only is a crime of violence like
murder forbidden, but even the anger that is the root cause of such a criminal
act. Not only is the act of adultery to be shunned, but even lustful looks that
are the beginnings of adultery. Not only are false oaths to be avoided, but any
words that might compromise our honesty.
Indeed, these are new teachings that go beyond the
letter of the law to its spirit: that no longer stress legalism, but love; that
transform one’s attitude from “What should I not do?” into “What more can I
do”.
Third, Jesus brings the law to fulfillment with a new authority. In a series of sex
contrasting statements Jesus begins by saying, “You have heard it said of old”,
and then he finishes with his escalated demands, “But what I say to you is”.
Can you imagine how shocking this was to his listeners? For them the supreme
authority was the revealed word of God in Scripture. They must have thought
that Jesus was either mad or a megalomaniac to claim an authority greater than
the Scriptures.
It was only after he died and rose again that his
claims would be understood. Only then would his disciples see that Jesus did in
fact fulfill the law. Only then would they realize that he did embody in
himself all that was excellent in the law because he was the Son of God.
As disciple of Jesus, to what extent do we fulfill
the law and the prophets? Are we satisfied with a minimal legalism, like going
to Mass once a week and not killing our neighbor? Or are we striving for
quality and excellence the other six days of the week?
Do our thoughts reflect honesty and integrity? Are
our motives lofty an noble? If not, then we’re no better than the scribes and
Pharisees. Do our words show respect and care? Are we demonstrating by our
actions unselfishness and love? If not, then our Christian witness is weak.
We may not be without fault and flaws, but at least
we must try to embody God’s laws and persevere in our pursuit of excellence.
7th Sunday of
the Year Lv 19: 1-2, 17-18 Mt 5: 38-48
LOVE YOUR ENEMY
In 1963 a five – week civil rights boycott erupted
in Birmingham , Alabama
Martin Luther King’s third commandment required
walking and talking in the manner of love, for God is love. His sixth
commandment read: “Observe with friend and foe the ordinary rules of courtesy”.
His eighth commandment demanded that a demonstrator refrain from the violence
of fists, tongue or heart.
According to Martin Luther King’s Ten Commandments,
love and nonviolence had to be the soul power of the Civil Rights Movement.
According to another great master, Jesus Christ, love and nonviolence have
to be the soul power of Christian disciples.
In today’s gospel Jesus says: “You have heard the
commandment, You shall love your countryman, but hate your enemy”. My
commandment to you is: love your enemy and pray for your persecutors”.
The gospel doesn’t describe the crowd’s reaction,
but we can imagine how startled they were. Surly Jesus must be joking. Love the
Roman army which has plundered our farms, desecrated our synagogues, and
occupied our land? Love the enemy who has taxed our property, humiliated our
leaders, and enslaved our youth?
Indeed, it was a hard saying to hear. Nevertheless,
there it is recorded by the evangelist without any qualifications or
exceptions. Commentators agree that Christ’s command to love your enemy is one of his unique and original sayings. It has
no parallel in biblical or other Jewish literature of the period.
Why would Jesus make such an incredible statement?
Perhaps an answer can be found from the context. This statement is the last of
a series of six contrasts Jesus is making between the Old Law and his New Law.
The whole series was introduced in last week’s
gospel with his principal teaching: “Unless your holiness surpasses that of the
scribes and Pharisees, you can’t enter the kingdom”. The series is now
concluded with the final remark of today’s gospel which restates Christ’s main
point: “In a word, you must be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect”.
That is why we must love our enemy. We have to do
more than is humanly expected and imitate our heavenly Father, who loves both
the good and the bad without discrimination.
The next question is how such a love is possible.
An important distinction is necessary. Love is essentially an act of the will and not a feeling. So we don’t have to feel
good about our enemies, but we do have to will good to them. We don’t have to experience nice feeling about enemies, but we do have to
will at least their healing and
salvation.
Jesus commands us to love our enemies, not because he
approves of their wickedness, but because he loves all his creatures and wants
them to be saved, not so much because of what they are now – sinners – but
because of what they can become – saints.
On the cross, Jesus showed how far we may have to
go in loving our enemies. Through the civil rights demonstrations, Martin
Luther King showed the power love has to change the hearts of the enemy.
In the midst of today’s crises, Jesus needs new
witnesses to this power of love over hate and of forgiveness over animosity.
Will we stand up and show that we are Christians by our love for enemies?
8th Sunday of
the Year Is 49: 14-15
Mt 6: 24-34
LILIES OF THE FIELD
In 1963 Sidney Poitier won an Academy Award for his
performance in the film Lilies of the
Field. He played an ex – GI, Homer Smith, who stumbles across five East
German refugee nus in Arizona
But instead of paying Homer for his work, the
Mother Superior proposes that he stay on and build an chapel for them. Her
dogged determination and absolute trust in god inspire Homer to take on the
project. The simple faith of these five nuns to expect from God whatever they
need transforms Homer Smith from a skeptic into a believer. He builds their chapel.
The movie’s title is taken from today’s gospel. The
lilies of the field are part of the
imagery Jesus uses in his parable about not worrying and putting more trust in
God.
In his book Invitation
to Matthew, Fr. Donald Senior comments on today’s gospel parable:
This passage is
not an invitation to passivity, nor does it spring from a trivial romanticism
about nature and its beauty. These verses are a call to action – action that
proceeds from a commitment to the Kingdom. Such commitment frees one to live fully
in the present, and not be immobilized or diverted by anxiety about one’s
future.
In other words, when Jesus says that we should
learn from the lilies of the field and from the birds of the sky, he is not
saying, “Don’t work”, but rather, “Don’t worry”. And when he tells us to let
tomorrow take care of itself, he is not telling us, “Don’t plan or provide for
the future”, but rather, “Don’t be anxious or uptight about the future”.
We know from other parts of the gospel that Jesus
encourages hard work and diligence, and he praises wise planning and astuteness
regarding the future. His main point of today’s parable, however, is “don’t
worry”. He says it five times to make sure we don’t miss it.
Instead of worrying he wants us to put our faith in
God, to seek first his kingdom and to trust in him more. Work, yes, but not as
if God didn’t exist or care about us. Provide for the future, yes, but not with
excessive concern or anxiety.
We must not allow ourselves to get too melodramatic
over this parable. Disciples of Jesus like those five nuns in the movie indeed
have a lot of faith and trust, but they also work hard themselves and pray
often. Wonderful stories are told about saints like Vincent de Paul and Mother
Cabrini and how God rewarded their faith and multiplied their resources. But
Vincent de Paul and Mother Cabrini also toiled to the point of exhaustion and
prayed when it seemed useless.
Another point of realism about this parable is its
stark implication about death. A gracious god feeds his birds but some birds
still freeze to death. A caring god clothes the flowers with splendor, but
these same flowers also wither and die. So too, a loving Father knows all our
human needs and provides for them, but we still experience pain, suffering and
death.
Are these contradictions? No, they are a call to
faith – faith in a God who will ultimately give us more than we can see now;
faith in a God who will in the end restore more than we’ve ever lost; faith in
a God who will eventually win the victory for us when he raises us from the
dead.
The lilies of
the field then is not some pious parable, but a call to action and
commitment to faith. We are called to work with all our might, but not to
worry. We are expected to provide for the future, but without anxiety. We are
going to encounter and death, but with faith and trust in the living God.
9th Sunday of
the Year Dt 11: 18, 26-28 Mt 7: 21-27
LONDON BRIDGE
Little children are still taught the ole nursery
rhyme “London Bridge Britain London
from the Danes, who had their main defense on the bridge , King Aethelred
enlisted the help of King Olaf of Norway
King Olaf had his men row under the bridge, lay
cables around its pilings, and then pull them away. Thus London
Bridge came falling down, the Danes
were defeated, London
When a new
London Bridge
In today’s gospel Jesus doesn’t talk about bridges
falling down, but about houses. However, the basic idea is the same. If we
build a hose or bridge with a weak foundation instead of setting it solidly on
rock, then a storm or a flood or an enemy’s attack will make it collapse in
ruin.
Our Lord applies the imagery to the two ways we can
hear his words. If we do not put them
into practice, we build on shifting sand. If we do put them into practice, we build on solid rock.
In the modern world of mass media we hear and see a
lot of messages competing with our Lord’s words in the gospel: easy instant
gratification as opposed to self – denial and carrying one’s cross; stockpiling
material things as opposed to being poor in spirit; doing your own thing as
opposed to keeping the commandments.
If we buy into the values promoted by the world,
then we are laying the foundation of our lives on unstable sand. Eventually our
indulgence in sensual kicks will leave us empty; our material things will
become boring; and having our own way will only make us more restless.
But if we believe in and live by the gospel values
of Jesus, then we are setting our lives on solid rock. No adversity will be
able to destroy the fulfillment we find in Christ; no loss will be able to
deprive us of the joy we experience through Jesus; no disappointment will be
able to shatter the solidarity we have with him.
As it turned out, for 900 years London Bridge Lake Havasu in Arizona
In a similar way, if we truly make Jesus our “rock
of safety”, as today’s Psalm 31 invites us to do, then we will indeed “be
stouthearted and take courage” when the rains come and the winds lash out
against us.
None of us can be spared from some kind of setbacks
and sufferings in this life. To survive the worst we need the solid bedrock of
faith in Christ. With the sure anchor of the hope Jesus holds out for and with
the steadfast support of his love, he will always be our “Bridge Over Troubled
Waters” and he will always “lead us on”.
10th Sunday of
the Year Ho 6: 3-6
Mt 9: 9-13
SECOND CHANCE
The
Natural is movie starring Robert Redford as a baseball player
name Roy Hobbs who is blessed with natural talent. An innocent, sunny – faced
farm boy, Hobbs
It takes Roy Hobbs fifteen years to work his way
back for another chance to play in the big leagues, and to redeem himself both
as a baseball player and as a man. Finally, his magic bat leads the New York
Knights on a charge out of the cellar to the pennant, and he returns to his
childhood sweetheart to begin a new life with her.
The
Natural may be too melodramatic as a movie, but is does make us
feel good to see a hero who had fallen from grace get a second chance and
succeed. Perhaps, too, that explains the appeal of today’s gospel story about
the call of Matthew to be apostle – he gets a second chance.
Actually Matthew is an anti – hero because he’s a
hated tax – collector. He was a Jew who sold his services to the Roman
conquerors to collect taxes for them from his own countrymen.
In the eyes of a good Jew, Matthew had already made
a mess of his life by betraying both his country and his religion. Jesus was
well aware of this, and yet he was willing to give Matthew a second chance by
inviting him to follow him.
Matthew sensed that something significant was
happing. Here was a supreme chance to leave his old life and to start again; a
one – in – a – lifetime opportunity to redeem the past and to create a new
future. Like Roy Hbbs in the movie, Matthew didn’t miss his second chance. He
seized the moment and followed Jesus.
William Barclay observes that Matthew left behind
his tax – collector’s table but took with him his writing pen to compose a
gospel later. He lost a lucrative position but found an apostolic mission. He
gave up economic security but gained a destiny.
In a sense we’re all second – chance people in the
company of Roy Hobbs and Matthew. We’ve all made mistakes or wasted
opportunities in the past. Perhaps it was not continuing or education, or
drinking ourself out of a good job, or messing up our marriage.
Whatever it may have been, the Lord gave us a
second chance. He saw us for what we were in terms of our past foolishness, but
he also saw what we could become in terms of our future possibilities.
It’s no different today. Jesus doesn’t want us
sitting around some table collecting taxes of guilt and self – pity when we
make more mistakes. He invites us to leave the table and follow him; he calls
us to take new directions with our life and to explore new paths.
Sometimes we find ourselves in awkward or
undesirable positions through no fault of our own: an accident may have
disabled us; economic misfortunes may have impoverished us; or death may have
deprived us of someone very dear to us.
In these circumstances, too, the Lord always finds
a way to give us a second chance of some sort. He may invite us to discover a
previously undeveloped talent, to take on another challenge, or to make new
friends.
Jesus won’t let us sit still in such situations. He
summons us to new adventures and further growth. He stretches our imagination
to look beyond the tables surrounding us and see new visions and new missions.
11th Sunday of
the Year Ex 19: 2-6
Mt 9: 36-10:8
GIVE YOUR GIFT
In a 1984 article Newsweek described Tom Monaghan as a man who had gone “From Pizza
to Pennant”. The title had reference, first of all, to his ownership of
Domino’s Pizza – the second largest pizza chain in the United States
Newsweek
went on to say that Monaghan’s life had all the stuff of
an old Frank Capra movie starring Mickey Rooney as a gutsy kid, because Tom
grew up in an orphanage and in a series of foster homes from the time he was
four.
With the encouragement of Sr. Mary Berarda,
Monaghan learned at the orphanage to have faith in God and in himself to be
anything he wanted to be. He worked hard selling vegetable, fish, newspapers –
anything to earn a dollar. Eventually he became the self – made millionaire he
is today.
Near Ann Arbor in Michigan
The context of the passage in which Jesus spoke
those words is the summoning of his twelve apostles and sending them on
mission. In doing so he gave them power to expel demons, cure the sick and even
raise the dead. However, the special powers they received were not given for
their own personal gain. Rather, they were given primarily to benefit others.
It is the same with us. Our talents have been given
to us by God as gifts. We may have worked hard to develop these gifts, but
originally they were given to us without our deserving them or having any claim
on them. We don’t own the gifts; we
are only trustees or stewards of them. So like the apostles
and Tom Monaghan, we are obliged to use these gifts to benefit others.
We are dealing with a paradox here. If we try
selfishly to hold on to the gifts for ourselves, they will never achieve their
full purpose. But if we try to share them with others, they will reach their
perfection.
In
the words of the late Oscar Hammerstein:
A
bell is not a bell until you ring it;
A
song is not a song until you sing it;
And
love in your heart wasn’t put there to stay;
Love
isn’t love until you give it away.
We may not have money to give away to worthwhile
causes like entrepreneur Tom Monaghan has. But all of us can give words of
encouragement to someone the way Sr. Berarda did to Tom. We may not have
miraculous powers as the twelve apostles had when Jesus sent them on mission.
But all of us have the capacity to comfort, sympathize with and affirm people
who are hurting in some way. Whatever gifts we have – gifts of listening or
reassuring, gift of repairing or building things; gifts of serving or
volunteering – these gifts have been freely given by God and should be just as
freely given away. Scientist Albert
Einstein once said:
There is one
thing I know, that man is here for the sake of other man. Many times a day I
realize how much of my life is built on the labors of my fellowmen, both living
and dead. And I must earnestly exert myself in order to give in return as much
as I have received.
The Eucharist we celebrate is an apt symbol of
giving freely of what we have received. Jesus gives and shares the gift of
himself with us so well under the signs of bread and wine that we can’t help
but be inspired to give and share the gift of ourselves with others.
This, too, is meant when the Lord commanded: “Do
this in memory of me – freely have you received, freely give of yourselves the
way I did”.
12th Sunday of the Year Mt
10: 26-33
DO NOT BE AFRAID
The book Audacity
to Believe is an autobiography by Dr. Sheila Cassidy. In it she relates how
she left England in 1971 to
escape the “rat-race” professionalism of Bristish medicine to go to Chile
In 1975 Dr. Cassidy was arrested by the Chilean
secret police for having treated the bullet wounds of a revolutionary leader.
At an interrogation center she was stripped, tied to a bed, and tortured by
electrodes attached to her body. Then she was placed in solitary confinement
for three weeks and imprisoned in a detention camp for another five weeks
before she was finally released and expelled from the country.
Dr. Cassidy writes:
I didn’t hate
the men who had hurt us…The freedom of spirit we enjoyed was something that our
captors did not possess. Incredibly, in the midst of fear and loneliness I was
filled with joy, for I knew without any vestige of doubt that God was with me,
and that nothing they could do to me could change that.
Dr. Sheila Cassidy knows from experience the full
meaning of today’s Scripture readings. With Jeremiah in the first reading she
can proclaim that the Lord was with her like a mighty champion. Her persecutors
failed and did not triumph.
She knows that Jesus was speaking the truth when he
said in the gospel: “Do not let men intimidate you. Do not be afraid of those
who can deprive the body of life but cannot destroy the soul”.
Jesus doesn’t pretend that we will be exempt from
problems, pain or even persecutions. But he does promise to be with us when
they do come upon us.
In times of persecution, torture may touch our body
but cannot reach our soul. As human beings we are always more than our body. We
have a spirit whereby we can know, choose and love. The secret police could
inflict pain on Dr. Cassidy’s body. But they couldn’t force her free will,
change her mind or destroy her faith.
The ordeal Sheila Cassidy went through will
probably never happen to us. Nonetheless, we have our own difficulties and
sufferings to face. And so we, too, need to hear Christ’ encouraging words: “Do
not be afraid of them”. We, too, need to be reminded of Jeremiah’s declaration
that the Lord will be with us to see us through.
The worst things that can happen to us may deprive
us in some physical or emotional way. But they should never destroy our faith,
hope or love. Consequently, we may see our car wrecked, our home burned, or our
marriage broken up. But none of these things should shatter our faith that God
is still with us and cares for us. With him at our side we will find a way to
survive these setbacks.
We may suffer the loss of our health, our job, or a
loved one through death. But none of these things should topple over our hope
that somehow good will come out of it – that in some way we will emerge from
the misfortune stronger, wiser or more compassionate.
We may hurt because we’re overlooked, unappreciated
or misunderstood. But none of these things should lessen our love. Our hearts
are too big to allow such hurts to keep us from reaching out to people who may
be hurting more than we are.
“Do not be afraid, then”, Jesus says, “if trials,
sufferings or disappointments beset you. They may hurt you in some way or
other, but they should never destroy your spirit our your will to survive”.
13th Sunday of
the Year 2 K 4: 8-11, 14-16 Mt 10: 37-42
HOSPITALITY
Leave’
Em Laughing is a movie made for television about the life and
death of Jeack Thum, played by Mickey Rooney. Jack Thum was a real-life Chicago
Near the end of his life Jeack Thum found it
difficult to be funny because of the pain caused by his terminal cancer.
Nevertheless, to make one of the small runaways living with him smile, Jack
played his clown role to the en to leave’
em laughing.
The script about clown Jack Thum’s care for kids
seems almost to have been taken literally from our Lord’s words in today’s
gospel: “He who welcomes you welcomes me, and he who welcomes me welcomes him
who sent me. I promise you that whoever give a cup of cold water to one of
these lowly ones because he is a disciple will not for his reward”.
The theme of welcoming and showing hospitality to
someone appears also in the first reading. There an elderly married couple take
into their home the prophet Elisha and his servant Gerhazi, and as result are
rewarded with the promise of the birth of their first son.
Welcoming someone into our home or hearts is not an
easy thing to do, especially today with so many pressures and tensions in our
lives, with so much rivalry and competition in our schools and places of work,
and with so much violence and crime in our streets.
In his book Reaching
Out, Fr. Henri Nouwen discusses this problem and sees the movement from hostility to hospitality as one of the
three main movements of the spiritual life, the other two being the movement
from loneliness to solitude and the
movement from illusion to prayer.
Fr. Nouwen defines hospitality as the creation of a
friendly space where a stranger can enter and leave in freedom. The aim of
hospitality is not to change people or mold them or convince them about our
beliefs, but to provide a comfortable empty space for them to enter and
discover their own best selves.
On the one hand, good hosts will be good listeners
for their guests, feel their pain, share their struggles and dream their dreams
with them. In a word, they will affirm their
guests.
On the other hand, good hosts will set limits,
however flexible, for their guests, confront them if need be and challenge them
to further exploration in their journey through life. In a word, they will
invite their guests to grow.
Whenever parents do these things for their
children, or teachers for their students, or people in the helping professions
for their patients, we see taking place in a hostile world a significant
movement toward hospitality; we see fulfilled our Lord’s promise that in
welcoming children or students or patients, we welcome the Lord himself into
our hearts.
Moreover, when we reach out beyond the ordinary
boundaries of our everyday life and welcome the slowly stranger in the streets
into our hearts, we see the kingdom
of God
Showing hospitality in some form or other to the
poor and the downtrodden, the refugee and the immigrant, or the unloved and the
unwanted, gives them a chance to be free and to find their own destiny. In the
words of Fr. Nouwen, we give them a chance “to sing their own songs, speak
their own languages, and dance their own dances”.
14th Sunday of
the Year Zc 9: 9-10 Mt 11: 25-30
COME TO ME
In 1903 a poem was composed by Emma Lazarus and
inscribed on a tablet in the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty. The poem was
entitled “The New Colossu” and is best remembered for the following lines:
Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp! Cries she
With silent lips. Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,
Send these, the homeless, tempest – tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!
Up until 1954 the island on which the statue stands
was an immigration center. Who can count the number of immigrants who passed
through there or tell the stories of new beginnings they found there? Who can
measure the inspiration they received from the words written by Emma Lazarus?
Today’s gospel gives us another set of inspiring
words. Jesus’ invitation is similar to the Statue of Liberty’s, but infinitely
more consoling because it is a divine revelation and not merely a stone
inscription.Jesus says: “Come to me, all you who are weary and find life
burdensome, and I will refresh you. Take my yoke upon your shoulders and learn
from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart. Your souls will find rest, for my
yoke is easy and my burden light”.
The
Interpreter’s Bible calls this “The Great Invitation”, the
very sound of which rings out like cathedral bells. To whom is the invitation
given? To all, and, in the context of
the gospel, this refers to those who are burdened with the works of the Mosaic
Law. But The Interpreter’s Bible goes
further when it says:
Christ set no limits to that blessed all.
We cannot limit the application. The sad in heart are included, and all who
bend beneath time’s load.
Experiencing weariness and finding life burdensome
is part of the human condition. There is the ordinary fatigue we feel from hard
work – the kind nurses and doctors, cooks and secretaries, teachers and
entertainers feel after a hectic day on their job.
Then there is the weariness that comes from
boredom. We feel a vague, general dissatisfaction with life. Colors look gray,
the atmosphere feels heavy and food seems insipid.
An extreme kind of weariness borders on severe
depression and suicide. Everything seems tedious, empty and meaningless. One
feels like giving up the struggle because it doesn’t seem worthwhile any more.
Just as there are different degrees of weariness,
so too there are different types of burdens. There is the ordinary burden of
responsibility that comes with being a leader, director, parent or teacher. Then
there is the burden of being sick, handicapped, out of work, widowed r divorce.
In such circumstances we feel the heavy weight of being restricted –
physically, financially or emotionally.
There are also the burdens we sometimes carry in
looking after others – perhaps taking care of a retarded child, a crippled
spouse or a senile parent.
And yet, no matter what kind of weariness we feel
or what kind of burden we bear, Jesus says: “Come to me and I will give you
rest. Come to me and I will give you strength. Come to me and I will give you
grace”.
If only we could believe that, we would feel new
energy in our bodies, see new visions in our imaginations, and find new reasons
for living. If only we could take Jesus at his word, we would fulfill our
responsibilities with joy, fight to overcome difficulties with determination,
and take on challenges with courage.
Indeed, we would find that “his yoke is easy and
his burden light”.
15th Sunday of
the Year Is 55: 10-11 Mt 13: 1-23
MULTIPLYING GOOD
A Washington, D.C track observer once described
Glenda Moody as: “A very large white woman functioning as a track coach for
young black men, and succeeding very well”.
Glenda came to Washington
More than 175 of Glenda Moody’s runners have won
full, four – year athletic scholarships worth about one million dollars. Glenda
has made quite an impact on these young black men. Besides their track form,
she has also shaped their attitudes with her belief in the fatherhood of God,
the unique worth of every person and the responsibility of each individual to
make this a better world.
Like many other great coaches, teachers and
parents, Glenda Moody’s influence for good has multiplied many times over. Her
success sounds one of the keynotes of today’s gospel parable.
Jesus tells the story of how a sower sowed seeds in
different kinds of ground – footpaths, rocky ground, ground covered with
thorns, and good ground. The seeds that fell on good ground brought forth grain
thirtyfold, sixtyfold and some a hundredfold.
In his Pelican commentary on this parable, J.C.
Fenton observes that the quantities of grain production Jesus quotes are far
higher than was usual. A little more than sevenfold was considered average,
whereas tenfold was considered good. The fantastic numbers Jesus cites
emphasize the immense power of his word as it is spoken to us. There is no
proportion between what we contribute to God’s kingdom and what he accomplishes
through us.
We see a multiplication principle at work even in
the natural order. For example, Eugene P. Smith, a professor of mathematics at Wayne State
University
The same is true of all great mentors and their
love for a certain field: Martha Graham in dancing; Leonard Bernstein in music;
Beverly Sills in opera. All of these mentors have had their influence
multiplied a hundredfold among their disciples.
Outstanding coaches like Vince Lombardi, poets like
Robert Frost and heroines like Helen Keller – all of these have had their
vision of life multiplied through the people they’ve touched in some way.
If this is true of the natural order, how much more
true must it be of the order of grace. Who can deny the tremendous good done by
the parents of Pope John Paul II and Mother Teresa? Certainly much of that good
was done directly by their children, but it would never have happened had not
the parents raised those children in a faith – filled family.
We never know, then, how many times even a single
act of kindness will be multiplied in God’s hands, or how the harvest of a
lifetime of dedicated service to some noble cause will be increased a
hundredfold by God.
The seed of God’s word has immense power to
reproduce and bear fruit in our lives. All God asks is that we provide good
soil by having faith and trust in him, and he will do the rest – he will take
our talents, as he took those of Glenda Moody, and use them to build his
kingdom in the heart of his people.
16th Sunday of
the Year Ws 12: 13, 16-19 Mt 13: 24-43
MUSTARD SEEDS
On December 17, 1903, at Kitty Hawk , N.C.
From the simple first flight of the Wright brothers
we have developed a spectacular space program. The same has been true in other
fields of endeavor. From small beginnings great things have been developed in
music, theater, literature and education.
Today’s gospel gives two other examples of this
axiom and applies it to the growth of God’s kingdom. From the small beginning
of a mustard seed, a large plant grew. From the tiny yeast mixed in flour, a
whole mass of dough expanded.
So too with the kingdom of God
The Church’s mission began in a simple way with the
twelve apostles. But because of God’s power it has undergone tremendous development
over the centuries and its eventual extension will be something awesome.
If we examine our own spiritual growth, we discover
a similar phenomenon. Our spiritual life was initiated with a simple sign – a
washing with water in the sacrament of baptism. From that moment on we have
held within us the very life and power of God himself; we have within us a
dynamism to develop and do great things for God.
If we nurture that seed with the bread of the
Eucharist and enrich that yeast with the word of Scripture, we cannot help but
grow and expand and produce something marvelous for the Lord.
It doesn’t matter how limited our talents are. With
God’s grace, we can use those talents to do tremendous things in the world.
Rosa Parks didn’t have much talent, but because she insisted on her right to
sit anywhere on a public bus, she was instrumental in starting the Civil Rights
Movement.
It doesn’t matter how small our community of
believers is. With God’s impetus behind us, we can accomplish mighty works for
him. The Ploughshare Seven were a tiny band, but because they demonstrated
against the use of nuclear arms, they were a factor in the formation of the
bishop’s pastoral letter The Challenge of
Peace.
Nor does it matter how insignificant our ideas or
efforts seem to be. With God supporting us, those ideas and efforts will join
forces with those of other people to achieve their purpose. In the 1940’s
Sister Kenny insisted on treating polio patients with movement and therapy, as
opposed to putting them in immobilizing splints. As a result of her efforts,
the medical treatment of infantile paralysis was revolutionized.
We need never get discouraged, then, by how small
the seed of our own resources seems to be. Under God’s care that tiny beginning
can grow and multiply to produce great things in his kingdom. We need never
despair at how weak the yeast of our talents appears. In God’s hands that yeast
can be transformed and expand to reestablish all things in Christ.
17th Sunday of
the Year 1K 3: 5, 7-12 Mt 13: 44-46
TREASURE HUNTS
Most of us have read the story of Treasure Island . We are still fascinated by the
adventures of such characters as Jim Hawkins, Billy Bones and Long John Silver.
Many of us have been fascinated, too, by the movie Raiders of the Lost Ark and its sequel Indiana
This is what today’s parables appeal to: our
capacity to enjoy a search for treasures. One of the parables is about a
treasure hidden in a field while the other is about a pearl of great price. The
two parables are different in the sense that the treasure is found by chance in
a field, whereas the pearl of great price is located after a deliberate search.
But their theme is the same: the tremendous joy someone has discovers a hidden
treasure or a priceless pearl.
This joy is so overpowering that it dominates all
his feelings and thoughts. He will give up everything to obtain that treasure
or pearl, because what he has now seems valueless compared to what he is able
to obtain.
This joy is so overwhelming that it seizes the
person completely and penetrates his inmost being. To secure this joy he will
make any sacrifice; to possess that treasure or pearl he will pay any price.
So the decisive thing is not what one gives up to
obtain the treasure or pearl he finds. Rather, the decisive thing is the reason
for doing so – the all – surpassing joy he experiences.
This is the way it should be with the kingdom of God
We have the good news of God’s revelation in the
Scriptures. The Bible is like a treasure map showing us how to find the Way,
the Truth and the Life. This good news should cause joy in our lives – joy
because we have access to the hidden treasure of God’s wisdom and knowledge;
joy because we seek a crown that is imperishable and unfading; joy because all
else seems valueless compared to the riches we find in Christ.
Hearing the good news of the gospel should fill our
hearts with such gladness that no price would be too great to pay for it. The
joy we find in Christ should be so overwhelming that no sacrifice would be too
heroic to make for him. Once we taste the goodness of the Lord, the unreserved
surrender of even valuable things for him becomes easy. Once we experience the
peace that Jesus alone can give. The renunciation of everything that interferes
with it becomes reasonable.
If our discipleship is like the adventure of a
treasure hunt, then why do we find it dull and tedious sometimes? Perhaps
because we don’t have enough faith to see the mystery and excitement that is
there.
If hearing the good news should overwhelm us with
joy, then why are we so sad and serious sometimes? Perhaps because we don’t
have enough confidence in the power of God’s word to generate joy.
If following Christ fulfills our every expectation,
then why are we so reluctant sometimes to make sacrifices for him? Perhaps
because we don’t have enough courage to take such risks for him.
Pray that God may strengthen our faith, our
confidence and our courage so that we can undertake our discipleship as an
adventure, discover the joy of the good news, and give up whatever is necessary
to secure that treasure or pearl we have found hidden in Christ.
18th Sunday of
the Year Is 55: 1-3 Mt 14: 13-21
HUMAN HUNGERS
In his book Toma
Tell It Straight, ex-policemen David Toma journals his life story. It takes
us through his days as a boxing champion for the Marines, a profestional
athlete, a Newark
On the one hand, Toma’s adventures as a cop caused
him to be wounded and hispitalized more than 30 times. On the other hand, they
also served as the inspiration for the Baretta
television show.
But there was a time when David Toma was a drug
addict. After the death of his five – year – old son, he tried to escape from
his feelings of guilf anger and despair by resorting to tranquilizers.
Eventually he broke his 100 pill – a – day habit.
Today he travels the country to talk to teens and parents about the damage
which drugs and drink do to us. “Get high on life”, Toma says: “God should be
number one in your life, and you should be next. Get high on yourself”.
David Toma’s message about finding fulfillment in
God and self instead of in drugs and drink fits in well with today’s readings
from Scripture.
In the first reading from Isaiah the Lord says:
“Why spend your money for what is not bread; your wages for what fails to
satisfy? Heed me, and you shall eat well… Come to me, that you may have life”.
The gospel story dramatizes this teaching through
Christ’s multiplication of the five loaves and two fish. The people are in a
deserted place, a symbol of the emptiness of their lives. They are hungry and
thirsty, not only for food and drink for their bodies, but also for nourishment
for their spirits.
After the miracle they eat their fill, and there
are even twelve gaskets of fragments left over. We can’t help but recall here
one of the eight beatitudes: “They who hunger and thirst for holiness shall
have their fill”.
In what amounts to a commentary on this gospel, the
U.S. Bishop, on the occasion of the 41st International Eucharistic
Congress in Philadelphia
There is no one of us who does not hunger in many
ways: for, besides physical hunger, human beings have deep emotional,
intellectual, and spiritual hungers. Pleasure, power or possessions may
temporarily quiet the pangs of some hungers. They cannot satisfy us on the
deepest levels of our personhood. Only
God can do that.
In other words, as long as we try to nourish our
lives with fame, wealth and amusements, we find that our appetites are never
fully satisfied. Some of us, unfortunately, even become enslaved by our
appetites and become addicted to alcohol or drugs.
But if we nourish our lives with the bread of life
– Jesus Christ – we find our hunger and thirst for higher things satisfied. We
discover that we can feel a short of peace and contentment even with the little
we may have; that we can be joyful and glad even when there is some sorrow to
bear; that we can experience order and harmony even when things seem chaotic.
As we wait for the Lord to feed us with his
Eucharist, pray that we may not waste our time seeking satisfaction in
substitutes for the Lord, but instead to find our fulfillment in him; that we
may not wander around our deserts hungry and thirsty, but instead to let him
fill us with the wine of his word and the bread of his body.
19th Sunday of
the Year 1K 19: 9, 11-13 Mt 14: 22-33
WALKING ON WATER
A
Man Called Peter was a best – selling biography that was
later made into a movie. It narrates the life of Peter Marshall, a Scotsman
from Glasgow
Persuaded by a cousin to come to America , Peter set out in faith to cross the
cold waters of the North Atlantic . With little
money, no friends and only a job reference, Peter likened himself to other
faith who ventured into the unknown, men like the patriarch Abraham, the
explorer Columbus and the pioneer Brigham Young.
The Lord continued to guide Peter Marshall in
surprising ways through the Presbyterian ministry, his marriage to Catherine,
his parish assignments and finally to his fame as chaplain to the U.S. Senate.
Peter Marshall died in 1949 when he was only 46,
but in that short lifetime he inspired thousands of people by his preaching,
his friendliness, and above all by his faith.
Another man called Peter who ventured over water is
the subject of today’s gospel. Peter the apostle follows in faith the Lord’s
bidding to walk on water. But when his faith falters, he begins to sink. In
desperation he cries out to the Lord to save him. Jesus stretches out his hand
to catch Peter, but expresses his disappointment over Peter’s lack of faith.
In the Jerome
Biblical Commentary, scholar John L. McKenzie sees symbolic significance in
this gospel story. Chapter 14 starts as section of Matthew called “the
ecclesiastical portion”. The apostles in the boat personify the Church, to
which Jesus is always near even when the situation is threatening.
Moreover, Peter’s prominent place in the story,
unique to Matthew, increases its symbolic significance. Peter’s special
position among the apostles begins to build up with this episode. But, to
fulfill his role, Peter must have faith.
As long as Peter kept his focus on the Lord, all
went well. As soon as he forgot about Jesus and worried about the wind, he
began to sink. Perhaps this is what faith means: keeping our focus on the Lord,
regardless of the turmoil around us; trusting that he is always near to support
us, regardless of the waves of trouble that engulf us.
This kind of faith is more an encounter with God than it is a belief about God. It is more an experience of
the divine presence itself, than an
acceptance of dogmatic pronouncements about
it.
Such a faith won’t remove all our difficulties. In
fact, it might create some new ones. But it will give us the strength we need
to cope with them. Such a faith won’t be a master key unlocking the answer to
all our questions. But it will give us the assurance that Christ holds the key,
and that will be enough for us. Such a faith will not eliminate all the
darkness that sometimes surrounds us. But it will filter through some light to
allow us to recognize Christ’s presence in that darkness.
Yes, the Lord is always near, even when we can’t
see him or feel his presence. But it takes faith to contact him. Peter Marshall
had this kind of faith when he voyaged across the Atlantic
– a staunch and steadfast faith that saw him through all uncertainty, every
unknown and each difficulty.
What kind of faith do we have? Will we sink with
Peter the apostle, or sail with Peter Marshall?
20th Sunday of
the Year Is 56: 6-7 Mt 15: 21-28
PERSISTENCE
The movie Norma
Rae tells the true story of a woman whose pluck and grit won a fight to
establish a workers’ union. Played by Sally Field in the film, Norman Rae
starts out as an ordinary worker in a southern textile mill. Gradually she
becomes angered by the inhuman working conditions that make her mother deaf and
are slowly destroying her father.
So she joins forces with a labor union leader to
begin organizing the workers. Norma Rae encounters all kinds of resistance from
her bosses in the mill, her pastor in the church and her husband at home.
Her supervisors even use her reputation as a woman
of easy virtue to intimidate her. Still, Norma Rae stubbornly sticks to her
task. Her tenacity triumphs when the workers vote in favor of establishing a
union.
Today’s gospel relates the story of another
determined woman who met a lot of resistance – the Canaanite woman whose
daughter was possessed by a demon. At first her cry for mercy was simply
snubbed by Jesus. Then the annoyed disciples tried to get rid of her. Finally,
Jesus addressed her contemptuously as a dog.
Still, she persists: “Please, Lord, even the dogs
eat the scraps that fall from their masters’ table”. At last the Lord
acknowledges her indomitable spirit: “Woman, you have great faith! Your wish
will come to pass”. That very moment her daughter was healed.
In his commentary Invitation to Matthew, Fr. Donald Senior calls attention to the
irony of the story. The Canaanite woman asks for a mere crumb from the Lord’s
table of miracles. Not only does she secure the crumb of healing she sought,
but also access through faith to the Lord’s messianic banquet.
What the Gentile woman requested and received was
magnificent in itself – deliverance for her daughter from a demon. But what she
was rewarded with above and beyond any of her wildest dreams was even more
magnificent – the privilege to become one of the Lord’s chosen people.
Isn’t that often what happens to us? The Lord is
never outdone in generosity. If we have faith, there is no limit to what he can
do for us. Whether we put our faith in some cause as Norma Rae did, or in a
person as the Canaanite woman did, Jesus can do marvelous things through us. He
can use us to secure justice for the poor, peace between warring parties or
freedom for the oppressed.
If we never quit or allow ourselves to get
discouraged, there is nothing we cannot accomplish. We might run into strong
resistance or be rebuffed, but if we are indomitably persistent, by God’s power
we will prevail. We might encounter what seem to be insurmountable obstacles or
insoluble problems, but if we remain steadfast in our efforts, by God’s grace
we will ultimately overcome them.
People like Norma Rae and Canaanite woman pursue
their purposes with dead earnestness. They will not take “No” for an answer.
Can we do the same for the cause of Christianity?
In our battles against the nuclear arms race, the
spread of pornography or legalized abortion, are we ready to accept ridicule,
but not give up our resolve? Are we strong enough to suffer temporary setbacks
but not surrender the fight? Can we be looked at as fools and still not lose
our faith?
21st Sunday of
the Year Is 22: 15, 19-23 Mt 16: 13-20
PUBLIC IMAGES
Bin his book The
Image – Makers, William Meyers has a chapter on “Pioneers of Persuasion”.
One of the stories he tells is how ad executive Rosser. Reeves used carefully
spliced television commercials during the 1952 presidential campaign to sell
General Eisenhower to the public “like a tube of toothpaste”.
Ever since then, professional image – makers and
marketing experts have been employed to package political candidates in a
glamorous way so that they will appeal to the voters’ emotions. To be
successful today, office seekers have to be as concerned about their public
image as about the campaign issues. Appearance and performance on television
are as important as one’s experience and programs.
In the gospel for today, it seems that Jesus too
was worried about his public image. “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
he asks he disciples. In response they give sort of the latest Gallup
But as we read further, we see that Jesus is not
interested in his popularity rating. He is interested in the more profound
question of his essential identity: “Who do you say that I am?”
Moreover, Jesus is not aiming so much at finding
out who he is – he knows that already – but at leading his disciples to
discover this for themselves. Scripture scholar William Barclay points out how
Peter’s discovery was that human categories alone were inadequate to identify
Jesus. His public image as carpenter, teacher, healer, prophet and leader all
failed to measure up to the true meaning of who he was.
It was only by divine revelation and inspiration
that Peter could declare the true identity of Jesus: “You are the Messiah, the
Son of the living God”. To confirm the accuracy of Peter’s confession, Jesus
made several significant and symbolic statements.
First, he declared Peter blest for responding to
the revelation he was given. Second, Jesus conferred a new name on Peter – he
will henceforth be call “Rock”. Third, he promised to make Peter the foundation
on which he would build his Church. Fourth, Jesus gave to Peter the authority
and power to heal and forgive.
All this is history now, and yet the question Jesus
asked continues. It is one of those classic eternal questions all of us have to
confront: “And you, who do you say that I am?’
It is a personal question that demands a personal
response from us. It is a critical question that calls for us to make a
commitment one way or the other. It is a decisive question whose answer will
determine our entire destiny.
Whether we’re in Caesarea Philippi or in Cincinnati , Ohio
We can’t escape the challenge thrown at us/ either
we declare his divine identity in human form and follow him, or else we
denounce him as a phony and fine someone else.
At this very moment, Jesus is questioning us: “And you, who do you say that I am? Am I just a nice guy who said a lot of nice
things, or am I truly a Savior who gives you his peace? Am I just another of
may myths, or am I really the Master and Lord who gives meaning to your life?.
22nd Sunday of
the Year Jr 20:7-9 Mt 16: 21-27
LOSING
In the 1984 Olympics at Los Angeles
While other teenagers were enjoying themselves with
a full schedule of dating and dancing, Mary Lou Retton could only practice long
hours in the gym; to nourish her body properly she had to follow a strict diet;
and to increase her confidence she had to compete frequently in meets.
But what Mary Lou Retton gave up in terms of good
times and junk food was little compared to what she gained in self –
satisfaction and public acclaim when she won her Olympic gold medal. What she
lost in the usual social life of a teenager she found in the special setting of
becoming a champion gymnast – acceptance, camaraderie and respect.
Mary Lou Retton’s Olympic experience illustrates
somewhat Christ’s paradox in today’s Scripture: “If a man wishes to come after
me, he must deny his very self, take up his cross and follow me. Whoever would
save his life will lose it. But whoever loses his life for my sake will find
it”.
The
Interpreter’s Bible calls attention to the fact that this
“losing – finding” saying is recorded six times in the gospels. It is more than
a pious proverb. It is a scriptural axiom and a principle for life.
If we worry about keeping our health, we lose it
becoming hypochondriacs. But if we let go of ourselves and burn up our energy
in worthwhile activities, we find that we become healthier and happier people
in the long run.
Many of us are afraid to start a regular exercise
program like jogging because we might lose out on some sleep or else be too
tired to do our work. Yet, once we get going on such a regime, we find that we
sleep better and that our energy level rises to do our work.
People who smoke cigarettes or drink alcohol often
have to give up these habits. But they gain years of added life in place of
them. Diabetics have to let go of foods and drinks with high amounts of sugar
in them. But they learn to like other foods and drinks and extend their
lifespan in exchange.
These common experiences should convince us that
often we have to lose something to gain something better. It is no different in
our relationship with the Lord.
Instead of hoarding so many clothes in our closets
because we’re afraid we won’t have enough or the best to wear, maybe we should
let go of some of these clothes to help the poor. Instead of overindulging in
food, drink or sex because we’re afraid we won’t get enough to satisfy
ourselves, maybe we should feed our bodily appetites less and feed our spirits
more with prayer and the reading of Scripture.
As Christ himself says in the gospel, we sometimes
have to deny ourselves in order to follow him as disciples; we sometimes have
to lose certain things in order to find better things.
The Lord will never ask us to let go of everything,
but he will require that we often give up some of our times, energy, money and
love to a particular cause or to a particular person.
And as we do so, he will show us how we gain peace,
joy, fulfillment and satisfaction. Whoever loses his or her life for Jesus’s
sake will find it.
23rd Sunday of
the Year Ezk 33: 7-9
Mt 18: 15-20
PRAYING TOGETHER
In 1868 Susan B. Anthony and her friend Elizabeth
Cady Stanton persuaded a Congressman to introduce and amendment to grant voting
rights to American women. Although their efforts failed at the time, they began
the Women’s Suffrage Movement, which gradually gained momentum until the 19th
Amendment was finally passed in 1920.
Today we see the results of the revolution Susan
and Elizabeth began as more and more women not only decide political elections
with their votes, but also participate in them as candidates themselves.Other
examples of two or three people getting together to initiate significant change
include: Ralph Nader and consumer advocate groups, and MADD (Mothers Against
Drunk Drivers).
Jesus presents his own pressure group version in
today’s gospel and he does it in the context of prayer: “if two or three of you
join your voices on earth to pray for anything whatever, it shall be granted
you by my Father in heaven. Where two or three are gathered in my name, there
am I in their midst”.
Is Jesus playing a numbers game with us? Is he
saying that if two on three of us get together to buy a lotto ticket and then
pray over it, we will win the big bucks?Obviously not, although some have tried
this as a magic formula, Jesus is using numbers to impress upon us the
importance of praying with others as opposed to praying by ourselves.
Elsewhere Jesus stressed praying in private. In
Matthew 6:6 he recommended that we go to our room when we pray, shut the door,
and speak to our Father in secret. Here in Matthew 18, Jesus shows that he
equally endorses the practice of praying with others.
He himself prayed this way when he took with him on
several occasions his three closest disciples, Peter, James and John. Recall
the stories of the raising of Jairus’ daughter, the transfiguration and the
agony in the garden.
Praying with others is so important to Jesus that
he attached two promises to it. First, if we join together to ask for anything
whatever, it will be given to us. Second, if we gather together in his name, he
will be present to us.
The first promise – getting whatever we ask for –
must not be taken literally. Otherwise, we reduce God to something like an
applause meter – that is, a God who grants requests to one competing group over
another depending on which one prays the loudest or the longest. The promise really centers on God’s answer to
our prayers, which may be different from our own imagined answer. God’s answer
may not remove all our troubles, but it will renew our strength to deal with
them.
The second promise – God being with us in our midst
– can be taken literally. Whether we’re in a crowd of two or three million
people praying with the Pope on some of his papal visits, or in a small group
of two or three praying with a grieving family over someone’s death, God is
present there. Moreover, where we pray is secondary. Certainly it is inspiring
to pray in a beautiful cathedral, temple or shrine, for there God’s presence
seems to be very powerful. But it is no less a spiritual experience when we
gather to pray at the family dinner table before meals, in a schoolroom before
catechism class, in a hospital ward before surgery, or on a street after an
accident. Significant changes can take place in the natural order when two or
three people get together to achieve some goal. For all the more reason,
magnificent things can happen in the spiritual order when two or three people
join together in prayer for something.
God’s presence is felt in our midst and his power
becomes operative in us. What we cannot do alone, we can do together in terms
of correction and forgiveness, healing and service, organization and building.
24th Sunday of
the Year Si 27: 30-28: 7 Mt 18: 21-35
FORGIVENESS
In his book High
Wind at Noon, author Allen Knight Chalmers narrates the following story
about Peer Holm. At one time Holm was a renowned engineer who had built great
bridges, railroads and tunnels all over the world. But later, because of
failure and sickness, Holm was barely able to eke out a living for his family.
Holm had a neighbor with a very fierce dog, and he
asked the man to do something about the danger it posed. The neighbor got angry
and abusive. One day the very thing Holm feared happened. The dog attacked his
little daughter and she died from the wounds.
The sheriff shot the dog and all the village people
became embittered against the owner. When sowing time came and all the fields
were plowed, they refused to sell him grain. Without seed the farmer would go
hungry and be reduced to poverty.
However, Peer Holm could not allow this to happen.
So early one morning he took his last bushel of barley and sowed his neighbor’s
field. Later, when the crops grew, it was obvious what had happened. Part of
Holm’s own field was bare, while his neighbor’s field was green.
That kind of forgiveness is not easy to find, yet
it is what our Lord expects of us. In today’s gospel Jesus tells his own story
of forgiveness involving an unjust steward.
The story is occasioned by Peter’s questions about
the limits we should set on forgiveness: “How often must I forgive my brother?
Seven times?” Current rabbinic teaching was that a man must forgive his brother
three times. Peter might have thought that he was being generous in stretching
the number to seven.
But Jesus would have none of these limitations. By
multiplying Peter’s proposed number of seven by seventy, Jesus exaggerates and
shows how silly it is to count the number of times we forgive someone.
Forgiveness must be unlimited.
His parable makes this clear. How can we calculate
how often or how much we should forgive others, when all of this is trivial
compared to the way Jesus has forgiven us?
We sometimes forget how extravagant God has been
with the frequency and the immensity of his forgiveness of us. Perhaps this is
because we become preoccupied with the pain other people inflict on us when they
wrong us in some way.
Nonetheless, we should never fail to remember our
own offenses against God’s people and the hurt that we have caused them, and
how the Lord has always been lavish with his mercy towards us in spite of our
own unworthiness.
Besides remembering our own sinfulness, Jesus
insists that we forgive from the heart. “How is this possible?” we might ask.
“How can we forgive from the heart someone like criminal who has terrorized
us?”.
In his book Mere
Christianity, C.S. Lewis says that loving our enemies does not mean feeling
fond of them or pretending that they are not such bad fellows after all. Loving
and forgiving our enemies does mean, however, to wish that they were not bed,
to hope that they may be healed and cured, and to will them good.
It was in this spirit that saints like Stephen,
Joan of Arc and Thomas. More were able to forgive their executioners when they
were martyred. It was in this spirit that Jesus himself prayed on the cross:
“Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing” (Lk 23: 34). It
was in this spirit that Peter Holm forgave his neighbor and sowed his field for
him.
25th Sunday of
the Year Is 55: 6-9
Mt 20: 1-16
WORK PARABLE
The 1954 movie On
the Waterfront is considered a classic in film making. It features Marlon
Brando as longshoreman Terry Malloy, who gets locked in a brutal battle with
the ruthless labor boss Johnny Friendly, played by Lee J.Cobb.
The issue is the rights of the dock workers. Not
only are the longshoremen being exploited by the ship owners, but they are also
being shaken down by their own union leaders.
With the help of Fr. Barry (played by Karl Malden)
and Edie Doyle (played by Eva Marie Saint) Terry Malloy undergoes a
transformation after his brother is murdered by Johnny Friendly’s goons.
From being a tough and uncaring street fighter, he
becomes a crusader for his fellow workers and testifies for them to the crime
commission against their corrupt labor bosses.
Today’s gospel also deals with a labor problem. At
first it appears that the parable is setting up a model for management and
labor relationships. Such is not the case.
The parable by our Lord is more about the
generosity of God than about working conditions. The story is more about the
supreme goodness of God than about wage settlements.
The punch line in the parable is the statement at
the end: “I intend to give this man who was hired last the same pay. I am free
to do as I please with my money, am I not? Or are you envious because I am
generous?”
In his book The
Parables of Jesus, Joachim Jeremias says that today’s story does not depict
reckless, arbitrary action by the owner. Rather, it portrays the behavior of a
large – hearted man who is compassionate and full of sympathy for the poor.
According to Jeremias, the owner sees that if he
pays the last group for only their one hour of work, they will not have enough
to take home to feed their families. So it is out of pity for their poverty
that the owner decides to give them a full day’s wage.
Of course this shocks our strong sense of justice.
Like the workers who labored all day we protest: “It’s not fair! We not only
worked longer hours, but also harder in the heat. Surely we are entitled to
more than the last group”.
But if we’re disturbed by this double injustice,
then we miss the point of the parable. It’s a story about God’s goodness and
not about labor – relation guidelines. Jesus wants to shake us up purposely:
“Don’t you see? The owner is what God is like – all goodness and compassion, al
mercy and generosity”.
In one of his takes, Fr. John Shea points out a
problem Christ has – he can’t count or measure. He makes too much wine at the Cana wedding – more than 100 gallons of it. He multiplies
too much bread for the crowd – twelve baskets of food were left over. He forgives
way too much – he uses infinity expressions like 70x7 times. The numbers he
uses in his talent or debt stories are either too small or too big.
This is Jesus’ way of showing that when God does
things, he does them in a big way – with extravagance and generosity, with
flair and foolishness.
Praise God for always giving us more than what we
are entitled to; for forgiving us more than we ever deserve; for blessing us
with more than we are worthy of.
Pray that may be more generous with each other – by
not just forgiving offenses, but also by forgetting them; by not just
fulfilling our duties, but by offering to do more; by not just doing what is
expected of us, but also by doing the unexpected that delights people so much.
26th Sunday of
the Year Ezk 18: 25-28 Mt 21: 28-32
BROTHERS
Along with Oedipus
Rex and Hamlet, Sigmund Freud
considered Dostoevski’s The Brothers
Karamozov one of the three greatest works in world literature. In Freud’s
interpretation, the three Karamzov brothers symbolize the nature of man.
The eldest son Dmitri is a wild wastrel. He
represents man dominated by sensuality. The next son Ivan is a teacher, writer
and atheist. He symbolizes the intellectual dimension of man. The young son
Alyosha was a novice at a monastery. He stands for the spiritual nature of man.
The three Karamazov brothers were abandoned by
their father Fyodor after their mothers died. They reassemble now to do battle
with their father and claim what is rightfully theirs. Their conflicts reflect
those of Everyman, which occur not only in his soul, but also in his
relationship to God.
Today’s gospel parable tells another symbolic
brother story. The elder son was told by his father to work in the vineyard,
said he’d go, but never went. The younger son was also told to work, refused to
go, but later regretted it and went.
Jesus doesn’t wait for Freud to arrive to interpret
his brother story. He analyzes it himself. The younger son represents the tax
collectors and prostitutes whose lives have been a “No” to God, but who now
repent and enter the kingdom
of God
In point of fact, both groups have their faults,
but at least the group who turn toward God is to be preferred to the group who
turn away from him. The ideal for us is to live in such a way that we profess
and practice, meet and match.
In other words, we must strive to translate our
noble promises into noble performances; to carry out our fine words into fine
deeds; to extend our saying, “Lord, Lord”, into doing the will of our Father in
heaven.
According to Fr. Donald Senior’s commentary Invitation to Matthew, Christ’s parable
repeats the demand for repentance that is the hallmark of his teachings. On the
one hand, the elder son “knows the right answers, but his response is hollow”.
On the other hand, the sadder – but – wiser reaction of the younger is more
sincere: “He repents and proves it by action”.
The parable warns us, then, not to get complacent –
that is, to be satisfied with professing our faith, and then failing to
practice it; with making promises, and then not keeping them; with making a
good beginning, and then not persevering.
For example, we must not worship in church on
Sunday, and then work dishonestly during the rest of the week; nor pledge our
love at a marriage ceremony, and then pursue our own selfish ways the rest of
our married lives.
But besides warning us, the parable also gives us
hope. We may have been slaves to some sin in the past, but we can free
ourselves from its hold. We may have been sensual like Mary Magdalene, greedy
like Matthew, or rebellious like Paul, but we don’t have to remain that way. We
can change our ways.
With the help of God’s grace we can bring our
passions under the control of reason; make our desire for money meet the
demands of generosity; and curb our rebelliousness by the exercise of service.
There is always hope that we can repent of our ways
and start all over again. There is always hope that we can turn away from our
mistakes in the past and turn to the Lord by taking on a new agenda for action.
27th Sunday of
the Year Is 5: 1-7
Mt 21: 33-43
UNCONDITIONAL LOVE
In 1978 a man travelled to Cincinnati
Soon after the accident, a surprised court heard
Max ask that charges be dropped. Instead he wanted to give the death – car
driver a job and help toward his education. Max did all that and more,
virtually adopting the 15 year – old boy into his family. Max shared his home,
time and understanding with the troubled youth.
We might wonder, “How could Max do that? I could
never befriend a wild teenager who had just killed my 5 year – old son. Max
must have been a little crazy to go out of his way that much to become like
father for that boy”.
But if Max Ellerbusch was a little crazy, so is
God. The parable in today’s gospel describes God as a landowner who prepared a
beautiful vineyard and gave it to his people to tend. However, his people wanted
not just their share of the harvest, but the whole thing. They even abused and
killed the prophets God sent to help them.
Finally, in a desperate attempt to save his
vineyard and his people, God sent his own Son, hoping they would respect and
honor him. Nonetheless, they abused and killed him, too, in an effort to seize
his inheritance.
“What a silly story”, we might say. “No landowner
in his right mind would risk sending his own son among rebels who had already
murdered his messengers. How crazy can you get? Who can believe in a God so
dumb?”
But that is precisely the point of the parable.
Where we would cry for vengeance on the tenants, God chose another alternative
– the alternative of unconditional love.
God chose to use the tragic death of his own Son to
give new life to his people. He chose to outdo the hatred of his people by his
generous outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon them. Yes, when his own Son was
crucified, God chose the way of unconditional love, and he is still doing it
today.
No matter how far we wander away from him like lost
sheep, he gently seeks us out and brings us back to himself. No matter how
foolish or wasteful we’ve been with our lives, he is always ready to give us a
new start. No matter how hopeless or desperate our situation might become, he
has already prepared a way out for us.
Moreover, what God does for us in an example of
what we should do for one another. We may not have an opportunity to give
unconditional love in a tragic situation like Max Ellerbusch did. Nonetheless,
we do have other hurts in our lives that can either cause bitterness and
hatred, or become occasions for generous self – giving.
We can love unconditionally: an alcoholic in our
family or among our friends; a spouse whose affection has become cold; a teenager
who rejects our family values; a neighbor or fellow worker who tells lies about
us.
By allowing the example of Max Ellerbusch to
inspire us we can feel beyond our own personal wounds, and reach out with
compassion to heal the wounds of another who may be hurting more than we. By
following God’s way of unconditional love, we can use each death of a part of
ourselves as a means of passing on new life to another person.
28th Sunday of
the Year Is 25: 6-10 Mt 22: 1-14
PRIORITIES
William Manchester’s book American Caesar is about the life of General Douglas MacAthur. Manchester Corregidor
he said:
Intrinsically
it is but a barren, war – worn rock, hallowed…by death and disaster. Yet it
symbolizes within itself that priceless, deathless thing, the honor of a
nation. Until we life our flag from its dust, we stand unredeemed before
mankind. Until we claim again the ghastly remnants of its last gaunt garrison,
we can but stand humble supplicants before God. There lies our Holy Grail.
The Holy Grail image of liberating the Philippine
Islands was a driving force in MacArthur’s Pacific campaign. This mission was so
urgent to him that nothing else mattered and no sacrifice was too costly.
In contrast to the strong sense of urgency that
seized MacArthur, our Lord’s parable today pictures a negative attitude of
complacency. The wedding banquet is a symbol of his kingdom. Everything is
ready, but when the time comes for the feast to begin, none of the invited
guests are present.
It’s not that those invited refused to come; they
merely had more important things to do and would come later. Since the wedding
banquet was not hing on their priority list and would run until well past
midnight, the invited guests decided that rather than cancel or postpone their
scheduled business, they would attend later.
In their view, the king’s wedding banquet could
wait a while; whereas in the king’s view, this was a party that could not wait.
In other words, Jesus is telling us that the kingdom of God
Unfortunately most of us don’t take our Lord’s
invitation seriously. How many times does he call his people to come to his
weekly Eucharistic banquet on Sundays, only to be ignored because there are
more important things to do like praying a game of golf, shopping or sleeping a
little longer?
How many times does Jesus invite us to become more
prayerful peoples, only to have us turn away to our television sets for the
afternoon soap operas or Monday Night football? How often does Jesus invite us
to be more helpful to others, only to have us look beyond their needs to our
trivial pursuits or vain amusements?
On the one hand, it’s sad to see people drift
through life because they lack a sense of urgency. This might mean a wasted
youth and a lost education, a humdrum marriage and unfulfilled dreams, a middle
age of mediocrity and stagnation, or the onset of old age and the realization
of not having done anything significant.
On the other hand, it’s exciting to experience
people such as General MacArthu who have a strong sense of urgency about some
Holy Grail in their life. They pursue with passion liberty or learning or love
for the Lord. They recognize opportunities that may never come again and reach
out for growth and greatness.
The banquet of God’s kingdom is ready, the invitations
are sent, and an RSVP is attached. The Lord is waiting for our answer.
29th Sunday of
the Year Is 45: 4-6 Mt 22: 15-21
TRIVIAL PURSUIT
One of the more popular games today is called Trivial Pursuit. Its variations are
many, including Celebrity Trivia,
Scriptural Trivia, and Tiger Trivia.
In today’s gospel the Pharisees play their own game
of Trivial Pursuit. They have in
their presence none other than Jesus himself, the long awaited Messiah and the
very Son of God. He comes in word and power to teach and heal. He brings the
good news of forgiveness and a new creation.
But all of these momentous things pass the
Pharisees by, because they are preoccupied with trivia – how they can trap
Jesus in his speech and discredit him. “Master”, they ask him, “is it lawful to
pay tax to emperor or not?” they purposely put Jesus in a no-win situation.
On the one hand, if he says “Yes”, the people will
resent him. Nobody likes to pay taxes, let alone to a foreign power occupying
their homeland. Moreover, for the Jews there is an added insult since their
religion holds that only Yahweh is their King.
On the other hand, if Jesus says “No”, the
Pharisees will report him to the Roman government as a revolutionary and an
insurrectionist. The Romans then might arrest and imprison Jesus.
But Jesus outwits the Pharisees and gives an answer
that goes beyond their question. He insists that they not only give to Caesar
what is his, but also return to God what belongs to him.
Christ’s answer transcends the trivial the trivial
pursuits of the Pharisees and expresses a profound principle. He points out
that we are citizens of two worlds – the world we see of body and matter, and the unseen
world of the spirit.
As such we have duties in both worlds – to man and to God. Our duties to man include
not only what we owe to Caesar (what we owe to our government in terms of taxes
and allegiance), but also what we owe to others.
This includes what husbands and wives, parents and
children, workers and employers, teachers and students, doctors and patients
owe to each other.
We can also add here what the rich owe to the poor,
the strong to the weak, and the educated to the ignorant.
Perhaps, too, we can say that this includes
ourselves. We owe to ourselves, for instance, taking good care of our health,
continuing our education to improve our minds, and taking time out for rest and
relaxation.
Besides belonging to the world we see, we are also citizens of the unseen world of the spirit. As such, we
owe to God praise and thanks giving,
honor and glory. In a word, we owe to God worship because he is all good and
the source of all that we are and have.
However, here too we own something to ourselves in
the sense that we should pray, read the Scripture, and receive the sacraments
in order to develop our life of the spirit. In a word, we have to take care of
our inner life as much as we do our outer life.
We must not allow ourselves to make the same
mistake the Pharisees did. Their trivial pursuits caused them to miss the
meaning and the message of Jesus. May we always render what we owe to Caesar
and to God by recognizing what is important in both our outer and inner worlds,
and by responding to the opportunities and the challenges they present.
30th Sunday of
the Year Ex 22: 20-26 Mt 22: 34-40
LEPER PRIEST
Father
Damien: The Leper Priest is a movie made for television in which
Ken Howard plays the lead role. The program dramatizes the story of Fr. Damien
who came from Belgium to the
Hawaiian island
of Molokai
At that time in history, the colony of Molokai was a dumping ground for lepers and it was like a
death sentence to be put there. There was little law and order, medical help
and supplies were nonexistent, and housing and sanitation were so bad that the
island seemed like a sewer.
At first Fr. Damien found the lepers repulsive. But
as he suffered with them, struggled with them and served them, he overcame his
revulsion toward the lepers and developed deep feelings of love for them. Fr.
Damien dedicated almost two decades of his life to the lepers because he
believed that in doing so he was demonstrating both his love for God and his
love for neighbor.
According to our Lord’s words in Matthew’s gospel
this is the greatest thing we can do
with our lives: to love the Lord our God with our whole heart, mind and soul,
and to love our neighbor as ourselves. “On these two commandments the whole law is
based and the prophets as well”. The full significance of Christ’s statement
stands out when we see that he is putting together two familiar Old Testament
texts. He quotes Deuteronomy 6: 5 to make his statement about love of God, and
then he cites Leviticus 19: 18 regarding love of neighbor.
What is new, then, is not the texts themselves,
which every good Jew knew, but the way Jesus puts them together for the first
time. By tying them together as the greatest
of the commandments, Jesus gives them equal weight in terms of seriousness
and he gives them a new interpretation.
From now on, all good works have value both as acts
of love of God and as acts of love of neighbor. The two can no longer be
separated, even in the Bible. We can no longer speak of one without the other.
In other words, by linking the two commandments
together Jesus makes explicit what
was only implicit in the Old
Testament. For example, today’s Old Testament reading from Exodus forbids us to
exploit the poor and the helpless because the Lord will surely hear their cry.
Implicit
in this reading is the close connection that exists
between what we do to our neighbor whom we see and what we do to God whom we
cannot see. Jesus now makes this close connection not only more explicit, but goes on to say that it sums up the entire teaching of the Old
Testament.
Saints like Father Damien of Molokai and Mother
Teresa of Calcutta
It may not be our call to minister to the most
unwanted, like lepers and AIDS victims, war refugees and immigrants, or
alcoholics and drug addicts. But it is our call to balance in some suitable way
the vertical dimension of our
relationship with other people in mutual service.The praise we give to God with
our lips might be followed up by using those same lips to talk to someone who
is lonely, to encourage someone who is disheartened, or to cheer up someone who
is sad.The prayer we say with our hands might be followed up by using those
same hands to hug our children or spouse, to prepare a meal for our family, or
to do some housework for a shut – in neighbor. May the cross formed by the intersection of
a vertical beam with a horizontal one remind us to love God with our whole
being and to love our neighbor as ourselves.
31st Sunday of
the Year Ml 1: 14-2; 2, 8-10 Mt 23: 1-12
SERVICE
Helen Hayes is still recognized as the First Lady of the Theater. She is a long
– standing member of the Theater Hall of Fame, won Academy Awards in 1932 and
in 1970, and was named “Woman of the Year” in 1973 by Ladies Home Journal.
But besides her professional successes, Helen Hayes
is also noted for her humanitarian services. When her only daughter Mary died
of polio in 1949 at age 19, Helen Hayes began helping the National Foundation
for Infantile Paralysis with their fund raising.
After her husband Charles MacArthur died in 1956,
Helen Hayes got involved in helping Fr. William Wasson with his Mexican orphans
in Cuernavaca Washington
In 1980 a new hospital was dedicated in her name on
her 80th birthday in appreciation for her 40 years of volunteer
service at the old facility. At the dedication, New York
Indeed, Helen Hayes is prototype of the kind of
person Jesus had in mind when he said: “The greatest among you will be the one
who serves the rest”. Service was one of the most striking sings of Christ’s
own life. He healed the sick, restored sight to the blind, and raised the dead
to life. At the Last Supper he washed the feet of his disciples, and after his
resurrection he prepared a meal for them on the shore while they were fishing.
He characterized his own life as one of service when he said: “The Son of Man
came not to be served, but to serve”.
Service has also been the keynote of other great
people in history. The Buddha was once asked how one could experience the
ultimate in reality. He answered: “The great gate of charity lies wide open”.
In other words, the wise man was saying that if we want to find God, then we
must go through the gate of charity by serving the needs of our brothers and
sisters.
Another example is Marion Hill Preminger, an
internationally known actress and hostess. When asked why she gave all that up
to work with Albert Schweitzer in the steaming equatorial jungles, she replies:
“Dr. Schweitzer says that there are two classes of people – the helpers and the
non – helpers. I want to be a helper”.
We too are called to service in some way. If we
want to become a great human being and an outstanding Christian, then we must
serve the rest.Our service might take the form of meeting their physical and material needs by: washing clothes or cooking meals for our
family; lending a tool or doing some repairs for a neighbor down the street;
nursing the elderly or babysitting the young.
Our service might take the form of caring for the emotional and psychological needs of
others by: offering companionship and friendship; speaking words of hope and
encouragement; showing acceptance and giving recognition.
Another form of service might be to meet the spiritual and faith needs of other
by: giving good example and
participating in the parish liturgy; living a simple lifestyle to offset
materialism; quietly accepting unavoidable sufferings.During the Eucharist we
repeat Christ’s words over the bread and wine: “This is my body which is given
up for you. This is my blood which is shed for you”. These words are call for
us to serve the rest – to give up our body in meeting the needs of others, not
as a burden, but as a privilege; to pour out our blood in ministering to those
we live and work with, not in a grudging way, but joyously and generously.
The gate to greatness is service, and it is as wide
as our heart to pass through.
32nd Sunday of
the Year Ws 6: 12-16 Mt 25: 1-13
TIMING
General Douglas MacArthur’s autobiography, Reminiscences, is full of World War II
stories. One such story is about Capt. Thomas G. Lanphier, a pilot of the 339th
Fighter Squadron who “became the unsung hero of an extraordinary exploit” on
April 18, 1943.
The Japanese code had been broken and our
Intelligence learned exactly where and when Admiral Yamamoto was going to fly
in to one of the Solomon
Islands
So eighteen P-38s were sent from Guadalcanal ,
400 miles away, to attack Yamamoto. At the exact hour of rendezvous, Yamamoto’s
squadron appeared and were met by our waiting planes. Sixteen P- 38s went after
his Zero escorts, while Tom Lanphier and another pilot were assigned to attack
the two bombers carrying Yamamoto and his staff.
Yamamoto’s pilot used every artifice to escape, but
eventually Lamphier’s gunfire hit his bomber causing it to explode and crash. Washington
Timing, alertness and readiness were factors in
this air strike which proved to be a turning point in the war. These same
themes are found in today’s readings, but for different reasons.
In the first reading, Wisdom is readily found by
those who keep vigil for her. She hastily makes herself known to them man who
watches for her at dawn.
In the gospel parable, the five wise virgins are
the ones who took oil as well as their torches. When the groom arrived at
midnight they were ready to greet him. Jesus says that the moral of the parable
is: “Keep your eyes open, for you know not the day nor the hour when the Lord
will come”.
We know what a sense of timing and readiness means
for battles in war. But what does it mean for us?
First, we are supposed to be alert for Christ’s
coming at the midnight of our life when we die. The day of our death is not a
day of doom. On the contrary, the wedding where there will be torchlight and
warmth and the riches of a banquet.
Second, we are supposed to be alert when Christ
comes every day of our lives. He comes to us in the things we do, in what
happens to us and in the people we meet. Yet, quite often we are insensitive to
his presence.
Shakespeare once wrote that there is a tide in the
affairs of our lives that is either accepted or is lost forever. There will be
other comings by our Lord, just as there are other tides. But that particular
coming will never happen again. And if we let too many comings of our Lord pass
us by, we end up finding that our whole life has passed us by. We end up with
no oil in our lamps.
That brings us to our third point. How do we
develop a sense of timing so that we know when to respond to the Lord? The
answer is by praying. Prayer not only prevents us from becoming too preoccupied
with ourselves, but it also opens us up to Christ’s presence.
To pray does not mean that we neglect our work or
play, but rather that we pause occasionally to pay attention to the Lord. It’s
similar to a man plowing a field. He keeps his eyes fixed on the furrow, but
sometimes looks up to set his eyes on a distant mark to keep the furrow
straight, while at other times he pauses to greet a neighbor.
During this liturgy we might ask Christ to give us
this spirit of prayer so that we will be alert for his comings in our daily
lives and be ready for his final coming at the time of our death.
33rdSunday of Year Pr31:10-13,19-20,
30-31 Mt 25: 14-30
TALENTS
Gwen Verdon is one of the most talented dancers of
our time. She has won four Tony Awards for her dancing in Broadway musicals,
including such shows as Can – Can, Damn
Yankees, and Sweet Charity.
It would seem only natural that Gwen Verdon, the
daughter of a dancer, would grow up to be a dancer herself. But it was not that
easy. Gwen’s childhood was marred by badly bent legs, but Gwen’ mother wouldn’t
let them.
Instead Gwen’s mother devised a set of exercises
for her to straighten out her legs. She made Gwen walk with corrective shoes,
write with her toes, and walk in the sand a lot. It worked, and Gwen went on to
become a dancing star.
Gwen Verdon is an example of a person who had a
special talent that she developed to the fullest. Making maximum use of one’s
talents is the topic of today’s readings from Scripture.
In the first reading from Proverbs, the talented
wife brings her husband happiness day by day, makes clothes for her children,
and reaches out her hand to the poor. This wife is praised because she makes
maximum use of her talents.
In the gospel, a servant is given five talents.
Each talent is worth 1000 silver pieces. He invests these and makes another
five talents. As a result, his master says: “Well done. Come share my joy”. The
servant is praised and rewarded because he made maximum use of the talents
entrusted to him.
What about us? All of us are blessed with special
talents and resources. But do we make maximum use of them? Do we put them at
the service of the community, the parish and our family? Or do we hold back and
save ourselves for something we may never do?
Time
is a resource. Some people try to save time and never
make that visit to cheer up their aging parents, never make that phone call to
show interest in someone who needs it, or never write that letter to encourage
someone in difficulty. Other people use their time wisely to prepare good meals
for their family’s enjoyment, improve their home for their family’s comfort, or
pray to God for blessings on their family.
Money
is a resource. Some people hold it back and hoard it for
themselves. They are always saving their money for some imaginary rainy day.
But that day never comes, except on the day when they die.
Other people spend their money sensibly. Their own
personal needs are simple and so they can afford to be generous to others.
These are the people who contribute to diocesan fund drives, or who donate food
for distribution to needy families.
Work
and education are
resources. Some people work and study as if they were saving themselves for
something big in the future. No wonder they feel bored and dissatisfied.
Other people work and study with enthusiasm, and so
they feel excited and stimulated. They know that it is better to wear out one’s
talents than to let them rust.
As we continue this Eucharist, pray that like Gwen
Verdon we will not save our talents for something we will never do, but use
them to the fullest. Pray that like the talented wife in Proverbs we will make
maximum use of our talents to bring happiness to other people. Pray that like
the servant in the gospel we will not let our talents lie idle, but use them
for our own good and God’s glory.
Christ the King
Ezk 34: 11-12, 15-17 Mt 25: 31-46
HALE AND MILLS
In one of the 1984 issues of the Sunday Parade magazine there was a feature
story about Mother Clara Hale. She was a 79 – year – old black woman who had
dedicated the last 15 years of her life to nursing children of drug addicts.
Since 1969 Clara Hale had cared for over 500 children who were born already
addicted to drugs.
About the same time, The Detroit News ran an article about another mother, Lynn Mills.
Mrs. Mills was 30 years ole at the time and was expecting her second child. She
is a Pro – Life activist who pickets abortion clinics in Livonia
and Redford in Michigan
These are but two examples of what today’s liturgy
is about proclaiming Christ as King and extending his kingdom on earth.
This biblical image used today to represent Christ
as King is that of the Good Shepherd. In the Old Testament reading from Ezekiel
we get a picture of what the Good Shepherd does for us. In the New Testament reading from Matthew we see the
reverse side of the picture, namely, what the Good Shepherd expects from us.
On the one hand, Ezekiel has much to say about what
the Good Shepherd does for us. If we
stray form the fold and get lost, he seeks us out and brings us back to the
fold. If we get sick or injured, he heals us or binds up our wounds.
In other words, he looks after us with tender care
and concern. No wonder we say in the Psalm refrain: “The Lord is my shepherd.
There is nothing I shall want” (Psalm 23). Indeed, he leads us to the waters of
baptism; anoints us with the oil of confirmation; spreads his banquet table
before us in the Eucharist; and guides us in the right paths by his words in
Scripture.
Truly there is nothing lacking in the love God has
lavished upon us. That is why we have a Thanksgiving holiday about this time of
the year: to praise and thank God for his love toward us.
On the other hand, our Lord’s parable in the gospel
outlines to some extent what that Good Shepherd expects from us. If we want to enter his kingdom, we have to give food to
the hungry and drink to the thirsty.
Whether to the poor in Africa or to the street
people in our own big cities in America
If we want to hear his words of welcome, then we in
turn have to welcome the stranger and clothe the naked. If we want to be
consoled by the Lord, we have to comfort the sick and visit the imprisoned.
To do these things might seem hard at first, but
they are the only way we can become fully human. They might seem too demanding,
but they are the only way we can fulfill our destiny.
In a parish bulletin one time, there was the
following indictment:
I was hungry and you formed a humanities club and discussed my hunger. I
was imprisoned and you crept off quietly to your chapel and prayed for my
release. I was naked and in your mind you debated the morality of my
appearance. I was sick and you knelt and thanked God for your health. I was
homeless and you preached to me of the spiritual shelter of the love of God. I
was lonely and you left me alone to go and pray for me. You seem so holy, so
close to God. But I’m still very hungry and lonely and cold.
So, if we want to honor Christ as our King, extend
his kingdom on earth, and then enter his kingdom in heaven, there is really
only one way. Ask Clara Hale and Lynn Mills and they’ll tell us what it is: “Do
something for the least of Christ’s brothers and sisters, for that we will be
doing for him”.
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