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Scripture:

Nehemiah 8:1-4a, 5-6, 7b-12
Luke 10:1-12

Reflection:

Images and stories of the devastation from hurricanes and earthquakes continue to fill my consumption of current events in the world.  And surprisingly, just as the spirit always does, I’m reflecting on the book of Nehemiah as the reading of the day.

Of all the books of the bible, Nehemiah isn’t in the top fifty in terms of popularity.  Yet it holds a most remarkable story of people who have influenced Judaism and Christianity to this day.  And we hear about this in today’s first reading.  In 538 BC the Edict of Cyrus permitted those captive in Babylon to return to Jerusalem. The reality was that those returning didn’t find much to return to.  Since the Babylonians had destroyed Jerusalem fifty years earlier, little progress had been made economically, politically, and religiously.   While many were delighted to go home, they quickly discovered this wasn’t the home they remembered, nor the home of their heart-warming stories.  Sitting in the midst of the ruins was demoralizing.  It did nothing to motivate them to rebuild. Nor did the lack of economy spur any desire for construction.  It was difficult enough to rebuild a home.  The idea of rebuilding the city of Jerusalem or the Temple must have been far too lofty.  This is when the prophets, Haggai and Zechariah come into their own.  Their immediate purpose was to spur the lethargic religious spirit of the people to rebuild the temple and fully restore worship in Jerusalem.  In short, their argument was that the sooner the temple is rebuilt and the sacrificial system is functioning, then the sooner the LORD God will be on their side.  After all, who is going to motivate us? And who will defend us from our enemies?

Amidst destruction and lethargy, Nehemiah, Ezra strove to motivate the people to work for the fulfillment of the vision of restoration.  And today’s first reading is the promulgation of the law when Ezra gathers everyone, men, women, and children old enough to listen and proclaims the law again to the people.  They all sit listening attentively.

Why is this remarkable?  This is our first written account of people sitting listening to a public proclamation of God’s Word.  Yet it isn’t written as a news report merely stating the facts of a particular day in human history.  It is descriptively written, touching the senses of seeing and hearing.  One can almost smell the motivation in people beginning to bubble up into a desire to positively respond to this Word of God being proclaimed.  It is remarkable to me on a second level.  When I witness 900+ people coming to a Sunday Eucharist and listening to God’s Word is most impressive. They take time out of their schedule which is far busier and more hectic than our ancestor’s schedules.  Sometimes it is a miracle for that many people to put their cell phones down for 15 minutes.  And to choose to listen to what this Word of God says, not what we want it to say, testifies to me how powerfully Jesus continues to teach and feed his people in the Liturgy of the Word.

To move a group of people from lethargy to motivation requires inspiration touching the depth of sacredness in the human person.  In the past several months we have all seen loss, violations, and desperation beyond our comprehension of how to respond.  So how is it something written 2500 years ago speaks so clearly to us today?  Because first and foremost we start with God’s Word and listening to what is said to us, we discover God’s love for us, resulting in determination, and motivation.

Fr. David Colhour, C.P. is the pastor of St. Agnes Parish in Louisville, Kentucky.

Feast of St. Francis of Assisi

Scripture

Nehemiah 2:1-8
Luke 9:57-62

Reflection:

Today’s Gospel recounts Jesus inviting people to share his mission of proclaiming the Kingdom of God.  Some made great professions of faith as they joined Jesus; others put some conditions on their program of discipleship – seemingly honorable deeds of burying deceased parents or saying farewell to families at home.  And yet Jesus asks for a full and sacrificial commitment of his disciples…with nothing standing in the way of a person’s 100% response!  To join Jesus in going to Jerusalem, to suffer and die…and rise …for the salvific love of all creation.  Amazing!

That bold challenge spoke to the heart of the well-known saint we celebrate today, Francis of Assisi.

Francis heard that personal call of Jesus in the 12^th Century and ultimately gave himself wholeheartedly to Jesus in an exemplary life of praise, sacrifice and service. The Scriptures came alive for Francis of Assisi.  His carefree youth was radically changed by the call of Jesus; he renounced his personal possessions and redirected his life to evangelical poverty and preaching.  Francis’ life witness was truly charismatic, compassionate, and loving of all God’s creation.  God used Francis to call others to join in lives of radical discipleship – so many that Francis compiled a “rule of life” and established a number of religious communities of both men and women.  In the 44 short years of his life, he shared the joy of those early disciples of Jesus and sparked a spiritual renewal that continues to inspire men and women of all ages and walks of life – especially our own Pope Francis!  “Rebuild my church…”

Today Jesus and Francis of Assisi challenge us to generously live and promote God’s Kingdom in 2017 and beyond.  Our world is being dramatically challenged by disasters of all types and intensities, violence, selfishness, poverty and hunger, hopelessness, injustice, etc.  And, our witness as faith-filled disciples today?  How do we respect God’s presence in people, nature, created things, the daily events in the lives of our worldwide sisters and brothers?  How do we reflect the life-giving simplicity and humility of Jesus and Francis in our lives?  How do we best lovingly proclaim God’s mercy and compassion in the midst of our world’s suffering and hopelessness, and thus help build up the Church?  Today’s Scriptures, the life of St. Francis, and the example of our contemporary disciples encourage us to say “yes” and leave all behind to join Jesus in proclaiming God’s love by word and deed.

Today and every day, in the spirit of Francis of Assisi:  May we be simple, faith-filled, joy-filled, compassionate, and respectful disciples of Jesus!  May we be channels of God’s peace!

Fr. John Schork, C.P. is a member of the Passionist community in Chicago, Illinois. 

Scripture:

Zechariah 8:20-23
Luke 9:51-56

Reflection:

“Yahweh Sabaoth says this, ‘In those days, ten men from nations of every language will take a Jew by the sleeve and say: We want to go with you, since we have learned that God is with you.’” Zechariah 8:23

Have you ever met someone that touched you so deeply by their faith that you wanted to “go with them?” And the more important question… do people want to go with you because they know God is with you?

When we first moved to Chico a year after we married I did meet some people whose faith seemed much deeper than mine. I wanted what they had, and I did follow them – to a church camp that they had once a year up in the mountains. There I learned how their faith was different, and was able to begin my own deeper journey into our faith by the power of the Holy Spirit.

About 10 years after that happened, Fr. Cedric Pisegna, CP, came to our parish to lead a mission. During the mission I knew I had met a brother in the Lord and that God was definitely with him. Jim and I followed him around California to hear him preach whenever we could. He finally allowed us to begin taping his talks to share with others and as they say, “the rest is history.” We have been in ministry with him ever since.

But back to my second question… do people want to follow you? Are they drawn to you because of your love, mercy, forgiveness, kindness and compassion? The more we become like Jesus, and not just in our words, but more importantly in our deeds, the more others will want to know what makes us different. May we take our role to heart and be ready to share the great hope to which we are called. And may we love others into God’s incredible family and ultimately to our heavenly home.

 

Janice Carleton and her husband Jim live in Bainbridge Island, Washington,  and partner with Passionist Fr. Cedric Pisegna in Fr. Cedric Ministries. She is the mother of 4 grown children and grandmother of 6. Janice also leads women’s retreats and recently published her second book: God IS with Us. Visit Janice’s website at http://www.janicecarleton.com/ or email her at [email protected].

Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels

Scripture:

Exodus 23:20-23
Matthew 18:1-5, 10

Reflection:

In previous years, for this memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels, I have written about the roles of angels in God’s provident care for us; I have written of the role of angels in the lives of children and of those who are “young” in their baptism into the Church.

One of the roles we traditionally ascribe to the Holy Guardian Angels is that they keep us safe on the roadway of our lives, on our journey to the Father’s home. We describe this role to our children as the kind of guidance that an angel walking alongside of us will give us at dangers in the road.

As we get older, we may think of our Guardian Angels as “taking a break” because we are pretty good at avoiding the pitfalls, potholes and the dangers of the road on our own.

And as we get older, perhaps we begin to realize that for some things we can use a little extra help: we don’t see as well, we may not hear as well, and we don’t get out of the way quickly enough. We might have to step up our dependence on our Guardian Angels.

This Sunday, October 1, 2017, I have spent the day preaching in a parish in Texas on behalf of our Passionist Missions. Four times today I have read the congregation the Gospel episode from Matthew 21:28-32 (Jesus rebukes the high priests and the elders of the people for not accepting the message of John the Baptist and his call to conversion.) With each reading, I have felt the inspiration to continue my reflection into the celebration of the Holy Guardian Angels on October 2, today.

The key text is Jesus’ accusation of the priests and elders when he says: “When John came to you in the way of righteousness, you did not believe him; but tax collectors and prostitutes did. Yet even when you saw that, you did not later change your minds and believe him” (Mt 21:32).

Jesus accuses the “leadership” of the inability to see beyond their powerful positions and roles. What the “ordinary sinners” could see and accept, their leadership rejected in favor of their own positions of power.

Today, the second of October, we celebrate the intention of God to guide each of us in our daily decisions and responsibilities. Our Guardian Angels are the parallel of John the Baptist in the times of Jesus; just as John came to call the people to conversion and to prepare them to recognize Jesus as the Savior, the role of our Guardian Angels is to help us find our way to the home of the Father.

If we have closed ourselves off to the inspirations of God in our lives (“angels”), we are like those who would not listen to the message of The Baptist, and who gave ground on the way to the Father in favor of tax collectors and prostitutes.

Perhaps the tragic events surrounding hurricanes and earthquakes in this last month of September are a reminder to us that our God surrounds us with warnings and foreknowledge; which we may choose to ignore, or we may choose the path of solidarity in order to help one another to the better life which is within our reach, a life built of truth, justice and compassion for one another.

Fr. Arthur Carrillo, C.P.  is the director of the Missions for Holy Cross Province.  He lives in Chicago, Illinois.

Scripture:

Ezekiel 18:25-28
Philippians 2:1-11
Matthew 21:28-32

Reflection:

Both the readings for this Sunday are powerful.  In the gospel selection, we hear the parable of the two sons from Matthew’s Gospel. As Jesus is teaching in the temple, his opponents challenge his authority.  In response Jesus tells them a parable that has a strong punch.  A man had two sons and one day he asked the first to go and work in the vineyard.  “I will not,” the son replies, but later changes his mind and does what his father asked him.  Then the father asks his second son the same request.  He promptly says, “Yes, sir,” but in fact did not go. “Which of the two,” Jesus asks his critics, “did his father’s will?”  They answer, “the first.”  And then Jesus drives home the point of the story: “Amen I say to you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you.  When John [the Baptist] came to you in the way of righteousness, you did not believe him; but tax collectors and prostitutes did.  Yet even when you saw that, you did not later change your minds and believe him.”

This parable fits so well into Matthew’s portrait of Jesus.  What counts is not just saying the right words but doing the right thing. The “tax collectors and prostitutes,” people despised by others in proper society, may have started out saying ‘no’ to God’s will but changed their ways and obeyed the Father. Throughout the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus challenges religious hypocrisy and blesses those who seek to do God’s will.

There is another version of this message in the second reading, taken from Paul’s Letter to the Philippians.  The Roman colony city of Philippi in present day Greece was the first place that Paul visited when he crossed from Asia Minor to the continent of Europe.  From Paul’s later letter to the Philippians you can detect his warm love for this Christian community.  Apparently there were some divisions in the community and Paul pleads for reconciliation: “If there is any encouragement in Christ, any solace in love, any participation in the Spirit, any compassion and mercy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, with the same love, united in heart, thinking one thing…”  To make his point, Paul quotes from an early Christian hymn—one of the most profound texts of the New Testament.  He invites his beloved community to “Have in you the same attitude that is also in Christ Jesus,” and then introduces this hymn that praises Christ, “who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped at.” Rather, “he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave…humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”  Because Christ Jesus gave of himself for the sake of others, “God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

This early hymn tells us that Christian faith in Christ as the exalted Son of God was already strong only a decade or two after the death and resurrection of Jesus.  Paul quotes the hymn to urge the Christians at Philippi literally “to think as Christ does,” or “to have the same perspective” as Christ.  They are urged not just to “look out for their own interests” but to be concerned for others. The reality that Jesus gave his life out of love for others becomes the norm of Christian life.  As Pope Francis eloquently put it in The Joy of the Gospel, “Life grows by being given away, and it weakens in isolation and comfort. Indeed, those who enjoy life most are those who leave security on the shore and become excited by the mission of communicating life to others.”

[Adapted from “Perspectives in Scripture,” a weekly column by Fr. Donald Senior, C.P., for The Chicago Catholic archdiocesan newspaper.]

Fr. Donald Senior, C.P. is President Emeritus and Professor of New Testament at Catholic Theological Union.  He lives at the Passionist residence in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago.

Scripture:

Zechariah 2:5-9, 14-15a
Luke 9:43b-45

Reflection:

“Sing and rejoice, O daughter Zion!  See, I am coming to dwell among you, says the Lord.” Zechariah 2:14

The red sanctuary lamp in our churches and chapels alerts us that Jesus is present in the Blessed Sacrament, reserved in the tabernacle.

But if this candle alerts us to the presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, it could also be placed next to the Ambo or pulpit.  Vatican II tells us that Jesus “is present in his word, for it is he himself who speaks when the holy Scriptures are read in the Church.”

This candle could also be placed in the hand of the priest.  Vatican II says, “In the sacrifice of the Mass, he (Jesus) is present in the person of the priest.”

This candle could also be placed in the midst of the congregation, for Jesus told us, “where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20).

This candle could also be placed in skid row.  Jesus told us that, “whatsoever you do to the least of my people, you do to me” (Matthew 25:40).  That means that Jesus is present in our neighbor in need, esp. the poor.

And finally, this candle could be placed next to your heart and mine.  St. John tells us that, “God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God and God in them” (John 4:16).

The Holy Eucharist, the proclaimed Word of God, the priest, the gathered faithful, the poor, our loving hearts…  Yes, there are many ways that Jesus is present to us, dwelling among us.  Let us “Sing and rejoice — and give thanks!”

Fr. Alan Phillip, C.P. is a member of the Passionist Community at Mater Dolorosa Retreat Center, Sierra Madre, California.   http://www.alanphillipcp.com/

Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, archangels

Scripture:

Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14 or Revelation 12:7-12
John 1:47-51

Reflection:

War broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels battled against the dragon.
     The dragon and its angels fought back, but they did not prevail . . . Rev 12: 7

Depictions of angels can be found in most specialty shops, catalogs and art stores in the forms of small, medium and large statues, pictures, on prayer cards, garden art and numerous other objects. They can be found in stain glass windows and statuary of the great cathedrals of Europe and around the world. We grow up knowing the guardian angel prayer and hope we haven’t frightened ours off by the time we have “grown up”. In the Catholic faith there are the nine choir of angels beginning with the lowest to highest ranking; Angels, Archangels, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Dominions, Thrones, Cherubim and Seraphim. In the Church we celebrate the archangels, Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael who are mentioned in both the Old and New Testaments. Michael’s name means, “Who is like God?” We have a prayer calling on St. Michael for protection. This archangel is best known for his battle with evil, as quoted above. Gabriel is known as the messenger angel who announced to Mary that she was going to bear God’s Son. Gabriel’s name means, “God is My Strength” and is known as the Archangel of Wisdom, Revelation, Prophecy, and Visions. Raphael’s name means, “Healing Power of God”. We find this Archangel in the book of Tobit. He was sent in an answer to Tobit’s prayers and the prayers of his daughter. In this book of the Old Testament, Raphael is companion, guide, and heals Tobit of his blindness.

Angels are spiritual beings who assist God with those tasks on earth and in heaven. In the readings today we read that, “Thousands upon thousands were ministering to him, and myriads upon myriads attended him.”(Dn 7:9 – 10) What a sight that must be! All of those spiritual beings tending to God and doing what God commands. As I picture it in my mind’s eye it seems as if Heaven is a very busy place. During the Triduum I have pondered what the angels were doing as Christ went through his Passion, death and Resurrection. I can hear God telling Michael, No, hold back your angels, do not interfere. Gabriel watching with great sadness and Raphael wanting to heal broken hearts. And then great joy with Christ’s Resurrection and Ascension. And most likely they too understood the plan that God had in mind and tended to Christ on the day of Resurrection and the Ascension.

Today is a good day to reflect on these Archangels. Read and reflect on your favorite Archangel story and see where God leads you.

Linda Schork is a theology teacher at Saint Xavier High School in Louisville, Kentucky.

Scripture:

Haggai 1:1-8
Luke 9:7-9

Reflection:

Psalm 149:4   The Lord takes delight in his people

John 14:6       I am the way and the truth and the life, says the Lord;
No one come to the Father except through me.

Psalm 149: 4 is a hymn inviting the people of Israel to celebrate their God in song and festive dance because God has chosen them and given them victory (4).  In John: 6 we hear Jesus tell us HE is the Way and the Truth and with him is new Life, a place in the Kingdom!  As believing members of the Body of Christ, these words that come to us this day from scripture should bring us immense joy and hope.  So many times in our busy, harried day to day life we get overwhelmed with trying to ‘do it all ourselves’!  This oftentimes leads us to frustration and desperation!  We live in a frightfully fast-paced life that can overshadow the message of hope which we can find in Jesus!

In the past month, our world has been besieged by incredible tragedy.  Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Jose and Maria as well as the earthquakes in Mexico have left a path of destruction and devastation everywhere we turn.  Millions of suffering people have been left in its wake.  As I write this reflection this day, I continue to be overwhelmed by the ever-present reality that surrounds us daily through the media and technology that brings these sad situations into our homes and lives.

In the aftermath of these tragedies, as we search for ways to bring hope and healing to so many, the words of Jesus are a light in the darkness.  Let us remember these words and take them to heart and really focus on how much better our lives can be when we stay rooted in Jesus Christ.  We are a blessed people truly loved by our God and called to spread God’s message of hope and peace to all. Amen.  Alleluia!

Theresa Secord is a Pastoral Associate at St. Agnes Parish, Louisville, Kentucky.