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Scripture:

1 Thessalonians 3:7-13
Matthew 24:42-51

Reflection:

“Stay awake, for the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” Matthew 24:42-51

Some years ago I had cause to plead with God – to beg for something… anything that would help me.  Sure, every single day I’m in need.  And if I were a betting man I’d bet that you also feel the same way.  But on this particular day, I was slapped in the face with a horror I could never have imagined, and certainly didn’t want.  It doesn’t really matter what it was, but it was there… palpable and intense, just like yours.

So there I was.  Despondent.  Eventually I found myself in the sanctuary, sitting alone and staring at the tabernacle, crying and not knowing what to do next.  Completely alone, completely isolated, completely broken.  I yelled, “Why?  God, are you even there?”

And then it happened.

In a voice as clear as someone sitting uncomfortably close to me, I heard  “Well, Paul, I had to get your attention SOME-how.”

I looked to my left immediately, but the church was completely empty.  It took a few moments, but it dawned on me that I had heard the voice of God right next to me.  It was as though Jesus had to beat me over the head with a huge stick just so I would be able to recognize that he was there.

Our Gospel today speaks to us about the coming of the Lord at the end of times, and that we should be watchful and ready.  For me, I need this reminder every single day!  And it’s not just about the end-of-times… it’s about finding God in every moment, in every person, in every experience.  Jesus walks with us in every step and in every occasion, whether we like it or not.  God is always there, pursuing us.  In our strength and in our sorrow.  In our joy and in our pain.  In our standing and in our hiding.  In the profound and the profane.  In the extraordinary and the ordinary.

We know not the day, nor the hour.  But if we seek, and remain open to the call of the Most Holy One, maybe – just maybe – we’ll be able to be hit in the head with the care and call of God, our savior!  I want that again… and I pray that you, too, will feel the call and presence of The One who loves us at all times, without exception.

So where does God find you?  Is it always in the good?  Is it ever in the bad?

Could it be loss from theft?
Maybe a car accident?
A diagnosis you just didn’t want to hear?
Could it have been The Call from a loved one’s doctor?
Perhaps discovering infidelities from the one person you should have been able to trust most deeply?
Could it be the horror and regret of the mistakes of your past?

God is there.

God is with you… especially when you least expect it.

Always.

Let’s do this together.  Look around and see… open your eyes, your ears, your heart.  A tree.  A flower.  A bird.  A song.  A weed.  A phone call.  A broken bone.  A chance meeting.  A stranger appearing at the exact right moment.  A person saying, “I love you.”

That’s God, coming for you.  Wanting you. Holding you in the amazing expanse of his most holy arms.

I don’t know when it’ll happen.  Who knows but God?  But God does know, and all we have to do is keep our eyes peeled, and be open, be ready, be waiting.  Even in our darkest moment, it’s never too late to know and feel God’s loving presence.

So where is God in your life right now?
Who is Jesus using to reach you, to walk with you?
Or, could it be that God is in you, acting though you, to reach out to another?

(scary!)

Dear God of all creation, thank you for the gift of your most amazing presence in all things. Please, grant us the faith to see you, to call for you, to reach for you, and to know your healing – in your perfect way, in your perfect time.  … thy will be done. Amen.

Paul Puccinelli is Director of Liturgy & Music at St. Rita Parish in Sierra Madre, California, and a member of the Retreat-Team at Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center.

Scripture:

1 Thessalonians 2:9-13
Matthew 23:27-32

Reflection:

In Matthew Chapter V we are given the seven beatitudes.  In today’s Gospel, Matthew Chapter XXIII Matthew gives us the seven woes.  Basically, what Jesus is upset about is that the Scribes and Pharisees, who should know the importance of the Law and the Prophets, seem to have failed to understand their message.  The Scribes and Pharisees  have put so much emphasis on externals that they have neglected what is most important the message of the Law and the Prophets, that is one’s internal disposition or interior values are what is most important.

Jeremiah 2:4 says that it took the Babylonian Captivity for Israel to understand their identity, meaning and purpose.  They had to lose everything before they came to understand God and the world as God’s creation.  They had worshiped worthless idols and in doing so became worthless themselves.  Even their rigorous religious mandates, their externals got in the way of authentic religious worship.  In other words for them things  became more important than people.

Karl Jung says that happiness cannot be pursued, it is ensured.  He also says that after thirty-five years of age all questions are religious questions regardless of culture or status.  The wisdom of the ancients says that identity, meaning, and happiness are discovered not purchased.  So all the external rituals in the world will not make us happy or holy.  Genuine happiness or holiness is a question of loving God.  The way we can measure that holiness or love of God is answered by the question:  “How much do we love our neighbor.”

Fr. Ken O’Malley, C.P., is the local superior at Holy Name Passionist Community in Houston, Texas.

Memorial of the Passion of Saint John the Baptist

Scripture:

1 Corinthians 2:1–5
Mark 6:17-29

Reflection:

“ .  .  . so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God.”

With the reemergence of comic superheroes, a new phrase or question has developed, “What is your super power?” A question that helps us to think about the special gift or talent we possess that might assist others. The Church calls these charisms. They are the graces/gifts and talents given to us by God, intended to build up the Body of Christ.

Saint John the Baptist knew that his charism was to preach and proclaim the coming of the messiah. He held fast to his gift of preaching and teaching and put his life on the line to speak the truth when it came to confronting Herod Antipas about his marriage to his brother’s wife when his brother was still living. While Herod Antipas, a “king” with “power” could not stand up to the truth when his wife asked for the “head of John the Baptist”. He could not humble himself and say no to the request. It would have been “humbling” for him to do so. He might have seem weak. What would people think of a king not keeping a promise?

When given power we need to know what to do with it. In the scriptures today we have two great examples of the choices we have in using our “power” or charism. We can use it for a greater good and it may cost us friends, job or opportunities. Or we may use it to make us “king of the hill”. Walking over others and ignoring the truth as we climb up to what we think is our goal. Not an easy choice when “human wisdom”/society tells us that it is okay to climb our way up and if someone next to me is falling down well, too bad for them. On the other hand, our faith says that we can all climb together helping each other to achieve our goals. In doing so we build up the “Body of Christ”

What are your gifts and talents? How are you using these to build up the “Body of Christ”?

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

Feast of St. Augustine

Scripture:

1 Thessalonians 1:1-5, 8b-10
Matthew 23:13-22

Reflection:

What does a true disciple of Jesus Christ look like?  Could they be like Saint Augustine whose feast we celebrate today, a man called by God to teach and preach the Word of God to those unchurched in North Africa, who became a Bishop and well known Doctor of the Church?  Augustine came to be baptized after many years of running away from God’s persistent call to faith and conversion, not to mention the perseverance and prayer of his mother, Saint Monica, whose feast we celebrated yesterday!  Could they be someone like our own Holy Father, Pope Francis, who daily models the life and love of Jesus Christ?  He challenges us, cajoles us and affirms us, to be that light in the darkness, to answer the call to bring mercy, peace and justice to our suffering brothers and sisters.

What does a true disciple of Jesus Christ look like?  To find that answer, we must all look in the mirror!  In looking at ourselves in that mirror, we see who we really are, that person created in the image and love of our God!  We are not called to be the community of Thessalonica, or Monica, Augustine or Pope Francis!  We are called to emulate our ancestors in faith and present day prophets as we focus on works of faith, labors of love and the enduring hope in our Lord Jesus Christ!

True discipleship is shown in the Bishop who calls all of his priests to speak out on the sins of racism, prejudice.  True discipleship is the neophyte who accepts the call to serve his parish as a member of the Pastoral Council.  A True disciple is the parent who brings their family to the soup kitchen to help provide a meal for the hungry.  True disciples are those who continue to speak out against those who focus on bigotry, bullying and discrimination.  True discipleship calls us to march against the events in Charlottesville and Boston and other places where violence reigns supreme!

The psalmist reminds us that ‘The Lord takes delight in his people.”  As true disciples of Jesus Christ let us share that delight with all we meet and in turn help to make our Church and our World a better place for all.  Have a delightful day!

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

Scripture:

Isaiah 22:19-23
Romans 11:33-36
Matthew 16:13-20

Reflection:

“You are Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.”

When I was a small boy I remember hearing sermons preached on this verse from Matthew’s gospel.  One sermon would focus on the “therefore Peter was the first Pope” theme and the other might reinforce the argument for the Catholic Church being the “one, true Church.”  Another minister might talk about the un-changing nature of doctrine, the “faith as solid as a rock” speech with the song “Rock of Ages” playing in the background.  In any case, this verse sometimes was used as a hammer to drive home the permanent and unchanging nature of true faith.  Little did I know at the time.

As I encountered more of life, especially through adolescence, adulthood and midlife, I began to realize the truth about faith from the prophet Jeremiah.  A beating, living, heart of faith is what I needed to develop and build on the foundational faith of my early years.  There’s nothing wrong with a good, solid foundation for faith and most other things in life (houses).  There also is something right, necessary and essential about growing and deepening our faith as we age.  Other more noteworthy individuals than I have found this to be true.

One need only look at the journeys of Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton to see how life can change the expression and experience of faith.  Merton died while he was traveling and deepening his exploration of eastern approaches to faith and merging them with his own experience.  Day lived her faith in a way which challenged the hierarchy of her own Catholicism.  Back to me.

Now, in the later third of my life, I find myself asking questions and reflecting on the core nature of what I believe.  I am finding much more in common with people of all faiths while experiencing a re-birth of my own Catholicism, connecting me with God in the present moment.  I find myself in a wonderful “mindfulness” of who I am, the richness of being human, the experience of Christ in others, our earth and the presence of God within my heart.  They say people “slow up” as they age.  Physically maybe.  Spiritually, this should never happen!

Terry McDevitt, Ph.D. is a member of our Passionist Family in Louisville, Kentucky.

Scripture:

Ruth 2:1-3, 8-11; 4:13-17
Matthew 23:1-12

Reflection:

Throughout the Gospels, there is an interesting pattern that occurs with some regularity. High versus low. Inside versus outside. Public versus private. We hear Jesus chastising those who take the high places at the banquet only to find themselves replaced by those who take the low place. We hear him reference the tomb that is beautiful on the outside but full of decay on the inside. We hear the story of the widow’s mite that is more valuable than the rich person’s offering. Today he tells us, “The greatest among you must be your servant.”

Today’s readings share in this pattern. Jesus enjoins his followers to listen to the scribes and Pharisees, but do not act like they do, “For they preach but they do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they will not lift a finger to move them. All their works are performed to be seen.”

From the first reading, Ruth has lived quite a different life than that of the scribes and Pharisees described by Jesus. Boaz is moved by how she has cared for others, leaving her own land and her own family. “Casting herself prostrate upon the ground, Ruth said to him, ‘Why should I, a foreigner, be favored with your notice?’ Boaz answered her: ‘I have had a complete account of what you have done for your mother-in-law after your husband’s death; you have left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people whom you did not know previously.’”

We live in a time of grandstanding and self-aggrandizement. Who’s richer or more powerful? Who’s a foreigner and who’s not? Who’s in and who’s out in Hollywood or Washington DC? The simple, quiet work of caring for our families, paying attention to our co-workers, and making our communities a little more peaceful may not garner much attention…except by Jesus. Living a life of discipleship does matter. We have to believe it does make a difference in our world…because it does.

Robert Hotz is a consultant with American City Bureau, Inc. and was the Director of The Passion of Christ: The Love That Compels Campaign for Holy Cross Province.

Scripture:

Ruth 1:1, 3-6, 14b-16, 22
Matthew 22:34-40

 

Reflection:

No Law So Demanding

Passionist Scripture scholar Fr. Barnabas Ahern once wrote that there is no law so demanding as the law of love. Today’s readings not only offer a classic example of this wisdom, they become a marvelous source or font for our meditation, because we are pulled into a delightful paradox as we ponder God’s love and care for us.

While Jesus begins with love of God, and from there proceeds to love of neighbor, Ruth’s dedication is, first of all, to Naomi, her mother-in-law, and only then to Naomi’s God. Widowed herself, Ruth refuses to leave widowed Naomi alone, to fend for herself.

This interplay might serve as a kind of guidepost for us today, in the chaos of politics and government, and, yes, organized religion. We come to God, to love, to loyalty and faithfulness, responsibility and commitment, first of all through love and admiration of another person. But we also notice how Jesus transcends the messy context of jealousy, polemics and “one-upmanship”, argumentation and intrigue… he simply invites us to relationship. To surrender and self-emptying. There is no law so demanding as the law of love.

Fr. Jack Conley, C.P. is a member of the Passionist formation community at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago.

Scripture:

Revelation 21:9b-14
John 1:45-51

 

Reflection:

Love and Service

Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him, and *said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit! John 1:47 

Jesus gives Nathanael a beautiful compliment by saying “there is no deceit in him”.    The word deceit in original Greek New Testament is “dolos”.   It probably comes from obsolete word meaning decoy; a trick (bait), i.e. (figuratively) wile:—craft, deceit, guile, subtlety.  “they plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill Him”. Mt 26:4

Nathanael was not someone to use others for his own purposes by guile.   In the modern world we are bombarded by deceitful adds that often are more useful to the advertiser than the receiver.  In real life we can easily use others for our gain.  When they are on to us and refuse to cooperate we get angry at then.  This is a major problem for all of us who live in community.  A modern expression for this is a “micro manager”.   He is a person who does not recognize the gifts of the Spirit that others have.  He only trusts in his own self-serving vision.

We can easily see that it is important for an Apostle in the Church to recognize the needed gifts of all the members of the Body of Christ!  Service to others in SS is enormous!  The form “ebed” (servant) appears 799 times in the Old Testament.    In the New Testament we find beautiful quotes on service 74 times!  The word in original Greek text is the verb  dee-ak-on-eh’-o or the noun dee-ak’-on-os.   Our word deacon comes from service.  

“The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” Mt 20:28  St Paul in a rare quote from Jesus says; “remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ” Act 20:35   Genuine service has little self interest!   Like Nathanael would it not be nice if Jesus said to us “there is no deceit in him”?

Fr. Bob Weiss, C.P. preaches parish missions and is a member of the Passionist Community in Louisville, Kentucky.