Claire Smith

Scripture:

Job 3:1-3, 11-17, 20-23
Luke 9:51-56

Reflection:

Today we celebrate the Feast of St. Vincent de Paul, the patron of all charitable societies. What a wonderful example of being a people for others as we read today’s gospel reading. One would wonder if he ever experienced hostility in the areas he visited, as Jesus and the apostles did between the Jews and the Samaritans in today’s readings. Would it have been difficult to visit the poor, to mission to them as St. Vincent did? I continue today’s reflection with some facts about St. Vincent…

St. Vincent went to Avignon and later to Rome to continue his studies. While there he became a chaplain to the Count of Goigny and was placed in charge of distributing money to the deserving poor. He became pastor of a small parish in Clichy for a short period of time, while also serving as a tutor and spiritual director. (Thank you to the website Sacred Space for the historical information – a great resource for background information!)

From that point forward he spent his life preaching missions to and providing relief to the poor. He even established hospitals for them. This work became his passion. He later extended his concern and ministry to convicts. The need to evangelize and assist these souls was so great and the demands beyond his own ability to meet that he founded the Ladies of Charity, a lay institute of woman, to help, as well as a religious institute of priests – the Congregation of Priests of the Mission, commonly referred to now as the Vincentians.

Let us be mindful of those in need, regardless of what society in general may believe, or what convention may prescribe. God cares about his people, and when we can love each other and serve without bias, we are more capable of doing God’s work in this world.

God bless you!

Patty Masson serves the Passionists from Spring, Texas.

Scripture:

Amos 6:1a, 4-7
1 Timothy 6:11-16
Luke 16:19-31

Reflection:

I wonder if every Lazarus we encounter is special blessing just for us. Far from an obligation, our Lazarus’ seem to invite us into a special soul work, unique to each of us on our journey and, yet, also so necessary for all of us on our collective journey of healing and transformation.   The gift of Lazarus is the repeated opportunity to say yes to letting the incomprehensible, unconditional love of God flow through us.

As we all know, this is not a simple thing.  We humans are adept at getting lost in our distracting thoughts. Is this person safe for me to approach?  What if they use what I give them for drugs or something I don’t think is appropriate?  Will I still have enough for myself and my family if I give?  Our minds are masters of calculation, of fomenting anxiety and fear. Even reading this, we may be thinking, “Well, those all seem like reasonable questions to consider.”

I wonder though, what if we choose not to push away from the surrender necessary for such an encounter and, instead, allow ourselves to relax into it, like the flow of a gentle river on a sunny day?  We don’t need to reject any of the fears or concerns or judgments that arise in meeting our Lazarus’; we can just let those concerns flow too, held in that love much larger than ourselves, that love made abundantly manifest in Jesus’ sacrifice for all of us.  All of it is sacred.  Nothing is outside of God. And then we can choose to engage with the Lazarus before us.

In every encounter, we have the possibility of choosing to participate in the flow of divine love, to claim our rightful place in the Kingdom. Sometimes we’ll be able to do it, sometimes we won’t.  But we can hold the vision that surrendering to love has the power to change the course of human destiny and all of creation.  And we can keep trying.  Our salvific soul work.

We see everywhere in the news today the message that real power is dependent on military might, on money, on positioning oneself to have power over others.  We, as followers of the crucified Christ, stand in something else: a self-giving love that has the power to transform each of us and all of us.

And God never tires of placing just the right people in our path, always inviting us into active participation in divine Love.

Lissa Romell is the Administrator at St. Vincent Strambi Community in Chicago, Illinois.

Scripture:

Ecclesiastes 11:9-12:8
Luke 9:43b-45

Reflection:

Wonder of His Love

The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed and be raised up on the third day.” LK 9:22

We were impressed by the outpouring of love and affection in England at the funereal ceremonies of Queen Elizabeth II.  Hundreds of thousands of people saw on the coffin the Queen’s scepter.  On the top of the scepter is the cross of Jesus and under it was the most expensive diamond in the world, the 430 karat Star of Africa!  Its value is so great that $400 million probably far underestimates its worth! 

What a wonderful symbol of the value of the cross of Christ!  We see close to the cross this incredibly precious jewel reminding the whole world of the worth of the Crucified Jesus’ love for us!   Today is the feast day of St. Pio of Pietrelcina, affectionately known as Padre Pio.   He once said, “If we only knew how God regards us, we would risk our lives to be present at a single Mass.”  His devotion to the Eucharist was based on his faith that it contained the living and explosive love of the crucified Christ. 

Padre Pio lived a beautiful life of prayer.  He, like a host of saints, saw in the sufferings of Christ the amazing love of God for us. He was touched like his founder, St Francis, with the stigma of wounds of Christ!  We all can imitate Padre Pio in his prayer life.

I feel that reading the quotes of the saints is the best way to understand them. The quotes of Padre Pio are quite moving. Here are some of Padre Pio’s quotes  “Prayer is the oxygen of the soul.” “Prayer is the best weapon we possess, the key that opens the heart of God.”    “My past, O Lord, to Your mercy; my present, to Your love; my future to Your providence.”   He was a man of prayer inspired by the precious jewel  of the Cross

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

Scripture:

Ecclesiastes 3:1-11
Luke 9:18-22

Reflection:

In our Gospel reading for today, Jesus asks His disciples what the people are thinking about Him: “Who do the crowds say that I am?” When the disciples mention John the Baptist or Elijah or one of the “ancient prophets,” He asks them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter replies “The Messiah of God.”

Then Jesus tells them not to say this to anyone. Why? After all, Jesus told the people in Nazareth that the prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled in their hearing (Luke 4:16-21). For me, the explanation lies in what Jesus tells the disciples after Peter’s confession of faith: “The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised.”

Jesus is telling the disciples how He was going to save the people, not by military triumph over the Romans, nor even by getting rid of the corrupt leadership of the Jews. He was going to save the people by His death on the Cross and His Resurrection.

It would take time for the people to understand this. It took quite a bit of time for those closest to Jesus to understand it. I think Jesus knew that He had to tell and show the people in His own way how the Messiah would be. The people were not ready if the disciples just blurted out the news without any understanding. There were a lot of expectations associated with the coming of the Messiah, most of them wrong. The Messiah would save the people, not by conquest, but by sacrifice.

The challenge for us is that there is still a great temptation to try to fit Gospel values into worldly considerations, or, to put it another way, try to portray worldly values as Gospel ones. As we heard this past Sunday, we cannot serve both God and mammon.

We pray for the grace to follow our Messiah in love and sacrifice for others and for the world.

Fr. Phil Paxton, C.P., is the local superior of the Passionist Community in Birmingham, Alabama. 

Scripture:

Ecclesiastes 1:2-11
Luke 9:7-9

Reflection:

So few lines in the gospel today, but such a huge lesson!

Pride made Herod arrest John the Baptist because the Baptizer was openly calling his marriage incestuous, sinful and unworthy of a King.  He has John dungeoned to quiet the irritating prophet who was damaging his standing in the community.   Pride.

It is Pride again when Herod makes a boastful promise in front of a group of guests.   Rather than look weak or foolish, he orders John’s murder.   Later, troubling rumors reach the Court that cause him to fear that John may have risen from the dead and is now performing powerful miracles. H 

I tell my young grandson that “bad decisions cause things to not go so well, while good decisions cause good actions which bring us happiness. Not listening to parents usually means trouble of one sort or another.  Making good decisions, like doing what Momma asks, usually brings smiles and good consequences. 

Why is it that I can help him see the lesson, but it is so hard for me to internalize it?   False steps are built on stairways with false steps building on one another.  Herod imprisons John because of his Pride, then his pride forces him to behead the prophet, Pride being the motivating factor in both actions.

When I listen to myself or others before I listen to God, bad things happen. Obeying God’s law is not a burdensome roadblock, but a guide from a loving Father to the road to real happiness.  I must strive harder to listen to God and obey His law.

 Day by day, oh dear Lord three things I pray;
              To see Thee more clearly,
                 Love Thee more dearly,
               Follow Thee more nearly day by day.

“Day by Day” from the musical “Godspell” 1972

Ray Alonzo is the father of three children, grandfather of two, and husband to Jan for 45 years. He is a USN Vietnam Veteran, and a 1969 graduate of Mother of Good Counsel Passionist Prep Seminary. Ray currently serves on the Passionist Alumni Council.

Scripture:

Ephesians 4:1-7, 11-13
Matthew 9:9-13

Reflection:

Today is the Feast of St. Matthew apostle and evangelist.  The painting is the “Call of St. Matthew” by the famed artist Caravaggio based on this scripture passage:  “As Jesus passed by, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post.  He said to him, “Follow me” He got up and followed him.”  (Wikipedia, The Calling of St. Matthew https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Calling_of_St_Matthew)

A number of writers assume the bearded man is Matthew pointing to himself and saying “Who Me”?   A  more modern interpretation is that the bearded man is pointing to a young man slumped over the table.  Some tax collectors had the reputation of being dishonest.  Jesus is calling Matthew “to come follow me”.  Jesus calls all of us, young and old alike, to come follow Him.  The Pharisees question the disciples about Jesus’ behavior.  Jesus responds: ”Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. Go and learn the meaning of the words, I desire mercy, not sacrifice.”

So many of us can be self-righteous thinking all we have to do is go to mass on Sunday and we have done our duty.  However, Jesus’ words could be paraphrased I desire mercy and forgiveness not just participating in rituals as important as they are.  When I rise each morning do we hear the call of Jesus to Matthew: “Come follow me throughout your entire day.”

“Come follow me” embracing each person you meet,  each problem you solve, each meeting you attend or each child or elderly parent you care for is done with love and compassion. “Come Follow Me” is our vocation call.  Have you and I responded as St. Matthew did completely?  Lord, give us the strength and grace to respond to your call daily.

Carl Middleton is a theologian/ethicist and a member of the Passionist Family.

Memorial of Saint Andrew Taegon and Companions

Scripture:

Proverbs 21:1-6, 10-13
Luke 8:19-21

Reflection:

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Andrew Kim Taegon and Companions.  For many of us, St. Andrew is a “new” saint, canonized by Pope John Paul II.  Though new to the liturgical calendar, St. Andrew and his companions are fellow Christians that we need to know because they are powerful witnesses to living the Gospel in real life.

St. Andrew is tied closely to the foundation of Christianity in Korea.  He wasn’t the first Korean Christian by a long shot.  By the time he was born in 1821, Christianity had been growing in Korea for about fifty years.  It is believed that Christianity had been brought into Korea by some Christian Japanese soldiers in the latter part of the 18^th century.   The Christian Japanese soldiers baptized the first Korean Christians and the Christian community began to grow quickly.  By the time the first foreign priest arrived in Korea in 1836, there was already a substantial Christian community flourishing there.  It’s the only known Catholic Christian community that first developed completely from the witness and work of lay Christians.

The rulers in Korea were not at all pleased to have this foreign religion thriving in their country.  At first, they just discouraged it but soon enough outlawed this practice and began to actively persecute anyone who took it up.  As Christians were arrested, tortured and put to death the Church quickly moved underground

St. Andrew’s parents, members of the Korean nobility, were an important part of that early community and secretly remained faithful to their life with Christ.  Andrew was baptized at fifteen and soon expressed his desire to become a priest.  He traveled to Macau to attend the seminary and was ordained in 1845.  He was the first Korean to become a priest and returned home shortly after his ordination to help organize the Church and bring the sacraments to the faithful.  He ministered in Korea only a year before he was arrested and put to death.

There were intense persecutions of Christians in Korea in 1839, 1846, 1866 and 1867 and 103 Christians were martyred for their faith.  We celebrate these heroic martyrs on this day.

May their faith and courage inspire us to live our lives faithful to the Gospel and have the strength to be fearless witnesses for Christ in our everyday lives.

Fr. Michael Higgins, C.P. is the director of retreats at Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center, Sierra Madre, California.

Scripture:

Proverbs 3:27-34
Luke 8:16-18

Reflection:

Shine

The Lord shines ever brighter in you.

Your life is filled with the light of a beautiful heart…one that is touched by the grace of God’s love.

Celebrating the special person He created in you. HAPPY, Blessed BIRTHDAY

I asked myself, am I living my life in such a way that I have placed my lamp “on a lampstand

so that those who enter may see”?  Who do I know that “shine”?

In the past few years, my family would meet individuals that had graduated from Franciscan University of Steubenville. Every single one of them had a “joy” that just seemed to “shine” with authentic love for Christ. There is something happening there, besides people graduating with degrees. FUS is focused on their mission of forming “men and women to serve God and one another so they can be a transforming Christian presence in the world.” This was one of the many reasons our two youngest chose to attend there. And perhaps moving forward we too can “shine” and think of everyday as a “birthday” a chance to be God’s presence and celebrate with a new beginning – to begin again in love, action and deeds so that God indeed may be the one praised and glorified.

Lori Kananen, LMC, is a lay Pastoral Associate at Holy Name Passionist Retreat Center in Houston, Texas.