Claire Smith

Scripture:

Romans 10:9-18
Matthew 4:18-22

Reflection:

Did you know that there are 26 bones in the human foot?  Amazing things, our feet.  They enable us to stand and not fall over.  They make it possible for us to dance, play football, or kick the can. 

Besides, there are footmen, foot soldiers, and footnotes.  Some people stand in the footlights, get a foothold, or are just footloose.  Sometimes we put our best foot forward, put our foot in your mouth, foot the bill, or live in the foothills. 

Amazing things, our feet. The most amazing thing about our feet, be they small or big, dainty or calloused, is that they can be…the feet of Christ.

It was Teresa of Avila (1515–1582) who said that.  She said:

Christ has no body but yours…
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.

In our first reading today Paul quotes the prophet, Isaiah, “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good tidings.” (Isaiah 52:7)  (One glance at my feet proves that Paul was not speaking of physical beauty!)  Paul is proclaiming how beautiful are the feet of those who decide follow the Lord.  In today’s gospel Peter and Andrew decided to follow Jesus.  Their feet took to them into Jesus’ company where they walked with him, talked with him and watched him preach the Gospel.  Isaiah’s statement would certainly identify Jesus’ feet as beautiful.  Eventually Peter and Andrew would be sent out to preach the gospel.  And, behold, their feet became beautiful, too.

When we make a decision our feet are usually involved.  We decide to get out of bed in the morning.  So our feet hit the floor.  We decide to go to school or go to work.  Our feet have to take us there.  But there is more.

When we choose to walk the way of truth, justice and peace, our feet are beautiful.  When we decide to walk with refugees, the poor, hungry or abandoned, our feet are beautiful.  When we decide to walk beside a person who just needs a listening ear, our feet are beautiful.  

Each day the Lord calls us to follow him more closely.  Let us say, “Yes,” and put our best foot forward.  We can’t go wrong.

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

First Sunday of Advent

Scripture:

Isaiah 63:16b –17, 19b; 64:2–7
1Corinthians 1:3–9
Mark 13:33-37

Reflection:

Yet, O LORD, you are our father; we are the clay and you are the potter: we are all the work of your hands. –Isaiah 64:7

Clay is an interesting substance that can be molded into any form. Clay comes in four types, earthenware, stoneware, ball, and porcelain. These types of clay can be fired in a kiln at various high temperatures and times. If the potter has worked the clay correctly to remove the air bubbles then it will retain its shape through the firing. In other words it doesn’t explode. A glaze then is painted onto the vessel to create a unique design and it is placed back in the kiln to be fired again so the glaze can melt and take on its own characteristics. Expert potters can recreate the same shape over and over so that they seem to be all the same. The potter might know the small flaws but you or I would not see these.

God, as the potter, created us as unique masterpieces. We are the work of his hands throughout our lives. Through God’s gentle hands he molds and shapes us into the person that we are supposed to become. As we begin a new liturgical year today, with the coming of the First Sunday of Advent, we await with hope and expectation the coming of the Lord within us in a new way. The experiences of the past year have molded and shaped us into the person we are today. We are not the same as we were last year at this time. Many have lost loved ones and jobs. Some have experienced more stress than usual whether it be at work or at home. So much of how we live and work has changed over the past ten months due to the pandemic. We are ready for something to be different. We wait in hope and expectation that there is a vaccine soon. We wait in hope and expectation that the numbers will be lower so that we can do some of the things we enjoy. We wait in hope and expectation that . . .

As we begin, a new liturgical year, we can continue to be clay. To be molded by God into the person that we were created to be with expectation that God will fill us with faith, hope, and love as we move forward towards the coming of Jesus Christ in our hearts once more.

May you and your families have a blessed Advent Season!

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

Scripture:

Revelation 22:1-7
Luke 21:34-36

Reflection:

Today we celebrate the last day of the Church year 2020, Saturday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time.  I’m sure we can all agree that this church year and calendar year has been anything but ‘ordinary’!  We have endured a continuing pandemic wherein countless numbers of people have died as the death toll continues to rise daily around the country.  In this country we have weathered political battles and divisiveness that continues to make headlines.  My book club is reading White Rage, an account of the terrible brutality that our black sisters and brothers have endured for much of our nation’s history and continues today!  It is a hard read, but a necessary one if we are ever going to move towards a just world for all peoples! On top of all this, we have hurricanes, flooding, fires, riots and demonstrations across our country and world to deal with on a regular basis.

Today, as I prepare this reflection, I am also aware that this day, November 22, is the 57^th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination, a dark time for our entire world!  The world prayed, cried, stayed glued to the TV as they joined together to mourn as one and to question where there were no answers!

Today as we collectively share our fears, frustrations, impatience, inconveniences, and so many other emotions and constraints, we are reminded of Jesus’ words in scripture,

Be vigilant at all times!

Yes, we are in dark times, but our faith tells us to have hope, be vigilant, be strong!  The season of Advent begins tomorrow.  In our parish the theme we have chosen for Advent, Behold the Promise, calls us to look forward to the promise that the newborn babe brought to a world troubled in the past, and still troubled in the present. A promise that inspires trust and belief in faith that our God continues to walk with us every step of the way!

Maranatha, Come Lord Jesus!

Theresa Secord recently retired as a Pastoral Associate at St. Agnes Parish, Louisville, Kentucky.

Scripture:

Revelation 20:1-4, 11 – 21:2
Luke 21:29-33

Reflection:

The beautiful Gospel reading today is the parable of the fig tree. Our world is in desperate need of the buds of spring. We yearn for that second chance for the opportunity to bear fruit when we falter. We need the words of St. Luke to remind us that His ageless values, the Heavenly vision of beautiful budding trees and butterflies and whatever else is in the vision of your Heavenly garden, emanate from one loving and gracious God.

As we enter into the end of our church year, we are reminded that we should want and we do need to belong to the kingdom that Jesus has prepared for us, and to dedicate our lives in preparation of being in His presence. Are we able to see, through the eyes of God, what is truly valuable in today’s world and what is fleeting?

The word of God will never pass away! Be ready and waiting, in joyful anticipation, for the coming of our precious Lord!

Patty Masson supports the Passionists from Spring, Texas

Scripture:

Revelation 18:1-2, 21-23; 19:1-3, 9a
Luke 21:20-28

Reflection:

Thanksgiving. Today is a day we set aside to take a good look around us and be thankful. We probably should make every day Thanksgiving Day, but still it is good to set this day apart to be more consciously thankful.

For many of us who no longer live close to the land or measure time by when we plant and harvest, Thanksgiving has all but been removed from its agricultural roots. We perhaps retell the stories of early European settlers surviving difficult times. Images of the bountiful harvest certainly convey the beauty and richness of the earth. But more important, a plentiful harvest meant the community could survive the harsh winter ahead. They would have enough to eat and not starve.

Our context may not be the plentiful harvest, but we can certainly say on this day that it has been a long, hard journey through this Covid-19 pandemic. And yet through it all, we are here. We are going to make it, even as we mourn hundreds of thousands of lost lives. Even as we experience how we claw at each other and demonize one another and listen to all sorts of false prophets, we have hope that we will come through this. Maybe we can be more grateful for one another instead of critical.

We have been given so much and have learned so much in these challenging times. How can we not be grateful? Setting aside today as a Day of Thanksgiving is good, even if with fewer family members around the table but no less thankful. Consider praying today’s responsorial, Psalm 100, either with those gathered in your home or quietly by yourself. God is good, and faithful to all generations.

Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
serve the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful song.

Know that the LORD is God;
he made us, his we are;
his people, the flock he tends.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
his courts with praise;
Give thanks to him; bless his name.

For he is good:
the LORD, whose kindness endures forever,
and his faithfulness, to all generations.

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:

Revelation 15:1-4
Luke 21:12-19

Reflection:

“He did not say, ‘You shall not be perturbed, you shall not be troubled, you shall not be distressed,’ but He said, ‘You shall not be overcome.’” 

~Julian of Norwich, Revelations of Divine Love, Chapter 68

Hearing today’s readings in light of the tumult, uncertainty and suffering in the world and our lives today, we might feel not so far removed from John who sees in heaven “seven angels with the seven last plagues.”  We are in the midst of Covid, with deaths rising once again. Our country feels more divided than ever. Inequalities in housing, wealth, healthcare, and employment are in sharp relief. We see the disastrous results of climate change daily, most recently the devastation of Hurricane Iota leaving tens of thousands homeless in Central America.

Yet today’s readings are a celebration of divine triumph. We are called to sing of God’s “great and wonderful” works, to trust in God’s “wondrous deeds,” to join the mountains in shouting for joy. This is the grace of our faith, knowing that simultaneously with the tumult exists God’s victory, timeless and ever-present.  And we are necessary co-creators. Every time we take a step in solidarity with the crucified today–whether they be migrants, Covid patients, those in homeless shelters and prisons, or victims of racial injustice–we live into God’s wondrous works.

Jesus tells us, “By your perseverance you will secure your lives.” May we together persevere in co-creating a new song, joyfully singing into being the Kingdom, where God “will rule the world with justice and the peoples with equity.”

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

Scripture:

Revelation 14:14-19
Luke 21:12-19

Reflection:

Lead Astray

“See to it that you are not misled ^“LK 21:8 The Greek inspired word for misled in Gospel today is planao. It means to stray, to lead astray, get lost.    It’s importance is shown that it is used 46 times in NT. For instance it is used in Matthew 18:12  “What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray planao, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray?”   Without a shepherd it would be killed by lack of water, food, or wild beasts!

In today’s world we are constantly bombarded with a thousand voices that can lead us to a harmful end.  Christ is the light of the world and we walk in a very dangerous environment without His light! “For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” 1 Peter 2:25  How right Jesus was when He said: “And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.” Matthew 24:11  It is well we say the Our Father so often.  “led us not into temptation (testing)”

As a practical example our faith in eternal life.  So many of our modern movies and TV are very confused about this basic teaching of Christ.  Jesus strongly warned us: “He said to them, Is this not the reason you are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God? He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are greatly mistaken.”  The exact translation “greatly lead astray” planao Mk 1:27  Someone asked Daniel Boon if he ever got lost in the wilderness of Kentucky. He said “no never!”.  “However I was confused for three days once.”  I think many today are dangerously confused about the next life!  Why such effort to kill the unborn!   “Therefore I was provoked with that generation, and said, ‘They always go astray (planao) in their heart; they have not known my ways.’” Hebrews 3:10

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