Claire Smith

Scripture:

I Samuel 15: 16-23
Mark 2: 18-22

Reflection:

“Old habits die hard!”  Now, there’s a truism!

As I’ve gotten older I’ve noticed that conversations, and even disagreements, with long-time friends and family often take a very familiar path.  Whatever the topic, I tend to say similar kinds of things as I have before, and the person I’m talking to responds in familiar ways.  This pattern is especially true in our long-term disagreements.  Perhaps it is just easier to repeat ourselves because then we don’t have to really think much!

In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus surely challenges that very human expectation and habit.  In His examples of a garment patch or a need for new wineskin, Jesus invites his disciples to be open to new ways of thinking and acting.  In his response to those asking about the fact that his disciples don’t fast, Jesus claims that the reason his disciples don’t fast is his very presence with them.  He’s the difference!

Jesus constantly invites us, his disciples, into new ways of thinking and acting.  He asks us to trust God in every aspect of our lives because God is our loving Father.  Jesus wants us to realize how deeply he loves us, so gives his very life ­­­­for us.  He tells us that love and forgiveness, even or maybe especially, for those who have injured us or are our enemies are the only paths to peace, either personal or communal.  Jesus teaches us that it is in caring for the poor, homeless, hurting, oppressed or outcast that we build the Kingdom of God.  Many of us disciples of Jesus cherish these teachings but few of us are able to live them fully.  It seems our ways of thinking and our imaginations are just too small to free us to risk living fully the example and teachings of Jesus.

Let us pray today that we are able to recognize any of our beliefs or attitudes that keep us from embracing fully the life-giving teachings of Jesus.

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

Scripture:

Isaiah 49:3, 5-6
1 Corinthians 1:1-3
John 1:29-34

Reflection:

It is too little, the LORD says, for you to be my servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and restore the survivors of Israel; I will make you a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.  Isaiah 49:6

Today’s readings invite us to think about the expectations we have for our lives. Sometimes our expectations coincide with other people’s, and other times, their expectations are radically different from ours. Some of us live our lives with a sense of fulfillment that we are doing what we wanted to do, and others of us live with a sense of disappointment and unhappiness because we realize we will never attain our expectations. When it comes to our expectations, sometimes we overreach and at other times, we settle for less.

The readings for today’s Mass are a reminder that it is God’s expectations for us that really matter, and no one else’s, not even our own. We often come to this conclusion after a painful discernment and at other times, the choice has always been obvious, but we lack the courage to say yes. For it takes courage and grit and fortitude to say yes to God. What we often don’t take into account is that God always does the heavy lifting when we say yes. Our readings are also a reminder of this.

The prophet Isaiah discerns that he is to be a servant of God. Then God tells him that he is not just called to be a servant but also the light to the nations of the world and that light will reach to the ends of the world. There are times when we underestimate what we can do for God, only to find out that God has more faith in us to do more.

Paul says in his letter to the Corinthians, that they are called to holiness. So many of us shy away from being holy. We may think that holiness means being perfect in everything, in our prayer and our behavior. But at its core, holiness means loving unconditionally, as God loves us unconditionally. When the saints figured that out, then God took over their lives and they accomplished all kinds of great things.

In the Gospel, John figured out who he was and who Jesus is: the Christ, the Savior, the one who is to come. Some of us spend our whole life figuring out that we are not Jesus the Christ, but rather his disciples. The thing is, who we think Jesus is and who Jesus really is are two different realities. Jesus is gentler, kinder, more forgiving, more loving and compassionate than we will ever be. Being his faithful disciples will get us where Jesus is! We don’t need to overreach.

God expects a great deal from us. And our response is: Here I am Lord, I come to do you will!

Fr. Clemente Barrón, C.P. is a member of Mater Dolorosa Community in Sierra Madre, California. 

Scripture:

1 Samuel 8:4-7, 10-22a
Mark 2:1-12

Reflection:

The evangelist Mark depicts today’s gospel story in such vivid and dramatic detail that we feel as if we are right there in Capernaum. This must have been what Jesus’ life was like once he began his public ministry—swarms of people beseeching him for help, exhausting him with endless pleas and petitions. One of those seeking Jesus on this day is a paralyzed man whose friends have brought him on a stretcher. With people spilling out of the house, they are desperate. If they cannot bring their friend through the door, what can they do? They know their friend will be devastated if he cannot get to Jesus, so they carry him up to the roof, pull away part of it, and slowly lower him down until he is at the feet of Jesus.

This riveting story carries an important reminder: All of us are called to Jesus, but none of us reaches Jesus on our own. We come to Jesus through the help, encouragement, support and guidance of others. Today’s gospel offers a breathtaking picture of true friendship at work because the friends who bring the paralyzed man to Jesus do whatever is necessary—even if it means going to extremes—so that he can reach Jesus.

The Christian life is a journey to God, but we cannot manage that journey on our own. Like the man in today’s gospel, we need companions on our journey to help us stay close to Jesus and to draw us nearer to God. That’s the inescapable truth in this gospel story. If any of us are going to find Christ in our lives, we need others to help us. After all, if it is true that the paralyzed man could never have gotten so close to Jesus without the help of his friends, it is equally true that the paralyzed man, in his undisguised need, brought them to Jesus as well. When it comes to the Christian life, if we don’t do it together, we don’t do it at all.

Paul J. Wadell is Professor Emeritus of Theology & Religious Studies at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin, and a member of the extended Passionist family.

Scripture:

1 Samuel 1:1-8
Mark 1:14-20

Reflection:

Whenever we read in Scripture stories about miraculous pregnancies like Hannah (who gave birth to Samuel) and Elizabeth there is usually a divine plan a-foot. These clues should get our attention. John, the son of Elizabeth (who herself was considered barren) is preparing the way for Jesus. He is considered the last of the Hebrew prophets.

I have often spent time daydreaming about this exact scene in today’s Gospel. Did it start for Simon who becomes Peter, Andrew, James and John as an ordinary morning? There they were doing their work and along came Jesus and completely changed their lives, forever. That day, they walked away from their lives and left everything. How exciting and even romantic the call from God can seem at first. I imagine those were halcyon days for the disciples. Simply being part of Jesus’ mission support would have been extraordinary and I’m sure it was something none of them ever imagined in their wildest dreams. The miracles they observed, no doubt the encounter with the incarnate Word, nourished their days. Except when Jesus would speak of his future and cast a shadow of concern over them—maybe that simply lasted a moment until the next miracle. Do you imagine they didn’t want this to end? Who would?

Yet, end it did. Or perhaps a better word we could use is transitioned. A time of change (and growth) came along when they least expected it.

Like Hannah, are we struggling to understand the divine plan in our lives?

The disciples discovered how the call of Jesus brought them into darkness before the light appeared again. How else could you describe the utter devastation and loss of Good Friday? What about their call? Was it over—finished? When they saw their Lord, their Teacher, suffering on the cross did they ask, “where is God in this?” Did they doubt? Or wonder if they missed the signs along the way?

What started as a normal day at the Sea of Galilee also includes this moment. I wonder if this is true of our own lives. I don’t mean in the same way but experientially and perhaps even sequentially. We embark upon what we hope to be a call and we are filled with hope and purpose for the future and life takes on a familiar pattern. Then something takes an unexpected turn and we feel lost. Maybe it’s an illness, relationship ending, an accident, depression or betrayal. Whatever it is this is NOT how life should be, we tell ourselves. We feel life has let us down or maybe wonder if we’ve failed. Can we look at these transitions in life as gifts for growth? As times of new life emerging. Of something being born in us. Can we resist the temptation to put life back together like in the Humpty Dumpty nursery rhyme?

In reality, we are all called to drop everything and follow Jesus, not to the cross but through the cross. Going through the cross means we are called to find that hope in the darkness and trust that the light is just beyond our horizon. We eventually find the seed of Resurrection is hidden in plain sight. New life is being called forth from the tomb. May we find peace this New Year. Amen.

Jean Bowler is a retreatant at Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center in Sierra Madre, California, and a member of the Office of Mission Effectiveness Board of Holy Cross Province.