Claire Smith

Scripture:

Wisdom 18:6-9
Hebrews 11:1-2, 8-19 or 11:1-2, 8-12
Luke 12:32-48 or 12:35-40

Reflection:

I’m afraid despite the fact that one of the most repeated scripture admonitions is to “be not afraid”. I am afraid if I tell you who I really am, you will laugh or worse, you’ll tell me that’s sinful. I am afraid to pick up the pieces when everything in my life seems to have come to an end. I am afraid when I have to comfort a friend who has just suffered a great loss. What can I say? Will I make their loss worse and how can I possibly make it better?

Jesus said to his disciples:

“Do not be afraid any longer, little flock,
for your Father is pleased to give you the kingdom.
Sell your belongings and give alms.
Provide money bags for yourselves that do not wear out,
an inexhaustible treasure in heaven
that no thief can reach nor moth destroy.
For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.
Luke 12:32-34

Did you really mean that Jesus?  Maybe this is what Chesterton was referring to when he wrote: “The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried” – G. K. Chesterton

God, give me the courage today to try once again.

Dan O’Donnell is a Passionist Partner and a longtime friend of the Passionists.  He lives in Chicago. 

Scripture:

Nahum 2:1, 3; 3:1-3, 6-7
Matthew 16:24-28

Reflection:

Recently I heard a speaker mention that the average lifespan in the village of first century Nazareth was between thirty and thirty five years.  Archeological evidence from bones they have found from Jesus’ home village indicates people suffered from a lack of calcium and protein.  Undoubtedly, advances in science, medicine and health care have pushed life expectancies now into the eighties.  The drive to live longer with appreciative quality has never diminished.    This attitude of preserving our lives so we live longer is addressed by Matthew’s gospel today.  Contrary to the desire to live longer, Matthew places these words in Jesus’ mouth;
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

The disciples must have been perplexed.  It certainly doesn’t fit the conventional mode of thinking.   But then nothing in this 16^th chapter of Matthew’s gospel fits with conventional thinking. Only three verses before,  Peter challenges Jesus as Jesus begins speaking about being put to death and being raised up on the third day.  Peter’s reaction is that he would have none of it.  So today, when Jesus begins using the term “cross”, specifically, each person must “take up their cross, and begin to follow in my footsteps” it must have really rattled the disciples’ perspective.  They must have been beside themselves.  Jesus was inverting what they were expecting and the glory they were anticipating.

On another level, when Matthew writes this, his community is being persecuted for its beliefs in Christ. He is addressing those who are questioning if believing in Christ is really worth the suffering and persecutions they are enduring.    Many are saying that it isn’t worth the persecution and they are leaving.  In some ways Matthew draws a line in the sand saying, you are free to stay or free to go.  Whichever you choose you will still need to answer this fundamental question.  “What is the mission of your life?”  Or perhaps another way of asking it is why did God create you?

This question is still fundamental to each of us today.   How would you answer it?  In our contemporary days of mission statements and vision statements, do you have a personal purpose statement?   I think a good purpose statement could say:  The reason I was brought into existence is to give praise to the one who is divine and to bring glory back to the one who created me.  And a component of that is being a person of service toward others that the Great Creator has made in the divine image.   If that is the purpose of my existence then nowhere in my purpose statement does suffering give me an out.  My purpose doesn’t exclude suffering anymore than it embraces pleasure.  While my feelings and emotions may color the way I approach my purpose, they certainly don’t negate or confirm the path of the journey.  Even more, Matthew will specifically say when suffering happens within the context of fulfilling your purpose, then you are blessed (Mt: 5:11).  This was one of the significant issues Matthew faced in writing his gospel.  How do you address fair weathered believers.  What do you do when you discover the cost of discipleship is more than you first anticipated?  And this same issue faces believers today.

Jesus concludes this teaching with the reward, and that is to “see the Son of Man come in his kingship.”  That statement alone is not personally strong enough to convict me of accomplishing my daily purpose.  Yet I do find the inverse is true.  When my vision is good and I’ve worked at my purpose that day, then before retiring and taking rest, I have clarity as I see God’s Kingdom in my world.  Knowing that it is God’s kingdom and not mine, I can rest in the grace and the peace of Christ.

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

Feast of St. John Vianney

Scripture:

Jeremiah 31:31-34
Matthew 16:13-23

 

Reflection:

Building the Church

“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”  Jesus’ question to his disciples long ago continues to challenge people in the 21^st Century – as does His follow-up question: “…who do you say that I am?”  Hopefully we can chime in with St. Peter and faithfully respond “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus used this encounter with his disciples to share his divine plan for the building up of the Church, his Body on earth.  As this selection from Matthew’s Gospel states, “building up the Church” included Jesus’ rejection, suffering and death…and even the hindrance of the disciples in walking with Jesus in his toughest hours.  Again Peter spoke from his human heart when he cried out that “God forbid, Lord…no such thing shall ever happen to you!”  Yet Jesus would freely embrace his suffering and death on the cross, and rise from the dead; later the outpouring of the Holy Spirit gave life to that small group of followers…and here we are today, Jesus’ Church of the 21^st Century, embracing the opportunities and challenges that are ours.

Today we celebrate the life of a faithful minister and disciple-builder of the Church from the 19^th century, St. John Vianney.  He was a simple man with a humble background, an unsophisticated theology – and a zeal to spread God’s love and build up the Church!  He is especially known for his gracious and generous ministry of the Sacrament of Reconciliation at his parish in Ars, France — regularly spending hours sharing God’s merciful love through the Sacrament with thousands of penitents who traveled great distances for those few graced moments with him.  His loving ministry flowed from an intense spiritual life based on prayer and mortification.  Saint John Vianney truly witnessed the age-old, merciful love of the Jesus — so much so that in 2009 Pope Benedict XVI named him patron of priests.

Jesus and St. John Vianney pose questions for us as we are today called to help build up the Church:  How zealous are we for our faith?  Do we offer forgiveness to those who hurt us?  Do we really listen to those who come our way?  Do we zealously and tirelessly give of ourselves in service to our sisters and brothers?  Do we personally take advantage of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, especially in this Jubilee Year of God’s Mercy?

And today, as we honor the “patron of priests”, let’s pray for priests — active, retired, deceased — and for those discerning a priestly or religious vocation:  for a deepening faith and a greater, zealous love.  Together we proclaim Jesus as the Son of the living God, and continue to build the Church!

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

Scripture:

Jeremiah 31:1-7
Matthew 15:21-28

Reflection:

In today’s Gospel we read about the woman who asked Jesus to heal her daughter but was told Jesus couldn’t help her because he was sent only to the house of Israel and it wasn’t right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs. How astute was her answer: “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.”

I believe this woman’s ability to pursue the Lord even after he ignored her and then rebuked her came from her mother’s heart. She wasn’t asking for herself, she was asking the Lord to heal her daughter because she was being tormented by a demon. When our children are hurting, we will do anything to help them!

Jim and I watched a movie recently called “Miracles from Heaven.” It is the amazing true story of a young girl who was dying from an incurable disease, but after an accident, she was miraculously healed. I cried throughout the movie as I watched this little girl suffer, and as I felt the depth of the suffering of her parents because they couldn’t take away her pain. Even after the family was given no hope for a cure, the mother took her daughter to Boston from Texas to see a specialist without an appointment she was so desperate to find help.

Are you desperate for God’s help? Or have you felt unworthy of His love? Don’t give up! Like these two women, keep seeking God and asking for His help. Let this verse from today’s psalm give you hope: “I will turn their mourning into joy. I will console and gladden them after their sorrows.” Even if you don’t get a miracle like the family in the movie, or a physical cure like the daughter in the gospel, God will be with you to console you and one day you will again find joy.

Janice Carleton and her husband Jim live in Portland, OR 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].

Scripture:

Jeremiah 30:1-2, 12-15, 18-22
Matthew 14:22-36; or 15:1-2, 10-14

Reflection:

In the first gospel proposed for this day, Matthew 14:22-36, we read the very easily recalled episode of the Apostles’ being out on the Sea of Galilee through the night, but buffeted by a violent storm. Jesus, who had let them go on, in order spend some time alone, comes out to them on the Sea of Galilee, apparently walking calmly toward them on the water.

Quite naturally, the Apostles are frightened, both by the force of the storm, and by the incongruence of a body walking across the waves toward them. Jesus calls out to them, reassures them, and calms them. Peter, however, leaps into the drama of the moment, and raises the ante of his belief, in spite of the calming of the rest of the Apostles’ anxiety.

Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water. Jesus obliges, Come.

That is all the cue that Peter needs, and he leaves the boat to join Jesus on the water. We all know what happens next. He begins to sink under the influence of the still raging storm, but Jesus brings him safely back to the boat, and questions him, …why did you doubt?

As though this humiliation of Peter (and the Apostles) were not enough, this passage of the Gospel concludes by recounting that many of the people from the surrounding territories, upon hearing that Jesus had come ashore, came in search of healing—and they were healed!

It is almost as if to suggest by contrast that a simple faith and a hopeful attitude are more effective in bringing us into God’s plan of blessing that the probing and questioning of the Apostles when coerced into fearing for their lives.

We are beginning the final phase of our national, electoral journey. While there are certainly storm clouds and winds buffeting our national soul, will we succumb to fears, ghosts and self-doubt? Or, will we see in the presence of Christ in our brothers and sisters the desired healing that God offers to those who believe in reaching out to touch the hem of his cloak; which can mean nothing other than believing that Jesus is in our midst and we choose to live in affirmation of that divine power which is shared with those who believe.

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

Scripture:

Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:21-23
Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11
Luke 12:13-21

Reflection:

It may shock you to hear this, but I like funerals.

Now, just bear with me for a minute. If you don’t know me well, let me tell you a little aboutmyself. I’m a father, a husband, a composer, musician, writer, director, liturgist, minister – celebrating now 30 years working for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles (I’m also outrageously handsome). In addition to the countless masses, services, liturgies, weddings, baptisms, and other events, as you might imagine I’ve ministered at or attended so many funerals…I stopped counting after 1,000.

And I really like funerals.

No, I’m not nuts. Well, perhaps a little bit, but in a good way. See, while funerals are largely viewed as perhaps the most sad and wretchedly emotional time in people’s lives, they also are the ultimate celebration we have as humans! The funeral mass, the Rite of Christian Burial, is the powerful celebration of the absolute culmination of our life, our purpose. The race being won, the soul that once inhabited the tent that lays in that casket over there is now running in the vast playground of God’s loving arms. As heartbroken as we, those left behind, may feel, the true glory isn’t that the person we mourn in this life is dead… it’s that they’ve never been more alive!

They’ve never been more alive.

Let me tell you about something interesting I hear it at just about every single funeral for which I minister or attend. And if I were a betting man, I’d bet you’ve heard it as well. Shoot… you’ve probably said it. I have.

“Tell people you love them while they can still hear it.”

It’s an universal thing when people grieve, I think, that they want to help others not make the same mistakes they made, and so they offer suggestions like that one. It’s so well meaning, and I think so beautiful, and absolutely we must do it. We must. And if you’re at all like me, you’ll get sidetracked and time passes and don’t do it at all. We’re human, I guess.

“How many times must He call my name?”

That portion of lyric from the Praise & Worship song “I Will Choose Christ” by Tom Booth resonates with me deeply. It always has. It’s like the funeral-eulogizers… Over and over again, I hear it. “Tell them you love them…” “PAUL – I’m CALLING you….” One thing I don’t want is to regret my lack of reaching out to people before they die. I can’t get that time back, that’s for sure.

And still I sometimes forget (on purpose).

Today’s scripture lays it on the line. In no uncertain terms, the readings tell us to guard against all greed, and focus on what matters to God. In the First Reading, Qoheleth (the probable writer of this passage), says that working for purely wealth and possessions is not only foolish but results in sorrow, grief, and anxiety. Jesus echoes this in no small way as he describes the rich man in the Gospel parable who believes he has stored up enough possessions to guarantee a good life without worries – or so he thinks. See, any reliance on wealth and possessions is in vain, for both worldly possessions and this life are fleeting. What truly matters is that finale – our inheritance that only God can give – eternal life. What “matters to God” is letting go of things which hinder us from growing into the fullness of life, because we, as people of faith, know our ultimate goal, and we must focus on that, and share it the good news with others.

“Tonight your very soul will be demanded of you,” Luke writes in today’s Gospel. It’s true, “we know not the day, nor the hour,” and no matter what, we can’t take any of this world with us when we go. Sure, in this world we all need currency and possessions that aid us in living the life to which God has beckoned us, but we are called not to love a floor-wax or a car, but to love each other. We are asked to serve, and to walk, humbly, the path to Heaven.

And, friends, I don’t know about you, but no matter how many times I mess it up, I’m going to stand when I hear Him call my name, drop the things I hold so tightly, and run past “Go,” do not collect $200.

What is it that you need to let go of today? Let’s do it, together.

Dear God of all, thank you for the gift of Eternal Life. Grant us the grace to see you, to hear you, and to drop all that weighs us down, so we may know what it’s like to never be more alive. Amen.

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

Scripture:

Jeremiah 26:11-16, 24
Matthew 14:1-12

Reflection:

In our first reading, we see Jeremiah under attack for preaching God’s word.  Eventually, Jeremiah’s life is spared.  In the gospel, we see John the Baptist hated for upholding the moral teaching about marriage.  He lost his life.

There was violence in the old days. There is violence today.  In the Middle East many Christians have lost their lives for being loyal to their faith.  In western society many people are hated because of their pro-life stance for the unborn, the immigrant and the elderly, for their efforts to abolish the death penalty, and for their loyalty to the Church’s teaching about marriage.  In some cases there is physical violence.  Often there is the violence of ridicule, social rejection and political pressure.  Even the treasured freedom of conscience is under attack here in America.

The words of the late Cardinal Francis George come to mind.  He said, “I expect to die in bed, my successor will die in prison and his successor will die a martyr in the public square.  His successor will pick up the shards of a ruined society and slowly help rebuild civilization, as the church has done so often in human history.”

Later in commenting about this statement, Cardinal George added, “I was talking to a couple of troubled priests who are worried about the secularization of our culture. I was telling them they should take the long view, step back, and renew their confidence in the providence of God. I was saying that even if the worst possible case scenario happens, we’ll be okay.”

Jeremiah had confidence in the providence of God, as did John the Baptist.  They must have viewed their challenges “sub specie aeternitatis (from the standpoint of eternity).” In the words of J.R.R.Tolkein, “No man can estimate what is really happening sub specie aeternitatis.  All we do know, and that to a large extent by direct experience, is that evil labors with vast power and perpetual success – in vain: preparing always the soil for unexpected good to sprout in.”  Jeremiah and John the Baptist certainly prepared the soil.  We can too.

These are tough times.  But by the grace of God we were made for these times.  We may lose our heads, but we will not lose our integrity as followers of Christ.

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

Scripture:

Jeremiah 18:1-6
Matthew 13:47-53

Reflection:

Pottery has always fascinated me.  The ability of the potter to take a lump of clay and fashion it into something of beauty is amazing!  God has created us out of nothing and fashioned us into someone of grace and grandeur, created in love, surrounded by love and called to love. How awesome is that!?  In the throwaway society that surrounds us, God’s gift of creation, all of nature and humankind often gets neglected.  Human beings are looked at as objects; nature is abused, neglected and taken for granted!

God our Creator never takes us for granted!  How often do we take each other for granted?!  How often do we turn our back on those who don’t share our values or expectations?  How often do we ignore the blight of our planet Earth and say, “tomorrow I will buy that recycling bin?”  God our heavenly potter has molded us and shaped us into something good and loving!  We are called in turn to be potters who mold and shape others following God’s example.

Today is my parents’ 77^th wedding anniversary!  They took seriously the call to be potters.  They molded and fashioned 8 children created out of their love for each other and blessed by God’s loving hand.  I am sure they worried at times what that ‘lump of clay’ was ever going to become!  But it never stopped them from loving and molding us into the image that God created us to be.

Happy Anniversary, Mother and Dad; and Thank you for being such creative, loving and inspiring potters of God’s love.  We are blessed because of your faith in God the Divine Potter!

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