Claire Smith

Scripture:

Amos 2:6-10,13-16
Matthew 8:18-22

Reflection:

In today’s Gospel, we hear brief exchanges between Jesus and two potential disciples. The first person is a teacher of the law, who is probably accustomed to a comfortable lifestyle. He tells Jesus that he will follow him wherever he may go. Jesus responds clearly that He does not have a life of luxury and does not even know where He will be resting at the end of the day. The second person wants to follow Jesus but only after burying his father. Jesus’ response sounds harsh: let the dead bury their dead. Some scripture scholars explain that the father probably was not dead or dying, just that the son wanted to be home to claim his inheritance and then he would be a disciple. In other words, the son wanted to be a disciple on his terms.

These two stories remind us that discipleship is a commitment to model our lives after Jesus. Earlier in the Gospels, Peter and Andrew did not hesitate to drop their fishing nets and follow Jesus when they were called to be disciples. Jesus does not say we should count the costs of discipleship or tie up our loose ends. He simply says, “Follow me!” and challenges us to have faith in His call.

Becoming a follower is the first step to discipleship. We listen and watch Jesus, hearing his teachings and observing his actions. We are interested but not yet committed, which possibly describes the two men in today’s Gospel. When we commit to modeling ourselves after Jesus, practicing His teachings in our daily lives, striving to love God and our neighbor, and are willing to take up our cross daily and follow Jesus, we have become disciples.

Mike Owens is coordinator of the Passionist Alumni Association and a member of the Migration Commission of Holy Cross Province.  He lives in Louisville, Kentucky. 

Scripture:

Wisdom 1:13-15; 2:23-24
2 Corinthians 8:7, 9, 13-15
Mark 5:21-43

Reflection:

In our Gospel reading for Sunday (Mark 5:21-43), we have two examples of great faith. The first person we encounter is Jairus, a synagogue official. Jairus comes to Jesus, pleading Him to lay hands on his daughter, who is “at the point of death.” As a synagogue official, I wonder if Jairus was instructed by many Pharisees and scribes to denounce, or at least discourage others from listening to Jesus. But here he is, desperate about his daughter, willing to trust that Jesus has the power to heal her.

Then, when Jesus takes the time to attend to the woman suffering from hemorrhages, Jairus still has faith, even though he might well have given into impatience and anger about the interruption, and given up. And when they arrive at Jairus’ home, and find out that his daughter has died, he might have given up then. But he still has faith that Jesus can do something for her.

Then there is the aforementioned woman. She has been suffering from hemorrhages for a long time. She has tried everything she can think of, but nothing has worked. She decides to go to Jesus. But unlike Jairus, she does not go directly to plead with Jesus. But she believes that he has the power to heal her, and she believes that even if she just touches His clothes, she will be healed.

We have two different people, with two different situations, with two different approaches. But their answer to their situations is the same: to go to Jesus.

Is Jesus the answer for us? Do we trust that Jesus has the power to heal? I think that some people may have the faith that Jesus can heal, but have a hard time believing that Jesus is willing to heal them. So, it’s not only having the faith in Jesus’ power, but having the faith in Jesus’ love, that is the issue. And when it seems that God is moving too slowly to answer our prayers, we may be tempted to think God has stopped loving us. But look at the Cross, and know God’s love in Jesus Christ for you and for me and for the whole world!

In our divided world, the greatest challenge may be to believe not only in God’s love for us, but in God’s love for “them.” When I was looking at the Scripture readings for Sunday, I could not let go of one of the verses in our first reading from Wisdom (1:13-15, 2:23-24): “God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the living.” If God does not rejoice in the destruction of life, why do we find ourselves at times rejoicing in the destruction or downfall of those we consider “other;” those we consider “enemies? Maybe the more challenging question is to ask why it can be so easy for us to be complacent in the midst of destruction of life caused by poverty or oppression or the damage done to our environment? The ills afflicting our world can be overwhelming, but by the grace of God and empowered by God’s love, we can do what we can, where we are, to help heal a suffering world.

In our second reading from 2 Corinthians (8:7, 9, 13-15), St. Paul is asking the Christians in Corinth to help the Christians in Jerusalem: “As you excel in every respect, in faith, discourse, knowledge, all earnestness, and in the love we have for you, may you excel in this gracious act also. For you know the gracious act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, for your sake he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich.” Paul is not talking about material wealth, but that the Son of God became incarnate in Jesus Christ in order to save us. But in response to Jesus’ love, we are to respond in love to the needs of others.

May we not give in to despair, but like Jairus and the woman, give in to hope. May we not give in to rejoicing about the downfall of others, but give in to love. And may we continue to do “gracious acts” to help our hurting world.

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

Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul

Scripture:

Acts of the Apostles 12:1-11
2 Timothy 4:6-8, 17-18
Matthew 16:13 -19

Reflection:

Today we celebrate two great men of the Church, Saints Peter and Paul. Two ordinary men, one a fisherman and the other a Pharisee and a tentmaker. Two ordinary men who recognized that God had called them to be something greater than they thought themselves to be. Two ordinary men who had courage to speak the truth that was spoken to them through Christ. They endured suffering through many hardships and trials for their words and actions and yet they kept on believing in the truth that dwelt in their hearts.

 “And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church . . .” Mt 16:19

I have just returned from a trip to France, Spain, and Italy. The first stop was the city of Paris and the first landmark we visited was the Cathedral of Notre Dame. The cathedral was not open for visitors, but the outside was an architectural marvel. Standing in the place where the story of the people of Paris began was a great way to begin our travels. There would be other cathedrals and churches that my husband and I would visit along the way. Many had beautiful works of art depicting the life of Christ and the Saints in them, such as the cathedrals in Arles and Monaco, and the Papal Palace in Avignon. The last great cathedral on our trip was the Dumo in Milan. The third largest cathedral in Europe is the burial place of Saint Charles Borromeo who was the Archbishop of Milan from 1564 – 1584. There is also a simple but large wall monument to honor Saint Ambrose who was bishop of Milan from 374 – 397. In the Spirit of Saints Peter and Paul, they continued the mission of building the Church by leading the people into a deeper relationship with God. The beauty of these cathedrals, basilicas, and churches give praise to God as well as the people who come to pray and celebrate mass every day and on Sundays. If there were no great buildings the Church would still exist because the Church is more than brick and mortar, it is the People of God, Saints and sinners alike who continue what was begun over two thousand years ago.

All of us who are baptized in the Church are the Church. From the beginning it has always been about the people. The prayers of the Church are powerful, they may not always be answered the way we would like but they are still answered. Peter and Paul both put their faith and trust in the Church as they went about spreading the “Good News” They did not have an easy task with the many abuses they underwent as they preached, taught and baptized those who wanted to become disciples. On this feast we remember our two great saints who established the Church. Let us pray for our Church and world that God may send us the graces we need to proclaim the “Good News” and be the Church in our world today.

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

Scripture:

2 Kings 25:1-12
Matthew 8:1-4

Reflection:

In reflecting on our first reading from 2 Kings today, I felt as if I was watching the nightly news, reading the local paper, listening to the latest updates of life and death that surround us in our daily lives. The killing of Zedekiah and his sons, the pillaging and destruction of the city of Jerusalem and the persecution of its inhabitants made me very sad!  War continues to go on in the Ukraine, Gaza, Syria to name just a few places on a national level. Senseless shootings, negative rhetoric, poverty, homelessness and so many forms of abuse are daily occurrences for so many in our cities and neighborhoods.  It makes me very sad!

I am sure I am not the only one who is experiencing this deep sense of sadness and frustration!  How do we as faithful believers in a God of peace and justice work to overcome evil with goodness, hate with love, apathy with understanding and unbelief with faith?!  For me, I can only let this feeling of sadness consume me for a short time before I focus on how to combat the sadness with a sense of joy and hope.  Recently, we participated in the Poor Peoples Campaign, whose focus is to bring awareness to the greater community that poverty is the 4^th leading cause of death in our modern world.  It brought joy to my heart to be a part of this larger group of people of all ages, denominations and cultures who came together at our state Capital to share ways to combat this evil and bring about a lasting justice.  Sadness was replaced by hope in a small way that day!

Jesus gives us another example of how we can turn sadness into hope and joy as found in the gospel today.  We know Jesus spent his time here on earth preaching the good news, curing the sick, challenging the status quo, serving the helpless and downtrodden, to name just a few ways he sought to grow the kingdom of God here on earth! Jesus saw the leper who came to him asking to be cured as a person of faith who believed in the good news.  Lepers in Jesus’ time were seen as worthless trash, sinners of the worst kind and shunned by all.  Jesus was able to see beyond how society saw this person and recognized him for the inherently good person that he was.  How do we treat the lepers in our society?  This is a challenge for us who find ourselves in the midst of so much chaos and sadness.  How do we bring hope and joy out of the pervasive sadness that engulfs us at times?  If we are who we profess to be, people of the gospel, living the good news and calling others to do the same, then, aren’t we called to see the lepers of our time as Jesus saw the leper in the gospel passage today?!  There are many ways to do this if we remain open to the spirit guiding our way.  I was invited recently to join a ministry team who visit the women’s prison in our area.  We go once a month to pray and listen to our incarcerated sisters.  It is an eye-opening and humbling experience for me each time I go.  I am overwhelmed by the courage and hope of these women as they face daily what could be seen as hopelessness and despair.  It gives me joy to pray with them and listen to their highs and lows.  

I was relating to my two young grandchildren about this prison ministry recently and they were dumbfounded and confused about why I would visit bad people in prison!  It was one of those teachable moments we have every once in awhile with our young ones!  I explained that oftentimes people are in prison because they have done something bad, but that doesn’t make them a bad person.  Furthermore, they are worthy of our prayers and mercy and presence.  I like to think that this is something we all need to remember when the sadness of the world overwhelms us.  Mother Teresa said, “We aren’t called to do big things, just little things with great love.”  Amen.

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

Scripture:

2 Kings 22:8-13, 23:1-3
Matthew 7:15-20

Reflection:

Today’s gospel selection from Matthew (7:15-20) could not be more timely for us living in the United States and having to endure the caustic rhetoric that comes with what now seems to be forever political campaigns. Indeed, tomorrow the two major party presidential candidates will be together on a stage in Atlanta. Could this scripture reading provide a helpful context for that event?

Jesus said to his disciples:

Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing,
but underneath are ravenous wolves.
By their fruits you will know them.
Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
Just so, every good tree bears good fruit,
and a rotten tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit,
nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down
and thrown into the fire.
So by their fruits you will know them.

Our commitment to living a faith-filled life is not a private affair. We live in community. We live and work within a society full of differences that matter far less than what unites us as the beloved of God. The differences should delight us, revealing the marvelous facets of God’s love. We should engage in public discourse and the political process to help each other and grow into our better selves.

When I was teaching high school boys, we wanted them to enthusiastically cheer on our teams. But we had to help them learn that we weren’t going to make ourselves better by belittling the other team or school. We can be fiercely proud without disparaging the opponent. We are better than that. We can disagree without being disagreeable. We can argue and still be friends. By the fruits, you will know them. Look for the fruit.

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:

2 Kings 19:9b-11, 14-21, 31-35a, 36
Matthew 7:6, 12-14

Reflection:

“Blessed Be the Name of the Lord”

Years ago, when one of my sisters-in-law celebrated her fiftieth birthday, she told me that a “good day” was when she awakened in the morning… and nothing hurt!  As we age, the limitations of physical mobility, painful joints, and memory loss can seem challenging to our peaceful, spiritual lives.

Sacred Scripture tells us that aging is a normal part of the life cycle, but among the most distressing aspects of growing old—especially in cultures like ours that set a high value on “living for the moment,” youthful vitality and appearance, and rugged individualism — is our need to depend on others.

In recent years, several Catholics have helped us immensely by narrating their experience, teaching us how to live well, but also how to die well. I think of Chicago’s Joseph Cardinal Bernardin, whose book, The Gift of Peace, empowers us with his vulnerability and honesty. And more recently, Boston College Theologian, Richard Gaillardetz’s book, While I Breathe, I Hope, explores the fears and doubts, joys and sufferings, and the graces and blessings Rick encountered along his final journey with pancreatic cancer.

Like any experience of suffering and the Cross, embracing the limitations of growing old might lead us to either of two options: anger and resentment, or a peaceful acceptance. Jesuit Cardinal Avery Dulles said it well as he faced a recurrence of polio, leaving him unable to speak, yet his mind unaffected. “As I become increasingly paralyzed, I can identify with the many paralyzed and mute persons in the Gospels. If the Lord now calls me to a period of weakness, I know well that his power can be made perfect in infirmity. ‘Blessed be the name of the Lord!’”

After comforting countless people as an emergency room chaplain for forty years at Lutheran General Hospital, Passionist Fr. Frank Keenan continued his ministry of compassion at St. Benedict’s Nursing Home — always with a smile —after suffering a debilitating stroke.

Fr. Jack Conley, CP, is the local superior of St. Vincent Strambi Community in Chicago, Illinois.