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Scripture:

Acts 9:1-20
John 6:52-59

Reflection:

Both of our Scripture readings speak in some way about blindness. As we move through the Acts of the Apostles, we read the first description of the conversion of Saul of Tarsus. Convinced that Christianity, or “The Way,” is a danger to the Jewish people, Saul is on his way to Damascus to arrest any Christians and take them back to Jerusalem. But on his way, he is struck by a bright light, and encounters the risen Jesus. Saul then realizes that he is physically blind. His blindness about Jesus is now matched by his loss of eyesight. When Ananias comes to Saul and lays hands upon him, Saul can see again, and begins to proclaim the Good News about Jesus.

In our Gospel reading from John, Jesus continues the “Bread of Life” discourse, and there are many listening to Him that do not understand Him: “How can this man give us [his] flesh to eat?” They, too, are blind to who and what Jesus is.

While we may wonder at Saul’s persecution of the early Church, or at the people’s disbelief of Jesus, we need to see if there is any blindness within us. Do stress and distress in our lives blind us to God’s love and presence? Does busyness blind us to Jesus’ call to follow Him? When we read the mystics, we find that even they knew times when it was hard to see God working in their lives.

What can heal us of this blindness? Openness to Jesus. Saul’s life was opened to Jesus in a dramatic way, but that does not have to happen with us. As Jesus says, “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.” When we receive the Eucharist, we are being opened to Jesus in a special way. We can open ourselves to Jesus by studying the Word. We can open ourselves to Him by opening ourselves to each other. Even the faithful disciple Ananias had to trust in Jesus and reach out to Saul.

When we trust in the love of the risen Lord, we begin to see more and more, until the time when we are with Jesus and can see Him “face to face.”

 

Fr. Phil Paxton, C.P., is the local superior at St. Paul of the Cross Passionist Community in Detroit, Michigan. 

Scripture:

Daniel 9:4b-10
Luke 6:36-38

Reflection:

Reading the gospel today I had a flashback to a funeral procession I was in sometime ago.  The person in front of me had a poster-size statement plastered on the back of the vehicle.  It was a statement with rooted anger and judgment behind it.  I found myself wondering what kind of a person would put this on their vehicle.  And more specifically, what does this say about the driver of this vehicle?  The only answers I could find were anger and judgment.  And for a moment I questioned: where does one draw the line between intense anger and hatred?

I contrast this with today’s gospel.  Jesus’ message is extremely clear. Do not judge! He specifically says, “Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.”

I’ve begun noticing more and more subtle forms of judgment within people. We have judgments between parishioners, judgments between parishes and judgments between faith traditions. Some can be positive and constructive.  Others are mean spirited. While still others border into self-righteousness.

I’ve noticed there are some people who simply can’t be happy with who they are.  There are some people who always have a strong need to be against another.  Some people are always against the Pope or the Vatican.  Others are against the president or a particular political party. Still others are against their boss, a coworker, their spouse.  Why do some have such a strong need to be against others? Is this not a variation on judgmentalism? Yes, we may have differences of ideas or opinions.  But what does it say about us when we can’t find anything good in those that we are against? And what does it say about those who spend all of their energy being against? Frankly, I’m completely mystified at how a person can devote themselves to be a follower of Jesus, yet inside they fill their heart with things that
feed their anger, even to the point of hatred.

Jesus concludes, “For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you.”

The holiest people I know are the people who fill their hearts with love. And what do they get in return? They get more people.  They get people who can receive their love and give love in return.

I remember a dream I had about one of these holy people.  It was the kind of dream that has no end.  It has spilled over into my wakened conscience.  And my day has been filled with pleasantness.  This joy has not even been worn down by the grumbling voices.  Indeed, today I’ve seen even a new form on the salvation of Jesus.  And my Lenten season is blessed for I’ve witnessed the salvation of Christ in a new way on this blessed day not out of judgment, but out of the goodness of love.

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

Feast of the Presentation of the Lord

Scripture:

Malachi 3:1-4
Hebrews 2:14-18
Luke 2:22-40

Reflection:

This is the one feast of the Church year that immediately reminds me of the image of my grandmother, “Chanita”.  Her name was “Feliciana”, and she was my father’s mother.  Her life’s story was punctuated by events anything but felicitous.  We kids got to know her because she lived with us throughout the time I was in grade school; the year I left for the seminary, she moved to a nursing home, and two years after that, she died, on the very day that I was coming home for summer vacation from the seminary, at the very hour that my father and mother had left her bedside to come pick me up at the Union Station in Los Angeles.

As we grew old enough, we got to hear some of the stories of her years growing up in an hacienda around the village of San Andres, in Chihuahua, Mexico.  She married Vicente Carrillo, and they went across the Rio Grande to El Paso TX, where two children were born: Julia, and Jose.  Julia had cerebral palsy, her paralysis would require a mother’s constant care.  Vicente wanted to move the family to California, where jobs were more plentiful, but Chanita wouldn’t think of leaving the environs of her relatives, especially with so much care needed by Julia.  The couple separated, leaving Jose to look after himself at a young age, and Chanita, caring for her daughter, cared for her until the illness and the lack of adequate medical care brought an early, child’s death into the maternal heart of Chanita.

That tragic background was reflected in the ways that we came to know and love our grandmother.  She always dressed in black; she prayed day and night (we often shared the same bedroom); she went to both parish Sunday Masses (it was a mission church; had there been more Masses, she would probably have worked in a few more, if possible); she gathered us around her bedroom altar, on our knees, to pray the Rosary each evening (with the undulating flame of her vigil candles distracting us from the pain in our knees); and we never tired of listening to her tell us of the apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe to Juan Diego.  In our naïve, childrens’ imagination, we sometimes wondered (aloud) why she hadn’t become a “nun”–which would have left us more bedspace in our crowded house.

As I grew older, entered the seminary, learned of the richness of meditation and of the rich font of inspiration found in the Scriptures, I began to associate people and events in the context of a scripture reading.  So it was that one year, as the readings of the feast of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple were being offered to us for our reflection, that I began to identify Anna and Simeon with the real life person of my grandmother, Chanita.

Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, awaiting the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was  upon him. Simeon, the just and elderly man, had been led by the Spirit of God to the Temple, where he found the consolation of his life-long desire to know that God’s savior had prevailed over time, over a life-time.  Anna, who never left the temple, worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer.

Chanita, as faithful as Simeon and as prayerful as Anna, trudged every Sunday to the temple of Our Lady of Victory Chapel, in East Los Angeles, to meet with her consolation, the real presence of Christ in the Mass and Holy Communion.  When, just a few years after she was no longer able to walk to the church, she surrendered her soul to the Father, it was the “nunc dimittis” shared with Simeon.  She had indeed welcomed the Salvation promised by God many times over through a persevering faith in God’s eternal love for those whose lives have known suffering and pain.

As we listen to the Gospel narrative of these two elderly people who longed for the fulfillment of their hopes and of their faith, look around, notice the hopes and faith of the elderly folks who live nearby, down the street, around the block, in the parish, and at the grocery.  The Spirit of God has led them through many of the aches and sorrows of the human heart, but they continue to live with the hope and faith that they are in God’s care.  May we always welcome and treasure their witness to us and to our families.

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

Scripture:

Hebrews11:32-40
Mark 5:1-20

 

Reflection:

Comfort and Companionship Amidst the Challenges

Both Scripture selections present major challenges:  how do we deal with the demons of lethargy and evil?  No small challenge for the people of Jesus’ time, or today.

The Letter to the Hebrews was written in part to give courage and support to the early community of Christians that had lost heart.  Their initial fervor had cooled and the “demon” of spiritual lethargy settled among them.  The author of Hebrews tried to jog their memories with mention of men and women heroes from the past and all they had endured for the Lord.  These ancient heroes had responded to challenges of their times, and could also motivate those dealing with the current challenges in the early Church.

Jesus confronted the reality of evil in the person of the possessed Gerasene.  Imagine:  a “wild” man from the tombs, unable to be restrained even by chains, shrieking aloud as he roamed the area.  He sought out Jesus, and as requested Jesus cast the “legion” of evil spirits into a very large herd of swine that perished as they ran over a nearby cliff.  The possessed man’s life was radically re-oriented; Jesus asked him to return to his family and tell them what God had done for him.  News of this event spread, and all who heard of this “miracle” or saw the changed Gerasene were truly amazed!

As 21^st century disciples, we believe in Jesus — and we are often challenged by today’s demons of despair or lethargy.  We likewise see in our world today’s demons of violence, abuse, poverty, injustice. We can all-too-easily say “what’s the use?  why try to change the unchangeable?”  Jesus meets us head-on and invites us to be in communion with him, and with his people – our brothers and sisters – in the Church.  With Jesus, we together seek healing and strength in the Life Jesus offers us in the Scriptures and the Eucharist.  We never stand alone but face all life’s challenges with the dynamic Life and fellowship which is ours in Jesus.  Who knows what miracles Jesus may work in and through us?

As members of the Passionist family facing the challenges and sufferings of 21^st century life, may we “take comfort, all who hope in the Lord”.  St. Paul of the Cross and all our Passionist saints and blesseds, pray for us.

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

Scripture:

Hebrews 8:6-13
Mark 3:13-19

Reflection:

Our Scripture readings for today have led me to reflect on what it means to be church. Our reading from the letter to the Hebrews speaks about the new covenant we have in Jesus Christ. A covenant implies a relationship not only between God and individuals, but between God and a people, a community. In our Gospel reading, Jesus calls twelve disciples as Apostles. Why did Jesus call twelve? It’s clear that Jesus is making a parallel to the Twelve Tribes of Israel making up the Chosen People.

As a church, one of the ways we refer to ourselves is as the People of God. If we as a church were to see ourselves as a community of faith in mission, it would be a powerful witness to the world. Can we come together as a community, as a church? I don’t ask that question lightly. Just as it is in society, there are many things that can divide us even though we hold a common faith. Political and cultural differences seem to play themselves out in the church as much as they do in the broader society. But even apart from those considerations, there are also the all-too-human tendencies to turf wars and rivalries.

There are bound to be differences of opinion and even conflicts in any institution made up of human beings, and the Church is no exception. But we are called to something different when it comes to resolving conflicts. We are called to something different than one faction trying to eliminate or dominate the other. That is the way of the world. Rather, we are called to love each other as Christ loves us. Our proclamation of the Good News of Jesus’ love carries much more weight when people can see that love in the church.

Like the Twelve, we are called to preach by our lives the love of God in Jesus Christ! And when we come together and support each other in living out our faith, we can help cast out the demons of prejudice and fear and division. May the Good News shine through us together!

Fr. Phil Paxton, C.P. is on staff at St. Paul of the Cross Retreat and Conference Center, Detroit, Michigan. 

Scripture:

Hebrews 7:1-3, 15-17
Mark 3:1-6

 Reflection:

In our Gospel reading from Mark, Jesus enters a synagogue where there is a man with a withered hand. Those opposed to Jesus are almost hoping that He will heal the man so they can accuse Him of doing something unlawful on the Sabbath. So Jesus addresses them directly: “Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?” After this, Jesus restores the man’s hand, and the Pharisees plot with the Herodians on how to kill Him.

This account in Mark’s Gospel is a challenge to us “church” people. Too often it seems that knowledge of the the laws or liturgy of the Church is used to put down or scold others. You may know people who never came back to a certain parish because of some disapproving remark made to them in church. It can be easy to disapprove of a person’s dress or seemingly uncaring attitude when they come to Mass. It can be easy to let disputes between families influence how we treat each other, even in church. It seems easy to bring our judgments of certain people with us when we come through the church doors.

When we come to Mass, somehow we are to come together. The Eucharist is important for the individual, but it is not meant to be a private celebration. Somehow we are to witness to being the Body of Christ. Conflicts will arise, but they need not keep us apart. We need to stand up for what is right, but I question whether condemnation has any place in our worship.

Jesus’ words call us to focus on lifting each other up instead of putting each other down. They call us to bring life to our worship together instead of death (It’s not always the pastor’s or the choir’s fault). May our desire to worship God with reverence not keep us from showing hospitality and joy!

Fr. Phil Paxton, C.P. is on staff at St. Paul of the Cross Retreat and Conference Center, Detroit, Michigan.