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Scripture:

Sirach 51:12c-20
Mark 11:27-33

Reflection:

As I awake from sleep and take in my first thoughtful breath, I ponder quietly ‘Is Wisdom here today?  Did she get lonely and wonder off to someone more interesting during the long night?’

In today’s Gospel, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders are not seeking Wisdom.  They only want to hear what they already believe is true.  They are closed minded and wisdom is not currently within their reach.  The men gather and struggle to form their response to Jesus’ question all knowing that Wisdom is not within the grasp.  Wisdom is not shy and she will not hide from those who have made the effort to find peace by her side.

Sure they believe that Wisdom already lives within them, but they do not dare to question that reality for the cost would be their own identities.

If they were truly open in their hearts and minds and asked Jesus with the spirit of a child, they might begin to open the door to wisdom.  They must breathe in Wisdom and release the angst they feel from deep within their souls or they will never enjoy the peace and freedom that comes from knowing wisdom.  Wisdom is very powerful and knows the peace that can be shared with her acceptance, but only those who languish on her words as gospel or pure truth can be free. 

Knowing Wisdom is not like an Ah-Ha moment in life. She comes to us through continual, thoughtful, everyday prayer.  My story is not new or unfamiliar to most people.  When my brother was 33, he took his own precious life.  I begged Jesus to give him back.  I thought I was pleading my case to the highest authority; however, I only heard what I thought was the truth that Jesus did not love my brother and that is why He allowed this to happen to me.   So I turned my back and left Him.  Fortunately, He did not do the same to me.  I yelled at Him for years actually, but He never left me.  Maybe I only yelled because I knew He did not leave me.  Gradually I began speaking to Him and more importantly I noticed Jesus was following me around again.  Don’t get me wrong, I always knew He was with me I was just to closed-off to hear what He had to say.  Wisdom slowly and patiently began to trust me and inch by inch came into my life.  I have long forgiven Jesus and was filled with the Wisdom that my brother is loved and that he is safe at home.  

‘Drink Wisdom in until you feel it softly reach your toes and rises back up through your spine bringing the sweetest smile to your lips as she is pure, sweet poetry. Your questions will no longer be left unheard by Wisdom, your peace has been granted.’

 

Darlene McClure is a retreatant at Christ the King Passionist Retreat Center in Citrus Heights, CA.

Scripture:
Sirach 42:15-25
Mark 10:46-52

Reflection:
Read Sirach’s commentary aloud a couple of times. Then describe to yourself your "place" in life…"where am I at?" Then answer the question that Jesus poses to the blind beggar.  "What do you want me to do for you?"

I am a Passionist religious. Have you ever wanted to listen in on a "down-to-earth" discussion between two contemporary religious? They probably would not be talking about the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience. Rather, they would speak of being involved in building God’s kingdom on earth. Listen.

"Don’t ask us about our vows," they say. "Watch what we do until you, too, make a commitment that takes on the characteristics of God’s dream for us. We must keep on living in the hope…the power of faith that allows us to accomplish what our hearts hope for. We must embrace the future, rather than dwell on the immediate results of our actions.

We must embrace the future, daring simply to be present to those who are poor or rejected, voiceless or silenced. We must embrace the future so we can call for the equality, justice and happiness that are promised to all. Yes, brothers and sisters, fellow religious, let us embrace our future.  Let us stop wondering about whether our religious families will survive.  Instead let us proclaim the power of a future, a gift from God that begins with our commitment. Even though we are vulnerable, let us get up and return to the margins of society and church where so many isolated and wounded are waiting for us. Let us dare to address our leaders with our words, as well as, our actions -with words that inspire and surpass us, with words of the people we meet on the paths of our mission. This is to be truly prophetic." This meditation was inspired by a Canadian religious, Alain Ambeault, CSV. Yes, in the words of Sirach, "all of us differ, one from another, yet none of us has He made in vain."

 

Fr. Alex Steinmiller, C.P. is president of Holy Family Cristo Rey High School, Birmingham, Alabama.

Scripture: 

Sirach 36:1, 4-5a, 10-17
Mark 10:32-45

Reflection:

It is hard to blame someone, anyone, for yearning for vindication, or longing for an ample reward for having made good choices in one’s life.  To have been faithful to one’s duties and responsibilities, even when it may have brought reproach or jealousy from among one’s family or acquaintances, seems a good basis for looking forward to "living happily ever after".

Put into the context of God’s Word and the Mission of Jesus Christ, it is not surprising that the reading from Sirach addresses God in this way: Reward those who have hoped in you, and let your prophets be proved true.

Even more explicit is the dialogue between Jesus and the Apostles: Grant that in your glory we may sit one at your right and the other at your left.

There is a longing of the human heart to be satisfied in its desire to both do good and be rewarded for the good that we have done.  We all dream of living "happily ever after". But first, Jesus invites his followers to follow his example (to be "baptized" in his baptism, which means to be "immersed in his mission"), to give their life in service to others, to fulfill what he will declare to be the great commandment, to love one another.

Lent will be upon us next week (March 9, 2011); let us prepare our hearts for the season of Lent by naming the persons who most need our serving them, and putting these words of Jesus into practice on a daily basis during Lent: Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant…For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve….

 

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

Scripture:

Isaiah 49:14-15
1 Corinthians 4:1-5
Matthew 6:24-34

Reflection:

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life."

 

Is it me, or does it seem as if I always seem to get the readings about anxiety?  In any event, I don’t think this assignment is a coincidence since I have made worrying almost an art form.

When we are young, our worries start out similarly small.  I have some recollection of worrying about the 3^rd grade spelling bee and why my terrible parents wouldn’t let me sleep over at my friend’s house-that was of course, ruining my life.  As we get older, perhaps it’s grades or boyfriends, getting to drive the car on weekends or attending a good college.  When we enter the world of marriage and mortgages, kids and careers, that’s when some of the heavy-duty worrying can take on a life of its own.

"No one can serve two masters."  This line is often quoted in popular culture without fully capturing its import.  When worry and fear over earthly things consumes our thoughts, we have very little room left for God.  And when we exclude God, I am not talking just about missing church and forgetting to pray.  I am talking about living a life lacking in love, gratitude and service to others.   Do you notice how you treat others when your mind is preoccupied with anxiety?  Can we fully love our neighbor when we are constantly wishing we had a house or car as nice as theirs?  Can we be fully grateful for the food on our table when we are wondering why we can’t afford to eat at a fancy restaurant?  Christ asks, "Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span?"  Put another, slightly less eloquent way, worrying don’t get you nowhere.

It’s not the passing worry or concern that is the problem.  It’s not the nagging fear that you pray about when you wonder if your child will pass a test or if you will get the much-deserved raise at work.  It’s unrealistic to think we can move through life carefree.  But, it is when worry becomes our master, when we begin to serve it with our time and thoughts, that we offend God.   When we "seek first the kingdom," all else will follow.

It may seem absurd that Jesus tells us not to worry about food and clothing.  Aren’t these basic necessities of life?  It’s seem like a fairly legitimate worry if you don’t have enough food for yourself and your family.  But Jesus asks: "Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?"  I don’t think what we are to take from this is that we should sit idly by and wait for God to intervene.  We don’t throw our arms up and hope God will show up with the rent check.   Our heavenly Father knows our needs.  Just give over your fears to God.

What He does ask us to do is to not to worry about tomorrow because. as we learn from the first reading from Isaiah, God will never forget us.  We can trust in God.  He may not show up with the rent, but He may lead us to call an old friend who just so happens to know about a great job opportunity.  By trusting fully in God, we are promised care on earth.  And by abandoning our focus on this life, we can set our sights on the promise of eternity.       

 

Marlo Serritella is on staff at the Holy Cross Province Development Office in Chicago.

Scripture:

Sirach 6:5-17
Mark 10:1-12

Reflection:

"and the two shall become one flesh. So they are no longer two but one flesh."

Earlier in the week, I read an article in our local paper which quoted a county employee lamenting the national marriage rate saying, "Marriage goes in and out of fashion and I think right now it is not as fashionable to get married." How sad for society that marriage is viewed much like the latest fashion trend and not a divine union bestowed with lifelong graces.

As I reflect on my own marriage of thirty plus years, I see the Sacrament of Marriage as our first step in experiencing the ultimate human commitment of love and faith.  Over the years, both of us have steadfastly supported one another’s personal, as well as, mutual growth.  This was and is no easy task and challenges ones communication skills and tolerance often. We have worked hard to insure that our marriage has been a gift of ourselves to one another.  Out of that giving we were able to expand our love outward, blessing us with the life and love of our family.  It was clear to both of us, as we entered in to our marriage back in May of 1980, the enormity of our commitment to each other and God was going to be one we would have to work at daily.

The scripture readings for today present an interesting correlation between the importances of a good friendship to marriage.  The word "friendship" brought to light by the wisdom book of Sirach, describes eloquently, a friend as your confidant, a sturdy shelter; a faithful friend is priceless -a life-saving remedy.  I cannot think of any better words or phrases to describe the essential building blocks of a marriage.  A strong friendship is in many ways like a strong union as they posses many of the same characteristics.  We all have had friends and acquaintances who have entered and exited our lives. Do we want our spouse to posses the same qualities of an acquaintance as described in verses 8-12?   Perhaps without these essential building blocks a partnership could never be a single soul inhabiting two bodies.  Maybe before entering into marriage we need to ask ourselves:

What is a friend? 

 

Angela Kwasinski is the Planned Giving Manager at the Province Development Office in Chicago.

 

 

Scripture:

Sirach 6:5-17
Mark 10:1-12

 

 

Reflection:

Salted with Fire

"For everyone will be salted with fire" (Mk 9:50) Today’s readings are difficult to understand until we remember the practices of ancient Jewish sacrifices.   The offerings had to be salted to express symbolically their soundness, sweetness, wholesomeness, and acceptability.  Before the days of refrigeration, salt was used as an important means of preserving food.  Nothing rotten was to be given to the Lord.   Since the offerings were to God "they became a thing most holy made by fire" Lev 2:3   Besides being a preservative, salt made things taste good.  "Can that which is tasteless be eaten without salt?" (Job 6:6) 

To be an acceptable sacrifice we must be salted with fire.  "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God." (Rom 12:1)  The pain and sorrows we experience in following Christ are the salt and fire by which we are given to God, sharing in Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross.  "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." (Gal 2:20)

Reflecting on the words of Christ gives us hope in the darkness of our pain.  We are being given the privilege of participating in the redemptive sacrifice of Christ on the Cross.  The pain and suffering of our lives is not in vain.  The ups and downs of our lives are a sacrifice to God in Christ.  The Scriptures with many words and hundreds of times tell us to hope in God.  

Charles Peguy in his beautiful poem on hope said:          

I am, says God, the Master of the Three Virtues
Faith is a church, a cathedral rooted in the soil of France
Charity is a hospital which gathers up all the miseries of the world
But if  it weren’t for hope, all that would be nothing but a cemetery.

                                                                                           

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

Scripture:

Genesis 11:1-9
Mark 8:34-9:1

Reflection:

"For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the Gospel will save it."

 

As I read about Babel in the first reading for today, my memory of the story of Babel was hearing it for the first time in religion class when I was in grade school.  I remember thinking how scary it must have been to not be able to understand what another person was saying.  How would they live? How would they survive?

Today, there are hundreds, perhaps thousands of different spoken languages and dialects throughout the world.  How do we understand each other?  How do we communicate?  Sure, English is spoken in many countries, but are we not too arrogant to presume another can speak English? I regret not learning another language when I was younger.  I know words and phrases here and there, but I am only fluent in English.   I should have paid more attention in my Spanish and German classes! I should have paid more attention to my grandmother and great-grandmother when they spoke Polish!

There is however, one common language that is "spoken fluently" across the globe, regardless of what your native country is, regardless of what language you think or speak in, regardless of what religion you practice.  There is one common language at the foundation of it all; it is our common language of Faith.  We all have some type of faith.  Some stronger than others; some different from others, it is our unique spirituality.  Our faith is our own personal language of our spirituality, but it is the common underlying foundation of our lives.

Jesus says in the Gospel, "Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me."  We all, in our own way, follow Jesus through our belief in God, our love for one another and our common language of faith.

 

Claire Smith is on staff at the Holy Cross Province Development Office in Chicago, Illinois.

Scripture:

Sirach 1:1-10
Mark 9:14-29

Reflection:

Growth is the law that prevails in the spiritual life.  It is not a "one size fits all" program, since we all commence the process from different starting points, we keep at it for varying lengths of time, and we have differing arrival places, depending on God’s designs for us and our cooperation with Him.

Our scriptures today present one scenario of what this looks like.  It features the beginning of the book of Sirach within the wisdom tradition that was honored in ancient Israel.  It clearly focuses on the prominence of wisdom in God’s designs for those for whom wisdom is a calling-which presumably is most of us.  Sirach is laudatory of wisdom, situating it at the very beginning of creation, giving it an overarching role in the creation process, almost identifying it with God Himself.  This is an encomium to wisdom that suggests it as a requisite in the lives of us all.  And we gratefully note that God bestows it upon us all.

So far, so good.  But we know from our track record that there’s something amiss in our appropriation of wisdom.  If we possessed our fair share of it, we certainly must wonder why it is not more in evidence in the way we lead our lives.  Thankfully we have today’s gospel of Mark in which to frame an instructive picture of wisdom in operation.  As frames are prone to do, this frame sets limits to the attractive picture of wisdom that Sirach provides.

In the first place, Mark presents some of Jesus’ disciples in a quandary before a significant problem confronting them, the plight of a young lad possessed by the devil and grievously tormented by him.  This situation has driven the boy’s father to desperation, and he has approached the disciples, seeking their help for the boy, to no avail.  The disciples don’t know what to do.  They don’t display the kind of wisdom that Sirach speaks of in the earlier reading.  And even the father, at wits end, evidences a faltering conviction that Jesus can do something about the situation, when he exclaims: "If you can do anything…"  Jesus seems nettled by this remark of the father, mimicking in reply: "’If you can!’"  So the father too labors under a less than desirable portion of wisdom, until challenged by Jesus: "Everything is possible to one who has faith."  And that triggered in the father the requisite wisdom required: "I do believe, help my unbelief!"  And Jesus casts out the demon.

So we see wisdom in the process of being achieved, in this account.  Not all at once, but bit by bit.  And later on the disciples got the formula from Jesus on how to gain its fullness: prayer (and fasting).

We celebrate today the memorial of St. Peter Damian who, as a Doctor (a learned one) of the church, excelled in acquiring, and using, the kind of wisdom that Sirach proposes to us today.  St. Peter Damian was an 11^th century professor, prior and bishop who wisely used his gifts for the good of the church of his day.  His accomplishments offer another frame featuring wisdom at work, giving us hope that we too, each in our own frame of reference, can display the wisdom Sirach proposes today.

 

Fr. Sebastian MacDonald, C.P. is a member of the Passionist formation community at Catholic Theological Union, Chicago.