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Scripture:

Genesis 21:5, 8-20a
Psalm 34: 7-8, 10-11; 12-13
Matthew 8:28-34

Reflection:

Today’s feast and readings give us concrete examples of our Responsorial Psalm (Ps. 34) …that the "Lord hears the cry of the poor…" 

First of all, we celebrate Blessed Junipero Serra, Franciscan priest, who "Heard the cry of the poor".  Desiring to become a missionary, he left his native Spain and sailed to central Mexico where he preached and taught.  Appointed superior of  Franciscans of the Indian Missions of Baja California in 1768, he went on to establish the Church in nine of the California Missions. John Paul II called him "an exemplary model of the selfless evangelizer." He died in 1784 at the age of 70 and was buried at Mission San Carlos Borromeo in Carmel, CA .

 In our first reading from Genesis, we hear how God heard the cry of Hagar  – concubine of Abraham who bore his son, Ishmael, and who, at the demands of Sarah, was sent out into the desert with only some bread and a skin of water to die.  The child began to cry and God’s messenger called to Hagar from heaven… "Don’t be afraid’ God has heard the boy’s cry in this plight of his…and God was with the boy as he grew up…"

 In our gospel today, Jesus heard the cry of the two demoniacs coming from the tombs to challenge him, and Jesus drove out their demons and they were healed.

 As we reflect on these readings today: Two movements come to mind… you may have many others… In what distress do I call out to our loving God seeking help and healing today?

As the lord hears my cry… who cries out to me today? …do I hear the cry of the poor, those in pain,  those in difficult situations, in my family, my neighbors, co-workers ,even enemies…the list goes on…

 The words of Jesus come to mind…  "What ever you do to the least of my brethren… you do to Me!" (Matt.25: 40-46)    Lots of challenges for each of us today!!!!

 

 Marcella Fabing, csj , is on the staff of Christ the King Passionist Retreat Center, Citrus Heights, California.

Scripture:

Genesis 18:1-15
Matthew 8:5-17

Reflection:

I was struck by the connection between the readings today.  And, as much as I try to dodge it, the question raised continues to weigh on me-how do I encounter God? 

Genesis tells us that when the Lord appeared to Abraham, he immediately ran to him, saying "Please do not pass your servant by."  The text is filled with references to how intensely Abraham embraced the three men that appeared before him as if from out of nowhere.  Now, I am not a Biblical scholar, but it seems to be evident that Abraham recognized the presence of God in these men.  But even if these were simply God’s messengers, Abraham receives them with the great passion of the love of his God.

How does he greet his God?  He offers to wash his feet, feed him and give him comfort from his journey.  All this when he wasn’t even expecting him!  He tells his wife to quickly whip something up for the weary travelers (like most wives, she obliges even though he might have asked a bit more politely).  Abraham himself waits on the men, though he could have easily delegated their care to his many servants.  So Abraham greets the Lord with generosity, hospitality, intimacy and great enthusiasm-to say the least. 

Two thousand years later, we meet a very different man who seeks out Jesus along his journey with the disciples.  Matthew tells of a centurion who comes to our Lord, "Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, in terrible distress."  So great is the faith of this man-a Roman commander no less-that he doesn’t technically ask Jesus for help.  He seems to know that just by telling him about the suffering that Jesus will answer his plea.  Let’s not overlook the fact that this man risked who knows what kind of retribution from his countrymen for approaching Jesus with open faith.  In fact, when Jesus offers to go to his home to see the servant, the centurion is taken aback, "Lord, I am not worthy."  He had such great trust in Christ and such love for his servant that he went to Jesus with deep humility, earnestness and great devotion.

And what do these men receive in return for their faith in God?  In the Genesis passage, our Lord leaves Abraham and Sarah with the news that she will be expecting a child.  For the faithful centurion, Jesus tells him "Go; be it done for you as you have believed."  In other words, miracles.

So, I come back to my original question.  How do we encounter God?  Do we greet him with expectant faith or guarded caution?  Are we willing to show our faith to others who might not approve?  Do we go to God with modesty?    These are not easy questions and I think, for myself, the answers are different at different stages in my life.  It’s tempting to be doubtful and uncertain about the power of God in our lives. When we see things in our lives that aren’t going as we hope, when we find ourselves in need of God’s grace, this is when we must have the greatest faith.  Easier said than done, perhaps.  But how else can we expect miracles?    

 

Marlo Serritella ([email protected]) is on staff at the Holy Cross Province Development Office in Chicago.

Scripture:

Genesis 19:15-29
Matthew 8:23-27

Reflection:

In today’s gospel Jesus chides his apostles, "Oh you of little faith."  If Jesus were to speak to us today, he would chide us, "Oh you of misplaced faith."

We are not like the apostles, just a few individuals rocking about in a boat on a stormy sea.   We are billions of people rocking about in multiple storms that threaten the very life of our planet.  There are the blizzards of war, the tempests of religious and political oppression, the cloudbursts of terrorism, and the squalls of economic hardship around the globe.  The storm clouds of nuclear war are again appearing from belligerent nations.  And our air and water continue to be polluted.

So what do people put their faith in?  "Let’s spend more and more money on bigger armies and better weapons."  "Let’s spend more money on bailouts."  "Let’s spend more money on walls and fences."  "Let’s put our faith in our generals, our politicians, our economists, and our talk show hosts."

"Oh you of misplaced faith."  Seek first the kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33).  Seek first a change of heart, so that all life is seen as precious, each person is seen as a brother or sister, and the earth is revered as our home.  Make every effort to turn swords into plowshares (Isaiah 2:4), so we can feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, obliterate poverty, conquer illiteracy, and enjoy each other.

Let us take our misplaced faith in power and money and place it in the truths of the Sermon on the Mount.  Then the Master Teacher of these truths will guide us to peaceful shores.

 

Fr. Alan Phillip, C.P. ([email protected]) is a member of the Passionist Community at Mater Dolorosa Retreat Center, Sierra Madre, California.

Scripture:

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

Reflection:

"Love without truth is powerless. Truth without love is just plain cruel."

It goes without saying that Peter and Paul were giants in the early church. Believers and leaders whose personalities were larger than life and whose influence would endure well into the 21^st century. But why?

From what we can tell, neither one seemed to possess skills anyone would associate with future greatness. We know from the Gospels that Peter was a simple Galilean fisherman when called to follow Jesus. Impetuous, combative, fiercely loyal, he was also at the same time weak, unsure, and emotionally unstable. From the Acts of the Apostles and his Letters, we know Paul was at first an enemy of the new faith – perhaps seen by some as a rising star in the nascent rabbinic Judaism of his day. He was someone, it seemed, no one wanted to tangle with, even after his startling conversion to the new Way. While sophisticated, direct, learned, a brilliant and eloquent preacher, Paul could also be petty, petulant, and extremely insecure. Given all their humanness, however, both men’s avowed faith in Jesus the Christ helped to transform a small insignificant illicit Jewish sect into a major world religion spread across seven continents.  

At their best, Peter and Paul’s greatness stems from the fact that both represent the Christian message as Truth rooted in Love. Remember Jesus’ last conversation with Peter in John’s gospel? "Peter do you love me more than these?" "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." "Feed my lambs." "Feed my sheep." While Peter denied his Lord prior to the Crucifixion, after the Resurrection Peter was a different man. A man committed in his heart and soul to love – to love his Lord.

Paul was insistent that the message he preached was always a message of truth and he was a passionate defender of that truth. He goes so far as to tell one of his divided communities that even if an angel should come preaching a different message, not to believe it. Paul knew how lies, deceit, and falsehoods poison not only individuals and families, but divide and destroy groups as well. He committed his life to preach the Truth – "to preach Christ Jesus and Him Crucified."

It is no coincidence that both of these great saints spent the last of their remaining lives in Rome. As the center of the Empire, Rome eventually drew everyone and everything to itself. We know very little regarding the last days of these faithful men. However what we can assume is that both died professing the faith they lived for – the Truth rooted in Love.

The greatness of these two men therefore is not based on their persons, their abilities or their accomplishments. Their greatness is based on their faithfulness to their Lord. And is not that in reach for all of us?

 

Patrick Quinn ([email protected]) is the director of Planned Giving at the Passionist Development Office in Chicago.

Scripture:

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

Reflection:

One of the beautiful aspects of the miracle stories is their vividness.  Today, in Mark’s Gospel, we can clearly visualize the images of the synagogue official and the hemorrhaging woman.  It is not hard to see Jairus falling at Jesus feet and grasp his feelings as he fears for his daughter’s life.  You can feel his pain and see the tears he must have been shedding.  You can empathize with this man who is going to lose his child.  And yet, he had faith.  He had faith and trust that Jesus would have mercy on him.

And too the hemorrhaging woman, we can see her, weak from excessive bleeding, ignored and mistreated by her doctors.  Because of the stigma of menstrual bleeding, she was most likely scorned by family and friends.  Surely she must have been feeling utterly without hope.  Perhaps she was thinking that she would be better off dead.  She had nowhere to turn, you can feel her deep despair.  And yet, she had faith.  She had faith that Jesus would cure her.

When the Gospel of Mark was being written, the author must have thought about how desperate people become in their lives.  How often they are without hope.  Perhaps that is why these stories are so very vivid.  We are being told – look,  see this man and this woman, surely the most desperate of people, turning to Jesus in hope and faith.

What do we do when we meet with what we perceive as hopeless situations?  Where do we turn when it seems as though there are no answers?   How often do we think to drop to our knees and ask for Jesus’ help? 

Where is our faith? 

The Sacrament of Reconciliation is one of the ways that God performs miracles for us.  When we go to Confession, with faith in the power of God, we are healed!  And forgiven!  Is there any better miracle than this?

This summer as we deal with the problems of everyday life, as we experience the frailty of our human condition, let’s pray that our faith will be straightened.  And let’s turn to God in Reconciliation and as the woman in today’s Gospel, let us say and believe- "if we can just touch the hem of his cloak, we will be cured!"

 

Mary Lou Butler ([email protected])is a former staff member and is now a member of the Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center Board, Sierra Madre, California. 

Feast of the Birth of St. John the Baptist

Scripture:

Isaian 49:1-6
Acts 13:22-26
Luke 1:57-66, 80

Reflection:

As I read today’s Gospel, it prompted me to read more about the life of St. John the Baptist.  The Gospel states, "’What, then, will this child be?’ For surely the hand of the Lord was with him."  When a child is born, we all anticipate and wonder with the best hopes and dreams of what that child will grow to be. Surely John, whose conception and birth was a miracle in its own right, grew to adulthood living a righteous, devout life.

John is highly regarded in many religious faiths, and in the Old Testament, John the Baptist was thought to be the precursor to Jesus, who was foretold to be the anticipated Messiah.   

John began his baptism movement as a way for sinners to repent to prepare for the Judgment Day that would restore occupied Israel. When Jesus came to John to be baptized in the River Jordan, John immediately recognized him as the Messiah and hesitated to baptize Jesus.  John standing humbly before Jesus stated, "It is I who needs to be baptized by you." Jesus convinced him to do it, John baptized him and then introduced Jesus as the "Lamb of God."  This baptism is said to have marked the beginning of Jesus’ ministry.

John was later imprisoned because he denounced the marriage of the ruler, Herod Antipas to Herodias, his former sister-in-law.  Herodias’ daughter Salome found great favor with the ruler and he offered her anything.  At her mother’s urging, Salome requested the head of John the Baptist.

Today,  John the Baptist is known as the patron saint of many cities in Canada and Europe, the island of Puerto Rico, and the country of Jordan where he is believed to have died.

 

Claire Smith is on the staff of the Province Development Office in Chicago.

Scripture:

Genesis 12:1-9
Matthew 7:1-5

Reflection:

"Stop judging, that you may not be judged." Matthew 7:1

 

I wish I could stop judging, but so often it seems that I’m judging someone before I realize it. For example, when I see a young person who has a punk hairdo or tattoos and piercings, I think, "Boy, they sure must need attention", or even, "How sick is that"? Then one of my kids got a tattoo and another got a piercing. And these were my kids who I knew and loved! They were and are intelligent, interesting people and very much worth getting to know. They have really helped me not be so quick to judge by appearance (or at least when I start to judge, I can stop myself more quickly).

I also used to be very judgmental of people who worked at abortion clinics. I used to pray once/week at a planned parenthood with a friend. We would take our walk around and around the clinic praying that the women going in would change their minds, or that the electricity would go off and they would have to close for the day. We prayed and prayed that the hearts of the doctors would be changed and that their eyes would be opened to the reality of abortion.

At this clinic there were "escorts" who sat at the door of the building. They would run over to a car when a client would arrive and rush them inside before a pro-life person could talk to them or hand them information about abortion. One day when we were walking, it was very cold. Since we were walking, we warmed up and soon didn’t need our gloves. As we came around to the front of the building, I sensed the Lord asking me to give my gloves to the escort who was sitting there and obviously very cold. I stopped and asked him if he would like to wear my gloves while I finished my walk. He looked at me curiously and then said, "Yes, please that would be very nice."

I will never forget that experience. The Lord showed told me that He loved that man just as much as He loves me! And that we were really very much alike… because we were both doing something for a cause we believed in. He believed in a woman’s right to choose and I believe life begins at conception and needs to be protected. It wasn’t my job to judge him – it was my job to be kind to him as I should be to all of God’s children. Remember the song the Love Round? "Love, love, love, love. Christians this is your call. Love your neighbor as yourself, for God loves us all." Lord please help us judge a little less, and love a lot more!!!

 

Janice Carleton and her husband Jim live in Portland, OR and partner with Passionist Fr. Cedric Pisegna in Fr. Cedric Ministries. Janice also leads women’s retreats. She is the mother of 4 grown children and grandmother of 2, soon to be 3. Visit Janice’s website at http://www.jcarleton.com/ or email her at janice@frcedric/org

 

Scripture:

2 Corinthians 11:1-11
Matthew 6:7-15

 

 

 

Reflection:

I know a group of people who would thank Jesus for the prayer that he taught the disciples: the "Our Father."  Those are the men and women who are involved in the 12 Step programs.  They always end their meetings by saying the Lord’s Prayer.  But it’s a prayer we all stand in need of.

One of the requests that is made to the Father is "forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us."  Two of the 12 Steps bring the individual face to face with the need for forgiveness. The fourth step asks for forgiveness of the resentments they have against those who have hurt them in any way.  And the fifth step asks for forgiveness for the ways that they, themselves, have hurt others.

I believe that anyone who prays the Lord’s Prayer knows that no one can omit those two petitions:  "I have been hurt by others, forgive them; and I, myself, have hurt others, forgive me."

I find that compassion is a great aid in these two instances.  A person who is in touch with the ways he/she has hurt others along with an honest sense of why they did so, will begin to understand why others have acted in their own way.  This doesn’t erase the hurt or wrong that was done.  But a compassionate person begins to realize that anger, jealousy, low self esteem, rejection, stress, greed for power over others, addictions of all sorts or many other reasons can drive a person to do the things they do.

An honesty can be gained by looking at and understanding why others have hurt us. Things can get out of control in everyone’s life.  That makes so much sense to bring our sincere request to the Father: "Forgive those who trespass against us."  Remembering why others have done the things that have hurt us can slow us down in our resentments
because compassion now helps us to look into the mind and heart of others.

Dealing with resentments caused by the hurts we have suffered, now brings us to another important moment in our lives: I need forgiveness because I have hurt others.  This can be a tough order.  Finally admitting to the hurts that we have inflicted on others can
be very humbling.  I have seen people break down and cry as they honestly admit that they have hurt others so unjustly, so selfishly, so blindly, so cruelly, so coldly and in many other ways.

And so, the Lord’s Prayer for all of us becomes very genuine and true, especially as we say with compassion and love: "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us."

 

Fr. Peter Berendt, C.P. is on the staff of Holy Name Passionist Retreat Center, Houston, Texas.