Daily Scripture

Feast of Saint James the Apostle

Scripture:

2 Corinthians 4:7-15
Matthew 20:20-28

Reflection:

A Gospel for Today

Sometimes when directing a retreat or parish mission I’ll give a talk on the difficult passages in Sacred Scripture. In last Tuesday’s Gospel, for example, when folks tell Jesus, “Your mother and your brothers are outside and they want to speak with you,” Jesus responds, “Who are my mother and my brothers? Pointing to his disciples, he says, “Here are my mother and my brothers and my sisters.” Jesus challenges his listeners to become his family and sets a new criterion for becoming the Family of God — viz., doing the will of God. Jesus is not denigrating his mother; rather, he is challenging us to extend that love, to stretch our boundaries of care and compassion.

And along with other passages like our Lord’s mandate to “love our enemies,” today’s Gospel offers yet another similarly difficult challenge: Jesus instructs his disciples, “Whoever wishes to be great among you shall be the servant of all.”

Recent news footage has me pondering. We older folks might remember when, in August of 1988, George H. W. Bush accepted his party’s nomination for President. He thundered, “But where is it written that we must act… as if we do not care, as if we are not moved? Well, I AM moved. I want a kinder and gentler nation.”

And reading several responses of world leaders to President Biden’s decision last Sunday to end his campaign for President, I was especially touched as I watched former President Bush’s granddaughter, Jenna Bush Hager speak eloquently on Monday. “President Biden reminds me a little bit of my grandfather, who, I’ll never forget when in 1992, he worked so hard and he wasn’t elected and he was crushed,” she recounted. But at the end of his term of office he hand-wrote on White House stationery a letter to President Clinton, seeped in wisdom and advice and encouragement, which went around on the Internet but basically the end of it was, ‘You are my president now, and today I’m rooting for you.’”

May I learn to serve and not be served, “to wash other’s feet,” to love enemies… for truly God’s Kingdom is kinder and gentler.

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

Scripture:

Jeremiah 1:1, 4-10
Matthew 13:1-9

Reflection:

The Word Came to Us

The beautiful phrase in today’s liturgy “the word of God came to me” Jer 1:4 appears many times in Old Testament.  At its best a word comes from our heart and mind, the deepest and most intimate function of our nature! God’s word comes right from His heart!  It comes to us with unimaginable power.  “By the word of the Lord the heavens were made^” Ps 33:6 

I was looking at the spectacular photos from NASA Webb of the spiral galaxy NGC 5468 which is 130 million light years from earth.  Since light travels at 186.000 miles per second it is quite overwhelming to try to conceive of the immensity and magnificence of God!  God’s word is extremely creative and powerful!  “Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.” Ps33:8  Our prayer might be weak because God’s word is not part of our conversation with Him!

The thought that He speaks to us in the Scriptures is utterly awe-inspiring!  We encounter God’s creative and unspeakable power when we listen to His word!  How often Jesus tells us to listen!  “He who has ears to hear let him hear!” Mt 11:15 This exhortation appears 15 times in NT.  Jesus also said: “My sheep hear my voice.” In Revelation 3:20, He says: “Behold I stand at the door and knock, if anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him and he with Me.”

Not only are we exposed to the incredible power of God’s word, but even more importantly by it we are privileged to an intimate relationship with Jesus!  On this earth communication is a very deep way to be intimate with God!  St Gregory the Great puts it beautifully: ““To know the Heart of God through the Word of God”  Jesus puts it this way: “If a man loves me, he will keep (tereo-treasure) my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. John 14:23  

If prayer is intimacy with Christ His word to us in Scripture is vitally important!  The ancient description of this is the Latin word: Lectio Divina (Divine Reading) i,e, holy reading of Scripture.  We must be very sensitive to Christ’s word to us, if we ever hope to be close to Him!  Otherwise, we might find ourself talking to ourself rather than to Jesus!  Christ is the ultimate Word the Father speaks to us! “The Word was make flesh and dwelt among us.” John 1:14

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

Scripture:

Micah 7:14-15, 18-20
Matthew 12:46-50

Reflection:

In our Gospel reading for today, when Jesus is speaking to the crowds, He is told that His mother and brothers are waiting to speak to him. Instead of stopping what He’s doing to go to them, He says, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” It is not what you’d expect. Then He goes even further. Indicating the crowds, He says, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother.”

I go on Facebook every day. I see a lot of the division often mentioned in the U.S. And Jesus’ words, I think, continue to challenge us to go beyond even blood relations, or “tribal” affiliations, and see others as Jesus sees us, as beloved.

To be able to see each other that way requires the grace of God. We might very well echo the prayer we hear in our first reading from the prophet Micah: “Shepherd your people with your staff…As in the days when you came from the land of Egypt, show us wonderful signs…Who is there like you, the God who removes guilt…Who does not persist in anger forever, but delights rather in clemency…You will cast into the depths of the sea all our sins…You will show faithfulness to Jacob, and grace to Abraham, as you have sworn to our fathers from days of old.”

As God has shown us mercy and clemency and love, may we show the same to one another.

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

Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene

Scripture:

Songs 3:1-4b or 2 Corinthians 5:14-17
John 20: 1-2, 11-18

Reflection:

I’ve come to think of St. John’s Gospel as “color commentary” on the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. While the synoptic gospels give us factual details and timelines concerning Christ’s Resurrection and subsequent appearances, it is John who shows us Christ’s humanity. He does so superbly in illuminating the tender meeting of Mary Magdalene and Our Lord outside the tomb that first Easter morning. 

The depth of infused emotion Christ uses, calling Mary’s name animates a scene that resonates so strongly with our shared nature human nature that even two hundred centuries later, we are still affected by its intensity.  Christ sought out Mary first, before all others.  In her relief and joy, she attempted to hold on to Him, perhaps because she thought she had lost Him on Calvary. But Christ explained that she must not cling to Him because “He had not yet ascended to the Father”.  

Devil promises only after ascending to His Father does Our Lord then seek out His disciples: The men and women who had followed Him, and now have hidden themselves in fear of the Roman authorities, the leaders of the Temple who accused them of hiding Christ’s body, and even angry followers who feel betrayed by Jesus’s promises, expecting the arrival of a powerful, earthly king who would destroy the Roman occupation and subjection of Israel.   

I ask you Lord, please seek me out as well. I have gone all too far from Your path, then struggled in the darkness to find my way back.  Please light the way to follow you, ~ my Redeemer, my Lord, my God.

Ray Alonzo is the father of three children, grandfather of two, and husband to Jan for over45 years. He is a USN Vietnam Veteran, and a 1969 graduate of Mother of Good Counsel Passionist Prep Seminary. Ray currently serves on the Passionist Alumni Council.

Scripture:

Jeremiah 23:1-6
Ephesians 2:13-18
Mark 6:30-34

Reflection:

The Lord is my Shepherd there is nothing I shall want…

This verse from Psalm 23 and the entire Psalm 23 will forever be with me. This is the Psalm prayer that my father had us as a family recite together as he died of lung cancer. This psalm was hopeful and soothing. It is understandable why Psalm 23 is prayed often by many people.

Today’s readings focus on the meaning of Jesus as Shepherd. “His heart was moved with pity for them, they were like sheep without a shepherd”.(6:34)  The Greek used here is “splagchnizomai”, a great word denoting sympathy, mercy, and loving concern. (Working Preacher, Mark G. Vitalis Hoffman, ¹Eva  ngelical Lutheran Worship, (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 2006), #612.

What gives us peace, joy, and rest to our hearts? Have we been too busy, like the apostles, to take time to  rest and eat. Some of us sprint from one task to the next with no time to catch our breath and relax our tense muscles. What does it mean to have Jesus as our Shepherd? For me it means to slow down, take moments to savor the compassion and love that Jesus as our shepherd has for each of us. (Joe Egan, Living with Christ, July 21,  2024, Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, p. 150).

Please call time out in your busy life today and pray slowly and meaningfully Psalm 23. “The Lord is my Shepherd and there is nothing I shall want.”

Carl Middleton is a theologian/ethicist and a member of the Passionist Family.

Scripture:

Micah 2:1-5
Matthew 12:14-21

Reflection:

….the grace to reject all that is contrary to the name of Christ…

Today’s Gospel boasts of justice – not an eye for an eye – but a justice of healing and reconciliation.  Jesus chose to ‘withdraw’ from a place of contention, division and hatred.  Many followed and he cured them – not for personal gain, but to spread peace.  Matthew shares that he warned them not to make him (his healing) known.  Jesus knew that healing brings peace – and peace – internal peace – is the foundation of collective peace.

The Collect of today’s liturgy talks of the ‘grace to reject all that is contrary to the name of Christ’ – in today’s world reality, that grace is the bedrock of change and transformation.  How do we open our hearts – individually and collectively – to that ‘peace’ of Christ?  Can we trust those words of Isaiah – ‘a bruised reed he will not break – a smoldering wick he will not quench’?   Many are hurting in our world and our country today – many are bruised and smoldering – what is God asking of us, of me, in these uncertain times, how is he inviting me to open my heart to the truth – not the politics – but the truth and the potential for healing. A healing that gives way to the possibility of hope and reconciliation – a healing that affords transformation, rebirth and growth!

In the words of a popular song, …’let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me’…

Today’s Gospel is an opportunity for us, each of us, to spend some time with the Lord and ask him what is it that he wants us, me, to do – how do I respond in a way that affords peace – peace in my heart, in my mind, in my community, my world?

If we are willing to ask with an open heart and mind – Jesus will answer – he will cure, heal and provide the path to hope, renewal and peace.  Can we trust?  Will we act?  Will we open our hearts to the grace to reject all that is contrary to the name of Christ?  To do that we have to hear the voice of Christ in our heart and step out in faith – He will heal!!

Faith Offman is the Associate Director of Ministry at St. Paul of the Cross Passionist Retreat and Conference Center in Detroit, Michigan.

Scripture:

Isaiah 26:7-9, 12, 16-19
Matthew 11:28-30

Reflection:

Jesus said: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.” Matthew 11: 28 – 30

We learn about working hard and carrying heavy burdens at an early age, anyway, I did. I think I was about 10 years old when I had this awareness. I had two older brothers and a sister who were slowly disengaging themselves from house chores as they advanced in age and studies. The house chores that they use to do, almost daily, like washing and drying the dishes after meals, were being passed on to me and my younger sister. Our whining fell upon deaf ears and our parents were not having any pity on us. We felt over-worked and unduly burdened.

One evening, after diner, I had had enough. I announced that I was going to run away from home! My mom asked, “Do you want me to pack you a lunch?” I decided to stay.

The older I got, the realities of hard work and the heavy burdens of life became much too real. Hard work was not just about physical labor, such as working long hours in the fields or pouring cement for foundations under the hot Texas sun. It was also about making difficult life decisions, like deciding who I wanted to be and what choices I needed to make to achieve my dream. Added to this, I became aware of the burdens of life: the death of grandparents, disappointments in friendships and the burden of not having much money. They seemed, at times, overwhelming.

As a young adult, I also learned that I carried the burdens of society and the injustices of world leaders with me. We found ourselves at war for a cause that lacked clarity as the years passed. We found peoples within our country who were treated brutally, even killed, for trying to register to vote or eat at lunch counters or drink from public water fountains. There was a felt need within us to say or do something in response, to be prophetic witnesses.

These burdens and injustices began to take a toll on us personally and as a society. We realized that no one person was going to fix it. No one political party had all the answers. And added to all this, there was the realization that it was going to take a lot of hard work to build a better world.

It seems to me that Jesus is speaking to me personally as he invites us to come to him so that we find rest, the kind of rest that will relieve us of our burdens as we assume his yoke and his burdens. By surrendering ourselves to him, we discover someone who is meek and humble of heart, someone who will enable us to rest easy and peacefully.

Today, we are filled with so much unrest, personal unrest, emotional unrest, social unrest, political unrest, anxious about what is said or not said, how it’s said and what needs to be said. If we take Jesus’ invitation seriously, then we will find rest and peace in him, in his word, in his Gospel, in his Truth, in his Life and Death, and Resurrection. These realities were true when Jesus spoke them, and they are true now. Love your neighbor and your enemy, treat the other with kindness and dignity, welcome the stranger, welcome the children, forgive the sinner, and do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

I find that if I strive to do this, then I will find peace and rest. Yes, it may seem to be hard work, but soon we will find the yoke easy and the burden light!

Fr. Clemente Barrón, C.P. is a member of Mater Dolorosa Community in Sierra Madre, California. 

Scripture:

Isaiah 10:5-7, 13b-16
Matthew 11:25-27

Reflection:

Today’s tidbit of a gospel contains a very important message, one we cannot afford to overlook or dismiss. Jesus breaks forth in exuberant praise of God because God chose to reveal the ways of God—indeed, the very mysteries of God—not to the “wise and learned,” but “to the childlike.” What is it about children that makes them particularly fitted to receive the revelations of God in ways that the “wise and the learned” cannot?

Children are open, trusting, curious, and eager to learn, which are all essential qualities to a life of faith. Children are not reluctant to follow even if they aren’t completely sure where a journey might take them, which pretty well describes a life of discipleship, a life marked by following, imitating, and learning from Christ. Perhaps most importantly, unlike people who look for reasons not to believe, children are filled with a natural sense of wonder that makes them eager to believe even if (and perhaps especially if) something sounds too good to believe. In fact, with children if it sounds too good to believe, all the better.

But isn’t that Christianity in a nutshell? Isn’t Christianity the revelation of something that seems far too good to believe—totally preposterous—but is nonetheless true? Isn’t the gospel “good news” precisely because its message of God’s undying love, of God’s unconditional mercy and forgiveness, of God’s promise of healing, wholeness, and everlasting life (all of which sounds far too good to believe), the key to understanding everything and the reason for our hope? That is why no matter how far along we may be on our journey, we should never stop being a child.

Paul J. Wadell is Professor Emeritus of Theology & Religious Studies at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin, and a member of the Passionist Family.