Daily Scripture

Scripture:

Ephesians 4:7-16
Luke 13:1-9

Reflection:

In our Gospel reading, Jesus tells the people about sin and repentance and God’s mercy. When people talk to Jesus about Pilate slaughtering a group of Galileans, and what he did with their blood, He replies, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were greater sinners than all other Galileans? By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!”

The people in Jesus’ time tried to make sense of some tragedy or evil by concluding that it was a punishment from God. Many people today follow the same line of thought. Almost inevitably, after some disaster has befallen some part of the world, some evangelist will make a statement about how the disaster was God’s punishment on that country or that group of people. Today we hear Jesus reject that kind of thinking. The victims of Pilate’s slaughter were not punished by God. They were victims of sin. And Jesus’ exhortation to repent is so that, we too, do not fall victims to sin.

Instead, we are to follow Jesus in sharing love and showing mercy. We are to work for peace and justice. In other words, we are to bear “fruit.” And so Jesus tells the parable of the barren fig tree. In the parable, the owner of the tree, frustrated that there is no fruit on the tree, tells the gardener to cut it down. But the gardener asks that the tree be left for one more year, to see if it can still bear fruit. Such is God’s mercy toward us.

If we can accept God’s love and mercy, there need be no delay in our being disciples. By the grace of God, we can bear fruit, and witness to the love God has shown us in Jesus Christ. As our first reading says, “grace has been given to each of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift.” May we use the gifts we have been given, turn away from sin, and bear fruit to a world in need.

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

Scripture:
Ephesians 4:1-6
Luke 12:54-59

Reflection:
One of my esteemed professors in graduate school shared with me a fairly common matrix used by management professionals to prioritize the day’s or week’s tasks.  You may have seen or used this matrix:

Not Urgent and Not Necessary	Necessary but Not Urgent
Urgent but Not Necessary	Necessary and Urgent

We are hearing stories from the Gospel of Luke that clearly fall into the “Necessary and Urgent” category, and today’s selection in particular challenges us to apply our abilities to read the weather to the more important and urgent matters of life.  All through Chapters 12 and 13, Jesus implores us to be ready, watchful and diligent; to not be the unfaithful servant or the barren fig tree; to not be the rich fool who stores up what does not last or to worry about what we cannot control.

Too often, though, I find myself all-consumed by those concerns that are neither urgent nor necessary.  I find myself upset by minor distractions that really matter not.  I seem to focus on what’s right in front of me right now, which may not really be important.  I had an assistant who knew how to move her work along…she put documents front and center on my desk knowing I’d attend to those immediately, even at the expense of more important priorities.  I pulled out this matrix one day to remind me (and my assistant) that just because something is right in front of me does not make it urgent and necessary.  We worked out a better system.

I am very blessed to be carrying very few regrets in my heart.  This is not to say I could not have done many things better.  I know I could have.  But those regrets I do have are all because I did not do what I knew in my heart was the right, necessary and urgent thing to do.  I lost focus.  Jesus knows we lose focus and today calls us to clarify what is necessary and urgent.

St. Paul writes to the Ephesians a prescription for keeping priorities in their right order.  He writes, “I urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace; one Body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your call; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.”  The Kingdom of God is all that is really urgent and necessary.

 

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:

Ephesians 3:14-21
Luke 12:49-53

Reflection:

The Love of Christ

Several phrases from today’s two readings could each serve as a theme — not merely for a homily — but for an entire retreat!  For example, “that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith,” or “I have come to set the earth on fire!”  We might take one line, however, from the Letter to the Ephesians: “to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge” and ponder upon it for today’s reflection.

A current spiritual writer says that we live in a time and in a culture with an obsession for clarity; we limit reality to what WE can understand, what is clear to us. What, then, does it mean that “Christ’s love surpasses knowledge”? This is different from the time of the Enlightenment (Europe, eighteenth century) when many felt that reason alone would solve all problems.  For some today, reality is limited to what is perceived by our human senses, what can be entered into a computer, or measured and monitored in a test tube.  It was St. Paul, however, who wrote, “…we see dimly (or indistinctly) now, as in a mirror, but then, face to face. (1 Corinthians 13:12)

It’s ironic that science now tells us NOT to limit reality to our perceptions. It was back in the 1920’s that Werner Heisenberg articulated his “uncertainty principle,” stating there is a fuzziness in nature, a fundamental limit to what we can know about the behavior of quantum particles, and that the best we can hope for is to calculate probabilities for where things are and how they will behave. And it was in the 1990’s that the Hubble telescope (named after the “pioneer of the stars,” Edward Hubble) helped us realize that the universe is expanding! The cosmos, our biggest frame of reference, is still unfolding, at a greater and greater pace!

Of course, this is a simplistic analysis, but it tells us that science is not the enemy of religion, that the thirteenth century “Cloud of Unknowing” is truly relevant today, to know that the love of Christ surpasses our knowledge. How sad that we barricade ourselves in our own little worlds, circling the wagons of our myopic vision. We listen to talk radio (thug radio!) and watch our cable news networks that support only our preconceptions and nurture our particular bias. This is low-level religion, when we entrench ourselves deeper and deeper into our toxic polarization with no room for the Spirit… and all the while the goal is not TRUTH-seeking, but victory and dominance.

Today, may we instead know the love of Christ that surpasses our knowledge!

Fr. Jack Conley, C.P. is a member of the Passionist formation community at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago.

Scripture:

Ephesians 2:1-10
Luke 12:13-21

Reflection:

“But God said to him,
‘You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you;
and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?’
Thus will it be for the one who stores up treasure for himself
but is not rich in what matters to God.” Luke 12:13

Today’s Gospel is very dear to me. You see my husband who passed away 4 years ago, used this as a guide for his entire life. Don’t get me wrong, he had plenty of ‘treasure’ or junk as I would often call it, but he tried to have a focus of Christ in his life that was extraordinaire.

Once a year we would talk through our ‘things,’ and see if they were used for God. If they were, we kept them. His caution cone orange helicopter, that he purchased in order to take, “angel flights’ those who needed flights to the hospital for free from far away was one example of what some people would consider an extravagance, he used for God. He didn’t always live this way, but as he grew older and was ordained a deacon in the church, his love for the Lord became more important than his love for things.

It is a challenge in this day and age to use the things we have for God. Mike’s truck had a bible verse on the back. We shared our home with missionaries. We wear crosses on our necks.

It’s not about oh, look at me I am holier than thou, it’s about, “yeah, God can use, even little ole me, to be his hands and feet”. As I look back at Mike’s life, I am so very thankful for this bible verse and all the ways that he embraced it.

Mike died in that caution cone orange helicopter. “That night, his life was demanded of him”

He was rich in what mattered to God, and that my friends is a gift, for those that are left behind.

That is the challenge this day, to evaluate what is it that you have and what needs to be given away? What are you using for Gods work and what are you holding onto for your own sake?

Let go, take my word for it.  You do not know when your life will be ‘demanded of you’ and the things that you own, will not matter in the least. Blessings on your week

Kate Mims is the Retreat Center Director at Holy Name Passionist Retreat Center in Houston, Texas.

Scripture:

Isaiah 53:10-11
Hebrews 4:14-16
Mark 10:35-45

Reflection:

One of the advantages that an infant enjoys over an adult is that an infant has few accolades or a reputation to live up to, while an adult dreads the day when the young ones in a family gradually begins to realize that  mom or dad have unexpected faults and weaknesses.  The parents dread the day when the little ones in the family who have come to idolize mom and dad gradually come to see that they’re really not all that the child had come to admire about them.  The parents also have their feet of clay.  So while the child is expected to have bowel problems, the parents are not expected to have drinking problems.  Every boy likes to boast: “my dad can beat up your dad”.

This carries over into the spiritual or religious realm too.  For instance, we hear Isaiah the prophet coming to terms with the long-awaited messiah who has been a dominant figure in the history of the Jewish people.  The messiah was to be the champion of the Jewish people, who could do no wrong and who would stand head and shoulders above everyone else.  And yet today we hear Isaiah prophesying that this messiah was going to be crushed by the Lord because of the weakness afflicting him.  And he is going to have to lose his life in carrying out his mission, and suffer much.  This was not the message the Jews wanted to hear about their long-awaited promised one.

And along the same lines, we hear the apostle Paul speaking about this long-awaited person to come in terms of priesthood.  He is going to be a priest, but then, remembering the sordid history of so many priests in the history of the Jewish people, Paul goes on to clarify that the priest he has in mind is not an unsympathetic, cold-hearted individual who has no appeal to the expectant Jew, but one who indeed is going to be tested with some hard times, but who will win over Jewish hearts in the long run.

And then we’re updated to the time of Jesus, and hear Him trying to straighten out some ideas that His disciples have about him, as for instance when two of them, James and John, ask Him to arrange seats of honor for them when they all arrive in heaven.  And so Jesus has to straighten them out on their expectations of what lies ahead of them.  It’s not going to be all peaches and cream, but there are going to be some tough times ahead that will test their expectations of what Jesus is going to do for them, like the boy or girl dreaming of the good times ahead when mom and dad do all kinds of favors for them.

So it’s a matter of living up to expectations.  We all want to achieve this, but we also have to be realistic and admit that some of these ambitions are off-target.  We have had expectations of others, which were unrealistic, and others have had hopes for us, which are simply not going to happen.  And today we are asked to recognize this, not to sour ourselves on life, but to prevent ourselves from being misled by false expectations, while still believing in the goodness and promise latent in others.  Like the Detroit Lions quarterback of years ago, Bobby Lane, a native of Texas where he picked up some unfortunate drinking problems, but whose teammates kept their faith in him, so that, when he huddled with them about the next play, they turned him around facing the right direction, and most of the time their faith in him to throw it to the right player paid off.  It’s a matter of putting up with another’s foibles in order to succeed beyond one’s expectations.  That’s Jesus’ message to us today.

Fr. Sebastian MacDonald, C.P. is a member of the Passionist Community in Louisville, Kentucky.

Feast of St. Paul of the Cross

Scripture:

Ephesians 1:15-23
Luke 12:8-12

Reflection:

Today is a very important day for all the Passionists throughout the world.  It’s the feast day of our Holy Founder, St. Paul of the Cross.  Perhaps you’ve wondered what inspires the various Passionist priests and brothers you have known?  What vision do they carry in their hearts that forms them into the people they become?  Jesus Crucified is, of course, the most important inspiration for all of us.  But a man of the 18^th century, who allowed himself to be transformed by the love he saw in Jesus Crucified, is certainly a major inspiration as well.  So, I want to tell you a bit about St. Paul of the Cross because some people are just worth knowing.

Paul Daneo, St. Paul of the Cross, Founder of the Passionists, was born in 1694 in a small town called Ovada, in Northern Italy.  He was one of sixteen children, only five of whom survived infancy.  His father, Luke Daneo, owned a small clothing and tobacco shop that barely supported his large family.  His mother, Anna Maria, was a faith-filled woman, whose devotion to the Passion of Jesus was the source of her courage and strength as she endured the grief and loss of so many of her children.

From his earliest years Paul, by the example of his Mother, had a deep devotion to the Passion of Jesus and at the age of 19 had a vivid experience of the depth of God’s love.  As a result of this experience Paul became determined to give himself totally to God.  Due to family need, however, he stayed at home, helping to support the family by working in his father’s shop.  At 22 he joined the crusade against the Turks though it took only two months for him to realize that the army was not for him.  Returning home, he once again worked in the family business.

When he was 26, the circumstances of the family became a bit better and Paul finally felt free to pursue his own personal dreams. Bidding good-bye to his family, he went to Alessandria, where Bishop Gattinara, Paul’s spiritual director and confessor, clothed Paul in a black tunic on the day of his arrival and then sent him to the parish of St. Charles in Castellazzo for retreat.  In the small sacristy of the parish church Paul made a 40 day retreat.  It was during those 40 days that Paul had the most extraordinary experiences of union with God and wrote the Rule of Life for the congregation he hoped to found.

After his retreat Bishop Gattinara sent him back to his home town where Paul lived in various hermitages for several years.  In 1721 Paul made his way to Rome in hopes that he could get his Rule of Life approved by the Pope.  He was turned away by a Vatican guard so Paul returned home, discouraged but determined.  On his return, his brother, John Baptist, joined with him to try living according to Paul’s Rule of Life.  Paul and John Baptist became well-known catechists and Paul was even invited to give spiritual talks by various groups.

In 1725, the brothers returned to Rome and this time Paul was given verbal permission to gather companions to live according to his Rule of Life.  Cardinal Corrandini asked the brothers to work in a newly established hospital there in Rome.  The president of the hospital was so impressed by Paul and John Baptist that he arranged for them to be ordained to the priesthood.

As more men joined with Paul and John Baptist, they moved the whole community to Monte Argentario, a promontory about 150 kms northwest of Rome, where they established the first Passionist monastery in 1737.

While contemplation and prayer were at the very heart of Paul’s life and the life of his new institute, Paul himself soon became a very famous popular preacher, spiritual guide, writer and mystic.  For Paul the Passion of Christ was the most                                                                                    vivid witness to God’s love for us and he constantly called upon his followers to remember the sufferings of Jesus.

During his lifetime Paul founded thirteen monasteries of Priests and Brothers throughout Italy as well as a monastery of Passionist Nuns.  Today the Passionists live and serve in 62 countries of the world and are enhanced by other religious and lay groups who find inspiration in the Charism of St. Paul of the Cross.

This bare outline of the life of Paul Daneo only describes some of the important moments of his life.  But it was his interior transformation brought about by his total openness to God’s love and his commitment to love God with his whole heart that made Paul into one of the most significant mystics and spiritual guides of the 18^th century.  May his example lead you into a deep and passionate love for Christ who gave himself so generously for us all.

May the Passion of Jesus Christ be always in our hearts.

Fr. Michael Higgins, C.P. is the director of Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center, Sierra Madre, California.

Scripture:

2 Timothy 4:10-17b
Luke 10:1-9

Reflection:

“He appointed seventy-two disciples whom he sent ahead of him to every town and place…tell them the Kingdom of God is at hand for you”.

 He sent 72, a richly symbolic number in Scripture – Genesis numbers the nations of the earth at 72.  The mission of the Christian is to all the world and the message of the Christian mission is not our own message – but Christ’s message – and Christ’s message was about the Kingdom of God – his Father’s kingdom, his Father’s world, his Father’s vision.

We received our mission at Baptism – a question for us is have we grown into that mission?  Or perhaps HOW have we grown into that mission?  Or maybe Are we ready to accept that mission?  How and to whom are we willing to share our mission?

 Pope Francis, in his exhortation Gaudete et Exsultate, reminds us that we have each been given a mission, “planned by the Father to reflect and embody, at a specific moment in history, a certain aspect of the Gospel”.  A question for each of us is which aspect of the Gospel have I been called to embody and reflect?  How well do I know the Gospel – what facet do I need to embody here in my little corner of the Kingdom?  What facet do I need to put flesh and bones on today in the 21^st century?  With whom am I called to share with?  With whom am I called to partner with in spreading the mission?  Who are the crucified in my neighborhood, workplace, community?

In his book, Reading the Clouds, Anthony Gittins talks about learning to read the clouds and that as Christians “Committed to the inclusive and boundary-breaking mission of Jesus, we are called – each of us in some fashion – to go beyond familiar people and places” (122).  In Mt 25, Jesus tells us that whatever we do to the least of these, we do to him.  How and to whom are we going to go and spead the word that the Kingdom of God is at hand, shake the dust when necessary, and share Peace – God’s Peace.

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

Memorial of Saint Teresa of Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church

Scripture:

Galatians 4:22-24, 26-27, 1-5:1
Luke 11:29-32

Reflection:

“I die a daughter of the Church”, these are the words of Saint Teresa of Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church whom we celebrate today. These words “I die a daughter of the Church,” were spoken from her death bed and are words that we should hold dear as we journey through life as Catholic Christians. Through the struggles we endure, the joys we experience and the lessons that we learn, we should all strive to utter these words at the end, “I die a daughter/a son of the Church.” Saint Teresa of Avila, a Carmelite became one of the most important figures in all of the Church for her Catholic spirituality. Her works were many, her best known: The Life, The way of Perfection, The Mansions and The Foundations, contain a doctrine which encompasses the whole of the spiritual life. As we reflect on her today we should also reflect on our own lives spiritually in relation to the life that God has called us to, we should reflect on the struggles that Saint Teresa of Avila experienced and how she endured to become a Doctor of the Church. We should consider our lives from the perspective of our last days, working through our burdens, struggles and joys in light of our role as Catholic Christians in order that we too, in our last days, may consider the whole of our legacy as daughters and sons of the Church, as daughters and sons of Christ.

Today Jesus points us to an evil generation, who seeks a sign, but the only one given is the sign of Jonah and it is one of great theological importance. Jonah was a disobedient prophet who rejected his commission from God to go to the capital city of Nineveh, an enemy of Israel to warn them to repent or face imminent doom. Because of his disobedience Jonah was cast into the sea and swallowed by a great fish where he remained for three days, upon being rescued he changed his ways and obediently carried out his mission and the Nenevites repented, saving their city and its many citizens because there was something greater than Jonah at work here. And there is something greater than Jonah, something greater than Solomon and something greater than the great Saint Teresa of Jesus at work in each of our lives. It is the great Redeemer Himself, Jesus Christ who is always at work in our lives, who wants no more than for us to be sons and daughters of His Church and He always offers His graces which are sufficient for us to rise above the evils of our own generation.

Deacon James Anderson is the Administrator at Holy Name Passionist Retreat Center in Houston, Texas.