Daily Scripture

Scripture:

Galatians 1:6-12
Luke 10:25-37

Reflection:

(Please keep the Passionist Congregation in your thoughts and prayers over these days and throughout this month of October. We began our General Chapter in Rome two days ago and are working now to plan and prepare for the years ahead. Thank you, Denis Travers, CP)

But to focus on today our liturgical readings take us to one of the most loved stories that Jesus told – that of the Good Samaritan.

We are all too familiar with the story and its main characters. The Traveller who foolishly attempts to journey unaccompanied on one of the most notorious and dangerous roads of the time. The Robbers who act with violence to deprive the naive traveller of his goods and who nearly take his life as well. The Priest and then the Levite who adhere to rituals whilst overlooking the great commandment to love their neighbour.

But I want to speak about another character – one who offers us the chance to meditate on our own loving. Especially when our love for another is often unseen and hidden and yet is vital to that person’s well-being.

I am not referring here to the Samaritan, but to the Inn Keeper – the one who imitates and continues the compassion of the Samaritan! He is an unobtrusive character in the story, yet one whose actions are essential to the working of the parable.

The Inn Keeper’s role is almost unnoticed in the story. He does not rescue the traveller, but he is the one charged with the day to day care of the injured man. His role is not so widely acclaimed, but it is essential to the Samaritan’s strategy – for without the Inn Keeper there is no ongoing care for the wounded man, there is no one to trust with the money left behind (and no one to extend credit). Without his care there is no continued treatment of the wounds, no daily nourishing provision of conversation and food, no company for the wounded traveller and no point of reference for the Samaritan upon his return visit to the area.

The love shown by a parent, partner or friend is so often the same. So many times in life our call to love another is not seen in dramatic deeds, but rather goes on quietly in the background gently accumulating years of faithful and caring service to those we love.

Indeed much of our most compassionate work will be unseen (sometimes even by the recipient and certainly by the wider public). Yet this approach to people we love – and especially to those who need our assistance – is one of the most deeply valued aspects of Christian life and service. We are called to be generous with others as God is generous with us.

This is often loving from the level of the ‘heart’ – wherein resides that inner life and goodness given by God and which was explicitly identified in our baptism. Our capacity to love as God has first loved us is reactivated every time the call of Jesus is whispered in the depths of our hearts. In response to this call we manifest our true nature as one created in the image and likeness of God by our determination to respond in a kindly, sympathetic manner to those who are ‘wounded’ by life. We are called on often in life to release, and act from, our capacity to be a neighbour to those who are in need.

Let’s pray that throughout our Christian life we allow our own inner goodness to be manifested in our gentle sympathy and love for others.

Indeed this parable teaches us that sometimes the worst times can become beautiful memories – and thus through the risk-taking of the Samaritan and the ongoing generosity of the Innkeeper, the wounded traveller’s life goes from a moment of horror to an experience of deep compassion and loving care.

Of course and ideally, we are both the Samaritan and Innkeeper – since in this parable both can model for us what ‘loving our neighbour’ (or loving as a neighbour) can look like.

Fr. Denis Travers, C.P., is a member of Holy Spirit Province, Australia.  He currently serves on the General Council and is stationed in Rome.

Scripture:

Genesis 2:18-24
Hebrews 2:9-11
Mark 10:2-16 or 10:2-12

Reflection:

In my first month of teaching one of my homeroom students brought in an underground newspaper published on 8 ½ x 14” mimeographed paper with a front-page editorial that he had written. He gave it to me and asked me what I thought. I studied it for a couple of minutes (it wasn’t very long) and then gave him my honest opinion. “This is terrible!” He didn’t care for my appraisal and responded: “You just don’t like what it says.” I told him, I had no idea what he was trying to say at which point he began verbally explaining what he wanted to write.  I stopped him and suggested that I would teach him and his class how to write a good editorial and then we could discuss this further. The following week, I presented a unit on how to write a good editorial.

Not long after that, my “problem” student returned with the latest edition of the underground rag and sure enough—he had learned how to write a good editorial, only this time it was all about the school we were part of. I guess I told him he should write about something he actually knew about. Anyway, to the total chagrin of my fellow teachers, the student had managed to spread the paper all over the school. Need I say, this student didn’t have anything good to write about the school? My fellow teachers quickly decided that I was the real author of this editorial and the best way to deal with me was to isolate me at the lunchroom or faculty meetings, by immediately vacating any table I dared to take a seat at. Those actions really didn’t bother me. I had no intention of sticking around anyway—I continued to hope that I would find another position in the paper industry where I could make some real money.  Eventually, the principal hired a woman teacher who at first probably didn’t know better, but she would gladly sit with me at lunch—she had the same responsibilities I had with the high school students, only with the grammar school students.

After about six months of continuing my search for another position selling fine papers to the printing and graphic arts industry, I settled into my teaching position realizing that I actually liked teaching.  As I look back at that time, I also understood that what I liked most about teaching was all the learning I was doing. I was learning about myself, about young teenage boys who had come from a much different environment, and yet, not so different in many respects, than I did. I was learning that what some people identified as “bad” was really not that at all—needy maybe, but not bad. I was learning that maybe doing what I liked doing was more important than making tons of money.

I wonder if that isn’t the very quality of children (the ability to learn and change) Jesus was referring to in today’s gospel selection when he tells his disciples:

“Let the children come to me;
do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to
such as these.
Amen, I say to you,
whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child
will not enter it.” (MK 10:14-15)

Then again, maybe it’s not that at all. Maybe it’s children’s ability to stay in the present moment, not lamenting the past or worrying about the future, just trusting in the world around them one day at a time.

Maybe it’s both?

Dan O’Donnell is a Passionist Partner and a longtime friend of the Passionists.  He lives in Chicago. 

Scripture:

Job 42:1-3, 5-6, 12-17
Luke 10:17-24

Reflection:

In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus demands a lot from his followers. Stripped from our wealth, privilege, and personal relationships he wants us totally dependent on God.

Prior to this passage Jesus sends six dozen followers, as sheep among wolves, to spread out, without a wallet, suitcase or even sandals, with his message of the new reign of God.

In this section they return thrilled with witnessing evil defeated.

In their excited conversation Jesus tells them what he too has experienced: “I have observed Satan fall like lightning from the sky.”

Wow!

I wonder how often I am stunned at the power of God over evil.

In these days of chaos in families, communities and nations, Satan seems in charge. The opioid crisis leaves orphans in its wake. Racism and gun violence rip neighborhoods and hearts asunder. The nuclear arms race, terrorism, famine, trade wars and extreme nationalism raise serious tensions around our globe. And in our Church the scandal of sexual abuse of minors is enough to unleash primitive anger from the depths of each of our souls.

In this swirl of evil, where Satan seems to have the upper hand and the pillars of our lives appear to crack and crumble, where is our faith?

Jesus tells us to get ourselves out there into the mess. Announce the reign of God. Be totally dependent on Him. Confront evil in all its forms. Have enough faith to act, even when you are afraid and unsure of yourself.

This conversation happens on Jesus determined trip to Jerusalem, where he will stand up to the powers of the Roman Empire and the Temple. He is fearless. He is totally dependent on his Father to compete the mission.

It is our mission too. He did it and he expects us to do it too. With faith just as strong as his.

“Turning to his disciples in private he said: ‘Blessed are the eyes that see what you see.  For I say to you, many prophets and kings desire to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.’”

That is strong assurance for a wobbly disciple like me. I pray to be stunned by the power of God just like that six dozen of long ago.

Jim Wayne is a board member of the Passionists Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) Office, state legislator, and author of The Unfinished Man. He lives in Louisville, Kentucky.

Scripture:

Job 38:1, 12-21; 40:3-5
Luke 10:13-16

Reflection:

If you have been following the Old Testament readings of the day throughout this week you have been on a fast excursion through the story of Job.  This great drama is unlike any other book of the bible.  Job is a man of exemplary character and unwavering devotion who is stricken with misfortune, disease and disaster.  Job, having lost every consolation of life, wrestles to understand his own destitution.  He doesn’t buy into reward and punishment theory, but can find no answers to such evil in his life even when his friends and wife are against him.  In distress he calls out over and over to God.

If this has been unfamiliar to you, I would encourage you to familiarize yourself with the earlier part of Job’s drama.  Job searches and questions for some type of understanding.  He calls out to the Divine, who is so patient.  Finally, in this 38^th chapter God responds in a lengthy outpouring of questions which just spectacularly put Job back in his place.

Where were you when I founded the earth?  Tell me, if you have understanding.   Who determined its size; do you know? Who stretched out the measuring line for it?   Into what were its pedestals sunk, and who laid the cornerstone?

• Have you ever in your lifetime commanded the morning and shown the dawn its place?
• Do you know how the clouds are banked, the wondrous work of him who is perfect in knowledge?
• Tell me, if you know all: which is the way to the dwelling place of light?  And where is the abode of darkness?
• Have you entered the storehouse of the snow and have you seen the treasury of the hail?
• Can you raise your voice among the clouds, or veil yourself in the waters of the storm?

These are all statements beyond human ability.  They put all of us back in our place when as people we begin demanding that we should know God’s mind.  For many of us, it is so difficult to learn a basic lesson; it simply isn’t your place to know and understand the mysteries of the mind of God.   And what is transformative is the invitation God gives us.   Don’t keep trying to figure out God’s mind.  Rather, spend your time rejoicing in the heart of God.

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

Feast of St. Francis of Assisi

Scripture:

Job 19:21-27
Luke 10:1-12

Reflection:

“The Kingdom of God is at Hand!”

Today’s Gospel selection recalls the sending of the 72 disciples, in pairs, to every town and place Jesus intended to visit.  His instructions were clear:  go, as lambs among wolves; pack lightly, take nothing extra; greet no one along the way; proclaim God’s peace, cure the sick, announce the Kingdom of God.  The disciples did as instructed; the Kingdom was proclaimed; lives were changed – and we today, worlds away from those early disciples, are blessed with our Christian faith.

That same call of God has been shared with many other great men and women – with “heavenly” results!  The month of October celebrates the lives of many founders of religious communities; today we celebrate the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi…patron of our Holy Father, Pope Francis, and thousands of men and women who seek to enflesh the charism and ministry of St. Francis of Assisi.

Today’s Gospel passage about the sending of the 72 disciples came alive for Francis of Assisi.  His carefree youth was radically changed by the call of Jesus; he renounced his personal possessions and changed his life to one of evangelical poverty and preaching.  Francis’ life witness was truly charismatic, compassionate, and loving of all God’s creation…so much so that God called others to join him in community.  Francis compiled a “rule of life” and established many religious communities of men and women.  In the 44 short years of his life, he sparked a spiritual renewal that continues to inspire men and women of all ages and walks of life, in all parts of the world.

Have we heard the call?  No doubt, Jesus and St. Francis spoke to the heart of the Founder of the Passionists, St. Paul of the Cross, and today we Passionists are grateful for our charism that is rooted in the love of Jesus Crucified and ministry to the “least, the last, the lost”.  Jesus speaks to each of us today as our world deals with a variety of challenging issues:  violence, mistrust, abuse, the environment, a lack of good leadership, a “ho-hum” attitude about life, selfishness, etc.  Jesus and Francis and Paul of the Cross challenge us to look deeply into our hearts and respond as people of faith and courage and service.

Let’s pray that, with St. Francis’ example, we all may help renew the Church in our day and age, especially with the generous involvement of young people as the XV Ordinary General Synod of Bishops takes place in Rome, focused on “Young People, the Faith, and Vocational Discernment”.  The Kingdom of God is at hand

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

Scripture:

Job 9:1-12, 14-16
Luke 9:57-62

Reflection:

“He alone stretches out the heavens and treads upon the crests of the seas. He made the Bear and Orion, the Pleiades and the constellations of the south; He does great things past finding out, marvelous things beyond reckoning.” Job 9: 8-10

Job is reminding us of God’s greatness and that there is so much that we don’t know or understand. We are such tiny things in the scheme of the whole universe! God can walk along the waves in the ocean; He flung the stars across the sky; He created the infinitely beautiful creatures in our world, and holds it all together so that we don’t fly off into space as the earth turns. And He does even greater things that are way beyond our “finding out.”

I love the stars and constellations and was shocked the first time I got to see the night sky at 7,000 feet elevation. I felt like I could reach out and touch them! Job 9:9 mentions one of my favorites – the Pleiades. The Pleiades are seven stars that are in a small tight cluster that looks very much like a tiny dipper. The best way to see this constellation though is to look away from it.

That can work when we don’t understand a situation here on earth too. Maybe we are staring too hard at the problem. We need a little space, or we need to get a different perspective. We need to look away and look to God; surrender whatever it is – to really let go and wait on Him. To sit still and ask if we need to do anything differently, or just wait and trust.

We can’t always see the stars, especially up here in the great Northwest. If you can’t see the night sky where you live, go to a planetarium or look at images from the Hubble telescope on your computer and be dazzled! But even when we can’t see the stars, they are always there. And even when we can’t see God at work in our lives, He too is always there. Always. He made us little less than the angels and even though we are so tiny, we are His crowning creation and He loves us and cares for us beyond our imaginings. You can stake your life on it… and your afterlife!

Janice Carleton and her husband Jim live in Bainbridge Island, Washington,  and partner with Passionist Fr. Cedric Pisegna in Fr. Cedric Ministries. She is the mother of 4 grown children and grandmother of 6. Janice also leads women’s retreats and recently published her second book: God IS with Us. Visit Janice’s website at http://www.janicecarleton.com/ or email her at [email protected].

Memorial of the Guardian Angels

Scripture:

Job 3:1-3, 11-17, 20-23
Matthew 18:1-5, 10

Reflection:

It happened that as I was preparing some thoughts for this reflection on the memorial of the Guardian Angels, I was sitting at a supper table with some friends. I asked them what meaning this memorial might have for them.

The conversation turned around how one first learns of “Guardian Angels” in one’s childhood, and very naturally Guardian Angels are seen as protectors from the dangers of childhood, often portrayed as a rural childhood—raging rivers, roaming animals, and finding one’s way through a darkened forest.

The imagery which depicted the role of the Guardian Angels was very uniform in children’s prayer books, catechisms and storybooks. It also was a familiar design in the stained glass windows of the churches built by many of the immigrant Catholics who came to the United States in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries.

Not surprisingly, as children grew into adulthood, the awareness of having a Guardian Angel seemed to diminish, and this was the general opinion of those at table with me. It seemed natural enough that as one grew to independence and maturity, one would look after oneself without the need for a spiritual companion to pluck one from the dangers that one might encounter.

Instead of conceding that angels were of little consequence for us as adults, the conversation turned to the way that our deceased family members or persons with whom we have shared strong bonds in life, continue to influence our adult lives as members of Christ’s body, as members of the mystical body of Christ. Since the liturgy of this memorial refers to the three traditional roles of the angels (to praise God, to be God’s messengers, and to offer protection), it seems a natural and a supernatural reality to consider our parents, our closest friends, and our own saintly patrons, who have all gone before us, to serve as our guides and intercessors before God.

St. Therese of Lisieux, who wrote passionately about her relationship with her Guardian Angel, and about the role of angels in the life of the faithful, also saw in her approaching death, the transition to an angelic life of service. It would be a heaven…spent on earth until the end of the world.

“I feel that I am about to enter into my rest. But I feel especially that my mission is about to begin, my mission of making God loved as I love Him, of giving my little way to souls. If God answers my desires, my heaven will be spent on earth until the end of the world. Yes, I want to spend my heaven in doing good on earth. This isn’t impossible, since from the bosom of the beatific vision the Angels watch over us.” (CJ 7/17/1897).

Today is a good day to thank God for the angels who have been a part of our lives, both when we were very young, and who have been added to our retinue of saints and angels since our maturity. May we always give thanks to God for our being able to be inspired, guided and prayed for by our angel-spirits who lead us to God and our heavenly rest.

Fr. Arthur Carrillo, C.P.  is the director of the Missions for Holy Cross Province.  He lives in Citrus Heights, California. 

Memorial of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus

Scripture:

Job 1:6-22
Luke 9:46-50

Reflection:

Today the Church celebrates a beloved saint, Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, also known as the “Little Flower.”  Her life and fame are full of ironies.  She lived in the provincial town of Lisieux in the Normandy region of France and except for participating in a diocesan pilgrimage to Rome and other sites in Italy, never left her hometown.  She became a cloistered Carmelite sister at the age of 15, joining her two older sisters in the same local convent.  She died of tuberculosis in 1897 at the age of twenty-four.

Yet for someone whose life seemed destined for obscurity she became one of the most popular saints in the history of the Catholic Church.  Pope Pius X called her the “greatest saint of the modern era.”  She was canonized in 1921 by Pope Pius XI, only twenty-eight years and her popularity spread through the church like wildfire and remains strong—her shrine in Lisieux is the most popular pilgrimage site in France after Lourdes itself.  Although she spent her brief adult life in a cloistered convent, she is the patron of missionaries.  And although her education was home-bound and rudimentary, she has been declared a “Doctor” of the Church.

Thérèse gripped the imagination of the Church precisely because of the paradox of her life.  She espoused what she called “the little way”—placing her entire life in the arms of God, filled with a tender love for Jesus—she dedicated every conscious act of her life as an act of love and devotion to the One who loved her.   She was thoroughly human and thoroughly committed to the gospel. No gesture, no act of enduring annoyance from her fellow sisters, no smile or bearing of suffering—was too little or insignificant to become an act of love.  She was a young woman, living a sheltered life, and having limited experiences, yet possessing a magnificent spirit that reached out to the entire world and incorporated its hopes and concerns in her daily prayer.

In his powerful encyclical on the environment, Laudato Si’ (“On Care for Our Common Home”), Pope Francis recognizes the overwhelming ethical and issues posed by human responsibility for the ravages that are now effecting our earth.  He urges people of good will, no matter what their religious convictions may be, to join with believers in addressing these problems.  Some people such as competent scientists and political leaders can have a substantial impact.  Others of us may despair of knowing how we can respond.  Here Pope Francis turns explicitly to the spirituality of the saint we honor today.  “St. Thérèse of Lisieux invites us to practice the little way of love, not to miss out on a kind word, a smile or any small gesture which sows peace and friendship.  An integral ecology is also made up of simply daily gestures which break with the logic of violence, exploitation and selfishness.”

The Pope goes on to say that the mission of the church, through such small gestures, is to build a “civilization of love”—a beautiful phrase that I think Saint Thérèse would eagerly embrace.

Saint Thérèse, pray for us and for our world.

Fr. Donald Senior, C.P. is President Emeritus and Professor of New Testament at Catholic Theological Union.  He lives at the Passionist residence in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago.