Daily Scripture

Scripture:

Exodus 32:15-24, 30-34
Matthew 13:31-35

 

Reflection:

A New Reformation

I suppose most of us succumb, throughout our lives, to the sin of “them and us”…that is, we project guilt on others, then try to distance ourselves from that guilt. For example, each person, tribe, family, nation, or church — like ancient Israel in today’s first reading — continues to commit the sin of worshipping a golden calf and reckless revelry. For us, the golden calf might be purchasing things, clutter. Passionist Scripture scholar Fr. Carroll says, “The consequences of sin aren’t always experienced immediately, but, sooner or later, the poison works its way through the system.”

Pope Francis is now leading us in a reformation. Repeatedly he reminds us that our golden calf (and revelry) is consumerism. Most of us counter his prophetic word with, “But look how capitalism has lifted so many out of poverty!”  Maybe we are confusing the ideals of Adam Smith in the 18^th century — a foundation in morals, values, doing what’s right for the common good (a vision that created a great economic superpower) — with “mutant capitalism” (an aberration sabotaged by greed, Ayn Rand’s narcissism).

The parable we hear in today’s Gospel about how yeast is able to transform a large batch of dough suggests a better way to impact society, countering this mutant capitalism, than litigation and argumentation. Countless studies and our own observation remind us again and again that people are led to Christ by good example. I know the impact Pope Francis has had on me: I want to be a better priest, I want to be a better disciple.  From South American recently, Pope Francis’ words are compelling: “The future of humanity does not lie solely in the hands of great leaders, the great powers and the elites. It is fundamentally in the hands of peoples and in their ability to organize. It is in their hands, which can guide with humility and conviction this process of change. I am with you.”

 

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

Scripture:

2 Kings 4:42-44
Ephesians 4:1-6
John 6:1-5

Reflection:

“There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many?”

The miracle of the loaves and fish begins with the disciples feeling overwhelmed by the sheer number of people to feed with such meager resources.  But what there is, it is enough.  It is enough when Jesus takes the five loaves and two fish, gives thanks, breaks it, and distributes it among the people.  Not only was there enough, there was more than enough.  Lots of leftovers.

This is the only miracle story that appears in all four gospels.  It is a powerful story that connects us to the Last Supper and our own Eucharist.  But it also connects us to our own sense of feeling overwhelmed with the tasks given to us.  We too often say, “Lord, what can I do with so little?  I am not rich enough, talented enough, old enough, educated enough, strong enough.”

And Jesus says to us, “What you have is enough, and even more than enough.”  It is enough when we allow him to take what we have, to bless it, and to say back to us, “Now, give them something to eat.”  Give them what you do have.  Give them a smile, a pat on the back, a dollar, a bit of volunteer time; give those around you a compliment, an offer to help with a home project, a ride to the doctor, a note to a grieving widow.

If we all took our meager little five loaves and two fish, and we together put them at the service of God’s people, there would be enough.  In fact, there would be more than enough.  When we gather for Mass, we all bring what little we have, and together with the bread and wine, it is blessed and broken and given to us to take back into the world.  We won’t feed the hungry world all by ourselves.  But together, all of us blessed by Jesus and sent into the world, we do have enough.  More than enough.  But first, we have to hand over the loaves and fish.

 

Robert Hotz is a consultant with American City Bureau, Inc. and is the Director of The Passion of Christ: The Love That Compels Campaign for Holy Cross Province.

Feast of Saint James, Apostle

Scripture:

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

Reflection:

What was the mother of James and John thinking? Jesus has just finished talking about his betrayal, the subsequent suffering and death and his rising to life on the third day. The mother of James and John didn’t want to miss this opportunity to push the envelope. Like any other mother or parents, she wanted the best for her sons. Which mother, or parents, wouldn’t want to see their children doing well in life? She actually kneels down and comes with a straight forward request. The request probably took Jesus by surprise!

Jesus tries to be patient with the mother and the two brothers and explains to them what it all entails. He understands the indignation of the other disciples. He tries to convince them that success in his Kingdom does not consist in prestige and power, but in following the way of Jesus, their leader.

However, what happens to James and John eventually is what we celebrate today. They didn’t back off because Jesus challenged them. We can be sure that the sons of Zebedee must have been deeply struck and moved by Jesus’ words, for James began preaching with great zeal. James will ultimately drink the ‘cup’ that Jesus drank when he will be put to death shortly after the death of Jesus.

We can easily get discouraged and disappointed by life’s challenges. It is easy to get carried away by our achievements and fame. We can easily lose sight of what God wants us to be. Sometimes we just get it all wrong. Sometimes we just need to stop, re-focus and re-align. It is both a challenge and opportunity for us to bring God’s love, care and compassion through the various roles that we play in our lives. It is a privileged task as God’s children. This feast also reminds us that while grace is God’s free gift, there is a cost to discipleship.

Writing to the Corinthians, St. Paul reminds us: God who said, Let the light shine out of darkness, has also made the light shine in our hearts to radiate and to make known the Glory of God, as it shines in the face of Christ (2 Cor 4:6)… we hold this treasure in earthen vessels!

 

Fr. Bruno D’Souza, CP, is on the staff at Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center, Sierra Madre, California.

Scripture:

Exodus 20:1-17
Matthew 13:18-23

 

Reflection:

 A Jealous God

“I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God.” Ex 20:5    Jealousy is a repulsive word.   Jealousy means my ability is resented by someone.   It means, if I am a married person, that my heart is not to be trusted and that I am seeking comfort from another and under suspicion of infidelity.   If I am a jealous person I want to control someone just for my purposes.    At any rate jealousy has an overwhelming negative flavor to it.  How in the world can Scripture call God jealous twelve times in Old Testament.   In fact it is an often repeated name for God:  El Kana.  “For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.” Deut 4:24

I think there are basically two reasons why God is jealous in our regard.   First of all He knows how weak we are and are so easily turned away from Him.  Secondly, He knows we lose all hope of meaning, happiness and joy if we try live without Him.   At the very beginning of the Roman Catechism we find this beautiful text.  “God, infinitely perfect and blessed in Himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to share in His own blessed life.  For this reason, at every time and in every place, God draws close to man.” #1

God’s jealousy is His zeal and love for us so we are not deprived of the incredible joy he has planned for us.   What we experience as disappointments and broken dreams is often God’s gentle redirecting us to His wonderful plans fashioned in all eternity.  The world is constantly telling us in thousands of advertisements that happiness consists in wealth and materialism.  “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” Lk 12:15

The Jealous God is the One who cares too much for us to allow us to walk away from Him without a fight.  He never takes away our liberty.  His love for us is beyond our imagination.  When things are not going well for me, it might be our loving God close by redirecting my life.

After all He is a Jealous God! The last thing He wants is to lose us.

 

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

Scripture:

Exodus 19:1-2, 9-11, 16-20b
Matthew 13:10-17

 

Reflection:

In today’s Gospel reading, the apostles ask Jesus, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” Jesus replies, “Because knowledge of the mysteries of heaven has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted.” And then Jesus quotes Isaiah about the unwillingness of the people to see, hear, and understand.

If we have been given “knowledge of the mysteries of heaven,” then why did the evangelists pass down the parables of Jesus? Is it because we are hard of heart and unwilling to be converted? Sometimes I think that’s true. We can often be unwilling to surrender to God’s will for us, stubbornly hanging onto the belief that somehow our plans and our wills are the ones to be followed.

But for me, the parables of Jesus are not meant to be obstacles for us to believe, but invitations to enter more deeply into the “mysteries of heaven.” Many people have remarked throughout history that the meanings of the parables can never be fully exhausted. Depending on what is going on in our lives and in our world, we can always learn something from them, even from the ones which seem to convey a single concept.

The parables of Jesus challenge us to let go of any preconceptions we have of how God operates, or any limitations we may be tempted to put on God’s love for us and for the world. Just as we are reminded by our first reading from Exodus, God’s ways are above our ways. But at the same time God chooses to reveal Himself to us, and continues to love us beyond any human understanding.

So, when Jesus says, “To anyone who has, more will be given, and he will grow rich; from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away,” He is promising us that the more we are willing to enter into the mystery of His love for us, the more understanding we will have, and we will “grow rich” in love and grace to be shared with others.

May we not be hard of heart, but willing to learn from the parables of Jesus.

 

Fr. Phil Paxton, C.P. is on staff at St. Paul of the Cross Retreat and Conference Center, Detroit, Michigan. 

Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene

Scripture:

2 Corinthians 5:14 – 17
John 20:1-2, 11 – 18

Reflection:

There is a multitude of movies which portray for us the presence, the power, the wisdom and the energy of women.  These are not necessarily women who stand out in a crowd like Joan of Arc, Queen Elizabeth I or Eleanor Roosevelt.  No, these are women who have been gifted by God and use these gifts to foster, promote and guide their loved ones, friends and neighbors.  I am thinking about portrayals of women in plays and movies such as The Color Purple, Not Without My Daughter, Mistletoe Over Manhattan, and Steel Magnolias.  This last movie gives us a vivid picture of women who live a deep and abiding friendship to the point that they live with a very conscious mission to be there for each other in every moment of life – joys, sorrows, storms and anxieties.  They live a “mission” to one another and to all who are part of their lives.

Saint Mary Magdalene is such a woman in our faith life.  She is cured by the Lord Jesus.  Actually, in one Gospel, Jesus expels several demons from her.  She in turn becomes a dedicated disciple and follower.  She travels in the Lord’s itinerant band and cares for the assembled faithful.  She is a steadfast presence to the Lord in the sufferings of His Sacred Passion.  She stands resolute with the Blessed Mother as Jesus hangs in agony upon His Cross and finally dies.  She shed her tears of sorrow and disbelief as they carried His body to the tomb and rolled the stone into the mouth of the cave.  She waited with heavy heart throughout the Passover celebration for a chance to return to the tomb to perform the usual burial customs.  The Gospels certainly present her to us a woman of strength, solid conviction and courage with a caring compassion born out of her own weakness and healing by the Lord.

Once Easter morning arrived and she was standing at the open tomb, all of these great dimensions of this wonderful woman become magnificently amplified.  She is the first to whom the Risen Lord appears and reveals His resurrection.  Incredulous with joy, Mary Magdalene tries to hold onto to Him.  She discovers in a flash this will not be possible.  She will not be able to relate to the Risen Lord in the same way that she did when she walked along with Him, listened to Him teach, and watched Him heal.  The Risen Lord has fulfilled the promise of salvation in a manner which exceeded her wildest expectations.  She becomes the first to understand that all of life must now be seen and understood through the prism of the Resurrection of the Risen Lord.  All of life is now made new.  All of life is now understood in a different, exciting and dynamic way.  Our destiny to live as citizens of the New Jerusalem is now made clear.  Mary Magdalene is the first to hear it, the first to begin to see it, the first to begin to unravel the marvels of the Father’s love given to us in the Risen Lord.

With this new knowledge, this new understanding, this new heart, Mary Magdalene becomes what Blessed Pope Paul VI called “the Apostle to the Apostles”.  She was the first witness, the woman of strength, love and courage, who would announce the Resurrection to the Eleven and the Blessed Mother.   In accepting this mission, Mary Magdalene began the unfolding of the missionary dimension of God’s People.  She helps us to see, understand and accept our faith reality that we are indeed made daughters and sons of the same Heavenly Father who sent Jesus to redeem us.  She continues to urge us to see and share the glory of the new life which burst forth that blessed Easter morning.  She continues to guide us toward an understanding of all of our lives seen through the power of the Resurrection.   In our faith life, she continues to be for us our very own “Steel Magnolia”.

 

Fr. Richard Burke, CP, is a member of St. Paul of the Cross Province. He lives at St. Ann’s Monastery in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

 

Scripture:

Exodus14:5-18
Matthew 12:38-42

 

Reflection:

The great adventure begins!  Moses had finally been able to convince the Jewish people, the slaves of Egypt, to seek freedom from their oppression.  He had also finally been able to convince Pharaoh that it was in the best interests of Egypt to let the Jewish people go.  So, the children of Israel have begun their great journey from Egypt to the Promised Land, from oppression to freedom, from living as slaves in Egypt to living as the Chosen People of God.  What a great adventure!

But such a momentous journey turned out to be a much more difficult one than anyone, including Moses, had imagined.  As soon as the Jewish people left Egypt, the Pharaoh changed his mind and sent his armies to re-impose his will by bringing back the slaves, at least those who would survive the confrontation.  The army caught up with the slaves as they camped by the sea.  The slaves were caught between the army and sea so there was no where to flee.

The Egyptians were elated and the Jewish people lost heart and were in despair.  They turned on their leader, Moses, with anger and berated him for bringing such calamity upon them.  Moses turned to God.  God responded, “Why are you crying out to me?  Tell the children of Israel to go forward….”  God created a path for them, a path that turned out to be a safe path for the Israelites but a path to destruction for the army of Pharaoh.

This story marks the beginning of the great journey (the forty year Exodus) of the children of Israel.  This crisis that marks the beginning of the journey, is only the first of many.  Again and again the people will lose heart and believe that their journey is impossible to complete because of outside forces: the hostility of their environment, lack of food and water, attack by other peoples, devastation by wild animals, and most tragically their infidelity to God.  But God remains faithful throughout, patiently responding to their cries for help by meeting their needs and encouraging them not to lose heart.

As we live our lives, we, too, often fear that the obstacles we meet, the betrayal’s we experience, and the frailty of our faith will destroy us.  This story of Exodus reminds us that God is always faithful, ever ready to hear our cries for help and give us new courage “to go forward” in our personal journey.

 

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