Daily Scripture

 

Feast of St. John Mary Vianney

Scripture: 

Jeremiah 26:11-16, 24
Matthew 14:1-12

 

 

Reflection:

Ministering God’s Love:  Zealous Charity

In today’s Gospel, St. Matthew recounts the death of John the Baptist at the crazy whims and jealousy of both Herod and Herodias.  John the Baptist gave his life for Jesus and His proclamation of the Kingdom of God.  God gave John the Baptist the power even to die as he witnessed to Jesus in his preaching and public ministry of the Good News.  What zeal, what strength, what love!

The reading from Jeremiah also tells of another earlier prophet who witnessed God’s love to the people of his day – and was threatened with death!  Jeremiah continued to be firm in his statements and prophesies, and God changed the hearts of those seeking to kill him; his life was spared and he continued to minister God’s love to even more people.  Again, what zeal, what strength, what love!

Today another example of faithful ministering of God’s Love is given us in  the example of the 19^th century saint, St. John Mary Vianney.  He was a simple man with a humble background, an unsophisticated theology – and a zeal to spread God’s love!  He is especially known for his gracious and generous ministry of the Sacrament of Reconciliation at his parish in Ars, France — regularly spending hours sharing God’s love through the Sacrament with thousands of penitents who traveled great distances for those few graced moments with him.  His loving ministry flowed from an intense spiritual life based on prayer and mortification.  St. John Mary Vianney truly witnessed the age-old love of the Lord witnessed in the lives of both Jeremiah and John the Baptist.  In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI named him patron of all priests worldwide.

Jesus and St. John Mary Vianney pose some questions for our faith journey:  How zealous are we for our faith?  Do we offer forgiveness to those who threaten to hurt us?  How do we really listen to those who come our way?  Do we zealously and tirelessly give of ourselves in service to our sisters and brothers?  We have many great examples of zealous, charitable love of God and neighbor.

As we honor the "patron of priests", pray this day especially for priests — active, retired, deceased — and for those discerning a priestly or religious vocation:  for a deepening faith — and a greater, zealous love.

 

Fr. John Schork, C.P. is the local leader of the Passionist community in Louisville, Kentucky. 

Scripture:

1 Jeremiah 18:1-6
Matthew 13:47-53

Reflection:

There are many perspectives in Christian spirituality that attempt to make sense out of the perennial question, why does a loving God let suffering coexist with a world we say is created by God, saved by the Son of God, and is destined for an eternal participation in the Kingdom of God?

This summer, while spending my summer vacation at home with my brothers and sisters, I am also doing double-duty, filling in for the hospital chaplain at the Catholic hospital where my sister is an RN, because their chaplain is on vacation.

Daily, I am asked to visit a patient or patients who ask for the sacrament of the sick; many of them are quite conscious and want to share their feelings with me.  For many, the question is there, perhaps not "up front," but in their doubts, their fears, and in their uncertainty about the future. Why me?"

Reading today’s scripture text from the prophet Jeremiah, I hear echoes of the question-"Why me?" and I sense that God not only wants us to ask, to question, but also to glean wisdom from the response God makes to our hearts.

We need to remember that asking a question in response to God’s action in our lives is not a sign of lack of faith, or of a refusal to accept God’s will.  The incarnation, Jesus’ becoming human, taking on the form of an unborn child in the womb of Mary, follows on Mary’s question to the Angel Gabriel, "How can this be…?"  Mary’s question is posed in order to be able to respond generously to God’s will as presented by the Angel Gabriel. 

I went down to the potter’s house and there he was,
working at the wheel.
Whenever the object of clay which he was making
turned out badly in his hand,
he tried again,
making of the clay another object of whatever sort he pleased.
Then the word of the LORD came to me:
Can I not do to you, house of Israel,
as this potter has done’ says the LORD.
Indeed, like clay in the hand of the potter,
so are you in my hand, house of Israel.

God instructs Jeremiah to see in the rise and fall of the fortunes of the chosen people a necessary re-forming, re-shaping, re-modeling of the people who are no longer faithful to the image first seen in the eye of the potter, and then fashioned into clay on the potter’s wheel.

I am reminded of two other examples used by the Prophet Malachi to describe the purifying work of God, the refining of gold and silver, and the whitening of the cloth by the work of the fuller.

Thus says the Lord GOD:
Lo, I am sending my messenger
to prepare the way before me;
And suddenly there will come to the temple
the LORD whom you seek,
And the messenger of the covenant whom you desire.
Yes, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts.
But who will endure the day of his coming?
And who can stand when he appears?
For he is like the refiner’s fire,
or like the fuller’s lye.
He will sit refining and purifying silver,
and he will purify the sons of Levi,
Refining them like gold or like silver
that they may offer due sacrifice to the LORD. (Malachi 3:1-4, 23)

It has been two days since the historic achievements of United States’ swimmers and gymnasts in the London Olympic games.  What an achievement, for which we can stand in proud amazement.  They would be the first to say that were it not for the hours of dedicated practice, practice and more practice, with coaching and parental support, they might not be there on the victors’ podium.  That regimen of practice is like "the refiner’s fire, or like the fuller’s lye".

When we struggle against our illness, our aging bodies, or our fading memories, we are in a process of purification, submitting ourselves to the refiner’s fire, to the fuller’s lye, and to the potter’s wheel.  God will create in us a new experience of life, better than anything we’ve yet known, and ready to be presented before the Divine Majesty on the last day.

 

Fr. Arthur Carrillo, C.P.  is the director of the Office of Mission Effectiveness for Holy Cross Province.  He lives in Chicago, Illinois. 

Scripture:

Jeremiah 15: 10, 16-21
Matthew 13: 44-46

Reflection:

In this first reading Jeremiah continues to be the living parable of God.  In love with the Word of God,he devours the Lord’s words to him, feeds on them, and becomes God’s word himself.  And he suffers in himself what the Lord is feeling and suffering.  The pains that Jeremiah moans about are the pains of God himself, suffering from the treatment shown him by his faithless people.  Jeremiah is called to continue to be the voice of the Lord to these faithless and selfish people, preaching repentance from a saving God, despite what they do to him and the way they treat him.

When we move into the gospel, Jesus himself speaks to us directly.  We are his disciples and he teaches us about the kingdom of heaven.  We can recall from the opening of Mark’s gospel, that Jesus began his public life by calling us to the kingdom: "The time is near.  The kingdom of God is at hand.  Repent and believe in the good news."  (Mark 1:15)  Now, that we have believed and have become his disciples, he continues to teach us about this kingdom of God, the kingdom of heaven.   And like Jeremiah, he teaches us in parables. 

These parables given in Matthew are short, pithy little comparisons, unadorned with questioning or further explanation.  Today Jesus continues with them, offering us simply two: "The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, . . ." and "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls."  How shall we deal with these parables?

I suggest that we just sit with them – sit with Jesus speaking them to us.  This is my Lord who loves me personally, unconditionally, who wants me to be one with him.  What is he saying to me  through these two little parables?  What does he want me to dwell on?  If I am quiet, attentive, keeping my eye on him and my heart open to him, listening, he will tell me – and tell me perhaps without using any more words.

 

Br. Peter Fitzpatrick,CFX, a Passionist Associate is a Xaverian Brother, dwelling across the creek fromSacred Heart Monastery in Louisville, KY, in Ryken Retirement Home on the St. Xavier H.S. property.

Scripture:

Jeremiah 13:1-11
Matthew 13:31-35

Reflection:

Jesus speaks in today’s gospel about the reign of God. It is like a mustard seed.  It is like leaven. 

When we think of the reign of God, we picture a world of justice, of peace, of compassion and love.  Somehow we forget one obvious part of that reign, the "keeping of the Sabbath."  Keeping the Lord’s Day holy has gotten lost among all the busyness of modern life.       

Instead of prayer, family and leisure time, Sunday has become just another day for work and shopping.  Even early morning sports events are scheduled, making it difficult for kids and their parents to get to church.  People are being pulled in many different directions and getting bent out of shape.  Is it any wonder that we hear news about suicides, spousal abuse and all sorts of drug and alcohol related problems?  The sale of antidepressants continues to rise as the rat race shifts into higher gear.        

The Third Commandment is a weekly call to quiet down and "recalculate."  Am I leading a balanced life?  Do I have my priorities correct?  Is the pressure to work and get ahead running my life?  Am I getting enough recreation and sleep?  Is God number one in my life?  Do I enjoy praying for and with my family and friends?  Do I commune with nature and dine on good literature and art?      

Sunday is just one day out of seven.  But if it is kept well, we will be sowing seeds that can make us grow and feel whole.  It Sunday is kept well, it can be the leaven that transforms us into wise and happy people.  And we will not be far from the reign of God.

 

Fr. Alan Phillip, C.P. is a member of the Passionist Community at Mater Dolorosa Retreat Center, Sierra Madre, California.

Scripture:

Jeremiah 14:17-22
Matthew 13:36-43

Reflection:

"Whoever has ears ought to hear."

Today’s gospel gives us both a parable and then an interpretation of that parable.  The gospel explains the parable of the weeds among the wheat. Jesus is telling His disciples how the one who sows good seed is the Son of Man, and the one who sows the weeds is the Devil.  When the wheat grew, the weeds appeared as well.  Jesus had previously indicated that if you uproot the weeds, you might uproot the wheat along with it.  So, He concludes by saying, "At the end of the age, the harvesters (angels) will go through and collect the weeds, bind them up and throw them into the furnace." Those who bore good fruit in their life by living as Jesus taught us will be welcomed into Heaven with open arms.

Human beings are complex.  We sometimes have a tendency to want to divide people into two categories: saints and sinners.  However, people can’t be divided into the good and the bad, as though they were two completely separate classes of people.  All of us are a mixture of good and bad, wheat and weeds, as we’ll discover when we take a good honest look into our own field.  And we are truly blessed that The Harvester doesn’t uproot the "weeds" as soon as they appear.  We get a second chance to live as "wheat". 

Some of us might remember in gym class the importance of being chosen to be on the team that was most likely going to win.  Obviously, no one wanted to be on the team that would most likely lose, we wanted to be on the team that gave us the best chance for success.

One can think of this as being a parable about a winning team (wheat) and a losing team (weeds). The only difference between our gym class example and the parable is this; we get to choose which team we are on!   We can say "yes" to God’s plan and strive to know and accomplish His will in our lives; or we can say "no", and choose to live a life that is selfish and self-centered. We get to choose whether we live as "wheat" or as "weeds."

Today’s parable is both realistic and optimistic.  We go to church, not because we are saints, but because we are sinners, sinners who know we are sinners, but who are willing to strive for something better.The main point of this parable is clear:  up to the last judgment, the Kingdom will be a mixed bag of good and evil.  Our Lord is inviting us to change and today He gives us the opportunity and encouragement to do so.  "Whoever has ears ought to hear!"

 

Deacon Brian Clements is a retired member of the retreat team at Mater Dolorosa Retreat Center in Sierra Madre, California

Scripture:

Jeremiah 7:1-11
Matthew 13:24-30

Reflection:

In today’s Old Testament reading we hear that God wants his people to learn that they must reform – and how does he want them to reform? God wants them to deal justly with their neighbor;

to no longer oppress the resident alien,
the orphan, or widow;
to stop shedding innocent blood,
or following strange gods,

Only then will God remain with them in this place. How often do we pray in these words:  "God be with us." Can we hear God saying to us that if we want Him to be with us, we must change our behavior? We have to make good choices.

God goes on to incredulously ask if the people of Judah can actually come to stand before him even though they steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, and worship strange gods. We too, should ask if we dare stand before God in our sinfulness.  It’s only because we know of God’s mercy and love that we can stand before our God.

The Gospel today is about the wheat and the weeds. This can be a pretty disturbing message. It is certainly much easier to think about God’s love and mercy than to think about God’s punishment. But of course, what we are really being encouraged to do here is to be the wheat. The message is not about how severe the punishment will be, but rather that God really wants us to make the right choices.

If you’ve ever raised a teenager, you can relate to God’s frustration in these two readings. Remember thinking (or saying), "How can I get through to this kid?" He doesn’t seem to hear a single thing I say. First, you may have tried saying something like, if we are going to have a good relationship, you need to straighten up. How can we support you when you act like this? Then perhaps you move on to asking in disbelief, how can you stand there looking so innocent when we both know you’ve done this or that. And finally, you try the carrot and the stick method. If you do better, you’ll get more privileges, rewards and lots of good things but if you don’t measure up, you’re grounded and you’ll lose all your privileges. You just wanted your child to make the right choices.  And through all the worry, frustration and anger, you still managed to love your son or daughter. Does God do any less with us?

 

Mary Lou Butler is a long-time friend and partner in ministry to the Passionists in California. 

Scripture:

2 Kings 4:42-44
Ephesians 4:1-6
John 6:1-15

Reflection:

The story of Jesus feeding a crowd of five thousand with a few loaves and fishes and its precursor in the story of Elisha from the Book of Kings are reassuring reminders of how much God loves us.  Two questions come up in both of these narratives.  The first question is one which comes up every time we prepare a meal for others.

Will there be enough for everybody?

In both readings there is a concern raised over whether a little bit of food will be enough for the crowds.  Andrew asks Jesus, "There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many?"  The answer is revealed as everyone in the crowd is fed until they are satisfied.  The simple truth in the story is that God’s love is more than enough for us all.  Even when we are suffering we can be assured of the abundance of God’s love for us.  The second question comes up after we prepare a meal and it’s time to do the dishes.

What should we do with the leftovers?

Jesus tells the disciples to gather up any leftovers.  "Gather the fragments left over, so that nothing will be wasted."  This is much more than a Tupperware opportunity.  Not only are we to partake fully in consuming God’s abundant love; we also must give this life giving love away to others.  We must give from our abundance.  Our baptism in God’s loving grace fills our souls.  We in turn must give this grace to others in every human interaction.  This can be as simple as a loving smile, a helpful hand or a compassionate act.

I love this story.  It clearly reminds me of how hungry I am for God’s love in my life.  It also reminds me of how much I need to share this experience of grace with others.  My prayerful reflection can be summed up in an old spiritual.

"Fill my cup Lord, I lift it up Lord.  Come and quench this thirsting of my soul.  Bread of heaven, feed me till I want no more.  Fill my cup, fill it up and make me whole."

 

Terry McDevitt, Ph.D. is a member of our Passionist Family who volunteers at the Passionist Assisted Living Community in Louisville, Kentucky.

Feast of Saints Joachim and Anne,
parents of  the Blessed Virgin Mary 

Scripture:

Jeremiah 2:1-3, 7-8, 12-13
Matthew 13:10-17

Reflection:

Sitting in the faculty lounge during my first year of teaching, I was surrounded by the cumulative wisdom of seasoned teachers, many of whom taught me.  The conversation that particular day was quite disturbing.  The foibles of adolescents in high school were paraded out for all to lament.  Their inattentiveness, tardiness, stubbornness, laziness, and overall snarky nature exacerbated these teachers.  "Well," I ventured to say, "if they’re to be perfect, then they really don’t need us, do they?  Isn’t this why we’re all here?"  That cleared the room.

Just as Jeremiah was sent as a prophet to the people of Israel, God sends parents, teachers and preachers to help us find our way during those times in our lives when we get lost.  Jeremiah was a reluctant prophet, and referred to as the "Weeping Prophet" for all the suffering he endured in calling the people of Israel back to their Covenant with God.  What parent or teacher, what confessor or counselor is not also rightly called a weeping prophet?

We are stubborn learners.  We resist new ideas or ways of doing things that force us out of our comfort zones and familiar ways.  We wander like roaming sheep without thought that we are lost…we just don’t know where we are, as my grandfather liked to clarify when we were actually lost.  Learning, healing and reconciling begins, to borrow the First Step in AA, with admitting that one cannot control one’s addiction or compulsion.  We have to admit we are lost.

Each of us can identify those in our lives who were a prophet to us.  Maybe they were in the classroom.  Maybe at home.  On the playing field.  In a doctor’s office.  They were sent by God to help us find our centers, our hearts, our meaning and hope.  They were our personal prophets who were not afraid to stand up to speak what needed to be said, whether we liked it or not.

Today’s memorial feast honors Sts. Joachim and Anne, the parents of Mary.  History actually does not record their names and there is no mention of them at all in the Gospels.  But no matter their names, we know Mary had parents who helped guide her to a moment of truth when she said to the Angel Gabriel, "Let it be done to me according to your Word."  She was open to learning from a rather strange visitor the meaning of the Word of God in her life. 

The Gospel today begs us to have ears that hear, eyes that see, and hearts that understand.  That means we need to surround ourselves with those who will be prophets for us, who will help us learn what God desires for us.

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.