Daily Scripture

Feast of St. Francis de Sales

Scripture:

Hebrews 9:15, 24-28
Mark 3:22-30

Reflection:

Today we celebrate the feast of St Francis de Sales.    He was born at Thorens, in the Duchy of Savoy, August 21, 1567.   One of the more beautiful memories of my life was visiting his tomb in the Visitation Convent of Annecy.   The convent overlooks the second biggest lake in France called Lake Annecy.   Francis de Sales is a wonderful inspiration for the practice of prayer, love of religious life, and devotion to the written word.   

But what has always impressed me was his love for the Catholic Church.  After his ordination he volunteered to evangelize the district of Le Chablais where the Genevans had imposed the Reformed Faith.   For three years he risked his life by journeying through the entire district to convert the 60,000 Calvinists back to Catholicism.    For three years, he trudged through the countryside, had doors slammed in his face and rocks thrown at him. In the bitter winters, his feet froze so badly they bled as he tramped through the snow. He slept in haylofts if he could, but once he slept in a tree to avoid wolves. He tied himself to a branch to keep from falling out and was so frozen the next morning he had to be cut down.  After three years he did not have one convert!  

Francis’ unusual patience kept him working. No one would listen to him, no one would even open their door. So Francis found a way to get under the door. He wrote out his sermons, copied them by hand, and slipped them under the doors.  By the time Francis left to go home he is said to have converted 40,000 people back to Catholicism.

Francis saw how terribly important the ancient truth of the Catholic faith was.   In our anxiousness to appreciate the beauty of the faith of our separated brothers and sisters, have we the zeal he had to share the fullness of our traditions?

 

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

 

Scripture:

Isaiah 8:23-9:3
1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17
Matthew 4:12-23

Reflection:

In our Gospel reading from Matthew, we hear the account of Jesus calling His first disciples in Galilee. When Jesus sees Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea, He says to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of people." So Simon and Andrew leave their nets and follow Him. Jesus then comes upon James and John, who are also fishermen. They are mending their nets. Jesus calls them, and they leave everything, and follow Jesus.

The image of James and John mending their nets speaks to me about discipleship. For a fisherman, mending one’s nets is a worthwhile thing. But if James and John continued mending their nets, they could not follow Jesus.

Sometimes there are things that we continue to do that prevent us from following Jesus. Our reading from Isaiah says, "The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone." Sometimes we hold on to the "gloom" in our lives because, as painful as it may be, it still is more comfortable than making the changes necessary to live a better life. At other times, we may hold on to the "darkness" of our prejudices and biases, rather than taking the risk to love as Jesus loves.

The challenge for us is to answer the call to follow Jesus. To do that, we need to discern what we need to hold on to, and what we need to leave behind. As we continue our spiritual journey, we find that there are more and more things we need to leave behind. For instance, we may have begun loving others in order to get love in return. But as we follow Jesus, we realize that He loves us without conditions. And so we are called to love without calculating what we might receive in return. Another example is doing what we do in order to get esteem or applause. Our call is to use our gifts for the sake of the Good News, not for our own glory!

The ability to discern what we need to let go of, and the willingness to let go of these things, do not come from us. They are gifts of God’s grace. But as we are more and more open to following Jesus, we will receive the grace we need to be His disciples. The more we are His disciples, the more people who "live in darkness" will see a "great light," the light of Christ bringing forth God’s love to the world!

 

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

 

             

Scripture:

Hebrews 9:2-3, 11-14
Mark 3:20-21

Reflection:

"He entered once for all into the sanctuary."  Hebrews 9:11

Jesus made a way for us to enter into the very throne room of God! I wonder how often we realize that God invites us into the sanctuary, into His very presence whenever we please. Do you think that if I showed up at the White House, I would be ushered into President Obama’s oval office just because I said I wanted to see him??? Of course not!!! And yet the King of kings and the Lord of lords allows us access to His presence every day, 24 hrs a day! You don’t even have to make an appointment!

We get so busy each day, maybe we should write "appointment with God" into our day planners. If we set a time, and pick a place without distractions, and unplug the phone if we have to, maybe we will actually slow down enough to enter in. The benefits are amazing: peace beyond understanding; strength for the day; joy for the journey; the knowledge that we are loved unconditionally and the assurance of a forever home in heaven. It doesn’t get any better than that!

Take time each day to enter into God’s awesome presence, and worship the living God who is always available to you. Thank Him for all of your blessings, and like Mary, "ponder these things in your heart." Let Him love you and guide you and forgive you and teach you and comfort you and give you everything you could possibly need. What are we waiting for?

 

Janice Carleton and her husband Jim live in Portland, OR and partner with Passionist Fr. Cedric Pisegna in Fr. Cedric Ministries. Janice also leads women’s retreats. She is the mother of 4 grown children and grandmother of 4. Visit Janice’s website at http://www.jcarleton.com/ or email her at janice@frcedric/org

 

 

Memorial of St. Agnes 

Scripture:

Hebrews 8:6-13
Mark 3:13-19

Reflection:

Our parish church in Louisville is named after St. Agnes.  She was a young girl in the ranks of the early church martyrs, who gave her life as witness to her faith in Christ.  She went about this distinctively enough to merit incorporation into the Eucharistic prayer of the church, taking her place with other outstanding members of the primitive church.

Since her name, Agnes, bears close resemblance to the Latin word "agnus", which means "lamb", on this day the wool is sheered off two lambs, and is made into the pallium, a distinctive neck-pendant worn by archbishops, given them annually by the Pope on June 29^th of each year.  This may be the closest a young woman like Agnes comes to the office of archbishop, at least for awhile.

Archbishops are the contemporary successors of the twelve men appearing in today’s gospel, whom Jesus appoints as "the twelve", naming them "apostles".  They were to carry on the mainline work of preaching and casting out demons.  Their emergence is a significant development in the budding ministry of Jesus as He broadens His ministry, and prepares for the future.  For He was about something new.  The number "twelve" that He honors on this occasion refers back to a venerable usage among the Jews, referring to the sons of the patriarch Jacob as founders of the twelve tribes of Israel.  Jesus now extends its use to another set of persons who are to help found a new Israel, a different people of God, the church.  Rooted in the past, it points to a distinctive future.

Today’s Hebrews reading spells out this future by borrowing from the prophet Jeremiah’s  reflections on the covenant, a sacred instrument at the heart of ancient Jewish history.  Jeremiah prophesies continuing prominence for the covenant, but in a significantly new way, since it will not be written on scrolls but will be embossed on the human heart, close to us as our guide and direction, even as it was for the young Agnes.

The apostles, newly minted by Jesus, exemplify this new covenantal relationship with God, and the metropolitan archbishops, garnished with their pallium, symbolize this today.  A covenantal relationship to God remains forever central in establishing a relationship to God, but, as in the case of ancient Israel, it has to be renewed innumerable times.  In our time too, the covenantal bonding with God needs constant repair and maintenance.  During this annual week of prayer for church unity, we are mindful of the various understandings of the covenant prevailing among the many Christian churches and fellowships.  Each vies to be faithful in keeping the covenant, but differs one from the other in doing so.

St. Agnes reflects the heart of the covenant, as its fairest flower.  Upon the apostles and (arch)bishops falls the responsibility of maintaining it in the hearts of us all.  Fortunately, there are counterparts of Agnes in every age, and in each of the Christian churches and denominations.  For did not Jeremiah prophesy: "…all shall know me, from least to greatest.  For I will forgive their evildoing and remember their sins no more."?

 

Fr. Sebastian MacDonald, C.P. is a member of the Passionist formation community at Catholic Theological Union, Chicago. 

 

 

Scripture:

Hebrews 7:1-3, 15-17
Mark 3:1-6

Reflection:

"Looking around at them with anger and grieved at their hardness of heart, Jesus said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out and his hand was restored." Mark 3:5

The other day, I was having lunch with a religious. We do not know each other well, but well enough to join other religious for an occasional breakfast after Sunday Mass. Our conversations range from everything religious to sports and weather. This time, someone mentioned the political posturing that was taking place over social issues, such as the "Dream Act," (an immigration issue), giving the uninsured a chance at insurance and helping those who suddenly find themselves jobless and even homeless. Some of us were surprised at the reaction this religious had to these issues. He thought that the Federal Government should not get involved in the personal lives of other people, even though they were suffering and unable to resolve their situations by themselves alone.

As a member of the Passionist General Council, I have had an opportunity to travel around the world. I see suffering and poverty in such places as Mexico, El Salvador, India, Indonesia, Africa, and Papua New Guinea. I believe that we can look at suffering and hopelessness by either being compassionate or by hardening our hearts. The more compassionate we are, the more involved we become in trying to respond to these enormous challenges, sometimes one person at a time. The more we harden our hearts, the less responsibility we take for the pain and suffering that exists around us.

If we harden our hearts, we find it difficult to offer life-giving solutions to those who are in need. And we are less likely to get involved in resolving these sufferings. In today’s Gospel, this attitude of hardness of heart was being solidified in the Synagogue, the place where the Word of God was read and an instruction on the meaning of that Word was given. In this Gospel passage, we see a familiar drama played out: the Pharisees harden their heart against Jesus because he wanted to heal a man with a withered hand on the Sabbath, and the compassion of Jesus as he encountered personal suffering. Jesus did not only become very sad at their reaction, but he also became angry at the Pharisee’s attitude.

I believe that these Scriptures should lead us to ask ourselves, do we make Jesus sad and angry with our attitudes, especially with our attitudes toward those who are suffering greatly and do not know how to resolve their suffering? Sometimes, we can take approaches like "tough love" to mask our hardness of heart. We are there for the "deserving" poor, but our heart doesn’t ache for those whom we think deserve their lot in life. And like the Pharisees, we want these solutions done in the proper way.

It is much more difficult to be Christian these days, not because we are afraid to say the "right thing" but because our lack of compassion distances us from those who find themselves in need. We can always come up with laws, norms and regulations why we should not reach out to those in need. On the other hand, we can become more like Jesus, whose heart is being continually moved with compassion when he encountered great pain and suffering. To be a Christian today is not just about being able to say the right thing, but to love and heal as Jesus did, to have a loving, compassionate heart. We pray for that grace!

 

Fr. Clemente Barron, C.P. is a member of the General Council of the Passionist Congregation and is stationed in Rome.

Scripture:

Hebrews 4:12-16
Mark 2:13-17

Reflection:

Jesus breaks the boundaries and expectations of the religious leaders of his day by calling Levi to be one of his disciples.  Levi’s friends were fellow tax collectors and "sinners", maybe the type of people that did not follow the strict dietary and purification code of the Pharisees. The scribes and Pharisees were very particular in keeping these outward observances and thought themselves "better" than the common people. Jesus breaks through this attitude with the declaration: "Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners."

Lord, like the author of the Letter to the Hebrews, I am grateful that you are able to sympathize with my weaknesses. May I always be aware of my sinfulness. You discern my reflections and thoughts of my heart. I am not afraid. I confidently approach you "to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help". 

 

Fr. Michael Hoolahan, C.P. is on the staff of Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center, Sierra Madre, California.

 

Scripture:

Hebrews 3:7-14
Mark 1:40-45

Reflection:

"If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts."

All of us have prayed and read this verse from Hebrews many times. We might remember a time in our lives when we realized that our heart had become hardened, perhaps towards a friend who distressingly had hurt our feelings, towards community or church. Then, a remark from a loved one touched us.

Or seeing great beauty in nature moved us. Maybe it was at a recent Christmas concert that we realized that our heart had become hardened, and a beautiful voice moved us to tears. Then, like the leper in today’s gospel, we turned to Jesus and said: "If you wish, you can make me clean."  If you wish, you can restore my heart, our hearts, to be like yours: full of compassion for all.

In a world filled with too much unnecessary pain and suffering–too much hardness of heart, we turn to the One on the cross. Saint Bernard of Clairvaux wrote: "Unhappy is he who carries the cross of Jesus but who is not with Jesus." 

During this New Year, we can pray that we and all Christians, all of goodwill, have a compassionate heart. This heart, like Jesus’, and beating in union with his, will move us to action for all in distress. In Haiti, Houston, Birmingham, Chicago, wherever we are, we will be happy and know happiness as we carry the cross of Jesus and are WITH him and all of our sisters and brothers.

 

Fr. Bob Bovenzi, C.P. is stationed in Houston, Texas.

Scripture:

Hebrews 2:14-18
Mark 1:29-39

Reflection:

Years ago, dear friends, I saw a fellow walking through East Los Angeles with a very interesting expression printed on his baseball cap, or cachucha as they often say in Spanish.  I will translate for you, but first the expression:  Que viva la suegra….muy lejos de aqui!  Very tongue in cheek, the lines on the cap read:  Long live (my) mother-in-law…very far away from here!  There you are, another mother-in-law joke!  Not having a mother-in-law I am hardly in a position to comment on why such genre exists in humor, be it jokes told on a stage or expressions found on a young man’s baseball cap.  However, the jokes are out there and, as we discover in a passage from today’s Gospel, even Simon Peter had one…a mother-in-law that is, not a joke!  And the Lord loved her very much and cured her from a debilitating fever, even as he cured many others in the same town.  Naturally, the people flocked to the front door of Peter’s home searching and hoping for something miraculous to happen.  Yet, Jesus’ response was most revealing as he later said very quietly, "Let us go on to the nearby villages that I may preach there also.  For this purpose have I come."  How often we seek the Lord for his miraculous cure and healing touch, yet more important to the Lord is that we listen to his message, to the heart of his preaching as the one sent to us by God.

In our beautiful passage from Paul’s letter to the Hebrews we learn even more about this one who was sent by God for our sake.  Paul tells us that Jesus is just like us, one who shares in blood and in flesh.  And because he is one like us in all things but sin Jesus has the power even to overcome "the one who has the power of death, that is, the Devil."  And still more heartening and endearing is Paul’s reminder that Jesus did not come to help angels, but rather, to bring his healing message to us, the descendants of Abraham.  In this wonderful passage Paul concludes by saying, "Because he himself was tested through what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested."  Jesus, the one sent by God, the one who is just like us, the one who knows the meaning of suffering and struggle, he is the one, our faithful high priest who stands before God on our behalf.  What hope and encouragement God’s holy Word gives us this day!

 

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