Daily Scripture

Scripture:

2 Corinthians 9:6-10
John 12:24-26

Reflection:

My husband died suddenly when I was 25 and our son Carl was 7 months old.  When Carl was almost 5, God gifted me with Ken, who asked me to marry him.  Rather than being elated, I found myself faced with a tortuous decision.  I knew with a clarity borne of suffering that we were both going to die and there was a 50-50 chance Ken would die first.  If I said yes, if I gave my entire life and my whole heart to him, I risked going through this hell all over again.  

I prayed and agonized over my decision.  Could my heart survive being torn apart a second time?  Could I expose my son to the risk that he’d have two daddies die?  If I said no I would lose Ken anyway. Yet it would happen immediately, when our lives were not so intertwined and it was easier to say goodbye.  I could stay safe and avoid the potential of profound pain.

And yet, saying no meant I would miss the potential for great joy.  I would be safe, but I would not be stretched, remaining a seed that refused to be broken open by life.  I would deprive myself and my son of the depth of relationship that can only happen when one risks it all.  I would be saying no to the cross, and no to the fullness of life to which God calls me.  Is that what I wanted for myself?  And is that the model I wanted to give my son?

With quaking heart I said yes.  Carl now has two brothers, Ken and I will celebrate our 25^th wedding anniversary in October, and our family is rich in joy and love.  Yes, Ken will die, and there is still a 50-50 chance he will die first, but the pains of hell that follow will be more than worth it for the happiness we have shared.  In a very profound way, I had to lose my life, my sense of security, my desire for control, and the safety of the familiar in order to follow where God called. 

My decision of 25 years ago continues to inform my life as the challenge of risking, losing, and giving without measure is constantly present.  How often do I make easy decisions instead of stretching myself beyond what I think is possible?  In what ways do I try to control and hold onto my children instead of letting them grow away from me with freedom to become who God created them to be?  Of what situations, possessions, or attitudes do I need to let go?  How cheerfully do I give my time, acceptance, forgiveness, and love?  Where do I look for security, and how tenaciously do I cling when I think I’ve found it? 

I don’t know what the future holds, but I know these challenges will never cease.  I pray I have the courage to sow bountifully, give my heart fully, and lose the safety of my current life for the boundless love of Christ.

 

Amy Florian is a teacher and consultant working in Chicago.  For many years she has partnered with the Passionists.  Visit Amy’s website at http://www.amyflorian.com/.

Scripture:

Deuteronomy 6:4-13
Matthew 17:14-20

Reflection:

Jesus speaks about "mountain moving" faith in the Gospel. Sir Edmund Hillary was the first to ever climb Mount Everest. What few know is that he lost one of his men to death in a failed first attempt. Sometime later a group of reporters were questioning him about the climb. Behind the podium was a picture of the majestic Mount Everest. When Hillary saw the picture he spoke, "You have defeated me, but I will defeat you. You can’t get any bigger, but I can."

We usually use our words to speak about our mountains. We use statements such as these: "This is too hard." "It’ll never happen for me." "I guess my best days are behind me." "How can I ever overcome these obstacles?" In life it is easy to focus on the problems and difficulties and talk about them. Jesus challenges us to speak to them in a positive way. There is power in our words. The way we speak displays our hearts and can determine our destiny. 

Today is the memorial of St. Dominic who founded the Order of Preachers. Preachers are those who instill hope and faith in others through their words. As Passionists our primary call is to inspire faith and new possibilities through the use of words. Words are containers of power. Speak to your mountains and discover that "nothing will be impossible for you."

Fr. Cedric Pisegna, C.P. is a missionary preacher, author of 12 books and creator of the TV program Live with Passion! airing in many cities. You can learn more about his ministry at: http://www.frcedric.org/

Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord

Scripture:

Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14
2 Peter 1:16-19
Mark 9:2-10

Reflection:

I could tell you that I don’t like brussels sprouts unless they have maple butter on them. You could quote me, saying, "He doesn’t like brussels sprouts." Obviously this is a quote out of context. Your quote suggests that I don’t like brussels sprouts at all, never, ever. Context is very important. In a piece of writing, or a speech, what precedes and follows a word or passage contributes to the full meaning of what is being said. The use of context gives a more accurate meaning to a statement.

Today’s Gospel reading is better appreciated in context. In the preceding chapter, before Jesus took Peter, James and John up a high mountain, he asked them, "Who do people say I am?" After being pressed, Peter said, "You are the Messiah, the Christ." Before they could triumph in their close relationship with this "Messiah" and what glory that would bring them, Jesus reveals the future: suffering, rejection and death. This was such a terrible shock to the apostles; they couldn’t accept it. Peter cries out, "This cannot happen to you!" Jesus replies, "Get behind me, Satan."

It is in this depressing situation of misunderstanding and disillusionment that the Transfiguration takes place, six days later. On the mountain Jesus is suddenly transformed. Moses and Elijah appear to be talking with Jesus. The message is clear: Moses and Elijah fully endorse what Jesus is doing and saying and the future he has foretold about his suffering and death. Then a cloud appears and covers them. This was not simply a change in the weather. For a Jewish person, it represented the presence of Yahweh. A voice from the cloud declares: "This is my beloved Son; listen to him." A supreme endorsement of the Son by his Father. Yes, listen to him even when he says things that you don’t like, things that you do not yet understand.

This special moment of encouragement will help the apostles through the difficult days ahead, though they will not fully understand until after the Resurrection and the Ascension, when they will boldly proclaim the Cross and not hesitate to carry daily their own cross.

The second reading invites us to meditate on this event, "as a lamp shining in a dark place." May the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ be an encouragement to us to faithfully continue our journey, even when we don’t understand all that God is doing in our lives.

 

Fr. Don Webber, C.P. is Provincial Superior of Holy Cross Province and resides in Chicago.

Scripture:

Numbers 13:1-2, 25-14:1, 26-29a, 34-35
Matthew 15:21-28

Reflection:

Holy Frustration

Our Exodus story continues,  and  I’m feeling inside myself a tremendous amount of frustration. 

Before speaking of the frustration, this isn’t merely a historical story, leaving us detached and gazing at a historical event. We are connected to the story because these are our ancestors.  Moreover, the story of our lives is a journey story which has strong parallels with this Exodus story.  Let’s go back to the frustration.

Recall how this story begins.  It begins in frustration with our ancestors being slaves in a foreign country.  Through the events of liberation we move out of slavery but yet we end up moving into more frustration.  We grumble. We are hungry! We grumble. We are thirsty!  We grumble.  We are tired of this flaky starchy manna.  We grumble.  We even want to go back to being slaves.   Because even when we were slaves life was more predictable.  And we’re frustrated. This journey story has a lot of frustration.  After so many years, we finally learn how to live out in the desert, and to trust that God will give us sustenance, our children are born, our elders die, and finally we come to the Promised Land. If only it were that easy.  For before us is more frustration.  So today as we hear the reading we sit on the edge of the Promised Land gazing in.  And after all this time, we cannot enter.  We must wait some more time.  We must continue our journey.  But aren’t our feet tired and our bodies weary?

A couple of years ago we expanded our labyrinth here at the retreat center. A labyrinth is a walking journey prayer.  It moves one from the outside to the inside and there is only one path.  Retreatants frequently reflect back to me how quickly they think they are getting to their destination.  However, if one continues to walk the labyrinth they realize that just as you begin getting close to your destination, the path turns.  In the labyrinth you end up walking a path which leads you out, away from, and all around the destination you are trying to reach.  Retreatants frequently will say how this mirrors life.  The mirroring of life of the labyrinth is also the truth we see in this first reading.  Just when we think we are getting to where we need to be going, God gives us a detour. 

Do we not see the same issue in the Gospel?  Jesus is very clear of his mission.  His mission is "to the lost sheep of the house of Israel".  Those are his words.  Yet this woman, who is an outsider, refuses to take Jesus’ "no" seriously. 

One way of looking at this story is that the need and frustration of the woman lead her to Jesus.  Notice she is not disrespectful.  She honors him and pays him homage, even calling him, "Lord".    She does not accept Jesus’ "No".  Her frustration has led her here.  She stays in the frustration and keeps pushing Jesus.  She will even take Jesus analogy and throw out an argument simply because of her desperation. 

Have you ever had an experience of a holy frustration?  Perhaps it was around issues of finance, health, or the raising of your children.  If you have, I invite you to take some time today to allow these readings to speak to that experience. 

 

Fr. David Colhour, C.P. is on the staff at Christ the King Passionist Retreat Center, Citrus Heights, California.

Feast of St. John Mary Vianney

Scripture:

Numbers 12:1-13
Matthew 14:22-36

Reflection:

Foibles and Fear — Faith and Forgiveness

St. John Mary Vianney, today’s celebrated saint, was known for his generous ministry of the Sacrament of Reconciliation…many sought God’s forgiveness and encouragement through the pastoral care of the Cure of Ars!  Now, years later, our own sharing in the Sacrament of Reconciliation invites us to acknowledge our failures, overcome our fears, and faithfully seek God’s forgiveness and love.

Our readings highlight God’s continued outreach to us in our foibles and fears.  In the Book of Numbers, Aaron and Miriam mistakenly grumbled to God about Moses’ personal conduct; realizing the gravity of their mistake, Moses interceded for them and asked God to remove the leprosy which had afflicted Miriam.  The words of Psalm 51 are an inspired plea for God’s mercy, prayed by all sorts of saints and sinners.  Today’s Gospel selection from Matthew highlights Peter’s lack of faith as he tried to cross the choppy waters of the lake, and Jesus’ literal reaching out to him to save him from drowning.  In these scripture selections, "human nature" tried to get in the way of God’s loving plan for people – and yet nothing can hinder God’s fidelity and unconditional love for us.

God invites us to benefit from regular, in-depth reflection on our personal spiritual lives.  Are we growing?  Has personal sinfulness clouded our view of people and our world?  Is our faith strong enough to carry us over troubled waters?  Are we humble enough to reach out for the help that God offers us in so many ways, especially through the Sacraments?  Such questions and reflection are at the heart of our Passionist retreats, parish missions, and other ministries.

And, "Cheerleaders" abound for us in living the Christian life — Moses, Miriam, Aaron, Peter, John Mary Vianney, Paul of the Cross … to name just a few!  Their lives witness that our foibles and fears are divinely outmatched by God’s forgiveness and love, if we faithfully open our hearts to Jesus Crucified.  Indeed He awaits us with outstretched arms, a loving smile, and a warm embrace.

 

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

Scripture:

Numbers 11:4b-15
Matthew 14:13-21

Reflection:

The Word of God is so clear today and shines a bright light on our own challenges when we are faced with, seemingly, insurmountable difficulties. Personally, I work with another Passionist priest, Fr. Bob Crossmyer, C.P.,  and a team of laity who are doing everything possible to maintain the launching of a college preparatory high school that invites only students from low income homes ($40,000.00 combined income or less) to attend. They are welcome here, provided they are willing to: 1. work, once  week,-at  an entry level, corporate job where they earn 70% of their tuition, 2.  do homework and maintain good grades, and, 3. set their aim on going to college. This program actually breaks the cycle of poverty (raised in poor neighborhood,get  poor education,have poor job, resulting in living in a poor neighborhood).This is the work of Jesus who says to us in the "deserted place" of his day: "They need not go away; you give them something to eat…Bring them here to me."  "…here to me," in our case, is the Catholic school  system. It is the Body of Christ, the Church working in our midst.

One of the interesting spiritual phenomena in doing something about insurmountable difficulties in Jesus name is that we are changed and transformed in the process. God is going to do what God wills, and desires that we act according to the image of God. That is the shaping and forming that goes on. The image of God in Christ is a powerful  one of compassion, not doing miracles. I suppose that Jesus could have said something like "don’t worry guys, I’ve got these resources that will take of it." No, it was the power of compassion. I know the distractions of lack of funds, and, just cutting corners and making excuses are easy cop-outs to faithfully taking action through  compassion. Why is a team, a "body," so important? More often than not I don’t feel the compassion, the challenges can drain me. Moses had this issue when he complained to God; he had had it. God would subsequently gather 72 to share in the responsibilities which Moses bore. The compassion of another team member just gives everyone the impetus to follow through. Maybe that is what happened when the disciples began distributing the meager amount of food available and then collected "twelve baskets full" of leftovers.  Faith in the face of the insurmountable, through compassion, gets communicated somehow  through His Body on earth. It is a matter of paying attention.

 

Fr. Alex Steinmiller, C.P. is the president of Holy Family Cristo Rey Catholic High School, Ensley, Alabama.  

Scripture:

Exodus 16:2-4, 12-15
Ephesians 4:17, 20-24
John 6:24-35

Reflection:

Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves." This is how Jesus responded to the people who searched him out after the feeding of the multitude which we read about last Sunday. This response unlocks for me the message behind the readings for this Sunday. Similar to the structure of last week’s readings this week we are again reading and learning about an historical incident linked with a spiritual message in the Gospel, a similar incident in the Hebrew Scriptures, and a virtue-based message by St. Paul that is related to these incidents. Once again Bread becomes the symbolic instrument for the spiritual message.

A similar (but perhaps less tactful) response that Jesus could have made to these people is that they are "thinking with their stomachs and not with their hearts." In the case of the feeding of the multitude or in the manna that comes from heaven it seems that the people who are affected are seeing this as a form of divine welfare policy. God and Jesus are both suggesting to the people that this is not the case. In both incidents there is certainly the implied message that God will provide, but the heart of the message is not that. Instead what it is desired is that the people see this test or sign as an opportunity for them to relate with each other in a way that is similar to how God is treating them. This is an invitation not just to eat, but to share and to "perform the works of God."   

St. Paul also reminds us that this is an opportunity for us to put away our "former way of life… and to be renewed in the spirit." In this letter Paul reminds the Ephesian community that in the former way of life the Gentiles were "lost of all sensitivity and have abandoned themselves to licentiousness, greedy to practice every kind of impurity." Following these verses we hear St. Paul offering some rules for the new life in Christ. These rules are based on a close relationship of solidarity to one another. We are expected to be truthful, slow to anger, compassionate and sharing. "Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us."

These miracles can only be truly understood as part of the overall message that we are called to be in powerful relationship. On occasions God demonstrates this relationship between each one of us, our Divine Creator, and the cosmic forces of creation. These moments that we consider supernatural are moments where all creation testifies to the intense relationship that God calls us to be in. The manna from heaven, the feeding of the multitude, the resurrection of Christ, all these are moments that demonstrate a divine purpose where all of us are called to be in relationship with God and with each other. This relationship is a relationship based on love, integrity, and mutual sustainability.

 

John Gonzalez is the Executive Director of the Passionist office for Peace, Justice and the Integrity of Creation.  He lives with his family in New York.

Scripture:

Exodus 40:16-21, 34-38
Matthew 13:47-53

Reflection:

Today’s Responsorial Psalm is from Psalm 84: "How lovely is your dwelling-place, Lord, mighty God!"

Our first reading from Exodus directs our attention to the Dwelling that housed the Ark of the Covenant.  The Dwelling was carefully constructed by Moses, and was considered a holy place.

In every Catholic church we have a tabernacle.  The Blessed Sacrament is kept in the tabernacle.  And reverently we genuflect to the Lord present there when we enter the church. The tabernacle is considered a very holy place.

However, there is some place holier than the Dwelling Moses built.  There is some place holier than a tabernacle.  And that "place" is the baptized Christian.   St. Paul tells us, "Do you not know that you are a temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in you (1 Cor 3:16 )? "

A tabernacle may be made of gold and covered with diamonds.  But it is still just a thing.  It has no mind, no will, and no heart.  It is not alive.

We are living tabernacles, with minds that can know truth, wills that choose good, and hearts that can love.  What a wonder of creation and grace is the human person in whom God dwells. How lovely is the dwelling-place that is you!

St. Augustine said, "Those who are filled with love are filled with God."  The people of the Old Testament had a cloud and fire that directed their journey through the desert.  We of the New Testament have the words of Christ and grace of the Holy Spirit directing us on a journey of love.  Filled with God, we advance with grateful hearts.

 

Fr. Alan Phillip, C.P. is a member of the Passionist community in Sierra Madre, California.