Daily Scripture

 

Scripture:

Exodus 12: 1-8, 11-14
1 Corinthians 11: 23-16
John 13:1-5

 

 

Reflection:

Tonight is a day of "re-membering". The community gathers to remember and celebrate the stories. Tonight we begin with the story of Exodus: The story of Passover, when the Angel of God passed over the doorway marked with the blood of the sacrificed lamb and

the marvelous works that God did for the chosen people in leading them out of Egypt, away from slavery and repression, through the desert of Sinai and into the promised land.

Remembering is the essence of the ritual.  It makes present in history the story and the promises. What God did in ages past for the chosen ones, God does now, for those gathered at the table of Eucharist.  The story continues in every generation.

On this night, we remember Jesus of John’s Gospel…it is simple… Jesus intends to show his disciples how much he loves them before he leaves them… so , reversing the relationships, He, the master, takes off  his outer garments, gets on his knees and, he the Master,  washes their feet.  …After washing their feet, Jesus reclines at the table… challenges the disciples and us saying: "I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do…" 

In John’s gospel there is no specific ritual of the breaking of the bread and the sharing of the cup at the Last Supper.  For John’s community and for all the church, getting down on our knees in humble obedience is remembering Jesus’ example of a lifetime of service and performing those tasks that are needed in the world. 

In our second reading from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, he tells us to remember and to pass on what we have received from the Lord, exactly we have been given.  The words, actions and intent of Jesus are all important.  This is the core of our worship, our lives, our communities and our meaning as Christians.

With the Psalmist, today we respond:  Our Blessing cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ.  

As we reflect on the readings of this Holy Thursday, let us ponder deeply the questions and their meanings for our own lives now…

                        "Why is this night different from all others?"

                        "How am I being called to "wash the feet" of my brothers and sisters?

Marcella Fabing, ,csj, Christ the King Passionist Retreat Center, Citrus Heights, California. 

 

Scripture:

Isaiah 49:1-6
John 13:21-33, 36-38

Reflection:

Moses Mendelssohn, the great-grandfather of the famous German composer, was far from being a handsome man.  In fact, he was inflicted with a grotesque humpback.

One day when his family was visiting a merchant in Hamburg, Moses noticed the man’s beautiful daughter.  He fell hopelessly in love with her.  But she was repulsed by his misshapen appearance.

When it was time for him to leave, he gathered up all his courage to try to speak with her.  But this beautiful girl wouldn’t even look at him.  And this caused him much pain. After several attempts at conversation, Moses shyly asked, "Do you believe marriages are made in heaven?"

"Yes," she replied, still looking at the floor.  "And do you?"

"Yes I do," he replied.  "You see, in heaven, at the birth of each boy, the Lord announces which girl he will marry.  When I was born, my future bride was pointed out to me.  Then the Lord added, ‘But your wife will be humpbacked.’"

"Right then and there I called out, ‘Oh, Lord, a humpbacked woman would be a tragedy.  Please, Lord, give me the hump and let her be beautiful.’"

This beautiful girl looked up into his eyes.  Then she reached out and touched his hand.  Later she became his devoted wife.

The story reminded me of the words of the prophet Isaiah,

It was our infirmities (sins) that he bore, our sufferings that he endured." (Isaiah 53:4)

Indeed, Jesus took upon himself the infirmities of us all.  We who were once humpbacked with selfishness and sin have been made beautiful by the sufferings and death of Christ.

The apostle John would later write, "Love then consists of this: Not that we have loved God, but that God has loved us and sent his Son as an offering for our sins. If God has loved us so, we must have the same love for one another."  (1 John 4:10-11)

From the beauty God has bestowed upon us, we in turn are called upon to make our world more compassionate, more forgiving and more kind.

 

Fr. Alan Phillip, C.P. is a member of the Passionist Community at Mater Dolorosa Retreat Center, Sierra Madre, California.  http://www.alanphillipcp.com/

 

Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion

Scripture:

Isaiah 50:4-7
Philippians 2:6-11
Luke 22:14-23:56

Reflection:

Today we begin the most important week of our Church year.

Today’s Gospel seems to be almost a "coming attractions" notice.  We hear today of the events that we will be remembering during the coming week and especially through the beginning of the Triduum – the Last Supper, the betrayal, and the Passion and Death of Christ. 

And yet we begin our Liturgy with a celebration!  The Church reenacts the joyful entrance of Christ into Jerusalem.  It is easy to feel a little stymied at this mixture of messages.  What message can we take from this day? 

Perhaps one thing we can take away from this is that Jesus willing accepts his suffering because it is the will of the Father and because a wondrous thing will happen because of his suffering.  Humanity will be saved!  I think WE celebrate today BECAUSE of Jesus’ Passion and death.

We would do well during this Holy Week to remember the words of St. Paul of the Cross, the founder of the Passionist Congregation:

"Meditation on Jesus Christ crucified is a precious balm which sweetens all our pains."

All of us know some degree of pain and suffering in our lives.  Whether it is our own illness, the death of someone in our lives, or the disappointments and set-backs of daily life, we all suffer. As we gaze at Jesus on the Cross, our own sufferings, frailties, concerns and cares are somehow lightened.  St Paul of the Cross is giving us the best remedy for our pain and that is to meditate on Christ’s suffering.  The Passion and death of Jesus is the greatest act of love ever known. If we think about this, we realize that acceptance of our own problems can also be gift if we place them on the Cross. Today and throughout this coming week we celebrate this gift Christ has given us in His Crucifixion.  How blessed we are!

In our second reading, the letter to the Philippians, we are again reminded of just how great is this gift of Christ’ death and how we are to respond. 

"….every knee should bend,
of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord…"

So let us today give thanks and glory to Christ…let’s wave our palms high and shout "Hosanna!"  Our Savior is here!

 

Mary Lou Butler ([email protected]) is the interim administrator at Christ the King Passionist Retreat Center, Citrus Heights, California. 

Monday of Holy Week

Scripture:

Isaiah 42:1-7
John 12:1-11

Reflection:

"There are many people who can do big things, but there are very few people who will do the small things."  ~Mother Teresa

Mary must have known! They all must have known! As the closest followers of the Master, the man they all called "Rabboni," they must have suspected this visit to their home in Bethany might well be his last. They knew he was on his way to Jerusalem- Jerusalem, the holy city, but also the city that "kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it." (cf. Mt.23:37) He told them time and time again that it would be there that "the Son of Man must undergo great suffering and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the scribes and be killed…" (Cf. Mk 8:31) Surely his closest friends, the women who cared for him and the man he raised from the dead -surely they must have known the end was near.

It was into this atmosphere of unspoken sadness mixed with bewilderment that Mary chooses to show her love for her Master. One small act which would demonstrate to him her faithfulness, her devotion, her complete self dedication in the face of almost certain loss. She took the most precious possession they had – a small vial of costly perfumed oil and used it generously to wash the feet of her Teacher. Such a simple act which, although unknown to her at the time, would reverberate throughout the centuries as a sign of her selfless devotion.    

The more pragmatic viewed this action with a certain amount of disdain. "Why was this oil not sold for three hundred days’ wages and given to the poor?" Judas only spoke the words that were on the minds of everyone else. Yet Jesus pointed to the fact that Mary’s act was in itself prophetic. Unknowingly her simple act of devotion prepared the body of Jesus for his future burial. And besides Jesus stressed "you will always have the poor with you…"

Fast forward now to our current age, more precisely the day of January 12, 2010 – that Tuesday evening we received news of a disastrous earthquake in Haiti. Father Rick Frechette, Passionist priest and physician, was home in the U.S. tending to his dying mother. He wondered if St. Damian’s Hospital in Tabarre, Haiti’s only free children’s hospital he co-founded years ago, was still standing.  He wondered how severe the causalities were. Did his friends, co-workers, children survive?

Immediately returning to Haiti Father Frechette had 18 funerals in one day. He spent the remainder of his time treating those severely wounded. He worried and prayed for this people who have suffered so much, yet lived with so much faith, with so much hope.

The more pragmatic among us might think a man like Father Frechette crazy. How could what little he was able to do matter in the face of such devastating loss and despair??? What could such simple acts of faith mean? How could such small gestures of compassion and solidarity matter to a people experiencing the overwhelming results of a natural disaster?

Yet to me, Father Frechette’s simple acts of love and devotion make perfect sense, particularly in the light of today’s gospel. His presence and actions among his people encompasses the Passionist spirit in its totality. Father Frechette saw in his sisters and brothers the suffering face of Jesus the Christ and because of his love for Christ in them he could do no less.

As we enter more deeply into this holiest of weeks, what simple act of love and compassion will you do? How will you demonstrate your devotion to Christ to those who are considered the least or the lost or the lacking?  

 

Patrick Quinn ([email protected]) is the director of Planned Giving at the Passionist Development Office in Chicago.

 

Scripture:
Ezekiel 37:21-28
Luke 11:45-56

Reflection:
Today’s Gospel reading follows the raising of Lazarus at the house of Mary and Martha.  That’s especially important to note because of the unspeakable evil that is about to transpire in the wake of that great miracle. 

We learn that many who saw this miracle "believed."  But others, it seems perhaps out of fear, went immediately to inform the Jewish authorities-the Pharisees and the Sadducees.  My 12 years of Catholic education failed me a bit, so I had to remind myself the difference between these two groups.  The Pharisees and Sadducees were actually theological and political opponents.  (Imagine for a moment what might unite the Democrats and the Republicans of today.  The most recent answer that comes to mind is 9/11.  So basically Jesus’ rise in popular esteem is akin to a national tragedy).  The fact that they were united in their desire to stop Jesus speaks volumes about the threat that they perceived in this new prophet and his ever growing popularity.  Together, they ask a simple question: "What are we going to do?"

And this is the line that leaves me cold every time I read it, "If we leave him alone, all will believe him . . ."  It seems that the amazing miracle of breathing life back into Lazarus was, ironically, the act that sealed Jesus’ own fate.  So there was no regard for the truth of Christ’s message, the greatness of his works, the power of his teachings, the magnitude of his character.  They weren’t going to allow his ministry to grow any more than it already had.  Their hearts were set against him even in the face of the increasing evidence of his divinity.  So, the question becomes, why?

The answer is, "the Romans will come and take away both our land and our nation."  These Jewish authorities enjoyed great power and privilege among their people.  Simply put, Jesus was a threat to their interest and position.  They decide it is better that "one man should die . . . so that the whole nation may not perish. . . . So from that day on they planned to kill him."  So in some ways, I suppose, this council chose Rome over God.  They would appease Rome and keep peace politically but sacrifice the Son of God.     

And what loyalty or protection or security did they get from Rome in return?  It was just a few generations later that all they sought to evade by handing over Jesus would in fact come to pass.  The Roman army came and destroyed Jerusalem and left the Temple in ruins. 

So I will leave you with some final food for thought.  There is a popular poem that has been re-written in countless forms since it’s origination in the 40s.  When first written by Martin Niemöller in response to the unspeakable crimes of the Holocaust, it went something like this:

First they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew.  Then they came for the Communists, and I did not speak out because I was not a Communist  Then they came for the Catholics, and I did not speak out because I was not a Catholic.  Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak out.

Marlo Serritella is on staff at the Holy Cross Province Development Office in Chicago.

The Annunciation of the Lord

 

Scripture:

Isaiah 7:10-14; 8:10
Hebrews 10:4-10
Luke 1:26-38

 

Reflection:

St. Irenaeus, a second century bishop, records the importance of this feast.  There is also another ancient tradition that marks the death of Jesus on March 25^th.  Today this feast day comes as we are in the midst of Lent, and it brings something of the ineffable season of Christmas. 

In Luke, God works among ordinary people.  Zachary the elderly priest is going about his temple duties.  Elizabeth is a faith filled wife.   Mary is a young maiden betrothed to Joseph, the carpenter.  They live in an insignificant village, in an unimportant outpost of the Roman Empire.  There the angel Gabriel appears to Mary.

Luke focuses on the words spoken by the angel and Mary’s response.  Luke does this because it is God who is the principle actor in this scenario.  Gabriel’s parting words are: "Nothing is impossible for God!"  He is right: a barren couple bear a child.  A virgin conceives a child.  God becomes human.   A tomb will beget the resurrection.  The Spirit of God will inspire the Church. 

Like Mary, God enters our life at half stream and turns it around.  Gabriel waited for Mary’s answer.  God waited for Mary’s answer.  We all carry the promise of salvation within us.  God awaits our answers. Mary had no idea what was in store for her.  She entered into the imagination of God. Her whole life, body and soul, was caught up in God’s grace.  She was led by the Spirit into the full truth of Jesus’ suffering, passion, death and resurrection. 

Mary’s yes enlivened history, and changed the future.  Mary’s example teaches us that God interrupts our lives when we least expect it.  Mary’s honor and dignity come from her relationship with Jesus and her faith filled response to God’s call.  To accept interruption becomes a principle of our life.  Thus peace and salvation come into the world.

 

Fr. Kenneth O’Malley, C.P. is the archivist at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago.   

   

 

           

Scripture:

Daniel 3:14-20, 91-92, 95
John 8:31-42

Reflection:

In today’s Gospel Jesus speaks about his deep concern about truth. "If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples".   One of the scariest things in life is truth.  We spend a great deal of time and effort in our lives making sure people don’t know the truth of ourselves.   The truth of God is far more intimidating than the truth about ourselves.    Once the truth of God is known, then excuses and lack of response leave us guilty and cowardly.    So we have a tremendous resistance to the truth.   We do all we can to obfuscate it, and have antipathy towards anyone who talks about the truth.   Authority in the Church is resented.   We defend ourselves by pointing to the personal deficiencies of the presenters of the truth.   Even the enemies of Jesus admitted, "Teacher, we know you are true, and teach the way of God in truth" ( Mt 22:16),  but they killed Him.

The Greek word for truth in the New Testament is alathaes.  It is a combination of the negative a and the word for hide, lanthano.   Truth is reality that is seen and is no longer hidden.  It is not difficult for us to understand why we fight the truth.  "The light shines in darkness" but we run like bugs on the floor.  We head for the dark places of this world.   I think in our modern world there is an abhorrence of the truth.   It makes too many demands on us.   It takes away our excuses.   It is interesting that both in biblical and modern English that truth is not just about reality.    Truth is deeply relational.  When Jesus says "I am the Truth" ( John 14:6), he not only talks about his all embracing reality, but about his faithfulness.   When a couple promise to be true to each other, they are talking about fidelity.   One of the beautiful titles of God is El Emuna, Truthful God.   Truth and fidelity must kiss if they are to reach their all enticing beauty.

 

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

Scripture:

Numbers 21:4-9
John 8:21-30

Reflection:

In our Gospel reading for today, Jesus is trying to convince the people that He is the Messiah, the Son sent from the Father to save His people. He tells them, "For if you do not believe that I AM, you will die in your sins." But the people do not understand. And Jesus then says, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I AM, and that I do nothing on my own, but I say only what the Father taught me."

Once again, Jesus shows how different the Gospel is from the ways of the world. When He tells the people that they will recognize Him when He is lifted up, He is of course referring to being lifted up on the Cross. God’s power is not revealed in the taking over of a nation, or wresting it away from a foreign empire. God’s power is revealed in love and sacrifice.

What do we "realize" when we look at the Cross? Do we realize that God, the great I AM, the source of all being, the One beyond the limitations of time and space, chooses to love us that much? Do we hear Jesus indeed saying what the Father taught Him to say: "You mean this much to me?" Can we see that we are not alone in our sufferings and trials?

In our first reading from Numbers, Moses was told to make a bronze representation of a seraph serpent, so that the people could be healed from the bites of the real serpents. May we look upon the Cross, and open our hearts to Christ’ healing love for us.

 

Fr. Phil Paxton, C.P. is pastor of St. Mary’s Parish, Fairfield, Alabama.