Daily Scripture

Memorial of Saint Andrew Kim Tae-gŏn and Companions

Scripture:

1 Timothy 3:14-16
Luke 7:31-35

Reflection:

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Andrew Kim Tae-gŏn and Companions.  For many of us St. Andrew is a “new” saint, canonized by Pope Paul II.  Though new to the liturgical calendar, St. Andrew and his companions are fellow Christians that we need to know because they are powerful witnesses to living the Gospel in real life.

St. Andrew is tied closely to the foundation of Christianity in Korea.  He wasn’t the first Korean Christian by a long shot.  By the time he was born in 1821, Christianity had been growing in Korea for about fifty years.  It is believed that Christianity had been brought into Korea by some Christian Japanese soldiers in the latter part of the 18^th century.   The Christian Japanese soldiers baptized the first Korean Christians and the Christian community began to grow quickly.  By the time the first foreign priest arrived in Korea in 1836 there was already a substantial Christian community flourishing there.  It’s the only known Catholic Christian community that first developed completely from the witness and work of lay Christians.

The rulers in Korea were not at all pleased to have this foreign religion thriving in their country.  At first they just discouraged it but soon enough outlawed this practice and began to actively persecute anyone who took it up.  As Christians were arrested, tortured and put to death the Church quickly moved underground.

St. Andrew’s parents, members of the Korean nobility, were an important part of that early community and secretly remained faithful to their life with Christ.  Andrew was baptized at fifteen and soon expressed his desire to become a priest.  He traveled to Macau to attend the seminary and was ordained in 1845.  He was the first Korean to become a priest and returned home shortly after his ordination to help organize the Church and bring the sacraments to the faithful.  He ministered in Korea only a year before he was arrested and put to death.

There were intense persecutions of Christians in Korea in 1839, 1846, 1866 and 1867 and 103 Christians were martyred for their faith.  We celebrate these heroic martyrs on this day.

May their faith and courage inspire us to live our lives faithful to the Gospel and have the strength to be fearless witness for Christ in our everyday lives.

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

Scripture:

1 Timothy 3:1-13
Luke 7:11-17

Reflection:

So often in the gospels, Jesus finds himself smack in the middle of somebody’s pain, somebody’s sorrow and loss. That is certainly true in the poignant, heart-wrenching story we hear today. In great detail, the evangelist Luke vividly describes the scene. Jesus approaches the city of Nain, accompanied, Luke tells us, not only by his disciples but also by a large crowd. As they are about to enter the city, they encounter a funeral procession. The deceased was a young man, and “the only son of his mother, and she was a widow.”

Our attention is understandably drawn to the miracle by which Jesus brings the dead man back to life, but we should not overlook that the first thing Luke tells us is that when Jesus saw the sorrowful mother, he was moved with compassion for her. If we focus only on Jesus’ miraculous power in this gospel story, we fail to see that compassion comes first. The fact that Jesus raised this mother’s son back to life only after feeling deep compassion for her suggests that the miracle flowed from compassion; perhaps we can even say that Jesus’ compassion made the miracle possible.

The great theologian of the thirteenth century, St. Thomas Aquinas, taught that compassion is the most important characteristic of God and the quality that most fully reveals to us who God is. He said that God’s power is a power of compassion and that we who are made in the image of God are most like God when we show compassion. This is one way of understanding the crowd’s proclamation about Jesus at the end of today’s gospel: “God has visited his people.” God continues to visit his people when we extend to others—especially the most distraught and desolate—the compassion that God in Christ has shown to us. What are we waiting for? After all, if we start with compassion, who knows what miracles might follow.

Paul J. Wadell is Professor Emeritus of Theology and Religious Studies at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin, and a member of the extended Passionist family.

Scripture:

Sirach 27:30-28:7
Romans 14:7-9
Matthew 18:21-35

Reflection:

Today could well be called “Forgiveness Sunday.” The first reading from Sirach proclaims the scandalous contradiction between expecting forgiveness from God while selfishly withholding it from others: “Could anyone nourish anger against another and expect healing from the LORD?” In the passage from Romans, Paul succinctly reminds us that we live only because of the freely given mercy of God that is ours through the death and resurrection of Jesus: “For this is why Christ died and came to life, that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.” And today’s gospel, which begins with Peter’s memorable question about the permissibility of limiting forgiveness, unfolds in a parable that emphasizes the disturbing fate that awaits anyone who refuses to extend to others the very forgiveness they have received.

None of us finds it easy to forgive. Christians should be virtuosos of forgiveness because we know that God has been—and always will be—endlessly merciful to us. But sometimes we’re understandably reluctant to forgive because we know forgiveness is both challenging and risky. Forgiveness is challenging because in order to forgive we must be willing to move beyond the justifiable anger, hurt, and resentment we feel when we are unfairly treated by another. And forgiveness is notoriously risky because we can never be sure it will repair relationships that have been damaged by unkindness, carelessness, and thoughtlessness. What if our forgiveness is refused? Even worse, what if the people we forgive show little remorse, accept no responsibility, and do nothing to amend their behavior? No wonder it is sometimes easier to remain estranged than to be reconciled; easier to nurture anger and bitterness over love and forgiveness.

But nothing could be more self-destructive or hopeless. Forgiveness is seldom easy, but what is the alternative? Yes, what was done to us was wrong, unfair, and inexcusable—which is also true about how we sometimes treat others—but do we want our lives defined by anger, hurt, and bitterness? Is that how we want to be remembered? The message of this Sunday’s readings is unmistakably clear: Forgiveness really is a matter of life and death. As the late Passionist priest and renowned scripture scholar Carroll Stuhlmueller, CP, wrote about these readings: “Not to forgive is like not breathing; it is that unnatural and inhuman.” Those are words to take to heart.

Paul J. Wadell is Professor Emeritus of Theology & Religious Studies at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin, and a member of the Passionist Family.

Scripture:   

1 Timothy 1:15-17
Luke 6:43-49

Reflection:

Jesus often speaks in parables in the Gospel. He uses an image to describe what the kingdom of God is. Funny how the Scribes and Pharisees ask him to speak plainly. He reveals the meaning to His disciples! I will show you what a follower of mine looks like. One who builds their house on a firm foundation, one who has a firm foundation in God, the Rock. This is the house that can weather the storms, the daily afflictions and bombardments.

This day in 1810 inaugurated Mexico’s war for independence. A Catholic priest Miguel Hidalgo rang the church bells in 1810. In the form of grito, he “decried” Spanish oppression with an impassioned speech. The brutal war lasted nearly eleven years. To this day, the tradition continues with the Mexican president ringing the same 200+year bell at midnight and reciting the cry of pain.

The bell continues to ring out across our world; we hear the cries of the earth. The war in Ukraine persists. Incidents of gun violence are taking the lives of our children. With all these events, what is our firm foundation? We are crying out and searching for our firm foundation. Christ indeed says that in the world that you will have trouble. But also, to take courage because He has conquered the world. Let us hear these “gritos” and stretch out our hands to our needy brothers and sisters. God bless!

Fr. Phillip Donlan, CP, is the Associate Director of Ministry at Christ the King Passionist Retreat Center, Citrus Heights, California.

Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows

Scripture:

1 Timothy 1:1-2, 12-14
John 19:25-27 or
Luke 2:33-35

Reflection:

On one occasion I was invited to preach in the beautiful Rosary Chapel in Lourdes.  A very large group of us were assembled together in pilgrimage, many who were very ill, whom we lovingly referred to as “maladies.”  The others were family members, friends, and the patrons of the pilgrimage, the Knights and Dames of Malta.

It was the feast of the Blessed Mother, Mary Queen of Heaven and Earth.  I naturally thought of her under her other title, as well, Queen of Angels and Saints.  As I prepared this sermon for the Mass, I remembered prior visits to Lourdes with so many who were ill and suffering in so many different ways.  I knew that if I were to preach about Mary as Queen, I would have to also remember when she became our Queen, so beautifully adorned with clothing, robes, a scepter in her hand, and a golden throne upon which she would sit and inspire.

I remembered all the beautiful images of our Blessed Mother, sitting upon her throne, a moment captured by many Italian and Dutch artists, and others as well.  Radiant in her beauty, surrounded by angels and saints, too.  But because I was so aware of all those who would be seated before me in the Rosary Basilica, so many of whom would be in wheelchairs and voitures, as they are called in French, I knew I could hardly invite them to a golden throne, so majestic and beyond earthly experience.  Rather, as a Passionist, I realized that the Lord was asking me to bring all the assembled to a different place, to the first throne of Mary, the mother of Jesus.  And where do we find this very “first throne” of Mary?  At the foot of the Cross.  We see Mary sitting in the dirt, adorned not with silk robes but rather wearing blood-stained garments and her tear-streaked face, all of which came from the unimaginably painful moment when she held in her arms, embraced in her lap, the broken, crucified body of her beloved Son, Jesus, our Crucified Lord.

This is the moment when Mary, simple maiden of Nazareth, became Queen of Heaven and Earth, Queen of Angels and Saints, seated in the mud and dirt of Calvary, at the foot of the Cross.  This is when Mary became our Queen, our very own “blessed” mother.  And, in this moment, as we approach the Cross of Christ, it is her calloused and stained hand that can reach out and hold our own.  She knows our sorrows; she knows our pain.  Not simply as a queen gloriously enthroned in Heaven, but as a beloved mother who embraces us, even as we seek to understand the meaning behind our own crosses and suffering so often encountered in daily life.  Mary, our Sorrowful Mother, holds us, too, in her warm embrace as she leads us to Jesus, her crucified and beloved Son.  It was on Calvary, sharing in the Passion of Christ, that Mary became our Queen, our Mother of Sorrows.  And it is this special mother gifted us by God whom we honor on the special feast of Our Sorrowful Mother.

Fr. Pat Brennan, C.P. is the director of Saint Paul of the Cross Passionist Retreat and Conference Center, Detroit, Michigan.

Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross

Scripture:

Numbers 21:4b-9
Philippians 2:6-11
John 3:13-17

Reflection:

Sometimes it’s hard to understand why the God of the Old Testament was so angry and punishing, while the Son of God in the New Testament seemed more reasonable and empathetic. The bronze snake on the pole reminded the Israelites of their lack of loyalty to God, just as the Holy Cross reminds us of God’s willingness to help us overcome sin.

In today’s readings, the word “steadfast” in the Psalms is important. Just like spouses promise to be steadfast in sickness and health, we should ask ourselves if we are staying faithful to God no matter what challenges or joys we face. God’s Kingdom belongs entirely to Him and He cannot be replaced like an elected politician. The Israelites complained about their food, but the bronze snake on the pole served as a warning to be steadfast, to let go of pride and unfaithfulness.

The Holy Cross takes the message of the bronze snake to a higher level. It reminds us that God sacrificed His only son to teach us about faith, humility, obedience, and the belief in eternal life.

Jack Dermody is the editor of the CrossRoads bulletin for the Passionist Alumni Association and a member of the Migration Commission for Holy Cross Province. He lives in Glendale, Arizona. 

Scripture:

Colossians 3:1-11
Luke 6:20-26

Reflection:

In the hustle and bustle of our daily lives, we can be so focused on the demands immediately before us, that we easily lose sight of what is truly important.  “Set your minds on the things that are above, not on things that are on earth.  For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Col 3:2).  With these words, Paul the Apostle exhorts us to remain centered on God.

We should not be mistaken, though, in thinking that Paul wants us to live with our heads in the clouds and ignore our responsibilities here on earth. No.  Paul is pressing on us the need to bring those heavenly qualities into our everyday lives, to set aside all behaviors that work against our goal of eternal life.  After all, what we believe has a definite connection with how we behave.  Faith in Christ means being united to Christ.  It means dying to ourselves in order to live in Christ.  Through our baptism, we share in Christ’s death and resurrection.  Our old self has died.    We have put on the new self and have been made new.

Can we hear Christ’s call to be his disciples?  Can we perceive that God is doing something new in us, calling us to new life?  “Set your minds on what is above,” we are admonished, so that we may become the whole person God intends us to be.

Deacon Manuel Valencia is on the staff at Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center, Sierra Madre, California.