The Passionists of Holy Cross Province

The Love that Compels

Daily Scripture, September 4, 2020

Scripture:

1 Corinthians 4:1-5
Luke 5:33-39

Reflection:

Discipleship and Growth

Today, September 4th, 2020:  Jesus’ Lesson in Discipleship #2020.   Discipleship involves growth and change!  Day by day, come what may…to see more clearly, to love more dearly, to follow Jesus more nearly.

Luke’s Gospel selection presents Jesus meeting with a group of Scribes and Pharisees as they raised questions about fasting and prayer, comparing their disciples and those of John the Baptist with Jesus’ disciples whom they observed as “lax”; Jesus’ disciples were even eating and drinking!  Jesus challenges their thinking, using a variety of down-to-earth parables about patching clothes, as well as the storage and consumption of wine.

Many Jewish leaders had developed a legalistic formalism towards the practice of their faith.  It was more important to abide by minute fasting regulations than, for example, to help a neighbor in need.  Jesus tried to change that perception – and met opposition!  Jesus demonstrated that love is the essence of religion and that the “regulations” were simply to serve as concrete helps, not absolutes.  What Jesus asked was really more demanding; no doubt it is easier to be precise about fasting than to genuinely love God and neighbor with ones’ whole being.

As 21st Century disciples in this time of serious health and social pandemics, we are challenged to continue growing and loving in new ways.  Our involvements with others, our celebration of the Eucharist and other Sacraments, the challenge of “zooming” and social distancing and face masks:  life is radically different for us!  We may long for the “good old days”, but life today presents us with “new wine” needing “new wineskins” and suitable patches for the fabric of life today.  We are called to grow…building upon the wisdom and experience of one another and our history as the People of God.  Together, with Jesus, we can!

The coming days and weeks present us with a variety of celebrations and challenges.  Labor Day on September 7th, our Blessed Mother’s Birthday on September 8th, the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross on September 14th, our fellow Passionist St. Vincent Strambi on September 24th, the Archangels on September 29th, the month-long days of Prayer for the Care of Creation:  May we grow in gratitude for the gift of our faith and the blessings of life and one another, and an openness to God’s loving care for us in all of life.


Fr. John Schork, C.P. is the Vocation Director for Holy Cross Province. He lives at St. Vincent Strambi Community in Chicago, Illinois. 

Ash Wednesday

On March 2, the Church celebrates Ash Wednesday. 

Most of us learned early in our Catholic lives that Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent, and that is a time of special sacrifice in preparation for the Easter celebration of Jesus’ Resurrection.

Dear brothers and sisters, every moment of our lives is a time for believing, hoping and loving…. These words of Pope Francis, taken from his Lenten Message of last year, 2021, and echoing the virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity, can still inspire our answer to the question: “What am I giving up for Lent?” 

We can draw our Lenten sacrifices out of our daily life: 

Share our faith in God’s presence by sharing in prayer with our family or with those in our parish community.
Share our hope in God’s promises by encouraging positive and respectful dialogue in our family circle and among our friends. 
Share the charity God has bestowed on us in the Passion of Jesus, with those whose sufferings are ignored or aggravated.

Let us pray for one another as we enter the season of Lent. Our Passionist “motto” can be our daily prayer during Lent, “May the Passion of Jesus Christ be always in our hearts.”