Give Them Some

Memorial of Saint Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop, and Doctor of the Church

From of old, the prophets who were before you and me prophesied war, woe, and pestilence against many lands and mighty kingdoms. But the prophet who prophesies peace is recognized as truly sent by the LORD only when his prophetic prediction is fulfilled.  Jeremiah 28:8-9

“This is a deserted place and it is already late; dismiss the crowds so that they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves.” He said to them, “There is no need for them to go away; give them some food yourselves.”  Matthew 14:15-16

Piety

In honour of St. Alphonsus Rodríguez,

Lay brother of the Society of Jesus

HONOUR is flashed off exploit, so we say;

And those strokes once that gashed flesh or galled shield  

Should tongue that time now, trumpet now that field,       

And, on the fighter, forge his glorious day.      

On Christ they do and on the martyr may;      

But be the war within, the brand we wield

Unseen, the heroic breast not outward-steeled,

Earth hears no hurtle then from fiercest fray.

                                                       

Yet God (that hews mountain and continent,   

Earth, all, out; who, with trickling increment,  

Veins violets and tall trees makes more and more)   

Could crowd career with conquest while there went  

Those years and years by of world without event     

That in Majorca Alfonso watched the door.      

Study

Yesterday, Phil Russell (and whoever offered the homily at the Mass you joined in celebrating) provided us with a reflection on the rich fool.  The Rich Fool saved up stores of grain in his barn instead of seeking what is above.  Unbeknown to the rich fool himself, the man would die that very night while building yet bigger barns to hold riches that he could not take with him to heaven.

Thus, we started the week with an important lesson about the evils of hoarding large amounts of riches.  Today’s scripture follows that up and builds upon it with a lesson about the benefits of sharing what little we might have.  If yesterday was the Parable of the Rich Fool, today’s reading might be called the Parable of the Poor Fools (aka the Disciples).  

The “war” of striving for Christian holiness does not always include the flash of honor and renown.  Sometimes, it works in minute steps that are almost imperceptible.  While history and Roman armies march by, some must be charged with simpler duties.  Martha-like hospitality.  Brother Alfonso of the Hopkins poem quoted above offered the wisdom of his whole life as the porter of the door at the seminary in Majorca for 40 years. “A mere porter for a life time, a gate keeper, yet his eyes always on Christ,” said poet William Breault, SJ. 

The disciples played the poor fool to Christ offering all five loaves and two fish – which ended up being blessed and broken to feed more than five thousand men plus the women and children.

Action

To whom will you offer some of your food today? 

Give Them Some.  Give Some to Them.  Give to SOME and they will be fed.

S.O.M.E. (http://some.org/)

Your donation will provide food for the hungry and homeless, medical care for the sick and other services that protect and transform the lives of the homeless and poor in our community.  You can give online, by phone, by mail or many other ways. Give them some before the sun goes down. 

Seek What is Above

Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Feast Day of Saint Ignatius of Loyola

By Philip Russell

"Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth, vanity of vanities! All things are vanity!" Ecclesiastes 1:2

"If you were raised with Christ, seek what is above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God."   St. Paul to the Colossians

"Teacher, tell my brother to share his inheritance with me."  Luke 12:13

Piety

Suscipe by St. Ignatius of Loyola

Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty,
my memory, my understanding,
and my entire will,
All I have and call my own.

You have given all to me.
To you, Lord, I return it.

Everything is yours; do with it what you will.
Give me only your love and your grace,
that is enough for me.

Study

"Think of what is above, not of what is on earth."  St. Paul to the Colossians

 "If God sends you many sufferings, it is a sign that He has great plans for you and certainly wants to make you a saint."  St. Ignatius of Loyola 

As I spend (waste) time in Cleveland and Philadelphia listening, pondering (maybe even) worrying and watching this earthly exercise, I have to put then to death the things that I think and even say, and TRUST the LORD in "All things are vanity!"   It really isn't about the barns we build. I pray the prayer of St. Ignatius of Loyola: 

Lord, teach me to be generous,

Teach me to serve as you deserve,

To give and not count the cost,

To fight and not to heed the wounds,

To toil and not to seek for rest,

To labor and not to ask for reward.

Save that knowing that I do your will.  Amen.

Saint Ignatius (1491-1556) is the founder of The Society of Jesus (Jesuits).  In the beginning of his life, he was a gambler, killer, soldier and lady's man until he was seriously wounded by a cannon ball in 1521 while at the Battle of Pamplona against the French.  While injured, he became a devout Christian. 

In 1539, he formed the Jesuits with companions. By 1540, Pope Paul III approved the Society of Jesus and the next year, Ignatius was elected General of the Society of Jesus. The Spiritual Exercises were approved by Pope Paul III eight years later and remain an active spiritual process to this very day.

St. Ignatius died of Roman fever, a type of malaria. At the time of his death, the Society of Jesus was sixteen years old and included about a thousand men with Jesuit houses in one hundred locations.  He was beatified by Paul V in 1590 and canonized by Pope Gregory XV in 1620.  Three hundred years later, Pope Pius declared Ignatius patron of all spiritual retreats. 

Action 

"Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain wisdom of the heart."  Psalm 90

"Put to death, then, the parts of you that are earthly: immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and the greed that is idolatry."  St. Paul to the Colossians

"LOVE consists of sharing what one has and what one is with those one loves.

LOVE ought to show itself in deeds more than in words."  St. Ignatius of Loyola

"Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one's life does not consist of possessions."  JESUS (Luke 12:13-21)

"Every Saint has a past and every sinner has a future."  Oscar Wilde

And lastly I would just like us to add a simple prayer:  

Saint (my words) Joe McCloskey, SJ, Pray for Us.   

(Fr. Joe was Spiritual Director of the 91^st Men's Cursillo of Arlington at Missionhurst when I made my Weekend.)

Fr. Joe shared with us that weekend that he learned the power of the Name of JESUS When a man held a gun to his head.  Fr. Joe prayed: The Name of Jesus, the man dropped to his knees and dropped the gun.  Fr. Joe, never forgot the power of the Name.  I have never forgotten Fr. Joe or the powerful lesson he taught us in that Spiritual exercise of my Cursillo! 

What's IN your barn?   Jesus: " You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you: and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?" Thus will it be for all who store up treasure for themselves but are not rich in what matter to God."  Luke12:13-21

And again I say:  "What's IN your barn?"

DE COLORES! 

At Work in Him

Saturday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

“It was the LORD who sent me to prophesy against this house and city all that you have heard. Now, therefore, reform your ways and your deeds; listen to the voice of the LORD your God, so that the LORD will repent of the evil with which he threatens you.”  Jeremiah 26:12-13

Herod the tetrarch heard of the reputation of Jesus and said to his servants, “This man is John the Baptist. He has been raised from the dead; that is why mighty powers are at work in him.” Matthew 14:1-2

PIETY

A Midrash on Genesis reads: "Weeds spring up and thrive; but to get wheat how much toil we must endure."

STUDY

Jeremiah might not have been any more successful than John or Jesus in getting people to change their evil ways. However, his appeal did results in his life being spared.

Clearly, Herod did not listen to John’s message.  He allowed the weeds of selfishness to overtake his life. 

Our readings in Ordinary Time have brought us to the half-way point in Matthew’s Gospel.  We are at the stage in the narrative where Jesus has been trying to give away pearls of wisdom through the parables.  He has been preaching, healing and trying to reform the ways of the people around him.  He picked up on John’s message of change.  Repent, they both said, for the Kingdom of God is at hand (closer than you think). 

Despite this, the people reject Jesus at Nazareth.  Therefore, when we hear today that “Herod heard the reputation of Jesus,” it could be referring to both the track record Jesus has been establishing as teacher—preacher—healer AND the rejection Jesus experiences from his own neighbors.

Herod THINKS that he has John boxed up in prison where he can do no harm but Herod is wrong. In two ways.  First, John’s spirit lives on in his cousin Jesus.  That transference happened when a reluctant John baptized Jesus and the Spirit of God was heard proclaiming Jesus as His own.  That is why the mighty powers are at work in Jesus.  Second, Herod wrongly thinks Jesus is John reincarnate but Jesus picks up Johns work and brings it to a new, higher level. Wrong, wrong Herod.   

Doubling down on two wrongs, Herod seals his fate in the seventh circle of Hell by following through on the request to execute the Baptizer.  We, however, know the “Jesus-is-John” theme foreshadows the state-sponsored execution of Jesus when Herod orders John’s death.

ACTION

Depending on which translation of the Bible you use, the words repent and repentance appear more than 100 times. 

How many different ways do we need this message explained and reinforced in order to internalize it? This message is there not just for our neighbors to change but also for us.  What weeds can you focus on removing today so that God’s plan can be more actively working in your life?

Be in the Moment

Memorial of Saint Martha

By Colleen O’Sullivan

Jesus entered a village where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him.  She had a sister named Mary who sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak.  Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving?  Tell her to help me.”  The Lord said to her in reply, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things.  There is need of only one thing.  Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.”  (Luke 10:38-42)

Piety

Lord, may I be truly present to you in prayer and in my interactions with my brothers and sisters.

Study

Christ in the House of Martha 

and Mary, Johannes Vermeer 

From Wikimedia Commons

Several years ago, on a Saturday when I was having company for dinner, I called my father in the middle of the afternoon.  “Dad, I just made a huge discovery.  I can’t be Mom’s daughter.  It’s only 2:00 pm and my guests aren’t coming till 5:00, and I have nothing to do.  I’m ready and the food is ready to pop into the oven at the appropriate time.  I simply can’t be related to Mom.”  He still had a sense of humor at that point, and he laughed and laughed.  He knew exactly what I meant.  My mother was Martha on steroids when it came to entertaining.  We all dreaded hearing that she had invited company for dinner.  She always planned something elaborate and then fussed and fumed and rushed around for hours on the appointed day.  She maintained that she never enjoyed her meal after a day of such anxiety and hard work.  Not surprising.

In spite of the fact that all her anxiety and worry and rushing around caused her to become exhausted and unable to enjoy her guests or her meal, my mother always insisted that when it came to this story in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus got it wrong.   Jesus should have praised Martha for all her hard work as a hostess and should have told Mary to help her sister.  There’s no time for just sitting around and talking.

I’m afraid my mom got it all wrong.  It’s not a contest between Mary and Martha or between listening and doing.  A balanced life calls for both contemplation and action.  Jesus isn’t picking one as preferable to the other.  The Lord is focusing on Mary’s anxieties and worries.  They are keeping her from enjoying the evening, and they are hindering her from being truly present to Jesus, her sister, and maybe even her innermost self.

Worrying is a distraction.  It prevents us from being present to God in prayer.  Anxiety can have a person’s head in a thousand places other than the present moment.  God wants to be with us and hopes we will want to be with God, but fretting can get in the way.  God is always present, but, mentally and emotionally, we are sometimes somewhere else. 

We first need to be like Mary, giving our full attention to Jesus.  When we do that, we listen and discover what it is God has for us to do.  Being and doing in the presence of God are equally important.  One flows from the other.  Jesus loves both Martha and Mary.  The Lord knows there’s a time for listening and a time for action, but both can be hindered by giving in to all manner of worry and anxiety.

Action

When you pray today, open your hands wide and release your worries and anxieties.  Let the Lord help carry your burdens.  Trust in God to care for you.  Be present to the One who loves you beyond measure.  God has something for you to do.  Listen carefully to see if you can hear discern what that might be.     

Divine Potter, Make Me as You Please

Thursday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

By Beth DeCristofaro

This word came to Jeremiah from the LORD: Rise up, be off to the potter’s house; … Whenever the object of clay which (the potter) was making turned out badly in his hand, he tried again, making of the clay another object of whatever sort he pleased. (Jeremiah 18: 1,4)

Thus it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.” (Matthew 13:49-50)

Piety

Lord, You are the Potter and I am the clay.
Mold me and make me, have Thine own way

Lord, I need Your Spirit, Lord, I need Your grace;
Help me to run this Christian race.

Lord, I give my life, I give my all to You,
To be a willing vessel, to use me through and through.

Have Your way,
Have Your Way in me.

  (from "Lord You Are the Potter," Norman Hutchins lyrics)[i]

Study

Sewing is my creative hobby.  Or, truth be told, my hobby is better described as collecting fabric with which I plan someday to make fantastic pieces.  Watching a potter one can marvel at her designing eye, flexible and strong hands, patience, and an artist’s desire to use her materials well.  I keep scraps of fabric after projects as well as cloth I’ve never used for years because to throw them away, still useful and beautiful, just seems so wrong.

How much more does the Lord value us, His raw material being shaped to worship and build his kingdom.  How it must pain Him to imagine his creations being discarded.  However, he gave us free will allowing ourselves to be thrown on His wheel or not.  Sr. Joan Chittister, OSB, states “The fact is that the only purpose of the spiritual life, the Desert Monastics tell us to this day, is to begin to see the world as God sees the world. It is about becoming the self that sees life through the eyes of Jesus and then, like Jesus, bends to become the miracle the world awaits.[ii]

Action

Our choices, habits, biases, anxieties, obsessions can make us spiritually misshapen and lumpy.  God still loves us deeply!  Pray that God helps you distinguish how you can turn back to Him.  Pray for the strength to practice, practice, practice new approaches and to fast from what is your obstacle to God.  Step out in faith as you turn and are thrown on God’s loving, creative wheel.

---

[i] http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/normanhutchins/lordyouarethepotter.html

[ii] —from In God’s Holy Light  by Joan Chittister (Franciscan Media)

If You Come Back

Wednesday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

Thus the LORD answered me: If you come back and I take you back, in my presence you shall stand; If you utter what is precious and not what is worthless, you shall be my mouth. Then they will be the ones who turn to you, not you who turn to them. And I will make you toward this people a fortified wall of bronze. Though they fight against you, they shall not prevail, For I am with you, to save and rescue you—oracle of the LORD.  I will rescue you from the hand of the wicked, and ransom you from the power of the violent.  Jeremiah 15:19-21

Jesus said to his disciples: “The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.” Matthew 13:44-46

Piety

Meditation by Fr. James Martin, JS

This is what a martyr looks like.

Today Père Jacques Hamel was martyred in the town of Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, near Rouen, where St. Joan of Arc was martyred in 1431.

Père Hamel, age 85, was murdered by an ISIS followers, while he was celebrating Mass, as was St. Thomas of Becket and Blessed Oscar Romero. The story of this beloved priest is here: http://mobile.nytimes.com/…/jacques-hamel-85-a-beloved-fren…

Like many martyrs, Père Hamel did not seek martyrdom or court death, but was simply carrying out his ministry among the People of God.

In such times, whether it is priests, brothers, sisters or lay men and women who are martyred, I always remember Tertullian, who said, "The oftener we are mown down by you, the more in number we grow; the blood of Christians is seed."

Tonight meditate on the mystery of martyrdom, pray for peace and justice, and pray for his eternal rest, though I believe he went immediately from the Eucharist in his church to the Eucharistic Feast in heaven.

Holy Martyr Père Hamel, pray for us.

Study

Today’s Good News is among the shortest readings we have in the Liturgical Calendar.  Two verses make up the entire selection yet those two verses are both pearls of great price.

Yet I am left wondering are we more like the people Jesus refers to in the parable – or more like the complaining Jeremiah in the First Reading?  Instead of recognizing the pearl of great price or the treasure buried in a field, are we more likely to complain to the Lord about our situation?

Woe to me, mother, that you gave me birth!
a man of strife and contention to all the land!
I neither borrow nor lend,
yet all curse me.

Like Tevia in Fiddler on the Roof, we try to bargain with God to provide (more) for us than for others. 

Lord who made the lion and the lamb,

You decreed I should be what I am.

Would it spoil some vast eternal plan?

If I were a wealthy man.

The Lord will deliver upon that “covenant” that Mel Rigney wrote about yesterday.  However, the covenant is not a one-way street. We have a job to do, a mission to fulfill.  If we come back.  If we change the direction in which we are looking for happiness.  If we speak the Lords words.  If.  If.  If.  The Lord leaves the choice in our hands and minds.

Action

What would you do to obtain a pearl of great price? 

These days, we are more likely to pursue a great deal on eBay, Amazon Prime Day or Black Friday.  We are more likely to try to score a great deal on a year-end sale of the old model cars. 

Why will we not do the same to build the Kingdom of God?  Would you sign up for text messages to track the wisdom in each daily reading? 

• Find the readings on iTunes. . . under "Daily readings from the New American Bible"
• Or, Subscribe to the RSS Feed 

Would you check back before the bidding deadline?  Would you make an offer hoping it will be accepted and the rest of the bidders would be taken out of the picture?  Would you bargain with the Lord like you try to bargain with the eBay sellers?

Are you prepared to outbid the others with your actions?  Don’t wait too long.  As the Lord says to Jeremiah, “If you come back AND IF I take you back…”  Let us not tempt the Lord to reject our homecoming if we dally too long. 

Remember Your Covenant

Gustave Doré [Public domain],
via Wikimedia Commons 

Memorial of Saints Joachim and Anne, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary

By Melanie Rigney

For your name’s sake spurn us not, disgrace not the throne of your glory; remember your covenant with us, and break it not. (Jeremiah 14:21)

For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us. (Psalm 79:9)

“The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his Kingdom all who cause others to sin and all evildoers. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the Kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears ought to hear.”  (Matthew 13:41)

Piety

Open my ears, Lord, to Your message of salvation. Close them to those who would tempt me. Close my lips when I am tempted to lead others to sin.

Study

Covenant.

It means a promise, a contract, and agreement. We find it often in the New American Bible, Revised Edition’s Old Testament—more than 200 times. God makes covenants with Jeremiah, Adam and Eve, Moses, and more.

We see the word far few times in the New Testament—35, by a quick scan, and fewer than ten times, including notes, in the Gospels. Why is that? Perhaps because Jesus is the Living Covenant, the tangible fulfillment of all those Old Testament promises.

In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus reminds us of what will happen at the end for those of us who prefer to live a life that doesn’t honor our end of the covenant. It isn’t pretty; He talks of a fiery furnace and the “wailing and grinding of teeth.” For the righteous, all will be well, shining like the sun.

Covenant.

We know the Lord will honor his end of the deal. Whether we will is up to us.

Whoever has ears ought to hear, indeed.

Action

Tonight, examine where you honored the covenant… and where you instead fostered or embraced sin or evil. Pray for forgiveness, and the courage to do better tomorrow.

Carrying About

Feast of Saint James, Apostle

We hold this treasure in earthen vessels, that the surpassing power may be of God and not from us. We are afflicted in every way, but not constrained; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our body. 2 Corinthians 4:7-10

“But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave. Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Matthew 20:26-28

Piety

“Earthen Vessels” by John Foley, SJ

We hold a treasure
Not made of gold
In earthen vessels, wealth untold
One treasure only, the Lord, the Christ
In earthen vessels.

Light has shown in our darkness
God has shown in our hearts
With the light of the glory
Of Jesus the Lord.

He has chosen the lowly
Who are small in this world
In his weakness His Glory
In Jesus the Lord.

Study

Somewhere in a box in my office is a shard from a clay pot that we used at the opening of a Just Faith/Engaging Spirituality retreat a few years back.  At the opening of the class, each of us decorated the pot with images and words. 

Around the outside of the clay pot, we inscribed it with the Bible verse: “They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of God as the waters cover the sea. (Isaiah 11: 9) Then, we added this quote from John 17: 11: May they be ONE as we are ONE.

During a quiet reflection, the instructor calmly wrapped the decorated pot in a newspaper just as you would sometimes use newsprint for wrapping paper.  She then picked up a hammer and smashed it to little pieces shocking those of us who meticulously decorated it.  We did not understand why she broke it.  We did not “get it” until we learned and experienced more.

The notes to the New American Bible for today’s Gospel reveal that James and John did not “get it.”  They did not understand why they could not sit at Jesus’ right or left hand. Their request – as well as the response that the other disciples have to the issue – shows that those closest to Jesus are still farthest from grasping the enormity of his commandments.

What marks a Christian for greatness is not political, economic or social power.  Rather, humble service is the ticket.  Foot washing.  Table service.  Cross carrying.  Dying.  Jesus’ ministry of service reaches its highest point when he gives his life for the deliverance of the human race from sin.[i]

The image that Paul uses in the first reading is that we are always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our body.”  The crucifix and our icons are the symbolic ways we carry around the shards of the broken and dead body of Christ.  The Eucharist is the metaphysical way we carry the actual Body of Christ from the sanctuary to the streets. 

These do not give us any some special position power like a King who wears a crown or a general who wears a uniform or a Tour de France winner who wears a yellow jersey.  The ways we carry Christ are the gentle reminders for us to bring a little bit of Christ into every broken and earthy place we go, to share a little piece of Christ with every person we meet, and serve Christ by serving face-to-face the most vulnerable person or persons we encounter each day.

Action

What symbols of the body of the dying Jesus are you carrying about today? We carry those symbols, not as an end in and of themselves.  We carry them so we remember to “be Christ” to those we meet.   

We may not “get it” any better than James and John, denying Peter, doubting Thomas, or jealous Judas.  Our vessel is broken – maybe not in the exact same ways the apostles were broken.  We each bring our own unique broken-ness to the mission.  However, we can pray to St. James the Apostle for the lessons in humble service that he learned. With these lessons, our lowly and weak vessel can bring God’s glory to the world – one person at a time.  

God wants our pot and the pots belong to all others to be one.  But we are not.  We are as divided as were Christ’s clothes -- divided up among the Roman centurions who drew lots.  We are broken like Christ’s body was broken by the nails and the thorns and the whips and the sword. 

The Spirit of the Gospel propels us into the broken heart of this world.  When we accept to walk with Jesus, we are led into the lives of vulnerable and threatened people… hoping and holding out for good news.  (From Opening Retreat, Engaging Spirituality)

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[i] http://www.usccb.org/bible/matthew/20:20#48020020-1

To the One Who Knocks

Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

By Melanie Rigney

(Abraham said to the Lord:) “Far be it from you to do such a thing, to make the innocent die with the guilty so that the innocent and the guilty would be treated alike! Should not the judge of all the world act with justice?” (Genesis 18:25)

Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me. (Psalm 138:3a)

… he brought you to life along with him, having forgiven all our transgressions; obliterating the bond against us, with its legal claims, which was opposed to us, he also removed it from our midst, nailing it to the cross. (Colossians 2:13-14)

“And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Luke 11:9-10)

Piety

Lord, I am knocking, full of faith that the door will be opened.

Study

A friend recently hosted a lovely event where we were asked to put on a poster board images and words of the things we really wanted. The idea was that if you name and picture your desires and goals, you’ll be more likely to realize them than if you flail about, flitting from one dream to the next.

It makes sense. If you really want a beach house, you need to take steps to get it—determine where it would be, how much it would cost, how much you would need to save, where you would trim your budget elsewhere, and so on. If you really want to lose forty pounds, you need to take steps to do it—eat less, exercise more, develop other ways to deal with stress, be more mindful of the types of food you eat, and so on. Just talking about having a beach house or losing forty pounds gets you nowhere.

It’s the same way with God. Just talking about wanting a stronger faith or richer prayer life or closer relationship with the Lord gets you nowhere. Ask for what you want, with humility and vulnerability, bringing yourself to Him in total honesty, and you will receive it. Seek God in the good and the bad in your life and in the people around you, and you will find Him. Have the courage to knock on His door, and it will be flung wide open, with Him on the other side, joyously welcoming you.

The question is: Is that what you really want?

Action

Identify what it is you really want from the Lord… and we’re not talking about beach houses and weight loss. Ask. Seek. Knock. 

Reform Your Ways

Saturday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Put not your trust in the deceitful words: “This is the temple of the LORD! The temple of the LORD! The temple of the LORD!” Only if you thoroughly reform your ways and your deeds; if each of you deals justly with his neighbor; if you no longer oppress the resident alien, the orphan, and the widow; if you no longer shed innocent blood in this place, or follow strange gods to your own harm, will I remain with you in this place, in the land I gave your fathers long ago and forever. Jeremiah 7:4-7

Let them grow together until the harvest; then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters, “First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning; but gather the wheat into my barn.  Matthew 13:30

Piety

Turn back, O man

Forswear thy foolish ways

Old now is earth

And none may count her days

Yet thou, her child

Whose head is crowned with flames

Still will not hear

Thine inner God proclaims

(Stephen Schwartz, Godspell – Turn Back, O Man)

Study

Cursillo was not first to connect piety, study, and action.  It extends back before Jeremiah.

The “harvest” is a common biblical metaphor for the time of God’s judgment.  Originally, the Biblical writers appropriated the image of harvesting from its farming reference point -- the process of gathering a ripe crop from the fields. 

No matter how much we might want to try to purge the weeds from our life, Jesus warns his followers to let the weeds grow until the Lord God can do the winnowing at the last judgement.

Matthew extends this metaphor later in chapter 25 as he talks about harvesting souls at the end time. 

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him. And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.  Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.’”  (Matthew 25:31-36)

The connection of our Bible Study with social action that is explicit here in Matthew 25 harkens us back to Jeremiah where he wants us to assure that our deeds to serve the most vulnerable follow our words.  Such a life of action assures that the Lord will remain with us in our holy place. 

Of note is that the Temple Sermon in our first reading takes place…at the temple.  You would think Jeremiah was preaching to the choir.  However, even at the threshold to the holiest of holy places, Jeremiah encountered people who were not authentic – whose actions did not speak louder than their words. Attendance at the Temple of the Lord did not guarantee safety against enemy invasion or any other misfortune where someone would plant weeds among your crops.

Specifically, he warns to protect the most vulnerable – the alien, the widow, and the orphan. In Biblical times, rulers had a special responsibility to protect the most vulnerable of their citizens.  Preferential caring for these same groups and others who are poor remain at the heart of Catholic social teaching to this very day.

Action

What actions and habits (weeds) can we banish to the fire to leave more time in our lives for helping the vulnerable? 

A Love that Changes Everything

Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene

By Colleen O’Sullivan

The watchmen came upon me, as they made their rounds of the city:  Have you seen him whom my heart loves?  I had hardly left them when I found him whom my heart loves.  (Song of Songs 3:3-4a)

And the (two angels sitting in the tomb) said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken my Lord, and I don’t know where they laid him.”  When she said this, she turned around and saw Jesus there, but did not know it was Jesus…  Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni,” which means Teacher. (John 20:13-14, 16)

Piety

O God, you are my God whom I seek;

for you, my flesh pines and my soul thirsts

like the earth, parched, lifeless and without water.

(Psalm 63:2)

Study

As I pondered today’s Scripture readings, I thought about words attributed to Pedro Arrupe, SJ:  What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything.  It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you will do with your evenings, how you will spend your weekends, what you read, who you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in love, stay in love and it will decide everything.

Certainly, that seems to be true for Mary Magdalene.  In Luke’s Gospel (ch. 8, vs. 2), we are told that Jesus healed many women as he made his way from village to village, including this Mary.  She had been beset by seven demons, but we are not told any more than that.  For a long time, it was believed she was the unnamed sinner in Luke 7:36-50, but more recent scholarship holds that that was an error, that St. Mary Magdalene was not a prostitute.  So, all we know is that her life was dragged down in some way, physical or emotional, by these demons.

And then Mary meets Jesus as he travels throughout the countryside.  He does what no one else has been able to do.  He rids her of those demons.  He heals her.  He lifts up her soul.  He restores her dignity.  He gives her another chance at a life filled with joy and purpose.

What you are in love with… will affect everything.  From the moment Mary encountered Jesus, she was filled with love for this itinerant preacher from Nazareth.  And it did affect everything in her life.  Even when her beloved Jesus hung dying on the Cross, she couldn’t stay away.  She was there, silently, prayerfully supporting him with her love in those difficult final hours.   That can’t be said of all of Jesus’ apostles.  Even in death, she stayed with him.  She got up while it was still dark so she could go to the tomb and sit with his body.  Again, that can’t be said of all Jesus’ followers.  Finding the tomb empty deepened her grief.  Even his body was gone.

But all that changed in a matter of moments.  When Jesus revealed himself to her, she didn’t recognize him, but the instant he said her name, she knew it was the Lord!  At Jesus’ bidding, she joyfully ran to tell the others that everything would be okay.  Their friend and teacher, Jesus, had overcome death!

Action

St. Mary Magdalene shows us how deep love truly does dictate what a person does from morning till night and defines what you hold dear.  How does your love for Jesus shape your days and your life?

Listen, Look, Love and Grow Rich in God

Thursday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time

By Beth DeCristofaro

This word of the LORD came to me: Go, cry out this message for Jerusalem to hear! I remember the devotion of your youth, how you loved me as a bride, … When I brought you into the garden land to eat its goodly fruits, You entered and defiled my land, you made my heritage loathsome. (Jerimiah 2:1-2, 7)

To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away. … “But blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they hear. Amen, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.” (Matthew 13:7, 16-17)

Piety

http://www.carmelites.net/blog/gods-garden-june-10-2016/

Study

Have you seen the news video of two police officers standing, talking beside their patrol car when a second car plows into it?  No one was hurt but the driver of the second car admitted that he was playing Pokemon Go while driving. 

On a recent flight, I noticed a passenger who had to be physically jolted so he would put away his electronic device on landing.  He was so intent on the movie he was plugged into that he did not hear several flight crew announcements.

While on an incredible whale watching excursion I commented to our young, enthusiastic naturalist how much I appreciated her extensive knowledge of whales.  She thanked me and mentioned how disappointed she is when people focus on their cell phones during cruises rather than on the wildlife around them.

We can get so distracted that we cannot hear, cannot see, cannot feel the incandescent presence of God who, in fact, is closer to us than our favorite pastimes, our personalities, our friends, our political obsessions, our fears and anxieties, our money our earbuds or anything else.  How sad to think I would have missed seeing Granny, the 104-year-old matriarch of her Orca pod and her adopted son Ruffles’s mighty, 6-ft tall dorsal fin sliding majestically through the water!   

Action

We grow in the Spirit as we accept God’s abundance.  We lose ground in our spiritual life when we do not hear, see, act upon.  What graces of God are you missing?  What divine surprises might be right under the waters of our distracted days?  Today pause, even if only mentally and in spirit, to really look, closely listen, attend to your heart and absorb God’s presence in each moment.