Come Closer

May God give to you of the dew of the heavens and of the fertility of the earth abundance of grain and wine. Genesis 27:28

People do not put new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise the skins burst, the wine spills out, and the skins are ruined. Rather, they pour new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved. Matthew 9:17

Piety

Let us pray: God, help us to welcome your presence into our lives. Come closer to us and pour your fresh wine into our new wineskin so we can share your taste and goodness with those whose lives touch ours on a daily basis. Let things turn out well in our lives. Make us people of obedience and people of action to build the City of God…the Right Way, Right Here, Right Now. Amen.

Study

http://www.usccb.org/nab/070707.shtml

Today’s readings hold out another example of the preferential option for the active and the obedient -- just as Cursillo does not stop at Piety and Study, Action is the integral third leg of the Tripod.

Despite Jacob and Rebekah’s trickery on Isaac, Esau is the son who obeys the father and follows his commands to go out and hunt. Esau is the son of action and obedience. While God still has blessings for those who lead lives filled with piety and study, such lives lack a critical third dimension. Furthermore, Rebekah and Jacob are remaining too “self” centered instead of putting God and other people at the center.

We also see followers in the Gospel today who are not “centered” properly. They challenge Jesus on the practice of fasting. His answer, about the guests at the wedding, implies that they are right to look for holiness. However, he also leads them to think that they are looking for holiness in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Jesus pivots the argument and starts contrasting the new and the old. Jesus’ new perspective changes everything. Rather than the Lord being on the defensive, he lays down a challenge for us. Not only did He turn the water into wine, but he also seeks to turn our views around and instead of focusing on what we do, he wants us to focus on His presence in our lives.

And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. Taken literally, this image brings to mind the fact that an old wineskin dries out, shrivels, and cracks. If we put new wine into it while there is still fermentation taking place, the chemicals that are still being created in the new wine may burst the old skin before we drink it, spilling the wine. An “old wineskin” does not have the flexibility to expand like a new skin. Some interpret this saying to mean that Jesus’ new teachings will not fit within the old Jewish religion, or within the existing religious structures of the time.

Fr. Thomas Keating has another view. He has written:

“When God graciously comes into our lives for a few minutes, it is not the time to practice our customary austerities. It is like having a surprise visit from a dear relative who comes to share affection and love, and who finds us too busy with various chores to say anything but, "Come back some other time."

The new wine of the Gospel is manifested by the fruits of the Spirit which are nine aspects of the mind of Christ. If the new wine is to be preserved, new structures have to be found that are more appropriate than the old ones. If we lean too heavily on the old structures, the new wine of the Spirit will be lost.

Our basic act is to consent to the presence and action of the Spirit within us. This consent is directed not to our intentionality but to God's intentionality The Spirit who loved us first is pouring the wine, not we. It is a mistake to think that we have to win God's attention or impress him with our virtues. That is not the new wine. That is an attitude that belongs to the old wine where efforts are viewed as a necessary means of winning God's favor.

Jacob and Rebekah exhibited the attitude of the old wine…they thought they could impress Isaac and get his blessing by trickery and deceit. They failed to understand God already wanted to be in their lives just as God wanted to be in Esau’s life. Esau, the obedient son, was out hunting for something new to offer to his father.

Maybe that’s exactly what Jesus wants from us. He wants us out there hunting and fishing for our Father. He wants us to stop being so self-centered and pre-occupied with activity that we fail to recognize and revel in God’s presence in your life. He wants us to be aware of the need to share that real presence with others through a life that is marked by faith working through love.

Action

What are you out seeking to offer to your Father? As Cursillistas and Christians, we are the new wine and the new wineskins bursting with energy, filled with the Blood of Christ. How are you using the Cursillo experience to welcome God’s presence into your life?

When you welcome God into your life, you will naturally allow God to push aside childish and selfish pursuits. The new relationship will make time by cancelling out something you did in the last.

Today marks the 500^th edition of “Your Daily Tripod.” I hope those of you who have been with this project from the start, especially the men of the 113^th Cursillo (whose hiatus led me to start this project) and the men of my group reunion (especially Jim Jacobs who inspired me to read the Bible regularly as he has been doing since his childhood) will stick with us. I also welcome the newest e-mail subscribers and anyone else who wants to join in this project either via e-mail or on the Internet (www.yourdailytripod.blogspot.com).

None of this would happen unless as we sat down to read and write and edit, we did not have the gifts of the Holy Spirit with us and the presence of God in the room to aid us. I am grateful for the continued assistance of my wife Beth De Cristofaro along with Melanie Rigney, Diane Bayne, and Fr. Joe McCloskey, S.J., in submitting regular or periodic contributions to “Your Daily Tripod.” I thank Pete Roth for encouraging me to put these on the Internet; Jack Finnerty who sells so many subscriptions to YDT that he and Caryl will be able to take a vacation in Vienna (Virginia); my sponsor Esther Silva and Tom for their continued support; and our Cursillo spiritual director Fr. Mike Hann, CICM for inspiration through his presence and guiding gentle hands.

As we set out together wherever tomorrow’s Scripture will lead, I invite you, as always, to consider spending time, even if it is just once, to offer your reflections on a daily reading to share with the community. We’ll scoot over and make room for your thoughts on Piety, Study and Action as the Holy Spirit moves you.