The Essentials

The Essentials

May 1, 2013

Wednesday in the Fifth Week of Easter

By Colleen O'Sullivan

Some who had come down from Judea were instructing the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the Mosaic practice, you cannot be saved.”  Because there arose no little dissension and debate by Paul and Barnabas with them, it was decided that Paul, Barnabas, and some of the others should go up to Jerusalem to the Apostles and presbyters about this question.   (Acts 15:1-2)

“I am the vine, you are the branches.  Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.”  (John 15:5)

Piety

O Lord, may I ever dwell in you and you in me, for without you I am nothing, I have nothing and can do nothing.  In you, all things are possible.

Study

At first glance, the reading from the Book of Acts might seem somewhat irrelevant.  No one I know ever gives a moment’s thought to whether or not men need to be circumcised or whether we have to follow other Mosaic practices in order to be considered Christians.  That issue was settled once and for all long ago.  But here’s the bigger question of ultimate importance in every generation: What is rock-bottom essential to being a follower of Christ?  

Jesus answers that for us by using the analogy of a vine and its branches. God plants and tends the vine, which is his Son Jesus.  You and I are the branches.  To be a follower or disciple, it is essential that we be firmly rooted in Christ and that we acknowledge that all we are, all we have and do comes from the Vine.  Love, mercy, grace, and forgiveness flow into us from the Vine.  No resting on our own laurels.  We can’t give ourselves any of these gifts, nor can we sustain ourselves in the long run.  If we aren’t firmly attached to our Source, we soon wither and die.  Yes, we may be good people.  We may do kind things for others.  We may be pillars of our parishes.  But we aren’t true followers, nor can we produce fruits of lasting value unless we are firmly anchored in Jesus.

Action

Every time I forget that I’m a branch attached to the life-giving Vine and start behaving like I’m in control and self-sufficient, something happens to remind me that I’m not really lord of my life.  I begin to wither and dry up.  Everything seems out of kilter.  It’s only when I ask for forgiveness and re-orient myself as a branch securely rooted in the Vine that life seems good again.  What about you?  In what or whom are you rooted?

Make Known the Kingdom

Make Known the Kingdom 

April 30, 2013

Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Easter

By Beth DeCristofaro

(Some Jews)  stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead.  But … he got up and entered the city. On the following day he left with Barnabas for Derbe.    After they had proclaimed the good news to that city and made a considerable number of disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch.  They strengthened the spirits of the disciples and exhorted them to persevere in the faith, saying, “It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.”

Jesus said to his disciples:  “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you.  (John 14:27)

Piety

Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your kingdom. (Psalm 145:12)

Study

Sit with me for a few minutes, on a high bluff over the Potomac River at Loyola Retreat Center in Faulkner, MD and marvel with me as Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your kingdom.  On retreat as I write, I am spending time in prayer with teeny tiny lavender flowers at my feet which grow in self-satisfied clusters, exquisitely fulfilling their part in the spring growing cycle.  Bright green inch worms either dangle like ornaments from trees or determinedly go about their appointed rounds even as I try to coax them off my arm or my neck and onto a juicy leaf.  Silky mosses grow on downed trees – life from death.  Swift ospreys make my mood soar as they ride the currents out over the water.   And eagles!  They fly past with a fierce dignity of creatures at harmony in their place.

Lets’ close our eyes for a moment and hear frequent and plentiful birdsong.  Their vocalizing is random and varied but never discordant.  Listen to the soothing concert of buzzing critters going about their mating rituals, grasses rustling in the breezes and waves shhh-shhh-ing against the shore.  Take a deep breath to smell flowers, dirt, river.  I wonder if God delights twice in the splendor of creation as we pray our thanksgiving?

Most probably those clown-like squirrels, hunting up hidden food with one eye on the sky watching for predators would not agree, but God has asked a much more complicated friendship of you and I.  Look at Paul.  Instead of obeying that deep instinctive drive to run from danger, Paul returns to Lystra where he was stoned.  He returns to support and strengthen God’s other friends.  Paul continues to speak the Word, making known the God’s Good News, making known the splendor of God’s kingdom.  Most of our lives are not spent in such peril, but Jesus does ask us to risk offering the world his living Word and  to love as He would do, even those who would stone us, misunderstand us,  judge us, slander us, dismiss us or ask us to buy into indefinite values.  As His true friends, Jesus offers us not only the splendors of the kingdom but his divine peace surpassing anything that this world has to offer.  We can get glimpses of that splendor in places such as Loyola on the Potomac.[i]

Action

Now back in your own space, I pray that you are able to spend time with Jesus in the splendor of His kingdom.  Bring a friend – perhaps plan to ask someone to one of next Fall’s Cursillos.  How are you helping build His kingdom?

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[i] www.loyolaonthepotomac.com

Teach You Everything

Teach You Everything

April 29, 2013

Memorial of Saint Catherine of Siena, Virgin and Doctor of the Church

“Men, why are you doing this?  We are of the same nature as you, human beings.  We proclaim to you good news that you should turn from these idols to the living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and all that is in them.  In past generations he allowed all Gentiles to go their own ways; yet, in bestowing his goodness, he did not leave himself without witness, for he gave you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, and filled you with nourishment and gladness for your hearts.”  Acts 14:15-17

“Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.  Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; yet the word you hear is not mine but that of the Father who sent me.  “I have told you this while I am with you.  The Advocate, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name– he will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.”  John 14:23-26

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

Earth might be fair
And all men glad and wise
Age after age their tragic empires rise
Built while they dream
And in that dreaming weep
Would man but wake
From out his haunted sleep

(Lyrics from "Turn Back, O Man," from Godspell by Stephen Schwartz)

Study

God does not give up on us.  After millennia of prophets trying to change the ways of humanity, Jesus came on the scene.  Although his ministry was short-lived (in the scheme of salvation history), his Words and Works endure.  Yet, we persist.  Like his disciples, we need constant reminders of the message.

Today, Jesus promises to send an Advocate to continue to work on His behalf for us.  God did not leave himself without witness -- in nature and in the people around us.   In some ways, the Holy Spirit might get the least attention of the Trinity but might be more important to our personal salvation history.  Is it not through the Holy Spirit that we actually hear the words of Jesus today?  Without Jesus, the message revealed by the Holy Spirit would have no context.  However, with Jesus, the Holy Spirit inspires us to foreswear our own ways and idols and turn to the Father to make our lives a place where his Spirit lives.

Action

"Lives."  An interesting word.  It not only depicts the sense of a dwelling place but also of action -- what we do within and beyond the place where we reside. 

Where we live is where we come alive.  Each day, we wake up and go about our business…making coffee, loving, dressing, working, commuting, meeting, praying, eating, volunteering.  We need a place to call home but also a reason to come alive each day. 

Where God lives is where the Lord comes alive each day.  When the Lord dwells in us, we are his means to work in the world. 

What is the reason you are coming alive today?  How is the Holy Spirit reminding you of what Jesus taught?  For what and whom will you Advocate the word of God?

Love One Another

Love One Another

April 28, 2013

Fifth Sunday after Easter

By Rev. Joe McCloskey, SJ

After Paul and Barnabas had proclaimed the good news to that city and made a considerable number of disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch.  They strengthened the spirits of the disciples and exhorted them to persevere in the faith, saying, “It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.”  Acts 14:21-22

He will dwell with them and they will be his people and God himself will always be with them as their God.  He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain, for the old order has passed away.”  The One who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.”  Revelation 21:3a-5a

I give you a new commandment: love one another.  As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.  This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”  John  13:34-35

Piety

Piety is best seen in the love that Christians have for one another.  The invitation of Christ to our piety is the invitation to love one another as He has loved us.  There is no greater love than to give one's life for another.  We see piety in the way people offer their limbs for one another.  When we die, the offer of body parts might seem gruesome even as it is a powerful example of how much some are capable of loving others.  How we give our time and our energy to the needs of one another is love expressed and the fullness of piety.  Returning to a work we were part of is an example of piety when we return to encourage the good work others are doing in our stead.  Our piety is the fullness of the reflection of the love of Christ we have in our lives.

Study

I just finished rereading a book on the Japanese Martyrs that raised a devastating question: "Could you deny Christ for the sake of ending the sufferings of other Christians?"  Even if you thought that Christ was telling you to do it, could you believe that it really was Christ who told you to do so?  Study is how we discern what Christ is asking of us.  What fascinates my soul about the first martyrs of Christianity is how they encouraged each other to die for Christ.  A vision of Christ telling one to deny himself for the sake of others is all too easily believable.  Discernment allows us to make the best possible decision in a given moment.  Issues that are really important deserve as much time as we can give the decision.  If I found Christ going in the opposite direction, I would not mind changing direction in midstream no matter how wet I would get if I am to follow Christ.  There is always the possibility of being deceived.  The angel of dark can use the form of the angel of light.  The saints never took any decision for granted. Christ is the good news.  How we put ourselves into His shoes and bring the good news of God's love for us to the world is our job.  The good news is that God loves us so much he wants us to be one of us in his son, Christ, and God wants to be all of us in our life in Christ.  Our study allows us to deepen our relationship to Christ.

Action

Our actions in Christ allow us to be His word to our world.  We light up our world by living the love of Christ with one another.  Our reading of Scriptures allows us to put on the mind and the heart of Christ.  Our sharing the words of Christ in all of our actions allows us to become the update of Christ to our world.  Christ who is the same yesterday and tomorrow is the beauty of our love for one another.  We can change the world we live in by allowing our world to realize how much Christians love each other.  Selfishness can be replaced by selflessness and our world can know an end to poverty and war.  Our actions can make us instruments of salvation to our entire world.  John's vision of heaven can have its beginning in our world.  The Lamb will lead us to the springs of life-giving water.  We will be his sheep and he will be our good shepherd.