Memorial of St. Dominic, Priest
The story before us today from the Book of Matthew appears, on the face of it, to be simple enough. It goes like this: The disciples tried but were unable to cure a boy afflicted by a demon. So, the boy’s father begged Jesus to cure him, which Jesus did. When the disciples asked Jesus why they were unable to heal the boy, Jesus told them that they had too little faith. Further, he instructed them that if their faith were even as tiny as a mustard seed, then they would have been able not only to heal the boy but also to perform miracles of all sorts. Including moving mountains with just a command!
Friday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” (Matthew 16:24) These are the words of Jesus to his disciples that open our gospel reading for today. Although we’ve likely heard these words many times in our lives as Christians, I found it helpful to look at the passage just prior to this one in order to get the full context.
Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord
Today is the feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord. All of the readings today reveal details about the glory of God. There are times when I read the scriptures, and I wonder what it would be like to have lived during the time of prophets and Jesus and to have had firsthand experience with these great revelations. On further reflection, I realize that God’s glory is all around us- if only we will open our eyes and believe.
Wednesday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time
I’m never quite sure what to do with Jesus in today’s Gospel. He seems so dismissive of the Canaanite woman’s plea to heal her daughter. Perhaps, like Mary, the Canaanite woman is widening Jesus’ vision for Christ’s mission. While we can’t split Jesus Christ into human parts and divine parts, this perspective helps me a bit.
Memorial of St. John Vianney, Priest
Today the Church remembers the life of St. John Vianney, the Cure of Ars. He grew up during the French Revolution when church worship was banned and schooling limited, He was inspired by the women and men he viewed as heroes who quietly carried on the traditions of Catechesis, Eucharist and other Sacraments ‘in secret’, at risk to their lives. When public faith practices were restored, he pursued his education and studied for the priesthood. He was beloved as a pastor and devoted himself to making sacraments and pastoral care available to the people. He was an appreciated confessor because of his wisdom, insight and care given. His dedication was legendary - often sitting in the confessional for 16 hours a day, with long lines of the faithful seeking his wisdom. St. John Vianney, is known as the patron saint of priests, because he united his heart to Jesus, and lived his life according to the heart of Christ - showing deep compassion as well as the invitation to conversion and change to be more fully reconciled with God’s love. The heart is important Scripturally as it is known as a person’s hidden center of emotional, intellectual and moral activity. For this reason, On the 150th anniversary of his death, Pope Benedict XVI declared a Year for Priests, beginning with the Feast of the Sacred Heart in June 2009 through June 2010 to strive for spiritual perfection, with St. John Vianney as a model. He saw the Curé d'Ars as "a true example of a pastor at the service of Christ's flock”.
Monday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time
When was the last time you weren’t simply frightened but petrified? Being terror stricken can impact to the point of lifelong trauma. My father comes to mind. In World War II he was in Leghorn, Italy where he was buried under the rubble of a fallen wall (think of Bing Crosby in “White Christmas”). He was left for dead when a couple of the men disobeyed orders and went back to dig him out, finding out he was still alive. He was traumatized by this event (as well as other events in North Africa and Corsica) and suffered from lifelong PTSD.
Memorial of St. Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
Contradictions, sickness, scruples, spiritual aridity, and all the inner and outward torments are the chisel with which God carves his statues for paradise.
~St. Alphonsus Liguori
Today we celebrate the Memorial of St. Alphonsus Liguori (1696 – 1787), Bishop and Doctor of the Church. We remember him as a compassionate confessor and down-to-earth preacher as well as a spiritual writer, composer, musician, artist, poet, lawyer, philosopher and theologian. Liguori founded the Redemptorists, a religious order established to minister to the poor and those on the peripheries of Church and society. He wrote more than 100 books in his lifetime, including his multi-volume magnum opus, Moral Theology.
Memorial of St. Ignatius of Loyola, Priest
I had a dry spell in my young adult life regarding an interest in the lives of the saints. Thankfully it was renewed while my children were still young, in part through James Martin’s “My Life with the Saints” and Robert Ellsberg’s “All Saints,” which helped bring them back to life for me. Today, I draw upon Ellsberg’s writing to reflect briefly on the life of St. Ignatius Loyola whose memorial is celebrated on this anniversary of his death. Along with today’s readings from Jeremiah and Matthew, I hear a theme of growing and moving beyond our childhood and familial origins to respond to God’s call. A call that often requires leaving behind the comfortable and familiar.
Thursday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time
Our first reading today is the familiar parable from the prophet Jeremiah, the potter and the clay.
The prophet writes: “Just like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel” (Jeremiah 18:6). The Hebrew word for “potter” is translated “maker” with reference to God.
Memorial of Saints Martha, Mary, and Lazarus
It’s a familiar scene: family and friends gather to grieve the loss of a loved one. A loved one who bravely battled a long illness. A young person lost in the blink of an eye in an accident. An aging mother who slowly slipped away to dementia, her body also slipping away. We don’t know how Lazarus died. And that’s ok because, in some ways, it doesn’t matter how our loved ones die. We are left with the same reality of death.
Tuesday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time
In today’s Gospel, Jesus explains the parable of the weeds among the wheat. Earlier, he told his disciples that the kingdom of heaven is like a farmer who sowed good seed in his field. But during the night, while everyone was asleep, the enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat. When the servants noticed the weeds, they wanted to pull them up immediately, but the farmer stopped them, knowing that doing so could uproot the wheat as well. Instead, he instructed them to let both grow together until the harvest.
Feast of St. James, Apostle
A distinguishing feature of Gnosticism – a set of ancient religious ideas originating in first and second century Judaism and Christianity – is that matter is evil. This includes the human body. As a result, redemption requires an escape from our material selves.
Monday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time
Today God commands Jeremiah to obtain a brand-new linen loincloth to wear. Now, this is odd enough. The “bottom-line” (no pun intended) it was an intimate undergarment, worn close to the skin and out of view — as personal a piece of clothing one could own. Then, Jeremiah was instructed to “go to the Euphrates and hide it there in a cleft of the rock” (Jeremiah 13:4).
Friday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time
I’ve been doing a lot of serious weeding this summer. I don’t mean just pulling up dandelions and other little plants, I’m talking about uprooting heavy-duty invasive ground-covering plants, vines, and ivy that have practically taken over our backyard. Yes, we’ve neglected it for too long as life has taken us this way and that over the past several years. And now I’m seeing how little-by-little these weeds have “choked out” the other plants. Just like the “worldly anxiety” and “lure of riches” choke out “the word of the Kingdom” in today’s gospel passage from Matthew (13:18-23).
Thursday in the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time
If you are around a 3 year old child, you will hear this question asked frequently- “Why?” These toddlers are in good company, since the disciples in today’s gospel reading ask Jesus “Why?” He speaks in parables. Asking God (Jesus) questions may not produce all of the answers, but seeking the truth may provide opportunities to learn how to better see and hear what God is sharing with us in our daily lives.
Feast of St. Mary Magdalene
The name her parents gave her, Mary, was chosen carefully. It connected her to her community, to generations of faithful women, including Miriam in Exodus, who played a central role in salvation history. Her name means “wished-for-child,” “belovedness,” and also “bitterness.” I imagine her parents chose her name not for the last meaning in this list, but because she was wished for and beloved from the moment her mom knew she was pregnant. As she grew and encountered Jesus, she became one of His faithful followers. She and other women were among the early disciples, learning from him, witnessing miracles, and being sent to tell good news. She is among the beloved of Christ, as are we.
Tuesday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time
The experience of feeling guilty for having made a mistake or hurt someone is difficult to bear. Sometimes my own weaknesses or frustrations can get in the way of conveying a peacefulness or care for others that I would normally convey when ‘at my best’. Sometimes when I am challenged on my imperfections or failures at loving, I get defensive and am tempted to argue back. I can miss the opportunity to say I am sorry and to deepen my trust in God and relationship with the person I’ve hurt. I forget that through honest prayer, God’s love, acceptance and mercy are ever available.
Monday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time
“What does YHWH require of you? Only this: To do justice, love tenderness, and walk humbly with your God” (NJB). These words from the prophet Micah (6:8) are among the most beautiful and efficacious in the whole of the Bible.
Saturday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time
As we approach today’s Gospel, it’s important to do so with yesterday’s text in mind, as well as the intervening verses, Matthew 12:9-13. I see the extravagant mercy of God underscored in this overall passage. Today, let us ask God for the grace to become more merciful, especially when we recognize a spirit of judgment within ourselves. Rather than being quick to judge, may we each become quicker to be merciful.
Friday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time
I have been formed in faith, raised in a family, taught by, and work among, educators that hold high the values of love, compassion, respect, integrity, and community (along with many other things). One of the greatest developments of my faith has been the recognition of the centralizing and centering power of Jesus--in name, in word, in sacrament. We hear in today’s Gospel, “for the Son of Man is Lord of the sabbath.” The Pharisees are following Jesus and his disciples around, finding yet another technicality to complain about. The disciples are picking the heads of grain to eat...on the Sabbath! Shame on them! That is against the law!