Daily Retreat 02/07/07

2007 Feb 7 Wed
Gn 2: 4b-9. 15-17/ Ps 104: 1-2a. 27-28. 29bc-30/ Mk 7: 14-23

From today’s readings:  “You are free to eat from any of the trees of the garden except the tree of knowledge of good and evil....  O bless the Lord, my soul!...  From within the man, from his heart, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly....”

Catalogs of Vices

There’s a number of passages in scripture that catalog and put together lists of various vices,  lists of the different diseases of the soul and their sinful symptoms.  One such list is found in the final verses of today’s Gospel reading.  The other New Testament lists include:

Romans 1:29-31;
1 Corinthians 5:11 & 6:9-10;
Galatians 5:19-21;
Ephesians 5:3-4;
Colossians 3:5;
1 Timothy 1:9-10;
2Timothy 3:2-4;
1Peter 4:4;
Apocalypse 21:8 & 22:15.

As these lists are read, each of us will note many vices that we do not possess, and we give thanks to God for that!  But, each of us will also, if we are honest, see at least some of these sinful symptoms in our own lives, alerting us of the need  to call upon our Lord to help us address them squarely and aggressively with the help of  His grace.

Daily Retreat 02/06/07

2007 Feb 6 Tue: Paul Miki, p, mt, & co., mts M
Gn 1: 20 – 2: 4a/ Ps 8: 4-5. 6-7. 8-9/ Mk 7: 1-13

From today’s readings:  “God created man in His image; in the divine image He created him; male and female He created them....  O Lord, our God, how wonderful Your Name in all the earth!...  ”

Scrubbing Scruples

Particularly the perfectionists among us, but probably also all of us have at times lost sight of the big picture because of an annoying little detail that somehow seemed out of place, such as when one forgets the point of an essay simply because of an overlooked typo.  When left unchecked, this tendency can lead to mammoth problems in our spiritual life, because here especially, it’s essentially to always keep first things first.

Thus, an overlying scrupulous person can get hung up on a thousand little things, like wondering if accidentally dropping a Bible might be a sin.  By wasting time and energy worrying about such trivialities, such a person is diabolically distracted from focusing on the true issues, for all of us need our full strength and efforts to address, with the help of God, the  real sins and vices of our lives - we simply can’t squander our spiritual ammunition on scrupulous overkill!

That doesn’t mean that “little things” never matter, since that attitude would lead to lax morals (which, in fact, is a more common spiritual ailment today then excessive scruples).  To make the proper distinctions, we need a well-tuned conscience, formed by God’s grace with prayerful meditation, diligent application and faithful consideration of the teachings of Christ and His Church.

Daily Retreat 02/05/07

2007 Feb 5 Mon: Agatha, v, mt M
Gn 1: 1-19/ Ps 103(104): 1-2a. 5-6. 10 and 12. 24 and 35c/ Mk 6: 53-56

From today’s readings:  “In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth.....  May the Lord be glad in His works.....  Whatever villages or towns or countryside He entered, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged Him that they might touch only the tassel on His cloak; and as many as touched it were healed.”

Touching Tassels

Those who follow the daily lectionary readings sequentially in the Bible will note that several verses (35-52) were skipped between Saturday’s and today’s Gospel passages.  This happens,  not because those verses (recounting the Feeding of the Five Thousand and Jesus Walking on Water) are unimportant, but only to avoid repetition, since they had already been slotted in the lectionary for certain daily readings immediately after Epiphany.  But that needn’t stop us from reading those verses!

In the account of the Feeding of the Five Thousand, the disciples reacted to the pressures of time, people, and hunger by selfishly recommending to Jesus that He leave the people to their own devices (Mark 6,36).  But after the multiplication of the loaves, as Jesus sends His disciples to Bethsaida, the scary crossing provides those same disciples with a sobering reminder of what happens when they are left to their own devices - something for you and me to remember as well!

Then, after landing at Gennesaret, Jesus is once again besieged by people rushing to Him from all sides, following His travels and particularly looking to Him for healing.  Too often, instead of rushing to Jesus and making the necessary effort to follow His leads, you and I and others drag our feet and complain about how far we need to go to get to Him, forgetting how blessed we are to have even just His tassels within reach for our salvation!

Daily Retreat 02/04/07

2007 Feb 4 SUN: FIFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Is 6: 1-2a. 3-8/ Ps 137(138): 1-2. 2-3. 4-5. 7-8 (1c)/ 1 Cor 15: 1-11/ Lk 5: 1-11

From today’s readings:  “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts!...  In the sight of the angels I will sing Your praises, Lord....   But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me has not been ineffective....  Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch....”

Made Worthy of God’s Call

Isaiah, Peter, and Paul all were called by God to a holy mission, in spite of the fact that all three recognized their own unworthiness.  When confronted with the Heavenly vision of Seraphim adoring and sing praises to God, Isaiah became acutely aware of his own failure (and the failure of all the people) to render worthy praise to God, and so he protests, “Woe is me, I am doomed! For I am a man of unclean lips, living among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”   Yet God who, called Isaiah, also sanctified him and made him worthy of His calling by sending the angel with Heavenly fire to incinerate the impurity, explaining “See, now that this has touched your lips, your wickedness is removed, your sin purged!”

Likewise, as he gradually catches on to the holiness of the One who nets the miraculous catch of fish, Peter also became acutely aware of his own sinfulness, and so he protests,  “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!”  Yet Jesus, who called Peter, also sanctified him and made him worthy of His calling, assuring him “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men!”

God’s miraculous intervention in converting St. Paul was the defining moment of his life - he never forgot the grace of that moment; writing to the Corinthians years later, still acutely aware of his own unworthiness, Paul protests, “For I am the least of the apostles, not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the Church of God!”  Yet Christ, who called Paul, also sanctified him and made him worthy of His calling, leading Paul to rejoice, “But by the grace of God, I am what I am, and His grace to me has not been ineffective!”

God has similarly called you and me, in spite of our unworthiness, to a holy mission in His service.  Like Isaiah, Peter, and Paul, we do well to recognize our own sinfulness and our reliance on God’s grace, realizing and rejoicing that God, who called us, also chooses to sanctify us and make even you and me worthy of His calling!

Daily Retreat 02/03/07

2007 Feb 3 Sat/ BVM/ Blase, bp, mt/ Ansgar, bp, ms
Heb 13: 15-17. 20-21/ Ps 22(23): 1-3a. 3b-4. 5. 6/ Mk 6: 30-34

From today’s readings:  “Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have - God is pleased by sacrifices of that kind!...  The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want....  Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while....”

Why Retreat?

The homepage for the Immaculate Heart Retreat Center  highlights a verse from today’s Gospel passage: “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while!”  Jesus gives this imperative invitation in consideration of the hustle and bustle facing the Apostles as they simply strive to live as Jesus leads them.

And obviously, that directive is not just for the Apostles of old!  Jesus really does care about all our own problems and challenges and troubles and difficulties as we strive to live as He wants us to, and thus it’s important for us to turn to Him for comfort, strength, and guidance.

And so, we need to follow His advice: to go away with Him occasionally to a peaceful place for rest and respite!  A prayerful retreat is one of the best ways to benefit from His sensible suggestion - perhaps, since it’s still early in this year, you can look into the scheduled retreats at Immaculate Heart and plan your time in 2007 to obey the Lord’s call to “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while!”

Daily Retreat 02/02/07

2007 Feb 2 Fri: PRESENTATION OF THE LORD F
Mal 3: 1-4/ Ps 23(24): 7. 8. 9. 10/ Heb 2: 14-18/ Lk 2: 22-40 or 2: 22-32

From today’s readings:  “And suddenly there will come to the temple the LORD whom you seek....  Reach up, you ancient portals, that the King of glory may come in!...  He had to become like his brothers in every way....  Now, Master, You may let Your servant go in peace, according to Your word, for my eyes have seen Your salvation....”

Presenting...JESUS!

Malachi prophesied that “suddenly there will come to the temple the LORD whom you seek.”  Simeon was on hand when the prophecy was fulfilled, and he appended some additional verses of prophecy, both about the Child and His Mother.

And about us!  In his beautiful prayer, Simeon recognized in Christ the “light for the revelation of the gentiles.”  Where would we be without light?  In darkness, of course!    And so, where darkness remains in our lives and in our nations, it’s clear that the light of Christ must be brought to bear in order to dispel those shadows.  

Mary and Joseph were entrusted with the Christ Child, and they presented Him to the Lord and to those such as Simeon and Anna who were waiting and searching for Him.   In the intimate moment of receiving the Eucharist, each communicant is likewise entrusted with the Body of Christ - so each of us, like Mary and Joseph, have the divine privilege of re-presenting Him as we turn to God in reverent gratitude, and then, letting our lives shine with His light, we turn to present Him anew to all in the world who are still waiting and searching for Him!

Daily Retreat 02/01/07

2007 Feb 1 Thu
Heb 12: 18-19. 21-24/ Ps 47(48): 2-3ab. 3cd-4. 9. 10-11/ Mk 6: 7-13

From today's readings: "You have approached Mount Zion and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem....  O God, we ponder Your mercy within Your temple....  Jesus summoned the Twelve and began to send them out two by two...."
Mini-Missions

The word “Apostle” means “one who is sent,” and, as the Gospel passage today shows, before sending forth His apostles in the Great Commissioning after His Resurrection, Jesus also sent His apostles on “mini” missions even during His own public ministry, whereby the apostles both substantially assisted Christ in His foundational earthly mission, and also were prepared by Christ for their own eventual lifetime missionary work after Pentecost.

Some crucial points stand out.  First of all, Jesus Himself takes the initiative in summoning the Twelve and sending them out, and that’s still true today, for every authentic vocation of service in Christ’s Church always begins with a call from Christ.  Jesus also sent His apostles out “two by two,” and while many parishes have only one resident priest, and foreign missionaries in particular can be quite isolated, each pastor is nonetheless sent in the spirit and expectation of cooperation with fellow workers in the Lord’s vineyard, for none of us are is ever sent as  an independent self-styled maverick or “Lone Ranger.”

Those sent by the Lord were given a share in His authority over evil, but they were also cautioned to stick to the essentials in regards to their own needs, for in the past as well as our own day, accumulated material possessions are often unfortunate hindrances to Gospel ministry.   The Apostles were also instructed to develop an appropriate residency in their missions, so that people could come to them, in addition to their going out to the people. But places which steadfastly refused them welcome were to be left behind in the dust....

“So they went off and preached repentance....”  The Apostles began in earnest their missionary work in the Lord’s name, and so the apostolic labors continue and  will continue in His Church until the end of time!

Daily Retreat 01/31/07

2007 Jan 31 Wed: John Bosco, p, rf M
Heb 12: 4-7. 11-15/ Ps 102(103): 1-2. 13-14. 17-18a/ Mk 6: 1-6

From today’s readings:  “See to it that no one be deprived of the grace of God, that no bitter root spring up and cause trouble....  The Lord’s kindness is everlasting to those who fear Him.... Where did this man get all this?”

The Nazareth Syndrome

To readers of the Gospel, the Nazareth townsmen’s rejection of Jesus comes across as particularly offensive and inexcusable.  His charisma, His wisdom, even His ability to work miracles - they saw all those good things about Jesus plainly, and yet, rather than being led by them to faith or at least an appropriate sense of town pride, “they took offense at Him.”  They were scandalized simply because Jesus had proven Himself to be more than they had initially seen in Him.

In reality, though, Jesus is forever proving Himself to be more than expected.  Faithful Christians are bolstered, inspired, and saved every day by the Lord’s charisma, wisdom, miracles, and mercy, and yet, sometimes rather than being led to greater faith and humble gratitude, you and I can all too easily undervalue the grace of the Lord’s presence, and even might resent the implications that we should be honoring Him more in our own lives with our day-to-day choices and lived convictions.

For Christ is ever eager and willing to love and comfort and help, but, in the end, lack of faith is still too often such an awful obstacle to His grace, and thus even some of the modern brothers and sisters of Christ, stuck in the podunk of nominal Christianity,  opt to be scandalized rather than vitalized by the God who is with us.

Daily Retreat 01/30/07

2007 Jan 30 Tue
Heb 12: 1-4/ Ps 21(22): 26b-27. 28 and 30. 31-32/ Mk 5: 21-43

From today’s readings:  “ For the sake of the joy that lay before Him, Jesus endured the cross, despising its shame, and has taken His seat at the right of the throne of God....  They will praise You, Lord, who long for You....  You see how the crowd is pressing upon You, and yet You ask, Who touched Me? ”

Doing Our Part

In general, our noisy and hectic world can make it hard to think straight sometimes, and thus  peace and quiet are rare and prized commodities in our day. And yet, even so, there are times when stillness can be alarming, as when a pulse is so faint it can hardly be felt.  

The same dangerous extremes can be observed in the spiritual life.  Consider first the detriment of noise and commotion:  In the Gospel reading, as Jesus makes His way to Jairus’ house, He is surrounded by a chaotic crowd.  Now we can presume these were good people, for they evidently wanted to be close to Jesus and follow Him.  But, by and large, they were meshed in a mob mentality, and they were caught up in the emotion of the moment, and probably just looking for a little excitement - that’s why they were pressing on Jesus!  Not because they sought to know Him personally, not because they were listening much to His words of life, not because they were open to His sacrificial love for each of them, not because they had any intention of following Him for more than a few blocks - none of those good reasons were driving the throng to follow Jesus, but simply because there was a crowd, and the rabble wanted to be part of the crowd, and hang out with the crowd, and so that particular day, they happened to crowd around Jesus.

But in the midst of the multitude, there’s one person who manages to tune out the din and think and act clearly and deliberately.  So the woman with the hemorrhage approaches Jesus, not just to be in the “in” crowd, but because she recognizes His saving power, and so she touches Him in faith.  Streams of people are physically brushing against Jesus, but just in the non-personal way that you or I might unintentionally bump into another in a crowded concourse.  Only one elevates the encounter to the level of personal contact.  As St. Augustine said, “Multitudes are they who throng about Him, but few are they who by faith touch Him.”  And yet what a difference it made for that woman, and for all who want to do more than just crowd around Jesus, those who recognize His saving power, and touch Him in faith!

And it’s the same story with the next miracle:  Jesus arrives at the official’s house, and there’s this commotion of weeping and wailing, people too caught up in their own sorrow to even listen to the Lord’s good news, “She’s just asleep!”  So Jesus puts them all out, so that finally His own words can be clearly heard and felt: “Talitha koum!”  In our lives too, Jesus insists that you and I take action, and put out the distractions of our lives, especially on the Lord’s day, but also every day in our daily prayers, so that His words of life can be clearly heard and felt....


Yes, we need to do our part too, and that insight returns us to the second danger, for not only do people fail in Christian discipleship when misled by chaotic distractions, but also when paralyzed with morbid inaction.   This is a form of the sin of presumption, and the heresy of quietism, which perhaps is more prevalent in our day than most realize.  “I’ll just let God do it all.  If I don’t get around to daily prayers, if I miss going to Church on Sunday, if I don’t bother to read the Bible or study my faith, if I just ignore my pastors, if I worry more about sports scores than I do about eternal salvation, well, God’s big enough to handle all that stuff without my help.”

But, quoting St. Augustine again, “God who made you without your cooperation, will not save you without your cooperation.”  The Lord is too polite to bodily force us to be with Him, so if we decide to crowd Him out of our lives, He doesn’t compel us to make room for Him.  Are you content with crass “Crowd Christianity,” following Jesus every once in a while for a short distance when you’re in the mood and there’s promise of a little excitement?  But that’s not enough!  You can’t just drift with the crowd that hangs out occasionally with Jesus - you need to make a personal commitment, and hang on religiously to Jesus, like the woman who touched the Lord in fullness of faith!

When we hang on faithfully to Jesus, His power touches us, and transforms us.  And then there’s so much we learn from His words and actions.  Did you ever consider, for instance, that if Jesus could raise Jairus’ daughter from the dead, He certainly could have raised her with a full stomach as well?  And yet, after the miracle, Jesus told her parents to give her something to eat, saying, in effect, “I will do My part, but you still need to do your part!”  That’s what Jesus tells each of us today:  He will do His part, but you and I also need to do our parts!

Daily Retreat 01/29/07

2007 Jan 29 Mon
Heb 11: 32-40/ Ps 30(31): 20. 21. 22. 23. 24/ Mk 5: 1-20

From today’s readings:  “God had foreseen something better for us, so that without us they should not be made perfect....  Let your hearts take comfort, all who hope in the Lord....  Go home to your family and announce to them all that the Lord in His pity has done for you.”

Home Missions

Mark’s report of the healing of the Gerasene demoniac is the longest exorcism account in all of the gospels, and the intriguing details tells much about the characteristics of demonic possession and expulsion.  But today, I want to just focus on the final three verses: as Jesus was embarking to leave the region, the man who had been possessed by Legion pleaded with our Lord, asking for permission to come with Him.  But surprisingly, Jesus denied the grateful request, telling the man instead, “Go to your home, to your family, and announce to them what the Lord has done for you, and that He has had mercy on you.”  And the man did just that, proclaiming not just to his family, but to all ten of the cities of the region what Jesus had done for Him, and all were amazed.

Since the reason is not given in the gospel, there’s a lot of speculation on why Jesus didn’t welcome the dispossessed man fully aboard as a disciple.  Whatever the reason may have been, Jesus certainly would not have denied anyone the opportunity to grow in faithful discipleship.  But as always, Jesus knew best the way and the where in which that man, and each one of us as well, could and would serve Him best.

 I remember my missionary zeal as a seminarian, committing myself to go wherever in the world Jesus wanted me to go with Him, and lo, here I am, having been sent to serve as pastor in the little town of Okanogan!  Because, for myself and for most of us, Jesus doesn’t call us to exotic missionary travels in His name - instead, our mission from the Lord is simply to go to our own people and announce in word and action the good news about what the Lord has done - what He’s done throughout salvation history, and what He’s done personally in our own lives, and that He’s shown us His mercy.  Because, wherever we are, when we faithfully do what He taught us to do, when we share fully the Gospel, the whole world takes note!

Daily Retreat 01/28/07

2007 Jan 28 SUN: FOURTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Jer 1: 4-5. 17-19/ Ps 70(71): 1-2. 3-4. 5-6. 15-17/ 1 Cor 12: 31 – 13: 13/ Lk 4: 21- 30

From today’s readings:  “The word of the LORD came to me, saying: Before I formed you in the womb I knew you....  In You, O LORD, I take refuge....  Love is patient, love is kind....  Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing....”

Luke Lays Out Life’s Option

    In chapter 4 of St. Luke's Gospel, the stirring manifesto of the Messiah's mission is presented (last Sunday’s Gospel, which leads into this Sunday’s passage). Jesus quotes from the book of the prophet Isaiah about how the Lord has sent Him to announce the good news (the Gospel) and to proclaim liberty to the captives, and healing to the blind, and release to the prisoners... and it's so filled with good news — and yet, after a momentary euphoria, there's this reaction from the people of Nazareth that they don't want to hear the good news... in fact, they want to get rid of Jesus! And this is what happens time and time again in this Gospel:  Luke paints in inviting detail just how good is the good news, and yet there's people who completely ignore or even reject this good news.  
    But Luke also takes great pains to show, not just who Jesus is (the One who brings the good news) but also who are the people who do receive the good news (see, for instance, next Sunday’s Gospel). Luke, more than any other evangelist, has a beautiful picture, a portrait, of the supporting cast:  the people who received the good news, who were there with Jesus and are taken up by His message. Now Luke of course, has good reason for this detail, because in his second volume (the Acts of the Apostles) he's going to develop more fully how those people who received the good news, the supporting cast of Jesus, continued to carry out His mission.
    So Luke presents this ongoing contrast between those who accept and those who reject the Gospel.   Consider, for example,  the crucifixion of Christ, there's only one Gospel that sets off the good thief and the bad thief- and that's the Gospel of St Luke.  What a contrast - in the hour of death, either humbly crying out, "Jesus, remember me!" or tragically, blaspheming Him.  All throughout the Gospel, there are people that get the message and there are people who don't get the message.  So you and I, the readers, are presented with this clear option: are we going to humbly accept Jesus and His Gospel, or are we going to tragically ignore and reject Him, and drive Him out of our own hometown?

Daily Retreat 01/27/07

2007 Jan 27 Sat/ BVM/ Angela Merici, v, rf
Heb 11: 1-2. 8-19/ Lk 1: 69-70. 71-72. 73-75/ Mk 4: 35-41

From today’s readings:  “Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen....  Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel; He has come to His people....  Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?”

Weathering Storms With Christ

We’ve all seen storms that were at least slightly scary, and if we found ourselves at that time in a boat, or plane, or car, then the storm may well have become very scary!  Earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, and the like, also remind us, even when observed from afar, that the forces of nature are more than man can ever control!

We’ve all been buffeted by figurative storms in our lives as well, those times we’ve found ourselves drenched in problems, engulfed with worries, and even nearly drowning in fears.  Many such squalls are more than partly our own fault, arising from our own poor decisions.  But then again, there are also times when we, through no fault of our own, just find ourselves in the wrong place, at the wrong time, suddenly faced with the most adverse conditions.

And often, after doing our best to get out of the storms of our lives, whether literal or figurative, we discover that, on our own, we just don’t have what it takes to weather such foul weather.   Our prayers can even reach the desperation of the disciples, “Teacher, don’t You even care that I’m perishing?  I’m drowning!  I’m up to my neck! I’ve tried everything, and still the storms just grow worse!”

The Gospel reminds us that, in the midst of the storm, the disciples had Jesus with them - that would be their salvation!  But the Gospel also reveals that the disciples weren’t initially inclined to turn to Jesus for help; for too long, they ignored the Lord - that would be their consternation!  For if they had called upon Him earlier, He certainly would have answered with full assurance.  

Jesus wasn’t annoyed that His apostles woke Him up, but He was concerned that they had waited to the point of desperation, so much so that, when they turned to Him, they didn’t even have much faith that He would or could do much to save them.  And so their prayer had the tone of a reproof: “Don’t You even care that we’re perishing?”

The elements of nature and the adversities of our lives are more than we can control, and often enough, more than we can take without help.  So, rather than pushing ourselves to our breaking points, rather than ignoring the Lord and waiting until the point of consternation and desperation, finally turning to God but with little hope that He can or will do anything about such storms, it’s much better for us to remember now that we have Jesus with us, and that will be our salvation! 

Daily Retreat 01/26/07

 2007 Jan 26 Fri: Timothy and Titus, bps M
2 Tm 1: 1-8 or Ti 1: 1-5/ Ps 95(96): 1-2a. 2b-3. 7-8a. 10/ Mk 4: 26-34

From today’s readings:  “For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control.....  Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations.....  With many such parables He spoke the word to them as they were able to understand it. ”

Timothy and Titus

There are a two options for the first reading today - Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus, because of their personal touch, provide us with a sense of how we should see all of the Bible - not as an intimidating, musty, outdated book, rarely read but kept mostly for its antique value, but rather, as a living, loving letter written to guide and inspire us by a wise, caring Father.

The beginnings of both the letters in the lectionary are filled with such excitement and joy at this opportunity for Paul to “fan the flame” and give encouragement to Timothy and Titus, so that they in turn will give encouragement and direction to the people of God entrusted to their care.  As Paul proves (and in turn, Timothy and Titus as well), helping others to grow in their faith is one of the best ways to celebrate and strengthen and rejuvenate your own faith!

Daily Retreat 01/25/07

2007 Jan 25 Thur: Conversion of Paul, ap F
Acts 22: 3-16 or Acts 9: 1-22/ Ps 116(117): 1bc. 2/ Mk 16: 15-18

From today’s readings:  “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? ....Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature!”

The Conversion of St. Paul

Accounts of the conversion of St. Paul recur three times in the Acts of the Apostles: first, the author (St. Luke) recounts the incident (chapter 9); then, St. Paul narrates his conversion while presenting his defense to the Jews in Jerusalem (chapter 22); and  then again, Paul recalls the miraculous events in his speech before King Agrippa (chapter 26).

In compiling the Acts of the Apostles, Luke could have chosen to present the details of Paul's conversion only once, and then merely mentioned a summary of Paul's  defense statements before the Jews and King Agrippa.  But because the details of the conversion are repeated  and even offered from a slightly different point of view each time, it's patently clear that Paul's conversion was a watershed event in the early Church, and the miracle of his conversion must have been the inspiration for many conversions.

Some of us can trace particular moments of conversion  in our own lives, but even if, by God's grace, we've  stayed relatively close to Him all of our lives, each of us needs to be committed to ongoing conversion, to continual sanctification, and the commitment to grow in our faith - and to be just as grateful as St. Paul was for the wondrous ways God has shown us His light!

Daily Retreat 01/24/07

2007 Jan 24 Wed: Francis de Sales, bp, rf, dr M
Heb 10: 11-18/ Ps 109(110): 1. 2. 3. 4/ Mk 4: 1-20

From today’s readings:  “by one offering He has made perfect forever those who are being consecrated....  You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek....  Do you not understand this parable? Then how will you understand any of the parables?”

The Seminal Parable

Of all the things that Jesus taught, most people find His parables particularly memorable.  All good teachers, of course, strive to not just present facts for their students to memorize and parrot on tests, but rather, to inspire the students to think about the facts as they learn them.  Parables are well-suited for such efficacious teaching, since they effectively engage the listener in the search to understand their meaning - no wonder that the best Teacher made extensive use of parables in His teaching!

The Parable of the Sower is particularly detailed and prominent, and one of the few parables for which Jesus explicitly appended His own explanation, simply because of its fundamental theme of exposing the obstacles to the fruitful reception of the Word of God.

Those who first heard and those of us who most recently heard again this punchy parable are thus left with some thought-provoking and action-inspiring questions:

Since I have heard the Word of God, how rich of a harvest has been yielded? 

Thirty? Sixty? A hundredfold? 

If less than that, why? 

Has my inattention too often allowed Satan to steal the Word before being well implanted in my heart? 

Has my lack of follow-up and follow-through exposed me as one with lack of rooted convictions concerning the Word of God? 

Have my worldly anxieties, the lure of riches, and other preoccupations choked the Word of God in my life? 

What can I, with the help of God, do today about that?

Daily Retreat 01/23/07

2007 Jan 23 Tue
Heb 10: 1-10/ Ps 39(40): 2 and 4ab. 7-8a. 10. 11/ Mk 3: 31-35

From today’s readings:  “It is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats take away sins.... Here am I Lord; I come to do Your will....  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and sister and mother.”

Brethren of the Lord

Because the perpetual virginity of Mary is affirmed as Catholic doctrine, it is sometimes called into question by Protestants who see that teaching as unbiblical, appealing to the scriptural verses that specifically refer to brothers or sisters of Jesus, such as today’s passage (Mark 3:31–35) and several others (Matt. 12:46; Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3; Luke 8:19–20; John 2:12, 7:3, 5, 10; Acts 1:14; 1 Cor. 9:5).

Clearly, throughout scripture, and in our own time as well, the words “brothers” and “sisters” are used in a range of meanings, from a narrow sense (siblings from the same parents, such as Cain and Abel), to an approximate sense (including half-brothers, such as Jacob’s many sons), to a wider general sense (relatives or any people of similar origin or purpose - John 19:25 can be considered, for example:  “There stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas.....”  Presumably, the parents of the Virgin Mary did not have another daughter whom they also named “Mary” and married Clopas!).  It also should be noted that the use of the terms “brothers” and “sisters” in a wider sense was especially common in Aramaic, the language spoken by Jesus and His contemporaries, since that language lacked a specific word to designate cousins.

The heart of the Catholic position thus stems from the fact that it is incontestable that none of biblical passages can refer to full brothers or sisters of Jesus in the narrow sense, because He alone had Mary as His mother, but God Himself as His Father.   Furthermore, none of the biblically designated “brothers” or “sisters” of Jesus are elsewhere presented as sons or daughters of Mary (or even of Joseph, for that matter).  And the mistaken notion that Mary had other children would clash with, for example, the need or purpose of the crucified Christ to entrust the care of His mother to His beloved disciple (John 19:26).

Early Church writings were united in affirming or at least presuming the perpetual virginity of Mary.  Not until the late fourth century did a certain Helvidius suggest that the biblical brethren of the Lord were natural children of Mary and Joseph, but the idea was immediately derided by St. Jerome as a groundless, impious, ignorant, and irreverent innovation.  Jerome’s biting and hardhitting refutation of Helvidius can be read here:  http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3007.htm

More detailed apologetics notes on the issue can be found here: http://www.catholic.com/library/Brethren_of_the_Lord.asp

 

Daily Retreat 01/22/07

2007 Jan 22 Mon/ Vincent of Saragossa, d, mt
Heb 9: 15. 24-28/ Ps 97(98): 1. 2-3ab. 3cd-4. 5-6/ Mk 3: 22-30

From today’s readings:  “Christ is mediator of a new covenant....  Sing to the Lord a new song, for He has done marvelous deeds....  Whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an everlasting sin.”

The Unforgivable Sin

The Lord’s mention of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit as the unforgivable sin is disturbing to many people. Some, in fact, are obsessed by the fear of inadvertently committing that unforgivable sin, and thereby forfeiting salvation.

Jesus, however, came to call sinners, and He preached throughout His public life of the mercy of God.  His brief mention of the unforgivable sin was surely thus not intended to eclipse all that Jesus did and taught about the forgiveness of sins.

As always, reading the words of Jesus in context leads to better understanding.  The scribes accused Jesus of being in league with Satan, and because they were maintaining that His Spirit was evil, they were thereby blaspheming the Holy Spirit.

As the first reading recalls, however, Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant.  God’s covenantal blessings, including the forgiveness of sins, come through Jesus and His Holy Spirit.  So, when a person explicitly shuns Jesus and His Spirit as intrinsically evil, the person is tragically spurning the very source of forgiveness, like a child who rejects a saving antidote by refusing to take his medicine because he fears the medicine itself will poison him.

Thus, it is impossible to inadvertently commit the unforgivable sin, and even if a person had grievously sinned by initially scorning the Holy Spirit as evil, by turning in repentance to God for His forgiveness as provided in the New Covenant, the sinner would demonstrate that he had not committed the unforgivable sin of blaspheming irrevocably against the Holy Spirit.

Daily Retreat 01/21/07

2007 Jan 21 SUN: THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Neh 8: 2-4a. 5-6. 8-10/ Ps 18(19): 8. 9. 10. 15/ 1 Cor 12: 12-30/ Lk 1: 1-4; 4: 14-21

From today’s readings:  “ All the people listened attentively to the book of the law....  Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life....  Now you are Christ’s body...  I too have decided, after investigating everything accurately anew, to write it down in an orderly sequence for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received.”

Luke’s Letter to Theophilus

St. Luke begins his Gospel with aplomb, explaining to Theophilus the precise reason why he has compiled his account of the life of Jesus, “so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received!”  Luke also addresses his second volume, the Acts of the Apostles, to Theophilus as well, whose name means, “Loved by God.”   Since, throughout this year, the Sunday Gospel will be almost exclusively from Luke’s Gospel, now is the time to really get into the Gospel of Luke - perhaps you can set aside time to read the whole book throughout this week.

Since nothing else is known about Theophilus, some scholars have suggested that Luke penned that name as a literary device to connect with readers, all of whom would well see themselves as “Loved by God” personally after reading the good news of God’s love and mercy so convincingly presented by  Luke.  But regardless of whether or not there ever was an historical “Theophilus,” it’s certain that Luke wrote intending and hoping that everyone would come to hear the Gospel.

By “investigating everything accurately anew,” St.  Luke makes sure that we get a close-up of the best side of Jesus-the very best of Jesus! Not that there's a “worst of Jesus,” of course, but I think we can say there is a "best of Jesus": The Jesus who is so fired up with His Messianic mission (summarized in the manifesto from Isaiah He proclaimed in His hometown), the Jesus who so loved, the Jesus who is so compassionate, the Jesus who is so forgiving, the Jesus that is so much with us - St Luke really shows best how Jesus is one with us:  He's one with the downtrodden (like the Good Samaritan was, for example). He's one with those, such as lepers, who are marginalized in society, He's one with the poor (such as the widow who generously gives her last pennies), He's one with those who have done something so bad that they've been excluded by their sins from society (such as the prodigal son and adulterous woman) and He's there to bring them back and reconcile.  Read the whole book, see the best of Jesus, following the Lord's own example of reading scripture right in your own home town!

Daily Retreat 01/20/07

2007 Jan 20 Sat/ BVM/ Fabian, pp, mt/ Sebastian, mt
Heb 9: 2-3. 11-14/ Ps 46(47): 2-3. 6-7. 8-9/ Mk 3: 20-21

From today’s readings:  “ He entered once for all into the sanctuary, not with the blood of goats and calves but with His own Blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption....  God mounts His throne to shouts of joy: a blare of trumpets for the Lord....  When His relatives heard of this they set out to seize Him, for they said, ‘He is out of his mind.’ ”

Craziness

Today’s Gospel passage is not only the shortest daily reading in the entire lectionary (a mere two verses), but’s it’s also one of the most difficult to interpret, especially taken, as it is, out of its wider context.  Evidently, the compilers of the lectionary wanted the congregation to be confronted with the abrasiveness of verse 21, for otherwise, today’s verses could have easily been read with the eight ensuing verses assigned for Monday.

First, there are a few translation issues to be considered.  Because of an ambiguity in the original Greek text, verse 21 could be rendered, “When His relatives heard, they went out to take control of it (viz., the demanding crowd mentioned in the previous verse), for they were saying it was beside itself.”  This interpretation would neatly remove the distastefulness of recording that some of the closest people to Jesus thought He was crazy.  But, while such a translation is defensible, based on word usage patterns in Mark’s Gospel, most scripture scholars would hold that a stronger case could be made for the more straightforward and traditional translation, “... they went out to take control of Him....”

Now, what were they saying about Him?  The American lectionary reads, “... they said, ‘He is out of his mind!’ ” However, other translations put it, “He is beside himself!” Both are acceptable translations, but the second reads a bit less harshly to pious listeners, since, given the demands of the pushy crowd,  it is certainly understandable that the Lord’s relatives would be worried about His perhaps being overwhelmed with the frenzy of His work.

However, even granted the possibility that such legitimate translation possibilities exist, the compilers and translators of our lectionary wanted us to face head-on the traditional rendering, viz., that those close to Jesus were saying that He was insane!  

You or I would never say such a thing about our Lord, of course.  And yet, when we read the Gospels attentively, and consider the full impact of what Jesus did and said, and when we take seriously what He demands that His followers likewise do and say, then can’t we sometimes detect a little voice of doubt in our own hearts that also seems to say, “He can’t really mean that - that’s impossible - He’s crazy!”

Interestingly enough, in his letters, St. Paul didn’t hesitate to admit that Christ’s whole life certainly appears as utter madness to the world (see, for instance, 1Cor. 1:23, 2:14ff, 4:10).  For, if solely secular standards of sanity are sanctioned, then Christ indeed is crazy!  But, when Christ and His sanctity are seen as the sole sane standard of salvation, then really, it’s only our world that’s crazy, not our Lord!

Daily Retreat 01/19/07

2007 Jan 19 Fri
Heb 8: 6-13/ Ps 84(85): 8 and 10. 11-12. 13-14/ Mk 3: 13-19

From today’s readings:  “Now our high priest has obtained so much more excellent a ministry as He is mediator of a better covenant, enacted on better promises....  Kindness and truth shall meet....  He appointed Twelve, whom He also named Apostles, that they might be with Him and He might send them forth to preach and to have authority to drive out demons....”

Sending of Apostles

The very word “apostle” means “one who is sent.”  In choosing His apostles, Jesus was designating them and commissioning them to go forth in His Name to preach His Gospel and share in His work.  This He did on occasion even while He was bodily with them on earth (cf. Mark 6:7ff), and even more radically after His Resurrection (cf. Mark 16:15ff).

“Apostolicity”is thus one of the marks of Christ’s true Church, the unbroken connection to the foundational commissioning of those Twelve men chosen by Christ for that purpose.  Peter, who clearly exercised a role of leadership among the college of Apostles, was the first Pope, and Pope Benedict is now his 264th successor in that office, and the other bishops of the Church are the successors to the band of the Apostles.

It is most significant that Jesus specifically and deliberately chose these men to share in His own mission and authority.  The Son of God could have organized the Church of His followers without any such visible hierarchy of helpers, but in His Providence, God did as He knew best, summoning and forming  and sending forth His apostolic assistants as a blessing of pastoral guidance for all ages.

Daily Retreat 01/18/07

2007 Jan 18 Thu
Heb 7: 25 – 8: 6/ Ps 39(40): 7-8a. 8b-9. 10. 17/ Mk 3: 7-12

From today’s readings:  “Jesus is always able to save those who approach God through Him, since He lives forever to make intercession for them....  Here am I, Lord; I come to do Your will....  ”

Spreading the Good News

After a number of miracles and a period of teaching with authority in the synagogues in the towns along the north and west coasts of the Sea of Galilee, the news about Jesus started to spread throughout the country, and as the passage in the Gospel relates, many people started to come to Him from all over the land.

How did so many people hear about Jesus?  There were, of course, no television spots or newspaper features about Him - it had to be word of mouth, as each person who had encountered Jesus shared the news with family and friends about the difference He had made in their lives.  

True, Jesus forbade the evil spirits from making Him known, and even discouraged some of the people He healed from talking about it.  This was probably to avoid a mass hysteria of people mistaking Him as a political messiah who would be taking on the Roman occupiers.

The truth about Jesus spread throughout the land, because the people who had come to know Him cared about sharing the blessings He brought.  The same should be true in our own day!

Daily Retreat 01/17/07

2007 Jan 17 Wed: Anthony, ab M
Heb 7: 1-3. 15-17/ Ps 109(110): 1. 2. 3. 4/ Mk 3: 1-6

From today’s readings:  “He remains a priest forever....  The LORD has sworn, and He will not repent....  Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath? ”

A Simple Choice

Yesterday’s Gospel theme of Sabbath observance is revisited today with the Lord’s penetrating question:   “Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?”  Presented this way as a simple choice between two alternatives, Jesus’ remark couches a significant insight:  omission of a good act furthers the tide of evil, and refusal to save life contributes to its destruction.

The Sabbath, and the whole of God’s law, can thus never be invoked as an excuse to neglect the duty to defend life or other timely good deeds.  Quite the opposite - God prescribes Sabbath rest and the moral compass of His revelation precisely to help us do the right thing at the right time - always!

Keeping the Lord’s day holy therefore entails spending time scrutinizing our past attitudes and habits and resolving to address our own hardness of heart that may have made us resist or reject any of the Lord’s teachings and His way of doing the right thing at the right time, always.

Daily Retreat 01/16/07

2007 Jan 16 Tue
Heb 6: 10-20/ Ps 110(111): 1-2. 4-5. 9 and 10c/ Mk 2: 23-28

From today’s readings:  “God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love you have demonstrated for His Name by having served and continuing to serve the holy ones....  The Lord will remember His covenant for ever....  the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.”

The Lord of the Sabbath

Saturday, the seventh day of the week, is the original Sabbath, and still observed as the holy day of rest by the Jews.  Jesus, however, rose from the dead on Easter Sunday, the first day of God’s new creation.  While the earliest Christians faithfully continued to observe the Jewish Sabbath, their awareness of the significance of the Lord’s Resurrection inspired them to gather in prayerful communion with the Risen Lord every Sunday, which soon became known as “the Lord’s Day.”  

Recalling the words of Jesus that “the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath,” the Church has come to celebrate Sunday, the Lord’s Day, as the Sabbath of the New Testament.  In living their faith, Christians thus are to observe the Third Commandment of the Decalogue and remember to keep the Lord’s Day holy by participating in Mass and engaging in deeds of mercy and charity, while refraining from work or activities that diminish the sacred character of the day,

Some, however, seek to dispense themselves from any sense of Sunday obligation, even appealing for justification to the Lord’s comment that “the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath,” as if He had implied that God’s Commandments were subject to personal tastes and whims.

Actually, God did not command Sabbath sanctification because He needs worship and rest, but, rather, because, as our Creator, He knows we need that!  We need to punctuate our work weeks with a special day honoring God and thus insisting that humans are more than gears in the machine of the national economy.  We need to come together with our larger human family to pray with and for others, and be strengthened by their prayers for us.  We need the enlightenment and inspiration from listening devoutly to God’s Word solemnly proclaimed anew in our sacred assemblies.  And we need the nourishment from the sacramental presence of our Lord!  And God gives us all this, on His day, in His house, because the Sabbath was made for man....


For further reflection, review the Catechism of the Catholic Church §2168-2195, and Dies Domini, the 1998 apostolic letter from Pope John Paul II on keeping the Lord’s Day Holy.

Daily Retreat 01/15/07

2007 Jan 15 Mon
Heb 5: 1-10/ Ps 109(110): 1. 2. 3. 4/ Mk 2: 18-22

From today’s readings:  “ Son though He was, He learned obedience from what He suffered; and when He was made perfect, He became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey Him....  You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek....  New wine is poured into fresh wineskins.”

New and Old News

There’s something very human about constantly looking for something new: a new book, or new computer, or new car, a new outfit, or a new song.  In fact, there’s a whole industry to help us digest daily all the “news.”  Many of you reading these daily reflections are looking for new insights into God’s word.

When Jesus came to earth, He brought a lot of news - the whole New Testament in fact, and so His parable about putting new fine in fresh wineskins clearly applied to His own innovative teachings and examples.

In our day, however, Jesus and His Gospel are dismissed as old: old fashioned, old hat, old school, and paradoxically, old news!  Granted - Christianity has been around for 2000 years, so can anything about it be considered new?  Well, as G.K. Chesterton quipped, "Christianity has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and not tried."

For, in reality, the freshness of Christianity is renewed whenever and wherever the faith is taken seriously, as is seen in the lives of all the saints.  Just consider, for example, the witness of Mother Teresa of Calcutta - her actions and humble words, in the midst of dire poverty, were universally recognized as something beautiful for God.  What was her secret?  Simply taking the Gospel to heart!

For the One who said, “Behold, I make all things new” (Rev. 21:5) is still at His work of soul-shaping renovation in modern times, most particularly when He is welcomed with joy as the soul’s Bridegroom, sharing all aspects of our entire lives!

Daily Retreat 01/14/07

2007 Jan 14 SUN: SECOND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Is 62: 1-5/ Ps 95(96): 1-2. 2-3. 7-8. 9-10 (3)/ 1 Cor 12: 4-11/ Jn 2: 1-11

From today’s readings:  “As a bridegroom rejoices in his bride so shall your God rejoice in you....  Worship the LORD in holy attire....   To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit....  There was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; Jesus and His disciples were also invited to the wedding.”

Celebration of Faith

The first reading might seem vaguely familiar - it  was proclaimed on Christmas Eve! Indeed, all the  scripture today rings with an exuberant air, a festive reminder that our faith is meant to be celebrated, not just on great feastdays such as Christmas, but throughout the year as well.  

And what is the nature of this celebration? The Gospel  account of Christ's first miracle at the Wedding Feast of Cana points the first reading's focus to the final verses: "For the Lord  delights in you, and makes your land His spouse. As a  young man marries a virgin, your Builder shall marry you,  and as a bridegroom rejoices in his bride, so shall your God rejoice in you!" Since the Lord Himself delights in His relationship with us, how can we help but to delight in and  celebrate our relationship with Him?  

St. Paul, in his first letter to the Corinthians, revels in the generosity of God, who, because of His delight in us and love for us, has showered upon us such a multitude of  blessings and gifts. What's more, each gift given to an  individual is given as a blessing to be shared, so that, in  fact, every talent and gift I have received from God is also  intended for you, and every blessing you've received from God is also something for which I can be grateful as well, because as you conscientiously use your gifts, I too share in its blessings and benefits.  

Notice how this principle is played out so beautifully in the Gospel - Mary's awareness of the bride and groom's rather simple need is brought to the attention of her Son Jesus, who, for  His part, uses the occasion to demonstrate the divine generosity poured out in abundance for all to share! Take the time today to  thank God for His own delight - His closeness to you manifested in so many blessings - not just the blessings received directly in your own  life, but, just as importantly, the countless blessings

Daily Retreat 01/13/07

2007 Jan 13 Sat/ BVM/ Hilary, bp, dr
Heb 4: 12-16/ Ps 18(19): 8. 9. 10. 15/ Mk 2: 13-17

From today’s readings:  “The word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword....  Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life....  Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. ”

Calling All Sinners!

As Jesus Himself explained, He came to call sinners, not the self-righteous.  Consequently, those who do not acknowledge their own sinfulness are not able to hear Jesus calling them - even if in some nominal way they consider themselves Christian, their operative presumption is that Jesus need only play a minor part in their lives, because they believe they can basically handle things on their own.

On the other hand, those who have the self-honesty to admit to personal sinfulness and moral failings are much more disposed to hear Jesus’ call to repent and believe in His Gospel - Jesus is thus welcomed for who and what He is:  the essential source of salvation!

Thus, one of the benefits of regular sacramental confession is just the simple reminder and admission that:  I am a sinner!  I need Jesus!  I hear Him calling me today, and in answer to His call, I humbly come to His seat of mercy....

Daily Retreat 01/12/07

2007 Jan 12 Fri
Heb 4: 1-5. 11/ Ps 77(78): 3 and 4bc. 6c-7. 8/ Mk 2: 1-12

From today’s readings:  “Therefore, let us strive to enter into that rest, so that no one may fall after the same example of disobedience....  Do not forget the works of the Lord!...   But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth....”

Carrying Others to Christ

When reading the Bible, we must always strive to avoid reading “into” the sacred text our own preconceived ideas, prejudices, and assumptions, for scripture is truly the “Word of God,” what He wants to say to us.   However, since even the most detailed passages can frequently support many different insights,  more than one legitimate interpretation can often be validly argued.  As long as one respects the integrity of sacred scripture and takes into account the entire Tradition of our faith, it’s oftentimes beneficial to consider new points of view.

Consider, for example, the healing of the paralytic, recorded in today’s Gospel reading.  The focus is clearly on the man’s healing as the visible guarantee of the forgiveness of his sins when Jesus said to him, “Child, your sins are forgiven!”  But that central insight shouldn’t prevent us from considering other details of this miracle.

Note, for instance, in introducing the Lord’s proclamation of the forgiveness of sins, the Gospel clearly reads, “... Jesus saw their faith.”  Not just “his” faith, but “their” faith!  In other words, what warranted Jesus’ attention was not just the faith of the paralyzed man, the one who would directly receive the blessing of forgiveness and healing, for evidently, Jesus was also touched by the faith of those who brought the man to Him.  

In fact, we can legitimately speculate a bit about the faith of the paralytic - did he himself hear about Jesus, and then beg his friends to bring him to the Lord, and insist that they promise to do everything possible to get him close to the Lord?  Or did his friends first hear about Jesus - were they the ones to initially tell the paralyzed man about Jesus, maybe even needing to overcome the sick man’s skepticism, and fear of being pulled up on top of the roof?  On this point, scripture is not clear: perhaps the entire fivesome were all strong in their faith, but then again, maybe one or more of them were weak in faith, but dragged along willy nilly by the fervent faith of the others.

And so, while each person’s faith by itself must be addressed and nurtured, the issue shouldn’t be reduced to just “your” individual faith and “my” individual faith - the Lord Himself considers (and wants us to also consider) our collective faith, which could very well be more than just the sum of its parts!

For whenever we come to Jesus in prayer, we should also bring others with us, carrying them if necessary, at least through our prayer!  We should bring all those who can not come to Jesus and His Church on their own because of illness or other handicaps - sometimes this means physically assisting those in need of transportation, or with other special considerations.  We bring them to Jesus, that He may fill their lives with hope and healing, strength and comfort!

But when we come to Jesus in prayer, we should also bring all those who do not come to Jesus and His Church on their own because of ignorance, doubt, confusion and other difficulties, those who perhaps haven’t even thought much yet of issues of faith in their lives.  We bring them to Jesus, that He may fill their lives with faith and the Sanctifying Grace of His Presence!

And when we come to Jesus in prayer, we should even bring all those who deliberately will not come to the Jesus and His Church on their own because of alienation, anger, fear, or other troubles, so that our patient God may fill their lives with charity as He draws them ever nearer to Himself and His Mystical Body, the Church!

Daily Retreat 01/11/07

2007 Jan 11 Thu
Heb 3: 7-14/ Ps 94(95): 6-7c. 8-9. 10-11/ Mk 1: 40-45

From today’s readings:  “Encourage yourselves daily while it is still ‘today,’ so that none of you may grow hardened by the deceit of sin....  If today you hear His voice, harden not your hearts.... go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed.... ”

Show Yourself to the Priest

After compassionately healing a man of leprosy, Jesus sent him away with some noteworthy instructions:   “See that you tell no one anything, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them.”

In ancient times, leprosy was not only a personal physical disease, because indeed, the fear of contagion also effectively ostracized the leper from the community.   Even after a man had been healed of leprosy, before he could return to the community, he had to first present himself to the priest for inspection and a ritual offering and cleansing (cf. Leviticus 14).

Sin, it must be remembered, is likewise not only a personal spiritual disease, but also a rupture from God’s family.  That’s one of the reasons why, in the sacrament of reconciliation, the penitent presents himself to the priest for confession and sacramental forgiveness.  The priest then, in the name of God, effects and certifies the healing of the sin-wounded relationship, and so, by Divine Mercy, the penitent is reconciled to God and His Church.

Daily Retreat 01/10/07

2007 Jan 10 Wed
Heb 2: 14-18/ Ps 104(105): 1-2. 3-4. 6-7. 8-9/ Mk 1: 29-39

From today’s readings:  “Because He Himself was tested through what He suffered, He is able to help those who are being tested....  The Lord remembers His covenant for ever....  Rising very early before dawn, He left and went off to a deserted place, where He prayed.”

Prayer On-the-Go

Particularly in Mark’s Gospel, Jesus is depicted as constantly on-the-go.  His activity confirms Him, fittingly, as the truest “man with a mission.”  And so, without a doubt, we Christians, in following Jesus, are to be animated by His divine sense of urgency, for every moment in our lives counts either for or against eternal salvation.

Yet the Lord’s frenzied pace was never untethered from the deepest commitment to prayer and meditation, which made it necessary for Him to rise very early before dawn in order to slip away to a place of solitude.  Consequently, all of us Christians must personally commit to a similar priority of prayer, no matter what sacrifice that entails - even if that means, as it did for Jesus, getting up early to get the job done!

Daily Retreat 01/09/07

2007 Jan 9 Tue: Ordinary Weekday

Heb 2: 5-12/ Ps 8: 2ab and 5. 6-7. 8-9/ Mk 1: 21-28

 

From today’s readings:  “...by the grace of God, He might taste death for everyone....  You have given Your Son rule over the works of Your hands....  The people were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes....”

 

Mark His Words

 

For the Sunday readings, the Church observes a three year cycle, focusing in turn on each of the synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke).  So,  this year, the Sunday readings are predominantly from St. Luke’s Gospel.

 

The daily lectionary is structured differently.  After Christmas season and the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, the daily Gospel readings start with Chapter One of St. Mark’s Gospel, which is then read sequentially until Lent and Easter, seasons which have proper readings selected in keeping with the theme of the liturgical times.  After Pentecost, though, the daily lectionary returns to following the Gospel of St. Mark, then St. Matthew’s, and finally St. Luke’s.  Readings from the Gospel of St. John are interspersed throughout the year, particularly in the Easter season.

 

So today’s reading recounts the Lord’s first miracle recorded in Mark’s Gospel - an exorcism.  The focus, however, seems to be more on the phenomenon of the Lord’s “new teaching with authority,” which even the unclean spirits are seen to acknowledge.

 

Sometimes there’s a temptation to overlook that in modern times - the fact that the Lord teaches with authority!  Many today presume to adjudicate on biblical matters of all sorts, as if contemporary norms and standards somehow trumped the eternal teaching authority of the One to Whom, as the letter to the Hebrews reminds us,  God has made all things subject!

Fr. Rory Pitstick
Our Lady of the Valley Parish
2511 N. Elmway
Okanogan WA 98840 USA
(509) 422-5049

"Illum oportet crescere, me autem minui." John 3:30

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Daily Retreat 01/08/07

2007 Jan 8 Mon: BAPTISM OF THE LORD F

Is 40: 1-5. 9-11 or Ti 2: 11-14; 3: 4-7/ Ps 103(104): 1b-2. 3-4. 24-25. 27-28. 29-30 (1)/ Lk 3: 15-16. 21-22

 

From today’s readings:  “Fear not to cry out and say to the cities of Judah: Here is your God! ...   He saved us through the bath of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit....  The Lord will bless His people with peace....  After all the people had been baptized and Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, Heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove....”

 

Two Reasons for Baptism

 

In accordance with the Church’s recommendation, many of us received the grace of Baptism within a few weeks after our birth, and so it’s hardly a coincidence that, this Sunday, the Church celebrates the Baptism of the Lord, just a few weeks after the Christmas celebration of His birth.

 

Christ’s baptism marked the beginning of His public ministry, and since the life of Jesus is an example for us, our commemoration of His baptism today is also intended to inspire us to appreciate anew the grace of our own baptism, and understand how our own baptism is connected to Christ’s baptism.

 

Why are Christians baptized?  What happens in the spiritual order when the minister of baptism pours water on a person’s head, saying, in fulfillment of Christ’s own command, “I baptize you in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”?  Through the waters of baptism, all sins (including Original Sin) are washed away, and moreover, the person baptized is born anew in the order of grace as a child of God, a bona fide member of His family. 

 

There’s much to elaborate about these two central effects of baptism, but before that line of thought can even be pursued (on another occasion), since baptism washes away sin and gives new birth as a child of God, then the question immediately arises, Why was Christ baptized?  He who knew no sin certainly did not require the sacramental cleansing of baptism, and of course, that only begotten Son of God had no need of baptism to legitimize His lineage.  No wonder John the Baptist was understandable taken aback when approached by Jesus, when the King explained to His soldier his ironic duty of commissioning his own Monarch!

 

And yet, as always, God knows best!  For Jesus too needed to undergo baptism for two reasons, though His motives were quite different from the spiritually salutary effects you and I received at the moment of our baptism. 

 

First, in order to fulfill all righteousness, Jesus was baptized Himself in order to leave His followers forever with the crystal clear example of the crucial indispensability of baptism - He who Himself wholly knew no sin had the humility to approach John, who though himself holy, did know sin.  Clearly, then, none among us, even one with the innocence of a baby, should forego divine sacramental cleansing!

 

And second, Jesus was submersed in the waters of baptism not for His own rebirth, but to baptize the water itself as the new sacramental conduit of His holiness of life.  So now, all the baptismal water which washes the head of a child originates as prolific runoff from the head of Christ!

Fr. Rory Pitstick
Our Lady of the Valley Parish
2511 N. Elmway
Okanogan WA 98840 USA
(509) 422-5049

"Illum oportet crescere, me autem minui." John 3:30

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Daily Retreat 01/07/07

2007 Jan 7 SUN: EPIPHANY OF THE LORD S
Is 60: 1-6/ Ps 71(72): 1-2. 7-8. 10-11. 12-13/ Eph 3: 2-3a. 5-6/ Mt 2: 1-12
N.B. Epiphany is celebrated on January 6th in many countries.

From today’s readings:  “Rise up in splendor, Jerusalem - your light has come, the glory of the Lord shines upon you....  Lord, every nation on earth will adore You....  the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel....  Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw His star at its rising and have come to do Him homage.”

The Search of a Lifetime

We don’t know much about the Magi, the wise men whose quest ended in the Epiphany of the Lord.  We do know two things about them, though: 1) Their lives were defined by their persistent, diligent search for Christ, and 2) They were successful in their search.

Matthew does not relate many of the details of the Magi’s journey, but we certainly can surmise that they came far enough from the east that they had little knowledge of the Jewish scriptures or contemporary political scene, since they naively turned to the evil king Herod with the candid question, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews?”  So their journey from their homeland must have been long and demanding.  But note that they were motivated and driven, not by what they could GET from the newborn king, but what they could GIVE - their presents of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, and even more, their presence with heartfelt homage!

So they were successful in sanctity - the Magi found the Messiah!  But their quest has become our question: Do you and I orient our lives with our own persistent, diligent search for Christ, looking for Him, not to GET something, but so that we can GIVE Him our own presents and presence?

Daily Retreat 01/06/07

2007 Jan 6 Sat
1 Jn 5: 5-13/ Ps 147: 12-13. 14-15. 19-20/ Mk 1: 7-11 or Lk 3: 23-38
N.B. Epiphany is celebrated today (instead of tomorrow) in some countries

From today’s readings:  “ God gave us eternal life, and this life is in His Son....  Glorify the LORD, O Jerusalem; praise your God, O Zion....  When Jesus began His ministry He was about thirty years of age. He was the son, as was thought, of Joseph....”

Eternal life and love

As St. John begins to bring this letter of love to a close (and as we likewise approach the formal close of the Christmas liturgical season), he states his purpose in writing:
“I write these things to you so that you may know that you have eternal life, you who believe in the Name of the Son of God!”

What does it mean to you to have eternal life?  Mostly, we only think of that concept in terms of heavenly bliss, but St. John suggests that this is not just something promised for the future (“God WILL give us eternal life...”) but something that has already been presented (“God GAVE us eternal life...”).

To be sure, this eternal life is not yet possessed in its fulness by those of us still running the course of our earthly life. But in spite of the differences, John's insight is that there is a profound continuity between life now in Christ and life in Heaven with Christ, for "whoever possesses the Son has life...."

Daily Retreat 01/05/07

2007 Jan 5 Fri: John Neumann, bp M
1 Jn 3: 11-21/ Ps 99(100): 1b-2. 3. 4. 5/ Jn 1: 43-51

From today’s readings:  “Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life remaining in him....  Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.....  Amen, amen, I say to you, you will see the sky opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

Love and Life

In general, the tendency is to think of MATTER as distinct from ENERGY, although intuitively, one supposes that the two notions are certainly somehow related.  Albert Einstein’s simple yet most profound equation, E= mc2, calculates the fundamental equivalency of ENERGY and MATTER.   As Einstein explained, “It followed from the special theory of relativity that mass and energy are both but different manifestations of the same thing -- a somewhat unfamiliar conception for the average mind.”

St. John’s Gospel and letters are favorites of many Christians because of the ardent and sublime verses which extol and explain Christian LOVE.  But St. John also returns time and time again to the theme of LIFE.  It’s intuitive, of course, to recognize that LIFE and LOVE are intimately related realities, but St. John declares certain formulae which insists that the two notions are marked with a fundamental equivalency, e.g.:

     “We know that we have passed from death to life because we love our brothers. Whoever does not love remains in death.   Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life remaining in him.   The way we came to know love was that He laid down His life for us; so we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.

Daily Retreat 01/04/07

2007 Jan 4 Thu: Elizabeth Ann Seton, r M
1 Jn 3: 7-10/ Ps 97(98): 1. 7-8. 9/ Jn 1: 35-42

From today’s readings:  “ Indeed, the Son of God was revealed to destroy the works of the Devil....  All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God....  We have found the Messiah!”

Unraveling the Devil’s works

The Devil is also known as “the Deceiver” - he lurks in lies and eclipses truth with the darkness of dishonesty.  In contrast, Jesus is the true Light of the world (John 1:9), dispelling the darkness of sin and error, untangling the mess of deception and confusion.  The clarity of this radical opposition is bluntly expressed time after time in the works of St. John.

The tendency of modern man, however, is to avoid absolutes, insisting that there is no black and white - only varying shades of grey.  Granted, many moral issues are indeed complex, but it is precisely the complexity of these issues that calls for a clarifying examination in Christ’s light.

The Son of God was revealed precisely to unravel and destroy all the Deceiver’s deceptions, so whenever we’re faced with the confusion of choices, you and I need to pray, study  and seek the illumination of the eternal Truth of Christ.  In fact, many (if not most) of us are at least vaguely suspicious that we continue to tolerate some self-deception in various areas of our lives - NOW is the time to pierce the fogginess of these secret issues with the piercing light of the Truth of Christ!

Daily Retreat 01/03/07

2007 Jan 3 Wed: Christmas Weekday/ Holy Name of Jesus
1 Jn 2: 29 – 3: 6/ Ps 97(98): 1. 3cd-4. 5-6/ Jn 1: 29-34

From today’s readings:  “See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God.....  All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God....  Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”

Children of God

At the Incarnation, when God became man, human nature was elevated - no longer were we to be considered mere creations of God, now Jesus our Brother gives us the right to be called children of God.  This is the highest dignity of our race - even if an alien race were discovered which surpassed human intelligence, they would still rank below us in the order of grace, for we are the only “blood relatives” of God!

That’s why the birth of Christ has universal, direct significance for every human being of the past, present, and future.  And that’s why our Christian moral obligations to others of our race goes beyond just the minimal, “Do no harm.”  As children of God, united as members of His holy family, we have the divine command to “Love one another.”  Divine adoption enriched our nature not just with great dignity, but great responsibility.

And that’s not all - St. John reminds us, “Beloved, we are God's children now; what we shall be has not yet been revealed. We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.”  So God is not finished with us yet - in the end, those adopted children of God who persevere in His grace will be glorified in body and soul and have the fullness of sharing the Resurrection of Christ!