Fourth Sunday of Lent, Year B

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD

A LECTIO DIVINA Approach to the Weekday Liturgy CYCLE 1

ORDINARY TIME: WEEK 10-18

Tenth Week in Ordinary Time (n. 55) Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time (n. 56) Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time (n. 57) Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time (n. 58) Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time (n. 59) Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time (n. 60) Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time (n. 61) Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time (n. 62) Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time (n. 63)

Prepared by Sr. Mary Margaret Tapang, PDDM

*** Text of the Cover Page ends here. *** A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy: Cycle I

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 55) ORDINARY SEASON: WEEK 10

MONDAY: TENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Shows the Way of Beatitudes … We Share in His Suffering”

BIBLE READINGS II Cor 1:1-7 // Mt 5:1-12

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 5:1-12): “Blessed are the poor in spirit.”

In today’s Gospel episode (Mt 5:1-12) Jesus proclaims the Beatitudes which are a “summary” of the meaning of Christian discipleship. In the Beatitudes, Jesus – the new Moses teaching on the new mountain of revelation - offers us the foundations of the law of the Kingdom. He shows us the path of Christian perfection. The Beatitudes are a description of Christ as well as a portrait of the ideal Christian. In order to experience fully God’s beatitudes, the Christian disciples are called to live intensely the life of Jesus, as one who is poor, lowly, merciful, single-hearted, peaceful, persecuted, sorrowful, hungry and thirsty for holiness.

The following story illustrates the spirit of the Beatitudes in a modern setting (cf. Dale Galloway in Stories for the Heart, ed. Alice Gray, Sisters: Multnomah Publishers, Inc., 1996, p. 65).

Little Chad was a shy, quiet young fella. One day he came home and told his mother he’d like to make a valentine for everyone in his class. Her heart sank. She thought, “I wish he wouldn’t do that!” because she had watched the children when they walked home from school. Her Chad was always behind them. They laughed and hung on to each other and talked to each other. But Chad was never included. Nevertheless, she decided she would go along with her son. So she purchased the paper and glue and crayons. For three whole weeks, night after night, Chad painstakingly made thirty-five valentines.

Valentine’s Day dawned, and Chad was beside himself with excitement! He carefully stacked them up, put them in a bag, and bolted out the door. His mom decided to bake him his favorite cookies and serve them nice and warm with a cool glass of milk when he came home from school. She just knew he would be disappointed … maybe that would ease the pain a little. It hurt to think that he wouldn’t get many valentines – maybe none at all.

That afternoon she had the cookies and milk on the table. When she heard the children outside, she looked out the window. Sure enough here they came, laughing and having the best time. And, as always, there was Chad in the rear. He walked a little faster than usual. She fully expected him to burst into tears as soon as he got inside. His arms were empty, she noticed, and when the door opened she choked back the tears. “Mommy has some warm cookies and milk for you.” But he hardly heard her words. He just marched right on by, his face aglow, and all he could say was: “Not a one … not a one.” And then he added, “I didn’t forget a one, not a single one!”

B. First Reading (II Cor 1:1-7): “God encourages us that we ourselves may be able to encourage those who are in any affliction.”

We begin today the semi-continuous reading of the Second Letter of Paul to the Corinthians. Written during a difficult period in his relation with the Church at Corinth, it is his letter of reconciliation. In the reading (I Cor 1:1-7), Saint Paul - “the apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will” - begins his letter with a benediction for the blessing he has received, especially for the hardships he has been able to endure. He invites the Corinthians to bless “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all encouragement”. Indeed, Paul’s experience of suffering and hardship does not nullify his spirit of thanksgiving, but causes him to praise God, who helps us in all our troubles so that we are able to help others with the same consolation we have received. Just as Jesus’ own experience of death leads to him being the source of life, so our own participation in Christ’s sufferings is a share in God’s great help. God is not only the origin of life, but also a sustainer and consoler in trials.

The following is a touching story of a boy who, in suffering, is able to give comfort and joy to others (cf. Samuel Bogan, “The Christmas Scout” in Chicken Soup for the Christian Soul, ed. Jack Canfield, Deerfield Beach: Health Communications, Inc., 1997, p. 78-81).

In spite of the fun and laughter, 13-year-old Frank Wilson was not happy. It was true that he had received all the presents he wanted. And he enjoyed these traditional Christmas Eve reunions of relatives – this year at Aunt Susan’s – for the purpose of exchanging gifts and good wishes.

But Frank was not happy because this was the first Christmas without his brother, Steve, who, during the year, had been killed by a reckless driver. Frank missed his brother and the close companionship they had together.

Frank said good-bye to his relatives and explained to his parents that he was leaving a little early to see a friend: from there he could walk home. Since it was cold outside, Frank put on his new plaid jacket. It was his favorite gift. The other presents he placed on his new sled.

Then Frank headed out, hoping to find the patrol leader of his Boy Scout troop. Frank always felt understood by him. Though rich in wisdom, he lived in the Flats, the section of town where most of the poor lived, and his patrol leader did odd jobs to help support his family. To Frank’s disappointment, his friend was not at home.

As Frank hiked down the street toward home, he caught glimpses of trees and decorations in many of the small houses. Then, through one front window, he glimpsed a shabby room with the limp stockings hanging over an empty fireplace. A woman was seated near them weeping. The stockings reminded him of the way he and his brother had always hung theirs side by side. The next morning, they would be bursting with presents. A sudden thought struck Frank – he had not done his “good turn” for the day.

Before the impulse passed, he knocked on the door. “Yes?” the sad voice of the woman inquired. “May I come in?” “You are welcome”, she said, seeing his sled full of gifts, and assuming he was making a collection, “But I have no food or gifts for you. I have nothing for my own children.” “That’s not why I am here”, Frank replied. “Please choose whatever presents you’d like for your children from this sled.” “Why, God bless you!” the amazed woman answered gratefully. She selected some candies, a game, the toy airplane and a puzzle. When she took the new Scout flashlight, Frank almost cried out. Finally, the stockings were full. “Won’t you tell me your name?” she asked, as Frank was leaving. “Just call me the Christmas Scout”, he replied.

The visit left the boy touched, and with an unexpected flicker of joy in his heart. He understood that his sorrow was not the only sorrow in the world. Before he left the Flats, he had given away the remainder of his gifts. The plaid jacket had gone to a shivering boy.

But he trudged homeward, cold and uneasy. Having given his presents away, Frank now could think of no reasonable explanation to offer his parents. He wondered how he could make them understand. “Where are your presents, son?” asked his father as he entered the house. “I gave them away.” “The airplane from Aunt Susan? Your coat from Grandma? Your flashlight? We thought you were happy with your gifts.” “I was – very happy”, the boy answered lamely. “But, Frank, how could you be so impulsive?” his mother asked. “How will you explain to the relatives who spent so much time and gave so much love shopping for you?” His father was firm. “You made your choice, Frank. We cannot afford any more presents.

His brother gone, his family disappointed in him, Frank suddenly felt dreadfully alone. He had not expected a reward for his generosity. For he knew that a good deed always should be its own reward. It would be tarnished otherwise. So he did not want his gifts back, however, he wondered if he would ever again truly recapture joy in his life. He thought he had this evening, but it had been fleeting. Frank thought of his brother and sobbed himself to sleep.

The next morning, he came downstairs to find his parents listening to Christmas music on the radio. Then the announcer spoke: “Merry Christmas, everybody! The nicest Christmas story we have this morning comes from the Flats. A crippled boy down there has a new sled this morning, another youngster has a fine plaid jacket and several families report that their children were made happy last night by gifts from a teenage boy who simply referred to himself as the Christmas Scout. No one could identify him, but the children of the Flats claim that the Christmas Scout was a personal representative of old Santa Claus himself.”

Frank felt his father’s arms go around his shoulders and he saw his mother smiling through her tears. “Why didn’t you tell us? We didn’t understand. We are so proud of you, son.” The carols came over the air again filling the room with music. “… Praises sing to God the King, and peace to men on Earth.”

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

1. What are our experiences of joy and difficulty in living out the Beatitudes? Among the Beatitudes mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew, which ones challenge us with greater intensity today?

2. Do we believe that God strengthens us in our afflictions and that we are being called to strengthen others with the same consolation we have received from him?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO

Jesus poor, help us to be poor in spirit and to trust in your divine assistance and strength that the kingdom of Heaven may be ours. Jesus, man of sorrows, help us to mourn and to surrender to the divine will that our grief may be transformed into joy and consolation. Jesus, most gentle, help us to be meek and humble that peace may reign in our hearts and upon the earth. Jesus, yearning for love, help us to hunger and thirst for holiness that we may satisfy our deepest longings. O most merciful Jesus, help us to be merciful that we may relish your mercy and compassion. Jesus, chaste and loving, help us to be pure and single-hearted that we may see God in the daily events of our life and be admitted into his eternal Kingdom.

Jesus, our peace, help us to be peacemakers that we may build a world of harmony and beauty and be called children of God. Jesus Savior, help us to welcome persecution for the sake of justice that we may be rewarded greatly in heaven. Jesus, Risen Lord, make us the people of the beatitudes. Help us to trust in the power of your Word. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Almighty God, you are the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all encouragement. You give us strength in our affliction. Help us to participate fully in the life-giving sufferings of your Son Christ so that we may fully share in your consolation. Make us channels of your joy for the sorrowing and the afflicted. We love you and adore you, now and forever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the week. Please memorize it.

“Your reward will be great in heaven.” (Mt 5:12) //“He encourages us in our every affliction.” (II Cor 1:4)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Give thanks to the Lord for the gift of the Beatitudes in the Church. Choose a Beatitude as a moral-spiritual program and try to live this out in a more intense way this week. Pay special attention to the word of God proclaimed in the liturgy. // By your kind words and charitable deeds, be an instrument of God’s consolation for the suffering and the sorrowing.

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TUESDAY: TENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Calls Us to be the Salt of the Earth and the Light of the World … He Is God’s YES”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 5:13-16): “You are the light of the world.”

Today’s Gospel reading (Mt 5:13-16) presents the role of the disciples of Jesus using the images of salt and light. The biblical scholar, Daniel Harrington, gives a concise, but insightful explanation: “In Jesus’ time, salt was used not only to improve the taste of food but also to preserve meat and fish. When Jesus compares his followers to salt, he says that they improve the quality of human existence and preserve it from destruction. In Jesus’ time, the only lamps available were small dish-like devices in which oil was burned. By our standards these lamps did not give off much light, but in the time before electricity their light must have seemed very bright. When Jesus calls his disciples the light of the world, he says that their actions serve as a beacon of light in a dark world. The disciples are challenged to let their light shine as a witness to their fidelity to Jesus and his heavenly Father.”

Against this backdrop, I find the article of Robert Rodriguez on the De Alba Family, the co-parishioners of our PDDM Sisters in Fresno, very interesting (cf. The Fresno Bee, Dec. 25, 2004, p. A11). Remembering its roots in the fields, the family has fed farm workers in the central San Joaquin Valley for many years. It is their way of thanking them for their hard work in harvesting the region’s fruits and vegetables. It is also a reminder of how far this family of twelve has come from their own days of picking cherries, tomatoes and grapes in Valley fields and orchards. The De Alba Family also has held very successful canned-food drives for the poor and strongly supports St. Mary Queen of Apostles Church to which they belong. Rev. Pat McCormick, a former parish priest, testifies: “They have really been a unifying factor for the church. They are a great family.” Indeed, this wonderful De Alba family of Fresno is an inspiring example of what it means to be “the salt of the earth … the light of the world” in today’s world.

B. First Reading (II Cor 1:18-22): “Jesus was not yes and no, but yes has always been in him.”

In the reading (II Cor 1:18-22), the Apostle Paul affirms his credibility by appealing to the integrity of God’s “YES”, made incarnate in his beloved Son Jesus Christ, into whom Paul is totally configured. Accused of being fickle and not true to his word, the deeply aggrieved Paul asserts that the change concerning his planned visit to the Corinthians is motivated by charity and his concern for the good of the Christian community. It is definitely not a sign of fickleness or insincerity. Indeed, Paul’s credibility and integrity come from God, whose faithfulness is fully manifested in his Son Jesus Christ and whose gift of the Holy Spirit is a guarantee and a pledge of our future glory. Jesus Christ, the incarnate Word, is God’s “YES”. It is he who is the “YES” to all of God’s promises, accomplishing the Father’s messianic plan. Through the same Jesus Christ our loving “AMEN” response is directed to God for his greater glory.

In the following story, replete with charm and inspiration, we can see the “YES” forgiving stance of Jesus at work in the lives of a remarkable couple, who are marked with moral integrity and animated by Christian charity (cf. Lola Walter, “Tale of Two Houses” in Guideposts, Large Print Edition, December 1997, p. 169-180). The young couple Lola and Glenn, struggling through financial constraint and the effects of the Great Depression, had to resort to the arrangement of a used-car dealer when their old vehicle broke down beyond repair.

The sign at the lot advertised easy credit, just what we needed. The owner, a husky man in his mid 30’s, treated us like old friends. He picked out a good, clean Chevrolet sedan. “This one’ll do you real fine,” he promised, and we settled on a price before heading to his office. “My wife will type up the contract,” he said, gesturing to the prim blond woman who smiled at us shyly as she slipped onto a stool. In minutes she pulled the paper from the roller bar. Ceremoniously her husband passed the contract to Glenn. “If the details are agreeable to you, sir …” he said. We met our payments faithfully – paid to the car dealer in person, in cash - and rejoiced when half the coupons in the credit book were gone. (…)

Not long after, we got a strange visitor. “I’m a bank officer, ma’am,” the man explained. “I’d like to talk to you and your husband about your car payments.” I wiped my hands on my apron. What is there to talk about? The contract was filed in our strong box with other important papers; the deal was legitimate. But something told me this man didn’t have good news. “Please come in,” I said warily. I held the screen door and called my husband. “This man’s come from the bank,” I filled Glenn in as we sat down around the kitchen table. “Oh?” Glenn said. “And what brings you out this afternoon?” The man explained that our car dealer had financed his business through the bank, and the bank owned the contract we signed. “We’ve not received a single payment on that car, Mr. and Mrs. Walters. You’re a year delinquent on the loan – with interest.” “There must be some mistake,” Glenn said. “No mistake, Mr. Walters. I’m sorry to have to tell you that unless you bring the debt up to date, the bank will repossess the car.” (…) I tried to calm down while Glenn saw the bank officer to the door. Surely the dealer had some explanation.

But when we got to the car lot, the easy credit sign was gone. The place had been shut down. We learned the car dealer had filed for bankruptcy. More than likely he had pocketed our payments. We convinced the bank we were victims of fraud. Payments were extended another year and bank interest was waived. We started from scratch … While we made do in our barely patched house, the car dealer continued to live in his big, beautiful home. Bitterness filled my heart every time we passed it. I never saw the wife in their big fancy car anymore. Vacation? I wondered sarcastically. And then we saw her working at the assessor’s office when we went to file some documents. I had to restrain myself from telling her off. Apparently her husband didn’t need to work, for at any time of any day we saw him walking the streets in fashionable dark glasses. Trying to look debonair, I thought with contempt.

About the time we were again down to 12 payment slips, we were shocked to read that the car dealer had found his wife dead from an overdose of sleeping pills. I was thankful I had held my temper around the unhappy woman. The next time I saw the car dealer walking the streets near his home, decked out in his dark glasses even though the day was overcast, I was even more disgusted. If I ever got the opportunity, I would tell that man one thing: “You ought to feel ashamed of your dishonest feelings.” That would give me a great deal of satisfaction.”

During the next years we paid off the car debt … The first winter in our new, improved, insulated house, I cooked every holiday dish I could think of … After the blessing over the food, Glenn dished up a bowl of soup and began to eat, in silence. “Is something wrong?” I asked. “I picked up Fred.” The car dealer? We hardly ever spoke his name. “You gave that cheat a ride?” I demanded. “Why?” “You don’t understand,” Glenn said slowly. “He was lying on a snow bank in front of his house. I helped him inside. It was a mess in there. He was mumbling about his wife.” I had noticed in the last few years the dealer had grown thin and his walk had become unsteady. He seemed to let his house go too. But I had paid little attention to his troubles. My only thoughts regarding him were angry ones, focused on his dishonesty. For the first time I considered that he was a man with his own problems. “Was he drunk?” I asked. Glenn nodded. “He could have frozen to death.” (…)

It’s hard to reach out to someone in need – sometimes impossible, if not plainly inappropriate. But I had not even taken the first step, the step I owed it to my faith to take: After all that time I had not forgiven this man in my heart. Fred disappeared soon after Glenn stopped to help him. We never saw him again. But I think about him often, and pray for him … Forgiving him has been a step-by-step process … And if I could tell Fred only one thing, I would say, “I forgive you, completely.” It would give me a great deal of satisfaction.

1. Are we “the salt of the earth … the light of the world”? Is the heavenly Father being glorified by our daily acts of Christian witnessing?

2. How does the “YES” stance of Jesus and of the apostle Paul inspire you?

Lord Jesus, you call us to be “the salt of the earth … the light of the world”. As “salt of the earth” and by the zest of our Christian witnessing, we strive to uplift human dignity and help our brothers and sisters relish the joy of salvation. Moved by the Holy Spirit to proclaim your saving love, we wish to be “the light of the world … the city on the mountaintop”. Make us instruments of God’s compassion. Help us trust that “the jar of flour” and “the jug of oil” will never be empty. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Loving Father, we thank you for the faithfulness of Jesus Christ to your benevolent will. He is the gracious and faithful “YES” that accomplished all your kind plans and gracious promises for our healing and salvation. With the great apostle Paul and the entire Church, we offer to you our loving response of “AMEN” through the same Christ, your Son and our saving Lord. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

You are the salt of the earth … You are the light of the world.” (Mt 5:13a, 14a) //“The Son of God, Jesus Christ, was not “yes” and “no”, but “yes” has been in him.” (II Cor 1:19)

By aiding the poor, the marginalized and the suffering members of the local and world community, strive to be “the salt of the earth … the light of the world”. // Through a life of integrity and charity, enable the people around you to experience the goodness of the Father’s “YES” and to give a loving response of “AMEN” to the divine love.

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WEDNESDAY: TENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us the Meaning of the Law … In Him We Are Ministers of the New Covenant”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 5:17-19): “I have come not to abolish the law, but to fulfill it.” (Gospel Reflection by Richard Noack, St. Christopher Parish, San Jose, CA-USA)

Sweating the Small Stuff in Faith: In his 1996 book, “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff,” Psychologist Richard Carlson writes that we spend too much time, energy, and stress focused on minutiae. The “small” stuff, suggests Carlson, will take care of itself if only we focus on the big stuff, such as our lives, relationships, and families. But in today’s Gospel, Matthew 5:17-19, Jesus tells us that He has come as the fulfillment of the law and the prophets, not to abolish them. Not only must we love God and follow Jesus, the “big” stuff from our Christian perspective, we must also abide by all of the law and prophets, to the smallest part of the smallest letter, careful not to break the least of these commandments. When it comes to our faith, it seems, we must sweat the “big” stuff and the “small” stuff.

Over time, we Christians have gradually marginalized many of the strict Jewish laws in Deuteronomy, as well as those given by the prophets, as “small” stuff. Some of those laws such as circumcision, dietary restrictions, and Sabbath observance, were viewed as anachronistic, often as an accommodation for the assimilation of non-Jewish converts. But that legacy of not sweating the “small” stuff extends to the present day. There are those in our communities who view some of our faith practices, disciplines, and doctrines as “small” stuff that need not be sweated, such as regular Sunday Mass attendance, appropriate and respectful attire while attending Mass, arriving on time for Mass and staying until the end of the closing hymn, participating in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, meatless Fridays during Lent, and respecting the sanctity of human life from conception to natural death.

But these things aren’t “small” stuff. They are a part of who we are as a faith community and they define us as the People of God. As Catholic Christians, we consider our call to love God with our entire beings and to love our neighbors as ourselves to be our “big” stuff. Our faith practices, disciplines, and doctrines are signposts that point the way to the “big” stuff and that sustain, strengthen, support, nourish, guide, prepare, and affirm us along the Way.

“Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.” (Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta)

B. First Reading (II Cor 3:4-11): “He has qualified us as ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of spirit.”

Today’s reading (II Cor 3:4-11) needs to be seen in the context of Paul’s difficult relationship with the Church in Corinth. Some members of the community challenge his credentials. Interested in external, superficial criteria, his detractors accuse him of being a false apostle. Paul refutes them by affirming that his qualifications come from God alone. God gives him the power for the apostolic ministry. It is God who makes Paul competent to serve the new covenant, which consists not of the written law but of the life-giving Spirit. The new covenant surpasses the glory of the first covenant. The God who called him when he was a persecutor of the Church is the same faithful God who qualifies him as minister of the new covenant. This gives Paul full confidence and credential as an apostle of Christ.

Paul’s assertion that it is God who qualifies us for our ministry is very relevant for our daily life. The following story gives an insight into this (cf. Jeff Japinga in Daily Guideposts 2010, p. 254).

When you’re faced with a decision or you need to do something you haven’t done before – a new job or a new Bible study group or planning next week’s menu – how do you approach it?

My default mode is to be cautious. I want to know what other people’s expectations are, the rule I need to follow. I don’t want to make a mistake because I don’t want people criticizing me. No criticism? Then all is well.

Shortly after I started my new job a couple of years ago, I had a cup of coffee with a colleague. I was telling him about my cautious approach to the new work. He got a quizzical look on his face and said, “Don’t you believe the Bible?”

My first thought was, Oh, no! The most brilliant Bible scholar I know is criticizing me. What have I done wrong? Then he smiled and gave me a pat on the back. “The Bible is clear”, he said. “God loves you, God has gifted you and God watches over you. If that doesn’t give you the confidence to be creative and courageous, I don’t know what will.”

I’ll probably never be a bold, caution-to-the-wind person. But since that day I’ve tried to be a more biblical person, trusting more in God and less in my own abilities. I must say, it’s a great way to go.

1. Do I strive to act in accordance with the spirit of love that animates the law and the prophets? Do I value and carry out the “small” stuff that leads to the “big” stuff?

2. Do we believe that God has qualified us to be ministers of the new covenant and that our strength for our apostolic ministry comes from him?

Loving Father, you form us into a covenant people through the law and the prophets. Let your spirit of love animate us. Help us to transcend the letter of the law and to act by the love of the Spirit. With Christ in the Spirit, let us perceive the meaning of the law and the prophets and lovingly fulfill it with devotion. We bless and praise you, now and forever. Amen.

*** God of love, our strength comes from you. You have made us ministers of the new covenant, in Christ and by the power of the Holy Spirit. We trust in you alone and not in our ability. We thank you for calling us to share in Christ’s apostolic ministry to bring salvation to the world and the entire creation. We praise and glorify you. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” (Mt 5:17) // “Our qualification comes from God.” (II Cor 3:5b)

Carry out your duties to God as well as the greater society, e.g. social service, paying taxes, etc., with personal dedication. // When your apostolic work becomes frustrating and overwhelming, put your trust in the Lord God who qualifies us for this ministry.

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THURSDAY – TENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us the Path of Reconciliation … He Makes God’s Light Shine in Our Hearts”

BIBLE READINGS II Cor 3:15-4:1, 3-6 // Mt 5:20-26

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 5:20-26): “Whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment.” (Gospel Reflection by Bong Tiotuico, ASSOCIATION OF PAULINE COOPERATORS- Friends of the Divine Master, Antipolo Unit, Philippines)

Anger, Hatred and Reconciliation: According to the Jews at the time of Jesus, righteousness is equated to one's ability to follow the law. Scholars of scripture describe the attitude of Jesus regarding the law. He rejects erroneous interpretations of the law while he holds firm to its original intent, i.e. the practice of a greater justice which is love. In this gospel, Jesus teaches a higher standard of adherence to the law that is more stringent than the "Thou shall not kill; whoever kills will be liable to judgment" commandment handed down through Moses.

Jesus denounces murderous anger and hatred as immoral. From this, the Church teaches, if anger reaches the point of a deliberate desire to kill or seriously wound a neighbor, it is gravely against charity although it is also praiseworthy to impose forms of restitution to correct vices and maintain justice. Yes, there is such a thing as righteous anger when we face oppression, greed, corruption and other forms of injustice. But most people are not righteously angry: most of the time they are "sinfully" angry. We experience deliberate hatred toward other human beings because of wounded pride. We want to get even from a perceived hurt.

Husband: When I get mad at you, you never fight back. How do you control your anger? Wife: I clean the toilet. Husband: How does that help? Wife: I use your toothbrush.

We always need to teach the usual suspects a lesson they will never forget. Like when you get seriously angry with that colleague who, due to a misunderstanding, starts spreading lies behind your back. And there were moments when you secretly wished that neighbor down the corner bad fortune because you were simply envious of his brand new red Porsche.

From human experience we learn that anger, like sin, grows like a seed in our hearts, then becoming like a weed that chokes and displaces love, kindness, patience and other virtues, ultimately leaving no room for God. It is likewise compared to an acid which does more harm to the container in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured. What is the antidote to these commonly occurring but overpowering feelings? Long before anger management therapy was invented, St. Paul (Eph. 4:31-34) advises, "Get rid of all bitterness, all passion and anger, harsh words, slander and malice of every kind. In place of these, be kind to one another; be compassionate and mutually forgiving, just as God has forgiven you in Christ." With our human weaknesses and limitations, how do we follow these prescriptions? With God's grace, nothing is impossible. We pray for patience, humility and for God to fill our hearts with love and forgiveness so we can better deal with that obnoxious next-door neighbor. In the same light, as they say in another part of the world: "If you are right, there is no need to be angry. If you are wrong, you have no right to be angry. Jesus tells us not only to reconcile with the subject of our anger but to do it without delay so that we can proceed to an authentic and perfect form of worship. Furthermore, to paraphrase St. James (Jas 1:19-20) "Let every person be quick to hear and listen, slow to speak, slow to anger like the heavenly Father, for anger does not fulfill God's justice."

B. First Reading (II Cor 3:15-4:1, 3-6): “God has shone in our hearts to bring to light the knowledge of the glory of God.”

In today’s First Reading (II Cor 3:15-4:1, 3-6), Saint Paul asserts that if the Jews will turn to God, then the veil of unbelief will be lifted from them just as the face of Moses was uncovered when he turned to God. The glory of God shines forth perennially on the face of Jesus Christ and we are called to reflect that glory with “uncovered faces”. That same glory, coming forth from the Lord, transforms us in his likeness through the Spirit. The task of Saint Paul is a service to the “glory of God shining in the face of Christ”. Trusting in the merciful God who has qualified him for the task, Paul’s ministry is to proclaim the Good News about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God. Saint Paul’s vocation is geared towards a “ministry of true light”. Just like Jesus Savior, he is called to make God’s light shine in our hearts.

God continues to make the light of his glory shine that we may give him glory and praise. The following is a modern day example (cf. Marilyn Morgan King in Daily Guideposts 2010, p. 15).

One of the earliest memories is of sitting in St. Alban’s Episcopal Church in McCook, Nebraska, gazing at the stained glass window above the altar. I must have been three or four years old and bored by a sermon I couldn’t understand. That was when I started gazing at the colorful window. The sun was at exactly the right height to shine directly through the glass, radiating stunning blues, emerald greens and deep maroons onto the white choir robes and even onto my lap. The colors were so jewel-like, they seemed magical to me.

Pulling on Mother’s sleeve and pointing to the window, I said in a loud whisper, “Look! God is smiling at us from heaven!”

She put her finger on her lips and whispered, “No, dear. It’s just the sun shining through the colored glass.” But with preschool certainty, I was sure I was right. I had no doubt that those beautiful colors came from God and that He was smiling at me from heaven, just on the other side of the glass.

For the first of many times to come, I breathed in beauty and breathed out gratitude. Whether Mother knew it or not, I felt sure that beauty and the eyes with which to see it were special gifts from God – my favorite of all His presents.

1. What do I do to manage my anger and to seek healing for sinful attitudes that lead to violence and acted-out anger?

2. Do we marvel at the light of glory that God let shine around us and within us? What is our response to the divine splendor radiated by Christ?

Lord Jesus, heal us of sinful attitudes and unbridled emotions that disturb our peace, harmony and dignity. Give us the grace to pacify vengeful anger. Let your Holy Spirit anoint the violent with the balm of peace. Help us to see that we are part of God’s loving creation. Give us the grace to choose God and life. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** God our Father, you are the font of beauty and light. We marvel at the splendor that surrounds us. We contemplate the beauty that is within us. We thank you for Jesus Christ, the light of the world. He makes us bask in the radiance of your goodness and love. Like Saint Paul, may we participate in Christ’s “ministry of light”. We give you glory and praise, now and forever. Amen.

“Whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment.” (Mt 5:22) //“God made his light shine in our hearts.” (II Cor 4:6)

By putting greater trust in Jesus, meek and humble of heart, strive to manage anger whenever it surfaces from your heart. Be a peacemaker to the people around you. // Today carry out in a special way the apostolate of radiating the light of God to the people around you by your kind word, good deed and the warmth of your smile.

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FRIDAY – TENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Integrity … We Are His Earthen Vessels”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 5:27-32): “Everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

In today’s Gospel reading (Mt 5:27-32) Jesus continues to interpret the Law and the Prophets. He delves into the meaning of the command “Do not commit adultery” and asserts that as anger is at the root of murder, so lust lies at the root of adultery. It is not just the act of adultery that breaks the Law, but also thoughts and desires that lead to it. Deeply aware of our frail and fallen humanity, Jesus exhorts us to eliminate what corrupts our personal integrity and vitiates our covenant relationship with God. The salvation of the whole person is of more value than anything or anyone that could lead to sin. Lust is an “implicit” adultery that compromises our eternal beatitude with God. Divorce is a “legalized adultery” that militates against faithful husband-wife relationship, the basis of a healthy family life and society.

Lust leads to crime and death. Faith in God leads to life. The following article gives insight into how to embrace Jesus’ teaching on the total integrity of the person and our need to trust God who has covenanted himself to us (cf. “God Put Me Here To Do Great Things” in Alive! April 2014, p. 9).

An American Beauty queen has hit the headlines by revealing that she was conceived as a result of a violent rape. But strong in her faith and despite her far from promising start in life, Valerie Gatto is immensely grateful for her existence and believes that God has put her on earth “to do great things”. (…)

Gatto’s mother was a 19-year-old student when she was raped at knife-point. The assailant intended to murder her but was distracted by a strange bright flash of light. “He got scared and didn’t want any onlookers to see her and what he was doing to her.” This gave the young woman the opportunity to break free and escape. “I like to think of that light as my mother’s and my guardian angel”, said the beauty queen.

Some weeks later the assault victim realized that she was expecting the rapist’s child. She decided to keep her pregnancy a secret and to put her baby up for adoption when it was born. But after the birth her mother encouraged her to keep her baby daughter, explaining to her that “God does not give us more than we can handle.”

Relying on family support and on her strong faith, the young woman put aside her plans to attend law school so that she could mind her baby. It was a decision she never regretted. Gatto was told as a child about the assault on her mother but was able to deal with it thanks to her faith.

She explained: “I’ve always been a positive person, and I went to church all the time when I was little. I think it was more about having religion and Christianity a lot of my life. So I knew that God put me here for a reason and, although my circumstances weren’t the same as a traditional family with the perfect white- picket fence, he gave me to my family and my mother for a reason.” (…)

As Miss Pennsylvania 2014 she hopes to inspire people and to show them that “no matter where you come from, you can achieve your dreams. But you need to make sacrifices, work hard and stay positive.”

B. First Reading (II Cor 4:7-15): “He who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus.”

In today’s First Reading (II Cor 4:7-15), Saint Paul underlines the reality of human frailty and weakness and its limpid capacity to manifest the power of God. In the context of his experience with the contentious Corinthian community, the apostle is truly an “earthen vessel” because of his limitations. His critics despise him as not qualified for the apostolic task. Thus Paul, whose qualifications for the apostolate come from God and not from human origin, both concedes his poverty and underlines the divine power at work in that very poverty. He admits he is an “earthen vessel” – yes - but a treasure- bearing “earthen vessel”. In spite of our human limitations, God choose us to be bearers of his spiritual treasure. He wills to manifest through us the supreme power that belongs to him alone.

The apostle Paul then underlines what it means to be a treasure-bearing “earthen vessel”. He was afflicted but not constrained, perplexed but not driven to despair, persecuted but not abandoned, struck down but not destroyed. Death-dealing situations seek to overwhelm him, but never succeed because he is totally united with Jesus in his life-giving passion. In union with the Christ’s paschal mystery, Paul’s ministry is bearing fruit in the believing Corinthians. Indeed, God the Father who raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us with him. This will cause thanksgiving to overflow for the glory of God.

The following personal account is an example of what it means to be Christ’s “earthen vessels” in today’s world (cf. Fr. Emmet Murphy, “The Franciscan Journey” in The Anthonian, Winter 2012-2013, p. 29-30).

Although I was raised at St. Agnes in Arlington, Mass., a parish staffed by diocesan priests, I was one of the nine candidates who joined the Franciscans of Holy Name in 1951. St. Anthony’s Shrine in downtown Boston happened to be my first contact with the friars. Their joy and ministry immediately impressed me. After working for ten years as a salesman in Boston, I entered the Franciscan Brothers training program. (…)

All in all, I spent 13 fruitful and happy years at Sr. Francis Church, but my journey with the friars was not without its heartaches and pitfalls. Along the way I had neglected my early lessons in discipline and prayer and developed an addiction to alcohol, which completely unraveled my religious life. I was urged to take a leave of absence in order to bring peace to my chaotic life.

After an absence of two years, I was readmitted to the life of a friar and asked to consider entering into a new apostolate to help poor people in Philadelphia with Father Roderic Petrie, OFM. Soon, Father Robert Struzynski, OFM, joined us. After surveying the needs, we searched for a building in the impoverished Kensington section of the city that was to become St. Francis Inn. We bought an old tavern below the Market Frankford elevated train line for $9,000 and immediately set out to renovate the building. The first floor was the kitchen and dining room, the second floor to be rooms for the friars.

On December 16, 1979, the first day we opened this ministry to the poor so dear to the heart of St. Francis, we fed 29 people. Since then St. Francis Inn has been open every day of the year, and last year the permanent staff of four friars, two Franciscan Sisters and three dedicated laywomen plus a host of volunteers served nearly 150,000 hot, nourishing meals to families and to single men and women – some unemployed but most of them retired persons who cannot survive on their fixed incomes – and to others trapped by addictions, as I had been.

It was in Philly that I felt called to priesthood. I enrolled at St. Francis College for philosophy studies and Pope John XXIII for theology. I was ordained to the priesthood in 1986 at the ripe age of 52. Last June, at age 78, I took up residence at St. Anthony Friary in Butler, N.J., after having spent almost four years in the large, very active Franciscan parish in Raleigh, N.C. I served as one of the North Carolina State prison chaplains, ministering to death row and general population inmates. I found the Raleigh’s Catholic community warm and friendly as they opened their homes and hearts to me.

My current priestly ministry has been in the Ministry of the Word; that is, preaching parish missions and leading Twelve Steps retreats. At times, I am also called to help out in neighboring parishes.

As I look back, I consider my life a blessed and incredulous journey … I would do it all over again!

1. Do we endeavor to be chaste and to promote the dignity of our human person? Do we reject any form of “adultery” within us and outside us?

2. Are we aware that we are treasure-bearing “earthen vessels”? Do we truly endeavor to manifest the life-giving glory of Christ that is within us and thus help bring salvation to the death-dealing situations that surround us?

Jesus Lord, we thank you for teaching us integrity of heart and faith in God who has bound himself to us in covenant love. Help us to perceive your gentle presence everywhere. Give us the grace to extend your loving comfort to others. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Father, we are earthen vessels that hold the life of Christ, our absolute treasure. We praise and bless you for choosing our poverty to be channels of your grace. Let us live the life of Christ to the full that we may radiate his splendor into the death-dealing situations of today’s world. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out …” (Mt 5: 29) //“We hold this treasure in earthen vessels that the surpassing power may be of God and not from us.” (II Cor 4:7)

Pray for all those in adulterous situations that God may give them the grace to follow his saving will. // When your poverty and limitations daunt and overwhelm you, take courage in Saint Paul’s words that we are simply treasure-bearing earthen vessels and that the power comes from God and not from us.

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SATURDAY – TENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us to Be Truthful … We Are His Ambassadors”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 5:33-37): “I say to you do not swear at all.”

In today’s Gospel (Mt 5:33-37), Jesus teaches us that truthfulness is assured by the inner integrity of the person. The biblical scholar Adrian Leske comments on the reading: “The practice of making oaths or vows had become so commonplace by the time of Jesus that the rabbis spent much time discussing valid and invalid forms. Originally oaths were made before the altar in the presence of God, when the truth of a matter could not be substantiated, by witnesses or documents. Included in such an oath was the invoking of a curse if the oath was false. Later in order not to take the name of God in vain it became a practice to use circumlocutions for God’s name, and even beyond that, in popular practice, to swear by anything of value. Jesus points out that no matter how one words that oath, it is still an oath before God … Those who belong to the kingdom will speak in sincerity and faithfulness, so their simple yes and no can be accepted as trustworthy before God and people. While oath-taking today may be required by courts and other institutions, the essential point here is speaking with utter honesty and sincerity.”

The following story gives insight into the value of a man’s word – if he is a person of integrity (cf. Iris Deurmyer, “Let’s Shake on It” in Country, April/May 2014, p. 51).

On a spring day when I was 6, I rode to town with Uncle Art to buy seed for planting gardens and fields and get feed for the calves. As a young girl growing up in the heartland, I found a special joy spending time with him. As we traveled in the pickup truck, Uncle Art made up silly rhymes and we sang them together. He patiently taught me to say the ABCs backward.

After loading supplies at the feed store, Uncle Art visited with the owner outside and then pointed at the truck. “I forgot to sign for this”, he said. The owner said, “Arthur, let’s shake on it. Your handshake is worth more than most men’s signatures.”

Later, I asked him what the owner had meant. Uncle Art explained that if a man gave his word, it should be dependable as money in the bank. He said a trustworthy man’s handshake was like an unwritten promise to keep his word.

In the half century since that day, I’ve reflected on Uncle Art’s words and his reputation. I can still picture that handshake; it’s a permanent reminder that the word should be as good as money in the bank. Oh, and one other thing has stuck with me. I can still rattle off the alphabet backwards.

B. First Reading (II Cor 5:14-21): “For our sake, he made him to be sin who did not know sin.”

The reading (II Cor 5:14-21) invites us to focus on Jesus Christ, who brings about the “new creation”. Like our heavenly Father, Jesus is sacrificial in his love. Through Jesus, God reconciled the whole world to himself. In his beloved Son, we are a “new creation”. Through Jesus, we become ministers of reconciliation and agents of “new creation”.

The biblical scholar Mary Ann Getty explicates: “All is new in Christ. Priorities have changed. All that matters is that one is created anew. The same God who created out of nothing is certainly capable of recreating and making us – however poor, unpromising, and undeserving – sharers of his work. God reconciled the world to himself in Christ. Further, in Christ, God overcame the obstacles of our transgressions so that we are enabled to become partners in the ministry of reconciliation. And not only the apostle, but all who are in Christ, have been sent out into the world with a single message: Be reconciled! This is both imperative and empowerment. For our sakes God made the sinless one sin so that redemption could penetrate the darkest, most forbidding, isolated, and inhuman part of our human experience. This was so that God, in Christ, could bring us to holiness.”

In the following excerpt from the vocation testimony of Sr. Helen Prejean, the author of Dead Man Walking, she illustrates her deeper journey into God’s renewing, reconciling love and the expansion of her ministry: initially, for the prisoners on death row and belatedly, also the families of their victims (cf. America, April 13, 2009, p. 36- 37).

In my life I have ridden the current (of my true calling) as a Sister of St. Joseph, and as it turns out, the vessel of Sisterhood has proved a trustworthy vessel for me. I was carried a while, seeking to mold myself as an exemplary nun, until the current caught my boat to follow Christ in a very particular, unique work: accompanying death row prisoners to their deaths, being there for them faithfully; visiting, supporting, serving, praying, comforting and confronting, loving, writing and enlisting others to write and visit. Always seeking to show them the face, even as others strap them down to kill them – even when, as a service to society, the state disposes of their lives in a way that’s legal and approved with opinion polls backing it up, shoring up that yes, this is what the people want: your death. And being there to be the face, to be the presence, to assure them, tell them, witness to them even in the last moments of their lives: “You are a child of God, you have a dignity that no one can take from you. Look at me, look as they kill you, look, and I will be the face of Christ for you.”

Then, like St. John in his First Epistle, writing, speaking, traveling, proclaiming what my eyes have seen and my ears have heard and my hands have touched – the trembling shoulders of the condemned, led into the room where the gurney waits – that is, the Word of Life.

This is the amazing journey into the heart of the Gospel of Jesus: to love, to forgive, to allow no one to be enemy – at least for long – to feel the sufferings of others as our own and then to drop the stones at our feet, powerless now to hurl them at another. The call, I hear it, keep hearing it, to teach the people, to keep getting on planes to reach out to the people, to help them navigate the greatest heart journey of all: from vengeance to compassion, right straight into the heart of a merciful Savior: “Go and learn what this means. It is mercy I desire, not sacrifice.”

My own heart traveled first to the condemned, then belatedly to the families of their victims. Belatedly, because at first I did not get it, did not hear the call that I must not choose sides, that I must reach out in compassion to the families of perpetrators and victims alike. After Patrick Sonnier’s electrocution in 1984, the very first man I accompanied, I read with distress the angry letters to the editor in the New Orleans paper about me. My soul was untouched by their anger that I was coddling a cruel, cold-hearted monster. On that score my soul felt pure, untarnished by guilt. They just did not understand. They had not witnessed the torture, the anguish, the futility of his death.

No, the guilt came from my neglect of the victims’ families. “She didn’t throw us a crumb”, bereaved parents told reporters. They were right; I was wrong. I had not reached out to them. I was afraid. I was cowardly. I was afraid of their anger, their scalding rejection. So I had stayed away. But I was wrong. Guilt was salutary. The new call of God was in the guilt. I heard my own heart’s anguish. Guilt shoved my boat out onto new waters.

I reached out to victims’ families – even if they scorned me, rejected me, hurled insults at me. My suffering was nothing, piddling nothing, next to their great sorrow in the violent, tearing, irrevocable loss of their loved one.

Grace was waiting for me.

First it came in the compassionate, wide, loving heart of Lloyd LeBlanc, whose only son David had been killed by Patrick Sonnier and his brother. We prayed together, Lloyd and I, and soon I was seated at his kitchen table, eating with the family, they forgiving my terrible mistake, taking me in like a lost daughter.

As I write this, my heart still resonates with gratitude. Lloyd LeBlanc was my first teacher. Through him I got a peek into the chasm of suffering that families endure, who wake up one morning and everything is alive and humming and normal and by evening face the unalterable fact of the death of a loved one.

1. Am I trustworthy? Do my words have integrity?

2. Do we realize that in Christ we are a “new creation” for through him, we have been reconciled to the Father? Are we willing to be ministers of reconciliation and agents of God’s “new creation” in Jesus Christ?

O Lord Jesus, you called me. Help me to say “yes” and to follow you with integrity. Make me a servant of your word and make me trustworthy. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Almighty and merciful God, you embrace us with tenderness when we turn to you with tears of repentance. Above all, we thank you for sending your Servant-Son Jesus, our beloved brother and Savior, to bring us back to you. Jesus leads us to your reconciling embrace, enabling us to feast at the banquet of your eternal kingdom. In Christ, we are a “new creation”. The old things have passed away and behold, new things have come. Help us to be efficacious ministers of reconciliation. Teach us to be agents of “new creation” in the here and now. We love you and praise you. now and forever. Amen.

“ Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes’.” (Mt 5:37) //“Whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold new things have come.” (II Cor 5:17)

Resolve to be faithful to the demands of Christian discipleship. Make every effort to be honest and truthful. // Pray for the grace to be efficacious ministers of reconciliation and powerful agents of “new creation”. By your life of witnessing and service of charity, lead the “lost” to a joyful “homecoming” and enable them to experience the tender embrace of our loving God.

*** Text of 10th Week in Ordinary Time ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy: Cycle I

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 56) ORDINARY SEASON: WEEK 11 MONDAY: ELEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Counters Evil with Good … His Apostle Paul Is a True Minister of God”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 5:38-42): “But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil.”

The law of retaliation contained in the Old Testament (that is, “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth”) is meant to moderate vengeance and to keep violence within limits. It restricts the punishment inflicted by the avenger to injury proportionate to the damage done by the aggressor. In today’s Gospel reading (Mt 5:38-42), we hear Jesus’ radical teaching on non-retaliation, which seeks to break the cycle of revenge. The righteous man is called not just to respond with proportionate vengeance to an injury inflicted by an aggressor, but to take no vengeance at all. Jesus teaches us “to offer no resistance to one who is evil”. The Divine Master’s teaching of non-resistance to an evildoer is not an invitation to suicide, or to let true justice be trampled upon, but a call to counter evil with good, hatred with love, vengeance with forgiveness. Love, though vulnerable and paradoxical, is the only force capable of overcoming evil. By his passion and death on the cross, Jesus showed how forgiving love can overcome the ugly forces of evil and sin that lead to violence. With his life of non-retaliation and reconciliation, a new world order has begun.

The following story gives us insight into the ways of the non-vengeful who seek to overcome evil with good (cf. Anthony de Mello, Taking Flight: A Book of Story Meditations, New York: Image Books, 1988, p. 65).

A traveler was walking along the road one day when a man on horseback rushed by. There was an evil look in his eyes and blood on his hands. Minutes later a crowd of riders drew up and wanted to know if the traveler had seen someone with blood on his hands go by. They were in hot pursuit of him. “Who is he?” the traveler asked. “An evil-doer”, said the leader of the crowd. “And you pursue him in order to bring him to justice?” “No”, said the leader, “we pursue him in order to show him the way.”

Reconciliation alone will save the world, not justice, which is generally another word for revenge.

B. First Reading (II Cor 6:1-10): “In everything we commend ourselves as ministers of God.”

Today’s First Reading (II Cor 6:1-10) gives us a beautiful insight into Saint Paul’s experience as an apostle. He recognizes that the Corinthians and he are working together with God in fulfilling the saving plan. He also exhorts them not to receive the grace of God in vain, but instead to claim the “now” as a moment of salvation. Paul’s primary work is to spread the saving Gospel and he absolutely avoids anything that will jeopardize his ministry. Indeed, Paul proves himself a minister of God by his way of life. In his Gospel ministry, he shows patient endurance through every kind of trial. He manifests himself as God’s true servant through a life of purity, knowledge, patience and kindness - in the love of the Spirit and by the power of God. Indeed, God equips him with “weapons of righteousness” which he uses in all circumstances - through glory and dishonor, insult and praise. His life as an apostle is challenging and fascinating, mysterious and paradoxical: treated as a liar though he speaks the truth, unrecognized but acknowledged, given up for dead but he lives on, punished but not killed, saddened but always rejoicing, poor but enriching many, having nothing but possessing all things.

Like Saint Paul, we need to conduct ourselves as servants of the Gospel. The following story, entitled “A Quarter for Jesus” and circulated on the Internet, gives us an idea of what it means to be a true “minister of God” today.

Several years ago, a preacher from out-of-state accepted a call to a church in Houston, Texas. Some weeks after he arrived, he had an occasion to ride the bus from his home to the downtown area. When he sat down, he discovered that the driver had accidentally given him a quarter too much change. As he considered what to do, he thought to himself, “You’d better give the quarter back. It would be wrong to keep it.” Then he thought, “Oh, forget it. It’s only a quarter. Who would worry about this little amount? Anyway, the bus company gets too much fare. They will never miss it. Accept is as a gift from God and keep quiet.”

When his stop came, he paused momentarily at the door, and then he handed the quarter to the driver and said, “Here, you gave me too much change.” The driver, with a smile, replied, “Aren’t you the new preacher in town?” Yes”, he replied. “Well, I have been thinking a lot lately about going somewhere to worship. I just wanted to see what you would do if I gave you too much change. I’ll see you at church on Sunday.”

When the preacher stepped off the bus, he literally grabbed the nearest light pole, held on, and said, “Oh, God, I almost sold your Son for a quarter.”

1. Do I strive to conquer vengeful instincts and to overcome evil with good? Do I practice the ethic of non-violence and the Christian way of forgiving love?

2. Like Saint Paul the Apostle, can we present ourselves to the people of today as true “ministers of God”?

Jesus, meek and humble of heart, your example transcends the ugly ways of the violent. By your life of forgiving love and reconciliation, you show us how to break the cycle of vengeance in this world. Give us the grace to be peaceful. Let your love be upon us that we may respond to evil with good, to hatred with love. Lead us on the path of true justice and peace. We give you glory and praise, now and forever. Amen.

*** Almighty God, help us to live the Gospel to the full and become your true servants through trials and adversities. Let us proclaim the Gospel of Christ in the love of the Holy Spirit. Sustain us by your power. We believe that our poverty is our wealth for we know that even though we seem to have nothing, yet in Jesus we possess all things. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“Offer no resistance to one who is evil.” (Mt 5:39) //“In everything we commend ourselves as ministers of God.” (II Cor 6:4)

If someone offends you, put into practice the teaching of Jesus of non-retaliation and reconciliation through the power of good. // Today make a special effort to conduct yourself with kindness, patience and unfeigned love toward the people around you and thus help them recognize you as a “minister of God”.

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TUESDAY: ELEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us to Love Our Enemies … He Became Poor for Our Sake”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 5:43-48): “Love your enemies.”

Today’s Gospel reading (Mt 5:43-48) contains the Divine Master’s radical teaching on magnanimous love even of enemies. Harold Buetow comments: “Jesus teaches largeness of heart and mind … Our love for our enemies – those we do not like or who do not like us – is not of the heart but of the will. Therefore, to love them need not be an emotional experience, but must be a decision to commit ourselves to serve the best interests of all other people … We see that the apex of God’s kind of perfection is compassion, a willingness to suffer for others. Those who love in such an unconditional and non-selective way are true children of the God of limitless love … In our dealings with other people, both friends and enemies, we are to be magnanimous: large-minded, wide open, generous – and holy.”

The Amish community’s compassionate act to reach out to the family of Charles Roberts, the suicide-attacker of 10 Amish girls, illustrates the grandiose love that forgives and embraces all (cf. Internet article of Daniel Burke, Religion News Service).

It was October 2, 2006, and Charles Carl Roberts IV had just shot 10 Amish schoolgirls before turning the gun on himself. Five girls died. Five others were seriously wounded. The shooting shocked this quiet, rural county and horrified countless outsiders glued to the nonstop media coverage. “Not only was my son not alive, he was the perpetrator of the worst crime anyone could ever imagine”, Terri Roberts said. After the shooting, the world was riveted by the remarkable display of compassion shown by the Amish, as the quiet Christian sect embraced the Roberts family and strove to forgive the troubled sinner. (…)

On the day of the shooting, Terri crawled into a fetal position, feeling as if her insides were ripped apart. Her husband Chuck, a retired policeman, cried into a tea towel, unable to lift his head. He wore skin off his face wiping away his tears. Family and friends poured into the Roberts’ home in Strasburg, Philadelphia, a small town about six miles from Nickel Mines, where the shooting occurred. No one knew what to say. “What do you say, ‘At least it’s not as bad as so-and-so’? There was nothing that anyone could imagine that would have been worse than that day”, she said.

Later that evening, an Amish neighbor named Henry, whom Terri calls her “angel in black” arrived at their house. Chuck had begun a second career as an “Amish taxi”, driving families to destinations farther away than horses and buggies could carry them. After the shooting, Chuck feared he could never face the Amish again. “Roberts, we love you”, Henry insisted and continued to comfort Chuck for nearly an hour. Finally, Chuck looked up. “Thank you, Henry”, he said. “I just looked at that and said, ‘Oh Lord, my husband will heal through this.’ I was just so thankful for Henry that day”, Terri said.

B. First Reading (II Cor 8:1-9): “Christ became poor for your sake.”

In today’s First Reading (II Cor 8:1-9), Paul proposes to the Corinthians a collection to alleviate the suffering of the poor of the Mother Church in Jerusalem. The apostle feels obliged to instruct the skittish Corinthians on this delicate but important issue. The collection for the poor is, for Paul, of special importance for it signifies acceptance of the Gospel and of self-donation to God. The apostle therefore urges them to emulate what God’s grace has accomplished in the churches in Macedonia, that is, in Philippi, Thessalonica, and Beroea. Though living in poverty and undergoing severe trials, they abound in joy, simplicity and generosity. The Christians in Macedonia give as much as they can and even more than they can. For them it is a privilege to take part in helping God’s people. Acknowledging the spiritual riches of the Corinthians, Paul exhorts them to be likewise generous in this service of love for the Jerusalem faith community. The apostle then provides a spiritual foundation for his mission appeal: Christ’s kenosis. Rich as he is, the Lord Jesus makes himself poor for our sake in order to make us rich by his poverty.

The model of Christian giving that Saint Paul underlines in his second letter to the Corinthians is an inspiration for all. The following story illustrates that the spirit of self- giving lives on in the here and now (cf. Marion Smith, “Drawn to the Warmth” in Chicken Soup for the Soul, ed. Jack Canfield, et. al. Cos Cob: CSS, 2008, p. 226-227).

Factoring in the wind chill, I knew the temperature was below zero. The bitter cold cut through my Californian sensibilities, as well as my enthusiasm as a tourist, so I ducked through the nearest door for warmth … and found myself in Washington, D.C.’s Union Station. I settled onto one of the public benches with a steaming cup of coffee – waiting for feeling to return to my fingers and toes – and relaxed to engage in some serious people-watching.

Several tables of diners spilled out into the great hall from the upscale American Restaurant, and heavenly aromas tempted me to consider an early dinner. I observed a man seated nearby and, from the longing in his eyes, realized that he, too, noticed the tantalizing food. His gaunt body, wind-chapped hands and tattered clothes nearly shouted, “Homeless, homeless!” I wondered how long it had been since he had eaten. Half expecting him to approach me for a handout, I almost welcomed such a plea. He never did. The longer I took in the scene, the crueler his plight seemed to be. My head and heart waged a silent war, the one telling me to mind my own business, the other urging a trip to the food court on his behalf.

While my internal debate raged one, a well-dressed young couple approached him. “Excuse me, sir”, the husband began. “My wife and I just finished eating, and our appetites weren’t as big as we thought. We hate to waste good food. Can you help us out and put this to use?” He extended a large Styrofoam container. “God bless you both. Merry Christmas”, came the grateful reply.

Pleased, yet dismayed by my own lack of action, I continued to watch. The man scrutinized his newfound bounty, rearranged the soup crackers, inspected the club sandwich and stirred the salad dressing – obviously prolonging this miracle meal. Then, with a slow deliberateness, he lifted the soup lid and, cupping his hands around the steaming warm bowl, inhaled. At last he unwrapped the plastic spoon, filled it to overflowing, lifted it toward his mouth and – with a suddenness that stunned me – stopped short.

I turned my head to follow his gaze. Entering the hall and shuffling in our direction was a new arrival. Hatless and gloveless, the elderly man was clad in lightweight pants, a threadbare jacket and open shoes. His hands were raw, and his face had a bluish tint. I wasn’t alone in gasping aloud at this sad sight, but my needy neighbor was the only one doing anything about it. Setting aside his meal, he leaped up and guided the elderly man to an adjacent seat. He took his icy hands and rubbed them briskly in his own. With a final tenderness, he draped his worn jacket over the older man’s shoulders. “Pop, my name’s Jack”, he said, “and one of God’s angels brought me this meal. I just finished eating and hate to waste good food. Can you help me out?” He placed the still-warm bowl of soup in the stranger’s hands without waiting for an answer. But he got one. “Sure, son, but only if you go halfway with me on that sandwich. It’s too much for a man my age.”

It wasn’t easy making my way to the food court with tears blurring my vision, but I soon returned with large containers of coffee and a big assortment of pastries. “Excuse me, gentlemen, but …” I left Union Station that day feeling warmer than I had ever thought possible.

1. Do I strive to conquer the vengeful instincts and to overcome evil with good? Do I practice the ethic of non-violence and the Christian way of forgiving love?

2. In our self-donation and care for the poor, do we imitate Jesus Christ, who became poor although he was rich, so that by his poverty we might become rich? Do we thank God for the many generous souls who follow the spirit of Christian giving and allow ourselves to be inspired by them?

Loving Father, in you mercy and justice have embraced. thank you for the gift of your Son Jesus Christ. Through his self-giving, we realize that Christian holiness demands compassion. It challenges us to love our neighbor as ourselves. Give us the strength to love unconditionally and to learn the ways of justice and peace Let us draw courage from the truth that we belong to Christ and that he leads us on the right path. You live and reign, now and forever. Amen.

*** God our Father, we thank you for the spirit of self-giving that Jesus Christ has shown in his kenosis: he became poor for our sake. Help us to imitate his total self-donation. Let our poverty overflow in a wealth of generosity. Make us generous in caring for the needs of the poor. You are a loving and provident God. We love and praise you, now and forever. Amen.

“Love your enemies.” (Mt 5:44) // “He became poor although he was rich, so that by his poverty you might become rich.” (II Cor 8:9)

By an act of kindness and compassion to a needy person or an offensive person, or by a forgiving stance to an injury suffered personally, enable the Gospel of saving love to spread. // In a spirit of self-giving and in imitation of the generous Macedonians, make an effort to alleviate the suffering of today’s poor.

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WEDNESDAY: ELEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us to Do Good Deeds … He Is a Cheerful Giver and Jubilant in Serving”

BIBLE READINGS II Cor 9:6-11 // Mt 6:1-6, 16-18

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 6:1-6, 16-18): “And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.”

From today’s Gospel reading (Mt 6:1-6, 16-18), we realize that doing the right deed for selfish reasons is “phony” and not commendable. Jesus takes up three traditional Jewish good deeds: almsgiving, prayer and fasting. While encouraging his disciples to practice them, he warns about the manner of practicing them. These traditional acts of righteousness are meaningless when done hypocritically and in view of self-seeking. Jesus criticizes pious self-display and not the pious actions themselves. Almsgiving, prayer and fasting are meaningful only when they are motivated by a sincere and faithful relationship with God and one’s fellow human beings. The Father of Jesus – our own Father too – who sees acts hidden from human sight will surely reward good deeds done for the glory of God and the good of others. God the Father rewards good deeds, both those done in secret and those carried out in public witnessing, as long as they are properly motivated, i.e. to secure God’s glory and to promote the well-being of our brothers and sisters. While teaching his disciples not to be hypocrites and self-seeking, Jesus Christ also encourages them to let their light shine before others so that those who see their good deeds may glorify the heavenly Father (cf. Mt 5:16).

After the 8:00 A.M. Easter Sunday Mass at our parish of St. Christopher in San Jose (CA-USA), our community of three, plus a friend, went for breakfast at a nearby restaurant in our Willow Glen neighborhood. We enjoyed freshly brewed coffee and placed our order. Mine was a bowl of fresh fruit and Eggs Benedict. Easter joy was in the air as we shared the meal. When we asked for the bill, the waiter told us that an “Easter bunny” took care of it. We greatly appreciated the kindness of our secret benefactor. We prayed that God the Father, who sees good deeds done in secret, may reward and fill him with Easter blessings.

B. First Reading (II Cor 9:6-11): “God loves a cheerful giver.”

In today’s First Reading (II Cor 9:6-11), Saint Paul underlines the blessings of generosity using the image of a sower. The one who sows many seeds will have a large crop. God, who supplies seed for the sower and bread to eat, will also supply all the seed we need and help produce a rich harvest. Indeed, God will bring forth a bounty from our generous and kind hearts. He will always make us rich enough to be generous at all times. Therefore, we should not fear that generosity will impoverish us. God is infinite in his gifts. There is no need to covet or hoard. Our role as Christian disciples is to reflect the richness of God and his concern for the poor. We must have unlimited trust in divine providence. Our sharing must be motivated by a desire to proclaim God’s name. Our generous giving must inspire people to thank God for the many gifts he showers upon us.

The apostle Paul likewise asserts that God loves a cheerful giver. Like Jesus Savior, we too must be cheerful givers and jubilant in serving. The following story gives a glimpse into this (cf. Carol Knapp in Daily Guideposts 2010, p. 281).

I received a surprising faith boost through my job selling baked goods at the farmers’ market. I had a tent and tables to set up, heavy racks of bread to load and unload, long hours standing in the weather-of-the-day and waves of people eager to hear me explain my wares.

Mothers came with children to buy their favorite cookies. Men stopped by on their lunch breaks to pick up pepperoni rolls. Summer customers wanted sweet breads for the cabin or buns for the outdoor grill. Autumn shoppers purchased scones to go with morning coffee and savory loaves to have with the soup. One woman preparing a Greek dinner for friends bought the spinach feta; a man on a bicycle liked his granola with raisins; a curmudgeonly man counted on his sourdough.

Somewhere in the middle of my job, the joy hit me; the unexpected joy of serving people, matching the right breads to their needs and watching them walk away satisfied.

I formed a new picture of the Son of Man, exuberant in sharing God’s message, excited to serve others: Jesus providing wine for the wedding guests in Cana, touching the hand of Peter’s mother-in-law so that the fever left her, giving sight to a man born blind, restoring life to a twelve-year-old, welcoming children into his arms.

How Jesus must have celebrated with the recipients of these wonderful works! What joy he must have felt every morning, anticipating the great things he would do, the words of life he must teach!

1. Do we do our “good deeds” with proper motivation, or do we carry them out as an occasion for self-seeking? Do we believe that God the Father who sees in secret will reward us for all good deeds done for his glory and the salvation of his people?

2. Are we generous in self-giving? Are we cheerful givers?

Heavenly Father, we praise and thank you for you see all our humble efforts to love and serve you. You search the secrets of our heart and all our actions are known to you. Teach us always to work with supernatural intentions. Deliver us from self-seeking and hypocrisy. May our prayer, fasting and almsgiving be done always for your greater glory and the good of souls. Grant us the prophetic power of Elijah and Elisha. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** God of love, help us to be generous sowers and bountiful reapers. Please give us the grace we need to be of service to your kingdom. Let your provident hand make a bounty of our generosity. Help us to imitate Jesus who is cheerful in giving and jubilant in serving. Let our good works give you glory and praise, now and forever. Amen.

“ Your Father who sees in secret will repay you.” (Mt 6:4) // “God loves a cheerful giver.” (II Cor 9:7)

In every good you do and in your pain and suffering, give glory and praise to God and seek the salvation of souls. // In accomplishing your daily tasks and ministry, do it with a joyful heart and in a spirit of self-giving.

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THURSDAY – ELEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us to Pray … His Apostle Paul Preaches the Gospel without Charge”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 6:7-15): “This is how you are to pray.”

When I was a postulant, we had a retreat with an Irish Carmelite priest. To help us understand better the meaning of prayer, he narrated a story about two hermits. Each one planted a papaya and took care that it should grow well and be fruitful. They even prayed for the papaya. One hermit tried to make God understand what needs to be done for the papaya: “Lord, please send some rain today for the papaya”; “The sun is too hot; please send some cool breeze for the papaya;” etc. But his papaya was unhealthy and scrawny. When he visited his friend, he noticed that the papaya he planted was sturdy and extremely fruitful. “What is your secret?” he asked. The other hermit responded, “I prayed and asked God, Please take care of the papaya!”

In today’s Gospel (Mt 6:7-15), Jesus teaches us the true meaning of prayer and how to pray. God our Father knows our needs even before we make our request. But he wants us to ask in confidence and trust. In prayer we do not so much inform God of some situation or micromanage him, as express our dependence and faith in him. The “Lord’s Prayer” that Jesus teaches us is a model of total surrender to God: “Your will be done …” Mother Teresa of Calcutta remarks: “Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at his disposition, and listening to his voice in the depths of our hearts.”

B. First Reading (II Cor 11:1-11): “I preached the Gospel of God to you without charge.”

In today’s First Reading (II Cor 1:1-11), we see the apostle Paul constrained to do some boasting. His detractors think he is not on par with the “super apostles”. He contends that he may not have the rhetorical skills that their so-called “apostles” have, but certainly he is not lacking in knowledge. Saint Paul is absolutely not inferior to anyone in the knowledge of the true Gospel. Moreover, he has used every means at his command to preach Jesus and his Gospel to the Corinthians. Indeed, he has done more than the other “apostles” to further the work of Christ. Another foolish accusation hurled at the apostle Paul is that he does not seek recompense for his preaching simply because he is too insignificant to merit any payment. Paul refutes them by asserting that other churches do esteem him and support him in his apostolic ministry. With condescension, he uses his critics’ own foolish expression and says that he is “paid by other churches”. The Christian believers in Macedonia, in fact, have brought Paul everything he needs, while he proclaims the Gospel in Corinth without charge. He resolves to continue to be financially independent and to proclaim the Gospel gratuitously so as not to burden the Corinthians. This is to prevent his critics from maligning his ministry and to avoid being accused of preaching the Gospel for money. At the end, the ever-conciliatory Paul reaffirms his love for the people he is trying to evangelize: “God knows I love you!”

The following charming story, entitled “How Much Is a Miracle?” and circulated on the Internet, gives a glimpse into what it means “to preach the Gospel without charge”.

Tess was a precocious eight-year-old when she heard her mom and dad talking about her little brother Andrew. All she knew was that he was very sick and they were completely out of money. They were moving into an apartment complex next month because Daddy didn’t have the money for the doctor bills and their house. Only a very costly surgery could save Andrew now and it was looking like there was no one to loan them the money. She heard Daddy say to her tearful Mother with whispered desperation, “Only a miracle can save him now.”

Tess went to her bedroom and pulled a glass jelly jar from its hiding place in the closet. She poured all of the change out on the floor and counted it carefully. Three times, even. The total had to be exactly perfect. No chance here for mistakes. Carefully placing the coins back in the jar and twisting on the cap, she slipped out the back door and made her way 6 blocks to Rexall’s Drug Store with the biggest red Indian Chief sign above the door.

She waited patiently for the pharmacist to give her some attention but he was too busy at the moment. Tess twisted her feet to make a scuffing noise. Nothing. She cleared her throat with the most disgusting sound she could muster. No good. Finally she took a quarter from her jar and banged it on the glass counter. That did it!

“ And what do you want?” the pharmacist asked in an annoyed tone of voice. “I’m talking to my brother from Chicago whom I haven’t seen in ages”, he said without waiting for a reply to his question. “Well, I want to talk to you about my brother”, Tess answered back in the same annoyed tone. “He’s really, really sick … and I want to buy a miracle.” “I beg your pardon”, asked the pharmacist. “His name is Andrew, and he has something bad growing inside his head, and my Daddy says only a miracle can save him now. So how much does a miracle cost?” We don’t sell miracles here, little girl. I’m sorry but I can’t help you”, the pharmacist said, softening a little. “Listen, I have the money to pay for it. If it isn’t enough, I will get the rest. Just tell me how much it costs.”

The pharmacist’s brother was a well dressed man. He stooped down and asked the little girl, “What kind of miracle does your brother need?” I don’t know”, Tess replied with eyes welling up. “I just know he’s really sick and Mommy says he needs an operation. But, my Daddy can’t pay for it, so I want to use my money.” “How much do you have?” asked the man from Chicago. “One dollar and eleven cents”, Tess answered barely audibly. “And it’s all the money I have, but I can get some more if I need to.

“Well, what a coincidence”, smiled the man. “A dollar and eleven cents – the exact price of a miracle for little brothers.” He took her money in one hand and with the other hand he grasped her mitten and said, “Take me to where you live. I want to see your brother and meet your parents. Let’s see if I have the kind of miracle you need.”

The well dressed man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a surgeon specializing in neuro-surgery. The operation was completed without charge. And it wasn’t long until Andrew was home again and doing well. Mom and Dad were happily talking about the chain of events that had led them to this place.

“That surgery”, her mother whispered, “was a real miracle. I wonder how much it would have cost?” Tess smiled. She knew exactly how much a miracle cost … one dollar and eleven cents … plus the faith of a little child.

1. What is the significance of prayer for me personally? What are my experiences of prayer? Do I try to glean the true meaning of the “Lord’s Prayer”?

2. How do we respond to the criticisms and trials we encounter in our apostolic ministry? Do we proclaim the Gospel gratuitously or do we allow money, or the lack of it, to inhibit the work of evangelization?

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

*** God our Father, we trust in your protection and providence. Defend us from our adversaries. Help us to proclaim the Gospel without charge for you have given us gratuitously the gift of salvation that your Son won for us at the price of his blood. We love and glorify you, now and forever. Amen.

“This is how you are to pray.” (Mt 6:9) //“I preached the Gospel of God to you without charge.” (II Cor 11:7)

When you pray the Lord’s Prayer, mean what you say. // When you do something nice and beautiful for someone, let that person feel that it is done freely, gratuitously and joyfully on his/her behalf.

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FRIDAY – ELEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us to Seek True Treasures … His Apostle Paul Boasts of His Weakness”

BIBLE READINGS II Cor 11:18, 21-30 // Mt 6:19-23

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 6:19-23): “For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.”

In today’s Gospel (Mt 6:19-23), Jesus gives instructions on choosing between God and earthly treasures. Jesus Master counsels us not to store up treasures on earth because “earthly treasures” are fragile, alienable and perishable. There is nothing on earth that is worth putting our heart into in an absolute way. Only the Lord God is the eternal and absolute treasure. Our heart should be placed in him. He should be the object of our love, self-surrender and sacrifice. In view of this fundamental option, our principal concerns and interests are to store up treasures in heaven. Jesus also talks about the “eye” as the “lamp of the body”. In the ancient world the term “eye” is understood as expressing a person’s attitude. To say that “the eye is the lamp of the body” means that one’s attitude controls what one does or says. A healthy “eye” means that one’s personal attitude is sincere and open to God’s guidance. Hence, to make wise choices for the heavenly treasures would require a healthy “eye”, that is, a personal attitude that is enlightened by the wisdom of God. Storing up treasures in heaven needs true insight and perspective that is enlightened by the Spirit of God.

The following story, “The Seven Jars of Gold” illustrates the tragedy and misery of hoarding false treasures as well as the possibility of being “enlightened” and of rectifying our dismal acts and unfortunate choices (cf. Anthony De Mello, The Song of the Bird, New York: Image Books, 1984, p. 134-135).

A barber was passing under a haunted tree when he heard a voice say, “Would you like to have the seven jars of gold?” He looked around and saw no one. But his greed was aroused, so he shouted eagerly, “Yes, I certainly would.” “Then go home at once”, said the voice. “You will find them there.”

The barber ran all the way home. Sure enough, there were the seven jars – all full of gold, except for one that was only half full. Now the barber could not bear the thought of having a half-filled jar. He felt a violent urge to fill it or he simply would not be happy.

So he had all the jewelry of his family melted into coins and poured them into half-filled jar. But the jar remained as half-filled as before. This was exasperating! He saved and skimped and starved himself and his family. To no avail. No matter how much gold he put into the jar it remained half-filled.

So one day he begged the king to increase his salary. His salary was doubled. Again the fight to fill the jar was on. He even took to begging. The jar devoured every gold coin thrown into it but remained stubbornly half-filled.

The king now noticed how starved the barber looked. “What is wrong with you?” he asked. “You were so happy and contented when your salary was smaller. Now it has been doubled and you are so worn out and dejected. Can it be that you have the seven jars of gold with you?”

The barber was astonished. “Who told you this, Your Majesty?” he asked.

The king laughed. “But these are obviously the symptoms of person to whom the ghost has given the seven jars. He once offered them to me. When I asked if this money could be spent or merely hoarded, he vanished without a word. That money cannot be spent. It only brings with it the compulsion to hoard. Go and give it back to the ghost this minute and you will be happy again.”

B. First Reading (II Cor 11:18, 21-30): “Apart from these things, there is the daily pressure upon me of my anxiety for all the churches.”

In today’s First Reading (II Cor 11:18, 21-30), Saint Paul continues “to boast” in the Lord. Challenged by his detractors, he is impelled to respond to them in their own terms. He exposes to them his ethical and religious credentials: “Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Abraham’s descendants? So I am …” The most substantial part of his “boasting”, however, is based on his profound understanding of himself as a “minister of Christ”. He is a minister of Christ even more than the others, for he has done more in the service of the Gospel. If others gain recognition on account of their sufferings for the Gospel, their trials would seem insignificant in comparison to Paul’s. The apostle then enumerates the adversities he suffered: imprisonments, floggings, shipwrecks, attacks from fellow Jews and from Gentiles, dangers in the wilderness, dangers from false friends, etc. Above all, he cannot refrain from adding his anxiety over the churches he founded. The daily trials of caring for the churches are without end and the conscientious Paul cannot find rest from these. He suffers intensely when others sin and the problems of everyone deeply concern him. Indeed, the great “boast” of Saint Paul is his own “weakness” which manifests the power of God at work in him. The great apostle does not exalt his own work in any way, but in God’s protection.

In a way, Paul’s apostolic sufferings for the sake of the Gospel are replicated in the life of Pope Pius XII. The following excerpt gives insight into this (cf. Alive! May 2012, p. 13).

New York Jew Gary Krupp grew up hating Pius XII for what he was told was the Pope’s anti-Semitism and unwillingness to help Jews during the Holocaust. Then he discovered that the indoctrination which he, like many of his generation, had received was a lie. Krupp became a passionate defender of Pius, determined to dig up all the information that would show the true greatness of the war time Pope.

In six years of research Krupp and his “Pave the Way Foundation” have uncovered over 76,000 pages of original material, plus eyewitness accounts and testimonies from various international scholars. His research has forced Yad Vashem museum in Jerusalem to significantly modify its section on Pius. Krupp believes that as the evidence emerges, the bid to blacken Pius’ name and destroy his reputation is coming to an end. “We’re definitely winning, absolutely no question”, he said. “Every time we do more research, we find a diamond. It’s incredible, but there’s nothing on the other side because there’s no documented foundation for any of their accusations.”

Some of the documents brought to light by “Pave the Way” show that more than 20 years before he became a Pope, Pius favored the creation of a Jewish state. Krupp also unearthed a letter written by the then Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli shortly before he was elected Pope on 2nd March 1939. The letter was an attempt to obtain visas to Brazil for 200,000 Jews still in Germany after Kristalnacht. “He wasn’t able to obtain the visas, but he tried”, said Krupp. “The point is, he didn’t do it from the safety of Washington DC or London. He did it while surrounded by hostile forces and infiltrated by spies. And yet he still managed to save more Jews than all the other world leaders combined.”

Through his nephew, Carlo Pacelli, Pius helped prevent the arrest of Roman Jews in 1943. Some 12,000 found refuge in convents, monasteries, and Catholic homes.

1. Do I truly seek to store up treasure in heaven? What are my priorities, interests and choices? Do I strive to keep the “eye” – the “lamp of my body” healthy? Do I cultivate true insight and a supernatural perspective in life?

2. What sufferings do we experience, or are we willing to undergo, for the sake of the Gospel and for the faith community?

O Jesus Divine Master, we thank you for teaching us where to put our hearts and where to store up treasure. Help us to seek God as the only and absolute good. Let us not be tantalized by the false treasures of this earth. Give light to the “eye” of our soul. Grant us true insight that we may seek the eternal treasure in heaven with love, devotion and sacrifice. Give us the wisdom, grace and strength to fight evil and to do good. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** (From the prayer “To Obtain Patience” by Blessed James Alberione)

Glorious Saint Paul, from a persecutor of Christianity, you became a very ardent and zealous apostle, and suffered imprisonment, scourging, stoning, shipwreck and endured persecutions of every kind, in order to make the Savior Jesus Christ known to the farthest bounds of the world. In the end you shed your blood to the last drop. Obtain for us the grace to accept the infirmities, afflictions and misfortunes of the present life as favors of divine mercy, so that the vicissitudes of this our exile may not make us grow cold in the service of God, but may make us ever more faithful and more fervent. Amen.

“For where your treasure is, there also your heart will be.” (Mt 6:21) // “I will boast of the things that show my weakness.” (II Cor 11:40)

Get rid of superfluous goods and strive to share more fully your earthly and supernatural goods with the needy. // When sufferings and trials come your way as you carry out your task as “servant of the Gospel”, think of Saint Paul and the sufferings he endured.

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SATURDAY – ELEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Delivers Us from Anxiety … He Is Our Strength in Weakness”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 6:24-34): “Do not worry about tomorrow.”

In today’s Gospel (Mt 6:24-34), Jesus continues to shape us into disciples whose priorities are straight and who totally depend on God. He wants us to serve God and not mammon. Our possessions have a way of possessing us, but that cannot happen if we make a core decision for God. Our fundamental option for Christ and our radical choice for the kingdom values eliminate useless anxieties. Indeed, Jesus wants us to be free from excessive concern about food and clothing. What are they in comparison to the infinite value of the kingdom of God and his righteousness? He invites us to reflect on God’s care as shown in nature. The birds in the sky neither sow nor reap nor gather food into barns yet the heavenly Father feeds them. He gives color and beauty to wild flowers and clothes them with a splendor that surpasses Solomon’s regal attire. If that is how God cares for the birds and wild flowers, how much more would he care for us – more important in his sight. Jesus urges us not to worry, for worrying is unproductive and counterproductive, a vicious killer of joy in our life. If we put our heart in God and seek his kingdom and his righteousness, all other matters will be in place and our needs taken care of.

The following story gives insight into the meaning of Jesus’ exhortation not to worry about tomorrow for there is no need to add to the troubles each day brings (cf. Anthony De Mello, The Song of the Bird, New York: Image Books, 1984, p. 21).

The Japanese warrior was captured by his enemies and thrown into prison. At night he could not sleep for he was convinced that he would be tortured the next morning.

Then the words of his master came to his mind. “Tomorrow is not real. The only reality is now.”

So he came to the present – and fell asleep.

The person over whom the future has lost its grip. How like the birds of the air and the lilies of the field. No anxieties for tomorrow. Total presence in the now. Holiness!

B. First Reading (II Cor12:1-10): “I will rather boast most gladly of my weakness.”

Today’s First Reading (II Cor 12:1-10) tells us that the New Testament prophet Paul is afflicted with a “thorn in the flesh”. Like his beloved Lord Jesus Christ, the great apostle Paul has been rejected, challenged, contested and criticized by the people he is meant to serve. Some vicious critics in the Corinthian community doubt his credentials and rate him as not being on par with the “super apostles” who have received visions and revelations. Compelled to deal with his critics on their own terms, the indignant Paul confesses that he too is a recipient of a special vision. This unique “revelation” has transported him to paradise. His ecstatic, mystical experience definitely surpasses those of the so-called “super apostles”. Paul speaks of this “revelation” in the third person to emphasize that it is an undeserved gift received from God. Indeed, until driven to this extreme by his Corinthian critics who looked down upon him, he has refrained from speaking about this and kept it a secret. However, in order that he may not become conceited on account of this extraordinary revelation, the mystic Saint Paul has been gifted with a “thorn in the flesh”, most likely, an embarrassing, chronic physical malady. The purpose of this affliction is clearly to help Paul assume a humble stance and allow the grace of God to work more freely and efficaciously in him.

The experience of Saint Paul testifies to the presence of divine grace in all our afflictions. Though his “thorn in the flesh” continues to afflict him, the certainty of God’s favor and assistance is enough for Paul. The Christians of today are called to the same trust, surrender and faith that in weakness, there is strength, if only we are united with Christ. The following story of the cancer victim, Kevin Barry, a former chief of legislation for the U.S. Coast Guard and a director of the National Institute of Military Justice, is a modern day testimony of how a physical affliction – a “thorn in the flesh” can be a “gift” to manifest the love and power of God (cf. “Pain and the Power of Prayer” in Saint Anthony Messenger, February 2009, p. 35-37).

It is said that cancer changes everything. That goes also for prayer. I was diagnosed with colon cancer on the Feast of the Assumption, August 15, 1997. When the diagnosis first came in, prayer suddenly took on a much more prominent role in my wife’s life, as well as my own. Each time the cancer returned, and with each new crisis, prayer again rose up to be a more constant companion. But it is not just the proximity or amount of time we came to spend in prayer. What is more important is that, since cancer, our prayer habits have changed. Our prayers have become more present, more intense, more frequent, more together. (…)

My cancer has also resulted, at various times in the past years, in me experiencing pain. At such times I tend to pray with more intensity than is my norm when I am not in any pain and life is proceeding smoothly. That intensity can vary from a little more prayer than normal to an almost constant plea for strength to endure when the pain is particularly severe … Obviously, the pain is part of the whole deal. It is a result of cancer. Thus, it has to be part of what Roslyn and I have come to accept as “the gift of cancer”. (…)

To a certain degree, my experience of pain changed in 2007, after I had to stop chemotherapy in February because it wasn’t working well – its toxicity became too great. My white blood cell and platelet counts were being suppressed and were taking longer and longer to bounce back. Soon thereafter, I began to experience cancer pain that was chronic and quite severe, and I learned just how much a part of my life pain and pain medications could become. I spent more time praying, not just for the grace to endure the pain, but especially for the grace to accept better both my cancer and its pain as part of the gift (some would call it a cross), which was fashioned just for me by my loving God. I was extraordinarily blessed when the next round of chemotherapy miraculously terminated the pain just two days after the first treatment. I believe this sudden relief from all pain was a reminder of God’s mercy. (…)

The serious pain I have experienced has led me to consider pain and suffering on another level. Paul the Apostle has two extraordinary sentences in his letters. One is: I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me (Gal 2:20). The other is: Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ (Colossians 1:24). What could possibly be lacking in the sufferings of Christ? His passion and death were part of his perfect sacrifice. The only thing I know that is lacking is for his suffering to be made present today – in this place and in this time. But if Christ lives in me, then my suffering becomes Christ’s suffering. Suddenly, it is much easier to endure pain knowing that, by doing so with the right intention; I bring the mystery of Christ’s own suffering into my life, for my benefit and for the benefit of all who are “one with me” in my struggle. It is like a variation on the Mass, through which Christ’s sacrifice is made present today in our world. In my suffering here and now, if I can truly live Paul’s words, Christ lives and suffers in me. And I live and suffer in him. What an awesome mystery. What a profound faith to share.

1. Do I put my total trust in God, not worrying about tomorrow and not giving in to useless anxieties?

2. What are your own experiences of grace? Can you truly avow that there is “strength in weakness”?

Jesus Master, we trust in divine providence. We look at the birds of the sky and the immense field of wildflowers, radiant with color and beauty. You care for them. How much more will you care for us! Deliver us from useless anxieties. Give us the grace to seek you and the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Help us to persevere in overcoming evil with good. Let us live day by day in your grace. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Loving Father, be present to us in our afflictions through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit. We trust in your saving help and we allow ourselves to be grasped by your guiding hand. Gracious God, in our human weakness and brokenness, allow us to believe that there is “strength in weakness”. You are our provident Father, and together with your beloved Son Jesus Christ our Savior and the Holy Spirit, the breath of life and love, we give you praise, now and forever. Amen.

“Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.” (Mt 6:33) //“My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” (II Cor 12:9)

When the present socio-economic situation threatens you with fear and anxieties, turn to God and assert more strongly your fundamental option for him as the one and absolute good. // Pray for the weakest and most vulnerable members of the society and, by your works of charity on their behalf, allow them to experience that there is “strength in weakness”.

MONDAY: TWELFTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us that God Is the True Judge … He Shows Us How to Respond to Our Vocation to Glory”

BIBLE READINGS Gn 12:1-9 // Mt 7:1-5

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO A. Gospel Reading (Mt 7:1-5): “Remove the wooden beam from your eye first.”

I was praying the rosary in the spacious and beautifully tended grounds of our Fresno convent. But I was perplexed when I saw a few trash items on the ground – a styrofoam cup, candy wrapper, empty bag of potato chips, etc. Who could have trashed this place of prayer? I picked them up and disposed of them in the garbage bin. Day after day, I would see trashed things here and there, not many, but enough to upset me. I complained how irresponsible and irreverent the “litterbugs” were. I fumed that some “pious” people coming to our convent for Mass were actually “litterbugs”. But the “evidence” was there – right? One morning, I took notice of a flock of crows – busy and noisy. One powerfully swept down from the sky. His beak was clutching an empty snack bag that he promptly trashed on the ground. An inner voice pierced my conscience: “Rash judgment! Rash judgment! You have been making a rash judgment!”

In today’s Gospel reading (Mt 7:1-5), Jesus tells us to stop judging that we may not be judged. Against the backdrop of the hypercriticism of the Pharisees and scribes, Jesus cautions against passing harsh judgment on others and denying them entry to the kingdom of God. To condemn others is not our prerogative. God alone is the true judge. We must leave judgment to the final judge. Instead of “judging” we must imitate the Divine Master’s compassionate stance and his work of healing and salvation. The measure we use to deal with others will be measured out to us. We will be judged on the basis of our own attitude – whether hypercritical or compassionate. Jesus, the son of a carpenter, uses carpentry images to deliver the irony of hypocrisy and false condemnation: the righteous with a wooden beam in the eye wants to remove the sawdust in another’s eye. In the biblical world, the “eye” represents a person’s attitude and understanding. Indeed, our pride obstructs the light of compassionate understanding and blinds us to our own faults and the duty of charity. Jesus warns against exaggerating our neighbor’s faults and minimizing our own. He wants us to remove the “wooden beam” dimension of our hypocrisy and pride that we may be able to remove charitably the “splinter” that hurts our neighbor’s eyes. He does not condemn fraternal correction, but false condemnation. Jesus Master counsels true compassion in dealing with our brothers and sisters.

B. First Reading (Gn 12:1-9): “Abraham went as the Lord directed him.”

In today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 12:1-9), we hear God calling Abraham to be the father of nations and we see the patriarch’s marvelous, obedient response to the divine call. Through Abraham’s faith and trust in Yahweh’s benevolent initiative, humanity’s compulsive path to destruction is radically changed. In calling Abraham, God offers him both a challenge and a promise of blessing. The call summons him away from his former life and challenges him to an ineffable relationship based entirely on faith and trust in God.

The vocation of Abraham is a vocation to grace and glory. It is replete with divine favor and blessing. God promises him: “I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you. I will make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you. All the communities of the earth shall find blessings in you” (Gen 12:2-3). Abraham responds to the divine command to leave his homeland to an unfamiliar land that God would show him. He “goes” with his wife Sarah. His “going” in the direction of the divine will is necessary for receiving the fullness of God’s gifts. By leaving behind his country, relatives and homeland, Abraham would become the father of a posterity that would end up as the “new people of God”. In obedient faith, Abraham travels to his true destiny of grace and glory. The remarkable response of Abraham to Yahweh prefigures the unconditional response of Jesus Christ to the divine saving plan.

The following modern day story gives insight into the pursuit of our true destiny (cf. Sandra Lee, “Recipe for Success” in Family Circle, November 1, 2007, p. 83-88). Sandra Lee is known for her best-selling Semi-Homemade cookbooks and food network show. Like Abraham and Jesus, she trod the difficult path and responded to her vocation to grace and glory.

I was about two years old when my mother, Vicky, dropped my younger sister Cindy and me off at Grandma Lorraine’s house in Santa Monica, California, one sunny afternoon in 1968, promising to return shortly. We didn’t see her again for four years. Grandma Lorraine was the mother of my birth father, Wayne. Vicky and Wayne were typical high school sweethearts. They filed for divorce about two years after they said, “I do,” somewhere around Cindy’s first birthday. I started calling Grandma Lorraine “Mommy,” and Vicky became a distant memory. Grandma Lorraine loved being in the kitchen. Some of my fondest memories are of baking with her. Grandma’s vanilla cake with butter cream frosting was my favorite. She also knew how to stretch a dollar better than anyone, mostly because she had to. She taught me to save money at an early age, opening my very own savings account when I was four … These were important lessons that would come in very handy a few years later. Grandma Lorraine reminded us what a gift life is and how important it was to embrace the joy in each and every day. She’d talk about all the possibilities that tomorrow could bring. Not long after my sixth birthday, Vicky came back into our lives. She arrived with her new husband, Richard. Vicky and Richard tried to explain that they were our mom and dad, but I wondered why these strangers wanted to take us away. Slowly I adjusted to my new life in Marina del Rey. (…)

Richard was transferred to Washington State for his job as a computer programmer, and everything changed. Vicky’s mood was becoming unpredictable and more volatile. Three years later Richard left Vicky, and at age 12 I became mom, sister, caretaker and homemaker of our family. There were six of us in the house – Richie and Johnny were born after we moved to Washington State – but I was the one looking after everyone. Vicky spent her days lying on the couch, taking pills and screaming at us. When the welfare check arrived, I’d bike to the bank to deposit it. Then I paid our bills to ensure our gas and electricity weren’t shut off. Next I’d use the food stamps to stock the kitchen as best I could. I was so glad Grandma had taught me how to cook and be frugal, because there was no other way for us to make it through. (…)

One morning before school, when I was 15, Vicky looked me in the eyes and said, “You are going to be so much more than I am when you grow up.” It was the only compliment I can remember her ever giving me. As usual I said nothing, but I couldn’t help thinking that I was going to be so much more than she in ways she couldn’t possibly imagine. I wanted to be the opposite of Vicky – kind, generous, supportive and nurturing, thoughtful and disciplined. I stared at her in disgust until I could no longer contain myself and said, “You’re right. I am going to be more than you.” The words stunned us both. She flew into an uncontrollable rage and grabbed me. Her punches were landing fast and hard – I could barely catch my breath. I lay there thinking this had to end or I would die. She beat me until she was done. I called my boyfriend, Duanne, and when he arrived at the house, he took one look at me and said, “Go pack. You are not coming back.” I moved in with Duanne’s family until I could decide what to do next. I contacted Grandma Lorraine and she told me that Wayne and his girlfriend Patty were moving to Wisconsin and would love to have me live with them. I left for Wisconsin on June 30, 1982, three days before my sixteenth birthday … I discovered I had a knack for putting together business outlines and marketing plans and decided to pursue a business degree. (…)

I decided to create a total lifestyle company … I wanted to design solution-based products that would make women heroes in their home. I noticed that one group not being served in the marketplace was women who didn’t have enough time to whip up tasty meals from scratch … I decided to refocus my energies by closing down the lifestyle company and writing my first cookbook … I decided to name my cookbook and approach to cooking Semi-Homemade … I sold SEMI- HOMEMADE COOKING primarily through television channels and small book sellers. It was an instant hit. (…)

The only way to move forward is to live an authentic life and be true to who you really are. I was dealt a hand that might have had a different outcome if I ever allowed myself to feel like a victim. Resilience is key. Learning to stand strong in the face of challenge and adversity is my secret to survival. Picking up and moving forward is the only thing we can do. And making your life matter is the most important thing of all.

1. Do I give in to a righteous tendency to judge my neighbors and condemn their “faults”? Do I endeavor to remove the “wooden beam” in my eye in order to help my brother remove the “sawdust” in his eye?

2. What is significant in the story of the call of Abraham? Do you recognize the graciousness of the almighty God in initiating an intimate relationship with patriarch Abraham? Why is Abraham a model of true faith?

Jesus Lord, you are God’s compassion and righteousness. Help us to stop judging harshly that we may not be judged. Help us to be compassionate. Deal kindly with us. With a true seeing “eye”, may we perceive the beauty of charity and embrace our duty to care for our brothers and sisters. Let your loving eyes be upon us. Empower us to make life-giving choices and teach us not to negate the Father’s love. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Loving Father, you called Abraham to go forth from the land of his kinsfolk and from his father’s house to lead him to his glorious destiny. We thank you for the sterling quality of Abraham’s response. Help us to fulfill our vocation to grace and glory. We love you and adore you, now and forever. Amen.

“Stop judging, that you may not be judged.” (Mt 7:1) // “I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you.” (Gen 12:2)

Resolve to avoid making rash judgment. // By your acts of charity, enable those in extreme difficulty to have a glimpse of their future destiny and respond to their vocation to grace and glory.

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TUESDAY: TWELFTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us to Abide by the Golden Rule … He Teaches Us to Overcome Strife”

BIBLE READINGS Gn 13:2, 5-18 // Mt 7:6, 12-14

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 7:6, 12-14): “Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.”

In today’s Gospel (Mt 7:6, 12-14), Jesus counsels discernment and discretion in dealing with those who are hostile to the message of salvation he brings. When our work for the Good News is rejected by those who impose rash judgments and are averse to the kingdom, he advises us not to get into a dispute. They lack understanding and refusing to understand, they will use what we say to condemn. The kingdom of God and its way of life are holy. They are like pearls of great price. The gift of salvation cannot be squandered and forced on anyone who resists them. It is sheer grace and an act of divine predilection to which we can freely respond.

Jesus Master tells his disciples to abide by the Golden Rule: “Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.” This wisdom saying can be verified in the Jewish tradition. Rabbi Hillel, who died when Jesus was about ten years old, was asked by a scoffer to teach him the whole Torah while he stood on one foot. Rabbi Hillel answered: “What is hateful to you do not do to your neighbor; that is the whole Torah; go and study it.” Jesus Master likewise uses the principle of mutuality, but on a higher level: “Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us”; “Stop judging and you will not be judged”; etc. By putting positively the wisdom saying “What is hateful to you do not do to your neighbor”, Jesus transforms a prescription of self-preservation into an action of love. A negative counsel becomes pro-active. Jesus’ Golden Rule, “Do to others whatever you would have them to you” is in deep affinity with the great command, “Love your neighbor as yourself” on which depends all the law and the prophets”.

Jesus Master exhorts his disciples to enter by the narrow gate. This is an exhortation to become part of the pro-active faithful and not simply to follow the crowd or abide by social pressure. He sets before his disciples the two ways: the broad way that leads to doom and destruction and the narrow way that leads to life. The narrow way is that of the cross. With Jesus, we travel through the way of the cross to eternal life and the light of glory.

The following story, circulated on the Internet, illustrates how we can incarnate in our daily life the teachings of Jesus: the Golden Rule, choosing the narrow way, holiness, caring for those in need, etc.

One day a man saw an old lady, stranded on the side of the road, but even in the dim light of day, he could see she needed help. So he pulled up in front of her Mercedes and got out. His Pontiac was still sputtering when he approached her. Even with the smile on his face, she was worried. No one had stopped to help for the last hour or so. Was he going to hurt her? He didn’t look safe; he looked poor and hungry.

He could see that she was frightened, standing out there in the cold. He knew how she felt. It was that chill which only fear can put in you. He said, “I’m here to help you, ma’am. Why don’t you wait in the car where it’s warm? By the way, my name is Bryan Anderson.”

Well all that she had was a flat tire, but for an old lady, that was bad enough. Bryan crawled under the car looking for a place to put the jack, skinning his knuckles a time or two. Soon he was able to change the tire. But he had to get dirty and his hands hurt. As he was tightening up the lug nuts, she rolled down the window and began to talk to him. She told him that she was from St. Louis and was just passing through. She couldn’t thank him enough for coming to her aid.

Bryan just smiled as he closed the trunk. The lady asked how much she owed him. Any amount would have been all right with her. She already imagined all the awful things that could have happened had he not stopped. Bryan never thought twice about being paid. This was not a job to him. This was helping someone in need, and God knows there were plenty who had given him a hand in the past. He had lived his whole life that way, and it never occurred to him to act any other way. He told her that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she saw someone who needed help, she could give that person the assistance needed, and Bryan added, “And think of me.” He waited until she started her car and drove off. It had been a cold and depressing day, but he felt good as he headed home, disappearing into the twilight.

A few miles down the road the lady saw a small café. She went in to grab a bite to eat, and take the chill off before she made the last leg of her trip home. It was a dingy looking restaurant. Outside were two old gas pumps. The whole scene was unfamiliar to her. The waitress came over and brought a clean towel to wipe her wet hair. She had a sweet smile, one that even being on her feet for the whole day couldn’t erase. The lady noticed that the waitress was nearly eight months pregnant, but she never let the strain and aches change her attitude. The old lady wondered how someone who had so little could be so giving to a stranger. Then she remembered Bryan.

After the lady finished her meal, she paid with a hundred-dollar bill. The waitress quickly went to get her change for her hundred-dollar bill, but the old lady had slipped right out of the door. She was gone by the time the waitress came back. The waitress wondered where the lady could be. Then she noticed something written on the napkin. There were tears in her eyes when she read what the lady wrote: “You don’t owe me anything. I have been there too. Somebody once helped me out, the way I’m helping you. If you really want to pay me back, here is what you do: Do not let this chain of love end with you.” Under the napkin were four more $100 bills.

Well, there were tables to clear, sugar bowls to fill, and people to serve, but the waitress made it through another day. That night when she got home from work and climbed into bed, she was thinking about the money and what the lady had written. How could the lady have known, it was going to be hard. She knew how worried her husband was, and as he lay sleeping next to her, she gave him a soft kiss and whispered soft and low, “Everything’s going to be all right. I love you, Bryan Anderson.”

B. First Reading (Gn 13:2, 5-18): “Let there be no strife between you and me for we are brothers.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 13:2, 5-18) is a vivid account of shepherd nomads and their need for grazing land and water. Both Abraham and his nephew Lot own many sheep, goats, and cattle. There is not enough pasture land for the two of them to stay together. The herdsmen of Abraham and Lot begin to quarrel. With great wisdom and noble spirit, Abraham remarks: “Let there be no strife between us for we are kinsmen.” To forestall further dispute, Abraham proposes that they separate. The patriarch magnanimously defers to Lot, who chooses to go eastward and settle in the lush and fertile Jordan Plain near Sodom. Abraham is left with the western half of Palestine from the central mountain spine to the sea coast. Lot’s decision, although inspired by human wisdom and practical concerns, works ultimately for the fulfillment of the divine plan. God blesses Abraham and promises him the land and numerous progeny to fill it.

The conciliatory act of Abraham foretells the non-violent stance of his progeny Jesus Christ, our Savior. In today’s world we all have personal responsibility to overcome strife and senseless division that vitiate human relationships. The following story is an inspiration (cf. Arlene West House, “An American Beauty” in Chicken Soup for the Soul, Cos Cob: CSS, 2008, p. 230-233).

In the 1930s, after the death of her husband, a middle-aged woman named Marguerite left Germany to make a new life in America, away from Hitler and the Third Reich. Marguerite’s younger brother Wilhelm, stayed behind with his Jewish wife and family to protect their assets, unaware of the horrors to come.

In her adopted country, Marguerite lived on a small pension and supplemented her income by raising a variety of roses, which she sold to local florists and hospitals. She sent some of the earnings from her roses to help support her brother in Germany. And, as the war advanced, she also sent money to help Jews escape from Germany.

Marguerite’s neighbors viewed her as a quiet, unassuming woman who spent most days in her garden or greenhouse. Not much was known about her, nor did the community try to befriend the foreign-born woman. But when the United States entered the war against Germany, Marguerite became suspect. While her neighbors and shopkeepers had never been friendly or particularly kind, they were now openly hostile. There were mutters and whispers about her being a Nazi, always just loud enough for her to hear.

Without fanfare, Marguerite continued to send money to Jewish families and to her brother in Germany. Then, one day, she received a letter from her sister-in- law with devastating news. Her beloved Wilhelm was dying of cancer. He was praying for a miracle: to be able to come to the United States where he could receive better medical care. At first Marguerite was panic-stricken: she didn’t have the extra money. But soon, she was overjoyed when a hospital requested an unusually large order of roses. This was the extra income she needed to make the miracle happen!

For weeks she tended her roses, nurturing and fertilizing them with tender care. Each rose meant another dollar to help bring Wilhelm to America. In August, Marguerite entered a local contest for the most beautiful roses grown. If she won, the prize money of $25 would ease her financial burden when Wilhelm and his family arrived.

On the day of the festival, she rose early to cut the flowers before they were wilted by the sun. As she stepped into the garden, she nearly fell to her knees with shock. All one hundred rosebushes, lovingly planted and nurtured over the last seven years, lay in shambles before her. Every plant was slashed and chopped to the ground. They all but bled before her eyes. She could barely take it in: her beloved flowers, and her livelihood, gone, possibly forever. And the worst of it was that Wilhelm would not be able to come to America.

Marguerite was devastated, but more determined than ever to show up at the festival. She would not give the hooligans the satisfaction of her absence. She would still enter the contest, even if they left but a petal. She walked down the garden path to see if she could salvage anything from the debris. Clinging to life by the back fence, obviously missed by the vandals, was one single red rose. It was an “American Beauty”. She took the rose into the house, cut the stem on an angle and placed it in the icebox to keep it fresh until the contest. Then, shaking with distress, she cleaned up the ruined rose garden as best she could. When she could do no more, she put on her best hat and took a trolley to the contest, holding the lone rose in her hand.

When Marguerite’s turn came to show her entry, she held up her single “American Beauty”. In her halting English, she proudly described its origin, how she had bred it, and the special fertilizer she has used to enhance the color of its petals. But, when the winners were announced, she wasn’t surprised at the absence of her name. Why would they give the prize to a rose from the garden of the enemy? She went home that evening trying to think of some other way she could earn money.

The next day, Marguerite attended church, as was her custom, to pray for strength and guidance. When she arrived home and opened the door, the scent of flowers filed the air. Someone had placed a large vase filled with summer flowers on the entryway table. As she walked toward the kitchen, she saw that every room in her home had more bouquets of flowers in Mason jars and pitchers. It was heavenly!

As she approached the kitchen, she saw a fresh coffeecake in the middle of the table. Under the cake plate was an envelope addressed to “Marguerite”. She opened it to find $300 in single bills and a card that said simply, “Many thanks from your friends in town.” Stunned and happy, Marguerite realized that this was the miracle Wilhelm had been praying for! Now she could bring him to America. The miracle did come to pass. With the $300, Marguerite bought steamship tickets. Within a few months, Wilhelm and his family arrived. Marguerite and his wife cared for him tenderly, and he received excellent medical attention that added years to his life.

For years Marguerite tried to discover who her benefactors were, but without success. Many years later, a local woman was going through the personal effects of her late grandfather, who had been a cantor in the local synagogue. She found his journal – and in it, an entry of particular interest. The journal stated that while attending the rose festival, the cantor had overheard two men in the audience brag about ripping up “the Nazi’s” rosebushes. He knew who they meant. Marguerite had never sought recognition for her charity, but many Jews in the community knew that her roses helped Jewish families escape the nightmare of the Holocaust.

That day the cantor set about calling on members of the synagogue, explaining about the vandalism and the financial loss Marguerite had suffered. The men and women in the synagogue gave with their hearts and pocketbooks for the “rose lady”. Several women who shared Marguerite’s love of gardening gathered flowers from their own gardens to honor her for all she had done for their people. Rather than have her feel an obligation, they took an oath to remain anonymous until death. They all kept the promise.

With patient love and care, Marguerite’s roses bloomed again. And Marguerite bloomed as well. She made many friends in town in the years following the war, never knowing that many of them were her secret benefactors. And she continued to send money to Germany to help Jewish families until her death in 1955.

1. Do I believe in the positive value of the Golden Rule? Do I practice the Golden Rule in the spirit of Jesus’ love command?

2. What do we do to overcome strife and ugly disputes? Do we endeavor to adopt a peaceful and conciliatory stance when confronted with divisive situations and potentially violent conflicts?

Loving Jesus, we thank you for teaching us about the great value of the kingdom of God. The heavenly kingdom is a pearl of great price that must not be lost or squandered. Thank you for calling us to holiness and for consecrating us for your service. Help us to put into practice the Golden Rule: “Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.” Give us the grace to enter the narrow way that leads to life. Grant us the grace and strength to be pro-active in our ministry of love. You are the way, truth and life. We bless you and adore you, now and forever. Amen.

*** God our Father, we thank you for the graciousness of Abraham, our father in faith. We thank you for Jesus, the prince of peace. Make us channels of peace in today’s world wounded with strife and brutal wars. Help us to overcome violence and senseless divisions by the love of the Holy Spirit. We praise and glorify you, now and forever. Amen.

“Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.” (Mt 7:12) //“Let there be no strife between us for we are kinsmen.” (Gn 13:8)

Living by the Golden Rule, do an act of kindness for a needy person and be patient and kind to one who challenges your patience and provokes your anger. // When dealing with divisive and destructive conflict situations, pray for the grace to imitate the conciliatory and peace-making stance of Abraham, our father in faith, and his illustrious progeny, Jesus Christ.

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WEDNESDAY: TWELFTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Tells Us to Beware of False Prophets … He Calls Us to a Covenant Faith”

BIBLE READINGS Gn 15:1-12, 17-18 // Mt 7:15-20

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 7:15-20): “By their fruits you will know them.”

This happened in Antipolo, Philippines in the ‘70s. The Sisters welcomed into our convent a young priest who introduced himself as the Vocation Promoter of the Rogationist Fathers. He was offered a fine dinner and given permission to enter the Sister Superior’s Office to use the only telephone in the house. After the phone call he told us that he needed to go. After he left the Sister Superior discovered that the grocery money for the week was gone. She called up his seminary to investigate. She was told that our “guest” had entered their seminary and stayed with them for a few months. After getting what he wanted, he took off. We were victimized by a bogus priest.

In today’s Gospel (Mt 7:15-20), Jesus tells us to beware of false prophets who come in sheep’s clothing, but underneath are ravenous wolves. Their evil sentiments are acted out in deceit – to the detriment of the people they claim to serve. Some of the false prophets in Jesus’ time are those who falsely claim to be spiritual leaders of the people and by their false teachings lead them to destruction. False prophets are like a rotten tree that bears bad fruit. The image of “thorn bushes and thistles” represents their grisly sin and the desolation it brings. True prophets are like a good tree that bears good fruit. Their words are true and their lives inspire people to holiness and transformation.

Papa Mike, the founder of the Poverello House in Fresno, talks about Fr. Simon Scanlon, the Franciscan priest who led him on the path of conversion, and was for him a true prophet-shepherd (cf. Mike McGarvin, Papa Mike, Fresno: Poverello House, 2003, p. 46-47).

Father Simon had once been a businessman. He and his brother owned a medical sponge business in the ‘30s and ‘40s. It was a million-dollar-a year enterprise, which was a huge amount of money back in those days. Then World War II intervened, and Simon went off to Europe. We don’t hear too much about older war veterans suffering the same sorts of symptoms as Vietnam vets, but they did. Many of the men who saw action during World War II witnessed carnage on an unbelievable scale, and Simon was one of them. The war made life as he knew it came to a halt, and he returned, not a victorious soldier, but a man whose soul had been ripped out and torn to pieces. Later in life, Father Simon told a newspaper reporter that after seeing so much bloodshed and death, nothing mattered except life. Making money no longer had any allure. He wanted to make a change, a radical change, so he signed over the business to his brother and entered the Franciscan Order of the Catholic Church. Eventually he was ordained a priest.

He ended up in a tough parish assignment, St. Boniface Church in urban San Francisco. The area was like a vast bleeding wound. It was populated by people who just barely survived, who had long ago given up on life and were now numbly eking out a daily existence on disability checks, meager old-age pensions, prostitution, or muggings. It was an area full of predators and victims.

Father Simon responded by gathering some volunteers and opening the Poverello Coffeehouse. Poverello was a safe haven, a place of refuge. It was a small storefront room where people could find acceptance, hot coffee, and a few smiles. These weren’t earth shaking things, but they were rare commodities on the streets. Father Simon was the driving force behind Poverello, but he had a small cadre of friends who aided him. Always short-staffed, he was constantly on the prowl for help. Providentially, while I was talking to him, a fight broke out between two patrons. I instinctively stepped in and broke it up. Father Simon watched with interest while I enforced peace. When everything had calmed down, I came back to chat with him some more, and he popped the question: Would I like to volunteer there at Poverello?

I hesitated. Working and partying were my priorities, and I knew I couldn’t give up work. Volunteering at Poverello would cut heavily into the time I spent smoking weed and dropping acid; but then, it felt good when I broke up that fight. For the first time in quite a while, I felt useful, and I kind of liked it. Besides, something had clicked for me with this priest guy. He intrigued me, and I thought it would be interesting to hang around him for awhile. “Yeah”, I said. “I’ll try it out.” Thus began my career as a Bouncer for Jesus.

B. First Reading (Gn 15:1-12, 17-18): “Abraham believed God and it was credited it to him as righteousness (Rom 4:3b), and the Lord made a covenant with him.”

The unwavering faith of Jesus Christ who strengthens the faith of his disciples for the paschal event of his passion, death and glory is prefigured in today’s story of Abraham (Gn 15:1-12, 17-18). The faith of Abraham in the first covenant is replicated and brought to perfection by Jesus in the new and everlasting covenant. In the Old Testament, it was God who initiated an intimate, loving relationship with Abraham, who responded totally with an irrevocable faith.

The biblical scholar Eugene Maly explains: “The fifteenth chapter of Genesis is a stunning piece of religious literature … When God called Abram from the land of his fathers, he promised him a great name and many descendants (Gen 12:1-3). Now some years later Abram is still without an heir. Yet he put his faith in the Lord, who then, in what we would call a bizarre ritual, initiated a covenant with the patriarch. Let us consider the theological insights. First of all comes the divine initiative, an unvarying element in all of biblical religion. God always acts first, and always in a saving way, here in the form of a promise. Abram believes in God. This is again, always the first and expected response of the human person. It is here an act of acceptance of, and surrender to, the promising God. There is no compelling reason, no persuasive argument. It is sheer faith … The bizarre ritual was actually a widely accepted form of treaty or covenant- making in ancient times. The animals are split in two to signify the fate of those who break the covenant. The passing between the divided pieces by a smoking brazier and a flaming torch symbolizes God’s acceptance and ratification of the covenant terms. God, as it were, puts his own life on the line for his servant Abram … The divine eagerness expressed in the Abram story spills over into a reckless giving of himself, his Son, to be with us. Only one question has meaning here: do we put our faith in him?”

The following story, told in a humorous vein, gives us an interesting insight into the meaning of faith (cf. Laverne W. Hall, “Faith” in Chicken Soup for the Christian Soul, ed. Jack Canfield, et. al. Deerfield Beach: Health Communications, Inc., 1997, p. 198-100).

The fields were parched and brown from lack of rain, and the crops lay wilting from thirst. People were anxious and irritable as they searched the sky for any sign of relief. Days turned into arid weeks. No rain came.

The ministers of the local churches called for an hour of prayer on the town square the following Saturday. They requested that everyone bring an object of faith for inspiration.

At high noon on the appointed Saturday the townspeople turned out en masse, filling the square with anxious faces and hopeful hearts. The ministers were touched to see the variety of objects clutched in prayerful hands – holy books, crosses, rosaries.

When the hour ended, as if on magical command, a soft rain began to fall. Cheers swept the crowd as they held their treasured objects high in gratitude and praise. From the middle of the crowd one faith symbol seemed to overshadow all the others: a small nine-year-old child had brought an umbrella.

1. Do I try to be aware of false prophets and resist their destructive influence? Do I open myself up to the transforming presence of Jesus the true prophet?

2. How are we inspired by the “faith of Abraham”? Do we try to imitate the total and irrevocable faith of Abraham? How?

Jesus Master, help us to beware of false prophets. Give us the light of the Holy Spirit that we may discern what is evil and detest it. By the strength of the same Spirit help us to be faithful to truth. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Loving Father, you are the God of the covenant. Like Abraham, the “father of nations”, we put our trust in you. Transform us more deeply, as we go through the daily paschal events of life, into the image of your Servant-Son Jesus Christ. Help us to live our covenant faith and to experience its abundant and eternal blessings. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“So by their fruits you will know them.” (Mt 7:20) //“Abram put his faith in the Lord, who credited it to him as righteousness.” (Gen 15:6)

Let your daily actions bear abundant fruit of goodness and holiness to benefit the people around you and the larger society. // Pray that those whose faith is being tested may never waver, but rather be strengthened in their experiences of distress and suffering. By your kind words and deeds, endeavor to share with them your covenant faith.

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THURSDAY – TWELFTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us to Build Upon the Rock … He Is Abraham’s Progeny”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 7:21-29): “The house built on rock and the house built on sand.”

Outward symbols must correspond to inner reality. Pious practices and confession with the lips are laudable, but are not enough; total obedience to the will of God and right actions are necessary. In the Gospel (Mt 7:21-29), using the powerful image of a solid foundation, Jesus tells his disciples that his teaching is the only safe foundation to build one’s life. Any other foundation spells destruction. The Divine Master calls us to build our lives on the rock of his living word and put it into practice. We must not simply proclaim in words that Jesus is Lord and call upon him as our Lord Savior. We must act in a way that corresponds to the inner strength of our word. Our actions must give witness to the faith we profess. Our worship of God must be incarnated in the life we live.

The following story of Jo Dee Baker from Slidell, Louisiana, whose lovely house and beautiful garden were devastated by Hurricane Katrina, tells of a community of believers whose efficacious faith is founded on a solid foundation (cf. “Angels on the Move” in Guideposts, Large Print Edition, March 2006, p. 5-9). Both Jo, the victim of a natural calamity, and the caregivers from the Baptist Church illustrate how wonderful and marvelous is a faith that is put into practice.

My beautiful yard was a mess of uprooted trees and debris; the salt water had burned the grass a sickly brown. My lovely white picket fence lay on its side, and shingles from my roof littered the ground like fallen leaves. Inside, slimy mud covered the floors, and water from the storm surge had tossed all my furniture upside down. The walls were caked black with mildew. Practically everything I owned was ruined. How could I ever come back from this? How could anyone? (…)

So many people needed help, and help was spread thin. “Lord”, I prayed, “I need some divine intervention here.” The next day, I pulled up to my house just as a man with a pickup truck was slowly passing by. He stopped, rolled down the window and leaned out. “Do you need any help?” he shouted. I laughed halfheartedly. “Help? I need an army,” I said. “I’m Brother Johnny from First Baptist Church of Pontchatoula.” He wrote down my name, address and number. “We’ll be in touch, Ma’am.” Then he drove off. But after two weeks I still hadn’t heard from him.

One Monday morning, lugging another bag of my ruined treasures to the curb, I stared down the street at the mountains of trash and destroyed homes. “So many people have lost so much,” I thought. Just then, my cell phone rang. Service was still spotty, but the voice on the other end was loud and clear. “Hello, it’s Brother Johnny. I’ve got some people who want to volunteer to help you. They’ll be calling you.” That was it. He hung up. Then the phone rang again. “Jo Dee? This is Jimmy Brown. I’m from the Pleasant Hill Baptist Church in Rives, Tennessee. We need to know what you need, exactly.” Where to begin? I told him about the mildewed floors, the torn up roof. “Don’t worry, Ma’am. We’ll be there. See you next Tuesday morning.” (…)

Nineteen people had traveled all the way from Tennessee just to help little old me. They spent three days cleaning the rot and grime and putting on my new roof. Two weeks after they left, about 40 more, from an association of 45 churches, came to finish the job! They ripped out and replaced the flooring, repainted the house, put in new shelves and cabinets, installed a stove and a water heater. By the time they were done, the house looked better than ever!

B. First Reading (Gn 16:1-12, 15-16): “Hagar bore Abraham a son and he called him Ishmael.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 16:1-12, 15-16) is a colorful account of the birth of Ishmael, Abraham’s progeny. Abraham’s barren wife Sarah takes the initiative to remedy the lack of descendants to insure the clan’s life-line. Following the ancient world custom and legal code, she proposes to her husband to impregnate her Egyptian maid Hagar. The offspring will be considered her legal child. Hagar is expected to humbly grant this right to her mistress, but instead she assumes an arrogant attitude of superiority over Sarah. This is understandable since childbearing is the most important marker of a woman’s status in that ancient culture. Likewise, it is understandable and perfectly legitimate for Sarah to insist that Abraham vindicate her. Following the law, Abraham returns Hagar to Sarah’s control. Sarah deals with her so severely that Hagar runs away from her.

The Lord’s messenger appears to Hagar by a spring in the wilderness and extends to her God’s promise to make of her son Ishmael, Abraham’s descendant, a great nation. God’s promise to Abraham of progeny and posterity slowly unfolds. The divine plan for Abraham as “father of nations” will be partly fulfilled through his son Ishmael. But first Hagar must return home and humbly submit to her mistress Sarah.

From Ishmael’s descendants the Arabs came forth: Islam, the third great world religion that has its origin from Abraham, and is the fruit of God’s promise of progeny and posterity to him. Against this backdrop of the common origin of Islam, Judaism, and Christianity from Abraham, we are called to live in greater unity and brotherhood with one another. Jews, Christians, and Muslims alike – we are all part of the fulfillment of God’s promise. We all originate from Abraham, our father in faith.

The following story illustrates what it means when the spirit of brotherhood reigns among us (cf. Patricia Lorenz, “Ali and the Angel” in Chicken Soup for the Soul, Cos Cob: CSS, 2008, p. 255-257).

A few days after Thanksgiving, the pastor of a small church in South Milwaukee, Wisconsin, was shopping at a large mall north of Milwaukee. He wandered into a temporary store set up just for the holiday season, which contained one-of-a-kind statues and sculptures purchased from museums all over the world. Most of the stunning brass and bronze statues were life size. Some were over eight feet tall.

As Pastor Ron wandered down the first aisle, he looked at the prices, thousands of dollars for each. He wondered who could possibly afford to put one of those statues in their home. Certainly no one from my small church, he mused. I doubt if there’s a house in South Milwaukee big enough to do justice to one of those enormous statues.

Pastor Ron wandered up another aisle when he saw it. The angel. An incredible angel … approximately four feet tall, cast bronze, with a six-foot wing span and the most beautiful face the pastor had ever seen. Thinking about the memorial/hospitality room he was dreaming about for the back of his church, he stepped forward and turned over the price tag. He gasped when he saw $7,000 in neat black letters. “Whew! Too steep for our church”, Pastor Ron muttered. His church only had about eight hundred families, mostly blue-collar workers struggling from paycheck to paycheck.

Just then a tall, striking gentleman who seemed to be of Middle Eastern descent walked up. “May I be of help? The angel, she is beautiful, yes?” “Oh, without a doubt. The most beautiful angel I’ve ever seen.” Pastor Ron said wistfully. “But unfortunately I need to look at something smaller.” He followed the dark-haired man to the rear of the store where he pointed out another angel, this one only eighteen inches tall. “No, this is too small”, Pastor Ron said. Even the little angel was beyond the price range for his church. “We want to build a memorial”, Pastor Ron began, “but we don’t have much money to …” He stopped talking when he realized the salesman was no doubt of a different faith and perhaps wouldn’t understand.

Pastor Ron followed the man up the aisle toward the front of the store where the first angel, the most beautiful one, stood with arms outstretched. Once more Pastor Ron paused to admire the delicate beauty of the sculpture and the peace radiating from the angel’s face. He took a deep breath and started to thank the man for his time, when the salesman spoke, “Tell me again. What is it you need the angel for?” “Our church. I’m the pastor of a small church in South Milwaukee. We want to build a memorial, a sort of hospitality room in the back of church. A place to celebrate the living as well. We’ll have a bulletin board for photos of weddings, baptisms, confirmations … and I, well, I’ve been hoping to find an angel to preside over this place of prayer and hospitality.”

“ I see”, said the tall, serious man as he pulled a calculator out of his pocket. “My name is Ali”, he said, “I am the owner and manager. We travel all over the country with these exquisite museum pieces.” Ali punched numbers on his calculator. Then he cleared the total and started over. Pastor Ron felt his shoulders sink as he thought to himself, “Even if he gives us a discount of twenty, thirty, or even fifty percent, we still can’t afford this angel. What am I doing here in a place where original, one-of-a-kind pieces of artwork are on display?” He began to feel uncomfortable, wishing he’d passed by this store during his visit to the mall.

Finally, Ali finished fiddling with the calculator. “How does this look?” he said as he held the calculator in front of Pastor Ron’s eyes. “I will even deliver the angel to your church for you personally”, he said. Pastor Ron jerked back a bit when he saw the figure. “Sixteen hundred dollars! Are you sure? You do mean the large angel, this one, the one priced at seven thousand dollars?” “Yes. The artist signed this cast bronze angel. It is a museum masterpiece.” “But why?” It was all Pastor Ron could mutter. Ali spoke softly. “Because I, too, am a spiritual man. I am a Muslim. I would rather see this angel in a house of prayer than in someone’s home. All I ask is that on the day you put this angel in your church you ask your people to pray for Ali.”

On the day Ali and his father delivered the angel to the little church in South Milwaukee, Pastor Ron began to understand a little more about angels. He learned that not all angels are gilded with copper and bronze. Not all of them have wings and small delicate faces. Some of them are tall with dark hair and black mustaches. One of them is a Muslim named Ali.

1. Is our faith solidly built on the word of God? Is it efficacious and operative? How do we translate our faith into action?

2. What does the story of the birth of Ishmael tell us about God’s mysterious plan of salvation? Do we value the common origin that we – Christians – have with the Jews and the Muslims as progenies of the patriarch Abraham?

Loving Father, give us the wisdom of the Holy Spirit that we may make the right choices and be faithful to the kingdom values. Assist us to trust in the saving word of Jesus. May our faith be true and shown by our actions. When the rains of temptation fall and the floods of evil come, let us not yield to despair, but rather, increase our faith in Jesus. He is our refuge and stronghold, our rock of strength and true foundation, now and forever. Amen.

*** God our Father, marvelous are your ways. You made Ishmael, Abraham’s progeny, a great nation. Help us to value our common origin with them from patriarch Abraham, our father in faith, Help us to promote interreligious dialogue with the Jews and Muslims of today’s world. Teach us to cultivate the spirit of brotherhood among Christian, Jewish and Muslim believers. We love and serve you, our loving Creator God. We adore your saving plan and give you praise, now and forever. Amen.

“Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.” (Mt 7:21-29) //“You shall name him Ishmael for the Lord has heard you. God has answered you.” (Gn 16:11)

When life trials seem to submerge you, pray to God that he may strengthen your faith. Extend your helping hand and share the Word with those whose faith is wavering. // Pray for our Muslim brothers and sisters all over the world. Do whatever you can to promote interreligious dialogue.

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FRIDAY – TWELFTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Cleanses Lepers … He Is the Everlasting Covenant”

BIBLE READINGS Gn 17:1, 9-10, 15-22 // Mt 8:1-4

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 8:1-4): “If you wish you can make me clean.”

It was in 1984 when I visited the PDDM Sisters in Nellore, India. To give me a chance to know more about the local Church, they brought me to the diocesan leper colony. It was situated in a vast isolated farmland, dotted with the humble dwellings of the lepers. The sun was scorching as we plodded through the dusty roads. The inhabitants were gentle and hospitable. We were conversing with them from a safe distance, when an elderly leper lady thoughtfully opened a battered umbrella and came near to shield me from the noonday sun. I politely rejected the proffered kindness, explaining that I needed the therapeutic warmth of the sun. I did not want to hurt her feelings, but I was afraid to stay close to a leper. I dreaded to touch a leper!

In today’s Gospel reading (Mt 8:1-4), we have a very beautiful picture of Christian compassion. In this narrative, Jesus offers a completely new and radical response to the unmitigated human suffering personified by a leper. Breaking down the barriers of hygiene and ritual purity, Jesus does the unimaginable. Responding with compassion to the leper’s faith invocation, “If you wish, you can make me clean”, Jesus stretches out his hand and touches him saying, “I do will it. Be made clean.” He touches the “untouchable” with his healing hand. He comforts the outcast with an authoritative word that brings wholeness. Indeed, the cleansing of the leper is a victorious messianic sign that the Kingdom of God has come.

One of the exigencies of Christian life is to bring the healing ministry of Jesus to the many “lepers” of today, especially the millions of victims of Hansen’s disease all over the world who, more than all others, fit the description “the poorest of the poor”. Mother Teresa of Calcutta dedicated her ministry of charity in a special way to these lepers, impelled by the slogan that was a rewording of the ancient taboo. “Touch a leper with your compassion.” Mother Teresa, moreover, spoke of the “leprosy of the Western world”, which is, the leprosy of loneliness. In her ministry to the lonely, the unwanted, the marginalized, the rejected, the AIDS victim, etc. she had given witness that with the love of Christ, there is healing for the leprosy of our modern times. Indeed, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, together with St. Francis of Assisi, Blessed Damien of Molokai, and many other Christian disciples, had shown that it is possible to respond to the Christian missionary imperative: “Cure the sick … cleanse the lepers!” (Mt 10:8) and that it is necessary to replicate the healing gesture of Christ: “Touch a leper with your compassion.”

B. First Reading (Gn 17:1, 9-10, 15-22): “Every male among you shall be circumcised; thus is my covenant with you. Sarah shall bear you a son.” Today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 17:1, 9-10, 15-22) presents an episode in the life of Abraham, now ninety-nine years old, thirteen years after the birth of Ishmael, whose mother is Sarah’s slave girl, Hagar. Revealing himself to Abraham as “El Shaddai” (“the God Almighty”), the Lord renews his covenant with him. The covenant is portrayed as a contract: God will give him many descendants; Abraham, on his part, is commanded to walk in the divine presence with blameless heart. What is unique in this encounter is God’s promise of an “everlasting covenant”. The covenant is not just with Abraham, but with all generations after him. It entails a new relationship: “El Shaddai”, who makes a covenant with Abraham, will be his God and the God of his descendants.

God’s covenant relationship with Abraham and his kin is physically signified through circumcision: every male is to be circumcised to indicate submission to the divine will. On his part, God will recognize the circumcised as a covenant partner. Abraham’s ninety-year-old wife Sarah plays an essential role in the fulfillment of the divine covenant promise. The barren and elderly Sarah, through divine intervention, will give birth to Abraham’s “son of the promise”, Isaac. Of him “El Shaddai” says: “I will maintain my covenant with him as an everlasting pact.” Although Abraham has suggested Ishmael to be the heir of the promise, God has an ineffable plan. The “everlasting covenant” will be fulfilled, not through Ishmael – who will likewise be blessed with numerous descendants – but through Isaac. And from Abraham’s son Isaac, a future descendant named Jesus Christ will fulfill, and bring to perfection, the “everlasting covenant”.

The beautiful Bible account of God’s predilection for Abraham and the latter’s total submission to his loving plan inspires us to live in the spirit of brotherhood with the people of today – no matter our racial and religious differences. The following story illustrates how wonderful it is to live in a spirit of compassion, harmony, and brotherhood (cf. Michael Jordan Segal, “A Beautiful Prayer” in Chicken Soup for the Soul, Cos Cob: CSS, 2008, p. 267-268).

My father is the most unselfish person I know – always thinking of others first before himself. Perhaps that is why he chose to be a rabbi, to serve God by helping other people.

Every Christmas, my father Rabbi Jack Segal volunteers at a hospital in Houston so Christian employees can spend Christmas with their loved ones. One particular Christmas he was working the telephone switchboard at the hospital, answering basic questions and transferring phone calls.

One of the calls he received was from a woman, obviously upset. “Sir, I understand my nephew was in a terrible car accident this morning. Please tell me how he is.” After the woman gave my father the boy’s name, he checked the computer and said, according to the protocol at that time, “Your nephew is listed in critical condition. I’m truly sorry. I hope he’ll get better.”

As soon as my father said “critical”, the woman immediately began to sob and she screamed, “Oh, my God! What should I do? What should I do? Hearing those words, my father softly stated, “Prayer might be helpful at this time.” The woman quickly replied, “Yes – oh, yes. But it’s been ten years since I’ve been to church and I’ve forgotten how to pray”, then asked, “Sir, do you know how to pray? Could you say a prayer for me while I listen on the phone?”

My father quickly answered, “Of course”, and began saying the ancient prayer for healing in Hebrew, the Mee Shebayroch. He concluded, “Amen”. “Thank you, thank you so much”, the woman on the phone replied. “However”, she went on, “I truly appreciate your prayer, but I have one major problem. I did not understand the prayer, since I do not speak Spanish.

My father inwardly chuckled and said, “Ma’am, that was not Spanish. I’m a rabbi, and that prayer was in Hebrew.” The woman sighed heavily in relief. “Hebrew? That’s great. That’s God’s language. Now he won’t need a translator!”

1. How do we react to people physically and spiritually afflicted with leprosy? Do we recognize the leprous elements in our modern society who bear the detestable sores of isolation and rejection, e.g. the poor and destitute, the homeless, the unattractive, the AIDS victims, etc.? Do we come to their aid?

2. How does the person of patriarch Abraham inspire us? Do we imitate his total and loving response to God and his promise of an “everlasting covenant”?

Lord Jesus, if you will, you can make me clean. Touch me; heal me. Cleanse me from the “leprosy of sin”. Free me from the sores of rejection and isolation. You are the wounded healer and the bearer of new life by your passion and death on the cross and by the power of your resurrection. You live, forever and ever. Amen.

*** O loving Lord, you are our “El Shaddai”, the “Almighty God”. We thank you for the gift of the “eternal covenant” you established with Abraham, our father in faith. Above all, we thank you for your Son Jesus Christ, Abraham’s illustrious descendant, who brought to perfection this covenant by pouring out his sacrificial blood on the tree of life. Pour upon us the blessings of the “everlasting covenant” and help us share them with the peoples of all nations. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“ He touched him.” (Mk 1:41) //“You must keep my covenant throughout the ages.” (Gn 17:9)

Pray for the victims of Hansen’s disease all over the world and all caregivers who work to alleviate their pain and suffering. Through moral, spiritual and material support, contribute to their healing and restoration. // Pray for the Jewish people that they may continue to grow in the love of God and in faithfulness to the covenant. Do what you can to promote the unity of the peoples of the earth.

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SATURDAY – TWELFTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Heals the Centurion’s Servant … He Is Our Sacred Host”

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO A. Gospel Reading (Mt 8:5-17): “Many will come from east to west and will recline with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”

This is a true story. A small Jewish boy realized that his teenage nanny, a Catholic, wishes him well. She even accompanies him to the synagogue when his daddy is not around. There she would encourage him to get into the serious business of praying. One day his dear nanny became seriously ill. She was in the hospital dying of pneumonia. The boy requested his dad to accompany him to her parish church so that he could pray there for her healing. The Jewish dad shook his finger at him, but finally relented. They went to the Catholic parish church. The boy knelt in a pew and poured out his heart to God in prayer. The beloved nanny recovered. She continued to serve at that Jewish household for many, many years.

The reading (Mt 8:5-17) depicts one of the most lovable figures in the Gospel: the Roman centurion who approached Jesus saying, “Lord, my servant is lying home paralyzed, suffering dreadfully.” He is a person of immense compassion for he pleaded for a suffering servant. He is mighty in military power but humble and gentle of heart. He is a foreigner, but sympathetic to the Jews. He is respectful of the Jewish culture for he does not wish Jesus to be defiled by going into his house – the house of a Gentile. Great is his faith in Jesus’ healing power for he humbly said to Jesus: “Lord, I am not worthy to have you under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed.” Jesus expressed surprise and delight at his request. He healed his suffering servant and praised his great faith. The Lord Jesus reminds us that faith – expressed in goodness, compassion and humility - entitles us to share in the promises God made to the patriarchs.

B. First Reading (Gn 18:1-15): “Is anything too marvelous for the Lord to do? I will surely return to you and Sarah will then have a son.”

Sr. Mary Jesusa and I were companions in the novitiate. After first profession we were assigned to the vocation ministry. It was our duty to follow up young ladies who showed interest in religious life and our Congregation. One damp, rainy day we boarded a bus and headed for Gumaca, a Philippine town on the Pacific coast, to interview an applicant who was residing there. The bus had already gone a considerable distance when the bus conductor started to collect the passengers’ fare and give them their tickets. I was shocked to know that Sr. Mary Jesusa did not bring sufficient money to pay for the trip. She emptied her wallet, but the fare was still lacking four pesos. The bus conductor kindly let go of the insufficient fare and allowed us to travel to our destination. Without even a cent, we arrived in Gumaca at about 2:00 P.M., after a seven-hour trip. The scenery was breathtaking. The coastal town of Gumaca, bordered by the immense Pacific Ocean and dotted with plantations of tall, fruit laden coconut trees, was a veritable tropical paradise.

We sought hospitality from the parish priest who unhesitatingly offered us a nourishing meal. He also requested lodging for us at the convent of the Sisters running the parochial school. After meeting and interviewing the applicant, we attended the Bible Study that the priest was conducting in his parish, participated mostly by low-income housewives. Sr. Mary Jesusa and I were glad to break the Bread of the Word with them. We shared our faith experience as well as our “adventure” that day. Some of them were deeply touched by what we shared. We thanked the priest and the parish community for their hospitality. After the Mass the following day, the women who were with us at the Bible Study bid us goodbye. Many of them handed us small amounts of money to help pay for our return trip. A poor widow, whose son was in jail, insisted that we should take her contribution. We were greatly touched by the generosity and sacrifice of that hospitable community. They had shown receptivity not only to the Word of God, but also hospitality to those in need of help. Indeed, their charitable action was based on listening and responding to the life-giving Word they had heard.

The Old Testament reading (Gen 18:1-15) speaks of the exquisite hospitality of patriarch Abraham and the warmth and kindness that a nomadic world could give to their guests. The Lord with his two companions appears to Abraham at Mamre as he sits in the entrance of his tent, while the day is growing hot. Abraham offers to wash the feet of his three guests and refresh them. His household prepares a luscious fare of food and drink for the mysterious guests. Abraham’s hospitality to the “three men” by the oak of Mamre manifests a deeper and more astounding “hospitality” – his receptivity and obedience to the Word of the Lord who has commanded him to leave behind his country, relatives and father’s home and set out for an unknown land, promising to make of him a great nation (cf. Gn 12:2). In the context of the feast offered by the hospitable Abraham, God intends to fulfill his promise. To Abraham who waits on them at table the Lord says, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah will then have a son” (Gen 18:10a). Indeed, Abraham’s hospitality to Yahweh and his faithful acceptance of his Word make possible the fulfillment of the divine promise and the covenant plan to make him a great nation.

1. Do I manifest the same faith, compassion and virtues as the Roman centurion who cares for a suffering servant?

2. Do we imitate Abraham’s hospitality and obedient stance to the divine word? Are we hospitable to the poor and the needy strangers?

Jesus Master, we thank you for the sterling character of the Roman centurion. He is a special model of compassion, goodness, humility and faith in you. With him, we cry out to you: “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word, and my soul shall be healed.” We give you glory and praise, now and forever. Amen.

*** O almighty God, marvelous is your love! You condescend to come to us. You fill us with hope and abundant blessings. Like the hospitable patriarch Abraham, we open our hearts to you. Let us rejoice in your presence, now and forever. Amen.

“Lord, I am not worthy to have you under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed.” (Mt 8:8) //“Is anything too marvelous for the Lord to do?” (Gn 18:14)

Show compassion, respect and caring love for the people around you, especially the subordinate, and uphold their dignity. // Be hospitable to the persons around you, especially those who have been rejected and feel unloved and unwelcome. To help us delve more deeply into our vocation to be hospitable to the Word of God, make an effort to spend some moments of quiet prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 58) ORDINARY SEASON: WEEK 13 MONDAY: THIRTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Invites Us to Follow Him Unconditionally … He Is our Intercessor”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 8:18-22): “Follow me.” (Gospel Reflection by Sr. Mary Gemma Victorino, PDDM)

Jesus' invitation is not a sweet and gentle word; his is a strong challenge: "Foxes have dens, birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head." To another who also wanted to follow him, but set the condition of first "burying his father and mother", he gave an uncompromising reply - "Follow me, and let the dead bury their dead."

What does he want to say here? There is nothing more important than following him and announcing his gospel. Such following and preaching asks unconditional detachment, clarity of priorities, total trust and utmost generosity.

I experienced this truth early in life. A month after I graduated from college, the persistent call from the Lord Jesus to follow him in consecrated religious life came back to me. When I asked permission from my elderly father to attend the discernment retreat for young ladies contemplating the religious life, he grudgingly gave me permission, coupled with an ultimatum: "Okay, you may go and stay over the weekend but if you don't return consider me dead."

I didn't return home after the retreat. Where did I get the strength to disobey my father and face the pain of detachment? Looking back after all these years, I think it is love for the Master and his Word plus the faith and conviction that his Word carries power and makes things happen.

His powerful command “Follow me” gave me the strength to get out of my comfort zone and put my most important relationships in their proper place. Nothing is more important than finding out what is God's will for me, the reason why I have been created in the first place. In being an obedient disciple, that is, a follower of Jesus, I have brought home an important message as well to my beloved father. In fact, after we had reconciled, he confessed and proclaimed, "I think I now understand your mission: when I see you, I remember God."

B. First Reading (Gn 18:16-33): “Will you sweep away the innocent with the guilty?”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 18:16-22) depicts Abraham in his compassionate role as an intercessor. The Lord has chosen Abraham to be a great and mighty nation and as an instrument of blessing to the nations. Moreover, God has singled him out that he may direct his descendants to do what is right and just. The Lord God will fulfill his covenant promise if they follow in his way. Against this backdrop of God’s plan for a just nation through Abraham, the wickedness of Sodom and Gomorrah seems abhorrent and deserves divine retribution. Abraham, however, dialogues with a just and merciful God and presents himself as an intercessor.

The Benedictine scholar Adrian Nocent comments: “Nothing could better show that prayer is a bold dialogue with God than this passage from the Book of Genesis, in which we see Abraham speaking with the Lord and almost straining the limits of respect in an effort to catch God, as it were, in the snare of his own goodness and his own sense of justice. The whole dialogue should be read in its entirety, for in it we see the Lord being pushed to the extreme mercy. The style and manner of proceeding are truly Semitic. The appeal to God’s honor and reputation for justice might seem to us highly disrespectful; as a matter of fact, however, it shows great confidence in God and demonstrates the friendly intimacy of God with Old Testament man. Abraham makes it clear that along with Moses, Samuel, and Jeremiah, he is one of the great spiritual men of all time, one of those whose spirit of trusting prayer is an example for every generation.”

Indeed, Abraham’s example of audacious confidence in the Lord God and his prayer of intercession prefigures the saving ministry of Jesus Christ. The following story, circulated on the Internet, makes us realize that Jesus Savior is our great intercessor and defender.

After living what I felt was a “decent” life, my time on earth came to an end. The first thing I remember is sitting on a bench in the waiting room of what I thought to be a courthouse. The doors opened, and I was instructed to come in and have a seat by the defense table. As I looked around, I saw the “prosecutor”. He was a villainous looking gent who snarled as he stared at me. He definitely was the most evil person I have ever seen. I sat down and looked to my left and there sat my “Attorney”, a kind and gentle looking man whose appearance seemed so familiar to me. I felt I knew him.

The corner door flew open and there appeared the Judge in full flowing robes. He commanded an awesome presence as he moved across the room. I couldn’t take my eyes off of him. As he took his seat behind the bench, he said, “Let us begin.”

The prosecutor rose and said, “My name is Satan, and I am here to show you why this man belongs to hell.” He proceeded to tell of lies that I told, and times when I cheated others. Satan told of other horrible perversions that were once in my life, and the more he spoke, the further down in my seat I sank. I was so embarrassed that I couldn’t look at anyone, even my own Attorney, as the Devil told of the sins that even I had completely forgotten about. As upset as I was at Satan for telling all these things about me, I was equally upset at my Attorney who sat there silently not offering any form of defense at all. I know I had been guilty of those things, but I had done some good in my life – couldn’t that at least equal out part of the harm I’d done? Satan finished with a fury and said, “This man belongs in hell. He is guilty of all that I have charged, and there is not a person who can prove otherwise.

When it was his turn, my attorney first asked if he might approach the bench. The Judge allowed this over the strong objection of Satan and beckoned him to come forward. As he got up and started walking, I was able to see him in his full splendor and majesty. I realized why he seemed so familiar. This was Jesus representing me, my Lord and my Savior. He stopped at the bench and softly said to the Judge. “Hi, Dad” and then he turned to address the court. “Satan was correct in saying that this man had sinned. I won’t deny any of these allegations. And, yes, the wage of sin is death, and this man deserves to be punished.”

Jesus took a deep breath and turned to his Father with outstretched arms and proclaimed, “However, I died on the cross so that this person might have eternal life, and he has accepted me as his Savior, so he is mine.” My Lord continued with, “His name is written in the book of life and no one can snatch him from me. Satan still does not understand yet. This man is not to be given justice but rather mercy.” As Jesus sat down, he quietly paused, looked at this Father and said, “There is nothing else that needs to be done. I’ve done it all.”

The Judge lifted his mighty hand and slammed the gavel down. The following words bellowed from his lips: “This man is free. The penalty for him has already been paid in full. Case dismissed.” As my Lord led me away, I could hear Satan ranting and raving, “I won’t give up. I will win the next one.”

I asked Jesus as he gave me instructions where to go next, “Have you ever lost a case?” Christ lovingly smiled and said, “Everyone that has come to me and asked me to represent them has received the same verdict as you, “PAID IN FULL”.

1. Do we respond fully to Jesus’ invitation “Follow me” and embrace the unconditional detachment it entails?

2. How does Abraham’s ministry of intercession impact us? Do we endeavor to dialogue with God intimately and trustingly as a true friend? How do we carry out our ministry of intercession in today’s world?

Jesus Lord, you call us to follow you, but the cost of discipleship is dear. Give us the grace to follow you unconditionally through all the detachment and hardships it entails. You are the center of our life and the font of our joy. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** All-powerful God, just and true are your ways! But you are also merciful and kind. We have rebelled against you and negated your love. We have greatly sinned and justly we merit the blow of your punishing hand. Have mercy on us through the merits of your Son’s saving passion. We are deeply sorry for our sins and offenses. Let the gift of your forgiveness be ours through the intercession of Jesus Christ, our Savior. He lives and reigns, forever and ever. Amen.

“Follow me, and let the dead bury their dead.” (Mt 8:22) //“Their sin is so grave.” (Gn 18:20)

Pray that many may respond in public service to God’s call offered in Jesus’ name. Promote vocations to priestly ministry and religious life in the Church today. // Pray that the Christian disciples of today may have the courage and strength to follow God’s commands and reject civil legislations that are against human nature and defy God’s benevolent will.

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TUESDAY: THIRTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Masters the Raging Sea … He Is God’s Judgment against Sin”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 8:23-27): “Jesus rebuked the winds and the sea and there was great calm.”

One warm, beautiful morning, my Sisters accompanied me to the pier in Manila where I boarded a ship to Cebu Island. After putting my things in the cabin, I went to the upper deck and had a great time watching the activity on the pier as the crew prepared for sailing. When the ship began to move, there was the soothing sound of parting waters. I also felt the cooling sensation of the sea breeze. And then I heard something fascinating – the amplified voice of a crew in devout prayer to the Lord God who masters the storms and the raging seas, asking for blessing and protection for all of us sea travelers. I felt so peaceful and secure in that sea voyage knowing that everything had been entrusted to God who has dominion over all – even violent storms and turbulent seas.

God, the Creator of the sea and its boundaries, is the Almighty One who directs the course of each individual’s life. Everything that happens in the universe is under the power of God’s dominion and control. God has sovereign mastery over the elements, particularly over the sea, which seems difficult to control. He also manifests his power, not only over nature, but above all, over the raging inner storms in our lives.

The Gospel picture of Jesus who sleeps through a raging storm (Mk 8:23-27) is perplexing and challenging. At times we panic when we are buffeted by the storms of life, and Jesus seems asleep and unaware. At times we despair because Jesus seems to pay no heed. But the Lord Jesus, the Son of God, is in control. He is fully concerned and involved in our fear and distress. As the Omnipotent One, he can pacify the tumults and “storms” of our daily life.

Harold Buetow comments: “Life presents all kinds of storms: disease, natural disasters, epidemics, and famines; and human anger, hatred, prejudice, injustice, betrayal, and selfishness. For Christians, acceptance of Jesus is not a guarantee that we will sail on trouble-free waters. To the contrary, Jesus invites us to travel on uncharted waters and to make for unfamiliar shores – and all this as darkness falls. The risk of faith demands a radical trust that, whatever our particular storm, Jesus is present; being conscious of his presence will give us a calm peace in all the storms of our life.”

The following personal account gives insight into what trust in the Lord and a miracle of faith mean (cf. Pam Kidd in Daily Guideposts 2010, p. 72).

We are on a bus driving through an off-road thicket, deep in a moonless landscape. There is no electricity for miles, and I can see nothing as I stare out the window into the darkness. The bus rumbles to a halt, and my husband David and I and our fellow passengers stumble toward a pontoon boat. Within minutes we’re anchored in the middle of a forbidding bay. “This is the strangest tourist attraction I’ve ever seen”, I whisper nervously to David.

Earlier, after we’d arrived on the Lake of Vieques for a special holiday, our taxi driver had said, “Put the Bioluminiscent Bay at the top of your agenda.” So here we are, listening to the pilot of the boat say, “To experience the miracle of the bay, you must jump into the water.”

No one moves.

This is ridiculous. The water is black as the night. We all wait.

Suddenly David stands up and jumps into the unknown. In the pool of darkness, his body takes on a bright glow. His every movement radiates a flowing blue- green light. Mesmerized, I jump in, and others follow. I wave my arms and make angel wings and then twirl and swirl in a trail of fairy dust. By now, everyone is laughing and splashing as our every move turns the night magical. The moment seems part fantasy, part science fiction as the energy of our bodies sets trillions of microorganisms aglow.

Later, back on the boat heading for the shore, I think of the fear that wrapped around us. There in a dark bay, magic was waiting – waiting for someone who believed enough to take a chance and jump in.

Father, take away my toe-first inclinations and fill me with a leaping faith.

B. First Reading (Gn 19:15-29): “The Lord God rained down sulphurous fire upon Sodom and Gomorrah.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 19:15-29) is about the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Lot welcomes into his home the two angels sent by God to investigate the outcry against the two cities. All the men of Sodom, both young and old, surround Lot’s house demanding him to bring out his guests for they want to have sex with them. The actions of the people and their perversity more than confirm the charges that God has heard against them. The angels strike the perverse men with blindness and help Lot and his family escape from the doomed city. The Lord rains burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah and destroys them and the whole valley. Lot’s wife looks back and is turned into a pillar of salt. The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah manifests not only God’s judgment upon sin but also the presence of divine mercy. Mindful of Abraham, God’s choice means blessing and protection not only for the patriarch, but for everyone associated with him. Thus God spares Lot and his family because of Abraham.

The Israelite tradition has always seen the sin of Sodom as total injustice and depravity towards God’s law. Unfortunately the situation of today’s society seems to “out-Sodom” Sodom itself. The following article gives an insight into this (cf. “Price for Choice Is Far Too High” in Alive! June 2013, p. 4).

Journalist Jillian Keenan, in Slate Magazine, made what she called the feminist case for polygamy, that it “shows women the respect we deserve. Here’s the thing: as women, we really can make our own choices” (see page 5). Her argument for polygamy, or any form of adulterous arrangement, boils down to one point: choice.

Choice has, in fact, become the dominant “liberal” argument in issue after issue in today’s society. No-fault divorce, for example, is based on the right of a spouse to walk out of marriage and family if he or she chooses. Indeed, virtually anything in the area of sexuality, from fornication to “gender identity”, from pornography to “gay marriage”, is now subject only to choice. Choice extends to the use of recreational drugs, how we dress going out, the school we send our children to, and so on.

The case for euthanasia argues that a person has a right to choose to end his or her own life. Given this background, the “pro-choice” argument for abortion carries great cultural power, even to the point where we can blind ourselves to the fact that it involves the killing of unborn children

Regard for choice now requires that we be spared, as far as possible, the harmful consequences of our behavior. And it includes a refusal on our part to “judge” what other people do. “It’s his/her choice” is enough to end almost any moral debate. (…)

Looking at it more closely, however, we see that choice is simply “my preference, what I want”. Pushed to the full expression, it is the ruthless self-assertion of the more or less disconnected individual. But putting it so bluntly exposes the fact that society is becoming less a community and more an arena where people compete fiercely to get what they want. This soon leads to rule by the powerful, involving emotional blackmail, bullying, various forms of manipulation, lying (now the rule in Irish politics?), even violence.

Uneasy at such a development we desperately resort to notions like right, equality, tolerance, pluralism, “compassion”. These give the impression of reason-based morality but are, to a large extent, ethical fictions with no substance, fig leaves to hide the crudity of our self-will. “It’s my right!” still sounds more acceptable to us than “I want it”, even if we know they amount to the same thing.

The only way out of this situation is a return to true objective morality, the recognition of good and evil ultimately grounded in the notion of divine creation. However, we may not want a “way out”. Being able to devote ourselves to our own desires, with the approval of society, is certainly attractive in the short term. That it leads to immense misery in broken homes, for example, and is paid for by the lives of countless unborn children, is unfortunate. But that’s just the price to be paid for choice. It remains to be seen, however, how long it will take us to realize that this price is far too high.

1. Do we feel abandoned and neglected by Jesus when the life-storms are violent and he seems to be “sleeping”? Do we panic? Or rather, do we believe in faith that God is in control? Do we place our trust in Jesus whom even wind and sea obey?

2. What lesson do we derive from the Bible account of Sodom and Gomorrah? How is divine mercy present in this situation? How is the story of Sodom and Gomorrah relevant for the people of today?

Loving God, your Son Jesus Christ slept through the raging sea. When life-threatening storms buffet us, help us to call on Jesus our Savior. He is the powerful Lord who masters the winds and the raging seas. May our faith be steadfast and strong. May we hold on to you and to Jesus as we journey through the turbulence and the violence of this world. You live and reign forever and ever. Amen.

*** God our Father, we praise and bless you for your loving mercy and forbearance. Forgive us our sins and perversion, our injustice and depravity, and our false “idols” and selfish choices. Save us from the punishment that our sins merit. Teach us to offer reparation for our wickedness. Lead us, loving Father, on the right path, on the narrow way that leads to life. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“ Jesus rebuked the wind and the sea, and there was a great calm.” (Mt 8:26b) //“He was mindful of Abraham.” (Gn 19:29)

Offer comfort and assistance to those whose faith is wavering and whose lives are deeply upset by trials and difficulties. // As civil authorities continue to legislate laws that are contrary to nature and the common good and negate God’s benevolent plan, pray that the Christian disciples today may live with integrity and follow the dictates of their moral conscience and that they may be willing to undergo the sacrifice and persecution that Christian commitment entails.

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WEDNESDAY: THIRTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Calls Us to Fight the Spiritual Warfare … He Is the Fulfillment of God’s Promise”

BIBLE READINGS Gn 21:5, 8-20a // Mt 8:28-34

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO A. Gospel Reading (Mt 8:28-34): “Have you come here to torment us before the appointed time?” (Gospel Reflection by Phil McCarty, St. Christopher Parish, San Jose, CA-USA)

In today’s Gospel (Mt 8:28-34) we read of Jesus casting out demons - demons so savage that no one dared to approach the demoniacs. I am struck by the fact that the demons immediately recognized Jesus as the Son of God, and they were threatened by Him. In the constant struggle of good versus evil, do we recognize that goodness is a threat to evil? Evil seeks to intimidate goodness, for evil cannot flourish when encountered by goodness.

We all encounter evil in one form or another in our daily lives, whether in news reports of violent acts carried out in our community and around the world, or on a more personal level as we are tempted and sin. As faithful Christians we are strengthened by our faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. We are called to be a force for good in the face of evil. When we encounter an unjust act, do we stand up for justice? Do we pray that those who choose a path of evil will turn to the Lord, repent, and be saved? Do we seek the sacrament of reconciliation to cast the demons of sin from our own lives?

The following excerpt from “Deliverance and Healing Ministry: Battle Between Good and Evil”, an article by Fr. Mike Lastiri (cf. Central California Catholic Life, February 2015, p. 11) gives deeper insight into the meaning of today’s Gospel episode (Mt 8:28-34).

Demonic possessions of human persons have long been a part of tradition in the Jewish, Christian and Islamic religions. These, the largest and greatest of the world’s religions, have long held that demons have the power to overtake the will of a person, provided they are open and willing. Exorcisms are ritual actions used by the different religious tradition to exorcise demons from a person. The Gospels have many stories, i.e. Gerasene Demoniac (Mark 5:1-20; Matthew 8:28-34; Luke 8:26-39). Jesus has command over the demons, which causes fear in them, and even fear among those not possessed. In our Catholic tradition, the Rite of Exorcism has been utilized for centuries to expel demons. Bishops have authorized special priests that were especially trained to do exorcisms.

Recently, the Vatican’s Sacred Congregation of Divine Worship revised the Rite of Exorcism for use in the modern day. While the rite itself has changed little since the earlier rite used before Vatican II, the rite allows the bishops to choose diocesan priests to celebrate the exorcisms. The rite demands before anyone is considered possessed by a demon, that a full psychological evaluation is completed, and that medical professionals have rendered that they can do nothing more. The bishop is to be fully aware of every step of the process before the actual exorcism is ever authorized. As the Chief Shepherd of the local Church, representing Christ the High Priest, the role of the diocesan bishop is paramount in these matters. (…)

Should we live in fear? No. Most of us, if living a good life, regularly receiving the Sacraments, having a deep love of Jesus, and being people of prayer and charity, have nothing to fear. Demons are terrified of faithful Christians, Jews and Muslims. If one ever wonders about such things, remember that power of the name of Jesus! He is the ultimate enemy of Satan and his armies. His name is feared and cannot be touched. The name of Mary, our Blessed Mother, is also feared by the evil one.

B. First Reading (Gn 21:5, 8-20): “No son of that slave is going to share the inheritance with my son Isaac.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 21:5, 8-20a) is about the birth of Isaac, the son born to Sarah in her old age in fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham, and the poignant departure of Hagar and Ishmael, the son Abraham fathered through the slave girl Hagar. This story underlines Abraham’s obedience to God who directs the course of salvation history by showing his favor and compassion both to the “child of promise” and the child of Hagar. Sarah’s jealous concern for her son Isaac leads to the demand that Abraham expel Hagar and Ishmael. The distraught Abraham gives in to her demands only when God tells him to do so and when God assures him that Ishmael would also be a great nation being also Abraham’s offspring. Responding to their cry of distress in the barren wilderness, God saves Hagar and Ishmael from death by sending his messenger of salvation. God is with Ishmael as he grows up. Ishmael marries an Egyptian woman and becomes the father of camel nomads (Ishmaelites) dwelling in the wilderness between Palestine and Egypt. However, God’s promise of a covenant people comes down through the line of Isaac.

The Jews, the Christians and the Muslims are all descendants of Abraham, our father in faith. Led by Pope Francis and together with the Israeli and Palestinian Presidents, the encounter of prayer for peace on June 8, 2014 at the Vatican Gardens was an important interreligious dialogue and a significant step on the path of unity and peace (cf. L’Osservatore Romano, June 13, 2014, p. 7-9).

From the Address by Shimon Peres, Israeli President: “On this moving occasion, brimming with hope and full of faith, let us all raise with you, Your Holiness, a call for peace between religions, between nations, between communities, and between fellow men and women. Let true peace become our legacy soon and swiftly.”

From the Address by Mahmoud Abbas, Palestinian President: “O Lord, bring comprehensive and just peace to our country and regions so that our people and the peoples of Middle East and the whole world would enjoy the fruit of peace, stability and coexistence. We want peace for us and for our neighbors. We seek prosperity and peace of mind for ourselves and for others alike. O Lord, answer our prayers and make successful our endeavors for you are most just, most merciful, Lord of the Worlds.”

From the Address of Pope Francis: “Lord, God of Abraham, God of the Prophets, God of Love, you created us and you call us to live as brothers and sisters. Give us the strength daily to be instruments of peace; enable us to see everyone who crosses our path as our brother or sister. Make us sensitive to the plea of our citizens who entreat us to turn our weapons of war into implements of peace, our trepidation into confident trust, and our quarreling into forgiveness.”

1. Are we aware of the constant struggle of good versus evil? Do we recognize that goodness is a threat to evil? In the spiritual warfare, which side are we on?

2. Do we mirror God’s compassionate stance for all? Do we promote interreligious dialogue and peace among nations?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (By Phil McCarty, St. Christopher Parish, San Jose, CA-USA)

Lord Jesus, grant us the wisdom and courage to face the evil we encounter, whether great or small, so that the goodness that comes from you will prevail. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“ The whole town came out to meet Jesus.” (Mt 8:34) // “God hears the boy’s cry.” (Gn 21:17).

Let us resolve to fight the evils and injustices in today’s society. By our life and example, let us promote interreligious dialogue and peace among nations.

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THURSDAY – THIRTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Has Power to Heal … He Is the Perfect Sacrifice”

BIBLE READINGS Gn 22:1b-19 // Mt 9:1-8

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 9:1-8): “They glorified God who had given such authority to men.” (By Mario Domino, St. Christopher Parish, San Jose, CA-USA)

Matthew’s description of the healing of the paralytic is not as elaborate as Mark’s (2:1-12). Matthew was more intent on proving Jesus’ messianic fulfillment: the establishment of a new kingdom. In order to do that, Jesus proves that he has power and authority.

Matthew shows that Jesus cures not only physical ills but, most significantly, spiritual ills. First, he tells the paralytic that his sins are forgiven him. Then, showing he can discern people’s thoughts, he rebukes the scribes by telling the paralytic to take up his stretcher and walk.

In a very convincing manner, he shows us that just as he has the authority to forgive sins, he also has the power to cure physical ills.

From this reading, we should take solace in the restorative powers of Jesus. He can indeed alleviate our physical ills but, more importantly, he does forgive our sins

Jesus Christ is the “holistic healer” par excellence. In imitation of Christ, his disciples endeavor to heal broken lives through “holistic” ways as illustrated in the following account (cf. Gladys Gonzales, M.M., “Healing Broken Lives” in Maryknoll, July/August 2014, p. 24-28).

Much of Tanzania’s landscape is surrounded by large boulders, which entrepreneurs are removing to construct buildings. The process is leaving huge holes, like craters, rendering the land unusable, causing massive erosion, and pushing out wildlife, flora and fauna. Added to that is the plight of the women who labor to break the stones to construct the buildings. (…)

Many of the women have lung problems. Many are completely blind or have impaired vision caused by the stone chips, particles and dust covering not only their faces but their whole bodies as they work day after day under a blazing sun. They have no hope of ever leaving this work until their bodies completely give out. I am working to help them holistically, that is, restoring their whole being, body and spirit, to health.

During my 18 years as a missioner in Tanzania I have discovered the importance of holistic healing working not only with women’s groups but also youth groups and children with HIV … I came to understand that the whole person is involved in any activity. That is what is meant by holistic. So I moved from formal teaching to informal teaching and the art of holistic healing. I believe that through nurturing, listening and responding to the deeper wisdom of our whole being, we can heal ourselves and the world. (…)

As a Maryknoll Sister, I am committed to carry on our charism: “to be an active participant in the mission of God: a mission of peace, healing, wholeness and love.”

B. First Reading (Gn 22:1b-19): “The sacrifice of Abraham, our father in faith.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 22:1b-19) is about the sacrifice of Abraham, our father in faith. In the Bible, testing proves the faith of God’s people. In today’s episode, God puts Abraham to the test by asking him to sacrifice Isaac, “his only son, whom he loves”. Isaac, the reward of Abraham’s inchoative faith, becomes the test of the same faith. What is demanded of Abraham is the surrender of that faith’s only basis: Isaac – his one thin line of hope on the divine promise. God’s “test” demands the complete surrender of his “beloved son”. Abraham’s obedient response does not withhold anything. He offers not only the sacrifice of his “beloved son”, but above all the sacrifice of his will. Abraham learns and relearns that only faith in God is the way to prosperity and posterity. Abraham passes the test with flying colors. God confirms anew the covenant promise of numerous descendants and his abundant blessings upon them. Abraham’s “sacrifice” prefigures the heavenly Father’s own perfect sacrifice of his only begotten Son Jesus Christ on the altar of the cross.

Abraham’s obedient faith response challenges us to trust God fully and to surrender totally to his mysterious but benevolent will. The following story illustrates what it means to surrender to the divine will in a spirit of sacrifice (cf. Teresa Anne Arries, “Place of Sacrifice” in Chicken Soup for the Christian Soul, ed. Jack Canfield, et. al, Deerfield Beach: Health Communications, Inc. 1997, p. 200-204)

(…) In the examining room, I had looked at Kim’s sweet face, distorted with pain. Her anguish wrung my heart. Holding my crying baby, I turned and faced the doctor. “If, if! That’s all I’ve been hearing for 16 months. Kim has had these painful shots every two weeks since she was born. You can see how she screams and cries. And all you can tell me is, ‘if’?”

Understanding the stress and fear behind my outburst, the doctor had not taken offense. “Her white blood cell count is the lowest it has ever been”, he said gently, holding the lab report in his hand. “The gamma globulin shots have helped her to survive her bout of illness, but her own body is not producing white blood cells in large enough quantities. I can’t give you a miracle. Kim will either start producing enough white cells or she won’t.” (…)

Tired and numb, I had returned home. Hearing Kim stir in her crib, I tiptoed in to check on her. In a deep sleep, she sobbed softly as she painfully moved her legs. The shots would bother her for several days. (…)

I went to the kitchen and began washing the breakfast dishes. The warm water felt wonderful on my cold hands as I twirled the soap suds, my mind beginning to wander. I was remembering when Kim became ill. “I wasn’t afraid, at first, I thought, as I spoke quietly in my mind to God. I knew you could heal. There is nothing you can’t do. If my baby was ill, you would heal her. Nothing more simple, right? Nothing more simple. I reached for the pan on the stove and started fiercely scrubbing it. Okay God, so what’s the deal? I know I believe and have faith in you. I have prayed. Our church has prayed. The elders have laid hands on Kim. We’ve studied your word, appropriated your promises and awaited your timing. What do you want? Why won’t you heal my baby? No answer came.

The dishes done, I dried my hands. In utter despondency, I went back to the living room. If my silent God had deserted me, where else was I to turn? My eyes fell on my Bible on the coffee table. A verse from Genesis 22 slipped into my mind, stunning me with its impact. I quickly opened my Bible to make sure that I had remembered it correctly. I had. The verse read, And he said, “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.”

I knew then, with absolute certainty that God was asking for Kim. My mind was suddenly clear as never before, and I realized that I had been placing my love for my little girl above my love for God. I had been asking for my will. My will. Not God’s. Not his sovereign choice. A clay pot had been railing at its maker, not falling in submission at his holy feet.

Realizing that I’d been manipulating God, I saw that I’d been doing all the “right things” so he would be required to answer my pleadings. I had never really considered the possibility that he might ask for Kimmie. Surely, sweet Jesus, you’re not asking this of me? Not my baby’s life. How easy for you to heal her. Just a touch. Oh, my Lord and my God, not this!

Even as I spoke, though, I knew the answer. Only total submission to God’s sovereign will would do. In my breaking heart I built an altar. Upon this altar I placed my only, beloved child as truly and sacrificially as Abraham had ever placed Isaac on the altar of Moriah. Oh, my Lord, I place my trust in thee. If you are going to take my baby, take her. I can’t fight you any longer. Forgive me, Lord, for my lack of trust and obedience. I don’t understand why you are asking for my little girl, but I do love and trust you. Help me in the time ahead.

A profound peace filled me. The battle was over. The victory won. I let go of all the anger and fear that I’d been living with for so many months. I would rest in the perfect will of God for my life.

Six weeks later, Kim and I were at Dr. Rubinstein’s office again. Kim had not been ill during all that time. She sat up bright and alert in my arms, radiant with health. “I’ve never seen anything like this”, said Dr. Rubinstein with a puzzled look in his face. “Kim’s white blood cell count is absolutely normal. This is impossible. It couldn’t have changed so quickly.”

But it had. And in my heart I knew why. As Isaac had been returned to Abraham, so had my little girl been given back to me. My Lord was the Great Physician and a Father to be trusted.

1. Do we turn to Jesus Lord and seek healing? Do we help our sick brothers and sisters to come to Jesus and be healed? Do we care for their spiritual-physical needs?

2. Are we willing to make the Abraham-like sacrifice in our life? Do we trust the loving God enough to surrender our will to him?

Loving Jesus, we turn to you and seek total healing. Forgive us our sins and heal our weary soul and broken spirit. Let our ailing bodies be restored to health, according to the Father’s compassionate will. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** (Cf. Prayer after the Second Reading – Easter Vigil) God and Father of all who believe in you, you promised Abraham that he would become the father of all nations, and through the death and resurrection of Christ you fulfill that promise: everywhere throughout the world you increase your chosen people. May we respond to your call by joyfully accepting your invitation to the new life of grace. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

“Your sins are forgiven … Rise and walk.” (Mt 9:5) //“Because you acted as you did in not withholding from me your beloved son, I will bless you abundantly.” (Gn 22:16)

Pray for a sick person and, if possible, assist that person to have access to the sacraments of reconciliation and the anointing of the sick. // Pray to God for the grace to be able to submit to his saving will. To help you in developing this obedient stance of faith, dedicate some precious moments of the day to meditative prayer.

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FRIDAY – THIRTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Comes for Our Healing … He Is Font of Consolation”

BIBLE READINGS Gn 23:1-4, 19; 24:1-8, 62-67 // Mt 9:9-13

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 9:9-13): “Those who are well do not need a physician. I desire mercy not sacrifice.” (Gospel Reflection by Rosemary Farrell, St. Christopher Parish, San Jose, CA-USA)

This short passage (Mt 9:9-13) contains the heart of the gospel message, the good news of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is LOVE. The calling of Matthew to discipleship is of great significance to us all. As a tax collector, Matthew belonged to a highly disreputable profession and would have been regarded as a social outcast by his fellow Jews. The prior calling by Jesus of the fishermen, Peter, Andrew, James and John would not have excited public interest, but Matthew was conspicuous because of his despised profession and because of the other outcasts who associated with him. However, all were called by Jesus in their failings and imperfections, whether these were highly visible and open to public scrutiny, as in the case of Matthew, or not; so too have we all been called in our imperfections, whether they have received public scrutiny, if we happen to be politicians or celebrities, or are known only to ourselves and to God. Do not be afraid, I am with you. I have called you each by name. Come and follow me, I will bring you home; I love you and you are mine. (David Haas)

This is the love of God, calling us just as we are, to be illumined in the light of His love; to be healed and transformed and to become His love to the world. Even if your sins are scarlet, they can become snow white; even if they are as wool dyed crimson, they can be white as fleece. (Isaiah 1:18)

While dining with Matthew and others who are deemed outcasts, Jesus overhears the skepticism of some of the Pharisees. He refers them to the scripture that says, “It is kindness that I want, not animal sacrifices” and tells them to go and find out what that means. Here, Jesus is referring to the words of the prophet Hosea: What I want from you is plain and clear: I want your constant love, not your animal sacrifices. I would rather have my people know me than burn offerings to me. (Hosea 6:6)

Hosea was not alone in uttering words like these; we hear them also from his contemporary, fellow prophets Isaiah, Amos, and Micah who completes his exhortation with the famous dictum: The Lord has told us what is good. What He requires of us is this: to do what is just, to show constant love, and to live in humble fellowship with our God. (Micah 6:8)

How do these words resonate with us today? Kindness, justice, humility and above all, love, we can certainly understand. We have each been called to know and love the God who is love, and to become His love for others; through this love, all the fruits of the Spirit will grow in us.

Hosea and the other prophets spoke out against animal sacrifice which was still practiced in the Temple in Jerusalem as atonement for sin in Jesus’ time and would continue until the Temple’s destruction in 70 AD. The Pharisees, who were critical of Jesus dining with tax collectors and sinners, would have zealously performed the Temple sacrifices, but in referencing Hosea Jesus tells them that external duties and observances are inferior to Knowledge of God and the love and compassion that emanates from that Knowledge. We may be tempted to dismiss the word “sacrifice”, in the prophetical writings that Jesus referred to, as something belonging to the distant past and not applicable to us today as long as we do not allow external religious observances to take precedence over compassion, kindness and mercy towards our brothers and sisters. Perhaps we should contemplate the suffering of animals in factory farms and the billions of God’s creatures who are still sacrificed each day, no longer as sin offerings but to provide us with food that we do not need; it is easy to survive and be healthy on foods from purely non-animal sources. Our task must be to widen the circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty. (Albert Einstein)

B. First Reading (Gn 23:1-4, 19: 24:1-8, 62-67): “In his love for Rebekah, Isaac found solace after the death of his mother Sarah.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 23:1-4, 19: 24:1-8, 62-67) helps us to see the ongoing spiritual journey of Abraham, our father in faith, and his humble collaboration in the fulfillment of the divine marvelous plan. When Sarah dies at the age of 157 years, Abraham buys a field from the Hittites that would serve as a burial place, not only for Sarah, but also for Abraham, Isaac, Rebekah, Leah and Jacob. For the first time Abraham actually owns a piece of the Promised Land. Abraham’s possession of a portion of the land stands as a pledge of the future possession of the land in its entirety.

Abraham’s last task now is to ensure that his son Isaac will have a spouse and thus promote the divine promise of numerous descendants for the patriarch. He entrusts a senior servant of his household with the task of finding a wife for Isaac from among his clan in northern Mesopotamia, and not from the people of Canaan with whom they live. He also charges the servant not to bring Isaac back by any means to the land from where the patriarch migrated. Abraham makes his servant swear by his genital organs, considered the transmitters of life, and thus adds greater binding force to the oath. The servant dutifully carries out his task, confident in the faith that he witnesses in Abraham.

The good and reliable servant thus places everything in God’s hand. At the well outside the city of his destination, the servant finds Rebekah, a beautiful young girl and still a virgin, the one designated by God to be Isaac’s wife. The servant recognizes Rebekah as God’s choice when she obliges to give him a drink from her jar and then she draws water from the well for his ten camels to drink. The servant is even more certain of God’s guidance when he discovers that Rebekah belongs to Abraham’s clan. After the customary negotiation with the family, the servant brings Rebekah, Abraham’s grandniece, to Canaan to become Isaac’s wife. In his love for Rebekah, Isaac finds solace after the death of his mother Sarah. Thus the progressing line of the covenant promise and its fulfillment moves on to a further stage of development.

The love of Isaac and Rebekah is a font of consolation. It prefigures the joy and comfort that spring forth from the love relationship between Christ and his Bride the Church. As Christian disciples we too must be a source of comfort and consolation for one another. The following story, circulated on the Internet, illustrates how love brings consolation.

The story goes that some time ago, a man punished his three-year-old daughter for wasting a roll of gold wrapping paper. Money was tight, and he became infuriated when the child tried to decorate a box to put under the Christmas tree.

Nevertheless, the little girl brought the gift to her father the next morning and said, “This is for you, Daddy.” He was embarrassed by his earlier overreaction, but his anger flared again when he found the box was empty. He yelled at her, “Don’t you know when you give someone a present, there’s supposed to be something inside it?”

The little girl looked up at him with tears in her eyes and said, “Oh, Daddy, it’s not empty. I blew kisses into the box. All for you, Daddy!” The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little girl and he begged for her forgiveness.

An accident took the life of the child only a short time later, and it is told that the man kept that gold box for many years, and whenever he was discouraged, he would take out an imaginary kiss and remember the love of the child who had put it there.

1. How does the call and response of the tax collector Matthew impinge on you? Do we put our trust in the Divine Physician who calls us to be healed and transformed and to become his love in the world?

2. How do the examples of Abraham and his dutiful servant inspire you in promoting the fulfillment of God’s saving plan? Do we value the value of marriage and family life? Do we value the Catholic teaching on marriage and family life?

O loving Jesus, Divine Physician, you did not come to call the righteous but sinners. You call us just as we are. Your healing love transforms us that we may become in turn your healing love to the world. We give you thanks and praise, now and forever. Amen.

*** O loving Lord, we thank you for guiding the life of Abraham, our father in faith. We thank you for your protective hands upon Isaac and all the other descendants of our beloved patriarch. We thank you for directing all human events toward the fulfillment of your covenant promise. Help us to be a vital part of salvation history and to be a means of comfort and consolation for others. We adore and praise you, now and forever. Amen.

“I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” (Mt 9:13) //“In his love for her, Isaac found solace.” (Gn 24:67)

Meditate on the graciousness of God’s call and of the ongoing response we need to give to him. Through your compassionate ways, let the healing love of Jesus be felt by the persons close to you. // Do something to console a family member, a friend, or anyone who is lonely or grieving. By word, example and deeds, promote the Catholic teaching on the sanctity of marriage and family life.

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SATURDAY – THIRTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Is the New Wine and Bridegroom … He Is from Jacob’s Line”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 9:14-17): “Can the wedding guests mourn a long as the bridegroom is with them?”

In the reading (Mt 9:14-17), John the Baptist’s disciples, probably prompted by the Pharisees, ask Jesus why they and the Pharisees fast, but his disciples do not. Jesus retorts with a rhetorical question: “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them?” In today’s Gospel, Jesus underlines a deeper truth that goes beyond the question of fasting. In the Bible, the marriage feast is a symbol of the kingdom of God. Jesus - the Bridegroom – invites us into the fullness of the kingdom, depicted as a marriage feast. As the Bridegroom of the Church, he brings in the radical newness of the reign of God. The radical newness is depicted in the image of “new wine” in fresh wineskins and of a “piece of unshrunken cloth” that will tear an old cloth if patched into it. Elements of Judaism that were either a temporary dispensation (e.g. the animal sacrifice) or a mere preparation for something better are surpassed by the Bridegroom Jesus Christ. He blesses us in a new way that shatters old categories and conventions. In his public ministry, Jesus did not require his disciples to fast the way the Pharisees and the disciples of John did. In the post-resurrection Church, “fasting”, with its many expressions, is still appropriate as long as it looks forward to the culmination of the kingdom. Fasting is done in the spirit of the Church-Bride waiting for Christ- Bridegroom’s return at the end time.

The radical newness of the kingdom and the “fasting” it entails can be perceived in the life of Mother Teresa of Calcutta (cf. Mother Teresa: Her Essential Wisdom, ed. Carol Kelly-Gangi, New York: Barnes and Noble, 2006, p. 97, 69, 64).

My sister and I used to read the same books. One day my sister read a book and passed it to me. As soon as I read two pages, I felt it would be a sin to read that book. Later I asked my sister whether she had read the book. She replied that she had and had found nothing wrong in it. There was no sin in my sister reading the book, but in conscience I could not read it. (…)

By our vow of chastity we renounce God’s natural gift to women to become mothers – for the greater gift – that of being virgins for Christ, of entering into a much more beautiful motherhood. (…)

I can’t bear being photographed but I make use of everything for the glory of God. When I allow a person to take a photograph, I tell Jesus to take one soul to heaven out of Purgatory.

B. First Reading (Gn 27:1-5, 15-29): “Jacob displaced his brother and usurped his blessing.”

We hear in today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 27:1-5, 15-29) about Isaiah’s blessing of Jacob. In the ancient world, deathbed blessings are believed to be particularly effective. A blessing or a curse, once spoken, has a life of its own and could not be recalled. The blessing that the old and blind Isaac gives to Jacob is irrevocable. The blessing, however, has been obtained through a scheme instigated by Rebekah to deprive Esau of his birthright. But the God who entered into a covenant relationship with Abraham is able to write salvation history even on crooked lines. Indeed, the Lord God cannot be bound by the conventional arrangement that gives preference to the firstborn. Jacob, despite his unworthiness and the odds against him, becomes the object of divine choice to perpetuate the saving plan. Indeed, the God of Abraham is the Lord of history.

Nonetheless, the effect of Jacob’s deceit is painful and shattering. The aggrieved older brother Esau bears a murderous grudge against Jacob. Rebekah is compelled to send away Jacob for his own safety to her brother Laban in Haran (North Mesopotamia). Esau, however, is not a totally innocent victim. Esau has brought this on himself by irresponsibly selling his birthright to his younger brother Jacob for a bowl of lentil soup and by his wanton intermarriage with Canaanites. Esau married the Hittite girls, Judith and Basemath, who made life miserable for Isaac and Rebecca. No wonder, Rebekah wants to secure Isaac’s blessing for Jacob and not for his twin Esau!

Today’s account helps us to consider the existence of family discord and squabbles that need healing, forgiveness and reconciliation. Each member needs to invest oneself in promoting the joy and goodness of the family spirit. The following story, circulate on the Internet, gives us an insight into this.

“Loving Family”

I ran into a stranger as he passed by. “Oh, excuse me please”, was my reply. He said, “Please excuse me too. I just wasn’t watching for you.” We were very polite, this stranger and I. We went on our way, and we said good-bye. But at home, a different story is told, how we treat our loved ones, young and old.

Later that day, cooking the evening meal, my son stood beside me, very still. When I turned, I nearly knocked him down. “Move out of the way”, I said with a frown.

He walked away, his little heart broken. I didn’t realize how harshly I’d spoken. While I lay awake in bed, God’s still small voice came to me and said,

“While dealing with a stranger, common courtesy you use, but the family you love, you seem to abuse. Go and look on the kitchen floor. You’ll find some flowers there by the door.

Those are flowers he brought for you. He picked them himself: pink, yellow and blue. He stood very quietly not to spoil the surprise. You never saw the tears that filled his little eyes.”

By this time, I felt very small. And now my tears began to fall. I quietly went and knelt by his bed. “Wake up, little one, wake up”, I said.

“Are these the flowers you picked for me?” He smiled, “I found ‘em, out by the tree. I picked ‘em because they’re pretty like you. I knew you’d like ‘em, especially the blue.”

I said, “Son, I’m sorry for the way I acted today. I shouldn’t have yelled at you that way.” He said, “Mom, that’s okay. I love you anyway.”

I said, “Son, I love you too, and I do like the flowers, especially the blue.”

1. Do I realize the radical newness of the kingdom of God that Jesus brings? How do I live out the radical newness of the kingdom?

2. Have we ever committed abuse, deceit, injustice and hurt to the people whom we love … to the people close to us? How do we feel about it? Do we try to rectify the harm we have done?

Jesus Lord, you are the Bridegroom of the Church. You call us to share in the feast of your kingdom. You offer us to savor the “new wine” in fresh wineskins. Teach us to practice true “fasting” on behalf of your kingdom. Help us to express in our life the beauty of the Gospel and the radical newness that your life brings. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Loving Father, you are kind and forgiving. We are deeply sorry for the hurt and injustice we have caused our family members and the people close to us. Grant us the gift of healing and reconciliation. Lead us on the right path and into the peace and joy of your kingdom. We bless and praise you for you are our gracious God, now and forever. Amen.

“Pour new wine into fresh new wineskins.” (Mt 9:17) // The Lord, your God, let things turn out well with me.” (Gn 27:20)

Examine the actions and choices in your life that are not “new wine” in new wineskins and ask the Lord for the grace to overcome them. With the strength of the Holy Spirit, carry out the “fasting” (e.g. from excessive use of digital media, etc.) that will benefit you spiritually and promote the kingdom of God. // Resolve to be more kind, gentle, patient and thoughtful to your family members and the people close to you.

MONDAY: FOURTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Is the Lord of Life … He Is the Stairway to Heaven of Jacob’s Dream”

BIBLE READINGS Gn 28:10-22a // Mt 9:18-26

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 9:18-26): “My daughter has just died, but come and she will live.”

Today’s Gospel (Mt 9:18-26) is a glorious celebration of life. It tells of the restoration of the fullness of life to a hemorrhaging woman and to a young dying girl. To both, Jesus brings life and brings it gladly. The woman healed of her bleeding and the little girl whom Jesus raised from the dead will die again. But because of Jesus’ benevolent actions on their behalf, their chances for eternal and unending life are enhanced. Their contact with Jesus is transforming and radically life-giving. In the same way, we are being challenged today to improve and enhance the quality of our own life and that of others. The Lord Jesus wants to give life and build a new world through us.

The following story testifies to the endeavors of Christian disciples of today to bring life to a death-dealing situation (cf. Deacon Darrell Smerz in “Missioner Tales” in Maryknoll, May-June 2012, p. 10).

A few years back, St. Mary’s Parish in Tomahawk, Wis., passed a resolution to adopt a sister parish. I contacted Father Leo Shea of Maryknoll and we were assigned a parish in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. A year later, our pastor and I visited that city, where Maryknoll Father David La Buda hosted us around many of the barrios. What a revelation! Of the many experiences, one stands out the most.

A 15-year old girl lay on a worn mattress on a dirt floor with one leg swollen three times the size of the other. The following day in the rain we placed her on a flat board in the uncovered back of a pickup truck to take her to the hospital 13 miles away. I held an umbrella over her head as we made the journey with her father. She was diagnosed with cancer and our parish paid for the amputation.

Months later the girl died, but she had remarked that the months after the amputation had given her great relief from pain. I’ll never forget that journey in the rain in the back of the open truck with the open umbrella over our heads.

B. First Reading (Gn 28:10-22a): “Jacob had a dream: a stairway rested on the ground and God’s messengers were going up and down on it and the Lord was speaking.”

In today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 28:10-22a), we hear of Jacob’s fascinating dream. Departing from his father Isaac’s house at Beersheba to seek a wife from the ancestral clan and, impelled by a more urgent reason – to flee from his twin brother’s wrath, Jacob journeys to Haran. Jacob stops for the night at a holy place and it is there that he has a dream: a stairway reaching from earth to heaven, with angels going up and coming down by it. This is the first major theophany, or divine revelation, in Jacob’s life. In this dream, the Lord reveals himself to Jacob as the God of Abraham and Isaac and extends to him the promises of land and posterity made to the patriarch Abraham. The Lord God assures Jacob of his presence and protection: “Know that I am with you. I will protect you wherever you go.” Jacob is deeply touched by this religious experience and divine revelation. He takes the stone that he has slept upon, sets it up as a memorial stone and, pouring olive oil upon it, he consecrates the place to God. He names the place “Bethel” and makes a vow to God.

Jacob’s dream is a revelation of his destiny. It gives us a glimpse of what lies ahead for him. In the same way, the people of our times are also gifted with “dreams”. Martin Luther’s “dream” has a social-mystical quality that is deeply inspiring and transforming. The following is an excerpt from the speech, “I Have a Dream”, given by civil rights worker, Martin Luther King on August 28, 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C.

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends. And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of the creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.”

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of “interposition” and “nullification” – one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; “and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together”.

This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with.

With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

1. Do we trust in Jesus, the Lord of life? What do we do to promote life in death-dealing situations?

2. Like Jacob’s experience of the “stairway to heaven”, did we ever have such a profound religious experience? How does is affect and/or transform us?

Dear Jesus, you are the Lord of Life. Animated by the Holy Spirit, we choose to tread the path of love and to affirm the power of life. Help us to promote life in death-dealing situations and to respond fully to your unending love. With you we celebrate the triumph of life and love. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** All-powerful God, you revealed yourself to Jacob as the God of Abraham and Isaac and with your promise of land and posterity. In a dream at Bethel, you assured him of your abiding presence and protection. Grant us also a mystical experience and the capacity “to dream” about our glorious destiny for we are your children in Jesus Christ, the “abode of God” and the “stairway to heaven”. We bless and adore you. We glorify and give you thanks, now and forever. Amen.

“The woman was cured … the little girl arose.” (Mt 9:22, 25) // “This is nothing else but an abode of God and that is the gateway to heaven.” (Gn 28:17)

By your charitable actions and care for the sick and suffering, let the healing power of Jesus prevail over death-dealing situations. // Spend some quiet moments before the Blessed Sacrament and allow God to let you experience Jacob’s dream and have a vision of the “stairway to heaven”.

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TUESDAY: FOURTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Calls Us to Work in God’s Harvest … He Teaches Us How to Wage a Battle of Faith”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 9:32-38): “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few.”

Today’s Gospel episode (Mt 9:32-38) presents Jesus as having power to exorcise demons and to heal speechlessness. The people respond to his miraculous intervention with amazement, but the unbelieving Pharisees claim that Jesus works by demonic power. It is unfortunate that the Pharisees, who have witnessed the miracles, have closed their hearts to Jesus as the one sent by God. In spite of their resistance and defiance, Jesus continues to fulfill his saving mission in word and deed. He teaches in the synagogue, preaches the Good News about the Kingdom, and heals people of every kind of disease and sickness.

Jesus’ compassion is full of concern for the negligence and harassment to which the people are subject. The lowly ones are troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd. They are an “abundant harvest” that needs to be gathered and brought into the Father’s kingdom. They need the care of good shepherds and the service of harvest workers. God is the ultimate Shepherd and Harvest Master, but he needs the collaboration of those who accept Jesus’ invitation to discipleship. Like Jesus, his followers need to shepherd the sheep and to help gather the Father’s “harvest”. Indeed, Christian discipleship entails pastoral activity and service.

The following vocation story of Sr. Mary Tiziana Dal Masetto, PDDM, gives insight into a disciple’s response to God’s call to work in his harvest and to care for his sheep.

My vocation came at an early time in my life. It dawned on me at my First Communion at age seven. I also asked myself, "What can I do to help Jesus?"

The question "What can I do for Jesus?" kept blossoming as my teenage life developed. Everything took place gradually and gently. I experienced wanting to spend time with Jesus. I was blessed with a grandmother who attended Mass every day; I would join her walking to the church. During winter, it was dark, and at times it was snowing. During summer, the light of the sun gave us a delightful and enjoyable time.

My desire to stay with Jesus grew further when my grandmother joined a prayer group whose members took turns praying the Rosary. The members of the group also had turns at night, so when my grandmother got sick, she asked me to take her turn. By this time, I already had my Confirmation at age eight. I continued to participate in the daily Holy Mass, going by bicycle and then keeping my turn to pray at night. I was so faithful to kneel on the bed and gaze at the picture of Jesus on the wall above my bed.

One day, when I was age twelve, our pastor read the Gospel of Matthew and explained how this tax collector was very prompt and generous in leaving behind all his business to follow Jesus. This story kept my mind and my heart occupied in imagining how this could have happened.

My turn for the night vigil came again. There I was at 1:00am when, while saying the Rosary, I stopped, and the whole scene of Matthew and Jesus came before me. I could hear the sweet voice of Jesus enlightening Matthew about what is important in life and how urgent it was for him to leave everything behind and to follow Him in love.

I remember feeling my heart throbbing. From kneeling on my bed, I found myself standing on it, as if Jesus were there in front of me, beckoning. I wanted to follow Him so much. Entranced, I walked towards the door of my room until I realized I was really in my room and had to go to bed. This experience was so sweet and attractive, and since I was already thinking about my life and my future, I felt that this was the answer to who I would be in life: a close follower of Jesus. This experience never left me even up until now.

Later, when I was fourteen years old, as my mother groomed me into becoming a young lady, I was already praying in the secret of my heart for a concrete way to enable me to follow Jesus more closely, more devoutly, and more exclusively. My grandmother had many books on the saints. I became a voracious reader and was figuring out the lives of the saints – what part of each life was feasible for me to imitate. I also had the invitation to participate in the social life, like the celebration of marriages with all its day-long banquets, dancing, and music. I remember being familiar with father's polkas, tangos, mazurkas, and waltzes, and how enjoyable the time was. This social life was part of my life, and often this kind of celebration was done in our home, where relatives, neighbors, and friends gathered for singing, playing, dancing, talking, and eating. I also experienced the gaze of a nice young man admiring me, and I felt very proud and happy about it. But the gaze of Jesus upon Matthew on that night when I was twelve kept coming back and attracting me, showing me how I could be united with Him in doing good around the world.

In the 50s, Italy experienced a strong wave of emigration to different parts of the world, and I was envisioning myself with Jesus and doing good everywhere. There were talks about Australia, Argentina, USA, Germany, France, and many other places. These were familiar in my town; even my father considered leaving Italy. I just wanted to go with Jesus everywhere in the world to do good. So I had this great desire, this opening to follow Jesus as a missionary. That night, when the story of Matthew came alive for me for the first time, was the foundational experience of the Call of God for me.

At fourteen, I left home with the intention of studying and preparing myself to become totally consecrated to God. In my youthful ardor, I did not hesitate to express to Mother Mary Lucia my missionary dream, and with pleasure she said, "I will keep this in mind." In fact, throughout my formative years, she provided me opportunities for studies, travels, and the most varied experiences. My heart and mind were shaped into that missionary spirit of St. Paul. And at the age of twenty-seven, Mother Lucia sent me first to Brazil for the work of formation of young women aspiring for Religious Life. Then I was sent to the Philippines and to many other countries until I reached the USA, where I find myself still with that passion burning within me to help "Jesus Master" in drawing to Him new Pious Disciples who will adore, celebrate, and serve Him in the Eucharistic, Priestly, and Liturgical Ministries in the contemplative style of Divine Beauty.

And what I now enjoy in my heart is this prayer: "One thing I ask of the Lord, all the days of my life: that I may gaze on the loveliness of the Lord and contemplate His temple." – Psalm 27:4

B. First Reading (Gn 32:23-33): “You shall be spoken of as Israel because you have contended with God and have prevailed.”

Today’s reading (Gn 32:23-33) is one of the most powerful scenes in the Old Testament. Jacob journeys back from Haran, where he has stayed twenty years in the service of his uncle Laban, toward his home in Canaan. Jacob takes his wives, Rachel and Leah, the two maidservants Bilhad and Zilpah, and his eleven children, together with all the possessions he has acquired in Mesopotamia. After sending them across the Jabbok River, he stays behind alone. A mysterious visitor wrestles with him throughout the night. Jacob’s struggle with the spiritual being represents one’s “battle of faith”. The test in the darkest night that Jacob undergoes signals the beginning of a new stage in his life. He receives a new name. He will no longer be called “Jacob” but “Israel” because he has struggled with God and men, and has won. The blessing he receives will give new direction to his life. Jacob is profoundly altered by his spiritual experience of the “dark night” battle. He is transformed into a person of honor and integrity, which is befitting for one who is destined to be the father of the Chosen People.

Jesus, who is prefigured by Jacob, undergoes the ultimate spiritual battle on the cross and is victorious. Jesus Christ wages the battle of faith perseveringly through the darkest hours upon the cross and thus attains the light of glory. Likewise, from our struggles with tribulations and sufferings, we emerge with integrity. We become “wounded healers”, like Jacob who goes limping to meet his estranged brother Esau in an embrace of reconciliation and like Jesus Savior, made victorious through his paschal sacrifice on the cross.

The following story, “No Hopeless Situations” narrated by Steve Goodier and circulated on the Internet, illustrates how to struggle through seemingly hopeless situations and emerge victorious.

Some 40 years ago, when he was only 11 years old, Morgan Rowe lost his left arm and much use of the right arm. It happened when he fell off a tractor at his father’s fence company in Valdosta, Georgia, and was dragged beneath the machine. Morgan’s left arm was destroyed and his right arm mangled.

Young Morgan was released from the hospital after three and a half months. The first thing he set out to do was to help pay the bills - $30,000 worth. That was a lot of money back then as it is now. For a boy of 11 to accomplish such a task, the situation seemed hopeless.

For five years Morgan scoured roadsides picking up cans and bottles. He collected thousands of cans and sold newspapers. He never gave up hope. First, he paid off the $455 ambulance bill. Then he put $2,500 down on the hospital bill. He was still a long way off though his parents raised another $9,000 toward the debt.

People began to hear about the injured boy and eventually some 2,000 donations poured in, totaling $25,000. The bill was paid in full! Morgan set aside the additional money for future education.

What then? Though the bill was paid up, Morgan kept his projects going to collect money for the hospital so he could help others.

Someone forgot to tell the boy he was too injured for that kind of work. Someone forgot to tell him the situation was hopeless. Somehow young Morgan didn’t realize that an 11-year-old could never pay off a hospital bill so large.

Church reformer Martin Luther once said, “Everything that is done in the world is done by the hopeful.” And entertainer Dinah Shore observed, “There are no hopeless situations – only people who are hopeless about them.” Morgan Rowe should know.

I will not always be young and strong. My life circumstances can change in an instant. My health may leave me and I may lose people who are important in my life. But there are no hopeless situations. So I won’t easily turn loose of my hopeful outlook, even when things seem bleak. Without hope, I’m lost. But with it, I suspect that any situation can be creatively redeemed.

1. Do we try to live out the compassion of Jesus who was moved with pity because the crowds pursuing him were like sheep without a shepherd? Do we pray that the master of the harvest may send out laborers for his harvest?

2. What are some of the spiritual battles we have undergone, or are experiencing at the moment? How do the examples of Jacob and Jesus Christ inspire us?

Loving Jesus, you pity the hapless crowds who are troubled and abandoned. They are like sheep without a shepherd. Give us the gift of compassion that we may respond in service to the needs of the poor and vulnerable. Together with you, we pray that the Lord of the harvest may send out laborers for his harvest. We love you, dear Jesus. Please never allow us to sow the evil wind and thus reap the violence of the whirlwind. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** God our Father, Jacob perseveres in his spiritual battle through a dark night by Jabbok River. Jesus Christ lives out fully his spiritual battle upon the cross. Give us the strength to fight our battle of faith when hope is gone and the darkness of despair frightens us. Please bless us with your love and protection. We bless and thank you. We love and serve you, now and forever. Amen.

“His heart was moved with pity for them.” (Mt 9:36) // “You have contended with divine and human beings and have prevailed.” (Gn 32:28)

By your words and actions, bring the compassion of Jesus to the people around you. Pray the following invocation: “O Jesus, eternal Shepherd of our souls; send good laborers into your harvest.” // When assailed with trials and difficulties, withdraw to a quiet place and pray for the grace to prevail over them. Assist the people around you who are struggling with various “tests of faith”.

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WEDNESDAY: FOURTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Summons and Sends His Disciples … He Moves Us to Remorse and Compassion”

BIBLE READINGS Gn 41:55-57; 42:5-7a, 17-24a // Mt 10:1-7

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 10:1-7): “Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (Gospel Reflection by Sr. Mary Anthony E. Basa, PDDM)

Jesus called the twelve disciples and sent them on a mission to the lost sheep of the people of Israel. The foundation of the Sister Disciples of the Divine Master in Iligan City in Mindanao was on June 26, 2011. I remember very well the time when the three of us (with Sr. John Paul and Sr. Elizabeth) were called to be the first Sisters in the new foundation. Iligan is a place that I do not know much about and, though I can understand a little, I do not speak the language. It is also a place where the peace situation is not very stable. How can one assigned in the liturgical and biblical ministry cope with the limitations of language? When one animates a liturgical celebration and shares the Bible, it should be in the vernacular.

As we begin our mission, I have experienced how the grace of God works. I have realized that serving others is not just about knowing the language or being familiar with the place. The message of God’s reign is preached in loving deeds and compassion. More than anyone else, I am the one who is formed and moved to conversion as I tend to the people of Iligan. When the city was hit by typhoon “Sendong”, thousands of people lost their homes, loved ones and properties. The call to reach out to the lost sheep became a real mission and a pastoral challenge for us as Sister Disciples. When God calls us for a mission, we need not fear because He will bless us with all the graces we need most in order to fulfill that mission.

B. First Reading (Gn 41:55-57; 42:5-7a, 17-24a): “Alas, we are being punished because of our brother.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 41:55-57; 42:5-7a, 17-24a) is an excerpt from the story of Joseph, which should be read in full (cf. Genesis 37, 39-50). It is one of the most beautiful accounts I have ever read. Joseph, sold by his brothers to a group of Ishmaelite traders traveling from Gilead to Egypt as a slave, rises to power in Egypt. “And the Lord is with him”, the Bible says. He becomes the governor of Egypt and has full authority. During the famine throughout the land, there is food in the storehouses of Egypt and Joseph is in charge of the distribution. People come to Egypt from all over the world to buy grain from Joseph because the famine is severe everywhere. Joseph’s brothers from Canaan likewise go to Egypt to buy grain. But Jacob keeps Joseph’s full brother Benjamin with him so as not to lose him.

Joseph, concealing his identity, puts his brothers to the test. He accuses them of spying and makes an exigent demand. He orders them to bring their youngest brother Benjamin to him to prove that they are not spies. However, this is just a ploy to expose their inmost heart. The brothers, who have subjected Joseph to undeserved cruelties, now manifest deep remorse and are in anguish. They feel they are being punished for the anguish they have caused their brother. They recognize that they have done wrong to him and are being punished rightly for causing his death. The poignant self-recriminations of his brothers make Joseph weep. His benevolence moves him not to revenge but to reconciliation with his contrite brothers.

The benevolent Joseph is a figure of Jesus Christ who moves us to remorse and teaches us compassion. The following story illustrates what it means to be kind, benevolent and forgiving (cf. Anthony De Mello, Taking Flight: A Book of Story Meditation, New York: Image Books, 1988, p. 159-160).

Abbot Anastasius had a book of very fine parchment, which was worth twenty pence. It contained both the Old and New Testaments in full. Once a certain monk came to visit him and, seeing the book, made off with it. So that day when Anastasius went to his Scripture reading he found that it had gone and knew at once that the monk had taken it. But he did not send after him, for fear he might add the sin of perjury to that of theft.

Now the monk went into the city to sell the book. He wanted eighteen pence for it. The buyer said, “Give me the book so that I may find out if it is worth that much money.” With that, he took the book to the holy Anastasius and said, “Father, take a look at this and tell me if you think it is worth as much as eighteen pence.” Anastasius said, “Yes, it is a fine book. And at eighteen pence it is a bargain.”

So the buyer went back to the monk and said, “Here is your money. I showed the book to Father Anastasius and he said it was worth eighteen pence.” The monk was stunned. “Was that all he said? Did he say nothing else? “No, he did not say a word more than that.” “Well, I have changed my mind and don’t want to sell the book after all.”

Then he went back to Anastasius and begged him with many tears to take the book back, but Anastasius said gently, “No, brother, keep it. It is my present to you.” But the monk said, “If you do not take it back, I shall have no peace.” After that the monk dwelt with Anastasius for the rest of his life.

1. Do we thank Jesus for calling his disciples in order to send them out and become his loving compassion for others?

2. What is our reaction when we are wronged or have done wrong to others? Are we ready to show benevolence and forgiveness to those who have offended us? Do we help those who have wronged us to see the light, to seek conversion and to feel remorse for their sins?

Loving Jesus, You send us to the “lost sheep” that we may proclaim the transforming good news: “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Grant that we may be faithful to the grace of conversion. Help us to correspond to the beauty of our vocation-mission as Christian disciples in today’s world. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Almighty God, your mighty hand leads Joseph, son of the patriarch Jacob, into Egypt. And you are always present to him. You bless all his endeavors with success. You make use of him to move his erring brothers to remorse and penitence. The benevolent Joseph becomes an instrument of salvation for all the nations. Teach us to imitate him in his obedient submission to your saving will. You are our loving and compassionate God. We give you glory and praise, now and forever. Amen.

“Jesus summoned his twelve disciples … Jesus sent out these twelve disciples.” (Mt 10:1, 5) // “We are being punished because of our brother.” (Gn 42:21)

Let us thank the Lord for our vocation and mission as Christian disciples in today’s world. Let us discover meaningful ways to live out fully this gift of discipleship. // When your heart is full of remorse for the wrong you have done, put your trust in the loving God who treats us with compassion and is ready to forgive. Manifest that same forgiving love to those who have offended you.

*** %%% *** %%% *** %%% *** THURSDAY – FOURTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Sends Them to Proclaim the Kingdom … He Is at the Service of God’s Saving Plan”

BIBLE READINGS Gn 44:18-21, 23b-29; 45:1-5 // Mt 10:7-15

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 10:7-15): “Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give.”

The Burnham couple, Martin and Gracia, who were serving in the Philippines as missionaries, was captured by the dreaded Abu Sayyaf, a terrorist group in Southern Philippines, whose primary activities were kidnapping and extortion. Gracia survived 14 months of terror in the jungle. On June 7, 2002, Martin died and Gracia was wounded in the shootout that resulted from the rescue attempt made by the Philippine Army. Gracia’s testimony revealed that Martin had been a missionary through and through. Thousands of people – including senators and ambassadors - attended Martin’s funeral at Wichita, Kansas. Gracia remarked: “They admired him most, perhaps, for what he stood for, what we all try to stand for. Nothing complicated. Just a simple, whole-hearted goodness. His death had not been in vain. He showed me what strength was. Faith. Faith in yourself, in those you love, and in God to be present in every moment of your life.” The missionary Martin Burnham is a modern-day example of a disciple sent by Jesus, one who had kept faith in him and had shown the world that faith is the inner strength to conquer evil.

Today’s Gospel reading (Mt 10:7-15) is about the Lord who sends and the mission of the disciples he sent. The origin of the missionary vocation is Jesus who prepared the apostles for this important moment. It was Jesus who called them personally; it was he who selected the Twelve to be his companions and to be sent out to preach with the power to cast out devils. Taught by Jesus and present with him as he healed many from sickness and evil, the Twelve were sent out with tremendous healing power bestowed upon them. The task of those sent by Jesus is to bring the healing balm of peace and forgiveness to those wounded by sin and to drive out the power of evil.

The missionaries of Jesus are to keep a simple lifestyle, bereft of material comforts and financial security. The Divine Master counsels the virtue of detachment, for without detachment the missionary’s attention cannot be centered on the Good News. Indeed, the life of missionaries is absolutely oriented to the task of preaching God’s kingdom. The missionaries must also contend with the possibility of not being welcomed and of not being listened to. In this case, they are simply replicating in their lives the destiny of the sending Lord who was rejected even by his neighbors in Nazareth. Indeed, the missionaries of all ages will be subjected to all kinds of trials. Their option is not violent reprisal, but humility and kindness. They accept the indignities of rejection and the painful process of “birthing” in order that the saving word of the Gospel may reach the ends of the earth.

B. First Reading (Gn 44:18-21, 23b-29; 45:1-5): “It was really for the sake of saving lives that God sent me here ahead of you.”

In today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 44:18-21, 23b-29; 45:1-5), Joseph reveals himself to his estranged brothers and is fully reconciled with them. But this happens only after subjecting his siblings to a final test. Joseph orders his steward to incriminate his brothers in a crime that he may find out whether their evil hearts have changed. Genuinely shocked when accused of the theft of Joseph’s silver cup, they protest their innocence. They vow death to the thief and slavery for the rest of them if the cup be found in their possession. When the incriminating silver cup is found in the youngest brother’s sack, they are dumbfounded and feel defenseless. But they realize more intensely that this dire situation is God’s punishment for their crime against Joseph. In contrast to their jealousy and evil acts in the past against a brother, they now manifest a genuine concern to protect their youngest brother from harm and to spare their aged father Jacob from a death-dealing grief. They who were once callous and murderous now show great fraternal and filial solicitude. Judah’s impassioned plea for clemency is the clincher. Joseph is convinced that his siblings have changed.

Joseph weeps in a great emotional outburst and discloses himself to his brothers as the one whom they sold into Egypt. Their fear and bewilderment open the way for Joseph’s even greater disclosure. It is really for the sake of saving lives that God sent Joseph there ahead of them. God has turned the brothers’ crime into a saving deed. The Lord is the one who sent Joseph to Egypt to deliver ultimately Jacob’s clan from famine and destruction. Indeed, God writes salvation history even on crooked lines.

The following story gives us an idea how God guides human events and makes them salvation history (cf. Karen Barber in Daily Guideposts 2010, p. 18).

Grandma’s spinning wheel had belonged to our family for generations. The wheel was as big as a wagon wheel, and the wood had been polished smooth by use and age. This colonial treasure proudly graced Mom and Dad’s living room and later my sister Susan’s home built on a hillside in Grandma’s land. Then one day the heirloom was missing from Susan’s home.

“Where’s Grandma’s spinning wheel?” I asked. “I gave it to our second cousin”, Susan said. “I prayed, and it seemed the right thing to do because he’s so crazy about family history.” I was stunned. I don’t give away things very easily; I hand on, telling myself that I’ll be ready to part with them sometime in the future.

A year later, Susan’s house burned to the ground in the middle of the night. Nothing was saved. “I’m so glad I gave away the spinning wheel before the fire”, she told me. “Me too”, I replied gratefully. “Who would have thought that by giving away the spinning wheel you were really saving it?

Sometimes the best thing I can do with things that seem well worth keeping is to give them away.

1. As Christian disciples today, do we trust in God who is lovingly involved in our lives? What is the specific apostolic mission addressed to us by Christ today?

2. Do we see that God’s mysterious hand is at work and guides us through our life? Do we trust in divine providence and his desire to bring to good the trials and difficulties in our life?

Jesus Lord, you have called us and entrusted to us the Gospel with its power to overcome evil. You commission us to overcome the death-dealing situations of today’s world by the strength of your Holy Spirit. You send us to touch the wounded with the healing power of your love. Help us to share with them the image of a compassionate and merciful God. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Loving God, we trust in your wisdom and love. The brothers of Joseph sold him into Egypt, but in reality it is you who sent him there in order to save Jacob’s family from famine and destruction. How marvelous and mysterious are your ways! You are compassionate and true to your covenant promises. Give us the grace to trust that for those who love you, everything works for their good. We adore and glorify you, now and forever. Amen.

“ Go and make this proclamation.” (Mt 10:7) // “It was really for the sake of saving lives that God sent me here ahead of you.” (Gn 45:5)

Pray for all missionaries that they may carry out their mandate with absolute trust in God and apostolic zeal. Be a missionary to a person close to you and in need of the healing power of the Gospel. // When trials and difficulties come, trust that the Lord is with you and that, like the experience of Joseph, everything will turn out for our good.

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FRIDAY – FOURTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Strengthens Us in Persecution … He Is Alive!”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 10:16-23): “For it will not be you who speak, but the Spirit of the Father speaking through you.” (Gospel Reflection by Sr. Mary Mercedes Pineda, PDDM)

Many say that it is not easy to follow Christ or to be a good Christian. Our Lord himself did not promise wealth, comfort, prestige, or power to those who have followed him. Rather, in today’s Gospel, Jesus made his chosen disciples aware of what awaits them once they accept Him as their Lord and Master; for example, rejection, opposition, persecution and discrimination.

As we journey through life and grow in our faith, we encounter these sad realities in various ways and degrees. We might experience them from people we love, from friends and associates, from strangers, from the community to which we belong, or in our workplace.

Rejection, opposition, persecution and discrimination are experienced due to differences in religious, political, cultural background and beliefs, perceptions and even sexual orientation. The Gospel values that as Christians we try to live in fidelity to God, are opposed to the values of the world and this could give rise to the harsh realities in families, communities and in society.

How do we react to persecution, opposition, discrimination and rejection? Is our response “flight or fight?” How do we bear with them?

I remember when I joined a pilgrimage to the Holy Land coming from Rome. In Tel-Aviv airport, I was segregated from the rest of our group, invited to go to the immigration office to be interrogated, simply because I was carrying a Philippine passport. Our group included priests, religious men and women, and families. I was the only one from Asia. The rest were Europeans and Americans, who passed immigration without any difficulty. It was indeed a humiliating and painful experience of rejection and discrimination. However, I remained calm and composed, talking to the Lord in silent prayer: “Lord Jesus, this is an unpleasant joke! See, I’m not welcome in your country. But thank you for this unexpected experience, because this is a chance to practice patience and humility. Amen.”

Jesus promised to give us the inner strength to endure such occurrences and to persevere in following him whatever the cost. We have only to trust and believe that He is always with us and in us.

In this Gospel text (Mt 10:16-23), we are invited and challenged to learn to accept these negative realities as occasions for growth in faith, in our maturity to follow Christ and lastly, an opportunity to renew our commitment to Jesus our Lord.

B. First Reading (Gn 46:1-7, 28-30): “At last I can die, now that I have seen for myself that Joseph is still alive.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 46:1-7, 28-30) focuses on the patriarch Jacob, who receives God’s assurance at Beersheba, goes down to Egypt with his entire clan in response to the divine command and meets his long-lost son Joseph. At Beersheba, where Jacob had erected an altar, he offers a sacrifice to the God of his father Isaac. God speaks to Jacob in a vision at night telling him not to be afraid to go to Egypt. The decision to depart from the Promised Land can be justified only by God’s command and his benevolent plan to make of Jacob in Egypt a “great nation”. The Lord assures him of his presence: “I will go down to Egypt with you.” God also promises that he will bring the patriarch and his descendants back to the Promised Land. Hence, Jacob, whose new name is “Israel”, and all his descendants migrate to Egypt.

The reunion of Israel with Joseph at Goshen is very touching. When they meet, Joseph throws his arms around his father’s neck and weeps a long time in his arms. Israel says to Joseph, “I am ready to die, now that I have seen you and know that you are still alive.” Israel’s joy is complete in being reunited with a beloved son once given up for dead. Indeed, the joyful experience of Israel is a foretaste of the Easter joy that is given to us through the paschal mystery of Christ’s death and rising.

Like the patriarch Israel who is ready to die after meeting his beloved son Joseph, the recently canonized Saint Rafael Arnaiz Baron willingly embraces the prospect of death after having encountered Jesus Savior, his ultimate love and the font of eternal life (cf. Ann Prendergast, “St. Rafael’s Cross” in America, May 29, 2010, p. 19-21).

Rafael Arnaiz Baron, a little-known Spanish Trappist, died at age 27 in April 1938 and was canonized on October 11, 2009. (…) Rafael was a Jesuit-educated architect, who originally intended to become a monk, but the onset of Type 1 diabetes forced him to withdraw. In December 1937 he re-entered the monastery for the last time as an oblate, a layman who shares in the spiritual life and prayer of the community. There he lived in the infirmary until his death four months later.

During this time he noted: “When I left my home, by my own deliberate intent, I left behind a series of treatments that my illness required and I came to embrace a state in which it is impossible to care for so touchy a sickness. I knew perfectly well what awaited me. Nevertheless … sometimes, poor Br. Rafael, without your being aware of it, you were suffering, seeing yourself deprived of many necessary things, stripped free of the liberty of giving in to the weakness of your illness and giving it the remedies that out there in the world you did not lack.”

Here we are confronted with the folly of the cross. Saint Rafael is set apart from us by his special vocation, but even more, by his freely chosen decision to abjure the care available to him for love of the cross of Christ. (…) He sums up his message of the cross in homage to simplicity: “With Jesus at my side nothing seems difficult to me, and I see more that the road to sanctity is simple. Better still, it seems to me that it consists in continuing to get rid of things instead of collecting them, in slowly boiling down to simplicity instead of becoming complicated with new things. In the measure that we detach ourselves from so much disordered love for creatures and for ourselves, it seems to me that we are getting closer and closer to the only love, the sole desire, the one longing of this life … to true sanctify which is God.”

1. What is our response to persecution? Do we trust in divine assistance when faced with rejection and persecution?

2. Are we ready to follow God’s command “to go down into Egypt” that he may make of us a “great nation”? Are we ready to embrace the prospect of dying?

O Jesus, font of strength, you send us like sheep in the midst of wolves. You counsel us to be wise as serpents and innocent as doves in the midst of a troubled world. We trust in your saving help. We trust that the Holy Spirit will put his words into our mouth and will defend us from all evil. You have summoned us to tread the path that leads to life. Let us be faithful to the ways you have shown us. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** O loving God, you have shown great favor to Israel and his descendants. The patriarch Israel obeys your command to leave behind temporarily the Promised Land in order to go to Egypt where you will make of him a “great nation”. There in Egypt he is reunited with his beloved son Joseph, who is alive and not dead as he was made to believe. Israel’s joy is complete and he is ready to die. Help us to imitate our patriarch Israel in completely entrusting himself to your saving will. Help us to be truly united with Jesus, the Risen Lord, so that we may embrace the fullness of joy and that death may not prevail over us. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“Whoever endures to the end will be saved.” (Mt 10:22) // “Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt.” (Gn 46:3)

When experiencing rejection, trust in Jesus and pray for help and protection. When persecuted on account of your fidelity to Church teaching, ask the Lord for strength and endurance and the grace to refrain from a violent response. // When you are forced to make a “detachment” and painful separation, unite this experience with Jesus Savior and recall also the acts of faith of the patriarchs.

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SATURDAY – FOURTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Exhorts Us Not to Fear … God the Father Leads Him through the Paschal Mystery”

BIBLE READINGS Gn 49:29-32; 50:15-26a // Mt 10:24-33

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 10:24-33): “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body.” (Gospel Reflection by Dr. Rachel Quinto, Holy Family Institute, Fresno, CA-USA)

Many years ago and for a very long time, I had a recurrent nightmare that would wake me up in the middle of the night in cold sweat. I dreamed that someone or something was chasing me in the dark shadows. I was alone and feared for my life. No matter how fast I ran or imagined hiding places where I would not be seen, I sensed that I could never escape this thing’s sinister grip. Strangely enough, even when I was paralyzed with fear and could not move, I was not overcome by my pursuer. When I finally managed to wake up, I would find myself exhausted, as if from an actual ordeal.

Back then, I understood healing to be physical or psychological and via human intervention. Using my background in psychology and medicine, I tried to analyze the origin of this unsettling subconscious experience in order to hopefully resolve it. But my intellectual efforts met with failure. The nightmares managed to come back over and over again to haunt me.

My breakthrough came in a most unusual manner. As I grew in faith, I began to know the healing power of the Word of God. After reflecting on this very same passage (Mt 10:24-33), I decided to take Jesus at his word. With all the conviction I could gather consciously, I resolved that when the chase happens again in my sleep, I will not run away. In fact, I am determined to turn around and face my pursuer unafraid. I am totally convinced that the Lord will protect me from all danger. In fact, with the Lord beside me, not a single hair on my head will be touched by this evil that has been after me for a long time. After all, am I not worth more than many sparrows?

Miraculously, just like that, the nightmares ended.

B. First Reading (Gn 49:29-32; 50:15-26a): “God will surely take care of you and lead you out of this land.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Gn 49:29-32; 50:15-26a), which is taken from the last two chapters of the Book of Genesis, presents three episodes: the death of Jacob, Joseph’s assurance of forgiveness for his erring brothers, and the death of Joseph himself. Jacob’s command to bury him at Machpelah in Canaan alongside Abraham, Isaac, Sarah, Rebecca and wife Leah is solemnly heeded. The divine promise must not die with Jacob in the land of Egypt. Indeed, the transfer of Jacob’s mortal remains to the Promised Land prefigures the later deliverance of the Israelite nation from Egypt and the fulfillment of the covenant promise. The benevolent response of Joseph to his siblings’ fear of retaliation underscores not only his forgiving nature, but also his total cooperation in the divine saving plan. He reiterates that the evil deed they had done against him has been redeemed by God and transformed for his saving purpose. Joseph does not act out of personal animosity, for he himself is at the service of God’s plan of salvation. In the concluding scene in the Book of Genesis, Joseph, on his deathbed, utters the prophetic words: “God will surely take care of you and lead you out of this land to the land he promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” Joseph’s final words point to the glorious destiny of Israel as God’s liberated and covenant people. They also evoke the paschal journey of Jesus from death to glory.

The assurance that God will take care of his people and lead them to the Promised Land is also experienced by those who are making a “transitus” or passage to the next life. The following testimony gives an insight into it (cf. Hal Zina Bennett, “Grateful Life, Joyous Passage” in Chicken Soup for the Soul, ed. Jack Canfield, et. al. Cos Cob: CSS, 2008, p. 354-357)

The evening my mother died, I was holding her hand. My mother’s eyes dropped shut, and I decided to close mine as well. As I did so, a tremendous feeling of peace spread over me. Speaking only in my mind, I said, I think it’s time for you to go. I opened my eyes. My mother was looking right past me, her eyes alert and happy. “All right”, she said, answering what I had only said in my mind. A coincidence?

“Go toward the light”, I said. She turned her head slightly up, to the right. Her face lit up. I had the clear impression she was greeting someone she was pleased to see. In a soft, calm voice, I repeated these words, “Go lightly, lightly, lightly.” I felt her hand in mine was slipping away, like an airplane fading away, growing smaller, becoming a dot, a blur. Then she was gone. Her soul had left her body – of that I had no doubt. Yet she looked radiant. I said a little prayer, though I don’t recall the words.

My mother’s gravestone bears the following epitaph: “A grateful life, a joyous passage.” It tells the story well.

1. Do we believe that God cares for us and that we are worth more than many sparrows? Do we try to overcome useless anxieties by putting our trust in the God who loves us?

2. Do we trust that at the moment of our passage to the promised “eternal life” the Lord God will be there for us with his comfort and guidance?

Jesus Lord, you care for us and assure us that we are worth more than many sparrows. Deliver us from evil and useless anxieties. Help us to trust in you. Grant us the grace to respond to the holy presence of God and his call to share in his plan of salvation. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Loving Father, you are loving and gracious. You are true to your promise. As you have guided the life and destiny of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph with his brothers, we pray that you may likewise be our guide and protection. Be with us at the hour of our death. Be with us as you have been totally present to your Son Jesus in his paschal mystery. Let your saving hand lead us gently as we make the passage from this world to eternal life. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” (Mt 10:31) // “God will surely take care of you and lead you out of this land to the land that he promised.” (Gn 50:24)

When anxieties come, remember the words of Jesus: do not to be afraid for we are worth more than many sparrows. Spend some quiet time in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, drawing strength from the Eucharistic Master. // Resolve to spend some quality time to contemplate the “last things” and to prepare yourself for them.

MONDAY: FIFTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us the Way of Peace … He Was Persecuted”

BIBLE READINGS Ex 1:8-14, 22 // Mt 10:34-11:1

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 10:34-11:1): “I have come to bring not peace, but the sword.”

I was in my third year of high school when I came across Leo Tolstoy’s novel, “War and Peace”. It was irresistible. I did not go to school for three days to read it from cover to cover. I love the works of Tolstoy. I am fascinated by this Russian “prophet”. I am awed by his commitment to Christ’s teaching on love, compassion and non-violence. Peter White’s article, “The World of Tolstoy”, in the June 1986 edition of the National Geographic (cf. p. 758-791) contains interesting insights which I share here.

Count Tolstoy was deeply inspired by Christ’s Sermon on the Mount, especially his moral exhortation, “Resist not evil” (cf. Mt 5:39), but instead, “Return good for evil”. This would be at the heart of Tolstoy’s doctrine on universal love, moral self-improvement and non-violence, as eventually expressed in his work, “The Kingdom of God Is Within You”. India’s Mahatma Gandhi was greatly influenced by Leo Tolstoy. He avowed that, when he read Tolstoy’s work, “The Kingdom of God Is Within You”, he was overwhelmed. Having exchanged correspondence with Tolstoy, Gandhi was cured of his skepticism and became a firm believer in ahimsa, nonviolence. Through Gandhi’s program of nonviolent struggle, India would later be free from British rule.

Leo Tolstoy, however, was a “sign of contradiction”. His radical view on non- violence was greatly opposed. While praising Tolstoy as a genius who drew incomparable pictures of Russian life and castigated social falsehood and hypocrisy, the communist leader Lenin considered his advocacy of nonresistance to evil as “crackpot preaching” and deplored his inability to understand the class struggle – that a better life could be achieved through the violent overthrow of capitalism by the proletariat.

In his novel, “Resurrection”, Tolstoy indicted the tsarist courts and prison system. The Russian Orthodox Church was angered by his comments in this book against the state religion. The Holy Synod declared Count Tolstoy a false prophet, accusing him of undermining the faith. He was excommunicated, but there was an outpouring of sympathy from other segments of Russian society.

Conscience-stricken and upset by the plight of the poor, Count Tolstoy opted for a simplified life and dedicated more greatly his literary pursuits to socio-religious themes. His wife Sonya did not share his zeal for reform and for his new lifestyle that was simple and austere – for example, making himself a brew of barley and acorns because coffee was a luxury! She was chagrined that he chose to work on pugnacious tracts that put people off, when he could be producing wonderful novels that would bring in lots of money. Tolstoy did not care about money, but she had to, otherwise what would become of their children? Unable to bear any longer the divisive and oppressive situation at home, and detesting the luxury found in his estate, Yasnaya Polyana, the 82-year-old Tolstoy, left home on November 10, 1910, accompanied only by his doctor. He fell ill on a southbound train and died at a stationmaster’s house on November 20, 1910. Indeed, Leo Tolstoy is a fascinating figure – a modern day example of a prophet of contradiction.

Today’s Gospel reading (Mt 10:34-11:1) presents the divisions that Jesus’ mission creates, even in families. His way catalyzes separations and provokes conflicts between those who have made a radical choice for him and those who have not. Jesus’ gift of peace comes from God. It is a result of his immersion into the bloodbath of paschal sacrifice and is therefore not a facile kind of peace. The authors of the Days of the Lord, vol. 6, explicate: “To welcome the peace of the kingdom which Jesus gives and which is only attained through the cross, places believers in a situation where they are sometimes set in conflict with others. For this peace rests on faith, the choice for Christ and the kingdom, which necessarily involves detachment from, if not rejection of, all that is opposed to Christ and the Gospel or that is incompatible with the choice one makes for it … Every human life is confronted, at some point or another, with choices that in some instances demand real heroism. The situation becomes particularly distressing when one finds oneself torn between faithfulness to God, faith, and the gospel, and on the other hand, to family, friends, and country.”

B. First Reading (Ex 1:8-14, 22): “Come, let us deal shrewdly with them to stop their increase.”

For the following three weeks the Old Testament reading is taken from the Book of Exodus. This is about the “exodus” or departure of the people of Israel from Egypt, where they have been slaves. God chooses Moses to lead his people from Egypt. Today’s reading (Ex 1:8-14, 22) tells us what brought about the misery experienced by the Israelites in Egypt. In the previous years, through the good graces earned by Joseph, the governor of Egypt, toward his father Jacob and the entire clan from the reigning Pharaoh, the Israelite nation had flourished in Egypt. The growth of the Israelites in Egypt, where they were once treated as special guests and bestowed special privileges by Joseph’s sympathetic Pharaoh-friend, fulfils the divine promise to the patriarchs to make of them a great nation. Many years later, a new king, who knows nothing about Joseph, comes to power in Egypt. The prolific Israelites seem a political threat to him and he tries to subjugate them through slave labor. But the cruel imposition of slave labor is not able to contain the population growth of the Israelites. The Pharaoh then resorts to infanticide. He orders his subjects to throw every newborn Hebrew boy into the Nile river, but to let the girls live. It is ironic that from “the river of death” will be drawn forth Moses, the Hebrew boy who will lead the Israelites through the Red Sea towards the Promised Land.

The population control that the Pharaoh uses in his attempt to subjugate and oppress the Israelites is a brutal tactic that modern people likewise employ. The following newspaper article illustrates the irony of it all (cf. Alive! March 2013, p.2).

Israel didn’t want black immigrants having babies: Israel has admitted that it has been injecting Ethiopian Jewish immigrants with a dangerous, long-lasting contraceptive without their consent. The practice is said to have been going on for years. Women in transit camps waiting to emigrate to Israel were told the injection was obligatory, or that it was simply for immunization, according to a report in Haaretz.

“We said we won’t have the shot”, one woman told the Israeli newspaper. “They told us, if you don’t, you won’t go to Israel. And also you won’t get aid or medical care.” The woman who left Ethiopia eight years ago added: “We were afraid. We didn’t have a choice. Without them and their aid we couldn’t leave there. So, we accepted the injection.”

The scandal was revealed by an investigative program on Israel Educational TV, and was at first denied by Israel’s Health Ministry. Journalist Hedva Eyal, who wrote the report, commented, “We believe it is a method of reducing the number of births in a community that is black and mostly poor.”

Since the story broke, the Health Ministry has ordered an end to the injections. Doctors have been told “not to renew prescriptions for Depo-Provera for women of Ethiopian origin if there is concern that they might not understand the ramifications of the treatment.” A civil rights activist noted that “findings from investigations into Depo-Provera are extremely worrisome, raising concerns of harmful health policies, with racist implications.” Numerous studies have linked the controversial drug with osteoporosis, increased risk of blood clots, breast cancer, cervical cancer and heart disease. Pushed by Western agencies, it also causes abortions by preventing implantation of the newly-conceived human being in the womb.

According to a LifeSiteNews.com report, Israeli schools have, in recent years, refused to enroll Ethiopian children, and the government has engaged in mass deportations of African immigrants.

1. Why does the peace that Jesus brings lead to division? Do we welcome the peace of Christ and his example of total commitment to the kingdom? Are we willing to embrace the detachment, renunciation and opposition that the peace of Christ entails? Are we willing to be fully united with Christ and become, in him, a “sword of division” in today’s world?

2. How do the cruel decisions of the Egyptian Pharaoh to subjugate the Israelites impact us? What do we do when civil authorities impose policies that are contrary to the right to life and the dignity of the human person?

Lord Jesus Christ, you said to your apostles: “I leave you peace, my peace I give you.” Look not on our sins, but on the faith of your Church, and grant us the peace and unity of your kingdom. Jesus, sword of division, you take away the sins of the world: have mercy on us. Make us walk in the ways of peace and help us to worship in spirit and in truth. We love and praise you, now and forever. Amen.

*** All-powerful God, you are the author of life and the defender of life. The destiny of the Israelite nation is in your hands. We too are in your hands. Protect us from those who violate the sanctity of life. Give us the wisdom and strength to promote the right to life and the dignity of every person created lovingly in your image. Bless us and grant us the gift of eternal life. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“ I have come to bring not peace but the sword.” (Mt 10:34) //“Look how numerous and powerful the people of the children of Israel are growing.” (Ex 1:9)

While avoiding facile compromises and easy tradeoffs, endeavor to bring the peace of Christ to a distressing situation that needs healing and reconciliation. Be courageous to be a “sword of contradiction” when the situation calls for it. // By word and action, promote the Church’s social teaching on the right to life and the dignity of a human person.

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TUESDAY: FIFTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Reproaches Them for Their Unbelief … He Cares for His People”

BIBLE READINGS Ex 2:1-15a // Mt 11:20-24

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 11:20-24): “It will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon and for the land of Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”

Today’s Gospel (Mt 11:20-24) teaches us that repentance is a key dimension of Christian discipleship. Those who hear Jesus’ words and witness his mighty deeds, but do not repent, will suffer the same fate as those of Tyre, Sidon and Sodom, the epitome of lack of repentance. The mission of Jesus in Galilee produces only a few disciples. Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum are recipients of his teachings and miracles. But there are those unmoved by his proclamation. Those with hardened hearts refuse to respond to the miracles that reveal his tender solicitude and compassion. Like the inhabitants of Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum, we are free to make choices and respond to God’s word. But we are ultimately responsible for what we are: our sins, failures, shortcomings, imperfections, the dismal acts that precipitate us to destruction. Jesus calls us to conversion. We must open up to the grace of repentance. Those who have been gifted with much have greater liability and accountability on judgment day.

The words of Mother Teresa contain a tinge of reproach for those who have received much spiritual enlightenment, but fail to respond fully to the gift (cf. Mother Teresa: Her Essential Wisdom, ed. Carol Kelly-Gangi, New York: Barnes and Noble, 2006, p. 117-118).

How is it that nowadays, all over the world, so many priests and nuns abandon their calling? Did they not commit themselves to follow him after long and mature reflection? How then can a nun pronounce perpetual vows, and some years later give up the religious life? Are married people not bound to remain faithful to each other until death? Then, why should the same rule not apply to priests and nuns?

Many congregations have discarded this vow of obedience. They don’t have superiors anymore. Each member makes her own decisions. They have discarded obedience completely. Do you know what has happened because of that? In the United States alone fifty thousand nuns have left the religious life. The destruction of religious life comes mainly from the lack of obedience. Sheer negligence destroys religious life completely.

B. First Reading (Ex 2:1-15a): “She called him Moses for she said, ‘I drew him out of the water’. After Moses had grown up, he visited his people.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Ex 2:1-15a) underlines God’s providential care for the future Exodus leader, who was rescued from the Nile River by Pharaoh’s daughter. She adopts him as her own son and calls him Moses because, according to her, “I drew him out of the water.” The boy’s name “Moses” (based on the Hebrew root “msh” meaning “to draw up”) is related to the word “Hebrew”, which means “the people from across the river”. Although brought up in the Egyptian royal society, his heart belongs to his people, the Hebrews. After Moses has grown up, he visits his people one day and sees how they are oppressed with hard labor. Feeling an affinity for his people, Moses takes vengeance against an Egyptian who kills a Hebrew. Unfortunately, his defense of the oppressed is misconstrued and would be wrongly used to reject his peace- making effort involving two Hebrews. The culprit resists him with the accusation: “Who has appointed you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian?” When the Pharaoh hears of the affair, he seeks to put Moses to death. Moses flees to the land of Midian, a desert area in the Sinai Peninsula where a kindred Semitic tribe welcomes him.

The sympathy and concern of Moses for his own people prefigures the ultimate love and saving intervention of Jesus Christ, who visits and dwells among us, his own people. The following story will help us appreciate what it means to have concern for one’s own people (cf. “Missionary Sister, 52, uses unusual background to help the Poorest of the Poor in Haiti” in Our Sunday Visitor, December 2, 2012, p. 6).

Sr. Irene Clare Duval knew she wanted to be a nun since she was 8 years old, but it wasn’t until she was 48 that she joined the Missionaries of the Poor Sisters. During the four decades in between she served in the U.S. military, went to college and worked for the New York City police department as a drug chemist.

Though she still isn’t sure why God told her to wait so long, she knows now that the things she learned while she was waiting help her serve the poor in Haiti better. “I could ask why for the rest of my life”, says Sr. Irene in something between a Haitian and Brooklyn accent. “But the way I see it, God’s timing is perfect and he had me go through what I have for a reason. Besides, I figure I’ll live until about 112, so I have lots more life to give to God”, the 52-year-old says with a broad smile.

Sr. Irene is known now as the dynamic Catholic sister who transformed the lives of hundreds of families in Viloux, a small, remote village in the mountains of southern Haiti. She began important social programs where none existed.

Sr. Irene was born in Haiti but moved with her family to New York when she was in sixth grade. In Haiti she had always attended Catholic school – where she first realized she wanted to be a nun – but in New York her parents could only afford to send her and her siblings to public school. “I used to get beat up every day at school because I looked and talked different from everyone in my class”, Sr. Irene says. “I quickly learned how to deal with bullies – a skill that still serves me well today.”

After graduating high school, she considered joining a convent, but she was shy and says “it just didn’t feel like the right time”. Instead she joined the U.S. army reserves and went to Prait University in Brooklyn to study chemical engineering. After graduating, she made a pact with God, promising to join an order and help the poor after she paid off her student loans – a task that took more than 15 years. In the meantime, she worked for the City of New York’s Department of Environmental Protection and then for the New York Police Department’s drug testing lab.

“My classmates and coworkers always used to ask why I’d want to give up my great job and become a nun. They asked how I’d have money to live,” Sr. Irene recalls. I just smiled and told them that I had the ultimate sugar daddy – Jesus.”

Finally at age 48, Sr. Irene joined the Missionaries of the Poor Sisters. Just two years later she was sent to Haiti to begin the outreach work she had promised God she would do. And she kept her promise in a big way. She started a school feeding program that provides meals to 121 children, most of whom were going days without food before she arrived. She opened up the local government school to more children by hiring additional teachers and launched a dispensary, doling out medicine and care to families who had nowhere to turn when they got sick. (…)

“ Everything I’ve done in my life has come into play in my mission. I’m not working as an engineer, but it’s like my studies – it all comes into play”, Sr. Irene says. “People are always coming to me with some need. I’m able to help because of the varied experiences I’ve had. I think that was God’s plan.”

1. Do we respond fully to the grace of God in our lives? Are there times when we are unrepentant and unresponsive to the word of God and his miracles in our life?

2. Do we feel a deep affinity with God’s people and are we willing to defend the oppressed? Do we look upon Moses as a model to imitate?

Loving Jesus, our disobedient hearts merit your reproach. Forgive our wicked ways. Help us to be receptive to your grace so that we may rejoice in your benediction. Teach us to be responsible in making life choices that we may no longer deserve your just reproach. Give us the grace to be firm in faith. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** God our Father, you surround Moses with care and protection. You guided Pharaoh’s daughter to draw him out of the water and save him. The young man, Moses, visits his own people and sees them subjected to oppression. On account of the Hebrews, Moses suffers persecution. Grant us the grace to imitate Moses in his care for the suffering and the oppressed. We give you glory and praise, now and forever. Amen.

“ Jesus began to reproach the towns where most of his mighty deeds had been done, since they had not repented.” (Mt 11:20) //“Moses visited his kinsmen and witnessed their forced labor.” (Ex 2:11)

Spend quiet moments with the Scriptures and/or the Blessed Sacrament. Examine your conscience and see what in your life deserves Jesus’ just reproach. // In words and in deeds, do what you can to alleviate the suffering of God’s chosen people today.

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WEDNESDAY: FIFTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Comes for the Little Ones … He Is God’s Burning Bush”

BIBLE READINGS Ex 3:1-6, 9-12 // Mt 11:25-27

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 11:25-27): “Although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike.”

Today’s Gospel reading (Mt 11:25-27) reinforces the truth that the meek and humble Messiah comes for the “little ones”. Jesus Christ, who exemplifies the anawim, or the lowly ones of God, invites us to assume his basic stance as the meek Servant-Son of Yahweh. He exhorts us to participate in his intimate and loving relationship with God the Father. Those who are childlike and trusting, like Jesus, become the recipients of divine revelation. They are able to relish deeper intimacy with God. Indeed, Christ’s saving message about the Father, the Lord of heaven and earth, could only be grasped by “the childlike” and not by “the wise and the learned”. In order to receive fully the refreshing peace and the restoration of soul that Jesus brings, we need to follow him who is the Servant-Son. We need to learn from him the humble ways of the anawim and the “little ones”. Jesus Christ teaches us how to be receptive to grace and submit to the benevolent plan of God. Through his compassionate ministry we are filled with divine wisdom and experience the joy of being God’s children.

The following story illustrates that the grace of God and his benevolent hand surround the “little ones” (cf. “An Extraordinary Daughter” by Mary Kay Kusner in St. Anthony Messenger, January 2008, p. 23-26).

I knew that something was wrong when I first laid eyes on my newborn daughter. Anna’s tiny forehead looked misshapen, and she was listless. As I held her and scanned her with my eyes, I noticed that her skin looked ashen. Minutes later, she was taken from me, rushed to the intensive care unit and put on a breathing machine. Within four days, the genetic tests were back: Anna had a chromosome abnormality … The doctors weren’t sure what this meant for Anna’s development but told us not to expect much. They predicted her I.Q. would be low – between 30 and 70. I was devastated. God had betrayed me. How could I ever believe again? Through all the sleepless nights and tears, I questioned: “Why? Why would God have kept nudging me to have a disabled child?” It made no sense. Just when I thought I had my life back under control, the rug was pulled out. I felt like a fool. All my life, I had been faithful, trusting. I thought Anna would be an answer to my prayer. Now none of that mattered. (…)

When Anna was about six weeks old, a strange incident occurred. She was lying on her back on our bed while I gently massaged her after her bath. Suddenly, I felt as if we were not alone. Anna looked past me, over my shoulder, to Someone who clearly adored her. My daughter smiled and I became almost bashful in the face of such love. I couldn’t see anything but felt the presence melt through me as I realized that Anna was seeing more than I did, that she was inviting me to see more too. After about a minute, the presence left and Anna looked right at me as if to say, “Why do you doubt, Mom?” I promised her to try to be more open after that.

Our boys adored their new sister from the start. They loved to make her laugh. David taught her how to burp and Jon wrestled with her on the floor. Matthew insisted that I never cut her curly hair. They didn’t notice her differences. When others stared at Anna, the boys got annoyed. “How do they know she’s different?” they asked me. Even though her eyes bulge and her forehead is flat, they don’t see it themselves. But I did. I was painfully aware of how different Anna looked. Sometimes I was embarrassed to take her out in public. Once, while riding in the van with the boys, I said out loud, “I wonder why God made Anna like she is.” After a few moments of silence, Matthew, who was almost 11, said, “Well, Mom, if God didn’t make her like she is, then she wouldn’t be Anna.” It took my breath away. “You’re right,” I said. “Thank you, Matthew.” It was a lesson of faith that made me begin to think twice. I loved Anna, but not as freely as a mom should. My boys were teaching me how unconditional love can be. (…)

One day at church, the fuller meaning of Anna finally hit home. Lorraine, a longtime friend, spotted us and waved from her pew. Anna, who was almost three, waved back, and I saw Lorraine laugh. When church ended, we were walking down the aisle toward the door. Lorraine was making her way toward us. “Hi, Anna, I saw you waved at me,” she said to Anna. Anna smiled and said, “Hi. Hi,” over and over. Then Lorraine looked at me and said with such directness, “Thank you for having Anna for all the rest of us.” Her comment brought tears to my eyes. I realized that Anna is a gift to others. She is her own person with her own worth, her own way of contributing to the world … Anna had taught me to be more open, to allow life to become what it can be, not to force it to be what I think it should be.

B. First Reading (Ex 3:1-6, 9-12): “The angel of the Lord appeared to Moses in the burning bush.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Ex 3:1-6, 9-12) is about Moses’ experience of the “burning bush”. While tending the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian, the fugitive Egyptian-bred Moses, who has found a refuge among a Semitic tribe in the land of Midian and has married Zipporah, encounters a strange phenomenon: a “burning bush” that is never consumed. In this awesome “theophany” on Mount Sinai or Mount Horeb, God reveals himself to Moses as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God likewise manifests to him his firm resolve to deliver the Israelites from their oppressors. Moreover, the divine plan is revealed to make Moses the instrument of deliverance. Moses is deeply overwhelmed, but the loving God says to him: “I shall be with you.” The Lord God assures Moses of his presence and the grace he needs to carry out a mission that is beyond his natural powers.

Jesus Christ is God’s “burning bush” in that in his Son the divine nature as compassionate love is fully revealed to us. In Jesus and in the events of our daily life God continues to reveal himself to us. We too like Moses continue to experience the “burning bush” phenomenon, but we need to be sensitive to the revelation of divine grace. The following account gives an insight into this (cf. Elizabeth Sherill, “Beauty” in Daily Guideposts 2010, p. 238).

The bedroom windows here face east. Through them come the sound of the surf, the salt air of the sea and, of course, around 5:00 AM, the light of the rising sun. Usually I groan and reach for my eye mask.

Today, though, a Carolina wren sang so urgently somewhere nearby that I threw off the covers, dressed and headed down the road to my favorite vantage point at the water’s edge.

On the dunes the rugosa roses were in bloom. I caught their fragrance before I saw them – white, pink, maroon. The tide was ebbing, leaving behind a carpet of glistening stones. I sat on a flat-topped rock and watched the incoming waves rise, curl, spill over. For an instant, as each wave crested, the early sun shining through it turned it translucent emerald green.

Beauty – the sheer, extravagant beauty of God’s creation is what the ocean is calling me to see today. Tomorrow we have to leave this house by the shore, and I’ve wondered how I can bear to say good-bye to the salt air and blue water. The ocean is speaking to me about just that. Open your eyes! it says. See the beauty of a raindrop as well as the beauty of a wave, a chipmunk as well as a whale, the potted plant in your kitchen as well as a wild dune rose. You’ve learned to look keenly here by the sea; look as keenly back home.

1. Do we trust in Jesus as the true revelation of the Father? Are we the “little ones” who are willing to savor the rich and life-giving revelation of Jesus?

2. Did we ever experience a “burning bush” divine manifestation in our life? What is our response to it?

Loving Father, you reveal your great love for Jesus, the anawim and the other “little ones” who are meek and humble. In your Servant-Son, teach us the way of “littleness” and complete surrender to your saving will. Help us to be humble instruments of your saving plan. We praise and bless you, now and forever. Amen.

*** Almighty God, you revealed yourself to Moses in the “burning bush” on Mount Sinai as the faithful and benevolent God of the patriarchs. And you reveal yourself radically to us through your Son Jesus Christ, the ultimate “burning bush” experience of our life. Moreover, you continue to manifest your beauty and grace in every aspect of our life. Help us to be sensitive to the light of truth and your saving grace. Give us the eyes to see the wonders of creation and the marvels of your love. We bless and thank you. We adore and glorify you, now and forever. Amen.

“You have revealed them to the childlike.” (Mt 11:25) //“God called out to him from the bush.” (Ex 3:4)

Pray meditatively the thanksgiving prayer of Jesus to the Father and make it your own. Alleviate the suffering of a person who is deeply afflicted and ease the burden of the poor and destitute in the local and world community. // Today be sensitive to the divine manifestation in your life and welcome this “burning bush” experience with joy.

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THURSDAY – FIFTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Comes for the Weary and Heavily Burdened … He Is the Ultimate Moses”

BIBLE READINGS Ex 3:13-20 // Mt 11:28-30

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 11:28-30): “I am meek and humble of heart.”

In today’s Gospel (Mt 11:28-30) we hear that Jesus is meek and humble of heart. He fulfills the Father’s saving plan by “humbly” and “meekly” undergoing the paschal mystery of his passion and death and glorious resurrection. By his triumphant entry into Jerusalem, as the meek and humble Messiah, Jesus inaugurates God’s kingdom of justice and peace. He offers to all – especially to the poor and the lowly - the radical salvation he merited on the cross. Jesus, who comes for the “little ones” to reveal the truth about the compassionate Father, also comes to refresh the labor-weary and heavily burdened. “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest” is his compassionate cry. To turn to him is true consolation. Jesus assures us that his “yoke” is easy and his “burden” light. The “yoke” of love that he puts upon our obedient heart becomes “easy”. He gives us the grace and strength to bear it. The “burden” that faithful Christian discipleship entails becomes “light”. He fills us with the power and wisdom of the Holy Spirit to follow him through the way of the cross to eternal glory.

When my father was diagnosed with terminal cancer when I was a teenager, my mother responded fully to Jesus’ invitation, “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest”. She turned to Jesus in trusting prayer. Her favorite praying stance was kneeling - arms outstretched in the form of a cross. Her eyes were closed to focus more intently on Christ crucified. In Jesus, meek and humble of heart, she found solace and strength to cope with life’s trials. My father eventually recovered and lived thirty more years.

In the Prayer Notes series published by the Abbey Press (St. Meinrad, Indiana), Joel Schorn has an article entitled “Comforting Prayers for Times of Pain and Suffering”. He writes: “For Christians, the life, death and resurrection of Jesus testify to the fact that God knows your pain and suffering and promises you relief from your fears.” From the Book of Common Prayer (1979), he cites the following comforting prayer.

Lord Jesus Christ, by your patience in suffering you hallowed earthly pain and gave us the example of obedience to your Father’s will. Be near me in my time of weakness and pain. Sustain me by your grace that my strength and courage may not fail. Heal me according to your will. And help me always to believe that what happens to me here is of little account if you hold me in eternal life, my Lord and my God. Amen.

B. First Reading (Ex 3:13-20): “I AM WHO AM. I AM has sent me to you.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Ex 3:13-20) continues to depict Moses’ experience of theophany at Mount Sinai. God reveals his name to Moses as “I AM WHO AM”. God’s name means “He causes to be what comes into existence”. Moreover, “I AM” sounds like the Hebrew name “YAHWEH”. It is a name that is not properly a name and thus affirms God’s transcendent otherness. Nonetheless, by revealing himself to Moses as “Yahweh”, God manifests a desire to enter into an intimate and personal relationship with his creature. It implies that God is always there for us and is deeply involved and actively present in our life. Indeed, Yahweh is deeply committed to act on behalf of his people. Hence, after revealing his name, God elaborates the mission of his newly chosen instrument. He chooses Moses to be his prophet and liberator. Moses is the one who will speak on God’s behalf to the people of Israel and the one who will lead the Israelites out of the misery in Egypt into the Promised Land, “a land flowing with milk and honey”. The invitation that God extends to the Israelites through Moses is a promise of rest – of deliverance from oppression and fruitless toil. To Moses’ doubt about his reception among the people and his fear of the Pharaoh’s violent resistance, the Lord God gives an assurance of divine protection and a promise of divine marvels.

Jesus Christ is the ultimate Moses – the “I AM” has sent him to us. Like Moses and Jesus Christ, the “I AM” has also sent us to do our part in the divine saving plan. The following story gives us a glimpse into our mission as human agents of the liberating and healing God (cf. Marion Bond West, “December 15 Reflection” in GUIDEPOSTS 2010, p. 392).

I didn’t want my son Jeremy to lose one inch of hard-gained ground. A recovering addict who struggles with bipolar disorder, he’s come so far in the last year. But when he received a much-needed hip replacement, he couldn’t attend his daily AA meetings.

Then one dreary December day, the mail brought a small, heavy package from Texas. Someone named Betty wrote, “Marion, I’ve been praying for Jeremy daily. I’m sending him a few of the smooth stones I’ve been painting and giving away.”

At the hospital Jeremy lit up like a Christmas tree when I put the stones on his bed. Betty had neatly printed a slogan on each stone, familiar messages from AA and Celebrate Recovery, like “One day at a time” and “Let go and let God”.

After Jeremy wrote to Betty to thank her, she sent him another heavy box. The accompanying note said, “Jeremy, this time I’m sending blank stones with paints and brushes. You paint them, okay?”

When Jeremy returned to his meetings, he brought stones with encouraging phrases he’d painted on them and handed them out to his buddies. “You should have seen how excited the guys were to get the stones, Mom. I’m going to paint some more.”

1. Do we give heed to Jesus’ invitation: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest”? Are we ready to take up the yoke of the Father’s saving will and learn from him, who is “meek and humble of heart”? Do we relish and look forward to the gentle promise: “you will find rest for yourselves”?

2. What is our response to the divine revelation “I AM WHO AM”? What is our response to his commission “I am sending you …”?

Jesus Lord, meek and humble of heart, we turn to you with trusting hearts. We bring to you the world’s afflictions. Restore our weary souls. Raise us up from the grave of sin and despair. My Lord and my God, you love us beyond death. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Lord God, you reveal to us the meaning of your name as a creative and saving presence. How wonderful are you and great is your name! We love and praise you. Like Moses and your beloved Son Jesus, you are sending us to the world of today as human agents of your liberating power and healing love. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Mt 11:28) //“I AM sent me to you.” (Ex 3:14)

That we may appreciate more deeply the promise of comfort of Jesus, the meek and humble of heart, make an effort to spend some moments of prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. // Be sensitive to the people around you who are in distress and are in need. See how you can bring the saving presence of God into their life so that you may be able to say: “I AM has sent me to you.”

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FRIDAY – FIFTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Is Lord of the Sabbath … He Is Our Passover”

BIBLE READINGS Ex 11:10-12:14 // Mt 12:1-8

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 12:1-8): “The son of Man is the Lord of the Sabbath.”

The Gospel (Mt 12:1-8) tells us that seeing Jesus’ disciples plucking heads of grain on a Sabbath and eating them, the Pharisees raise the issue of lack of Sabbath observance. According to them, the disciples are harvesting on a holy day and transgressing the law of Sabbath rest. Jesus’ defence of the disciples manifests his compassionate stance. For him, human need takes precedence over the law. People are more important than rigid legal observance. In a case of proportionate necessity, positive law may be rightly dispensed with. The Pharisees have wrongly hedged the Sabbath law with unnecessary prohibitions. Those who have God’s law in their hearts know how to act with compassion, even on the Sabbath. Jesus is the supreme interpreter of the Law and he does so in humanitarian terms. As Lord of the Sabbath, he calls for steadfast love rather than ritualism or false sacrifice.

An ex-seminarian committed suicide by hanging himself in the shower room using a bandanna. The parish priest denied him a Christian burial. He belongs to an old tradition that interprets rigidly the canon law concerning “those to whom ecclesiastical funeral rites are to be granted or to be denied”. A priest from the seminary, together with a group of seminarians, went to visit the grieving family and celebrated the Funeral Mass before the coffin of the deceased. He did so in the compassionate spirit of Jesus, Lord of the Sabbath.

B. First Reading (Ex 11:10-12:14): “It shall be slaughtered during the evening twilight. Seeing the blood I will pass over you.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Ex 11:10-12:14) depicts the rite of Jewish Passover. What is ritually commemorated is the Lord’s Passover, that is, the saving event when his angel of destruction “passes over” the Israelite households whose doorposts and lintels have been marked by the blood of the sacrificial lamb. When the Lord goes through Egypt to kill the first-born of the Egyptians in the last and final plague, he prevents the angel of death from entering the Israelite households. God commands the Israelites to celebrate this experience of salvation through a religious festival to remind them of what the Lord has done for them. God enjoins them to celebrate it for all time to come.

The following story gives us an insight into what a “memorial of salvation” means (cf. Cookie Curci, “The Secret of Grandma’s Sugar Crock” in Chicken Soup for the Soul, ed. Jack Canfield, et. al., Cos Cob: CSS, 2008, p. 190-193).

During World War II, a government-issued flag, imprinted with five blue stars, hung in the front window of my grandparents’ old farmhouse. It meant five of their sons were off fighting in the war. (…)

As darkness fell on the ranch, we’d all gather together on the cool, quiet veranda of the front porch, Grandpa would settle comfortably into his rocker, under the dim glow of a flickering moth-covered light bulb, and there he’d read the latest war news in his newspaper, trying to track the whereabouts if his five young sons.

Grandma always sat nearby on the porch swing, swaying back and forth and saying her perpetual rosary. The quiet squeak of Grandma’s swing and the low mumbling of her prayers could be heard long into the night. The stillness of the quiet ranch painfully reflected the absence of the five robust young men. This was the hardest part of the day for Grandma; the silence of the empty house was a painful reminder that her sons were far, far away, fighting for her country.

On Sunday morning, Grandma was back out on the porch again, repeating her rosary before going into the kitchen to start cooking. Then she and Grandpa sat at the kitchen table, counting out ration slips for the week ahead and what little cash there was to pay the bills. Once they were finished, Grandma always took a portion of her money and put it in the sugar crock, placing it high on the kitchen shelf. I often asked her what the money in the jar was for. She would simply say, “A very special favor.”

Well, the war finally ended, and all five of Grandma’s sons came home, remarkably safe and sound. After a while, Grandma and Grandpa retired, and the family farm became part of a modern expressway.

I never did find out what the money in the sugar crock was for until a week or so before last Christmas. Completely on impulse, perhaps feeling the wonder of the Christmas season and the need to connect with its spiritual significance, I stopped at a little church I just happened to be driving past. I’d never been inside before, and as I entered the church through the side door, I was stunned to come face-to-face with the most glorious stained-glass window I’d ever seen.

I stopped to examine the intricate beauty of the window more closely. The magnificent stained glass depicted the Holy Mother and child. Like an exquisite jewel, it reflected the glory of the very first Christmas. As I studied every detail of its fine workmanship, I found, to my utter amazement, a small plague at the base of the window that read, “For a favor received – donated in 1945 by Maria Carmela Curci-Dinapoli.” I couldn’t believe my eyes. I was reading Grandma’s very words! Every day that Grandma had said her prayers for her soldier-sons, she’d also put whatever money she could scrape together into her sacred sugar crock to pay for the window.

Her quiet donation of this window had been her way of saying thank you to God for sparing the lives of her beloved five sons. The original church in which the window was placed had long ago been torn down. Through the generations, the family had lost track of its existence. Finding this window at Christmastime, more than half a century later, not only brought back a flood of previous memories, but also made me a believer in small but beautiful miracles.

1. What is our attitude in regard to the law? Do we try to live by the letter of the law or by its spirit? Do we follow the compassionate stance of the Lord of the Sabbath? Do we allow the spirit of love to permeate our legal and religious observance?

2. Do we appreciate the importance of rituals and memorial celebrations? What do we do to keep alive the saving events we have experienced in our life?

O merciful Jesus, you are Lord of the Sabbath. Your compassionate ways and fidelity inspire us to live by the divine law. Deliver us from false piety and teach us to walk by your ways. You, likewise, are the font of healing. Free us from our infirmities and restore us to good health. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** O loving God, how wonderful are your works! Israel’s experience of Passover in Egypt is a saving event that prefigures Christ’s Passover from death to life. Help us be thankful and grateful. Help us to celebrate fittingly your might deeds and be faithful to you always. We adore and bless you, now and forever Amen.

“For the Son of Man is the Lord of the Sabbath.” (Mt 12:1-8) //“This day shall be a memorial feast for you.” (Ex 12:14

Reflect on the meaning of law in the Church. Try to perceive its significance and abide by the spirit of the law, and not by the letter. // Resolve to participate in the Mass with greater consciousness and appreciation of it as a memorial of Christ’s Passover.

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SATURDAY – FIFTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Will Not Break a Bruised Reed … We Celebrate His Passover in the Easter Vigil”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 12:14-21): “He warned them not to make him known to fulfill what had been spoken.”

In today’s Gospel (Mt 12:14-21), we continue to witness the “meek and gentle” ways of Jesus. He is the chosen and beloved Servant of the Lord, filled with his Spirit. He is destined to proclaim salvation to the nations and bring healing to the bruised and the weak. Jesus is the harbinger of God’s mercy to Jews and Gentiles. Fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy concerning the Servant of the Lord, the non-violent Jesus does not “contend or cry out, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets”. He avoids useless confrontations with the Pharisees by withdrawing quietly. He avoids self-aggrandizing publicity by ordering those cured not to make public what he has done. His care for the weak, the discouraged and the marginalized is captured in the beautiful words of Isaiah: “A bruised reed he will not break; a smoldering wick he will not quench.” Far from rejecting sinners and morally weak people, Jesus encourages them to greater efforts and leads them to repentance. He is not a conquering political Messiah, but a Servant Lord who heals and treats mankind with great compassion. His loving heart is open to all. His “meek and gentle” heart can sense the longing for conversion that lies deep in every person.

The ministry of Poverello House, founded by Mike McGarvin (“Papa Mike”) in Fresno, gives us a glimpse of how to incarnate the mission of the Servant of the Lord in today’s world. From the incident he relates below, we are challenged not to give up on the “bruised reed” (cf. Poverello News, December 2011, p.1-2).

People in line for food in our dining room queue up on the southern wall as they come through the door. Here, they wait to move up to the serving window. This places them in close proximity to tables where people are already eating. Often, to pass the time while they wait, those in line exchange pleasantries with friends who are already served. Occasionally, an argument will break out between someone in line and someone seated, but that is, thankfully, a very rare occurrence.

One day recently, a “Code Red” call crackled across our walkie-talkies. Code Red is never good news; it means that there is a fight taking place, or that someone is having some kind of medical emergency, and all the available staff need to rush to the scene to assist. Over the years, Code Reds have been invoked for seizures, fainting, one-on-one fights, melees involving many people, car accidents, stabbings, and shootings. A Code Red is guaranteed to make one’s adrenaline start pumping.

This time, the Code Red was for a man seated near the line on the south wall. He had tried to swallow something too large, and it became lodged in his throat. He started choking severely, his face turning purple, and the people around him began panicking.

The men on security duty knew they needed help, so they immediately put the call out on the radios. Just as they did, a homeless man in the food line observed what was happening. He quietly walked over to the distressed man, and proceeded to do a textbook Heimlich maneuver on him. After a few abdominal thrusts on the choking victim’s diaphragm, the food rocketed out of the victim’s mouth, and he could breathe once more.

As nonchalantly as he left the line, the rescuer walked back over and resumed his place. He was a hero, but he nevertheless didn’t seem to want much attention, nor did he want to miss his meal.

This action surprised many of us, but it shouldn’t have. Sometimes, we make the mistake of thinking far too negatively about our homeless guests, based on the action of a few. In reality, there is a sense of community and helpfulness among many of the homeless.

Around here, the old saying, “There is no honor among the thieves”, sometimes get paraphrased as, “There is no kindness among homeless addicts”. Addictive behavior is often quite predictable, but, because we are dealing with individual human souls, our predictions are never the last word. Even people in the throes of this extremely self-centered affliction are capable of rising above their circumstances and aiding someone else.

Those of us who labor trying to help the homeless are also human. That means that, in spite of our good intentions, we sometimes lapse into negative attitudes, stereotyped thinking, and low expectations. Occasionally, God sends a small miracle our way, like the homeless hero described above, to remind us that people are every bit as capable of saintly behavior as they are of selfishness.

B. First Reading (Ex 12:37-42): “This was a night of vigil for the Lord as he led them out of the land of Egypt.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Ex 12:37-42) depicts the night vigil for the Lord as he leads the Israelites out of the land of Egypt. The Israelites have lived in Egypt for 430 years. On the day the 430 years ended, all the tribes of the Lord’s people leave Egypt. The Lord keeps vigil over the Israelites on the night when he leads them out of slavery in Egypt. Just as the Lord has kept vigil over the Israelites on the night of deliverance, so must the Israelites celebrate their deliverance by keeping a ritual night vigil for all generations. The Jewish vigil celebration of their deliverance from Egypt prefigures the Christian Easter Vigil, the Mother of all Holy Vigils. St. Augustine reminds us: “We must keep vigil on that night because the Lord Jesus rose from the dead. That life where there is no longer the sleep of death began for us in his flesh. Being thus risen, death will no more have dominion … If we have kept vigil with the risen one, he will see that we shall reign with him forever.”

The importance of keeping vigil over those undergoing the completion of their “transitus” or passage to eternity can be gleaned from the following story (cf. Sandy Beauchamp, “Helen’s Story” in Chicken Soup for the Christian Soul, ed. Jack Canfield, et. al. Deerfield Beach: Health Communications, Inc., 1997, p. 265-266).

Helen Packer was 17 years old when I met her. A devout Christian and much- loved child, she was entering the hospital for the last time. Her diagnosis was lymphoma and all attempts at remission failed. Helen shared with me, her nurse, that she could handle everything but the thought of dying alone.

She just wanted a loved one near her to hold her hand and pray with her. Helen’s mother would stay at her bedside from early morning to late evening, return home for rest and resume the vigil come morning. Her father traveled in his job but relieved his wife as often as he could.

All of the nurses on the unit realized that Helen was precariously near death, as did she and her family. She began having seizures and lapses of consciousness.

As I was leaving the hospital at 11:00 one night, I noticed Helen’s mother heading toward the parking garage as well. Our conversation was interrupted by the loudspeaker. “Outside call, Helen Packer. Please call the operator!”

Mrs. Packer reacted immediately with alarm. “Everyone knows how ill she is!” she blurted. “I’m going back to her room to see who is calling.” With that she left me and returned to Helen. The operator reported that the calling party had hung up but left a message: “Tell Helen her ride will be late but is coming.”

Baffled, Mrs. Packer stayed at Helen’s bedside in anticipation of a mysterious visitor. Helen died at 1:13 A.M. with her mother at her side, holding her hand and praying.

When queried the next day, the operator couldn’t remember even the gender of the caller. No other Helen Packer was found, employee or patient or visitor. For those of us who cared for, nurtured and prayed for Helen, there was only one answer.

1. How does the following description of Jesus impinge on us: A bruised reed he will not break; a smoldering wick he will not quench”? Do we imitate the gentle ways of Jesus and his compassionate stance?

2. Do we see the importance of keeping vigil over a dying person? How do we participate in the Church Easter Vigil celebration?

Jesus Lord, you are the beloved Servant of Yahweh. The Lord God delights in you. He anoints you with his Spirit. Help us to be channels of your peace to the heart-broken and bearers of grace to the hopeless. Give us the courage to be peaceful in a violent world and the faithful love to care for the needs of the weak. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Loving Father, you always keep vigil over us as you lead us from death-dealing situations to the light of eternal life. Grant us the grace to celebrate worthily the Easter Vigil of our Lord Jesus Christ’s resurrection and help us keep watch and support those who are departing to eternal life. We trust in you for you are the God of the living, now and forever. Amen.

“A bruised reed he will not break; a smoldering wick he will not quench.” (Mt 12:20) //“This was night of vigil for the Lord.” (Ex 12:42)

Manifest the compassionate stance of Jesus to the people around you. Pray for the grace to overcome negative attitudes and prejudices so as to avoid breaking a “bruised reed” and quenching a “smoldering wick”. // Pray for the grace of a happy death for the dying and assist in any way possible those who are terminally ill.

MONDAY: SIXTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Gives the Sign of Jonah … He Is Our Saving Glory”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 12:38-42): “At the judgment the queen of the south will arise with this generation and condemn it.”

The Gospel (Mt 12:38-42) tells us that the scribes and Pharisees demand to see a “sign” from Jesus – a flashy miracle that will convince them he is truly the Messiah. The “sign” they want is one that fits their notion of a triumphant political Son of David. Jesus has given enough signs in his public ministry, both in word and deed. But their prejudice prevents them from recognizing Jesus as the Messiah. He obliges by giving them the ultimate sign: Jonah in the belly of the whale three days and three nights. The mind- baffling “sign of Jonah” refers to the paschal event of his death and resurrection. Failure to accept this sign is unfortunate and merits condemnation. The people of Nineveh, who responded with repentance to Jonah’s proclamation, and the Queen of the South, who yearned to hear the wisdom of Solomon, stand in sharp contrast to their unbelief. Indeed, Jesus is “something greater” than Jonah or Solomon. More than Jonah who preaches repentance, Jesus is our peace and reconciliation. More than Solomon and his wisdom, Jesus is the incarnate wisdom of God. He is the fullness of truth - the absolute revelation of the heavenly Father’s love.

Jesus continues to offer the “sign of Jonah”, and those who are sensitive to grace can perceive it. The paschal sign of his death and resurrection enfolds us. We are called to an intimate participation in it. The following story circulated on the Internet gives insight into this.

A sick man turned to his doctor as he was preparing to leave the examination room and said, “Doctor, I am afraid to die. Tell me what lies on the other side.” Very quietly the doctor said, “I don’t know.” “You don’t know? You’re a Christian man and don’t know what’s on the other side?” The doctor was holding the handle of the door. On the other side came a sound of scratching and whining. And as he opened the door, a dog sprang into the room and leaped on him with an eager show of gladness. Turning to the patient, the doctor said “Did you notice my dog? He’s never been in this room before. He didn’t know what was inside. He knew nothing except that his master was here. And when the door opened, he sprang in without fear. I know little of what is on the other side of death. But I do know one thing … I know my Master is there and that is enough.”

B. First Reading (Ex 14:5-18): “They will know that I am the Lord when I receive glory through Pharaoh.”

The reading (Ex 14:5-18) depicts Pharaoh and his army in pursuit of the Israelites. Pharaoh has changed his mind about the Israelites leaving Egypt. He now regrets letting them go and resents the loss of a significant slave-labor force. The Israelites understandably react to the enemy’s pursuit with fear, and are tempted to prefer the slavery in Egypt to sure death in the desert. To Israel’s cry of despair, Moses responds with the assurance: “Don’t be afraid … You will see what the Lord will do to save you today … The Lord will fight for you!” The Lord then gives directions to Moses to ensure the safe passage of the Israelites through the sea. Moses is to lift his staff, stretch out his hand, and divide the sea in favor of Israel. The consequent defeat of the Egyptians will be an eloquent witness to the power of the Divine Warrior. Thus the Lord God will be extolled and glorified.

The following story gives a glimpse into the fear and danger that the Israelites went through because of the attacks by the Egyptians (cf. Lou McMurray, “A Most Unusual Vacation” in Poverello News, March 2013, p. 3-4 // April 2013, p. 3-5).

Our group was visiting Crown Island off the coast of mainland Papua New Guinea (PNG). The island was populated by several extended families … I took a walk on a trail passing through a small family unit, unkempt gardens and rainforest. After the walk I decided to take a swim … I had swum approximately one fourth mile and was having a nice time looking at all the fish and coral formations.

I suddenly felt something big against my body and something clamped onto my right arm. I looked and saw a big crocodile with my arm in his mouth. I was immediately able to yank my arm out. I felt no pain and my body went into survival mode … This time he started snapping his jaws and caught my left lower leg. I again kicked and yanked my leg out of his mouth. He backed off and swam next to me. I was still at least 100 meters offshore. I didn’t notice the water depth. My only thoughts were to keep my eyes on the crocodile, that I was probably going to die and that I was getting exhausted from swimming and kicking him.

He came at me several more times. I can’t recall how many aggressive moves he made, probably five or six. He caught my other leg in one of the attacks and again I was able to kick free. I was now desperate. I realized that if he kept at me I wouldn’t make it to shore. It was all I could do to keep swimming and kicking at him. The croc was getting wise to my kicks and starting to lower his approach so I couldn’t get my feet under his jaws to kick him. He seemed to have no inclination to leave me.

I lost track of the crocodile and looked under water to see where he was. Before he stayed on top of the water and I could see him. My last view of him was underwater swimming away. But I wasn’t sure he wouldn’t come back, so getting on the boat was a high priority. The problem was that the ramp was narrow and about a foot above the water. I didn’t have the strength to lift myself in. I was totally exhausted. With the help of Dan, the boat hand, I finally got on board.

It was on the short boat ride back to the ship that I realized I was injured. I couldn’t evaluate my situation but could only feel overwhelmed with my good fortune that the rescue boat came when it did. Apparently, Steve, one of the boat hands on shore saw me struggling and splashing. As I was a good one fourth mile away he did not know I was being attacked. Thinking something was wrong Steve called the ship and requested a rescue boat to come to investigate. Had Steve not made that call, it’s doubtful I would have survived.

1. What is our response to the “sign of Jonah” that Jesus continues to offer us in our daily life?

2. What do we do when fear assails us and when we are the object of an enemy’s attack? Do we hold on and allow the Lord to defend and fight for us?

Lord Jesus Christ, we thank you for the paschal “sign of Jonah”. Please give us the grace to respond in faith to this “mystery” and revelation of love. Teach us to make a quest for you, the eternal wisdom that leads to eternal life. Loving Lord, help us to do what is required of us: “to do the right and to love goodness, and to walk humbly with God”. We love you and praise you, now and forever. Amen.

*** All-powerful God, like the Israelites in the desert pursued by the Egyptians, we too suffer attacks from death-dealing forces. Let us be comforted by your assurance: “Do not be afraid … The Lord will fight for you.” Be our defense and protection. We give you glory and praise, now and forever. Amen.

“ No sign will be given it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.” (Mt 12:39) // “Fear not … The Lord himself will fight for you.” (Ex 14:13-14)

Be receptive to the “sign of Jonah” that surrounds us in daily life. By consciously participating in the paschal sacrifice of Christ, let the people around you realize that the “sign of Jonah” is a sign of salvation. // When assailed by temptation and danger, stand your ground and fear not, believing that the Lord himself will fight for you.

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TUESDAY: SIXTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: His Family Obeys the Will of God … He Is Victorious in His Exodus”

BIBLE READINGS Ex 14:21-15:1 // Mt 12:46-50

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 12:46-50): “Stretching out his hands toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers.”

The Gospel (Mt 12:46-50) tells us that Jesus continues to suffer unbelief and rejection. The hostility of the Jewish religious leaders is mounting. The mother and relatives of Jesus are deeply concerned. They want to speak to him. They probably intend to take him away from danger. But Jesus makes use of the presence of his mother and kinsmen to define the true nature of his family. The true family of Jesus is constituted by those who follow the will of God – of which Mary is the model. Jesus does not reject the bond of blood kinship, but his commitment to the reign of God leads him to affirm the new and higher bond of spiritual kinship. Those who, in faith, submit to the will of God the Father are brothers and sisters and mothers to Jesus. They are true members of God’s family.

The following story, circulated on the Internet, shows how Mother Teresa of Calcutta testifies to how we can live in today’s world as true members of God’s family.

Jim Castle was tired when he boarded his plane in Cincinnati, Ohio, that night in 1981. The 45-year-old management consultant had put on a week-long series of business meetings and seminars, and now he sank gratefully into his seat, ready for the flight home to Kansas City, Kansas. As more passengers entered, the place hummed with conversation, mixed with the sound of bags being stowed. Then, suddenly, people fell silent. The quiet moved slowly up the aisle like an invisible wake behind a boat. Jim craned his head to see what was happening and his mouth dropped open. Walking up the aisle were two nuns clad in simple white habits bordered in blue. He recognized the familiar face of one at once, the wrinkled skin, and the eyes warmly intent. This was a face he’d seen in newscasts and on the cover of TIME. The two nuns halted, and Jim realized that his seat companion was going to be Mother Teresa!

As the last few passengers settled in, Mother Teresa and her companion pulled out rosaries. Each decade of the beads was a different color, Jim noticed. “The decades represented various areas of the world”, Mother Teresa told him later and added, “I pray for the poor and dying on each continent.”

The airplane taxied to the runway and the two women began to pray, their voices a low murmur. Though Jim considered himself not a very religious Catholic who went to church mostly out of habit, inexplicably he found himself joining in. By the time they murmured the final prayer, the plane had reached cruising altitude. Mother Teresa turned toward him. For the first time in his life, Jim understood what people meant when they spoke of a person possessing an “aura”. As she gazed at him, a sense of peace filled him; he could no more see it than he could see the wind but he felt it, just as surely as he felt a warm summer breeze. “Young man”, she inquired, “do you say the rosary often?” “No, not really”, he admitted. She took his hands, while her eyes probed his. Then she smiled. “Well, you will now.” And she dropped her rosary into his palm.

An hour later, Jim entered the Kansas City airport where he was met by his wife, Ruth. “What in the world?” Ruth asked when she noticed the rosary in his hand. They kissed and Jim described his encounter. Driving home, he said “I feel as if I met a true sister of God.”

Nine months later, Jim and Ruth visited Connie, a friend of theirs for several years. Connie confessed that she’d been told she had ovarian cancer. “The doctor says it’s a tough case”, said Connie, “but I’m going to fight it. I won’t give up.” Jim clasped her hand. Then, after reaching into his pocket, he gently twined Mother Teresa’s rosary around her fingers. He told her the story and said, “Keep it with you, Connie. It may help.” Although Connie wasn’t Catholic, her hand closed willingly around the small plastic beads. “Thank you”, she whispered. “I hope I can return it.”

More than a year passed before Jim saw Connie again. This time her face was glowing. She hurried toward him and handed him the rosary. “I carried it with me all year”, she said. “I’ve had surgery and have been on chemotherapy, too. Last month, the doctors did second-look surgery, and the tumor’s gone. Completely!” Her eyes met Jim’s. “I knew it was time to give the rosary back.”

B. First Reading (Ex 14:21-15:1): “The children of Israel marched into the midst of the sea on dry land.”

Today’s reading (Ex 14:21-15:1) recounts the awesome manifestation of divine power at the crossing of the Red Sea. This confirms the reality that the God of Israel is the Lord of all. As commanded, Moses stretches out his hand over the sea, resulting in a very special miracle. The water is divided, and the Israelites go through the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on both sides. At this point, the Egyptian forces pursue the Israelites on the dry land. Moses then stretches out his hand over the sea and the returning waters engulf the Egyptians. This victory at sea enables the Israelites to acknowledge God’s saving intervention on their behalf. Moses and the Israelites thus sing the following song to the Lord: “I will sing to the Lord, for he is gloriously triumphant; horse and chariot he has cast into the sea.” The Lord’s deliverance of Israel at the Red Sea has clearly proved his dominion over all forces and manifests that he is the singular savior of Israel. By his passion, death, and glorification, Jesus Christ has brought to fulfillment the saving event of the Israelites’ crossing of the Red Sea, which prefigures it.

The “victory” that the Israelites experience at the crossing of the Red Sea continues to surface in our daily life, as the following story shows (cf. Sabra Ciancanelli, “July 5 Reflection” in Daily Guideposts 2010, p. 212).

My son Solomon was afraid of getting his head wet. Last summer when I signed him up for swim lessons, my husband and I spent many nights reassuring Solomon that he’d be fine.

On the morning of his first lesson, Solomon and I waited outside the community swimming pool. I gave him a hug and whispered, “You can do it!” Solomon put on a belt with floats and climbed down the ladder. He followed the instructor’s words carefully. When she asked him to blow bubbles in the water, without hesitation, he leaned in and blew.

In the following days Solomon learned to float and paddle. By the second week my concern eased, and I read a magazine as they practiced. At one point I looked up to check on Solomon and didn’t see him. I raced to the pool’s edge and fearfully searched the bottom. I was about to yell out to the instructor when I noticed the boy in front of me swimming gracefully with his face in the water. He was wearing the same kind of swimsuit as Solomon. Wait, that is Solomon! Look how beautifully he glides! I clapped and cheered, and my eyes filled with tears as Solomon reached the edge of the pool.

1. Do we truly belong to the family of God by our faith response and obedience to the Father’s will? By our work and deeds, do we strive to be a mother, brother or sister to Jesus present in today’s poor and needy?

2. Do we trust that the Lord is with us to protect us as we cross the raging waters of our life? Do we acclaim his saving power in our life?

Loving Jesus, you are the beloved son of God. Baptized into the community of faith, we become members of God’s family. Help us to live our baptismal consecration and obediently follow the Father’s saving will that we may truly be a part of the divine family. Give us the grace to be a mother, brother or sister to the poor and needy in today’s world that we may merit your gift of spiritual kinship. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** God our Father, the exodus of the Israelites through the Red Sea manifests your saving power. Let your marvelous power guide us as we attempt to cross the desert of temptations and to traverse the raging seas of our life. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother.” (Mt 12:50) //“I will sing to the Lord, for he is gloriously triumphant.” (Ex 15:1)

By your witness of charity and service to the people around you, let them know that you truly belong to the community of faith and that you are a brother, sister, or mother to Jesus. // Be attentive to the many “victories” in your daily life that you experience through divine grace, and be thankful to the Lord for them.

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WEDNESDAY: SIXTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Sows the Seed of God’s Word … He Is the Bread from Heaven”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 13:1-9): “The seed produced grain a hundredfold.”

In today’s Gospel reading (Mt 13:1-23), the impressive image of the fruitful seed that yields a hundredfold underlines the mighty power of God’s saving plan. The Word of God, prefigured in the “seed” sown liberally by the sower, is Jesus Christ whose favorable saving action on our behalf is total and efficacious. The fruitfulness of the seed of the Word, however, involves not only the graciousness of the divine initiative but also the receptivity and personal response of the recipient.

The authors of the Days of the Lord, vol. 4, comment: “The word attests to God’s faithfulness, long patience, and assiduous labor for the unfolding of salvation offered to all humankind. This word comes from God, who created human beings free, and who made with them a covenant of love. Efficacious, indescribably fecund, this word demands from human beings a willing response made of openness, conversion, and ever- renewed trust in him who speaks it … Thanks to the generous manner in which it is sown, we see the extraordinary fecundity of a single seed encountering a bit of good soil; it gives fruit a hundred or sixty or thirty fold. Are these different yields due to chance or luck? Absolutely not, for it is in the human heart that the word is sown … If the word is not fruitful, it is due to the listeners’ poor disposition. The urgent appeal to each one’s responsibility must be welcomed with immense hope.”

The following gives insight into the dynamics of the sowing of the Word and the reaping of a fruitful harvest (cf. Harold Hostetler‘s April 15 Reflection in Daily Guideposts 2010, p. 120).

When I was a boy getting ready for school each morning, I often found my mother sitting at the kitchen table, reading her Bible. After seeing my father off to work in a Pennsylvania coal mine, she turned to the Good Book before making breakfast for her three children. I can still visualize her bowing her head over her well-worn King James Bible, eyes closed, chin resting on a half-clenched hand, probably praying for each of us.

It took twenty years from the time I left home before I gave my heart to Jesus, but when I did, the first thing I wanted to do was read the Bible. In nearly four decades since that eye-opening moment I’ve read God’s Word from cover to cover almost every year, in more than a dozen different translations. My favorite is the New International Version, maybe because I spent a year working for the International Bible Society during the time it was producing the NIV Study Bible and I was able to contribute some thoughts for its footnotes.

And today, as I finish yet another reading of Psalm 119, I can’t help but remember one of the reasons I feel do drawn to the Good Book.

Thanks, Mom.

B. First Reading (Ex 16:1-5, 9-15): “I will rain down bread from heaven for you.”

The reading (Ex 16:1-5, 9-15) depicts God’s act of graciousness upon the hard- headed Israelites. It is the fifteenth day of the second month after their departure from Egypt and the people wandering in the desert are given to despair. They express a death wish that is tantamount to a rejection of God’s saving plan: “Would that we had died at the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, as we sat by our fleshpots and ate our fill of bread! But you had to lead us into this desert to make the whole community die of famine!” Their grumblings manifest their lack of trust in the God who desires to lead them into the Promised Land. The Lord God, however, responds to their despair with an act of mercy. To the people’s complaint and hunger pangs, the Lord God promises relief and nourishment. God rains down bread from heaven that they may have their fill. He also sends quails from the sky to provide them with meat to eat. God’s gracious care of the people in the desert prefigures the ultimate care he gives to his people by sending his beloved Son Jesus Christ, the bread of life come down from heaven.

The following story illustrates the enormous care of God, especially for those who trust in him (cf. Lalia Winsett, “Baptist Minister” in Chicken Soup for the Christian Soul, ed. Jack Canfield, at. al. Deerfield Beach: Health Communications, Inc. 1997, p. 197).

I have a cousin who is a Baptist minister. When we were growing up, we only saw each other a couple of times a year. Now we see each other even less.

A few years ago, when I hadn’t seen him for some time, I suddenly began thinking about him and his family. I just couldn’t get them off my mind. And for some reason, I felt compelled to send him a check for $100. I thought about it for a few days and made more than one aborted trip to the post office. I finally mailed it with a letter saying I hope I wasn’t offending him, but I believed the Lord wanted me to do this.

A couple of weeks later I received a reply. My cousin said it never ceased to amaze him how God worked in his life. And now God had once again shown him, through us, that he will always meet our needs. My cousin said the only concern he had was that I sent too much. All he needed was $97.56.

1. Are we thankful for the goodness and generosity of Jesus the Sower, who casts the seed of the Kingdom everywhere and brings the Good News to all? Do we endeavor to be the rich, welcoming soil that will make the seed of the Kingdom grow and bear abundant fruit?

2. Do we ever grumble and complain to God about anything? What does this say with regards to our faith relationship with God?

Lord Jesus, you have sown the seed of the living Word. Let it find a fertile ground. You have called us to broadcast the saving Word. We trust in the power of your Word. Let the sown seed produce a hundred-fold. Make us faithful prophets and servants of the Word. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Almighty God, how gracious you are and how marvelous is you saving plan! You responded with care and kindness to the hunger pangs of the Israelites. You have provided for their needs. You rained down bread from heaven to satisfy their hunger. We too are hungry for spiritual food and you send Jesus Christ, the bread of eternal life. We thank you for this marvelous gift. Grant that, in being nourished by this gift, we may be transformed and become living “Eucharist”. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“ Some seed fell on rich soil.” (Mt 13:8) //“I will now rain down bread from heaven for you.” (Ex 16:4)

To help appreciate more deeply the generous kindness of Jesus, the Sower of God’s Kingdom, make an effort to spend some moments of prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. // Today when you are tempted to complain against God and grumble, keep in mind how good and gracious he is. Resolve to trust him in your deep needs.

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THURSDAY – SIXTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Speaks in Parables … He Is God Manifest”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 13:10-17): “Because knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of heaven has been granted to you, but to them t has not been granted.”

In the Gospel (Mt 13:10-17) we see that Jesus uses stories to communicate the kingdom values. He speaks to people in parables to reveal the mysteries of the reign of God. The Gospel message demands a positive response and necessitates openness of heart. The parables and stories are meant to be meditated upon and “interiorized”. Teaching in parables is a compassionate act of the Divine Master to reach out to those in need of salvation. The simple and childlike are able to glean the life-giving wisdom of Jesus’ parables. Those who have deliberately closed their heart to Jesus are untouched by the power of the parables. Since their heart is gross, they look but do not see; they hear but do not understand. They are oblivious to the saving message and are not moved to conversion and transformation. Their lack of understanding results from their prejudice that Jesus does not meet their criteria of the Messiah.

The following story illustrates that to glean the life-giving meaning of stories and parables, the heart must be at work (cf. Anthony de Mello, The Song of the Bird, New York: Image Books, 1984, p. 1).

A disciple once complained, “You tell us stories, but you never reveal the meaning to us.”

Said the master, “How would you like it if someone offered you fruit and masticated it before giving it to you?”

No one can find the meaning for you. Not even the master.

B. First Reading (Ex 19:1-2, 9-11): “The Lord descended on Mount Sinai before the eyes of all the people.”

The reading (Ex 19:1-2, 9-11, 16-20b) depicts the “theophany” or God’s manifestation on Mount Sinai. The people of Israel reach the desert of Sinai on the first day of the third month after leaving Egypt. The Lord commands Moses to prepare the people for the divine encounter by sanctifying themselves and through certain rituals for purification. On the third day of preparation, Moses leads the people out of the camp to meet God and they stand at the foot of the mountain. The Lord then comes down on Mount Sinai. Having summoned Moses to the mountain top, the Lord God speaks to him. In the Sinai theophany that is marked with fire, smoke and the shaking of the mountain, God reveals himself as the Lord of majesty, power and glory. The people of Israel are overawed. God likewise confirms Moses’ unique position as his prophet and the covenant mediator. God stipulates a covenant with the Israelites and fashions them into a “chosen people”, a people dedicated to God alone.

The divine manifestation goes on through time and space. God continues to reveal himself as a “mighty and powerful” God. Our response is awe and adoration. The following lyrics composed by Isaac Watts (1674-1748) underline a very positive response to the display of God’s power and might.

“I Sing the Mighty Power of God”

I sing he mighty pow’r of God that made the mountains rise, that spread the flowing seas abroad and built the lofty skies. I sing the wisdom that ordained the sun to rule the day. The moon shines full at his command and all the stars obey.

I sing the goodness of the Lord that filled the earth with food. He formed the creatures with his word and then pronounced them good. Lord, how thy wonders are displayed where’er I turn my eye. If I survey the ground I tread or gaze upon the sky!

There’s not a plant or flow’r below, but makes thy glories known. And clouds arise and tempests blow by order from thy throne. While all that borrows life from thee is ever in thy care. And ev’ry where that I can be, Thou, God, are present there.

1. Do we make a personal effort to deepen our faith by prayerful reflection on the word of God? Do we continue to value the life-giving meaning of Jesus’ parables?

2. What is our response to God who manifests his loving and marvelous presence to us? Are we open to welcome the beauty and miracle of God’s self-revelation as a mighty, strong and immortal God?

Jesus Lord, you spoke in parables to reveal to us the mysteries of the kingdom and to manifest the state of our heart. Help us to be receptive to your word. Give us the grace and wisdom we need to delve into the meaning of your parables. Let your life-giving message transform us. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** O loving God, holy, awesome, glorious and powerful are you! You are our merciful Father. Your love makes of us your “covenant people”. Let us be faithful to you. We will sing your praise all the days of our life and serve you, now and forever. Amen.

“Knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven has been granted to you.” (Mt 13:11) // “The Lord will come down on Mount Sinai before the eyes of all the people.” (Ex 19:11).

Pay particular attention to Jesus’ parables, especially when they are proclaimed in the liturgical assembly. Make a special effort to glean their message for you and the community. // Be attentive and responsive to the various “manifestations” of God in our daily life.

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FRIDAY – SIXTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Helps Them Understand … He Is the Rule of Life”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 13:18-23): “The one who understands the word and understands it will bear much fruit.”

The Gospel (Mt 13:18-23) tells us that without spoon-feeding them, the Divine Master helps his disciples delve into the meaning of the parable of the sower. He underlines that the growth of the seeds of the kingdom depend on various factors. But the clincher is the fruitful result of the seeds that fall into good soil. This refers to authentic disciples of Jesus who hear the word of God, make an effort to understand and glean its personal implication, and let the Gospel bear abundant fruit in their life.

The miracle of the fruitful seeds lives on through the work of Christian disciples who sow and promote the spirit of the Gospel in the here and now. The story of Papa Mike, founder of the Poverello House in Fresno, gives insight into this (cf. Poverello House, May 2012, p. 1-2).

A man named Ed was the victim of growing neighborhood violence. An older man who had been on the streets for many years, he recently got a place to stay. He still comes here to eat, and as he was leaving one day, two young men accosted him not too far from Poverello. They beat him, knocked out a tooth or two, and took his money.

When he told me about it, he was understandably angry. He wanted to get his gun and take his revenge. In his younger days, I have no doubt that Ed would have done just that. However, I was able to talk him down and help him try to see the big picture, how shooting these men would cause him even more grief. Thankfully, Ed listened to me. (…) I believe that I’ve done at least a little of what the Good Lord put me here to do.

B. First Reading (Ex 20:1-17): “The law was given through Moses.”

Maryknoll magazine, published by Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers, never fails to inspire me. In its March 2006 issue, Sean Sprague presents the laudable work of Christine Bodewes, a Maryknoll lay missioner in Kenya (cf. “Sowing Seeds in the Slums”, p. 32- 34). Eight years ago, Christine left her Chicago law firm and went to the Kenyan capital of Nairobi to run a legal aid clinic. Many of her cases involved defending the slum dwellers’ rights to their land. Four years later, she responded to an invitation from the Mexican Guadalupe Fathers to set up a human rights office in Christ the King Parish, in the heart of Kibera, the largest slum in Nairobi.

Christine narrated, “I spent a year trying to understand the complex ethnic, political, social and economic issues of Kibera. I didn’t have a strategy, but I spent a lot of time listening to people. I saw that human rights education was the key to the ministry.” She therefore networked and pulled together a part-time team of volunteering professional Kenyan lawyers, who created a curriculum to teach civic education to people who were ignorant of their rights. Later she was able to hire four full-time, paid employees, all Kibera residents, and they broadened their civic education curriculum to include the teachings of the Church. The recent addition to the team is a full-time Kenyan lawyer, Dorothy Ombajo.

Christine remarks: “Christ the King office of human rights is one of the best human rights groups in Kenya. The people feel blessed having a lawyer who understands their problems. There has been a huge increase in people coming to the office, especially children, about rape, sodomy and being thrown out of school … I also feel great pride in our human rights team. My goal has been to plant the seeds. These people can change the world.” Christine Bodewes is aglow with joy because, through her ministry as a lawyer, she was able to harness the spirit of the civil law to promote human rights and serve the good of people, especially the poor.

The first reading of today’s liturgy (Ex 20:1-17) is also about the law – the divine law given through Moses. It is about the Decalogue – also called the Ten Commandments - the fundamental law that regulates the moral life of the people of Israel. This rule of life, an expression of Yahweh’s passionate love for his chosen people, is meant to deepen his covenantal relationship with them and protect their identity as a people consecrated to him alone. The purpose of the Ten Commandments is to establish a righteous relationship between God and his people, and between the various members of his people. The God who delivered his people from oppressive slavery in Egypt had given them this moral code as an opportunity to love him and their neighbors, not just in words, but above all, in deeds.

In an astounding revelation of divine love, the new and everlasting covenant would be inaugurated by the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ on the cross and by his glorious rising to life. One characteristic of this new covenant in the blood of Christ is the “interiorization” of religion: the Law is no longer to be a code regulating external activity, but an inspiration working on the heart of man, under the influence of the spirit of God, - the spirit of Love - who gives us a “new heart”. Indeed, though the Law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through the incarnate Word of God, Jesus Christ (cf. Jn 1:16) - the ultimate Rule of Life.

1. Do I intend to be good soil that promotes the growth and fruitfulness of the seeds of God’s kingdom?

2. What is our attitude to the Ten Commandments given to us by God? Do we consider it merely as a moral code, or do we treasure it as a gift of covenantal love? What do we do personally to help “interiorize” the spirit of the Ten Commandments? What is our response to Jesus Christ, who has ratified the new and everlasting covenant in his blood? How do we follow and reverence him as the total and ultimate Rule of Life?

O loving Jesus, you sow the seeds of God’s kingdom. Let me be like the good soil that promotes their growth and fruitfulness. Teach me to open myself to the miracle of life that you bring. Give me true understanding of the message of salvation. Help me to sow the seeds of your saving word in the here and now. We love you and praise you, now and forever. Amen.

*** Gracious Father, your commands spring forth from covenant love. You have the words of everlasting life. In the death of your Son Jesus Christ, your definitive saving word, you have revealed the depths of your love. Help us to follow unreservedly your Son, the Rule of Life. By the gift of his life on the cross, which brought forth the new covenant, cleanse us from what draws us away from you. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“But the seed sown on rich soil is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit.” (Mt 13:21) //“For I, the Lord, your God, bestow mercy down to the thousandth generation on the children of those who love me and keep my commandments.” (Ex 20:6)

Reflect on what you can do to share the word of salvation with the people around you. Do what you can to make the Internet a forum of evangelization. // Pray for the conversion and enlightenment of those who disregard the commandments of God, either willfully or through ignorance. Study the incredibly enriching and inspiring chapters of the Catechism of the Catholic Church on the Ten Commandments.

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SATURDAY – SIXTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Will Separate the Weeds from the Wheat … His Is the Blood of the New Covenant”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 13:24-30): “Let them grow together until harvest.”

In today’s Gospel (Mt 13:24-30) we hear the parable of the weeds among the wheat. It underlines that those who endeavor to live faithfully in this world are surrounded by those who do not. But Jesus, the sower of the good seed and the Lord of the harvest, wants us to trust that the wheat can withstand the weeds and even be stronger for it. The parable also tells us about the patience of God, who is compassionate. He allows the weeds to grow with the wheat until harvest time, when the weeds will be separated and burned and the wheat stored and treasured in the barn. He does not easily condemn, but rather, is kindly disposed to give us a chance to prove our true worth. The society in general and the Church in particular have a “mixed bag” quality. They contain side by side the best and the worst as well as the sinners and the saints. The Jesuit bible scholar Fr. Nil Guillemette comments: “Let us not forget, too, that the mixture of good and bad is not only in society at large and in the Church in particular; it is also in our own hearts. We ourselves are a mixture of weeds and wheat. By admitting this to ourselves, we can become less judgmental and more compassionate about our neighbors’ weeds.”

The following stories about “streaky people” are funny, but give us idea of the need to be less judgmental and more compassionate in dealing with the people around us (cf. Anthony de Mello, The Song of the Bird, New York: Image Books, 1984, p. 129).

A preacher put this question to a class of children: “If all the good people were white and all the bad people were black, what color would you be?”

Little Mary Jane replied, “Reverend, I’d be streaky!”

So would the preacher. So would the mahatmas, popes, and saints.

A man was looking for a good church to attend and he happened to enter one in which the congregation and the preacher were reading from their prayer book. They were saying, “We have left undone those things which we ought to have done, and we have done those things which we ought not to have done.”

The man dropped into a seat and sighed with relief as he said to himself, “Thank goodness, I’ve found my crowd at last.”

Attempts to hide your streakiness will sometimes be successful, always dishonest.

B. First Reading (Ex 24:3-8): “This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you.”

When I was a student in elementary grades, one of my favorite subjects was Social Studies. I enjoyed Philippine History and was enthralled when I saw a painting entitled, “The Blood Compact”. It showed the Spanish conquistador, Legazpi and a local chieftain, Rajah Lakandula seated at a table, with a cup and a knife lying on top of it. Their arms were bleeding. According to the explanation of our teacher, they were having a blood compact. They were sharing a drink, mixed with each other’s blood, from a common cup to ratify a compact or a covenant. They were to treat each other as blood brothers and share a life at the level of intimate friendship. The succeeding events of Philippine history, however, would show that the meaning of the blood compact they had made was not really respected. Spain subjugated the Philippines and made it a colony.

The Church invites us today to focus our attention on the meaning of the new and eternal covenant that Christ ratified with his sacrificial blood. The Old Testament reading (Ex 24:3-8) provides us with a deeper perspective on the meaning of the new, definitive and everlasting covenant in his blood. The biblical scholar, Eugene Maly comments: “This is the blood of the covenant which the Lord has made with you … When Moses pronounced those words at the foot of Mt. Sinai, they must have struck an awesome note in the minds and hearts of the Hebrew people standing about. They had just seen Moses splash half of the blood of the young sacrificed bulls on the altar that symbolized God. The rest of the blood he sprinkled on them. That strikes us as a strange rite, indeed. But it had a powerful meaning for those people. The blood, as always in the Scriptures, symbolized life. Sprinkled on the altar and on the people, it symbolized a community of life shared by God and Israel. God, moved only by love, was making a covenant with them. He shared his life; they responded by keeping his law. The religious experience was what constituted Israel as a unique people, God’s special people. Though they did not realize it at the time, that covenant was an anticipation of another and new covenant, whereby a new people of God would be constituted, this time with no restrictions as to race or nationality. Blood was to be a symbol of the new covenant, too. The new covenant is, of course, the one made by God through Jesus Christ with all people. And the blood of Christ, shed on Calvary, symbolizes the new life God shares with us.”

Blood is life in its most elemental form. The Italian-born, liturgical theologian Romano Guardini explains: “Blood belongs to God, the Lord of all life. The flowing of the sacrificial blood in the Old Testament is an acknowledgment of His sovereignty … It is simply the recognition and prayerful acknowledgment that God alone is Lord! Upon the conception of streaming blood as an expression of ultimate obedience, then, God places His covenant … We are Christians because of a covenant. This thought must complement the other, more familiar concept of rebirth and the new creation. Covenant and rebirth: individual dignity and responsibility, and the abundance of the new life. The two great concepts belong together, for they mutually sustain one another.”

Romano Guardini concludes: “Holy Mass is the commemoration of God’s new covenant with men. Awareness of this gives the celebration an added significance that is most salutary. To keep this thought in mind is to remind ourselves that Christ’s sacrificial death opened for us the new heaven and the new earth; that there exists between Him and us a contract based not on nature or talent or religious capacity, but on grace and freedom; that it is binding from person to person, loyalty to loyalty. At every Mass we should reaffirm that contract and consciously take our stand in it.”

1. Do we try not to be judgmental, but to be patient and compassionate with the weeds and the wheat that grow side by side within our world, our Church and ourselves?

2. Do I try to glean the true meaning of God’s covenant love for us? Do I render praise and thanksgiving for the saving blood of Christ that constituted us into God’s holy people? What are concrete implications for me as a participant in the blood of the new eternal covenant?

Jesus Lord, you are patient and kind. You let the weeds grow with the wheat until harvest time. Help us to manifest the beautiful qualities of the good wheat. Judge us favorably and bring us home. Gather us into the barn of your kingdom that we may render fitting worship to God with all the saints in heaven. We love and serve you, now and forever. Amen.

*** Father, you have brought to fulfillment the work of our redemption through the paschal mystery of Christ your Son. May we who faithfully proclaim his death and resurrection in the sacramental signs of “bread broken and shared” and of “the cup of eternal covenant” experience the constant growth of your salvation in our lives. May the Eucharist be for us the sign of unity and the bond of charity. By the body and blood of Christ join all peoples of all races and diverse cultures in brotherly love. May we be faithful to your covenant love and observe your law and commands which lead to everlasting life. Grant this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

“Gather the wheat into my barn.” (Mt 13:30) //“This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you.” (Ex 24:8)

Be patient with the foibles of the people around you. In your dealings with them, manifest the good qualities that will inspire them to be better persons. // Endeavor to protect the rights of all people for whom the blood of Christ was poured out. When you receive communion from the cup make an effort to appreciate the covenant dimension of our being the people of God.

*** Text of 16th Week in Ordinary Time ends here. *** A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy: Cycle I

MONDAY: SEVENTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: His Kingdom Is Like a Mustard Seed and a Transforming Leaven … He Intercedes for His People”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 13:31-35): “The mustard seed becomes a large bush and the birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.”

In today’s Gospel (Mt 13:31-35), Jesus uses the figure of a mustard seed that grows into an enormous “welcoming” tree to symbolize the hidden power of the kingdom of God. The tiny mustard seed, with its dynamic character, represents the kingdom, which has humble beginnings but is destined for universal greatness. Jesus, moreover, depicts the transforming character of the kingdom by using the image of yeast which a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch is leavened. The kingdom of heaven is hidden in the world like yeast and will transform the world with radical newness. We are “leaven” in the world, vibrant and acting as ferment in the society, on account of Jesus who powers our witnessing and activity.

I went to the Sacramento State Fair in 2012. It was an awesome experience of America’s noble spirit. I muttered: “How come we always hear the bad, and very little of the good?” I had a great time at the livestock pavilion, horticulture pavilion, county pavilion, etc. At the end of the day I was tired. I found a bench near a plot of beautiful flowers and relaxed. A beautiful lady sat beside me and started a nice chat. Her disabled husband in a wheelchair also came. As ministers in their church, they help “at-risk” youth and guide them on the right path. One way is to bring them to the State Fair, which is very educational and inspiring. When I bid them goodbye, I was full of gratitude to God for their ministry and for all the wonderful works I witnessed that day. They all have “mustard seed” beginnings and testify that the “leaven” of God’s kingdom continues to be at work in today’s world.

B. First Reading (Ex 32:15-24, 30-34): “This people has indeed committed a grave sin in making a god of gold for themselves.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Ex 32:15-24, 30-34) depicts the apostasy of Israel and Moses’ intercession on their behalf. God again summons Moses up the mountain and entrusts to him the stone tablets containing the Ten Commandments as well as instructions on worship. As Moses encounters God on the mountain for forty days and nights, the people left under the care of Aaron and Hur apostatize. They instigate Aaron to fashion a gold bull-calf. They worship it, saying “Israel, this is our god, who led us out of Egypt.” Their festival to honor the bull-calf degenerates into an orgy of drinking and sex. Coming down from the mountain and confronted with the people’s idolatry, Moses is furious and smashes the tablets of the divine commands. The people have turned away from God and their sinful action has ruptured the covenant. The breaking of the tablets signifies the destruction of their covenant relationship with God. After subjecting them to a punitive action, Moses goes up once more to the mountain to intercede for them. Moses, a self-sacrificing mediator whose prayer of intercession eventually leads to a covenant renewal, prefigures Jesus Christ, the ultimate mediator between God and people.

The following article gives insight into the meaning of “idolatry” or the seeking of false gods in today’s world (cf. Gerard Murphy, “Special Feature” in Alive! January 2013, p. 4).

Last month we reflected a bit on the notion of freedom that dominates in today’s world. It is a simplistic notion that resents all limits, whether they come from other people, the law, nature or even God. The individual should be allowed to make virtually any choice he or she wants, so long as it doesn’t “harm anyone else”.

At its extreme we have demands that two people of the same sex be allowed to “marry” each other – human nature shouldn’t be allowed to restrict marriage to a man and a woman. If a woman wants to abort her unborn child, that should be her choice, and if we want help to kill ourselves, the law should permit it.

Ireland recently voted to allow parents to hand over any of their children to be brought up by the State. Even rearing their own children has become a matter of choice for parents.

When people still believed in God, the Commandments saved us from the most absurd and destructive extremes of this understanding of freedom. But with the loss of religious faith and with growing indifference to God, all barriers are being torn down – pure whim rules.

The decision of the strongest, or of the best manipulator, is the only rule now. No wonder bullying is such a huge problem in society. And government is becoming little more than the exercise of naked power.

1. Do we treasure the miracle of small beginnings and the transforming power of the kingdom of God? Do we allow ourselves to be a part of the miracle of the heavenly kingdom?

2. How does Israel’s sin of idolatry and unfaithfulness impact us? How does the figure of Moses and his ministry of intercession inspire us?

Lord Jesus, we thank you for the grandiose destiny of your kingdom. Help us to embrace the challenge of its “mustard seed” beginnings. Let us be leaven of transformation in today’s world and instruments of the radical newness your salvation brings. We love and adore you; we praise and bless you, now and forever. Amen.

*** All-powerful God, you are loving and forgiving. You heeded the ministry of Moses on behalf of an idolatrous and unfaithful people. We, too, lift up our hands in union with Jesus Christ, the ultimate Moses-mediator, for the people of today who have made a false “idol” of their self-will. Have mercy on us, Lord, and bring us back to you. Let us live under the protective shadow of your saving will. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed... like yeast that a woman took …” (Mt 13:31, 33) //“This people has indeed committed a grave sin in making a god of gold for themselves.” (Ex 32:31)

Be responsive to the challenge of small beginnings. Use the resources you have, however small, to promote justice and peace in society and the integration of creation. // In reparation for the sins committed through the mass media and digital/social media, resolve to fast from the excessive and abusive use of these media.

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TUESDAY: SEVENTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Is the Judge at the Harvest … He Speaks To Us Face To Face”

BIBLE READINGS Ex 33:7-11; 34:5b-9, 28 // Mt 13:36-43

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 13:36-43): “Just as the weeds are collected now and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age.”

The Gospel (Mt 13:36-43) tells us that in response to his disciples’ request, Jesus Master gives them tools to help them understand the parable of the weeds in the field. The “sower” of the good seed is the Son of Man, the judge at the harvest. The “good seed” are those who have been receptive to the divine word and have borne abundant fruit. The “bad weeds” are the evil ones who reject God’s offer of salvation. The “harvest” is the judgment at the end time. The judgment will determine the final destiny of the righteous and the wicked, and will purify the kingdom entirely. The wicked and the perpetrators of evil will be thrown into the “fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth”. The righteous will shine like the sun in the heavenly kingdom, for God’s brilliant presence will permeate them. Jesus’ parable invites us to be patient with the wicked and likewise assures us that unending doom is the lot of the unrepentant wicked. As Christian disciples in today’s world, we have a duty to catechize people about the “last things”: death, judgment, heaven, hell.

George Alford, a 67-year old surfer in New Smyrna, Florida, counts his mission to surfers and beachgoers as a very important ministry. When he goes to the beach, he plants a cross in the sand in front of his SUV to remind beachgoers that God loves them. On special occasions, he will hoist the 12-foot cross on his shoulder and carry it up and down the beaches. He testifies how God makes his ministry fruitful (cf. Kathy Alford, “Surfing for God” in St. Anthony Messenger, July 2012, p. 33).

One spring break, while George was carrying the cross down the beach, an inquisitive young man with multiple face piercings came walking toward the cross with a cigarette lighter in his hand. He asked, “Can I burn your cross?” “Why do you want to burn the cross?” George asked him. “He said, ‘Because I worship Satan.’”

“ The young man wasn’t angry or hostile”, George says. “He just wanted to talk.” “That’s bad news, dude”, George replied. “No, Satan speaks to me in my mind”, the young man said. “Satan hates you. He wants to drag you into hell.” “Oh, that would be great – going to Satan’s house”, the young man responded. “No, hell’s a horrible place, full of anguish and suffering forever. You don’t want to go there.” At that point, the young man started backing away from George, and then he turned and walked away.

A year later, George was carrying the cross down the beach again during spring break, and he saw a young man who smiled at George and nodded. “He looked like he wanted to say something. I slowed down to give him a chance to talk, but he just smiled. I noticed that the young man had scars where piercings used to be. Later, as I walked down the beach, it occurred to me: that was the young man with the lighter!”

“His look had meant, ‘Look at me; I’ve changed. We’re brothers.’ I’ve prayed for another opportunity to see him again, but it didn’t happen. I still continue to pray that the Lord will bless him and help him grow in his faith.”

George pauses, then sums up his passion. “Changing lives: that’s the power of the cross!”

B. First Reading (Ex 33:7-11; 34:5b, 28): “The Lord spoke to Moses face to face.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Ex 33:7-11; 34:5b-9, 28) is about the intimate relationship of God with Moses and how the mediator’s intercession leads to a covenant renewal. Moses is indeed God’s intimate friend. At the Tent of the Meeting, the Lord speaks to Moses “face to face, as one man speaks to another”. At Mount Sinai where he summons Moses once again, God reveals himself more intimately to Moses as “the Lord, a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger and rich in kindness and fidelity”. In the awesome presence of a forgiving God who does not declare guiltless the unrepentant guilty, Moses begs for clemency: “If I find favor with you, O Lord, do come along in our company. This is, indeed, a stiff-necked people; yet pardon our wickedness and sins, and receive us as your own.” Moses stays again at Mount Sinai for forty days and nights, at the end of which the covenant with God is renewed and the words of the Ten Commandments are inscribed once more on stone tablets. Indeed, Moses’ prayer for forgiveness is based on his intimate relationship with God as well as his sympathetic identity with the people of Israel. The salvation of Israel hinges in no small amount on this unique mediation of Moses, who prefigures the perfect saving mediation of Jesus Christ on the cross

The following story gives us an idea of what a “face to face” relationship with the Almighty God means (cf. Anthony De Mello, Taking Flight: A Book of Story Meditations, New York: Image Books, 1988, p. 163).

There was an old Sufi who earned his living by selling all sorts of odds and ends. It seemed as if the man had no judgment because people would frequently pay him in bad coins and he would accept them without a word of protest; or people would claim they had paid him when they hadn’t and he accepted their word for it.

When it was time for him to die, he raised his eyes to heaven and said, “Oh, Allah! I have accepted many bad coins from people but never did I judge them in my heart. I just assumed that they were not aware of what they did. I am a bad coin too. Please do not judge me.”

And a Voice was heard that said, “How is it possible to judge someone who has not judged others?”

1. Do we believe that at harvest time we will be judged? How do we prepare for this deep encounter with God’s grace?

2. How does God’s intimate relationship with Moses impact us? Do we long to have an intimate relationship with God? What do Moses and Jesus Christ teach us about personal relationship with God and the ministry of mediation?

Loving Jesus, we thank you for your patient love and great justice. You are the sower of good seed and the judge at the final harvest. May we bear abundant fruit and be counted as precious in your sight. Bring us into your heavenly kingdom where the presence of God will make us shine with splendor and glory. We pray for those who reject your saving love. Give them light and show them the way. Let this interim time be an occasion of healing and conversion for us all so that we may be spared from eternal doom. We love you, Jesus, for you are kind and merciful. Glory and praise be yours, now and forever. Amen.

*** Lord God, you used to speak to Moses “face to face, as one man speaks to another”. You revealed yourself to him as “a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger and rich in kindness”. His loving intimate relationship with you brought healing to a contrite Israel and the restoration of the ruptured covenant. Help us to trust in the saving mediation of Jesus, whose perfect prayer of intercession is offered on the cross, the point of encounter between heaven and earth. Restore us to your grace, through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

“Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” (Mt 13:43) //“The Lord used to speak to Moses face to face.” (Ex 33:11)

When the world events tend to depress you, find strength and comfort in the reality of the “last things”. Let the Church teaching on the final judgment be a guidepost on your spiritual journey to God. // Resolve to spend some quiet moments during the day with the Lord and allow him to speak “face to face” with you.

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WEDNESDAY: SEVENTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: His Kingdom Is a Treasure … He Is the Splendor of God”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 13:44-46): “He sells all he has and buys the field.”

Jesus’ parable of the treasure hidden in the field and the parable of the finest pearl (Mt 13:44-46) underline the absolute value of the kingdom of God, the joy it brings and the total commitment it entails. The response of the treasure finder and the pearl merchant who sold all they had to buy the greatest treasure of their life is an example of how we should pursue the heavenly kingdom. It is the chance of a lifetime. It must be pursued at any cost – without regret or hesitation. The heavenly kingdom deserves our deepest love and concern. It is our utmost treasure and absolute good.

The following story, circulated on the Internet, gives insight into what must be our stance in order to achieve our true treasure.

Once upon a time there was a rich King who had four wives. He loved the 4th wife the most and adorned her with rich robes and treated her to the finest of delicacies. He gave her nothing but the best. He also loved the 3rd wife very much and was always showing her off to neighboring kingdoms. However, he feared that one day she would leave him for another. He also loved his 2nd wife. She was his confidant and was always kind, considerate and patient with him. Whenever the King faced a problem, he could confide in her, and she would help him get through the difficult times. The King's 1st wife was a very loyal partner and had made great contributions in maintaining his wealth and kingdom. However, he did not love the first wife. Although she loved him deeply, he hardly took notice of her.

One day, the King fell ill and he knew his time was short. He thought of his luxurious life and wondered, "I now have four wives with me, but when I die, I'll be all alone." Thus, he asked the 4th wife, "I have loved you the most, endowed you with the finest clothing and showered great care over you. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?" "No way!" replied the 4th wife and she walked away without another word. Her answer cut like a sharp knife right into his heart. The sad King then asked the 3rd wife, "I have loved you all my life. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?" "No!" replied the 3rd wife. "Life is too good! When you die, I'm going to remarry!" His heart sank and turned cold. He then asked the 2nd wife, "I have always turned to you for help and you've always been there for me. When I die, will you follow me and keep me company?" "I'm sorry, I can't help you out this time!" replied the 2nd wife. "At the very most, I can only walk with you to your grave." Her answer struck him like a bolt of lightning, and the King was devastated. Then a voice called out: "I'll go with you. I'll follow you no matter where you go." The King looked up, and there was his first wife. She was very skinny as she suffered from malnutrition and neglect. Greatly grieved, the King said, "I should have taken much better care of you when I had the chance!"

In truth, we all have the 4 wives in our lives: Our 4th wife is our body. No matter how much time and effort we lavish in making it look good, it will leave us when we die. Our 3rd wife is our possessions, status and wealth. When we die, it will all go to others. Our 2nd wife is our family and friends. No matter how much they have been there for us, the furthest they can stay by us is up to the grave. And our 1st wife is our Soul, often neglected in pursuit of wealth, power and pleasures of the world. However, our Soul is the only thing that will follow us wherever we go. Cultivate, strengthen and cherish it now, for it is the only part of us that will follow us to the throne of God and continue with us throughout Eternity.

B. First Reading (Ex 34:29-35): “Seeing the face of Moses, they were afraid to come near him.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Ex 34:29-35) is about the radiance of Moses’ face that results from his intimate encounter with the Lord. As he goes down from Mount Sinai carrying the Ten Commandments, his face shines because he has been speaking with the Lord. The radiance of Moses’ face reflects the divine glory that he has contemplated and experienced on the holy mountain. Moreover, his shining face is a symbol of the authority he has received from God. Indeed, Moses’ face becomes radiant when he communes with God and when he fulfills his ministry of mediation on behalf of the people. The one who has been challenged and rejected by the Israelites as mediator now restores them in covenant. Moses, a figure of Jesus Christ, the splendor of God, is imbued with divine glory as he continues to participate faithfully in the divine saving plan.

In Moses’ selfless “self” the divine glory shines through. The radiance of the spirit shines when the “self” is overcome through contemplation and deep communing with the Absolute. We can glean this in the following story (cf. Anthony De Mello, Taking Flight: A Book of Story Meditations, New York: Image Books, 1988, p. 138).

A woodcarver called Ching had just finished work on a bell frame. Everyone who saw it marveled, for it seemed to be the work of spirits. When the Duke of Lu saw it, he asked, “What sort of genius is yours that you could make such a thing?”

The woodcarver replied, “Sire, I am only a simple workman. I am no genius. But there is one thing. When I am going to make a bell frame, I meditate for three days to calm my mind. When I have meditated for three days, I think no more about rewards and emoluments. When I have meditated for five days, I no longer think of praise or blame, skillfulness or awkwardness. When I have mediated for seven days, I suddenly forget my limbs, my body; no, I forget my very self. I have consciousness of the court and my surroundings. Only my skill remains.

“ In that state I walk into the forest and examine each tree until I find one in which I see the bell frame in all its perfection. Then my hands go to the task. Having set myself aside, nature meets nature in the work that is performed through me. This, no doubt, is the reason why everyone says that the finished product is the work of the spirits.”

1. Do we pursue the kingdom of God with the creative zeal of the treasure finder and the diligence of the pearl merchant? Do we consider the heavenly kingdom, fulfilled by Jesus Christ, our ultimate treasure and utmost good?

2. Have you experienced divine glory shining through you? What does it mean to be filled with the splendor of God’s glory? What are its implications?

Loving Jesus, you invite us to pursue the kingdom of God. Grant us the creative zeal of the treasure finder and the diligence of the merchant searching for fine pearls. Help us to make the right choices. Be our help and protection in contentious situations and difficulties. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Almighty God, your glory shines through in the face of Moses after an intense commune with you. His face also shines as he carries out his ministry of mediation on behalf of your people. But the full splendor of your glory rests upon your Son Jesus Christ. Help us to be totally configured to Jesus so that we, too, may share in your divine glory, now and forever. Amen.

“He sells all that he has and buys the pearl of great price.” (Mt 13:45) //“His face had become radiant while he conversed with the Lord.” (Ex 34:29

In your daily choices, be conscious of what brings you closer to the kingdom of God and what draws you away from it. // Resolve to be faithful to the practice of meditation and contemplation. Allow this to shape you into persons capable of radiating the glory of God, just like Moses and Jesus, the Mediator par excellence.

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THURSDAY – SEVENTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: His Kingdom Is Like a Dragnet … In Him the Divine Glory Dwells in Us”

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 13:47-53): “They put what is good into buckets, what is bad they throw away.” In today’s Gospel (Mt 13:47-63), Jesus gives us the parable of the dragnet. The dragnet, hauled to shore by fishermen, brings with it all the fish of the enclosed area. Some of the catch are inedible and some unclean according to Jewish law, and these will have to be thrown back into the sea. The good edible fish will be separated and put into buckets. The parable of the dragnet underlines the same point contained in the parable of the weeds growing among wheat: the good and bad exist together until the end of the age, when the Son of Man will make the final judgment.

At the conclusion of his series of parables, Jesus asks his disciples a significant question: “Do you understand all these things?” The disciples answered an emphatic “Yes”. The Divine Master has been helping them delve into the meaning of the kingdom of God with the use of parables. The disciples are like “scribes” who study the divine word. The “storeroom” of their lives contains what is “new” – the teaching of Jesus – and what is old – the law and prophets. They are called to see the radically new act of God in Christ in the light of the Old Testament tradition. They realize that Jesus’ message of the kingdom now takes precedence over the old and gives it new meaning.

The following story gives insight into how we will be judged at the end time (cf. Anthony de Mello, Taking Flight: A Book of Story Meditations, New York: Image Books, 1988, p. 137-138).

An old woman died and was taken to the Judgment Seat by the angels. While examining her records, however, the Judge could not find a single act of charity performed by her except for a carrot she had once given to a starving beggar.

Such, however, is the power of a single deed of love that it was decreed that she was to be taken up to heaven on the strength of that carrot. The carrot was brought to court and given her. The moment she caught hold of it, it began to rise as if pulled by some invisible strength, lifting her up toward the sky.

A beggar appeared. He clutched the hem of her garment and was lifted along with her; a third person caught hold of the beggar’s foot and was lifted too. Soon there was a long line of persons being lifted up to heaven by that carrot. And strange as it may seem, the woman did not feel the weight of all those people who held onto her; in fact, since she was looking heavenward, she did not see them

Higher and higher they rose until they were almost near the heavenly gates. That is when the woman looked back to catch a glimpse of the earth and saw this whole train of people behind her.

She was indignant! She gave an imperious wave of her hand and shouted, “Off! Off, all of you! This carrot is mine!” In making her imperious gesture, she let go of the carrot for a moment – and down she fell with the entire train.

There is only one cause for every evil on earth: “This belongs to me!” B. First Reading (Ex 40:16-21, 34-38): “The cloud covered the meeting tent and the glory of the Lord filled the Dwelling.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Ex 40:16-21, 34-38) is about the preparation and the dedication of the “Tent of the Lord’s Presence” (also called the “Tabernacle” or the “Dwelling”). Moses meticulously follows God’s commands regarding the Tabernacle, the vesture and the anointing of priests. The Lord God then takes possession of the sanctuary and his glory fills the “Dwelling”. Israel’s care for the elements of worship is salutary. It enables Israel to experience the “divine beauty and glory”. Cultic elements are linked to, and manifest, the presence of the Lord among his people. The Book of Exodus concludes with a very consoling note of divine indwelling. As Israel journeys to the Promised Land, the cloud of the Lord’s presence covers the Tabernacle and the dazzling light of divine glory fills it.

Israel’s experience of “divine beauty and glory” through cultic and artistic elements gives them hope. In the same vein, Pope Benedict XVI, in his address to artists, gathered in the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican in 2009, underlines how the experience of “divine beauty and glory” through the work of artists leads to hope (cf. Our Sunday Visitor, February 5, 2013, p. 12).

Dear friends, let us allow these frescoes to speak to us today, drawing us toward the ultimate goal of human history. The Last Judgment, which you see behind me, reminds us that human history is movement and ascent, a continuing tension toward fullness, toward human happiness, toward a horizon that always transcends the present moment even as the two coincide. Yet the dramatic scene portrayed in this fresco also places before our eyes the risk of man’s definitive fall, a risk that threatens to engulf him whenever he allows himself to be led astray by the forces of evil. So the fresco issues a strong prophetic cry against evil.

For believers, though, the Risen Christ is the Way, the Truth and the Life. For his faithful followers, he is the Door through which we are brought to that “face to face” vision of God from which limitless, full and definitive happiness flows. Thus Michelangelo presents to our gaze the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End of history, and he invites us to walk the path of life with joy, courage and hope. The dramatic beauty of Michelangelo’s painting, its colors and forms, becomes a proclamation of hope, an invitation to raise our gaze to the ultimate horizon.

The profound bond between beauty and hope was the essential content of the evocative Message that Paul VI addressed to artists at the conclusion of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council on December 8, 1965: “To all of you”, he proclaimed solemnly, “the Church of the Council declares through our lips: if you are friends of true art, you are our friends!” And he added: “This world in which we live needs beauty in order not to sink into despair. Beauty, like truth, brings joy to the human heart, and is that precious fruit which resists the erosion of time, which unites generations and enables them to be one in admiration. And all this through the work of your hands … Remember that you are the custodians of beauty in the world.”

1. Do I prepare myself for judgment day with acts of charity so that I may become an object of God’s mercy and saving grace? Do I treasure the radical newness of the Christ event and see it against the backdrop of the Law and the prophets?

2. How does the expression “the glory of the Lord filled the Dwelling” impact you? What are your experiences of “divine glory and beauty”?

Jesus Lord, at the end time, let us be the object of your saving grace. When the dragnet of our destiny is hauled into the eternal shore, please count us among the redeemed. Grant us divine wisdom so that, as scribes of the kingdom, we may delight in the radical newness of your saving work. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Almighty Father, you are the font of beauty. You fill with your glorious presence the Tabernacle of the Ten Commandments tablets. The works of Israel’s artists and craftsmen adorn the Tabernacle of your divine presence. Dwell in us with your beauty and grace for we, too, are “tabernacles” of your Holy Spirit. Transfigure us into the image of your Son Jesus Christ, the Beauty that saves the world. Let the works of artists and artisans give you glory and praise, now and forever. Amen.

“The kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind.” (Mt 13:47) //“The glory of the Lord filled the Dwelling.” (Ex 40:34)

By your acts of mercy and kindness, prepare for the definitive encounter with God’s mercy and justice at the hour of death and at the end time. // Pray for artists that through their gifts and ministry the people of today may experience the divine beauty and glory. Do what you can to make the church where you worship conducive to prayer and a true dwelling place of the glory of God.

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FRIDAY – SEVENTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Experienced Rejection and He was Persecuted … He Calls Us to a Sacred Assembly”

BIBLE READINGS Lv 23:1, 4-11, 15-16, 27, 34b-37 // Mt 13:54-58

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 13:54-58): “Is he not the carpenter’s son? Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds?”

In today’s Gospel episode (Mt 13:54-58), we come face to face with the mystery of a resisting and unbelieving heart. One can close one’s heart and mind to the Prophet of truth and Savior of the world. The townsfolk of Jesus are prejudiced by the utter ordinariness of his background. Jesus is amazed by the lack of faith that he found at Nazareth. The popular proverb he cites, “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and in his own house”, situates him in line with all the prophets who were subjected to rejection by their co-citizens. Jesus is affected by the power of their unbelief and is not able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them. Jesus respects human freedom. The decision of an unbelieving and resisting heart, which negates the gratuitous offer of his love, is respected.

The Lord’s frustrating experience of “rejection” also surfaces in our daily life, in one way or another. This can be verified in Papa Mike’s ministry to the homeless (cf. Mike McGarvin, Poverello News, May 2012, p.1).

When homeless people tell me about the difficulties of their lives, I tend to be a good listener, which is why they talk to me, I suppose. However, I also have a habit of jumping in and giving them my opinion. Sometimes, it’s because I think that I can actually help them; other times, I see someone “stuck on stupid”, and I want to give him a reality check.

Like Rodney Dangerfield, it seems that when I offer my two cents’ worth, I don’t get any respect. It’s a little frustrating, because here I am, freely giving this person bits of McGarvin wisdom achieved through that famous School of Hard Knocks, and he completely ignores my advice. You’d think I’d learn to just shut up, but I guess I can’t help myself.

One woman approached me during a lunch meal and, talking very fast, told me how bad things were getting “out there”. She said she doesn’t drink or use drugs anymore, but she doesn’t seem to get away from those who do. I suggested she stay at Naomi’s House, a suggestion that was quickly rejected. This woman suffers from schizophrenia, which may account for her reluctance to accept help, but it was yet another case where I gave someone a good suggestion that was ignored.

B. First Reading (Lv 23:1, 4-11, 15-16, 27, 34b-37): “These are the festivals of the Lord on which you shall proclaim a sacred assembly.”

We begin today the readings from the Book of Leviticus. It is a call to a life of holiness founded on the presence of the “Holy One” dwelling among his Chosen People. Today’s Old Testament reading (Lv 23:1, 4-11, 15-16, 27, 34b-37) presents the liturgical calendar of Israel. It is a schedule of important feasts to be celebrated with a holy assembly. God himself calls his people to assemble and celebrate these festivals: the feast of the Passover and Unleavened Bread, the feast of Weeks (Pentecost), the Day of Atonement, and the feast of Booths (called also Tabernacles, Tents, Ingathering, or Sukkot).

The feast of Passover celebrates Israel’s deliverance from slavery in Egypt through God’s mighty hand. The Jewish pastoral rite of Passover becomes enriched with the springtime agricultural feast of the Unleavened Bread (Massot), which honors God, as the Lord of the harvest and of new beginnings. The feast of Weeks (also known as Pentecost) is celebrated seven weeks after the feast of the Unleavened Bread and marks the conclusion of the wheat harvest and the offering of the first fruits. The feast of Pentecost becomes a fitting commemoration of the gift of the Torah at Mount Sinai and of the spiritual gifts that result from it. The Day of Atonement is a day of fasting and sacrifice in atonement and reparation for the sins of the people. The feast of Booths, celebrated at the autumn harvest, commemorates the “booths” made from branches and the tent dwelling of the Israelites in their desert sojourn. This feast reminds God’s people that they are still on pilgrimage.

These annual festivals celebrated with a “sacred assembly” (that is, with the active participation of God’s people) help them to be attuned to God’s word. In these festivals and in their religious observance of the Sabbath, they are able to focus their attention on the Lord and discover more deeply that he alone is God. They empower them to contemplate the saving events in their life as God’s Chosen People and “to remember” the transforming marvels God has done.

The freedom to worship and to come in a “sacred assembly” ought not to be taken for granted. The following story illustrates this (cf. Rhoda Blecker, January 30 Reflection in Daily Guideposts 2010, p. 35).

Saturday morning services had become kind of routine. We sang the same songs; we said the same prayers. Some of the joy and mindfulness had gone out of worship, and most of us hadn’t actually noticed that we were only going through the motions.

Then one Saturday a woman we had never seen before came to a service with our social action chairwoman Clara. The new woman seemed nervous, despite the welcome we gave her. Clara explained that she had recently come over from the former Soviet Union, where she had not been allowed to attend a synagogue or even to admit openly that she had a religion.

Instead of having the Torah carried through the congregation before it was read, our rabbi created a ritual of passing it from person to person. Each of us took the velvet-covered scroll from the person on one side of us and passed it to the person on the other. It all went as usual until Clara held out the Torah to the Russian woman.

For a moment she was just frozen, staring at it. Then she reached out, hands shaking, and let Clara put the scroll into them. She slowly lowered her head over the Torah, cradling it, and silently she began to cry. Several minutes went by before she could turn and let the person on her other side take the Torah from her.

We were stunned, and as the Torah made its way through the rest of us and up the platform for reading, our surprise became excitement. The Russian woman had reminded us of how precious the freedom to worship together was and that we must never let it become routine.

1. What is our response to experiences of rejection? Are we gracious, or do we allow ourselves to be overwhelmed by frustration?

2. What is our attitude toward “sacred assembly” and the call to worship as members of God’s people?

Lord Jesus, your co-citizens were scandalized by your humble “roots”. You were not able to perform many mighty deeds in Nazareth for the people’s lack of faith. You are the true prophet who speaks the word of life. Grant us the strength and the courage needed to be true prophets like you. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Gracious Father, great are your works. How gracious you are in calling us to celebrate your saving marvels in a “sacred assembly”. Let our festivals be life-transforming and help us to be thankful for the freedom to worship as Church. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“And he did not work many mighty deeds there because of their lack of faith.” (Mt 13:58) //“These are the festivals of the Lord which you shall celebrate at their proper time with a sacred assembly.” (Lv 23:1)

In reparation for the rejection suffered by Jesus from his neighbors, do not react negatively to someone who treats you with hostility, but rather, respond to him/her with an act of kindness. // Be mindful of the great gift to freely assemble to worship. Resolve to participate more actively, consciously and fruitfully in the Church liturgy.

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SATURDAY – SEVENTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: The Baptist Shared in His Paschal Destiny … He Proclaims the Great Jubilee of Salvation”

BIBLE READINGS Lv 25:1, 8-17 // Mt 14:1-12

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 14:1-12): “Herod had John beheaded. John’s disciples came and told Jesus.”

In the Gospel (Mt 14:1-12) we hear that in upholding the integrity of moral truth against the malice of King Herod and his partner Herodias, John suffered martyrdom. His death was an intimate participation in the paschal destiny of the Messiah, of whom he was the precursor. In sharing intimately the universal work of salvation of Jesus Christ, the words of Yahweh in the Second Servant Song, could also be applied not only to Jesus but also to John: “I will make you a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth” (Is 49:6).

The courageous stance of John the Baptist in defense of truth and justice lives on in the Christian disciples of today’s world. This is marvelously illustrated in the lives of Fr. Gregory Schaffer and Fr. Rother (cf. Kayla Ann Smith, “Standing for Guatemalans” in Maryknoll, May-June 2005, p. 19-21). Kayla, a Minnesota teen inspired by those who champion oppressed Central Americans, writes:

Father Schaffer’s true courage to stand up for the poor of Guatemala was put to the test when, in the 1980’s, there were armed campaigns pointed at the natives of Guatemala. Even though the priest from the New Ulm Diocese knew he could be killed at any time for helping the indigents of Guatemala, he remained with the people he had come to love. He was in an especially dangerous position, since he was aiding the innocent of Guatemala as well as being a Catholic priest. Through his many acts of charity, he spoke plainly and boldly that the poor cannot be ignored, and that we are called to help the less fortunate.

Soon Father Schaffer found that he had been put on a death list. Although the fact of possible death would have scared many people to leave the terrorized country, Father Schaffer remained in Guatemala. He barely saved his life by convincing a military commander that he was not an ally of the guerrilla terrorists. Father Rother, who was a priest in the neighboring town, Santiago de Atitlan, was not as fortunate as Father Schaffer. Father Rother was murdered by the death squads. The farmer’s son turned priest from Okarche, Oklahoma, paid the ultimate price for being a soldier of Christ.

The loss of Father Schaffer’s fellow priest friend saddened him almost to the point of anger until he realized that Father Rother’s passing would be a powerful event that united all the people.

B. First Reading (Lv 25:1, 8-17): “In the year of the jubilee you shall return, everyone of you, to your own property.”

In today’s First Reading (Lv 25:1, 8-17), God establishes in Israel the observance of the Jubilee. This fiftieth year, announced on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), is to be a sacred time proclaiming “liberty” for all. The goals of the Jubilee Year are human liberation (releasing captives and so curbing the institution of slavery), economic liberation (restoring land to its original owner and so controlling the distribution of wealth), and ecological liberation (respecting the earth and the animals on it by allowing them to rest and replenish themselves).

The biblical scholar Armando Levoratti comments: “The legislation associated with the Year of Jubilee presents the most radical program for continuous social reform to be found in the Old Testament. The main purpose of these laws is to prevent the utter ruin of debtors. People who incurred debts they could not repay could be forced to sell off their land or even their personal freedom by becoming slaves. When left unchecked this process leads to serious social division, with a class of rich landowners exploiting a mass of landless serfs. Leviticus 25 prohibits all the people of Israel from selling themselves or their land permanently. Therefore Israelites may only rent out their land or their labor for a maximum of 49 years. At the end of that period those who have been enslaved return to their families, and the land sold during the preceding years was to be returned to the original owners or their descendants.

Israel’s Jubilee celebration prefigures the day when God’s reign would be finally and fully revealed. In the fullness of time, Jesus Christ proclaims the great Jubilee of salvation and by his paschal offering on the cross makes it operative for all peoples and creation. The Church’s “Great Jubilee of Redemption” at the beginning of the new millennium fosters the salutary effect of the “Jubilee of salvation” ushered in by our Lord Jesus Christ. The following song composed by the Filipino priest Carlo Magno S. Marcelo captures the meaning of the Christian Jubilee.

THE JUBILEE SONG

It’s a time of joy, a time of peace, a time when hearts are then set free, a time to heal the wounds of division. It’s a time of grace, a time of hope, a time of sharing the gifts we have, a time to build the world that is one.

Refrain: It’s a time to give thanks to the Father, Son, and Spirit, and with Mary, our Mother, we sing this song.

Open your hearts to the Lord and begin to see the mystery that we are all together as one family. No more walls, no more chains, no more selfishness and closed doors for we are in the fullness of God’s time. It’s the time of the Great Jubilee!

It’s a time of prayer, a time of praise, a time to lift our hands to God, a time to recall all our graces. It’s a time to touch, a time to reach those hearts that often wander, a time to bring them back to God’s embrace. (Refrain)

1. Like John the Baptist, are we prophets of truth and are we ready to undergo sacrifice for the sake of truth?

2. What does the Jubilee Year, established by the Lord for the observance of Israel, mean to us? What does the Great Jubilee of salvation ushered in by Jesus mean to us?

God our Father, you called John the Baptist to be the herald of your Son’s birth and death. As he gave his life in witness to truth and justice, so may we strive to profess our faith in your Gospel. When persecuted for our faith, let us feel your saving power. Grant this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

*** Father, in your great compassion you establish the Jubilee Year for the observance of Israel. This is meant to bring liberation to people, the land and all that dwell therein. And for this we greatly thank you. Above all, we give you glory and praise for Jesus Christ for his “Great Jubilee of salvation”. Help us to treasure the spirit of the Christian Jubilee and let it transform our life. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“Herod had John beheaded in the prison.” (Mt 14:10) //“It shall be a jubilee for you, when every one of you shall return to his own property.” (Lv 25:10)

Pray for Christian disciples who promote God’s kingdom of truth and justice. In your daily life, endeavor to be a prophet of truth. Pray for the persecuted Christians and for the courage to be peaceful. // By your acts of compassion and Christian charity, help those who are enslaved by any form of addiction to be set free.

MONDAY: EIGHTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Multiplies the Five Loaves and Two Fish … He Carries the Burden of Leadership”

BIBLE READINGS Nm 11:4b-15 // Mt 14:13-21

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 14:13-21): “Looking up to heaven, he said the blessing and gave the loaves to the disciples, who in turn gave them to the crowds..”

The Gospel episode (Mt 14:13-21) depicts Jesus’ “banquet” of the loaves and fish in a deserted place in Galilee near the sea. The miraculous banquet laid out by Jesus the Master-Shepherd points to the Eucharistic feast and the dawning of messianic salvation. In the superabundance of the multiplied loaves and the twelve baskets filled with leftovers is a sign of the copious spiritual nourishment and the unfailing Eucharistic food that Jesus offers to hungry crowds over the course of centuries. Our sense of faith is heartened by the remarkable quality of Jesus’ banquet of the loaves and fish, especially of what it prefigures – the Eucharist. Moreover, in the miraculous event of the multiplication of the “five loaves and two fish”, Jesus is forming his disciples’ faith in preparation for their role as pastors and givers of nourishment to the ecclesial community.

The Lord of the feast and Eucharistic banquet is Christ Jesus, who invites us to share at the table of the Word and Sacraments. As his beloved and privileged disciples, he summons us to bring his spiritual nourishment to the “hungry” crowd of today’s world. He is the gracious host who transforms our paltry, humble supply of “five loaves and two fish” into a table of plenty. In our vocation as Christian believers in the modern world, he assures us that with only “five loaves and two fish” and by his grace, we will be able to respond to the “hungers” of today’s anguished and restless modern society. If only we turn to Jesus Host in faith, our poverty will be transformed into spiritual riches for the benefit of the world’s poor and their salvation. Indeed, the miracle of “superabundance” begins with “little”. In his compassion, the power of God – through Christ and the Holy Spirit - is actively and marvelously at work in us, embracing our poverty and multiplying the meager resources we lovingly place at his disposal.

The following modern day account teaches us that with God we can do all and that the miraculous sign of “multiplication” can be experienced even now (cf. Lisa Beech, “A Lesson in Multiplication” in Guideposts, March 2014, p. 23).

Last year I joined San Francisco’s City Impact, a nondenominational group doing outreach to inner-city residents. This was my first day visiting a public housing complex. The leader put me and another newbie in charge of handing out groceries. My partner and I agreed we had the best job. Who didn’t love food, especially when they couldn’t afford much of it?

“Not everyone will need some”, our leader reminded us. “We’re also just here to talk, check in with people, pray with them if they want. It’s about showing love.”

The people on our assigned floors seemed happy to see us and our big box of supplies when we knocked – all except one. “I have company”, he said. “Sorry. I have to go.” He shut the door before we’d even had time to offer him anything. Which might have been for the best. Our box is almost empty. “We’re going to run out of food!” I said. “We must be giving people too much.”

My partner and I looked at each other in alarm. Had we messed everything up? We had a whole floor of apartments left to visit! Lord, I said silently, you fed the five thousand. Could you multiply this food the way you did the loaves and the fishes?”

“ I asked God to multiply the food”, I whispered to my partner. “Me too!” he whispered back. Visit by visit our supplies dwindled. We still had quite a few apartments left when I checked the box again: one lime and a can of soup. Soon those were gone. “We’ll have to tell people we ran out”, I said. “We really miscalculated.” No way is God going to bail us out, I told myself miserably.

Just then someone came running down the hall. It was the impatient man from the floor above. His arms were full of groceries: cereal and cans of soup. “Here”, he said, putting them in the box. “Thought some of the other residents could use them. I’ve got plenty this month. Gotta run!”

We had just enough for the apartments we still had left to visit. God had multiplied our groceries – and multiplied our faith too.

B. First Reading (Nm 11:4b-15): “I cannot carry all this people by myself.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Nm 11:4b-15) depicts the anguish of Moses as God’s divinely appointed leader of the Israelites journeying in the desert to the Promised Land. The people grow impatient and start to whine for the fleshpots and abundant food in Egypt: “If only we could have some meat! In Egypt we used to eat all the fish we wanted and it cost us nothing. Remember the cucumbers, the watermelons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic we had. But now our strength is gone. There is nothing at all to eat – nothing but this manna day after day!” Overwhelmed by the burden of leadership, Moses, the mediator of God’s providence, starts “to whine” too: “I can’t be responsible for all these people by myself; it’s too much for me! If you are going to treat me like this, have pity on me and kill me, so that I won’t have to endure your cruelty any longer.”

The Lord responds to the people’s complaints by sending them quail to eat. He also responds to Moses’ lament of “being alone” in caring for God’s needy people. He orders Moses to assemble seventy respected men who will be given a share of the spirit of leadership given by God to Moses. The Lord says: “Then they can help you bear the responsibility for these people. And you will not have to bear it alone.”

Jesus Christ is the “Moses” par excellence – the utmost mediator of divine providence. He carries the burden of leadership of the new people of God, the Church. The Christian disciples participate in his ministry of compassion and caring for God’s people. The Poverello House in Fresno, founded by “Papa Mike” McGarvin to help the needy poor and the disadvantaged, illustrates how shared leadership and collaborative ministry are at work today (cf. Poverello News, August 2013, p. 3-4).

In forty years of existence, Poverello House has changed tremendously, a fact to which longtime friends can attest. We have always been very much a grassroots organization, one that has been supported primarily through local donations and volunteerism. However, in order to better serve a changing population of homeless people, we have gradually hired more professional staff, worked hand- in-hand with other groups and organizations, and sought out grants and corporate donations. (…)

In its long history, one of the things that has distinguished Poverello House is that the majority of our funding has always been from donors, not foundation or governments grants, and the greatest percentage of those donations are in the category of under $100. In other words, we have many, many people, often who have limited incomes, regularly giving us small donations, and these make up the bread and butter of our funding. What this means is that a huge number of people believe in our mission and make monetary sacrifices each month to ensure that we can continue.

Last year over 9,000 volunteers came to help at Poverello House, including about 3,000 students from local universities, elementary, junior high and high schools. Out of that overall number, we trained 1,277 brand new volunteers in our orientations. It is obvious that despite changes and challenges over the years, Poverello House is still extremely reliant on volunteer labor.

Many volunteers have gone on to become boardmembers, contributing members of Amici Del Poverello Guild, or active donors. Often experiences here at Poverello have helped change the direction of volunteers’ lives, particularly in the case of students who are searching for meaningful careers.

So, in spite of changes, evolutions and all the challenges we face in these challenging times, one thing that remains a constant at Poverello House is the participation and dedication of the community in helping us achieve our mission objectives. For that, we are profoundly grateful, and our prayer is that we may never lose sight of the importance of individuals, whether they be our homeless clients, our volunteers, or our donors.

1. Do we see the miraculous possibility of the “five loaves and two fish” that are available to us in our ministry to the poor? Do we trust that Jesus will multiply our resources? Do we allow ourselves to be filled by the superabundant riches of God?

2. When feeling overwhelmed and frustrated, do we humbly turn to God and present to him our concerns with filial confidence? Or do we whine and complain like spoiled brats? Do we trust that God, through his Son Jesus Christ, will help all those who are heavily burdened?

O loving Father, your Son Jesus, our Master-Shepherd, multiplied the “five loaves of bread and two fish”. He is both the host and the fare. He is the bread of the Word and the bread and wine of the Eucharistic sacrifice on the cross. . Strengthened by the bread of life, help us to overcome all kinds of trials, difficulties and distress through the love of God in Christ Jesus. He is our Lord and he lives and reigns, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Our compassionate God, you respond to Moses with paternal kindness and solicitude. You teach him the way to shared leadership and collaborative ministry. Help us to realize that of ourselves we can do nothing, but with your grace we can do all things for your greater glory and the good of all. Let our lives share in the saving ministry of Jesus, the “Moses” par excellence and the utmost mediator of divine providence. We praise and glorify you, now and forever. Amen.

“They all ate and were satisfied.” (Mt 14:20) //“I cannot carry all this people by myself, for they are too heavy for me.” (Nm 11:14)

Seek to alleviate the hunger of a needy brother and sister in any way. Contribute to the local Church’s effort to provide bread for the poor in your community. // When feeling helpless and frustrated about anything, especially with regards to your responsibility and care for others, turn to God and beg him to help you.

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TUESDAY: EIGHTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Saves Us from the Raging Waters … He Is the Moses Par Excellence”

BIBLE READINGS Nm 12:1-13 // Mt 14:22-36

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 14:22-36): “Command me to come to you on the water.”

The need for deeper faith permeates the Gospel reading (Mt 14:22-36). Peter, impetuous as ever, asks to come to Jesus on the waters, but his faith fails him. After a tentative beginning, he begins to sink. Jesus saves him, but rebukes him for his feeble faith. Even Peter, the “prince of apostles”, wavers in his faith.

St. Augustine exhorts us to contemplate this Gospel episode so that, when beset with the turmoil of temptations, we can put our faith Jesus, who for our sake suffered death in order to save us: “Look at Peter, who in this episode is an image of ourselves; at one moment he is all confidence, at the next all uncertainty and doubt; now he professes faith in the immortal One, now he fears for his life … Think, then, of this world as a sea, whipped up to tempestuous heights by violent winds. A person’s own private tempest will be his or her unruly desires. If you love God you will have power to walk upon the waters, and all the world’s swells and turmoil will remain beneath your feet. But if you love the world, it will surely engulf you, for it always devours its lovers, never sustains them. If you feel your foot slipping beneath you, if you become a prey to doubt or realize that you are losing control, if, in a word, you begin to sink, say: Lord, I am drowning, save me! Only he, who for your sake died in your fallen nature, can save you from the death inherent in that fallen nature.”

The following lovely story illustrates that those who love God and have faith in him have power to walk upon the waters (cf. Anthony de Mello, The Song of the Bird, New York: Image Books, 1984, p. 72-73).

When the bishop’s ship stopped at a remote island for a day, he determined to use the time as profitably as possible. He strolled along the seashore and came across three fishermen mending their nets. In pidgin English they explained to him that centuries before they had been Christianized by missionaries. “We Christians!” they said, proudly pointing to one another.

The bishop was impressed. Did they know the Lord’s Prayer? They had never heard it. The bishop was shocked. “What do you say, then, when you pray?” “We lift eyes in heaven. We pray, ‘We are three, you are three, have mercy on us.’” The bishop was appalled at the primitive, the downright heretical nature of their prayer. So he spent the whole day teaching them the Lord’s Prayer. The fishermen were poor learners, but they gave it all they had and before the bishop sailed away next day he had the satisfaction of hearing them go through the formula without a fault.

Months later the bishop’s ship happened to pass by those islands again, and the bishop, as he paced the deck saying his evening prayers, recalled with pleasure the three men on that distant island who were now able to pray, thanks to his patient efforts. While he was lost in the thought he happened to look up and noticed a spot of light in the east. The light kept approaching the ship and, as the bishop gazed in wonder, he saw three figures walking on the water. The captain stopped the boat and everyone leaned over the rails to see this sight.

When they were within speaking distance, the bishop recognized his three friends, the fishermen. “Bishop”, they exclaimed. “We hear your boat go past island and come hurry hurry to meet you.” “What is it you want?” asked the awe-stricken bishop. “Bishop”, they said, “we so, so sorry. We forget lovely prayer. We say, ‘Our Father in heaven, holy be your name, your kingdom come …’ then we forget. Please tell us prayer again.”

The bishop felt humbled. “Go back to your home, my friends”, he said, “and each time you pray, say, ‘We are three, you are three, have mercy on us!’”

In imitation of Jesus Christ, who walks on the water, the beloved St. John Mary Vianney, whose memorial we celebrate on August 4, saves many people from the raging waters of evil and sin (cf. The Word Among Us, June 2008, p. 54-57).

Jean-Marie had very little education and did poorly in class. No matter how hard he studied, he couldn’t remember his Latin grammar. Just when all seemed lost, Fr. Charles Balley – a far-seeing pastor who recognized Vianney’s potential – decided to tutor him. Vianney passed the required tests, was ordained in August 1815, and served as Fr. Balley’s assistant for two and a half years, until his assignment to Ars. (…)

Vianney set to work. Very early each morning and very late each night, he spent hours before the altar in the dilapidated church. Face down on the floor, he begged God – often with tears – to change the people’s hearts. A curious parishioner who once followed him inside was surprised at what his new pastor was praying out loud: “My God, grant me the conversion of my parish. I am willing to suffer all my life … I am prepared to endure the sharpest pains even for a hundred years. Only let my people be converted. (…)

In time, the people of Ars began to heed their pastor’s exhortations to stay out of the taverns and come to church, to refrain from work on Sundays, and to end the wild dances. They came to love the religious processions and pilgrimages that Vianney organized to help them know that God was among them. Many learned to pray and grew close to God themselves … As Vianney’s fame grew, pilgrims began showing up – twenty a day at first, then over the next three decades, up to eighty thousand each year. Often they waited for days, crowded together in the church, awaiting their turn in the confessional … Young people flocked to him to help them discern whether they had a religious vocation. The sick came to be prayed over for healing. (…)

For forty-one years, Vianney persevered as the pastor of the little village … He died on August 4, 1859, at the age of seventy-three. Already acclaimed a saint by the people, Jean-Marie Vianney was canonized on May 31, 1925, and later named the patron of parish priests. His life can be summed up by one of his sayings: “To be loved by God, to be united with God, to live in the presence of God, to live for God. Oh! What a beautiful life and what a beautiful death!”

B. First Reading (Nm 12:1-13): “Not so with my servant Moses! Why, then, did you not fear to speak against him?”

The Old Testament reading (Nm 12:1-13) is about a family conflict and even more. Moses is opposed by his sister Miriam and his brother Aaron on account of his marriage to a woman from Cush. But the marriage to a foreign woman is only a pretext. The real issue is Moses’ position as a unique mediator between God and his people, which they resent. Miriam and Aaron challenge Moses on the ground that they are prophets as well. However, the dissent against Moses is tantamount to a dissent against God.

Moses, described as “the meekest man on the face of the earth”, is God’s gratuitous choice as the mediator between God and man. God speaks to Moses “face to face” and is present to him most intimately. By opposing God’s choice of Moses, a “pious” man (anawim) who lives a humble and God-fearing life, Miriam and Aaron rebel against the magnanimous plan of God. Just as the people’s murmuring arouses God’s anger, so Miriam’s grumbling against Moses provokes a severe punishment. Miriam becomes a snow-white leper. Moses proves his mettle as a person with compassion and integrity of character. In response to Aaron’s frantic appeal, Moses intercedes for Miriam: “Please, not this! Pray, heal her!” Moses’ ministry of intercession is efficacious and his authority as God’s prophet and unique mediator is confirmed.

In a humorous vein, the following story gives insight into how, like Miriam and Aaron, we can create a conflict-situation for an innocent person (cf. Anthony De Mello, Taking Flight: A Book of Story Meditations, New York” Image Books, 1988, p. 122).

A man was fishing in the northern mountains. One day his guide took to telling him anecdotes about the bishop whose guide he had been the previous summer.

“Yes”, the guide was saying, “he’s a good man, except for his language.”

“Are you saying that the bishop swears?” asks the man.

“Oh, but of course, sir”, said the guide. “Once he caught a fine salmon. Just as he was about to land it, the fish slipped off the hook. So, I say to the bishop, ‘That’s damned bad luck!’ and the bishop, he looks me straight in the eye and he says, ‘Yes, it is indeed!’ But that’s the only time I heard the bishop use such language.”

1. When we are buffeted by howling winds and violent storms in the sea of life, how steadfast is our faith? Do we dare to walk on the “raging waters” on the basis of our faith in Jesus? When we sin and falter, what do we do? Do we have recourse to Jesus and cry out: “Lord, save me”?

2. Do we grumble against an innocent person and oppose him unjustly? Why?

Loving Jesus, you walk on the water and you master the raging sea. When we are buffeted by howling winds and violent storms in the sea of life, help us to have steadfast faith in you. Hold us by the hand and we too will walk with you upon the raging sea. But when our faith falters, save us and do not let us perish. Deliver us too from raging storms created by false prophets. We love you for you are kind and merciful. You come to our aid always. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Loving Father, just and true are your ways. Let us never cause the downfall of the innocent. Like Moses and Jesus, the Mediator par excellence, let us promote your saving plan. We give you glory and praise, now and forever. Amen.

“ He came toward them, walking on the sea.” (Mt 14:25) // “Throughout my house he bears my trust; face to face I speak to him.” (Nm 12:7-8)

Pray for those whose lives are in a “raging sea” and beset with trials and difficulties. Assist them in any way you can. Pray for fishermen and seamen and all those engaged in ministering to their material, moral and spiritual needs. // Be deeply aware of God’s gratuitous choice of ministers of salvation and humbly abide to that choice.

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WEDNESDAY: EIGHTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Extols the Woman’s Faith … He Calls Us to Trust in God”

BIBLE READINGS Nm 13:1-2, 25-14:1, 26a-29a, 34-35 // Mt 15:21-28

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 15:21-28): “O woman, great is your faith!”

Today’s Gospel episode of the healing of the non-Jewish woman’s daughter (Mt 15:21-28) contains the fascinating dialogue of faith between the Gentile mother and Jesus. Indeed, this faith encounter between an irrepressible intercessor and the source of healing would encourage the Church in its mission to the Gentiles after Jesus’ death and resurrection. Although, in the divine plan of salvation, pride of place belongs to the Jews, the “bread of salvation”, that is Jesus, would be offered to assuage the hunger of all nations, prefigured in the faith-filled Canaanite mother. The universal mission to the Gentiles would primarily be the work of the Spirit-propelled missionary Church, born in the wake of the Easter event.

The Canaanite woman epitomizes the remarkable attitude of the recipients of the Good News through time and space. The faith of the Filipino people is of the same sterling quality as the Canaanite woman. As recipients of the Church’s evangelizing work they show what great things can be achieved through faith in Jesus Christ. The following “Open Letter of Steve Ray to the Filipino People” is a tribute to their Christian faith. Steve Ray authored many best-selling books, among which are Crossing the Tiber (his conversion story), Upon This Rock (on the papacy), and just recently John's Gospel (a comprehensive bible study guide and commentary).

We stepped into the church and it was old and a bit dark. Mass had just begun and we sat toward the front. We didn't know what to expect here in Istanbul, Turkey. I guess we expected it to be a somber Mass but quiet and somber it was not - I thought I heard angels joyously singing behind me. The voices were rich, melodic and beautiful. What I discovered as I spun around to look did not surprise me because I had seen and heard the same thing in other churches around the world. It was not a choir of angels with feathered wings and halos but a group of delightful Filipino Catholics with smiles of delight and joy on their faces as they worshiped God and sang His praises. I had seen this many times before in Rome, in Israel, in the United States and other countries.

Filipinos have special traits and they are beautifully expressed as I gazed at the happy throng giving thanks to God. What are the special traits which characterize these happy people? I will share a few that I have noticed - personal observations - as I have traveled around the world, including visits to the Philippines.

FIRST, there is a sense of community, of family. These Filipino Christians did not sit apart from each other in different aisles. They sat together, closely. They didn't just sing quietly, mumbling, or simply mouthing the words. No, they raised their voices in harmony together as though they enjoyed the sense of unity and communion among them. They are family even if they are not related.

SECOND, they have an inner peace and joy which is rare in the world today. When most of the world's citizens are worried and fretful, I have found Filipinos to have joy and peace and a deep sense of God’s love that overshadows them. They have problems too, and many in the Philippines have less material goods than others in the world, yet there is still a sense of happy trust in God and love of neighbor.

THIRD, there is a love for God and for his Son Jesus that is almost synonymous with the word Filipino. There is also something that Filipinos are famous for around the world - their love for the Blessed Mother. Among the many Filipinos I have met, the affectionate title for Mary I always hear from their lips is "Mama Mary". For these gentle folks, Mary is not just a theological idea, a historical person, or a statue in a church - Mary is the mother of their Lord and their mother as well, their "mama".

The Philippines is a Catholic nation -- the only such nation in Asia -- and this wonderful country exports missionaries around the world. They are not hired to be missionaries, not official workers of the church. No, they are workers and educators, doctors, nurses and housekeepers that go to other lands and travel to the far reaches of the earth, and everywhere they go they take the joyous gospel of Jesus with them. They make a somber Mass joyful when they burst into song. They convict the pagan of sin as they always keep the love of Jesus and the Eucharist central in their lives.

My hope and prayer, while I am here in the Philippines sharing my conversion story from Baptist Protestant to Roman Catholic, is that the Filipino people will continue to keep these precious qualities. I pray that they will continue loving their families, loving the Catholic Church, reading the Bible, loving Jesus, His Mother and the Eucharist. As many other religions and sects try to persuade them to leave the Church, may God give the wisdom to defend the Catholic faith. As the world tempts them to sin and seek only money and fame and power, may God grant them the serenity to always remember that obedience to Christ and love for God is far more important than all the riches the world can offer. May the wonderful Filipino people continue to be a light of the Gospel to the whole world! Be a proud Filipino and forward this to friends!

B. First Reading (Nm 13:1-2, 25-14:1, 26a-29a, 34-35): “They despised the desirable land (Ps 106:24).”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Nm 13:1-2, 25-14:1, 26-29, 34-35) depicts God’s chosen people at the threshold of the Promised Land. Moses sends twelve scouts, one from each tribe, to explore the land of Canaan and to get as much information as possible about the people and the land. Moses also asks them to bring back some produce. They succeed in bringing back some pomegranates, figs and a bunch of grapes so heavy that it takes two men to carry it on a pole between them. The land is very fertile and is indeed “flowing with milk and honey”. But after exploring the land for forty days, the scouts have witnessed that the people are powerful and their cities well-fortified. Many of them lose heart and some scouts spread false reports that the land is not fertile enough to feed the people and that the inhabitants are giants. The Israelites are distressed and start to grumble against Moses and Aaron. They conclude that it would be better for them to return to the security of bondage in Egypt rather than risk sure death in the Promised Land.

Caleb and Joshua assure them that the land is indeed fertile. They plead with them to trust in the Lord and take possession of the land. The words of Caleb and Joshua are not heeded. The community threatens to stone them to death. But the Lord God reveals his presence through a dazzling light and pronounces his judgment against the rebellious Israelites. Because they have despised the desirable land, they are rejected from entering it. Those who have rejected his gracious offer will not possess the Promised Land. Caleb and Joshua, who have trusted in the Lord, will survive the wilderness wanderings and will lead the new generation of Israelites into the Promised Land.

The experience of the Pious Disciples concerning the establishment of the Liturgical Apostolate Center near Saint Mary Major Basilica in Rome and the obedient faith they have shown to their Founder Fr. James Alberione give us an idea of what kind of response God demands from his people Israel (cf. Maria Lucia Ricci, A Historical Journey: From the First Seeds of the Liturgical Apostolate to the Liturgical Apostolate Centers, PDDM manuscript, p. 56-58).

During the Holy Year 1950, the Paulines of the community at Via Grotta Perfetta had the idea of opening a bookstore with the diffusion of religious articles in the Piazza Esquilino. Primo Maestro (= Fr. James Alberione), for reasons known to him alone, with one of his not infrequent decisions, disposed that the place together with its furnishings should pass to the Pious Disciples and become a Liturgical Apostolate Center. On July 6, 1950, Sr. M. Adalgisa Tavella and Sr. M. Lorenzina Ellena were chosen for this task. In 1951 there was a change in personnel and Sr. M. Redenta Gorlani was appointed as the person responsible.

The location at Piazza Esquilino soon proved to be too small. In 1958 they transferred to Via Cavour, which was a larger space but it was no longer near the Basilica of St. Mary Major as Primo Maestro desired. In the meantime Mother M. Ausilia Cristino, the General Treasurer who always understood, loved and supported the liturgical apostolate, dedicated herself together with other sisters to seek a suitable location.

The search was extended to places that seemed suitable and presented to Primo Maestro, who would invariable reply: “Your place is beside the Madonna at St. Mary Major.” They began serious negotiations for a site well known in Rome and abroad, near the Pantheon. We obtained knowledge of the median annual income, the clientele, the inventory and the conclusion was almost reached. Upon referring the matter to Primo Maestro, he delicately made us aware that he did not agree. He made no excess reflections, but he made us understand his unchanged desire and suggestion. It was clear, a common conviction for anyone who desired to assist us that it was completely useless to search any further in the area near St. Mary Major. It then became a matter of faith which doubtless needed to be nourished and increased.

I recall very clearly one detail. I was in the Piazza of St. Mary Major with Mother M. Annunziata (la Nonna). At the corner of Via Liberiana and Via dell’Olmata there was a bar which was clearly visible and efficient. M.M. Annunziata said: “I am going to see if the owner will surrender the location.” The interested party showed surprise but he did not refuse the proposal. The negotiations continued for a long period of time; they were complex, or rather they became very complicated, to the point that it was necessary to resort to legal channels and go accompanied by a trusted lawyer, following the suggestion of Primo Maestro. Besides this, the process of the negotiations became known and there began a true hunt for that location, which also involved qualified buyers, such as banks.

The Pious Disciples prayed. Primo Maestro followed the events and, through his words or through significant silence, he made us understand that finally we were correct and we should proceed. During the 1960’s they took possession of the location.

1. Is our faith as steadfast as that of the Canaanite mother? Does the faith of others move us to positive and compassionate action? In light of the Easter event, do we commit ourselves to share the saving work of Jesus, the “bread of salvation”, with all peoples of the earth?

2. Are there moments in our life when we refuse to welcome the grace of God and reject it because it seems to be too good to be true? Do we ever question the reality of God’s benevolent plan for us?

Loving Jesus, you extolled the faith of the Canaanite mother. Help us to imitate her steadfast faith. We thank you for revealing to us that you are the “bread of salvation” for all nations. Give us the grace to share the bread of your Word to all peoples of the earth. You are the universal Savior and giver of life. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Lord God, we are deeply sorry for the lack of faith of the Israelites. They refuse to claim and enter the Promised Land. We too are guilty of refusing your love and negating your gracious plan for us. Grant us the wisdom of the Holy Spirit. With the strength of our Lord Jesus Christ, help us to claim our glorious heritage in your kingdom. Let us enter and dwell forever in the Promised Land. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“Great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” (Mt 15:28) //“You will realize what it means to oppose me.” (Nm 14:34)

Pray for Christian missionaries who spread the Gospel beyond ethnic and cultural boundaries. Bring the healing touch of Jesus to the sick and needy. Contribute to the ecumenical effort of the Church and the task of inter-religious dialogue. // Today be very sensitive to the divine offer of grace and make an effort to welcome it in your heart and respond to it with faith and love.

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THURSDAY – EIGHTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Gives Peter the Keys to the Kingdom … He Is the Rock that Gushes Forth Living Water”

BIBLE READINGS Nm 20:1-13 // Mt 16:13-23

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 16:13-23): “You are Peter. I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven.”

Today’s Gospel reading (Mt 16:13-23) is about the investiture of Peter with the keys to the kingdom. In response to Peter’s confession of faith in Jesus, whom he acknowledges as “the Christ, the Son of the living God” – a spiritual truth revealed by the heavenly Father – Jesus establishes him as the “rock” of the Church. He presents to him the “power of the keys”. The commissioning of Simon Peter is part of God’s benevolent plan for his chosen people. It is an important step in the realization of his saving design to provide them with trustworthy stewards and spiritual shepherds. Indeed, the “power of the keys” is a pastoral power meant to benefit God’s people.

Through time and space, the Church – the community of faith founded on the Risen Lord Jesus Christ and ministered to by Peter and his successors – experiences various crises, persecutions and trials. But the “gates of the netherworld” do not prevail against the Church because Christ is its leader. He has radically conquered the power of sin and death. He remains with his disciples until the end of time.

The ministry of the Pope is a vital expression of the pastoral office of Jesus who lives on in the Church. The following account of John Thavis, Catholic News Service (CNS) Rome Bureau Chief concerning Benedict XVI, illustrates the Pope’s effort to live up to the challenge of his pastoral ministry and as Christ’s trusted steward of faith for today’s society (cf. Carrie Swearingen’s “PAPA-RAZZI: Following the Man who Follows the Pope” in St. Anthony Messenger, July 2008, p. 16).

John Thavis found it stunning to see the Pope, during his tour of a Turkish mosque, turn toward Mecca and pray alongside his Muslim host. “In one gesture, he bridged the gap of misunderstanding that had arisen after his Regensburg lecture several months earlier”, says Thavis. “Of course, Christians and Muslims pray to the same God, so there was nothing really revolutionary about it. But after some media had labeled him ‘the Pope against Islam’, this was a clear illustration that Benedict was not about to play the role of anti-Islamic crusader.”

Thavis has been moved by Pope Benedict XVI’s simplicity and clarity when speaking to foreign groups. In May of 2007 the Pope and the press corps took a long bus ride through picturesque hills in central Brazil. “He addressed recovering drug addicts. It was a rousing welcome by a mostly young group of people and, when the Pope ended, they kept chanting his name. When he was getting into the pope-mobile, his aides telling him they had to hurry up and leave, he suddenly stopped, got out of the vehicle and walked back on the stage. He waved and gave them one last greeting. It was just a small kindness, but it meant so much to these people.” (…)

Thavis knew that this Pope would want to make an effort to be more engaging. “And he does. He makes eye contact, is always kind, and says a few words to each person he meets. The world had known him as a doctrine enforcer, but that was not on his mind as Pope.” The Pope’s main goal, Thavis explains, is to reawaken a sense of God in society and a deeper faith in Christ and the Catholic Church.

B. First Reading (Nm 20:1-13): “Water gushed out in abundance.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Nm20:1-13) depicts some incidents toward the end of the people’s forty-year sojourn in the desert. The Israelites have reached the wilderness of Zin and settle at Kadesh. Miriam dies and is buried there. This is a reminder that an entire generation of rebellious Israelites will perish in the desert before a new generation enters the Promised Land. Likewise, Moses and Aaron, because they have failed to witness the holiness and loving mercy of God before an obstinate people, are not destined to enter the Promised Land. When commanded by God “to order the rock to yield its waters” for the thirsty and ever-grumbling people, the leaders respond with frustration, anger and sarcasm. Moses upbraids the whiners: “Listen, you rebels! Do we have to get water out of this rock for you?” Burning with anger, Moses strikes the water twice and water gushes forth for all the people and animals to drink. Instead of making the occasion a joyful manifestation of divine mercy, Moses and Aaron turn it into a bitter denunciation. God reprimands them: “Because you were not faithful to me in showing forth my sanctity before the children of Israel, you shall not lead this community to the land I will give them.”

At Meribah, Moses and Aaron are “failed leaders”. They fail to invite people to trust in God. They lose the opportunity to give glory to a loving God and magnify his holiness. The following story, circulated on the Internet, illustrates how true “leaders” trust in God and remind others to do the same.

In God We Trust: A few months ago, my husband and I were invited to spend the weekend at his employer’s home. I was nervous about the weekend. The boss was very wealthy, with a fine home on the waterway, and cars costing more than our house. The first day and evening went well, and I was delighted to have this rare glimpse into how the very wealthy live.

My husband’s employer was quite generous as a host and took us to the finest restaurants. I knew I would never have the opportunity to indulge in this kind of extravagance again, so I was enjoying myself. As the three of us were about to enter an exclusive restaurant one evening, the boss was walking slightly ahead of us. He stopped suddenly, looking down on the pavement for a long, silent moment. I wondered if I was supposed to pass him. There was nothing on the ground except a single darkened penny that someone had dropped and a few cigarette butts.

Still silent, the man reached down and picked up the penny. He held it up and smiled, then put it in his pocket as if he had found a great treasure. How absurd! What need did this man have for a single penny? Why should he even take the time to stop and pick it up? Throughout dinner, the entire scene nagged me. Finally, I could stand it no longer. I casually mentioned that my daughter once had a coin collection and asked if the penny he had found had been of some value. A smile crept across the man’s face as he reached into his pocket for the penny and held it out for us to see. I had seen many pennies before! What was the point of this?

“Look at it”, he said. “Read what it says.”

I read the words, “United States of America.”

“No, not that; read further.”

“One cent?”

“No, keep reading.”

“In God We Trust?”

“Yes!”

“And?”

“And if I trust in God, the name of God is holy, even on a coin. Whenever I find a coin, I see that inscription. It is written on every single United States coin, but we never seem to notice it! God drops a message right in front of me telling to trust me! Who am I to pass it? When I see a coin, I pray. I stop to see if my trust is in God at that moment. I pick the coin up as a response to God that I do trust in him. For a short time, at least, I cherish it as if it were gold. I think it is God’s way of starting a conversation with me. Lucky for me! God is patient and pennies are plentiful!”

When I was out shopping today, I found a penny on the sidewalk. I stopped and picked it up and realized that I had been worrying and fretting in my mind about things I cannot change. I read the words, “In God We Trust” and had to laugh. Yes, God! I get the message. It seems that I have been finding an inordinate number of pennies in the last few months, but then, pennies are plentiful! And God is patient!

1. How does Peter’s confession of faith affect us? Do we make an effort to understand the role of Peter and his successors in salvation history? Do we pray for the Pope and lovingly sustain him in his pastoral ministry and as “steward” of faith?

2. Do we allow ourselves to be instruments of God’s patient mercy and caring love? Do we give in to anger and frustration and thus fail to manifest to the world the holiness of our loving God?

O God, our Father, we thank you for Peter’s faith confession that Jesus is indeed “the Christ, the Son of the living God”. We thank you for the Church, the community of believers founded on the faith of the apostles. We thank you for Peter’s successors, whom you have established as stewards of Christian faith. May they all be trustworthy and faithful! We give you praise, now and forever. Amen.

*** Almighty Father, you are kind, patient and merciful. You wish to provide water to your thirsty, whining people at Meribah. Moses and Aaron have failed to give witness to your patient mercy, but you continue to use them as mediators of your divine providence. Through them water gushes from the rock, symbol of Jesus Christ, the font of living water. We are thirsty for your saving well and for the font of eternal life. Bring us to the Promised Land in your eternal kingdom, where you live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.” (Mt 16:19) //“From the rock you shall bring forth water.” (Nm 20:8)

Pray for the Pope that he may be strengthened in his pastoral ministry as chief steward of Christian faith. By your service to the poor and the needy, and through a life of holiness and personal dedication, let the love of Christ Shepherd touch a world in need of healing. // When dealing with “whiners”, pray for the grace of patience and the wisdom of the Spirit so that in the kindness shown to them, their spiritual thirst may be satisfied.

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FRIDAY – EIGHTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us the Meaning of Discipleship … He Chose Us”

BIBLE READINGS Dt 4:32-40 // Mt 16:24-28

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO A. Gospel Reading (Mt 16:24-28): “What can one give in exchange for one’s life?”

In today’s Gospel reading (Mt 16:24-28), Jesus challenges us to take up our cross. After prophesying his paschal destiny on the Cross, Jesus delineates the meaning of the discipleship: “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it”. Jesus thus connects the fate of his disciples with his own. Christian discipleship involves a share in his paschal sacrifice on the cross. Only in letting go of self and in letting God realize his mysterious, saving plan in us, can we achieve true life and happiness. Indeed, taking up one’s cross is a badge of discipleship.

The following personal reflection of Eli Doroteo, one of our dear friends and benefactors in the Philippines, is likewise insightful.

The call to discipleship entails suffering. Jesus himself, in his words to his disciples, asserts: “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.”

As we heed the call to follow the will of God and Jesus who has shown us the way, at times, there are obstacles. Sometimes they are our attachments. They could be our families, our possessions and even our friends. In Jesus’ case, Peter – a disciple and a friend – tried to obstruct Jesus on his way to Jerusalem, which eventually led to Calvary. For Jesus, the way of suffering and death has a different meaning. It is a service and an offering of self to fulfill God’s saving plan. But Peter, seeing it in the context of the world’s desires, would not allow any evil or disaster to happen to his friend. His was a genuine, fraternal concern, which shows that our ways and thinking are far different from God’s. From a human perspective, Jesus’ way of suffering and death was futile and needless, but from the viewpoint of God and Jesus, it was a “necessary fault”.

Our attachments tend to blur our vision in fulfilling the calling we have received. The Gospel affirms that what could derail us in following the will of God must be cut off at once. We should and must resist the temptations of the devil and the evil designs of this world.

In our journey of faith, we make choices. This is where the challenge lies. At times, we take the shorter, easy way, and avoid the long, winding way. More often than not, the easy way out, the practical one, is the way of the world, and not of God. Jesus has shown us the way - the way of the cross – and no other. His death is the truth that brings life to the Church.

B. First Reading (Dt 4:32-40): “For love of your fathers the Lord chose their descendants.” In the next few days we will hear passages from the Book of Deuteronomy. It presents a series of addresses given by Moses to the Israelites in the land of Moab, where they sojourn at the end of a long wilderness journey and as the new generation prepares to enter the Promised Land. Moses reminds the chosen people of the great events of the past forty years. He exhorts them to remember how God has led them through the desert and that they ought to be obedient and loyal to God so that they may have life and continual blessing in the Promised Land.

Today’s reading (Dt 4:32-40) is a magnificent homily on the election of Israel. Moses praises the Lord who has chosen Israel as his own. He prods the people: “Has any god ever dared to go and take a people from another nation and make them his own as the Lord your God did for you in Egypt? Before your eyes he used his great power and strength … Because he loved your ancestors, he chose you, and by his great power he himself brought you out of Egypt.” Thus Moses speaks powerfully of the uniqueness of Israel’s God who makes himself known through marvelous saving actions on their behalf. This calls for a faith response. A life lived in obedience will bring not only renown but also long life in the Promised Land.

Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross is the patroness of converted Jews. She represents the Jewish people who have fully responded to God by embracing the radical salvation he offers in his Son Jesus Christ. The following biography is taken from the Wikipedia on the Internet.

Edith Stein, also Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, known informally as Saint Edith Stein (born: October 12, 1891 – died: August 9, 1942), was a German Roman Catholic philosopher and nun, regarded as a martyr and saint of the Roman Catholic Church. Born into an observant Jewish family she was atheist by her teenage years; moved by the war tragedies, in 1915 she took lessons to become a nursing assistant, and worked in a hospital for outbreak prevention. Edith was baptized on January 1, 1922, into the Roman Catholic Church.

Although Edith Stein had wished to enter Carmel since 1922, she was deterred from this by her spiritual leaders, canon Joseph Schwind and archabbot Raphael Walzer OSB, who wished her to act in the world as a teacher and speaker for the education of women. Having been forced to quit her teaching position as a result of the Aryan Clause, which was central to the Law for the Restoration of the Professional Civil Service, she entered the Discalced Carmelite Order Monastery of Cologne in October 1933, taking the name Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. She received the habit of the Discalced Carmelites as a novice in April 1934. Although she moved from Germany to a Carmelite convent in the town of Echt, the Netherlands, in solidarity with her sister who had failed previously in obtaining a place in a Swiss convent to avoid Nazi persecution, in 1942 she was arrested and sent to the Auschwitz concentration camp, where she died in the gas chamber. (…)

Stein was beatified as a martyr on May 1, 1987, in Cologne, Germany by Pope John Paul II and then canonized by him 11 years later on October 11, 1998. The miracle which was the basis for her canonization was the cure of Teresa Benedicta McCarthy, a little girl who had swallowed a large amount of paracetamol (acetaminophen), which causes hepatic necrosis. Her father, Rev. Emmanuel Charles McCarthy, a Melkite Catholic, immediately rounded up relatives and prayed for Stein’s intercession. Shortly thereafter the nurses in the intensive care unit saw her sit up completely healthy. Dr. Ronald Kleinman, a pediatric specialist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston who treated Teresa Benedicta, testified about her recovery to Church tribunals, stating “I was willing to say that it was miraculous. Teresa Benedicta would later attend Stein’s canonization ceremony in the Vatican.

The beatification of Stein as a martyr generated criticism and created some controversy. Critics argued that Stein was killed because she was Jewish by birth, rather than for her later Christian faith, and that, in the words of Daniel Polish, it seemed to “carry the tacit message encouraging conversionary activities” because “official discussion of the beatification seemed to make a point of conjoining Stein’s Catholic faith with her death with fellow Jews in Auschwitz”. The position of the Catholic Church is that Stein also died because of the Dutch episcopacy’s public condemnation of Nazi racism in 1942; in other words, that she died for the sake of the moral position of the Church, and is thus a true martyr.

1. How do we actualize in our daily lives the discipleship of the cross? How do we translate into concrete reality the Christian challenge: “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me” (Mt 16:24)?

2. Do we value the dignity and privilege of belonging to God’s chosen people through Christ, in Christ and with Christ? Are we capable of “remembering” – one that leads to praise and thanksgiving?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (From “Suffering with Jesus”, a prayer composed by Francois Fenelon)

O crucified Jesus, in giving me your cross, give me too your spirit of love and self-abandonment. Grant that I may think less of my suffering than of the happiness of suffering with you. What do I suffer that you have not suffered? Or rather what do I suffer at all, if I dare to compare myself with you? O Lord, grant that I may love you and then I shall no longer fear the cross.

*** Gracious Father, we thank you for the marvels you have done on behalf of the Jewish people whom you have chosen. Through Christ, in Christ and with Christ, we become members of the new people of God. Give us the grace to remember your saving acts through the death and glorification of Jesus Christ. Let our “memorial” transform us and make of us a “Eucharistic” people, filled with praise and thanksgiving. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

“ Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” (Mt 16:24) // “For love of your fathers the Lord chose their descendants.” (Dt 4:37)

Pray for those who find the cross of their daily lives overwhelming and burdensome. In your own way and doing the best you can, try to alleviate the sufferings of the people around you. // Be deeply aware of your dignity as part of the Church, the new people of God, and of your covenant relationship with Jesus, who chose you. By your kind words and acts of charity, let the people around you experience and appreciate their dignity as children of God.

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SATURDAY – EIGHTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us the Power of Faith … He Teaches Us to Respond to the Love Command”

BIBLE READINGS Dt 6:4-13 // Mt 17:14-20

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 17:14-20): “If you have faith, nothing will be impossible for you.

Today’s Gospel (Mt 17:14-20) tells us that after the Lord’s transfiguration on the mountain, he comes down with Peter, James and John. The father of a self-destructive “lunatic” approaches him prayerfully. Kneeling before Jesus, he pleads mercy for his suffering son. The Divine Master is exasperated at the inability of his disciples to help the boy. He berates them for their unbelief: “O faithless and perverse generation, how long will I be with you?” Jesus uses the same phrases that Moses had used, coming down from Mount Sinai, to describe the faithlessness of Israel. Jesus drives away the demon and the boy is healed. When the disciples come to Jesus in private to ask why they were not able to drive the demon out, Jesus answered that they did not have enough faith. True faith in Jesus, even if it is the size of a mustard seed, is efficacious and can move mountains. The Divine Master thus teaches us the power of faith and affirms that with faith, nothing will be impossible for us.

The following account concerning Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini illustrates the power of trusting faith in today’s world (cf. Patricia Treece, Brewster: Paraclete Press, 2011, p. 64-66).

Picture Mother Cabrini in a strange land where she knew no one but the only One you have to know to go into a city and penniless and soon put up a hospital (she did that in New York, Chicago, and Seattle), an orphanage (in Colorado, New York, and Los Angeles, to mention three), dozens of schools in various countries throughout the Americas and Europe, and other institutions to bring God’s loving care to others. She kept them running for decades too. At night she has to sleep in a room alone because the glory of God tends to light up the space and wake companions, which is of course offensive to the humility of one who no longer thinks of herself at all, so madly in love is she with Jesus.

Mother Saverio De Maria, assistant, secretary, and constant companion on Mother Cabrini’s travels for these undertakings, wrote a life of the saint. Mother Saverio recalls that many people offered Mother Cabrini financial help, but she accepted from very few. Among the reasons she did so is this utterly delightful one: “Her trust in divine providence was so limitless that it seemed unfair [to her] to seek other support.”

Now picture a day like many when this consummate businesswoman (as people who had dealings with her described Mother Cabrini) is told a tradesman is at the door, seeking payment of his bill. The saint hands to another of the sisters the key to the desk money drawer. “Empty!” she reports back to Cabrini.

Mother De Maris writes: “Mother [Cabrini] concentrates a moment, then, with serene tranquility said, ‘You did not look well, look again’. Sister opened the same drawer and found a small package of brand new bank bills – the exact amount required to pay the bill. Our dear Mother, while recounting this fact (just to her daughters) many years later with eyes full of gratitude and love used to add: ‘How many of these occurrences I could tell! Truly the Lord overwhelmed us with his benefits.’”

Another time a sister needed to pay off a bill, but there was no money. “Why don’t you put your hand in your pocket?” Mother suggested. Without thought, the sister did so. There, as before, was the precise amount needed.

B. First Reading (Dt 6:4-13): “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart.”

The reading (Dt 6:4-13) contains the Shema, the principal profession of faith of the Jewish people. It begins with the words “Hear, O Israel!” and asserts that the Lord is the only God for Israel. It then delineates the great imperative: “Therefore, you shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength.” The “love” envisioned here is the kind of deep loyalty and affection that Israel owes to the God who ended their cruel bondage in Egypt. This exclusive “love” prohibits the worship of gods other than the Lord. Moreover, this all-encompassing “love of God” must permeate each and every Israelite, their homes and the entire community – at all times and in all circumstances.

The call to a total devotion to God is powerfully expressed in the injunction: “Take to heart these words which I enjoin on you today. Drill them into your children. Speak of them at home and abroad, whether you are busy or at rest. Bind them at your wrist as a sign and let them be a pendant on your forehead. Write them on the door posts of your houses and on your gates.” Inspired by these metaphors, the Jews begin the custom of wearing phylacteries (small leather containers holding tiny scrolls on which were inscribed Dt 6:4-9 as well as other biblical texts). Jews also begin to attach a mezuzah (a small container holding a written biblical text) to the upper part of the right doorposts. Jesus, who considers the love of God as the greatest command, criticizes such practices when they are bereft of meaning – that is, when the total obedience to a loving God that they signify is absent.

Indeed, religious practices are meant to express our faith and intensify our love of God. The following article is insightful (cf. Stephanie Thompson in Daily Guideposts 2015, p. 29). On the entry gate of the fence that surrounded my great-aunt’s house was a small metal box with what looked like squiggles to my seven-year-old eyes. “Mezuzah on the post lets everyone know we are Jewish”, Aunt Frieda explained. Laughing, she added, “Mezuzah also reminds us that we are Jewish.”

Hebrew for “doorpost”, mezuzah is a small container placed by the doors of Jewish homes. The word Shaddai (“Almighty”) adorns the box’s exterior in Hebrew lettering.

My grandfather and his family are Jewish, but I’m a Christian. Yet on my porch, no emblem professes my religion or love for God. My house looks like every other on the block. Inside are furnishings, photographs, and figurines, but nothing shows my faith. God may be first in my life, but where is He in my home?

Finally, evidence of my belief: I have several Bibles, biblical references, and Christian titles. In all, I have at least ninety books that could give the impression that I am a woman of God. Yet, would ninety books in a library of more than six hundred volumes be enough to convince someone of my faith?

I love the Lord with all my heart, but there is little evidence of Him where I live. Maybe I should redecorate with God in mind. Not only will all who pass by know I’m a Christian, but like Aunt Frieda, I, too, could use visual reminders of my faith.

1. Do we trust in the power of faith that can move mountains? How do we cultivate that faith?

2. Do we endeavor to love the Lord God with all our heart, soul and strength? Do we endeavor to share our faith? How?

Loving Jesus, we are a “faithless and perverse generation”. We are afraid to let go and trust in you. We hesitate to exercise the efficacious power of faith that is your gift to us. Teach us to submit to you in a loving personal response. Help us to believe that true faith can move mountains. With faith in you, nothing is impossible for us. Let us proclaim to the nations that the just, because of their faith, shall live. We love you, praise you and extol you, now and forever. Amen.

*** Lord God, in your loving initiative, you brought the Israelites out of the land of Egypt, the place of slavery, In Jesus Christ, you saved us from the slavery to sin and death. Help us to love with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our strength. Let your command of love be the guiding force of our life. We give you glory and praise, now and forever. Amen.

“If you have faith the size of a mustard seed … nothing will be impossible for you.” (Mt 17:20) // “The Lord is our God, the Lord alone! Therefore, you shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength.” (Dt 6:4-5)

In every trial that comes your way, have faith in God. Believe that he is in control and ask him for the grace to bring about the divine saving will. Continue to affirm in every death-dealing situation that the just, because of their faith shall live. // Be courageous to manifest your Christian faith in public.