"The Lord has done great things for us. We are filled with joy." Ps 126
The Eucharist is the central mystery of our faith. In it and through it we remember the life, suffering, death and resurrection of the Lord. By celebrating the great gift of the Body and Blood of the Lord, especially on Sunday's, we keep alive all that God has done for us, from the creation of the world, to the making of the Covenants, the sending of the prophets and the gift of Jesus in a form that allows us to grieve our own sins and celebrate the unwavering love of God. In eating the Body and Blood of the Lord, we are nourished both as individuals and communities, and we are challenged to feed others as God continues to feed us.
The mystery of the Eucharist is something that deserves our daily gratitude. There is no fuller way to honor God than in the breaking of the bread, and there is no more fitting way to remember Jesus than to proclaim his love in service of the hungry and poor.
Today, be grateful for all the gifts of God, especially the gift of his Son.
What helps you remember to live your faith each day?
Saturday, October 27, 2018
Friday, October 26, 2018
Bearing Fruit
"For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree but have found none. So cut it down. Why should it exhaust the soil?'
At the time of Jesus, Palestine was an arid land with little water and shallow soil. Farmers had to use their resources carefully. Because they could not afford to allow fruit bearing plants or trees that did not produce a good crop to litter the land, they became a ready example for Jesus to teach.
All of us must bear fruit. Given faith as a free gift, we need to spend it freely for the good of others. Faith is not something that merely calls us to personal holiness. It is a treasure intended to help others know God and the Good News of Jesus. Only when we live faith in a transparent way does it bear the fruit intended by God.
Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk committed to the silence of the Cistercian life, insisted that anyone who sought entry into the monastery to escape the world did not have a vocation. Even, perhaps especially, monks dedicated to silence must bear fruit by being attentive to all believers in order to bring the concerns of God's people before God in prayer.
Today, reach out for someone lost.
What keeps you from producing fruit for all to eat?
At the time of Jesus, Palestine was an arid land with little water and shallow soil. Farmers had to use their resources carefully. Because they could not afford to allow fruit bearing plants or trees that did not produce a good crop to litter the land, they became a ready example for Jesus to teach.
All of us must bear fruit. Given faith as a free gift, we need to spend it freely for the good of others. Faith is not something that merely calls us to personal holiness. It is a treasure intended to help others know God and the Good News of Jesus. Only when we live faith in a transparent way does it bear the fruit intended by God.
Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk committed to the silence of the Cistercian life, insisted that anyone who sought entry into the monastery to escape the world did not have a vocation. Even, perhaps especially, monks dedicated to silence must bear fruit by being attentive to all believers in order to bring the concerns of God's people before God in prayer.
Today, reach out for someone lost.
What keeps you from producing fruit for all to eat?
Thursday, October 25, 2018
Humble Leadership
"If you are to go with your opponent before a magistrate, make an effort to settle the matter on the way." Lk 12:57
Worry rarely gets us anywhere, but we often can't stop obsessing about things that we know are not important but concern us nonetheless. Whether because our pride gets in the way or our self image is threatened, we find ourselves unsettled and perturbed over matters that we can't control.
Worry rarely gets us anywhere, but we often can't stop obsessing about things that we know are not important but concern us nonetheless. Whether because our pride gets in the way or our self image is threatened, we find ourselves unsettled and perturbed over matters that we can't control.
Jesus warns his disciples and us about this. The leaders of the Jewish community, like so many people with a little bit of power, cling stubbornly to their interpretation of the law for fear they will lose their influence over their people. Forgetting that the Law's purpose is to remind Jews of God's largess, they argue among themselves about how to maintain control of the community, and they refuse to seek reconciliation with those with whom they disagree. When Jesus' followers argued about who was the greatest, he challenged them to be like children and take the lowest place, and urged them to find paths of healing between and among themselves. Only in this way would they be able to demonstrate that they were his disciples.
Today, ask for the gift of true humility.
What do you think are the qualities of a Christian leader?
Wednesday, October 24, 2018
Living with Jesus' Hard Sayings
"Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division." Lk 12:51
When Jesus tells us that the “good news” he speaks is a hard word, a demanding word and one that will sometimes bring about division between and among families, we are always unnerved. What could this talk about division mean? Are we not called to be one with each other as a sign of God's unity?
In the film, The King’s Speech, the Duke of York suffers terribly from stuttering. Though born to nobility, the man who would eventually be known as King George VI, cannot even read a speech on the radio. Exhausted and ashamed by his struggles, the future king submits himself to the “cleansing” and “purifying” skill and friendship of a commoner. Slowly he gains some control of his stammer and emerges humble and grateful, and able to play a key role in leading England through the Second World War. This is, of course, exactly what the Lord did for his first disciples and continues to do for us today.
The body of Christ is one but has many members, each with a distinct role without which the whole cannot function completely and integrally. All of us are important in the eyes of God. Each of has a dignity that can never be taken away from us. When we forget or ignore these basic truths, we must be cleansed and purified.
Today, ask not to be afraid of the fire of God.
Have you been refined like gold in the furnace for the service of God's reign?
When Jesus tells us that the “good news” he speaks is a hard word, a demanding word and one that will sometimes bring about division between and among families, we are always unnerved. What could this talk about division mean? Are we not called to be one with each other as a sign of God's unity?
In the film, The King’s Speech, the Duke of York suffers terribly from stuttering. Though born to nobility, the man who would eventually be known as King George VI, cannot even read a speech on the radio. Exhausted and ashamed by his struggles, the future king submits himself to the “cleansing” and “purifying” skill and friendship of a commoner. Slowly he gains some control of his stammer and emerges humble and grateful, and able to play a key role in leading England through the Second World War. This is, of course, exactly what the Lord did for his first disciples and continues to do for us today.
The body of Christ is one but has many members, each with a distinct role without which the whole cannot function completely and integrally. All of us are important in the eyes of God. Each of has a dignity that can never be taken away from us. When we forget or ignore these basic truths, we must be cleansed and purified.
Today, ask not to be afraid of the fire of God.
Have you been refined like gold in the furnace for the service of God's reign?
Tuesday, October 23, 2018
Gratitude, Always Gratitude
"Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more." Lk 12:48
Unfortunately, like most people in the developed world, I often take "my wealth" for granted, and even feel entitled. If the phone doesn’t work for two days, I might threaten the service provider with switching to another company. You get the idea. I have been given so much that when I read today’s gospel parable, I realize that my one task is to stay awake in gratitude and too often I am asleep, even to the gift of faith.
When we stop to notice of all we have and offer a word of gratitude for whatever and whomever comes to us each day, we are different. We are rich and as Jesus reminds us, “Much will be required of the person entrusted with much.” Don’t be afraid of this warning. Be grateful for the gifts you have been given, and share them generously. God gives us all the strength to live our faith and give it away with joy and exuberance.
Today, make an inventory of all you have been given. Then take five minutes of silence to sit with your gifts in gratitude.
How best can you share "your wealth" with others?
Unfortunately, like most people in the developed world, I often take "my wealth" for granted, and even feel entitled. If the phone doesn’t work for two days, I might threaten the service provider with switching to another company. You get the idea. I have been given so much that when I read today’s gospel parable, I realize that my one task is to stay awake in gratitude and too often I am asleep, even to the gift of faith.
When we stop to notice of all we have and offer a word of gratitude for whatever and whomever comes to us each day, we are different. We are rich and as Jesus reminds us, “Much will be required of the person entrusted with much.” Don’t be afraid of this warning. Be grateful for the gifts you have been given, and share them generously. God gives us all the strength to live our faith and give it away with joy and exuberance.
Today, make an inventory of all you have been given. Then take five minutes of silence to sit with your gifts in gratitude.
How best can you share "your wealth" with others?
Monday, October 22, 2018
Opening our Hearts to God
“Gird your loins and light your lamps and be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding, ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks." Lk 12 35-36
Getting ready for a lifestyle change can be both unnerving and exciting. Seventeen young men recently entered the Capuchin novitiate in California. Reading their names, I immediately started praying for them. While I am sure they are excited, I also know they will have some butterflies.
Praying for these young mne helped me remember that whenever I have the privilege of helping someone ready themselves for marriage, many of the same concerns emerge. Has the couple spent enough time learning about one another? Do they have good communication skills? And most important for believers, are the thinking of marriage as a faith commitment, an opportunity to grow in the love of God through marriage?
These questions, and the answers they imply, when altered slightly are good ones for the candidates to our Order. Life doesn't happen in a day, but unfolds a day at a time. Taking enough time to focus of goals rather than accomplishments makes it possible for religious life and marriage to be a wonderful time of transformation and hope.
Today, thank God for those who helped you make difficult transitions in your life.
What most helps you make transitions in your faith life?
What most helps you make transitions in your faith life?
Sunday, October 21, 2018
The Danger of Greed
“Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.” Lk 12:15
Jesus did not come to straighten out the world but to set its people free, and while some will deny or ignore this gift, it is ours for the taking. When we live generously and with deep regard for those most in need, relationships blossom and the Good News becomes powerful and transforming. It is virtually impossible to turn away from someone we know who is in real need. It is only when the poor remain faceless that our greed overwhelms our beliefs. Opening our eyes to everyone in front of us not only changes us, it can change the world.
Today, ask yourself how much you need to live.
Has your own or another's greed ever impacted your life?
Greed has been a constant theme in the United States in recent years. The discrepancy in income between the super rich and the everyday poor is growing and a cause for deep concern. Jesus had more than a little to say about this, and it is still valuable advice. Money, property and power accumulation are not in themselves the problem. Greed is. The desperate clinging to what we have suggests there is no other world but the one in which we live, and faith challenges this view over and over.
Jesus did not come to straighten out the world but to set its people free, and while some will deny or ignore this gift, it is ours for the taking. When we live generously and with deep regard for those most in need, relationships blossom and the Good News becomes powerful and transforming. It is virtually impossible to turn away from someone we know who is in real need. It is only when the poor remain faceless that our greed overwhelms our beliefs. Opening our eyes to everyone in front of us not only changes us, it can change the world.
Today, ask yourself how much you need to live.
Has your own or another's greed ever impacted your life?
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