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

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?

Our Prisons Within

 “I want you to give me at once on a platter the head of John the Baptist.” Mk 6:25

Each time we read Mark's gospel about the party Herod threw for his friends, we wonder if John had an inkling of what might be his fate. A critic of Herod for marrying his brother's wife, John was in prison awaiting he knew not what. Would he rot, be beaten, escape or be sprung from prison by his followers? Though we have no direct evidence of how John reacted when he was about to be beheaded, it must have been awful.

Women and men in prison are among the most isolated people in the world. Often forgotten even by their friends and family, they have little to do but endure and hope for their freedom. For those who study or learn to pray in prison, life can have new meaning, but the strength needed to survive the emptiness and segregation is often lacking. Many become chronically depressed and often think of suicide.

All of us have or make prisons for ourselves from time to time. Call it what you will, but our unwillingness to let go of a job, a lifestyle, a home or an idea can trap us in a place that once served us well on our earthly pilgrimage, but is now very much like a prison. Unless we seek the grace to live in Christ each day, we will be unable to see God wherever we are or hear God directing us to a new path.

Today, ask God to free you from prisons of your own making.

How can the witness of John the Baptist help contemporary Christians?

St Martha, Mary and Lazarus

 "When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who had come with her weeping, he became perturbed and deeply troubled, and said, 'Where have you laid him?' They said to him, 'Sir, come and see.' And Jesus wept." Jn 11: 33-35

The raising of Lazarus from the dead is confusing at best and impossible at worst. If Jesus is such a good friend of Lazarus and knows Lazarus is sick, why does he wait two days before going to him? It seems to most of us that Jesus' delay is unnecessary, even cruel. No wonder Lazarus' sisters complain when Jesus finally appears in Bethany. Convinced Jesus was the Messiah, Martha and Mary wonder aloud to Jesus: If you had been hear, our brother would not have died. Are they accusing Jesus of not caring about them or Lazarus?

The story of Lazarus is curious for other reasons as well. The L'Arche community, a group that works and lives with persons who have intellectual and other disabilities, thinks there is evidence in the scripture that Lazarus was disabled. The Greek word used to describe Lazarus' sickness is asthenes  and can be translated without strength or feeble. Moreover, the gospel calls Martha not Lazarus the head of the household, further suggesting that Lazarus' illness or disability made it impossible for him as a man to take responsibility for his family home.

In any case, when Jesus finally speaks with Martha, she and those grieving with her are weeping. Distraught and upset by his friends' sorrow, Jesus weeps and proceeds, even though Lazarus has been in the tomb four days to raise him from the dead. Jesus' power over death calls us to a new level of faith. We must trust the Lord no matter how sick or disabled we might be and how often he seems to be absent, because he is Lord of the living and the dead.

Today, don't be afraid to weep about your own unbelief. Submit yourself to the Lord and ask him to raise you up.

In what ways are you drawn to the humanity of Jesus?

Remembering we are Clay

"Then the word of the LORD came to me: Can I not do to you, house of Israel, as this potter has done? says the LORD. Indeed, like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, house of Israel." Jer 18:6

Do you ever think of God as a potter, someone who can and will rebuild us as often as we fail to be the person God needs us to be? I love this image, perhaps because I know a few potters who seem infinitely patient and always willing to forgive us and begin again.

While images and metaphors like the potter can be very consoling, they are also very challenging because they remind us that, made in God's image, we must also forgive those who hurt us and begin again. This does not mean we have to be punching bags, but it does mean we need often to take a deep breath, think about how often God has forgiven us and ask for the help to start over.

Today, take a few minutes to let go of hurt and ask God for the grace to begin again.

Has anyone ever let go of a hurt they experienced and shown you God's face?