“No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life” (Jn 3:13-15).

The reference to Moses lifting up the serpent can be found in Numbers 21:4-9. The people, worn out by their journey in the desert began to complain instead of trust in God’s deliverance. The people sought a return to their prior condition of slavery rather than forge ahead and endure the trials of gaining freedom. Venomous snakes came into the camp and began to bite many who then died. The people recognized their sin and implored Moses’ intercession. Moses prayed for the people and lifted up a bronze serpent on a pole and whoever looked upon the serpent was healed.

There is a difference between seeking understanding from God, seeking to understand why something is happening in our lives, and complaining from a posture of self centeredness. The Israelites were looking at their present condition of suffering and missing the point that that they were free from slavery. They were not trusting in God’s providential care and support.

How often do we with our ease of access slip into whining and complaining mode when something doesn’t go quite right. St Paul reminds us through his words to the Corinthians: “Let us not test Christ as some of them did, and suffered death by serpents.” In our most recent exodus heading north to flee Irma, JoAnn and I experienced many hours of travel in bumper to bumper traffic. I had to remind myself often, that at least we had the freedom to leave, while there were many who did not. Again Paul reminds us that no matter what arises, “God is faithful and will not let you be tried beyond your strength; bit with the trial he will also provide a way out, so that you may be able to bear it” (1 Cor 10:9,13).

Today we celebrate the triumph of the cross. It is a good reminder that, when trials and tribulations arise, instead of grumbling, let us look to the crucifix. The sacramental reminder that the Son of God came to be one with us, to experience the fullness of our human experience, even our pain and suffering, to lead us to freedom through his death and resurrection. Jesus is present to us in our struggles and when we turn away from only looking at our own self and limitation, turn instead to him on the cross, seek his guidance, and place our trust in him, we will experience his power and support, we will be able to bear the weight of the struggle, and there will be a way out, through the cross.

What used to be a symbol of oppression, torture, and capital punishment is no more. Let us embrace and “glory in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ; in him is our salvation, life and resurrection. Through him we are saved and set free” (Gal 6:14). Is the life of the disciple easier? No, but with Christ at our side we will be free.

Link for the Mass readings of the day:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/091417.cfm

Photo: Crucifix in the sanctuary of St Peter

“Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude and insult you, and denounce your name as evil on account of the Son of Man” (Lk 6:22).

This fourth beatitude shared by Jesus in Luke’s Gospel is so contrary to what much of secular America aspires to: seeking power, fame, wealth, pleasure, and celebrity. What is more, how many of us who proclaim to be people of faith resist the Gospel Message for our own anxieties, fears, and self centered reasons?

Jesus spent the night in prayer, called his Apostles, and as we read or hear in today’s account, taught them and his disciples how to attain the kingdom through five blessings and four woes. Jesus’ message is a universal message, it is an invitation for all as I have commented often in these reflections. Yet, his teachings challenge us to place our trust in him and not the things of the world. For that which is finite and material is fleeting and passing. By placing our trust in him we will truly be happy and fulfilled, but to live out our trust in him means we will receive opposition from those who will be challenged by the Gospel.

To live the in accord with Jesus is to identify as he said today with the poor, the hungry, those who mourn, and to speak the truth even when we risk being hated, excluded, insulted, and denounced as evil. We are to resist the lure and attachment to the false promise of security believed to be found in material wealth, thinking that we can have all the food, drink, clothes, friends,and joys that money can buy. Access to these are only limited and apparent goods, that if we seek to be fulfilled in and by, we will be left empty and wanting for more. In the pursuit of the material we can also become ensnared by attachment and addiction.

To be blessed, to be happy, to be fulfilled, is to anchor our life in building a relationship with Jesus. To look seriously at what he taught, to face within ourselves those areas in which we believe and act contrary to his teachings, to be open to God’s work of transformation, to apply his teachings to our lives, to commit to living as his apostle, and to proclaim the Gospel in our day and time, “we will rejoice and leap for joy” (Lk 6:23)! The key distinction is to realize that Jesus was not only an amazing teacher, he is the Son of God. The same “power that came forth from him” (Lk 6:19) to heal, to cast out demons, to teach truth, is still active in our lives today.  May we have the courage to, “Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord.”

Link for today’s Mass readings:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/091317.cfm

Photo credit

http://www.adventunwrapped.ca/2016/12/11/finding-joy/

Jesus departed to the mountain to pray, and he spent the night in prayer to God (Lk 6:12).

In the midst of a busy ministry, Jesus spent time alone with God in prayer. In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus often did so before making important decisions, as in today’s reading that recorded the choosing of his Apostles. Prayer is an important, foundational principle to experiencing and knowing God as well as discerning his will for living a fully human life.

The Mystery of God is not a problem to be solved. In our language today, we often use mystery and problem interchangeably, as, “I lost my keys, it is such a mystery.” Strictly speaking, the loss of keys is a problem that can be solved. We can back track our steps, and through a process of elimination the problem becomes smaller until we solve the whereabouts of the missing keys. We cannot solve or prove God exists as if he is a problem to be solved. This is because God is not a being, not even the supreme being. God is a mystery that transcends any finite dimension of reality. We have nothing to measure him by, we cannot prove his existence, nor can we solve him as we would a problem.

Yet we can come to know God intimately just as Jesus did. Even though he is transcendent, beyond our reach and comprehension, he is at the same time closer to us than we are to our self. We come to know God through his invitation, and as we enter into the mystery of his reality through developing a relationship with him, we come to know him. He does not become smaller, but more vast, beyond our comprehension. His mystery is luminous, as if we were in a completely dark room and someone turned on and shined a flashlight into our eyes. We wince from its brightness, yet in time, our eyes adjust and we eventually are able to see what was beyond our ability apart from the light. Jesus wants us to experience and embrace the mystery of the radiance and warmth of his Father’s light and love.

Jesus called each apostle by name. He calls us by name too. We can come to know God, though we will never fully comprehend him because we are finite beings. Our lives are busy and full, even with good things, yet, if we are not making time to spend with God alone as Jesus did, we will run out of gas, we will make decisions that may appear to be good, but will lead us astray and away from the fulfillment of our vocation and experience of God. Through making time for prayer with him, meditating on his word, learning from those who experienced God in their prayer lives, worshipping him, serving him through our service to others, we will discern his will for our lives, be drawn ever deeper into his mystery to experience the intimacy of communion and relationship we have been created for.

Please pray for all of us making the trek back home from our exodus today and this week, and those recovering from the effects of Harvey and Irma.

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Link for Mass readings for the day:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/091217.cfm

Photo:

Great location I spent time in prayer at Hidden Treasure Airbnb in Panama City Florida before the winds and rain tracked us down.

Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it” (Lk 6:9)?

On this day we remember those who lost their lives on 9/11. We recognize those who gave their lives to save lives and the many who chose good over evil. To honor each of them we are called to be people of forgiveness, forgiving even those attackers who committed the unconscionable acts of terror, to choose good rather than evil. As Matt Malone, S.J. wrote: “The Gospel is clear: If we believe that we will escape this vicious cycle of violence without radical acts of love and forgiveness to which the Gospel testifies and Christ commands us, then we are simply fooling ourselves” (3).

If we are to heal, we must forgive, otherwise we contribute to perpetuating the violence inflicted upon us and spread it through our realm of influence. We also need to resist the temptation of judging a people and a faith tradition based on the acts of terrorists. To treat Muslims and people of Arab descent as anything other than our brothers and sisters only fuels the terrorist’s agenda. We begin to counter the cycle of violence by addressing the wounds of fear, unforgiveness, hate, prejudice, and racism present within us. We also need to recognize the destructive force that our own words inflict, seek forgiveness for the evil we have loosed, and choose instead to invoke words that soothe, empower, and encourage. Each step of the way we need to seek the aid of Jesus for we cannot forgive on our own merit or will alone.

If we struggle with unforgiveness, we can be honest with Jesus and say that we need him to forgive for us, as he himself said on the cross, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do” (Lk 23:34). Over time, if we are willing, he will lead us to a place where we too may forgive. As we seek healing and forgiveness, we also need to be willing to reach out beyond our own comfort zones, our own nationality, race, ethnicity, and religion or no faith, to engage with others that we may see as different. Our starting point of interaction needs to be to recognize each other as human beings. Then we are better able to take steps to being open to learn and come to understand another’s belief, culture, and practice. There is so much more we can do together, so much farther we can grow when we embrace the diversity within our communities, instead of walling ourselves off from each other.

Today we pray for, remember, and honor our fallen on 9/11 by seeking healing and forgiveness. I invite you to join with me in praying for those families and friends who have lost loved ones and are still in need of healing. May we also join in prayers of forgiveness for the attackers of 9/11, and for the many who still contemplate, participate, and perpetuate violence in our country and world, that we may come to a place of healing and forgiveness and instead channel our energies toward working for justice with charity and reconciliation. May we seek each day to resist evil and choose good, to resist destroying life and instead commit to saving life with our words, faces, and actions. Lord forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us!

Link for today’s Mass readings:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/091117.cfm

Malone, S.J., Matt. Remembering 9/11. America, Aug 21, 2017.

Photo credit: Marley White, NYCgo.com

As Irma begins to send her winds and feeder bands through southern Florida, and as we start to feel the winds pick up and storm clouds gather in Panama City, where JoAnn and I were kindly taken in from our exodus, I felt a quiet assurance. Texans and Floridians, with the support of one another, with the aid of many from many corners of the region and nation will work together. Even in the utter devastation experienced by the Caribbean islands of Barbuda and St Martin, there will be recovery.

The larger concern I have is the continued gathering of the oppressive clouds and destructive winds of division, polarization, tribalism, nationalism, violence, and war that is wearing down our country and world. We can come together in a time of natural disaster, but we are ripping ourselves apart with the lack of respect and unwillingness to acknowledge the dignity of one another. Our Gospel today offers some hope.

The opening and close of today’s Gospel reading is very telling: “Jesus said to his disciples: ‘If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone’ ” (Mt 18:15) and “For where two or three are gathered together in my name,
there am I in the midst of them” (Mt 18:20). Jesus provides for us a model and he himself is the source for dealing with conflict.

Jesus offered the steps for coming together to resolve disharmony. First one to one, then three two one, then if the person still does not see their error, bringing in the elders and leaders of the Church. Each is an appeal to the conscience of the individual who has offended, who has sinned, who has caused harm, and at the foundation of each attempt is the intent not bring down condemnation but conviction. Jesus insists that we resist the temptations of gossip, character assassination, and dehumanization. In this way, we can work to hold each other accountable in love, moving toward reconciliation and mutual respect, to win over our brother or sister.

We are called to embrace the gift and grace of our own God given dignity and diversity. Each one of us who are a unique gift and expression of our loving Abba that no one has nor ever will again express, as each of us can, in our own original way. But we will not attain the harmony and peace of Jesus’ call for unity if we keep making decisions rooted in our fear and prejudices, if we continue to crouch and operate from a defensive posture.

On our own initiative, from a posture of I am right and you are wrong, and even with the best of intentions, we will fall short, for “with human beings this is impossible, but for God all things are possible” (Mt. 19:26). As we deal with conflict, with division, we need to be willing to come together, to see each other as human beings first and foremost, and with two or more, be willing to pray with and for one another, knowing and trusting that Jesus will be with us. Jesus who spoke to the storm and stilled the storm.

Let us continue to unite in prayer for those who are recovering from Harvey and Irma as well as those who are experiencing Irma right now and those who are in her path to come. Let us be there for one another as best we can when the storm passes, to assist in recovery. May we also be willing to put Jesus’ teaching today into practice: to seek reconciliation, to pray together for one another, to be willing to work together to resolve our conflicts, to act with St Paul to love our neighbor as ourself, for “Love does no evil to the neighbor; hence, love is the fulfillment of the law” (Romans 13:9-10). In this way, we can be bearers of light in the darkness and gathering gloom of division, polarization, and prejudice that still covers our land.

Link for today’s reading:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/091017.cfm

Photo from the sanctuary of St Bernadette Catholic Church in Palm City Florida where JoAnn and I offered prayers of intention during the Saturday Vigil Mass last night for our brothers and sisters who have been affected by and will be in Irma’s path.

Then he said to them, “The Son of Man is lord of the sabbath” (Lk 6:5).

The disciples were traveling with Jesus, they gathered food where they could. In today’s reading they picked heads of grain and rubbed them in their hands to make them easier to chew. The critique of those Pharisees, presumably, walking along with Jesus, was that his disciples were breaking the sabbath law by working and thus not keeping it holy.

The reason for this was that pious Jews would often practice what is called, building a hedge around the Torah, meaning that they would institute practices beyond the original law so that there would be no way of breaking it. Fr. Bill Burton, ofm, shared an example that has stuck with me since my Scripture studies in seminary. There is a prescription in Exodus 23:19, that states that you should not cook a kid (baby goat) in its mother’s milk. So as not to even come close to breaking this law, pious Jews developed the practice, which continues today, to not cook any meat and dairy together; thus the idea of building a hedge around the Torah. The hedge in today’s reading had to do with what constituted work and what did not, so as to keep the sabbath rest intact and keep the Sabbath holy. Jesus settled the debate by claiming that he was the Lord of the Sabbath.

The Lord of the Sabbath, needs to be the Lord of our lives. We live in a fallen world, but even at its best, we live in a finite and fragile world. We as human beings can only do so much. The best we can do is to use our intellect and ability to reason while at the same time seeking to discern God’s will and direction in our life, in the everyday affairs and matters of our life.

JoAnn and I, as well as many Floridians, are in the process of doing just that. JoAnn and I, having boarded up our home, made the determination, based on the Thursday tracking projections of Irma, to leave at 3:00 pm and head to the panhandle of Florida, outside of the cone of error. Driving through stop and go traffic until 1 am Thursday night, we stopped and slept in the car at a rest stop. We left at 7am and and made it to Panama City Beach about 5 pm last night. As we sat down for the tracking update we heard how the storm was no longer tracking east, but west. Here we are to stay, come what may. We trust in Jesus the Lord of our lives!

We continue to pray for those affected already and those who will be. May all our sisters and brothers in Florida be safe. May Jesus be with us to calm the storm without and within. In Jesus’ name, “Peace be still!”

Link for today’s Mass reading:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/090917.cfm

Picture I took on Panama City Beach. May the sun rays shining down on us represent the Son’s rays of support that is present with us!

The Book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham (Mt 1:1).

Many may gloss over the long genealogy of names that follows verse one. Matthew certainly had a reason, Luke also had his, as did other ancient writers for compiling genealogical lists. Those reasons are interesting in and of themselves, but I wanted to key in on something basic we may miss if we quickly pass over Jesus’ bloodline.

Matthew placed the context of the incarnation of the Son of God in history, time, and place. Jesus belonged to a people. All of us, as human beings, have the same desire and yearning for belonging. Knowing where we came from, sharing stories of our families, of our culture, ethnicity, race, language, customs, celebrations, rituals, and religion, provide a place for us, provide stability and security. On the flip side, the more we lose the connectedness to our roots, the more we may feel adrift. The need to belong is primal.

Matthew shared and shares again for us in today’s readings the roots of Jesus’ genealogy, for they are our’s as well. He invites us to hear them again, to recognize our place in the same saga of salvation history. The Church chose this Gospel today as we remember and celebrate the nativity of Mary. All of the Bible, as a part of Sacred Tradition, is the story of Mary and our ancestors who encountered God and shared their stories. They passed them on, generation after generation, to provide for us a foundation, so we can know that we are never alone, that we have a place, that we are a people, we stand in solidarity with one another, that we belong.

Let us continue to show that solidarity through prayer and support for those already affected by Harvey and Irma, and those of us who may be affected by Irma tomorrow and in the days to come. In Jesus’ name, “Peace be still!”

Link for Mass readings for today:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/bible/matthew/1:1

Photo credit:

http://www.luc.edu/dos/services/statementofsolidarity/

After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.” Simon said in reply,”Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets” (Lk 5:4-5).

Faith is to trust in God and believe that what he tells us is true. On our own initiative and will power we are limited as finite beings as to what we can do. We can read an example if this in today’s account regarding how Simon had been fishing all night with no results. But when we follow God’s direction and initiative all things are possible. At Jesus’ command, Simon Peter follows and not only completes what he originally set out to do, he did so beyond anything he had imagined. He caught so many fish that the nets were tearing.

God’s initiative and grace enter our life daily as Jesus entered Simon’s boat. Do we have eyes to see and ears to hear and a willingness to listen and follow the initiative of Jesus? Remember the rich man who had followed all the commandments, but when Jesus invited him to sell all and come and follow him, he could not do it. Simon the magician saw the works of Philip, Peter, and John and wanted to buy the power of the Holy Spirit to heal but was rebuked. Turning away from Jesus’ invitation or seeking to manipulate Jesus for our own personal gain will not gain fulfillment.

We need to follow the example of Mary’s faith. She received the invitation of God to bear a child even though she did not understand how this could be since she had not known a man. She trusted, bore Jesus, not just any baby, but the God Man, the incarnate Son of God, Jesus the Christ. We need to follow such examples of Peter, James, and John, who in today’s reading said yes to lowering their nets, even though they did not see the point since they had been fishing all night to no avail, and were amazed at their catch. Then led by Peter’s humility and contrition, they “left everything” and said yes to following Jesus. They went on to announce the Gospel of the Lord and caught people for the Kingdom of heaven.

Are we willing to be caught by the Love of Jesus? Jesus calls us today to do little things with great love. He has a plan for us, as he did for Mary and the Apostles. He will give us the means to accomplish what he calls us to do. In that quiet place in our soul he is inviting us to follow him. We may not think what he is inviting us to do is possible, but trust him. “Do not be afraid!”

Our prayers continue to be with those who are already suffering from the effects of Irma in Puerto Rico and the islands of the Caribbean. As it continues on toward the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Cuba, and turns toward Florida, may its course veer far enough away so as not to cause any significant damage to life and property. In Jesus’ name, “Peace be still!”

Link for today’s Mass reading:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/090717.cfm

Photo credit from:

To Catch Uhu, Be an A‘ama: Traditional Hawaiian Fishing Methods

“But he said to them, “To the other towns also I must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God, because for this purpose I have been sent” (Lk 4:43).

Jesus himself present, fully divine and fully human, is the foretaste of heaven in our midst then, as presented in our Gospel reading, and today at work in us his Church. His work of preaching, teaching, healing, and casting out demons, shows the divinve flow of the Father’s Love being infused into our fallen human condition. Jesus came to restore that which had been lost and once he begins his mission he is ever on the go.

Through our Baptism we have been conformed to and indellibly marked by Christ, and for Christ. We are nourished by his Body and Blood in the Eucharist and were empowered through the laying on of hands by the bishop at our Confirmation. We have been divinized, made God through our pariticpation in the life of Jesus the Christ. We are to preach and teach the same Gospel, we are to be his healing presence, we are to make Jesus present to those in our midst, and yes we too are called to cast out all demons, negativity, fear and darkness. The weakest Christian is more powerful that Satan himself, for we are aligned and empowered by Jesus when we invoke his holy name.

Jesus did not travel very far during his three and a half year public ministry, yet his Word has reached all corners of the world. That is because of those who have encountered him, said yes to his invitation, and have been about building a relationship with him, and embracing the gift of the vocation they have been called to. We are called to the same mission of evangelization. Jesus invites us today to “proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God.” Let us begin, let us be on our way!

Let us hold each other up in prayer for those in the path of Irma and those evacuating. “Peace be still!”

Link to today’s Mass readings:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/bible/luke/4:38

Jesus returned to his Nazareth, as we saw in yesterday’s reading, and that did not end so well, with his fellow Nazoreans running him out of town (Lk 4:29). In today’s reading, Jesus was teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum. The initial reaction to Jesus’ teaching was similar in both accounts; the people were “amazed” and “astonished” with his teaching. But no one in either group makes the bold statement that arises today: “I know who you are – the Holy One of God” (Lk 4:34)! This phrase was professed by a demon. He who taunted Jesus.

From the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry the opposition was present. In Nazareth, the fallen nature of our humanity reared its head. His own people were unwilling to see beyond the ordinary Jesus they always knew. Wasn’t he just the son of Joseph, just the carpenter? Jesus was safe when he merely worked a quiet life, participated in the life of the synagogue, even when he returned from surrounding territories amidst words of praise, and even stepping up to read in the synagogue from the words of Elijah: he was the hometown boy making good. But once Jesus began to equate himself in the line of the prophets and share how God was working beyond the people of Israel, with his accounts of Elijah going to the Gentile widow, and Naaman, another Gentile going to Elisha, highlighting that God worked beyond the people of Israel, even his own had enough. Jesus had to go (Lk 4:29).

In today’s account, another source of opposition, is the taunting demon. Jesus rebuked him immediately and called him out of the man. Jesus would face time and again the fallen nature of humanity, disbelief, lack of faith, and the opposition of demons and soon the failure of religious and civic leadership. Sound familiar?

Where do we find our self in the scenes of Jesus’ ministry and teaching? There is a clear choice that Jesus proposes and that is we are either for him or we are against him. Saying yes to follow Jesus is a day to day commitment and we must be willing to face the same challenges that his disciples did. We need to be willing to face our weakness and own shortcomings, conform our lives to his will to see the darkness and sin within ourselves, be willing to ask for help and be willing to be healed, to acknowledge that demons do exist and play a role in the principalities and powers that influence our world. The harsh truth is that the closer we draw to Jesus, the more we experience his light, the clearer we see the dark influences that plague our world that we were blinded to before.

We need to believe in Jesus, trust in Jesus, spend time in prayer, in his word, and serving him in one another and stand strong against the temptations and darkness of this world. When we fall short, fail, as did the apostles, we need to follow, not Judas, but Peter: repent, confess our love for Jesus, and begin again. We need to hold one another accountable, support and lift one another up in love. Together, with our Loving God and Father, for he is at our right hand, we will stand firm (cf. Psalm 16)!

Readings for today:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/090517.cfm

Photo Credit: Reuters Daniel Chan