When we trust in the Lord, we will be healed and be able to see and hear.

In today’s Gospel from Mark, Jesus healed a blind man. Like the healing of the deaf man (cf. Mk 7:31-37), Jesus again used his own saliva in the healing process showing the intimacy and closeness of each encounter. The difference this time is that this man does not receive a full and complete healing the first time. Jesus laid hands on the man’s eyes a second time and he saw clearly; his sight was restored and he could see everything distinctly (Mk 8:25).

Often with Jesus, there are instant healings, as well as healing by his word alone. What might be happening with this need for a double healing? Maybe it is because Jesus meets each person where they are at. He invites us into the process of healing and each person has a different response, even to the point of saying no to the invitation to heal. Remember how Jesus was only able to heal a few people while in his own home town of Nazareth?

We need to read the two miraculous healings of the deaf and blind men deeper than the literal physical healings. Each of us suffers from both spiritual deafness and blindness to some degree. Jesus revealed this with his disciples on the boat ride over to Bethsaida when they did not understand his teaching on the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod. We come to hear and see God’s will for us gradually.

As I shared a few days ago if we knew God’s intention for us early on, we might be crushed with the weight of our own doubt! If someone had told me when I was in high school that I would be a teacher, later a deacon, and now a priest, teaching and preaching coherently, I would have quietly retreated to a stand of white birch across from the old oak tree in the field behind my parent’s house until that idea passed.

Yet, Jesus met me on my level. Sometime around my junior of high school, he invited me through an interim pastor to teach Sunday school to a class of three. About a year later I gave a children’s sermon to the youth and the small congregation. The summer after my freshman year of college, I began to work second shift as a certified nurse’s aide and during my sophomore year of college, after following the urge to take a search in education course, I switched my major from psychology to elementary education. After graduation, my first teaching position was not in the four walls of a classroom, but six hundred eighty acres at the Sharon Audubon Center as an environmental education specialist.

I began to interact with people, Jesus drew me out of my own self-centered posture, and I began to grow and mature. I would eventually enter the classroom when we moved to Florida in 1997 to teach, first in public school for five years and then through JoAnn’s guidance, I applied for a substitute position at Rosarian Academy in WPB, where I would spend the next eight years teaching middle school religion. While at Rosarian, I also entered the permanent deacon program and was ordained a deacon in 2013 and then would go on to teach at Cardinal Newman HS for nine more years.

Each of these experiences of saying yes to Jesus was my willingness to be healed and lead gently. Certainly, with the loss of JoAnn, my foundation had been shaken, but Jesus continued to lead me and helped me to discern my next step which was returning to seminary for two years and then fortunate to be ordained this past May as a priest and I’m blessed to be serving now and typing these words from my office at Holy Cross Catholic Church.

The journey continues for each of us, and we are invited to trust in Jesus and be led by his guidance into healing and service. As he has guided me, I trust that he will do the same for each of you. We just need to have our eyes and ears open for his healing touch. He is not done with any of us yet!

Photo: Full moon rising during Rosary walk back in November.

Link for the Mass readings for Wednesday, February 19, 2025

May we guard ourselves against the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod.

Jesus convicted the Pharisees for demanding a sign and for their continued hardness of heart, their unwillingness to see and hear the work and presence of God right before them. He also saw the unsettling yeast of the Pharisees present in his own disciples. In today’s reading, Jesus seized on the opportunity of being together in the boat, Jesus seized on this teachable moment. He wanted to help the disciples of his inner circle to resist the same path of corruption when he enjoined them: “Watch out, guard against the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod” (Mk 8:15).

As has been their pattern, the disciples missed the point as they focused on the literal reality that they only had one loaf of bread among them. Jesus was not, as they thought, taking them to task for not thinking ahead to bring enough bread. He had twice now multiplied minimal amounts of bread to feed thousands. One loaf with them would not have been an issue. He was more concerned about them resisting of falling into the danger of pride, seeking honor, power, and fame which had lead many of the Pharisees and Herod astray. To be his followers, striving to place themselves first would be not only the undoing of each of them but also undermine the authenticity of the Gospel message they were to proclaim and affect those they would be charged to care for.

Unfortunately, too many have not heeded this lesson that Jesus offered in today’s Gospel to his disciples regarding being aware of the corrupting leaven of many of the Pharisees and Herod. Just as the effects of original sin has wounded humanity, so it has also affected those in the Church. Throughout the ages, clergy and laity alike have succumbed to the temptations of placing our needs before and focusing on ourselves instead of God and who he calls us to serve.

Yet throughout the worst corruptions and abuses, the Church remains. God continues to work through many who are faithful and say “yes” to his invitation and follow his will in simple ways, living lives of quiet prayer, worship, and giving of themselves in acts of service daily. It is unfortunate that there are those who leave because they see hypocrisy, injustice, abuse, and corruption. For it is those with eyes to see and ears to hear that need to stay and be faithful witnesses to the call of the one true Bread from Heaven. We must remain persistent and lean on Jesus to give us the strength and clarity on how best to proceed to heal his wounded Body.

We also need to be aware of the sinful leaven that would seek to undo each of us. It is easy to point fingers. We will be on surer footing when we seek healing, transformation, and guidance from Jesus and choose to place God primary before any self-serving pursuits. Doing so will help us to live simple and holy lives of loving God, our neighbors, and ourselves.

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Photo: Daily prayer and meditation, pondering the word of God, and opening our hearts and minds to God’s guidance will help us to resist the spiritual leaven of hypocrisy, sin, and hardening of our hearts.

Link for the Mass readings for Tuesday, February 18, 2025

Trusting in Jesus and Mary is a good way to begin each day.

“Give me a sign!”

Often, when we ask for a sign, we have a preconceived notion of what we are seeking and we want God’s stamp of approval on it. The impetus is coming from us, seeking to bend the will of God to our will. More often times than not this approach will end in frustration. The Pharisees in today’s account are asking for a sign. Jesus has already been preaching with authority, healing, casting out unclean spirits and demons, encountering the unclean and restoring them to the community and right worship, and this is not enough?

The Pharisees echo their ancestors in the desert who constantly complained and were rebellious toward Moses and God. They refused to see that God had freed them from their bondage in Egypt and was caring and providing for them every step of the way in their journey. Yet, they refused to see God working in their midst. The Pharisees refuse to see in Jesus the Son of God in their midst.

We can understand how: He sighed from the depth of his spirit and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Amen, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation” (Mk 8:12). The majority of the Pharisee’s minds were set, they were “motivated not by a sincere desire for truth but by a refusal to relate to God on his own terms. To insist on irrefutable evidence is really a demand for control” (Healy, 153).  Jesus knew there was nothing he could say or do to prove to them he was who he said he was; the kingdom of God at hand.

If they had not the eyes to see nor the ears to hear, there was no argument, point, or sign that would have changed their minds. Jesus sighed from the depths of his spirit because their hearts were hardened such that they closed themselves off from the gift of the grace he sought to share. There was nothing left to say, so he then got into the boat to go to the other shore. He was determined to now put his energy in preparing his disciples, to ready them for his death and their mission.

The question for us today is, do we believe, do we really believe, that Jesus is who he says he is; do we believe that Jesus is “the way, the truth, and the life” (Jn 14:6)? Do we seek to bend God’s will to our own or are we willing to change and seek to align our will with his? The woman with the hemorrhage for twelve years, Jairus, the leper, the Syrophoenician woman whose daughter was possessed, the friends with the man with the withered hand, and the leper, did not ask for a sign, they asked for healing. They trusted, believed, and risked getting closer to Jesus seeking to encounter him despite the barriers in place to prevent them. In each of these cases, Jesus recognized their faith and each received the healing they sought.

In our discernment, we need to be aware of our intent. There is a subtle distinction, but it is important. Are we seeking proof, a sign, or do we have faith in Jesus? Do we believe him, and seek to know God’s will, as Mary did when she asked, “How can this be” (Lk 1:34)? Are we demanding proof, a three-point plan from God before we follow his lead, or do we trust his invitation and believe that he will reveal what we need to do each step of the way? Often times, if we knew the end result and full ramifications of his original request, our doubt would crush our spirit before we even started.

Let us not seek a sign but instead a relationship. Making time to be still, to pray, to open and lift up our hearts and minds to God and spend time with him each day will help us to better know him and his will. May we trust as Mary did when she said, “May it be done to me according to your word” (Lk 1:38), and as did her Son, “not my will but your will be done” (Luke 22:42). Let us take the hands of Mary and Jesus in ours. They who know our Father can help us to know him as well and help us to accomplish what God calls us to do just for today.

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Photo: Very blessed and thankful that Jesus and Mary continue to be a source of guidance, strength, love, and support each day.

Healy, Mary. The Gospel of Mark. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2008.

Link for the Mass readings for Monday, February 17, 2025

Barren bush in the desert or lush tree planted beside living waters?

In today’s Gospel, Luke records Jesus sharing his sermon on the beatitudes as a parallel with Matthew’s account. His sermon is often called, Jesus’ sermon on the plain instead of Matthew’s sermon on the mount. Dr. Brandt Pitre offers an interesting insight in stating that the word plain is used as a translation of the Greek word pedinou that is used in the King James version of the Bible. Also, for us as Americans when we might read or use the word plain, we think of the flat prairies, the plains of the midwest. Pedinou, Dr. Pitre states, is more accurately translated as a flat or level area. So topou pedinou would more accurately be translated as a flat place.

Following this line of thought, Jesus, in his time and place does not encounter the Rocky Mountain high as found in the west, for there are not mountains in his geographical area as much as there is hill country. When Jesus goes to the top of the “mountain” to pray, he is going to the top to the hill and then as he comes down, it may be that he did not come down all the way to the bottom, but most likely to an area that is flat or level, from which would have then been easier to preach and allow his listeners to gather around him.

Dr. Pitre’s proposition is that this may be the same sermon as well as happening in the same place as in Matthew as it is in Luke. The more common interpretation of Biblical scholars regarding the two accounts of the sermons are that Jesus preached this sermon on multiple occasions, with each sharing offering different aspects of his presentation. Though an interesting debate, ultimately, what is most important is the message that Jesus shared with his disciples then and us today who seek to follow him.

With our initial hearing or reading, our response to Jesus’ sermon as recorded by Luke can be jarring. When Jesus says blessed are you who are poor, hungry, weeping, or persecuted. Really? Then even more unsettling, woe to you who are rich, full, laughing, and are praised. These blessings and woes would be really hard to digest for Jews of his time as well. For much of the understanding of the Old Testament was the idea that if you obey God, you will prosper, you will receive the wonders of earthly blessings. If you disobey God, you will be cursed. Have a good read of Deuteronomy 28 as Dr. Pitre invites and you will get the point.

Our first reading from the prophet Jeremiah 17:5-8, may help us to gain some perspective. Jeremiah wrote that, “Cursed is the one who trusts in human beings” and “whose heart turns away from the LORD.” The one who is blessed or happy is “the one who trusts in the LORD, whose hope is in the LORD.” Jeremiah, like the psalmist in Psalm 1, equates the blessed with the imagery of a tree “planted besides the waters… it fears not the heat when it comes… in the year of drought it shows no distress.”

Dr. Brant Pitre, points out that Jesus uses the same Hebrew word, ashar, as the psalmist, which means happy. Barak means blessed. Jesus offered an echo of Jeremiah as he spoke to his followers and speaks in his words proclaimed today. He is not only turning the Torah upside down in that it is not the rich, the full, the laughing, and the praised but the poor, hungry, weeping, and persecuted who will be blessed, those are the ones who will be happy. It is by trusting in God, not the strength, pleasure, wealth, and fame of the world, that will make us happy. The things of the world God created as good, but when they are disordered and placed before God to seek out satisfaction, they will lead us astray and empty. Worse, by leading us away from the true source of our being, we separate ourselves from our life force and will become like “a barren bush in the desert.”

Looking at one of the blessings and woes with hunger can help us to get a better distinction: “Blessed are you who are now hungry, for you will be satisfied” and “Woe to you who are filled now, for you will be hungry.” Jesus is addressing that which truly satisfies and fulfills us as human beings. He is helping us to see what we need to be connected to, God, and what we need to detach from, anything that diverts us away from our relationship with God. If we are thirsty, we need to drink water for our thirst to be quenched. If we want to be happy in this life we need to drink from the spring of eternal life, the Holy Spirit.

Each of us ultimately wants to be blessed, to be happy. If we follow the trail of any thought we entertain, seek to satiate instant gratification, seek the freedom to do what we want when we want and how often we want, this will lead not to fulfillment and meaning in our lives, but instead, like a steady diet of junk food, lead to a disordered and unhealthy life and then we will wonder why we have no joy in our lives. The challenge is to discern and to determine between apparent goods and true goods. What will truly fulfill us not just in the moment, but will satisfy us for the long term, and in Jesus’ presentation, what will satisfy us in this life while at the same time prepare us for eternity.

If we are constantly satisfying our hunger with those foods, activities and expending of our time on seeking apparent goods, we may not be aware that we are filling ourselves with those things that are not truly satisfying, and when we hunger again, we try to keep filling ourselves with more of those same things. Addiction anyone? We can eat a whole bag of potato chips, a half gallon of our favorite ice cream, a whole pizza, and find satisfaction in the moment, be full for the moment, but in constantly filling ourselves with such as these, over time our health will suffer and we will still be hungry for more! “Woe to you who are filled now, for you will be hungry.” What is worse is that by doing so, we cover over the deeper hunger of our soul, which is to love God, ourselves, and our neighbors as our selves.

We can apply this to anything, our entertainment, occupation, how we spend our time, who we spend our time with, and what we do with our time. At some point, we become aware that we are filling ourselves up with that which is not fulfilling, that which will continue to leave us empty, because nothing in the material or finite realm will ultimately satisfy. We have been created for something more, to be in relationship with God and one another properly ordered from our relationship with God.

Jesus came to help us to realize that our truest and deepest hunger is for God. When we properly identify our hunger, then we can properly seek what will satisfy our hunger. Many times we may be thirsty, but go to get something to eat instead. The food does not satisfy because we have discerned poorly that which we truly needed, which was water. We need to resist the temptations of material and finite allurements which may be good in and of themselves, but not so if disorder, and we place them as foundational to our happiness and fulfillment.

Our deepest hunger is for God. We need to trust in Jesus as our Lord, place him first in our lives before anything and everyone else, and make the time to discern each thought entertained, word spoken, decision made, and action taken by seeking the promptings of the Holy Spirit. When we make the time to do so we will be, “like a tree planted beside the waters that stretches out its roots to the stream: it fears not the heat when it comes; its leaves stay green; in the year of drought it shows no distress, but still bears fruit” (Jeremiah 17:8).

JoAnn and I spent a few years even before knowing that she was sick, sorting through many of the material items that had been taking up space for years. We were able to let go of many material things, that at one time provided enjoyment, but had just been taking up space. Letting go, emptying, and purging, as well as renouncing spiritually, is a good practice that helps us to be open to see what we are truly hungry for, which is God’s love. When we open our hearts to receive the love of the Holy Spirit, we will be blessed because we can continue to draw from this eternal source of love through the joyful as well as the challenging times.

To be truly happy, may we with the psalmist place our “hope in the Lord.” Let us meditate on God’s “law day and night.” Meaning, read, study, pray, and meditate upon the words of the Bible daily, seek and listen to God’s guidance, regularly participate in Mass, and the sacrament of Reconciliation. Placing God first in our lives, deepening and growing our relationship with him, letting go of disordered attachments to anyone and anything that is not within his will for our lives, will help us to let go of the false promises and apparent goods that will lead us astray. Discerning well with the guidance of the Holy Spirit will help us to truly satisfy the deepest hunger of our souls and we will be blessed, and happy in this life as we prepare for the next.

Photo: Spending a few quiet moments with the Lord, stretching out my roots to experience his eternal living stream of water.

Link to the Mass readings for Sunday, February 16, 2025

What does Jesus ask us to give?

As Christians we are called to be disciples of Jesus, to learn his teachings, and follow his ways. We are also called to be apostles in that we are to go out, proclaim and share that he is who he said he is, and how he has affected our lives. Often when we are reminded of this message though, we may feel inadequate. We may question what it is that we can even possibly offer in an effort to help build the kingdom of God. We may feel we have nothing to share, nothing to give, nothing to say, or that what the Lord asks of us, we do not know how to accomplish.

The disciples express similar feelings today for the latter point. Jesus shows concern for the thousands who had just listened to him for three days and are readying to depart. He is concerned that they are hungry and that some may collapse on their way home. The disciples look about bewildered as to how they could possibly feed the vast crowd of four thousand. Then Jesus asked,  “How many loaves do you have” (Mk 8:5)? They responded that they had seven loaves and a few fish. Jesus would go on to feed, not only the whole multitude gathered, but when all ate their fill, seven baskets of bread fragments were left over.

We may not know how to take active steps to live our faith out in our daily lives, we may not even be aware of how to begin. On the other side, we may have actually been engaged in service, in our vocation, but have started to coast, gotten complacent, and need to continue to strive to mature as a disciples and apostles. Each day is a new opportunity to begin again, and a good way is to place ourselves in the presence of Jesus. If we have trouble visualizing him, we can look at a statue we may have, a picture, or an icon. Then take some deep breaths, meditate on our present life condition, and assess where there is a need in our own life as well as those of others. Once we are able to identify a concern, let us have ears to hear Jesus ask us, “What do you have, what can you offer?”

You may not have an immediate answer. Stay with the question for a period of time, take it with you throughout the day if need be. Resist looking for the big response or grand plan. Ask yourself what you can offer no matter how small. What you give to Jesus in service and participation with him, he can multiply and bring about amazing results. The disciples only gave him seven loaves and some fish, what seemed insignificant to feed the thousands. And yet, Jesus multiplied the meager amount to feed all present with seven baskets left over. Jesus provides, Jesus works through us. The question we need to answer is not are we worthy because we are not. The question we need to answer is, “Are we willing?” If “yes”, then all things are possible through Jesus.

Photo: When we are willing to collaborate with Jesus, miracles happen!

Link for the Mass readings for Saturday, February 15, 2025

“Ephphatha!”

Those who witnessed Jesus healing the man who was deaf with a speech impediment grasped something more than just the healing when they stated: “He has done all things well. He makes the deaf hear and the mute speak” (Mk 7:37). With these words, they were acknowledging the deliverance of Israel by the Lord, promised by the prophet Isaiah, when he mentioned how, “the eyes of the blind will be opened, the ears of the deaf will be cleared” (Isaiah 35:5).

The beauty of this healing may be missed by us in the modern age because of the graphic nature of the details used by Mark. Jesus places his fingers in the man’s ears, spits into his own hands, and then touches the man’s tongue. Jesus is mixing his own saliva with this man in need of healing. We don’t even share drinks from the same bottle anymore as we used to do when we were kids! While in the shadow of Covid, this imagery can seem incomprehensible!

Yet, what Jesus is showing is the intimacy of communion that he offers us. He gave the very essence of his own being, his own saliva and mingled it with this man’s saliva. This physical teaching is an image or icon, of how the Son of God, in no way diminishing the fullness of his divinity, entered into the very real corporality of our humanity. He became one with us so that we can become one with him. This was true then and it is still true for us today!

This is also especially true because as with Jesus healing of the Syrophoenician woman’s daughter yesterday, this man too is not a Jew but a Gentile. In each of their healings, the good news is not only being proclaimed now beyond the Jewish people but also they represent that they and all people are given access to God through Jesus. The eyes and ears of all will be opened to the glory of God’s message and invitation to relationship.

We all suffer physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual trials. But we also suffer from not being able to hear God’s word, and so are mute in speaking his word. Jesus, even if he does not provide a healing or an immediate solution, is present in our lives. We are invited to consciously resist the temptation of avoiding our own suffering, pain, or challenges and instead are invited to embrace and enter into them. We are not expected to do this alone, but to bring our need for healing to Jesus. In this way, we are aligning our suffering with his on the Cross. When we choose to offer up our pain and suffering on behalf of another, we participate in redemptive suffering. Others can experience relief and healing from our sacrifice in participation with Jesus.

This act of the will gives meaning to our suffering such that we do not endure what we are going through in vain. May we face, head-on, that which rises before us, actualizing the guidance of Jesus as well as the advances of modern medicine, science, and psychology, embracing a posture that engages both faith and reason. Our approach will be best if we are more mindful and balanced with our discernment. Just masking struggles without dealing with the root cause will only prolong and possibly worsen the condition.

Jesus seeks to heal us at the core root of our wounds as well by saying to us: “Ephphatha!” so that we too can hear his word, speak his word, and be more present to and love one another. Jesus wants to heal others through us. With ears more open to the voice of God, we become more aware of the needs of others. The best gift of healing we can offer to one another is to be present and really listen to and hear them, such that they have experienced being heard and loved. When we are open to hearing others and God, we will also then receive his guidance on best how to help one another.

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Picture: Icon of Jesus healing the man deaf and mute – Artist unknown.

Link for the Mass readings for Friday, February 14, 2025

“Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s scraps.”

In today’s encounter between Jesus and the Syrophoenician woman, we can observe again the crossing of societal norms by both the woman and Jesus. The woman, very much like the woman who had been hemorrhaging for twelve years, was desperate, faithful, and bold as she approached Jesus. She was willing to risk breaking the social taboo of speaking with Jesus on one hand and entering into the place where he was staying uninvited on the other! She walked into the home where Jesus was staying for the sole purpose that her daughter would be healed.

Jesus meets her with the derogatory language of equating her with a dog, considered one of the most unclean of animals by Jews: “Let the children be fed first. For it is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs” (Mk 7:27). This woman would have none of Jesus’ rebuke, she wasn’t leaving without receiving a healing for her daughter, even if that meant she was putting her life in danger. Her retort, “Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s scraps”, emphasized this point. It was also the key that opened the door for the disciples and us to witness a consistent pattern with Jesus.

Just as the woman who was experiencing the hemorrhage (cf. Mk 5:25-34), both women had the faith and courage to approach Jesus. The outcome of this encounter was also similar to the one that Jesus had with another Gentile, the Roman centurion, who said that he was not worthy for Jesus to enter under his roof. In both accounts, Jesus healed solely by his word from afar. What is important to Jesus is the person’s faith and belief that Jesus was who he said he was and still is today!

Jesus’ apparent rebuke to the woman was more a statement of fact. He did first come to proclaim the Good News to the “children” first, the chosen ones of God’s children, the people of Israel. And how sad was the day as we saw not too long ago when Jesus came to proclaim this message to those in his hometown and none had the faith of this woman before him, a Gentile. Her faith not only saved her daughter from the possession of a demon, but was the opening for the Gospel to also be proclaimed to the Gentiles as well as to the Jewish people.

Do we have the courage, faith, and belief in Jesus as shown by the Syrophoenician woman? Are we willing to take the risk of crossing our own societal norms to draw closer to Jesus? When we let nothing hinder our stride closer to Jesus, including relinquishing the reigns of being our own masters, acknowledging that God is God and we are not, believing that Jesus is truly the Son of God and that he is still present and active in our lives, miracles still do happen! Jesus said that if we have faith but the size of the mustard seed, we can move mountains (cf. Mt 17:20) and what we ask for in prayer, we will receive (as we shall see in Mark 11:24).

If you or someone close to you are dealing with some conflicts, challenges, trials, or tribulations, if something, someone, or your own fear or anxiety is keeping you from making a deeper commitment to surrendering your life to Jesus, if there are opposing forces that feel as big as mountains, be not afraid! Trust in Jesus! Bring any and all burdens and lay them at his feet, and then take his hand. With Jesus all things are possible. We just need the courage to believe that our Lord is present with us especially in the midst of our challenges. Jesus has not left us as orphans. We are not alone, but we do need, as did the Syrophoenician woman, have faith that Jesus is who he says he is. Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, our Savior and Redeemer, and he is present, is the kingdom of God at hand, and will see us through step by faithful step.

Photo: Syrophoenician Woman by Robert Lenz

Link for the Mass readings for Wednesday, February 13, 2025

With a breath and a prayer, we can choose what we think, speak, and how we are to act.

“[W]hat comes out of the man, that is what defiles him” (Mk 7:20).

Jesus offers a list in today’s gospel of what can be unleashed from within and then directed out toward another. These are examples of what defiles us because, at some level, we make the decision to think about, speak, and put into action those thoughts, words, and actions.

To resist the temptation to defile ourselves and others, we can follow the lead of the writer from the letter to the Hebrews who offered a wonderful verse, which I pray each morning in my recitation of the Office: “Encourage each other daily while it is still today” (Hebrews 3:13). There are many that we will encounter or hear about each day that will do the exact opposite.

Our goal each moment is to resist spending any time or energy in supporting any thoughts, words, or actions that demean, belittle, or dehumanize. We can call those out who do so, stand up for those impoverished from these attacks who do not have a voice but we must not succumb, engage, or in any way be lowered to the negativity unleashed. Otherwise, we become an agent in perpetuating the same vileness and poison already unleashed.

Our thoughts, words, and actions matter because we are all interconnected, and even what we ruminate upon can be projected onto our faces and directed out toward another without saying one word. Thoughts entertained can lead to words and actions that wound. We are better when we approach each moment accessing more intentional choices. Instead reacting on automatic pilot, we can take a slow breath, think, and pray about our response.

Let us choose this day to align our thoughts, words, and actions with those of Jesus. We can follow St Mother Teresa of Calcutta’s five-finger gospel as a reminder: “You did it to me.” What we say and do to the least of our brothers and sisters, we say and do to Jesus (cf. Mt 25:35-45). This begins when we resist defiling ourselves by never letting evil talk pass our lips and instead think, speak, and act in ways that empower, convict, and build up others. Our effort is strengthened when we choose to forgive any negativity hurled at us, and meet it with a posture of compassion that seeks to understand the perspective of the hurler. In our efforts, we are not alone when we call upon the help and strength of Jesus as we strive to become ambassadors of his transforming love.

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Photo: Making time to be still and quiet when all is well helps us to more easily choose to do so when stressful opportunities arise.

Link for the Mass readings for Wednesday, February 12, 2025

Let us honor God with open minds and hearts to his will.

Jesus reacted to the criticism of not observing ritual washing prior to eating that was leveled at him from the Pharisees and scribes by recalling the tradition of the Prophets through the words of Isaiah: “This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me” (Mk 7:6). For Jesus, following the law for the law’s sake is an empty act. What is more important is encountering God, experiencing his love and forgiveness, developing a relationship with him, being transformed by him, and restoring what has been lost. Human beings were created in God’s image and likeness, but through sin, lost that likeness. Jesus sought to help bring God’s children back into right relationship with his Father so as to be able to glorify him by serving others and inviting others into communion with him. Jesus challenged the hyper scrupulosity and exactitude of the rules that had nothing to do with being humble servants of and growing in relationship with God.

Just laws and practices are enacted to build up and empower through discipline and clear boundaries. They help keep us from being enslaved to our passions and sins and instead lead us to freedom for excellence, for fulfillment, and to experience a heart on fire with an ever-growing love that yearns for a relationship with God and each other, like a deer does for running streams.

As with any game we play, there are rules and regulations, there are referees and officials to keep order. When the rules enforced encroach on the flow of the game, such that they inhibit the freedom of play, the game is stunted. When there is no enforcement, the game quickly devolves into chaos. When the rules are consistent, they provide the structure and boundaries that limit abuse, allow for the game to flourish, and the players to experience the freedom to actualize their potential, and as such, there is the experience of the true, the good, and the beautiful.

The first time I saw people skate, at around seven years, I was enraptured. My father was working on a project at our local, ice rink. We had not gone there to skate, and yet, I refused to leave until he took me on the ice. It didn’t matter that the only skates to fit my feet were figure skates or that my first attempt was a dismal failure. What mattered was that I made it to the ice and the joy of that experience inspired me as I learned the rules of balance, how to stop, and what a toe kick was and was not for. Soon I had the freedom not only to skate but to join a hockey team. The freedom and joy I felt any time I skated or played hockey, I still carry with me.

The Church, when we are at our best, is the same. We don’t lead with the rules and moralizing, but instead, we share our time, presence, and the joy of our faith. We empower and support one another as we enter into the play between our finite freedom and God’s infinite freedom. We have been created for and seek a deep and intimate relationship with him that will lead us to a deeper transformation of our hearts and minds. With both open to God’s guidance, we can better identify and discern between the voice of the enemy and God. There is a unique balance between the rules and the freedom of play in ice skating as well as our relationship with God.

Loving someone does not mean we allow them to do whatever they want, but in willing their good, we offer invitations, options, establish boundaries, and offer corrections, that will provide opportunities for growth, maturity, and authentic freedom. We are going to make mistakes, I have made plenty. The key is recognizing that we are on a journey together. As we walk together, we support and learn from one another. In this way, the boundaries and rules we follow are meant to set a foundation for healthy relationships and actualizing who God invites us to be; joyful, human beings that are fully alive!

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Photo: Getting back on the ice with Jack and Christy, Christmas Eve day, 2023, in the city of my birth, Hartford, CT.

Link for the Mass readings for Tuesday, February 11, 2025

To touch only the tassel of his cloak…

“Whatever villages or towns or countryside he entered, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak; and as many as touched it were healed” (Mk 6:56).

The people of Jesus’ time were in need of healing, hungry to draw closer to God, often searching, wandering, and wounded. That some begged only to touch the tassel on his cloak is interesting. Had the story of the faith of the woman with the hemorrhage for twelve years who courageously reached out and touched the tassel of his cloak and was healed spread? Had the woman herself shared her story and inspired others who had all but lost hope to seek out Jesus?

Even though there was a lull in the momentum when Jesus’ healed only a few in his hometown, and Mark paused in his account to share the flashback of John the Baptist’s death, Jesus has not slowed and people continue to seek his healing. The apostles also have been sent to bring healing and with success. Though Jesus is not as visible to us as he was to those in the land of Gennesaret, he is just as present if not closer, especially in the sacraments, to us today. “Jesus is still the great Physician of our souls and bodies. In the power of the Holy Spirit he continues his work of healing and salvation through the Church, especially in the two sacraments of healing: Penance and the Anointing of the Sick” (Healy, 134).

Let us also not forget the gift of Jesus present in the Mass. After experiencing the word proclaimed at Mass as his disciples heard Jesus teach with authority and receiving his Body and Blood, we are not to go home as if nothing of any significance just happened. Jesus invites us to his banquet weekly, and daily, to encounter him so that in receiving his love and his presence, we may be transformed and go forth to bring Jesus who we have received to others. We are also to see Jesus present in others who are in need.

Pope Francis was asked in an interview by Fr. Antonio Spadaro, S.J., in 2013, “What does the church need most at this historic moment?” And Pope Francis answered, “that the thing the church needs most today is the ability to heal wounds and to warm the hearts of the faithful; it needs nearness, proximity. I see the church as a field hospital after battle.” We need to be “near”, in the same “proximity”, to bear Christ to one another: “The church sometimes has locked itself up in small things, in small-minded rules. The most important thing is the first proclamation: Jesus Christ has saved you. And the ministers of the church must be ministers of mercy above all.”

As in the time Jesus walked among the people of Galilee and they came to him seeking healing, we and so many are in need today. May we seek to breathe, rest in, and receive God’s love and healing, sot that we may be then present, have compassion like Jesus and draw near to those who Jesus sends us. May we resist the temptation to keep others at a distance and refuse to be indifferent to the needs of those he brings to us in their time of need. May we too, in the words of Pope Francis, go out to “heal the wounds and to warm the hearts of the faithful” by being willing to accompany others in their sorrows, anxiety, trials, and tribulations.

People are hurting. We are not necessarily called to fix others or their problems but to be present, to listen, to hear, and to allow the Holy Spirit to speak and love through us at the appropriate time, so that, in the end, we do not prevent people from encountering Jesus, but provide a means for them to encounter the divine Physician. Maybe we can be the tassel on the cloak of Jesus to help others to experience his healing.

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Photo: Do we have the faith to seek healing from Jesus and also to be a link for Jesus to heal others?

Healy, Mary. The Gospel of Mark. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2008.

Spadaro, S.J., Antonio. “A Big Heart Open to God: An interview with Pope Francis”. America Magazine. September 30, 2013 Issue: https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2013/09/30/big-heart-open-god-interview-pope-francis

Link for the Mass for Monday, February 10, 2025