This is Holy Saturday. Jesus lies in the tomb, the disciples of Jesus feel that their hopes have been dashed by the death of their teacher and they hide in fear that they might be next. They also wonder, could he really have been the Messiah if he has died? Anguish, fear, doubts, and despair weigh heavily upon them.

Some glimmer of hope may come as they gather together and begin to recall what Jesus had said and taught. Peter, James, and John were especially privileged to have seen the transfiguration of Jesus. Jesus had raised from the dead Jairus’ daughter, the widows son, and Lazarus. Was Lazarus with them now? Could he have provided some possible hope that since he was raised, that Jesus may indeed rise again as he said?

A powerful claim. But could it really happen? 

We often find ourselves in the same emotional maelstrom as did the disciples. We have or are right now experiencing dire situations and/or unexpected events. We know we are to trust in Jesus, and yet, as doubts arise, we don’t see how we can possibly get through what we are in the midst of or what looms before us. We have heard that he is with us no matter what, but there is this period of dead silence. 

Holy Saturday is that time of waiting, that time of silence, and that time to draw deeper into believing what we cannot see or experience with our senses. Holy Saturday is a time to ponder and embrace the Passion of Jesus: his suffering, crucifixion, and death. 

We have an advantage that Jesus’ followers did not have as they huddled together so many Saturday’s ago. We know that Jesus did rise again. The question we have to answer for ourselves is, do we really believe he did? When faced with chronic or debilitating conditions, a non-ending world wide pandemic, the death or imminent death of a loved one, loss of a job, a surprising diagnosis, and/or whatever issue, we come to our Holy Saturday’s in our life.

Our minds tend to focus on the worst case scenario, and in these times when we don’t feel or experience Jesus’ presence, he is not absent and he has not abandoned us. Jesus is right by our side but in the times of silence, he just may be challenging us to go deeper in our trust and faith in him. When we do, instead of feeling like we are sinking in the mud, we will come to set our feet on solid stone.

Readings for the Easter Vigil Mass Saturday, April 3, 2021

Photo by Vladyslav Dushencovsky from Pexels

Jesus was betrayed, arrested, falsely accused, tried, scourged, and beaten. Jesus carried his cross, was crucified, and with his words, “It is finished” (Jn 19:30), Jesus died. The gift of a crucifix is that it is an icon of the moment of the death of Jesus. Having a crucifix is not a morbid fascination with death, nor a rejection of his resurrection. The crucifix is not a magic talisman, but a sacramental, that helps us to remember the reality of what the Son of God, who became one with us, did. Jesus embraced humanity all the way even unto his death, giving his life for us that we might have the opportunity to be born again, to be one with him, to be deified, and live with him forever. Without the crucifixion, there would have been no resurrection.

On this Good Friday, let us spend time in venerating Jesus on the Cross, meditating before a crucifix, before this expression of the most intimate act of Love ever expressed in human history. This icon expresses the wonderful bestowal of the grace of God upon humanity, in that it reminds us that we have a God who has experienced and understands betrayal, loss, suffering, pain, anguish, and even death. Jesus is relevant to our lives because he meets us in the chaos and suffering of our lives.

In making time to be still and looking upon the cross upon which he died, seeing his body slumped and lifeless, we can call to mind the times we have been betrayed, the struggles, trials, pains, sorrows, and losses that we have or are enduring right now. We can also recall those times we have betrayed and hurt others with our actions or inactions, as well as caused pain and suffering. With each conflict or experience of injustice, we can be comforted in knowing that Jesus understands because he has experienced them all.

Making time to gaze upon the crucifix in times of fear, anxiety, temptation or indecision, and in need of forgiveness, can give us the strength and courage to endure or go through what lies before us. Jesus with his arms outstretched represents for us his eternal welcome, that he loves us more than we can ever mess up, that he does not define us by our sin or worst mistakes, and that he loves us more than we can ever imagine.

When we resist running from our trials, our suffering, and our pain, and instead face them, we will find that Jesus is waiting for us with his arms outstretched and wide open, just as he did on the Cross. Jesus meets us in the depths of the whirlwind of our deepest hurts, struggles, and confusion, as well as when and where we need him most.

Being with JoAnn during her final month was like watching a crucifixion. She continued to lose weight. Even though in the final weeks she was just skin and bones, she never lost her beauty or her grace. JoAnn radiated love for me, our children, and any of those who helped to care for her in her final days. What sustained me was her love, my willingness to be there for her instead of focus on myself, and Jesus holding each of us up and drawing us closer together. I still experience the pain of loss, but the love of Jesus and JoAnn continue to sustain me.

This is why we venerate Jesus on the cross today, this is why today is Good Friday, so we remember that death does not have the final word, for Jesus conquered death. This is why we can say with St. Paul, “Where, O death is your victory? Where, O death is your sting” (1 Cor 15:55). Jesus did not leave us as orphans when he died on the Cross. Jesus conquered death for us and became the firstborn of the new creation. We are not alone because as St Irenaeus wrote, “Jesus opened up heaven for us in the humanity he assumed.” Jesus is present with us in whatever we may be dealing with, now, always, and forever.

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Photo: JoAnn and I in LA outside the USC Keck Cancer center taking another step on our way of the cross about a year and a half ago now.

Link for the Mass readings for Good Friday, April 2, 2021

A key focal point of the last supper narrative in the Gospel of John is Jesus washing the feet of his disciples. Washing feet was certainly a custom in the ancient Near East, for either people walked barefoot or wore sandals. In either event, people’s feet became quite sore and dirty getting from here to there. Washing of the feet was a hospitable way to welcome guests into one’s home, though this action was the most menial of tasks and often performed by slaves or servants.

After washing his disciples’ feet and sitting down, Jesus said to them, “Do you realize what I have done for you? You call me ‘teacher’ and ‘master,’ and rightly so, for indeed I am. If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another’s feet” (Jn 13:13-14). Jesus is sharing with those who will carry on his message and ministry that they are not to feel so high and mighty in their being called to follow him. The Apostles, those who are sent by Jesus, are to look at their ministry as seeking how best to serve others, not seeking to be served themselves.

Traditionally, this evening at the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, select members of the parish would have come to have a foot washed by the priests, following the model set by Jesus washing his disciples’ feet. This would remind all of us, as members of the Church that we are all an integral part of the Body of Christ. There will be no washing the feet at our parish again this year for obvious reasons. Yet the actions of Jesus that have been and will be proclaimed in the Gospel still ring as true as any bell. We are at our best when we are willing to serve, support, and lift one another up. This is to be true when all is well and rosy, in addition to when conflict and challenges arise in the messiness of our daily lives.

Pope Francis, in his homily on April 5, 2020 highlighted this same point: “Dear brothers and sisters, what can we do in comparison with God, who served us even to the point of being betrayed and abandoned? We can refuse to betray him for whom we were created, and not abandon what really matters in our lives. We were put in this world to love him and our neighbors. Everything else passes away, only this remains. The tragedy we are experiencing summons us to take seriously the things that are serious, and not to be caught up in those that matter less; to rediscover that life is of no use if not used to serve others. For life is measured by love.”

We best exemplify Jesus’ washing of the feet when we resist the allure and temptation of pride because our life is not about us. We are not the center of the universe. We need to walk away from the table presenting a buffet of the false substitutes for God: pleasure, wealth, fame and power. We are not to curve in upon ourselves either, even during this time of social distancing. Jesus has not abandoned us and he never tires of loving, forgiving, and serving us. We are called to do the same and to love and serve one another.

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Pope Francis delivering his Palm Sunday homily, April 5, 2020. – Photo credit Reuters

Link for the Mass readings for Holy Thursday, Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper, April 1, 2021

As Jesus and his companions shared the Passover, Jesus offered this morsel, “One of you will betray me” (Mt 26:21). I am sure that this bitter herb shifted the mood of the meal. Each apostle asked if they were the one to betray him. There is no recorded response, though the assumption is that Jesus says no to each, except for one.

A unique feature about this exchange was that each of the disciples in asking Jesus if they would betray him prefaced their request by calling him, Lord. In doing so, they acknowledged that Jesus was the Messiah. When Judas addressed Jesus he called him Rabbi. He did not acknowledge Jesus as his Lord. Could this be a tell regarding why Judas was willing to turn Jesus over because he did not believe Jesus to be the Messiah, that he too believed Jesus to be a blasphemer?

Jesus’ response to Judas was an affirmation of truth: “You have said so” (Mt 26:25).

Jesus offered this affirmative response two other times, confirming each time the truth presented to him by Caiaphas that he was the Messiah and then later with Pilate when he asked Jesus if he was the king of the Jews. In answering in the affirmative to Judas, was Jesus giving him the opportunity to look at himself in the mirror? Jesus knew that Judas would betray him, he did not have to make this point known. Judas could have remained silent, yet he asked, as did the others who went before him. Could he have been contemplating shifting his prior determination of betrayal? Was Jesus inviting Judas to acknowledge what he had agreed to do, confess, change course, and ask for forgiveness?

Judas chose his course of action to betray Jesus, and unfortunately, even with Jesus’ intervention, Judas was not able or willing to stop what he had started. Judas fulfilled his agreement with the chief priests to turn him over. Often we set a similar course of action and even when Jesus makes an attempt to intercede on our behalf, we do not slow down enough to hear, that is one of the dangers of not making time regularly to be still, to pray for God’s discernment.

God speaks to us in the silence of our heart but too often we are focused on other things to be able to hear. We can allow fear, anxiety, pride, prejudice, or anger to be our guide. We can be too blind to see or too determined to do it our own way, regardless of the consequences. Our interpretation of our experience may be that the momentum is already too strong to turn around. That it is too late to change course.

We need to know in the depth of our being, that it is never too late to change course, to make amends, to repent, and to turn back to God. The first step is being willing to be still or aware enough to hear or see his guidance. The second step is to be willing to look in the mirror and see what Jesus presents to us, accept what we see, and then seek his forgiveness. Yet, sometimes we feel we are digging ourselves into a hole that we can’t escape from. The answer is that we need to just stop digging, put the shovel down. Jesus will meet us in the deepest of the holes we have dug and lift us out.

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Photo: A still point, hiking in Torrey Pines, CA 2014 visit

Link for the Mass readings for Wednesday, March 31, 2021

The Gospel reading for today from John is painful on two fronts. First, Jesus said to Judas, “What you are going to do, do quickly” (Jn 13:27). Did their eyes meet at that moment, was there an unspoken appeal from Jesus to Judas, or had that already been settled in Jesus’ full surrender in the Garden of Gethsemane? Judas aligned himself with Satan and set his course, and removed himself from Jesus and his companions and it was night.

The second front appears at the end of today’s reading. Despite Peter’s apparent full endorsement of Jesus and promise to even lay his life down for him, Jesus predicted that “the cock will not crow until” Peter will deny him “three times” (Jn 13:38). The momentum of utter betrayal builds. Judas will agree to turn Jesus over for thirty pieces of silver. He will betray the Son of God, yet in so doing, Judas will play his part in salvation history.

Judas will set in motion Jesus’ arrest that will culminate in his crucifixion. Peter will come to deny Jesus three times as Jesus predicted. I cannot think of any experience worse than the pain of betrayal. Yet, how is it that we betray Jesus each day? Remember what he taught us, “What you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me” (Mt 25:45). Who and how have we betrayed Jesus in our lives? This is an important question to ask, and what is even more important is that we not only answer it honestly but seek forgiveness and resist the temptation of isolating ourselves in our sin and pride.

Judas separated himself, cut himself off from Jesus and his companions. He came to realize his sin, though he did not seek forgiveness, but isolated himself further and in his despair took his life. Peter, also regretted his sin, his cowardice, he wept when he heard the cock crow, but he also trusted, and later affirmed his love for Jesus three times, atoning for his three denials and was forgiven.

This Holy Week we can choose to walk the path of Judas or Peter. With each humble step may we come to see how our spirits are often willing but our bodies are weak, that we have been wounded by others and acted in kind, so falling short of who God has called us to be in what we have done and what we have failed to do.

Through our awareness of our unworthiness though, we must resist isolating and beating ourselves up, but instead recognize that Jesus has not come for those who are worthy, but for those who are willing to be forgiven and to be healed. In this way, we can learn from Peter, that we have betrayed Jesus also, but he is willing to forgive us too so that we will become wounded healers as well!

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Painting: Denial of St Peter by Caravaggio, 1610

Link for the Mass reading for Tuesday, March 30, 2021

“Mary took a liter of costly perfumed oil made from genuine aromatic nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and dried them with her hair; the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil” (Jn 12:3). This is indeed some gift that Mary shares with Jesus, though Judas’ critical response showed that he missed the point of her offering, which went well beyond the material cost of the perfume. Mary even exceeded the gesture of hospitality by going beyond washing Jesus’ feet and anointing them as well. This act of caring could have been a bestowal of appreciation and gratefulness toward Jesus who brought Lazarus, her brother, back to life, but it was even more than that.

In Jesus’ correction of Judas, “Leave her alone. Let her keep this for the day of my burial” (Jn 12:7), we may intuit the best source for interpreting Mary’s act. Mary comprehended better than any of the Apostles that Jesus’ death was imminent. Mary’s washing the feet of Jesus, anointing them, and drying them with her hair was a gift of love, of giving herself in service to the Son of God. This exchange mirrors the communion between God the Father, God the Son, and the love shared between them, God the Holy Spirit. Mary follows the will of the Father and plays her part in salvation history.

We do not know how Mary came to possess this precious oil, but what we do know is much more important. She did not grasp or cling to the oil, she did not count the cost and just pour out a little bit. When she felt moved to pour the costly nard and anoint the feet of Jesus she freely poured all the perfume out in an act of love to serve the need of Jesus by anointing him for his death and burial. Even Peter, James, and John would not able to stay awake in the garden with Jesus in his time of need.

What is something that we may hold as precious that God may be calling us to give up, to let go of, not just for the sake of doing so, but in service to Jesus? The path to holiness and sanctity, is coming to a place in our lives in which we can let go of that which we are attached to, so to hear clearly the will of God, know what is required of us, and give freely in love and service without counting the cost, to be as St. Mother Teresa has said, just a pencil in God’s hand.

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Painting: Mary anointing the feet of Jesus

Link for the Mass reading for Monday, March 29, 2021

In yesterday’s reading, Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin plot to bring about the death of Jesus. The results of their planning will be on full display today in the Gospel account of Mark. Though long, these verses are well worth the time and effort to read (cf. Mark 11:1-10, 14:1-15:47).

The scene from the Passion account that I would like to reflect upon is Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mk 14:32-42). Jesus invited Peter, James, and John, the same three apostles that witnessed the raising of Jairus’ daughter and the Transfiguration of Jesus on Mt. Tabor to be with him again, this time in his hour of dire need. As Jesus entered the garden, he expressed to them that he felt “sorrowful even unto death”, reflecting the full weight of what was about to transpire. Jesus asked the closest of his inner circle to watch and pray while he went off at a distance. Through Mark’s account we are able to read the fullness of Jesus’ humanity and divinity on display.

The most primal of our human instincts is the preservation of our life. Jesus, faced with his imminent death, acknowledged this primal urge by requesting, “Abba, Father, all things are possible to you. Take this cup away from me”. The agony is palpable. Jesus has done all that the Father asked of him, he has preached, taught, healed, exorcised demons, followed his Father’s will, and now finds himself on death’s door. He can probably sense Judas and the Temple guards drawing close. He will be turned over to those who have turned their back on his Father. All appeared to be hopeless.

Yet, Jesus was not done, he continued, “but not what I will but what you will.” With these words of surrender Jesus echoed the verse from Psalms 42 and 43: “Hope in God, I will praise him still, my savior and my God.” Even faced with his death, Jesus accepted the will of his Father, his Abba. He trusted that there would be a greater good to transpire through his death, through the giving of his life. With those words, Jesus surrendered his human will to that of his divine will. With each and every yes to his Father’s will through his life, his human nature was more and more conformed to his divine nature. What is on full display for us in the garden is that Jesus is one divine person, the Son of God, while at the same time having two natures and two wills, the human and divine.

As Jesus arose, he came to Peter, James, and John. He found them asleep. He said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? Watch and pray that you may not undergo the test. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.” Jesus returned to prayer and returned two more times to find his three closest disciples asleep each time. Jesus was ready to face the cross even if they were not. As with the apostles, Jesus commands us to watch and pray this Holy Week. How will we do?

Though our flesh too is weak, and we too have sinned, Jesus has faith in us that we will actualize who his Father calls us to be, as he still had faith in his apostles who persisted despite their failures and fulfilled their role in God’s plan. No matter what trial or tribulation arises before us, may we meet it head on, placing our trust in God, as Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane. We are to follow the lead of Jesus to give over our will to God the Father in participation with his Son through the Love of the Holy Spirit. Let us hope in God, let us praise him still, our savior and our God!

Painting: Heinrich Hoffman, Christ in Gethsemane, 1886

Link for the Mass reading for Sunday, March 28, 2021

A core group within the leadership of Israel has decided. They will not deny themselves, their power, prestige, their place. They will not take up their cross and follow Jesus, the way, the truth, and the life. They will not allow the teaching and momentum of the growing number of those following Jesus to continue unchecked. As Passover drew nearer, thousands of people were coming to Jerusalem to purify themselves for the great feast.

This meant the Romans would have many more centurions in place to keep the peace. The division and commotion that Jesus was causing could cause conflict and unrest and then swift and violent retribution from the Roman presence. The Sanhedrin, the Jewish High Council, followed the lead of the high priest, Caiaphas, who said, “You know nothing, nor do you consider that it is better for you that one man should die instead of the people, so that the whole nation may not perish” (Jn 11:49-50). With these words, they began to plan how to put to death the carpenter of Nazareth.

With the words of Caiaphas, the sun began to set on the life of Jesus. These words even affect us still today as they usher in the sunset of our Lenten observance. The gift of our liturgical readings allows us to relive the story of our faith. Lent has given us a time to reflect, to meditate on who Jesus is. Is he just a carpenter, another teacher, or a holy man from the past, or is he each of these, but someone so much more, the Son of God who became one with us in his humanity so that we can become one with him in his divinity?

Do we see his teachings and life as a threat as did the Sanhedrin? Do we like our life the way it is, such that we do not want Jesus to come into our home and start turning over the tables and disrupting our order and comfort? Or do the Gospels cut us to the heart and inspire us to shake off our complacency, our indifference, our cynicism, so to be inspired to acknowledge our sins, to repent, and to begin anew? Are we willing to have our hearts opened such that we see the needs of our brothers and sisters in need and so be moved with compassion to help?

As Holy Week begins with the Vigil Mass for Passion Sunday may we meditate on the words of Caiaphas, “consider that it is better for you that one man should die instead of the people, so that the whole nation may not perish” (Jn 11:49-50). Caiaphas did not know that what he proclaimed would be so true, that the one, Jesus, would die, not only so the nation would not perish, but that all humanity would not perish.

Jesus died for each and everyone of us that we might have life and have it to the full. As the sun sets this Saturday evening, may it not be just another rotation of the earth on its axis, but an opportunity to commit once again to die to our false selves, our egos, our self-centered postures, so to take up our cross and follow Jesus into Holy Week.
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Photo: Drove to the canal Friday night for the sunset.

Link for the Mass readings for Saturday, March 27, 2021

Two groups of Jews emerged in today’s Gospel account. There were those about to stone Jesus for blasphemy and those who began to believe. The first group did not recognize the good works that Jesus did as coming from God, nor his reasoning that “even if you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may realize and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father” (Jn 10:38). They listened to the claim that Jesus was making but they refused to accept the fulfillment of the assertion: Jesus did the works of his Father because he was then and still is today the Son of God.

The more that Jesus sought to help them to understand that he was who he says he is, the more they dug in their heels. They left the stones on the ground but then moved to have him arrested. Jesus evaded their grasp and moved on to the region across the Jordan where John first baptized. John did not preach in the Temple precincts either, even though he was the son of a priest. John followed the lead of God to prepare the way for Jesus and his eternal priesthood. The Temple had not been the seat of God for some time. Jesus would become the new living Temple.

Jesus returned to the place of his baptism, where he joined in solidarity with sinful humanity. This visible image of consecration revealed what happened silently in his conception and birth: the Son of God took on flesh and became man to open up heaven for us in the humanity he assumed. As people came to John in the Jordanian wilderness, so too, people came to Jesus. Not all rejected his message. Many came to him and said, “John performed no sign, but everything John said about this man was true.” And many there began to believe in him (Jn 10:41-42).

The question that arises for us as our steps take us closer to Palm Sunday and Holy Week is to which group of Jews recorded in today’s Gospel account will we align ourselves with? Will we label Jesus as a blasphemer or accept that Jesus is the Son of God? The scriptural record does not reveal indifference as an option, the accounts do not leave any room for Jesus being only human; a good teacher, a wise man, or a revolutionary radical.

We either accept Jesus is fully human and fully divine or we don’t. If he isn’t who he claimed to be, God, then Christianity is just another philosophical, theological pursuit. If we accept that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, then our lives ought to be aligned to his. Our thoughts, words, actions, and even our faces need to reflect that truth.

A good way to begin each day is affirming this fact by stating with an attitude of prayer, “Jesus I believe in you, I need you,” and asking him what works of the Father he would have us offer in his name this day? In what ways can we be of help and support even while limiting our social interactions during this pandemic. May we have the openness of mind and heart to hear his words and the courage to act upon his guidance, so to be the precious, living stones we are, radiating the light from our source, Jesus the Christ, the Son of the Living God.

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Painting credit: Sacred Heart of Jesus by CB Chambers

Link for the Mass readings for Friday, March 26, 2021

Why celebrate the Annunciation at the beginning of the third week of Lent? Simple math. If we celebrate the birth of Jesus on December 25, it is logical to celebrate his conception nine months earlier on March 25.

Gabriel, an angel, a messenger of God, a spiritual being, interacts with a human being; though Mary is not the first one to experience such an encounter. There are personal encounters with God and his messengers throughout the Bible. This is how the God of Israel, the God of Jesus Christ acts, person to person, through invitation, either directly himself or indirectly through one of his angels.

We can read such encounters going back to Genesis. God invited Abraham to be the father of a people that God would call to be his own. This reality would come to be with the birth of Isaac, while Sarah was well past child-bearing years. Jacob would wrestle all night with an angel and become the father of the twelve tribes of Israel, during the time of the Judges the mother of Sampson and Hannah, the mother of Samuel, both barren women would encounter angels bearing the message that each would give birth to those who would grow to lead the people Israel in their time of need. Moses, the judges, David, and the prophets all would hear and answer God’s invitation. Zechariah had an encounter in the temple and his wife Elizabeth, also barren and older, would give birth to John the Baptist. God has communicated and reached out to his created beings in history, in time, and in specific places.

With Mary, this announcement and encounter was different, for, at this appointed time, the Son of God himself would become, while remaining fully divine, a human being in the womb of Mary. The God who is. Period. Full stop. He is not a being, not a human, or even a supreme being. Infinite Act of Existence, the Sheer Act of to Be, who took on flesh and dwelt among his created beings. This is the message that Mary receives, and we can understand why she might be “troubled”. Yet Mary, the model of discipleship, pondered what this might mean as Gabriel said to her:

“Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God” (Lk 1:30).

Mary, who knew the arch of salvation history as briefly sketched above, knew of the encounters God had with his people, her ancestors, knew of the promised coming of the Messiah, would now be the bridge between heaven and earth, the bridge between the old and the new covenant, the bridge between a people lost and a people found. Mary in her fiat, her yes, would become Theotokos, the God-bearer.

This is why we celebrate this feast each year: The Son of God has been born to us because Mary said yes. Yet, her yes is not in isolation. It is made possible by so many who had gone before her. Joachim and Anna, Mary’s parents who provided care and guidance, as well as the many named above and not named throughout the Biblical tradition who said yes to God and played a part in making this moment possible. Mary is not alone in the Annunciation, not alone in this definitive moment. This is the distinctive feature of Judaism and Christianity: We cannot save ourselves. We are not God. Our very life as created beings is a gift from God and we are in need of constant help and support from God and one another (cf. Lohfink, 254).

God invites us, not just today as we celebrate the feast day of the Annunciation, but every day. Each day is a day to ponder, to wonder, to be still, to be in awe. The Son of God, the Second Person of the Trinity, loved us so much more than we can ever imagine, more than we can ever even begin to conceive, that he became one with us so that we can become one with him. Us, you reading this, me writing this, and each unique person taking a breath on this earth.

No matter how much we have messed up, no matter how distant we feel we may be from him, no matter how confused, overwhelmed, disillusioned, he is present for and with us. The question is not whether we are worthy, for none of us are worthy, the question is, “Are we willing?”

We are invited to play our part in the ongoing drama of salvation history. Mary’s answer to this invitation was: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word” (Lk 1:38). This is her definitive yes. We too are called. What will our response be?
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Painting: Henry Oswana Tanner, The Annunciation, 1898

Lohfink, Gerhard. No Irrelevant Jesus: On Jesus and the Church Today. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2014.

Link for today’s readings for Wednesday, March 25, 2021