Today we celebrate Trinity Sunday. The Trinity is the foundation of not only our faith but the reality of all that exists. God has been, is, and always will be. God exists as a communion of three Persons, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Three Persons in one God, but not three beings.

Anything we say about God is going to be woefully inadequate of the truth about who God is. As the saying goes, all analogies limp regarding our description of God. We have a better chance of saying what God is not. To say that God is not a being is a good place to start because God is not in the same genus as us, nor in any genus. God is not even a supreme being, the being of all beings. God transcends all space and time. God is completely self-sufficient, God does not need anything, does not rely on anything else, and thus he does not need us, so he is not in competition with us.

God is infinite act of existence, or in the Latin of St Thomas Aquinas, ispum esse subsistens, the sheer act of “to be”. This means that God has no limitations. To say that God is three Persons is harder for us to comprehend because we often in our modern context use the words person and being as synonyms. To use the word person in speaking of God means that we are speaking relationally.

We describe God as Father because he begets God the Son, God the Son is the one begotten. The Son is not generated or created, because the Son has always existed with the Father. This is true because they are not finite beings separate from one another. They are infinite, though distinct in their relation to one another. God the Holy Spirit is then the Love shared between God the Father and God the Son. God’s immanence, God within himself then is an infinite communion because of the infinite giving and receiving between each other. Each person gives and receives infinitely, perfectly giving all and holding nothing back.

We will never be able to fully comprehend God because he transcends our finite reality, but we can encounter him and develop a relationship with him because he draws close to us, he reveals himself to us, he seeks us his created beings out. We are blessed in that he has drawn close to us in the Person of his Son. “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life” (Jn 3:16).

Jesus, in his incarnation, is the enfleshed Son of God. Jesus is fully divine and fully human and this is how he reveals God the Father to us. Through becoming one with us in our humanity, we are able to share in the love that he experiences as Son with his Father because God has created all as interconnected, such that what affects one, affects all.

The best way to understand, to know, and to build our relationship with God, is not to force God to fit into our finite reality, mindset or limited view, but to be open to, “the Spirit of truth, he will guide [us] to all truth” (Jn 16:13). The Holy Spirit will guide and lead us to all truth when we resist turning in upon ourselves and instead be open to following his lead. When we are willing to be expanded by his love, we will be more open to opportunities to be loved and to love in our everyday moments. For where the willing of the good of each other is, God is, and Love is present.

Jesus was sent into the world to save all of humanity, not just a select few, such that all might have eternal life. The richness of the diversity of humanity is not a curse, but a gift. This Holy Trinity Sunday, may the Love of God move us beyond our defensive and divisive postures such that we resist closing our hearts and minds but instead become more willing to open them to build bridges of encounter and relationship.

Photo: Building relationships

Link for the Mass readings for Sunday, June 7, 2020

In our Gospel reading from Mark, there appear to be two separate accounts. In the first, we witness Jesus’ critique of the scribes, and in the second, the generosity of a poor widow is emphasized. There could not be a much starker contrast between the two. Jesus points out those scribes with the primary motivation of self-aggrandizement, “who like to go around in long robes and accept greetings in the marketplaces, seats of honor in synagogues, and places of honor at banquets” (Mk 12:38-39). They make a lofty show of themselves, yet, what is worse is the following verse. “They devour the houses of widows and, as a pretext, recite lengthy prayers” (Mk 12:40).

The implication is that certain scribes used their position not to edify, provide care for, and lead widows closer to God, but instead chose to exploit them for their own selfish gain. As Jesus finishes his rebuke of the scribes, he moves to observe those making contributions at the treasury of the Temple. A poor widow donates two coins. No one, except Jesus, pays her any notice. Jesus calls his disciples to him and says, “Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more that all the other contributors to the treasury. For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood” (Mk 12:43-44).

Jesus commends this woman for her generosity. She does not make a fancy show of what she is doing, she quietly and simply gives all that she has. Is Jesus sharing his critique of the scribes just moments before related to this expression of generosity by the widow? Could she have done so through the influence of one of these scribes? We are not told why she gives all she has, but her willingness to do so is clearly on display.

Jesus so often in the Gospels holds up a mirror, especially to those in positions of religous authority who place their focus on themselves, their own gain, and their own prestige, instead of their service to the poor and those in need. Those like Matthew and Zacchaeus, though not scribes but tax collectors, embraced Jesus’ invitation of repentance, were willing to make a 180 degree turn from their old ways of self-service, and instead were willing to change and begin anew.

Jesus, through George Floyd, has been holding up a mirror to all of us this past week. George, when he asked for water while the police officer had his knee on his neck, echoed Jesus on the Cross when he said, “I thirst” (Jn 19:28). George also called out for his “mama” as he died, just as Jesus looked down to his mother before he gasped his last breath and said, “It is finished” (Jn 19:30).

Will we be like the unnamed scribes and Pharisees who were not willing to look in the mirror that Jesus held before them, more interested in supporting their place of entitlement and privilege, and unwilling to change? Will we acknowledge in the death of George Floyd and so many who have gone before him the disparity of equality for people of color in our country and the poison of racism that sickens our society? Will, we as did Matthew and Zacchaeus allow our consciences to be convicted, be willing to repent and rend our hearts so to be moved and more willing to love, so to stand alongside our brothers and sisters in need?

We are receiving a clear message through this pandemic and from Jesus through George Floyd that what affects one of us, affects all of us or as Bruce Lee stated, “Under the sky, under the heavens, there is but one family.”

Photo: Closeup of a mosaic of Jesus in the apse of the Basilica of St Cosmas and Damien in Rome.

Link for the Mass readings for Saturday, June 6, 2020

The opening scene from the Gospel from Mark opens with Jesus teaching in the temple area. He poses this question to those gathered, “How do the scribes claim that the Christ is the son of David” (Mk 12:35)? The question that Jesus is offering engages in the Jewish debate regarding the promise of the Messiah or Mashiach in Hebrew, the Christ or Christos in Greek. Messiah or Christ is not a surname but a title meaning anointed one.

One interpretation of the long-awaited Messiah would be a kingly figure descended from King David. Son of David is a common Messianic title. The blind Bartimaeus called out to Jesus using this title (cf. Mk 10:46-48). Jesus then quotes the beginning of Psalm 110 as he goes deeper. “David himself, inspired by the Holy Spirit, said: The Lord said to my lord, ‘Sit at my right hand until I place your enemies under your feet’” (Mk 12:36).

This statement can be a little confusing, especially if you are hearing this word proclaimed and not reading it closely. The first Lord referred to by Jesus has a capitol letter l and the second lord has a lower case l. The reason for this is that in the original Hebrew the sacred name of God was not to be uttered or written. Instead, the Hebrew Adonai, meaning Lord, would be used to refer to God. The use of the word lord with a lower case l could refer to a military leader like King David.

In this very short account from Mark today, Jesus deftly addresses some of the titles floating around about him, Messiah, Son of Man, Son of David, and with his final question, “David himself calls him ‘lord’; so how is he his son” (Mk 12:37), this One to follow David would be even greater than the expectations of these messianic titles because he actually preceded David and so is even greater than the genetic heir to David. Jesus is saying that he is the Son of God and he is Lord.

This not only far surpasses even the highest ideal of messianic hope but would also be a direct challenge to the occupying Romans. For in the ancient Greek, of which Mark is written, Kyrios, means Lord. For the Romans, Caesar is Lord. Jesus is challenging the worldly establishment by saying that he, not Caesar, is Lord.

Jesus will soon after these words participate in his suffering, death, resurrection, and ascension, where he will return to be seated at the right hand of God his Father. The enemies that will be subjected under his feet will be sin and death, each of which he will defeat.

This is why Jesus is our hope even and especially during our troubled times. Jesus is our Lord not any emperor, president, or worldly leader. It is he to whom we are to place our trust, to follow and Jesus is the Lord who will lead us to freedom from our bondage to addiction, racism, sin, suffering, and ultimately even our death.

Photo of an icon of Jesus the Lord accessed from Orthodox Christian Network

Link for the Mass readings for Friday, June 5, 2020

In today’s Gospel from Mark, one of the scribes approached Jesus and asked him, “Which is the first of all the commandments” (Mk 12:28). This may have been a challenge to Jesus or it may just have been a valid question of one seeking the Truth. Scribes were the experts in securing and making known the Torah. They could read and write, a skill not only used for protecting and passing on the faith, but also for the daily tasks of commerce and contract writing.

This question of the scribe was one that was asked often by those who sought how best to live out the Torah. Not only were there the Ten Commandments, but throughout the Torah, there were 613 prescribed laws! A common debate that was often entered into was which were the most important to follow to be faithful, as well as the minimalist approach, being, which were the most important to be followed so someone could just get by?

Jesus replied, “The first is this: Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these.” With this response, Jesus drew first on Deuteronomy 6:4-5 and then regarding loving your neighbor, Leviticus 19:18. By answering in this way, Jesus stated that when we orient our lives to who God has created us to be, which is to Love God first, place God at the center instead of ourselves, we can then better love our neighbors and ourselves.

St Augustine, the bishop of Hippo (354-430), echoed Jesus’ “Greatest Commandment” by stating that we can love God and do whatever we want. The order of that statement is aligned to the commandment Jesus gave. God is first. The problem many of us have is that we place ourselves first, and seek to bend God’s will to our own. We look to flip the words to, do what I want and God will love me. True God will love us, but we will not experience his love, for we have disconnected ourselves from our relationship with him.

When we shift our orientation to seeking God first, such that he is our foundational approach to our life, our world opens up. Many of us are wounded by our own sin and the sin of others. We retreat into defensive postures and actualize defense mechanisms to survive. These may be good and necessary at the moment, but the challenge is that if we continue to live in a posture of survival mode, we are merely existing.

God wants us to strive, to be fully alive. His greatest joy is when we become fully alive and flourish, actualizing our vocation and the truth of who we have been created to be. This becomes a reality in our life when we open ourselves to the love of God, when we recognize we need him in our life, and that we need him to bring us the healing balm of his love and mercy. Once we begin to experience the love of God we will begin to see ourselves and others, not from our own limited perspectives, but from the greater breadth and depth of how God sees us.

God is reaching out to us in so many ways to tell us that he loves us. He is loving us more than we can ever imagine. We unfortunately are so turned in on ourselves that we close ourselves off to him. God’s love for us is unconditional, it is not based on a feeling or an emotion, though we sometimes experience those. God’s love is a deeper experience of willing our good. God loves us as we are, right now, right at this moment. We just need to take some time to sit, breathe, and experience God loving us. As we slow down enough to receive the love of God, we will begin to see in the course of our day how many ways he reaches out to us.

What we are needing now more than ever is to expereince the love of God so we can move out of our defensive postures and risk loving each other. This is possible when we are willing to say yes to God’s invitation for us to enter into a relationship with him and each other. What will begin to heal the division, dehumanization, and polarization in our country is our willingness to encounter one another as human beings, resisting the labels and prejudgments, to experience our differences not as obstacles but gifts to our mutual growth, and loving our neighbors as ourselves as God loves us. This takes time, there is no quick fix to building relationships. But start now we must.

Photo: Loving God, loving each other as ourselves

Link for the Mass readings for Thursday, June 4, 2020

In today’s account from the Gospel of Mark, Jesus faces another challenge, but this time and the only time recorded in Mark, it is the Sadducees that confront Jesus. They present a hypothetical case based on the provision of Deuteronomy 25:5-6, which states that if a man dies and leaves a widow who has not as yet given birth to a son, that she is not to marry outside of the family, but she is to marry her husband’s brother. The reason was so that the first-born son would “continue the line of the deceased brother”(Donahue 2002, 352).

This was the starting point of the presentation. The representative of the Sadducees, then presented the absurd case in which six brothers die, all before the woman gives birth to a son. “Last of all the woman also died. At the resurrection when they arise whose wife will she be? For all seven had been married to her” (Mk 12:22-23). The logical presentation was presented in this way to prove their point that there is in fact no resurrection of the dead. The Sadducees did not believe in a resurrection of the dead because they saw no overt mention of it in the Torah, the Law or the Teachings, or what we as Christians would call the first five books of the Old Testament.

The reply of Jesus aligns him with the belief of the Pharisees, as they do believe in a resurrection of the dead, that is not a mere resuscitation, but that “the whole person will be restored to life” (Donahue 2002, 352). Jesus counters the claim of the Sadducees by inferring that they did “not know the Scriptures or the power of God” (Mk 12:24). Jesus shares, not if, but when the dead rise, they will not marry as they had done during their life on earth, but that they will be like the angels. Jesus also cites an account in Exodus when Moses encounters God. During their exchange, God states that he is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. “He is not God of the dead but of the living. You are greatly misled” (Mk 12:27).

God our Father is a God of the living. He is the source and sustainer of our life and that life is to continue beyond the temporal reality of our present experience and on into eternity. God has created us to yearn for communion with him, to find our true fulfillment in our relationship with him. In this life and in the next, we will not ever be able to exhaust that hunger and desire to be one with him. His love beckons us ever on.

We limit ourselves and the gift of wonder, as the Sadducees did if we reduce the mystery of heaven to a problem to be solved. It is natural to think and ask questions like what do we do in heaven, who will we meet, and will…, fill in the blank here. In our present state of three-dimensional reality though, there are probably no words or descriptions that would suffice. A better way to exert our energy is to realize that heaven is not so much a place as it is a communal state of unity with God.  We are better able to do so when we open and prepare our hearts, minds, and souls to receive the one who has loved us into existence and continues to invite us into deeper communion with him. We can also ponder the gift that he is present in all aspects of our lives now and that we just need to attune our awareness of his presence in our lives.

As we become more aware of the presence of God and begin to experience his nearness, his love, we are to share it by being present to others in our interactions and beyond to those we may have closed ourselves off to in the past. If we are to learn to get along with one another, we need to spend time with and experience each other beyond our comfort zones. God comes closest to us in our relationships. As we are loved by God and share our love with others, love increases, the source of which will never run dry.

God, please reveal yourself to us and help us to be open to encounter you in our experiences and our encounters with each other today. Help us to remember to turn to you as anxieties, conflicts, and struggles arise, especially in our current state of pandemic and continued unnecessary tragic loss of life. Help us to realize that in seeking you we will be found by you because you have already been present waiting for us, inviting us to come to you. It is in our encounter with you that we experience the foretaste of heaven.

Allow us to experience your peace, that peace that surpasses all understanding in this exchange such that we are inspired to commit to acting in ways today and all days that respect the dignity, not of a select few, but of each person we encounter, through our thoughts, words, and actions in person and online. It may not seem like much, but small acts of love do matter to those we interact with, and as we begin to treat each other as part of one human family, as brothers and sisters, God’s love will ripple out from us to become an antidote to the hatred, racism, and violence that plagues us in all its forms.

Photo: Mutual respect builds relationships

John R. Donahue, SJ and Daniel J. Harrington, SJ. The Gospel of Mark, vol. 1 of Sacra Pagina. Edited by Daniel J. Harrington, SJ. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2002.

Link for the Mass readings for Wednesday, June 3, 2020

Two groups who are generally opposed to one another, the Herodians and the Pharisees, appear to have formed an alliance. The Herodians, most likely supporters of the Galilean tetrarch Herod Antipas, have acquiesced and have allied themselves with the Roman occupation so that their “party” can be in leadership. The Pharisees, are opposed to Roman occupation and certainly do not support Caesar’s self-imposed status as a god. Mark indicates that representatives of each group are sent to Jesus to “ensnare him in his speech.” They are seeking to gain evidence to bring charges against him.

They come up with an elaborate plan that seems foolproof. A representative from these groups asks Jesus, “Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not? Should we pay or should we not pay” (Mk 12:14). If Jesus answers that they ought to pay, then the Pharisees can bring charges against him for idolatry. If Jesus refuses to pay, the Herodians can then bring charges against him for disobeying Caesar’s tax. Jesus asks for a denarius, a Roman coin, and asks what image is on the coin, the response is Caesar. So Jesus said to them, “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” They were utterly amazed at him (Mk 12:17).

Jesus bested them at their own game, in thinking outside of the limitations that were imposed on him by his questioners. Our faith is built on Jesus’ response. Not in the modern distinction of church and state, but more often than not we are to follow Jesus’ model and guidance of how we are to live in the world but not be of it. In most cases, we are to embrace not an either/or response, but a both/and response. Ultimately, the final determiner is God.

One example of such a false dichotomy which is often displayed is whereby one is placed in a position to choose either faith or reason. One could approach Jesus today, as did the representative for the Herodians and the Pharisees, and ask, “Rabbi, should we follow faith or reason?” We are more authentic in actualizing and pursuing the greater breadth, depth, and width of understanding who we are as human beings and our place in the cosmos when we embrace both faith and reason. Our science and intellect are spurred on by our sense of wonder and awe in that we seek to understand our world around us. Using our ability to reason, to hypothesize, and ask why have lead humanity to some wonderful discoveries. Reason and science though can only take us so far.

The gift of faith helps us to go beyond the ability to solve problems in the sensory or physical realm alone and to enter into the ground of Mystery by entering into a relationship with God and the spiritual realities of his creation that transcend our physical world and capacity to measure it. God has created all things visible and invisible.  Just a few of the many examples of practicing Catholics from our past who have shown this both/and approach are Copernicus (1473-1543), who developed the theory of heliocentrism, meaning that the earth is not the center of the universe but instead revolves around the sun; Nicolas Steno (1638-1686), who excelled in the study of anatomy, geology and is considered the founder of the study of fossils; Gregor Mendel (1822-1844), who was an Augustinian friar and is considered to be the father of genetics; and Fr. Georges Lemaitre (1894-1966), who is considered the father of the Big Bang Theory.

The Catholic Church is not opposed to science but discourages the concept of a hyper-scientism, which states that we can only believe something to be real or to exist if it can be measured by the senses or experimentation alone. This is a limitation to the gift of wonder. As St. Pope John Paul II wrote in his encyclical Fides et Ratio: “Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth—in a word, to know himself—so that, by knowing and loving God, men and women may also come to the fullness of truth about themselves.” We need to continue to embrace the gift of wonder and rise to meet its invitation by soaring aloft with both wings of faith and reason.

Photo: Fr. George Lemaitre and Albert Einstein

The following link lists an article by Shaun Mcafee regarding 11 Catholic scientists through the ages: https://epicpew.com/11-amazing-catholic-scientists-you-should-know/

Link for the Mass readings for Tuesday, June 2, 2020

Today’s memorial, Mary the Mother of the Church, only began two years ago with the decree released on February 11, 2018, by Cardinal Robert Sarah of the Congregation of Divine Worship. Pope Francis called for the Church to celebrate this memorial on the Monday after Pentecost. Not only is Mary the Mother of Jesus, but since we as the People of God participate in the life of Jesus as members of the Body of Christ, she is our mother too.

The New Testament records time and again how Mary reveals by word and action that she is the model of discipleship.

Mary answered Gabriel’s request to conceive and bear Jesus, with her response, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word” (Lk 1:38). Mary then went with haste to share the good news with Elizabeth and to assist her in her pregnancy of John the Baptist. Mary, after the birth of Jesus, is visited by the shepherds and upon hearing their news from the angelic host, she “kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart” (Lk 2:19). Mary and Joseph care for, protect and guide Jesus in the Jewish faith as he matures and grows into a young man.

Mary was also present at the beginning of his ministry when she says to the servants at the wedding at Cana, “Do whatever he tells you” (Jn 2:5). Mary was present at the crucifixion, as recorded in today’s reading from the Gospel of John: When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son.” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his home (Jn 19:26-27). Mary was pierced with sorrow when the lance was thrust through the side of Jesus, her son, as blood and water flowed. Mary was then present as the Church was birthed at Pentecost at the coming of the Holy Spirit (cf. Acts 1:14).

Mary, the mother of Jesus, the Mother of the Church, is also our mother. We do not worship Mary but seek her intercession and guidance as we would our own mothers. We also look to her as a model for living as disciples of Jesus as outlined in the examples above. May we ponder the wonders and mysteries of God working in our lives. May we resist the temptation of living in denial, running from our humanity and suffering, but instead face and embrace the sorrow and pain experienced in this fallen world so to receive her Son, Jesus, whose arms are wide open to receive us in the midst of our pain, so that he may bestow upon us his consolation and healing.

But may we not stop there. May we open ourselves to the love and empowerment of the Holy Spirit such that we may say yes to bearing Christ and going with haste to share the Good News of his life with others. May we resist the temptation of indifference and uncaring and instead help and support those we come into contact with who are in need. May we follow the last words of Mary recorded in Scripture and do whatever Jesus tells us to do to make his Church relevant and vibrant in our time, to speak out and stand up to hatred, injustice, racism, sexism, and violence in all its forms. As we honor Mary, may we also learn to honor and respect the women in our lives more as well.

Mary, Mother of the Church, pray for us now and at the hour of our death!

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Photo: Statue of Jesus and Mary outside Mission San Luis Rey de Francia, Oceanside, CA, Christmas 2017

Link for the Mass readings for Monday, June 1, 2020

There is a list of seven deadly or capital sins. They are pride, lust, greed, envy, wrath, gluttony, and sloth or acedia. Acedia may be the least recognized on the list but it is the most dangerous because it is the most subtle. If it is recognized at all, it is often compared to laziness, but that does not quite grasp the depth of it. The word, from its literal meaning, means a lack of care. This can manifest in our life as cynicism, finding no meaning, a minimalist approach, a resistance to discipline, disengagement with the world around us, and ultimately a “lack of care given to one’s own spiritual life, a lack of concern for one’s own salvation” (Nault 2015, 28).

Marc Cardinal Ouellet, in his foreword to Jean-Charles Nault’s, The Noonday Devil, describes the effects of acedia on us today this way: “Left to his own devices, man ultimately despairs of ever being able to find a meaning for his existence and runs the risk of sinking into mediocrity that is just the symptom of his rejection of his own greatness as an adopted son [and daughter] of God” (Nault, 2015, 11).

Many of us, especially during this time of the pandemic, struggle with just getting by, feeling tired, worn down, and worn out, seeing on some far horizon the possibility for our potential but wondering if we can ever fully achieve it. We deny the very gift of our humanity, we retreat into a stance that accepts the unthinkable, as long as it does not directly affect us. We grow in our indifference toward the needs of others we consider not like us. This happens when we listen to the father of lies instead of our Father in heaven.

Today we celebrate the antidote to acedia as well as all those temptations that grasp at our throat to choke out the divine life from growing within us. Today we celebrate the feast of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came upon Mary and the Apostles to empower them with divine Love.

From our Gospel reading today we read how: The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you” (Jn 20:21). Jesus, who embraced our humanity, took upon himself our sin on the Cross, then conquered death, rose again, and freed us from our slavery to sin. The Risen One comes to us as he came to his disciples in the locked room and invites us to participate in his divine life, to share in the love he shares with the Father, who is the Holy Spirit. So when the temptations of sin arise in our mind and heart, we are to, in the words of St Benedict of Nursia, “dash them against Christ immediately” (Nault, 2015, 41).

We are able through the prompting of the Holy Spirit through prayers, songs, and words of Scripture to counteract the lies and temptations that seek to lure us away from the truth of our relationship with Jesus, ourselves, and each other. One simple but powerful prayer to use is reciting the words from Psalm 70:2 “God, come to my assistance. Lord make haste to help me.” Another is “Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of the faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created and you shall renew the face of the earth.” Just saying, Veni, Sancte Spiritus, or the English equivalent, Come, Holy Spirit, reciting the Jesus Prayer or simply the words, Come, Lord Jesus, and/or spontaneous words are all ways to immediately turn away from the temptations that arise and draw on the infinite power and love of God.

We are like diamonds in the ruff. We are unique and special gifts to this world, though wounded and marred by our own sin. We may feel adrift, without direction; we may feel cynical and without hope; we may feel beaten, worn out, and worn down; we may feel anxious and afraid, but let us not despair or lose our ability to care, especially for each other. We need to realize that we are not overcome or outdone. We may be wounded by indifference and complacency, but we are not defined or set in stone. We can change. We can learn to love, to will the good of each other, even those that are different than ourselves.

Today, on the Solemnity of Pentecost, the birthday of the Church, let us call on the same Holy Spirit that empowered Mary and the Apostles to give us the guidance and strength from our God and Father who loves us and desires for all of us to fully actualize who we are and who he calls us to be: People of love. Unfortunately, the disrespect for the dignity of life has reared its ugly head yet again as three more unarmed people of color, Ahmaud Arbery, Breona Taylor, and most recently, George Floyd, as well as many others reported and unreported, have lost their lives unnecessarily. There is no justification for the loss of their lives and nor for the fact that too many of us, including myself, have remained silent.

God does not want us to settle for a minimalist approach or to live a life of mediocrity that is bogged down by apathy, but instead, he urges us to call on the name of his Son, Jesus, who will break the bonds of our enslavement to sin, and through our participation in his life become empowered by the Holy Spirit so to be free to live the life we have been created for; a life of meaning, fulfillment, joy, love, and unity with God and one another. This is a promise made, not just for a select few, but for all people, no matter their ethnicity.

Holy Spirit set us aflame with the fire of your love and burn off the dross of our covert or overt racism so that we may be like precious stones radiating your light and love in such a way that we keep our tongues from evil and our lips from speaking deceit, that we turn aside from evil and do good, that we seek and strive after the peace of God, that peace that surpasses all understanding and that we become more present, more understanding, and more loving, so to see each other as you see us, as precious children in your sight. Help us to respect the gifts of our diversity and differences while at the same time embrace the dignity of each human person. The gift of Pentecost is the universal invitation to enter into relationships with those that are different than us so to come close and embrace our common humanity. Help us to see each other as brothers and sisters, as fellow human beings, as people with dignity. Help us to love one another as you love us.

Veni Sancte Spiritus! Come Holy Spirit!

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Photo: George, Ahmaud, and Breona from CNN.com pray for us!

I recommend the article by Olga Segura: How can Catholics help lead the fight against racism?

Nault, O.S.B., Jean-Charles. The Noonday Devil: Acedia Unnamed Evil of Our Times. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2015. If you are looking for a transformative book for summer reading, I highly recommend it!

Link for the Mass readings for Sunday, May 31, 2020

How many times have we looked to others instead of staying focused on what we need to do or be doing? How many times do we compare ourselves to others, assessing what we or others have or don’t have, how others are more or less confident, more or less better looking, more or less intelligent, and even, how our faith life is worse or better?

We get a taste of these questions and what our response ought to be from Jesus in today’s Gospel. The background of today’s reading is a continuation from yesterday’s, in which the author described how Jesus forgave Peter for denying him by asking him not only if Peter loved him, but how he was to put that love into action by feeding his lambs, taking care of and feeding his sheep. Jesus also had just let Peter know that Peter was going to die in his service to him.

Today we read that upon hearing the news of his eventual death, that Peter shifts the direction away from himself.  When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, what about him?” Jesus said to him, “What if I want him to remain until I come? What concern is it of yours? You follow me” (Jn 21:21-22). Jesus does not definitively say what is or is not going to happen to the beloved disciple. Jesus is clear with Peter that his focus is not to be on what is going to happen to the beloved or any other disciple, but to direct his attention to following him and his will.

Our orientation as disciples of Jesus is to be focused on his will for our lives and to expend our energy in such a way that promotes his will toward building up the kingdom of Heaven on earth. We are to spend less time comparing ourselves to others. This temptation is a very slippery slope that can easily lead us to the devastating sins of gossip, pride, and envy. If we are to compare ourselves to anyone, let it be to Jesus.

Jesus calls us to be perfect as his heavenly Father is perfect, which is an impossible task if we seek to go it alone. Yet, we can become perfected through our participation in the life of Jesus the Christ. We begin when we decide to ask for Jesus to help us make a commitment to resist the temptation to compare ourselves to others. Then when the first instant of a comparative thought arises, we are to replace it with a prayer of blessing directed toward another.

Moment by moment, we then just need to remember that we are not alone, that we walk with Jesus. Together, one thought at a time, one action at a time, one interaction at a time, we are called to surrender our will to the love of God. By taking these steps to counter the influences of self first, comparative and celebrity culture, we can begin to shift the momentum away from the increasing divisiveness, polarity and growing tide of rampant violence, and instead strive toward embracing the gift of our mutual uniqueness and diversity in which we commit to supporting, encouraging, and uplifting one another.

Let us combine our prayer with action in our realm of influence at the community, state, and federal level so to build bridges of communication, conflict resolution, and dialogue. In so doing, we will begin to curb the fear, prejudice, and violence in our country. We need to be willing to see each other as human beings again, to resist seeing people as others, and be more willing to respect the dignity of each and every human life. This will happen when we resist comparing ourselves to others and are willing to see each other through God’s eyes.

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Photo: Working together to lift one another up!

Link for the Mass reading for Saturday, May 30, 2020

When we spend time reading the Gospels, we will encounter in them that the God of Jesus Christ is a God of justice, yes, but a justice that is tempered with mercy and love, a restorative justice, not a punitive justice. God invites us to be in communion with him and one another, and to answer that call requires a transformation, a change of heart and mind. Jesus meets people where they are, accepts them as they are, while at the same time holding a mirror up to them to show how what they are doing is keeping them from the very reality of communion with his Father that they seek.

One example can be seen when Jesus encountered the Samaritan woman at the well and asked her for a drink. What followed from that simple, while at the same time profound request, led to her humble confession that she did not have a husband to which Jesus responded: “You are right in saying, ‘I do not have a husband.’ For you have had five husbands, and the one now is not your husband. What you have said is true.” Jesus spoke to a woman and a Samaritan in public, two things that were not done in his time as it was against societal norms.

Jesus recognized the distinction, but saw instead and foremost, a human being created in the image and likeness of God. He saw a woman isolated, close to the point of being ostracized from her community, for who else would come by themselves to fetch water in the full heat of the day? What he shared with her was acceptance, as he spoke to her as a person. Because of her honesty, humility, and courage, what transpired over the course of the conversation was not only her transformation but the redemption of her whole community. This transpired because, with joy and courage, she proclaimed the Good News even to those that kept her at arm’s leg, and on the margins (cf. Jn 4:1-12).

Another encounter happened with Saul who was present and oversaw the stoning of St Stephen and continued his zealous persecution of the followers of Jesus. On the road to Damascus, Saul encountered the risen Jesus, who met him with the words: “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me” (Acts 9:4)? Again, as with the woman at the well, Jesus greeted Saul with a simple but profound question which had a tremendous effect on him. Saul too was transformed from a persecutor of the Way to a follower of the Word. He would not only change his name to Paul and proclaim the Gospel to a community but to the Mediterranean world.

In today’s Gospel, Peter, who had betrayed Jesus three times, encountered Jesus who also posed a question, but this time asking it three times: “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” (cf. Jn 21:15-19). With these simple, questions and Peter’s affirmative responses of yes, Jesus forgave Peter for betraying him. Peter went forward to proclaim boldly the life of Jesus at the feast of Pentecost, and three thousand were moved by his words and sought to become part of the Way of Jesus.

In each encounter Jesus experienced with the Samaritan woman, Paul, and Peter, he met each of them, not with condemnation or judgment, but with love and mercy. He met them on their level and then offered them a look in the mirror by asking a simple question. Jesus sought to draw them out of their own false senses of self and sin, and into the love of God. Each person answered with truth and humility, and willingly looked at their life, turned away from their sin and accepted the invitation of Jesus to lead them to a change of heart and mind.

The justice of God is not about the punitive measure, about rubbing our noses in our own sin. Yet, if we choose our own sin over the love of God’s healing transformation, it may feel punitive, because God will allow us to feel the effects of our decisions. God gives us another choice. He has sent his Son to show us the path of love, forgiveness, and reconciliation. Jesus echoes Hosea 6:6 when he is recorded as saying, “‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice’. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners” (Mt 9:13). Jesus comes to us, as he came to the Samaritan woman, Paul, and Peter, who were able to receive the healing of Jesus because they acknowledged their sin.

When we make some time for prayer and spend some time in silence today, let us allow ourselves to see Jesus approaching us or sitting with us. What simple, yet transformative question does he ask that reveals to us our sin, how we are keeping ourselves at a distance from God? In what way do we need to change our hearts and minds? When we choose to leave behind our false self, our pride and our ego, and instead respond with humility and contrition, true sorrow for our sins, as did the Samaritan woman, Paul, and Peter, we will be healed, transformed, and empowered to go forth to share the Good News of the love and mercy we experienced with God.

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Photo: Close up of Heinrich Hoffman’s Christ and the Rich Young Ruler, 1889

Link for the Mass readings for Friday, May 29, 2020