Simeon, a righteous and devout man of Israel, had received a revelation from the Holy Spirit that before his death he would behold the Messiah, “the Christ of the Lord” (Lk 2:26). We do not know how long Simeon was waiting, we do not know how old he was when Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the temple. How many people had crossed his path, how many times must he have turned his head wondering when a family brought a male child to be presented to the Lord, “Is this the one?”

Today we recall the presentation of Jesus in the temple, the day in which Simeon’s waiting, his growing anticipation, comes to fulfillment. “Lord, now you let your servant go in peace; your word has been fulfilled: my own eyes have seen the salvation which you have prepared in the sight of every people: a light to reveal you to the nations and the glory of your people Israel” (cf. Lk 2:29-32). He can now go to his eternal rest in peace.

We can see in the presentation of Jesus more than a pious act though. In this event, the glory of God had returned to the Temple in this infant. What Simeon said and experienced as he held up the infant, is still true for us today. Jesus the Christ has come to us, to lead us “out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9), for, Jesus is the Temple, the embodiment of the Living God, where heaven and earth meet, where the divine and human are one.

May we spend some time in prayer today imagining ourselves holding the infant Jesus in our arms, as did Simeon, looking into his eyes, and allowing his smile, his giggle, to fill us with his unconditional love and mercy. As we adjust and cradle him in the crook of our arm and reach a hand to him, he grasps our finger. In that simple touch, we experience a warmth that radiates through our entire being melting all anxiety, doubt, and/or fear. Anything that keeps us bound to darkness and sin is loosed such that we may feel the freedom of forgiveness and reconciliation. From this moment of experiencing Jesus in our time and place, may we give our life to him so that we too may radiate his light, his love, his mercy, and forgiveness to others. To love those whom Jesus sends us to encounter today.

Photo: Holy Family at St Peter Catholic Church

Link for the Mass readings for Saturday, February 1, 2020

On display in Mark’s recounting of the calming of the storm at sea is the humanity of Jesus. He has finally succumbed to the exhaustion from being pulled and touched, challenged and accused, the constant interaction through his service of teaching, healing, forgiving, and exorcising, that he not only fell asleep on the boat but was in such a deep sleep that he was as if dead, even during the height of the storm. Also, we see his divinity expressed when his disciples wake him and he calmed the storm immediately with just his word: “Quiet! Be Still” (Mk 4:39)!

The disciples have grasped his uniqueness and have accepted him as their rabbi, their teacher, but they are still grappling with the reality that Jesus is at the same time the Son of God. The disciples will continue to experience his miracles, but it will not be until after his resurrection and ascension, that their faith will find the maturity to participate in the fullness of the ministry Jesus was grooming them for.

Storms arise in our lives, sometimes just as unannounced and as quickly as the squall from today’s Gospel. A health issue, an injury, an economic shift, a conflict, the effects of a mistake in judgment, or a sinful choice, all can arise at a moment’s notice. We, like the disciples, can sometimes only hold on so as not to be tossed into the sea, or bail out water so we don’t sink. But sooner or later, we need to turn to Jesus to seek his aid. A helpful point to keep in mind that I have learned from one of our past retreat directors, Fr. RB, is: “Sometimes the Lord calms the storm, and sometimes the Lord lets the storm rage on and calms his child.”

To understand this statement is to begin to mature in our faith. No matter the severity of the storm, we are to trust in Jesus. He remains present with us, accompanies us, and does not leave us alone. Whether we brought the storms upon ourselves or they arose from another source, Jesus does not leave us to fend for ourselves. When we remember to call on Jesus, he will either calm the storm or bring us a sense of peace as we travel through it empowered by the assurance that he will give us that which we need to ride it out to the other side.

We are also to allow Jesus to work through us such that his presence will be there for others in their storms. We are to be that conduit of calm assurance for those who need Jesus but do not know him or are focusing on the anxiety and fear instead of him. We do this when we are willing to enter the chaos of another, choose to be present and accompany them in their trials and allow God to happen. Through our open hearts and minds, the divinity and peace of Christ will be present in our midst as we lean on and embrace one another.

Photo: Peaceful morning at Cardinal Newman yesterday.

Fr RB Williams home page and link to his homily – http://www.rbwords.com/wttw/date/2018-01-27

Link for the Mass readings for Saturday, February 1, 2020

Two parables are presented by Jesus today in the Gospel of Mark. Both are presenting what the kingdom of God is like. The first presents a man who sows seeds, and the second is a mustard seed that is planted. In both cases, the seeds germinate and go through the process of becoming mature plants. The kingdom of God is like these plants in that God works through the smallest of and many times, unnoticed beginnings. Also, God’s timing is not our timing. In our rapid-paced world of instant access, we would do well to slow down.

God not only begins small, and on his own timetable, but he is often working beyond the realm of our awareness. This is evident in the first parable offered by Jesus: “This is how it is with the Kingdom of God; it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land and would sleep and rise night and day and the seed would sprout and grow, he knows not how” (Mk 4:26-27). This is not to say that God has set everything in motion and is indifferent or despondent to his creation. Quite the opposite. God has a plan and has been intimately engaged in guiding his creation and in each of our lives as well. He revealed this truth to Jeremiah: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I dedicated you” (Jeremiah 1:5). God is present to us, in a relationship with us, whether we know it or not. He quietly invites us to participate in his plan.

The beauty is that even though God has no need for us, he invites us to know him, to participate in the spreading of his kingdom. Just think of someone who you have, for the longest time, wanted to meet. If the opportunity arose to spend time with that person, how excited would you be? We have the opportunity to do so with the Creator of all that exists, and not just today, or tomorrow, but for all of eternity.

God has created us to know him, to love him, and to serve him. He invites us to share in his relationship, his work of salvation history in simple and subtle ways in this life. Are we making an effort to be aware, are we willing to watch and pray? Are we willing to place ourselves in a posture so better to receive his Word as well as his Silence? Just as an acorn that is sown matures and grows over time into the mightiest of oak trees, so may our relationship with our Loving God and Father also grow and mature that we become one with him in this life and into the next for eternity.

Photo: Oak canopy from a tree behind my parent’s house that I have watched grow since I was five. I visited Grandfather Oak again this past Christmas. It is wonderful to watch God’s hand at work.

Link for the Mass readings for Friday January 31, 2020

Jesus said to his disciples, “Is a lamp brought in to be placed under a bushel basket or under a bed, and not to be placed on a lampstand” (Mk 4:21)? The obvious answer is no. A lamp is brought in to illuminate a room so one can read, find something misplaced, and it can even provide some warmth if needed. It would be absurd to do the things with a lamp that Jesus presented in today’s Gospel.

We are like lamps in that we are invited to shine the light of Christ to dispel the darkness of our fallen nature and world. This is the path of a disciple. Yet, many of us do not allow the light of Jesus to shine through us. Here are a few reasons why this may be so.

To draw the analogy of the lamp into our modern electric lamp instead of an oil lamp of Jesus’ day, one reason a lamp does not work is that it is not plugged into its source. Are we plugged into Jesus? Are we spending time in prayer, worship, study, building relationships, and serving God and one another?

Another reason may be that the light bulb is not screwed in all the way or the bulb has gone out. We may be plugged into the source of Jesus, but we are just going through the motions. We show up for Mass or church physically but are not engaged in any meaningful way. We spend time in prayer but we are just saying words or going through the motions without listening to God or willing to allow him to challenge us to go deeper. We have a nice pile of spiritual reading, apps, and DVDs, but the books are only gathering dust, and the apps and DVDs were not opened since they were first accessed or purchased.

Another reason a lamp may not work is that it has been damaged. Many of us may be broken or wounded. It is hard to risk sharing the light when our trust has been manipulated, misused, and/or abused. We need not despair or lose hope. Jesus meets us in our pain, our injury: emotional, psychological, physical, and/or spiritual, and offers his healing and restorative power so we too can shine his light again.

We are called and empowered by Jesus to shine his light. If we haven’t been doing so because of our woundedness, may we be open to his healing. If we aren’t plugged in to the life and source of our being, let us ask for God’s grace to be more disciplined and dedicate ourselves to spending more quality time engaged in prayer, worship, study, and fellowship. If we feel like we are in a rut, we are just going through the motions, and/or our spiritual and relational life is dry: We must consider how to rouse one another to love and good works (Hebrews 10:24). A kind act, a listening ear, or a smile is the simplest way to begin to allow the light of Jesus to shine through us to others. We just need to begin!

Photo: For me, the simplest way to share the light of Jesus is to offer a smile.

Link for the Mass readings for Thursday, January 30, 2020

Each of the elements of the Parable of the Sower is worthy of meditation and reflection. A very good practice would be to take some time to reflect on each aspect and ask what limits the germination and growth of the seeds God has sown in our lives, and also what helps us to bring about successful growth and a successful yield. When did we experience God’s word but have it almost immediately snatched away; when did we gain an insight, experience joy from his word and guidance, but did not in any way put the learning into practice; how many times have trials, hardship, and lack of courage or outright persecution, robbed us of stretching out of our comfort zone, and we withdrew, not wanting to risk growth?

Many of us can relate to: “Those sown among thorns are another sort. They are the people who hear the word, but worldly anxiety, the lure of riches, and the craving for other things intrude and choke the word, and it bears no fruit” (Mk 4:18-19). Distractions pull at us from within and without, from one second to the next. So much seeks to undo us, tear us down, and drive us into states of anxiety, despondency, cynicism, and depression. So many apparent goods and false truths entice us to feed our desires for power, wealth, fame, and pleasure. Material temptations offer promises of fulfillment but shortly after purchase leave us feeling empty. All the while, there is so much good that needs to be done and so much work to do. Even if we are willing to look beyond ourselves to be of help, we may not even be sure how to serve or where to begin.

Jesus offers us in the Parable of the Sower a promise that the seed sown in rich soil will grow to be a mature plant that bears much fruit. To bear fruit we need to create rich soil. This means breaking into hard ground, the hardness of our heart, prejudgments, and pride, by spending time and being present with not only those close to us but also with people who we keep at arm’s length. We also need to be willing to face our fear of rejection and be willing to encounter a person with understanding and respect instead of a preconceived notion of who someone is, then we can begin to diffuse false judgments, prejudices, and fears.

We often react from a defensive posture or give in to our immediate impulses, when instead we need to be more mindful. We do so when we take a moment to inhale deeply, discern each thought, situation, purchase, and action, to pray and seek God’s guidance, and to rely on trusted family, friends, colleagues, and classmates for guidance. We can learn from past experiences and resist making any rash or reactive decisions. Regarding service, it is best to start small, apply the same points just mentioned, and engage in reaching out in our own small way, but with, intention, confidence, and persistence.

These are just a few ideas that can help us start to uproot weeds and overgrowth, to begin to remove some rocks and soften the earth, and enjoy the process of preparing some rich soil – our heart, mind, and soul – to better receive and nurture the seed of the love of God that he sows, which is Jesus his Son. In time, as we surrender more to his will, continue to be nourished by his word, accept and put it into practice, and trust in him and not the temptations that entice, distract and disrupt our growth, we will see sprouts begin to grow, and soon mature plants that will “bear fruit thirty and sixty and a hundredfold” (Mk 4:20).

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Photo: Class of 2017 models of creating rich soil!

Link for the Mass readings for Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Even a surface reading of the Gospels will offer a glimmer of Jesus making things new. We can read and imagine the scene today. Many are gathered around him in a circle. The crowd is large but focused intently on Jesus as he taught. His family, presumably the relatives that only a few verses earlier came to seize him because he was out of his mind (cf. Mk 3:21), had arrived, were standing outside, and sent word. The message passed among the people was: “Your mother and your brothers [and your sisters] are outside asking for you” (Mk 3:32).

Jesus seized on the opportunity for a teachable moment. He looked not beyond and past the crowd that encircled him to his family who had sent word, but to those who were nearest to him and said: “Here are my mother and my brothers. [For] whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother” (Mk 3:35).

The true measure of the family in the kingdom of God is not a bloodline but faith in and following the will of God. Those who have experienced or still experience the gift of a close, tight-knit, extended family can come close to the dramatic moment of silence that must have followed after this statement. For anyone living in the ancient Near East, familial, clan, and tribal relations were paramount to survival. To say that family bonds were strong is an understatement. Yet, Jesus challenged this societal norm by raising the bar even higher.

The relatives of Jesus were not present in this inner circle, they were on the outside. Imagine who might have been sitting in that circle; sinners, the unclean, tax collectors, and possibly even Gentiles – non-Jews, and Jesus said that they were his brother and sister and mother! If his relatives thought he had lost his mind before, I cannot imagine what kind of mental conniption they entered into after these words.

Jesus was not devaluing or delegitimizing family, he was restoring the family to its proper place and extending it out beyond what anyone of his time could conceive of. As Bishop Robert Barron writes, “when we give the family a disproportionate importance, in short, it becomes dysfunctional” (Barron 2011, 17). We as the baptized are united in a deeper way into the Mystical Body of Christ, which is even a more powerful call to unity here than the blood-line of family, clan, or tribe.

The end goal is that as each person draws closer in their encounter and relationship with God, they also draw closer together. As we are conformed more and more to the life of Christ we begin to bear his fruits of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and self-control (cf. Galatians 5:22).

In sharing the fruit of the spirit, in giving this gift away to one another, our relationships will grow and our bonds will become stronger. Our love grows as we give it away, person to person, out beyond our comfort zones, to the peripheries, where there are those who feel set apart, and/or are on the outside looking in. We are even to share with our enemies. Not possible? True, if we enclose ourselves within our own bubble and focus on protecting our ego. Possible, when we deepen our relationship with Jesus.

Too many today are choosing to encase themselves in their own protective bubble wrap. Instead of embracing diversity, we are going backward, we are regressing. By choosing to close ourselves off from other viewpoints, talking over each other and at each other, if we are talking at all, and embracing fear instead of love, we are distancing ourselves from God and each other. Our strength as a people and as a nation and as a world increases when we embrace the human dignity of each person, and the rich diversity bestowed upon us through the unconditional love of God. May we embrace the teaching of Jesus who in his emphasis on following God’s will “was insisting that the in-gathering of the tribes into God’s family is of paramount importance” (Barron 2011, 17).

In today’s Gospel account from Mark 3:31-35, Jesus did not define those gathered around him by race, ethnicity, gender, or any other label. He defined them then, as he still defines his family today, as those who are willing to follow the will of God his Father. Mary his mother being the primary model.

Jesus, please help us to open our hearts and minds to receive the Love of the Holy Spirit so as to will the good of our family and friends, our colleagues, classmates, and neighbors, as well as those we may consider as other, and even our enemies. Help us to resist asking who does or does not belong in your inner circle, but instead be willing to surrender to God, follow his will, and sit at your feet, not only to learn from you but also to be empowered by you, so to care for one another as brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers.

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Photo: One family in Christ!

Barron, Robert. Catholicism: A Journey to the Heart of Faith. NY: Image, 2011.

Link for the Mass reading for Tuesday, January 29, 2020

The scribes who had come from Jerusalem said of Jesus, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “By the prince of demons he drives out demons” (Mark 3:22).

The scribes experience for themselves Jesus exorcising demons, and do not understand how he is able to cast them out to heal those possessed. They judge that he does this feat, not by the power of God but, by the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons. Could their purpose be to delegitimize, or literally demonize, Jesus in such a way that those beginning to follow him will begin to doubt or outright turn away from him? If Jesus is who he says he is, then the scribes are actually the ones serving Satan in aligning with him to sow discord and disunity.

Jesus provides an invitation to build bridges of reconciliation and healing to restore the unity that has been lost by those choosing to sin, to put self first over God. He also meets those on the peripheries, those who have been kept at arm’s length, healing those conditions which have been used to justify their separation. Yet Jesus does not impose, he proposes. Even so, Jesus demands a choice.

Jesus shows over and over again by word and deed not only how he is creating bridges of connection between the human and the divine, he is in actuality the bridge, the kingdom of God in our midst, and yet, he is not going to drag anyone over it against their will. Jesus calls all who encounter him to make a choice, there is no middle ground, we are either for him or against him.

We have witnessed in the Gospel accounts how some of the scribes, Pharisees, and even some of his relatives reject Jesus. He is able to perform only a few miracles in his own hometown. Those who say no to the invitation cut themselves off, separate themselves from the very source of their life, the very core and sustaining force of their being. Those who say yes and repent, like those that receive his healing, will be transformed, and are freed from their enslavement to sin.

They align themselves with the very source and communion they have been created for, God the Father, when they continue to say yes, day by day, decision by decision. This is no one revelatory moment but a daily commitment of saying yes to Jesus. Even in messing up or falling down, we refuse to stay down but arise, repent, and begin again and again. We must always and everywhere reject the lie that echoes in our minds that we cannot be forgiven. Jesus loves us more than we can ever mess up, he loves us more than our worst choice or mistake.

If this is true, then what does Jesus mean when he says that “whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an ever lasting sin” (Mk 3:29)? Jesus refers here to our free will to accept or reject the free gift of his grace. We can observe this played out in the choices of Peter and Judas. Peter repented, was forgiven, and transformed. Judas withdrew within himself, cut himself off from Jesus, did not believe that Jesus would forgive him, and took his own life. Jesus would have forgiven Judas as he had Peter, but Judas kept himself at a distance. He refused to accept the love of the Holy Spirit.

We have a choice to make each day. We can let ourselves be defined by our sin and our worst mistakes, believe the lies of the father of lies and division who wants us to help him build up walls separating us from Jesus and each other. We can walk the path of darkness which consists of living defensively, keeping those who we deem as different at a distance, or worse, demean, belittle, and degrade others. We can live in the shadows of indifference and cynicism. Or we can surrender our will to Jesus and repent from our pride, prejudice, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, sloth, and wrath. We can believe that Jesus is who he said he is, refuse to build walls of separation but instead align ourselves with him and join in the task of building bridges of unification and communion.

We will take steps forward and steps back, and we will fall, but through each experience, the hand of Jesus is still there to help us back up and if we are willing, we can begin again and again and again. We are not alone. Mary the Mother of God and all the saints said yes to Jesus’ invitation, they understand what we are going through, they are also cheering us on, guiding us, empowering us, so that one day we too will be where they are, seeing God the Father face to face.

Jesus invites us to be unified in his love. May we place our hand in his, follow him, and live our lives in communion with others committed to his mission. By doing so we will radiate his light, in our own unique way,  like a rainbow, expressing the gift of glory that God has given us.

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Photo: Rainbow at Cardinal Newman HS, sometime in August 2018

Link for the Mass readings for Monday, January 27, 2020

Our country appears to be under a constant state of siege. Polarization does not seem to be dissipating but sometimes it feels like we are tearing each other apart. Laws are passed that do not protect the dignity of the person but justify the taking of life from the womb of his or her mother. We are no longer a nation that welcomes people to our shores but limits access and cages those fleeing violence and seeking asylum. More people seem to be dying of cancer, far too many people do not have access to quality healthcare and the rise of drug-related deaths and suicides among our youth is at epidemic proportions. Gun violence and mass shootings have become the norm and nothing seems to change.

And yet, we need not give in to the temptation of despair. Hope is presented in today’s reading from Matthew.  “[T]he people who sit in darkness have seen a great light, on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death light has arisen” (Mt. 4:16). This proclamation, quoted from the prophet Isaiah, (cf. 9:1) I took special comfort in while reading it today.

We certainly are a people sitting in darkness and are overshadowed by death on every side. Yet,  we are not overcome. We can feed the darkness or be fed by the light. As Christians, we believe that Jesus is the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy. And his antidote to address the darkness comes to us a few verses later. Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Mt 4:17).

Jesus’ message is as simple as it is clear. Jesus is the kingdom of heaven that is at hand. He is present among us as the light shining in the darkness. We can repent, come out from the shadows of our darkness, or we can retreat deeper into darkness. Each thought, word, or action contributes to deepening the present darkness or to the light that will overcome it.

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Photo by Agung Pandit Wiguna from Pexels

Link for the Mass readings for Sunday, January 26, 2020

In today’s gospel account, chosen because of the feast of St Paul’s conversion, we read:

Jesus appeared to the Eleven and said to them: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature” (Mk 16:15).

The Eleven, and Paul who would encounter Jesus after his Resurrection (cf. Acts 9:1-9), are commissioned with carrying the Gospel to the whole world. What did they preach? How are we do follow in their footsteps?

The earliest kerygmas, Greek for to preach, and in this case to preach the Gospel, were very simple but effective mnemonic devices. Each disciple was taught what was needed to be covered in sharing the Good News. One such “blueprint” was the symbol of the fish. In Greek, fish is written as ichthus. Each of the characters of ichthus represented the keywords that needed to be covered as follows:

Iesous – Jesus
Christos – Messiah or Anointed One
Theos – God
Hyios – Son
Soter – Savior.

Jesus Christ is the Son of God our Savior.

The dynamic truth of these five words is profoundly transformative if we truly believe them. What we need to ask ourselves is, do we believe this statement to be true? If we do, how can we stop ourselves from smiling, from dancing, from sharing that Jesus is truly who he said he is!

Jesus is fully God and fully man and he became one of us so that we can become one with him. Through the Son of God’s Incarnation, Passion, Resurrection, and Ascension, we are called, as were the first disciples, to share in the divinity of Jesus. We become deified, meaning we become God through our participation in the life of Jesus. The foundation of our faith has to do with our encounter with the person, Jesus the Christ.

This encounter is personal for each of us. No one can save another. We can only propose, invite, and present the Good News that Jesus Christ is the Son of God our Savior, and share our own experiences of this reality. Our encounter with Jesus does not need to be as brilliant as happened with Paul. More often, Jesus invites us in more quiet and subtle ways. We are to share the Gospel with joy and accompany each other on our journey by providing support, encouragement, and guidance, and let God be who he is and work through us as he will.

The Apostles and Paul, Mary the Mother of God, Mary Magdalene and the many who have continued to answer yes to his invitation through the ages up until this day were willing to be shaped, conformed and sent on mission. Each of us, have a part to play in salvation history, and so are invited to have our own unique experience of Jesus. As Bishop Robert Barron says often, “Our faith will grow as we give it away.” We too are called. When we say yes to Jesus, we too will be shaped, conformed, and sent on mission to proclaim the Gospel, to give our faith away!
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Picture: The mosaic of Jesus Christ the Pantocrator, Ruler of the Universe, at Hagia Sophia, in Istanbul, Turkey.

Link for the Mass Readings for Saturday, January 25, 2020

Jesus went up the mountain and summoned those whom he wanted and they came to him (Mk 3:13).

Through the centuries mountains have been sites where people have gone to rise above their daily experiences, to rise above the clouds, where the air is crisper, cleaner. It is a means of gaining a new perspective, transcending the human to touch the spiritual, and possibly hearing the voice of God. When one of the Gospel writers inserts the detail that Jesus is present on a mountain, we can be prepared that something significant is going to happen.

In today’s Gospel of Mark, the good news revealed to us is that Jesus calls to himself the Twelve, the Apostles, to preach and cast out demons. They are to continue the ministry of Jesus. These are not perfect men, but each will have a part to play in salvation history. Jesus will entrust them with the deposit of faith that they are to protect, yes, but more so to proclaim. Apostle means one who is sent.

Jesus will continue to call the Twelve to himself, to teach, mentor, model, and empower them so they will continue his mission to call people to repent and believe in the Gospel. Even though, especially through the Gospel of Mark, it often looks as if Jesus may have made a mistake in his choice. The Twelve do not ever grasp who Jesus really is, and when Jesus needs them most, Judas will turn him over to the Temple guards, the others flee at his arrest, and Peter will publicly deny him three times. It will not be until after the Resurrection and Ascension that the seeds that Jesus had sowed in them would begin to germinate and bear fruit.

Just as Jesus called the Twelve, he calls us as well. Each generation must experience and embrace the deposit of faith that has been given to us and pass it on to the next. Are we perfect, no. Do we have doubts, fears, weaknesses, yes. Does God call us and love us anyway? Yes. Like each Apostle, we are to go out and proclaim the good news that Jesus is our Lord! We do this daily with our words, faces, and actions. We think, look, speak, and act in ways that are kind, empowering, uplifting, and convicting while at the same time resisting the temptation to fix others. We are to strive to bear witness, be present, accompany and guide one another.

We all have much on our plate, some of us to overflowing. We may be thinking I cannot possibly do one more thing. Start small by bringing God with us into whatever we are already doing. He will give us the tools and accompany us as we seek to fulfill his will. As did the Apostles, we will make mistakes, make false starts, trip, fall, sin, and deny opportunities to reach out to be a witness. When we commit any or all of the above, we must resist beating ourselves up and instead learn from the experience, lean into Jesus, and with him prepare better for the next apostolic opportunity.

Jesus went up the mountain and summoned those whom he would send. Are we worthy of this same call? Probably not, for all of us fall short of the glory of God. Are we willing? That is a question for each of us to answer today and each day hereafter.

Photo: Hiking to the heights, Mohawk Trail, MA., around 1983-84

Link for today’s Mass readings for Friday, January 24, 2020