discipleship

Where, in what, or with whom do we place our trust?

Jesus said to the crowds, “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions” (Lk 12:15). Jesus is responding to the man in the crowd who asked him to be an arbitrator between him and his brother. The brother was concerned that he would not get his fair share, or any share, from the inheritance.

Jesus is offering the man a healthier orientation and perspective, which is to help him to see what is most important in life. Jesus knows the scriptural stories of conflicts between brothers, such as Cain and Abel, Esau and Jacob, Joseph and his eleven brothers. Jesus knew his own culture and interactions of the people of his time. He knew that conflicts over inheritance could quickly escalate into blood feuds and even death.

Jesus is helping the man in today’s Gospel, his disciples, as well as those listening to him then and us today to see that what is primary and important is relationships, not wealth. First and foremost, our relationship with God is the most important. One’s life does not consist in possessions, and this ought not to be our pursuit and primary focus in life. Wealth and material goods are fleeting, they do not last. We will always seek the newest, updated model of this or that, we will become bored quickly and want more and more. Ultimately, we will not be fulfilled, because we have been created for so much more.

We have been created to be in relationship with God and each other. We have been made to worship, and if we do not worship God, we will worship something or someone else. If it has been awhile, return to reading the Book of Exodus and see what happened when Moses was away from the Israelites for only forty days (see Exodus 32). Too many of us idolize wealth or seek it as security. Dr. Matt Nelson, author, apologist, and assistant director of the Word on Fire Institute has written that: “Sanity begins with the realization that God does not need us to worship him, we need to worship God. Worship cultivates peace in the soul of the deepest and most lasting kind. When we worship we rest. It is thus the essential human activity, the first of all first things and the secret to real and lasting happiness.”

The parable that Jesus shared about the rich man with his bountiful harvest brings the point home that God and the things of heaven are more important than the things of this world which will not last. The man in the parable constantly thinks of only himself, not what does God want me to do with this bountiful harvest. He is wrapped up in – I, me, and mine. Jesus’ listeners would have recognized in Jesus’ telling another person who stored up vast amounts of grain, Joseph who “collected grain like the sands of the sea, so much at last he stopped measuring it, for it was beyond measure” (Genesis 41:49).

The difference between the man in the parable and Joseph was that the man was storing up grain for himself alone, and not thinking of anyone else in need. Joseph stored up grain beyond this man’s wildest dreams and was doing so because God let him know that the seven years of prosperity would end and would be followed seven years of dire poverty. Joseph was saving the grain to save the nation and those in need. The man was following his own self interest, Joseph was following the will of God.

Let us meditate on the words that Jesus offers us today, “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.” What is more important to us, our things or God and the people in our lives? Do we place our security in wealth or God? Do we want apparent, temporary happiness or real, lasting meaning and fulfillment? All that we have is a gift from God. What prevents us from sharing with others in need from that which we have received? How we ponder and answer these questions will have an impact on the peace and happiness in our lives now and in the life to come.

Painting: I have found more peace and rest in following the guidance of Jesus. Photo of the painting of Jesus I took in the chapel at The University of St. Mary of the Lake.

Nelson, Matt. Just Whatever: How To Help the Spiritually Indifferent Find Beliefs That Really Matter. El Cajon, CA: Catholic Answers, 2018.

Link for the Mass readings for Sunday, August 3, 2025

Do we know who we serve?

Herod the tetrarch heard of the reputation of Jesus and said to his servants, “This man is John the Baptist. He has been raised from the dead; that is why mighty powers are at work in him.” (Mt 14:1-2).

After the death of Herod the Great (4 BC), one of his sons, Herod Antipas, was given a portion, a fourth, of his father’s kingdom by the Roman Emperor Augustus. Thus, Herod Antipas was the tetrarch of Galilee and Perea from 4 BC to 39 AD. Herod, like, Pontius Pilate, held power as long as he was a faithful servant to Rome.

News of the ministry of Jesus got back to Herod and he believed Jesus to be John the Baptist raised from the dead. What followed in today’s Gospel were some reasons why Herod arrested and unjustly beheaded John the Baptist. John was killed for speaking truth to power, as happened often in the long line of prophets before him. Jesus continued John’s ministry of calling for repentance, to turn away from sin and turn back to the will of God. John suffered capital punishment at the hands of Herod Antipas and Jesus at the hands of Pontius Pilate. The Apostles and martyrs of the early Church followed John and Jesus, lived and proclaimed the truth publicly and courageously.

How are we living today? Are we faithful to the Gospel values that Jesus and the Apostles taught and were willing to die for? Do we serve Herod Antipas and Pontius Pilate or Jesus the Christ? Do we assume a defensive posture or open ourselves to love? Most of us are somewhere in between. The hope is that we are moving closer to serving God, being people of prayer and practice, getting in touch with the particular charism and gift that God has given us, and loving one another as he has loved us.

It is important to stop and reflect on questions such as these, to examine our thoughts, words, and actions and determine who it is that we are truly serving. It is not easy living the teachings of Jesus. We will fall short but we must remember that God loves us more than we can ever mess up and it is through his power that we will fulfill his will. We just need to remember that we are his children and as his children we need to ask for his help. When we let go of holding onto our self reliance, surrender to God our Father, we strengthen the relationship we have been created for.

When we are also humble enough to allow the Holy Spirit to reveal to us our mistakes, failures, and sins, we will experience his forgiveness and mercy, we will become more open to truly knowing his will and how best to serve him and each other. Embraced by and participating in the Trinitarian Communion of love, let us recommit ourselves today to living as Jesus’ disciples, to growing in courage, to follow his path, so to better live and speak his truth by promoting forgiveness, justice, love, mercy, and reconciliation in and out of season.
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St. Mother Teresa knew who she served – “I belong entirely to the heart of Jesus.” Photo credit: 1979 CNS/KNA and accessed from NCRonline.

Link for the Mass readings for Saturday, August 2, 2025

No or little faith?

“Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds? Is he not the carpenter’s son?” (Mt 13:54-55).

Many people wonder what Jesus did from the age of twelve until he began his ministry around the age of thirty. Today’s reading gives us some insight into that question. Most likely, Jesus did nothing extraordinary, he was just as ordinary, if that, as any other first-century Palestinian Jew living in the small town of Nazareth, with a population of about 250 to 500 people.

Jesus most likely worked as a carpenter. This was rough, menial work, and as a day laborer, a position that was looked down upon. We can even see evidence of this in the Gospel accounts. Mark describes Jesus as the carpenter, the son of Mary, Matthew in today’s account portrays Jesus as the carpenter’s son, and Luke and John just refer to Jesus as Joseph’s son, leaving out any reference to carpenter altogether. Most scripture scholars believe Mark was written first, so we can see a progression in the biblical tradition moving away from identifying Jesus as a carpenter.

Jesus’ return to his hometown and his teaching was first met with wonder. The question arose, “Where did he get such wisdom and how did he work such mighty deeds?” But wonder soon turned to judgment. Who is he? Isn’t he just the carpenter of Nazareth, no better than any of us. In effect, “Who does he think he is?” Not only does this show that Jesus probably lived a very simple peasant life, but that Jesus’ social status was set in stone.

The people’s hearts and minds were closed to Jesus. THEY KNEW who he was and there was no way someone like him could do what they had heard, so they “took offense at him… And he did not work many mighty deeds there because of their lack of faith” (Mt 13:57-58).

How many times have we judged someone? Have we said to ourselves, “I know who he or she is.” We box them in, not as they are, but as WE see them, as we define or label them. We look at another individual not as a person with dignity, but as a two-dimensional caricature to satisfy our own prejudgments and lack of vision. We also do this to ourselves by limiting our potential when we say we can’t do this or that. Husbands and wives, having been married for years, can fall into the routine of everyday and not allow themselves to be surprised by one another, to wonder at what about each other they still don’t know!

Maybe we have had a similar experience as Jesus did in returning to his hometown, in that we have sought or are seeking to move beyond our particular social status, or follow a dream or career out of the norm of familial or community expectations. No matter our age, through no fault of our own, by pursuing this path some or many may feel threatened. Thus, not willing to accept our vision, those who are not willing to grow beyond what they have always known.

I read an account from the writer/producer Stirling Silliphant and how one day Bruce Lee challenged him to run five instead of his usual three miles. Into their fourth mile, Stirling said, “if I run any more I’m liable to have a heart attack and die.” [Bruce] said, “Then die.” He was so mad he finished the five miles. Afterward, Stirling approached Bruce and asked him why he said that.

Bruce replied, “Because you might as well be dead. Seriously, if you always put limits on what you can do, physical or anything else, it’ll spread over into the rest of your life. It’ll spread into your work, your morality, into your entire being. There are no limits. There are plateaus, but you must not stay there, you must go beyond them. If it kills you, it kills you. A man must constantly exceed his level” (p. 23).

Jesus rebukes limiting attitudes and perspectives. His Father has a plan for our lives and so he invites us to open our minds and hearts, to see the potential he sees in us. Jesus, the carpenter, invites us to embrace the infinite possibilities that will arise when we participate in his life and love. With God there are no limitations. The villagers of Jesus’ hometown are said to have had a lack of faith or unbelief, and because of that limitation, Jesus “did not work many mighty deeds there” (Mt. 13:58). When Jesus challenged his disciples, he said that they had “little faith” (Mt. 14:31). The disciples struggled to understand Jesus, but they were open.

We just need a little bit of faith to let Jesus in. If we are closed, if our hearts are hardened, Jesus will respect the boundary we place. He will not go against our free will. If we give him a little though, just as with the feeding of the five and four thousand, Jesus can do wonders in our lives.

The Holy Spirit seeks to free us from the shackles that bind us, the limitations imposed upon us from without, as well as those we impose upon ourselves from within. Let us cooperate with the urgings of the Holy Spirit, to be free with each breath and step we take into embracing the freedom of the love of God. With the leading of the Holy Spirit and experiencing the love of God, the limiting attitudes can begin give way to accept what God already sees, that we are his beloved daughters and sons with whom he is well pleased.
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Photo: Picture does not do the view justice, but a moment of wonder as I was getting ready to drive home and chose to stop for a quick pic.

Stirling Silliphant story accessed from Bruce Lee: The Art of Expressing the Human Body, compiled and edited by John Little. North Clarendon, VT: Charles E. Tuttle, Co., 1998.

Parallel Gospel accounts: Mark 6:3, Matthew 13:55, Luke 4:22, and John 6:42

Link for the Mass readings for Friday, August 1, 2025

Not to wriggle free from but to surrender all to God.

Jesus said to the disciples: “The Kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind.” (Mt 13:47).

The invitation of God is universal and we are all lured by his invitation of love and intimacy. We long to belong, our very substance and essence as human beings is the reality that our ultimate fulfillment can only be reached in communion with the God who has created us. Yet, though drawn, we can resist being caught.

St Augustine (354-430), bishop of Hippo, came to a point in his life where he realized that the flame of his desire for wealth, fame, and pleasure was dimming. He clearly felt moved toward “one reality that cannot decay, from which all other realities are derived.” Though he was caught in God’s net and being pulled in, Augustine still sought to wriggle free, for: “Though drawn to the Path, who is my savior, I shied from its hard traveling” (Augustine 2008, 161).

How many of us echo Augustine’s dilemma? We have experienced God in our lives and feel the invitation to be drawn in, yet, we still seek to wriggle free. We are attracted to God but our attraction to other apparent goods still hold priority of place. At a baser level, we may believe that the minimalist approach is easier. God’s path is too hard.

Harder? Yes, but if we follow the will of God he will give us the strength to endure and persevere.

In reality it is more of an effort to work against God’s will, just read the Book of Jonah! May we instead surrender to the current of the Father’s Love and allow ourselves to be caught in the net of his Grace. At first, anxiety and fear will arise, just like being caught in a rip tide, because the pull may appear too strong, his love too pure. When we surrender to the will of God though, the anxiety will subside, the joy and consolation will arise, as we flow with ease and are empowered by the love of the Holy Spirit.

St. Ignatius of Loyola, whose feast day we celebrate today, resisted God for a time as well but then realized, during his long period of recuperation from a canon ball strike, a distinction between the invitations of the world and God’s. The intoxications of the world brought a momentary high which would then leave Ignatius wanting. “While reading the life of Christ our Lord or the lives of the saints, he would reflect and reason with himself: ‘What if I should do what St. Francis or St. Dominic did?'” (Gonzalez).

The thoughts of Jesus and the saints did not wane and after reading about them, left him with periods of ongoing consolation. The path that Ignatius then walked led him to sainthood and the Exercises he developed have helped countless, including myself, to experience healing and a deeper and more intimate relationship with Jesus. If you have read my encouragements to imagine yourself in the daily gospels before, you now know that I learned that practice from St. Ignatius. Give yourself some time getting caught in the net of God’s love today, resist the temptation to wriggle free, and offer the Lord all your liberty!

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Photo: Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam – In the Ignatian tradition may we do all things for the greater glory of God! St. Ignatius, pray for us!!!

St Augustine. Confessions. Translated by Gary Wills. NY: Penguin Books, 2008.

Luis Gonzalez in The Liturgy of the Hours, vol III, 1975, 1566.

Link for the Mass readings for Thursday, July 31, 2025

Jesus the Christ, the Son of God, will make all things new.

Hospitality was a key virtue for people of the ancient Near East. Martha approached Jesus as he was teaching looking for support from her sister Mary in preparing the meal. Mary was sitting at Jesus’ feet with the male disciples gathered around him while Martha appeared do be doing all the work. Martha was hoping that Jesus would support her in her request. Jesus not only did not, but said that Mary had chosen the better part and that Martha was “anxious and worried about many things” (cf. Luke 10:38-42).

We don’t know how Martha reacted to Jesus. A subtle key in today’s Gospel account from John may shed light on their last encounter and Martha’s reaction. Martha’s boldness was on display again. As soon as she was aware that Jesus was coming near, she did not wait for him to arrive but “went to meet him” (Jn 11:20). Martha’s brother, Lazarus, had now been dead for four days and Jesus, who had the time to arrive before his death, was not present to help his friend, her brother, Lazarus in his time of need.

How many times have we been in Martha’s position? Feel that Jesus was not there when we needed him most? Why do bad things happen to good people? Part of the answer is that we live in a fallen world of sin and self-centeredness. God does not bring about suffering but he does allow it. God loves us so much that he is willing to give us the free will to reject him. The cost of our freedom to choose means that there are consequences to our choices which can be detrimental or beneficial. We are all interconnected so when we choose to act on our own apart from God’s guidance and the welfare of others, the damage that ensues affects not only those around us but everyone. On the other side of the coin, there is the presence of grace, forgiveness, and love when we choose to draw close to God, especially in challenging times.

When we choose God, we will find out that we are not alone in our suffering, especially, when we do as Martha did and go out to meet Jesus. She most likely did not holding back any of the full range of her hurt and pain. Martha’s words expressed her anguish, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (Jn 11:21). We can only see from our limited point of view, especially with our own experiences of grief. Yet God sees far beyond our finite perspectives and Jesus helps to not only bring about a greater good, though it may take time to come to understand and experience, he accompanies us in each agonizing breath of our suffering.

Jesus came too late to heal his friend, which Martha and Mary could not understand. What he came to do, was beyond their wildest imaginings. Jesus came to restore Lazarus to life, which would also be a foreshadowing of his own Resurrection. The difference being that Jesus would not merely be resuscitated as Lazarus was and die again.

Martha was not holding a grudge from their last exchange. She came directly to him. She knew he could have healed her brother if he had been there, but did not say so accusingly. Martha immediately followed instead with: “But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you” (John 11:22). Then even before Jesus called Lazarus back to life, Martha showed her faith. Jesus asked if Martha believed. Martha, as did Peter, made the affirmation of our faith: “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God” (John 11:27).

We have been blessed by the witnesses of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. Each show their trust in Jesus in their own unique way and follow his guidance. Those of us who have suffered the loss of a loved one, or more, know something of the pain that Martha and Mary experienced. May we also all trust in Jesus, the Son of God, the “resurrection and the life” who conquered death and became the firstborn of the new creation. We need not fear our time of suffering or death, our own, or for our loved ones as long as we give our lives to him. When we call on Jesus he will give us the strength to endure and overcome, in this life and into the next.

Painting: The Raising of Lazarus – Caravaggio, Martha, Mary, and Lazarus help us to trust and have faith in Jesus as you did. Pray for us!

Link to the Mass readings for Tuesday, July 29, 2025

With each small act of love, we help God to embrace one more person in need.

“The Kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a person took and sowed in a field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants.” (Mt 13:31-32).

God can do so much with so little. This is so because even the smallest detail is important to God. Just think of the immensity, not only of our solar system and galaxy but the whole cosmos. Despite the grandiosity and massive expanse of all creation, not even a sparrow can fall to the ground without the notice of God. Even all the hairs of our head he has counted (cf Mt 10:29-30). Our life, who we are, and who we are becoming matters to God.

Jesus is revealing through these parables of small beginnings, seed sown in a field, a mustard seed, and yeast allude to how God begins small and often hidden to fulfill his plan of salvation. What God has begun, he will bring to fruition. The gathering in of the nations is an Old Testament theme that Ezekiel especially highlights when he shares that God will break off and plant a tender cedar shoot and from this small shoot it will become a, “majestic cedar. Every small bird will nest under it, all kinds of winged birds will dwell in the shade of its branches” (Ezekiel 17:22-23). God has a plan for the unity of all of humanity and creation and Jesus is inviting us to be a part of the collaborative effort.

God builds up his kingdom one person at a time and sows his seeds of divine grace which is a movement of the outpouring of his divine love. He watches over us, his children, and shares his life with us. We can accept or reject this love which falls afresh upon us like the morning dew upon the grass. To accept and abide in the reality that God loves us is a gift. When we say yes to the outpouring of God’s love, we become more aware of the gift already bestowed. As we experience and savor this nourishing gift of God’s love we then have something to share with others.

What we will come to realize is that as we give more of God’s love away, we receive more in return. Our smallest thoughts, words, or deeds make a significant difference to those on the receiving end of God’s love flowing through us. We have an opportunity today to think, speak, and act as bearers of our loving God and Father. We can share a smile, a word of encouragement, a wave, and/or a hug, send a text, and/or just follow through on the the myriad stirrings of the Holy Spirit and offer a simple act of the will to love and truly be present with someone. No matter how small a sharing, it will mean more than we will ever know or can even imagine to the one who receives.

Photo: This colonnade at St. Mary of the Lake is fashioned after the colonnade in St. Peter Square. Both represent the welcoming arms of the Church seeking to embrace the people of the world.

Link for the Mass readings for Monday, July 28, 2025

“Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?” Matthew 20:22

“The mother of the sons of Zebedee approached Jesus with her sons and did him homage, wishing to ask him for something. He said to her, ‘What do you wish?’ She answered him, ‘Command that these two sons of mine sit, one at your right and the other at your left, in your Kingdom’” (Mt 20:21-22).

The context of this request from the mother of the sons of Zebedee, James and John, comes from reading a few verses before the quote above. Start reading at Matthew 20:17 and you will see that Jesus and his twelve apostles are heading toward Jerusalem. Jesus stops to share with them, for the third time, that he will be condemned and crucified.

The request of James and John, through his mother, in the eyes of the world would seem a reasonable request. To them, Jesus was marching toward Jerusalem to claim his throne as king. To sit on his right and left, was an acknowledgment of their willingness to follow him, and serve as support for and witnesses of his kingship. It was also a preemptive strike before any of the other apostles could make that claim. There is a problem with their understanding though.

Jesus’ third statement of his imminent suffering and death appears to be ignored by or it goes over the heads of James and John, again, as well as their mother. The other ten are indignant, not because of the apparent lack of acknowledging Jesus’ upcoming passion, but because they entered into a free for all for position of which of them would be the greatest! It is easy to imagine how chaotic this scene quickly escalated! Saint John Chrysostom offered this insight: “See how imperfect they all are: the two who tried to get ahead of the other ten, and the ten who were jealous of the two” (Chrysostom 1975, 1552)!

This event made an impact for it was recorded in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Mark has James and John speaking for themselves, not their mother, as in Matthew. Luke does not even record the initial request of James and John and instead comes in at the point of the apostle’s dispute. What all record, including the Gospel of John, is how Jesus made it clear that he came to serve, not to be served. To follow Jesus meant, not that James and John would be given positions of honor and power, the sitting at his right or his left, but that they were to serve as he served, to love as he loved.

The right and left that James and John asked for, Jesus shared was not his to give. That assignment would come directly from the Father. He also said, “You do not know what you are asking” (Matthew 20:22). For if James and John did, they would have thought twice about asking him. The ones who would assume the right and left were the two thieves on either side of him as Jesus was lifted up on the cross.

As disciples of Jesus, we too are called to show our love, not a sentimental love, but a love willing to serve and sacrifice for one another. Most of us are not accustomed or naturally disposed to either. A good way to begin is to be truly present to another, done most effectively when we actively listen. We learn this best in times set aside to meditate and pray with God. As we are able to quiet our minds, slow our heartbeats, and listen to God, we can begin to do so with one another.

Listening happens when we look up, put the phone, paper, or magazine down, turn away from the computer and/or turn off the tv. Then as we take a few breaths, we can open our hearts and minds to listen, and hear. When we learn to listen to God and one another, we will hear where the needs are. When we allow our hearts to be moved with compassion, we will be more willing to truly love by sacrificing and serving one another.

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Painting: “St. James the Greater” by Guido Reni. James learned the art of service and became the first to drink Jesus’ cup. St. James, pray for us!

Chrysostom, St John. Homily. The Liturgy of the Hours: According to the Roman Rite. Vol. 3. NY: Catholic Book Publishing, 1975.

Parallel Gospel passages to review:
Mark 10:35-45; Matthew 20:20-28; Luke 22:24-27 and John 13:12-17

Link for the Mass readings for Friday, July 25, 2025

Trusting in Jesus will help us to heal and prepare fertile soil to receive God’s Word.

The root of the message offered in today’s Gospel is what is foundational to the beginning and continuing as a disciple of Jesus. This being the disposition of our hearts. Are we closed to receiving the message of the Gospel, or are we open to embrace the invitation Jesus shares with us to become more active in living out our faith in our everyday lives?

The exchange of Jesus with his disciples in today’s reading from Matthew comes after his sharing of the Parable of the Sower (Mt 13:1-9). In this parable, Jesus offers scenarios regarding the conditions of seeds sown. Some fell on a hardened path, some on rocky ground, some fell among thorns, and some fell on the rich soil. The seeds on the hardened path could not even germinate. Those in rocky ground and among thorns germinated and began to even sprout but would not come to full maturity. The seed that was sown in rich soil germinated, sprouted, matured, and bore fruit.

As disciples, we are meant to bear fruit and that means we need to prepare ourselves so that we will have rich soil. The beginning step is to have open hearts and minds. If we have a desire to pray, the hardened soil has given way somewhat. The seed has penetrated, died and has begun to grow. God is the originator of our prayer. The desire to spend time in prayer is good news. The devil has not stolen that from us. Now if we do not follow through on the inspiration of nor follow the nudging of the Holy Spirit, means we have some tilling to do. We need to remove the rocks of resistance, distraction, and diversion so that we can get deeper.

Daily coming to a place that we have created and set aside for ourselves to breathe and be still will help us to begin the work of facing those internal resistances and diversions. We can begin to see where are hearts and minds may have been hardened. By breathing and slowing down, we get in touch with our body and may be surprised by how tense we are. With just a few breathes we may notice that our shoulders come to a more peaceful place of rest. Our neck and our hips can begin to let go. Once we have prepared the soil, the next preparation is the weeding. Among good soil grows what has been planted, the seeds of the enemy as well as the seeds of God.

As we continue to return each day and allow God to happen, to acknowledge his presence and closeness, we can begin to then allow his light to reveal to us those thorns and other weeds that seek to choke the growth that has begun. Anxieties, worries, frustration, and reactions all choke out the peace, faith, confidence, and love that God seeks to sow and grow within us. Being diligent and disciplined in showing up, allows us to begin to feel safe in the place we have set aside. In encountering God each day, we begin to know him. In this place of stability, we come to know that God is our refuge and strength, and we begin to feel safe. From this place of safety, we can begin to face and breathe into where we notice our bodies hold anxiety, fear, and stress.

God helps us to tend the gardens of our souls patiently and gently. Thoughts of condemnation and shame are the weeds of the enemy that seek to choke out our healing, growth, and spiritual maturity. The gentle light of Jesus is that light that brings warmth and safety. The conviction he brings is the light that helps us to identify that which needs to be weeded and pruned so that our soil becomes richer and our growth can continue unimpeded. In time and with disciplined attention, daily coming to our places of quiet with the Lord, spending time in his word, we will be forgiven, healed, and freed from that which seeks to stunt our growth and we will continue to mature and begin to bear good fruit, the gifts and charisms that the Holy Spirit has sown within our good soil.

Whatever the state of the soil of our soul that we bring to this reading whether it be a hardened and worn path, rocky ground, weeds and thorns, know that there is some soil to work with. Like any garden that is to grow, mature plants that bear good fruit will take time, energy, and work. The most difficult state and the one Jesus addressed in today’s Gospel is the heart of indifference that is closed, the seed falling on the well-trod path, that is hard and packed so nothing gets through. For these people, “they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand” (Mt 13:13). Yet, even this soil can be turned and tilled. Even the hardest heart can be softened if one is willing to turn to Jesus.

Jesus, in his explanation of why he spoke in parables, returned to the inaugural message of his ministry: “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Repent and believe in the Gospel” (Mk 1:15). Before we may be willing to repent, we may need to first acknowledge the places in our hearts and minds that are closed, those areas that are hardened from real or perceived past pain or trauma, those situations in which we chose to shut down and separate ourselves from God and others.

When we allow Jesus in, we can experience his healing touch. When we take the risk to accept his help, we will receive his forgiveness and healing. When we trust in Jesus, are willing to take his hand, follow his lead, and learn from our mistakes, turn away from our sins, and return to him for healing and confession, our hearts will soften and our minds will open.

Jesus wants to help us to turn over the rocks we have been hiding our pain under so that we can experience those deeper wounds that we have kept buried. This will only happen when we trust Jesus and feel safe. Spending quiet time each day, surrendering and being docile to the Holy Spirit, helps us to do just that. In time, we will feel safer and more confident to turn over those stones, pull up the weeds, and begin to till the fertile soil underneath. Through experiencing our pain, our emotions, and facing our fears, we help to prepare the fertile soil, in which the seed of God can thrive and in which we will mature to bear good fruit the will last.

Photo: Enjoying the fruit of this tree in bloom on my walk after morning prayer at University of St. Mary of the Lake.

Link for the Mass readings for Thursday, July 23, 2025

As we allow ourselves to be loved by God, we are transformed and become new wine skins.

“Rather, they pour new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved” (Mt 9:17).

Mark, Matthew, and Luke all record the reference of pouring new wine into fresh wineskins. What Matthew adds is, “and both are preserved.” Luke adds: “[And] no one who has been drinking old wine desires new, for he says, ‘The old is good.’”

The Gospel authors offer this teaching of Jesus in the context of the tensions between those who would reject Jesus and those who would follow him and his new way. The new wine represents the acceptance of the Gospel, the Good News of the kingdom of God in their midst. To receive this new wine though means to change one’s mind and heart. “The tension, and often incompatibility, between the old and the new is part of every religious tradition and attends every change within that tradition. Matthew and Luke wrestled with it and adapted it to their community situation. Contemporary Christians have no less a challenge” (The Gospel of Mark, Donahue, SJ, p. 109). Matthew shared with his community that Jesus is the new Temple, the old had been destroyed in 70 AD.

Following Jesus meant that both the old and new covenants would be preserved. Jesus did not come to abolish the law and prophets, but fulfilled and raised what went before him to a higher level.

We are invited to wrestle as well. The Church is called to change, to be transformed by the Living God. Many say the Church needs to change this and that, not realizing that we are the Church, the People of God, the Body of Christ. If the Church is to mature and grow each of us is to embrace transformation, being made anew through the guiding presence of the Holy Spirit. This invitation is a call to let go of those habits, lifestyles, behaviors, mindsets, attachments, and addictions that are weighing us down or worse holding us in bondage and slavery to our sin, and ultimately keeping us separated from God. Much of the material and finite things we hold onto prevents us from receiving the new life God wants to pour into us.

Jesus has come to set us free from our enslavement to sin by inviting us to try some new wine which consists of contemplating upon and living the message of his teachings and actions as recorded in the Gospels. We do not have to be afraid of the change and transformation Jesus is calling us to experience. As St Irenaeus, the second-century bishop of Lyons is attributed to have written: “The Glory of God is man fully alive!” Jesus is inviting us to live our lives and live them to the full!

To become new wineskins then, we are called to identify and let go of those selfish and sinful inclinations that keep us constricted, rigid, and curved in upon ourselves. We are to let go of our fears so that we can be healed from them. We also must let go of what appears to be good, but in truth is not the good that God offers. We let go when we give our lives to God and follow his will.

When we do so, we will experience the Father’s love and can then love as Jesus loves. Through this transformation, we are expanded and open to receive the new wine the Holy Spirit wants to pour into us. We are called to go beyond the foundation of our identities that we have found safety and comfort in. We are transformed to be people of integrity, free to follow God’s will in and out of season. Our identity gives us roots and our integrity received through trusting and following the guidance from the Holy Spirit gives us wings to fly.

Each time we come to God in stillness, we will experience opportunities to experience distractions. These distractions become invitations to purify that which we need to let go of, so that we may grow deeper in our relationship with God and one another. With each identification and willingness to let go, our false self begins to be burned away. We become new wineskins, capable of receiving God’s love, and expanding as we follow God’s will and receive the freedom to be who he calls us to be.

Photo: May each of us be full wineskins, filled with he love of the Holy Spirit to overflowing!

Donahue, John R. S.J., and Daniel J. Harrington, S.J. The Gospel of Mark. Vol. 2 of Sacra Pagina, edited by Daniel J. Harrington, S.J. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2002.

Parallel Scriptural accounts: See Mark 2:22, Matthew 9:16-17 and Luke 5:37-39

Link for the Mass readings for Saturday, July 5, 2025

We don’t have to be perfect to be called by Jesus.

“Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. Go and learn the meaning of the words, I desire mercy, not sacrifice. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners” (Mt 9:12-13).

How could Jesus have called Matthew, named Levi in Mark and Luke, to be part of his inner circle and then how could he eat with sinners? Matthew is a tax collector. Tax collectors were, at the least, believed to be collecting money over and above, skimming off the top, the allotted prescribed taxes and at worst, they were considered to be in collusion with the occupying power of Rome. Not only were they considered unethical and unclean, tax collectors were in league with the enemy! And Jesus is sitting down and eating with THEM!!!

In quoting Hosea 6:6, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice,” Jesus was drawing reference to the growing Pharisaic influence to aspire to and take on the ritual purity status of the priests sacrificing at the Temple. To be in favor with the religious leadership, to be accepted as part of the religious community, one had to follow certain prescriptions and practices, otherwise be recognized as unclean and while in that state, one did not belong to the community. Sharing table fellowship was a measure of that social construct, so if one was unclean, they were to eat alone.

Jesus would have none of that. Jesus sought to enter into relationship with anyone who was willing, even those who were considered unclean, on the outside, and/or the peripheries. He loved people then and loves us today for who we are and as we are, a beloved child of God. There is no THEM or OTHER for Jesus! He bestowed and bestows his mercy, love, and healing first, as the starting point of any relationship. Jesus calls us to a better and more fulfilling life now, so that it may carry over into eternity. He accepted and accepts people first, builds relationships first, and continues to walk with us to lead us to be better than we are when he meets us.

Jesus reveals to us our sins not with the intention to condemn or shame us, but so that we can see how our sins separate us from the love of God and each other. In revealing our sins, Jesus helps us to see better to make a clearer choice. We can choose God or our sins. We can’t have it both ways, we cannot serve two masters. Jesus also calls us to be perfect as his heavenly Father is perfect (cf. Mt 5:48). Apart from him that is not possible, but with him growing in the love and perfection of God is possible.

The bar of perfection is indeed high, higher than that of the Pharisees; the difference is that Jesus’ mercy, his willingness to enter into the chaos of another, is higher. Jesus meets us in our imperfections, sin, and weaknesses. He enters through our door of our fallen humanity, but, he wants us to exit out of his door so that we can participate in his divinity and be transformed by his love.

Jesus’ teachings are hard, and when we fall he does not kick us in the teeth and cast us aside. He lays down, right in the muck and mire with us. Face to face, he wipes the dirt and tears from our eyes, offers his hand, and helps us to continue on our journey to see and experience that which is good, true, and beautiful.

No matter what we are dealing or struggling with, know that Jesus loves each and every one of us more than we can ever mess up and he does not define us by our worst choices and acts. God forgives and heals as many times as we are willing to go to him, to repent, to turn away from our sins and turn to the love of God. Sometimes when we feel stuck, indecisive, and immobile, we just need to remember to accept Jesus’ invitation, arise as did Matthew in today’s Gospel, and walk with him. Step by step, empowered by the Holy Spirit, we will be transformed as we grow and mature, which is messy because life is messy.

We just need to be patient with Jesus, ourselves and each other. As we experience our healing moments in the midst of our chaos, may we also be understanding of and willing to enter into the chaos of others and allow God to forgive, heal, and love us and through us.

Painting: The Calling of St Matthew – Caravaggio, 1600

Parallel readings: Mt 9:9-13, Mk 2:13-17, Lk 5:27-32

Link for the Mass readings for Friday, July 4, 2025