trust

“Quiet! Be still.”

On display in Mark’s recounting of the calming of the storm at sea is the humanity of Jesus. He had 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, such that he not only fell asleep on the boat but was in such a deep state that he was as if dead, even during the height of the storm.

What is also on display is his deep and abiding faith in his Father. For those aboard with Jesus were seasoned fishermen and had experienced sudden storms arise before. This must have been some storm to raise such panic. And yet, Jesus is sound asleep. He only arises because of his disciples insistence: “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing” (Mark 4:38)? They unconsciously echo their ancestors in the desert with Moses when they moaned that it would have been better if the Lord had killed them in Egypt instead of their perceived starvation in the wilderness (see Exodus 16:1-3). Even though God had freed them from their slavery, they did not trust he would provide for them in the desert.

Despite the grumbling of the disciples and the fatigue of Jesus, he also reveals a glimpse of his divinity. Jesus arises. He does not invoke God’s aid but commands: “Quiet! Be Still” (Mk 4:39)! Just as Mark recorded that Jesus exorcised demons earlier in his Gospel, Jesus hear rebukes the wind and the waves and all is calm and peaceful. This does not escape the disciples who are filled with awe.

The disciples have grasped his uniqueness, 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. They will continue to experience his miracles, exorcisms, and teachings, but their faith is still small like a mustard seed. Though germinating, the stalks will not break through to maturity until after his resurrection and ascension. It is then that their faith will begin to bear fruit as they participate in the fullness of the ministry that Jesus is about to begin to train them for.

Similar to the disciples, 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. The most recent and devastating plane crash in DC shows how fragile our lives are and how quick life can change.

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. 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, was: “Sometimes the Lord calms the storm, and sometimes the Lord lets the storm rage on and calms his child.”

No matter the severity of the storm, let us place our trust in Jesus. Let us hold firm to the truth that Jesus remains present, accompanies, and cares for us and what we are going through. In every challenge he remains our anchor. We are never 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 his name, he will either calm the storm or bring us a sense of peace as he guides us through, and empowers us to ride it out to the other side. With each storm that has arisen over the years, I have felt less fear and insecurity and more peace as I trust in Jesus. My faith has grown because time and again when I have turned to Jesus he has been there. The outcome has not always been the one I sought, but that he has been with me through each storm, I have no doubt.

As we experience Jesus and his love, we come to understand Jesus’ teachings as well as our lives better. The maturity of our faith begins to bear fruit when we are willing to allow Jesus to work through us so to be there for others in their storms. We can be a conduit of calm assurance for those who need Jesus even and especially when they do not know him or are focusing on the anxiety and fear of the storm instead of him. May God grant us the presence of heart and mind to be his peace and stillness for those who invite us into their boats as we ride out their storms with them.

Photo: Thankful all is calm and peaceful this night.

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, 2025

Let us repent and believe.

“This is the time of fulfillment. The Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the Gospel” (Mk 1:15).

With these words as recorded by Mark, Jesus begins his public ministry in time and space and we in 2025 begin the first week of Ordinary Time together. Whether we are in the season of Christmas, Easter, or Ordinary Time, each day is an opportunity to be thankful and celebrate our life for this continues to be “the time of fulfillment”. The Kingdom of God is still at hand because Jesus is still present with us.

We are not alone on our journey. The Son of God became human, as we just celebrated this Christmas season, and as we will celebrate in Easter, he died and rose again. This was no mere resuscitation like with Lazarus who rose and died again. Jesus conquered death and became the firstborn of the new creation. Ordinary Time is the season in which we not only study the life and teachings of Jesus but hopefully continue to be willing to be more conformed to his Body and the will of his Father through the love of the Holy Spirit.

One of the things that may hold us back from embracing the gift of the Kingdom of God in our midst is that we have often chosen to place our focus on other distractions or diversions or placed ourselves first before God and others. Jesus calls us to reorient our lives in urging us to repent, to turn away from the false reality that we are the center and author of our own lives, such that we come to realize the truth that God is our true author and director. To repent also means to open ourselves to his love, to place our trust in him, and to be assured that God accepts us as we are, right now at this very moment.

We do not repent so that God will love us. We do not have to do anything or act perfectly or say the right prayer for God to love us. We just need to “move the Lord out of the category of ‘polite company’ and into that of intimate friend to whom one can tell everything” (Barry 1987, 55). To repent means to turn back to the God whose arms are wide open ready to embrace us. We are given the opportunity to see where we have turned away from God. Let us run into his waiting embrace and receive the forgiveness, mercy, and love that he offers us.

The call to repent that Jesus accentuates is a continuation of the preaching of the prophets and John. What he adds to repentance is to believe. To believe is to “trustingly accept and yield to what God is doing in him. The kingdom is near enough that anyone who so chooses can reach out and lay hold of it through faith (Healy 2008, 42). As we turn back to God, reorient our minds to his guidance and direction, reflect on how much he has blessed us, we will better make an ascent to believe.

To “repent and believe” is a good way to begin our journey into Ordinary Time together. May we resist the temptation to hold anything back and share more with our Father and grow closer to God each day. Let us trust in Jesus who encourages us to resist limiting God and the possibilities he places before us. Instead of attempting to bend his will toward ours, may we allow the love of the Holy Spirit to expand our hearts and minds such that we will believe in and trust God more so to be like a pencil in his hand.

Photo: A good way to reorient our minds and hearts to the will of God and to believe is to slow down and make time to pray. Doing so at the side chapel in the Cathedral of Charleston this past June.

Barry, S.J, William A. God and You: Prayer as a Personal Relationship. NY: Paulist Press, 1987.

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

Link for the Mass readings for Monday, January 13, 2025

Some guidance from Jesus, St. John, and St. André Bessette, for the new year.

The beloved disciple John shares with us today a wonderful compass to guide us into the new year. From his first letter he writes that God’s “commandment is this: we should believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another just as he commanded us” (I John 3:23).

Before we can believe in God’s Son, we need to trust him. For many if not all of us at some point in our lives who have experienced being hurt, betrayed, or wounded in any way, trust can be hard.

That is why the Son of God was willing to be sent by his Father. He wanted to become one with us so that he could not only experience all the pain and suffering of our humanity but that he could take that upon himself, even death, so he could conquer them and heal, restore, and show us the way back to the Father, through our suffering and pain and into healing.

We can trust Jesus. Jesus not only has our best interest in mind, but he knows the plan of his Father for our lives and he can lead us to experience his love and our vocation as we trust him by taking one step at a time. He gives us enough light to see two steps ahead and when we take those steps, he will give us enough light to see the next two.

We can trust Jesus, but each thought or invitation we hear in our mind is not necessarily from Jesus. Some may appear good and true, but are only apparently so. For as John continues: “Beloved, do not trust every spirit but test the spirits to see whether they belong to God” (I John 4:1).

The devil and his demons tempt, entice, divert, and distract us, with the ultimate goal to lead us away from the love of God, the source of our true fulfillment. They seek to plant seeds of so doubt, so we believe that God does not have our best interest in mind. And once those seeds of doubt begin to sprout he seeks to isolate us from our Father by fertilizing those doubts with distrust in our minds and hearts. And when we sin, the devil condemns and shames us, and leads us to believe that we cannot be forgiven and that no one will accept us for what we have done or for who we are.

God never tempts us, he invites us and challenges us to move beyond our sins and our fears. He gently coaxes us to come out of the darkness of our self-centered, protective cocoon, and into the gentle light of his love. He does so patiently, sometimes with a firmness of a good parent, but gently. We hear his voice mostly in the quiet and stillness of our heart. When we do make a mistake, he does not condemn us, he convicts us to learn, to renounce our mistake. When we sin and turn back to him, he forgives and embraces us. We then begin again strengthened by his grace and greater clarity.

God loves us more than we can ever imagine no matter what we have or have not done, he loves us more than we can ever mess up, and he loves us even in the act of our sin. He has shown this love most profoundly in sending his Son so we can see his face and experience his love, forgiveness, and mercy. We can experience that he loves us as we are right now, right where we are in our weakness and imperfection.

The key to walk free from the “fowler’s snare” (see Psalm 91:3-4) is to heed the words that Jesus began his public ministry with: “Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). God does not seek to punish us. Neither does he want us to stay in our sin and separation from him. God’s love calls us to more. Feeling guilty and shame is a false humility that keeps us separated from God because our focus remains on ourselves.

God imparts within us a sense of guilt, so that we experience our separation from him. Being in touch with this experience, helps us to choose true humility which leads us to trust in the love of God and believe in his mercy. When we sincerely and contritely confess our sins, do penance, and with his help seek to sin no more, Jesus will forgive, free, save, and restore us to our right relationship with God.

When we are willing to allow the gentle light of Jesus to shine in our darkness, Jesus helps us to see what our life is like without God and with God. He helps us to be able to see the difference between the apparent goods and the true good so that we can make a clearer decision. Will we choose darkness, separation, and death or light, reconciliation, and life?

St. André Bessette, whose feast day it is today, could have fallen for the devil’s tactics. He who was sickly since he was an infant, lived in poverty as a child, and who then lost his parents when he was only twelve, and struggled with illness for all of his ninety-one years, could have been bitter towards God. André chose instead to trust in God and how he could make this statement: “Do not seek to have your trials removed. Ask rather for the grace to bear them well.”

Living a devout life of faith as a youth, his pastor encouraged him to apply to religious life and he sought at twenty-five to enter the Congregation of the Holy Cross. His poor health continued to plague him and at the end of his novitiate year, he was not asked to continue. André continued to trust in his Lord and his long standing ally St. Joseph. His novice master and bishop saw the light of Christ in this young man and petitioned that he be given an extension and he was eventually admitted into the order and served as a brother. His birth name was Alfred. Upon his profession he took the name of André who was the pastor who had mentored and recommended the pursuit of his vocation.

André was assigned the position of porter, the door keeper, because of his lack of education and frail health. A role that many would not look on with any esteem, André welcomed with open arms. Seeing in this position the opportunity to greet Jesus at the door with each knock and person he met. Looking back at his life he would say, “When I entered the Congregation, they showed me the door. And I stayed there for forty years.”

During his time of service, through the intercession of St. Joseph and his unwavering trust in Jesus despite much opposition and his continued frail health, thousands experienced being heard, loved, and healed. Through St. André, they experienced a foretaste of heaven.

St. André is a model for us on how we can in this new year “believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another just as he commanded us…”, trust only in the Spirit of God without hesitation, and when we do fall, “Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

God loves us so much and wants to share his life with us so that we can share in his relationship. Are we willing to resist the lies of the enemy, trust in the love of God, seek his guidance in all circumstances, discern and let go of anything that is not of God? When we do so, we will heal, be forgiven, and be set free to love and love in return. This journey begins and continues by trusting in God the Father’s Son whom he sent.

Photo: St. André Bessette, pray for us!

Link for the Mass readings for Monday, January 6, 2024

Spending time with Mary and sharing in her memory will help us in healing ourselves and our relationships.

Our gospel today is relatable to anyone hearing or reading it because each of us have experienced family life in all of the different ways family life can be expressed today. At one point or another we have experienced conflict, misunderstanding, and anxiety.

The Bible is good about not covering over the complexities and challenges of life. If the Holy Family can have difficulty, then that can give us comfort if we have gone, or are going through some challenges right now.

One point that jumps out from the start is that Joseph and Mary are not helicopter parents. After celebrating the Passover, they have left the temple and Jerusalem and are heading back home to Nazareth. Because such a journey was not a safe one, they were traveling in a caravan of extended family, friends, and neighbors. After a day into their trek, they realized that they had not seen Jesus and began a more intense search.

Jesus was nowhere to be found and so they returned to Jerusalem. With each step their concern rose. The ancient near East was not a safe place to travel in nor was it safe to dwell. Children were often kidnapped and sold into slavery. When we don’t understand or are faced with the unknown, we typically conjure up the worst case scenarios and Joseph and Mary were no different. By the time that they found him after their three days of searching, they were filled “with great anxiety.”

Jesus, in typical pre-teen fashion did not seem to appreciate their need for anxiety. He was safe all along among the teachers in the temple. Where else would he be? Neither Joseph nor Mary understood what Jesus was talking about. What happened next is a good response to a lack of understanding.

There was no argument. Jesus was found safe and sound. It was time to go. Jesus was obedient and followed. Joseph was quiet. Mary pondered and “kept all these things in her heart.” We are not given to know the conversation between them on their way back home, but what Luke does share was that, “Jesus advanced in wisdom and age and favor before God and man.”

Jesus did so because he was obedient to “God and man.” And that made a big difference.

Joseph and Mary reacted in the natural way that parents missing their child would react, with concern and anxiety. What they did not allow to happen was to allow their emotions override their reason. Jesus didn’t see anything wrong with what he did because he was following the direction of his Father. He didn’t seem to pick up on the point that he failed to share that little detail with Mary and instead assumed they would know where he was.

This is a powerful affirmation regarding Joseph and Mary’s faith. They were not only faithful to the annual Passover pilgrimage, but they showed their faithfulness to following God’s lead from the beginning of Jesus’ conception. They more than likely passed on their stalwart faith onto Jesus such that he believed that they would know where he was. Yet when he realized this was not true, he obediently followed his parents back to Nazareth.

The three days searching for Jesus would also be a preparation for turning to God and trusting him during another three days in which Jesus remained on a stone slab lying in a tomb. Mary trusted again during her time of anguish of not knowing. Not knowing if or how Jesus would come back from the dead after his brutal death on the cross.

What spending any time in the school of the Holy Family will teach us, is that we are to place our trust in God first. We are to ponder more and react less. This does not mean we will understand God’s will each time, it does not mean that we will be free of suffering or anxiety, nor will we be free of conflict with those we love. Yet, when we resist placing ourselves front and center and instead remain faithful to and seek God’s will in every situation, when we resist reacting and seek to understand, when we are willing to forgive, there will be a better chance of healing and reconciliation sooner.

In times of conflict and misunderstanding, when our intent is to will each other’s good, even when we see things differently and disagree, we will be better off turning to God and trusting in him. We will do better when we are willing to breathe and listen to the one speaking as well as the Holy Spirit that will give us the words to speak or the pause to be silent. Pondering and seeking to understand the will of God as Mary did is a course of action that will bring about better benefits.

One powerful tool of prayer that helps us to be more patient, understanding, and forgiving one another is to spend time quietly meditating and contemplating the mysteries of the Rosary, like this fifth joyful mystery of Mary and Joseph finding Jesus in the temple. For each of us, Mary “continues to relate her personal account of the Gospel. Mary constantly sets before the faithful the ‘mysteries’ of her Son, with the desire that the contemplation of those mysteries will release all their saving power. In the recitation of the Rosary, the Christian community enters into contact with the memories and the contemplative gaze of Mary” (St. John Paul II, The Rosary of the Virgin Mary).

Photo: Our Lady of Grace on the grounds of Joseph and Mary Retreat House, Mundelein, Il, where I was blessed to spend a 30 day silent retreat. Learned much from Mary’s memory!!!

Link for the Mass readings for Sunday, December 29, 2024

May we play our part as did St. Joseph.

When the magi had departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you” (Mt 2:13).

The scene the magi left from was not a glamorous one. Mary gave birth to Jesus in a stable or a cave. This setting was not the most hygienic of situations as this is where animals were kept. After the shepherds and kings come to pay the baby homage the situation does not get much better. For as we read in today’s Gospel from Matthew, Joseph is urged by an angel to flee because Herod had ordered the death of all male children under two years of age.

Sounds a bit extreme of a measure, and one might think this could just be a trumped up story. Until looking back to see how Herod killed anyone he felt threatened without thinking twice. This included his own wife, Mariamne, and three of his sons. The news Herod received by the magi that they wanted to see “he who was born the king of the Jews” (Matthew 2:2) and the messianic fervor that was growing because the prophecy of Daniel (cf. Dn 9:24-27) predicted the messiah during this time period, could have easily fed Herod’s paranoia. When the magi did not return to reveal the location of this baby king, he wasn’t going to take any chances for this wee one to grow up.

Joseph would have known about Herod’s temperament as he was the rightful heir to the thrown of David as well as the caretaker of Jesus, the baby who, it was becoming clearer to Joseph, was the Messiah. With the words of the angel, Gabriel, Joseph trusted again and packed up all they had. The three of them were on the road again, not back home to Nazareth, but to Egypt.

The Son of God could have easily been born in a palace, among a family with power and stability, yet his Father chose to send him to be born among the poor and displaced. His earliest days were ones marked by instability and danger. The only stability and safety that Jesus had was in Mary and Joseph. They trusted in God, followed his guidance, and were willing to sacrifice their lives to protect and keep him safe.

Over these past days of readings we have encountered simple and yet significant figures of faith: Zechariah, Elizabeth, Mary, Stephen, Mary Magdalene, Peter, John, and today, Joseph. In the face of not understanding the reality of the conception of Jesus, he chose to trust Gabriel’s invitation to take Mary as his wife, to provide and protect her and Jesus. He risked his life by going into the territory of the crazed king Herod and then onward to Egypt until presumably Gabriel would call them back to Nazareth.

Joseph did what each of us are called to do, to follow the will of God – to be saints. We are called to listen to, trust in, and do whatever he tells us. In this way, we play our part, as Joseph and the others did. We are to allow the love of God to flow through us to those in our realm of influence, make a difference in our corner of the world, and make it a place where the dignity of each person in our reach is respected and cared for. When we do that, miracles happen!

Photo: St. Joseph Catholic Church, Poquonock, CT. Christmas Day, last year.

Link for the Mass readings for Saturday, December 28, 2024

May we, with John, contemplate the true gift we have received.

Jesus Christ is born for us. Jesus Christ dies for us. Jesus Christ conquers death and rises again for us. Because of our place in time, December 27, 2024 AD – Anno Domini, In the year of our Lord, we are capable of experiencing his life, suffering, death, Resurrection, and Ascension into Heaven. The important question we need to answer is, “Does this new fact, this new reality in human history, make a real difference in our lives?”

Christmas did not end two days ago. We are still in the Octave of Christmas. The Church celebrates two octaves in the Church liturgical calendars, Christmas and Easter. These eight days are celebrated as such to impress on us the solemnity of the event of remembrance. From the vigil celebration of Christmas Eve on December 24 to January 1, the Solemnity of Mary the Mother of God, we celebrate the significant event of the Incarnation, the Son of God, the second Person of the Trinity becoming one with us in human history. The Masses celebrated within the Octave of Christmas, as well as the readings of Evening Prayer in the Liturgy of the Hours, reflect the celebration of Christmas Day each day for the eight days. It is like having a week-long birthday party.

If we are solely focused on gifts, the returning of gifts, and celebrations apart from the celebration of Jesus’ birth, if we are removed from the liturgical cycle and rhythm of the Church, it is easy to fall into the post-Christmas blues because it does feel like everything is done but the returning of gifts and getting a good after Christmas deal. Christmas music has been alive and well on many radio channels for weeks, but at some point on Christmas Day and often the following day, they stop. They stop at the time when they ought to begin!

The material and finite, no matter how wonderful, even our closest relationships, will never satisfy our deepest hunger and thirst. If you are experiencing any post-Christmas blues, today is great opportunity to let go of the material for a bit and enter into the gift of silence, and to spend some meditating and contemplating on what will satisfy. The greatest gift that we have been given, we began to celebrate again two days ago. The Son of God changed human history by his conception and birth and we are invited to participate in God’s great theodrama of human transformation. Today’s Gospel reading is a fast forward from this birth we are celebrating and the gift that keeps on giving, the reality of the purpose of the incarnation.

Jesus was born to die, to show the fullest extent of his obedience to his Father. In trusting his Father, Jesus died, experienced our greatest fear of death, and through the power of the Holy Spirt, conquered death and rose again. Mary Magdalene was the first to experience the empty tomb and shared this good news with the apostles. Peter and John ran to see. John arrived first. John remained outside, possibly out of respect, to allow Peter to go in first. Peter saw the empty tomb except for the burial clothes. When John entered, “he saw and believed” (Jn 20:8).

Are we willing to take the time to ponder as John did? To see beyond the merely finite and physical? To be willing to be still. Silent. To allow God to speak to us in the silence of our hearts? John, Mary, and Peter’s lives were changed and transformed because they encountered Jesus and chose not to ignore him or run away, but to give their lives to him. We are invited to do the same. Our hearts were created for this relationship with Jesus and our hearts will be restless until we allow ourselves to slow down, embrace the gift of silence, and allow ourselves to hear him speak in the silence of our hearts that we too may believe.

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Painting: Close up of St. John the Evangelist by Vladimir Borovikovsky

Link for the Mass readings for Friday, December 27, 2024

When we trust in the will of God and persevere, we will be saved.

“You will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved” (Mt 10:22).

Why are we talking about being hated the day after Christmas? One reason could be that Jesus, this baby whose birth we just celebrated is “the light that shines in the darkness” (Jn 1:5). The very reality of Jesus is that he is the light that exposes darkness, he is the very embodiment of Love that exposes evil and hatred.

St. Stephen, whose feast we celebrate today, and whose death we read about in the first reading from Acts, experiences his words personally. For he is killed for the sole purpose of speaking the Gospel. While during his persecution he sees and communicates how even the heavens open for him. The reaction to those who hear his words are infuriation and they then throw him out of the city and “stone him” (cf. Acts 7:54-59).

Stephen radiated the light, love, and wisdom of Jesus and like Jesus he was put to death. His persecutors felt threatened by the light instead of welcomed to let go of the darkness that held them bound. Jesus exposes the truth of those dark places within our own hearts, minds, and the very depth of our being as well. What is our response? Will we also reject the light, not aware that it is an invitation to healing and to wholeness?

We may wince at the luminous brightness of Jesus’ light and resist the intimacy of the love he seeks to share. We may unconsciously do so, because we have so often faced so much of the opposite; hurt, pain, betrayal, and lack of understanding or acceptance, that we assume a defensive crouch is best to protect our false sense of self, when in fact that is just what we are invited to let go of. As time passes and we keep to the shadows, we risk becoming ingrained in our fear and pride and our posture of protecting our ego.

Yet, to be fully alive, we need to embrace the light, not hide from it. When we are open to the healing touch of Jesus and receive the gift of his light in our lives, we begin to die to our false self and the lies that we have believed. Allowing ourselves to breathe and rest in God’s loving presence helps us to heal, indentify, and allow Jesus to transform our vice to virtue. Once we allow ourselves to be loved by Jesus, we begin to recognize that we are turned in upon ourselves, and then we can adjust our posture and begin to open ourselves to him. We also begin to recognize that we are not the center of the universe.

As we follow the model of John the Baptist, St. Stephen, the other saints, we become less so that Jesus becomes more in our lives. We too will face the same rejection that Jesus faced. We will be labeled crazy, out of step, simple-minded, irrational, and worse. Yet we are to resist returning to a defensive posture, to refuse to react in kind, but instead, to be present, call upon and trust in the Holy Spirit to give us the words to speak, and allow God to happen. We are to remain open, accepting of the person where they are and as they are, and share the same transformative mercy, love, and forgiveness of Jesus that we have received from our attacker.

Change, maturation, and growth are not easy. As disciples, we are to be disciplined and persevere, while at the same time remember that our redemption does not come from our own doing or willing it to be so on our efforts alone. Our healing, restoration, and transformation come first and foremost from a willingness to accept the invitation to experience a deepening of our relationship with Jesus. When we accept his invitation to walk with him, and trust him, we will receive the healing salve of his love, mercy, and forgiveness. We will then heal from and let go of our biases, prejudices, hatred, and selfishness.

Transformation is not a one-time event. Christmas is not just a day, it is not just a season. Christmas is a time when we can recommit to allowing Jesus to enter into and to transform our lives each and every day, each and every moment, with each and every decision. When we are tempted in any way, let us call on the name of Jesus, trust in him, take a few deep breaths, and we will better be able to resist that which seeks to divert us.

In becoming human, Jesus lived showing us that this life was not all there is. The fullness of our lives are to be lived in and for God his Father. When we, like, Jesus, Stephen, and the saints, trust and obey God’s will, no matter where that will lead, we will be transformed, whole, and more alive than we can ever imagine, in this life and the next.

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Photo: St Stephen the Protomartyr – icon by Theophili Saint Stephen, pray for us!

Link for today’s Mass readings for Thursday, December 26, 2024

“Blessed are you who believe.”

If you attend Mass daily or pray with the daily Mass readings, you may wonder, “Didn’t I just hear or read this account?” You would be correct, as this was the same Gospel reading as Saturday morning’s daily Mass. The difference comes in with the other readings.

The first reading from Micah may seem a bit obscure and we might be moved to question what does this have to do with getting ready for the coming of Jesus? Bethlehem would be our first clue. Bethlehem is the city of the birth of David. Micah shared that, “from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel; whose origin is from of old, from ancient times” (Micah 5:1). Micah is prophesying that the messiah will be no mere shadow of David, nor a mighty judge like Samson. This one has his origins “from of old”, beyond time. This messiah will be God with us. Both Matthew and Luke pick up on this in their nativity accounts (Matthew 2:1-2 and Luke 2:4-20) that we will read on Christmas.

So what about Ephrathah? Jews from the time of Jacob until those practicing today would pick up the reference to Ephrathah right away as being the burial place of Rachel the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, and beloved wife of Jacob. Though not the birth mother of the twelve sons of Jacob, Rachel was considered the matriarch, the mother of Israel. Jacob’s name, after wrestling with the Lord all night, was changed to Israel.

Echoes of Rachel being the mother of Israel also arose from the prophet Jeremiah when he wrote of her by name as weeping over her the fall of Jerusalem at the hands of the Babylonians. And yet, God sends comforting words through the prophet: “There is hope for your future – oracle of the LORD – your children shall return to your own territory” (Jeremiah 31:15-17).

We can see with the early Church Fathers that David was the premier king of Israel while at the same time he was foreshadowing Jesus the one “from of old” as Micah predicted. Rachel is a foreshadowing of Mary, the mother of Jesus, the mother of the Twelve Apostles, the fulfillment of the gathering in of the lost twelve tribes of Israel and the mother of the Church. She, like Rachel, would also suffer at the death of her children, but also be the intercessor for them through her suffering.

Mary is the new Rachel and also the new Eve because Mary’s obedience unties the knots of Eve’s disobedience. As we learned in the second reading to the Hebrews, God has no pleasure in sacrifice but takes pleasure in those doing his will. God delights not sacrifice but obedience. Mary, before becoming the mother of the Messiah, the mother of God, was obedient with her “yes” at the Annunciation. As Jesus said, the one who does the will of his Father was his mother (cf. Matthew 12:46-50). Who followed the will of the Father better than Mary?

Very soon after her “yes”, and the conception of Jesus in her womb, Mary went in haste to see Elizabeth. Each celebrating the gift of new life in each of their wombs. And how is Mary greeted by her elder cousin? With reverence, which was unheard of. The youth revered the elder family members during Jesus’ time. After hearing the words of Mary’s greeting, experiencing her son leaping in her womb, Elizabeth is moved by the Holy Spirit to proclaim blessing upon Mary: “Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb” (Luke 1:42). Elizabeth does so with great joy, “crying out in a loud voice.”

May Elizabeth and Mary’s joy reach into the depths of our souls. May we be open to believe.

May we believe that Jesus is the Son of God who became man. That Jesus came into the world not just to be a great rabbi and teacher, not just to perform miracles and cast out demons, nor just to be the messiah, that Jesus came not just to live, but that he came to die, to give his life for us, and in so doing become our savior. This birth we are about to celebrate was just a foreshadowing of his impending death.

As Bishop Fulton Sheen wrote, “He was laid in a stranger’s stable at the beginning, and a stranger’s grave at the end… He was wrapped in swaddling bands in His birthplace, He was again laid in swaddling clothes in His tomb… It was not so much that His Birth cast a shadow on His life, and thus led to his death; it was rather that the Cross was there from the beginning, and cast its shadow backward to his birth…” (The Life of Christ).

Jesus, as the fulfillment of the law and the prophets, is inviting us in these final days of Advent to do as he, Mary, and Elizabeth did, to follow the will of his Father. What joy we too will experience when we open ourselves up to the reality of the gift that God has given us, his Son, and so rejoice with Elizabeth and Mary that we too have a part to play in salvation history!

Photo: May these words and picture help you to experience some quiet time to pray and ponder about the connection between the birth and death of Jesus and the life he has called us to live.

Source for Bishop Sheen quote and background information from Dr. Brant Pitre, Mass Readings Explained, The Fourth Sunday of Advent Year C, Christmas and the Cross

Link for the Mass readings for Sunday, December 22, 2024

When struggling with impatience, let us remain faithful and trust in God’s will.

The Gospel of Luke and today’s first reading from the Book of Judges both continue the theme of divine intervention through angelic messengers and the message they convey is new life. The wife of Manoah, not named, and Zechariah, the husband of Elizabeth, both receive the message of an impending birth. The miraculous claim here is that both women are beyond child bearing age.

For women of ancient Israel, this was a tremendous cause for shame; for many women, their worth was defined by their ability to bear children. This was in evidence in the words of Elizabeth. When she was aware she had conceived she said, “So has the Lord done for me at a time when he has seen fit to take away my disgrace before others.” (Lk 1:25). Her shame and anguish, her long period of barrenness, was coming to an end.

Many women today feel similar anguish and shame in that they desire to have a child and are not able to. There are many reasons this may be, but there may also be a plan that God has in place that is not readily apparent at the time. One may be God’s timing, for Mary it was too soon! For Manoah’s wife and Elizabeth it was about time! But in each case God had his plan and timing in mind. For some women there may be another way of serving other than being a birth mother.

Adoption or foster parenting of children who are in desperate need of safe, stable homes are direct options. Some more indirect ways could be assisting in caring for nieces and nephews, cousins, teaching catechesis or working with youth groups. Other ways to serve could be through more time consuming active ministries, vocations, or jobs. There can also be underlying medical conditions as well as the stress of trying too hard. I know of two occasions where when each couple adopted, shortly thereafter both couples were blessed to conceive a child. I cannot imagine wanting to give birth to my own child and not be able to do so, nor can I imagine the inner anguish that may cause. I do believe God has a plan for each of us and when we align ourselves with his will we will truly be happy and fulfilled.

Advent is a time of waiting and anticipation. There are periods of waiting in all of our lives and we can certainly feel impatient with God and ourselves. We have certain expectations, intentions, and plans that we would like to see fulfilled, but often are not capable of seeing far enough down the road to notice if those plans are apparent or actual goods. The light at the end of a tunnel could actually be a train!

When we remain faithful like Manoah’s wife, Elizabeth, and Mary, and resist the temptation to go off on our own, while seeking to understand God’s will, we will find fulfillment and joy. Each of us are called to bear Christ to a worn and weary world desperately in need of new life! We will also enjoy the time of waiting more when we are trusting that God is preparing us for what we seek or something even greater than we can ever imagine!

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Photo: God will give us enough light to see a few steps ahead. When we walk those steps, he will offer some more light for the next few.

Link for the Mass readings for Thursday, December 19, 2024

Mary and Joseph, a yes to God and a yes to life.

Joseph heard the news that Mary, his betrothed, was with child. He clearly knew the child was not biologically his. Scripture does not account for the thoughts or emotions of Joseph, but whatever inner turmoil he did have, he came to a decision that would not expose Mary to shame. He was not going to make a public spectacle of Mary, but instead decided to divorce her quietly. Before he made his final decision though, Joseph made an excellent choice regarding the discernment of serious matters. He slept on the idea before acting.

During Joseph’s sleep, the angel of the Lord delivered a message. “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins” (Mt 1:20-21). When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home (Mt 1:24).

From their encounter with God’s messengers, both Mary and Joseph trusted in God’s will, and “that has made all the difference” to quote Robert Frost’s poem, “The Road Not Taken.” Because of Mary and Joseph’s “yes” to God and to family, the Son of God became man and opened up heaven for us in the humanity he assumed.

God often works in the same way when dealing with us. What may appear to be absurd, unimaginable, or downright impossible, is indeed possible when we align our will with God’s will. This is the week of Joy in Advent.

The source of joy does not come from external experiences but from an encounter with and acceptance of God’s invitation. Joy is an experience of communion with the love of God. This has been given to us in greater measure because Jesus became one with us, and so upon his ascension into heaven, we too can experience the loving communion he experiences with his Father. We also experience the love of the Holy Spirit in our encounter with family and friends, this exchange of giving and receiving of ourselves in conversation, shared experiences, and in resolving challenges and conflicts together.

Mary and Joseph both received incredible news, that neither of them fully comprehended. They could have easily responded in a different way. Instead, they trusted in God, they chose family, and because they did, we can rejoice not just during this week but as we heard from the past Sunday from Paul, we are to rejoice always!

Mary and Joseph followed God’s lead and were willing to allow their unborn child, Jesus, to come to full term. Because they were willing to risk public ridicule and worse, Jesus entered into our human condition. There may be a difficult situation we are dealing with, we may feel we are on our own, and that there is no way out, and/or no help on the horizon. God will make a way and reveal it to us through his Son. We may not understand either, but like Mary and Joseph, let us trust in God, one another, and experience that we are not alone.

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, please intercede on our behalf this Advent Season such that we may better be able to resist the temptation of taking each of our family members for granted, but instead choose to be appreciative and thankful for one another. Help us to react less and breathe deeply more. Help us to be more understanding, patient, and willing to forgive, such that even though we have experienced past hurts, conflicts, disagreements, and different points of view, we may ultimately experience time and again the joy of being there for one another, through thick and thin.

Spiritual Stepping Stones