4th Sunday in Ordinary Time

The first chapter of Mark’s gospel is packed with action. Mark opens his gospel with the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. In this one chapter he covers the ministry of John the Baptist, the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist, the temptation of Jesus in the dessert, John’s arrest, Jesus calling his first disciples, Jesus announcing his mission and Jesus launching his mission. This Sunday and for the next two Sundays the gospel covers the first full day of Jesus in active ministry, Mark 1:21-45.

Given Jesus’ mission to bring “the good news” to people (Mark 1:1); it makes sense that he begins his work on the Sabbath in a synagogue, the primary place where local people gathered for community prayer and to hear and study scripture. And on the first day of his ministry, the first thing Jesus does is teach. He does not teach like the scribes who were experts on Mosaic Law found in the Torah. Jesus teaches with personal authority, authority given to him by God. Mark does not tell us exactly what Jesus taught in that synagogue in Capernaum. However, he does tell us that the impact of Jesus’ teaching was profound. Jesus, like Moses in the first reading from Deuteronomy 18:15-20, spoke the words God “put into his mouth.” These words were so powerful that the people around him were compelled to listen. Even an “unclean spirit” recognized the power and authority of his message. Then Jesus exorcised the unclean spirit.

This is the pattern we see over and over again in Jesus’ ministry. He preaches, he confronts evil and he heals people. He also takes time out to revive himself through prayer. Jesus taught the people of his day and he teaches us by his words, actions and example, guiding us all to the Kingdom his Father has prepared for us. It is our responsibility to listen, open our hearts, believe and acknowledge “our God, whose people we are, God's well-tended flock” (Psalm 95:7).

Father in heaven,

From the days of Abraham and Moses

Until this gathering of your Church in prayer,

You have formed a people in the image of your Son.

Bless this people with the gift of your kingdom.

May we serve you with our every desire

And show love for one another

Even as you have loved us.

Grant this through Christ our Lord.

Amen

Seeking Answers

We are told that St. Francis used to spend whole nights praying the same prayer: “Who are you, God? And who am I?” Evelyn Underhill claims it’s almost the perfect prayer. The abyss of your own soul and the abyss of the nature of God have opened up, and you are falling into both of them simultaneously. Now you are in a new realm of Mystery and grace, where everything good happens!

Notice how the prayer of Francis is not stating anything but just asking open-ended questions. It is the humble, seeking, endless horizon prayer of the mystic that is offered out of complete trust. You know that such a prayer will be answered, because there has already been a previous answering, a previous epiphany, a previous moment where the ground opened up and you knew you were in touch with infinite mystery and you knew you were yourself infinite mystery. You only ask such grace-filled questions, or any question for that matter, when they have already begun to be answered!

~ Fr. Richard Rohr OFM

Start Your Day Right

The legendary football coach Paul "Bear" Bryant had a note he carried in his pocket. Every morning he had taken it out of his pocket, unfold it, read it and returned it to his pocket. When he died this note was found in the back pocket of pants. I plan to share it with as many people as possible in hopes that they, too will make it a ritual by reading this poem every day.

This is the beginning of a new day.

God has given me this day to use as I will.

I can waste it or use it for good.

What I do today is important as I am

exchanging a day of my life for it.

When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever.

Leaving something in its place I have traded for it.

I want it to be a gain, not a loss;

good, not evil;

success, not failure;

in order that I shall not forget the price I paid for it.

Paul William "Bear" Bryant (1913 - 1983) was the longtime head coach of the University of Alabama football team. During his 25-year tenure as Alabama's head coach, he amassed six national championships and thirteen conference championships. Upon his retirement in 1982, he held the record for most wins as head coach in collegiate football history with 323 wins.

To Let Go

To let go doesn't mean to stop caring;

It means I can't do it for someone else.

To let go is not to cut myself off.
It's the realization that I can't control another.

To let go is not to enable,
but to allow learning from natural consequences.

To let go is to admit powerlessness,
which means the outcome is not in my hands.

To let go is not to try and change or blame another,
I can only change myself.

To let go is not to care for, 

but to care about.

To let go is not to fix, 

but to be supportive.

Modern Proverbs

 

1. The best way to get even is to forget.
2. Feed your faith and your doubts will starve to death.
3. God wants spiritual fruit, not religious nuts.
4. Some folks wear their halos much too tight.
5. Some marriages are made in Heaven; but they all have to be maintained on Earth.
6. Unless you can create the whole universe in five days, then perhaps giving advice to God isn't such a good idea.
7. Sorrow looks back, worry looks around, and faith looks up.
8. Standing in the middle of the road is dangerous. You will be knocked down by the traffic from both ways.
9. Words are windows to the heart.
10. A skeptic is a person who when he sees the handwriting on the wall, claims it's a forgery.
11. It isn't difficult to make a mountain out of a molehill, just add a little dirt.
12. A successful marriage isn't finding the right person; it's being the right person.
13. The mighty oak tree was once a little nut that held it's ground.
14. Too many people offer God prayers with claw marks all over them.
15. The tongue must be heavy indeed; because so few people can hold it.
16. To forgive is to set the prisoner free, and then discover the prisoner was you.
17. You have to wonder about humans; they think God is dead and Elvis is alive.
18. It's alright to sit on your pity pot every now and again; just be sure to flush when you are done.
19. You'll notice that a turtle only makes progress when it sticks out it's neck.
20. If the grass is greener on the other side of the fence, you can bet the water bill is higher.​

3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

If you read your Sunday Missal you will see that the themes for today’s readings are “call, reluctance and repentance.” All the readings from Jonah, St Paul’s first Epistle to the Corinthians and St Mark’s Gospel have elements of these themes. However, I think that there is an overarching theme and that is God’s overwhelming spirit of mercy and love that draws all people to repent and seek forgiveness.

Jonah is a model of God’s mercy because he experienced it himself. Jonah was called by God to go to Nineveh and preach. But he didn’t want to go and headed in the opposite direction. We all know the story about how Jonah ended up in the belly of a whale who spit him out on the shore. After this experience when God called Jonah again, he followed directions. He went to Nineveh and preached a hell, fire and brimstone message, "Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed." Much to Jonah’s shock and dismay, the people of Nineveh believed God’s message. They repented and God responded to their repentance with mercy. Jonah wanted hell, fire and brimstone but he didn’t get it. Which leads to another story about God giving Jonah a lesson about mercy.

St Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthian has a similar theme. Exasperated with the Corinthian’s shocking behavior, St Paul sends them a letter warning them that “time is running out.” The difference between St Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians and Jonah’s message is that St Paul wrote his letter in a spirit of mercy and love. St Paul founded the Christian community of Corinth and his reproach was delivered as a caring founder. He ended the Letter with an exhortation, “Be on your guard, stand firm in the faith, be courageous, be strong. Your every act should be done with love” (1 COR 16:13-14).

Today’s gospel from Mark 1:14-20 recounts the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. His message was, "This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel." For the people who lived in Galilee at that time the word gospel meant “good news.” Jesus came to proclaim the good news of God’s love. Our job is to turn our lives around and believe the good news that God loves each and every one of us. Believing in the gospel message is not just an intellectual exercise it is an exercise of the heart. Jesus’ call to repentance is a call for a radical change of heart (metanoia). Jesus invites us to repent so that we can experience a “time of fulfillment” and enter into the Kingdom of God. Simon, Andrew, James and John did not need to be coerced to follow Jesus. They heard his message and followed willingly. The message of mercy and love was compelling enough for them. It may have taken some time for them to understand what Jesus’ message meant but ultimately, they did. We are here today because they heard, followed and believed.

Almighty and ever-present Father,

Your watchful care reaches from end to end

And orders all things in such power

That even the tensions and tragedies of sin

Cannot frustrate your loving plans.

Help us to embrace your will,

Give us the strength to follow your call,

So that your truth may live in our hearts

And reflect peace to those who believe in your love.

We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord.

Amen

2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

This week as I was reflecting on the readings for Sunday’s masses, I was struck by a phrase from our first reading, 1 Samuel 3:19, “Samuel grew up, and the LORD was with him, not permitting any word of his to be without effect.” The New American Standard Bible translates the phrase as: “Thus Samuel grew and the LORD was with him and let none of his words fail.” Another translation says: “As Samuel grew up, the LORD was with him, and everything Samuel said was wise and helpful.”

Few of us can claim that every word we utter is wise and helpful or that none of our words fail. The question we should ask ourselves is what effect do my words have? A Chinese proverb says, “Words are the keys to the heart.” As I read this proverb, it has two meanings: words can open a heart or they can lock or harden a heart. The effects of our words are usually determined by our intentions. We use words to encourage and uplift people. We use words to comfort people who are suffering. We use words to express our love. We use words to pray and to praise God. We can also use words to offend and wound people. Through gossip, we can use words to defame people and harm their reputations. Occasionally we use words to curse God. Samuel’s words were sometimes harsh, like most of the prophets, but he always spoke the truth. And the source of his truth was God.

Through baptism, we all share in the priesthood of Christ and we become the adopted daughters and sons of God. As God’s children and people who share in the priesthood of Christ, we are expected to proclaim the good news of God’s love and show his compassion to everyone we encounter: the people in our families, the people we work with, the people we go to school with and the people we meet in our day-to-day activities. Every word we speak should reflect the special relationship we have with God through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. In Matthew 12:36-37, Jesus tells the Pharisees and us that we will be held accountable for our words, “I tell you, on the day of judgment people will render an account for every careless word they speak. By your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” And so, we should pray every day with the Psalmist, “Let the words of my mouth meet with your favor, keep the thoughts of my heart before you, LORD, my rock and my redeemer” (Psalm 19:15).

O God, 

send forth your Holy Spirit

 into my heart that I may perceive,

Into my mind that I may remember, 

and into my soul that I may meditate.

Inspire me to speak with piety, holiness, tenderness and mercy.

Teach, guide and direct my thoughts and senses from beginning to end.

May your grace ever help and correct me,

And may I be strengthened now with wisdom from on high,

For the sake of your infinite mercy.

Amen.

Saint Anthony of Padua

Epiphany of the Lord

Many years ago, I decided that I wanted to become a serious stargazer. I mentioned my interest to a friend who presented me with a telescope. This was not a simple point at a star and look telescope. It was a real telescope that required some knowledge about astronomy or at least a sense of where to look to see what the night sky has to offer. I must admit I was a bit disappointed. All I wanted to do was take a close look at some stars and planets. I didn’t realize how complicated the sky is with thousands and thousands of stars, clusters, nebulae and galaxies. Serious stargazing takes work and I was not sure that I wanted to put much energy or effort into this project. So, my telescope sat in a corner, rarely used until I finally gave it to someone who was truly interested in learning about astronomy.

The Magi who followed the Star of Bethlehem were scholars. They were serious stargazers who, when they saw the “star at its rising,” dropped everything they were doing to follow it. They did not have telescopes. They had to rely on the low-tech science of the day. They studied the night sky watching for changes and movement. They knew this new star represented something extraordinary, the “newborn king of the Jews” and they were willing to make great sacrifices to find him. We don’t know exactly where they came from but St. Matthew implies that they traveled a great distance to get to Bethlehem. What is interesting to consider is that this star clearly was not invisible. Others must have seen it. The Scribes and Pharisees, the chief priests and scientists of Israel must have seen the star. But they did nothing to investigate. Pagan foreigners recognized the significance of the star and set out to find it.

All our readings today emphasize that Jesus was born for the people of all nations. The Magi were non-believers, pagans, gentiles, not worth any consideration in the eyes of the people of Israel, but they were the people who had the faith and humility to seek and welcome Jesus into our world. They did not know where the star would lead them. However, they pursued their journey of faith knowing that the end of their journey would reveal something spectacular, “the glory of the Lord.” On this Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord, we should ask ourselves, what star do I follow? Will I recognize a God sent star? What will I sacrifice to follow that star?

Father,

you revealed your Son to the nations

by the guidance of a star.

Lead us to your glory in heaven

by the light of faith.

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God forever and ever.

Amen

Clock and Calendar

 

Broken Resolutions

Most of us, I suspect, have our own long history of broken New Year's resolutions.

How many times have we begun a new year with the sincere intention of ending some bad habit and of finally setting ourselves to living life as we should have been living it all along and, after a very short time, have found ourselves again solidly embedded in our old habits and ruts?

Hence, most of us live lives not so much of quiet desperation as of quiet resignation: "This is the way I am! This is the way my life has always been! This is the way I will always be!"

The belief that things can be different, and for the better, is a crucial part of our Christian faith. To believe that there can be "a new heaven and a new earth" (and that we can be paragons of virtue and delight within it) is not something that takes its ground in natural optimism (for example, "I always see the positive in things.") but is something that is rooted in the belief that "nothing is impossible with God."

How to change? As Psalm 96 puts it, "sing a new song to the Lord."