Bringing good news to the poor

The psalmist prays that the words of his mouth and the meditation of his heart be acceptable to God in the texts from the RomanCatholic Lectionary today. The speaking of the words of God is prominent in the other texts. The Hebrew Bible brings us to the time when Ezra assembled those who had returned to Jerusalem from exile in Babylon to celebrate their reform of their religious practice and to re-establish their desire to live in Covenant with God. The response of the people to weep at hearing the Law suggests that they may be looking inward at the apparent lack of progress in the reform of their hearts. Ezra seeks the positive interpretation based on tears of joy for the search for holiness upon which they are embarking. Friar Jude Winkler comments on the ongoing encouragement of Paul to the Corinthians to consider how there are many gifts of the Spirit essential to the life of the community. The mystical and public impressiveness of speaking in tongues is acknowledged and placed at a lower priority in the service to the community for which the gifts are intended. Father Larry Gillick SJ encourages us to consider that individual teachers, preachers, writers and seekers seem to return to the deep theme which is boiling below the surface. He associates that deep gift passion with our naming, Baptism and anointing. It is perhaps our portion of the anointing of which Jesus speaks in the passage from the Gospel of Luke. Our gift and our name are part of the bringing of good news to the poor. Our theme may be expressed in journey, as Bishop Terry appears to present. It may be a message to be open to ongoing conversion. It may encourage others to reflect on our spiritual tradition. We use tools to highlight our theme. Ezra gathers the struggling to listen. Paul orders the gifts and touches of Stoic thought about the body. Luke writes to attract learned Greeks and omits less than optimistic passages from his reference to Isaiah 61. Our mission to be holy, as expressed by many including Father Larry today, is not to be or seek the impossibility of perfection, but to look within at our Anointed state and seek to live to bring the gifts we have for the community to those who are poorer that we. We center ourselves in the prayer of the psalmist that our techniques for action will be pleasing to God.