Control and vindication

The psalmist today in the texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary prays to God “Let them know that this is your hand” (Psalm 109:27). The Letter to the Romans declares the deep faith of Paul that there is nothing in Creation which can separate us from the Love which is demonstrated by God in the gift of the life of His Son to humanity. Friar Jude Winkler reminds us of how our fear of being taken under the control of evil influences may be keeping us from surrendering to the Love plan of God which is mercy and forgiveness for all. EdwardMorse of Creighton University identifies a tendency which may be part of our desire, and that of the psalmist, to have vindication over our enemies when we experience the action of the hand of God to lead us. This desire for vindication is perhaps our seeking a sign of the Presence which is actually not in accord with His Will. Our vindication is a need focused toward ourselves. The Gospel of Luke tells of the warning some Pharisees give Jesus of those who desire to kill Him in Jerusalem. Jesus understands that the place where the Will of God is revealed is Jerusalem. In this place, traditionally, the people have slain the Prophets. The gift of Life which will open all people to praise “Blessed is the One who comes in the Name of the Lord” (Luke 13:35) will be through the witness that even death does not separate God and His children.

Good plans for the narrow gate

“We know that all things work together for good^* for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose”. (Romans 8:28). This passage, today, in the Roman Catholic Lectionary, from the Letter of Paul to the Romans is a reminder of an attitude which some believers express in their journey as “8:28 it”. We see that this letter is witnessing to the deep intimacy of prayer as the Spirit within teaches us the communication of Love with God. Friar JudeWinkler advises that we experience this communion of Love and through the experience we are able to trust in the plan of God. Surrender to the plan of God is not easy. The Gospel from Luke tells of Jesus response to the question of will many be saved? Sue Crawford of Creighton University reminds us that we do not attempt to go through the narrow gate described by Jesus on our own. Jesus journeys with us and our trust in His direction through listening to the indwelling Spirit will keep us on the path of the great cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1). Paul lays out the path for the family of God trusting in the plan of God which calls us to communion through the Spirit and in that trust we will live righteous lives leading to the passage through the narrow gate into full life in glory.

Small but big

“What is the kingdom of God like?” (Luke 13.18). This rhetorical question is asked by Jesus in the text from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today. The answer provided by Jesus in the Gospel from Luke uses two parables to give us an image of the way the Kingdom, or the reign of God in our time and society, works. Andy Alexander, S.J. of Creighton University reminds us of the mystery of the vegetable garden and the wonder of making bread. Our modern lives may not include real memories of family who lived in the faith of God to bless and provide growth to these simple but essential actions of human survival. Blessing and prayer and signing our efforts are practices which remind us the importance of continuous steps toward living in the Spirit which are transformed as growth for those we see around us, and in hope and faith, the many for whom we cultivate Life that we do not see. The Love uses our faithfulness to provide sustenance, shelter and respite for others. Friar JudeWinkler uses the phrase “the already but not yet” as he reflects on the message of Paul to the Romans comparing the suffering of the present time with our hope of the glory of God to reign in society and through our personal resurrection. The phrase used by Friar Jude is linked to the theology of “The Eternal Now” ofPaul Tillich. Our hopes for ourselves, our family and friends and even the change of social structures, mentioned by Andy Alexander, will find their fulfillment in the future. Christian hope is based in the faith of the vegetable gardener planting the mustard seed and the bread maker that the dough will raise in accord with the blessing which we extend through our work in small steps.

Family Temple

“Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night declares knowledge” Psalm 19 expresses the praise of the psalmist for the declaration of the Presence of God we witness in the wonder and awe of every day and every night. The Roman Catholic Lectionary today contains texts which bring our attention to the feast today of apostles, Saint Simon and Saint Jude. FriarJude Winkler draws our attention to the way in which the author of the Letter to the Ephesians describes the Gentile Christian Community in Ephesus as a living temple to God with Jesus as the capstone or cornerstone. Ephesus was the city in which Paul battled intensely against the paid preachers who were associated with the temples to Greek and Roman deities in that city. The living temple in which we are members is the Body of Christ. Friar Jude reminds us that this community is for all and the members are to reach out in the manner of the apostles and bring the broken to be the strength of this unity. Comments made by the late Prof. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira at the conclusion of a biography of Simon and Jude suggest that the Tradition shows God’s consideration for legacy. The number of the apostles associated with the line of David is cited as well as the number of cousins of Jesus, including St Jude, who were in the family of apostles. Pope Francesco is quoted by Good MorningAmerica as Pope Francis breaks with tradition at a celebration of families at the Vatican. Pope Francis has decided to devote the next synod of bishops to the family. Archbishop Paglia said that this synod “ is an extraordinary sign of affection of Pope Francis for families,”. The richness, wonder and awe of life proclaimed by the psalmist is visible in the dynamics of Love, support, self sacrifice, healing and development in the human family. It is the foundation of the Living Temple in the Spirit.

Mercy hears

The psalmist today in the texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary tells us “When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears, and rescues them from all their troubles” (Psalm 34:17). We sometimes wish we knew the formula for obtaining rescue. What do we know about being righteous? The Second Letter of Paul to Timothy is noted by Friar Jude Winkler to be the last letter of Paul (or one of his disciples) which tells of the faith of Paul that the time has come to stand before God as one who has run the race and given his life as a libation. This is understood by Paul as being righteous. The rescue Paul anticipates is the continued action of God to save him from the attack of evil which will maintain his place in the kingdom of heaven. The evil whichFather Larry Gillick SJ understands inhibits full our participation in life is our ongoing tendency to “dress up” our position before God with false pride and positioning. The Gospel from Luke characteristically throws us a curve as we are told by Jesus that the righteous Pharisee who attends to the detail of the Law and Justice leaves the Temple at a lesser righteousness before God than the tax collector who is aware of his state of need of the mercy of God. Our “troubles” may be rooted in our own pride and self focus. Mercy responses to the cry of the poor and celebrates being who we are. 

Assume to presume

“What did I do to deserve this?” is a question which we are reminded by PatrickBorchers, of The Werner Institute, which we ask when the misfortunes of the type described by Jesus in the Gospel of Luke from the Roman CatholicLectionary visit us. The psalmist today puts the question of being singled out in another flavour. The people who have clean hands, pure hearts, avoid falseness and do not swear shall stand in the Holy Place of the Lord. Our struggle in life deals with knowing in our minds that misfortune is often vested in circumstances which are not within the control of those affected, but holding in our hearts the resentment of being unjustly done by. The knowledge of the nature of the Divine, which we study and intellectually define, is in conflict with our response in our behaviour. The Presence of Total Love is without the self serving concupiscence and personal gratification that Paul identifies to the Romans and us which struggles with the Spirit of Life in our hearts. FriarJude Winkler states that something within us dies when we move in the direction away from the Life in the Spirit. Jesus ends the parable of the fig tree, which has shown signs of death, with the proclamation of mercy. There is more time. We are doubly grateful for God is Mercy as we struggle with our ongoing presumption of that Mercy.

Choosing Now

The psalmist declares the desire of people in their relationship with God “Let your steadfast love become my comfort” (Psalm119:76). This text from the RomanCatholic Lectionary today is balanced by the distress that Friar Jude Winkler comments Paul expresses in his Letter to the Romans that he experiences the weakness of human flesh which draws him to choose self pleasure in the many ways understood by moral theologians as concupiscence. The nature, effect, origin and sinfulness of concupiscence is a discussion which appears frequently within the literature of our seeking spiritual understanding. The opposite of this tendency is perhaps expressed in the quote from Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus, who invokes prayer in the moment with “a simple glance directed to heaven”. This remedy to the tension expressed by Paul puts us in the moment. The distress we experience from living in the past and especially in the future is associated by Rev. Richard Gabuzda with the urgent assertion of Jesus, in the Gospel from Luke that we see the signs today and now of our spiritual health and take steps to move toward heaven. Gabuzda quotes C.S. Lewis in the The Screwtape Letters, reminding us the Present is the point at which time touches eternity. The Love which is the comfort of God is now!

The righteous and the wicked

The conclusion of the passage from the Letter of Paul to the Romans today in the Roman Catholic Lectionary is the often quoted phrase “the wages of sin is death”. Modern society does not discuss death very much. We have pushed the events around end of life aside from the main events of daily life. The demographics of Western society, however, indicate that death will be all around us soon. The choice presented to the Gentile Christians was, according to Friar Jude Winkler, an unexpected one. The religiosity of the pagan society was based on pacifying deities through recitation of ritual prayer. The morality of living was not seen as a factor in the quality of our relationship with God. The Jewish Tradition as expressed by the psalmist differentiated between the scoffers, wicked, evil ones and those who meditate on the Law of the Lord. The righteous know the peace and prosperity of trust in Providence as their foundation. The wicked, like chaff, are blown away by the wind. The death to which Paul refers for the immoral begins as we decide to disconnect from our solid place following the Will of God and let ourselves be directed toward self gratification, pride, privilege and power. This direction is popular in our society. The severe rejection which Luke describes for those who choose to follow this Way of movement toward righteousness can be understood when we realize how the society of mercy, compassion, cooperation, charity, peace and universal brother and sisterhood where we are our brother’s keepers threatens those on the power and privilege path.

Got to serve someone

The psalmist in the texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today proclaims “Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth” (Psalm 124:8) The knowledge of the role of God in our lives to bring, as Paul writes to the Romans, life of righteousness where there once was the death of sin is the background we have to make our daily and sometimes continuous decisions about our enslavement or in less involved language, our direction. Dennis Hamm, S.J. of Creighton University wrestles with the “better translation” of the Greek to “slave” instead of “servant”. Bob Dylan’s lyric that “ you gotta serve someone “ is another reminder that we are in tension between our desire for autonomy and the momentary events in life which seem to draw us to choose directions of virtue or immorality. Friar JudeWinkler presents the service and surrender in the Christian Tradition as that of the “Handmaid of the Lord”, Mary. Dennis Hamm is reminded of the idols about which we can organize our life, making money, keeping health, seeking power and getting toys which are counter to the lead and direction to Israel in the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4) to focus on the One God with all our strength. Friar Jude sobers our speculation about our enslavement and the direction of our path by commenting on the fate of the slave found to be unfaithful when the Master returns. He restates the Gospel message that we who know better are held to a higher standard of faithfulness. A disturbing aspect of searching faithful and unfaithful slave references is to encounter the modern culture which sets expectations that faithfulness to a spouse or partner is depriving yourself of something you deserve. The spiritual eyes closed by the choice of sin by Adam, then and now, are opened by the choice of God, now.

Unity in sin and justification

The psalmist in the texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today praises God in the words “I am poor and needy, but the Lord takes thought for me”. (Psalm 40:17). This statement of solidarity of Yahweh with the poor and needy is understood by the homilist for the Irish Association of Catholic Priests as a unity of humanity through our heritage of sin from Adam. Friar Jude Winkler picks up this theme in his reflection on the passage today from the Letter to the Romans where Paul compares the sin of Adam, in which we are all participants, with the free gift of gracious reconciliation with God through Jesus Christ. This is certainly the personal experience of Paul who lived the transformation of his personal life from zealous Pharisee in vigourous persecution of those outside the Law to Apostle to the Gentiles. The Gospel from Luke is set, according to the ACP writer, in time when Christians were beginning to understand that the return of Jesus was not imminent. The instruction to be watchful slaves waiting for the Master to return in this parable of Jesus told by Luke is applicable to the final judgement, but perhaps more importantly, as noted by Friar Jude, to our death when we are greeted by Jesus. The Evangelist uses the technique of reversal of the expected throughout the Gospel. The image of the Master feeding and waiting on the slaves is food for contemplation. Jesus, the Suffering Servant of Isaiah and the Master who washes the feet of His disciples in the Gospel of John is the experience of unconditional Love offered freely without restriction of Law or Tradition. On another plane, this is an example of the humility of service to the poor and needy of the Psalm for people to act upon as believers in God. It may be literary exaggeration to catch our attention, as Friar Jude notes, Jesus later statement in the Gospel that slaves are not the master. The experience of Jesus in our lives gives us the faith that we live in the Mystery which makes all of the above subjects for contemplation.

Barns which blind

The text today from the Roman Catholic Lectionary taken from the Gospel of Luke reminds us that one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions. Cyril of Alexandria, a fifth century church father, is quoted by blogger worryisuseless describing the character of the person who is satisfied with few things and keeps his hand open to the poor. The faith of this person is placed like Father Abraham in Providence. We are encouraged by Paul to understand that righteousness before God is not a matter of our good deeds. Some of the audience to which Paul speaks, then and now, seek to do enough for God to avoid His displeasure and possible retribution. The words of the Canticle of Zachariah today proclaim the mercy and Love of God through which we can be in righteous relationship with God. This trust in God is in the witness of Zachariah as he declares the birth of his son John to be in accord with the fulfillment of the Promise made to Abraham. Dick Hauser, S.J. invites us to look around at the cloud of witnesses who have marked our salvation history. These believers have rejected modern secular materialistic conditioning which calls to us to build up our barns for our self satisfaction in housing, education or retirement as we become blind to those who Cyril of Alexandria, Evangelist Luke and Jesus remind us are the “poor of Yahweh”.

Persistence Transformed

The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time on and for evermore (Psalm 121:8) This is part of the Scripture for the psalm today in the Roman Catholic Lectionary. The description of the battle between the Amorites and the Israelites in the text from Exodus highlights the prayer of Moses with arms raised which brought fortune to the Israelites in battle. The keeping of our coming and going by the Lord is not the conquering of our free will by an eternal control freak. It is the faith and trust through which will live the journey of life expecting God to be Present to us. This expectation is developed through our study, perhaps in the ancient monastic tradition of Lectio Divina, which Father Robin Gibbons reminds us brings Scripture and prayer together. The Sacred Scriptures bring all of the benefits cited in the Letter to Timothy to us as we journey with Jesus. The Gospel from Luke presents one of the “speed bumps” which Father Larry Gillick SJ notes are opportunities to slow down and become aware of the Presence of God in our encounters with the people who may be offering us a different vision of the path on which we are called to live today. Father Larry notes how easily we seek presents from God and how often we may be missing the Presence which is in our situation now. We thank God that he “keeps our going out and our coming in”. We need to rejoice and be thankful when our path requires more patience and persistence. In prayer, our attitude to changes to changes in circumstance, can transform our impatience for Divine intervention to faith and trust that God is leading us in Life.

Faith Father of all

The life of faith and trust is presented today in the texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary as the relationship with the Divine that links the many nations descendant from Abraham, who Paul describes in the Letter to the Romans as the father of all. Friar Jude Winkler traces the blood inheritance of this “Father of Many Nations” to the Jewish nation through Isaac and the Arab peoples through Ishmael. The fatherhood of Abraham for the Gentile people is through faith. Paul proclaims our reconciliation with God through our faith and trust in His Love. The faith of Abraham that he would bring his people to the land of milk and honey and have descendants as many as the stars, Friar Jude reminds us, was not fully realized during his life. The trust in God that requires the believer to act without signs and evidence and to give ourselves to action, the consequence of which is beyond our knowledge or comprehension, is the faith of Abraham and the faith of the Mother of Jesus, Mary. The faith in which Christians attempt to live is the faith of Mary which accepts that the will of God be done. The Gospel of Luke today reassures the faithful that Jesus stands with them as they seek to live and witness to others the trust in God of Abraham and Mary. Friar Jude reminds us that the Love between Father and Son is the Holy Spirit. This Love is forgiveness. The decision to reject the forgiveness of God is the blasphemy which Luke describes as unforgivable. The steps in faith begin with acceptance of the Divine invitation to intimacy through the Spirit.  

Journey to the Kingdom

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today bring us to consider how we continue the mission of the Evangelists and Apostles today. Friar JudeWinkler comments on the story of St Luke, Evangelist and physician who is commemorated in the Church liturgy today. The Christian Evangelists of the first century encountered the situation presented in the Gospel of Luke that the harvest is plentiful but the labourers are few. The letter of a disciple of Paul to Timothy indicates that labourers in the vineyard then, as now, lose their zeal and we are always in need of the reminder to trust in Providence to stand by our efforts and strengthen us when we encounter rejection. The psalmist lays down the foundation for all evangelism in our own conviction and presentation of God in our lives, Who is faithful, glorious, just, kind and near. The Journey to the Kingdom, which is the theme in the writing of Luke, is our daily opportunities to bring peace to others as the 72 in the Gospel today are commissioned to do. We are not required to preach like Paul or paint word pictures like Luke. MarciaShadle Cusic of the Creighton University School of Medicine encourages us to listen to the “God experiences” of others and be open to share our own “God story”.  Emily Stimpson offers How to Become An Annoying Catholic (In Eight Easy Steps) as she understands the comment of Pope Francis to ask the Holy Spirit for “the grace to be annoying”.

Pushing back darkness

The psalmist in the texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today strikes the note of the deep longing we have for God to be present to us particularly when we are in need. The longing for the presence of God is the deep need to be righteous and we long for it in the manner of waiting for dawn to push back darkness in which we are blind and uncertain. Paul works with this movement toward righteousness before God to reveal to his audience in Rome that the Law which many Jews struggled to keep to the letter was condemning them rather than bringing them closer to intimacy with the Divine. Jesus is the evidence that that God is Love. Mercy and forgiveness are the action of this Love. The One God is Love to all, Jews and Gentiles. Friar Jude Winkler underlines that our justification and righteousness comes from the faith which allows us to trust that God loves us to death without condition, regardless of our attentiveness to the Law or our race or religion. The message of unconditional Love which breaks through the darkness to bring us to dawn is difficult for both ancient and modern people who, like the Pharisees, bind up the relationship with God in adherence to detailed laws, customs, traditions, religiosity and literalism. In the Gospel from Luke today Jesus upsets the Pharisees as he extends the history of the Jews killing the Prophets of the Hebrew Testament to the action of the Pharisees and Lawyers of His time who try to stifle the Word which He lives. Even the commentary on this passage from Luke seems to focus more on the literal accuracy of Jesus citing Abel to Zachariah as the sweep of Prophets to whom death at the hands of believers was their fate. Our Tradition, Scripture, Law and Worship are important aspects to help us know about the historical themes and insights of humanity into the experience of God. Love is the experience which pushes back darkness.

Pity the pointing

The act of finger pointing comes to mind today as the texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary probe our attitude to finding fault with others. Paul addresses the Romans and describes our tendency to look critically at the faults and failings of others and as a result somehow depend on the corruptness of their life style to justify or own behaviour, which in our eyes, is less severe. The failure to forgive and seek forgiveness when we find ourselves in this state is to forget the praise of the psalmist that God is our rock and salvation and in Him is our deliverance and honour. Mercy which invites us to intimacy with God is the invitation we need to extend to others. The Gospel from Luke today may appear to be a contradiction to the message of Romans. Scholars suggest the term “woe” is used here by Jesus as an expression of pity for those who are under the judgment of God. In this way the distress of Paul that the Roman community was not seeing the error in their judgement, is similar to the pity of Jesus for the leaders of the people, Pharisees and lawyers, who fail to see the hypocrisy in their actions which Mercy will reveal through the light of Truth and Love. We become aware that when we impose burdens of accusation and neglect of their needs on others, we shine a light on ourselves which illuminates our pitiful state of reliance on our self gratification for our security.

Spiritual Path of Nature

The psalmist in the texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today proclaims all we can see about God in the Creation around us. The awesome beauty of Creation becomes clothed in spectacular colour in the Northern Hemisphere at this time of year. The stage is set in Nature for contemplation as we stroll in the cool air and witness the beauty of the return of the life giving foliage to the ground to become the starting and protecting material for the regeneration of green in the Spring. This cycle of death giving life is important for the Christian to consider as the warnings of Paul to the Romans about loving the creature more than the Creator settle into our consciousness. The self centered attention or the narcissism which Jan Schnack is reminded about in an interview of Pope Francis with Repubblica, is the root of the evil which breaks our relationship with the Divine. God is Love which moves outward to the other. Our nature too often is very concerned with taking care of “number one”. The incompatibility of narcissism and following Jesus is part of the strong message in the Gospel of Luke that Jesus delivers to the Pharisees who protect themselves behind cleanliness “laws” which encourage superficial attention to others in hypocrisy of being people of God. The Spirit calls the followers of Jesus to fall like the foliage in October and surrender to the Will of God through which life is the fruit of death to self.

Clearer from the outside

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today give a message that we need to expect that our shallow review of the message from the Good News needs to be deepened. We hear the salutation of Paul which begins the Letter to the Romans. This introduction traces the origin of Jesus in the House of David and proclaims the revelation of the Son of God through resurrection and a message of the law of faith whereby the followers of Jesus will go deeper into the Love of this communion with God which has drawn Paul to be an apostle. The psalmist restates that we are heirs to the faithfulness and marvelous works of God which are within the history of salvation in the Hebrew Testament. The Gospel from Luke has Jesus cite two high points in the Jewish Tradition. He presents the era of the Kingdom of Israel under David and Solomon when foreign royal personages were attracted to Jerusalem as the centre where the Wisdom of God was to be approached. He recalls the repentance of Nineveh after the reluctant work of Jonah which was an overwhelming statement of a people desiring to return to God. The message of Jonah is read at Yom Kippur to underline that forgiveness is the nature of God. The Wisdom and Forgiveness of God are, according to Luke, seen by the foreigners and are not appreciated by the Chosen People. The message of Paul is received by the Gentiles and is scandal to the Jewish community in which Jesus, Peter and Paul have their spiritual formation. Our complacency with this transformative invitation to intimacy with the Son of God threatens to leave us on the sidelines of True Life.

Healing and thanksgiving

The texts today in the Roman Catholic Lectionary challenge us to get beyond our preconceptions and our preferences.  The psalmist proclaims the mighty hand and holy arm of God which delivers steadfast love and faithfulness to Israel so that the entire world will know the victory of the Lord. This victory is present in ways of healing and consolation which are opportunities for thanksgiving and invitations to go deeper into ourselves to our need for humility and openness to accept like Naaman in the episode from the Second Book of Kings that position and privilege can blind us from the truth that we are lepers who have been brought inside. The testimony of Paul to Timothy points to imprisonment and rejection as the experience of Paul through which he is brought to know that Roman citizenship and brilliant oratory, things for which he may express legitimate thanksgiving, are parts of his experience which bring him to the truth of his status as one outside the social order who is invited by Jesus to call others to life in their truth. Faithfulness to the Truth of our condition and calling strengthens our experience of Divine Providence. Father Larry Gilick SJ contemplates the difference between the nine lepers cured by Jesus who continue to Jerusalem and the one who returns to give thanks. This Gospel from Luke places healing and return to the status of “clean” in the context of Jesus instruction to the Pharisees, and the Christian community, to see, as Father Larry puts it “the calling all of humanity away from the leprosy of self-righteous pharisaic posturing”. Our healing is the visible surface which we may acknowledge and continue on “our way” to Jerusalem like the nine. Jesus also offers the freedom from “our way” which is experienced by the outsider, the Samaritan, who as he is shown the Truth of his transformation gives deep thanksgiving for the invitation to come inside knowing the humility which comes from his acknowledgement of his history of being “unclean”.

Making Present

The texts today from the Roman Catholic Lectionary orient us to our mission to bring joy and fullness by living in the Presence of God. The passages from the Book of Joel and the Psalms describe a Kingdom of the righteous which is filled with good things from Providence and in which those who have battled against the people of Israel are judged and justice is enacted. The response of the woman in the Gospel of Luke today as she blesses the Mother of Jesus for her birthing and nurturing role is used to illuminate our role, as Friar Jude Winkler comments, to make Jesus Present today and always by our hearing of His call to serve and surrender our will to the Will of God. The “yes” of Mary to the will of God is our continuous model of how to respond to the Word we hear. The Word continues to bring joy and fullness to life. 

Choices and judgement

A quote attributed to MartinBuber by the authors of Living with Christ, which notes that “The older we get, the greater becomes our inclination to give thanks, especially heavenwards” sets the stage for the attention getting proclamation of the Prophet Joel that the Day of the Lord when the neglect of God by the people of Israel will be judged by God is near. The psalmist today in the texts from the Roman CatholicLectionary expresses these two aspects of our understanding of God; praise for the wonders we experience through our life with others in His Creation and the need to be aware that the righteous must triumph at the time of judgement. The Hebrew Testament today exhorts us to penance, reflection on our sinful neglect of others, and fasting to restore our realization that our Life is in the Spirit of God. Friar Jude Winkler sees our need to recognize our lowliness and our need to move with Jesus as he continues to call us to our Jerusalem, which in the passage from the Gospel of Luke today, brings us to consider the decision we need to make to reject those influences which lead us away from deepening our relationship with Jesus and deciding to be with Him, working to put our spiritual house in order so that we will trust that His Presence is the exorcism of the evil which leads us to decide, as encouraged by the author ofDaily Exegesis, to align our lives with things of real value and structure which is essential for making good decisions.

Our prayer relationship

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today remind us of our situation which is that we are not God. We seem to have many ideas about how “our God” should behave. FriarJude Winkler suggests that we often have solutions for God to deal with the evil doers and those who the prophet Malachi identifies trumpet themselves proudly while ignoring the Law and Tradition or by cheating or disrespecting the religious practice in which we find spiritual growth. The time of judgement will be in the domain of God. We see the world and the gifts and talents of others from a human perspective. Tom Purcell at Creighton University recalls a teaching where our lives are compared to a beautiful tapestry woven with gifts and talents from God but we see the tapestry from the underside. The parables today from the Gospel of Luke encourage patience, perseverance and persistence in prayer.  Fr. Pierre Teilhard deChardin, SJ, is quoted “We are not human beings having a spiritual experience; we are spiritual beings having a human experience.” Our spiritual being is fed by continuous contact with God through the Spirit which is the gift of God to His children. Glenmary Home Missioner, Father Charlie, explores the exhortation of Paul to “pray always” as the disposition for a deep relationship with God. In this relationship, our direction will tend to be away from the evil doers presented by the psalmist and toward the trust of the prayerful that God always offers us the best for our lives in Him.

Give us

The psalmist in the texts today from the Roman Catholic Lectionary proclaims the deep desire and longing we have for relationship with God, who we experience to be the generous protector of all people. In the Book of Jonah we hear the dialogue between God and Jonah who is extremely upset that the evil people of Nineveh responded to the call of God and were forgiven. Friar Jude Winkler notes that our openness to forgive is often bounded. Some evil people, in our opinion, deserve punishment and death. The universalism that God presents to Jonah is that all people and life are the concern of the Divine. We are reminded by the Gospel of Luke today that relationship to God is sustained in prayer and communication about our decisions and how we live in the Kingdom of God. We free our concerns about the material and transitory as we praise Eternal Love and recommit ourselves to be active agents of Love and forgiveness in His Name. 

Tension and attention

The texts today from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today put some of the tensions in our lives before us. Friar Jude Winkler refers to the episode from the Book of Jonah as the “sign of Jonah” proclaimed by Jesus (Matthew 12:38-41). The striking response of the people of Nineveh to the preaching of Jonah points to a tendency we may share with the Pharisees that we have become complacent about the invitation to live in the Kingdom of God. When our ability to be on top of our game slips, we can get back in shape through practice. The phrase that we should practice our faith is not an appeal for increased religiosity and attending more services. It is the call to be open to see, hear, taste and smell the action of God in our lives through our interactions with people daily. In these interactions, we can find the opportunity to be in prayerful thankful contact with God as His Love is revealed as we journey through our Nineveh. The tension between living a necessary hospitality and busy schedule with people in our work, family and life and the call to know people as individual sons and daughters of God is brought to the forefront by Jesus reminder to Martha, in the Gospel of Luke today, that her lack of attention to the detail of the individual guests may mean that her intended hospitality is less that it could be. What are we to do? Which is our best choice? As with many tensions in life, it is not either/or but both.

Clarification and transformation

The lawyer in the account from the Gospel of Luke today in the Roman Catholic Lectionary addresses Jesus as he might someone in the legal profession seeking clarification about who is the neighbour referred to in the Great Commandment. We often try to parse the directions we understand as the intention of God into actions which apply to us and those which for some reason do not apply, today, in a particular context. The tendency in the stereotype of the lawyer to pick apart what should be a straightforward rule is often a behaviour which we both detest and practice. The text from the Book of Jonah is, according to Douglas Aronin, a very important part of the Jewish celebration of Yom Kippur. The message of Yom Kippur is an invitation to turn back to God. In our dealing with sin, we can engage in behaviour, like the lawyer which we both detest and practice. We attempt to satisfy our needs by manipulating our understanding of the Way of God so that we are exempt or have special status. Mary Lee Brock reflects on the grandfatherly nature of Jonah which her young children detected from this Bible story. He is a good man who is running away from the path which God desires for him and his righteousness. Jonah demonstrates the transformation of Yom Kippur and the trust Luke asks of his Christian audience to put his whole life in the hands of God as he gives himself to the sailors to be thrown into the sea. We hear the Shema and we may recall the Baltimore Catechism and our invitation from the Gospel of Luke is to welcome all those we encounter today as neighbour and trust that the life which flows from these encounters is guided by the Love of God.

Faith working in the wilderness

The texts today from the Roman Catholic Lectionary offer support and a plan for those times when it is necessary to concentrate to continue to put one foot in front of the other. Fr Robin Gibbons picks up the tension we experience between a society which seems to offer our entitlement to “15 minutes of fame” and the frequent affirmation of our good works with the traditional expectation that we have work to do as part of our membership in communities and our efforts are expected for the greater good of the family or community. Father Larry Gillick SJ recalls working at chores in his family. The response of his parents seemed to be pleasure in his decision to do what was expected of the oldest son in the family. Father Gibbons asks us to put the description of the duties of the slave to his master described in the Gospel of Luke in the context of the message of the Evangelist to reveal aspects of the Kingdom including the need for disciples to be free from the influence of power, wealth and pride. The heads down performance of our chores while we are extremely thankful for the grace of being a worker in His vineyard is the Spirit of love and self discipline which Timothy is reminded come to those in the service of God. The prayer of the psalmist that we do not harden our hearts in expectation of affirmation and praise will carry us through the difficulties which we may feel weight us down as the Prophet Habakkuk declares to God are troubling him as he views the attack on his people by foreign armies. Father Larry notes that often the seeds of destruction of the troublesome opponent are contained in the action they take. God reminds Habakkuk to “Look at the proud! Their spirit is not right in them, but the righteous live by their faith”( Habakkuk2.4).

Serve the Joy

The words of the psalmist today in the text from the Roman Catholic Lectionary present the image of God who cares deeply for His Children who find themselves in distress. We are encouraged to know that God desires our restoration to joy and fullness of Life. Friar Jude Winkler comments that the Prophet Baruch, who was taken into exile at the time of Jeremiah after serving as secretary and brave spokesperson for Jeremiah, is encouraging the people that God created them for His Joy and their fullness of life. The difficult times are opportunities to see how we can move into our own preoccupation with ourselves and miss the invitation which is accepted by the seventy two disciples, in the Gospel of Luke today, to serve God through the continued application of service with our gifts to others. In the faith and trust which is required to continue service in difficulty, we anticipate the deep joy which Jesus proclaims, some suggest by dancing in the Spirit, in the passage from Luke as He witnesses the transformation of His Disciples to workers in the vineyard of God in relationship with Father and Son through the Spirit. 

Woe and Know

The use of the word ”woe” in the way Jesus presents the consequences of the failure of the “Unrepentant Cites” to hear His message in the Gospel of Luke from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today may be quite unsettling. Friar Jude Winkler emphasizes that we too often take the gifts of God which we have received for granted. The feast today of Saint Francis of Assisi marks the life of a man who saw the gifts of God in all Creation and brought peace to others through lived experience of faith and goodness. The reflection of Baruch, in the passage from the Hebrew Testament, speaks a truth that we often miss. We bring the consequences of our selfishness and turning away from the plan of God for love upon ourselves. Some scholars have interpreted the “woe” of Jesus as His own sorrow for those who the Great Reversal, which John R. Barker, O.F.M. comments is thematic in the Gospel of Luke, will mean a drastic change in their circumstances. These consequences of failure to hear the invitation of Jesus to Love and peace will be brought upon ourselves as Baruch reflects as the understanding of the Babylonian captives five hundred years before Jesus is born.

Hunger for the Word

The psalmist from the texts of the Roman Catholic Lectionary today praises the life giving sweetness of the Word of God. Friar Jude Winkler tells of the gathering of the people of Jerusalem described in the Book of Nehemiah to listen to Ezra proclaim the Word of God from the Sacred Books of Moses. They are moved to understand the intimacy with the will of God that they have lost during their association with the pagan people. The leaders instruct them focus on the opportunity ahead for them to hear anew the Word of God and to accept Divine Love and mercy. When we begin a “new start” in our relationship with God, it is cause for rejoicing and Nehemiah and Ezra instruct their audience to praise God and celebrate. The Gospel from Luke outlines the instructions of Jesus to 72 disciples who are to go to people with the Good News of the nearness of the Kingdom of God in the person of Jesus. Luke wants the evangelist to show that they are entirely dependent on Providence for their mission. The people who hear the message they bring will find a resonance with the Love of God and will know peace in this intimacy that the disciple lives. Friar Jude reminds us that faith which opens ears, minds and hearts is a gift of God which is given differently to everyone. The rejection of the message of the disciple is to be expected by those who for whatever reason are not gifted, at this time, with the ears of faith. 

Angel Aid

The RomanCatholic Lectionary today brings texts which open our attention to angels. The exploration of angels in our society seems to tend to magical expectations which will be realized by believers in angels. Many Christians have experience of the action of God in their lives. Often this action is remembered as protection against harm or evil influence. Our thanksgiving for our situation as we review our journey in life brings to mind many scenarios when Providence prevailed for our good. Friar Jude Winkler offers our celebration of this intervention in our journey through the people and events which God has placed in our life. The Gospel today from Matthew is another passage about the difficulty of the disciples around greatness, place and position in the Kingdom of God. Dennis Hamm, S.J sees Jesus pointing to those who serve “the little ones” imitating the care of the Father as the greatest. The care of Yahweh for the Anawim is an ancient understanding. The Beatitudes in the Gospel of Matthew declare the “little ones” blessed. We encounter angelic relationship to God as we act to serve in response to His Will.

Truth is for all

The texts in the Roman Catholic Lectionary today, when we remember St. Therese of Lisieux, bring us into a very difficult area for some believers. Friar Jude Winkler comments that the history of salvation featured the growing understanding among the Jews, chosen people of the Covenant, that God is one. Monotheism is the belief in one God. The God of Israel is the God of all nations and as the passage from Zachariah and the praise of the psalmist indicate, all nations will seek to come to Jerusalem for the revelation of God. Rabbi Steven Blane is quoted on the web site of Sim Shalom as part of a collection of Biblical quotes presenting Jewish universalism. When we pursue the question of universalism in Christianity, we might start with the episode today from the Gospel of Luke. James and John are insulted by the rejection they receive in Samaria as they accompany Jesus in His journey to be the Revelation of God in Jerusalem. They react to the insult, Friar Jude notes, from a position of power, pride and privilege as people who have encountered an enemy. They have forgotten that Jesus, Messiah to Jews, is brother to all God’s children. Jesus rebukes His followers for their attitude. St Therese is quoted “You know, God that I have never wanted anything but to love you alone.” This phrase is a restatement of the core statement of the Jewish tradition: “Sh'ma Yisrael. The controversy over the mountain on which we worship and the days which we set aside as holy is trivial in comparison to the response of humanity to Divine Love. Research into Catholicuniversalism shows a traditional theme among Church Doctors, like St Therese, and within the teaching of Popes and Councils towards salvation for all. We need to hear, like James and John, that the grace of walking with Jesus missions us to welcome all who seek intimacy with God.