Four dimensions and conflict

The psalmist proclaims that the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord and the texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today address some of the conflict which arises from this belief. The prayer of Paul as recorded by the author of the Letter to the Ephesians is that we become open to the Divine Plan of salvation which immerses us in Love through Christ and the indwelling Spirit. Friar Jude Winkler tells of how this message strikes out against the Gnostic heretics who understood fullness in a very different way. The Gospel from Luke states clearly that the acceptance of Jesus proclamation of the Kingdom of God will refine and purify His followers. Friar Jude explains that the consequence of acting in the Spirit of the goodness of the Lord in our daily life will bring crosses which will even come from family members who misunderstand our work in the vineyard as trivial, misdirected, being taken advantage of, deluded, not realistic, too passive and inappropriate in a world where there are winners and losers.

Live with faith and love eternally

The Household listens for the Master

In the Household listening for the Master

The ideals of peaceful communion and life lived well are set before us from the texts in the Roman Catholic Lectionary today. The letter to the Ephesians proclaims that the Gentiles, who did not know the salvation history of the Jews, are called by Jesus to join the communion which sets aside the differences between peoples. Friar Jude Winkler describes the Household of God wherein we no longer seek God in the Temple but we encounter the Spirit in ourselves and others. The reality of our finite time in our earthly existence is brought to our attention by the Gospel from Luke. Friar Jude describes the peaceful anticipation of the final judgement through living daily with the goal of leaving nothing unsaid or nothing undone. This is a tall order. We are not alone as we journey in our transformation to deeper intimacy with God. Craig Zimmer encourages us to listen and we may hear the echo of the master’s footsteps, in the here and now.

Living with excess... giving with grace

Our greed is our life

Our choices about what we carry from this life to the next are a topic of reflection from the texts of the Roman Catholic Lectionary today. The letter to the Ephesians reminds us of death like existence of being slaves to our passions with our transgressions dominating our concern. The text points to the free gift of salvation which manifests itself, as Friar Jude comments, in a life of vitality in Christ which will transition to the next life by falling asleep in the Lord. The Gospel from Luke challenges the degree of our complete dependence upon God when greed seems to be our strong motivator. Don Schwager meditates on the reality that our treasure is the thing upon which we most set our hearts. The parable from Luke encourages Jay Carney to remind us that a typically northern and western desire to choreograph our lives may take us away from the living our fundamental dependency on God and each other. The social message which we fail to hear is that our excess is gift from God and that gift is to be shared with those who have less.

On a mission acting with faith, hope and love