Saturday of the First Week of Lent
My dad is a dentist and has always been my dentist. One day I was sitting in his office getting a check-up when he said something along the lines of, “If you got a dental license you could probably just take over the business.” This sounded like a strange concept to me, to inherit the family business, but in a different time it would have been completely normal. Farmers raised farmers. Blacksmiths raised blacksmiths. Carpenters raised carpenters, which was likely true even as Joseph raised Jesus. This idea of the family business put a verse in today’s gospel into perspective.
Friday of the First Week of Lent
Thursday of the First Week in Lent
Today’s readings reiterate to us the power of prayer. We hear of Esther who begs the Lord to come to her rescue. In the psalm we sing “Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.” And finally, in the Gospel, Matthew reminds us that what we are to seek and to knock and then the Lord will respond. We cannot escape the message that God answers our prayers!
Wednesday of the First Week in Lent
The Lenten readings for today are a terrific reminder of the purpose of Lent. We called into a time of purification so that we might be transformed to live the Lord’s will for us more fully. In the first reading, Jonah decides to listen to the call of the Lord and to deliver the message from God to the people of Nineveh. Jonah proclaimed God’s warning to this pagan people. The prophecy declared, “Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed.” (Jonah 3:4b) Upon hearing this, the king of Nineveh declared a fast that man and beast alike would put on sackcloth and ashes and that everyone would turn from their evil. Here we recall the ashes we ourselves displayed last Wednesday.
Tuesday of the First Week of Lent
We’re barely a week into Lent and this about the time where I start wondering if I’m doing enough. I haven’t been giving up things over the past couple of years, opting instead to take on daily rosaries and going to daily mass when I can. I decided to do this a few years back when I realized that I was neglecting the “prayer” part of the fasting-praying-almsgiving program for Lent. I can’t say whether my “taking on” approach has been more fruitful than giving up something (usually a food or beer) but it’s helped me refocus.
Monday of the First Week of Lent
In today’s reading God tells us that we are to be “holy” like Him. God is love, and He calls us to love like Him. Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta had remarkable insight into holiness when she said, “Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.” When we do even the smallest things with love for others and for God, we allow our everyday experiences to become opportunities for growing in holiness.
First Sunday of Lent
To the modern mind, stories like the story of Noah raise many questions as it answers them. How could destroy all of creation? Is not a compassionate God? As we ask these questions, we must remember the book of Genesis was not written as an eye-witness account. Noah’s story is being narrated for a far bigger purpose. Whereas the story is a lesson on the destructive power of sin, it is even more importantly the story of God’s first covenant with humanity. God makes a promise with all of humanity that not destruction but rather salvation that will be the final word.
I would like to draw three connections that help us see the meaning of the story of Noah and the great flood.
Saturday after Ash Wednesday
Have you ever listened to a good homily, or convicting speech? From the outside it was apparent that you were listening attentively. You looked at the speaker, your head bobbed along in silent affirmation. Internally, you really paid attention, you took in the speaker’s every word. But every word passed through a filter that identified the person in your life who would benefit the most from hearing what you heard. Not a single word got past your mental mail sorter who filled up crates assigned to friends, family, and colleagues, while your mail tote remained empty. You walked from this event without the slightest indicator that it impacted your life, but with plenty of “notes” that you couldn’t wait to share with everyone in your life.
Friday after Ash Wednesday
Thursday after Ash Wednesday
As human beings, we don’t like suffering. For the most part our inclination is to avoid suffering. And yet it’s also part of our human experience and cannot be avoided. Sometimes we go to great lengths in attempting to avoid suffering. We try to avoid illness and harm to ourselves and loved ones and we try to prolong death and extend our lives as much as possible. Most of us, if given the choice each day, would choose life. Today’s readings talk about choosing life or death in a spiritual sense.
Ash Wednesday
Lent is upon us. This day we recall the fact that we are sinners and need conversion. In the Church ritual today, we are marked with the sign of the cross on our forehead using ashes. This cross recalls the sign of the cross we received on our forehead at baptism. That original cross claimed us for Christ, and began our journey as members in the Body of Christ. Today’s cross is penitential in nature and reminds us both of our own sinfulness, as well as our need for conversion.
Tuesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
My first car was a ‘95 Ford Escort station wagon that I bought with 139,000 miles on the odometer. It was only 4 years, old, and I really liked that car. It seemed to drive forever without breaking down. But ten years later, with rusted out strut towers, big dents from two wrecks, a list of nagging mechanical problems, and 296,000 miles, it was time to admit there was nothing else I could do to keep this vehicle drivable. God seems to feel the same way in today’s reading about humanity’s state just before the flood. But we all didn’t just get junked and crushed like my old car. God had a different plan. This story contains the truth about how God responds to our sinfulness. It’s less about a big floating boat full of animals, and more about how God refuses to give up on our good side (even when it’s really small).
Monday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
What do you expect from God? This may seem an odd question, but have you ever asked this of yourself? If you do nothing else today, ask yourself this question. I think my expectations of God are often very low. I go through the day taking care of what is scheduled on my calendar and, if nothing unexpected happens, I end the day feeling that everything is okay. I look for God in the little things pretty often. I try and do the right thing and always take time to reflect a Scripture that has struck me. I even spend time in silence trying to listen to God. But there is always so much more.
Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Just when we think we have been surprised enough by Pope Francis, he gave us yet another one. Last Sunday, before he said mass at a local parish on the outskirts of Rome, he made a surprise visit to a shanty town. Most of the people were immigrant refuges from Peru and Ecuador, Eritrea, Ukraine, Russia, and other parts of the world. His love for these ordinary folks and their affection for him – it is amazing to watch. I watched the video and felt my eyes filling up. This man is changing the meaning of the papacy, of the church, of what it means to be a Christian in today’s world. Perhaps, the Pope is teaching us to be human again.
Memorial of Saints Cyril, Monk, and Methodius, Bishop
Have you ever made a decision that led to difficulties for others? Maybe, no one knows your involvement. You could even be in the dark about the consequences for weeks, months, or years. Then comes a pivotal moment of choice. Seeing the consequences, you can alleviate some of the difficulties you caused, but you will begin to reveal your level of responsibility. Do you step in and possibly face scorn and reproach? Do you leave it quietly between you and God hoping you never have to explain your silence and inaction? These are the thoughts triggered in me by today’s readings.
Friday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
There was a time in my life (my teenage years) when I was "sure" I would not get married, for a variety of reasons. Marriage seemed too scary because of its long-term commitment; marriage meant I would have to think about another person besides myself and that seemed difficult; marriage seemed too "adult." When I eventually meet someone and decide to marry, I remember having a conversation with a friend about a week before the wedding. I told my friend it was still difficult to imagine being married - the largeness and longevity of the expectations of marriage seemed overwhelming. To this day, I remember her answer word for word: "But Jana, you can imagine being married to Joel, right?" In that instant, all my fears went away and I felt at peace. My perception of marriage changed. Marriage, as an abstract institution, was indeed scary. But marriage to a specific person, the specific person that I knew and loved - that I could see.
Thursday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
Today’s readings speak to me of the deep need we all have for a loving and challenging community. In the first reading from Genesis it is very obvious that God is telling us of our need for community. We hear that it is not right for man to be alone, that we are not made to live this life in isolation. Rather, we are made to share this earth and this life with those around us. We are called to be companions for one another.
Wednesday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
Almost every culture has creation stories. The reading from Genesis today begins our second creation story. This inspired story looks at the act of all creation as it relates to humanity. What is so powerful from the readings imagery is that the original sculptor, God, forms a creature from the earth and breaths life into the unanimated form. Thus humanity came into existence. This breath of life may be understood as the Holy Spirit, also it might be seen as a scriptural reference for God infusing humanity with soul.
Memorial of Saint Scholastica, Virgin
Today’s first reading is the end of the first creation narrative in Genesis. It’s the one with the long list of the six days of creation, which we usually hear at the Easter vigil. Genesis 1 always reminds me of a television show which was on a few years ago called Planet Earth. It presented all of the world’s ecosystems and showed so many creatures in great detail. It’s a beautiful series, and a great reminder of the beauty of the earth. It’s remarkable that the ancient peoples who composed Genesis had a similar imagination of their world! They knew that their world was beautiful and that it was created by God. More than that, they knew that God had given the world to humans to care for it.
Monday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
There are many days when I get up in the morning and I bustle around all day long until I collapse in bed at night. When I read today’s reading, the word “scurrying” caught my attention, since there are many days when I think I “scurry” around trying to get everything accomplished. Although the people in today’s scripture hurry around, they have a “holy” purpose. They are busy about bringing the healing touch of Jesus to as many people as possible. I am reminded that even in my busyness, I am called to bring Christ to all those that I encounter in the day. If I get too caught up in the doing, I neglect the importance of being Christ for others. It is with Christ that I can accomplish all that He calls me to do and with Him I can touch others to share His healing and love.