Friday of the First Week In Ordinary Time
Today's first reading (Hebrews 4:1-5, 11) seems to proclaim something odd: that we have to strive for eternal rest. The Hebrews passage seems very busy, with constant commands to work for our rest, and that struck me as rather contradictory at first; how can working so hard for something make me feel rested or make me want to rest? I know from experience that when I've put a lot of energy into doing something, my adrenaline gets going and it is harder to rest. I have a new baby at home, and one of the first things the pediatricians told me was that sleep begets sleep. So a new parent wants to aim for good naps during the day because that will lead to good sleep at night as well.
Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time
One image that stands out today from our first reading and responsorial psalm is that of hardening the heart. Even in our culture today, thousands of years after Psalm 95 (our psalm for the day) was written, we know what it means to say that someone has a “hard heart.” The image of heart indicates something that is intimate; just think of how we say we “give our heart” to the ones we love – or think of the popularity of hearts as we approach Valentine’s Day.
But it may be that we don’t always know when we are starting to harden our hearts. It can be a gradual process, particularly as we start to grow in self-sufficiency and fail to recognize our dependence on God. One of the hallmarks of sin is that it indicates a kind of self-sufficiency; it’s a way of saying that we think we know a better way than God knows. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the stories of the Old Testament, where the people of Israel are constantly struggling to be faithful to God and yet erecting their own idols, imaging the gods of other nations, such as Egypt. In our first reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Hebrews, he quotes Psalm 95, which is in reference to the people depending on other gods and hardening their hearts toward the one true God.
In contrast, consider our gospel passage from Mark. “If you wish, you can make me clean,” are the words of the leper (Mk 1:1). Those first words, “if you wish” are crucial here. This leper is not trying to bend God’s will to his will; rather he is submitting to God’s will (unlike the people of Israel who believed they could be self-sufficient by depending on other gods). “If you wish” is a prayer of hope and faith because the leper knows that Jesus has the power to heal him. But it is also a prayer of love because the leper is not trying to control Jesus. In such a situation, the leper could be selfish, but here he is really selfless, the picture of humility as he kneels before Jesus and begs. And after his healing, he cannot keep the miracle to himself; his love drives him to tell others of the power of Jesus. He is an evangelist, encouraging others to believe as he believed and to bring others to Christ.
In this season of Ordinary Time, when we count our weeks with the Lord, we must strive every day to submit ourselves to his will and to accept God for who God is – not a lucky charm, not a divine therapist, not a moral sage – but the divine Trinity who is our beginning and our end. We are not supposed to use God. We are supposed to let God use us. Today, let us contemplate on the words “if you wish.” May all our prayers today begin with these words that we may not harden our hearts to the God who is our very source of life and being.
Maria Morrow
Wednesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time
Have you ever held a conversation with another person in your mind? Maybe it was rehearsing something that needed said or simply making a mental note of a thought that needed to be shared with a spouse, a child or even a friend. In my mind, the practiced conversations or mental notes are as if I had the actual conversation. This however turns out to be unhelpful when I realize that the words haven’t been spoken out loud and the other person is left in the dark.
Tuesday of the First Week In Ordinary Time
The question the unclean man asks in today's gospel (Mark 1:21-28) is one I think many people might secretly ask themselves today: have you come to destroy us? People are often affected by Christian messages in a negative way and might well see Christianity as out to destroy them. For instance, people often complain about how stupid Christian teaching against premarital sex is because the common modern assumption is that sex is beautiful as long as two people are in love - marriage isn't necessary. "Have you come to destroy us and our love?" people might ask Jesus. Both Genesis and Jesus proclaim that marriage and sex are about being unified in one flesh, and being fruitful and having children (see Genesis 1-2 and Mark 2:2-10). For Jesus, it is the long-lasting unity of the couple that matters more than love, especially the fleeting kinds of love we tend to revere in romantic movies and valentines. While the teaching against premarital sex bothers many, isn't there also some truth in the teaching? Many are hurt by unattached casual sex because they thought sex signified something more serious than the other person thought; or because a one-night stand led to a pregnancy or an STD (or both) and so drastically change lives, but without a lifelong promise of fidelity to accompany the hard times.
Monday of the First Week in Ordinary Time
Christmas is finally over, and we now begin the season that is referred to as “Ordinary Time.” The “Ordinary” of Ordinary Time is not, however, contrasted with the “Extraordinary” (there is no season called “Extraordinary Time”). Rather, the word Ordinary refers to the ordinal numbers. In other words, this is a season where we count our time, and the season is named for the fact that we count our time. We might make a comparison to newborn babies or wedding anniversaries. When a baby is born, we count the weeks, telling people that the baby is “three weeks” old or “three months old.” But those words do not simply indicate numbers; they also indicate how long we have been together. We have taken care of the baby, tending to the baby, for three weeks or three months. It has been three weeks since that child came into our lives to change our world forever. Likewise, when a couple is married, they count the years of their marriage. To be married five years or fifty years indicates more than just time that has passed. It indicates how we have spent that time, loving and being loved by another person through good times and bad.
The Feast of the Baptism of the Lord
The baptism of Jesus is such a powerful story. It is a Father-Son love story. It is the story of the deepest bond that can exist between a loving parent and a deeply loved child. It is the love story of redemption. The baptism of Jesus will prepare him to take upon himself the most difficult task in all of human history – the redemption of the human race. Both the Father and the Son know what awaits them. And so there is a certain poignancy about the baptism of Jesus. The Father embraces the Son through the Holy Spirit, the Son embraces the Father in the Spirit knowing all that is to come. This is the “eternal embrace.” The Father claims the Son and the Son will confess the Father. “This is my beloved Son,” the Father said. The Son would just say, “Abba.” The baptism is an experience of intimacy.
Saturday after Epiphany
“He must increase; I must decrease.” These words of John the Baptist at the end of today’s gospel are the mantle of Christian humility. We know that John the Baptist came before Jesus and baptized his followers, always speaking of one greater who will come and baptize with the Holy Spirit. Indeed, earlier in the Gospel of John, John the Baptist pointed to Jesus and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God” (Jn 1:36). According to all of our sources, John had quite a following in first century Palestine. One could imagine that as such a renowned figure, he would be tempted to draw all of the attention to himself. Yet, by God’s grace he humbly fulfilled his role as the one who prepares the way of Jesus. John the Baptist becomes one of the most profound examples of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus – a disciple is one who always directs attention to the Master. Despite John’s important role in God’s plan, he didn’t think himself worthy even to untie Jesus’ sandal straps (Jn 1:27).
Friday after Epiphany
In my preschool room, this is the time of year when we start to talk about the mystery of life and death. This is partly because it is the middle of winter when things appear dead, but relatively soon the children will be seeing the first shoots of green under the snow on tree branches- and partly because we are preparing, even in January, for Lent and Easter and the big celebration of Jesus' life, death and resurrection, and our own victory over death in Jesus Christ.
Thursday after Epiphany
We often hear of a supposed “holiday spirit.” From Thanksgiving to Christmas, people seem to be in good moods. They smile more often, they rejoice in giving and receiving gifts, they donate to the poor, they hum Christmas carols, and they even endure the cold and darkness with the expectation of cozy fires and fun family time. Now that Christmas has ended, however, everyone goes back to being their whiney, grumpy, old selves.
Memorial of Saint John Neumann, bishop
I was initially confounded by the readings, especially in trying to ascertain their connection with today’s Saint. St. John Neumann is one of those saints that you admire from the outset. He loved being a server at Mass and entered the seminary at age 20. While there, he became fluent in eight languages and well versed in theology and botany. After seminary, John Neumann left for the United States as there was an overabundance of priests in Europe. He was ordained in New York City. Later, John went to Pittsburgh where he joined the Redemptorists. Pius IX appointed him the fourth Bishop of Philadelphia, a position he reluctantly accepted under vow of obedience. John Neumann is well remembered for the 100 parishes and 80 Catholic schools he founded. He may best be remembered for his humility, perseverance and his untiring work to build the Kingdom of God.
Memorial of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, religious
I have sometimes struggled with how to talk about the gospel message of Christianity with non-believers. In presenting Christianity to others I find that what often comes up in conversation is the commonly repeated “God is love.” This is undoubtedly a true statement; yet by now it has become trite, and by itself it is not very informative or helpful by itself at expressing what Christians believe to be the case about God. What does it mean to say that God is love? How is God love? The answer to these questions is contained in the first reading in the lectionary for today: we understand God’s love through God’s gift of himself in the person of Jesus Christ.
Monday After Ephiphany
It may feel to us that Christmas is already over. The pre-Christmas shopping frenzy has been changed into a post-Christmas clearance shopping. Gifts have been exchanged, family gatherings have happened, and now the world moves on to the next holiday. In our Church, however, we continue to celebrate Christmas – that wondrous even that brought our savior to us as a humble babe.
Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord
A couple of weeks back I drew a contrast between Ahaz and Joseph. I had said that whereas Ahaz was playing games with God, Joseph had shown incredible capacity for fidelity and trust in God. Today, I want to contrast King Herod and the wise kings/men that came from afar. There are many points on which Herod and the wise men differ.
Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God
In today’s gospel, after the shepherds arrive at the manger and deliver the message that they had heard from the angels—that the Messiah has been born and is lying in a manger—we are told that Mary “kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart” (Lk 2:19).
The Seventh Day in the Octave of Christmas
In our culture, we seem to have a stigma against the phenomenon of regifting, believing that every gift ought to be entirely new, entirely bought or made for us, or it can't really be "ours." It's the joke that gets played on many sitcoms and earns a lot of laughs. Some regifts are even true: I'm reminded of a story a friend of mine told me once about giving a fancy lamp as a wedding gift to some friends of hers. "They must not have liked it," she said. "When I got married a couple years later, I got the exact same lamp." My friend wasn't all that offended actually, and like the sitcoms, it became a good story and a good laugh.
The Sixth Day in the Octave of Christmas
Jesus can sometimes seem far away from us, a kind of abstract concept, or a spiritual being. Even at Christmas time, it is possible to get caught up in the sentimental notions of Christianity and forget that what Christmas means is that God was here on earth, in the flesh. Jesus is not some warm, fuzzy feeling, nor is Jesus some kind of Spirit of Christmas past. No, Jesus is for real. Real God who took on real human flesh.
The Fifth Day in the Octave of Christmas
The first reading (1 John 2: 3-11) makes a connection between two themes not related anywhere else in the scriptures – light/darkness and brotherly love/hatred. John is very logical as he lays out what he terms a “new commandment” (1 Jn 2:8). He begins by suggesting that relationship with God (John calls it ‘knowing’ God: 1 Jn 4-5) necessarily involves keeping the commandments/word. Then he proceeds to suggest that the commandment he is talking about is the commandment of love. Finally, he draws the connection between light/darkness and brotherly love/hatred. The seriousness of John’s final statement must not be missed: “Whoever hates his brother is in darkness” (1 Jn 2: 11a). The source of this darkness lies inside the human person – an internal blindness caused by a refusal to be obedient to the commandment of love (1 Jn 2: 11b) The bottom line is this – all hatred as darkness is incompatible with the light of Christian life.
Feast of the Holy Innocents, martyrs
I have always been struck by the imagery of light that surrounds the great feasts of the Christian year, particularly Christmas. There is something about the candles lit throughout advent that brings about a sense of wonder and expectation of something great to follow. As the days become shorter and shorter in November and December, the advent candles are a sign of the power of God to overcome darkness. The Christ candle lit on Christmas day is the culmination of this and it speaks of God’s dwelling with us in the person of Jesus Christ (Immanuel). At Easter too, we use the metaphor of light to symbolize Jesus Christ’s presence in the world. This is seen in the lighting of the Easter candle at the beginning of the Easter vigil liturgy.
Feast of Saint John, Apostle and evangelist
For many in our world, Christmas has come and gone. But for those of us who are Catholic, the celebrating continues. And how appropriate that today we celebrate the feast of St. John, the Apostle and Evangelist. As both one of the Twelve and the author of the Gospel of John as well as 1 and 2 John and the book of Revelation, St. John is for us a model of the great and complete joy that we ought to have as Christmas continues.
Today is the feast of the Holy Family. Where does its sanctity the family come from? While we can trace the history of the feast to the eighteenth century, the sanctity of the family comes from the fact that at creation God gave man and woman as companions to each other and gave them the gift of procreation. The family is God’s creation as much as human kind is. The family is as much in the image and likeness of God as human beings are. We know God as family, as community: the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. That is the image of every family. Its sanctity also emerges from the fact that of all the innumerable ways God had to be incarnated in the world and in our lives, he chose the family. Jesus was born into a family and grew up in a family. By that choice God reiterates the sanctity of the human family.