July 26, 2015

17^th Sunday in Ordinary Time B

2 Kings 4: 42-44; Ephesians 4: 1-6; John 6: 1-15

Am I aware of the gifts God has blessed me with? Am I grateful? Do I realize that my gifts are to be shared? When I look to share my gifts am I just looking in certain areas that I know I am talented or do I let the Lord surprise me with making me aware of ‘more’ of His gifts? When I begin to give in these areas that I’m unsure of, I am very dependent on God to ‘do His miracles’ and I am the willing sharer. I have found that the deep truth in this last sentence has brought me consistently closer to God’s love for all His people and specifically how He is using me to be His instrument of love and care. The readings help me understand God’s gifts and my sharing of these gifts.

The first reading from the second book of Kings depicts a ‘miracle’ time in Elisha’s life. Elijah picked out Elisha when he was plowing the fields to be his attendant. The interesting story of Elijah being taken up to heaven in a ‘flaming chariot’ in a whirlwind and Elisha picking up his mantle and continuing his mission of prophecy is found in 2 Kings chapter 2. Today Elisha is brought twenty barley loaves as an offering. He was serving God at a time of drought in the Israel. God had withheld rain from the land so that the kings would turn back to Him. Elisha was preaching that God was the source of all good and the sustainer of all His people. Today, a person brings these loaves from a place bearing the name of the Canaanite god Baal. It seems that this person realizes that he owes thanks to the God of Elisha for providing the first fruits and the fresh grain. Elisha reflects on the graciousness of God and is about to share these loaves when a servant objects saying that the loaves are so small and will not be enough for so large a crown. Elisha uses this opportunity to teach them and me that as long as they rely on God first, they will lack nothing. All one hundred people are fed and leftovers are gathered.

Jesus said repeatedly that what I have been given as a gift I should share as a gift. Paul is in prison where he is writing the Ephesians to encourage unity among them and to build up their faith. He shares that all people are called to live in peace and to practice every virtue. He provides a strong dose of reality to us when he preaches patience and living with each other in love. We are to be one in Christ…to be Christ to others. This unity just doesn’t happen, we have to work on it. It’s a question I have to ask myself all the time, how am I reaching this goal in my life? God has chosen each person to be Him to the world. To do this I have to be humble, gentle, patient and understanding. No matter how small or large my gift, am I using them to build up Christ? Are my gifts making a difference in showing others how to live in love?

Jesus, as always, brings out this gift-sharing in a wonderful way. John’s gospel shares an incredible miracle that relies on a young child’s gifts which strengthen my faith and sharing. Regardless of who I am or what little I have, I should never think that I have nothing to give. God fills every void.

A little background: the feeding of the multitude is the only miracle (John prefers the word sign) that is found in all four Gospels. (Matthew 14: 13-21; Mark 6: 32-44; Luke 9: 10-17; and here in John 6: 1-13). Matthew and Mark include an additional feeding miracle while Jesus is in Gentile territory. John’s gospel today includes interesting details. The loaves are made of barley, just as in the story from Elisha today. The people are told to recline which is the position one would take at a dinner table. The Synoptic Gospels envision a picnic where all sit. The event looks back to a time during the Exodus where the Hebrew’s are fed in the desert. It also looks toward the Last Supper and the establishment of the Eucharistic meal. Now John does not depict the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper, rather, later in this chapter, he will present Jesus as describing Himself as the bread of life (John 6:22-59). “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is My flesh for the life of the world.”

I found a very interesting reflection on this gospel in Living the Word, “St. John Chrysostom, who lived in the last half of the fourth century, raised an interesting question in connection with the feeding of the multitudes. Why didn’t Jesus simply create food out of thin air rather than multiply the food that was there? After all, the bread and fish were pretty simple fare, lowbrow food—not unlike saltines and canned sardines. Could Jesus, who in John’s Gospel is depicted as the one through whom all things were made, not have conjured up something more exciting for the gathered multitude? Chrysostom responds to his own question, saying that it was because Jesus wished to use, ‘the creation itself as a groundwork for his marvels (Homily 42 on the Gospel of John). Rather than create something anew, Jesus takes what is already at hand and transforms it by multiplying it. And in doing this, Jesus is teaching us two things.

First, he is reminding us that creation itself is already miraculous, Jesus works miracles not to convince us that God can, on occasion, do extraordinary things, but to awaken us to the fact that God does an extraordinary thing—holding our world in existence—all the time. The ongoing existence of our world is the greatest of God’s mighty acts, and the miracles of Jesus should reinforce this truth and not undercut it.

Second, he is showing us that the way God works in the world is not by discarding the ordinary realities of creation and substituting for them something new and different, but rather by taking what is already at hand and transforming it. As an old adage of Catholic theology puts it, grace perfects and does not destroy nature. Just as Christ use the simple food provided by a boy to fee the multitude, so too he can use the simple substance of our daily lives to do His work in the world. We might look at our lives and ask, like Andrew in today’s Gospel, ‘What good is this for so many?’ But today’s Gospel shows us that it is good enough, if Christ takes it and blesses it.”

So I reflect on:

• Do I appreciate the miraculous nature of my daily life? Am I grateful for all the miracles I witness and am a participant in each day? What hinders me from seeing these miracles?

• When have I seen God use ordinary things and events to do something extraordinary?

“Do I realize that Eucharist is possible only when:

• self defers to community
• serving others is exalted over being served
• differences dissolve and the common and shared are honored above all else?”

Sacred Space 2015 shares:

“I enter in imagination into this amazing scene. I share Philip’s puzzlement; I watch the little boy as he gives up the lunch his mother made for him. I gaze at Jesus as He prays, then as He breaks the bread and the fish. It takes so long to feed everyone, but He is smiling as He works.

Jesus fills my empty and grubby hands, too, and I look into His eyes and thank Him.”

July 19, 2015

16^th Sunday in Ordinary Time B

Jeremiah 23: 1-6; Ephesians 2: 13-18; Mark 6: 30-34

In looking and reflecting on the readings today, my initial reaction was that they were a little disjointed. Maybe individually there were some points that could lead to deeper reflection, but overall it would be a little hard to find a common denominator. But there is a message and a deep one, I’m glad that I took the time to see what was written and what passages were ‘omitted.’

Jeremiah’s constant ‘sermon’ was to challenge the kings of Judah to rule the people by God’s standards. They were successors of David, thus their task was to serve God as ‘good shepherds’ leading the people deeper in their faith commitment to God. “I will appoint shepherds…who will shepherd the people so that they need no longer fear and tremble…these shepherds will reign and govern wisely.” But the kings turned not to the Lord but to Egypt for security and built their palaces with all the comforts of the pharaohs had. In doing this they focused on their own comforts, ignoring the poor. Today Jeremiah is condemning their spiritual failures. He tells us God will step forward to act and this ‘divine good shepherd’ will care for the flock. They have been scattered to so many lands, but God will bring them back and love them.

Paul goes deeper into this theme by saying that Jesus came to unite all: the Jews who were near and the Gentiles who were far off. Jesus did this by dying for all on the cross. All are to live together in mutual love and peace.

The sixth chapter of Mark starts out by showing how Jesus was rejected by his home town people so much so that “He was not able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from curing a few sick people by laying His hands on them. He was amazed at their lack of faith.” (v 1-6)

Then Jesus sends the Twelve out to continue the work He had started. “So they went off and preached repentance. They drove out many demons, and the anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.” (v 7-13) One would guess that today’s gospel would follow immediately since it begins, “The apostles gathered together with Jesus and reported all they had done and taught.”

Instead are 15 verses that ‘come out of nowhere.’ Maybe it could be titled, ‘What Jesus did while the apostles were away’. But it goes into a deeper message. The narrative recounts a very vivid story of the murder of John the Baptist. Is it just about John the Baptist or does it also inform us of the suffering and opposition that awaits each Christian. The ‘Herod’ described is ‘Herod Antipas’, the son of Herod the Great. In Luke’s gospel, Jesus calls him ‘that fox.’ Also Luke tells us how Jesus, after Pilate’s interrogation, sent Jesus to Herod who agrees in His execution. In this ‘interlude’, Herod Antipas thinks that Jesus is John the Baptist whom he beheaded…was he somehow raised from the dead and is now haunting Herod? Mark describes the banquet that led to John’s murder. The Roman banquets routinely closed with dancing. Imagine a Herodian princess dancing at such a dinner. What father would allow his daughter or step-daughter to dance for a bunch of drunks? And the dancing so pleased him that he promises on an oath to give her whatever she asks for, ‘even half of my kingdom.’ A leading Marcan scholar, Dr. Bonnie Bowman Thurston, in Preaching Mark writes, “Mark could hardly have made the John/Jesus parallel clearer. Both John and Jesus are martyred by rulers who recognize their goodness but are too weak, too influenced by popular opinion, to act on their behalf. But official opposition cannot stop God’s plan of salvation (a message not lost on Mark’s community which suffered Roman persecution). As the proverb goes, the church flowers from the blood of its martyrs.”

Today’s passage begins with the apostles’ return. Mark always describes Jesus as being compassionate. He knows they must be worn out from their travels and preaching and now He invites them to come to a ‘deserted place’ or uninhabited place. This ‘word’ has come to be identified with the theme of ‘desert spirituality’ (a place where people go to meet God or where God chooses to appear). AND before they could begin their hiatus, the crowds had found them and Jesus “was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and He began to teach them many things.” The compassionate Jesus saw that they were tired and hungry and asked the disciples “give them some food yourselves.” The next ten verses (34-44) describe the feeding of the five thousand with the five loaves and two fish.

We look at the sixth chapter as a whole: Jesus returns to His home town…the people no doubt proud of Him…He was now famous…They knew all about Him…but they were unwilling to see God in Him and to listen to the message of God He brought. Their faith was weak…they believed what they wanted. Jesus commissioned the Twelve to be ‘apostles’ … those SENT… He blessed them and gifted them. Then the narrative is interrupted with the story of John the Baptist and Herod and the bottom line the people believed what they wanted and followed the popular opinion and John was murdered. Then the twelve returned so very enthusiastic and excited because they did what they had been told. Jesus said ‘let’s go and reflect and be thankful and the crowds followed. Jesus as always the teacher and the compassionate one told the apostles to feed the people. We don’t have enough food. What is the food they are to share? We had the Roman banquet and the Jesus banquet…one of receiving and filling oneself; the other of sharing and caring.

Dr. Thurston helps with a deep reflection: “In an overworked, stressed out, and consequently burned-out world (and church!) It is important to highlight those places in scripture where Jesus invites, in fact, commands His followers to withdraw and to rest. Solitude and rest are not “icing” or ‘extras.” They are the very environment from which fruitful ministry grows. Verses 35-37 (chapter 6) are stark reminders of what happens when they are ignored; Jesus’ disciples can find themselves at odds with what He wants them to do….If people are hungry, Jesus expects His disciples to do something about it: ‘you give them something to eat’. If what we provide is not to be the spiritual equivalent of ‘junk food,’ then we must have deepened ourselves through the ‘withdrawal’ described in v. 31. But it is more serious than this. We are not only the ones commanded to feed, but we are the ones who are ‘taken, blest, broken, and given’ to feed. Sometimes we, like the disciples’, are called to meet serious, human needs at just the point we find ourselves at the very ‘end of our ropes’ physical and spiritually. And precisely then we become the body of Christ, as in our brokenness, we are blest and given to others.”

Sacred Space 2015 says: “Jesus cares about me and invites, too, to come away and rest a while. If I can go to a ‘deserted place’ occasionally, it will allow my soul to catch up. Otherwise, as T.S. Eliot says, I have the experience of God’s action in my life, but miss its meaning because I don’t give time to reflection.”

July 12, 2015

15^th Sunday in Ordinary Time B

Amos 7: 12-15; Ephesians 1: 3-14; Mark 6: 7-13

After reflecting on the readings today, I came up with a question that is good for me to spend time with:

I am called by God to be …………….!

I could immediately fill in this blank and then go on to the next question…but this is the only question! Then in realizing it is the only question I would come to the apparent response for me which would be ‘a priest.’ Others may take this question and respond that they are called by God to be a parent…a mother…a father…a spouse…a doctor…a nurse…an engineer…a designer…a computer programmer…a teacher…a student…a neighbor…a friend…a brother…a sister…a deacon…a religious…and the list continues. Some may stop and think that they have to be multiple ‘people’ depending on the situation and circumstances. Yet each of us is called by God to be one thing before all the rest.

The readings today present different situations for the individuals involved, each one being ‘called’ by God. Amos had no intention of being a prophet. He already had two jobs, one as a shepherd and the other as a tender of sycamore trees. I imagine he needed both jobs to support his family. He presents the situation to Amaziah a priest of Bethel saying that he rejects the title of prophet. He did not belong to the ‘professional prophet class’ and he received no money or stipend He is not a trained seer. He was called by God to announce devastating oracles against the northern kingdom of Israel. He was not at all popular in that region. He felt overwhelmed with this task. Which leads to another searching question for me:

What criteria do I use to discern when to accept or reject a call to service?

Down through the years, I have been asked to do many things: serving on committees, talking on a responsibility, etc. My problem is that I almost always say, ‘Yes’. I don’t feel I’m alone in this: you have been called to a volunteer part-time (it’s never part time); to be on a neighborhood committee, to take a new place at work in a new division, to baby sit the grandkids, to watch over a neighbor’s house, etc. So often ‘yes’ is given because we feel it is a summons from the Lord.

The time has arrived for the apostles. They had been listening to Jesus, watching His miracles, seeing how He cares for all people and is delivering God’s message. They had already been specifically chosen to be ‘apostles’. Now Jesus is sending them out to preach repentance and to anoint with oil those who were sick and to cure. And they were to take no food, backpack, or money. Did they feel qualified for this? I’m sure they didn’t. Mark doesn’t tell this but I’m sure there were loads of questions: how do I do this…what if there is opposition…what if the authorities interfere…what if…what if….and I’m really uncomfortable with this. The good part is that they go out in two’s…but did they like the one they were going with? Who did Judas go with…how about Thomas who always doubted things…or Peter the impetuous one. Today’s question is a direct question for each of them: I am called by God to be....!

Paul is sharing with the Ephesians how he and each person has been blessed with every spiritual blessing. And Paul helps each one of us with ‘our question’. God has chosen each one of us. God has chosen each one of us before the foundation of the world. He has chosen each of us to live at this time in this place. He has gifted each one of us and continues to gift us with everything that we need to be His people of love. He gave us Jesus to be our model and the Holy Spirit to continue to grace and help us. And Paul answers our question:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with very spiritual blessing in the heavens, and He chose us in Him, before the foundation of the world, to BE HOLY and without blemish before Him.”

Alice Camile in Exploring the Sunday Readings shares these words, “Maybe you’d say no to being a prophet, if the celestial text inviting you to the role arrived on your smartphone today. (Perhaps you’d say yes if you got the text despite the fact that you have a rotary phone!) Not everyone is summoned to prophecy, as St. Paul notes in describing the spiritual gifts in the twelfth chapter of First Corinthians. So most of us can breathe a sigh of relief for being spared.

But every person who bears the name Christian is called to be holy. Before the dawn of creation, according to Ephesians, God anticipated that life in Christ would sanctify us in a way that would make our identity apparent before the world. How are we doing so far?

‘In Him’ -- that oft-repeated phrase in this letter which leads us to recognize that life in Christ is a whole new state of affairs – we’re blessed, chosen, destined, redeemed, forgiven, enlightened, and sealed with the Spirit. All of us are ‘in Him,’ included in this vital citizenship, by virtue of our baptism. You’ve already said yes to the call to holiness.”

Each of us is called to be HOLY! As we live our daily lives we sometimes find ourselves in tasks that we are completely unprepared for. We can even feel overwhelmed but if these are tasks God has called us for and which He has called us to then HE GIVES us all we need to do them. What do I need in these cases? Faith in God. Faith is not that easy but it is a gift from God. And as Paul starts out,” Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ WITH EVERY SPIRITUAL BLESSING IN THE HEAVENS.” God does not lie. His promises are forever.

So I reflect on:

• What does it mean to live a holy life? Do I consciously embrace the vocation to holiness?
• Do I give into the devils’ temptation to start working on my holiness when I get older or have more time?
• St. Ignatius the founded of the Jesuits said, “There are very few people who realize what God would make of them if they abandoned themselves into His hands and let themselves be formed by His grace.”
• God is speaking to me individually and to each person. I need to listen to what He is saying…Take time and listen.

Our Prayer:

Lord, you call me to take up my cross and follow You. But each time I start on the journey something gets in the way. I am afraid, Lord, of what the future might bring. Yet I read about the disciples and how they laid down the things of this world in order to follow You. Give me courage, Lord. Amen.

July 5, 2015

14^th Sunday in Ordinary Time B

Ezekiel 2: 2-52 Corinthians 12: 7-10; Mark 6: 1-6

What is my biggest flaw? What is it that haunts me that I really would like to get rid of but it seems to be present in me more often than not? In looking at myself, I acknowledge that I am a sinner. I have a whole bunch of sins that pop up in my life. Many of these have been with me for centuries. When I confess these in the sacrament of Reconciliation I truly hope that they will never return; but they do. What is it about me that I do not like? What do I constantly work on to limit their occurrences but like an ‘old penny’ they just pop up when I’m least prepared or more prone to give in?

I could give a list of each of the above. The readings take up this topic and point me in the direction of faith. How deep is my faith? How open am I to the workings of God in my life? How adaptable am I to change? Am I about my own agenda or about God’s agenda for me? What is it in me that presents the biggest obstacle to my ‘opening’ myself to God? Paul in his letter to the Corinthians calls his obstacle “a thorn in the flesh”. I could pinpoint a few ‘thorns in my flesh’ which I am not happy about. Do I give them to the Lord? Do I understand what the Lord said to Paul about this, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness?”

Ezekiel is also struggling. He is not feeling appreciated, something that’s common among the prophets. The Lord describes the people He is sending the prophet to: the “Israelites, rebels who have rebelled against Me; they and their ancestors have revolted against me to this very day.” This certainly doesn’t seem like a great group of people to bring God’s message of peace and love. And the Lord describes them as, “hard of face and obstinate of heart.” They don’t seem to be an appealing audience. The Lord is telling Ezekiel that this is not his problem. He has a job. He is to speak the word of God. That is all. The outcome is not in Ezekiel’s hands. God wants them to know that “whether they heed or resist … they shall know that a prophet has been among them.” The prophet is not to look for success and appreciation…if he does, he will be disappointed. In my life do I want to be successful? Yes I do. When I give direction, when I preach, when I celebrate the liturgy is it about me being applauded or listened to or is it about God? It seems to me that in reading the Scriptures I was never called to be God, I am called so that people can see God in me. They do that by my love and example. Am I concentrating on being love or being appreciated and accepted?

Jesus in the gospel passage is experiencing a ‘thorn in the flesh’ too. He had just come from performing two miracles in Capernaum, the curing of the woman with the hemorrhage and the raising to life of the daughter of Jairus. Now he goes up to the hill country of his hometown Nazareth. He had lived there a good twenty years, learning the carpentry trade and taking over Joseph’s business when he died. He goes to the synagogue where He had spent countless hours and began to teach the people. His listeners are amazed at His wisdom and teaching ability and the mighty deeds – miracles – that Jesus has performed. Yet they are ‘boiling over inside’; they feel they know Him. They know all about Him. Who does He think He is by telling them how to live? And Jesus responded, “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house.” And Jesus did not perform any miracles because of their lack of faith. When I’m looking at myself, I am not realizing that faith is a gift from God to me. Do I expect this gift to do ‘this and that’ for me or do I see that it is a gift to bring me closer to God and my salvation and God is in control?

I return to Paul’s ‘thorn in the flesh’ that was given to him to keep him from being too excited by his own successes. “Three times I begged the Lord about this that it might leave me…” Then he was told that God’s grace will take care of him as he continues the mission given by God. What was this thorn? Scholars only guess at what it was: some propose that it may have been problem with his eyes. Paul starts out by telling all he had endured: weaknesses, insults, hardship, persecutions, constraints. And then is this ‘thorn in the side.’ I can imagine him saying…for all I did for you, don’t you think Lord, you can take this ‘pain’ away? But God want Paul to be faithful, not concentrate on success. This is the same message to me and every follower of Jesus: be faithful in sharing God’s love all the time, to each and every person. God takes care of my success which may take years but will come in God’s time.

I’m reminded of a funny story from Teresa of Avila who was assigned the task by God to reform the Carmelite order. One day, after falling out of her carriage into the mud, she complained to Jesus at being treated in this way while trying to serve Him. The voice of Jesus then came to her: This is how I treat my friends, Teresa.” Wiping the mud from her face, she replied, “No wonder you have so few!” So I am told to have faith.

When I protect myself from the pain in the world, I say, ‘What can I do’? I feel small and hopelessly ineffective. Yet every great movement for change in the history of the world has started on the level of the individual. All God does is call me to be love? Mother Teresa of Calcutta once said, you don’t think about insurmountable multitudes. You just begin, you pick up one. Alice Camille in Exploring the Sunday Readings says, “We can imagine that Paul, a deeply zealous and not always likeable fellow, might have personally preferred a method of Church governance that would make his authority unassailable. For a leader, being feared has its advantages! But Paul learned, from Jesus Himself, that weakness is the way to real power. Empty yourself of the need for control. If you’re not afraid of death, no one can hurt you.” Jesus is asking me to be obedient to God’s word which means that I have to trust and hope in Him and be obedient to His commands.

So I reflect on:

• Have either success or failure ever led me to forget the role of God in my life?
• In what way do I serve as a ‘prophet’, making God’s word and will present in the world?
• How is my faith challenged by those around me? What happens when I put myself in someone else’s shoes and listen to what I am saying about my faith? Am I self-righteous? Wishy-washy? Strong in my convictions? How can I share my faith and not turn people off?

Sacred Space 2015 shares:

“Why do His fellow townspeople take offence at Jesus? Why do they resent this ordinary building worker they all knew so well? Do I tend to pull people down to my own low level, or do help them to feel as great as God has made them?
For Jesus, this event is a learning experience.

He is shocked at His hostile reception. While He is truly God, He is truly man, too. He does not know everything but grows in wisdom, as we do. God is patient with me as I grow through making mistakes.”