Some miss the point

Friday, July 07, 2017

Love creates. Love heals. Love redeems.

Love reaches deep down into the hurting places.

Love reaches down into the sin-filled places.

Love heals. Love redeems.

Jesus looked upon Matthew the tax collector, a man lost in an unjust and dishonest political and economic system, a man who was a great sinner, and Jesus called him and then went to his house to eat with him, and many other sinners with gathered together for the meal. (Matthew 9:9-13)

The righteous religious looked askance at what He was doing and couldn’t understand how Love would have fellowship with such sinners, but Jesus would not allow Himself to be affected by their scorn and judgmentalism. In fact, Jesus used it as a teaching opportunity and explained to them what God was really like—this God who existed apart from their code of rules and dogma, this God who is so much greater than the narrowness of their half-blinded vision. And Jesus taught them that Love seeks out the sinner and remains with him even in the midst of his sinfulness. Jesus explained to them that God was about mercy, not One who demanded sacrifice. “I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

There was a hidden message there, an irony which eluded His critics. All are sinners, and it says that in the very psalms that they prayed every day. What Jesus refers to when He speaks of the “righteous” were those who mistakenly thought they were righteous on the basis of some defined code, but who were actually sinners who were unable to recognize themselves as such.

This is true today as well. There are strident voices within the Church today who continue to inflict codes of conduct on others and who forget about the most important aspects of True Religion: mercy, love, healing, redemption. Those who are experts about the sin of others, who are passionate in pointing out what they consider to be sin, and who have constructed complex systems of thought to justify their own hatred and scorn so they can rest in their own sense of superiority, but who cannot recognize their own sin. Such folk, sadly enough, deprive themselves from tasting the incredible richness of their own religious heritage. I know people like that and perhaps you do as well. Give them little heed and return your attention to God’s love for y-o-u.

But God is love.

Love is about mercy.

Love redeems.

Love touches sin and some extraordinary cosmic explosion takes place which often takes a lifetime to work out. Just be patient.

And notice, perhaps that the story of Matthew’s redemption is written in the Gospel of Matthew.

If you were to write a Gospel of Love in your name, what tales would it have to tell? Think about this.

God bless you! Have a nice weekend.

Empty as a cloudless sky

Wednesday, July 5, 2017

“Truly I have set my soul in tranquility and silence.”  (Psalm 131:2)

Every single one of us can benefit from creating more room for tranquility, silence and peace In our lives. It is important to see these things as necessities rather than as luxuries which we have little time for in our busy lives.

I’ve enjoyed some tranquil time during my vacation period and my reading has helped by reminding me just how important (and DESIRABLE) these things are. Over the vacation I had a chance to visit one of my favorite bookstores, tucked away in a hidden corner of the Berkshires in western Massachusetts. Whenever I go there I find at least one book which seemed to be waiting for me to discover it. (Sometimes I think that we don’t necessarily choose a book; the book chooses us, and that is what happened to me during my browsing.)

The book which “found me” is called “The Calm Center: reflections and meditations for Spiritual Awakening” by Steve Taylor.

The following lines from one of his meditations has been drawing me towards moments of contemplation, silence, stillness and peace. Perhaps they will serve you as well:

Let your mind become as empty as a cloudless sky

and as calm as the surface of a lake

until your depths are rich with stillness

and the channel is wide and clear enough

for the secrets to flow through

and reveal themselves to you.

If you can reach this state, even for a brief moment, God will speak to your heart of things which you need so, so much.

God bless you!

He WANTS to heal you.

Friday, June 30, 2017

Today’s Gospel passage is particularly powerful for those of us who are struggling in any way. Matthew is very clear and succinct (Matthew 8:1-4). A leper approaches Jesus and pays him homage and says to him, “Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.” Jesus stretches out his hand, touches the leper, and says, “I do will it. Be made clean.” And the leper was cured immediately.

The leper stands for all of us in this scene. Notice how Jesus answers the leper’s plea: I DO WILL IT. It is Jesus’ will that we be healed, that we be made clean. We might not be afflicted with leprosy, but isn’t it true that there is always something inside of us that begs for cleansing or healing? Some internal struggle, perhaps, or some weakness that plagues us?

I find that as the years go by, every time I encounter this passage and take it to prayer, that there is some particular issue in my life begging for resolution, healing, cleansing, that becomes the focal point for my intimate interaction with Jesus. The subject, or topic, of the prayer changes as the years go by, but there is always something on my mind or in my heart that calls out for the reassurance and healing that only Jesus Christ can give.

Notice that in response to the leper’s plea, Jesus reaches out and touches him. This is a drastic move, because in those days leprosy was a contagious disease and people were afraid even to draw near to the lepers. Lepers were cast out from society and from their families and friends, separated from everything they had known once the disease had touched them. And yet, Jesus breaks the taboo and touches him, but rather than Jesus getting invaded by the disease, it turns out to be the other way around: the power and holiness and love of Jesus envelops the disease itself and dissolves it in a loving embrace.

Can you picture Jesus reaching out and touching you in that place where you are unclean or diseased, or weak, or alienated, or scorned or wounded? As you pray to Him, picture Him reaching out and touching you in that very tender and wounded part of your own existence, and dare to hope that the pain of your own existence will be saturated with the healing love of your Lord, Whom you approach in an intimate and powerful way.

Like me, you will find that whenever you read or hear this passage again, there will be something that you will want Him to touch. And it is His will that you be touched, and cleansed, and healed. That healing may not happen immediately as it does for the leper, but the process of healing will have begun in you and He will bring it to fulfillment at the time of His choosing.

God bless you,

The next reflection will be on July 5. Have a good weekend and if you are an American, a good holiday as well.

A Crowd of Christs

Thursday, June 15, 2017

Sometimes we’re given special little gifts of faith and insight that cause us to see things in ways that we usually don’t see them. I was given such a gift yesterday.

I was in Boston at the bus-subway-train transportation center (South Station) and there were a lot of people going about their travels, hastening to and fro, checking schedules, grabbing a bite to eat, carrying backpacks, suitcases, carts, strollers and toddlers with them. All sorts of sizes and shapes and colors and nationalities, and I was happy to see that because living at Saint Anselm College, I rarely get to see any signs of diversity (although the situation is slowly improving).

I was very happy and content and things looked beautiful to me. People looked beautiful to me. Each person in his/her noble individuality, each with a personal history or story, none of which was known to me, people in joy or even in distress because the work of traveling is often a stressful task. And I kept noting to myself how beautiful everyone looked, and then suddenly I realized that what I was looking at was a large assortment of Christs all around me. God sent us Jesus so that in him earthly matter and divine reality could be brought together as one, and through Christ that one-ness becomes our reality as well—each of us, all the time, even though we are so often unable to realize it.

It is not a question of good or bad, of worthy or unworthy, of merit or deficiency or of anything else of that sort. No. What I was experiencing was a totality which was perfect in and of itself. There was no room for judgment or evaluation, for fault-finding or assessments. None of that figured into the particularly graced vision that was given to me as I made my way to my own destination. This was truly a gift from God.

I wish some of those who are prisoners of bigotry, or who extol divisiveness and hatred, could be given a few minutes sharing the vision I was given.  

May it be yours as well.

God bless you!

Observing good deeds

Tuesday/Wednesday June 13-14, 2017

Today’s Gospel: Matthew 5: 13-16

Here’s the last verse: “your light must shine before others, that they may see you good deeds and glorify your Heavenly Father.”

When I pondered this verse, I couldn’t help thinking of a saying attributed to Saint Francis. It goes something like this: “Preach the Gospel at all times. Sometimes use words.”  And isn’t it true that we have learned more from peoples’ example than by anything they may have said to us?

I can’t help thinking of a couple of monks I know. One, who I’d like to propose for sainthood, is an example of walking, living, love. His life is totally devoted to doing good things for other people in practical, simple and humble ways.

I think of another of my confreres who cooks wonderful meals for us, and who often spends time advising and helping those of us who aren’t as gifted in the kitchen as he is.

And one last example: someone who consistently goes out of his way to welcome people to the church, to get acquainted with them, and who always has a smile for someone he has met even briefly long ago.

And then there are those of us who perhaps aren’t as noticeable, but who spend their time doing secret hidden things that need to get done, often without ever being thanked.

I looked around the church during Mass this past weekend (I should be ashamed of myself) and was inspired by some of the people I saw. One set of parents whose entire time was taken up by tending to their two beautiful little girls—very restless little girls---and who managed despite it all to take much food for thought away from the homily and some of the prayers. How do I know this? Because I could see it written on their faces during those few brief moments when they weren’t tending to their daughters. What extraordinary patience they had!

And I saw the father of a little boy with Downs Syndrome. He never stopped, even for a brief instant, showering his son with love. As you probably know, children with Downs Syndrome tend to be very affectionate, and this lad certainly was. And his father matched him, affection for affection and by watching the two of them I learned some things about prayer that I had never realized before.

Good deeds. Jesus places the emphasis on good deeds today. And so I ask myself, what have I done today? What unspoken messages have I been broadcasting? What might I want to reevaluate in light of all the good I see around me this day?

How about you?

God bless you!

"Pay it forward"

Monday, June 12, 2017

From today’s Mass, one of my favorite passages:

“Praised be God, the Father of mercies, and the God of all consolation! He comforts us in all our afflictions and thus enables us to comfort those who are in trouble, with the same consolation we have received from him.” (II Corinthians 3-4)

A more recent translation uses the word “encourage” rather than “comfort,” and in my humble opinion, it takes away from some of the dynamism of the passage. I went to the Greek to see what word was used there and found the Greek word “parakleseos” which has the same root as the word “Paraclete,” which is a title given to the Holy Spirit, the Comforter.

Think of it this way: when we are involved in some difficulty, or when we are afflicted, the Holy Spirit is poured out upon us, bringing encouragement, and comfort, and more than we can fully understand with our limited human minds. So many people report that they have received this gift during the difficult or low period of their lives, and I can certainly attest to the same. How about you?

This is one of those graces that we can become more aware of, and perhaps go so far as to even expect God to come to our aid. I think that a lot of graces often pass us by because we have not sharpened up our “antennae” to seek them out.

Finally, this passage delineates a process which is present in the Scriptures from the very beginning when God promised Abram (Abraham) that He would bless him so that he could become a blessing for others. I once took a Bible study course whose title was “Blessed to be a blessing.” That is what is at work in this passage: God gives us a grace or a gift so that we can turn around and gift that same gift to others who are in need. Perhaps you’ve heard the modern term “Pay it forward.” That’s what it’s all about. Thanks be to God!

God bless you! 

you WITHIN the Trinity

Thursday-Friday, June 1-2, 2017

From John 17:26: “I made known to them your name and I will make it known, that the love with which you loved me may be in them and I in them.”

This is Jesus’ wish for all who would believe in Him for all time. And it wasn’t until I read a wonderful book called “the Divine Dance” by Fr. Richard Rohr that I came to appreciate more fully the importance of this final petition of what is known as Jesus’ “High Priestly Prayer” prayed to the Father before He was taken away to be crucified.

The fullness of the Trinity is contained in this one sentence. The love shared by the Father and the Son is the Holy Spirit, the extraordinary beauty of the essence of the Trinity, that same Spirit that we ask God to bestow on us as we draw near the great feast of Pentecost this coming weekend. But notice, if you will, that this Spirit has already been poured out upon us and we taste of it whenever we open the eyes of our souls to see the beauty which God continues to pour out upon the world, as tired and polluted and war-torn as our world may be at this time in history.

I was reminded that as I drove home from an errand this afternoon. The road was flanked by lush green trees which were glistening in the spring sunlight, and as I enjoyed the view I couldn’t help but realize that I was gazing upon the beauty of the work of our Creator God, and I sang the first line of the ancient hymn “Veni Creator Spiritus” (Come, Creator Spirit).

But there is yet more to consider: Notice, if you will, that Jesus Christ prays that we be included within the embrace of the Trinity. Father, Son, Spirit, and you, all tasting the same unfathomable love. It’s not a question of merit, or worthiness, of justification or redemption. All that is required is faith. And because of that faith (which itself has been given to us as a gift), the three persons of the Trinity take us unto themselves, now and for all eternity.

The Psalmist cries out somewhere, “Such knowledge is too much for me, so far beyond my understanding.” And that is fine. You don’t need to understand it. Simply experience it. Simply taste it. Simply gaze on those words and repeat them to yourself until they nestle within your soul, and you will find that so many of the troubled questions you have in your life will find a bit of resolution, and you will be at peace.

God bless you!

I will be on vacation for a while. The next Reflection will by on or about June 12.