A Lectio Divina Approach to the Sunday & Weekday Liturgy
BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (Series 22, n.25)
Pentecost – Week 7 in Ordinary Time: May 19-25, 2024
(The pastoral tool BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD: A LECTIO DIVINA APPROACH TO THE SUNDAY & WEEKDAY LITURGY includes a prayerful study of the Sunday liturgy from various perspectives. For the Lectio Divina on the liturgy of the past week: May 12-18, 2024 please go to ARCHIVES Series 21 and click on “Ascension/Easter Week 7”.
Below is a LECTIO DIVINA APPROACH TO THE SUNDAY - WEEKDAY LITURGY: May 19-25, 2024.)
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May 19, 2024: PENTECOST, YEAR B
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Was Taken Up into Heaven”
BIBLICAL READINGS
Acts 1:1-11 // Eph 4:1-13 or Eph 1:17-23 // Mk 16:15-20
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Mk 16:15-20): “The Lord Jesus was taken up into heaven and too his seat at the right hand of God.”
One of my most unforgettable experiences was my visit to Chennai, India when I made a pilgrimage to St. Thomas Cathedral where, according to local tradition, the body of the apostle Thomas is buried. I also visited the cave perched on a desolate mountain where he made water gush forth to slake the thirst of the people to whom he had been preaching the Good News of our salvation in Jesus Christ. Our guide drew water from the well-spring of St. Thomas and offered it to the pilgrims to drink. The limpid water tasted fresh and sweet. Indeed, Christianity had reached India during the apostolic times, with St. Thomas and St. Bartholomew sowing the seeds of faith, in obedience to the apostolic mandate of the Risen Lord ascended into heaven. Today’s Syro-Malabar Christian communities in India, who trace their origin to the preaching of St. Thomas, testify to the extent of the zeal and ardor of the first apostles commissioned by Jesus Christ, ascended into heaven, to go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature (cf. Mk 16:15).
Today we commemorate the ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ into heaven. Christians have always believed that Jesus, having completed his earthly mission of salvation, returned to God who has sent him, and now takes up his continuing saving role as priest, prophet and king. According to Mk 16:19: “The Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them, was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God.” The image of Jesus “sitting at the right hand of God” is not a static symbol, but an indication of power and authority. It symbolizes Jesus’ close relationship to God and his role as God’s agent. Harold Buetow comments: “When he was visibly present on earth, Jesus was limited by time and space. By his ascension, Jesus is no longer limited to the dimensions of earth. Jesus’ enthronement signifies that Jesus in his humanity has now reached a position of equality and association with the Father where all God’s power can act through him.” The ascension of Jesus into heaven, “who took his seat at the right hand of God” is a celebration of Christ’s glorified humanity.
The feast of the Lord’s ascension, moreover, is a celebration of his new and enduring presence. No longer present in his earthly reality, Jesus – in his glorified form - is present to us profoundly and intimately by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is present in the living Word proclaimed, prayed and lived. He is present in the worshipping assembly gathered in his name. He is present in the Eucharist and in the other sacraments. He is with us in the saving work of bringing the dispersed sheep into his fold. Through his ascension, Jesus ceases to be present to the Church in one way in order to be present in another. Aelred Rossner remarks: “We celebrate today the Risen Lord’s appearance among us in a new and wonderful way, far beyond the power of the human eye, but well within the loving grasp of the believing heart.”
The continuing presence of the Risen Lord ascended into heaven, in the lives of his apostles and disciples, confirms them in the missionary mandate: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature” (Mk 16:15). Today’s Gospel passage is derived from what is called the “longer ending” (Mk 16:9-20). The original form of Mark’s Gospel almost certainly ended at the empty tomb (v. 8). We read in the Collegeville Biblical Commentary: “Although the Church has recognized the added endings as worthy of inclusion in the inspired text, none of them is as inspiring and involving as Mark’s own. Mark’s abrupt ending leaves it up to his readers to complete his Gospel in their lives.” The canonical finale (vv. 9-20) that has been added includes the appearances of the Risen Jesus to Mary Magdalene and to the disciples. The Collegeville Biblical Commentary further explains: “These visions were meant to inspire the early missionary Church to go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature (v. 15). The Church’s missionaries had nothing to fear, because the ascended Lord (v. 19) was with them in their preaching (v. 20) and would confirm their message with special signs of his protection and power (vv. 17-18).” Indeed, our celebration of the Lord’s ascension is a call to actively spread the Gospel. The “Gospel” to be proclaimed to every creature refers not to a doctrine, but to the very person of Jesus. With the Risen Lord Jesus as the content of the proclamation, the apostles go everywhere promptly and unhesitatingly.
B. First Reading (Acts 1:1-11): “As the Apostles were looking on, Jesus was lifted up.”
The witnessing Church in mission is powered by an energy that comes from on high in accordance with the Risen Lord’s assurance: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). The Holy Spirit, the vitalizing power of the Church’s mission, is the ultimate and enduring manifestation of the risen Lord’s presence in the world. In the Acts of the Apostles, the evangelist Luke presents the Spirit uniquely as the divine energy communicated to the witnesses of Christ in view of the tasks they are to perform. The believer whom the Risen One encounters lives henceforth by his Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the source of various charisms that build up the Church and the principle of continued existence in the sacred era of the Church’s mission.
The following modern day account illustrates the continuing Church witnessing, powered by the Holy Spirit, the Easter gift (cf. “The Odd Man Out of the Victims” in Alive! April 2015, p. 2)
A video released by ISIS in mid-February showed 21 men being beheaded on a Mediterranean beach in Libya. Most of the men were Coptic Christian workers from Egypt, and the killers made it clear that they were being killed because of their faith in Christ.
Some of the men could be heard murmuring the name of Jesus as they faced death. But it has now emerged that one of the men was nit Egyptian, but from Chad. And according to Ahram-Canadian News the darker skinned man had not been a Christian. But the faith and courage of his fellow hostages inspired him to accept faith in Jesus.
When the terrorists called on him to reject Jesus Christ as God, looking at his Christian friends he replied, “Their God is my God”. So the murderers beheaded him also.
Thirteen of the men came from a farming village about 150 miles south of Cairo. In comforting the families the local priest told them “the Bible tells us that the life we live is but numbered days that will quickly pass”. It is what happens after death that really matters in the long run.
The older brother of two of the men, Bashir Estefanous Kamel, 32, said that the first reaction was sadness at being separated from family members. But, he added, “I felt peace knowing that they died as martyrs in the name of Christ”.
C. Second Reading (Eph 4:1-13): “To the extent of full stature of Christ.”
According to St. Paul, the Church, whose head is the One seated at the right hand in the heavens, is the fullness of Jesus (Eph 1:23). Just as Jesus is the fullness of the Father, so the Church is the fullness of Jesus. Each one of us, as members of the Church, is called to attain the full stature of Christ (Eph 4:13) and his fullness. Jean Corbon comments: “The ascension is progressive until we all form the perfect Man fully mature with the fullness of Christ himself. The movement of the ascension will be complete only when all the members of his body have been drawn to the Father and brought to life by his Spirit … The ascension is the activation of the paschal energy of Christ who fills all things. It is the ever-new moment of his coming.” Indeed, the feast of the Lord’s ascension into heaven is an invitation to attain personally to the full stature of Christ and a renewed mandate to proclaim the Gospel to every creature, so as to achieve the cosmic fullness willed by God and hoped for by us.
The following family experience gives insight into what it means growing into the full stature of Christ (cf. Scott Walker in Daily Guideposts 2014, p. 126).
How do you express gratitude to someone who has shaped your life? I pondered this recently when I attended the seventy-fifth wedding anniversary of my uncle Clarence and aunt Shirley Walker.
My grandfather Eddie Walker was a successful rancher on the high plains of eastern Colorado. One day in 1933, he asked my father, Al. to ride with him to pick up supplies. Walking into a store, my grandfather suddenly collapsed. His stomach ulcer had perforated in an age prior to antibiotics. Within three days. he was dead, leaving his wife, Callie, a sixteen-year-old son, Clarence, and my fourteen-year-old father to run a ranch at the height of the Great Depression. It seemed an impossible challenge.
However, Clarence dropped out of high school and poured his energy into saving the ranch, insisting that my father remain in school and help only as time permitted. Later, Clarence encouraged him to attend college. Over the next eight years, my father earned a PhD in theology and became a minister, teacher, and missionary.
As I flew to Colorado, I promised to say thank you. Clarence and Shirley are frail and live in an assisted-living facility. Both are deaf, and there would be few private moments for conversation. However, the time came on the evening following the anniversary celebration. Sitting quietly by Clarence’s bed, I placed my hand on his and quietly said a simple prayer of thanksgiving for a good and loving man. I know he heard me and God did too.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
Do I believe that Jesus’ ascension doesn’t mean that he has departed from us and that he is truly present to us in a new and wonderful way through the power of the Holy Spirit? What do I do concretely to respond to the missionary mandate of the Risen Lord ascended into heaven: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature”? Does the quality of my service promote a person’s growth in the full stature of Christ and help achieve his fullness in all creation?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
(From the Liturgy of the Hours, Feast of the Lord’s Ascension)
Lord Jesus, King of glory,
you were offered once as the victim for sins,
and ascended to the right hand of the Father:
make perfect for all time those whom you sanctify.
Eternal Priest and minister of the new Covenant,
you live forever to make intercession for us:
save the people that pray to you.
You showed yourself alive after your passion
and appeared to the disciples for forty days:
confirm our faith today.
Today you promised the Spirit to your apostles,
to make them your witnesses to the ends of the earth:
by the power of the Spirit strengthen our own witness.
You live and reign,
forever and ever.
Amen.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.
“They went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them.” (Mk 16:20)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Using a map or a globe, offer a prayer for the Church’s mission to spread the Good News to all creatures and do what you can to promote this Christian mandate. You may view a good film on Christians who have fully responded to the Christian mandate of proclaiming the Gospel, e.g. “The Inn of the Sixth Happiness”, “Damien, the Leper”, etc.
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May 20, 2024: MONDAY – THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, MOTHER OF THE CHURCH
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Gives to Us Mary as
Mother of the Church”
BIBLE READINGS
Gn 3:9-15, 20 or Acts 1:12-14 // Jn 19:25-34
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
In 1994, desiring to deepen our Priestly Apostolate as PDDM Sisters, we presented to Msgr. Protacio Gungon, the Bishop of the Diocese of Antipolo (Philippines), our plan to organize the mothers, fathers, relatives and friends of priests as “prayer warriors”. They would pray especially for priests and for priestly-religious vocations and would also serve as a support group for them. Bishop Gungon blessed our initiative with his approval. Moreover, he suggested that this group of “prayer warriors” be dedicated to “MARY, MOTHER OF THE CHURCH”. Thus, the Mary, Mother of the Church: Prayer Association for Priests started on February 2, 1994 in the Diocese of Antipolo to support and collaborate with the priestly ministry. It was very opportune to be under the patronage of Mary, who is the Mother of Jesus Priest and the Mother of the Church, the community of believers generated by Christ’s priestly sacrifice on the cross. Hence, I received with joy the recent announcement made by Pope Francis on March 3, 2018 that a new memorial entitled, “The Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church” would be universally celebrated throughout the Church, on the Monday after Pentecost Sunday.
The Bible Readings assigned for this Marian memorial are well chosen. The Gospel reading (John 19:25-34) depicts the “birthing” of the Church from the wounded side of Christ and the entrusting of the Church, the community of disciples represented by John, to Mother Mary. In the Gospel of John, the attempt to slake his “thirst” with “a sponge soaked in wine on a sprig of hyssop” evokes the “sprig of hyssop” of Exodus 12:22, that is, the plant used to sprinkle Israelite doors with the saving blood of the Passover lamb. Against this backdrop, we realize that Jesus’ cry: “It is finished”, before he bows his head and hands over his spirit, indicates the fulfillment of the divine plan of salvation. By the outpouring of his blood on the cross, Jesus, the Priest and Victim, accomplishes all he has to do - the Father’s will … the Scriptures … the salvation of humankind! In the mind of the evangelist John, the death of Jesus is a “glorification”. It is the release of his Spirit into the world. By his death, Jesus releases his Spirit to the Father and at the same time, pours it out to believers. Moreover, the evangelist John narrates that a soldier pierces the side of Jesus with a lance and immediately “blood and water” flow out. The “blood and water” from the pierced side of Christ signify Baptism and the Eucharist, by which Christ continues to generate the Church through time and space and to nourish them with his sacramental body and blood. Indeed, Baptism and the Eucharist are the “life sources” of the Church, the “new Eve”, coming forth from the side of Jesus Christ, the “new Adam”.
In the context of the “birthing” of the Church on the cross, Mary plays a prominent role. In the mystery of the Lord’s incarnation, Mary becomes the Mother of Jesus, the Son of God. In the paschal mystery on the cross, Mary becomes the “Mother of the Church”, the community of Christian disciples that is continually generated through the ages. The First Reading (Gn 3:9-15, 20) is about Adam’s wife, Eve, the mother of all the living. Mary, who stood with Jesus by the cross, is another Eve – the “new Eve” – the mother of all those redeemed by her Son Jesus. While Adam’s Eve brought death to the world, Mary – the “new Eve” is life-giving through her intimate participation in Christ’s redemptive work. For us Christian disciples, Mary becomes our Mother and Jesus becomes our brother. We are Mary’s children and, consequently, we are brothers and sisters in the Lord Jesus. The biblical scholar Neal Flanagan asserts that Mary, beneath the cross, is “a woman of victory” and indicate Mary’s vital contribution to salvation history.
The alternative First Reading (Acts 1:12-14) depicts Mary as the Mother of the apostles and disciples in the Cenacle, preparing for the “Pentecostal” generation of the Church, that is destined to preach the Gospel to the nations by the anointing of the Holy Spirit. In this biblical text, the evangelist Luke portrays the time between the Ascension of the Lord and the Pentecost as a time of waiting and praying. The disciples of the Lord, as participants in the Easter event, are sharing in the hour of “silent begetting” and are waiting for the Pentecostal hour that will change everything. According to Saint Luke, they “devoted themselves with one accord to prayer”. The community of praying disciples has as its nucleus the apostles who, on the day of Pentecost, would be empowered to become the new leaders of God’s people. Luke narrates that the prototype Church includes “some women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers”. Among the women disciples in Jerusalem after the Ascension, Luke names only Mary, the mother of Jesus. She who bore the Savior in her womb is with the apostles when the Holy Spirit descends to bring the missionary Church to birth for the sending out to the nations. The vital role of Mary in Jesus’ birth is beautifully evoked at the birthing of the Church on Pentecost.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
Do we greatly esteem the role of Mary in the birthing of the Church and in the life of the Church? How do we manifest in daily life our love for Mary?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
(Our Founder Blessed James Alberione has a great devotion to Mary, Queen of the Apostles. In the following prayer he composed, he underlines her animating role in the apostolic and praying Church. Likewise, in this prayer, Blessed Alberione gives Mary the beautiful titles, “Mother of the apostles” and “Mother of the Church”.)
Virgin most pure, noble Queen of Martyrs,
Morning Star, safe Refuge of sinners,
rejoice for the days in which you were Teacher, Comforter
and Mother of the apostles in the Cenacle!
You invoked and received the Divine Paraclete,
the Spirit with the seven gifts,
Love of the Father and of the Son,
Transformer of the Apostles.
With your all-powerful intercession
and your humble and irresistible prayers,
which always move God’s heart,
obtain for me the grace to realize the value
of every human person ransomed from hell
with Jesus’ most precious blood. (…)
Mother of the Church,
Queen of the Apostles, our Advocate,
to you we sigh, mourning in this valley of tears!
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.
“Behold, your mother!” (Jn 19:27)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Continue to invoke Mary’s intercession that finally we may be liberated from the pandemic calamity. Extend your assistance as the Church community slowly come together for the sacramental celebration.
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May 21, 2024: TUESDAY – WEEKDAY (7); SAINT CHRISTOPHER MAGALLANES, Priest, AND COMPANIONS, Martyrs
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Calls Us to a Humble Service … He Calls Us to a Total Conversion”
BIBLE READINGS
Jas 4:1-10 // Mk 9:30-37
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Mk 9:30-37): “The Son of Man is to be handed over. Whoever wishes to be first shall be last of all.”
We hear in the Gospel (Mk 9:30-37) that after healing the epileptic boy, Jesus with his disciples leaves the place and goes on through Galilee. He speaks again about his passion, death and resurrection, but his disciples do not understand. Though afraid to ask what he means, they do not have any qualms about arguing who among them is the greatest. At a house in Capernaum, Jesus tries to enlighten their hearts. To help them overcome their wicked ambition, Jesus puts in their midst a child, symbol of poverty and powerlessness. Jesus teaches his disciples that greatness consists in service and in caring for the weak and vulnerable. To be first is to serve. Jesus is the ultimate servant. By his passion and death on the cross, he offers himself totally at the service of the Father’s saving will. By his life-giving sacrifice, the Servant Messiah embraces infinitely all the “children of God”, especially the poor and vulnerable. A moral test of a society is how we treat the weakest among us. In our preferential option for the poor and in our care for the weak, we truly embrace God’s children. Like Jesus Christ, we become the “servant of all”.
The following story, circulated through the Internet, is very touching. It illustrates a compassionate stance on behalf of the needy.
I was walking in a Walmart store, when I saw a cashier hand this little boy some money back. The boy couldn’t have been more than 5 or 6 years old. The cashier said, “I’m sorry, but you don’t have enough money for this doll.” Then the little boy turned to the old woman next to him, “Granny, are you sure I don’t have enough money to buy this doll?” “No, my dear.” Then she asked him to stay there for just five minutes while she went to look around. She left quickly. The little boy was still holding the doll in his hand.
Finally, I walked toward him and asked him who he wished to give his doll to. “It’s the doll that my sister loved most and wanted so much for Christmas. She was sure that Santa Claus would bring it to her.” I replied to him that maybe Santa Claus would bring it to her after all, and not to worry. But he replied to me sadly, “No, Santa Claus can’t bring it to her where she is now. I have to give the doll to my Mommy so that she can give it to my sister when she goes there.” His eyes were so sad while saying this, “My sister has gone to be with God. Daddy says that Mommy is going to see God very soon too, so I thought that she could take the doll with her to give it to my sister.”
My heart nearly stopped. The little boy looked up at me and said, “I told Daddy to tell Mommy not to go yet. I need her to wait until I come back from the mall.” Then he showed me a very nice photo of himself. He was laughing. He then told me, “I want Mommy to take my picture with her so she won’t forget me. I love my Mommy and I wish she didn’t have to leave me, but Daddy says that she has to go to be with my little sister.”
Then he looked again at the doll with sad eyes, very quietly. I quickly reached for my wallet and said to the boy, “Suppose we check again, just in case you do have enough money for the doll!” “OK” he said, “I hope I do have enough.” I added some of my money without him seeing and we started to count it. There was enough for the doll and even some spare money. The little boy said, “Thank you God for giving me enough money!” Then he looked at me and said, “I asked last night before I went to sleep for God to make sure I had enough money to buy this doll, so that Mommy could give it to my sister. He heard me! I also wanted to have enough money to buy a white rose for my Mommy, but I didn’t dare to ask God for too much. But he gave me enough to buy the doll and a white rose. My Mommy loves white roses.”
A few minutes later, the old lady returned and I left with my basket. I finished my shopping in a totally different state of mind from when I started. I couldn’t get the little boy out of my mind. Then I remembered a local newspaper article two days ago, which mentioned a drunk man in a truck, who hit a car occupied by a young woman and a little girl. The little girl died right away, and the mother was left in a critical state. The family had to decide whether to pull the plug on the life-sustaining machine, because the young woman would not be able to recover from the coma. Was this the family of the little boy?
Two days after this encounter with the little boy, I read in the newspaper that the young woman had passed away. I couldn’t stop myself as I bought a bunch of white roses and I went to the funeral home where the body of the young woman was for people to see and make last wishes before her burial. She was there, in her coffin, holding a beautiful white rose in her hand with the photo of the little boy and the doll placed over her chest. I left the place, teary-eyed, feeling that my life had been changed forever. The love that the little boy had for his mother and his sister is still to this day, hard to imagine, and in a fraction of a second, a drunk driver had taken all this away from him.
B. First Reading (Jas 4:1-10): “You ask but you do not receive because you ask wrongly.”
In the reading (Jas 4:1-10), Saint James condemns the faithlessness in the community; that is, their human degradation, the riotous living, the fights and pleasure seeking, etc. Having exposed the extensive social and personal turmoil and having reacted with a just reproach, Saint James now issues a call to repentance: “Submit to God … Draw near to God… Purify your hearts … Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you.” There should be a complete reversal of their lives from vice to God, from fragmentation to integration, from division to wholeness. Saint James exhorts them to a total conversion of heart and urges them to let God be the Lord of their lives.
The following personal testimony of Papa Mike, the founder of the Poverello House in Fresno, gives insight into the meaning of Saint James’ moral and spiritual exhortation (cf. Mike McGarvin in Poverello News, July 2013, p. 2-3).
In the 1960s, I was an eager participant in the hippie movement: free love, drug experimentation that soon led to dependency, openness to a hodge-podge of strange spiritual beliefs, and advocating for the expansion of the welfare state as a way of addressing poverty. I marched in anti-war and anti-poverty marches (when I wasn’t too drunk to march), took LSD, smoked marijuana, and practiced sexual liberation with a vengeance. And guess what? I became poor, miserable, spiritually empty, and got to the point where I wanted to kill myself.
As much as I hate to admit it, it’s when I embraced those hated middle-class values that I found meaning and happiness. Middle-class value number one: old-fashioned Christianity. My conversion to Catholicism gave me a new direction and a purpose for living. Middle-class value number 2: I got married, and I stayed married, taking seriously that “until death do us part” business. Middle-class value number three: I worked my way up from an apprenticeship to a full-time job as a photoengraver, learning good work habits and providing for my family. Finally, middle-class value number four: I started giving back to others less fortunate than me, which is how Poverello House started. (…)
When we take a homeless drug addict into our program, in most cases we’re not only dealing with the personal wreckage of his life, but also the leftover cultural debris from the 1960s. Our solution is so middle-class that it almost makes the old hippie in me want to cry: get clean and sober, get God, work hard, be responsible, get a job, and take care of the messes you’ve made, and then go out and help someone else in need. It’s a far cry from “Turn on tune in, drop out”, and certainly more humdrum, but it means the difference between a horrible life of squalor and having a chance at achieving lasting joy.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. Are our hearts blinded with ambition and are we unable to be the “servant of all”? Do we endeavor to welcome the needy and vulnerable “children of God” in our midst?
2. Do we respond to God’s call to total conversion and do we draw close to him and make him be the Lord of our lives?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
O Jesus,
you are the ultimate servant and the “servant of all”
by your life-giving sacrifice on the cross.
Help us to be “first” by our serving love.
Give us the grace to welcome the poor, the needy, the vulnerable …
all the children of God.
Teach us to overcome the demands of evil passions.
Draw us close to our loving God,
who lives and reigns, forever and ever.
Amen.
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O Jesus,
grant us the wisdom to submit humbly
to the compassionate plan of our almighty God.
Teach us to overcome the demands of evil passions.
Draw us close to you.
You live and reign, forever and ever.
Amen.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.
“If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.” (Mk 9:35) //“Submit yourselves to God … Draw near to God.” (Jas 4:7-8)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
In your acts of charity, enable the people around you to feel the love of Christ, the “servant of all”. // Pray for the grace to resist temptations and the destructive lure of evil passions.
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May 22, 2024: WEDNESDAY – WEEKDAY (7); SAINT RITA OF CASCIA, Religious
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us to Be Open to Others … He Teaches Us Submission to the Will of God”
BIBLE READINGS
Jas 4:13-17 // Mk 9:38-40
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Mk 9:38-40): “Whoever is not against us is for us.”
The following charming story, “Jesus at the Football Match”, from Anthony De Mello’s book, The Song of the Bird (New York: Doubleday Image Books, 1984), p.147, helps me to understand today’s Gospel reading (Mk 9:38-40) in a humorous vein.
Jesus Christ said he had never been to a football match. So we took him to one, my friends and I. It was a ferocious battle between the Protestant Punchers and the Catholic Crusaders. The Crusaders scored first. Jesus cheered wildly and threw his hat high up in the air. Then the Punchers scored. And Jesus cheered wildly and threw his hat high up in the air. This seemed to puzzle the man behind us. He tapped Jesus on the shoulder and asked: “Which side are you rooting for, my good man?” “Me?” replied Jesus, visibly excited by the game. “Oh, I’m not rooting for either side. I’m just enjoying the game.”
Indeed, Jesus is not in the habit of taking sides. He is concerned with the good of people and not with trifling issues of party membership or political color. In light of the above story, we can understand why Jesus roots for anyone who does good in terms of service to God’s anawim - “the little ones” - even if that person does not belong to the inner circle of disciples. In today’s Gospel reading, he recognizes the good work done by “someone driving out demons in his name”. He tries to correct the clique tendency and the petty exclusivity of his disciples. As the Divine Master, he teaches his disciples to be tolerant and open to others of good will. They are not to consider those not in their company as less favored.
B. First Reading (Jas 4:13-17): “You have no idea what your life will be like. Instead you should say: If the Lord wills it.”
In the reading (Jas 4:13-17), Saint James warns against radical self-assertion and about not orienting one’s entire life to God. The one who boasts and proudly conducts his life as if he is in control should take heed. The businessman whose only plan is to make more profit and does not recognize the role of God in his life is like a puff of smoke that appears briefly and then disappears. Such a man does not even have an idea what his life will be like tomorrow. Our human life is fragile and transitory and we cannot afford to conduct our life as if we are in control and not God. We must not be proud or boastful, but make the Lord God the center of our life. We must live our life in dependence on God. Recognizing the wisdom of the divine plan, our stance is humble: “If the Lord wills it …” Moreover, Saint James reminds us that in failing to do the good we must do, we are guilty of sin.
The following story gives insight into the mystery of the divine plan and the need to submit to the will of God (cf. Frank Slazak, “I Won Because I Lost” in A 3rd Serving of Chicken Soup for the Soul, ed. Jack Canfield & Mark Victor Hansen, Deerfield Beach: Health Communications, Inc., 1996, p. 225-229).
I wanted to be an astronaut … Then it happened in early 1985, like a lightning bolt from the sky, the White House announced that President Reagan was directing NASA to begin the search for an ordinary citizen to fly into space on board a space shuttle mission … Two weeks later, NASA announced that any teacher interested in competing for the honor of being the first ordinary citizen and teacher in space should write to them to request an application. That very same day, I sent my request to Washington … Express Mail! I wondered if other teachers had the same dream. (…)
Every day, I ran to the mailbox to see if I had survived the space agency’s scrutiny. NASA took several weeks to review the 11,000 submitted applications, but then it came … an official-looking envelope with NASA’s logo in the upper left-hand corner. I waited so long for this news, and now that I had it, I was afraid to open the envelope. What if it was bad news? I prayed that the news would be good as I excitedly read the letter. My prayers were answered! I survived the first cut! (…)
I finally received the call that I had prayed for. NASA informed me that they had chosen me to attend their special astronautic training program at the Kennedy Space Center! This was it; this was the final step toward being chosen! My confidence soared as I knew that I would be the one who would be the first teacher in space. (…)
Then came the devastating news. I would not be the first teacher to fly in space. NASA had chosen a teacher from Concord, New Hampshire, by the name of Christa McAuliffe. I had lost. My lifelong dream was over. Depression, loss of confidence and anger replaced my euphoria as I questioned everything: Why God, why not me? What part of the right stuff did I lack? Why had life dealt me such a cruel blow? How could I face my students, my family and my community? Why did my dream have to end when I was so close? (…)
Tuesday, January 28, 1986, the day I had dreamed about for 25 years, found me gathered with those that I had shared my failed dream with: my students, my family and people from the community, along with members of the media. We all came to witness history and watch the historic flight of teacher Christa McAuliffe. We watched as the space shuttle Challenger lifted off the launch pad on what seemed like a perfect launch. As it cleared that launch tower, I challenged my dream one final time. God, I would do anything to be in that shuttle. Why can’t that be me?
Seventy-three seconds later, God answered all of my questions and invalidated all of my doubts as the Challenger exploded, killing all on board, including teacher Christa McAuliffe. My father’s words, “Everything happens for a reason”, instantly came back to me. I was not chosen for that flight no matter how much I wanted it or prayed for it, because the Divine Plan included another reason for my presence on this earth. I had another mission in life. I was not a loser; I was a winner! I had won because I had lost!
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. Do we exclude “non-members” from the ministry and echo the intolerance of the immature disciples of Jesus: “Teacher, we tried to prevent him because he does not follow us”? Do we believe wholeheartedly in Jesus’ declaration: “There is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name who can at the same time speak ill of me … For whoever is not against us is for us”?
2. Are we obedient to the divine plan and do we trust God’s benevolent wisdom? Do we carry on the humble stance of a faithful disciple: “If the Lord wills it …”?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
Lord Jesus,
at times, our hearts are intolerant.
We try to lay exclusive claim to the Reign of God
you have graciously shared with us.
Help us to realize that the Kingdom
is meant for all people of good will in every time and culture.
You live and reign, forever and ever.
Amen.
***
Jesus, Divine Master
teach us your humble ways
and to trust in God’s plan.
Grant that in the vicissitudes of life
and in all our endeavors,
we may always say: “If the Lord wills it …”.
You live and reign, forever and ever.
Amen.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.
“For whoever is not against us is for us.” (Mk 9:40) //“You should say, ‘If the Lord wills it ...’” (Jas 4:15)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Pray for the success of the ecumenical movement in the Church and the laudable endeavor of inter-religious dialogue. See what tangible contribution you can make in this regard. // Present all your endeavors to the Lord and say to him, “If you will it …”
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May 23, 2024: THURSDAY – WEEKDAY (7)
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Calls Us to a Radical Discipleship … He Hears the Cry of the Poor”
BIBLE READINGS
Jas 5:1-6 // Mk 9:41-50
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Mk 9:41-50): “It is better for you to enter into life with one hand, than with two hands to go into Gehenna.”
Today’s Gospel (Mk 9:41-50) continues to underline the challenges of Christian discipleship. Jesus warns against the evil of causing scandal to others by using the harsh imagery of the unquenchable fires of Gehenna. Harold Buetow remarks: “The figure of Gehenna is a symbol of hell derived from the garbage dump in the dried-up Valley of the Hinnon River below the southwest wall of the city. It had an evil history. Once the site of child-sacrifices to the god Moloch, in the time of Jesus it was the city dump, and its smoldering fires and billowing acrid smoke consuming the smelly garbage were a symbol of the punishment of the damned.”
To avoid the hell of Gehenna, the disciples must take care not to give bad example to anyone. Jesus asserts: “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed than with two hands to go into Gehenna, into the unquenchable fire”. Jesus’ remarkable saying is not meant to be taken literally. Physical mutilation does not always work against temptation. What Jesus underlines is the absolute importance of entering the kingdom of God and the exigent demand is entails. Anything that jeopardizes participation in the heavenly kingdom must be expunged from our lives.
Indeed, the Christian disciples need to be purified in their innermost motives. They need to be “salted with fire” and experience the purifying fire of trials by which the faithful become pleasing sacrifices to God and at peace with one another. They need to expunge the evils of ambition, intolerance and scandal from their midst. In place of these, they have to make a tough choice for primacy in service, for tolerance and openness to others of good will, and for integrity in their dealing with God’s “little ones”. Those who respond to the radical demands of Christian discipleship with zest and gusto become the salt of the earth. As the good salt of the earth, they continue to inspire people with the liveliness of the Gospel spirit and lead them to yearn for God’s kingdom.
The following testimony is an example of today’s laudable efforts to help the “little ones” experience the blessings of God’s kingdom and to overcome the obstacles in their lives (cf. Sister Mary Rose McGeady, Sometimes God has a Kid’s Face, Covenant House USA, 2010, p. 82-84).
Freddy had been born seventeen years ago in one of those small old mill towns in the Northeast, the kind of town where industry and hope left town and never looked back at what was left behind. Unable to find work, unable to cope, his parents both took to drinking as a way to escape their sorrow. Sometimes when the drink wasn’t enough to ease their pain, they took their frustrations out on Freddy. Many nights, Freddy found himself hiding in his house, in closets and under beds, trying to escape a beating that had, by that point, become an almost weekly ritual.
Afraid and desperate to please his parents, Freddy began drinking with them, in order to show he was on their side. Soon, well before he had become a teenager, he found himself hooked on alcohol, unable to pry himself loose from the grip it had on him.
“It’s in my blood, Sister”, he said to us that first day. “I was born an addict … there’s nothing you can do to help me.”
One day, when the beatings got to be too much, he fled to the streets to find a peace he had never known. Instead, he found what all kids find – the aloneness, hunger, fatigue and darkness of an unforgiving world on the street. He was sixteen years old. For one full year, Freddy struggled to find some kind of existence on the streets. He slept in alleys, and ate out of garbage cans. He drank to forget how scared and alone he was – and he began experimenting with drugs, hoping they would somehow help him escape his pain. He died a little, day by day.
Then he found Covenant House. I’m not sure exactly how it’s going to turn out for him. I’m hoping – I guess some would say against hope – that it’s not too late for him to believe, that it’s not too late for him to finally overcome an addiction that has an ironclad grip on every ounce of his body. I do know that as long as he is alive, I have hope that we can turn his life around … “I want you to know something, Freddy”, I said. “I still think you are going to make it”, I said. “Just give us a chance”, I said. I could tell by the look of his eyes that he hoped I was right. “I’d like to try”, he said. I reached out and hugged him. “Thank you. God”, I whispered to myself.
B. First Reading (Jas 5:1-6): “The workers from whom you withheld the wages are crying aloud; their cries have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.”
In the reading (Jas 5:1-6), St. James comes to grips with a sinful situation that jeopardizes the Christian community’s call to serve the kingdom of God and to mirror his liberality. The selfish desire for possession brings about violence to the innocent and militates against human dignity and the beautiful unfolding of our Christian vocation.
Harold Buetow comments: “Today’s Reading laments that some people, instead of being prophets as Moses and Jesus had wished – that is, speakers of God – place their trust in money … An angry James wants to show the ultimate worthlessness of riches and to show how detestable some who own riches can become. James condemns the rich who hoard their wealth, cheat laborers of their just wages, and live in a luxurious way that is unmindful of the poor. He, like the rest of Scripture, does not condemn wealth as such, but insists strenuously upon its responsibilities and on the perils that surround the person who has it. The more you own, the more you are owned; it is good to have money, if money is not all you have … The desire for possessions can eat at a person like a fire. This all-consuming fire can cause a person to be oblivious of the needs and rights of others – even those to whom we have immediate obligations, like employees … James insists that we cannot be right with God unless one is just.”
Manila Hotel’s former PR officer Gwen Carino writes about her close encounter with hotel guest Michael Jackson in December 1996. Her testimony serves as a counterpoint to the portrait of the uncaring rich depicted in the passage from St. James. The grace of God calls us to manifest God’s liberality and compassion for the poor and to all.
MANILA, Philippines – When I was a PR officer at Manila Hotel, I was assigned to head the annual Orphan’s Christmas Party where 300 children from different orphanages around Metro Manila were treated to a day of fun and surprises. It was one of the biggest projects on my plate and it was such a challenge to focus on work the day before the big event, knowing Michael Jackson was billeted in the hotel. Two nights before, I had been fortunate to be part of his welcome line at the hotel lobby together with the rest of the PR and sales staff but was content enough to see him walk by.
The day before, a guy claiming to be Michael Jackson’s aide from Mamarao
Productions came to the office. I couldn’t recall his name but he looked for
the “person in charge” and said his boss had read the announcement about the
event in the Dear Guest flyers we had circulated to all the rooms a week
before. Michael wanted to know how he could help. His aide went up to the
Penthouse and down to the PR office several times after we gave our
suggestions. Michael offered to fill up the 300 loot bags with goodies and
toys, candies and chocolates. But after getting close to 50 sponsors, it was
actually a problem for us to dispose of everything. So I thought hard…how
can the King of Pop meaningfully join the
affair? I couldn’t possibly have him be with the kids in the palayok
game or the pabitin as he might end up being mobbed! And since the
annual event was really all about giving, I mustered all my courage and told
the Mamarao guy that the best thing I could think of was for Michael to
literally be present to help distribute the loot bags, sign autographs and
pose with the children for photos. “Wow, that may not be easy. You’re
talking about handing goodie bags to 300 children and
I can just imagine the chaos. We’ll see, Ms. Jacinto. I’ll get back to you,”
he said.
Lunch break came and it was the most hurried one I ever took in my entire
life. It wasn’t until after 5 p.m. that Michael‘s aide came back and said,
“Michael is more than happy to do whatever you suggest. How do we go about
it tomorrow?” I wanted to scream. I had to calm myself and regain composure
as the Lizzie McGuire in me said, “Get real, get back into focus.”
We agreed that Michael would join after the games, musical program and snacks, and at the last part to give out the loot bags. My colleague Annette Africano and boss Dulce Agnir requested additional security around the garden and the stage area as this was where we decided to distribute the gifts. We made sure the children would form an orderly line.
Then the moment arrived. It was at the Champagne Gardens on Dec. 7, 1996.
I was surprised to see him walking towards us, guided by his aide. Michael
came up to me as I had to brief him. “Hi, how are you? Thanks so much for
letting me in, I know I’m early ’coz I didn’t want to miss the program.” I
said, “Are you kidding? Thanks so much for volunteering! Here’s what,
Michael, why don’t you just sit here and watch the musical numbers before we
get into the gift giving. I will have to tweak the program a bit.” He
replied, “Sure, anything you say… (pausing to look at my name tag) Gwen!” I
was stunned at how incredibly sweet and modest he was. And in my mind it
was, “Oh my God, this is really happening!”
Amazing how he patiently sat through the whole program. Carol Banawa, then
an Ang TV mainstay, couldn’t believe MJ was watching her perform. She
had her red blouse signed by him right after her number. Then followed
Stefano Mori’s dance number. Later, his backup singers and dancers came up
on stage followed by select kids from different orphanages who danced to the
beat of Billie Jean. Oh, the smile on Michael’s face was just amazing.
Then we announced that Michael will be distributing gifts onstage. I
explained to him that there’s a loot bag for the younger kids and another
for the older ones and he nodded. The thrill and excitement he gave those
children was incredibly touching. It was in between the gift bag
distribution that I caught a glimpse of MJ, not as a performer but as a
person. It was one in the afternoon. Santa Claus (David Endriga, a friend
of fellow PR officer Francis Capistrano) was with us. The heat was scourging
and I was worried that Michael felt so hot with his black long-sleeved
signature attire and hat. “Are you alright Michael? We can let you take a
break,” I asked. He said, “I’m cool Gwen. Just imagine how Santa feels
inside his velvet suit and beard. We’ll be fine.” I never heard him complain
or say a word about how hot it was or how long the line was. He had the most
beautiful manners. He didn’t even ask for a drink or a towel to wipe his
sweat but one of our banquet staff made sure he got a glass of fresh orange
juice.
An hour passed and we were halfway through gift-giving when we noticed that
the garden was getting filled up. Suddenly, there were people from the
media, politicians, officials and hotel guests including those in a wedding
reception at the nearby Champagne Room who deserted the newly-weds just to
get a glimpse of the King of Pop. “Oh oh, this isn’t supposed to be, I’m so
sorry,” I said. “It’s all right, we’ll get through it,” Michael said
smiling. As we finished giving out the last loot bag to an 11-year-old
orphan, a new line of more kids and adults formed. Michael’s bodyguard,
Wayne, said. “We can leave now.” Michael replied calmly, “We can’t leave
when there are still people in line. It’s Christmas, dude.” I felt my heart
beat faster and the hair on my arms and the back of my neck stood up. He
wasn’t just the most electrifying performer, but the most generous person.
One of the most memorable moments was when a lady came up to him for an
autograph. Laughing and holding his tummy, he said “Hey Gwen, you’ve gotta
check this out”. He whispered, “It’s a blank check. The lady is making me
sign on a blank check.” We laughed hard and little did we know that it
wasn’t even half of the comedy. He later showed me and Wayne other stuff
people would use or pick up on the ground when they couldn’t find paper for
him to sign on. One lady made him sign at the back of her elegant, designer
Filipiniana gown. One teenager came up to him holding a dead leaf and
another one, a popped balloon. Imagine how our laughter ballooned as well.
It was an amazing, genuine experience. At one point he asked if I was
going to catch his History concert and I said “tomorrow night.” “Oh, you’ll
have a blast!” Michael told me. At this point he became concerned about the
stage as adults outnumbered the kids. His face had nervousness written all
over it but he still didn’t complain. He tapped the wooden floor with his
foot several times making sure it was sturdy enough not to fall apart. “I’ve
experienced the stage collapse and I just want to make sure we’re all safe
here,” he explained. Half of me wanted the line to finish because we were
literally melting and worried about our safety, but half of me didn’t,
knowing that once the line ended, Michael will leave.
At some point it did end. I managed to get an autograph for my sisters and
me before our general manager, Clem Pablo, requested him to sing Give Love
on Christmas Day. Cesar Sarino, one of the hotel’s officials, addressed his
thank you
note to the King of Pop. Then I saw his guards and aides whisking Michael
off stage. I said in my mind, “Oh man, I didn’t even have the chance to say
goodbye.” Suddenly, I saw Michael return on stage and say, “Thanks so much
to you and your team, Gwen. This really means a lot.” Then he held me beside
him and said, “I’ll see you at the concert.”
As Michael Jackson is laid to rest and returned to pristine condition in the afterlife, these two incredible acts of the King of Pop — volunteering for charity and unselfishly spending time with the less fortunate, will forever be the way I will remember this man.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. Do we make a fundamental choice for the Kingdom of God, and are we ready to renounce all that impedes from total participation in it? Do we endeavor to help the “little ones” to experience the blessings of the heavenly Kingdom?
2. Do we hear the cry of the poor and respond to their needs? Do we truly seek the treasures of heaven?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATI
Lord Jesus,
help us to heed your warning
not to cause the “little ones” to sin,
but rather to promote their dignity and integrity.
Teach us to respond to the cry of the poor
and aid them in their needs.
Let us respond to the call of radical discipleship.
We love you and we trust in you, O Divine Master,
for in drawing us close to you
we are purified and “salted with fire”
and become the good “salt of the earth”.
You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.
***
Lord Jesus,
help us to promote the dignity and integrity of the human person
for whom you have poured out your sacrificial blood.
Teach us to respond to the cry of the poor
and aid them in their needs.
You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.
“It is better for you to enter into life maimed than with two hands to go into Gehenna, into the unquenchable fire.” (Mk 9:47) //“Their cries have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.” (Jas 5:4)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
To help you interiorize the radical demands of God’s kingdom, spend some moments of quiet prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. // Make a personal inventory and see what things/resources/assets you can renounce/share with the “little ones” and the needy poor.
*** *** ***
May 24, 2024: FRIDAY – WEEKDAY (7)
DAY OF PRAYER FOR THE CHURCH IN CHINA
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us the Sanctity of Marriage … He Shows Us Patient Endurance”
BIBLE READINGS
Jas 5:9-12 // Mk 10:1-12
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Mk 10:1-12): “What God has joined together, no human being must separate.”
This true story of enduring love happened some years ago in the Philippines. The parents of our friend, Fr. Allan Lastimosa, went to visit him at his parish in Metro Manila. They had a beautiful time together, especially when they celebrated his mom’s birthday. Soon it was time for his parents to sail for their Cebu island hometown. Fr. Allan brought his parents and a nephew to the pier in Manila and sent them off. As they were about to sail, his dad commented, “The weather doesn’t look good!” But there seemed to be no cause for alarm. And so the ship set off for a day’s journey to Cebu. That was the last time Fr. Allan would see his mom and dad. They were among the fatalities when the boat was caught offshore by a typhoon and capsized. The nephew survived to tell a beautiful story of sacrificial love and nuptial fidelity. Fr. Allan’s dad, who was physically able and could have saved himself, refused to leave his sickly and fragile wife behind. Death perfected their marriage covenant. Indeed, their love for each other is a paradigm of the irrevocable unity of “what God has joined together”.
Today’s Gospel reading (Mk 10:1-12) continues to delineate the radical demands of Christian discipleship. Jesus’ teaching on marriage is a further challenge to those who wish to follow him. At the core of his message is the challenge to spouses to live in faithful union until death. In the divine plan, the married couple constitutes “one flesh” and their covenantal relationship is enduring. He asserts radically that what God has joined together, no human being must separate. Jesus thus enunciates the ideal of indissoluble marriage in the context of the divine plan and the Reign of God that he has come to establish. Though cognizant of the painful issue of marital failure and divorce, the Church continues, then and now, to uphold the lofty ideal of the sacredness of the marriage covenant. In a world where marriage is a convenience, Christian couples are called to witness to the sacred character of the bond of matrimony. God proposes this ideal of marriage to weak human beings, but he places his trust in men and women created in his image and strengthened by his grace.
B. First Reading (Jas 5:9-12): “The Judge is standing before the gates.”
The reading (Jas 5:9-12) contains a lesson on patient endurance. Saint James invites the Christian community not to judge one another because the true Judge who is God is ready to appear. Rather, he invites them to emulate the sterling models of patient endurance. He reminds them of the prophets who suffered for God’s word and of Job, a paradigm of perseverance and a recipient of God’s abundant reward. Indeed, those who persevere are blessed. The words of Saint James are meant to console and to enlighten. The Lord who comes as judge is compassionate and merciful. But to avoid being condemned by the just judge, one must live in truth and integrity.
The courageous Pakistani girl, Malala, gives us a glimpse what “patient endurance” in today’s world means (cf. “The Face of Courage” in Parade, October 6, 2013, p. 10, 16).
In a country that’s seen more than its share of violence, the fate of one teenager might not seem to count for much. But somehow Malala Yousafzai of Pakistan has managed to become an international inspiration. She was only 11 when she took on the Taliban, demanding that girls be given full access to school. Her campaign led to a blog for the BBC, a New York Times documentary, and a Pakistani peace prize. But all that was only a prelude to even more extraordinary events. Last October, Taliban assassins attacked Malala, then 15, on her way home from school, shooting her in the head. Here Malala describes that day and offers her hopes for the future. (…)
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2012: The man was wearing a peaked cap and had a handkerchief over his nose and mouth. Then he swung himself onto the tailboard and leaned in over us. “Who is Malala?” he demanded. No one said anything, but several girls looked at me. I was the only girl with my face uncovered. That’s when he lifted up a black pistol. Some of the girls screamed. Moniba tells me I squeezed her hand.
My friends say he fired three shots. The first went through my left eye socket and out under my left shoulder. I slumped forward onto Moniba, blood coming from my left ear, so the other two bullets hit the girls next to me. One bullet went into Shazia’s left hand. The third went through her left shoulder and into the upper right arm of Kainaz Riaz. My friends told me the gunman’s hand was shaking as he fired.
In the year since that fateful day, Malala has undergone a recovery that is nothing short of miraculous. The bullet narrowly missed her brain, and doctors at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, England, where she was brought in a medically induced coma six days after the attack, marveled that she was able to stand within a week of her arrival. Malala underwent multiple surgeries and spent nearly three months in the hospital (which specialized in treating wounded soldiers) though mercifully it was found that she had suffered no major permanent neurological damage.
The ordeal did, however, solidify her will: “It feels like this life is not my life. It’s a second life. People have prayed to God to spare me and I was spared for a reason – to use my life for helping people.”
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. Do we believe in Jesus’ radical affirmation: “What God has joined together, no human being must separate”? How do we promote the sanctity and integrity of family and married life?
2. As Christian disciples, how do we build in ourselves “patient endurance”? Do we allow ourselves to be strengthened by our compassionate and merciful God?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
Almighty and eternal God,
you have made the unbreakable bond of marriage
a sign of your Son’s union with the Church as his spouse.
Look with favor on all married couples
whom you have united.
Let them grow in love for each other
and may they resolve to be
of one heart, one mind, one soul.
In their needs, be near to them
and in their struggles, assist them with your saving power.
Loving Father,
we pray for the Church, the Bride of Christ,
that she may trust in your mercy and compassion
and work for the coming of your kingdom in “patient endurance”.
We give you glory and praise,
now and forever.
Amen.
***
Lord Jesus,
we look forward to your coming.
You are the Judge who stands before the gates.
Help us to work for the definitive advent of your kingdom
in “patient endurance”.
We give you glory and praise, now and forever.
Amen.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.
“What God has joined together, no human being must separate.” (Mk 10:9) //“Indeed we call blessed those who have persevered.” (Jas 5:11
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Pray for all married couples, offering special petitions for those who are having marital problems. // Manifest “patient endurance” and perseverance in carrying out the daily tasks of Christian discipleship.
*** *** ***
May 25, 2024: SATURDAY – EASTER WEEKDAY (7);
SAINT BEDE THE VENERABLE, Priest, Doctor of the Church;
SAINT GREGORY VII, Pope; SAINT MARY MAGDALENE DE’PAZZI, Virgin; BVM ON SATURDAY
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Welcomes the Children … He Teaches Us the Power of Prayer”
BIBLE READINGS
Jas 5:13-20 // Mk 10:13-16
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Mk 10:13-16): “Whoever does not accept the Kingdom of God like a child will not enter it.”
Today’s Gospel episode of Jesus blessing the children (Mk 10:13-16) follows Jesus’ teaching about the sacredness of marriage. This is significant in that to accept the Lord’s teaching on marriage requires the openness of children and a sense of dependence on God’s strength matching the child’s sense of dependence on the parents. Only a childlike trust will enable the Christian disciples to live up to the demands of the day-to-day relationships they have in the family and elsewhere. Jesus shows compassion and concern for the children who are being prevented from coming to him. Reacting with righteous indignation, he orders them to let the children come to him and holds the little ones as models for those who receive the kingdom of God. It is only to those who are receptive as children that the kingdom of God belongs. Those who are childlike have a central place in the community of faith.
The following story illustrates the sensitivity and receptivity of a “child” to the works of God’s kingdom (cf. Taste of Home, February-March 2009, p. 67). A 12-year-old’s fundraising effort to help poor African children gives us a glimpse of what Christians can do in today’s world to be pleasing to God.
A video shown at church inspired Miranda Walters to make a difference. She saw the faces of children dying from malaria thousands of miles from her Cedar Falls, Iowa home and knew she couldn’t ignore them. A $10 mosquito net dramatically reduces the risk African children face of contracting malaria, an often-fatal infectious disease transmitted through mosquito bites. So Miranda, 12, gave herself a goal: raise $100, enough to buy 10 nets for the nonprofit organization Nothing But Nets. “After seeing the video, I told my grandma I wanted to do something to help them”, Miranda says. “She suggested a bake sale. So we talked to people at church, made posters and baked some things.”
She and her grandmother, Jill Rechkemmer, also of Cedar Falls, made Caramel-Pecan Cheesecake Pie and Caramel-Pecan Apple Pie, both from Taste of Home. They also invited others from the congregation to help with the baking. “At first I worried we wouldn’t get enough baked goods”, says Grandma Jill. “But there were so many!” The bake sale raised $640, enough to buy 64 nets.
Miranda encourages other kids to think about raising money for a cause. “It’s possible no matter how busy you are”, she says. “It feels good to do something to make a difference.”
B. First Reading (Jas 5:13-20): “The fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful.”
In today’s reading (Jas 5:13-20), we hear the conclusion of the letter of Saint James in which he continues to underline what an authentic faith entails. Whether suffering or in good spirits we need to draw near to God in prayer. When there is a sick member, the Church elders are urged to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. The prayer made in faith will heal the sick person. The Lord will restore him to health and the sins he has committed will be forgiven. Citing as model the prophet Elijah, whose prayer brought both drought and life-giving rain on the land, Saint James declares that the prayer of a righteous person is very powerful. The prayer of faith should not only concern the physically sick person, but the sinner who has gone astray. The spiritually sick member deserves as much attention as the physically ill. Such kindness and concern for the well-being of the sinner’s soul will find favor with God.
Here is an example of a church’s prayer of faith at work (cf. Lynda Ramsey Martinez, “Anointed” in Guideposts, February 2014, p. 24-26).
I could not possibly have advanced ovarian cancer … I knew God didn’t make mistakes and everything happened for a reason. But this felt like a mistake … I’m a deeply faithful person. I totally trust God. But I couldn’t help being afraid … I didn’t want this to be the end. I was only 59! I thought back over my life – my first marriage, then marrying Pete, raising two sets of kids, Lynda’s Café.
Suddenly I remembered something from my church growing up. How our pastor would anoint the sick with oil for them. Our church had believed strongly in the healing power of God’s Spirit. Was that what I need? A kind of spiritual chemo? It was as if my sister Mary Margaret read my mind. She was my big sister. She’d always looked out for me. Out of the blue she called and announced. “Lynda, I found a pastor who will anoint you with oil. Remember how they did that when we were kids? He’s coming the day before your surgery.”
Pastor Kenneth Kelly arrived the evening before I went to the hospital. The instant I saw him I felt at ease. He was the pastor of a small church in downtown Phoenix. His eyes were kind and filled with God’s mercy, almost as if a light shone in them. The anointing was very simple. Pastor Kenneth took a small vial from his pocket, poured a drop on my forehead, then laid his hands on my head. His wife and brother, who’d accompanied him, laid their hands on too. “Dear Lord, protect Lynda and heal her body.” Pastor Kelly prayed. “Send your angels to carry her through this surgery and guide the hands of the doctors. We ask this in the name of your blessed son, Jesus.” That was all. I felt no different when the prayer ended. But I was glad he’d come. I asked if he would come again during chemo. “Of course”, he said.
I made it through the surgery … Dr. Bhoola prescribed six rounds of chemo, starting in December … The night before the third round, Pastor Kenneth had gently asked whether I was prepared for the possibility that God would not heal my body. “Sometimes there’s physical healing”, he said. “Sometimes the healing takes a different form. Are you open to that?” All I could think to reply was, “Well, if the Lord chooses not to heal me, then I’ll see my mom and dad and everyone else in heaven.” I meant that. But I didn’t want it to happen yet.
The night before the fourth round of chemo, Pastor Kenneth came to our house once again. I sat in a chair in the living room, trying to feel the same sense of comfort I’d felt the first time he came. He got out the oil and poured a drop on my forehead. Then he laid his hands on me and prayed. He finished and stepped back to talk to Pete. Suddenly I sat bolt upright. A wave of intense heat passed through my body … “I think I was just healed”, I said. (…)
I underwent tests just before Memorial Day. All through the long weekend Pete and I prayed and agonized, waiting for the results. At last, on Tuesday, the phone rang. It was Dr Bhoola’s assistant. “You are one strong woman, Lynda”, she marveled. “The tests show you are one hundred percent cancer-free. We call that NED – no evidence of disease.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. Do we have a childlike dependence in our relationship with God and are we animated by a sense of trust in our pursuit of the kingdom of God?
2. Do we perceive the importance of the prayer in our life as Christian disciples? How do we contribute to the prayer of faith of the Church and the well being of the members?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
Dear Jesus,
you wanted the children to come to you.
We come to you with childlike dependence
and total trust.
We love and serve you, now and forever.
Amen.
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Loving Jesus,
you are our healing Lord.
Let us enter the heavenly kingdom
and give us the grace to share in the healing ministry
and the prayer of faith of the Church.
You live and reign, forever and ever.
Amen.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the week. Please memorize it.
“Let the children come to me … the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” (Mk 10:14) //“The prayer of faith will save the sick person.” (Jas 5:15)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
With childlike dependence, ask God for the grace you need to serve him in the sick and suffering and in caring for the “little ones”.
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Prepared by Sr. Mary Margaret Tapang PDDM
PIAE DISCIPULAE DIVINI MAGISTRI
SISTER DISCIPLES OF THE DIVINE MASTER
60 Sunset Ave., Staten Island, NY 10314
Tel. (718) 494-8597 // (718) 761-2323
Website: WWW.PDDM.US