A Lectio Divina Approach to the Sunday & Weekday Liturgy
BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (Series 17, n. 41)
Week 23 in Ordinary Time: September 8-14, 2019
(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: September 1-7, 2019 please go to ARCHIVES Series 17 and click on “Week 21 Ordinary Time”.
Below is a LECTIO DIVINA APPROACH TO THE SUNDAY - WEEKDAY LITURGY: September 8-14, 2019.)
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September 8, 2019: TWENTY-THIRD SUNDAY
IN ORDINARY TIME
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Lays Down the Cost of Discipleship”
BIBLE READINGS
Wis 9:13-18b // Phlm 9-10, 12-17 // Lk 14:25-33
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Lk 14:25-33): “Anyone of you who does not renounce all possessions cannot be my disciple.”
I was a novice when I saw the film, “Brother Sun, Sister Moon”, produced and directed by Franco Zeffirelli. That movie - a powerful idyll on Christian discipleship - touched me deeply. It transported me to a fascinating world of beauty and grace. It evoked in me a great desire to pursue the Kingdom of God and give myself totally to Jesus. In the life of Francis of Assisi I saw a full response to Christ’s challenge, “If you wish to be my disciple …” The two most powerful images of discipleship that I saw in Zeffirelli’s movie were: when Francis, overcoming his revulsion, kissed a leper and when he stripped off all his clothing to give it back to his father. However, the scenario that greatly delighted me was Francis prayerfully contemplating in a field of poppies (papaveri), in an Umbrian countryside ablaze with thousands and thousands of reddish-orange flowers. When I was assigned in Italy years later, the sight of a field of poppies would always make me rejoice and remind me of a disciple’s call to deep communion with God.
St. Francis of Assisi epitomizes the true and courageous response to the challenges of discipleship uttered by Jesus and reported in this Sunday’s Gospel reading: “If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple … Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple … Anyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple” (Lk 14:26-27,33). Having made a radical choice for Christ as the ultimate and absolute value, all other realities became relative and secondary – including family relations, material possessions, and even his very life. St. Francis thus showed us what it means to be a Christian disciple.
This Sunday’s Gospel passage is an incisive instruction on Christian discipleship. The followers of Christ should not entertain illusions, but rather grasp the real demands of Christian life. One radical demand of discipleship is an unconditional preference for Christ that would enable the disciple “to hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life …”. The Christian challenge “to hate” should not be understood in its narrow literal sense, but as a Semitic way of saying “to love less”. It indicates a preference for Christ that is deliberate, absolute, total and complete. The liturgical scholar, Adrian Nocent comments: “Jesus is speaking of a value judgment and a freedom from ties that have nothing in common with a refusal of fraternal love or with self-centeredness. He is demanding an unconditional love of himself that gives priority to everything that concerns him and makes everyone and everything else secondary. He is asking for a preferential love that entails the leaving behind of all else. Human affections are legitimate, but they are subordinate to love of Jesus … the other objects of our affection, even, our own life, take second priority.”
The second radical demand of Christian discipleship enunciated in today’s Gospel is “to carry the cross and come after Christ”. This entails self-surrender to the divine saving will and total participation in the paschal destiny of Christ.
The third radical demand of discipleship mentioned in this Sunday’s Gospel reading is “to renounce all possessions”. Our choice for Christ calls for the reassessment of our relation to every type of goods. It invites us to evaluate our priorities. It challenges us to cultivate a spirit of detachment, an essential mark of Christian followers. The goods that preempt our loyalty and devotion are to be renounced.
Every Master worthy of the name lays the cards on the table and presents to those who desire to follow him the radical implications of being united with him. The honest and sincere leader gives fair warning of the price of discipleship. With the parable of the man who wishes to build a tower (Lk 14:29-30) and the parable of the king who intends to wage a war (Lk 14:31-32), the Divine Master asserts that we should consider carefully the cost of a venture before embarking on it. Indeed the “price of grace” is costly. The price of discipleship is dear.
On the “costly grace”, the theologian D. Bonhoeffer remarks: “Costly grace is the gospel that must ever be sought; it is a gift for which one must ask; it is the door at which one must knock. It is costly because it calls for obedience; it is grace because it calls for obedience to Christ. It is costly because it may cost a man his life; it is grace because only thus is man brought to new life. It is costly because it condemns sins; it is grace because it justifies the sinner. It is costly grace most of all because it has cost God dearly, because it has cost God the life of his Son – You have been bought at a great price – because what has been costly for God cannot be cheap for us. It is grace most of all because God did not regard his Son as too precious for our life, but gave him for us. Costly grace is the incarnation of God.”
B. First Reading (Wis 9:13-18b): “Who can conceive what the Lord intends.”
In order to have the courage to confront and respond to the “price of grace”, we need to be filled with the wisdom of God (Wis 9:13-18a) – the “Holy Spirit from on high” who would enable us “to conceive what the Lord intends”. The authors of the Days of the Lord, vol. 6, remark: “We know perfectly well that we do not have enough to pay the price, to go the distance, nor the strength needed to deflect the adversary. But we also know the Spirit is given to us, and thus the grace that leads to doing good, to hold fast till the end of our vocation, to meet all requirements: to bear the cross of the disciple and renounce all our goods. The designs and secrets of God have been revealed by the gift of Wisdom and the sending of the Holy Spirit. Knowing what is pleasing to God, we know the paths that lead to salvation.”
An example of a disciple who has been enlightened and strengthened by the Holy Spirit for his Christian witnessing is Saint Maximilian Mary Kolbe. He was arrested by the Gestapo in 1941 for his tireless work against the Nazi forces. The founder of the Militia of Mary Immaculate was sent to the infamous death camp of Auschwitz where he served in slave labor. He was frequently beaten and subjected to humiliations. On August 14, 1941 he was granted the crown of martyrdom when he offered his own life in place of another prisoner. Indeed, Saint Maximilian Mary Kolbe exemplifies a disciple’s heroic response to the challenges posed by Christ.
C. Second Reading (Phlm 9-10, 12-17): “Receive him no longer as a slave but as a beloved brother.”
In his loving letter to Philemon, Saint Paul, an exemplary Christian disciple and a “prisoner for Christ”, illustrates that absolute preference for Christ and immersion into his paschal destiny lead to transformation and new relationships. Onesimus’ new birth in Christ through baptism establishes a new kinship with the saving Lord and with other Christians. Though Saint Paul does not directly challenge the institution of slavery, he exhibits a humane attitude that would eventually guide Christianity to abhor that system.
Considering the historical background, it seems that Philemon has responded to Paul’s revolutionary challenge to freely love Onesimus and respect him with dignity and respect as a “brother” in Christ. Philemon freely renounces his legal right to his slave Onesimus, who is eventually returned to Paul to be the latter’s co-worker in the Gospel. The former slave Onesimus becomes in time a bishop of a vibrant Christian community in Ephesus. Following the inspiration of Saint Paul, Philemon has wonderfully embraced the liberating new vistas of Christian discipleship that enables him to embrace an escaped slave, to give opportunity to a forgiven slave and a “brother” in Christ to realize his full possibility, and to transcend personally the flawed structure of a civil society based on slave ownership.
The following article gives insight into Paul’s assertion that he is a “prisoner for Christ Jesus” (cf. Fr. Kevin O’Neill, “A Bishop’s Story” in L’Osservatore Romano, July 28, 2010, p. 3).
The first time I saw 86 year old Bishop John Baptist Wang was during the Easter Vigil Mass in the cathedral of his diocese. It was a moving Easter ceremony. There was a large fire outside the church followed by a procession into the church with lighted candles. Primary school children read the readings with gusto. Just before the Gloria was sung a huge banner of the risen Jesus was unveiled over the main altar accompanied by a fanfare of trumpets followed by fireworks outside the church.
The symbol of water was in the form of a waterfall set up on the right side of the sanctuary. The congregation shouted aloud in one voice their renewal of faith while holding high their lighted candles. This was very powerful. Just before the liturgy of the Eucharist, Bishop Wang was ushered to the altar with assistance. He sat in a chair beside me so I assisted him with his standing and sitting during the Eucharistic prayer. In 2008 he had a number of minor strokes that affected the feeling in his hands and his ability to walk unaided. A few days later I had the opportunity to talk with him. He was still quite frail then, lying in bed with a drip, nevertheless he graciously met with me.
He was ordained a priest in 1951 at the age of 28. In 1999, at the age of 76 (normally Bishops resign at 75 years of age), he was ordained Bishop by the former Bishop of his neighboring home diocese. He pointed out the needs of his diocese as the formation of priests, sisters, seminarians and catechists. The sisters work in parishes, clinics and an orphanage. The priority of the diocese is mission outreach. The diocese is one of the poorer dioceses in China that gets some financial assistance from Rome.
A few months later I had the opportunity to return to his diocese. This time the Bishop was in better health but still unable to walk unassisted. He shared with me a little of his experience in detention and prison.
In 1965, at the age of 42, he spent 11 years in detention and nine years in prison. It took the officials 11 years to charge him with being an “anti-liberationist”. He said life in detention was tougher than life in prison though life in prison was also difficult. While in prison he shared a small room with seven other men. There was one bed for them to share. If they all slept on their side they could manage to fit onto the bed. If anyone needed to use the toilet at night his space on the bed would be gone. The toilet was in the corner of the room.
They were allowed to leave their room for 20 minutes once per week. Food was passed into the room through a small hole in the door. Meals consisted of soup and a little vegetable. They had a change of clothes once a week. He did not wash his body for the 20 years he was incarcerated! He said the smell in the prison cell was terrible. He was released from prison in 1985 and for political reasons had to leave his home diocese and work in the neighboring diocese where he is now a Bishop. When he was in prison his family sent him a dictionary and the book Tale of Two Cities. He used these to study English. He added a few sentences of English when he spoke to me saying, “Can I now practice my English with you?” A good grasp of Latin helped him in learning English.
It was hard for me to fathom how an old man who had experienced so much suffering could be so serene. He didn’t even have a bad word to say about those who kept him captive all those years. I think deep down he has forgiven them though of course I imagine he could never forget what they did to him and others. Serenity is so obvious in his face, his gestures and speech … Though old and frail; he is strong in mind and spirit.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
Are we ready to respond continually and progressively to the demands of Christian discipleship? How do the parables of the tower builder and the war-waging king impact us? Do we dedicate adequate reflection and consideration to the price of discipleship? Why is the price of discipleship costly? Are we thankful to the Lord for the gift of discipleship and are we ready to pay the price?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
Loving Father,
your Son Jesus Christ calls us to be his disciples.
But the price of discipleship is dear
and the grace that is offered to us is “costly”.
We open our hearts
to the tremendous challenge of Christian discipleship.
We humbly welcome the “costly grace” offered to us in the name of Jesus
and by his paschal sacrifice.
Send forth upon us the “wisdom from on high”
that we may discern with sensitivity your saving will.
Renew the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon us.
Give us the strength to renounce
what impedes us from following Christ, our supreme good.
Help us to follow Christ on the path that leads to life.
We praise and bless you,
in the name of Jesus and in the wisdom of the Holy Spirit,
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 week. Please memorize it.
“Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.” (Lk 14:27).
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Pray that those who wish to follow Christ may respond to his radical demands with generosity, integrity and total dedication. In your detachment from temporary goods and total attachment to the absolute treasure, Jesus Christ, be open to share generously with the poor and the needy the talents and resources you have received from God.
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September 9, 2019: MONDAY – SAINT PETER CLAVER, Priest (USA)
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Does Good on the Sabbath … His Ministers Proclaim the Mystery of Salvation”
BIBLE READINGS
Col 1:24-2:3 // Lk 6:6-11
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Lk 6:6-11): “The scribes and the Pharisees watched him closely to see if he would cure on the Sabbath.”
On another Sabbath, Jesus goes into the synagogue to worship and teach. The scribes and Pharisees are there to actively scrutinize him. They watch closely to see if he would cure on the Sabbath and thus find a reason to accuse him. They legally interpret healing as a medical intervention and, therefore, as a kind of “work” that transgresses the law of the Sabbath. Jesus, however, realizes how wrong they are. He, therefore, responds to the conflict situation proactively. He deliberately heals on a Sabbath day to teach them its true meaning. The law of Sabbath rest is meant for the good of people. To do a compassionate act on the Sabbath – to heal a man with a withered hand and to relieve him of suffering - is therefore “lawful”. To refuse to do the good that can be done is akin to evil. There is no “Sabbath” that restricts us from doing good to another human being. There is no “Sabbath” that prevents us from loving. Indeed, the refusal to love is a betrayal of life.
In light of today’s reading (Lk 6:6-11), we are being challenged to be courageous like Jesus in doing what is good and not allow “false restrictions” to impede us. When I was a teenager, I saw on television the movie “The Nun’s Story”, starring Audrey Hepburn. She was a missionary nun in Africa and was serving as a nurse in a hospital. The medical doctor was out of town when a bleeding patient was brought for treatment. An emergency surgery has to be done to save the injured man. Although she did not have a medical license, she took the risk and operated on him. The courageous nun saved his life.
B. First Reading (Col 1:24-2:3): “I am a minister of the Church to bring to completion the mystery hidden from ages past.”
Today’s First Reading (Col 1:24-2:3) underlines the toil and struggle of Saint Paul as a messenger of the mystery of salvation. He asserts that the core of the “mystery” is a person – the person of Jesus Christ. As a servant of the Church, Saint Paul is happy about his sufferings. By means of his sufferings he helps to complete what still remains of Christ’s sufferings on behalf of his body, the Church. Paul does not mean that Christ did not suffer enough or that something is lacking in Christ’s afflictions to save humankind. “To fill up what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ” means that the apostolic toil and sufferings of Saint Paul are associated with and continue the saving work of Jesus in preaching the Gospel, with all the trials and difficulties it entails. Hence, the completion of the “sufferings of Christ” is intimately connected with the completion of the preaching of the Gospel. The hard-working Saint Paul continues to reveal to the Colossians and other people the divine saving mystery, which is Christ himself – the key that opens all the hidden treasures of God’s wisdom and knowledge,
The following portrait of two senior priests illustrates what it means to be a servant of the Church and to toil on behalf of the saving mystery in today’s world (cf. Michelle Martin, “Older Priests Continue Ministry Long after Retirement” in Our Sunday Visitor, June 9, 2013, p. 12).
Msgr. Thomas Prendergast, a senior priest at Our Mother of Confidence Parish in San Diego, said his days are full. Prendergast is 81 and has been retired since he was 75. He was already retired when he moved into Our Mother of Confidence at the invitation of the pastor.
“I say Mass at least every Sunday and sometimes during the week”, he said. “I hear confessions every Saturday, and the sick calls, you know. We have a large parish here, a lot of seniors. I don’t do a lot of administration to speak of. Before I was retired, there was a lot of administration.”
Msgr. Prendergast said he thinks that people might like to have a younger man in the parish, but “they’re happy to have a priest.” He most enjoys visiting the sick and anointing people who are seriously ill. Asked if he intends to continue his ministry, Msgr. Prendergast said, “As long as I am in reasonably good health, yes.”
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Msgr. Francis Maniola is nothing if not a model of faithfulness. The priest, who celebrated his 100th birthday and his 75th anniversary of ordination in April, still participates at Mass every weekend at St. Symphorosa Church in Chicago, taking Communion on the same altar where he has served nearly every weekend since he became a pastor of the parish in 1968. Since then, Msgr. Maniola has baptized and married generations of parishioners, said Marge Garbacz, the parish’s pastoral associate and director of religious education. Msgr. Maniola served as the parish’s third pastor before retiring in 1981. Named pastor emeritus and asked to stay on by the next pastor, Msgr. Maniola never left.
Now he participates in Mass by watching from the sacristy door, approaching the altar for the Our Father and Communion, Garbacz said. “It’s such a witness of faithfulness”, she said. Up until this year, Msgr. Maniola blessed many sacramentals and other objects, even after he stopped celebrating Mass publicly and could no longer listen to confessions because he was too hard of hearing. “He loved to bless things”, Garbacz said. “People would stop by the rectory and we’d call him and he’d come down.”
After a brief hospitalization in January, Msgr. Maniola now has the aid of a caregiver for some daily tasks, but he still joins the parish staff for lunch every day. “When he was in the hospital, he told everyone, ‘I want to go home’,” Garbacz said. “For him, St. Symphorosa is home.”
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. Are we like the scribes and Pharisees, who prevent others from doing good to the needy? Do we have a healthy understanding of the “Sabbath” that enables us to be more compassionate to our needy and suffering neighbors?
2. What do we do personally “to fill up what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ on behalf of his Body” – the Church? What do we do to reveal the saving mystery, who is Christ?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
Loving Father,
we thank you for Jesus, the Divine Master.
He is the Lord of the Sabbath.
He heals even on the Sabbath
to teach us that the Sabbath is made for the good of man
and that man was not made for the Sabbath.
Help us to imitate him
in acting compassionately with the freedom of the Holy Spirit,
the principle of life and good.
Let us be convinced that refusal to do good
is a betrayal of life.
We love you, dear Father in heaven.
We give you glory and praise, now and forever.
Amen.
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O loving God,
we thank you for Saint Paul’s work as servant of the Church
and for revealing to the nations the saving mystery,
who is Christ.
Help us to treasure the presence of Christ in us.
He is the hope of glory.
Give us the grace to unite our apostolic endeavors and afflictions
with the saving work of Christ on behalf of the Gospel.
Let us be drawn together in love
and be filled with courage to preach Christ to everyone
and to give witness to him throughout the world.
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.
“Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath?” (Lk 6:9) //“I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake.” (Col 1:24)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Pray that you may have a healthy understanding of church and civil laws. Endeavor to do charitable acts every day so that you will be ready to do good even in extraordinary situations and/or conditions. // Offer to God your trial, toil and affliction for the sake of the Gospel believing that in your very struggle the saving mystery of God’s love in Christ is revealed.
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September 10, 2019: TUESDAY – WEEKDAY (23)
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Spends the Night in Prayer … He Is
the Fullness of Life”
BIBLE READINGS
Col 2:6-15 // Lk 6:12-19
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Lk 6:12-19): “He spent the night in prayer. He chose Twelve whom he also named Apostles.”
The night is fascinating. It can be a moment of deep commune with God and a time of profound prayer. In today’s Gospel (Lk 6:12-19) we hear that before choosing his apostles, Jesus spends an entire night on a mountain in prayer. Once again, before making a decisive decision crucial to his messianic mission, he prays. When the day comes, he calls his disciples to himself and chooses the twelve apostles, who represent the “twelve” tribes of the New Israel, the Church. Like Moses descending from the mountain to deliver the Law to the people, Jesus comes down from the mountains to share with them the word of life and his touch of healing. On the plain, people crowd around him to hear the word of God and to experience his healing touch.
Prayer is a very important element in the life of Jesus and his disciples. Harold Buetow remarks: “It’s in prayer that we learn the mystery of Christ and the wisdom of the cross. In prayer we perceive in all their dimensions the real needs of our brothers and sisters throughout the world; in prayer we find the strength to face whatever lies before us; in prayer we get the strength for the mission which Christ shares with us.”
The following account in the life of John Michael Talbot, a modern day disciple-apostle and a “troubadour for the Lord” gives us a glimpse into the role and importance of prayer in the Christian vocation (cf. Dan O’Neill, Signatures: The Story of John Michael Talbot, Berryville: Troubadour for the Lord, 2003, p. 43-45).
It happened in 1971 in a hotel in mid-America. “Things now rush together in my memory about those years, probably the endless touring and performing lulled me into a stupefied indifference about where I was or when I was there, and, of course, there were far more important matters on my mind at that time”, John points out. “All I remember about the general circumstances is that we were in the middle of a tour, probably somewhere in the Midwest, and spending this particular night at Holiday Inn. I had my own room – the walls I recall as being blue – probably matched my disposition at the time.”
The other band members and road crew were checking into their rooms down the hall as John closed the door and collapsed on the double bed, turning his tired gaze toward the window. The soft eerie glow of the neon hotel sign filtered softly through the drawn blue drapery, bathing him in a pattern of light and shadows. As had become his custom when there were quiet, restful moments at hand, John began to pray to a God he did not know deeply but had come to believe in. Almost imperceptibly, his silent, interior meditation became an audible, vocal question: “Lord, who are you?”
Then it happened. Light seemed to fill the room, gradually intensifying to a mind-bending brilliance. Startled, John sat up, blinking his eyes to behold the figure of a man in white robes, arms outstretched, with long hair and a beard. “I saw an image”, John says, “that looked like Jesus – it was a traditional Christ-figure – an incredible sight.” A surge of adrenaline tore through his body like a hot rushing current, yet there was no fear or panic.
“I looked up out of my prayer and saw Christ bathed in light before me”, says John Michael. “He didn’t say anything. He didn’t give me a ‘great commission’ or anything like that. He was simply present. His love poured over and through me – it even seemed to emanate from me. In that experience I knew that my prayer for God to reveal himself to me was answered in the person of Jesus. I didn’t understand any Christian theology. I just knew that God loved me through this revelation of Jesus, and that any of my past sins or failings were forgiven. He stood before me, somehow almost around and within me, in infinite greatness yet total humility. I felt compassion. And I felt acceptance. I had been reading about Jesus and feeling him in my heart, but at that moment I actually experienced his touch. I knew it was Jesus. From that point on, I begin calling myself a Christian again.” (…)
As they say, “the real test is in the fruit”, and the fruits of John’s life were definite changes for the better. John’s band-mates said that he became a more mature and well-balanced person. His newfound faith was making him a better human being. He was nicer to be around. The photos of Mason Proffit show the change. The early ones show a dull-eyed, aimless teenager. After the Christ experience John Michael Talbot looks like a young man with a vision about the direction of his life.
B. First Reading (Col 2:6-15): “God brought you to life along with Christ having forgiven us all our transgressions.”
In today’s First Reading (Col 2:6-15), Saint Paul exhorts the Colossians to live in union with Christ and to remain faithful to the apostolic teaching. He advises them to be on guard against those who deceive them with human wisdom and false teachings about “the ruling spirits of the universe”. Paul thus underlines the pre-eminence of Christ. The full content of divine nature lives in Christ, who is supreme over every spiritual ruler and authority. In union with Christ through baptism we have received the fullness of life. Those who through sin are spiritually dead have been brought to life in Jesus Christ. God has done away with their spiritual debts by nailing them to the redemptive cross together with Christ. Through the cross, Christ subjected all rulers and authorities.
The following story gives an insight into Saint Paul’s assertion that God has brought us to life in Christ and that in him our sins are forgiven (cf. Anne Caron, “My Own Disbelief” in 101 Inspirational Stories of the Sacrament if Reconciliation, Sister Patricia Proctor, Spokane: Franciscan Monastery of Saint Clare, 2006, p. 208-209).
A few years ago our parish held a Lenten Mission. I was not planning to go, but a friend didn’t want to go alone, so I went to accompany her. I think God used her to get me to go!
The Passionist priest giving the mission was very fervent and very much in love with the Lord. I drank in every word he said and thrilled to the truth of it. It had been awhile since I’d gone to confession because I felt very unworthy. I had feelings that God loved everyone else more than he loved me. Sometimes I would imagine that God was impatient with me for repeating the same sins over and over.
At one point during the mission, the priest pointed to the crucifix. He said to us in a firm and solemn voice, “If you don’t think this is enough to forgive what you’ve done, then there’s no way you can be forgiven.”
It hit me like a ton of bricks! My feelings of unworthiness could prevent Our Blessed Lord from forgiving my sins? Not because Jesus was unwilling, but because of my own disbelief! I was stunned. Could I actually prevent God from forgiving me?
I approach the sacrament of reconciliation very differently now. It’s still not easy. It’s still humiliating to admit my faults and deliberate actions, but knowing that there is an ocean of mercy that I can throw those sins into fills me with deep gratitude.
Now I know that God’s loving heart is always there to lean on and whisper my sorrows to. I haven’t yet been able to live up to my desire to live the perfect life out of love for Him, but I know that this is where I receive the grace to keep trying.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. What role does prayer play in our life, and especially in our Christian vocation? Do we give fundamental importance to prayer and contemplation? Do we see the intimate connection between prayer and deep commune with God and the call to mission and service of the Kingdom?
2. How does Paul’s assertion that God has now brought us to life with Christ and that God forgave us all our sins impinge on us?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
Lord Jesus,
you spent an entire night in prayer
to discern the divine will
with regards to your mission
and the future leaders of the Church.
Help us to perceive
the great importance of prayer in our life.
Grant us the strength
to carry out our mission
on behalf of your kingdom of justice, peace and love.
You live and reign, forever and ever.
Amen.
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O loving and merciful God,
you have brought us to life with Christ
and upon the cross, our debt of sins is forgiven.
Help us to accept your gift of forgiveness.
Let us live in union with Jesus
and build our lives on him.
Strengthen our faith
and fill us with thanksgiving
for freeing us from the power of the sinful self.
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.
“He spent the night in prayer to God.” (Lk 6:12) //“But God has now brought you to life with Christ.” (Col 2:13)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Tonight spend quiet moments in prayer to God. Allow your prayer to be transformed into acts of self-giving and service to the needy. // Be aware of the beauty and power of the sacrament of reconciliation. Help your friends and loved ones to appreciate this God-given gift.
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September 11, 2019: WEDNESDAY – WEEKDAY (23)
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Blesses the Anawim … In Him
We Have Put On the New Self”
BIBLE READINGS
Col 3:1-11 // Lk 6:20-26
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Lk 6:20-26): “Blessed are you who are poor. Woe to you who are rich.”
In today’s Gospel (Lk 6:20-26), Jesus blesses the anawim (from anawah = humility). They are a people - humble and lowly - who find their well-being in God. These humble believers are eager to welcome God and ready to do his will. They put their hope and trust in God alone. Formed by his mother Mary, the Lord’s humble handmaid, Jesus is the ultimate anawim. As the Servant-Son of Yahweh, he is meek and humble of heart. In his inaugural discourse as Divine Master, Jesus declares that the anawim – the poor, the hungry, the grieving and the persecuted - are blessed by the Lord. They are recipients of salvation and of God’s infinite favor. Immersed into the baptismal waters of his paschal destiny, the Christian disciples in today’s world are the anawim. Like Jesus and Mary, they are called to proclaim the beatitudes of God’s anawim.
Instead of beatitudes, woes are to fall upon the rich who do not use their wealth to help the needy, hoarding it for themselves. Woes are to fall upon the well-fed who are oblivious to the hunger pangs of the poor, not sharing with them the bounty from their table of plenty. Woes are to fall upon those who seek the joys of the world, not commiserating with the grieving and the afflicted. Woes are to fall upon the false prophets, basking in the adulation of friendsmade complacent by their false words of comforts.
But what does it mean to live the spirit of the anawim today? This personal account can give an insight.
A few years ago, I conducted a liturgy class at Maryhill School of Theology in Metro Manila, Philippines, that included the topic “Liturgy and Creation”. I invited an ecology team from Barrio Ugong to share their endeavors with my students. The team was composed of enterprising housewives. None of them had a college or even a high school degree, but they became a leaven of transformation for their local community. Speaking in Tagalog, for none of them was proficient in English, the medium of instruction in higher Filipino schools, the housewives conducted the seminar on waste management, recycling, composting, organic gardening, etc. in very simple terms, but with expertise. They also shared the initial resistance of some people to their community project. The “macho” men in the neighborhood were hostile. But the women steeled themselves from their unjust attacks and persisted with single-hearted devotion and courage. Their humility and prophetic stance paid off. Barrio Ugong was judged the best barrio in the Philippines!
B. First Reading (Col 3:1-11): “You have died with Christ; put to death, then, the parts of you that are earthly.”
In today’s First Reading (Col 3:1-11) Saint Paul exhorts the Colossians to seek out the matters that are in heaven, where Christ sits on his throne at the right side of God. Their “old self” has died and they have been raised to life with Christ. Now their life is hidden with Christ in God and this will be made manifest in glory on judgment day. This dying with Christ involves absolute separation from the former sinful life. They must put off the old self with its habits and put on the new self that is being renewed into the image of the Creator. Christ is the perfect image of God and the perfect pattern of life for the baptized. In Jesus Christ, the great social barriers of race, culture and states of life are broken down. “Christ is all and in all.” These social distinctions are non-consequential when we consider the truth that Jesus Christ is really all that matters.
Mike McGovern (“Papa Mike”) and his conversion story illustrate, in a social context, Saint Paul’s insight about a worldly life that leads to self-destruction and a spiritual life that leads to salvation (cf. 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 two: I got married, and I stayed married, taking seriously that “until death do we 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.
Granted, Poverello House isn’t the usual career path of an up and coming bourgeoisie fella, but then, I didn’t follow the typical middle-class blueprint for successful living until I’d already messed things up pretty well. The point is, even though I gravitated toward the counterculture of the 1960s and continued to view myself as part of that culture, and even though I still have some euphoric recall of those days, I can see now that it was utterly destructive. The only way I escaped was to embrace those boring middle-class values … Drugs, uncommitted sex, irresponsibility, and dependency became permanent features of urban poverty, and this cultural dysfunction led to widespread despair.
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. How does Jesus’ proclamation of the Beatitudes impinge upon us? Do we accept his declaration that the anawim are indeed blessed by the Lord? Do we try to live out in our life the beatitudes of the anawim? Do we look upon Jesus as the ultimate anawim and imitate Mother Mary who has lived the spirit of the anawim?
2. What does it mean personally for us that “we have died with Christ” and that “we need to put to death, then, the parts of us that are worldly”?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
Loving Jesus,
you are the true anawim.
In Galilee, you taught us the beatitudes of the anawim.
Help us to live the spirit of the anawim
and total dependence on God.
We adore you, Jesus, meek and humble of heart.
Live in us, Christ our Lord, now and forever.
Amen.
***
Loving Father,
we thank you for uniting ourselves into the death of Christ.
Help us to put off the old self with its sinful habits
and to put on the new self that shares in the glory of Christ.
Teach us to cherish the new being
that is constantly renewed in your image.
In our life of holiness and service to the Gospel,
let us no longer be concerned with false distinctions
based on race, culture and various states of life.
We believe that Christ is all
and that he is in all.
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.
“Blessed are you who are poor.” (Lk 6:20) //“Put to death, then, the parts of you that are earthly.” (Col 3:5)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Meditate on the Beatitudes and our identity as Christian anawim. In your service to the poor, those who mourn, the victims of injustice and violence, etc., endeavor to be an instrument of God’s beatitude for them. // Make it a point to make an examination of the heart at the beginning of the day and at the end of the day. Examine how you respond to the grace of God calling you to live to the full the “new self” in Christ. If you have failed, consider the possibility of approaching the sacrament of reconciliation.
*** *** ***
September 12, 2019: THURSDAY – WEEKDAY (23); THE MOST HOLY NAME OF MARY
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Calls Us to Radical Forgiveness and Mercy … He Wants Us to Put on Love”
BIBLE READINGS
Col 3:12-17 // Lk 6:27-38
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Lk 6:27-38): “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”
In today’s Gospel (Lk 6:27-38), Jesus challenges us to be radically God-like in extending forgiveness, love and mercy to all. Jesus’ exigent demands resound: “Love your enemies … Do good to them … Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” The words of Jesus on forgiveness and compassion, however, should not be falsely interpreted. His words on non-retaliation and forgiveness do not promote passivity nor permit us to succumb to evil and injustice. Rather, Jesus’ words are a call to radicality. Aelred Rosser asserts: “It’s about being radical: radically loving, radically generous, radically God-like. All the kinds of behavior that Luke records here are summed up in one kind of behavior: God-like behavior. To what extent can we behave like God? To a far greater extent than most of us do. The bottom line may be put this way: if there is no difference between how Christians behave and how non-Christians behave, where’s the evidence that Christianity is different?”
Indeed, Jesus challenges us anew. He who invites us to this radical expression of God’s benevolence and compassion will also give us the grace and inner strength to be radically loving and forgiving. In the case of someone who loves God and Christ, everything is possible. Trusting in the grace of God, the Christian disciple is able to say: “In him who is the source of my strength, I have strength for everything” (Phil 4:13).
The following two stories illustrate what it means to live the challenge of forgiveness and mercy. The first story is about radical forgiveness (cf. Mary Brown in Daily Guideposts 2010, p. 270) and the second is about radical compassion (cf. Brenda Wilbee in Daily Guideposts 2010, p. 271)
Story 1: I’ve been deeply concerned for my friend. Her teenage daughter has moved in with her older boyfriend and his dad. The boyfriend and his dad treat my friend with hostility. To make matters worse, my friend’s ex-husband has joined them in their anger at her. Together they’ve leveled false accusations against my friend and have alienated her daughter from her.
Over the past months my friend has poured out her despair to me. Tonight, however, when I phoned her, I heard an amazing change in her voice. “I feel as though a huge weight had been lifted off me”, she said. “What happened?” I asked. “Well, when I heard the Gospel reading at church this morning – to love your enemies and to pray for those who persecute you – I knew that somehow I had to do what Jesus said, even though it seems impossible.” “Considering how you’ve been treated, it does seem impossible to respond that way.” “I felt that I couldn’t but that God could. For the rest of the service, I prayed for them. When I came home, I still felt overwhelmed by my hurt and anger, so I prayed more. Instead of praying for them to change, I simply asked God to do good to them. Suddenly, everything inside me changed, I felt a lightness I’ve never felt before. I know that somehow everything will work out. I’ll keep praying for them and trusting God. I finally have peace.”
***
Story 2: David Denny founded the city of Seattle in 1851. I know the man well; I wrote six books about him and his Sweetbriar Bride Louisa. With only twenty-five cents in his pocket, he went on to become the city’s third richest man. With assets of three million dollars. In the panic of 1893, his brother begged that he shut down his enterprises to weather the terrible recession.
“I can’t”, he replied. “A hundred families will starve.” David instead mortgaged everything, and the recession rolled in. He and Louisa celebrated their fortieth wedding anniversary in an empty mansion and then moved on to a log cabin he’d once given his daughter Abbie. He died ten years later with less than twenty-five cents to his name but with a reputation worth more than gold. Seattle loved Honest Dave.
Before he died, he wrote: “If I could live my life again, I’d still come West, I’d join the same church and marry the same woman. But I’d endeavor to be a better Christian.”
B. First Reading (Col 3:12-17): “Put on love, that is, the bond of perfection.”
Today’s First Reading (Col 3:12-17) is a prescription for an ideal relationship among Church members. Taken from the section of Colossians which urges the members of the body of Christ, the Church, to live according to the values of the community, it encourages works of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and love in Christ’s name. In the faith community and in its individual members, the peace of Christ must reign. Moreover, they should be filled with praise and thanksgiving. Saint Paul teaches us how this could be done: letting Christ’s word dwell in us, teaching with all wisdom according to apostolic understanding, admonishing one another, worshipping and singing to God with grateful hearts, doing everything in word and deed in the name of Christ Jesus. The biblical scholar Ivan Havener remarks: “Seen in this light, thanksgiving to God the Father through Christ becomes a whole way of life. Christian life is eucharist, that is, thanksgiving.”
The following story, circulated on the Internet, illustrates how inspiring and awesome it is when people put on love, the bond of perfection.
In Phoenix, Arizona, a 26-year-old mother stared down at the 6-year-old son who was dying of terminal leukemia. Although her heart was filled with sadness, she also had a strong feeling of determination. Like any parent, she wanted her son to grow up and fulfill all his dreams. Now that was no longer possible! The leukemia would see to that. But she still wanted her son’s dream to come true.
She took her son’s hand and asked, “Billy, did you ever think about what you wanted to be once you grow up? Did you ever dream and wish what would you do with your life?”
“Mommy, I always wanted to be a fireman when I grow up.”
Mom smiled back and said, “Let’s see if we can make your wish come true.”
Later that day she went to her local Fire Department in Phoenix, Arizona, where she met Fireman Bob, who had a heart as big as Phoenix. She explained her son’s final wish and asked if it might be possible to give her 6-year-old son a ride around the block on a fire engine. Fireman Bob said, “Look, we can do better than that. If you have your son ready at seven o’clock Wednesday morning, we’ll make him an honorary Fireman for the whole day. He can come down to the fire station, eat with us, go out on all the fire calls, the whole nine yards! And if you give us his sizes, we can get a real fire uniform for him, with a real fire hat – not a toy – one with the emblem of the Phoenix Fire Department on it, a yellow slicker like we wear and rubber boots. They’re all manufactured right here in Phoenix, so we can get them fast.”
Three days later Fireman Bob picked up Billy, dressed him in his uniform and escorted him from his hospital bed to the waiting hook and ladder truck. Billy got to sit on the back of the truck and help steer it back to the fire station. He was in heaven. There were three fire calls in Phoenix that day and Billy got to go out on all three calls. He rode in the different fire engines, the Paramedic’s van and even the fire chief’s car. He was also videotaped for the local news program.
Having his dream come true, with all the love and attention that was lavished upon him, so deeply touched Billy, that he lived three months longer than any doctor thought possible. One night all of his vital signs began to drop dramatically and the head nurse, who believed in the hospice concept that no one should die alone, began to call the family members to the hospital. Then she remembered the day Billy had spent as a Fireman, so she called the Fire Chief and asked if it would be possible to send a fireman in uniform to the hospital to be with Billy as he made his transition.
The chief replied, “We can do better than that. We’ll be there in five minutes. Will you please do me a favor? When you hear the sirens screaming and see the lights flashing, will you announce over the PA system that there is not a fire? It’s the department coming to see one of its finest members one more time. And will you open the window to his room?”
About five minutes later a hook and ladder truck arrived at the hospital and extended its ladder up to Billy’s third floor open window --- 16 fire-fighters climbed up the ladder into Billy’s room! With his mother’s permission they hugged him and held him and told him how much they LOVED him.
With his dying breath, Billy looked up at the fire chief and said, “Chief, am I really a fireman now?”
“Billy, you are, and the Head Chief, Jesus, is holding your hand”, the chief said.
With those words, Billy smiled and said, “I know. He’s been holding my hand all day, and the angels have been singing.” He closed his eyes one last time.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. How does today’s Gospel on forgiveness and mercy challenge me? What is my response to the command of Jesus: “Love your enemies and do good to them … Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful”? Do I use Christ’s teaching on forgiveness and compassion as an excuse to hide the absence of justice and to acquiesce to the onslaught of injustice and evil?
2. How do we endeavor to put on love, the bond of perfection?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
Lord God,
you are merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in kindness.
We thank you for your Son Jesus Christ
who incarnated the meaning of forgiveness and mercy.
He calls us to be forgiving and merciful.
Give us the grace to show to the world
that “love builds up”.
Do not let us commit scandal
that will cause others to sin.
O loving Father, you live and reign, forever and ever.
Amen.
***
Loving Father,
we are your chosen ones.
Give us the grace to live fully our vocation to holiness.
Help us to be compassionate, patient, gentle and kind.
Teach us to be forgiving
and to put on love, the bond of perfection.
Let the word of Christ dwell in us
and may we do everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Through him 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.
“Love your enemies … Be merciful.” (Lk 6:35 - 36) // “Put on love, that is, the bond of perfection.” (Col 3:14)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Name someone who has hurt you. Pray for that person for a period of time and offer him/her your gift of forgiveness even from afar. Offer an act of compassion and mercy for someone in deep need. // Today resolve to show your kindness and concern for a needy person.
*** *** ***
September 13, 2019: FRIDAY – SAINT JOHN CHRYSOSTOM, Bishop, Doctor of the Church
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Condemns False Condemnation … He Mercifully Treated the Apostle Paul”
BIBLE READINGS
1 Tm 1:1-2, 12-14 // Lk 6:39-42
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Lk 6:39-42): “Can a blind person guide a blind person?”
In today’s Gospel reading (Lk 6:39-42), Jesus, the son of a carpenter, uses carpentry images to deliver the irony of hypocrisy and false condemnation: the righteous with a wooden beam in the eye wants to remove the sawdust in another’s eye. In the biblical world, the “eye” represents a person’s attitude and understanding. Indeed, our pride obstructs the light of compassionate understanding and blinds us to our own faults and the duty of charity. Jesus warns against exaggerating our neighbor’s faults and minimizing our own. He wants us to remove the “wooden beam” of our hypocrisy and pride that we may be able to remove charitably the “splinter” that hurts our neighbor’s eyes. He does not condemn fraternal correction, but false condemnation. Jesus Master counsels true compassion in dealing with our brothers and sisters.
In a funny vein, the following story illustrates how prejudice could pervert our judgment (cf. Anthony de Mello, Taking Flight: A Book of Story Meditations, New York: Image Books, 1988, p. 122).
Two Irish laborers were working on the road outside a house of prostitution. Presently the local Protestant minister came along, pulled down his hat, and walked into the building. Pat said to Mike, “Did you see that? What can you expect? He’s a Protestant, isn’t he?
Soon after, a rabbi arrived on the scene. He pulled his collar up and walked in too. Said Pat “What a terrible example for a religious leader to give his people!”
Finally, who should pass by but a Catholic priest. He drew his cloak around his head and slipped into the building. Said Pat, “Now isn’t it a terrible thing. Mike, to think that one of the girls must have taken ill?”
B. First Reading (I Tm 1:1-2, 12-14): “I was once a blasphemer, but I have been mercifully treated.”
Today we begin reading from Paul’s First Letter to Timothy. A young Christian from Asia Minor, Timothy is the son of a Jewish mother and a Greek father. He became a companion and assistant to Paul in his missionary work. The letter contains instructions concerning the Church and its leaders as well as personal instructions to Timothy on how to be a good servant of Jesus Christ and how to carry out his responsibilities to the believers.
In today’s reading (I Tm 1:1-2, 12-14), Paul identifies himself as an apostle as well as a recipient of God’s mercy. Saint Paul is a model and limpid example of a sinner saved by grace. He had been a blasphemer, a persecutor of Christ and his Church, and an arrogant man. But God pours out his abundant grace upon him and gives him the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Paul is totally grateful to Jesus who has appointed and strengthened him for the apostolic ministry.
Saint Paul’s experience of being mercifully treated by God continues to be felt by people even in the here and now. The following is an example (cf. Leodone Yballe, “A Heavy Burden” in 101 Inspirational Stories of the Sacrament if Reconciliation, Sister Patricia Proctor, Spokane: Franciscan Monastery of Saint Clare, 2006, p. 29-30).
As I write this, I have tears streaming down my face; these are tears of joy and gratitude.
Reconciliation? The Lord had been working overtime on me for the last several years. But my addictions to pornography, lies, and self-importance – won me back almost every time.
On the feast of the Conversion of St. Paul two years ago, He did to me what He did to Saul. God knocked me down from my high horse. My marriage was in trouble.
Driving to my office that morning, I was listening to the radio and happened to tune in to a Catholic radio station, The Station of the Cross, in Rochester, New York. EWTN’s Mass broadcast had just started. As I listened to the readings, the Lord touched my heart. He helped me to see my life and how far I was from Him. I cried like a child in my car. As I was parking, sobbing like an infant, I resolved to find my Ananias.
Father Peter Abas, a priest at St. Anne’s in Rochester, was the first and only priest I could think of. I left voice and E-mail messages asking if he could see me that night. We played phone tag throughout the day. Father Peter thought if the Holy Spirit wants it, he will come. At six-thirty that night, I got into my car trusting the Lord would lead me to see Father Peter. At seven o’clock, I drove into St. Anne’s parking area. Father Peter was waiting and hoping that I would come.
We went into one of the small private rooms in the rectory, and I knelt down and asked Father Peter to hear my confession. I started by telling how heavy the burden was on my soul. My tears were a cleansing flood, as I recounted, amidst sobs, all my sins. It seemed as if my confession lasted almost an hour. Like the Prodigal Son, I told my Father I was not worthy to be called His son.
Father Peter took a clean sheet of paper, crumpled it in his hands, opened it, and said, “See how ugly this is?” I responded, “Yes, it is a very messy looking paper.”
Opening it up, he said, “Look at the lines here, and here, and here – don’t they look nice? This is how God sees you – so pleasing to Him that He can only love you.” And of course, I cried some more, a mixture of joy and shame in my tears. Joy because He did love me and did not throw me away from His sight, and shame for rejecting Him from my life.
When I received the absolution, my soul felt light, and I started to see a new path. Unlike Saul, my eyes did not see everything immediately. But He showed me enough to help me walk home to Him.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. Do I give in to a righteous tendency to judge my neighbors and condemn their “faults”? Do I endeavor to remove the “wooden beam” in my eye in order to help my brother remove the “sawdust” in his eye?
2. Do we realize that we are recipients of divine mercy and that we have been mercifully treated by God? What is our response?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
Jesus Lord,
you are God’s compassion and righteousness.
Help us to stop judging harshly that we may not be judged.
Help us to be compassionate.
Deal kindly with us.
With true seeing “eye”,
may we perceive the beauty of charity
and embrace our duty to care for our brothers and sisters.
Teach us to imitate Saint Paul
in his zeal to proclaim the Gospel to all.
You live and reign, forever and ever.
Amen.
***
Loving Father,
you are loving and merciful.
In your Son Jesus Christ,
we have experienced what it means
to be an object of divine grace.
We give you thanks and praise for your saving mercy.
Teach us to cherish and bring to fruition
the grace of mercy you have poured out upon us abundantly.
Let us live faithfully in the faith and love of our Lord Jesus,
who lives and reigns with you, 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.
“Remove the wooden beam from your eye first.” (Lk 6:42) //“I have been mercifully treated.” (I Tm 1:13)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Before making a judgmental remark, hold your tongue and pray to God for the spirit of compassion and the grace not to make false judgments. To help you make life-giving choices that are pleasing to God, make the examination of the heart a part of your life. // In your dealings with persons whom you find troublesome, make an effort to treat them with patient mercy remembering how God has treated you with kindness and love.
*** *** ***
September 14, 2019: SATURDAY – THE EXALTATION OF THE CROSS
“JESUS SAVIOR: We Glory in His Cross”
BIBLE READINGS
Nm 21:4b-9 // Phil 2:6-11 // Jn 3:13-17
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Jn 3:13-17): “So the Son of Man must be lifted up.” /
This true story took place in 1945, during World War II, in the Japanese-occupied Philippines, a former American colony. During the fierce battle to liberate the city of Manila, the capital of the Philippines, the American forces were bombarding Japanese military installations. Hundreds of civilians took refuge in a big school run by Catholic nuns. The refugees feared that the American troops, unaware of the civilian presence, might bomb the school and kill them all. To avoid being killed by their own liberators, the civilians rushed to the open playground and, with their trembling bodies, formed a gigantic living cross, easily recognizable by the American pilots from the sky. Sure enough, the incredible outline of the living cross, formed by the bodies of hundreds of refugees, deterred a disastrous and involuntary attack on innocent civilians. In assuming the form of the cross, the Manila populace experienced salvation. Indeed, the cross is an enigmatic sign. The mystery of the cross is the font of salvation.
The “Feast of the Triumph of the Cross” is an invitation to contemplate the saving mystery of the cross, the instrument of our salvation. The entrance antiphon of today’s Mass asserts: “We should glory in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, for he is our salvation, our life and our resurrection; through him we are saved and made free.” The true value of the triumphant cross is derived from the Crucified and Exalted One, Jesus Christ, the Son of Man who was “lifted up”. Therefore, the true focus of our contemplation today is our Lord Jesus Christ, who has taken the shape of the cross, a dreaded tool of criminal punishment, in order to save us and set us free. The cross, as a Christian symbol, has meaning only in relation to the primordial sign of the Son of Man in whom heaven and earth meet, especially as he hung upon the tree of condemnation and salvation.
The Son of Man died on the illustrious cross on Mount Calvary. His death on the cross was a summation of his whole life given to God in humble obedience. St. Ireneus remarks: “Through his obedience unto death, hanging upon the cross, he destroyed that ancient disobedience committed on a tree of wood.” By loving unto death on the cross, Jesus crystallized God’s love for humanity in his very person. The sole motive for his sacrificial death on the cross is the ineffable mystery of divine love. According to the Gospel proclaimed in today’s liturgical assembly: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that he who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life” (Jn 3:16).
B. First Reading (Nm 21:4b-9): “Whenever anyone who had been bitten by a serpent looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.”
The lifting up of the bronze serpent that we hear about in the Old Testament reading (Nm 21:4b-9) is fascinating and illumines the mystery of the cross that we venerate. The bronze serpent on the pole that brings healing to those bitten by poisonous seraph snakes is a symbol of God’s benevolent saving will. Like the terror-stricken Israelites seeking salvation from the serpents in the desert, we too are in need of redemption from the snares of sin and death. And just like the Israelites who have experienced God’s mercy for the umpteenth time by gazing upon the bronze serpent on the pole, we too must look at Jesus lifted up on the cross that we may not die but live.
In the following article by Mother Angelica of EWTN (Eternal Word Television Network) she gives an example of a redemptive experience (cf. Mother Angelica with Christine Allison, Mother Angelica’s Answers, Not Promises, New York: Pocket Books, 1987, p. 141-142).
I’ve counseled so many women who have aborted children, and when they come to me, distraught, anguished, and bereft, I can see that they are devastated by the realization that they have taken a human life – and they just don’t know what to do about it.
I believe that the guilt over having aborted a child is one of the more severe pains a person can experience. I’m reminded of a letter received from a woman in Michigan:
Mother, you won’t remember this, but four years ago I called you to ask you to save my life. I had attempted suicide twice, and a friend suggested that I call you.
It only took a couple of minutes to get to the root of my problem. I had aborted two children within six months of each other. When I told you, I knew you were as heartbroken as I was. Well, I know you probably won’t recall our conversation, but you told me something odd. You told me I was not alone and that I still had two children, even though they had gone to the next life.
You told me to name my children. You told me to ask them to pray for me. I thought you were some kind of weirdo, but I had nothing to lose. I did what you said to do. Over time, I realized that my children were not lost, but were created and loved by God even though they are no longer in this world.
Two years later I married a wonderful man, and last month we had a little girl. We named her Mary Michael. This is a birth announcement, Mother. I know I love her with a depth I could never have had were it not for God’s forgiveness and healing Power. I’ve tried to warn other woman about abortion, and I’ll fight it now with an even greater love for God and the life you helped me find.
This woman had experienced an extraordinary healing from God through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. She had suffered tremendous guilt and remorse for her abortions and had asked God for his Help and Forgiveness. She had repented for her sins and was now healthy, fueled with a higher joy and understanding than most people today. She didn’t sugarcoat her sins. With God’s Grace, she had overcome her guilt.
C. Second Reading (Phil 2:6-11): “He humbled himself; because of this God greatly exalted him.”
In today’s Second Reading (Phil 2:6-11), Christ’s death on the cross is the climax of a life totally given to God in humble obedience. Upon the cross, the Son-Servant of God carries out the ultimate act of sacrificial love and fulfills the Father’s benevolent plan of salvation. The cross of Christ is therefore a glorious throne, a font of healing and a means to eternal life. Saint Paul and the early Christian community, therefore, sing this beautiful hymn of faith: “Christ humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Because of this, God greatly exalted him, and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth. And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
The following story illustrates the participation of Christian disciples in the mystery and triumph of the cross (cf. Full Sail with the Wind of Grace: Peter Kibe and 187 Martyrs, written and edited by “Martyres” Editorial Cimmittee, Tokyo: Don Bosco Sha, 2008, p. 44-46).
Genka’s daughter Maria was married to the son of Kondo Kisan, the commissioner of Tachiura (Hirado City, Nagasaki Prefecture). Kondo was a devout Buddhist. He tried to convert his daughter-in-law and make her give up her faith. Maria always responded with the same words: “I was baptized by my father and have always walked the way of God that was taught to me. I cannot give up my faith.” “If you do not renounce your faith, we cannot keep you in our household. Think well and choose either my son or your faith.” Kondo oppressed Maria with these harsh words. After two years of struggling with the situation, Maria told her husband of her decision, and returned to her father Genka.
“It must be Genka who encouraged her to leave. He must pay for this!” Kondo discussed the matter with his friend, a Buddhist monk in Hirado, and appealed to Shigenobu to punish Genka. Shigenobu was furious with Genka who not only disobeyed his orders and continued to practice his faith, but also worked as a Christian leader. Shigenobu ordered the execution of Genka together with his wife Ursula and their eldest son John Mataichi.
Genka was handed over to the commissioner of Yamada (Hirado City, Nagasaki Prefecture), Inoue Umanojo, to be executed on 14 of November 1609. To Umanojo, Genka was a friend for whom he had a great respect. Genka told him of his only wish. “Lord Inoue, could you do me a favor and perform my execution at the Kurusu (cruz = cross) Trail? “Why the Kurusu Trail?” “Once a cross stood there, and my parents and friends are buried there, too.”
Umanojo nodded and they started to walk toward the Kurusu Trail. When they arrived at the spot, Genka said to Umanojo, “Lord Inoue, it was my heart’s desire to offer my life here. None of this is your fault. Please be at peace.” Genka knelt down, raised his tied hands toward heaven and silently bowed his head. Umanojo, choking down his tears, performed the execution with one stroke of his sword so that Genka would not suffer too much.
Genka’s wife Ursula and their son John Mataichi were also beheaded about the same time at a place nearby. Gaspar Nishi Genka and his wife Ursula were both 54 years old. Their oldest son John Mataichi was 24 years old. Their remains were buried at the Kurusu Trail. The Christians secretly planted a pine tree on the spot.
In 1992, the Christians of Ikitsuki built a large cross on the Kurusu Trail. It is to remind them of the importance of faith strengthened in the family, a precious heritage of Gaspar Nishi Genka.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. Why is the cross of Christ the supreme proof of God’s infinite love for us? What made the triumph or exaltation of the cross possible? Are we disposed to participate in the folly of the cross and the mystery of Christ’s sacrificial love?
2. What was the significance of the bronze serpent that Moses fashioned and lifted up on the pole? What was its saving effect on the distressed people of Israel? How is the mounted bronze serpent a symbol of Jesus Christ? Are we willing to fix our gaze on Jesus Christ crucified and seek healing from him?
3. How does the Pauline hymn of Christ’s self-emptying (“kenosis”) and exaltation impact us? Do we wish to share in the Divine Master’s twofold movement of self-abasement and exaltation? Are we willing to meditate on the mystery of the cross and its meaning for us? Are we willing to proclaim to the world the triumph of Christ on the cross and give a living witness to it?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
Lord Jesus,
the mounted bronze serpent
that saved the ancient Israelites from sure death
prefigures your crucifixion and redeeming death on Mount Calvary.
We thank you for your obedient sacrifice.
Above all, we render praise and thanksgiving to God the Father
who loved us so much that he sent you, his Servant-Son,
to be lifted up on the cross.
Now in faith we look upon the cross of your sacrifice
and see in it the source of healing and the font of eternal life.
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.
Through your cross you brought joy to the world.
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 God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.” (Jn 3:16)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Pray for the victims of violence, hatred, and war and all those suffering from acts of injustice and oppression. By your compassion and charity, allow them to experience the healing and saving love of Christ on the cross.
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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