Second Sunday of Easter (April 19, 2020)

With the reading of Peter’s First Letter, we are invited to join the whole Church in offering praise to our heavenly Father for his great mercy, shown to us in the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Through God’s mercy, we draw new life from the resurrection of Jesus and partake already in eternal life. Through his mercy, we already possess an imperishable inheritance. We are also reminded of the cost of this new life - the death of Jesus on the Cross - a death we too must share in. This new life that we celebrate will pass repeatedly through the cycle of death to new life. Each new suffering that we experience can lead us to a new experience of Jesus’ resurrection.

We have been encouraged to appreciate the description of the early Jerusalem community as a model for our own experience as a faith community. We all know from our experience that these expectations are not easily achieved. Each of us individually and all of us together must learn to share all things in common - including suffering, patience, forgiveness, and love. All of these are the marks of the crucified Jesus that we must learn to bear in order to bring about the transformation needed to live as Jesus calls us to live.

The ability to do all this must rest on faith that Jesus lives within and among us and shares the power of his death and resurrection with us. The signs of Jesus’ scars are the human weaknesses we see among us. In those scars we can learn to acknowledge “My Lord and my God” as Thomas did.

The glory of resurrection is to be revealed through the weakness of human flesh. The hope held out to us by our faith reaches beyond reality and expects more than what is seen and what seems possible. This hope brings us through the daily deaths we need to experience to new glory and wonder at the power of the Lord Jesus to transform those who are willing to be transformed.

There is a cost to living as the Jerusalem community lived - the daily cost of dying to our self-interest and selfishness. But the cost is nothing compared to the joy and strength we can be for one another in a loving community of faith and hope. Our willingness to accept the daily death required to live our common life opens us to sharing in an ever-deeper way in the risen life of Jesus. May we praise the great mercy of our God by letting Jesus live in us more fully each day.

Resurrection of the Lord (April 12, 2020)

This is the day that the Lord has made! We have good reason to rejoice and be glad. Jesus has triumphed over sin and death; he is risen!

In his great love for us, Jesus has drawn us into himself by his death and resurrection, making us his “body”. We now share in his loving obedience to his Father on the Cross; we now share in his new life after the Resurrection.

St. Paul reminds us: if we really believe that Jesus is risen and we share his new life, we must make a sincere effort to set our hearts on heavenly things. We must try to be intent on things above rather than on things of earth.

This is a daily struggle for most of us. It’s just too easy to become intent on our own needs and wants, our own suffering and pain. These can easily distract us from the new life we share and seeking to do God’s will and not our own and trying to love others as Jesus has loved us.

St. Francis de Sales encourages to start afresh each day. Mindful of God’s loving presence with us and the new life within us, we can ask our God for the grace we need to do each action of our day in a manner that is pleasing to him – as Jesus did.

In a moment, we will share again in the saving mystery of Jesus’ death and rising.

We will renew our baptismal promises as a community of faith.

Let us be mindful that we are called to give witness to our renewal by the way we live our daily lives. Our words and deeds must flow from the same source - the grace of our salvation – being one with Jesus.

May the words we say and the actions we do proclaim to everyone we meet that Jesus is risen. He is alive in us!

The Easter Vigil (April 11, 2020)

Tonight, we join the whole Church in a most sacred celebration -- the wonderful opportunity to experience once again and celebrate the full sweep of God’s saving work among His people.

We began our celebration by accepting once again the light that Jesus brings to our lives as believers. In the Easter Proclamation, we sang of our Father’s great care for us - his boundless merciful love. We even rejoiced over Adam’s sin, which gained for us so great a redeemer.

Our Scripture readings offered us an opportunity to remember - we have been made in the image and likeness of our God and, like the chosen people of old, coming through the water has saved us. And the prophet Isaiah spoke to us of God’s mercy: “My love will never leave you.”

The Gospel has just announced the great mystery that brings us together tonight: Jesus, the One who was crucified for our sins, is risen. He is alive, among us drawing us into a deeper sharing in His new life.

St. Paul reminded us that God’s saving work continues in our midst. We have been incorporated into his plan of salvation by our baptismal washing which allows us to share in Jesus’ death and rising. As a result, we are slaves to sin no longer. We have been made new, alive for God in Christ Jesus.

In a moment, we will renew our baptismal promises together: a further sign of our re-dedication to letting Jesus live in us more fully each day.

Jesus chooses us to be messengers of God’s continuing mercy and love for his people. May our joyful celebration this evening renew us and give us strength for our mission.

The Passion of Our Lord (April 5, 2020)

We have just heard Matthew go to great pains to show us that every event, every happening, every person involved in the passion and death of Jesus fulfills a passage from the Hebrew Scriptures.

The betrayal and abandonment of Jesus by his special friends, the innocent Jesus becoming the victim of religious and political conniving, the darkness and the skies and the dramatic ripping of the Temple veil - all are seen in light of the sacred scriptures of the Jewish people.

The proclamation of the centurion who has witnessed all these events is the surprised recognition from all the clues: “Clearly this was the Son of God.”

With that recognition, Matthew turns our attention back to the fidelity of the women who have been following Jesus from Galilee. They alone remained to witness the fulfillment. All the others had scattered in fear.

We are among the faithful who attend Jesus and will follow him through His passion and death. St. Paul tells us what we must be doing as we journey. We are to learn to live with the attitude that Jesus had toward life and its varied events. Suffering and glory will be so intertwined as to be inseparable. Learning to accept whatever comes as coming from God’s hand and doing it in obedience to the will of the God who is my Father, being willing to put aside any position so as to better love God and my neighbor - all of this is having the attitude of Christ.

May we all be open to learning more about life from Jesus this week.

Fifth Sunday of Lent (March 29, 2020)

Rather than talk about what Francis de Sales has to say about living in the Spirit of God, we shall allow him to speak – or, in this case – to write for himself.

“To live according to the spirit means to think, speak and act according to the virtues which reside in the spirit and not according to the senses and feelings which reside in the flesh. We must use and master the latter and not live according to them; but the spiritual virtues must be nurtured and all the rest made subject to them.”

“What are the virtues of the spirit? There is faith, which shows us the truths that are not accessible to the senses; hope, which makes us strive for things unseen; charity, which makes us love God above all things and our neighbor as ourselves, not with a sensual, natural or selfish love but with a love that is pure, firm and changeless, being grounded in God.”

“The spirit, which relies on faith, grows in courage when it is hemmed in by difficulties, for it knows well that God loves, supports and helps those who are needy, provided they fix their hope in God.  Human reason, by contrast, wants to know everything that is going on because it imagines that nothing in which it cannot have its say is any good; the spirit, on the other hand, cleaves to God and often says that whatever is not of God does not really matter…”

 “Living according to the spirit means doing the actions which the spirit of God asks of us, saying the words and thinking the thoughts that God wants. And when I say saying the words and thinking the thoughts that God wants, I am referring to your willed thoughts. I am miserable and so I don’t feel like talking: parrots do as much. I feel miserable, but since charity demands that I should talk I will do it.  That is what people who live in the spirit do. I have been slighted so I grow cross: peacocks and monkeys do as much. I have been slighted and rejoice: that what the apostles did. So to live according to the spirit is to do what faith, hope and charity teach us to do, whether in things temporal or things spiritual.”

“Live wholly to the Spirit; live gently and in peace. Be quite confident that God will help you, and in all that happens, rest in the arms of God’s mercy and goodness. May God be your all forever.”

The Spirit is alive and well in us, active in our lives, shaping our attitudes, impacting our actions. This is obvious to those people we encounter every day.

Well, isn’t it?

(These quotes are taken entirely from a letter written in April or May 1616, to Sister Marie-Aimee de Bloney, Mistress of Novices at the Visitation at Lyons, France. It is found in Selected Letters of St. Francis de Sales. Translated with an Introduction by Elisabeth Stopp.  Published in 1960 by Harper & Brothers)

Fourth Sunday of Lent (March 22, 2020)

Blindness is cured by the touch of Jesus. Expressing our faith - being sources of the touch of Jesus in the lives of others - allows others to see and experience the healing power of Jesus, too.

Jesus took the initiative in curing the blindness of the young man born blind. This miracle provided others the occasion to come to a better understanding of Jesus and his mission.

The young man dialogued with the authorities concerning his cure. In doing so he came to a better understanding of Jesus for himself and he thereby challenged the authorities concerning their beliefs.

Francis de Sales wrote in the Introduction to the Devout Life (3,26) “If then you are in love with God, you will often speak of him in your familiar conversations with those of your household, your friends and your neighbors…But speak always of God, as of God: reverently and devoutly; not with ostentation or affectation, but with a spirit of meekness, charity and humility…Pray secretly to God in your soul that it would please Him to make this holy dew sink deep into the heart of those who hear you.”

As the young man spoke more and more about Jesus, he broke open the mystery of what had happened to him and how much Jesus meant to him. He went from seeing Jesus as a miracle worker, to recognizing him as/believing him to be the Son of God (“he worshipped him”). He gradually came to know Jesus in his fullness; encountering and making that truth his own and doubtlessly changing his life forever.

During this season of Lent, the Sacrament of Reconciliation provides us with the touch of Jesus that cures our own blindness, weakness and sinfulness. Prayer and meditation provide a means to break open for ourselves the mystery of our own redemption. Reading and listening to the Word of God in Scripture and sharing it with others in Bible groups and in less formal ways gives us further insight into how we can participate in the mission of Jesus and his Church.

Openness to the gift of faith permits us to see others as God sees others: Samuel saw in David God's anointed one.

St. Paul in his letter to the Ephesians says, “Live as children of the light, for light produces every kind of goodness and righteousness and truth.”

If our life style as a Christian challenges others, we can express our beliefs with meekness and humility. We need to accept the gift of grace we have received not only as a gift but also as a responsibility: to help others be likewise open to grace and be cured of their own blindness, to come to see and experience the light that we find only in the life, death, resurrection and love of Jesus Christ.

Third Sunday of Lent (March 15, 2020)

From generation to generation, this is a timely (even a perennial) question, more often than not raised in moments of crisis and confusion or in the experience of suffering, tragedy, injustice or loss. Angry, frustrated and disillusioned, the Israelites - our spiritual ancestors - posed the question to Moses in the midst of the seemingly aimless desert trek on which they had been led. We ask the same question in our own ways every day, whether due to global events like terrorism, war, famine and disease or our own personal struggles, including unemployment, illness, death and relational issues.

Moreover, it is the perfect question to reflect upon as we progress in our Lenten journey.

At least intellectually, we do believe that God is truly in our midst. Francis de Sales certainly did, but for him, this was no mere intellectual assent: this was a core belief: “There is no place or thing in this world in which God is not truly present. Just as wherever birds fly they always encounter the air, so also wherever we go or wherever we are God is truly present.” (Introduction to the Devout Life, Part II, Chapter 2)

However, in our eagerness for God to spring water from the rock in times of doubt or adversity, we often forget the fact God has been with us all along the way. In moments of crisis, those who encourage us with a kind word, good turn, or attentive ear can reflect to us the immediacy of God's faithful, ongoing presence: a presence likewise experienced in Scripture heard, Eucharist shared and prayer raised up.

Still, despite our best intentions and attention, we sometimes panic and miss the obvious in our frantic search for the Lord, especially in times of great need. God is, as it were, ‘hidden in plain sight.’ We forget that God is as near to us as the very air we breathe a mistake that the Samaritan woman almost makes in her own encounter with Jesus at the well. The Lord is in her midst – in fact, he is right in front of her – but this spontaneous request for a drink from a Jewish male is so astonishing that she almost fails to recognize who is speaking with her. Happily, she realizes that it could “possibly be the Christ” and gratitude stirs her to abandon her water jar, run to town and announce to the people the Good News of her encounter with Jesus.

Whether in the desert or at the well, signs of God's presence are always in our midst and, like the woman in the Gospel, this is something for which we should be grateful. The gratitude we feel and express for these signs produces trust: trust in God and trust in those who are signs of God's love for us. “Just trust in the Lord,” St. Francis de Sales writes, “and He will continue to lead you safely through all things. Where you cannot walk, God will carry you in His arms.”

In gratitude for those times when we have been carried in the Lord's arms, may we become signs of God's presence for others.

Second Sunday of Lent (March 9, 2020)

Jesus takes Peter, James and James’ brother John to a high mountain. There, before their eyes, Jesus is transfigured. They see his dazzling and radiant glory. They clearly see Jesus’ relationship with all that had come before in the divine history of salvation in the persons of Moses and Elijah. They hear a voice that confirms Jesus’ union with God, Abba…Father.

I sometimes find myself wondering: was it Jesus who changed, or was there something in the three followers of Jesus that changed? 

Did Jesus show them something new and different about himself, or did his followers, for the first time, see without difficulty or obstacle the dazzling glory that was always a part of Jesus’ ministry to the poor, the disadvantaged, the needy, the neglected? Was the voice that spoke of Jesus as a beloved son a new revelation, or did these three men hear for the first time a voice that had always been present and active from the very beginning of Jesus’ conception?

What about us? Do we see our own God-given glory in ourselves as clearly as the three disciples saw in Jesus? Do we see how God’s divine plan of salvation has brought us to where we are in life? Do we recognize the role in that same plan of divine salvation that each of us is called to play? Do we hear the voice of a God who created us, redeemed us and inspires us to be his beloved children, his very dear daughters and sons?

The message could not be any clearer than the Word of God we hear from the book of Genesis. The same God who spoke to our ancestor Abram is the same God who speaks of us when he says: “I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you…all the communities of the earth will find blessing in you.”

To the extent that we are a blessing in the lives of others (as distinct from a curse) then God’s dazzling glory shines in us; God’s will is revealed through us; God’s loving voice is embodied in us…for the entire world to see. Not just on the mountaintop of life, by the way, but in the valleys and plains of everyday life.

As we journey through this season of Lent, let us ask for the grace to see not only the brilliant glory of Jesus who is always with us but also the God-given glory that shines inside of us and inside all those whose lives we touch. Let us hear not only the voice of God that speaks of Jesus as a son, but also the voice of the same God who calls us his sons and daughters in the everyday circumstances, relationships and experiences in which we find ourselves.

First Sunday of Lent (March 1, 2020)

While Jesus was preparing to begin his public ministry – to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom of God – to be the kind of Messiah envisioned by His Father – to open up his mind and heart to the power and promise of the Holy Spirit – he was tempted.

Tempted to turn stone into bread: to use his saving power for his own convenience. Tempted to settle for earthly kingdoms: to be satisfied with passing glory and majesty. Tempted to throw himself from the temple: presumably, to convince people of his identity and authority through a single, dramatic, headline-grabbing event.

Fundamentally, Jesus was tempted to be someone other than who God wanted him to be. Jesus was tempted to be a different kind of savior. Jesus was tempted to believe that there was an easier way to redeem, to save, to sanctify. Jesus was tempted to believe that there was a short cut to salvation, a “one-size-fits-all” road to redemption.

We can relate to this temptation. How often do we tell ourselves that we would be happier, healthier and holier if we were someone else? How often do we say that there must be another way (read, an easier way, a less inconvenient way) to be a good wife, a good husband, a good son or daughter, a good sister or brother, a good friend or neighbor? The tragedy is that if we spend our lives believing that we’d be better off if we were someone or somewhere else, we never live the one life – the only life – that God gives us.

Francis de Sales wrote: “Don’t sow your desires in some else’s garden; just cultivate your own as best you can. Don’t long to be someone other than what you are; rather, desire to thoroughly be who you are.  Direct your thoughts to being very good at that and to bear the crosses, little or great, that you find there. Believe me, this is the most important point– and least understood – in the spiritual life.” (Letters of Spiritual Direction, p. 112)

Jesus was tempted to be someone other than who the Father wanted him to be.  Jesus was tempted to forsake the authentic pathway of love for the hollow, devilish promise of a shortcut: Jesus was tempted to take the (seemingly) easy way out.  However, his belief in God’s plan for him allowed Jesus to disavow the empty promise of a quick fix for the path that leads to true happiness, health and holiness.

As we journey through this season of Lent, let us ask for the courage we need to recognize the voice of the tempter within us. Let us ask for the insight to see the ways in which we are tempted to spend our lives wishing we were someone else. Let us ask for the grace and the strength to follow the example of Christ, the one who shows us that love is not about quick fixes or short cuts: love is about being willing to go the distance…faithfully, one day, one person at a time.

Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time (February 23, 2020)

Early in the history of His people, God summoned them to pattern their lives on His: “Be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy.” Jesus repeats that summons to us in the Gospel: “You must be perfected as your heavenly Father is perfect.” In order to make that seemingly impossible summons possible, the Spirit of God dwells in us.

Today’s Scriptures focus on how we become perfected through the way we act toward one another. The pattern that Jesus offers us is truthfulness, compassion and non-violence. When we recognize and honor ourselves as temples of God and respect others as His temple, then our words and actions will mirror our belief. The wisdom behind the way we choose to act comes from the Spirit dwelling in us. He will lead us to act in ways that the world around us may consider foolish.

Acting as Jesus would act calls us to greatness of heart. If loving as God loves is our model, then we must be willing to risk not returning violence for violence done to us. When we choose to love as God loves, we risk being taken advantage of and even getting hurt. The alternative - to be suspicious, stingy or cynical - is not worthy of anyone who possesses the Spirit of God.

Jesus summons us to the perfection of love: “Love your enemies, pray for your persecutors.” There’s no great challenge in loving those who love us. The real proof that we understand that we are children of God comes when we are willing to love those who do not love us in return, especially those who harm us. There is heroism involved in choosing to love each and every person who crosses our path.

The challenge that Jesus offers us is accompanied by the gift of His presence in us through the Spirit, making it possible for us to live out his challenge. Allowing Jesus to live in us and love through us more and more each day makes the seemingly impossible possible.

You and I can be perfected, as our heavenly Father is perfect.

Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time (February 16, 2020)

Today’s Scripture readings elaborate on the wonderful reminder that we have heard from the book of Sirach: God has created us out of love, and the surest sign of his love is the blessing of free will. Sirach encourages us to exercise our freedom to choose wisely.

St. Paul reminds us that God has revealed his wisdom to us through his Spirit who dwells in us. The gift of faith gives us a broader view of life than mere human wisdom can give. Allowing the Spirit to lead us will enable us to see beyond our own selfish needs and desires and choose to act in ways that manifest God’s goodness and love.

In the Gospel, Jesus speaks about one way to do this. He encourages us to look beyond the mere letter of the law and strive to act in ways that move us toward the ideal living of the kingdom of God. Minimal obedience is far beneath the dignity of anyone who genuinely loves God and neighbor.

Jesus’ words in the gospel are not to be taken too literally. He is using the customary Middle Eastern love of exaggeration to make his point. What he is saying is that reaching the ideal implies avoiding whatever will compromise the ideal.

For example, the letter of the law says: “You shall not commit murder.” Living by the spirit of the law will mean: Do nothing which can injury another person (anger, abuse, hatred). And if you have injured anyone, go and seek reconciliation immediately. Then the two of you can worship God in mutual love and respect.

Jesus is encouraging us to listen to the wisdom of God present in us in the Spirit, and use our freedom to choose wisely as we go about our daily living.

In this way, we respond to the love that God has shown us in the gifts he has given us. Our choice to use our gifts wisely becomes an act of love. And in choosing to love, we are building up the kingdom. 

May we learn to be faithful in following the lead of his grace.

Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time (February 9, 2020)

St. Paul reminds us that our faith rests on the Cross of Christ and the convincing power of the Spirit, not on the wise argumentation of the world that so often leads to conflict and division. The crucified Jesus is the powerful manifestation of God’s love that unifies.

In the Gospel, Jesus calls us to be what we are because of the power of the Spirit. You and I are “the salt of the earth.” We flavor the world with the presence of God’s loving concern. Jesus encourages us to look at the flavoring we are at present. If we are not flavoring the world around us with the presence of God’s loving concern by the way we live each day, then we must be careful. Then we are good for nothing except to be thrown out and trampled.

You and I are “the light of the world.” We are a “city set on a hill,” “a lamp set on a stand to give light to all in the house.” Everyone sees us. Are we light in the darkness? The power of the Spirit working in us and through us is meant to touch others’ lives with God’s loving concern and mercy.

The theme of “light” appears again and again during this time before Lent. As Jesus manifested the light of God’s great concern for the poor of this world, you and I are to be continuing manifestations of that care and concern.

When we are aware of God’s presence in our own lives, then we are capable of illuminating the lives of others. When we do this is a way that makes it clear that we are reflecting the “true” light, then those around us will recognize the “light” we manifest and give thanks to the Father for it.

Francis de Sales must have had this in mind when he wrote: “Let us be what we are, and let us be it well, to do honor to the Master whose work we are.”

May today’s Word be good news once again and may we rededicate ourselves to being flavorful “salt” and transparent “light” for our little corners of the world.

Feast of the Presentation of the Lord (February 2, 2020)

We heard the prophet Malachi make the prophecy: “Suddenly there will come to the Temple the Lord whom you seek and the messenger of the covenant whom you desire.” And St. Luke writes about the fulfillment of that prophecy in today’s Gospel from Luke.

In Simeon and Anna, we are invited to experience the longing of God’s people for the promised Messiah. The prophets through the centuries have fed that longing. And today’s Psalm response prepares us for what is to come: “Lift up, O gates, your lintels, that the King of glory may come in.”

The King of glory is carried through the gates into the Temple in the arms of Mary and Joseph. No splendid entrance! And yet Simeon recognizes the hoped-for Messiah in the person of this baby. The Spirit of God has drawn Simeon to the child Jesus. At that moment, a glimpse of the glory that has come to earth is heard in the response of Simeon: “Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in the sight of all the peoples.” What a blessed encounter!

But we also hear words that are meant to prepare Mary and Joseph and us for what is to come. The Messiah will suffer and die for the salvation of the world.

As we pray with these Scriptures, what might we learn?

As the Lord has come among us in a humble, gentle way, he is encouraging us to be his humble, gentle presence in the world around us. As Simeon and Anna longed for the coming Messiah, we too might take the quiet time needed to get in touch with our longing for all that Jesus will bring to us.

As Simeon thanked the Lord for fulfilling his promise, we too might develop a deeper sense of gratitude for all the gifts that our loving God has graced for us each day.

Give thanks for our loving God who enters our temple every day.

Third Sunday of Ordinary Time (January 26, 2020)

Today’s reading from Isaiah announces once again that Jesus’ coming among us has brought light to the darkness and gloom of our world. Jesus has smashed the yoke of sin; he brings us joy and reason for great rejoicing. You and I have been brought into the Light through our baptism, and we are grateful for this gift.

We look around us, and it’s easy to see the gloom and darkness that cover so many peoples’ lives. Since our baptism gives us a share in Jesus’ mission to bring Light to the world, it’s important that His Light be with us as we go about our daily living. The way we reach out to the people we live with and work with offers us an opportunity to share His Light. Our caring, our honesty, our compassion, our willingness to forgive - each can bring Light into the darkness which envelops many of our brothers and sisters.

Like Andrew and Peter, James and John, Jesus calls us to follow him into our world. We need to be clear about our mission as followers. We are called to share the Light of Christ, not our own light. If we are sharing the only true light – Jesus, then there can be no factions, no special groups. We are called to be one in the Body of Christ; otherwise we risk rendering the cross of Christ void of its meaning, as we heard St. Paul tell us.

Today we are invited to spend some time renewing our commitment to live in the Light of Christ. In prayer and Eucharist, we can gain some new insights into how we can do this more completely. And now the Lord will come to nourish us for our continuing journey with him.

May we let Jesus live in us more and more each day and may His Light shine through us in all we do.

May God be praised in our efforts today!

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (January 19, 2020)

Today we begin the cycle of ordinary Sundays of the year - a time when the Church once again focuses our attention on the reality of God’s kingdom present among us in the life and ministry of Jesus.

In the gospel passage we just heard, John the Baptist identifies Jesus as “God’s Chosen One,” the servant spoken about by the prophet Isaiah. He is the One who is “a light to the nations” so that the salvation planned by our God may reach the ends of the earth.

Through our baptism, you and I have been incorporated into God’s saving plan. As St. Paul tells us, we are “called to be a holy people, consecrated in Christ Jesus.” We are members of his Church and therefore part of Jesus’ continuing presence in the world. We share in his prophetic mission to be “a light to the nations,” announcing the good news of salvation to the ends of the earth.

It’s very easy to forget that you and I have an obligation to be light to the nations, even though most of us have little contact with “the ends of the earth.” We have to remind ourselves frequently that we are essential parts of the body of Christ. While we may not be able to reach very far physically, we can give strength to those who do. The power of our prayer for those who minister the good news and for their people is invaluable. How often our brother Oblates who minister in Africa or South America or India have thanked us for our prayers which give them the strength they need to carry on their efforts for the Church.

Today might be a good time to renew our efforts of prayer on their behalf. We might even take a few minutes this week to write to one of them, reminding him (and ourselves) of our prayer for him and his people. As we prepare to celebrate the feast of Francis de Sales this week, we might offer a day of fidelity in our practice of the Directory for our brother Oblates who serve the Church far from home. In this way, we can stir up in our own hearts a sense of connection with the mission of the Church and, in the process, assist others in coming to know Jesus as God’s Chosen One.

God be praised!

Baptism of the Lord (January 12, 2020)

Today we complete the Church’s celebration of the unbelievable good news that God has fulfilled his promise to be Emmanuel - God with his people.

As we hear Matthew recount the baptism of Jesus, heaven and earth are joined together as the Spirit descends on Jesus and we hear the Father’s voice announce Jesus’ true identity: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

To help us understand the full meaning of the Father’s words, we have also heard the words of the prophet Isaiah. Jesus is the fulfillment of his prophecy. Jesus is the Servant, the Chosen One, on whom the Father’s favor rests. The Spirit of the Lord is upon him, and he will bring forth God’s justice to all the world.

The wonder of this revelation is that he will bring about this justice with meekness and gentleness, especially toward the downtrodden. Jesus will announce this good news of peace as he goes about going good and healing sinners. He will be light to the blind and freedom for those locked away in darkness. Anyone who reveres God and is willing to live as Jesus teaches can share in God’s gift of peace.

That’s the message we have received and the challenge we are offered by our baptism. Because Jesus wants us to share his very life, the Spirit of God has descended on us and dwells in us, and the Father speaks the same wonderful words to us that he spoke to Jesus: “You are my beloved son or daughter, with whom I am well pleased.”

Our Father has grasped us by the hand and he wants us to be the living signs of his continuing care for all his people, especially the downtrodden. We are to work each day for the victory of justice with great gentleness. In our own way, we are to bring light to anyone who is living in darkness.

Our Father wants to remind us at the beginning of each day:  “You are my beloved son or daughter, with whom I am well pleased.” If we take the time to listen to his words each morning, they offer us direction for our day. As we listen, we can ask ourselves: how will I live today as the beloved son or daughter of God? How will I make it evident today that I am thankful that God is pleased with me?

God’s loving word to us has to be an uplifting start to our day! Let us take the time to listen.

Epiphany (January 5, 2020)

Have you ever thought what could possibly have possessed very wise men to leave their homes and undertake a long, hard desert journey?

What was so special about this new “king of the Jews”? Everyone knew that Israel was under Roman occupation. Any Jewish king would be a mere puppet of the emperor. Why would news of a powerless king in a faraway land be so attractive? Perhaps the Holy Spirit was moving them, touching a sense of longing and hope and compelling them to investigate. These wise men, astrologers and interpreters of dreams, clearly believed that they were being led to someone extraordinary.

What must have happened when they arrived where Joseph, Mary and the child were staying? Did they simply present their gifts and then hurry back to the East? I would imagine they stayed for a little while asking Joseph and Mary lots of questions, trying to find out what all these signs were about.

And Mary and Joseph had plenty of extraordinary happenings to tell them about – angels visiting, dreams, Scriptures foretelling their arrival. Even their gifts had been foretold. These men must have been thrilled to know that the longing in their hearts could be fulfilled in this little child! Mary and Joseph evangelized these wise men from the East.

Every one of us longs for a sense of meaning and purpose. All around us people are starving for answers, and the Holy Spirit may want to direct them to us, just as he directed the wise men to Mary and Joseph and the child. Like Joseph and Mary, all we have to do is share with them the ways that God has moved in us, the ways that God has shown us divine love. The Holy Spirit will take care of the rest.

As we begin a new year and celebrate the coming of the wise men to the home of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, let us reflect on the gifts we have received from our loving God - gifts far more valuable than gold, frankincense and myrrh. Then we will be well prepared for whoever may show up at our door this year.

Mary, Mother of God (January 1, 2020)

Today the Church celebrates Mary, the Mother of the Word made flesh.

In greeting Mary, the Mother of God, we are reminded that she is also our Mother,
the Mother of all of us who form the Body of Christ.

As we just heard, the shepherds hurried to find Jesus with Mary and Joseph. Mary and the shepherds encourage us to join them in making known the message we have heard this Christmas: Jesus is God’s gift of peace; he shares with us the love of our heavenly Father.

As we begin a new year, our Mother Mary offers us a way to keep alive the peace and love we have been given in Jesus. As Luke told us, Mary kept all the things she experienced in her heart and reflected on them in prayer. She invites us to do the same.

The more we remain aware of the presence of God during the day, the more we will be able to see that all that happens each day is part of God’s loving plan for our holiness and salvation. God is with us, giving us the strength we need for whatever we have to do.

May 2020 be a year in which each of us grows in wisdom and knowledge. Like our Mother Mary, may the gift of God’s loving peace take root in our hearts so that we can bring God’s peace to others.