Gospel Reflection – 6/18

Todays Gospel is from the Gospel of John [6:51-58]

Jesus said to the Jewish crowds:
“I am the living bread that came down from heaven;
whoever eats this bread will live forever;
and the bread that I will give
is my flesh for the life of the world.”

The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying,
“How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
Jesus said to them,
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood,
you do not have life within you.
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood
has eternal life,
and I will raise him on the last day.
For my flesh is true food,
and my blood is true drink.
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood
remains in me and I in him.
Just as the living Father sent me
and I have life because of the Father,
so also the one who feeds on me
will have life because of me.
This is the bread that came down from heaven.
Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died,
whoever eats this bread will live forever.”

I am the living bread. The Jewish people were very nervous about this proclamation given by Jesus. They had very strict laws about the body and blood. Many of the Rabbi could not touch bodily fluids, especially blood, or they would be considered unclean. When a person is considered unclean they cannot enter into Temple and give worship to God. This is a serious situation.

An example of this mentality among the Jews is demonstrated in the Good Samaritan story. Here the injured person is on the side of the road bleeding and in need of aid. Yet, the Jewish men passed by, perhaps even crossing to the opposite side of the road. They were on their way to Temple. They could not go near this injured person for fear that they may become “unclean.”

Imagine the desperation to understand what Jesus was saying. “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you.” This talk made a lot of people nervous, and afraid. Some were so afraid that they left Jesus because of this talk about eating the flesh.

When the people were leaving and walking away, Jesus did not change his story. He did not alter it to say, “Hey, I was only kidding. I only meant that you do this symbolically. It is a metaphor.” Instead he stayed where he was and repeated it, so that everyone might understand.

As Catholics we are the very few that believe that the breaking of bread through the Liturgy of the Eucharist makes this request of Jesus a Reality. We eat the flesh and drink the blood of Christ in each Eucharist celebration. For that we are promised by Jesus eternal life, a chance at life in Heaven.

It is such a wonderful and powerful gift that is given to us by Jesus, who could say that he meant something different? Who could say, it was only a metaphor, he did not really mean it?

Many people believe that life is a giant buffet table, that we get to pick and chose what we want to believe and do. God did not have the people that he freed from the desert wandering for 40 years, because he could not decide what to do with them. They spent 40 years in the desert for two reasons:

• Testing them by affliction. Only those that are devout will persevere in order to be rewarded.
• To punish those that sinned at the foot of the mountain while Moses received the 10 commandments. The 40 years made the people leaving the desert a different generation than the ones that left Egypt.

For although God loves us, he punishes us still. [Psalm 99:8]

Let us always remember that we are a community, when we receive the Body of Christ. When we receive Jesus, we become the body of Chris. We are joined into that body. It is not an individual experience, as much as it is a communal experience (hence name communion). It is our participation in the Body of Christ that we help, or hurt, those around us by our actions.

Our sins are an injury to the community and our brothers and sisters.

A lot of deep spirituality in the Holy Eucharist. That is why it is the center of our Catholic religious experience. Let us rejoice that God called us worthy to receive such a precious gift as we have in his Son Jesus.

May God bless you and open your hearts to hear his words.

A very special blessing to the fathers out there. As Joseph was a Father, may all Fathers care and provide for the health, education, and religious life of their children. Whether they are blood, adopted, or foster children. They grow by our example as men, and how we live our lives. May you live your life as an example of Jesus to others, and especially to your children.

Gospel Reflection – 5/21

The Gospel reading from this week is from John [14:15-21]:

Jesus said to his disciples:
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
And I will ask the Father,
and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always,
the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot accept,
because it neither sees nor knows him.
But you know him, because he remains with you,
and will be in you.
I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.
In a little while the world will no longer see me,
but you will see me, because I live and you will live.
On that day you will realize that I am in my Father
and you are in me and I in you.
Whoever has my commandments and observes them
is the one who loves me.
And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father,
and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”

A Spirit of Truth! O Come, Holy Spirit!

It is ironic, that Jesus understood too well the people of this world. Not just of his own time here with us, but for all time. In so many ways we are not much different than the people at that time.

Jesus said, the world cannot accept the Holy Spirit, because they cannot see Him, or know Him. This is how the world views God, and Jesus as well.

In many ways the readings in the Bible are so relevant today, and it really brings to vision the Glorious Omnipresence, and Omnipotence, of our God. Just imagine, Jesus said things in such a precise way that they did not just apply to the people living in the day of his earthly life, but that He said them in a way that they apply to all times. So many people can argue that Jesus forgot to say something, or that he meant something different. The reality is that everything he said was said deliberately, precisely, and with purpose for God.

Then if we step back into the Old Testament, there are words written and recorded that applied in that time, in the time of Jesus, and even today.

There is a subtle woven presence of God’s majesty in these words. Many of us do not see, or appreciate this subtlety. We just assume that God is not real, or that God is not present in this world, that there is no consequences to life, or that He might even reject us and ignore our prayers. In these times of denial we allow our pride to blind our eyes to His presence.

It is said in the Bible that our Faith is more precious than Gold tried by Fire.

Gold is “tested by fire” through a purification process. The gold is melted, filtered, and cooled. Then it is melted, filtered and cooled again with a smaller filter. Eventually if the process is repeated enough then 24K gold will remain.

We are faced with challenges in life, because we must be tried by fire. In each challenge we are given the choice to once again choose God. Time and time again we are given the opportunity to be strengthened, and purified. God never gives us more than He believes we can handle. Even when we don’t think we can, we must rely on Faith to tell us He knows we can.

In all the challenges, we must remove our fear of this world and place our trust in God. As Jesus said, we are not left as orphans. Jesus said he will always be our side.

Let us take a part in a challenge. A challenge that can prepare us for hard times, but must be practiced daily in good times. The challenge is to find Jesus each day. Examine the day, and pay attention. Think of it as a game. Throughout the day look for a moment, a person, and act, a word, or even a song. Find something that you can say beyond a doubt was Jesus, and then thank Him.

Let me give an example for this challenge. This will make more sense if you have read my Blog Posts. I was on my way, over the weekend, to give a talk. I was a bit nervous. Not because of speaking, I have don’t that many times. I was more nervous over little things, because it was a new place, a new task for my life. New ground to explore. And then in a moment I stopped swimming around in my head and took in my surroundings. On the radio was the song Move by TobyMac. If you have read my blog post with the same title you will immediately see the connection with Jesus. I did, and I thanked him.

Sometimes we just need to learn to open our eyes and ears and realize He is always there.

Genuflection

I would like to take a break from all the Spiritual Exercises and talk about some Catechism. It is good to have a strong spiritual faith growth, but as I mentioned in the post on prayer spiritual growth increases our faith, and the increase in faith instills a hunger for knowledge about our faith.

Important to note that this will not be an exhaustive exploration of Genuflection. It is meant only to give an overview of the basic practice. Many of us that go to Mass might find this information useful.

What is Genuflection?

Genuflection is a gesture that can be a bow, bending of the knee, bending of both knees, or prostration. It is a position that indicates reverence, servitude, helplessness, and dependency. These are all the things we wish to indicate about our relationship with God. We are servants of God, we are helpless and need God, and we depend on God. We accomplish everything by the Grace of God. We do nothing without Him.

The practice of Genuflection is documented in the book of Genesis [27:29],

May peoples serve you,
And nations bow down to you;
Be master of your brothers,
And may your mother’s sons bow down to you.
Cursed be those who curse you,
And blessed be those who bless you.

Another passage from the Bible, this one from Philippians [2:6-11] I really like:

Who, though he was in the form of God,
did not deem equality with God
Something to be grasped.
Rather, he emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
coming in human likeness;
and found human in appearance,
he humbled himself,
becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.
Because of this, God greatly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name
that is above very 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.

Genuflection with the Right Knee –

I need to specify the Right knee. There are many of us that do not know that we use the right knee for genuflection. I have heard the the left knee is used when genuflecting before the Pope, but I have not read that anywhere for certain.

We touch the right knee to the ground. The symbolism of this is to remind us that we are an earthly creature. From Dust we came, to Dust we return. [Gn 3:19] We are earthly and what we are reverencing is divine, or heavenly.

In the old days of the church this form of genuflection was done at anytime someone entered or left the church, or sanctuary. Now it is done when entering, or leaving the pew. This is done outside of Mass, not during Mass. If we arrive late to Mass, we really should not genuflect in this way, because mass has begun.

Where do we genuflect?

We genuflect to the tabernacle. The tabernacle is the box, or space, used to hold the body of Christ outside of Mass. In some late 20th century churches, this tabernacle was moved from the Sanctuary to a room behind the Sanctuary. This is being changed, and more modern church construction has moved it back into the church. We genuflect to the tabernacle because that is where Jesus is.

If there is no tabernacle, or we are visiting a church and do not know where it is, then we should genuflect to the altar.

Once mass has started the focus changes. We now genuflect to the altar and not the tabernacle. The altar then becomes the altar of sacrifice, and will be used for the Liturgy of the Eucharist. That is our focus during Mass, the journey towards the Eucharist.

Genuflection – Both Knees

When we genuflect with both knees we offer a greater reverence and different meaning to our gesture. Where the single knee gives reverence and reminds us of our earthly humanity, both knees places us in a position of humility and service. When we genuflect with both knees we place ourselves in dependency of God.

As Catholics we perform genuflection at a few parts of the Mass. Most specifically when the Liturgy of the Eucharist is done. We genuflect to lower ourselves as servants to the Lord. We remain this way for most of the Liturgy, rising to say the Our Father, and then kneeling again.

Catholics see the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist as being Jesus, present among us. With Jesus present we kneel to give ourselves to Him and to pay our reverence. Some people that attend Mass, and are not Catholic, do not kneel. I would invite them to kneel. If they call themselves Christian and believe in Jesus, why not kneel and pay him homage?

We also genuflect on both knees during prayer. Here we are placing ourselves, servants, at the mercy of God.

We also genuflect on both knees during benediction and adoration of the body of Christ.

In the old days it was customary that a person receiving communion would Genuflect on both knees when receiving the Eucharist. This was removed as practice by Vatican II. It is no longer necessary to do this and is discouraged. The reason it is discouraged is because we process up to receive Holy Communion. When a person suddenly knees, it can cause the person behind them to trip over them, or fall. I still see people, even young people, genuflecting at communion. Out of respect of the people behind us, we should withhold from doing that.

Today we genuflect before the Eucharist. Either in Mass before Holy communion, Benediction, and Adoration. If a person cannot genuflect, then they should perform a bow out of respect for Jesus.

Ordinarily, when Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist are at the altar before communion they may not kneel when the Priest holds up the Body of Christ. If they do not kneel, they should bow in respect.

It is also important to note that the General Instruction of the Roman Missal states that the lack of kneelers is insufficient reason for not kneeling when the Body of Christ is lifted. Therefore, even if we do not have kneelers we are required to kneel.

Prostration

It sounds like a strange word, but, prostration is the highest form of supplication and praise a person can give. When we prostrate ourselves we lay, face down, flat on the floor. In some cases the arms are outstretch, just as the Lord crucified on the cross. In other cases, we fold our arms under our forehead.

It is a position of giving ourselves to God. We place ourselves at the mercy of God.

Prostration is typically done by the Ordained, and those about to be Ordained, and also those taking on Religious Orders. They will Prostrate themselves before being Ordained to symbolize their servitude and humility before God.

There is one acceptation for Prostrations. When a person is genuflecting on both knees and bows forward to place their head on their hands in prayer, they take a form of prostration. If I am sitting in the pew, have my hands clasped in prayer, and bow over to place my forehead on my hands, I prostrate myself.

Most people do not prostrate themselves during Mass. However, in the old days of the Apostles they might prostrate themselves at Temple. The person reading the Word of God had to be in a Higher position than those listening. If the person reading was sitting on the floor, or on pillows, then the community listening would need to prostrate themselves, and lower themselves.

Today we have the Ambo [Greek: Ἄμβων, meaning, “step”, or “elevate”]. The Ambo is a raised platform that the readings take place. This raises the person doing to readings higher than those sitting in the Pews.

I hope and pray that someone found this interesting. Perhaps now when we go to Mass, we can perform our genuflection and know why we are doing it; what the meaning of our actions is, and enrich our Mass experience.

God Bless you.

Sunday Reflection 5/14

This week the reading of the Gospel is from John [10:1-10]:

Jesus said:
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever does not enter a sheepfold through the gate
but climbs over elsewhere is a thief and a robber.
But whoever enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.
The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice,
as the shepherd calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
When he has driven out all his own,
he walks ahead of them, and the sheep follow him,
because they recognize his voice.
But they will not follow a stranger;
they will run away from him,
because they do not recognize the voice of strangers.”
Although Jesus used this figure of speech,
the Pharisees did not realize what he was trying to tell them.

So Jesus said again, “Amen, amen, I say to you,
I am the gate for the sheep.
All who came before me are thieves and robbers,
but the sheep did not listen to them.
I am the gate.
Whoever enters through me will be saved,
and will come in and go out and find pasture.
A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy;
I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.”

It fits in well with the reading from last week. Jesus referred to Himself as the gate, or doorway in-which the sheep may enter. He continues this same example in the Gospel for this week.

Jesus says that if we want to get to heaven then we must follow his teaching, we must know Him, and He will find us.

Jesus never said that we can pick and choose what we want to believe, or what we want to do. We do not get the right to claim that something was too difficult, or that things were just too hard in this life. We are all called to bear our cross.

We can know God, and Jesus in three ways:

• attending Mass
• receiving Holy Communion
• Payer

We participate in the community through worship of God at Mass. We are brought into the Body of Christ through Holy Communion. We are brought into a personal relationship with God through prayer.

It is irony that so many things in the Catholic Faith have a Trinitarian formula to them. Here Mass worships God, the Father. Holy Communion is to enter the Body of the Son, Jesus. Prayer is always a communication with God and can lead to inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Jesus who preached the very first Catechism to the Apostles knew exactly what it was we needed for our salvation.

Like many things Jesus taught, the Apostles were slow to learn. He needed to repeat things to them and some things were not understood until they received the Holy Spirit. That has not yet happened in our readings.

We are often slow to understand things also. Like our Jewish Fathers in the Old Testament. They broke the Law, they were punished ,they returned to the faith. After some time, they broke the same Laws again, they were punished, they returned to the faith. It is a cycle that is well documented and repeated in the Bible.

In 2000 years we have not advanced much. In the nearly 3800 years since Abraham, we have not advanced much. We have greater technology, and more distractions to aid the Devil in his temptations. Our will, our Fortitude has not grown much.

More people today believe in God, but do not believe in religion. Jesus went to Church (Temple) every Sabbath. In the Time of Jesus the Sabbath was on Saturday, and is still held that way by the Jewish people today.

The Apostles went to Temple, just as Jesus taught them, and then went to a person’s home to break the bread and have communion. Also, as Jesus taught them.

Mass today holds true to this formula, that we have the Jewish tradition of gathering, and hearing the Word of God. Then we transition to the Liturgy of the Eucharist for the breaking of Bread and Communion. Like the two men on the road to Emmaus, our eyes are opened to Jesus with the Breaking of the bread.

Tradition does not change because this is what Jesus instructed the Apostles. This is what Jesus said was the way to know Him, and to follow him.

Like the words to the song Where I belong,  from the band Building 429:

All I know is I’m not home yet
This is not where I belong
Take this world and give me Jesus
This is not where I belong

This is not where Jesus wants us, He wants us with Him. We must welcome Him, Worship, and know Him. Then He will find us.

God Bless you on your journey.

What is Ours to Bear?

If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. [Lk 9:23]

This is a very common verse from the Bible. I have mentioned in several posts about how each of us must “Carry our Cross.” Do we really understand what that means?

It is preached by many Priests. It is thrown around as if a common saying, or “Hello.” I do not think that many of us understand the significance of this verse.

As with all things there is both a literal and nonliteral meaning in scripture.

The literal meaning in this verse is the one most people envision. This would be the image of Jesus carrying a physical object, the Cross. Jesus speaks in literal terms that each person must be willing to carrying their Cross. Not just today, yesterday, or tomorrow, but everyday. The context of this passage would be a message for the Christians at the time of Jesus, that they may be crucified for following Jesus. The very first followers were the Apostles.

This literal sense of the verse is the most common vision by people, but also holds the least significance to them. As of this moment most Christians in the free world are not being Crucified daily for following Jesus. That is not to say that this is not occurring in different places, because it is. For most, particularly the ones that are not feeling any immediate danger of persecution, the verse loses meaning.

Let us take a look at this verse from a non-literal perspective.

To carry a Cross is to carry something heavy. That we can agree on. Jesus fell several times carrying His Cross, so therefore, it must have been heavy.

Many of us carry heavy “baggage” with us every day. These things may not be physical in nature, but still are a burden. For example,

• Caring for a parent
• Caring for a sick person
• Fostering a child (particularly a child that is not a relative)
• Being married
• In an abusive relationship
• Having an unrewarding career
• illness
• debts
• Fasting (self-imposed, such as during Lent because it is supposed to be a burden)

The list is short, but illustrates the point. Let me be clear, in no way are these items in the list equal, or put in any order of importance. The list is incomplete. Some may suffer from other things that are not on the list. The importance and burden of the issue is dependent on the person carrying the burden.

For example, someone may care for a sick relative, or parent, and find reward in it. Another person may do the same thing and avoid it at all costs. There is a difference of opinion for this burden that is based on the person that must carry it.

“In bringing about the Redemption through suffering, Christ raised human suffering to the level of the Redemption. Thus each man, in his sufferings, can also become a sharer in the redemptive suffering of Christ” (Salvifici Doloris).

This is our suffering. For each person it is different but it can be a redemptive suffering. This form of suffering offers us a chance to learn obedience, humility, and increase our own personal discipline. All of which bring us closer to God. Most trials of suffering are meant for us to grow spiritually, to increase the Graces in our lives, and strengthen us against temptation of sin.

To gain these graces offered by God, we must choose to suffer through our pains. To do them without complaint. Let’s be honest, everyone has a cross to bear, but bearing it with humility and discipline increases our gifts of fortitude, and prudence.

Jesus has many lovers of His Heavenly kingdom, but few bearers of His Cross. Many that seek his comforts, and few of tribulation…Many love Jesus so long as it causes no adversities to their life. – The Imitation of Christ

The Cross becomes a very spiritual moment for us. We have a moment to bear our sufferings. Our sufferings which cannot compare to the suffering of Jesus, or what Jesus did for our souls. What we do is so small in comparison.

It offers us a moment of Grace. An opportunity to offer an exchange with God. Consider this, the next time we find ourselves rolling our eyes, or possibly feeling tense about doing something. Consider for a moment that you might offer this pain and suffering you have up to Jesus. As Jesus did in the garden.

Father, if you are willing, take this cup away from me; still, not my will but Yours be done. [Lk 22:42]

By offering our suffering to Jesus, he may give us the Graces we need to bear the suffering. If it is the will of God, the suffering may be made easier, or removed from us.

Now consider another option, which not only teaches us humility, but allows us to imitate Christ. We may consider a prayer similar to this one:

God, although I suffer through this ______, I will gladly do so. I will take this pain and suffering for Jesus who suffered for me. By His example, I too will suffer and in return I ask in the name of Jesus that ______ be given to ____. I ask this in Jesus name. Amen

For this prayer we express our suffering to God. We then give the example that Jesus did by redeeming us through his Passion. Next we state to God that we will accept this suffering, without complaining, and bear it willingly. We ask in return that another person by be spared their suffering.

In this way we can offer to God our own suffering so that another person, a loved one, a parent, or a person we know of, may not have to suffer greatly. We may even offer our suffering for those in Purgatory, that the our deceased loved ones might be forgiven of their sins and granted life eternal in Heaven.

I hope that the Bible verse, To Carry Our Cross, has new meaning. Perhaps even a new spiritually enriched meaning. It offers each of us a way to share with Jesus in His mission of loving others. It allows us to express our lives in humility for the love of another. In return we get to fulfill our own call from Jesus:

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven.

Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.

Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God.

Let us pray together for all those who struggle to carry their Cross. That Jesus, who struggled to carry His cross and who is so willing to help us with ours, will come to their aid.

Let us pray for those that have fallen under their Cross. The ones that feel defeated, and not able to carry on. That they know through the Love of Jesus and by our examples that they are never alone.

Let us also pray for all those who willingly and unknowingly bear the cross of another person. That through their works of mercy they are showing the love of Jesus to a person who cannot bear their cross alone. May they have an abundance of Love, Joy, Happiness, and Good Health all the days of their life. Amen

May God bless each and everyone of you.

Move

I write this one with a lot of reluctance. I have been on a very spiritual journey. On this journey, I am becoming more aware of things in my life. One such thing is self praise, or Pride.

Pride is the foundation sin. I call it that, because it was a fundamental part of the exile from the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve wanted for themselves what God had. They wanted to be like God, and doing so, they fell into Pride.

Many of us find someone else to blame for our problems. Adam said, “I didn’t do it, she gave it to me.” Eve said, “It was not my fault, it was the snake.”

The start of all sin in the world began with Pride, and climaxed to scapegoating. It is so easy for us to find someone else to blame for our problems, to not let our pride be hurt and pretend that nothing we did was wrong. The human mind can disillusion itself to extreme measures.

My story and thought for today, is centered on Jesus. I want to say that first because at no time should this story be about myself. It is about Him and what He did for me. He alone deserves all the praise and glory.

I was recently listening to a song by TobyMac, title Move. The chorus to the song goes like this:

I know your heart been broke again
I know your prayers ain’t been answered yet
I know you’re feeling like you got nothing left
Well, lift your head, it ain’t over yet, ain’t over yet so

Move, keep walkin’ soldier keep movin’ on
Move, keep walkin’ until the mornin’ comes
Move, keep walkin’ soldier keep movin’ on
And lift your head, it ain’t over yet, ain’t over yet

In a strange way, I was listening to this song and it made me think of Jesus.

While walking the road to His crucifixion He was so battered and beaten. There is no art, that I have seen, or image of Christ that can make us understand the fullness of this. He was beaten so badly, that if a person were to see Him, they might not recognize Him as even human.

The movie, The Passion of Christ, shows the horrifying story. It is probably the closest thing to the reality of what happened. If watching that movie makes us cringe in our seats, then imagine this: brutality in the Roman Empire had no limits, Hollywood does.

In most likelihood what Jesus experienced was far worse. If that does not make us pause and think, then it becomes impossible to imagine He suffered that for you, me, and all of us.

When He walked to that sacrifice, and His Passion, He had to carry the Cross. The same Cross they would hang Him on. What started with Adam and Eve eating from a tree ends with Jesus being hung on a tree.

He fell, He stumbled, and He struggled to carry that Cross after such a beating. And, without disrespect I think of the song Move. It ain’t over yet. Keep walking’. Keep movin’ on. I know your prayers ain’t been answered yet. I know you’re feeling like you got nothing left. But lift your head. It ain’t over yet. So, get up.

I am a military veteran. When I left my Military service, it took me just over two weeks to be able to fall asleep on my own. I say on my own, because I would stay up to the point of exhaustion and my body would give out. That was the only way that I could sleep. For two years I would have nightmares, imagine sounds, or smell things that were not their. It took me a long time to learn to control it, and to tell myself it was not real. None of it was real.

One day my eyes were opened to Jesus. The real presence of Him in the people around me. My world flipped over. I know now, I have fallen constantly over the years. Not just in these things I shared here, but in life. We all stumble, and we fall. I can imagine the Military Instructors yelling at me, telling me to Get up, and Move. Now I know, it was Jesus.

And this song. I see those Angels telling Jesus, as He stumbles, to Get up and Move. I wonder, how many times has He done the same to me. Yelled at me, “Get up. I know you’re prayers ain’t been answered yet. You feel like you got nothing left. But lift your head. It ain’t over yet. Move.”

And so, I move. Never alone. I have Him with me. He is with all of us. In all our struggles. Mine is not greater than anyone else. I am held no greater than any person struggling with themselves, or struggling with this crazy world.

Jesus loves us all the same.

God’s delays, are not God’s denial. He answers all prayers in the way that brings us all closer to Him.

Angel In A Bottle

Gospel Reading for Sunday, May 7, 2017.

Gospel JN 10:1-10

Jesus said:
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever does not enter a sheepfold through the gate
but climbs over elsewhere is a thief and a robber.
But whoever enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.
The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice,
as the shepherd calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
When he has driven out all his own,
he walks ahead of them, and the sheep follow him,
because they recognize his voice.
But they will not follow a stranger;
they will run away from him,
because they do not recognize the voice of strangers.”
Although Jesus used this figure of speech,
the Pharisees did not realize what he was trying to tell them.

So Jesus said again, “Amen, amen, I say to you,
I am the gate for the sheep.
All who came before me are thieves and robbers,
but the sheep did not listen to them.
I am the gate.
Whoever enters through me will be saved,
and will come in and go out and find pasture.
A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy;
I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.”

Imagine for a moment a window. On the other side of this window is a man. His hands are on the glass, and he appears to be yelling something. We cannot hear anything inside the box. We might think to ourselves, what is wrong with that person? We might ignore him. After we meet our curiosity, while maintaining a safe distance, turn to move away.

Now, let us imagine another scenario. Jesus is standing at a window. He knows them, and has a message for them. Almost like a mime acting out the famous box act. Jesus has his hands on the glass and he is screaming, trying to get a message through. But the person on the other side does not hear, and they move away.

The Jewish people from the time of Abraham were a nomadic people. They did not own land, they owned wells. The people that owned the wells, owned the water and controlled life. They would move from well to well with their herds of animals.

Sheep graze, the eat from the ground. The don’t look up much and always walk with their eyes down, never looking around. Much like many of us, and our phone.

A sheep that gets too close to a river might drown. They can get out into the water too far, and their wool will soak with water and pull them under. A similar problem occurs with holes in the ground. A sheep will walk along grazing and fall into the hole. Not seeing the hole to avoid it, and they will with their until the Shepherd comes to save them.

When the shepherd calls there is no mistake, they will always go to him, and follow him. They know him, they trust him, and he protects them. Carrying his rod with him, to protect the flock.

There was an amazing video online that showed this. A shepherd taught a bunch of people to mimic his shepherds call. They all came forward and called the sheep. Some even tried to call together. This continues for several minutes. Then in a moment of silence the shepherd does the exact same call. The entire flock moved toward him instantly. It was a beautiful and amazing sight.

We go through most days, and how many of us hear Jesus? How many of us see Him?

I don’t mean coffee cup, in person, conversation. No. We can speak with him, through our prayers. We can always hear God by reading His word.

Through prayer we speak to God, and through reading the Bible we can hear God.

How well do we really know Christ? When He calls, do we hear Him? Or, is he a strange man behind the glass of a window?

I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father accept through me. [Jn 14:6]

It makes sense that we want to know Jesus, and to follow Him. If we want to go to Heaven, we want to have a relationship with Him, and hear Him when He calls.

Be weary, there are others that can easily present themselves as Angels. They will want to lead you away. But knowing and understanding Jesus will help us to ignore the imposters, and the fallen, so that we can hear Jesus clearly.

Let us take just a moment each day to say, “Thanks”. All friendship starts with, “Hello.” Prayer starts that easy too.

May God Bless you and bring you the peace and joy of Jesus.

Hail Mary

THERE is one harp that any hand can play,
And from its strings what harmonies arise!
There is one song that any mouth can say –
A song that lingers when all singing dies,
When on their beads our Mother’s children pray,
Immortal music charms the grateful skies.
– THE ROSARY, Joyce Kilmer

Why do Catholics say, “Hail Mary”?

Hail, comes from the Divine words of the Archangel Gabriel in the Bible,

Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you. [Lk 1:28]

Hail! in Hebrew, is used to wish someone joy, happiness, and peace.

Much later in this story, Mary is sitting again, only now she is with all the apostles; hidden in a chamber. They were afraid that they were going to be arrested and Crucified.

At that moment a divine presence appears before them.

It is the Risen Christ.

In their fear and anxiety He says to them, Peace be with you. (Hail!)

With those words all their worries and anxieties were removed. What a great salutation of great deep spiritual importance. With it we wish to not only have the other person’s problems and anxieties removed, but we wish for them to share in the presence of Jesus.

Who better to wish this unto than His Mother.

Hail Mary! and Hail to all of you, may the peace of Christ be in your hearts. May all your fears and anxieties be replaced with love and joy.

Prayer – For Starters

I am going to talk about prayer a lot in my posts. It is a very important topic for a few reasons:

• A lot of us have low self confidence about prayer
• Some of us do not understand what prayer is
• Some of us do not understand the importance of prayer

The dictionary meaning for prayer is: the elevation of our heart to God, to give praise (adoration), to thank Him (also adoration), to depreciate His anger (reconciliation), to implore his mercy (supplication), and to invoke his assistance (petition).

While we explore these different aspects of prayer (in future posts), let us keep in our mind an important thought:

Most of the world suffers unhappy conditions, or states, having nowhere to carry it’s hearts supplications. Let us also remember, that all the world calls misery, shame, defeat, pain, suffering, loss, sorrow, loneliness, despair, and misfortune changes meaning when it passes through the hands of God. 

We can often find ourselves in a lonely place. Having some condition, or state in our lives that leads us to despair. We have doubts about our life, and where we have gone. We pray to God and wonder if He is even listening.

God’s delays are not God’s denials. Patience is Genius and we must persist when all feels lost.

A Christian that has real Faith, a Faith that is genuine, can never doubt that God hears us even when it appears there is no answer, or our prayer has been refused. God answers all prayers in His time, and in a way that provides us the opportunity to grow closer to him.

That is the true meaning of salvation. Gaining the opportunity to Love God, and not pass it up. Our reward is Heaven.

With God there is no confusion. God loves all of us, unconditionally. He is willing to free us of our sins and pains. He is willing to ignore our mistakes.

Prayer is the most essential element of all religion. Without it we cannot discover God, we cannot get to know God.

Without prayer our religious life disappears and fades away. In the absence of prayer religious loses it’s breath and dies from within us.

Prayer is therefore not only a plea to God, but a relationship, and exercise that persists to strengthen our inner conscience and soul. Without prayer we cannot know God.

In the Catholic Faith we believe that some individuals lived such incredibles lives for God, that when they died they went straight to Heaven. We know this, because miracles happen when people pray (intercession) for these deceased religious people to plead their case to God.

It is a misconception that Catholics worship Saints. The Saints are just people that we say, with confidence, are in the presence of God. We may never know who made it to Heaven for sure, because this is the Will of God. When a Saint intercedes for us, and miracles happen, then we can say with confidence (not mistaken with assurance) that they are in the presence of God.

Many of the Saints had encounters of the Spiritual nature. Some had conversations with Jesus, Angels, God, and others may have spoke with the Blessed Mother. Their encounters did not happen because the suddenly found themselves in a jam, and prayed for help.

These Saints had very strong devotions to prayer and conversed with God regularly. St. Padre Pio, for example, was known to be kneeling in prayer all through the night. It was said that he almost never slept.

God listened to them, and listens to them now. Their life of prayer created a bond with God, and in return God gave them incredible Grace and Fortitude.

We become strong by our weaknesses. We may not see that, during the moment of suffering. It is not the challenges we were faced, or the trials we suffered, that defines us. It is always how we survived them, that speaks about who were are. Our fidelity and perseverance in prayer, in times of darkness, and weariness is the first measure of our success.

Sadly too many people abandon prayer when they need it the most.

 

Pray everyday, come to know God, and he will show you the way. Let us not be afraid to let Him lead our hearts on the path. With a strong Faith, the rest can fade away. Never to bother our minds again.

“Illis poma cadunt qui pompa sub arbore quaerunt.” [Latin] – Apples fall to those who seek them under the tree.

May God Bless you. With the Love a Grace of God may we all learn to hear Him in our prayers, see Him in the faces we meet, and know that we face everything with God.

The Empty Tomb

There is a song from a band called Casting Crowns. The song is called Stained Glass Masquerade. Here are some of the words to that song.

Is there anyone that fails?
Is there anyone that falls?
Am I the only one in church today, feeling so small?
Cause when I take a look around
Everybody seems so strong
I know they’ll soon discover
That I don’t belong
So I tuck it all away
Like everything’s OK
If I make ’em all believe it
Maybe I’ll believe it too
So with a painted grin
I’ll play the part again
So everyone will see me
The way that I see them

Are we happy plastic people
Under shiny plastic steeples
With walls around our weakness
And smiles that hide our pain
But the invitations open
To every heart that’s been broken
Maybe then we close the curtain
On our stained glass masquerade

Is there anyone who’s been there?
Are there any hands raised?
Am I the only one who’s traded
In the altar for a stage?
The performance is convincing
And we know every line in my heart
Only when no one is watching can we really fall apart
But would it set me free
If I dared to let you see
The truth behind the person
You imagine me to be
Or would your eyes be opened
Or would you walk away
Would the love of Jesus
Be enough to make you stay?

When I was listening to this song recently it made me think of the Tomb. That then led me to think of Mass. Many of us go to mass and trade the altar for a stage.
We go to mass and recite memorized lines, and they we leave.

When the apostles went to the tomb and found it empty. They must have felt a real emptiness. First they lost Jesus at the crucifixion and now his body was gone. They were lost. I am sure many of them panicked and asked themselves, “What do we do?” “Where do we go?” From the Bible we read that some of them gave up and left Jerusalem.

So many of us seek the comfort of Jesus, but are we willing to bare His cross. We rejoice and call out the name of Jesus, but we are not willing to undergo any suffering for His sake.

Yet, He carried His cross and was Crucified for our sins.

Like the apostles, we must carry our cross. We must go through difficulty and challenges, if we are to get to heaven. We must cary our cross to the end, if we are to be resurrected with Christ.

Jesus has many lovers of his kingdom in heaven, but so few that are willing to carry their cross. So many want to skip ahead to the comforts of heaven. Few are willing to stand strong in the face of challenges to get there. Many of us feel that Heaven is owed to us just because we went to church and recited some words from memory.

But Jesus did not come to save robots, or people without feelings.

In a way we all carry that tomb inside of us. We look inside the tomb, like the apostles, and we see an empty tomb. We feel lost and confused. We feel like God is missing from our lives, and the weight of that cross gets a little heavier.

But, the tomb is empty only to those who cannot see. The tomb is empty to those who do not have Jesus in their hearts.

The love of Christ may not be enough for us to stay at His side; but by the Love of Christ, He will never leave our side.

It is not easy. It is a burden, but we are all called to suffer that burden and face that challenge. How sad would it be, to be the person that ignores God out of laziness, difficulty, or sadness.

The tomb is not empty it is full of hope. The tomb is so full of love, and mercy, that the door was not enough to contain it. If we doubt that, then why was the tomb we imagined while reading this without a door?

We have a special gift given to us by Jesus. At mass we each have a chance to encounter Him and Heaven. It requires us to participate with a fullness of heart. God so loves us, that he wants us to really show him our love. He showers us with so many gifts, and we should return to Him with Praise.

During the Eucharistic Liturgy when the Priest holds up the Body and Blood of Christ, we don’t just sing alone. In that moment all of heaven and earth are present, the Angels and the Saints. It is glorious, it is majestic, and it is beautiful beyond words. If we were to catch a glimpse of the reality of it, our hearts and breathing would stop.

We need to see that beauty, but we must first see the Tomb is not empty. We must place ourselves in the Tomb, and give ourselves to God. Even if for that hour of Mass. Then we can ensure that we are not among the happy plastic people, with an empty tomb for our heart.

When we open ourselves up and share who we really are, we don’t just let in our family, our brothers, and sister; we let in Jesus. We become one together with Christ, and in a sense we become resurrected in our spirit. Strong again to carry our Cross.

Jesus, who stumbled and fell carrying his cross, will always be at our side, to help us carry ours.

In closing here is something to think about. It is from the First Letter of Peter. Let it be a reminder to each of us that we need to worship and live for Christ in our hearts. In our prayers, our worship, our singing, and when we carry our cross.

In this rejoice, although now for a little while you may have to suffer through various trials,
so that the genuineness of your faith,
more precious than gold that is perishable even though tested by fire,
may prove to be for the praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Although you have not seen Him, you love him;
even though you do not see him now, yet you believe in him,

so rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy,
as you attain the goal of faith,

the salvation of your souls

May the Lord Jesus Bless you and be at your side on this journey.