A Regular Joe: 2016

Sunday, December 18, 2016

WHAT’S IN A NAME?

[1] “What shall we name the baby?” Let’s play a game. I’ll call out children’s name and you name the children’s parents:

1. Fifi Trixibelle, Little Pixie, & Peaches Honeyblossom are daughters of …?

2. Blue Ivy is the daughter of …?

Answers can be found at celebrity-baby-names

Different cultures at different times have various customs and ways of naming children. In some European countries, they are named after their grandparents (i.e. Judy and I named our son, Leo Joseph after my father). In this country, parents often name their children after themselves or even after movie stars. We Catholics often choose the name of a saint. In ancient times, the newborn’s name often reflected the hopes that the parents had for their child. This was how Jesus got his name.

The angel tells Joseph that Mary “…will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus” (Mt 1:21), meaning “Yahweh saves,” because he is destined to save his people. To some Jews of his time, this meant being saved from the Roman army that occupied their country. But Jesus was not to be a messiah who would win a military victory over their enemies; he was to save them—and us—from our sins.

What does that mean? Well, think for a moment what the words saving and safety bring to people’s minds today. We keep our nation safe by maintaining a well-trained military with a variety of weapons as insurance against enemy attacks. We have a Department of Homeland Security taking elaborate precautions to protect us from foreign and domestic threats. All these measures are designed to save us from enemies outside who want to harm us. But not all our enemies are outside us. Some are within, and they are what we call sins. It is from these that Jesus comes to save us.

What are sins, anyway? They’re not just the breaking of rules. They are the acting out of our worst instincts: greed, anger, lust, selfishness, cruelty, envy. We all know that we have these enemies within us; when we let them out, they do harm to others and to ourselves. They keep us from reaching out to those who love us or need us. Sometimes they take the form of apathy or self-absorption that doesn’t make us do wrong but prevents us from doing good. Then there are the sins of weakness that lead to aimlessness, irresponsibility, and addiction.

What are the enemies within us, and how can we deal with them? I believe the following story explain the strategy the best.

A Cherokee Indian tells his grandson, “There is a fight is going on inside me. It is a terrible fight between two wolves. One wolf is evil. He is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, self-pity, guilt, resentment, false pride and ego. The other wolf is good. He is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, benevolence, compassion, and faith. This same fight is going on inside you – and inside every other person, too.”

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked the old man, “Which wolf will win?”

The old man simply replied, “Whichever one you feed.”

In a few days we are going to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Let Christmas and our Eucharistic feast feed us with Hope, Faith, Joy, and Peace. They are both joyful feast for many reasons. So as we enjoy family reunions, the exchanging of gifts, and countless acts of generosity to those in need, recognize why Christmas brings out the best in people. It’s because this is exactly why Jesus came—to bring out the best in all of us.[2]

[1] New American Bible: Isaiah 7:10-14; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-24

Sunday, November 20, 2016

REMEMBER ME

[1]King Cănūté was once ruler of England. The members of his court were continually full of flattery. “You are the greatest man that ever lived…You are the most powerful king of all…Your highness, there is nothing you cannot do, nothing in this world dares disobey you.”

The king was a wise man and he grew tired such foolish speeches. One day as he was walking by the seashore Canute decided to teach them a lesson. “So you say I am the greatest man in the world?” he asked them.

“O king,” they cried, “there never has been anyone as mighty as you, and there will never be anyone so great, ever again!”

“And you say all things obey me?” Canute asked. “Yes sire” they said. “The world bows before you, and gives you honour.”

“I see,” the king answered. “In that case, bring me my chair, and place it down by the water.”

The servants scrambled to carry Canute’s royal chair over the sands. At his direction they placed it right at the water’s edge. The King sat down and looked out at the ocean. “I notice the tide is coming in. Do you think it will stop if I give the command?”

“Give the order, O great king, and it will obey,” cried his entourage

“Sea,” cried Canute, “I command you to come no further! Do not dare touch my feet!” He waited a moment, and a wave rushed up the sand and lapped at his feet. “How dare you!” Canute shouted. “Ocean, turn back now! I have ordered you to retreat before me, and now you must obey! Go back!”

In came another wave lapping at the king’s feet. Canute remained on his throne throughout the day, screaming at the waves to stop. Yet in they came anyway, until the seat of the throne was covered with water.

Finally Canute turned to his entourage and said, “It seems I do not have quite so much power as you would have me believe. Perhaps now you will remember there is only one King who is all-powerful, and it is he who rules the sea, and holds the ocean in the hollow of his hand. I suggest you reserve your praises for him.”[2]

Unlike the servants of King Canute, there is a tender relationship between the would-be king, David, and the tribes of Israel that suggests the oneness between God and his people. The tribes characterize themselves as “your bone and your flesh” (2Sm5:1) as if they were his progeny rather than his subjects. David represents God’s authority on earth, and the nation finds in him a father and a powerful leader. Despite David’s tragic human flaws, we see in him a foreshadowing of a distant descendant who will also combine compassion and dominion.

Pope Pius XI established the Solemnity of Christ the King in response to the destructive forces of his time: the rise of Mussolini and fascism, the Churches loss of its political power and the decadence of the Roaring Twenties. The Pope insisted the only weapon against such military forces and human chaos was the acknowledgement of the sovereignty of Christ. He was calling us to actively participate in the celebration as a means to remind us of the need to respond and answer our baptismal call to be a disciple of Christ, to follow Christ, to be like our Christ the King.[3]

I’m not sure how successful we’ve been teaching the faithful and changing the world. The U.S. is engaged in three war zones, there are riots in many major cities because we don’t like the President elect, hate messages are flooding Facebook, schools, and communities; there are so many other false kings that capture and hold our attention.

Maybe it’s we just don’t get this kingship thing! After all Christ the King reigns from the throne of the cross—a king whose royal crown is made of thorns.

This whole Liturgical year, seen through the writings of Luke, has been story after story of how Christ demonstrated to us what it means to be his disciple, of how we are called to treat others, of what it means to be Christ to our family, our co-workers, to the people we meet on the street and to ourselves.

God’s mercy is expressed in Jesus’ table fellowship style of teaching. Jesus is always eating with new people, the wrong people—women at a men’s symposium, non-Jews, and sinners. Christ formed new unity wherever he went. But that new unity requires us to change. It requires us to review our priorities. It requires us to revisit who or what we hold as King in our lives.

Christ’s Kingship is not based on “human power”, but on loving and serving others, and may we have the faith that allows us to fall into the hands of a living and loving Christ, as remember He is truly present in this table fellowship, the Eucharist we are about to share. May Christ the King remember us, as we hope to share in His Kingdom now and forever.

[1] Scriptures: 2 Samuel 5:1-3; Colossians 1:12-20; Luke 23:35-43

[2] www.storiesforpreaching.com, “King Canute”

Sunday, November 6, 2016

PRAY, DISCERN, ACT

[1]A young woman named Caroline once wrote an unusual letter to the New York Times. She was twenty-five, working at home as a free-lance company editor, married to a successful young businessman, and the mother of two children. In it she says, “I am faced with the crisis of finding some meaning in life. No, my family is not enough. Yes, I want to make their lives as happy as possible. The question is, how do you find something to look forward to? Basically, what are goals of any kind in the face of death? How is it possible to be happy in the present, if there is no sense of accomplishing anything?”

This young woman was confronting her own mortality. People who knew her probably thought of her as someone who “had it all.” But she is asking the most basic question about the meaning of life, what’s the point, if it all ends with death?[2]

The question that came to my mind while praying with today’s scriptures is what do the Maccabees know that Caroline and so many of us struggle to understand? Caroline seemingly has it all, yet struggles with understanding her purpose, her goal in life. The Maccabees are arrested and subjected to the cruel sport of their captures just to get them to renounce their faith yet they willingly, even boldly, offer their words and bodies knowing the end result, that “…the King of the world will raise us up to live again forever.” (2 Mc 7:9) which has a familiar tone to what we heard from the gospel during the All Souls Day liturgy where Jesus says, “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him on the last day.” (Jn 6:40)

We are constantly presented with alternative courses of action (choices) some are easier, like the choice between right and wrong or good and evil. Some, not so easy, where each choice seems attractive to some degree, and we’re not blessed with the gift of a clear certainty about what to do. In these cases, St. Ignatius says that we can discern the right choice by attending to the inner movements of our spirit. In particular, feelings of “consolation” and “desolation” will signal the correct course of action. St. Ignatius always carefully puts the word “spiritual” before consolation and desolation. For him spiritual consolation is our experience “when some interior movement in the soul is caused, through which the soul comes to be inflamed with love of its Creator and Lord.” St. Ignatius more simply describes spiritual consolation as every increase in hope, faith, and charity. Spiritual desolation is just the opposite.[3]

Tuesday, November 8^th, Election Day. We’ve talked about choices between good and evil, and the choice between two uncertainties. What about choosing between two imperfect choices? PRAY, DISCERN, ACT.

In Bishop Noonan’s letter, published in the Florida Catholic, he writes to the faithful, “While St. Paul writes to the Thessalonians to speak of his prayer for them, I also pray like St. Paul for you. These are difficult times. In a [couple days], we will have our presidential election. Many of you have written to me about the election and your questions regarding the consequences of your vote for either candidate. Some of you have stated that you won’t vote at all, because of your uncertainty about which candidate to choose.

Voting in our country is a privilege and one in which I encourage your participation to the fullest. This means taking care to know all the candidates, including those running for your city or county council, your judges, your state legislators, and other local candidates, as well as your presidential choices.

The opportunity to vote in our country is a gift to us. It is by these choices that we can offer our world the opportunity to be guided by the tenets of faith, as best as possible. We recognize that the candidates may not be people of faith, and because of that, they may not live according to our faith, or if they exhibit an essence of faith, it might be humanistic in its approach. It is our responsibility not to judge them, but to determine if their platform will allow us to practice our faith and to bring about God’s love of us and His command for us to love our neighbor as ourselves to thrive.” The Church, for over 2000 years, has remained constant in her moral teachings concerning: life; the dignity of every human person; marriage; stewardship; and the environment. She asks her believers to utilize this moral code to vote with a fully informed conscience. The Church will not tell you who or what party to vote, nor will she condemn you in your act of exercising your fully informed conscience vote. PRAY, DISCERN, ACT.

The Eucharist is an expression of our belief in the good news that Christ is risen and has won for us a life stronger than death. Participating in this feast is an act of love and “if you are choosing love then you’re choosing the eternal element that exists forever. If you’re choosing to love and serve this world and your neighbor, you’re already in Heaven. Maybe it doesn’t always feel like it, but in fact it’s the foretaste of the promise.”[4]

Yes, Caroline, there is a resurrection. Death does not have the last word and those of us who believe can sing with the psalmist, “Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full.” (Ps 17:1)

[1] Scriptures: 2 Maccabees 7:1-2, 9-14; 2 Thessalonians 2:16-3:5; Luke 20:27-38

Sunday, October 23, 2016

CHURCH, WHAT’S YOUR JOB?

Dan Greenburg in his book “How to Make Yourself Miserable” suggests if readers have a sincere desire to make life miserable for themselves, they might learn to compare themselves to other people.

It seems that, as human beings, we just can’t help ourselves and it starts at a young age! Many years ago I used to coach little league football. It was midway into the season when a young player came up to me as we were preparing for a game to explain to me how much better a player he was compared to his team mates that I could not win the game without him. REALLY! It was then that I announced his very special position for the game, to his and his parents’ great dissatisfaction, the end of the bench. It was a hard lesson for this young player. That season our team had a perfect 10-0 record.

A similar drama is played out in today’s Gospel. The Pharisee takes up his prayer position and lists his credentials before God, “I fast twice a week and I pay tithes on my whole income.” (Lk 18:12) Good stuff, but he had to start out with the comparison, “I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity…” (Lk 18:11), especially this tax collector.

Want in on a secret? Credentials do not impress God, but humility gets God’s attention. You see, I believe our team had a perfect season because every coach was persistent, consistent, and encouraging in explaining player assignments, players knew their role and how their gifts and faithful performance fit for the greater good of the team. Winning just became the natural consequence to performing well and trusting that their team mates had the same humble vision and goal.

Let me give you an example of how a pre-game preparation would sound like:

Coach: Outside linebacker, what’s your job?

Player: Containment. Go straight in 5 yards, find the ball, and chase the play.

Coach: Nose guard, what’s your job?

Player: Watch the ball, when it moves knock the center on their butt.

I believe Christianity is also a team sport. Too often we tend to make religion/church a “just Jesus and me walk” which can lead us down the path to comparing ourselves to others, even slipping into judging others without even knowing them or their situation. The Trinity (Father, Son, & Spirit) is the Christian model of unity; we were created for each other. We are called to a humble responsibility to each other. How? Prayer. As our Sunday readings remain focused on prayer, we need to remember last week’s Gospel reading encouraged us to be “persistent in prayer”.

So a Christian’s pre-game preparation might sound like this:

· When I see a person dozing off in church, maybe during the homily; PRAY: Lord may their ears and heart, hear your sweet voice.

· When I hear the emergency vehicles passing by; PRAY: May the vehicles find a clear path to those in need and may those in need may know your loving presence.

· When I’m feeling judged; PRAY: My Lord you formed me in your perfect image and gifted me uniquely. I Trust in You.

The Church’s job is Persistent & humble prayer. This gets God’s attention; perpetual prayer in praise and thanksgiving for His many graces he showers on us; laments for the challenging times of tribulations that help us grow in faith; intercessory petitions for the needs of so many others who have asked for our prayers. The author of Sirach tells us that, “The prayer of the lowly pierces the clouds, it does not rest till it reaches its goal, nor will it withdraw till the Most High responds …” (Sir 35:17-18)

There is no doubt in my mind that this community has received many graces because of our faithfulness to Perpetual Adoration. For 17 years many parishioners have dedicated themselves to an around the clock vigil, spending an hour before the Exposed Lord in prayer. Our adorer pool is showing signs of time; aging, health issues, travel, and jobs have made it difficult to maintain enough adorers to staff two people in the chapel, especially in the later hours between 11:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. We are inviting you to join the many of us in our persistent prayer life for our community. Spend an hour a week, every other week, a month. Do it as a family, do it as a small church community, women of faith, men’s discipleship group, but do it. Make a prayer commitment. For me it has been a tremendous experience where I get to be most intimate with my Lord and Savior. Once a week Judy and I spend time in the Adoration Chapel, together, yet in separate conversations with Jesus. For me, it is the wisest hour spent in my work week. When you ask me to pray for you, I bring them to my Adoration hour and present your needs to Jesus.

Church, what’s your job? Persistent, perpetual, and humble prayer.

Sunday, September 4, 2016

DISCIPLESHIP SANDWICH

[1]Whose hungry? Here’s the menu special of the day, the Discipleship Sandwich. It’s the only thing on the menu board. The two slices of bread in this sandwich are “Renounce Your Family” and “Renounce Your Possessions.” In between is the toughest meat imaginable: “Carry Your Cross.” This Discipleship Sandwich must have been just as hard to digest when Jesus described it to the crowds on his way to Jerusalem two thousand years ago, as it is today. Nobody I know would voluntarily order this sandwich. I wouldn’t be surprised if those who did order it only got a few bites into it before leaving it, unfinished, on the table.

Renounce your family. Carry your cross. Renounce your possessions.

There’s got to be something wrong with this sandwich. Is it that there is too much cholesterol, too many calories, too many carbs. Jesus doesn’t even offer a tasty drink to wash it all down.

I wish I could go on a diet and avoid this one sandwich. I don’t want to renounce my family and my possessions. I certainly don’t want to carry my cross! But when I look up at the Menu Board, I’ve got to remember that I’m not at McDonald’s. I’m not here to be “McSaved” and I don’t want to be a “McChristian.” I’m standing in line for real salvation and the Lord is calling me to be a real Christian.

So I’m putting off my diet and I’m ordering the Discipleship Sandwich. I’m going to remember that “renouncing my family” and “renouncing my possessions” simply means not letting my relationships or my things get in the way of “looking for the cross” or “embracing the cross” when I find it. Renouncing is hard; but it’s not impossible.

Here’s a little side McNote. You know when you go through the McDonald’s Drive Thru, the cashier usually throws in all kinds of freebies in the bag we might need: salt and pepper packets, little tubs of dipping sauce for your McNuggets, ketchup for your McFries, sugar for the McCafe, a straw for your McShake and a fist full of napkins. You get enough free stuff to start your own little McLandfill in your car.

Well, with the Discipleship Sandwich, the Lord throws in some freebies in too. In the bag you’ll find packets of mercy and forgiveness; little tubs of love and compassion. Salvation is in there too, it’s down at the bottom of the bag: just look for it.[2]

You ask, what’s the cost for a Discipleship Sandwich? Redemption costs nothing. Discipleship will cost you everything.

[1] Scriptures: Wisdom 9:13-18a; Philemon 9-10, 12-17; Luke 14:25-33

Sunday, August 28, 2016

SEE YOU IN THE EUCHARIST

[1]Imagine a young person on the eve of a major life event that is both thrilling and daunting, like a wedding. A groom or bride might be intimidated by the anticipated pageantry, by the commitment, and by the unfolding relationship that lies ahead. A wise parent or friend might speak to them much as the author of Hebrews speaks today.

Asking them to consider a similarly thrilling but more daunting experience—going to college, entering the military, starting a new job—the parent or friend might say, “this is nothing like that. You had reason to fear and even feel alone, but this is just the opposite. You have the embrace of someone who loves you, the support of family, the experience of knowing this person with whom you’ll now be one.”

The author of Hebrews is making this same point as he contrasts the old covenant made in the midst of the thunder and fire of Mt. Sinai, a sight that filled the people with fear of God and made them want to shut their ears to block God’s fearful voice, with the new covenant made under a wholly different circumstance. In the new covenant, we stand with Christ at Mt. Zion in the company of innumerable angels and saints. Rather than fear, this setting fills us with peace, for we see those who went before us assembled in “festal gathering” (Heb 12:22). Though we stand before “God the judge of all,” (Heb 12:23) we are not alone but in the company of “Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant” (Heb 12:24) who intercedes for us and turns what might be fearful into an experience of safety, solace, and communion![2]

Clearly, the whole meaning of participating in the Eucharistic Sacrifice is union with Christ in the outpouring of his life for love of God and of his bride the Church, us. “The Church’s great liturgical tradition teaches us that fruitful participation in the liturgy requires that one be personally conformed to the mystery being celebrated, offering one’s life to God in unity with the sacrifice of Christ for the salvation of the whole world.”[3]

From the beginning, the Christian community has interpreted the events of Jesus’ life and Paschal Mystery in particular, in relation to the entire history of the Old Testament. That Jesus is the fulfillment of all revelation, the consummation of God’s plan for salvation. The great reality of Christ’s Real Presence with us in the Holy Eucharist is more deeply understood in the light of all scripture, the Old and the New. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI points out the importance of teaching the meaning of the liturgical signs of the Mass, that these signs are more than simply conveying information or a required action to avoid hell. The elements we use, the words we say and the gestures we make are an invitation to enter into, not only the story of salvation, but to be in relationship with and in the real presence of an all loving God in the person of Jesus, leading us into a deeper understanding of how being in His real presence transforms us more and more into effective witnesses of Christ in the world.

It is with this realization that we are invited to the practice of Eucharistic adoration. Eucharistic adoration “is simply the natural consequence of the Eucharistic celebration, which is itself the Church’s supreme act of adoration. The act of adoration outside Mass prolongs and intensifies all that takes place during the liturgical celebration.” Our relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ always leads us back to His Real Presence in the Most Blessed Sacrament and, in Him, to all our brothers and sisters for whom He gave His life. It’s all about relationship and today’s first reading and the Gospel tell us when we approach a relationship with humility we “will find favor with God” (Sir 3:18) and “will enjoy the esteem of your companions at the table” (Lk 14:10).

The big questions are: Do we really know what is going on here at this table? Do we understand that we are not just spectators in a recollection of an event that happened over 2000 years ago, but active participants in the Paschal Mystery. We are there when Jesus is arrested, we are part of the crowd as Jesus is presented to Pilot, we are there on the mountain top when Jesus ascends and charge us to go into the whole world to share the Good News. Do we really believe in his Real Presence in this most Holy Sacrament? Do we have the faith to grasp that within this Eucharistic liturgy that we are truly connected in communion; I guess that’s why the Church calls it the “communion rite”, the “communion line” that we are receiving communion that we are in communion with Jesus, God made man, the Word Incarnate. We are in communion with the Blessed Mother of God, we are in communion with the apostles, the saints, the martyrs, the entire Church and each other in a very special way. The really BIG question is: Why wouldn’t we, who have faith and believe, not want to keep this intense and intimate relationship alive and growing ever deeper by offering ourselves to be in the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist on a regular basis outside of this liturgical celebration, after all He has given and desires for us?!

Eucharistic adoration, outside of Mass, whether individually in the Adoration Chapel or in community during regularly scheduled devotions, like the Divine Mercy Chaplet, for me, is a very humbling experience. To be in His presence pouring out my heart in thanksgiving for all the gifts and graces he has showered upon me. Pour out my heart in sorrowful laments as I realize and reconcile with myself that I am a sinful man in need of His unfathomable Divine Mercy. As I pour out the petitions of those who have asked for my prayers so that I could pour them out at the feet of Jesus exposed. This is all an opportunity to deepen my relationship with Him whom I have received, Him whom I have been created in the likeness of, and Him who loves deeper than I could ever imagine.

I invite all of you, young and old alike, make a loving commitment to be in His presence for an hour on a regular basis. When I look deeply into the Eucharist during adoration I see all of God’s creation in communion, won’t you join the ranks of the faithful adorers around the globe that see you in the Eucharist.

[1] Scriptures: Sirach 3:17-18, 20, 28-29; Hebrews 12:18-19, 22-24a; Luke 14:1, 7-14

[3] Sacramentum Caritatis, n. 64

Sunday, July 24, 2016

THE SECRET INGREDIENT

Pizza Night was a favorite night for me growing up. OK pizza night is still one of my favorite nights of the week, but it’s not the same as my dad’s pizza night. Now, Judy and I visit to our favorite pizza place and watch them make our pizza. Dad made his pizzas from scratch. Pizza night then was more than a night, it started first thing in the morning, when he made the dough. 4 cups of flour, dash of salt, dab of olive oil, 1½ cups of water and a small packet of what he called his secret ingredient. He’d split the dough between two bowls cover them with a towel and then we’d go do chores and play for the day. When we came back to make the pies, the dough that looked barely enough for two pies had grown big enough to make four pies! Dad would joke how it was his secret ingredient in that little packet. Yep, yeast.

God could use this secret ingredient to help refocus our nation’s pledge to be “one nation under God”. It’s possible! Consider our first reading from Genesis where we hear this wonderful bargaining between Abraham and God. Can we bargain with God? Look at it this way. “In any relationship there is the freedom to allow the other person to change us, to influence us.”[1] While Abraham does get God down to ten just men, the idea is that God is willing to deal with the whole because of a few; all we need is a few to get it right! All God needs is some yeast among his people.

G. K. Chesterton once said, “We are all in the same boat in a stormy sea, and we owe each other a terrible loyalty.” We’re all caught up in God’s great sweep of love. All it takes is a few enlightened people to influence a parish, a neighborhood, or a city, even a nation. How!?

The Gospel today gives us the model prayer, though considerably shorter than Matthew’s account and the prayer we recite as part of this liturgy, Luke version can help us unpack how we can be God’s secret ingredient to spare our world from destruction.

When we pray this prayer we start with a very bold statement. “Our Father, who art in heaven…” (Mt 6:9). By our baptism, we are adopted sons and daughters of our heavenly Father. It is a privilege, both a gift and a commitment that acknowledges our true citizenship and home as God’s children.

“Give us each day our daily bread” (Lk 11:3) “this petition captures the peasants view of time, neither yesterday nor the distant future is of concern, it’s only the needs of “this day, today,” the immediate present, which command attention.”[2] When I visited Madagascar in 2013 I gained a real understanding of this truth. Most of the people I visited were concerned with making enough to survive the day. Yes they had dreams for their children’s future, but life was about getting the daily bread. In our nation’s current state of violence, terrorism, and addictions better than ever we have very real reminders that tomorrow is not a guarantee.

“forgive us our sins for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us, …” (Lk 11:4) Do you know what the prerequisite is to having our sins forgiven? This prayer tells us we can only receive what we our self give. We must forgive others, even the ones who may have hurt us. Put another way, we must give up the rights to our grievance because it is just a search for power; for superiority; a search to say, or a need to say, I gotcha! You did me wrong and now you owe me. We have to let it go!

We live in very turbulent times, the headlines are full of violence against police officers, crimes against children, division between races, and rampant addictions to drugs, sex and Pokémon. How do we turn the tide of these stormy seas? Know and accept our role and responsibility as God’s secret ingredient. Are you interested in knowing the recipe to achieve a more peaceful now!? It’s all about establishing relationship, a relationship of trust. It’s a recipe to being a conduit of grace, freedom, and healing for the world.

The first ingredient is our authentic self, knowing who we really are, “God created man in His own image … male and female He created them.” (Gn 1:27) We need to develop an intimate relationship with “Our Father”, commit to a life of prayer, live the model Jesus our brother lived, a model of compassion, mercy, and self-giving love. The second ingredient is living in the present moment. Slow down enough to be in the now moments, be in the present moment with your family, the present moment with the friend, co-worker or even the stranger who just needs to bend your ear. Don’t try to fix them or judge them, just lend them you ears and be in the present moment with them. The third ingredient is forgiveness, always the first step to the path of reconciliation and a renewed relationship.

With these ingredients, we can be mixed into the greater community, having the same influence a tiny packet of yeast has on the dough. We can become the secret ingredient that raises our community to new heights. In the midst of the stormy seas, we can be the beacon to safe harbor; in the midst of the political rhetoric we can be a consistent moral compass guiding all too right relationship. All we have to do is ask for the gift of the Holy Spirit, seek his wisdom, and knock on the door of opportunity to become God’s secret ingredient in the world.

Sunday, June 5, 2016

WHEN GOD VISITS HIS PEOPLE

Shortly after I joined the Daily Bread team, I overheard the Board chairman at the time remark that the clients need God—that we need to get prayer in their lives. Honestly, my first reaction was: Great, along with the other challenges in their lives, now we’re going to be like so many other social service agencies by shoving God down their throats as a requirement for services. Recognizing God is a key ingredient to reconciliation and resurrection, as a staff, we decided to do morning devotions, beginning with Advent 2014, by invitation, not requirement. The plan was to open the dining facility 15 minutes early for those interested. At first, many of the clients took advantage of it to get in the building early, especially on the colder mornings or just to gain access to the bathroom. But as the days went by, God’s word and the witness sharing from the staff began to have a positive impact on the clients. They began to long for the Word, they began to share their witness & wilderness stories, and some even asked to lead devotion. With this sharing, there was a change in the staff, client, and volunteer relationships. When God visits his people, things cannot remain the same.

Prophets see life where others see no life. Sometimes a lack of vision is a form of complicity with the status quo. Sometimes it’s not having a sufficient lens through which to see new shoots poking their heads through cement.[1] Often our own wilderness times become important witness sources of our interacting with a settled church that, all too often, attacks its own.

Paul shares, how in his former zeal for his ancestral traditions, he tried to destroy the church of God. He says: “But when God … called me through his grace, and was pleased to reveal his Son to me” (Gal 1:15-16), things had to change. Out of his experience, he found a central unifying source of the gospel that those on the inside kept overlooking because they were too close. Think of a time when you were confronted with a challenging situation, you desire to move forward but can’t because of one of two common thoughts. The first thought is that the current situation is what I feel is best for me; I don’t want to change, if there is a change I will have to give something up. Or in our human weakness the situation seems so big that we find ourselves paralyzed, we just can’t see the situation any differently, therefore we do nothing, stop seeking other solutinos and accept the status quo.

Note the “healing” in the Gospel story is focused not so much on the raising of the dead son, but on the restoration of the mother, whose place in the community was reborn when the son rises. The critical point in the story occurs when Jesus gives the young man back “to his mother.” That’s the moment of her being raised from social death.[2] Luke tells us that Jesus was “moved with pity.” He uses a term that the gospels often use to describe Jesus’ reaction to human suffering. Jesus raising the young man was a miracle, but it was also a sign.[3] This Jesus who was heard to say that those who will come later would do more than he evidenced here. When God visits his people, things cannot remain the same.

When we consider our world, our community, the needs of many “widowed” still present and need attending. Often in scripture, the “widow” represents the poor and the vulnerable of a society. The church is called to be God-like, imitating his example of mercy. The early church cared for widows (Acts 6). In fact, the task was so important that seven men of good reputation, full of wisdom and the Holy Spirit, were selected to be responsible for the matter. Yet, proceeding one-by-one won’t suffice. Waiting for the clergy alone to respond to all the concerns is impossible. It’s going to take a common-unity, a community approach. The Church called to mission is all of us, each with our unique God given gifts are called to respond to the “widows” of our community, we have to be the voice for the voiceless.

Imagine a vision where all “widows” are cared for—beyond blood lineage, beyond class, beyond status, beyond religious obligation. In Pope Francis’ homily during the Jubilee Mass for Deacons he tells the world’s deacons, “if evangelizing is the mission entrusted at baptism to each Christian, serving is the way that mission is carried out. It is the only way to be a disciple of Jesus. His witnesses are those who do as he did: those who serve their brothers and sisters, never tiring of following Christ in his humility, never wearying of the Christian life, which is a life of service.”

We have a choice: we can continue the status quo by whispering with and about each other concerning how bad things are in our community; or we who proclaim to be Jesus’ disciples can act as he did, “merciful, zealous, walking according to the charity of the Lord who made himself the servant of all” (Saint Polycarp, Ad Phil. V, 2). It is in this way that people will know that God is visiting his people, and that things cannot remain the same.