A GRANDMOTHER’S FAVOR

(Ex 20:1-17; Mt 13:18-23)

I often find it hard to put into words what it’s like becoming a grandparent.  The indescribable feelings of love and the strong desire to explore with and teach our grandchildren all the world and our faith offers.  On this day, the Memorial of Saints Joachim and Anne, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and grandparents to Jesus.  I stumbled onto the St. Anne Novena and decided to pray the novena knowing I would be serving this day.  She goes by many titles: Patroness of the Childless, Help of the Pregnant, Model of Married Women and Mothers, Protectress of Widows, Comfortress of the Sorrowing, Mother of the Poor, Patroness of Laborers, Health of the Sick, and Consoler of the Dying.

I believe what I most got out of the novena was an appreciation for the role of grandparents in the lives of our children and grandchildren, and maybe a desire to amend some of the areas I fell short of as I raised my children.  Sts. Joachim and Anne taught and shared the faith of their fathers and I’m sure today’s first reading was the baseline for their teachings.  Not only their teachings but their actions; how they engaged each other, neighbors, community, the poor and needy.  I shared a picture on facebook of a man and a small boy sitting on a bench watching the water of a creek go by with the caption, “Everything you do has the power to change the world.  You never know who will be touched by your words or inspired by your actions.”

From my grandparent perspective, I see in the Parable of the Sower containing some intentional roles I must fulfill to continue to nurture my children and inspire my grandchildren to an active faith life.  First, we must be a sower of seeds.  By our words and actions, we must profess and live the Gospel value of love.  Love of self, love of neighbor, love of the poor.  Next, we need to be in the rock removal business.  Growing up in NY I saw many a farmer removing the rocks from their fields to avoid damaging their planting equipment.  What rocks do we need to remove from our hearts that get in the way of effectively sowing the seeds of faith?  One more, we must be willing to maintain the fertile field of the impressionable heart and mind of our children and grandchildren, by maintaining an awareness of the thorns and thickets of this world that can and will choke off the growth of a healthy faith life.

Happy Feast Day of St. Anne! This glorious saint was one of the first to be a faithful echo of her Grandson.  Her uncompromising submission to God’s will is a testament of her faith.  I invite you to take a grandmother’s favors to a celestial level. Ask your Heavenly Grandmother on this day to restore to the One, True Church our loved ones who have sailed away from the harbor of Truth.  We ask her to ask her Daughter, Our Lady, and her Grandson, Our Lord, for an abundance of merits and graces on this special day!

THE LAW & MY IDENTITY

(Ex 11:10-12:14; Mt 12:1-8)

It seems I’ve spent my summer being schooled in the law, both religious and secular.  In June I spent two weeks at the School of Canon Law in Washington, DC learning how to apply the Law to the Marriage Tribunal procedures; and this week I was released from 3 days of jury duty, as the court worked the law to identifying 18 jurors for a first-degree murder case.  Now, while I found the application of the law very interesting in both systems, it did leave me wrestling interiorly between respect for the law and my identity.

This week’s Old Testament readings have been leading up to the actual exodus from Egypt.  God intervenes in ways that could not be imagined, and God’s final act of power is the springboard to Israel’s eventual freedom.  If that first Passover and God’s saving power are forgotten, the people will forget their identity.  Thus, it is memorialized in a detailed annual ritual.  The danger is that something done so often and far removed from the original event will lose its meaning in the rubrics of carrying it out.  God has made the Israelites a people all his own.  That identity is crucial to their existence.  They must enter into the memory so that it continues to save them and to form them.

In the Gospel, the Pharisees, quick to condemn the actions of the hungry disciples, they are very concerned about rubrics, rules, and order (“right practice”) on the sabbath.  Jesus must remind them again that the sabbath is for people, that he is greater than the sabbath, that He is Lord of the sabbath.

When we celebrate the memorial of the new covenant in Jesus’ blood, grounded in mercy and service, like Israel, we must not forget our origins, our identity in Christ, as the new people of God.  In the Eucharist, we remember Jesus’ paschal journey and make present our relationship with God in Christ.  The danger is that if our participation is done so often and far removed from the original event, we will lose its meaning in the rubrics and routine of participation.

I was reminded as we spoke the refrain of the Psalm today, “I will take the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord” of the book “Can You Drink This Cup?" by Henri Nouwen. Nouwen asks the question, “How do we drink the cup of salvation?”  He says we have to drink our cup slowly, tasting every mouthful, and by using three concrete disciplines we can connect this ritual with our identity, to find spiritual freedom.  The disciplines are silence, work, and action.  Silence is where we confront our true selves, word to share our faith walk with others, and action where we put into practice the intent of God’s law which is love and mercy for all his adopted children.

When we worship and approach the mystery of the Eucharist, we must enter into the memory of the event, be connected to its root, for our formation and our salvation.  This is our identity with God in Christ.  Let us go live it in our actions of mercy and service

THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD

(Gn 46:1-7, 28-30; Mt 10:16-23)

The first thought that came to my mind when reflecting on today’s scripture was the song, “The Long and Winding Road” released in 1970 on the Beatles “Let It Be” album, written by John Lennon & Paul McCartney.  (No, I didn’t sing this time.) The lyrics talk of life’s journey.

The long and winding road, that leads to your door, will never disappear, I've seen that road before, it always leads me here, lead me to your door.

The wild and windy night, that the rain washed away, has left a pool of tears, crying for the day, why leave me standing here?  Let me know the way.

Many times, I've been alone, and many times I've cried, any way you'll never know, the many ways I've tried, and still they lead me back.

To the long winding road, you left me standing here, a long long time ago, don't leave me waiting here.  Lead me to your door.

For me the lyrics reveal the road, God throughout time, has led and formed his people.  Take Israel & Jacob’s calling in scripture.  We know how Joseph ended up in Egypt, we know how Israel loved Joseph and was heartbroken when was told Joseph was killed.  A reunion is in the works and a promise, “I will also bring you back here, after Joseph has closed your eyes.” (Gn 46:4) It is a long and winding road that lead him to God’s door.

For us it much the same.  We all start at Point A (Baptism) to the door of the Church (where the typical Baptism Rite begins), the door into the Christian community.  Then we wander the long and winding road of life and like the Apostles, Jesus is “sending [us] like sheep in the midst of wolves.” (Mt 10:16) With this promise, “do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say.  You will be given at that moment what you are to say.” (Mt 10:19)

Faith sharing and speaking up for justice takes a lot of courage these days.  There are so many sensitive issues and civil laws that are challenging the Gospel values.  The opponent is as clever as we are called to be, but his intention is much more devious.  His goal is often to get us to give into the temptation to react to the issues.  This often causes us to become no better than the opponent in what comes out of our mouths.  The fury, judgement, condemnation that lead to disharmony and exclusions.  It takes a great deal of trust and patience to formulate an appropriate response to the issues.  To wait for the Spirit to speak in our hearts and take the long and winding road to our mouths.  All too often the shorter road, from the head to mouth, usually beats the compassionate & merciful heart response.

While there is much more, we could talk about, but let’s take some time today to reflect on where do our responses most often come from?  Are they reactions from the head or a response from the heart?  Do we have the trust and patience to allow the Spirit of our Father speak through us?  I know that when I do, it leads me and others back to Point A, God’s loving promises.

Lord, lead me to your door

THE ADVANCE PARTY

[1]Over the last couple of months, we have seen the commemorative ceremonies of the seventy-fifth-year anniversary of the start of World War II.  As the war drew on allied political leaders and military commanders at the highest strategic levels fretfully considered the question of when the war in Europe would end, what that end would look like, and preparing a nation and its allies for the problems they would face when peace finally did return.[2]  War is always such an ugly endeavor that lasts well after the bullets stop flying.

I know a man who is a member of what we call today the “Greatest Generation.”  He served in World War II, was in the Normandy invasion, D Day.  He would tell stories of the sufferings, the deprivation, and the horror of the war.  But then he’d always say, “Still, I look back on those four years as the very best years of my life.  For once in my life I really had the feeling that I was part of something bigger than myself.  I was on the move.  We had a mission.  Maybe it’s sad to say, but I look back upon those years as the best of my life.”[3]

In the prophecy from Isaiah, the Lord speaks to his people who are returning home from exile in Babylon.  Upon their return, they found their beloved Jerusalem, including the Temple, in ruins.  While they are mourning this bleak reality, God urges them to rejoice in the midst of their present sorrow because of what He will do for Jerusalem in the future.  God offers them one of the most comforting images: a mother nursing her child.  This image of Mother Jerusalem is full of words and phrases that emphasize God’s generosity.  It says that even in the midst of complete destruction, God can bring forth new life in abundance.  The abundance God promises is accompanied by Mother Jerusalem’s tenderness: “you will be carried in her arms and fondled in her lap,” an image expressing God’s constant care and delight.  It is a message of new life that is to be shared. 

Typically, when a military unit is deployed, they will send out an advance party to prepare for the arrival of the main body of the unit.  Jesus does the same with the seventy-two, his advance party.  Jesus sends his advance party “to every town and place he intended to visit” telling them to cure the sick and proclaim: “The kingdom of God is at hand for you.”  In other words, feed others with the joy, promise, and comfort that God’s kingdom brings.  It isn’t something out of this world.  God’s kingdom is present in our midst.  Too often we miss this reality because we think of God’s kingdom as a future reality,[4] something achieved after death and up there, somewhere.

One of my favorite hymns is “Here I Am Lord” by Dan Schutte.  In the verses we hear all that the Lord has done for his people and at the end of each verse the question is asked, “Whom shall I send?”  The refrain is the answer our scriptures are leading us too, a response expected from each of us.

Here I am Lord, is it I Lord?  I have heard you calling in the night.  I will go Lord, if you lead me.  I will hold your people in my heart.

Now, did you notice what my WWII friend said?  He said the best part of his life was when he was “part of something bigger … we had a mission.”  For me, this was his “Here I am Lord.”  In the midst of the horrors of war he was given a vision, a consciousness, to see beyond himself, to see how his seemingly small contribution fit into the bigger picture, which influenced ‘who he was’ for the rest of his life.  He was given the grace of a mission for life.

We too have a life mission!  We are the “advance party” being sent forth from this community prayer, from this Eucharistic meal “to every town and place [Jesus] intends to visit.”  He knows it’s not an easy journey, that it’s often a dangerous journey.  He encourages us, that in fulfilling our mission, we are not to burden ourselves with non-essentials, to avoid the many distractions, to remain focused on proclaiming the Kingdom of God, both in word and practice. 

We are to be a sign of the Kingdom of God present now, despite the challenges, even the horrors; the Church, our nation, and the world are encountering.  Give a smile that will cure what ails a person; speak the truth that confronts the demons we encounter; be a physical presence that eases loneliness; and speak of a hope that helps carry the crosses of life to a place of peace, mercy, and new life, because the Kingdom of God is at hand, for you.

---

[1] New American Bible, Saint Joseph Edition © 1986.  Scriptures: Is 66:10-14c; Gal 6:14-18; Lk 10:1-12, 17-20.

[2] World War II: Winston Churchill’s Vision of Victory, by Christopher C. Harmon, March 2005. www.historynet.com

[3] Hungry, and You Fed Me © 2012 Edited by Jim Knipper. “Rejoice because your name are written in heaven” by Fr. William Bausch.

[4] Living the Word, Year of Luke © 2018 by Laurie Brink, O.P. and Paul Colloton, O.S.F.S.

PRO-PARTICIPATION

(Gn 23:1-4, 19; 24:1-8, 62-67; Mt 9:9-13)

The mission statement of a relatively newly formed church states, they are “anti-excellence” and “pro-participation.”  The founder explained that the statement was very intentionally adopted by the congregation in order to dispel the “hierarchy of holiness” that undermines the intrinsic value and contribution of each member, contributing to an unhealthy sense of entitlement of select individuals that often typifies organized religion.  Additionally, this new church encourages unqualified, equal participation and engagement in all the undertakings of the church.

As I contemplated the scriptures this morning I couldn’t help but consider the many ways we, as humans, have divided ourselves.  The obvious way is by race, gender, and national origin.  Then we’ve become more sophisticated in our divisions, dividing ourselves by political affiliation, sexual identity, documented or undocumented.  Even within the church we manage to divide by degrees of sinfulness.  We acknowledge we are all sinners yet there are some sins that become the basis to exclude a person or group.

These divisions are not the values of Jesus put forth in today’s Gospel.  Jesus is the ultimate engager and non-discriminator.  He accepts the unacceptable and allows what many would consider unallowable.  Jesus welcomes all of us, everyone, “as is”—exactly where we are—he sees the good within us that most often is only recognizable by the Divine.  To those of us like Matthew, he offers an invitation to a new life that we cannot refuse.

It is Jesus’ theology of inclusion and mercy that reigns supreme, he subverts the false belief of salvific meritocracy and encourages us to do the same.  Ultimately, Jesus is all about the “pro-participation,” which goes beyond our Sunday obligation or daily routine of Mass.  Jesus invites us to his table, the table where we find reconciliation and intimate union with Christ.  It is here that all sinners can look to be in relationship with the living, dynamic, Triune God and invited to enter into the divine dance of life with him and all his children.

Reflection Substantially by: Jo Koch, Weekday Homily Helps