When your sorrow is comforted (Isabel Allende / Antoine de Saint-Exupéry)

There is no death, daughter.
People die only when we forget them,
my mother explained shortly before she left me.
If you can remember me,
I will be with you always.

 --Isabel Allende, Eva Luna

    All men have the stars… but they are not the same things for different people. For some, who are travelers, the stars are guides. For other they are no more than little lights in the sky. For others, who are scholars, they are problems. For my businessman they were wealth. But all these stars are silent. 

    You — you alone — will have the stars as no one else has them… In one of the stars I shall be living. In one of them I shall be laughing. And so it will be as if all the stars were laughing, when you look at the sky at night… 

    And when your sorrow is comforted (time soothes all sorrows) you will be content to have known me. You will always be my friend. You will want to laugh with me. And you will sometimes open your window, so, for that pleasure… And your friends will be properly astonished to see you laughing as you look up at the sky! 

--Antoine de Saint-Exupéry,
The Little Prince 

In November we remember All Souls...

Image source: https://www.designboom.com/art/encounter-little-prince-exhibition-paris-musee-des-arts-decoratifs-02-17-2022/
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Sunday Gospel Reflection, December 1, 2024: Strengthen your hearts...

Strengthen your hearts…

How can Christians stand erect and raise their heads

in moments of trial and tribulation? 

    In Luke’s Gospel, as his teaching ministry in Jerusalem comes to a close, just before his Passion, Jesus speaks to his disciples of the tribulations that are imminent, reminding them that they must be vigilant at all times, and pray that they have the strength to escape the tribulations and to stand before the Son of Man. Some people will die of fright, Jesus says, but the disciples know the Lord, know how to remain in right relationship with him, and thus know that their redemption is at hand. They must continue to trust, therefore, in the promises given through the prophet Jeremiah: that the just shoot that is Jesus shall do what is right and just in the land. 

    We want to know the ways of the Lord; we would rather have certainty than signs, definite answers rather than dismay. But, as Psalm 25 reminds us, the friendship of the Lord is with those who fear him, and his covenant, for their instruction. It is openness to this instruction and trust in the Lord our justice that allow all Christians to stand erect and raise their heads in moments of trial and tribulation. The psalmist prays, Your ways, o Lord, make known to me; teach me your paths; we echo this prayer as we wait for the coming of Christ. 

    Yet, as St. Paul tells the Thessalonians, we have simply to conduct ourselves in such a way as to please God, according to the instructions given to us through the Lord Jesus to be assured of eternal life. If we are open to God’s love active in our lives, then the Lord will make us increase and abound in love for one another and for all – a sure way for us to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus. Constant vigilance, as the refrain goes, is essential. Don’t lose sight of the goal that is eternal life; don’t lose sight of the face of God who loves you and who calls you to union with him; don’t lose sight of the love that is ours, but remain strong in heart, dedicated to the one Lord Jesus Christ. 

This post is based on Fr. Pat’s Scripture classes and homilies.
Image source: www.wordclouds.com

Let God know how you are grateful (Mary Oliver / Thornton Wilder)

Love still as once you loved,
and without patience.
Let God know how you are grateful.
That the gift has been given.

 --Mary Oliver 

    The happiness of life is made up of little things - a smile, a helping hand, a caring heart, a word of praise, a moment of shared laughter. We are most alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures. 

--Thornton Wilder 

What are you grateful for today?
Give thanks to God! 

Image source: https://lacatholics.org/2020/11/10/gratitude/
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We give thanks this day (Thomas Merton / O. Eugene Pickett)

To be grateful is to recognize
the love of God in everything.

--Thomas Merton 

For the expanding grandeur of creation, worlds known and unknown, galaxies beyond galaxies, filling us with awe and challenging our imaginations:
We give thanks this day.

For this fragile planet earth, its times and tides, its sunsets and seasons:
We give thanks this day.

For the joy of human life, its wonders and surprises, its hopes and achievements:
We give thanks this day.

For our human community, our common past and future hope, our oneness transcending all separation, our capacity to work for peace and justice in the midst of hostility and oppression:
We give thanks this day.

For high hopes and noble causes, for faith without fanaticism, for understanding of views not shared:
We give thanks this day.

For all who have labored and suffered for a fairer world, who have lived so that others might live in dignity and freedom:
We give thanks this day.

For human liberty and sacred rites; for opportunities to change and grow, to affirm and choose:
We give thanks this day.

We pray that we may live not by our fears but by our hopes, not by our words but by our deeds.
We give thanks this day. 

 --O. Eugene Pickett, Giving Thanks 

Image source 1: Harvest theme at the altar, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Mill Valley, https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1246813152046771&set=a.1198614813533272 

Image source 2: Catherine Twomey, from her “Universe” series, https://humansandnature.org/the-universe/
Prayer source

Christ's power is real and transformative (Sr. Julia Walsh)

From the macro of the cosmos to the micro of our hearts:
the love of Christ prevails and has authority.
Christ’s power is real and transformative.

To see this, we are invited to shift our perspective.
 A step back to see the big mess on the board.
To step back and see the little ones gaining might.
Entering into the Word of God expands our view as well. 

What could happen if we lived as if we believed 
salvation has already been given us?

What would we act like if we really believed
that the kingdom of God surrounds us?

Would we live with more joy and wonder?
Would we reverence God and every part of creation we encounter? 

I imagine that if we believed that we’re already in the kingdom of God, then we’d live more wholeheartedly.

We’d be our true selves, free and unafraid of judgments, not worried about fitting in.

We’d heed the advice of St. Francis De Sales “be who you are, and be it perfectly well.”

We’d show up for others, every day.

We’d love wildly and freely---no longer trapped by the limits of what we alone can dream up.

We wouldn’t be stuck in a pile of “should” and “shouldn’t.”

We’d be celebrating the goodness. 

--Sr. Julia Walsh, FSPA 

Image source 1:  https://www.holytrinitygoodhue.org/post/jesus-king-of-our-salvation
Image source 2: https://www.crosswalk.com/faith/prayer/a-devoted-heart.html
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The truth may be puzzling (Kim Gilliland / Carl Sagan)

If you want peace to rule in your heart,
then you have to let Jesus in.

--Kim Gilliland 

    The truth may be puzzling. It may take some work to grapple with. It may be counterintuitive. It may contradict deeply held prejudices. It may not be consonant with what we desperately want to be true. But our preferences do not determine what’s true. 

--Carl Sagan 

Image source: The Eyes of Truth, https://jigsawaday.com/the-eyes-of-truth-wednesdays-daily-jigsaw-puzzle/
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Setting our hearts on the Kingdom (Henri Nouwen)

For Jesus, there are no countries to be conquered,

no ideologies to be imposed,

no people to be dominated.

 There are only children,

women and men to be loved.

--Henri Nouwen

   The words of Jesus "Set your hearts on God's kingdom first... and all other things will be given you as well" summarize best the way we are called to live our lives. With our hearts set on God's kingdom. That kingdom is not some faraway land that we hope to reach, nor is it life after death or an ideal state of affairs. No. God's Kingdom is, first of all, the active presence of God's Spirit within us, offering us the freedom we truly desire. 

    And so the main question becomes: how do we set our hearts on the Kingdom first when our hearts are preoccupied with so many things? Somehow a radical change of heart is required, a change that allows us to experience the reality of our existence from God's place. 

--Henri Nouwen 

Image source:  https://www.sfcatholic.org/bishopsbulletin/christ-the-king-a-social-doctrine/
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The way of truth and love (Mary Oliver / Mahatma Gandhi)

So it is if the heart has devoted itself to love,
there is not a single inch of emptiness.

 --Mary Oliver, Devotions 

     When I despair, I remember that all through history, the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible. But in the end, they always fall. Think of it: always. 

--Mahatma Gandhi 

Image source 1: Death of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, medieval manuscript (1372), https://picryl.com/media/death-of-antiochus-iv-epiphanes-0c513f
Image source 2: https://davericho.com/sacred-heart-retreat/spiritual/reading_03.html
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The memories bring back you (The One Children's Voice Choir)

…Here's to the ones that we got
Cheers to the wish you were here, but you're not
'Cause the dreams bring back all the memories
Of everything we've been through
Close to the ones here today
Close to the ones that we lost on the way
'Cause the dreams bring back all the memories
And the memories bring back, memories bring back you 

 …There's a time that I remember, when I did not know no pain
When I believed in forever, and everything would stay the same
Now my heart feel like December when somebody say your name
'Cause I can't reach out to call you, but I know I will one day, yeah

…Everybody hurts sometimes
Everybody hurts someday, yeah
But everything will be all right
Go and raise a voice and say, ayy 

Refrain 

 …Doo-doo, doo-doo-doo
Doo-doo-doo, doo-doo-doo
Doo-doo-doo, doo-doo
Memories bring back, memories bring back you … 

There's a time that I remember when I never felt so lost
When I felt all of the hatred was too powerful to stop
Now my heart feel like an ember and it's lighting up the dark 
I'll carry these torches for ya and you know I'll never drop, yeah 

 …Everybody hurts sometimes
Everybody hurts someday, ayy-ayy
But everything will be all right
Go and raise your voice and say, ayy 

Refrain 

Memories bring back, memories bring back you
Memories bring back, memories bring back you
Memories bring back, memories bring back you 

In November we remember All Souls...

To hear The One Voice Children’s Choir sing a slightly modified version of Maroon 5’s Memories, click on the video below, and may your memories of those who have preceded us to heaven bring you joy:  

Image source: https://elunanetwork.org/resources/10-things-greiving-children-want-you-to-know
Video source
Original Maroon 5 video (Adam Levine of Maroon 5 wrote this song to honor the memory of the band's manager Jordan Feldstein, a close friend of Levine's.)

My feelings do not define truth (John Piper)

My feelings are not God. God is God.
My feelings do not define truth.
God’s word defines truth.
My feelings are echoes and responses
to what my mind perceived.
And sometimes – many times –
my feelings are out of sync with the truth.

When that happens – and it happens
every day in some measure – I try not to bend
the truth to justify my imperfect feelings, but
rather, I plead with God: Purify my perceptions
of your truth and transform my feelings so that
they are in sync with the truth. 

--John Piper, Finally Alive        

Image source: https://khollandsblog.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/waytruthlife2.jpg
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Sunday Gospel Reflection, November 24, 2024: Are you the King of the Jews?

Are you the King of the Jews?
What kind of king is Jesus, anyway? 

    Ancient peoples had various ways of imagining kingship. Psalm 93, for example, celebrates God’s kingship as evidenced by God’s victory over the chaos at the time of creation: The Lord is king, in splendor robed, and he has made the world firm, not to be moved. The psalmist is remembering back to the moment when God set order on the world so that humanity could exist there, a moment of victory to be praised by all. For after all, who else has the right to be king but the one who made all possible? Much later, the prophet Daniel offered what sounds very much like a messianic prophecy: I saw one like a Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven to receive dominion, glory, and kingship. Daniel’s vision of the heavenly kingdom of God is set in opposition to the worldly kingdoms opposed to God; God’s kingdom is everlasting and shall not be destroyed. 

    But Jesus has his own vision of the kingdom of God. And so when, in John’s gospel, Jesus is brought before Pilate, he will try to make the Roman governor understand that his is a new sense of kingship: My kingdom does not belong to this world, Jesus tells Pilate. Jesus is inviting Pilate to look deeper, for Jesus testifies to the truth, the truth that love itself is the only true power because it can transform hearts. Everyone who accepts the love of God in their lives listens to his voice; only Christ’s truth gives access to the heart, which is the only kingdom the Lord is interested in ruling, a kingdom not bound by this world but reaching beyond it. Through his death and resurrection, the Book of Revelation tells us, Jesus Christ has made us into a kingdom; with time, God will gather all into one in him, bound only by and to the Alpha and the Omega, the one who is and who was and who is to come, the almighty! This is the king we worship – not a king we define in our own terms, but a king who offers us his love, that we might one day know perfect union with the Lord in heaven, hearts aglow with the light of Christ! 

This post is based on Fr. Pat’s Scripture class.
Image source: www.wordclouds.com

Break off from your cares and troubles (St. Anselm of Aosta)

   Escape from your everyday business for a short while, hide for a moment from your restless thoughts. Break off from your cares and troubles and be less concerned about your tasks and labours. Make a little time for God and rest a while in him. Enter into your mind’s inner chamber. Shut out everything but God and whatever helps you to seek him; and when you have shut the door, look for him. Speak now to God and say with your whole heart: I seek your face; your face, O Lord, I desire (Proslogion, 1). 

--St. Anselm of Aosta 

Image source: https://christianfellowshipucc.org/meditation/
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If we live in fear (Fr. Patrick Michaels)

    When I was growing up, we were taught to be very afraid of the Lord, because the judgment was coming. Many people who grew up in the Church in the fifties and the sixties were nursed on fear. It became their constant companion, and too often, it was all they had. They didn’t have faith because there was too much fear in the way. 

    Fear refers to being afraid and it is the opposite of love. Where there is fear, there is a closed heart, and where there is love, there is an open heart. If we live in fear – and many were taught to do so – when will we ever get around to the work of our baptism, which is to love the world we are in, to love the people in it and to allow them to love us? When can that happen if our hearts are closed? 

    If we are afraid of God, we can’t love God. If we can’t love God, no matter how much God loves us, it won’t get in. But as St. Paul says, you are in Christ – why are you afraid? Why do you worry about when Christ comes? You can’t know when it will be. But as long as you live the life he has given you, as long as you open that life and share it, you have nothing to fear. 

--Fr. Patrick. Michaels,
Homily, November 19, 2023 

Image source: Detail of the Last Judgment, mosaic dome, Baptistry of San Giovanni, Florence, Italy (1240-1300), https://artandtheology.org/2018/06/12/get-ready-artful-devotion/

Time gives us a chance to grow (St. Gerard Majella / Fr. Wilfrid Stinissen)

Consider the shortness of time,
the length of eternity,
and reflect how everything here below
comes to an end and passes by.

 --St. Gerard Majella 

    Compared to eternity, time can seem inferior, degenerate. But this is an abstract speculation. If we look at man’s purpose and destiny, which is to be introduced into the life of the Trinity, then it is clear that time is a gift. Time gives us a chance to grow. Thanks to time, what God has placed within us can germinate and become a tree. Because of time, we have the possibility of participating in God’s creation ourselves. 

--Fr. Wilfrid Stinissen, OCD,
Eternity in the Midst of Time

Image source 1: https://marketplace-website-node-launcher-prod.ol.epicgames.com/ue/marketplace/en-US/product/clock-1920s
Image source 2:  Statue of St. Gerard Majella, found in the pantheon of saints lining the walls of Mill Valley institution Joe's Taco Lounge.  Look for it next time you're there!
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Remember your death (Mark Halprin / Bishop Robert Barron)

Anticipation is the heart of wisdom.
 If you are going to cross a desert,
you must first anticipate that you will be thirsty,
and you take water.

 --Mark Helprin 

    Jesus directs us to be vigilant about his coming again. But his words also warn us to prepare for the day of our coming before him in death. On that day, our world will end. How are we going to deal with that day? 

    Most of our interests, pursuits, and entertainments are designed to stave off this question. And this is why so many of the spiritual masters emphasize the importance of forcing ourselves to address this matter. St. Benedict tells his monks to hold their own death before their mind’s eye every day. All forms of prayer are, in one sense, coming face-to-face with eternal things. 

    Be a person of steady and regular prayer; don’t allow your relationship to the Lord to fall into disrepair. Avail yourself regularly of the sacrament of Reconciliation; bring your sins before Christ and seek his forgiveness. Don’t let grudges and resentments fester; keep your relationships in good repair. Memento mori; following the Christian spiritual tradition, regularly “remember your death.”

--Bishop Robert Barron,
Gospel Reflection,
November 25, 2022

Image source 1: https://thenextchallenge.org/kit-crossing-desert/
Image source 2: Georges de La Tour, The Magdalen with the Smoking Flame (17th c.), https://piolog.com/2019/10/04/pams-masterworks-series-features-painting-by-la-tour/ 
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Love is stronger than death (Henri Nouwen)

    True friendships are lasting because true love is eternal. A friendship in which heart speaks to heart is a gift from God, and no gift that comes from God is temporary or occasional. All that comes from God participates in God’s eternal life. Love between people, when given by God, is stronger than death. In this sense, true friendships continue beyond the boundary of death. When you have loved deeply that love can grow even stronger after the death of the person you love. This is the core message of Jesus. 

    When Jesus died, the disciples’ friendship with him did not diminish. On the contrary, it grew. This is what the sending of the Spirit was all about. The Spirit of Jesus made Jesus’ friendship with his disciples everlasting, stronger, and more intimate than before his death. That is what Paul experienced when he said, “It is no longer I, but Christ living in me” (Galatians 2:20). 

    You have to trust that every true friendship has no end, that a communion of saints exists among all those, living and dead, who have truly loved God and one another. You know from experience how real this is. Those you have loved deeply and who have died live on in you, not just as memories but as real presences. 

    Dare to love and be a real friend. The love you give and receive is a reality that will lead you closer and closer to God as well as to those whom God has given you to love. 

--Henri Nouwen

In November we remember All Souls... 

Image source: Benny Andrews, Mourners (1974), https://www.arthistoryproject.com/subjects/feelings/mourning/
Quotation source

Stand ready! (Henri Nouwen)

    When Jesus speaks about the end of time, he speaks precisely about the importance of waiting. He says that nations will fight against nations and that there will be wars and earthquakes and misery. People will be in agony, and they will say, “The Christ is there! No, he is here!” Many will be confused and many will be deceived. But Jesus says, you must stand ready, stand awake, stay tuned to the word of God, so that you will survive all that is going to happen and be able to stand confidently (con-fide, with trust) in the presence of God together in community. That is the attitude of waiting that allows us to be people who can live in a very chaotic world and survive spiritually. 

--Henri Nouwen 

Image source: https://tinybuddha.com/blog/when-life-gets-hard-how-to-find-peace-within-the-chaos/
Quotation source

Sunday Gospel Reflection, November 17, 2024: Of that day or hour, no one knows...

Of that day or hour, no one knows…
Do you worry about what is to come? 

    In the Book of Daniel, probably written during the persecutions of Antiochus IV Epiphanes in the 2nd century BC, the prophet speaks of a time unsurpassed in distress, but assures the people that those whose names are written in the book of truth shall escape. In his description of the cataclysm to come, the author was not speaking of eternal life, but simply of those who would survive past the events predicted: the wise shall shine brightly, and those who lead the many to justice shall be like the stars forever. Clearly, the author of Daniel believed his community needed reassurance about the future! 

    Jesus similarly offers reassurance to his disciples in Mark’s Gospel. Yes, tribulation will happen, he says, but they are not to worry themselves about the precise timing of the events: of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. So, rather than stress over the future, get ready now! Don’t wait until later, until it’s convenient or imminent. Get ready now by recognizing who you are and what you have already: God is already at work in you. Even Jesus himself is waiting for the end times, as the Letter to the Hebrews tells us: Jesus took his seat forever at the right hand of God; now he waits until his enemies are made his footstool, that is, until we on earth have completed what he began and all, former enemies included, now serve him, know him, and believe in him, aware that he offered one sacrifice for sins, theirs included. Thus, all may be made perfect forever, consecrated, set aside for a holy purpose. 

    We gather daily at Mass to participate in Christ’s sacrifice for all. As Psalm 16 reminds us, only when we place ourselves under God’s care, allowing the Lord to direct our existence through prayer and Eucharist, can we set the Lord ever before us, confident that with him at our right hand, we shall not be disturbed. Thus, there is no need to worry about what is to come, for he shows us the path to life, fullness of joys in his presence, the delights at his right hand forever. Get ready! 

This post is based on Fr. Pat’s Scripture class.
Image source: www.wordclouds.com

Have the audacity to trust (Tim Shriver)

    I was lucky to spend an hour with [Fr. Thomas] Keating two months before his death. In our last conversation, he emphasized trust. He heard my confession and stopped me when I said I was struggling to trust in these times of fear and violence and division. “Focus on trust,” he said. “When you trust that we are all part of something beautiful beyond our wildest imagination, you will find healing.” 

   As we neared the end of our time, he gave me an instruction in prayer: “Keep returning to silence. It’s God’s first language, and everything else is a poor translation. And say just one Hail Mary, but say it slowly so you can feel the unconditional trust that made it possible for Mary to allow God’s love to take over her life.... Meet her and understand her model of trust in God and let her heal you.” 

   I left him moments later. “Til we meet again” were his final words to me, yet another expression of a man who trusted in the totality of God’s love and who taught prayer as an act of surrender, an act of presence, an act of love. Have the audacity to trust that we all belong to God: It may seem like an unlikely call to action in 2018, but it may be the only call that can start the healing in our divisive and fearful times. 

--Tim Shriver 

Image source: L’Annonciation, stained glass window, Notre-Dame de Banneux, Sanctuaire de la Vierge des Pauvres, Liège, Belgium.- Ardennes Belges - Belgique sanctuaire de la Vierge des Pauvres, https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=8747414591938655&set=gm.2746196392201824&idorvanity=517611451727007
Quotation source & complete article

Love is the gift of self (Fr. Greg Boyle / Bishop Robert Barron)

You go to the margins not to make a difference, 

but so that the widow, orphan and 

stranger can make you different. 

--Fr. Greg Boyle SJ, 

Commencement Address, 

Le Moyne College 

    [In this week’s Gospel,] Jesus praises the widow who gave all her resources to the treasury: “I tell you truly, this poor widow put in more than all the rest; for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.” She is a model of detachment for us. 

    If the spiritual life is essentially about love, and love is the gift of self, then possessions are a problem. This means that the game of filling up the empty ego with the goods of this world is not the way forward; rather, giving one’s life away is the way forward. 

    Once you let go of the world in a spirit of detachment, once you remove the things of this world from your grasp and see them without distortion, you will really have them. They will appear as they are, as God intended them. They will no longer be objects for your manipulation or possession, but beautiful realities in themselves. 

    G.K. Chesterton insisted that only when he realized that the things of this world would not make him ultimately happy did he find real joy in them. 

--Bishop Robert Barron, 

Gospel Reflection, 

November 27, 2023 

Image source: James Tissot, The Widow’s Mite / Le denier de la veuve (1850), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesson_of_the_widow%27s_mite#/media/File:Brooklyn_Museum_-_The_Widow's_Mite_(Le_denier_de_la_veuve)_-_James_Tissot.jpg

Does the path seem too steep? (St. Augustine / Pope Francis)

Beware of despairing about yourself;
 you are commanded to place
your trust in God, and not in yourself.

 --St. Augustine 

    Let us not be discouraged if at times the peak of Christian life seems too high and the path too steep. Let us look to Jesus, always; let us look to Jesus who walks beside us, who welcomes our frailties, shares our efforts and rests his firm and gentle arm on our weak shoulders. With Him close at hand, let us also reach out to one another and renew our trust. With Jesus, what seems impossible on our own is no longer so; with Jesus we can go forth! 

--Pope Francis, August 27, 2024 

On Veterans Day, we honor all those 
who have loved their country 
with a willingness to serve and sacrifice 
for the common good with trust and confidence! 

Image source: G. Hillyard Swinstead, The White Comrade (1915), depicting two soldiers, one wounded, being comforted on the battlefield by a vision of Christ, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_World_War;_two_soldiers,_one_badly_wounded,_being_comf_Wellcome_V0015798.jpg 
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To lean upon thy great strength (St. Francis of Assisi)

Lord, help me to live this day, quietly, easily. 

To lean upon Thy great strength, trustfully, restfully. 

To wait for the unfolding of Thy will, patiently, serenely. 

To meet others, peacefully, joyously. 

To face tomorrow, confidently, courageously. 

--St. Francis of Assisi 

Image source: Giovanni Francesco di Bernadone, Saint Francis of Assisi (early 17th century), https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Italian_%28Lombard%29_School_-_Saint_Francis_in_Prayer_-_959446_-_National_Trust.jpg 

Quotation source

They are with us still (Fr. Joseph Veneroso)

We do not run the race alone
Nor go into exile by ourselves.
For we journey along the Way
Made smooth by those who’ve gone before
And though invisible to the eye
They are with us still, forebears in faith
Whose example, wisdom and yes, prayers
Inspire, encourage and guide us
Through the valleys and mountains of life.
And in the silence of the night
Listen for the soft whisper of
Ancestors, relatives and friends
Who, though gone from the sidelines
Still cheer us on and
Whose love and countless kindnesses
Brought us to this very day
Alone no longer (as if we ever were)
We are part of a vast, unending
Procession of love and life
Past, present and to come,
Where memory and meaning mingle
To create an eternal, dynamic
Community of souls and
Communion of saints. 

--Fr. Joseph Veneroso,

Poem published in
Maryknoll Magazine,

November 2020

In November we remember All Souls...

Image source 1: https://www.wordonfire.org/articles/contributors/why-we-pray-for-all-souls-today/
Image source 2: https://www.forestryengland.uk/blog/running-wild-why-you-should-be-running-the-forest

A command from God (Dr. Loren Crow)

    What seems at first like a hopeless act — a last meal before curling up to die — becomes the very means by which hope comes in. Her obedience to the prophet’s word results in her receiving God’s provision of food as well as, later on, the life of her son.

    But Jesus’ observation is still apropos: God might have sent Elijah to any number of Israelite widows to save them, but instead sent him to this foreigner to save her. What do we learn about God by observing this? We learn what Israel needed to learn, too, that God is not only the Lord of us and our people, but the Lord of aliens, legal and otherwise, and even the Lord of other nations regardless of whether or not they know it. God loves and cares for the unclean as well as the clean, the sick as well as the whole, the addicted as well as the teetotalers, the Canaanites as well as the Israelites. 

    In this story it’s precisely the miraculous provision of food that leads to the widow’s conversion. Like all Jews and Gentiles, she is presented with a command from God obedience to which will make her live. That command, which we also receive multiple times in Scripture, is that she care for the stranger living in her vicinity. Even this Phoenician woman can recognize the truth of that command and obey it. Will we? 

--Dr. Loren Crow 

Image source 1: https://walkingintheshadowlands.com/2018/10/20/kept-for-us/ 

Image source 2: https://choosefaith.com.au/lessons-from-the-widow-of-zarephath/
Quotation source

Sunday Gospel Reflection, November 7, 2024: She, from her poverty, has contributed all she had...

She, from her poverty, has contributed all she had… 

How strong is our trust in the Lord?

    In the First Book of Kings, God directs Elijah to go to Zarephath, a town in Gentile territory. A terrible drought has caused famine in the land, but the Lord has instructed a widow there to feed Elijah. When Elijah meets the widow and asks, Please bring me a small cupful of water to drink… and a bit of bread, the woman responds, As the Lord, your God, lives, I have nothing, yet she does as he asks! How interesting that this woman not only is familiar with but also trusts Elijah’s God enough to do what he has instructed her. Her trust will be rewarded when Elijah promises that her jar of flour shall not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry. The widow of Zarephath’s faith opens God’s ability to act in her life more profoundly. Perhaps she would, as Psalm 146 says, praise the Lord, now having irrefutable proof that the God of Elijah sustains the fatherless and the widow, among others. 

    The fate of widows had not improved by Jesus’ time. In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus warns the crowds that the scribes, who like to go around in long robes and accept seats of honor in synagogues also devour the houses of widows! Jesus then observes how the crowd puts money into the temple treasury. These are not taxes but donations, and the larger the donation, the louder the sound the coins make as they go into the donation box. Although the rich scribes put in large sums, their gift is nothing compared to that of a poor widow who puts in two small coins worth a few cents. Where they give from their surplus, she contributes all she has, a sign of her complete and utter trust in the Lord to take care of her. Having given away her freedom, the widow’s hands are empty and open to receive from the hand of God. 

    The Letter to the Hebrews reminds us that Jesus himself will likewise give away all he has, offering himself once for all, to take away sin by his sacrifice. We are assured that he will appear a second time, not to take away sin but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await him. We have but to trust, as the widows did, and to wait eagerly for his return! 

This post is based on Fr. Pat’s Scripture class. 
Image source: www.wordclouds.com

To trust in the love that unites us (Pope. Francis / Fr. Patrick Michaels)

In the great commandment,
Christ binds God and neighbor.
There is no authentic religious experience
that is deaf to the cry of the world.
There is no love of God
without care and concern for our neighbor.

 --Pope Francis, November 10, 2023 

    If you feel that you love God with all that is in you but you do not love your neighbor, you might be kidding yourself. Because if we can’t see those we have so much in common with, if we can’t love them, then how can we love God whom we can’t see? How can we stretch out the boundaries of our hearts? 

    If we loved God with everything that is in us and we loved our neighbor, we would be concerned for every life. We would love every life. We would have a concern for the poor, whom we must love and greet and value and show compassion. For that is what we are about; that’s all we have. 

    Love isn’t a warm, fuzzy feeling; love is an action, something we do, something we live, something we are. We can restore our collective integrity as a Church. We can learn to face any problem. But we are going to have to trust in the love that brings us together and unites us. We are going to have to try and participate in it at every opportunity. Then, we will be one. Love does that like nothing else can. Then, the Lord will be a force to be reckoned with in the world, because he will be revealed… in us. 

--Fr. Patrick Michaels,
Homily, October 29, 2023 

Image source: Augustus Edwin Mulready, Uncared For (1871), one of many of Mulready’s paintings meant to draw people’'s attention to the plight of the unhoused street children of his age. Notice the torn street poster above the little girl’s head. For this and other work by Mulready, go to https://victorianpeeper.blogspot.com/2010/09/more-news-from-art-world.html

So many neighbors to love (St. Maximilian Kolbe / Rev. Benjamin Cramer)

The cross is the school of love.

--St. Maximilian Kolbe 

   Beware of any Christian movement that insists it has so many enemies to conquer rather than so many neighbors to love. 

--Rev. Benjamin Cremer 

Image source 1: https://www.wearemakingdisciples.com/blog.aspx?action=view&id=68
Image source 2: https://www.dioceseofcleveland.org/news/2022/05/15/fifth-sunday-of-easter-may-15-2022
Quotation source

You need both to be a Christian (Jen Arnold)

   There is no doubt that the cross is the most recognized symbol of Christianity. It symbolizes what our Lord endured for us, what we carry, and our hope for salvation. There is so much meaning wrapped up in this one symbol of our faith. Not by coincidence, the cross is made up of two beams of wood – one vertical and one horizontal. The vertical beam symbolizes your relationship with God while the horizontal beam represents your relationship with others. You need both to form a cross. You need both to be Christian. 

   We use the vertical beam to represent our relationship with God because we are inferior and He is all-supreme. We look up at Him while He lovingly looks down upon us. We reach for heaven while He extends His mercy and grace down to us. This vertical relationship illustrated in the cross is a beautiful thing to imagine. We need to put effort strengthening that vertical relationship. We do this by praying to God every day and listening to how He speaks back to us, just as we would in any other relationship. We need to frequent the Sacraments and receive His grace in all the ways He has offered to us. We need to go to Mass to hear His Word in Scripture and receive His Body in the Eucharist. This vertical relationship is not passive... 

   The horizontal beam represents our relationship with others. We know that we make up the Body of Christ and that we are all connected to one another on this horizontal plane. Everything we do affects the rest of the parcels on that beam. When we sin, it affects our neighbor. When we are charitable and loving, it also affects our neighbor. Again, this relationship between persons is not passive. Christians are called to action. Remember the corporal acts of mercy in Mahew 25:35-40 where Jesus tells us to do things like feed the hungry, clothe the naked and visit the imprisoned. He reminds us that, in doing these things for the least of our brothers, we are doing them for Him. We honor Jesus Christ by being in the right relationship with our neighbor and thereby strengthening our horizontal beam. 

--Jen Arnold
 

Image source 1: https://www.equip.org/hank-unplugged-podcast-and-shorts/the-sign-of-the-cross-the-symbol-the-history-the-mystery-with-andreas-andreopoulos/
Image source 2: Mezuzah, Dove with Olive Branch with Adorned Hoshen, https://www.holyshroudfragrance.com/p-4959-mezuzah-dove-with-olive-branch-with-adorned-hoshen-blue.aspx. A mezuzah is a small scroll of parchment contained withing a decorative box. The Shema Yisrael is one of the texts inscribed on the scroll. Traditionally, the mezuzah is affixed to the doorpost at the entrance of a Jewish home to remind them of their love for the Lord God.
Quotation source & complete article

What it means to love (Fr. Patrick Michaels)

   Why did Jesus provide two commandments when one was asked for? What would have happened if Jesus had just given the greatest commandment – the first? Then the focus of our lives would be upon ourselves: it’s all about what I need to do in my relationship with God. The second expands it, so that we truly understand what that relationship is about. 

    Love of neighbor is absolutely necessary in the pursuit of a relationship with God. Look at your neighbor and realize that God made them, too. They are just as extraordinary in God’s act of creation as you are. And they are on the same journey. The two commandments fill out what it means to love; they complete what would otherwise be an incomplete concept. That’s why Jesus gives two when one is asked for. But then he summarizes all the law in those two, because if your love for God is expressed in your love for neighbor, the rest of the law would be superfluous, unnecessary. 

   God offers us the fullness of life… in the neighbors around us, those who are in need and who are right here. He gives us life all the time; we have but to choose it. 

--Fr. Patrick Michaels,
Homily, August 23, 2024

Image source: https://cmmb.org/to-love-god-to-love-your-neighbor/