Weekly Readings Reflections: July 2018

Sunday, July 29, 2018

Our readings for the 18th Sunday of Ordinary Time are:

Poor Moses didn't have a good lawyer on his staff at the time, or else he would have had the children of Israel all sign a waiver to the effect that they forfeit all rights to anything that they were familiar and comfortable with, in exchange for their freedom.
Do you think that God categorically has an issue with us being comfortable in life?
If not, when do you think that God does take issue with comfort?
How do you tell when your comforts are holding you back from God?

We like to know how everything will work out before we venture into anything new, but that does not seem to be the way of things in God's service.
When was the last time that you took a new beginning, without knowing how all of your needs would be met.
Why did you take that risk?
How did it turn out?
Did you end up needing everything that you thought that you would need?
How did that experience of uncertainty change you?

Jesus fed those folks for any number of reasons, but one reason certainly was to show them the Father's compassion and generosity, another to show them that God stood ready to meet all of their needs, physical and not.
Do you think that ministry to the needy has to address all of their needs, no matter how diverse those needs are?
Typically in a homeless shelter, the homeless get treated to a sermon first, then food. Many of the homeless take the opportunity to grab a quick nap before eating.
Is there anything wrong with that picture?

Am I willing to turn my back on what is comfortable and familiar in favor of a fuller life?
How do I see God providing for me in the context of my service to Him?
What desires of my heart do I need to bring to God in prayer?
What generosity does God look for from me this week?

Shalom!

Our readings for the 76th Sunday of Ordinary Time are:

In my wife's family, the longstanding tradition is that the host/hostess never goes it along, everyone brings something to share, even if they are told not to.
Of course, nothing compares to what God offers us at Eucharist, but each of us brings something to share at the feast. What are some of the things that you share at Mass?
What would you like to share differently/more/better?
Be honest, what do you wish was shared differently/more/better by others at Mass?

Sometimes, it can be instructive to ask what would have happened in a Gospel story if things had been just a bit different. In this case, if the boy had decided that he wasn't going to share his lunch, how do you think that might have gone?
Have you ever tried to meet a need that was hopelessly too big for your resources?
What did you bring to the table?
Was it enough?
Did it matter?

Shalom!

Our readings for the 16th Sunday of Ordinary Time are:

Once upon a time, there was a parish where the Confirmation sacramental preparation was done by volunteers, mostly parents. The teens were divided up into groups that met in homes, much like the early church. Then along came a teacher who felt that these parents were often uninformed, mistaken, or just sloppy about their teaching, so he took all of those teenagers, had them meet in one large room each week, and he taught them himself to make sure that there was no error in the teaching.
We often speak of the distinction between faith formation, and information. What would you say is the difference between the two?
Is one or the other more important?
At what point and in which way(s) do we become adults, and have to start taking responsibility for our own formation?
Do you think that someone could be influencing/forming/teaching another without knowing it?
How do we keep each other honest?

As Westerners, and certainly as males, we are conditioned to appreciate and praise those who push the boundaries, who succeed in spite of the odds, who have the courage to go beyond their comfort zone. Hardly an ethic that you associate with sheep.
Do you think that there are things in this life that are just out and out impossible for you?
Would it make your life any better to try those things?
If you don't think that anything is impossible to you, then think about flapping your arms and flying, or being able to compose a truly great sonata, or finding the cure to cancer.
If not these things, then what are your strengths?
Do you think that you might have strengths that you've not stumbled into?
How have you found your strengths, your genius, your calling in life?
Do you think that was just luck, or something else?
How can you be more open to that "something else"?

In the parable of the prodigal son, what I like to call the prodigal father, the father waits patiently, longingly, for the son to come back. He's the first to see that weary, beaten son come over the horizon from distant lands, and he runs toward that young man as though his very life depended on that reunion.
Who are some of those in your life who have "gone prodigal" and left, be it a violent rending of relationships, or an inexorable corrosion?
Is anyone looking for them?
What do they have to do before anyone is willing/able to receive them back?
What will they have to do if they ever came back, before anyone would trust them again?
Who decided that anyway?

Sanctuary is a place, time, space where we go to recuperate. For the introvert, such sanctuary can be very tangible. They prefer quiet, a spell where they can center themselves, recover from the demands of people all around them, and rediscover their inner compass. Other folks crave time with nature, time in their gardens, time on the phone with their best friend, an hour spent in front of the reserved Eucharist, you name it.
Where is your sanctuary?
Do you go there regularly?
Do you bring an agenda with you when you go there?
How much of your sanctuary do you bring back with you when you rejoin humanity?
What is the difference between sanctuary and trying to escape?

Shalom!