6th Sunday of Lent

Our readings for the 6th Sunday/Passion Sunday of Lent are:

1. Matthew 21: 1-11
2. Isaiah 50: 4-7
3. Psalms 130: 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8
4. Romans 8: 8-11
5. John 11: 1-45

• Left out in the parking lot
• I always feel bad for the folks who are too infirm or too disinclined to join us for the Palm Sunday procession into church.  When we assemble out in the parking lot we find ourselves tossed in with people that we rarely see on a Sunday morning because we don't usually sit at "that end" of the worship space.  We all share in the distribution of the palms, the blessing with the holy water, the reading, the processional song, and there is a sense of community that is often absent.
• What do you do in your family, community, parish to celebrate and foster the development of the community?
• How did those practices get started?
• How do you keep them alive and lively?
• What else could we all do to bring us closer to each other?
• The power of language
• In the movie The Darkest Hour, prime minister Winston Churchill has given a rousing speech calling on Parliament, all of the government, all of the people of England to join in waging war on the impending tyranny from Germany.  One of the astonished members asks the other "what just happened?"  The reply "Churchill has called upon the English language and sent it to war."
• What gives you hope for a better future for you, your family, your faith community?
• What is that hope based on?  How was it communicated to you originally?
• How can we be more convincing in our communication of hope to one another?

• Fear of abandonment
• There are perhaps no more comforting words than "I'm here for you."  That companionship without any qualifications is perhaps the greatest gift that we can offer to someone else in need.  When we go through tough times, it often feels as though there is an invisible wall surrounding us.
• Think of the last time that you went through a tough time.  Who was there for you the most?
• What did they actually do for you during that time?
• How can we be more available to those around us in need, particularly when there are competing/conflicting demands on us?

• One step at a time
• I would like to define humility as "a profound and deep understanding of where one fits in the universe, one's purpose in the moment, one's relationship to all others and one's ultimate unity with all life, holiness, and love."
• If you take that as an operating definition of humility, do you think that Jesus was born with that, that Jesus had to be intentional about His humility, or both?
• Is there anything about humility that you find inviting?
• How can Jesus teach us about humility from His life when there is so much between us today and 1st century Palestine?
• If someone came to you today and asked you to teach them humility, where would you start?

• Via Dolorosa
• Jesus' leadership skills seem lacking in this episode of His life.  A gang of hired thugs shows up while He's praying after Passover, and his followers all desert Him.  In contrast to them, Catholic Tradition tells us of Veronica who wiped the face of Jesus while He was on his way to the Cross.
• Think of a time when someone close to you was going through something that they didn't deserve, that had no easy answer.  What did you do to help?
• Veronica risked the anger of the Roman cohort escorting Jesus.  They were doubtless a little jumpy, worried that these crazy Jews might riot seeing their "savior" going to His execution.
• Veronica knew that there was little that she could do to ease Jesus' suffering, but she had to do what she could.
• What little things are there that you can do to ease the suffering of someone around you?
• Who/what are the Roman soldiers in your life who are holding you back?

• Preparation for Reconciliation

1. How can I strengthen my community?
2. Who needs my presence?
3. Where is God calling me to share His kindness and mercy?
4. Where can I be more humble?
5. Where is God calling me to take risks in my life?

Flash Mob

Youtube videos abound of flash mob performances of anything imaginable.
First one musician starts a solo, a few passers by take note and stop to listen.
Seemingly random instruments drift in and join the tune, adding their voices.

Eventually a director arrives, deploys their baton, and the swelling chorus continues
Unabated, smooth as glass, each new addition joining in without a hitch.
The spectators by now have realized something is afoot, and start taking pictures.

The charm of the scene is the seeming randomness of it all,
As though that first musician started some sort of musical vortex
Drawing in one instrument and musician after another.

Watching that today, as someone hoping to survive COVID-19,
I find the sight of people standing close to one another almost strange.
Stranger still that they can cooperate so well, so beautifully together.

No matter what the future brings us, we are, we are called to, we always have been
Community.
Nothing can change that, nothing can rip our essential oneness from us.

For it is with, in, and through the God who made us who made us one,
That we find the essence, the meaning, the gritty messiness of life.
Both here, now, this moment, and in all time, all places, eternity.

Some say that disease is a product of sin, that we brought this on ourselves.
I would rather say that suffering is a doorway that we are invited through
To find our true selves, our foundation, our essence.

Let us all find the courage to join our voices into the swelling chorus
Believe not the conceit that any one of us, any family of us is in this alone.
Saints and martyrs bear witness to a deeper reality that is ours if we have the courage.

Shalom!

5th Sunday of Lent

Our readings for the 5th Sunday of Lent are:

1. Ezekiel 37: 12-14
2. Psalms 130: 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8
3. Romans 8: 8-11
4. John 11: 1-45

• Of the people and their land
• Increasingly, our world is populated by refugees.  Families, whole villages, tribes forced to move from their homeland by famine, political unrest, acts of God, persecution ...
• What are you attached to about the place that you inhabit today?
• If you were forced to leave there, what would you want to take with you?
• Would those things be keepsakes, people, tools, ...?
• What purpose would those things serve for you?
• Where might you find God in such a displacement?

• Healing kindness
• God proves His greatness in kindness and mercy, freely given, undeserved.
• How has God been kind to you?
• Did you expect that of Him?
• How did that kindness affect you?
• How have you passed that along?

• Spirit of belonging
• Hopefully all of us have a place where we feel that we belong, where the very best in us is not only free to be expressed, but encouraged.
• Where are a couple of those places for you?
• How did you find each "house of belonging"?
• Is that house a place that continues to be welcoming to new comers?
• What is your role in that welcoming presence?

• Lenten Journey
• This Sunday, the 5th Sunday of Lent, marks the third and final Scrutiny of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA).  Each Scrutiny offers the members of the Elect an opportunity to truly understand themselves, their strengths and weaknesses, where God is leading them in their lives, and what God is offering them this moment.  It is in this context that we enter into Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, and just as importantly, we see Jesus showing us His true nature and mission.
• What do you expect of Jesus in your life today?
• What makes you say that?  Is it past history, your reading of Scripture, something someone told you ...?
• If Jesus had something else, maybe even better, in mind, would you accept it?

• Preparation for Reconciliation

1. Where has God chosen me to be?
2. Where is God calling me to share His kindness and mercy?
3. Who needs a welcoming?
4. Where is God broadening my expectations?

The Old Burial Cloth

Mommy, where did this cloth come from?

Come here, sit on my lap, and I'll tell you a story.

When did it happen?

Years ago, in Bethany, when my grandfather Lazarus died.

Is this going to be a sad story?

You can only tell if a story is going to be happy or sad by how it ends.  Listen and decide for yourself.

Long ago, in the hills above Jerusalem, my grandfather lived with his two sisters, Mary and Martha.

They were happy together, living devout lives dedicated to God and their community.

They had a friend, an itinerant preacher named Jesus, from Nazareth.

Who told of God's mercy and kindness, and everlasting love for all of us.

They found great consolation in Jesus' words and His life.

Jesus and His disciples were guest at their house on many an occasion.

At those times, the house rang with laughter, sometimes tears

As they all shared their lives together, finding and sharing God in and with each other.

One day, Lazarus woke up feeling weak and giddy.

His sisters sent for Jesus to come and help however He could.

Jesus got there too late to heal Lazarus, and he died.

Ooooh, so it's a sad story.  Why didn't you tell me?

It's not over yet, be patient.  This cloth you're holding was wrapped around him.

Jesus comforted the family, prayed over Lazarus, and brought him back to us.

Ooooh, so it's a happy story.  Why didn't you tell me?

It's not over yet, be patient.  The eyes of many were opened that day, and they realized who Jesus was.

His followers multiplied, His popularity soared,

Until the religious leaders of the day decided that Jesus was a threat, and had him executed.

This is very confusing.  Does it end well, or not?

Jesus, himself, came back to us, from beyond the grave.

And now it's your turn.  We've shared the Life that Jesus offers with you.

What will you do with it?  Will you have the courage to share it with others?

So, is this a happy ending?

That's up to you.

Shalom!

4th Sunday of Lent

Our readings for the 4th Sunday of Lent are:

1. 1 Samuel 16: 1b, 6-7, 10-13a
2. Psalms 23: 1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6
3. Ephesians 5: 8-14
4. John 9: 1-41

• You are chosen, like it or not
• You have to wonder what went through David's mind when he got word that he was required at a sacrifice with the noteworthy prophet Samuel.  David probably had no idea what that anointing would thrust him into, nor the demands that would be made on him by the kingship.
• In what part(s) of your life do you feel chosen, anointed, hand picked by God?
• What gives you that impression?  Is it because you are really good at what you do, or maybe because no one else wanted that job, or you just feel as though your whole life has led up to this?
• Would you ever want to leave that position?
• Why?

• You are not alone
• Have there been times when you felt as though no one was "in your corner" with you?
• Did you ever get to the point where you felt more supported?
• Were you lonely?
• What was your prayer during that time?
• Do you trust God more now than you did when you went through that troubled time?

• I thought that's what the tabloids are for
• The prophet helps God's people see things for what they really are, see them from God's perspective.
• Who are some of the prophets that we have today?
• How do you think that they got that job?
• Do you think that we can ever have too many prophets among us?
• Could you ever be called upon to be a prophet?
• Why or why not?

• I am
• In first century Palestine, begging was a perfectly acceptable way to make a living.  In fact, the general populace regarded supporting the poor among them as a sacred duty.
• The blind man in today's Gospel was there, minding his own business, when Jesus suddenly, without asking permission apparently, thrust him into the limelight.  Yet the man born blind shows profound courage in the face of all of this attention.
• How has God changed your life over the years?
• Were those changes always welcome?
• Did you feel at all ready for those changes?

• Preparation for Reconciliation

1. Where has God chosen me to be?
2. Is God's presence in my life enough for me?
3. What in my life needs a prophet?
4. Where is God calling me from my comfort zone today?

Shalom!

3rd Sunday of Lent

Our readings for the 3rd Sunday of Lent are:

1. Exodus 17: 3-7
2. Psalms 95: 1-2, 6-7, 8-9
3. Romans 5: 1-2, 5-8
4. John 4: 5-42

• Where is God?
• All of us have wanted to know what the future would bring at one time or another, so that we would have a better idea of how to respond to the present.
• Have you ever felt abandoned by God, left totally to your own devices, without any way out of the predicament that you were in?
• How did you get through that period?
• What did you learn from it?
• Do you ever tell that story to others?
• Why?

• God's intentions
• God doesn't seem to be in the business of revealing what He's about.  When we ask for reassurances, we get them, but most of the time those assurances are: "fear not, for I am with you."
• What do you fear most?
• Do you ever pray about those fears?
• What would you rather have, the thing that you fear to go away, or that you find the strength to work through that tough time?
• Which do you think that God is most likely to give you?

• What does God see in me?
• Sometimes, the hardest thing to believe is that God can somehow love us in spite of ourselves.  When a loved one hurts us, we tend to withdraw because we don't want to be hurt again.  But God appears not to fear pain, He keeps reaching out to us, time and again.
• Imagine that you are across the table from God, the two of you looking into each other's eyes.
• What do you see there?  Compassion, joy, acceptance?
• What does God see on your face?
• How does your appreciation of God change over time as you continue to gaze at Him.

• Finding the way
• Catholics consecrate the worship space for that one purpose, nothing else.  Sacred spaces, sacred times, sacred words all weave in and out of our lives, reminding us that it all belongs to God.  Jesus' bold statement that soon "you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem...But the hour is coming, and is now here, when true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and truth" must have scandalized many.
• Do you find that a particular place, or time is easiest to pray?
• When you pray, do you do anything external to make that time special?  Light a candle, close the blinds, play soft music?
• If you were deprived of that routine, would you still pray?

• Preparation for Reconciliation

1. Where is God calling me to greater trust in Him?
2. Is God's presence in my life enough for me?
3. Do I believe God when He tells me that he takes joy in me?
4. Is my relationship to God more than rituals worked out at scheduled times and places?

What in the world?

I've decided that we just cannot leave Jesus alone for even a few hours.
We all had gone into town to procure provisions, and came back,
To find the Master talking with a Samaritan woman.

They looked pretty intense to me, as though much had been said already,
And their sharing had just begun.
What could He have been thinking?

Then, as we approached, we heard Him telling her that we would all worship together,
Samaritans, Judeans, all God's people,
As though we somehow had anything to do with a cursed Samaritan.

Our people have been through so much through the centuries
To keep our blood lines pure, to be true children of the Covenant.
Not like the Samaritans who muddied their blood with the Canaanites around them.

To worship with such is unimaginable.
And to worship outside of Jerusalem, the holy city,
Why would we ever resort to that?

The Temple is the core of all of our history, the great works of God,
The events that forged us into a people, and made us great in this land.
To leave all of that behind is to turn our backs on something essential to our identity.

And yet, Jesus has told us that He's here to fulfill the Law and the Prophets,
To bring to fuition all that God has labored over with us, His People.
Too much to process, too much to understand, only time will make sense of this.

I feel shaken, uncertain, and yet, excited.
That maybe larger horizons are just ahead,
And freedom to be all that God meant for us from the beginning,

Is now becoming visible.

Shalom!

2nd Sunday of Lent

Our readings for the 2nd Sunday of Lent are:

1. Genesis 12: 1-41
2. Psalms 33: 4-5, 18-19, 20, 22
3. 2 Timothy 1: 8b-10
4. Matthew 17: 1-9

• Do they have WiFi where we're going?
• Abram, as the patriarch of a prosperous tribe, had to marshal everyone together and get them saddled up for the trip to the Promised Land.  Doubtless caravans had come from Palestine, bringing goods and impressions, but little else.
• When was the last time that you had to venture into something new to you?
• What made you leave what you were familiar with, comfortable with behind?
• Did you feel at all prepared for that move?
• Was it a good idea, to leave all of that behind?

• Hoping against hope
• An old friend used to say "I feel so much better now that I've given up all hope."  That fatalist sentiment certainly has its adherents, but it's fundamentally flawed in its outlook.  It says that the grief, the pain, the vulnerability of hope is not worth it.  Tragically, it's hard for us to realize that the pain, the grief fuel true hope and fan its flames.
• What is it that you most hope for?
• Is there a hope behind that?  For instance, I used to hope for a long life.  Then I shifted and started to merely hope for a healthy life, thinking that good health right up to the very end is a very good thing.  Now, I hope that I have the strength to persevere in my faith on through my dying breath and beyond.  Is that progression merely settling, or is it maturing?
• Is that process of transforming what I hope for done?
• Where do you think that process of transforming hope is headed?

• Finding holiness
• Thinking of the holy men and women who have graced history with their lives, shat are the marks of holiness?
• How do the holy ones achieve holiness in their lives?
• What made them do it?  Do you think they were transported in and by their prayer, that they saw visions and dreamed dreams of the Divine because of their holiness?
• What do the holy ones have to deny themselves?
• Is it worth it?

• Perspective
• Jesus is a complex character at best.  Past heresies asserted that Jesus' human form was merely a disguise.  If that be the case, then He lifted that disguise briefly in today's Gospel.  But I prefer to think if the transfiguration more as an opening of the disciples' eyes to the greater wonders beyond what they customarily saw, heard, felt, apprehended.
• What does the term "revelation" mean to you?
• How is God revealing to you today?
• What part do you have in that Divine revelation?

• Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. What might God be calling me out of?
2. Where is God calling me to greater hope?
3. Where is God calling me to holiness today?
4. Do I really trust God to reveal Himself in me?

Comfort Zone

It used to be easier.
Back when we thought that there was only so much to go around.
There was almost a nobility to being poor.
Because that meant that someone else must be rich.

But now, people far smarter than I am,
Tell me that there is no limit to the expanding economy.
That one person achieving prosperity and success,
Does nothing to diminish someone else's achievements.

So, it would seem, that there is no reason not to be a stunning success
At whatever it is that life calls us.
The only trouble is, how do you measure success?
No one wants to just be a legend in their own mind.

Is success measured by how many lives we touch?
Maybe by how long others remember us?
Or the time it takes before anyone realizes what we've accomplished?
How deeply we have loved?

Perhaps success is a measure of how faithfully we share of ourselves,
And only ourselves.
Not some expectation of us, or who we would prefer to be.
But who we were born to be.

But how to find that person?
Do I wander far from home to find him?
Is he lurking in lessons of my past that I have yet to learn?
Is he waiting for the right time to reveal himself?

Or, maybe that true self waits for some attention
In the moments between the busyness of all the business.
Waiting for some silence
Into which he can speak softly

I love you.
I have known you from eternity into eternity
You are mine and I dwell within you
Be still and know that I am God.

Shalom!