4th Sunday of Easter

Our readings for the 4th Sunday of Easter are:

1. Acts 4: 8-12
2. Psalms 118: 1, 8-9, 21-23, 26, 28, 29
3. 1 John 3: 1-2
4. John 10: 11-18

1. We are Jesus' resurrection glory
• How can we become imitators of Christ, without becoming mere imitations?
• What does it really mean to carry on His ministry?
• What does that say about our prayer life?
2. Blessed with rejection
• Jesus was rejected by His people, by all of humanity.  Can you think of any saints who have been similarly rejected?
• Do you think that rejection was somehow necessary or pivotal for that saint's ministry.
• What does that say about our lives as Jesus' followers?
• How does that make you feel?
• How do you tell that rejection you face is because you are His follower, not something more mundane, like bad hygiene?
3. Image and likeness of God
• The epistles speak often of "the world", worldly pleasures, and so on.  Just what is meant by that, what does it include?
• If the world truly does not know us, know what's best for us, what will make us happy, what does that say about the values that the world tries to offer us?
• How do you think we might better distance ourselves from those values of the world?
• How might we help each other in that regard?
4. It's not what you know but who you're known by
• Who are some folks who look to you for example?
• What is it that you think they see in you?
• What sort of responsibilities do you have to them?
• Ask these same questions about you to someone else and see what you get.

Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. Would anyone describe me as a healing presence?
2. Who/what do I put my trust in?
3. When was the last time that I shared my life with someone who really knew me?
4. Is there anyone that I would lay down my life for?

Trust is hard

In his book Jacob the Baker, a woman asks Jacob if he trusts God.
To which Jacob replies "Faith uses its strength to develop trust."

Paul tells us in Hebrews "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen."
Faith is a gift, freely given.  None of us earns it.

By faith, we are able to see the visible for what it truly is
A manifestation, a shadow of what is not visible.

And by gazing at this whole picture, in all its wholeness
We can see the hand of God far more clearly.

Seeing God's movements, His ongoing creation
Shows us His character, His generative generosity.

We learn that God is true
True to His own nature, to who He is revealing Himself as.

That Vision tells us that God is with us in ways unfathomable
And yet so intimate.

And as we gaze with that Vision upon that Vision of a much wider realness
We grow in confidence that He is always there, always Present.

And trust becomes the only possible outcome
It is our only response.

Shalom!

3rd Sunday of Easter

Our readings for the 3rd Sunday of Easter are:

1. Acts 3: 13-15, 17-19
2. Psalms 4: 2,4, 7-8, 9
3. 1 John 2: 1-5a
4. Luke 24: 35-48

1. God's promise fulfilled
• Couples sometimes speak of "us" as an entity in its own right, beyond the two members of the couple.  Some theologians have described the Holy Spirit as the love between the Father and the Son, the embodiment of the relationship between them.
• How do you regard your relationship with God?  Does that relationship flourish or weaken over time?
• How often do you take a reading on how that relationship is doing?
2. Trust and peace
• What are some times that God has answered your prayer in your life?
• What does that tell you about the God whom we worship?
• If some individual person had accomplished all of that for your, how would you treat them?
• Is that the way that you treat God?
3. True children of God
• Why do you think that Jesus came to save the whole world?
• Do you think that God is an extrovert and just needs lots of people around?
• Surely God must have known that there were going to be diversity of cultures, backgrounds, ... how does He expect us to welcome all of that?
• How can we be more welcoming this Sunday?
4. Open the eyes of my heart Lord
• It seems that the risen Christ spent a good deal of time revealing Himself to his disciples on every level, tactile, visually, mentally, emotionally.  How is God revealing God's self today?
• In your life, who are those that really stand out as revealing the glory of God?
• What makes them so good at that?
• What can we do to emulate them?

Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. Have I consistently brought life and peace to those around me this week?
2. What are the things that distress/stress/worry me?  Are they from God?
3. What can I do to be the Love of God to the most difficult person in my life?
4. How am I sharing my faith with those who need to hear that?

Hey, I was going to eat that!

Feeding the homeless isn't for type A personalities.
The donations come in all shapes and sizes,
No real schedule to them.

Then, there's the people that you are there to serve.
Getting them to E-mail you with an RSVP is just not going to happen,
So you just have to make your best guess how many places to set.

And yet, folks I've met who do this day in, day out
Radiate joy when they speak of their ministry
The love of Christ for these marginalized -

That love is sustained by being given away
Strengthened in the face of daily need
Flourishes by every touch of those in need.

Jesus Himself ate in the resurection.
Maybe we will too.
Maybe the need to serve each other will persist into Eternity.

Maybe abundance isn't so much about never wanting
As it is about never fearing to share.
The way I figure it, they weren't expecting Jesus to appear to them.

So I have to wonder who thought they were going to eat that fish He had.

Shalom!

2nd Sunday of Easter

Our readings for the 2nd Sunday of Easter are:

1. Acts 4: 32-35
2. Psalms 118: 2-4, 13-15, 22-24
3. 1 John 5: 1-6
4. John 20: 19-31

1. Community transformed
• Do you think that it's possible to achieve justice in an unjust world?
• What does it mean to be "in the world but not of the world"?
• What sort of people would you invite into a Catholic community of justice?
• What would distinguish them from the world around them?
• How would such a community remain pure?
• How do the Amish do it?
2. Man up
• If someone were to buttonhole you at Church and ask you what your strengths were, what would you say?
• If someone else were to ask the same question of you at your place of employment, what would you say?
• Is there a difference?
• Why?
3. Essence of greatness
• When we think of the great figures in human history, we often think of conquerors, folks who have reshaped entire regions for generations.
• What does it take to be great in the Kingdom of God?
• How great are you?
4. Ready or not
• What does it really mean to be a missioned people?
• To what extent are we all on the same mission?
• How does our mission differe one from another?
• How do we find out how we are being asked to contribute to that one great mission?
• Who are some people in your life who have found that mission in their lives?

Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. When I see a homeless person, what is the first thing that comes to my mind?
2. What have I done this week to develop my strength in God?
3. What have I done this week out of love for another?
4. Are my faith and trust in God building each other?

We'll stay in touch

I had staked so much on Him,
Well, we all had, truth be told.
Even poor Judas for that matter.

That to watch Him topple
Dragged off like a criminal
By those unworthy of Him

Was a death of its own
Except this death lasts
Until you are numb from it.

To ignite hope again
In the ashes of my heart
Seemed folly to me

And so I played it safe
Staying walled up inside
Stout fortress of despair.

But even despair craves company.
And my friends drew me
And it was there He appeared.

Readiant beyond splendor
Present beyond intimate
Joyous in forgiving

His touch so healing
It frightened me
Knowing that an open heart

An open heart will break
Again and again
Bleeding for others in pain

But now my heart unfettered
Fears pain no more
And I am truly healed.

Shalom!

Easter morning

Our readings for Easter Sunday morning are:

1. Acts 10:34a, 37-43
2. Psalms 118: 1-2, 16-17, 22-23
3. Colossians 3: 1-4 (I don't know if we're going with this epistle or 1 Corinthians 5: 6b-8)
4. John 20: 1-9

1. My heart to yours
• Why do you think that Jesus insists on using us to spread the Good News about Him?
• Why do you think that He ascended?
• Why do you think that He only appeared to a select few?
2. His mercy endures forever
• If God is mercy, then why not just enjoy life?  After all, like the Prodigal Father, He will always take us back.
• What would your definition of true joy be?
• What contributes most to that joy?
3. Love people, use things, not the other way around
• Does indifference to the things of this world mean that I don't have to paint the house, try hard at work, take my car in for maintenance?
• The message to simplify our lives comes more and more strongly as we age.  What does a simple life look like?
• How do you get there?
• What's the point?
4. Seeing is understanding
• The resurrection narratives are filled with accounts of the disciples discovering the risen Christ even though Jesus had told them how this was all going to play out.
• Do you think that this sort of process of 
• Intellectual hearing but not understanding
• A radical experience that reveals to the heart what Jesus meant all along
• Sharing of that revelation within the community
• Spreading out beyond the bounds of the community - is a theme in Chrstianity?
• If so, how can we be more intentional about this process so that it might occur more readily, the revelations run deeper, the final resurrection joy more profound?

Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. When was the last time that I thought that anything about my life in Jesus had anything to offer to anyone else?
2. Have I shown mercy to others?
3. What was the first thing that came to my mind this morning when I woke up?
4. Does my life bring resurrection joy and life to others?

Race you to the tomb

I'm going to say that the lonliest person
Is not the one who's just endured the loss of a spouse,
Or someone caught far from home at the holidays,
But the one with Jesus in his heart and no one to share that with.

Revelation best comes to us as us.
Not so much because we need to check each other
Or cheerlead each other
But to share the ongoing revelation of Christ incarnate among us.

And where is that safe haven?
Where is that place where what has been inner can become outer,
That we may better and more thoroughly take what is outer
And bring that in to where we truly live, and be changed for the better?

Jesus promised "where two or three are gathered in my name,
There I am, in the midst of them."
What does that look like?
Do those gatherings have to be on a calendar?

What sort of covenant should such communities share?
How many can/should you be involved in at once?
Are they intrinsically self-sustaining,
Or do such need help from the outside?

Who has the time?

Shalom!

Passion Sunday

Our readings for Palm Sunday are:

1. Isaiah 50: 4-7
2. Psalm 28: 8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24
3. Philippians 2: 6-11
4. Mark 14: 1-15:47 (long version) or Mark 15: 1-39 (short version)

1. Lending a hand
• Oftentimes, we come from "different worlds" than those that we help.  We might have a better childhood, more time, more money, more maturity, ... than they do.  How are we to be relevant to them?
• What does it take to have truly authentic ministry?
• What are we getting in return from those whom we serve?
2. All alone
• What difference does it make that God is for us?
• Does that insulate us from the worst that life has to offer?
• If not, why would anyone be attracted to this life?
3. The cost of obedience
• Do you think that Jesus knew for a fact that everything was going to "turn out OK" in the end?
• How do you think that the human Jesus found the humility that he needed to suffer the way that he did?
• What does it really mean for us to "take up our cross and follow Jesus" in our daily lives?
• How can we find the humility needed for that sort of life?
• Is it worth it?
4. Lending a hand
• The passion story has a lot of bit players appear.  Some try to help Jesus, others join in the punishment, but in the end He's getting crucified.
• Do you ever wonder what was going through the mind of Simon of Cyrene?  Did he feel as though he was making a difference by easing Jesus' suffering?
• Is there any way that we can ease Jesus' suffering in our lives today?

Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. Is my ministry making life better for others?
2. What is it exactly that I expect in return for my service to God?
3. Where is Jesus suffering today?  Can I give Him any comfort?
4. Am I willing to speak up for justice, regardless of what I think the outcome might be?

Wood of the Cross

The tell me that this cross piece that I bear has had some noted insurrectionists nailed to it.
A regular piece of history no doubt.  If only wood could talk.
If only the blood that it's absorbed could cry once more.

Jesus shambles along in front of me.
Clearly exhausted, slowly oozing life from a thousand cuts
Feeling the world around him, magnified by bruises beyond counting.

Part of me wants to elbow past him, get this cursed journey over with.
Get to that foresaken hillside that Rome has desecrated with all their executions,
Drop off my burden be on my way, and try to forget.

But even without looking at me, Jesus becons me to abide with Him,
Somehow share this moment, lean into the pain that He bears,
Keep company with Him for just a little while.

I cannot see any real benefit to my strength at this sorry affair.
This story is going to end pretty much the same no matter what I do.
But I match my steps to his, stop thinking about tomorrow, and settle into the moment.

Together, we keep company without words.
Slogging along through familiar streets and lanes.
That have become strange to me in the context of this misery.

There is an odd solitude on this road.
The passers by, the mocking crowds, the soldiers, all become larger than life
And become a sign for all who this Jesus has come to serve.

And as this journey progresses, Jesus looms larger in my view.
The loose limbed gait, the uneven trail of blood, the tattered clothing,
All take on a shattered sweetness in my view.

I know that I will never be the same for sharing this road with Him.
And I wonder where this journey will take me in the days to come.
But wherever it goes, I know that Jesus will be with me because I have been with Jesus.

Shalom!

4th Sunday of Lent

Our readings for the 4th Sunday of  Lent are:

1. 2nd Chronicles 36: 14-16, 19-23
2. Psalms 137: 1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
3. Ephesians 2: 4-10
4. John 3: 14-21

1. Sabbath journey
• Last week we heard proclaimed Exodus 20:1-17 in which God gave His people the Law.
• If God made all of creation in six days, and rested on the seventh, what does it say about the other six days that god desires that we enter into His Sabbath rest?
• This land, that we are borrowing from our descendents, what are our responsibilities towards it?
• Does the land, the earth, somehow participate in the Sabbath?
2. Faith of our fathers
• Do you have family members, deceased or otherwise, who have been shining examples to you in your faith, have inspiried you?
• How does that family relate to the faith of your wider parish, the Catholic Church, now and through all time?
• Our history is very much a mixed bag.  What does it really mean to say "I am Catholic"?  What responsibility do we carry for past sins of this, our extended family?
• How can those be atoned for?
3. Works prepared for you
• Do you think that God has work/works prepared for you in particular?
• What do you think happens to those works if you don't "show up for duty" by not hearing God's voice in your life at some decision point?
• How would you define true happiness in life?
• What are you doing to get there?
4. Emerging from the darkness
• I'm told that one of the precepts from the AA "big book" is that "we're as sick our secrets."
• How and to whom can we bring those secrets in the light?
• Do such confessions have to occur to a priest?

Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. When have I been God's messenger?
2. Am I an example of strong faith to anyone?
3. What is God's purpose for my life?
4. Who can I confide in?

Shalom!

3rd Sunday of Lent

Our readings for the 3rd Sunday of Lent (cycle B) are:

1. Exodus 20: 1-17
2. Psalm 19: 8, 9, 10, 11
3. 1 Corinthians 1: 22-25
4. John 2: 13-25

1. Rules to live by
• Do you think that there is a common thread running through all of the 10 commandments?
• Why do you think that they are so hard to live by?
• Do you think that God was doing us any favors by giving us those commandments?
• Day to day, how is it that faith in Christ helps us live by those?
2. The Law of the Lord is clear
• Have you ever struggled for clarity from God, really wondered what it was that He had in mind for you?
• What made it hard to achieve that clarity?
• How did you finally find the peace that you were seeking?
3. Humility just doesn't make sense
• Can you think of anyone that you've known who was truly humble?
• How did their life impact those around them?
• Do you think that humility is something that we can work on ourselves, is it pure gift, or some sort of combination of the above?
• Why is humility so hard?
4. That wasn't quite the intent ...
• The temple had become corrupted in practice.  The people had lost their focus on true worship, and became focused on things that supported that worship.
• Have you ever seen that sort of corruption elsewhere?
• Who is responsible for calling that sort of corruption out, holding us accountable for the real reason for what we do, who we are?

Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. When was the last time that I prayed to God for a clear picture of where I have missed my chance to draw closer to Him?
2. What am I doing to build my trust, the strength of my faith, in God?
3. Am I willing to be seen as impractical, even foolish because I'm following Jesus?
4. If someone is looking for the presence of God in their lives, are they likely to think of me?

One God

When you got right down to it, a world with lots of gods can be comforting.
In their own chaotic way, they are more immanent, easier to touch.

If your village economy is based on the grain harvest, a wheat god makes sense.
Someone to look out for you, defend you against all the uncertainty of rain and sun.

If the rain god is particularly displeased with you and a drought smites the land,
You can take comfort that there is a struggle between the gods over you.

If there's only one god, and bad things happen, you're forced to ask serious questions.
Does this one, all supreme being not care about what is befalling His people?

Or do these capricious storms, earthquakes, fires and floods come to test us?
Are all the calamities in life the fallout of original sin in the world?

Is there some higher purpose to Alzheimers and other calamities in life?
Is it presumtuous of us to even ask what the higher purpose, the ultimate reason is?

And if there is a purpose to it all, what should be our part in the those events?
What sort of partnership are we called to as creation continues to unfold?

Shalom!