26th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 26th Sunday of Ordinary Time are:

1. Numbers 11: 25-39
2. Psalms 19:8, 10, 12-13, 14
3. James 5: 1-6
4. Mark 9: 38-43, 45, 47-48

• Membership criteria
• Confirmation retreats are often a time of bonding teenagers into community.  But the question is, is it the music that they share that weekend, the experiences, the talks, their common community at Church, their commonality of culture and age, ... that made them a community?
• Think of some of the communities that you belong to.  What single thing do you all have in common that really binds you together, really makes a cohesive whole out of you?
• Do you think that everyone in the community has that same thing in mind?
• What do you thing should bind you together as a community?

• Curing my blind spots
• Each of us has a blind spot or two in our lives, particularly about ourselves.
• How have you become aware of some of those blind spots?
• How was your life changed by that new knowledge?
• How can we be more objective about ourselves? 

• Prophetic in humility
• Gandhi stands as as the 21st century's emblem of non-violent protest, and the power that can have to make changes happen in our world.  No one would ever accuse Gandhi of weakness or cowardice.
• Most likely, none of us feels that we have much influence over others, but we do have some "pull" with some people, sometimes more than we know.
• Is there anyone in your life who need someone to stand up for them, someone to help them through something in life.
• Why aren't you that someone?

• How big is your tent?
• A joke that I heard once is here.  I think that it's worth a read.
• What things have to be true about someone before they can show you something of Jesus?
• When was the last time that you experienced God from an unexpected source?
• How was it that you knew God was there?
• Why did you not expect to find Him there?

• Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. What have I done to build community this week?
2. Do I humbly seek God's insight into my life, my motivations, my limitations, or would I just as soon not hear about that in my prayer life?
3. Who in my life am I willing to go to bat for?
4. Who am I excluding from those that God can use to minister to me?

Shalom!

25th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 25th Sunday of Ordinary Time are:

1. Wisdom 2: 12, 17-20
2. Psalms 54: 3-4, 5, 6-8
3. James 3: 16-4: 3
4. Mark 9: 30-37

• Embracing humility
• In Daniel 6 we read of Daniel's deliverance from the plot of envious government officials to have him killed.  Sounds like a good outcome for anyone who fearlessly follows God.
• Jesus wasn't so lucky, yet no one in history has followed God more closely.  Since His death, Jesus has been joined by countless disciples who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the service of God, and far more who have lost fortunes, been exiled, ostracized and persecuted for their faith.
• Were all of these men and women of faith delivered in any way?
• If so, delivered from what, exactly?
• Is such deliverance enough, or would you like God to be a little more generous?

• God has a thing for the weak
• Few of us have the experience of outright persecution from anyone for our faith.  But even given that, there are times when your faith has constrained you.  Maybe you were not able to take advantage of some insider trading opportunity, or you don't stay late at work because you know that your family needs you more.
• What was the reward that you expected from that behavior?
• Did that work out?
• Did it matter whether it worked out that way or not?
• Why? 

• Prayer changes things
• When I was a child, a popular slogan was "Prayer changes things!" which I have since come to believe fosters a superstitious attitude toward prayer.  I'd rather that such a bumper sticker read "prayer changes us!".
• Have you ever started praying, perhaps desperately, for one thing, and, over time, that changed to another prayer altogether?
• Why do you think that happened?
• How can we make ourselves more open to that process?

• The margins
• In Jesus' day, children were very much at the margins of society, without anyone but their parents to look after them.  There was nothing more destitute than an orphan.
• Who are some of those that you have served, benefited, who will never be able to repay you?
• Why did you perform those services?
• How did that service bring you closer to Jesus?
• How did that service make you more like Jesus?

• Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. What do I want to be delivered from?  What/who do I want to be delivered to?
2. What/who threatens me?  Have I brought that to God?
3. Am I open to God changing my mind about things as I pray over them?
4. Where will my discipleship to God take me this week?

Shalom!

24th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 24th Sunday of Ordinary Time are:

1. Isaiah 50: 4c-9a
2. Psalms 116: 1-2, 3-4 5-6, 8-9
3. James 2: 14-18
4. Mark 8: 27-35

• Embracing humility
• No one likes to be misunderstood or misrepresented.  And yet that was Jesus' lot during his entire public ministry.
• Do you think that Jesus felt lonely or isolated by that treatment?
• If you had been there during those final weeks of His ministry, what might you have done to comfort and support Him?
• Do you think that Jesus could use some comfort and support today?
• How might you minister to Him in your life?

• God has a thing for the weak
• How has God delivered you during your life?
• What were some of the things that He delivered you from?  Were they things like a sense of entitlement, unreasonable expectations on someone else, an attachment to success, were they more tangible like deliverance from a financial problem, ...?
• How did that make you feel about your life, about God?
• Do you ever think back on those times and give thanks? 

• Faith in action
• Work for justice often comes in two categories: addressing the immediate need, and looking "upstream" to find why the need arises and address the causes of injustice.
• Do you think that some of us are called to one type of justice work and not the other?
• Do you think that such a call can change over time?
• Do you think that someone who is prophetic, who speaks to the injustice of our day, can really make a difference?
• Who are some prophets of our time that you admire?

• Astonishment
• How do you think Peter should have reacted to the news that Jesus was going to be rejected and suffer?
• How do you think we can learn to think more like God in our lives?
• Do you think that the slogan "what would Jesus do?" is a good place to start answering that question?
• Is there anyone in your life that you feel that you can go to when you want to find the mind of God?

• Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. Of the characters in the stations of the Cross, which do I identify with most, and why?
2. What am I grateful for especially this week?  Maybe not things that have happened this week, but things that have come to mind this week.
3. How is my faith changing my actions?
4. What is God calling me to understand from His perspective?

Shalom!

23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 23nd Sunday of Ordinary Time are:

1. Isaiah 35: 4-7a
2. Psalms 146: 6-7, 8-9, 9-10
3. James 2: 1-5
4. Mark 7: 31-37

• Abundance in unexpected places
• How has God been abundant beyond reason in your life?  Given you more than you ever would have asked for, ever expected?
• How would you define "more" in your life?  How do you quantify that?
• Why do you think that God is so abundant?
• Is that abundance always easily visible?
• Why is that?

• God has a thing for the weak
• Who are the oppressed in our midst these days?
• What do you think that God desires for them?
• How do you think that God will make that happen?
• What is our role in bringing His kingdom? 

• The source of all generosity
• What would you consider to be the true riches of our faith?
• Is it the concepts, the beliefs that we hold?
• The sacred art and sacred music that has been inspired through the ages?
• The incredible generosity that has poured out from God's people to those in need?
• ...?
• Given that, how ought we to treat those riches?

• Astonishment
• Richard Rohr draws a distinction between astonishment that seems to be the stock response in Mark's Gospel, versus pondering, that is the response that Mary seems to have throughout the Gospel.  Astonishment is a knee-jerk reaction to what God/Jesus does, pondering is a meditation on those same actions.
• Do you think that Mary ever completely "figured it out"?
• Have you ever tried to "ponder" some event, some gift in your life to find its meaning?
• How did you know that you were done in that process?
• Does that pondering actually have to arrive at a conclusion?

• Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. What are my expectations of God in prayer lately?  How much do I trust Him for?
2. How am I bringing about God's kingdom this week?
3. What am I doing to add to God's riches?
4. What is God calling me to ponder this week?

Shalom!

22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 22nd Sunday of Ordinary Time are:

1. Deuteronomy 4: 1-2, 6-8
2. Psalms 15: 2-3, 3-4, 4-5
3. James 1: 17-18 21b-22, 27
4. Mark 7: 1-8, 14-15, 21-23

• Foundation for reform
• In fairness to the Jews, many of those admonitions and rules were put into place to help protect the law by making it difficult for someone to unintentionally even come close to breaking the law.
• Is the answer to legalism in religion to strip all of the regulations back to their essence?
• If so, how far back do you go?
• How do you know that you're done removing the "extra" prohibitions, beliefs, devotions?
• And what of someone who imposes safeguards on themselves?  For instance an alcoholic who will not even enter a bar for fear of having a relapse, are they being legalistic?

• Who decides what is just?
• We can all think of things that are unjust.  Things such as a person not being able to enjoy the fruits of their labor, or a family constantly afraid of deportation simply because of their ethnicity, or someone cheating on their income taxes.
• Is there something that ties these, and all injustices together?
• If someone wanted to put a situation in front of you and ask whether that was just, would you feel comfortable rendering a judgement?
• How do we find God's perspectives on issues of justice?

• The source of all generosity
• Selfless philanthropists are looked up to for their generosity.  Those that give away large sums even put in their time and talent along with the money to help in the administration.
• If you won the lottery, how would you spend it?
• Where would you go for guidance in such a venture?
• How long would it take for you to "get back to normal" after winning all of those millions?

• Purification
• Truly pure motives are hard to find.  We often set out with the best intentions, only to find half way through a venture that we are not as pure as we thought.
• Does that mean that we should never take on a venture until we have totally pure motives?
• Is doing the right thing for the wrong reason always totally wrong?
• Is doing the wrong thing for the right reason always totally right?

• Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. How does my relationship with Jesus modify my behavior?
2. When was the last time that I spoke out against an injustice?
3. How can I be generous and yet be true to my needs, my passions, who God has created me?
4. How can I be more honest about my motives?

Shalom!

20th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 20th Sunday of Ordinary Time are:

1. Proverbs 9: 1-6
2. Psalms 34: 2-3, 4-5, 6-7
3. Ephesians 5: 15-20
4. John 6: 51-58

• Food for the journey
• Who in your life would you say has an abundance of wisdom?
• Do you ever go to them for answers to specific issues, or wisdom in general?
• How do we achieve wisdom?
• How does one pass that along to others?
• Should we all be wise, or is wisdom something that you can just "Google up"?

• Tasting or savoring?
• Why do you believe that God is good?
• What does that really mean?  How could God be bad?
• Does God's goodness require that He always be good to all of us all of the time?
• How are you good to God?

• No regrets
• Looking back over your life, are there times or seasons that you wished that you had savored more?
• What kept you from really appreciating those times as you went through them?
• Do you think that you are getting the most out of today?
• How do you think that you might become more aware of God's daily gift to/in/and through you?

• Manna
• The bread from heaven for the Jews would immediately make them think of the manna in the desert, one sign that God was with them during their time in the Sinai desert, a sign that they were God's people, a community in His care.
• How does the Eucharist make a community of us?
• Does that community just include those partaking of the Body and Blood that particular Mass, or does it include those who receive from that table by way of extraordinary Eucharistic ministers?
• Does that community extend to the other communities, celebrating different Masses that day?
• Does it include all Catholics celebrating Eucharist anywhere any time?
• Or is that community, does God's love extend even farther?
• What does this sort of community really mean?

• Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. What journey is God's wisdom taking me on today?
2. What do I need to be more grateful for?
3. How have I not been as present as I could be to those around me?
4. How can I more deeply celebrate the whole community that God has called me into?

Shalom!

19th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 19th Sunday of Ordinary Time are:

1. 1 Kings 19: 4-8
2. Psalms 34: 2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9
3. Ephesians 4: 30-5:2
4. John 6: 41-51

• Food for the journey
• We don't see whether God told Elijah what he would find there at Horeb, God just equipped him and sent him.
• What are some of the things that you participate in regularly that nourish and equip you?
• Where do you feel that God is sending you lately?
• What do you expect to find when you "arrive" there?

• We have nothing to fear but fear itself
• What are some of the things that you fear in particular.  When you make this list, be as specific as you can.  Don't just say "I worry about my family".  Rather, something specific such as "I fear that my son is making career choices that he will regret later."
• Where is God in that circumstance?
• What do you expect God to do?
• What would you like for God to do?
• If there is a difference between those two, why is that?
• If you see no difference between those two, why is that?

• It's hard being vulnerable
• What really happens to the other person when you forgive them?
• What happens to you?
• Do you feel that forgiving others makes you more vulnerable?
• How can the person that you forgive take advantage of that forgiveness?
• How can the person that you forgive take advantage of you?

• One bread or another
• The sacraments are described as doorways to the sacred, a means for us to touch that which is holy and sublime, even while we are here in the physical world.
• Why do you think that Jesus fed the people those barley loaves first, then preached to them this bread of life discourse?
• When our parishioners are going hungry physically, is our Eucharistic celebration complete and authentic?
• How can we more fully be bread for the poor, no matter what makes them poor?

• Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. Am I willing to turn my back on what is comfortable and familiar in favor of a fuller life?
2. What will it take for me to give up a fear (pick one) to God?
3. Who do I need to forgive, in order for me to achieve wholeness?
4. How can I be more deeply generous in my life?

Shalom!