Reflection for February 18, 2016: Thursday of the First Week of Lent

            For many of us, today’s Gospel may seem to run contrary to our experiences. How many of us have prayed for something, and seemingly gotten no answer? Does this mean that God has not heard our prayers- that he has not answered us, or we are somehow not praying hard enough? How do we reconcile what seems to happen in our prayers with today’s Gospel?

            God answers all prayers- however, he does not always answer them in the way we expect.  Sometimes the answer is no, or not yet. Sometimes the answer is “I have something better in store for you, if you trust me.” Jesus reminds us in the Gospel that our Heavenly Father will bestow “good things” on those who ask for them. God, who knows us better than we know ourselves, knows what our needs truly are- and is waiting to give us these good things- if we only ask for them.

            In order for our prayer to bear more fruit, it is important to recognize that God is not a divine “genie,” whose only purpose is to grant the wishes of humankind. Prayers of petition are  important, but unless we are also willing to pray for knowledge of God’s will, these prayers of petition can only take us so far. As St. Paul says in his letter to the Colossians, The goal of our prayer is to “attain full knowledge of God’s will through perfect wisdom and spiritual insight,” in order that we may “lead a life worthy of the Lord and pleasing to him in every way.”

            Praying for and accepting God’s will is difficult, because it requires us to let go of our selfish wants and desires, and accept God’s will as our own.  This requires great trust.  Trust that God will indeed provide us with good things, which will help us to grow closer to Him, and seek after the life which is to come. 

            Each day at Mass, when we pray the Our Father, I challenge you to truly think about the meaning of the words “thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” This is just one example of a way in which we pray every day for knowledge of God’s will for our lives. Do we take this part of the prayer seriously? Or do we gloss over it as we say it, because it has become routine? When we truly make this prayer our own, and begin to accept God’s will, we are better able to see how God does answer prayer, and we will be able to recognize that His answers to our prayers are continually guiding us to knowledge of his will.

Reflection for February 11, 2016

February 11, 2016

Thursday After Ash Wednesday

            “Choose Life.” These words from today’s first reading form the basis of Moses’ instructions to the Israelites before they take possession of the Holy Land. But what does it mean for us to choose life? and how does this relate to our Lenten observance?

            In today’s first reading, Moses equates choosing life with fidelity to God’s law. If the Israelites are faithful in observing the Law of God, then they will enjoy life and prosperity in the Land of Israel. If they are not, they will suffer the death of exile, and be cut off from the land, their promised heritage.  This instruction is very much focused on earthly realities- especially true since the Israelites at the time did not have a concept of heaven or an afterlife. In their view, earthly prosperity was a sign of God’s favor.

            In today’s Gospel, Jesus also instructs his disciples to “choose life”, albeit in a more implicit manner. but this time there are eternal implications. And perhaps most strikingly, Jesus hints that earthly prosperity is not part of the deal- in fact, he tells his disciples that earthly prosperity can be a hindrance to entering the kingdom of heaven! Jesus’ words are clear- “whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me.”  If yesterday’s readings issued a call to repentance, and gave us a model for our Lenten observance, today’s readings issue a call to action, and remind us that our journey cannot end with mere sorrow for our sins. Jesus calls us to daily conversion- to a daily denial of self wants and interests, in order to take up the cross of discipleship, and faithfully follow in the footsteps of Christ. In this way, we save our life by losing it- we deny ourselves of earthly treasure, power, and prestige, in order that we might store up treasure in heaven

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And this is the key to eternal life. But this does not mean that everyone here must completely divest themselves of all possessions- we have a right to ensure that our basic needs are met, and we would be foolish to deprive ourselves of the resources to do so. Rather, we are called to be good stewards of the gifts that have been entrusted to us, and to use those gifts to serve those in need, and build up treasure in heaven. Pope Francis, especially in this year of Mercy, has spoken extensively about the need to care for the poor- saying that the Year of mercy is not complete unless we are willing to give to the poor. This is also a part of our Lenten observance of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, and our experience of lent will be richer if we heed Pope Francis’ words - even if all we do is give up one cup of coffee at starbucks a day, and give that money to the poor.

              As we continue this Lenten Journey, Let us ask God for the grace to take up our own cross in order to follow Christ- not allowing the desire for earthly power, wealth and prestige to hinder us, but striving to be faithful witnesses to the Gospel, and faithful servants of Christ. In this way, we will be able to “choose life” every single day- not the passing life of this world, but the eternal life that is to come.  

Gospel Reflection for February 4, 2016

As I begin my studies in Homiletics this Semester, I am going to start posting my reflections here, for people to read.

Gospel: Mark 6:7-13

How many of us, when preparing for a journey, spend many hours packing suitcases, making sure our finances are in order, arranging transportation, hotels, planning activities, and many other tasks- before we even step out the door?  Often in our preparations, we pack too much for the journey, wanting to be prepared for all possible situations. And often, we find that the items we packed “Just in case” were not necessary- they only cause us more trouble, because we must lug them around with us until we return home.

Now imagine if you were told to go on a journey, and were told to leave immediately, taking nothing with you. How would you feel then? anxious? Scared? Afraid?

The disciples in today’s Gospel must have felt some of these feelings when they heard the instructions of Jesus telling them how they were to go out and preach the Gospel to the villages and towns. It seems strange to us that Jesus would tell his disciples to go out to preach without basic necessities, and basic means of providing for their own survival. Jesus, however, knew what he was doing.

By commanding the disciples to bring no food, money, or extra clothing, Jesus is telling the disciples that their own personal needs are to take second place to the proclamation of the Kingdom of God. He does not want them to be worried about where they are going to buy lunch, or whether they have enough money to pay the innkeeper- rather Jesus wants their sole focus to be on proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom, trusting that if they faithfully proclaim the message, God will take care of everything else.  Jesus doesn’t want “extra baggage” to get in the way of proclaiming the Gospel. In fact, the faithfulness of the disciples to these instructions will begin to make the reality of the Kingdom of God manifest.

Too often, our “extra baggage” weighs us down, and keeps us from authentically proclaiming the Gospel Message through word and deed. Jesus’ instructions to the disciples challenge us to examine our own lives, and ask “What can I leave behind so that I am better able to make the Gospel known through my life? Do I truly trust that God will take care of me?” Learning to leave aside our extra baggage will help us to focus on our own needs less and less, and increasingly focus on the needs of others. It will help us to build relationships, and better communities. It will make us authentic witnesses to the Gospel. and in the end, we too, will make the Kingdom of God manifest.