Readings: Acts 5, 12-16; Psalm118; Revelation 1, 9-10; John 20, 19-31

Second Sunday After Easter – Reflection on the Readings

Acts of the Apostles continues Luke’s Gospel by focusing on the spread of Christianity after the Resurrection.  The focus is first on the work of the Apostles and especially on the position of Peter, and then in the second half of the book, the focus is on the work of Paul. 

Today’s reading from Chapter 5 comes immediately after the apostles have been brought before the Sanhedrin (the powers that be in the Jewish community) and told to stop their preaching about Jesus.  This is clearly a focus on the question “who will be in charge of the twelve tribes of Israel?  It also echoes back to Abraham and his being placed in charge of the tribes of Israel. 

Remember, we are dealing with a group who have only the Old Testament to turn to in their attempts to make sense of all that they remember or heard about Jesus.  The power of God, working thru Peter is now much stronger than even when Jesus cured.  All people need for healing is to have Peter’s shadow pass over them.  There is no need for any physical contact!  Luke is here building up the importance of the “new leaders” of the people, the apostles.

Our second reading is from the Book of Revelations; a much-misunderstood work, which I wish had never been included in the New Testament!  The work is primarily written in an apocalyptic style and its main focus is on the Roman Empire and the battle which the early Christians had with that entity.  There is nothing about the 21^st century in this writing, nor about how the world itself would end!  The writer had no idea of a place called the USA nor the Soviet Union!  

Second Sunday After Easter – Homily

Poor Thomas!  Actually thank God for Thomas!  It is comforting to know that someone else had doubts about the resurrection.  One week after our high point of Easter Sunday we are immediately given this wonderful little incident.  What I like about it is that it allows space for a very natural doubt to exist side be side with the faith in the Resurrection. 

Back in 1968 a book was published called Introduction to Christianity by Joseph Ratzinger.  The book was a through examination of the Apostles Creed.  I remember being surprised when he talks fairly early on in the book about both the believer and unbeliever share, each in his own way, doubt and belief.  At the time it struck me as quite surprising.  Remember I was a naive seminarian in my early twenties and everything was rock solid!  Oh for those nice innocent days!!

I have since grown up to recognize the truth in Ratzinger’s book, and in my own life.  If we remember back to the church before Vatican II we seemed to live in a world of certainty.  We were told exactly how everything was, now it seems things are messy!  It is what happens when you look behind the curtain, as happened to Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz. 

Doubting seems to be an integral part of our lives.  We would very much like the comfort of absolute certainty, and we do have it in a few things, like death and taxes, but for all the other areas of our lives we move from one doubt to another, all the while trying to either buy insurance or insulate ourselves in some other way against the uncertainties of life.  And belief in God is one area where there is lots of room for doubt, since God is mystery. 

So what can we begin to compare or faith in God to in our experience?  It seems to me that it is like being in love.  You meet someone and fall in love.  But the other person is free to respond or not.  The minute you force their response it is no longer love.  And so our most intimate of relationships with other humans is based on a hope that the other will respond and continue to respond.  If I think of God along those lines there is one major difference, God is going to love me, in this relationship; God is the only one taking the risk. 

Picture 1:  Tony begins Mass

Picture 2:  The Offertory

Picture 3:  Jim, Bob, Jackie, & friend 

Readings:

Ecclesiastes 1, 2; 21-23,  All things are vanity.

Psalm 90,  If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Colossians 3, 1-5, 9-11  Seek what is above.

Luke 12, 13-21, You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you.

Ecclesiastes Observations: 

Author:  unknown.   A belief was that it was Solomon

Date: 
 250-150 years before Christ.

Subject: 
the work is a putting together of a lot of folk sayings and life
observations which represent wisdom sometimes, sometimes not.  For instance, today’s selection. 

Today: 
pretty pessimistic.  It says that
everything is vanity. 

Beginning with photos to come.

Colossians
observations:  We are done with this work for now,
fortunately.

Best line of
the Day: check the Psalm, the 4^th stanza, “Fill us at daybreak with
your kindness, that we may shout for joy and gladness all our days.”  This has been my experience the past week in
Iowa.  More in the homily.

Joanie and Payton arriving.

Fill us at daybreak with
your kindness

Fill me
at daybreak with your kindness, that I may shout for joy and gladness. 
This was Iowa, folks. 

If you
don’t know what this is all about it is this. 
Sunday, July 21^st, Chris and I set out on our bikes with an
estimated crowd at times of 35,000 riders. 
We departed the west side if Iowa at the Missouri River and finished at
the east side and the Mississippi River 7 days later, Saturday. 

CC and her buddy.

The
whole experience really touched my spirit, but let me single out three special
events, hospitality, trust, and beauty.

First, hospitalty.  Most of
the nights on the ride my team, Spokes of Hope, a cancer support team from
Indianapolis, found homes at which we could set up tents in the yard.  This was a little more private.

Kayla following CC.

One
family in Oskaloosa, the next to the last night, knocked me out.  They had a nice big 5-9 acre lot with two
houses for the family.  They hosted about
80 people, Spokes of Hope and Livestrong, Lance Armstrong’s former cancer
program. 

And Mr. Leo looking cool on a hot morning.

When we
arrived they had spread out on their deck chips and dip and drinks.  At 5:00 they themselves served us all an
enormous dinner.  The next morning they
sent us on our way with a great breakfast. 
All gratis, no charge.   Hospitality.

Gracie ready for anything with her backpack.

In Des
Moines a widow of about 6 months invited our 14 member team into her nice
house.  She is a doctor and teaches at
the local medical school.

She,
also, fixed us all a big dinner and a big breakfast.  She sent us on our way with a few dozen
chocolate chip cookies and brownies.  The
Indianapolis folks are probably still eating those cookies.   All
gratis, no charge.  Hospitality.

Emma looking beautiful, as always.

Next, trust.  Never did I fear my bike would be
stolen.  In the small towns where it was
impossible to ride because of the mass of people, bikes were dropped
everywhere.  In fact, the problem was
remembering, “Wow, where is my bike?”

Curtis at 84 who lost his Cupcake of The Week to Emma temporarily.

One
afternoon I rode up to a Tom Thumb type grocery store that had an $8 all you
can eat pasta & dessert sale.  This
was in the last overnight town on the road, Fairfield.  I remember hesitating at first.  My bike. 
Lots of people around.  Plus lots
of bikes.  I left my bike with my helmet & gloves hanging from the handlebar.  An hour
later it was right there along with all the other bikes & bikers.  The trust, everywhere.

Kevin, The Reliable, suiting up.

Finally,
the beauty.   Don’t believe the idea that Iowa is flat.  It is not mountainous, okay.  It is hilly. 
This trip had lots of hills and lots of scenic vistas, plus beautiful little towns.  Once
I must confess at the end of a day 110 miles long I had to walk a hill, my
thigh muscles saying they just might like to cramp.   I learned prudence from Rosemary.

Judy arrives to hear news about….

There
were a number of occasions when the hospitality, the trust, and the beauty, to
not even mention my gratitude at being able to do this, just touched me to
tears as I rode peacefully along.  Which
made me say to myself, “Watch out, man, you can’t see and you will crash.”

Keokuk, Iowa and Judy's house, facing the Mississippi on Grand Avenue.

This is
the psalm line exemplified, “Fill us at daybreak with your kindness, that we
may shout for joy and gladness all our days.”

How is
it for you?

Keokuk, Iowa, the home of Mike on Grand facing the Mississippi, also. What a coincidence! Same town, same street, facing the same river. Should not these houses be considered historical monuments?

Readings:                          

Deuteronomy  30,  10-14,  Heed the voice of the Lord.

Psalm 69,  Turn to the Lord in your need and you will live.

Colossians 1, 15-20,     Jesus is the image of the invisible God.

Luke 10, 25-37,  The man robbed on the road to Jericho.

Genevieve says, "Welcome in, Everybody.  It is nice to be back.  Here, let me open the door for you."

Deuteronomy observations:

The Scene: the desert outside the promised land.  Moses is talking to the people about all that has happened to them since he led them out of Israel and through the desert for many years.  Now, as they prepare to enter, Moses is dying.  He is simply exhorting them to love Yahweh and obey his laws. 

The Author:  not Moses.  A compilation put into three discourses.

Date:  guess when?  Yes, after the Babylonian Captivity, ca. 555 before Christ.

Subject today:  Moses talks about a command, but never mentions exactly what it is.  Watch for the answer in today's gospel.  The Great Command, to be a Good Samaritan.

Says Zoe, "Hi, Folks, Yes, it is nice to be back.  California is also pretty nice."

The Victims in Our Lives

This past Friday evening I did something I have been doing a lot of.  I rode my bike down the White Rock Creek Path to The Lake, went around it, and came back up the path to Royal Lane, a distance of about 20 miles.   Sorry to tell another biking story, but it was so relevant for me at the time.

As I was coming home and making the transition from the Lake to the Path, I went under the new Northwest Hwy Bridge.  Being dusk it was sort of dark under the bridge.  However, to my left about twenty yards over to the wall, I noticed 3 bikers stopped maybe two guys and a girl. 

So, I took a deep breath and yelled, “You guys okay, need any help?”

Welcome back to you, Leo.  I've missed the Leo spirit around here.

It may seem pretty trivial, but this is so hard for me to do.  These people are calling me to be a Good Samaritan.  I, however, am obsessed about keeping my schedule.  As I yelled I was hoping they would say, “We are okay.”  Which they did.  So I got off easy. 

I asked these people because I knew I was going to have to make a resolution in view of this homily.  I even used to ask people, but got too busy, at least in my mind. 

Victoria and Zoe, our Candle Lighters of The Week.

In the past two months I have passed two groups.  One group of two guys, they were walking a bike with a flat front tire.  I can fix flats in ten minutes.   I have everything I need.  The other group was under another bridge and had a bike upside down and they were working on an inner tube.  Both times I passed by, said nothing, and then felt guilty.

So, I resolve to always ask people if they need help when I see them standing by their bike. 

Now, you say, ‘Well, I don’t even ride a bike.  How does this pertain to me?’   My bet?  Somewhere you have a similar challenge.

Three of the Wyndham Clan, Ron, Barbara, and Ray.

As a community, I would highlight a joy I have, the fact that we attempt to be a good Samaritan to a number of small charities, and in particular to Souls Harbor.  This is a privilege. 

Recalling my psych stuff, How am I called to be a good Samaritan to myself?   We are all wounded people in some way.  How am I nurturing my spirit?  Where have I been hurt and how am I a Good Samaritan with that hurt? 

Where are you challenged to be a Better Good Samaritan?

"Nothing beats Grandma's hugs,"  says Zoe?

Readings:  Deuteronomy 30, 10-14; Psalm 69, Turn to the Lord in Your Need, and You will Live; Colossians 1, 15-20; Luke 10, 25-37

Apologies for a late blog.  The Editors are in Lindsay, Ontario where wireless is fairly non-existent on Sundays.

Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time.

Introduction to the Readings

Our first reading today comes from the Book of Deuteronomy, which is the fifth book of the Pentateuch.  The section is from the closing chapters, which are best identified as “The Final Discourse of Moses”.  It may seem strange to us, that having lead the people from captivity in Egypt and spent some 40 years wandering thru the desert, received the famous “Ten Commandments” on Mount Sinai, which set up the covenant between the God and the Jews, we find that Moses is not going to enter into the Promised Land, because of some unnamed fault (Numbers 20: 12).  In the reading today, Moses emphasizes the nearness of God’s commandments to the people.  

Paul’s Letter to the Colossians gives us what is clearly an early liturgical hymn about Christ.  The reason for the letter to the Colossians was that there were some folks creating problems in the community with false teachings.  In using this hymn, which was probably part of a very early liturgy, he is working with a concept that faith is not only needed for liturgical worship, but that through liturgical worship faith is deepened.  The hymn can be broken into two themes, Christ’s role in creation and Christ’s role in reconciliation.

Our gospel continues the journey to Jerusalem.  On the way a lawyer tests Jesus and we have the great story of the “Good Samaritan”. 

Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. – Homily

What is our image of God?  In our lives our image of God must go through many changes.  If we reflect on what happened to Moses after all he had done in helping the Jews escape from Egypt, lead them for 40 years thru the desert towards the Promised Land, only to be denied entry himself, it would seem that God is harsh. 

If we look at the image of Jesus presented to us in the Second Reading from the letter to the Colossians, we find a God who is more in fitting with what modern writers are calling the Cosmic Christ, who is present in the entire universe and holding all creation in existence.  This Cosmic Christ is a difficult image to have a relationship with for humans.

And finally in our Gospel, we are told clearly that the way to live our lives in relationship with God is to love one another, especially those whom we wouldn’t consider our friends.  Elsewhere in the gospels we are told “as often as we did it for one these, the least, we did it for Jesus”.  So to live our lives as God wants us to, we do need to pay special attention to what we read in the gospels.  If I look at the balance in Jesus’ life, he certainly took care of his neighbors, but he also went off to pray quietly.  Do we have that balance?

Picture 1:  Mass with Tony and Kevin

Picture 2:  The Choir, Wendy, Shonda, Ray & Celeste

Picture 3:  John Cade

Picture 4: Cora Elizabeth Shadrick, daughter of Megan and Dave, granddaughter of Rob and Beth.

Readings: Hosea, 6, 3-6; Psalm 50; Romans 4, 18-25; Matthew 9,9-13; plus a good Alleluia verse, Luke 4, 18, about which I would like to speak.

Hosea: as with most of the prophets, Hosea is disturbed by the infidelity & behavior of the Hebrews.  He tells them how bad they are and warns them that their bad ways will have consequences.  Yahweh will punish them.  He lives about 700 years B.C. & worked the area of the north, called Israel or Galilee.

Me Bring Glad Tidings to the Poor?

Many of you, I am sure, have your favorite auto mechanic.  And if you don't, you probably wish you did.  Rosemary & I have an Italian Catholic family, the Lucidos, who run One Stop.  Trouble with it is that it is a little distance, near 35 & Royal. 

In Richardson there is another of these reliable mechanics.  I don't know the man, but he has a reputation of being reliable, dependable, reasonable with his prices, and a curmudgeon.  A grump, a no patience, no compliments, non-smiler. 

A family I know who has lived in Richardson forever has believed in this mechanic.  The family has raised three kids who are now grown up and at least into their 20's.  As is the case in so many families, one of the kids, the oldest boy, has had his troubles migrating from adolescence into adulthood.  In and out of school, not able to find what he wanted to do, hanging with friends who likewise could not find their way. 

In the past couple of years, this boy finally married, had some kids, and actually graduated from college.  I think this was his first year to teach in special ed.  It looked like the kid was really putting his life together and going somewhere.

In the spring the boy had car trouble and naturally he took his trouble to the family mechanic.  All went well and the car was fixed for a reasonable price. 

A few days later the father got a call from the curmudgeon mechanic.  What do you think he was calling to say? 

"I am calling," he said, "to compliment you on your son."  The mechanic who never gives compliments and who had known and followed the son through his growing pains, said the boy had turned out marvelously, courteous, friendly, saying "Yes, sir," & "No, sir," and was really a pleasure to be around. 

I think dad just about fainted dead on the phone.

I tell this story because it exemplifies one approach to "The Lord sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor."  A marvelous line.  For three reasons.

     We are all the poor and need to hear glad tidings.  We are less than we want to be, we hurt others, we fail in business and in sports, we fail as spouses, as parents, as priests.   Then along comes glad tidings: "I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.  Pretty good news for us sinners.

   The Lord sends Me to bring glad tidings, good news, compliments.  The Richardson curmudgeon mechanic brought happy tidings to a father who could have felt rather poverty stricken over the years as a parent.  This is one of the main motivations I work as a priest & therapist.

   The result of the glad tidings is greater inner peace–for the person who receives the gift and for the person who brings it.  Certainly the father felt greater peace and probably the mechanic felt a peace.

With whom do you share glad tidings & how?

AUDIO: http://mysite.verizon.net/reso7rjy/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/2008-06-08.mp3

Readings:  Jonah 3, 1-10, Forty days more and Nineveh will be destroyed; Psalm 25, Teach me your ways, O Lord; 1 Corinthians 7, 29-31, The time is running out; Mark 1, 14-20, I will make you fishers of people.

Jonah: This little book of 4 chapters is a gem and tells a delightful short story.   It is so good I would like to read it all, but will read chapter 1 and all of chapter 3. 

Background: Jonah has been asked by Yahweh to go to Nineveh in Assyria to tell the people & leaders that they are evil and will be punished shortly by Yahweh.  Trouble is, Nineveh is the enemy, like me going to Houston or Philadelphia. 

So he runs away, catches a boat headed for Spain, is blamed by the sailors for causing a big storm on the sea, and is dumped overboard.  The whale swallows him and for three days Jonah is constrained to reflect on what he is doing.  When, after 3 days, the whale dumps him on shore, Jonah is more willing to listen.  We arrive at this point and I will have all of chapter 3 read.

Author: For centuries, while people took this story as factual, Jonah was considered author of his own story.  Once it was seen as a fable or allegory, the story probably has some unknown ancient as the author.

Date of composition: no one really knows, but educated guesses put it ca. 800 BCE.

Note: the story of Jonah and the story of Jesus' interaction with his future apostles are both about The Call. 

A Call Story

    Because the Jonah story and the story about Jesus relating to his future apostles all talk about The Call, I have a short contemporary story.

    The girl’s name is Susan.  Blond hair, green eyes, vivacious, a cheer leader at Skyline and at S.M.U.  In fact, she was the head cheerleader at S.M.U.  She was fun to be around and full of zest for life.  

    While Susan presented herself so positively at school, At this point in her life three horrible events had taken place.   

    First, the summer Susan was 10 she and her mother were at the lake on the 4^th of July.  They were on the boat dock when a man came up and whispered in her mother’s ear that their 18 year old son had just committed suicide back at their home.  Susan watched as her mother was carried off the pier.   

    The suicide drove her parents to drink and eventually divorce.  Susan was left to care take the house and her drunk mother while she finished grade school and high school.  This was the second horrible event. 

    When Susan graduated with honors from high school, no one was there to clap for her or support her.  She went home, raged at her mother, and told her she wished she were dead.   The next morning Susan found her mother dead.  Her mother was 49 when she drank herself to death.  This was the third tragedy.  She was just entering S.M.U.

    Some years later one more tragedy struck her.  Her older sister Kathy, upon whom she depended, died of cancer at the same age as their mom, 49, on the same holiday as her mom, Memorial Day. 

    This final event did it.  Despite having kids and a career as a special ed coordinator, Susan entered the world of drug addiction.  Within about a year CPS had taken her kids away and Susan went to prison.  

    In about a year Susan came out of the belly of the prison and two things happened.  First, she heard The Call.  Secondly, and interconnected with The Call she watched two parents react to the tragic death of their child.  The parents inspired her and she answered The Call to come back to life.  Today Susan gives talks about her life to strengthen others.

    If you are like me, you think that The Call is to do something usually significant.  Maybe it is, but it can be simply an invitation to come back to life or to be more fully alive.  

    Today the Mass is all about Call.  What is yours today?

Resource, Dallas Morning News, 1-21-12, Kristie Smith, Viewpoints section, Educator Fell far but found God.

Picture 1:    Offertory, Mary Ellen & Grace

Picture 2:    Brooklyn with Joanie & Erin

Picture 3:    Ray & Claire celebrating 41 years

Picture 4:    Tom, Bill, & Ron

Picture 5:    Someone has come to visit, no fear!

Picture 6:    It's Sienna!