Urban Hermit at 3156 Doyle Street, Toledo, OH 43608-2006 US - Year B, 2nd-8th, 12th-13th
| Year B, 2nd-8th, 12th-13th |
2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (B): God's Call 1 Samuel 3:3b-10, 19—Here I am. Psalm 40: Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will. 1 Corinthians 6:13c-15a, 17-20—Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you. John 1:35-42—Come, and you will see. God, like true love, doesn't come around just once. In the reading today from the first book of Samuel, God keeps calling Samuel until he learns to answer. Jesus calls the disciples, and we know that they faltered and floundered along the way. Still, Jesus kept calling them, in various ways, until they listened. These pictures of the dynamics of call show that we, too, will be called by God until we answer. If we ignore the call, as Samuel did, or follow and falter, as the disciples did, God will keep on calling. It's not a once-in-a-lifetime thing. It's over and over again. I chuckle whenever I hear the phrase "practicing Catholic"—practice, indeed, until I get it right… and I haven't got it right yet. The call is the same: answer, until I get it right. The essence of what a vocation is has been obfuscated by the incomplete categories presented to us by church and society. Our list of sacraments includes, as we've been taught to categorize them, two sacraments of vocation, Matrimony and Holy Orders. Even in more primitive cultures than ours, those two would seem incomplete because of their ignoring of single life, vowed life, and widowed life. In society at large we look at vocations to professional life in areas like education, medicine, or business, but we ignore vocations to government service or mechanics or farming, for example. In truth, the vocation we are called to is not our marital status or employment. We are called to walk with God, wherever we are. Many people have more than one talent and, depending on their age and inclination, more than one structure to their lifestyle. My mother, for example, started life as a single person, first as daughter, then as young worker in retail sales. She became a wife and mother, working as a truck driver and then as a nurse, sharing homemaking and parenting duties with my father. She was a widow, working in a factory. She was a retiree, organizing church groups. In each of those areas of her life, she had a vocation to follow God in shaping her life to God's will, regardless of whether she was married or where she worked. It is God who gives expression and continuity to our vocation: it is God's call we answer. The world is full of ways and places we can follow. Let's go! Jonah 3:1-5, 10—When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he repented of the evil that he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out. Psalm 25: Teach me your ways, O Lord. 1 Corinthians 7:29-31—The world in its present form is passing away. Mark 1:14-20—Repent and believe in the gospel. The great preachers preach the word of God: today Jonah, Paul, and Jesus call us to reform, change our lives, repent and believe. The key to their preaching is integrity. Each of them, in his own way, becomes the word of God that is preached. Jonah himself repents of his reluctance and sets out for Ninevah. It was not his preference to preach to the Gentiles there, and he ran from God. Unable to hide, he admits his failings and ends up preaching to the Ninevites, a prophet whose word of repentance rests on his own bending of his will to God's. Paul, too, understands firsthand his message that the world is passing away. His world—the world of powerful Rome and persecuting Pharisee—has passed away from him. He belongs to Jesus, and the word he preaches is the word of God. Jesus steps forth into Galilee once John has been arrested, preaching the word of repentance and belief in the good news. He fishes for people, seeking out that which will turn them to God. The bait he uses is his own integrity, the word made flesh and walking among the people, reaching out and touching them in their poverty and illness and disease. And so it is that we are called, each of us, to speak the word of God with the integrity of our own lives. We are called to turn our attention away from the things of this world, which is passing away, and tend to the service of others. However we do this—whether through family or job, prayer or charity—we must strive to do it with integrity, baring the lessons of our souls to inspire those we serve. As we go about this week, let's make a special effort to become transparent to the word of God, that its message might be in us and be seen through us, wherever we go. 4th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B): Devote Yourselves Entirely to the Lord Deuteronomy 18:15-20—The Lord said to me, "This was well said. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their kinspeople, and will put my words into his mouth; he shall tell them all that I command him. If anyone will not listen to my words which he speaks in my name, I myself will make him answer for it." Psalm 95:1-9—If today you hear God's voice, harden not your hearts. 1 Corinthians 7:32-35—I should like you to be free of all worries. The unmarried man is busy with the Lord's affairs, concerned with pleasing the Lord; but the married man is busy with this world's demands and is occupied with pleasing his wife. This means he is divided. The virgin—indeed, any unmarried woman—is concerned with things of the Lord, in pursuit of holiness in body and spirit. The married woman, on the other hand, has the cares of this world to absorb her and is concerned with pleasing her husband. I am going into this with you for your own good. I have no desire to place restrictions on you, but I do want to promote what is good, what will help you to devote yourselves entirely to the Lord. Mark 1:21-28—Jesus entered the synagogue on the Sabbath and began to teach. The people were spellbound by his teaching because he taught with authority and not like the scribes. If nothing else were to convince us of the radical nature of Christianity, this pericope from Saint Paul's first letter to the Corinthians would have to do it. Free of all worries… no restrictions… sounds like paradise! And indeed it is—it is the paradise of life in God, of a life totally concerned with pleasing the Lord, totally immersed in the pursuit of holiness, whole and entire, undivided. This is the way prophets are raised among us. Today's reading from Deuteronomy relates Yahweh's own description of the prophet raised up from among the people and speaking the Lord's own words to the people. The prophet speaks with authority, and so Mark describes Jesus in today's Gospel. Each member of the body of Christ—the people of God—shares this call to prophecy just as we share the call to priesthood and royal authority. In answering the call, we are encouraged to do that which would help us devote ourselves entirely to the Lord. In Paul's view, that is the single life, undivided devotion in pursuit of holiness. How each of us works out that pursuit is as individual as we are. Many marry, working to please the Lord through devotion to the cares and demands of married life and the raising of children. Some remain unmarried, and for them the pursuit of holiness can be straightforward and without distraction. Our Church has sometimes presented the single life as superior to the married life. Fortunately, recent theology attempts to erase the idea that one is better than the other. Certainly, the two choices are different. The key lies in each person's discerning the way God sets out for him or her, and following that way with eagerness and energy. As we go about this week, let's look at the lifestyle choices we have made and reflect on our living them out in devotion to God and in pursuit of holiness
5th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B): Slave to All
Job 7:1-4, 6-7—Job spoke, saying: Is not man's life on earth a drudgery? Are not his days those of hirelings?
Psalm 147: Praise the Lord who heals the brokenhearted.
1 Corinthians 9:16-19, 22-23—Although I am free in regard to all, I have made myself a slave to all so as to win over as many as possible.
Mark 1:29-39—She waited on them.
In this land of the free and home of the brave it is not politically correct to choose slavery, yet today's readings clearly direct us to that stance from every direction.
In our first reading Job observes that we are hirelings, drudges, slaves who long for shade as the highest hope of our condition. Paul's assertion to the Corinthians is that he has made himself a slave, but for a purpose.
In the gospel Mark tells the story of Jesus' cure of Simon's mother-in-law, who rises from her sickbed to wait on Jesus and his friends. Mark embeds that story in the wider dynamic of Jesus' own slavery to his mission. Jesus has just served in the synagogue, healing and preaching there. Then he moves out into the world, to the house of Simon and Andrew, where he again serves by the cure of Simon's mother-in-law, who in turn goes about serving. Then late into the evening he serves the whole town gathered at the door, curing the sick and driving out demons. Getting up early with the purpose of self-renewal in prayer with God, Jesus is chased down by Simon and the others. His response is to expand his service even further: "Let us go on to the nearby villages that I may preach there also," he tells them. "For this purpose I have come."
Many kinds of slavery—many kinds of service. No matter where we are or what is going on around us, we are here to stand before God as slave. No choice: we are here to serve. We are here to continue our service in an ever-widening circle.
And exactly what is this slavery, this service, this ongoing attentiveness to our purpose in life? We call it ministry—slavery freely embraced in the service of God.
This week I visited a friend in the hospital, recuperating from serious surgery. In the midst of her pain, the fuzzy side effects of the painkillers that didn't go far enough or come often enough, the frustration at being stuck and stabbed and cut and poked, she carried on her ministry: affirming words to the nurses and aides, compassion and concern for her roommate, patient listening to the contradictory advice of those who phoned.
Profiles of servant discipleship abound. As we go about this week, let's take notice of those slaves of the gospel and take time to give them a bit of affirmation.
6th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B): For the Greater Glory of God
Leviticus 13:1-2, 44-46—As long as the sore is on him he shall declare himself unclean, since he is in fact unclean. He shall dwell apart, making his abode outside the camp.
Psalm 32: I turn to you, O God, in the time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.
1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1—Whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.
Mark 1:40-45—Jesus remained outside in deserted places, and people kept coming to him from everywhere.
AMDG, we printed at the top of our papers back at St. Ann Elementary in Fremont. Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam—to the greater glory of God. For some, the fifth-grade incident was a one-time lesson; for others, the practice went on and on, burned into our brains and hearts and souls, a mantra of sorts that we returned to year after year. Whatever you do—even the shortest of homework assignments in grade school—do everything for the glory of God.
I recall my father reiterating the same message from time to time. "If you're going to be a ditch digger, do your best. Leave everything and every place better for your having been there," he would counsel us. The tiny Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence embodies the lesson as well: no matter how simple or humble the task, do it for God.
And the pastor at St. Richard in Swanton, Fr. Dan Zak, responds to compliments with a booming, hearty "Glory be to God!" Thus he directs the praise where it rightfully belongs—and in doing so he reminds all within earshot of the proper order of things.
Three years ago this week the people of the Diocese of Toledo grieved the passing of our Bishop James Hoffman; our continuing celebration of his life gives glory to God. It happens that way whenever we remember the people who have served us and gone on; we remember their good works and praise God for them.
Today's first reading from Leviticus tells us of the Old Testament strictures on lepers. For the good of the community, lepers had to separate themselves from other people. In the second reading, Paul tells the Corinthians to avoid giving offense. The gospel pericope from Mark relates Jesus' healing of the leper, whom Jesus tells to follow the law in showing himself to the priest. Unclean or clean, the Word tells us to put ourselves under the law. Whether leprous or cleansed, we serve God with who we are and what we do.
When we are sick, we need to be sick for the greater glory of God. When we are well, we are to be well for the greater glory of God. When we work, when we play, when we laugh, when we cry, we are to work, play, laugh, and cry for the greater glory of God.
7th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B): I Am Doing Something New!
Isaiah 43:18-19, 21-22, 24b-25—Remember not the events of the past, the things of long ago consider not; see, I am doing something new! It is I, I, who wipe out, for my own sake, your offenses; your sins I remember no more.
Psalm 41: Lord, heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.
2 Corinthians 1:18-22—The one who gives us security with you in Christ and who anointed us is God; he has also put his seal upon us and given the Spirit in our hearts.
Mark 2:1-12—We have never seen anything like this!
This past week at dinner with friends our conversation turned to memories of high school and college and first forays into the workforce. One memory led to another, and soon we were remarking on how we had changed from earlier times—how our lives had changed, but even more how our hearts had changed.
We rehashed recent news reports, full of revelations about politicians and priests and teachers whose actions are being held up for public scrutiny. We agreed that none of us would want our earlier days probed deeply. We wondered at our remembrance of the sins we had committed in the name of politics, before Watergate made us realize what we were doing. We wondered at the follies of Friday-night drinking in our college years. We spoke of family problems, job problems, and relationship problems. At one point, I began to relate one of my foibles from 1969, only to be told that, after a certain point, it's best just to forget and go on.
Each of us had confessed these sins, big and little. Yet I had not completed the reconciliation because I still held on to the guilt. In some ways I allowed myself to remain paralyzed by very old errors. I allowed them to become part of myself rather than leave them as part of my past.
In today's gospel, Jesus tells the paralytic that his sins are forgiven. And then he tells him to pick up his mat and go home. It's the same dynamic—after a long period of paralysis over the sins of my past, I need to hear the voice of God telling me that I have been forgiven, telling me to get up and get going. My sins are wiped out for God's sake, that I might for God's sake go about those things I was created to do.
Our first reading from Isaiah tells us to let go of past events. If God is willing to forgive us our sins, why should we keep recalling them? God is "doing something new!" What a tragic waste of my life if I refuse God's forgiveness—if I refuse to go on to new life!
As we go about this week, let's be open to the new path God lays out before us. Let us, with St. Paul, say yes to the one who puts his seal upon us and gives us the Spirit in our hearts. Let us go on with the one who is ready to do " something new" with us.
8th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)
Hosea 2:16b, 17b, 21-22—You shall know the Lord.
Psalm 103: The Lord is kind and merciful.
2 Corinthians 3:1b-6—Our qualification comes from God, who has indeed qualified us as ministers of a new covenant, not of letter but of spirit.
Mark 2:18-22—New wine is poured into fresh wineskins.
The United States of America is split over questions surrounding the morality of the continuing war in Iraq, with increasing numbers of religious leaders calling for peaceful solutions to our differences. The old "just war" theory has fewer and fewer proponents as consciousness grows in relation to the evolving world situation.
In today's gospel Jesus uses a series of metaphors to talk about the effect of change—the bridegroom, the new cloth, and the new wineskins. Each of these metaphors drives home the same lesson: The new will be wasted if attention is not paid to the old. Our world has grown new wine--proliferation of weapons to the point of mass destruction, an international community with awareness of atrocities in troubled spots around the globe, a widening call for social justice, growing sense of the dignity and worth of the human person, a respect for and celebration of diversity. Those who would pour this new wine into the old wineskin of "just war" find that it no longer fits.
If, as St. Paul urges us, we are to look to the spirit rather than the letter, we must seek the Spirit of God in all we do, whether it is searching for world peace or solving problems in our parish communities. The harsh diatribes exchanged between defenders and victims of priest sexual abuse do not seem to speak to the Spirit on either side. The bitterness borne of church renovation efforts shows both sides clinging to a version of the past that remains deaf to the Spirit alive in the church today. The long rifts in our families cry out for new graspings for peace.
Our Lent approaches. Each of individually is called to the desert, as we're told in today's first reading from the prophet Hosea. God asks us to listen with our hearts and promises us that we "shall know the Lord." As we go about this week, let's concentrate on making our souls fresh for the new wine the Lord is pouring out into us.
12th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B): New Faith
Job 38:1, 8-11: God addressed Job out of the storm.
Psalm 107:23-24, 25-26, 28-29, 30-31: Give thanks to God, whose love is everlasting.
2 Corinthians 5:14-17: Whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come.
Mark 4:35-41: “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”
Sometimes it seems that it takes hard times—rough seas—to bring me to prayer. When times are good—when I have a job, and my health is stable, and my family is around—my prayer becomes rote and my thoughts rarely turn to God. Then something happens—an argument with a friend, a change in my workplace duties, a bout of the flu; it doesn’t take much—and the storm around me (or inside me) has me crying out, “God! Where are you?”
The disciples in the boat cried out in their panic: “Don’t you care?” The very question assumes their belief that Jesus can do something about the storm. Job complains to God: the fact that he calls on God reveals his faith. The questions indeed bring a response from God, not always the response hoped for, but a response that brings Job and the disciples to a place of calm.
So I call out in my fear and despair, “Where are you?” My question proclaims my faith: I believe there is a God who will answer, a God who will be around when needed, a powerful God with the ability to help me, a compassionate God who has the desire to make things new for me.
As we go about this week, let’s recognize the many ways in which God’s ongoing presence supports us between the times of fear and panic that cause us to call out, and give thanks. As the psalmist sings, God’s love is everlasting.
13th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)
Wisdom 1:13-15, 2:23-24: Justice is undying.
Psalm 30:2, 4, 5-6, 11-13: You have rescued me!
2 Corinthians 8:7, 9, 13-15: Though he was rich, for your sake he became poor.
Mark 4:21-43: “Why trouble the teacher any longer?”
This week’s pericope from Mark’s Gospel continues to utterly astound the leaders of our institutional church. They can, of course, understand clearly why Jesus would respond to Jairus’ request for a healing—Jairus, the rich and powerful synagogue leader, a man. But the woman with the hemorrhage? Not only is she a woman but she is also unclean, doubly to be avoided by the “holy” ones. And Jairus’ daughter—once she’s dead, she’s unclean, too: “Why trouble the teacher any longer?” The synagogue leaders are blind to the teaching in Jesus’ actions.
The attitude of the institution remains unchanged. Just this past month the American bishops gathered in Los Angeles to approve a new translation of the Mass prayers; nowhere in their discussion did they consider making the language inclusive of women. It wasn’t even on the table as an issue for them. So the references to God as masculine remain, continuing the institution’s insistence on limiting the nature of the deity. The references to the people of God as masculine remain, continuing the institution’s practice of treating women as non-persons. Lex orandi, lex credendi: We pray as we believe; we believe as we pray. So long as we continue to pray to a male deity—to talk to a male God—we will believe that the deity is thus limited; we are unnecessarily closing ourselves off from conceiving of God as God. We allow the limits of now-archaic linguistic usages to control our vision of God’s greatness.
How long will this obtuse spirit stay in our church? It’s obvious—and ironic—that inclusivity was a significant concern for Jesus the Christ. It’s also obvious—and ironic—that inclusivity is outside the vision of our church’s leaders. Furthermore, the problem extends far beyond the question of inclusive language to questions of discipleship.
We can look to today’s first and second readings for guidance. Paul urges members of the community in Corinth to offer even more from their surplus to help starving Christians in the Jerusalem community. “Whoever had much did not have more, and whoever had little did not have less,” he says. Wisdom tells us that “justice is undying.” Women in the church are starving for equality to carry out the servant discipleship to which they have been called just as the Jerusalem church was starving for food. Power and authority now need to be shared just as the early church members needed to share food with the starving. After he resuscitates Jairus’ daughter, Jesus tells them to give her something to eat. His words ring across the centuries to women starving for an inclusive vision of God: “Give them something to eat!”
Jesus responds to the child’s and the woman’s needs as if to the whole of Israel—all twelve tribes symbolized in the twelve years of a female child’s life and the 12 years of the bleeding woman’s ailment. As we go about this week, let’s pray that our church leaders open their eyes to Christ’s inclusive vision.
