Sermon for the 5:1 of mark – 20: The possessed person of Gerasene

By Admin

Jan

31

The story of the Gerasene demoniac is certainly colorful and legendary. It is the first time in Mark’s short Gospel that he took some time to tell a story. The story shifts from its focus on a possessed man, to the sacrificial herd of swine, to the people of the area, and back to the liberated man. Raw human emotions are swirling throughout each verse as sheer terror grips the onlooker. It comes after a series of parables describing the kingdom of God and it is the middle of three miracle stories in which Jesus shows his power over Satan – this time in a case of demonic possession. The tale is set within the tombs as the people connected ‘death’ with ‘demonic possession.’ Death touches each human heart uniquely. We are to examine our responses to death. Perhaps we recall the experience of a deceased loved one or we have dealt with aging or illness that puts us one day closer to our own death. The thought of death unsettles us and we want to find meaning in it, and sometimes it is difficult to do, especially when it involves an innocent person. It is a mystery to behold and too often, we don’t want to do it. We find clever ways to resist and even deny death. We anaesthetize ourselves to its presence and we don’t want it to cheat us or take us too soon. Death shows we are powerless. I call to mind a current film, The Rabbit Hole, that will not will any Academy Awards, but I honor it for its realistic portrayal of a couple’s coping with the death of their four-year old son to a tragic accident. Their happy suburban world is turned upside down. Becca, the wife, and Howie, her husband are caught in a maze of memory, longing, guilt, recrimination, sarcasm and tightly controlled rage from which they cannot escape. Their ways of coping are diametrically opposed to one another. Becca finds pain in the familiar, Howie finds comfort in the familiar. Becca mocks the “grieving parents” support group while Howie finds solace, but both come in contact with a whole network of friends who are beset by loss. No one grieves the same way. No plan or timeframe exists for healing; memories will never fade; the search for meaning remains elusive. Death is final. Shifts comes in abrupt, unforeseen moments. Becca hesitantly opens up to her opinionated, loving mother who is still dealing with her son’s death to a drug overdose, and Becca secretly reaches out to the teenager involved in the accident that claimed her son’s life. Howie lashes out and daydreams about the solace he will find with another woman, a kindred spirit who lost her daughter 8 years ago. Everyone’s life is shattered. Yet, as divergent their paths are, the couple keeps trying to find their way back to a life that still holds the potential for beauty, meaning, laughter and happiness. They needed to take their own pathways, because not one way is clearly demarked. The same goes for us. Becca and Howie must have felt like the Gerasene demoniac. No one could help them as no one could help the possessed man. These demons and our disordered attachments possess us. They define us and we cannot imagine life without them. They are our identity. Once these demons within us have life, they multiply and rule over us. Many times, we did not invite them in but they are part of the cycle of shame we inherited from our parents, our upbringing, and the events that happened to us. These are things beyond our control, and they may result from boundaries that were transgressed against us. It is unfortunate. I’m deeply sorry for what has happened to you. Look at the chaos it creates within us: debilitating, paralyzing shame, sadness and loneliness, stifled anger, repressed memories, a life that is damaged. We are cut off from our true selves. We have fallen far from our dreams of the way our life ought to be. We don’t want these demons to have power over us anymore. They kill our spirit and we desire to be liberated and happy. We want our life to have meaning. There is no sense of hiding these demons. We all have them and they will do their best to hook us. We present our best face instead of our reality for some reason. We are broken and we come to realize we need a savior, and only this savior’s deeper affection, only his love can subdue our demons. After a struggle to keep control, we realize we have no control and we admit our powerlessness. We are not God. The possessed man did not save himself. We can’t save ourselves. The good news is these demons do not stand a chance in front of Jesus. When the possessed man catches sight of Jesus, he runs towards him crying at the top of his lungs. I know I have spent many prayer periods crying out to Jesus. What does he do? Jesus enters into my chaos. He doesn’t move me. He stays with me in the stillness. He stands there among the tombs with me with all the shackles and chains binding me up, and looks at me with love. He desires my liberation, and he asks me to name my demons, to which I reply, “there are so many of them. They are Legion. I want to be free of them.” He wants me to cry out to him, but to notice that he is looking upon me with love. I, too, have to clearly name these demons and acknowledge their power over me, the power I gave them whether consciously or unconsciously, and I have to let Christ free me – even if the man is hanging on the cross near death, or already dead and buried in the tomb. The demons recognize Jesus as the Son of the Most High, God. Why can’t I? I have to let him free me. I have to let him take all my chains and shackles, anything that weighs me down, and give it to him on the cross or lay it inside his tomb. I have to do it even though it is going to weigh him down and cause him even more pain or break his back or even takes the dying breath from the man. We may further hurt from our doing this, but it is the reason he came to us. And if I cannot give it to him, he will understand. My prayer for you is that you will at least consent to let him take it from you so he can achieve the purpose for which he came. Give his death the meaning he desires. Like Becca and Howie, you have to find your own way of doing that. It will be a way that you uniquely can do it, and it may take you great courage and energy. This man who hangs on the cross or lays in the tomb is the same man you held in your arms when he was an infant, the same boy who was swept away into Egypt, the teen you met in his hidden years, the man who cured and taught and revealed something precious about God to you. This is the guy who became your good friend. He remains steadfast to you, even though you deserted him or denied him or fell asleep on him in his time of need. He is still in front of you reaching out and saying, “I want to share my heart with you. Will you open yours to receive mine. It breaks my heart that these demons separate us.” Christ took on our powerlessness because of our powerlessness. Find Christ in this intimate moment of death. He wants to liberate you so your heart can be brought into his own and to his Father’s. Others may be seized with fear and astonishment when they see us like the man who was once possessed. When we allow Christ to liberate us, we too will go off and proclaim to others what Jesus has done for us. Our hearts will be amazed. Our hearts will remember the tender moment of salvation when Christ called our true selves forth and showed us the true power of God. “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High?” asks the possessed man.?”Everything,” he replies. “I want your liberty, your memory, your will, your understanding, all that you have and possess. You are mine.”

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Poem: I ACCEPT. Lorenzo of the God hands

By Admin

Jan

31

It is an afraid thing to lower in the hands of the alive God.But that is a much more afraid thing to lower of him… except me, God of Or, to fall in the knowledge impío me because I am without God.Let never it knows, Or Godlet I never knows that which I am or that I must bewhen I have fallen of its hands, the hands of alive God… except me of that, God of Or! Déjeme to never know itself aside from alive God!

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Photo: Déjeme only

By Admin

Jan

30

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Photo: Déjeme only

By Admin

Jan

30

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Const.: GASEOUS CHROMATOGRAPHY 34, decree 4: “Our mission and culture”, equality. 6

By Admin

Jan

30

Like Jesuits, we lived a faith directed towards the kingdom, with which justice becomes a reality that forms in the world; we thereforebring the particular quality of that faith in dialogue with the members of thereligions and the cultures of our contemporary world…. [Jesuits] we have insistedon the inseparabilidad of justice, the dialogue, and evangelization of the culture.

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The fourth Sunday in ordinary time

By Admin

Jan

29

January 30, 2011 The Beatitudes are one of the most beloved passages from the Gospels. It opens the famous Sermon on the Mount that was masterfully recorded by Matthew. Mountains are often places of revelation in the Hebrew Scriptures and Jesus rightly is taking his place on the mountain in a way similar to an Oriental teacher. He address, as in concentric rings, first the disciples, next the crowds who gathered, and then all peoples, even the Gentiles, from the lands beyond Galilee. This is meant to show the shining power of Jesus who his mighty in both words and deeds. The Beatitudes set a high standard of moral wisdom about life and are not meant to be exhaustive, but they also are not arbitrary. Most of the Jesus sayings are taken from the “Q” source that helped shaped the Gospels. Matthew probably took some of his expressions from the Psalms. Mark records no such speech and Luke provides four “blesseds” and four “woes” given on a plain instead of a hillside. Though we can never know for sure what Jesus actually said, it is very likely that he said something akin to these sayings. It carries through in the development of his thought. These sayings represent a form of congratulations that recognize an existing state of happiness. Categories of people are rejoicing because the kingdom of heaven has been proclaimed to them. The poor, the mourners, and the hungry are recipients of Jesus’ mission to the needy. His preaching ushers in the dawn of a new era of salvation history. Jesus is not saying the poor are happy because of their condition in life. Poverty was seen as an evil; wealth as a blessing. Jesus is telling the poor that they are happy because they receive God’s special care for them, just as an Oriental king specially provides for his people. Matthew emphasizes God’s justice as it is a major theme of his Gospel, hence the concentration on one’s persevering through terrible persecutions. The poor are the needy ones in Israel who prefer divine service to financial advantage and yet he adds “in spirit” to move the emphasis from social-economic to a personal-moral, voluntary poverty with highlights of humility and detachment from wealth. Wealth carries with it an inherent risk of neglecting God and others who are needy. The meek show a form of charity; some mourn to see evil reign on earth; the merciful pardon one’s neighbors; the pure of heart stand close to justice; and peacemakers are no longer only mighty monarchs, but can be anyone. Hence, the Beatitudes become a program of life for the believer. God will stand by those who strive for these lofty virtues. Jesus is not asking the people to change their status in life, only their attitudes. These actions will influence their hope-filled future and will make them able to notice God’s steadfast presence in their life today – a presence that reaches everyone, especially the neediest in society. Following the way of Jesus is sure to bring us happiness today because we are in right relations with others and with God. We can see ourselves as blessed because our saving God stands by us. This changes our attitudes and we learn to see others as God does. Everyone wants to be happy. We are to realize it is within our grasp today – and always. It really is. Themes for this Week’s Masses First Reading: Hebrews tells of our ancestor’s sacrifices in the face of adversity. God approved their good efforts as they lived according to God’s promise. When you offer worship, you approach Mount Zion, the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and of his angels and spirits. You also approach Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, whose sacrifice was far greater than that of Abel. Because of the Christ event, we are to let fraternal love continue while we are mindful of those whose lives are vulnerable. The Lord will never forsake them. Through Jesus, we are to continually offer God a sacrifice of praise. God is pleased with our good actions towards one another. Gospel: Jesus enters the 10 Gentile cities of the Decapolis where he meets a strong man possessed by demons named Legion. After exorcising them from him, Jesus sends the spirits into the swine who are impelled to jump into the sea and drown. Jesus crosses back into Galilee where he is met by a synagogue official whose daughter is near death. Jesus heals her from afar. He also heals the woman suffering from hemorrhages for 12 years. He then calls the Twelve together and sends them forth with instructions for preaching and healing. Herod wonders about Jesus, but at a banquet he foolishly grants his daughter a wish, which she misuses as she asks for the head of John the Baptist. Jesus withdraws with his disciples to a quiet place so they can rest and tell their stories of preaching. The crowds arrive and Jesus’ heart is moved with pity for them. Saints of the Week Monday: John Bosco, priest, (1815-1888) grew up in Turin, Piedmont in the northwest corner of Italy. As a priest, he surveyed the fate of children in prison and formed a religious order to help them build better lives for themselves. He educated working class boys in the evenings and in factories or fields or wherever he could reach them. He was noted for his charity in finding the goodness in these boys. Wednesday: The Presentation of the Lord is celebrated 40 days after Christmas. Often called the Purification of Mary, it remembers her fulfillment of Mosaic law that demands new mothers to present themselves to the priest who will adjudge their cleanness. She and Joseph brought the child to the Temple with an offering so as to be cleansed by prayers. During this time, Mary and Joseph met the elders, Simeon and Anna, who represented the passing of the old covenant of God. Thursday: Blaise, bisop and martyr (c.316) was from Armenia was died under the persecution of Licinius. He received fame for curing a boy who nearly choked to death by a fishbone that was lodged in his throat. He has been invoked for many throat afflictions. The rite for blessing throats is done on this day in commemoration of his legendary miracle. Ansgar, bishop (801-865) was a French bishop who became a monk to preach to pagans. He preached in Denmark and Sweden and met great success and became archbishop of Hamburg. He is known as the Apostle of the North. Friday: John de Brito, priest, martyr, and Carlos Spinola, Rudolph Acquaviva, and companions, martyrs of the missions, are celebrated for giving their lives for the build up of the faith in foreign missions. John de Brito was a Portuguese who ministered in India; Spinola, an Italian, went to Japan, and Acquaviva, from Naples, was killed with companions near Goa, India. Saturday: Agatha, martyr, (d.251) was a martyr in the Decian persecution. When she was forced into a brothel to give up her faith, she was tortured and killed. Agatha’s intercession is attributed for the stilling of Mount Etna’s eruption the year after her burial. The faithful began to invoke her protection against fire. She is mentioned in the first Eucharistic prayer. This Week in Jesuit History • Jan 30, 1633. At Avignon, Fr. John Pujol, a famous master of novices, died. He ordered one of them to water a dry stick, which miraculously sprouted. • Jan 31, 1774. Fr. General Laurence Ricci, a prisoner in Castel S Angelo, claimed his liberty, since his innocence had been fully vindicated. He received from the Papal Congregation the reply that they would think about it. Pope Clement XIV was said at this time to be mentally afflicted. • Feb 1, 1549. The first Jesuit missionaries to go to Brazil set sail from Lisbon, Portugal, under Fr. Emmanuel de Nobrega. • Feb 2, 1528. Ignatius arrived in Paris to begin his program of studies at the University of Paris. • Feb 3, 1571. In Florida, the martyrdom of Fr. Louis Quiros and two novices, shot with arrows by an apostate Indian. • Feb 4, 1617. An imperial edict banished all missionaries from China. • Feb 5, 1833. The first provincial of Maryland, Fr. William McSherry, was appointed. Groundhog Day Spring is seven weeks from February 2nd, Groundhog Day. If the groundhog peeps out of his winter quarters and sees his shadow, it will return to its burrow and wait out the winter. If the day is cloudy and he does not return, an early spring and moderate weather is predicted. Punxsutawney Phil is the most famous of the groundhogs where crowds of over 40,000 have been known to gather on February 2nd to find out if spring will come early. The tradition arises from German folklore that was brought to the United States. This poem was proclaimed on Candlemas, which is also the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord. As the light grows longer The cold grows stronger If Candlemas be fair and bright Winter will have another flight If Candlemas be cloud and rain Winter will be gone and not come again A farmer should on Candlemas day Have half his corn and half his hay On Candlemas day if thorns hang a drop You can be sure of a good pea crop Candlemas is 40 days after Christmas. The priest will bless candles that will be used throughout the liturgical year during Mass on this day.

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Video: Ignatius and the green olive

By Admin

Jan

28

The life of Ignatius according to what has been said by the green olive of the Spanish of OliveThe.

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Prayer: Thomas Aquinas

By Admin

Jan

28

The creator of all the things, true light source and wisdom, origin of all which they were, gracefully let a ray of his light penetrate the dark of my understanding. He takes from me the double dark in which I have been born, the dark of the sin and the ignorance. Déme a sharpened understanding, a memory retentive, and the capacity to take hold its words and correctly fundamental. Grant I the capacity and talent to be exact in my explanations to express its words with meticulousness and enchantment. He needs the principle, he directs the progress, and the aid in the completion. I request to this through Christ our gentleman. Amen.

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Photo: Force in numbers

By Admin

Jan

27

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Prayer: Teilhard de Chardin

By Admin

Jan

27

Someday, later-dominating the winds, the waves, the tides and gravity, we will harness… the energies of the love. And then, for the second timein the history of the world, there will be shortage the fire.

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Prayer: Elizabeth Johnson – it considers Jesus P. 115

By Admin

Jan

26

When the human beings who God mistress suffer, God is present with them, compassionately loving them with the suffering, wishing the life for them, and acting to cause it when the human forces have been realised.

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Sermon: The conversion of Paul

By Admin

Jan

25

The story of Saul’s call to discipleship is an enviable one. Many of us wish for that brilliant ‘flash of lightning’ event that gives us an unmistakably clear picture of the way the Lord is calling us to deeper love and intimacy. It doesn’t work that way for us. Our call typically comes from invitations that encourage our freedom rather than from an earth-shaking event like Saul’s. We meet Saul as an infamous persecutor of the People of the Way, as Christians were called. His road to Damascus experience makes him a believer and gives him a mission as the apostle to the Gentiles. Paul did not just go on his merry way to start his ministry. We seldom think about the trauma Paul experienced during the transition. He is a zealous man who believes in the supremacy of the Torah, as any devout Jew believes. He works tirelessly to bring about conditions to fulfill the Law, and he is intent on wiping out any impediments to that goal – and to Saul, the People of the Way are upsetting the hopes of the Jews. To be a faithful servant who hastens God’s plan for salvation, Saul seeks to correct the conditions to bring about the Day of the Lord. His mind is bewildered and boggled to realize that this man, Jesus, whose mission apparently failed, now replaces the Law as his symbol of worship. Saul cannot comprehend Jesus through his cognition. His head gets in the way. His duty, strict adherence to his belief in the laws, his cultural conditioning does not allow his heart to be moved. Somehow it has to be moved aside. We have parallels in our church today when bishops teach the faithful ones to obediently fulfill church teaching by rigid adherence through its documents, it’s teaching of idealized Platonic and classical ideals, rather than through one’s own heart that is taught from one’s lived experiences of faith. Faith in God comes about only when it becomes personal. This is what happens to Saul. With Saul, it gets personal. Jesus cries out to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” No human runs to his or her catechism, or General Instruction on the Roman Missal, or puts on a cassock or biretta, to answer this question. Our heart and emotions engage. We deal with our human response as we contemplate the pain our Risen Lord is feeling. How many times have we uttered a cry like this, “why are you picking on me?,” “why don’t you leave me alone,” or “don’t you realize you are hurting me?” This is real pain. Christ feels vulnerable. Christ feels real pain. Saul causes it. We also cause it. The Lord’s words erupt after experiencing prolonged abuse, and he seeks relief. Saul can only ask, “Who are you that I am hurting?” Yes, this is personal. He no longer wants to hurt Christ Jesus anymore. His heart becomes aware; now his mind has to comprehend the consequences of his actions. The heart informs the head. The heart leads the head. Saul goes off to Damascus and becomes Paul. We pay little regard for the wrestling that Paul goes through to piece his life together. His world is shattered – completely splattered – and he no longer has a compass to orient his life. His entire worldview has to be rebuilt. Without a doubt, Christ does not leave him, and without a doubt, Paul relies upon the graciousness of his one-time enemies. We cannot contemplate Paul’s call without looking at Ananias who becomes a critical player and his metanoia is more along the lines of our own call. Ananias offers Paul hospitality. He feeds him, nurses him, spends time with him, and lays hands upon him. He respectfully relates his own story to Paul and patiently gets him back on his feet. He cares for him in his trauma and soothes his soul-searched wounds. He does not proselytize, but gives him freedom and space and time to be healed. Ananias has fears and doubts for sure. Against the fragile community’s wishes, he takes in his most-feared adversary who now professes ‘Jesus is Lord.’ Surely he doubts Paul’s integrity, but he hangs on. He just remains with him rather than trying to do something for him. His patient pacing and persevering pays off. Ananias was called to greater love and trust in Christ which makes him risk his life and the life of the fledgling, persecuted community. He wasn’t called to a specific vocation, or to a new position, or to a new identity. He was called to a new way of being. Ananias’ call was to be a person who extended mercy and hospitality, compassionate care, and a tender invitation for Paul to rebuild his life around the Lord in his Damascus home. It was not a call to a “what” but to a “how.” It was a shift from head to heart. The early church needed the example of Ananias, and we need this example in our church today. “How are we going to be?” is more important than “what or who are we going to be?” We come here to focus upon our friendship with Christ. As we consider our own call, perhaps it is helpful for us to remember the people who invited us along the way to see Jesus more clearly. We cherish them and uphold them and we want what they have. They are like Ananias to us and they befriend us when we find ourselves in a bad way. And in a loving way, they hold up for us a giant STOP sign to indicate that we may need to take a breath and get our life on track with the Lord once again. They help us look deeply into the eyes of Christ so we may once again be in right relations with him. Only Christ can help us remove the impediments to seeing him more clearly. We can’t do it. We can’t will it to happen. Only his mercy will take away that which keeps us from getting closer. He helps us see that we try to control him, that we see him as we would like not as he really is, that we look at the narcissistic part of ourselves that keeps us looking at our navel instead of looking at him. In many ways, he is trying to knock us off our high horse with a blinding light so we can stop to pay attention to him, just as he did with Saul. He is crying out, “John, John, why are you neglecting me? I want you to come closer to me. Why don’t you let go? Think of what you will gain rather than what you will lose. I can’t reach you if you hold onto yourself. Please, John, let go. I want you to be with me.” When we stop and learn to see him with our heart, we feel his pain, we feel his vulnerabilities. We feel with him as he feels. Everything changes. Everything looks different when we allow his heart to touch our own. Christ wants to give himself to us because that is all he can do. He knows how much we need forgiveness and healing in a world that is systemically broken. He knows the extent that each of us is hurt and battered, and he wants us to actualize his dream for us. He wants our hearts to be so alive each day that it nearly explodes with his presence, just because he desires us so much. Watch him over these next few days. Just be with him now – not working hard, not praying hard. He wants us to be with him now, to see him fully, so we can also see the great act of love he does for us. The cross looms on the horizon and while it is horrific to gaze upon, we can’t escape it. We cannot separate him from his Cross. He wants us to know just how far he will go to give himself over for us. We need him to do this for us. You can’t save yourself. In the meantime, give whatever you can to him. Give him your heart. Give him all your worries and fears. Give him anything you can. And if you still can’t do that, let him take it from you. Let him do what he came to us to do. His heart will be consoled.

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Song: God of Australia

By Admin

Jan

25

This song can be sung by a sum of Matilda that dances vals. Jose was composed by Jesuit Father who Sobb in 1988.Since is nowadays of Australia, he is a good day to remember to the people of the plain under countryGod of AustraliaGod of Australia, you you have loved this old earth, God of all the people and to Earth God. In the dream we found him, to the gentleman of the life and holiness, alcohol between us who create new birth: Refrain: God Australia of the praise! , God of the praise, Australia! The desert and the coast and the mountains give praise! In the city, the place of work, the shrub and the farm and the home are praise! Blest is God that gives the life us all! Refrain: God of Australia, you have known us all by name, God in our present and God of our past. You have called to us to walk with justice and integrity, vision of the hope of first and lasts. Refrain: God de Australa, you have loved us all our days, God of the interior and God of the sea. Diríjanos all in its mercy, as we maintain its gifts in confidence, constructing a united nation and we released.

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Photo: Carefree

By Admin

Jan

25

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Prayer: Simplified examination

By Admin

Jan

25

We twice request a prayer like this to the day. After we request God behold us, we asked simply that God reviews with us where was present God in our day. We only do it for the present segment of our day. No necessity to return to the previous days. It simply lets to God say on the God presence this morning to him or a later segment of the day. Where was you, Or God, (tomorrow) (behind schedule) of my life? The revision of this period is as the donor of clicker of the TV (remote-control) above to God. God (Christ has) it and is in control. It gives to God a certain time to say to him on his presence. The tolerance is to consider the presence of God to you.

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Question: Attachments

By Admin

Jan

24

The severe attachments are devastating to a person and her social systems. Our Co-dependencies is destructive also. We contain our attachments and they rise rarely conscious in our prayer. The classic attachments are to the alcohol, the narcotic and other drugs, including tobacco addiction. Much investigation has been made recently of attachments to sex and the love. Within last the two decades also we have seen great attachments the technology, that includes attachments to send by electronic mail and insidious to the pornography of the Internet. Of what ways you are making his own investigation so you can help yourself and to others to better understand the nature of attachments?

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Poem: Confessions of Kathleen Raine

By Admin

Jan

24

Desire to know passed through high each particleContaining there wholeUnknowable.Intent in a great love, perfect, Requited and for never, I lacked the presence of everywhereSmall of the love, thousand-guised. And of by life he has been readingBook after book, wisdom of the searchingFor, but bringingOnly my own understanding. Perdóneme, to forgiver, if you are omniscientOr infinite that a certain inadvertent existence otherMy has hurt. Being what I could do amWhat of incorrect I but? Yet the love can meaning of the chaos of healingTo of the heart of bringTo.

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Photo: Bear

By Admin

Jan

23

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Prayer: Request to God for behold me (before period of the prayer)

By Admin

Jan

23

Part I: Before each prayer, I solicit that God behold me. Request, “that you, God of Or, see me, feels to me, it hears to me, and it knows what I am feeling.” or “you, gentleman of Or, know what is igniting with me. I am in its presence. It knows what has happened to me today.” I let to God watch on me – in wonder and honor. This one is not that collection or I feel God, but simply that God sees me, feels to me, beholds me. This time is like the psalm 139.At: I present/display my sensations (positive and negative, the whole range of sensations) and as soon as I ask that God sees me whereas I am. Part 2: If you, God of Or, behold me, déme the tolerance for behold him. Déjeme to see him. Déme that tolerance.

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The third Sunday in ordinary time

By Admin

Jan

22

January 23, 2011 Jesus begins his Galilean ministry soon after John the Baptist has been handed over to prison and execution. Jesus makes a surprising move to take up his mission at an unsafe time. He plays it safe by moving to the outskirts. Success would be greater in the traditional places of Jerusalem or the desert, but as he is near Capernaum, he can escape by boat to the Decapolis if need be. Several distinct political jurisdictions offered the possibility of sanctuary. The gospel arrives in a specific time and place. The geographic reference points refer to lands surrounded by Gentiles. Isaiah’s promise of the liberation of these areas is fulfilled by Jesus’ arrival. “The people who sit in darkness have seen a great light” are both the oppressed Israelites and the Gentile people who are to be included in the kingdom. The preaching of Jesus is a light of consolation to the suffering people. In his preaching of the immanence of God’s kingdom on heaven and on earth, he calls his circle of intimate friends together. Simon Peter and his brother Andrew are first, while James and John, sons of Zebedee are next. He calls brothers because he is interested in community life. Following Jesus means discipleship will sometimes disrupt family ties while he also hold the support of parents in their old age is essential. Jesus may have expected a prompt, radical response from his followers in joining him, but this part of the story was probably compressed by the authors. In all likelihood, a follower would have had an opportunity to make such an important decision over time. Jesus would have respected the psychological development of the would-be follower. This is especially important with the fisher-disciples who left a quite prosperous fishing industry at the Galilean Sea. The lucrative family trade needed some careful planning to sustain the livelihood. We would find it more helpful if we saw the disciples’ calls as a development of a relationship with Jesus. Relationships take time to develop a level of trust. Relationships invite a person to a new possibility while respecting where the person is in life. Good friendships don’t try to change the person. If we use this lens to view the disciples’ call, we see that Jesus called upon them to use their already existing skills for a greater purpose. He capitalized upon who they already were rather than who he wanted them to be. He wanted them to be themselves. Their manner of being was not essentially changed. In many regards, the call was more about a “how” than a “what.” They were to preach the kingdom of God and to bring others into the catch. How they did this determined whether they were attractive enough to others to join their mission. When we stand open before Christ Jesus, he will honor and respect our gifts, but may tweak the way we use them. For if they are not used to glorify God, they are not used for their proper end. If we don’t use them in love, then they don’t satisfy. It is good for us to look at the way the relationship with Jesus transformed the way the disciples used their gifts. From all accounts, they were successful in bringing others to Jesus to hear his good news. Themes for this Week’s Masses First Reading: Hebrews asserts that Christ, who offered once to take away the sins of many, will appear a second time to those who eagerly await him. In the face of the world’s challenges, we are to hold unwavering to our confession that gives us hope. We are to consider how to raise one another to love. Do not throw away your confidence. It will have a great reward to hold onto it. Christ himself was looking forward to the city whose architect and creator was God. Gospel: Scribes from Jerusalem say Jesus is possessed by Satan, but he responds by saying that Satan cannot act against himself. Jesus heads out to teach by the sea. Crowds come and he tells them a parable of a sower who goes out to plant seeds. Jesus is strengthening his disciples to withstand great pressures. He tells them to be a lamp lifted high on a lamp stand for all to see. The standards by which we measure will be the ones to which we are held accountable. Jesus returns to the parable to explain its significance to the Twelve. As the day comes to a close, Jesus crosses the sea to the other side. A terrible sea squall comes up and threatens their safety, but Jesus shows that he has power over nature and quells the storm. All are filled with awe. Saints of the Week Monday: Francis de Sales, bishop and doctor (1567-1622) was a brilliant scholar of canon and civil law who became the bishop of Geneva, Switzerland. He was an organizer of the Catholic Reformation by setting up new structures in the diocese, beginning a seminary, religious education units, and several schools. His “Introduction to the Devout Life” focused on human kindness as a way of seeing God’s love. He co-founded the Sisters of the Visitation with Jane Frances de Chantal. Tuesday: Conversion of Paul, apostle, was more of a call than a conversion, but it was one of the most significant turning points in history. He moved from a persecutor of Christians to become its greatest missionary to the Gentiles. Without Paul, Christianity may have remained a small sect within Palestine. Wednesday: Timothy and Titus, bishops (first century), were Paul’s devoted disciples. Paul writes to them in letters that are included in the New Testament canon. Timothy because the leader of Ephesus while Titus went to Crete. Both helped Paul form new churches in Asia Minor. Thursday: Angelic Merici (1474-1540) founded the Ursuline order of nuns to educate the poor. Her order invoked the name of Ursula, patron of medieval universities. They began as a loose federation of lay women who did not live in community, take vows or wear a habit. They met to devote themselves to learn techniques to better educated the poor. Friday: Thomas Aquinas, priest and doctor (1225-1274) was educated in a Benedictine monastery at Monte Cassino and eventually joined the newly-formed Dominican Order. He wrote great books on theology with his Summa Theologiae as his most complete summary of the faith. He also wrote liturgical hymns that conveyed his theology: Adoro Te Devote, Tantum Ergo, Pange Linqua. Much of the church’s thought was shaped by the cogent arguments of Aquinas. This Week in Jesuit History • Jan 23, 1789. John Carroll gained the deed of land for the site that was to become Georgetown University. • Jan 24, 1645. Fr. Henry Morse was led as a prisoner from Durham to Newgate, London. On hearing his execution was fixed for February 1, he exclaimed: “Welcome ropes, hurdles, gibbets, knives, butchery of an infamous death! Welcome for the love of Jesus, my Savior.” • Jan 25, 1707. Cardinal Tournon, Apostolic Visitor of the missions in China, forbade the use of the words ‘Tien’ or ‘Xant’ for God and ordered the discontinuance by the Christians of the Chinese Rites. • Jan 26, 1611. The first Jesuit missionaries sailed from Europe for New France (Canada). • Jan 27, 1870. The Austrian government endeavored to suppress the annual grant of 8,000 florins to the theological faculty of Innsbruck and to drive the Jesuit professors from the university, because of their support of the Papal Syllabus. • Jan 28, 1853. Fr. General John Roothaan, wishing to resign his office, summoned a General Congregation, but died on May 8, before it assembled. • Jan 29, 1923. Woodstock scholastics kept a fire vigil for several months to prevent the Ku Klux Klan from setting the college on fire. Flood Donations in Australia The Australian states of Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria have been devastated by flooding over the last month, with many parts of the country still bracing themselves. Brisbane was the biggest urban centre hit by the floods, with many houses in riverside suburbs swamped with water. In Queensland, an area larger than Texas has been under water during the past month. A massive clean-up task awaits these communities. To make a donation to ease the burdens of the flood victims, refer to the online sites below: St Vincent de Paul: http://www.vinnies.org.au/qldfloodappeal Queensland Premier’s Appeal: http://www.qld.gov.au/floods/donate.html

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Espiritualidad: Its belief of Anthony de Mello, S.J.

By Admin

Jan

21

The master had quoted to Aristotle: “In the search of the truth, it would seem better and in fact necessary to give for above which is considered.” And it replaced the word “God” for the “truth.” A disciple said more ahead to him, “I is I list, in the search for God, to give above for any thing: abundance, friendly, family, country, life itself. What a person can more give for above” The master answered calmly, “his belief on God.” The disciple went sad absentee, because he clung in his convictions. He feared “ignorance more” than death.

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Sermon for the 3:7 of mark – 12

By Admin

Jan

20

After yesterday’s shocking opposition to the healing actions of Jesus so early in the Gospel, Mark pauses in his Gospel so we can grasp hold of what is happening around Jesus. Up to this point, Jesus is enthusiastically received as a healer and as one who teaches powerfully. Very many are responding well to him. Mark sets this general summary in place to let the hearer appreciate its importance: people from many areas are converging on Jesus as the center of attraction. They want to meet him. In fact, they are coming from all directions. Word of him has spread beyond Galilee and Judea. With great significance, Jews from Jerusalem, the capital, the holy city, are seeking him. Notice that the place to encounter God is no longer temple-centered, it is kingdom-centered. People come from Idumea in the south, beyond the Jordan River in the east, and Tyre and Sidon in the north and west – all lands that fall outside of Israel. These are the people who will first hear parables and witness exorcisms in the next few chapters. These people recognize something in this man as the Son of God. It does not stop there. Even the unclean spirits recognize him shouting out, “You are the Son of God.” Now is a good time for us to pause to examine what we know of Jesus. It might sound like a silly exercise, but we suffer from information-deficit-disorder. Let us examine how we know what we know of Jesus. We may find our knowledge of him is not as secure as we would like. We have built up illusions about his identity. Take for instance the many movies and plays about his Passion, Death, and Resurrection, or even of his nativity. These images of Jesus are often a product of a conflation of the four Gospels into one portrait. When we hold these conflated images, we lose the portrait of the man the Evangelist sought to portray. These are four distinct stories that highlight a certain aspect of Jesus with an intended message for a specific audience. Then we have the dilemma of reading accounts of his historical life decades after his death and resurrection. The authors transferred their experience of the Risen Lord onto the life of the historical man. We lose the radical identity of the man when we perceive him as more God than man. In fact, those heretical views were condemned by the early church. In many conversations with faithful churchgoers, a large majority still believe that Jesus possessed greater divine nature than human nature. They conclude that Jesus had almost perfect knowledge of what would happen to him in his Passion. We’ve lost the man in our theological imagination. Our faith is meaningful when we look at the historical man rather than the God-man. We are to look at the real person because it is his life and teachings that drew so many to him. It was his human faith in God that saved us. We are not saved because of our faith in him, but because of his utter fidelity to God – even a God he felt was absent in his greatest need. He needed to be completely human to make his work possible. Since he was steadfast to God, he gave us a way of life to emulate. Because he was fully human, not partly God while being human, we place our hope in him. His nature and identity are quite a mystery to behold. During retreats, we petition God for an intimate knowledge of our Lord, who became human for us, that we may love him more and follow him more closely. We have to discover the truth of his identity in light of all the other data we have been taught. In some cases, we are to deconstruct what we think we know so we can come to a fuller understanding of who he really is. After all, this is what we do in prayer. We present to Christ who we are, our true selves, genuinely, authentically, while Christ responds to us and reveals more about his life to us. We grow in friendship with him and he places us with the Father through the Spirit. We are here because we are like the people from Idumea, or Tyre or Sidon. We want to know Jesus, just as they desired. We have come from all directions to meet him again or to learn about him for the first time. We’ve heard about his words of life, his healings, the way he extends new boundaries of freedom, and that he radically cares for each person he meets and liberates us from our deep, dark, muckiness. He wants us to come to know the God he calls Abba so we can know the steadfast care of God. He yearns to bring us into a new family that not only welcomes everyone and treats them with respect and dignity, but rejoices that they are here. He wants us to care for one another with a mercy that is befuddling curious to those who don’t believe. They will find it attractive and will be led to our way of life. He wants us to be in a world where others remark, “See how they love one another. They should be natural enemies, but anyone who calls upon the name of the Lord is treated with mercy.” Come to Jesus today. Waste time with him. Don’t force your prayer as if it is work. It is not therapy. Prayer doesn’t have to be profound each day. Prayer can just be sitting next to your friend in silence, or in very frivolous conversation. It can be light-hearted and fun and gentle. Just be who you are with the one you want to be with. That’s all. It’s all so simple. Just relax and be who you are. Your true identity will help see his true identity. He is worth coming to know. I’ll shut up now, but I’ll leave you with a story about a Trinidadian woman I met in Jamaica. She taught me great stuff about how to enter into prayer by a simple beholding exercise. Every day, this mother would send her daughter, Marissa, off to school with a simple ritual. Each night she would make her daughter a lunch before sending her off to school. They would have a simple breakfast and then it was time to part. The mother gave her child her lunch pail and would give her a huge hug. This woman could give a substantial hug. She would utter into her Marissa’s ear, “I will miss you, and I love you.” The girl would head towards the door and the mother would stop her and gasp, “Marissa, wait. Let me look at you one last time. You are so beautiful to behold. I just want to see your face one more time.” The woman would savor the sweet image of her daughter while Marissa walked tall and straight towards school. Come to Jesus today. Waste time with him. Behold him the way this Trinidadian mother would hold Marissa in her memory. Through beholding his humanity, we can say of him, like the unclean spirits did, “wow.” “Wow!” “You truly are the Son of God.” My best guess says that Jesus will behold you too and will praise and honor you. He wants you to know that you have a beautiful face. He wants to savor the good person that you are and hold you in his memory. Watch him as he gazes upon you so tenderly that your presence takes his breath away.

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Photo: A layer of the winter

By Admin

Jan

20

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Prayer: Benedicto XVI

By Admin

Jan

20

We can thus be sure that the most sacred heart of Jesus, in its life hidden whole in Nazareth, always found hearth of `that always burned with prayer and the constant attention to the Spirit Santo in the immaculate heart of Maria.

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Song: Breathing of the sky of Amy Grant

By Admin

Jan

19

I have many traveled nightscold without moon and I get tired inside with a baby, and I ask myself what I have done. Father santo, you make comeand choose can now take to his son. I am hoping in a quiet prayer. The load I am scared that I take. In a cold of the world like stonemust way so this trajectory only? Now it is with me. Now it is with me. You ask yourself as you watch my faceif more wise person must have had my place? But I offer to all amfor of I the mercy of its plan. Ayúdeme to be strong. Ayúdeme to be. Ayúdeme. Refrain: The breathing of the sky, maintains to me united. It is in favor of always near me, breathing of Heaven.Breath of the sky, lightens my dark. Holiness spills on me his, because you are santo, breathing of the sky.

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