Kings Bishop to Knight 3....

A reflection on the daily Mass readings for Thursday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time (June 23, 2016)

2nd Kings 24:8-17
Psalm 79
The Holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew 7:21-29

When I was four years old my dad was electrocuted in the coal mines.   His heart stopped for a while, longer than should have been possible.  Another man kept him going this entire time by doing CPR until they could get an ambulance there.  The road to recovery was long and hard.  I remember though, that it meant he got to spend time with us.  I also remember playing chess.  I was never very good at chess, but what I do remember is that in order to win you need to get rid of their key players.   Going after the pawns doesn't do much.  Getting rid of the queen, a bishop or a rook... now that gets you closer to check mate.

The King of Babylon in the first reading knew exactly what he was doing.  He didn't take every one away into exile, some of them he left behind.   What he did do was take those who had influence.   The politicians who knew how to run the government, the skilled foremen and laborers who knew how to plant, build, design.   Anyone who would help to rebuild society was taken away, leaving only the uneducated, the poor, those who could not stand up on their own.   He left the nation of Israel reeling with no leaders to stand up and lead the people out of bondage.   He returned them to a worse state of slavery than Egypt could ever hope to impose.  A hopelessness, a fear that left them unable to act, unable to move.

The enemy seeks to do the same to you and I every day.   He seeks to use fear to instill in us doubt, hopelessness, depression and a sense that nothing can be done to make life better.  He wants to take all of our virtues, our gifts, and drag them off into bondage.  To repress them so that we can't see the light of day.  Faith, hope and charity are the rock foundations of the society of our soul.  When we begin to falter in these he sees an opening, all he needs to do is get us to instead follow despair, doubt, and hate.  That's when our spiritual life begins to falter.. that's when all that is left of our own faculties are left reeling, unable to act, unable to move towards Heaven, toward's Christ who never left.

You see, just like the remnant of people left in Israel, Jesus never moved.  He has always been there, waiting for us to turn to Him for help.  To realize that He is the key, the Rock on which we can build our faith.   A Rock that is not just passively sitting there, but which helps us to build up and turn into a rock of our own.  Just like Simon Peter, who at one point gave into despair and hopelessness, to the point of denying he ever knew Christ; we too can be transformed into a new person.  God offers us a new name, no longer will we be Simon, but Peter, the rock who guides others to Christ.

First though, we must become the poor.  In many cases the enemy has already taken away our leaders, our craftsmen, and our laborers.  He has replaced the King in our heart with one he has appointed in it's place.  It's only when we let go of all those things we hold on to, all of those things that stand in the way of Christ being the center of our lives... relationships, desires, hatreds... when we become completely detached from the world and it's enticements and instead only trust in God... when we become the true poor, that's when the beatitude is fulfilled:

And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said:
“Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God."

So what is standing in your way?  What has taken the place of God in your life?  He's not something you just add into your schedule when you find time... but rather, He should be put in your schedule first, and all the rest should be put around Him.  Christian, are you taking time to listen to Him today as He tries to lead you out of captivity?  Out of bondage and into the freedom of salvation?  He is offering you a Rock to build your spiritual house on.... are you taking time to set the foundations?  To receive Him so that He can mold you into a solid structure? Don't be a fool and build on the sand of the enemy.

His servant and yours,
Brian

"He must increase, I must decrease."

That's Not How I Want It!

In Today's Gospel we see one of the most beautiful phrases in Sacred Scripture, at least in my humble opinion: Jesus, looking at him, loved him.  Oh how that should resound in our hearts and our souls as we think of Jesus doing the same for us.  Here is this young man who has done everything he has been taught but he still feels something more is necessary.   Why do we call him a young man? As Archbishop Barron said, "Because he came running up."  We know little else about him except his desire to get to Heaven and that he knew he must come to Jesus for the answer.  That's really a lesson in and of itself isn't it?  When we have to make a decision, when we have a crisis in life, when we want to know an answer... how often do we go around asking everyone else their opinion before speaking to our friend, our brother, our Savior first?

The young man calls Jesus good.  Jesus responds with that inquiry, "Why do you call me good?  No one is good but God alone."   So many have interpreted Jesus words here to say that he was just a man, that's part of the problem of interpreting scripture outside of the faith in which it was written.  We can't interpret this verse without looking at not only all the rest of scripture but what the authors believed.   Jesus was not telling the man not to call me good but saying "Do you know who I am?  Do you know why you sought me out?  I am the Son of God.  That is why I am good."   He knowing the young mans heart goes on to say you already know the commandments, follow them.  The man knows that's not enough, how do we know this?  Because he pushes the point.   "I've done all this.  I need more."  That's when He turns and looks on him and loves him.  Oh how wonderful a moment that must have been.  What more can the young man offer? What more can Christ ask of him?

In the book a Rabbi Talks with Jesus, Jacob Nuesner posits that to all of this Christ adds only one thing.  For Neusner it's something unfathomable.  Something that if he had heard himself he would walk away.  For those of us with faith though, those of us who are Christian, it makes perfect sense.   Jesus does not add or take away from the law, but he fulfills it.  To the young mans list he simply adds one thing: Himself.   "Get rid of all the things holding you back, and come and follow me."  The young man was rich and this was his folly.   This was what he was clinging too.  This wealth was exactly what stood in his way of "letting go, and letting God."  It seems like a simple thing doesn't it?   This young man was faithful and he believed.   He knew where to find the answers and now exactly what was left for him to go on to live in Heaven with God the father for eternity.   Yet, he walked away sad.   I imagine when he ran up he thought that maybe Jesus would exhort him, "Well done good and faithful servant!"   Or maybe he thought that it would be something simple like go to this place and do this thing.  

It reminds me of Naaman the Leper who came to Elisha for healing.   He expected some quest, some Holy Grail to have to find, in order to receive this miraculous cure.   When Elisha told him something so simple to do.. he rejected it and stormed off.   How dare this holy man tell him simply to dip in the water?  It wasn't until a servant convinced him to give it a try that he received God's blessings.   If the prophet had commanded you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much rather, then, when he says to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?”  So he went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.  

Like Naaman and the rich young man, sometimes we want our relationship with God to be more complicated than it is.   We go to Confession where Jesus himself meets us Sacramentally and then we wonder afterwards if we did enough, if the priest gave us enough penance, did I remember everything?  Or we come to the Eucharist and we worry whether or not we are doing everything right.. do I need to do this first?  Or this after?  Kneel? In the hand? On the tongue?   We spend so much time worrying about all the extras, trying to make it into our own Holy Quest that we forget the simple nature of what God has offered us.. He has added just one thing: Jesus.   I'm not talking about ignoring reverence.   I am talking about making the moment about Christ and not ourselves.  Both men walked away from an encounter with God because it wasn't what they wanted in that encounter.   It wasn't how they wanted it to be.

How many have done just that today?  "I don't like the priest."  "I don't think I need confession."   "Why should I go to Mass every Sunday?"  Jesus says, "Come and follow me."  He gave us a Church with authority.   That Church has shown us the revealed way to do things.  What is standing in our way?  For some of us it's not wealth, not all of us have the same condition this rich young man had.. nor do we know if this man ever turned and followed Christ... what we do know is that he had an attachment to something other than God.  Where is mine?   That is the question we must ask today.   "If Jesus asked me to give up X and come and follow him, would I go away sad?"  What is your attachment?  Don't miss an encounter with God because it isn't how you thought it should go... rather, let Him lead you to the truth.  Jesus is looking at you and loving you, how will you respond?

His servant and yours,
Brian

"He must increase, I must decrease."

Why don't your eyes see me?

Illustration of Lazarus at the rich man's gate by Fyodor Bronnikov, 1886.

In tomorrow’s Gospel we see the familiar passage in which Jesus speaks a parable about Lazarus and the rich man.  He tells the Pharisees in his presence about these two men and how they lived their earthly life.  One was a poor beggar who sat at the rich man's doorstep begging for scraps.  The other an extremely wealth man.   A man not just presented as well to do, but extremely wealthy.  Dressed in purple and fine linen, he dined sumptuously. 

sumptuous[suhmp-choo-uh s]
adjective
1.entailing great expense, as from choice materials, fine work, etc.;costly:a sumptuous residence.
2.luxuriously fine or large; lavish; splendid:a sumptuous feast.

Here is this man who has these magnificently lavish feasts daily, not just on special occasions.  His life is full of excess, full of carnal pleasures.   How great a contrast we have with Lazarus, the beggar.   This man has no fine clothing.  He sits begging at the door of the rich man's abode desiring to even eat the crumbs that fall from his table.  Alas, they are consumed by the very dogs that lick the poor ragamuffins’ wounds.  He has no one to support him, no one to bandage and dress him that he might get better, but is tormented by the very animals that eat the food he so ardently needs to survive.  

Oh how this speaks to my heart during Lent as we try to raise money to build a well to bring clean water to those in distant countries who do not have any, or have very little access to them.  We who sit lavishly in our homes with an unlimited supply to be had.  They who just wish to drink of the drops that we so dishonorably waste in our excess. How can we not recognize Lazarus, the hungry beggar in the parable (cf. Lk 17:19-31), in the multitude of human beings without bread, a roof or a place to stay? How can we fail to hear Jesus: "As you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to me" (Mt 25:45)? (CCC 2463)  During the super bowl this year, the only football game I actually chose to watch, there was this amazing commercial about water conservation.   Colgate took a moment to highlight how much water we truly do waste, how much we take for granted, how much we let fall to the wayside to be consumed by the dogs of our sewers, instead of protecting for those who have none.  They sit at the gate of our hearts and beg to partake of just our scraps, and are we aware?

When the disciples begged Jesus for their own crumbs, he fed them exorbitantly from the masters table.   They said Master teach us how to pray and he so obliged, not holding back but opening up the floodgates of heaven with the prayer that is familiar to Christians of all backgrounds. In the Our Father we ask specifically for our daily bread.    This speaks of trusting in God for God’s provision, not that we should become lax in our duty to try and earn our bread, nor that we should just stop providing and protecting our families, but that we should be aware of the blessings we receive.  

But the presence of those who hunger because they lack bread opens up another profound meaning of this petition. The drama of hunger in the world calls Christians who pray sincerely to exercise responsibility toward their brethren, both in their personal behavior and in their solidarity with the human family. This petition of the Lord's Prayer cannot be isolated from the parables of the poor man Lazarus and of the Last Judgment. (2831)

How felicitous it is that the Church has been guided by the Holy Spirit to share this pericope of scripture with us at this point during Lent.   To remind us of our duty to the poor as we are reminded of one of the three pillars of the journey through the desert, almsgiving. What are we doing to help those in need?  How are we using our prayer, fasting, and almsgiving to bring that change into the world and into our own hearts?  It’s not enough to simply conserve water, we need to be sharing it.  God does not give us these wonderful blessings in our lives to be hoarded in our cabinets for future meals of our own.  He intends them to be given out to those who have none.  That is why the goal of Lent should not just be to reduce our consumption through fasting, but to then take that money that we have saved and use it to feed another.  

It’s an opportunity for us to go out to the gate of our own hearts, lift up Lazarus as he sits watching our comfort, bring him into our home and bandage him, clean him up, care for him and nourish him to health.  Lent is supposed to change us.  It’s supposed to draw us closer to who Christ is.  Christ heals.  Christ cures.  Christ feeds.  Christ loves.  As I sit here in my heated home, typing on my chromebook, surrounded by loved ones, books, comforts.. blessings, I realize I am not doing enough. How about you?  Remember too that there are two responses to Jesus message today.  Lazarus was downtrodden, a broken man who sat at the mercy of the world.  Yet, we see from his presence in Abraham’s bosom that he never blamed God for it.   He never turned his back on his faith.   The rich man had every material comfort needed, but when he died he went to eternal torment.  It’s apparent that in his faith he knew he needed to repent, he knew he needed to serve, he knew what he was doing was wrong.  He kept it all for himself.

Which are we today? Are we Lazarus? Do we put our faith in God no matter what comes? Are we the rich man?  Do we ignore God’s prompting to do good and simply lavish ourselves with comfort in a grand hedonism?  Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your heart.  Trust in God.  Find comfort in his promise. Find a way to reach out to those in need materially, physically, and spiritually.  You have been called to the greatest feast of all time, the wedding feast of the Lamb. You receive the most extravagant meal in the entire universe in the Eucharist... are you sharing those crumbs? Or keeping them for yourself? We are the hands and feet of Christ, we have work to do Church!

His servant and yours,

Brian

“He must increase, I must decrease.”

Silent Night, On a Somber Note

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve.  It's a time of celebration, a time of great joy, and yet here I am at one A.M. in the morning having very somber thoughts.  I want to share those with you if you will bear with me.  I intended to write something uplifting, something joyful and edifying.  We will see if that comes out it.  Sometimes the Holy Spirit has his own idea of what my blog posts should be about.

I ran into a friend earlier today at the store while getting some things for dinner and for the house.  He stopped to talk to my wife and I as we were moving thorugh the freezer section.   We talked about his plans for the next few weeks.   He is travelling down south to a place he owns in a warm climate.  He'll be gone for a few weeks.  He has to decide if he's going to keep the place or sell it.  It is a good time to get away, right after Christmas.   He said he'll spend Christmas with the family then fly down.  Then he looked at me.  I guess I reminded him of her.  We spent some time together before she passed.  Tears came to both of our eyes.  He didn't want to talk about it, I didn't want to bring it up.  We hugged.  We talked anyway. It's the first Christmas since she went on to the next life.

I hope this Christmas for him will be one in which he finds how to deal with the sorrow and finds comfort.  The Gospel reading for the Night Mass tomorrow talks of how Joseph and Mary had to journey to a place with many memories.  He had to return to the land of his family to be counted in the census. Like my friend, he had to go back.  Decisions had to be made.  Worries sorted through.  As they journeyed together conversations had to be had.  Christmas Eve was a time of hardship.  A time of fear.  No money, no place to stay at an inn, a baby on the way.

Then the angels came to the Shepherds in the field.  They proclaimed the good news!  “Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For today in the city of David savior has been born for you who is Christ and Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.”  I think often we forget how much fear was involved the night before Christmas.  So many strange things happening.  Life was going on though.  Christ, the king of the universe, was being born into the world.  The greatest event in all of human history, the salvation and restoration of mankind to a right relationship with God, began in the still and darkness of night.  It began with a journey.  Both for Mary and Joseph, but also for all those who came to see Christ.  They had decisions to make.  Shepherd or wise man, both had to go on a journey looking for answers.

Just like my dear friend who is flying out to make decisions, what they all have in common is they are looking for answers.  You and I, we are looking for answers too.  Truly though the answer lies in one man, Jesus Christ.   He is the full revelation of God.  Everything we need to know about mankind, everything we need to know about God, everything we need to know about life... all of it lies in this God man, born in the darkness of night.  Shrouded in mystery.  Placed in a manger.  The Bread of Life.  The Son of Man.  Emmanuel.  God with us. 

Tomorrow as we begin our Christmas season anew, let us begin to search earnestly for answers.  Don't let Christmas get away from you.  Too many times we get so caught up in the presents, in the food, in the atmosphere, that we don't spend time in prayer.. time with Christ.  We too have a journey to make, we just don't know when the final flight will occur.  Christ is being born into our world in the past, present and future.   What does that mean to us?   What do we do about it?  There can be a lot of fear.  A lot of doubt.   A lot of questions.  We know though, that a wise man once said, "We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him."   Wise men still seek him, that's where the answers are. 

His servant and yours,
Brian

The Rest is just Icing on the Cake

Back when my daughter was much younger she stayed at home with me during the day.  We would work on learning the things she needed to know for school.  My mother had bought us these wonderful little math and reading flash cards and we would use those.  We would also go over very simple things about God and the bible.   I was trying to prepare her for her life of learning, both in the secular world of public education and in the religious world of C.C.D.  There were times she'd get what I would say, and other times I wasn't sure she was learning, especially when it came to things like who God was, the Holy Spirit, Jesus, and the trinity.  How do you explain such difficult concepts to someone who is 4 years old?

I still did my best and we would talk plainly and simply about God.  As her math skills improved, her letter recognition and even simple reading began to flourish as well.  One day she was laying on the floor looking up through the skylight at the sky.  She sat scrunching up her face like she was trying to figure something out. 

"What are you thinking about?", I asked.

"Thinking about the Holy Ghost."

"ah, what about him?"

"That cloud looks like him."

"How so?"

"Well, it looks like Jesus, but he has on a costume like the Holy Spirit."

It's a simple analogy, and imperfect in many ways.  But she was getting it!  She knew that they were both God.. but they were different people, different looking, but the same substance.   I was so excited!  She was learning!  How beautiful that is for a parent to watch their child begin to wrestle with difficult, and even abstract concepts, and start to grasp them for the first time.

In the Gospel for tomorrow I feel that is why Jesus is rejoicing.  Seventy of his missionaries have just returned filled with excitement at the success of their mission.  "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!"   How amazing that must be?  How powerful and exciting to see the Lord move through miracles that make his presence evident in the world.  Yet, Jesus reminds them that it isn't these loud showy things that they should be excited about, but their salvation.  How often is it that we want that though?  We want the flash.  We want the bang.   We want to see the mountains move.  We want the fourth of July.  Jesus wants to give us Easter though.  As Elijah found on the top of the mountain, God wasn't in the lightning.  He wasn't in the earth quake.  Not in the thunder or the flame.  He was in the stillness, in the quite whispering wind of the Spirit.

Notice that phrase at the start of the Gospel?  Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit. That's what we should be asking to do as well.  That's the beauty of having the Holy Spirit in our lives.  We don't need the flashy.  We don't need the speaking in tongues, or the shouting Amen, though these things can be beautiful if done correctly.   We don't need the falling out in the spirit, or the miraculous healings, though those too are beautiful and wonderful.  Rather we rejoice in just being filled with God.  Just his presence in our hearts gives us joy.  All the rest is just icing on the cake. 

The disciples got to see something that the Prophets and Kings of old desired to see.  They got to see the Kingdom of God before them, the Messiah standing in their presence.  For centuries the people of God had been longing for this moment, to come face to face with God made man.  Many didn't see him.  Many ignored him, or thought him to not be doing the right things.  The simple, trusting disciples were the ones who saw all of this come to pass.  They got to see Christ.  They got to see God and live. 

What about you?  Jesus says to us today as well, "do not rejoice in these miracles; but rather rejoice that your names are written in Heaven."  Again, he says "I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it."  Do you realize how blessed you are?  You get to see the risen Lord in the Eucharist every day you choose to do so.  Do you rejoice?  Or do you desire rather the flashy, explosive things.   Pray to the Holy Spirit that you too will rejoice in Christ's presence in your life.  That you will be filled with joy, not seeking the explosive manifestations of the spirit that sparkle and shine in the sky like the fourth of July.. but rather Easter.  That transformation that brings you from death to life.  If the explosions come?  Then rejoice.  If not?  Rejoice. 

Everlasting life is a more astounding miracle than anything we might see here in this world.   Rejoice!

His servant and yours,
Brian

Happy New Year!

Be vigilant!   That is our message from today's Gospel.  As we enter the season of Advent, we see more of that Apocalyptic literature that reminds us to be ever ready and watchful for the return of our Lord, Jesus Christ.  It exhorts us to continue working towards that perfection, that holiness of life that comes with following Christ as our example.  It also evokes in our hearts the realization that we all have one thing in common.  We all eventually will die.  We all eventually will face judgement.  These readings are intense, but they are written not to scare us but to encourage.  A prompting to "conduct ourselves in a way pleasing to God."

The last few days I've been binge watching a television show that I find to be very interesting.  I wouldn't recommend it for children or anyone sensitive to harsh language, but the Man in the High Castle definitely shows us a danger of the human condition.  In this alternate reality the Nazi's created the bomb before America did.  This enabled them to not only win the war, but to take over half the country.  The other half seems to have been dominated by the Japanese which I imagine began with Pearl Harbor.  Throughout the series we see what life would truly be like if we didn't have freedom.  If you have ever complained about freedom here in the United States?  Give this show a watch.

Why do I mention this show?  When I watch it I see something about the characters that is very much vigilant.  They have their eyes open.  They are seeking the good of 'society'.  One of the characters is a Nazi commander and he very much seeks the best for the Nazi government.  He is dedicated.  He believes in what he is doing.  He keeps to his 'rule' of conduct at all costs.  In that though, he ignores one thing, his heart.  At one point he turns over his friend, because as he puts it, "There is no room for emotions" in the world.  He has left love behind. 

That is a danger that many people forget.  In their conduct they are trying to be pleasing to God, but God is pleased truly with love.  Our liturgies are important, our devotions too, our prayer and worship should be first and foremost in our lives.  All of it must be tempered with love.  Humanity is bad to stick to one ideology, one way of doing things, to the point of harming others in order to stick to that one way of life.  We aren't like the Nazi's, I agree.   Most of us would blanch at killing in order to purify the human race.  Yet, how many of us stick to our democratic or republican voting points regardless of if love is involved?  How many of us would vote the party line even if it means supporting one of the five non-negotiables?  How many of us decide that one liturgy is better than another? Or one version of music is the 'right' one, even to the point of running someone down to get our way?

Jesus said if we were angry with our brother it was the same as murdering him.  If we are so set in our ways of doing things, and have not love, St. Paul says we are just a sounding gong or a clanging cymbal.  That is, we are just a loud noise with no effectiveness, pushing people away and harming them instead of soothing them and drawing them closer to Christ.  When we decide at work that our way is the only way to do things, even to the point of not being charitable to that person who wants to try something new, hurting their feelings and gossiping behind their back; aren't we killing them with our words and thoughts?  Jesus condemned empty and hollow tradition.  He said that the Pharisees were like white washed tombs.  On the outside they did all the right things.  On the inside there remained the filth of decay and the bones of dead men.  Are you the same inside as your are outside? or are you wearing a mask? We must change.  We must start with love.  Then and only then, when we do our traditions out of love.. they are a true and pleasing sacrifice to the Lord. 

As we approach Christmas through advent let us do so with love.  Let us invite others into our celebration.  Let us spread the word, declaring "Blessed Advent" or "Happy Advent" to those who wish us a "Happy Holidays."   Then when they ask what Advent is, let us explain our traditions, how that we are journeying towards Christmas to remind us of that grateful expectation that Israel felt as they waited for the long prophesied Savior and Messiah.  Let us build that palatable excitement in our lives until we can sing with the angels, the Saints, and the blessed Virgin Mary:

“Glory to God in the highest heaven,    and on earth peace among those whom he favors!”

His servant and yours,
Brian

The Bears Win!

Today's readings are quite intense.  Since we are less than a day away from Advent it would be expected that the intensity grows, and so it does!  We see all these strong apocalyptic images of great beasts rising up and devouring, and then falling away to the next beast.  What are these images about?  Apocalyptic literature is always kind of scary and many people spend the majority of their lives trying to find out who these people are, not just in the past but some try to interpret them as in the present.  The point of the literature, though it can be prophetic and often was, is to point to righteousness and faith being the key to redemption.  They almost always end with the judgement seat of God and the end of time.

The lions, tigers and bears (oh my!) represent strength and characteristics of kingdoms to come and go.   Just as you and I would be scared if a bear walked into our living room, let alone a bear with three large tusks; so too was the imagery intended to convey a message.  That message is that these kingdoms that are coming and going are very powerful, savage and cruel.  They all fall though.  This scene in Daniel ends with the coronation of the Son of Man coming on the clouds.  Jesus is in charge.  These kingdoms, despite their power and guile, will all fall away.. the only Kingdom that reigns forever is that of the Messiah, of the Christ.  This is the promise of the Davidic throne, this is the promise to us through Christ, the only begotten Son of God. 

Then we see this interesting parable that talks about figs, and signs of the times.  Just like in the apocalyptic literature we see symbols of what is going on in the world politically at the time, we see Jesus teaching us to keep our eyes and ears open.  He talks about the fact that we see the buds of the fig trees ready to burst forth and that shows us that summer is almost here, so too should we keep our minds open for the coming of Christ.  He also taught us though, that only the Father will know that day.  So what does he mean?  He means to be vigilant.  To be ready.

I was trying to learn more about figs earlier today, to see how this parable could apply to my life.  I grew up helping to tend bee hives occasionally.   I had heard quite a bit about bees and how they pollinate the food we eat, helping things to grow and reproduce.  I did not know that wasps also for some plants do the same thing.  Figs have a special kind of wasp that not only pollinates the fruit but also lays it's eggs there.  The queen crawls into the fig, lays her eggs, in the process pollinates the inside of the fruit, and then she dies.  She is consumed by the fig. 

That's a strange relationship.  The thing is, if you ask me about wasps I truly think of them as a terror.  Compared to bears, lions, eagles... a wasp is much scarier to me.  I don't know why.  Their little faces make me think of pure evil.  That to me is the lesson I take from this whole situation.  I think of the wasp as evil, as those things inside of me that get in the way of me letting God have complete control.  Just like the fig I often think these things are for my good.  I let them crawl around inside, not really asking what to do with them.  The fig teaches us a lesson though.  When we have those things inside we need to dissolve them.  We need to let the Jesus inside of us consume those things, drive them out... leaving nothing but the fruit inside. 

I think that's our lesson.  As the liturgical year ends, our minds begin to think of the end of time.  We don't know when that will come.  We don't know exactly what that will look like, or what it means for us to transition from life to eternity.  What we do know is that we need to be ready.  We need to let the Holy Spirit scatter the darkness in our hearts until nothing is left but the sweetness of His fruits.  As my dear friend Kenn often says, "Get ready, be ready, stay ready."  Don't wait till tomorrow, don't simply watch for signs of things to come.. but be ready regardless of what is happening.  Don't let your lamp go empty, keep the fuel handy at all times.

His servant and yours,
Brian

Supreme Court Decision

It's been an interesting few days.  We've seen the supreme court decide for the entire nation an issue
of morality.  Forcing states (regardless of voters opinion in those states) to accept something they may or may not approve of.  For many that's a hard thing to swallow.  Tempers are high.  Families are fighting among one another. People are spitting on Priests.  In several celebratory parades people mocked Jesus Christ himself, and attacked Christians in effigy.

So how do we as Christians respond?  We live our vocation.  It is time for us to step up and be the men and women we claim to be.  Imperfect, broken, but forgiven.  We pray.   We love.  We remain chaste to our calling in life.   We call people to Christ by our actions as well as our words.   It is not a time for anger or berating.  Rather its a time for peace, joy and love.

The Supreme court decision does nothing to redefine what we morally believe to be the real, revealed truth of God.  So we raise our families.   We stay true to our spouses.   We live our lives as Catholics. That means a sacramental life.   It's time to start receiving those channels of grace and putting them to work.  When we do something wrong, it's time to get to confession.   When we are having a rough day, it's time to get to communion.  We need to start praying as families, as husbands and wives, as single men and women.   We need to sanctify the day to the Lord, hour by hour.  Take up a rosary, the Divine Office, or just speak to God!

Live your calling.  Live it with love, peace and joy.  Let people see that you are the person you claim to be.  Do not condone sin, but always treat it with the gloves of mercy and love.  Every single one of us is a sinner.  We all have things in our closet that we are not proud of.  We are forgiven, and so we forgive.  We pray for the other, as we would pray for ourselves.  Above all, we pray His will be done, on earth, as it is in Heaven.

-Brian

Jesus, the Incarnation

Today's reading at Mass was about God creating Eve from the rib of Adam, because Adam was lonely without one of his own 'kind'. While this is a reading about marriage, it's also about human relationships. That fits well with my readings from "Consoling the Heart of Jesus." Bear with me while I try to express a mystery so great that I am sure my words will fail me.

God became man. A mercy beyond all mercies. God who needs nothing, lowered himself to a state of mortal needs. As we see from Adam, he 'needs' human companionship. God sees that it is not good for mankind to be alone, so he makes another human to have a bond... a friendship with. God became incarnate in a mortal body, he became one who needs bonds.. needs friendship. For us. For YOU. He, the all powerful, omniscient, omnipotent.. became defenseless. He became a babe in his mothers arms. A child unable to feed or clothe himself. A person in need of love, friendship, camaraderie. All this he did that we might be able to relate and exchange our own love with him.. that we might be able to experience that two way street of needing each other.

I often hear people say God does not need us, but I think it would be more accurate to say: God did not need us. The he chose to become incarnate... vulnerable., who who needs so that we might have the great honor of being 'needed' by God...

Do you realize that you are so important to him? So very important that God chose to need you?

Understanding that Jesus being in the incarnate word of God, had potential access to all the knowledge in the universe: past, present and future... yet being also fully man possessed a fully human mind.... a mind that as we have experienced in our own humanity is unable to contain that much knowledge.. brings to mind the thought that Jesus only had in his mind what was necessary for his mission. "He while being of the same estate as God, did not think equality something to be grasped; so he emptied himself." He chose YOU. Think of that... He considered YOU to be vital to his mission.. the knowledge of you, while on the cross.. he thought of YOU.

I have a friend who talks about spoon theory. Spoon theory is the thought that each person only has so many spoons in a day. Some may have a lot, but those who don't have much energy, that are sick or hurting... might only have a few spoons. So you take the spoons out one at a time.. and when the spoons are gone? Your day is done.. your spent...

Jesus chose you as one of his spoons.

The Bars of Life

I thought he was gone,

This prisoner of war. 

In the dark night of the soul

A personal Darfur

An angry, dark man

Seeking for that happy day

Tripping down the ladder

Falling along the way

Thought to be in control

Truly tis but a myth

With St. Paul I cry out

My soul a vile pith

That I know to do

That I do not

A darkness creeps in

My essence of rot

There he is again

The man I thought I lost

A super hero, invisible

A heart of frost

Seeking freedom from this prison of sin

Found only in the word of the Lord

But truly as our Master has said

Tis a painful two edged sword.