Love your enemy. We know this is what Jesus exhorts us to do, but this is such a difficult thing. Especially when we live in a society that seems to value revenge and vengeance. I remember back last November, President Obama made headlines, making a statement at a public school in Springfield, Ohio, tell Americans: "Voting is the best revenge!" I remember being shocked that the president of our country would tell people to go to the polls not to do the right, not with a desire to help others and to make our country a better place, but rather to go to the polls and to vote as a form of revenge against others. Where is the love in that notion?
As a priest, I hear so often that it is difficult to forgive and to reconcile a broken relationship. And I compare forgive or reconciling with our brother or sister to a slow progression of drops of water that gradually fill up a glass. Forgiveness is not usually like flicking on a light switch, something that turns on in an instant. Forgiveness and reconciliation are things that we have to pray for and work toward each day. It is a process that is usually not very easy.
But I must say, I humbly disagree with our president. Revenge is not the answer. And I don't think Jesus would agree with him either, certainly not in the light of today's Gospel.
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Monday, June 17, 2013
6/23/2013 – Duodécimo domingo del tiempo ordinario – Lucas 5,18-24
«¿Quién dice la gente que soy yo?» Es la pregunta que Jesucristo tiene para sus discípulos
en el Evangelio de hoy, y es la pregunta que tiene para cada uno de nosotros en
nuestra vida de fe. Los nombres que tenemos para las personas y las
cosas en nuestra vida ayudan a definirnos también. Y los nombres que tenemos para estas cosa pueden
establecer las fronteras y los limites que tenemos en nuestra vida. El Evangelio de hoy explica que la muchedumbre
tenía una opinión muy buena de Cristo, porque le identificó con los lideres de
su religión – Elías y Juan el Bautista. Y Jesús pregunta si ellos tienen otro nombre para
el – y les pregunta en otra manera - «Quien dicen que soy yo?» Pedro le contesta con una profesión de fe - «Tu
eres el Mesías de Dios.» Aunque Pedro entienda la identidad verdadera de
Cristo con esta profesión de fe, él tiene mucho para aprender sobre los
detalles de su identidad. El no entienda
que Jesús no es un líder militar que llevará la gloria a Israel otra vez. El no entienda que Jesús es el sirviente que
va a sufrir mucho por el redención del mundo.
Los musulmanes tiene noventa y nueve nombres de
Dios en su tradición religiosa. Ellos
hacen una oración de estos 99 nombres en sus cuentas de oración muy parecida de
nuestro rosario. En estos nombres, ellos
identifican las características y los atributos de Dios. Asimismo, en la nuestra religión católica,
tenemos nombres diferentes para Jesucristo. Esta semana, podemos reflexionarnos sobre los
nombres y imagines que tenemos personalmente para Cristo en nuestra vida. Reflexionando sobre estos nombres y imagines
pueden decir mucho sobre nuestra relación con Cristo, sobre la manera que
Cristo está interrelacionándose en nuestra vida. Como podemos madurar y crecer en los imagines y
los nombre que tenemos por Cristo – en la manera que nosotros nos hace amigos
de Cristo en nuestra vida.
6/21/2013 – Friday of 11th week in ordinary time – St Aloysius Gonzaga – Psalm 34 –
“From all their distress – God rescues
the just.” We hear this in the psalm
today, as the psalmist declares that he blesses the Lord at all times. We can give blessings to the Lord very easily
for our joy and our comforts, but can we bless the Lord in the midst of our
sorrow and our distress?
God rescues the just, but sometimes the
rescue is not from earthly dangers. The
saint we celebrate is Aloysius Gonzaga, who was born into an aristocratic
Italian family, but who died at the age of 23 while studying in Rome as a
member of the Jesuits from the plague that he contracted while nursing some
sick patients when an epidemic broke out in Rome in the late 16th
century. Aloysius was known for his
great piety, and was honored by many since the time of his death. He is buried in the Church of St Ignatius of
Loyola in Rome. I remember visited that
church in Rome when I went there with the St Richard Youth Choir in 2010, and
remember the many people who came to that church looking for St Aloysius’ grave
site.
As we bless the Lord in our joys and
our sorrows, we follow the journey of faith where he calls us here on
earth. Sometimes it is quite a difficult
journey, but we are called to lift it all up to the Lord.
In
1729, Pope Benedict 13th declared Aloysius to be the patron saint of
young students. And in 1926, he was named patron of all Christian youth by Pope
Pius11th. We pray this prayer for his
intercessions for our youth today:
St
Aloysius ,you were a faithful follower of Christ as you were studying to enter the
Society of Jesus. You steadily worked toward perfection in your life of faith
while you generously served victims of the plague in Rome. Help our youth today
who are faced with a plague of false cults, false gods, and false values in our
modern secular world. Show them how to focus their energies toward God and to
use them in service toward others. Amen.
6/17/2013 – Giving thanks - Matthew 5:38 - 42 - Monday of 11th week in Ordinary time
I recently came across this quote by
Meister Eckhart – “If the only prayer I ever
say is Thank You… that is enough.” Eckhart was a Dominican priest from Germany who lived in the late 13th and early 14th century. He is a philosopher, theologian, and mystic who is greatly admired in our modern era. Gratitude and thanks seem to be missing so much in our society. We so easily become frustrated, angry, and
impatient. We want everything quickly
and on our own terms. What can we give
thanks for today, even in the midst of everything else we are going
through?
In the Gospel today, Jesus challenges
us against the culture of revenge and vengeance that exists in the world. We want retribution when someone does
something wrong to us. We want to strike
back at them and have the upper hand.
Seeking forgiveness and reconciliation is what we are called to do in
our faith. If St Paul can give thanks
for the blessings he has and find joy even in the midst of being imprisoned for
the faith, what things can we give thanks for in our own lives? Even though I would have like to have been on
the shores of Lake Michigan this morning as I had planned to do, I give thanks
for having the privilege to serve as a priest in the Diocese of Jackson and
here at St James Catholic Church in Tupelo. I give great thanks for that.
Sunday, June 16, 2013
6/23/2013 - 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Luke 9:18-24
What is in a name? The names we have for things, the way we name things, reveal a lot about a
language and a culture. When I worked up in Winnipeg, Canada as a missionary, working in soup kitchen
and food bank for two years, many of the homeless and street people I served
were members of the native American Ojibwe tribe. I had the opportunity to learn some of the Ojibwe language. Ojibwe has many words for the weather and the environment, since describing the
weather and the land was important to survival on the harsh Canadian prairies. English has only one word for snow, but Ojibwe has words for different kinds of
snow: soft snow, wet snow, and crusty snow. I distinctly remember one word I learned – gakapiganianquadinaguagin – that's
one word – and it means “it's bone-cracking cold outside.” Having survived several frigid Canadian winters, I understand why that word
exists in their language. It the middle
of our hot and humid Mississippi summer, that word seems like it describes a
different planet, doesn’t it? The Ojibwe words for animals were very descriptive as well: their word for
chipmunk literally translates into “the animal that has spots between its
stripes.” I learned a lot about the Ojibwe people and culture from the words and names
their language had for different things.
Peter answers the question in a profession of faith: You are the Christ of God
– you are the Messiah! Even though Peter understood Jesus' true identity through this statement of
faith, he still had a lot to learn about what his identity was all about. He would have to realize that the Messiah
wouldn't be a powerful military and religious leader who'd lead Israel back to
glory, but rather that he would be a servant to others who suffer greatly in
order to the redeem the world.
Just as Peter and the other disciples still had to learn about Jesus, we also
are on a life-long journey that challenges us to grow in our faith and in our
relationship with Christ. As children, we probably learned images or names for Jesus, such as the Light
of the world, the Son of God, and the Good Shepherd. These names and images are important, especially as we grow in our
understanding of Jesus and of our faith. As we grow up and mature as human beings, some of us may cling to the images
and names of Christ we had as children, refusing to go any further. Yet, to grow in our faith, we're challenged to move beyond the images and names
we have for Christ, to grow in our relationship with him and to walk with him
every day of our lives. As Jesus tells us in the Gospel, we must take up our cross daily and follow him, in effect losing our lives
for the sake of Christ and for the sake of our faith.
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