Today’s Thoughts: The readings today, especially the first one from Deuteronomy and the Gospel, present us with a contrast. In Deuteronomy Moses is reminding the people from where they have come, and all that God has done for them. Not spoken is this section but still present is all that the Israelites have done, much of which was to grumble, build a golden idol and turn away from God. Yet, as Moses says God has stayed with them. God has remained faithful.
The contrast is that Jesus does not give in to any of the temptations in the desert that he is confronted with while the Israelites do give in to the exact same ones they are confronted with. Jesus is tested in the desert just like the Israelites, but he does not let history repeat itself. Jesus chooses instead to make God's word, God's promise, his priority. St. Paul tells us that what we believe must be spoken but also held in our hearts so that as we live, we too might make the right choices. If we believe with our hearts in the promises of God, if we believe with our hearts in Jesus, if we believe with our hearts that Jesus when through his passion, death and resurrection for us then our lives must show this gift, this presence. Our choices must be made reflecting the grace, wisdom and love of God. This is not easy. The road of life is full of temptations that challenge us with choices. Thus, it becomes profoundly important that we know the story and hold it our hearts. Let us remember this Lent the story of God's love and choose wisely as we live life! Have a blessed and holy Sunday everyone and don't forget to give God a little time today.
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Today’s Thoughts: "Repairer of the breach...Restorer of ruined homesteads." (Isaiah 58:12) Do we not have a picture of these titles in the Gospel today from Luke? Jesus invites Levi (Matthew) to follow him. Jesus invites a tax collector a profession that made the people involved hateful to society. Yet, Jesus brings them into the community of faith. Jesus eats with tax collectors and sinners and the religious leaders are taken back, Jesus brings those who are thought to be outside the community into the community. Yes, Jesus in the true "repairer of the breach and restorer of ruined homesteads.”
However, these words and this story are not just about Jesus. Isaiah is speaking to us. Jesus is laying down an example for us. We are to be the repairers of the breach and restorers of the ruined homesteads. It is our job as members of the faith community to reach out and make those on outside welcome within the community. It is our job to offer God’s mercy. So often we find within the faith community people who find it much easier to judge, to exclude, to criticize, to question the actions of people then to reach out and help, then to be merciful. So often we find people within the faith community who create the breach and ruin the homesteads. As people of faith we live with the hope that the words of Isaiah are fulfilled in the person of Jesus, but we also live with the challenge that as a disciple of Jesus we need to keep that hope alive. It has been said that through what God "does" we come to know who God "is." I think this can also be said about us. Through what we do for others as a people of faith people, people will come to know who we are. As we continue this journey of Lent let us respond to Jesus' invitation to follow and give life, mercy and hope to life as repairers and restorers! Have a blessed Saturday everyone! Today’s Thoughts: Who shall know the mind of God? No one really, God's thoughts are not our thoughts; God's ways are not our ways. (Adapted from Isaiah 55:8)
I find the reading from Isaiah rather interesting today. It confirms for me something about my faith that I have struggled with for many years, the idea of doing things to be seen rather than doing things to make a difference. In recent years there has been a movement among some to kneel or bow profoundly when receiving communion. There are those in high places who commend this practice and there are others who think all should be doing this. Now I truly believe that when we receive communion, we should do it reverently. That said there are many ways to be reverent. If we were to apply Isaiah's words in the first reading to the action of receiving communion, they might sound something like this, "Do you call receiving communion in this way what I want? This rather, is how you are to receive communion, I want you to receive and then take me into the world, help others, be the presence of God everywhere you go. In other words, as Isaiah reminds us God is not about rituals, God is about actions. However, we receive communion is not the point – it is what we do once we receive the Lord. It is how we treat people that makes all the difference. God does not put a lot of importance in the "show" of things, in the "how" we do it, in the "what" we look like when doing it, in how many people see it, in the how reverent it is. God puts value in the way we live our faith, the way we interact with the world, the way we treat others, the way in which we bring God's compassion and mercy to the world. In the Gospel, the religious leaders are once again hung up on the rules, regulations and rituals but Jesus is about the living of life. Jesus is about recognizing God in our midst. Lent keeps reminding us that our thoughts are not God's thoughts and our ways are not God's way, yet we have the opportunity to recognize the presence of God in our life and change the way we think and the way we act so that we are about God and not ourselves. Have a great Friday everyone! Today’s Thoughts: "Today I have set before you, life and prosperity, death and doom...I have set before you, life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life..." Moses in the Book of Deuteronomy presents to the people, presents to us two roads for the taking and suggests to us that we choose the road of life.
Many years ago, as I was entering religious life my sister gave me a gift; I think it was for Christmas. It was a picture of a road sign, with an arrow pointing in two directions. It is the kind of sign that you find as a road comes to an end and as a driver you have to make a choice to go either right or left. Beneath the picture were the last three lines of Robert Frost's poem The Road Not Taken. "Two roads diverged in the woods, and I - I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference." The picture has hung on my wall wherever I have lived over the years and has been an inspiration; it has been a reminder that the journey that I have traveled even though difficult at times has been the right journey. We might say that Moses is presenting to us two roads that diverge in the living of life. That we stand before those two roads that Moses calls Life and Death, blessing and curse, prosperity and doom. There are no signs just the choice of two roads, two ways to live life and we have to choose. Moses suggests that we choose life. In many ways this suggestion is the road less traveled because it is not always comfortable, it is not always self-gratifying, it is not always easy, and it is not always the road everyone else is traveling. The road of life can be filled with crosses, struggles, challenges, steep hills and selfless responses. The road of life has none of the allurements that you often find on the other road, power, wealth, instant gratification, self-importance, status and greatness in the eyes of the world. Yet, on the road of life you also do not find loneliness, judgmentalness, selfishness, greed, anger and death. On the road of life, you will find a community. It is a community ready to help, ready to walk with you. It is a community with a vision, a purpose beyond this life. It is a community of faith, of hope and of love. On the road of life faith will be strengthened, hope will be enlivened, and love will be the order of the day! Yes, as we begin Lent, we are presented with two roads diverging in front of us. There is a great crowd walking down the one, no so many on the other. Which road are we going to choose? My hope is that we choose the road less traveled, my hope is we choose life because that will make all the difference! Have a great Thursday everyone! Today’s Thoughts: Ash Wednesday 2019 – There is always a bit of tension went it comes to the scriptures at mass on Ash Wednesday, especially the Gospel. Jesus' words all point to a quiet, non-public, personal and hidden commitment to fasting, alms giving and prayer. Yet, right after the Gospel we parade up and get a large cross of ashes that we can wear throughout the day for everyone to see. It doesn't seem right but that is what we do!
I got a little clarity to my struggle with the readings today one Ash Wednesday when a Passionist who was celebrating the community mass articulated my struggle but then said perhaps it is important for us as a faith community to do this as we begin Lent. Ashes are a sign of unity, a sign of belonging and often for us that is important. I had never considered it that way. The ashes we Christians receive today connect us, they bring us together for a common purpose. Now we will each live out that common purpose differently, some more involved than others but we are together, we are connected! Now I still struggle with the fact that churches are full to overflowing today because people want the ashes and they will take them anyway they can get them, often wishing to avoid the mass or service, just give them the ashes so that they can be on their way. However, each and every Sunday when we have the opportunity to receive the Body and Blood of Christ, often they are nowhere to be found and there is plenty of room in the church. I do not think I will ever understand how ashes became more important than Eucharist! Perhaps it is wearing the badge, the outward sign of ashes for all to see that makes us feel closer to God. I don't know! On to more positive thoughts..."Behold, now is a very acceptable time; behold now is the day of salvation. [So] a clean heart create for me O God, and a steadfast spirit renew within me," words from St. Paul and Psalm 51 that help us to begin this journey of Lent. St. Paul was one for always putting things in the moment not caught in the past or looking too far ahead, St. Paul in the here and now. Now was always the time, today this moment is what we should be concerned about. Somehow, some way God will be present to us today, God's Spirit will be alive for us today and we dare not miss it! The journey begins today and every day. The end of the journey is today and every day. The time is now! I have always found the Psalms to be a wonderful book of prayer and if I could make a suggestion for your journey of Lent go to the Psalms and use them as part of your prayer. In fact I would suggest using Psalms 51 and 139. Alternate them during Lent spending some time with each. In Psalm 51 we seek forgiveness, joy, hope and God's love. In Psalm 139 we are reminded of God great love for us and the intimacy a relationship with God can bring. During Lent, we can live each day in the hope that now is the time and go to prayer in our inner room knowing that we are not perfect, that we struggle but that God is right there with us! Blessing on this Ash Wednesday to all! Inviting you to join us today at 3:00 pm for an exciting new livestream program here at The Sunday Mass - Through The Cross with Fr. Paul. The program premieres today Tuesday March 5th at 3:00 pm EST. Our first show will focus on "Who Are The Passionists?" The show will livestream on The Sunday Mass web site - Why not join us? For more information go to https://thesundaymass.org/en/live
Today’s Thoughts: “We have given up everything and followed you.” I wonder how many of us can really say this. Whether we are religious brothers, priests, sisters, diocesan priests, lay women and men, bishops, cardinals or popes we might think we have given up a lot or everything, but we haven’t.
One of my Passionist brothers often tells the story that at his first vows the preacher said, “Today you have given up everything and tomorrow you will begin to take it all back!” And in a way, I think I have to agree with him as I look back of the course of my own religious life. It is hard giving up everything and with the way the world is going each day there are new things that we must have, that we cannot live without. We rationalize and we make excuses for needing things, for collecting things, for having things. The same Passionist brother in the above story once put up a picture of a very beautiful chalice and paten in the office of our retreat house and he wrote on the picture, “I need this!” Being a young and brash religious I wrote underneath, “Do you need it or do you just want it?” The picture came down, but we bought the chalice and paten. We didn’t need it, we just wanted it! Yet, in the midst of all this needing, wanting and possessing the Gospel (Mark 10: 28-31) today reminds us that if we are willing to let go there is much we can receive. It might not seem as valuable and important as the things we seem to need and want but it is far more important and valuable. It is the presence of God found in the people around us and in ourselves. Can we let go and let God today? Have a great Tuesday everyone! Inviting you to an exciting new livestream program here at The Sunday Mass - Through The Cross with Fr. Paul. The premiere program will be Tuesday March 5th at 3:00 pm EST. Our first show will focus on "Who Are The Passionists?" The show will livestream on The Sunday Mass web site - Why not join us? For more information go to https://thesundaymass.org/en/live
Today’s Thoughts: In our Gospel today (Mark 10: 17-27), we hear the story of the rich young man, perhaps one of the saddest stories in the Gospel. The story of struggle because of wealth and possessions, a story that points out one of the great pitfalls of being successful, that it can go to your head. Wealth and possessions can become a god if left unchecked, if they become the most important things in life.
Yet, the end of the Gospel leaves us with a sense of hope. The hope is that “For human beings it is impossible, but not for God. All things are possible for God” (Mark 10:27). Yes, we are going to struggle with the trappings of life. Yes, sometimes we are going to feel like the rich young man. Yes, at time the words of the disciples will be uttered by us, “Then who can be saved” (Mark 10:26). And yes, sometimes our possessions and money will overwhelm us, and we will struggle. But we live in the hope that even in our failures, our distractions all things are still possible, salvation is still possible, friendship with God is still possible because God is always with us and will never leave us to face life alone! Have a great Monday everyone! Inviting you to an exciting new livestream program here at The Sunday Mass - Through The Cross with Fr. Paul. The premiere program will be Tuesday March 5th at 3:00 pm EST. Our first show will focus on "Who Are The Passionists?" The show will livestream on The Sunday Mass web site - Why not join us? For more information go to https://thesundaymass.org/en/live
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Fr. Paul R. Fagan, C.P. "Preacher on the Run"Just a few thoughts to help you on your journey through life...let me know from time to time what you think... Archives
April 2024
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