Today’s Thoughts: “If you want to identify me, ask me not where I live, or what I like to eat, or how I comb my hair, but ask me what I am living for, in detail, ask me what I think is keeping me from living fully for the thing I want to live for.” (Thomas Merton)
In today’s Gospel (Luke 8:1-3) we are reminded of the importance of women in Jesus’ ministry. They were there supporting, taking care of, helping Jesus with their resources, their gifts, their talents, their faithfulness and their faith. I ran across a reflection that was very interesting in terms of today’s Gospel here is that reflection by Kevin Perrotta – “What is it about Mary of Magdala that cause so many misconceptions to sprout up around her? Some mark her as a great sinner; others suggest she had a romantic relationship with Jesus. Hacking our way out of this underbrush of speculation, we do know Mary had some wealth, since she supported Jesus and the male disciples. No husband is mentioned; was she widowed? Perhaps she ran her own fish business – a trade that flourished in Magdala. Rather than a repentant floozy, Mary may well have been a solid family and business woman – like many of the women in church on Sunday. Seeing her [this] way makes her a model for many of us today!” (Living with Christ) Kevin certainly makes us stop and think about Mary Magdalene. Yes, our Gospel says seven demons came out of her, but who hasn’t fought with seven or more demons in life? In paraphrasing Thomas Merton – When trying to identify Mary Magdalene let’s not ask where she lived, or what she liked to eat or how many demons came out of her but let’s ask how she lived, what she lived for and what got in the way from time to time? If we ask these questions Mary becomes a woman of strength and great faith just like the others who followed Jesus and attended to his needs in daily life. Let’s hear it for women today and every day! Friday blessings everyone.
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Today’s Thoughts: “If I wait to be perfect before I love myself I will always be unsatisfied and ungrateful. If I wait until all the flaws, chips, and cracks disappear
I will be the cup that stands on the shelf and is never used” (Joyce Rupp) May we live our life remembering that God is a merciful God, always willing to forgive. As we learn in the Gospel today it is our faith that will save us, so let us trust in God today, be faithful in living our life and know that God will bless us with peace. A little wisdom to begin your day with. Have a great Thursday everyone! Today’s Thoughts: I think we have all had the experience of not liking a person. I certainly have and if I don’t find a way to see some good in the person at some point I struggle. When there is something about a person that I don’t like it begins to color everything they do. Because of this I find it easy to criticize, make fun of or dismiss them. No matter what they do it is wrong. If I or someone else does the same thing it is just fine, but because this person does it, then it is wrong.
When I catch myself judging someone this way I feel embarrassed and ashamed. I know it is a human behavior, a human feeling and sometimes the person involved has done things that validate these feeling, yet I know that my behavior, my judgmentalness is wrong and because of it I push God away. Jesus seems to be reminding us of this in today’s the Gospel (Luke 7: 31-35). No matter what he does the religious leaders and some of the people of his time do not believe in him or his message. John the Baptist and Jesus approach life from two distinct directions. John does not eat or drink, he fasts and is austere in his lifestyle, while Jesus does eat and drink, he always seems to be going to someone’s home for a meal. His lifestyle is more socially oriented. Yet for the religious leadership and some of the people both, John and Jesus, are wrong. John is crazy, possessed and Jesus is a glutton, a drunkard, a friend of sinners. No matter what John and Jesus do to help people encounter the presence of God they are wrong. The religious leadership and some of the people in the crowd are closed to the gift and presence of God that John and Jesus bring. Their eyes are blinded by attitude and judgment. When I find myself like the religious leadership of Jesus’ time my eyes too are blinded by attitude and judgment and I miss the presence of God in that moment, in that person. We are reminded to be open to all the possibilities of God today even in the people, situations and experience that often seem to make our life hard and difficult. We are reminded that God can come to us in many ways through many people. Let us not be judge, jury and executioner. Let us be children of wisdom and hope open to the gift of God in others and ourselves! Have a great Wednesday everyone. Today’s Thoughts: “You are not a human being in search of a spiritual experience. You are a spiritual being immersed in a human experience.” (Pierre Teilhard de Chardin)
This simple expression of life touches our readings today (1 Timothy 3:1-13 and Luke 7: 11-17). In the Gospel Jesus reminds all gathered at the city gate that they are spiritual beings in the presence of God as he brings the widow’s son back to life. The value of our life rests in our relationship with God and when we trust that relationship wonderful things can happen. Yes, the world around us is human, imperfect but we are created in the image and likeness of God. We are spiritual beings living this human experience. God is always present. If we invest in God’s presence, if we stay connected to God’s presence the richness of our relationship with God can be experienced. God is always waiting. God is always ready to help. Our first reading from Paul’s First Letter to Timothy talks about the attributes of bishops and deacons. Once again if we listen to Paul’s words those called to these positions of leadership need to be spiritual people. God needs to be first. Care and concern for others is the primary task. Compassion is the attribute that enable all to experience the presence of God. Today let us pray for Church leaders that they will always serve with compassion and love. Let us pray for ourselves that we will always embrace the spirit of God as we journey through this human experience. Have a great Tuesday everyone! Today’s Thoughts: Our faith it often tested, we might even say it is tested every day. We probably find it hard to have the faith of the centurion in today’s gospel He has a strong faith and is willing to turn everything over to God. His words to Jesus echo the words we say in the midst of every Mass, “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul will be healed.”
Just before we received communion like the centurion we ask God to accept us as we are, and we have faith that God will. We trust that God loves us even as we fumble through life, as we make mistakes. I admire the faith of the centurion and all those early, early Christians, they believed so strongly, they seemed to have such unwavering faith in Jesus. Our challenge is be like the centurion. It is to be willing to turn everything over to God. However, this kind of trust, this leap of faith can be hard, because it is hard to give up control. I think sometimes we are willing to be faithful but with some exceptions. We stand on the edge, but we just cannot take that leap of faith, our fears are holding us back. We might say that faith is like a muscle, one that grows stronger as we exercise and stretch it, as we use it, as we live it. At times taking a leap of faith, turning everything over to God, letting go and letting God are ways that we stretch, strengthen and develop our faith. St. Ignatius Loyola has a very famous prayer call, the Suscipe, that seems to express the faith we find in the centurion of today’s Gospel and hopefully our own faith… Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my entire will, All I have and call my own. You have given all to me. To you, Lord, I return it. Everything is yours; do with it what you will. Give me only your love and your grace, that is enough for me. Have a great Monday everyone! Today’s Thoughts: Recently I ran across a quote by C. S Lewis, “Human history is the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy.” These words from C. S. Lewis seem to fit well with our readings today.
In our first reading from the Book of Exodus we encounter Moses and God having a conversation. God is fed up with Israel. They have found a Golden Calf and for the moment it has made them happy. God wants to destroy them and start over and but Moses talks God out of his anger. God choses not to give up on Israel. In our second reading from St. Paul’s First Letter to Timothy we hear St. Paul tell us how much of a sinner he was before encountering Jesus. How he thought he found happiness is persecuting the early Church until Jesus gave him the opportunity to see things differently. St. Paul’s message to Timothy and us is that God doesn’t give up on us. Finally, in our Gospel from Luke today we encounter the three parables that Jesus tells in Chapter 15. This chapter is often known as the Chapter of the Lost, because we encounter a lost sheep, a lost coin and two lost sons. There are many things we can take away from these parables but perhaps the most important message for today is the message that God does not give up on us! Yes, even today after all these thousands of years, we still spend a lot of time searching to things that will make us happy other than God. Yet, God does not give up on us. God is always will to welcome us home, whether we have gone else where to find happiness or whether we have become angry, jealous, or resentful because of God mercy, compassion and forgiveness. There are some people who don’t like or have rejected Pope Francis because he lives his ministry as the father in our Gospel today. Always ready to be merciful, compassionate and forgiving. He is our Moses always trying to talk God out of being angry with us. He is our St. Paul reminding us that God never gives us. These older sons can remain standing outside or they can join the celebration. Pope Francis is always going to remind us that God is never going to give up on us! Have a blessed Sunday everyone and don’t forget to give God a little time! Today’s Thoughts: Today is a very special feast in the Church and the Passionist Community. It is the Feast of the Triumph or the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. So I offer you two simple prayers to guide you through this day and life...
The first comes from our Passionist tradition it is a simple prayer we utter each day - "May the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ be always in our hearts!" The second prayer was written by the great Jesuit theologian Fr. Karl Rahner, S.J. - "The Cross of My Lord, Be my Standard, Be my Comfort, Be the Answer to all dark questions, The Light of all nights, The Sign that You have chosen us, The mysterious and sure Sign that we are Yours for eternity. Amen." These two simple prayers reflect the meaning of the Cross that we as Church and as the Passionist Community celebrate this day. May the Passion and the Cross of our Lord, Jesus Christ be not a sign of violence, oppression, war and failure. May The Passion and Cross of Christ be a sign of God's great and unconditional love for us. May the Passion and Cross of Jesus be a walking stick that we can lean on to rest; be a protector in times of struggle and danger; and always be a reminder of just how much God love's us, no matter how imperfect we are as we journey through life! Have a blessed Saturday everyone. Today’s Thoughts: “No one can grow if he [or she] does not accept his [or her] smallness.” (Pope Francis) With this thought Pope Francis seems to get at the heart of what Jesus is saying in the Gospel today. If we don’t deal with our own faults and failings, if we cannot see our own humanness how are we ever going to be able to grow into the person God has created us to be and help others.
We cannot just look at other people’s faults and failings we need to start with our own. If we do, we will have a better, more compassionate understanding and view of the world. We will truly be able to help not hurt others. The starting point for looking at and dealing with the problems, struggles and sinfulness of the world is always ourselves. When we can proclaim our faults, failings and our need for help, our need for forgiveness we are on our way to being able to help and forgive others. St. Augustine perhaps put the focus of our Gospel today a little differently when he said, “God is always trying to give good things to us, but our hands are too full to receive them.” So, let’s put down what fills up our hands in this world, anger, resentment, the faults and failings of others and receive the grace that God offers us and live in the joy and love of God today! Have a blessed Friday everyone. Today’s Thoughts: Today’s scripture readings present some challenging standards by which we are called to live. At first hearing, St. Paul asks the Colossians to be grateful and to live out of the mercy and love of God. His beautiful hymn this morning challenges us to not let the negativity of life overwhelm us which is not an easy task.
In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus says; “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” These challenges along with the rest of what Jesus asks in the Gospel are seemingly impossible commands. Tall orders for the living of a faith life. Each of our Scripture readings today in their own way are asking us to do everything for the glory of God. If we can keep this in front of us, then our actions and our words will ring true. We are always challenged to reflect on our motives for doing things especially when our feelings are hurt for being ignored. A question always in front of us is, are we about serving God as we journey through life? Are our words and actions about the glory of God? If we can say yes to these questions, then we know we are on the right path. We will never do it perfectly because at times we step off the path because we are hurt temporarily by the insult or carelessness of the world around us. However, if God is our focus then we can refocus on the true purpose of our life, reminding ourselves that God knows our names and what we are doing always. A life of faith is not about “Me,” it is about serving God with gratitude and love! Have a great Thursday everyone. Today’s Thoughts: I have two sections to my thoughts today. First, I would like to reflect on this day and secondly, I would like to reflect on our Gospel for this day…
Remembering the 18th Anniversary of the tragic events of September 11, 2001 “There is nothing that can replace the absence of someone dear to us, and one should not even attempt to do so. One must simply hold out and endure it. At first that sounds very hard, but at the same time it is also a great comfort. For to the extent the emptiness truly remains unfilled one remains connected to the other person through it. It is wrong to say that God fills the emptiness. God in no way fills it but much more leaves it precisely unfilled and thus helps us preserve -- even in pain -- the authentic relationship. Furthermore, the more beautiful and fuller the remembrances, the more difficult the separation. But gratitude transforms the torment of memory into silent joy. One bears what was lovely in the past not as a thorn but as a precious gift deep within, a hidden treasure of which one can always be certain.” (Dietrich Bonhoeffer) As Dietrich Bonhoeffer says above there is nothing that can be said or done that replaces the loss of someone dear to us. But hopefully Bonhoeffer’s words can help to give comfort to all who lost loved ones fourteen years ago in Lower Manhattan, Washington, DC and Pennsylvania. Perhaps, Bonhoeffer’s words can help all of us deal with what we as a city, a country and a world lost thirteen years ago. May his words give us pause to be grateful for the silent joy that all who gave their lives continue to give us. May those who lost their lives continue to be a hidden treasure for all of us, a treasure that we can always count on. “In normal life we hardly realize how much more we receive than we give, and life cannot be rich without such gratitude. It is so easy to overestimate the importance of our own achievements compared with what we owe to the help of others.” (Dietrich Bonhoeffer) To the people who gave their lives, to the families who gave their loved ones, to those who continue to give their lives because of the aftereffects of this day even these many years later, to all of you I say thank you! Turning to our Gospel today… In Luke’s Gospel today, we experience several of the Beatitudes and we are encouraged to feel the “blessings” that come with our poverty and reliance on God. If we feel content and complete with all our earthly wealth and success how can we improve our dependence and reliance on God? How does one strengthen and enrich a relationship if there is no need for the other person in our life? If one is so independent, as to not need another person’s help, council, ideas, or support, how does a non-relationship with another enrich us? Our Gospel is suggesting that, if we “hunger” or “weep,” if we need for others and need God, then we will experience a fulfilling life, we will find direction and come to appreciate our need for others and our need for God. When we experience poverty, sorrow, hunger or insults, and find that we can overcome these struggles in life, through our dependence on God, we then will find true joy, appreciation and satisfaction in life. Have a blessed and prayerful Wednesday. |
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
May 2023
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