Today’s Thoughts: I have a couple of thoughts about our Gospel today, both are from brother Passionists that I heard over the years...
My first thought is not directly related to today Gospel, but it is a good starting point for my thoughts today. I always remember some advice given me just after I was ordained by a wonderful older Passionist who was in the last years of his life. One day shortly after I was ordained he appeared at the door of my room and said, "Son, I don't have a lot to offer you these days, but I will give you a bit of advice, always celebrate mass as if it is your first mass and your last mass!" I have always remembered his words and certainly every time I have celebrated mass I have tried to celebrate as if it is my very first and very last mass. Yet, I know sometimes I don't have the initial energy, that first love that I had the day of my first mass. I don't have that sense of urgency that I would have if it were my last mass. But this image from a saintly Passionist, a wisdom figure in my life, always reminds me of what God asks of me each day, "Stay in love with me and live out of that love!" At a community mass a couple of years ago one of my brother Passionist reflected on today's Gospel and he challenged us with the point that sometimes we would prefer not to see. The blind man in the Gospel wants to see but sometimes we find it easier not to see, it means less responsibility, less hurt or pain, less expectations on us. If I look into my own life I would have to say his observation is true. I think there have been times when I really didn't want to see, it was easier not to! If we can find and enliven that first love for God, others and ourselves then we will always want to see! Or perhaps if we ask God in faith to see then our first love will once again come to life! May this day be one of seeing and rich in energy grounded in love! Have a great Monday everyone!
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Today’s Thoughts: “You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith and hope.” (Thomas Merton)
Perhaps this is the spirit of today Gospel (Matt. 25:14-30) that we take the chance and invest our life. There are always risks involved but in the end, wouldn't it be great to hear God say to us, "Well done good and faithful servant, come share my joy!" The word talent or talents that we find in our Gospel today at one time had the meaning in English of a “large sum of money,” which is its meaning in Greek. However, through the years influence by this parable the meaning came to be a “natural capacity for success in some mental or physical activity.” Thus, we think of a talent as a special gift that we have for sports, art, music and in other things. Our scripture today, however, is not talking about special gifts, but talent as the challenge to use our God given ability to be compassionate, understanding, wise, forgiving, merciful, loving. We are challenged to be the person created in the image and likeness of God by using our God given talents to make this world a better place not just for ourselves but for all. We are challenged today to take a risk with our lives not keep them safe. I have always said when we heard or read one of Jesus’ parables and at the end of the parable someone is outside, “You don’t want to be that person!” Today, the third servant in the end because he fails to take a rise, because he safely buries his talent ends up “outside where there is wailing and grinding of teeth.” We are asked today to trust in the gifts, talents, presence of God in our lives and take the risk so that when we meet God face to face we will hear “Well done good and faithful servant…Come share my joy!” Have a blessed Sunday everyone and don’t forget to give God a little time today! Today’s Thoughts: Early this morning as I spent some time in prayer I was struck by Jesus’ closing words in the Gospel today, "But when the Son of Man comes will he find faith on earth?" (Luke 18:1-8) My guess is that Jesus’ question in today’s Gospel is always the underlying question when it come to our human condition. There are so many experiences that seem to make faith difficult. So many experiences that direct our attention away from our relationship with God.
In the Gospel today, Jesus reminds us to pay attention and be persistent. In many ways it is these two qualities that will help keep our faith alive so that when Jesus does return he will find faith! ... Key thought for our journey of life today..."Being attentive to God especially through persistence in prayer!" Have a great Saturday everyone! "One sign of hope is that public opinion is manifesting a growing opposition to the death penalty, even as a means of legitimate social defense. Indeed, nowadays the death penalty is unacceptable, however grave the crime of the convicted person. It is an offense to the inviolability of life and to the dignity of the human person; it likewise contradicts God's plan for individuals and society, and his merciful justice. Nor is it consonant with any just purpose of punishment. It does not render justice to victims, but instead fosters vengeance. The commandment 'Thou shalt not kill' has absolute value and applies both to the innocent and to the guilty. The Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy is an auspicious occasion for promoting worldwide ever more evolved forms of respect for the life and dignity of each person. It must not be forgotten that the inviolable and God-given right to life also belongs to the criminal." (Pope Francis)
Today’s Thoughts: I think the quote from Fr. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J. that I will end this reflection with touches on the message from the Book of Wisdom today (Wisdom 13:1-9).
We certainly can learn a lot from nature, God’s creation however we must be observant. We need to look around us and see the blue skies, the many-colored leaves, the red, yellow and pink roses, the majestic trees, the soaring birds, the never-ending oceans and wonderful night sky. St. Paul of the Cross once talked about stopping to hush the flowers because they were speaking to him of God too loudly. God is all around us, God is within us, but we need to take the time to see and hear what nature, what God’s creation has to say to us! “By means of all created things, without exception, the divine assails us, penetrates us, and molds us. We imagined it as distant and inaccessible, when in fact we live steeped in its burning layers” Stop and take it in today! Have a great Friday everyone! Dear Friends of the Preacher on the Run,
As I mentioned a little while ago, I am in the process of planning a pilgrimage to Oberammergau, Germany to see the famous Passion Play in 2020. Now I know that 2020 seems far off, however, a journey like this takes a lot of planning and it is time to get started. Also, this pilgrimage is a bit on the expensive side so starting early gives people a chance to save. The pilgrimage will be 11 days long. It will be through Alpine Europe meaning we will see parts of Germany, Austria and Switzerland. This is a very beautiful journey with the center piece being The Passion Play in Oberammergau. I have requested an August 3, 2020 departure date and if it is accepted we would be leaving Monday August 3rd and returning Thursday August 13th. Two of the days would be spent traveling from the United States to Germany and back which means we will have 9 days of sightseeing. There will be mass everyday and most days breakfast and di8nner will be part of the package. I truly believe this is a journey of a lifetime, so I hope you will consider it. As time goes on I will be providing more and more details, a brochure. If you are interested, please let me know and I will make sure to keep you in the loop! Peace in Christ’s Passion, Fr. Paul Today’s Thoughts: “The Kingdom of God is among you.” These are Jesus’ words in today’s Gospel (Luke 17:20-25). What do they mean?
On the one hand Jesus could be talking about himself. He is the Kingdom of God at that moment. The religious leaders are looking around for God and signs of God, yet God is in their midst. The Kingdom of God is among them and they are missing it! Another way of looking at Jesus’ words is that Jesus does not say that the Kingdom of God is in us or above us or around us; Jesus says the Kingdom is among us. Perhaps Jesus is saying that none of us alone possesses the Kingdom of God. Each of us shares in the Kingdom, thus we need each other for the Kingdom to be fully appreciated. With this in these two understandings of Jesus’ words today our challenge is to be on the lookout for marks of the Kingdom. We need to be on the lookout for the presence of Jesus in our life. And what will help us not miss the marks of the Kingdom and the presence of Jesus? Well as the first reading tells us (Wisdom 7:22b-8:1) the gift of the spirit of wisdom and remember wisdom produces friends of God! Have a wise and wonderful Thursday everyone! Today’s Thoughts: Our readings today offer us a few challenges. In our first reading from the Book of Wisdom (Wisdom 6:1-11), the writer addresses the leaders of nations. The author tells them that God will hold them accountable for their actions, that God will judge them strictly. Now hearing these words, we might say; “Well that has nothing to do with me I am not in a position of power, authority or influence.” However, in everyday life we can often throw our weight around and impose our will even when we only have a small amount of authority and power. Remember Wisdom tells us that “the lowly may be pardoned out of mercy but the mighty will be mightily put to the test.” (Wisdom 6:6). We might well pause in the midst of our journey of life to consider others and their needs a little more carefully.
In our Gospel (Luke 17:11-19) Jesus responds with mercy to the ten lepers who asked for mercy. Yet it is the Samaritan in the group who returns to offer thanks. How often do we get caught up in the attitude that “Life is about me!” How often do we forget that all we are and all we have comes from God? When those good moments happen; when life falls into place for us; when things work out just as we had planned, how often do we remember to pause and say thank you? If we look at the history of the world, the history of life, the history of the Church, great decisions have been made but so to have great mistakes and poor choices. Things have constantly changed sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse yet what has endured is the presence of God. As Jesus tells us in the Gospel today, faith and thankfulness are key ingredients in the journey of life. We need to have faith, to trust in God’s mercy. We also need to be thankful for that mercy each and every day of our life. Blessings and peace to all today! Enjoy your Wednesday everyone! Today’s Thoughts: There is a quote from St. John of Damascus that goes, “What is more precious than to be in the hands of God? God is Life and Light, and those who are in God’s hands are life and light.” There is something very beautiful and comforting about these words as there is about the words in the Book of Wisdom (Wisdom 2:23-3:9) our first reading today.
We most often hear this reading or at least part of it at a funeral mass. I always find it comforting to think that the person that I have come to remember is now in the hands of God and that they are at peace. I think back to my mother’s death and the years of struggle that proceeded that moment. She struggled with dementia for over ten years. She was not herself. She was not the woman who brought me into the world or raised me to be the man I am today. At times she did not know me or anyone else in the family. Her life memories were all jumbled up somewhere in her brain. The expressions on her face were often those of confusion and struggle but at the moment that I celebrated her funeral mass I was comforted by the fact that she was now with God, she was now at peace! The words of the Book of Wisdom and St. John of Damascus comfort us today especially as we think of those important people in our life that we have lost. Yet, Jesus, in the Gospel (Luke 17:7-10), reminds us that throughout our life good works are expected of us. Living life in relationship to God is what is expected of us. We are not special because we do good things; we are simply God servants, no more no less. The gift of being at peace, the gift of being in God’s hands, the gift of being life and light are just that gifts given us by God. We should not expect praise and honor because we live a life of faith. It is expected of us. Yet in living a life of faith we are comforted by the end of the journey when God, who is Life and Light, will hold us in peace! Have a great Tuesday everyone! Today’s Thoughts: Our readings today point and counterpoint to each other. They warn of the inherent pitfalls of sin. In the Book of Wisdom, we hear “think of the Lord in goodness, and seek him in integrity of heart.” Yet we also hear a warning to be spiritually fit and be free of sin and injustice. Without being in that state we can be shut out from the grace of God.
Luke’s gospel continues to talk about sin, which is not a topic that most of us like to embrace with vigor. Perhaps it is because we have been influenced too much by societal norms which seem to reject the notion of sin in the modern world. As we reflect on the readings today, the words of Pope Francis come to mind when he asks, “Who Is Jorge Mario Bergoglio?” and he responds, “I am a sinner.” Perhaps it is good to know that we are the same company as the Pope. Our readings not only dwell on the effects of sin but also the resolution to bring us back into the light of the Spirit. We see in Wisdom that the all-embracing God knows our heart and will acquit us if we are truly repentant. In Luke we hear a lesson on how to forgive others. If someone wrongs us seven times a day, we are called to forgive seven times. Yes, we are called to constantly forgive, God in his unquantifiable love forgives us if we truly have a repentant heart. The work of forgiveness is never finished. It is an ongoing process until we meet God face to face. Have a great Monday everyone. Today’s Prayer: O God, strengthen us with the grace of your Holy Spirit and give your peace to our souls that we may be free from all needless anxiety, solicitude, and worry. Help us to desire always what is pleasing and acceptable to you so that your will may be our will. Amen (Adapted from a prayer by St. Frances Xavier Cabrini) A Runner’s Thoughts: “We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.” (Abraham Lincoln) Today’s Blessing Prayer: Monday greetings and blessings to all. I hope your Monday is getting off to a good start? I would like you to remember the Cashen/Zentgraf family in your prayers today as they bury their daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother, aunt and for many others a friend, Marilyn. May she now be at peace with our loving God! My prayer of blessing for all of you today is that as you journey through your Monday may it be a good journey. May you live by faith and trust in the gift that you are. May you place your gift, your light, on a stand in the middle of the room so that it will give light to the whole house, to everywhere you go and to everyone you meet. Blessings today upon all you do, upon everyone you meet and most importantly upon all of you! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul |
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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