Pssst...Can You Keep a Secret?

Deacon Tom Writes©

“Pssst…Can You Keep a Secret?”

Second Sunday of Lent, Year B

“As they were coming down from the mountain, he charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone, except when the Son of Man had risen from the dead.”

Mark is the only writer of the Synoptic gospels that weaves the mysterious theme we hear today, in which Jesus charges his disciples to keep his identity a secret. Mark makes us aware that Jesus understood the mounting opposition against him and his need to be in control of the events that were to unfold at the end of his life. All four evangelists record that Christ believed he was commissioned by God and acted with his authority. Yet, it is only in the Gospel of Mark that we encounter this unusual language instructing his closest followers not to reveal his identity. This desire to withhold that he was the Messiah from the larger population is known as the “Messianic Secret.” 

William Wrede first used the term “Messianic Secret” during the late 1800’s in his attempt to explain that Jesus was not understood to be the Messiah during his lifetime. Wrede theorizes that in those instances where Mark recounts Jesus telling others not to reveal the secret of his Messiahship, he does so to explain that it took the Resurrection for people to realize fully that Jesus was the Messiah. In this sense Mark, according to Wrede, was using the Messianic Secret as a literary device to reconcile Jesus’ identity with the very unmessianic character of his ministry. This technique works nicely to focus the mounting tension between the mission and purpose that Jesus came to fulfill, and that which existed in the minds of the people.

Jesus avoided any claim on the title of Messiah for fear that it would trigger the notion of political kingship. The Jewish people expected just such a Messiah who would lead them in revolution against their Roman occupiers. But that was not the role Jesus intended to fill.

We know that Jesus had a different kingship in mind, one that would introduce the “reign of God”; one that would be better understood after he had risen from the dead. Then, Jesus’ true identity would be revealed throughout the world and throughout the ages. But until that time, he told them, “not to relate what they had seen…”

In some obscure way the obtuseness of the "Messianic Secret" is a great equalizer in portraying even those who witnessed the ministry and work of Jesus as having no particular advantage to having been there.  Some like Thomas stood side by side with Jesus through it all and yet he needed the reassurance of putting his hands into the very wounds that Jesus suffered. Other, like the Centurion, believed once they witnessed the crucifixion.  That the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus, the Christ, is the central focal point of Christianity is without question.  The debate over whether Mark developed the "Messianic Secret" to ease the tension of the early Christian community that saw Christ as the Messiah amidst a hierarchical Jewish establishment that failed to do so has been the subject of debate for many years.  But in a more profound way, the secrecy that Mark records in his gospel narrative provides the veil into the life and times of Jesus that we all experience until we, perhaps like Thomas, through the gift of faith, are able to proclaim with certainty, “My Lord and My God”.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom 

A Tough Nut To Crack

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                                           Deacon Tom writes ©

A Tough Nut To Crack

First Sunday of Lent Year B

The word “Contrition” comes from the Latin word contritio, meaning a breaking of something hardened…  Like our attitudes, perhaps?  We all become hardened to one degree or another by our life experiences. A homeless person will approach us on the street and ask for some change and we refuse him. We justify our actions in many different ways… They need to get a job…They will only buy booze… Those panhandlers make loads of money! …Etc. If only we were in their shoes for a little while, how our attitudes would change.

That is exactly what the Season of Lent is all about. It is a time to make some changes in our attitudes. And our attitudes can only change when we take steps to change the focus of our life.

I don’t think many of us enter Lent looking to do a complete makeover of our lives. Most of us know that even small changes in our behavior are very difficult to make. Just try to stop smoking or go on a low cholesterol diet!  We find out then how making small changes really impacts many other facets of our lives.

Maybe that’s why we approach Lent so cautiously. We are afraid to go messing around with some of those attitudes that need to be adjusted. Let’s face it; it is easier to give up a meal here and there than to try reaching out to a co-worker who is always making our lives miserable. It is much easier to say a Rosary than to say I forgive you to someone who has hurt us in the past.  Yet, Lent is the perfect time to look deeply into our lives and honestly confront those areas where change is needed.  Perhaps we need to be more forgiving of ourselves and others.  Maybe we need to be more appreciative of what others do for us, more thankful for the gifts we have, kinder with our words when we things aren't going our way.  If we just take the time to reflect on the events of the day and how we responded to them, I am sure our eyes would be opened to some of the changes we could make to improve our attitudes so that we could become better persons and more Christ like in the process.  

During these next forty days, let’s ask God for his grace that calls us to a spirit of “Contrition” so he may help us in our efforts to breakdown any and all of those attitudes that keep us separated from His love, mercy, and compassion.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom 

Clean Me Up, Lord!

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Deacon Tom writes©

Clean Me Up, Lord!

Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Leprosy was dreaded disease. Can you imagine the feelings of utter rejection the Leper in today’s gospel experienced when he was found to be “unclean”?  Unclean!  This word meant banishment and isolation not only from participating in the services at the Synagogue, but also from family, friends, and even their livelihood. People with leprosy were banished to the “abode of the dead” for all intense and purposes. And, worst of all, there was no way back.

We can’t help realize as we read the gospels that Jesus did not recognize any barrier that kept people alienated from God’s abundant love. In fact, throughout Jesus’ ministry, he continued to challenge rules, attitudes, powers and authorities that led to division or imposed obstacles to genuine and authentic spirituality, that is, union with God. Today’s gospel shows Jesus bringing God’s healing power to this forsaken man and making him clean. This intensely liberating act by Jesus allowed the cleanse Leper to reclaim his rightful place in the community.

Sin is tantamount to “spiritual leprosy”, a sickness that deprives us of God’s graces that are vital to life. Sin diverts our focus away from God. We choose instead to pursue our own selfish and often destructive desires. Let’s face it, we are not very pleasant at times and fall way short of “the glory of God”. We are demanding of others. To get what we want we can often be abusive, manipulative, and conniving. When we don’t get what we want, we can become bitter, resentful, and very ungrateful. We experience too many days when we are not our best selves and those around us know it! We do many things that alienate us from one another, that undermine one of the most basic tenets of our faith, namely, that we are “temples” of the Holy Spirit and that the Spirit of God abides in us. 

Jesus is always looking to wash away our sins in order to strengthen our relationship with him. The Leper in today’s gospel shows us how to do that when he asks Jesus:

“If you wish, you can make me clean.”  

And Jesus’ reply, “I do will it. Be made clean.”

If we wish it, Jesus can restore us to health –physical, spiritual or emotional. He can get us back on the road to true happiness and joy, even though we may have messed things up quite a bit. He can, in the words of the 23^rd Psalm, “…. Restore my soul…” if, that is, we ask Him, and if we let Him. Let us look to Jesus to help us overcome our sinful past and to be made clean to enjoy the abundant life we find only through, with, and in him.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom 

Find the Joy

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Deacon Tom writes ©

“Find the Joy”

Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Have you ever heard the expression, “The more things change, the more they remain the same”.  For many of us, life is extremely hard, or as Job says, “life is a drudgery”.  Those repetitive demands that go into daily family life…the laundry, cooking and cleaning, the shopping, the commuting to work, the homework…taking care of children or parents or both, day in and day out can become exhausting and easily wear us out.  These essential activities may even become boring!  We wake up and then rush into the demands of the day.  At night we go to sleep, or try to, only to have the alarm go off in the morning so we can start all over again, like Bill Murray in the movie, “Groundhogs Day”. These daily activities become so routine and ordinary they may leave us with a sense of being “unfulfilled”.

It doesn’t have to be this way!  Sure, we all get stuck in that proverbial "rut" at times.  We all fall victim to feeling unappreciated and sense that our lives are unfulfilled, empty or that we will “never see happiness again”.  It is understandable how this happens.  We are busy people.  We have responsibilities.  We carry around our “to-do” lists on our I Phones and tablets or on little pieces of paper in our pockets.  We do all those big and little things to care of our families, provide for our loved ones, for their immediate needs like food, clothing, shelter, and for future needs, like college for the kids or retirement for ourselves.  Busy…Busy….Busy, yet so dull and oridnary!!!

Running constant four minute miles will begin to take its toll and get us asking ourselves if it’s all worth it, or worse, wondering at some point along the way if, like Job, we will ever find happiness again.

When we find ourselves with too much to do and feel we are missing out on the simple joys and happiness of life that should be a “red flag” alerting us that we need to take some precious minutes for ourselves.  See how Jesus revitalizes himself in today’s Gospel.  With the crowds now seeking him out and his celebrity status growing, Jesus “rising very early before dawn…he went off to a deserted place, where he prayed”.

Jesus responds to the demands others place upon him by withdrawing into the solitude of prayer.  Prayer is one of those activities that will reenergize our spirits and keep us from falling into a life of drudgery.  Prayer, meditation, spending quiet time with Jesus routinely is therapeutic.  Prayer validates our reason for being… gives us time and space to hear God’s plans for us…gives us the courage to set out in the direction he wants us to go.  Prayer even helps us get our priorities straight, helping us let go of some those activities we “think” are essential. 

We are in troubled times but we don’t have to be troubled people.  Prayer will help us discern God’s plan in all the events, activities, and demands that we face each day and give us a clear vision of how we should face our daily challenges and obligations without being overwhelmed.  If we remain faithful in our prayer life, like Jesus, we will find the joy he promised us so that, in this life, our… joy may be complete (Jn 15:11).

Enjoy the day!!

Deacon Tom