From Shame to Fame

Deacon Tom Writes,

“From Shame to Fame”

Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

The Shunammite Woman the Prophet Elisha visits today has a condition that she shares with other notable women in Sacred Scripture such as Sarai (Sarah) (Gn 16:1), Rebekah (Gn 25:21), Rachel (Gn 30:1), Manoah’s wife (Judges 13:2), Hannah (1 Sam 1:11), and Elizabeth (Lk 1:6-7). They were women who were childless in their elder years.  For the women of antiquity having a child was not a matter of choice. It was a matter of necessity, so much so that for a married woman not to have a child was considered to be a defect. Being a childless Hebrew woman secured for her a shameful, unbearable place in her society among the despised and the helpless.

It is no surprise then, at least to people of faith, that given the hopelessness and desperation these women find themselves in (the men, apparently, did not share the humiliation and shame of their wives ... dah!!!) it is no wonder that we see the hand of God intervene in the plight of these women. For, in the words of Psalm 34, “The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”

We know what an important role these women played in Scripture.  Can you imagine how different our bible stories would be without Isaac, Jacob and Esau, Joseph and Benjamin, or Sampson, or Samuel, and even John the Baptist? Yet, all these amazing characters were the progeny of women who, at least for a time, thought that they were forgotten by God.

Elisha’s intervention on behalf of the Shunammite Woman when he prophesied that she would bear a son is part of the bigger picture in which our faith tells us that God has a plan for each one of us too, no matter how desperate a situation in which we find ourselves. It is a good plan, one for which another of the Major Prophets, Jeremiah writes, “For I know well the plans I have in mind for you—oracle of the LORD—plans for your welfare and not for woe, so as to give you a future of hope”( Jer 29:11). As distressed and hopeless as this situation was for these heroic women of the Bible, God was able to advance His plan for our benefit and to bring about a goodness that our limited minds could hardly conceive. The problem we face today is one of belief! Can we imagine that God still has the ability to bring about any good from the apparent desperate and impossible situations we find ourselves in today?

If we are challenged by this thought we can find some consolation in the fact that God is no stranger to working out the impossible for the good. In part that is the very nature of God, who is all good. With all the burdens and sadness that weigh upon our hearts we can find some consolation knowing that the Lord hears our prayers as he heard the prayers of these faithful women of antiquity and as He heard the prayers of His own Son in his time of need. And God, who is forever faithful, will answer each of our prayers in ways that are sure to amaze and bewilder even those who have been blessed with great faith.

This weekend we will be celebrating the July 4th Holiday.  Enjoy the celebrations and stay safe.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Living Without Fear

Deacon Tom Writes,

“Living Without Fear”

Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Seized by fear...Paralyzed by fear. These are just a few of the ways to describe the trauma that fear can have on us. At times our fears seem to gang up on us and we feel powerless over them. We fear the loss of a loved one. We fear our own mortality, the loss of a job or economic status, our sanity. We fear loosing our youth, our friends, or pretty much anything that is dear to us. Being fearful, worrying about things over which we have no control, saps us of the energy and vitality that rightfully belongs to today.

Jesus is on record for telling us not to be afraid. Today’s reading is one of many of them. “Fear no one”, “And do not be afraid…” The Lord knows that we are like little children and that we need to be told over and over again that our Dad will always be there when we need Him. He reassures us that our fate is in the hands of our heavenly father who is more concerned about us than we can ever imagine. God, who cares for the sparrow and watches over the lilies of the fields, cares infinitely more about us. He even counts the hairs on our heads!

More than just instructing His listeners on a wholesome way of living, we see Jesus putting these words into practice all through His ministry. We see Jesus pass through “terrors on every side” and not give way to fear. We see Him challenged and persecuted by the religious leaders of His day and He does not weaken or become weak-kneed. When He is beaten and nailed to the Cross, He utters not a word of anger. How is Jesus able to do this? Because in the words of Jeremiah, Jesus puts His trust in the Lord, “O Lord of hosts,...for to you I have entrusted my cause”.

Jesus came into the world to teach us to fear nothing, not even those who can harm us physically. Through His life and activities He has given us example so that we too can have the confidence to put our trust in our heavenly Father who loves us without limit and who seeks to rid us from every fear seeking to seize our hearts and would have us live our lives under its power.   

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Image Credit: The Scream, by Edvard Munch

Satisfaction Guaranteed!

Deacon Tom Writes,

"Satisfaction Guaranteed”

Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ, Year A

Can we ever be satisfied...with anything? We want faster, bigger, better, more of everything and we want it right now. We don’t want to wait to have it, or work long and hard to get it. And the message we hear loud and clear today is, “You can have it all!” “You can have it your way!” Tell tale signs that our expectations are not realistic.

Our spiritual senses, if they are well developed, will tune us in to the fact that there is a problem with our instant gratification mindset and warn us that this is not the natural order of things. No created thing, no human being can completely satisfy us or our hearts desires. It is only God who can satisfy the deepest longing of our hearts. Today we contemplate the wisdom of God as we celebrate the Feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. God, the architect of the universe and all that exists within it, designed us to seek the ultimate good, which can only be found in Him. The Almighty has “hard wired” us, so to speak, thus enabling us to know Him so that our life’s journey would be a quest to discover Him in all created things and to put them all aside in favor of Him, the one and only giver of life and of all that is.

Those who were fortunate to hear Jesus speak about the Kingdom of God did not realize the gift they were being given, the bread of life, food that would satisfy completely. As Catholics there is no more profound mystery of faith than what we experience when we receive the Eucharist – the Son of God comes into our lives and dwells within us and satisfies us completely. God becomes, in a sense, the very fuel that energizes us to do our part to help Him establish the reign of God in our times, in our lives, and in our world.

That God would become really present in the bread and wine during the Consecration remains a difficult teaching today as it was when Jesus first revealed it. Recall how many walked away because this teaching was too difficult? Jesus asked the apostles, “Will you leave me also?” And Peter responded, “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

The gift of the Eucharist reveals God’s desire to be a part of the very fiber of our lives. Let us thank Him for this special gift that we often take for granted and His faithfulness to His promise of "Satisfaction Guaranteed" for those who trust in His Word. 

Happy Fathers' Day to all the dads, granddads, and great granddads

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

A Merciful and Gracious God

Deacon Tom Writes,

“A Merciful and Gracious God”

The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

In today’s reading from the Book of Exodus, God joins Moses on Mount Sinai and reveals some things about Himself. For instance, God tells Moses that He is “Lord”, that He is “a merciful and gracious God”, and that He is,  “…slow to anger and rich in kindness and mercy”. What an encounter on a mountaintop in the middle of the desert! And how does Moses respond? He petitions God to “come along in our company”. In other words, Moses wants God to be an abiding presence in the community and a source of pardon, peace, and forgiveness in the midst of His stiff-neck travelling companions.

This ancient text invites us to reflect on our own experience of God. For instance, do we see God as Our Lord? Do we acknowledge Him as a presence or a reality in our life? Do we feel as comfortable with God as we do a close friend, a trusted confidant, and life companion who always has our best interest at heart? Have we any personal experience that affirms that God is “merciful and gracious”? Can we speak first-hand about God’s pardon and forgiveness? If we are having trouble recalling any personal encounter with God, perhaps it’s time to offer up this prayer, “do come along in my company” personalizing that request Moses made of God during his encounter with the Almighty.

Just like the Israelites wandering in the desert, we too may be going through our own desert experience. The severity and the magnitude of the problems we face today have driven many people to despair. There are those who genuinely believe that a “merciful and gracious God” could not sit idly by and watch the wars, the natural disasters, the greed and violence go on. Their choice is to cut God out of their lives and strike out on their own. This isn’t a phenomenon new to our times; Friedrich Nietzsche, the 19^th century German philosopher, thought that God was the culprit for all of humanities problems giving rise to the expression  “God is dead”. But, the Christian reality is that God isn’t to blame for the conditions from which we suffer, but rather He is our help in times of need, just as Moses discovered way back when.  In the midst of crisis and uncertainty, when the Israelites were lost, hungry, homeless and afraid, God reached out to them and offered to be their companion on the journey that we know as Salvation History. God is anything but dead, and He has never abandoned us. God is with us on our life’s journey if we just ask Him to, “come along in our company.”

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Image credit:  http://aacciaio.hubpages.com/hub/The-Holy-Trinity-in-Christianity

Let The Fire Fall

Deacon Tom Writes,

Let the Fire Fall

Pentecost Sunday, Year A

                     

Today marks the Feast of Pentecost that celebrates the Holy Spirit’s presence in our church. In fact, Pentecost is considered the "birthday of the church”. The term "Pentecost" comes from the Greek word meaning "the 50th day". It is the day Christianity commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles, fifty days after Jesus’ resurrection.

Pentecost is not just a Christian feast. It is derived from a Hebrew celebration known as, Shavuot, which was held 50 days after Passover and was associated with the first harvest of grain in the spring, in other words, it is a sign of life, a sign or hope, a sign of renewal, ideas and expressions that perhaps have taken on greater significance given the state of worldly affairs. 

Pentecost continues to be very important in our Catholic tradition because of its identification with the Trinity where God is the Father who created all things; Jesus is the Redeemer of mankind; the Holy Spirit sanctifies all that the Father has brought into being and all that Jesus has redeemed.

The coming of the Holy Spirit into our world continues God’s presence among us. The Holy Spirit, our Advocate, our Helper, brings divine power to enable us to overcome our human weaknesses, our bigotries, our hatreds, our idolatries, rivalries, and jealousies. The Holy Spirit is our champion who awakens within us the divine qualities of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, and faithfulness. We call these attributes the “fruits of the Holy Spirit”. It is through these gifts that we ourselves are transformed and are thus able to cooperate with God in bringing about the transformation of the world into the Kingdom of God, a kingdom of peace and justice, a kingdom where Christ will reign forever over a new heaven and a new earth that we have been created to share.

Today, more so than perhaps ever before, we pray that the Spirit of God, the Advocate, our Helper, friend, and companion be with us to enlighten our minds and strengthen our hearts so that we may be instruments of God’s peace. We pray that our world may see the dawning of a new day that ushers in the Kingdom of God in its fullness.

Come Holy Spirit

Fill the hearts of your faithful

And kindle in them the fire of Your Love.

Send forth your Spirit

And they shall be created.

And You shall renew the face of the earth.

O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit,

did instruct the hearts of the faithful,

grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever rejoice in His consolations,

Through Christ Our Lord,

Amen.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom