"I Come To Do Your Will, O God"

Deacon Tom writes,

“I come to do your will, O God”

Fourth Sunday of Advent, Year C

Isn’t it strange that the one thing that can keep us furthest from God’s love is the very gift God intended to draw us closest to him?  It’s this unique gift of “Free Will” that flows from God’s unimaginable love for us that enables us to say “No” to him. When we misuse this gift, we are free to reject him completely; we can ignore him when it is convenient to do so; we can even deny that he exists.  Then we are completely free to live our lives with reckless abandon trying to find substitutes for those very things God intended us to have from the beginning – our complete joy and happiness. But striking out on our own to find “the good life” usually has dire and “unintended” consequences.

Of course, God did not intend for us to use the gift of “Free Will” to reject him.  In giving us this gift God revealed something about himself. He revealed his unconditional love for us and for all his creation. No “normal” parent gives their children something that would harm them. The giving of gifts reflects the deep love parents have for their children. Genuine giving is an intimate sharing of parents’ desire for their children to experience joy and happiness here in this life, to reach their full potential as they mature into adulthood, and one day to enter into eternal life for which we were all created.

In the Second Reading today, St. Paul quotes Jesus’ words letting us know that he is aware of the gift he has received from God, and that he knows how to respond to that gift. He responds to the precious gift of free will by saying “Yes” to God. In the Gospel, Mary is visiting her cousin Elizabeth to share with her the good news of how God responded to her saying, “Yes” to him.  Both Jesus and Mary use the gift of their free will by submitting themselves to God and disposing themselves to do all that God asks them to do. Jesus and Mary know and teach us that this is the only way for us to fully experience all that God has promised us in this life….and, in the one to come.   

As we prepare to exchange gifts this Christmas, let us recall the gifts that we have received from God. And, let us respond joyfully to the many other gifts we have been blessed with over the years by echoing Jesus’ words, “I come to do your will, O God” and then, sit quietly and await his response. He surely will.

God bless and keep you and your loved ones close to him, now and always.     

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

What Should We Do?

Deacon Tom writes

 “What Should We Do?”

Third Sunday of Advent, Year C

John the Baptist was like a magnet drawing people out into the desert. They came because they were looking for something, and perhaps, because John was so very different than anyone they had ever heard or seen, they may have thought that he had what they were looking for. So they came and listened. Some even went so far as to be baptized, a sign that they bought into what he was preaching - lock, stock and barrel!

The baptism that John was preaching called for a change of heart. They had to leave their old ways behind and start out fresh, as if it was a new beginning, or at the least, a new mindset. Those who desired to change their ways asked John an obvious question, “What should we do?” And so, to the Tax Collector, John says, “Stop collecting more than is prescribed”. In other word, do whatever is the right thing to do in all your business affairs. To the Soldiers who asked what they should do, he answered, “Do not extort…do not falsely accuse…. be satisfied with your wages”. That’s the equivalent of saying don’t abuse your power or misuse your authority. People from all walks of life came to John for his advice and it would basically be the same, “Stop the injustice; start doing what is right”.

John is preparing the people for the one who is to follow him soon, Jesus. John lays the foundation of justice that Jesus will build on. The call to justice requires that we look within and see how we have contributed to the injustices that surround us.

John calls us to conversion, a change of heart that comes from within. When we experience this conversion, we too begin to ask the question, “What should we do?”   While we still have some Advent time remaining, let’s pause and ask Jesus to help us answer this question from within so we may always “act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God”. (Micah 6:8)

Enjoy the Day!

Deacon Tom 

Love Changes Everything

Deacon Tom writes

“Love Changes Everything”

Second Sunday of Advent, Year C

Paul tells his brothers and sisters in Philippi that he prays “…always with joy in my every prayer for you”.  He goes on to tell them, “And this is my prayer:  that your love may increase ever more and more” [so you may] “discern what is of value”.  Paul expresses that love is the most important virtue in his letter to the Corinthians in one of his most famous quotes, “So faith, hope, love remain, these three; but the greatest of these is love”

1 Cor 13:13. Love, as a song written by Andrew Lloyd Webber expresses so well, changes everything!

Advent is a time to embrace some of the changes we have put off for too long, a time to change course and head in a new direction on roads that have been leveled and filled in for us by the Holy One, highways and byways that lead us on the paths of forgiveness, and healing, and holiness. To turn our hearts and minds towards the Most High is to turn our backs to the malls and Main Street bazaars and barkers that normally inordinately usurp our time and treasures this time of year. If we truly love and discern what is of value, this will not be a difficult choice to make”. For where our treasures lie, there will our hearts be also.

Let us pray this Advent is different than all the past ones and that we enter into the grace which enable us to seek those gifts that last forever, that reflect the love that God has for us in giving us the gift of his only Son: a generous heart, a deeper sense of compassion and empathy for those who are hurting this year, physically, emotionally and spiritually, that God will use us when and where he sees fit to be instruments of his peace.

Yes, “Love changes everything” and, when it does, “Nothing in the World will ever be the same”.  Advent is that time of year when we dare to dream that the forces of love can cast out the darkness in our world and prepare our hearts for the King of Glory to enter within.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Image: Giotto Nativity

To You, O Lord, I Lift Up My Soul

Deacon Tom writes

“To you, O Lord, I lift my soul”

First Sunday of Advent, Year C

In the silence of our Advent reflection, the words of the Prophet Jeremiah can stir our hearts with expectant hope and longing for promises to be fulfilled, for the days when, “all shall be safe and dwell secure”.  This deep longing for safety and security is shared by all humanity in the aftermath of the Paris tragedy and the ongoing suffering countless victims of war, violence, poverty, and illness throughout our hurting world. For this to become a reality we must first, however, place ourselves in the presence of the Lord and breath the prayer we hear in the Responsorial Psalm today, “To you, O Lord, I lift my soul”.

Every year we all face the challenge of Advent; we need to get everything ready for Christmas, the shopping, the cooking, the visits to family and friends, the writing out of Christmas cards. And when do we stop to put it all in perspective and reflect upon the “Reason for the Season”?

This year can be different. We can break the cycle of insanity….if we want to. We can take a tip from St. Paul and ask the Lord to make us, “increase and abound in love for one another and for all”.   How our lives would change!  So some questions to ask during this Holy Season are these:  What holds us back?  What prevents us from seeking the holy?  Are we afraid of the changes that an injection of love into the fabric of our lives would cause?  Are we afraid of what the newborn Babe would ask of us? Are we afraid of the confrontation with self that can take place in the time we spend in holy solitude?  There are a lot of reasons that we avoid silence and fill our lives with business. But it doesn’t have to be this way. This year can be different!!!

Jesus tells us to, “Be vigilant at all times and pray… to escape the tribulations….and to stand before the Son of Man”.  This Advent gives us another chance to renew our efforts to center our lives around prayer and to create a quiet space where we can go and rest awhile with a friend, Jesus, who comes to us as a little child bearing many gifts to all who come before him singing the refrain, “To you, O Lord, I lift my soul”.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Shine Like The Stars

Deacon Tom writes

Shine Like The Stars

Thirty –third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Our Liturgical Year comes to a close next Sunday on the Feast of Christ the King. As we reflect about the passing of another year, our readings today focus our attention on the “End Times”. The physical laws of the universe tell us that all things must come to an end. That pertains to our world as well. Today we read a prophetic account of those days and they paint of pretty grim picture. The Prophet Daniel says, “it will be a time unsurpassed in distress”.  Jesus tells his disciples, “the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give it’s light”. 

Hollywood has tremendous imagination when it comes to world-ending cataclysms. Our readings today, however, challenge us to see these apocalyptic signs through a much different filter, through the eyes of faith guided as we are by the two Prophets who speak to us today, Daniel and Jesus.

Daniel tells us that during these devastating days, “the wise shall shine brightly….and those who lead the many to justice shall be like the stars forever”.  Jesus tells his disciples that, “they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds… and he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds”.

Today’s readings tell us some truth about the future. Hollywood imagines the “how”; our Christian focus is on the “what”. For each of us must consider how we live our lives and prepare ourselves for that day which will be our last.   Through the eyes of faith we know that we have nothing to worry about on our “last days” if we have been faithful to our Baptismal promises and if we have let our light shine brightly to all around us so that in the words of St. Paul, we may “…shine among them like stars in the sky” Phil 2:15.

Aware of our shortcomings in this life, we place our trust in God and his abundant love, mercy and compassion in fervent hope that, at the appointed time, he will come and gather  to himself all who have let his light shine in their lives to be with him forever.   

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Image Credit -wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/be/Brilliant_star_Merope.jpg

We Remember

Deacon Tom writes

“ We Remember”

The Solemnity of All Saints, Year B

“From age to age you gather a people to yourself, so that from east to west a perfect offering may be made to the glory of your name.”

These words from Eucharistic Prayer III remind us that our faith unites us to one another throughout time and throughout space. Our Church honors as Saints those who have gone before us having lived exceptionally good and virtuous lives. They are models for us to imitate. We see them as sources of inspiration for us to follow in our attempt to live holy and charitable lives. Names like St. Francis, St. Martin de Pores, St. Vincent de Paul, and St. Damien of Molokai have earned their place in this ever-growing litany of inspirational lives. They inspire us in our efforts to serve one another as Christ taught us to do, and to carry those crosses that come our way because of our faith in Chris. Today we witness many ordinary people who live each and every day with a spirit of humility, who go through life making many sacrifices to ease the burdens of those around them. They do this because they are disciples of Jesus and they desire to follow in his footsteps. These too are saints in every sense of the word.

We honor both categories of Saints today, those recognized by our Church as Saints and those ordinary people who lived their lives in our homes and our communities witnesses and practitioners of God’s love, mercy, and compassion.  Yes, we remember the lives of the saints that we called our mothers and grandmothers, fathers and grandfathers, our husbands and wives, and children who made a difference in our lives. We recall the joy and happiness they brought into our lives and into the lives of so many others. We recall their faith, their struggles, and their love.

It is all these wonderful lives that make up the “Communion of Saints”. It is both the great and the small saints as John Nava depicted in his rendition of the “Communion of Saints” that we honor today. It is these men and women who have been “good and faithful servants” who have entered the kingdom of God and who now faithfully pray for us, the living, to do the same. And for them we praise God!

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Image Credit: Los Angeles Cathedral Tapestry by John Nava

The Courage To Speak

Deacon Tom writes

“The Courage To Speak”

Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Today we hear the familiar story of Bartimaeus, a man whose disability sets the stage for his encounter with Jesus. It’s an ordinary day; Bartimaeus sets up on the side of the road to do the only thing he can do…Beg. His blindness makes him vulnerable and without the help of others, his life would go from bad to worse. How excited he must have been when he heard the crowd approaching! Perhaps, he might have thought, their generosity would get him through a couple of days, please God! But in reality, a greater gift awaited him.

In some ways we are like Bartimaeus. We routinely set out each day trying to secure the necessities of life, to earn enough to pay the mortgage, the orthodontist, buy groceries, fill the gas tank of the car. Yes, we need these things to provide for our families. That’s keeping it real. But there is more to life than the things that money can buy. Ironically, Bartimaeus, the blind man, helps open our eyes to the fact that our well-being depends totally on someone else, and that someone else is God.

It takes courage for Bartimaeus to continue calling out to Jesus when those around him demand his silence. Bartimaeus recognizes Jesus’ true identity as the “Son of David”. He cries out, not for a handout to get him through the day, but for God’s mercy that will open for him a whole new way of life and satisfy all that is lacking within.

We all stand in need of God’s mercy, for his healing, for the gift of sight to see the awesome works of God around us and even in our lives. We have so many needs; there are so many things to pray for. Prayers that break the silence to ask for God’s guidance, protection, and his mercy so that we might make it through today and have hope for tomorrow; prayers that silence the rumble of war and that bring peace to our troubled world; prayers for those who are abused and neglected who are often silent victims.    

Like Bartimaeus, let’s not be silenced by the world around us. Instead, let us call out “Jesus, Son of David, have pity on us” and see what wonders lie in store. 

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Image credit: maryricehopkins.com:Bartimaeus3

To Be First Is To Be Last

Deacon Tom writes

“To Be First Is To Be Last”

Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

On three separate occasion over this past month, St. Mark recounts Jesus in similar ways revealing his plan to his disciples that he was going to Jerusalem where he would “suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again”.

The first time Jesus tells his disciples this, you may recall from St. Marks account, Peter protests vehemently only to be rebuked by Jesus harshly, “Get behind me Satan”, Jesus tells Peter. Then in the following Sunday’s gospel, Jesus informs his disciples of his immanent death a second time, only to find his disciples arguing as to who was the greatest among them.

And finally, in the text leading up to today’s gospel, in Mark 10:32-34, Jesus again predicts his passion and death for a third time only to have James and John trying to secure the best seats in the house, those at the right and left hand of Jesus for themselves.

The disciples reaction to Jesus’ fate speaks volumes to us…They are in denial…They can’t “handle” this foundational “truth” of Jesus’ ministry to paraphrase a quote line from a Hollywood movie. After all, they had seen first hand Jesus as a “wonder worker”, healing the sick, cleansing leapers, raising the dead, revealing the deep, inner operations of the Kingdom of God.

And they, too, shared in this wonder working power for they had received  “power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases” as we heard in our weekday gospel a while back.

I imagine the disciples enjoyed the attention and fame that came their way just by being associated with Jesus. From this vantage point, life is pretty good, isn’t it? But things began to change once Peter has this epiphany and recognizes Jesus as, “You are the Christ”. From that point forward Jesus unfolds a different direction for the road ahead:

- for him - that he would suffer, be rejected by the elder  and put to death, but will rise on the third day…

- and for any would-be disciple who… “wished to follow him”, that they too must likewise, “.. deny himself…[and] take up his cross…”. They, the Apostles, must embrace this new revelation of Jesus that, “Those who wish to be the first shall be the last of all and the servant of all”.

There is a change in mindset once his disciples hear what Jesus expects of them. And, it takes them awhile to “get it”. And that just may be the case for us as well. For, if we truly hear what Jesus is saying in these passages…we too can’t help realize that our calling as Christians isn’t to a life of fame, privilege, power, or success but rather,

 …we are called to a lifetime of service and sacrifice;

 …we are invited into a ministry of mercy and forgiveness;

 …we are summoned into a life of spiritual growth and interior

       transformation…So that, with St. Paul, we too can say,

        “Yet I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me”. GAL 2:20

I believe Pope Francis is reaffirming this same message Christ gave his disciples two thousand years ago and that we have heard repeated on his recent visits to Cuba, Washington, D.C., New York, and Philadelphia. The teachings of Jesus that Pope Francis reaffirmed for us is that we are to be instruments of God’s love, mercy, and compassion, by seeking to put others and their needs before our own, and by seeking ways of peace and forgiveness.

And this is not a new message that Cardinal Bergoglio acquired once he became Pontiff. Back in 2007, as Cardinal of Buenos Aires, Jorge Mario Bergoglio wrote the closing document for the Fifth General Conference of the Bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean in Aparecida, Brazil.

In that lengthy document which summarized the main themes of that conference, he wrote:

 “A Catholic faith reduced to mere baggage,

to a collection of rules and prohibitions,

to fragmented devotional practices,

to selective and partial adherence to the truths of the faith,

to occasional participation in some sacraments,

to the repetition of doctrinal principles,

to bland or nervous moralizing,

 that does not convert the life of the baptized

  would not withstand the trials of time.

Our greatest danger is the gray pragmatism of the daily life of the church in which everything apparently continues normally, but in reality the faith is being consumed and falling into meanness”.

Pope Francis is attempting to refocus our attention on one of the central truths of our faith: God has loved us and we are to love others without preference, without limit, without conditions.

We whose allegiance is to Christ today are to be witnesses of the love that God has shown to us in everything we say and by every action we do so that everyone around us can say, as they did in those early days of our church…

“See how they love one another……”

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Image: flyingfeetinfaith.com

Choose Wisely

Deacon Tom writes

“Choose Wisely"

Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Have you ever had the chance to watch a little child try to decide which coin to take when given a choice between a nickel and a dime?  Quite often, the child will choose the nickel because it’s bigger. The poor lad hasn’t learned to distinguish value. The reading from the Book of Wisdom is intended to teach us about what constitutes real value in our lives so that we may know how to choose wisely and not be deceived by the illusions of our physical world. The sacred author writes this beautiful passage that is so rich in meaning. Here it is again –

I prayed, and prudence was given me;

I pleaded and the spirit of Wisdom came to me.

I preferred her to scepter and throne,

And deemed riches nothing in comparison with her,

nor did I liken any priceless gem to her;

Because all gold, in view of her, is a little sand,

and before her, silver is to be accounted mire.

Beyond health and comeliness I loved her,

And I chose to have her rather than the light,

because the splendor of her never yields to sleep.

Yet all good things together came to me in her company,

and countless riches at her hands.

The teacher of Wisdom informs us that we need other virtues to lead us to Wisdom.  Prudence and Perseverance, Patience and intense Prayer are necessities for those seeing Wisdom. That explains why Wisdom is so rare and so rare and elusive, while foolishness is seen all around us, like pollen during ragweed season. Foolishness appeals to the here and now, feeds upon our egos and disillusions, and makes no demands upon our character. Foolishness endures because it is so captivated by the glitter of the physical reality around us and is so easily enticed by the things of this world… the riches, temporary fame and fortune, success and the pleasures that fail to give lasting joy and happiness.  The Wisdom described above is a manifestation of God’s very identity and his essence. It is a part of God’s very being.  God shares His Wisdom, a very part of His nature with those who ask for it, with those who seek lasting riches found only in the things from above. When one possesses this form of Wisdom, they abide in God and God in them. 

If we seek the things from above, we will never be disappointed. God’s Wisdom will guide us on our earthly journey and enlighten us along the way so we, unlike the little child who is deceived by the belief that bigger is better and makes the wrong choice, won’t settle for second best. May we have the Wisdom of God at work in us so that we always and easily choose wisely.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Image: eastdailyoffice.wordpress.com

Envious Hearts

Deacon Tom writes

“Envious Hearts”

Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Both Moses and St. Luke give us some insight about a serious sin that we all experience from time to time. It is the sin of envy. We hear today how Moses responds to a complaint brought to him by two of his tribesmen.  What bothered them was that several others of their group were prophesying even though they had not been there when they received the “spirit. Moses sensed a spirit of envy or jealousy was at work with those who lodged the complaint. Instead of chastising the two who complained he, in turn, complained to them saying, “Would that all the people of the LORD were prophets! Would that the LORD might bestow his spirit on them all!"

In a similar way, the Apostles see that someone not in their group is casting out demons and report that to Jesus.  Jesus wisely cautions his disciples “Do not prevent him.” Jesus knows that any good work done in His name will produce good fruit.

Very often our fragile human nature shows itself in the ugliest of ways. In these two incidents from Sacred Scripture we notice how one group of individuals is offended because others appear to have gotten something that they did not deserve:  in the first reading the Spirit came to rest on the men who left camp; in the gospel a stranger was casting out demons without being an Apostle. Envy is at work in both these events. Each time one group feels that they have been cheated, perhaps, like someone else was getting something they should not have.

Our sequential, linear minds constantly seek to put God in a box. We want to control God. We want Him to be predictable and to be fair; fair, that is, as we perceive fair to be. But God is above all our thinking and even above our wildest imagination. God’s ways are simply beyond us and we need to grow into that realization.

God is at work all around us, in all faiths, in all peoples, in all circumstances. God’s Spirit works in the hearts of the faithful everywhere. God is the reality through which we live, and move, and have our being. It is not jealousy that should fill our hearts, but rather a deep sense of awe at the wonders God is unfolding minute-by-minute, day-by-day all around us. Even in those who look, act, believe, and worship differently than we do.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Image from: zazzle.com

Decision Time

Deacon Tom writes

“Decision Time”

Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

“If it is displeasing to you to serve the LORD, decide today whom you will serve…” (Jos 24:15).  Joshua poses this demanding question to all the Israelites gathered at Shechem many years after they had entered the promised land.  The people responded, “… We will serve the Lord, our God, and will listen to his voice.” (Jos 24:24)  Today as we listen to this scripture passage, we are asked the same question!  And what is our response?

No generation has had an easy time answering this question.  Life has always been hard.  Finding God in the midst of all that life presents challenges all of us and eludes even those who strive to do so.  Who is God? What is my relationship with God? What does the Almighty ask of me so that I can answer this question honestly and with resolve?  These thoughtful questions are ones people have been asking themselves throughout the ages, questions, perhaps we have been asking too over the course of our spiritual journey. 

I find it helpful to reflect on a passage from St. John’s gospel to get a better understanding on “how to” serve God in the way that God desires.  It is the passage where Jesus washed the feet of his disciples and when he has finished, he asked them, “Do you realize what I have done for you?” Not certain how they, the apostles, should respond, Jesus continues… “I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do”.  (John 13:15)

Jesus, ever the teacher, gives us a very simple example of how we are to serve the Lord, Our God… by placing ourselves at the service of one another.  St. Paul gives us some further guidance when he instructs the Corinthians, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ”. (1COR 11:1)

This question about deciding whom we should serve is so very important today.  There are many activities competing for our time, our attention, money, and loyalty.  Our own individual choices we make in pursuit of happiness and the lure of the myriad of technological advances that fill every waking hour leave very little time for crucial activities such as spending quality family time together, engaging in meaningful reflection, finding time for solitude and reflection…

Scripture asks us today “…Whom we will serve”.  May God’s grace lead us so we may come to know, love and serve him in this life and in the life to come.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Image credit: thronewatching.com