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

All God's Creatures, Great and Small

Deacon Tom writes

All God’s Creatures, Great and Small

Twenty-seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B

Looking up at the sky on a clear October evening can be an exhilarating experience. The stars shining brightly give us a good reason to stop and consider the immensity of the universe. What is more amazing is that we believe that God put all that we see in place just for us, for us human beings, the highlight of his creation.

When we read the account of Adam naming the animals today, we recall how God has given us the responsibility to take care of, to be good stewards of all he has entrusted to us.  As Pope Francis reminds us in his encyclical on the environment, Laudation Si, “…our common home is like a sister with whom we share our life and a beautiful mother who opens her arms to embrace us”. Our First Reading is so appropriate for today’s Feast of St. Francis of Assisi.  Francis’ love of all God’s creatures is legendary. He lived a simple life that enabled him to see God’s goodness at work throughout the natural order. In his poem “Canticle of the Sun”, he calls the sun and the moon his “Sister” and his “Brother”.   

Today is also “Respect Life” Sunday. Our Church sets this day aside to remind us of the dignity and worth of every human life. The value of human life flows from our creator in whose image and likeness we are made. Every person is unique. Every life is special and sacred. Many of the evils we see today are specifically directed against the dignity of the human person…abortion, euthanasia, the death penalty, “ethnic cleansing”, prostitution, pornography, war, poverty, and “white slavery”.  When will we ever learn? Will we grow out of our “hardness of heart”?

Dr. Bernard Nathanson was a doctor who was responsible for over 75,000 abortions. He experienced a radical transformation (Grace???) in the 1980’s when he saw the astonishing images of the fetus produced by the then new ultrasound technology. In rethinking his position, he was drawn to the Catholic Church because of its strong belief in the dignity of life, from the moment of conception to the very last, natural breath.

Today we recognize that we are all God’s creatures, great and small alike. We are called to celebrate this life as best we can by being good stewards of all creation… ourselves included!!!... by loving one another as a way of showing our thankfulness to our God who loves us without limit or condition; God who loves us into life.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

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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

Numero Uno

Deacon Tom writes

“Numero Uno”

Twenty-fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B

One of telltale signs that we struggle to embrace Jesus’ message “to become the least” is the fact that we do all that we can to be the first… to be the best… the greatest, the center of attention. We want to be in the limelight; we want the bigger piece of the pie. Yet, today, Jesus’ instructions are clear:  the only way we get to the head of the line is by seeking to be the last one in it! “If anyone wishes to be first”, he says, “he shall be the last of all and the servant of all”.   That’s how things operate in the Kingdom of God. It was the behavior of his closest disciples that prompted Jesus to pass this teaching on to us. In today’s gospel we hear that an argument broke out among his disciples as to who was “Numero Uno”. This happened right after Jesus revealed what’s going to happen to him when they get to Jerusalem.  “He will be handed over to men and they will kill him…but in three days he will rise”.  How callous of his followers to be so dismissive of Jesus’ horrific prophesy! Imagine how anguished we would be if, while we were bearing our souls to a close friend, they were disengaged and self-absorbed. There is just no imaginable way to describe how hurt and distraught we would feel‼! 

Jesus made many references to the fact that the Kingdom of Heaven was ordered a bit differently than our experience here in this temporal realm. In God’s kingdom ….the first shall be last, the hungry will be satisfied, the broken, crushed, dispossessed and sorrowing will be comforted. And forever, the peacemakers will be held in high esteem….!

Those are some powerful promises, and yet, given the state of the world, some of our inner city neighborhoods, and even our family, one can’t help wonder if we are doing all that we can to ease the plight of the poor, the neglected, those who are suffering through this life?  Why aren’t we looking to “store up treasures in heaven” (Mt 6:20) by helping the worst of the worst?  Are we confused about the significance of Jesus’ teachings?  Matthew, Chapter 25 makes it pretty clear… “Whatever you do to the least of my brothers and sisters, you do to me?”…Or, are we, like the disciples in today’s gospel more distracted with our own concerns and interests than the suffering and hopelessness of many of those around us? 

It is very difficult to die to self, to take up the crosses of our lives and unite them with that of Christ. That is why we need to learn from the Master, to follow in his footsteps, and practice every day to love and serve each other, as Christ has loved us, even unto death. That is one way to show others that Christ truly is “Numero Uno” in our lives.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Image from – lailas blog.com

Just a Different Way of Thinking

Deacon Tom writes

“Just a Different Way of Thinking” 

Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

The first fifteen years of this new millennium have been a challenge beyond any imagination. It seems like just yesterday that we watched in horror as both World Trade Centers collapsed shattering the lives of so many people and, in an instant, changing the course of American history. Although fourteen years have passed, we really haven’t recovered from this event. Indeed, our world has been embroiled in constant turmoil since then. Wars in Iran and Afghanistan, terrorism directed at innocent civilians around the world, financial markets in a state of heightened volatility, unimaginable numbers of refugees risking their lives in search of safety, shelter, and food. Reports of cyber crime, economic disparity, charges of policy brutality keep us in a state of anxiety and increase our worries and our fears about the future. Yes, we have reaped more than our share of hardship and disappointment from this millennium that held out such promise for us as we crossed the threshold into Y2K, a time when we all looked forward with such hope and expectation.  But the reality, sadly, has been much different.

As we struggle to respond to the difficult challenges we face in our own lives and in the world, it occurs to me how important it is to place Christ at the center of our lives. Having Christ at the center of our lives enables us to cope with the magnitude of the problems that confront us on both a personal and global level. For, if our minds and hearts are focused on Christ as our teacher who directs our thoughts, words and actions, we can understand the problems our world is facing and that eventually touch all of our lives in one way or another.

The reason we engage in conflict, the reason we suffer violence, discrimination, the reason fear and anxiety have laid a firm grip on our lives, is because we are not seeing things clearly. We are in every way living the words that Jesus speaks to Peter in today’s gospel… we, “are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do” AND acting accordingly!

Yes, sadly, we think in dualistic terms, either – or, win – lose, terms. That is,  we function, consciously or sub-consciously under the belief that one can only win by someone else loosing, as if the activities of our lives…  political, economic, and even spiritual lives are all zero-sum games. Our thinking remains darkened by that pesky original sin, which limits our vision for goodness and seeks only what is best for ourselves. Fueled by desires that are too often primitive and self-centered, we fight with one another to obtain more for ourselves at the expense of others. That’s true for nations as well as individuals. How long now have we known about sweatshops and the exploitation of those who work there and yet, we continue to buy the items they produce? How long have we denied paying living wages to those who do menial labor in this country so we can have more “stuff”? 

There are so many good works that we do because we are trying to live and act as Christ taught us, and we can never lose track of that. Yet it is clear that our world suffers today because too many of us are still thinking, “as human beings do”. St. James calls us to task by reminding us that we are often long on talk and short on doing. He challenges us to live our faith in a way that demonstrates our efforts to strive to think as God thinks. How does God think? Jesus let us know that and His message is clear: we should love one another and take care of our brothers and sisters in need, just as He loves and cares for us.  That way of living puts aside our dualistic thinking so that we can focus single-mindedly on Christ and see and think as he does. 

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

Image Credit: turboread.com

Built To Last

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Deacon Tom Writes ©

“Built To Last” 

Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

The author of the Book of Wisdom writes, “God formed man (and woman) to be imperishable…in the image of His own nature”.  In Jesus we get to see the image of God dwelling among His people. Jesus is tireless in preaching the kingdom of God. Mark relates numerous stories of Jesus working miracles as he encounters people who needed to be healed, reconciled, and fed. Today’s readings contain several such miracles.  After curing the man who was possessed, Jesus crosses the lake and encounters Jairus who implores him to come to his house where his daughter lies near death. But, as Jesus begins his journey, he senses “power had gone out from him”, power that had been usurped by the hemorrhaging woman who found herself healed.

Jesus brings about much healing in Mark’s Gospel. It seems as if Jesus is rushing off from one miracle to another the way Mark recounts it! It is interesting to note that the word that Mark uses for the “healing” is the Greek word “sōzō”, a word that not only means “to heal” but also “to save”. In other words, Jesus not only heals people from their sickness but also he saves and restores them to the original state they were created, as “imperishable” beings… made in the image and likeness of God and destined to share eternity with Him.

A challenge we face in our busy lives is that there are so many activities and so much technology available to entertain us that we have little time for spiritual reflection or very little time to probe the deeper meanings of our human experiences for that matter. And so we go from one activity to another, from work to recreation.  We get a little sleep, cut the grass, do the shopping, and bring the kids to this activity or that sport. We are so fatigued at the end of the day, we go to sleep only to rise the next morning and begin all over again. We seldom give any conscious thought to key spiritual aspects of our lives such as our mortality or what lies ahead when we die. For most people, this is “living the dream”.  We are rarely looking to seeing or experiencing God in any of our daily routines. 

Yet, I believe, we all long to experience the presence of God that touches and heals us and brings us his salvation. But in order to find that calming peace and healing presence, we must first look to find God’s presence in the ordinary…in the mundane… in the routine and boring events that are the bulk of our day-to-day lives. We must, as St. Ignatius discovered, “find God in all things” if we are to experience the divine and to recognize its imprint within us.  If we think about it, that is, if we take the time to think about it, we have already entered into eternity.  Life for those who believe will be changed, not ended, as proclaimed in our Christian funeral liturgy. For, as the Book of Wisdom reminds us today, we were made in the image of God’s own nature. So then, we can believe and trust that we have been made to go the distance. We were, as it were, “built to last”! So, once we have lived and spread the good news in this life, we can look forward to celebrating it forever in the life to come!

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom 

Stormy Weather

Brueghel,_Pieter_I_-_Christ_in_the_Storm_on_the_Sea_of_Galilee_-_1596_- wikimedia-org

Deacon Tom writes ©

Stormy Weather 

Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

The gospel paints quite a picture for us today. A nice day on the water suddenly turns into a heart-clutching event. The disciples are “terrified” and fearful that they are about to die.  They wonder how Jesus can sleep through this violent storm.  Indeed, they ask him outright, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”  After Jesus calms the sea, it’s his turn to ask the tough questions: “Why are you terrified?  Do you not yet have faith”?

We all experience tempests in our lives.  Oftentimes they terrify us and challenge our faith.  Doubt, uncertainty, guilt, fear and regret raise havoc with our faith.  When we are in such a state we question why God doesn’t reach out and save us from our misery.  “He’s sleeping”, we may think, or “He just doesn’t care”.  We may even begin to rationalize to the extreme… “God’s not helping because he doesn’t exist”... Or at the least, “We doubt that he will come to our rescue”.  If we let these thoughts gain control over us they can lead us to utter despair or worse, a complete crisis of faith. 

Yet, what do we hear in today’s gospel when the apostles were overcome with fear?  We are told not to fear, not to doubt, but rather, “Quiet! Be still!” Listen for that quiet voice within where God speaks to our hearts.  When we are overcome by the overwhelming circumstances we can’t avoid, there is something we can do… and that is to listen for that quiet, still voice within us…the promptings of the Holy Spirit who is “nearer to us than we are to ourselves”, in order to tap into an endless supply of Christ’s abiding love to help us persevere until the storms of uncertainty pass us by. 

You may recall the expression, “That which does not kill me makes me stronger”. This is true in matters of faith as well.  As we grow in our faith we gradually begin to understand that it is during those dark and uncertain moments that we experience God’s abiding presence, when we are most aware that God is “near to the brokenhearted”.  We recognize God’s presence more and more in our lives the more we are tossed about by the sea of life and especially when things are not going our way. Perhaps that’s because when everything around us has failed… when our friends have abandoned us, when we lose our jobs or health or loved ones, when we begin to realize that we don’t have the power to fix what’s wrong in our lives or the lives of those we love… it is then when we are out of options that we turn to God.  It is in times such as these that we are more open to receive what Christ has to offer us…his love, compassion, and mercy.

All of the tempests in our lives have the potential of bringing us closer to Christ if we let them.  If Christ truly becomes our rock and our salvation, we will overcome all the stormy weather we encounter as we navigate the waters of this life while keeping our bearings on the one to come. 

A Happy Father’s day to all the fathers, grandfathers, and soon to be fathers (that’s for my son-in-law, Brandon!!!). I jumped the gun by putting this in last week....I am loosing track of time!!

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom 

Go, Make Disciples (AscensionThursday) / Sharing In Christ's Joy ( Seventh Sunday of Easter)

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 Deacon Tom writes ©

Go, Make Disciples

Ascension Thursday, Year B

May 14, 2015

It’s hard to believe that three months ago we were just getting ready for the beginning of Lent. Now, as the Easter season draws to a close, this may be a good time to reflect on where our spiritual journey has taken us.

        

Were we able to hear God’s voice in the midst of our Lenten journey through the desert? Or gain a new insight about God’s incredible love for us during this Easter Season; perhaps we have a better sense of what he is calling us to do. How successful were we in changing some of those habits and behaviors we needed to change about ourselves - our judging and criticizing others, our negative thinking, our inertia for self- reflection and sense of superiority, and our gossip…

Three months is not a long time when you think about it, especially if we are trying to measure such things as spiritual growth…. It just not a lot of time.

I suspect that three years isn’t a lot of time either, to make a lot of progress in the spiritual realm. And yet, that’s, at most, all the time that the apostles’ had to grasp his new way of thinking and new commandments of loving, forgiving, and serving one another… friend and enemy alike. They really were, when you think about it, on the fast track. Once Jesus was gone, that was it. It was all up to them to spread the word throughout the world.

Imagine if you were the one who Jesus told to, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature”. What would you do? How would you begin?

Well, guess what?  You and I, yes, we are the ones Jesus is telling to go into the world and proclaim the Good News.  

In his Apostolic Exhortation on Evangelization in the Modern World[1], (or as they say in Rome, Evangelii Nuntiandi- December 8, 1975 – the feast of the Immaculate Conception), 

Pope Paul VI wrote:

“Those who sincerely accept the Good News, through the power of this acceptance and of shared faith therefore gather together in Jesus' name in order to seek together the kingdom, build it up and live it. They make up a community which is in its turn evangelizing. The command to the Twelve to go out and proclaim the Good News is also valid for all Christians, though in a different way…. Moreover, the Good News of the kingdom which is coming and which has begun is meant for all people of all times. Those who have received the Good News and who have been gathered by it into the community of salvation can and must communicate and spread it”.

My brothers and sisters, there is a saying that goes, “Faith isn’t taught, it’s caught”. Jesus’ work of salvation has been accomplished. What remains is our participation in that work that calls us to spread the Good News, to be living witnesses of the faith that we profess, to do as St. Francis was fond of telling his followers….to go out and preach the gospel, and when necessary, use words.

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Deacon Tom writes ©

Sharing In Christ’s Joy

Seventh Sunday of Easter, Year B

May 17, 2015

We read in today’s gospel that Jesus wants to share his joy with us “Completely”. The joy that he wants to share with us has its source in the words the Father gave him. But living those words, Jesus tells us, puts us at odds with the world, “I gave them your word, and the world hated them, because they do not belong to the world”.  Jesus leaves little doubt about where our loyalties lie. 

It is natural for us to want to have as much joy in this life as we can get. How we find that “joy” is the essence of our spiritual journey. How often we confuse happiness with joy! Happiness depends upon our circumstances and the events that happen to us. I am happy when something good happens to me such as making a new friend, winning the lottery or getting that new car or job, just as I may be sad when I have a reversal of good fortune. Happiness doesn’t last. We always need something else each tomorrow to renew our happiness. If we don’t find something new to enthrall us, we very often end up down in the dumps. Here in America it seems that happiness is available for a price. At least that’s what Madison Avenue would have us believe. Isn’t that the message that advertisers are selling…You will be happy if you drive this kind of car, or if you wear this suit or go on this vacation…if you buy this or that?

Joy is something else completely. It is an interior state of being. Being joyful has nothing to do with my circumstances or what is happening in my life. Joy has REAL staying power. As a matter of fact, one can be full of joy while experiencing extreme hardships in life. The Perfect Joy of St. Francis was in serving God completely by renouncing all but the necessities of life. Most of us wouldn’t find the joy in that! I have encounter people with true joy in soup kitchens, lying in a hospice bed, mourning the loss of a loved one…The Anawim, God’s lowly, disenfranchised, poor, humble people seem to have found the secret to the perfect joy Christ intends for his disciples.

Today we are invited to share Christ’s joy completely by listening to the “Word” and letting it take root in our hearts, elevating our love and service to one another. Let us grow deeper in our relationship with Christ so we can choose to live in that complete joy that only he can give and which lasts forever over the happiness of the world that never satisfies and always leaves us wanting for more.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom 

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[1] Evangelii Nuntiandi, 13