Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Our Help Is In The Name Of The Lord_101820

Deacon Tom Writes,

“Our Help Is In The Name Of The LORD” PS 124:8

Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Have you ever had this experience: you are in a difficult situation and you are desperately in need of help but you have no idea where to turn. Then, someone, a complete stranger, comes to the rescue, and you are left with this overwhelming sense of amazement. You just know that God somehow had His hands in these events that touched your life.

The story of the Jews liberation from captivity in Babylon at the hands of the Persian King Cyrus is just such an experience. It is a genuine sign of God calling upon a “stranger” to accomplish His plan in an amazing and awesome way. About King Cyrus, Isaiah wrote, “I have called you by your name, giving you a title, though you knew me not”. The Jews were in a hopeless situation; they were being held captive away from their home; their temple lay in ruin; their way of life altered forever. So they thought! Then Cyrus, the King of the Persians, one not numbered among the tribes of Israel, rises up and defeats the Babylonians and comes to their aid. In 538 B.C. Cyrus issued an edict allowing the return of all the Hebrews to Jerusalem. Better yet, he ordered the rebuilding of the Temple and provided that the Israelites be given a royal subsidy from his treasury. He directed that the sacred vessels seized by the Babylonians when they destroyed the Temple should be sent back with the released captives.  Finally, he urged all Israelites to contribute to the restoration of public worship. Isaiah tells how God took Cyrus’ right hand and led him, “subduing nations before him…..opening doors before him and leaving the gates unbarred”. Isaiah wrote that the Lord summoned Cyrus. The events that followed tell us that responding to the Lord’s call produces amazing results. 

Today we face an unimaginable, life threatening and life changing global pandemic. Evidence of the devastation this pandemic has caused is all around us.. in the loss of lives, in the physical, emotional and financial suffering we or our family or friends and neighbors have or are suffering. This tragedy only exacerbates the everyday problems and difficulties we face in our lives, problems with our relationships, with our kids, our boss, fears of losing our jobs or our health. We struggle with forgiving those who have hurt us; we struggle with addictions and all sorts of impossible situations.  We even struggle with the teachings of our church. We ask ourselves, “How am I going to get through this?”  or, “Where can I turn for help?”  

It’s always darkest before the dawn, they say. I am sure the Jews held captive in Babylon felt that way. But, then God, who is the master of doing the impossible, comes to their rescue and turns their tears into laughter. Isaiah tells us today to keep the faith. There is no struggle or difficulty God cannot overcome!! There is no struggle or difficulty of ours that God does not want to overcome. But, the lesson from Isaiah’s text is clear….the Lord called Cyrus by name to do His work, to liberate His Chosen People, to rebuild the Temple and restore Israel to its former glory. The thing is, God has call us by name, today… and he asks us to do the same. He calls us to respond to the needs of those around us… who have suffered tragic loss, who are in desperate need, who have given up hope. How will we decide to be instruments in the hands of our Lord in helping accomplish His plan?

Enjoy the Day!
Deacon Tom

Twenty-eight Sunday in Ordinary Time - Guess Who's Coming To Dinner_101120

Deacon Tom Writes,

“Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner?”

 Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A 

Jesus uses the story of a king who invites his subjects to the wedding banquet for his son and the people reject his invitation outright.  What an insult!  The King’s outrage is understandable. And so is his desire to have a banquet in honor of his son’s wedding.  

The Jews knew they were the ones Jesus was talking about and they certainly didn’t like the way the story ended. Jesus says how the King sent his servants out to the highways and byways and brought in others to celebrate this festive occasion.  

It’s interesting that history seems to be repeating itself. Every Sunday we are invited to celebrate a special Eucharistic banquet in honor of God’s Son, Jesus. It is a standing invitation to come and celebrate and to be one with each other and God.  We gather together to give thanks to God for sending His Son into our world and freeing us from sin and death….AND giving us Eternal life….But, as in times past, so many people today are just too busy, too tired, too involved with other interests, or simply not interested….too spent perhaps …to respond to this invitation.

I think it’s by invitation and example that those who come to Mass on a regular basis can help others to see how important it is to center our lives around this most holy banquet. We as Catholics believe that the Eucharist is the source and summit of our lives, spiritual and temporal, for it is within the context of these sacred mysteries that we are renewed and strengthen for all that life throws at us. And for many, life is coming at them hard. If our lives reflect the presence of Christ, others will notice that uniqueness and that may spark some interest for them. If others see that there is a connection between what we receive from the Eucharist and how we handle the misfortunes of life, make sacrifices for our families - running the kids around to soccer practice, religious ed. classes and piano lessons, doing the shopping and chores - contribute to our community, they may want to find the source of that strength and experience the interior joy and peace that comes from the Eucharist for themselves. As they say… “Imitation is the best form of flattery.”

The banquet is prepared, the table is set, we all have our reservations that says to bring a friend.  Do you have someone in mind you would like to invite to this banquet?          

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom          

Image credit:  220px-Nicolas_Poussin_-_The_Institution_of_the_Eucharist_-_WGA18310.jpg

Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time_A - God Be In My Head_100420

Deacon Tom Writes,

“God Be In My Head ” 

Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A 

The gospel for today sets the stage for Jesus’ death. The parable of the wicked tenants who kill the servants sent to collect the rent and then the vineyard owner’s son foreshadow the events that will soon claim Jesus’ life. The message Jesus is conveying is that God’s plans will not be stifled by those of man. His being rejected by the Jewish authorities allows a furthering of God’s Kingdom. For… “The stone rejected by the builders will become the cornerstone”. God’s plan of salvation is mysteriously broadened so that others may join in the task of bringing about that bountiful harvest the Kingdom of God will produce. 

Jesus showed us by word and example how to live fruitful lives. As His disciples it is necessary to engage in meaningful reflection about the quality of our spiritual lives. A question we might ask ourselves is, “How do we know if we are bearing fruit for the kingdom?” One way to fathom this out is to set some time aside  at the end of the day and review our day’s activities from a spiritual perspective. This is one of the many spiritual practices handed down to us from St. Ignatius in his Spiritual Exercises. It goes like this:  

1)  Give thanks to God for all that we have.

2)  Ask God for the grace to know our sins and to avoid them in the future.

3)  Reflect on the events of the day to see where we served God or where we have neglected Him.

4)  Ask God to pardon our faults.

5)  Ask God for the grace to be more like Him.

If we are to form a habit of this simple yet humbling practice, we are sure to grow spiritually and that growth will produce a harvest worthy of the Kingdom.

As we grow in the love of God, we are able to surrender our thoughts and desires to Him and allow Him to fill us with His thoughts and desires as was captured in this prayer from the middle-ages: 

God be in my head and in my understanding;

God be in my head and in my understanding;

God be in my eyes and in my looking;

God be in my mouth and in my speaking;

God be in my heart and in my thinking;

God be at my end and at my departing.

Amen

May God open our minds and hearts and bless the work of our hands so that we can advance His Kingdom in our time.

Enjoy the day!
dcn Tom

Image - https://commons.wikimedia.org / Montréal God resting after creation. jpg

Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time_A - And Miles to Go Before We Sleep_092720

Deacon Tom Writes,

“And Miles To Go Before We Sleep”

Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

In his Apostolic Exhortation, “Evangelii Gaudium, the Joy of the Gospel” Pope Francis wrote “The Church which “goes forth” is a community of missionary disciples who take the first step, who are involved and supportive, who bear fruit and rejoice. An evangelizing community knows that the Lord has taken the initiative, He has loved us first (1 Jn 4:19), and therefore we can move forward, boldly take the initiative, go out to others, seek those who have fallen away, stand at the crossroads and welcome the outcast!”  The Pope’s reflection here captures well the image Matthew uses in today’s gospel in which the Father sends both his sons into the field to do the critical work of harvesting the field.  In this gospel passage and Francis’ comment we have a vivid picture of our task as missionary disciples: we have been sent into the world to do not our work but that of the Father's. We are, in the words of Fr Rodger Schroeder, S.V.D.,  “to proclaim, witness and serve God’s reign of love, salvation and justice” everywhere we go, to everyone we meet.  

Giving a list of chores to our children is something all parents can relate to. And, undoubtedly so is our kid's response. One might say “Yes” but doesn’t follow through; another says “No” but does what is asked. Both have been given a chore; only one obeys! Today’s gospel message is God’s request of us, His children, to bring His message of love, compassion, forgiveness and mercy to others, to a friend or neighbor who has given up on church, perhaps, or has been going through a difficult time and feels no one cares. There are many who need to know God loves them. There are so many who feel that God has abandoned them or is punishing them and they have isolated themselves from a parish community and they carry their sorrows and disappointments alone. Pope Francis is reminding us that we have all been called to share God's love, mercy and healing with others. This is the Joy of the Gospel, the Good News, to be shared with the lonely, those who are afraid and those who have fallen away from their faith. We are all active players in the work of spreading the Joy of the Gospel. There are no passive players, no benchwarmers sitting on the sidelines waiting for others to do the work. Spreading the gospel, being missionaries, and evangelizing – being joyful transmitters of the faith that we believe - is a requirement imposed upon us by our Baptism. It is, when all is said and done, about being “human” and in a way that Jesus was human, sharing in the lives of others in a most caring and sensitive way.

Many Catholics resist this notion of being “missionaries”, of “evangelizing” or being “sent” to engage in “missionary activity.” That is primarily because so many of us have a limited understanding of the word “mission”.  We associate it with going to the far reaches of the earth to preach the faith. True, many have done this – vis-a-vie the Maryknoll Fathers, the missionary arm of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, over the past century. But, over the years, we  have come to a better understanding about the nature of mission work to include any work that we do to “gossip the gospel” that is, to tell others how the gospel is alive and working in our life. That is essentially what missionary work is.  Any effort we do to help a neighbor because of our willingness to be a “servant” as demonstrated by Christ, is missionary work. Any sacrifice we make for others because of our love of God is a sacrifice that makes us a “missionary”. The prayers we offer in light of the suffering and misery of others is “missionary” work. Any and all Sacramental graces we receive into our lives that we pass on to others by listening without criticizing, feeding without judging, forgiving without blaming is the work the Father is asking of us today as He sends us out into the Fields of the Lord today.

What we know about mission from the profound writings of recent popes is that the Church doesn’t have a mission; rather, the mission has a Church… So, when Jesus tells his disciples, “Go, make disciples of all nations”, that’s what we are to do… How are we to do that?  As a community of missionary disciples sent out by our Church to whom that mission has been entrusted.

Enjoy the day and may God bless the work of your hands….

Deacon Tom

Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Tine_A - Food For Thought_092020

Deacon Tom Writes,

“Food For Thought”

Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Most of us tend to dismiss the parable we hear in today’s gospel. We don’t like its message; it rubs us the wrong way; it’s contrary to the way we were brought up and our sense of “fairness”. We rationalize that the person who puts in an 8-hour day should earn more than the person who shows up on the job an hour before quitting time. I confess that I would feel cheated if that happened to me. How about you?  Can you blame those who worked all day if they began to protest and grumble or for harboring a grudge against the landowner?

“God’s ways” are not “our ways” we have heard. And perhaps we know that in our heads. We know that God has a different way of seeing the reality of things. In today’s reading we get to ponder one particular element of justice from God’s viewpoint. What do I mean? We are a work-oriented society in America today. I say that grossly aware of the many unemployed and chronic under-employment that we are experiencing which has been exasperated in our Covid-19 plagued nation. Work is essential to our economic survival and our personal identity. No work equals not only no money but also no identity and, therefore, no dignity in the minds of many. And once chronic unemployment sets in, one begins to suffer the degradation of the human spirit, which is a fully unjust condition.

Today we read about a landowner who continues to send workers into the field throughout the day. They work, and if you have ever worked on a in the fields, you know they worked hard!  At the end of the day they must provide for their family. An hour’s wage isn’t going to provide adequately for the family. The landowner knows this… and so how does the landowner act?  With justice and compassion; He pays the going daily wage to each and every worker regardless of the number of hours they spent under the sun.

Unjust? What if tomorrow you weren’t hired until 3 o’clock in the afternoon? What if you were the recipient of this landowner generosity…. his sense of justice? Would your attitude change if you were able to provide for your family in good times and lean times? 

Jesus teaches us in many ways that we have to rethink our attitudes in how we treat one another. What a message for us today as we hear the verbal venom being spewed about this group or that group of people. It is essential that people of faith recognize and act accordingly to the truth that God’s way is the only and best way to build and sustain a just society, one where everyone shares fairly in the work and rewards of labor. We see that intention and opportunity are as important as pure productivity in the kingdom of which Jesus laid the foundation.

We see God in today’s scripture as one whose generosity is beyond our comprehension. We know from our knowledge of scripture that God is good to everyone, that “he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.” (MT 5:45) This is an amazing thought! For Jesus constantly challenges us to imitate Him and see things the way that God sees them and to act accordingly… with justice, mercy, and compassion.

Please keep all the victims of the pandemic, their loved ones and the dedicated medical personnel whose service to those in need is inspirational in your prayers.

Enjoy the day and stay safe!

Deacon Tom

Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time_A - Forgiveness_091320

Deacon Tom Writes,

"Forgiveness"

Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

There is no shortage of reports of the civil unrest, street violence, interpersonal conflicts and domestic abuse that individuals and communities experience on a daily basis. So many of our brothers and sisters endure unimaginable suffering which, too often, is intentionally inflicted on them for hateful reasons. We are no strangers to this behavior; it has gone on for years. Violence, conflict, suffering is the stuff that fuels Hollywood’s piggy bank. In reality there is no need for Hollywood to produce these images, real people in the real world are living them and often the misery of others is right outside our door, on our street, on neighbor’s house or, perhaps, even our own. We seem to be living during a time of endless conflict, division, discord, hostility. How are people able to forgive those who have brought such pain and suffering into their lives? How can anyone put their life back together after such traumatic suffering without resorting to the ancient custom of revenge and retaliation toward those who have caused their suffering?  

The people of South Africa and Ireland seemed to have met with some success in providing alternatives for ending systemic violence.  In the case of South Africa ending apartheid, the legalized segregation of the population into black and white, was crucial in stopping the brutality.  In the case of Ireland, years of economic domination gave way in the late 1980’s to a period of economic growth and stability that has been a significant factor helping build a bridge to a new era of peace and cooperation between former adversaries. 

In these two examples, where ancient rivalries have yielded to a day of peace, there is another dynamic at work that draws its inspiration from the Triumph of the Cross. The spirit of forgiveness and reconciliation that emanates from Christ’s salvific action has taken root. If you look at Christ as the victim who represents all the victims who have ever suffered throughout time, before him and after him, then we can see in his death that there is no need for further victims.  The message of the cross is this:  NO MORE VICTIMS. 

This message has been slow to take root for certain, but as fragile as that root may be, it is showing signs of life.  For we could not experience the reconciliations that have happened in Ireland or in South Africa and in other places where former adversaries now live side by side, unless we understand that our spiritual destiny is tied up with that of our torturers, “unless each of your forgives your brother from your heart”. We are called to love others as God loves us.  This is the only way we will have a future.  If we are not able to get beyond the violence, the violence will consume us.  For Christians, violence stops at the cross. 

This is the real Triumph of the Cross: that we are learning how to forgive others as Jesus did. May God give us the courage, strength and wisdom to forgive those who have hurt and those, in turn, we have hurt.

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom  

Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time - Love in Action_090620

Deacon Tom Writes,

Love in Action

Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

There is a very wise saying that cautions, “Before you tell someone what you’re going to do, tell her or him what you have done.” In other words, it is experience that counts more than talk!

It’s no different on the spiritual plain. The essence of spiritual life is action. There must be growth in the form of a deeper understanding of self and God, of movement in the form of a change of heart that gradually becomes less self-absorbed and more concerned about the well-being of others; of activity in the form of service to the “least of my brothers and sisters” (Mt 25:45). St. Paul writes to the Romans that keeping the law means obedience to the commandments to do no harm by not murdering, not committing adultery, not stealing, etc. But these and “whatever other commandments there may be”  (Rom 13:9) are all housed together within the framework of the great commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Mk 12:31) which is a clear and concise summary of God’s commands.

If love is the ultimate sign of the depth of our faith and the fulfillment of the law, if love shows our willingness to put others before self, then one of the mantras of our contemporary society is appropriate for us…. more is better! We need more in the way of   spiritual matters, i.e. spiritual truths, spiritual insight, spiritual growth and depth. The difference, between God’s way and the ways of the world, of course, is that there are no negative side effects to loving without limit. Actually, it is our spiritual goal: to grow in love each and every day.

Love in action is what Christ demands of his disciples. We are expected not only to be the messengers of his words, but also doers of his works. This is what it means, to deny oneself and take up the cross daily and follow him (Lk 9:23). This is the difficult work of discipleship. Christian love demands that we love when love is needed, not just when we feel in the mood. These times call for an outpouring of self-sacrificing love, the love Jesus poured out on us. There are so many people in need due to Covid-19. We don’t have to look very far to see where we can reach out in love and compassion as faith in action dictates. The need is overwhelming, not just for financial assistance but for a spiritual response also, through our prayers and sacrifices. We are “One body in Christ” (Rom 12:5) St Paul reminds us. In the Spirit of that unity, may we reach out to our brothers and sisters in needs so that we too may, “Rejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer”. (Rom 12:12)

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom