Reflection for the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2014

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We have put on
Christ

But though you are master of might, you judge with clemency, and with much lenience you govern us; for power, whenever you will, attends you. And you taught your people, by these deeds, that those who are just must be kind; and you gave your children good ground for hope that you would permit repentance for their sins.

In the moment of baptism we put on Christ. The white garment we received represents the purity and beauty of our souls at that moment and also represents our future, where as Revelation tells us: a great multitude which no man could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes.

We should reflect on this awesome picture and see ourselves standing there, clothed in white, before God’s throne, ready to praise, worship, adore, and live with Him forever.

We began our readings today with the Book of Wisdom, and Wisdom knows that all fall and cannot possibly live up to the perfection of God. God is mighty, yet His might is filled with mercy and lenience. He sets that example for us to live up to, for we must be kind. The caveat is that kindness must flow from being just.

To be just means that we live guided by truth, reason, justice, and fairness. Our actions are principled; equitable; and proper. Everything we feel, say, do; all that is seen and unseen is based on right and in keeping with the truth of God. It means that if we have put on Christ, taken up that white robe, our lives must be modeled on and lived out in His way.

The problems we face in our lives, homes, neighborhoods, cities – in fact worldwide – come from confusing God’s mercy and leniency with license to do whatever we feel, to believe whatever we want, to just let it all be. We forget our white robes (I think I left them in that closet I never open), and that we have put on Christ. We think being just is to just go along, to ignore the questions that should be plaguing us. We believe the false prophets who tell us that everything is ok, do what feels good, our feelings are all that matter. We start thinking all faiths are somehow equal and ‘what does it really matter…’ Jesus gets reduced to maybe a once weekly outing.

The allures are strong, we can be weak – but there is hope in God’s forgiveness. With prayer, regular worship, and bible study we build up the strength to be just – to dig out those white robes, to remember that we must measure every moment of our lives against Jesus. Jesus is the only truth, and each decision, word, and action are to be considered, spoken, and done as if Jesus were doing them – for we are wearing Him.

Reflection for the 4th Sunday of Advent

WhatifLove

“When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home.”

Today we hear of Joseph as he confronts fear, doubt, and a decision about right and wrong.

The Gospel tells us that Joseph was a righteous man. Now, being ‘righteous’ or ‘just’ as an observant Jew meant that Joseph followed, lived, and abided by the law.

The law laid out the penalty for pre-marital sex and adultery. It was death for both the woman and man involved. Leviticus 20:10 states: “If a man commits adultery with the wife of his neighbor, both the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.” Deuteronomy 22:22 states: “If a man is found lying with the wife of another man, both of them shall die, the man who lay with the woman, and the woman. So you shall purge the evil from Israel.”

Since Joseph and Mary were engaged, Mary was legally Joseph’s wife. Mary was obviously pregnant – so in everyone’s mind she was an adulteress. By law Joseph could denounce Mary and she would be stoned to death. Joseph would cast first stone.

Joseph is shamed by Mary’s pregnancy. Joseph went home to think this all over. We can imagine his thoughts, the stress, the anger, the shame, and the hurt. What should he do? The law says put her to death, get revenge, and purify the community. What would happen if he didn’t follow the law?

Before his adopted Son would ever proclaim the value of forgiveness, before Jesus would say, “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone,” or “Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment” Joseph acted with true righteousness. Amidst the hurt, pain, and conflict Joseph decided against death. He would arrange a no-fault divorce, without admitting or denying paternity of child. This would save Mary’s life.

God would intervene through His angel to give Joseph all of the facts – that there is no human father for Jesus. More importantly, Joseph provides us with an example of true righteousness. This is the kind of righteousness we are called to live.

Death is the penalty for sin. Thankfully, through Jesus’ coming, we have been freed from death. Being freed, Jesus asks us to free others from death. This is not the literal death of the Old Testament imposed by stoning, but the sort of death we impose if we harden our hearts to those who have hurt us.

As Joseph chose true righteousness so must we. When we do, when we forgive as we are forgiven, when we free as we have been freed, we overcome death by love.

Reflection for the 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time

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Doing whatever
it takes

Now a man there named Zacchaeus, who was a chief tax collector and also a wealthy man, was seeking to see who Jesus was; but he could not see him because of the crowd, for he was short in stature.

Zacchaeus was not a good person. As we learned last week, people despised tax collectors. Zacchaeus was not just a tax collector – but was the chief tax collector!

Zacchaeus may likely have suffered from what we might call a Napoleon complex (although he lived long before Napoleon). A Napoleon complex is an informal term describing a psychology that is said to exist in persons, usually men, of short stature. People with a Napoleon complex compensate for their short stature by being overly aggressive and domineering.

So here you have Zacchaeus, short, the chief of the thieves, living the high life – nice house, great food, all the luxuries who is also aggressive and domineering.

We consider what may have motivated Zacchaeus to see Jesus. He certainly heard of Jesus, and likely knew Jesus’ reputation – He was a healer, a prophet, and was known to have broken the rules by spending time with sinners. Jesus invited a tax collector to follow Him (Luke 5), His feet were bathed by the tears of a prostitute (Luke 7), He healed those possessed by evil (Luke 8, 9, 11), tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him (Luke 15:1).

The power of grace moved Zacchaeus to see Jesus. He was moved to do whatever it took to see Him. He was moved by the possibility of Jesus, the remote chance that Jesus might notice him and heal the smallness of his soul.

Zacchaeus’ hopes were met when Jesus stopped, looked up, and said “Zacchae’us, make haste and come down; for I must stay at your house today.”

Grace motivated Zacchaeus to seek the Lord, and the Lord replied to Zacchaeus’ response, not just by saying ‘you are forgiven,’ but by emphatically stating that He MUST stay with Him. Zacchaeus did whatever it took and Jesus answered. Zacchaeus was raised up out of sin and into new life – repenting and doing whatever it took to make his life right before God: And Zacchae’us stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have defrauded any one of anything, I restore it fourfold.”

We are given grace every day, called to do whatever it takes to be raised from smallness of life to greatness of life in Christ. Jesus notices when we respond, and He responds by staying with us, healing us, freeing us, and making us great in the kingdom of heaven.

Reflection for Quinquagesima Sunday

Swim away!
Maybe it would be better if…

“Child, your sins are forgiven.”

Fishing is a two-way relationship. It involves work, struggle, and tension. It also involves pain and trauma for the fish.

When a fisherman hooks a fish, which of them is really in charge? Most think the fisherman. He has the brains, the tools, and the power to overcome and land his catch.

Every fisherman knows that for every fish caught, many more get away. Some snap lines that trail behind them as they swim away. Others tear the hook out in the struggle, and swim away wounded.

Yet some fish figure out a simpler, braver path. Rather than pull, dash, or thrash, they swim toward shore, and approach the fisherman. When fish do so, you’re bound to see a frantic person reeling like crazy shouting “No, no, no—not towards me!” But if the fish persists, the line goes slack, and the hook comes out with a flick of its head.

In cases where fish swim toward their enemy, they often gain freedom from pain, and leave dragging nothing behind them.

Today, God asks us to consider His forgiveness and the way we forgive each other.

Like the fish and fisherman, we are in relationships with each other. At times those relationships can be marked by struggle, tension, and pain.

When we choose, as a result of hurt (those hooks that stab at us) to fight and flee, we end up either dragging the memories of those hurts behind us, or we end up deeply wounded.

God asks us to be the smart fish, to swim towards those who have hurt us. As we do, we free ourselves from the barbs that hurt us and we are free.

The pain doesn’t go away easily, and true reconciliation and the rebuilding of relationships is a much longer process, but it has to start with our going toward those who hurt us. There we offer our forgiveness.

When we hurt God through sin, we will always find Him swimming toward us, with complete forgiveness. As we enter Lent, let us resolve to do the same with each other.