January 31^st, 2016; Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time

Gospel Luke 4:21-30

Jesus began speaking in the synagogue, saying: “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.” And all spoke highly of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They also asked, “Isn’t this the son of Joseph?” He said to them, “Surely you will quote me this proverb, ‘Physician, cure yourself,’ and say, ‘Do here in your native place the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.’” And he said, “Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place. Indeed, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah when the sky was closed for three and a half years and a severe famine spread over the entire land. It was to none of these that Elijah was sent, but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon. Again, there were many lepers in Israel during the time of Elisha the prophet; yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.” When the people in the synagogue heard this, they were all filled with fury. They rose up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town had been built, to hurl him down headlong. But Jesus passed through the midst of them and went away.

Meditation Reflection:

Most of us have had the unfortunate experience of Christ in this passage. All too often so-called friends or groups of admirers show their fickle nature by turning on us at the first instance we upset them, let them down, don’t meet all of their expectations, or they simply become distracted by something else. The home-town crowd listening to Jesus turn from amazement at His gracious words to anger which impels them to hurl Him down a cliff it what seems like a moment.

The daily Gospel readings from this week shed some useful light on this situation that can help sooth our disillusionment. Jesus responded to both praise and rejection with the same calm demeanor. He knows human nature and refrains from getting worked up about the opinion of the masses. His mission is to do the will of the Father not to poll focus groups. Moreover, Jesus teaches that all any of us can do is the will of the Father, the results are in God’s hands not our own. This works both ways – when we seemingly do great works and when we seemingly fail. In Thursday’s Gospel reading from Mark 4:1-20 Jesus told the parable of the Sower and the Seed. As a teacher and mother this is one of my favorite passages. Jesus, and His servants, have the responsibility to sow the seeds of the Gospel wherever God sends. How those seeds grow depends on the soil, or the disposition, of the receiver. Jesus’ words quite often fell on hearts that were hardened toward Him or too distracted by greed or anxiety. Why should we be surprised if we experience the same thing? Sometimes Jesus’ words fell on generous hearts and the Holy Spirit was able to work wonders through His followers. Again, can we really take all the credit when our work bears rich fruit? Some of the credit belongs to the person of faith willing to “hear the word of God and obey it” (Lk 11:28). Thus, Jesus places higher honor on two foreigners over God’s own children the Israelites because they were willing to do something in response to God’s word. Finally, credit ultimately belongs to God. In Friday’s Gospel from Mark 4:26-32 Jesus reflects on how a farmer plants seeds and harvests the crops but the entire process of growth in between is due to the mystery of God’s work in nature.

This Gospel should give us peace that God is in control. He opens people’s ears to hear and eyes to see if He chooses. He decides what persecution He will allow toward His servants and what He won’t allow. In this Gospel Jesus calmly and effortlessly passed through the angry crowd, demonstrating God’s total control over the situation. During His Passion however, God allows His Son to be taken by the angry crowd in the Garden of Gethsemane and eventually crucified. Yet, by the power of God Jesus also rises from the dead. Disciples of Christ can take comfort in Jesus’ words He so often speaks: “Peace be with you” and “Be not afraid”. We can let go and let God because our only task is to do the will of the Father and let Him bring our work to fruition. We have the joy of being His instrument, but the music played through us belongs to Him.

Consider:

• Have you ever had an experience like Christ’s where a friend or an acquaintance turned on you? What did it teach you about relying on the opinion of others?
• How much do you worry about what other people think of you?
• Do you trust your children to God or do you put all the pressure for their good on yourself?
• In John 15:1-5 Jesus asserts that our fruitfulness depends upon our connection to Him.

• How often do you begin your work with prayer?
• Do you pray for the people in your life?
• Do you pray for God to guide little decisions and everyday tasks in addition to the larger ones?
• How has bringing things to prayer enrichened your experience or the outcome?

Make a Resolution (Practical Application):

• Whatever your work may be, take time in prayer to surrender it to Christ each day. Ask for Him to guide the process as well as the outcome.
• Choose a time in the middle of your day to connect with Christ. Decide on when, where, and how – even if it’s as simple as 5 minutes of silent prayer or reading Scripture at your desk during lunch.

~ Written by Angela Lambert © 2016

January 24^th, 2016; Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Gospel Luke 1:1-4; 4:14-21

Since many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as those who were eyewitnesses from the beginning and ministers of the word have handed them down to us, I too have decided, after investigating everything accurately anew, to write it down in an orderly sequence for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received.

Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news of him spread throughout the whole region. He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all. He came to Nazareth, where he had grown up, and went according to his custom into the synagogue on the sabbath day. He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord. Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him. He said to them, “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”

Meditation Reflection:

Fables and epic stories begin with something along the lines of “Once upon a time” or “A long long time ago, in a galaxy far away…” Biographies on the other hand begin with concrete dates, places, and people. The Christian faith differs from other religions because it is not the accumulation of man’s wisdom in his search for God, rather it rests on the testimony of men’s experience encountering God in His search for us. St. Luke begins his Gospel as a biography not a story. He underscores his intent to present the research he has compiled through his investigations in an orderly way. The historical reality of Jesus, His place of origin, death under Pontius Pilate, the respect He gained from multitudes of people, and the numerous witnesses of His miracles are written of not only by the Gospel writers but secular historians of the time as well such as the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus.

The apostles believed in Jesus because of what they saw as did many of the first followers of Christ. Their faith centered on the climatic event of the Resurrection and seeing Jesus for the 40 days leading up to His ascension into heaven. When choosing someone to replace Judas for instance, the apostles required that the candidates be men who had followed Jesus from His Baptism through His Ascension and that the person had been a witness of the Resurrected Christ. The early Christians did not preach a “spirituality” or self-help plan and Christ is not our universal imaginary friend. The early Christians died for their belief in the reality of Christ and His promise of resurrection. Their willingness to sacrifice everything this life has to offer proved their belief in the promises of Christ in Heaven. The apostles and martyrs had nothing worldly to gain from their belief and their supernatural deeds of heroism, courage, sacrifice, and love served as a potent witness of the authenticity of their testimony.

Jesus brings “glad tidings to the poor” because He freed captives, healed the blind and lame, comforted the sorrowful, and gave eternal life to those willing to accept His love. He then gave this same power to His followers through His Holy Spirit. Read Acts of the Apostles, also authored by Luke, to see the evident power of God at work through the apostles.

The mission of Christ to free and heal continues in His Church today. St. Paul writes in his first letter the Corinthians:

Every Christian is called to witness to Christ. The early Christians demonstrated their belief by how much they were willing to risk for their faith. The same applies for us as Christians today. Blessed Cardinal John Henry Newman (1801-1890) challenged in his sermon Venture of Faith that we consider how “Christian” we really are by reflecting on our commitment:

 Every Christian risks something because Christ transforms us which requires breaking things down as well as building things up.   That risk may be something material or it may be immaterial. It may mean putting family before career or taking a risk in your career to reach for greatness. It may mean taking the risk of emotional vulnerability, making connections with people, surrendering fear, or accepting the truth of your worth in God’s eyes. When united to Christ, He will do great things through you. Each person has gifts from the Spirit and they vary. Today’s Gospel reminds us of the mighty deeds of Christ, witnessed by many, and continued today. Let us pray for the courage to take a leap of faith and trust in the power and love of Christ.

Consider:

• Consider the great things Christ has done in and through you.
• Consider the great things Christ could do in and through you if you let Him. Reflect on what holds you back and prayerfully surrender it to Christ.
• Reflect on how Christ has set you free, opened your eyes, and brought you glad tidings.

Make a Resolution (Practical Application):

• Pray each day for God to work in you.
• Pray each day for God to work through When given the opportunity, take the risk to follow the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
• Read Acts of the Apostles.

~ Written by Angela Lambert © 2016

January 17^th, 2016; 2^nd Sunday in Ordinary time

Gospel of John 2:1-11 NAB

There was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding. When the wine ran short, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servers, “Do whatever he tells you.” Now there were six stone water jars there for Jewish ceremonial washings, each holding twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus told them, “Fill the jars with water.” So they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, “Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter.” So they took it. And when the headwaiter tasted the water that had become wine, without knowing where it came from — although the servers who had drawn the water knew —, the headwaiter called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves good wine first, and then when people have drunk freely, an inferior one; but you have kept the good wine until now.” Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs at Cana in Galilee and so revealed his glory, and his disciples began to believe in him.

Meditation Reflection:

In his weekly Wednesday audience (from January 13, 2016), Pope Francis continued his reflections on God’s mercy by examining the Scriptures. God revealed that He is mercy, so much so that it could accurately be stated as part of His very nature or essence. Pope Francis continued on to assert that the image which best represents this particular kind of mercy is that of a mother. With these poignant words, he said:

The visceral, or deep inward feelings, of a mother for her child cannot be matched. It moves her to sacrifice everything, even joyfully, for her little ones. She is their best advocate, always working for their good and looking to their future. She offers the most sympathetic comfort and the fiercest protection.

Fathers can also offer an image of God’s love and mercy. Pope Francis goes on to compare God’s revelation that He is gracious to Christ’s parable about the prodigal son (originally titled the merciful father).

At the wedding at Cana, Jesus had just begun His public ministry. He had spent thirty years living a humble and seemingly ordinary Jewish life. He begins His public ministry by being baptized by John and then spending 40 days in the desert praying and fasting. He returns from this preparation and begins calling the apostles. Next He attends a wedding with His mother and brings His apostles along. The humanity of Jesus – the reality of His human relationships, real family, the limits of time and space – become apparent in this account. As Jesus transitions from private to public life, His plans bend around a wedding. Before He begins preaching and healing and casting out demons, He goes to Cana and celebrates the wedding of a couple he must have known or likely been related to. As usually happens at weddings, there occurs a snag. Moreover, this snag could embarrass the couple in a very humiliating way.

Mary’s motherly love advocates for the couple. She looks ahead and sees they are nearly out of wine. Rather than worry the bride and bridegroom, she goes to her Son and pleads for His help. She doesn’t demand He tell her His plan but rather trusts that He will take care of the problem. I imagine this is both because she knows Jesus’ compassionate heart and because she’s His mother and mothers expect their sons to do what they ask.

Jesus vocalizes the inconvenience of the situation. He did not plan that His first miracle would be to fix a snag at a wedding. Yet, in God’s divine providence, it reveals precisely the kind of love God’s miracles were intended for.   God became man to enter our misery and the embarrassing limitations we experience. As Pope Francis teaches, “For God is great and powerful, and this greatness and power are used to love us, who are so small, so incompetent.”

Together Mary and Jesus image the love of God for humankind in today’s Gospel. Mary sees the need and advocates for the couple, Jesus bends in compassion. God operates in the real, everyday of individuals. He did not come to offer propaganda for the masses. He came to care for His beloved children with the self-gift of a deeply loving mother and father.

Prompted by Mary’s presentation of the problem, Jesus is moved and softened. We can have confidence and take comfort in the truth that He will have the same response toward our needs, no matter how seemingly insignificant they may seem to the world. The everyday difficulties and humiliations our lives matter to God and He desires to care for us in our need.

In light of this mystery, Pope Francis offered these encouraging words:

Consider:

• Consider the mystery of God’s immanence. The transcendent God, other from His creation, immune from suffering became man that He might share in our experience of pain so He could give us comfort.
• How long do you wait to ask God for help? Do you reserve only your biggest problems for Him when you have ran out of solutions? Consider bringing to Him every concern as it occurs and sharing the burden with Him.
• Consider how motherhood or fatherhood has made you more compassionate, merciful, and aware of the needs of others. How has it opened you to spiritual motherhood or fatherhood toward those who aren’t even your biological children?

Make a Resolution (Practical Application):

• Intentionally entrust to God your difficulties each day this week – even the simple embarrassments.
• Extend mercy and compassion toward your children or spiritual children this week. Bend toward someone’s need, save someone from humiliation, advocate for someone in need of help.
• Pray for a tender heart like that of Christ’s.
• Read Pope Francis’ Wednesday Audience address from this past week: Pope Francis 1/14/16 audience

~ Written by Angela Lambert © 2016

The Manifestation of Christ – God & Man – Savior For All Who Will Receive Him.

January 3^rd, 2016; The Epiphany of the Lord

Gospel of Matthew 2:1-12

When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage.” When King Herod heard this, he was greatly troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, He inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it has been written through the prophet: And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; since from you shall come a ruler, who is to shepherd my people Israel.” Then Herod called the magi secretly and ascertained from them the time of the star’s appearance. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search diligently for the child. When you have found him, bring me word, that I too may go and do him homage.” After their audience with the king they set out. And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place where the child was. They were overjoyed at seeing the star, and on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their country by another way.

Meditation Reflection:

You might be asking yourselves at this point, or at least your kids might like mine, “why do we keep having to go to all of these masses?!” Feast, after feast, after feast. For Christians, and Catholics in particular, Christmas season is not shopping season. It’s a time to reflect, ponder, and grow in our understanding and appreciation of the birth of our savior. A mystery of this grandeur naturally requires several days and weeks to digest and contemplate. Presently, our culture is celebrating the new-year which causes us to pause, reflect on our lives, and set new goals. In the liturgical calendar the new-year begins with Advent but has a similar process. We pause to reflect on our lives, but also to reflect on the great love of God who gave His only Son for our salvation. We contemplate this gift because it ought to change the way we approach our life and inform our goals for the next year.

During Advent we prepare for the coming of Christ. We repent of sins that keep us from Him and open our eyes and ears through prayer and spiritual reflection. On Christmas day we rejoice at the coming of our savior, God incarnate. We reflect on the mystery of God’s transcendence and immanence – that He is both completely other and above all, and at the same time intimately close and present. As Divine, Christ is all-powerful and as human, He comes in the weakest form possible as a vulnerable baby.

The Sunday after Christmas we celebrate the Holy Family. When God created man and woman in His image, He created them as a family. God’s work of restoring His image which had been distorted by sin begins with restoring the family. He enters humanity and spends His first thirty years simply being the son of Mary and Joseph. In this way, God bestows renewed greatness and dignity upon the call to family life.

On January 1^st, the feast of Mary the Mother of God, we reflect on the question “who/what is Jesus?” After a few centuries of Christian reflection and worship this question began to emerge along with different answers. Some said He was merely a human, and some said He was only God and merely appeared to be human. After much debate, deliberation, prayer, and investigation into Scripture, the Church declared that Jesus is a Divine Person (the Second Person of the Trinity) with two natures – a divine nature and a human nature. If Jesus wasn’t human He couldn’t have suffered, died, and atoned for our sins. If He wasn’t God, His sacrifice would not have infinite value and therefore would not pay the debt owed to God. In both scenarios, we would not be saved! The mystery of who Jesus is hinges on His relationship to Mary. Mary has the title “Mother of God” because at the incarnation, Jesus was conceived in Mary’s womb and received His human nature from her. At the same time, the person who took a human nature at conception was God the Son. Mary is the mother of a son, not a body; and that son, is God.

The next question we need to ask is who did Jesus come to save? On the Feast of the Epiphany we celebrate that the Christ came to save all people universally who seek Him. Epiphany means “the manifestation of the divine.” The angels had announced the manifestation of Christ’s coming to the shepherds and they responded by going to visit the Christ child. God announces to His people who have been looking and waiting for Him for almost two thousand years that He had come.   Moreover, the new star in the sky proclaimed to all creation that the Christ had come and the magi who were looking and searching responded by following the star to the Christ-child as well. They offered Him gifts that recognized who the baby Jesus is – Gold because He is king, Frankincense because He is God, and Myrrh which is a burial ointment that foreshadowed His death.

God reveals Himself to all who will look and listen. He might reveal Christ to you through His People, through an angel, or through Creation. All should lead you to “the child with Mary His mother.” It should lead us all to offer Christ our worship and every gift we can give. He calls us all into communion with Him and His People the Church. Christ came to save us from sin and to restore us to unity as a human family in God. The magi teach by example that seeking the Lord requires openness, effort, perseverance, investigation, and reverence. As we celebrate the coming of Christ this Christmas season it should set the course of our entire year. We must live in response to this gracious encounter with our Lord and Savior.

Consider:

• Reflect on how you first encountered Christ and any additional times you encountered Him in a deeper way.
  • How did this encounter enrichen your life?
  • How have you responded to this encounter?
• Reflect on the mystery of Jesus’ divinity and humanity.
  • Consider Christ’s transcendence as God – eternal, all-knowing, all-powerful, all-loving, perfect, Creator of all that exits….
  • Consider Christ’s immanence as man – His vulnerability as an infant and child, His union with our very nature, His lived experience of everything we too experience, His appreciation for the simple things in life such as family and work, friendships, meals together…
• Reflect on Mary’s motherhood.
  • Consider the faith and courage it required to believe God would work such a wonder in her.
  • Consider the hope and humility it required to trust God to enable her to mother such a son.
  • Consider her pure love for God and Jesus. Her heart must have been nearly bursting every day. A mother’s love is already hard to contain, add the contemplation of the mystery of God’s love to come as man on top and I don’t know how she managed to endure it except to “keep all these things, pondering them in her heart.” (Luke 2:19)
• The word catholic means “universal.” Take a moment to praise God for extending His saving Truth and Love to all persons world-wide. Consider how you might grow in union with God and with others.

Make a Resolution (Practical Application):

• Seek God actively in one way this week.
  • Some ideas: reading Scripture, silent prayer, service toward others, or attending a daily Mass.
• Investigate God’s revelation.
  • Learn about Scripture and our Faith. Attend a Bible Study, join Faith Formation at your parish, read a book about the Faith or the Catechism, talk to a priest or religion teacher and ask him or her some of your questions.
• Spend 5-10 minutes in silence reverencing the new-born king. Imagine yourself as one of the magi encountering Jesus held in His mother’s arms.
• Offer a gift to Christ this week. Make it thoughtful, something you know He would appreciate from you.

~ Written by Angela Lambert © 2015