Year: 2024

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Gospel: Luke 6:20-26

Raising his eyes toward his disciples Jesus said:

“Blessed are you who are poor,
for the Kingdom of God is yours.
Blessed are you who are now hungry,
for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who are now weeping,
for you will laugh.
Blessed are you when people hate you,
and when they exclude and insult you,
and denounce your name as evil
on account of the Son of Man.

Rejoice and leap for joy on that day!
Behold, your reward will be great in heaven. 
For their ancestors treated the prophets 
in the same way.

But woe to you who are rich,
for you have received your consolation.
But woe to you who are filled now,
for you will be hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now,
for you will grieve and weep.
Woe to you when all speak well of you,
for their ancestors treated the false prophets in this way.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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One of the most popular social media platforms today is “X,” formerly known as Twitter.

Twitter is used by 450 million people around the world. It allows you to share whatever is on your mind, usually in a single sentence.

Here are two recent tweets that went viral:

Congratulations to the astronauts who left earth today. Good choice.

Humans are simply not built for email.

We could write a book about what each of these two tweets means. But this is the genius of a pithy Tweet – it distills our thoughts or experiences into a single sentence.

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In today’s Gospel, Jesus preaches his first sermon, often called, “The Sermon on the Mount,” boiling God’s vision for humanity down into a handful of simple Tweets.

Consider two of them, and what each might mean for us:

“Blessed are the pure of heart.”

To be “pure of heart” means to be, “single-minded; without division.” By extension, blessed are those who live moral lives; who pray to resist temptation; who strive to grow in virtue; who keep God at the very center of their lives.

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Secondly, “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” 

To be, “poor in spirit,” means, “to know your need for God.” 

I think of a young father who’s poor in spirit. Every morning, he wakes up 20 minutes before there’s a stir in the house in order to pray for his wife and three children. He knows his need for God.

Or a woman who was married for 50 years. Her husband passed away suddenly at 6 am on a Sunday morning. She came to the noon Mass that day to thank the Lord for their 50 years of marriage and to pray for her husband’s soul. She knew her need for God.

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Much more could be said about each of Jesus’ Tweets. But perhaps we can choose just one of these two to meditate upon today: “Blessed are the pure of heart.”

“Blessed are the poor in spirit.”

Which of these speaks to me and why?

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Image credits: (1) Forbes (2) Psephizo (3) Dreamstime.com

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Gospel: Luke 6: 12-19

Jesus departed to the mountain to pray,
and he spent the night in prayer to God.
When day came, he called his disciples to himself,
and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles:
Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew,
James, John, Philip, Bartholomew,
Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus,
Simon who was called a Zealot,
and Judas the son of James,
and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

And he came down with them and stood on a stretch of level ground.
A great crowd of his disciples and a large number of the people 
from all Judea and Jerusalem
and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon
came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases;
and even those who were tormented by unclean spirits were cured.
Everyone in the crowd sought to touch him
because power came forth from him and healed them all.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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One of the remarkable traits of Jesus was his ability to bring vastly different people together, uniting them under a single mission.

For example, in today’s Gospel he calls the Twelve Apostles. Some of these men would’ve never been friends without the Lord; quite the opposite.

Consider Simon and Matthew.

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Simon was a member of the Zealot party, a group of Jewish patriots who viewed the Roman Empire as an invading force that stole their freedom. They wanted independence and would do almost anything for it.

Then there’s Matthew, also a Jew, who served the Roman Empire as a tax-collector. Matthew would’ve been seen by Simon as being in cahoots with the enemy.

Somehow, Jesus brought these men together, uniting them under a single mission – the salvation of souls.

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That’s what the Holy Spirit still does today.

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The Spirit fosters harmony; inspires forgiveness; heals wounded hearts; and enables people with divergent – even conflicting – views to set aside their differences, to work together, and to build the Kingdom of God.

In what ways has the Holy Spirit made me a kinder, more inclusive, less judgmental person?

How do I work with others – including those who are different from me – to build up God’s kingdom at home, at work, in this parish, and in the broader community?

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May the same Lord, who inspired a diverse group of people to work together in the beginning, inspire us to continue doing good work together today.

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Image credits: (1) Living Bulwark (2) Commissioning of the Twelve Apostles, Domenico Ghirlandaio (3) Encourage Yourself in the Lord, WordPress

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Gospel: Luke 6: 6-11

On a certain sabbath Jesus went into the synagogue and taught,
and there was a man there whose right hand was withered.
The scribes and the Pharisees watched him closely
to see if he would cure on the sabbath
so that they might discover a reason to accuse him.
But he realized their intentions
and said to the man with the withered hand,
“Come up and stand before us.”
And he rose and stood there.
Then Jesus said to them,
“I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath
rather than to do evil,
to save life rather than to destroy it?”
Looking around at them all, he then said to him,
“Stretch out your hand.”
He did so and his hand was restored.
But they became enraged
and discussed together what they might do to Jesus.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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When we consider some of the bigger challenges facing our world, like poverty, hunger, unpredictable weather, and gun violence, it’s easy to throw our hands up and say these problems are almost too big to be solved.

But that’s not what Christians are called to do.

Even if we can only make a splash, a tiny difference in the life of another person, we should do it.

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Consider the life of Father Peter Claver, a Spanish priest from the 17^th century, whose feast day we celebrate today.

Distraught over the injustice of the slave trade, he moved from Spain to Cartagena, Colombia, and vowed to become, “a slave to slaves forever.”

For 33 years, Father Claver woke up every morning and went to the shipping docks, where men, women, and children were being unloaded after being separated from their communities, enduring harrowing journeys across the Atlantic, and sold into slavery.

While he couldn’t stop this horrific practice, Father Claver courageously welcomed them with food and water, while preaching the Gospel. He sought to, “save life, rather than destroy it,”as Jesus says today.

Father Claver was a flicker of light – the face of Christ – in what was an otherwise dark and scary time. By the end of his life, he baptized over 300,000 people, giving them something to hope for – a new life to come.

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While we may not resolve every challenge facing our world today, Father Claver reminds us that we can make a difference; there is always something we can do.

Bring a cup of water to the thirsty; a word of love to the lonely; a blanket to the homeless; or the Gospel to someone who’s never heard it.

As Mother Teresa once said, “We can do no great things… only small things with great love.”

What’s something small that you can do to bring comfort to your neighbor today?

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Father Peter Claver, pray for us.

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Image credits: (1) (2) Saint Peter Claver, SJ, Jesuits.org (3) The Catholic Company