Author: admin

***

Gospel: Luke 14: 1-6

On a sabbath Jesus went to dine
at the home of one of the leading Pharisees,
and the people there were observing him carefully.
In front of him there was a man suffering from dropsy.
Jesus spoke to the scholars of the law and Pharisees in reply, asking,
“Is it lawful to cure on the sabbath or not?”
But they kept silent; so he took the man and,
after he had healed him, dismissed him.
Then he said to them 
“Who among you, if your son or ox falls into a cistern,
would not immediately pull him out on the sabbath day?” 
But they were unable to answer his question.

The Gospel of the Lord.

***

***

Throughout his ministry, Jesus is set up by the scribes and Pharisees. Often, they try entrapping him with questions like: “Is it lawful to pay the census tax?” Or, “A woman had seven husbands. At the resurrection, whose will she be?”

They hope the Lord’s answer will either make him an enemy of the state, or in the least look foolish. 

Today’s Gospel is similar. But instead of asking the Lord a question, a prominent Pharisee invites Jesus to his home for dinner. He then assigns the Lord a seat next to a man with dropsy. 

Dropsy caused a person’s chest and stomach to fill with fluids, which was not only painful; it also could lead to death.

The Pharisee knows Jesus will be moved with compassion by the sight of this man. The trap is this: will the Lord break the Law and heal him on the Sabbath?

Luke tells us this Pharisee “observed” Jesus carefully – literally meaning, he “stared” at the Lord with a sinister eye. If Jesus breaks the Sabbath, then he’d be considered a Jew gone rogue.

***

What is the Lord to do?

***

Of course, Jesus heals him. As he says elsewhere, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.”

This becomes one of seven different times the Lord breaks the Sabbath to heal a person in need.

***

So, what might this Gospel passage mean for us?

As Catholics, we’re invited to follow a variety of laws, moral codes, and traditions. For example, we avoid eating meat on Fridays in Lent. 

But the primary rule that should order our lives is charity. Anything we do for the good of another person – whether or not it’s on the “Sabbath” – is pleasing in the eyes of God.

Think of one way you might be a blessing for someone else today. 

And act on it.

***

***

Image credits: (1) Pix4Free (2) X.com (Twitter) (3) What Christians Want to Know

***

Gospel: John 6: 37-40

Jesus said to the crowds:
“Everything that the Father gives me will come to me,
and I will not reject anyone who comes to me,
because I came down from heaven not to do my own will
but the will of the one who sent me.
And this is the will of the one who sent me,
that I should not lose anything of what he gave me,
but that I should raise it on the last day.
For this is the will of my Father,
that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him
may have eternal life,
and I shall raise him on the last day.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

***

***

We gather together this evening with a common purpose – to remember and to pray for those whom we’ve loved and given back to God.

Our loss is heaven’s gain.

As Jesus says in tonight’s Gospel: “I will not reject anyone who comes to me… For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life.”

Still, tonight is bittersweet. Bitter because part of us is no longer here; sweet, because the people we’ve loved, and pieces of our own heart, are now in heaven with the Lord – just as Jesus promised.

***

For some of us, it’s been a year or more…for others, a handful of days.

But we know the loss of a loved one doesn’t hit us all at once; it comes in stages.

There’s the first Thanksgiving. The first snowfall. The first Christmas. The first phone call when they don’t pick up.

Weeks or months go by, and a letter arrives in the mail with their name on it. Suddenly you pick up their scent in the house – an old t-shirt you find in the closet; their pillow you still snuggle with at night. 

Maybe you hear them walk down the hallway; see an old picture; or remember their grin; their laugh; the warmth of their hugs.

At first these memories bring tears to our eyes – we fall back into days gone by, wishing they were still here. But over time, that sadness can turn into something sweet – a smile, a joyful tear, a prayer of gratitude that we knew, and, yes, were loved by them.

***

The road to healing is long and sometimes rocky. 

It requires seeing ourselves differently; imaging a future we never planned; still loving someone who loved us deeply, even though we cannot see or touch them anymore.

It’s a personal road – an intimate road – that no one can walk for us. Yet it’s also a journey that does not have to be walked alone.

“Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy burdened,” Jesus says, “and I will give you rest. For I am meek and humble of heart. My yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

We approach Jesus at this altar – the same altar many of us gathered around to offer our loved ones back to the Lord. We approach him in prayer. We approach him in the silence, when words are not enough.

***

We also encounter the Lord in one another.

If you look around the church this evening, you’ll see a community of “all generations” who know what the ache of grief is like – utterly unique, yet common to us all.

Some of you have also discovered our Bereavement Ministry, a place where anyone can go to share their heart, to learn how to cope, and even to find friend who’s “been there.”

After Mass, as you enter the narthex, you will notice some home baked goodies that were prepared by members of our faith community just for you. They’re reminders that you’re thought of; that so many are here to support you.

***

My hope is that each person here will experience the peace the Lord offers. 

This was, after all, the first word that Jesus said to his disciples after being raised from the dead: “Peace.” In Hebrew, “shalom.”

“Shalom” means wholeness; harmony; prosperity. It implies that something – even someone – has been broken and then pieced back together. We know what the brokenness is like. Now we ask for the healing.

This is the Lord’s will after all – to piece us back together; to transform our grief into hope; doubt into faith; loss into gratitude.

***

Whether it’s the first, or yet another, Thanksgiving, snowfall, and Christmas that comes, when you’re reminded of who is no longer there, remember who always is:

Jesus.

The one whose yoke is easy and whose burden is light. He will comfort us all, filling our hearts with that peace, which he alone can give.

And for our loved ones – grateful that God has saved them – we pray: 

“Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May their soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.”

***

***

Image credits: (1) Conrad Sangma, Twitter (2) Celebrating Winter Magick with Ice Candles, Pinterest (3) Pin on November, All Souls, Pinterest

***

Gospel: Matthew 5: 1-12

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain,
and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. 
He began to teach them, saying:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you
and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.
Rejoice and be glad,
for your reward will be great in heaven.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

***

***

The Saints are the merciful, the clean of heart, and the peacemakers, whom Jesus blesses in today’s Gospel.

Some examples include: 

Peter, the first Pope, who led the Church on earth for thirty years, then offered his own life for Jesus on a cross.

Paul, the greatest missionary of his time, who walked an estimated 10,000 miles on foot spreading the Gospel.

Francis of Assisi, an instrument of God’s peace, who rebuilt the spirit of the Church.

And Teresa of Calcutta, a modern-day Saint, who showed the world how to love the poor.

These men and women changed the world. And, rightly, they’re revered as Saints.

***

But most of the Saints were ordinary men and women like us.

Saint Conrad was a doorman. For 40 years, he stood and welcomed pilgrims to a Marian shrine in Germany.

Saint Zita was a cook.

Other Saints were barbers, farmers, maids, soldiers, and soccer players. 

There’s nothing extraordinary about what they did: we can all welcome people coming to church, cook a meal in our soup kitchen, till the land in our backyard, or kick a soccer ball.

What’s the difference? What made them Saints? 

***

They did ordinary tasks with extraordinary love, living out that great prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi. We’ve heard it many times, but maybe a particular line will strike you today:

“Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy.”

Bring the love of God wherever you go today, and you, too, can be a saint.

***

***

Image credits: (1) Catechist’s Journey, Loyola Press (2) Living Stones (3) QuoteFancy