Category: Uncategorized

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Gospel: Mark 9: 41-50

Jesus said to his disciples:
“”Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink
because you belong to Christ,
amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward.

“”Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin,   
it would be better for him if a great millstone
were put around his neck
and he were thrown into the sea.
If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off.
It is better for you to enter into life maimed   
than with two hands to go into Gehenna,
into the unquenchable fire.
And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off.
It is better for you to enter into life crippled   
than with two feet to be thrown into Gehenna.
And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out.
Better for you to enter into the Kingdom of God with one eye
than with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna,
where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched. 

“”Everyone will be salted with fire.
Salt is good, but if salt becomes insipid,
with what will you restore its flavor?
Keep salt in yourselves and you will have peace with one another.””

The Gospel of the Lord.

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On the topic of heaven and hell, C.S. Lewis once wrote: “There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, in the end, ‘Thy will be done.’ All that are in hell, choose it.”

The Church has never stated with any certainty that anyone is, in fact, in hell – or ever will be. But it must remain an option if we are free; freedom implies a choice of at least two options.

In this case, life with or life without God. Our choice.

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In today’s Gospel, Jesus gives stern instructions on how to orient ourselves towards God. “If your hand causes you to sin,” he says, “cut it off.”

Clearly, the Lord is being metaphorical. God would never condone self-harm. What Jesus is saying is that we must uproot all temptations from our lives, even those that are as deeply rooted as the limbs of our body.

In my own spiritual journey, I’ve found the easiest way to rid myself of sin – if there is any easy way – is not to focus on conquering a particular sin (while letting other sins go unchecked).

Rather, to spend time with Jesus.

In the church, in my chapel at home, reading his Word, sharing my heart with Him, praising him in song, praying in community, celebrating the Sacraments, and encountering Him in my neighbor.

Just as two friends or spouses slowly become “one flesh,” the more time we spend with Christ, the more we become like Him. Since no sin is appealing to the Lord, sin slowly fades away in us.

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“There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, in the end, ‘Thy will be done.’”

May Jesus grant us all the grace we need to follow the path of surrender, so that we may love Him the way he has loved us.

Then, we shall become not two, but “one flesh,” which no one and no thing can separate.

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Image credits: (1) iStock (2) The Final Judgment, Sistine Chapel, Vatican City (3) Pinterest

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Gospel: Mark 9:38-40

John said to Jesus,
“Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name,
and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow us.”
Jesus replied, “Do not prevent him.
There is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name
who can at the same time speak ill of me.
For whoever is not against us is for us.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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One of the tortures of jealousy is the fact that it can never turn its eye away from the thing that pains it.

Such is the case in today’s Gospel.

John is jealous. An anonymous exorcist has crept into his territory. Christ gave him and the other Apostles the authority to cast out demons. But now it seems that power is spreading beyond the Apostles. 

“Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name, and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow us.”

Notice, John says, “he does not follow us,” as opposed to, “he does not follow you.”

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We don’t know who this person is, perhaps a listener among the crowds who once heard Jesus preach. Perhaps someone who was previously healed by the Lord. Someone who touched the tassel of his cloak.

However it happened, faith made its way into this person’s heart and now they have a good deed to prove it.

The Apostles should rejoice! Yet they’re jealous.

“Do not prevent him,” Jesus says.

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How often do you think the Lord would repeat this command if he walked into a church, an office, or a circle of friends?

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Like the Apostles, we can all succumb to jealousy, to being territorial, to claiming that a particular role is “mine,” or “ours” without being open to new people.

But Christ is inclusive. “Do not prevent them,” he says.

All are welcome in his circle.

All should be welcome in ours, too.

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Image credits: (1) Emotional Intelligence Magazine (2) Backstage (3) Deposit Photos

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Sirach: 2: 1-11

My son, when you come to serve the LORD,
stand in justice and fear,
prepare yourself for trials.
Be sincere of heart and steadfast,
incline your ear and receive the word of understanding,
undisturbed in time of adversity.
Wait on God, with patience, cling to him, forsake him not;
thus will you be wise in all your ways.
Accept whatever befalls you,
when sorrowful, be steadfast,
and in crushing misfortune be patient;
For in fire gold and silver are tested,
and worthy people in the crucible of humiliation.
Trust God and God will help you;
trust in him, and he will direct your way;
keep his fear and grow old therein.

You who fear the LORD, wait for his mercy,
turn not away lest you fall.
You who fear the LORD, trust him,
and your reward will not be lost.
You who fear the LORD, hope for good things,
for lasting joy and mercy.
You who fear the LORD, love him,
and your hearts will be enlightened.
Study the generations long past and understand;
has anyone hoped in the LORD and been disappointed?
Has anyone persevered in his commandments and been forsaken?  
has anyone called upon him and been rebuffed?
Compassionate and merciful is the LORD;
he forgives sins, he saves in time of trouble
and he is a protector to all who seek him in truth.

The Word of the Lord.

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Folded inside the back page of my holy hour journal, is the text of our first reading from the Book of Sirach. 

Sirach was written about two hundred years before the birth of Jesus, and is a compilation of Jewish wisdom for all who, in Sirach’s words, desire to, “serve the LORD.”

Ideally, one would spend long hours meditating on his words of wisdom, but I’ll repeat a few lines in the hope that a word or line might speak to you.

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When we seek to serve the Lord, Sirach says:

Prepare yourself for trials.

Be sincere… and receive the word of understanding.

Remain undisturbed in time of adversity.

Wait on God, with patience, cling to him, forsake him not.

Accept whatever befalls you.

In crushing misfortune be patient.’

Above all: 

Trust God and God will help you; trust in him, and he will direct your way.

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In the silence of your own prayer, return to these words. Perhaps you, too, will fold them inside your journal and learn them until you begin to live them.

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Image credits: (1) Medium (2) Hillspring Church (3) Covenant House New Orleans