Category: Uncategorized

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Gospel: Luke 5:33-39

The scribes and Pharisees said to Jesus,
“The disciples of John the Baptist fast often and offer prayers,
and the disciples of the Pharisees do the same;
but yours eat and drink.”
Jesus answered them, “Can you make the wedding guests fast
while the bridegroom is with them?
But the days will come, and when the bridegroom is taken away from them,
then they will fast in those days.”
And he also told them a parable.
“No one tears a piece from a new cloak to patch an old one.
Otherwise, he will tear the new
and the piece from it will not match the old cloak.
Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins.
Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins,
and it will be spilled, and the skins will be ruined.
Rather, new wine must be poured into fresh wineskins.
And no one who has been drinking old wine desires new,
for he says, ‘The old is good.'”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Fermentation is the process that turns grape juice into wine. During fermentation, gas is released, causing the wineskins to expand, which is why new, stretchy wineskins must be used. Old skins would rip and tear, as Jesus describes in today’s Gospel.

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So, what is this “new wine” that the Lord is speaking of? Who are the “wine skins?”

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Most directly, the Lord is speaking to his Apostles. He longs to pour the “new wine” of his love into their hearts. However, divine love releases grace, causing the human heart to expand, which at times, can be uncomfortable.

If the Apostles are going to become who Jesus desires them to be, then they must make room for him, welcoming the “stretchiness” of the Spirit into their hearts.

While this stretching started occurring during their earthly journey with Jesus, their transformation was fulfilled at Pentecost. 

In that upper room, they were no longer the same fishermen who dropped their nets on the shores of Galilee three years prior, nor were they the same men who fled fearfully from Calvary.

They were bold; determined; convinced; ready to do the Lord’s will.

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The Church still needs this type of renewal – or stretching – today as it’s called to make room for all, both the sinner and the saint.

We, too, need to be occasionally stretched. How often do our own attitudes, habits, or theology become old; rigid; in need of a renewal?

God will not force any change upon us, certainly anything we are capable of doing ourselves; the Spirit of Love conquers gently. Never by force. As Saint Thomas Aquinas once said, “grace builds upon nature.”

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In what ways might the wine of Christ’s love stretch my heart?

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In the words of Saint Paul, “May the God who has begun this good work within you bring it to fulfillment.” 

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Image credits: (1) Bible Study Tools (2) London Wine Competition (3) Living Word Ministries

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Luke 5: 1-11

While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listening to the word of God,
he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret.
He saw two boats there alongside the lake;
the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets.
Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon,
he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore.
Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.
After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,
“Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.”
Simon said in reply,
“Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing,
but at your command I will lower the nets.”
When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish
and their nets were tearing.
They signaled to their partners in the other boat
to come to help them.
They came and filled both boats
so that the boats were in danger of sinking.
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,
“Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”
For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him
and all those with him,
and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee,
who were partners of Simon.
Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid;
from now on you will be catching men.”
When they brought their boats to the shore,
they left everything and followed him.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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“Depart from me, LORD, for I am a sinful man.”

There’s always been a tender spot in my heart that is pricked when I read Peter’s words, because I identify with them. I know my weaknesses; I know my fears; I know the temptations that tug at my flesh, which can change over time. 

Although I long to be perfect as my heavenly Father is perfect, my heart remains a work in progress. 

So, I empathize with Peter’s humble protest, “Depart from me, LORD.”

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And yet, where is Jesus going to go?

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He and Peter are floating in the middle of the Sea of Galilee with a net full of fish. If Jesus took Peter’s words literally, then he’d have to either sink into the sea … or walk on it. 

I doubt Peter had either in mind.

Rather, in this heightened state of humility, Peter is ready to listen. His resistance is softened. His guard is down. Why did Jesus really get into his boat? Why has Peter been chosen? What, exactly, is it that Jesus wants him to do?

“I will make you a fisher of men,” he says.

Peter cannot fully grasp what this means. But he’s willing to accept the call. Jesus’ description of his future as being a “fisher of men” implies that he will not sever Peter from the work he loves; nor will his skills be underutilized.

Rather, Jesus will transform Peter into a greater version of himself. All of the experience he’s accumulated on the waters of Galilee will aid him in his future.

So, Peter drops his guard, his nets, and his own plans, allowing the adventure with Jesus to begin.

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Sometimes we need to be reminded that, like Peter, God has a plan for each of us.

But it can only be revealed while we are in a state of humility – our hearts opened, our ears bent, our spirit ready to respond.

May we live this day saying not, “depart from me, LORD, “ but in the spirit of the prophet Samuel, who said, “Speak, LORD, your servant is listening.”

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Image credits: (1) emeryhorvath.com (2) Saint John’s Seminary (3) Adobe Stock

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Gospel: Luke 4: 38-44

After Jesus left the synagogue, he entered the house of Simon.
Simon’s mother-in-law was afflicted with a severe fever,
and they interceded with him about her.
He stood over her, rebuked the fever, and it left her.
She got up immediately and waited on them.

At sunset, all who had people sick with various diseases brought them to him.
He laid his hands on each of them and cured them.
And demons also came out from many, shouting, “You are the Son of God.”
But he rebuked them and did not allow them to speak
because they knew that he was the Christ.

At daybreak, Jesus left and went to a deserted place.
The crowds went looking for him, and when they came to him,
they tried to prevent him from leaving them.
But he said to them, “To the other towns also
I must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God,
because for this purpose I have been sent.”
And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Today we discover a full day in the life of Jesus.

The Lord began his day in the synagogue, where he cast out an unclean spirit from a man, revealing Christ’s power of evil.

“After lunch,” Jesus enters Simon Peter’s home, where he heals Simon’s mother-in-law who is deathly ill. 

Then he continues his ministry well into the evening. As we hear in today’s Gospel, “At sunset, all who had people sick with various diseases brought them to Jesus. He laid his hands on each of them and cured them.”

I’d imagine by night the Lord was exhausted.

But early the next morning – before dawn – he is up and out, finding a quiet place to commune with his Father in prayer.

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Prayer is what sustained Jesus throughout his life and ministry. It’s also what should sustain us. 

Think of prayer as another word for relationship. Everything that you do to enrich your relationship with God – from studying his Word, to serving him in your neighbor is prayer.

But the most important form of prayer is that one-on-one, heart-to-heart time with God, which the Lord shows us today is best found, “very early before dawn,” before other obligations or demands of the day take over.

I’ve been fortunate to pray for at least an hour a day before dawn for the last fifteen years. It’s transformed my life.

Over time, God can do wonderous things in your heart, as well, even with a few minutes each morning.

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But be consistent. Be sincere. Be open.

Slowly, you’ll become more and more like him, “who has loved us and given himself for us.”

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Image credits: (1) One Full Day, X (2) Healing of the Man Born Blind, El Greco (3) Catholic Coffee