Our God, the God of the Living

 

 Mark 12:18-27

Marriage at the Resurrection

¹⁸ Then the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question. ¹⁹ “Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. ²⁰ Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died without leaving any children. ²¹ The second one married the widow, but he also died, leaving no child. It was the same with the third. ²² In fact, none of the seven left any children. Last of all, the woman died too. ²³ At the resurrection whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?”

²⁴ Jesus replied, “Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God? ²⁵ When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. ²⁶ Now about the dead rising—have you not read in the Book of Moses, in the account of the burning bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? ²⁷ He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”

Such a question would not be asked today, but we are grateful that it was as well as for the answer. How blessed are we to have "the God of the Living" as our God! He calls us to witness to his living presence among us, an assignment so relevant in our age of disbelief, and back turning on God and traditional teachings. May we teach and bear witness to this and other truths Jesus taught, by our word and our lives.

Bro. Rene

Dear God, we live in an age of slow and silent rebellion which attempts to ignore you and make you irrelevant. May I do my part to counteract this by standing up for the TRUTH by my words and deeds. Amen.

 

Remembering Ouur Founder

 Note: We are deviating from our usual pattern of a Gospel passage and reflection to this reflection on St. Marcellin Champagnat, Founder of The Marist Brothers, whose feast day is today.

 

While June 6 is the feast commemorating the death of Marcellin Champagnat,
it is important to see this day as one commemorating the gift of Marcellin’s life,
vision, and mission which we enthusiastically embrace today in 2023, 183
years after his death.
As the inheritors of Marcellin’s legacy and the bearers of his vision and
mission, let us reflect on these passages from Water from the Rock:
Today, those of us who follow in the footsteps of Marcellin and his first
disciples are seized by the same inner dynamism. We develop a way of being,
loving and doing, in the spirit of our origins. Gradually, day by day, we deepen
our experience of the loving presence of God within ourselves and in others.
This presence of God is a profound experience of being personally loved by
God, and the conviction that he is close to us in our daily human experiences.
(Water from the Rock: Marist Spirituality Flowing in the Tradition of Marcellin
Champagnat, # 16)
We endeavor to develop our relationship with God so that, just as for Marcellin,
it is our daily source of renewed spiritual and apostolic dynamism. This vitality
makes us daring, despite our short-comings and limited resources. Drawing
from Marcellin’s experience, we embrace the mysteries of our life with
confidence, openness, and self-giving. (Water from the Rock: Marist Spirituality
Flowing in the Tradition of Marcellin Champagnat, # 18)
Mostly young men gathered around his bedside. In his Spiritual Testament, he offered
the answers to their questions of “What will happen now?” and “How will we go on?”
Marcellin died in the early morning hours of Saturday, June 6, 1840. Brother Jean-
Baptiste, author of the first biography of Marcellin wrote, “Several times during his
illness, he had expressed a desire to die on a Saturday, but he always added that he
did not deserve such a favor. Not only was that grace granted to him, but it was given
him to die during the very hour which, for more than thirty years, he had devoted to
meditation and union with God.” (Brother Jean-Baptiste, Vie, Vol 1, p. 270)
Today in Marist History:
The Death of Saint Marcellin Champagnat
June 6, 1840
When Marcellin gave his spiritual testament to the Brothers on May 18, 1840, it was
clear that he was dying. The anguish of the Brothers gathered at the Hermitage was
evident as they wondered to themselves and with each other, “What will happen now?”
“How will we go on?” For Marcellin was not just the founder of a religious order, he was
their spiritual father and older brother. The Marist Pillar of Presence, like all the other
Pillars, had its origin in the life and witness of Marcellin Champagnat.
reflection:
In presenting his Spiritual
Testament, Marcellin stated his
vision for what he hoped the Little
Brothers of Mary (the original name
of the Marist Brothers) would
become in the days, weeks,
months, and years ahead. Like the
good father and an older brother
that he was, Marcellin offered
comfort and encouragement to the
Saturday is a day that Marist
Brothers have always dedicated to
Mary, so right after Marcellin died
the Brothers gathered in the chapel
at the Hermitage to sing the Salve
Regina (Hail, Holy Queen) and offer
prayers to Mary for the repose of
Marcellin’s soul.
In his book, The Life of Joseph
Benedict Marcellin Champagnat,
Brother Jean-Baptiste gives many examples of the love that the Brothers had for
Marcellin. We also have testimonies from some of the people who came to know
Marcellin during his years in La Valla. Here are some of their recollections

 

 I still remember Father Champagnat, who prepared me for my First Communion in
1817. It was the first time he had the pleasure of preparing children for First
Communion. I will never forget the touching exhortation he gave me before giving
me absolution for the first time; I could hear his deep faith in his earnest words. It
was as though he poured his whole soul into them. He taught catechism in his
surplice, standing in the middle between us and the boys. Everyone's eyes were
riveted on him. He was strict with those who didn't know their lesson, but he was
also very just.
--Catherine Prat--
All I can tell you about Father Champagnat is that, having had frequent dealings
with him, I considered him a peerless man, very strict with himself and strict with
others also, but always for their own good. Gentle, affable, always on good terms
with everyone. He was the father of the town of La Valla. He did incomparable
good through the whole area. Everyone loved and venerated him.
--Jean-François Badard--
I went to Father Champagnat's catechism lessons, and though I was very young, I
loved to listen to him, and especially to see the church full of grownups who
followed his explanations so carefully. He spoke simply so that the most
uneducated could understand, but he said such beautiful and moving things that
he delighted everyone. People used to say, "Let's go to the catechism lesson;
Father Champagnat is giving it." And the church would be full.
--Françoise Baché--
As for his catechism lessons, we hurried to them, and despite the cold, the snow,
the terrible roads and the distance (it took us over an hour), we were always the
first to arrive. Then he would tease our friends from the town, telling them, "You're
lazy! Look at the children from Saut-du-Gier: they have to walk more than an hour,
and they're always the first ones here. You're two steps away, and you're always
the last." He made us feel very proud of ourselves.
--Louise and Marie-Anne Duvernay--
I have seen older Brothers go to pray at his tomb as at the tomb of a saint. I have
often seen tears on their faces, when they spoke to me about him. What touched
them most of all was the memory of his fatherly goodness.
--Father Pierre-Louis Mallaure--
While June 6 is the feast commemorating the death of Marcellin Champagnat,
it is important to see this day as one commemorating the gift of Marcellin’s life,
vision, and mission which we enthusiastically embrace today in 2022, 182
years after his death.
As the inheritors of Marcellin’s legacy and the bearers of his vision and
mission, let us reflect on these passages from Water from the Rock:
Today, those of us who follow in the footsteps of Marcellin and his first
disciples are seized by the same inner dynamism. We develop a way of being,
loving and doing, in the spirit of our origins. Gradually, day by day, we deepen
our experience of the loving presence of God within ourselves and in others.
This presence of God is a profound experience of being personally loved by
God, and the conviction that he is close to us in our daily human experiences.
(Water from the Rock: Marist Spirituality Flowing in the Tradition of Marcellin
Champagnat, # 16)
We endeavor to develop our relationship with God so that, just as for Marcellin,
it is our daily source of renewed spiritual and apostolic dynamism. This vitality
makes us daring, despite our short-comings and limited resources. Drawing
from Marcellin’s experience, we embrace the mysteries of our life with
confidence, openness, and self-giving. (Water from the Rock: Marist Spirituality
Flowing in the Tradition of Marcellin Champagnat, # 18)
St. Marcellin Champagnat: pray for us!
Mary, our Good Mother: pray for us!
Let us remember: to pray for each other!

Accept Or Reject?

 

 Mark 12:1-12

The Parable of the Tenants

12 Jesus then began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the winepress and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place. ² At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. ³ But they seized him, beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ⁴ Then he sent another servant to them; they struck this man on the head and treated him shamefully. ⁵ He sent still another, and that one they killed. He sent many others; some of them they beat, others they killed.

⁶ “He had one left to send, a son, whom he loved. He sent him last of all, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’

⁷ “But the tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ ⁸ So they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.

⁹ “What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. ¹⁰ Haven’t you read this passage of Scripture:

“‘The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone;
¹¹ the Lord has done this,
    and it is marvelous in our eyes’?”

¹² Then the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders looked for a way to arrest him because they knew he had spoken the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd; so they left him and went away.

Each day circumstances arise which cause us to make choices, and basically they revolve around accepting or rejecting some emissary from God, be it a teaching, a representative, or the service to someone in need, material or  spiritual. Reading and learning from this parable we see that rejection of what God wants or who he sends is not a wise option. Our daily prayer is necessary, for there we will learn, as Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane, that the ultimate prayer is, "Thy will, not mine, by done." (Mark 14: 36)

Bro. Rene

Dear God, may I not reject who or what you send my, but turn my whole being over to you to carry out what you ask of me and know what is best for me. Amen.

 

No Greater Love

 

 

John 3:16-18 

That We Might Have Everlasting Life

 ¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. ¹⁷ For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

¹⁸ “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

As we celebrated and honor the Blessed Trinity, God the Father,  Son and Holy Spirit, we are not presented with some deep theological tract, but this simple and beloved description of God's great love for us: so great that he sent his Son Jesus to BE one of us and die for us that we, the world, might be saved. Which one of us would be so willing to give our own life, or the life of our child so that others might live? Yes, there are such folks...our military, the Four ministers on the Titanic who gave their life jackets to others, for example, but the greatest manifestation of selfless love is Jesus.  Through him we get a glimpse of the Infinite Love of our God; And Jesus came that we might not only know this love, but experience it for all eternity, a concept that that befuddles our minds.  Rather than clogging our brains trying to comprehend this love, may we simply accept it and try as best we can to share it with others.

Bro. Rene

Dear God, you are love and want us all to experience your love, to be your "beloveds". Remove all doubts fears and hesitations that might block or diminish this love, and help us to open our hearts to receive it fully and share it with others. Amen. 

Cannot Trap Jesus

 

 Mark 11:27-33

The Authority of Jesus Questioned

²⁷ They arrived again in Jerusalem, and while Jesus was walking in the temple courts, the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders came to him. ²⁸ “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you authority to do this?”

²⁹ Jesus replied, “I will ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. ³⁰ John’s baptism—was it from heaven, or of human origin? Tell me!”

³¹ They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ ³² But if we say, ‘Of human origin’ …” (They feared the people, for everyone held that John really was a prophet.)

³³ So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”

Jesus said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”

This passage comes later in the ministry of Jesus when his dual with the priests, scribes and elders was accelerating.  He again stands his ground and leaves them speechless. Today, we celebrate St. Charles Lwanga and his companions who suffered martyrdom in Uganda in 1886's; who, like Jesus, stood their ground for their faith against the brutal tribal king, Mwanga. Although these confrontations happened from the time of Jesus through the centuries to the present, we must hold to the truth and not let clever arguments knock us off course. We are called to follow Jesus, no one else.

Bro. Rene

Dear God, may I never waver in my faith and desire to follow and serve you, even when it seems "the enemy" surrounds me. Amen.

 

I Want To See

 

Mark 10:46-52

Blind Bartimaeus Receives His Sight

⁴⁶ Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means “son of Timaeus”), was sitting by the roadside begging. ⁴⁷ When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

⁴⁸ Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

⁴⁹ Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”

So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” ⁵⁰ Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.

⁵¹ “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him.

The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.”

⁵² “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

We marvel at the determination and directness of Bartimaeus:  He desperately wanted to see and made his desire known directly and without compromise. "I want to see." Jesus saw his faith and immediately answered his request. The question always arises: Do I pray with such faith and assurance that simply asking will gain the desired results? Many of us can say that we thought we prayed with faith but failed to receive the desired answer. What went wrong? The answer has always been, " You actually didn't have enough faith," or "God has another plan for you that is better than your request."  Whatever the result of our prayer, we can be assured that God hears us and in HIS GOOD TIME, he will grant what is BEST for us. A prayer to Bartimeus might help us to pray with his faith.

Bro. Rene

Dear God, when I think I've prayed with deep faith, let me truly turn my heart over to you and accept whatever answer you give me. Amen.

 

Rejoice With Mary

 

 Luke 1:39-56

Mary Visits Elizabeth

³⁹ In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, ⁴⁰ and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹ And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, ⁴² and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! ⁴³ And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? ⁴⁴ For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. ⁴⁵ And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”

Mary's Song of Praise: The Magnificat

⁴⁶ And Mary said,

“My soul magnifies the Lord,
⁴⁷     and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
⁴⁸ for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
    For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
⁴⁹ for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
    and holy is his name.
⁵⁰ And his mercy is for those who fear him
    from generation to generation.
⁵¹ He has shown strength with his arm;
    he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
⁵² he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
    and exalted those of humble estate;
⁵³ he has filled the hungry with good things,
    and the rich he has sent away empty.
⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel,
    in remembrance of his mercy,
⁵⁵ as he spoke to our fathers,
    to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”

⁵⁶ And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home.

We end the Month of May, a month dedicated to Mary, with this beautiful, yet simple feast of the  Visitation, a trip to a cousin made in haste in order to BE with her for the remainder of her pregnancy and for three months after the birth of the boy, John. What does this show us of Mary? It's what we rely on: her presence, her loving care, her concern that we have what we need...and beyond...as we live our daily challenges.  Mary's Magnificat sums it up: Yes God has blessed her (and us), but the focus is on him, his power to bring down the mighty and raise the lowly, to fill the hungry and dismiss the rich, and to be there for us with mercy.  Let us spend time with THE MAGNIFICAT and listen to Mary pray it for us.

Bro, Rene

Dear God, thank you for this feast and Mary's simple yet profound summary of your great love and care for us.  May  we spend the day singing our own Magnificat for all the wonders you have worked and will continue to work in our lives. Amen.