It Is Enough

The great saints have all arrived at the point where they totally let go and put their lives in God's hands. Mary at the announciation: "Let it be done to me according to your word" (Lk 1: 38)
St. Ignatius composed a beautiful prayer which sums up his 30-day Excersises: "Lord Jesus Christ, take all my freedom, my memory, my understanding, and my will. All that I have and cherish you have given me. I surrender it all to be guided by your will. Your love and your grace are wealth enough for me. Give me these, Lord Jesus, and I ask for nothing more. Amen." Reinforcing this prayer, St. Josemaria Escriva, founder of Opus Dei, prays: "Lord, I trust in you; your ordinary providence, your help each day, is all I need." Let us not look for the great miracles, but for an increase in faith, the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and the determination to live in total trust in God. That is enough.
Bro. Rene

I will be visiting folks in Oglala, South Dakota until July 15. I'm not sure about internet access, so be understanding if there is no daily slice of bread for the next two and a half weeks. I'll do my best, but again, leave it up to God.

In The Little Things

Three major characteristics of Marist Spirituality are Presence, Devotion to Mary and Simplicity. All three are tied closely together, for attentiveness to the Presence of God not only in the grandeur of creation or of his loving friendship, but in the little things that pop up each day, reminds us of Mary's pondering of the events in her life, of the little things, and of her straightforwardness, her genuineness, her simplicity: "How shall this be, for I do not know man?" (Lk 1: 34). "They have no wine" (Jn 2:4). "Do whatever he tells you" (Jn 2: 5). To be that open, that simple, that in tune with God! It is not WE who are in charge, but the One who causes us amazement in his attentiveness to us, our needs, our "education" in his ways and to the fullness of our potential. If we, like Mary, can keep it simple, we can see God in the little things that happen today: the person who comments on the beautiful day, who asks us how we are, who opens or holds a door for us, or who calls to thank us for something we had routinely done. Our days are brim over with little things. God is right there in them, all the time. We simply need to recognize him.
Bro. Rene

The Birth of John the Baptist

This slice of Daily Bread comes in the context of the Solemnity of the Nativity of John the Baptist, the 29th anniversary of the apparitions of the Blessed Mother, the Queen of Peace, in Medjugorje and the conclusion of the Assembly of the Marist Brothers. Is there a common thread tying all three together? It would seem so. All three events bespeak mission, the call to conversion and joy. Even before he was born, John leapt for joy in his mother's womb when Mary arrived carrying the Messiah in her womb. Over the years that moment was translated into his mission to prepare the way for his cousin by calling his disciples to conversion of heart. Mary has been calling her children (us) to that same conversion through prayer, peace, fasting, he sacraments and the holy scriptures: long venerated tools of spiritual growth. One hundred thirty-nine Marist Brothers and lay people convened for two and a half-days pondering our mission as Marists, how better we can live it, share it and bring others to know and love Jesus. A joyful spirit of family gathered around St Marcellin prevailed and comes with us as we return to our local communities. Grace and renewed energy unite us and will help us be more effective witnesses as was St. John. It is a day to rejoice a time for optimism and a reason for much gratitude and humility. "Who am I that the Mother of my Lord should come to me?" (Lk 1: 43).
God's ways are beyond ours. Let us "do whatever he tells us." (cf. Jn. 2:5).
Bro. Rene

Marist Jubilees

Today, 15 Marist Brothers will be celebrating Jubilees: three brothers, their 70th, eight, their 60th, and four, their 50th, for a total of 770 years of life consecrated to God as "Little Brothers of Mary". By the grace of God, I am one of the Golden Jubilarians. We will celebrate at Mass at the Immaculate Conception Center in Douglaston New York with family and friends. Those who cannot be with us will join us in prayerful spirit.
Three brothers took the habit on July 26, 1940, almost a year after Hitler invaded Poland, and before the United States became engaged in either theater of World War II. Little did they know how many wars and disturbances the second half of the twentieth century would unfold in the years ahead, nor the advances in technology, nor the broad sweeping reforms of the Second Vatican Council, nor the strong erosion of values, religious practice, and faith precipitated by the spread of secularism and materialism. Indeed, we all have faced challenges we never dreamed of when we first became brothers. Yet we Marists have faced challenges from the very beginning, even in the lifetime of St. Marcellin. There has never been a "golden age", despite the fast growth in the Congregation after his death. If there were "golden years", they were short-lived.
However, to be alive, well, and still "making Jesus known and loved" in any age, is a grace, a privilege and more than sufficient reason to bend the knee and give thanks to God for the call to the Marist Brotherhood and the grace to remain faithful to that call. We follow in the footsteps of a man who deeply loved God, trusted and loved his Blessed Mother, and gave us the example of faith, fortitude, courage and determination that his brought his little band to 79 countries around the world since its beginning 193 years ago. We live not in a perfect world, but by keeping the faith and remaining focused on God, we have found favor with God and carried on our mission with a fidelity that warrants the celebrations we will experience today, and we trust, in Eternity.
Bro. Rene
P.S. The Province Assembly at Marist College will run Monday through Wednesday. I'm not sure if I will be able to slice off daily bread while I'm there. I hope so, but you'll know after nine AM on Monday.

We Are Not Alone

There is depression that comes from a chemical imbalance; another from the prospect of failure, when we feel the rug has been pulled from under us; or another that comes from fear: of losing a job, of not living up to expectations, or of lacking confidence to accomplish what we promised to do. Then, there is the depression that comes from our sinfulness in realizing how pride, how selfishness, how arrogance block our relationships with people and with God. We may think we "are the only one who is so bad", but we are not alone. Read the description of a person in such a state that was written perhaps 2,500 years ago:
"Have mercy on me, Lord, I have no strength;/Lord, heal me, my body is racked;/ my soul is racked with pain./ I am exhausted with my groaning;/every night I drench my pillow with tears;/ I bedew my bed with weeping./ My eye wastes away with grief;/ I have grown old surrounded by my foes." (Ps 6: 3, 7-8 )
Sound familiar? We are not alone; it is the plight of the human condition. However, we need not be victims forever. "I prayed to the Lord, my God, and confessed, 'Ah, Lord, great and awesome God you who keep your merciful covnenant toward those who love you and observe your commandments! We have sinned, been wicked and done evil; we have rebelled and departed from your commandments and your laws. But yours, O Lord our God, are compassion and forgiveness!'" (Dan 9: 4-5, 9).
Such an honest confession becomes balm for the soul and lifts the bonds of confusion, pain and depression. It includes a focus on our merciful God, as well as on the sinful self. Fridays are the traditional days of penitence, a good time for an examination of conscience and firm resolve to seek out the Sacrament of Reconciliation, or at least make a sincere act of contrition. Less expensive than a prescription or therapy, and more effective for the depression that arises from our sinfulness.
Bro. Rene
P.S. I will be at Camp Champagnat in Ossipee, New Hampshire, and will not have access to a computer for Saturday's Daily Bread.

Our Daily Bread

Prayed slowly and from the heart, the Lord's Prayer succinctly "covers all the bases" to foster a full and fruitful relationship with God. We acknowledge God as Father, and ourselves as not alone, but in communion with all the other members of OUR Father's family. We praise him, we ask that his will be done rather than ours, we pray for the fullfillment of his plan. We ask for our daily bread, the ability to forgive as well as the dispostion to be forgiven, and protection from evil. Usually we rattle this prayer rotely without realizing what we are saying. Here's a suggestion on how to rectify that.
The wisdom writer, Sirach, leads us to contemplation by way of food, a universal need and symbol we can all understand. "Come to me, all you that yearn for me,/ and be filled with my fruit;/ You will remember me as sweeter than honey,/ better to have than the honeycomb./ He who eats of me will hunger still,/ he who drinks of me will thirst for more;/ He who obeys me will not be put to shame,/ her who serves me will never fail." (Sir 24: 18-21). Is this not an echo of the Lord's Prayer...a "prequel" to use a contemporary term, for it was written hundreds of years before Christ? Using this passage along with the Our Father might provide a healthy and substantial portion of our needed daily bread today.
Bro. Rene

"The Shadow of God's Wings"

In the ancient Temple of Jerusalem, the Ark of the Covenant was kept in "the holy of holies". Above it were two carved winged cherubim; in the luminous cloud which hovered between the wings, God was present. This presence was known as the "Shekinah Yahweh." Before the temple was built, the Ark had been kept in a tent: "Moses could not enter the Tent of Meeting for the cloud rested upon it and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle." (Ex 40:35). Later, in the Psalms, the "shadow of God's wings" came to refer to a place of refuge in God's presence.
Today, there is no Ark, no Temple, no cloud, but we do have the presence of the Lord in a very special way in the tabernacle in our churces, where the REAL PRESENCE is kept on reserve.
It used to be a custom "to pay a visit to the Blessed Sacrament" frequently, if not daily, when we passed by a church. Easy to do in those days when churches were open all day long. Now that they are locked, this custom has fallen by the wayside. However, the Lord also dwells in our hearts, so we can take refuge in the shadow of his wings there by periodically withdrawing into our own innter temple and letting ourselves BE before the Lord. The challenge is to make the time and find a place of quiet, where we can withdraw from the noise and busyness of each day, and find peace and refreshment in God. If we can find an open chapel or church, so much the better, but our own interior tabernacles are worthy and viable substitutes.
Bro. Rene

Open Our Eyes

The eyes of children see with wonder, imagination and appreciation. In their eyes a clump of wet sand becomes a castle; a passing cloud, a butterfly; the stars the beacons of worlds beyond ours; animals, friends;, trees, ladders to be climbed; church, a glimpse of the sacred and mysterious. Jesus reminds us that "Unless you become like little children, you shall not enter the kingdom of God. (cf. Mt 18:3) June has its "perfect days" and if we have not lost our childhood innocence and imagination, we can forget ourselves and become lost in the profound beauty around us and proclaim in awe: "How great is your name, O Lord our God, through all the earth!/ Your majesty is praised above the heavens;/ on the lips of children and of babes..../ When I see the heavens, the work of your hands,/ the moon and the stars which you arranged/
[I ask] "what is man, that you should keep him in mind...?" Yet, we are the pinnacle of all creation, made in God's image and likeness...more breathtaking than the snow-covered Rockies or Alps, a South Dakota sunset, a mighty sequoia or the Oregon Coast. "God created man in his image;/ in the divine image he created him;/ male and female he create them. God blessed them, saying to them: ""Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that move on the earth.' God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good." (Gen 1: 27-28, 31a).
May we open our eyes today and see with the innocence of young children what wonders surround us, what wonders we are.
Bro. Rene

Choice

God is the giver of all good gifts, a truth we cannot repeat enough. Often, however, we don't see some of the things that come our way as gifts; it takes time and reflection to see them that way. One of these most precious gift is our free will. God leaves the choice up to us. We've seen in our own lives and in the history of the world, how this gift can be a blessing as well as a curse. Each moment, it seems, we are confronted with a choice: How will we use this hour, this minute? How will we treat those who come into our lives? How will we respond when asked to do something we had not planned? All across the moral plain, the range of choices is endless and and ever-present.
We are encouraged by the familiar verse from Deuternonomy: "I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life, then." (Dt 30:19). And in Sirach: "When God, in the beginning created man,/ he made him subject to his own free choice./ If you choose you can keep the commandmens;/ it is loyalty to do his will./ There are set before you fire and water; to whichever you choose, stretch forth your hand./ Before man are life and death,/ whichever he chooses shall be given him." (Sirach 15: 14-17). Let us today give glory to God by pausing to thank him for this gift and ask for his guidance through the Holy Spirit to use it wisely.
Bro. Rene

St. Anthony of Padua

The popular saint of "lost and found", whose feast day is June 13th, takes a back seat this year to the elventh Sunday in Ordinary Time; however a brief reflection on his life will help us keep this sabbath holy. We might or might not be aware of the stories of his miracles, how he preached a sermon to attentive fish at Rimini, when the people were disinterested, or how a mule knelt before the Blessed Sacrament he was carrying, or how the man who was hosting him in his home saw him in the garden holding the child Jesus in his arms. And, of course, there is the return of the missing Psalter, which has given St. Anthony the enduring reputation of finding lost articles. How many people of all faiths do we know who pray to St. Anthony to find what they've lost? He always comes through.
The lesser known story is how Anthony, a Portuguese by birth, searched and struggled to find his place in God's plan. He originally entered religious life in a "plea bargain" with God to spare the life of his friend, whom he had wounded in a fight. In so doing, he gravely disappointed his family and the young woman who had hoped to marry him. Their relationship haunted him, even after he had take his vows. He was originally a member of the Canons of St. Augustine, but when he saw the relics of five Franciscans who were martyred for preaching to the Muslims, he left the Canons and joined the Franciscans, hoping to finish what the martyrs had left undone. He was shipwrecked and unable to fulfill his dream. What to do? St. Francis himself sanctioned his teaching, but it became evident that his gift of preaching was even greater than his ability to teach at the University of Padua, so he then became a preacher responsible for the conversion of thousands, and for the preservation of the original spirit of the Franciscans. So highly renowned was he, that he was canonized only a year after his death. Called by God, gradually learning how best to serve him, he was not an instant saint. His journey toward holiness remains a model for what we can become if we give ourselves fully to the power of the Holy Spirit living and working within us and are willing to walk our journey with faith, patience, conviction and determination. St. Anthony, pray for us.
Bro. Rene

The Immaculate Heart of Mary

Back to back with the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary honors the closeness of mother to Son, and the closeness of disciple to master. St. John Eudes writes: "If Saint Bernard could say he had but one heart with Jesus, and if it was said of the first Christians that they had but one heart and one soul, so great was the union amongst them, how much more can we say that Jesus and Mary had but one heart and one soul, considering how closely they were bound together by the perfect conformity of mind, will and sentiment that existed between the divine Son of God and his Immaculate Mother." When Mary "treasured these things and pondered them in her heart" (Lk 2: 19), she was again as close to Jesus as she was when she carried him in her womb. And from her many apparitions in the course of history, she has made known over and over again, that we, her children have a place in that heart. Our own country is consecrated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary; the national basilica bears that name as well. This, then, is a day for us to treasure and ponder in our hearts our wonderful mother and our relationship with her: that we may be "one heart and one soul" with her. A slow, thoughtful praying of the Hail Mary is a good way to begin our pondering.
Bro. Rene

His Love Endures Forever

Today's Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart emphasizes the total, eternal, and unconditional love of God. Psalm 136 repeats its re-assuring refrain after each short verse, dozens of times: "For his faithful love endures forever." (Ps 136: 1). St. Paul asks: "What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword? No, in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Rm 8: 35, 37-39). When our anxieties seem to be getting the best of us, when our prayers seem unanswered, when our own sinfulness discourages us, these are the verses we need to pick us up and put us back on track. Along with them, picture the Good Shepherd with you on his shoulder, or Jesus with children on his lap. Imagine yourself as one of those children. Sing with them Paul's passionate and confident hymn to God's unshakeable love, or this simple acclamation: "O give thanks to the Lord for he is good,/ for his faithful love endures forever." (Ps 136: 1).
Bro. Rene

Bearing our Burdens

In Ethiopia, where bridges are scarce, experience has taught the people a simple technique to prevent them from being swept away to deeper waters and stronger currents when attempting to cross rivers or streams on foot. They simply find a big stone, put it on their shoulders as ballast, and with the extra weight, have a firmer footing while the waters rush past their legs. Carrying the extra "burden" makes a safe river crossing possible.
Applied to life and its many precarious paths, as ironic as it may sound, we NEED the ballast of our burdens to prevent us from being swept away into complacency or a fase sense of self-sufficiency. Our burdens keep us grounded in reality and humble. We also are more aware of and sympathetic toward others who are also shouldering burdens. We could easily be overwhelmed with our own burdens, but locking arms with others and sharing our burdens together makes them lighter. Thank you, Lord, for the blessing of my burdens; broaden my shoulders to bear them and to help others with theirs. Amen.
Bro. Rene

Do Not Be Anxious

"And who among you , through his anxiety, is able to add a single cubit to the length of his life?" (Lk 12:25) We, in our anxiety-ridden times, need to hear and digest this. Things, people do not meet OUR expectations, so we easily fall prey to anxiety: "Who will do it if I don't? No one does things as well as I. I would rather do it myself than trust another to do it, at least I know it will get done." We find ourselves exhausted, stressed, and frustrated, for we find that we do not have time, nor cannot do everything ourselves. So we worry more and more about what needs to be done and our inability to do it. What a mess! In contrast the Psalmist writes:
"Trust in the Lord, and do good; so you will live in the land, and enjoy security.
Take delight in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Our steps are made firm by the Lord,
when he delights in our way;
Though we stumble, we shall not fall headlong,
for the Lord holds us by the hand." (Ps 37: 3-4, 23-24).
We need to learn that "nothing, absolutely nothing happens in God's world by mistake. We need to concentrate not so much on what needs to be changed in the world as on what needs to be changed in us and in our atttudes." A doctor is quoted, "I can watch my serenity level rise, when I discard my expectations." (Medjugorje Day by Day)
The time-honored and effective "Serenity Prayer" comes to mind as a handy tool to calm our anxiety: "O lord, grant me the serenity to accept the thins I cannot change; the courage to change the things I dan; and the wisdom to know the difference."
Bro. Rene

Relying on the Lord

As we begin this day and before we move too far into the planned and the unexpected, let us pause a moment to look out the window, to look around the room, to close our eyes and breathe slowly for a few minutes. Such a mini-retreat-moment will help us to hear the Word of God as if it were written only for us. The Psalmist puts words into our hearts and on our lips to help voice our response to all that we see and feel in such a moment of peace: "I can rely on the Lord: I can always turn to him for shelter. It was he who gave me my freedom. My God, you are always there to help me!" (Ps 17: 3). And in Psalm 4: "Know that the Lord does wonders for his faithful one; the Lord will hear me when I call upon him. / O Lord, let the light of your countenance shine upon us!/ You put gladness into my heart, more than when grain and wine abound." (Ps 4: 4, 8) Reliance on the Lord, fortifying that reliance with memories of when God actually stepped into our lives through people, through something we heard or read, not only shows us who God is, a God of loving kindness, mercy, compassion, patience and forgiveness, but also helps to transform us and establish ourselves in peace and charity. Taste and see, feel the goodness and kindness of the Lord, and sail with confidence through the rest of this day.
Bro. Rene

From God

God's goodness strikes us in many ways, even in a sunny, humidity-free Monday morning like today. Prayers answered, guidiance sought and received, good wishes from good people, just being alive. There are days when all is well, to say the least. Yes, the Psalmist was right when he wrote, "Taste and see that the Lord is good" or in another translation, "Taste and see the goodness of the Lord." (Ps 34: 9). He does fill us with the finest wheat...not only in the bread we eat, nor the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, but in the beauty of creation, the grandeur of the heavens and earth, the magnificent people we have so far met and will meet, and in the assurance that NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE with him.
A friend of mine, who has been destitute for work and money for two years, called last night to say that she is receiving an inheritance this week and now has a job. She had hit her uttermost bottom, but her honesty with God in prayer has finally been rewarded by his goodness. Every phone conversation with her has been from the depths of depression and near despair until last night. She was a new person, into a day like today after two years of storms. God knows our needs, our endurance and what is best for us. When he comes through, it's like being born again. "All comes from God...we only offer him what we have received."
Bro. Rene

The Bread of Life

This year the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ and the 170th anniversary of the death of St. Marcellin Champagnat coincide. It is a huge Church Feast and a huge Marist Feast. And fittingly, for St. Marcellin loved the Eucharist, preparing ahead of time for his daily celebration of Mass, even when he was presiding in the "chapel under the trees" while building the Hermitage, and spending quiet time in thanksgiving after concluding the Mass.
We celebrate the gift of the Real Presence of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist, not simply a memorial or symbolic representation, but truly the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ under the appearances of bread and wine. We take time to reflect on and reverence this unique gift, which promises to those who believe, eternal life. "Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has etenal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world." (Jn 6: 47-51). Pope John Paul II emphasized the the universality of this great gift when he wrote, "[The Church] "does not only celebrate the Eucharist but solemnly bears it in procession publicly procaliming that the sacrifice of Christ is for the salvation of the whole world." Public procession. When I was in Fribourg, Switzerland in 1977, the "Fete Dieu", Corpus Christi, today's Feast was celebrated on a Thursday. It was a holiday, and the solemn procession through the Streets, including several retired members of the Swiss Guard, was observed in strict silence until the Monstrance carried by the Bishop under a magnificent canopy was returned to the Cathedral for Benediction. In Rwanda, the procession wound its way on dirt paths artistically decorated with colored sand and grasses depicting the Chalice and Host, while the people sang hymns and the children climbed trees and basketball hoops in Zachaeus fashion, to honor and give praise to the presence of Jesus in the host. Our secularized world would have trouble observing the feast in this fashion, but in our own hearts and in our own time, especially as we receive Holy Communion today (and everytime) we might deepen our reverence, devotion and gratitude for and recall the universal application of this great sacrament, the Bread of Life.
Bro. Rene

Children of God

A couple of recent conversations, both along the same lines, reveal a truth that holds fast for all, not matter what age. Two men either in or approaching their seventies, said independently of each other, that no matter what the weather, no matter what interferes with their plans, they are just grateful to be able to wake up each morning and put their feet on the floor. Where they could be complaining or feeling sorry for themselves because of a few aches and pains, when they look at the plight of some people, whose suffering far outweighs theirs, they approach their day in this positive and grateful manner. A good way to approach this gloomy Saturday when the threat of showers all day will dampen or postpone the plans of many.
No doubt St. Paul was also affected by the weather...read ACTS and see how many times his plans were changed! He raises us to a new level in Romans where he writes: "The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and join heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so that we may also be glorifed with him. I consider that the sufferings of this present time are nothing compared with the glory to be revealed of us." (Rm 8:16-18). Don't we always want the best for our children? So too does God. How good it is to recall that we are God's children, which alone should be cause of endless joy and gratitude, but that as we put our feet on the floor, to have our health, mobility and our faith, and the promise of the glory to come, we realize that we have so many more reasons to give thanks and live our gifted day with positive and upbeat joy.
Bro. Rene

Fasting on Fridays

This is the First Friday of June when many make a special effort to attend Mass as requested by Jesus to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in the 17th century. A week from today the Church will be celebrating the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart, where the liturgy will focus on the great love Jesus has for us, symbolized by his exposed heart. The observance of First Fridays is an extension of this devotion throughout the remaining months of the year. The Entrance Antiphon reads: "The thoughts of his heart last through every generation, that he will rescue them from death and feed them in time of famine." (Ps 32: 11,19).
One of the messages of Mary at Medjugorje is a request that Fridays be a day of fast, a "going without", in order to be filled. The fast can range from simply bread and water instead of regular meals, or going without deserts, salt and pepper, water instead of coffee, or passing up a favorite dish. Why fast? To imitate Jesus who fasted; to thus draw closer to him; to learn his ways, to open our eyes to his many gifts, to open our hearts to our neighbor, to grow in understanding of the hungry and deprived, and above all, to grow in the confidence that indeed God will feed us in time of famine. We need a physical reminder that all comes from God, and that we need a healthy sense of dependence on God in order to become more sensitive and compassionate to others. The little pangs of hunger we feel throughout a fast day are tangible reminders and triggers of desire to be more open to RECEIVE from God rather than operate on a false sense of self-sufficiency and "non-need" of God. Fasting is a way to reach out to the immense love that God offers daily, but which we fail to acknowledge because "we can take care of ourselves." Fasting is freeing. May our faces radiate the joy of this freedom as we fast today.
Bro. Rene

Teach Me Your Ways, O Lord

Each day gives us the opportunity to learn and to put into practice "the ways of the Lord", as well as for the Lord to reveal something about himself and his ways to us. The lessons might come through our prayer, our reading or in the events, planned and unplanned, the successes, conversations, the people we meet, the laughter, the annoyances, the frustrations, the gains and the losses that fill these 24 hours. It's mainly in "the little things" that we learn. How do we react, for example, when we attempt to extract some crushed ice from the door of our refrigerator and end up with bits of ice all over the kitchen floor; what should have taken a few seconds eats up five minutes as we clean up, check the ice maker and find it overloaded or almost empty? This "project" then makes us late for the next thing we had planned to do. And so goes the day: late, late, late, rush, rush, rush. We realize we need patience, and the humility to accept the "superiority" of the ice-maker. When someone comes with a long tale to bend our ear, that patience and humility can serve both of us well. Who would have suspected that a morning "catastrophe" would have prepared us with a listening ear that would bring solace to someone's agitation or confusion? The ways of the Lord are kindness and constancy toward all, but if we attune ourselves in the simple actions of our day, we become kinder, more consistant, more humble, more like God. Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Bro. Rene

God Does Not Quit on Us

This is the 200th slice of bread that has been cut to offer a small source of nourishment to start the day. As we move into this beautiful month of June with all kinds of beautiful flowers, deep green grass and leaves surrounding us, we see signs of God's fidelity, his care in providing these extras to lift our spirits and of his almost grandparent-like indulgence in us. Matthew shows us a picture of our generous and loving God as he succinctly describes the ministry of Jesus: "He went around all of Galilee teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and curing every disease and illness among the people." (Mt 4:23). How consoling to know that we too, the often hopeless, frightened and needy folks we are, have such a God on our side, who is there not only to pick us up when we fall or succumb to occasional doldrums, but also has a lolipop to hand us and encourage us to continue moving on. "I will strengthen, you and help you" he tell us (Is 41: 10b). Knowing we are children of such tender love may we "dance as though no one is watching us, love as though we have never been hurt before, sing as though no one can hear us, and live as though heaven is on earth." (Souza). No, God never quits on us, rather, always rejoices in us.
Bro. Rene

Be Strong in the Lord

June 1st, the beginning of the sixth the year, the half-way mark of the "new" year which seems began only minutes ago. Our high-speed pace seems to know no end, even with the prospect of some vacation time looming in the weeks ahead. Not disconcerted by what WE may be conceiving as overwhelming odds, the Church calendar begins this month dedicated to the Sacred Heart, and by customary preference, a month of weddings, by honoring one of the early Martyrs, a man called Justin, who was a philsopher at he time of emperor Marcus Aurelius, that is the mid-second century...a long way back. His relevance to us, almost 2,000 years later, is the confidence he had in God his rock, his strength, his fortress and his shield. The threat of death did not weaken his resoved to remain faithful to Jesus, whose suffering and cross served as bullwarks for his faith. Above all, it was his love of Jesus, and a life lived in conformity to his teachings that gave him the certainty of life with Jesus beyond death.
Our deaths are a certainty, but WHEN they will occur is unknown. However, two friends of this area are hovering on the brink of eternal life: Sr. Mary Shea, dying of cancer and "in her last hours", and Brother Rick Carey, former principal of Central Catholic, who is now in a medically induced comma after collapsing in Rome with a brain aneurysm. St. Mary is in her 80's, Br. Rick is only in his late 50's. Their situations point to the need to "be strong in the Lord" and like Justin, deepen our reslove to love and remain faithful to Jesus.
Bro. Rene