The Silence of Holy Saturday

Despite most people's regular work or shopping day, yard work, or Easter Sunday preparations, liturgically, this is the quietest day of the Church Year:  no Mass, no Gospel passage, empty tabernacles,  just silence as Jesus lies in the sealed tomb.  Lent is officially over, but some people continue fasting this day to commemorate the absence of Jesus.  Really, a good day to MAKE time to reflect on what happened to us during Lent as well as on the mission of Jesus.  His conquest of Death will be finalized by his Resurrection, but for now, we visualize him descending to the realm of the dead to free Adam, Eve and all who have gone before him. An ancient and beautiful homily portrays Jesus as calling Adam from his sleep, Awake O Sleeper, and with vivid imagery recounts the conversation between the Creator, and Adam, the man who became his father, whose sin called forth the Sinless One to take on all sins and wipe them away by his death.  There are many paradoxes and blessings we can ponder today.  Let us take the opportunity to be silent and do so.
Bro. Rene

Selfless Sacrifice

Good Friday...a solemn day, fittingly, the Book of Lamentations is appropriate, for there is much to lament, and yet much over which to rejoice and give thanks.  We wail over the abandonment and destruction of Jerusalem, a wailing that applies to the death of Jesus...abandoned by all, save for his mother, Mary Magdalene and his beloved disciple John at the foot of his cross.  He cries out with the words of Psalm 22, "My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?" (Ps 22 1). His mission, his three years of preaching and healing, of remaining faithful to his Father's will, end in apparent utter failure. The pain of the scourging, the betrayal, denial, and do not equal the pain of rejection and failure.  Truly, "he emptied himself" and had nothing more to give than to turn his spirit over to his Father:  the total selfless sacrifice.
There are times in our lives when we feel some of this...rejections from all colleges or medical schools to which we applied...the feeling of  "Now what, where?"  A similar loneliness and abandonment to what Jesus felt.  A call to unite with Jesus on the cross and turn our lives and futures completely over to the Father.  As clearly demonstrated by the Resurrection, this is only a passing phase leading to something better than we have ever planned or for which we have hoped.  Let us all, no matter what our circumstances, turn ourselves over to this loving Father and continue to trust in him and serve him.
 Almighty and eternal God, you have restored us to life by the triumphant death and resurrection of Christ. Continue this healing work within us. May we who participate in this mystery never cease to serve you. We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord. Amen.   Post Communion Prayer for Good Friday. 

A Day of Gifts

Holy Thursday, the first day of the Triduum, three days focused on the last days of Jesus and culminating with the Resurrection, celebrates the institution of the priesthood and the Holy Eucharist, and the example of service symbolized by the washing of the feet....the maundatum in Latin, giving the name Maundy Thursday to this day.  It is a day we learn what Jesus meant to give of self, to serve, and not to count the cost.  He has given us the example, and as his followers, he asks us to do the same.  An would-be impossible task, if he did not feed us with himself in the Eucharist, the reception of which makes us a bit more like him each time we receive it.  The priesthood insures that the Bread of Life will always be available.  Jesus thought of everything.  May we show our gratitude by incorporating his example into our lives.
Bro. Rene

Thirty Pieces of Silver

As we hear Matthew's account of the betrayal ( Mt 26:14-15) today, we might ask how a chosen disciple of Jesus could "sell" his leader for a relatively small sum of money.  More importantly, we might examine ourselves and our behaviors, which, although not the exact equivalent of taking money for the life of another human being, friend or foe, in small ways might be considered betrayals and sell-offs for reputation, misplaced esteem, or acceptance.  Gossip, "locker room" tales and jokes told to impress and "fit in",  neglect of weekly worship, disregard for poor and struggling families, "cheating" on the job, cheating on a spouse...breaking any of the commandments and finding excuses to justify ourselves and not admit guilt...the list piles up. What do we gain for these measly pieces of silver?  Is there not a misdirected Judas within each one of us?  It is exactly for him that Jesus died...let us not betray him by refusing his merciful love.
Bro .Rene

Betrayal, Denial

It seems that Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot had given at least some thought to turning Jesus over to the Pharisees, but Peter in his protest to "lay down his life for Jesus" (Jn 13:37) demonstrates that his denial was born of fear "on the spot" and not premeditated. Seems like another example of what St. Paul describes and what we all know:  The good that I want to do, I do not, and the evil I do not want to do, I do." (Rm 7:19)   Judas is evidently haunted by his guilt which progressively engulfs him, even to the point of recognizing that he has betrayed an innocent man, with the opportunity to ask forgiveness, but continues in his despair to suicide.  Peter, realizing what he had done, weeps bitterly under the glance from Jesus, but does not despair, and rises from his fall to reassume his leadership role among the Apostles, and the Church.
We carry elements of both these men within us in our daily betrayals and denials, needing  the strength and courage that come from the eyes of Jesus to choose the path or Peter and not the path of Judas. Jesus, look upon me in my weakness and in your mercy, save me from discouragement and despair.
Bro. Rene

Attentive to Jesus

Holy Week gives us the opportunity to BE with Jesus.  The example of Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus sets the stage for the week as she anoints the feet of Jesus with an expensive perfume and dries them with her hair.  What an intimate expression of the love and attentiveness which seems to have been her habitual way of relating to him.  We are aware of the classic situation when she sat attentive to Jesus while Martha "was busy about many things."  Jesus enjoyed her company, and, evidently she enjoyed his.  Jesus defends her lavish "waste" of the costly nard, acknowledging his appreciation at being so "coddled" (for he would not always be with them),  and  hinting of his burial. We have no indication that Mary knew that a few days hence, that burial would take place, but she wanted to show her extreme love for him at any cost, even to the criticism it provoked.
In what ways can we anoint the feet of Jesus?  In what ways can we express our love for him who has expressed his love for us in such an extreme way?
Bro. Rene

A Disturbing Week

The Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem sets the stage for a disturbing week. With disturbing news hitting us daily, we might be desensitized to the events of Jesus's final week, but let's not be. Acclaimed with palms and hosanna's as he enters Jerusalem, he will leave it mounted on a cross atop Calvary five days later. Within that time, confrontation, betrayal, denial, abandonment, scourging, mockery, total emptying even as he gives himself to us in Bread and Wine and saves us from eternal death by his death.  We know that his death is not the end, for there is the glorious Resurrection on Easter Sunday, a week from now, but to get there, even though he dreaded it and we too might dread it and want to jump from now to Easter, skipping the suffering, these measured steps must be taken one at a time.  May we willingly enter into this week, as Jesus did, side by side with him to support him in some small way as Dismas, the Good Thief did, returning our love and gratitude for his limitless and universal love.
Bro. Rene

The Ideal Kingdom

Ezekiel prophesied an ideal kingdom: one nation, one prince, no idols, no apostasy, one people under God living in peace and harmony. (cf. Ez 37:21-28).  Appealing and inspiring, but not yet fulfilled, nearly three thousand years later.  Hope for such an ideal situation lead us to a spiritual kingdom, heaven, for as long as we inhabit this earth as wounded, weakened human beings, we never seem to be able to establish such a perfect situation, not even in the Church. This is not to discourage us from TRYING as best we can with God's help to attain this ideal, for that is what we have been doing during Lent with our prayers, almsgiving and fasting:  chipping away at the old and crusty so that the new can emerge. The final assault comes with Holy Week, our "last ditch effort" for renewal and rebirth. Yes, there will be an Easter after Good Friday; let's not give up; let's hope, let's turn our hearts over to God who CAN transform them and bring us closer to the IDEAL
Bro. Rene

Pondering the Passion With Mary

An alternative Collect for today's weekday Mass reminds us that there is a rich source of meditation in imitating devoutly the Blessed Virgin Mary as we, along with her, contemplate the Passion of Christ, that we like a loving mother might cling more firmly to Jesus. We are approaching the moment for which Jesus came into this world, as he reveals clearly who he is, the Son of God, and is thus rejected by the leaders of the Jews who staunchly defend their belief in ONE God.  They failed to be open to the deeper understanding of God as Three Divine Persons in ONE God, a mystery that defies human comprehension and demands a leap of faith.  We recite the Creed weekly at Sunday Mass, glibly reciting "God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial (of one substance)l with the Father" without realizing what startling things we are saying. Mary probably did not have this theological language in her vocabulary, but she knew that this son of hers was the Son of God who had come into the world to suffer, die and release all of us from our sins. This knowledge did not take away the pain of watching a son being rejected, beaten and crucified, as being God did not lessen the pain that Jesus felt. Yet, she was there through it all, with her encouraging presence and loving empathy.  May we accompany her these last days of Lent.
Bro. Rene

What Shall I Offer To The Lord?

Psalm 116 poses the Question: "What shall I offer to the Lord for all that he has done for me?" (P 116:12).  Realistically,  there is little that can measure up to the limitless gifts God gives us each day, but we can make some effort as we offer prayers of gratitude throughout the day: a simple THANK YOU for both the good things and the "bad" (for in the end some good always seems to come out of the worst "disasters" in our planned day), and we can extend our gratitude in works of service to others in big and small ways.  Putting ourselves out to drive someone to a doctor's appointment, or simply clearing the table or setting the table so that our spouse doesn't have to do it all the time.  Holding the door at work or church for someone.  Simple things can go a long way in "making the day" for someone else as well as "repaying" God for his kindness to us. Dear God, make me conscious of little ways to "pay forward" what you so lovingly lavish upon me."
Bro. Rene

The Truth Will Set You Free

Pointedly, Jesus said to the Jews (and us) who believed in him, "If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (Jn 8:31).  It's so easy these days to find the truth, so muddled is our thinking with political and prejudiced opinions, true and fake being served to us daily.  What is truth in a world so full of lies?  How do we discern the truth?  Remain in the Word...in Jesus, in his teachings...Immerse oneself in the Scriptures...learn from reliable teachers such as Bishop Robert Barron or Matthew Kelly whose excellent talks find themselves at our fingertips on line or in books.  Check out Word on Fire and  Dynamic Catholic, St. Augustine Institute, Twenty-Third Publications, Ignatius Press...Pray, as with Father Paul Kollman, CSC :
Jesus, you promised that the truth would set us free. Draw us into the mystery of your love for us, a love that frees us from the lies that keep us bound in sin and self-deception. May we embrace the new life that comes from Baptism and live in the freedom of the children of God. Amen.Bro Rene

Waiting In Patience

Note:  There are two slices of Daily Bread today...I missed the deadline by seconds yesterday, the Solemnity of St. Joseph, of all days. Read below today's slice.

As the Hebrews wandered in the desert for 40 years, yes, they became weary and succumbed to complaining and whining to Moses:  "Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert, where there is no food or water?  We are disgusted with this wretched food." (Num 21:5).
In this fifth week of Lent, we might be asking similar questions:  "What good have I accomplished with all this extra praying, sacrificing, fasting and almsgiving?  I feel as dry as the desert, I'm weary of Winter, the cold, the snow, the shoveling.  Nothing stirs me.  I need Spring and sunshine, etc. etc."
Psalm 102 might give us some peace and help us to bear Lent in peace and with patience.
O Lord, her my prayer,
and let my cry come to you.
The Lord looked down from his holy height,
from heaven he beheld the earth,
To hear the groaning of the prisoners,
to release those doomed to die.
Of old you laid the earth's foundations;
the heavens are the work of your hands.
They perish, but you remain
they all wear out like a garment;
they are changed,
but you are the same, your years have no end.
May the children of your servants live on;
may their descendants live in your presence.   (Ps 102: 2, 20-21, 26-29)
Bro. Rene

Go To Joseph

Ite Ad Joseph, Go to Joseph, a saying popular in prayer and song among devotees of St. Joseph, husband of Mary and foster-father of Jesus.  We go to Joseph, yes, for special favors, such as the selling or finding of a house, and especially for the grace of a happy death, but even more importantly, we go to Joseph because he is so much like us...a worker who had to find work in a radius beyond Nazareth, and earlier, as an outsider living in Egypt.  We know from St. Luke that he was not wealthy, for he could not provide a lamb when Jesus was presented in the Temple, but only two turtle doves. Yet, he seems to have provided a home for Jesus and Mary and was able to travel with them to Jerusalem when Jesus was twelve.
Despite the few verses in the Gospels describing Joseph, what we do have provides the picture of a man of faith, obedience, integrity, fortitude, patience, fidelity and holiness.  Something to which we all can aspire.
Bro. Rene

Just A Grain of Wheat

The old adage, "Bread is the staff of life." continues to hold true today, in both a physical as well as a spiritual sense. Although people fear excessive carbohydrates, bread does provide protein and other nutrients needed to sustain a healthy body. Wheat germ is a noted supplement for a healthy diet.  Fields of golden wheat swaying in the breezes of Kansas, Nebraska and the Dakotas feast the eye with their simple beauty.  And the Bread of Life, the Holy Eucharist, is necessary for our spiritual lives here and for eternity. But all comes from the tiny grain that, planted and watered, breaks apart, "dies" if you will, and produces something better. If it does not yield to this "dying process" it will not give us the grains that become our bread.
Our spiritual journey is full of seasons of a dying which produces growth.  We discover insights, achieve goals,  reach plateaus, and then the bottom seems to drop out.  Yet, from the adversity or pain, whatever it may be, we emerge stronger and climb to a new plateau...again and again.  There can be no Spring without Winter, no Easter without Good Friday.  Food for thought as we ponder this little seed  and realize that it's more than "just a grain of wheat."
Bro. Rene  

Remembering St. Patrick

Parades, parties, Hibernian feasts, festivities, roastings, songs, green beer, greeting cards and general mirth surround the commemoration of St. Patrick, the one time slave and later priest and bishop, responsible for the conversion of Ireland over a 30 period, whose Irish monk/missionaries helped to spread the Faith in Europe.  Irish immigrants helped build the Church in the United States and Australia.  Many of us, whether Irish or not, owe a debt of gratitude for his powerful witness, preaching and evangelizing. Chosen by God for a mission larger than he foresaw, he listened to
God speaking in his heart, and followed through with indefatigable energy and zeal, destroying idols, winning souls for Jesus, and building churches and monasteries.  He is another example of how God chooses the lowly and forsaken, yes even "slaves" to do his work.
St. Patrick, apostle of Ireland, you were kidnapped as a youth and sold as a slave, but discovered the living God in the depths of solitude and prayer. After escaping home, God called you to return to the land of your imprisonment as a missionary, and you converted the entire nation to faith in our Lord. In the trials of life, help us to cast ourselves into the hands of the Almighty, as you did. May we find in these hardships an opportunity to discover the God of life at work in our experience—sustaining us, calling us home, and sending us out again to serve others. Pray for us, that we might proclaim this faith with your fearlessness. Amen.
Bro. Rene

The Lord Is Close To The Brokenhearted

Daily, tragedy multiplies upon tragedy.  A month ago, the Parkland shooting, and residual grieving mixed with anger and frustration that may never disappear, and again in Florida, a newly installed bridge collapses and crushes an estimated ten cars and kills at least six people and injures several others..  More grieving, more broken hearts. We feel for the victims but we must not forget the families and friends who experience the trauma of suddenly losing a loved one.
Today's Responsorial Psalm, excerpts from Psalm 34,  offers some consolation for these brokenhearted (and all of us). Yes, the Lord is especially close in misfortune, injustice and distress.
When the just cry out, the Lord hears
and rescues them from all distress.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted,
saves those whose spirit is crushed..
Many are the troubles of the just,
but the Lord delivers from them all. (Ps 34: 18-20)
May we, in prayer, word and prayer be close to the brokenhearted we know about and help them bear with and rise above their grief.
Bro. Rene

The Ides Of March

March 15th, the "Ides of March", already infamous for the assassination of Julius Caesar, was  made immortal by William Shakespeare in his play, JULIUS CAESAR, and, as we approach Holy Week, has an ominous link to the "assassination" of Jesus. In two weeks, we will be in Holy Week when our readings and thoughts will be focused on the Passion and Death of Jesus. (This would be the time to watch THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST, perhaps a bit closer--Palm Sunday, for example).
 Our Lent, thus far, has been dealing with how we can purify our lives to be a more faithful and ardent disciple of Jesus, but we shift now to the thinking, and events that led up to his great sacrifice on the cross. The violence of our time was equally matched in his time, and would seem that despite his death and resurrection, has abated little. We have been given the task of living out the mission of Jesus for our day; we might look closely at the way we live to see if it is truly doing that.  If so, then we can have an influence on diminishing violence in our circle of the planet; if not, then we continue the pattern of assassination in word and deed.  The Ides of March is our day, not Easter.
Bro. Rene

God's Comforting Love

We hear from "The Book of Consolation" in what is called  "Second Isaiah", differing from the castigations of the earlier chapters Isaiah and prophesying the victory of good over evil.  Things were "bad:" in Isaiah's time, as they seem to have been at all times since THE FALL, so what he said to the Israelites still applies to us today.  He promises that God will keep his covenant with his people, give them green pastures, water, mercy and cause to rejoice. When they expressed doubt, Isaiah uses the beautiful image of motherly love:  "Can a  mother forget her infant,/ be without tenderness for the child of her womb?/ Even should she forget, I will never forget you." (Is 49:15).  Doesn't this say it all?
If we are dealing with discouragement, frustration or challenges we think are too much for us to bear, let us reflect on these comforting words and be assured that we are as safe and secure as a child in his or her mother's arms.
Bro. Rene

Awaiting Healing With Patience

Today's Gospel describes the healing of the man by the pool of Bethesda, who had been waiting 38 years for for a cure.(Cf. Jn 5:1-16).  We do not know much about him, but few of us would have his patience waiting practically a lifetime for someone to help us. He might be labeled "homeless" in today's jargon; how he survived without SSI is a mystery.  We don't even know if he prayed for a cure, but Jesus, seeing his plight, approached him, had pity on him and cured him.  Can we imagine the man's exhilaration, and joy? Somewhat matched the compassion of Jesus, who breaking the Sabbath, set this man free.
This is the Jesus to whom we pray.  Do we realize this?  Do we have the patience to wait or the  confidence in his compassion to answer our prayers, or even better, to reach out to us and take care of us without our even asking?
Such is the patience and confidence I find in a Rwandan man I helped (through friends) to have a cleft palate and hairlip corrected through surgery.  Now he seeks with utter confidence $2,000 to start a pharmacy to support his mother, father, and sister. His name is Melard and he has been patiently waiting for his "cure" for over 20 years, and now his opportunity to start his business.  It will come.
Bro. Rene

Asking With Faith

The story of the royal official's request for his son's healing, teaches us that our prayers need to be backed by the kind of faith that moved Jesus to grant his request. Jesus, at first, expressed a bit of exasperation, :Unless you see signs and wonders, you will not believe." (Jn 4: 48), but when the man ignored these words and persisted in his request, Jesus was satisfied with his faith and assured him of his son's recovery.
So often when we ask for something and do not receive it right away, we give up.  Doubt displaces what little faith prompted us to ask in the first place,  or perhaps we had the thought in the back of our heads that "asking won't do any good, but I'll ask anyway".   Certainly, the royal official did not ask in this way, but with the assurance that Jesus could and would do what he requested.  Strong faith.  No wonder Jesus responded so positively. May this Lent strengthen our faith so that our prayers will be fortified with a stronger-than-ever faith.
Bro .Rene

Spiritual Blindness

The thought of being blind is frightening.  Somehow, however, when blindness strikes, people learn to adapt.  Spiritual blindness, is not always easy to detect ("Not My Fault Syndrome)", and can be dismissed for a long period of time.  "I'm doing fine without ll this religion stuff."  But that's just it, we can miss the beauty and depth of a life of faith, of seeing the hand of GOD in creation and in the events of our lives.  It's not just coincidence or happenstance, but blindly, that's what we attribute things to.  Jesus was there for the man born blind, John 9:1-41, cured him and helped him take the next step to open his eyes and recognize and come to believe that it was Jesus, the Son of Man, who cured him. Both his physical and spiritual eyes were opened.  May we this day pray for the cure of our own physical blindness and that of so many others, especially for "The Searchers" and "The Drifters".
Bro. Rene

Facing The Truth

Two contrasting characters, both sinners, appear in today's Gospel, the Parable of the Publican and the Pharisee  (Lk 18:9-14), a good story for reflection during Lent. The Pharisee lists his reasons for gratitude, based on his "privileged rank" above the greedy, dishonest, adulterous, and the publican who prayed from the back of the Temple area.  No, he was not like these others, but he failed to see that indeed, he and all of us carry the shadows of sinfulness within, despite how we appear on the outside.The tax collector,on the other hand, makes no pretense of his righteousness and admits flatly that he is a sinner in need of pardon.  He is honest, truthful, direct and  humbly admits his sinfulness and need for forgiveness, warranting the praise of Jesus: "...for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled and the one who humbles himself will be exalted." (Lk 18:14). May his prayer, "O God, be merciful to me a sinner,: be ours, for it is so easy to slip into the self-righteous attitude of the Pharisee.
Bro. Rene 

LIving The Great Commandmet

Jesus commended the Scribe who attested that not only did he know the Great Commandment, to love God and neighbor, but that keeping them was worth more than burnt offerings and sacrifices. (cf. Mk 12:33 )  He spoke with such understanding that he obviously had been living them, for which Jesus commended him that he was "not far from the kingdom of God" (Mk 12:34).  His was not just intellectual knowledge, but  empirical as well. 
In this Lenten season, are we not striving to live this commandment better that we have been?  Our prayers, fasting and almsgiving should be leading us to a deeper love of God and our neighbor, not just "spiritual push-ups" Most likely, we too are "not far from the kingdom of God," but surely we are not there yet.  There are miles yet to be traveled.  May our actions today set the direction and pace of our journey toward that kingdom.
Br. Rene. 

• 7:10 AM

Blaming

This day an age of blaming someone or something else rather than facing the truth is not new, as we read in today's Gospel. Lk 11: 14-23).  Rather than accept the cure of the mute as a miraculous sign of God's power at work, some claimed:  "By the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons, he drives out demons." (Lk 11:15).  Jesus, with razor sharp logic quickly refutes their claim:  How can the kingdom of Satan survive if it's at war with itself?  He then challenges them and us when he states:  "But if it is by the finger of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you." (Lk 11:20).  In the Kingdom of God, human values and logic must yield to a "higher logic", one that defies the world's way of thinking, into which we can easily fall prey.  And blaming goes right along with a refusal to accept the ways of the Kingdom of God..  Fixing our eyes and heart focused on Jesus keeps us on the path of the truth and discipleship.  Isn't that where we want to be?
Bro .Rene

The Spirit of the Law

Being a good Jew, Jesus adhered to the Law of Moses, but admitted that he had come to fulfill it, not abolish it.  (cf. Mt 7:17).  The fulfillment consisted in emphasizing the Law of Love, which was behind the many tenets of Jewish Law.  That was sometimes overlooked, as the letter of the Law dominated thinking and acting.  Jesus made it clear that love of God and love of neighbor must come first. The Law is there to guarantee that acts of charity will be performed, but the law can sometimes stand in the way of performing them.  When the disciples were hungry, they picked grain to eat, even on the sabbath, much to the disdain of the Pharisees, yet Jesus gave examples of other Greats from the past, David included, who "broke the law" to feed the hungry.  It takes a listening heart to discern the difference between charity and outright lawlessness. Dear God, let the Law of Love take precedence in my actions today and every day.
Bro. Rene

Remember Mercy

Note:  Evidently the deadline for posting was changed again...you will receive two slices today, I hope.

When Jesus answered Peter's question about the appropriate range of forgiveness, "seven times" (the Hebrew euphemism for "unlimited", Jesus replied, "seventy-seven times", a multiple of seven to emphasize "limitless".  This is a tall order, but as we pray in Psalm 25,  God's mercy is limitless and "from of old". and is the model for ours.  God shows sinners the way and teaches the humble his way. (cf. Ps 25: 8-9).  If we remember the zillions of times we have asked for mercy and forgiveness and have received it, it will help us to lavish forgiveness limitlessly on those who have offended us.  It will help us today, if we remember God's mercies to us, just in the past week, we'll see how kind and merciful he is, and how he gently invites us to be the same.
Bro. Rene

No Spectacle

Despite all the glimmer and glamour of the 90th presentation of the Oscars. when Naaman, came for a cure to his leprosy, the method proscribed by Elisha the Prophet was a simple plunge into the Jordan seven times..  Naaman balked, wanting something more Hollywood-like. and left in anger.  A servant convinced him to follow the prophet's orders and lo and behold, he was cured.
God answers our prayers the same way.  Let us be content with his simple response and not look for a Hollywood answer.
Bro .Rene

Cleansing

The Liturgy for today provides two Gospel options, the cleansing of the Temple, Jn 2:13-25, or, in view of upcoming Baptisms at Easter,  the Samaritan Woman, Jn 4:5-52. Both might be considered under the title, Cleansing.
Jesus is outraged, to put it midlly, at the sight of his Father's House now turned into a "den of thieves", a market place for the sale of goods and sacrificial offerings as well as the exchange of money.  The whip comes out, tables are overturned, coins fly everywhere and merchants flee, themselves outraged by this "house cleaner."
Jesus uses a more gentle approach with the woman at the well, by acknowledging her presence and his need for a drink of water. Winning her confidence in the course of their conversation, he aids her in "coming clean" about her past and her possible future.
Isn't Lent about cleansing?  Of routing habits, or sluggishness, or things that stand between us and the Father?  Is it not a call to "come clean and admit our sins and seek pardon for them?  If we need a strong force to help us, Jesus is there.  If we need his gentle prodding, he will give it.  Come, Jesus, do what you see is best for me to clean my temple.
Bro. Rene 

Lavishly Loving

The appropriately fitting Gospel for Lent, the Prodigal Son, AKA, the Prodigal Father, the Parable of the Two Sons (Lk 15: 11-32), gives us a picture of the enormous love between a Father and his sons.  Despite his bold demand for his inheritance before his father's death, and the squandering of it, the "bad son" cannot escape the Father's unbounded love, even before he sees the error of his ways and returns begging forgiveness. The Father had been waiting for him daily and spared no expense to lavish his love and forgiveness upon him. The "good" son, resents this, blinded by he is by his own self-righteousness and self-pity and fails to welcome his brother with even a smidgen of love.  Yet, the Father lovingly explains his position without dismissing this older son, giving him a chance to repent from his sin as the younger son had done.
It's very hard to accept such unconditional love, especially when all we see is the "bad" side of our lives. If we cannot see the good in ourselves, how can we see it in others, especially in our loving Father, whose love seems "unreal", too good to be true?  He knows this and will continue to love and to lavish that love upon us, until, like the younger son, we bend in humility and accept his lavish love.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner; remove the scales from hy eyes that I may see and accept your unconditional love. Amen.
Bro Rene

The Stone Rejected

Following Jesus includes being rejected as he was.  This is not a pleasant thought, for we all from the depths of our being wish to be accepted.  It's a more acute longing when we are expending all of our energy, time and talent to living as Jesus did (as best we can) and yet, not only seem to have no effect on others, but are ridiculed and rejected. St. Marcellin suffered much at the hands of fellow priests who berated his lack of education, his "farm boy" upbringing, his work ethic, and labeled him unfit to be a priest, least of all the founder of a congregation of teaching brothers. Yet, utilizing his strong will, stubborness, if you will, he stuck to what he sensed to be God's call and two hundred years later, the fruits of his efforts continue to reach thousands of students and inspire countless others to adhere to his simple spirituality of imitating Jesus and Mary. 
The parable of the landowner (Mt 21:33-43, 45-46) foreshadowed the fate of Jesus and speaks loudly today to us of our own "fate" as his disciples, as well as to those who reject him and us, for the rejection continues to this day. May we be among those who accept Jesus and follow him despite the opposition we receive.
Bro. Rene

Sharing Our Gifts

Today's familiar parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus teaches us that we are not to hoard or selfishly keep to ourselves, the gifts we have been given,  "remember that you have received what was good during your lifetime",  (Lk 16: 24). We do not see a command to share them in the parable, yet for not being aware of Lazarus at the gate in his sorry plight, the rich man finds himself in torment in the netherworld, while Lazarus finds comfort in the bosom of Abraham. We can be so easily blinded by the many things we accumulate and miss the opportunity to share what we have, materially or spiritually with others.  If we go through our homes, closets,  attics, basements, garages, how much "stuff" do we find that we never use anymore?  There are many who, no doubt, could use it.
Not that Lent is meant for Spring Cleaning, but it could help us to open our eyes to help the Lazarus's at our gate as well as free us from our blindness.
Bro. Rene