My Soul Glorifies the Lord

 

  Lk 1:39-56

Mary Visits Elizabeth

³⁹ At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, ⁴⁰ where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹ When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. ⁴² In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! ⁴³ But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? ⁴⁴ As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. ⁴⁵ Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”

Mary’s Song

⁴⁶ And Mary said:

“My soul glorifies the Lord
⁴⁷     and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
⁴⁸ for he has been mindful
    of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
⁴⁹     for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
    holy is his name.
⁵⁰ His mercy extends to those who fear him,
    from generation to generation.
⁵¹ He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
    he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
⁵² He has brought down rulers from their thrones
    but has lifted up the humble.
⁵³ He has filled the hungry with good things
    but has sent the rich away empty.
⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel,
    remembering to be merciful
⁵⁵ to Abraham and his descendants forever,
    just as he promised our ancestors.”

⁵⁶ Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.

Today's Feast is a joyful celebration and prefigure of the missions of Mary and Jesus.  She was called to bring forth the Son of God into this world for the sake of our redemption and even before he was born, she brings him to meet his unborn cousin and his mother. Mary "went with haste," no hesitation, no holding back, as fast as she could. Her joy is expressed in her Magnificat, her prayer of praise which is prayed daily in the Church's Evening Prayer, Vespers.  As we celebrate this Feast, may we be aware of our mission to bring Jesus to others in imitation of Mary, joyfully and unreservedly.

Bro. Rene

Dear God, help me to follow the example of Mary, finding joy in my mission to bring her Son to others. Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bold Faith

 

  Mk 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.

Blind Bartimeus's desire to see impelled him to call out to Jesus even louder when the crowd was urging him to be silent. There must have been a desperateness in his heart and voice, for Jesus stopped and told the crowd to bring the blind man to him. Jesus honored his simple and direct request immediately, rewarding his faith. We like to think we have faith, but is it as strong as the faith of Bartimeus? Do we insist, persist, or simply give up when we don't have the answer we want when we want it? Bartimaeus displayed a bold, courageous faith and was rewarded for it. May he inspire us to be bold, faith-filled and persistent.

Bro. Rene

Dear God, help me to believe with the same strong faith of Bartimeus. Amen.

To Serve, Not To Be Served

 

Mk 10:32-45

Jesus Predicts His Death a Third Time

³² They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again he took the Twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him. ³³ “We are going up to Jerusalem,” he said, “and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, ³⁴ who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise.”

The Request of James and John

³⁵ Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.”

³⁶ “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.

³⁷ They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”

³⁸ “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”

³⁹ “We can,” they answered.

Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, ⁴⁰ but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.”

⁴¹ When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. ⁴² Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. ⁴³ Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, ⁴⁴ and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. ⁴⁵ For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

(Note: It's very good to be back after almost two weeks because of a scam that locked me out of my laptop.  Thanks to a friend,, we're back in business. Praise the Lord!)

 Ambition can creep into our lives as it did with the sons of Zebedee. They meant well, and so do we, but our desires and ambitions do not always mesh with the plan God has for us. Jesus clearly predicted a path of suffering and rejection, but James and John evidently missed the point, and so can we. That's why daily reflection on God's Word is so important; it keeps HIS plan before us and constantly demands that we let go of ours, which is usually not what God has in mind for us. The pattern of service and of death to self is what Jesus asks us to follow. He showed us the way of total self-giving and wants us to follow in his footsteps. May we listen to him and do whatever he tells us.

Bro. Rene

Dear Jesus, help me to follow the path of service to others rather than service to my ambitions. Amen.

The Greatest Commandment

 

  Jn 15:9-17

Remain In My Love

 ⁹ “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. ¹⁰ If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. ¹¹ I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. ¹² My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. ¹⁴ You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵ I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶ You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. ¹⁷ This is my command: Love each other."

One of the most beloved passages in St. John, in Scripture itself, it sums up beautifully and succinctly the message Jesus came to give us. We never seem to exhaust its meaning and implications even as we ponder it time and time again.  Sometimes love is not "warm and fuzzy", sometimes it is "tough love", but it always puts the good of the other first. We certainly hear and see this in the life of Jesus, and  his outstretched arms on the cross give us a striking visual of the extent of his love for us and what our love for others can and should be. Let us takes some extra time with these verses throughout the day and allow them to become the guidelines for our relationships with all who come into our life today and in the days ahead.

Bro. Rene

Dear Jesus, as you have loved me, so may I love others. Amen.

 

Do You Believe?

 

 John 16: 29-33 

 Overcoming the World

²⁹ Then Jesus’ disciples said, “Now you are speaking clearly and without figures of speech. ³⁰ Now we can see that you know all things and that you do not even need to have anyone ask you questions. This makes us believe that you came from God.”

³¹ “Do you now believe?” Jesus replied. ³² “A time is coming and in fact has come when you will be scattered, each to your own home. You will leave me all alone. Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me.

³³ “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

(Note: It has taken an hour and a half to connect to the internet this morning, so the question is not only how to overcome the world, but how to overcome a clogged and sluggish internet!)

Don't we wish we could see as clearly as the Apostles said they did?  I wonder.  From their reaction to the arrest, trial, scourging, crucifixion and death of Jesus we can surmise that they certainly did not "get it" until after the arrival of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. But they were eager, as we might be, to show their willingness to follow Jesus totally. Jesus was certainly right when he said "in this world you will have trouble." Thankfully he has overcome the world, so we do have his assurance that no matter how bad things seem, he is the victor. It is we who need an increase of faith and confidence. Yes,  we might claim that "we get it", we believe,  but do we? Our faith is tested daily, so daily we need to renew it.

Bro. Rene

Dear Jesus, strengthen my faith and help me to renew it every day so that I might follow you without reserve or fear. Amen.

Sent To The World

 

John 17: 11b-19 

Protect Them From Evil

¹¹ I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. ¹² While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.

¹³ “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. ¹⁴ I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. ¹⁵ My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. ¹⁶ They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. ¹⁷ Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. ¹⁸ As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. ¹⁹ For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.

Many Dioceses celebrate the Ascension of Jesus to heaven, but since we observed it on Thursday we will reflect  on the Gospel for the 7th Sunday of Easter. The Easter Season will end next Sunday on Pentecost.

We hear these consoling words of Jesus, part of his priestly prayer at the Last Supper. In his love for the disciples and us, he prays that we might continue to remain united to him as he sends us into the world to continue teaching about and spreading the Kingdom of God. With the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit, and despite human frailty, his followers have done that and we try as best we can to continue living out this mission. We know it's beyond just human capability and talent, so we relay on the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit to help us.  Together we can do it. We need to pray daily for the grace to be faithful and faith-filled bearers and teachers of the Word. Let us take more time for prayer today, the Lord's Day, to strengthen our faith and carry out our mission faithfully and zealously.

Bro. Rene

Dear God, thank you for calling me to be one of your disciples. Send me your Spirit that I might carry out my mission faithfully and zealously. Amen. 

 

Ask And Receive

 

 Jn 16:23b-28

Your Joy Will Be Complete

²³ In that day you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. ²⁴ Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.

²⁵ “Though I have been speaking figuratively, a time is coming when I will no longer use this kind of language but will tell you plainly about my Father. ²⁶ In that day you will ask in my name. I am not saying that I will ask the Father on your behalf. ²⁷ No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. ²⁸ I came from the Father and entered the world; now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.”

We hear this wonderful promise that Jesus will give us whatever we ask for, yet so often it seems our prayers go unheard, unheeded. At the same time Jesus speaks strongly about how much the Father loves us. If so, why my continued pain, my "unanswered" prayers for healing, the end of wars, the return to the faith of those who have drifted,  "liberty and justice for all", and so many other petitions?  Does God hear me, and if so, why doesn't he grant these requests? Always a mystery, it seems, but it is ours to believe that he hears our prayers and answers them in his own time and in the way that is best for us, which might not be the way we think they should be answered. May we not blame him for his apparent indifference or of turning a deaf ear to us, but rather open our hearts in trust that he will answer in his good time and in the way that is best for us.

Bro. Rene

Dear God, I believe you hear my prayers and will answer them in your good time, and because of your great love, in a way that is best for me. Amen.

 

Sorrow and Pain to Joy

 Jn 16:20-23

 ²⁰ Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. ²¹ A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. ²² So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy. ²³ In that day you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.

"I never promised you a Rose Garden" , goes an old country western hymn. Each day carries its challenges, mostly unexpected and unpredicted. When ever does the day go as we planned or envisioned it? It took an hour to connect to the internet this morning.  Was that in my plan book?  Everything is now late and the day's plan totally revised. A small thing compared to sorrows stemming from random shootings, or bombings in Gaza or the Ukraine. Jesus promises deliverance from all of this, sometimes in this world, but surely in the next. He promises joy as our pains disappear.  Let us remember his promises and rejoice when things don't seem to be going our way.

Bro. Rene

Dear God, your ways are not my ways.  Help me to trust the plan YOU have laid out for me. Amen. 

Go Into All The World

 

 Mark 16: 15-20 

The Ascension; Our Mission

¹⁵ He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. ¹⁶ Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. ¹⁷ And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; ¹⁸ they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”

¹⁹ After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God. ²⁰ Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.

We celebrate the Ascension of Jesus, his return to the Father and the commission handed to all of us to continue carry on the spreading of the Good News he came to teach us.  A formidable task, yet, with the presence of the Holy Spirit as our strength and our guide, the followers of Jesus have been faithful to it for 2,000 years!  Little by little we do our best to teach the Gospel by example and by word, even with that occasional butterfly in our stomachs or intimidated by our own failings or feeling of unworthiness.  This Gospel passage reminds us that we have a job to do and the means to carry it out.  Let us proceed with confidence knowing that we are not alone.

Bro.. Rene 

Dear Jesus, help me to accept and carry out the task you have given to me  to be your witness in word and action. Amen

The Spirit of Truth

  

John 16: 12-15

 The Spirit Continues the Teachings of Jesus

¹² “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. ¹³ But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. ¹⁴ He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. ¹⁵ All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”

Jesus has not abandoned us but remains with us through the Holy Spirit who continues to teach, inspire, guide and heal us. How blessed are we to have such a gift and further, how obligated are we to rely on the Spirit for guidance in our daily life.  We face obstacles, challenges, "tests" every day, even as simple as waiting an hour for the internet to "wake up" and allow us to use it, as happened this morning. These four verses assure us that we are not alone, but that the Spirit is with us. Let us take heart and cast away our fears and disgruntlement and face the day with confidence and joy.

Bro. Rene

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful. Amen.    

Jesus Will Send the Advocate

 

 Jn 16:5-11

 For Our Good

5 Jesus said to his disciples,  "Now I am going to him who sent me. None of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ ⁶ Rather, you are filled with grief because I have said these things. ⁷ But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. ⁸ When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: ⁹ about sin, because people do not believe in me; ¹⁰ about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; ¹¹ and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned."

As the time for the return of Jesus to the Father approaches, Jesus consoles us with the promise of the Advocate, the Spirit. His love for us does not allow him to leave  us orphaned, but under the guidance and protection of the Holy Spirit. Jesus finished the work he came to do, and now turns the ball over to us with the Holy Spirit to guide us, fortify us and enable us to live as Jesus taught us as well as to spread his teachings to others. It's a huge challenge, but his followers over the centuries have carried it out. This is our job now; can we live up to it?

Bro. Rene

Dear Jesus, send us your Holy Spirit and help us renew the face of the earth. Amen.

Not An Easy Life

 

  Jn 15:26-16:4a

The Work of the Holy Spirit

²⁶ “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me. ²⁷ And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning.

16 “All this I have told you so that you will not fall away. ² They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. ³ They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me. ⁴ I have told you this, so that when their time comes you will remember that I warned you about them. I did not tell you this from the beginning because I was with you."

Six weeks after the Resurrection, we are preparing for the next phase, the departure of Jesus and the coming of the Holy Spirit. Jesus sets the stage for the challenges and trials to come. Being a  disciple will not be easy. It will mean rejection, even death. We've seen it over the centuries and it continues today. Are we willing to walk this path? Are we willing to testify and to suffer for Jesus? The Holy Spirit will guide us and give us the strength and wisdom we need. Come, Holy Spirit!

Bro. Rene

Dear God, send us your Holy Spirit and we shall renew the face of the earth. Amen.

The Great Commandment

 

 Jn 15: 9-17

Love One Another

⁹ “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. ¹⁰ If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. ¹¹ I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. ¹² My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. ¹⁴ You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵ I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶ You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. ¹⁷ This is my command: Love each other."

Behold the great Template and Legacy of Jesus: "Love one another." This is why he, the Son of God, became one of us, taught us and died for us: that we may see with our eyes and hear with our ears how much God loves us, and for this reason,why we must love one another. How can Jesus make it any clearer? On Thursday we will celebrate the Ascension of Jesus into heaven; he leaves us, yes, physically, but not without having left us with the command and example to love one another. It takes effort, but without this magnanimous and unconditional love, we miss the point of the life, message and mission of Jesus.  Let us take time to reflect on and soak up these few verses, and renew our efforts and commitment to live them.

Bro. Rene

Dear Jesus, as you have loved me, so may I love others. Amen. 

 

Expect To Suffer

 

 Jn 15:18-21

The World Hates the Disciples

¹⁸ “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. ¹⁹ If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. ²⁰ Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. ²¹ They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me.

Jesus is very clear:his followers will suffer as he did for 'a servant is not greater than his master.' As his disciples, we experience rejection, ridicule, persecution and as we have seen over the centuries, death. Our love for Jesus is tried and proved in the crucible of suffering. Jesus warned us and stands by us. May we be willing to follow him in "bad times" as well as in good times. He suffered for us; are we willing to suffer for him?

Bro. Rene

Dear Jesus, thank you for suffering for me; may I willingly suffer for you. Amen.

 

Show Us The Way

 

 

 Jn 14:6-14

 Jesus Is The Way

⁶ Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. ⁷ If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

⁸ Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.”

⁹ Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? ¹⁰ Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. ¹¹ Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. ¹² Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. ¹³ And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. ¹⁴ You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

Like Philip, we want to know the Father and serve him better, and Jesus tells him and us that to do so, we need to know Jesus better, absorb his words, teachings and example and live them daily. It is the owrk of  lifetime but it can be and has been done. Jesus tells us to ask for anything in his name and he will grant it. The invitation is there; if we want to be more like him, let's ask, accept, and do whatever he tells us.

Dear Jesus, you are the Way, the Truth and the Life. Help me to do whatever you ask of me. Amen.

Remain In My Love

 

 Jn 15:9-11

True Joy

 ⁹ “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. ¹⁰ If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. ¹¹ I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.

These three short verses contain the formula for happiness and set the tone for post-ascension life with and in Jesus: keep his commands and remain in his love. By  doing this we will find complete and abiding joy. Not that we will be jumping frenetically for joy, but it will be a peaceful, all-encompassing joy that will be visible in our attitudes, our outlook on life and the future, and in our dealings with one another.  We will be "happy campers", a goal all of us want and seek. We find it in Jesus.  Let us renew our love for him daily through prayer and our interactions with one another.

Bro. Rene

Dear Jesus, as you love me, I love you and all who come into my life. Amen. 

Remain in Jesus

 

  Jn 15:1-8

The Vine and the Branches

15 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ² He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. ³ You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ⁴ Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

⁵ “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶ If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. ⁷ If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ⁸ This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

Today we celebrate the Optional Memorial of St. Joseph the Worker, instituted by Pope Pius XII in 1955 to give an authentically Christian understanding of work  and underscore its dignity and as a means of giving glory to God and of growing our own sanctification. If we see ourselves as branches on the vine, united to Jesus, then even our work can be part of our daily offering to him, thus giving work an important place in our  spiritual growth. Our work can thus be a prayer and not a drudge. May the example of St. Joseph help us appreciate our place on the vine and help us grow closer to Jesus.

Bro. Rene

Dear God, thank you for the gift of work and for the example of St. Joseph the Worker who silently and faithfully worked his trade. Amen.