Giving In Abundance Always

When Jesus heard the news of his cousin, John the Baptist's brutal death, it was the final straw, it seemed, in a bad week. He had been rejected by the people of Nazareth and had to leave to save his skin.  To ease his sorrow, he sought a place of solitude so he could regain his focus on his Father and his mission,   But that was not to be; the crowds found him; they were hungry for his teaching and healing, and to boot, were also hungry for food, so he fed them.  The numbers are astounding:  5 loaves, two fishes, 12 baskets of fragmented left-overs and 5,000 men (not counting women and children) fed.  Is there no limit to the goodness of Jesus, of his abundant giving?  No, certainly not.
It is this image, and fact about Jesus that should spur us on when we think people are asking too much of us and we feel the need for a break. When it doesn't come, or is interrupted, it's time to pray over Jesus and the 5,000, or to St. Cajetan, whose Memorial is today.  He was a lawyer turned priest, a reformer, a founder of a hospital for the incurable and the founder of a group of fellow priests who worked to reform a corrupt clergy and church. Like Jesus, he gave entirely of himself for others, and when dying asked to be placed on a bed of planks because Jesus died on the wood of the cross.
When we feel tired, spent or in a "poor me" mode, these examples might give us to give limitlessly and in abundance.
Bro. Rene

Living Out The Transfiguration

In today's Gospel we see Jesus in garments shining like the sun and conversing very naturally with Moses and Elijah, an awesome trio and scene. Then the VOICE"  "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased; listen to him." (Mt 17:5). Dumbfounded, Peter, James and John  fell prostrate; yes it was good for them to be there, and yes, perhaps setting up three tents would make sense. But it was not the sense Jesus had in mind, and as they came down from the mountain, he told them to keep this a secret until he had risen from the dead.  No doubt they did not "get" this last part; it became clear only later, but this would be a boost to them when they saw their world torn apart by the arrest and crucifixion of Jesus.  Tabor perhaps helped soothe their bruises, but it was only on the Third Day that the "rising from the dead" clicked.  He meant it; he certainly was God!

We sometimes have Tabor moments but it is the living out of them through life's surprises, disappointments, challenges and pain that we fully experience our transformation.  Do we handle these with faith, trust and steadfast love of the ONE who brought us to the Mountain?   We need to nurture our Tabor moments by recalling them daily, by spending time in a "tent" with Jesus, and gazing upon his awesome, powerful, shining,loving Presence.
Bro. Rene

St. Mary Major

One of the four major basilicas in Rome, St. Mary Major is the oldest church dedicated to Mary and the oldest site of pilgrimage in her honor.  Today we celebrate the dedication of the basilica in 435 by Pope Sixtus III, in honor of the title of Theotokos, (Mother of God) declared by the Council of Ephesus in 432....
The original structure was an existing large home...palace, basilica...renovated into a church by Pope Liberius in the 3rd century.
Legend has it that Mary appeared in a dream to a man named John asking that a church be built in her honor.  The location of the church was to be marked by snow.  John reported the dream to the Pope, who also had the same dream.  They went to the hill, and sure enough, it was covered with snow.  The Pope marked out the dimensions of the church in the snow, giving Mary the title, "Our Lady of the Snow."  St. Mary Major is also known today as Maria ad Nives,' "Mary of the Snow."
Today's memorial is one of three Marial feasts in August, the Assumption on the 15th and the Queenship on the 22nd, reminders again of Mary's prominent place in our faith and our need to ask her to "pray for us now and at the hour of our death."
Bro. Rene

Rejection

Np one likes to be ignored or worse, rejected.  Jesus, who was acclaimed by the crowds after the Sermon on the Mount, was rejected by his hometown people in Nazareth.  It's a fact of life, that heroes, saints, are often misjudged and rejected.
John Marie Vianney, whose Memorial we observe today was nearly rejected by authorities in the seminary because he was such a poor student.  His education had been fragmented and inadequate on top of his slowness to learn, making him an unacceptable candidate for the priesthood.  Yet, when it came time for ordination, the bishop said, "We do not need learned priests, but holy ones."
With this obstacle overcome,, there began a 40 year term as pastor of the little church in Ars, a small town whose residents had drifted away from the faith.  When they saw his zeal, determination and austere lifestyle, they began to turn their lives around in imitation of him.  "We are no different from other people," they said, " but we live with a saint."  Rather than rejection, for him now it was recognition, reverence and acclamation as his reputation as a confessor spread throughout France.  In the summers he would spend 16 hours a day in the confessional, hearing over 300 confessions a day.
Even on his deathbed, he heard the confessions of penitents.
Being rejected might be a good sign that God is using the "weak, the unlearned, the humble," to do work that becomes seen as unmistakably his.
Bro. Rene

Old and New

"Then every scribe who has been instructed in the Kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old." (Mt 13: 51). Have you ever tried to clean out the attic, basement, garage, or a closet and found yourself making decisions as to what to keep and what to "pitch"?  For some, it's easy: " Everything must go."  For others, nostalgia and that ever- haunting, "I might need or use this someday" make us hesitate, and yes, keep, perhaps, more than we should...At least we put a little more "order" into our possessions, and down the line "the old" might be just what we are looking for.
On the spiritual level, it's more of a case of keeping what traditionally has worked for centuries, and adapting to something new, "outside the box" which has also proved amazingly helpful:  Religious Orders of Sisters outside of the cloister, the Jesuits and their 4th vow of obedience to the Pope. St. Marcellin and the mission of education to the "least favored." have added new and vibrant dimensions to the Kingdom of God.  In our own lives, morning, midday and evening prayer. weekly (or daily) Mass should be sturdy pillars.  The return of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is countering the "noise" of cell phones and i-phones and giving people, even the young a sense of peace and Presence that has been buried by technology.  May we exercise prudence as well as daring as we seek the best means to allow Jesus to build his Kingdom within us and around us.
Bro. Rene

St. Peter Julian Eymard

Noted for his love of the Eucharist and of Mary, Julian Eymard was once a member of the Marist Fathers, but his contemplative inclinations made it evident that he was not fully at home with them.. He left the Marist Fathers and, encouraged by St. John Mary Vianney, the Cure of Ars, he founded two congregations dedicated to Adoration of and promotion of the Blessed Sacrament:  The Blessed Sacrament Fathers and Sisters.  He had found "the pearl of great price" again referred to in today's Gospel, and was willing to "sell all" to purchase it.  (Cf. Mt 13: 45).  “We believe in the love of God for us,” he wrote. “To believe in love is everything. It is not enough to believe in the truth. We must believe in love and love is our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. That is the faith that makes our Lord loved. Ask for this pure and simple faith in the Eucharist. Men will teach you, but only Jesus will give you the grace to believe in him. You have the Eucharist. What more do you want? ”
St. Peter Julian, please help us to develop such a love of the Eucharist that it might become the center of our spiritual lives.
Bro rene

Our Own Wheat and Weeds

It's easy to look at the world and pick out who are the wheat and weeds.  "God will get 'em in the end", we think, but further reflection reveals that within our own hearts grow these two contrary plants forces, tendencies.  Do we have to wait for the "end" to weed them out or can we begin now, one by one?  Any gardener knows that as clean as a garden bed might appear after a "thorough weeding", it isn't long before the weeds start to appear again, and the weeding must be repeated.  So with us, it makes sense to try to eliminate the weeds as best we can and be ready to face them again and again...truly a life-long process. Where to begin?  God, guide me and help me to cultivate a fruitful and weedless garden as best I can with your help.
Bro. Rene