His Word Today: Saint Ignatius of Loyola

Good morning everyone,

Today, the Church celebrates the liturgical Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, born circa 23 October 1491 in the Basque region of present-day Spain.  After spending some time at court and as a soldier, he experienced a call to follow Jesus.  Having been injured in battle, he was convalescing when he asked for books of fiction and tales of knight-errantry, however none were to be found.  Instead, he was presented with a book describing the life of Christ and another containing the lives of the saints.  As he read these over and over, he began to be attracted to the stories and reflected on them.  Eventually, the practice of reading these texts, combined with that of reading about worldly things led him to ponder all of them.  While he considered worldly things, he would often be excited, but this excitement would pass, while his fascination with the life of Christ and with that of the Saints continued to fill him with joy.  This discipline eventually developed into a refined method of discernment that is still known as the Discernment of Spirits.

The gospel passage chosen for this liturgical Memorial places us with Jesus and the crowds that were following him.  At a certain point, he said to them: If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple (Lk 14:26).  This translation is somewhat challenging, for Jesus never wished us to hate anyone.  However, in the light of the experience encountered by Saint Ignatius, we might consider the relationships we currently have with our fathers and mothers, our wives and children, our brothers and sisters, and even ourselves.  Are we truly happy with these, or is there something that we need to change in order to make them better?

It takes great courage to make changes, but sometimes these are necessary so that we can work at strengthening the relationships we have with others, and with God.  If we want to follow Him, if we want to learn from him, we need to ask for the grace to discern the truth of the situations we are facing.  Only then will we be able to make wise and prudent decisions.

Have a great day.

His Word Today: Saint Peter Chrysologus

Good morning everyone,

Today, the Church celebrates the Memorial of Saint Peter Chrysologus (circa 380 to circa 450 AD).  The name Chrysologus means golden worded.  Saint Peter was the Bishop of Ravenna (Italy) from about the year 433 until his death.  He is known as the Doctor of Homilies because of the concise but theologically rich reflections he delivered during his time as Shepherd of Ravenna.

An example of his teachings appears in the Office of Readings (part of the Liturgy of the Hours) for this day.  Speaking about the incarnation of Christ, he says:

A virgin conceived, bore a son, and yet remained a virgin.  This is no common occurrence, but a sign; there is no reason here, but rather God's power, for he is the cause, and not nature.  It is a special event, not shared by others; it is divine, not human.  Christ's birth was not necessity, but an expression of omnipotence, a sacrament of piety for the redemption of men.  He who made man without generation from pure clay made man again and was born from a pure body.  The hand that assumed clay to make our flesh deigned to assume a body for our salvation ... (Sermon 148, PL 52, 596-598).

These rich images provide food for our thought and prayer.  May Saint Peter continue to inspire those who seek to share the Word of God, so that this living Word may always awaken a desire within us to know God more closely.

Have a great day.

His Word Today: Saint Martha

Good morning everyone,

Today, the Church celebrates the Memorial of Saint Martha.  Martha is described in the gospels of Luke and John as the sister of Mary and Lazarus.  Saint Luke says that when Jesus entered the village ... a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him (Lk 10:38).  Based on this description of hospitality, Saint Martha has been associated with the images of maturity, strength, common sense and concern for others.

Inspired by the example of Saint Martha, Jesus disciples have striven through the centuries to be people of service, ready to welcome strangers and to extend hospitality to them as though they were Christ himself.  As we do, we must also constantly fuel our eagerness to extend exuberant welcome with a willingness to sit at the Master's feet (cf Lk 10:39).  If we do, he will constantly guide our words and actions, making us aware of those who are in need, and allowing us the privilege of welcoming guests and caring for them.

Today, let us ask the Lord to inspire a thirst in our hearts to extend hospitality to those we meet.  We may never know the ways that Jesus will show his face to us, and the opportunities he will afford us to serve him, even with the most simple of gestures.  Yet, even the most insignificant effort on our part might bring immense relief to another person's soul.

Have a great day.

Ask

Who among us has not been strolling through the aisles in the grocery store only to come upon a young mother pushing a child in her grocery cart and witnessed the child asking insistently for one item or another?  Perhaps we have seen this scene in a restaurant where parents seem to be doing all they can not to appear frazzled while the children seated around them constantly cry out about one concern or another.  Do you feel sorry for the parents or for the children?  Do you remember a time when you too experienced such moments with your own children or grandchildren?

When a child is still young and innocent, requests of this sort are simple; they can be persistent and are not always timely, but they are made with complete earnestness and trust: they ask for love, they ask for drinks, they ask for food, they ask for protection, they even ask for play.  And they ask over and over again.

The first reading for this Mass presents Abraham who stands before the Lord and asks the same question over and over again (cf Gn 18:23-32), as though he might be a child asking his parent for a treat.  If Abraham could pray with such insistence, why is it that we somehow think that we cannot or should not ask in this way for the things we need?

Sometimes, we need to be reminded that we are also children, God's children.  We have a loving and generous Father who is waiting for us to ask, and he welcomes our persistence too.  Like parents who dream of the day when their children will grow up, our God looks forward to the day when we will come to him with our questions, our doubts and fears, our joys and our successes.  In the gospel passage today, Jesus taught his disciples to pray with simple words (cf Lk 11:1-4).  Let us never be afraid to speak these words in our own prayer, over and over again.  Our God loves us and wants to provide for us.  He has made us alive together with him (Col 2:13).  He wants us to be happy, he wants us to ask persistently, he wants us to live forever with him in heaven.

His Word Today: Saints Joachim and Anne

Good morning everyone,

Today, the Church celebrates the liturgical memorial of Saints Joachim and Anne, the parents of the Virgin Mary.  They are not mentioned in the gospels but our knowledge of them comes from the oral tradition of the early Church.  They are mentioned in a writing known as the Gospel of James: a transcript which is from the second century A.D. which was never included among the writings of the New Testament.  According to this writing, Mary was promised to Joachim and Anne by an angel.  As a child, she was consecrated to God and remained a virgin all her life.

Veneration of the parents of Mary has a special prominence in the Eastern Church - both Orthodox and Catholic.  They are especially seen as patron saints of holy marriages and holy families and grandparents.  Joachim and Anne serve as role models for husbands and wives, mothers and fathers and even grandparents.  We can strive to emulate them in their devotion to God and to Our Lady, Mary, the mother of our Lord, Jesus.

In the gospel chosen for the memorial of these holy grandparents, Jesus says to his disciples: Blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear ... many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see ... and to hear what you hear (Mt 13:16-17).  Let us ask Saint Joachim and Anne to be close to us today.  May they who had the privilege of saying yes to God's word help us to do the same so that we too can see and hear with faith today and joyfully give thanks to God for all that we have received.

Have a great day.

His Word Today: Saint James the Greater

Good morning everyone,

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of Saint James the Apostle, the patron saint of Spain.  His mortal remains are housed in the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostella, in the region of Galacia.

The gospel passage for today's Eucharistic celebration shows us the heart of Jesus' understanding of authority.  The mother of James and John misunderstood his interpretation of this teaching.  Like many of her time, she perceived leadership as a majestic reward, rather than Jesus' new-found concept of authority that is born out of service.  In fact, he explained to the apostles: whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant (Mt 20:26).

This image might seem simple at first, but the more we strive to implement it, the more we will discover how challenging it truly is.  It is not impossible though; it begins with a simple prayer whispered in hope: Dear God, where do you need me to be today and what do you need me to do?

Have a great day.

His Word Today: Seeking

Good morning everyone,

Today's gospel passage begins by describing the scene: Jesus went out of the house and sat down by the sea (Mt 13:1).  We are not told at what time of the day this happened.  It could have been early in the morning, just as the sun was rising, or it could have been in the evening hours.  Regardless of the time of day, the important thing is that Jesus went to the seashore.  The constant roar of the waves was - and is - a wonderful place for meditation.  Like an undulating heartbeat, it soon lulls the listener into a trance of sorts, one that somehow helps us to rest in prayer.

We cannot be sure that this was Jesus' intent, but on other occasions, the scripture writer tells us that Jesus had a routine of pausing in prayer, therefore it would not have been unusual for him to seek out such a place for meditation that day.  As was the case on many other occasions, he crowds came in search of him, seeking knowledge and teachings, and as he did on most occasions, Jesus responded to their request with no apparent concern for his own need (cf Mt 13:3-9).

The days of summer can provide us with an opportunity to ask ourselves how often we take time to sit in the presence of the Lord.  Do we seek out such occasions on a regular basis, pausing in prayer so that we can remain connected to the One who loves us and wants to be with us?  If we do, our God will most certainly fill us with the gifts we need in order to respond joyfully to the needs of his people.

Have a great day.