Monthly Archives: May 2016

Thursday of the 8th Week in Ordinary Time (Year II)
1 Peter 2:2-5,9-12 | Psalm 99:2-5 | Mark 10:46-52

When Bartimaeus heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout and to say, ‘Son of David, Jesus, have pity on me’. And many of them scolded him and told him to keep quiet, but he only shouted all the louder, ‘Son of David, have pity on me’. (Mark 10:47-48)

We call on the Lord when we are troubled. As the depth of our plight increases, our voices, like Bartimaeus’, grow all the louder.

But when everything’s hunky-dory, we quietly go about our own business, and the Lord is an afterthought at best.

And when the Lord comes to our attention in the form of people needing help, or even charity fundraisers, they might as well have “detour” signs hanging from their necks.

Not exactly exemplary conduct for “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a consecrated nation, a people set apart to sing the praises of God who called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.” (1 Peter 2:9)

Perhaps we should spend more time asking the Lord what He would like us to do, take the time to listen to His quiet voice in the stillness of our hearts…and take the appropriate actions. Even if St. Peter deems us “visitors and pilgrims”, living in this world but not of it, we “have been given mercy” and should therefore show compassion towards those who are “outside the mercy”. (1 Peter 2:10)

Can I have an “Amen”, brothers and sisters? ?

Wednesday of the 8th Week in Ordinary Time (Year II)
1 Peter 1:18-25 | Psalm 147:12-15, 19-20 | Mark 10:32-45

They said to Jesus, ‘Allow us to sit one at your right hand and the other at your left in your glory’. […] When the other ten heard this they began to feel indignant with James and John (Mark 10:37, 41)

And probably just a little jealous.

“Wah, so thick-skinned man!” would be a common reaction to the above passage, but the outspoken sons of Zebedee weren’t exactly ordinary apostles. Based on the Synoptic Gospel accounts, they ranked with St. Peter himself as the apostles most closely associated with Jesus. To wit:

• all three, with Peter’s brother Andrew, were the first four called by Jesus (Matthew 4:21, Mark 1:19, Luke 5:10)
• all three witnessed Jesus’ Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1, Mark 9:2, Luke 9:28)
• all three witnessed the raising of Jairus’ daughter (Mark 5:37, Luke 8:51)
• all three had a private discourse with Jesus about the End Times (Mark 13)
• all three were closest to Jesus during His Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:33)
• the brothers wanted to call down heavenly fire on a Samaritan village that rejected Jesus (Luke 9:54), befitting Jesus’ nickname for them: Boanarges or “Sons of Thunder” (Mark 3:17)
• Peter and John were sent to make preparations for the Last Supper (Luke 22:8)
• Jesus uses John to teach an important lesson on the use of His Name (Mark 9:38)

Certainly, from a human perspective, James and John must have at least been on the shortlist of personages entitled to sit beside Jesus in the heavenly kingdom. True to their thunderous nature, they were not shy about asking for that privilege.

To their credit, though, they did ask, and Jesus in turn kindly but firmly put them in their place. In contrast, I think we’ve all witnessed braggarts male and female who make a beeline for strategic tables at various functions, believing themselves to be Very Important Personages, and leaving waitstaff with the unpleasant task of bursting their bubble and enduring their blustery tirades.

So let us remember to pray for our clergy, our maids, our food servers, our public transport drivers, our block cleaners, and every else who serve our needs and wishes daily, and may have had to endure our fiery unreason. Let us also think hard about how we can serve others both more and less fortunate than ourselves, for as today’s Gospel reminds us:

the Son of Man himself did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45)

Lord, you taught us that to love is to serve. Help us serve others with love for all, and malice toward none. Amen.

Tuesday of the 8th Week in Ordinary Time (Year II)
1 Peter 1:10-16 | Psalm 97:1-4 | Mark 10:28-31

Free your minds, then, of encumbrances; control them, and put your trust in nothing but the grace that will be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. Do not behave in the way that you liked to before you learnt the truth; make a habit of obedience: be holy in all you do, since it is the Holy One who has called you, and scripture says: Be holy, for I am holy. (1 Peter 1:13-16)

St. Peter’s exhortation to turn our backs on our former hedonistic selves inspired me to write this parody of an exceedingly secular song made popular by Elvis Presley:

A little less fornication, a little more Spirit please
Earthly complication ain’t satisfactioning Me
A little more like and a little less bark
A little less fight and a little more spark
Loose your toungue and open up your heart and praise and glorify Me
Praise and glorify Me

Or, in the words of St. Paul:

When I was a child, I used to talk like a child, and think like a child, and argue like a child, but now I am a man, all childish ways are put behind me. (1 Corinthians 13:11)

Lord, remind us every day that what we truly need is the one thing we often turn our backs on: Your loving guidance that is Truth in holiness. Help us see that Truth in the world around us, and help us help others find it in You. Amen.

Monday of the 8th Week in Ordinary Time (Year II)
1 Peter 1:3-9 | Psalm 110:1-2, 5-6, 9-10 | Mark 10:17-27

In today’s reading, St. Peter reinforces the message that St. Paul wrote for the Romans in yesterday’s second reading: the road to God’s glory may pass through the tribulations of people or circumstances who would beat down or otherwise weaken your faith. Stay the course, though, and you will be rewarded with the crown of life that comes with your own faithfulness.

This is a message familiar to all Catholics, but following through on it can be somewhat difficult, with the distractions and seductions of modern life, with the continual badgering from advertisements on the virtues of the latest material goods and comforts. Indeed, as Jesus reflected in today’s Gospel, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!”

I’ve been trying something over the past few years to moderate these impulses, with surprising success. It’s a simple two-part question that I’d like to share with you, dear brothers and sisters:

How much joy will this bring me, and for how long?

It’s telling that, with pretty much every new tablet, or car, or other modern temptation, the answer to the above is invariably “less than I’d expect for the price I’d be paying, and not for long”.

Similarly, when it comes to considering the possibility of undercutting my rivals or otherwise gaining riches and fame at the expense of others, the answer is inevitably “not a lot, and it’ll only last till they cut me off at the knees”.

When it comes to spending time learning about and sharing the Word of God, however, I can honestly answer “more than I expected, and for all eternity”. For the unbelievers, it’s a bizarre choice, considering:

You did not see him, yet you love him; and still without seeing him, you are already filled with a joy so glorious that it cannot be described (1 Peter 1:8)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBiWbfDmg70

Lord, we love You, but our love is weak and easily shaken. Help us endure those who would tear us from You, and show them in turn what Your unconditional Love could be for them, so that they in turn may come to love You as we do. Amen.

The Most Holy Trinity (Year C)
Proverbs 8:22-31 | Psalm 8:4-9 | Romans 5:1-5 | John 16:12-15

But [looking forward to God’s glory] is not all we can boast about; we can boast about our sufferings. These sufferings bring patience, as we know, and patience brings perseverance, and perseverance brings hope, and this hope is not deceptive, because the love of God has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit which has been given us. (Romans 5:3-5)

For some reason, I picture in my head a “martyred” middle-aged lady, moaning aloud at her bad back and miscellaneous aches and pains that are part of the ageing process, and delighting in others’ portrayal of her as a “suffering saint”.

Except, of course, that isn’t the kind of suffering that St. Paul refers to. Instead, he’s recalling Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, specifically:

Happy are you when people abuse you and persecute you and speak all kinds of calumny against you on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven; this is how they persecuted the prophets before you. (Matthew 5:11-12)

I’ve written previously about how my best friend also happens to be my “personal faith assailant”. If you’ve ever been asked seemingly-innocent questions about Catholicism that you couldn’t answer, you know what I deal with on a regular basis.

But his “assaults” remind me just how much I still have to learn, and though I may not be able to jump into full-time seminarial studies, I can at least dedicate myself to reflecting for an hour or so each day as I write this blog (patience).

And taking “baby steps” gives me the will to keep going (perseverance).

Which in turn gradually brings me closer to a proper understanding of God’s unconditional and unlimited love, and so entertain such sure hope, in the fullness of time, of dwelling with God in his eternal kingdom. This, I think, is worth boasting about…which is why you’re reading about it here. ?

As for my own age-related aches and pains, I’ll bear them quietly, thank you very much. ?

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.