Learn from Me. The Fourteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time 2020

   Learn from Me.

The Fourteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time 2020

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July 5, 2020

Zechariah 9:9-10; Psalm 145; Romans 8:9-13; Matthew 11:25-30

In the Book of Zechariah, Israel is told to be patient and to be joyful for their king will come in unexpected ways. Instruments of war will no longer be required, and he will bring peace to his vast domain  In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus also talks about his dominion, but in a more gentle, inviting way, and Jesus is willing to share what he knows to anyone who wants to know God. He asks of us one thing – to learn from him for he is gentle and humble of heart.

         Jesus wants us to learn from him. How do we learn? We first listen, ask probing questions, we ponder, we read, test our knowledge, but mostly we keep an attitude of openness towards the new information we are appropriating. Allowing ourselves to be a student means to place ourselves in a position of humility, in a position of vulnerability, in a position where we confess that we do not know. As much as we continue to learn throughout life, we realize that we know less and less than we thought we did.

         Over the past month, a number of people have stopped to ask me genuinely what Black Lives Matters really means, what their goals were, and why they are so upset.  A far majority of people already know with great certitude and they have told me everything they know about the organization. They speak with clarity and conviction and they dismiss the actions and behaviors of protestors. However, I found those people who sincerely asked what they need to know much more interesting because they have an attitude of openness. They are willing to learn and they want to understand, and I don’t have the answers.

         We have much to learn about racism and privilege and its consequences. We have much to re-learn about our history and the ways we and our ancestors have contributed to creating systems that permit some groups to dominate while others are suppressed, and sometimes those systems are hard to detect because of our worldviews, our language, and the symbols we value. Our political and economic philosophies shape how we are going to learn about our current situation, but we need to take a step in that direction.

         The best way we can learn is to listen to stories of suffering, and listening is an enormously difficult task. Listening to suffering can be overwhelming, but we have to see that suffering is useful because it brings about the birth of compassion and love. Until suffering has been transformed, we carry with us, not just our own suffering, but that of our parents and ancestors. We have to learn to listen. The other person may say things that are full of wrong perceptions, bitterness, accusation, and blaming. We cannot lose our capacity to listen when we are tempted to give in to our irritation, judgment, and anger. When we keep compassion alive through our listen, the seeds of anger and judgment in our hearts do not get fed. If you want to make someone happy, ask him or her, “Do I understand you enough?” Also, know that people who suffer a lot are not able to tell us about their suffering inside.

         Understanding one’s suffering gives rise to compassion. Love is generated and we suffer less. If we understand the roots and nature of suffering, the path to its end will appear in front of us. Knowing there is a way out of this suffering brings relief, and we are no longer afraid. This is what Jesus asks of us when he says, “Take my yoke upon you, and your burden will be light.” Don’t be afraid of holding someone else’s suffering. It is your way forward.

Scripture for Daily Mass

First Reading:

Monday: (Hosea 2) I will allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak to her heart. She shall respond there as in the days of her youth, when she came up from the land of Egypt.

Tuesday: (Hosea 8) They made kings in Israel, but not by my authority; they established princes, but without my approval. With their silver and gold they made idols for themselves, to their own destruction. Cast away your calf, O Samaria! my wrath is kindled against them.

Wednesday: (Hosea 10) Israel is a luxuriant vine whose fruit matches its growth. The more abundant his fruit, the more altars he built; The more productive his land, the more sacred pillars he set up. Their heart is false, now they pay for their guilt.

Thursday: (Hosea 11) When Israel was a child I loved him, out of Egypt I called my son. The more I called them, the farther they went from me, sacrificing to the Baals and burning incense to idols.

Friday (Hosea 14) Return, O Israel, to the LORD, your God; you have collapsed through your guilt. Take with you words, and return to the LORD; Say to him, “Forgive all iniquity, and receive what is good, that we may render as offerings the bullocks from our stalls.

Saturday (Isaiah 6) I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne, with the train of his garment filling the temple. Seraphim were stationed above; each of them had six wings: with two they veiled their faces, with two they veiled their feet, and with two they hovered aloft.

Gospel: 

Monday: (Matthew 9) While Jesus was speaking, an official came forward, knelt down before him, and said, “My daughter has just died. But come, lay your hand on her, and she will live.” Jesus rose and followed him, and so did his disciples.

Tuesday: (Matthew 9) A demoniac who could not speak was brought to Jesus, and when the demon was driven out the mute man spoke. The crowds were amazed and said, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.”

Wednesday (Matthew 10) Jesus summoned his Twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out and to cure every disease and every illness. The names of the Twelve Apostles are these: first, Simon called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus; Simon the Cananean, and Judas Iscariot who betrayed Jesus.

Thursday (Matthew 10) Jesus said to his Apostles: “As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, drive out demons.

Friday (Matthew 10) “Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves. But beware of men, for they will hand you over to courts and scourge you in their synagogues, and you will be led before governors and kings for my sake as a witness before them and the pagans.

Saturday (Matthew 10) “No disciple is above his teacher, no slave above his master. It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher, for the slave that he become like his master.

Saints of the Week

July 5: Elizabeth of Portugal (1271-1336), was from the kingdom of Aragon begore she married Denis, king of Portugal, at age 12. Her son twice rebelled against the king and Elizabeth helped them reconcile. After he husband's death, she gave up her rank and joined the Poor Clares for a life of simplicity.

July 5: Anthony Mary Zaccaria, priest (1502-1539) was a medical doctor who founded the Barnabites because of his devotion to Paul and Barnabas and the Angelics of St. Paul, a woman's cloistered order. He encouraged the laity to work alongside the clergy to care for the poor.

July 6: Maria Goretti, martyr (1890-1902) was a poor farm worker who was threatened by Alessandro, a 20-year old neighbor. When she rebuffed his further advances, he killed her, but on her deathbed, she forgave him. He later testified on her behalf during her beatification process, which occurred in 1950.

July 9: Augustine Zhao Rong, priest and companions, Chinese martyrs (1648-1930) were 120 Chinese martyrs that included priests, children, parents, catechists and common laborers. Christians were persecuted throughout Chinese history. Augustine Zhao Rong was a diocesan priest who was brought to the faith after the example of the French missionary bishop Dufresse. Zhao Rong was arrested in 1815 and died in prison.

July 9: Leo Mangan, S.J.

July 11: Benedict, Abbot (480-547), was educated in Rome, but left after a few years to take on a life of solitude. He became a monk at Subiaco and lived alone, but his lifestyle developed followers so he built 12 monasteries for them. He left to found a monastery at Monte Cassino where he wrote his Rule that became a standard for Western monasticism. He adopted the practices of the austere Desert Fathers for community life and emphasized moderation, humility, obedience, prayer, and manual labor. 

This Week in Jesuit History

·      Jul 5, 1592. The arrest of Fr. Robert Southwell at Uxenden Manor, the house of Mr Bellamy. Tortured and then transferred to the Tower, he remained there for two and a half years.

·      Jul 6, 1758. The election to the papacy of Clement XIII who would defend the Society against the Jansenists and the Bourbon Courts of Europe.

·      Jul 7, 1867. The beatification of the 205 Japanese Martyrs, 33 of them members of the Society of Jesus.

·      Jul 8, 1767. D'Aubeterre wrote to De Choiseul: "It is impossible to obtain the Suppression from the Pope [Clement XIII]; it must be wrested from him by occupying papal territory."

·      Jul 9, 1763. The Society is expelled from New Orleans and Louisiana at the bidding of the French government.

·      Jul 10, 1881. Fr. Frederick Garesche wrote from Sequin, Texas, to his Superior: "The cowboys who had not deigned at first to lift their hat to the priest or missionary; who had come to the mission as to a camp meeting, for the fun of the thing, gave in, and their smiles and awkward salutes showed that they had hearts under their rude exterior."

·      Jul 11, 1809. After Pius VII had been dragged into exile by General Radet, Fr. Alphonsus Muzzarrelli SJ, his confessor, was arrested in Rome and imprisoned at Civita Vecchia.