Deep Within: The Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time 2024

                                                                      Deep Within:

The Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time 2024 

August 4, 2024

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Exodus 16:2-15; Psalm 78; Ephesians 4:17-24; John 6:24-35

 

We continue reading the narrative of the Fourth Gospel and the Bread of Life discourses. Exodus sets the stage for us as God provides manna in the desert for the wandering Israelites. The emphasis is that God is directly feeding the people and caring for their needs. The Jews of the time of Jesus know the story well, and they see the parallels between Moses and Jesus. The Gospel begins today with the people diligently looking for him, though he evades their search and ends up in a place they did not expect. Why are they looking for him? He is the real deal. He is the one who unites the people to God and shows them that God does care for their daily needs.

 

Perhaps the disciples search for Jesus reminds us of our search for God. We seek him in many places, times, and events, and sometimes God seems elusive and distant. Perhaps we speak to God in the wrong way or something we have done is the reason God will not come close. A reason we are often looking for God is that we are looking on the outside and in the distance. God remains an impenetrable mystery, and God’s action in the human heart and the unconscious world is also hidden. Our senses, our reason, our imagination, no matter how hard we try, cannot grasp the inner life of God, and so we continue to seek. 

 

Perhaps we have it all wrong. We keep looking for God on the outside and as if God is quite distant. We try to do what we think is pleasing to God, but we sometimes objectify God, and therefore make God into an idol. We cannot see God just as we cannot see our own face. We see our face through photographs or a mirror, but we cannot look at our face directly. Perhaps, we cannot see God because God is far too close. God is within, and therefore, we need to look within. Perhaps we need more alone time or to spend time in silence in order to encounter the God whom we seek.

 

We cannot answer the question, “Where is God?” because God cannot be rooted in a particular place or located. God and the human person are intrinsically interconnected. Our discovery of God as the divine presence within ourselves reveals who we truly are: a people with the capacity to receive God. Jesus is the place where all humanity is invited and drawn into the incarnation, the union of human and divine.

 

When we see that God dwells within us, with a closeness we cannot comprehend, we realize God is within every person. The person we love and cherish and honor, God is within that person. The person we hate, God is inside that person. The person we fear or distrust, God is within her. The person who hurt us or whom we have harmed, God is within him. It changes everything around when we see each other person as a child of God or as a brother, sister, friend. It is time to stop searching for God on the outside and looks for God’s abiding presence within each soul. God will nourish each person in one’s own way. Each person is seeking the God who will offer nourishment, and we innately cry out, “Give me this bread always.” Jesus is place of encounter. He is present to unify our divine hunger with an encounter with the living, abiding, the care-giving God. Our faith in him gives life to the world. As we receive Christ in our Eucharist, let us remind ourselves how deeply interconnected God is within our souls, within each soul, and that God cares for each person across our globe. God is the impenetrable mystery deep within. 

 

Scripture for Daily Mass

Monday: (Jeremiah 28) “Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon. Within two years I will restore to this place all the vessels of the temple of the LORD which Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, took away from this place to Babylon. 

 

Tuesday: (Daniel 7) Thrones were set up and the Ancient One took his throne. His clothing was bright as snow, and the hair on his head as white as wool; his throne was flames of fire, with wheels of burning fire.

 

Wednesday: (Jeremiah 31) At that time, says the LORD, I will be the God of all the tribes of Israel, and they shall be my people. Thus says the LORD: The people that escaped the sword have found favor in the desert.

 

Thursday: (Jeremiah 31) The days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers: the day I took them by the hand to lead them forth from the land of Egypt; for they broke my covenant,

 

Friday (Nahum 2) See, upon the mountains there advances the bearer of good news, 
announcing peace! Celebrate your feasts, O Judah, fulfill your vows! For nevermore shall you be invaded by the scoundrel; he is completely destroyed.

 

Saturday (2 Corinthians 9) Moreover, God is able to make every grace abundant for you, so that in all things, always having all you need, you may have an abundance for every good work.

 

Gospel: 

Monday: (Matthew 14) When Jesus heard of the death of John the Baptist, he withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself. The crowds heard of this and followed him on foot from their towns.

 

Tuesday: (Mark 9) Jesus took Peter, James, and his brother John, and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no fuller on earth could bleach them. 

 

Wednesday (Matthew 15) And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out, “Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is tormented by a demon.” But he did not say a word in answer to her. His disciples came and asked him,
“Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.”

 

Thursday (Matthew 16) "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."
He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter said in reply, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

 

Friday (Matthew 16) “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

 

Saturday (John 12) Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.

 

Saints of the Week

 

August 4: John Vianney, priest (1786-1859) became the parish priest in Ars-en-Dombes where he spent the rest of his life preaching and hearing confessions. Hundreds of visitors and pilgrims visited him daily. He would hear confessions 12-16 hours per day. 

 

August 5: Dedication of the Basilica of Mary Major in Rome is celebrated because it is the largest and oldest of the churches in honor of Mary. The veneration began in 435 when the church was repaired after the Council of Ephesus in 431 when Mary was proclaimed the Mother of God. This is the church where Ignatius of Loyola said his first Mass and where Francis of Assisi assembled the first crèche. 

 

August 6: The Transfiguration of the Lord is an historical event captured by the Gospels when Jesus is singled out as God's Son - ranking higher than Moses or Elijah. In front of his disciples, Jesus becomes transfigured, thus revealing his true nature. Ironically, the anniversary of the dropping of the first atomic bomb occurred at Hiroshima on August 6, 1945.

 

August 7: Sixtus, II, pope and martyr with companions (d. 258), died during the Valerian persecutions in 258. They were killed in the catacombs where they celebrated Mass. Sixtus was beheaded while speaking in his presidential chair and six deacons were killed as well. Lawrence, the Deacon, is honored on August 10th. Sixtus is remembered during the 1st Eucharistic prayer at Mass. 

 

August 7: Cajetan, priest (1480-1547), was a civil and canon lawyer who worked in the papal chancery. He later joined the Roman Order of Divine Love and was ordained a priest. He became aware that the church needed reform and he teamed up with the bishop of Theate (Gian Pietro Carafa) and formed a society of priests called the Theatines who lived in community and took monastic vows. They owned no property. 

 

August 8: Dominic, priest (1170-1221), was a Spaniard who was sent to southern France to counter the heretical teachings of the Albigensians, who held that the material world was evil and only religious asceticism could combat those forces. Dominic begged and preached in an austere fashion and set the foundations for the new Order of Preachers for both men and women.

 

August 8: Mother Mary MacKillop, religious (1842-1909), who worked in Australia and New Zealand to assist the poor, needy, and immigrants to the country, was canonized on October 17^th 2010. August 8^th is chosen as the day in which she will be memorialized on the Roman calendar. I offer the following prayer:

 

Bountiful and loving God,

You have filled the heart of Mary MacKillop

with compassionate love for those

who are in need at the margins of our society.

Deepen that love within us

that we may embrace the mystery of the Cross

which leads us through death to life.

We ask this in the Spirit of Jesus

who having broken the bonds of death

leads us to everlasting life. Amen.

 

August 9: Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), martyr (1891-1942), became a Catholic convert from Judaism after reading the autobiography of Teresa of Avila. He earned a doctorate in philosophy, but was unemployable because she was a woman. She taught at a high school for eight years before entering the Carmelites in 1933 where she made final vows in 1938. She moved to Holland to escape persecution by the Nazis, but was arrested when the bishops spoke out against the persecution of the Jews.

 

August 10: Lawrence, deacon and martyr (d. 258) was martyred four days after Pope Sixtus II and six other deacons during the Valerian persecution. A beautiful story is told about Lawrence's words. When asked to surrender the church's treasure, Lawrence gathered the poor and presented them to the civil authorities. For this affront, he was martyred. He is the patron of Rome. 

 

This Week in Jesuit History

 

• August 4, 1871. King Victor Emmanuel signed the decree that sanctioned the seizure of all of the properties belonging to the Roman College and to S. Andrea. 
• August 5, 1762. The Parliament at Paris condemned the Society's Institute as opposed to natural law. It confiscated all Jesuit property and forbade the Jesuit habit and community life. 
• August 6, 1552. The death of Claude Jay, a French priest who was one of Ignatius' original companions at the University of Paris. 
• August 7, 1814. The universal restoration of the Society of Jesus. 
• August 8, 1604. St Peter Claver takes his first vows at Tarracona. 
• August 9, 1762. The moving of the English College from St Omers to Liege. 
• August 10, 1622. Blessed Augustustine Ota, a Japanese brother, was beheaded for the faith. He had been baptized by Blessed Camillus Costanzi on the eve of the latter's martyrdom.

En lo profundo de: El Decimoctavo Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario 2024

En lo profundo de:

El Decimoctavo Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario 2024

4 de agosto de 2024

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Éxodo 16:2-15; Salmo 78; Efesios 4:17-24; Juan 6:24-35

 

Seguimos leyendo la narrativa de los discursos del Cuarto Evangelio y del Pan de Vida. Éxodo nos prepara el escenario cuando Dios proporciona maná en el desierto para los israelitas errantes. El énfasis es que Dios está alimentando directamente al pueblo y atendiendo sus necesidades. Los judíos de la época de Jesús conocen bien la historia y ven los paralelos entre Moisés y Jesús. El Evangelio comienza hoy con el pueblo buscándolo diligentemente, aunque él evade su búsqueda y termina en un lugar que no esperaban. ¿Por qué lo buscan? Él es el verdadero negocio. Él es quien une al pueblo con Dios y les muestra que Dios sí se preocupa por sus necesidades diarias.

 

Quizás la búsqueda de Jesús por parte de los discípulos nos recuerda nuestra búsqueda de Dios. Lo buscamos en muchos lugares, tiempos y acontecimientos, y a veces Dios parece esquivo y distante. Quizás le hablamos a Dios de manera incorrecta o algo que hemos hecho es la razón por la que Dios no se acercará. Una de las razones por las que a menudo buscamos a Dios es que miramos hacia afuera y a lo lejos. Dios sigue siendo un misterio impenetrable, y la acción de Dios en el corazón humano y en el mundo inconsciente también está oculta. Nuestros sentidos, nuestra razón, nuestra imaginación, por mucho que lo intentemos, no pueden captar la vida interior de Dios, y por eso seguimos buscándola.

 

Quizás lo entendamos todo mal. Seguimos buscando a Dios por fuera y como si Dios estuviera bastante lejano. Tratamos de hacer lo que creemos que agrada a Dios, pero a veces objetivamos a Dios y, por lo tanto, lo convertimos en un ídolo. No podemos ver a Dios del mismo modo que no podemos ver nuestro propio rostro. Vemos nuestro rostro a través de fotografías o de un espejo, pero no podemos mirarlo directamente. Quizás no podamos ver a Dios porque Dios está demasiado cerca. Dios está dentro y, por lo tanto, debemos mirar hacia adentro. Quizás necesitemos más tiempo a solas o pasar tiempo en silencio para encontrar al Dios que buscamos.

 

No podemos responder a la pregunta: "¿Dónde está Dios?" porque Dios no puede estar arraigado en un lugar o ubicado en particular. Dios y la persona humana están intrínsecamente interconectados. Nuestro descubrimiento de Dios como la presencia divina dentro de nosotros revela quiénes somos realmente : un pueblo con la capacidad de recibir a Dios. Jesús es el lugar donde toda la humanidad es invitada y atraída a la encarnación, la unión de lo humano y lo divino.

 

Cuando vemos que Dios habita dentro de nosotros, con una cercanía que no podemos comprender, nos damos cuenta de que Dios está dentro de cada persona. La persona que amamos, apreciamos y honramos, Dios está dentro de esa persona. La persona que odiamos, Dios está dentro de esa persona. La persona a la que tememos o desconfiamos, Dios está dentro de ella. La persona que nos hizo daño o a quien le hemos hecho daño, Dios está en él. Todo cambia cuando nos vemos como hijos de Dios o como hermanos, hermanas o amigos. Es hora de dejar de buscar a Dios en el exterior y buscar la presencia permanente de Dios dentro de cada alma. Dios alimentará a cada persona a su manera. Cada persona busca al Dios que le ofrecerá alimento y de forma innata clamamos: “Dame este pan siempre”. Jesús es lugar de encuentro. Él está presente para unificar nuestra hambre divina con un encuentro con el Dios vivo, permanente y protector. Nuestra fe en él da vida al mundo. Al recibir a Cristo en nuestra Eucaristía, recordemos cuán profundamente interconectado está Dios dentro de nuestras almas, dentro de cada alma, y que Dios se preocupa por cada persona en todo el mundo. Dios es el misterio impenetrable en lo profundo de nuestro interior.

 

Escritura para la misa diaria

Lunes: (Jeremías 28 ) “Así dice Jehová de los ejércitos, Dios de Israel: 'Romperé el yugo del rey de Babilonia. Dentro de dos años devolveré a este lugar todos los utensilios del templo de Jehová que Nabucodonosor , rey de Babilonia, llevó de este lugar a Babilonia. 

 

Martes: (Daniel 7 ) Se levantaron tronos y el Anciano tomó su trono. Su ropa era brillante como la nieve, y el cabello de su cabeza blanco como la lana; su trono era llama de fuego, con ruedas de fuego ardiente.

 

Miércoles: (Jeremías 31 ) En aquel tiempo, dice Jehová, yo seré el Dios de todas las tribus de Israel, y ellos serán mi pueblo. Así dice el SEÑOR: El pueblo que escapó de la espada ha hallado favor en el desierto.

 

Jueves: (Jeremías 31 ) Vienen días, dice Jehová, en que haré un nuevo pacto con la casa de Israel y la casa de Judá. No será como el pacto que hice con sus padres: el día que los tomé de la mano para sacarlos de la tierra de Egipto; porque rompieron mi pacto,

 

Viernes (Nahúm 2 ) ¡Mirad, sobre los montes avanza el portador de buenas nuevas, 
anunciando la paz! ¡Celebra tus fiestas, oh Judá, cumple tus votos! Porque nunca más seréis invadidos por el sinvergüenza; está completamente destruido .

 

Sábado (2 Corintios 9 ) Además, Dios es poderoso para haceros abundante toda gracia, a fin de que, teniendo siempre en todas las cosas todo lo necesario, abundéis para toda buena obra.

 

Evangelio:

Lunes: (Mateo 14) Cuando Jesús se enteró de la muerte de Juan el Bautista, se retiró solo en una barca a un lugar desierto. La multitud se enteró de esto y lo siguió a pie desde sus ciudades.

 

Martes: ( Marcos 9 ) Jesús tomó a Pedro, a Santiago y a su hermano Juan, y los llevó aparte a un monte alto. Y se transfiguró delante de ellos, y sus vestidos se volvieron de un blanco resplandeciente, como ningún batanero en la tierra podría blanquearlos. 

 

Miércoles (Mateo 15 ) Y he aquí, una mujer cananea de aquella región vino y gritó: “¡Ten piedad de mí, Señor, Hijo de David! Mi hija está atormentada por un demonio”. Pero él no le respondió ni una palabra. Sus discípulos se acercaron y le pidieron: 
“Despídela, porque sigue llamándonos”.

 

Jueves (Mateo 16 ) "¿Quién dice la gente que es el Hijo del Hombre?" Ellos respondieron: "Unos dicen que Juan el Bautista, otros Elías, otros Jeremías o alguno de los profetas". 
Él les dijo: "¿Pero quién decís que soy yo?" Simón Pedro respondió: "Tú eres el Cristo, el Hijo del Dios vivo".

 

Viernes (Mateo 16 ) “El que quiera venir en pos de mí, debe negarse a sí mismo, tomar su cruz y seguirme. Porque quien quiera salvar su vida, la perderá; pero quien pierda su vida por mí, la encontrará.

 

Sábado (Juan 12 ) En verdad, en verdad os digo, que si el grano de trigo no cae en la tierra y muere, queda solo en grano de trigo; pero si muere, produce mucho fruto.

 

Santos de la semana

 

4 de agosto: Juan Vianney, sacerdote (1786-1859), se convierte en párroco de Ars -en - Dombes , donde pasará el resto de su vida predicando y confesando. Cientos de visitantes y peregrinos lo visitaban diariamente. Escuchaba confesiones entre 12 y 16 horas al día.

 

5 de agosto: Se celebra la dedicación de la Basílica de María la Mayor en Roma porque es la más grande y antigua de las iglesias en honor a María. La veneración comenzó en el año 435 cuando la iglesia fue reparada después del Concilio de Éfeso en el año 431 cuando María fue proclamada Madre de Dios. Esta es la iglesia donde Ignacio de Loyola celebró su primera misa y donde Francisco de Asís montó el primer pesebre.

 

6 de agosto: La Transfiguración del Señor es un evento histórico capturado por los Evangelios cuando Jesús es señalado como el Hijo de Dios, con una clasificación más alta que Moisés o Elías. Frente a sus discípulos, Jesús se transfigura, revelando así su verdadera naturaleza. Irónicamente, el aniversario del lanzamiento de la primera bomba atómica tuvo lugar en Hiroshima el 6 de agosto de 1945.

 

7 de agosto: Sixto , II, papa y mártir con compañeros (m. 258) , muere durante las persecuciones valerianas en 258. Fueron asesinados en las catacumbas donde celebraban misa. Sixto fue decapitado mientras hablaba en su silla presidencial y seis diáconos fueron asesinado también. Lawrence, el diácono, es honrado el 10 de agosto. Sixto es recordado durante la primera oración eucarística en la Misa.

 

7 de agosto: Cayetano, sacerdote (1480-1547) , fue un abogado civil y canónico que trabajó en la cancillería papal. Posteriormente se unió a la Orden Romana del Divino Amor y fue ordenado sacerdote. Se dio cuenta de que la iglesia necesitaba una reforma y se asoció con el obispo de Theate (Gian Pietro Carafa ) y formó una sociedad de sacerdotes llamados Teatinos que vivían en comunidad y tomaban votos monásticos. No poseían ninguna propiedad.

 

8 de agosto: Domingo, sacerdote (1170-1221), fue un español que fue enviado al sur de Francia para contrarrestar las enseñanzas heréticas de los albigenses , quienes sostenían que el mundo material era malo y sólo el ascetismo religioso podía combatir esas fuerzas. Domingo rogó y predicó de manera austera y sentó las bases de la nueva Orden de Predicadores tanto para hombres como para mujeres.

 

8 de agosto: El 17 ^{de octubre fue canonizada} la Madre Mary MacKillop, religiosa (1842-1909), que trabajó en Australia y Nueva Zelanda para ayudar a los pobres, necesitados e inmigrantes del país. 2010 . Se elige el 8 ^de agosto como el día en el que será conmemorada en el calendario romano. Ofrezco la siguiente oración:

 

Dios generoso y amoroso,

Has llenado el corazón de Mary MacKillop.

con amor compasivo para aquellos

quienes están necesitados en los márgenes de nuestra sociedad.

Profundiza ese amor dentro de nosotros

para que podamos abrazar el misterio de la Cruz

que nos lleva de la muerte a la vida.

Te lo pedimos en el Espíritu de Jesús.

que habiendo roto las ataduras de la muerte

nos lleva a la vida eterna. Amén.

 

9 de agosto: Teresa Benedicta de la Cruz (Edith Stein), mártir (1891-1942), se convierte al catolicismo del judaísmo tras leer la autobiografía de Teresa de Ávila. Obtuvo un doctorado en filosofía, pero no pudo conseguir empleo por ser mujer. Enseñó en una escuela secundaria durante ocho años antes de ingresar a las Carmelitas en 1933, donde hizo sus votos perpetuos en 1938. Se mudó a Holanda para escapar de la persecución de los nazis, pero fue arrestada cuando los obispos hablaron en contra de la persecución de los judíos.

 

10 de agosto : Lorenzo, diácono y mártir (f. 258) es martirizado cuatro días después del papa Sixto II y de otros seis diáconos durante la persecución valeriana. Se cuenta una hermosa historia sobre las palabras de Lawrence. Cuando se le pidió que entregara el tesoro de la iglesia, Lawrence reunió a los pobres y los presentó a las autoridades civiles. Por esta afrenta fue martirizado. Es el patrón de Roma.

Esta semana en la historia jesuita

 

• 4 de agosto de 1871. El rey Víctor Manuel firma el decreto que sanciona la confiscación de todas las propiedades pertenecientes al Colegio Romano y a S. Andrea.
• 5 de agosto de 1762. El Parlamento de París condenó el Instituto de la Sociedad como opuesto al derecho natural. Confiscó todas las propiedades de los jesuitas y prohibió el hábito jesuita y la vida comunitaria.
• 6 de agosto de 1552. Muerte de Claude Jay, un sacerdote francés que fue uno de los compañeros originales de Ignacio en la Universidad de París.
• 7 de agosto de 1814. La restauración universal de la Compañía de Jesús.
• 8 de agosto de 1604. San Pedro Claver pronuncia sus primeros votos en Tarracona .
• 9 de agosto de 1762. Traslado del English College de St Omers a Lieja.
• 10 de agosto de 1622. El beato Agustín Ota, hermano japonés, es decapitado por la fe. Había sido bautizado por el beato Camilo Costanzi en vísperas de su martirio.

 

Photo: Harborside relaxation

 

Spirituality: Robert Macfarlane, The Old Ways: A journey on foot

For some time now it has seemed to me that two questions we should ask of any strong landscape are these: firstly, what do I know when I'm in this place that I can know nowhere else? And then, vainly, what does this place know of me that I cannot know of myself?

Photo: Come sit with me

 

Prayer: Anthony of Padua

Lord Jesus, bind us to you and to our neighbor with love. May our hearts not be turned away from you. May our souls not be deceived nor our talents or minds enticed by error, so that we never distance ourselves from your love. Thus may we love our neighbor as ourselves with strength, wisdom, and gentleness. With your help, you who are blessed throughout all ages.

Photo: The Grounds of Weston Priory

 

Prayer: Ignatius Loyola

Lord, welcome into your calm and peaceful kingdom those who has departed out of this present life to be with you. Grant them rest and a place with the spirits of the just. Give them the life that knows no age, the reward that doesn’t pass away, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Spirituality: Clarissa Pinkola Estes in Do Not Lose Heart

My friends, do not lose heart. …One of the most calming and powerful actions you can do to intervene in a stormy world is to stand up and show your soul. The light of the soul throws sparks, can send up flares, builds signal fires…causes proper matters to catch fire. To display the lantern of soul in shadowy times like these—to be fierce and to show mercy toward others; both are acts of immense bravery and greatest necessity…Struggling souls catch light from other souls who are fully lit and willing to show it. If you would help to calm the tumult, this is one of the strongest things you can do.

Photo: Colorful Banners

 

Poem: Beauty, by Kahlil Gibran

 And a poet said, Speak to us of Beauty.

And he answered:
… beauty is not a need but an ecstasy.
It is not a mouth thirsting nor an empty hand stretched forth,
But rather a heart inflamed and a soul enchanted …
People of Orphalese, beauty is life when life unveils her holy face.
But you are life and you are the veil.
Beauty is eternity gazing at itself in a mirror.
But you are eternity and you are the mirror.

Photo: Coastal Maine

 

Prayer: Fr. Joseph T. Nolan

 O God for whom we have so many names until we stutter into silence,

you give your love a name in Jesus and by this name we seek our peace,

we find salvation.

For he gives some measure of your love for us.

Our thanks, then, take our thanks, our eucharist

for this Good Shepherd who gives his life that we may live.

Don’t Pray - Act: The Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time 2024

                                                              Don’t Pray - Act:

The Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time 2024 

July 28, 2024

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2 Kings 4:42-44; Psalm 145; Ephesians 4:1-6; John 6:1-15

 

Jesus continues to reveal that he is the Good Shepherd who will rightly nourish those who come to him. He makes the people recline in fields of grass reminiscent of the shepherd in Psalm 23 and the prophet Elisha in the first reading. Paul portrays Jesus as the one who preserves unity through his right action because all that is does points to God the Father, the Parent, the one who is all in all.

 

In both the first reading and the Gospel, it is not enough just to have good thoughts and kind wishes. Those thoughts must be translated into positive action. In other words, we can’t just pray. We must act. Having positive thoughts is essential for right action because we first are moved to feeling and thinking. We must remember that making judgments is essential, and we are not to be closed or trapped in those judgments because we must remain open. We make conclusive judgments when we do not choose to think anymore. Therefore, our first thoughts are essential. From those thoughts come our attitudes, and they are followed by words, and words are followed by actions. Before we get in the trap of judgment making, we must make certain that we remain open to new, creative thinking.

 

Jesus pushed the disciples to think and act creatively. At first, they only saw a dead end with no solution to their problems. Jesus asked them to look for a starting point. They discovered they had something and from that, they could build new possibilities. Peter’s brother, Andrew, noticed they had five loaves of bread and two fish. It certainly not enough to feed the crowds, but it was a start, and new beginnings need a starting point. Jesus pushed them to act. It is not enough to just have compassion and to say a few prayers; it is to be followed by action. That is proof of the prayer.

 

Jesus prepared them for daily life by teaching them that they had to use their resources. Daily food was precious in Jesus’s time and many people risked their livelihood by leaving their lands to hear the message of Jesus. A day away from the crops could mean the loss of food for the family. This was a paycheck-to-paycheck existence. Many of the biblical countrypersons lived day by day working the land hard and living off of it dependently. Jesus knew that there was no wasting of that which sustains life, and what comes from God is to be revered.

 

Prayer and its resultant action become about the faithfulness of God. Prayer does not only function to put a person’s spiritual lives back into order and give them an inner focus. It is only when people relate to God, speak to God, that a real relationship develops. We relate to God in the way we would another person, and we become authentically human when God gazes upon us. Jesus was leading the people to a deeper relationship. I’m sure when the disciples finished distributing the meal that Jesus gazed upon them with deep satisfaction. They ministered well, and he looked upon them with joy. We only become utterly human when someone looks at us with joy, in a loving gaze, that we become more of who we are. The nourishing act of Jesus points to the living presence of God among the people, and those who were fed came to know the nourishing generosity of God. The people came to know for certain that God was in their midst.

 

When we come to the altar, it is important for us to realize how God feeds us as a community. We often see the love of God lived out in the action of others. We know the world still suffers greatly and hungers for God, and God is still calling us to act, to be creative, to see what happens when we try a new way, to go above and beyond our comfort zone, because in the midst of that we will find the same generous God who wants us to eat our fill and give what we have to our brothers and sisters. We will find a God who acts through our actions and will surprise us with God’s abundance. We then begin to trust that God, if we let it happen, will spoil us with abundance and goodness. 

 

Scripture for Daily Mass

Monday: (Jeremiah 13) Go buy yourself a linen loincloth; wear it on your loins, but do not put it in water. I bought the loincloth, as the LORD commanded, and put it on. A second time the word of the LORD came to me thus: Take the loincloth which you bought and are wearing and go now to the Parath; there hide it in a cleft of the rock.

 

Tuesday: (Jeremiah 14) Let my eyes stream with tears day and night, without rest, Over the great destruction which overwhelms the virgin daughter of my people, over her incurable wound.

 

Wednesday: (Jeremiah 15) When I found your words, I devoured them; they became my joy and the happiness of my heart, Because I bore your name, O LORD, God of hosts. I did not sit celebrating in the circle of merrymakers; Under the weight of your hand I sat alone because you filled me with indignation.

 

Thursday: (Jeremiah 18) Rise up, be off to the potter’s house; there I will give you my message. I went down to the potter’s house and there he was, working at the wheel.
Whenever the object of clay which he was making turned out badly in his hand,  he tried again, making of the clay another object of whatever sort he pleased.

 

Friday (Jeremiah 26) Stand in the court of the house of the LORD and speak to the people of all the cities of Judah who come to worship in the house of the LORD; whatever I command you, tell them, and omit nothing. Perhaps they will listen and turn back, each from his evil way.

 

Saturday (Jeremiah 26) Thereupon the princes and all the people said to the priests and the prophets, “This man does not deserve death; it is in the name of the LORD, our God, that he speaks to us.” 

 

Gospel: 

Monday: (John 11) Many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them about their brother [Lazarus, who had died]. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming,
she went to meet him; but Mary sat at home.

 

Tuesday: (Matthew 13) "Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field." He said in reply, "He who sows good seed is the Son of Man, the field is the world, the good seed the children of the Kingdom. The weeds are the children of the Evil One, and the enemy who sows them is the Devil.

 

Wednesday (Matthew 13) The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls.

 

Thursday (Matthew 20) The Kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind. When it is full they haul it ashore and sit down to put what is good into buckets. What is bad they throw away. Thus, it will be at the end of the age.

 

Friday (Matthew 13) Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds? Is he not the carpenter’s son? Is not his mother named Mary and his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas? Are not his sisters all with us? Where did this man get all this?”

 

Saturday (Matthew 14) Herod the tetrarch heard of the reputation of Jesus and said to his servants, “This man is John the Baptist. He has been raised from the dead; that is why mighty powers are at work in him.”

 

Saints of the Week

 

July 29: Martha (1st century), is the sister of Mary and Lazarus of Bethany near Jerusalem. Martha is considered the busy, activity-attentive sister while Mary is more contemplative. Martha is known for her hospitality and fidelity. She proclaimed her belief that Jesus was the Christ when he appeared after Lazarus had died. 

 

July 30: Peter Chrysologus, bishop and doctor (406-450), was the archbishop of Ravenna, Italy in the 5th century when the faithful became lax and adopted pagan practices. He revived the faith through his preaching. He was titled Chrysologus because of his 'golden words.'

 

July 31: Ignatius of Loyola, priest (1491-1556), is one of the founders of the Jesuits and the author of the Spiritual Exercises. As a Basque nobleman, he was wounded in a battle at Pamplona in northeastern Spain and convalesced at his castle where he realized he followed a methodology of discernment of spirits. When he recovered, he ministered to the sick and dying and then retreated to a cave at Manresa, Spain where he had experiences that formed the basis of The Spiritual Exercises. In order to preach, he studied Latin, earned a Master’s Degree at the University of Paris, and then gathered other students to serve Jesus. Francis Xavier and Peter Faber were his first friends. After ordination, Ignatius and his nine friends went to Rome where they formally became the Society of Jesus. Most Jesuits were sent on mission, but Ignatius stayed in Rome directing the rapidly growing religious order, composing its constitutions, and perfecting the Spiritual Exercises. He died in 1556 and the Jesuit Order was already 1,000 men strong. 

 

August 1: Alphonsus Liguori, bishop and doctor(1696-1787), founded a band of mission priests that became the Redemptorists. He wrote a book called "Moral Theology" that linked legal aspects with kindness and compassion for others. He became known for his responsive and thoughtful way of dealing with confessions.

 

August 2: Peter Faber, S.J., priest and founder (1506-1546), was one of the original companions of the Society of Jesus. He was a French theologian and the first Jesuit priest and was the presider over the first vows of the lay companions. He became known for directing the Spiritual Exercises very well. He was called to the Council of Trent but died as the participants were gathering.

 

August 2: Eusebius of Vercelli, bishop (d. 371), was ordained bishop after becoming a lector. He attended a council in Milan where he opposed the Arians. The emperor exiled him to Palestine because he contradicted secular influences. He returned to his diocese where the emperor died.

 

August 2: Peter Julian Eymard, priest (1811-1868) left the Oblates when he became ill. When his father died, he became a priest and soon transferred into the Marists but left them to found the Blessed Sacrament Fathers to promote the significance of the Eucharist.

This Week in Jesuit History

 

• July 28, 1564. In a consistory held before twenty-four Cardinals, Pope Paul IV announced his intention of entrusting the Roman Seminary to the Society. 
• July 29, 1865. The death in Cincinnati, Ohio of Fr. Peter Arnoudt, a Belgian. He was the author of The Imitation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. 
• July 30, 1556. As he lay near death, Ignatius asked Juan de Polanco to go and obtain for him the blessing of the pope. 
• July 31, 1556. The death in Rome of Ignatius Loyola. 
• August 1, 1938. The Jesuits of the Middle United States, by Gilbert Garrigan was copyrighted. This monumental three-volume work followed the history of the Jesuits in the Midwest from the early 1820s to the 1930s. 
• August 2, 1981. The death of Gerald Kelly, moral theologian and author of "Modern Youth and Chastity." 
• August 3, 1553. Queen Mary Tudor made her solemn entrance into London. As she passed St Paul's School, Edmund Campion, then a boy of thirteen delivered an address.