Photo: Purple Orchids on Red

 

Poem: “The Greated Evil in the World” by St. Teresa of Calcutta

 Many today are starving for ordinary bread.

But there is another kind of hunger – 

the hunger to be wanted, to be loved, to be recognized.

Nakedness too is not just a want of clothes, 

but also about loss of dignity, purity, and self-respect.

And homelessness is not just want of a house; 

there is the homelessness of being rejected, 

of being unwanted in a throwaway society.

The biggest disease in the world today 

is the feeling of being unwanted and uncared for.

The greatest evil in the world is lack of love, 

the terrible indifference towards one’s neighbor.

Photo: Pasttimes

 

Spirituality: Two Statements on Love

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J.:

Love is the only force that can make things one without destroying them.

Tomas Halik:

Love is the courage to die to one selfishness, to forget oneself because of others, to step out of oneself. Love is essentially transcendence, crossing the borders that surround our existence. Love is an unconditional and all embracing form of unification. God happens where we love people, our neighbors.

Photo: Time for Worship

 

Poem: “Letting Go” by Edwina Gateley

It is time to go.

I can smell it.

Breathe it.

Touch it.

And something in me

Trembles.

I will not cry.

Only sit bewildered.

Brave and helpless

That it is time.

Time to go.

Time to step out

Of the world

I shaped and watched

Become.

Time to let go

Of the status and

The admiration.

Time to go.

To turn my back

On a life that throbs

With my vigor and a spirit

That soared

Through my tears.

Poem: “Lenten Poem” by Ann Weems

 Lent is a time to take time to let the power 

of our faith story take hold of us, 

a time to let the events get up 

and walk around in us, 

a time to intensify our living unto Christ, 

a time to hover over the thoughts of our hearts, 

a time to place our feet in the streets of 

Jerusalem or to walk along the sea and 

listen to his Word, 

a time to touch his robe 

and feel the healing surge through us, 

a time to ponder and a time to wonder …. 

Lent is a time to allow 

a fresh new taste of God! 

Perhaps we’re afraid to have time to think, 

for thoughts come unbidden. 

Perhaps we’re afraid to face our future 

knowing our past. 

Give us courage, O God, 

to hear your Word 

and to read our living into it.

Give us the trust to know we’re forgiven 

and give us the faith 

to take up our lives and walk.

Photo: Gate of Heaven Church

 

Prayer: Cyril of Jerusalem

Our actions have a tongue of their own. They have an eloquence of their own, even when the tongue is silent. For deeds prove the lover more than words.

Photo: Letting Go

 

Spirituality: Fr. Predmore is running the Boston Marathon to raise money for Boston Healthcare for the Homless Program

May God bless you for your generosity and care. The Jesuits are deeply committed to caring for the most vulnerable in Society, and we have a motto called "being a person with and for others." We know that greater meaning in life happens when we become aware of and care for the needs of others.

To be a "person without housing" affects all families. We often know someone who has struggled to make ends meet and to make the best choices. As Jesuits, we honor the dignity of each person made in the image and likeness of God.

Each person we encounter has a story.

I am a 63 year old man and this will be my third Boston Marathon. It takes a lot of training. I provide adult faith formation at my work at B.C. High. I give the 19th annotation of the Spiritual Exercises online and Ignatian Spirituality retreats. I provide a Theology Book group by Zoom, and classes on compassionate communications, the Synod, and current religion events. As an artist, I have a studio at SoWa, 450 Harrison Avenue, Studio 230, where I paint with oil and provide art and spirituality classes.

I’m committed to raising funds for Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program. They provide essential healthcare services to individuals experiencing homelessness in the Boston area. Their work ensures that everyone has access to necessary medical attention, regardless of their circumstances. By supporting this campaign, you bring healthcare to those in need. Let’s work together to make a difference in their lives!

Thank you for your generosity. May God bless you abundantly.

https://www.givengain.com/project/john-raising-funds-for-boston-health-care-for-the-homeless-program-89025

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The God who Abides: The First Sunday of Lent 2025

                                                      The God who Abides:

The First Sunday of Lent 2025 

March 9, 2025

www.johnpredmoresj.com | predmore.blogspot.com

predmoresj@yahoo.com | 617.510.9673

Deuteronomy 26:4-10; Psalm 91; Romans 10:8-13; Luke 4:1-13

 

We begin another season of Lent, and we enter it as a time for metanoia, a change of heart. We want to be closer to Jesus as he goes through his days until his Passion. Obviously, we focus upon the thought and actions of Jesus, and today, I would like to reflect upon what God the Father, the Parent, is doing during this time as well because God is always present in God’s absence, and sometimes God is silent. We begin with the First Reading that shows us that Moses is speaking for God. Though God seems silent, God is aware of the way humans treat one another. 

 

Moses tells us that we are to be sympathetic to wanderers and migrants because their and our ancestors were mistreated aliens. One who has been wounded and has suffered is better able to respond compassionately to the suffering of others. God, as Father-Parent to this people, heard the cries of the people and was aware of their suffering and pain. God was not deaf to the cries back then, as God is not deaf to today’s cries of the poor. God will work to change human hearts in order to liberate those who toil in misery.

 

Was God present to Jesus when he suffered temptations in the desert? Jesus, in his weakened state, was vulnerable to quickly end his suffering, and yet he trusted in the presence of the absent God. Jesus demonstrated his trust and established the basis for a profoundly solid relationship. This allowed Jesus to know God would abide by him throughout his ministry to the very end. Jesus knew that a fundamental characteristic of God is God’s abiding fidelity. God will remain by his side, even though God may seem hidden and silent.

 

Watch this Lent how God relates to Jesus. How do we imagine God to be? Many want a God of majesty, when in fact, we have a God of weakness. We have a God who has a special place in God’s heart for those who are the least, the weakest, and the most vulnerable. Our God is a wounded God because God’s heart is wounded each time we hurt another person. We cannot say that we truly love God unless we can take seriously our neighbor’s pain. Our sensitivity to the suffering of others must increase because wounds do not heal unless we see and acknowledge them. We know that God abides when whenever we touch the wounds of another person. Then we realize God is alive and concerned. God is a sympathetic God, who feels with us, who suffers with us. 

 

During Lent, we will hear about the pain carried by many people, and we will experience how Jesus is derided, degraded, rejected, betrayed, and turned over entirely into the hands of his enemies. Through it all, God seems to remain silent. We will see how Jesus shows solidarity with those who are regarded as small and insignificant, the uninvited and the wounded. He identifies with them and becomes them, so much so that “what you did to the least of my brothers and sisters, you did to me?” Jesus is with them. In fact, he is them. He stands by them and abides by them, and he reveals to us that he is doing what God does – abides. We know the rest of the story, and there are times in our lives that God seems to be silent. We need to hear this story over and over again so that we do not become indifferent, that we may continue to change our hearts when it is so easy to look away. We cannot be deaf or blind to God’s hidden presence among us. We can hear them in the screams, in the cries, of the poor, the needy, the wounded. God happens when we attend to their needs. God is always there. 

 

Scripture for Daily Mass

Monday: (Leviticus 19) The Lord gives Moses ten commandments that he inscribes on stone tablets. 

 

Tuesday: (Isaiah 55) God’s word will issue forth from his mouth and shall not return until it has fulfilled his will.

 

Wednesday: (Jonah 3) Jonah set out to Nineveh asking them to proclaim a fast and then repent. The king does repent and the Lord dropped his threat because they turned from evil.

 

Thursday: (Esther 3) Queen Esther appeals to God for help in converting the king’s heart for hatred of the enemy that threatens them.

Friday: (Ezekiel 18) If the wicked turns from sinfulness and keeps the Lord’s statutes, he will surely live. Likewise, if a virtuous man becomes wicked, he shall die. 

 

Saturday: (Deuteronomy 26) Moses tells the people to observe the Lord’s statutes and decrees with their whole heart and soul. The Lord will stand by you. 

 

Gospel: 

Monday: (Matthew 25) Jesus tells his disciples about the last judgment when the goats and sheep will be separated. The measuring stick is the mercy shown to the most vulnerable.

 

Tuesday: (Matthew 6) The disciples ask Jesus to teach them to pray. He tells them not to pray like the pagans, who seek honor and glory, and then gives them the Lord’s prayer. 

 

Wednesday: (Luke 11) Jesus chastises the crowd that seeks a sign, but none will be given to them. Because of Jonah’s preaching, the king and people repented.

 

Thursday: (Matthew 7) Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened. The Father is generous, especially to those who love him.

 

Friday: (Matthew 5) Your righteousness must surpass the levels of the scribes and Pharisees in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Show righteousness by quickly settling disputes. 

 

Saturday: (Matthew 5) Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Heavenly Father. Be perfect as the Father is perfect.

 

Saints of the Week

 

March 9: Frances of Rome (1384-1440), was born into a wealthy Roman family and was married at age 13. She bore six children and when two died in infancy, she worked to bring the needs of the less fortunate to others. She took food to the poor, visited the sick, cared for the needy in their homes. When other women joined in her mission, they became Benedictine oblates. She founded a monastery for them after her husband's death. 

 

This Week in Jesuit History

 

• March 9, 1764. In France, all Jesuits who refused to abjure the Society were ordered by Parliament to leave the realm within a month. Out of 4,000 members only five priests, two scholastics, and eight brothers took the required oath; the others were driven into exile. 
• March 10, 1615. The martyrdom in Glasgow, Scotland, of St John Ogilvie. 
• Mar 11, 1848. In Naples, Italy, during the 1848 revolution, 114 Jesuits, after much suffering, were put into carts and driven ignominiously out of the city and the kingdom. 
• March 12, 1622. Pope Gregory XV canonized Sts Ignatius, Francis Xavier, Teresa of Avila, and Philip Neri. 
• March 13, 1568. John Segura and five companions set sail from Spain for Florida, a fertile field of martyrs. (Nine Jesuits were killed there between 1566 and 1571.) 
• March 14, 1535. Ignatius received his degree from the University of Paris. 
• March 15, 1632. The death of Diego Ruiz, a great theologian, who studied on his knees.

El Dios que permanece: Primer Domingo de Cuaresma 2025

                                                   El Dios que permanece:

Primer Domingo de Cuaresma 2025

9 de marzo de 2025

www.johnpredmoresj.com | predmore.blogspot.com

predmoresj@yahoo.com | 617.510.9673

Deuteronomio 26:4-10; Salmo 91; Romanos 10:8-13; Lucas 4:1-13

 

Comenzamos otra temporada de Cuaresma, y la iniciamos como un tiempo de metanoia , un cambio de corazón. Queremos estar más cerca de Jesús a medida que va pasando por sus días hasta su Pasión. Obviamente, nos centramos en el pensamiento y las acciones de Jesús, y hoy, me gustaría reflexionar sobre lo que Dios Padre, el Padre, está haciendo durante este tiempo también porque Dios siempre está presente en la ausencia de Dios, y a veces Dios está en silencio. Comenzamos con la Primera Lectura que nos muestra que Moisés está hablando por Dios. Aunque Dios parece estar en silencio, Dios es consciente de la forma en que los humanos se tratan entre sí.

 

Moisés nos dice que debemos ser compasivos con los vagabundos y los migrantes porque sus antepasados y los nuestros fueron extranjeros maltratados. Quien ha sido herido y ha sufrido está en mejores condiciones de responder compasivamente al sufrimiento de los demás. Dios, como Padre de este pueblo, escuchó los gritos del pueblo y era consciente de su sufrimiento y dolor. Dios no fue sordo a los gritos de entonces, como Dios no es sordo a los gritos de los pobres de hoy. Dios trabajará para cambiar los corazones humanos a fin de liberar a quienes sufren en la miseria.

 

¿Dios estuvo presente junto a Jesús cuando sufrió tentaciones en el desierto? Jesús, en su estado de debilidad, era vulnerable a terminar rápidamente con su sufrimiento, y sin embargo confió en la presencia del Dios ausente. Jesús demostró su confianza y estableció las bases para una relación profundamente sólida. Esto le permitió saber que Dios permanecería a su lado durante todo su ministerio hasta el final. Jesús sabía que una característica fundamental de Dios es su fidelidad permanente. Dios permanecerá a su lado, aunque parezca oculto y silencioso.

 

Observad esta Cuaresma cómo se relaciona Dios con Jesús. ¿Cómo imaginamos que es Dios? Muchos quieren un Dios de majestad, cuando en realidad tenemos un Dios de debilidad. Tenemos un Dios que tiene un lugar especial en su corazón para los más pequeños, los más débiles y los más vulnerables. Nuestro Dios es un Dios herido porque su corazón se hiere cada vez que lastimamos a otra persona. No podemos decir que verdaderamente amamos a Dios a menos que podamos tomar en serio el dolor de nuestro prójimo. Nuestra sensibilidad hacia el sufrimiento de los demás debe aumentar porque las heridas no sanan a menos que las veamos y las reconozcamos. Sabemos que Dios permanece cuando tocamos las heridas de otra persona. Entonces nos damos cuenta de que Dios está vivo y se preocupa. Dios es un Dios compasivo, que siente con nosotros, que sufre con nosotros.

 

Durante la Cuaresma, escucharemos acerca del dolor que llevan muchas personas, y experimentaremos cómo Jesús es ridiculizado, degradado, rechazado, traicionado y entregado completamente en manos de sus enemigos. A pesar de todo, Dios parece permanecer en silencio. Veremos cómo Jesús se solidariza con aquellos que son considerados pequeños e insignificantes, los no invitados y los heridos. Se identifica con ellos y se convierte en ellos, tanto que “lo que hicisteis a uno de mis hermanos más pequeños, a mí me lo hicisteis”. Jesús está con ellos. De hecho, él es ellos. Está a su lado y permanece junto a ellos, y nos revela que está haciendo lo que Dios hace: permanece. Conocemos el resto de la historia, y hay momentos en nuestras vidas en que Dios parece permanecer en silencio. Necesitamos escuchar esta historia una y otra vez para no volvernos indiferentes, para que podamos seguir cambiando nuestros corazones cuando es tan fácil mirar hacia otro lado. No podemos ser sordos o ciegos a la presencia oculta de Dios entre nosotros. Los podemos escuchar en los gritos, en los llantos de los pobres, de los necesitados, de los heridos. Dios aparece cuando atendemos sus necesidades. Dios siempre está ahí.

 

Escritura para la misa diaria

Lunes: (Levítico 19) El Señor le da a Moisés diez mandamientos que él escribe en tablas de piedra.

 

Martes: (Isaías 55) La palabra de Dios saldrá de su boca y no regresará hasta que haya cumplido su voluntad.

 

Miércoles: (Jonás 3) Jonás se dirige a Nínive y les pide que proclamen un ayuno y luego se arrepientan. El rey se arrepiente y el Señor retira su amenaza porque se apartan del mal.

 

Jueves: (Ester 3) La reina Ester pide ayuda a Dios para convertir el corazón del rey del odio hacia el enemigo que los amenaza.

Viernes: (Ezequiel 18) Si el malvado se aparta del pecado y guarda los estatutos del Señor, seguramente vivirá. Asimismo, si un hombre virtuoso se vuelve malvado, morirá.

 

Sábado: (Deuteronomio 26) Moisés le dice al pueblo que observe los estatutos y decretos del Señor con todo su corazón y alma. El Señor estará a su lado.

 

Evangelio:

Lunes: (Mateo 25) Jesús habla a sus discípulos sobre el juicio final, cuando las cabras y las ovejas serán separadas. La vara de medir es la misericordia mostrada a los más vulnerables.

 

Martes: (Mateo 6) Los discípulos le piden a Jesús que les enseñe a orar. Él les dice que no oren como los paganos, que buscan honor y gloria, y luego les da el Padre Nuestro.

 

Miércoles: (Lucas 11) Jesús reprende a la multitud que pide una señal, pero no se la dan. Gracias a la predicación de Jonás, el rey y el pueblo se arrepienten.

 

Jueves: (Mateo 7) Pedid y se os dará; buscad y hallaréis; llamad y se os abrirá. El Padre es generoso, especialmente con los que le aman.

 

Viernes: (Mateo 5) Tu justicia debe superar los niveles de los escribas y fariseos para poder entrar al Reino de los Cielos. Demuestra justicia resolviendo rápidamente las disputas.

 

Sábado: (Mateo 5) Amen a sus enemigos y oren por quienes los persiguen, para que sean hijos de su Padre Celestial. Sean perfectos como el Padre es perfecto.

 

Santos de la semana

 

9 de marzo: Francisca de Roma (1384-1440), nació en una familia romana adinerada y se casó a los 13 años. Tuvo seis hijos y cuando dos murieron en la infancia, trabajó para llevar las necesidades de los menos afortunados a otros. Llevó comida a los pobres, visitó a los enfermos, cuidó a los necesitados en sus hogares. Cuando otras mujeres se unieron a su misión, se convirtieron en oblatas benedictinas. Fundó un monasterio para ellas después de la muerte de su esposo.

Esta semana en la historia de los jesuitas

 

• 9 de marzo de 1764. En Francia, el Parlamento ordenó a todos los jesuitas que se negaron a abjurar de la Compañía que abandonaran el reino en el plazo de un mes. De los 4.000 miembros, sólo cinco sacerdotes, dos escolásticos y ocho hermanos prestaron el juramento requerido; los demás fueron obligados al exilio.
• 10 de marzo de 1615. Martirio en Glasgow, Escocia, de San Juan Ogilvie.
• 11 de marzo de 1848. En Nápoles, Italia, durante la revolución de 1848, 114 jesuitas, después de mucho sufrimiento, fueron puestos en carros y expulsados ignominiosamente de la ciudad y del reino.
• 12 de marzo de 1622. El Papa Gregorio XV canonizó a Santos Ignacio, Francisco Javier, Teresa de Ávila y Felipe Neri.
• 13 de marzo de 1568. Juan Segura y cinco compañeros zarparon de España rumbo a Florida, un campo fértil de mártires. (Nueve jesuitas fueron asesinados allí entre 1566 y 1571.)
• 14 de marzo de 1535. Ignacio recibió su título en la Universidad de París.
• 15 de marzo de 1632. Muere Diego Ruiz, gran teólogo, que estudiaba de rodillas.

Photo: A Costume for Carnival

 

Prayer: Thomas A Kempis

Grant me, Lord, to know what is worth knowing, to love what is worth loving, to praise what delights you most, to value what is precious in your sight. Do not let me judge by what I see, nor pass sentence according to what I hear, but judge rightly between things that differ and above all to search out and to do what pleases you.

Photo: Rowe's Wharf, Boston

 

Spirituality: "Hope," by Barbara Kingsolver

The very least you can do in your life is to figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope. Not admire it from a distance but live right in it, under its roof. What I want is so simple I almost can’t say it: elementary kindness. Enough to eat, enough to go around. The possibility that kids might one day grow up to be neither the destroyers nor the destroyed. That’s about it. Right now I'm living in that hope, running down its hallway and touching the walls on both sides.”

Photo: A Jesuit, Catholic College

 

Prayer: Joseph Bernardin

Grant us the gift of modesty. When we speak, teach us to give our opinion quietly and sincerely. Help us in success to realize what we owe to you and to the efforts of others, in failure to avoid dejection, and in all ways to be simple and natural, quiet in manner and lowly in thought, through Christ our Lord.

Prayer: Alcuin of York

Give me the grace, Lord, to be strong, prudent, just, and wise in all things. Give me an exact faith, generous love, and unshakeable trust in you. Fill me with the spirit of intelligence and wisdom. Let me always be considerate of other people. O perfect and eternal light, enlighten me.