Monday, March 14, 2011
Prayer: "The Clowns of God" by Morris West
Once you accept the existence of God - however you define him, however you explain your relationship to him - then you are caught forever with his presence at the center of all things. You are caught with the fact that human beings are creatures who walk in two worlds and trace upon the walls of their caves the wonders and the nightmare experiences of their spiritual pilgrimage.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
New Book “Changed Heart, Changed World” by William Barry
Developing a friendship with God may be the starting point for the spiritual journey, but how can that important internal relationship move us to make an impact on—and even transform—the world around us?
In Changed Heart, Changed World, renowned spiritual director William A. Barry, SJ, delves into such topics as how friendship with God impacts our role in society, how to see forgiveness as a way of life, and how compassion can make its mark on the world. Throughout the book, Fr. Barry provides many practical ways to integrate the inner life, where we experience a relationship with God, with the outer life, where we live in relationship with our world.
Above all else, Changed Heart, Changed World reminds us that God has a dream for his creation here and now—a dream that can only be realized by our becoming “other Christs in this world.”
In Changed Heart, Changed World, renowned spiritual director William A. Barry, SJ, delves into such topics as how friendship with God impacts our role in society, how to see forgiveness as a way of life, and how compassion can make its mark on the world. Throughout the book, Fr. Barry provides many practical ways to integrate the inner life, where we experience a relationship with God, with the outer life, where we live in relationship with our world.
Above all else, Changed Heart, Changed World reminds us that God has a dream for his creation here and now—a dream that can only be realized by our becoming “other Christs in this world.”
Prayer: by Marcel Proust
Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Prayer: Hildegard of Bingen
Glance at the sun. See the moon and the stars. Gaze at the beauty of earth’s greenings. Now, think. What delight God gives to humankind with all these things. All nature is at the disposal of humankind. We are to work with it. For without it, we cannot survive.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Poem: Knut Nystedt
O Cross, more radiant that the stars.
Celebrated throughout the earth,
Beloved of the people.
Holier than all things,
Which alone was found worthy
To bear the light of the world;
Blessed Tree. Blessed Nails.
Blest the weight you bore:
Save the flock which today
is gathered to praise you.
Celebrated throughout the earth,
Beloved of the people.
Holier than all things,
Which alone was found worthy
To bear the light of the world;
Blessed Tree. Blessed Nails.
Blest the weight you bore:
Save the flock which today
is gathered to praise you.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Poem: "Spring and Fall: to a young child" by Hopkins
Margeret, are you grieving
over Goldengrove unleaving?
Leaves, like the things of man,
you with your fresh thoughts care for, can you?
Ah! as the heart grows older
it will come to such sights colder
By and by, nor spare a sigh
Though worlds of wanwood leafmeal lie;
And yet you will weep and know why.
Now no matter, child, the name:
Sorrow's springs are the same.
Nor mouth had, no nor mind, expressed
What heart heard of, ghost guessed:
It is the blight man was born for,
It is Margaret you mourn for.
over Goldengrove unleaving?
Leaves, like the things of man,
you with your fresh thoughts care for, can you?
Ah! as the heart grows older
it will come to such sights colder
By and by, nor spare a sigh
Though worlds of wanwood leafmeal lie;
And yet you will weep and know why.
Now no matter, child, the name:
Sorrow's springs are the same.
Nor mouth had, no nor mind, expressed
What heart heard of, ghost guessed:
It is the blight man was born for,
It is Margaret you mourn for.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Novena of Grace in Honor of Francis Xavier
Novena of Grace in Honor of Francis Xavier
Jesuits and their colleagues worldwide pray a Novena of Grace in honor of Francis Xavier, one of the founding Jesuits who was missioned to the Far East and the Indies. This nine-day period of prayer was instituted in gratitude for the canonization of Xavier and Ignatius of Loyola in 1622. The prayer runs from March 4th to March 12th. The Novena is imbedded below.
Lord God, our Father, we honor the memory of the Apostle of the East, St. Francis Xavier. The remembrance of the favors with which You blessed him during life and of his glory after death, fills us with joy; and we unite with him in offering to You our sincere tribute of thanksgiving and of grace.
We ask You to grant us, through his powerful intercession, the inestimable blessings of living and dying in the state of grace. We also ask You to grant us the favors we seek in this novena.
(Pause for personal petitions)
But if what we ask is not for the glory of God and the good of our souls, grant us, we pray, what is more conducive to both. We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Closing Prayer
Almighty God, by the preaching of St. Francis Xavier You won many peoples to Yourself. Give his zeal for the faith to all who believe in You, that Your Church may rejoice to see the virtue and number of the faithful increase throughout the world. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.
Jesuits and their colleagues worldwide pray a Novena of Grace in honor of Francis Xavier, one of the founding Jesuits who was missioned to the Far East and the Indies. This nine-day period of prayer was instituted in gratitude for the canonization of Xavier and Ignatius of Loyola in 1622. The prayer runs from March 4th to March 12th. The Novena is imbedded below.
Lord God, our Father, we honor the memory of the Apostle of the East, St. Francis Xavier. The remembrance of the favors with which You blessed him during life and of his glory after death, fills us with joy; and we unite with him in offering to You our sincere tribute of thanksgiving and of grace.
We ask You to grant us, through his powerful intercession, the inestimable blessings of living and dying in the state of grace. We also ask You to grant us the favors we seek in this novena.
(Pause for personal petitions)
But if what we ask is not for the glory of God and the good of our souls, grant us, we pray, what is more conducive to both. We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Closing Prayer
Almighty God, by the preaching of St. Francis Xavier You won many peoples to Yourself. Give his zeal for the faith to all who believe in You, that Your Church may rejoice to see the virtue and number of the faithful increase throughout the world. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.
Prayer: "Marked by Ashes" by Walter Brueggeman
Ruler of the night, Guarantor of the day...
This day - a gift from you.
This day - like none other you have ever given, or we have ever received.
This Wednesday dazzles us with gift and newness and possibility.
This Wednesday burdens us with the tasks of the day, for we are already halfway home,
halfway back to communities and memos,
halfway back to calls and appointments,
halfway on to next Sunday,
halfway back, half frazzled, half expectant,
half turned toward you, half rather not.
This Wednesday is a long way from Ash Wednesday,
but all our Wednesdays are marked by ashes -
we begin this day with that taste of ash in our mouth:
of failed hope and broken promises,
of forgotten children and frightened women,
we ourselves are ashes to ashes, dust to dust;
we can taste our mortality as we roll the ash around on our tongues.
We are able to ponder our ashness with some confidence,
only because our every Wednesday of ashes anticipates your Easter victory
over that dry, flaky taste of death.
On this Wednesday, we submit our ashes way to you -
your Easter parade of newness.
Before the sun sets, take our Wednesday and Easter us,
Easter us to joy and energy and courage and freedom;
Easter us that we may be fearless for your truth.
Come here and Easter our Wednesday with mercy
and justice and peace and generosity.
We pray as we wait for the Risen One who comes soon.
This day - a gift from you.
This day - like none other you have ever given, or we have ever received.
This Wednesday dazzles us with gift and newness and possibility.
This Wednesday burdens us with the tasks of the day, for we are already halfway home,
halfway back to communities and memos,
halfway back to calls and appointments,
halfway on to next Sunday,
halfway back, half frazzled, half expectant,
half turned toward you, half rather not.
This Wednesday is a long way from Ash Wednesday,
but all our Wednesdays are marked by ashes -
we begin this day with that taste of ash in our mouth:
of failed hope and broken promises,
of forgotten children and frightened women,
we ourselves are ashes to ashes, dust to dust;
we can taste our mortality as we roll the ash around on our tongues.
We are able to ponder our ashness with some confidence,
only because our every Wednesday of ashes anticipates your Easter victory
over that dry, flaky taste of death.
On this Wednesday, we submit our ashes way to you -
your Easter parade of newness.
Before the sun sets, take our Wednesday and Easter us,
Easter us to joy and energy and courage and freedom;
Easter us that we may be fearless for your truth.
Come here and Easter our Wednesday with mercy
and justice and peace and generosity.
We pray as we wait for the Risen One who comes soon.
First Sunday in Lent
March 13, 2011
Genesis 2:7-9, 3:1-7; Psalm 51; Romans 5:12-19; Matthew 4:1-11
It does not take long for simple matters to get complicated. For example, Mark, in the first Gospel written, addresses the temptations of Jesus in two brief lines. For Mark, temptation is essentially a personal inner experience. In Matthew’s account that we hear today, the author is interpreting the events for his audience in a way that is pastorally meaningful. Therefore, deep rich cultural experiences are projected onto the life of Jesus.
Matthew connects the temptations of Jesus in the desert with the 40-day fast of Moses and also with Elijah’s time in the desert. Furthermore, it hearkens to the experience of the Israelites after the exodus from Egypt. God’s patience was tested by the people when they doubted God’s care. They rebelled against God’s nourishment of them by becoming dissatisfied with the daily manna and they turned away by offering sacrifices to a golden calf. Jesus is representing the ordinary experiences of the people of God.
Matthew’s account is to be read with the background of Deuteronomy 6-8, which details the temptations offered to the people. Jesus is responding to these temptations. He is offering a way of fulfilling the great commandment to love God “with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.” Heart refers to the affective side of us that drives us to do good or evil; soul means ‘life’ – even to the extent of martyrdom; and might means wealth, property, and external possessions. These temptations are formidable, but Jesus has an answer for each of them and his fundamental answer relies upon trusting in the providential love of God.
Jesus is acting as the representative of Israel. He is teaching them about God’s providence. Turning desert stones into bread is tantamount to rebelling against God’s will. The word of God becomes the chief nourishment. The second temptation, throwing oneself down from the holy city of Jerusalem, is testing God’s care of each person by unnecessarily and recklessly risking one’s life. The tempter is mocking the Christian custom of martyrdom. To invite Jesus to inherit all the magnificent, earthly kingdoms, the tempter appeals to the human preference for wealth and power to the love of God. This violates the covenant with God.
Jesus is able to answer each temptation with scripture; the tempter has his own scriptural foundations. His approach appeals to the good desires within us. The temptations are logical, clearly reasoned, and sensible. They are cogent and coherent and are found in our own beloved Scripture. We can easily be led astray.
Jesus shows us that only God is worthy of our worship. For the people of his day, Jesus represents the beginning of a new people of God. In a sense, he is the founder of a new humanity. Humanity’s basic temptation is not to love God with a unified heart, at the risk of life, at the cost of wealth. Jesus is the perfect lover of God. We learn from him because our love is imperfect and we are not as strong as he. This is a reason for our increased fasting, prayer, and almsgiving. Yes, we do become more like him when we imitate him. We also need his grace so we can have insights into our own temptations and strengths. Through his abiding presence, we have a spiritual ally who has withstood the greatest tests. He won!
Themes for this Week’s Masses
First Reading: The first week of Lent highlights stories that tell of a person’s repentance and conversion to God. The good shall live. Those who follow the will of God’s inherit eternal life. The Ten Commandments are given to the Israelites by God through Moses in the Book of Leviticus. Isaiah reminds the people that the word of God is like a seed that needs to be nourished on fertile ground. Jonah sets out for the great city of Nineveh to announce God’s word. The King, upon hearing the news of Jonah, relents and repents, bringing himself favor by God. Queen Esther falls prostrate and begs help from the Lord for she finds herself alone except for the steadfast presence of God. Ezekiel tells of the wicked man who turns from sin and finds eternal life; he also tells of the virtuous man who breaks from righteousness and commits sin will surely die.
Gospel: Matthew 25’s famous eschatological begins the Lenten season as the last judgment will separate the righteous from wayward sinners. The criterion is one’s mercy and compassion to the least among us. Jesus teaches his disciples how to pray. He teaches them the “Our Father.” He then tells the people that they are to look closer. They pay homage to Jonah and Solomon, but he is greater than both these heroic men. To pray effectively, Jesus tells his friends to ask for whatever they want in his name and the generous Father will grant their requests. He tells them to deal with their anger and make reconciliation part and parcel of their habits. A reconciled life will bear great fruit in this life and the next.
Saints of the Week
Thursday: Patrick, bishop (389-461) is the revered Apostle of Ireland and patron saint of many U.S. dioceses. At age 16, he was kidnapped from Britain and brought to Ireland where he herded sheep and cattle. When he escaped, he decided to return to Ireland as a priest. Pope Celestine ordered him to bring the faith to Ireland. He is credited for converting many pagans, establishing Christianity, and setting up a local clergy in the land.
Friday: Cyril of Jerusalem, bishop and doctor (315-387) was a well-educated man who had connections to Caesar. He became a scholar of the early church before he was elected as Bishop of Jerusalem. He defended the work of the Nicene Council against the Arians and he wrote 24 treatises on catechesis.
Saturday: Joseph, husband of Mary, is honored today for his support of Mary in their marriage. He is portrayed as a righteous man who obeys the will of God. Therefore, his ancestry is upheld as a virtuous stock through which God’s promises come true. We seldom contemplate his marital relationship to Mary and his responsibility to love and raise Jesus as his son.
This Week in Jesuit History
• Mar 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.)
• Mar 14, 1535. Ignatius received his degree from the University of Paris.
• Mar 15, 1632. The death of Diego Ruiz, a great theologian, who studied on his knees.
• Mar 16, 1649. The martyrdom in Canada of St John de Brebeuf, apostle to the Huron Indians. Captured by the Iroquois along with some Christian Hurons, he endured horrible tortures.
• Mar 17, 1964. The death of Joseph O'Callahan. He was awarded the US Medal of Honor for heroism as chaplain on the USS Franklin, off Japan on March 19, 1945.
• Mar 18, 1541. Two letters arrived from Lisbon from Francis Xavier. One was addressed to Ignatius, the other to Frs. LeJay and Laynez. They were written just before his departure to India.
• Mar 19, 1836. By imperial decree, the Society was allowed to re-enter the Austrian dominions.
Libya, Ivory Coast, and other lands of unrest
We continue to pray for the people of Libya, the Ivory Coast, and other lands of instability. Certain strategic countries command greater media attention. We are to pray for those who are forgotten or are out of the media spotlight. May innocent people be free from harm. May freedom ring loud and clear in the hearts of all. We must not judge what is happening through our worldview because we do not know what is happening within the experiences of the people.
Rite of Election
Candidates (baptized) and catechumen (unbaptized) has been preparing to receive the Easter sacraments for months. They have been sent from their congregations throughout the year to break open the word of God with their catechists. This Sunday their names are inscribed in the Book of Elect at the local cathedral. They are scrutinized each week in front of the congregation who will attest if they are ready to enter the local community of faith. Pray for our newly elect!
Genesis 2:7-9, 3:1-7; Psalm 51; Romans 5:12-19; Matthew 4:1-11
It does not take long for simple matters to get complicated. For example, Mark, in the first Gospel written, addresses the temptations of Jesus in two brief lines. For Mark, temptation is essentially a personal inner experience. In Matthew’s account that we hear today, the author is interpreting the events for his audience in a way that is pastorally meaningful. Therefore, deep rich cultural experiences are projected onto the life of Jesus.
Matthew connects the temptations of Jesus in the desert with the 40-day fast of Moses and also with Elijah’s time in the desert. Furthermore, it hearkens to the experience of the Israelites after the exodus from Egypt. God’s patience was tested by the people when they doubted God’s care. They rebelled against God’s nourishment of them by becoming dissatisfied with the daily manna and they turned away by offering sacrifices to a golden calf. Jesus is representing the ordinary experiences of the people of God.
Matthew’s account is to be read with the background of Deuteronomy 6-8, which details the temptations offered to the people. Jesus is responding to these temptations. He is offering a way of fulfilling the great commandment to love God “with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.” Heart refers to the affective side of us that drives us to do good or evil; soul means ‘life’ – even to the extent of martyrdom; and might means wealth, property, and external possessions. These temptations are formidable, but Jesus has an answer for each of them and his fundamental answer relies upon trusting in the providential love of God.
Jesus is acting as the representative of Israel. He is teaching them about God’s providence. Turning desert stones into bread is tantamount to rebelling against God’s will. The word of God becomes the chief nourishment. The second temptation, throwing oneself down from the holy city of Jerusalem, is testing God’s care of each person by unnecessarily and recklessly risking one’s life. The tempter is mocking the Christian custom of martyrdom. To invite Jesus to inherit all the magnificent, earthly kingdoms, the tempter appeals to the human preference for wealth and power to the love of God. This violates the covenant with God.
Jesus is able to answer each temptation with scripture; the tempter has his own scriptural foundations. His approach appeals to the good desires within us. The temptations are logical, clearly reasoned, and sensible. They are cogent and coherent and are found in our own beloved Scripture. We can easily be led astray.
Jesus shows us that only God is worthy of our worship. For the people of his day, Jesus represents the beginning of a new people of God. In a sense, he is the founder of a new humanity. Humanity’s basic temptation is not to love God with a unified heart, at the risk of life, at the cost of wealth. Jesus is the perfect lover of God. We learn from him because our love is imperfect and we are not as strong as he. This is a reason for our increased fasting, prayer, and almsgiving. Yes, we do become more like him when we imitate him. We also need his grace so we can have insights into our own temptations and strengths. Through his abiding presence, we have a spiritual ally who has withstood the greatest tests. He won!
Themes for this Week’s Masses
First Reading: The first week of Lent highlights stories that tell of a person’s repentance and conversion to God. The good shall live. Those who follow the will of God’s inherit eternal life. The Ten Commandments are given to the Israelites by God through Moses in the Book of Leviticus. Isaiah reminds the people that the word of God is like a seed that needs to be nourished on fertile ground. Jonah sets out for the great city of Nineveh to announce God’s word. The King, upon hearing the news of Jonah, relents and repents, bringing himself favor by God. Queen Esther falls prostrate and begs help from the Lord for she finds herself alone except for the steadfast presence of God. Ezekiel tells of the wicked man who turns from sin and finds eternal life; he also tells of the virtuous man who breaks from righteousness and commits sin will surely die.
Gospel: Matthew 25’s famous eschatological begins the Lenten season as the last judgment will separate the righteous from wayward sinners. The criterion is one’s mercy and compassion to the least among us. Jesus teaches his disciples how to pray. He teaches them the “Our Father.” He then tells the people that they are to look closer. They pay homage to Jonah and Solomon, but he is greater than both these heroic men. To pray effectively, Jesus tells his friends to ask for whatever they want in his name and the generous Father will grant their requests. He tells them to deal with their anger and make reconciliation part and parcel of their habits. A reconciled life will bear great fruit in this life and the next.
Saints of the Week
Thursday: Patrick, bishop (389-461) is the revered Apostle of Ireland and patron saint of many U.S. dioceses. At age 16, he was kidnapped from Britain and brought to Ireland where he herded sheep and cattle. When he escaped, he decided to return to Ireland as a priest. Pope Celestine ordered him to bring the faith to Ireland. He is credited for converting many pagans, establishing Christianity, and setting up a local clergy in the land.
Friday: Cyril of Jerusalem, bishop and doctor (315-387) was a well-educated man who had connections to Caesar. He became a scholar of the early church before he was elected as Bishop of Jerusalem. He defended the work of the Nicene Council against the Arians and he wrote 24 treatises on catechesis.
Saturday: Joseph, husband of Mary, is honored today for his support of Mary in their marriage. He is portrayed as a righteous man who obeys the will of God. Therefore, his ancestry is upheld as a virtuous stock through which God’s promises come true. We seldom contemplate his marital relationship to Mary and his responsibility to love and raise Jesus as his son.
This Week in Jesuit History
• Mar 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.)
• Mar 14, 1535. Ignatius received his degree from the University of Paris.
• Mar 15, 1632. The death of Diego Ruiz, a great theologian, who studied on his knees.
• Mar 16, 1649. The martyrdom in Canada of St John de Brebeuf, apostle to the Huron Indians. Captured by the Iroquois along with some Christian Hurons, he endured horrible tortures.
• Mar 17, 1964. The death of Joseph O'Callahan. He was awarded the US Medal of Honor for heroism as chaplain on the USS Franklin, off Japan on March 19, 1945.
• Mar 18, 1541. Two letters arrived from Lisbon from Francis Xavier. One was addressed to Ignatius, the other to Frs. LeJay and Laynez. They were written just before his departure to India.
• Mar 19, 1836. By imperial decree, the Society was allowed to re-enter the Austrian dominions.
Libya, Ivory Coast, and other lands of unrest
We continue to pray for the people of Libya, the Ivory Coast, and other lands of instability. Certain strategic countries command greater media attention. We are to pray for those who are forgotten or are out of the media spotlight. May innocent people be free from harm. May freedom ring loud and clear in the hearts of all. We must not judge what is happening through our worldview because we do not know what is happening within the experiences of the people.
Rite of Election
Candidates (baptized) and catechumen (unbaptized) has been preparing to receive the Easter sacraments for months. They have been sent from their congregations throughout the year to break open the word of God with their catechists. This Sunday their names are inscribed in the Book of Elect at the local cathedral. They are scrutinized each week in front of the congregation who will attest if they are ready to enter the local community of faith. Pray for our newly elect!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Question: What are your favorite Lenten traditions?
Many people give us cheese, meat, and/or desserts during Lent. It is also the time for hot cross buns, fish on Fridays, and Polish ponchkies. Many have traditions are working at soup kitchens and food pantries and increasing the times of one's prayers. What do you do?
What do you give up for Lent? What do you add to your devotions?
What are your favorite traditions?
What do you give up for Lent? What do you add to your devotions?
What are your favorite traditions?
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