Remind me again?

Romans 12:6-13

            Today's passage is (yet) another exhortation on how to live. We have the prophets, Moses and the Ten Commandments, Jesus, his life, the two great commandments, the New Testament and lives of countless Saints. Why are we not yet living perfect lives? The examples of us as sheep seem quite reasonable. Easily lead (one way or the other), simple and pleasant. So too is the example of us as a thick headed people. We need to be told over, and over, and over again, just how to live our lives. We need new ways to imagine, new and different voices to explain the truths God wishes us to know. Rather than lament this situation of humanity, perhaps it is simply best to acknowledge it as fact. But we do need to be constantly reminded. We do need to hear the message again. We do need re-imagine ourselves and the words of God. I am the first to say that The Word reveals different messages to us at different times in our life.

             I am blessed in that I know the fundamental message that God wishes to impart. That message is the knowledge deep in my marrow and in my heart and mind that I am a loved creation of God. I am not perfect but I am perfectly loved. So are you. This is a core fundamental truth.  What I do need to be reminded of is how to respond to the love God has graced me with. The love of my husband and loving him is part of my response to God. A loving, giving, committed relationship. But the response to love is more challenging when I move out beyond the confines of my husband, our children, our friends. The call to love and respect the dignity of others is what we need to be reminded of. We need to grow and constantly be challenged to re-imagine how we can love and respond in a changing world.

              Perhaps our need to respond and the fact that we are growing is the reason we need to be constantly reminded of how to love. Perhaps the fact that the Spirit of the living God who is alive and present to us needs to be recognized and responded to by every person in every age.  We are static, every changing and ever growing so we need to be ever reminded.

            So whether it is an author infused by the gifts of the Holy Spirit, a retreat, time with scripture, walking a labyrinth, weekly services or whatever, we need to put aside the time to be reminded of how loved we are, how special we are and how we can live out that love in our ever changing world.

        

We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness.

Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honour. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. ¹³Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.

Touching your soul

Sirach 50:16-21

            When I was a little kid of 9 or 10 I apparently used to skip down the street singing or whistling. Come to think of it, was that clue way back then? In any event, my neighbors said they delighted in seeing me go down the street so happy and care free. I have always had an attachment for music that expresses the feelings inside. I do not have a great voice and yet I think the sound of the seminarians in chapel, our voices raised high to God sounded heavenly. Dare I say I also sound great in the shower and lastly, I sound exquisite as I make up songs of praise as I sing on my way to work at 5am. In all these situations, I am using or listening to songs which express the state of my soul. Joyous praise, solemn prayers or celebrating life. My soul is revealed in music. I believe this is true of many of us. Perhaps it is true of all humans, maybe even in the entire animal kingdom. Music connects us to the unseen power and glory of our creator. It expresses what is deep inside of us,  foundational, deep and raw.

              This is why music takes on such a dramatic role in every society on earth, in every religion. It can express what we feel, sooth the savage beast, raise praise as high as the rafters and the heavens. This is one reason music is integral to so many forms of worship.

              This probably is no great revelation to most people. But perhaps some get caught up in the peripheral experience of music that might be part of a rock concert or the sheer elegance of attending an opera at the Met. So this is really a simple reminder to realize the role music plays in our lives and to appreciate it, enjoy it.

           Music touches our soul and expresses who we are.

            

Then the sons of Aaron shouted;
   they blew their trumpets of hammered metal;
they sounded a mighty fanfare
   as a reminder before the Most High.
Then all the people together quickly
   fell to the ground on their faces
to worship their Lord,
   the Almighty, God Most High. 

Then the singers praised him with their voices
   in sweet and full-toned melody.
And the people of the Lord Most High offered
   their prayers before the Merciful One,
until the order of worship of the Lord was ended,
   and they completed his ritual.
Then Simon came down and raised his hands
   over the whole congregation of Israelites,
to pronounce the blessing of the Lord with his lips,
   and to glory in his name;
and they bowed down in worship a second time,
   to receive the blessing from the Most High. 

Narrow gates indeed

Matthew 7:12-14

          There are people who obsess over the idea of the narrow gate or how hard the life is that leads to it. This may be justification for "it's my way or the highway" rule of living. There are many churches that have the incredible arrogance to believe that they are the narrow gate. Only through them can salvation be found. They are the one true church.   LOL

           But I would like you to consider the idea that the narrow gate is yourself. That does make the gate extremely narrow. The wide gate that leads to destruction is trying to be everyone for everybody. The wide gate is not being true to yourself. The narrow gate is the difficult and lifelong task of knowing yourself, appreciating yourself and sharing yourself  with the rest of God's created world. It's no easy task discovering all there is to know about yourself. There are strengths, weaknesses, talents, gifts all unique to you.  Some are difficult to discern and not appreciated by society. Some are joyfully expressed and recognized. We are to discover them all,  use them all and that is the narrow gate.

           Some people wander through life without purpose, committed to nothing, caring for only themselves (in a selfish way) and no introspection, no self examination. Could that gate get any wider?

           Of course the narrow gate is surely exemplified by the two great commandments. On a intimately personal level, the gate is narrowed by how we personally live our life, how we share our love in only a way we can do it. God did not make automatons, he made us unique and special and in His (or Her) image. What is the image of God within us that helps us save the world? We have a gift only we can bring to the table. That narrow gate.

‘In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.

‘Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it.

Go fer it

Mark 14:1-11

        I have noted that that we humans have a penchant to go full tilt when we make a decision about something. Moderation is rarely something we engage in our hyper materialistic Madison avenue society. Of course some people are more afflicted than others but in general, we make a decision and go forward with whatever the plan is.  We are not likely to admit we are wrong. We are unlikely to change course lest it affect our self worth, which, for some reason we tie to always being right. This is a horrible thing unto itself and I suspect it's the reason we are so polarized as a society.

         But the basic tenet here is that we all search and when we do we go gang busters. We want to succeed. So if you want to be a millionaire, you go for it. You want to be spiritual? Read books, attend seminars, go to church, and well, you go for it. If we want sex, we know where to look and we, yep, we go for it. Not much stops us. We are a nation of go getters, we always succeed. Bravo. I think.

         The problem is, sometimes we are wrong. Sometimes we succeed at others expense. Sometimes we rationalize and romanticize and we go for the goal with a kind of tunnel vision that precludes rational thinking and any possibility of retreat even if we do realize we are wrong.

         I can't help but think that Judas, for whatever reason, made his decision and may have had a moment or two (or three) when he had a second thought about what he was doing. He may have actually  realized he was in too deep, maybe made a mistake but human nature what it is (and probably was then too),  he went ahead , pedal to the metal so to speak. Of course after it was all said and done, he really did have a horrific realization of what he'd done. He fell into a very worldly trap and took to a worldly centered, rash decision and took his own life.

         If there is a take home message it would be about moderation and our ability to admit we are wrong. We should not let ourselves get tunnel vision about anything and certainly not about worldly things. God gave us brains for a good reason - to think. We are charged to examine, think, reassess and perhaps change course.

          There are numerous examples out there of ways to examine your conscience, to re-evaluate what you are doing during your day, during your life. A very worthwhile endeavor. If only you would ask "What would Jesus do", that would be a fine start. Another good question might be to ask yourself if the action you are considering is based in love? 

          

         

          

The Plot to Kill Jesus

It was two days before the Passover and the festival of Unleavened Bread. The chief priests and the scribes were looking for a way to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him; for they said, ‘Not during the festival, or there may be a riot among the people.’

The Anointing at Bethany

While he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at the table, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very costly ointment of nard, and she broke open the jar and poured the ointment on his head. But some were there who said to one another in anger, ‘Why was the ointment wasted in this way? For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii, and the money given to the poor.’ And they scolded her. But Jesus said, ‘Let her alone; why do you trouble her? She has performed a good service for me. For you always have the poor with you, and you can show kindness to them whenever you wish; but you will not always have me. She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for its burial. Truly I tell you, wherever the good news is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in remembrance of her.’

Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus

Then Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, went to the chief priests in order to betray him to them. When they heard it, they were greatly pleased, and promised to give him money. So he began to look for an opportunity to betray him. 

On the journey to wholeness

Psalm 25 7-14

          I am not sure how to say this except to come right out with it. I am a sinner. I have caved to the flesh, perhaps exercised poor judgement at times. Perhaps we all have.  "Who am I to judge?" The lines of good and bad behavior seem to be blurred when you are overcome by the joy of knowing who you  are, out and proud, exploring the gift of sexuality that God gave you.  I am sure however that there are a number of people who feel that I am going to hell in a hand basket. I have sinned and have not sought redemption in the manner in which they think is appropriate. I have not repented, again, in the way they think is appropriate. But, I have arrived at a place in my journey to wholeness. This is a place many have found, the joy of a person that completes them. My husband completes me.  Is this any different than straight people that 'sew their wild oats'?  What people do, as long as it is with consent and respect, I do not find sinful. To revel in God's gifts is not sinful. I believe God smiles at this.

           Back to me. In my mind and heart, I have been on a journey. I still am, as we all are. Yes I have acted in ways that if perceived in black and white terms might send me to hell. But nothing is really black or white and even the most heinous sins are open to redemption and understanding in the Lord's eyes. There is conscience, journey and growth and they are all intertwined it seems to me.

         I would not want anyone to use this information as the basis for a spree of social and moral transgressions to simply say "I am on a journey". Yet, as we struggle with our own createdness, our surroundings and our imperfect choices, we do make decisions that help us go from here to there and grow. Our lives, transgressions included, are a journey to the wholeness God wishes for each and every one of us.

Do not remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions;
   according to your steadfast love remember me,
   for your goodness’ sake, O Lord! 

Good and upright is the Lord;
   therefore he instructs sinners in the way.
He leads the humble in what is right,
   and teaches the humble his way.
All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness,
   for those who keep his covenant and his decrees. 

For your name’s sake, O Lord,
   pardon my guilt, for it is great.
Who are they that fear the Lord?
   He will teach them the way that they should choose. 

They will abide in prosperity,
   and their children shall possess the land.
The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him,
   and he makes his covenant known to them.

Your holiness

Matthew 23:13-22

             As always, there is pleasant and often quite interesting conversation over the post Mass coffee hour. Today we briefly touched on the differences between Cistercians, Capuchins, Franciscans and what Saint Francis himself may have intended at different times in his life. One point is that Saint Francis, at least at one time, would even argue against ownership of a personal copy of the Bible. Brother Mark noted that if you own a book, then you might want a shelf  or then a light or then something else. Perhaps owning things is a slippery slope. I do know that things can own you. I usually associate that with much more material things, i-pods, phones, TVs, cars, houses, clothing, jewelry, etc.

I deference to my fathers wisdom (earthly and heavenly), I believe we are better off if we realize we are merely caretakers of everything we are graced with.  We are better off if we think we own nothing and that includes spouses, children and anything else we seem to feel we own or would fight for.

             This begs to ask the question of what makes us holy?  Do even the holiest of objects, texts or robes make us holy? Are my grandmothers set of Rosary beads exempt from the feeling of ownership? Do they make me holy? Does my ordination make me holy? There are a great number of Pedophile Priests and ordained ministers that helped cover it up that would lead me to believe that ordination does not in fact automatically make you holy.  What makes us holy?

               I think an argument could be made that  living an authentic life makes you holy. Knowing in your heart your uniqueness and goodness  as  created by God may make you holy on the face of it. Does loving and generosity make you holy?

             I am going to suggest that there is no material possession that makes you holy. You are Holy as created, as in the book Original Blessing by Matthew Fox. You can attain Holiness by loving and placing everything in proper perspective.  Hint: God is always numero uno.

‘But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you lock people out of the kingdom of heaven. For you do not go in yourselves, and when others are going in, you stop them. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cross sea and land to make a single convert, and you make the new convert twice as much a child of hell as yourselves.

‘Woe to you, blind guides, who say, “Whoever swears by the sanctuary is bound by nothing, but whoever swears by the gold of the sanctuary is bound by the oath.” You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the sanctuary that has made the gold sacred? And you say, “Whoever swears by the altar is bound by nothing, but whoever swears by the gift that is on the altar is bound by the oath.” How blind you are! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? So whoever swears by the altar, swears by it and by everything on it; and whoever swears by the sanctuary, swears by it and by the one who dwells in it; and whoever swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by the one who is seated upon it.

Abba, not the band

Galatians 4:1-7

          I've attended many biblical courses in my time but one stands out from this passage.  The "Abba! Father!" came up in a class and the translation really struck me.What is the proper translation of the word, "Abba"? We can come up with many synonyms for father. Pop and Dad come to mind but what of Daddy? Daddy is a terms that invokes a childlike love. I speaks to being dependent and loving. It speaks of youth and love. Daddy is the word that is used to define Abba. It is more than "Dad" whom you might ask for $20 and the keys to the car. It is not as formal as "Father" which you might invoke when you are trying to explain a less than desirable grade in school. Daddy is a word even more casual and loving than even "Pop".  Daddy is such a special word reserved for an innocent love that it seems (sadly) that only children possess.

             It would be wonderful if we could put aside some of the worldly concerns, divest ourselves of some of the practicalities we have learned being in the 'real world' and return ourselves to a state where we could appreciate and revel in our Abba (Daddy), God the Father.

             We might actually be afraid to approach God with such simplicity but that is arrogance on our part. We may not want to be seem as childlike but I can assure you that to God we are indeed all children. We are all his children and we are indeed very childlike. We probably should not forget that and we should be willing to approach him with the innocence and love we were able to do as a 5 year old child.

         To what end you might ask?  As far as God is above us, and as childlike as we in comparison to our creator, God wishes to have a relationship with us. He has offered us the world. Like the child with a guardian in today's passage, we need guidance and love to grow and appreciate all the gifts we have been given. We need to realize sometimes that we are dependent on God, we do need to grow and mature always and for the rest of our lives. We need to remember we are all children of God and we need to be loving and generous like a child in the best possible ways.

          Love in innocence and purity.       

My point is this: heirs, as long as they are minors, are no better than slaves, though they are the owners of all the property; but they remain under guardians and trustees until the date set by the father. So with us; while we were minors, we were enslaved to the elemental spirits of the world. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’ So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God.

A leg up

1 Corinthians 4:9-15

           Finally, we get a leg up. I think it is easier to be a good Christian when you are gay. One of the things that this passage speaks of is being different. Not only being different but revelling in your difference and being happy about it. This passage calls it being a fool for the sake of Christ. Look at the parallels.

           When you are gay, many people look down on you. You are different, misunderstood. Yet, we are happy with who we are, comfortable in our own skins. We know that God made us this way. We know better than to vilify sex and loving. We have a heightened sense perhaps of the joys of our sexuality and the ability to love and appreciate others. We know our self worth, we may be described as "out and proud". We live our own lives confident in our skin, our love and our God.

           When you are a Christian you may also find yourself at odds with the world. You often will. Your actions are centered in another world, not this world. You love and forgive others which many might say is admirable yet they would not practice it themselves and really don't understand it. Christian values are not the values of this world. We love when others choose to hate.  Our standards are not the same standards as that of society. We do not buy into the materialistic rat race as a source of satisfaction and destiny and completeness of our being. 

           Being gay and being different is very much how a good Christian feels. Many of the same feelings arise. Misunderstood, acting out of a paradigm that is misunderstood and not fully appreciated. You know that you are acting how God wants you to act but yet not as the rest of the world acts.

           Fundamentally, being gay and being Christian is about love, loving others being the person that God wants you to be because it is what He created us to be. In our case, that is gay (check) and loving (check).  Go forth ad love.

          

For I think that God has exhibited us apostles as last of all, as though sentenced to death, because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels and to mortals. We are fools for the sake of Christ, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honour, but we in disrepute. To the present hour we are hungry and thirsty, we are poorly clothed and beaten and homeless, and we grow weary from the work of our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; when slandered, we speak kindly. We have become like the rubbish of the world, the dregs of all things, to this very day.

Fatherly Admonition

I am not writing this to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. For though you might have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers. Indeed, in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. 

Ruth and Naomi bound together

Ruth 1:1-22

           When I speak of the diversity of God's creation, I am usually speaking about the spectrum of sexuality that is exhibited not only by humans but in the entire animal kingdom. This is a well documented scientific fact. They are not aberrations but consistent and proven fact. How wonderful it is today in this passage that there is also documentation of yet another form of 'family'.

             The conservative right speaks of 'traditional Biblical marriage' as if it is a proven, documented and religious standard that is set in Biblical stone. In fact, if we look at 'marriage' and family in Scripture you would find far less desirable examples of relationships. From slavery and concubines, to incest and rape, marriage in a biblical context is far from set in stone and not always of the Ozzie and Harriett or Father Knows Best varieties.

            Here we  have a passage that is often used to indicate an expression of a supposed Lesbian relationship. The love affair of Ruth and Naomi is set as a beacon of hope for all who are trying to integrate their sexuality and love of God who is often represented as condemning homosexuality by some Jewish and Christian denominations. Whether Ruth and Naomi were a Biblical gay couple is perhaps not provable beyond the shadow of a doubt. The evidence is there in many, many passages.  One thing is for sure though, they represented a different kind of family and that model is one to certainly be emulated. Certainly not a universal norm but certainly within the broad spectrum of God's love and relationships, relationships that express love and commitment.

              Ruth and Naomi are read at countless lesbian weddings because,  if nothing else, it shows a couple who come together to live life supporting and loving each other. This seems radical for their time. For us is it is a shining example of love and commitment. It is yet one more example that the so called standard of Biblical love and relationships is not as defined as some would have you believe.

               Can the love of of God actually be contained? Can the desire of man to love in His image, to come together and 'not be alone' be regulated? The only restrictions that come to my mind are that the relationships be loving, nurturing, have mutual consent and life giving in the broadest sense of the word. Love does conquer all. 

In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land, and a certain man of Bethlehem in Judah went to live in the country of Moab, he and his wife and two sons. The name of the man was Elimelech and the name of his wife Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion; they were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They went into the country of Moab and remained there. But Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, died, and she was left with her two sons. These took Moabite wives; the name of one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. When they had lived there for about ten years, both Mahlon and Chilion also died, so that the woman was left without her two sons or her husband.

Then she started to return with her daughters-in-law from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the country of Moab that the Lord had had consideration for his people and given them food. So she set out from the place where she had been living, she and her two daughters-in-law, and they went on their way to go back to the land of Judah. But Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, ‘Go back each of you to your mother’s house. May the Lord deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me. The Lord grant that you may find security, each of you in the house of your husband.’ Then she kissed them, and they wept aloud. They said to her, ‘No, we will return with you to your people.’ But Naomi said, ‘Turn back, my daughters, why will you go with me? Do I still have sons in my womb that they may become your husbands? Turn back, my daughters, go your way, for I am too old to have a husband. Even if I thought there was hope for me, even if I should have a husband tonight and bear sons, would you then wait until they were grown? Would you then refrain from marrying? No, my daughters, it has been far more bitter for me than for you, because the hand of the Lord has turned against me.’ Then they wept aloud again. Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.

So she said, ‘See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.’ But Ruth said,
‘Do not press me to leave you
   or to turn back from following you!
Where you go, I will go;
   where you lodge, I will lodge;
your people shall be my people,
   and your God my God.
Where you die, I will die—
   there will I be buried.
May the Lord do thus and so to me,
   and more as well,
if even death parts me from you!’
When Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.

So the two of them went on until they came to Bethlehem. When they came to Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them; and the women said, ‘Is this Naomi?’ She said to them,
‘Call me no longer Naomi,
   call me Mara,
   for the Almighty has dealt bitterly with me.
 I went away full,
   but the Lord has brought me back empty;
why call me Naomi
   when the Lord has dealt harshly with me,
   and the Almighty has brought calamity upon me?’

So Naomi returned together with Ruth the Moabite, her daughter-in-law, who came back with her from the country of Moab. They came to Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest.

I'm doing you a favor

James 2:1-8,14-17

         I can picture the person in the synagogue (or church) telling the poor person to 'sit here' and at the same time rationalizing why the person would want to sit in a place less honoured.  I am amazed at how convoluted some logic becomes in a effort to justify one's position. Jesus certainly did not use such logic. Jesus was a straight shooter and used  parables that people could understand and that made sense.

         As you may know, several years ago  I had a Baptist minister living with me. He stayed a few months while he discerned what he was being called to do. We agreed on almost nothing except that Jesus is our Lord and saviour.  One of our big differences was on the role of women in life and in the church, any church. He was of the barefoot and pregnant ilk. What amazed me is the logic he tried to use to justify his position. Clearly Hebrew and Christian scripture showed women in a status that was radical for their time. Jesus touched , spoke and congregated with women which was almost heresy at the time. Perhaps it was then.  So to hear this man of the cloth say that his sincerest wish was to elevate all women and the way to do that he'd say was to be sure they live the life God made for them by virtue of their wombs. Uh-mayzing. All I could say in my astonishment was that I completely and thoroughly disagreed with him. It's not that I wish to dishonor women. My wish is to allow a women to choose what they want to do. I am for women's lib as much as I am for men's liberation.

           That seemed like a bit of  digression but the Christian right seems to revel in an equal mix of ignorance and  faulty logic. As Saint Paul said, 'there will be neither, Greek nor Jew, male nor female'. We are all equal in God's eyes, rich and poor, black, white, yellow, gray, Jew, Muslim, Christian, Chinese, Arab, American or Martian.

            The only thing in my mind worse than treating people differently is to have the chutzpah to try and rationalize it. There is a simplicity to Jesus' message of love. There is no need to justify it by some artificial or pseudo-intellectual treatise. Jesus' message is love and it stands on it's own, simply and quite powerfully.

             To my way of thinking, when someone starts talking and my eye's begin to glaze over, that's a sign that there is something fishy going on. If the message isn't clear and obviously derived from love, it is probably very questionable in content and motive. Just a thought. Equality is equality. Love is love.

Warning against Partiality

My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favouritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ? For if a person with gold rings and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and if a poor person in dirty clothes also comes in, and if you take notice of the one wearing the fine clothes and say, ‘Have a seat here, please’, while to the one who is poor you say, ‘Stand there’, or, ‘Sit at my feet’, have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters. Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him? But you have dishonoured the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you? Is it not they who drag you into court? Is it not they who blaspheme the excellent name that was invoked over you?
You do well if you really fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’

Faith without Works Is Dead

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill’, and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. 

The day got away from me

Matthew 22:1-14

          When anyone announces that they are gay, they know full well the risk involved. Their family may abandon them, friends may turn their backs. At the same time you can find you have a new family, an expanded family and people that you least expected come to your side, holding you up, even elevating you.

            When I came out I was truly blessed, my family was very supportive and loving. They may not have fully understood, but they were loving and supportive. I think in part because they knew I was still the same decent person. I did however form a bond with many new people who intimately understood what it is to be gay, to have to come out.  The gay community such as I knew it , welcomed me and I felt a kinship with many new people. 

             When my husband and I knew we wished to spend our lives together and before the thought of marriage being legal even crossed our minds, we decided to have our own small commitment ceremony. We were the only two present except for George and Sniffy (our cats).  When we wished to have a small gathering of those friends who had been supportive we extended invitations.  In a twist that this passage mirrors, one such person called at the last minute and said the day had gotten away from them. I don't think they realized how big a deal it was to us or that they were even invited.  Someone we felt a kinship with was extended an invitation and that invitation was dismissed.

               How much more challenging it must be for God when we are offered salvation, love and eternal happiness and we too turn our backs. It may not be God in himself but a neighbor or friend that we dismiss and in so doing we are rejecting God.  I believe God still feels the sadness of our daily casual abandonments. A tear is shed by our God that loves us so much and who feels a kinship with us because  he is our creator, becasue he knows the full depths of being human as Jesus and because he died on the cross for us.

               What have we done lately to accept the invitation to love? Do we routinely accept an invitation to the feast?

Once more Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. Again he sent other slaves, saying, “Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.” But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, maltreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. Then he said to his slaves, “The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.” Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests.

‘But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, and he said to him, “Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?” And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, “Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” For many are called, but few are chosen.’

What's a little war amongst brothers and sisters

Mark 11:27-12:12

            If the tenants in this passage killed the owners previous messengers, I'm not sure I would send my son to deal with them. Of course not only was Jesus speaking about the chief priests, scribes and elders, he is speaking about all of us. Considering how we lived (and sadly , how we continue to live) why would God send his only son to redeem us?  Forget about "What would Jesus do" for the moment, what did we do? We killed Jesus. OK, so you can say the Jews killed him but really, that's pretty lame. We all killed him. We continue to 'kill' Jesus and make God ache with every stone we throw, bomb we drop or word of anger we utter. 

         The amazing part is that Jesus would do it again for us. How is it that we just don't get it? When Jesus speaks of a thick necked people, is he speaking about us today as well? When will we open our hearts and minds to his love? When will we realize how much God loves us and how worthy we are?

         We are so intent on protecting our little parcel of earth, our grandiose lifestyles, our 'right' to rape the earth, our arrogant surety that we know the real so called revealed truth, that we are willing to risk our souls on hate, misleading and hurtful speech and wars. Sure, we absolutely kill Jesus over and over.  When will we realize our own loved status while simultaneously realizing God loves 'them' just as much because they are unique and loved too. This is not an exclusive club of us or them, It is us and them.

         This might seem hopeless if you look at the world around us and the wars, the bombs and the hate. What are we to do? First we can have hope. God does love us and continues to shower his love upon us. Each and every one of us should count our blessings and love as best we can in our little portion of the world. We can shape, convert and change the world by the love we foster in our self, our families and in our immediate world.  I'll say it again, 'preach the Gospel at all times, use words if needed'. 

          I have said this before too, we need to be more thankful, more humble, open to learn and especially, open to love.

            

Jesus’ Authority Is Questioned

Again they came to Jerusalem. As he was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to him and said, ‘By what authority are you doing these things? Who gave you this authority to do them?’ Jesus said to them, ‘I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin? Answer me.’ They argued with one another, ‘If we say, “From heaven”, he will say, “Why then did you not believe him?” But shall we say, “Of human origin”?’—they were afraid of the crowd, for all regarded John as truly a prophet. So they answered Jesus, ‘We do not know.’ And Jesus said to them, ‘Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.’

The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

Then he began to speak to them in parables. ‘A man planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a pit for the wine press, and built a watch-tower; then he leased it to tenants and went to another country. When the season came, he sent a slave to the tenants to collect from them his share of the produce of the vineyard. But they seized him, and beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. And again he sent another slave to them; this one they beat over the head and insulted. Then he sent another, and that one they killed. And so it was with many others; some they beat, and others they killed. He had still one other, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, “They will respect my son.” But those tenants said to one another, “This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.” So they seized him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others. Have you not read this scripture:
“The stone that the builders rejected
   has become the cornerstone; 
this was the Lord’s doing,
   and it is amazing in our eyes”?’
When they realized that he had told this parable against them, they wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowd. So they left him and went away. 

He walked away grieving

Matthew 19:16-22

          I work in the medical profession. We are constantly challenged to be better. The standards that we aimed for years ago are now passe. We are now charged with reaching an ever higher level of practice. This is a professional goal for sure but as fate would have it, it is now a government mandate as well. Reimbursement is and will continue to be based on standards that are ever increasing. 

           This is true of us as humans as well. We will never be perfect but we can and need to strive to better all the time. If you think you have it made and have achieved perfection, you are dead wrong. 

           So in today's reading the man who obeyed all the rules and yet never challenged himself to dig deeper, walked away from Christ grieving. He mistakenly thought he had it all done. He was set.

Sure, anyone can obey the rules, the laws, the rubrics. But what of love and faith as I spoke of yesterday? What about "who is my neighbor?" Love and faith are not self centered. If it is true faith and true love, it is always outwards focused. What can I do to help? How can I love my neighbor with who I am and what I have been gifted with? 

           The challenge is to look at others and try to love as much as we can with the same love God has for us. Much harder to do than simply obey a laundry list of rules, commandments or laws. Jesus came to fulfill the law which means a much harder challenge for us.

            An adage that I have always subscribed to is 'the more you are given, the more that's expected from you'. Go out and love. Fill your heart and life with joy.

Then someone came to him and said, ‘Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?’ And he said to him, ‘Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.’ He said to him, ‘Which ones?’ And Jesus said, ‘You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; Honour your father and mother; also, You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ The young man said to him, ‘I have kept all these; what do I still lack?’ Jesus said to him, ‘If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’ When the young man heard this word, he went away grieving, for he had many possessions.

Honey wafers

Galatians 3:6-14

          So there is this Deacon of the Roman Catholic faith who has a good heart (really he does, but he hides it well). On one particular Thanksgiving he decided, with the permission of the Pastor, to make the hosts for the Eucharistic Feast.  This man is extremely scrupulous about everything.

Perhaps beyond that, he's fanatical. Whatever possessed him to add a small amount of honey to his 'hosts'? Well somehow, it got out that the host were not made by some miraculous official formula and then the drama came, the controversy and the so called scandal. We did not really receive communion! some shouted. He should be thoroughly routed said others. (ok, I made that one up because it rhymed)

What gives? Was it malicious? Was he lead astray by the Devil?   And the Pastor? Well, he allowed it.  Call the Bishop! Send a letter to Rome! Such nonsense. It's as if some magical incantation turns the host into the body of Christ.

        You'd think common sense eluded everyone so outraged. It's difficult for me to believe that with this passage alone, people still feel they are justified by the law. Follow all the laws and you shall be saved! There are practical laws and laws that help guide us but in reality the laws are not what justifies us. When I started attending the local Friary, the brother had noted the number of newcomers to the chapel. He apparently felt compelled to tell everyone that they could do nothing wrong. Miss up a word or two here or there, fail to bow one's head, it was all ok. He was saying it is not by those man made words and those man made gestures that we are justified. Had this passage been the reading for the day he would have had a ready made sermon.

          Our justification comes from our faith that Jesus Christ as the son of God who came to earth, lived among us as one of us and offered up himself willingly to death for us, and an excruciating death it was.

           I understand that Jihads, Holy wars, Inquisitions and Reformations have been begun over the basis for Holy justification but really, isn't our faith and the extension of that, love, the most important?

           If we have no faith we are hollow. If we have no love we are not alive. If we have rules and simply obey them we are robots.

           I vote for faith and love in the name of our creator who loves all of us. Let us never forget his unending love for us.

Just as Abraham ‘believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness’, so, you see, those who believe are the descendants of Abraham. And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, declared the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, ‘All the Gentiles shall be blessed in you.’ For this reason, those who believe are blessed with Abraham who believed.

For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the things written in the book of the law.’ Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law; for ‘The one who is righteous will live by faith.’ But the law does not rest on faith; on the contrary, ‘Whoever does the works of the law will live by them.’ Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree’— in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Living Stone, corner stone

1 Peter 2:1-10

        When I was in the Canadian Rockies I had this feeling of oneness with my surroundings. Not that necessarily that I was 'coming home' but more that I felt one with my surroundings down to the dirt and the rocks. Even though there was a awful lot of dirt and rocks to be seen it seemed alive and I was part of it. I suspect that is because in this section of the world, there was a sense of purity and power that was not obstructed in any way by man made creations or the seemingly crazy life we live. It was all very raw but very much alive.

          The concept of a person being a living stone then doesn't seem that odd to me me. It makes even more sense to me when you look at the cover photo of this blog, my hand full of pebbles. The pebbles are quite varied and yet all beautiful. That picture was taken on a Triduum retreat several years ago and it represented what it should have, new beginnings and new life.  What do rocks have to do with new life?

          We ourselves are the little pebbles in my hand, we are all varied and all beautiful. All created by God, perhaps polished by the world, wind, water, tumbling. Still, all special. If we can realize how special we are and what makes us special, we can realize that we are all purpose built, all unique and created by God to be a cornerstone. That starting point and foundational beginning of something great. We are all unique living stones, cornerstones for God's evolving creation.

        What part in God's creation do you hold? What kind of living stone are you? What are your attributes? Your characteristics? Your strengths and your weaknesses? What do you find foundational about yourself that will help build the city of God?

Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice, and all guile, insincerity, envy, and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow into salvation— if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight, and like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in scripture:
‘See, I am laying in Zion a stone,
   a cornerstone chosen and precious;
and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.’
To you then who believe, he is precious; but for those who do not believe,
‘The stone that the builders rejected
   has become the very head of the corner’,
and
‘A stone that makes them stumble,
   and a rock that makes them fall.’
They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.
Once you were not a people,
   but now you are God’s people;
once you had not received mercy,
   but now you have received mercy.

What are you looking for?

Mark 10:46-52

           When I was a young man, my father advised me about a great many things.  One of his standards was that I should always seize an opportunity to expand my horizons and that a new experience  always looked good on my resume. Consequently I looked for some jobs that others probably would have overlooked in my profession. I still recall his excitement that I had landed a part-time job as a 'consultant' for the county. All outside contractors for the county were called consultants, whether it was the chaplain or the barber. Still it looked good on my resume.

             We look for a great many things in life, many times it is what is good for us. The world seems very self centered. It's a 'me' world and everything is seen in that light. We look out for me, me, me, me, me!

              When we experience Jesus though, we see things in a much different light. Whether this passage was intended to be literal or figurative, people who experience Jesus see things differently. Life is no longer about me and what's good for me. Life becomes how can I serve and how can I say thank you for all that I have been graced with.  You gain new sight, you gain new insights. Many things that Jesus espoused were quite revolutionary and counter cultural. In yesterdays passage I spoke of breaking out of boxes. The new vision that you receive in faith will help you see a person and not a box. You won't see those boxes any more. You will be free.

             Just as a person can be constrained somewhat by blindness and is a much freer with sight, coming to faith and the love of Jesus sets us free from self centeredness, and boxes that we not only put others in, but also ourselves. 

They came to Jericho. As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Jesus stood still and said, ‘Call him here.’ And they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take heart; get up, he is calling you.’ So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. Then Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man said to him, ‘My teacher, let me see again.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your faith has made you well.’ Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way. 

Un-boxing day

Galatians 3:22-28

          I am in the process of reading a really good book called Dilemma. As a side note, one of the things that Fr. Cutie points out throughout the book is how people like to put you in boxes. I am well aware of this and perhaps that's one of the reasons I am enjoying the book so much. Our lives are so very different but so many similarities at the same time. 

           There seems to be an endless array of boxes, religious and secular. First think of how many religions there are.  Then, within the box of Christianity there are far too many smaller boxes. Within Catholicism there are the boxes of Independent, Roman, "Old" and perhaps you might consider Conservative and Lefebvre as well.

            Secularly we can be heard to ask what nationality are you? "I am an American" really doesn't do it. North American? Canadian? United States? But we seem to be comfy if someone says Italian and then certain judgements are locked in, nice an neat in your little Italian box. Asian Americans I think have it the worst right now. The boxes people put them in would have you believe they are all immigrants. Where did your parents come from?  Imagine the contorted faces when the answer comes back, Cincinnati! How could an Asian American be 4th generation American?? My own poor children are mutts, it's hard to put them in a box. Swiss, English, Welsh, French-Canadian, Hungarian, German, Irish, Polish, Cherokee and Puerto Rican. Try finding a box for them! I'd call them Americans in the best sense of the word.

            When Jesus came to set us free from the law, or to fulfill the law as he said,  Paul notes There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. As if to say, stop with the boxes already! God's creation cannot be confined to what we humans may seem comfortable with. You are citizens of the world that I created, you are all brothers and sisters. The anti-box movement  or full recognition of God's creation movement, whichever you prefer, is highlighted no better than in the growing letters of LGBTQ. Every day another letter is added, recently I discovered Intersex., so LGBTQIA, "A" added for ally. This is all good. Perhaps we will eventually get around to throwing out the boxes altogether and instead recognizing each persons' uniqueness as created  by God. We will be free to fall in love with the essence of a person as we already do but without fear or labels. Two souls can meet, fall in love and spend as much time of their journey together as they are graced with.

             I would like to see us celebrate un-boxing day. Celebrate the diversity of God's creation.

            

But the scripture has imprisoned all things under the power of sin, so that what was promised through faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian, for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus

Touched

Luke 1:46-55

        Every so often, you read something, watch something or experience something that deeply touches your soul and in every fiber of your being.

        Today I was reading the story of Jonathan Myrick Daniels, seminarian. It seemed to be a nice enough story of a man who heard the calling, listened to God, even when it did not seem practical and acted in faith and love. It seemed like a nice story. I almost did not finish it in my hurried state. Then it struck me, Seminarian. Not a priest, but remembered as a seminarian. So I kept reading and sure enough the dreaded line came. 'He stood in front of a threatened girl and took a shotgun blast in her place and died instantly'. My heart sank and I was overcome at the grief over an event that took place 45 years ago.  He touched my soul. I am in tears again as I write.

           I suppose another heart rending moment might be when you experience the birth of your child or the joy you feel deep in your heart as you hold your grandchildren for the first time - and the second time - and the third time....

            Our heart and soul are deeply interconnected and when we allow it, when we are jolted, we can experience such joy and such pain, empathy and experiences of profound love and sacrifice.  It stops you in your tracks and makes you think, be grateful, know how precious life is and how graced we are with the lives that travel along side us in our life's journey. Graced moments for sure.

            I recall reading today's scripture passage so often in seminary and it is not until now that I am able to identify the depth of joy that Mary was feeling.  How would we feel if we met Jesus in the most tender and vulnerable of moments and he embraced us with the warmth and love that defines him. I am sure I would be brought to tears yet again.  What joy did Mary feel then as the bearer of the Christ child?

             I am not sure you can summon such depth of feelings on your own but I know that I have experienced it many times in my life.  That feeling, joy down to your bones, or compassion or sadness at the loss of a genuinely beautiful life. That feeling is what Jesus wants us to know is ours from his love. His love embraces us totally. I have said it before, if we could realize the depth of His sorrow and the extent of His pain when he died, and know, absolutely know, that if I was the only person on earth, or if you were the only person on earth - he would have done it  again willingly.  How humbling. How intensely loving, beyond our comprehension I suppose. Yet, we do get glimpses of such strong emotions, joy, sadness, awe. That glimpse is a hint of how much God loves you just as you are.

        How powerful is that?

Mary’s Song of Praise

And Mary said,
‘My soul magnifies the Lord,
  and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.
   Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
   and holy is his name.
His mercy is for those who fear him
   from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
   he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
   and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
   and sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
   in remembrance of his mercy,
according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
   to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’ 

Transcendant truths

Romans 14:7-12

          My beloved daughter went on a retreat weekend when she was about 16 years old. She returned to give me some incredible insights into life and explained things to me that I marvelled at. It was not that she was a prophetess or such, it is simply that many wonderful things had been revealed to her. I realized it might take me many years to come to the knowledge she had.  I also recognized that some of her own family made fun of her because she was in fact wiser than them. This is the story of the ages. We all receive truths at different times and at different depths. What it took me (at that time) some 30 years to understand she grasped at the ripe age of 16. Of course there are things I grasped when I was 16 years old that she might never come to see. And so life goes for everyone.

          What is truly important? Who is smarter? Who is wiser? Who has more money? Who is Catholic? Who is Muslim? Who is a man? Who is a woman? Who is gay and who is straight? I am rest assured than almost nothing matters more in our core than being a creation of God. This is where we begin and this is where we shall return.  On the most fundamental of levels, that is truth.

            The essence of our existence is in God and God is love. No matter what we do, what we know or who we are, we must love. That is a fundamental truth that transcends anything in this life.

             There will always be someone perceived as greater or lesser than we are. We are not perfect. What we can be sure of is the perfection of love in God and in one another. Strive for purity of heart and love above all else. That will help us perfect who we are and what we are until we head home to our Creator.

          

We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, so that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.

Why do you pass judgement on your brother or sister? Or you, why do you despise your brother or sister? For we will all stand before the judgement seat of God. For it is written,
‘As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
   and every tongue shall give praise to God.’
So then, each of us will be accountable to God.

Saying yes when many say no.

Luke 5:4-11

         I love that when you listen to God, even though it may seem the most impractical thing, you are rewarded leaps and bounds, far more than you can possibly imagine.

         Jesus the carpenter telling the seasoned fishermen to lower their nets when they have worked all night with nothing to show for it. And what is Simon's reward? The mere thought that Simon (Peter) would actually listen is amazing. 

          I am sure there are many things we think of doing and consider it crazy talk and do not do it. I wonder what good things we may have missed out on as a result? And then perhaps you can think of  something you felt you were called to do, did it and your life changed forwever with immeasurable rewards.

           Answereing a call to go the Dominican Republic comes to mind for me.  I do not speak any Spanish at all and had no experience in foreign travel and yet was asked to go. Many of my fellow Seminarians did not go and I wonder do they know what they missed? Whatever the reason, many said no. I said yes and I was rewarded with so many life altering experiences most of which were unplanned and unforeseeable.

             In a completely different vein, what did I do when I began to realize I was gay at the age of 50? It troubled me incredibly. This could not be happening to me. What was I supposed to do? My family? my ministry? But yet with the grace of God and the help of several incredibly good and gifted people, I came to say "Yes, I am a gay man". Life altering? Yes. The answer that most would have said to do, suppress, deny or even live a double life all came to mind. All those solutions were suggested by one or another, explicitly or implicitly. What did God want me to do? The guide would be acceptance of who you are, loved by God as you were created and to forge forward to make yourself as whole a person as you can. Avoid hurting others? Absolutely, as best I could without harming myself, without disrespecting myself and helping others to move forward as well. The gifts of my decision to say yes to who I am has been enormously wonderful. The gift of my husband primary among them. No small mention goes to the joy of being who I am and that God loves me as he made me.

              What have you been called to do that may not have seemed practical? Perhaps something that put you at odds with others or those that seek only the practical answers to life's questions?

              Answering a call from God to be who you are or to work on his behalf is always rewarding and a joyous experience.  What is God saying to you? It is perhaps fitting that Florence Nightingale is commemorated today. She answered a very impractical call. Here's to Florence, here's to all nurses, here's to anyone that lowers their nets when God asks them to.

When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.’ Simon answered, ‘Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.’ When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break. So they signalled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!’ For he and all who were with him were amazed at the catch of fish that they had taken; and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Then Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.’ When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.

Now is the time to live and love

Luke 12:32-40

          Yesterday we discussed that the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah was not that of sanctioned, committed loving relationships.  It was a whole list of vices and uncontrolled beahviour that began with selfishness and loose living, went on to uncharitableness, not caring, worship without content and actions and then too, rape. 

          But God has spoken through prophets, the lives of countless people and especially Jesus to tell us how we are to act. His life was a guide. This passage is a reminder that we are not to wait to begin living a straightforward decent life. We all are aware of poeple who are taken from us all too soon. Our time will come when we least expect it and we will be called to account for our actions. Two immediate thoughts come to mind, "There ain't no hearses with luggage racks", a line from a song I once knew. The other thought is really an admonition about how we spend our life. I was once told, no one ever said, on their dying bed, "I wish I had spent more time at the office".

          So what does this say to us ? Love and live. Know how lovable you are, live life heartily with all the gusto and fervor you can muster. Life is a gift to be cherished. Undoubtedly we will  make some mistakes, we are human after all, but to embrace love and make a mistake is far better than to live a life of regret, sorrow, and a life filled with errors of omission or neglect.

            Live and love! Embrace the gifts God has given you to share and enjoy! Carpe Diem!

"Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

"Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit;

be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and knocks.

Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them.

If he comes during the middle of the night, or near dawn, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.

"But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into.

You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour."

The real sins of Sodom and Gomorrah: not gay love

Isaiah 1:1, 10-20

           And gays are called to a life of celibacy. So that's the story? That is what some religions would have the world believe. Love the sinner, hate the so called sin. What is the sin? Love? Commitment? A life shared with love and concern?

          The sin is whatever torrid and horrible manifestation these errant religious zealots can concoct in their feeble minds.  Not as concerned what the acts straight people do in their bedrooms or the back of cars, they imagine what gay people do (and all gays are supposedly guilty of whatever that is by the way). These people have no fear of intruding into others bedrooms or households to define and regulate what is proper physical love and support offered by a loving partner or spouse. Allegedly because God says so. Based on what word you might ask?

           One of the primary sections of scripture used is found in Genesis, the story of Lot in Sodom and Gomorrah. If you read it though it is nothing about love and commitment between a same sex couple. It is not the loving story of David and Jonathan found in the book of Samuel. What it does show is townspeople wishing to rape two male guests. The last time I checked rape can in no way be equated with love or a loving relationship. What else does the Genesis passage offer us? Well, it gives us a glimpse of Lot offering the mob his very own two daughters for rape in place of the two men. Wow. Now doesn't that seem like a good action to emulate?! Based on that alone I am not surprised that Sodom and Gomorrah was destroyed. 

          But wait, what is this talk of Genesis? The reading today is from Isaiah? The xenophobes that seem content to misuse the passage from Genesis as the basis for their anti-gay slurs and thoughts are corrected in today's passage. As if it really isn't apparent that being inhospitable and offering up your daughters is a sin of the greatest magnitude, this passage in Isaiah really spells out the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah. Loving relationships is not among those listed.  

        The list includes a great many things that major churches seem to have a penchant for. Perhaps it is no wonder they wish to turn the message around and deflect the judgement from themselves onto a marginalized group of people who only wish to love and live as good and decent a life as the next person. Sacrifices? Incense? Solemn assemblies? These are not bad per se but if this is what you are offering to God and not loving then God will cease to listen to you. God will destroy you or you will destroy yourselves - voila, the story of Sodom and Gomorrah.

         So what is it that God does want? Is celibacy for gays on the list? The list in Isaiah doesn't seem to go there to clarify the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah. Here's a partial list from Isaiah, learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow. 

       The only thing that I would have added to the list in Isaiah would have been the heresy of using God's word and message as the basis for misinformation and hate. To mistranslate and mis-inform the world (the faithful) that looks to you for information and love and replace the words with a fowl message of sexual fixation and hate is a real abomination.

The vision of Isaiah son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

Hear the word of the LORD, you rulers of Sodom! Listen to the teaching of our God, you people of Gomorrah!

What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices? says the LORD; I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed beasts; I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of goats.

When you come to appear before me, who asked this from your hand? Trample my courts no more;

bringing offerings is futile; incense is an abomination to me. New moon and sabbath and calling of convocation-- I cannot endure solemn assemblies with iniquity.

Your new moons and your appointed festivals my soul hates; they have become a burden to me, I am weary of bearing them.

When you stretch out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen; your hands are full of blood.

Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your doings from before my eyes; cease to do evil,

learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.

Come now, let us argue it out, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be like snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.

If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land;

but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the sword; for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

Pick your favorite

Luke 9:46-48

          I will be heading off to Las Vegas in a few weeks, or simply Vegas! Baby! Our annual trip is something I look forward to all year long. It is a combination of culinary delights with some of our favorite restaurants, the sights and sounds, the pool, the desert for hiking and biking and of course, gambling. We call it Disneyland for adults. So what is our favorite in Vegas? I would hard pressed to come up with one favorite thing. Is it the joy of lazing at the pool for hours? The prime rib at Lawry's?  The breakfasts at Terrace Pointe Cafe or the 4 Seasons? How about the magnificence of Red Rock Canyon or the Valley of Fire?  I think trying to pick a favorite for Las Vegas would be like a parent trying to pick a favorite child. You can't do it.

            For the least among all of you is the greatest is a very telling line from this passage. The most obvious point is that of service. The one who places him or herself last will be the greatest.   Jesus said that numerous times. But then I had  a different thought about that line.

             What if Jesus was simply saying everyone of his creations is the greatest? Even the very least of his creations is the greatest. No one can get top billing in God's eyes because we are all the greatest according to Him. As they said on a high school retreat "God don't make junk".  That is something that I embraced in every fiber of my being at the age of 17. It's no wonder that realizing I am gay at the age of 50 I still knew I was not junk, God created me lovingly, intently and beautifully. 

           This is not to say that everyone or anyone is less than me since I am SO good. God made everyone SO good.  Trying to figure out who is the greatest is an exercise in futility and actually is quite sinful. We must know how wonderful we are and love ourselves for who we are as much as God loves us. We must also realize that each and every person is also a beloved creation of God. 

            Don't ask God to pick His favorite son or daughter. Know how much you are loved just as you were created. Respect God, love God; respect others and love others as you love yourself.  

            and Counting the days to Vegas! Baby!          

An argument arose among them as to which one of them was the greatest. But Jesus, aware of their inner thoughts, took a little child and put it by his side, and said to them, ‘Whoever welcomes this child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me; for the least among all of you is the greatest.’

Be who you are

Acts 19:11-20

         Everything was going along so well. After decades of prayer, pleadings for wholeness and peace,  joy in service, love of family, I was being ordained. Not something I had particularly aspired to. In fact, some parts of service I actually approached with a bit of fear. But I felt the calling and I would be loath to turn my back on God who has been so good to me. God had been there for all the great moments of my life and God had been there with me for the hardest times as well.

          A funny thing happened though. Those things that I approached with trepidation? They brought great joy. I was clearly called to service. Someone who really knew me once said that Ordination was merely a recognition of who I am, how I lived my life and the service I had offered for so many years. Not a reward but recognition, a confirmation.

           Ironically, the life of service and love that I was called to was in direct conflict with something else that was just as intimate a part of me as service. It need not be a conflict but according to the Church which was so basic a part of me since my youth, it was. I was gay and the internal conflict after my ordination roiled in me in a way I was unfamiliar with. I was unable to calm the conflict with prayer and I was loath to figure out what was at the root of such anxiety and confusion.  If the passage for today has any correlation to what I am writing, this is the general area where I run out naked and wounded. There was no malice in my offer to serve, it truly is foundational to me. My love of God and recognition of his love for me is etched in my soul. Yet, the conflict within me seemed to grow like a tsunami. A friend suggested therapy was clearly what was needed and my Spiritual director agreed and had several recommendations. I hold my therapist in very high regard.

          Not unlike spiritual direction,  therapy is something that holds value only if you are an active and honest participant. The journey was long and difficult. What emerged from the cocoon was not a naked and wounded player of religion like the seven sons of Sceva.  I emerged a whole person. I emerged more integrated than I had ever been before. I willingly left the church in respect for their rules and their beliefs all the while knowing the respect and love of God in being able to finally say after 50 years that I was gay, gay, gay, gay, gay. Hindsight makes me laugh that I did not know this. I also am amused that no one else did either. I suppose it is irrelevant.  I left 'the house' not naked and wounded but clothed in the love of God and far less wounded than I had ever been.  If I am wounded at all, it is the betrayal of the inability to integrate the holiness of my sexuality and the service that the Roman Catholic church offers. Others seem to do it but only with a bifurcated personality and a lack of self respect for who they really are. Many do it it, I could not. I have that self respect and I know that God loves me as I am.

          The lessen for today is no matter how long, how hard it may be to acknowledge who you are you must do so. Many things in life can obscure your true path, your true identity, but if you fail to be who you are even in the face of God, perhaps especially in the face of God, you will wind up running naked and wounded from wherever you are and whomever you are. God loves you more than anyone else possibly could and God loves you as you are. As He (She) created you. Respect that.

God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that when the handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were brought to the sick, their diseases left them, and the evil spirits came out of them. Then some itinerant Jewish exorcists tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, ‘I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.’ Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. But the evil spirit said to them in reply, ‘Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?’ Then the man with the evil spirit leapt on them, mastered them all, and so overpowered them that they fled out of the house naked and wounded. When this became known to all residents of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks, everyone was awestruck; and the name of the Lord Jesus was praised. Also many of those who became believers confessed and disclosed their practices. A number of those who practised magic collected their books and burned them publicly; when the value of these books was calculated, it was found to come to fifty thousand silver coins. So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed. 

Unearthing treasure

Matthew 13:44-52

          When I was being ordained, a casual friend asked why I would do such a thing? I attribute that to the person not really appreciating the joy and peace that comes from knowing and serving God.  No recrimination, no remedial religion lessons, we are all on different journeys. Still I think I found the hidden treasure in the field and I was willing to give up a great deal simply to say yes and serve. A large portion of my life has been devoted to a relationship with God who has called me and saved me.

         It makes me wonder though about how we perceive that treasure in the field. How would you judge a person who devoted their life to the solitude of a cloistered monk, or a Priest who decides never to marry and devote their lives in earnest to God in that way? To them they are called but it is also their treasure in the field that are clearly giving their life to. Is there an equalization between those who turn their back on  God and those that devote their entire lives to Him?  Ideally, I believe no Priests , evangelists, monks or nuns would be needed if we all acknowledged God in our own way. Everyone would acknowledge God, serve Him in their own called way, love each other and we'd have a perfect world - in theory.

           You'd be happy that I celebrated God's world by being an artist, or teacher, or some such.  I would celebrate you as a physician, musician or scientist. There would be respect for everyone and for whomever they were created as. Gay, straight, asexual, perhaps even poly amorous. I don't know for sure. I do know that if we all accepted who we are and did a better job at accepting others for who they are, it would be a better world.

        In accepting yourself and loving others, you have found the pearl of great price, the hidden treasure in the field, the joy and meaning of life.

     

Three Parables

‘The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.
‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Treasures New and Old

‘Have you understood all this?’ They answered, ‘Yes.’ And he said to them, ‘Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.’