In the gospel reading this morning Jesus speaks of the shepherd who calls his own sheep one by one and leads them out. The Father loves the Son and has entrusted everything to him. Jesus is presented as working powerfully through very meagre resources. but so that through him the world might be saved. The movement of the prayer is towards silence. Barnabas was what we would call today, an enabler. Charity Number CHY 5894 | Registered Charity Number RCN 20009656, Copyright 2021. Resistance, even hostility, to the churchs message can allow the Lord to work in new ways. The evangelist is referring there not to daylight, but to the one who declares himself to be the light of the world. Jesus was concerned about peoples physical needs, their physical hungers. We all need something of the vision of Barnabas to see how the Lord is working in such unexpected and unplanned developments. It is probably true to say that we are all searching for something. Whoever eats me will draw life from me. They bring us hope in our despondency and strength in our weakness. We are very security conscious in these times. That fundamental message of Marks gospel remains a word of encouragement to the church, the community of the Lords disciples, today as we battle with our own storms. In the gospel reading Jesus offers himself to us as the one who offers us the food that endures to eternal life. Its natural movement is towards greater simplicity, with less and less talking and more listening. Jesus goes on to make a comparison between the wind and the Spirit, or more precisely with all who are born of the Spirit. It was as if the risen Lord was creating him anew; his energies and gifts were being channelled in a new direction; he had become a new creation. It was St Irenaeus, one of the early theologians of the church, who said that the glory of God is the human person fully alive. There is a verse in the letter to the Hebrews which says, do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it. The gospel says that they were talking together about all that had happened. This being born of the Spirit will take more than nine months, the period of human birth. and my own know me, God the Father draws him to his Son firstly through the Scriptures, the Word of God. The gospel reading goes on to declare that because Jesus comes from heaven, he is able to bear witness to what he has seen and heard in heaven, what he has seen and heard from God his Father. for the life of the world.. The risen Lord is the living sign of Gods enduring love. This frightened them, but he said, It is I. That is because Jesus does not ask us to live his teaching out our own strength alone. Born in 1347, Catherine entered the Dominican Third Order at the age of eighteen and spent the next three years in seclusion, prayer, and austerity. Do not work for food that perishes but for food that endures for eternal life. A little later in this same gospel, Jesus will say to his disciples, those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. He eventually surrendered to the God who was drawing him. The Lord who is the gate is also the shepherd who protects and nourishes us each day. In the words of the gospel reading, though the light has come into the world, people have shown that they prefer darkness to the light, because their deeds were evil. He understands of what we are made, why we do what we do and fail to do what we fail to do. One of the images of Jesus that you find in the catacombs is that of the Good Shepherd. We may be especially conscious of our weakness in these anxious times. The risen Lords story continues to speak powerfully to us today. He insisted not just on seeing the risen Lord for himself, like the other disciples, but on physically touching his wounds. The purpose of all that Jesus said and did - of his life, death and resurrection - is that we might have life, and have it in abundance. The word of the Lord remains a living word for each one of us today. According to todays first reading, Peter and the message he preaches cannot be confined behind bars, in spite of the best efforts of those who want to silence that message. In the gospel reading this morning, Jesus makes reference to stealing. Each new day is a day of grace and opportunity to reflect. Philips response to Jesus showed that he felt overwhelmed by the problem. Jesus fed the hungry multitude in the wilderness with five loaves and two fish. A gate creates an opening into an otherwise closed environment. The way the risen Lord related to tthem is how he relates to us all. According to Luke, the public ministry of Jesus wasnt the time for the Samaritans to respond to the gospel (contrary to the gospel of John!) Having come to know Jesus somewhat, he continues to draw us to himself. This is the reaction of the generous person, of the one who is prepared to give all he or she has, even though it appears to be far less than what is needed. In the words of todays second reading, we can find ourselves being plagued by all sorts of trials in the season of Easter as much as in any other season. In one of his encyclicals, Faith and Reason, Pope John Paul II stated that the church remains profoundly convinced that faith and reason mutually support each other they offer each other a purifying critique and a stimulus to pursue the search for a deeper understanding. It is notable that the text says that Philip heard him reading Isaiah the prophet. When the two disciples told their story of the recent events in Jerusalem, the stranger who had joined them and who had listened carefully to their story told another story about those same events. God has given his Son to us; it falls to us to give ourselves to Gods Son. The light of Easter shone through the wounds of Jesus, and if we open ourselves to the risen Lord standing beside us, his light can shine through our wounds too. We listen to him, we follow him, in the confidence that his devotion to us and to our ultimate well-being is unconditional. Life is never the same for a couple after the birth of their child. If we become too attached to our way of telling the story, we can become blind to other ways of seeing and of understanding what has happened in our lives. He is clearly speaking about himself. the kind of food the Son of Man is offering you, These cookies are necessary to let our website work. It was only looking back on their encounter that the two disciples came to realize that the stranger was the risen Lord. Lectio Divina is a reflection based on the daily Gospel. I am the bread of life. Our website places social media cookies to show you 3rd party content like YouTube and FaceBook. One of the loving services we can render each other is listening to each others heartfelt and painful stories, especially in these times of Coronavirus. Jesus is the one on whom the Spirit came down and remained and his life is pre-eminently Spirit filled. Our website uses cookies to give you the best online experience. because I have come from heaven, not to do my own will, It was winter, and Jesus was in the Temple walking up and down in the Portico of Solomon. is to come to me. In the gospel reading Jesus makes a comparison between the wind and the Holy Spirit. Their understanding of what had happened was far too limited. It is in this latter sense that we have to understand the reference to the gate in this mornings gospel reading. We can open our hearts and souls to his presence wherever we are. He sums up this two-fold role he has as the gate by affirming, I have come so that they may have life and have it to the full. They were fearful that those who put Jesus to death would come looking for his followers. Below are links to various resources to inspire you on a daily basis. We can sometimes find it difficult to believe in the ultimate triumph of life over death, of joy over sadness, especially during those times in our lives when we feel somewhat sad and lifeless. Gospel (Except USA) Easter is a time when we open ourselves to the renewing power of his Holy Spirit. December 26-31, 2022. The gospel was perhaps intended as a word of encouragement to the church, assuring them that just as they had travelled and were still travelling the way of the cross, Jesus had travelled that way before them. only to steal and kill and destroy. That is our fundamental calling, to come to the Lord in faith; all else follows from that. In todays first reading, an Ethiopian court official comes to faith in Jesus. Complete the form below to register. In the words of the gospel reading, he leads us to a place where we may life and have it to the full. Josephs faithfulness to his task created the space for Jesus to be faithful to his calling. We reach out towards the Lord who journeys with us in the context of the church, in the company of our fellow pilgrims, those who are stumbling along the path of discipleship with us. The question that the Jews ask at the beginning of todays gospel reading must have been a question that was on the lips of very many people in the time of Jesus and of the early church. That is why we treasure the books of the gospels so much, because if Jesus bears witness to God, the gospels bear witness to Jesus. The wind blows wherever it pleases; Our calling is to open our hearts ever more fully to the powerful presence of the Spirit, whom the Lord continues to pour out on all who know their need of the Spirit. We spend our lives growing in our openness to the Spirit. The Lord will do all he can to hold onto us but we also have our part to play. They were walking away from Jerusalem, when they really should have been staying put there, because it was in Jerusalem that the risen Lord intended giving them the Holy Spirit, and it was from Jerusalem that he would send them out to the ends of the earth. A rule of life was given to the early Carmelites by St Albert Avogadro, Patriach of Jerusalem between the years 1206 - 1214. but the preaching of Philip in the period after Pentecost was that time. The Lord is very attentive to us, but we need to attend to him as well. We are to keep receiving from Jesus all he wishes to give us, his word, his Spirit, his love, so that, like Peter in todays first reading, we can witness to him before others. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. Our website uses functional cookies. Then the Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them, was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God. When a loved one dies, we try to come to terms with it by talking about it. At the beginning of todays gospel reading we find the people of Galilee searching for Jesus. In group prayer, much will depend on the type of group. but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. Jesus was making peace with his disciples who had failed him in the hour of his passion and death. Tag cloud If we become too married to our way of telling the story, we can become blind to other ways of seeing and of understanding what has happened. He calls to us as someone who knows us and cares about us. We can make the mistake of thinking that how we talk about something is all that there is to it. We can all look for Jesus for the wrong reasons. For this Liturgical Year: Weekday Reflections for 2019/2020 'The Word of God is Living and Active' available at messenger.ie & 'Journeying with . The general call to be the Lords disciple is lived out in particular ways. and then the wolf attacks and scatters the sheep; The power of the Lords faithful love to recreate people, to transform them with new life, is at the heart of the Easter message. and there will be only one flock, They hate and avoid the light because they feel threatened by it, as if it will expose what is wrong in them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, Peace be with you. Then he said to Thomas, Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe. Thomas answered and said to him, My Lord and my God! Jesus said to him, Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Some are asked by Jesus; others are asked by those who meet with Jesus. However, the Spirit can enter a human life and we know what a Spirit-filled life looks life. What are we looking to him for? Yet, the Lord insisted and eventually Ananias did as he was asked. This message of Marks gospel that the Lord continues to work with his disciples today, in spite of past serious failings, is one the church needs to hear today. He says in that gospel reading, anyone who enters through me will be safe, he will go freely in and out and be sure of finding pasture. Even though we are an Easter people, we never stop being a Good Friday people also, at least on this side of eternity. Very often when Jesus uses an image, like that of the gate, he takes it from his observation of life all around him. Do not work for food that cannot last, but for food that endures to eternal life. The closer we come to him, the more we realize how deeper our relationship with him could be. Then there are other kinds of losses that we experience in the course of our lives, such as the loss of a job, or the loss of full health, or the loss of our good name. We are all concerned about the church today. Many questions are asked by people in the course of the gospels. Just as the risen Lord stood before his fearful disciples, he stood before the disbelieving Thomas, offering him the same gift of his peace, inviting him to satisfy the conditions he laid down. He was imprisoned by the Carmelites at Toledo for trying to reform them, and later was badly treated by the houses of his own reform which he had established. On one occasion, Jesus says of himself: I am the light of the world. Today is Vocations Sunday. He has been travelling his own very personal way of the cross. Yet, Peter was able to see the working of God in this unexpected development. The gospel teaches us that if we give generously from our resources to others, the Lord will work powerfully through those resources, small as they may seem to us. Yet, Nicodemus did not give up on Jesus and the last we see of him in Johns gospel is at Golgotha where, after the death of Jesus, he and Joseph of Arimathea ensure that Jesus has a dignified burial. Every so often the Lord prompts the church to take a new step beyond where it has been. They claimed to have seen the risen Lord; Thomas declared that he would not believe until he not only saw the Lord but touched his wounds. The Lords faithfulness encourages us to keep turning back to him, to keep coming to him, even after we have turned away from him. We spend our lives learning to receive like little children. That is one way of understanding what is happening on the road to Emmaus in todays gospel reading. We may not be physically present at the Eucharist these days, but we are spiritually present and we continue to recognize the Lord in the breaking of bread. We encounter something of the mystery of God in and through every human birth. Jesus reveals himself to Nicodemus as the giver of the Spirit - the Spirit who propels us towards the kingdom of God. are thieves and brigands; Yet, the primary purpose of this loving light is to take away our sin. Anyone who eats this bread will live for ever; To look upon the flesh of Jesus, his human life, is to look upon God. Sheep went one way through the gate to reach the security of the sheepfold and they went the other way through the gate to reach pasture. On this occasion Jesus did not break through the resistance of those to whom he spoke. Reflections on Daily Readings 2022 October 30th - November 26th, 2022 October 30 - November 5, 2022 Ordinary Time - The Thirty-First Week | Readings: Sunday Cycle C; Weekday Cycle 2. Even those of us who have been baptized and who have come to believe in Jesus are being drawn more closely to Jesus by God the Father. Coming to his home town, Jesus taught the people in their synagogue in such a way that they were astonished and said, Where did the man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers? It invites us to ask, Who shapes our lives? To do that well, we need a listening ear, an ear and an eye that is open to the surprising ways of the Spirit. He then travelled all the way to Tarsus to encourage Paul to come to Antioch and to work among the believers there. With the Lords help what seemed impossible became possible. Even if we try to lock the Lord out of our lives, he comes to us anyway. The ruins of the city are still to be seen today. He comes to recreate us through the Holy Spirit. A little later in that same gospel of John, Jesus declares that, after his death and resurrection, he will send us the Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit, who will guide us into all the truth. We have a whole year to reflect upon that sense of being called by God. Our coming to believe in Jesus is always in response to the initiative of God the Father towards us.
Light for the Journey: Reflections from Carmel (Second Edition) He has come and he continues to come that we may have life now and beyond this earthly life. It was a sad story, but it wasnt the whole story. JANUARY DEC 26th to JAN 29th Click here FEBRUARY JAN 30th to FEB 26th Click here MARCH FEB 27th to MAR 26th Click here APRIL The clarity with which the apostles could identify their priorities amid competing claims on their time is admirable. Then they said to each other, Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the scriptures to us?. His words were prophetic. In Johns version of this episode, which we have just heard, he is first referred to by Andrew, Simon Peters brother, but he is referred to in a way which suggests his relative insignificance, There is a small boy here with five loaves and two fish; but what is that between so many? However, Jesus does not consider the presence of this small boy with his meagre resources to be insignificant. He had been on pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Barnabas could see that the emergence of a new kind of the church in Antioch, a mixed church of Jews and Gentiles, was crying out for someone like Paul, a Jew who had become the apostle to the Gentiles. The wind was strong, and the sea was getting rough. Nicodemus, a leading Pharisee, was one such example in the gospel of John. - 8:00 pm Exposition followed by Conference, Night Prayer, and Confessions. The two disciples were journeying away from Jerusalem when the risen Lord joined them in the form of a stranger and opened the Scriptures for them. Yet, the Lord will always seek us out and offer us the gift of peace, the gift of his reconciling love. Now while he was with them at table, he took the bread and said the blessing; then he broke it and handed it to them. Reflections - Carmelite Spirit Reflections "But only now, with inward jubilee, I come upon earth's most amazing knowledge: someone is hidden in this dark with me." - Jessica Powers - Glorious Failure Embracing failure, imperfection, and incompleteness can be a spiritual practice that brings us closer to the heart of God in Jesus Christ. Anyone who does eat my flesh and drink my blood The Lord gives us the Spirit to draw us to himself and, through himself, to God the Father. No one can come to me Gradually, a group of followers gathered around her, men and women, priests and religious. God has embraced the world through the death and resurrection of his Son. Is he not the carpenters son? Catholic Daily Reflections My Catholic Life! What is it that makes us more alive? Catherines mysticism did not withdraw her from the world; she was deeply involved in what was happening in Europe and in the church in her time. When Nicodemus sought out Jesus, Jesus called him to take a step he had never taken before, to allow himself to be born from above, to be born of the Spirit. Shortly after his return, Pope Gregory died. He is the good shepherd because he is the faithful shepherd. In that village culture, a skill could be a small source of income. He who comes from heaven The story is a reminder to us that we need each other on the journey of faith. She commenced her role as a public figure, dictating hundreds of letters to popes, monarchs and other leaders of note. Daily Scripture, May 1, 2023. Jesus, the light of God, seeks us draw us to himself so that we may have life and have it to the full. Those days are gone, unfortunately. The two disciples were suddenly joined by a stranger who invited them to share their story with him, What matters are you discussing as you walk along? He was inviting them to open their hearts to him. If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? God sent his Son into the world so that through him the world might be saved. Our calling is to come out into the light, in the words of the gospel reading. Yet, the Lords part in our relationship with him is always so much greater than ours. With great wisdom he suggests that they should leave the apostles alone and just wait and see. The story they told was a true story but it was not the whole story. People began to see that this movement wasnt just a particular branch of Judaism. Later on, writing to the church in Corinth, he would say, if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation. When we do than, like Paul, we too can become the Lords chosen instruments to bring his presence into the lives of others. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. They are portrayed as failing to understand Jesus teaching, especially when he speaks of himself as the Son of Man who must be rejected, suffer and die. The role of the shepherd was to give life to his flock, to protect them from harm and to lead them to pasture. The relationship between the shepherd and his sheep was more immediate than it is today. He immediately came to them, speaking a reassuring word, It is I. how are you going to believe me when I speak to you about heavenly things? The leaders of the church in Jerusalem had to discern whether this new development in Antioch was the work of the Holy Spirit, or just a human aberration. All he asks is that we keep listening to his voice and keep trying to follow him. She was deeply involved in what was happening in Europe and in the church in her time. We tend to put things under lock and key much more than we used to do in the past. It is the light of God who so loved the world that he gave his only Son, in the language of the gospel reading. The Lord is always working with us to confirm, strengthen and support us in our efforts to answer his call in todays world. Gods love revealed in the death and resurrection of Jesus had triumphed over human wickedness. They had abandoned him when the hour of his passion and death came, but he had not abandoned them. No one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. That is part of the calling of each one of us. The first reading reminds us that an encounter with the Lord in his word is often prior to an encounter with him in the Sacraments. In the estate where I lived as a child in Cabra, built in the early 1930s, all the houses had gates. Cleopas began to tell their story. As Peter declares in that first reading, we have a sure hope. If the wind is mysterious and beyond our control, the Spirit of God is even more mysterious and beyond our control. He goes ahead of us towards this place and he calls us to follow him. Without the desire of the Ethiopian and the responsiveness of Philip, the work of the Holy Spirit would not have come to pass. and the Son of Man must be lifted up They will pick up serpents with their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. His frustration at being unable to speak clearly to the people gathered in St. Peters square was painfully obvious. The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice, as the shepherd calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. While listed as an optional Memorial, today's liturgy honors the Blessed Mother in her role as patroness of the Carmelite tradition. Here and now the Lord wants us to know something of that life to the full which is our ultimate destiny. Our union with Christ through baptism is thereby strengthened in the Eucharist. The cardinals regretted their decision and elected a second Pope but could not persuade Pope Urban to retire. He not only calls on people to eat his flesh but to drink his blood. we speak only about what we know When we listen attentively to the Lords word, we are opening ourselves to Holy Spirit, and in the power of that Spirit we will be able to witness to our faith in the Lord with something of the courage shown by Peter and the apostles in todays first reading. Then some of those with us went to the tomb and found things just as the women had described, but him they did not see. And he said to them, Oh, how foolish you are! In response, he looks to us for something of the same openness to being drawn displayed by the Ethiopian in our first reading. His reading of the passage gave rise to a question for him that he sought an answer to from Philip, Tell me, is the prophet referring to himself or someone else? When Philip then proclaimed the gospel to him, the Ethiopian took a further initiative on his spiritual quest, again in the form of a question, Look, there is some water here; is there anything to stop me being baptized? Having been baptized by Philip, the Ethiopian went on his way rejoicing. This gospel emphasizes their failure. We can make that same discovery. We are more aware today than in the past that our relationship with Jesus and with his followers is a choice we have to make. It was as if a heavenly light helped him to see everything in a new way. Catherine stood out as a beacon of light in a dark time. It speaks of Gods love for the world, of Gods generous way of expressing his love by giving the world his Son and of Gods desire that all people would experience eternal life through receiving Gods Son in faith. As Jesus says in the gospel reading, whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me and I live in them. He wants us to go freely in and out through him. The first reading says that when Barnabas got there, he could see for himself that God had given grace, and this pleased him, and he went on to give encouragement to what was happening. To look for Jesus, to search for him, is a good thing. you are not looking for me because you have seen the signs Yet, according to Luke in the reading we have just heard, in the immediate aftermath of his meeting with the Lord, Paul was first struck blind and had to be led by the hand into the city of Damascus. I like the Popes reference to a communal journey. It may seem as small as the two barley loaves and five fish, but the Lord can work powerfully through our efforts, small as they may seem to us. He is uniquely placed to bear witness to who God is because, according to Johns gospel, he has been with God from all eternity and has come from God. but may have eternal life. everybody who believes has eternal life. The Jewish feast of Passover was near. He is clearly speaking about himself. We might even struggle to get out of bed some mornings. Indeed, he invites each of us to become such a person. My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. Jesus has come not just to give people physical food but to give them the spiritual food of Gods presence, Gods life and Gods Spirit. and speaks in an earthly way. This was what Paul came to realize when the risen Lord appeared to him, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? Yet, the Lord had great plans for this persecutor of the church, but first he had to endure a period of blindness, during which this proud man was completely dependent on others, they had to lead him into Damascus by the hand. The story of the stranger can have a lot to say to us. We meet every Friday at 10am (Australian Eastern Daylight Time) [You are welcome to join from other time zones, eg. you hear its sound, The risen Lord can transform our lives too, making us more hopeful people. In reality, it was only beginning. That is why we gather as a community of faith, in various settings, especially in the setting of the Eucharist. Sunday, October 30 Monday, October 31 Tuesday, November 1 Wednesday, November 2 Thursday, November 3 Friday, November 4 Saturday, November 5 Even older again is Rome, and older again is Jerusalem. Their inclination was to do nothing because the situation seemed hopeless. All that the Father gives me will come to me, The Lord meets us where we are, in all our fears and doubts, and he does so to draw us into a sharing in his risen life. It always strikes me as strange that the gospel reading for his feast is taken from the longer ending of Mark which was probably a later addition to the gospel! Jesus came and stood among them. In the gospel reading, Jesus declares, whoever eats me will draw life from me. The shepherd had gone looking for the one sheep that has wandered off and, having found it, he is taking the sheep on his shoulders back to the flock. We take hope and wisdom from St. Therese of Lisieux's sayings and reflections from her Story of a Soul and other writings.
Reflections on Daily Readings November 22 - Carmelites In these Covid times when we cannot receive the Eucharist, it is good to be alert to the many other ways that the Lord comes to us. Yet, this is not a closed relationship.