Know that the Kingdom of God is near!

 

The scripture readings for this reflection can be found at Friday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB

As we approach the end of this church year and prepare ourselves for Advent, and the preparation for the birth of Jesus on Christmas day, the readings at daily mass are focusing on the end times and the fact that eventually this world will come to an end and we will be facing the judgment seat of God. But they are also reminding us to live in the presence of God.

Our Lord in the gospel for today is reminding us that the Kingdom of God is always near to us.  It surrounds us in the different aspects of nature, whether it’s trees growing and showing the beauty of God in the spring, or by the onset of winter when the weather becomes cold and frigid. God is present in every aspect of the natural elements that surround us. God’s kingdom is also around us in the people that we encounter every day, whether it’s our family or friends. The kingdom of God is always at hand.  Our Lord is reminding us that we are always living in the presence of God and need to always remember that this life of ours is transitory. Jesus further reminds us that God’s presence is eternal. Our Lord says, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.”

An early Carmelite saint, Brother Lawrence, who lived from 1611 until 1691, talked about living in the presence of God. He was not a priest, but rather a Lay Brother and was responsible for the daily chores in the monastery he lived in. His simple faith that God was always with him, even in the simple practice of washing the pots and pans, helped him to develop that close relationship with God. This example reminds us that in all things we do, whether it’s the small tasks of taking care of our household duties, or taking care of our family, we should remind ourselves that God is always with us. Our focus should always be looking forward to eternal life with God as we take care of our duties here in this life. We need to do all things for our salvation and the greater glory of God.

Brother Lawrence is quoted as saying, “Let us occupy ourselves entirely in knowing God. The more we know Him, the more we will desire to know Him. As love increases with knowledge, the more we know God, the more we will truly love Him. We will learn to love Him equally in times of distress or in times of great joy.”

Lord Jesus, as we approach the busy Advent season and the preparations to celebrate your birth, help us remember that you are always with us in all our activities, and help us to always live in the presence of God. Amen.

My house shall be a house of prayer

 

The scripture readings for this mediation can be found at https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/112020.cfm

As we come close to the end of the church year and get ready for the start of Advent next week and the preparation of the Christmas season next month, we hear in today’s gospel of our Lord being upset at the fact that there were those in the temple not really making God the focus of why  they were there. These money changers were making the temple into a “den of thieves.”

These money changers sold animals for the ritual sacrifice that religious Jews would need in order to offer sacrifice to God in the temple. These money changers took advantage of the people that needed the animals for the sacrifice by cheating them and overcharging them just to make a profit.

Reflecting on this passage, we can and should ask ourselves what our focus is as we enter church for Mass. What are our priorities? Are we focused and recollected on the fact that we are entering the House of God? Are we focused on giving praise and worship to God alone? Or are we distracted by the cares and concerns of what is going on in our lives outside of church? With the health issues that are still in our society and all the political bickering going on because of the recent elections, we need to be able to focus on the Lord. These problems are like the thieves in today’s gospel. These problems are stealing our attention away from prayer and worship of God.

Upon entering any Catholic Church, our focus should always be on our Lord in the tabernacle, present in a very real way: Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity. We are to take with us as we enter the church our cares and concerns and place them into the loving arms of our Lord. With all that is going on in our city and world around us, it’s tempting to not to focus on our relationship with God. Let us turn from these troubles and develop that trust and prayerful relationship with our Lord.

The chief priests, the scribes, and leaders were looking for ways to put Jesus to death but saw that the people were hanging on to every word that Jesus spoke. Let us hang on to every word of Jesus by the frequent reading of scripture. With our Lord in the center of our very being we can trust in him to help us through these problems.

Lord Jesus, help us to always remember that your house is a house of prayer. Amen.

Let us love one another

 

The Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/111320.cfm

In our first reading for mass today, we hear from St John talking about what is central to what it means to be followers of Jesus Christ: love of neighbor. John tells us that this is not a new commandment, but rather one we have had from the beginning: love one another.

This message from John reflects the central teaching & message of Jesus in the gospels. In the gospel of St. Mark, chapter 12, our Lord tells us to love the Lord our God with all our minds and all our strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves. Our Lord clearly points out that there are no greater commandments than this: to love God and to love our neighbor.

The saint that we commemorate today, St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, attempted to follow out this command of love of God and neighbor by entering religious life as a nun. After being rejected by two congregations, Frances formed the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart and were sent to the United States to bring this gospel of love of God and love of neighbor to the Italian immigrants coming to this country. These Italian immigrants lived in the slums, poorly educated and in clear need of not only physical help to get them out of poverty, but needed help spiritually to know and love God.

Mother Cabrini and her sisters would go on to establish schools, orphanages, and eventually hospitals across the United States and eventually to Latin America. In her audience with Pope Leo XIII, he told her to “hurry all over the earth if possible, in order to take the holy name of Jesus everywhere.” By being obedient to the pope, she was able to bring the love of God to those who needed to hear it here in the United States.

Mother Cabrini died on December 22, 1917, and was canonized in 1946, with a feast day of November 13^th. Mother Cabrini was a naturalized American citizen, and as a result is the “first citizen saint” of the United States.

We are called to follow Mother Cabrini’s example by bringing Christ to those in our lives by showing them the love that God has for each of them. By showing the love of God to those in our lives, we are following what St. John says in our first reading: “love one another.”

Lord Jesus Christ,  help us to bring your holy name to all we meet today!

Our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ

The Scripture readings for today's reflection can be found at  https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/110620.cfm

In our first reading from St. Paul to the Philippians, we hear Paul advising the Philippians, and us, to remain focused on Jesus Christ! Paul says for us to be imitators of those who have been a model as followers of Jesus Christ. It is those people who live out their lives as followers of Christ by not being concerned with their own comfort or selfish needs, but in loving God and loving others.

One such person in recent history that lived out his life in this way was Martin Luther King Jr. who reminded the world that we are all made in the image of God and are to treat all people with love and respect. It was through this living out the gospel of love for all people that Martin Luther King lost his life.

Martin Luther King listened to Paul’s warning about not being selfish. Paul says of those who have turned away from Christ, “Their God is their stomach; their glory is in their ‘shame.’” (Philippians 3:19)  These are the type of people that go about worried about their own cares and needs without any worry or concern about others who are in need of their love, concern and help. He goes on to say, “Their minds are occupied with earthly things.”

Paul goes on to talk about a citizenship in heaven. Paul uses this analogy of citizenship to show that as citizens of heaven, we should live differently than those who are citizens of this earth. With the general elections just behind us, there has been a lot of bickering and hatred going back and forth between different points of view. There has been a great deal of hatred and back biting by everyone, no matter what the political affiliation happens to be. All throughout this recent political season, we have seen people lack charity towards those they may not agree with on different issues. We are called to live beyond the political name calling and to remember that all people, whether we agree with them or not politically, are children of God. Further, Paul is teaching us to live out our lives as followers of Jesus Christ with love and affection for all people, no matter their point of view. We are called to remember that all people are made in the image of God, and we are called to love them as God loves them.

In these politically charged times, as we attempt to live out our lives as citizens of heaven, let us remember the words of Martin Luther King Jr.: “Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend.”

Let us pray for ourselves and our country to bring about the healing and peace that can only come from God through Jesus Christ.