Intercessions ~ Feast of Corpus Christi

Corpus Christi Procession ~ Grodno, Belarus

As the new month of June begins,/ we pray for those who celebrate birthdays,/ anniversaries and other days of remembrance,/ asking for good health,/ safety and peace./ We pray to the Lord.

In the Eucharist,/ God continues to walk with us in our human vulnerability./ We pray for the weakest among us/ or who in their frailty/ are alone or without supports./ We pray to the Lord.

The month of June is traditionally dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus./ We pray for those who have no love or friendship in their lives./ For those we do not love rightly or at all./ We pray to the Lord.

For those of good-heart who come to the rescue wherever there is fire,/ flood,/ terrorist attack,/ or disaster of any kind./ For those who staff hospitals/ or who rush to help others in emergencies./ We pray to the Lord.

For the safety of summer travelers./ For the well-being of our families and friends,/ especially those who are stressed,/ in any kind of trouble or difficulty,/ who live with addictions,/ pain or sickness./ We pray to the Lord.

Preserve us as a decent and good people,/ freed of racism and the phobias and hatreds that weaken the nation./ Grant that those who lead us/ would pattern honesty,/ service,/ solidarity/ progress for all/ and the healing of divisions./ We pray to the Lord.

A fool! Hey, who's a fool?

Verse 1: The first words of the psalm: The fool has said in his heart. We usually think of a fool as someone who acts ridiculously: "You drank too much last night and made a fool of yourself." But that's not what the word means biblically. In the Old Testament a fool is someone whose priorities and values are out of whack. And out of whack means those values which make no room for God and God's thoughts and ways. 

Notice too in this verse that the psalmist hones in on the true and first place of religion: it is the heart. We often forget that, so busy with the outer do-ings of religion we neglect the work of the soul, our inner person, which is worlds more than the two-second pause at the start of Mass or sleepy check-list examination of conscience.

Verses 1-3: The psalmist takes a dim view of human kind in this regard. He sees those who live without sharing God's values as corrupt and depraved. He says depraved twice. He thinks things are so bad, he imagines God scanning the earth unable to find even one good person remaining. Wisdom gone. God sees into hearts

Verse 4: You see, the issue is understanding. Being a fool doesn't mean NOT believing in God - in the ancient world everyone believed in one god or another. The psalmist is more concerned with those who "don't pray" which means make no inclusion of God or who have no regard for God's suffering people. A kleptocrat is a ruler or person with political power who steals or exploits - politicians who only take and accrue for themselves or their think-alikes and who don't serve the ones who are most vulnerable. "They eat up my people as though they were eating bread."

Verses 5 and 6: These people have reason to fear - God is on the side of the poor. In the very midst of their voting sessions, speeches, deliberations and rallies, while they leave others oppressed - if they looked up to see where God stands, they would be terrified. "Religion belongs in the sanctuary" not a few believe. These verses seem to grow out of an ancient society sorely divided: haves and have nots, powerful and powerless, evil-doers and righteous. Still?

Verse 7: Some scholars say this last verse with the happy ending was added after Israel got free from the oppression of other nations. God restores. The verse might be better expressed as a question: "Who will save us from Zion?"  Of course, the answer is GOD. Despite what the fools do and say - God is the helper. But this calls to mind the words of St. Teresa of Avila: God has no hands but my hands, no back to bear his burden to feet to walk his errands. 

Finally, we must never think that the word fool applies to everyone else but me. In some sense we're all fools. I'm thinking of the Sunday when I was a young boy and three Christian neighbor-men came to our door to ask my father to join them in buying a house on the block from under a black family who had looked into it for themselves. We can all be fools - acting as if God doesn't know, see or care. 

The Prayer of a Sigh

A gardener friend who lives with Parkinson's emailed recently musing a bit on the challenges he faces in his spring garden: the struggle not to fall over, the struggle to keep moving despite the paralysis of his legs, the struggle of telling his brain to move his foot into a step. He wrote that despite all this he would continue his focus and intensify his prayer. 

I wrote back that I didn't think praying in the garden should entail still more struggle and that he might consider and value the prayer of sighing. St. Therese of Lisieux wrote: "My slightest sighs, my greatest sufferings, my sorrows and my joys, my little sacrifices, my flowers, Jesus for you." And in another place: "I assure you that God is much better than you believe. He is content with a glance, a sigh of love." 

The psalmist refers frequently to sighs, but always as a negative, surrounded as he is by enemies who seek his un-doing. Even the well-loved prayer, Hail Holy Queen, sees sighing negatively. "To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears." 

In truth, some people are sighing experts who burden others with their unspoken groans of dissatisfaction and complaint. But I have in mind those spontaneous sighs which are genuine expressions of wordless and deeply felt surprise, joy, delight, awe, gratitude. There are also the sighs which accompany compassion or the powerlessness of pain, loss or frustration. We can trust the prayer of sighing.

• I see a Blackburnian Warbler high in a tree - a bird I've never known before - and I sigh.
• The sun breaks through the clouds; I feel its warmth on my skin - and I sigh.
• A light breeze comes through the garden carrying the scent of flowering fruit trees - and I sigh.
• My arthritic thumbs, my cranky back are slowing me up - and I sigh.
• I carry the morning news with me, of sixty Palestinians dead, including children and thousands wounded along the Gaza-Israel border - and I sigh.
• This glass of water - and I sigh.
• My mind travels back in time to a youthful mistake - forgiven - and I sigh.
• A thought: I survived intact that terrible time from long ago - and I sigh.
• Am I the first person ever to touch this patch of ground - this soil, these rocks - and I sigh.
• I consider with awe the seed packet gently shaken into my open hand - and I sigh.

Intercessions ~ Trinity Sunday

Spring Trillium

May our religion not be privatized this Feast of the Holy Trinity,/ but communal,/ modeling ourselves on the relationship of the three divine persons of God's inner life./ We pray for those who suffer without family,/ community or friendship./ We pray to the Lord.

It is Memorial Day weekend./ And as we pray for those who have died in battle,/ may be remember that every nation has its own memorial day./ Grant that we may vigorously explore the creation of a world of peace/ which is rooted in justice. We pray to the Lord.

Friday is Global Day for Parents./ We pray for mothers and fathers who have the care of children,/ asking protection,/ strength and perseverance./ For those whose families are destabilized by wars,/ disease,/ disaster or lack of opportunity./ We pray to the Lord.

Grant that we would not despair by so much troubling news,/ but retain a sense of awe and gratitude this season of planting,/ transformation,/ renewal and birth./ We pray to the Lord.

We pray for our dear ones and those who are with us at Mass today,/ asking for gifts of good health,/ safety and endurance./ For those we need to forgive./ May we not be distracted or fatigued by resentment./ We pray to the Lord.

We pray for those who are saddened by violence or abandonment,/ tragedy or losses./ For the healing of all who carry emotional wounds,/ long held guilt or fear./ We pray to the Lord.

A Celtic Style Blessing in the Springtime

My paternal grandparents were Irish born, having come to the United States around 1900. My grandmother, Catherine, was from a poor farm in Galway, and my grandfather, John, a Catholic from Belfast. Not easy. John shod horses in Manhattan and Catherine was a maid to a wealthy family on Park Avenue. She lived with us for some time when we were kids. That makes me second generation Irish. I can feel it.

The low temperatures here are in the 50's now and the parsley, lettuce and spinach seeds have sprouted. Spring is finally winning over winter. And from that place, I'm sending my own version of a Gaelic Blessing to you - from my garden to yours. Maybe you have a garden out back. Or maybe you admire a neighbor's garden. Or maybe your garden is your indoor potted African Violets by the window. Maybe your garden is one of those huge cement pots filled with spring flowers you pass on a Manhattan Avenue on the way to work. Doesn't matter. I'm sending the spring blessings to you and your family - your spouses, your children and grandchildren, your siblings - mindful that some of them may be having a hard time of it.

Deep peace of the forest's layered greening to you.

Deep peace of the birds returning to you;

   their nesting,

   their surround-sound song.

Deep peace of the fawn's birth to you.

Deep peace of the seeds sprouting to you;

   the wisteria bud-swell,

   the lilac scenting.

Deep peace of the days lengthening to you;

   its warming,

   its brightening.

Deep peace of the morning fog to you;
   its dew and mist.

Deep peace of the frog's pond-life to you.

Deep peace of the bee's foraging to you.

Deep peace of the soil's softening to you.

Deep peace of Mary's faith-smile to you.

Deep peace of Christ's trillium-red wounds to you.

World Bee Day and Saint Gobnet

Today is World Bee Day. Bees are vital. Without bees, there are no fruits and vegetables. But bees are disappearing at an alarming rate and some people are not alarmed. Many kinds of bees have already gone extinct. There are increasingly few fields and meadows where bees can forage because "They paved paradise and put up a parking lot, with a pink hotel, a boutique and a swingin hot spot."*  Our chem-lawns, gardens and agriculture fields are sprayed with stuff that kills any flying insect (other pollinators) including bees. 

But Europe has recently enacted legislation prohibiting chemical sprays that kill bees. My goodness, most jarred honey contains traces of chemical pesticides. The farmers and the producers of killer-chemicals are not happy, but an important step has been taken to ensure an alive planet for our children and grandchildren. 

Bees figure in our religion not infrequently. During the song to the Easter Candle on Holy Saturday Night we hear, "On this, your night of grace, O  holy Father, accept this candle, a solemn offering, the work of bees and of your servants' hands, an evening sacrifice of praise, this gift from your most holy Church."

And Saint John Chrysostom said: "The bee is more honored than other animals, not because she labors, but because she labors for others." 

There is a lovely legend that on Christmas Night honey bees hum Psalm 100. But only those who are clean of heart are able to hear it.

O be joyful in the Lord, all you lands:
serve the Lord with gladness,
come before his presence singing for joy.

Know that he, the Lord is God.
He made us, we belong to him,
we are his people, the sheep of his flock.

Go within his gates, giving thanks.
Enter his courts with songs of praise.
Give thanks to him and bless his name.

Indeed, how good is the Lord,
eternal his merciful love.
He is faithful from generation to generation.

The patron of bees and bee-keepers is Saint Gobnet (5th century) who was born in County Clare, Ireland. Having fled to the Aran Islands to escape a family feud, Gobnet built a church there but was instructed in a vision that this was not to be the place of her resurrection, but  rather another place, where she would find nine white deer grazing. So she came to southern Ireland, founded the church of Kilgobnet and eventually settled at Ballyvourney. There she built a nunnery and was guided by St. Abban. She was a skillful bee-keeper, using honey to cure illnesses and wounds. The site of her convent with its holy well is still a place of pilgrimage. Her feast day is February 11.

Holy Gobnet, help us to save our planet.

Holy Gobnet, that we may revere every living thing.

Holy Gobnet, that we may be generous in supporting life.

Holy Gobnet, heal us of our illnesses and inner wounds.

Holy Gobnet, may no living thing go extinct on our watch.

Holy Gobnet, that we would fall to our knees in wonder.

Want to plant a Honey Bee Garden? Here are the names of thirty plants known to be favored by bees. These seeds and plants can be found in almost any nursery. All you need is some good soil and at least six hours of sun each day. And the desire to put caring into living action.

Cosmos
Aster
Sunflowers
Calendula (aka Marigold)
Primulus
Rudbeckia
Cornflower
Lavender
Bluebells
Clematis
Crocus
Mint
Rosemary
Thyme
Hebe
Cone Flower
Mignotette
Thrift (aka Sea Pink)
Sedum
Sweet William
Monarda (aka Bigamist or Bee Balm)
Poppies
Verbena
Snapdragon
Ageratum
Globe Thistle
Digitalis
Anise

*Big Yellow Taxi ~ Joni Mitchell 1970  And the last verse: 

Hey farmer, farmer, put away the D.D.T now
give me spots on my apples
but leave me the birds and the bees ~ please! 
Don't it always seem to go
that you don't know what you've got til it's gone...

Intercessions ~ Pentecost Sunday

Holy Spirit Flower ~ Panama

The Jewish Pentecost remembers the giving of the Law to Moses on Mt. Sinai,/ fifty days after Passover./ May we remember Jesus giving us the new law of love,/ and live that law creatively and well./ We pray to the Lord. 

On Pentecost Sunday may the Holy Spirit keep us from the discouragement and cynicism that might overwhelm us./ May the Church be blessed with new gifts of wisdom and joy./ We pray to the Lord.

Today is World Bee Day./ We pray to know how to take care of the planet-gift God has given us./ May we have the courage and persevering energy to love this earth,/ even in the small details of the pollinating insects./ We pray to the Lord.

Dozens are dead and many thousands have been wounded in new fighting between Israel and Palestians./ We ask God to forgive this violence in what we call the Holy Land./ And may the world learn how to be peaceful and just./ We pray to the Lord.

We ask for the calming of voices and the attitudes which often insult and hurt people./ We ask to be thoughtful and insightful,/ gentle and always grateful./ We pray to the Lord.

We pray for the sick,/ those recovering from trauma and accidents,/ those who need inner healing or the healing of relationships./ We ask blessings for those whose efforts help to make our daily lives easier./ We pray to the Lord.

Trout Lily's Invitation to Hiding

This lovely native North American plant, with its nodding flower on the end of slender stalk, has the botanical name: Erythronium americanum. Its various common names are: Trout Lily, Dogtooth Violent, Fawn Lily. 

Trout Lily is expert at hiding. Its mottled leaves resemble a brook trout in a dappled stream or spring fawn in grass. It does not bloom for the first 4 to 7 years of its existence. In late afternoon, it assumes this heads-down position, while in the morning, growing under deciduous tress before they leaf out in early spring, the petals curve backwards, revealing a lemon yellow interior and anthers on thread like stamens.

Trout Lily seems to know where it belongs and is rarely takes to being being dug up and transplanted from its wooded hideaway to someone's home garden. Even in a large colony of say one hundred plants, only one will carry two leaves and a single flower, the ninety-nine remain camouflaged with one one green-brown spotted leaf. 

"Guard me as the apple of your eye. Hide me in the shadow of your wings..." Psalm 17:8

"You are my hiding place, O Lord; you save me from distress." Psalm 32:7

"You are my hiding place, my shield; I hope in your word." Psalm 119:114

And of course, the Christian speaks of the "Hidden Years" of Jesus - after a few gospel reports from his Infancy, we hear nothing again of him until his adult appearance along the Sea of Galilee.

Christianity speaks so often of "tireless work" that we neglect the soul work that might take place in silence, solitude and hiddenness. Maybe this is a Trout Lily's spring time for us: Stop running away from hidden-ness. Stop apologizing for hiddenness. Stop thinking hiddenness isn't Christian.

Someone recently sent a very short essay written by the English Poet, David Whyte, titled: Hiding.  

Hiding is a way of staying alive. Hiding is a way of holding ourselves until we are ready to come into the light. Even hiding the truth from ourselves can be a way to come to what we need in our own necessary time. Hiding is one of the brilliant and virtuoso practises of almost every part of the natural world: the protective quiet of an icy northern landscape, the held bud of a future summer rose, the snowbound internal pulse of the hibernating bear. Hiding is underestimated. We are hidden by life in our mother's womb until we grow and ready ourselves for our first appearance in the lighted world; to appear too early in that world is to find ourselves with the immediate necessity for outside intensive care.

Hiding done properly is the internal faithful promise for a proper future emergence, as embryos, as children or even as emerging adults in retreat from the names that have caught us and imprisoned us, often in ways where we have been too easily seen and too easily named.

We live in a time of the  dissected soul, the immediate disclosure; our thoughts, imaginings and longings exposed to the light too much, too early and too often, our best qualities squeezed too soon into a world already awash with too easily articulated ideas that oppress our sense of self and our sense of others. What is real is almost always to begin with, hidden, and does not want to be understood by the part of our mind that mistakenly thinks it knows what is happening. What is precious inside us does not care to be known by the mind in ways that diminish its presence.

I've read these paragraphs many times in order to understand. And I'm thinking of the recent dust-up surrounding Facebook selling peoples' names and other information. And our asking, "What does privacy mean anymore?" Or of advertising that pops up on my computer screen - something out in cyber space "thinking" it knows me: who I am, what my interests are, what I need to own, what I need to read. It all makes me want to run to the hiddenness of my garden. We can stop defending or apologizing for our hiddenness. 

St. Edith Stein's collected works is titled: The Hidden Life. And there is a book titled: Halfway to Heaven - the Hidden Life of the Sublime Carthusians. We can stop thinking "hiddenness" is un-Christian.

At Table With Jesus

The Last Supper ~ Joos Van Cleve ~ 1485 -1540

On the first day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb is sacrificed, Jesus' disciples said to him, "Where do you want us to go and make the preparations for you to eat the Passover?" So he sent two of his disciples, saying to them, "Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you; follow him, and wherever he enters, say to the owner of the house, 'The Teacher asks, 'Where is my guest room where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?' He will show you a large room upstairs, furnished and ready. Make preparations for us there." So the disciples set out and went to the city, and found everything as he had told them; and they prepared the Passover meal.

When it was evening, he came with the twelve. And when they had taken their places and were eating, Jesus said, "Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me." They began to be distressed and to say to him one after another, "Surely, not I?" He said to them, "It is one of the twelve, one who is dipping bread into the bowl with me. For the Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that one by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would be better for that one not to have been born."

While they were eating, he took a loaf of bread, and after blessing it he broke it, gave it to them and said, "Take; this is my body." Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he gave it to them, and all of them drank from it. He said to them, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. Truly  tell you, I will never again drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God."

When they had sung the hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. And Jesus said to them, "You will all become deserters; for it is written, 'I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered." But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee." (Mark 14: 12-28)

Do we remember earlier (Mark 11:1-2) when Jesus told the disciples they would find a donkey they could use for his Jerusalem entrance? Here he tells them to follow the man carrying a water jar. Jesus seems to have a knowledge of future events.  Notice too that a man carrying water is unusual; in the ancient world water-carrying is women's work. All of this in preparation for the upstairs dinner, a dinner he will eat not with his family, as was the custom, but with them. Jesus is forming a new family, bigger than blood relations.

Jesus is referred to as the teacher. We must pay attention to the lesson then, even in its details. After the bread is passed, is Jesus teaching us something new: instead of each disciple drinking from his own cup, there is one cup passed among them all.  

Jesus is preparing the disciples for his death. He speaks of betrayal, and denial. He makes a psalm-reference to an enemy and a divine curse which is really a claim that he will be raised up and delivered. The blessing words over the bread and cup foreshadow his death.

But there is more. This meal anticipates the meal (a heavenly banquet) which will take place when Jesus returns and brings in God's full reign over all creation. I knew a non-believing doctor who  worked in a Catholic hospital and who one night wandered into the hospital chapel and carefully observed the Stations of the Cross on the walls. "How ridiculous, a God who dies," he said. 

I suppose, instead of jumping to defend against that claim, one could accept it and come to love Jesus precisely because, as the world goes, he is ridiculous: Jesus, who told us about a shepherd who had a big flock of one hundred sheep and who left them vulnerable to go in search of the one that got lost. That's ridiculous. Or the ridiculousness of a woman who had ten coins, but who lost one and ripped the place apart until she found it. And here, the ridiculousness of Jesus, who is starting a new family, a new spiritual way that is sealed not with a kiss, but with his spent blood. And that spent blood he tells us is, "for the many," which is the Aramaic way of saying, for all. I mean, really: the folks who don't make the cut, who aren't on the honor roll, who don't win the golden whatever, who aren't on the A list, who don't merit citations - searching them out for love!?

This Last Supper scene isn't just about the twelve disciples, but it's about us. I'm invited to take my place at the table too. Jesus knows the betrayer and the denier are at the table. And the two disciples who argued about seats of honor at Jesus' left and right; they're there.  And Jesus' references that later that same night they'll all run away from him. So it's not a table of perfect people by any means.

In my meditation, where do I seat myself? Anywhere is fine really. But what matters is that the seat next to me is empty. Remember, I am sitting at the table of Jesus-the-Ridiculous. The table is my heart. Our country loves to talk about winners and losers, who's in and who's out, who matters and who doesn't. So who sits down next to me? Think of the news. Even think of what we call politics - which it isn't really. How do I feel? And do I care that I'll be labeled ridiculous or worse, even by other Christians?

Intercessions ~ Seventh Sunday of Easter

Mary creates an atmosphere of faith,/ humility,/ prayer,/ compassion and loving service around Jesus./ May we live in that atmosphere always./ We pray to the Lord.

This Mother's Day/ we pray for the strengthening and endurance of mothers around the world./ For mothers who are living in great insecurity or vulnerability./ And for the children of the world to be welcomed,/ protected and helped./ We pray to the Lord.  

Tuesday is the Feast of Saint Isidore the Farmer./ We pray blessings for those who grow and supply our food./ May we be good stewards of the water and land God has given us as a life-sustaining gift./ We pray to the Lord

Tuesday is also the International Day of Families./ Grant healing to families weakened by addiction,/ dysfunction,/ unemployment and fighting./ Give safe-haven to families displaced or worn down by war and poverty./ We pray to the Lord.

Wednesday is International Day of Living  Together in Peace Day./ We pray boldly for those who make decisions about war and peace./ And may we be reconcilers and agents of justice/ which is the first ingredient of peace./ We pray to the Lord.

May we have some experience of deep gratitude every day,/ take nothing for granted/ and live generously/ as we have been given much./ We pray to the Lord.

Loving Jesus

This painting (Christ in the House of Simon) was created by the Netherlandish painter Dieric Bouts (1420-1476). It depicts the Gospel scene of Mark 14:1-11. It is a very important account for the Christian disciple:

Now the festival of Passover and Unleavened Bread was only two days off; and the chief priests and the doctors of the law were trying to devise some cunning plan to arrest Jesus and put him to death. 'It must not be during the festival,' they said, 'or we should have rioting among the people.'

Jesus was at Bethany, in the house of Simon, a man who had suffered from a virulent skin-disease. As he sat at table, a woman came in carrying a small alabaster bottle of very costly perfume, oil of pure nard. She broke it open and poured the oil over his head. Some of those present said to one another angrily, 'Why this waste? This ointment might have been sold for thirty pounds and the money given to the poor'; and they turned upon her with fury. But Jesus said, 'Leave her alone. Why must you make trouble for her? It is a fine thing she has done for me. You have the poor among you always, and you can help them whenever you like; but you will not always have me. She has done what she could: she has anointed my body beforehand for its burial. I tell you this: throughout all the world wherever the Gospel is proclaimed, what she has done will be told as well, in remembrance of her.'

Then Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Jesus to them. They were delighted to hear it, and promised to give him money. So  he watched for an opportunity to hand him over.

Verses 1-2: The religious leaders have decided that Jesus has to be gotten rid of because he makes them think about their religion in uncomfortable ways. He takes them to task for their superficiality and fakery. They also know Jesus is more popular than they are, and that if they are seen as responsible for the death of Jesus in an emotionally charged time like Passover and there is a riot, Rome will be unhappy, and the consequences could be dire.

Verse 3: This homeowner, Simon, is something of a mystery man. We don't know who he is, except that he's got his own problems with a bad skin disease. But the dinner takes place in his home in Bethany, where Lazarus, Martha and Mary live. Surely everyone knows about the great miracle of Jesus restoring Lazarus to life. We can imagine the religious leaders hating Jesus all the more for that miracle which would have resulted in his increased popularity.

A woman comes into the house. Has she been invited? Is she considered to be intruder - a brave woman stepping into a men's club. She knows who Jesus is, and she's not going to be distracted or stopped. 

She carries a small vial or bottle which would have had a thin neck. She's spent some money on the gift she carries; it is made of alabaster and filled with an expensive, fragrant oil. Alabaster is a translucent mineral, soft enough to be carved. Then she snaps off the top or breaks the seal on the bottle and pours the contents over Jesus' head, which is reminiscent of what the women of Good Friday will do after washing the dead body of Jesus.

Verse 4: Some of the men get angry and call her action wasteful. Maybe their anger is a cover-up for their shame, that they see her love and respect for Jesus to be deeper than their own. 

Verse 5: The men continue with a pious defense of their annoyance, citing the Law of Moses which requires helping the poor. Jesus doesn't buy it. It's easy to fall back on a shallow piety which makes religion easy. 

Verse 6: There's a lot of tension at this table and Jesus sees through it. He recognizes false religion and gratefully goes to the woman's defense, calling her action, a fine thing.

Verse 7-8: The woman seems to know and accept that Jesus is going to Jerusalem because he will suffer and die there. Jesus often holds up for admiration the faithful response of women. In chapter 12: 41-44, it's a poor widow who illustrates a right response to God and it's women again, going to the tomb on Easter morning, loving Jesus through death. In the ancient world, women were not allowed to testify in court. Jesus breaks down that prohibition.

Verse 9: Jesus doesn't promise that this woman's name will be remembered, but her action. Action matters most to Jesus, not "the name we make for ourselves". We might remember Herodias in the early part of Marks' Gospel (6:14-29) who demanded the head of John the Baptist and see the contrast of love in this mystery- woman's anointing of the head of Jesus. Notice too, the good news of Jesus is not just for some, but for everyone "all through the world".   

Verse 10: Notice that Mark has placed the account of this woman's love between the two mean-spirited verses of the religious leaders looking to get rid of Jesus, and Judas playing into that nasty scheme. And so, the Gospel presents us with a choice.

Maybe this awareness of our having a choice is depicted in Bout's painting. He has placed a devout monk in a white habit at the edge of the room. Monks didn't exist at the time of Jesus. His taking up a place in the room, and even the young apostle gesturing to him, suggests the timelessness of the Gospel question. It is as if the painter is asking all the Christians who will come after Jesus, even (or perhaps especially) the clergy, do you love Jesus the way this woman does? Look closely at the monk's face - he knows it's a most serious question.

Psalm One ~ Life and Delight in God's Teaching

Psalm One serves as an introduction to the collection of 150 psalms which is called the psalter (salt-er). The opening word of invitation is Happy. In other words: "Dear Pilgrim, as you set out into this collection of song-poems, may they teach you how to be genuinely happy." 

Verse 1: The word blessed or happy appears in the psalms 25 times. The psalms want to teach us how to be happy. Are we ready for their plan or proposal? The invitation begins by contrasting the happy person with the wicked person or scoffer. The wicked person is someone who just doesn't get it. A scoffer is an arrogant person who isn't teachable. Notice the use of the word WAY.  The Psalms are a journey into a new life-style or a new mind-set. 

The culture we live in offers this kind of happiness: 

• "You'll be happy if you land the right job." 
• "You'll be happy if you set and achieve all the goals you've set for yourself." 
• "You'll be happy if you have all the money you need and more." 
• "You'll be happy if you drive this sexy car." 
•  You get the picture; pretty superficial, self-centered stuff.

Verse 2: But his delight is in the law of the Lord. Often, and not only in religion, we tend to fall back on and parrot what we were taught even a very long time ago. We'd like to think we're open to new ideas, but really we're just returning to what was memorized or words that sunk in on a superficial level. And so "Law of the Lord" might mean nothing more than the Ten Commandments or the Laws of the Church or the legalities of fasting and abstinence, or the laws surrounding sexual morality. But that's not what's on the psalmist's mind.

The one who delights in the law of the Lord is the one who is constantly open to God's instruction. Notice, this instruction is a delight, not a burden. Lots of people reject religion because they see it as an imposed burden. Where does that come from? There's no indication that God's instruction comes through a book, a lecture, lesson or even a sermon. The how, when, where is wide open and to be left to God. Some people won't like this idea as it leaves too much to surprise or spontaneity. The happy life? I start by being totally open to what God might want to teach me. And I'll know I'm living this way when someone else says to me, "You know, you're changing. There's something new about you."  Some people go to Mass all their life, they say prayers and listen to countless homilies, but they stay the same. They never change. 

Verses 3-4: Then right in the middle of the psalm there are these two wonderful similes. The one who delights in God's instruction is like a tree that's perfectly planted near moving water. The emphasis isn't on the fruitfulness, but on the roots themselves. I want to be utterly rooted in God's instruction. Don't you too? And deeply rooted (entrusting my life completely to God's teaching) like the tree, I can withstand drought. Name it! 

"Whatever he does, prospers." Some people think, "Oh, if I follow the rules, show up to satisfy my obligations and say the right things, I'll "prosper" - be materially rewarded."  Prosper means rather, come what may, I will have from God what I need to stay standing. Contrast this with the "wicked" - the ones who get it wrong and make wrong choices. They are like chaff. Chaff is light. Chaff is the waste part of wheat. Chaff is good for nothing. The bit about the right-rooted tree takes up three lines. The bit about the chaff takes one. Gives you an idea of what God thinks is important. Perhaps also a word of correction to those who spend their time warning and condemning everyone else. 

Verse 5: The psalmist takes us back to the wicked and the sinners for a contrasting moment. The verse is not likely a reflection on what we have come to call Judgment Day, but rather, when the things of justice are decided before God, the wicked won't have any place in the conversation. The wicked come and they go. What they have to say, in the long run, is of no consequence. They're lost (without standing) and disappear to the edges of society.

Verse 6: The Lord watches over the way of the righteous. In another biblical place the words watches over suggests sexual intimacy. That is to say, those who entrust themselves completely to God's instruction will know the deepest intimacy with God who is the source of all life - real life, a happy life.

The word wicked appears here for the last time. This is the self-centered person rather than the God-centered person. The self-centered person thinks, "I don't need anyone else; I don't need God." American hero, Daniel Boone, said, "When you can see your neighbor's smoke, it's time to move." And for many, "In God We Trust" or "One nation under God" are just words (words we can do without). Could they be the more honest ones - giving voice to the way many people actually live.

Final word: Psalm One is a door opener. One hundred and fifty times we'll have put before us the two ways. The choice is ours. The way of God's teaching (what, when and how) opens up a way of happiness and life. I want it!

Intercessions ~ Sixth Sunday of Easter

In the new month of May/ we pray for the children who will receive their First Holy Communion./ May we be among the clean of heart./ We pray to the Lord.

At the start of May we pray for those who will celebrate birthdays,/ anniversaries and other days of remembrance./ Grant them peace,/ good health and safety./ We pray to the Lord.

We pray for the healing of the broken-hearted./ For those who are oppressors,/ dividers,/ war-makers and exploiters./ Bless the work of rescuers,/ reconcilers/ and the advocates of mercy and justice./ We pray to the Lord.

Renew families where there are little children and young people./ Give parents the strength they need and long for,/ and gifts of patience and wisdom./ We pray to the Lord.

We pray for the Korea's,/ North and South/ who like ourselves are nations placed under the patronage of Mary's Immaculate Conception./ May the impending peace talks be fruitful./ We pray to the Lord.

Thursday is the Feast of St. Damien de Veuster,/ the Leper Priest of Molokai./ May the Church excel in announcing the befriending love of God in Christ./ May no one suffer exclusion./ We pray to the Lord.

At The Start Of May ~ Mary's Month ~ An Apology, O Lady!

May is Mary's month. And Catholics make a fuss over Mary because she creates an atmosphere of love around Jesus. Not just Mother-Love but Disciple-Love. She is the first to say "yes" to Jesus. 

In the April 16, 2018 issue of America magazine we read: "...the present issue of America kicks off a multi-year initiative in which we will examine the future of the church in the United States and how to incorporate Latino Catholics fully into ecclesial life."  And in the first article: For the Church and U.S. Society, A Latino Future it is reported: "Over one  third of all U.S. Latinos are still under 18; six in 10 are younger than 33. In an otherwise aging population, the Latinos of the United States are a young people. Amercias' Latinos are increasingly assimilated, with record numbers speaking English, a trend driven by the young."

In the column titled: "Your Take" the readership was asked: "How does your parish reach out to Hispanics in your community?" Twenty-four of the 136 respondents said that their parishes made no efforts to reach out to Hispanics. Some expressed frustration at the lack of outreach. An anonymous reader from Marlboro, N.J., wrote: "My parish does nothing! Our pastor has commented about not wanting the Our Lady of Guadalupe icon at one point to avoid having 'those people' come to the church. It is no wonder Latinos flock to evangelical and Pentecostal churches."

I might have thought the pastor's quote couldn't possibly be accurate except that years ago when I brought a copy of the tilma to my parish, I asked a parishioner if she had seen where I had placed it with the Litany-prayer. "Oh, I don't even go back there; she's for the Mexicans."  YIKES!

Do you know that when computer enhancements are done on the eyes of the Guadalupe tilma, reflected human figures are discernible. It is thought they are reflections of the people who were in the room when Juan Diego opened the tilma before Bishop Zumarraga and his assistants. Who is reflected in the Guadalupe's eyes today? The people who are kidnapped. The people who are trafficked. The people who are murdered. The children. One  young mother said, "I had to leave Honduras when gang members threatened to kill my six year old boy."  

And you and I are held in the Guadalupe's eyes, and our families, in all their fears, dysfunction, addiction, health concerns, broken-ness, divorce, spiritual poverty, losses and heartache.  

Profound apologies O Lady,
 for those who have built walls
 around their hearts ~
 walls so high even you are not welcome,
 Mother with reflecting eyes.

Oh, give us some of that golden light
 radiating from your face,
 that we would come to see rightly,
 enough at least to stop calling others
 "those people".