Millions of people are recently effected by floods and tornadoes./ We pray for them as they suffer the pain and sadness of great losses./ We ask blessings for first responders/ and the many who assist in rescue and recovery efforts./ We pray to the Lord.
At the start of June,/ we pray good health,/ safety and well-being/ for those who celebrate birthdays,/ anniversaries and other days of remembrance./ For the safety of summer travelers./ We pray to the Lord. As Pope Francis travels to Romania this weekend,/ and beatifies seven Catholic bishops who were murdered during the Soviet years,/ we pray for Christians who are menaced and persecuted in our own time./ We pray to the Lord. Wednesday is World Environment Day./ May we be aware,/ creative and generous in our response to safeguard life on this planet./ We pray to the Lord. For our President,/ our Congress,/ and for all in positions of authority./ We ask for world leaders who are able to resist making deals with the devil./ We pray to the Lord. For the sick,/ the broken-hearted,/ the desperate and dis-spirited./ We ask for the strength needed to live with our personal struggles and challenges./ For family members and friends./ We pray to the Lord. We pray for the protection and encouragement of peacemakers./ For those whose work safeguards our health and well-being./ We ask for the continual renewal of joy and hope within ourselves./ We pray to the Lord.
Here is a detail of the Salus Populi icon: just the faces of the Mother of God and the Christ. I think there are two take-aways here. The first: notice that the Mother of God is looking out at us with full face and wide-awake eyes. However, she does not look directly ahead, but to her right. It is as if she is looking off afar to the margins. Is is a searching gaze.
Did you ever scope out a seat in the last row of a classroom because you were ill-prepared or late and didn't want to be noticed? Maybe it's something like that. She sees human kind where we hide in shadow and ignorance. She sees us in the things we think and plan that would shame us if they were known: the deals, the machinations, the covert plans, the things that take place underground, off in safe places, in hidden rooms and cells.
As she presents her Healing-Son to the world, she observes and is fully aware of us where we are at our worst. Salus Populi: she is Mother of the People - the people who build great cathedrals and discover cures, but also the people who kill children and can't stop blowing up things.
Secondly, the Infant Christ doesn't look at us, but at his Mother. It would be very easy to reduce this to sentiment, "Oh baby Jesus is looking at his Mother lovingly." There is more to it than that. In any icon of the Mother of God holding her Infant Son, Jesus never looks like the delicate child on a baby food jar. He is always depicted as a miniature man. He is always the Lord. So here, this "adult" Jesus looks at his Mother, yes, but who is also his first disciple. She is the first to say yes to him.
And you and I are in the long lineage of those who say yes to Jesus. In effect then, he is looking at us, the other disciples. She is the first of us, the ones who go to Jesus, not to clap and cheer, but to learn. That's what a disciple is: one who learns. And the learning doesn't mean lamenting that I haven't read the catechism or dropped out of religious instruction after Confirmation, but that there is something heaven wants me to learn personally about how to live my life authentically and fully, as Jesus lived his.
This photograph is of Pope Francis visiting the side chapel of the Basilica of Saint Mary Major, where the Salus Populi icon of the Mother of God resides. The Pope visits her prior to every trip outside of Rome and then again, upon returning. It is a lovely custom he adheres to.
Catholics love to decorate. There are dangers. Here, the newly restored icon seems lost in an ocean of carpet swirls, candle sticks and flowers, marble and metal angels. Hmm. I think the Mother of God and her Divine Son would much prefer to be on eye level with us - interfacing - as with the shepherds of Bethlehem and the Magi from the East.
Christianity is the religion that claims God has a human face, like our own. God meets us first through the meeting of eyes, even before words. And if I am a Christian disciple then this aspect of interface is to be extended. As God looks out at me in Christ, so I am to look out at others, as God's own dear children. It is a summoning to great attention as I see and make eye contact with...
the special needs person who greets me at the door of the "thingdom come" store,
the young fellow behind the deli counter,
the other patients in the doctor's waiting room,
the pharmacist who fills my script,
the stranger at Mass who would like to join me in the pew,
the visiting priest from Africa,
the woman loading groceries into her car next to mine,
the children at the southern border who I see on the news,
the motorists stopped alongside me at the intersection light,
the men who maintain the lawns in this neighborhood (have I ever even waved?)
the women who change adult diapers in the nursing home where I visit,
the others who sit in the Twelve Step circle,
the fellow on the floor of the aisle stocking shelves,
the boy who delivers the pizza,
the others who inhabit this planet in every kind of variety.
We pray for the safety of Pope Francis/ as he travels to Romania this week/ to encourage the Catholic and Orthodox communities in reconciliation,/ love and unity./ We pray to the Lord.
As the nation observes Memorial Day this week,/ may we learn how to create,/ sustain and extend peace in the world./ We pray boldly that wars would become obsolete./ We pray to the Lord.
We pray for our families and our friends at Mass today,/ mindful of those who are struggling with health problems,/ emotional pain,/ marital or financial difficulties./ We pray to the Lord.
May we respect,/ protect and care for the gift of our beautifully alive planet./ We pray for those whose love of money,/ keeps them from acknowledging the planet's fragility./ We pray to the Lord.
For the President of the United States,/ our Congress and those who seek public office./ We ask for leaders who create unity/ by fostering respect for each human person./ We pray to the Lord.
This week,/ may we have some new insight as to how to live the most difficult parts of Jesus' teaching:/ how to forgive,/ how to love an enemy,/ how to welcome the stranger,/ how to encounter others without fear,/ neediness,/ selfishness or entitlement./ We pray to the Lord.
Notice that the Mother of God holds the Infant close to her and under her folded hands. This modeling pre-dates the Hodgetria "style" where Mary points to Jesus. The cross inside Jesus' nimbus indicates his divinity. He is an animated figure - seeming almost to be already in motion along the roads of Galilee. Christ's tunic is a royal red. There are vertical stripes on his shoulders called a clavus, symbolizing imperial power - his teaching is from heaven.
Aware of all that vexes us, Jesus blesses us with his right hand, while in his left he carries the Book of the Gospels. But notice that the book is closed. Perhaps it is for us to open. Is he daring us? Surely our eyes will fall upon some line that will require a change, a transformation, a letting go, an inner death to some old way of thinking. Some Christians never take the challenge. There is too much at stake for. They remain fans of Jesus, but not his disciples. The Holy Mother carries a mappula in her left hand - a ceremonial handkerchief carried by imperial women. Mary is Queen of Heaven, surely, but I prefer to think she'd share the handkerchief with us who are "mourning and weeping in this valley of tears." There are an awful lot of broken hearts shedding an awful lot of tears shed on this planet, no? You're attentive to the news, yes? Years ago I had a colleague at school who told me she never reads a newspaper and doesn't have a TV. I asked her how she knew about what was going on beyond her own immediate concerns. She said, "If the world is going to end, someone will tell me." I think that's cavalier, and I wondered how she could pray from any felt place.
Here is a short video showing the fascinating restoration effort made to save the 6th century Salus Populi Romani icon of the Mother of God, which was introduced here in last Tuesday's post. Open your screen fully.
However wonderful the icon's cleaning and repair, perhaps of even more urgent importance is our own need for restoration - a return to wholeness and health for individuals, families, the nation, the Church, the planet itself.
Delighting in the restoration of your icon, O Lady,
we ask for our own return to health and wellness, in...
the epidemic of our drug addiction,
the pestilence of gun lust,
the anguish of parents for the safety of their children,
the groan of the world living in poverty, the contagion of our militarization, the debility of our planet destruction,
the disease of distrust,
the bedevilment of our consumerism,
the malady of non-transformative religion,
the blight of resentment,
the torment of those who are hoping to be welcomed, the contagion of blaming,
the affliction of self-deception,
the ailment of despair,
the scourge of non-questioning,
the illness of our disinterest,
the infection of this ruinous partisanship, the sickness of all this killing, the epidemic of our hatred, the malady of power-quest, the malignancy of superiority, the toxicity of power-lies, the infirmity of our ignorance, the disorder of our wasteful greed.
Mother of Restoration, of soundness, of well-being, may we inhale your brightness,
We pray for Pope Francis,/ and the Church he loves and serves./ In the season of ordinations/ we pray for priests and deacons around the world,/ asking for them to experience a spiritual awakening./ We pray to the Lord.
We ask to learn justice/ so that peace may grow and increase around the planet./ For those born into the world where there is no opportunity,/ no education,/ but only debilitating poverty./ We pray to the Lord.
Countless persons are on the move around the world,/ fleeing wars,/ famine,/ dictatorships,/ terrorism and gangs./ May we be more than fans of Jesus,/ and as his true disciples,/ learn his way of welcoming strangers./ We pray to the Lord.
For the President of the United States,/ our Congress,/ and those seeking public office./ May the world be blessed with leaders who govern with ethical principles./ We pray to the Lord.
Grant that we would be healed of exclusivity,/ racism,/ and the many phobias we speak of /which are not so much fears/ as they are various forms of hatred./ We pray to the Lord.
For the sick,/ the weak,/ the addicted and the wounded./ For the conversion of war profiteers,/ and those whose investments encourage exploitation./ We ask blessings for those/ who have helped and supported us throughout the years./ We pray to the Lord.
This icon is titled:Salus Populi Romani. Arriving in Rome in 590, it is kept in the Pauline Chapel of the Basilica of Saint Mary Major. This is the icon which Pope Francis visits before and after each trip outside of Rome. The icon's Latin title translates, The Health of the Roman People. But Rome, like Jerusalem and New York, is an international city - everyone from everywhere is there. So maybe we could adjust the title to something more universal, "Salus Populi - Health of the People." At the Pope's request, the Vatican Museum undertook a complete restoration of the icon in 2018. The before and after photographs above show us how badly that work was needed. The golden halos were restored, the faces and hands brightened, insect and wood-worm holes were repaired, the delicate colors uncovered, the icon's reverse side was varnished to strengthen the wood panel. The "Salus Populi" Mother of God icon is unusually large: five feet high and three and a quarter feet wide. It is also filled with spiritual meaning: Mary's gaze, her handkerchief, her indigo maphorion (mantle), the way she holds the holy infant, his blessing hand, and closed gospel book. Perhaps over the next days we can ponder these things together - like going on a mini retreat!
But first: In 593, Pope Gregory prayed before the icon for the city of Rome which was suffering from the Black Plague. In 1571, Pope Pius V prayed for Rome during the naval Battle of Lepanto. In 1837 the icon was venerated during one of Italy's many Cholera Epidemics. These historical events of healing and strength, and the icon's recent restoration, might help us further to focus our prayer for today. This Mother of God and her Child have assumed a stately pose. She is not down for the count before plague, cholera, naval battle or the polarizations which afflict us in our nation, or the many threats to populations and the planet itself today. Might we take a moment to offer a prayer to the restored and regal Mary we encounter so clearly on the right. Ask her and her Son to help us to stay standing and not to crumble before the menace and threats: May we remain alert, confident and strong.
Then, as the sun was setting, all those who had friends suffering from every kind of disease brought them to Jesus and he laid his hands on each one of them separately and healed them. Evil spirits came out of many of these people, shouting, "You are the Son of God!" But he spoke sharply to them and would not allow them to say any more, for they knew perfectly well that he was Christ. Luke 4:40,41
Verse 40: This ends the "Day in the Life of Jesus at Capernaum." It has been a Sabbath day, and so all of this healing will not go down well with those who see it as forbidden work.
Notice the first words of the gospel verse: "As the sun was setting." Much of what we do that matters (even matters a lot) has to take place within a certain time frame: a marriage license is good for so many days, the New York Stock Exchange takes place between opening and closing bells, prescriptions are good for so many refills and the meds taken at certain times. But God's action isn't bound or regulated by any earthly understanding of time. Just when everything is supposed to stop and be wrapped up for the day, as the sun is setting, Jesus is surrounded by crowds who go away healed and whole.
Notice this too: "He laid his hands on each of them separately." In Christ there is God's interface with each human person. No big waving of his arm over the masses, but God responding to each individual. Someone asked Mother Teresa of Calcutta about her method. "One, one, one," she said. I expect she'd say Jesus taught her that.
Verse 41: The malign spirits know that Jesus is divine. Here again, they declare it. They know who he is, even if we often don't, or are afraid to say it because it's gone out of fashion. One senior priest told me that in his religious order there were priests who didn't say the name of Jesus because it isn't considered manly. Wow! Imagine telling an evangelical preacher-man not to use the name of Jesus because it made him look delicate!
Finally, Jesus tells the expunged evil spirits not to speak further. But why? They're not in charge; Jesus is. There are lots of folks, even self-roclaimed religious devotees, who aren't quite sure. Jesus, take charge of my life, especially the thoughts of my heart.
We pray for the mothers of the world today./ For mothers who are burdened with sickness,/ frailty,/ poverty./ We pray as well for the one in five children of this country/ who live in poverty./ For our nation to lift up the littlest and the weakest./ We pray to the Lord. For the President of the United States,/ our Congress and those who have presented themselves for public office./ May they realize they are called to be stable servants of love./ We pray to the Lord.
We pray for the people of Ethiopia,/ South Sudan,/ Somalia and Kenya,/ where again famine-producing drought/ conflicts and terrorist attacks are leaving millions of people suffering./ We pray for our own country/ which is trying to cut funding to international aid organizations./ We pray to the Lord. There was a school shooting outside of Denver this week./ We pray boldly for our nation,/ so often menaced by gun violence./ We pray to the Lord. Jean Vanier died this week,/ the founder of the L'Arche Community./ May we learn to embrace special needs persons,/ not as charity cases,/ but as friends and companions along our life-way./ We pray to the Lord. We pray for the sick,/ those who have been injured in accidents or wars,/ those who are suffering psychological illness,/ or who are mourning great losses./ For those who have died since last Easter./ We pray to the Lord.
This is the Psalm we prayed at Mass last week, the Second Sunday of Easter. When we pray a psalm at Mass the difficult bits are taken out. We'll include them here. Why shouldn't we address them? If a given psalm doesn't reflect life in Christ, we should simply say that.
Verses 1-4: The families of Aaron and Israel are invited into the life of the psalm. Perhaps we're being invited to consider our own ancestral line. There are new companies that trace where we come from in history, following our DNA or blood line. But what about our long spiritual lineage. Perhaps it is a lineage of faith (even a faith that led to persecution), prayer, holy living, charity and justice. But perhaps mixed in that long family line going back hundreds upon hundreds of years, there is also the story of violence, mental illness, criminality, suicide, depression, addiction, even murder. And through it all, we're told four times in four verses that God's love is forever enduring. How wonderful is that.
Verses 5,6: The psalmist calls upon God in the time of distress. He declares that his prayer was answered and he was freed. Could that be some inner freedom: freedom from resentment, old nagging wounds, cynicism. Whatever it was, he calls God his helper. Do I have some healing of my own in mind?
Verse 7: "I shall look down on my foes." It doesn't sound very nice. Today, when we hear biblical lines like this we tend to come up with some spin, so it doesn't sound as bad as all that. Looking down on my foes isn't a Christian way. Pray for your enemies, Jesus says. It is admittedly a sometimes very difficult aspect of Christian discipleship. "Every priest has his detractors" a senior priest told me when I was new at this. And while I have found that to be true, even Padre Pio had enemies, I have found that I can wish everyone well.
Verses 8,9: People can fail us. We can fail ourselves. People can be un-reliable. I can be un-reliable. People can be disappointing. I have disappointed others at times. But I'm sure of this - God's love is sure.
Verses 10-12: The psalmist is surrounded by enemies. It was a dangerous world then, it's a dangerous world still. The word psalm means praises. But this book of one hundred and fifty psalms is often a series of complaints - whining really. Maybe the psalmist has no one else to whom he can vent all his troubles. But after all his complaining, even angry, vengeful complaining, the psalmist comes around and gives God the praise that is God's due. I remember the day I showed up for duty in my first priest-assignment. I was twenty-eight years old. The rectory was dirty, the pastor was intoxicated, the housekeeper was bossy, the secretary was angry. Talk about being "compassed about as with bees." I get it! My prayer was very earnest those days.
Verses 13-17: Can you tell this story for yourself - the story of your feeling as if you were going under, but heavenly help caught you. If even by the scruff of the neck? Remember the words of the 19th century Baptist hymn: My life flows on in endless song;
Above earth's lamentations,
I hear the real, tho' far-off hymn
That hails a new creation;
Through all the tumult and the strife
I hear its music ringing;
It sounds an echo in my soul-
how can I keep from singing
Although the tempest loudly roars,
I hear the truth, it liveth.
But though the darkness 'round me close,
Songs in the night it giveth.
No storm can shake my inmost calm
While to that rock I'm clinging;
Since love is lord of heaven and earth,
How can I keep from singing?
Verse 18: As a boy I was taught that God's righteous punishment was always just around the corner. That threat was effective in getting us to behave. But it really isn't a very Christian way to live. God isn't small. God isn't petty - this idea or image of God sitting up there keeping records of slights and offenses against rules. Then if life's troubles are not divine punishment, what then? We live on a perilous planet, and increasingly so as we throw the planet into imbalance. When I was a young priest I was chaplain to a futuristic state hospital. Everything was trauma and specialty there. More than anything I came to realize that pain and suffering reveal a person's true character. Verses 19-21: The psalmist asks for the gates of holiness; the Lord's own gate, to be opened. He undoubtedly is thinking of the gates to the beautiful Temple in Jerusalem. But there is a more important inner sanctuary, where I am alone with God, where God sees me as I was seen the moment of my birth, even in the moment God took for my imagining. Oh, believe it; it can change everything! Verses 22-24: "The stone which the builders rejected has become the corner stone." Of course, Christians see this as an image of the rejected Jesus become the centerpiece of our lives. Then,"This day was made by the Lord; we rejoice and are glad." Why do we so often think there is some other day: a better day, a holier day, a more perfect day, a more fulfilling time. There is really only one day, isn't there? THIS day! TODAY is the day for living spiritually, which is the discovery of God's nearness and love, long before I ever had a thought to look up and see. The poor are often very good at living this way. Verses 25-29: There is a procession here - everyone carrying palm branches, which are symbols of victory. The procession goes up to the temple altar. I'd venture most of the folks reading these reflective lines here are Mass-goers. So, what do I bring to the altar in my church? What inner gift of praise and gratitude to I carry the rejoicing way, up to the altar of God's goodness and enduring love?
At the start of May/ we pray for those who celebrate birthdays,/ anniversaries/ and other other days of remembrance,/ asking for them,/ good health,/ safety and peace./ We pray to the Lord.
We pray for the children who will receive their First Holy Communion in the Easter weeks ahead./ May we recall our own First Communion Day/ and feel again for Christ,/ that same intensity of love. We pray to the Lord. On Easter Morning,/ deadly bombs exploded during church services in Sri Lanka./ This week another killer-assailant attacked a synagogue in California./ We pray for the dead,/ the wounded/ and the broken-hearted./ We pray to the Lord. May Pope Francis be safe during this weekend's trip to Bulgaria and Macedonia./ May his words and gestures be received by people of good heart./ We pray to the Lord. We pray for seasonable weather/ and for those who have suffered during recent floods,/ tornadoes and storms./ For the safety of travelers./ We pray to the Lord. For the President of the United States,/ our Congress and those who are presenting themselves for public office./ We ask for the restoration of peace where there is bitter division,/ hatred,/ war and turmoil./ We pray to the Lord. For the sick,/ mindful of family and friends/ and those who have asked for our prayer./ For the many who are left alone and untreated in their illness,/ fear and fatigue./ We ask blessings for doctors,/ nurses and rescuers./ We pray to the Lord.
