The Allure of Jesus' Teaching

One day the people were crowding closely around Jesus to hear God's message, as he stood on the shore of Lake Gennesaret. Jesus noticed two boats drawn up on the beach, for the fishermen had left them there while they were cleaning their nets. He went aboard one of the boats, which belonged to Simon, and asked him to push out a little from the shore. Then he sat down and continued his teaching of the crowds from the boat.

When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out now into deep water and let down your nets for a catch." Simon replied, "Master! We've worked all night and never caught a thing, but if you say so, I'll let the nets down." 

And when they had done this, they caught an enormous shoal of fish - so big that the nets began to tear. So they signalled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. They came and filled both the boats to sinking point. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, "Keep  away from me, Lord, for I'm only a sinful man!" For he and his companions (including Zebedee's sons, James and John, Simon's partners) were staggered at the haul of fish they had made.

Jesus said to Simon, "Don't be afraid, Simon. From now on your catch will be men." So they brought the boats ashore and left everything and followed him. Luke 5:1-11

This painting by the 14th century Sienese artist, Duccio di Bouninsegna, is a detail of a much larger image of Jesus teaching. It is lovely, isn't it? The gentle, direct gaze of Jesus, his animated hands, the golden sparks of divine light radiating through his clothes!  And the gospel...

Verses 1,2: The crowd has gathered at the sea to hear the word of God which Jesus offers. It's a poetic image: the people want to be caught up in the "fisherman's net" of Christ's teaching. 

Verse 3: Notice that Jesus gets into Peter's boat without even introducing himself or asking permission. He's in charge. He lets Peter hear what he has to say. Jesus trusts the allure of God's word will win Simon Peter's heart. Introductions will come later. Notice too that Jesus sits in the boat. It is the ancient posture of teaching with authority. The little boat becomes Jesus' pulpit. The water will carry his voice in a practical way, but more than that, it is an image of a voice that is clear and authoritative. 

Many people think that preaching is a priest or deacon's prerogative, or that pulpits are for church buildings. I don't think Jesus would agree - the witness of a life lived in God's justice, compassion and love is the best sermon. We could do with more of that today in a world of too much talking.

Verse 4: Here Jesus speaks to Peter directly and alone (singularly) to move the boat out into deep water. But "lower your nets" is plural. Maybe the plural directive is aimed at us who live more than two thousand years later. Put out into the deep: Beyond the safe margins of my own little life. I like this prayer to the Mother of God which seems to ask for that freedom to move beyond my own shallow thinking.

"O Lady, grant me compunction and contrition of heart, humility in my thoughts and a release from the slavery of my own reasonings."

Verses 5-8: These men have been fishing all night, in the dark of unknowing. They have nothing to show for their efforts. But Jesus takes them into the light of his word, the daylight, his new illuminating teaching. And with that, Peter realizes his littleness (not a list of sins) but his vulnerability, his un-evolvement, his shapeless life, his emptiness that only Jesus will fill.

Notice that Peter had originally called Jesus Master but now he calls him Lord. This is an Easter title. A disciple is one who allows himself/herself to be taught. The Christian disciple is eager to be taught by Jesus who is sparked with divinity. 

Verses 9-10:  I think it was the kindness of Jesus that Peter found so attractive. Jesus said, "Don't be afraid." How kind was that in a world of empire: Occupying Roman soldiers all heavily armored, policing everyone. There's an awful lot of un-kindness on this planet: blaming, ridicule, name-calling, labeling, the resource grab, climbing over people, big talk, threats, power display. We can experience this at home, at work, in the Church, in government and among the nations. It isn't Christ's way.

Verse 11: They left everything. Another translation says, They left all. It could be that they left their families, or the boats and equipment. But the Gospel is a spiritual way, inviting us, the world's biggest consumers, using most of the world's resources, to live more simply. Pope Francis models and invites us to this Christ-mind. But to leave all? Maybe to leave all the resentments behind? Leave all the ignorance behind? Leave political ideology behind. Many people have their politics as their real religion. Their real gospel page is their party platform affiliation. Pope Pius XII (Pope 1939-1958)) said: "Never make a man choose between his Church and his country. He will almost always choose his country." 

Pius said this fully aware of the stupid men of his day and their adoring disciples - the power figures, mugging and posturing for camera and crowd. 

Intercessions ~ Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today we return to the liturgical green time and the long weeks of summer./ With Pope Francis,/ may we love our green and blue planet,/ protect and secure it for those who will live here after us./ We pray to the Lord.

Many hundreds of migrant children,/ have been separated from their families in our country./ There are troubling reports of their detainment in hidden squalor,/ sickness and neglect./ We pray to be a truly pro-life people/ whose righteous anger forbids this./ We pray to the Lord.

Wednesday is the Feast of St. Thomas the Apostle,/ who is called the Apostle to India./ May we look beyond ourselves to the poor,/ the sick,/ the friendless and the needy./ We pray to the Lord.

Thursday is Independence Day/ celebrating our freedoms./ May we strive to be inwardly free of hatred,/ plundering-selfishness,/ threats of others/ and love of violence./ We pray to the Lord.

The summertime frog sits in the sun/ and in the rain./ May we complain less/ and find our way to happiness in acceptance and surrender./ We pray to the Lord.

Isalm and Christianity have in common a great love for the Virgin Mary./ From that unity of heart,/ we pray for a peaceful solution to the great tensions of the Middle East,/ especially between the United States and Iran./ We pray to the Lord.

Seventeen Months Before An Election

"When I give food to the poor,  

 they call me a saint. 

When I ask why the poor have no food, 

they call me a commuist." 

 Dom Helder Camara 1909-1999

On The Feast of Corpus Christi ~ The Body and Blood of Christ

Today is the Solemnity of Corpus Christi - the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ. The Eucharist is the centerpiece of Roman Catholic life. May our lived-understanding of Christ's Presence continually evolve and mature.

In a kind of  conversational prayer with the Eucharistic Christ, Brazilian Archbishop Helder Camara (1909-1999) said:

"Woe to the one who feeds on you,

 and later has no eyes to see you, 

to discern you foraging for food

 among the garbage." 

Intercessions ~ Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ

Vank Cathedral Manuscript ~ Isfahan, Iran

On this feast of recognizing Christ in the Bread and the Wine,/ may we discern his presence in the lives of the countless persons who are un-employed, homeless and hungry,/ who live in flight,/ insecurity,/ anxiety,/ pain and grief./ We pray to the Lord.

The cup Christ offers is poured out and emptied,/ the Bread is broken./ We pray for the sick,/ the exhausted,/ the ones who give themselves away in service to the needy and the helpless./ We pray to the Lord.

We join Pope Francis prayerfully in his recent heartfelt appeal to the international community/ to make every effort to favor dialogue and peace in the Middle East/ where tensions are once again very great./ We pray to the Lord.

We ask strength and courage for those who are with us at Mass today,/ and our families and friends./ For our own growth in humility and hope when we are tempted to discouragement./ We pray to the Lord.

For the President of the United States,/ our Congress and all who are in positions of authority./ May they be people of good conscience,/ authenticity and service./ We pray to the Lord.

However early,/ another election time has begun./ In our own thinking and deciding,/ may we keep alive an urgent and broad belief/ in what is best for others,/ and not just ourselves./ We pray to the Lord.

Psalm 70 ~ Through it all, I will be confident

Much of life is uncertain: What will this new day bring? How will the kids turn out despite our best efforts? How long will I be at this job? Will this person be true to me? Will this medication bring the healing and health I seek?

But one thing is certain - every day I am a little older. And while "they say" the person who will live to be one hundred and fifty years old has already been born - we know we don't have forever. The author of Psalm 70 understands. Here, in old age, back and forth, back and forth, he reviews his life, praises God, expresses his distress, makes his petition, struggles to allow God to teach him to the end, then praises God yet again. I expect many of us will be able to identify with the struggle.

Verses 1-3: How eager the psalmist is. Such an inner sense of urgency, calling God a refuge. We're reminded of those who are in trouble and run into a church seeking sanctuary. We don't know if the poet is sick, worn out, or who might even be pursuing him. What matters is that he is throwing his life upon God in a heart felt dependency. He makes the point with words like: deliver, rescue, save, rock, fortress.

Verse 4: "Rescue me from the hand of the wicked." He believes God can make things right, that God is in charge, that God's rule is stronger than the might of the persons he calls wicked. The wicked are those who think they are self-sufficient, who trust in their own machinations, schemes, power, money, influence, deals and connections. There are wicked people in every age.

Verses 5-8: Here the psalmist calls God his hope. He declares that he has belonged to God from the day he was born, even from when he lived in his mother's womb. He declares this relationship will carry him through till the end. When I turned fifty I made a pilgrimage to the Bronx, returning to the church of my Baptism. I stood at the white marble font, consciously grateful for the parents and godparents who brought me there and the priest who introduced me to God in Christ - in the water. When I know my life belongs to God, life is not a Sunday Mass, but everything is changed - my life becomes a continual act of praise and thanks.

Verse 9-13: Happiness is fleeting. Here the psalmist returns to expressions of anxiety, stress and complaint. We have to free ourselves of any thinking that suggests our suffering is God's punishment. This fellow can't understand the cause of his suffering, but he's not blaming God. Instead, he again leans into praise and trust. Can I feel the struggle?

Verse 14-17: I love how this verse begins. He wants God to see his life as lived in contrast with the wicked who are a source of grief, "But as for me..." he says. He seems to say, "The more I'm troubled and burdened, the more I will praise you; trust you." He never says this confidence is going to be easy, but it is his intention and desire. He wants to remain as faithful to God as God has been faithful to him - from his youth. He is the image of the elderly person who has outlived or lost everything: money, property, strength, health, family, security, recognitions, life-achievements, even the consolations of youth, but who still clings to God in loving trust. 

Verse 18: Here the psalmist says he's going to be a proclaimer of God's greatness for generations to come. Catholics have to get better at doing this. Many of us were raised to leave the proclaiming to the priests and nuns. As if they were God- specialists. Is the old expression about the laity still true, that they exist to: pray, obey and pay. How sad is that! And what a waste. 

Verses 19-24: Indeed, we are living in difficult times. One could easily become depressed, cynical and bitter. I might even be tempted to think of God as the big loser. May the psalm's last verses encourage us with their themes: God is faithful. God is a soul-rescuer. God is the righteous helper who wills life in the midst of all the death, darkness and destruction. 

Holy Trinity ~ Unity Born of Love

Abbess Catherine ~ Dame Phillipa ~ Dame Agnes

Holy Trinity is the Christian doctrine that there is one God, and within God's inner life there is a community of persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. God exists in fellowship, relationship, family, friendship. And in Baptism we are flooded and immersed in that divine related-ness. Chrisitianiy is not a trip for isolators.

Trinity celebrates God's unity. It is a unity born of love. We could do with a good bit of that in our hyper-divided country these days. And this unity born-of-love doesn't happen because we take a course in it, or join a religious order with rules, or even practice good deeds. It happens in us when we realize that the Father's love for the Son, and the Son's love for the Father, dwells in us - it is God's gift to us and exists outside of institutions.

Love is surrendering self-interest for the good of the other. Love actively makes good happen for others. Love is tenderness which word comes from the Latin tendere which means to stretch. To love others is to have our hearts stretched. It is the work put before us. It's bigger than just being nice, kind, helpful or sweet. Dostoyevski writes that love in action is a dreadful thing. We needn't be discouraged, only steady.

Rumor Godden wrote the novel In this House of Brede in 1969. In 1975 the story was adapted for television staring Diana Rigg. In the  adaptation, Philippa Talbot is a war widow and a sophisticated London business woman. After suffering a terrible family tragedy, she enters Brede Abbey, an English Benedictine convent of enclosed nuns.

The abbess, who was a loving and encouraging friend to Philippa, dies the first night Philippa arrives as a postulant. Dame Catherine comes to Philippa's room to tell her of the news and to summon her to the Abbess' bedside. Dame Agnes is in the room. She is Phillipa's nemesis - a bitter, suspicious, jealous nun who doesn't think Phillipa should have ever been accepted into the convent and who subsequently makes life difficult for her. 

Dame Catherine is elected the new abbess. After her installation, Philipa goes to Catherines' office for a private conversation. Here's the most important part of that conversation.

Philippa: I can't tell you how pleased I was when I heard it was you and not Dame Agnes. It's good to know I have a special friend in these rooms again.

Catherine: There's only one special friend here in this house, or any other. "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart with all thy soul and with all thy mind." This is the first and great commandment.

Philippa: This is my commandment: "That ye love one another as I have loved you."

Catherine: "As I have loved you." That says it all, doesn't it? Because he loves us equally, all in the same degree.

Philippa: Can you do that - care for all of us equally without any sort of natural preference?

Catherine: I must. It is my duty.

Philippa: And must I be as fond of Dame Agnes as I am of you -Dame Agnes, and all those chattering girls in the novitiate?

Catherine: If only  you could.

Philippa:  (long pause) I can't.

Catherine: I said, "If only you could." It would be quite something wouldn't it?

Intercessions ~ Feast of the Holy Trinity

Today we pray for fathers who are away from their families,/ who are negligent,/ addicted,/ unemployed,/ or struggling against great obstacles./ We pray for our own fathers and grandfathers/ living or deceased./ We pray to the Lord.

We pray for the nation/ which is frayed with anger and animosity./ Grant to the President,/ Congress and those who seek public office,/ a fresh desire to promote healing and reconciliation./ We pray to the Lord.

Our poor planet,/ the people,/ the plants and animals,/ the ground itself,/ is so burdened by exploitation and waste./ Grant us the loving hearts of good stewards./ We pray to the Lord.

We pray for the nations of the world where there is war,/ where citizens are afraid or degraded,/ where leadership fails to serve,/ where the children are caught in the awful choices of adults who should love them./ We pray to the Lord. 

For the sick,/ the frail,/ the broken-hearted,/ the imprisoned,/ the poor and vulnerable./ For the people who feel they are losing ground or going under,/ who fear they can no longer hold on./ We pray to the Lord.

In the face of all the pressures and disappointments,/ may we be given gifts of courage./ Preserve us from cynicism and despair./ Keep us from hurting others./ We pray to the Lord.

At daybreak he went off...

At daybreak, he went off to a deserted place, but the crowds tried to find him and when they did discover him, tried to prevent him from leaving them. But he told them, "I must tell the good news of the kingdom of God to other towns as well - that is my mission." And he continued proclaiming his message in the synagogues of Judaea. Luke 4:42-44

Here is a photograph of the 4th century monastery of St. George, hidden in a deep gorge of the Judaean desert. This is the kind of wild, deserted geography Jesus escaped to: a place of temperature extremes, of  low vegetation and  little water. I sometimes meet people who say they'd love to get away to a place like this because they need some silence and a good rest. But we can easily romanticize life in these places.

Four diocesan priests arranged for a week long retreat in an Ohio monastery where the monks live solitary and spartan lives. The priests arrived in the later morning. By afternoon they were wandering around the property. That evening they disappeared by car for several hours. By 11:00 A.M. on the second day, they left for good without saying good-bye. One can go to a deserted place, but I take myself with me, and with no outer thing to distract, I can find myself in an impossible situation.

Maybe this is the deserted place Jesus went off to, three hundred years before the monastery was built. He has left the crowd.The word disciple means, one who learns. Maybe what I need to learn from this short passage is that there comes a time when I need to leave the crowd. Some people don't know how much they live in the crowd. They can't conceive of it being otherwise. Jesus wants me to be free of anything that keeps me from finding God (who by the way has found me long before I even had an idea of looking for God). The "crowd" can be just such an obstacle.

The crowd can deceive me into thinking this is what I need. I only need to watch a few television commercials to hear the crowd's voice. The crowd can pressure me into thinking I've got the truth. Folks who consider themselves to be "the base" in religion or politics might envision themselves as truth carriers. The crowd can dull my conscience or my imagination, leaving me satisfied with business as usual. "Oh well, what are you going to do?" a priest from my boyhood used to say whenever the news was unpleasant or hard to hear. Living in the crowd can cause me to fear rejection. "They won't like me or accept me if I disagree." 

"And he continued proclaiming his message..." Sounds like Jesus has a mind of his own. Some people never develop a mind of their own. In seminary we were taught what to believe, what to say, how to solve the problems, how to respond to questions and arguments. We became religious tradesmen - like the appliance repairman who knows the ins and outs of machines and how to keep them all working. We only learned someone else's experience of God and were never invited to share our own. Imagine if seminarians were trained and encouraged to write hymns, prayers and poems, with their own vocabulary and insights.

What's my life when, Jesus-like, for at least awhile I leave the crowd's demanding, mesmerizing, reassuring, manipulative voice? It isn't about finding a convent or monastery to hide out in for a few days.

Red Doors

These are the red doors of Saint Mark's Episcopal Church in Philadelphia. There's no rule requiring red doors for Episcopal churches, but it's not uncommon to see them. 

Reasons abound. Some say it was a sign in the Middle Ages that a person who was evading the law could find refuge inside. That the church was outside the reach of civil authority. Some say red is the Pentecost color. Pray that inside we'd find people who are spirit-filled with the love of God - God's mercy and justice. Or red doors were a sign of an Anglo-Catholic Church (altars, Virgin Mary, crosses, images, smells and bells), while Evangelical Churches, where the Word alone was preached, had gray or brown doors. That's kind of interesting.

Or maybe, the color red is a take off from Exodus 12:7, where  Moses is instructed that on the night of the Passover, when Israel would be freed from Egyptian slavery, that a lamb was to be slaughtered and its blood put on the door posts to mark the Israelite houses and over which the angel would then pass-over, keeping the children safe. That strikes me as quite plausible.

Now we're the children who pass under or through the blood stained doors. But the ancient lamb's blood is now Christ's blood. 

Blood is the stuff of life. But I'd suggest that it isn't only the Sunday church-goers, passing through the doors, who are kept safe from sin's death-claim, but we all are - all of humankind. The red doors might be a flashy, wordless way of telling folks: We're universally saved; come on in and hear about it. Come on in and celebrate what's true for and about all of us. Christ's gifts aren't parcelled out in small bits for some and not for others. 

Remember the Cana wedding story? Jesus makes huge amounts of wine to keep the love-feast going. The whole village was there! It would be a ridiculous image to think of Jesus standing, warden-like, next to the clay jars filled with his amazing vintaged wine, ladle in hand, asking people to prove they qualify, deserve or somehow measure up before filling their mugs. The only qualifier is, "I'm thirsty and want to get in on the fun."

I like how in this wintry scene up top, the dawn sun seems to be lighting up the Calvary image over the doors. Jesus wide-armed! Christianity is supposed to illumine what's true about God and us.

Intercessions ~ Pentecost Sunday

Normandy Beach ~ American D-Day Cemetery

On Pentecost Sunday we pray for the nation's heart which is sick and broken,/ after a deadly shooting in Virginia Beach./ Gun violence is a  very great evil that needs to be rooted out./ We pray to the Lord.

Thursday marked the 75th anniversary of D-Day,/ the Allied breaching of the Nazi defenses in North Western France./ Between June and August of 1944,/ 225,000 Allied service members were killed,/ wounded or went missing./ We pray for a world at peace./ We pray to the Lord.

Thursday of this week is the Feast of St. Anthony of Padua./ the patron saint of lost things./ May we not be lost to selfish indifference,/ but find our true selves in Christ/ and in the love of one another./ We pray to the Lord.

In June,/ the month of the Sacred Heart,/ we pray for family members and friends who need help and healing in their troubles,/ sickness or loss./ We pray for students and teachers as their school year draws to a close./ We pray to the Lord.

We pray for the conversion of those who live in the sickening underworld of weapons and drug sales,/ murder,/ theft and human trafficking./ For those who are victimized by others./ We pray to the Lord.

The South African nation of Mozambique has been ruined by years of fratricidal wars./ Recent hurricanes have destroyed entire villages,/ claiming hundreds of lives and leaving populations sick and starving./ We pray for reconciliation and material help./ We pray to the Lord.

Prayer of Intercession ~ Why Bother

This icon of the Mother of God, Supplicating is very lovely. She turns sideways (undoubtedly in the direction of her son), but we encounter her full-faced and wide-eyed. Her hands are stretched out and open in a simultaneous gesture of receptivity and humility. 

Another word for supplicating is interceding. She is praying on our behalf. Some folks doubt it - the value of praying for or about our lives and the troubling sadness in which we can find ourselves. I'm sometimes asked, "Do you really believe that praying can change anything?"

I don't put demands on God, as if to say:  Now here's my prayer; so make it happen as I've spelled it out for you. I want to let God be God. I'm more simply intent on opening my heart to God. I want a tenderized heart. Tender comes from the Latin word tendere - to stretch out or extend. Offering intercessions works to that end.

I don't think God needs to change; we do. Tenderness (which means loving, kind, affectionate, young and fresh) seems to be disappearing. Interceding or supplicating helps to keep one's heart awake and fresh.

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7

St. Paul's verses here suggest that our time in history doesn't have a corner on anxiety and that our hearts and minds need protecting. I don't want to become a cynic, embittered or depressed. Instead, I'll keep the Thursday intercessions as part of the blog-scene here in anticipation of Sunday, and remain grateful for the folks who join that prayer. 

Along with many people today, I understand powerlessness. Intercessory prayer gives me something to do with that feeling.

Her Indigo Mantle

In the 2018 restoration of the Salus Populi icon, Mary had her mantle restored to its original indigo. The King James Version of the bible uses the word indigo more than forty times. Other translations more simply say blue. But we know the biblical blue was not baby boy blue or even what a 1950's Catholic would recognize as Blessed Mother Blue. In the icon, the Mother of God, holding her Divine Child, has stepped up to heaven's window, wearing a globe-covering maphorion of indigo blue: we are covered with heaven.

But as indigo is a rich color, so is its meaning. It is the color of intuition or perception - what we might call the third eye - that capacity to know someone deeply by looking at them, even before  words are spoken. 

Indigo is the color of integrity, which is deep sincerity. It is the color of devotion, justice, wisdom, fairness and impartiality. The world could do with being wrapped in some of this. Indigo seems to reduce things to their most fundamental and essential.  

Prayer to the Mother of God, Who Wears a Banishing Blue

Virgin Mary,
Banishing Blue, 
Dislodge the soul clogging resentments,
Dispel the exhausting fears,
Disperse the shade of cynicism,
Allay the hunger to be consulted,
Drive off the rehearsals of punishing revenge,
Expel the provocateurs of hate.

Virgin Mary,
Banishing Blue,
Scatter the tendency to keep God small and leashed,
Rout the old damage which causes us to hurt others,
Oust the hidden desire to be privileged and preferred,
Quell the noisy pride; the ugly arrogance,
Dismiss the joy-stealing complaints,
Cast out the un-Christly bits within.

Virgin Mary,
Banishing Blue,
Exorcise from the nation's heart the demon-spirit of gun lust.