Feed the Need

Gospel:  Matthew 24: 42-51

Today's parable reminds us of two important truths.  The first is that we are all servants and stewards of the things God has given to us.  Each of us lives among fellow servants and stewards within the same household, on this same earth.  As such there is no hierarchy among us.  We are all radically equal before God and before one another.

The second important truth is that we are called to serve one another, to feed the need of others when the time comes and our fellow servants are in need.  Whether we do so, or whether we abuse our fellow servants, is largely the result of whether we think God to be near us or far away.  If we see God as distant and far from us - because we have not experienced God's love through others - we are then likely to maltreat our fellow servants.

But if we see God as near to us and close - because we have experienced God's love through others - then we are more likely to love and care for others, to feed their need when the time comes.  The reality is that God is ever near, God is always within his dwelling - the heart of each person God created as a temple to himself.  If we remain conscious of this fact always, it will inspire us to serve others, to feed the need.  

Religious Whitewash

Gospel: Matthew 23: 27-32

One of the strengths of the Old Testament is its brutal honesty in recounting history.  It records both the good deeds and bad in equal detail.  It does not pretend to create a triumphalistic history of salvation, a tendency that is all too common in Christianity where there is the never ending attempt to create a history of good deeds that overlooks and minimizes the horrors of the history and the tradition.

Such a whitewashing has terrible consequences on the spiritual life.  It creates a people that cannot properly examine one's conscience, a people that minimizes their own faults and maximizes their accomplishments.  It creates a people that thinks themselves to be "faithful Catholics" for their adherence to a few truths to the exclusion of many others.  

If we take seriously the sacrament of penance, then self-created labels of "faithful Catholics" make no sense.  If we take seriously our objective status before God, such attitudes are pure folly.  We are only faithful when we are utterly dependent upon God's mercy and extend that mercy outward toward others.  Any other notions of fidelity are self-created attempts at whitewashing and self-justification. 

Whims of the World

Gospel: Mark 6: 17-29

The parallels between the death of John and that of Jesus are striking.  Both are imprisoned by nefarious forces who oppose them for being a threat to their power, but those forces themselves lack the ability to put to death.  For that they need to convince the powers of this world to do so.  Both Herod and Pilate seem unwilling, both seem to have sympathy for the accused.

But in the end both rulers hand over their prisoners for execution, both on a whim.  For Herod it was to keep an oath of vanity, for Pilate it was to retain his standing before the religious authorities subject to him.  Neither ruler had any consideration for justice at the end of the day; both consented to unjust executions.  Both John and Jesus were executed on the whims of worldly power.

Today's feast gives us pause to consider our relationship to worldly power.  It is not something to be trusted.  It is not based on justice and truth; it is guided only by the vanity of its rulers and the whims of the day.  If we seek justice and truth in our lives, we must look to the kingdom not of this world, and not entrust ourselves to political power and its ideologies.   

Whoa - Woe

Gospel: Matthew 23: 13-22

 

Woe comes to visit us every time we fail to love, every time we fail to provide access for others to the Lord Jesus.  Throughout the Gospel we have seen barrier after barrier put before people: disciples who do not want people to have access to Jesus; Pharisees who block the way to the kingdom of heaven with infinite rules no one can bear and that they themselves do not follow; those in power threatened at the thought of losing power to a God who is open to all. 

 

At the same time we see another movement in the Gospel – that of Jesus eating with tax collectors and prostitutes, Pharisees, doubters, deniers, and betrayers; Jesus healing people of all races and genders, touching the untouchable, cleansing the unclean, feeding all without distinction or interrogation. 

 

Which approach are we going to follow? The way of woe leads to exclusion from the kingdom for others and for ourselves.  The way of Jesus, however, is the way by which we came.  We are here because Jesus invited us, not for any merit of our own.  We have no more right than anyone else, yet the Lord Jesus invited us as he invites others.  The way of Jesus is the way to the kingdom, the way of mercy by which we came and through which we are to welcome all others.  

Messiah & Son of God

Gospel: Matthew 16: 13-20

While many today will perseverate on Petrine claims in today's Gospel, focus instead is more importantly placed on the creed that Peter professes, for he makes two bold declarations: first, that Jesus is the Messiah, one that stands in contrast to the religious institution of the day; and second, that Jesus is the Son of God, a claim that is a bold proclamation against the political rulers of the day.  This creed of Peter is consistently expressed throughout the New Testament.  

The faith of Peter is a bold claim of discipleship in the Lord Jesus, one that is at the same time a claim of complete autonomy from institutions of power that place authority and divinity in human rulers and powers.  Peter's claim of faith is to follow the Lord in his ministry of service, love, and mercy extended to all peoples of all times and all places.  The authority Peter receives from Jesus is an entirely spiritual one of service; it is in no way a political or worldly power.

Peter will come to realize this fact in being rebuked by Jesus.  Peter did mistake Jesus as a political Messiah, shocked that Jesus would speak of crucifixion at the hands of these powers.  Jesus purifies Peter's faith by stooping down to wash his feet, telling him: As I have done, so you also must do.  This is the faith of the Church, faith in the Suffering Servant of Jesus the Lord. 

Why Follow Jesus?

Gospel: Matthew 23: 1-12

We are all too familiar with today's Gospel reading.  We live it everyday: religious leaders who lay heavy burdens and obligations on their people while they carry little themselves.  Men in power who hold over every law over their people, but cover for one another while they perform their misdeeds under cover of darkness.  Yes. as people head for the doors to consider religion no more the hypocrisy and double standard continues...

The Christian Church has billed itself as the new and better Israel, the spotless bride of Christ.  The marketing is smooth, the words are slick, but the product - the deeds - well, it handles a lot like the old car we had.  We will find ourselves adrift if we pattern ourselves after institutions and human beings who are false Messiahs and purveyors of their own self-interest.

We follow the Lord Jesus because he is such a compelling figure that we cannot not follow him.  His deeds conform to his words: the love he preached is the love he lived.  We are followers of the Lord Jesus because of him alone and very often in spite of, not because of, the institution and leaders who have authority and the magic ju-ju.  Jesus continues to inspire even if his followers do not.  Let us be followers who do inspire by following Jesus' example of love in all things. 

One and Only Law

Gospel: Matthew 22: 34-40

Jesus makes it so very simple: love God, love neighbor.  It is we who have made it complicated in so many ways.  Some do so by making a distinction between love of God and love of neighbor, that love of God is more important.  Others find various ways to exclude people from the category of neighbor or limit the notion of love to whatever is convenient for them.  

But the reality is what we only love God by loving our neighbor.  God needs nothing from us - no sacrifices or temple buildings or ornate liturgies.  God created one temple in which God dwells - the human person, made in God's image and likeness, another Christ, a temple of the Holy Spirit.  Our oil and wine given in service to our neighbor in need is a greater act of worshipping God than those items used by priests and Levites in a temple building.

We lament the loss of temple buildings, but shed not a tear for the degradation and destruction of human life.  Or we only mourn the loss of those we care about and not at all to those we hate.  But every human being is God's temple, every person one we must love - friend and foe, near and far.  None are excluded from God's love, none should be excluded from ours. 

Get Out of the Way

Gospel: John 1: 45-51

Today we learn a valuable lesson on what it is to be a good disciple and to provide a good model for ministry.  Philip introduces his friend Nathaniel to Jesus and invites him: "See for yourself." Philip respects the freedom of his friend to explore for himself; there is no coercion, no words of shrillness and fear.  It is an invitation, the same invitation Jesus extended to him - "Come and see."

Then, once Nathaniel has met Jesus, Philip leaves the scene.  He does not try to influence the relationship with Jesus in any way.  Nathaniel has now seen for himself and has his own relationship with the Lord Jesus.  He does not need any programs, events, or video series or the latest fad book.  Nathaniel has found the one thing necessary.  

We like to convince ourselves that our ministry is all about the needs of others - all our events, programs, and the like.  But is it? Or is it about ourselves - the need to fundraise to keep our position, the need to feel important and needed in others' lives? There are people who do need us - those in trauma, crisis, immigrants, refugees, the sick, victims of violence, and so many others.  But they don't need a pricey program; they just need us to be with them, provide care and mercy, and introduce them to the Lord, and for us to get out of the way when they have met him. 

A More Basic Virtue

Gospel: Matthew 20: 1-16

Jesus gives us the image of day laborers to teach an important lesson about virtue and priorities.  Day laborers, then as now, are extremely vulnerable people dependent upon the daily wage to provide for their families.  It is their need, not any consideration of the owner, that is of priority in the story, and that which should be our priority in every society.  

There is a cynical view of virtue that looks upon the generosity of the owner in the story as laudable but not in any way mandatory for everyone to follow.  But the story is not about generosity; it is about a much greater virtue - justice.  It is justice that requires everyone to receive a living wage, to be able to provide for one's family in their necessities of food, clothing, shelter, health care.  A society that sees providing these things as generosity and not justice is far from the kingdom of heaven.  

It is a virtuous society that upholds justice for all and seeks to ensure that all are provided for their basic needs which belong to all by right.  It is a wicked society that sees such things as optional and only for some.  To seek justice is to seek the greater virtue for all, and to provide justice with love is even greater still.  This is what Jesus calls us to be and to do.   

Who Can Be Saved?

Gospel: Matthew 19: 23-30

The disciples understood well the plain meaning of Jesus' teaching on being rich and finding one's way into the kingdom of heaven.  Even those of us who are not rich want to be so.  If given the opportunity we would gladly become so and give ourselves over to their possession of us.  The line to purchase lottery tickets is testament enough to this fact.  

But these possessions and these desires prevent us from entering the narrow gate of the kingdom, the gate of the poor, the slave, the nomad of the desert.  It is the gate of the Beatitudes: poverty of spirit, meekness, purity of heart, empathy with the sorrowful, peacemaking, thirsting for justice, suffering with joy for the sake of others.  This is the way God makes possible for us in passing through this narrow gate.

The path to the kingdom is the path of the desert where reliance on riches and possessions is a folly, where reliance on God alone and what God provides in the daily bread of manna and water from the rock are our only sustenance.  Few will choose the desert road. Many choose the evil one's temptations there of possessions and power.  The way of the desert is the way of the Beatitudes, the path marked out for us to the kingdom of heaven. 

Possession(s)

Gospel: Matthew 19: 16-22

Matthew begins Jesus’ public ministry with the Sermon on the Mount, wherein we saw that the Beatitudes form the central focus of Jesus’ entire teaching, and that through the sermon Jesus will show the inadequacy of the external law and the primacy of the internal law.  This teaching comes to the forefront in this encounter with the rich young man in today’s story.

The man wants to know how to gain eternal life.  Jesus first tells him to keep the commandments, specifically those regarding our relationships with other people.  The man has kept all these and he has still not acquired that which he seeks.  So now Jesus gets to the heart and root:  sell what you have, give to the poor, and follow him.  This the man cannot do for he possessed – or was possessed by – many things.

How many of us have similar attachments that hold us back from a full relationship with God? We possess many things, and many things possess us.  The Beatitudes are the pathway to freedom from possessions: to be poor in spirit, meek, empathetic, thirsting for righteous, seeking peace, and suffering with joy.  With these we desire no possessions and none can hold us.  We are for God and for others in the service of mercy and love. 

A Place for Everyone

Gospel: Matthew 15: 21-28

The Canaanite woman in today's Gospel has some similarities to the Samaritan woman in John's Gospel.  Aside from their gender, both are foreigners and people of another religious sect.  In both stories the disciples are urging Jesus to send them away and are shocked he talks to these women.  And Jesus once again rejects the narrow view of his followers and provides care for these women.  

We might be shocked at the way in which Jesus speaks to this woman.  The reality, however, is that these objections of Jesus are in reality the objections of his disciples - those who followed him then, and those who claim to follow him now.  Jesus raises them up in order to tear them down, not through argumentation but by actions of love and mercy extended to the one who would be excluded by disciples.  

When we see people being excluded and rejected by church communities, we may hear the echoes of Jesus' rebuke to the disciples of his day.  We may also hear within our own hearts a call from the Lord to care for those people who have been rejected and cast out - to do for them as Jesus did for the outcasts and unclean of his own day.  

Let Them Come

 

Gospel: Matthew 19: 13-15

 

Today we find the disciples preventing children from coming to have an encounter with the Lord Jesus.  As in all other instances where they try to prevent an encounter with him, Jesus rebukes his disciples and interacts with those who had been previously excluded.  Children had no rights in ancient society; their presence was often easily dismissed and disregarded.  How could children have a relationship with God? And yet Jesus clearly states that they do matter and that they can indeed have such a relationship with him. 

 

What is more, Jesus will use children as the example of faith for all people to have – unless we have faith like children we cannot enter or understand God’s kingdom.  Here, the excluded now become the paradigm and model of faith.  In fact, it is partly because they are excluded that children become a pattern of faith for us to follow and emulate.  They are not deterred by the rejections of the adult disciples.  They continue to try and aspire to a relationship with Jesus.  They will not be put out.

 

We might well consider all the various people we seek to exclude from God’s presence in a variety of ways: expulsion from church employment or volunteering for being pregnant out of wedlock or gay; excommunication for being inclusive; denying communion to someone over being divorced and remarried or for one’s voting choices; not having the “correct” liturgical preferences or culture war positions.  The list is now rather large and the participants at the table grow ever fewer.  Today is a day of reflection on whom Jesus excluded in his time, the One who ate with all, touched the untouchable, and forgave all for putting him to death. 

A Marriage Made in Heaven

Gospel: Matthew 19: 3-12

Jesus' teaching on marriage and divorce is quite clear and needs no further explication given the myriad treatises given on the subject.  That we have found a multitude of ways to sidestep what he says, along with many other things Jesus teaches, only serves to highlight our continued negligence in being disciples of the Lord Jesus.  

In spite of our lack of fidelity to the Lord, this teaching on marriage also speaks to us about our own relationship with the Lord, which is often compared to a marriage covenant with God.  God will always be faithful in that relationship; we will not.  Despite our unfaithfulness, God will continue to remain faithful and never abandon us or divorce us.  God continues to work on our relationship with us even when we do not.  

In this regard we must be like God in all of our dealings with other people, and the Church is called to be so with all people.  That we so easily expel others from our midst and exclude others from the table again speaks to our failings in being what God calls us to be as a community of faith.  Still, this is our call that we must continually try to live each day.   

The One Thing Necessary

Gospel: Matthew 18: 21 - 19: 1

Today's parable encapsulates the entire message of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus.  The Kingdom of God has arrived and is in our midst.  Everyone has been granted complete mercy and amnesty.  The only condition placed upon us is that we extend this mercy to other people in our lives.  As we have been forgiven so we must do for others.  It is a very simple and uncomplicated message. God has done God's part of the bargain.

And what of us? We who are the makers of broken homes, shattered relationships, neglected children and spouses.  We who are the purveyors of wars and gun violence, the persecutors of entire racial, social, and classes of people.  We who create refugees and immigrants and maltreat them.  We who continue and defend a system of capital punishment and retributive penal systems.  We who expel and exclude others from our table and altar, from our schools and communities... 

When we fail to abide by the core message of Jesus, we invent a new religion to take its place.  We create new obligations, rituals, laws and codices of complex natures - and we make these binding on others.  We pretend this to be Christianity instead of the core message of forgiveness and mercy.  Today we can recommit to the core message and create communities committed to its application in our world. Yes, we can...

The Good Place

Gospel: Matthew 18: 15-20

Human beings are by nature social creatures.  We need the company of others in order to survive and flourish.  Even in the realm of faith we need one another along the journey, we need to interact with others in order to live out the law of love.  Even hermits interact with one another for the necessities of life and to care for one another.  

It has been said by the cynics that hell is other people.  For those who abandoned the life of love other people would indeed be hellish.  The faults of others would grate heavily on them as it would remind them of their own faults.  Even the mere presence of others would be unbearable to them as they would be reminders of their failure to love.  

But it is also true that heaven is other people.  For the person who loves people are a continual encounter with beings created in God's image and likeness, encounters with other Christs, temples of the Holy Spirit.  Every interaction with another person is an encounter with the holy, an opportunity to forgive, to love, and care for others. This is how Jesus lived, he who embraced Judas and called him friend at the very end.     

The Place of Refuge

Revelation 12: 1-10

When the woman (an image of both Mary and the Church) is beset by the dragon she flees into the desert for refuge, a choice that seems strange to us but one that is eminently wise.  For the dragon represents the powers of the world - they seek only power, prestige, wealth, and influence.  The desert is of no value to them.  The desert is not a place of worldly influence and power.

The desert is, however, the place of refuge for the faithful.  It is here that Moses encounters God at the burning bush, here where Israel has its most intimate moments with God, here where Jesus overcomes the wiles of the evil one and is tended by angels.  The desert is where the early Church sought refuge when the Romans came to destroy Jerusalem, there where Christian hermits went to flee compromising churchmen when the church was made the official religion of the empire.  The desert is ever and always the place of refuge.

Mary continually sought refuge in God alone and God raised her up in her last days.  If we seek refuge in the desert - where we are totally devoid of earthly help and reliant on God alone - and not in the places of power, wealth, and worldly influence we too will have eternal refuge and perpetual peace. Today's feast is a reminder of our desert refuge of intimacy with God alone and its continual reward.  

A Taxing Issue

Gospel: Matthew 17: 22-27

The conversation between Jesus and the collectors of the Temple tax is incomprehensible to us, as we all pay taxes in our day.  No one is exempt from them as they were in Jesus' day.  Jesus seems indifferent on the question of paying the tax, and he pays it only to avoid causing offense.  But should not every believer be willing to support the upkeep of the Temple?

The greater temple in the mind of Jesus is the human person, made in the image of God and a temple of the Holy Spirit.  It is within each person that true worship is offered in spirit and in truth, not in a building.  It is the building of the Temple that should be supporting the temples God has made - human persons, not the other way around.  True worship is that of the Good Samaritan who used oil and wine to care for one in need; his was greater worship than the priest and Levite.  

Do our faith institutions place a priority on the care of the human person? Or are they more like pyramid schemes to support the buildings and lifestyles of the clergy? Today Jesus asks us to reflect well on this matter and to give priority to the temple God made in his own image and likeness.   

Walking on Water

Gospel: Matthew 14: 22-30

Jesus does something unexpected, something he has never done before.  He comes walking on water to us in our boat.  We are incredulous; we want proof.  So, Peter asks for proof: bid me to walk on water too!  Jesus allows it, knowing what will happen.  Peter makes a few steps forward, but then he falters and sinks.  He needs to be rescued from himself, and the Lord rebukes him for his lack of faith.  Lather, rinse, repeat.

This is our life with the Lord Jesus as well.  Jesus continually does new, unexpected things in our lives that challenge our comfort zones.  Time and again he challenges us to expand our circle of love, to make it ever more inclusive and universal.  And time and again we are resistant.  We take a few steps forward, but then we falter and sink.  We need to be rescued from ourselves, and we are rebuked for our lack of faith.  Lather, rinse, repeat.  

We grow comfortable with the Jesus we knew.  We are accustomed to the healings, the feeding of those hungry and in need.  We have come to see him in those familiar to us - our family, friends, some church goers.  But when the Lord does something new - when he asks us to see him in people we do not like - what then?  Lord, increase our faith.  Increase our love.   

Demons That Remain

Gospel: Matthew 17: 14-20

In today's reading the disciples are unable to expel a demon from a man's son.  They are exasperated and cannot understand why they failed.  Jesus rebukes his disciples for their lack of faith, blaming the continued existence of the demon entirely on them.  Jesus removes the demon from the boy and restores him to complete health.

How many demons remain in our lives and in our world because of our lack of faith? We have bad habits and broken relationships, but we lack the faith to take the first steps to recovery or repair the broken relationship.  Our world is beset with violence, war, poverty, and illness, but we are unwilling to care for the poor, refugees, immigrants, or those who lack health care.  We lack the faith and the love necessary to take the steps to overcome these demons in our lives and in our world.

We may claim to have tried to resolve these issues, but did we use our faith, or did we rely on our political ideologies that are often our real religions? Authentic faith always finds a solution to help other people, to remove the demon.  By following the example of the Lord Jesus we can remove the demons that plague our individual lives and our larger society. 

Following the Lord

Gospel: Matthew 16: 24-28

Modern Christianity is obsessed with the self.  Christians of every stripe talk about life with God as some primrose path of self-promotion and self-interest.  In the realm of politics Christians are urged to advocate for their self-interest to the detriment of the common good.  And sermons abound on the topic of personal salvation in the next life and following Christ as a path to prosperity in this one.  

And yet Jesus preaches to us a path of self-denial and self-giving.  If we are to follow Jesus we are to deny ourselves and take up the cross; that is the only path to discipleship.  It is not a path of the self; it is the path of love that leads to service of others - service to other people, service to the ultimate Other, God.  This is the way of one who genuinely seeks to follow the Lord Jesus

In ancient Israel God lived among his people in the desert; the desert path was the way to a life of promise.  Yet the people complained continually; they wanted to be like other nations.  So God allowed them to do so, and it led to ruin.  Jesus asks us to follow the same road of the desert, and we complain and desire all the things Jesus refused to accept from the evil one, and to our ruin.  But we are always given the option to turn from false roads to the way, the way of self-denial and service to others, the way of Jesus. 

Serving Christ

Gospel: John 12: 24-26

What does it mean to serve the Lord Jesus? For some it means engaging in liturgical ritual and worship; for others it means building churches and institutions; still others see it as teaching the Gospel; and still others see it as engaging in media evangelization.  But what did Jesus mean when he talked about serving him?

When he sent out the 12 and the 72, Jesus instructed them to heal the sick and lame, to free those gripped by demons, and to announce that God's kingdom was open to all people, that God's mercy was extended to all and not to a few.  When Jesus spoke of judgment, it was in the context of feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, caring for the imprisoned and foreigner, clothing the naked.  In short, to serve the Lord Jesus is to serve those in need - the poor and marginalized.  

Today's saint understood this lesson well.  When asked to give over the riches of the church, Lawrence brought to court the poor and announced: "This is the treasure of the Church!" It is the human person, made in God's image and is God's temple alone - that is our treasure.  It is in serving the needs of people that we serve Christ, where our treasure lies.  Here alone, in the needs of other people, is where Christ is present and served. 

The Way of Love

Gospel: Matthew 15: 21-28

Today's Gospel is perplexing to many as it appears Jesus is indifferent to the needs of this foreign woman.  But a great deal more is at work in this passage than meets the eye.  It is important to note the specific background of this woman: she is a Canaanite, and the way in which Jesus deals with her is vastly different than the way in which ancient Israel dealt with her ancestors.

Ancient Israel arrives in Canaan and decides to subdue the people through military conquest and genocide.  The passages from the Old Testament that describe these events are truly awful.  By contrast, however, Jesus will conquer this woman and everyone else through the power of love and mercy.  She, and everyone else, will be included in the kingdom of God as a full citizen, not as a conquered, humiliated slave.  

The way of the Lord Jesus is the way of the disciple to follow.  It is a sad fact of history that followers of Jesus have chosen the path of violence and coercion more often than the way of love and mercy.  Yet we have the example of Jesus and the ability to choose his path of love, the only authentic means of proclaiming the Good News of the kingdom of God. 

Why Did You Doubt?

Gospel: Matthew 14: 22-36

How often does Jesus rebuke his disciples for their fear, for their lack of faith? As in all other instances, it is when we turn our eyes away from Jesus that our faith wavers, that we fear, and sink into the sea like Peter.  It is then that we come to a crossroads: we either call out to Jesus to save us, or we fly into the arms of the powers of this world for its protection, fleeting as it may be.

Christians are consumed with conspiracy theories and arguing for their religious freedom.  Jesus was the victim of a conspiracy and what did he do? He continued going about doing good, not letting it bother him in any way.  Jesus told us what to do if we are persecuted: rejoice! Do not fear!  If we keep our eyes on Jesus, this is what we will see.  

In the early church we find Christians rejoicing in persecution, continuing to go about doing good in the midst of the conspiracies against them.  If we no longer do this it is the fruit of the Constantinian bargain: the Church became the preferred religion.  It became the persecutor instead of the persecuted.  It became a religion of privilege instead of a humble servant.  We wed ourselves to worldly powers to preserve power and influence.  But like Peter we can cry out to Jesus to save us, and he will do so, and we can keep our eyes fixed on him to find another way to live.

Feed Them Yourselves

 

Gospel: Matthew 14: 13-21

 How often do we human beings blame God for all sorts of things: natural disasters, famines, diseases, sporting event outcomes – the list is endless.  We human beings never take responsibility for any of these things.  So, when Jesus goes off to a deserted place after the death of John the Baptist, crowds follow him.  More than likely these are followers of John looking for a leader, someone to guide them now that their beloved leaders is dead.  No one asked them to follow in such great numbers to a deserted place without any provisions, and yet there they are.  What is to be done?

 

Jesus turns the issue to us: what are we going to do about it – what are you prepared to do about it? The disciples provide all they have in terms of food – five loaves, two fish.  Jesus does the rest and the people are well-fed with leftovers to spare.  This remarkable event was a sign to the people that at the death of John the Baptist Jesus is the One to guide God’s people now, for not even had John produced such abundance for them during his time of ministry. 

 

Our world finds itself with many poor and hungry people looking for food, and God asks us – what are you going to do about it – what are you prepared to do? Given the reality  that hunger on earth is the result of human behaviors of selfishness and deliberate inequality of distribution, the challenge of Jesus is a moral rebuke to our world.  We who hoard the riches of the world so that a privileged few could enjoy then dare to blame poverty and hunger on God.  The words of Jesus are addressed to us today: feed them yourselves.  

It's All Good!

Gospel:  Matthew 17: 1-9

Peter always gets it half right.  He realizes that he and James and John have experienced something wonderful and he gives thanks - "it is good for us to be here!" But then he wants to create shrines, to stay on the mountaintop.  Jesus ignores this part of Peter's response, and Jesus promptly leads them back down the mountain.  

The true temple of God is not any building - no church, shrine, or basilica.  The temple of the God is the human person wherein God dwells.  It is here that the Transfiguration can be experienced by every person no matter where they are.  It need not be on a mountaintop; it could be in one's home, a hospital, prison cell, or baseball field.  Everyone of us has access to this and every other event of Jesus' life on earth in this indwelling temple of ours that we carry with us wherever we go.  

If we are continually conscious of this reality - that we are a temple of God with access to God at all times - then we can say with Peter: "it is good for us to be here" no matter where we are.  We need not build shrines.  We have only to look at another person to see a temple of God, to be reminded that we are all temples of God carrying within us the divine image ready to transform our lives and our vision as on Mount Tabor.   

Bad Compromises

Gospel:  Matthew 14: 1-12

Herod did not want to kill John, but he does.  He kills John for a light and transient cause: Herod promises Salome any request she might have because she performed a dance that was so pleasurable to him.  So, when she asks for the head of John the Baptist on a platter, Herod considers his promise more important than human life itself.  So it is with the powers of the world.

Similarly, Pilate will find himself dealing similarly with the life of Jesus.  Pilate did not want to kill Jesus, but he does so in order to appease the crowd who press for the death of Jesus.  In exchange he gives them the life of Barabbas, an actual zealot who killed other people.  That religious leaders were in consort with this work foreshadows how often religious institutions up to our own day behave.

In seeking the approval of worldly leaders and the power and privilege therein, religion compromises its core values for utilitarian concerns.  They often claim to do so in order to "defend human life" but in reality they protect their own self-interests and some human lives in exchange for the lives of other people they will not speak up for.  To be a follower of Jesus is to stand with him on the mount of temptation and reject the offers of power and privilege from the evil one, it is to stand for every human life and not just a few.   

Going Home

Gospel: Matthew 13: 53-57

Many people have had the experience of growing up in a place, then moving away to live and work somewhere else. After a while one has the desire to return to your hometown to visit or perhaps live again there. But we find it very different than what we remember, and the people there find you very different from what they remember of you. 

Sometimes we cannot accept such a change, and others cannot accept it of us. Jesus has thus experience in today's Gospel. His town was fine knowing him as he was in their minds. They cannot understand or accept this new understanding of who Jesus is and has become. 

The life of faith is a continual development of understanding who Jesus is in our lives. We might get comfortable with the way we knew Jesus from an earlier time in our life, but the life of faith demands an ever-deepening understanding of Jesus as the relationship develops over the course of a life. Our nostalgia for a past time is not authentic faith and understanding. What matters is the continual development and following of Jesus each day. 

Worthwhile Things

Gospel: Matthew 13: 47-53

It is often said that one man's trash is another man's treasure.  An academic might have little use for a garage full of tools, while a mechanic would find little value in bookshelves, and yet each would find the other to be important and valuable to their work.  Utility, of course, is only one measure of a thing's value, and not even the most important factor.  

We have discovered over time that what we have found to be of no value in point of fact does have use.  Things can be recycled and repurposed.  Weeds can be composted and made into good soil with kitchen scraps.  Even trash can be used for fuel in order to heat homes, provide a flame for cooking, and the ashes used for compost to help make new soil.  Everything has value, everything has use.

We who are the creators of mass graves, genocide, total warfare and weapons of mass destruction, capital punishment, and slavery - we who declare individuals and entire races as worthless and beyond redemption - we who would subject others to these horrors but would object if done so to us - we are not in any position to judge the worth of anything or anyone.   

Buried Treasure

Gospel: Matthew 13: 44-46

The kingdom of heaven is a priceless treasure indeed.  Jesus compares it to buried treasure and a pearl of great price, things any person would do just about anything to acquire.  We, however, would think of having this treasure in order to sell it for money in order to buy things - houses, cars, whatever.  Yet in the parable we are giving up all we own to possess these treasures!  

It is for this reason that we do not understand the kingdom of heaven.  Its treasure is buried within us.  Once we discover this reality, every earthly treasure is of no value to us.  We would gladly get rid of this earthly excess in order to possess the peace and tranquility of the kingdom that lies within us.  For we come to realize that all the impermanent things of earth we consider treasures - money, status, power - are of no value whatever. They hold us back from acquiring the one thing necessary - the kingdom of God within us.

To find this treasure we must dig deep within, removing layers of illusions we have created that hide this treasure.  Once found and the illusions removed, getting rid of the impermanent treasures of the world is quite easy.  Today is the day to begin the dig in search of this treasure within! 

Wheat and Weeds in Every Age

Gospel: Matthew 13: 35-41

There were Christians who supported the Nazi regime, helping Nazis to escape justice and flee to other lands.  There were Christians who owned and defended chattel slavery and the denigration of non-white races.  There are Christians today who malign and exploit immigrants, migrants, and the poor.  In all cases, there were - and are - shepherds and pastors who have been and are part of such undertakings.

There were Christians who opposed the Nazis, hiding Jews and other targets of hatred from certain death and helping them flee to other lands.  There were Christians who opposed slavery and helped slaves escape to freedom at the risk of arrest and death.  And there are Christians today who shelter, feed, and help immigrants, migrants, and the poor in an attempt to lift them up and improve their lot.  In all these cases, there were - and are - shepherds and pastors who are helpers in such works.

Weeds and wheat there have always been.  Weeds and wheat there are still today, and weeds and wheat there will be in the future.  Unlike actual weeds and wheat that are so by nature, we have a choice as to which we would be.  Will we choose to be weeds that harm other plants, or wheat that nourishes and sustains the life of others?