Going to daily Mass this week?

Sometimes I read something that's so good I wish I'd written it.  Sr. Marianne Race has a post at Pray Tell that puts the first readings from this coming week in literary and theological context.  It's very helpful to anyone that wants to appreciate how these first readings are part of a story that has been handed on to us in order to deepen our faith.

The Light bids us come, to shine Him into the darkness – Matt 4:12-23

Sunday, OT Wk 3; Holy Cross Parish.

The people living in snow have seen fresh grass, or even just blacktop!  That would be good news for us right now!  The cabin fever of being stuck inside, the worry about the pipes that might break or the huge heating bill that’s surely on its way, the discomfort and fatigue of snow-shoveling, the very real concern for those lack shelter… we know it will end, even if not soon enough.  Isaiah uses the image of people walking in darkness, fumbling, uncertain, scared.  This oracle may well have been written to one-time residents of the Northern Kingdom, conquered by Assyria, whose walking may have included death marches.  Defiled and denied their human dignity, those walking in darkness could be Israelites, naked but for shackles, forced to walk to their death, paraded not as God’s precious children, but as the spoils of war.

WwtW: The Light calls us to venture into darkness (OT A 3)

Wednesdays with the Word bible study is back!  Here are my notes on the coming Sunday's readings (just gospel this time).

Gospel:           Matt 4:13-23

Context.           This is really the beginning of our reading through Matthew’s account of Jesus’ earthly ministry.  Matthew’s gospel is divided into five sections, corresponding to the five books of the Torah, each consisting on Narrative and Discourse, surrounded by an Introduction (Nativity) and Climax (Passion, Death and Resurrection).  We pick up the story midway through the narrative section of Part I.  The preceding parts introduced John the Baptist (Advent), narrated Jesus’ baptism by John (Feast of Baptism) and his forty days in the wilderness (Lent).  We will soon reach the Sermon on the Mount.

God reaches out to us, and touches – 1 Sam 9 (selections); Mk 2:13-17

Saturday of the 1st week of Ordinary Time; St. Stan's.

Saul has lost the donkeys, but it’s not just the donkeys who are lost.  It’s the mark of someone who truly cares that when they’ve lost something, they themselves feel lost.  Saul is himself at a loss because he’s lost the donkeys.  The one who has lost out is out seeking.  But Saul’s also sought out.  And he’s found.  He’s found by Samuel, the prophet, the gift of God to his once barren mother and father, the faithful servant of the priest Eli, the seer of God, and now God’s tool, the one who lets himself be transparent to God’s purpose.

God comes close to us in serving and resting – 1 Sam 3:1-10

Monday of the 1st week of Ordinary Time; Holy Cross Parish.

The Lord called Samuel.  We’re not told exactly what that means.  We’re not told exactly what that experience was like for hm.  We do read that it wasn’t obvious: it wasn’t a burning bush or an angel.  In fact, it presented itself as something very mundane, very worldly; the young temple servant thought he was hearing the priest he worked for, calling him!  But, eventually, with Eli’s help, he realizes that something quite marvelous is happening.  God is calling him.

God brings our restless hearts to a place of giving – Matt 2:1-12, Isa 60:1-6, Eph 3:2-3a, 5-6

Epiphany homily, Year A; Holy Cross - St. Stan's.

Seeking.  It’s one of our fascinations, the foundation of so many of our most treasured stories: the hero who seeks.  Whether it’s a movie in which Susan is desperately sought, a novel about a boy seeking his treasure with the aid of an Alchemist, or songs by a band who still hasn’t found what it’s looking for, we admire protagonists who let themselves be known as seekers, who admit to their audience that they have a deep need which makes them restless and who spend their restless energy searching.  We value their attentiveness to every possible clue, the ways in which their eyes open to the world around them and thank them that we start to see it more keenly through their inquisitive gaze.  We root for their success, because we want to see these characters find their missing piece so as we can finally see them whole, and so find a little of what we’re looking for.  We’re fascinated by these characters because they put into action what we can’t help but wonder about: how can I seek the place my restless heart can rest?

God fills our hearts with a word worth contemplating – Luke 2:16-21

Feast of Mary, Mother of God; Holy Cross Parish

An odd 10-year anniversary is coming up for me: ten years on facebook.  Over those past ten years, my feed has undergone an interesting change.  Fewer and fewer are the photos of wild nights out (my friends’ photos of course, not mine!).  Gradually, the percentage of parties viewed that were someone’s wedding increased.  Now, more and more, I log on to see pictures of my friends’ kids.  And I’ve learnt some very interesting things now that so many of my friends are either consecrated religious or parents.  One very interesting set of conversations I’ve had with a number of friends who are new mothers have been about missing being pregnant.  Now, as one friend with whom I was discussing this homily while it was gestating reminded me, that is most definitely not the experience of all mothers of newborns!  But it is the experience of some.