Light displaces Darkness

"Creation of Light" by John Martin

“What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people.” John 1:4

 

I write this on the last day of 2021 as the Omicron variant spreads rapidly worldwide and in our community. We are hearing reports that this new variant is displacing the Delta variant and is far less lethal. We hope that this displacement by a less virulent variant brings about an end to this wretched pandemic.

 

Years ago, when visiting northern Ontario, I took a tour of a former underground mine. At one point the tour guide asked the small group of tourists if we wanted to see how dark it was down there. With our agreement, she turned out the light. It was a darkness I had never experienced before. It could be easy to feel overwhelmed by the darkness rather than to recall that the light displaces darkness. And to hope our guide's light still worked...

 

John’s Gospel begins with a chapter full of complex theological and philosophical concepts where he introduces themes that flow through the entire Bible: the divinity of Jesus the Messiah, the Holy Trinity, the power of the light over darkness, the Incarnation and the prophetic voice of John the Baptist. These themes are fundamental to our understanding of Jesus as fully human, Jesus as fully God, Jesus as a Jew, Jesus as Redeemer, Jesus as Mediator and Jesus as the one who ushers in the Holy Spirit as gift for all people. John uses powerful images from the creation story of Genesis where the Holy Spirit hovered over all of creation displacing chaos with order.

 

It can seem to us today that the Church has descended back into chaos. As if someone turned out the light and we are in a dark cave. Yet, the central truth of Christianity is that of Emmanuel, God is with us. Do we abandon the idea of the beauty of nature when we confront the violence of a tsunami or an earthquake? Surely not. Do we abandon the central truth of Christianity when we navigate times of darkness? I hope not, for all the law and the prophets remind us of the reality of darkness but to fear not for God is with us and the light displaces the darkness.

 

Don’t let the dualistic nature of the language of light and darkness fool you. A Christian understanding of light and darkness is not an attempt to lure us into a naïve, simplistic, moralism of right and wrong, good and evil, but to have the humble courage to know Christ, the light of the world, in ALL situations as our friend, companion and saviour.

 

I hope you don’t hear this as a call to naïveté or a call to ignore the reality of human sin in which we are all embroiled. That is the false hope of idealism, which is definitively NOT the message John introduced in the opening chapter of the Gospel he wrote. Not at all.

 

John knows the human potential to live in a dark cave. But John knows who can turn the light back on, even when the darkness seems overwhelming. I knew the tour guide could turn the light back on and help us find our way out. John knows that Jesus has the light which illuminates the way of the human condition through darkness. This is why John, like the Psalmist today can proclaim, “O sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, bless his name; tell of his salvation form day to day.” -Psalm 96:1

 

A Communal Hope: The Prophet Anna

Painting by Jan Van't Hoff

The political, economic and military systems of the world seem to limit our understanding of peace to simply the absence of war. But what about those dreams that are held in the innermost places of people that are shattered by realities of the human condition that are neither political, economic nor military. Those realities that can cause people to cave in on themselves, like the unexpected death of a loved one, a sick child, a broken relationship.

Peace, a peace that surpasses all understanding, may seem like an elusive, naïve dream to some.

The Good News of Jesus Christ involves confronting the world as it is, not as we would have it be. It’s not easy. We need one another.

From the Gospel today, Anna had been a widow for many, many years. She knows the curve balls life can throw. She knows grief. She also knows hope. The artist Jan Van't Hoff captured Anna's face beautifully in the painting above. A face weathered by years and toil but a face that knows deep joy.

 

In her grief Anna went into the Temple. The place where the community gathers and she found hope. She found something there that fed her soul and kept her living in hope all those many years. She learned the disciplines of worship, fasting and prayer. She learned that where the community gathers there too is the hope that true peace can be found.

 

Jesus gathers the scattered and restores individuals and communities that have been scattered and broken by all the realities of the world. Today, our invitation to others - all others - must help people grapple with the realities of their world as it is.

 

How are we as a community of faith helping people grapple with their reality?

Rest, Reveal and Guide Us: Simeon and Anna

Sr. Anne Marie

I went for a walk yesterday along Governor’s Brook. It’s a remarkable series of trails in our neighbourhood. I walked for a while with a friend whose company and perspectives I very much appreciate. After he left, I continued walking and I stopped to take a few pictures. When I stopped, I was overwhelmed by the sense of silence all around me. Birds started landing on branches very close to me. It was stunningly beautiful.

 

After my walk, I felt led into our parish church to give thanks to God for my friend and also for some time alone in silence. I hadn’t planned it that way.

 

I entered the church and saw Sister Anne Marie praying. We had a lovely chat about Kairos and Chronos. Our conversation was a consolation for me. I took a picture of her (above) and went on my way.

 

In our Gospel reading today Luke tells us about Simeon and Anna. Luke wrote his Gospel “to set down and orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us” (1:1).  It was written at a time when the first eyewitnesses were beginning to die. 

 

Simeon and Anna show us how to wait and the source of consolation and peace. I think they show us that waiting involves the soul clinging to a promise but also enduring suffering.

 

Throughout Luke, and Acts, also written by Luke, the work of the Holy Spirit is on full display. So, through the Gospel reading today, what can we learn about this Holy Spirit? I want to suggest three lessons: Rest, Reveal and Guide.

 

a.   The Holy Spirit rested on Simeon. Simeon was a just man, a righteous man, who was in Jerusalem when the Holy Spirit rested on him. When the Holy Spirit comes into our lives the Church teaches that the first effect of the Holy Spirit is the forgiveness of our sins. This is the true gift of Divine Love, which is truly God, who takes away the sins of the world. It’s a free gift, unmerited by us. As the Holy Spirit rested on Simeon, so too the Holy Spirit rests on us and grants us the grace of forgiveness. This gives us a taste of peace, this same peace, Shalom, that was known by Simeon.

 

b.   The Holy Spirit guides Simeon to go to the Temple. When we get an experience of this peace, this Holy Spirit resting on us, we are guided to follow where this peace, this Divine Love, leads us. Simeon was guided to the Temple where he encountered Jesus. We too, as a Eucharistic people, are led to the Altar where we too experience the presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. We are a Eucharistic people, called to gather in thanksgiving for this great gift.

 

c.   The Holy Spirit reveals something to Simeon. The Holy Spirit revealed to Simeon that he would not see death until he saw the Messiah. The Holy Spirit is One with the Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit reveals to us, Jesus, the Son, who gives glory to the Father. The Church teaches that the Holy Spirit reveals Jesus to us, not only Christ’s true presence in the Blessed Sacrament, but also Christ’s true presence through Sacred Scripture and through one another.

 

As a Sacramental people, when the Holy Spirit rests on us, we receive God forgiveness, we are guided to follow God’s leading to the Altar, where it is revealed to us that we too are sent. We are sent to be people of peace and a source of consolation for all people through our humble, prophetic witness to the Divine nature of Jesus, just as did Simeon and Anna. This is the will of God – Our Mission. It will be accomplished in God’s time, not ours. 

 

Almighty and Merciful God,

in your goodness take away from us all that is harmful,

so that, made ready both in mind and body,

we may freely accomplish your will. Amen.

God is Faithful: Holy Innocents 2021

Nicholas Mynheer, The Flight to Egypt, 2004

The historical context for Matthew description of the birth of Jesus occurs in a world that remains sadly similar to our own. According to the UN website, there are 84 million displaced people today. 24 million people are living in refugee camps. There are also paranoid political leaders and wars, which can easily catch our gaze. But there is also, just like in Matthew’s time, people who are simply trying to live lives of faith, hope and love in the midst of it all. Despite the underreporting or sensationalism of media reports on religious matters, many people still have faith and desire to respond to God’s will in the midst of the many challenging matters of our world.

 

And this is precisely where faith grows legs, stands up and walks in humble confidence, knowing that it’s not going to be easy but it is truly right and just.

 

In the Gospel today, Joseph is told in a dream, “Get up, take the child, and his mother and flee to Egypt and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.”

 

Do you remember the Joseph from the Genesis chapter 37 and his coat of many colours? After being thrown into a dry well by his jealous brothers and left for dead he was picked up a caravan of traders and taken to…Egypt!

 

Joseph, husband of Mary, is led by angels in a dream to go the same place where Joseph, son of Jacob, was taken against his will.

 

In the Old Testament, Joseph’s father, Jacob, went to Egypt to escape a famine in their Palestinian homeland and find the son he thought had been dead for years alive and well.

 

In the Gospel today, Joseph, husband of Mary, flees with God’s Son, Jesus, to escape danger at home. A different danger in a different time for certain. But…God’s actions in a difficult new situation look very similar to God’s actions in a previously difficult situation. God is always faithful.

God is always faithful.

 

How are you being called to be faithful to God who remains faithful to you?

A Prophetic Moment for Your Soul: Christmas Day 2021

Last night I preached on our taking a step back to consider our image of God. God who is Emmanuel – God with us. As we consider this image of God - this image of God revealed to us through Scripture - we must consider the Christmas event. That God came in human form, as a baby, born into a poor family and whose first visitors were poor, socially marginalized shepherds.

 

What’s your image of God?

Is it an angry old man on a cloud concerned about petty moralism here on earth?

Is it like a World War I general, far from the front lines of the battle?

Is it a distant something that is not all that concerned about what happens? Not too concerned about anything that happens here in the world.

 

Our image of God must consider the Christmas story.

Our image of God must contemplate the vulnerability of a child. 

Our image of God must contemplate this child who grew into a penniless field preacher from Galilee who went to the cross to perfectly reveal Divine Love to us.

Our image of God must contemplate the humanity of God.

Our image of God must contemplate that the humility of God is an expression of a great love that God has for you. Yes, you.

 

In today’s Gospel we read from the prologue of John's Gospel. The important words that understand Jesus as God, the logos behind all that is, seen and unseen.

 

Jesus came into a context of Roman occupation, deep divisions among the Jewish people and much fear.

 

Today, as we are in yet another COVID shutdown, it is an act of mercy and compassion to take a step back and acknowledge how much we have been through over the last two years. I know for me; I have been with lonely people whose loneliness has only gotten worse. People who couldn’t travel to grieve the loss of loved ones. Those with delayed medical procedures.

 

In the past week I heard stories of bus drivers who regularly get spit upon and yelled at by angry commuters. I spoke to a young man who works a minimum wage job at a local pharmacy who is regularly yelled at and insulted. I have read in the local media of the mistreatment of medical staff by patients and protestors who are angry with public health protocols. 

 

What kind of dull, dreary, angry do we allow to be revealed to us when we cease to see the wonders and miracles all around us. God is with us. Divine Love is all around us, even in the midst of the dull, dreary, anger that seems to catch our focus more easily. 

 

Our world is suffering from a self-inflicted wound of selfish nonsense and spiritual blindness.

 

Throw on top of it all the reality of parish amalgamation we are in the midst of, and it could seem like a nearly continuous drip of negativity that attached itself to the core of our beings. We seem to live in this space that is oscillates between hypervigilance and the numbness of shutting down.  

 

I wonder if underneath it all is a deep desire to simply rest and to feel safe again. Surely this is a normal and healthy human desire: to rest and to feel safe.

 

God is with us. Divine Love is still being revealed to us in the midst of the wounds of the world, in the midst of all the pain and anger. Even in the midst of our selfish nonsense. As such, this is also a prophetic moment to not let this period in history pass without taking stock of our soul. There is a wellspring of truth, beauty and goodness to be found in the midst of all this and we should not let the moment pass too quickly through our soul because the precious gold will be revealed when all the other stuff is sifted away. When the dull, dreary, angry, selfish nonsense is sifted away; when the loneliness and hurt and pain are sifted away, there is life-giving beauty to be found amid everything that is falling apart. Yes, in you. 

 

This is a prophetic moment for our soul.

 

It is an invitation to true wealth in the midst of so much spiritual poverty.

It is an invitation to wholeness in the midst of so much falling apart.

It is an invitation to healing your soul in the midst of so much hurt.

It is an invitation to peace in the midst of so much chaos.

 

It is an invitation to re-birth. It is a nativity that takes humility, vulnerability, patience and courage.

 

We need – we must -  have a clear understanding of our image of God to navigate this space well. If your image of God is more like a cosmic traffic cop worried out giving out tickets for petty moral failures, you will probably miss out on the beauty of surrendering to God who is gentle, compassionate, awesome, merciful, powerful, beautiful and vulnerable. 

 

This God is with us. Emmanuel.

 

This is an invitation to receive the grace that is available, even in the midst of all this unknown.

 

Today, let’s take a moment alone to pray to this God of Light in whom there is no darkness, this Jesus of Mercy, this Holy Spirit of Comfort to ask for the grace to see the tender beauty of the moment that has been given to us.

 

God is with us.

"Live in Love"

Here are a few thoughts on Ephesians 5:2, specifically the exhortation to "live in love".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QI5XnK130ds

SOS!

Here's a YouTube link to my first homily as Pastor of Stella Maris Parish, Halifax: https://youtu.be/rWMmK-QQ8HE

Where do I start?

I write this brief reflection at the beginning of my third day as Pastor of Stella Maris Parish. I know there is a great deal of hurt, pain and anger in the parish for a myriad of reasons, not the least of which is the difficulty of amalgamating four parishes into one and the bewilderment of so many at how the Church is dealing with the truth about the Residential School legacy. It doesn't take ecclesiastical authority to exercise moral leadership.

So, I was deeply moved yesterday as the Church remembered Saints Martha, Mary and Lazarus, and the different ways in which Marth and Mary served Jesus that day of Jesus' visit. I know deeply that any of my Martha instincts to just do what needs to be done must be rooted in my Mary instincts, to simply sit and pray at the feet of Jesus, for I know that this entire effort is His, not mine.

And today, the second reading in the Office of Readings was from a letter written by Saint Ignatius of Antioch (I was ordained on his feast day - Oct 17th) to Saint Polycarp. Here is a rather lengthy but profoundly meaningful extract for me:

"Justify your episcopal dignity by your unceasing concern for the spiritual and temporal welfare of your flock; let unity, the greatest of all goods, be your preoccupation. Carry the burdens of all as the Lord carries yours; have patience with all in charity, as indeed you do. Give yourself to prayer continually, ask for wisdom greater than you now have, keep alert with an unflagging spirit. Speak to each person individually, following God's example; bear the infirmities of all, like a perfect athlete of God. The greater the toil the richer the reward.

If you love only you good disciples, you gain no merit; rather you must win over the more troublesome of them by kindness. The same salve does not heal all wounds...

Do not be overwhelmed by those who seem trustworthy and yet teach heresy. Remain firm, like the anvil under the hammer...and above all we must bear everything for God, that that he in turn may bear with us...Read the signs of the times. Look for him who is outside time, the eternal one, the unseen, who became visible for us; he cannot be touched and cannot suffer, yet he became subject to suffering and endured so much for our sake."

So, with these wise words, I prepare for the day, ever mindful of my need for God's grace every moment of every day

.

Saint Martha, Mary and Lazarus

On the day when the Church remembers Saints Martha, Mary and Lazarus, I was moved by this excerpt from a sermon by Saint Augustine:

“Do not grieve or complain that you were born in a time when you can no longer see God in the flesh. He did not in fact take this privilege from you. As he says: Whatever you have done to the least of my brothers, you did to me.

But you, Martha, if I may say so, are blessed for your good service, and for your labors you seek the reward of peace. Now you are much occupied in nourishing the body, admittedly a holy one. But when you come to the heavenly homeland will you find a traveler to welcome, someone hungry to feed, or thirsty to whom you may give drink, someone ill whom you could visit, or quarreling whom you could reconcile, or dead whom you could bury?

No, there will be none of these tasks there. What you will find there is what Mary chose. There we shall not feed others, we ourselves shall be fed. Thus what Mary chose in this life will be realized there in all its fullness; she was gathering fragments from that rich banquet, the Word of God. Do you wish to know what we will have there? The Lord himself tells us when he says of his servants, Amen, I say to you, he will make them recline and passing he will serve them.”

They: Facelessness or Personal Agency

"Resurrection Morning" by JRC Martin

“They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” -John 20:2

 

“They have closed the schools today, and it’s not even snowing that much!”

“They have raised the price of gas this week!”

“They are burning down churches across Canada!”

"They have treated indigenous people horribly!"

 

Don’t we have an interesting use of the word ‘they’. Some semi-anonymous group that seems to do things that impact our lives in some way. It seems to be an entry point to describe a depersonalized authority that has some impact on our daily lives, good or bad. However we define ‘they’ seems to depend on the point we are trying to make, maybe our political stance or assumptions. ‘They’ is depersonalized, abstract, but clearly an actor with authority. Perhaps if we put a face on ‘they’ we would be less critical, or more critical…

 

If ‘they’ is Dr. Robert Strang, it seems like many people will give him the benefit of the doubt, unless you are an anti-vaxxer.

If ‘they’ is Boris Johnson or Jeff Bezos it seems we are more prone to mockery.

 

The ‘they’ in the gospel reading today are causing Mary a high level of stress. She is simply a grieving woman and she has no idea who ‘they’ is – could it be grave robbers, the high priests, the Romans? She doesn’t know. She does know that the body of her dear friend is gone and ‘they’ did it. They - the unknown, bland, faceless people who do things behind the scenes that impact us and can afford us the opportunity to not use our own initiative.

 

‘They’ took his body and ‘we’ do not know where it has been placed.

 

‘They’ seems to be a catch-phrase for what someone else has done or needs to do.

 

‘They’ need to fix the church.

‘They’ need to talk to the indigenous people to fix this awful situation.

 

A world dominated by ‘they’ is one in which we have given our agency for action to faceless power-brokers behind the scenes and we are not in control of our destiny.

 

Mary sees a man, and in her grief says, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.”

 

Even in her grief, she confronts the anonymity of ‘they’ and is motivated by action. Not just any action, but loving action of care. Basically, she says, “Just tell me where his body is and I will take it from there.” She just needs to know where to start.

 

Who is ‘they’ for us right now, in this point of history? Whether it is residential schools, federal politics, municipal politics or parish amalgamation, there is an opportunity for us to demystify the ‘they’ by taking personal action, loving action, that shows our concrete resolve for faithful, loving action in a world that needs faithful, loving action.

 

‘They’ did not relegate Jesus to death.

‘They’ did not prevent the resurrection.

 

Some things will never change, ‘so they say’ and you can never go wrong by applying a little personal, loving action. But everything did change, Jesus Christ is alive and Mary Magdalene went and proclaimed this good news. 

 

‘They’ don’t need to proclaim the gospel. We do.

Pollett’s Cove Hike: July 2021

Photo by Rob Elford

A dear friend, Deacon David Viscount and I just returned from a beautiful hike into Pollett’s Cove, on the North-West coast of Cape Breton. It was one of the most beautiful hikes I have ever done. I hope you enjoy this video:

https://youtu.be/eoIhClkesyU

Judgement, Self-Examination and Healthy Relationships

“Do not judge, so that you may not be judged.” -Matthew 7:1

 

The very act of judgment is tied up with the notion of justice. What is justice? Justice, according to Jesus, is something like the quality of living together in right relationship with God and with one another - two great commandments. So, when Jesus tells us not to judge others, and to take the log out of our own eye before we discuss the speck in our neighbour’s eye, he is teaching what it means to live relationships of true justice.

 

As such, our judgement of others must be tempered by our desire for justice if healthy relationships are to be maintained. Standing aloof, detached from relationships while criticizing others is to be negligent in both self-examination and our own need for healthy relationships.

 

As a spiritual exercise, try this today. Consider a person you find very difficult to be around. What are the characteristics of that person that you find so annoying? When you have completed that list, ask God to forgive those same faults in yourself.

 

You know that God will be compassionate, gentle, kind and just with you in dealing with your faults. How are you with those same faults in others?

 

 

 

 

What are you most afraid of?

I took this photo after the storm had passed, and just moments before making landfall off Cape Cod

What are you most afraid of?

 

When the certainties of life and your plans are pulled away, and the underlying fragilities of being human are revealed, what evokes a sense of unease, worry, stress or fear in you?

 

For some, it may be fear of death itself, or the dying process. For some it may be getting accepted into an education program that you really want because of the plans you have for life. 

Maybe it’s a recent health diagnosis? Maybe it’s worry about your children as you see them wandering down a path that concerns you. Maybe it’s financial concerns, political concerns. Maybe it’s simply putting food on the table.

 

Could it be the PTSD that you are dealing with because of your military, police, firefighting or paramedic work? Maybe it’s your own childhood trauma.

 

I don’t take the deep peace in Christ I know for granted. I nurture it. I also know disruptions to this peace when storms in life blow. I also know that on this Father’s Day, my father is not doing too well, my siblings are carrying a heavy load, as we all try to support my mother in her role as primary caregiver to my father.

 

It’s not easy. But I know God’s peace in the midst of it all. That doesn’t mean it’s easy.

 

Jesus never promised anywhere in Scripture that life was going to be easy. But Jesus did assure us of peace, a peace that surpasses all understanding.

 

Psychologically speaking, if the underlying issues of our lack of peace are not brought to the fore, discussed and dealt with in the healthy way, they will come out in unhealthy ways. 

 

Likewise, spiritually speaking, challenges in life are a gateway to deepen into the fragility of the human existence and they can reveal an ancient pathway that sustains the human soul as we journey from this side to the other. 

 

It’s a journey from fear to freedom, and it has been well trodden.

 

The Gospel today gives us a deep insight into this journey through life -  a journey from this side of the great waters of life – to the other side. This journey with Jesus comes with the gentleness of his suggestion, “Let us go across to the other side.” 

 

There is no coercion involved in this suggestion. They are all fishermen, used to the volatile conditions of the Sea of Galilee. At 250 meters below sea-level and about 13 kilometers across, it is surrounded with mountains which can cause winds to unexpectedly whip up a storm. At any rate, these hardy fishermen head out to sea, at Jesus’ suggestion, who they had come to follow in life.

 

Let us go across to the other side is in invitation to journey through life with Jesus.

Let us go across to the other side is an invitation to journey from this life to the next with Jesus.

Let us go across to the other side is an invitation to see life through a spiritual lens rather than simply a material lens.

So, we take Jesus up on this offer, we get in the boat and voyage with him to the other side.

 

We know it’s getting dark, but we trust Jesus. 

We trust Jesus until the storm blows and we start taking on water.

We trust Jesus until the fear kicks in because it dark and stormy and, Jesus, the person you trusted is asleep at the helm. But he is not just asleep, the text says he is asleep on a cushion.

 

We fear for our lives. The boat is sinking. Do you care, Jesus? Where are you now, God, in the midst of this? I trusted you! It doesn’t seem like you care because we are going to die here and you are asleep on a cushion. This is ridiculous, why did I ever trust this guy. I can’t believe I am going to die like this. I am such a fool. How did this happen. My own plans were much better.

I should have trusted myself.

 

I sailed twice from Halifax to Newport, Rhode Island in a sailboat. Both times the conditions were quite challenging. I liken the second trip to being in a washing machine. In fact, Deacon David Viscount, who has been assigned to this parish was with me on the second trip. Ask him to tell you the story about the first 36 hours of the trip. Not exactly fun.

 

I can’t imagine being asleep in the stern, comfortably tucked up with a cushion, in a storm. But that is how the text describes Jesus.

 

The storm broke and I had the morning watch when we made landfall off Cape Cod. This is the picture I took.

 

It was hard to believe it was so storm just ten hours earlier.

 

There is an important spiritual threshold here that we must confront. In his letter to the Romans, Paul tells us that “the Spirit of God dwells in you” (Romans 8:9). The Holy Spirit is God, given to us through God the Son, from God the Father. This divine power is in each of us and you have no idea how strong, how brave, how inspiring, how humble in your courageous you can be until you surrender your idea of power in this material world to the power of the Holy Spirit working through you.

 

When you wake up the Holy Spirit in you, when you bring your fear to the Holy Spirit, to Jesus who seems asleep in the stern, you will discover that Jesus is alive and well, and with you every step of the way.

 

Jesus is in this storm.

Jesus is in this storm.

Jesus is in the storm of parish amalgamation.

Jesus in in the storm of sickness, fear, depression and anxiety. 

Jesus is in the storm of your hurting marriage.

Jesus is in the storm of your self-loathing.

Jesus is in the storm of your grief.

Jesus in in the storm of your cancer treatments.

 

The source of peace is in the midst of the storm. But first we need to wake up to the fragility of the human experience and call upon Jesus. Wake up the Holy Spirit that you may think has been dormant in you. Call upon him and ask him as the disciples did, “Do you not care that we are perishing here?”

 

What then, how do we more deeply know this source of peace?

 

I recommend you commit to three disciplines. 

 

I will call them:

Gospel Reading

Prayer 

Sacrament

 

GPS…

 

Gospel: Read the Gospel daily. If this intimidates you, start with the Mass readings and read commentaries on the scripture. That’s why Fr James has recommended “The Word Among Us,” it has daily reflections on the daily mass readings. 

 

Prayer: After reading a bit of Scripture and having read a commentary on it, spend some time in prayer. What does the reading mean to you? Is there something that was in the text or in the commentary that resonated with you? Why was that?

 

Sacrament: I know we are in the midst of a Covid lockdown, but in the weeks ahead, when things start to open up, get out weekly to go to Mass and to receive the Blessed Sacrament. I also recommend making a good confession to better open yourself up, to be free to receive the graces the Holy Spirit has to offer you.

 

What are you most afraid of?

Jesus is in that fear with you. The Holy Spirit dwells in you. Wake the Holy Spirit up within you. Call on Jesus. 

And may you know a peace that surpasses all understanding.

 

 

 

 

Our Father...

“Our Father…”

 

Jesus teaches us to pray and he started with, “Our Father…” which expresses a radically new intimacy between God and humanity. It’s an intimacy that comes with the deeply personal dimension of being personally known and loved by God. You are personally known and loved. I want to repeat that: you are personally known and loved.

 

As individuals, deeply loved by the very source of our being, we are also called into relationship. Relationship with God and relationship with one another. The dynamic of relationships is a critically important aspect of living out our faith for we are called into relationships, into community.

 

There is no “Me. Me. Me” in the prayer Jesus taught us.

 

The radical individualism of the modern world is brought into a corrective lens through life in Christ. We work out our identity through the dynamic, iterative nature of relationships. I am Rob, but I am Rob who is a son, who is a brother, who is a cousin, who is a father, who is a husband. I know me and I form who I am in relationship with God who bestows on me an inalienable identity of dignity. I ground myself in this as I form as a person in relationship with others.

 

Christ assures us that we are individually loved and we work that love out in relationships with others. There we will discover our own need for love, grounded in our true identity, and the beauty of forgiveness. 

 

There is no “I” in the Our Father.

 

Let us learn to love one another as God loves us.

Prayer

Lent may seem like a distant memory, but COVID doesn’t. So as our province begins to open up after a third wave, in today's gospel reading, Jesus teaches us to remember three things that ground us spiritually: Almsgiving, Prayer and Fasting.

These important spiritual disciplines are, of course, not limited to Lent! They ground the person spiritually and today Jesus is reminding us to take stock of our core motivation. Basically, to take a serious examination of conscience, of why we are doing what we are doing. Fundamentally, we must be guided by our intimacy with God, not how we may want to be seen by others, or by that part of our ego that needs to see ourselves in a certain way that deep down we know is not genuine to our true self and motivations.

 

In our parish we are in the midst of an Alpha Taster. It’s been a wonderful opportunity to hear some basic teachings about who is Jesus, why we need Jesus and why he gave us the gift of God’s very self, the Holy Spirit. Some people are praying for the first time, and it’s wonderful to see such a deepening in faith, especially in the midst of so much turmoil. Whether it’s the stress of parish amalgamation, or the shame of the front-page stories in the media, we need to take authentic stock of who we are and what we are doing.

 

This morning I want to emphasize prayer for those of you who may be new to prayer or even those who have been praying for a long time but are feeling a little dry.

 

At home, by yourself, take two chairs and place them facing one another, separated by a couple of feet. Sit in one and imagine Jesus sitting in the other. Talk to him about whatever comes to mind. Say it out loud, no one is listening except God whose very essence is love. 

 

That’s prayer. A conversation with Jesus.

 

Our church institution is being brought to its knees. Good. God is sovereign and there must be a reason why it is being brought to its knees. That’s a great place from which to pray and to repent. Perhaps God is calling his church to a renewal of prayer; to repentance and toward reconciliation . To a deepening in our total reliance on God.  Good. 

 

You don’t need to be fancy in prayer. It’s doesn’t take advanced degrees in theology to learn how to pray. Prayer is a conversation with God. Have a seat. Talk to God. 

 

Be open to receive God’s peace.

Fulfillment of the Law

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” -Matthew 5:17

 

Do you to recall our Lenten preaching series on the topic of Covenant? Do you remember the difference between a contract and a covenant? A contract says, “This is yours and this is mine” whereas a covenant says, “I am yours and you are mine.” It was emphasized through that preaching series that God entered into a covenantal relationship with humanity, not a contractual one.

 

Our Gospel today, is from the fifth chapter of Matthew. It comes directly after the Beatitudes and may seem contrary to the love of God revealed through Jesus. Some may ask, “I thought Jesus saved us from the law?” Or, as Saint Paul wrote in our first reading, “...for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”

 

The key to understanding all of this is through the lens of the Covenant. Remember, the Covenants God made with Noah, Abraham, Moses and David? Jesus reveals Himself as the Lamb of God, who instituted a new covenant as a fulfillment of the former covenants.

 

Now, read that troubling verse again, which seems to bring us into a legalistic understanding of Jesus’ teaching: Do not think that [Jesus] has come to abolish the law or the prophets; [Jesus] has come not to abolish but to fulfill.”

 

Jesus fulfills.

 

Jesus ushers in a new covenant. Jesus fulfills the law. Jesus renews our relationship with God, makes it anew and invites all of creation to bask in the law of love in spite of our tendency to be lovers of law.

 

None of us can fulfill the law perfectly. The story of Israel is the story of the Church. We are a pilgrim people totally depended on God’s grace. We can’t do it! We try and fail and yet that is the very essence of grace. It’s not what we do, it’s what God did for us that renews us in spirit and we keep going, in gratitude for this great gift. This journey into the heart of Christ is a journey into the heart of humanity where we can all discover our call to holiness.

 

As we participate in the renewal of this Covenant through Christ at the Altar, let us trust where Jesus is leading us. He has fulfilled it all. 

 

These are difficult days in the Church. If we are being stripped down and made to feel poor in spirit and meek. Fear not, for blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the kingdom of God.

 

God is in the midst of this mess. As we prepare to celebrate the Covenant God made through Jesus, let us open our hearts to receive Him.