Memorial Day

Readings for Monday May 31, 2010

Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

First Reading: Zephaniah 3:14-18 or Romans 12:9-16
Responsorial Psalm: Isaiah 12:2-3, 4-6
Gospel: Luke 1:39-56


Today is Memorial Day in the US. For some this is the day that their local pool opens. For others it is a day of family, friends and grilling out. Still for some, it is simply another day off of work and an extension of the weekend. Memorial Day originally was called decoration day, and was a holiday to remember those who had fallen during the Civil War. Many years later it was expanded as a National Holiday in remembrance of the brave soldiers who had given their life during every war and during their military service. Today, let us remember to honor and pray for all those men and women who fought for our freedom, and for those who continue to fight for our freedom. Let us also pray for Mary's intercession, for their is no one who knows more about sacrifice than our Blessed Mother. Let us ask for Mary's prayers that we may be a country under her loving care and that she may lead us closer to her son; so that we may truly be a nation under God.

Hail Mary, full of Grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus. Holy Mary Mother of God, pray for us sinner now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Glory be to the Father, to the Son, to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be world without end. Amen.

Good Steward

Readings for Friday May 28, 2010

First Reading: 1 Peter 4:7-13
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 96
Gospel: Mark 11:11-26

Beloved: The end of all things is at hand. Therefore be serious and sober-minded so that you will be able to pray. Above all, let your love for one another be intense, because love covers a multitude of sins. Be hospitable to one another without complaining. As each one has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God’s varied grace. Whoever preaches, let it be with the words of God; whoever serves, let it be with the strength that God supplies, so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. (1 Pet 4:7-11)

Imagine that you gave me a brand new car as a gift. Then a few months later you stop by to how me and the car are doing, when to your surprise the brand new car is not looking so good. It's got dents, dings, and scratches all around it from my reckless driving. It looks as it has been driven for a little while, as one of the wheels is missing and the car is propped up on a cinder block. The inside is full of trash and has gotten quite filthy. There are parking and speeding tickets inside the glove box. Now at this point, you are pretty ticked off, wondering what kind of ungrateful person does such a thing as take a perfectly good gift and waste it and not take care of it. In this situation it is a very fair question. I think that there are times in our life that God could ask the same question of our lives.

Like the car, we don't always use the gifts that are given to us by God. God gives each of us different gifts and abilities, and sometimes we use them for our own gain and glory. Other times we don't use them at all. Sometimes we are too afraid to use our natural talents and abilities, other times we are just too lazy. Whatever the case, the fact is that God has given each of us a beautiful life to live, a life that we are to be good stewards of. A life that is supposed to be spent loving God and others. A life where we use our talents and treasures to glorify God and to show His goodness to the whole world. As it says in the first reading today: As each one has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God's varied grace. (1 Pet 4:10)

Jesus shows us today, that the choice to not produce fruit is not the right one. It is only by being good stewards of our gifts and producing good fruit that we can live the lives that we were meant to.

May God bless each of us in our journey, and may we each be the good stewards that we are called to be!

Father above, we thank you and praise you for the gift of this day. Lord, thank you for all that you have blessed us with and for all that you give. Help us to use the gifts that you have given us to glorify you and to spread your love to all those we come in contact with. Lord, we praise you for your great love and mercy, help us to never stray from your arms. We ask this all through Christ our Lord. Amen.

With a Pure Heart

Readings for Wednesday May 26, 2010

First Reading: 1 Peter 1:18-25
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 147
Gospel: Mark 10:32-45

Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Jesus and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” He replied, “What do you wish me to do for you?” They answered him, “Grant that in your glory we may sit one at your right and the other at your left.” Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the chalice that I drink or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” They said to him, “We can.” Jesus said to them, “The chalice that I drink, you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right or at my left is not mine to give but is for those for whom it has been prepared.” When the ten heard this, they became indignant at James and John. Jesus summoned them and said to them, “You know that those who are recognized as rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all. For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mk 10:35-45)

In today's gospel, we see the bold and ambitious question that James and John ask; "Grant that in your glory we may sit one at your right and the other at your left." Can we really blame them for wanting to be closer to Jesus, to wanting to have a bigger part in His kingdom? I think that only difference between James and John and the other is disciples, is that James and John weren't afraid to ask. I think that they asked what each of the other disciples was thinking.

It is perfectly natural as people to want places of honor and certain titles and responsibilities; but the biggest factor in wanting these things is our motive. What is the reason that we are asking for these things. We are not told why James and John asked for what they did, who knows maybe they didn't fully understand it themselves, it could have been that they were just trying to call "dibs" on those places of honor. Whatever the reason, I do not think that it was for right reasons, I do think that they were asking for their own gain, even if the place of honor was a good thing, that does not make it right. Jesus then used this as a good "teachable moment" for His disciples. He used this as an opportunity to teach them that they should not be seeking things out for themselves, but rather for the glory of God.

Today, let us reflect on these words from 1 Peter: "Since you have purified yourselves by obedience to the truth for sincere mutual love, love one another intensely from a pure heart." (1 Pet 1:22)

May the peace of the Lord be with each of you today, and may the Lord grant each of us a pure heart that allows us to love as we are meant to, instead of a selfish heart.

Father above, we thank you and praise you for the gift of this day. Lord, thank you for all that you have blessed us with and for all that you give. Lord, we thank you so much for your great, abundance love and mercy, which we are not deserving of, but you still choose to freely pour out to us. Help us to live this life as we are meant to, loving each other with a pure heart. We pray for all those you do not know you and that are in need of conversion. We ask this all through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Striving for Holiness

Readings for Tuesday May 25, 2010

First Reading: 1 Peter 1:10-16
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 98
Gospel: Mark 10:28-31

Therefore, gird up the loins of your mind, live soberly, and set your hopes completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Like obedient children, do not act in compliance with the desires of your former ignorance but, as he who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in every aspect of your conduct, for it is written, Be holy because I am holy. (1 Pet 1:13-16)

How many times have we all been in the situation where someone has told an offensive, inappropriate joke that had everyone laughing, except you. Instead of saying something, we kind of just fake a smile and chuckle a little, so that we can go along with the group. How many times have we been walking or driving along and seen a homeless person on the street, and instead of stopping to help, we pass by just like everyone else. How many of us have been in the situation at work or school where people are gossiping about someone else, and instead of standing up for that person, we just go along nodding our head with the group. The truth is that in life, it is simply easier to go with the flow and do what everyone else is doing. Nobody really likes to be an outcast, and it is hard to be put in an uncomfortable place against everyone else.

As we see in the readings today, we are not called to be like everyone else, we are meant for more. We are called to be Holy. Our main purpose in life should not be to be like everyone else, our main purpose should be to be Holy and get to heaven. And while right now in life, it may be easier to go with the flow, it is not what will pay out at the end. Going with the flow and being like everyone else in the world only leads to an eternal life of suffering. Being Holy and following Christ leads to an eternal life in paradise with our Creator.

Not only does striving for Holiness reap eternal rewards, but it also has some immediate benefits as well. In fact living out God's plan for our lives and striving to do His will and what is right is what leads to peace and happiness. The reason we have peace and happiness from doing the Lord's will is because we are living out our life as it was meant to be lived. We were not created to serve ourselves, we were created to love God and others, and to be loved by God. If our main goal is to only be comfortable and look out for ourselves, as most people do; then we will not find the peace and happiness that we all seek. And this is not the type of lifestyle that leads us to heaven.

We each have a choice in this life: we can strive to follow the world, or we can strive to be Holy. They each lead to very different places ... which will you choose?

Father above, we thank you and praise you for the gift of this day. Lord, we praise you for all that you have blessed us with in this life. Lord, thank you for your great love and mercy, for without it we are lost. Lord, help us to follow you in this life and to never stray away from where you lead us to. Lord, you are so good and merciful to us, help us to show this same love and mercy to others. Lord, we pray for all of our priests and religious, that they may be strengthened in their ministries and in their vows. We ask this all through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Go Deeper

Readings for Monday May 24, 2010

First Reading: 1 Peter 1:3-9
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 111
Gospel: Mark 10:17-27

As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus answered him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; honor your father and your mother.” He replied and said to him, “Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth.” Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, “You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” At that statement, his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. (Mk 10:17-22)

Remember when you were younger and the time finally came for you to take the training wheels off of your bike? I remember it being a pretty scary moment, after all those things had kept me from falling over. But my parents saw the the time was right, I had already learned the basics of riding the bike, and it was time to go deeper and truly experience the bike as it was meant to be.

In today's gospel, we read about the rich man who approached Jesus asking what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus tells him to keep the commandments; when the man said that he had done these things, Jesus then tells him that he has the basics down, but he must go deeper by selling what he has and giving to the poor. This made the man sad, because he had a lot of things that he just was not ready to part with. I also think that this made the man sad because he probably thought that there is no way that he could get by without all of his stuff. He had probably spent his life defining himself by the things that he had, but when Jesus tells him that is not the way to be, his whole world came crashing down.

Most of us have the basics of our faith down, we need to follow the commandments and live a good life. But, that is not enough. God wants us to experience this life as it we were meant to, with freedom from worldly things and complete trust and reliance on Him. Just like we could not truly experience the bike without the training wheels, we cannot experience this life if we are clinging to worldly things. It is certainly not easy to let go of the world and follow Christ, but the eternal reward that we can gain is worth anything that we must go through. As we read in 1 Peter today; "In this you rejoice, although now for a little while you may have to suffer through various trials."

Although no one really likes the time for the training wheels to come off, it is a necessary step. It takes a lot of courage and trust, but it is always worth. May each of us be granted the strength and courage to go deeper into our faith and to trust in God alone.

Father above, we thank you and praise you for the gift of this day. Lord, thank you for all that you have blessed us with and for all that you give. We are your humble servants, may we never veer from your path and may we always stand strong against opposition in this life. Lord, guide us and strengthen us in this world, may we be your lights to all those we come in contact with. We pray for all of those in need of conversion and those who do not know your love. We ask this all through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Do You Love Him?

Readings for Friday May 21, 2010

First Reading: Acts 25:13-21
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 103
Gospel: John 21:15-19

After Jesus had revealed himself to his disciples and eaten breakfast with them, he said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” Simon Peter answered him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.” He then said to Simon Peter a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Simon Peter answered him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was distressed that he had said to him a third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. Amen, amen, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” He said this signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when he had said this, he said to him, “Follow me.” (Jn 21:15-19)

What if Jesus asked you three times in a row whether you loved Him or not? Most likely you would react like Peter did, getting frustrated at the repeated question. But regardless of how comfortable we are with the question, it is still a good one for us to ask ourselves. Do we love Him more than anything else? Do we love Him so much that we would be willing to sacrifice for Him? Do we love Him so much that we are willing to obey Him and follow His agenda rather than our own? Do we love Him enough to endure pain and hardship in this life? Do we recognize how great His love for us is, and are we willing to love Him back?

The exchange that we see take place between Peter and Jesus is one that not only gives Peter authority as the leader of the Church ("feed my lambs ... tend my sheep ... feed my sheep"), but it is also help Peter realize that loving the Lord means following Him where ever He leads. The truth is that you cannot truly follow someone unless you have love for them. It takes a certain type of love, a love of a person that makes us loyal and trusting, that allows us to follow someone. Like Peter, we cannot follow God unless we realize how much we love Him and how much we are loved.

God is calling out to each of us; "do you love me?" Once we say "yes Lord, I love you", then we are ready to follow Him.

Father above, we thank you and praise you for the gift of this day. Lord thank you for our lives, help us to glorify you through all that we do. Lord, you are our God, and you know what is best for us, help us to never veer from the path of which you have laid down for us. Lord, we belong to you, we do not belong to this world; help us only to live in it and not of it. We pray for all of our priests and religious. We ask this all through Christ our Lord. Amen.

In the Father's Love

Readings for Thursday May 20, 2010

First Reading: Acts 22:30, 23:6-11
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 16
Gospel: John 17:20-26

Lifting up his eyes to heaven, Jesus prayed saying: “I pray not only for these, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me. And I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may be brought to perfection as one, that the world may know that you sent me, and that you loved them even as you loved me. Father, they are your gift to me. I wish that where I am they also may be with me, that they may see my glory that you gave me, because you loved me before the foundation of the world. Righteous Father, the world also does not know you, but I know you, and they know that you sent me. I made known to them your name and I will make it known, that the love with which you loved me may be in them and I in them.” (Jn 17:20-26)

Growing up, my dad used to collect different antique items. Usually they were things like old tools, appliances, etc. I was always intrigued by these items, because it was just amazing to see a drill with no power source other than two hands, a laundry washboard, or old toys that in no way today would pass safety requirements. It was always amazing to me to see how much things have changed and how much the things that we use every day have changed so much.

While the things in our lives are constantly changing, especially in technology, there is one antique that has never changed ... God's love. In today's gospel reading, Jesus tells us how God's love for the Son was there even before the foundation of the world. It has always been there, and it always will be. Jesus came to help us see how much the Father loves Him and how much He wants to love us. This same love, which has always been around, is the same love that can be in us; but only if we are willing to open ourselves up to it. We can only have the love of God in us if we are willing to believe in Christ and to follow Him where ever He leads us. We cannot be people of this world, we must be people of God if we want to have the love of the Father in us.

We are all called to communion, called to be one. If we all choose to follow Christ, then we can enter into this unity with the Father and the Son, and therefore can enter into this unity together as a people. There is no better place for us to be than in the Father's love, may we all come to share in that love together.

Father above, we thank you and praise you for the gift of this day. Lord, thank you for your great love, we are not deserving of it, but you offer it to us freely. Lord, we praise you and thank you for our lives, help us to live them for you and to always give you all the glory. We pray for all those who do not know your love, may they have their eyes and hearts opened and come into your loving, gently arms. We ask this all through Christ our Lord. Amen.