The need for affirmation - Sunday's reading reflection

In the area of discipleship, "Christian disciples can make no claim on God’s graciousness; in fulfilling the exacting demands of discipleship, they are only doing their duty." (NABRE) In the area of faith, as human beings, we want “affection”, that is getting the job done well, and “affection” a little praise or thanks. Our basic human and Christian struggle seems to be about present-time versus eternal-then. We are all in the family of God and we listen to what is “commanded”. Fr. Alexander of our staff is fond of saying, “Jesus is grateful.” Though that can bring a smile to my face, I do wish Jesus would congratulate, praise, or thank me in person, especially when I feel like Habakkuk. We are all believers in the promises, the “eternal then” and we wait and keep washing windows, mowing lawns, plowing and tending the flocks in our care. Our faithfulness to our doing such things is our service for our Master and our pledge of trust in the life to come.

I am sure that God is grateful, but if God were to send me a thank-you card each time I did something good, I think I would end up serving myself and not God.  And that wouldn't be such a good thing. Jesus himself said that he did not come to be served but to serve.

(Adapted from Larry Gillick, S.J.)

Remember not against us the iniquities of the past - Tomorrow's reading reflection

Today’s readings are not what I anticipated on the Memorial of Saint Francis. The first reading expounds upon disobedience to the Lord and the failure of the kingdom of Israel to listen to the prophets through the ages. Ancient Israel is taken to task in Baruch for its evil ways and failure to please God. As I turn to the Psalms the theme continues. The Gospel of the day heeds a similar warning. However, reading the gospel in context of Luke’s chapter 10 does present a different picture.

The passage is sandwiched between the mission of the seventy-two and the return of the seventy-two. As the disciples are sent out they are also told they will be rejected and if so shake the dust off your feet and move on to the next town. As the disciples return the report to the Lord “even the demons are subject to us because of your name.” Understanding the context of the readings gives hope to us on earth and myself personally.  Even in my worst moments when I reject Christ and fail to follow God, I’m given confidence that in his name all things are possible.  And with him his mercy.  The mercy St. Francis showed to all creation, especially his fellow man; a mercy emphasized and modeled for us in our current day by Pope Francis. 

The Psalmist prays, "Remember not against us the iniquities of the past; may your compassion quickly come to us, for we are brought very low." And so on a daily basis I know that as the responsorial to the psalm proclaims “For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us”, that I too can call upon God in my daily life to help protect and guide me as I move forward in my spiritual life.

(Adapted from Joe Zaborowski)

The Enlightenment that darkened the world to the idea of the common good - Tomorrow's reading reflection

For us, in these United States, and perhaps in most of world culture influenced by the Enlightenment, we have a cultural aversion to law unless we establish it ourselves.  We are so deeply committed to the absolute rights of the individual that the scene painted for us in the first reading is utterly “mind blowing”.   These people are listening all day long, and then sobbing in joy and celebrating with dancing and feasting the reception of a pattern of directives that challenged them in virtually every area of their personal and social relationships to address first and foremost the “common good.” Tomorrow's saint of the day, St. Francis, did not need anything like what the Enlightenment purported. Francis, like Ezra in the first reading, was enlightened by God.  And that was enough because it led him to lose sight of himself as the center of the world and focus on caring for the world as the center of his life.

(Adapted from Eileen Burke-Sullivan)

Canonization Pilgrimages - tektonministries.org

Tekton Ministries is going to Rome!  

Canonization pilgrimages leaving on 4/21/14 and returning on 4/30/14.  

Itineraries include combinations of Assisi, Orvieto, Lanciano, San Giovanni Rotondo and Rome.

Space extremely limited and planes/hotels are filling fast.  Contact us now so you don't miss this once-in-a-lifetime canonization!

Click here for contact information!

Guardian angels stop Texas shooting? - Tomorrow's reading reflection

"their angels in heaven"

Trusting in God’s care--what we call divine Providence--is a basic part of our faith. Whether we think of this care as mediated by guardian angels or saints, or as the direct action of God, it is still a matter of trusting in divine Providence. We all have stories about experiencing rescue from “close calls” in ways that speak much more of a divine care than of good luck. For many of us, the Christian tradition of a personal guardian angel is easier to think about than a special intervention of the Holy Trinity.

To honor divine Providence in the form of the guardian angel tradition, the Church has chosen the one passage in the Gospels where Jesus refers to the personal care of angels, today’s reading from the fourth speech of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew. What I notice, this time around, is that Jesus’ words in this passage do not so much teach about guardian angels as presume their existence as he makes another point: the importance of imitating the heavenly Father’s care for “the little ones.”

(Adapted from Dennis Hamm, S.J.)

Here's a recent video of what might have just been God's guardian angels for us at work in a story of a gunmen attempting multiple times to discharge his weapon, unsuccessfully, inside a Texas McDonald's.

Click here for Dallas/Fort Worth police video and like our Facebook page while you're at it.

Canonization date set: April 27, 2014, Divine Mercy Sunday - Book with us today!

Tekton Ministries is excited to announce the Canonizations for Blessseds John XXIII and John Paul II on April 27, 2014 -Divine Mercy Sunday- in Rome.  We pray in thanksgiving to God for the lives of these two great popes and look very forward to forming pilgrimages to Rome and Assisi to participate in this historic event.  Book your pilgrimage today!  www.tektonministries.org

St. Therese, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.” - Tomorrow's reading reflection

“Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”

Are you surprised to see two of Jesus' disciples praying for the destruction of a Samaritan village? The Jews and Samaritans had been divided for centuries. Jewish pilgrims who passed through Samaritan territory were often assaulted. Jesus did the unthinkable for a Jew. He not only decided to travel through Samaritan territory at personal risk, but he also asked for hospitality in one of their villages! Jesus' offer of friendship was rebuffed. Is there any wonder that the disciples were indignant and felt justified in wanting to see retribution done to this village? Wouldn't you respond the same way? Jesus, however, rebukes his disciples for their lack of toleration.  Jesus had "set his face toward Jerusalem" to die on a cross that Jew, Samaritan and Gentile might be reconciled with God and be united as one people in Christ.

Tolerance is a much needed virtue today. But aren't we often tolerant for the wrong thing or for the wrong motive? Christian love seeks the highest good of both one's neighbor and one's enemy. When Abraham Lincoln was criticized for his courtesy and tolerance towards his enemies during the American Civil War, he responded: "Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?" How do you treat those who cross you and cause you trouble? Do you seek their good rather than their harm?

(Adapted from Don Schwager)