Taking stock is not just for grocery store workers - Sunday's reading reflection

Two thoughts dominate the readings: first, John’s dramatic call to behold the Lamb of God; second, that we do a good personal stock-taking during this first month of the new year, look where we are going, and make the practical resolutions that might raise the quality of our lives. The Baptist urges us to ask what are we fundamentally about and then seek to reset our lives. And St Paul reminds us that we are “called to be saints together with all those who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

An honest stock-taking of our spirituality may unveil the egocentric way we usually conduct our lives. To rise above this we need to recognize something outside of and larger than ourselves, the God who cares for us and for the whole human community among whom we live. Can we listen to John’s call to restore what is broken, and Jesus’ call, to bring light to the world? Do we see that it is with our cooperation that the Lamb can remove the “sin of the world?”

Facing such truths is always difficult; it calls us to not just drift along with this world’s evil, always taking the line of least resistance. Discipleship is urgent and costly, but it is also possible and is the way towards the deeper joy and fulfillment that our soul is longing for. If we properly hear the Baptist as he witnesses to Christ, our response will be a stock-taking that goes to the root of our being. It may even reveal to us the truth that sets us free.

(Adapted from ACP)

Forget about becoming St. Anthony - Tomorrow's reading reflection

Anthony died when he was one hundred and five years old. A life of solitude, fasting, and manual labor in the service of God had left him a healthy, vigorous man until very late in life. And he never stopped challenging himself to go one step beyond in his faith.

Saint Athanasius, who knew Anthony and wrote his biography, said, "Anthony was not known for his writings nor for his worldly wisdom, nor for any art, but simply for his reverence toward God." We may wonder nowadays at what we can learn from someone who lived in the desert, wore skins, ate bread, and slept on the ground. We may wonder how we can become him. We can become Anthony by living his life of radical faith and complete commitment to God. (Taken in part from Terry Matz, catholic.org)

That's if we want to become Anthony.  Some want to become St. Anthony.  Some, St. John Vianney. Others, St. Catherine.  The reality is there is only one for whom we should model our behavior, Jesus Christ. The saints are witnesses, models- not the original.  

Forget about becoming St. Anthony.  Best to become you- as God intended- by imitating Jesus Christ who gives you the grace not to be St. Anthony, but to be YOU.

More than externals - Tomorrow's reading reflection

In his story about the healing of the leper, Mark stresses the supremacy of faith. He teaches us we must be open to God’s personal presence. The externals of religion, even the most sacred dogmas and holiest objects, are meant to facilitate our interior communion with the Lord. Our hearts, when silence prevails and distraction is kept at bay, are the true Ark of the Covenant and place of miracle. For his own reasons, God sometimes allows the externals on which we rely seemingly to collapse. The Ark will be captured by the enemy. The tried and true of religious practice suddenly seems inadequate to our needs and leaves us lonely and helpless. We must traverse this desert to find Jesus.

Discerning true from false religiosity is not always easy. The common folk are hardly to blame for rallying around traditional centres of religion — the Ark of the Covenant and the miraculous power of God. Who then is to blame? It seems that religious leaders carry the burden of fault. Earlier in First Samuel, in a section not mentioned in the liturgy, Eli’s sons Hophni and Phinehas were guilty of serious wrongdoing. They were reserving the best part of the people’s sacrifices for themselves and offering to God only the remnants; there were other scandalous actions. Religious leaders bear the brunt of blame if superstition and selfishness are rampant among the people — or if the people cannot distinguish true from false forms of religion.

Each one of us has religious influence in one way or another: as parent or teacher, as priest or minister, as neighbor or friend. In all of these capacities we influence others and are responsible for the moral attitude and strength of faith in others. The Scriptures question us: Do I use my position of authority to dominate others or to acquire personal benefits or to further personal career? Do I seek not to be the center of attention, so that my words and actions lead others to prayer and recollection in God’s presence?

(Adapted from ACP)

Open horizons - Tomorrow's reading reflection

Jesus, in today's Gospel, wanted to go to nearby villages and preach, saying, “For this purpose have I come.” Through listening to God’s call through prayer, he was able to focus in on what he was to do. He shows us the way to discover what we are to do: listen to God’s whispers in our hearts and then act on them. We may not always have the extreme clarity to say, “For this purpose have I come,” but sometimes we will, and other times we will know at least what direction we should go and what direction we should avoid. Great way to begin this new year!

(Adapted from Cindy Murphy McMahon)

Power in the Word - Tomorrow's reading reflection

When Jesus taught he spoke with authority. He spoke the word of God as no one had spoken it before. When the Rabbis taught they supported their statements with quotes from other authorities. The prophets spoke with delegated authority – “Thus says the Lord.”When Jesus spoke he needed no authorities to back his statements. He was authority incarnate –  the Word of God made flesh. When he spoke, God spoke. When he commanded even the demons obeyed.

Augustine of Hippo (354-430) remarked that “faith is mighty, but without love it profits nothing. The devils confessed Christ, but lacking charity it availed nothing. They said, 'What have we to do with you (Mark 1:24)?' They confessed a sort of faith, but without love. Hence they were devils.” Faith is powerful, but without love it profits nothing (1 Corinthians 13). Scripture tells us that true faith works through love (Galalatians 5:6) and abounds in hope (Romans 15:13). Our faith is made perfect in love because love orients us to the supreme good which is God himself as well as the good of our neighbor who is created in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26,27). Hope anchors our faith in the promises of God and purifies our desires for the things which will last for eternity. That is why the word of Christ has power to set us free from all that would keep us bound in sin, deception, and despair. Bede the venerable abbot of an English monastery (672-735) contrasted the power and authority of Jesus' word with the word of the devil:  “The devil, because he had deceived Eve with his tongue, is punished by the tongue, that he might not speak” [Homilies on the Gospels 1.8].

Faith is both a free gift of God and the free assent of our will to the whole truth that God has revealed. To live, grow, and persevere in the faith to the end, we must nourish it with the word of God. The Lord gives us his Holy Spirit to enlighten our minds that we may grow in his truth and in the knowledge of his great love for each of us. If we approach God’s word submissively, with an eagerness to do everything the Lord desires, we are in a much better position to learn what God wants to teach us through his word.

(Adapted from Don Schwager)

Pope names 19 new Cardinals; none from U.S.

Following today's Angelus prayer, Pope Francis announced that on 22 February, feast of the Chair of St. Peter, a consistory will be held during which 19 new cardinals will be appointed. Absent were any candidates from the United States. 

The group will comprise 16 electors and 3 archbishops emeritus, from twelve different countries from all over the world, and “represent the deep ecclesial relationship between the Church of Rome and the other Churches throughout the world”. The day after the consistory, the Holy Father will preside at a solemn concelebration with the new Cardinals, while on February 20 and 21 he will hold a consistory with all the cardinals to reflect on the theme of the family.

- Archbishop Pietro Parolin, secretary of State.
- Archbishop Lorenzo Baldisseri, secretary general of the Synod of Bishops
- Archbishop Gerhard Ludwig Muller, emeritus of Regensburg, Germany, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
– Archbishop Beniamino Stella, prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy.
– Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster, Great Britain.
– Archbishop Leopoldo Jose Brenes Solorzano of Managua, Nicaragua.
– Archbishop Gerald Cyprien Lacroix of Quebec, Canada.
– Archbishop Jean-Pierre Kutwa of Abidjan, Cote D'Ivoire.
– Archbishop Orani Joao Tempesta, O. Cist. of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
– Archbishop Gualtiero Bassetti of Perugia-Citta della Pieve, Italia.
– Archbishop Mario Aurelio Poli of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
– Archbishop Andrew Yeom Soo jung of Seoul, Korea.
– Archbishop Ricardo Ezzati Andrello, S.D.B. of Santiago del Chile, Chile.
– Archbishop Philippe Nakellentuba Ouedraogo of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
– Archbishop Orlando B. Quevedo, O.M.I. of Cotabato, Philippines.
– Archbishop Chibly Langlois of Les Cayes, Haiti.
The three archbishops emeritus are:
– Archbishop Loris Francesco Capovilla, ex prelate of the Shrine of Loreto and ex personal secretary of Blessed John XXIII.
– Archbishop Fernando Sebastian Aguilar, C.M.F. emeritus of Pamplona, Spain.
– Archbishop Kelvin Edward Felix, emeritus of Castries, Saint Lucia.