“Semper Paratus”Always Ready
A Reflection for Every Day By Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD
Franciscans of Divine Mercy/ Mission Saints Sergius & Bacchus
www.franciscansdivinemercy.org
www.missionstsergius.org
“No one knows the day or the time. The angels in heaven don't know, and the Son himself doesn't know. Only the Father knows”. (Mark 13:32) I find it truly amazing that so many who consider themselves believers and followers of Jesus Christ, or Christians, seem to forget these words from Holy Scripture.
All last week, the everywhere you looked, people everywhere were talking about the “prediction” of a so called pastor, that the Apocalypse, Rapture or the end of this world as we know it was going to happen at 6:00 PM on Friday.
As this reflection can well testify, he was wrong “AGAIN!” for the third time, and now says , “ooops, I got it wrong again and my calculations were off by 5 months”
The following may sound like the beginning of a joke, but it actually happened. A Jewish Rabbi, a pastor of another denomination, a priest and I were talking about the events of the last week along with a neighbor of mine and we all said the same thing at about the same time. “The end will come for every one of us at some time and we need to be prepared as the motto the Coast Guard says we need to be “Semper Paratus” to meet our maker.” It may come very quickly without any warning like it did for my father or the victims of the recent Tsunami, earthquakes, Tornadoes or an accident or it may come after a lingering illness where the family prays that the persons suffering will come to an end as I did for my mother who suffered for more than four years.
This brought us to another observation and comments about how in this day and age attendance by members of the various Religious denominations has dwindled to such a degree that all over the world churches, Synagogues and other places of worship to God are closing because of the lack of attendance which leads to the denominations not being able to afford to keep them open and also the lack of people who are willing to make a commitment to the service of God and His people.
In short, God is the furthest thing from too many people’s minds.
Sundays are just like every other day. People make plans to shop, get their hair done, play golf or go to the beach but no where do they have time, even for an hour, to gather together as a faith community to thank God for what they are able to do and also to offer petitions to God for the needs of other or for themselves.
The gospel reading for this coming Sunday instructs us “If you love me you will keep my commandments.” And last week we heard the following; “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me”. If we couple all the passages from Scripture mentioned above together how is it that we can continue to live our lives so care free and have God as the person we turn to only when we are in crisis and forget about him and His commandments, especially the TWO GREAT COMMANDMENTS according to Jesus Christ; “; “YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH.' "The second is THIS; YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.' There is no other commandment greater than these.”
As I go about tending to those who are ill in the nursing home and hospices and as I myself have reached the youthful age of 75, I often wonder if this persons illness is the illness that will be the last one on this earth or will the person recover to live to use their God given gifts in a manner that will reward them when they are finally called home to God with these words “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have shown you can be faithful in small things, I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master’s happiness.” Matthew 25:14-30
Daily I examine my own actions to determine if I did all I could do to help those in need of comfort, spiritual uplifting or just some companionship and conversation. Have I shared myself and the gifts God gave me with others?
During these troubling times with the downturn in the economy, wars raging, famine, genocide and continued high unemployment, gas prices continuing to skyrocket causing prices to soar on everything we hear daily of the excesses of so many and the exorbitant salaries being demanded by performers and professional athletes I have to wonder when people are going to wake up and come to the realization that “YOU CAN NOT TAKE MATERIAL THINGS WITH YOU WHEN THE END COMES FOR YOU”
I know of a woman who had acquired huge resources in property, money and other material things but was one of the least generous people I have ever known. Her life in her final years was extremely lonely and she complained bitterly that; “no one, even her children, seemed to care”. She died in a huge mansion alone but she did leave a huge fortune to her children who also inherited her bitterness probably because they never really knew love, kindness or saw charity in their lives.
So many people misuse the gifts that God gave them and I am certain that they will be called to answer for their misuse when they face that judgment spoken about in the Book of Daniel and when their “End Time” comes.
We need to acquire the motto “Semper Paratus” as the way of living so that we will be ready when we are called before God to answer for how we used the gifts he gave us.
God is going to ask us to answer for how we used His gifts to us. He will ask if we shared our resources with those in need. Did we show compassion for the aged and sick? Did we practice brotherly love to all God’s children regardless of race, creed, marital situation or sexual orientation?
Christ in the Beatitudes gave us the instructions and the way to live when He preached in the Sermon on the Mount and the parables like The Good Samaritan.
As The Gospel readings for this coming Sunday and the Readings from Last Sunday have made extremely clear there is one way, and one way only to god and that is keeping what Christ called the Greatest Commandments; “YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH.' "The second is THIS; YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.” , and remembering that we NEVER know when our end time will come so we had better be prepared and brgin to place God at the center and forefront of our lives and make time for him not only on Sunday, but every day that we live. AMEN
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Thursday, May 5, 2011
A Reflection for 3rd Sunday of Easter
In The Breaking of the Bread
A Reflection for the 3rd Sunday of Lent 2011 By Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD
Mission Saints Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
www.franciscansdivinemercy.org
“Were not the Scriptures open and our hearts burning within us as He spoke?” “By the breaking of the Bread their eyes were opened to them” These words taken from the Gospel of today should give us pause to think. What would it take for us to recognize Christ today?
Jesus told us He came to bring a new covenant, a clearer meaning of all that had been written before by the prophets. Jesus came into being, sent by Almighty God, to open up the scriptures to all people of all nations, races and genders.
Jesus came to simplify the message of Scripture for everyone.
Jesus came to dispel the idea that God was a vengeful God, but was a God of mercy, forgiveness and Love. Last Sunday we celebrated the feast honoring the Divine Mercy of God but even in light of all that has happened since the disciples met Christ on the road to Emmaus and chatted with him but did not recognize him until he sat with them and broke the bread there are people who do not accept or believe.
Jesus told us that the greatest commandments were “You shall love the Lord, your God, with your whole heart, mind, soul and body and the second is like unto it, Love your neighbor as you love yourself” (Luke 10:27” “Do this and you shall live” (Luke 10:28)
I do not think that Christ’s teaching could be any clearer. Yet, throughout the entire history of the Christian faith, men try to impose all sorts of rules, regulations and conditions onto this basic message often preventing those who desire to know, love and serve God from doing so.
I grant you, that sin interferes with our expression of love for God. So what is sin? Sin is anything that hurts another, sin is anything that defames or injures your body, soul and mind or another person.
In short, sin is doing anything that does not acknowledge your love of your neighbor or yourself.
In order to accomplish this act of love for God and all His children, we need strength to overcome the many temptations that plague us every day.
We get that strength from frequent prayer (conversations with God), participation in partaking of the bread of life given to us by Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. “Take, eat, This is my body” (Matthew 26:26) “As often as you do this you do so in remembrance of me” (1 Corinthians 11:25).
The Eucharist is much more than just a remembrance of Jesus Christ, it is His Body and Blood given to us to assimilate into our body’s giving us the strength to overcome the enticement of Satan.
In the Breaking of the bread, we call to mind the way Christ’s body was broken because of our sins.
In the mixing of the water and wine, we call to mind the blood and water that poured forth from Christ’s side when pierced by the lance.
Every time we receive the Eucharist, we strengthen our ability to repel sin.
Just as the disciples, whose hearts were ablaze with the Scriptures being opened to them when this stranger they met traveling to Emmaus told them “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” it was not until the invited stranger sat with that their eyes were opened and they recognized Jesus, the Risen Christ when “he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”
We too can have our hearts and eyes opened to Christ, living in our midst, through the Eucharist and by looking for the qualities that a follower of Christ should be exhibiting; compassion for the poor, aged homeless and unemployed, forgiveness toward those who have wronged them in any way, generosity with the gifts that God has given them and love of all they encounter as they travel life’s road.
We can deepen that recognition of Jesus by daily prayer and scripture reading.
Christ is the one and only head of the church, all the rest of us are mere servants of Christ who are here to shepherd and guide His flock toward the promised reward of everlasting life with God and all the heavenly elect when our days on this earthly plane are over. AMEN
A Reflection for the 3rd Sunday of Lent 2011 By Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD
Mission Saints Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
www.franciscansdivinemercy.org
“Were not the Scriptures open and our hearts burning within us as He spoke?” “By the breaking of the Bread their eyes were opened to them” These words taken from the Gospel of today should give us pause to think. What would it take for us to recognize Christ today?
Jesus told us He came to bring a new covenant, a clearer meaning of all that had been written before by the prophets. Jesus came into being, sent by Almighty God, to open up the scriptures to all people of all nations, races and genders.
Jesus came to simplify the message of Scripture for everyone.
Jesus came to dispel the idea that God was a vengeful God, but was a God of mercy, forgiveness and Love. Last Sunday we celebrated the feast honoring the Divine Mercy of God but even in light of all that has happened since the disciples met Christ on the road to Emmaus and chatted with him but did not recognize him until he sat with them and broke the bread there are people who do not accept or believe.
Jesus told us that the greatest commandments were “You shall love the Lord, your God, with your whole heart, mind, soul and body and the second is like unto it, Love your neighbor as you love yourself” (Luke 10:27” “Do this and you shall live” (Luke 10:28)
I do not think that Christ’s teaching could be any clearer. Yet, throughout the entire history of the Christian faith, men try to impose all sorts of rules, regulations and conditions onto this basic message often preventing those who desire to know, love and serve God from doing so.
I grant you, that sin interferes with our expression of love for God. So what is sin? Sin is anything that hurts another, sin is anything that defames or injures your body, soul and mind or another person.
In short, sin is doing anything that does not acknowledge your love of your neighbor or yourself.
In order to accomplish this act of love for God and all His children, we need strength to overcome the many temptations that plague us every day.
We get that strength from frequent prayer (conversations with God), participation in partaking of the bread of life given to us by Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. “Take, eat, This is my body” (Matthew 26:26) “As often as you do this you do so in remembrance of me” (1 Corinthians 11:25).
The Eucharist is much more than just a remembrance of Jesus Christ, it is His Body and Blood given to us to assimilate into our body’s giving us the strength to overcome the enticement of Satan.
In the Breaking of the bread, we call to mind the way Christ’s body was broken because of our sins.
In the mixing of the water and wine, we call to mind the blood and water that poured forth from Christ’s side when pierced by the lance.
Every time we receive the Eucharist, we strengthen our ability to repel sin.
Just as the disciples, whose hearts were ablaze with the Scriptures being opened to them when this stranger they met traveling to Emmaus told them “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” it was not until the invited stranger sat with that their eyes were opened and they recognized Jesus, the Risen Christ when “he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”
We too can have our hearts and eyes opened to Christ, living in our midst, through the Eucharist and by looking for the qualities that a follower of Christ should be exhibiting; compassion for the poor, aged homeless and unemployed, forgiveness toward those who have wronged them in any way, generosity with the gifts that God has given them and love of all they encounter as they travel life’s road.
We can deepen that recognition of Jesus by daily prayer and scripture reading.
Christ is the one and only head of the church, all the rest of us are mere servants of Christ who are here to shepherd and guide His flock toward the promised reward of everlasting life with God and all the heavenly elect when our days on this earthly plane are over. AMEN
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Reflection for Easter 2011
Be Not Afraid, He is Risen
An Easter Reflection by Rev. Robert Johnnene OFD
Mission Saints Sergius and Bacchus
www.missionstsergius.org
.www.franciscansdivinemercy.org
Alleluia, Alleluia “This is the Day the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad” (Psalm 118:24). “Do not be Afraid, You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth who was crucified, He is not here, He has risen” (Mark 16:6). “Why do you search for the living among the Dead” (Luke24: 5 ) “He is not here, He has been raised, exactly as He had promised” (Matthew 28:6).
These words taken from the four gospels telling of the Resurrection of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ should have special meaning for us and fill us with hope and trust in God.
The first phrase, one that I especially love and keep deep in my heart, is “Do Not Be Afraid” simply put, if you have faith in God and the truly believe the promises of Jesus Christ, there is nothing in life that you need to be afraid of. By placing your trust in the will of God and believing that everything in life has a God given purpose, even the dissention that causes separation, bickering, and the power seeking of all those who profess to be followers of Christ.
In these days where division seems to be all around us in government and even faith communities we need to seek out what the root cause of it is. At the heart of most of the discourse is the desire for power, control and most of all, MONEY.
How foolish are we mere mortals, we allow our pride, greed and envy to cloud our eyes so that we forget the message proclaimed by Jesus through His resurrection. The message that with God, all things can be conquered, even death. We also seem to conveniently forget what Christ has taught us by His life, words and deeds. “Love one another as I have loved You”
Christ proved His love for us in the ultimate way, by willingly accepting death, not just any death, but the ignominious death of crucifixion. What greater love can a person have but to be willing to give up their own life for another.
Christ not only conquered death, he conquered our sins because by His overcoming death and with His resurrection he brought us forgiveness for our weaknesses and gained for us the promise of everlasting life.
Jesus came to us from Almighty God to be a “Rabbouni” teacher to us. He came to teach us the way to our own salvation and glory. The sad thing is, all too often, we are either not willing to truly hear the teachings of Christ or if we do hear them we choose not to follow them because they are inconvenient for us.
All the proclamations of Halleluiah, all the prayers, all the ceremonial trappings and fancy vestments are for naught if we do not follow them through with actions. If we do not assist the poor and needy, speak out against injustice and discrimination and share our gifts with those who are less fortunate. We need to affirm, as Mary Magdalene did when she proclaimed “Rabbouni” that Jesus was the teacher and we learned His lessons and follow them.
Jesus was, is still, and always will be the head of the church. He is still directing those who believe through the Holy Spirit, “the giver of life who proceeds from the Father and the son. With the Father and the son, is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the prophets.” (Nicene Creed)
He speaks to each and every one of us who desire to know His truth and seek it out. He does not just speak to the hierarchy but to all who, through Baptism, have been called to “priesthood” not just those who have been consecrated as “Presbyters”.
Each and every person who has been born again in Baptism need to open their own hearts and minds to listen for the voice of God speaking within us and judge how what we are feeling and hearing complies with what Christ taught us in not only His words but by His actions.
We need to acknowledge Christ by seeking the truth as found in His teachings. We need to act in our daily lives in the manner that Jesus instructed us.
“Why do you search for the living (Jesus) among the dead? “He has been raised, exactly as He promised”
Jesus is alive; he is alive in the hearts and souls of all those who have been reborn through Baptism and who faithfully live according to His instructions. Christ is alive in every person who partakes of the “living Bread” he gave us in the Eucharist.
He gave himself to us, died for us and rose from the dead to conquer forever death from sin. Jesus taught us the way in order for us to know how to carry on His work here on earth while he and the Father watch over us.
On this Easter day, we need to believe and accept God’s will as taught by Christ in words, deed and actions and emulate them in our life.
On this glorious day when we celebrate the resurrection of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Let each of us who believe in Him and accept the call to “Come Follow Me” (Luke 18:22) work together to bring all who believe in the message and teachings of Christ together. Each and every one of us needs to make a concerted effort to repair the breaches that have torn us apart into separate factions, usually over some man made regulations that were instituted for the purpose of gaining control, power or political gain and which have nothing to do with God‘s will.
There is only one God. There was only one Jesus Christ. Christ, though His Apostles established one church, one faith.
It was not until that church, for political gain under Constantine, began to selectively pick and choose the teaching that fit their agenda and objectives that separation began and culminated when one Bishop decided that He, and only He was infallible and those who were supposed to be his equals were now subservient to him.
Every Baptized Christian is called to be God’s servants, His disciples.
All of us are called to live our faith and the teachings of Christ in our thoughts, words, and actions and not just by giving lip service.
We need to not only talk the talk but we need to Walk the walk.
Those of us who have been called to be shepherds and presbyters of His flock need find ways to work together with one voice just as Jesus spoke with one voice.
We need to stop the name calling and jockeying for power and financial gain and come together in unity with one message, the message that Christ claimed was the two greatest commandments, “Love the Lord, your God, with your whole heart, mind, soul and body and the second is like unto it, Love your neighbor as you love yourself”
By living that way when we proclaim, “Alleluia, Alleluia, This is the Day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be Glad, Jesus Christ has risen, Jesus is alive. Alleluia, Alleluia.” on Easter Sunday morning we are saying that Jesus lives today in each of us and we are attempting to live in accord with His teachings every day.
Let us pray; “Give praise to the Lord, for He is good: for His mercy endures forever. Alleluia, Alleluia. Send down Your spirit of love upon us and through your goodness make us of one mind who you have bless with the Paschal Sacrament. All glory honor and praise be yours, now and forever. AMEN.
An Easter Reflection by Rev. Robert Johnnene OFD
Mission Saints Sergius and Bacchus
www.missionstsergius.org
.www.franciscansdivinemercy.org
Alleluia, Alleluia “This is the Day the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad” (Psalm 118:24). “Do not be Afraid, You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth who was crucified, He is not here, He has risen” (Mark 16:6). “Why do you search for the living among the Dead” (Luke24: 5 ) “He is not here, He has been raised, exactly as He had promised” (Matthew 28:6).
These words taken from the four gospels telling of the Resurrection of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ should have special meaning for us and fill us with hope and trust in God.
The first phrase, one that I especially love and keep deep in my heart, is “Do Not Be Afraid” simply put, if you have faith in God and the truly believe the promises of Jesus Christ, there is nothing in life that you need to be afraid of. By placing your trust in the will of God and believing that everything in life has a God given purpose, even the dissention that causes separation, bickering, and the power seeking of all those who profess to be followers of Christ.
In these days where division seems to be all around us in government and even faith communities we need to seek out what the root cause of it is. At the heart of most of the discourse is the desire for power, control and most of all, MONEY.
How foolish are we mere mortals, we allow our pride, greed and envy to cloud our eyes so that we forget the message proclaimed by Jesus through His resurrection. The message that with God, all things can be conquered, even death. We also seem to conveniently forget what Christ has taught us by His life, words and deeds. “Love one another as I have loved You”
Christ proved His love for us in the ultimate way, by willingly accepting death, not just any death, but the ignominious death of crucifixion. What greater love can a person have but to be willing to give up their own life for another.
Christ not only conquered death, he conquered our sins because by His overcoming death and with His resurrection he brought us forgiveness for our weaknesses and gained for us the promise of everlasting life.
Jesus came to us from Almighty God to be a “Rabbouni” teacher to us. He came to teach us the way to our own salvation and glory. The sad thing is, all too often, we are either not willing to truly hear the teachings of Christ or if we do hear them we choose not to follow them because they are inconvenient for us.
All the proclamations of Halleluiah, all the prayers, all the ceremonial trappings and fancy vestments are for naught if we do not follow them through with actions. If we do not assist the poor and needy, speak out against injustice and discrimination and share our gifts with those who are less fortunate. We need to affirm, as Mary Magdalene did when she proclaimed “Rabbouni” that Jesus was the teacher and we learned His lessons and follow them.
Jesus was, is still, and always will be the head of the church. He is still directing those who believe through the Holy Spirit, “the giver of life who proceeds from the Father and the son. With the Father and the son, is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the prophets.” (Nicene Creed)
He speaks to each and every one of us who desire to know His truth and seek it out. He does not just speak to the hierarchy but to all who, through Baptism, have been called to “priesthood” not just those who have been consecrated as “Presbyters”.
Each and every person who has been born again in Baptism need to open their own hearts and minds to listen for the voice of God speaking within us and judge how what we are feeling and hearing complies with what Christ taught us in not only His words but by His actions.
We need to acknowledge Christ by seeking the truth as found in His teachings. We need to act in our daily lives in the manner that Jesus instructed us.
“Why do you search for the living (Jesus) among the dead? “He has been raised, exactly as He promised”
Jesus is alive; he is alive in the hearts and souls of all those who have been reborn through Baptism and who faithfully live according to His instructions. Christ is alive in every person who partakes of the “living Bread” he gave us in the Eucharist.
He gave himself to us, died for us and rose from the dead to conquer forever death from sin. Jesus taught us the way in order for us to know how to carry on His work here on earth while he and the Father watch over us.
On this Easter day, we need to believe and accept God’s will as taught by Christ in words, deed and actions and emulate them in our life.
On this glorious day when we celebrate the resurrection of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Let each of us who believe in Him and accept the call to “Come Follow Me” (Luke 18:22) work together to bring all who believe in the message and teachings of Christ together. Each and every one of us needs to make a concerted effort to repair the breaches that have torn us apart into separate factions, usually over some man made regulations that were instituted for the purpose of gaining control, power or political gain and which have nothing to do with God‘s will.
There is only one God. There was only one Jesus Christ. Christ, though His Apostles established one church, one faith.
It was not until that church, for political gain under Constantine, began to selectively pick and choose the teaching that fit their agenda and objectives that separation began and culminated when one Bishop decided that He, and only He was infallible and those who were supposed to be his equals were now subservient to him.
Every Baptized Christian is called to be God’s servants, His disciples.
All of us are called to live our faith and the teachings of Christ in our thoughts, words, and actions and not just by giving lip service.
We need to not only talk the talk but we need to Walk the walk.
Those of us who have been called to be shepherds and presbyters of His flock need find ways to work together with one voice just as Jesus spoke with one voice.
We need to stop the name calling and jockeying for power and financial gain and come together in unity with one message, the message that Christ claimed was the two greatest commandments, “Love the Lord, your God, with your whole heart, mind, soul and body and the second is like unto it, Love your neighbor as you love yourself”
By living that way when we proclaim, “Alleluia, Alleluia, This is the Day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be Glad, Jesus Christ has risen, Jesus is alive. Alleluia, Alleluia.” on Easter Sunday morning we are saying that Jesus lives today in each of us and we are attempting to live in accord with His teachings every day.
Let us pray; “Give praise to the Lord, for He is good: for His mercy endures forever. Alleluia, Alleluia. Send down Your spirit of love upon us and through your goodness make us of one mind who you have bless with the Paschal Sacrament. All glory honor and praise be yours, now and forever. AMEN.
Friday, April 22, 2011
A Reflection on The Entombed Christ
Holy Saturday Reflection
The Day of The Tomb
A Reflection for Holy Saturday/Easter Vigil by Rev. Robert Johnnene OFD
Mission Saints Sergius and Bacchus/Franciscans of Divine Mercy
http://www.franciscansdivinemercy.org/
http://www.missionstsergius.org/
"We Adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, because by your Holy Cross you have redeemed the World" these words we say during the Stations of the Cross are a powerful affirmation of what this entire Lenten season is all about. Without Christ's death, we would not have the gift of redemption. When Jesus went to the cross, he did so willingly. He knew that he was taking all the sins of the world with him. That by the shedding of His blood, Christ made peace by reconciling everything with God according to Saint Paul. By Christ's death, a new light was brought to all men.
Today is commonly called Holy Saturday for many reasons the most obvious one is that it comes at the end of Holy Week. Holy Saturday in Latin is, Sabbatum Sanctum, which means the "Day of the entombed Christ" because it is the day Christ's body lay in His tomb. We reference it in the Apostle's Creed when we say "He descended unto the dead."
Holy Saturday is a day of suspense between two worlds, that of darkness, sin and death, and that of the Resurrection and the restoration of the Light of the World through Christ's rising from the dead through which we gained everlasting live because when he rose we overcome our death by sin.
Because of this reason no masses are held until the Easter Vigil begins that evening.
At Nightfall on Holy Saturday the Easter Vigil service or, Great Service of Light begins and it is a time of expectation as well as joy. The Easter Vigil Liturgy was restored to the liturgy in 1955, during the liturgical reform of the Second Vatican Council.
The Sacred Liturgy of the Easter Vigil signifies Christ's passage from the dead to living and it begins in darkness (sin, death) and is enlightened by the new fire and the candle representing Lumen Christi - the Light of Christ or the Paschal Candle. The Candle signifies The light of Christ's Truth by which the Mystical Body of Christ, the community of believers, is led from spiritual darkness to the light of God's truth.
Christ's baptism, which our own baptism imitates, is represented during the liturgy by the blessing of the water of baptism by immersing ("burying") the candle representing His Body into the font
During the liturgy we recall God's sparing of the Hebrews whose doors were marked with the blood of the lamb; when we are sprinkled with the blessed water by which we were cleansed from original sin through Christ's sacrifice, and we repeat our baptismal vows, renouncing Satan and all his works.
When a parish has people who had not been baptized as children or Confirmed and who had gone through the preparation period known as RCIA (Right of Christian Initiation of Adults) The entire faith community will be present as they are Baptized and/or Confirmed. This year our Faith Community of St. Joseph Cupertino in Fall River Massachusetts will be welcoming into the Mystical Body of Christ, The Church, 6 persons and I am pleased I will be a part of that glorious celebration as a co-celebrant.
The Easter Vigil Mass rejoices at Christ's bodily resurrection from the darkness of the tomb; and we pray for our passage from death into eternal life, from sin into grace from the anguish of the Cross to complete peace and infinite mercy and love of God, and from this sinful world unto the everlasting live with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and all the heavenly elect in heaven.
The Sacred Liturgy of the Easter Vigil celebrates Christ's offering himself up as the sacrificial lamb on the cross through which we gained the promise of everlasting life. Without the cross, the tree that gave us the promise of everlasting life, we would still be floundering around in the darkness of sin and confusion.
The triumph of Christ is not something of the past, it is a living thing. It is something we are called to live every day.
When we are faced with oppression, illness, rejection, alienation we need to recall that all these were faced by Jesus Christ. By his life and death, Christ made holy every aspect of the human experience. We need to look upon our lives and live them with that in mind.
Our lives are holy, they are holy if we are willing to work hard to live by the example Christ gave us.
Christ spoke out against injustice, Christ welcomed the outcast, Christ challenged the unjust rules and regulations of His time and we are called to do all of the same.
The cross is a symbol of Christ's triumph and this Paschal Season is our liturgical means of participating in Christ's gift of redemption.
Our challenge is to live by the lessons Christ gave us every day of every year.
Let us then celebrate Christ's willingness to suffer the indignities of the passion and a criminal's death on the cross, which brought us the forgiveness of our sins and our salvation and make it ours by being faithful to Him and carrying our crosses proudly for all the world to see by our actions and daily life.
In today's society there are many crosses being offered for us to take up.
Can we carry the cross of speaking out against injustice even though it may bring us scorn and reproach by friends and family?
Can we speak out against acts of discrimination and bigotry even though by doing so we may find ourselves in the minority?
Do we have what it takes to allow ourselves to be stripped of all our pretensions and allow the world to see our true selves?
Can we give of ourselves enough to be of assistance to those who are not able to provide the basic necessities of life for themselves?
All these are things that require us to give of ourselves and deny ourselves of being comfortable with the status quo.
Let us not only renew our Baptismal vows but let's promise to be work harder every day to live our life in accord with Christ's teaching to Love God with all our heart, mind, soul and body and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves which means we become more mindful of the needs of others and not just our own needs. AMEN
The Day of The Tomb
A Reflection for Holy Saturday/Easter Vigil by Rev. Robert Johnnene OFD
Mission Saints Sergius and Bacchus/Franciscans of Divine Mercy
http://www.franciscansdivinemercy.org/
http://www.missionstsergius.org/
"We Adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, because by your Holy Cross you have redeemed the World" these words we say during the Stations of the Cross are a powerful affirmation of what this entire Lenten season is all about. Without Christ's death, we would not have the gift of redemption. When Jesus went to the cross, he did so willingly. He knew that he was taking all the sins of the world with him. That by the shedding of His blood, Christ made peace by reconciling everything with God according to Saint Paul. By Christ's death, a new light was brought to all men.
Today is commonly called Holy Saturday for many reasons the most obvious one is that it comes at the end of Holy Week. Holy Saturday in Latin is, Sabbatum Sanctum, which means the "Day of the entombed Christ" because it is the day Christ's body lay in His tomb. We reference it in the Apostle's Creed when we say "He descended unto the dead."
Holy Saturday is a day of suspense between two worlds, that of darkness, sin and death, and that of the Resurrection and the restoration of the Light of the World through Christ's rising from the dead through which we gained everlasting live because when he rose we overcome our death by sin.
Because of this reason no masses are held until the Easter Vigil begins that evening.
At Nightfall on Holy Saturday the Easter Vigil service or, Great Service of Light begins and it is a time of expectation as well as joy. The Easter Vigil Liturgy was restored to the liturgy in 1955, during the liturgical reform of the Second Vatican Council.
The Sacred Liturgy of the Easter Vigil signifies Christ's passage from the dead to living and it begins in darkness (sin, death) and is enlightened by the new fire and the candle representing Lumen Christi - the Light of Christ or the Paschal Candle. The Candle signifies The light of Christ's Truth by which the Mystical Body of Christ, the community of believers, is led from spiritual darkness to the light of God's truth.
Christ's baptism, which our own baptism imitates, is represented during the liturgy by the blessing of the water of baptism by immersing ("burying") the candle representing His Body into the font
During the liturgy we recall God's sparing of the Hebrews whose doors were marked with the blood of the lamb; when we are sprinkled with the blessed water by which we were cleansed from original sin through Christ's sacrifice, and we repeat our baptismal vows, renouncing Satan and all his works.
When a parish has people who had not been baptized as children or Confirmed and who had gone through the preparation period known as RCIA (Right of Christian Initiation of Adults) The entire faith community will be present as they are Baptized and/or Confirmed. This year our Faith Community of St. Joseph Cupertino in Fall River Massachusetts will be welcoming into the Mystical Body of Christ, The Church, 6 persons and I am pleased I will be a part of that glorious celebration as a co-celebrant.
The Easter Vigil Mass rejoices at Christ's bodily resurrection from the darkness of the tomb; and we pray for our passage from death into eternal life, from sin into grace from the anguish of the Cross to complete peace and infinite mercy and love of God, and from this sinful world unto the everlasting live with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and all the heavenly elect in heaven.
The Sacred Liturgy of the Easter Vigil celebrates Christ's offering himself up as the sacrificial lamb on the cross through which we gained the promise of everlasting life. Without the cross, the tree that gave us the promise of everlasting life, we would still be floundering around in the darkness of sin and confusion.
The triumph of Christ is not something of the past, it is a living thing. It is something we are called to live every day.
When we are faced with oppression, illness, rejection, alienation we need to recall that all these were faced by Jesus Christ. By his life and death, Christ made holy every aspect of the human experience. We need to look upon our lives and live them with that in mind.
Our lives are holy, they are holy if we are willing to work hard to live by the example Christ gave us.
Christ spoke out against injustice, Christ welcomed the outcast, Christ challenged the unjust rules and regulations of His time and we are called to do all of the same.
The cross is a symbol of Christ's triumph and this Paschal Season is our liturgical means of participating in Christ's gift of redemption.
Our challenge is to live by the lessons Christ gave us every day of every year.
Let us then celebrate Christ's willingness to suffer the indignities of the passion and a criminal's death on the cross, which brought us the forgiveness of our sins and our salvation and make it ours by being faithful to Him and carrying our crosses proudly for all the world to see by our actions and daily life.
In today's society there are many crosses being offered for us to take up.
Can we carry the cross of speaking out against injustice even though it may bring us scorn and reproach by friends and family?
Can we speak out against acts of discrimination and bigotry even though by doing so we may find ourselves in the minority?
Do we have what it takes to allow ourselves to be stripped of all our pretensions and allow the world to see our true selves?
Can we give of ourselves enough to be of assistance to those who are not able to provide the basic necessities of life for themselves?
All these are things that require us to give of ourselves and deny ourselves of being comfortable with the status quo.
Let us not only renew our Baptismal vows but let's promise to be work harder every day to live our life in accord with Christ's teaching to Love God with all our heart, mind, soul and body and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves which means we become more mindful of the needs of others and not just our own needs. AMEN
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Palm Sunday Reflection
Palm Sunday 2011
A Reflection for Palm Sunday by Rev. Robert Johnnene OFD
Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus/ Divine Mercy Franciscans
Divine Mercy Parish, Franklin, MA
www.missionstsergius.org
http://www.franciscansdivinemercy.org
Today we celebrate Christ’s triumphant entrance into Jerusalem but we must keep in mind it marks the beginning of the week that details the suffering that Christ was willing to endure so we could have forgiveness of our sins and achieve everlasting life with God and all the heavenly elect.
The week highlights what Christ was willing to GIVE UP in order for us to receive forgiveness of our sins.
For this reason throughout all of the history of the church the faithful have been asked to GIVE UP some of the comforts and luxuries that make our lives pleasurable.
As a Franciscan I and the members of our Divine Mercy Franciscans follow the rule of St. Francis who is most often shown surrounded by animals not just because he respected all of God’s creatures but because they reminded him of Christ’s teaching found in Matthew 6 :26 “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?”
St. Francis saw in animals a vision of the poverty of God, a freedom for life not dependent on possessions, a freedom that lives by giving and receiving, rather than by possessing.
The hallmark of St. Francis’ commitment to life with and for the poor is the practice of voluntary begging. Voluntary begging, for Francis, is the act of intentionally and publically relying on the charity of others for the sake of one’s livelihood and a means of caring for those who are in need because of illness, age, poverty and homelessness.
Item one of the Rule of St. Francis it states “This is the rule and way of living of the brothers: namely to observe the holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, living in obedience, without personal possessions”, and Item 6 it states “The brothers shall appropriate nothing to themselves, neither a house, nor a place, nor anything; but as pilgrims and strangers in this world, in poverty and humility serving God, they shall confidently go seeking for alms. Nor need they be ashamed, for the Lord became poor for us in this world even to giving up His earthly live in order for us to gain forgiveness of our sins and achieve everlasting life with God and all the heavenly elect. .”
On this Palm Sunday and the final week of Lent called Holy Week this reflection will talk about specific ways we can practice self-denial to and in a small way participate in a very small way in the suffering that Christ endured during his week of passion.
It is so easy for us to be attracted to material riches and the creature comforts they often provide but to be true followers of Christ we need to make a categorical decision not to let them become an idol we honor more than we honor God.
One way we can overcome this constant temptation and respond to our neighbor's needs by share with others what God in His generosity has given to us or allowed us to earn is to make a donation of the cost of what we give up to a charity or your faith community so they can help others as St. Francis instructs in his rule item 6.
Saint Paul, in Romans 15:25-27 speaks of the collection for the Faith Community of Jerusalem which tells us that even in the early church the work of proclaiming the Good News of Salvation required all the faithful to participate and care for each other. It is no different today.
A Faith Community is only as successful as how many of the community get involved in doing the work of God by providing the means to do it.
There is no better way for us to show our intercommunion and fellowship with the Body of Christ than to “Do unto others as we would have done unto us.” (John 15:13)
All over the world ministries and churches are having difficulty meeting the basic needs of their faith communities. Even here in the United States many faith Communities have difficulty because of and the sluggish economy meeting the weekly operating expenses let alone fulfilling the food, shelter, and other services the poor, aged and sick of their area need due to high unemployment.
I hear the same story from pastors all over this country how they are struggling and having difficulties because collections and donations have dropped drastically
Recently a Boston Globe story reported that the average per person weekly income of the Greater Boston are is $1000 (One Thousand Dollars) a week. Considering that there are many who do not receive even $250 a week, I have to wonder what others must be making for the average to be that high and how those on the high end of the wage scale are helping those at the bottom.
The average weekly salary in the area is more than I receive to live on for a whole month and I use some of my income to support the needs of our ministry.
If everyone reading or listening to this reflection would just give the cost of a daily cup of coffee at Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks for the week to their Church the result would make a huge impact.
I pray that everyone who this reflection reaches will reflect on their sharing of the gifts God has given them to have, especially in light of how the recent disaster in Japan reminded us how quickly everything can be lost, consider making an offering that helps those less fortunate the impact could be awesome.
The Church from the earliest times has called on Christ’s followers to give of themselves as Christ was willing to give for us.
Giving up something does nothing unless it also has a positive result like Christ’s Passion and Death.
As Paul reminds us in Romans 15:25; “ I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the saints there. For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in the Jews' spiritual blessings, they owe it to the Jews to share with them their material blessings.”
May Almighty God inspire you during this last week of Lent to be merciful and generous to the needs of our brothers and sisters in Christ and neighbors of the world for it is not what we have given up that will open the gates of heaven, but what we have done to help others. AMEN
A Reflection for Palm Sunday by Rev. Robert Johnnene OFD
Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus/ Divine Mercy Franciscans
Divine Mercy Parish, Franklin, MA
www.missionstsergius.org
http://www.franciscansdivinemercy.org
Today we celebrate Christ’s triumphant entrance into Jerusalem but we must keep in mind it marks the beginning of the week that details the suffering that Christ was willing to endure so we could have forgiveness of our sins and achieve everlasting life with God and all the heavenly elect.
The week highlights what Christ was willing to GIVE UP in order for us to receive forgiveness of our sins.
For this reason throughout all of the history of the church the faithful have been asked to GIVE UP some of the comforts and luxuries that make our lives pleasurable.
As a Franciscan I and the members of our Divine Mercy Franciscans follow the rule of St. Francis who is most often shown surrounded by animals not just because he respected all of God’s creatures but because they reminded him of Christ’s teaching found in Matthew 6 :26 “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?”
St. Francis saw in animals a vision of the poverty of God, a freedom for life not dependent on possessions, a freedom that lives by giving and receiving, rather than by possessing.
The hallmark of St. Francis’ commitment to life with and for the poor is the practice of voluntary begging. Voluntary begging, for Francis, is the act of intentionally and publically relying on the charity of others for the sake of one’s livelihood and a means of caring for those who are in need because of illness, age, poverty and homelessness.
Item one of the Rule of St. Francis it states “This is the rule and way of living of the brothers: namely to observe the holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, living in obedience, without personal possessions”, and Item 6 it states “The brothers shall appropriate nothing to themselves, neither a house, nor a place, nor anything; but as pilgrims and strangers in this world, in poverty and humility serving God, they shall confidently go seeking for alms. Nor need they be ashamed, for the Lord became poor for us in this world even to giving up His earthly live in order for us to gain forgiveness of our sins and achieve everlasting life with God and all the heavenly elect. .”
On this Palm Sunday and the final week of Lent called Holy Week this reflection will talk about specific ways we can practice self-denial to and in a small way participate in a very small way in the suffering that Christ endured during his week of passion.
It is so easy for us to be attracted to material riches and the creature comforts they often provide but to be true followers of Christ we need to make a categorical decision not to let them become an idol we honor more than we honor God.
One way we can overcome this constant temptation and respond to our neighbor's needs by share with others what God in His generosity has given to us or allowed us to earn is to make a donation of the cost of what we give up to a charity or your faith community so they can help others as St. Francis instructs in his rule item 6.
Saint Paul, in Romans 15:25-27 speaks of the collection for the Faith Community of Jerusalem which tells us that even in the early church the work of proclaiming the Good News of Salvation required all the faithful to participate and care for each other. It is no different today.
A Faith Community is only as successful as how many of the community get involved in doing the work of God by providing the means to do it.
There is no better way for us to show our intercommunion and fellowship with the Body of Christ than to “Do unto others as we would have done unto us.” (John 15:13)
All over the world ministries and churches are having difficulty meeting the basic needs of their faith communities. Even here in the United States many faith Communities have difficulty because of and the sluggish economy meeting the weekly operating expenses let alone fulfilling the food, shelter, and other services the poor, aged and sick of their area need due to high unemployment.
I hear the same story from pastors all over this country how they are struggling and having difficulties because collections and donations have dropped drastically
Recently a Boston Globe story reported that the average per person weekly income of the Greater Boston are is $1000 (One Thousand Dollars) a week. Considering that there are many who do not receive even $250 a week, I have to wonder what others must be making for the average to be that high and how those on the high end of the wage scale are helping those at the bottom.
The average weekly salary in the area is more than I receive to live on for a whole month and I use some of my income to support the needs of our ministry.
If everyone reading or listening to this reflection would just give the cost of a daily cup of coffee at Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks for the week to their Church the result would make a huge impact.
I pray that everyone who this reflection reaches will reflect on their sharing of the gifts God has given them to have, especially in light of how the recent disaster in Japan reminded us how quickly everything can be lost, consider making an offering that helps those less fortunate the impact could be awesome.
The Church from the earliest times has called on Christ’s followers to give of themselves as Christ was willing to give for us.
Giving up something does nothing unless it also has a positive result like Christ’s Passion and Death.
As Paul reminds us in Romans 15:25; “ I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the saints there. For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in the Jews' spiritual blessings, they owe it to the Jews to share with them their material blessings.”
May Almighty God inspire you during this last week of Lent to be merciful and generous to the needs of our brothers and sisters in Christ and neighbors of the world for it is not what we have given up that will open the gates of heaven, but what we have done to help others. AMEN
Saturday, February 19, 2011
A Refelction for Sunday 2/20/2011
7th Sunday of Ordinary Time Reflection
By Rev. Fr. Bob Johnnene OFD
Mission Saints Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
Divine Mercy Parish, Franklin, MA
www.missionstsergius.org
This week’s readings are about how we are called to be holy and explain very simply what being holy is.
Being holy all revolves around LOVE, MERCY, KINDNESS, COMPASSION, CHARITY, FORGIVENESS and being flexible.
In our first reading from the book of LEVITICUS which is the book of laws, we hear these words; “You will not harbor hatred for your brother. You will reprove your fellow-countryman firmly and thus avoid burdening yourself with a sin. You will not exact vengeance on, or bear any sort of grudge against, the members of your race, but will love your neighbor as yourself. I God have spoken.”
The Gospel repeats the same idea when it tells us to; “if anyone hits you on the right cheek, offer him the other as well; if someone wishes to go to law with you to get your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone requires you to go one mile, go two miles with him. Give to anyone who asks you, and if anyone wants to borrow, do not turn away. You have heard how it was said, You will love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say this to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; so that you may be children of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on the bad as well as the good, and sends down rain to fall on the upright and the wicked alike.”
God expects us to be holy persons, which means we must not seek what is fashionable in the world, but must extend to every person we come across the same kind of love as Christ showed to all who came to him.
We need to worry about those who are hungry, homeless, unemployed, sick and reach out as best we can to help them, even if they have done something to hurt us or have shown us disdain.
This is certainly not easy and totally opposite the norms of society but it is possible if we turn to our creator and ask for the graces to be Holy and to emulate Christ, St. Francis, Mother Therese of Calcutta, Father Damien of Molokai, all of whom gave totally of themselves to work and live with the poor, the sick, lepers, all those who society usually distains and rejects.
Last Monday we celebrated Valentines day, a day that is supposed to be dedicated to lovers but many have no idea who St. Valentine was and why he is associated with that day. St. Valentine was a Roman priest martyred during the reign of Claudius the second. He was arrested and imprisoned upon being caught marrying Christian couples and otherwise aiding Christians who were at the time being persecuted by Claudius in Rome. Helping Christians at this time was considered a crime.
Notice that Valentine was HELPING those who society had deemed unwelcome and unworthy of having their love committed in Marriage. This was an act of being HOLY.
To actually live a life of holiness is extremely difficult especially when today’s society is so self centered and consumed with acquiring material things, fame, power and wealth, all of which are opposite what being HOLY is about and a life style exactly like the people of Sodom and Gomorrah were living and we know what happened to them for NOT living a holy life.
What we need to do is ask God for help and the prayer I find addresses the goal and attributes of Holiness is what we call THE PRAYER OF ST. FRANCIS. Let me close this reflection by inviting you to say the PRAYER OF ST. FRANCIS with me.
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen
By Rev. Fr. Bob Johnnene OFD
Mission Saints Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
Divine Mercy Parish, Franklin, MA
www.missionstsergius.org
This week’s readings are about how we are called to be holy and explain very simply what being holy is.
Being holy all revolves around LOVE, MERCY, KINDNESS, COMPASSION, CHARITY, FORGIVENESS and being flexible.
In our first reading from the book of LEVITICUS which is the book of laws, we hear these words; “You will not harbor hatred for your brother. You will reprove your fellow-countryman firmly and thus avoid burdening yourself with a sin. You will not exact vengeance on, or bear any sort of grudge against, the members of your race, but will love your neighbor as yourself. I God have spoken.”
The Gospel repeats the same idea when it tells us to; “if anyone hits you on the right cheek, offer him the other as well; if someone wishes to go to law with you to get your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone requires you to go one mile, go two miles with him. Give to anyone who asks you, and if anyone wants to borrow, do not turn away. You have heard how it was said, You will love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say this to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; so that you may be children of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on the bad as well as the good, and sends down rain to fall on the upright and the wicked alike.”
God expects us to be holy persons, which means we must not seek what is fashionable in the world, but must extend to every person we come across the same kind of love as Christ showed to all who came to him.
We need to worry about those who are hungry, homeless, unemployed, sick and reach out as best we can to help them, even if they have done something to hurt us or have shown us disdain.
This is certainly not easy and totally opposite the norms of society but it is possible if we turn to our creator and ask for the graces to be Holy and to emulate Christ, St. Francis, Mother Therese of Calcutta, Father Damien of Molokai, all of whom gave totally of themselves to work and live with the poor, the sick, lepers, all those who society usually distains and rejects.
Last Monday we celebrated Valentines day, a day that is supposed to be dedicated to lovers but many have no idea who St. Valentine was and why he is associated with that day. St. Valentine was a Roman priest martyred during the reign of Claudius the second. He was arrested and imprisoned upon being caught marrying Christian couples and otherwise aiding Christians who were at the time being persecuted by Claudius in Rome. Helping Christians at this time was considered a crime.
Notice that Valentine was HELPING those who society had deemed unwelcome and unworthy of having their love committed in Marriage. This was an act of being HOLY.
To actually live a life of holiness is extremely difficult especially when today’s society is so self centered and consumed with acquiring material things, fame, power and wealth, all of which are opposite what being HOLY is about and a life style exactly like the people of Sodom and Gomorrah were living and we know what happened to them for NOT living a holy life.
What we need to do is ask God for help and the prayer I find addresses the goal and attributes of Holiness is what we call THE PRAYER OF ST. FRANCIS. Let me close this reflection by inviting you to say the PRAYER OF ST. FRANCIS with me.
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen
Friday, February 4, 2011
Sunday February 6th Reflection
You Are The Salt of the Earth
A Reflection for the 5th Sunday of Ordinary Time 2011
By Rev. Fr. Bob Johnnene OFD, Mission Saints Sergius & Bacchus/ Divine Mercy Franciscans
Divine Mercy Old Catholic Parish, Franklin, MA
www.missionstsergius.org
“You are salt for the earth. But if salt loses its taste what can make it salty again”, Our Gospel reading began with these words and they are more than worth pondering over.
Think about the attributes of salt. Without salt most foods are bland and have little taste. Salt is an essential part of our body. Our tears and sweat are salty. Salt can melt ice and when mixed with certain chemicals can cause and explosion. When Christ tells us that we are the salt of the earth he means that without us, the world would be bland and tasteless.
The Gospel goes on the tell us that salt when it looses its flavoring ability; “is good for nothing, and can only be thrown out to be trampled under people's feet.” Like salt, if we loose our flavor for God we become worthless as disciples of Christ and messengers of God‘s love.
The next passage of the Gospel proclaims; “You are light for the world. A city built on a hill-top cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lamp stand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”
The meaning of this passage is very clear, you can not hide your faith and trust and love of God from other but you need to be proud and wear your faith like a badge of honor.
Paul in his letter to the Corinthians explains that he is not a great orator nor did he use mystery and high faulting language but simply explained the truth of Christ’s message and God’s love for all His children. He explains that he came with fear and trembling and with the full recognition of his weakness and his failings. In other words he recognized that he was a simple human being that God picked out to proclaim the Good news of Salvation to all he encountered.
He did not use Great theological, philosophical and psychological language but the simple language and Christ’s words to let people know that Christ came for Everybody on the face of the earth.
Paul makes it clear that we can not depend on human knowledge and man made rules and regulations to earn the kingdom of heaven but we need to listen to that inner voice which is usually the Holy Spirit, guiding us and leading us to a deeper knowledge and love of God.
We need to put complete faith and trust in God and continually ask God to assist us in getting to know , love and serve Him and to have the courage and the strength to “Let our light of faith shine brightly for all to see”
We have to be like Salt and give a wonderful flavor to our message of God’s power, love, mercy by letting the light of our faith in God shine forth every day having our daily actions emulate the Beatitudes that we heard last week and the Great commandment Christ gave us; “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law of the Prophets hangs on these two commandments.”
We must always remember that; “God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him” (1 Jn 4:16).
Remembering this we can always have the courage and not be afraid to let our Faith and love of God shine forth like a beacon to keep away the darkness and despair that often can overtake people who have lost their faith or who have never known the Good News of Salvation that Christ earned for us.
We can be the spice of life and a beacon of faith to lead others to the promised land of everlasting life in heaven with the creator and all the heavenly elect. AMEN
A Reflection for the 5th Sunday of Ordinary Time 2011
By Rev. Fr. Bob Johnnene OFD, Mission Saints Sergius & Bacchus/ Divine Mercy Franciscans
Divine Mercy Old Catholic Parish, Franklin, MA
www.missionstsergius.org
“You are salt for the earth. But if salt loses its taste what can make it salty again”, Our Gospel reading began with these words and they are more than worth pondering over.
Think about the attributes of salt. Without salt most foods are bland and have little taste. Salt is an essential part of our body. Our tears and sweat are salty. Salt can melt ice and when mixed with certain chemicals can cause and explosion. When Christ tells us that we are the salt of the earth he means that without us, the world would be bland and tasteless.
The Gospel goes on the tell us that salt when it looses its flavoring ability; “is good for nothing, and can only be thrown out to be trampled under people's feet.” Like salt, if we loose our flavor for God we become worthless as disciples of Christ and messengers of God‘s love.
The next passage of the Gospel proclaims; “You are light for the world. A city built on a hill-top cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lamp stand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”
The meaning of this passage is very clear, you can not hide your faith and trust and love of God from other but you need to be proud and wear your faith like a badge of honor.
Paul in his letter to the Corinthians explains that he is not a great orator nor did he use mystery and high faulting language but simply explained the truth of Christ’s message and God’s love for all His children. He explains that he came with fear and trembling and with the full recognition of his weakness and his failings. In other words he recognized that he was a simple human being that God picked out to proclaim the Good news of Salvation to all he encountered.
He did not use Great theological, philosophical and psychological language but the simple language and Christ’s words to let people know that Christ came for Everybody on the face of the earth.
Paul makes it clear that we can not depend on human knowledge and man made rules and regulations to earn the kingdom of heaven but we need to listen to that inner voice which is usually the Holy Spirit, guiding us and leading us to a deeper knowledge and love of God.
We need to put complete faith and trust in God and continually ask God to assist us in getting to know , love and serve Him and to have the courage and the strength to “Let our light of faith shine brightly for all to see”
We have to be like Salt and give a wonderful flavor to our message of God’s power, love, mercy by letting the light of our faith in God shine forth every day having our daily actions emulate the Beatitudes that we heard last week and the Great commandment Christ gave us; “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law of the Prophets hangs on these two commandments.”
We must always remember that; “God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him” (1 Jn 4:16).
Remembering this we can always have the courage and not be afraid to let our Faith and love of God shine forth like a beacon to keep away the darkness and despair that often can overtake people who have lost their faith or who have never known the Good News of Salvation that Christ earned for us.
We can be the spice of life and a beacon of faith to lead others to the promised land of everlasting life in heaven with the creator and all the heavenly elect. AMEN
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