3/1/12 - Revisiting "Ask, Seek, and Knock"

Matthew 7:7-11

Jesus said to his disciples:
"Ask and it will be given to you;
seek and you will find;
knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds;
and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
Which one of you would hand his son a stone
when he asked for a loaf of bread,
or a snake when he asked for a fish?
If you then, who are wicked,
know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much more will your heavenly Father give good things
to those who ask him.

"Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.
This is the law and the prophets."
------

So over the time I've been writing this message, I have written about this passage three times. That gives me an opportunity to look at my own spiritual development over the years.

On 7/22/08, I said:

If you don’t feel your faith is deep enough, ask God to help build your faith. If you’re looking for an answer to a difficult question, ask God to reveal the answer to you. If you are in a time of trouble, cast all your anxieties upon God, and just seek him. It really is that simple. Sure, the situations can be extremely difficult and the questions can be extremely tough, but remember – God can overcome all of that instantly. If we seek Him faithfully, we will NEVER be disappointed.

On 3/4/09, I said:

Developing/increasing your faith and marching toward spiritual maturity doesn’t require great intellect, or some special gift only available to few. For years I had thought that was the case, and I was continually frustrated that I couldn’t unlock the answers to spiritual questions. What I've been able to see in the last year is that when I take those questions to God (i.e., seek Him), God usually reveals the answers to me.

On 8/24/10, I said:

The more I think about these verses, the more precious they are to me.

At the moment, I think of them mostly in terms of my relationship with Christ. I want a deeper relationship than what I have. I want to increase my connection with Christ, who is already living inside me. I want to live "life in the sprit." A lot of people want those things. But ... wanting isn't enough though. I need to ask, seek, and knock. I need to engage Christ - through prayer, adoration, the Sacraments, and the Word.

Specifically with the Word -- I need to pay close attention to what He desires from His people -- which is for us to remain in Him, and to obey His commandments. The first, most important, and best way to do this is through love. Christ says to love one another. St. Paul tells us that above everything is faith, hope, and love (ie, the theological virtues), and that the greatest of these is love.

Today ...

I agree with all of the above. I can also see the transition from being concerned about what what I am seeking from Christ to beginning to be concerned with what He is seeking from me. I think that's a step in the right direction. As I walk through this lent, I want to focus more and more on that point, because that's what a close relationship with Christ is all about. To do that, I need to spend less time talking to God about myself and what I think I need, and more time just sitting in front of Him, and letting Him teach me what He is about.

1/6/12 - Making a Gift to God

Matthew 26:6-12

Now when Jesus was in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper,
a woman came up to him with an alabaster jar of costly perfumed oil, and poured it on his head while he was reclining at table.
When the disciples saw this, they were indignant and said, "Why this waste?
It could have been sold for much, and the money given to the poor."
Since Jesus knew this, he said to them, "Why do you make trouble for the woman? She has done a good thing for me.
The poor you will always have with you; but you will not always have me.
In pouring this perfumed oil upon my body, she did it to prepare me for burial.
Amen, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be spoken of, in memory of her."

-------

One thing that touches me about this passage is how receptive Christ is to the gift that the woman gives to him. She brought something to him that she treasured, and she offered it to Him. He accepted it gratefully, even though others thought that the gift might be wasteful, and that the gift could have been used for better purposes.

I've been thinking a lot lately about what it means to offer my day to God. I can say the words, but I struggle with truly putting it into practice. I'd like to get to the point where I can approach my day as a gift that I can make to the Lord. The gift won't be perfect. There will be lots of junk in it, both good and bad. But if I can begin to approach the day's events as a process of building something I can give to the divine creator, and have that in my mind as I go about my day, I'm sure the day will be more fruitful, and that I might make a gift suitable for Christ.

Need a heaping spoonful of grace to do that, though!

10/7/11 - Pearl of Great Price

Matthew 13:44-46

44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
45 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls.
46 When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.
-------

How much do you value the kingdom of heaven?

According to Christ, we should value it more than anything. It is so valuable that we should "sell all that we have" to obtain it. We should hold onto it with everything we have, because it is FAR FAR FAR more valuable than anything that we value here on earth -- even the things we value the most.

I came back to this verse recently and was struck by it. In my head, I want to value the kingdom of God as Christ says. I'm pretty sure that's what my heart wants too. That all sounds good ... but the proof is in the pudding. The easiest way to understand the things that I truly value is to look at how I spend my time, my money, and my talents. When I look at myself hard from that perspective, I can identify a number of things that I hold more value than the Kingdom.

That's just plain wrong,

Of course, faith comes from God. We are human. We are fallen. We are on a journey. But it IS incumbent upon us to realize that ARE on a journey, and that we need God's grace to get us to the Kingdom. We need to ask Him to take us there. Not just once, but over and over and over, throughout the course of our lives. As St. Paul says, we must "press on toward the goal."

If you're reading this and am with me, just take a moment to stop and pray, and ask God for His help today. And pray for me as well!

8/9/11 - Faith Like A Child

Matthew 18:1-5

The disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?”
He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said,
“Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children,
you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Whoever becomes humble like this child
is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.
And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.
---

About six months ago we had Mark's version of this episode.

When we were children, we have full faith in our parents. We depended on our parents for everything, down to the most basic of needs. When something went wrong, we ran to them for help. When we didn't understand something, we went to them for guidance. We had complete trust in them.

According to Jesus himself, the Word incarnate, that is what our relationship with God should be like. Is that what yours is like? Do you depend on Him? Do you go to Him for guidance? Do you run to Him for help? Do you have trust in Him?

This is where the rubber meets the road. This is what "faith" is all about. The idea of faith is so watered down in today's culture. It's not merely recognizing something as fact, or believing something to be true. Faith much more than that. It is about trusting completely in God -- which ultimately means seeking Him out, listening to Him, and doing what He tells you to do. That is the way it has always been, from Adam to Noah to Abraham to David ... to Christ. And to us.

8/8/11 - Are You Ready To Walk On Water?

Matthew: 14:22-53

After he had fed the people, Jesus made the disciples get into a boat
and precede him to the other side,
while he dismissed the crowds.
After doing so, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray.
When it was evening he was there alone.
Meanwhile the boat, already a few miles offshore,
was being tossed about by the waves, for the wind was against it.
During the fourth watch of the night,
he came toward them walking on the sea.
When the disciples saw him walking on the sea they were terrified.
“It is a ghost,” they said, and they cried out in fear.
At once Jesus spoke to them, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”
Peter said to him in reply,
“Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”
He said, “Come.”
Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus.
But when he saw how strong the wind was he became frightened;
and, beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!”
Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught Peter,
and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
After they got into the boat, the wind died down.
Those who were in the boat did him homage, saying,
“Truly, you are the Son of God.”

-------

This was Sunday's gospel, and here at St. Patrick's in Gretna, NE, we had the pleasure of hosting Archbishop George Lucas for the dedication of our new parish center.

I've gotten to where I really enjoy a trip by the bishop. It gives me an opportunity to remember, and to teach my children, that this is the continuation of an ancient tradition. The bishops are today's successor's to the apostles, and just like those first bishops, these men are the shepherds of the church. It is their job to shepherd the flock in their dioceses, and to teach them the faith. That has been the case since the Pentecost.

Archbishop Lucas gave a great homily on Sunday. He talked about how this event is so legendary and so far removed in time that it seems distant -- a gift that was meant for other people, for their purposes. And yet, if anything, Christ is MORE present to us here in the 21st Century than He was for the Apostles. He has sent the Holy Spirit. They are inside of us and with us all the time. He is there with us through all sorts of trials, and His help is there for the asking. And he comes to us so intimately and humbly in the Eucharist -- taking all of the hurt and pain and sin we give Him, and exchanging it for His own divinity.

We all have storms that we struggle through, little ones and big. How often do you go to Christ in those times? Are you willing to completely to rely on Him? Are you willing to step out of the boat and give Him control? Are you willing to commit to that?

"O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"

7/6/11 - What I Say To You In Darkness, Speak In The Light

Matthew 10:

27 What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light; what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops.
------

In Matthew 10 Jesus is speaking specifically to the Twelve, so these words are meant for them. However, there is a crucial truth in this one verse for anyone who wants to grow spiritually.

Jesus teaches in the darkness. He teaches in silence. He teaches without words.

The more I've grown spiritually, the more I've realized this. Great emotional moments are nice. Obvious signs from God are very nice. But ... they aren't ultimately what the Christian should be after. The Christian should be seeking God, and not need any of those things. The God that teaches in silence.

One thing is for sure -- one after another, the Saints are unanimous on this teaching. Some articulate it better than others. Some, like Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross, Therese of Liseaux, Alphonsus Liguori, and Francis de Sales -- have been able to articulate this in texts that stand as masterpieces for us to learn from. Others have just lived it. Of all people, St. Paul couldn't even describe it in his letters, he could only hint at it with terms like "the peace of God which transcends all understanding." But one saint after another agreed with this remarkable thought.

God is within us. He teaches us in silence. You can search the world over for Him, and eventually you will find Him within yourself.

If you want to dive into this subject in detail, go out and buy THIS book. You won't be disappointed.

The Fire Within by Father Thomas Dubay

7/5/11 - Take My Yoke Upon You

Matthew 11:27-30


27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him.

28 "Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.

29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for your selves.

30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden light."

---------

Jesus says, no one knows the father, except Him, and anyone to whom He wishes to reveal God. Knowledge of God is divinely revealed, by Jesus, at his own discretion.

Have you ever wondered exatly what makes Jesus wish to reveal the Father to a person? Verse 29 says "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me." If we are to take Jesus at his word, that means we learn from Jesus by taking on his yoke.

What does that mean?

According to Wikipedia, A yoke is a wooden beam, normally used between a pair of oxen or other animals to enable them to pull together on a load when working in pairs. Taking Chirst's yoke means tying yourself to Him - sticking to Him, going where He goes, and acting the way He wants us to act. According to Jesus, if we are willing to do this, we will learn from Him. He will reveal the Father to us.

6/23/11 - I Did Not Come To Save The Righteous

Matthew 9:9-13

9 As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post. He said to him, "Follow me." And he got up and followed him.

10 While he was at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat with Jesus and his disciples.

11 The Pharisees saw this and said to his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"

12 He heard this and said, "Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.

13 Go and learn the meaning of the words, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' I did not come to call the righteous but sinners."

--------
This is such a great reminder of the Savior that we have. Even though we are sinners, and even though we don't deserve Him at all, He comes to us. He moves into our lives. He eats and drinks with us. He becomes part of us.

This isn't something that just happened once in the past. It happens with us, every day. He sits with us every day, and he gently teaches us. He gives himself to us. He lives within us. And ... he transforms us. He makes us righteous. He doesn't just "call" us righteous or "count" us as righteous. He MAKES us righteous.

If we let Him!

6/22/11 - Courage, child, your sins are forgiven

Matthew 9:1-8

1 He entered a boat, made the crossing, and came into his own town.

2 And there people brought to him a paralytic lying on a stretcher. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Courage, child, your sins are forgiven."

3 At that, some of the scribes said to themselves, "This man is blaspheming."

4 Jesus knew what they were thinking, and said, "Why do you harbor evil thoughts?

5 Which is easier, to say, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Rise and walk'?

6 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins" --he then said to the paralytic, "Rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home."

7 He rose and went home.

8 When the crowds saw this they were struck with awe and glorified God who had given such authority to human beings.

-----------

I've read this episode many times. What struck me today is Christ's initial response to the paralytic: "Courage, child, your sins are forgiven." The first thing Jesus does is address the paralytic's spiritual ailments, not his physical ones. He doesn't do anything about the physical ailments until he is challenged by the scribes, and His specific purpose for the physical healing is to demonstrate that He has the authority to forgive sins.

We spend so much of our lives addressing our physical situations. Homes. Jobs. Security. Physical Health. But here Jesus is showing us that our spiritual situation -- our standing before God -- is more important than any of those things. In fact, He tells the paralytic to have courage. Your sins are forgiven. There is nothing to worry about.

Be not afraid.

6/16/11 - Demons and Townspeople

Matthew 8:28-34

28 When he came to the other side, to the territory of the Gadarenes, two demoniacs who were coming from the tombs met him. They were so savage that no one could travel by that road.

29 They cried out, "What have you to do with us, Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the appointed time?"

30 Some distance away a herd of many swine was feeding.

31 The demons pleaded with him, "If you drive us out, send us into the herd of swine."

32 And he said to them, "Go then!" They came out and entered the swine, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea where they drowned.

33 The swineherds ran away, and when they came to the town they reported everything, including what had happened to the demoniacs.

34 Thereupon the whole town came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw him they begged him to leave their district.

---------

There is a tremendous contrast between the behavior of the demons that Christ encounters, and the townspeople who witness that encounter.

The demons, which can see the spiritual world, immediately recognize the Son of God, submit to His authority, and beg him for mercy. That's what the demons do, and they are slaves to the sin of pride.

The townspeople ... BEG HIM TO LEAVE! Even after they've seen him drive out the demons, they want him to go.

Think about that for a minute. Those who were created in God's image want God incarnate to leave them. They don't want to face him. They'd rather go back to their lives in the flesh and deal with day to day worries, than walk toward the ultimate spiritual light.

What does that say about man? How willing are we to see the Christ that exists around us? How willing are we to submit to His authority? Are we willing to do what he says, or are we going to continue man's age-old story of neglecting God's will?

6/8/11 - The Centurion

Well I've taken quite a break.  Here we go!

Matthew 8:5-10

5 When he entered Capernaum, a centurion approached him and appealed to him, 

6 saying, "Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, suffering dreadfully." 

7 He said to him, "I will come and cure him." 

8 The centurion said in reply, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed. 

9 For I too am a person subject to authority, with soldiers subject to me. And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another, 'Come here,' and he comes; and to my slave, 'Do this,' and he does it."

10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, "Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith.

-----

"Jesus Christ is my personal Lord and Savior".

Lots of people say this.  For the most part, people are "all in" on the idea of Jesus as Savior - how could you not be?  He is the Lamb that takes away the sin of the world, and we all absolutely need that.

But what about Jesus as Lord?  When someone is Lord, they are a ruler.  They have absolute, unqeustionable authority.  That isn't a popular idea these days, and for us in America, it's a repulsive idea.  Our country is based on the premise that we don't deal with those guys.

That wasn't the case for the centurion.  He was a military man.  He had people bound to his orders, and he was bound to the orders of his superiors.  Completely bound, without question.

As a man who served under authority, he recognized authority when he saw it.  He didn't need proof.  He didn't need a demonstration.  He didn't need Christ to come with him.  He was absolutely, 100% sure that if Christ said the servant was healed, that he would be healed.  No questions asked.

I think it's worthwhile for all Christians to take a long, hard look and determine whether or not Christ is Lord in their life.  Do you believe Christ is authoritative in what He says?  If so, do you submit to His authority, really and truly?

5/6/11 - The Eye Is The Lamp Of The Body

 

 

Matthew 6:22-23

"The lamp of the body is the eye. If your eye is sound, your whole body will be filled with light; but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be in darkness. And if the light in you is darkness, how great will the darkness be. "

-----

 

Have you ever spent any time thinking about this verse, and what Jesus is actually saying?  I spent some time meditating on this last night, and here's my opinion.  

 

A sound eye is an eye that seeks God. It has spiritual perspective.  It certainly sees the worldly and deals with it as necessary for daily life, but a sound eye has a keen sense of the eternal -- the things that truly last.  It is discerning, and it considers God's will as it takes in the view.

 

A sound eye doesn't focus on the created.  A person with a sound eye looks at the created, and sees the reflection of the creator.  And he treats what he sees accordingly. . 

 

A sound eye isn't lustful.   A man with a sound eye doesn't look at a woman as an object of desire.  That type of eye lets the darkness in. A man with a sound eye understands that people are created in God's image, and treats them with that respect.

 

A sound eye isn't prideful.  A person with a sound eye doesn't perceive the world and form opinions based on how the world affects him -- what he doesn't like, what makes him mad, how he is inconvenienced, how he can conquer, how he can gain, how he can get what he wants, or how he can win. A man with an eye that sees the world from pride, selfishness, and greed lets the darkness in.

 

A sound eye is humble.  A person with a sound eye truly (NOT FALSELY) sees himself as meek.  He understands that he is fully dependant on God.  He does not try to do things without God's help or outside of God's will.  He accepts troubles as part of life on earth, and doesn't pass judgements on others because of them.  He is confident in his heavenly Father.

 

It's really worth thinking about.  Jesus wouldn't have said it if it weren't true.

3/30/11 - Fulfilling the Law

Matthew 5:17-19

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.
I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.
Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away,
not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter
will pass from the law,
until all things have taken place.
Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments
and teaches others to do so
will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven.
But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments
will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.”
----

The subject of Christ fulfilling the law can be tough to get your mind around. I know, I've tried. In very basic terms though, here is my 25-cent version: Christ is the only person who could perfectly live the Mosaic Law, and he did it for all of us. This immediately raises a huge stumbling block though. If Christ fulfilled the Law, how does it apply to us today? Are we bound to try to fulfill it?

Immediately after this passage, through the end of Matthew 5, Christ gives divine interpretation of some elements of the Mosaic Law. Clearly the moral teachings still stand, and he explained them in further detail throughout the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5, 6, and 7).

Here's more from the CCC:

I. JESUS AND THE LAW
 
577 At the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount Jesus issued a solemn warning in which he presented God's law, given on Sinai during the first covenant, in light of the grace of the New Covenant:

Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets: I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law, until all is accomplished. Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.³²⁹

578 Jesus, Israel's Messiah and therefore the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, was to fulfill the Law by keeping it in its all embracing detail - according to his own words, down to "the least of these commandments".³³⁰ He is in fact the only one who could keep it perfectly.³³¹ On their own admission the Jews were never able to observe the Law in its entirety without violating the least of its precepts.³³² This is why every year on the Day of Atonement the children of Israel ask God's forgiveness for their transgressions of the Law. The Law indeed makes up one inseparable whole, and St. James recalls, "Whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it."³³³
 
579 This principle of integral observance of the Law not only in letter but in spirit was dear to the Pharisees. By giving Israel this principle they had led many Jews of Jesus' time to an extreme religious zeal.³³⁴ This zeal, were it not to lapse into "hypocritical" casuistry,³³⁵ could only prepare the People for the unprecedented intervention of God through the perfect fulfillment of the Law by the only Righteous One in place of all sinners.³³⁶
 
580 The perfect fulfillment of the Law could be the work of none but the divine legislator, born subject to the Law in the person of the Son.³³⁷ In Jesus, the Law no longer appears engraved on tables of stone but "upon the heart" of the Servant who becomes "a covenant to the people", because he will "faithfully bring forth justice".³³⁸ Jesus fulfills the Law to the point of taking upon himself "the curse of the Law" incurred by those who do not "abide by the things written in the book of the Law, and do them", for his death took place to redeem them "from the transgressions under the first covenant".³³⁹
 
581 The Jewish people and their spiritual leaders viewed Jesus as a rabbi.³⁴⁰ He often argued within the framework of rabbinical interpretation of the Law.³⁴¹ Yet Jesus could not help but offend the teachers of the Law, for he was not content to propose his interpretation alongside theirs but taught the people "as one who had authority, and not as their scribes".³⁴² In Jesus, the same Word of God that had resounded on Mount Sinai to give the written Law to Moses, made itself heard anew on the Mount of the Beatitudes.³⁴³ Jesus did not abolish the Law but fulfilled it by giving its ultimate interpretation in a divine way: "You have heard that it was said to the men of old. . . But I say to you. . ."³⁴⁴ With this same divine authority, he disavowed certain human traditions of the Pharisees that were "making void the word of God".³⁴⁵
 
582 Going even further, Jesus perfects the dietary law, so important in Jewish daily life, by revealing its pedagogical meaning through a divine interpretation: "Whatever goes into a man from outside cannot defile him. . . (Thus he declared all foods clean.). . . What comes out of a man is what defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts. . ."³⁴⁶ In presenting with divine authority the definitive interpretation of the Law, Jesus found himself confronted by certain teachers of the Law who did not accept his interpretation of the Law, guaranteed though it was by the divine signs that accompanied it.³⁴⁷ This was the case especially with the sabbath laws, for he recalls, often with rabbinical arguments, that the sabbath rest is not violated by serving God and neighbor,³⁴⁸ which his own healings did.

CCC Footnotes:

329 Mt 5:17-19.
330 Mt 5:19.
331 Cf. Jn 8:46.
332 Cf. Jn 7:19; Acts 13:38-41; 15:10.
333 Jas 2:10; cf. Gal 3:10; 5:3.
334 Cf. Rom 10:2.
335 Cf. Mt 15:31; Lk 11:39-54.
336 Cf Isa 53:11; Heb 9:15.
337 Cf. Gal 4:4.
338 Jer 31:33; Isa 42:3, 6.
339 Gal 3:13; 3:10; Heb 9:15.
340 Cf Jn 11:28; 3:2; Mt 22:23-24, 34-36.
341 Cf. Mt 12:5; 9:12; Mk 2:23-27; Lk 6:6-9; Jn 7:22-23.
342 Mt 7:28-29.
343 Cf. Mt 5:1.
344 Mt 5:33-34.
345 Mk 7:13; cf. 3:8.
346 Mk 7:18-21; cf. Gal 3:24.
347 Cf. Jn 5:36; 10:25, 37-38; 12:37.
348 Cf. Num 28 9; Mt 12:5; Mk 2:25-27; Lk 13:15-16; 14:3-4; Jn 7:22-24.

3/22/11 - Widening Phylacteries and Lengthening Tassels

Matthew 23:1-12

Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples, saying,
“The scribes and the Pharisees
have taken their seat on the chair of Moses.
Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you,
but do not follow their example.
For they preach but they do not practice.
They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry
and lay them on people’s shoulders,
but they will not lift a finger to move them.
All their works are performed to be seen.
They widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels.
They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues,
greetings in marketplaces, and the salutation ‘Rabbi.’
As for you, do not be called ‘Rabbi.’
You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers.
Call no one on earth your father;
you have but one Father in heaven.
Do not be called ‘Master’;
you have but one master, the Christ.
The greatest among you must be your servant.
Whoever exalts himself will be humbled;
but whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”
-------

Christ tells his disciples to respect the office of the chair of Moses, regardless of the actions of those occupying the chair. He then gives his opinion on those who have that office. We get a taste of this in the verses above.  Immediately after this come the "Seven Woes," in which Christ severely rebukes them. The basic issue here is that the religious elite of the time were more concerned with religious practice, image of piety, and condemnation of others than they were with obeying God. Here are two of the Seven Woes:

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You lock the kingdom of heaven before human beings. You do not enter yourselves, nor do you allow entrance to those trying to enter.

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You cleanse the outside of cup and dish, but inside they are full of plunder and self-indulgence.
 Blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup, so that the outside also may be clean.
The Pharisees exalted themselves, and passed judgment on others. We need to look out for the same trap. 

PS - Note the verse on "calling no man Father." This is a stumbling block for many people with respect to the Catholic Church. We call our own priests "Father." Yet Christ says we should call no one father, or master, or rabbi. What's the deal?

Here are a couple of good answers to that question, written by priests. They are useful to have in mind if this topic ever comes up in conversation.

http://fatherrays.blogspot.com/2005/10/why-priest-is-called-father.html

http://www.stpaulsirvine.org/html/father.htm

3/15/11 - Forgiveness: A Matter of Life and Death

Matthew 6:7-15

Jesus said to his disciples:
“In praying, do not babble like the pagans,
who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them.
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
“This is how you are to pray:

Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

“If you forgive men their transgressions,
your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive men,
neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.”
--------

Matthew 6 is the middle portion of the Sermon on The Mount.  Christ gives us the Lord's Prayer, and then He immediately repeats the petition on forgiveness. 

As the Catechism says, this is significant:  "This petition is so important that it is the only one to which the Lord returns and which he develops explicitly in the Sermon on the Mount. This crucial requirement of the covenant mystery is impossible for man. But "with God all things are possible."  (CCC 2841)

Truly forgiving others can be very, very difficult.  It is difficult enough when it's a minor issue.  Let alone when somebody does something truly terrible that impacts you.

Just think about that for a while.  Many, many, many people are such a slave to their own pride that they are willing to sacrifice a relationship because of it.  Many are willing to stop loving a person, stop caring for a person, or stop associating with a person because they feel they've been wronged.

Just think about how many times in your life have you seen a relationship broken because one person demanded that another apologize?   How many times have you demanded an apology from someone else?  How did that work out for you?

Why is forgiveness so important that Jesus establishes it as a CONDITION for us to be forgiven?  Here is the Church's answer:  "Love, like the Body of Christ, is indivisible; we cannot love the God we cannot see if we do not love the brother or sister we do see. In refusing to forgive our brothers and sisters, our hearts are closed and their hardness makes them impervious to the Father's merciful love; but in confessing our sins, our hearts are opened to his grace."  (CCC 2840)

---
PS - If this sounds familiar, it is.  Here's a link to a message I sent out about six months ago.  It includes the full Catechism discussion of this point:

Link:  http://matt-lifeinthespirit.blogspot.com/2010_08_01_archive.html

3/14/11 - Sheep or Goat?

Matthew 25:31-46

Jesus said to his disciples:
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory,
and all the angels with him,
he will sit upon his glorious throne,
and all the nations will be assembled before him.
And he will separate them one from another,
as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
Then the king will say to those on his right,
‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father.
Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave me food,
I was thirsty and you gave me drink,
a stranger and you welcomed me,
naked and you clothed me,
ill and you cared for me,
in prison and you visited me.’

Then the righteous will answer him and say,
‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you,
or thirsty and give you drink?
When did we see you a stranger and welcome you,
or naked and clothe you?
When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?’
And the king will say to them in reply,
‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did
for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’
Then he will say to those on his left,
‘Depart from me, you accursed,
into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels.
For I was hungry and you gave me no food,
I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,
a stranger and you gave me no welcome,
naked and you gave me no clothing,
ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.’
Then they will answer and say,
‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty
or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison,
and not minister to your needs?’
He will answer them, ‘Amen, I say to you,
what you did not do for one of these least ones,
you did not do for me.’
And these will go off to eternal punishment,
but the righteous to eternal life.”
--------

This reading isn't a parable, it's prophecy.  Jesus is telling us exactly exactly how He will operate on  judgement day.  He will separate the people based on charity -- how much we love one another and care for one another.

He is speaking both about the theological virtue of Charity (with a capital C), which is love, and what people typically mean today when they say "charity" (with a small c), which is giving aid to those in need.  These are related, but aren't the same thing.  The second flows from the first, and without the first, it is meaningless.

The basic works Jesus lists above are called works of mercy.  I'll refer to the CCC (Catechism of the Catholic Church) for more detail.  You can find this online at:  http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc.htm  .

2443 God blesses those who come to the aid of the poor and rebukes those who turn away from them: "Give to him who begs from you, do not refuse him who would borrow from you"; "you received without pay, give without pay."²³² It is by what they have done for the poor that Jesus Christ will recognize his chosen ones.²³³ When "the poor have the good news preached to them," it is the sign of Christ's presence.²³⁴
 
2444 "The Church's love for the poor . . . is a part of her constant tradition." This love is inspired by the Gospel of the Beatitudes, of the poverty of Jesus, and of his concern for the poor.²³⁵ Love for the poor is even one of the motives for the duty of working so as to "be able to give to those in need."²³⁶ It extends not only to material poverty but also to the many forms of cultural and religious poverty.²³⁷
 
2445 Love for the poor is incompatible with immoderate love of riches or their selfish use:

Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have rusted, and their rust will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure for the last days. Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. You have lived on the earth in luxury and in pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. You have condemned, you have killed the righteous man; he does not resist you.²³⁸

2446 St. John Chrysostom vigorously recalls this: "Not to enable the poor to share in our goods is to steal from them and deprive them of life. The goods we possess are not ours, but theirs."²³⁹ "The demands of justice must be satisfied first of all; that which is already due in justice is not to be offered as a gift of charity":²⁴⁰

When we attend to the needs of those in want, we give them what is theirs, not ours. More than performing works of mercy, we are paying a debt of justice.²⁴¹

2447 The works of mercy are charitable actions by which we come to the aid of our neighbor in his spiritual and bodily necessities.²⁴² Instructing, advising, consoling, comforting are spiritual works of mercy, as are forgiving and bearing wrongs patiently. The corporal works of mercy consist especially in feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and imprisoned, and burying the dead.²⁴³ Among all these, giving alms to the poor is one of the chief witnesses to fraternal charity: it is also a work of justice pleasing to God:²⁴⁴

He who has two coats, let him share with him who has none and he who has food must do likewise.²⁴⁵ But give for alms those things which are within; and behold, everything is clean for you.²⁴⁶ If a brother or sister is ill-clad and in lack of daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what does it profit?²⁴⁷

--------
CCC footnotes

232 Mt 5:42; 10:8.
233 Cf. Mt 25:31-36.
234 Mt 11:5; cf. Lk 4:18.
235 CA 57; cf. Lk 6:20-22, Mt 8:20; Mk 12:41-44.
236 Eph 4:28.
237 Cf. CA 57.
238 Jas 5:1-6.
239 St. John Chrysostom, Hom. in Lazaro 2,5:PG 48,992.
240 AA 8 § 5.
241 St. Gregory the Great, Regula Pastoralis. 3,21:PL 77,87.
242 Cf. Isa 58:6-7; Heb 13:3.
243 Cf. Mt 25:31-46.
244 Cf. Tob 4:5-11; Sir 17:22; Mt 6:2-4.
245 Lk 3:11.
246 Lk 11:41.
247 Jas 2:15-16; cf. 1 Jn 3:17.

2/28/11 - Do Not Worry

I couldn't let Sunday's gospel pass.  It's been huge in my own personal spiritual development.

Matthew 6:36-54

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life,
what you will eat or drink,
or about your body, what you will wear.
Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?
Look at the birds in the sky;
they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns,
yet your heavenly Father feeds them.
Are not you more important than they?
Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span?
Why are you anxious about clothes?
Learn from the way the wild flowers grow.
They do not work or spin.
But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor
was clothed like one of them.
If God so clothes the grass of the field,
which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow,
will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith?
So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’
or ‘What are we to drink?’or ‘What are we to wear?’
All these things the pagans seek.
Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness,
and all these things will be given you besides.
Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself.
Sufficient for a day is its own evil.”

----------

I know a lot of people in my life that if I could make one wish come true for them, it would be  ....  that they would stop worrying.

If you don't remember anything else from this message, remember this.  Christ looked the disciples in the eye and asked them who of them, by worrying, could add even a SINGLE MOMENT to their lives. He's telling them (and us) that the whole process of worrying is absolutely useless in this life.  It accomplishes nothing.  Nothing.  NOTHING.  There are no benefits to it.

The anxieties of each and every day are a series of barriers that we place between ourselves and God.  Some of are big and have significant worldy impacts.  Others are small and don't mean very much, even in wordly terms.  But all of them are barriers, and truly the biggest impact is that we choose to place them between us and God. When we worry, we are focused completely on ourselves.  Worries keep us from focusing on God.  They keep us from trusting Him, from depending on Him, and from serving Him.

Here's a great objective for Lent -- start training yourself to give your worries over to God.   One way you can do that is have a "worry list" or a "worry bucket".  If you note yourself being worried about something, write it down, and say a small prayer handing it over to God.  If you want, you can write it on a small piece of paper and put it in a jar.  If you're more of a geek like me, you can make a chart.  If you worry about it again, give it to God again.  Make another entry on the list, or put another piece of paper in the jar. Do it as many times as you need to.

At the end of lent, go back through the list, and review the data.  How many times did you worry about something?  What was the resolution?  Did the worrying do anything to help the situation?  Were you able to give worries away to God?  If so, did life get easier for you?

Start with something small.  Over time you'll build confidence in two things -- that worrying is useless, and that giving worries over to God works.  These are the building blocks.  Eventually you'll be ready to hand over bigger and bigger issues.  And once you can do that, it's time to celebrate your liberation.

12/10/10 - Wisdom Is Vindicated By Her Works

Matthew 11:16-19

Jesus said to the crowds:
“To what shall I compare this generation?
It is like children who sit in marketplaces and call to one another,
‘We played the flute for you, but you did not dance,
we sang a dirge but you did not mourn.’
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they said,
‘He is possessed by a demon.’
The Son of Man came eating and drinking and they said,
‘Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard,
a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’
But wisdom is vindicated by her works.”

-----------

This scripture is painful for me because I think I'm far more like the children he mentions than I'd like to be.  I can talk a great game.  The important thing isn't words, though, it's actions.  As Christ says, Wisdom is vincicated by her works.  It's OK to marvel over Christ's teaching, but without putting those words into action, it's just empty praise.  To know the truth and not act on it is far worse than never knowing it in the first place.

12/7/10 - Not One of These Be Lost

Matthew 18:12-14

Jesus said to his disciples:
“What is your opinion?
If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray,
will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hills
and go in search of the stray?
And if he finds it, amen, I say to you, he rejoices more over it
than over the ninety-nine that did not stray.
In just the same way, it is not the will of your heavenly Father
that one of these little ones be lost.”

-----------

It's important to remember that Christ's ultimate mission on Earth was to save US. He came to save the world collectively, but he also came to save each one of us individually. He has a personal knowledge of and caring for each one of us. Jesus, the most powerful person in the history of the earth, came for each one of specifically. This is something that we all know and were taught from a young age, but it's another one of those things that ultimately we can't truly understand. Until, God willing, we get to meet Him, and it all becomes clear.

Here's what the Catechism says about this passage:

605 At the end of the parable of the lost sheep Jesus recalled that God's love excludes no one: "So it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish." (410)  He affirms that he came "to give his life as a ransom for many"; this last term is not restrictive, but contrasts the whole of humanity with the unique person of the redeemer who hands himself over to save us. (411) The Church, following the apostles, teaches that Christ died for all men without exception: "There is not, never has been, and never will be a single human being for whom Christ did not suffer."(412 )

(Catechism footnotes)

410. Mt 18:14.
411. Mt 20:28; cf. Rom 5:18-19.
412. Council of Quiercy (853): DS 624; cf. 2 Cor 5:15; 1 Jn 2:2.

12/3/10 - The Blind Can See The Christ

Matthew 9:27-31

27 And as Jesus passed on from there, two blind men followed (him), crying out, "Son of David, have pity on us!"


28 When he entered the house, the blind men approached him and Jesus said to them, "Do you believe that I can do this?" "Yes, Lord," they said to him.


29 Then he touched their eyes and said, "Let it be done for you according to your faith."


30 And their eyes were opened. Jesus warned them sternly, "See that no one knows about this."


31 But they went out and spread word of him through all that land.

------------

I love this episode. Two blind men, who have NOT seen the miracles that Jesus is performing but can only hear of them, identify Jesus as the "Son of David." By calling Jesus the "Son of David", they are identifying Jesus as the Christ. And because the ancient Scriptures said that the Christ would be able to heal the blind, they ask for Him to heal them.

From the blind came true recognition of divinity. We don't know what other people thought, but we do know that these two were on the right track, and that Jesus immediately responded to their prayer for help, according to their faith.

Furthermore, the blind men teach us a great lesson. They hear Jesus is nearby. They follow him, get his attention, and cry out for His help. They understand that they NEED Him. They won't ever get to where they wants to be without Him. They don't spend their time before Jesus trying to justify why Jesus should give them what he wants, or making promises for how they will behave in the future if He helps them. They bow down and ask for His pity.

Like these guys, I need to understand that I NEED the Christ on a daily basis, and call out to Him for His mercy.