Looking beyond Appearances

Jesus heals man born blind

These days, as we stay at home and keep “social distance” for awhile, perhaps we’re re-thinking "what's life all about," or catching up on tasks postponed, or reading a bestseller and watching a classic on Netflix.

I found a reflection online, written by U.S. astronaut Mike Massimino, describing his experience during a space walk high above the world.
“I think this is a wonderful place to be,” the astronaut wrote of our marvelous planet, “but I think seeing it from space, the beauty of it...This is what heaven must look like, and I can’t imagine anything more beautiful than our planet from space.” Yes, looking from a new perspective, we may see more clearly God’s gifts all around us.

This Sunday is known as Laetare Sunday. Laetare is a Latin word meaning “rejoice.”Why rejoice? We are close to celebrating the Easter mystery.

Today's word of God challenges us to look beyond appearances, and with the gift of faith, discover three realities:
Jesus as the light who illumines the purpose of life;
ourselves as a light to others in our attitude and behavior; and
our fellow human beings as bearers of the light or presence of God,
no matter how hidden that presence may be.

The word of God takes us back over 3,000 years. King Saul made a mess of things. God inspired Samuel to look for another king. At first, David is overlooked. He’s the youngest in a family of eight brothers, an unlikely choice.

Think of great leaders in our country and how unlikely they appeared to many people. George Washington looked downright unfriendly with his false teeth. Lincoln had a face someone compared to a trowel. FDR was wheel-chair bound. Yet, they became admired leaders. And the unlikely young David became king of ancient Israel. God saw in David the potential for great leadership.

The word challenges us not to stereotype people, but rather to look beyond appearances to the incredible potential for good, and try to bring out their best qualities by affirming them.

Paul in his letter to the Christian community in Ephesus in Turkey reflects upon light and darkness. Light can transform a cold night into a warm day. Light enables us to study, to discover, to behold the wonders of God’s universe. In short, light warms, nurtures, sustains, reveals and cheers. Paul urges us to live as children of light, pleasing God in our attitude and behavior.
Jesus is indeed our light.

Saint John Henry Newman captured Jesus as light in a wonderful poem:
"Lead, Kindly Light, amidst th'encircling gloom,
Lead Thou me on!
The night is dark, and I am far from home,
Lead Thou me on! ….

Often, people are in darkness about their purpose, and forget that Jesus illumines our pathway into eternal life. We too are called to be light, to let our life shine forth with virtues such as honesty, integrity, responsibility, courage.

In the Gospel according to John, Jesus cures a blind man. He opens the eyes of this man so that he can see reality. But notice how blind some of the characters in this story were.  The Pharisees were blinded by protocol – how dare Jesus heal on the Sabbath! They also were blinded to the power of God. The parents too were blinded by fear, and refused to stand up for what they knew was true.

The Gospel author challenges us to see Jesus, through the lens of faith, as the light who illumines the purpose of life. 

I think of a twentieth century monk, Thomas Merton, who wrote in his autobiography, The Seven Storey Mountain, about his conversion.

At Cambridge University, Merton had engaged in reckless drinking and carousing. Then at Columbia University, he delighted classmates with his wit and charm, and became editor of the student literary publication.

Merton's chance encounter with a classic philosophical book about the Christian understanding of God changed his life. He went with Robert Lax to St. Bonaventure University, a Franciscan sponsored school in upstate New York, where he became instructor of English. He eventually applied to join the Franciscan friars but was rejected.  But a friend advised Merton about the Trappists and off he went to Kentucky. He was based there for the remaining twenty-seven years of his life.

The abbey's mantra was ora et labora (pray and work). Merton wrote dozens of books, poems and articles, and corresponded with religious thinkers and cultural icons, political movers and shakers and people of different faiths or no faith. All of us, Merton argued, are children of God. Faithful to his Catholic tradition, Merton was always open to the truth in other religious traditions. He died tragically in Thailand at age 53.

Throughout his Trappist life, Merton tried to live a life of prayer, of intimacy with God: through chanting the psalms, daily Eucharist and such practices as the stations of the cross and the rosary. Above all, he sought solitude and contemplation: that inner center within himself where he could feel God's love sustaining him. That's why he sought Buddhist techniques, for example, to help find that inner stillness.

In his work Seeds of Contemplation, Merton noted that noise, more than anything else, sabotages contemplation and blocks out the voice of God within us. Merton asked for the grace to clear his mind of earthly “concerns” so that in solitude he could move beyond thoughts and words into a felt awareness of the presence of God within himself. There he would sit still and listen to God's voice.

Yes, he sought to find his true self in God: God abiding in him and he in God. Moreover, Merton sensed the oneness of God all about him, in all creatures and all creation. All were holy. The invisible light of God in all creatures simply has to be made visible.

Our Lenten task, Merton might say, is to let the image of God become manifest in who we are so that others can see beyond appearances the very likeness of God in our attitudes and behaviors.
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Being Salt and Light

Nathan Greene's  Jesus Light of the Universe

Last Sunday was the Super Bowl. This Sunday brings the Academy Awards. How can we consider these media events in light of Scripture? It often appears our culture is celebrity-driven.

But celebrities are not the only people with talent. Every one of us has gifts or talents that can “build up” other people. We have special gifts by virtue of our baptism. We possess the power to believe, to hope and to love.

The Book of Isaiah notes practices like fasting are useless if we treat people unfairly. It’s better, the author says, to practice works of mercy: feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, care for the sick, and be compassionate.

St. Paul asks us to look for wisdom not just in people of eloquence, but in the Spirit who empowers us to proclaim the good news: God became one of us in Jesus so that we could become like God, see God as God is. That indeed is our purpose in life: to be in relationship with God forever.

In the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus says we are to be “salt of the earth” and “light of the world.” Adding salt to food can bring out the natural flavor. Salt in our bodies enables our muscles to expand and contract, our hearts to beat, our blood to circulate. We are “salt” when we bring out the best in people: bring out the “flavor” of God in everything.

Light can transform a cold night into a warm day. Light enables us to study, to behold the beauty of God’s universe. Luminosity in art can point us to the transcendent. We are “light” when we illuminate the presence of God in our everyday life. There are many splendid callings. Parent, teacher or student, doctor or lawyer, businessperson -- whoever you are, you have a specific vocation, right now: to inspire people to be the best version of themselves, to give their time and talents to others, to have the courage to stand up for what's right and true, to be men and women of integrity.

And what makes us a faithful and effective Christian is the Spirit of God within us. Oh, personality can be a blessing. But the Spirit of God works through us as we are. The Spirit illumines our minds to know the way we should behave and strengthens us to behave in that way. The Spirit gives us “love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and discipline.” What more can we want?

The Spirit of God can make us a means of healing, a channel of grace, an instrument of peace. What a wonderful gift. These gifts or talents we have are not for ourselves but for the common good, for the family in which we live, the profession in which we work, the community in which we find ourselves.

May each of us realize that the purpose of life is to matter, to make a difference for the better by giving the best we have in service to one another. And then we will realize, with God’s grace, the best version of ourself.

The On-going Search For Christian Unity

Jesus prayed that "we all may be one."

In Sunday’s readings, we hear various titles ascribed to Jesus.

He is the “lamb” who saves us through his death and resurrection. He is the “son” who is one with the God of Israel.  He is the “Christ,” the long-expected messiah who inaugurates God’s kingdom of justice and freedom and truth and peace and love. He is the sovereign “Lord” to whom we pledge our ultimate allegiance.  He is the “servant,” the “light” who illumines answers to questions about life, e. g., what on earth am I here for..

John’s description stands out for me: “Behold, the lamb of God.” John pointed out that Jesus was the sacrificial lamb who would re-establish a right relationship for us with God and one another. In death, there will be eternal life.

The author of Isaiah takes us back to the sixth century before Jesus, to the Jews exiled in Babylonia. This passage is a poem, a song, about a “servant of God” who will bring hope to those who have lost hope in the future. This “servant” will save all peoples, be a “light” to all. The Christian community saw in this “servant” Jesus, whose vocation or calling was to be our way to eternal life, our truth who sets us free from false isms, our light who guides us in our earthly journey toward our heavenly dwelling place.

Paul in his letter to the Christian community at Corinth, a seaport city in Greece, speaks about his own vocation as an apostle.  God through Jesus by the power of the Spirit has bestowed his grace and peace upon us. Paul challenges us to live a life of virtue that’s worthy of our calling, to become a holy people.

In the Gospel, John points out Jesus as the Lamb of God, an allusion to the  Hebrew Passover meal and the sacrificial lamb in Jewish temple worship.  John then saw Jesus arise from the Jordan waters and the Spirit confirming Jesus as “Son of God.” This Jesus, truly human and truly divine, who through his death/resurrection by the power of the Spirit re-established our friendship with God again, is gloriously alive in his community of disciples, the one Church he founded, to continue his saving ministry until he comes again in power and glory to create a “new heaven and a new earth.”

Jesus prayed that this community would always be one.  Yet over the centuries it has divided into many communities: Catholics, Orthodox and Protestants: Lutherans, Episcopalians, Presbyterians etc.

And that is why we have a week of prayer for Christian Unity January 19-25. All Christians profess one Lord, one faith and one baptism. But they have split into different and sometimes opposing traditions.

As we pray with Jesus that “we all may be one,” we recognize that Jesus in today’s Gospel is the foundation of our world-wide faith community. And we ought to give thanks to God for this: a community that calls us to a life with God here and now, and to eternal life where we shall be like God and see God as God is.

Facing the Dazzling Light of Jesus Christ

Mosaic of Jesus  in Wash. DC Basilica

In Sunday's Gospel according to Luke, Jesus speaks of the destruction of Jerusalem’s Temple. For Luke, the end of Jerusalem was the prelude to the end of this world. The author uses apocalyptic imagery: wars and earthquakes, famines and plagues, persecutions and betrayals. In the midst of it all, Jesus counsels us to persevere in our life/work of discipleship.

This word of God brings us toward the end of the liturgical calendar, which relives the story of our salvation. In Advent we re-experience the hope for a Messiah. We then have Christmas, the birth of the Messiah. Lent culminates in the dying and rising of Jesus at Easter, and finally, after Ordinary Time, Jesus Christ will come “in great power and glory.” Next Sunday we crown him king of the universe.

Yes, we celebrate the story that began in Genesis: “God created the heavens and the earth,” and that ends on the last page of Revelation: “Come, Lord Jesus.” God will transform this universe into a glorious kingdom in all its fullness. How, we don’t know.

But the question is not how. Rather the question is, are we ready to enter into the dazzling light of Jesus Christ, gloriously alive, when He does come to us in the mystery of our own dying.

You may have read Harold Kushner’s book Living a Life That Matters. As a clergyman, Kushner has cared for many people in their last moments. Those who had the most trouble with death were those who felt they had never done anything worthwhile.

Sunday’s word of God asks, are we ready to face Jesus Christ? What attitudes and behaviors do we have to change now? The key question is quality of life, not length of years. Ultimately, we each will have to stand before the awesome light of Jesus Christ where we will see who we really are, for better or worse.

Life is precious—and so “Be prepared” is an everyday Christian motto.

The beatitudes can be a good guide. Here’s one paraphrase: “If we strive to seek God in our everyday lives; if we spend time listening and consoling; if we heal wounds and build bridges; if others see in us goodness, joy, and serenity; if we can see the good in everyone and seek the good for everyone, blessed are you. You are the face of God in our midst.” Think of your own paraphrases of the beatitudes and live them.

The word of God invites us to be prepared now to stand in the awesome light of Jesus Christ gloriously alive. May that word of God inspire each one of us to value each day of our lives as a gift from God and to become the best version of ourselves today. Amen!

Give Thanks to God for Newman's Life

Sketch of a Young St. John Henry Newman

Sunday's word of God takes us back in our imaginations to the ninth century before Jesus, to a man of God by the name of Elisha. And a foreigner, a Syrian army general, begs the prophet to heal him. To the general’s surprise, Elisha simply suggests that he bathe in the Jordan River. The Syrian does so, is cured, and this foreigner praises the God of Israel.

Paul, in his letter to Timothy, speaks about the hardships he has endured. Paul invites us to give thanks for the gift of God’s life, bestowed upon us in the waters of baptism, nurtured in this liturgy, and ours forever in a transformed heavenly life.

In the Gospel according to Luke, Jesus heals ten people of leprosy. Only one, a foreigner, returns to give thanks to God.

Gratitude is a theme in today's word of God. I would like to highlight the grateful and faith-filled life of John Henry Newman, whom Pope Francis canonized in Rome today.

This nineteenth century Englishman spent the first half of his life as an Anglican (aka Episcopalian here) and the second half as a Roman Catholic. Newman influenced the so-called Oxford movement, an intellectual effort to return to the resources of our faith--the Bible, the sacraments, belief statements, authority in the Church and apostolic succession.

Newman's research eventually convinced him to join the Catholic Church. Two years later he was ordained a Catholic priest. Returning to England, Newman founded Oratory houses in Birmingham and London and then served as rector of the Catholic University of Ireland, which inspired his landmark book The Idea of a University. Newman wrote 40 books and 21,000 letters that survive.

The fullness of revelation, Newman emphasized, resides in the person of Jesus Christ. Belief statements try to capture, but never fully, the inexhaustible reality of the God-man. Hence, Christianity must develop over the centuries as we grow from childhood to adulthood. And there must be an authority on the truth or falsity of such developments.

Newman was a supporter of Christian unity at a time when Christianity was divided and religious bigotry commonplace.

In particular, he emphasized the active role of the laity: the “Spirit dwells in the Church and in the hearts of the faithful as in a temple.” Newman's writings prefigured the spirit of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65). The Church is always reform-able, holy yet made of sinners.

Revelation is a person. In other words, God reveals himself to us in Jesus and we describe this revelation in belief statements. The Eucharist is the font from which all the Church’s power flows. From this we go forth to love and serve.

I highlight two awesome prayers by John Henry Newman: the first about purpose in life:
“God has created me to do Him some definite service. He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have my mission. I may never know it in this life, but...I shall do His work...Therefore, I will trust Him, whatever, wherever I am.… If I am in sickness, my sickness may serve Him, in perplexity, my perplexity may serve Him...God knows what He is about. He may take away my friends. He may throw me among strangers. He may make me feel desolate, make my spirits sink, hide my future from me. Still, He knows what He is about.”

The second prayer holds one of my favorite images of God: light. Newman’s poem “The Pillar of the Cloud,” written while he recovered from a severe illness, was made a hymn. Here is a very recognizable verse of the poem:
 “Lead, Kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom, Lead Thou me on!
The night is dark, and I am far from home, Lead Thou me on!
Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to see the distant scene; one step enough for me...
So long Your power hath blest me, sure it still will lead me on” into God's eternal light.
Amen!

A Fresh Start With Jesus As Our Guide

Rubens' Adoration of the Magi

Perhaps the best resolution for the new year is to cultivate a focus on the presence of God in our lives, to become aware of God's presence within ourselves and let the glory of God shine forth in our daily routine.
 
Today we celebrate the Epiphany: the manifestation or showing forth of the child Jesus as the messiah to the magi.

We really don’t know who the biblical visitors were--wise men or astrologers or spice traders. All we know is that they were non-Jews who came from far, far away, guided by a mysterious bright star. They came to pay homage to this Jewish baby called Jesus.

In today’s readings, the word of God from Isaiah takes us back to the sixth century before Jesus. The Jews were freed, to rebuild their city of Jerusalem. The author indicates a divine light will emanate from this shining city on a hill and all people, Jews as well as non-Jews, will acknowledge and walk by this light.

Christians see Jesus as this light who illuminates darkness, who shows human beings the ultimate purpose of life: to be in relationship with God and thereby manifest the glory of God through who we are and what we do.

St. Paul's letter to the Christian community at Ephesus in Turkey outlines our future. Jesus is indeed our guide: a beacon of hope for all.

In the Gospel according to Matthew, we have all the ingredients of a great story: exotic visitors, a wicked king, court intrigue, a mysterious star, precious gifts, a new child. The magi give homage to this child with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, highly symbolic gifts about the identity of this child.

Gold can symbolize kingship or divinity, the things of God; and the coin of this child’s heavenly realm are the virtues of self-discipline, compassion, responsibility, friendship, courage, perseverance, honesty, decency, respect and faith in God. Are these virtues the “currency” of our own lives?

Frankincense with its wonderful fragrance and medicinal magic can symbolize healing, and this child came to heal our wounds and bridge the chasm separating us from God and one another. We too are called to be healers.

Myrrh or ointment can symbolize a burial embalmment, and this child through his dying/rising re-established our relationship with God.

Now who is this child? This newborn messiah, completely human and completely divine, is the exemplar or prototype or model of what it means to be an authentic human being. That is why some ask themselves: what would Jesus do in this or that circumstance?

With Jesus as our model, God invites us, from an infinite number of possibilities, to live a holy life, every man and every woman, without exception, regardless of age, race, socioeconomic background, career or calling in life.

Holiness is allowing God to enter into the very fiber of our being so that we can become the best version of ourselves through who we are and everything we do.

Now is the time for us to begin again, to become the best version of ourselves. 

Facing the Light

Christ Risen

The word of God takes us back to the wisdom literature of ancient Israel. The author speaks about a person who always tries to do the right thing. But how do some react? They want to murder him. “Let’s see whether God will rescue him,” they say.

This raises the eternal problem of evil. Why do bad things happen to good people? The word assures us God is close to us, even during the storms or assaults of life.

The author of the letter of James asks: why do some people choose evil? People indeed at times choose wrong over right, falsehood over truth. Christianity calls this human condition “original sin.” The fall from grace is described in the biblical Book of Genesis: man and woman hid from God.

Jesus, the Word made flesh, through his life-giving ministry and terrible death and glorious resurrection is our healer, our reconciler with God and one another. In baptism, we have become by grace what Jesus is by nature: sons and daughters of God, called to live a life worthy of that calling.

In the Gospel according to Mark, Jesus challenges us to serve one another even if it may cost us dearly.  Jesus predicts his own passion and death and resurrection. This mystery reveals our true destiny: in relationship with God forever in a new, indescribable, transformative life.

Jesus brings us face to face with his and our own death: a fact of life.

Today, some people may die in their 90s or 100s in hospitals or nursing homes or hospices, or alone. The best seller “Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End,” by a surgeon, questions when to “let go,” when to stop offering medical treatments that likely don’t work. The doctor asks: why submit the dying to the full panoply of procedures only to see them completely lose their independence.

Many of us know Elizabeth Kubler-Ross’s five stages through which many patients and loved ones may pass:
-Denial: “No, not me.”  A typical response if one is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness.
-Anger: “Why me?” God may be a target especially if one is young. But it's ok to be angry with God.
-Bargaining: “Yes me, but.” The patient accepts, but bargains for more time. I'll do this or that if you, God, lengthen my life.
-Depression: “Yes, me.” The person realizes he/she is not getting better. The person regrets things done or not done.
And finally,
- Acceptance: “My time is running out but it’s all right.”

These stages can apply as well to other major life changes.

Dr. Kubler-Ross also wrote “Death: the Final Stage of Growth.” The title leads us to the Christian understanding of death. The foundation is Good Friday/Easter.

The story of Jesus did not end in the tragedy of the cross but in the triumph of the Resurrection, God transformed Jesus into an indescribable heavenly reality. And God also will transform us into a new kind of spiritual embodiment.

Our faith challenges us to remember that the light of our resurrection will shatter the darkness of our own death.