Friday, October 30, 2009
Sayings of St. Ignatius of Loyola
"Charity and kindness unwedded to truth are not charity and kindness, but deceit and vanity."
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Playing the Prophet
In today's Gospel, of all people, the religious authorities are trying to convince Jesus to take to the hills in order to protect himself from King Herod, a petty tyrant who is colluding with the Roman occupation. Jesus doesn't mince words, calling Herod a fox, and then going on to reflect out loud about the risks he faces as he takes up the role of the prophet calling for conversion.
A few thoughts... when we describe Jesus as a prophet, it is not to say so much that he his prognosticating about the future, but rather, that he is speaking in God's name about the need for people to turn away from the way of the world and back to faithfulness to God's ways. This means more specifically that he is calling them to liberation from an enslaved pursuit of riches, honors, and pride, back into a wholesome love of God, self, and neighbor. In that call, he is taking up the prophetic mantle as so many before him had, speaking up on behalf of the widow, the orphan, the marginalized...
And so, the question comes around to each of us as to how circumstances in our lives call us to play the prophet as well?
Gospel
Lk 13:31-35
Some Pharisees came to Jesus and said,
“Go away, leave this area because Herod wants to kill you.”
He replied, “Go and tell that fox,
‘Behold, I cast out demons and I perform healings today and tomorrow,
and on the third day I accomplish my purpose.
Yet I must continue on my way today, tomorrow, and the following day,
for it is impossible that a prophet should die
outside of Jerusalem.’
“Jerusalem, Jerusalem,
you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you,
how many times I yearned to gather your children together
as a hen gathers her brood under her wings,
but you were unwilling!
Behold, your house will be abandoned.
But I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say,
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”
A few thoughts... when we describe Jesus as a prophet, it is not to say so much that he his prognosticating about the future, but rather, that he is speaking in God's name about the need for people to turn away from the way of the world and back to faithfulness to God's ways. This means more specifically that he is calling them to liberation from an enslaved pursuit of riches, honors, and pride, back into a wholesome love of God, self, and neighbor. In that call, he is taking up the prophetic mantle as so many before him had, speaking up on behalf of the widow, the orphan, the marginalized...
And so, the question comes around to each of us as to how circumstances in our lives call us to play the prophet as well?
Gospel
Lk 13:31-35
Some Pharisees came to Jesus and said,
“Go away, leave this area because Herod wants to kill you.”
He replied, “Go and tell that fox,
‘Behold, I cast out demons and I perform healings today and tomorrow,
and on the third day I accomplish my purpose.
Yet I must continue on my way today, tomorrow, and the following day,
for it is impossible that a prophet should die
outside of Jerusalem.’
“Jerusalem, Jerusalem,
you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you,
how many times I yearned to gather your children together
as a hen gathers her brood under her wings,
but you were unwilling!
Behold, your house will be abandoned.
But I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say,
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Saints Simon and Jude, and the importance of diversity on teams
Today is the feast of Saints Simon and Jude. As is the case with many of the disciples, we just don't know all that much about these men. Jude is so named by Luke and Acts. Matthew and Mark call him Thaddeus. He is not mentioned elsewhere in the Gospels, except, of course, where all the apostles are mentioned. Scholars hold that he is not the author of the Letter of Jude. Actually, Jude had the same name as Judas Iscariot. Evidently because of the disgrace of that name, it was shortened to "Jude" in English.
Simon is mentioned on all four lists of the apostles. On two of them he is called "the Zealot." The Zealots were a Jewish sect that represented an extreme of Jewish nationalism. For them, the messianic promise of the Old Testament meant that the Jews were to be a free and independent nation. God alone was their king, and any payment of taxes to the Romans—the very domination of the Romans—was a blasphemy against God. No doubt some of the Zealots were the spiritual heirs of the Maccabees, carrying on their ideals of religion and independence. But many were the counterparts of modern terrorists. They raided and killed, attacking both foreigners and "collaborating" Jews. They were chiefly responsible for the rebellion against Rome which ended in the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70.
From my perspective doing leadership development and team-building, what is so amazing is the diversity of the team that Jesus gathers to help him advance his purpose, the Kingdom of God. In addition to people like Simon, the Zealot, he also chooses Matthew, the tax collector-- a man who the zealots would have despised for his collusion with the Roman occupation. Further, Jesus chooses James and John, who have the nickname, "the sons of thunder." We can only guess why, but I would imagine that they were somewhat impetuous, maybe a bit boisterous. And then there is Simon Peter, a most unlikely foundation stone for the future church.
In all this, Jesus opts for diversity of personality and background, and seems to choose people more for their growth potential than for their professional competence, their intellectual brilliance, or expertise. In fact, from the numerous accounts in the Gospels, these men often acted like a bunch of competitive adolescents, each in their own way torn between the way of the world and the WAY that Jesus was modeling them: a way of humble, self-abnegating service.
So, if you happen to find yourself on a diverse and seemingly motley team, perhaps it is an opportunity to see that your way may not be the only way, and that God indeed can work wonders through the most unlikely people.
Gospel
Lk 6:12-16
Jesus went up to the mountain to pray,
and he spent the night in prayer to God.
When day came, he called his disciples to himself,
and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles:
Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew,
James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew,
Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus,
Simon who was called a Zealot,
and Judas the son of James,
and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.
Simon is mentioned on all four lists of the apostles. On two of them he is called "the Zealot." The Zealots were a Jewish sect that represented an extreme of Jewish nationalism. For them, the messianic promise of the Old Testament meant that the Jews were to be a free and independent nation. God alone was their king, and any payment of taxes to the Romans—the very domination of the Romans—was a blasphemy against God. No doubt some of the Zealots were the spiritual heirs of the Maccabees, carrying on their ideals of religion and independence. But many were the counterparts of modern terrorists. They raided and killed, attacking both foreigners and "collaborating" Jews. They were chiefly responsible for the rebellion against Rome which ended in the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70.
From my perspective doing leadership development and team-building, what is so amazing is the diversity of the team that Jesus gathers to help him advance his purpose, the Kingdom of God. In addition to people like Simon, the Zealot, he also chooses Matthew, the tax collector-- a man who the zealots would have despised for his collusion with the Roman occupation. Further, Jesus chooses James and John, who have the nickname, "the sons of thunder." We can only guess why, but I would imagine that they were somewhat impetuous, maybe a bit boisterous. And then there is Simon Peter, a most unlikely foundation stone for the future church.
In all this, Jesus opts for diversity of personality and background, and seems to choose people more for their growth potential than for their professional competence, their intellectual brilliance, or expertise. In fact, from the numerous accounts in the Gospels, these men often acted like a bunch of competitive adolescents, each in their own way torn between the way of the world and the WAY that Jesus was modeling them: a way of humble, self-abnegating service.
So, if you happen to find yourself on a diverse and seemingly motley team, perhaps it is an opportunity to see that your way may not be the only way, and that God indeed can work wonders through the most unlikely people.
Gospel
Lk 6:12-16
Jesus went up to the mountain to pray,
and he spent the night in prayer to God.
When day came, he called his disciples to himself,
and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles:
Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew,
James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew,
Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus,
Simon who was called a Zealot,
and Judas the son of James,
and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
To what shall I compare the Kingdom of God?
When we hear the expression, "the purpose driven life," I wonder what it stirs up for people? Perhaps it connotes a sense of living from the inside out, rather than being a victim of circumstances, or of constantly being in a reactive rather than proactive posture. It might suggest that a person is capable of setting their own agenda, articulating their own self-formulated values, or of someone who is self-possessed rather than being subject to the whims of the world.
When it comes to Jesus, it is fairly safe to say that he was a purpose driven person, and that the purpose he served was that of proclaiming and revealing the Kingdom of God. At the same time, even though the Kingdom seems to have been his animating purpose, when he describes it to others, he always explains it by use of analogy. What do you think he means?
Gospel
Lk 13:18-21
Jesus said, “What is the Kingdom of God like?
To what can I compare it?
It is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in the garden.
When it was fully grown, it became a large bush
and the birds of the sky dwelt in its branches.”
Again he said, “To what shall I compare the Kingdom of God?
It is like yeast that a woman took
and mixed in with three measures of wheat flour
until the whole batch of dough was leavened.”
When it comes to Jesus, it is fairly safe to say that he was a purpose driven person, and that the purpose he served was that of proclaiming and revealing the Kingdom of God. At the same time, even though the Kingdom seems to have been his animating purpose, when he describes it to others, he always explains it by use of analogy. What do you think he means?
Gospel
Lk 13:18-21
Jesus said, “What is the Kingdom of God like?
To what can I compare it?
It is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in the garden.
When it was fully grown, it became a large bush
and the birds of the sky dwelt in its branches.”
Again he said, “To what shall I compare the Kingdom of God?
It is like yeast that a woman took
and mixed in with three measures of wheat flour
until the whole batch of dough was leavened.”
Monday, October 26, 2009
Woman Unbent
The gospel today strikes me as a powerful contrast with the Church's patriarchal position on the role of women. Jesus defies religious conventions by healing on the Sabbath, and beyond this, it is hard not to see the symbolic meaning of this gesture as he heals the bent woman.
Gospel
Lk 13:10-17
Jesus was teaching in a synagogue on the sabbath.
And a woman was there who for eighteen years
had been crippled by a spirit;
she was bent over, completely incapable of standing erect.
When Jesus saw her, he called to her and said,
“Woman, you are set free of your infirmity.”
He laid his hands on her,
and she at once stood up straight and glorified God.
But the leader of the synagogue,
indignant that Jesus had cured on the sabbath,
said to the crowd in reply,
“There are six days when work should be done.
Come on those days to be cured, not on the sabbath day.”
The Lord said to him in reply, “Hypocrites!
Does not each one of you on the sabbath
untie his ox or his ass from the manger
and lead it out for watering?
This daughter of Abraham,
whom Satan has bound for eighteen years now,
ought she not to have been set free on the sabbath day
from this bondage?”
When he said this, all his adversaries were humiliated;
and the whole crowd rejoiced at all the splendid deeds done by him.
Irene Zimmerman, OFM writes a lovely and powerful poem inspired by this liberating and healing encounter:
Woman Un-Bent
That Sabbath day as always
she went to the synagogue
and took the place assigned her
right behind the grill where,
the elders had concurred,
she would block no one's view,
she would lean her heavy head,
and (though this was not said)
she'd give a good example to those who stood behind her.
That day, intent as always
on the Word (for eighteen years
she'd listened thus), she heard
Authority when Jesus spoke.
Though long stripped
of forwardness,
she came forward, nonetheless,
when Jesus summoned her.
"Woman, you are free
of your infirmity," he said.
The leader of the synagogue
worked himself into a sweat
as he tried to bend the Sabbath
and the woman back in place.
But she stood up straight and let
God's glory touch her face.
Gospel
Lk 13:10-17
Jesus was teaching in a synagogue on the sabbath.
And a woman was there who for eighteen years
had been crippled by a spirit;
she was bent over, completely incapable of standing erect.
When Jesus saw her, he called to her and said,
“Woman, you are set free of your infirmity.”
He laid his hands on her,
and she at once stood up straight and glorified God.
But the leader of the synagogue,
indignant that Jesus had cured on the sabbath,
said to the crowd in reply,
“There are six days when work should be done.
Come on those days to be cured, not on the sabbath day.”
The Lord said to him in reply, “Hypocrites!
Does not each one of you on the sabbath
untie his ox or his ass from the manger
and lead it out for watering?
This daughter of Abraham,
whom Satan has bound for eighteen years now,
ought she not to have been set free on the sabbath day
from this bondage?”
When he said this, all his adversaries were humiliated;
and the whole crowd rejoiced at all the splendid deeds done by him.
Irene Zimmerman, OFM writes a lovely and powerful poem inspired by this liberating and healing encounter:
Woman Un-Bent
That Sabbath day as always
she went to the synagogue
and took the place assigned her
right behind the grill where,
the elders had concurred,
she would block no one's view,
she would lean her heavy head,
and (though this was not said)
she'd give a good example to those who stood behind her.
That day, intent as always
on the Word (for eighteen years
she'd listened thus), she heard
Authority when Jesus spoke.
Though long stripped
of forwardness,
she came forward, nonetheless,
when Jesus summoned her.
"Woman, you are free
of your infirmity," he said.
The leader of the synagogue
worked himself into a sweat
as he tried to bend the Sabbath
and the woman back in place.
But she stood up straight and let
God's glory touch her face.
Sayings of St. Ignatius of Loyola
"The one who sets about making others better is wasting his/her time unless that person begins with his/herself."
Sunday, October 25, 2009
A new way of seeing...
I've been reflecting the whole day on the Gospel from today's liturgy...
Gospel
Mk 10:46-52
As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd,
Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus,
sat by the roadside begging.
On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth,
he began to cry out and say,
"Jesus, son of David, have pity on me."
And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent.
But he kept calling out all the more,
"Son of David, have pity on me."
Jesus stopped and said, "Call him."
So they called the blind man, saying to him,
"Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you."
He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus.
Jesus said to him in reply, "What do you want me to do for you?"
The blind man replied to him, "Master, I want to see."
Jesus told him, "Go your way; your faith has saved you."
Immediately he received his sight
and followed him on the way.
------
As with every Gospel passage, there are so many ways to interpret a given passage, and when we pray over a certain text, there is often a way that our current lived reality affects what we see and how we see it. This morning, I was meditating on the theme of sight... What is it that I need to see more clearly? Where are my blind-spots? Do I feel the same irrepressible desire to be healed and to follow Jesus? Do I have to faith that the blind man had?
In truth, my prayer foundered a bit in abstraction. Focused on myself, these questions didn't get much traction or yield much insight. But later in the day, I was driving back from an art exhibit downtown and saw a man by the side of the road, holding a sign saying that he was homeless and needed help. Hmmm... I could not help but make the association with Bartimaeus sitting on the curb calling for help.
Now, you might be thinking that because I made that connection, or simply because I have an empathetic concern as a Christian, or as a fellow human being, that I pulled over and went to this man's aid. But instead, I passed him, rationalizing that if I did stop to give the man money, that he would use it for drugs or alcohol. And indeed, for all the years I lived in New York City, I always made a point to offer people food, not cash, even if it meant that I spent much more than I would have if I had given a handout. It was a sort of principle I held on to, and as a result, many people declined the offer because they seemed uninterested in food. Others took me up on it and at times, this led to ongoing relationship with homeless men and women, such that we knew each others' names and basic story lines, and occasionally we shared a meal together.
But today, I realized that principle was based on an assumption about people and their motivations. It was based on a sort of cynical blanket judgment, that while it might have applied in certain situations, was by no means universally accurate. Assumptions have a way of affecting what and how we see... and today, I had my blinders taken off (at least that particular set!). Maybe principles work in a general way by definition, but if I am not mistaken, Jesus decided on a case by case basis how he would respond to each person... because he truly saw each person. I hope I might do the same.
Gospel
Mk 10:46-52
As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd,
Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus,
sat by the roadside begging.
On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth,
he began to cry out and say,
"Jesus, son of David, have pity on me."
And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent.
But he kept calling out all the more,
"Son of David, have pity on me."
Jesus stopped and said, "Call him."
So they called the blind man, saying to him,
"Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you."
He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus.
Jesus said to him in reply, "What do you want me to do for you?"
The blind man replied to him, "Master, I want to see."
Jesus told him, "Go your way; your faith has saved you."
Immediately he received his sight
and followed him on the way.
------
As with every Gospel passage, there are so many ways to interpret a given passage, and when we pray over a certain text, there is often a way that our current lived reality affects what we see and how we see it. This morning, I was meditating on the theme of sight... What is it that I need to see more clearly? Where are my blind-spots? Do I feel the same irrepressible desire to be healed and to follow Jesus? Do I have to faith that the blind man had?
In truth, my prayer foundered a bit in abstraction. Focused on myself, these questions didn't get much traction or yield much insight. But later in the day, I was driving back from an art exhibit downtown and saw a man by the side of the road, holding a sign saying that he was homeless and needed help. Hmmm... I could not help but make the association with Bartimaeus sitting on the curb calling for help.
Now, you might be thinking that because I made that connection, or simply because I have an empathetic concern as a Christian, or as a fellow human being, that I pulled over and went to this man's aid. But instead, I passed him, rationalizing that if I did stop to give the man money, that he would use it for drugs or alcohol. And indeed, for all the years I lived in New York City, I always made a point to offer people food, not cash, even if it meant that I spent much more than I would have if I had given a handout. It was a sort of principle I held on to, and as a result, many people declined the offer because they seemed uninterested in food. Others took me up on it and at times, this led to ongoing relationship with homeless men and women, such that we knew each others' names and basic story lines, and occasionally we shared a meal together.
But today, I realized that principle was based on an assumption about people and their motivations. It was based on a sort of cynical blanket judgment, that while it might have applied in certain situations, was by no means universally accurate. Assumptions have a way of affecting what and how we see... and today, I had my blinders taken off (at least that particular set!). Maybe principles work in a general way by definition, but if I am not mistaken, Jesus decided on a case by case basis how he would respond to each person... because he truly saw each person. I hope I might do the same.
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