Friday of the Fourth Week of Easter

 Lectionary: 283

We ourselves are proclaiming this good news to you that what God promised our fathers he has brought to fulfillment for us, their children, by raising up Jesus, as it is written in the second psalm,
     You are my Son; this day I have begotten you.”

As the first disciples were caught up in the Spirit of Easter and Pentecost, they reread the Hebrew Scriptures and discovered prophecies about the Crucified and Risen Lord on every page. They especially knew Jesus as the fulfillment of God's word to Abraham. He is the beloved and only begotten son; the very one of whom the psalms and Isaiah spoke: "Before my birth the LORD called me, from my mother’s womb he gave me my name." 

There was no old testament god to be compared with a new testament god; they were one in the Father and his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. That unfortunate myth about their differences persists among many Catholics and their priests. They ignore the Good Shepherd's sobering threats and stress the angry warnings of the Hebrew prophets. Their failure to remind the self-righteous, content, and powerful of God's demands must follow. They suppose the Lord who sacrificed his own Son is a sugar daddy, an unquestioning, unchallenging, harmless teddy bear. Their god cannot bring down the mighty or lift up the lowly. Their Christianity becomes one among many "comparative religions." That idol may soothe the anguish of some psychiatric ills but it does not address global poverty or waste.  

Saint Paul's invocation of Isaiah recalls the "royal" Psalm 2 in which we hear the prophet's promise to the king:

I myself have installed my king
on Zion, my holy mountain.
I will proclaim the decree of the LORD,
he said to me, “You are my son;
today I have begotten you.

The Jewish people never forgot the peaceful reign of King David; they clung to the belief that all nations would live securely and prosperously when the Lord restores the Shepherd King's once-and-future governance. If we cannot imagine such a world today, our imagination is stunted by the choking anxieties which bear no fruit.

The threats and the promises remain for those who have ears; and we do hear them in our hearts as we practice our faith and recite our daily prayers. And because we pray for it, that Day of Just Mercy will come. 

Feast of Saint Mark, evangelist

Lectionary: 555

Clothe yourselves with humility
in your dealings with one another, for:
God opposes the proud
but bestows favor on the humble.
So humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God,
that he may exalt you in due time.
Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you.

Saint Mark didn't invent the expression "good news." That honor belongs to Isaiah the Prophet, who used it twice:

How beautiful upon the mountains
are the feet of the one bringing good news,
Announcing peace, bearing good news,
announcing salvation, saying to Zion,
“Your God is King! (Isaiah 52:7)

and

The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
because the LORD has anointed me;
He has sent me to bring good news to the afflicted,
to bind up the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives,
release to the prisoners... (Isaiah 61:1)

Saint Luke tells us that Jesus began his ministry with the expression as he cited the latter verse from Isaiah. 

However, we credit Saint Mark for creating the literary form we know as Gospel. Until then the message which the disciples of Jesus announced throughout the Roman empire -- a message which included stories of his life, death, and resurrection as well as accounts of his parables, healings, teachings, and wonderful deeds -- was called the good news. Or sometimes, the way. It was also a mission of announcing the name of Jesus far and wide, for by his name -- and no other -- we are saved. 

Today we use the word gospel for both purposes; it's a literary form and a message of salvation. It's wonderful in any case. 

Today's first reading from 1 Peter suggests that Saint Mark was a disciple of Peter. He was known to the Apostles Barnabas and Paul, though he remained with Barnabas when there was a falling out between those two great scholar/preachers. Apparently, they quarreled about him! And then he ended up with Peter. But the name Mark was not uncommon in the Roman Empire, and there might have been several Marks among the missionaries. This question no historian will ever settle, and is not terribly important. 

So we move on to celebrate the genius of "The Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God," which are the proper title and first words of this historic document. The book is a temple which we enter with profound reverence; it is an invitation and challenge to recognize the overwhelming mercy of God which penetrates, illuminates, and then annihilates the profound darkness of our sins. 

The Book includes us within the passion of Jesus by describing in no uncertain terms the weakness, confusion, and cowardice of the Lord's disciples. We find ourselves within the story. It's widely believed the Evangelist wrote himself into the story, despite his being too young to have been there, with two verses: 

Now a young man followed him wearing nothing but a linen cloth about his body. They seized him, but he left the cloth behind and ran off naked. (Mark 14:52)

Everyone who hears and reads this Gospel must admit they also would have fled, denied, or betrayed the Lord with a kiss; for without the Spirit which had not yet been given, no one could follow the Lord's bloody footprints to Calvary. As Saint John the Evangelist tells us:

[Jesus] said this in reference to the Spirit that those who came to believe in him were to receive. There was, of course, no Spirit yet, because Jesus had not yet been glorified. (John 7:39)

Not only does Mark describe the failure of our courage, he highlights it in yellow as he describes Peter's supercilious crowing, "Even though all should have their faith shaken, mine will not be.” (Mark 14:29)

This is us, people! It hurts, but it heals also. And for that the Church will always thank and celebrate Saint Mark the Evangelist. 

Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Lectionary: 281

“Whoever believes in me believes not only in me
but also in the one who sent me,
and whoever sees me sees the one who sent me.
I came into the world as light,
so that everyone who believes in me might not remain in darkness.

With these words from Saint John's Gospel Jesus describes not only his mission, but the mission of every disciple. 

I discovered this as a chaplain in the VA hospital, where I served from 2007 to 2022. There had been dreadful stories about priests in the news media for over five years, and people asked me about them. But invariably I was greeted with reverence and respect by patients, their families, and the hospital personnel. Most of them had known a priest and their affection for him was immediately transferred to me. I had only to introduce my name. They knew what I represented. I am a sacrament. 

We believe in Jesus because we know the man. We have lived with him; we have listened to his words; we have often been relieved of our troubles, whether they were disturbed hearts, conflicted conscience, or bodily ills. We know the voice of the Good Shepherd. 

And knowing him, we know where he comes from and who sent him. We know his Father is compassionate and merciful and just; and we trust the Father of Jesus because he trusted his Father even as he died on a cross. 

In the same way, people who believe in us believe not only in us but also in the One who sent us. And its corollary follows: those whom we betray believe they have been betrayed by God. 

Like Jesus, we must have, and be known for, integrity. That is, "I am what I pretend to be." As a Franciscan and a priest, I have that obligation to myself, to my Church, and to our God. But I cannot be what anyone thinks I should be. That would be the worse pretense, for I know already that I am a sinful man. To pretend otherwise would be a sham, and easily recognized; that's called hypocrisy. And so I "own" my sins, frailty, cultural blindness, and ignorance without excuse or phony remorse; as I pray that I cause no one to sin. 

Saint Paul said of Jesus, he cannot deny himself. As the Son of God, commissioned to represent the mercy and justice of God, to serve rather than be served, he must refuse to turn stones into bread and to jump off the highest parapet of the temple. He literally could not do it, not because he was not God -- which he was! -- but because he was obedient. And as the image of God, he must surrender to God because God has surrendered everything to him. 

And so we are called to discover who we are, and who we must be in God's sight. We are called to integrity, to being what we pretend to be. 

Whoever believes in me believes not only in me
but also in the one who sent me,
and whoever sees me sees the one who sent me.

Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Lectionary: 280

My sheep hear my voice;
I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.
No one can take them out of my hand.
My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all,
and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand.
The Father and I are one.

The Church must always remember and celebrate the martyrs. They appear in every century for the age of martyrdom has never ended. Should the day come when no one is challenged to surrender their life for their faith in Jesus, we will know the Church has failed and the Spirit has left us. 

But that day will never come because "no one can take them out of my hand.... and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand." A simple Google search for Catholic martyrs of the 21st century offers proof of that. And that story is only a sequel to the witness of twenty preceding centuries. 

As those who share the faith of the martyrs and accompany their via crucis, we must pray that we will be found worthy as their companions. 

Our bonds begin in God the Father and his Beloved Son, who are one in mind, heart, and will. As Jesus says in today's gospel, "The Father and I are one."  That oneness is rock solid, it is the covenant the Lord makes with his holy people. 

The covenant of baptism which the Church makes with every believer, and the covenant of marriage reflect that oneness. A priest might be accused of always agreeing with whatever the Church says, or a man might be accused of agreeing with whatever his wife says, but the accusation misses the point. They are of one mind and one heart; their fidelity flows from their union. Given that the Latin word for heart is cor, we understand their agreement as accord -- one heart.

Another word for that agreement is integrity. Saint Paul says of the Lord's integrity: 

If we are unfaithful he remains faithful, for he cannot deny himself. (2 Tim:2:13)

Footnotes on the USCCB Bible site encourage meditation on the purity of heart that is typical of God and the Trinitarian mystery:

• Numbers 23:19 -- God is not a human being who speaks falsely, nor a mortal, who feels regret. Is God one to speak and not act, to decree and not bring it to pass?
• Romans 3:3-4 -- What if some were unfaithful? Will their infidelity nullify the fidelity of God? Of course not! God must be true, though every human being is a liar, as it is written: “That you may be justified in your words, and conquer when you are judged.”
• Titus 1:1-3 -- Paul, a slave of God and apostle of Jesus Christ for the sake of the faith of God’s chosen ones and the recognition of religious truth, in the hope of eternal life that God, who does not lie, promised before time began, who indeed at the proper time revealed his word in the proclamation with which I was entrusted by the command of God our savior...

Our life is built on the truth. Buildings, roads, bridges must be built with integrity. Automobiles, airplanes, boats: if machines are not built honestly they self-destruct. A nation cannot endure cheating; civilization is built on truth. 

During the worst of our human cycles, when even good people deceive to survive, martyrs speak the truth and lead us back to God. 

Monday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Lectionary: 279

Peter explained his decision to baptize gentiles to the Apostles and the brothers who were in Judea...

"If then God gave them the same gift he gave to us when we came to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to be able to hinder God?"
When they heard this, they stopped objecting and glorified God, saying, "God has then granted life-giving repentance to the Gentiles too."

Pope Francis's famous remarks -- "Who am I to judge?" -- seems to echo Saint Peter's explanation to the Church in Jerusalem, "...who was I to be able to hinder God?" The first pope had done something in Joppa which seemed unimaginable to both Establishments in Jerusalem. The majority Jews and the minority Christians suddenly, unexpectedly agreed as they cried with one voice. "You did what?"

When the dust settled, their separate courses had become more obvious. If gentiles were reluctantly accepted by Jews after their circumcision, they were courted and welcomed into the Church through the less painful rite of Baptism. But the converts would also face the combined wrath of the Jewish synagogue and the Roman empire. 

Clearly, the converts of Joppa were not seeking social respectability as they listened to Peter's proclamation and received the Holy Spirit. They knew about the crucifixion of Jesus, the stoning of Stephen, and the execution of James. Nor did they intend to retain their former, pagan practices. Rebirth in the Lord meant a total overhaul of their way of life. They studied and accepted the moral code and sexual standards of the Jewish religion.  

The Lord's parables of the wheat and the wheat, and the sorting of fish, testify to the dilemma the Church addressed as the sincerity and enthusiasm of new converts failed. Anyone who joins the Church looking for social respectability must soon be disappointed. God's chosen people must be pariahs in a world which is hostile to God. 

The parables also assure us that thorny issues will be sorted out. On That Day of Judgment the faithful will be proven by their choice of Life over liberal and conservative cultures of death. 

Fourth Sunday of Easter

Lectionary: 50

I am the good shepherd,
and I know mine and mine know me,
just as the Father knows me and I know the Father;
and I will lay down my life for the sheep.
I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold.
These also I must lead, and they will hear my voice,
and there will be one flock, one shepherd.

The familiar hymn, Christ beside me; Christ within me, is a musical version of Saint Patrick's Lorica, the Deer's Cry. It's said that the Saint with his troupe of missionaries was travelling through a dense forest. He knew there was a hostile force nearby, waiting to attack and kill them. And so he composed and taught the monks this prayer and they sang it together. The enemy saw and heard only a passing rangale of deer. 

The prayer begins,  "I arise today / through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity..."  Like many of the psalms, it's a personal prayer. An individual stands before God helpless, alone, and needy; and prays for help. A petitioner before the Almighty cannot pretend to be powerful, righteous, or worthy. We have no claim on God except the name of Jesus; or, as Patrick says, the name of the Trinity. 

A Christian knows the mystery of the Trinity, "a mystery hidden from ages and from generations past, but now manifested to his holy ones." Like the mysterious deer, this enigma stands in plain sight of the enemy and yet they cannot perceive it. But it is lorica to the faithful individual, "a shell-like protective outer covering," or "a Roman corselet or cuirass of leather." 

As I have recited this prayer each morning for many years, I feel the reassuring presence of our Good Shepherd. He is "my strength, the LORD, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my God, my rock of refuge, my shield, my saving horn my stronghold!" Psalm 18

I suppose anyone who greatly admires a leader believes that individual would enjoy their company. Many people felt they could sit down and drink a beer with George W Bush, rather than his opponent Al Gore in  2000. If he actually won that election, it was in part for his folksy manner. He cultivated that appearance despite his prolific reading and his predilection for Catholic advisors. In 2024, many people feel an intense bond of affection for Donald Trump despite his fabled wealth and notorious contempt for advisors. He has only to repeat whatever falsehoods his admirers believe to win their undying loyalty. 

The Christian feels that reassurance in the presence of our Good Shepherd. We know the Lord is with us even before we respond, "...and with your spirit." We see his companionship in Bethlehem's manger, on Calvary's cross, and the road to Emmaus. Hearing the Gospel, we sign ourselves with a cross on the forehead, the lips, and the heart. We pray to be always aware of his care and concern for us. When that day comes -- that dies irae, dies illa -- we'll know his call to "Come out!" and like Lazarus we'll come dancing. 

The Good Shepherd accompanies and reassures us as we navigate the wilderness of this 21st century. If the "apocalypse" happens when we no longer recognize the world as familiar, we live in a post-apocalyptic age not unlike that of Moses and his tribes in the Sinai wilderness. 

The LORD answered: I myself will go along, to give you rest. Moses replied, “If you are not going yourself, do not make us go up from here. For how can it be known that I and your people have found favor with you, except by your going with us? Then we, your people and I, will be singled out from every other people on the surface of the earth.” The LORD said to Moses: This request, too, which you have made, I will carry out, because you have found favor with me and you are my intimate friend. (Exodus 33:14-17)

Jesus knows our distress for he has passed out of this Egypt through the harrowing Red Sea into the Promised Land. But he has not left us behind for he who knows the way is the Way. He is the Truth and foundation of our Life. Standing far taller than his sheep, with an endless view of the future and a serene understanding of our past, the Shepherd leads us in the most direct route to the meadows of our true homeland. 

Saturday of the Third Week of Easter

 Lectionary: 278

It is the Spirit that gives life, while the flesh is of no avail.
The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life.
But there are some of you who do not believe."

The Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit are sometimes described as God's right and left hands. He plunges both into the filthy cauldron of human affairs and begins the delightful, demanding work of healing, cleansing, and sanctifying us. As we can see by the Scriptures, God does not abandon us to our misguided thinking. Long before anyone is born he is deeply engaged in our world. 

Today's account from the Acts of the Apostles describes the miraculous healings that were typical of that apostolic age. They are not unheard of today although the sciences are skeptical and the Church handles them carefully. Nearly every Christian has one or more stories to tell of the Lord's intervention. They might not be as spectacular as healing the paralyzed and reviving the dead but many of us have been healed when we were paralyzed by resentment and prostrate with remorse. 

If we take delight in the natural wonder of our human bodies, and are amused by our failings, we take greater pleasure in the Spirit who gives life. While we must care for our bodies, in obedience to our Lord, we also cultivate his Spirit. Like Saint Luke, we seek and find moments when God's presence appears; we wait for, and then act upon, the impulses that come with the spiritual life. Opportunities for generosity, hospitality, and mercy are so abundant we might be like kids in a candy shop, wanting to grab everything. But the Spirit who is wise also counsels us to take some and leave the rest for others. 

We do not live in the Garden of Eden but we enjoy the Spirit and the Life the Lord has given us; and we cultivate an Eden in our hearts where he rests with his Beloved, even as he did with Adam and Eve in the cool of the evening.