Reflections of a beloved son

“Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?’ “Here I am,” I said; “send me!” Isaiah 6:8   Memorial of St. Benedict   Today we celebrate St. Benedict, the Father of Western Monasticism. He strived to be with God. There were too many distractions in the world so he went away to a quiet place to listen to the Voice of God. There is too much noise in our world today that keeps us from hearing and listening to God’s voice. But the reality is that God is calling out to each one of us even if we cannot or do not want to hear it.  God calls us by name and has a unique mission for each one of us – a plan for our lives that will bring us deep joy and lasting peace. God wants this for each one of us. The Lord calls us and invites us to a mission that is uniquely ours, and if and when we answer this call, that joy and peace will get us through even the toughest moments of our lives. So, when the Lord comes to the silence of your h...

Trials and difficulties in life are inevitable. What we can decide is how we face them. Do we escape and retreat in the face of struggles or do we follow the lead of the Lord in embracing and carrying our crosses? At first we may see our trials and difficulties as annoyances and curses, but if and when we come to embrace them and face them with the Lord they will become blessings. Through our trials, God can give us many graces. We only need to want them and receive them. There will be pain and suffering, yes, but the joys and peace that comes will be greater.

We are called to remain in God’s love. It is only by remaining in God’s love, in the Holy Spirit, that our joy might be complete. Life in the Spirit is what will bring our joy to completion. When we live in the Spirit and in the love of God, we can not but be moved to do all that we can to make God’s love known to others – even at the expense of sacrifice. When we come to realize that our lives are gifts, we will be more willing to give of it and ultimately give it up. Gifts are meant to be given. Our lives are gifts, and so our lives too are meant to be given up, in service of the Gospel and of our brothers and sisters. If you want to experience true joy and peace, live knowing that your life is a gift. Give it a try.

“The brother is not bored. He is alone with God” (103). This line is from Nicolas Diat’s “A Time to Die - Monks on the Threshold of Eternal Life.” The Father comes to meet us in the silence. Being alone is not being bored or lonely. Solitude and loneliness are different. The former is being aware of the presence of God and allowing yourself to rest in Him, but the latter is ignoring it and trying to find peace outside of its source. As we enter this final week of Advent, let us be aware of God’s presence in our hearts, in others, and in the sacraments, and invite others to do the same. For only in Him will we find peace and rest.  God is there - in the stillness of your hearts.  God knows it is difficult to find peace and to find Him in the noise and busyness of the world, and so He comes to meet us in a “light silent sound” (1 Kg. 19:12b). When you feel empty and restless, and cannot seem to find any joy or peace that lasts, call out to God, for then you will be able to exp...

The world tells us there are many paths to take.   "Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and sorry I could not travel both."  Those are the opening words to Robert Frost's The Road Not Taken .  Sometimes we are faced with that same decision.  We come to a place where there are two possible paths to take, and we must decide which to take.  Both may take us to different destinations or it may take us to the same destination - we do not know.  But we must make a decision. Jesus told His disciples to "enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and those who enter through it are many" (Mt. 7:13).  Why the narrow gate?  Why does the wide gate and broad road lead to destruction?  I do not have the answer to that. I just know that Jesus said He is the way, the truth, and the life, and those even at the time of Jesus's earthly life rejected Him.  So, since Jesus is the way, and many have re...

I believe if you were to ask anyone who seems well-adjusted, doing well, and happy if everything in their lives has always been well and easy, I am sure they will tell you no.   It takes hard work to produce good results , in anything.  For a student, to get honestly good grades, one must study and work hard and diligently.  For a teacher, to be an effective instructor, one must do as much, if not more work than their students to prepare lessons and to love them well.  For a parent, to be a loving parent who does his best to provide for his family, he must maintain his career.  For an athlete, to play to win one must practice day in and day out, putting in sweat and tears.   All things worth doing are worth sacrificing for .  The struggles will be there, but if you keep in mind why you’re working so hard, those struggles will become opportunities to respond to grace and let God lead you. St. Paul and Barnabas told the people who were struggling to ...

Whether matters small or big, they are all important.   In today's Gospel reading we are told: "Amen I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of the letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place." Rules are not always easy to be followed.  Sometimes the more minor a rule or law seems to be, the harder it is to follow.  For example, it is tempting not to come to a complete stop at a STOP sign.  It's very simple but our "go" mentality takes over and say "well, as long as there's no people or car, I'll just tap the brake lightly and coast by."  However, it is important to follow this rule.  It may happen that we get distracted and we accidentally hit a child crossing the street. From a different perspective, tasks whether big or small all contribute to the greater good of the society and of the People of God.  Whether it be sweeping the floor or managing the airport tr...

"Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way  they were greater sinners than all other Galileans?   By no means!   But I tell you, if you do not repent,  you will all perish as they did! Or those eighteen people who were killed  when the tower at Siloam fell on them—  do you think they were more guilty  than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem?   By no means!   But I tell you, if you do not repent,  you will all perish as they did!" Jesus tells us that just because we perceive something as a certain way, the reality may not be the case - in fact it may be drastically different.  How we perceive things is tainted by our biases and preconceived notions of things and people .  " Look at that young homeless man.  He must be addicted on drugs and now have no money and no job."  "She probably doesn't speak English well.  Look at her."  "Wow.  He was once at the top of...