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...

Like Jesus, St. John the Baptist was a miracle baby. He was born to an old couple and to a mother who was barren. John had been called by name. When the Angel appeared to Zechariah to tell him his wife Elizabeth will bear a son, he also told him the name the child shall be called. After his birth, the people asked Elizabeth and Zechariah what the name of the child should be. They said, “John is his name.” John had an important mission. He was to be the forerunner of Christ, to tell people to prepare their hearts for Christ, and to baptize the people for the forgiveness of sins. You too are called by name. We too have a mission. God calls us by name. God calls you by name. God calls out to you, in the deepest recesses of your hearts. He calls for you. Even before you were born, God has called you. John the Baptist leapt in his mother’s womb when Jesus in Mary’s womb came to visit. Each one of us is special to God and each one of us has a special call and mission. Your life is meaningful...

After Jesus told Peter what would happen to him, he turned to John and asked Jesus, “ What about him?” Peter was so interested in the affairs of others that Jesus had to remind him to focus on what he had been asked to do. Sometimes in our lives we may get carried away in the affairs of others that we forget what we are supposed to do. In the midst of trying to make sure everyone is doing what they’re supposed to do, we neglect what we’ve been asked to do. Our mission as disciples is not to micromanage and become busybodies but rather to root who we are and what we do in Christ and from there bring others the hope and the joy of the Gospel not merely by our lips but by our actions and example.  After Jesus had reprimanded him, Peter shifted his focus on what the Lord asked him to do – “Feed my sheep.” He kept his eyes on Christ, knowing that only by doing so will he be able to carry out what Jesus instructed him to do. As Christians our focus can sometimes be lost in the world of...

We are called to mission. But before that we first must know who sends us on mission. And to know this person we must have an encounter. The Christian life is a life of encounters - encounter with God and encounters with one another. It is our encounter with God that moves us to encounters with others. Through these rich encounters we cannot but be moved to conversion. And this conversion ultimately propels us into mission - a mission that is journeyed together with Christ by our side as well as Christ as our guide.

"I have something for you!" "There's something very special in store for you!"  Those are two statements that may rouse up inside of us feelings of warmth, love, and over all feelings of being recognized as someone important and special.  When we were younger teachers may have done something similar to us when they tried to encourage us and motivate us, "Tommy there is a very special mission for you!  You have been called to be a special agent to bring this very important letter to Mrs. Wheatland in the 6th grade.  You must do it with top secret!"  Tommy would usually have felt very much encouraged and would take this task very seriously and execute it with the utmost care.  Have you ever experienced that before?  Or, have you ever used that with someone before? Whether you have or have not in the past, we are being asked to go on a very special, important, and urgent mission right now.  Just as Saul and Barnabas was set apart by the Holy Spirit...

The portrait painted about the early Church by St. Luke in the Acts of the Apostles was one that expressed unity and communion.  We are told that "the community of believers was of one heart and mind" (Acts 4:32).  Then we are given a description of how they had put that "one heart and mind" into action - by sharing their time, talent, and treasure.  They were able to do so because they had one mission and were One in the Father. Are we a people of one heart and one mind?  This means do we have God in our hearts?  Do we root our identity and all that we do in the Father and His love?  Then we must ask do we see our mission as one.  The mission Jesus gave to His disciples was to proclaim the Good News to all nations and creatures.  This Good News is the Resurrection.  This Good News is the hope of eternal life.  This Good News is the ransom paid for our freedom from slavery to sin.  This Good News is the love of the Father. ...

Imagine this scenario: You are the homeroom teacher for one section of high school juniors.  Throughout the semester you have reminded them daily "Phones away during prayers and announcements."  The students had a rocky start but later caught on and were generally compliant and had no phones out during homeroom.  The end of the semester comes and everyone goes home for Christmas break.  Ten days later everyone comes back for the first day of the new semester.  It is 7:40AM and the first bell rings - a warning bell.  The bell rings again at 7:50AM.  Everyone is in their homerooms and prayers come on through loudspeaker.  You find that 70% of students have their phones out.  How do you respond? If I were the teacher I would be quite disappointed, but at the same time not completely shocked.  I don't want to say I expected it because I had hope that my students who continue with their good work - I mean not the entire class violated the...

We are told that “Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went away from the tomb, fearful yet overjoyed, and ran to announce the news to his disciples” (Mt. 28:8).    What made them “fearful yet overjoyed?” In the preceding verses we are told that they experienced an earthquake and witnessed the “angel of the Lord” come down, roll over the huge, heavy stone, and sat on it.    He told them that Jesus has been raised from the dead, invited them to see the empty tomb, and instructed them to go and tell the disciples.    So both Mary’s went on their way and while running Jesus came to meet them.  “ And behold, Jesus met them on their way and greeted them.    They approached, embraced his feet, and did him homage. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. Go tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.’” We are told that Jesus went to meet the Mary’s.    I can only imagine Jesus’ coming to them further affirmed an...