[Reflection] Genesis 22:10

Then he reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.

What kind of faith does it take for a man to reach out for a knife to kill his only son? One can only imagine, since the author of Genesis wisely leaves us with just the bare bones of the story.

All of us have an “Isaac”. A uniquely precious, specially loved person or aspect of our lives. One we have longed for, prayed for, the one that we are most tempted to think of as our own. The one we are least likely to share or open to the presence of others.

When God sees that we are being distracted by our “Isaac”, that’s when he gives us a choice we find nearly impossible to make : to freely give over this precious one over to Him, or to wait till He has to take it away from us. Ouch! I know that when I face this kind of decision, my reaction earns me awards for over-acting. I weep, plead, bargain, grow angry — but deep in my heart I know the choice is mine alone to make.

So I swallow hard, and reach out for the sacrificial knife. Like Abraham, I am left with no choice but to trust in God’s infinite mercy. As Isaac was returned to Abraham, so too, does the Father return peace and gratitude when I choose to follow His will, without reservations.

[Reflection] Matthew 20:28

Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.

Your mission, should you choose to accept…

Every week on Mission Impossible, the team leader was offered a dangerous assignment. If he accepted, he was warned that failure was their death warrant. As Christians, our mission is no less dangerous–opposition by hostile forces is a common reaction to those whose faithful obedience to the Lord, sheds light on what others would rather keep dark.

To this challenge, we see three reactions in today’s readings. The prophet Jeremiah calls down God’s vengeance on his behalf. The psalmist throws himself at God’s mercy and asks for deliverance. Jesus — states his mission and the fatal consequences for seeing it through. No ranting, no pleading. Just the facts, and calm acceptance of certain death.

Your mission, should you chose to accept it…We go in with a vague knowledge of the price to be paid, and when reality bites, it’s only natural to want God to come out for you in a spectacular way, or to look for a way out. Fight or flight, as they say. Jesus gives us another alternative : to fulfil our role as God’s servants in the knowledge that the end result of our mission is not death at the hands of our persecutors, but resurrection and eternal life.

[Reflection] Psalm 84:4

As the sparrow finds a home and the swallow a nest to settle her young…

I was often bored by the homilies intoned by the elderly priests who presided over the Masses of my childhood. As a result, I spent the time scrutinizing the ceiling fixtures and the statues around the altar, looking for the sparrows who managed to make themselves at home in the most unlikely places. Small, trusting creatures, always on the move; always flitting about in a never-ending search for food, yet somehow knowing that a church was a place where they would be allowed to sing freely, a place of rest against storms and stones.

Like sparrows, we fly about in a never-ending search for “the good life” — money, influence, recognition. We bustle about in our daily lives, trying to be the best witnesses that we can be. Often we move against the winds of pain and persecution. Or we cage ourselves behind the bars of jealousy, anger, denial, and frustration. In the midst of struggle, it is easy to focus on one’s own smallness and seeming ineffectiveness against the situation.

Jesus used sparrows as an example of the Father’s loving kindness — stressing that we are worth far more than that! Like sparrows seeking sanctuary in a church, believers have a “homing instinct” that draws them near to the Father. In our heart of hearts, we know that when we still our fluttering wings in prayer, we will find healing, forgiveness, and renew our strength.

The next time you hear those little brown birds chirping inside a church, let your praise go up to the Father for all that He has done.

[Reflection] 1 John 5:19

We know that we belong to God, and the whole world is under the power of the evil one.

“He belongs there/Where is it I belong…” I remember listening to these lyrics on a Sunday afternoon, and musing on the strength of the human need to belong. The girl in the song was willing to accept the attentions of a married man, such was her desire to be someone’s special person.

Belonging gives us a sense of place, of purpose, of definition. When the mushy old love songs say “you belong to me” — it’s not that the partners have established ownership over each other, the way things belong to people. Belonging to a person means each has identified the other as the person to whom one has made a commitment, and therefore acts in ways to honor that commitment.

St. John wrote that we belong to God. Which basically means that we’ve agreed to behave according to the promises we have made — in baptism, confirmation, and renewal of our lives in the Spirit. The devil tries to lure us with promises of “more and better”, “easier and faster”. Sometimes we succumb to temptation, only to find that the promises are empty and we’re left a bitter realization : because of our actions, we’ve lost our place in line for the Kingdom. We no longer belong.

But praise be to the loving Father who keeps watching for his prodigals to come home. The one who, when we repent, comes running out to meet us, with the words, “Welcome home, my child — with me, where you belong.”

[Reflection] Christmas Is Here!

Didache 2002
December 25

“. . .Training us to reject godless ways, , ,and to live temperately, justly, and devoutly. . .” – Titus 2:12

Paul’s letter to Titus receives scant notice beside the well-loved propecy of Isaiah or Luke’s chronicle of Christ’s birth. while Isaiah speaks of Christ’s divinity and Luke talks of His humility, Paul touches on a key aspect of the miracle that is Christmas–a life transformed by saving grace.

However, salvation is not a gift that we can make over to suit our particular needs. Rather, it is a gift that shapes “us.” It strips away the false images that have colored our perceptions of God, ourselves and others. It gives us new patterns for healthy living. It changes us into the very image of Christ Himself!

People will say that to live out Bible principles in this day and age is the stuff of which idealistic dreams are made. But they said the same thing about a Messiah born in a cold Bethlehem stable all those years ago, and still the power of saving grace continues to make itself manifest all over the world.

[Reflection] Powerful Words

Didache 2002
November 30

“. . .That faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard come through the word of Christ. . .” – Romans 10:17

“Did you hear?” Three words with life-changing power, for better or worse.

“Did you hear? They say the pretty secretary on the sixth floor got her promotion because she slept with the boss during the company outing.”

“Did you hear? She’s finally pregnant, after nine years of marriage! Isn’t that wonderful?”

Often, another set of three small words is attached as a postscript : “Do you believe?” It’s almost automatic. In the end, of course, the choice to believe is ours, based on what we know of the situation and the people involved.

But in no other situation is the life-changing power of those simple words, more evident than when we use them to tell others about the love of God. Sometimes it doesn’t take the tongues of angels to evangelize others, but merely a set of simple words: “Did you hear? Jesus loves you! Do you believe?”

[Reflection] Equal

Didache 2002
October 7

“. . .devoted themselves with one accord to prayer, together with. . .” – Acts 1:14

A prayer adventure I had in Lourdes brought home the awesome power of the Rosary to draw people “with one accord to prayer.” During the famous evening candlelight procession, participated in by pilgrims from all over the world before the procession began, you could feel the separateness of each group — language, clothing, caps told you where the people were from.

But once the Rosary began with “I believe in God. . .” it was a throwback to the old days. For the time it took to finish the Rosary (all 15 mysteries in various languages), it no longer mattered where you were from or where you were going; everyone was equal in the eyes of God.

Recent events have shown us what a people united in prayer can accomplish. Praying the Rosary is second nature to most of us; in imitating Mary, that most perfect of all the disciples, let us seek to make the Rosary more than just a hurried repetition of familiar words, but a catalyst for conversion and revival.

[Reflection] My Shelter

Didache 2002
September 25

“. . .Every word of God is tested; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. . .” – Proverbs 30:5

“If he doesn’t come back, get an annulment,” said her father.

Hemmed in by heartbreak, insecurity and despair, the young wife turned to the only weapon she knew to battle the darkness. Her Bible. Between its battered covers, verses marked in rainbow colors leaped from the printed page to comfort and sustain as she put the survival of her months-old marriage on the line.

“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil,” murmured the Psalmist. “Ask in faith, not doubting,” was the advice from James. “The peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard…” assured St. Paul.

Finally, over the phone, came the answer, “I’m coming home.”

That marriage so nearly wrecked is approaching its first decade. It’s not a perfect marriage–nothing is, where two all-too-human parties are involved. But I know that as long as my husband and i continue to trust in God, our married life will always find a safe anchorage against the storms of this world.

[Reflection] Real Peace

Didache 2002
August 28

“. . .May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you. . .” – 2 Thessalonians 3:16

“Mothers,” I read once, “are that special kind of person who cry out for quiet when kids are noisy — and then worry when they can’t hear them.”

How often have we longed, like harassed moms, for peace and quiet, and when we do get them, we realize we don’t know what to do? It’s almost like we have forgotten what it is like to have moments of stillness in this world where we can now, quite literally, carry our offices in the palms of our hands.

Why do we get that itchy, uneasy feeling when we are caught unaware by quiet time? perhaps the quiet serves to magnify the inner turmoil of the heart normally masked by the rush of normal living. We realize then that true peace is not defined by the absence of conflict or noise, but by hope that everything will be right in the end.

How is this possible? St. Paul gives us a clue when he writes to a community preoccupied with the end of the world. “The Lord be with all of you.”

[Reflection] Prayer

Didache 2002
July 21

“. . .for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit itself intercedes. . .” – Romans 8:26

“Please pray for me…?”

It’s a request that comes at fairly regular intervals. I have come to expect it. The intentions are varied : physical or emotional healing, financial aid…but each is a plea from a heart seeking help.

It is then that I realize how much the outcome of our prayers rests in God’s loving hands. For a brief moment, I wonder what I could possibly say — but only for a moment. As the prayer begins, the words start to flow — sometimes tumbling over each other in urgency, at other times carefully measured out. Words that come from a hidden source, sudden insights to address the problems entrusted to me.

Sometimes I am given the chance to ask a person about their petition, and once in a while they answer, “I didn’t get the answer I was praying for…God worked it out so that things are now much better. Thank you for praying for me.”

And I say to myself, “Thank You, Holy Spirit…”