From the warmth of Christmas, Hearts brighten and faces glow; Generosity abounds.
The origin of one and all Drawing out our spirits; His Spirit placed within.
Let the peace of Christ control your hearts; Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. – Colossians 3:15a, 16a
Reflecting on this Christmas and the days surrounding it, envision your heart resting within the heart of the Lord. What feelings and experiences come to mind? How was your heart moved?
The following is the Gospel passage for the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph:
When the magi had departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him.” Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed for Egypt. He stayed there until the death of Herod, that what the Lord had said through the prophet might be fulfilled, Out of Egypt I called my son.
When Herod had died, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child’s life are dead.” He rose, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go back there. And because he had been warned in a dream, he departed for the region of Galilee. He went and dwelt in a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, He shall be called a Nazorean. – Matthew 2:13-15, 19-23
What speaks to your heart most from the above passage? What quality or characteristic would you assign to it?
Again, thinking of Christmas, the birth of our Lord, and the days surrounding it, what do you desire to carry forward? What does the Lord desire for you?
The readings for the First Sunday of Advent begin with the prophet Isaiah’s vision:
This is what Isaiah, son of Amoz, saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. In days to come, the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established as the highest mountain and raised above the hills. All nations shall stream toward it; many peoples shall come and say: “Come, let us climb the Lord’s mountain, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may instruct us in his ways, and we may walk in his paths.” For from Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, and impose terms on many peoples. They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; one nation shall not raise the sword against another, nor shall they train for war again. O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the Lord!” – Isaiah 2:1-5
What does your vision of walking in the light of the Lord look like?
Picture yourself ascending the mountain to receive instruction from the Lord. Be attuned to the stirrings of your heart as you do so. Thinking about your ways (words, actions, and general way of being), ask the Lord to join.
Letting the Lord be the judge, what adjustments might help you to greater reflect the image of God?
The Responsorial Psalm is from Psalm 122 (verses 1-9):
R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
I rejoiced because they said to me, “We will go up to the house of the Lord.” And now we have set foot within your gates, O Jerusalem.
R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
Jerusalem, built as a city with compact unity. To it the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord.
R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
According to the decree for Israel, to give thanks to the name of the Lord. In it are set up judgment seats, seats for the house of David.
R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! May those who love you prosper! May peace be within your walls, prosperity in your buildings.
R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
Because of my brothers and friends I will say, “Peace be within you!” Because of the house of the Lord, our God, I will pray for your good.
R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
What phrase(s) draws your attention most? In what way does it strike a chord with you? Spend some time praying with this verse(s). How are you inspired? Share the thoughts and feelings that arise with the Lord. Ask the Lord to deepen your understanding and the grace to embody the wisdom of this psalm.
In the Second Reading (Romans 13:11-14), St. Paul writes that time is of the essence as he urges the Christians in Rome to embrace that which is eternal, the Light of Christ, over “works of darkness” (verse 12). Knowing that works of darkness can enter through the disguise of light and that the Light of Christ is not stagnant, in what ways do you invite the Lord to be with you as you make decisions, and how do you keep the Lord in your heart and on your mind, as you proceed through the tasks of each day? Ask the Lord to help you in areas you find challenging and to awaken you to areas of potential growth.
The Gospel for the First Sunday of Advent is from Matthew, chapter 24, verses 37-44:
Jesus said to his disciples: “As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. In those days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day that Noah entered the ark. They did not know until the flood came and carried them all away. So will it be also at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be out in the field; one will be taken, and one will be left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken, and one will be left. Therefore, stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come. Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour of night when the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and not let his house be broken into. So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.”
“Stay awake!”, “be prepared,” the time is unknown to you. It could happen in the next breath, far into the future, or somewhere in between. What is your initial reaction to this Gospel passage? And, in what ways does it move you?
Part of awareness and preparation involves thinking about when something will be coming or how long it might last. However, no matter how much one might plan, things can change. And while there are things that one can do regularly to be ready, faithfulness to God is about holding fast to the Lord with an openness or flexibility that allows one to cooperate with His grace. In this way, impediments to staying awake and being prepared are cast out, rather than interfering with discernment and a greater sense of God’s will.
What gets in the way of your openness to change, or things being different than what you thought, hoped for, or planned? Think of a situation where you were open to change. What was that like? And what role did prayer play in it?
Now think of a situation where you were resistant or hesitant to change because what you saw was different than your way of thinking, your approach, or what you pictured. What were you clinging to that removed the choice of being flexible? Ask the Lord to step through this situation with you and for the willingness to accept His point of view, whether it includes reaffirmation, further instruction, or gentle correction.
Continue to reflect on and pray with the insights revealed to you throughout the week. Ask for the grace to be inspired and guided by the will of God, and the desire to draw closer to God this Advent.
Show us, Lord, your mercy; grant us your salvation. – Psalm 85:8
The Gospel for the Fifth Sunday of Lent (John 8:1-11) can be seen as providing an opportunity to consider what’s at the root of one’s reactions and the ensuing responses or decisions to the situations or news that arises from day to day.
Read the passage below to familiarize yourself with the situation described.
Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. But early in the morning he arrived again in the temple area, and all the people started coming to him, and he sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and made her stand in the middle. They said to him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” They said this to test him, so that they could have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger. But when they continued asking him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again he bent down and wrote on the ground. And in response, they went away one by one, beginning with the elders. So he was left alone with the woman before him. Then Jesus straightened up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She replied, “No one, sir.” Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more.” – John 8:1-11
Next, take some time to revisit this reading from different perspectives.
First, put yourself in the shoes of the crowd. You’ve come to see and listen to this new teacher. What has drawn you to him?
Envision yourself listening to Jesus preach when suddenly, there’s an interruption. A group of men push there way through the crowd, pulling along and forcibly putting a woman into the middle of the gathering. Then they publicly call her out and ask the new teacher what he has to say about the impending doom called for by the law. What’s your first thought or feeling? What do you imagine the expression on Jesus’s face is as this is happening?
Allow yourself time to process and discuss with Jesus what it’s like to be in the crowd, witnessing this occurrence.
Next, put yourself in the shoes of the scribes and Pharisees. What do you imagine led them to essentially drag the woman, not only to where Jesus was, but also to where there was a crowd around him? The passage tells us they wanted to test Jesus. What about consideration of the woman?
Invite Jesus into the thoughts and feelings that come up as you contemplate this perspective. Ask Jesus to show you if there are areas where you might be prioritizing something to the extent that it causes a blind eye toward side effects, such as disregard for the circumstances and/or well-being of others.
Now, put yourself in the shoes of the woman caught in adultery. What’s it like to envision being forcibly taken from one place to another, put in the middle of a crowd, having your transgressions publicized, and being used as a pawn, as you await your fate, which doesn’t look good according to Mosaic law, and may or may not be determined by this new teacher?
Again, share your thoughts and feelings with Jesus. Ask him to impart wisdom and grace to you in whatever challenges you face. Also ask him to reveal anything that might be detracting from your ability to be at your best and/or to choose what is best in His eyes.
Finally, put yourself in Jesus’s shoes. You’re preaching to a crowd that has gathered around you. You see and sense the need in each person’s face. Your heart, full of peace, love, and purpose, is moved with compassion. As you’re speaking, the scribes and Pharisees arrive with the woman in tow. What do you notice most as this interruption is occurring? What’s happening internally, and from where does your response come?
Allow yourself time to pray and reflect on this experience with Jesus. What insight does Jesus want you to prioritize at this moment in your life? In what ways, and toward what, is your heart, full of peace, love, and purpose, moved with compassion?
Where can Divinity meet, and raise, your humanity for the greater glory of God?
Hope rooted in the Lord, is well placed; with the Lord, nothing is impossible.
The second reading for the Second Sunday of Lent (Philippians 3:17-4:1) closes with the phrase, “stand firm in the Lord” (Phil 4:1). These words follow verses in which St. Paul encourages the Philippians, and us, “be imitators of me,” and reminds all, “our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will change our lowly body to conform with his glorified body by the power that enables him also to bring all things into subjection to himself.” (Phil 3:20-21).
Take a few moments to contemplate the characteristics of the Lord based on Scripture and your experience through prayer and faith. Visualize yourself standing firm in the Lord. What comes to mind or stirs in your heart?
This Sunday’s Gospel passage (Luke 9:28b-36) is about the Transfiguration of Jesus. Just prior to its verses, as part of his teaching on what it means to be a disciple, Jesus says, “What profit is there for one to gain the whole world yet lose or forfeit himself?” (Luke 9:25).
In seeking to respond to the call to conversion and deepening one’s faith, envision yourself with Jesus, Peter, John, and James, going up the mountain to pray. As you walk, consider an area in which you desire to increase trust in the Lord. Bring the things you notice to prayer. Ask Jesus for the grace to receive his insights, and the wisdom to parse the various facets that are involved.
Reaching the top of the mountain, there is a pause for greater solitude—a change or shift in appearance, dazzling white, Moses and Elijah joining Jesus. It is as if time has stopped. You watch and notice, becoming more fully aware of everything around you.
Then, as Moses and Elijah depart and Peter is saying something to Jesus, you hear, “This is my chosen Son; listen to him.” (Luke 9:35). You turn to Jesus, your light and salvation, and he tells you what you need to know. You receive his wisdom as the loving guidance that it is.
Preparing to rejoin Peter, James, and John for your journey back down the mountain, you express a sentiment to Jesus, and he to you, as this intimate moment winds down.
Walking down the mountain, you continue to hold onto and savor what has transpired. When you arrive at the base of the mountain, you look back up to the top, remembering this Scripture verse:
The Lord God took Abram outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars, if you can. Just so,” he added, “shall your descendants be.” Abram put his faith in the Lord, who credited it to him as an act of righteousness.– Genesis 15:5-6
The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom should I fear? – Psalm 27:1
The magi, or three wise men, are first drawn to Jerusalem by the star signifying the birth of a newborn king. Once there, they encounter Herod, who acting on fear, deceptively seeks to have them locate this king so that he may bring about his demise; not pay homage as he has claimed.
For the wise men, this journey began with the beckon of a bright, new star. Then, from Jerusalem and their exchange with Herod, that same star leads them further onward, guiding them to Bethlehem, and Jesus Christ. And after paying homage and offering gifts to the newborn king, it is a dream that directs them back home, rather than returning to Jerusalem to reveal the location of the newborn king to Herod.
Along the way, and at each stop, the wise men, like us, undoubtedly had choices to make. What, do you imagine, inspired them to keep following the star from its rising all the way to Jerusalem? And then onward to Bethlehem?
What led them to listen to the dream and go home a different way rather than returning by way of Jerusalem, stopping to give Herod the information he wanted from them?
After taking some time to contemplate the Gospel passage for the Epiphany of the Lord (Matthew 2:1-12), reflect on the choices that you may be facing at this time and how you go about making decisions.
What influences your decisions and from where do you take direction or draw inspiration? What are the factors that motivate you? How do they reflect a posture of paying homage to the Lord? (Perhaps they are born out of, or hold at their roots, love, patience, or something similar.)
Take what you notice into prayer, inviting Jesus to share Light and Wisdom with you. Pray with any feelings or desires that arise in you. And when this prayer time comes a close, ask Jesus to reveal one parting word, phrase, or image that will help to draw and lead you, like that star, to where you ought to be.
We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage. – Matthew 2:2
In the First Reading for the Feast of the Holy Innocents (1John 1:5-2:2), it is written:
“Now this is the message that we have heard from him [Jesus] and proclaim to you: God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all.” (verse 5)
In the past week(s), how have you experienced God’s light? In what ways do you desire for the light of God to shine through you, inspiring and leading you?
A few days ago, the celebration of Christmas, the birth of Jesus Christ, began. The days leading up to Christmas can often be filled with anticipation and perhaps a rush, or a last-minute push, as if trying to cross the finish line in first place. Even in less busy years, this time of year can be as if there is something in the air, leading to reaching and stretching or a feeling of pressure and tension.
Similarly, some of the Scripture readings in the days after Christmas can change the feeling in the air as we read about stoning of St. Stephen and the Holy Innocents.
However, when and where there is darkness, there is also Light to be found.
In the Gospel for the Feast of the Holy Innocents, we are told of the Holy Family’s Flight to Egypt:
“When the magi had departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him.” Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed for Egypt. He stayed there until the death of Herod, that what the Lord had said through the prophet might be fulfilled, ‘Out of Egypt I called my son.’
When Herod realized that he had been deceived by the magi, he became furious. He ordered the massacre of all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had ascertained from the magi. Then was fulfilled what had been said through Jeremiah the prophet: ‘A voice was heard in Ramah, sobbing and loud lamentation; Rachel weeping for her children, and she would not be consoled, since they were no more.’” – Matthew 2:13-18
What do you imagine the experiences mentioned in this passage were like for Rachel, Herod, and Joseph? As you contemplate this along with your own experiences, what captures your attention most?
In the Gospel passage for the Feast of the Holy Family (Luke 2:41-52), Jesus at 12 years old is separated from his parents. After celebrating the Feast of Passover, Mary and Joseph are traveling as part of a caravan of relatives and others they know, heading back home from Jerusalem. They are more than a little way into the journey when they realize that Jesus is not with the group.
We read:
“After three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions, and all who heard him were astounded at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him, they were astonished, and his mother said to him, “Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.” And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” But they did not understand what he said to them. He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus advanced in wisdom and age and favor before God and man.” – Luke 2:46-52
Picture what it was like for Mary and Joseph as they retraced their steps back to Jerusalem trying to find their son. What do you think the experience was like for the others in their caravan? Who, if any, searched with and returned to Jerusalem with Mary and Joseph? And, how about what it might have been like for Jesus and the teachers in the temple?
Sometimes, when going through an experience, it can be easy for the scope of consideration to shrink, becoming narrower and leading one to consider fewer perspectives. However, faith calls us to be both focused (on God, Jesus, and the Way) and broad (open to different perspectives and willing to be guided and led by the Holy Spirit) in our approach and our endeavors.
What do you notice about God’s light and Divine intervention through the Flight into Egypt and the Finding of Jesus in the Temple? Pray with whatever insights you have. Talk with and listen to Jesus, as you share what you notice and any needs and desires that arise from within you as you continue to contemplate these passages and your own encounters and experiences.
Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if one has a grievance against another; as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do. And over all these put on love, that is, the bond of perfection. And let the peace of Christ control your hearts, the peace into which you were also called in one body. And be thankful. – Colossians 3:12-15
In the Book of Deuteronomy, chapter 30, verses 15-20, after having presented God’s commandments to the people, Moses exhorts them to choose life over death by embracing and living by God’s “commandments, statutes and decrees”. This brings up an interesting question. Outside of obvious situations where the distinction is clear between a choice that is life giving and one that is not, how does one determine what they are really choosing, and perhaps more importantly, why?
There are few things in life that are clear cut and without the possibility for change. Yet, the human tendency leans toward wanting things to be one way or the other, to fit comfortably into categories or boxes, and to be “known for all time”. However, this leaves little to no room for new information or consideration of different circumstances.
Sometimes it can be helpful to flip things around, contemplating them from another angle or two and considering different points of view. Oftentimes, what is thought to be wrong, so different, or out of line, underneath the surface or layers upon first look, can be not so wrong, different, or out of line, at all.
During Lent, we try to renew or refresh our spirit and growth mindset. We open our hearts and minds to seeing and being anew and strengthening our faith and discipleship ways. We are reminded of what it is we profess to believe and why, as well as the desire to choose what is life giving so that even in death, we experience Life.
Take some time to contemplate Moses’ words about choosing life or death alongside the following poem from the Persian poet Rumi.
“I died as mineral and became a plant, I died as plant and rose to animal, I died as animal and I was human, Why should I fear? When was I less by dying? Yet once more I shall die human, To soar with angels blessed above. And when I sacrifice my angel soul I shall become what no mind ever conceived. As a human, I will die once more, Reborn, I will with the angels soar. And when I let my angel body go, I shall be more than mortal mind can know.” – Rumi
What influences your choices? How do you draw inspiration from the example of Jesus in making them? What grace(s) do you desire in this area? Invite Jesus into this conversation, taking time to listen and asking to be open to and to notice whatever insights might be revealed.
Blessed are those who trust in the Lord; the Lord will be their trust. – Jeremiah 17:7
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