It’s Just Not Fair

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Dear Folks,

When we are kids, one of the first principles we learn is to play fair. Everyone gets a turn. Everyone gets the same number of cookies. When we hear this Gospel reading (Matthew 20:1-16a, the workers in the vineyard) the first reaction I had was this isn’t fair.  

So, what’s the deal? We get told that “life isn’t fair.” I, of course had trouble with this for a long time because when people said it, it usually meant that I was going to get the dirty end of the stick. 

However, when we get a larger perspective, we learn ways it is good that life isn’t fair. Different people are given different challenges and different gifts. This enables people to bring different strengths to the table. 

Returning to our Gospel reading, consider: If you are hiring people to do a job, and there is a large pool to choose from, who would you pick? I expect the ones who get hired look the strongest and most capable of working. Imagine you were one of the candidates, and you didn’t get hired yesterday. That might mean that you didn’t eat yesterday. What if you didn’t get hired for several day? You might not look very capable and wouldn’t be the first hired. You stay around the marketplace hoping to get hired to do something so maybe you could get something to eat. Perhaps the owner of the vineyard wanted to give these people a chance. We may feel a bit hurt when someone is getting an extra chance and we are not, but there are larger issues. I’ve known families where one of the children has a long-term disease and so gets more attention. The other children, even if they understand, still feel it.

Some had said that this verse refers to people going to the last judgement and everyone who is saved gets the same reward whether they have done a lot or a little. There are a couple of problems with this interpretation. First, it would be the only text I know of in scripture that teaches us how to cope with going to heaven. Second, Jesus makes reference some greater and some lesser in the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 5:19, 11:11). 

This story could certainly be understood as referring to the Gentiles becoming Christian, and their Jewish colleagues that, having followed the Torah for generations, they should get some special consideration in the Church compared to those who, for generations, practiced some pagan religion (which would often sound like more fun). If we hear the stories of some who had a time of seeking their own desires before becoming Christian (St. Augustine comes to mind) they often wish they had come to the faith sooner because that is better than what they had before. We have no cause to envy them.

God is at work. He wants everyone to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4) and will lead us through paths we might not understand at the time, but all will be made clear in the end. In the meantime, we keep going.

Blessings,

Fr. Jim

Praying the Psalms

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Dear Folks,

You have perhaps learned that the Catholic Church is putting out a new edition of the Liturgy of the Hours. This is a practice older than the rosary and rooted in Jewish practice, and being liturgy, not a devotion, it is a way we can be one with Jesus, and He is speaking though us to the Father. As a Catholic practice it started at the cathedrals and became common at the monasteries. During the Middle Ages it became the practice of clergy and religious only. The Second Vatican Council called for lay people to once again get involved in the practice. I think this is a good opportunity to get more lay people involved in the practice. It centers around the Psalms, and most Catholics haven’t been taught much about the Psalms. We pray a Psalm, or part of a Psalm at every single Mass, but how much do we really know about the Psalms? 

I just finished reading “Psalm Basics for Catholics” by Dr. John Bergsma. It is an easy read, I would think for high school students or ever upper elementary (Not my area of expertise) but it has a lot of information in it, and I learned a lot of things that I didn’t know. 

There are 5 “books” in the book of Psalms, and most of the Psalms in each book move in a certain direction. Psalms 1 and 2 are an introduction to the thought of the Psalter, first from a wisdom perspective and then from a royal perspective. 

The “books” of psalms are: Book 1: Psalms 1-41; Book 2: Psalms 42-72; Book 3: Psalms 73-89, Book 4: Psalms 90-106; and Book 5: Psalms107-150. We will learn from Dr. Bergsma how the “books” fit into salvation history. 

Jesus certainly knew and prayed the Psalms. We see he quoted Psalm 82 “you are gods” in John 10:34; Psalm 22 “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me (Matthew 27:46), Psalm 31 “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit (Luke 23:46).” If you read Psalm 24 you know that “Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God” is not a new teaching. If you read Psalm 37 you will see that “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land” is not a new teaching. 

The Psalms give us ways to pray whether we are happy or sad, on top of the world or having our lowest day. They give us words to bring all of ourselves to God.

There are various books on how to pray the Liturgy of the. Hours (I was surprised how many are available) and I’m going through them, hoping to share some recommendations. In the meantime, this introduction to the Psalms is a good place to start.

More soon.

Blessings,

Fr. Jim

Forgiveness is Hard

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Dear Folks,

Today’s readings are tough ones: we talk about forgiveness. Everyone knows that forgiveness is a part of Christianity. We know that if we are not willing to forgive, we are not really doing Christianity. Jesus spoke in very strong terms, but it is hard in practice.  I believe it was C. S. Lewis who said, “Everyone thinks that forgives is a lovely idea until they have something to forgive.”

I personally had a very hard time learning forgiveness because I thought it meant that others could torment me without limit and without consequence, and I was supposed to pretend that it didn’t matter (when you were the kid that didn’t fit in, that would be an easy trap to fall into).

I have since learned some important things.

!. Forgiveness is a form of healing.

2. I takes time to heal deep wounds.

3. It can exist alongside protecting yourself. 

4. Sometimes forgiveness includes cutting off a relationship. 

When Jesus said if you do not forgive others’ sins you will not be forgiven, I first thought that meant that if we didn’t forgive others’ sins then out of spite God would not forgive us. I later learned that there was a deeper reasoning. God wants to forgive us because even though he really cares about sin, He loves us even more. He really wants to get all of us in heaven, even the worst of us. God hates sin more than we do, even though it doesn’t affect Him personally. He knows that sin can destroy us, and He loves us more deeply than we can imagine. Opening our hearts to forgiving is opening our hearts to being forgiven. Believing that God wants all people to be forgiven enables us to look at our own sins honestly, and perhaps realize that they were more serious than we are in the habit of thinking.

Some books I have found useful are:

“No Future Without Forgiveness” by Desmond Tutu. This tells the story of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa. It tells the horrors of apartheid (I knew it was bad but I didn’t know it was that back) and the good things that come from the hard decision to grant amnesty.

“The Book of Forgiving” by Desmond and Mpho Tutu. Talks about how to forgive: Telling the story, naming the pain, granting forgiveness, renewing or releasing the relationship.

“Don’t Forgive Too Soon” by  Matthew Linn, Sheila Fabricant Linn, and Dennis Linn. This talks about practicalities of various situations and practical responses.

“Remembering God’s Mercy” by Dawn Eden. This tells the story of one woman’s journey from terrible abuse to Catholicism and healing. Her relationship with Jesus is central.

Now think of the goal. No more pain, no more anger, no more resentment. Only God can get us there.

Blessings,

Fr. Jim

Sharing the Faith

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Dear Folks,

The first point from our Sunday readings is to let go of success when it comes to persuading others (See Ezekiel 33:7-9). We are responsible for telling the truth. We are not responsible for others’ reaction. When I started college, I was determined to convert my agnostic roommate. Long story short, I did a terrible job. I could write a book, “101 Things Never, Ever to do While Evangelizing” and I did every one. The first one is I needed to convert him.   Sharing the truth is not about our needs. That said, we don’t get to be lazy about how we do it and how we learn to do it. I needed to learn a lot more about Christianity. I needed to learn a lot about how to dialog with people who thought differently from how I thought (I later learned that includes everyone: sooner or later I will disagree with you about something).  I had a lot to learn about how to manage my emotions.  God tells Ezekiel he is supposed to preach, and the people would respond how they chose.  We can just work on getting better ourselves.  I would suggest that one of the reasons that we are not doing better than we are is so many Catholics do not know how to share the faith, and one of the reasons good things are happening is we are getting some better apologists, including on social media (although good old-fashioned books still have a place). In twelve years of religious ed growing up they never taught us to share the faith with others. In eight years in the seminary they never taught us how to share the faith with those who don’t already have it (don’t get me wrong: I learned a lot of useful things in the seminary, just not that). This is one of the reasons I’m such a fanatic about being a lifelong learner about the faith. 

The Gospel (Matthew 18:15-20) talks about conflict in the Church. If the Church could deal with conflict better, it would save us a vast pile of time and energy that we could us practicing the faith.  If the Church could deal with conflict better that would be a powerful witness that Jesus is at work in our midst. Jesus doesn’t spend a lot of time with practicalities on how to be church, so this must be especially important. 

I have repeatedly recommended Ann Garrido’s book “Redeeming Conflict.” That gives us some basic tools.  However, we have all picked up bad habits in life, and it will take time and lots of effort (Is there any aspect of Christianity that does not require effort?). 

Imagine if everywhere Catholics go it becomes more peaceful, and people have more fruitful and more civil conversation.  It starts with each of us.

Blessings,

Fr. Jim

Sometimes We Don’t Understand What God is Doing

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Dear Folks,

God does some strange stuff.  Consider some of the animals He made. Consider what else He does. 

Thirty-nine years ago, I was ordained a priest on the Feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist. The next day, of course, I celebrated my first Mass, and being a Sunday, I used the readings of the day, and the first reading was this one from Jeremiah, “You duped me, Lord, and I let myself be duped.” I therefore learned a very important prayer:” I suppose You think this is very funny.”  I had also learned of a famous prayer of St. Teresa of Avila: “If this is the way you treat you friends, it’s no wonder that you have so few of them.” 

God is, of course, infinitely smarter than we are, so it should not be surprising that many of the things He does make no sense to us at the moment.

Peter was doing so well last week in the Gospel reading. For us it had been a week, for him just a moment. He went from “blessed are you Simon bar-Jonah” to “Get behind me Satan.”  That had to have been a shock. He just said that Jesus shouldn’t be rejected and killed, which, under normal circumstances, would have been a perfectly reasonable thing to say. 

We are so used to the cross being associated with Christianity that it is easy to forget what a shock and a “stumbling block (1Corinthians 1:22-24)” it was to people at that time. Peter would eventually come to accept it, to the point of giving his life for the faith. But let’s take a moment and consider his journey to getting there. But consider that it was completely contrary to everything that had made sense for them. 

Now think about how it can work it in our lives. We so often go through the words, but it is a completely different thing to accept it in reality. There was a time when I was getting attacked for doing my job, and a friend said to remember blessed are those who are persecuted. My first thought was “very funny” then I realized that This was actually a bit of truth. If we stand for something, we are going to get clobbered, if not physically, then psychologically. We do Jesus’ work, often not through our strength, but through our weakness. We often win by losing. It may be a small thing compared to what the martyrs faced, but Jesus taught that little things matter (Mark 12:41-44). 

St. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 1:9 “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” When have we served God, not through our strength, but through our weakness. When did our plans get turned upside down. How might God use our weakness?

Blessings,

Fr. Jim

Why Does Jesus Act Like This?

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Dear Folks,

This Sunday’s Gospel reading is uncomfortable. In Matthew 15:21-28 it seems that he is being mean to a Gentile woman. “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs (Matthew 15:26).”  

There are some realities to keep in mind. 

Jesus’ ministry was first to the lost sheep of the house of Israel (see Matthew 10:5-6). But He found great faith in some Gentiles (See Matthew 8:5-11), and He responded to that faith.

The woman is being tested. Jesus was very good a reading people and knew what they needed. We notice that the centurion was treated very differently (Matthew 8:5-13) In Matthew 19:16-22, the rich young man gets a challenge that not many are given. See how He responded to the people of Nazareth (Luke 4:16-30). Remember, there is a lot that is not mentioned in the Gospel account, like the internal attitudes of the people involved. 

There is another factor. We see in Scripture : “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does? declares the Lord. Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand (See Jeremiah 18:1-10)” “Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use? (Romans 9:21).” God will do different things with different people because they will have different roles. 

When we go to God, we might find that what happens next is not easy. Does this mean He had abandoned us or is mad at us for something? No necessarily. It could mean that we just need an extra lesson, or that God is making us into something special. Or both. Have you heard the expression, “No good deed goes unpunished?”  Have you ever felt it? If you read the Scriptures and the lives of the saints, you shall see you are not the first. 

I think life is like running an obstacle course with a backpack. We can see others’ backpacks, and some look heavier than others, but we won’t find out until the end how heavy each one’s pack is. We feel how heavy ours is, but we don’t really know how it is compared with others. We might find that our pack was really lighter than a whole lot of people’s and we had it easy. Or we might find our pack with heavier than most peoples. We might find that some people were given extra challenges and beautiful things came from that. We thought some people weren’t doing very well and find out their response to God’s gifts was heroic.  In the meantime, we really don’t know and God seems content to let some things be a surprise.  Some people seem to get challenge after challenge and we don’t know why. In the meantime, God is doing wonderful things.

Blessings,

Fr. Jim

Am I Doing this Right?

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Dear Folks,

Today we see Jesus walking on water. Matthew, Mark, and John all mention the walking on water incident immediately after the feeding of the 5000. Luke does not include the walking on water. Ony Matthew will have Peter getting out of the boat, walking on the water, and then sinking, like a rock. Only Matthew will tell the story in 16:16-20 of Peter declaring that Jesus in the Son of God and being bless and called Peter (But see John 1:43 which shows Jesus calling him “Cephas” which means Rock). All four Gospels mention Peter worst story then he denied Jesus three times (Matthew 26:69-75; Mark 14:66-72; Luke 22:54-62; John 19:17-18 and 19:25-27). It appears the more important one is in the early church, the more one’s failings become known.

As we saw in the multiplication of the loaves, we see in the walking on water, there are no forces on earth that can stop Jesus. As long as we keep our eyes on Him.

Peter got out of the boat and walked. No one else did that. But he looked at the storm and failed. We will often be challenged to step out in faith, and we might look at the storm and fail. Then we tell Him we need help.

If we want to do God’s work, we will make mistakes.  I have explained to God that if he would keep me from messing up, I could get His work done more efficiently. (I also mentioned that it would be very beneficial if He would give me some advanced notice what His is planning so I could get ready, and it would be a really good thing for gravity to give senior citizen discounts). 

In Ken Burns’ “History of Jazz” there was a clip of Artie Shaw criticizing Glen Miller for never making mistakes. He said that if you don’t make mistakes, you are not pushing yourself as hard as you can but staying where it’s safe. I suggest that Peter knew they were being called to greatness, and he tried very hard to answer the call, and that sometimes meant getting in over his head (so to speak). He would grow in the process and wound up giving his life for the Kingdom of God. 

How is God calling you? Have you made mistakes? If so, you’re in good company. 

Blessings,

Fr. Jim

We do What we Can, but it is Jesus Who Feeds

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Dear Folks,

Our Gospel today is the multiplication of the loaves and fish, the feeding of five thousand with five loaves and two fish. This story is familiar. After all, it is the only miracle mentioned in all four Gospels (Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:35-44; Luke 9:10-17 and John 6), and Matthew and Mark also have the feeding of he four thousand with seven loaves and a few fish (Matthew 15-32-39 and Mark 8:1-10). If you only listen the Sunday readings, you would never know that. This year we get Matthew’s account. Next year, we will interrupt Mark to do the feeding and the bread of life discourse from the Gospel of John (July 25th to August 6th). If you read through the Gospels (which I highly recommend) we Clearly, this story is important to the early Church.

Consider the poor disciples. They watched Jesus propose that they feed all those families. They would have known the Hebrew scriptures and the story of Elijah feeding 100 men with twenty barley loaves and having some left over (2 Kings 4:2-44). This is much bigger.  I could imagine them saying, “No, boss, no! Look at this crowd. If we promise them food and don’t give them food they will tear us apart!”  All the tellings of the stories involve starting with what He is given. Surely it would be in His power to go Poof! Everyone has bread and fish. It would be in His power to go Poof! Everyone has filet mignon. However, He calls them to give what they have, even though it is horribly, laughably inadequate. Then he feeds everyone, and there is not just some left over.  The feeding of the five thousand families had twelve baskets left over, symbolizing the twelve tribes of Israel. The feeding of the four thousand took place in Gentile territory, and has seven baskets left over, symbolizing the seven tribes of Gentiles (see Joshua 3:10).

There is an echo of this in John 21, when Jesus tells the disciples to cast out their nets and they bring in a huge number of fish (which echoes Luke 5:3-7)   Jesus says to bring some of the fish they caught, while He already had some bread and fish being cooked for breakfast. More astute students of the Bible would be asking why He wanted them to bring some fish when He already was cooking the bread and fish for breakfast. I would suggest that He always asks us to bring what we have, while it is He who feeds. 

When we come to worship God, our worship is imperfect, so much short of what God deserves. We bring what we have, and Jesus works though us in the liturgy, and wonderful things happen. When we serve God in the world, our ability is horribly inadequate for the mess the world is in. We bring what we have, and it is Jesus who makes wonderful things happen. Sometimes (as in usually) it takes longer than we think it should. However, much patience I think I have learned, God seems to think I need to learn more. God is at work and doing things we do not yet understand. He calls us to participate. How will we respond?

Blessings,

Fr. Jim

Wheat and Weeds: No Escape

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Dear Folks,

We continue on Matthew 13 and have more parables. We have the parable of the wheat and the weeds, then a pair of parables (the mustard seed and the woman who mixes yeast with dough). 

The parable of the wheat and weeds warns us that the Church is going to be messy. The particular kind of weeds they are mentioned here are called “tares” and young tares can easily be mistaken for young wheat. We continue to be surprised that we see bad behavior in church, and some people leave because of it. But Jesus warned us in the beginning that it would happen. We keep being surprised that Jesus was right. We don’t get to say that this person is not worthy to be in the Church. This, by the way, includes us. We don’t get to say, “I am too bad a person; I’m not worthy to go to church.”  We might not be ready to receive communion, but if we are feeling weedy, we need God and Church more that ever. 

Unlike with literal weeds, in Church a weed can become a stalk of wheat, and a stalk of wheat can become a weed. I think one of God’s favorite things to do is take great sinners and make them great saints. You never know when this is going to happen, including to you.

Does this mean we should do nothing about all the bad in the Church? Just accept it and hold on to things getting fixed in the end?

No. Not at all. In fact, the parable of the mustard seed and the parable of the yeast take away our biggest excuse. We don’t get to say that we have no power so it’s someone else’s problem. The parable of the mustard seed and the parable of the yeast tell us that little things matter. The smallest act can make a huge difference in the Kingdom. The smallest act of kindness, the smallest act of faithfulness, the smallest act of respect might make all the difference in someone’s life, and we won’t know until the last day what all difference it made. We might get some feedback that will help keep us going, but we know that much more is happening than we can see. A tiny mustard seed can make a huge plant. A small amount of yeast can transform a great quantity of dough. (Those who know me know I don’t like mustard, so this is not one of my favorite parables. However, I understand why Jesus did not use ketchup seeds.)

Yeast is somethings in the Bible a negative image (Matthew 16:5-12; Mark 8:14-21; Luke 12:1-3; 1 Corinthians 5:6-8). This reminds us that the Bible is not a code book and will use different images in different ways. We will not, in this life, say that we have figured it all out. Our understanding is tiny compared to the truth that is. And yet, we can make a difference. 

How are you dealing with weeds in your life? How are you feeling weedy yourself?  

Don’t worry, God is at work. 

Blessings,

Fr. Jim

Saying No to God

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Dear Folks,

The Gospel reading is from Matthew 13, and we’ll be seeking Matthew 13 for the rest of this month. It is full of parables, and Jesus makes an important statement that a “scribe who is learned in the Kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house that brings from his storeroom both the new and the old (Matt 13:51-52).” There is also the sad description of Jesus not being accepted at Nazareth (Matthew 13:53-58; compare with Mark 6:1-6 and especially Luke 4:16-30 which is the fullest version).

When one says, “Nothing is impossible for God (Luke 1:37)” we must understand it correctly. God can do what is practically impossible (I cannot jump to the moon, but if God wanted me to, he could make it happen. I trust He would also do something about my habit of breathing). He cannot do what is logically impossible, that which contains a contradiction. He cannot make a four cornered circle, which would be a contradiction.  He cannot give us free will and keep us from misusing it. He cannot force us to love Him freely. That would contain a contradiction. 

We see in “The Screwtape Letters” “But you see that the Irresistible and the Indisputable are the two weapons which the very nature of His scheme forbids Him to use. Merely to over-ride a human will (as His felt presence in any but the faintest and most mitigated degree would certainly do) would be for Him useless. He cannot ravish. He can only woo (Letter #8).”

This week we see the parable of the sower, and people’s ability to reject God’s grace. The parable of the sower shows three different kinds or rejecting God. One is dismissing the truth out of hand. One is being taken intimidated by “trouble or persecution.” One is being lured away by the pleasures of the world. 

We remember that the human race was tested first in a garden (Genesis 3) and then a desert (Exodus) and failed both times. Jesus was tested in the desert (Matthew 4:1-7) and then a garden (Matthew 26:36-46) and passed both tests. Sometimes we are tested through hardship, and sometimes we are tested through abundance. In either case, we are asked do we trust the promises of God more that the promises of the world?

The enemy is good at making the promises of God seem arbitrary and impossible.  Of course they are arbitrary apart from God’s plan for us, and of course they are impossible without His grace, but that is not how He calls us to do His will. 

God is calling. How will we respond?

Blessings,

Fr. Jim