Wednesday, April 29, 2020

Memorial of Saint Catherine of Siena, virgin and Doctor of the Church

(Acts 8:1b-8; John 6:35-40)

Frontliners in the struggle with the Corona-19 virus may look to Catherine of Siena for inspiration.  Catherine took care of the poor and the sick in her city.  When the bubonic plague struck, she attended its victims. But she is more remembered for her ministry to the influential.  She convinced the pope to return to Rome and brought reconciliation between the city of Florence and the papacy.  She also left a spiritual legacy.  As a writer, her book The Dialogue is a classic of Western mysticism. 

Catherine had great devotion to the Eucharist.  She would eat almost nothing but took Communion daily.  As a saint, she recognized that Christ is the “bread of life” as he says in today’s gospel.  She fed on him whom she considered her spouse. Nourished on that food, Catherine of Siena is rightly considered one of the most influential women of the fourteenth century.

All of us can find something to imitate in Catherine of Siena.  We may consider ourselves fortunate not to be like her in every way.  But it may be shortsightedness that makes us think that.  She knew Christ intimately and loved him unreservedly.  Now she experiences life in eternity with her beloved.

Tuesday, April 28, 2020

Tuesday of the Third Week of Easter

(Acts 7:51-8:1a; John 6:30-35)

People crave bread.  For the hungry bread may be the simplest form of dense food.  Once made, it can be transported anywhere and eaten for instant nutrition.  For the better off, “bread” serves as a metaphor for money.  This kind of bread seemingly provides for every need.  In today’s gospel Jesus uses bread in another way.  It represents his spiritual legacy.

The Jews ask for a sign if they are to believe in Jesus.  They remember how their ancestors pleaded with Moses and received manna received in the desert.  Jesus reminds them, however, that it was God who provided the bread-like substance.  Now, he says, the same God, his “Father,” is giving richer nutrition.  God has sent Jesus as the “true bread from heaven.”  Jesus provides all that a people need to live for eternity. He instructs them in his way of truth and love.  Even more, he nourishes for the task with his own body and blood.

Jesus is always calling us to believe in him more genuinely.  He wants us to embrace him more fully – his teaching, his example, and the community he has left behind.  When we do, he promises that we will not be disappointed.  Quite the contrary, we will find ourselves enjoying the fullness of life.

Monday, April 27, 2020

Monday of the Third Week of Easter

(Acts 6:8-15; Acts John 6:22-29)

The reading from the Acts of the Apostles gives a glimpse of societal life in first-century Jerusalem.   Stephen is a Greek-speaking Jew.  He is evidently not from Jerusalem where Jews speak Hebrew.  He also does not have much use for the Temple.  Jesus established a new form of sacrifice that may be done in a home.   So why have a Temple?  When he criticizes Temple worship, he is opposed by other Greek-speaking Jews.  These are “members of the so-called Synagogue of Freedmen.”  Just because they come from other places does not mean they have no need of Temple sacrifice.  They bring Stephen to the Sanhedrin, the governing body of Jews, for defaming the Temple.  Neither they nor the governors will stomach Stephen’s criticism even with his angelic face.

For a while Christians were tolerated in first-century Judaism.  They appeared as a sect together with Pharisees and Essenes.  They accepted the Law but believed that Jewish hope for the Messiah was realized in Jesus.  Judaism was flexible but the stress on the fault line between it and Christianity would soon give.  The Church was persecuted and the disciples left Jerusalem.  This led to fruitful missionary activity first in Samaria and then throughout the Greek-speaking world.

We should see the action as Luke, the author of Acts, intended.  The Holy Spirit moved the Christian mission from a fair start in Jerusalem to the whole world.  It disposed the people to hear the word of God as explaining the inner movements of their hearts.  It does the same today when we listen carefully to our deepest yearnings.

Friday, April 24, 2020

Friday of the Second Week of Easter

(Acts 5:34-42; John 6:1-15)

The gospels regularly portray the Pharisees as sinister.  Because of this, the word “Pharisee” has come to mean duplicitous.  If someone calls another a Pharisee, the other would want to defend herself.  But the gospels mention a couple of Pharisees worthy of commendation.  Nicodemus is a Pharisee who comes to Jesus to learn.  In today’s reading from the Acts of the Apostles, a Pharisees distinguishes himself for showing wisdom.

Gamaliel does not so much defend Peter and the Apostles as demonstrate good sense.  He points out that popular religious movements often rise and fall quickly.  He says that it would be a mistake to persecute Christians who may pass from the scene soon.  Rather, he recommends, they should be tolerated and then judged by their fruits.  If they bring about blessings, they obviously have God’s blessing.  On the other hand, if they only raise high expectations, the people will tire soon enough of empty promises. 

We should heed Gamaliel’s wisdom in regard to people of other beliefs.  Some people often want to tell us about their vision of God.  Unless they are a priest or a theology professor, we do not want to give them much time.  However, we might listen to them for at least a few minutes.  Perhaps they have a genuine spiritual insight.  We might do the same for television and radio evangelists.  They too may tell us something worthwhile about our Lord.

Thursday, April 23, 2020

Thursday of the Second Week of Easter

(Acts 5:27-33; John 3:31-36)

In yesterday’s gospel Jesus spoke of darkness as evil.  He said, “’…people preferred darkness to light, because their works were evil.’”  Darkness and its prime referent, night, do not only symbolize evil.  They also represent ignorance.  Earlier John’s gospel said that Nicodemus came to Jesus at night.  He was coming out of ignorance into the light of Christ.  He called Jesus, “Rabbi,” which means “Teacher.”  Today’s gospel indicates how authoritative a teacher Jesus is. 

Teachers study the ideas of wise people.  They learn from the writings of Aristotle or Plato.  They cannot know everything of these masters because they didn’t live with them.  They could not ask questions of clarification and deeper probing.  When Jesus speaks of God, however, he knows all that there is to know. It is unclear whether Jesus is the speaker of today’s passage.  Nevertheless, it is clear that Jesus is said to have come from heaven.  He shares with people on earth “what he has seen and heard.”  It is like having Shakespeare as your English teacher.

The content of Jesus’ teaching – all that he has learned from God – is revealed in the rest of the gospel.  Having been formed in the faith, we have some idea of what it says.  We are to deny ourselves and to trust in God’s mercy.  This is not just a difficult task; it is also harrowing.  Jesus lived what he taught, and look where it got him.