Tuesday, May 5, 2020

Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Easter

(Acts 11:19-26; John 10:22-30)

More is known about Jesus than just about any other person of antiquity. Yet like the Jews of today’s gospel, we want to ask him, “Who are you?”  The Jews have a sense that he is their long-awaited Messiah or Christ.  He works wonders and his words can galvanize people.  Yet he does not seem to be organizing a militia as they might expect.  Jesus responds to their query in an enigmatic way.  He says that he and the Father “are one.”  Is he saying that he is actually God?

The Church teaches that he is.  But this doctrine did not become clear until more than three hundred years after Jesus’ death.  Probably experiences like the conversion of non-Jews in the reading from Acts contributed to it.  Jesus was not just the Jewish Messiah calling Israel together as a nation.  He had an appeal to other peoples as well.  He came to bring the whole world together in peace.

We know the answer to our question.  Jesus is our Lord and God.  He comes to us as a brother to unite us to all humans under his Father’s care.  The gospel passage emphasizes that Jesus’ self-revelation takes place in winter.  That detail aids our sense of his identity.  He is the burning light that overcomes the cold and darkness of hatred among peoples.

Monday, May 4, 2020

Monday of the Fourth Week of Easter

(Acts 11:1-18; John 10:11-18)

One may be a good shepherd in two senses.  He is good if he always does what he knows to be right.  He is also good if his shepherding is of high quality.  Today’s gospel highlights both these senses of good.

Jesus’ shepherding excels because, first of all, he will stay with his sheep when danger appears.  He will not, as he says of the hired hand, “leave(s) the sheep and run(s) away” in the presence of a wolf.  Reflecting on these words, priest-martyr Blessed Stanley Rother stayed with the persecuted people he served in Guatemala.  Also, Jesus shows his ability to shepherd by knowing his sheep.  Like a teacher knows which of her students need attention and which work better alone, Jesus knows each sheep.  Finally, Jesus is good in the sense that he gives his life for love of his sheep.  Goodness certainly characterizes someone so generous. Again, Stanley Rother serves as an example.  He was murdered by the military when he stood with his people.

We are the sheep that Jesus shepherds.  He loves us collectively and individually.  He provides the sacraments to move us along the road of sanctity.  He also speaks to us personally in our hearts.  We should not hesitate to call on him for help.

Friday, May 1, 2020

(Optional) Memorial of Saint Joseph the Worker

(Acts 9:1-20; John 6:52-59)

Today much of the Church celebrates St. Joseph the Worker.  The feast reminds Christians of the dignity of human work.  Just as Joseph plied his trade to provide for his family so do billions of workers today.   The gospel suggests that Jesus too put food on the tables of his followers.

The gospel is unequivocal.  Jesus provides true food with his body and true drink with his blood.  These elements can hardly be considered ordinary food and drink.  They represent Jesus’ total sacrifice of self.  The also nourish one not just to live today but to thrive eternally.  The difference here is monumental.  It is like that of an entertainer saying, “I love you all” and a spouse saying to his bride on their wedding day, “I will love you until the day I die.”

We will see if the pandemic’s closure of churches results in a greater longing for the Eucharist.  Many people have commented how much they miss receiving Communion.  Hopefully, this longing will translate in regular reception of Communion when public masses resume.  May it all bring about a closer imitation of Jesus’ sacrifice of self for others.

Thursday, April 30, 2020

Thursday of the Third Week of Easter

(Acts 8:26-40; John 6:44-51)

In On the Origin of Species Charles Darwin proposed that evolution follows no design or purpose.  According to his theory, changes in living things happen accidently and in many ways.  The best of the changed beings survive and reproduce until even further changes make even better living things.  Most biologists accept Darwin’s ideas as gospel, but not all.   Some find living beings with built-in mechanisms to overcome future changes. These scientists see design and purpose at hand. They would be fascinated by today’s first reading.

Nothing seems to happen accidently when Philip meets the Ethiopian eunuch.  He is directed by an angel to go down the desert road.  The Holy Spirit tells Philip to join the eunuch in his chariot.  When he does, he instructs the eunuch in the Scriptures and eventually baptizes the man.  Then the Spirit snatches Philip off.  In the meantime, another person has joined the rapidly expanding number of Christians.

We believe in Divine Providence. That is, we believe that God creates and moves the universe with our good in mind.  Apparent challenges to faith like that of Darwin arise from time to time.  They may even be helpful to stimulate reflection.  But they will never succeed in contradicting faith because faith goes deeper than science can in viewing the nature of things.  We have the testimony of Jesus, validated through twenty centuries of Christian experience, that God loves us.  We will find our salvation in holding on to that faith. 

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.