Author: Fr. Peter O'Brien

Peace to you!

Last weekend we contemplated the qualities of persistence and insistence in the continual activity of our prayer.  This weekend, Jesus calls us to reflect on two inner qualities of our prayer: humility and pride.

In your own life of prayer, which figure do you most resemble?  Are you more like the Pharisee who ignores God by relishing your own vainglory?  Or are you more like the tax collector, who’s punctured heart is all too aware of his own unworthiness as he begs for mercy?  Are you aware of how you approach God in prayer?

The Pharisee practiced tithing and fasting, which are commendable religious practices but these became a source of personal pride—his downfall.  We get the sense that he became stagnant and hardened in his heart judging other people without compassion.  He could not see his own faults but could readily identify others’ shortcomings.  How does God respond to the prayers of the prideful and the arrogant?

The tax collector isn’t depicted as glorying in himself.  Rather he is someone who is deeply aware of his own failures.  The tax collector appears completely honest and vulnerable before God.  His prayer is in humble truth.  How do you suppose God answers the prayer of this sinner—who is humble?

In the first reading from Sirach we hear that God has no favorites and is not partial.  Sirach also tells us that God is attentive to the call of the oppressed, the widow, the orphan, the poor and lowly.  God is also attentive to the prayer of the just; that is those who may not be poor, orphaned or widowed but are concerned about serving God rightly with their lives.  We are told that their prayer “reaches the heavens.”

We know that God loves all people everywhere all the time and responds generously to the just and the unjust alike.  The Pharisee who extols himself will be humbled eventually but in the meantime, will remain stuck, blinded and impoverished by his pride, unaware of the great richness of God’s love and mercy.  Those who are introspective and aware of their own sin and weakness that come before God in simple honesty asking for mercy, like the tax collector, will receive God’s mercy.  God does not wish that the sinner should die, but that they turn to him and live.  God lifts them up and helps them.

The religious practices of the Pharisee are good, for such exercises help us remain vibrant.  The humility of the sinful tax collector is good, for it reminds us that none of us are equal to God in our love.

In today’s prayer over the offerings, we pray that whatever we do in service of the Lord may be done above all to the Glory of God.  This is the mark we aim for in all things.

God bless you always! +++ Fr. Peter

Peace to you! I thought you might enjoy something from my friend Fr. Boly.

What is prayer? Prayer is awareness of God, engagement with God, abandonment to God. Prayer is as natural as breathing, as spontaneous as wonder. Prayer is holding your breath at the beauty of fall leaves, is breaking your heart at the pain of a child. Prayer begins when God’s Spirit lifts your mind and heart to pay attention to the Divine Majesty.

All three scripture readings today deal with the attitude of insistence and persistence. In the reading from Exodus, Moses trusts God even when attacked by a superior army. Aaron and Hur help Moses keep his drooping hands aloft to assure Israel’s victory against Amalek. This is persistence.

In the second reading, Paul urges his young disciple Timothy to learn and proclaim the good news both when it is convenient and inconvenient. What does insistence in learning mean today? It means educating ourselves in practical wisdom about current issues. October is the month dedicated to our prophetic witness to the sanctity of life. This is a good season to refresh our understanding of the entire range of life issues.

In the gospel, Luke’s community had a question. When will the Risen Jesus return to establish the final reign of God? In response to the question, Jesus assures his hearers that it is necessary to persist in prayer and never give up hope that justice will prevail over unfairness. He then tells the parable about the widow and the unjust judge.

Luke introduces the parable with an editorial explanation so that everyone will be clear about meaning of the parable. He says that constant prayer and confidence in God’s promises are necessary in the spiritual life.

The story unfolds about two figures. One is a widow, among the most vulnerable in society, who has been wronged and seeks justice.

The other is a judge, powerful and respected. Jewish law obligates him to protect “widows and orphans” in a special way. The judge refuses to do his job, proclaiming neither respect for God nor for the community.

It is only when the widow continues to bother him and threatens his status that he relents. The message is clear. Just as the widow is persistent, so also are God’s chosen ones to beseech God and to await God’s justice. The time of justice is coming even though it seems delayed.

When people are treated unfairly, they are tempted to take the law into their own hands and retaliate against violators of their respectability. Jesus teaches his followers to turn the other cheek, to pray for those who persecute them. The role of disciples is to treat oppressors with kindness, and to trust that the role of God is to punish the defilers of justice in God’s mysterious way – by allowing the violent to suffer the consequences of their violence (Gen. 9.6; Exodus 21:12; Mt. 26.52).

Today’s readings urge patience and persistence in dealing with injustice. Patience and persistence. They seem to be at odds with one another. The first requires what seems like inactivity. The other involves active insistence, a holy indignation at inaction. For the Christian the message is this: Wait for God. But don’t stop asking or trusting God. God always will give you what you need for your journey home to God.

It is difficult to understand how you and I can persevere in prayer so that prayer becomes unceasing. One suggestion is the traditional prayer called “The Jesus Prayer.” You pray the phrase, “Lord Jesus, Son of the Living God” while inhaling a breath. And then you pray the phrase “have mercy on me” while exhaling.

In this form of prayer, inhale the sacred name of Jesus and exhale a plea for mercy. At first, begin by sitting quietly and concentrating on your breathing. When you are persistent, every breath will become a prayer and every moment of life – when while sleeping – an offering of praise.

What does it mean for us to be stewards of prayer? It means to embrace our identity as contemplatives in action. Pray for the grace “to be contemplatives in action.” Fr. Craig Boly, S.J.

Peace and grace to you all!

Naman the Syrian reminds us of those who have a deep need for help but are reluctant to listen to what will be a remedy.  Upon following prophetic advice, they discover God’s attentive, healing love.

The healing of the 10 lepers is the Gospel reading for the US National Feast of Thanksgiving.  Lepers in ancient times suffered at multiple levels.  They suffered loss by devastating health change, loss of livelihood, mobility and perhaps most crucial was loss of being part of a community that cares about them.    Imagine what that would feel like.

Some parallels of loss today might be immigrants living in the US without Citizenship status.  They have lost their home in search of a better life and have largely been rejected by the local residents.  People who have lost employment or those impacted by permanent health changes.  Someone who lost a child, a spouse or been divorced.  It might also include our loss of a sense of security because of terrorist attacks or random violence and crime.  There are also fears of pandemic flu or lethal virus outbreaks.  Those who suffer from PTSD and cannot break free of Hyper-vigilance and eruptive triggers destroying relationships and their own families, abuse survivors who have been unwept and unloved.  We all have some loss in common with the Lepers in the story.

The next part of the story includes a sense of journey and a passage of time.  They were not healed immediately but they discovered personal healing while they were on their way.

I think that this is realistic for most people.  Yes there are those stories of miraculous events when healing happened immediately but those are few and infrequent.

More often, we ourselves plod along the journey of life and cry out to God, like the lepers, for help and deliverance from oppressive situations, abuse, addiction, hardened, unchanging reactions, brokenness and the pain of sin: “Jesus, Master have pity on us!”  We keep calling out until we are tired of it and we wonder if our cry is ever heard.

This Gospel story extends to us a strong and real hope:  yes healing does happen!  It is possible! It may require plunging into a program or engaging in personal counseling on several occasions but it does come.  Sometimes we discover it within ourselves while we are caring for others around us.  Sometimes it comes imperceptibly over time and we change a little as we go but it does come and Jesus always hears us.

One of my favorite parts of the story is the gratitude shown by the one who returns.  I think this is the one who was most thoughtful.  Remember the movie “Little Big Man” with Dustin Hoffman?  The scene near the end when an Indian, Old Lodge Skins, who has lost his physical health, is going blind.  He knows he is dying, so he prays: “O Lord God, I thank you for having made me a human being.  I thank you for giving me life, for giving me eyes to see and enjoy your world.  But most of all, Lord, I thank you for my sickness and my blindness because I have learned more from these than from my health and from my sight.”

There are losses and pain in life but there are also new experiences ahead, new loves and joys, new hopes beyond grief.  The final healing is to be cured of ingratitude.  Blessings to you! +++ Fr. Peter

May the God of all grace preserve you in peace and health!

We are reminded that faith is one the most powerful forces in the universe. It is striking to hear the Apostles request of the Lord that he increase their faith. It seems odd because we usually assume that their faith would be much more confident and solid since they were experiencing daily life with Jesus and were witnesses to the wonders he did in their presence every day. Jesus’ response is also striking: “if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, . . .” The allegory that Jesus uses of the mulberry tree is supposed to help us understand the power of faith. Evidently, the Apostles were not yet putting what faith they had into action. Faith is first given as a gift from God (one of the theological virtues), but then it must be used and put to the test in order for it to grow and become a virtue—a personal strength of good habit. The second part of the Gospel tells us that once we grow in practicing our faith and do God’s will, we are not to expect recognition or even a special place in heaven. We must regard ourselves as servants of Christ, who accomplishes all things and wonders through us. For our part, we are simply doing our duty of serving our Master. A good example of this is reflected in the life of Brother Andre Bessette, CSC of Montreal who was Canonized as the first Saint of the Congregation of the Holy Cross on October 17, 2012. Br. Andre was famous for his prayers to St. Joseph through which, many thousands were healed. Brother Andre always deferred praise and credit to St. Joseph and God’s love and mercy rather than himself. He emphatically insisted the he was only an instrument to be used as God willed. People like Br. Andre are an inspiration to all of us and remind us that God wants to do good things through us if we can just grow in humble faith and trust in his power to save.

May God continue to fill you with gifts of faith, holiness and love! +++ Fr. Peter

Shalom! Peace to you!

The readings this weekend remind us of last week’s call to reflect on the order of our priorities but with a more urgent tone. Amos’ words “woe to the complacent” are intended to discomfort us to the point of taking action in changing our lives. Jesus’ account of Lazarus and the rich man goes even deeper because the woes that the rich man is experiencing seem to have a more intense and possibly eternal character to them while those that Amos warns of are temporal. Jesus is really encouraging us to think about the day of reckoning. A few things about this story are important for us to understand. First, like the rich man, God has given us many good things in life and we will give an account of how we use them. Second, it appears that the greatest problem that the rich man has is his attitude toward Lazarus. From his place of torment, his attitude toward Lazarus hasn’t changed. He still seems to look down on Lazarus as an inferior to himself. We are reminded that poor people don’t have the same chances in life as the rich. Lazarus received what was bad while the rich man received what was good. Lazarus could have grown up in any one of the thousands of slums in cities across the world or he was born to addicted parents. Who knows? The possibilities are endless. Third, it isn’t clear whether the rich man’s torments are eternal or not. We don’t know whether he is eternally damned or undergoing purification from his sins. There is a ray of hope that he will suffer—that is change his attitude—and be free upon his change. Either way, it is obvious that he is suffering greatly with no escape. We are supposed to feel concern when we hear these readings. We are concerned for ourselves and the account we will give and we are concerned with care for the poor—God cares and so do we! Paul’s letter to Timothy gives us encouragement and direction: we are people reborn in Christ, truly committed to love God and neighbor. Each day we are capable of helping another person in the name of Jesus Christ. Each day we find renewal in the grace we are given through these opportunities. The Gospel is the Good News, that when we turn from selfishness and try to serve others, God’s mercy helps us. Our efforts also help the Lazarus’ of our day share in the joy of God’s kingdom! May God’s blessings be with you all! +++ Fr. Peter

Peace and blessings to you all!

This weekend’s readings call us to reflect upon the underlying behaviors that manifest what our priorities truly are. The reading from Amos reveals that the community, although observing religious ceremony, is not putting into practice the principles of their religion. Rather, their actions in personal life are corrupt and directly opposed to the values of their religion. The poor and needy are not just neglected, they are exploited in their vulnerability! Jesus tells a story to his disciples (you and me) that shows how people are usually industrious and creative when it comes to serving themselves and their own interests but when it comes to serving God or other people, we do not make full use of all their talents and energies. Take a minute to consider your talents and gifts: your time, wealth and possessions, education, skills, your love, your relationships, especially yourself and your good name. Note them all. Recognize that ultimately, God has given all of these things to you. Plus, God has put an incredibly powerful Spirit within you to do something good. You know this because you have made sacrifices along the way to achieve your goals and desires! Now please consider what goals you want to accomplish for Jesus Christ and God’s kingdom. You and I, all of us together, have an incredible power to do great things for God! Both history and personal experience show that great things are usually accomplished one little step at a time, one prayer at a time, one heart beat at a time. One thing that I would like you to consider is that most parishes are financed by less than half of the people who attend Mass. Your parish needs and deserves the support of everyone! Please seriously consider giving back to God through your parish. The jar of flour and the jug of oil will not run dry! God always provides! Dream of what your community can accomplish when we all work together! May God bless you always! +++ Fr. Peter

May the light of Christ fill your hearts!

The Gospel readings this weekend communicate something fundamentally important to our understanding of God’s care for the human race. In the first two stories, there is a search for something of great value that has been lost and when it is found, the owner finds cause for a joy filled celebration. The third story, popularly known as “the prodigal son,” opens a way to an enriched and endearing understanding of God’s love and solicitude for us, his children. One important component included in the story of the prodigal son is carried forward from today’s first reading from Exodus: people seem to get off track very quickly and easily and fall into sin. Some of us know this by our own personal experience or through family or friends who seem to live in a manner that is disconnected from God. One point of the story that I find particularly moving is that while en route on his return, the father sees the son “while he is still a long way off, and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him.” From the first instance of this scene we can deduce that the father watched the horizon for his son every single day. The father never forgot his son. He never stopped hoping, he never stopped loving or longing for his son. At sunrise each day, his first prayer was for his distant son and at the moment of his return all was forgiven. For those of us who are sometimes distressed about people who seem to be distant from God or the Church we find hope and encouragement knowing that God is constantly working silently and secretly in each heart to call each one home. We ourselves may get angry, frustrated or just plain give up on them but God never does. It is truly wonderful to know that God is the one who saves us and it is God who will save them. May the Father of Mercy fill you with joy and peace! +++ Fr. Peter

May God’s peace dwell within you!

Although it is true that the Gospel always calls us to change, this weekend’s readings poignantly challenge us to be open to new ways of thinking. In Paul’s letter to Philemon (beloved), the request to welcome the return of Onesimus, a slave, is directed toward the unnamed master who owns Onesimus. The Apostle asks the master to regard Onesimus as Paul’s own beloved brother rather than as a slave or property possessed by the owner. To the slave owner, this is a radical change to be sure! Likewise in the Gospel, Jesus sets forth some very challenging conditions for discipleship. The use of the word “hate” in regards to one’s own life or family is strong indeed and Jesus uses it to make a definitive point. The followers of Jesus must decide that the highest priority in life is God and sharing in his work of completing God’s kingdom on earth requires unswerving commitment– it may require separation from one’s own family! To be a disciple of Jesus means to follow him not only to Church on Sunday but also into the market place on Monday. The imagery of constructing a tower helps us visualize the reality that one can give top priority to Jesus with words and even demonstrate a certain level of commitment by religious practice. But there will be times when upholding these priorities will be challenged and choices must be made. Jesus and his disciples recognize these times as crosses because they are difficult. As difficult as some of these challenges may be, we try not to feel overwhelmed or afraid because they are also cross roads by which we grow stronger in faith, love and understanding in our relationship with God. The cross is central to new life in Christ. For disciples of Jesus, the cross is salvation from compromising ourselves in every form, it is dying to what takes us away from God, and rising to what leads us closer to God. And we see in our own little crosses a share in the saving power of Christ’s cross. In what ways are you experiencing challenges to discipleship? What cross or sacrifice are you being asked to embrace? Ask Jesus and Mary for light to guide you through whatever it is. May the God of all grace preserve you in peace, health and joy! +++ Fr. Peter

May the peace and grace of Christ reign in your hearts!

The readings this weekend lead us to reflect on humility and service of others. The Gospel scene depicts Jesus as a special guest attending a formal meal celebration at a wealthy person’s home. Through the past couple of weeks, Jesus has been healing and preaching in the area. He has spoken about mustard seeds, yeast and narrow doors. He cured a woman incapable of standing erect and the man afflicted with dropsy, which is known as edema today. Jesus has been talking about the kingdom of God. It’s a kingdom of new life that is open to all people, both Jews and Gentiles alike. On the side of the mountain when he said “love your brothers and sisters,” he made a sweeping motion with his arm indicating everyone there; those of social status and those on the fringes of society. Afterward he fed them all the loaves and the fish and the last person received the same portion as the Apostles. Today Jesus reminds us how easy it is to get caught up in worldly standards, judgments and politics that constantly change: at times, it can seem like a roller coaster ride. The lesson is for the least prominent and the most eminent among us. God does not judge as people do and what we consider important is not necessarily what God regards as important. But we do know that God is humble, for Jesus said “I am meek and humble of heart.” The people at the banquette seem very occupied with who gets to sit with whom either for bragging rights or perhaps out of fear of being left out. Lucky for us, we don’t have to worry or jostle to get a place close to Jesus. He is the highest guest of honor, and he dwells within us. He sees the truth of our intentions in all our efforts and he knows the desires of our hearts. This knowledge gives us the freedom to not worry about how others perceive us and allows us to focus on Jesus’ encouragement to follow him in humble service of God and neighbor. May God preserve you in peace! +++ Fr Peter

May the God of all grace confirm and strengthen you in love!

When I was a 12 year old kid I had a summer job working on a ranch out of Pinedale, Wyoming. Being a ranch hand required knowledge and skills from doctoring people and animals to mechanical wizardry with bailing wire and everything in between. The spectrum of tasks associated with living and working on a ranch was and still is, broad. As you might have already surmised, the development of such skills takes time and repetition and it goes without saying that perfection comes at the cost of many mistakes. One day, my older brother Joe and I were sent out to repair fences and haul debris from the “home pasture” and I was volunteered to drive the truck/trailer for the operation. It took me a few tries to get the clutch figured out but I got to the point that I could avoid the bucking starts most times. I didn’t like shifting gears because I could hardly reach the pedals and I almost always went off the road while looking down, trying to get the stick shift into the proper slot (I quickly developed a dislike for International standard transmissions!). Joe was always insistent on fast travel so I was forced to improve my shifting. The narrow gate incident arrived when we were in a hurry to get back to the ranch for lunch. I thought I could make a turn-around out of the pasture without making the necessary exaggerated arc to get the truck and trailer lined up to pass through a particularly narrow gate. The truck made it but the edge of the trailer caught the post and I tore out the gate post and a section of fence. When we reached the ranch house, I had to give an account to the older ranch hands and the boss. I got razzed and laughed at in good-natured fun then they all came out and helped Joe and I repair the fence—and widened the gate! I think that like the older hands and the boss, God knows that we are going to make mistakes while learning. But if we ask him, God will help us in tight situations and Jesus is always there to repair our failed attempts. If we take the time to try to do the job right, God will help us and we’ll make it through! May God’s blessings be with you always! +++ Fr. Peter