The pursuit of holiness Gilmary Beagle, IHM York, Pennsylvania A wise friend of mine once told me, After you have found Jesus, you still have to brush your teeth and take out the garbage. The pursuit of holiness, he maintained, does not make the everyday, mundane tasks of life unnecessary. It should rather cast the daily events of one s life as part and parcel of the following of Christ. As a teacher of English on the secondary level, I have found it easy to identify with the situation John portrays: Jesus is surrounded and followed by a crowd that doesn t always readily understand what he is teaching. My prayer as I go through John 6 is to understand the parallels that exist between Jesus as teacher and myself in the classroom, between the slowness of the crowd to understand and my own slowness to recognize God s hand in the daily events in my life. It is my hope that the reflections I share here will resonate with readers and that they will find themselves saying, Me, too! as they read.
Today we should pay special attention to the strangers travelling with us and make a concerted effort to learn from them.
Wednesday of the Second Week of Easter May 4, 2011 Scripture: Acts 5:17-26; Psalm 34:2-9; John 3:16-21 Reflection: The Gospel today recalls one of the more familiar uses of symbolism in scripture: the contrast of light and darkness. We hear of Jesus as the Light of the World. In another place we are cautioned to avoid lighting a lamp and placing it beneath a bushel basket. Today we are told that this is the verdict, that light came into the world and those who live the truth come to the light, so that their works may be clearly seen as done in God. And, like most scripture passages, this presents a challenge, and an obligation. The traditional understanding of the choice between light and darkness claims that those who prefer darkness do so because of evil, sinful behavior on their part. Indeed, there is much validity in that position. However, there is also this possibility: perhaps some choose not the darkness of sin but the anonymity of shadow. Many people we encounter do many kind and Christ-like deeds every day without public acknowledgement or recognition, spending their days in the shadow of genuine humility. That is well and good, but the last portion of the Gospel for today suggests that perhaps a slight change of attitude might be in order. It may suggest that we not be hesitant to acknowledge our good deeds but live in such a way that our works may be seen as done in God. Perhaps rather than the usual, No problem, with which most people respond to expressions of gratitude these days, we are called to remind others that it is God who allows us to do whatever good we can perform for others. Suggested Action: Take stock at the end of the day as to how many times were you able to remind someone that you are only an instrument of God s kindness and care, a physical reminder of God s presence in our world.
Thursday of the Second Week of Easter May 5, 2011 Scripture: Acts 5:27-33; Psalm 34:2, 9, 17-20; John 3:31-36 Reflection: The Gospel today is a bit heavy-handed. John tells of the rejection of the one who comes from heaven, the threat of the wrath of God upon those who disobey the Son. As unpleasant as those passages are, they serve a practical function by calling us to examine our consciences, to look closely at our everyday lives to see where and how often we have failed to live fully the Christ-life we have been called to. As we revel in the Easter realization that we have beaten the system, that Jesus did indeed rise from the dead to save each of us and provide us entrance to eternity with him, it is good for our spiritual life that we be reminded of our human tendency to fall short of the demands placed upon us. And then there is the Responsorial Psalm: Fear the Lord, all you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing those who cry for help the Lord hears, and sets them free from all their troubles Lest we become disillusioned or too uncomfortable with the reality of our failures, Psalm 34 provides the antidote. Very simply, very directly, we are told that comfort and strength are ours for the asking. We are indeed a saved people. Suggested Action: Be conscious today both of how easy it is to fail in our attempts to follow Jesus, and how incredibly easy he has made it for us to avail ourselves of his forgiveness and strength.
Friday of the Second Week of Easter May 6, 2011 Scripture: Acts 5:34-42; Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14; John 6:1-15 Reflection: Today s Gospel is the wonderful story of Jesus feeding the huge crowd with five barley loaves and two fish. Praying the passage fills us with confidence as we witness again the care Jesus has for our physical as well as our spiritual well-being. A closer reading reveals something else about Jesus something that most of us have probably found irritating or even frustrating at times. This Jesus is found in verse six, right after he has asked Philip where they could buy enough food for the crowd to eat: He said this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do. As a teacher, I don t like tests. I don t like making them. I don t like administering them. I don t like grading them. So Jesus the Tester is a challenge for me. For most of us, the older we get the longer the list of testing situations becomes: times when events in our lives were challenging or difficult, when we struggled to get things right, perhaps even failed to do so. And there, all along, was Jesus, knowing exactly what he was going to do, exactly how he was going to resolve the dilemma for us. Often we find this Jesus irritating because our human tendency is to want quick and easy answers to our problems and challenges; we do not enjoy going through the process of working out solutions. Eventually, however, we learn to cheat we find ourselves asking Jesus, What s the answer? And there is always a reply. Suggested Action: Take every opportunity to cheat on today s tests: turn to Jesus quickly for the solution.
Saturday of the Second Week of Easter May 7, 2011 Scripture: Acts 6:1-7; Psalm 33:1-2, 4-5, 18-19; John 6:16-21 Reflection: Today s Gospel is another of those that demonstrate how clearly the disciples were a work in progress during the time of Jesus ministry. Yesterday we heard of the miracle of the loaves and fishes. John never says how the disciples felt after they collected the twelve baskets of fragments, and it s clear that Jesus wasn t there to explain things: he withdrew again to the mountain alone. So today we hear that the disciples went to the sea, got into a boat and headed for Capernaum without Jesus. It was dark, there was a strong wind blowing, and they had rowed three or four miles, so human nature being what it is, the mood in the boat was probably somewhat less than exultant. Suddenly they see Jesus walking on the sea, and John says, They began to be afraid. Don t you wonder why? We have probably all experienced the embarrassment of saying the wrong thing in the wrong place or at the wrong time. The conversation in the boat among the disciples probably ranged from complaints about the bad weather, the distance to Capernaum, the annoyance of picking up after more than five thousand people, and the absence of Jesus when suddenly Jesus is approaching. Most of us would be afraid, or at least embarrassed, in that situation. John doesn t say the disciples offered any explanations or excuses; they didn t get a chance. Jesus takes the moment to reassure them: It is I. Do not be afraid. The implication, the unspoken message is clear: I know you. You know me. I know sometimes you leave a lot to be desired but you need not fear. Suggested Action: At whatever point in the day today we become annoyed at the course of events (and such a moment always occurs), let us try to recall that such behavior is all too human, and then let Jesus take us quickly to the opposite shore.
Third Sunday of Easter May 8, 2011 Scripture: Acts 2:14, 22-28; Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-11; 1Peter 1:17-21; Luke 24:13-35 Reflection: This Gospel is sometimes referred to as The Gospel of the U-turn. Like everyone else Jesus has encountered since Easter morning, the two disciples do not at first recognize Jesus. At first they are astounded that this stranger who joins them on their journey has not heard about the crucifixion and death of Jesus the Nazarene. Then they are awed by his ability to explain the many passages of ancient scriptures that applied to the Messiah. As evening falls, they are comfortable enough to ask him to stay the night with them and to continue the discussion about Jesus. Finally, they recognize Jesus, who then disappears. And thus, the U-turn! The two disciples admit that they both sensed something special about the well-versed stranger, their hearts burned within as he spoke. They end their day much more contented than they began it. They understand the reason for the terrible events of Good Friday; they are able to anticipate the Messiah s entrance into glory. They have shared Eucharist with Jesus. They had reached Emmaus. The wonderful thing is that they now turn right around and go back to Jerusalem, at night, without any rest. They know that having shared this experience, they have an obligation and a desire to share it with the other followers of Jesus. Each of us can probably recall Emmaus moments in our lives times when Jesus, recognized or not, came to us to share our journey, to remove our confusion or lack of understanding, to share a Eucharistic experience with us. Did we, in turn, share our heightened awareness of Jesus in our lives with others? Suggested Action: Today we should pay special attention to the strangers travelling with us and make a concerted effort to learn from them.
Monday of the Third Week of Easter May 9, 2011 Scripture: Acts 6: 8-15; Psalm 119:23-24; John 6:22-29 Reflection: There are several pretty busy intersections on my route to and from school. At one of them, every afternoon, there is a man holding a sign: Will work for food. His name, I learned, is Rick and today s Gospel made me think of him. Rick and I have a drill: when I stop for the light, I hand him a container with food, and he returns the one from the day before. Sometimes I have a sandwich, sometimes a piece of chicken and some stuffing, sometimes spaghetti and meatballs. When he re-appeared one afternoon after being gone for two days I told him I was worried. He said his absence was a good thing someone had hired him to do some yard work, and he got paid in cash. When we trade containers and I drive away I always say, God bless you, and he replies, He already has. Today s Gospel reminds me of Rick, because in one sense, he s doing what the Gospel says we all should be doing: working for food. Not the things we bring home from Giant or Weis or Kroeger s in bags, but for the food that endures for eternal life. What we do every day, the ministry or career in which we spend our lives, should nourish and replenish us, should enable us to return the next day renewed and committed to our task for the people of God. If we can t push back from our work at the end of the day as satisfied as we are when we push back from the table after a good meal, then perhaps we need to examine our work and our attitude toward it. Suggested Action: Take a moment to examine your work, think about how what you do nourishes your spirit and your spiritual life. John tells us that the crowd Jesus had fed with the loaves and fishes got into boats and crossed to Capernaum in search of him. Jesus recognizes that they pursue him because they were well fed and tells them to seek instead the food that endures for eternal life. They, in turn, ask him, What can we do to accomplish the works of God?
Tuesday of the Third Week of Easter May 10, 2011 Scripture: Acts 7:51 8:1; Psalm 31:3-8, 17, 21; John 6:30 35 Reflection: Almost everyone is familiar with the plea, Don t shoot the messenger, especially if you are the one bearing the unpleasant news. The Gospel today tells a story that warns us to beware of doing something perhaps worse: Don t exalt the messenger. The crowd following Jesus clearly fails to understand what they witnessed. Now they want another sign. Perhaps, they suggest, something like the manna Moses gave their ancestors in the desert. Once again Jesus has to deal with human failure to understand God s design. It was not Moses who gave them bread from heaven, he says. My Father gives you the true bread from heaven, that which gives life to the world. How often we find ourselves in the position of the folks in the crowd: we mistake the gift-bearer for the gift-giver, we give undue importance to the messenger. Moses certainly deserves credit for his service to the Hebrew people, but the manna was from God Moses was only the instrument God used to deliver it. So Jesus clears up the misunderstanding on the part of the crowd, then tells them that he is the bread of life. Whoever comes to him will never hunger or thirst again. How simple. How direct. No middle man in God s dealings with us. Suggested Action: Be alert today for the many messengers who come into your life and strive to focus on the message rather than who delivers it or how.