John saw the Living Word and believed Feast of St. John glist

St. John, pray for us!

Scripture: John 20:1a,2-8: Now on the first day of the week [Mary Magdalene] ran, and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him." Peter then came out with the other disciple, and they went toward the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first; and stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; he saw the linen cloths lying, and the napkin, which had been on his head, not lying with the linen cloths but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed.
  

Meditation: What was it like for those who encountered the Son of God in human form? John, the beloved disciple of Jesus, wrote his gospel as an eye-witness of  the Word of God who became flesh and dwelt among us, and who died

and rose for our salvation. John was the first apostle to reach the tomb of Jesus on Easter Sunday morning. Like the other disciples, he was not ready to see an empty tomb and to hear the angel's message, Why do you seek the living among the dead (Luke 24:5)?  What did John see in the tomb that led him to believe in the resurrection of Jesus? It was certainly not a dead body. The dead body of Jesus would have dis-proven the resurrection and made his death a tragic conclusion to a glorious career as a great teacher and miracle worker. When John saw the empty tomb he must have recalled Jesus' prophecy that he would rise again after three days. Through the gift of faith John realized that no tomb on earth could contain the Lord and giver of life.

John in his first epistle testifies: What we have seen, heard, and touched we proclaim as the word of life which existed "from the beginning" (1 John 1:1-4). John bears witness to what has existed from all eternity. This "word of life" is Jesus the word incarnate, but also Jesus as the word announced by the prophets and Jesus the word now preached throughout the Christian church for all ages to come. One thing is certain, if Jesus had not risen from

the dead and appeared to his disciples, we would never have heard of him. Nothing else could have changed sad and despairing men and women into people radiant with joy and courage. The reality of the resurrection is the central fact of the Christian faith. Through the gift of the Holy Spirit, the Lord gives us "eyes of faith" to know him and the power of his resurrection. The greatest joy we can have is to encounter the living Christ and to know him personally as our Savior and Lord and shared by ALL! O Come let us adore Him, Christ the Lord!

Prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, you have triumphed over the grave and you have won new life for us. Give me the eyes of faith to see you in your glory. Help me to draw near to you and to grow in the knowledge of your great love and power." Amen.

Peace and all good,

Brother Ed, OFM

 

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Prayers:

 

For all the Tau House Community

For the Poor Clare Nuns in NOLA

For the NOFD & FOPD

For all doctors and nurses

For the poor and lost

For children

 

How badly do you want Christ this Advent?

Sometimes we are made to wait because we are not yet adequately prepared to receive what God wants to give us. In his remarkable letter to Proba, Saint Augustine argued that the purpose of unanswered prayer is to force expansion of the heart. When we don't get what we want, we begin to want it more and more, with ever greater insistency, until our souls are on fire with the desire for it. Sometimes it is only a sufficiently expanded and inflamed heart that can take in what God intends to give. What would happen to us if we received, immediately and on our own terms, everything we wanted? We might be satisfied in a superficial way, but we wouldn't begin to appreciate the preciousness of the gifts. After all, the Israelites had to wait thousands of years before they were ready to receive God's greatest gift. Even if we are on the right track and even if we desire with sufficient intensity what God wants to give, we still might not be ready to integrate a particular grace into our lives or to handle the implications of it. How badly do you want Christ this Advent?

Waiting for the Lord

Waiting is very hard for most of us. I suppose we human beings have
always been in a hurry, but modern people, especially, seem to want
what they want, when they want it. We are driven, determined, goal-oriented,
 fast-moving. I, for one, can't stand waiting.

As a Chicagoan I find myself unavoidably in a lot of traffic jams, and
few things infuriate me more. Usually stuck behind a massive truck,
I have no idea when I will get where I want to be, and there is nothing
 I can do about it.

I hate waiting at doctors' offices; I hate waiting in line at the bank;
I hate waiting for the lights to come back on when the electricity fails.

So when I'm told that waiting seems to belong to the heart of the spiritual life,
I'm not pleased, for here, too, I want answers, direction, clarity -
and I want them pronto. I desire to feel happy and to know what
God is up to; I need my life to make sense - now. I'm pleased to live a
 spiritual life, but I want to be in charge of it and to make it unfold according
to my schedule: Run Barron Run. All of this is profoundly antipathetic
 to the mood and spirit of Advent.

Throughout Advent so far, we've sensed a major theme: wait, but with the
 active expectation that God will move. The Psalmist had it right:
"Wait for the Lord, take courage; be stouthearted, wait for the Lord!" (Ps 27:14).

Advent Day 17 - Joseph's Wait

 

Yesterday we explored how Abraham was compelled to wait for the promises of God to be fulfilled, and today we turn to his great-grandson, Joseph, the wearer of the multi-colored coat. Joseph saw in a dream that he would be a powerful man and that his brothers would one day bow down to him in homage. But the realization of that dream came only after a long and terrible wait. He was sold into slavery by those very brothers, falsely accused of sexual misconduct, humiliated, and finally sent to prison for seven years. Imagine what it must have been like to endure years in an ancient prison - the discomfort, the total lack of privacy, the terrible food in small amounts, sleeplessness, torture, and above all, hopelessness. This is what Joseph had to wait through before his dream came true in a most unexpected way. We've seen already this Advent how waiting is an "active" discipline in the Christian life, but it can also be a difficult one.

"He is Elijah who is to come"

What must a lay before the manger today?

 Gospel Reading: Matthew 11:11-15: "Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has risen no one greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and men of violence take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John; and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear."

Old Testament Reading: Isaiah 41:13-20: For I, the LORD your God, hold your right hand;  it is I who say to you, "Fear not, I will help you." Fear not, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel!  I will help you, says the LORD; your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel. Behold, I will make of you a threshing sledge, new, sharp, and having teeth; you shall thresh the mountains and crush them, and you shall make the hills like chaff; You shall winnow them and the wind shall carry them away, and the tempest shall scatter them. And you shall rejoice in the LORD; in the Holy One of Israel you shall glory.

When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst, I the LORD will answer them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them. I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. I will put in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive; I will set in the desert the cypress, the plane and the pine together; that men may see and know, may consider and understand together, that the hand of the LORD has done this, the Holy One of Israel has created it.
  

Meditation

Who is the greatest in the kingdom of God? Jesus praised John the Baptist as the greatest person born. Who can top that as a compliment? But in the same breath Jesus says that the least in the kingdom of God is even greater than John! That sounds like a contradiction, right? Unless you understand that what Jesus was about to accomplish for our sake would supersede all that the prophets had done and foreseen.

"Your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel" :  The prophet Isaiah proclaimed to the forsaken and dispersed people of Israel some 700 years before the birth of Christ that "your Redeemer - the Holy One of Israel" would come to restore his people and to make all things new (Isaiah 41:14ff). When the Messiah and Redeemer of Israel did appear John the Baptist announced his arrival. He fulfilled the essential task of all the prophets - to be fingers pointing to Jesus Christ, God's Annointed Son and Messiah. John proclaimed Jesus' mission at the Jordan River when he exclaimed, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world" (John 1:29). John saw from a distance what Jesus would accomplish through his death on the cross - our redemption from bondage to sin and death and our adoption as sons and daughters of God and citizens of the kingdom of heaven.

The spirit of Elijah is sent in advance through John's words 
John the Baptist bridges the Old and New Testaments. He is the last of the Old Testament prophets who point the way to the Messiah. He is the first of the New Testament witnesses and martyrs. He is the herald who prepares the way for Jesus the Messiah. Jesus confirms that John has fulfilled the promise that Elijah would return to herald the coming of the Messiah (Malachi 4:5). Jesus declares that John is nothing less that the great herald whose privilege it was to announce the coming of the Redeemer - the Holy One of Israel.

Jesus equates the coming of the kingdom of heaven with violence (Matthew 11:12). John himself suffered violence for announcing that the kingdom of God was near. He was thrown into prison and then beheaded. Since John's martyrdom to the present times the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence and persecution at the hands of violent men. The blood of the martyrs throughout the ages bear witness to this fact. The martyrs witness to the truth - the truth and love of Jesus Christ who shed his blood to redeem us from slavery to sin and Satan and the fear of death. The Lord Jesus gives us the power of his Holy Spirit to overcome fear with faith, despair with hope, and every form of hatred, violence, jealousy, and prejudice with love and charity towards all - even those who seek to destroy and kill.

We proclaim the joy of the Gospel of Christ 
God may call some of us to be martyrs for our faith in Jesus Christ. But for most of us our call is to be dry martyrs who bear testimony to the joy of the Gospel in the midst of daily challenges, contradictions, temptations and adversities which come our way as we follow the Lord Jesus. What attracts others to the Gospel of Jesus Christ?  When they see Christians loving their enemies, being joyful in suffering, patient in adversity, pardoning injuries, and showing comfort and compassion to the hopeless and the helpless. Jesus tells us that we do not need to fear our adversaries. He will fill us with the power of his Holy Spirit and give us sufficient grace, strength, and wisdom to face any trial and to answer any challenge to our faith.

 

Refection question: Are you eager to witness to the joy and freedom of the Gospel?

Prayer: "Lord Jesus, by your cross you have redeemed the world. Fill me with joy and confidence and make me a bold witness of your saving truth that others may know the joy and freedom of the Gospel of your kingdom of peace and righteousness." Amen.

 

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Prayers:

For the people of the world

For all first responders

For the poor and needy of our communities

For peace within our hearts

For the Tau community 

"Prepare the way of the Lord"

Gospel Reading: Mark 1:1-8: The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, "Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, who shall prepare thy way; the voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight." John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And there went out to him all the country of Judea, and all the people of Jerusalem; and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel's hair, and had a leather girdle around his waist, and ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, "After me comes he who is mightier than I, the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."

Old Testament Reading: Isaiah 40:1-5,9-1: Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins. A voice cries: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low;  the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken."

Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good tidings;  lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings, lift it up, fear not;  say to the cities of Judah, "Behold your God!" Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might, and his arm rules for him;  behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. He will feed his flock like a shepherd, he will gather the lambs in his arms, he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young.
  

Meditation: John the Baptist's life was fueled by one burning passion - to point others to Jesus Christ and to the coming of his kingdom. Who is John the Baptist and what is the significance of his message for our lives? Scripture tells us that John was filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother's womb (Luke 1:15, 41) by Christ himself, whom Mary had just conceived by the Holy Spirit. When Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth John leapt in her womb as they were filled with the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:41). The fire of the Spirit dwelt in John and made him the forerunner of the coming Messiah. John was led by the Spirit into the wilderness prior to his ministry where he was tested and grew in the word of God. John's clothing was reminiscent of the prophet Elijah (see Kings 1:8).

John broke the prophetic silence of the previous centuries when he began to speak the word of God to the people of Israel. His message was similar to the message of the Old Testament prophets who chided the people of God for their unfaithfulness and who tried to awaken true repentance in them. Among a people unconcerned with the things of God, it was his work to awaken their interest, unsettle them from their complacency, and arouse in them enough good will to recognize and receive Christ when he came.

 

Refection question: Are you eager to hear God's word and to be changed by it through the power of the Holy Spirit?

Jesus tells us that John the Baptist was more than a prophet (Luke 7:26). John was the voice of the Consoler who is coming (John 1:23; Isaiah 40:1-3). He completed the cycle of prophets begun by Elijah (Matthew 11:13-14). What the prophets had carefully searched for and angels longed to see, now came to completion as John made the way ready for the coming of the Messiah, God's Anointed Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. With John the Baptist, the Holy Spirit begins the restoration to the human race of the "divine likeness", prefiguring what would be achieved with and in the Lord Jesus.

 John's baptism was for repentance - turning away from sin and taking on a new way of life according to God's word. Our baptism in Jesus Christ by water and the Spirit results in a new birth and entry into God's kingdom as his beloved sons and daughters (John 3:5). Jesus is ready to give us the fire of his Spirit that we may radiate the joy and truth of the gospel to a world in desparate need of God's light and truth. His word has power to change and transform our lives that we may be lights pointing others to Christ. Like John the Baptist, we too are called to give testimony to the light and truth of Jesus Christ.

 

Refection Question: Do you point others to Christ in the way you live, work, and speak?

Prayer: "Lord, let your light burn brightly in my heart that I may know the joy and freedom of your kingdom. Fill me with your Holy Spirit and empower me to witness the truth of your Gospel and to point others to Jesus Christ." Amen.

 

Peace and all good,

Brother Ed, OFM

 

Let us pray for the following intentions:

 

For the Tau Community gathering at the Poor Clare Monastery today, December 7.

 

For the soul of Sister Ann Roddy, SSND, and all the dead remembered in the Tau garden.

 

For Pope Francis and for his intentions

 

For all first responders

 

 

 

 

Love Both Gentle and Fierce

 

What does God's love looks like in a world gone wrong? During Advent we prepare for the Incarnation, when Jesus reveals a God who is nothing but love. But this enfleshment takes place in the midst of a fallen, sinful world. Therefore, it will naturally appear threatening, strange, or off-putting. Consider when you are in a particularly grouchy mood, when things are not going well. Who is the most obnoxious person to have around? Someone who is in a good mood. There is no one more annoying to a grouch than the sunny optimist. If you have been stuck for two weeks in the depths of a cave, what would be most tortuous to you? Light. If you have been swinging a golf club incorrectly for many years, who is most painful to you? The teacher who compels you to change everything you've known and to swing in a new way. The world, on the biblical reading, is a dysfunctional family. As G.K. Chesterton put it, "We're all in the same boat, and we're all seasick." Therefore in light of this disorder, when Jesus comes, he necessarily comes as a trouble-maker, as a breaker of the peace. It's helpful to remember during Advent that there is no contradiction between God's gentleness and God's fierceness: they are both expressions of his love. They both emerge when love breaks into our dysfunctional world and sets it right, which is precisely what commences at Christmas.   Father Barron   _____________________________________________________________________   What contradictions in my own life do I need to lay before the crib?   Peace and all good, Brother Ed, OFM

Slashing the Roots of Our Sin - Father Robert's refections for advent day 6

Slashing the Roots of Our Sin

In the Gospels, we hear Jesus say, "Even now the axe lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire." It's a peculiar image in some ways, an axe that cuts to the very roots, leaving no stump behind. But this is the way of Jesus, particularly during Advent. He wants a total renovation of our lives. He wants to get to the roots of our sin and dysfunction, addressing not just the symptoms, but the deep causes. If your relational life or your sexual life is dysfunctional, Jesus wants to root out the problem and not just change the behavior. If your professional life has become tainted by sin, Jesus wants to cut to the roots of it, in your pride, or fear, or ambition. Perhaps there is a pattern of violence in your behavior. Christ wants to get to the envy or greed that lies behind it. Jesus will separate what is life-giving and nourishing in us from what is merely chaff. We are always a mix, but as we move through Advent, we must not settle for a halfway spiritual life. Father Barron ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ What is it in my own life I need to lay before the manger to move towards a better Christmas this year? Peace and all good, Brother Ed, OFM

Advent Day 3 - Father Barron's refections

 

Advent is the liturgical season of vigilance or, to put it more mundanely, of waiting. During the four weeks prior to Christmas, we light the candles of our Advent wreaths and put ourselves in the spiritual space of the Israelite people who, through many long centuries, waited for the coming of the Messiah.   In the wonderful avant-garde German movie "Run Lola Run," a young woman finds herself in a terrible bind: she needs to gather an enormous amount of money in a ridiculously short period of time. Throughout the movie she runs and runs, desperately trying through her own frantic efforts to make things right, but nothing works. Finally, at the moment when she finds herself at the absolute limit of her powers, she slows to a trot, looks up to heaven and says, "Ich warte, ich warte" ("I'm waiting, I'm waiting").   Though she does not explicitly address God, and though there has been no hint throughout the movie that Lola is the least bit religious, this is undoubtedly a prayer. And in the immediate wake of her edgy request a rather improbable solution to her problem presents itself.   Lola's prayer has always reminded me of Simone Weil, that wonderful and mysterious twentieth-century French mystic whose entire spirituality is predicated upon the power of waiting, or, in her language, of expectation. In prayer, Weil taught, we open our souls, expecting God to act even when the content of that expectation remains unclear.   In their curious vigilance and hoping against hope, both Lola and Simone are beautiful Advent figures.   "I'm waiting, I'm waiting," they both exclaim. And so are we. Thank you Father Barron for your refection's today! +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ I hope each of you have a day filled with wonder and thankfulness!   Refection question: What am I waiting for in my life? Peace and all good, Brother Ed, OFM brotheredofm.com