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Daily Scripture

+ 7th Week of Easter

“Parting is such sweet sorrow.”

Readings: Acts 20:17-27 Psalm 68:10-11, 20-21 John 17:1-11

I am in the world no longer, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. [John 17:11]

Shakespeare ‘penned’ the phrase quoted above. I didn’t understand it as a student of Shakespeare in high school but I began to understand it when I waved goodbye to my family as I sailed off to Italy on September 21, 1963 for a three-year stretch in Rome. In fact, it has multiple meanings and applications that I appreciate now more than ever before.

There is another phrase that perhaps gives credence to my thoughts so poorly expressed and it’s this: “Absence makes the heart grow fonder.” Ah, that’s it. At times we need to separate from ‘the source’ in order to appreciate how important it is to stay connected.

The farewell speech of St. Paul in Acts and the farewell ‘prayer’ of Jesus in John’s gospel were more likely composed by the authors of these texts along the lines of the farewell speeches of great leaders of their times in order to attract the attention of Jesus’ followers.

The departure of Jesus and later that of Paul created ‘fallow’ time in the hearts of the neophyte believers that was absolutely necessary if they were to grasp the significance of Jesus’ message and the teachings of St. Paul.

We are once again in ‘fallow’ time as we prepare for Pentecost. It’s a time of discernment during which we are invited to ponder the words and deeds of Jesus so that in his absence, we may come to know his presence in the Spirit that remains within us and around us.

As we ponder, it is important to reflect on the gifts of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and reverence of the Lord. And the fruits of the Holy Spirit are qualities that are characteristic of a community living in Christ: charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty self-control and chastity.

There is much to ponder as we wait for the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost.

Daily Scripture

Friday December 17, 2004

+ 3rd Week in Advent

The Vigil of Christmas is nine days from today. From the 17th to the 24th our immediate preparation for the feast enfolds with a ‘novena’ of readings from the Old and New Testaments. They will help us to focus on the deeper reality of who the Messiah, the Anointed of God, the Christ. The readings are also intended to help us appreciate the reality of who we are as a ‘Messianic’ people; not ‘little messiahs, but a people caught up in a love which generates goodness-Godness in our world.

Readings: Genesis 48:2,8-10 Matt 1:1-17

We don’t choose our ancestors.

“A genealogy of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham…” [Matt 1:1]

Pedigree was important to the Jews; genealogy justified one’s position among the Jewish. Herod was half Jew and half Edomite. Hence, the Jews despised him. Matthew was intent on connecting Jesus’ heritage to Abraham and David to assure the Jews for which he was writing that his lineage was clear. Matthew’s description of Jesus’ genealogy is symmetrical and more symbolic than historical and is presented in three stages in Jewish History. The first section extends from Abraham to the rise of Israel’s greatest king, David. The second extends from David to the Babylonian exile, depicting the shame of Israel’s fall. The third extends from the exile to Jesus Christ who reversed the tide of Israel and of human history.

We are Judeo-Christians and trace our lineage to Abraham, “our father in the faith.”

At this time of the year, we do well to look for opportunities to look for those qualities in others that join us as a human family despite the barriers that divide us.