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Daily Scripture

+ 4th Week in Lent

He comes off smelling like a rose – Moses, that is.

Readings: Exodus 32:7-14 Psalm 106:19-23 John 5:31-47

But Moses pleaded with the Lord his God: “Lord” he said, “why should your wrath blaze out against this people of yours whom you brought out of the land of Egypt… Leave your burning wrath; relent and do not bring this disaster upon your people.” [Exodus 32:11-12]

No wonder God has such a band image even among Catholics! Poor God! Moses comes out smelling like a rose in this reading. Doesn’t seem fair to God.

Of course, this is a ‘cropped’ image of God. Much as we crop a digital photo to the size of our screen, the author of the Book of Exodus and other authors of Old Testament literature portrayed a wrathful God in the face of a sinful nation with the hope that they would wake up to their evil ways. Moses was their hero, a kind of interlocutor who interpreted the behavior of the people before God with the hope that mercy might prevail over the just punishment that they brought upon themselves. We might say that Moses was into ‘damage control’ before God.

This is an anthropomorphic (fancy word for ‘human’ image of God – inadequate at best.

In the scheme of life, it is we who bring ‘wrath’ upon ourselves. We don’t need God to do it. “What goes around comes around.” I often assign this ‘mantra’ as a penance within the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The wrongs we impose on others will come back to haunt us, sooner or later.

It is not God who has to relent; it is we who must face the music that we ourselves have scripted.

My God is a God of justice but justice and mercy meet in my God. How do I know this? It’s written on every page of the four Gospels.

Daily Scripture

Monday November 5, 2007

+ 31st Week in Ordinary Time

But hospitality is more than providing a meal.

Readings: Romans 11:29-36 Psalm 69:30-31, 33-34, 36 Luke 14:12-14

“When you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” [Luke 14:14]

Yesterday at the conclusion of Mass at Assumption Parish, invitations were extended to the congregation to consider contributing to two different projects designed to help people who may never be able to pay back what we were asked to contribute.

A young boy born in Guatemala soon thereafter adopted by an American family extended the first invitation. The project was established by Joe Collins, a New Jersey licensed private investigator who visited Guatemala with his son, Darron. Joe witnessed first-hand the devastating extend of poverty in Guatemala and soon after began volunteering for an organization that gathers service teams to build homes for the poor. In 2004, Joe established “From Houses to Homes” to provide individual families with a better home and a fresh start in life.

Tom Johnson, a parishioner of Assumption who spends three months every year in Sierra Leone, West Africa, extended the second invitation. His project is called ‘Africa Surgery, Inc. Tom first visited Sierra Leone as a member of the Peace Corps. With the help of the Knights of Columbus, he is able to get surgical treatment for severely handicapped children by a medical team in Ghana. The K of C finances his travel and expenses. 100% of all donations are used directly for patient treatments.

As I read the today’s gospel, I thought immediately of these two invitations to provide not just a meal, but a life!

“From Houses to Homes – Guatemala info@fromhousestohomes.org”

“Africa Surgery, In. – website: africasurgery.org (no ‘www’ in front)