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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

Saturday April 4, 2009

+ Fifth Week of Lent

It’s always easier to shoot the messenger than to accept the message.

Readings: Ezekiel 37:21-28 Responsorial: Jeremiah 31:10-13 John 11:45-56

One of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing, nor do you consider that it is better for you that one man should die instead of the people, so that the whole nation may not perish.” [John 11:49-50]

I don’t believe the date was the same but it was seven years ago on Palm Sunday that the New York Times carried the front-page story of the disclosure of sexual abuse that occurred for several years at St. Joseph Parish in Mendham and indeed across the country for many more year. Triggered by the court-ordered opening of secret church files in the Archdiocese of Boston, the stories of disclosure spread like wildfire. Cardinal Law’s initial reaction was to ‘shoot’ the messengers until it became clear to all that he had presided over a prolonged cover-up of abusive priests, the most notorious and tragic of which were John Goeghan and Shanley.

The New York Times article named me the ‘maverick priest’ who broke the silence at St. Joseph but it didn’t take long for the ‘messenger’ to get shot down by the ‘high priests’ of ecclesiastical governance through their advisors and counselors. Messengers were called ‘witch hunters’ rather than ‘truth sayers.’ And the more things change, the more they stay the same.

However, as we begin this the holiest of all weeks of the year, we meditate on the ‘truth sayer’ of the ages as he makes his final journey to the cross. Yes, for many it was better that one man should die rather than risk the collapse of the empire.

“So Pilate said to him, ‘Then you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.’ Pilate said to him, ‘What is truth?” [John 18:37-38]

Indeed, the more things change, the more they stay the same. Messengers of truth are still being discredited and shot down because to acknowledge the truth is to acknowledge the need for reform and it’s easier to settle for the status quo.