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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 January 29, 2011

+ 3rd Week in Ordinary Time

My faith held me up and pulled me through.

Readings: Hebrews 11:1-2, 9-19 Response: Luke 1:69-71 Mark 4:35-41

Sisters and brothers: Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen. Because of it the ancients were well attested. [Hebrews 11: 1]

Then he asked them, “Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?” [Mark 4:40-41]

I’ve heard that testimony more than once in my life. I feel certain you have too! Perhaps they have been your own testimony after a difficult experience or period in your life. No one is exempt from trial and error in life. Some of the ‘storms’ are the result of our own blindness or down right stubbornness. “My way or the highway” type of thinking can get us into trouble.

However, many of the storms are like hurricanes and earthquakes—not of our own doing but the result of the ‘rhythm’ nature. They are sometimes referred to as ‘acts of God’ but God should not be blamed for catastrophic events that result from the rhythm of nature as it unfolds in its evolutionary path toward completion.

Global warming may not be part of God’s plan. Toxic air resulting from the fumes of oil driven engines and the waste polluting our rivers, streams and now oceans will not have the last word. Nature is now fighting back.

Then where does faith come in? If “faith is the realization for what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen,” then faith will move true believers to roll up their sleeves, as it were, and assemble a brain trust to search for solutions to at least some of the storms that challenge our very survival. God is not a magician!

This is surely an apt metaphor for some of the other storms that challenge our individual and societal wellbeing. If the flight of a butterfly in New Jersey can impact on the direction of wind in Singapore, then there is no little effort that counts for nothing in the course of world events.