Eriugena: Daily Prayers of an Irish Pilgrim

2005-09-02T06:05:00.002Z

Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot:
The Pilgrim Praying
Albright-Knox Gallery,
Buffalo, NY, c. 1826-28

Email: Eriugena@gmail.com

Sept 2: The Fullness of Life Made Manifest in the World

2005-09-02T06:00:00.000Z

Christ Pantocrator, Basilica of Monreale, Sicily, 12th c.

Friday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Col 1:15-20

For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross (NRSV, Col 1:19-20).

Father, you are always present to every human being in every time and place through your Word, always offering us your life and forgiveness. The Word present to all at the depth of our being has been made manifest in his fullness, in the flesh, in our Lord Jesus Christ who gave him himself in love to you, Father, at every moment and challenges all of us to follow his example, even as, with him, we pass through physical death.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Sept 1: Fishers of People

2005-09-01T06:00:00.000Z

Jacopo Bassano: The Miraculous Draught of Fish
The National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1545

Thursday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Lk 5:1-11

Then Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people (NRSV, Lk 5:10b).”

Father, in every moment in every place you call each of us to grow in your life. Your Word, ever present at the depth of the being of each of us, challenges us to say “yes” to your summons. There is only one way in which we can answer that invitation: by accepting the gift of your love, Lord, and sharing it with our sisters and brothers. There is, Father, no other way to grow in you than by loving our fellow human beings. Flight from the world, Father, to be alone with you is not an option because the one life that you share with each of us is shared with all who will accept it. We are all one with you, called each of us to grow in you as we grow in one another. To leave everything to follow you, Lord, is finally to embrace all around us.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Aug 27: To All Those Who Have, More Will Be Given

2005-08-27T06:00:00.000Z

Rembrandt van Rijn: The Parable of the Talents, 1852

Memorial of St. Monica

Gospel: Mt 25:14-30

“For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away (NRSV, Mt 25:29).”

Father, at every moment in every time and place you offer us your life and power. You challenge us to accept it, to allow it to transform us that we may share more fully in everything that you are. Growth in you, Father, prepares us to say “yes” with an even greater commitment. If we turn away from you, we lose what little we might have had. Still, Father, you are always there, through your Word, calling us to return to you and to grow more completely in you.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Aug 7: A Sound of Sheer Silence

2005-08-07T06:00:00.000Z

Rembrandt van Rijn: Elijah on Mount Horeb

Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Reading I: 1 Kgs 19:9a, 11-13a

[Then the word of the LORD said to Elijah], "Go out and stand on the mountain before the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by." Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence (NRSV, 1 Kgs 19:11-12).

Father, your prophet Elijah heard you speak to him on Mount Horeb in a sound of sheer silence. Moses heard you speak to him on Horeb in the thunder and lightening of a mountain storm. In reality, Father you speak to everyone in every place and every time in the depth of our being through your one Word who reveals to us who you are and what you would have us do. May we listen ever more fully to that one Word as we say “yes” to you in every situation and grow constantly in your life and power.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Aug 6: The Challenge to Manifest the Lord

2005-08-06T06:00:00.000Z

Fra Angelico: The Transfiguration
Convento di San Marco, Florence, 1440-41

Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord

Gospel: Mt 17:1-9

And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white (NRSV, Mt 17:2).

Father, you only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus, so manifested your life and your power that it radiated out from him to all around him. May we also say “yes” to the gift of your life that it too may fills us, transfigure us, and go out from us to others.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen

Aug 1: Faith Saves in Every Moment

2005-08-01T04:00:00.000Z

Sadao Watanabe: Peter Sinking, 1963

Memorial of Saint Alphonsus Liguori, bishop and doctor of the Church

Gospel: Mt 14:22-36

Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt (NRSV, Mt 14:31)?”

Father, for us every moment is crisis. We risk losing everything or we can accept your gift of life that empowers us and we can move forward on our journey towards you, our only true future. May we always respond to you in faith and not slip below the waters even momentarily as did Peter. Faith in you, through Jesus, enables us to overcome every obstacle and to grow in you.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen

July 30: True Fidelity

2005-07-30T06:00:00.000Z

The Saint Head of John the Baptist
Volga River Region, 19th cent.

Saturday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mt 14:1-12

The king was grieved, yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he commanded it to be given; he sent and had John beheaded in the prison. The head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, who brought it to her mother (NRSV, Mt 14:9-11)

Father, may we always be faithful to the Word revealed to every human being at the depth of their being and to the divine life offered to all in the Holy Spirit. John was true to his commitment to serve you, Father, a commitment made even from the womb. You help us in every instance, Father, to follow his example.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

July 27: Choose First the Kingdom of God

2005-07-27T02:59:00.000Z

Sir John Everett Millais: The Hidden Treasure
British Tate Collection, London, 1864

Wednesday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mt 13:44-46

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field (NRSV, Mt 13:44).”

Father, Jesus tells us that there is only one reality that matters and everything else receives its value for that reality. It is you, Father, and your coming kingdom. There is no need to flee the world to find you. It is you and you alone who gives meaning to all else. While embracing all that is good, may we thus choose you first and make your kingdom the center and focus of everything that we are and do.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 26: God Speaks to All

2005-07-26T06:00:00.000Z

Alexander Master: God Speaking to Moses
Koninklijke Bibliotheek, the Hague, 1430

Memorial of Saints Joachim and Anne, parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Reading I: Ex 33:7-11; 34:5b-9, 28

Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend (NRSV, Ex 33:11a).

Father, you spoke to Moses directly, seemingly as friend to friend. You speak in the same manner to every human being, even from the womb, through your Word who is always present to us, closer to us than we are to ourselves. May all of us listen attentively and always respond positively that we may grow constantly in your life and in the understanding of who you are and what you challenge us to become.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 25: A Never-ending Journey

2005-07-25T06:00:00.000Z

Gil de Siloe: Saint James the Greater
The Cloisters, New York, 1489-93

Feast of Saint James, Apostle

Father, your holy people are a people on pilgrimage, always called to leave what they are in order to become something new. Abraham was called forth out of Mesopotamia to become the father of many believers. Moses and the Israelites were called out of physical slavery in Egypt and selfish rebellion in the desert. May we too, Father, be ready to leave everything we have become up until this very moment that we may share ever more fully in your life, a challenge that is then renewed in every moment forever and ever.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 24: Divine Wisdom Given to All

2005-07-24T04:00:00.000Z

Luca Giordano: The Dream of Solomon
Museo del Prado, Madrid, 1693

Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Reading I: 1 Kgs 3:5, 7-12

[O Lord], give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil (NRSV, 1 Kgs 3:9a).”

Father, your servant Solomon prayed for the gift of wisdom with which you then seemingly blessed him. In reality, Lord, you give to everyone who will accept and use it, even before our asking, this very gift for which Solomon pleaded. Your Word is present to all of us at every moment in every place. Through the Word, now made flesh in our Lord Jesus, you speak the fullness of your truth once and for all and you challenge us through him to accept and to grow constantly in your divine life.

May all of us, every human being in every time and place, be ever responsive to your gift of your own life which brings with it divine wisdom that we may judge rightly in all things, recognizing the truth and living it out in lives of love and service to one another.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 18: Through Water to New Life

2005-07-18T06:00:00.000Z

Marc Chagall: The Parting of the Red Sea
Private Collection in New York, 1966

Monday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Ex 14:5-18

“But you [Moses] lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the Israelites may go into the sea on dry ground. Then I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them; and so I will gain glory for myself over Pharaoh and all his army, his chariots, and his chariot drivers(NRSV, Ex 14:16-17).”

Father, as we remember the story and retell it to our children, you brought Israel out of slavery in Egypt through the sea into physical freedom and then eventually through the Jordan into freedom from the sin left behind in the dessert. In the sacrament of baptism you bring us through death into resurrection and new life in you. May we recognize that at every moment in every time and place, Father, you call every human being through the Word into newness of life in your Holy Spirit, life in which we are challenged to grow at every moment forever and ever.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 17: God Cares for All

2005-07-17T06:00:00.000Z

Andrea del Sarto: Charity
Musée du Louvre, Paris, 1518

Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Wis 12:13, 16-19

There is no god besides you who have the care of all (NAB, Wis 12:13a).

Father, all peoples are your chosen ones. You offer your own divine life in the Holy Spirit through the Word who is present to all at every moment and in every place. May we overcome any notion that we may have that some of us are more privileged than others, for your unbounded love goes out to all of your children.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 16: New Bread, New Life

2005-07-16T06:00:00.000Z

Hispano-Moresque Haggadah (Castile):Unleavened Bread
British Library, London, 13th cent.

Saturday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Ex 12:37-42

They baked unleavened cakes of the dough that they had brought out of Egypt; it was not leavened, because they were driven out of Egypt and could not wait, nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves (NRSV, Ex 12:39).

Father, the story tells us how the Israelites had to begin totally anew as they left Egypt, even eating bread made from unleavened dough because it was not possible to bring any previously raised dough with them. You, Father, through the Word always present to us, challenge us to start our lives anew at every moment as we are challenged to accept and to grow in your divine life. May every moment before us a dying to our old selves and a truly new birth in you.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 15: Sacred Meals

2005-07-15T06:00:00.000Z

Dieric Bouts the Elder: Passover
Sint-Pieterskerk, Leuven, 1642-47

Memorial of Saint Bonaventure, bishop and doctor of the Church

Reading I: Ex 11:10-12:14

"This is how you are to eat it: with your loins girt, sandals on your feet and your staff in hand, you shall eat like those who are in flight. It is the Passover of the LORD (Ex 12:11).”

Father, you are beyond place and yet in what you create you are everywhere. We find you in everything that we are and everything that we do. In the moment you share your life with us and so we have found you especially present in the meals in which we nourish the body, yes, but in which more significantly we share our lives, and your life, with one another. You are with the Jews as they celebrate Passover in the Seder meal. You are with Christians as we break bread together and celebrate your giving of life to us through the Word, now made flesh in Jesus the Christ. May the sacred meals we share bring us closer to you and to one another in loving service.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 14: I AM WHO I AM

2005-07-14T06:00:00.000Z

Raffaello Sanzio: God Speaks to Moses from the Burning Bush
Stanza di Eliodoro, Palazzi Pontifici, Vatican, 1512

Memorial of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, virgin

Reading I: Ex 3:13-20

But Moses said to God, “If I come to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” 14God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” He said further, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites, ‘I AM has sent me to you (NRSV, Ex 3:13-14).’ ”

Father, you love us so much that you offer us an ever-increasing share in your life through the Word in every moment. And more than that you reveal your very name to us, so much do you love us. Father, may we always live in such a way as to be worthy of your great love in fidelity to your sacred name.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 13: Here I Am

2005-07-13T06:00:00.000Z

Breviary of Martin d'Aragon: God Appears to Moses in the Burning Bush
La Biliothèque Nationale de France, Paris, 14th c.

Wednesday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Ex 3:1-6, 9-12

When the LORD saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am (Ex 3:4).”

Father, Moses sensed that you called to him and spoke to him at privileged moments. In faith, we realize, Father, that you call to us and speak to us in every moment through the Word, now made flesh in our Lord Jesus. The Word that you utter is your one revelation made to every human being in every time and place, even from the womb. Father, may we always be responsive as Moses was when he heard you speaking to him from the burning bush. May we not only respond with “Here I am,” but may we say “yes” to you in the moment and in every moment to accept your life into our own and to grow in it constantly, sharing it with our sisters and brothers through acts of loving service.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 12: Out of the Water

2005-07-12T06:00:00.000Z

Sébastien Bourdon: The Finding of Moses
The National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1650

Tuesday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Ex 2:1-15a

Pharoah’s daughter named him Moses, “because,” she said, “I drew him out of the water (NRSV, Ex 2:10b).”

Father, because it is such an ambivalent reality that speaks to us of both death and life, water has come to symbolize for us our encounter with you at every moment, called as we are to die to ourselves to be born more fully in you.

That is why, when you called your people out of the slavery in Egypt into new life, they remembered that deliverance in terms of a passage through the sea. They told the story as well of how Moses had been rescued from death in the Nile to lead your people to freedom.

The River Jordan too took on great significance as your people hopefully left their rebellious selves in the desert to enter upon the land which they understood as their destiny. John recalled all of this when he summoned the people once again to pass through the Jordan in renouncing their sinfulness.

But, most of all, Father, it is in the waters of baptism that we effectively celebrate our union with Jesus in his death and resurrection and our summons in every moment to die to self and to be reborn.

Father, may we live every moment as one symbolized by watery death and rebirth. In every moment may we grow in you.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 11: Every Moment A Prayer

2005-07-11T06:00:00.000Z

Anonymous Master (Monastery of St. Gilles, Nimes): St. Benedict Giving his Rule to St. Maurus and Other Monks
British Library, London, 1129

Memorial of Saint Benedict, abbot

Father, you summons us at every moment through the Word to accept and to grow in your divine life. Jesus, the Word made flesh, challenges us to decide for you, Father, and your coming kingdom in every situation. From St. Benedict may we also learn that every single moment can therefore be prayer if we lift it up to you, Father, through the Word in the unity of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Jul 10: The Sower is the Word of God

2005-07-10T06:00:00.000Z

Camille Pisarro: The Sower at Montfoucault
Private Collection, 1875

Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mt 13:1-23

“But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty (NRSV, Mt 13:23).”

Father, Your Word, spoken once and for all to everyone in every situation, is the perpetual sower who never fails to plant his seed. May we ever be responsive in every moment to his divine action that through him we may accept the the gift of life in the Holy Spirit and grow constantly in that life as we journey toward you, Father, who are our one and true future.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 9: Our Life and Our Salvation

2005-07-09T06:00:00.000Z

Pieter von Cornelius: Joseph Recognizes His Brothers
Nationalgalerie, Berlin, 1816-17

Saturday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Gen 49:29-32; 50:15-26a

But Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid! Am I in the place of God? Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good, in order to preserve a numerous people, as he is doing today (NRSV, Gen 50:19-20).”

Father, every situation for us is the saving one. Through the Word, your life and power is always offered to us in every situation in the Holy Spirit that blessing may flow from it. Evil has no grip upon us as long as we rely solely upon you, Lord, who empower us with the gift of your own divine life. You alone, Father, are salvation for us.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 8: One Word Spoken to All

2005-07-08T06:00:00.000Z

Caravaggio: The Inspiration of Saint Matthew
Cappella Contarelli, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome, 1602

Friday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mt 10:16-23

“When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you at that time; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you (NRSV, Mt 10:19-20).”

Father, everything is revealed to us in the moment, once and for all, through the Word, always present to us. May we be ever responsive to what is spoken that as we grow in your life we may also grow in understanding that your truth will fill us and we shall be empowered ourselves to utter your revelation, even as the Word does, to all who will listen.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 7: Every Moment is Blessed

2005-07-07T06:00:00.000Z

Marc Chagall: Joseph and His Brothers

Thursday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Gen 44:18-21, 23b-29; 45:1-5

Joseph said, “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. And now do not be distressed, or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life (NRSV, Gen 45:4b-5).”

Father, no moment is so dark, not the selling into slavery of Joseph, or even the crucifixion of Jesus, that it is not the saving moment. You greet us, Father, in every situation, even the darkest, through your Word always present to us who offers us your life and power if only we will accept it. Joseph, rejected by his brothers, provided for their material needs during famine. Jesus, even more, is the great sacrament of salvation. Crucified and rejected by us, resurrected to eternal life, Jesus is the very incarnation, Father, for everyone to experience, of your saving act that is one with your being and that fills all of history.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 6: The Glory of Poetry and Music

2005-07-06T06:00:00.000Z

Hans Memling: Angel Musicians
Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Antwerp, 1480s

Wednesday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 33:2-3, 10-11, 18-19

Praise the LORD with the lyre; make melody to him with the harp of ten strings.
Sing to him a new song; play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts (Ps 33:2-3).

Father, you speak your one Word to all of us in every moment but because of our finitude as creatures and because of the influence of the sin of the world and our own sinfulness it is difficult for us to articulate the fullness of truth that you reveal to us. In poetry and music we can often give expression to truth that logical reason cannot always utter. Father, may we find in poetry and music the means to speak when ordinary speech fails and thus give you more adequate praise even while growing in the life and power that you always offer to us.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jul 5: God Is Always Near

2005-07-05T06:01:00.000Z

Gustav Moreau: Jacob and the Angel
Musée Gustave Moreau, Paris, 1878

Tuesday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Gn 32:23-33

So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life is preserved (NRSV, Gen 32:30).”

Father, in a moment of enlightenment Jacob realized how close you were to him, even that he had seen you face to face. May we, in response to the challenge of the Word, recognize your presence to us at every moment, closer to us than we are to ourselves. May we grow constantly in the life that you offer to us in every situation.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 30: Abraham, Our Father in Faith

2005-06-30T06:00:00.000Z

Andrea del Sarto: The Sacrifice of Isaac
Gemäldegalerie, Dresden, 1520-25

Thursday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Gen 22:1b-19

The angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven, and said, “By myself I have sworn, says the LORD: Because you have done this, and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will indeed bless you, and I will make your offspring as numerous as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of their enemies, and by your offspring shall all the nations of the earth gain blessing for themselves, because you have obeyed my voice (NRSV, Gen 22: 15-18).”

At every moment, Lord, you meet us through your “angel,” the Word now made flesh, and challenge us to let go of everything we are and have become up until the present that we may continue to grow in your life and become truly something new. May we follow the example of Abraham, our father in faith, and place our confidence not in ourselves but solely in you who are our only hope and true future.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 29: Liberation Through the Word

2005-06-29T06:00:00.000Z

Filippino Lippi: The Liberation of St. Peter from Prison (detail)
Cappella Brancacci, Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence, 1471-72

Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles

Reading I: Acts 12:1-11

Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hands of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting (NRSV, Acts 12:11).”

Father, at every moment in every place, you send your “angel,” the Word, now made flesh, to rescue you us from every evil, not by taking over in our lives, but by challenging us to accept and to grow in the Holy Spirit. It is the Spirit that brings us a share, indeed an ever-increasing share, in your divine life. With that life comes the power, made our very own, to vanquish evil and triumph over all adversity even in the midst of apparent defeat.

As Jesus passed triumphantly through death to the resurrection, and Peter overcame personal weakness and all obstacles, may we too, by accepting the challenge in the moment always to grow in grace, be victors over all that would enslave us.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 26: Love God First and Foremost

2005-06-26T06:00:00.000Z

Bernard de Hoog (1866-1943): Tea Time
Private Collection

Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mt 10:37-42

“Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me (NRSV, Mt 10:37).”

Father, everything we are and everything we have comes to us through the Word through whom you create all things. We are grateful for your own divine life that you share with us in the Holy Spirit, the life that we share with all human beings who will accept it but first and most of all with our own family, with spouse and children and children’s children.

If we share life, Father, and are capable of loving one another, it is because you have given us the power through the Word in the Holy Spirit. May we make you, Father, the source of all, the center and focus of all that we are and, loving you and the Word, now made flesh, and the Holy Spirit first of all, may we then love the family you have given us, loving and serving them as well as all of our sisters and brothers.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 25: Expect the Unexpected

2005-06-25T06:00:00.000Z

Rembrandt van Rijn or Jan Victors: Abraham and the Three Angels
Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, c.1640

Saturday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Gen 18:1-15

The LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too wonderful for the LORD? At the set time I will return to you, in due season, and Sarah shall have a son (NRSV, Gen 18:13-14)."

Father, how difficult it is for us to realize that you are always present to us and that you offer us your life and growth in it at every moment. Angels are messengers but we need no messenger to hear your Word that is always with us and through whom we are immediately in your presence.

Nothing, Father, is too wonderful for you and everything we are and have is gift. All is possible with you and all should amaze us.

Father, may be always be ready to accept the unexpected and, responding to it, allow you to forge in us a future that is truly new and which by your grace we can make our own.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 24: Prayer and Fasting in the Desert

2005-06-24T06:00:00.000Z

Giovanni di Paolo: John the Baptist retiring into the Desert
National Gallery, London, 1453

Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist

Gospel: Lk 1:57-66, 80

The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel (NRSV, Lk 1:80).

Father, you reveal yourself to every human being at every moment, the same one revelation spoken through the Word, now made flesh in our Lord Jesus. Our grasp of your one Word, however, is limited by our finite historical and cultural situation, as well as by the blindness which comes with the common sinfulness of humanity and our own personal sins. With each moment we have the invitation to grow not only in the life that you, Father, share with us, but also in our understanding.

John came to a fuller understanding of who he was and the mission to which he was called while praying and fasting in the desert. May we too, Father, follow the Israelites, John, and indeed Jesus himself, into a spiritual desert of prayer and discipline that we may also grow in the life and understanding which in always available to us if only we will accept it and allow it to transform us.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

June 23: God Present to Us

2005-06-23T06:00:00.000Z

Carel Fabritius: Hagar and the Angel
Residenzgalerie, Salzburg, c. 1643-45

Thursday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Gen 16:1-12, 15-16

“The angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness (NRSV, Gen 16:7a).

Father, in our apparently worst moments you are always with us to empower us through the Word with your life in the Holy Spirit. I say “apparently worse moments” because every moment is the saving moment. You, Father, through the Word, now made flesh in our Lord Jesus, are always with us at every moment from that first moment in the womb. Even when we reject you and turn away from you in sin, you are always God-with-us calling us to repentance and new life. In fact, Father, your constant presence to us is one of the defining elements of human existence.

Father, you succored Hagar in the desert in her moment of need and called her to a destiny, far beyond even being the mother of a great nation. May I, in this moment accept the succor that you offer me that I may grow in your life which you always offer to every human being in every time and every place.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

June 22: The One, True Covenant with God

2005-06-22T06:00:00.000Z

Jean Blondel: The Covenant with Abraham
Koninklijke Bibliotheek, The Hague, 1372

Wednesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Gn 15:1-12, 17-18

When the sun had gone down and it was dark, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, ‘To your descendants I give this land (NRSV, Gen 15:17-18a).”

Father, in all of our lives there are moments that seem privileged when we are sure that we see clearly. On the contrary, Father, you are always there, in every moment, through your Word present to us, calling us to greater clarity and understanding. The Israelites were so sure from Mt. Sinai on that you had promised them the land. They told stories of that promise going back to Abraham. But it was not the land at all. Father, your promise and the destiny to which you call us, even though it begins here is not of this world. It is a share in your own divine life that you offers us and give to us in part even here below. Father, keep us safe on our journey through the desert of this world to you our only future. At every moment may we grow constantly in our understanding of you and the life to which you call us. May we choose only you and live out that choice in the constant service of one another.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 21: Choose the Narrow Gate

2005-06-21T06:00:00.000Z

Christoph Weigel: The Wide and Narrow Gates
Biblia ectypa: Bildnussen auss Heiliger Schrifft Alt und Neuen Testaments, 1695

Memorial of Saint Aloysius Gonzaga, religious

Gospel: Mt 7:6, 12-14

“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it (NRSV, Mt 7:13).”

Father, as we stand poised in every moment to direct our lives into the future, there are so many choices, some merely attractive but of little value but others that are noble and of great worth. Jesus, tells us that there is only one choice that really matters: You, Father, and your coming kingdom. Choose first the kingdom of God, Jesus says, and then order all other concerns under that primary goal which alone gives a share in divine life and imparts true value and meaning to everything.

Help us, Father, in every situation to choose the gate that leads to you, the narrow gate that opens wide to embrace all of reality and gives true significance to it all.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 20: The Call to a Distant land

2005-06-20T06:00:00.000Z

Pieter Lastman: Abraham on the Road to Caanan
State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, 1614

Monday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: Gn 12:1-9

Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing (NRSV, Gen 12:1-2).”

Father, in every moment, you call us forth, as you did Abraham, from the situation in which we find ourselves into something new. Abraham could only conceive of that call as one to a distant land that would be given to him and to his descendants. In the resurrection of our Lord Jesus we have come to understand that it is not the land at all but eternal life with you. This life is offered to us even now in the Holy Spirit through the Word who is always present to us calling us to say “yes,” as Abraham did, and to grow in your life.

Father, may every human with Abraham, our father in faith, respond to your call through the Word and let go of what we have been up until the present moment and grow ever closer to you by accepting the offer of continued growth in your own divine life.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 19: God’s Care for Us

2005-06-19T06:00:00.000Z

Giotto di Bondone (?): St. Francis Preaching to the Birds
Upper Church, Basilica di San Francesco, Assisi, 1297-99

Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mt 10:26-33

“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. And even the hairs of your head are all counted. So do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows (NRSV, Mt 10:29-31).”

Father, you care with infinite concern for all of your creation and through your Word you are with us always. In every situation you offer us your life and power always to transform the moment for what might seem defeat into victory. No matter how we may turn away from you in sin, forgiveness and new life are always offered to us.

Father, may we never forget or ignore your loving concern. May we extend your care to all others around us that your love may be manifest to our sisters and brothers through us.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 18: Breaking out of the World

2005-06-18T06:00:00.000Z

Johann Liss (1590-1631): The Ecstasy of St. Paul
Staatliche Museen, Berlin

Saturday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: 2 Cor 12:1-10

I know a person in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows. And I know that such a person—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows— was caught up into Paradise and heard things that are not to be told, that no mortal is permitted to repeat (NRSV, 2 Cor 12:2-4).

Father, you speak one Word to all in every time and every place. Because we are limited by the finite cultural situation in which we live and especially the common sinfulness of humanity and the evil that we ourselves do, the one Word that you speak to all is grasped only in part. There are however individuals, Father, who break forth in understanding and action in response to the one Word spoken to all. They often experience their response to you in the Spirit through the Word in terms of a vision or a moment of ecstasy. Their lives are often radically transformed. Physical healing can take place. They sometimes exhibit the wounds of Christ. They speak to the rest of us with prophetic insight condemning the evils which surround us and in which we often acquiesce.

Father, inspired by Paul’s conversion on the road to Damascus and his later mystical experience, may we open ourselves more completely to your life and power always offered to us all that with Paul we may understand and love more fully, ready to live, Father, only for you in service of our sisters and brothers.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 17: Glory in Weakness

2005-06-17T06:00:00.000Z

Masaccio: St. Paul (from the Pisa Polyptych)
Museo Nazionale, Pisa, 1426

Friday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: 2 Cor 11:18, 21-30

“If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness (NRSV, 2 Cor 11:30).”

Father, it seems strange that, with St. Paul, I thank you, not only for the wonderful realities that fill my life, but also for the weakness, the suffering and the emptiness. Everything I am and everything I do comes, not from myself, but from you. How easy for me to boast of the successes in my life, forgetting that it is only through you, Father, that they have been possible. That is why the moments of weakness are so important because they bring home to me my nothingness without you.

Father, may I rejoice in every moment, in failure as well as success, because, in every moment, I have the possibility, through your Word, of accepting you more fully into myself and of growing in your life. May every moment then, of apparent success or of apparent failure, be for me a moment of glory.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 16: God is Present to All

2005-06-16T06:00:00.000Z

Gaston Phébus : Gaston Phébus en prière
Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris, 15th cent.

Thursday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mt 6:7-15

“Pray then in this way: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name (NRSV, Mt 6:9).”

Father, there is so much that you speak through the Word to everyone in every time and place that has taken us so long to learn. It is only in the Word, now made flesh in Jesus, that we have realized that, through him, you are so close to us. It is not necessary as Moses thought to climb the holy mountain alone to talk to you, or to go apart into the Tent of the Presence, or for the priest to enter the Holy of Holies of the Temple. No, you are with us through the Word always and everywhere. You even share your life with us in the Holy Spirit if we will accept you in faith. How wonderful, Father, that each of us is empowered to call your name, not in search of you, but in response to your universal presence.

Alleluia. Amen.

Jun 15: Prayer Changes Us

2005-06-15T06:00:00.000Z

Icon of the Pharisee and the Publican

Wednesday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mt 6:1-6, 16-18

“When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him (NRSV, Mt 6:7-8).”

Father, when we pray to you, it is not to get your attention, because, through your Word, you are always present to us and you know all of our needs and desires. Indeed, Father, you always answer our prayers even before we utter them, because in every situation you offer us your life in the Holy Spirit and the possibility to grow in that life.

May our prayers rather change us than you, Father, that we may use your life and power effectively to serve one another now and together come to the fullness of glory with you, our only true future, in the world to come.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 14: Forgive and Love Our Enemies

2005-06-14T06:00:00.000Z

Luca Giordano : The Good Samaritan
Musée des beaux-arts, Rouen, 1685.

Tuesday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mt 5:43-48

“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you (NRSV, Mt 5:44).”

Father, no matter how much we sin, no matter how much we turn away from you and reject the life that you offer us, through your Word, you are always present to us, offering us forgiveness, love and new life in the Holy Spirit.

Father, with your help, may we accept the challenge of your Word, who never leaves us, and allow your forgiveness and new life to fill us. Transformed by that life, may we, in turn, go out to others in love, even to our worst enemies, offering them forgiveness and love as we first have been loved by you, Father, through your Word, in the Holy Spirit.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 13: The Summons to Holier Lives

2005-06-13T06:00:00.000Z

Gustav Moreau: St. Martin
Private Collection, 1882

Memorial of Saint Anthony of Padua, priest and doctor of the Church

Gospel: Mt 5:38-42

If anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well (NRSV, Mt 5:40).”

Father, you call us through the Word, now made flesh in our Lord Jesus, to make you and your coming kingdom the center and focus of everything that we are and do. You call us to forget ourselves and give all in service of our sisters and brothers.

We struggle in every age to find patterns of activity to govern our lives in justice. Help us to realize that within this world there is nothing that exhausts your truth and goodness and that we are constantly called to move beyond even our highest ideals and motivations to find new forms of moral behavior which in turn will also need to be surpassed.

Father, you give us life in the Spirit in the moment and call us always to grow in that divine life. May your gift never be in vain but manifest itself in us in holier lives.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 12: Called to be Apostles

2005-06-12T06:00:00.000Z

Icon of the Twelve Apostles

Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mt 9:36--10:8

“Then Jesus summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to cure every disease and every sickness (NRSV, Mt 10:1).”

Father, the authority over unclean spirits and the power to awaken healing in others which, we read in Matthew, Jesus gave to his twelve disciples, the Word in fact gives to every human being who will accept it. All of us are offered the possibility to grow in your divine life at every moment. With that life comes great authority and power. It is faith accepted and lived out that ultimately heals and saves. The Word, now made flesh in our Lord Jesus, is the sole mediator of faith but he offers a share in that mediation to every human being, just as you, Father, through the Word, offer all of us a share in your life.

Father, an apostle is an ambassador to others. All of us are called to minister to one another. Help us, Lord, to fulfill that mission.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

June 11: Called to Mediate the Faith with the Word Now Made Flesh

2005-06-11T06:00:00.000Z

Master of the Modena Book of Hours: Saint Barnabas
Koninklijke Bibliotheek, The Hague, 1390-1400

Memorial of Saint Barnabas, Apostle

Reading I: Acts 11:21b-26; 13:1-3

For Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were brought to the Lord (NRSV, Acts 11:24).

Father, your Apostle Barnabas went to Antioch and the divine life that you had shared with him (For he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith) radiated out from him to others who then came to believe.

Father, as you share your life through the Word with all who will accept it, you also challenge us to manifest it to others that thus they too may come to believe and to believe more fully.

Father, the Word, now made flesh in our Lord Jesus Christ, is the one mediator between you and us. As we share in your life through him, we are also called to share in that one mediation.

Help us, Father, to bring others to the faith and to a greater share in your life as did your Apostle Barnabas.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 10: Called to Resurrection

2005-06-10T06:00:00.000Z

Luca Signorelli: The Resurrection of the Body (detail)
Cappella di San Brizio, Duomo, Orvieto, 1499-1502

Friday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: 2 Cor 4:7-15

Because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus, and will bring us with you into his presence (NRSV, 2 Cor 4:14).

Father, you are always present to us through your Word offering us your life in the Holy Spirit even in this world. That life which filled our Lord Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, enabled him to pass unscathed through physical death to the glory of bodily resurrection. It is our belief and our hope that we are called to that same destiny.

May we, Father, say “yes” to your gift of life offered to us through the Word in every situation, and, growing in that life in this world, may we with Jesus also come to that final resurrection of the body.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 9: The Glory of God Revealed to All Who Believe

2005-06-09T06:00:00.000Z

Gustave Doré: The Glory of God
The Doré Bible Illustrations, 1974

Feast of Saint Columba (Colum Cille), abbot and missionary, secondary patron of Ireland

Reading I: 2 Cor 3:15—4:1, 3-6

And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit (NRSV, 2 Cor 3:18).

Father, all of us, even from the womb, who say “yes” to the challenge of the Word always present to us, find ourselves immediately in your presence. The Spirit is given to us through the Word and we become sharers in your own divine life.

Help us, Father, to commit ourselves ever more fully to you that we may grow in your life in every situation and come to experience the fullness of your glory which bathes us even now in this world.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 8: The Past is Fulfilled in a New and Unexpected Future

2005-06-08T06:00:00.001Z

Albert Bouts (1460-1549): The Transfiguration
The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, England

Wednesday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mt 5:17-19

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill(NRSV, Mt 5:17).”

Father, the evangelists described Jesus in glory atop the holy mountain surrounded by the Law and the prophets personified in Moses and Elijah. In Jesus we meet in the flesh the future to which we are all called, the future already accomplished. Jesus fulfills all things, the Law, the prophets, everything that preceded him and pointed to his coming.

Father, you call us to new life through the Word in every moment. The past drops away; the old understanding is subsumed into the new. Nothing of value is lost but all takes on new meaning and reality.

Father, help us to be faithful to what our “yes” of faith to you in the past has brought us, not by clinging to it, but by letting go and allowing it to be transformed into something new and glorious. Father, you are our one and true Future who affirms what has been of value in whom we have been by calling us always to something new and unexpected.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 7: Called to be Light to the World

2005-06-07T06:00:00.000Z

Philip Melancthon: The Sermon on the Mount
Annotationes Philippi Melanthonis in Evangelia Dominicalia, 16th cent.

Tuesday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mt 5:13-16

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven (NRSV, Mt 5:16).”

Father, in every moment, in every place, your Word, always present to us, offers us a share in your life, an ever-increasing share in your life. Transformed as we are by that gift freely accepted, the Word, now made flesh in our Lord Jesus Christ, challenges us to manifest that gift to others and to share it with them. The Word, the true Light of the World, calls us all to be with him beacons of God’s light and life to all of our sisters and brothers.

Father, help us to live so that we not only continually grow in your divine life but that we manifest that life to others so that all of us may be truly one family in you.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 6: Love Ever More Fully

2005-06-06T06:00:00.000Z

Anonymous Cologne Glazier: Sermon on the Mount
Great Bookham (Bucks.), England, 1460

Monday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I: 2 Cor 1:1-7

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all consolation, who consoles us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to console those who are in any affliction with the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God (NRSV, 1 Cor 1:3-4).

Father, everything that we are, and everything that we do, have their origin in you. When we console others, it is because we have been empowered to act by the consolation that we ourselves have first received from you.

Jesus, the Word made flesh, in the collection of moral challenges that the evangelists have united into the Sermon on the Mount, summons us to a new and higher form of moral life. The Word, in fact, always present to us in every situation from the very beginning, challenges us always in the moment to live better lives than we have up until that moment. With the challenge inevitably comes the power to act given to us in the Holy Spirit. As we are called to a deeper understanding of love of you, Father, and of our neighbor, and summoned to live out that love, we can only fulfill the calling because you, Father, have first loved us and empowered us with your infinite love. Help us grow in your love, Father, that we in turn may ever love more fully.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 5: Called at Every Moment

2005-06-05T06:00:00.000Z

Marinus van Reymerswaele: The Calling of Matthew
Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Ghent, 1536

Tenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mt 9:9-13

“Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners (NRSV, Mt 9:13).”

Father, your son Jesus, the Word made flesh, called Matthew the tax collector as he sat in his counting office. In fact, Lord, perhaps in ways not so obvious, through your Word, you called Matthew at every moment of his existence as you call every human being in every situation. That in large measure is what it means to be human: to be called forth, out of one’s present existence, to accept your gift of divine life in the Holy Spirit and always to grow in it.

No one is excluded. No one is beyond divine grace. The Word is present to all in every situation. His presence only seems at times to be absence because in our sinfulness we sometimes refuse to recognize him. That is why Jesus said, “I have come to call not the righteous but sinners,” because the sinner so often seems excluded from divine favor.

Help us, Father, in every situation, like Matthew in his counting office, to let go of everything we have become up until the moment, that with Matthew we may become truly something new, sharing every more fully in your divine life always offered us through your Word.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 4: Growth in Truth

2005-06-04T01:00:00.000Z

Michael Wohlgemut and Wilhelm Pleydenwurff:
Jesus as a Boy Preaching in the Temple
The Nuremberg Chronicles, 1488

Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Gospel: Lk 2:41-51

After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers (NRSV, Lk 2:46-47).

The Word made flesh in our Lord Jesus the Christ, child that he was, amazed the teachers in the temple with his knowledge and wisdom. Father, you reveal to us your Word, spoken to us once and for all at every moment, even from the womb. Help us in every situation to grow in your truth always revealed to us. May we accept that all of our understanding is in part, conditioned by time and space, and limited by our common sinfulness. By saying “yes” to your Word, ever present to us, and allowing your Spirit, who is life and love, to fill us more and more, may we continue to mature in your truth, leaving old understandings behind, as we participate more fully in you, our only real future, who alone is truth absolute.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 3: The Father Speaks His Word to All Who Listen

2005-06-03T06:00:00.000Z

Lieven van Lathem: Teacher with the Holy Ghost as a dove
on the young man's head
Koninklijke Bibliotheek, The Hague, 1460

The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

Gospel: Mt 11:25-30

At that time Jesus said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants (NRSV, Mt 11:25).”

Father, you speak to us your Word once and for all at every moment even from the first moment of our existence in the womb. May we ever be responsive to the gift of the Holy Spirit who enlightens all who will listen. Help us to grow constantly in understanding and life as we continue on our journey to you who are our only future.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 2: Growing in Love

2005-06-02T06:00:00.000Z

Christoph Weigel: Jesus and the Teacher of the Law
Biblia ectypa: Bildnussen auss Heiliger Schrifft Alt und Neuen Testaments, 1695

Thursday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mk 12:28-34

“And ‘to love God with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength,’ and ‘to love one’s neighbor as oneself,’ —this is much more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices (NRSV, Mk 12:33).”

Father, the divine life that you offer us at every moment, in every place, through the Word, your Son, now made flesh, is Love, the Love that you and the Word share with one another, the Love that we know also as your Holy Spirit. May we in every situation grow, first, in our understanding of your life which is Love, letting go in every moment of what we have understood up until that moment, understanding that is always partial and limited, grasped from a created perspective crying out to be superseded. But, even mort importantly, may we in every situation, accept that life which is Love, mediated to us through the Word, and grow in it, sharing ever more fully in all that you are, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Father, may your Love, ever more fully understood and lived, fill us and transform us, all of us, sisters and brothers, who share in your one life.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jun 1: The Gift of Divine Life Offered to All

2005-06-01T06:00:00.000Z

Andrea del Verrocchio: Tobias and the Angel
The National Gallery, London, 1470-80

Memorial of Saint Justin, martyr

Reading I: Tb 3:1-11a, 16-17a

So Raphael was sent to heal both of them: Tobit, by removing the white films from his eyes, so that he might see God's light with his eyes; and Sarah, daughter of Raguel, by giving her in marriage to Tobias son of Tobit, and by setting her free from the wicked demon Asmodeus (NRSV, Tb 3:17a).

Father, in the Book of Tobit we read how you answered the prayers both of Tobit and Sarah by sending Raphael to assist them. We firmly believe that even before we pray to you, Father, in every time and place, you send your Holy Spirit upon us through the Word, now made flesh, to share your life with us that, empowered by your life, we may be victors in every situation.

Father, may we be ever responsive to the gift of your life and thus constantly grow in unity with you and with all of our sisters and brothers.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 31: Welcome the Word at Every Moment

2005-05-31T06:00:00.000Z

Domenico Ghirlandaio : The Visitation
Musée du Louvre, Paris, c.1491

Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Gospel: Lk 1:39-56

When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb (NRSV, Lk 1:41a).

Father, you send the Word to every human being in every place at every moment. The Word brings the gift of your life and the challenge for us to accept it and grow in it in every situation.

With John the Baptist may be we welcome the Word at every moment as we are called to become one with you, Father, and to grow constantly in your divine life given to us in the Holy Spirit.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 27: Forgive As You Are Forgiven

2005-05-27T06:00:00.000Z

Rembrandt van Rijn: The Return of the Prodigal Son
The Hermitage, St. Petersburg, 1669

Friday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mk 11:11-26

“Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone; so that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses (NRSV, Mk 11:25).”

Father, at every moment, in every place, as you offer your life to every human being through the Word, you offer your forgiveness as well. It does not have to be pleaded for or paid for. It is free to all who will accept it. But in accepting your life and forgiveness we bind ourselves as well to forgive those who have sinned against us.

Help us, Father, not to reject the gift that you offer to us by refusing to pass it on to others.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May24: Love God and Do What You Will

2005-05-24T06:00:00.000Z

Anonymous Master: Saint Peter
Saint Nicholas Church, Studenica Monastery
Serbia and Montenegro, first half of 17th cent.

Tuesday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mk 10:28-31

Peter began to say to Jesus, “Look, we have left everything and followed you (NRSV, Mk 10:28).”

Father, Peter thought that he had to leave everything to follow Jesus. What you do require of us, Lord, is to make you the center and focus of everything that we are and everything that we do. To empower us to make this decision, through the Word always present to us, you give us your life in the Holy Spirit. Once we have accepted your life into our own everything that is meaningful to us is returned to us just as we need and desire it.

Father, you have chosen us, all of us. As we accept you, nothing is left behind but all is transformed so that it may be lived in you. May we ever be responsive to the invitation that you offer us through the Word in the Holy Spirit. Amen.

May 23: Choose First the Kingdom of God

2005-05-23T06:00:00.000Z

Alexander Master: Jesus and the Rich Young Man
Koninklijke Bibliotheek, The Hague, c.1430

Monday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mk 10:17-27

Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions (NRSV, Mk 10:21-22).

Father, from the preaching of Jesus we realize that your coming kingdom must be the center and focus of everything that we are and do. Not family, not the poor, certainly not material possessions, no matter how well we use them, may come between you and us.

May we ever be responsive to the grace that you always offer us through the Word and never allow any created good to come between you and us. May we always choose you, Father, and your kingdom first and then order all other goods under that first and foremost choice.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 22: God Revealing Himself to Us

2005-05-22T06:00:00.000Z

Marc Chagall: Moses Receiving the Tablets of the Law

The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

Reading I: Ex 34:4b-6, 8-9

The LORD descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name, “The LORD (Ex 34:5).”

Father, you reveal yourself to every human being at every moment in every place, speaking to us at the depth of our being, closer than we are to ourselves, through the Word, offering us life in your Holy Spirit in every situation.

Because of the sin of the world, the combined evil of all of humanity pressing in upon us, and because of our own sinfulness, we grasp only with great difficulty the reality of your presence to us and the Word that you speak to us. Moses and the Israelites experienced you in a special way at Mount Sinai but your truth is available to us all at every moment if we would only allow it to break through.

Father, may our minds be ever open to your Word and our wills ready to accept the great life to which you call all of humanity.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 21: Accept the Kingdom of God as Little Children

2005-05-21T06:00:00.000Z

Jacob Jordaens (1593-1678):
Let the Little Children Come unto Me

Saturday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mk 10:13-16

“Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it (NRSV, Mk 10:15).”

Father, help us to learn to become as little children that we may be welcomed into your kingdom. The child is totally dependent upon others for everything. To the child all is gift. We do not ask, Father, to become young again but to recognize that there is nothing that we can truly do on our own. Everything that we have, and everything that we are, is from you, given to us through the Word. All is gift.

May we accept all, Father, as little children and thus enter upon your kingdom.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 20: One Life Shared By All

2005-05-20T06:00:00.000Z

Isaac Fanous: Miracle at Cana of Galilee Wedding
St. Peter and St. Paul Coptic Orthodox Church, Santa Monica, California, 1997

Friday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time

“Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate (NRSV, Mk 10:9).”

Father, there is nothing in this world more than the intimate love that spouses have for one another that reveals to us the sharing in life and love that exists between you and your holy people. Your one life is offered to us all to be shared not only with you but also with one another. Through the Word, now made flesh in our Lord Jesus, in the Holy Spirit, we all have the opportunity to grow in you at every moment by accepting you more fully into our lives. And not only to grow in you but also in one another. One life, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, shared with all of your holy people. May we grow always in the life with you, Father, and with all of our sisters and brothers.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 19: The Word is Always Present Offering Life and Love

2005-05-19T06:00:00.000Z

Coppo di Marcovaldo (1225-74): Hell
Baptistery, Florence

Thursday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mark 9:41-50

“It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell, ‘where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched (NRSV, Mark 9:47b-48).’”

Father, over the centuries the religious imagination has attempted to visualize what it means to reject you, to choose evil rather than good. Finally nothing could be worse that the realization that no matter how much we might try to flee you that you are always there in your Word offering us forgiveness and new life. Father, you do not know anger, a human vice, but only love.

That, Father, is the worst of punishments: to reject love but yet to be pursue by it, love always present to the sinner, always offered by the Word whose very being there is a defining element of one’s humanity. The sinner may reject you, Father. In freedom he may turn to evil but he can never remove himself from your presence through the Word always offering love and forgiveness.

Father, may we never surrender to the temptation of sin and always embrace your life and love offered to us through your Word, now made flesh in our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

May 17: One Life Shared with One Another

2005-05-17T06:00:00.000Z

Nicholas Papas: Christ Blesses the Children

Tuesday of the Seventh Week of Ordinary Time

Gospel: Mk 9:30-37

“Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me (NRSV, Mk 9:37).”

Father, you are present everywhere in the world but especially with us, your sons and daughters, everyone who is a human being. Not only are you present to us but, through the Word, now made flesh in the Lord Jesus Christ, you offer us your very life. All that we must do is say “yes” to your offer and accept the gift of your life into our own.

It is one life, through the Word, that we all share, one with the other, in the Holy Spirit. When we accept one another, we are, through the Word, accepting you, Father. Help us to share your life with one another and together may we grow in that life forever..

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 15: Pentecost Sunday

2005-05-15T06:00:00.000Z

Giotto di Bondone: Pentecost
Cappella Scrovegni, Padua, 1305

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 104:1, 24, 29-30, 31, 34

When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground (NRSV, Ps 104:30).

Father, you send us your Holy Spirit not just in moments of special need, for the accomplishment of a particular mission, but always in every time and place to every person.

Your Spirit is sent through the Word, now made flesh in our Lord Jesus Christ, who challenges us, even from the womb, to accept, in the Spirit, your gift of divine life.

That challenge, which is a defining element of our humanity, is made in every situation, not only that we may accept the gift of the Holy Spirit, but that we may grow constantly in the Spirit who is your life in us.

Father, may we always accept the Holy Spirit into our lives that we too may be created and renewed in every moment.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 12: The Lord Stood Near Paul

2005-05-12T06:00:00.000Z

Pieter Coecke van Aelst: Arresting Paul in the Temple in Jerusalem Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, 1535-40

Thursday of the Seventh Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 22:30; 23:6-11

That night the Lord stood near Paul and said, “Keep up your courage! For just as you have testified for me in Jerusalem, so you must bear witness also in Rome (NRSV, Acts 23:11).”

Father, as the Word stood near Paul (actually nearer to him than he was to himself), so the Word is at every moment and in every place close to every human being, summoning us all to be faithful to the truth, spoken to us all once and for all and in every moment, faithful not only in our growing understanding of that truth and but also in the commitment to live it out in action.

Father, may we be ever responsive to the knowledge and courage given to us all in every situation.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 11: Keep Watch Over the Flock

2005-05-11T06:00:00.000Z

Claes Brouwer: St. Paul Boarding a Ship for Jerusalem;
Taking Leave of the Elders of Ephesus
Koninklijke Bibliotheek, The Hague, 1430

Wednesday of the Seventh Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 20:28-38

“Keep watch over yourselves and over all the flock, of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God that he obtained with the blood of his own Son (NRSV, Acts 20:28).”

Father, the life that you share with us, you challenge us through the Word to share with one another, not lording it over one another, but as servants one to other, ready to give of our very selves, as did Jesus.

Father, some have been set aside as elders, others as deacons and bishops, to shepherd the flock, but all are equally called to minister, opening the minds of our sisters and brothers to understand the one Word revealed to all, forgiving one another our sins, and healing our injuries and pains through love.

All this we are called to do, every one of us through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 10: Paul’s Farewell at Miletus

2005-05-10T06:00:00.000Z

Paul's Farewell Discourse at Miletus (detail)
Richmond Chapel, St. Paul's Episcopal Cathedral
Buffalo, New York, 1851

Tuesday of the Seventh Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 20:17-27

“And now, as a captive to the Spirit, I am on my way to Jerusalem (NRSV, Acts 20:22a).”

Father, Paul’s missionary efforts in preaching the gospel led him from one place to another, always on the move, eventually to Rome and his martyrdom. To be a human being is always to be on the move. To live in the Holy Spirit, given to us through your Word, now made flesh in the lord Jesus, is to be called in every situation to let go of the past, of what we have done and what we have become up to the present, in order to become something truly new. Every moment of growth in your life, Father, means becoming a new creation.

In response to your challenge, Father, given to every human being in every time and place through the Word, may we always say “yes” that every situation may bring us to new growth in the Holy Spirit which is a greater share in your divine life.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 9: Baptism in the Name of the Lord

2005-05-09T06:00:00.000Z

Jacquemart de Hesdin (?):St. Peter and St. Paul Baptizing
Les Petites heures de Jean, duc de Berry
La Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris, 14th cent.

Monday of the Seventh Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 19:1-8

Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, in Jesus.” On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus (NRSV, Acts 19:4-5).

Father, we believe that you are present to everyone at every moment and in every place, even from the womb. Through the Word who never abandons us even in our sinfulness, you offer us, in the Holy Spirit, a share in your divine life. You offer us forgiveness for our sins and growth in new life in every situation.

We rejoiced in the baptism of John which under the tangible sign of renewed passage through the Jordan we effectively celebrated the leaving of our sins in the desert and accepted the challenge to live in justice and holiness in the land.

In experiencing the resurrection of the lord Jesus, we came to understand, what you reveal to us always in him, the Word now made flesh, that it is not the land at all to which we are called but rather eternal life with you, Father. We have come to understand that you offer us that life at every moment, through the Word in the Holy Spirit, by your one act that is your being. In baptism in the name of the Lord, in your same one act, you effectively give us, always through the Word in the Spirit, that one gift of new life but under the tangible and visible sign of death-dealing and life-giving water.

We rejoice in every situation, Lord, because every moment is salvific. We rejoice in our baptism because you effectively come to us under the tangible and visible sign of water in the liturgical re-enactment for us of death and resurrection in Jesus. We rejoice as well in all of the sacraments, visible signs of your one, saving act, above all in the Sacraments of our lord Jesus Christ and of the Church and the ongoing celebration of the Eucharist.

We rejoice, Father, in everything you are and in all that you give to us and in which you call us to grow forever and ever.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 8: Waiting in Prayer on the Holy Spirit

2005-05-08T06:00:00.000Z

The Upper Room, Jerusalem

Seventh Sunday of Easter

Reading I: Acts 1:12-14

When they had entered the city, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying, Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers (NRSV, Acts 1:13-14).

Father, your holy people are liturgically gathered in the upper room with Mary, the apostles, and companions in prayer. It is the great novena of the Church praying for the coming of your Holy Spirit.

Father, may we always be responsive to the gift of your life in the Spirit offered to all peoples, in every place, at every moment, even from the womb. May we grow constantly in that life as we accept your Spirit ever more completely into our own lives.

Your Spirit empowers us to live the resurrection even here in this world. May we manifest that life in the Spirit by loving and serving one another and may the Spirit bring us to the fullness of the resurrection with you and all the saints in the world to come.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 7: Growth in Understanding of the Word

2005-05-07T06:00:00.000Z

Sir Edward Poynter: I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.
Tate Gallery, London, 1872

Saturday of the Sixth Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 18:23-28

Apollos had been instructed in the Way of the Lord; and he spoke with burning enthusiasm and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John (Acts 18:25).

Father, Apollos began preaching the good news of the gospel even before he had understood the full significance of baptism. The same is true for all of us: our enthusiasm often outstrips our comprehension.

Your Word, now made flesh in our Lord Jesus, is spoken to all of us at the depth of our being at every moment in every place but it is a Word that does not always find even adequate expression in our conscious mind. Help us, Father, through your Word, ever present to us, to grow in understanding that we may more truly live the life to which you call all people.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 6: I Am With You

2005-05-06T06:00:00.000Z

Joseph Mallord William Turner: Corinth from the Acropolis
The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, 1831-32

Friday of the Sixth Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 18:9-18

One night the Lord said to Paul in a vision, “Do not be afraid, but speak and do not be silent; for I am with you, and no one will lay a hand on you to harm you, for there are many in this city [Corinth] who are my people (NRSV, Acts 18:9-10).”

Father, during his passion Jesus underwent excruciating torture and then was put to a most ignominious death, but in it all he was never the victim but always the victor. Jesus was resurrected even as he passed through death.

As you are with Jesus in your life and love that you share with him, so, Father, as long as we are willing to accept you, you are also with us, sharing your life and your love also with us. Because of that life, we too can live resurrected lives even in this world. Because of that life, we too need never be victim but can always be victor. Nothing can really harm us, not even death, because you are with us.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 5: The Ascension

2005-05-05T06:00:00.000Z

Anonymous Norman (Fécamp ?) Master: The Ascension
Koninklijke Bibliotheek, The Hague, 1180.

Solemnity of the Ascension

Reading I: Acts 1:1-11

The two men in white robes said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward heaven (NRSV, Acts 11:10a)?”

In the celebration of the mystery of the Ascension of our Lord, we recognize, Father, that, although the Word now made flesh is seated definitively at your right hand, that does not mean that he has left us. The Word remains as always present to everyone of us, closer than we are to ourselves, always challenging us to accept and to grow in your divine life. The Word never leaves us even in our worst sinfulness. We may turn away from you, Father, and reject the gift of your life in the Holy Spirit but the Word remains ever present inviting to forgiveness and new life. The presence of the Word is a defining element of human existence.

Father, we should not dally by staring of into the skies, wondering where the Lord has gone or dreaming about his return. He comes, as he has always come, in every moment, now one of us, to invite us to share in your life, Father, to accept forgiveness for sin and to grow in your life. As we say “yes” to his challenge, may we lead lives with him that are truly resurrected.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 4: Called to be Living Witnesses

2005-05-04T06:00:00.001Z

Sir James Thornhill: Paul Preaching in the Areopagus
Royal Academy of Arts, London, 1729-31

Wednesday of the Sixth Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 17:15, 22-18:1

“When they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some scoffed; but others said, ‘We will hear you again about this (NRSV, Act 17:32).”

Father, when Paul arrived in Athens, he went directly to the Areopagus, and, speaking to the people gathered there, began to make a reasoned appeal about the good news and of Jesus’ resurrection. Those listening would have none of it. Paul made only a few converts. Yet, Father, when Barnabas went to Antioch, because he presented himself, not bubbling over with arguments, but as a man of the Holy Spirit and of faith, a large number came to believe.

Father, help us to bear witness to you, not so much by our logic which appeals to reason, as by our lives that testify to the transformation that occurs by accepting your life into our own. It is thus that we can truly bear witness to you and share in the one mediation of the Word always present to all of our sisters and brothers.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen

May 3: Tradition and New Understanding

2005-05-03T06:00:00.000Z

El Greco: The Apostle Saint James the Less
Museo del Greco, Toledo, 1606

Feast of Saints Philip and James, apostles

Reading I: 1 Cor 15:1-8

For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures (NRSV, 1 Cor 15:3-4).

Father, you speak to every human being at the depth of our being through your Word spoken once and for all in every moment. This one revelation is only understood gradually because of our situation as created beings located in time and space and because of the distractions introduced by the sin of the world and our own personal sinfulness. In Jesus Christ, the Word now made flesh, all has become clearer. We realize that our destiny is not the land as we had previously concluded but rather resurrection and new life with you, a life that begins even here in this world.

Father, with Paul may we be faithful to the tradition that we have received while at the same time may we always be open to further new understanding of the one revelation that you make in every situation to every human being through the Word always present to us.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 2: All Baptized into One Body

2005-05-02T06:00:00.000Z

David M. Mastrobete: St. Lydia

Memorial of Saint Athanasius, bishop and doctor of the Church

Reading I: Acts 16:11-15

When Lydia and her household were baptized, she urged us, saying, ‘If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my home.’ And she prevailed upon us (NRSV, Acts 16:15).

Father, According to Matthew, the first apostles were the holy women who arrived at the tomb to anoint the body of our Lord. He met them there and commissioned them to bring the good news of his resurrection to the others.

Father, holy women have served your Church in many ways even being admitted to the rank of teacher at the highest level.

Lydia welcomed Paul into her home and offered him hospitality.

Father, has not the time arrived, is indeed long overdue, when women should be admitted to serve at every level of life in the Church, “for in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body--Jews or Greeks, slaves or free--and we were all made to drink of one Spirit (NRSV, 1 Cor 12:13)?”

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May 1: Sent to be Instruments of Grace

2005-05-01T06:00:00.000Z

Anonymous Russian Master: The Apostles Peter
and John the Theologian
(detail from the Appearance of the Mother of God
to Venerable Sergius of Radonezh), late 18th cent.

Sixth Sunday of Easter

Reading I: Acts 8:5-8, 14-17

Then Peter and John laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:17).

As with the people of Samaria, we rejoice for the Philips in our lives who bring to the surface the good news of salvation perhaps long hidden in the depths of our consciousness and who baptize us; and for the Peters and Johns who make us aware of the Holy Spirit working in us.

Father, your truth is spoken to us once and for all in every moment by your Word dwelling within us even from the womb, the same Word who challenges us in every situation to accept your divine life in the Holy Spirit. Because of the limitations of our created being, hemmed in as it is by space and time, and weighed down by the sin or the world and our own sinfulness, we often find it so difficult to grasp our true relationship with you.

As we are grateful for those, our sisters and brothers, and most significantly our Lord Jesus Christ, the Word now made flesh, who awaken in us an awareness of who we really are and what we are called to be, may we also, Father, join with them in sensitizing others around us so that they too may see clearly and recognize their true nature and calling.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 30: Called Forth to Grow and to Serve

2005-04-30T06:00:00.000Z

Modern Mosaic: Vision Telling Paul to Come Over to Macedonia
Veroia (ancient Berea), Greece

Saturday of the Fifth Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 16:1-10

During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us (NRSV, Act 14:9).”

Father, in every situation in which we as human beings find ourselves, if we are sensitive to your one Word spoken to us, we realize that you are calling us forth, out of the limitations of the present moment, to grow in your life.

Abraham sensed himself called to leave his home in Mesopotamia in search of you. The Israelites were called out of slavery in Egypt. Paul was called forth continually to preach your gospel to all peoples.

Father, make us sensitive to the inevitable inadequacy of our present situation that we may be always ready to respond to your call to move forward from where we are, to let go of our past, indeed our sins and our selfishness, to grow in your life and to give ourselves ever more fully to the service of our sisters and brothers.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 29: One Word Spoken to All

2005-04-29T06:00:00.000Z

Giovanni di Paolo (1403-83): St. Catherine of Siena
Fogg Art Museum, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Memorial of Saint Catherine of Siena, virgin and doctor of the Church

Gospel: Jn 15:12-17

“I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father (NRSV, Jn 15:15b).”

Father, today we remember St. Catherine of Siena, a simple, uneducated woman, a lay Dominican, who dazzled the Catholic world with her understanding of divine truth and her writings.

Father, the answer is simple.

Through the Word living within each human being, the very Word now made flesh in our Lord Jesus Christ, your truth is spoken to us once and for all in every moment. We are hindered from a full understanding of that truth by the temporal and spatial situation in which we find ourselves, by the amassed sin of the world which oppresses and distracts us, and by our own personal sinfulness.

St. Catherine is one of the great and holy people, like the prophets, who broke through the limitations which hold us down and came to a fuller grasp of the one Word spoken to us all in every time and place.

You speak your one Word to every one of us. May we be open to that word as was St. Catherine, and grow in it always as we also grow in the life that you share with us.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 28: Everyone Must Be Heard

2005-04-28T06:00:00.000Z

Michael Wohlgemuth and Wilhelm Pleydenwurff: Jerusalem
The Nuremberg Chronicles, 1493

Thursday of the Fifth Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 15:7-21

The whole assembly [gathered in Jerusalem] kept silence, and listened to Barnabas and Paul as they told of all the signs and wonders that God had done through them among the Gentiles (NRSV, Acts 15:12).

Father, in every situation there is the possibility of growth in understanding of the same one Word spoken to us all at every moment and every place. It is to the Word living within us to whom we must listen most carefully. Because of our very nature as created beings, located in space and time, however, it is impossible for us to grasp all at once the truth, final and absolute, that is revealed to us. We are also hindered in this task by the sin of the world which presses down heavily upon us and of course by our own personal sinfulness.

Father you offer your life to all humanity and everyone hears your word. Help us to be open to the understanding of others, those within your church, especially those in positions of leadership, but also others who have found you in different ways and even those of good will who seem to deny your very existence. All have their contribution to make and all must be heard.

Guide us, Father, through the Word in the Holy Spirit to continue to grow in our understanding of who you are and the life that you challenge us to lead. Yes, Father, may we seek understanding rather than final answers which are never really possible within history. May our conclusions always be tentative and subject to revision as we grow in you who are our final goal and who alone are absolute truth.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 27: The Vine and the Branches

2005-04-27T06:00:00.000Z

The Vine and Branches
Beit Jala Latin Seminary, Jerusalem

Memorial of Saint Asicus, bishop

Gospel: Jn 15:1-8

“I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit (NRSV, Jn 15:5a).”

Father, there is only one life that you offer to share with all humanity. When we say “yes” in faith to the challenge of the Word, a “yes” always uttered in the power of the Holy Spirit, we become partakers of that one divine life. All become one with you, Father, through the Word, now made flesh in our Lord Jesus Christ.

Without a share in your life, Father, there is not one good thing that we can do. Love has its foundation in grace. With you, Father, all things are possible to us.

Christ is the vine and we are the branches. Through him may your life, Father, flow through us, and in and out among us, who are all one in you.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen

Apr 26: Aways Free in Every Situation

2005-04-26T06:00:00.000Z

Gustave Doré: Lucifer in Hell
Illustration for The Divine Comedy, 1861-68

Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Easter

Gospel: Jn 14:27-31a

“The ruler of this world has no power over me (NRSV, Jn 14:30b).”

Father, even from the womb, created for physical life on this earth and already given a share in your divine life, we are oppressed by the evil forces that fill the world. The sum total of all of the evil ever committed is our inheritance along with the life and power that you always offer us in the Holy Spirit through your Word.

We are at once weakened by the influence of sin and strengthened by your grace.

But, created in your image, we are endowed with free will in every situation in which we may find ourselves. We are always free to say “no” to sin and “yes” to you, Father, thanks to the gift always available to us in the Holy Spirit.

With Jesus we too can rightly say, “The rule of this world has no power over me.”

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 25: Called to Work Signs and Wonders

2005-04-25T06:00:00.000Z

Andrea Mantegna: St. Mark the Evangelist
Das Städel, Frankfort am Main, c.1450

Feast of St. Mark, evangelist

Gospel: Mk 16:15-20

And they went out and proclaimed the good news everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that accompanied it (NRSV, Mk 16:20).

Father, when Barnabas traveled to Antioch, we read that a large number came to believe because Barnabas was a good man filled with the Holy Spirit and faith. When we accept your gift of life, Father, always offered us through the Word dwelling within us, we are transformed. Your life fills us with great power that cannot help but radiate out from us to others.

Your Word is the only mediator, Father, between you and us but the life and power that we receive from you through him can influence others to say “yes” to you through the Word as we have done.

If there is only one mediator, Father, you enable us through him to share in that mediation.

As the Lord Jesus worked signs and wonder during his life on earth, so we too are called, and indeed empowered, to work signs and wonders among one another.

May we ever be responsive to our calling that like Jesus we too may effectively proclaim the coming of the kingdom to our sisters and brothers.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 24: The Stone Rejected

2005-04-24T06:00:00.000Z

Brother Nicholas: The Stone Rejected Has Been Made
into the Head of the Corner
Speculum Humanae Salvationis
Koninklijke Bibliotheek, The Hague, c.1450

Fifth Sunday of Easter

Reading II: 1 Pt 2:4-9

‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the very head of the corner (NRSV, 1 Pt 2:7b).’

Father, the author of 1 Peter writes of Jesus as a stone, first rejected, then used as the cornerstone, not just any kind of stone, but rather a living stone which communicates life to all of the others stones of the building so that the whole building becomes alive.

Father, the first Christians were not yet much familiar with the dome which the Romans had only just invented. A dome is built upon scaffolding which holds all of the stones in place. Then finally a keystone is dropped into the open space in the apex of the dome. The keystone exerts pressure on the stones around it and they in turn on those around them and so on until finally all is held in place by the living forces unleashed by the keystone and the scaffolding, no longer needed, can be removed. The dome becomes alive through the forces distributed from the keystone.

Father, the first of your churches built with a dome is the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. There the forces exerted by the dome press down upon the apexes of four arches upon which it rests and the pendentives uniting the arches and upon which the dome also rests. The forces continue right to the ground. The whole building becomes alive by the forces coming from the keystone.

Father, Christ, the Word made flesh, is the living cornerstone, yes, even the keystone, of the Church and indeed of the whole human family. It is through him that your life comes to all who will accept it and grow in it. May every one of us be ever responsive to this life-giving force.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 23: The Father Is Ever Present Through The Word

2005-04-23T06:00:00.000Z

Albrecht Dürer Saint Philip the Apostle
Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence, 1516

Saturday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Gospel: Jn 14:7-14

Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father (NRSV, Jn 14:8-9a).”

Father, we find you in a number of ways.

We can walk in your footprints, examining what you do in creation, learning about the craftsman from the work he has done.

Mostly, we find you by looking inward, deep within ourselves where we always find your Word challenging us to grow in the Holy Spirit in whom we share your very life. Even when we reject you in sin, the Word remains present to us offering us your forgiveness and the renewed gift of your Holy Spirit.

And so we find you, Father, by looking outward at the world you have created or inwards to the Word through whom you create everything that is.

If the Word always dwells within all of us, Father, we also find your Word in a way that is tangible and visible, for the Word has been made flesh in our Lord Jesus. Through Jesus, Father, we meet you in a human body, here among us, sharing our joys and sorrows and even passing through death with us.

And we do not forget, Father, that we also meet you in a tangible and visible way in your Church in the sacred actions you perform in our midst, the actions which we know as sacraments.

Father, there is no situation possible in which you are not present to us through your Word. May we ever be responsive to the gift of your life which you always offer to us.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 22: Many Dwelling Places

2005-04-22T06:00:00.000Z

Irving Amen (b. 1918): In My Father's House are Many Mansions
Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.

Friday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Gospel: Jn 14:1-6

“In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places (NRSV, Jn 14:2a).”

Father, the life that is yours is infinite. You share it with everyone who is ready to accept it. In truth, it is your life, always, in every situation, even from our mother’s womb, offered to us by your Word, now made flesh, that constitutes us as human beings. It is your life, Father, freely offered in the Holy Spirit to all of us that sets us aside from the rest of creation. There is no end, Father, to the number whom you embrace and with whom you share your very being.

Father, in offering us your life, you speak your one Word to everyone called to be a human being, once and for all, in ever time and place. Because of the sin of the world, our own personal sin, and the limitations of created time and space, the one Word is understood differently in different situations. Hopefully all of us, as a human family, and as individuals, grow in that understanding as we are challenged in every moment to grow, Father, in your life.

As each of us understands your truth from a different and inevitably limited perspective, Father, may we all share with one another and learn from one another as, hopefully, we all grow together in your life.

Keep us from being discouraged, Father, by the limitations that our humanity places upon us because it is that very humanity that launches us on the way towards you, our only true future, and enables us, through your gift, to share in that future even in this world.

Father, we believe that the fullness of your revelation is made manifest in the Word made flesh in Jesus Christ. As we move forward, emerging from darkness in light, may he always be for us the way, the truth and the life.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 21: Called to Bring Divine Life to One Another

2005-04-21T06:00:00.000Z

Duccio di Buoninsegna: The Washing of Feet
Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, Siena, 1308-11

Thursday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Gospel: Jn 13:16-20

Jesus said to his disciples: “Very truly, I tell you, whoever receives one whom I send receives me; and whoever receives me receives him who sent me (NRSV, Jn 13:20).”

Father, Jesus called each of his disciples but then he also sent them. He washed their feet the night before he died; then he challenged them to wash one another’s feet.

Father, you have sent your Son, the Word, now made flesh, into the lives of every one of us. He calls us into existence even in the womb and challenges us at every moment to grow in your divine life. But then, as he calls us, your Word also sends us to share the life that you give us with all of our sisters and brothers. It is one divine life that you share with us through the Word and which we are then challenged to share one with the other.

Father, you send your Word to all of us. Through him you also send us to minister to our sisters and brothers. May we ever been responsive to your gift of divine life by manifesting you to one another.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 20: Ever Present Through the Word

2005-04-20T06:00:00.000Z

Icon of Sofronov: Christ Pantocrator
Monastère de Chevetogne, Belgium

Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Gospel: Jn 12:44-50

Then Jesus cried aloud: “Whoever believes in me believes not in me but in him who sent me. And whoever sees me sees him who sent me (NRSV, Jn 12:44-45).”

Father, even though you are creator and Lord of all, you are not a God who is distant from your people. Through your Word, always living with us, you are intimately present to all of us, sharing your life with us, and even if we reject you by sin and turn away from you, you are still there ever offering us, through the Word, your forgiveness and the opportunity of once again partaking of your life.

Not only are you present at the depth of our being through your Word always spoken, once and for all, to us; not only do you offer us a share in your divine life in every situation; Father, in your Word, now the Lord Jesus Christ, you have become one of us, taking upon yourself a human body and human nature, to share with us everything that we are and do, our joys and our pains, even to pass through death with us.

Father, we are grateful for your great gift to us. May we always be responsive to the challenge of your Word, and, saying “yes” to you through him, always to grow in your divine life.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 19: Bringing Faith to Others

2005-04-19T06:00:00.000Z

Jean le Tavernier: St. Barnabas
Koninklijke Bibliotheek, The Hague, 1450-60

Tuesday of the Fourth week of Weater

Reading I: Acts 11:19-26

For Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were brought to the Lord (NRSV, Acts 11:24).

Father, your life is mediated to us through the Word who dwells within every human being. All of us are called to participate in that mediation by sharing our lives with our sisters and brothers.

Barnabas went to Antioch proclaiming the good news of Jesus’ resurrection and many were moved openly to accept the Lord because they saw in Barnabas a man who was himself full of the Holy Spirit and of faith.

May we lead lives responsive to the gift of the Holy Spirit offered through the Word to all of us so that others will see your good works, Father, before their very eyes and thus come openly to proclaim their faith in you.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 18: Salvation Open to All

2005-04-18T06:00:00.000Z

Christoph Weigel: Peter's Vision
Biblia ectypa: Bildnussen auss Heiliger Schrifft Alt und Neuen Testaments, 1695

Saint Laserian, bishop

Reading I: Acts 11:1-18

“If then God gave them the same gift that he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could hinder God (NRSV, Acts 11:17)?”

Father, you speak your one Word to everyone in every time and place but, because of the confusion that comes from the sin of the world and our own personal sinfulness, we come consciously to understand and to express that one Word only gradually.

In the resurrection of our Lord Jesus, the Word now made flesh, we understood clearly for the first time, what had been given to us from the beginning, that our destiny as your people is not the land, as had been supposed from Mt. Sinai, but eternal life with you, a life that you share with us even now in this world, and have shared with us from the beginning, through your Word who dwells within us.

Peter was the first in the Church to grasp how much of our religious practice comes from ourselves, Father, rather than from you. Peter was the first to understand as well, what Jesus had taught, that your people are a people of faith and not of blood descent. All who believe are daughters and sons of Abraham.

Father, may we always keep our minds open to understand more and more the one Word that you have always spoken to us and continue to speak at every moment.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 17: The Word Now Made Flesh Is The Good Shepherd

2005-04-17T06:00:00.000Z

Anonymous Master: Christ as the Good Shepherd
Musei Vaticani, Rome, c. 225 BCE

Fourth Sunday of Easter

Gospel: Jn 10:1-10

“I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture (NRSV, Jn 10:9).”

Father, to be a human being is to be related to one another, that is, to share life with one another. One is never truly a human being alone. We are necessarily dependent upon one another but often we fail each other. Even a mother has been known to abandon her children.

There is one, however, who never fails us. It is the Word now made flesh in our Lord Jesus Christ. The Word is with us from the beginning. It is through the Word that every thing that is has been made. It is through the Word that each one of us who is human has been called into existence, Father, and indeed called to share your divine life.

The Word is there from the first moment of our life as human beings. At a certain moment in our mother’s womb he offers us that life which is also a share in your divine life. Without benefit of language or logic, in the Holy Spirit, we are empowered to say “yes,” and to begin our journey to you, Father, as a human being.

From that moment on, the Word never leaves us. He is always there challenging us to grow in life. Even if we turn away in sin and say “no,” he remains ever present to us, calling us to accept forgiveness and new life, Father, from you. The presence of the Word to us at every moment is a defining element of our humanity.

The mother may abandon her children but the Word remains ever with us so that through him, Father, we may always pass to a new and greater share in your divine life.

The Word now made flesh in the Lord Jesus is truly the good shepherd. May we ourselves extend his care to all of our sisters and brothers.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 16: The Summons to Live Resurrected Lives

2005-04-16T06:00:00.000Z

Masolino da Panicale: The Raising of Tabitha (detail)
Cappella Brancacci, Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence, 1424-25

Saturday of the Third Week of easter

Reading I: Acts 9:31-42

Peter put all of them outside, and then he knelt down and prayed. He turned to the body and said, “Tabitha, get up.” Then she opened her eyes, and seeing Peter, she sat up. He gave her his hand and helped her up (NRSV, Acts 9:40-41a).

Father, because of the sin of the world and our own personal selfishness and sin, death often seems like the undoing of human life. Father, beginning in the womb, when, through the Word, you offered us life, even a share in your own divine life in the Spirit, you called us to constant growth without end. Human life is an everlasting journey which does not end in death but only passes through death to further, perpetual growth in you.

The power that filled Jesus enabling him to pass through death in glory has also been offered to every one of us. Father, the raising of Lazarus by Jesus, the raising of Tabitha by Peter, are merely signs of the power and glory also available to us to share in the resurrection. In saying “yes” to your ever-offered gift of divine life may we even begin, now, in this world, to live resurrected lives.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 15: Apostle to the Gentiles

2005-04-15T01:00:00.000Z

Caravaggio: The Conversion of St. Paul
Santa Maria del Popolo, Rome, 1600-01

Friday of the Third Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 9:1-20

But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen to bring my name before Gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel (NRSV, Acts 9:15).”

Father, an apostle is one who has immediately experienced the risen Lord Jesus and has been sent to announce the good news to the others. Mary Magdalene may have been the first apostle; Paul claims that he is the last.

Paul is important for us, Father, because he is the only apostle who has himself written about resurrection. Indeed, he is the first to write of all of those who have contributed to Christian scripture.

For Paul, and this is so important for us, Father, the resurrection is not resurrection merely of the spiritual principal, or soul. Jesus rose in his entirety, that is, also in the body. But, as Paul experienced it, the body was transformed into something beyond the physical, no longer subject to earthly forces. Jesus did not resurrect back into this earthly life but resurrected into the world to come, a destiny to which we are all called.

Father, Paul encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus in a way that changed his whole life. All of us, Father, in every time and place, experience the Word now made flesh at the depth of our being, closer than we are to ourselves, at every moment of our lives. Make us every responsive to this one Word spoken to all of humanity that we too may experience conversion in our lives, not merely on one particular occasion, but in every moment that we live, here in this world and into the next.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 14: The Challenge to Guide One Another

2005-04-14T06:00:00.000Z

Rembrandt van Rijn: Baptism of the Eunuch
Museum Catherijneconvent, Utrecht, 1626

Thursday of the Third Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 8:26-40

“How can I, unless someone guides me (NRSV, Acts 8:31a)?”

Father, how gracious you are to all of us in every situation. At each moment, you reveal yourself to us through your one spoken Word, uttered to all in every place and time. You have as well given us your written Word passed down to us through the centuries. Your truth is contained in the wisdom of the ages shared by the whole human family. If this were not enough, in the fullness of time, the Word has become flesh in our Lord Jesus Christ, indeed truly the way, the truth and the life, sent to teach, to comfort, to heal and even to die with us.

Father, our situation in life and history, the heavy burden of the sin of the world, and our own personal selfishness and sin, make it difficult fully to grasp your Word in every situation even though every moment, without fail, is always saving.

Your truth, Father, spoken to us all in the depth of our being through the Word, abounds throughout creation in ways we often least expect. Help every one of us, Lord, to a deeper understanding of who you are and what you challenge us to become. Help us also to encourage one another so that we may each one benefit from the truth revealed to all but only understood in part by any one of us. May each of us, in ways not always yet determined, share in mediating your Word to one another.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 13: I Am the Bread of Life

2005-04-13T06:00:00.000Z

Matthias Grünewald:
The Resurrection of Christ from The Isenheimer Altarpiece (detail)
Musée d'Unterlinden, Colmar, 1510-15

Wednesday of the Third Week of Easter

Gospel: Jn 6:35-40

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty (NRSV, Jn 6:35).”

Father, we are grateful for the gift of the Eucharist in which we celebrate the continuing presence in our lives of the Word made flesh under the tangible and visible signs of bread and wine.

Your act that is the Eucharist is the same act in which the Word challenges every human being in every place, and of every time, to accept and grow in your life, acceptance which is faith in you through the Word, faith that is often anonymous and implicit.

Father, in every moment, not only when we celebrate the Eucharist, may we recognize your presence in our lives through the Word made flesh, and say “yes” to the challenge with which he confronts us, for he is truly the bread of life.

Alleluia. Amen.

Apr 12: Forgiveness Offered to All

2005-04-12T06:00:00.000Z

Bernardo Daddi: The Martyrdom of St. Stephen (detail)
Santa Croce, Florence, 1324

Tuesday of the Third Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 7:51–8:1a

“Lord, do not hold this sin against them (NRSV, Acts 7:60a).”

In the moment of his approaching death, Stephen called out to you, Father, begging forgiveness for those who were killing him. In Luke’s gospel, Jesus himself, begged for forgiveness for those putting him to death.

Father, I truly believe that you offer forgiveness to all of us for our sins, through the Word, even before we ask for it. All that is needed is that we turn away from the evil that we have done and once again freely accept your life into our own, even as we did in the power of the Spirit that first moment of our existence in our mother’s womb.

Father, as you offer us forgiveness and we accept it forgiving ourselves for what we have done, may we also, as Stephen did, turn to those who sin against us and pass on to them the forgiveness that we ourselves have received. To be forgiven is also to forgive in turn.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 11: Stephen had the Face of an Angel

2005-04-11T06:00:00.000Z

Paolo Uccello: The disputation of St. Stephen
Duomo, Prato, 1435

Memorial of Saint Stanislaus, bishop and martyr

Reading I: Acts 6:8-15

And all who sat in the council looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel (NRSV, Acts 6:15).

Father, divine power transfigured Jesus even in apparent ignominy and defeat. In Mark’s gospel, seeing the manner in which Jesus was dying, the pagan centurion at the foot of the cross came to believe: “Truly this man was God’s Son!” In John’s gospel, the last to be written, the power that came from Jesus is such that he is seen as resurrected already throughout his entire public ministry.

Stephen, one of the seven, ordained to “serve,” the first martyr for faith in Christ, was so full of grace and power that at his trial before the Sanhedrin his face shone like an angel.

Father, help me to respond in such a way to the life which you always offer to me through the Word that I too may be changed, that others may come to believe your Word encouraged by everything that I say and indeed everything that I am.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 10: Food for the Journey Through Life

2005-04-10T06:00:00.000Z

Pontormo: The Meal in Emmaus
Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence, 1530

Third Sunday of Easter

Gospel: Lk 24:13-35

When Jesus was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us (NRSV, Lk 24:30-32)?”

Father, every Sunday, as we celebrate the Eucharist with you, we are like the disciples on the way to Emmaus. As we listen to the Word proclaimed, it is Jesus himself, the Word made flesh, who unlocks for us a fuller meaning of the Scripture. As we break Bread together, we are those same disciples, gather around the table in the inn, with our eyes on the Lord. In the Bread and the Cup, Jesus gives us his very life to share, the same life that is offered to everyone at every moment at the depth of our being, but now shared with us in a way that is tangible and visible.

Father, encountering Jesus as he taught them concerning Holy Writ and shared himself with them in the blessing of Bread, the disciples on the way to Emmaus came to a deeper understanding of who Jesus is and a fuller meaning of the journey that is human life. Help us, Father, in the celebration of the Eucharist and indeed at every moment to grow in that same understanding that guides us on our continuing journey to you.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 9: The Call to Service of Others

2005-04-09T06:00:00.000Z

Giovanni Battista Piazzetta:
St. Stephen, One of the Seven, Proto-martyr
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., late 1730s

Saturday of the Second Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 6:1-7

And the twelve called together the whole community of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables. Therefore, friends, select from among yourselves seven men of good standing, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this task, while we, for our part, will devote ourselves to prayer and to serving the word (NRSV, Acts 6:2-4).”

Father, in the course of the journey towards you who are our only true future, it is often the case that we unfortunately ignore the interests and well-being of some of our sisters and brothers journeying along with us. In the apostolic Church that was the case in Jerusalem with Christians of Hellenic origin. To address their needs Seven were appointed and ordained to serve them, those we often recognize today as the first deacons.

Father, we stand ready to accept further growth in your life through the Word always present to us, may we be ever conscious of those close to us and faraway that we may be always ready to share with them your life and whatever else they may need and encourage them on our common journey. Keep us conscious, Father, that every human being is loved by you and called to share in your life.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 8: Openness to Growth in the Truth

2005-04-08T06:00:00.000Z

Castillan-Moresque Haggadah: Rabbi Gamaliel and His Students
British Library, London, c.1300

Friday of the Second Week of Easter

Reading I: Acts 5:34-42

Then Gamaliel said to the members of the Sanhedrin, “Fellow Israelites, consider carefully what you propose to do to these men. . . because if this plan or this undertaking is of human origin, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them—in that case you may even be found fighting against God (NRSV, Acts 5:34,38b-39a)!”

Father, may we be attentive to the words of Gamaliel who sensed deep within him, although not clearly, the Word spoken to him. Often we, like the members of the Sanhedrin, are so certain that we understand what has been revealed, only to be enlightened later by one more sensitive than ourselves. Even in high places within the Church there has been found need to apologize for conclusions hastily reached and imposed upon others.

Father, keep us open to the movement of your Holy Spirit in our midst that we may be ever more and more responsive to the one Word that is spoken to all in the depth of our being. May me always be ready to admit error in judgment and then to grow in understanding of your truth.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Apr 7: Whoever Believes in the Son has Eternal Life

2005-04-07T06:00:00.000Z

Metropolitan John the Icon-Painter: Christ the Savior and Lifegiver
Museum of Macedonia, Skopje, 1384

Memorial of Saint John Baptist de la Salle

Gospel: Jn 3:31-36

Jesus said to Nicodemus, “The Father loves the Son and has placed all things in his hands. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life (NRSV, Jn 3:35-36b).”

Father, your love for the Son and your Son’s love for you is the Holy Spirit. Everything that you do in the one act that is your being is done through the Son, your Word. You give us a share in your divine life through the Word who is with us, and remains with us always, from the womb. It is the Word who challenges us to believe, to accept your life. This challenge, made at every moment, in every place, to everyone, at the depth of one’s being, is made manifest and visible, in the same one act that is your being, in the Word made flesh, your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. It is through acceptance of the Word that we receive eternal life.

Father, may all of us, everywhere, called also with the Christ to be your daughters and sons, say “yes” to the Word present to us that we may all share in your life through him, the Savior and Lifegiver, and grow in that life at every moment.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.