A reflection for the Solemnity of the Ascension, year B. The readings are Acts 1:1-11; Psalm 47; Ephesians 1:17-23 and Mark 16:15-20.
When I was 4 years old my grandfather died. The whole experience was kept fairly hidden from me – except I was told that he was going to Heaven. I remember that even though I was not taken to the funeral Mass, (for some reason) I was outside the Church, in the parking lot, just after the funeral was over and I kept looking up at the sky. I wanted to see if I could see the coffin flying off to heaven – with wings! I must’ve been listening to the song, “Spirit in the Sky“: “♪♪ going on up to the Spirit in the sky…” Hey, it was the 70’s!
I guess someone asked what I was doing and then explained that this is not how people get to Heaven. It’s funny the way kids think about things. I was looking up to the sky because I wanted to see someone awesome; something amazing.
And I think that’s a bit of what’s happening to the disciples in the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles.
Read more…A reflection for the 3rd Sunday, Easter, year B. The readings are Acts 3:13-15, 17-19; Psalm 4; 1 John 2:1-5a; and Luke 24:35-48.
Jesus is alive!
That’s all I want to say today, but It’s hard to read or listen to today’s readings and not realize that there is one word that is found in all of them: “sins”. Peter exhorts the crowds to “repent and be converted that your sins will be wiped away.” John writes in his letter that Jesus “is the expiation for our sins and the sins of the whole world” and in the Gospel Jesus tells the apostles that “repentance and the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all the nations.” I don’t like to talk about sin; I don’t like to think of myself a sinner or bout my sinfulness. But if you’re like me, and you avoid thinking about your sins and sinfulness you’re missing out on something greater. And that’s what I think is one of the messages for us today.
Six years ago, on the third Sunday of Easter I told you this story:
Read more…There was once an explorer who, after many years in the Amazon, returned home to England, where he proceeded to share with everyone he met about his wonderful adventures. But he really struggled with really sharing the reality of the Amazon. He could draw pictures and maps, he could write stories and descriptions but, how could he describe the smells of the tropical flowers and fruits that he had discovered. How could he describe the sounds of the birds and the animals at sun down? So he did what was natural: he shared as much and encouraged people to go to the Amazon themselves. He gave them clear descriptions as to how to get there and how to prepare for such a trip. He told them how to avoid dangers and gave them all the information they need. His adventures were well received. In fact, an organization was founded and a museum was opened so people could read his writings and look at his pictures and maps. Everyone was very excited to learn about the Amazon, but no one went. Years later, the museum still stands and many have studied the writings and descriptions of his journey. There are many experts on his journey – many people who now know about the Amazon because of him – but no one really knows the Amazon, because no one ever went after he did. [It’s funny because when I’ve told this story to kids they don’t even know what they Amazon is – they just think about the Amazon that’s delivering their package next Wednesday!] So, it’s possible to know about the Amazon, but if you want to really know the Amazon, you have to go there.
A reflection for the 2nd Sunday in Lent, Year B. The readings are Genesis 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18; Psalm 116; Romans 8:31b-34 and Mark 9:2-10.
Transfiguration by Feofan Grek from Spaso-Preobrazhensky Cathedral in Pereslavl-Zalessky (15th c, Tretyakov gallery) Created: early-15th century.
“Rabbi, it is good for us to be here!” (Mark 9:5)
It is so good that we are here at Church. So many have not been able to be here and starting tomorrow, where we live, we will not be here again for a few more weeks. And so, it is so good that we are able to be here. But I can’t help but think that a year ago, maybe we would not have felt the same way. In fact, I also preached a year ago – second Sunday in Lent, Gospel about the Transfiguration; March 8, 2020. That was the last Sunday we had Mass before that first lockdown. Remember going into “self isolation” that first time?
After the year we’ve had, “it’s good that we are here” has a completely different meaning.
And that’s so often how it goes. We get used to things. We take things for granted. When things are good and we have what we need, we don’t feel we have to work at it. We have Mass. We’ve always had Mass. But I guess we never really thought about what that means, until we don’t have Mass anymore.
It may be a bit of a stretch, but I kind of think that it was the same for the apostles. They knew Jesus. They had been with Jesus about three years. I don’t know what they thought about him – they’d seen the miracles and heard his preaching; they’d seen the crowds. But what did they really think of Jesus? Peter had just told Jesus that He was the Christ, the Son of the Living God. That’s exactly what happens right before this story, in the previous chapter (Mark 8:29). But I am not sure they knew what that meant. They definitely did not understand the cross, nor did they understand the Resurrection. How could they? And in order to help them understand and to help them prepare for what was to come, Jesus takes Peter, James and John up the mountain and he gives them a little glimpse of what it’s going to be after the Resurrection; He gives them a little taste of what it will be in Heaven. But they still don’t understand. (At least they thought that it was good to be there.) But clearly they didn’t think of Jesus as God or as divine – because when they saw him transfigured, Scripture tells us that they were terrified.
A reflection for the 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B. The readings are Jonah 3:1-5, 10; Psalm 25; 1 Corinthians 7:29-31 and Mark 1:14-20.
Image by Joachim Nusch from Pixabay
The readings today make me think of the song by the group R.E.M: “It’s the end of the word as we know it…” ♪
Except that they maybe don’t make you feel fine at all.
Several hundred years before Christ, people were telling stories about Jonah and how God was going to destroy Nineveh. Then John the Baptist appeared on the scene telling people to “Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is near” (Matthew 3:1-2). Then Jesus came and said, “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand” (Mark 1:15). About 30 years later St. Paul writes to the Corinthians, “The world as we know it is passing away” (1 Corinthians 7:31).
3000 years before that, the Mayans created a calendar that ended 5,125 years later. That was interpreted to prophecy that the world would come to an end in 2012. Remember the Mayan Apocalypse?
There are so many other end-of-world predictions that don’t make us feel fine.
I looked some of them up:
deacon pedro 