SUNDAY,  SEPTEMBER  27, 2020

Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Written by THE FAITHFUL DISCIPLE

Ez 18:25-28   |   Phil 2:1-11 or 2:1-5   |   Mt 21:28-32

GROW AS A DISCIPLE  |  PRAY, STUDY, ENGAGE, SERVE

I’ve always had a bit of a recalcitrant streak. Ask me to do something, and I’ll happily oblige. Order me to do something, and I’ll set my jaw. So, I can relate to the first son’s knee-jerk reply when told (not asked) to work in the vineyard. “I will not.” Yet, despite this initial reaction, the first son obeyed his father’s command. He “changed his mind and went.” I didn’t see it at first, but this parable is not about a clash of wills but obedience – not blind obedience, but choosing to turn over our lives to the will of the Father. The longer version of Paul’s Letter to the Philippians illustrates this beautifully, challenging us to imitate Jesus: “He humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” As human beings, we have the freedom to choose to place God’s will and the needs of others before our own. It doesn’t mean being a doormat, but rather having a healthy humility and willingness to “change our minds (and hearts)” to better conform to the example of Jesus. As the catechism reminds us in this gem about obedience: “The more one does what is good, the freer one becomes. There is no true freedom except in the service of what is good and just.” (1733)

GO EVANGELIZE
PRAYER, INVITATION, WITNESS, ACCOMPANIMENT

Have you ever kicked a bad habit, such as eating too many sweets, falling down the social media rabbit hole, or failure to floss? I’ve occasionally pulled it off (well, for a few days anyway), but I find it’s much tougher to change habits of my mind and heart. In today’s Gospel, the first son changes his mind, and his heart. This is what Jesus asks of us as well: a change of heart and mind toward love and obedience, wherever it is needed in our lives. For starters, it could mean taking a few moments to pray for guidance each morning before jumping full-speed ahead into our personal agenda. We can ask God to show us how to align our lives more closely with his will for us – through prayer, reading the Scriptures, and reflecting on areas in our lives that need an overhaul. Our “yes” to working in the vineyard begins by attending to what God has shown us, and leads us to even greater freedom in Christ.

PRAY    Need a spiritual jump-start? Pray the Daily Examen, an ancient practice from St. Ignatius Loyola of peacefully reflecting on the events of the day in order to detect the presence of God’s Spirit and discern his will for you.

SUNDAY,  SEPTEMBER  20, 2020

Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Written by THE FAITHFUL DISCIPLE

Is 55:6-9   |   Phil 1:20C-24; 27A   |   Mt 20:1-16A

GROW AS A DISCIPLE  |  PRAY, STUDY, ENGAGE, SERVE

Today’s parable about the workers in the vineyard reminds me of a popular paraphrase of a famous Theodore Roosevelt quote, “Envy is the thief of joy.” No matter how much or how little we have, we can find someone who appears better off or happier, or appears to have received more than they deserve. Take, for example, the vineyard workers in today’s Gospel. Those who arrived first for work were upset and envious, because the last to arrive were the first to be paid – and they were paid the same wages as those who had been first to arrive. Envy robbed the all-day workers of joy: joy in a job well-done and being paid the just wage due to them; joy in celebrating the generosity of the landowner, and of living in the kingdom of heaven begun here on earth, content with and grateful for everything God has provided for each one of us. Although envy may indeed be the thief of joy, joy can be ours when we appreciate what we have and quit comparing ourselves to others. It also frees us to share our gifts and truly walk with others through the ups and downs of our lives as we work together in God’s vineyard.

GO EVANGELIZE
PRAYER, INVITATION, WITNESS, ACCOMPANIMENT

Today’s parable has me thinking: When I feel envious of another’s good fortune (sparkling clean house, teenaged boys who smile for photos), perhaps one way to counter that would be to talk through those feelings with God: “Help me be content with what I have. Thank you for the ways you have blessed my friends and me, and for the people in my life who hold me up in good times and bad.” Just as the landowner was generous with the laborers, and God is immensely generous with us, let us make an effort this week to be generous in sharing the gifts in our lives with others. When we radiate gratitude and joy in our daily lives as Jesus’ disciples, and let the Holy Spirit work through us in leading others to him, our witness to others will bear much fruit.

ACTION    Make a list of the gifts in our lives: Health, family, sparkly new earrings, a shiny lawn mower, you name it. Next, choose a “gift” you can share with others, and be specific: “I will make a card for Grandma today.” “I will donate (fill in the blank) to the food and clothing pantry on Monday.” “I will volunteer to be a greeter at Mass every other Sunday.”

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2020

Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Written by THE FAITHFUL DISCIPLE

Sir 27:30–28:7  |  Rom 14:7-9  |  Mt 18:21-35

GROW AS A DISCIPLE  |  PRAY, STUDY, ENGAGE, SERVE

It’s part of human nature to focus on the negative “headlines” on any given day. For example, after encountering a traffic delay due to a harmless fender bender on an otherwise uneventful commute, we are more likely to be upset and angry at the delay – and the people who caused it – rather than forgiving of the situation, and aware of the concurrent fact that we made it home safely! The author of the Book of Sirach seems to have this insight into humanity, for he describes wrath and anger as “hateful things, yet the sinner hugs them tight.” I, too, have “hugged tight” to my anger at times over offenses real or perceived, and so I love the way Matthew’s Gospel challenges us to not only let go of past hurts, but to forgive: forgive, forgive, forgive. It doesn’t mean glossing over the human fender benders that can wreck relationships, but Jesus cautions us to prevent them from becoming the headlines of our lives. Instead, by opening our ears and our hearts to the Good News of God’s forgiveness, we can, in turn, extend it to those who have hurt us.

GO EVANGELIZE
PRAYER, INVITATION, WITNESS, ACCOMPANIMENT

When Jesus taught his disciples how to pray the Our Father in an earlier verse in Matthew’s Gospel, he used these words: “forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” Not, “maybe I’ll think about forgiving tomorrow,” or “I might forgive this but I can’t forgive that.” Because when we open our hearts to the Good News of God’s forgiveness, we must forgive “from the heart,” as Jesus says at the end of today’s passage. Is there someone in our lives whom we need to forgive? What’s holding us back? Are we “holding tight” to our anger, or hurt, or resentment? Think about a relationship in your life that could use some healing. Perhaps a first step involves a phone call, a letter, an email, or an embrace. In prayer, ask for God’s help; seek forgiveness and ask for the grace to forgive others.

ACTION    Think of someone or something that has caused you to hang on to anger or resentment. Write a letter [you’re not going to send it!] to that person, or to the “event,” as if it were personified. Spell out factually what caused your anger. Then write that you forgive them. Put the pen down, pray that God would help you with the grace to truly forgive, then shred the letter. And let the anger go.

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2020

Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                Written by THE FAITHFUL DISCIPLE

Ez 33:7-9  |  Rom 13:8-10  |  Mt 18:15-20

GROW   AS A DISCIPLE  |  PRAY, STUDY, ENGAGE, SERVE

Pop quiz: What’s the Seventh Commandment? Can you recite the other nine? At first glance, Paul’s Letter to the Romans seems like an easy out. The commandments, he writes, “are summed up in this saying, namely, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” Easy-peasy, right? Well, in this case the devil is not in the details, but in the totality. Most days, loving one’s neighbor as yourself is harder than following the letter of the law. It means putting others first in a culture where rugged individualism is rewarded. In an everyday way, it means letting the person with four items and 23 coupons go in front of us at the grocery store, listening with an open mind to those with whom we disagree, or driving our parent to the doctor’s office on a day we had hoped to attend our daughter’s basketball game. When those situations come up, we know we don’t have to go it alone. After all, God loved us first. As we move into the week ahead, we can ask God in prayer to open our hearts and minds to the needs of others, and help us love better by serving them, even when it’s hard.

GO EVANGELIZE
PRAYER, INVITATION, WITNESS, ACCOMPANIMENT

Who doesn’t love a romantic comedy? (Well, I can name four men of varying ages in my household.) Paul might have been one of them. His Letter to the Romans is more head than heart, grounded in rock-solid logic: “Love does no evil to the neighbor; hence, love is the fulfillment of the law.” The line reminds me of one of the most famous tenets of the Hippocratic Oath: “First, do no harm.” Surely, on some days, “doing no evil” or “doing no harm” may feel like enough. But as Christians, we can do so much more. I’m reminded of a generous couple who would pray together each morning asking God to show them how they could best help others. They understood the message of today’s Gospel, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Knowing that Jesus was at their side, they prepared to face whatever the day brought them. Is there someone this week you can accompany on their faith journey, or invite to join you in Christian service?

PRAY    By starting the day with a simple prayer like this: “God, show me how I can serve others today,” or “God, open my heart to the needs around me,” we may be pleasantly surprised at the opportunities to grow in love that we encounter.

SUNDAY, AUGUST 30, 2020

Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                         Written by THE FAITHFUL DISCIPLE

Jer 20:7-9 | Rom 12:1-2 | Mt 16:21-27

ROW    AS A DISCIPLE  |  PRAY, STUDY, ENGAGE, SERVE 
GROW: I missed baseball this past spring and early summer. Perhaps it’s because I am a Cubs fan, but I’m amazed at how humbling the game can be. It’s not uncommon to see yesterday’s MVP strike out with the bases loaded or an ace relief pitcher blow a save. I wonder if that’s how Peter felt when Jesus rebuked him. In last week’s Gospel, Peter recognizes Jesus as the Son of the Living God. Jesus blesses him and tells him, “Upon this rock I will build my Church.” However, today, after Jesus tells the disciples that he must suffer and die, Peter argues with him. Jesus knocks Peter down a few notches when he calls the would-be rock “an obstacle.” But the winning line here is: “You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.” Imagine how incomprehensible it was to Peter that Jesus would suffer, die, and rise on the third day. Like Peter, we will have days when we “get it right” and feel in sync with Jesus, and days when we feel like we’re chasing the ball in the sun, and yesterday’s peace and certainty seem out of reach. In both instances, Jesus reminds us that God really does know best. Whether we’re at the top of our game or struggling, it’s reassuring to know that God is our rock – and has a plan.

GROW    AS A DISCIPLE  |  PRAY, STUDY, ENGAGE, SERVE
GO: Sometimes my prayers get pretty specific. Please make the chemo obliterate my friend’s cancer. Help my husband find a job. Show my son which career path he should choose and help him succeed. When I’m not making God an oncologist, recruiter, or career counselor, I am known to ask him to be a divine meteorologist (Please no rain tomorrow, thank you!). There is nothing wrong with asking for what we desire, or need. But today’s Gospel alerts us of the temptation to tell God how to be God. For Peter, it was saying, “Surely you need not suffer and die.” Jesus reminds Peter, and us, that we don’t know how best to accomplish our salvation. God does. And so, in our prayers and our approach to life, we can ask for God’s healing and help, but we also need to trust in God’s plan and understand that his answers may not be what we have in mind.


PRAY/REFLECT: It’s OK to bring God our to-do list! I’m reminded, however, of a spiritual director who suggested I try to talk less and listen more. It may mean carving out some quiet time each time we pray. Another way to give ourselves over to God’s wisdom is by simply reciting the Our Father and paying close attention to the words: “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

Grow+Go Introduction
This week, we are introducing Grow+Go, content designed to help parishioners understand what it means to be an evangelizing disciple of Christ. Using the Sunday Scriptures as the basis for reflection, Grow+Go offers insight into how we can all more fully GROW as disciples and then GO evangelize, fulfilling Christ's Great Commission to "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit." (Matthew 28:19) The concept behind the weekly series is to make ​discipleship and evangelization simple, concrete and relatable.​ Look for Grow+Go in our weekly bulletin and on our parish website.