Year I

2nd Week in Ordinary Time, Tuesday, Year I

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In today’s First Reading the Letter to the Hebrews encourages believers who have served the Lord, seemingly with few results, to continue with an enthusiastic hope, faith, and patience, because when the Lord promises something, he delivers. Abraham received a promise from the Lord of blessings if he had faith, and the Lord kept his promise. The Lord could swear by nothing greater than himself when reminding Abraham of his promise, because there was nothing greater; if Abraham didn’t already believe that the Lord was “the greatest” that oath would have meant nothing.

Abraham’s example reminds us today that we are inheritors of the same promise, and to claim those blessings we not only need faith that the Lord can deliver, but the patience to persevere in faith when the inheritance is not soon to come. Abraham suffered trials and tests, and so will we. The key to moving forward in faith and patience is to trust in the Lord and the good that he has promised will come: our hope needs to light the way, even in the darkest moments.

We are not slaves of a promise, but heirs to it. Let’s live that way.

Readings: Hebrews 6:10–20; Psalm 111:1–2, 4–5, 9, 10c; Mark 2:23–28. See also 22nd Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday and 15th Week in Ordinary Time, Friday.

2nd Week in Ordinary Time, Monday, Year I

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Today’s First Reading reminds us that Our Lord became man not because he was on a fact-finding mission, but because he wanted to make it easier for us to relate to him and, through him, to relate to our Heavenly Father. Christ did not come to earth in a comfortable moment of human history; his life was hard, compounded by how hard it must have been for someone who’d been in Heaven for all of eternity to come down and live on Earth. His life was also unfair: he was a just man his whole life, concerned only with others, and he was branded a criminal and executed.

We often identify more readily with someone who has struggled through life, and we empathize often with those who seem to have gotten a raw deal. When we suffer we too can draw closer to Our Lord because we know he suffered too. He wasn’t indifferent to our sufferings, and he still isn’t. To be fair to him we too should not be indifferent to his sufferings for us. Those sufferings became the source of our blessings. His Father turned his sufferings into blessings, and he’ll turn ours into blessings as well.

Is life hard? Bring it to Our Lord. He’s experienced hardship as well and will help turn that hardship into blessings.

Readings: Hebrews 5:1–10; Psalm 110:1–4; Mark 2:18–22. See also Friday after Ash Wednesday, 22nd Week in Ordinary Time, Friday, and 13th Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday.

1st Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday, Year I

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In today’s First Reading the Letter to the Hebrews describes the word of God as being like a two-edged sword, a sword that has the edges and finesse to get to the vital spots of its opponent. Yet this “sword” goes even deeper: it can pierce even the spirit and the soul, leaving its adversary (an obstinate soul) defenseless and exposed. Depending on your state of soul the word of God may feel like jabbing an already raw wound or exposed nerve, but, as Our Lord describes in today’s Gospel, he is trying to perform surgery, which requires pain, a pain with the goal of healing a greater wound.

In today’s Gospel the word of the Our Lord strikes to the heart of Levi (St. Matthew) as he sits at his post, collecting customs, and simply says, “follow me.” Levi does it without question; following Our Lord is the answer to what he has been seeking in life, and what he thinks his friends and acquaintances have been seeking as well, which is why he invites them to dine with the man who has given newfound meaning to his life. The scribes who criticize Our Lord for associating with tax collectors and sinners are also disarmed by the words of Our Lord in a master stroke: do not the sick, even the spiritually sick, need a physician? In a few words he changes our attitude regarding sinners: from condemned to wounded in need of our compassion and care.

The word of God has something to say every time we listen to it. Let’s allow the physician to perform his surgery on our souls today. If he has to cut deep we know it is with greater healing in mind.

Readings: Hebrews 4:12–16; Psalm 19:8–10, 15; Mark 2:13–17. See also Saturday after Ash Wednesday and St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist.

1st Week in Ordinary Time, Friday, Year I

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In today’s First Reading the Letter to the Hebrews teaches us something not evident in moments of difficulty and trial: faith leads to rest and relief. Continuing yesterday‘s discussion of why the Israelites were condemned to wander in the desert for forty years after squandering an opportunity to enter the Promised Land, the Letter explains that it was their lack of faith that doomed the first generation of unbelieving Israelites. Many people draw solace from their faith, but others see faith as only making their life harder and riskier.

The paralytic in today’s Gospel had friends who thought outside the box due to their faith. They saw an opportunity for their friend’s healing in Our Lord, and they didn’t let conventional means get in their way. The paralytic had to have faith in his friends to be lowered from the roof, and Our Lord acknowledged his faith. Through his faith he received relief from his condition. We may not always see miracles, but our faith can make our life take unexpected directions and grant us the solace and relief we need when facing life’s challenges.

Ask Our Lord today to help you believe “out of the box” and see where life takes you.

Readings: Hebrews 4:1–5, 11; Psalm 78:3, 4bc, 6c–8; Mark 2:1–12. See also 2nd Week of Advent, Monday and 13th Week in Ordinary Time, Thursday.

1st Week in Ordinary Time, Thursday, Year I

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In today’s First Reading the Letter to the Hebrews encourages us to not let our heart become hardened to God and others when our faith and trust are subjected to trials. Whether our relationship with God is good or bad, he always tries to speak to us, in our hearts, whether we listen or not. A hardened heart leads to unhappiness. The psalm quoted today refers to the sad episode at Meribah and Massah when the Israelites complained in the desert out of thirst and questioned Moses (Exodus 17:1-7), as well as when the Israelites balked at entering the Promised Land because they didn’t trust the Lord to help them settle it (Numbers 13:30–14:38). As a result they wandered the desert for forty years, and those who were adults, with a few exceptions, didn’t live to enter the Promised Land.

We can suffer thirst and anxiety and become frustrated and close our hearts to God and to others when we should really foster an acceptance that the Lord gives us moments of feast and of famine and invites us to believe in him and to trust in him. The Israelites would have enjoyed forty more years of the Promised Land if they’d trusted the Lord. Experiences only harden us if we let them. If Our Lord is ready to forgive, so should we, trusting in him that everything will work out.

It’s never too late in this life for a hardened heart to turn back to the Lord. A hardened heart is as spiritually repugnant as a leper is physically due to his malady, but Our Lord will reach out to touch both without hesitation, if they let him. Hear his voice today and harden not your heart.

Readings: Hebrews 3:7–14; Psalm 95:6–7c, 8–11; Mark 1:40–45. See also Friday after Epiphany and 12th Week in Ordinary Time, Friday.