As I was going about my day, like I normally do, rushing here and there to get everything done, I happened to notice an elderly lady struggling with a walker. She was also trying to carry several bags of groceries, but because she relied on a walker to get around, she was having a very hard time. Now understand this wasn’t an isolated incident, in a rural area, but in the middle of a busy city – a local bus station. There had to be at least twenty people around her, including myself, but no one seemed to notice this lady’s struggles. As I rushed to help this poor dear, I muttered to myself, “Are so many people blind?”.

      Actually, there are many, many people of the world who are very blind. Blind to what is really right in front of them. Have we became so complacent in our society, that we ignore an elderly lady struggling just to get around? Have we become so immune to violence that we would rather post a violent video we caught with our I-phone on social media, than actually step in to help when we see someone being hurt? Have we so bought in to our culture of instant-gratification, that we expect our needs be met in a heartbeat, without actually putting in any work? What does it take to have our eyes opened? In Mark 10:46-52, Bartimaeus, the blind beggar, knew exactly what, or more importantly who, could grant him the gift of sight……could open his eyes.

“They came to Jericho. As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stood still and said, “Call him here.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart; get up, he is calling you.” So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. Then Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man said to him, “My teacher, let me see again.” Jesus said to him, “Go; your faith has made you well.” Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way.”

     How did a blind man recognize that this person, Jesus of Nazareth, could not only help him, but heal him? It took a blind man to see what was right in front of him. He recognized Jesus, and knew He was the ultimate healer. Yet, he couldn’t see. He starts by yelling very loud, much to the chagrin of those around him. They try to silence him, thinking him a fool, or not worth our blessed Savior’s time. But Jesus, in His infinite grace, calls the man over. He asks, “What do you want me to do for you?”. This is a very loaded question. If you had a magic genie that you knew could grant you any wish, what would you wish for? Wealth, fame, beauty? As we know, the blind beggar only wanted one thing…..to see again.

      He could have asked for anything, but he asked for one thing. His wish was to have his sight restored. But, I think this dear soul saw more than anyone around him. He, though blind, recognized the Son, believed in Him and knew to trust that he would be healed. I’ve read a lot of commentary on this one little piece of scripture, and most focus on the miraculous healing of Bartimaeus, the fact that a blind man can finally see. But I think he saw more, though he was blind, than many folks can see now with perfect eyesight.

      He recognized Jesus, knew he was the Son of David, and knew that He could heal him. He put his entire trust and faith in this person, whom he had never met. And Jesus, because He recognizes the strong faith in this young man, responds with, “Go; your faith has made you well.”. So, a blind man can see, and we can assume because of this, he no longer has to beg to live. So ask yourself this? Are you blind?

      I’m not only talking about the elderly woman I saw today, struggling to carry groceries, who’s hardship appeared to go unnoticed by those around her. Would Jesus have ignored her struggles? But, I’m also talking about faith. If a blind man can recognize our blessed Savior, and know that all he had to do was ask, and his sight would be restored, can we not also put our trust in this same Savior? What does it take for you to recognize Jesus, throw off your cloak of doubt, and simply ask (through prayer), for what is your most crucial need? Must you be like this blind beggar, to really see???

Mark 10:17-30New International Version (NIV)

The Rich and the Kingdom of God

¹⁷ As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” ¹⁸ “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. ¹⁹ You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.’^[a]” ²⁰ “Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.” ²¹ Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”  ²² At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

²³ Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”  ²⁴ The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is^[b] to enter the kingdom of God! ²⁵ It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”  ²⁶ The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”  ²⁷ Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”

²⁸ Then Peter spoke up, “We have left everything to follow you!”

²⁹ “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel ³⁰ will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life.

Jesus tells us that if we put aside our earthly possessions and follow him then we will be rewarded in the kingdom of God with 100 times as much. Now this does not mean that if we give up one car we will have 100 cars in heaven, nor does it mean that for every house we give away on earth we will get 100 houses in heaven. What He is trying to let us know is that our riches in heaven cannot be measured by dollars and cents, Mercedes or Chevy, or diamonds or emeralds. He is telling us that our rewards will be so wonderful that we cannot compare them to anything on earth. I believe that our rewards will be the eternal experience of the overwhelming love of our creator. There will be no stress there, we will have no sickness, cancer, diabetes, none of the earthly nuisances and bothers that we deal with on a daily basis here. We will walk in peace and tranquility with Jesus, without experiencing traffic jams, bosses that are irritable and cranky all the time. There will be no terrorists’ threats or school massacres. Overwhelming will be the feelings of joy and peace, to the degree that we cannot imagine here on earth. Bliss will be the norm; no stress headaches, no deadlines fast approaching, no such thing as overdrawn bank accounts and bounced checks. These things will all be but a memory. At the moment we enter into the kingdom of God we will be relieved of all sorrow and the weight of the world will be lifted off our shoulders. There will be beautiful soothing music sung by choirs of angels and happiness will abound everywhere. We will have eternal life without any worries or concerns to plague us as we have now. We will be reborn into a place where there is no stress, worries, or cares. So in essence this scripture tell us that when we enter the kingdom of heaven we will be starting our lives anew, fresh, unsoiled by the daily grinds that we experience here on earth today. It will be as if we have been showered in true love and cleansed of all our sins and transgressions. Starting over will be a joyous and wonderful experience that we all should be looking forward to. So when the traffic backs up, or the checking account is overdrawn, the neighbor is being a total jerk, or you have that desire to slap your boss and pour hot coffee down his pants, sit back and rejoice in the knowledge that soon, very soon these will be but distant memories and such things will never happen again for all eternity.  One of my favorite classic gospel hymns is Beulah Land. The lyrics describe perfectly the rewards that await us on the other side.

1. I’ve reached the land of corn and wine,
   And all its riches freely mine;
   Here shines undimmed one blissful day,
   For all my night has passed away.
   • Refrain:
     O Beulah Land, sweet Beulah Land,
     As on thy highest mount I stand,
     I look away across the sea,
     Where mansions are prepared for me,
     And view the shining glory shore,
     My heaven, my home forevermore!
2. My Savior comes and walks with me,
   And sweet communion here have we;
   He gently leads me by His hand,
   For this is Heaven’s borderland.
3. A sweet perfume upon the breeze,
   Is borne from ever vernal trees,
   And flow’rs that never fading grow
   Where streams of life forever flow.
4. The zephyrs seem to float to me,
   Sweet sounds of Heaven’s melody,
   As angels with the white-robed throng
   Join in the sweet redemption song.

Read the lyrics and be assured that these wonderful rewards are waiting for you on the other side.

 

How fitting that today, as the Bishop of Rome, Pope Francis, takes his leave of the richest country on earth…and in the history of the world…the second reading from today’s Mass is from James 5: 1-6:

You have lived on earth in luxury and pleasure;  you have fattened your hearts for the day of slaughter.

In fact, all of this passage has at one time or another in Francis’ Papacy been addressed by him and flung out to the world as a warning and as a criticism. “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

And the world has flocked to him – Roman Catholics and non-Catholics alike. But his message, as some think, including the young man Jesus told to sell all, is a hard one. How are we to give up all we have and still live in this world? Does Francis, like St. Francis, really mean to give away our inheritance and live in hair shirts? Are we supposed to go without shoes, even in the winter? What about when we get old, if we haven’t “saved up” how will we live?

But if we look at the first reading and at the Gospel, we see a nuanced story that is at the heart of what Jesus taught, and what Francis is proclaiming.

I think what we are seeing here is more profound than simply saying “the poor are better than the rich.” I think we are examining how Jesus viewed what we love, not what we have. In both the reading and the Gospel, the Holy Spirit is giving us the message that we are all equal, we are all children of God, and whether we are officially entitled or we are acting on our own, if what we are doing is loving God and our neighbor as ourselves, we are following the word of God…and we will enter the Kingdom.

Isn’t our life a constant sizing up? We compare ourselves with each other, with celebrities, with kings and queens – and don’t we usually find ourselves wanting? Moses asked Joshua, “Are you jealous for my sake?” And in that question, we can see the hierarchy that Joshua, and probably the whole people of the Exodus, had formed in his mind and tried to enforce: There’s Moses, then Aaron, then the 70 Elders…then maybe Joshua, then the heads of households, then the male children, etc., etc. Everyone was to know his or her place and act accordingly. And anyone who got out of line was to be censured, and of course Joshua and the other top dogs would do the censuring or meet out the punishments. The big guys vs. the little guys, or the worthy vs. the lesser beings.

Didn’t we read in Wisdom 2:11 “But let our strength be our norm of righteousness; for weakness proves itself useless.”? Again and again, God is telling us that no one is more worthy than any other. But further on in Wisdom we read: “Let us lie in wait for the righteous one, because he is annoying to us; he opposes our actions, Reproaches us for transgressions of the law and charges us with violations of our training.” This is echoed in the second reading:

You have condemned; you have murdered the righteous one;

he offers you no resistance.

And of course Jesus is the real subject here. But so also is St. Francis, and Pope Francis, both of whom have been reviled for speaking the words God has said to us in the Bible. And so have most reformers and seekers of justice for all. Reviled and condemned because they are really kicking away the ladder so many of us stand on. The higher the rung, the closer to…to what? Heaven, the giant’s castle in the clouds, the envy of our neighbors?

It’s really a simple message: there is one God and then there are the rest of us. Scrambling up the ladder of wealth and prestige will get us no closer to him.

And so should we really sign over our bank accounts and have a yard sale of all our possessions and put that money in the poor box? I suppose we should, if that would remove the beam from our eye. Still, that’s the same line of thought in reverse: the less we have, the better we are. It still precludes infatuation with hierarchy and position.

So what is the real answer? We know what it is. 1 Timothy 6:10 alludes to it. “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”

The real answer is “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.”

Lord, today as we contemplate these words and think on the poor and suffering, help us to remember that simply loving them and showing them the love of God is what they need most. Then, with differences of wealth and position aside, and in a spirit of your servants, we can begin to bestow what riches we may have on those who need them.

 

Is it nothing to you, all you that pass by? Behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow.

This familiar passage from Lamentations is so appropriate for today, isn’t it? Today is the Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows. Mater Dolorosa. What a whirlwind of feelings she must have embodied! First, the loss of a child, one of the most heart-wrenching things that can happen to a parent…a child of any age.

Second, what, at the foot of the Cross, looked to be the contradiction of all that had gone before with such promise.

Third, the desertion by most of the Apostles while she and John and the women were left alone.

Our Lady of Sorrows.

But wasn’t she prepared for this? Wasn’t she told by Rabbi Simeon, as we hear in today’s Gospel,

“Behold, this child is destined

for the fall and rise of many in Israel,

and to be a sign that will be contradicted

and you yourself a sword will pierce

so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”

Artists through the ages have depicted Mary in her sorrow, some even with seven swords embedded in her representing her Seven Sorrows. And many musicians have set the sorrows to music, especially the Marian hymn:

Stabat mater dolorosa
juxta Crucem lacrimosa,
dum pendebat Filius.

At the Cross her station keeping,
stood the mournful Mother weeping,
close to her Son to the last.

Isn’t this heartbreaking?

What are we to make of this devotion to a sorrowing mother? We Christians who are invited to incomparable joy with our Lord, how are we to fall to weeping with Mary? Isn’t this its own contradiction for us?

But are we not human? Are we not allowed at times to fall into self-pity, sorrow, despair?

Then maybe that’s the value of the phenomenon of Our Lady of Sorrows. Here is a way to experience these feelings that will not bring us down into the pit, she is a safe haven for us to mourn, and to experience the catharsis of deep, deep sorrow.

We have only to read our Bible to find many cues to us that it is time to mourn: over the death of Absalom, over the Holy Innocents, over the martyrdom of John the Baptist. And we can mourn the losses in our own lives: our friends, our parents, and so sadly, yes, our child. And especially we can mourn with Mary over the torture and death of her son, our Lord.

And sorrowing with Mary, we can feel the pain in her heart and her hands and her feet and her brow as she contemplates the wounds inflicted on her son. We can let ourselves go and weep along with her, and for her, and for us and our own many sorrows.

The sorrows of everyday life that we all experience.

We can cry until our throats hurt and our body is wracked with despair.

With Mary.

And then, as we are in the midst of our lamentations, we can feel the hand of Mary. We can imagine the comfort that she can bring us. And we can see her as she intercedes for us with her son. She is our Blessed Mother and we can surrender ourselves to her comfort just as we used to with our own mothers.

Because that is the message we were given, and that we hope to give to others. As George Fox heard, “There is one, even Christ Jesus, that can speak to thy condition.” And as John says in his Gospel, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

Wasn’t Mary joyful as she heard these words from her risen son? Didn’t all her sorrow come to fruition with the Resurrection and Ascension?

So it can be with us, today and all our days. We can remember Mary’s sorrow and we can rest comforted. We can remember our own sorrow and we can go out and comfort others. Because we have Jesus and Mary as pure examples of how sorrow can and will turn to joy when we open our hearts to God and his promises.

Father, as you comforted Mary and your Son, comfort us as we go through the world. Help us to sustain others in their sorrow and help us to bring the light of gladness to all we meet today and into the future. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Today the celebrates the Feast of the Triumph of the Cross.   Now, some of you may be asking what in the world is triumphant about an instrument of torture and death and WHY are we celebrating it?

What we celebrate today is the triumph of eternal life over death, infinite love over overwhelming evil.  The VICTORY of our Lord, through humility, over the arrogance of Satan.

It seems so easy for us to make small sacrifices in small areas of our lives.  We give up that candy bar, coffee, or profanity for the 40 days of Lent.  We need to drop five pounds, so we don’t “biggie size” our burger and fries for a few weeks.  We really want to see that particular movie next weekend, so we save up this week.  But what about the bigger picture??

We do seem to have trouble, usually, of making, in the much more important and far greater purpose of our earthly existence… which is where we wind up AFTER it ends.  The answer to WHERE we wind up AFTER starts in our here and now – in our daily life – in how we fight or give in to those daily spiritual battles.  What our response, here and now, to the occasions of sin, innumerable temptations and other potential woes that are laid before us OFTEN, daily.

Do we value the things of the world over the values of God’s Kingdom?  What aspects and pieces of our lives are we willing to nail to the cross, as often as is necessary, and let die so that we may live with victory?  Are we willing to put on the humility, as our Lord did, to make us capable of bearing, overcoming and triumphing over these earthly parts of our lives to bring ourselves, through our faith in Christ Jesus, to life everlasting?

It all begins with the first step of KNOWING that we cannot do it of our own accord.   WE MUST HUMBLE OURSELVES before ALMIGHTY GOD, assured that alone we are doomed to failure, and ask for his saving grace and guidance and Fatherly Love.  It is only after taking this step, WITH FAITH,  that we can even find ourselves on the beginning of the right path.  It is a choice, and I encourage all of us to begin TODAY, EVERYDAY, AS OFTEN AS IS NECESSARY, to examine our spiritual states and take the hammer and nails to anything separating us from living life as a true disciple of Christ.

Is it easy?  NO!!   Is it worth it??  YES; the rewards are far beyond what we can begin to comprehend.  We must be humble enough to trust God to be God and KNOW that His promises and assurances of recompense for living for him will not and cannot return void.

Let’s face it… none of us are getting out of this earth alive.  Our days will end will a last breath or the return of our Blessed Lord, Jesus Christ.  Either way, shall we be judged and rewarded as victors and receive a crown of eternal glory, or will we continue to live our here and now, falling into Satan’s snares, and have our days in this world end with eternal separation from God Almighty??

CHOOSE, HERE and NOW… take up your crosses and CARRY THEM TO VICTORY, to a TRIUMPHANT FINISH, through a humble way of living for and in GOD.  Only this, through faith in our Blessed Lord, can we turn our woes into WOWS and our death into an eternal existence of heavenly happiness.

From the Epistle of St. James, 2:14-17

14 How does it help, my brothers, when someone who has never done a single good act claims to have faith? Will that faith bring salvation?

15 If one of the brothers or one of the sisters is in need of clothes and has not enough food to live on,

16 and one of you says to them, ‘I wish you well; keep yourself warm and eat plenty,’

without giving them these bare necessities of life, then what good is that?

17 In the same way faith, if good deeds do not go with it, is quite dead.

Our jobs as Christians is to give those without faith, those who are doubting their faith, and those who have lost their faith, the spiritual necessities to regain that faith they once had by our actions and deeds. Pray with and for those who doubt their faith or have lost their faith. Feed the hungry, both nutritionally and spiritually. Clothe the naked, both physically and spiritually. Comfort the sick and dying, both physically and spiritually. And last but not least, open your homes to the homeless, both spiritually and physically.

Matthew 25:31-40 says:

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.

32Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.

33And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.

34Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

35For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,

36I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.

’ 37Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?

38And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?

39And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’

40And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.

The instructions are pretty clear here: we are our brothers’ keepers. Jesus has instructed us to take care of each other both physically and spiritually. It is up to each of us to fulfill Jesus’s instruction in order to inherit the kingdom of Heaven.

If we don’t follow the above instructions then we can expect the following as stated in Matthew 25:41-46

41Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

42For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,

43I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’

44Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’

45Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’

46And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

The instructions seem clear and the rewards are truly wonderful. Just as the consequences of not following the teachings of the Lord are quite clear and not nearly as wonderful.

Step back and take a look at your Christian life and evaluate yourself. Have you followed the teachings, have you clothed, fed, prayed, or visited? Or do you shun and ignore the people who need your spiritual help and guidance. Today would be a good time to start looking a little closer at those who most of us feel are “beneath us” or “unreachable”. Even the smallest act of kindness and true love might be just enough to touch the hearts of those in need.