Hopeless – this is something we often feel in relation to prayer and our spiritual lives; people feel hopeless about a lot of situations. Hopelessness affects the sick, the old, the addict, the sinner, the child at school, the student, the unemployed. It affects many people coming up to Christmas.

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IN PRISON AND YOU VISITED ME – A REFLECTION FOR CHRIST THE KING

As Jesus Himself is, so we are called to be; we who are the Body of Christ in our time. And when it comes to the end of time and our lives are assessed and judged by God then the bottom line will be “whatever you did to one of the least of these you did it to me and whatever you neglected to do to one of the least of these you neglected to do it to me” (Matthew 25:31-46)

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..there is one group of people that has stirred my conscience from today’s gospel – the prisoners. Jesus says “when I was in prison you visited me!” Sadly, I have never visited a prison and so have never visited Christ in this way. And I’m not suggesting that we all need to go running off to start visiting prisons because there are people called to this ministry  but we are all called to be aware of the prisoner, to be concerned for the prisoner.

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Jonathan Byrne,  a Dublin based professional artist has spent three years working on a new image of the Face of Christ. The work process and outcome is documented on my website: www.reedeemer.com “My objective was to produce an image that would be less definitive than the traditional images and to deliver a modern image for the new generation.”

Gospel of Luke 16:1-8

It gives me great encouragement that Jesus uses the example of a “chancer” to teach us a lesson about the kingdom of God!

It’s a difficult parable because the dishonest steward seems to be commended for pulling a fast one. But what he is actually being praised for is his shrewdness or astuteness.

A shrewd person grasps a critical situation and displays foresight to bring about a favourable resolution.

And this steward certainly managed to do this; he pulled a stroke to bring a good out of a potentially disastrous situation.

Of course this parable has a lot to tell us about the proper use of material wealth. The Lord expects us to be astute, while honest and responsible in their use and to put them at his service and the service of others.

As Christians all that we have beyond what we need belongs to the poor. And that’s a huge challenge!

But I think there is more to this parable. The key to the parable I think is the reference to the “children of light.”

That is what we are sons and daughters of light; our light is our faith—not in some abstract idea or set of propositions—but faith in a person, Jesus Christ.

The light of Christ brings meaning and hope into our lives; it is our real treasure, a most precious relationship that must be fostered.

Each one of us, having received such a gift, is expected to be astute in its use. We are stewards, not a worldly treasure, but of the light and responsible for sharing it with others.

This reminds me of Pope Francis call for all Christian to be in a “permanent state of mission.”
He says, “In fidelity to the example of Christ, it is vitally important for the Church today to go forth and preach the Gospel to all: to all places, on all occasions, without hesitation, reluctance or fear…Being a disciple means being constantly ready to bring the love of Jesus to others, and this can happen unexpectedly and in any place: on the street, in a city square, during work, on a journey.” (Evangelii Gaudium)

As disciple of Christ, as stewards of the light, we need to be astute using every opportunity, and even where it seems pointless and difficult to try, to share the gift that we have received—the gift that is the light of our faith.t’s a difficult parable because the dishonest steward seems to be commended for pulling a fast one. But what he is actually being praised for is his shrewdness or astuteness.

Painting ‘Children of the Light’ by Cornelis Monsma inspired by Colossians 1:9-14 http://www.pinterest.com/pin/173810866839241579/

ASIA E-BULLETIN #139                                                                                              29-Sep-14 

“Let the holiness of God shine forth” (cf. Mt 5, 16) 

item 264

Miracle 

A focus which was to the forefront of St Vincent Pallotti’s apostolic zeal and work was ‘salvare le anime’, or ‘to save souls’. I have often reflected on this, on what he meant by it and how this vision spurred him to reach out untiringly to others. How could he affirm that “among all the divine perfections that God communicates to his creatures, the most divine is that of calling the creature to cooperate with God himself in the salvation of souls”? 

An explanation of just what this might mean is that he intuited that the person is invited to commit oneself to bringing others to God, to knowledge of God, to Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord. That commitment is realized in bringing others to know and experience the infinite love and infinite mercy of God as revealed in the person of Jesus Christ. 

A gospel passage from St Luke struck me: “At sunset all those who had friends suffering from diseases of one kind or another brought them to him, and laying his hands on each he cured them.” It may have been the relaxation of the closing days of summer, or a good nights’ sleep the night before, but it was very easy for me to visualize the scene in Capharnaum at sunset; the hazy setting sun, the pleasant evening warmth, the trees, the sea in the distance, and then ‘all those who had friends suffering … brought them to him’. The impression is given of concerned, loyal FRIENDS bringing the sick and suffering to Jesus with hope in their hearts and a generosity of spirit and, because the friends did this, the sick and suffering ones have an opening to meet Jesus, and he readily responds and touches them.

I read further on and in the following chapter once again I noted: “Then some men appeared, carrying on a bed a paralysed man whom they were trying to bring in and lay down in front of him. But as the crowd made it impossible to find a way of getting him in, they went up on to the flat roof and lowered him and his stretcher down through the tiles into the middle of the gathering, in front of Jesus. Seeing THEIR faith he said, ‘My friend, your sins are forgiven you’. And later ‘get up, and pick up your stretcher and go home’. And he did.  

I came across a poem by the late Seamus Heaney, the foremost Irish poet in recent decades, in which he refers to this ‘miracle’: 

Miracle 

Not the one who takes up his bed and walks
But the ones who have known him all along
And carry him in –

Their shoulders numb,  the ache and stoop deeplocked
In their backs, the stretcher handles
Slippery with sweat. And no let up

Until he’s strapped on tight, made tiltable
and raised to the tiled roof, then lowered for healing.
Be mindful of them as they stand and wait

For the burn of the paid out ropes to cool,
Their slight lightheadedness and incredulity
To pass, those who had known him all along. 

Poetry speaks differently to us all. Heaney in an interview on this poem commented: 

“I realized that the guys that are hardly mentioned are central … without them no miracle would have happened.” 

For me there are three strands coming together, or converging: (1) … those who had friends suffering brought them to him: (2) … some men appeared carrying on a bed a paralyzed man: (3) the Miracle, not the one who takes up his bed and walks, but the ones who have known him all along and carry him in. 

Is this a way of understanding Vincent’s drive to ‘save souls’? To bring them to God, to Jesus, to a knowledge of him, to an encounter with him?  As UAC members, apostles, friends of Jesus and friends of the suffering, we ‘wear ourselves out’ in bringing others to Jesus; putting all our strength and energy into the daily tasks with our hearts and souls focused on Jesus. 

Derry Murphy sac [IR] – Dublin – IRELAND

13.09.14

motherofdivinelove@gmail.com

Jesus, Mary and Joseph,
in you we contemplate
the splendour of true love,
to you we turn with trust.
Holy Family of Nazareth,
grant that our families too
may be places of communion and prayer,
authentic schools of the Gospel
and small domestic Churches.
Holy Family of Nazareth,
may families never again
experience violence, rejection and division:
may all who have been hurt or scandalised
find ready comfort and healing.
Holy Family of Nazareth,
make us once more mindful
of the sacredness and inviolability of the family,
and its beauty in God’s plan.
Jesus, Mary and Joseph,
graciously hear our prayer.
Amen