When Did We See You?

 This week's Gospel reading is a familiar one: Jesus tells the disciples a story about when the Son of Man comes into His glory and the nations are assembled before Him.  At that time, Jesus says, the Son of Man will separate the sheep from the goats.  Will separate the righteous from the wicked.  Jesus goes on to define those two groups by whether they helped "the least" of His brothers when they encountered them in life.  Those who helped the least of them go to Heaven.  Those who did not go to Hell.  

I have often focused on the idea of what the nations did during their lives.  Did the feed the least?  Did they clothe the least?  Did they visit them in prison?  And that is certainly critical.  That's where the rubber meets the road.  

But I realize that the step before the clothing and the feeding and the visiting "the least" is recognizing that they are themselves Jesus in disguise.  

A few times I went with the Youth Group at St. Brigid's on the Midnight Run, bringing food and clothing and other necessities to the unhoused population of New York City.  The gentleman who organized the effort, Vince, would pray with the kids before we left.  He reminded them that perhaps the most important part of the night was to recognize the humanity of the unhoused, and to interact with them in a way that demonstrated that recognition.  It wasn't just about distributing necessities.

One night, I saw a young woman on the trip just sitting with one of the unhoused men, talking with him.  She got it.  She understood.  It came so naturally for her.  I've always remembered that.  She saw through Jesus' disguise.  She recognized the humanity.  

May God bless you at this moment, and may the spirit of Thanksgiving stay with you.

- The Older Brother 

 

The God of Abundance & Profit

Matthew 25: 14-30

Sunday Gospel 11/19/23

 

O’ Lord, You are the God of Action who entrusts His children with graces that extend beyond the horizon.

Father in Heaven, You are the King of Abundance whose generosity extends to all who seek Your divine company.

              Praise to the Consummation of Love!

Lord, You are the God of Magnification who affords us the opportunity to share in the great investment of creation.

Adonai, forgive me the times I only asked from You, for they far outweigh the times I gave You thanks.

              Glory to the God of Harmony!

O’ Lord, I take this time to praise & glorify You for the mercy and the love You give me that feeds my weary soul.

Sprit of Truth, You are my God who tenderly caresses my wounds and who teaches me the error of my ways.

              Praise to the Patron of Mercy!

Lord, You freely offer me more than I deserve, and Your lessons will bring a profit to my house unmatched by all others.

Blessed Yeshua, thank you for trusting me and for Your love that courses through my veins and enriches my soul.

              Glory to the Son of Man!

                                                                                      The Pilgrim

Got Oil?

Think about this: A big storm is bearing down on Long Island. Experts have been tracking it's path. The news has been talking about it all week. Now it's imminent; it will hit by nightfall - the storm is upon us. What do I do? I run out to the stores, of course -  I need batteries and I need to stock up on non-perishable food, in case the power goes out. Only the shelves are bare. There's no batteries, no milk, the isle with all the canned food is bare. Even the toilet paper is all gone. The wise people stocked up early; there's nothing left for me......

When I hear this weeks gospel reading, I like to think that I'm one of the wise ones who will be ready. When I stop and think about how I respond to things in my life, I realize that I need to take this Gospel reading a little more seriously. It's easy to say to oneself, "oh, yes - I know I have to take care of this or that - I got it. It's on my list; I know about it. Yet we don't actually do anything.

Let us not be one of those that are not always actively stocking up on the oil that is the Word of our God.

      + Theophilus

 

¡ Que el mayor entre ustedes

Sea su servidor!

 En la lectura del Evangelio de este domingo 31 del tiempo ordinario, Jesús critica severamente a los líderes religiosos de su tiempo porque no ponían en práctica lo que predicaban.

 

Éste domingo, además, marca  el inicio de la semana internacional de las vocaciones.

 

En nuestros días hemos visto el número de vocaciones al sacerdocio y a la vida religiosa declinando cada día más.  Tratamos de descubrir las causas y discernir soluciones

 

El pasaje evangélico señala al cristiano el modelo a seguir, “ que el mayor entre ustedes sea subservidor “. Tenemos la  buena fortuna que nuestro Santo padre, el papa Francisco es un excelente modelo de servidor.

 

 Si bien es cierto que la merma en el número de vocaciones al sacerdocio y a la vida religiosa comenzó antes, problemas como el abuso sexual por parte de sacerdotes y el abuso del poder de parte de señores obispos han agudizado la crisis

 

Pero antes de señalar con el dedo a otros, es necesario que yo y cada uno de nosotros  examine y analice cuanto de  fariseísmo hay en nuestra conducta.

 ¿ Qué clase de modelo soy; qué clase de modelo somos?