Search

Results

Exploring the word

22 Sep 2013 - Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

Whatever our differences, most of us put self-preservation very high on our lists. Even a soldier or martyr willing to die for a cause usually prefers to survive it. Mothers and fathers who make great sacrifices for their children still look for a fragment of the day that belongs to them alone. Whatever else we desire to do, above all we want to live. The gift of life is precious, unique, and fundamental to everything else we have and all that we are. So it makes sense that we instinctively protect it, even if in critical circumstances we may heroically choose to lay it down. The steward in the parable is a sensible man. Not especially virtuous, he betrays the definition of stewardship by squandering the boss’s money. Certainly high on his list of priorities is the “eat, drink, and be merry” lifestyle that he had to embezzle to afford. Now the party’s over and he’ll have to pay for his dishonesty. Self-preservation kicks in, and he figures out one more way to play the system to save himself. In a weird way the steward shows absolute integrity through the story. He’s always looking out for Number One and he’ll do what’s necessary to stay afloat. And Jesus invites us to admire this fellow. Not for his dishonesty of course, but for his integrity. As Jesus says: If only the children of light showed as much investment in their way of life as the children of this world do in theirs! The unjust steward is remarkably—we could say perfectly—unjust. He doesn’t waffle and weave but remains faithful to his ultimate priorities. His game plan makes more sense, really, than the person who recites creeds and participates in rituals of grace and redemption and then wanders vaguely into petty pursuits that have no meaningful connection to what they’ve professed. It makes no sense to say we believe in the forgiveness of sins—and then refuse to forgive those who trespass against us. It’s kind of crazy to believe in a God who is love—and yet inhabit small and unloving lives. We’re fools to admit the Lord hears the cry of the poor—while remaining deaf to the demands of compassion, charity, and justice. If self-preservation is really what we’re about, living what we believe is a great place to begin. Related scripture links Render to Caesar: Luke 12:13-15 Other money passages in Luke: Luke 6:20; 12:13-34; 14:33; 16:14, 19-31; 21:1-4 Catechism links Money: CCC 952; 2269; 2401-2414; 2419-2425; 2443-2449 Pray for the powerful: CCC 1349; 1900-1904; 2240; 2636; 2822

Authors Alice Camille

dishonesty stewardship

Restricted
The inner word

22 Sep 2013 - Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

This week we hear of two examples of dishonesty, one about some businessmen who not only cheat their customers but are also hypocrites about it: They impatiently but piously wait for after the “new moon,” when commerce was prohibited, so they can get back to shafting people with their crooked scales. The steward in the gospel, though working behind his employer’s back, was actually trying to correct an injustice by subtracting some of the huge interest his master was charging, an act of clever refinancing Jesus commends. Do you talk as if you believe one thing but do the opposite? How can you bring what you say into line with what you do? Do you bring to your faith the same attention and effort you do to your job, finances, and all the other details of life?

dishonesty stewardship

Restricted
Exploring the word

30 Dec 2012 - Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, Cycle C

In miracle-birth stories we’re reminded that all babies are a gift from God. When a child arrives into our families, we talk about being blessed, but then we might promptly begin to act in ways that betray our unconscious belief that children are more like possessions. We name them, pay for them, raise them, and are in every way responsible for them. They “belong” to us; are they not ours? Actually, no. We can only be stewards of a blessing but never owners of it. Children, like your material resources and your life itself, are given to you for your prudent investment by One who expects a return on that investment one day. The best response to the gift of a child, Hebrew custom has it, is to present the child back to God as soon as possible. As the ceremony goes, so does the intention. Hannah does more than this, of course. In her case she made a vow to offer the child wholesale to God, and she does so, returning Samuel to the shrine where she once prayed for him. “Here!” she says to Eli the priest. “God heard my prayer for this child at your shrine. Now you raise him.” For Mary and Joseph, the presentation of Jesus was ceremonial and not so literal. They brought him to Jerusalem, Simeon blessed him, Anna prophesied about him—and then his parents took him home. After that, it’s unclear whether Jesus went up to Jerusalem again until the age of 12. His parents did, so maybe he went with them. Jerusalem is a long walk from Nazareth. It would have taken days, not a trip to be taken lightly. Perhaps they went only once a year, at Passover, when observant Jews gathered at the Temple. In Luke’s gospel, going up to Jerusalem is a signal. Luke’s story is directed to this one goal: To get the Word of God to the City of God. Luke starts at the Temple, with the story of Zechariah and the angel. Jesus is brought there by his parents, twice. This second time he chooses to remain there, to debate with the teachers. He will not return after this visit until his triumphant entry into the city in chapter 19. He will weep at the sight of Jerusalem—and then sweep into the Temple area and clean it out. After that he will promptly begin to debate the teachers again—this time, to the death. Mary and Joseph knew that their child did not belong to them but to God. They surrendered him three times in Jerusalem. When given up to God, family stewardship can reach its highest potential. Related scripture links Mary as role model of obedience: Luke 1:26-38 Joseph as role model for trust in God: Matt. 1:18-25; 2:13-15, 19-23 Be compassionate: Luke 6:36; see also Matt. 5:48 Other temple scenes in Luke: 1:5-25; 2:22-38; 4:9-12; 19:45-48; 20:1-21:38 Catechism links Hannah: CCC 2578 Jesus and his parents: CCC 471-474; 502-507; 531-534; 583-586; 2599 Children of God: CCC 1691-1695

Authors Alice Camille

Children stewards stewardship

Restricted
Exploring the word

30 Dec 2012 - Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, Cycle C

In miracle-birth stories we’re reminded that all babies are a gift from God. When a child arrives into our families, we talk about being blessed, but then we might promptly begin to act in ways that betray our unconscious belief that children are more like possessions. We name them, pay for them, raise them, and are in every way responsible for them. They “belong” to us; are they not ours? Actually, no. We can only be stewards of a blessing but never owners of it. Children, like your material resources and your life itself, are given to you for your prudent investment by One who expects a return on that investment one day. The best response to the gift of a child, Hebrew custom has it, is to present the child back to God as soon as possible. As the ceremony goes, so does the intention. Hannah does more than this, of course. In her case she made a vow to offer the child wholesale to God, and she does so, returning Samuel to the shrine where she once prayed for him. “Here!” she says to Eli the priest. “God heard my prayer for this child at your shrine. Now you raise him.” For Mary and Joseph, the presentation of Jesus was ceremonial and not so literal. They brought him to Jerusalem, Simeon blessed him, Anna prophesied about him—and then his parents took him home. After that, it’s unclear whether Jesus went up to Jerusalem again until the age of 12. His parents did, so maybe he went with them. Jerusalem is a long walk from Nazareth. It would have taken days, not a trip to be taken lightly. Perhaps they went only once a year, at Passover, when observant Jews gathered at the Temple. In Luke’s gospel, going up to Jerusalem is a signal. Luke’s story is directed to this one goal: To get the Word of God to the City of God. Luke starts at the Temple, with the story of Zechariah and the angel. Jesus is brought there by his parents, twice. This second time he chooses to remain there, to debate with the teachers. He will not return after this visit until his triumphant entry into the city in chapter 19. He will weep at the sight of Jerusalem—and then sweep into the Temple area and clean it out. After that he will promptly begin to debate the teachers again—this time, to the death. Mary and Joseph knew that their child did not belong to them but to God. They surrendered him three times in Jerusalem. When given up to God, family stewardship can reach its highest potential. Related scripture links Mary as role model of obedience: Luke 1:26-38 Joseph as role model for trust in God: Matt. 1:18-25; 2:13-15, 19-23 Be compassionate: Luke 6:36; see also Matt. 5:48 Other temple scenes in Luke: 1:5-25; 2:22-38; 4:9-12; 19:45-48; 20:1-21:38 Catechism links Hannah: CCC 2578 Jesus and his parents: CCC 471-474; 502-507; 531-534; 583-586; 2599 Children of God: CCC 1691-1695

Authors Alice Camille

Children stewards stewardship

Restricted
Exploring the word

09 Dec 2012 - Second Sunday of Advent, Cycle C

IN THE YEAR of President X, during the term of Governor Y, when Mr. Z was mayor, and Pope A was occupying the Chair of Peter, the world’s superpowers were currently B and C. In these involved and conflicted times (and, seriously, have there ever been times when nothing was at stake and no one was at war?) there came a person out of nowhere—say, a fellow from the southern desert—who claimed to have a word from heaven about all of this. This person traveled around a river that’s hardly more than a wide stream, shouting that people had to change their hearts, reform their ways, or be lost. All takers were rinsed off as a sign of their good intentions. Some agreed with this messenger. Most didn’t. Then our hero got a Very Powerful and Important Person very mad and was killed. End of story. Or maybe not. That is Luke’s story, and he’s the only evangelist who tells it quite this way. Luke paints the gospel on a canvas wide enough to encompass the world. He names all the VIP players of that generation and then zooms in for a close-up on a man who would occupy a corner of that grand drama for an absurdly short time. In terms of the Roman Empire, John the Baptist has a walk-on part. The contrast is deliberate. Luke is a master storyteller, and he’s writing his gospel for a wide world that will be delighted to hear that a cameo role in salvation history can be a game-changer. The season of planting is tough, as the psalmist tells us. It’s all hard work and no fruit to take home and eat or even to see and hope for. Your muscles ache, you get real dirty, and it goes on day after day, row after row, seed after seed, in maddening similarity. Hoping and waiting and seeing nothing for your efforts. John the Baptist sowed in tears. That was his task. He never got to carry in a single sheaf. But he did see a few shoots, and he did have reason to hope. One day he saw the Lamb of God walk by—he was sure of it—and the day came when Jesus presented himself for baptism, and signs manifested around him. And John heard reports of wonderful deeds. Before he died he asked that shoot of hope to identify himself, once and for all. A farmer on death row has a need to know if his hope is real. And all of this occurred on a tiny corner of the world stage, while no one was looking. Consider the possibilities in your corner! Related scripture links In spirit and in truth: John 4:23-24 Genealogies in the gospels: Matt. 1:1-17; Luke 3:23-38 Herod’s family in Luke-Acts: Luke 3:19-20; 9:7-9; 13:31-33; 23:6-16; Acts 4:27-28 Luke’s concern with the secular times: Luke 1:5; 2:1-2; 3:1-2; 13:1-5; 24:46-47 The old cannot fit into the new: Luke 5:33-39; 9:23-25, 59-62; 18:15-17 Catechism links The way prepared: CCC 522-524; 535; 608; 711-720

Authors Alice Camille

lamb of god Luke war

Restricted
Who's listening?

24 Oct 2010 - Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

When it comes to religion, righteousness presents both a goal and pitfall. Who is truly righteous? According to this week's scripture, those who humble themselves, serve God, and keep the faith. They will be exalted, their prayers will be heard, and the crown will be theirs. Those who account themselves righteous to begin with will find themselves learning a lesson in humility. Humility is the awareness of one's limitations and the capacity to submit oneself to others. In service to God and others, especially the poor and lowly whom God hears, listeners to scripture this weekend can find the way of humility to which God so richly responds.

Humility awareness

Restricted
Who's listening?

19 Sep 2010 - Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

No one in church this weekend can escape the need to earn and manage money. The issue scripture puts before us today is how we use it. Which master do we serve? Service requires a total commitment of ourselves, and we are free to direct our energies to whatever we choose. Do we devote ourselves to matters of money in such a way that it rules our lives, makes us exploiters of others, and gets between us and God? Or do we use our resources to lift up the needy--cleverly, if need be, like the steward in the gospel--not grasping money but letting it pass through our hands, which we keep open in prayer and service?

money stewardship Service

Restricted
The inner word

22 Aug 2010 - Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

Trials can be rich opportunities on our spiritual path if we see them as "discipline," that is, training in new ways of seeing and living. Can I name a recent trial that helped me be a better disciple? Ego lowering is a big part of spiritual development. Do I take trials and disappointments as wounds to the ego that I defend against, or as ways to lessen my ego and rely more on God? How so? The narrow way that Jesus points us to demands awareness and choice. It also demands patience with myself and with God. What in my behavior right now indicates I'm choosing the narrow way?

ego trial awareness

Restricted
The inner word

01 Aug 2010 - Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

Qoheleth moans that all of life's labors come to naught. What kind of reward do I expect for the work I do? When I feel my efforts are in vain, what beliefs about life shore me up? One of the fastest growing industries of the 1990s and into the new millennium is the self-storage business. People are, in essence, building bigger barns. In what ways am I storing up treasures that will not last? How is "putting on the new self" an antidote to both the cynicism of Qoheleth and the grasping of the farmer building bigger barns?

reward qoheleth

Restricted

← Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 21 22 Next →