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By 'coming to terms with life' I mean: the reality of death has become a definite part of my life; my life has, so to speak, been extended by death, by my looking death in the eye and accepting it, by accepting destruction as part of life and no longer wasting my energies on fear of death or the refusal to acknowledge its inevitability. It sounds paradoxical: by excluding death from our life we cannot
live a full life, and by admitting death into our life we enlarge and enrich it.
- Etty Hillesum
(Take time each day to "make friends" with death -- your own and that of loved ones. Death belongs to Christ, and cannot separate us from Him.) |
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2 Cor 9:6-11; Ps 112:1bc-2, 3-4,
9 Mt 6:1-6, 16-18 Jesus said to his disciples:
"Take care not to perform righteous deeds
in order that people may see them;
otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.
When you give alms, do not blow a trumpet before you,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets
to win the praise
of others.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you give alms,
do not let your left hand know what your right is doing,
so that your almsgiving may be
secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you. "When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites,
who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners
so that others may see them.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door,
and pray to your Father in secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you. "When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.
They neglect their appearance,
so that they may appear to others to be fasting.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face,
so that you may not appear to others to be fasting,
except to your Father who is
hidden.
And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay
you." USCCB lectionary
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Reflection on the Scripture |
“He dawns through the darkness, a light for the upright.” —Psalm
112:4
In many aspects of our lives, we have various zones. For example, we all have comfort zones in work, relationships, prayer, study, service, etc. In our comfort zones, we are relaxing and probably enjoying ourselves.
If we, because of love or some other reason, cross the boundary of our comfort zone, we enter into a
discomfort zone. In this zone, we are struggling and suffering (see 1 Pt 4:19). In this zone, we find both the danger of burnout and the opportunity for significant growth in holiness as our faculties are challenged and exercised vigorously.
If we proceed further in love and cross the boundary of the discomfort zone, we enter a new, mysterious zone which is difficult to name. It is a zone of mystery and of the
paradox of indescribable joy combined with crucified love. In this zone, we are living, giving, praying and fasting “on the edge.” We are secretly extending ourselves more than ever before, and our Father Who sees in secret will repay us (Mt 6:4, 6, 18). This is the zone of agonizing temptations and Paschal victory.
Cross the border into a zone of greater love.
Prayer: Father, may I accept that my life is zoned for the cross. Promise: “He Who supplies seed for the sower and bread for the eater will provide in abundance; He will multiply the seed you sow and increase your generous yield.” —2 Cor
9:10 Presentation Ministries
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-Readings from Jesus Alive in Our Lives, by Philip St. Romain. Ave Maria Press, 1985. Contemplative Ministries, Inc. 2011. Part One, Chapter 6: Meaning in Life and History - Selected
quotes Because of the resurrection, Christians believe that the ultimate victory of the reign of God is guaranteed. The enemies of God’s reign failed to thwart the designs of God when they crucified Jesus; the cornerstone that Jesus laid in human history will, therefore, withstand the tempests of time. Furthermore, the Church stands on the promise of Jesus that the Holy Spirit
will lead it into the fullness of truth, and that the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Real progress for goodness and truth is assured, and this is the basis of our hope for the future.
This understanding of the reign of God is attractive in principle, but is there really any evidence that the world is moving toward greater justice, peace and prosperity? With nuclear weapons
incubating in silos, with holocausts and genocide still fresh in our memories, with terrorism plaguing various countries and with gross violations of human rights taking place in many places, where, might we ask, is the evidence for real progress toward goodness in the world?
The kind of objection raised above fails to consider the basis for Christian hope and optimism. Christianity
is the religion of the individual, albeit in a community context. Christians recognize the fact that individuals can and do change (if they want to), becoming more loving and less destructive influences in society. And what, after all, are societies if not collections of individuals? If individuals can change, societies can change. That there is still blatant evidence of evil in the world is obvious, but centuries of laziness and malice cannot be leavened out quickly.
Social structures must change to make way for the new wine of spiritual freedom given to us by the Holy Spirit, and structures do not change easily.
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