“For whatever be the knowledge which
we are able to
obtain of God, either by
perception or reflection, we must of
necessity believe that He is by many
degrees far better than what we
perceive Him to be."
- Origen (Do you believe this? How might your understanding of God's goodness be too limited?)
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Jer 17:5-10; Ps 1:1-2, 3, 4 and 6
Lk 16:19-31
Jesus said to the Pharisees:
"There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen
and dined sumptuously each day.
And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores,
who would gladly have eaten his fill of the
scraps
that fell from the rich man's table.
Dogs even used to come and lick his sores.
When the poor man died,
he was carried away by angels to the bosom of
Abraham.
The rich man also died and was buried,
and from the netherworld, where he was in torment,
he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off
and Lazarus at his
side.
And he cried out, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me.
Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue,
for I am suffering torment in these flames.'
Abraham replied, 'My child,
remember that you received what was good during your lifetime
while Lazarus likewise received what was bad;
but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented.
Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established
to prevent anyone from crossing
who might wish to go from our side to yours
or from your side to ours.'
He said, 'Then I beg you, father, send him
to my father's house,
for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them,
lest they too come to this place of torment.'
But Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the prophets.
Let them listen to them.'
He said, 'Oh no, father Abraham,
but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.'
Then Abraham said,
'If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets,
neither will they be persuaded
if someone should rise from the
dead.'"
Christianity and Spirituality monthly forum March 7, 2024, 7:30 - 8:30 p.m. CST Topic: "The Four Biases," by Sr. Carla Mae Streeter, OP More info via the link below
Free sign up for Zoom link
Reflection on the Scriptures
Every time I heard today’s gospel as a child, it was crystal clear who the good and bad guys were. It was easy to judge the rich man for his callousness to someone so
desperately in need. It made me feel superior and smug in my belief that I would never be like that ‘rich man’. It was so tidy .
However, as adults we know Jesus’ parables are not so tidy. Jesus is using Lazarus and the rich man to challenge us to see and hear who we are failing to see and hear in our own lives. Who am I missing? What can’t I hear?
Given the chaos in our world that is constantly creating so many more “Lazaruses”, how can I even see them all? How can I respond to such pain and overwhelming suffering?
The short answer is that I can’t, none of us can. But I can see the “Lazaruses” in my neighborhood. I can also join with others who are trying to reduce some aspect of human misery. For
example, many people in Nebraska petitioned and wrote letters to our Governor to change his mind about accepting federal aid to feed children this summer. He finally relented and agreed to accept this funding. Will there still be hungry children in Nebraska this summer? Yes, but thanks to the people who saw and heard and acted on this issue, there won’t be as many.
We can’t end all suffering, but we are all called to do something.
-by Julie Kalkowski
St. John of the Cross and the Beginning of Contemplation
by James Arraj From St. John of the Cross and Dr. C. J. Jung, Part II, Chapter 4. Inner Growth Books, 1986.
Three Difficult Texts
There are three passages that at first glance seem to imply that St. John recognized an acquired contemplation. The first in the Dark Night deals with the way people are to
conduct themselves in the dark night of sense and remain peaceful, even though it seems to them they are doing nothing: "What they must do is merely to leave the soul free and disencumbered and at rest from all knowledge and thought, troubling not themselves, in that state, about what they shall think or meditate upon, but contenting themselves with merely a
peaceful and loving attentiveness toward God, and in being without anxiety, without the ability and without desire to have experience of Him or to perceive Him."(46) Isn't this an excellent summary of a state of prayer in which there is no experience, and the person praying takes up an attitude of loving
attentiveness towards God? First of all, the phrase "to have experience of Him or to perceive Him" translates the original "sin gana de gustarle o de sentirle", which is literally "without the desire to taste or feel Him", which is how the Kavanaugh and Rodriguez translation puts it. What is at stake is not having no desire for any sort of perception or experience, but rather, St. John's often repeated advice that the particular kind of knowledge coming through the faculties hinder the reception
of infused contemplation, and it is a question of the actual reception of contemplation, for St. John concludes this passage by saying, "All these desires disquiet the soul and distract it from the peaceful quiet and sweet idleness of the contemplation which is being communicated to it."(47)
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