BABBLING LIKE THE PAGANS?

 

I wonder what Jesus means here by “babbling like the pagans.” Yes, Jesus is talking about prayer and how He wants His disciples to pray, but why bring up the pagans? Perhaps there was a new trend of prayer at the time in Israel that took something from the pagan religions that Jesus did not like? We will probably never know the answer to this question and so we will be left to guess at its meaning.

Christianity is a religion that respects the intellect of the individual so maybe the phrase “babbling like the pagans” is a reference to some religions where there is little respect for the intellect and people are confined to rote prayers and practices that make little sense. The focal point of Christianity is really obedience to God’s will as our response to the offer of salvation and this has little to do with the multiplication of words at prayer. It is far better to spend one’s time of worship and prayer listening to the Holy Spirit as He leads and guides us in the ways of God. There is an old adage that speaks of the need to listen twice as long as we speak because we have two ears and only one mouth.

Jesus then provides His disciples with a very simple prayer that covers the whole gamut of the life of faith. I think Jesus wants us to go straight to the point when we pray and not waste time “beating around the bush.” Far better to say what one wants to say to God up front than babble on for hours before getting to the point of the process. Also, there is no point in trying to hide something from God with a multitude of unnecessary words when a few will do. Like any listener, God will be appreciative of the person who clearly and concisely places their petitions and concerns before Him.

Jesus’ prayers to His Father are always straight to the point and without unnecessary additions. Let us follow His example and use the time we will save for better and more productive causes. Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

 

Reflection Question:

What is my prayer like? Do I ramble on and tend towards verbosity or do I have a good balance of clear and concise prayers and time to listen to God’s Word for my life?

 

Father, I know You will appreciate it if I keep my prayers clear and concise. Help me with the grace of the Spirit to grow in my ability to do this.

 

St. Leocrita, pray for us.

THE HOLINESS CODE

 

The 19th chapter of Leviticus outlines the Jewish Holiness Code, the heart of their understanding of what living a righteous life means and the more important prescriptions of the Law following from the Mosaic Code of the Ten Commandments. A good Jew is expected to abide by them all insofar as they are relevant to his situation.

The existence of a holiness code early on in the lives of the Jewish people indicates a long tradition of recognizing the need to live a holy life. It is not enough to simply declare that “we are God’s People,” or “we are saved by the death and resurrection of Jesus” in the case of Christians. There is far more to a life of faith than what God has done, is doing and will do for us. This point is often the launching pad for the difference between Protestant and Catholic theology on the nature of salvation and how it is gained.

By the late Middle Ages, the Catholic Church’s theology and practice had become corrupted by its association with the ruling classes of Europe. It would be true to say that virtually anything and everything could be bought for a price if you knew the right people and had enough money. This is a generalization as there were still some who resisted such corruption but it was the prevalence of all sorts of corruption that gave the initial impetus to the reform-minded Luther. His campaign for reform of the Church was well-intentioned at the start; it just became somewhat derailed towards the middle and end when he met resistance from Church authorities to his proposed reforms and also became radicalized by this experience and some of his colleagues.

Protestant theology tends to find little or no place for good works due to its emphasis on faith as the means to salvation. They failed to take into account that good works are a part of faith, maybe not the justifying part, but certainly in the way faith is expressed within and beyond the wider community of the faithful. Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

 

Reflection Question:

How serious am I about seeking to grow in holiness? Am I willing to do what is necessary to achieve holiness in my life?

 

Father in heaven, help me to see that the call of holiness is central to my life and that without making the effort to grow in holiness, grace will be lost to me.

FIGURES OF THE NEW TESTAMENT IN THE OLD

 

One of the ways that we understand the people and happenings in the New Testament is to relate them to similar figures and happenings in the Old Testament. This works because there have been hundreds of years of reflection upon the Old Testament that can help us to understand what people were expecting in a Messiah and what the nature of the mission of the Messiah would be. Of course, there is not a perfect match in any of these because when we are dealing with the Old Testament there is no way it can fully comprehend the divine aspect of Jesus’ life and mission.

Paul presents Christ to us as the New Adam. Immediately we know that at least a part of his thinking here is that Christ inaugurates a New Creation in His mission that is built on faith and not just material matter. Paul’s understanding of Christ’s relationship with Original Sin is also represented here when he says that Christ is the antidote to the sin of Adam; Christ brings forgiveness and righteousness with His obedience to the Father’s will, whereas Adam brought sin and destruction upon himself and the whole of Creation when he entered into rebellion against God’s will and sinned.

          He is not blaming Adam for Original Sin anymore than He blames any of us for being complicit with the sin of Adam through our own personal sin. We have to be careful how far we carry any analogy or we could overdo it and get the emphasis wrong.

All through the New Testament writings, we will find allusions and references to people in the Old Testament accompanying the suggestion that we try to understand a situation through looking at the life and times of that person and trying to translate them into the present. This is called typology where we say, for example, Adam is a “type” of Christ in this or that way. It is never a case that someone is a “type” of someone else in a complete way.Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

 

Reflection Question:

How much of the Old Testament am I familiar with? Do I read it much? Maybe I should take some time to acquaint myself with more than just the popular stories of the Old Testament.

 

Jesus, help me to open my heart and mind to the guidance of the Holy Spirit so that He can teach me all of the lessons He wants me to learn as I read Your Holy word.

 

St. Ramirus and Companions, pray for us.

ASSOCIATING WITH OUTCASTS AND THE POOR

Jesus did not hesitate in associating with the lowly and those whom society and the religious leadership had rejected. How well do we follow Jesus’ example? It is rarely easy to go against the trend in society, but generally speaking, in matters regarding the poor and the outcast, this would seem to be the Christian’s duty. If we go back a few centuries in European history we will discover that the Church did the vast majority of social service welfare. Even today it is not much different in many countries. I know, for example, that more than 90 percent of palliative care is provided through Catholic institutions, as are about 30 percent of the hospital beds and schools. If the Catholic Church was to forego its ministry in these situations, the cost for the government of Australia would be enormous. This is one of the reasons why the government is willing to subsidize these Catholic social works.

But what about each of us as individuals? How are we reaching out to those less fortunate than we are? How are we drawing the outcasts back into our society so that they can be cared for? These are questions we each have to answer, challenges that we each have to face.

There is a strong tradition in Catholic thought that it is the poor who will welcome the rich into heaven. If this is the case, and it is definitely true in spirit if not in reality, then one of the priorities of the rich must be to cultivate good relationships with the poor. The parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus ought to be required material for reflection for everyone so that we can understand the imperative nature of this calling. We only get one chance at life, so we had better make the best of it.

The saints give witness to the multitude of ways in which we can place our lives in the service of our brothers and sisters. Let us study their lives and motives and learn from them as we seek to put in place the right balance of activities in our lives.Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

 

Reflection Question:

How can I better reach out to those in need in my neighborhood? I know I cannot solve all the problems of all the people but I think I can help with some of them.

 

Father, give me the strength to incorporate in my life all the different aspects of a healthy and wholesome spirituality that will serve those who most need my help.

 

St. Bernard of Carinola, pray for us.

ON ASCETICAL PRACTICES

The question of asceticism is one that perplexes a modern world that is fixated on pleasure. Why on earth would anyone choose to freely embrace pain for no immediate and tangible reward? Yet, there is a history of ascetical practices in the Church that demonstrates otherwise. Jesus hints at this when He affirms that there will be a time for fasting when the bridegroom has been taken from them.

It is probably true that, to a certain degree, ascetical practices, and especially those that cause physical pain to one’s body, find their roots in the Manichaean belief that the physical body needs to be beaten into submission and that the spirit of a person is all that counts. The challenge of the Church is to teach against such error and try to remove it as a motive for any ascetical practice.

This causes me to ask myself what role asceticism plays in my life. Do I want it to have a role? The answer to the first question is, not a big enough role, and to the second, yes. Why? I have read enough of the lives of the saints to realize that there is a valid role for ascetical practices in the life of a Christian. We rarely question the sacrifices and ascetical practices of athletes, so why do we have such a problem when the saints employ such means to draw hemselves closer to God? There is an obvious double standard here and it is time to put an end to it.

Of course, any such practices must be used with moderation and due care for one’s body and general health. The Church teaches that any ascetical practices, particularly corporal ones, ought to be undertaken only with the supervision of one’s spiritual director. This will help guard against abuse and also keep in mind the overall health of the individual concerned.

Ascetical practices heighten one’s spiritual awareness as they teach us that our bodies are not in control of our choices — our minds are. Let us seek the mind of God on this matter and seek to follow His lead.Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

 

Reflection Question:

What place do I want asceticism to have in my spiritual life? Surely fasting is a possibility once in a while?

 

Father in heaven, You have given me a body with which to engage the world. Help me to respect it and keep its passions under control.

 

St. Amunia, pray for us.

PROSPERITY OR DISASTER: YOUR CHOICE?

Like so many things in life, both prosperity and disaster rest to a large degree upon the choices we make. No one becomes wealthy by complaining of their plight and doing nothing. There are a multitude of rags to riches stories of people who refused to accept the fact that having been born poor, they were destined to remain poor. I am not saying that all who are poor are destined to become rich. This simply will not happen. Jesus Himself tells us that we will always have the poor with us. At the same time, the rich cannot simply ignore the plight of the poor with the attitude that it is the latter’s fault or that it is their destiny to be poor.

It is the choices we make in life that will determine, first, our attitude towards poverty and wealth, and second, our capacity to improve our own economic situation. It will not be without hard work or a brilliant idea, but mostly the former.

The other aspect of this question is the relation of wealth and poverty to the gift of eternal life. Jesus clearly implies that it is easier for the poor to enter heaven in His teaching about wealth where He states that it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter heaven. Should we then desire to be rich? Well, it is up to you. What Jesus reminds us is that there are far more pitfalls when we are wealthy than if we are not as wealthy. Of course, there is probably a sensible middle road where we have sufficient for a reasonably comfortable life but not so much that the responsibility of riches weighs so heavily upon us. However, there are very few people I know who are satisfied with the wealth they have — there always seems to be a desire for a little bit more and more.

All in all, we should aspire to lift ourselves from poverty if that is our situation. Conversely, the rich have a responsibility to do what they can for the poor. If they fail in this they will not enter heaven. Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

 

Reflection Question:

What is my attitude towards wealth and riches? Do I have a good and balanced attitude or does my attitude need some work?

 

Father, You will judge harshly those who do not share their wealth with the needy. I pray that all people learn to share better all they have with another.

 

St. Sedna, pray for us.

BEING AMBASSADORS FOR GOD

It is a tremendous honor to be appointed as an ambassador of your nation to another country. How much more should we treasure our role as ambassadors for Christ? Admittedly, when we are ambassadors for Christ we do not get the perks that go with the job for our nation, but we do get to know that we are well and truly firming up our entry into the gift of eternal life. The earthly perks and privileges may be nice, but nothing is worth more than eternal life.

St. Paul reminds the Corinthian community of their duty to be ambassadors for Christ emphasizing that God speaks through our lives to the rest of the world. We carry within our own bodies, and within the life of our Christian communities,

a tremendous truth and blessing —the death of Christ that brings  us salvation through the forgiveness of our sins (cf. 2 Corinthians 4:7ff). It is this truth, the Gospel of salvation, to which we are called as ambassadors. Let us seek to acquit ourselves in this role as well as we possibly can.

It is as though God is appealing through us because we can interpret this in at least two very different ways. The first is that God is speaking from within us in the spirit of Galatians 2:20 where Paul tells us that it is no longer he that lives but Christ who lives within him. The second is that it is through the general witness of our lives as both individuals and the Christian community that the Gospel goes forth into the world. Either way, it is a privilege to be involved. That there are at least two interpretations indicates the flexibility of the Gospel and the variety of ways in which we can fulfill our roles as ambassadors of Christ.

However we want to interpret it, let us be mindful of our role as ambassadors and allow the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us along this path.Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

Reflection Question:

How do I understand my role as an ambassador for Christ? Is there anything more I could do to fulfill it more than I have in the past?

Jesus, help me to be faithful to my Christian calling so that my life will truly shine forth the message of the Gospel for all to see.

St. Anthony, pray for us.