Prepare the Way

You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High;

for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,

to give his people knowledge of salvation

by the forgiveness of their sins.

Canticle of Zechariah

Today is the feast of St. John the Baptist. We are reminded of him every time we say morning prayer and pray the Canticle of Zechariah.

“You, my child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way.” 

It seems sad that John, who is called for such great things has a life that is cut so short. He is known for eating honey and locusts.  We are first introduced to John when we hear the story of Mary and Elizabeth and this prophet is so key in the coming of Jesus he is destine even in the stars!

One fascinating fact about John the Baptist is his feast of his birthday.

 In the Churchs’ wisdom, the feast of the birth of St. John the Baptist falls near the summer solstice, that is when the tilt of the earth marks the longest day of the year.  In contrast, the birth of Christ falls near the winter solstice – marking the shortest day of the year. 

After the summer solstice the days get shorter.  The long sunny days start going away,

that is until the winter solstice.  After the shortest or darkest day of the year, finally our days start get longer again.

He must increase; I must decrease. John 3:30

It seems the heavens even knew of the place John had in the coming of Christ. 

I have been hanging out in church circles for some time now and learning about the faith. Others occasionally come to me and ask me questions about the church or their faith journey.  I love interacting with people and it is a privilege to chat about our faith and I feel especially privileged when people share with me about their own spirituality or prayer life. I often say people are more likely to share about their sex life than their prayer life. It is or can be such an intimate thing. 

Being asked my opinion or being sought after can boost my ego and I need to always remember – “It is not about me.”  Humility and remembering that my job in these situations is always to point to Jesus.  Like John the Baptist, I need to decrease so that He may increase.

I do have one caveat in this lesson of humility though.  Humility does not mean that we think less of ourselves. John the Baptist was sure of himself and in who he was and what his mission was. To prepare the way of the Lord.  No easy task. Humility is not that you think less of yourself – It means to think of yourself less.

To me – John the Baptist is a great example of humility and of doing God's work.  I will strive to point the way to Christ. (I just hope my head never is served on a silver platter!)

How are you called to prepare the way of the Lord? What are your gifts to bring?  How do you view humility? Do you think less of yourself or of yourself – less? 

Easter Alleluias from the Mouths of Babes

When I wrote about my Triduum reflection five years ago, I spoke about Easter Vigil and the unexpected death of my Father -in -law. This year we missed the Easter Vigil and went instead to an early morning Easter Mass.

The Vigil is filled with mystery and light and darkness and new Catholics coming into the church. It is a beautiful experience and if you have never attended a Vigil – you should!  The Easter Morning Mass however seemed to bring a different sense of hope.

As we drove to Mass both my husband and I reflected on the five years without his Dad and the upcoming one year anniversary of his Mother’s passing.

The Easter Sequence brought me words to ponder about life and death as the choir sang:

Death and life fought bitterly for this wonderous victory.

The Lord of Life now reigns on high. Alleluia!

But the greatest sign of love, life and hope that I heard at Mass was not from the priest or the Choir.  The parish was full of families with children dressed in their Easter best. A baby in front of me cooed and as if on cue a child from across the sanctuary babbled.  Soon it seemed to be a choir of babies cooing, babbling and singing from all corners of the church (and not a one of them crying).

Really, it was like one babe calling out to another and they were singing praises to God!

O LORD, our Lord,

how awesome is your name through all the earth!

I will sing of your majesty above the heavens

with the mouths of babes and infants.

Psalm 8:2-3

The only time I did not hear these children was when the choir sang the Hallelujah chorus  from Handel’s Messiah.  I am not sure which was more beautiful.

The sounds of these children made me smile and helped me remember that Easter is about new life no matter our age and we get to be born into the newness every Easter and every day.

That is the Easter story and we are Easter people!

Alleluia! Alleluia!

Good Friday and the Cross

This year I am trying to write about my Triduum experience in comparison from  when I wrote about it five years ago.
Each year the Triduum is the same but we experience it differently.
I have started the habit of  slowly meditated the stations of the cross using ‘A Walk of Mercy – The Divine Mercy Stations of the Cross.’  Saying the stations slowly has become a yearly tradition for me since discovering this version a few years ago. Each year, it seems a different station affects me. Initially it was the station where Jesus meets the women, this year it is the second station where Jesus takes up His cross.  The meditation that accompanies this station is from St. Ignatius.

Take, O Lord, and receive my entire liberty,
my memory, my understanding and my whole will.
All that I am and all that I possess you have given me:
I surrender it all to you
to be disposed of according to your will.
Give me only your love and your grace;
with these I will be rich enough,
And will desire nothing more.

I can’t seem to pray that prayer and really mean it.  Take my memory and my whole will?  Yikes!  Nope,  I can't really mean that one.  How does taking up my cross mean I need to surrender.  I am Minnesota tough and I thought I need to tough things out to carry my cross.  I thought to “offer it up” meant to  be quiet and quit complaining.
This year as I celebrated the Passion Service I was struck by the immensity of the cross that was carried in for veneration. Five big adult men (and one was a retired professional football player) struggled to carry the huge cross into the church. Not one of these men could have handled the cross alone.
I watched as people I knew came forward to venerate the cross. Families who had lost their children at too young of an age, cancer survivors,  a couple struggling with infertility, a widower, a divorcee, a woman who placed her child for adoption, those struggling with aging parents and those with outward frailties with walkers and canes, each stepped up to embrace this huge cross.  Not a one of them could have budged the huge thing alone, yet alone carry it. I thought about my own crosses I have had to carry in my life; the loss of a son and sister as well as parents and in-laws, various work difficulties and financial setbacks, betrayals and deep misunderstandings as well healing in parts of myself that I continue to struggle with.
As I reflected on these struggles I realized that I was only able to truly heal when I quit carrying my cross alone.  It was when I allowed others to help me and ultimately when I surrendered the cross to Christ that I experienced healing.

I surrender it all to you...

I still have a long way to go in surrendering but Jesus, I trust in you may need to be my mantra for a very long time.

Holy Thursday: The Lace Tablecloth

I went to Holy Thursday Mass last night. I almost didn't go.  Things have changed from 5 years ago when I wrote the post below.   I have lost some people in my life and I thought it might be too sad.  I went and sat with a friend who I unexpectedly saw there. It was fine. It actually ran through my head that..."this is fine... nothing special, but fine."

Then when the came out to "dress" the altar I noticed that the linen was a tablecloth that once belonged to Mary Varley. Mary was an older woman form my parish that showed me such great faith.  I used to do all of the "decorating' at the church and she would dutifully bring this tablecloth to the parish every Holy Thursday and she (only she) would then wash it and iron it. She lovingly shared her time and reverently shared this bit of herself with the church. She taught me many things through these actions. She passed away quite a few years ago now.

I met her for tea one time and asked her about her prayer life.  She told me to talk to Jesus like a friend, like you would talk to someone over a cup of tea.

When I saw the table cloth, I started to cry a little.  I realised that she was there. I realised that all of the people I loved and missed were right there at the Mass with me.  Some of the people I was missing had moved away but I knew they were celebrating this same Mass but in their new parishes. Some of the people I was missing have died.

That lace tablecloth reminded me that...
All the people I love are with me in the Mass.

Every year the Triduum is the same but it is always different because we are different.
Last night I learned that "The Eucharist is the sacrament of love. It signifies love. It produces love." (A quote from Thomas Aquinas)

Below is a post from 5 years ago but I think I will repost the Triduum series I wrote five years ago again this year with new insights from today.

Reflections on the Triduum - Holy Thursday
/http://catholichotdish.com/general/reflections-on-the-triduum-holy-thursday/

Bullies on the Playground

Today’s first reading has all the trappings of an excellent Cecil B. Demille movie… Complete with Charlton Hesston cast in a leading role!  We have the three followers of the true God; Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and

 they will not serve the God of King Nebuchadnezzar.  (Daniel 3:14-20) The names in themselves cause me to never volunteer to be a lector at a Mass with this reading.  In fact, I know a priest who frequently, and lovingly in an effort to remember the pronunciation, refers to Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego as Me-shack, You-shack and the Bungalow!

The names and setting may harken to an ancient time but the story could be placed into my life today. The golden statue that the faithful three are asked to worship can be likened to other idols in modern times. For many, it can be the idolization of money, power or status, but when I read this today the idol took on a different form. 

The faithful three are infused with the love of God and the truth of who they are as children of God.  With that knowledge and love, they can endure anything. The idol that I find that others want me to worship today is not made of gold or shaped like a calf, it is the idol of self-doubt and denying my own self-worth.  King Nebuchadnezzar is like a bully wanting the three to believe the lie.

I find even today as a woman well into my fifties, people around me who are no different than the bullies on the playground or the King on his thrown. Others around us want us to believe the lie that we are not good enough or force us to be under their power.  Thankfully we have the truth. Thankfully we have the Holy Spirit who dances in the flames and the fire with us to remind us of who we are. 

I am a child of God. I am a woman of faith. God is real and He knows me and loves me.

It saddens me to think that I sometimes loose that faith and believe the lie.  It is only when I walk with Christ and remain in that relationship with the Son of God that I am free from the lie.

"If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples,
and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." John 8:31-32

Only daily prayer and daily scripture keeps me in relationship with Him. My daily prayer is like the angel of the Lord in the fire with Me-shack, You-shack and the Bungalow or the friend who defends me against the bully on the playground.  I can’t do it without Christ but with Christ at my side I can be set free.

What lies do you believe?

What bullies do you face?

Imagine Christ at your side on the playground of life to defend you.  Believe the truth.