Lent #37 - Covenants

A covenant is a written agreement or promise - usually under seal - between two or more parties especially for the performance of some action.  In today's Scriptures - God makes a covenant with Abram - in which He changes Abram's name to Abraham - informs him that he is to be the - Father of all nations - (Genesis 17:3-9) - basically - "I will be Your God - you will be my people."   A covenant that will be perpetual through all eternity. In the Bible there are five covenants - the Noahic Covenant - the Abrahamic Covenant - the Mosaic Covenant - the Davidic Covenant - the New Covenant.  All agreements between God and various people throughout time.  Each one - to be honored specifically with God.  Even in this day - covenants are made - legal agreements between parties for numerous things -  very often involving business - financial transactions.

When Jesus declared to His disciples that - I AM - He revealed His Divinity - the Fact that He is God - in Human form. The promise He made with Moses - King David - Noah - Abraham - just like the one He has made with You - Me.  When we were baptized - anointed with Chrism - received Holy Communion  - each of us said - Yes - to God.  You will be My God - I will be your disciple.  As we reflect this Lent on our relationship with Him - we need to take time to ask ourselves - How well am I honoring My covenant with Him.

Deacon Dale 

Lent #36 - The Depth of Love

Love is an emotion - a feeling for many things - people - pets - possessions - homes - jewelry - sports - food - almost anything that one likes very much - often declared as loved. We tend to categorize these things into good - bad - acceptable - not acceptable and in each of  these categories - levels  of how much we like - dislike them.  For some things that we like very much - we declare our love for them.  In regards to people - we treat differently - different levels of being liked - disliked.  Before we can state our love for any individual - we process that information in a different way and when we finally decide to declare our love for another person - it becomes a matter not of emotion - rather an intentional decision to love them.  When we declare our love for a person - we state our love knowing full well their flaws.

When God created the world and all that is in it - He saw that it was good. He did not say he loved the things He made - in the instance of mankind - took a different turn - for people He stated His love. Love that knows no limits - no boundaries - always accepting - forgiving - a love that only God can possess - known as agape love - a love unknown by humans. That is the love that Jesus had for mankind - still has for each of us. For Jesus - God His Father - the depth of how deeply they love us - completely unknown by humans - a love that we will never posses. It is because of that agape love - Jesus could look down from the Cross - forgive them for what the were dong to Him. In Romans 5:7 we read "Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person - though perhaps for a good person one might even find courage to die".  Even as He was dying on the Cross - the last drops of blood flowing from His body - Jesus loved all of us - even those who rejected Him - even those who tortured Him - to a depth that we cannot imagine - He loved all - very deeply.  Coming towards the end of Lent - in our prayers - thoughts - a good idea for us to consider how much God loves us - wants us to be close to Him - wants us to cast aside our petty issues and love others as deeply as He  loves us.  With Jesus at your side - you can  do this.

Deacon Dale 

Lent #35 - Who Pays The Price

The price of sin - in Jesus' time - stoned to death - today - honest admission of guilt - confession - absolution.  Happily we have moved from stoning to - conversion - conversation - repentance - forgiveness.  If we follow the example set by Jesus we practice acceptance - compassion.  Nobody is perfect - all of us have done - will do things that we are not - will not be proud of.  When we sin there is a price to be paid. 

Jesus knew what the future held for Him - scourging - stripping - nailed to the Cross - not for what He had done - rather for what mankind had done since the beginning of time - what you and I have done in our lifetimes - what we will do in the future.  It is an inherent weakness in all of us - we cannot - will not be prefect - ever.  No matter how hard we try - we will mess up.  Luckily most of what we do wrong will be minor - not necessarily sinful - on some occasions - much worse. Looking down from the Cross - nails in His hands - feet - blood dripping from HIs body - He will look down at us - Father Forgive Them - those upon whom my eyes look at - For They Know Not What They Do.  Then in one final breath - Jesus dies - for you - for me - price of sin - Paid in Full.  By His Blood - we have been redeemed.  His Blood - not ours.  For our sins - not His.  Pray on that this Lent.  

Deacon Dale 

Lent #34 - The Price of Sin

In today's morning scriptures we hear of two instances of women who were accused of adultery - one falsely - the second - justified.   The remedy - stoning to death.  In the first case a false accusation by two men who eventually were proven to have told a false account.  In the case in the Gospel a woman who definitely was guilty - brought before Jesus for judgement.  His response - sure go ahead stone her - let anyone who is without sin cast the first stone.  All walked away - everyone a sinner. Before anyone could suffer death by stoning - first had to be brought to judgement.

Unfortunately too many people are very willing to judge others - often without complete information - jumping to conclusions.  As we reflect on our own lives - our own sins that we have committed - the things we have failed to do - the sin of omission - all have sinned in the eyes of God.  Jesus the only one who never sinned - the rest of us - guilty as charged.  The hardest sin to avoid - unjustly judging others - need to quit that - accept others in the spirit of love - forgiveness.  Offer your prayers to God - in the name of Jesus - Father forgive us - we know not what we do.

Deacon Dale 

Lent #33 - New Life

 Today - the Fifth Sunday of Lent - the third Scrutiny of the Catechumens -  Scriptures focus on resurrection - New Life.  The Gospel very clearly shares with us how Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead.  Just as He gave New Life to his friend - offers us the same.  Today marks the end of the Scunities for those preparing to enter the Church at the Easter Vigil.  In the past three weeks the scriptures have been focusing on the three elements of baptism - water - light - new life.  For those entering the Church - very special liturgies - for those of us - baptized many years ago - those baptized as infants - a chance to journey with the Catechumens - re-live that special moment in our own life.

In the Scriptures - daily - at every Holy Mass - we are offered New Life in Christ.  For those not in a state of grace - opportunity in confession to make things right -  to start lives freshly.  There is no magic - no special requirements - a repentant heart - commitment to leave the past behind.  Each of us is a work in progress - God working in our lives - molding us according to His plan - if we listen to Him - do as He asks.  Jesus always at our side offering His help along the way.  Palm Sunday - Holy Week - only one week away - time to still do what is necessary to prepare ourselves to be ready to celebrate the Easter Mystery.

Deacon Dale 

Lent #32 - God Is With Us

Today the Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Annunciation - the Scriptures contain a wealth of thoughts to contemplate during Lent. Considering that the Scriptures sound more like Christmas - all three readings contain words that fit in perfectly as we look for thoughts to meditate upon - on Scriptures that will help us draw closer to God - Jesus - the reason He became human to share our life experiences. In the first reading from Isaiah the Lord told Ahaz to ask for anything - His response - No - did not want to be guilty of tempting God - God responded - OK - here is the deal -  the virgin will bear a child and name him Emmanuel - which means God is with us.  WOW - That is one Scripture that really hits one heavily.  I want to know more about you God - BAM - you are going to come as a human! Really!  In the second reading from Hebrews we are told that it is impossible for the blood from bulls - goats to  take away sins.  So - God sends the Christ - His Son - His blood will do what could not be done with sacrificial animals. Again - WOW - human blood - a human becoming the Sacrifice! In the Gospel from Luke we read about the Angel appearing to a young girl - a girl so young that in our country she would not be able to drive a vehicle - not be able to vote - not be able to legally get married - here she is being asked to bear the Christ child - the future Savior of the World.  Her response - YES - let it be done to me as the Lord asks.  She could have said no - nope - she gave her approval - her YES.  These three thoughts will fill the mind of anyone and give you enough to meditate on for the remainder of Lent. 

Just writing this makes me think - who am I that God cares for me - that Jesus was willing to die for me - what have I done to receive this offer of New Life.  Everyone should have the same thoughts - just who am I - WHY?  Honestly - I could spend the rest of my life - asking those questions - day after day.  When did I say my YES - when did I choose NO instead.  What have I done as God asked - when did I close my eyes - go the other way. I am nobody - yet in God's eyes - I am somebody.  Meditate on that.

Deacon Dale 

Lent #31 - Magic Beads

It is interesting when discussing different prayer forms with Christians who are not Catholic when the conversation turns to Catholics and their - Magic Beads - otherwise known as - the Rosary.  Even though most faiths have prayers that involve some repetition - memorized words - chants - the rosary as a tool for prayer - seems to confuse some Catholics - majority of non Catholics.  Often it is hard to explain to others - without showing them - how to use  the rosary - letting them physically hold a rosary in their hands - saying prayers along with them.  Besides the official prayers of Mary's Rosary - chaplets - other short repetitive prayers prayed using the beads to help one keep track of where they are in the different sequences. Once properly explained - once personally experienced - many non Catholic develop an understanding - comfort using rosaries in their own prayer life.  A few become so comfortable that as non Catholics -  praying Mary's rosary becomes a daily practice. 

Getty Images Praying the Rosary 

When Jesus was asked to teach His disciples how to pray - the Lord's Prayer was the first.  Eventually - in addition to spontaneous - free form prayer - other prayers developed over the years.  Today the different forms - prayer styles - have developed so much - hard to keep track of all of them.  There are no bad - wrong - prayers - as long they are spoken to Our Lord - God - the Father - Jesus - the Son - the Holy Spirit.  All Prayers help lead us to God - closer to the Father - His Son - helping us to know Him better - helping us to draw closer to the Mystery that is Him.  At this point in our Lenten journey - prayer should be occupying the majority of our time spent with God. 

Deacon Dale 

Lent #30 - All Ready?

We are now well into the fourth week of Lent and very soon Lent will be over and we will be celebrating Holy Week and Easter.  By now everyone should be well entrenched in their spiritual exercises - fasting - prayers - meditations - devotions - quiet time - being able to be present to God.  For the past weeks so much has been happening - Holy Mass - penitential services - gatherings with others - seeking God - Jesus - in shared experiences.  In these final weeks of Lent - time to focus - attention - energy - leave all distractions behind - dive deeply into all that Lent is intended to be.

Jesus calls each of us to constantly improve our personal relationship with Him - His Father - Holy Spirit.  For many a lifetime of study - prayers - meditations - still lots to learn - experience.  In the end it is not about quantity - rather quality - all time spent with Jesus - extremely valuable.  Just as one may spend hours - days - weeks - at the gym developing their physical body - so too is it important to go to your personal spiritual fitness room - daily - developing your entire body - mind - spirit - into one unified holy person.

Deacon Dale 

Lent #29 - Seeking Faith

When one comes to Faith - has an experience - decides that it is time to learn more - about God - Jesus - the Holy Spirit - that can be a very daunting task.  Just trying to understand the Trinity - the entire idea that God is One person - yet - three persons in One.  How can this be - nobody - can ever make sense of the Trinity - how it exists - where it has its origin - how it gained its power - all one giant Mystery.  As an avid fan of sci-fi - mystery books - scientific explorations - mathematic logic - my poor small human mind - never will understand - comprehend - God.  Oh I can make assumptions - they will be wrong - I can discuss with those who have better educations - we will be wrong - never - will any of us ever truly understand God.  Faith - now that is easier I think - there is some logic - studies - that explain how one develops faith - grows in faith - lives a life of faith.  

Most of us grew up in religious families - in different denominations - varying structures of faith.  As children we were told point blank what we were suppose to believe - never questioned our parents - we couldn't because they did not have the answers either.  When people questioned Jesus - He shared stories - spoke in parables - attempting to explain.  The majority of the time - the Mystery was still as clear as mud.  His final answer to His followers - Trust in Me.  Now thousands of years later - it is all still a - Mystery.  All we can do is respond - Jesus I Trust in You.  In time our Faith will grow - even when we fail to understand - the peace in our hearts - minds - will fill that void.

Deacon Dale 

Lent #28 - Rise And Get Up

In today's Gospel we hear the story of the man who had been paralyzed for thirty-eight years - unable to walk - move about - forced to beg for a living.  Like others burdened with one illness - or another - he chose to lay by the pools at Bethesda - encouraged by stories that when the water bubbled up - moved by some sort of healing power - the first one to jump in the water would be healed.  It is not known if anyone ever was healed -  besides the natural fact that water cleanses - refreshes - it is possible that some minor issues may have been made better by the natural nature of water. When Jesus approached that specific man He did not automatically heal the man.  First he approached - asked him - do you want to be healed? Only after Jesus heard his yes - did He tell the man - rise and get up - take your mat with you.

Even today many come to God - Jesus - expecting cures for any and all issues.  They may be seeking physical - emotional - spiritual - financial - answers - often walking away - disappointed.  Jesus is not some sort of vending machine that grants healing - answers - on demand. Before one can receive any answer from God  - they have to first prepare their minds - hearts - approach in humility.  One needs to approach with the heart of a true believer - leaving any attitude - expectation - behind - placing  their wishes - desires respectfully at His feet.  Very often what some ask for - not what they really need - God knows our hearts - needs - better than we know ourselves. As we continue our Lenten journey - we are reminded - again and again - do not cripple ourselves with worries - concerns that we cannot fix ourselves - rise up - leave those things behind - take up the hope that is in Jesus - in time you will receive your answer.  God does answer all prayers - in His time.

Deacon Dale