St Margaret Roman Catholic Church

Saint Martin I, Pope and Martyr (Optional Memorial)

My dwelling shall be with them. (Ezekiel 37:27)

We all know what it’s like to make room in our homes for a new arrival, whether a new baby, a child returning from college, or an ailing parent. We rearrange furniture, do some extra cleaning, and maybe redecorate—usually with some anxiety about the coming change in our lives.

In today’s first reading, Ezekiel is speaking of God’s plan to bring Israel back from exile. God’s glorious presence will return to the Temple, and he will live with his people. Do you think they were all ready for him to come back? From the sound of it, probably not. Fortunately, however, God promises to help with the rearranging, cleaning, and even rebuilding. He promises to be with them to restore them and redeem them and cleanse them from their sins. He will even make his home with them.

Doesn’t this sound remarkably similar to Jesus’ promise of the Holy Spirit, who “remains with you, and will be in you” (John 14:17)? It should! After all, this is the same Holy Spirit who spoke through Ezekiel. The same Holy Spirit who restored Israel is living in and among us. Of course, he works in and through the Church. But he is also at work in your heart. Cleansing? Yes. Restoring? Yes. Redeeming? Yes. Rearranging? Yes!

So ask yourself what he is working on right now. He might be helping you rebuild a broken relationship. Or helping you open your heart more to his grace. He might be shining his light on some area of darkness in your heart that needs to be dealt with. Or comforting you and encouraging you through a difficult period.

You are a temple of the Holy Spirit. Don’t forget that, especially when you struggle with discouragement or frustration. If condemning thoughts are swirling around your mind right now, cling to that truth. Take a moment or two to quiet your heart, and turn to the Holy Spirit. Make room for him today. Ask him to help you hear his voice of encouragement and inspiration. As you turn to him and prepare your heart, notice all the ways he gives you his peace and his wisdom.

“Holy Spirit, I welcome you into my heart. Come and restore me, Lord!”

(Psalm) Jeremiah 31:10-13
John 11:45-56

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5th Week of Lent

The Father is in me and I am in the Father. (John 10:38)

The Jewish leaders had to admit that there was actually something good about Jesus. He was awakening sincere faith in many people and was even helping sinners repent and return to God. But now he made a statement they just couldn’t tolerate. He had already called himself the “Son of God,” which was troubling enough (John 10:36). Now he claimed he was equal to God. Picking up rocks, they closed in on him, ready to silence his blasphemy once and for all.

If we were in Jesus’ situation, we might want to look for a way out. But Jesus responded directly: “I have shown you many good works from my Father. For which of these are you trying to stone me?” (John 10:32). Jesus wasn’t trying to intimidate them by reminding them of his power; he just wanted them to see that he was ministering his Father’s love to his people. He wasn’t trying to claim any glory for himself. All he wanted to do was give glory to his Father.

The same holds true for us. How could we possibly keep quiet about God, our heavenly Father? He is the One who sent Jesus to redeem us. He is the One behind all the works of mercy that the Church does around the world. He is the One behind every word of love, reconciliation, and hope that we speak. It is his own Spirit who gives us our strength. It’s only because he has touched our hearts, forgiven our sins, and filled us with his love that we can share that love with other people.

If you want to stay strong as Jesus did when faced with opposition, stay connected to the Father. Strive to put your relationship with him above everything else. That way, you’ll be able to receive his inspiration, his strength, and his grace. Then, when your faith is challenged, you can respond with the one thing that will convince any skeptical heart: the love of God. When people see your Father shining through your words and actions, they’ll be drawn to him, and they’ll come to know that he is the answer they’ve been looking for.

“Lord, help me to keep your love in the forefront of my mind.”

Jeremiah 20:10-13
Psalm 18:2-7

Saint Stanislaus, Bishop and Martyr (Memorial)

Whoever keeps my word will never see death. (John 8:51)

If you were to take an immersion language course in French, from the moment you enter the classroom until the moment you leave, every word you hear and every word you speak would be in French. No English. Not a single word. Similarly, we could say that in today’s Gospel, Jesus is conducting an immersion class in the language of heaven.

A long debate between Jesus and his opponents has brought them to the question of his claim to be the Son of God. “It is my Father who glorifies me,” he tells them (John 8:54). “I know him. . . and I keep his word” (8:55). His opponents can’t seem to settle on who they think he is: “Where is your Father?” “Who are you?” “You are a Samaritan” “You are possessed.” “Who do you make yourself out to be?” (John 8:19, 25, 48, 52, 53).

Nearly two millennia of Old Testament history had brought Jesus and the Jewish authorities to this point of impasse. These were faithful Jews intent on honoring God’s covenant with Abraham. But Jesus insists that he himself is the fulfillment of God’s covenant promises. Their focus on their long-held expectations blocks their understanding. But Jesus doesn’t give up. He continues to show them an unimaginable future in which Abraham is waiting for them.

Jesus is still leading us today. Every day he is at the top of a hill looking over into a beautiful land and inviting us to join him: “Whoever keeps my word will never see death” (John 8:51). He is asking us to trust him and to follow him into that new promised land.

Let’s believe Jesus today. Let’s keep his word today and every day until we have made it over the hill and into our new home. We do that by fixing our eyes on Jesus. His cross is like a trail marker; it points us to the path of self-giving love. His resurrection tells us that our biggest obstacles, sin and death, have been defeated. And his ascension tells us that the gates of heaven have been opened—for all of us!

“Jesus, I believe that you are the way to heaven. Help me to turn from any paths that do not lead to you.”

Genesis 17:3-9
Psalm 105:4-9

In his recently released apostolic exhortation Christus Vivit (Christ Lives), Pope Francis reaches out to young people and to all of us to remind and encourage us in our faith. Here are two selections from the exhortation and a question for reflection.

I would also remind you that you won’t become holy and find fulfilment by copying others. Imitating the Saints does not mean copying their lifestyle and their way of living holiness: “There are some testimonies that may prove helpful and inspiring, but that we are not meant to copy, for that could even lead us astray from the one specific path that the Lord has in mind for us” (Apostolic Exhortation, Rejoice and Be Glad, 11). You have to discover who you are and develop your own way of being holy, whatever others may say or think. Becoming a saint means becoming more fully yourself, becoming what the Lord wished to dream and create, and not a photocopy. Your life ought to be a prophetic stimulus to others and leave a mark on this world, the unique mark that only you can leave. Whereas if you simply copy someone else, you will deprive this earth, and heaven too, of something that no one else can offer. I think of Saint John of the Cross, who wrote in his Spiritual Canticle that everyone should benefit from his spiritual advice “in his or her own way,” for the one God wishes to manifest his grace “to some in one way and to others in another.” (162)

*****

Realize that there is beauty in the laborer who returns home grimy and unkempt, but with the joy of having earned food for his family. There is extraordinary beauty in the fellowship of a family at table, generously sharing what food it has. There is beauty in the wife, slightly disheveled and no longer young, who continues to care for her sick husband despite her own failing health. Long after the springtime of their courtship has passed, there is beauty in the fidelity of those couples who still love one another in the autumn of life, those elderly people who still hold hands as they walk. There is also a beauty, unrelated to appearances or fashionable dress, in all those men and women who pursue their personal vocation with love, in selfless service of community or nation, in the hard work of building a happy family, in the selfless and demanding effort to advance social harmony. To find, to disclose, and to highlight this beauty, which is like that of Christ on the cross, is to lay the foundations of genuine social solidarity and the culture of encounter. (183)

For Reflection from the study guide included with The Word Among Us edition of Christus Vivit:

There are some who confuse beauty with appearances, Pope Francis writes, but true beauty lies in selfless service and pursuing our vocation with love. Can you point to someone in your life that lives this truth well?

Excerpted from Christus Vivit, Pope Francis (The Word Among Us Press, April 2019). Available at wau.org/books