February 2020 - Page 2 of 3

The Door to Favors

Carmelite homily for Monday, February 24, 2020 – Lectionary 341 (Mark 9:14-29)

In today’s Gospel the people bring to the disciples a boy who has convulsions. And the disciples can’t heal this boy, so they bring him to Jesus, and Jesus does heal him. And the disciples ask, “Why couldn’t we do that?” And he says, “Well, this one could only be healed by prayer.” But the call is not just for the difficult cases to pray, but to pray always, even for the easy cases. Here’s what Saint Teresa of Avila has to say, “I say only that prayer is the door to favors as great as those the Lord granted me. If this door is closed, I don’t know how he will grant them.” So let’s leave the miracles to the Lord, the answers to the Lord, let’s leave everything to the Lord – except prayer. Let’s do that, and see what happens.

Be Ye Perfect

Carmelite homily for Sunday, February 23, 2020 – Lectionary 79 (Matthew 5:38-48)

The last line of today’s Gospel says, “So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.” And sometimes we can hear this and say – oh, I’ve got to be perfect then; I can’t make any mistakes; I can’t make any failures; I cannot sin; I’ve got to be — ‘ahhhh’ – uptight. And that’s not what it means at all. Because if you take it in the whole context, the Father lets the sun shine on the good and the bad alike and the rain fall on the just and the unjust alike, means to treat everyone with love. Here’s what Saint Teresa of Avila has to write about this. This comes from her book, The Way of Perfection (it makes sense), “Zeal for perfection is in itself a good thing. But it could follow that every fault the sisters commit will seem to you a serious breach; and you are careful to observe when they commit them, where they commit them, and then go and inform the prioress. Often, you don’t see your own faults because of your intense zeal for the religious observance of everybody else. What the devil is hereby aiming at is no small thing; namely, the cooling of charity and love the sisters have for one another. So, let each one look to herself only. For perfection consists of love of God and love of neighbor; whereas, perfectionism comes from the devil.” So let’s not confuse ‘perfection’ and ‘perfectionism’ today.

Your Name is Spouse

Carmelite homily for Saturday, February 22, 2020 – Lectionary 535 (Matthew 16:13-19) – the Chair of Peter

In the Gospel for this Feast of the Chair of Saint Peter, Jesus asks of his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” And they give a bunch of answers and finally Simon says, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” And Jesus turns to him and says, “Your name is Peter.” He gives him a special name. But Jesus gives us a special name. Here’s what Saint Teresa of Avila has to write, “To always live in calm desire to rejoice solely in Christ, one’s spouse.” That’s the name Jesus, as we get closer and closer to him, gives us: spouse. So, yes, that’s what we celebrate on this Feast of the Chair of Peter – our espousal.

Why the Cross?

Carmelite homily for Friday, February 21, 2020 – Lectionary 339 (Mark 8:34-9:1)

On the cover of the most recent issue of the Sword, a Carmelite publication, there’s a picture of Jesus carrying the cross followed by a bunch of Carmelites all dressed in the white part of their habit, this part, carrying their cross. They’re all carrying the cross. And that seems to be what today’s Gospel is asking us – that we all need to carry the cross. But why? I think Teresa of Avila has a great answer. Here’s what she writes, “If the soil is well-cultivated by trials, persecutions, criticisms, and illnesses – for few there must be who reach this stage without them – and it is softened by living in great detachment from self-interest, the water soaks in so deep that one is never dry.” That’s why the cross. To sum up, to get us past our ego, our desire, me, I; and to get me to Jesus, to the other, to God. That’s why the cross.

Immensity of Christ

Carmelite homily for Thursday, February 20, 2020 – Lectionary 338 (Mark 8:27-33)

In today’s Gospel Jesus asks the disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” And they give a bunch of answers and finally Peter says, “You are the Christ.” Then Jesus predicts his upcoming passion and death. And Peter says, ‘Oh, This must not happen to you.’ Jesus, “Oh, behind me Satan for you do not think as God thinks but as human beings think.” I think that’s the call of today’s Gospel: is to think beyond what human beings think; to think as God thinks. Edith Stein (Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross) writes, “Living in a Eucharistic way means coming out of oneself, out of the narrowness of one’s life and growing into the immensity of life in Christ.” I think that’s why Jesus begins with the question, “Who do people say that I am?” Is your understanding big enough, immense enough, to understand Jesus? Because that’s what you’re called to grow into – that immensity. That’s what we called as Christians, as Eucharistic people, as disciples – to grow into the immensity of Christ.

Do Not Go Back

Carmelite homily for Wednesday, February 19, 2020 – Lectionary 337 (Mark 8:22-26)

In today’s Gospel we have a very interesting passage. The people from the village of Bethsaida bring to Jesus a blind man. And Jesus heals him – it takes two tries – and concludes with the line, “Do not even go back into the village.” Why? The purpose of all Jesus’ healings is to allow people back into the village, back to their families, back to society because the blind, the unclean, the lepers, the lame were all kept outside the village for health reasons. So why would Jesus tell this man to not go back? There must be something wrong with the village. That if he goes back, all the problems come back. So, I think, the call of today’s Gospel – are we part of the problem? – is to check out our own village. Are we adding to it or are we suffering from it? Let’s clean up the village. It’s really the call of today’s Gospel.

To Ponder Past Huh? to Aha!

Carmelite homily for Tuesday, February 18, 2020 – Lectionary 336 (Mark 8:14-21)

In today’s Gospel Jesus warns the disciples to be on guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, and they all go ‘huh?’ And so Jesus goes ‘huh?’ to them – you don’t understand? your don’t comprehend? you have eyes to see? ears to hear? Because, I think, life requires reflection, pondering – not just surviving or doing. But to reflect on life. John of the Cross writes, “Seek in reading and you will find in meditation; knock in prayer, and it will be opened to you in contemplation.” I think that’s the invitation, the call of today’s Gospel, is to pray, to reflect, to knock. And these things do become known and evident. Instead of going “huh?” we might go “aha!”

So Much Better to Say Nothing

Carmelite homily for Monday, February 17, 2020 – Lectionary 335 (Mark 8:11-13)

Today we have the Pharisees coming to Jesus and asking for a sign. And the passage says that he sighed from the depth of his spirit. Because we know there’s no pleasing the Pharisees. They would just get into an argument and continue their self-righteousness. I think that’s why Therese gives very good advice – very hard advice – but very good advice which, I think, Jesus is following in today’s Gospel. Therese writes, “When we are misunderstood and judged unfavorably what good does it do to defend our explain ourselves? It is so much better to say nothing and allow others to judge us as they please.” Wow, is that a difficult quotation, a difficult maxim, a difficult way. But, I think, we see Jesus in today’s Gospel doing that and calling us to do the same.

Deny to Find

Carmelite homily for Sunday, February 16, 2020 – Lectionary 76 (Matthew 5:17-37)

In today’s Gospel passage there’s certainly a lot going on – and it’s all kinda negative. Jesus first talks about anger and then resentment and then unforgiveness and then lust and then swearing and lying. Why is all this part of the Sermon on the Mount? And how does it all tie together? Actually, I think, one word – ego. It’s all about me – having my appetites met, my righteousness met, my self-righteousness – everything about me. That’s the call: to get beyond me. To get deeper, to my heart. Saint John of the Cross writes, “Deny your desires and you will find what your heart longs. For how do you really know that any of your desires are according to God?” I think that’s the call of the whole Sermon on the Mount – to get beyond your desires, your appetites, your ego, you. Into your heart where truth and life and love and depth and God live. And work out of and live out of there. That’s the call of today’s Gospel.

Change Everything

Carmelite homily for Saturday, February 15, 2020 – Lectionary 334 (Mark 8:1-10)

Last week I talked about Therese and there was a sister in that convent no one could get along with, so Therese finally said, “I am resolved to do for this sister what I would do for the person I love the most.” What was it that Therese did? But smile! Every time she saw the sister – whether in chapel, or at recreation, or at work duties – she smiled. Changed the sister, small thing, changed the sister, changed the convent, changed Therese, changed us. Because we read about this and are inspired today. One smile! I think that parallels perfectly what’s going on in today’s Gospel. Jesus and the disciples face this big crowd. Jesus asks, ‘what kind of food do you have?’ and they say, ‘seven loaves.’ What is seven loaves?! It’s like that smile – it’s enough. That’s the call of today’s Gospel. Whatever you have on hand – whether a smile, or a loaf, or whatever – share that. That will change everything.