Three meditations...Lectionary # 209, #214, and # 216

Dear Patient readers, Due to my preparation for surgery next Wed , Jan 13
at 3 P.M. for a total hip replacement, I have not been regular in these
sendings and probably have them mixed up due to not following closely the
new ordo for 2010 (MMX in Roman Numerals!). The preparation for surgery is
extensive and very intense here in Miam Valley Hospital where I have been
going every other day, but they assure the ten of us who are in the class
for preparing that the surgery will be successful if we follow their advice
and are disciplined to do all of the exercises the therapists want you to
do. I will make that my preparation for Lent! I do not think I will be
able to do the meditations on a regular schedule and do not want to make
them a stress point for myself. I know you will understand. Here are three
of recent vintage. The lectionary numbers are correct and so is the spirit
of both Christmas and Epiphany alive in them. I hope they help you.

Scripture: Lectionary # 209. I John 3:11-21. Psalm 100:1-2.3.4.5 John
1:43-51. (A call from Jesus narrative):

John the Baptist lives up to his own words and sees his own disciples
leaving him to join Jesus and to follow him in a new call to discipleship.
St. John gives us his version of the call in today's reading. It may be
closer to the real historical call of the first disciples. We have seen
that Andrew is the first to follow Jesus and he summons his brother Simon
Peter. Andrew and an unnamed disciple (probably the Beloved Disciple) are
the first three to follow the Lord in this Fourth Gospel. Today two more
will be named, Philip and Nathaniel. Philip is a Greek name meaning "lover
of horses," whereas Nathaniel is a Hebrew appelation which means "gift of
God." It is Philip who mentions Jesus to Nathaniel and he makes the sharp
remark about Jesus' hometown by saying, "Can anything good come out of
Nazareth?" Fortunately, someone who is more than anything did come from
this town which is never mentioned in the Hebrew Bible (the Tanach). Jesus
knows where Nathaniel has come from and where he was resting under a fig
tree. Nathaniel is so amazed that he bursts out, "Rabbi, you are the Son of
God; you are the king of Israel." Jesus compliments Nathaniel and tells
him he is an Israelite without guile, an authentic chosen person from among
the chosen people of God.

The Fourth Evangelist is also leading us into our call and hoping that we
will deepen our faith as these first five disciples do. The active
ministry of Jesus is beginning and it is a community oriented mission that
the Lord wants to put into action with their help. We know from the
commentaries we read that John's Gospel is a very decision oriented one
based on committing oneself to total belief in the person of Jesus. This
faith decision and theme is the strong golden thread of the first part of
his Gosple in chapters one through twelve.

We too are called to have such a decision based faith in Jesus as a Person
not a power and not a thing, but a real human being living among us from
the flesh of Mary his Virgin Mother! That in itself takes an act of faith
that many are unwilling to make. But like Nathaniel we have to enter into
that mystery of belief and live it out if we wish to be wholesome disciples
of Jesus. We learn from Nathaniel that Jesus is the Master Teacher
(Rabbi), that he is Son of God, and King of Israel. The Evangelist is
unravelling for us the christological titles and roles that Jesus will have
in this theological Gospel. But it is a theology based on the profound
thinking and pondering over who Jesus is and what he said and did by the
theolgian "John" among the four Gospels.

Many of us have followed our beliefs because of being born as a Protestant
or Catholic through our parents. Their faith is what we have inherited.
What the Gospel calls us to is to grow deeply into that personal decision
of faith and to carry out the mission of bringing Jesus to others just as
Mary did as his mother. "They found the child with Mary his mother." The
wisemen whose memory we commemorate during this time give us a good example
of what good marian theology and devotion consists in, namely, never
separating the Son from his mother.

If we now turn back to the first reading we will discover the other great
Johannine theme, that of love or "Agape". This helps us to make our faith
more real and tangible once we learn from believing in Jesus how to love
him. Not a bad idea for a New Year's resolution. Amen.

Scripture: Lectionary # 214. I John 4:11-18. Psalm 72:1-2.10-13. Mark
6:45-52:

Epiphany means "Manifestation." During these days of Epiphany various
types of manifestations in the life of Jesus are brought before us. Some
are more historical, others are symbolic. Sometimes they merge and help us
to have a type of three dimensional look at who Jesus is and what he can do
in our lives. We are encouraged in the liturgy to focus on these
manifestation events of the Lord.

Our first reading from the First Epistle of John shows us how the love of
God comes to us through Jesus and how we are to follow the love-commands of
the Lord. If you count the number of times you see some form of the word
love in the short reading for today you will see it occurs eight times. In
the entire Epistle of John the three verb forms connected with love occur
62 times, so there is not doubt about it as being a great theme for John or
the writer of the First Epistle. The Gospel which is longer than all three
epistles of John has 43 uses of the agape theme. Thus the theological
Gospel of John is balanced by the greatest of all themes, that of love. It
is John in his epistle who will tell us God is love.

We may think that this is too repetitive a word in the Epistle. The great
English exegete of the Fourth Gospel and the Epistles tells us that the
theme is like going up a spiral staircase. As you advance on each step you
have a different perspective for what was seen at the beginning of the
journey up those stairs. Love then is the greatest of the manifestations
of Jesus Christ, Son of God, become son of Mary. We are led to grow more
and more into that love as we follow John's words and messages. We
experience Jesus' love in the community and family in which we live and
move about. It is there that love should first be found as we advance
upstairs. This brings us joy, peace, and the fullness of life in Jesus.

Our selection from St. Mark's Gospel shows us the kindness and merciful
love of Jesus in the multiplication of the loaves and fish. Jesus also
invites us to help distribute that love just as the disciples distributed
the bread and the fish to others. The words Jesus uses and that Mark
intends us to understand are the same that we use in the Eucharistic
celebration and in the Last Supper. It says of Jesus, "taking the five
loaves and two fish, Jesus raised his eyes toward heaven, pronounced a
blessing and gave them to the disciples to distribute." Mark, our first
Evangelist, leads us to see in this action the manifestation of Jesus and
his love in the sacrament of the Eucharist where we all equally receive the
precious body and blood of the Lord, that is, we welcome him into our
hearts as a Person, a Divine Person. Amen.,

Scripture: Lectionary # 216. I John 4:11-18. Psalm 72:1-2.10.12-13. Luke
4:14-22.

"Today this Scripture passages is fulfilled in your hearing!" This passage
that Jesus reads from the holy scroll of the prophet Isaiah is found in
Isaiah 61:1-3. He reads this in the synagogue of Nazareth his home town.
When we hear it we usually are in a Church or silently reading it in our
prayer place in our home or religious community. Jesus is speaking
directly to us through the liturgy of the word and some of us have the
custom of sharing that word in our faith reflections. Luke is hinting that
we too should have our eyes fixed both on the words and on Jesus by
pondering it over, listening to it, and remembering it throughout the day.
We certainly are not alone as we reflect on this great passage from one of
the greatest of the prophets, Isaiah. God's word is a manifestation and we
learn how to follow the will of God through our hearing that word as Paul
tells us our faith comes by hearing the word of God.

The manifestation that Jesus gives us in the Epiphany reading is that God's
word is alive and compelling. We are to carry out the prophetic message of
Isaiah after the example of Jesus and with his help and grace. We are to be
bold in our witness which often is more effective by our own behavior and
our taking time to listen to others.

Jesus is actually using the text as his inaugural address to join him in
the mission of healing, reconciliation, and social concern for others. His
kingdom not only is near, it is within us when we bring good news to others
and when we visit those who are lonely, imprisoned, or in nursing homes.
We are to be ambassadors of God's merciful-kindness; announcers of God's
graces.

The Spirit of the Lord is also upon us as we are called to proclaim love,
peace, and justice which is the work of love toward peace. Jesus continues
to manifest himself in so many ways, but especially in the oppressed, the
poor, the marginal.

We may wish to recall a great verse on the manifestaion or epiphany of
Jesus found in I Timothy 3:16:
"He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated in the spirit, seen by angels,
proclaimed to the Gentiles, believed in throughout the world, taken up in
glory. " Amen.