Saturday Homily

FROM: www.saintvincentarchabbey.org

"Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands"

The missionary movement of the apostolic church is not just limited to the early days; it is essential to our identity as church, today. We too summon all you lands to sing joyfully to the LORD and Liberator of every human being and all human communities. In faith we recognize what the Psalmist knew that all people are God's people, the flock he tends. Indeed, the creator of every person is summoning all generations to the LORD, who is good and his kindness endures forever. Like our ancestors in the faith we too summon all the earth to the joy of complete liberation and true freedom. This universal call we inherit from Christ and his Apostles. The fulfillment of our missionary vocation today is subject to both the struggles of Saint Paul and the hatred about which Saint John writes.

Saint Timothy was born Jewish because his mother was Jewish. This ethnic background gave him an advantage in his missionary work. He was not excluded from fellowship with the Jews, but to make his ethnic identity clear circumcision was necessary. Perhaps, Saint Luke is trying to present Saint Paul as being all things to all people. In any case, Saint Paul is operating out of a genuine sensitivity to the audience. He is willing to use whatever is necessary to summon people to union with Jesus the Christ. Such apostolic zeal is tested and refined during his prayer. Twice the Holy Spirit from preaching the message in certain towns prevents him, and once in a vision he summoned to proclaim the good news -in Macedonia. Saint Paul is both sensitive to his audience and sensitive to divine guidance in prayer. Genuine listening to the needs of the people and the direction of the Holy Spirit enabled Saint Paul to fulfill his missionary vocation. We too need the same skills to fulfill our mission. We must be sensitive to others and listening in prayerful obedience.

Even though we have such a sensitive and obedient heart, we will encounter hatred. This is the promise of Christ to those who follow him. The reason we will be hated is simple; if the world hated the Lord Jesus then the world will hate those who follow Him. "They will harry you as they harried me. They will respect your words as much as they respected mine." This may appear to be bad news, but in fact it is good news. Indeed, persecution, rejection, hatred from the world is a sign that in our lifestyle and our witness we reveal the Lord Jesus, the faithful Son of the Father. Since the world knows nothing of the Father, they know nothing of the Son, so they will have nothing to do with those who follow the Son. Being sensitive to our audience does not necessarily mean buying into every agenda item of every group. Indeed, being sensitive may mean that we must challenge, question, and object to certain enslaving attitudes and values. Because we want our brothers and sisters in the world with us to live in true freedom and genuine liberation, then we will necessarily seem like an uncomfortable presence, at times, or share what seems to be a contradictory value, at times. However, it is the light of Christ and the warmth of the Spirit that reveals that obedience to the Father's will is our true delight. We, who daily struggle to become more faithful, cannot live without consuming Christ's flesh and being consumed by the fire of the Holy Spirit.

Monday of Holy Week

From: www.saintvincentarchabbey.org

"My heart will not fear."

We spend this whole week gazing upon the cross of Christ. We look with love upon the Faithful Servant of the LORD about whom Isaiah the Prophet sings. We look with love upon Christ the Suffering Servant of the LORD and recall every detail of his last week before his execution and resurrection. The Psalm has us singing the song of trust that the Lord Jesus sang as he prayed these words throughout his life of temple worship. Can our hearts echo this trust? "The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom should I fear? The LORD is my life's refuge; of whom should I be afraid?" We remember every detail described in the gospel. We remember the evildoers who surrounded him day in and day out; they were looking for details too, for details of his behavior or teaching that they could use to devour his flesh and consume him in their hate and jealousy. The Lord Jesus could not help notice his enemies stumbling and falling all around him. His heart was not fearful even as their numbers grew. Even though they took him on in public debate waging a war of words; even then did he trust the Father. Though meager the support from his followers, the Lord Jesus found bountiful support from the Father and he looked forward to again being in the glory of that eternal love. It is his absolute and total love and trust for the Father that gives us the courage to wait, to be stouthearted and wait for the LORD to accomplish his will in our lives. Even in the midst of the cross, even when we bear our share in the sufferings of Christ, we wait; we do not turn away; we do not fear.

Isaiah lived in a world of unspeakable violence. The Servant of the LORD, Jesus, lived in a world that did not respect gentleness. Yet, into this brutal and harsh world comes a faithful servant of the LORD upon whom the very Breath of God, the Holy Spirit hovers. This is the same Breath of the LORD that moved over the chaos of the early creation and brought order and growth. This Holy Spirit gives the Servant of the LORD justice for the nations. A justice that is established first in the human heart so the Servant need not cry out or shout or make his voice heard in the streets. All he needs to do is to tell the story of mercy and bounty. The hearts of his listeners are moved, as if on their own, to love justice and work for peace. This mighty servant of the LORD need not break a bruised and wounded soul to prove his power to influence the community. Even the smoldering wick is not quenched; rather he fans into flame the deepest hope and longing of the human heart for the justice and peace that only the LORD can provide. The wildest lands bordering on the dangerous oceans, the very coastlands have waited to hear the servant speak the truth. Above the roaring of the seas his voice is heard the very Breath of the LORD proclaims through his faithful servant the good news: "I, the LORD, have called you for the victory of justice, I have grasped you by the hand; I formed you, and set you as a covenant of the people, a light for the nations." This Servant of the LORD is the Lord Jesus who has identified us with himself, with his relationship with the Father and with his mission to heal and save all the nations. As members of the Body of Christ we are to "open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement, and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness." Such is the full meaning of our dying and rising with Christ the Lord. Baptized into his cross and glory we have an unspeakable dignity and no one can take away our true life in Christ, no foe, no enemy, human or spiritual. We are so confident in Christ that we need not imitate the ways of our brutal and harsh world. We need not force the truth upon anyone. The truth of the Father's love for us in Christ is so attractive and so convincing because it is still spoken by the same Breath of the Lord that hovered over the Lord Jesus during his prayer and ministry. That Holy Spirit breaths through us and the Word we speak is truly liberation for every human heart.

Four friends of the Lord Jesus are featured in today's gospel account for the sixth day before the Passover. He is surrounded by three faithful friends, who become dangerous, and one dangerous friend, who becomes deadly. Martha, Mary and Lazarus provide fellowship and food for their dear friend Jesus. In their desire to honor the Lord who had brought Lazarus back to life, their feast attracted a large crowd of Jews from the chief priests. Their public scrutiny of the Lord Jesus continued and when they saw how many Jews had turned away and believed in Jesus because of miracle of Lazarus, they plotted to kill the Lord and his friend Lazarus. These faithful friends were dangerous to the Lord Jesus because they unwittingly played into the hands of his enemies and gave them the straw that broke the camel’s back. Martha and Mary's feast for their friend Jesus only made it more obvious that the seventh sign was powerful and threatening to the chief priests and those in power. Judas was a dangerous friend of the Lord Jesus because he was a zealot, and he was convinced that the only way to hasten the arrival of the Kingdom of God was to revolt against the oppressive Roman government. These political solutions to social and spiritual evil were completely inadequate and totally rejected by the Lord Jesus. Judas leaves the Passover Supper to prepare for the betrayal of the Lord. At this meal several days earlier we catch a glimpse of his conflicted heart. The motives of Judas are questioned in the gospel when he reprimands Mary for wasting "oil made from genuine aromatic nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and dried them with her hair." On the surface his concern is that the money used to buy this oil could have been used for charity. However, his concern for the poor is less than pure. He seems to be using the poor to keep the disciples purse full so that as the group treasurer he could use the money for whatever he wanted. Even today, seeming concern for the poor is used to hide greed and self-seeking. Judas hides his mixed motivation behind a public display of devotion to the needy. The Lord Jesus defends Mary’s behavior without at all diminishing the need for true concern and charity toward the economically deprived. However, the irony of this table dialogue reveals a false split between costly devotion and costly service. Both love of Christ and love of his deprived brothers and sisters are necessary for any true friend and disciple. Growing closer to the Lord Jesus through our Holy Week devotions only makes greater demands of our hearts to be compassionate with others as the Lord Jesus has been compassionate with us. To buy into the false dichotomy Judas is pushing is to use Christianity to hide our own efforts to save ourselves and ignore the demands of intimacy by pouring our love out upon the Christ, the Anointed One, who pours out his blood without restraint so that we could live an abundant life.

Monday of the Fifth Week in Lent

"Even though I walk through the valley of darkness"

In today's readings there are many who walk through the valley of darkness. Some are very comfortable there in the darkness. Others are comforted by the presence of the Good Shepherd. Sooner or later everyone walks through this valley. Those who walk by faith know that the Lord is at their side; they do not fear. Not only are they fearless, they want for nothing. Indeed the valley of darkness is not endless; eventually the LORD guides them to restful waters that refresh the soul. Just hearing those bubbling brooks and feeling those splashing waters flowing over the stones brings refreshment to the heart. This refreshment is completed only in the taste of living waters; all thirst is quenched. It is for his name's sake that the LORD guides and directs us all along the way for his we are his people and the sheep of his pastures. We are strengthen by his power to save us; his rod and staff give us courage to continue the arduous journey all the way to Calvary. All through Lent he has spread the table of his body and blood before us in the sight of our foes. With all who hate us looking on he anoints our heads with oil, the oil of gladness above other kings. Our cup of suffering overflows and so does our cup of rejoicing. Only goodness and kindness follow us all the days of our lives. Indeed, only in the house of the LORD are we at rest, at home forever. Our ancestor, Susanna, was trapped under a tree by her accusers. Their lies were exposed because of that same tree. It was because of the mercy of Christ, who died upon the tree of the Cross, that the woman caught in adultery was set free to go and sin no more.

Susanna was not afraid of death or lies and "through tears she looked up to heaven, for she trusted in the Lord wholeheartedly." Such trust had grown in her heart over the years of her virtuous living. The fruit of a life of wickedness comes to term in the false accusations of the judges. These lusty old men represent the crowds gathered around the Lord Jesus in today's gospel account. They had become blinded by the lust in their hearts. They could not see Susanna's true beauty. All they could see was their desire imposed upon her body. The fulfillment of their lust drove them to assume that Susanna would fall victim to their trap. Consumed by such desire we so easily assume that those we want, want us. This self-deception made them victims of their own lies. After years of living a lie, they were easily tripped up by their lies about the tree under which they had caught Susanna. The Holy Spirit moved Daniel to have the courage to establish Susanna's innocence. It is the same Holy Spirit who works in all of us who follow the New Daniel, the Lord Jesus Christ. We can never stand by and watch one of God’s beloved children die because of a lie. We who have come to know the Lord Jesus, who is the way the truth and the life, have no fear as we confront the lies that abound in our hearts and in our communities. The innocent ones in our world have no need to fear because we stand up for them and defend them with the truth that the Holy Spirit inspires us to know and to proclaim. Indeed, innocent blood is spared in our day because of the Innocent Lamb of God who shed his blood so that we might be cleansed, purified, made new.

Susanna was innocent; the woman caught in adultery was not innocent. Both women are treated with great mercy. The Lord Jesus is the New Daniel upon whom the Holy Spirit rests from all eternity. From the eternal moment in which the Son was begotten, the Holy Spirit hovered over him. During his conception within the womb of the Immaculate Theotokos the Holy Spirit overshadowed her and rested upon him. This same Holy Spirit moves within the Lord Jesus and over him as he writes on the ground with his finger. Perhaps he is pausing in prayer to hear the voice of his Father, so that he would speak the word that forgives and challenges at the same time. He is that Word, spoken from all eternity and made flesh within the womb of the Blessed Mother, so that he can speak in time. Unlike the first Daniel, who had only the power and wisdom to expose the innocence of the woman falsely accused of adultery, the Lord Jesus has the power to forgive the sins of the woman caught in adultery. Perhaps such a word needs a seemingly distracted pause, so that it can be proclaimed. "Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." Again the Lord Jesus writes on the ground; perhaps this pause is for our sake. Perhaps, we who have heard this story so many times need to pay close attention. Perhaps we are both the crowd and the woman. In these words of the Incarnate Word, we are liberated from sin and from the impossible role of throwing the first stone. The only innocence that we can claim is that which comes from the blood of the Innocent Lamb who was slain by our guilt. Perhaps, now as if for the first time, we can go now and sin no more.

Ash Wednesday 2011

FROM: www.saintvincentarchabbey.org

If we prayed Psalm 51 every day throughout Lent, perhaps we would retrieve the joy of God's salvation. However, this may be just too much to ask; so perhaps we could simply pray for forty days, "Lord, give me back the joy of your salvation." This is indeed the mercy for which we long with desert-like hearts. It is already an experience of his great goodness that we have the sacrament of reconciliation readily available; it is a sign of his great goodness that we have yet another lent in which to linger over his compassion. Like a spring rain upon a parched earth so, too, does his mercy fall upon our dry and arid souls. It is times like lent when we are summoned to acknowledge our offenses and keep our sin before our eyes always. Indeed, our failure in relationship with Abba and with all people is very personal and causes heart pain. However, we need not fear because the LORD creates a clean heart for us and renews our spirits within. The LORD does not cast us far from his presence no matter how far we may wander. He takes not his Holy Spirit from us lest we choke or languish. The joy of salvation is the point of Joel's preaching. The LORD is stirred to compassion; we have no need to fear. Indeed, it is the joy of salvation that makes us ambassadors for Christ. The Lord Jesus assures us that the hidden beauty of our repentance will reveal the glory of God in the abundance of our joy.

Repentance is useless unless it is whole hearted. The prophet Joel makes this clear in today's first reading. Our fasting, weeping, mourning, rending, praying, giving up things, and even taking on new things is a complete waste of time and energy if it is not from the depths of the heart, if it is not whole hearted. There needs to be some event, some social gathering, some assembly to begin everything, but it cannot stop there. "Blow the trumpet in Zion…call an assembly…gather the people…notify the congregation!" Without all this excitement no one will even notice that Lent has begun. Notice, though, in Joel’s preaching that everyone is invited from infants at the breast to ministers of the LORD. This summons is for all people. No one can be excused--even bridegroom and bride must quit their chamber! The whole people, the entire congregation of Israel is called, invited, and urgently summoned. Then the very personal and completely private weeping begins with the priests on down through the ranks of the assembled. This public manifestation of heart felt repentance is only the beginning of conversion. Moved from the depths of the human heart we pray, "Spare, O LORD, your people, and make not your heritage a reproach, with the nations ruling over them!" Indeed no one can rule over us and we are free from sin and when we are liberated from self-deception, and other-dependence. Such is the freedom of the children of God. Those, who live and move and have their being in Jesus the Christ and in the Holy Spirit, are truly free.

If we are not reconciled to God, we are not brothers and sisters. If we are not reconciled to God, we are not ambassadors of Christ. If we are not reconciled to God, we do not appeal on behalf of Christ. This is the choice that lies before us each lent. Indeed, this is why we have lent year after year. For our sake God made Christ to be sin he who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Christ. This is not unlike the patristic insight that God made his Son like us to hide his divinity is our humanity so that when death swallowed him up, when Satan took the bait, God would enter into that place were he could never go without empting himself of glory. If we are reconciled to God in Christ we work together. If we are reconciled to God in Christ we have not received the grace of God in vain. If we are reconciled to God in Christ we live in an acceptable time; we have all the help we need. Behold this is our Lent, our acceptable time, our day of salvation.

What makes lent an acceptable time? What makes these forty days a season of salvation, mercy, grace? Three things make Lent, almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. Not that this is the only season for such activities, but during this season of preparation for a Holy Easter we strive to recover from the negligence of the rest of the year. However, what is it that makes these three pious practices more than merely Lenten activities? How do we prevent ourselves from performing righteous deeds so that other people may see just how holy we are? We do not blow trumpets. We do not stand on street corners. We do not neglect our appearance. Everything we do for Lent; we do in secret. This kind of hidden living is Lenten living. If we practice this for forty days, we just may come to find our true joy. If we practice living in a hidden world, we just might find ourselves at home in our innermost center. Lent gives us an extra push into the desert, into the wilderness, into the secret places where our true life is lived.

Sts. Cyril and Methodius

FROM: www.saintvincentarchabbey.org

Because their father was an officer in a part of Greece inhabited by many Slavs, Saint Cyril and Saint Methodius became evangelists, teachers and promoters of the Slavic peoples and their grown in the faith. After inventing the Cyrillic alphabet the language and culture of these eastern European peoples was preserved; these brothers were able to teach the Slavs the faith and discipline of the universal church. Their sacrifice of praise, which became the Eastern Liturgy, was a source of inspiration and education in the ways of the Kingdom of God. The sanctity of these two Greek brothers, who fell in love with the Slavic peoples and suffered great misunderstanding and even rejection and exile because of their missionary zeal, is a brilliant witness to the courage and humility of living in the transforming union with Christ. These Apostles to the Slavs are saints not because they won some ecclesial battle in the church of their day, but it is their willingness to react to the political and cultural struggles of their day with faith that summons each of us to offer our own lives as a living sacrifice of praise from the rising of the sun to its setting. Liturgy, that is not one with all of life, is not pleasing to the LORD God Almighty. It is never enough for us to recite his statues or profess his covenant with our mouth; we must delight in his discipline and never speak against our siblings much less hate them because of their worship. In his union with us, the LORD God does not act according to our prejudice or ignore our offenses. He hears the cries of those whose blood we shed and demands of us repentance and change of life. Indeed, the growing desire for and actual unity of the Western and Eastern churches is a bright sign of the power of right worship, orthodoxy, to enable our unconditional love for and openness of heart to every son and daughter of Adam and Eve.

The union between Adam and Eve brought two sons into the world. Such a loving union produces brothers who eventually bring deadly disunity into the world. Cain was a farmer and Abel a shepherd. Both were inspired to bring an offering to the LORD from the fruits of their labor. Cain offered the LORD some of his produce. Abel brought before the LORD one of his best firstlings from his flock. Already there is a clear difference between the two sacrifices. Cain's sacrifice was adequate for the ritual, but Abel's was beyond the external requirements necessary for worship. This distinction was the cause of a rift between the first brothers. From Abel's heart came a living sacrifice of praise symbolized by his offering "the best" firstling he could find. Cain's heart was crestfallen and resentful. The LORD challenged the elder brother with this question, "Why are you so resentful and crestfallen?" He goes on to warn Cain that sin is a demon lurking at the door of his heart; because of his wounded pride this demon's urge is toward conquest and domination of Cain's heart. When we are weak, the demon takes full advantage of the situation, but we can be the masters of our own destiny. Cain does not heed the wisdom from on high; rather, he attacks and kills his younger brother. The LORD God does not ignore the blood of Abel that cries out from the earth that Cain used to farm. Rather, the LORD God makes Cain a restless wanderer on the earth. He is rootless and disconnected from the earth that once gave him life. His heartless sacrifice and his cruel fratricide condemn him to wander aimlessly encountering those who would take his life, but the LORD puts a mark on Cain so that he must not be killed like he killed Abel. God's love for Abel and his self-sacrificing worship is remembered in the sign put on the head of Cain. This wanderer gives silent witness to the love of God that triumphs over even the destructive hate between brothers. On this feast we celebrate a brotherly love that is the fruit of divine love, and we witness the love of Saint Cyril and Saint Methodius inviting the East and West to become one sacrifice of praise.

Jesus Christ is the light of the world and his life is full of signs. His preaching and healing ministry is sign enough for anyone who approaches him with even the most miniscule faith. The Pharisees had no faith in our Lord Jesus. They had fear, challenges, and opposition, but no faith. It seems that they wanted the Lord Jesus to perform a sign, to do a miracle, that no one could doubt. They demanded an irrefutable sign; they wanted the Lord to perform a sign from heaven that finally proved his identity to everyone, even them. This is not unfamiliar complaining; our ancestors in the wilderness complained that the Lord had taken them away from the delightful food in Egypt in order to let them die of hunger and thirst. All the Lord Jesus could do in the face of such a complaint is to sigh from the depth of his spirit. At first his anger is wordless, then he refuses to be tested like the Father was tested in the Exodus: "Amen, I say to you no sign will be given this generation." Then He left them to stew in their own juices. He got into the boat again; this time and went the other side of the lake. He came to summon all people to light and love; without faith this kind of relation ship is impossible. And for people without faith, such light and love is not possible.

Feast of the Presentation

FROM: saintvincentarchabbey.org

"Lift up, O gates, your lintels!"

Never has the city of Jerusalem been so open. The gates are flung wide open; the lintels are lifted high; the portals couldn't be more accessible. Why all the excitement? The King of Glory approaches; his brightness is at the gate. Suddenly he comes to the temple; the one for whom we have been waiting. He comes as a messenger of the LORD to prepare the way before him. He is coming, the messenger of the covenant, who we desire, for whom we long, for whom we wait. Yes, his arrival is eminent. However, who will endure his coming? Who will stand tall when he arrives? This King of Glory is too bright for us to ignore. His glory shines into the depths of our dark and dreary lives. This brightness burns. This glory purifies. His coming changes everything. No longer do we have any excuses. Finally and definitively our sacrifice is made pleasing. The sacrifice of our broken hearts and the desires of our dried up tears is purified by the light of his glory. Indeed, it is transformed and united to his broken body and poured out blood offered on the cross outside the gates of the city so that all who pass by might catch a glimpse of the glory. A glory that refines like fire and purifies like love. Such is the King of Glory in all the brightness of his cross.

The Lord Jesus is the King of Glory, yet he himself was tested through what he suffered. This King on Calvary did not cling to his glory. He willingly sacrificed this glory; he emptied himself of glory, so that the children of blood and flesh might not be subject to slavery all their life. Christ, the Eternal Son of the Father, in becoming man became capable of suffering and death. This Divine Person took on our human nature so that he might be able to help those of us who are being tested even now. As the Letter to the Hebrews explains, the Lord Jesus came to help the descendants of Abraham not the angels. He became blood and flesh like his brothers and sisters; he became like us in every way but sin so that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest. This priesthood is eternal like Melchizedek of old. In Christ, the New Melchizedek, we have a share in the one pure sacrifice that expiates the sins of all the people, in every generation, among all the nations. Indeed, we offer with Christ a pure sacrifice of praise, and we offer to Christ a pure sacrifice of praise because his glory has touched and transformed us into a living sacrifice of praise by the power and presence of the Holy Spirit and for the glory of the Father, now and always and ever and forever!

When the days of our Christmas/Epiphany celebration are completed, we gather with blessed candles burning bright. We lift up our voices in praise and welcome the King of Glory. In this feast of the Presentation of the Lord Jesus in the Temple the liturgy reminds us again that the mystery of the incarnation does not fade like some Christmas decoration. This great mystery lights our way through Lent into Easter/Pentecost glory. At the gates of the New Jerusalem we meet the King of Glory who will become a sign that has been contradicted and is still contradicted. Not every heart is full of the bright glory of the Incarnate One. Not every heart is open to the purifying love of the King of Glory. As it was true for the Theotokos, so it is true for us. Simeon spoke a word of prophecy to the God-Bearer, and we who now bear the mystery of the Christ will also benefit from his words. "Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted, and you yourself a sword will pierce so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed." Indeed, it is the shattered, pierced and broken hearts that alone can be purified by the light of the King of Glory. This share in her suffering, which is a share in her son’s suffering, is not a waste of time and energy. With the Great High Priest, who enters his temple today, we offer to the Father of Glory a living sacrifice of praise. Such is the true joy of our life and the only dignity of our love, pure and undefiled.

Conversion of St. Paul

From: saintvincentarchabbey.org

"You nations glorify him!"

Saul was trying to destroy this new Way; soon he poured himself out to proclaim Christ, the Way, Truth, and Life. Certainly he was not a convert in the sense that he ceased being a Jew to become a Christian. Rather, Saint Paul always saw himself as a Jew. After his encounter with the Risen Christ, he saw himself as a truly faith filled and obedient Jew. Saint Paul knew in his heart of hearts that the LORD is faithful and kind toward his people. He also knew that the People of God are a people of purpose, God's purpose. From the beginning the LORD called a people to himself so that all peoples could hear the Good News and come to praise and glorify his Name. The LORD did not destroy his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in order to establish a new covenant with the Church. The LORD fulfills his covenant with our ancestors in the faith by offering us a new covenant in the Blood of the Lamb. This is the truth that Saint Paul suffered to preach to the ends of the earth. In the first reading we hear of a disciple named Ananias who approached Saint Paul while he was still blind and gave him new sight. Then, he began to proclaim Jesus the Lord of every person and all the nations. As Saint Paul had been commanded, so too, all the apostles were commanded in today's gospel to preach the Gospel and baptize all the nations. This, too, is our heritage and our mission. We cannot sit back on our laurels and ignore the fact that most people have not heard the good news. What will it take to awaken us? Do we have to fall to the ground or see a blinding light?

It is the zeal of the Apostle Paul that could be blinding in today's celebration. We are not very comfortable with religious zealots. We hear of them in the media, and they are roundly mocked and flatly condemned. Those who are a little too excited about God or God's Word are often shown in news clips as wide-eyed and dangerous. Not someone you would want your children to meet and befriend. Saul was zealous for God and the Law of God. It was just this zeal that moved him to seek letters of certification so that he could put followers of Christ into chains and punish them for turning away from the ancient ways. Any zeal that affirms violence is a deadly zeal. This kind of zeal is deadly, and it is this kind of zeal that was converted in the heart of Saul. Saint Paul went from death dealing zeal to life giving zeal. Such a miracle could only happen when he saw the Righteous One, and heard his voice. Note well, the Acts of the Apostles does not say that Saint Paul saw the face of the Risen Christ. It says that, "...about noon a great light from the sky suddenly shone around me. I fell to the ground and heard a voice..." To see a great light and hear a thunderous voice is enough to conclude that the Lord Jesus appeared to Saint Paul, only if we listen closely to the dialogue. Saint Paul was blinded by the overwhelming light; a light of truth that he heard during this conversation with the Lord Jesus. From the voice of the Master, the Apostle learned that the Body of Christ is composed of many members. What one member feels the whole body feels. This blazing truth would be repeated in Saint Paul's preaching throughout his apostolic ministry. This great mystery, hidden from ages past, is now to be preached to the ends of the earth. It is the very longing of The Father for his family to be one in Christ, The Son, that transforms Saul’s murderous threats into Saint Paul’s good news. Such is the influence and impact of the Holy Spirit upon this religious zealot, and if we are honest, this is the very transformation that most threatens us. No one wants to be labeled a dangerous zealot by the media or by those we love most.

In the blinding light of Easter the Lord Jesus appeared to the Eleven and commanded them to "Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature" Only in the light of the risen Christ can one hear and trust such a command. This is an impossible task. Without the commission of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit no one could fulfill such a command. Only gradually did the Eleven come to understand and fulfill the Lord's instruction. These Eleven who were so commissioned were in the previous verses reprimanded for their lack of belief in the resurrection. The very ones who were most hesitant to believe are called to spread the Good News. Saint Paul, too, was slow to believe that the Lord Jesus is the fulfillment of all the hopes of Israel. Saint Paul was more than hesitant; he was violently opposed to this proclamation. Yet, after the brilliant light and the strong voice of the Lord Jesus, Saul became Saint Paul. Not only will the Eleven and Saint Paul proclaim the truth of the Gospel, they will also work signs and wonders like the Master did to reveal the power and compassion of the Father whose Kingdom is Near. Those who hear and repent, who listen and believe, these will be saved in baptism. However, if they do not believe, they will be condemned. Those who do not want to be saved, those who do not want to be forgiven, those who do not want to be healed, will not be. No one, not even God, will force us to believe. Our faith comes from a heart delighted with the voice and the brightness of the Lord Jesus. It is this joy that moves us into a lifetime of faithful response. This is the conversion of Saint Paul that must become our apostolic witness.

Lateran Basilica

The Church today needs a refuge and strength. There may not be earthquakes or volcanoes in the city of Rome, but there is ever-present danger for the Church, the Body of Christ. In celebrating the dedication of the Lateran Basilica, the mother church of the Latin Rite, we honor all the dwelling places of the Most High. The Holy Spirit is the divine stream whose runlets gladden the city of God, the holy dwelling of the Most High. The LORD God is in the midst of his people who gather in all the churches throughout the world, east and west. He will help us at the break of every day. He is with us as our true dwelling place and lasting stronghold. At the summons of the God of Jacob, we stand here and behold how his mighty deeds are told and retold. Again and again, the things the LORD has wrought on earth astound us.

The prophet Ezekiel is caught up in a vision of the majesty of the LORD overflowing from his temple out into the whole world. The water flowing out from the beneath the threshold of the temple flows out as a blessing into the sea, the salt waters, which it makes fresh. This river floods the earth with life and not destruction. Abundant life is born from the refreshing waters of the Holy Spirit. All life upon the earth finds its origin and support from the abundance of the LORD's self-gift. Every living creature, abundant fish, and trees of every kind grow and bear fruit, a fruit that will last. Month after month, these trees bear fresh fruit because they are watered by the flow from the sanctuary. Their fruit shall serve as food for all God's people, and their leaves will bring healing. Such is the vision of Ezekiel; this prophet opens wide the eyes of all who hear the Lord's Word. Now, we can see what we never saw before. Now, we notice the living waters that spring up within Christ, the Living Temple of God. At last, we who are washed clean in the blood of the Lamb and refreshed with the Holy Spirit behold the glory that is ours, as we share in the very life of the Living God.

With eyes opened by the prophet Ezekiel, we can now share in the vision of Saint Paul in his letter to the beloved brothers and sisters in Corinth. The same Holy Spirit who gives refreshment and life in abundance has inspired Saint Paul to see the truth of our identity. We are God’s building; we are the true temple of God; we are the Body of Christ. By the grace of God, Saint Paul sees himself as a wise master builder who has laid the foundation upon which others now build by preaching and service. He goes on to warn all who build upon this foundation to never forget that Christ is the only sure foundation upon which the faith of God’s people can be built. This wise counsel is directed to the ministers of the Gospel who have inherited this divine building project from Saint Paul and all the Apostles. Never can their work be used to build up their own self-importance. Church is never about the personal projects of human ego. The ordained servants of the new temple must never get in God’s way. They must pray as did Mother Theresa of Calcutta, "Lord, help me stay out of your way." In the same way, Saint Paul warns all earthly powers, all human authorities, to take heed of the LORD's sovereign majesty when he writes, "If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy that person; for the temple of God, which you are, is holy." This is the sure refuge in which we live and move and have our being; we have nothing to fear.

Early in the Gospel of Saint John, the Lord Jesus takes on the similar men of authority in the temple that Saint Paul took on in his letter to the Corinthians. A prophetic and zealous Christ cried out, "Take these out of here, and stop making my Father's house a marketplace." He challenged the leaders of the Jews and drove out the merchants from the temple. Like the first disciples, we remember these words of the Lord Jesus, and we come to believe the Scripture and the word Jesus had spoken. After the Lord has died and risen from the dead, his words inspire our own prophetic and zealous nature. We, too, must drive out of our Father's house all those who use religion for their own gain and seek profit from the faith of God's Holy Ones. Such a mandate does not make us reckless or violent, but it cannot be ignored. We must be vigilant and faithful, so that all people find in our churches a place of welcome and peace in the midst of this world's threats and subtle attempts to trivialize faith. Without this kind of zeal, we will have nothing to offer those who search for truth and love throughout the world. Indeed, we who gather here again and again reveal the Father's desire to gather all his children into the Body of Christ, the Living Temple.

Feast of the Archangels

Great is the glory of the LORD!"

 

In this feast of the archangels, Saint Michael, Saint Gabriel, and Saint Raphael, we join our voices in the sight of all the angels to give wholehearted thanks to the LORD. In these great messengers from the holy temple of heaven we have received the protection of Saint Michael, whose very name asks the only question worth asking, "Who is like the LORD?" From Saint Gabriel we have received the good news of our salvation in the annunciation to the Virgin Mary and in the virginal conception of her son, Jesus the Savior of all. This archangel continues to pray for all who are engaged in the ministry of communication; he is their patron and guide as they seek to communicate the good news we all need to hear. In the ministry of Saint Raphael we have been healed, and we continue to be lead on a journey of faith by this archangel. Indeed, the names of these three heavenly messengers continue to reveal the faithful response of the LORD to our every prayer. Their ministry deepens our confidence in the LORD; through his archangels the LORD builds up strength within us. Indeed, all the powerful of the earth tremble in fear when these divine messengers appear among us. Their presence and their ministry enable the powerful and powerless in this world to hear words from the mouth of the Living God. We join with them and sing endlessly of the ways of the LORD. Indeed, we cry out, "Great is the glory of the LORD." The Book of Revelation gives us a glimpse of the faithful heavenly warriors who take our part in the battle with the dragon and his angels. Without this glorious army, the battle would quickly be lost. The Lord's promise to Nathanael is his promise to us. We will see with eyes of faith how the angels of God travel to heaven with our urgent petitions and come down to earth with the Lord's powerful response to our every need. At every Mass we gather with Saint Michael, Saint Gabriel, Saint Raphael, and all the heavenly hosts to proclaim the endless song of the Banquet of the Lamb, "Holy, holy, holy LORD God of hosts!"

How does the Devil deceive the whole world? How does this fallen angel convince us of the lie? Satan has power in our lives because we allow it. We foolishly linger over temptation, and soon the lie seems like the truth. If the temptation is seen for what it is, we would not hesitate to call upon Saint Michael. However, we choose to consider the half-truth being proposed, and this is our downfall. Sure we have been faithful or even very virtuous, but this struggle and our exhaustion is no excuse to sin. No, we do not deserve to let up our vigilance and our struggle. There is no entitlement in the life of a saint. In the midst of such a daily struggle, we hear the good news of the victory that has been won for us. In the midst of our weakness, we catch a glimpse of our holy patrons, Saint Michael and his angels. They have battled against the dragon and his angels. Indeed, these dark forces have lost any claim to a place before the throne of God, the Almighty. We can take courage in the voice from heaven that cries out, "Now have salvation and power come, the Kingdom of our God and the authority of his Anointed." Indeed, our accuser is cast out and we have conquered him by the Blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony. We who love life are not afraid of death, loneliness, humility, service. We stand in Christ the obedient Son of God and contradict the evil one by our cry, "I will serve, now and forever!" We stand boldly against the evil one who refused to serve anyone but himself. We serve gladly and rejoice with all the heavenly hosts. With Saint Paul and all the holy ones in our heavenly home, we know full well that our battle is with invisible forces of dark might. We also know that the battle has been won, and already we share in the Banquet Feast of the Lamb.

This feast of the Archangels gives us a glimpse of the heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man. It is the cross of Christ that provides us with a ladder to the heavens. We gather here around his cross to find our strength, and to be nourished with the body and blood of the Lamb of God. We gather here to hear the Lord Jesus say of us, "Here is a true child of Israel. There is no duplicity in him." Our deepest longing is here fulfilled. We long with broken and crushed hearts to be men and women of simplicity and truth, to be without duplicity. Here under the fig tree, the cross of Christ, we rest secure in the Son of God, the true King of the Universe. We are amazed that the Lord Jesus sees us as we are. Indeed, he sees through our masks and our self-deception. The Lord Jesus sees the beauty and goodness with which we have been created and in which we have been redeemed. It is his vision of who we really are that gives us new hope to join with the Archangels and all the hosts of heaven in the battle with Satan and his angels. United with such heavenly helpers we have every reason to hope and to rejoice that the Lord Jesus has found us and saved us.

Exaltation of the Holy Cross

"I will utter mysteries from of old."

It seems impossible that our ancestors so quickly forgot the works of the Lord in liberating them from slavery in Egypt. While he slew them through the saraph serpents that bit them, then they sought him for mercy. The Lord sent among his forgetful people the punishment of fiery serpents so that they might never forget how much they need God. They were bit by impatience and worn out by the journey so they complained against God and Moses. Their complaint was filled with the doubt about God's intention; they complained, "Have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert, where there is no food or water?" Are you really merciful or are you demonic? Such was the attitude of the rebellion in the desert. Yet, even this kind of doubt and this level of complaint did not diminish the mercy of God. The Lord had tough love for his rebellious children. God commanded Moses to make a bronze snake and put it on a pole with some kind of cross bar to hold it up. Those who were bitten were to gaze upon this cross and be healed. This is a hidden mystery from of old; this is a prefigurement of the Cross of Christ. We who have crucified our savior gaze upon his sacrificial love and know his power to save us. We who have been poisoned by the bite of sin cry out and sing in the words of the Easter Vigil, "O happy fall of Adam! O necessary Adam's sin that won for us such a Redeemer!" This is the mystery from of old that we celebrate in today's Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.

Father Vincent Zidek, OSB incenses the new Crucifix in our college student chapel this weekend

Saint Paul takes a hymn from the liturgy of the early church to further reflect upon the mysteries from of old. In this text from the letter to the Philippians he proclaims that Christ Jesus emptied himself taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness. As one like us in all things but sin the Lord Jesus humbled himself becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross. He willingly embraced the sacrifice of the cross to place himself where we would least expect to find God. Here on the cross of rejection and shame the Lord Jesus experienced what every sinner experiences, the seeming absence of God. "My God, My God, why have you rejected me?" Because of his acceptance of such humiliation the Father greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend in humble gratitude for the unspeakable mercy of God. Precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of his faithful one; too costly in the eyes of the Father is the death of his only begotten Son. Yet, the Father of mercies would not even hold back his Son so that everyone who suffers loneliness and rejection would know his power to raise us up with Christ.

This is the great mystery hidden from ages past and revealed to us today in the exaltation of the holy cross. Just as the serpent was lifted up by Moses in the desert so, too, Christ is lifted up so that everyone who sees with eyes of faith the mystery of sacrificial love will freely offer himself up with Christ and come to know eternal life. The Father did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. Is there any greater love than this? We who see this mystery in the broken bread and poured out blood of the Eucharist come to know a love that saves, heals and raises up to glory in the Spirit, through the Son, to the Father's glory.

- Written by a St. Vincent Archabbey Monk

Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

"Let me sing of the LORD!"

Mi 5:1-4a; Ps 13:6; Mt 1:1-16,18-23

Rejoice! There's a word seldom used these days. When is the last time you rejoiced? Or, better yet, when is the last time you rejoiced with delight? What does it take to spark delight in our hearts? Why would we bother to rejoice? Birthdays give us a good reason to delight, or rejoice, or at the very least to sing. Today the Church from East to West delights in the birth of the Virgin Mary. Today we rejoice that the LORD has given us such a good reason to rejoice! Many have begun to trust in his mercy. When we trust our hearts can more readily rejoice in the LORD who comes to save us. In Christ is our salvation. Indeed, we sing with the Blessed Virgin, the Theotokos, as she sings--"He has been good to me." Indeed, the LORD has been good to us, and his greatest blessing is the Incarnation, of the fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy mentioned in today's gospel from Saint Matthew. "Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means 'God is with us.'" Indeed, this good news delights the soul of anyone who reads Micah's prophecy, "He shall be peace." We who long for true peace on earth celebrate the birth of the woman who brings our God and our Peace into our world. If that's not something to delight in and to rejoice in, what is?

Did you ever wonder if they celebrated birthdays back in the day? It's not hard to imagine that the whole nation or empire celebrated the anniversaries of the emperor and his family. It probably did not matter if they wanted to or not; it happened. Now, for someone like Mary of Nazareth, the celebration of the anniversary of her birth probably did not take place. She was "no one" born in a nowhere village. Her birth was exciting for the immediate family, but it's doubtful that anyone else celebrated it. Even her son, Jesus, was born in a nowhere village, in Bethlehem, too small to be among the clans of Judah. However, he was the One that the prophet, Micah proclaimed in today's reading. He was born to be ruler in Israel. Indeed, his origin is from of old, from ancient times. He has been born to lead us all back to our true identity as children of the LORD, the New Israel of God. This son of Mary is to stand firm and shepherd his flock by the strength of the LORD, in the majestic name of the LORD, his God. As the Good Shepherd, Jesus the Christ, gathers us in from the ends of the earth, we shall remain with him and the Lord Jesus will be our peace.

The gospel for the Nativity of the Theotokos, the Mother of God, seems strange because there is no mention of the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This genealogy from Saint Matthew picks up a powerful rhythm from its beginning, "Abraham became the father of Isaac." This rhythm runs through the generations from father to son, and it is interrupted quite deliberately by the mention of four mothers: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Beersheba. These four mothers seem to interrupt the rhythm of the genealogy. "Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar", and Tamar is the one who offered herself as a harlot to continue the messiah's bloodline. Solomon, whose mother had been the wife of Uriah; Beersheba by name, the woman David took for himself to fulfill his lust. Boaz, whose mother was Rahab; she is another repentant harlot who saved her whole family because of the kindness she showed to Joshua when he was spying in the city of Jericho. Boaz became the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth; she was a foreigner who demonstrated faithfulness to Naomi and her people and her God. Not only are four mothers mentioned in the genealogy; these mothers are less than holy models of motherhood. Not until the mention of Mary, the wife of Joseph, does the plan of God reveal the true model of holiness and discipleship. The Blessed Virgin Mary is revealed in this gospel as the legitimate wife of Joseph, who is with child through the Holy Spirit. Indeed the Holy Spirit has been preparing the human family of Abraham and his descendants for the wondrous birth of the Savior of all families of every nation. Indeed the working of the Holy Spirit from the conception of Mary within the womb of her mother, Saint Anne, has revealed the holiness of God. This unique mother of all mothers is full of grace and therefore free to respond, "let it be done to me according to your word" to the Archangel Gabriel. The holy and blessed parents, Saint Anne and Saint Joachim, according to early church tradition, raised this holy and blessed Virgin. We who celebrate her birth rejoice and delight in the grace of the Holy Spirit in our lives. This same Holy Spirit moves in the hearts of Eastern and Western believers. Indeed, we join as one to respond to an exhortation from the Byzantine Liturgy: "Today the barren Anna claps her hands for joy, the earth radiates with light, kings sing their happiness, priests enjoy every blessing, the entire universe rejoices, for she who is queen and the Father's immaculate bride buds forth from the stem of Jesse!"

Feast of Saint Gregory the Great, monk, pope,& doctor

From: www.saintvincentarchabbey.org

1Cor 4:1-5;Ps 37:3-6,27,28,39,40;Lk 5:33-39

He will grant you your heart's requests."

The LORD grants the requests of our hearts when we take delight only in the LORD. Pope Saint Gregory the Great took delight in the LORD. Like our own great pope, John Paul II, growing in holiness is the only true greatness of human life. The LORD who knows us face to face; He communicates with us heart to heart. The intimacy of relationship between the psalmist and the LORD points beyond itself to the mystery of the incarnation and the mystical marriage of the Divine Bridegroom and the human soul. We, who trust in the LORD and do good, dwell in the land and are fed in security. We, who take delight in the LORD and do his will, dwell in his favor and are cared for in our every need. Indeed, He grants our heart's requests. When we have pure hearts that long to do his will, that want what he wants day in and day out. All we have to do is to commit ourselves to him, trust in him and he will act in us and for us. The LORD makes justice dawn for us like the light; bright as the noonday shall be our vindication. When we turn from evil and do good, then we abide forever in the bosom of the Father. For the LORD our God loves what is right and just; he forsakes not his faithful ones. Criminals are destroyed, and the posterity of the wicked is cut off. In all our distress, we take refuge in the LORD. The LORD helps us and delivers us from the wicked, because we take refuge in him. Saint Paul reminds us that the Lord will come to bring into light what is hidden in darkness and to manifest the motives of our hearts. For this day of the LORD we await with great joy and rejoicing! Now that the bridegroom has been taken away from us we find fast to feel in our flesh the loss of the Beloved who has been snatched from us and nailed upon a cross and is raised up on high in glory. Christ, our Bridegroom, is the one who makes us so new in heart and in fact that we actually begin in this life to taste that the Lord is good.

The one who judges Saint Paul is the same one who judges us. None other than the Lord Jesus is our judge. When he comes in all his glory with all the angels, the Lord Jesus will bring to light what is hidden in darkness, and He will manifest the motives of our hearts. It is our hearts that need to be converted and purified by the fire of the Living Flame of Love. As the Prophet Jeremiah complains, "more torturous than all else is the human heart who can heal it?" Our motives are often mixed, and we are often very self-centered in our motivation. However, those around us cannot enter into our hearts and sort us out. We need the Holy Spirit, who has the fiery love we need to purify us from the core and all throughout our behavior. The Spirit alone has the freedom and the generosity to tackle the torturous hearts of all who seek to be servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Indeed, we have no time to waste on judging one another; the Lord Jesus is our judge. Rather, we need to fast and offer petitions for each other. We all need to be pure of heart; we all need to be healed from our mixed motives and self centered preoccupation. The Lord Jesus can only accomplish such a process of detachment and renewal. When we try to purify our own motivation, we get caught up in the immensity and complexity of our own torturous hearts. Too many just give up, rather than surrender to the tender mercies of the Spirit who has access to our hearts and is not afraid or fooled by our complexity or limitations. Even though we may not be conscious of anything against us, we do not thereby stand acquitted; it is the Lord who judges each of us. Indeed, the Lord alone knows our hearts, and He alone can give us the praise we deserve.

The scribes and Pharisees are presented in today's gospel as the self-serving judges of the disciples of the Lord Jesus. From their so-called objective perspective, they condemn those who follow the Lord Jesus and praise those who follow the Baptist. The disciple of the Lord Jesus do not fast and offer prayers like the disciples of John the Baptist. The Lord Jesus sees through this complaint into the hearts of those who complain. Indeed, he is the only just judge; he sees to the core of these scribes and Pharisees. He knows that their motivation for complaining and judging is mixed. They are not as interested in the sanctification of the Lord's disciples as much as they are interested in discrediting the Lord Jesus who allows them to "eat and drink." The Lord Jesus challenges their condemnation and their pettiness with a revelation about the relationship between Christ and his disciples. Indeed, his defense of his disciples is clear in the statement about the presence of the Bridegroom, and even his short parables about the patch and the wineskins help to explain their behavior. Fasting and prayer are not longer offered to hold back the hand of the Almighty or to encourage the LORD to send his messiah. Indeed, the Messiah is here and something so new is happening that the very understanding of fasting and praying has changed. It's a whole new garment. It's a brand new batch of wine. Now we pray for the Father’s will to be done, because we know from His Son that it is the best thing that could ever happen, even if it means the cross, and we want to be a part of that coming Kingdom. Now we fast because we want to feel in our flesh the longing of those souls who have not met their Bridegroom, Christ the Lord. Among the disciples these traditions of devotion are strong and continue with a whole new meaning, just like the Passover is now the Supper of the Lamb.

Memorial of St. Augustine

 From: www.saintvincentarchabbey.org

"In his holy name we trust."

Without trust there is no intimacy and very little relationship. Psalm 33 celebrates the trust of the Chosen People. The people God has chosen for his own inheritance is truly a blessed nation. It is from heaven that the LORD looks down upon all mankind, but his gaze of tender mercy is upon those who fear him, upon those who hope for his kindness. They have been delivered from death and preserved in the time of famine. Israel has been rescued again and again; she has countless reasons to trust the LORD at all times. Indeed her soul waits for the LORD, who is her help and her shield. In the Holy Name of the LORD Israel places her trust and in him all hearts rejoice. Saint Paul calls his brothers and sisters in Corinth to boast in the Lord Jesus. Though they seem foolish and insignificant to the powers that be, for them the Lord Jesus has become wisdom from On High. In today's parable the Lord Jesus reveals the joy of those who trust in him and are willing to risk everything for the benefit of the Kingdom. Here we renew our trust in the Lord Jesus who becomes our Daily Bread.

Saint Paul invites his beloved brothers and sisters to consider their call. He points out a socio-economic reality that could apply to many churches even today. Few of us are wise by the standards of our world. Not many of us have a great claim on economic or political power. Probably the number of noble births is even lower today, unless one considers entertainment nobility. God chose the foolish of this world to shame the wise, and He chose the weak of the world to shame the strong. Those considered lowly and despised of this world, those who count for nothing, were chosen to reduce to nothing those who are something. The LORD has done all this to reveal that no human being can boast before God. One bold critic of Mother Teresa of Calcutta claimed that she spent her life manipulating public opinion by using the poorest of the poor to make herself look good. A critic of the critic responded with this challenge, "Just try to live the way she did for one year and see how long you could take it." The truth silenced the lie. Indeed, it is Christ Jesus who is for us true wisdom of God. He is our righteousness, sanctification, and redemption so that we might make our boast in the Lord. This is our calling to reveal the wisdom of God in a life of self-sacrifice and compassion. Indeed, this is our true dignity.

This parable has been so misunderstood. Some claim that the Lord Jesus is trying to assert his love for the rich when he states, "For to everyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away." Such an interpretation ignores the context of the Master's statement. This parable is about the joy of the Master that will enrich the lives of those who trust in him and live according to his teaching. The man who had five talents and the man with two talents trusted in the Master and used what was given to them to build up the Kingdom. The man who had only one talent was afraid and believed that the Master was demanding and harvested where he did not sow. It was his lack of trust that motivated him to bury his talent. Such fear only leads to real poverty. It is trust that leads to true wealth in the Kingdom of God. Indeed, talents are best seen as the gifts of faith that enable us to take risks and invest in life Eternal. It is our faith that makes us truly rich, even though we may be poor, weak and insignificant in the eyes of the world.