A second Spiritual Work of Mercy is to warn the sinner. Never a popular thing to do. No one wants to hear someone else telling them they are sinning. So how can we practice this particular work of mercy? Let's remember first of all that it is a work of mercy and must be approached with love and mercy in mind, not judgment. As Paul wrote to the Galatians (6:1), "Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently." Paul is speaking to a community of people who feel some spiritual responsibility toward each other to grow together in Christ. They are a community growing together in discipleship, working toward the common good. And they should treat each other gently. The way the woman caught in adultery was being treated by the Jewish leaders was not a good example of warning the sinner (John 8:1-6). Their intent to stone her was not a warning to her but to others who might be thinking of adultery. Jesus' instruction to her was to leave her life of sin. She had already been publicly humiliated. There was no need for him to say more. A word of warning would ordinarily be given in private, but the woman had been brought into the main public area of the temple. It would ordinarily be done one-on-one, but a group of men accosted her. It would ordinarily be done with compassion and mercy, but the leaders wanted to shame her and make an example of her. They were using her for their own ends. There was nothing gentle about it. For Reflection: How would I react if someone were to warn me about a sin? How would I want to be approached? Before we begin to warn someone else, a time of intercessory prayer for that person would be helpful, and perhaps all that is necessary. Let us pray. Jesus, if I am persisting in sin and hardened to it, I hope that you will send someone to warn me and that I will be open to that warning.
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As you may have noticed with the posts on Mary, the sister of Lazarus, and on Judas, I have been thinking about some of the characters who are mentioned in the last days of Jesus' life. Joseph of Arimethea is named as the one who asked Pilate for Jesus' body so that he could be buried quickly. In John's gospel, Nicodemus assists Joseph with the burial rites (John 19:38-42). It seems to me that Joseph and Nicodemus did this at great risk to themselves as Jews. Jesus had been killed for being a blasphemer and insurrectionist. Stepping up to claim the body closely associates them with Jesus - something none of the remaining apostles were around to do. And so, although hurried, they perform a great act of mercy. Burying the dead is known as one of the Corporal Works of Mercy. Nowadays most of us don't have the opportunity to physically bury someone. We have funeral homes to handle the preparation of the body and cemeteries to prepare the grave site. Yet from time-to-time we have the opportunity to attend funerals in order to honor the one who has died and to comfort the grieving. It is an act of mercy to do so (Matthew 5:7) and a means of fulfilling the command to love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:35-40). For Reflection: Have I ever thought myself to be too busy to attend a funeral? Have I in any way dishonored the dead? Have I made plans for my own death and funeral? As he was dying, Jesus made arrangements for his mother (John 19:26-27). Perhaps the next time I attend a funeral I will remember Joseph and Nicodemus who gave of themselves in a time of need. Let us pray. Jesus, may I be as faithful to you and to others as Joseph and Nicodemus were. If Satan was so bold as to tempt Jesus himself, should we expect to be treated any differently? Jesus was tempted in the desert; he was tempted through Peter; he was tempted in the garden and on the cross. And who knows how many other times he was tempted. In his desire to be fully human, Jesus chose to endure the temptations that we all endure. If we have chosen, during this time of preparation for celebrating Easter, to follow more closely in Jesus' footsteps by getting rid of bad habits or picking up new, better ones, we should not be surprised that Satan redoubles his efforts to tempt us to return to our old ways. If we have decided not to nag our spouse and to treat him/her more lovingly, it should not surprise us when she/he does something eminently "naggable." If we have decided to pray every morning, small crises will arise to keep us from doing so. It is all too easy to lose sight of the goal of becoming more like Jesus. The key to overcoming temptation is to fight back. We can quote Scripture as Jesus did (Luke 4). We can tell Satan to go away as Jesus did with Peter's suggestion (Matthew 16:23). We can refuse to argue as Jesus did with Pilate (John 18). We can pray as Jesus did in the garden (Matthew 26:38-44). We can refuse to give up as Jesus did when he was whipped and ridiculed (Matthew 27:26-31). For Reflection: What is my typical response to temptation? Let us pray. Father, hallowed by your name, your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation (Luke 11:2-4). As we approach the commemoration of the birth of Jesus, we turn to the title "Messiah." The Messiah was the longed-for Savior and Redeemer of the Jewish people who would set them free. Although many thought that the freedom the Messiah would bring would include freedom from their physical oppressors, what he brought instead was freedom from spiritual oppression. So some rejected Jesus as Messiah because he did not meet their expectations by getting them out from under the Romans. They weren't looking for someone who thought it more important to be set free from sin than from occupation by a foreign army. So when Andrew went to his brother Simon (Peter) and said, "We have found the Messiah", why did he say that? He said it based on the testimony of John the Baptist (that Jesus was the Lamb of God who would baptize them with the Holy Spirit) and on the time he had already spent listening to Jesus' teaching (John 1:29-42). And why did Philip say, "We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote -- Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph" (John 1:44-45)? He said it because he had listened to Jesus' teaching. Jesus' teaching was not of a revolution of overthrowing the Roman government. As we know, governments come and go. They are temporary things. Jesus' revolution was one of forgiveness, healing and justice; one of humility and service. These are things that permanently change the world. His revolution is for all times and places. For Reflection: "You say you want a revolution, well, you know, we all want to change the world" - so sang the Beatles. What type of revolution do we want? What needs to change in our world today? How can we bring it about through the Messiah's teaching? Let us pray. Jesus, you are the Messiah, the true Revolutionary. You conquered sin and death and brought everlasting life. Do you know who you are? When you introduce yourself, what do you say? "I am . . . ." Usually our name is the first thing we give. But what if we could not give our name, we had to say something else. And the next word after "I am" has to be a noun, not an adjective. You must say something about who you are (spouse, spreader of the Good News) and not what you are (blessed) or how you look. It may not be easy at first thought for us to name ourselves in this way. But Jesus gave us several examples for himself. He said, "I am the Light of the World" (John 8:12). It's a huge claim. He didn't say, "I am the Light of Jerusalem" or "I am the Light of Israel." Who is big enough, important enough, bold enough to be the Light of the World? Only Jesus. For Reflection: "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. I know where I came from and where I am going" (John 8:12, 14b). Do I know where I came from and where I am going? How do I complete the sentence, "I am . . "? Let us pray. Jesus, you are the Light of the World. You are the light that draws everyone. You are the light that banishes the darkness of evil, corruption, inhumanity and sin. You are the light set on the hill of Calvary. You are the light of our lives. You are the light of the universe. You are the light of heaven. Immediately upon his public ministry, Jesus began to perform miracles. Luke gives these accounts in his gospel to show that Jesus is the anointed one of God, the Messiah. Because people had seen him casting out demons and healing people, more and more people gathered to hear him preach. Jesus had already healed Simon's mother-in-law of a high fever, when he sits in Simon's boat to preach to the people on the shore. Following the message, he told Simon to go out into the deeper water to fish. It was not the right time of day to fish and Simon knew it. But he went out anyway because Jesus asked him. They caught so many fish that one boat couldn't handle them all. So James and John bring out their boat to help (Luke 5:1-11). This miraculous catch of fish, mid-morning, convinced Simon(Peter), James and John that Jesus was someone worth listening to. They hadn't asked Jesus to help them with fishing. Although they hadn't caught anything that early morning, and had no doubt missed out on a day's wages, they didn't complain. It seems Jesus arranged that miracle just to impress them. It worked. They began to follow Jesus. For Reflection: Jesus may move in unexpected ways. After all, what does a carpenter know about fishing? Where will I see Jesus working today? If He calls me to do something I've already tried and failed at, will I try one more time? Let us pray. Jesus, you are the master of everything above the earth, on the earth and under the earth. All creation owes its existence to you. There are some arguments against healing by Christians. The first is that healing was meant for the early years of the Church in order to give weight or proof to the Gospel but it was not meant to continue and is not necessary now. (Again, I give only the briefest summary here.) My response is that healing never completely died out in the Church and the Gospel still needs to be preached with signs and wonders. People still get sick today and seek healing. God still heals today. The second argument is that it is not always God's will to heal. There are a couple of responses to that. If we don't know whether or not it is God's will to heal someone (and, as I pointed out before, Jesus healed everyone who came to him in faith asking for healing), why not pray until we know God's will and then pray in accord with what we have discerned of God's will? That way we are praying in accord with God's will. God does not "put" any sickness on us; God does not make us sick. God is all good. Jesus came that we might have life to the full, abundant life (John 10:10). Nowhere does Jesus say, "My Father gave you this sickness so that you could learn ...." Let us pray. Father, show us your will regarding healing today. Show us what it means to have life to the full, to have abundant life. Following God is seldom easy. We can look to the record of the prophets in the Old Testament and Jesus' closest disciples in the New Testament. Only John seems to have died of old age. Following God's directives, doing what Jesus told them to do, got them killed. It is the same today in many places in the world. Sometimes those who follow Jesus do, or want to do, the wrong thing. When Peter cut off the ear of the servant of one of the men who had come to arrest Jesus, Jesus healed the man's ear. Even in a time of high stress, Jesus showed compassion and offered healing. Another time Jesus had to rebuke James and John. When they had been refused hospitality in a Samaritan village (another case of no room in the inn?), they asked Jesus, "Do you want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?" (Luke 9:54) Calling down fire from heaven seems like an extreme response to a small rejection, and certainly Jesus tells them they are out of order. But what else does that question indicate to us? That they believed they had the power to call down fire from heaven. For reflection: Jesus never called down fire from heaven, as far as we know. What made James and John think this was possible and appropriate? Is there a time when this might be appropriate? Let us pray. Lord of Justice, Lord of Mercy. You who want all people to be saved and none to be lost, help us to curb our baser instincts and listen to your guiding wisdom. Help us to know how to use the power that you give us to increase your Kingdom on earth. We last reflected on Paul's words of praise about Jesus in Colossians 1:12-20. John has a similar reflection at the beginning of his Gospel: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. (John 1:1-4) Let's intersperse the two passages: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He is the image of the invisible God. He was with God in the beginning. He is the firstborn over all creation. Through him all things were made, things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. He is the firstborn from among the dead. God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him. For reflection: What does it mean that Jesus is God made visible? Adam and Eve had spoken to God face-to-face, as had Moses. But now all could see Jesus, image of the invisible God. The fullness of God was in him. Let us pray. Invisible made visible, show yourself to me today. Let me see your face. "When Jesus had washed their feet and put his garments back on and reclined at table again, he said to them, "Do you realize what I have done for you? You call me 'teacher' and 'master,' and rightly so, for indeed I am. If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another's feet. I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do." (John 13:12-15). "Only when power is changed from the inside, and we accept Jesus and his way of life, whose whole self is there in the action of foot-washing, only then can the world be healed and the people be able to live at peace with one another." (Benedict XVI) |
AliceI started this website and blog on May 1, 2012. I am a Catholic who has been in ministry for many years. I first developed what I would call a close relationship with Jesus in the early 1970s. Ever since then I have been praying with people for healing and other needs. It is because I have seen so many of these prayers answered that I am so bold as to offer to pray for you individually through this website and phone line. Archives
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