![]() Let us treasure and safeguard our most personal, private relationship with the Holy Spirit, but also pray for the grace to confess publicly how we are disciples of Jesus, committed to learning to love one another. “The witness required of each of us is much more that of a transparency rather than a witness of words - a word, even an exact one, can raise a lot of contradictions, but nothing can resist the radiance of a silence that is filled with love” (M. Privacy is at the heart of a relationship with God, but we can develop through exercise the courage to disclose the character of our personal faith to one another, not merely in words but in our behaviours and actions. It is insufficient to confess Jesus as Lord by repeating dogmatic formulas every Sunday. Mature Christians must learn to speak freely, communicating through our behaviour how Jesus is Lord for us. In his essay “A Theology of Creativity,” Cistercian author Thomas Merton wrote of the dignity and responsibility each of us has “to stand before God on our own feet, conscious and alert to the light that has been placed in us” and then be willing to be “perfectly obedient to that light” . Every Sunday as we gather to recite “our creed” we should examine our consciences as our lips declare we believe in God, maker of heaven and earth. “Whoever loses his life for my sake,” says Jesus, “will find it” (Mt 10:39).Saint Bernard of Clairvaux advised his Cistercian monks that they should ask themselves every day, “Why did I come to this monastery and why do I stay?” We should perform a similar spiritual exercise, asking ourselves what is still motivating us to confess Jesus as Lord and why we are participating in a particular church/faith community. May this path always turn disciples back to a place that is lifegiving and back to Christ. For the disciples, this deepest love is found in Jesus. For the woman of wealth from Shunem, this meant a baby son. Readers of this Sunday’s passages are encouraged to tap into deep places of desire. This effort takes place not only in one’s extreme hardships, but more so in the quotidian interactions of mundane life like remembering to pray at mealtime. Within discipleship, the “cross” involves the effort made to remove any distraction that pulls away from the desire to follow Christ. “Whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me” (Mt 10:38). LISTEN PODCAST VIEW REFLECTION VIDEO En Espaol View Calendar Get Daily Readings E-mails Memorial of Saint Irenaeus, Bishop and Martyr Lectionary: 373 Reading 1 Gn 15:1-12, 17-18 The word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: 'Fear not, Abram I am your shield I will make your reward very great. In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus reminds his disciples that love for him must come from the deepest place. This exchange of gifts between the woman and Elisha highlights those core desires that we carry. Elisha, likewise, recognized what this woman needed most, to hold a baby son within a year’s time. Indeed, her gift is great because she understood what the holy man needed most, a place to contemplate and rest in the Word of God. Basilica of San Sossio Levita e Martire, Holy Mass. “Can something be done for her?” asks Elisha (2 Kgs 4:14). From the Holy House in Loreto, recitation of the Angelus prayer and Rosary. This space prepared for Elisha is not only welcomed by the holy man, but it moves him to offer a great reward to his host. This sounds more like the setting of a rabbinic scholar than one for a mighty prophet. These items describe a place to pray and meditate on the Scriptures. Elisha, while tired from his travels and spiritual quests, seeks the meaning of his life among the items of his room, especially the table, chair and lamp. These household necessities reflect the need for rest and place to read and think. A person of such prominence nevertheless requires the humble tools common to any domestic setting: a bed, a table, a chair and a lamp. Early Christian writers even considered Elisha a “type” or prefiguring of Jesus. Elisha is a prophet of significance in the biblical tradition. “Let us arrange a little room on the roof,” she said, “and furnish it for him with a bed, table, chair, and lamp, so that when he comes to us he can stay there” (2 Kgs 4:10). What does the Spirit prompt as you pray with your desires?Īn unnamed woman of influence from the town of Shunem is moved to help this prophet in a rather domestic manner. Is your deepest desire to follow after Christ, his life and mission?
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